April 21--St. Anselm of Canterbury, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Sometimes in one man, many gifts come together.  St. Anselm was such a man.  He was a renowned philosopher and theologian, the second Archbishop of Canterbury after the Norman conquest of England in the 11^th century, the father of Scholasticism, a Doctor of the Church, and last, but not least, saint.  In the 11^th century a new way of thinking developed that combined the insights of ancient philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle, with the Revelation of God as understood by theologians.  The person that is considered the father of this movement, Scholasticism, was Anselm.  He deeply loved the philosophy and theology of St. Augustine and further honed the necessary philosophical skills that made it clearer to a new audience that demanded concise and clear thinking.  His efforts influenced the entire Middle Ages and the greatest philosopher/theologian, St. Thomas Aquinas.

Clear thinking leads to greater understanding.  For him theology was “faith seeking understanding”, so that what we believed led to a better grasp of the mysteries of the faith.  Clear thinking also can lead to wisdom and fortitude, both gifts that Anselm had.  He was exiled twice under the Norman kings of England for his refusal to bow to their commands in how to administer the Church.  We can benefit from Anselm’s example to think clearly, love deeply, believe faithfully, and follow Mother Church obediently.  Thus may we too grow in our understanding of the mysteries of faith and apply the morals of God’s law to the circumstances of our times.

April 16--St. Bernadette of Lourdes, Virgin

April 16—St. Bernadette of Lourdes, Virgin

St. Bernadette received the grace of a series of visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1858 in Lourdes, France.  A spring also had sprung from the grotto where she had experienced the visions.  The water from this spring cured many sick and lame people.  But it was the proclamation that the Immaculate Conception had appeared to St. Bernadette that was of utmost importance.  In 1854 Pope Pius IX had defined the infallible dogma of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, that she had been conceived without original sin.  Although the Church had held this doctrine throughout her life, it had never been definitively declared until Bl. Pius IX.  This dogma assures for us that Mary indeed was the perfect Mother of God and had been give a special grace to be so.  She is the new Eve, the woman who brings us to Christ, her son.

St. Bernadette humbly accepted the gift that she had been given.  She bravely proclaimed the truth of her vision to both civil and Church authorities.  Her story has been commemorated in the movie, Song of Bernadette.  Our lives may not be the stuff of movies, but our humility and our steadfast adherence to the truths of faith and morals are the stuff of sainthood.  We are all called to salvation, to redemption, and to eternal beatitude with God and all the saints.  As we live our lives in hiddenness, in the daily ebb and flow of doing the right things with love and dedication, we can live like St. Bernadette.  We do not necessarily receive visions, but we have the presence of God in our lives at every moment.  We can receive the Eucharist, Jesus’ own body, blood, soul, and divinity.  We are blessed with the glory of God.

March 25--The Feast of the Annunciation

March 25—The Feast of the Annunciation

When the Feast of the Annunciation falls during Holy Week or Easter Week it is moved to another date; this year on April 8.  The Feast of the Annunciation is the great invitation to Mary to receive the gift of the Incarnation within her womb.  It is also the amazing response of a young woman to totally acquiesce to the will of God when she said, “Yes”.  The angel Gabriel greets Mary and proclaims to her the Good News of God’s salvation offered to all humanity through Incarnation of the second person of the Trinity, our Lord, Jesus Christ.  There is so much contained in this short passage (Luke 1:26-38):  The greeting to Mary who is full of grace and thus without Original Sin, the confusion that Mary felt about conceiving a child in a virginal state, followed by the calming revelation by Gabriel of God’s great plan, and the complete acceptance and decision to serve her cousin, Elizabeth.

The whole plan is similar to how we are called, proclaimed the Good News, and sent to go forth in mission.  We are called from our mothers’ wombs by the good and loving Lord that created us and knows us.  We then receive the call to faith in Baptism.  Then the Good News is proclaimed and explained to us throughout our youth and adulthood.  God never forces us to answer yes, but he does give us grace so that we may respond as Mary did.  Our positive response is then turned into a commission to spread the Good News to others and to serve others with the same love that we have been given.  Mary is the first disciple of Christ.  We are her children and are called to imitate her total sacrifice in love.

March 17--St. Patrick, Bishop

March 17—St. Patrick, Bishop

 

St. Patrick’s influence is amazing.  This saintly bishop who converted Ireland in the fifth century also influenced the Catholic Church in America and Europe.  St. Patrick was abducted by raiders and taken to Ireland as a slave.  After six years he escaped, went to the continent and was ordained priest and eventually bishop to be a missionary.  While in Ireland he preached the Gospel, endured suffering and hardship, ordained priests, and more.  There are many legends that have grown up around him, including casting snakes out of Ireland.  This probably refers to the symbolism of snakes for the devil, and thus casting them out symbolizes casting out the devil.

However, St. Patrick’s influence is felt far beyond the shores of a small island in the North Atlantic.  The Irish Catholics went out as missionaries to Scotland, England, and the European continent, bringing private confession as a new way for forgiveness of sins.  They also reestablished Catholicism in the areas that were overrun by pagans after the fall of the Roman Empire.  In America, too, we have been greatly influenced by the Irish.  When the Irish came over in the mid-19^th century, there were limited opportunities for their advancement in a Protestant country.  Their faith became a source of consolation and also of evangelization. 

The Irish Catholics of America became dominant in the clergy well into the 20^th century.  Venerable Fr. Michael J. McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus, now 1.8 million strong.  Servant of God Fr. Edward J. Flanagan founded Boys Town here in Omaha.  Without St. Patrick these men and many others may not have been around to continue to do God’s will and spread God’s word.

March 7--Sts. Perpetua and Felicity, Martyrs

March 7—Sts. Perpetua and Felicity, Martyrs

These two saints, noblewoman and slave, have one of the best recorded martyrdoms of early times.  They were killed in the third century because they wanted to become Christians!  Their last days and their deaths are recorded in The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas, which can be found on the Internet.  Perpetua was an educated Roman woman who wrote about her own martyrdom including her visions and experiences in prison.  She, along with Felicity and other catechumens (persons who were preparing for baptism), were sent to the games in honor of the emperor in North Africa.  She refused to renounce her faith in face of pleas from her father or threats of a terrible death.  Both Perpetua and Felicity were mothers of infants.  Felicity had even given birth in prison.  But they faced death bravely in the arena because they believed in the promise of Jesus that they would rise again.

Most of us are baptized soon after birth.  Perpetua and Felicity were baptized in prison by their catechist, who also suffered death before them.  However, we have catechumens who are moving toward their entry into the Catholic Church on Easter Vigil.  They have undergone months of training and education in preparation for this event.  They have made the decision that they want to become members of the Catholic community.  They will be baptized or make a profession of faith, receive the sacrament of Confirmation and then receive Holy Eucharist for the first time.  Oh what a joy for them and for us.  Please keep our catechumens in your prayers.

March 3--St. Katherine Drexel, Abbess

The Omaha Archdiocese has a connection with St. Katherine Drexel.  She founded St. Augustine Mission in Winnebago, Nebraska in 1909 at the request of Bishop O’Connor to serve the Native American people of the Omaha and Winnebago tribes.  She also founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament to serve both Native Americans and African Americans.  She also founded Xavier University in New Orleans.  By the time of her death in 1955 there were over 500 sisters teaching in 63 schools throughout the country.

St. Katherine Drexel did all this instead of living the life of a rich heiress, which she was.  She had money equivalent to $250 million today.  But she dedicated her life and her fortune to those who were the outcasts of American society.  She gave real meaning to the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

We too are called to live the works of mercy in our daily lives as we can.  It might mean donating time to the Francis/Siena House or clothing to Undie Sunday or helping the RCIA program as a sponsor or joining the Knights of Columbus and assisting in their good works.  It also might mean something as simple as giving a ride to someone or visiting a neighbor or playing cards with someone in a nursing home.  Ultimately it may mean being nice when someone is mean to us and forgiving instead of griping.  Jesus calls us to remember that we will be judged by how we serve him in others.

February 23--St. Polycarp, Bishop and Martyr

St. Polycarp was a second generation Christian, taught by St. John the Evangelist.  He led his community of Smyrna in Asia Minor to follow Jesus through differences of opinions within the Church, heresies, and persecutions.

St. Polycarp is a model for when we disagree with others within the Church.  In his day, there were two different dates of celebration of Easter.  In the East, where Polycarp lived, Easter was celebrated the day after Passover began.  In the West, it was celebrated on the Sunday of the week following the Passover.  St. Polycarp went to Rome to discuss the differences.  Although they did not agree on the issue, it did not result in schism.

But when he was approached by a heretic who claimed that God of the Old Testament was not the same as the Father of Jesus, St. Polycarp stated:  “I recognize you, yes, I recognize the son of Satan.”  There was no accommodation on differences in the faith.  Finally, when he was pressed to renounce Jesus in order to save himself from death by swearing by Caesar, St. Polycarp answered:  “If you imagine that I will swear by Caesar, you do not know who I am. Let me tell you plainly, I am a Christian.”

St. Polycarp shows us how to live with differences, with error, and with persecution.  He predates Bl. John XXIII’s famous dictum:  "Unity in necessary things; liberty in doubtful things; charity in all things."  These are words to live by.