April 4—St. Isidore of Seville, Bishop

The Church oftentimes names a person as a patron saint of a cause or group or even a nation.  For example, Mary, the Immaculate Conception is the patroness of the United States and St. Thomas Aquinas is the patron of Catholic schools.  However, there is no patron of the Internet.  Today’s saint has been proposed as the patron of the Internet because of his encyclopedia, which was used as a textbook for 900 years!

St. Isidore of Seville is considered the last of the Church Fathers.  He was the bishop of Seville, Spain and was influential in the conversion of the Visigoths in Spain in the seventh century.  He also established schools and seminaries, completed a Spanish version of the liturgy (Mozarabic), and played a major role in two councils in Spain.  His efforts inspired the education system of the Middle Ages.

We are fortunate to live in an age that values learning.  We have numerous junior colleges, colleges, and universities that educate our youth in various arts and disciplines.  We have numerous professions that contribute to the common good.  We owe their skills to men and women who have dedicated themselves to the vocation of teaching, the passing on of a lore of knowledge and the skill of processing that knowledge so that students may benefit society.  

But knowledge and skill are useless without wisdom.  “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Ps. 111:10).  It is vital that we educate our youth not just in arts and disciplines that may benefit society, but also in the ways of God so that society, in turn, may benefit individuals respectful of Truth.  St. Isidore knew about learning, but he also knew about God and the necessity of faith to guide reason.

March 23—St. Turibius de Mongrovejo, Bishop

Saint Who?  St. Turibius was one of the first saints of the Western Hemisphere.  He was archbishop of Lima, Peru from 1580-1606, home to St. Rose of Lima and St. Martin de Porres.  But before he was assigned to Lima, he first was ordained bishop after just being ordained priest.  Correct, he was drafted to be the archbishop of Lima when he was still a layman!  But the reason he was drafted was because of his ability as a lawyer and judge in Spain.  The Church needed someone beyond reproach to clean up the ecclesiastical and colonial mess of the conquistadors. 

When he arrived in Peru he walked to Lima, 600 miles away, teaching and baptizing as he went.  He traversed his diocese three times, baptizing and confirming nearly 500,000 natives.  He also challenged the governors and promoted the rights of the native peoples against their Spanish overlords.  He built roads, schoolhouses, hospitals, chapels, convents, and the first seminary in the Western Hemisphere in Lima.

St. Turibius was a pioneer in protecting native rights and ministering to their needs.  Not all of Spain was bent on the gold and glory of conquest.  He was concerned with God and how to bring God to these people.  It was not a matter of imposing a foreign god upon a defeated people; it was a matter of sharing the message of the love of the true God to those who had never heard of him.  He was their protector against the corruption and greed of the conquistadors.  Who do we protect?  To whom do we minister?  With whom do we share the message of God?  St. Turibius de Mongrovejo is not Saint Who? but rather, Saint Wow!

March 19—St. Joseph, Husband of Mary

Ite ad Joseph.  “Go to Joseph!”  But why?  We have Mary, who intercedes continually on our behalf.  We have Jesus, of course, who listens to our prayers and knows our needs before we do.  We go to Joseph because he was the husband of Mary and the foster father of Jesus.  He took care of and protected both of them.  He took Mary into his home after he had discovered that she was pregnant with Jesus, protecting her from being stoned to death for adultery.  He took her and the unborn Son of God to Bethlehem and found a place to stay, even though he was desperately poor.  He rescued them from Herod’s sword by fleeing to Egypt.  He raised Jesus as his son, taught him the trade of carpentry, and showed him what it meant to be a righteous man, for that is what he is called in the Gospel of Matthew (1:19).  He never said a word in any gospel, but he did what God called him to do.

Ite ad Joseph.  “Go to Joseph!”  Joseph is the patron of the Universal Church, which is the Bride of Christ.  As a husband and father, Joseph modeled for the young Jesus the meaning of spousal love in his celibate love of his wife, the Blessed Virgin Mary.  Joseph was the first “Abba” that Jesus knew as a child.  Joseph pointed Jesus to his true Father in heaven.  Joseph points us to our Father as well.  Those of us who are fathers and/or husbands, we need to model true love for our wives and point our families to our Father.  We need to “Go to Joseph!”

March 15—St. Louise de Marillac, Widow and Religious

Although most people don’t know it, there is a difference between a sister and a nun.  A nun belongs to a cloistered order, where she spends her time in prayer within a religious community.  A sister goes out into the community and spends her time serving the poor, the sick, and the ignorant by being a nurse, teacher, social worker, etc.  St. Louise de Marillac was the first woman to found a religious order of sisters, the Sisters of Charity.  In 17^th century France, the poor were usually aided by rich ladies of society.  St. Louise, along with St. Vincent de Paul, realized that serving the poor would be better if those who served were of the same social class as the poor.  The Sisters of Charity expanded their ministry to orphanages, the elderly, the mentally ill, prisoners, and soldiers in the field.

Jesus said to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned, shelter the homeless, and bury the dead, the Corporal Works of Mercy.  The Church has always answered this charge, but it was St. Louise who did it in a new and innovative fashion, which has led to thousands of religious orders of sisters who go out into the world.  St. Louise is the patron saint of social workers, and though the Church is not just about social work, she serves because she sees her savior in each person she serves.  Many of us are indebted to sisters who have taught us and ministered to our needs.  During Lent, let us remember to love and serve by imitating St. Louise de Marillac by our acts of kindness.

March 4—St. Casimir, Holy Man

Most saints on the Roman calendar are priests or religious or martyrs.  Today’s saint was a layman and a Polish prince as well.  The second son of the king of Poland lived in the fifteenth century.  When he was fifteen his father, Casimir IV, sent him to conquer Hungary and become king there.  Reluctantly, but dutifully, he followed his father’s request.  However, he was outnumbered and his officers suggested he withdraw.  He did and the king was so upset that he imprisoned Casimir for three months.  Casimir decided never to become involved in war again and he returned to a life of prayer and study.  He also chose a life of celibacy, even when urged to marry the emperor’s daughter.  He died at the age of 23 from lung disease.  He is the patron saint of Poland and Lithuania.

Doing God’s will is not always easy, especially if it conflicts with the will of those we love.  Casimir attempted to do his earthly father’s will, but ended up deciding to do his heavenly father’s will.  Our families are here to guide us to heaven, but when they guide us wrongly, we need to turn to God even more closely.  Our parents may do wrong, our children may do wrong, our siblings may do wrong, but God will never do wrong and will always strengthen us in the virtues of faith, hope, and love if we but focus on him first, last, and always.  Then we may turn to our children, our parents, and our siblings to guide them on the right path by our own example, our fortitude, and our prayers on their behalf.  St. Casimir can be our model to follow.

February 24—Bl. Tommaso Maria Fusco, Priest

Bl. John Paul II beatified 1,327 people, more than all the other previous popes combined.  One of these beati, or blesseds, is Bl. Tommaso Maria Fusco, a priest from Italy who died in 1891.  Bl. Tommaso “had a deep devotion to the crucified Christ which he cherished throughout his life.”  He opened a morning school for the formation of boys, organized evening prayers for young people and adults, became a missionary in southern Italy, built up men’s and women’s Catholic associations, opened a school of moral theology to train priests, founded a missionary order and a women’s religious order.  All in all, he was active in bringing about the Kingdom of God on earth to the best of his ability through the grace of God.

But he also suffered envy, humiliation, and persecution for his efforts.  During those times he would pray:  “May work and suffering for God always be your glory and in your work and suffering, may God be your consolation on this earth, and your recompense in heaven.  Patience is the safeguard and pillar of all the virtues.”

We all know of those men and women, priests, religious, and lay, who dedicate their lives to doing God’s work.  They seem to never tire in making the extra effort to help a person in need or the school or the parish.  We also know of those who envy the good that they do, who cast doubts on their sincerity.  As persons dedicated to God and as sinners subject to selfish desires, we may recall Bl. Tommaso’s words and live by his example.