July 28--Blessed Maria Teresa Kowalska, Religious and Martyr

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What happens when someone sins? An injury has been committed. How does one repair the injury? By sorrow and reparation. Sorrow is the key to forgiveness; reparation is the key to reconciliation. Today’s saint offered herself and her life in reparation to God for the sins of her family. Bl. Maria Teresa Kowalska was born in Poland in 1902. After the Russian Revolution in 1917 “her father and other relatives had embraced atheistic Communism and enthusiastically supported the new Soviet Union.” She entered the Capuchin Poor Clares in Poland in 1923 making her Solemn Perpetual Profession in 1928. She became a model nun, respected by her community. In 1941 the Germans arrested the thirty-six nuns at the convent and sent them to a concentration camp. She had tuberculosis while in the monastery and her illness worsened in captivity. One day she said, “I will not leave here alive. I offer my life for the sisters so that they may return to the monastery.” She died on July 25, 1941. Her sisters were released by the Germans two weeks later on August 7. She was beatified by Pope John Paul II in June 1999 with a group of 107 martyrs of WWII.

Reparation of sins is a holy purpose of prayer. Jesus made reparation for our sins through his death, but we can also make reparation for the sins of others through our prayers and sufferings.

The Morning Offering prayer states:

O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I offer you my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day
for all the intentions of your Sacred Heart,
in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world,
for the salvation of souls, the reparation of sins, the reunion of all Christians,
and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father this month.
Amen.

*https://www.capdox.capuchin.org.au/saints-blesseds/maria-teresa-kowalska/

January 17--St. Anthony of Egypt, Hermit

Why would anyone want to live a life separated from the rest of society, from family, friends, and colleagues?  That is what St. Anthony of Egypt chose in the third century, but not because he was anti-social or misanthropic.  He chose a solitary life as his form of discipleship.  He spent his life in prayer.

Do you believe in the power of prayer?  Do you really believe that God answers our prayers?  Really?  God answers our prayers in many ways, sometimes yes, sometimes no, sometimes later.  Sometimes he answers our prayers through others or through our experiences or difficulties.  God may require us to be persistent and perseverant in our prayer, praying that his will, not ours be done.  

Is it worth dedicating your life to?  St. Anthony did, as do many men and women who have become monks and nuns.  They have dedicated themselves to praying, in praise of God, in intercession for others, in thanksgiving for the gifts we have received.  We too are called to pray so that we may know God's will, that we may praise him, that we may intercede for others, and that we may express our love and devotion.  To live a life of prayer is to live a life in constant conversation with God.  That is what St. Anthony chose.  Not a bad choice, if you think about it.