Why even raise such a point? I think it was the skeptical father of Jules Lacassagne, who was cured at Lourdes, whom Franz Werfel, in his Song of Bernadette, has saying, “If miracles can happen, let them.” Yes, “let them!” … Continue reading
Category: Lives of the Saints
A Trifle, But It Was a Grace That Set Little Thérèse of Liseux On Path to Sainthood
Aleteia, Philip Kosloski: Therese Martin was a stubborn and childish little girl. Her mother Zelie was terribly worried about her and her future. She wrote in a letter, “As for [Therese], one cannot tell how she will turn out, she … Continue reading
Padre Pio and the Souls in Purgatory
Aleteia, Philip Kosloski: Padre Pio is known for his many mystical experiences during prayer, often piercing the heavenly veil while on earth. One such experience involved an unexpected encounter with a soul from purgatory. More here.
40 English Martyrs, Some You May Not Know
Aleteia, Philip Kosloski: After King Henry VIII proclaimed himself supreme head of the Church in England and Wales, a violent wave of anti-Catholic persecution began — and lasted over a century. It started with the executions of Sts. Thomas More and … Continue reading
The Agony of Padre Pio
Infallibly Catholic (from April 19, 2012): This is a photograph of the incorruptible body of Padre Pio exhumed on March 2, 2008, 40 years after his death on September 23, 1968. His remains was shown to the public in the Shrine … Continue reading
October 21: Blessed Emperor Karl Honored at Pontifical High Mass in DC on His Feast Day
The Remnant, Olivia Rao: The annual pontifical mass in honor of the Emperor Blessed Karl of Austria took place yesterday (October 21, 2017) at Mary Mother of God Church in Washington, D.C. The event, organized by the United States branch of … Continue reading
Twice Excommunicated by Popes, Blessed Thaddeus McCarthy, Patron for Perseverance
Aleteia, Meg Hunter-Kilmer: Blessed Thaddeus McCarthy had no way of knowing that he would be such an enormous failure. Born to a noble Irish family in 1455, McCarthy studied in Paris, served in a tribunal in Rome, and was made … Continue reading
Never Give Up: Padre Pio and the Conversion of Bernie
Aleteia, Judy Landrieu Klein: St. Pius of Pietrelcina is still fondly known as “Padre Pio” and I gratefully remember the day I was “introduced” to him in the mid-1990s. It happened when my dry cleaner, Curt, dropped off a relic … Continue reading
The POWER of Christ’s Baptism, Saint Porphyrius
Today is the feast day of Saint Porphyrius. He was an actor or “comedian” in Rome when Emperor Julian the Apostate ruled (361-363). Julian had reinstituted persecution against the Christians. The amazing fact about Porphyrius is that he was converted while … Continue reading
September 9, Feast of St. Peter Claver, Slave of the Slaves
Pope Francis will visit his tomb in Colombia on the 10th. CNA has a summary of the saint’s life here. I wrote a short biography of Saint Peter Claver here. CNA: During his trip to Colombia, Pope Francis will visit … Continue reading
St. Katherine Drexel: A Life Devoted to the Salvation and Education of Negroes and Indians
Aleteia, Philip Kosloski: Katharine Drexel was a pioneer in many ways. After seeing the plight of the Native Americans, she founded a religious order that she hoped could help relieve the suffering of the poor and vulnerable minorities of the country. … Continue reading
St. Peter Paschal Martyr: 13th Century Apostle to Moslems in Spain
Aleteia, Larry Peterson: His Muslim captors sensed and actually revered the sanctity of their prisoner. They told him if he would never say anything against Mohammad they would give him his freedom. He said he could never make such a … Continue reading
Unheralded Martyrs of Pre-Colonial America, About 1000 of Them
National Catholic Register, Peter Jesserer Smith: A small group of Catholic faithful in Florida never imagined that a simple inquiry into a mysterious plot of land in Tallahassee would reinvigorate a dream shared over three centuries by the king of Spain, … Continue reading
The Classic ‘The Golden Legend’ Lives of Saints Making a Comeback Today
National Catholic Register, Kevin di Camillo: I have written elsewhere of the second-bestselling book of all time, Thomas à Kempis’s Imitation of Christ. (Second, of course, only to the Bible.). But what was the most influential book among medieval and Renaissance Catholics? Here I … Continue reading
July 9, Feast Day of Martyred Opium Addict St. Mark Ji Tianxiang
Aleteia, Meg Hunter Kilmer: St. Mark Ji Tianxiang was an opium addict. Not had been an opium addict. He was an opium addict at the time of his death. Story is here.