Bl. Sebastian Montanol
Feastday: December 10
1616
Spanish Dominican missionary and possibly a martyr. He was sent to
Mexico from Spain and there worked among the Indians in Zacateca until
his murder. He was apparently killed by local Indians for castigating
some natives for treating the Eucharist with disrespect, although he
has never been officially declared a martyr.
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Feastday: December 12Patron of the Americas
Our Lady of Guadalupe December 12 (USA) When we reflect on the feast of
Our Lady of Guadalupe we learn two important lessons, one of faith and
one of understanding.
Missionaries who first came to Mexico with the conquistadors had little
success in the beginning. After nearly a generation, only a few hundred
Native Mexicans had converted to the Christian faith. Whether they
simply did not understand what the missionaries had to offer or whether
they resented these people who made them slaves, Christianity was not
popular among the native people.
Then in 1531 miracles began to happen. Jesus' own mother appeared to
humble Juan Diego. The signs -- of the roses, of the uncle miraculously
cured of a deadly illness, and especially of her beautiful image on
Juan's mantle -- convinced the people there was something to be
considered in Christianity. Within a short time, six million Native
Mexicans had themselves baptized as Christians.
The first lesson is that God has chosen Mary to lead us to Jesus. No
matter what critics may say of the devotion of Mexicans (and Mexican
descendants) to Our Lady of Guadalupe, they owe their Christianity to
her influence. If it were not for her, they would not know her son, and
so they are eternally grateful. The second lesson we take from Mary
herself. Mary appeared to Juan Diego not as a European madonna but as a
beautiful Aztec princess speaking to him in his own Aztec language. If
we want to help someone appreciate the gospel we bring, we must
appreciate the culture and the mentality in which they live their
lives. By understanding them, we can help them to understand and know
Christ. Our Lady of Guadalupe is patron of the Americas.
Monday, December 05, 2005
Monday, November 21, 2005
Martyrs And Saints Of The America's Hounoured In October And November
Bl. Francis Xavier Seelos
Feastday: October 11
Francis Xavier Seelos was born in Fussen, Germany, in 1819. Expressing his desire for the priesthood since an early age, he entered the diocesan seminary of Augsburg after completing his studies in philosophy. Upon learning of the charism and missionary activity of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, he decided to join and go to North America.
He arrived in the United States on April 20, 1843, entered the Redemptorist novitiate and completed his theological studies, being ordained a priest on December 22, 1844. He began his pastoral ministry in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he remained nine years, working closely as assistant pastor of his confrere St. John Neumann, while at the same time serving as Master of Novices and dedicating himself to mission preaching.
In 1854, he returned to Baltimore, later being transferred to Cumberland and then Annapolis, where he served in parochial ministry and in the formation of the Redemptorist seminarians. He was considered an expert confessor, a watchful and prudent spiritual director and a pastor always joyfully available and attentive to the needs of the poor and the abandoned. In 1860, he was a candidate for the office of Bishop of Pittsburgh. Having been excused from this responsibility by Pope Pius IX, from 1863 until 1866 he became a full-time itinerant missionary preacher. He preached in English and German in the states of Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin.
He was named pastor of the Church of St. Mary of the Assumption in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he died of the yellow fever epidemic caring for the sick and the poor of New Orleans on October 4, 1867, at the age of 48 years and nine months. The enduring renown for his holiness which the Servant of God enjoyed occasioned his Cause for Canonization to be introduced in 1900 with the initiation of the Processo Informativo . On January 27, Your Holiness declared him Venerable, de creeing the heroism of his virtues.
St. Rose Phillipine Duchesne
Feastday: November 18
?
St. Rose Philippine Duchesne, Virgin (Feast day - November 18) Born in Grenoble, France, in 1769, Rose joined the Society of the Sacred Heart. In 1818, when she was forty-nine years old, Rose was sent to the United States. She founded a boarding school for daughters of pioneers near St. Louis and opened the first free school west of the Missouri. At the age of seventy-one, she began a school for Indians, who soon came to call her "the woman who is always praying". Her biographers have also stressed her courage in frontier conditions, her singlemindedness in pursuing her dream of serving Native Americans, and her self-acceptance. This holy servant of God was beatified by Pope Pius XII in 1940 and canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1988.
Blessed Miguel Pro
A Martyr for Our Times
Feastday: November 23
Born on January 13, 1891 in Guadalupe, Mexico, Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez was the eldest son of Miguel Pro and Josefa Juarez.
Miguelito, as his doting family called him, was, from an early age, intensely spiritual and equally intense in hi mischievousness, frequently exasperating his family with his humor and practical jokes. As a child, he had a daring precociouness that sometimes went too far, tossing him into near-death accidents and illnesses. On regaining consciousness after one of these episodes, young Miguel opened his eyes and blurted out to his frantic parents, "I want some cocol" (a colloquial term for his favorite sweet bread). "Cocol" became his nickname, which he would later adopt as a code name during this clandestine ministry.
Miguel was particularly close to his older sister and after she entered a cloistered convent, he came to recognize his own vocation to the priesthood. Although he was popular with the senoritas and had prospects of a lucrative career managing his father's thriving business concerns, Miguel renounced everything for Christ his King and entered the Jesuit novitiate in El Llano, Michoacan in 1911.
He studied in Mexico until 1914, when a tidal wave of anti-Catholicism crashed down upon Mexico, forcing the novitiate to disband and flee to the United States, where Miguel and his brother seminarians treked through Texas and New Mexico before arriving at the Jesuit house in Los Gatos, California.
In 1915, Miguel was sent to a seminary in Spain, where he remained until 1924, when he went to Belgium for his ordination to the priesthood in 1925. Miguel suffered from a severe stomach problem and after three operations, when his health did not improve, his superiors, in 1926, allowed him to return to Mexico in spite of the grave religious persecution in that country.
The churches were closed and priests went into hiding. Miguel spent the rest of his life in a secret ministry to the sturdy Mexican Catholics. In addition to fulfilling their spiritual needs, he also carried out the works of mercy by assisting the poor in Mexico City with their temporal needs. He adopted many interesting disguises in carrying out his secret mininstry. He would come in the middle of the night dressed as a beggar to baptize infants, bless marriages and celebrate Mass. He would appear in jail dressed as a police officer to bring Holy Viaticum to condemned Catholics. When going to fashionable neighboorhoods to procure for the poor, he would show up at the doorstep dressed as a fashionable businessmam with a fresh flower on his lapel. His many exploits could rival those of the most daring spies. In all that he did, however, Fr. Pro remained obedient to his superiors and was filled with the joy of serving Christ, his King.
Falsely accused in the bombing attempt on a former Mexican president, Miguel became a wanted man. Betrayed to the police, he was sentenced to death without the benefit of any legal process.
On the day of his execution, Fr. Pro forgave his executtioners, prayed, bravely refused the blindfold and died proclaiming, "Viva Cristo Rey", "Long live Christ the King!"
Information courtesy of ProVision and Brother Gerald Mueller.
Feastday: October 11
Francis Xavier Seelos was born in Fussen, Germany, in 1819. Expressing his desire for the priesthood since an early age, he entered the diocesan seminary of Augsburg after completing his studies in philosophy. Upon learning of the charism and missionary activity of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, he decided to join and go to North America.
He arrived in the United States on April 20, 1843, entered the Redemptorist novitiate and completed his theological studies, being ordained a priest on December 22, 1844. He began his pastoral ministry in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he remained nine years, working closely as assistant pastor of his confrere St. John Neumann, while at the same time serving as Master of Novices and dedicating himself to mission preaching.
In 1854, he returned to Baltimore, later being transferred to Cumberland and then Annapolis, where he served in parochial ministry and in the formation of the Redemptorist seminarians. He was considered an expert confessor, a watchful and prudent spiritual director and a pastor always joyfully available and attentive to the needs of the poor and the abandoned. In 1860, he was a candidate for the office of Bishop of Pittsburgh. Having been excused from this responsibility by Pope Pius IX, from 1863 until 1866 he became a full-time itinerant missionary preacher. He preached in English and German in the states of Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin.
He was named pastor of the Church of St. Mary of the Assumption in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he died of the yellow fever epidemic caring for the sick and the poor of New Orleans on October 4, 1867, at the age of 48 years and nine months. The enduring renown for his holiness which the Servant of God enjoyed occasioned his Cause for Canonization to be introduced in 1900 with the initiation of the Processo Informativo . On January 27, Your Holiness declared him Venerable, de creeing the heroism of his virtues.
St. Rose Phillipine Duchesne
Feastday: November 18
?
St. Rose Philippine Duchesne, Virgin (Feast day - November 18) Born in Grenoble, France, in 1769, Rose joined the Society of the Sacred Heart. In 1818, when she was forty-nine years old, Rose was sent to the United States. She founded a boarding school for daughters of pioneers near St. Louis and opened the first free school west of the Missouri. At the age of seventy-one, she began a school for Indians, who soon came to call her "the woman who is always praying". Her biographers have also stressed her courage in frontier conditions, her singlemindedness in pursuing her dream of serving Native Americans, and her self-acceptance. This holy servant of God was beatified by Pope Pius XII in 1940 and canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1988.
Blessed Miguel Pro
A Martyr for Our Times
Feastday: November 23
Born on January 13, 1891 in Guadalupe, Mexico, Miguel Agustin Pro Juarez was the eldest son of Miguel Pro and Josefa Juarez.
Miguelito, as his doting family called him, was, from an early age, intensely spiritual and equally intense in hi mischievousness, frequently exasperating his family with his humor and practical jokes. As a child, he had a daring precociouness that sometimes went too far, tossing him into near-death accidents and illnesses. On regaining consciousness after one of these episodes, young Miguel opened his eyes and blurted out to his frantic parents, "I want some cocol" (a colloquial term for his favorite sweet bread). "Cocol" became his nickname, which he would later adopt as a code name during this clandestine ministry.
Miguel was particularly close to his older sister and after she entered a cloistered convent, he came to recognize his own vocation to the priesthood. Although he was popular with the senoritas and had prospects of a lucrative career managing his father's thriving business concerns, Miguel renounced everything for Christ his King and entered the Jesuit novitiate in El Llano, Michoacan in 1911.
He studied in Mexico until 1914, when a tidal wave of anti-Catholicism crashed down upon Mexico, forcing the novitiate to disband and flee to the United States, where Miguel and his brother seminarians treked through Texas and New Mexico before arriving at the Jesuit house in Los Gatos, California.
In 1915, Miguel was sent to a seminary in Spain, where he remained until 1924, when he went to Belgium for his ordination to the priesthood in 1925. Miguel suffered from a severe stomach problem and after three operations, when his health did not improve, his superiors, in 1926, allowed him to return to Mexico in spite of the grave religious persecution in that country.
The churches were closed and priests went into hiding. Miguel spent the rest of his life in a secret ministry to the sturdy Mexican Catholics. In addition to fulfilling their spiritual needs, he also carried out the works of mercy by assisting the poor in Mexico City with their temporal needs. He adopted many interesting disguises in carrying out his secret mininstry. He would come in the middle of the night dressed as a beggar to baptize infants, bless marriages and celebrate Mass. He would appear in jail dressed as a police officer to bring Holy Viaticum to condemned Catholics. When going to fashionable neighboorhoods to procure for the poor, he would show up at the doorstep dressed as a fashionable businessmam with a fresh flower on his lapel. His many exploits could rival those of the most daring spies. In all that he did, however, Fr. Pro remained obedient to his superiors and was filled with the joy of serving Christ, his King.
Falsely accused in the bombing attempt on a former Mexican president, Miguel became a wanted man. Betrayed to the police, he was sentenced to death without the benefit of any legal process.
On the day of his execution, Fr. Pro forgave his executtioners, prayed, bravely refused the blindfold and died proclaiming, "Viva Cristo Rey", "Long live Christ the King!"
Information courtesy of ProVision and Brother Gerald Mueller.
Monday, July 11, 2005
Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha Feastday: July 14
Patron of the environment and ecology
1680
Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, Virgin
Kateri was born near the town of Auriesville, New York, in the year 1656, the daughter of a Mohawk warrior. She was four years old when her mother died of smallpox. The disease also attacked Kateri and transfigured her face.
She was adopted by her two aunts and an uncle. Kateri became converted as a teenager. She was baptized at the age of twenty and incurred the great hostility of her tribe. Although she had to suffer greatly for her Faith, she remained firm in it. Kateri went to the new Christian colony of Indians in Canada. Here she lived a life dedicated to prayer, penitential practices, and care for the sick and aged.
Every morning, even in bitterest winter, she stood before the chapel door until it opened at four and remained there until after the last Mass. She was devoted to the Eucharist and to Jesus Crucified. She died on April 7, 1680 at the age of twenty-four. She is known as the "Lily of the Mohawks". Devotion to Kateri is responsible for establishing Native American ministries in Catholic Churches all over the United States and Canada. Kateri was declared venerable by the Catholic Church in 1943 and she was Beatified in 1980.
Work is currently underway to have her Canonized by the Church. Hundreds of thousands have visited shrines to Kateri erected at both St. Francis Xavier and Caughnawaga and at her birth place at Auriesville, New York. Pilgrimages at these sites continue today.
Bl. Kateri Teckakwitha is the first Native American to be declared a Blessed. Her feastday is July 14. She is the patroness of the environment and ecology as is St. Francis of Assisi.
1680
Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, Virgin
Kateri was born near the town of Auriesville, New York, in the year 1656, the daughter of a Mohawk warrior. She was four years old when her mother died of smallpox. The disease also attacked Kateri and transfigured her face.
She was adopted by her two aunts and an uncle. Kateri became converted as a teenager. She was baptized at the age of twenty and incurred the great hostility of her tribe. Although she had to suffer greatly for her Faith, she remained firm in it. Kateri went to the new Christian colony of Indians in Canada. Here she lived a life dedicated to prayer, penitential practices, and care for the sick and aged.
Every morning, even in bitterest winter, she stood before the chapel door until it opened at four and remained there until after the last Mass. She was devoted to the Eucharist and to Jesus Crucified. She died on April 7, 1680 at the age of twenty-four. She is known as the "Lily of the Mohawks". Devotion to Kateri is responsible for establishing Native American ministries in Catholic Churches all over the United States and Canada. Kateri was declared venerable by the Catholic Church in 1943 and she was Beatified in 1980.
Work is currently underway to have her Canonized by the Church. Hundreds of thousands have visited shrines to Kateri erected at both St. Francis Xavier and Caughnawaga and at her birth place at Auriesville, New York. Pilgrimages at these sites continue today.
Bl. Kateri Teckakwitha is the first Native American to be declared a Blessed. Her feastday is July 14. She is the patroness of the environment and ecology as is St. Francis of Assisi.
Sunday, May 29, 2005
Any American Saints?
Readers of "Saints Alive" will have noticed that the saints and blesseds treated are mostly from every country except the United States. How come? The basic reason why we don't have more canonized saints is that not enough of us Americans have tried to become saints.
Think about that.
On the other hand, don't think that we haven't had some people in this country capable of being declared "blessed" or "saints." They usually aren't people who would make the headlines. You've got to dig them out precisely because they have avoided the spotlight. But once they are brought to our attention, we can see that the Holy Spirit has not been bypassing American Catholics.
Once a deceased saintly person is known and becomes an object of devotion among the faithful, there is a series of official proceedings that have to be conducted in this country and in Rome before the pope can decide whether a beatification or canonization is justified. Sometimes that process takes years and years. Sometimes its results are negative.
Actually, we Americans are doing pretty well. In 1930 we got our first canonized martyrs, the "North American Jesuit Martyrs." Three of these French missionaries died in Canada; the other three in New York State. The three "New Yorkers" were SS. Isaac Jogues, Rene Goupil and Jean Lalande. Their shrine is at Auriesville, N.Y.
In 1946, we were given our first sainted non-martyr. She was St. Frances Cabrini (1850-1917). Foundress of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, this Italian-born nun became noted for her tireless work among the American immigrants. She was naturalized an American citizen in 1909 and died in Chicago. Her shrine is in New York City.
St. Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton was the next to be canonized. Mother Seton (1774-1821) was the daughter of an aristocratic Episcopalian/New York family. She became a convert to Catholicism in 1805 and in 1809 was designated foundress of the American Sisters of Charity. In that role she was the inaugurator of the American Catholic elementary school system.
St. Elizabeth Ann was canonized during the Holy Year of 1975. Two years later we received our first bishop-saint. St. John Nepomucene Neumann (1811-1860) was a native of Bohemia. He first served as a pioneer diocesan priest in the Rochester and Buffalo area. Subsequently, he joined the Redemptorist Fathers and rose into quiet distinction in that order. Then, in 1852, he became fourth bishop of Philadelphia. Unobtrusive and gentle, he was a prayerful and zealous missionary.
We have, therefore, six American saints, of varied backgrounds. We also have two "blesseds".
One is Rose Philippine Duchesne (1769-1852), beatified in 1940. She was French-born foundress of the Religious of the Sacred Heart in this country.
The other is Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680), an Iroquois virgin born in New York State, converted by the early Jesuit missionaries, beatified in 1980. One stage below the rank of "blessed" is "venerable". That title is accorded by the popes to one who has been accepted by the Holy See as of proven heroic virtue. American Catholics can lay claim to two "venerables".
Damien DeVeuster (1840-1889), the "leper priest" of the Hawaiian Islands, was declared Venerable in 1977. The other is the founder of the California Spanish missions, the Franciscan Junipero Serra (1713-1784). Pope John Paul II proclaimed Serra as "venerable" on May 9, 1985. --Father Robert F. McNamara
Update: 2005 The causes of some of the above have moved forward, and more saintly Americans are being presented for sainthood. To name a few: St. Rose Philippine Duchesne was canonized in 1988; St. Katharine Drexel was canonized in 2000. Blessed Junipero Serra was beatified in 1988. Blessed Damien DeVeuster (1840-1889) was beatified in 1995, and Francis Xavier Seelos was declared Blessed in 2000.
Father Solanus Casey, OFM was declared Venerable in 1995, and Haitian slave Pierre Toussaint (1766-1807) was declared Venerable in 1996. Msgr. Nelson H. Baker, V.G. (1841-1936) of Buffalo, NY, known as "the Padre of the Poor," was named "Servant of God" in 1987.
Think about that.
On the other hand, don't think that we haven't had some people in this country capable of being declared "blessed" or "saints." They usually aren't people who would make the headlines. You've got to dig them out precisely because they have avoided the spotlight. But once they are brought to our attention, we can see that the Holy Spirit has not been bypassing American Catholics.
Once a deceased saintly person is known and becomes an object of devotion among the faithful, there is a series of official proceedings that have to be conducted in this country and in Rome before the pope can decide whether a beatification or canonization is justified. Sometimes that process takes years and years. Sometimes its results are negative.
Actually, we Americans are doing pretty well. In 1930 we got our first canonized martyrs, the "North American Jesuit Martyrs." Three of these French missionaries died in Canada; the other three in New York State. The three "New Yorkers" were SS. Isaac Jogues, Rene Goupil and Jean Lalande. Their shrine is at Auriesville, N.Y.
In 1946, we were given our first sainted non-martyr. She was St. Frances Cabrini (1850-1917). Foundress of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, this Italian-born nun became noted for her tireless work among the American immigrants. She was naturalized an American citizen in 1909 and died in Chicago. Her shrine is in New York City.
St. Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton was the next to be canonized. Mother Seton (1774-1821) was the daughter of an aristocratic Episcopalian/New York family. She became a convert to Catholicism in 1805 and in 1809 was designated foundress of the American Sisters of Charity. In that role she was the inaugurator of the American Catholic elementary school system.
St. Elizabeth Ann was canonized during the Holy Year of 1975. Two years later we received our first bishop-saint. St. John Nepomucene Neumann (1811-1860) was a native of Bohemia. He first served as a pioneer diocesan priest in the Rochester and Buffalo area. Subsequently, he joined the Redemptorist Fathers and rose into quiet distinction in that order. Then, in 1852, he became fourth bishop of Philadelphia. Unobtrusive and gentle, he was a prayerful and zealous missionary.
We have, therefore, six American saints, of varied backgrounds. We also have two "blesseds".
One is Rose Philippine Duchesne (1769-1852), beatified in 1940. She was French-born foundress of the Religious of the Sacred Heart in this country.
The other is Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680), an Iroquois virgin born in New York State, converted by the early Jesuit missionaries, beatified in 1980. One stage below the rank of "blessed" is "venerable". That title is accorded by the popes to one who has been accepted by the Holy See as of proven heroic virtue. American Catholics can lay claim to two "venerables".
Damien DeVeuster (1840-1889), the "leper priest" of the Hawaiian Islands, was declared Venerable in 1977. The other is the founder of the California Spanish missions, the Franciscan Junipero Serra (1713-1784). Pope John Paul II proclaimed Serra as "venerable" on May 9, 1985. --Father Robert F. McNamara
Update: 2005 The causes of some of the above have moved forward, and more saintly Americans are being presented for sainthood. To name a few: St. Rose Philippine Duchesne was canonized in 1988; St. Katharine Drexel was canonized in 2000. Blessed Junipero Serra was beatified in 1988. Blessed Damien DeVeuster (1840-1889) was beatified in 1995, and Francis Xavier Seelos was declared Blessed in 2000.
Father Solanus Casey, OFM was declared Venerable in 1995, and Haitian slave Pierre Toussaint (1766-1807) was declared Venerable in 1996. Msgr. Nelson H. Baker, V.G. (1841-1936) of Buffalo, NY, known as "the Padre of the Poor," was named "Servant of God" in 1987.
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