Catholic Fire

The saint of the day for September 1 is St. Giles (650-710), abbot, hermit, and patron of the poor and disabled. One of the Fourteen Holy Helpers , Saint Giles is invoked for protection in times of plague and epidemic. Giles was born to a wealthy Greek family during the 6th century. When his parents died, he gave away all of his wealth to the poor and the sick and attracted many followers who wished to emulate his piety. Giles moved to France, where he lived alone in a cave near Nimes, and spent his days in prayer, meditation, and conversation with the Lord. The cave he made his home in was guarded by a thick thorn bush. In this solitude, he lived on wild herbs and roots, and water. A hind (deer) came daily to be milked by him, thus providing him with additional sustenance. The fame of his miracles became so great that his reputation spread throughout France. He was highly esteemed by the French king, but he could not be prevailed upon to forsake his solitude. He admitted seve...

The Holy Father's prayer intentions for the month of September are: Universal Intention -   That opportunities for education and employment may increase for all young people. Evangelization Intention - That catechists may give witness by living in a way consistent with the faith they proclaim.

The saint of the day for August 31 is St. Raymond Nonnatus. He is the patron of: children, expectant mothers, infertile couples, midwives, newborn babies, and obstetricians. Raymond was born at Portella, Catalonia, Spain in 1204, the son of wealthy parents. He was delivered by cesarean section when his mother died in childbirth. Hence his name non natus (not born). In his childhood, he seemed to find pleasure only in his devotions and serious duties. His father, sensing that Raymond was drawn to religious life, ordered him to manage one of the family farms. Raymond readily obeyed but spent his time with the shepherds and workers, studying and praying until his father abandoned the idea of making his son a worldly success. Raymond later joined the Mercederians, which was founded by St. Peter Nolasco, who devoted to ransoming Christians captured by the Moors. He succeeded Peter as chief ransomer and went to Algeria to ransom slaves. He remained as hostage for several slaves when ...

1. This has been a super-busy week as I continue to blog daily and to work on my second book. Here is also what I have been doing. 2. Enjoying nature and nature walks. Last week it was in the upper 70's, so we took a walk on my favorite trail.  3. Making friends with the wildlife on the trail: 4. Enjoying the beauty of God's work in my own yard: 5. Reading about some of my favorite saints: Read my brief review at Goodreads . And, while you are there, be sure to friend and follow me. 6. Happy Feast of St. Augustine! His mother, St. Monica is a wonderful model of evangelization , while St. Augustine is an illustrious theologian, bishop, and Doctor of the Church. 7. Mark your calendars! The Fast4Francis novena for the pope's visit to the USA starts September 18th.  Have a wonderful weekend and a great week! :) Jean For more Quick Takes, visit This Ain't the Lyceum.     Photos copyright Jean M. Heiman...

By Jean M. Heimann August 28th is the feast of St. Augustine, a Western Father of the Church whose conversion to Christianity is well-known as one of the most important events in the history of the Church. He was an illustrious theologian, a bishop, and a great Doctor of the Church. St. Augustine is the patron of theologians, brewers, printers, and sore eyes. Augustine was born in Tagaste, Africa in 354 to Patricius, a pagan Roman official, and to Monica, a devout Christian. Monica raised Augustine in the Christian faith, but when he went to college to study law in Carthage, he turned away from his Christian beliefs and led a life of immorality and hedonism. At age 15, he took a took a mistress who bore him a son, Adeodatus, which means “the gift of God,” and at age 18, he and his friend, Honoratus became members of the Manichaean heretical sect, which accepted the dual principle of good and evil. The late Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen explained his attraction to the heresy: ...

August 27 is the feast of St. Monica , patron saint of mothers and married women. She is a saint I admire so much for her tenacity, patience, and perseverance in prayer for the conversion of her son, St. Augustine. A persistent prayer warrior, Monica never gave up on her son, Augustine, a great sinner, who later became so strongly drawn to the faith that he was eventually canonized, as one of the Church's greatest teachers and philosophers, and was designated a Doctor of the Church. St. Monica is a wonderful model for us to follow today. How many of us have family members who have left the Church? I would guess that most of us have at least one or more relatives who are no longer practicing their faith. A Pew Research Study reports that 10% of all Americans are ex-Catholics. How can we encourage these fallen-away Catholics to return to the faith of their childhood? The most effective ways to positively influence our family members to return to their faith are to pray for th...

August 26 is the feast day of St. Teresa of Jesus Jornet Ibars (also known as Saint Teresa de Gesu, Jornet y Ibars), the Foundress of the Little Sisters of the Abandoned Poor. She is the patron saint of senior citizens and retired people. Born in 1843 at Catalonia, Spain, she was raised on a farm and later became a teacher at Lérida. She had been preparing to take her final vows as a Poor Clare nun, when the government suppressed all convents and she was sent home. She struggled to understand why God would permit this to happen and for several years asked Him what she was to do with her life. Then, she met a priest/spiritual director who provided the answer. Along with Father Saturnino Lopez Novoa, she opened a shelter for the poor and the elderly. At the age 29, in Barbastro, Spain, Teresa founded the community known today as the Little Sisters of the Abandoned Poor. By the time of her death, at age 54, she had established more than 100 shelters in Spain and 58 congregation hous...

Today, August 25, is the optional memorial of St. Louis IX (1215-1270). Louis IX, King of France, son of Louis VIII and Blanche of Castile, was born at Poissy, April 25, 1215. Louis was twelve years old when his father's death made him king.At that time, his mother Queen Blanche of Castile, was declared regent and remained an important influence throughout his life. Louis had tutors who made him a master of Latin, taught him to speak easily in public and write with dignity and grace. But Blanche's primary concern was to implant in him a deep regard and awe for everything related to religion. She used often to say to him as he was growing up, "I love you my dear son, as much as a mother can love her child; but I would rather see you dead at my feet than that you should commit a mortal sin." At nineteen, he married Marguerite of Provence and the couple had eleven children. Louis was a model father and his children received careful instruction from him in the C...

A Student's Prayer (by St. Thomas Aquinas) Come, Holy Spirit, Divine Creator, true source of light and fountain of wisdom! Pour forth your brilliance upon my dense intellect, dissipate the darkness which covers me, that of sin and of ignorance. Grant me a penetrating mind to understand, a retentive memory, method and ease in learning, the lucidity to comprehend, and abundant grace in expressing myself. Guide the beginning of my work, direct its progress, and bring it to successful completion. This I ask through Jesus Christ, true God and true man, living and reigning with You and the Father, forever and ever. Amen. Prayer to Our Lady (by St. Thomas Aquinas) O Mary, Seat of Wisdom, so many persons of common intellect have made through thy intercession admirable progress in their studies. I hereby choose thee as guardian and patron of my studies. I humbly ask thee to obtain for me the grace of the Holy Spirit, so that from now on I could understand more quickly, retain...

Pope Francis is coming to the USA in September and Live the Fast will lead a prayer and fasting novena in preparation for his upcoming visit.   The Fast4Francis novena will take place September 18-26, the nine days leading up to the pope’s arrival in Philadelphia. Fast4Francis is a wonderful opportunity for participants to embrace the Pope’s visit as an invitation to a deeper faith life and to pray for his safe travel leading up to and throughout his visit to the USA. Anyone from any faith can take part in the nine day fast. There are various tracks of fasting that participants can take part in. All tracks of fasting involve giving up certain foods, praying the prayers of the novena and taking part in a sacrament (like Holy Mass or Reconciliation). For example, Track 1 involves giving up coffee, Track 2, fasting from snacks and dessert, Track 3 involves skipping one meal, Tracks 4 and 5 bread and water fasts. Since prayer, fasting and almsgiving are inseparable, participants...

Today, August 24, is the feast of St. Bartholomew, one of the twelve apostles who is mentioned only a few times in the Synoptic Gospels. While Matthew, Mark, and Luke all include Bartholomew as an apostle, John's gospel does not mention him, but refers to a Nathaniel, whom ancient writers and Catholic tradition have identified as Bartholomew. The name (Bartholomaios) means "son of Talmai" which was an ancient Hebrew name. He carried the Gospel through the most barbarous countries of the East (India and greater Armenia), baptizing neophytes and casting out demons. Saint Pantænus testified that Bartholomew brought a copy of the Gospel of Saint Matthew to this vast region in the third century. Saint John Chrysostom said that Bartholomew also preached in Asia Minor and, with Saint Philip, suffered there for the faith. Saint Bartholomew’s last mission was in Armenia, where tradition has it that he was flayed alive and crucified for having won converts to the faith. Bar...

On August 22, we celebrate a beautiful Marian Feast -- the Queenship of Mary. This special Liturgical Feast was proclaimed by Pope Pius XII on October 11, 1954 through his Encyclical Letter Ad Caeli Reginam. The Catholic Church made this proclamation based upon the fact that whether in time of peace or in time of war, the faithful have incessantly offered prayers of petition and hymns of praise and veneration to the Queen of Heaven. Following the tremendous destruction that occurred during World War II and considering the reality that the threat of a similar catastrophe filled the faithful with a great anguish, the Church turned its eyes towards Mary, the Heavenly Queen, in the hope of her protection. Mary has never failed those who have sought her intercession in prayer, placing their total trust in her. Mary’s queenship has its roots in Scripture. At the Annunciation, Gabriel announced that Mary’s Son would receive the throne of David and rule forever. (Luke 1:32 -33) At the ...

August 21st is the memorial of Pope St. Pius X (1835-1914), patron of communicants. Giuseppe Sarto was born June 2, 1835, the second of ten children born to a poor family in the village of Riese, Province of Treviso, near Venice. His mother, Margherita Sanson, was a seamstress. His father, Giovanni Sarto, who was a cobbler by trade, as well as the caretaker of the city hall and the town's postmaster, passed away when Giuseppe was 16. Giuseppe entered the seminary at the age of 15 and was ordained at the age of 23. For nine years, he served as chaplain at Tombolo, having to assume most of the functions of parish priest, as the pastor was old and in poor health. He sought to prefect his knowledge of theology by studying Saint Thomas and canon law. He established a night school for adults, and devoted himself to pastoral ministry for 17 years. He became the bishop of Mantua, cardinal patriarch of Venice, and Pope in 1903. As Pope, he took as the motto of his reign "to ren...

Historically August 21 is the feast of Our Lady of Knock, where Our Lady is said to have appeared in Ireland with St. Joseph and St. John the Evangelist at the church's south gable on a wet and windswept evening in August and was witnessed by 15 people. On August 21, 1879, Margaret Beirne, a resident of Cnoc Mhuire, was sent by her brother to lock up the church for the evening. When she was ready to leave, she noticed a strange brightness hovering over the church. Margaret had other things on her mind, and didn't tell anyone what she saw. Around the same time, another member of the Beirne family, Mary, was leaving from a visit to the church's housekeeper, and stopped with the housekeeper at the gables, where they could see the church. Mary replied: "Oh look at the statues! Why didn't you tell me the priest got new statues for the chapel?" The housekeeper responded that she knew nothing of the priest getting new statues. So, they both went for a close...

August 18 is the optional memorial of St. John Eudes, a French priest who founded of the Society of Jesus and Mary (the Eudists) and the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity.  Pope Leo XIII proclaimed him to be the “father, doctor and apostle of the liturgical cult of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary.” John Eudes was born at Ri, Normandy, France, on November 14, 1601, the son of a farmer.  Prior to John's birth, his parents who had been praying for a child and when he was born, they offered him to God through Mary. He attended the Jesuit college at Caen, joined the religious order of the Oratorians, and was ordained a priest at the age of 24. John worked as a volunteer, caring for the victims of the plagues that struck Normandy in 1625 and 1631. In order to avoid infecting his fellow religious, he lived in a huge cask in the middle of a field during the plague. At age 32, John became a parish missionary, building a reputation as an extraordinary preacher and confes...

On August 18, we commemorate Saint Helena of Constantinople (246-330), mother of Constantine the Great, and finder of the True Cross of Jesus Christ. St. Helena was the daughter of an innkeeper in Bithynia, Asia Minor. She was married to an ambitious Roman general and they had one son, Constantine.  When her husband was named Caesar, he promptly divorced Helena to marry another woman for political gain. Following the death of his father, Constantine became emperor of Rome, and one of his first acts as ruler was to declare his mother empress. Constantine had converted to Christianity, and with his encouragement, Helena also became a Christian.  As empress, Helena spent her days in acts of charity, and built magnificent churches on the holy sites of the faith, frequently tearing down pagan temples that had been built on those sites. She worked tirelessly for the poor, released prisoners, and humbly mingled with ordinary worshipers in modest attire. Throughout her life, s...

Clare (1268-1308) was an Augustinian nun noted for her devotion to the Passion of Christ. For that reason, she is sometimes called Clare of the Cross. In her community of sisters, she was a model of religious life according to the ideals of Augustine. As superior of her convent, she constantly urged her sisters to practice self-denial and to seek holiness. She was given the gift of knowledge, which she used to defend the Christian faith. Clare was born in Montefalco, Italy, around 1268. While still young, she went to live with her sister Joan, who had established a community of cloistered nuns. Together they would spend long hours in prayer. As a young woman she became a member of that community, professing religious vows under the Rule of Saint Augustine. Soon after, she experienced a great trial. Her heart was filled daily with spiritual turmoil. She lost any sense of pleasure in prayer. Temptations assaulted her. She wondered if God had abandoned her. All this continued fo...

Here I am at the Casting Nets booth with Chris Stewart. 1. This past weekend I attended the Midwest Catholic Family Conference in Wichita and look who I met up with there -- Chris Stewart and Tony Brandt, whose new book, Casting Nets: Grow Your Faith by Sharing Your Faith was just released! Then, I met up with Tony Brandt, who is proudly displaying the new Casting Nets book. 2. You'll never guess who I met up wth next.  One of my favorite priests whose videos I love posting here at Catholic Fire...  Fr. James Kubicki 3. The best part of attending the conference is hearing the speaker's panel answer questions asked by the audience. And here are a few faces from that group... From Left to Right: Dr. Tim Gray, Fr. James Kubicki, Tim Staples, and Luke Maxwell 4.  I also had the opportunity to listen to Dr. Pia Solenni's talk on St. John Paul II’s Letter to Families, which was very informative and interesting. 5. REM...

The importance of leading a balanced life. This is what Pope Francis talked about as he started off a new series of catechesis,  in his weekly general audience. He explained that dedicating time to celebration, work and prayer are all needed to appreciate a healthy family life. POPE FRANCIS "It's a masterpiece of simplicity. It's beautiful because it's not artificial or fake. Rather it has the potential to incorporate all the aspects of true life.” Balancing these three elements will be one of the central themes of the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, which the Pope will attend at the end of September. The Pope emphasized that despite a societal obsession with economic profit,  celebration and prayer are needed to reflect on one's life and to reflect on God. POPE FRANCIS "We are made in the image and likeness of God, who is not a slave to work, but the Lord of work!  God asks us to break away from the obsession of economic profit, whic...

August 12 is the optional memorial of St. Jane Frances de Chantal, the foundress of the Order of the Visitation of Mary. Biography Jane Frances Fremiot was born on January 23, 1572, into a prominent and prosperous family of Dijon, in France. Her father was the president of the parliament and a wealthy landowner; her mother, who died in childbirth when Jane was about eighteen months old, was a descendant of St. Bernard of Clairvaux. By the time she was twenty, Jane was a beautiful, lively, charming young woman, not only rich and clever, but also possessing high ethical standards of service and a capacity for hard work. In 1592, she was wed to Baron Christophe Rabutin-Chantal, a member of the aristocracy and a soldier in the king’s service, who did not hesitate to leave the care of his neglected estate to Jane. As result of her diligent efforts, the family lived comfortably. In spite of the fact that her first two children died in infancy, Jane was supremely happy in her role...

August 11 is the memorial of St. Clare of Assisi, the first woman to follow the life of radical poverty practiced by St. Francis of Assisi and co-founder of the Poor Clares. The Contemplative Life The Lady Clare was born into a noble family in Assisi in 1193 and was admired for her great beauty. When she heard St. Francis of Assisi preach his Lenten homilies at the Church of San Giorgo, she was captivated by his words and became deeply determined to live the gospel in a radical way. On the evening of Palm Sunday, at the age of 18, she secretly left her paternal home with her cousin Pacifica, never to return. In the dead of night lit only by torches, Clare met Francis and his friars at the ‘Portiuncola’. There, in the little chapel of ‘Mary of the Angels’, Francis cut her long blond hair and Clare laid aside her fine clothes, clothing herself in a simple dress of sackcloth and a thick veil. She vowed from that moment on to give herself totally to God, her eternal spouse. Clare...

St. Lawrence Crowned by Baby Jesus -  Claude de Jongh Today is the feast of St. Lawrence, deacon and martyr.Lawrence was one of the seven deacons of the Church of Rome, who along with Pope Sixtus II and other deacons, was executed in 258 under the Emperor Valerian. St. Lawrence Distributing the Treasures of the Church - Bernardo Strozzi  St. Lawrence was in charge of the poor and had a great love for the poor and needy. The Prefect of Rome, a greedy pagan, thought the Church had a great fortune hidden away. So he ordered Lawrence to bring the Church's treasure to him. The saint said he would, in three days. Then he went through the city and gathered together all the poor and sick people supported by the Church. When he showed them to the Prefect, he said: "This is the Church's treasure!" The Martyrdom of St. Lawrence --Tintoretto  In great anger, the Prefect condemned Lawrence to a slow, cruel death. Lawrence was tied on top of an iron grill ove...

Mark Your Calendars Now! August 15 through October 7, 2015 Join hundreds of thousands of people of all ages in prayer across America Mark your calendars & spread the word A Message of Hope in response to the spiritual crisis in our culture and nation What: Pray the rosary for 54 straight days for the Novena Intentions 27 days in petition from August 15 through September 10, 2015 27 days in thanksgiving from September 11 through October 7, 2015 Where:  Pray the rosary individually or as a family in your home or as part of your parish community Primary Novena Intention:  “For the Family & Marriage” including for peace, human life and religious freedom Visit the website for more information www.54days.org A Hearts United Campaign of the Rosary Evangelization Apostolate Bishop Kemme (Wichita diocese) makes a request for our participation in this prayer campaign: