Category: Saints

The saints were seized and brought before the prefect of
Rome, whose name was Rusticus. As they stood before the judgment seat, Rusticus
the prefect said to Justin, “Above all, have faith in the gods and obey the
emperors.” Justin said, “We cannot be accused or condemned for obeying the
commands of Our Savior, Jesus Christ.”

Rusticus said, “What system of teaching do you profess?”
Justin said, “I have tried to learn about every system, but I have accepted the
true doctrines of the Christians, though these are not approved by those who
are held fast by error.” The prefect Rusticus said, “are those doctrines
approved by you, wretch that you are?” Justin said, “Yes, for I follow them
with their correct teaching.” 

The prefect Rusticus said, “What sort of teaching is that?”
Justin said, “Worship the God of the Christians. We hold him to be from the
beginning the one creator and maker of the whole creation, of things seen and
things and unseen. We worship also the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He
was foretold by the prophets as the future herald of salvation for the human
race and the teacher of distinguished disciples. For myself, since I am a human
being, I consider that what I say is insignificant in comparison with his
infinite godhead. I acknowledge the existence of a prophetic power, for the one
I have just spoken of as the Son of God was the subject of prophecy. I know
that the prophets were inspired from above from when they spoke of his coming
among us.”

Rusticus said, “You are a Christian, then?” Justin said,
“Yes, I am a Christian.”

The prefect said to Justin, “You are called a learned man
and think you know what is true teaching. Listen. If you were scourged and
beheaded, are you convinced that you would go up to heaven?” Justin said, “I
hope that I shall enter God’s house if I suffer in that way. For I know that
God’s favor is stored up until the end of the whole world for all who have
lived good lives.”

The prefect Rusticus said, “Do you have an idea that you
will go up to heaven to receive some suitable rewards?” Justin said, “It is not
an idea that I have; it is something I know well and hold to be most certain.”
The prefect Rusticus said, “Now let us come to the point at issue, which is
necessary and urgent. Gather round then and with one accord offer sacrifice to
the gods.” Justin said, “No one who is right-thinking stoops from true worship
to false worship.”

The prefect Rusticus said, “If you do not do as you are
commanded you will be tortured without mercy.” Justin said,, “We hope to suffer
torment for the sake of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and so be saved. For this will
bring us salvation and confidence as we stand before the more terrible and
universal judgment seat of our Lord and Savior.” In the same way the other
martyrs said, “Do what you will. We are Christians; we do not offer sacrifice
to idols.”

The prefect Rusticus pronounced the sentence, saying, “Let those who have refused to sacrifice to the gods and obey the command of the emperor be scourged and led away to suffer away to suffer capital punishment according to the ruling of the laws.” Glorifying God, the holy martyrs went out to the accustomed place. They were beheaded and so fulfilled their witness of martyrdom in confessing their faith in their savior.

“Please let me suffer like You, Divine Savior,” was Saint Rita’s prayer.

Saint Rita of
Cascia (d. 1457) is the well-known saint and patron of the desperate, seemingly impossible causes
and situations. She assists Saint Jude and others before the Throne of Grace. The
reputation of Saint Rita is such because she had been involved in so many
stages of life as a – wife, mother, widow, and Augustinian nun, she buried her
family, helped bring peace to her city Unmbria in Italy, saw her dreams denied
and fulfilled – and never lost her faith in God, or her desire to be with Him. The
shrine where her relics are venerated in Cascia (Italy) is well-visited.

Holy Patroness
of those in need, Saint Rita, you were humble, pure and patient. Your pleadings
with your divine Spouse are irresistible, so please obtain for me from our
risen Jesus the request I make of you: (mention your petition). Be kind to me
for the greater glory of God, and I shall honor you and sing your praise
forever.

Glorious Saint Rita,
you miraculously participated in the sorrowful passion of our Lord Jesus
Christ. Obtain for me now the grace to suffer with resignation the troubles of
this life, and protect me in all my needs. Amen.

Visit the National Shrine of Saint Rita of Cascia

Well done, good and faithful servant; because thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will place thee over many things, saith the Lord.

O God, Who didst give Thy people blessed Isidore as a minister of eternal salvation, we beseech Thee; grant that we may deserve to have him as an intercessor in heaven, whom we had as a teacher of life on earth.

Saint Isidore was married to a religious woman named, Maria Torribia. She, too is a saint of the Church. The couple had one son who died unexpectedly as a child. After the son’s death Isidore and Maria vowed to live a life of perfect continence. We ought to remember that Isidore came from a family of saints.

It is known that Isidore frequented Mass every morning making him late to work, which likely made his employer a bit annoyed, except that his work as a plowman was done by angels resulting in three times more productivity. His boss witnessed such miraculous events and accorded Isidore with great respect. Keep this info in the back your head next time you’re late to work due to attendance at Mass.

Saint Isidore loved the poor and the animals. The miracle of the multiplication of food occurred when he fed a flock of starving birds and at another time he shared his food with a large group of beggars.

Isidore died on May 15, 1120 at 60 years of age and was canonized in 1622 along with four very notable Spanish saints. The joke at the time of his canonization was that there were four Spaniards and a saint. The famous group was Saints Ignatius of Loyola, Teresa of Avila, Francis Xavier, Phillip Neri, and Isidore. His body has been found incorrupt.

A biography on our bishop and doctor saint.

You have not chosen me; I have chosen you. Go and bear fruit that will last, alleluia.

Pray for us, Saint Joseph, alleluia.

Thou faithful protector of all our work, alleluia.

Work was the daily expression of love in the life of the
Family of Nazareth. The Gospel specifies the kind of work Joseph did in order
to support his family: he was a carpenter. This simple word sums up Joseph’s
entire life. For Jesus, these were hidden years, the years to which Luke refers
after recounting the episode that occurred in the Temple: “And he went
down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them” (Lk 2:51).
This “submission” or obedience of Jesus in the house of Nazareth
should be understood as a sharing in the work of Joseph. Having learned the
work of his presumed father, he was known as “the carpenter’s son.”
If the Family of Nazareth is an example and model for human families, in the
order of salvation and holiness, so too, by analogy, is Jesus’ work at the side
of Joseph the carpenter. In our own day, the Church has emphasized this by
instituting the liturgical memorial of St. Joseph the Worker on May 1. Human
work, and especially manual labor, receive special prominence in the Gospel.
Along with the humanity of the Son of God, work too has been taken up in the
mystery of the Incarnation, and has also been redeemed in a special way. At the
workbench where he plied his trade together with Jesus, Joseph brought human
work closer to the mystery of the Redemption.

In the human growth of Jesus “in wisdom, age and
grace,” the virtue of industriousness played a notable role, since
“work is a human good” which “transforms nature” and makes
man “in a sense, more human.”

The importance of work in human life demands that its
meaning be known and assimilated in order to “help all people to come
closer to God, the Creator and Redeemer, to participate in his salvific plan
for man and the world, and to deepen…friendship with Christ in their lives,
by accepting, through faith, a living participation in his threefold mission as
Priest, Prophet and King.”

What is crucially important here is the sanctification of
daily life, a sanctification which each person must acquire according to his or
her own state, and one which can be promoted according to a model accessible to
all people: “St. Joseph is the model of those humble ones that
Christianity raises up to great destinies; …he is the proof that in order to
be a good and genuine follower of Christ, there is no need of great things-it
is enough to have the common, simple and human virtues, but they need to be
true and authentic.”

Pope John Paul II, Redemptoris Custos, 1989

Merciful God,source and goal of all life, you gave Blessed Pauline the grace to seek and do your will in all the changing circumstances of her life. Through her intercession help us to trust in your guidance and to bear witness to your love. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Blessed Pauline is the founder of The Sisters of Christian Charity

Mother Adalberta Mette’s biography of Blessed Pauline von Mallinckrodt

The source of Mother Pauline’s competence and self-assurance in dealing with people was Christ. It was said of her:

Christ was the center of her life–Christ, “the kindness and love of God” (Titus 3, 4) made visible. In Christ, in the encounter with him in his Word and in the Eucharist, as well as in the “least of his brothers and sisters,” she found love that does not count, that does not calculatingly repay like with like, but gives itself away out of pure mercy, without reservation, without restriction, without intention, and which gives witness of the fidelity, the mercy, the affection of God for us people. It is that love which accepts the risk to let the other free to accept this affection but in the same way knows how to awaken the best in others and may raise them to the light.  She wanted every Sister of her congregation to feel impelled by this love.

The Lord led the just in right paths, alleluia.