>

Sculpture by Dony McManus

It’s the feast of St. Joseph!
I’m so excited.
I love a feast, everything about it..food, fest, fete, remembering, commemorating, celebrating…it’s all the good stuff wrapped up into that one word, isn’t it? FEAST.  Yay.  We Catholics, we love a feast!
It’s also of course, the end of the novena, which is always good.
I’m reposting some of this from last year because I am just not good enough to redo my words and thoughts, no room in my brain to rephrase my ideas just for novelty’s sake.
But I will point out one shift, for me, with regard to this particular saint: I’m working hard this  year on getting closer to dear St. Joseph.
I feel the need to cling to him, in particular, in prayer and my heart and I’ve entrusted our family to his prayers and intercession this year.  This year, in particular, and perhaps all years ahead, we need, I need, to lean on and go to St. Joseph. Not trying to be cryptic, but just so you know I have a particular need to grow closer to St Joseph, and fast, and this year is the year our relationship takes a turn for the closer.  It must. I need him. 

Anyhow, more on all that later.  A year before I also did a post on this great saint, on his feast day.  And since I can’t redo my words or thoughts, and still don’t really want to, please go here to get a bit on dear St. Joseph.  As my mind continues to decline and muddle, best to return to my older posts that might be a bit more um, clear…..always!  

Anyhow, the year before I wrote all about my adoption links and issues with St. Joseph.  Not HIM actually, but rather others perception of him.  I mean, give the guy some cred! He’s the dad!  Ok…I begin to digress. Go read my post if you have a spark of curiosity about him and all this from an adoptive perspective.  

This year, again, I just want and need to think about dear St. Joseph.  As a faithful humble man, who served his God, his family, his child and community.  He didn’t get a lot of attention for it, except for some seriously negative opinions and sniping in the beginning of it all regarding his bride…..  So he didn’t get the kudos, he didn’t get the understanding.  He was and is still misunderstood.  But, and here is the key for me: he didn’t stand up and correct everyone and make sure they understood just what he was doing.  He didn’t.  

He just went ahead and did the next thing, lived and loved deeply as the dad.  

Every day.  

In his little town, doing his regular job, no status, no notice, no blog.  

Just, day to day, keeping on.  

So, I wonder.  He was  human.  Did he ever want to stand up on one of those tables he made (sturdy, no doubt) and holler at his little townspeople or neighbors, “Hey, I know you have all sorts of ideas about what is going on, but you’re wrong.  I love her.  I love him.  He’s special.  Yeah, God told me it’s ok, it’s right even.  So. Stop judging.  It’s SO much more than you know.”  Ya think???? Ok, probably not.  But, I wonder sometimes.  He’s a saint, but he was human.  He’s a saint not because God made him extra perfect and different than us.  He’s a saint because he was faithful, even when he didn’t understand.  

Michael O’Brien, St. Joseph

And that, that is like a whack in the head to me.

He was faithful, even when he didn’t – couldn’t – understand.  Because it all didn’t make sense.  But he still accepted.  And gave in to this plan.  And did what he was called to do.  And he didn’t whine and whinge on about it all.  He just did it.  Every day.  Every night.  As long as he was called to do it.  And that, I struggle with that.  Every day lately.  Because I always fall into the narcissistic trap of “it’s all about me.”  I don’t think St. Joseph did that.  Which blows my mind.  

So yeah,  he’s one of my heroes.  He’s still misunderstood.  But, he has much to teach me. Especially now.  

St. Joseph, pray for us!

Happy Feast Day!

>

It’s the feast of St. Scholastica!
And I had planned on doing a little post on  her, because we are quite fond of her ’round here.  But Anchoress  beat me to it and I can’t top her.  So, I’m gonna send you over.  Go, read, it’s worth it.  Scholastica’s got that brother-sister dynamic DOWN.  Which makes me grin; another saint that is all too human, but even so, holy!

Here’s a snip…..Go

“Perhaps I just love thinking that she had “irritated” Benedict, as only a sister can irritate a brother.

“When the man of God saw that he could not get back to the monastery because of the lightning and thunder and the great flood of rain, he was irritated and began to complain: “May God have mercy on you, my sister. Why have you done this?” And she replied to him: “See, I asked you, and you would not listen to me. So I asked my Lord, and he has listened to me. Now then, go, if you can. Leave me, and go back to the monastery.” But unable to go outside, he stayed against his will in a place where he had been unwilling to stay on his own”

Go, read the post for yourself.  You’ll get a smile, especially if you’ve ever been a sister with a brother!

>

It’s the feast of St. Cecilia!
We love her, and my eldest daughter has a particular affinity for her as well (maybe a number of my kids have her as a patron – music is so integral to their lives, not just the ipod hookup of standard teenhood, but the passionate playing of music…it’s part of who they are).   I also like to think of her as my Hannah’s patron due to her ‘shine’ (meaning both Cecilia and my girl).  St. Cecilia is the patron of our near and dear Dominican Sisters here too. They are filled with music and radiance and are just joyfully compelling, just like their patron must have been.

 From St. Augustine, apropos of this musical feast day:

Sing to him a new song, sing to him with joyful melody. Every one of us tries to discover how to sing to God. You must sing to him, but you must sing well. He does not want your voice to come harshly to his ears, so sing well, brothers!

Now, who is more worthy of such a cry of jubilation than God himself, whom all words fail to describe? If words will not serve, and yet you must not remain silent, what else can you do but cry out for joy? Your heart must rejoice beyond words, soaring into an immensity of gladness, unrestrained by syllabic bonds. Sing to him with jubilation.

 And I think that means that even us musically challenged folks can sing out on this day celebrating the life of St. Cecilia, flat notes and all! That’s my story and I’m sticking to it at any rate!
So, sing out!

St. Cecilia, pray for us!

>

Today is the Feast of St. Luke!
You all know him, gospel writer and all.

But what sometimes gets overlooked is that St Luke is a man of many talents.  Not only was he a  a writer of the gospel and all…so his faith of course is inspiring….but he was a physician and tradition has it also an artist.  Now, the arts part has been disputed, but who can know really?  And tradition has brought St. Luke down as an  honored patron saint of the arts and painters, in fact as an iconographer of Mary…so I’m running with it.
I mean, St. Luke is like the double whammy patron of the house, or our marriage, no? Yes!  How cool! You’ve got the whole doc factor for Tom, and the arts factor for me, and the faith factor for us both! Whoa.
Frankly, I’m just really dig that.

After those two connections, you then add the whole Mary connection and well, this is a lock on the patron of the house deal for us.  We love Mary.  I love Mary!  And I love painting Mary!  So…St. Luke, he’s the man…surely to goodness he’s an intercessor to turn to.  His gospel has some of the most profound parables as well:

“Luke is the one who uses “Blessed are the poor” instead of “Blessed are the poor in spirit” in the beatitudes. Only in Luke’s gospel do we hear Mary ‘s Magnificat where she proclaims that God “has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty” (Luke 1:52-53).

Luke also has a special connection with the women in Jesus’ life, especially Mary. It is only in Luke’s gospel that we hear the story of the Annunciation, Mary’s visit to Elizabeth including the Magnificat, the Presentation, and the story of Jesus’ disappearance in Jerusalem. It is Luke that we have to thank for the Scriptural parts of the Hail Mary: “Hail Mary full of grace” spoken at the Annunciation and “Blessed are you and blessed is the fruit of your womb Jesus” spoken by her cousin Elizabeth.

Forgiveness and God’s mercy to sinners is also of first importance to Luke. Only in Luke do we hear the story of the Prodigal Son welcomed back by the overjoyed father.” 

Anyhow…just so you know.  Today is the Feast of St. Luke.  He was  born in a pagan family and was a convert to the faith.  He worked with Paul and preached the “mystery of Christ’s love for the poor.” He is inspiring. St. Luke lived the gospel through his spoken and written words, his art,  his hands.   Just like I should do, in some small measure, every day. 


From the divine office, morning prayer:

” Saint Luke gave us the gospel message and proclaimed Christ as the dawn from on high.“

>

It’s the feast of Pope St. Gregory the Great!
Or, as we know him around our house: St. Gregory, Chris’ patron.
We hit him up for prayers, ok, I hit him up for prayers for my eldest son quite often.
By which I mean, I’m a dreadful nudge about it all.  But he is a faithful patron, and I am grateful for his prayers for my son.

 I don’t remember all of Buddybug’s reasons for choosing St. Gregory the Great as his patron. But I suspect that his love of music was one of the links. St. Gregory promoted sacred music, now known to us as, duh: “Gregorian Chant.” And Buddybug (and his mom and dad) love Gregorian Chant. So, no surprise there.

>Today is the feast of St. Maximilian Kolbe!

He is my son Jon’s patron and one very awesome saint.
He is a ‘modern’ saint, of the twentieth century, completely devoted to Mary and a Franciscan.

But what St. Maximilan is known for is his sacrifice, his martrydom of charity.

St. Maximilian was sent to Auschwitz Concentration camp, for being a Catholic and a priest. After ministering to his fellow prisoners during his time there, sick and hungry as the rest, Maximilian made the ultimate sacrifice: he stepped forward and volunteered to go to his death in order to spare a father of a family from this fate. St. Maximilian went to his death in a father’s place; dying after two weeks of forced starvation and ultimately, an injection of carbolic acid (and forgiving the one who gave him that shot as he was injected).

As such, not only is he a hero, among many other things, he is the patron of families, and he is the patron of addiction (the needle connection, I’m guessing, and really IMHO due to his inner core of strength and faith, something anyone prone to addiction of any sort needs to get well and be well).

We are big on family here around the coffeeblog.  We hit up St. Max for prayers for many of our friends and families who are going through different hard things but also this year for my Jon as he heads off to college and needs a strong faithful patron to also keep him in prayer.  And the prayers of a righteous man, a saint and patron of families, who knows from sacrificial living, are worth much. So, thank you St. Maximilian, for your patronage of my son, and for your prayers for so many!

Official disclaimer: Much but not all of this post is reposted from last year because things are slamming here at the coffeehouse. 

>

And not only does he have a fun cool name, he was an outstanding teacher and Bishop of the Church in the early years; elected Bishop of Milan in 340.  A wealthy politician, he ended up giving away all his material goods to the poor. 

I like him because though many thought he’d be “a player,” politically speaking, as a Bishop, he wasn’t.  At least not in the sense that was perhaps hoped for by the players of the time.  He perhaps used his political savvy, but for good.  And that is just the sort of saint we need in this duplicitous day and age of politics and media….. 

>

Its the feast of St. Elizabeth of Hungary.

She is a special saint and an amazing woman. There are “Mother Teresa’s” in every generation — usually many at any given time. St. Elizabeth was one of those in her time (1207 – 1231). We’ve given our daughter SBird, St. Elizabeth as a patron and pray for her prayers and intercession for her. Today we celebrate her feast and the best way I know how is to lift from the readings of the day from the Liturgy of the Hours (with a h/t to Coffeedoc for this).

She was a daughter of the King of Hungary. She was given in marriage to Ludwig, the Landgrave of Thuringia, by whom she had three children. She frequently meditated on heavenly things and when her husband died she embraced poverty and built a hospice in which she cared for the sick herself.

Oil painting on copper by Adam Elsheimer (1578-1610)

From a letter of Conrad of Marburg, Saint Elizabeth’s spiritual director
“
Elizabeth recognised and loved Christ in the poor

From this time onward Elizabeth’s goodness greatly increased. She was a lifelong friend of the poor and gave herself entirely to relieving the hungry. She ordered that one of her castles should be converted into a hospital in which she gathered many of the weak and feeble. She generously gave alms to all who were in need, not only in that place but in all the territories of her husband’s empire. She spent all her own revenue from her husband’s four principalities, and finally she sold her luxurious’ possessions and rich clothes for the sake of the poor.
Twice a day, in the morning and in the evening, Elizabeth went to visit the sick. She personally cared for those who were particularly repulsive; to some she gave food, to others clothing; some she carried on her own shoulders, and performed many other kindly services. Her husband, of happy memory, gladly approved of these charitable works. Finally, when her husband died, she sought the highest perfection; filled with tears, she implored me to let her beg for alms from door to door.
On Good Friday of that year, when the altars had been stripped, she laid her hands on the altar in a chapel in her own town, where she had established the Friars Minor, and before witnesses she voluntarily renounced all worldly display and everything that our Saviour in the gospel advises us to abandon. Even then she saw that she could still be distracted by the cares and worldly glory which had surrounded her while her husband was alive. Against my will she followed me to Marburg. Here in the town she built a hospice where she gathered together the weak and the feeble. There she attended the most wretched and contemptible at her own table.
Apart from those active good works, I declare before God that I have seldom seen a more contemplative woman. When she was coming from private prayer, some religious men and women often saw her face shining marvellously and light coming from her eyes like the rays of the sun.
Before her death I heard her confession. When I asked what should be done about her goods and possessions, she replied that anything which seemed to be hers belonged to the poor. She asked me to distribute everything except one worn out dress in which she wished to be buried. When all this had been decided, she received the body of our Lord. Afterward, until vespers, she spoke often of the holiest things she had heard in sermons. Then, she devoutly commended to God all who were sitting near her, and as if falling into a gentle sleep, she died.”

Happy feast day, Sbird!

St. Elizabeth of Hungary, pray for us!

>Today is the feast of St. Francis Xavier Cabrini.
She is also known as Mother Cabrini; and a saint that is known as “Mother” is usually a very special saint indeed. Its the mom factor, they don’t throw that word around lightly, you know? Nor should they! Anyhow, Mother Cabrini is a special saint, though not as well known as many.

She is known for starting hospitals, schools and orphanages in her native Italy and then right here in America. She was sent to America by Pope Leo the 13th. And as she was born in Italy but came to live out her days in American, she is also, importantly, an immigrant. She is the first American citizen, and an immigrant to boot, to be canonized.
So, lets make a list: uber organized, holy, immigrant, strong woman in a man’s world, courageous, started orphanages, hospitals, and schools. And, last but not least, she came from a large family too. Bigger than ours even! So, how many links does that give us (by which I mean, me and my family)? I’m losing count. So, I figure she’s a sort of patron of our family and the causes that pull at our hearts….the same ones that pull at many of yours. And if that is the case for you, then have a chat with Mother Cabrini, ask her for prayers. Surely, I know, she will pray faithfully for your intentions and concerns….because she has a mom’s heart.

St. Francis Xavier Cabrini, pray for us!
Happy feast day.