Blessings Received

Today October 24 is the Memorial of Saint Anthony Mary Claret. He worked as a weaver in his youth, and was seminary student with Saint Francisco Coll Guitart. Ordained on 13 June 1835, he was a missionary in Catalonia and the Canary Islands where he directed retreats and founded the Congregation of Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (Claretians). He was ordained Archbishop of Santiago de Cuba on 20 May 1850. Following his work in the Caribbean, Blessed Pope Pius IX ordered Anthony back to Spain. Confessor to Queen Isabella II, he was exiled with her. Had the gifts of prophecy and miracles. Reported to have preached 10,000 sermons, published 200 works. Spread devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Today we know ordinary persons that do not claim to have the gifts of prophecy and miracles. Yet they are extraordinarly close to our hearts - They include priests and lay persons. Other than the immediate family and our in-laws, I am blessed by the presence of quite a few priests such as Fr. Henri Boulad, S.J.; Fr. Daniel Callam, CSB; Msgr. Robert Nusca; as well as Melkite Catholic priests and other pastors. I am also blessed by quite a few lay persons who always ask about us and particularly a person who calls every day to ask about us. God sends us those who show us what is love, in oder that we love back... Life is a gift of God who loves all. He is "love" (1 John 4:8).

The Most Popular Contemporary Saint

Today October 22 is the Memorial of Pope Saint John Paul II; a man who served Christ in the Church since he was a young adult in Krakow, Poland. As a Bishop, he attended the Second Vatican Council...In 1978, he was elected Pope following the abrupt passing-away of Pope John Paul I. Right after being elected as Pope, he told the cardinals who elected him that he saw that his main work was to implement the teachings of the Second Vatican Council, an important centrepiece of which is a universal call to holiness. For nearly 27 years, he continued the dialogue started by his predecessors since Pope Saint John XXIII for restoring full Christian unity with non-Catholic Christians. His initiative liberated the globe from the atheism and false economic policy of the Communist regimes including Russia itself and the many countries whose peoples after World War II, following the Soviet Union, suffered under their Communist regimes. He initiated the World Youth Day; He recognized the rights of the Jewish People to celebrate their heritage in Israel, and the Patestinians for their self-determination. In 2000, John Paul II apologized for the sins of sons and daughters of the Church throughout dark centuries including the sacking of Constantinople. He also visited Egypt in 2000 and was received by the late Pope Shenouda III of the Coptic Orthodox Church (see a clip here) and in 2001 he visited the Omayad Mosque in Damascus where he was received by Muslims in Syria and called for an end to violence.Traditional in teaching, he nevertheless showed respect for other religions. His openness to other religions manifested in the Assisi Prayer for the first time in the history of Christianity. John Paul the Great loved the Virgin Mary who protected him when he was shot by a fanatic - He visited her shrine in Fatima and in Lourdes, carried the motto "Totus Tuus" in venerating her. During his pontificate the "Catechism of the Catholic Church" was issued (here). In "The Splendor of Truth" ("Veritatis Splendor"), a papal encyclical concerning morality, he emphasised the dependence of man on God and his law ("Without the Creator, the creature disappears") and the "dependence of freedom on the truth." He said that man "giving himself over to relativism and scepticism, goes off in search of an illusory freedom apart from truth itself." His philosophical insights were characterised by explorations in phenomenology and personalism. He was influenced by Hans Urs von Balthasar, Henri de Lubac, and Yves Congar. Admirable too are his submission to the will of God in all of his actions, and his adamant support for evangelization. During his pontificate he canonized more Catholics than all his predecessors (including the Stigmatist Padre Pio with whom he shared the suffering carrying his cross like Christ). On his deathbed, the popular Pope could hardly greet the multitudes who gathered in St. Peter's Square praying for him and as he passed away, they shouted "Saint Today!"

Henri Boulad: History Today

In his homily on Sunday October 18, 2020, the Jesuit scholar Fr. Henri Boulad interpreted history as listening to the Spirit of God. In his homily (in French titled "Comment lire l’histoire aujourd’hui ?" here), he explored the Biblical narrative of the pagan emperor Cyrus the Great of Persia who, according to Isaiah, was dedicated to serve the Biblical God even though Cyrus did not know Him.Probably the most enlightening idea he uttered was "But Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart" (Luke 2:19) indicating how the Spirit of God inspired her to foresee the messianic actions of her son Jesus.It was in this context that Jesus said "give to caesar what is caesar's" (Luke 20:25). Boulad said that today's presidents are elected by their people to be responsible for a mission that God wants them to accomplish. Years ago Pope Benedict XVI explored the theme "give to caesar what is caesar's". This is the text retrieved from CERC. Regarding the delicate issue of the relations to be maintained with the agencies of the State, particular enlightenment can be found in the invitation of the Second Vatican Council to follow the words and modus operandi of Jesus Christ. Jesus, indeed, did not wish to be a political Messiah who would dominate by force but preferred to call himself the Son of Man who came to serve, and 'to give his life as a ransom for many' (Mk 10: 45). He showed himself as the perfect Servant of God who 'will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick' (Mt 12: 20). He recognized' civil authority and its rights when he ordered tribute to be paid to Caesar; but he gave dear warning that the greater rights of God must be respected: 'Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God, the things that are God's (Mt 22: 21)'. Finally, he brought his revelation to perfection when he accomplished on the cross the work of redemption by which he achieved Salvation and true freedom for human race. For he bore witness to the truth but refused to use force to impose it on those who spoke out against it. His Kingdom does not establish its claims by force, but is established by bearing witness to and listening to the truth and it grows by the love with which Christ, lifted up on the cross, draws people to himself (see Jn 12: 32)"... However, if the image of Caesar was stamped on Roman coins which for this reason were to be rendered to him the human heart bears the imprint of the Creator, the one Lord of our life. Genuine secularism does not mean, therefore, leaving the spiritual dimension out of consideration but rather recognizing that it is precisely this that radically guarantees our freedom and autonomy from earthly realities, thanks to the dictates of creative Wisdom which the human conscience is capable of accepting and actuating.