St. Luke the Evangelist

St. Luke the Evangelist - Patron of Painters, Glass-Workers, and Doctors - October 18th


Luke was a pagan doctor, a good kind man who came to know Our Lord from the great Apostle Paul. After he had become a Christian, he went everywhere with St. Paul and was a great help to him in spreading the Faith. In the Bible this holy convert is called: “Luke, the beloved physician.”


St. Luke himself is the author of two books in the Bible: “The Holy Gospel according to St. Luke,” and “The Acts of the Apostle.” Although he did not know Jesus while Our Lord was on this earth, he wanted to write about Him for other new converts like himself. So he talked to those who had known Jesus and he wrote down all that they had seen Our Lord do and heard Him say. It is believed that St. Luke learned from the Blessed Virgin Mary herself all about the Angel Gabriel’s appearance to her, the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, the flight of the Holy Family into Egypt, and many other facts we read in his Gospel.


Luke also wrote the story of how the Apostles began to teach the message of Jesus after Our Lord went back to Heaven. It is in his book, “The Acts of the Apostles,” that we learn how the Church began to grow and spread.


St. Luke is the patron saint of doctors and of painters, too, because it is believed that he painted a beautiful picture of our Blessed Mother.


In his Gospel St. Luke wrote especially of the mercy of God for repentant sinners. Today I will read in it the parable of the Lost Sheep.

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque – October 17th

Margaret Mary is the famous French nun to whom Our Lord showed His Sacred Heart. As a child, she had a horror of being naughty and she was a healthy, happy little girl who loved the nuns at school. But when she was eleven, she became very sick and it was four years before she was well again. Her father had died, and an aunt had moved into their home. This aunt and her husband made Margaret Mary and her beloved mother suffer very much. Day after day, the young teenager would hide herself in the garden to cry and pray. What hurt her most was to see her mother being hurt.

Yet Margaret Mary grew to love good times and a few years later, she was considering marriage. Her mother wanted her to marry and so did her relatives, especially when she brought beggar children into the garden to try to teach them!

But Christ wanted her for His own. Margaret Mary hesitated a while, neither marrying nor entering the Convent, but at last she generously gave herself to Jesus as His bride.

In the Visitation Convent she entered, she was of good example to everyone because of her charity and humility. Often she made others impatient since she was rather slow and clumsy, but she was dear to Jesus, and He began to appear to Sister Margaret Mary to show her how much He loves us all. Jesus wanted her to spread devotion to His Sacred Heart. It was a very hard thing to do, because many people thought the good Sister really had not seen Our Lord at all. Some were very angry with her for trying to spread the new devotion, and all this brought great suffering to the Saint. Yet she still did her best to carry out Our Lord’s wish, and today, this wonderful devotion to the Sacred Heart is practiced all over the world.

Our Lord made great promises to St. Margaret Mary for those who are devoted to His Most Sacred Heart. Some of these promises are: “I will comfort them in all their afflictions. I will establish peace in their homes. I will bestow abundant blessings on all their undertakings. I will bless every place where a picture of My Heart shall be exposed and honored.” The greatest promise Our Lord made is this: “My Divine Heart shall be the safe refuge in the last moment to all those who receive Holy Communion on the First Friday for nine months in a row.” I want to make sure of making the Nine First Fridays.

St. Gerard Majella

St. Gerard Majella - Patron of Mothers - October 16th

Gerard was born in a little Italian town. Even as a boy, he loved to visit Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. “He would stop in church,” said his mother, “and then forget to come home for dinner.” When Gerard’s father died, the boy was taken out of school and sent to learn to be a tailor. His master was good to him, but the helper in the shop treated him roughly. Later Gerard started out in business for himself. One third of the money he earned he gave to his mother. Another third he gave away to poor people, and the rest he gave as offerings to have Masses said for the poor souls in Purgatory.

St. Gerard had once tried to enter the Capuchin Order, but they thought he looked too weak. Now he asked the Redemptorists to accept him as a brother. They did, but not too eagerly at all. At first they thought he would be useless, but soon they found him to be very humble and eager to do what he was told. While he was a novice, one priest heard him say, as he knelt in front of the altar: “Lord, let me go, I beg You. I have work that I must do!”

God gave St. Gerard marvelous and extraordinary gifts. He could read minds, appear to be in two places at once, cure people, tell what was going on someplace far away, and make animals and nature obey him. Yet Gerard had his sufferings, too. Once, a wicked woman accused the holy brother of committing a mortal sin, and since he did not excuse himself, he was punished by his Superior. He was sent away from everyone else and forbidden to receive Holy Communion. But all the Saint said was: “There is God in Heaven and He will provide.” Later, the evil woman repented and freely confessed that she had lied. Then everyone knew that Gerard was innocent and had said nothing because of his deep humility.

God alone sees my thoughts, word and deeds. I will never worry about what the others say about me. I will remember instead that God will be my Judge one day, and He will reward me if I was good, or punish me if I was bad.

Link to an audio story of St. Gerard Majella by Regina Martyrum Productions:

http://www.angeluspress.org/oscatalog/item/8201/to-heaven-through-the-window

St. Teresa of Avila

St. Teresa of Avila – October 15th

As a little girl in her parents’ rich home in Spain, Teresa and her brother Rodrigo loved to read the lives of the saints and martyrs. It seemed to them that the martyrs got to Heaven an easy way, so the two of them set out secretly to go to the land of the Moors. As they walked along, they prayed that they might die for Christ. But they had not gotten far when they met an uncle, who at once took them back to their worrying mother! Next the two little ones decided to be hermits in their garden, but they never could get enough stones together to build their huts!

St. Teresa herself wrote down these amusing stories of her childhood. The fact is that when she grew to be a teenager, however, she read so many novels and foolish romances that she lost much of her love for prayer, and she began to think more of dressing up to look pretty. But after she recovered from a bad illness, Teresa read a book about the great St. Jerome, and then and there, she made up her mind to become a Bride of Christ.

As a nun, St. Teresa often found it hard to pray and besides that, she was quite sick for some time. In those days many visitors used to come to the convent to talk with the nuns; and this practice, too, made it difficult for the Sisters to keep closely united to God. Teresa, like many others nuns, wasted much time this way. But one day, in front of a picture of Jesus, she felt great sorrow that she did not love God more. She started then to live for Him alone, no matter what sacrifice had to be made. In return for her love, Our Lord gave St. Teresa the privilege of hearing Him talk to her. She learned to pray in a marvelous way, too, and she wrote down in obedience all that she had experienced.

St. Teresa of Avila is very famous for having opened new Carmelite convents in which no worldly conversations with visitors disturbed their prayer. Her nuns made many sacrifices for Jesus and worked and prayed with great love. She herself gave them the example, not only by the way she prayed, but by the way she worked in spinning, cleaning, and sweeping the house.

Always St. Teresa placed all her hopes in God. Once in opening a new Convent, she had just a few coins to her name. “Teresa and this money are nothing,” she said. “But God, Teresa and this money are enough.” With a man-like courage, a heart full of love of God, and a wonderful sense of humor, this marvelous nun performed a great service for Christ’s Church.

From the life of this Saint, as well as of many other saints, we can see how the reading of books can change a person. From now on I resolve to choose good books as gifts for my family and friends.

St. Callistus

St. Callistus – October 14th

This great Pope and martyr was once a young slave in Rome, who got into serious trouble. His master, a Christian, had put him in charge of a bank, and somehow or other, Callistus lost the money deposited with him by other Christians. In fear, he ran away, escaping from Rome to Porto. But there he was caught, after jumping into the sea to try to get away. His sentence was a terrible one: he was chained and put to endless hard labor in a mill.

From this punishment Callistus was released, only because his creditors hoped he could get some of their money back. But once again he was arrested, this time for having gotten into a fight. He was sent to the mines of Sardinia. When the Emperor freed all the Christians who had been condemned to those mines, Callistus was freed, too, and from that time on things began to go better for the poor young man.

Pope St. Zephrinus came to know and trust the freed slave, and he placed him in charge of the public Christian cemetery. This cemetery is now named after St. Callistus himself and many popes were buried in it. Callistus proved himself worthy of the Pope’s confidence in him, and St. Zephrinus not only ordained him, but also made him his friend and advisor.

Later on, St. Callistus himself became pope. Some people complained because he showed too much mercy to sinners, but the holy Pope ruled that even murderers could be admitted to communion after they had done penance for their sin. This great Pope always defended the true doctrine of Jesus and ended his life with a glorious martyrdom.

Even after many failures, one can succeed in the end. What counts is never to quit, but always to try again.

St. Edward

St. Edward – October 13th

King St. Edward was one of the best loved of all the English Kings. Because of enemies in his own country, he had to live in Normandy from the age of ten until his fortieth year. However, when he came back to rule, all the people welcomed him with great joy.

St. Edward was a tall, well-built man, but he was never too healthy. Still he was able to rule his country well and keep peace most of the time because he trusted in God and held firm when necessary. He was a gentle, kind man who never spoke strongly, even to the meanest of persons. To poor people and foreigners, he showed special charity, and he helped monks in every way he could. It was his justice to everyone and his love for God’s Church that made St. Edward so popular with the English people. They would cheer him as he rode out hunting, which was his favorite sport. Yet they all knew that even if he was out for days at a time, he would always get to Mass every morning.

Although he was a King with great power, St. Edward showed his honesty by the way he kept his word-to God and to men. While he was still living in Normandy, he had made a promise to God that if his family would see better times, he would go on a pilgrimage to St. Peter’s tomb in Rome. After he was made King, he wanted to keep his vow. But the nobles knew that there would be no one to keep the peace among the war-like peoples in the land. So, although they admired his devotion, they did not want him to go. The whole matter was brought to the Pope, St. Leo IX, who decided that the King could stay home but was to give to the poor the money he would have spent on the trip. He also was to build or repair a monastery in honor of St. Peter. Obediently, St. Edward carried out the Pope’s decision and he was buried in the marvelous abbey he rebuilt.

For love of charity and peace, I will never say an unkind word to anyone. Like this holy king, I, too, will speak kindly with everyone.

Sts. Felix and Cyprian

Sts. Felix and Cyprian – October 12th

Felix and Cyprian were African bishops who suffered with over 4,900 martyrs in the terrible persecution by the Vandals. Huneric, the Vandal king, drove these Christians into exile in the Libyan desert. They were treated with great cruelty by the Moors. Some were stoned; others were dragged over stony ground, some forced to run by spear tips, and some torn apart.

A holy Bishop named Victor used to try to help the poor Christians who had been shut up in a horrible prison, packed in without air or light. He wrote the story of their courage and their sufferings, and he says that when they were ordered into exile in the terrible desert, they came out that prison singing hymns. Other Christians burst into tears at the sight and even women and children went with them to exile and death. The Bishop St. Felix was so old and so crippled that someone said to the Vandal King: “You might just as well leave him here to die.” But King Huneric cruelly answered, “If he cannot ride a horse, he can be dragged by oxen!” In the end, they decided to tie the brave old bishop to a donkey and he was carried off to die in the desert.

The bishop St. Cyprian risked his own life to take care of as many prisoners as he could. He spent every minute he could and every ounce of strength he had, plus everything he owned, to assist them. At last, he, too, was arrested and sent into exile. There he also died a martyr from the cruel treatment given to all these strong defenders of the Catholic Faith.

The Martyrs gave up all they had, even life itself, to keep their Faith in God. And I? Do my words and deeds reflect my Faith, even when little difficulties come up?

St. Kenneth

St. Kenneth – October 11th

This saint, who is sometimes called St. Canice or Kenny, was an Irishman, but he is famous in both Ireland and Scotland. His father was a bard, that is, a professional singer of ballads and stories in song. As a young man, Kenneth went to Wales to study for the priesthood with St. Cadoc as his teacher. After he became a priest, he went to visit Rome, and then returned to Ireland to study at the school of St. Finnian. He became good friends with three other Irish Saints-Kieran, Comgall and Columba.

After preaching through Ireland, St. Kenneth went with St. Columba to Scotland on a mission to the pagan King Brude. When this King angrily seized his sword to strike the two missionaries, St. Kenneth made the sign of the cross, and a miracle took place! The King’s hand was suddenly paralyzed, and the Saints were saved! St. Kenneth and St. Columba were always very close friends. Once Columba was sailing with some companions and Kenneth was far away in his monastery in Ireland. Suddenly he learned from God that Columba was in great danger at sea. He jumped up from the dinner table and ran to church to pray for his beloved friend. Out at sea, Columba cried to his frightened companions: “Don’t be afraid! God will listen to Kenneth. Right now he’s running to church with only one shoe on to pray for us!” And as he had said, they were saved!

St. Kenneth founded many monasteries in Ireland and converted many pagans in Scotland. He became famous for his zealous preaching of the Gospel and even more, for the perfect way in which he himself practiced the teachings of Jesus.

I will read a page of the Holy Gospel every day.

St. Francis Borgia

St. Francis Borgia - Patron of Portugal - October 10th

Francis was a young nobleman at the court of the King of Spain. He became a Duke when he was only thirty-three and lived a happy, peaceful life with his wife Eleanor and their eight children. But unlike so many other powerful nobles, Francis was a perfect Christian gentleman, a true man of God, and his great joy was to receive Holy Communion often.

This happy life ended when his beloved wife died. Just a few years later, Francis did something that astonished all the nobles of Spain: he gave up his dukedom to his son Charles and became a Jesuit priest. So many people came to his first Mass that they had to set up an altar out doors. But his superior tested him by treating him in exactly the opposite way he had been used to all his forty-one years of life. He who had once had been a duke had to help the cook, carrying wood for the fire and sweeping the kitchen. When he served the food to the priests and brothers, he had to kneel down in front of them all and beg them to forgive him for being so clumsy! Still he never once complained or grumbled. The only time he became angry was when anyone treated him with respect, as if he were still a duke.

Once a doctor who had to take care of a painful wound Francis had gotten said to him: “I am afraid, my lord, that I have to hurt your grace.” The Saint answered that he would not hurt him more than he was right then by calling him “my lord” and “your grace.”

It was not too long before the humble priest accomplished wonderful works for God’s glory as he preached everywhere and advised many important people. He spread the Society of Jesus all over Spain and in Portugal. When he was made Superior General of the Jesuits, he sent missionaries all over the world. Under his guidance, the Jesuits grew to be a very great help to the Church in many lands.

Through all such success, St. Francis Borgia remained completely humble.

How did this Spanish nobleman learn such humility, after so long being honored as a great man in the world? By reflecting often on the humiliations of Our Lord and strongly willing to imitate Him.

St. Louis Bertrand

St. Louis Bertrand – October 9th

Louis was born in Valencia, Spain, in a family of nine children. His good parents brought him up well, and he became a Dominican priest. He was very severe as the Master of the Novices, but even though he did not have a good sense of humor, he taught the novices to give themselves completely to God. When first he began to preach, it did not seem as though he would be very successful, but his deep love for souls brought great results.

At the age of thirty-six, St. Louis left for South America. He stayed in the New World only about six years, but in that short time, this great apostle baptized thousands of persons. Although he knew only Spanish, God gave him the gift of tongues, so that when he spoke, all the different tribes of Indians understood him. Yet his apostolate was not without dangers. A tribe called the Caribs of the Leeward Islands even tried to poison the Saint when he visited them to preach the Gospel of Our Lord.

Once he was called back to Spain, St. Louis trained other preachers, teaching them to prepare themselves by fervent prayer, first of all. The last two years of his life were full of painful suffering, but still he kept preaching. Finally he was carried from the pulpit to his bed, and he never left it again, for he died eighteen months later.

Success in life lies in generosity and prayer. Today I will try to overcome my selfishness and say my prayers well.