St. Frances Xavier Cabrini

St. Frances Xavier Cabrini – Patroness of Immigrants and Emigrants - December 22nd

When Frances was a child growing up in Italy, she used to dream about being a missionary to China. She would send paper boats down a stream pretending that they were ships taking missionaries to China. And she began giving up candy because in China, she wouldn’t be able to have any.

But when she grew up, Frances was not accepted into the two convents which she asked to join because her health was not too good. She taught school until a priest asked her to help out in a small home for orphans. Things were very hard for Frances here, because of the very queer lady who ran the house. Yet Frances stuck to the work, and some other generous women joined her. Together they took vows. At last the Bishop told Frances to begin her own Congregation of missionary nuns, and without hesitating, Frances started at once. Her Congregation is called the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart. Before long, it began to grow, first in Italy and then in many other countries.

Frances, whom everyone called Mother Cabrini, had always had her heart set on going to China. But it seemed that God wanted her to come to America. When the Pope himself told her, “Go West, not East,” the matter was settled. St. Frances Xavier Cabrini came to the United States, and became an American citizen. She came especially to help the poor people who had come from Italy to make their home in America. She was a real mother and friend to these immigrants.

Mother Cabrini and her sisters had a very hard time in the beginning. The Archbishop of New York even told them that since things had not worked out as they had hoped, they perhaps should go back to Italy. But Mother Cabrini answered firmly, “No, Your Excellency. The Pope sent me here and here I must stay.” The Archbishop admired her pioneer spirit, and so she and her Sisters began their great work for God. Schools, hospitals, and homes for children were opened up in different states, and as the years passed, Mother Cabrini made many trips to spread her Congregation and its works. There were always difficulties, but she put all her trust in the Sacred heart. “It is He Who is doing everything, not us,” she would say.

Forty-nine years after she died, Mother Cabrini was canonized. She is the first American citizen to be made a Saint.

Where did this sickly woman get the strength to do all she did? In prayer. We, too, will find the courage we need in nothing else but in prayer.

St. Thomas, Apostle

St. Thomas, Apostle - Patron of the East Indies - December 21st

Thomas was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. His name in the Syriac language means “twin.” St. Thomas loved Our Lord greatly, even though at first his faith was not very strong. Once when Jesus was going to face danger of being killed, the other apostles tried to keep the Master back. But St. Thomas said to them, “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.”

When Jesus was captured by his enemies, Thomas lost his courage and ran away with the other apostles. His heart was broken with sorrow at the death of his beloved Lord. Then on Easter Sunday, Jesus appeared to His Apostles after He had risen from the dead. Thomas was not with them at the time, so as soon as he came, the other Apostles told him joyfully, “We have seen the Lord!” They thought Thomas would be filled with happiness, but Thomas did not believe their message.

“Unless I see His hands the print of the nails,” he said, “and put my finger in the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” Eight days later, Jesus appeared to His Apostles again and this time, Thomas was there, too. Christ called him and told him to touch His hands and the wound in His side. Poor St. Thomas! He fell down at the Master’s feet and cried out, “My Lord and my God!” Then Jesus said, “Because you have seen Me, Thomas, you have believed. Blessed are they who have not seen, and yet have believed.”

After Pentecost, Thomas was strong and firm in the Faith. He went to India to preach the Gospel, and died a martyr there, after making many converts.

Every time we look at the Sacred Host at Mass or Benediction, let us exclaim with faith: “My Lord and my God!”

See here to view the reliquary where St. Thomas' incorrupt finger is held:

http://www.rosaryworkshop.com/ROME-Pilgrimage-Crx.html

St. Francis Xavier

St. Francis Xavier - Patron of Foreign Missions, of the Apostleship of Prayer, of Borneo, Australia, New Zealand and China - December 3rd

This great missionary was born at Xavier Castle in Spain and went to the University of Paris when he was eighteen. Here he met St. Ignatius Loyola, who was about to start the Society of Jesus. St. Ignatius tried to get Francis to join him, but at first the happy-go-lucky young man would not think of it. St. Ignatius often repeated to him the words of Jesus: “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” At last, Francis saw clearly that his place in life was among the Jesuits.

When he was thirty-four, St. Ignatius sent him as a missionary to the East Indies. The King of Portugal wanted to give him presents and a servant, but Francis answered, “The best way to acquire true dignity is to wash one’s own clothes and boil one’s own pot.”

During the course of his amazing career in Goa, India, Japan and other land of the East, St. Francis made thousands of converts. In fact, he baptized such great crowds that his arms were so weak he could hardly lift them. He gathered the little children about him and taught them about Our Lord. Then he made little “lay apostles” out of them, telling them to spread the Faith they had learned.

There was nothing St. Francis wouldn’t do to help souls. Once he faced a fierce band of raiders, alone, with no weapon but his Crucifix. They backed up and did not attack his Christian tribes. The Saint also brought many bad-living Christians to repentance, by his gentle, polite ways and by his prayers.

In the midst of his painful journeys and great labors, the Saint was full of a special joy coming from God. Sometimes he had to cry out: “Enough, O Lord, enough! My heart cannot hold any more of this tremendous joy!”

It had long been St. Francis’ great longing to get into China, into which no foreigner was permitted. At last, the arrangements were made, but the great missionary fell ill and died almost alone on an island off the Chinese coast.

This great saint stood out for three virtues: a great wish to bring souls to the Heart of Jesus; a heroic obedience; and a great spirit of sacrifice. Today I will ask myself what I can do for the missions.

St. Catherine Laboure

St. Catherine Laboure – November 28th

Zoe Laboure was the daughter of a French farmer, and she was the only one of her large family who did not go to school. She could not read or write at all. Her mother died while she was still very young, and Zoe had to run the house when her older sister became a nun.

Zoe, too, would have liked to enter the convent when she was in her early teens, but had to wait until she was twenty-four. She became a Sister of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul and took the name of Catherine.

Shortly after she finished her period of training as a postulant, Sister Catherine began to receive the special privilege of seeing the Blessed Mother. One night, she was awakened from sleep by a “shining child” who led her to the chapel. There Our Lady came to talk to her. The Blessed Mother, in another vision, showed herself standing on a globe with streams of light coming from her hands. Underneath were the words: “O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who turn to thee!” Sister Catherine was told that a medal was to be made of this picture of Our Lady and that all who wore it would receive many graces from God through His Mother’s prayers.

Sister Catherine told her confessor and he later told the bishop. So it was that the medal which we call the miraculous medal was made, and soon many, many people all over the world were wearing it. Yet no one in the convent knew that humble Sister Catherine was the one to whom Our Lady had appeared! She spent the remaining forty-five years of her life answering the door, looking after the hens that provided the nuns with eggs, and taking care of old and sick people. She was happy to keep her special privilege hidden, for she was only interested in serving God as best she could.

I will wear the Miraculous Medal and often repeat the ejaculation: “O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who turn to thee!”

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. John Vianney

St. John Vianney - Patron of Parish Priests - August 9th

John Mary Vianney was born in France. He grew to be a little shepherd of his father’s sheep, a devout boy who loved to pray, but also loved to play horseshoes. When he was eighteen, he told his father he wanted to become a priest, yet it took him two years to obtain his father’s permission, because they were poor and there was much work to be done on the farm. Then the next problem John met was Latin. He just could not seem to learn it! He became so discouraged that he decided to walk sixty miles to the shrine of St. John Francis Regis to beg God’s help. After that, although he had as much trouble as ever with his studies he never again grew discouraged.

John’s next big problem came when through some mistakes, he was drafted into the army! But about a year later he was finally able to enter the seminary. There again, he had a very hard time. He kept working humbly, yet he never did well in his studies. And when the final examination came, he was so upset that he broke down in the middle of it. Yet, because John Mary was a saint and full of common sense, he knew the right answer when he was asked what should be done in this case or that. From Latin books he could not learn, but he was ordained, anyway, because he was a model of goodness.

In his parish of Ars, a little, out-of-the-way village, Father Vianney fasted and did hard penance for his people. He did all he could to make them stop sinning by their drinking and dancing, to come to church and not work on Sunday, and to stop swearing. Pretty soon, the taverns had to close down because they had no business and people began living much better lives. “Our priest is a saint,” they said, “and we must obey him.”

God gave this Saint the power to see into people’s souls and to know the future. Because of this gift, he converted many sinners and helped people to make the right decisions. He became so famous that about three hundred souls came to Ars every day to go to confession to him. Although he would have liked to live in peace in a monastery, St. John Vianney stayed in Ars until he died, and even heard confessions as he lay dying.

We are to seek God’s aid when we find things hard. God never refuses to hear our prayers. He always grants our wishes if they are for our best; otherwise He gives us what is better for us.

St. Maria Goretti

St. Maria Goretti - Patroness of Children, Children of Mary, Girls, Rape Victims, Young - July 6th

Mary was the young daughter of a poor Italian widow. She was nicknamed Marietta, and at the age of twelve was already a very pretty young lady. She helped her mother on the farm, in the house and with the care of the other children. Never did she complain because they were so poor. In fact, she cheered up her poor mother and was a great comfort to her. She went to Mass regularly even though it meant a two-hour walk, and she went as often as she could to confession and Holy Communion.

Marietta was also very modest and careful to guard her purity. When a young man named Alexander tried a few times to make her sin, she absolutely refused and she did her best to avoid him from that time on. Then one summer day, she was alone in the cottage mending clothes, and Alexander came again to try to make her sin. This time, he dragged the poor girl into a room and when she tried to scream, he stuffed a handkerchief into her mouth. Yet she managed to keep saying, ‘No, no! It is a mortal sin. God doesn’t want it. If you commit you will go to hell!” And she struggled as much as she could. Furiously Alexander began to strike her with a knife. Again and again he struck, and then he ran away.

Marietta was taken to a hospital, where she died about twenty-four hours later. During her last hours, she forgave her murderer. Her only worry was for her mother. With great joy, she received Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and then went to Heaven.

Alexander was sent to prison where, for a long time, he did not repent of his horrible crime. Then one night he had a dream or vision of Mary Goretti offering him flowers. From that moment on he was a changed man. When he was freed from prison after many years, the first thing he did was to beg Mary’s mother for forgiveness.

On the day Mary Goretti was declared “Blessed,” her own mother was there in Rome for the great celebration. And when the Pope declared Mary as saint, more people gathered to honor her than had ever come for such a ceremony before. St. Mary Goretti is called a “martyr of holy purity.”

Alexander had become so impure because he used to read bad magazines. Mary Goretti was so pure, instead, because she went to the Sacraments as often as possible. Let us imitate this heroic young girl. Jesus will give us the strength we need to keep pure.

St. John Bosco

St. John Bosco - Patron of Editors and of Laborers - January 31st

St. John Bosco was born near Turin, Italy. Like many Saints, he was a poor farm lad, who was brought up by his holy mother in the love of God and Our Lady. John’s father died when he was young and his mother had to work very hard to feed her family. John, too, worked hard as he could to help his mother. He was an intelligent lad. Who knew how to keep his playmates from offending God. He would do tricks to win their attention and then he would talk to them about spiritual things.

In order to become a priest, John had to work his way through school. He did all kinds of work. He was a carpenter, a shoemaker, a cook, a pastry maker, a farmer, and many other things. At the same time he was a fine student and was always happy and cheerful.

After he became a priest, Don Bosco, which means, Father Bosco, began his great mission of helping orphan boys. He gathered together hundreds of these boys who had no home. He taught them all kinds of work, so that they would not steal and get into trouble. At first, people were angry with Don Bosco, because they did not think those boys would turn out to be good. But he proved that they would.

“Do you want to be Don Bosco’s friend?” he would ask each new boy who came to him. “You do? Then, you must help me save your soul.” Every night, he wanted the boys to say three Hail Marys, so that the Blessed Mother would help them avoid sin. He also recommended that they go to Confession and Communion as often as possible.

One of Don Bosco’s boys became a saint, St. Dominic Savio.
Later on, Don Bosco founded two Religious Orders to take care of poor children and he also built many homes and schools for them.

Let us help our parents at home as much as we can. The more things we learn to do, the better we can serve God.