Weekly Insight
Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque and Saint Hedwig
(Here in Canada, Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque and Saint Hedwig - normally celebrated on the 16th - are moved to October 20th, to make room on the 16th for the first Canadian-born saint, Marguerite...
The Passion of Saint Paul of the Cross
There are two options today for saints - the first are the North American Martyrs, also called the Canadian Martyrs, but who most accurately may be termed the French missionary martyrs to a country...
Madonna of the Stairs
One star-lit night she gave Him birth,
the son of Mary fair.
God-sent to hammer nails in wood
and build the Master stair.
For men had lost their upward Way
ten thousand years and more,
when Christ was born to...
Musical Offering: Eva Cassidy’s Golden Voice
On a different note for today's musical selection, we offer the voice of Eva Cassidy (1963 - 1996), who lived and performed in her native Washington, DC area in relative obscurity, dying young from...
Luke, Evangelist, Physician, Artist
A blessed would-be feast of Saint Luke (+84) to all our readers, which we may still recall on this Sunday. He was one of the four evangelists, author of the third Gospel - and...
Pike, Hasan, the Church and the Death Penalty
The death penalty has been in the news of late. There was the ābotchedā execution of Christa Pike on September 30th, the memorial of Saint Jerome. Iām not sure the hermit saint had an...
Lindsay Clancy and the Children
Iāve hesitated to write about the Lindsay Clancy case, for the whole tragedy is quite literally āobsceneā, which is to say, too gruesome to be visualized, put on display or even put into words....
Pope Benedict and Saint Ignatius of Antioch
BENEDICT XVI
GENERAL AUDIENCE
St Peter's Square
Wednesday, 14 March 2007
Saint Ignatius of Antioch
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
As we already did last Wednesday, we are speaking about the figures of the early Church. Last week we spoke of...
Saint Ignatius of Antioch, God’s Ground Wheat
Saint Ignatius of Antioch (+107) joyfully āwent to the lionsā, as the saying goes, meeting his martyrdom in the arena of the Coliseum in the eternal city, perhaps less than a decade after the...
What ever happened to hell?
There was a time when the thought of hell motivated Catholics to seek God and his mercy. Mortal sin was seen as something to be avoided. Once committed, though, Catholics knew enough to seek...
Beatification of Saint Marguerite d’Youville
A priest friend sent along the following archival video of the beatification of today's saint, Marguerite d'Youville, back in 1959, by Pope Saint John XXIII. It's in French, but even if you don't get...
A Panoply of Four Saints: Marguerite, Hedwig, Margaret and Gerard Majella
h. We celebrate a veritable panoply of saints today: In Canada, we have the memorial of Saint Marguerite DāYouville (+1771), the first Canadian-born saint. She was a lovely Quebecoise, who married young to a...
Saint Marguerite d’Youville: The First Canadian-Born Saint
(From the Vatican webpage)
MARGUERITE d'YOUVILLE, the first native Canadian to be elevated to sainthood, was born October 15, 1701 at Varennes, Quebec. She was the eldest of six children born to Christophe Dufrost de...
Nada Te Turbe – Prayer of Saint Teresa
Nada te turbe is a poem, also a prayer, composed by the great mystic and doctor Saint Teresa of Avila. 'Let nothing disturb you' is fitting for our turbulent times. When we pray at...
Father Paul of Graymoor and the call to Christian unity
A Review of Gribble, Richard, C.S.C. Father Paul of Graymoor: A Life of Courage, Determination, and Faith. Paraclete Press, 2026.
Christian unity belongs in the prayer and life of every Catholic parish. Ā Richard Gribbleās Father...
