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October 18, 2018 Feast of Saint Luke, Evangelist Reading 1 2 Tm 4:10-17b Beloved:Demas, enamored of the present world,deserted me and went to Thessalonica,Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.Luke is the only one with me.Get Mark and bring him with you,for he is helpful to me in the ministry.I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas,the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm;the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.You too be on guard against him,for he has strongly...

Franciscan Media Image: Detail | Saint Ignatius with Madonna and Child | Lorenzo Lotto Saint Ignatius of Antioch Saint of the Day for October 17 (d. c. 107)  Saint Ignatius of Antioch’s Story Born in Syria, Ignatius converted to Christianity and eventually became bishop of Antioch. In the year 107, Emperor Trajan visited Antioch and forced the Christians there to choose between death and apostasy. Ignatius would not deny Christ and thus was condemned to be put to death in Rome.Ignatius is well known for the seven letters he wrote on the long journey from Antioch to Rome. Five...

On the Adolescent Fixation of the Modern West Msgr. Charles Pope • October 16, 2018 • Recently at the Synod on Youth, Archbishop Charles Chaput made the following observation:Unfortunately, many “developed” countries today are actually “underdeveloped in their humanity. They’re frozen in a kind of moral adolescence; an adolescence which they’ve chosen for themselves and now seek to impose upon others.I have written on this topic as well. What follows is largely taken from an article I first published on this blog in 2010. In it I wrote about the kind of teenage fixation that is evident in our...

October 17, 2018 Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr Reading 1 Gal 5:18-25 Brothers and sisters:If you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.Now the works of the flesh are obvious:immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry,sorcery, hatreds, rivalry, jealousy,outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness,dissensions, factions, occasions of envy,drinking bouts, orgies, and the like.I warn you, as I warned you before,that those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God.In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,patience, kindness, generosity,faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.Against such there is no law.Now those who belong...

Franciscan Media Image: Stained glass, depiction Christ appearing to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque and showing her His Sacred Heart | St. Francis Xavier Basilica, Vincennes, IN Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque Saint of the Day for October 16 (July 22, 1647 – October 17, 1690)  Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque’s Story Margaret Mary was chosen by Christ to arouse the Church to a realization of the love of God symbolized by the heart of Jesus.Her early years were marked by sickness and a painful home situation. “The heaviest of my crosses was that I could do nothing to lighten the cross...

What Our Church Buildings Say About Us Msgr. Charles Pope • October 15, 2018 • The week in the Office of Readings from the Liturgy of the Hours we are reading from the books of Haggai and Zechariah. Both these prophets wrote at the time of the return of the Jews from the Babylonian exile, which had begun in 587 B.C. The Jewish people were permitted to return to the Promised Land beginning in about 538 B.C. Haggai wrote his book in the summer of 520 B.C. and in it he scolds the people for concentrating on their “paneled...

October 16, 2018 Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gal 5:1-6 Brothers and sisters:For freedom Christ set us free;so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. It is I, Paul, who am telling youthat if you have yourselves circumcised,Christ will be of no benefit to you.Once again I declare to every man who has himself circumcisedthat he is bound to observe the entire law.You are separated from Christ,you who are trying to be justified by law;you have fallen from grace.For through the Spirit, by faith, we await the hope of...

Franciscan Media Image: The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa of Avila | Gian Lorenzo Bernini | photo by Tybo | flickr Saint Teresa of Avila Saint of the Day for October 15 (March 28, 1515 – October 4, 1582)  Saint Teresa of Avila’s Story Teresa lived in an age of exploration as well as political, social, and religious upheaval. It was the 16th century, a time of turmoil and reform. She was born before the ------------- --------------- and died almost 20 years after the closing of the Council of Trent.The gift of God to Teresa in and through which she...

Forsaking Everything and Receiving More Besides Msgr. Charles Pope • October 14, 2018 • Church of Holy Comforter St. Cyprian. Photo credit: C. PopeIn the Gospel for Sunday’s Mass, we read this funny story about Peter that speaks to the paradox of losing one’s life only to find it more abundantly:Peter began to say to Jesus, “We have given up everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake...

October 15, 2018 Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church Reading 1 Gal 4:22-24, 26-27, 31–5:1 Brothers and sisters:It is written that Abraham had two sons,one by the slave woman and the other by the freeborn woman.The son of the slave woman was born naturally,the son of the freeborn through a promise.Now this is an allegory.These women represent two covenants.One was from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery;this is Hagar.But the Jerusalem above is freeborn, and she is our mother.For it is written:Rejoice, you barren one who bore no children;break forth and shout, you...

Franciscan Media Image: Statue of Pope Callistus I on the Saints portal | Northern transept of Our Lady cathedral of Reims, Marne, France | photo by Fab5669 Saint Callistus I Saint of the Day for October 14 (d. 223)  Saint Callistus I’s Story The most reliable information about this saint comes from his enemy Saint Hippolytus, an early antipope, later a martyr for the Church. A negative principle is used: If some worse things had happened, Hippolytus would surely have mentioned them.Callistus was a slave in the imperial Roman household. Put in charge of the bank by his master,...

Pope Francis has conferred sainthood on murdered Salvadoran Archbishop Óscar Romero at a ceremony in the Vatican. He praised the cleric - an advocate for peace during El Salvador's civil war - for sacrificing his own safety to be "close to the poor and his people". Óscar Romero was killed by soldiers while giving Mass in 1980. His killers have never been brought to justice. Pope Francis also canonised Pope Paul VI, known for making reforms to the Catholic Church in the 1960s. The bestowing of a sainthood onto Archbishop Romero has long been called for by Catholics in the...

What Does Heaven Cost? A Homily for the 28th Sunday of the Year Msgr. Charles Pope • October 13, 2018 • The Rich Young Man Goes Away Sorrowful, J. Tissot (1894)The Sunday Gospel invites us to wrestle with these fundamental, essential, focal questions: “What does Heaven cost?” and “Am I willing to pay it?” I. Problematic Pondering – A rich man asks Jesus, Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?Though his question is a good one, it is problematic because he couches it in terms of his own personal power and achievement. He wonders what he...

October 14, 2018 Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Wis 7:7-11 I prayed, and prudence was given me;I pleaded, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.I preferred her to scepter and throne,and deemed riches nothing in comparison with her,nor did I liken any priceless gem to her;because all gold, in view of her, is a little sand,and before her, silver is to be accounted mire.Beyond health and comeliness I loved her,and I chose to have her rather than the light,because the splendor of her never yields to sleep.Yet all good things together came to me in her...

Franciscan Media Image: Blessed Marie Rose Durocher | Achona, The Online Newspaper of Academy of the Holy Names, Tampa | photo by Keri Kelly/Achona Online Blessed Marie-Rose Durocher Saint of the Day for October 13 (October 6, 1811 – October 6, 1849)  Blessed Marie-Rose Durocher’s Story Canada was one diocese from coast to coast during the first eight years of Marie-Rose Durocher’s life. Its half-million Catholics had received civil and religious liberty from the English only 44 years before.She was born in a little village near Montreal in 1811, the 10th of 11 children. She had a good education,...

October 12, 2018 (CatholicCulture.org) – From Patrick Reilly of the Cardinal Newman Society, via the National Catholic Register, comes this ominous warning: At the Youth Synod in Rome this week, one of the bishops' discussion groups made some disappointing and ignorant comments about Catholic homeschoolers. In one of the English-language discussion groups at the Synod, a summary of the conversation included these disturbing notes: Home based schools – a model coming from America. USA has many home schoolers – bishops in USA are not united, as homeschooling can have an ideological basis – kids may have special needs are parents...

October 13, 2018 Saturday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gal 3:22-29 Brothers and sisters:Scripture confined all things under the power of sin,that through faith in Jesus Christthe promise might be given to those who believe. Before faith came, we were held in custody under law,confined for the faith that was to be revealed.Consequently, the law was our disciplinarian for Christ,that we might be justified by faith.But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a disciplinarian.For through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus.For all of you who were baptized...

Franciscan Media Image: Shrine of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos, St Magn Basilica, Füssen, Germany | photo by Myke Rosenthal Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos Saint of the Day for October 12 (January 11, 1819 – October 4, 1867)  Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos’ Story Zeal as a preacher and a confessor led Father Seelos to works of compassion as well.Born in southern Bavaria, he studied philosophy and theology in Munich. On hearing about the work of the Redemptorists among German-speaking Catholics in the United States, he came to this country in 1843. Ordained at the end of 1844, he was assigned...

The Little Sisters of the Poor took their fight to not have to pay for abortions in their health care plan all the way to the Supreme Court and won. So that should be the end of the battle right? Not so much. Last year, pro-abortion attorneys general in Pennsylvania and several other states filed lawsuits to overturn new religious protections issued by the Trump administration. The new rules protect the nuns and other religious employers from having to pay for drugs that may cause abortions in their employee health care plans. A federal judge blocked the rule in response...

What Conscience Dreads and Prayer Dares Not Ask Msgr. Charles Pope • October 11, 2018 • The Collect (Opening Prayer) for this week’s Masses (27th Week of the Year), though directed to God, teaches us that our prayer is not always about things with which we are comfortable. It sometimes leads us to examine areas of our life in which we struggle with sin or we struggle to desire to be free of sin. Here is the prayer:Almighty ever-living God, who in the abundance of your kindness surpass the merits and the desires of those who entreat you, pour...