BIG C CATHOLICS

September 21st, is the feast of Saint Matthew, the Apostle and Evangelist, best known for the Gospel bearing his name. Information about his early years is scarce. He was highly educated. In the New Testament, he is referred to variously as "Levi" and the "son of Alphaeus." He received the name Matthew upon becoming a disciple of Christ. (Matthew in Hebrew: מַתִּתְיָהוּ‎‎ means "gift of God.") As a publican for the Roman authorities, he collected taxes in Capernaum where Jesus is known to have resided in Peter’s house. Most tax collectors typically overcharged and pocketed the difference — a universally acknowledged practice. Moreover, they collaborated with the occupying Romans authorities in handling money deemed impure from those foreign to the People of God. Matthew was despised by fellow Jews, especially the Pharisees who likened tax collectors to sinners, prostitutes and extortionists. As such, Jewish publicans were forbidden from marrying a

The Eucharist is at the root of every form of holiness, and each of us is called to the fullness of life in the Holy Spirit. How many saints have advanced along the way of perfection thanks to their eucharistic devotion! … Holiness has always found its center in the sacrament of the Eucharist. This most holy mystery thus needs to be firmly believed, devoutly celebrated and intensely lived in the Church. — Pope Benedict XVI ______________________________________ Prayer in Honor of the Body and Blood of Christ  Almighty God, who in this wonderful Sacrament has left us a memorial of your Passion, grant us, we pray, so to revere the sacred mysteries of your Body and Blood that we may always experience in ourselves the fruits of your redemption. Who reign with the Father, and with the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever. Amen.

Pope Saint Pius X’s papacy was both courageous and immensely consequential. The Modernist crisis in biblical exegesis occurred during his reign. Using new methods of historical and literary criticism scholars challenged the meaning of Scripture. Such methodology led to erroneous conclusions that called into question many Church dogmas. St. Pius X published the encyclical, Pascendi dominici gregis , denouncing the Modernist heresy. He also instituted the Oath Against Modernism to be sworn to by all clergy, pastors, confessors, preachers, religious superiors, and professors in philosophical-theological seminaries. The oath addressed five solemn tenets central to the Catholic Faith . It reads in part: "I believe with equally firm faith that the Church, the guardian and teacher of the revealed word, was personally instituted by the real and historical Christ when he lived among us, and that the Church was built upon Peter, the prince of the apostolic hierarchy, and his successors

Devotion to Our Lady is an important part of spiritual life. In our prayer, we should not fail to turn to her, confident that Mary will intercede for us with her Son. Looking upon her, let us imitate her faith, her complete openness to the loving plan of God, her generous welcoming of Jesus. We learn to live from Mary. [Mary is continually] watching over us, her children, the children who come to her in prayer, to thank her or to ask for her maternal protection and heavenly help, perhaps after having lost their way, burdened with grief or anguish amid the sad and troubled vicissitudes of life. — Pope Benedict XVI, address to pilgrims, August 22, 2012 ________________________________________ Prayer For Our Lady's Intercession Almighty ever-living God, who made the Mother of your Son to be our Mother and our Queen, graciously grant that, sustained by her most loving intercession, we may attain in the heavenly Kingdom the glory you promised to your children. This we humb

The following commentary on the walking on the water in which Our Lord saves Peter from drowning in the storm is from Pope Benedict XVI’s Angelus address delivered from the Papal Residence, Castel Gandolfo on Sunday, August 7, 2011. ________________________________________ In this Sunday’s Gospel we find Jesus who, after withdrawing to the mountain, prays throughout the night. The Lord, having distanced himself from the people and the disciples, manifests his communion with the Father and the need to pray in solitude, far from the commotion of the world. This distancing, however, must not be seen as a lack of interest in individuals or trust in the Apostles. On the contrary, Matthew recounts, Jesus made the disciples get into the boat, “and go before him to the other side” (Mt 14:22), where he would see them again. In the meantime, the boat “was many furlongs distant from the land, beaten by the waves; for the wind was against them” (v. 24). And so, in the fourth watch of th

In a letter read at the funeral of Cardinal Joachim Meisner, archbishop emeritus of Cologne, Germany and one of four cardinals who wrote the dubia to Pope Francis last year . Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI praised his late friend as a "passionate shepherd and pastor", who died at peace with God and his will for the Church. According to CNA/EWTN News : "Benedict, who had known Meisner personally, noted that the late prelate... had found it difficult to leave his post in Cologne upon retirement, especially at a time when the Church needs persuasive priests 'who resist the dictatorship of the Zeitgeist and who live and think the faith with complete determination.'" The Pope Emeritus continued "However, what moved me all the more was that, in this last period of his life, he learned to let go and to live out of a deep conviction that the Lord does not abandon His Church, even if the boat has taken on so much water as to be on the verge of capsizing

[ W ] hen the believer enters into a profound relationship with God he cannot be content with living in a mediocre way, with a minimalist ethic and superficial religiosity. In this light, one understands better the expression… “Prefer nothing to the love of Christ.” Holiness consists in this valid proposal for every Christian that has become a true pastoral imperative in our time, in which one perceives the need to anchor life and history in solid spiritual references. — Pope Benedict XVI ________________________________________________ Prayer For Devotion to God Show favor, O Lord, to your servants and mercifully increase the gifts of your grace, that, made fervent in hope, faith and charity, they may be ever watchful in keeping your commands. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

July 11th, is the Memorial of Saint Benedict of Nursia, the 6th-century abbot who established Christian monasticism in the West. In his capacity as the "Father of Western Monasticism," St. Benedict is co-patron of Europe (together with Saints Cyril and Methodius). Pope Benedict XVI named him the patron of his pontificate. Born in Nursia, Italy, he was educated in Rome, was repelled by the vices of the city and in about 500 fled to Enfide, thirty miles away. He decided to live the life of a hermit and settled at mountainous Subiaco, where he lived in a cave for three years, fed by a monk named Romanus. Despite Benedict's desire for solitude, his holiness and austerities became known and he was asked to be their abbot by a community of monks at Vicovaro. He accepted, but when the monks resisted his strict rule and tried to poison him, he returned to Subiaco and soon attracted great numbers of disciples. He organized them into twelve monasteries under individual prio

Optional Memorial - June 22nd Saint Paulinus was born of a patrician Roman family in Bordeaux, Gaul. He was successively prefect, senator and consul. His wife, wishing to consecrate herself to God, gave up rank and riches; he followed her example and went to live an austere hermit's life in Nola. There he became a priest and then bishop of the city, and gave his people not only an example of virtue but also wise guidance during the ravages and calamities of the Gothic invasion. A Church Father, he was a contemporary of St Augustine to whom he was bound by a firm friendship. He died in 431, at the age of 78, and was buried in Nola near the tomb of St. Felix. Of his life and profound literary works Pope Benedict XVI observed : "Paulinus' conversion impressed his contemporaries. His teacher Ausonius, a pagan poet, felt 'betrayed' and addressed bitter words to him, reproaching him on the one hand for his 'contempt', considered insane, of material goo

The Priesthood is the Love of the Heart of Jesus. — St. John Vianney ______________________________________________ In reflecting upon this profound insight from the  Curé d'Ars , the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI observed, “This touching expression makes us reflect, first of all, with heartfelt gratitude on the immense gift which priests represent, not only for the Church, but also for humanity itself.” Grant, we pray, almighty God, that we, who glory in the Heart of your beloved Son and recall the wonders of his love for us, may worthily receive our measure of grace from that fount of heavenly gifts.

The following is from Pope Benedict XVI's homily  delivered during the Mass for the solemnity of Corpus Christi, in the square of the Basilica of St. John Lateran on May 26, 2005. Afterward the Pope led the Eucharistic procession to the Basilica of St. Mary Major. He explains how the feast of Corpus Christi relives the events of Holy Thursday, but in the light of the Resurrection. Benedict reflects upon the gift of the Eucharist, in which we truly receive the body of the Lord. Homily of Pope Benedict XVI on the Feast of Corpus Christi It is not possible to "eat" the Risen One, present under the sign of bread, as if it were a simple piece of bread. To eat this Bread is to communicate, to enter into communion with the person of the living Lord. This communion, this act of "eating", is truly an encounter between two persons, it is allowing our lives to be penetrated by the life of the One who is the Lord, of the One who is my Creator and Redeemer. Th

On June 1, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI approved a decree of martyrdom from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, concerning the heroic death of Bl. Franz Jägerstätter, a devoted husband and father of three young daughters who was beheaded on August 9, 1943, for refusing to enlist in the German army. He persisted in his conscientious objection despite pleas from his parish priest, bishop, friends and neighbors to not do so. Bl. Jägerstätter explained his reason , "Everyone tells me, of course, that I should not do what I am doing because of the danger of death. I believe it is better to sacrifice one’s life right away than to place oneself in the grave danger of committing sin and then dying." Thomas Merton’s essay "An Enemy of the State" includes this meditation from Bl. Franz Jägerstätter in which he elaborates on his decision not to fight: "The situation in which we Christians of Germany find ourselves today is much more bewildering than that faced b

May 31st Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled." — Luke 1:39-45 Almighty ever-living God, who, while the Blessed Virgin Mary was carrying your Son in her womb, inspired her to visit Elizabeth, grant us, we pray, that, faithful to the promptings of the Spirit, we may magnify your greatness with the Virgin Mary at all times. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and

Joseph De Veuster, the future Father Damien, was born at Tremelo in Belgium, January 3rd, 1840. His was a large family and his father was a farmer-merchant. When his oldest brother entered the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts (called 'Picpus' after the street in Paris where its Generalate was located), his father planned that Joseph should take charge of the family business. Joseph, however, decided to become a religious. At the beginning of 1859 he entered the novitiate at Louvain, in the same house as his brother. There he took the name of Damien. In 1863, his brother who was to leave for the mission in the Hawaiian Islands, became ill. Since preparations for the voyage had already been made, Damien obtained permission from the Superior General to take his brother's place. He arrived in Honolulu on March 19th, 1864, where he was ordained to the priesthood the following May 21st. He immediately devoted himself, body and soul, to the difficult service of a "count

Fr. Roger J. Landry As authentic Marian apparitions go, many of the aspects of our Lady’s appearances to the three shepherd children in Fatima a century ago seem commonplace: Mary asks the seers to pray and do penance for the conversion of sinners, calls them to daily devotion to the Rosary, advocates for peace in the world, requests the children to return on specific dates, and entrusts them with secrets. What has never ceased to surprise me, on the other hand, is what she revealed to the children after she had showed them a very vivid vision of hell. The sight of “demons and souls in human form” with “shrieks and groans of pain and despair” was so terrifying that, Lucy wrote later, had Our Lady not earlier promised them that she would one day take them to heaven, they “would have died of fear and terror” on the spot. After the vision, Mary said to them, “You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go,” a clear indication that Hell is a real possibility of human fr

( In 2017, this feast is superseded by the Sunday liturgy. ) May 7th, the Church celebrates the optional memorial of Saint Rose Venerini (or Rosa), the 18th century Italian educator and foundress who greatly advanced the education and catechesis of girls and women, despite tremendous opposition. Sometimes it turns out that the things we think we are called to do in life are not precisely what God has in mind for us. As St. Rose Venerini discovered, it was an innate talent, given to her by the grace of God and pointed out to her by another, that ultimately guided her toward the vocation she was meant to live. Rose, the daughter of a doctor, was born in Viterbo, Italy, in 1636. As a young woman, she was engaged to be married, but her fiancé died before the wedding could take place. Shortly afterward, thinking that she was instead called to the contemplative life, she entered a convent, only to be recalled home a few months later following the death of her father. She formed a

As our true mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary has lovingly gone on to prepare the way for her children. She intercedes for us in asking God never to leave us in our suffering. As we prepare to celebrate the 100th anniversary of her appearance at Fatima, we recall how she urged humanity to reject sin and to pray unceasingly. Our Lady extolled the power of the daily Rosary for conversion and repentance. May she lead us to love Christ. Here is Pope Benedict XVI’s prayer in her honor: Holy Mary, Mother of God,  you have given the world its true light,  Jesus, your Son — the Son of God.  You abandoned yourself completely to God’s call  and thus became a wellspring  of the goodness which flows forth from him.  Show us Jesus. Lead us to him,  teach us to know and love him  so that we too can become  capable of true love  and be the fountains of living water  in the midst of a thirsting world.  ( Deus Caritas Est , No. 42, December 25, 2005).

Pope Benedict XVI REGINA CÆLI St Peter's Square Third Sunday of Easter, 6 April 2008 The Gospel of this Sunday - the Third of Easter - is the famous account of the disciples of Emmaus (cf. Lk 24: 13-35). It tells the tale of two followers of Christ who, on the day after the Sabbath or the third day after his death, were leaving Jerusalem sad and dejected, bound for a village that was not far off called, precisely, Emmaus. They were joined on their way by the Risen Jesus but did not recognize him. Realizing that they were downhearted, he explained, drawing on the Scriptures, that the Messiah had to suffer and die in order to enter into his glory. Then entering the house with them, he sat down to eat, blessed the bread and broke it; and at that instant they recognized him but he vanished from their sight, leaving them marvelling before that broken bread, a new sign of his presence. And they both immediately headed back to Jerusalem to tell the other disciples of the

April 21st, is the optional memorial of Saint Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109)., also known as Anselm of Aosta and Anselm of Bec, the 11th century Benedictine abbot, archbishop, theologian and philosopher. He was born in the Italian town of Aosta, the eldest child of a noble family. His mother gave him a careful academic and Christian education. At 15, he sought entry to a monastery, but was refused over his father’s objections. Later, Anselm experienced a period of rebellion and excess, during which he abandoned his studies. He travelled to France in search of greater purpose and eventually reached the Abbey of Bec, drawn by the fame of its prior, Lanfranco of Pavia. There, at the age of 27, he entered monastic life. In time, Anselm’s fellow monks would name him Lanfranco’s successor as abbot. Anselm successfully made the Benedictine monastery of Bec the center of a true reformation in Normandy and England. From this position, he wisely exercised a restraining influence on popes,

In her didactic treatise, The Seven Spiritual Weapons , Saint Catherine offers deep insight into combating Satan’s lies and fighting temptation for the salvation of souls. Pope Benedict XVI called the seven spiritual weapons she identified as useful to the faithful, "A splendid program of spiritual life… for each one of us!" "1. Always to be careful and diligently strive to do good; 2. to believe that alone we will never be able to do something truly good; 3. to trust in God and, for love of him, never to fear in the battle against evil, either in the world or within ourselves; 4. to meditate often on the events and words of the life of Jesus, and especially on his Passion and his death; 5. to remember that we must die; 6. to focus our minds firmly on memory of the goods of Heaven; 7. to be familiar with Sacred Scripture, always cherishing it in our hearts so that it may give direction to all our thoughts and all our actions." ________________________________