Today, because it is the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’ death, we celebrate the feast of St. Francis of Assisi instead of Sunday of Ordinary Time. St. Francis is amongst the Church’s most famous and beloved saints, but how much do people actually know about him? People know that he is the patron saint of animals, and that he did a lot to take care of the poor, but how many people know the rest of his story?

This past week we celebrated the feast of St. Matthew the Apostle and evangelist. St. Matthew is perhaps most famous for being called from a life as a tax collector to become instead one of the Twelve and an evangelist. 

Often I get asked for books or other resources to help people become more familiar with their faith and build their relationship with God. One of the best books I can offer for getting to know Jesus Himself better (that is not a straight-up textbook) is Fulton Sheen’s Life of Christ. As is always the case with Sheen, his book is highly engaging, easy to read, and easy to apply to our own lives. 

There are some topics of the Faith which, for one reason or another, few ever seem to talk about. The Anointing of the Sick is one such topic, and even though I have talked about it a lot in recent years, it continues to be misunderstood or forgotten. So let’s review.

A lot of times, whether it is simply a quiet day with little going on or my actual day off, I tend to feel the same inclination: I feel like I need to be doing something. It is an almost guilty feeling. I know I am not alone in this, too; a lot of people wrestle with this feeling when things quiet down. We start to feel like we are being lazy simply because we are not working. Many people might even accuse themselves of being slothful. 

This past week, the Church celebrated the feast of St. Monica. For those who may not be familiar with Monica, she is the mother of St. Augustine. Augustine walked away from the Faith at a young age, and he spent many years devoted to a pseudo-religion called Manichaeism. Monica was distraught at her son’s turning away from Christ, and spent all of those years in prayer, offering even her tears for her son’s conversion. Eventually, as Augustine himself puts it, “[God] flashed and shone, and broke through [his] blindness;” God got through to Augustine and led him back to the Faith. Both Augustine and the Church attribute her prayers as one of the chief influences that eventually brought him to the Faith, even if in a behind-the-scenes manner.

When we recite the Nicene Creed at Mass (after the homily), we profess that the Church is four things: “I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.” We call these the Four Marks of the Church, but what do they mean exactly? 

Yesterday, the Church celebrated the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This is the moment when our Lady was taken, body and soul, up into heaven. As with many of the feasts that we celebrate in the Church, this is not only a significant occasion in the past, but it is also something that is significant for us here and now in the present. 

Tomorrow, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Lawrence, a popular choice for “favorite saint” amongst Catholics. Lawrence was a deacon of the early Church, serving in Rome in the 3rd Century. He was known for his tremendous love for the poor. When the emperor Valerian accused the Church of hoarding tremendous wealth and ordered it to be surrendered to the empire, Lawrence gathered the city’s poor into one location. When the emperor himself arrived to collect the treasure, Lawrence presented the poor and destitute to him, saying, “Behold the wealth of the Church!” Lawrence was subsequently arrested and sentenced to be executed by being grilled alive. He is perhaps most famous for his final words during his execution. While lying on the grill, Lawrence joked with his executioners, telling them: “You can turn me over now; I am done on this side!” 

Earlier this week, we celebrated the feast of Sts. Martha, Mary and Lazarus. These three figures appear multiple times throughout the Gospel, but perhaps one of their more famous stories is when Jesus visits and teaches in their home. Martha is busy serving at table while her sister Mary is listening attentively to Jesus teaching. Martha complains to Jesus about Mary not helping, and Jesus responds that Mary has chosen the better part and that it would not be taken from her. 

Earlier this week, the Church celebrated the feast of St. James the Greater. He is called “Greater” because there are two James amongst the Twelve Apostles and James the “Greater” was in the “inner circle” with Peter and John. 

This coming week, the Church will be celebrating St. Mary Magdalene. The most common misconception about Mary Magdalene is that she is the woman caught in adultery in John 8. To date, The Chosen is the only portrayal of the life of Jesus that I have seen that has not made this mistake, and I give major credit to them for that. If you look closely at John 8, the woman is never actually named. Instead, Mary Magdalene is identified in Mark 16:9 as having been exorcised of seven demons, as well as listed in Luke 8:2-3 as being one of the women who accompanied Jesus on His journey. What is indisputable about her identity, however, is that she was the first person entrusted with proclaiming the “good news” of the Resurrection (the Gospel). 

In light of the consecration of our new altar at the end of June, a lot of people have been asking whose relics were placed in the altar. I figured this would be the easiest way to share it with everyone. 

There is an interesting point in Roman law that I learned about some years back. Apparently, under Roman law, a parent could disown a child only if that child was biologically theirs. If the child was adopted, it was actually illegal to disown the child. This makes sense, if you think about it: you do not get to choose the children you give birth to; you do deliberately choose the children you adopt. Therefore, the choice ought to be binding. Thus, according to Roman law, if you adopt a child then, no matter what that child grows up to be, no matter what they do, they are yours.

Did you know? Every Mass is offered for an intention; depending on if it is a Sunday or weekday Mass, we always mention “For {insert intention here} for whom this Mass is being offered.” If you look just to the left of this reflection, you should see the Mass schedule, listed with the intentions that that Mass is being offered for. Nine times out of ten, those Masses are offered for someone who is deceased; but the Mass can actually be offered for any intention. Do you know someone who is sick? Have a Mass offered for them. Got a friend or relative who has fallen away from the Church? Have a Mass offered for them. Just had your first child? Have a Mass offered for them. Masses can be offered for any intention that we want to bring to God. 

This week, the Church celebrates the solemnity of the birth of St. John the Baptist. This may seem a little odd to those who follow the feasts of saints. Typically, a saint’s feast day is the day that they died, and yet here we have the celebration of John the Baptist’s birth. This is something that we really only do for Mary and Jesus. So what makes John so special?

Often times, when I am teaching the Mass, I will start by asking the person to define the word sacred. Almost every time, I get the response “holy” or “blessed.” These are not necessarily wrong but they are too broad. A rosary is holy and blessed, but a rosary is not sacred. All sacred items are holy but not all holy items are sacred. Instead, for something to be sacred, it means that that item is reserved specifically for the purpose of worship. 

In the first Eucharistic Prayer (the one with all of the saint names), we hear three names listed apart from the other lists: Abel, Abraham and Melchizedek. Each of these figures have a special significance with the Eucharist, and with this weekend being Corpus Christi, it seems fitting to discuss them.

Earlier this week, we celebrated the Feast of Mary, Mother of the Church. This may seem like an odd title for Mary: how can she be mother of an organization? The first thing that this title calls us to remember is that the Church is more than a mere organization. The Church is not some non-governmental organization or charity group; the Church is the Mystical Body of Christ. Just as the human body is compiled of many individual cells united together by a single soul, so too the Church is compiled of many individual persons united together by the one Holy Spirit and united to Jesus Christ her Head. What is it that Mary gave birth to? Jesus. Therefore, Mary is the mother of the Church Universal. 

This weekend, the Church celebrates the great solemnity of Pentecost. This feast is traditionally held to be the birthday of the Church inasmuch as the Holy Spirit is poured out onto the disciples. Just as God breathed the Spirit into Adam to bring him to life, so now God sends forth the Spirit into the Church (the gathered disciples) to bring her to life!