Tag: saint of the month

Saint of the Month: Saint Pope John Paul II

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Feast Day: October 22
Patron Saint of: youth, families, and World Youth Day

Much like last month’s Saint of the Month, our October Saint of the Month was something of a global superstar in the 80s and 90s. In fact, the two of them were less than rarely associated with one another. He was the pope of my youth and holds a special place in my heart for starting World Youth Day which was a key milestone in my own faith journey.

I have chosen him as our patron saint for the month not only because he is a patron saint of families, but also for his encouraging words to mothers in his Letter to Women:

Thank you, women who are mothers! You have sheltered human beings within yourselves in a unique experience of joy and travail. This experience makes you become God’s own smile upon the newborn child, the one who guides your child’s first steps, who helps it to grow, and who is the anchor as the child makes its way along the journey of life.

The saint’s words highlight the unique role that mothers hold. First, he acknowledges our first duty as mother: to grow our children within our own bodies, providing all they need until they are (with hope) ready to leave the safety of the womb, just as God provides all we need throughout our lives. As we raise our children, we radiate joy and delight in our child, offering them a dim reflection of God’s joy and delight in them as His children. We nurture and teach our children as they grow, as God nurtures and teaches us. Mothers remain a touchstone for children in their life journey, a source of wisdom and advice, or perhaps just someone who will listen, someone who is there, just as God is ever-present for all of us.

As I type this reflection, I am struck with the thought that as mothers, it is perfectly natural to show some version of God’s maternal love our role as mothers. It follows that we should be aware of this and intentionally work on how we can bring these facets of God’s love to our children and/or spiritual children.

Each of us, male or female, is called to bring God to others, in everything we do. We so often refer to God with the masculine pronouns, but there are both masculine and feminine qualities in God. It is important to remember that outside of the person of Jesus Christ, God is neither male nor female. St Pope John Paul II’s quote really brings to mind the maternal aspects of God’s love for us. His quote compels me to consider how I am bringing these qualities to my children and others around me.

This is not to say that these qualities cannot be embodied by men, nor that we as women should neglect to also show masculine aspects of God’s love. But mothers, and spiritual mothers have a special ability to reflect God’s maternal love. Therefore, we have a responsibility to do it and to do it well.

What are some maternal qualities you see in God? Which of these do you think you’re particularly adept at sharing with others? How do you do this? Any tips for how others might be better able to bring out the particular qualities you shine? Share your thoughts in the comments and let’s help each other become better mothers to all the people around us!

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Saint of the Month: St Monica

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St Monica
Feast day: Aug 27
Patron saint of mothers and wives

Mothers, who among you does not hope for your children to know, love, and serve Jesus? Yet this is not a choice we can make for them. Yes, we can teach them about our faith, and tell them all the great things God has done for us, but when it comes down to it, they are the ones who need to decide whether or not they will follow Christ. That can be scary, I get it – when it’s about their soul and eternity, it’s crazy important, but faith is always a personal choice.

Say it with me, ladies: conversion is the work of the Holy Spirit. We can only lead our proverbial horses to water. It’s the Holy Spirit that shows them how to drink.

St Monica knew this. So while her son rebelled and fell into a life of sin for 17 years, she grieved, yes, weeping for him, but she also prayed. She prayed for his conversion daily. And the Holy Spirit worked so hard in that young man that he became a Doctor of the Church – one of the greats! If you didn’t know or haven’t guessed who her son was, it’s none other than St Augustine of Hippo.

Mothers of children who have fallen away, who are falling away, or who may be tempted to fall away from the faith (ok, so basically any mother with any child), take St Monica as your example, pray for your children daily, hope that they heed God’s voice,  and leave them in His hands. In the words of St Padre Pio, “pray, hope, and don’t worry”. Remember, your children are even more precious to God than they are to you.

St Monica, pray for us!

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!

Saint of the Month: St Ignatius of Loyola

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St Ignatius of Loyola
Feast day: July 31
Patron of Dioceses of San Sebastian and Bilbao, Biscay & Gipuzkoa, Basque Country, Military Ordinariate of the Philippines, Society of Jesus, Soldiers, Educators and Education.

This month, we celebrate St Ignatius of Loyola. The founder of the Jesuit order, which was important in the wake of the Reformation, he is patron of a number of communities and educational institutions throughout Spain and the Philippines, and well-known Loyola University in Baltimore MD, educators/education in general, soldiers and spiritual retreats, as well as the order he founded (SJ).

I chose to look at St Ignatius of Loyola this month because I think his Imaginative Prayer, or Ignatian Contemplation, is something we can introduce to our little ones to get them praying about the Gospels. This form of prayer lends itself so well to young minds!

I would introduce it by saying something like, “today we’re going to be in a Bible story! We’ll read it together first, and then pretend we are part of it to imagine what it might have been like for us personally”

Below is a description of how to engage in imaginative prayer.

  1. Choose a bible story – one that really has a story feel. Probably not from anything like Leviticus, Psalms, Proverbs, or the Epistles. Children’s Bibles are a great resource for this, as they tend to be much more story-oriented. There are also a few audio and a video contemplations on this website (you’ll have to scroll down a little to get to the good stuff).
  2. Ask for the guidance of the Holy Spirit as you join in the story
  3. One person reads through the story aloud in prayer
  4. Act out the story using prompts, or for older children (or yourself!), you can simply have some silent prayer thinking about the story (in traditional Ignatian contemplation, you might choose a character or an object in the story and think about experiencing the story from their point of view) and then discuss it. It is important to consider what message God is sending them through this exercise.
  5. Read the story aloud again, but this time, ask your children to bear in mind (or act out) the new details they were able to see from the imaginative time.

Try it out and let me know how it goes!

St Ignatius of Loyola, pray for us!

Until next time, let’s pray for each other. And remember, we can do Mom things through Christ who strengthens us!