November is the time when the Catholic Church focuses on specific prayers and actions for all souls who are waiting for purification in Purgatory.
At Mass the Church will set aside time for special prayers for the dead and other acts. You too can help relieve the suffering of those in Purgatory. This assistance is known as an indulgence and there are specific acts and prayers that can lift the departed souls out of Purgatory and into Heaven.
Every year on November 1, we celebrate All Saints Day, also known as the Feast of All Saints. As the name implies, this occasion honors all those who have entered heaven and these include the saints who are recognized by the Catholic Church and those who are not.
On October 28, we celebrate the feast day of St. Jude Thaddeus, the patron saint of lost causes, desperate situations, hospitals and Armenia. In time for this occasion, let us reflect upon his life and legacy and look for lessons that we can apply in our walk of faith.
October is the month devoted to the Holy Rosary. This is the perfect time for us to reflect upon the meaning of the Rosary and its significance in our walk of faith.
St. Teresa of Calcutta is well known and well loved for her burning passion for the poorest of the poor. Many admired her for her charity work and her heart for serving others. As we celebrate her feast day on September 5, let us look back to her life and her extraordinary ministry.
The most precious blood of Jesus is a symbol of the ultimate sacrifice. We celebrate the Feast of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ in July.
The practice of infant baptism in the Catholic Faith has garnered some criticism especially from fundamentalists who believe that baptism should be reserved for adults and older children.
Ever since the New Testament era, the Catholic Church has viewed baptism differently. Here are some of the early teachings on the sacrament of infant baptism.
The Catholic Church encourages us to build a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and live out the gifts of the Holy Spirit through a spiritual movement known as the Charismatic Movement. When the Holy Spirit came to the disciples during Pentecost, he presented gifts that they could use for sharing the good news of salvation and building the Kingdom of God.
Saint Isidore is the patron saint of farmers and rural communities. Born in Madrid, Spain, in the year 1110, he came from a poor family and spent many years working as a farm hand on the De Vargas estate beginning from his childhood. Isidore was very prayerful and devoted to attending Mass and receiving the Holy Eucharist.
Maintaining a weekly Mass attendance is probably more important than ever. Still, the temptation to make excuses will be strong. What if you live in a country that’s not predominantly Catholic? What if family circumstances get in the way? What if your job is compromised?
Although, Martin Luther King Jr. may be the most famous of all people to advocate for the plight of minorities in the United States, he wasn’t the first. Nearly a century before the civil rights movement, there was Saint Katharine Drexel and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Indians and Colored People.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton married a wealthy businessman and was mother to five children. When her husband passed away she established a school in Boston, Massachusetts, to educate her children. She also opened a Catholic girl’s school in Baltimore, Maryland. She is the patron saint for Loss of Parent or Child.
The Christmas story is referred to many times throughout the Bible. It captures the beautiful gift that God gave to humankind which is the gift of His only son, Jesus Christ. Christmas reminds us of how Jesus became human in order to save us but it is not just the account of his birth. The Christmas story also lets us see how Christ’s arrival transformed the lives of the people surrounding Him.
There are many Catholic symbols that we can use in our everyday lives to remind us of our faith. Some choose to wear religious items for this purpose and one of the most popular example is the four and five way medal. These devotional medals are beautiful proclamations of our devotion to God.
We pray for Saint Lucy’s intercession in our lives for the preservation of the light of our eyes. She’s the patron saint of the blind and visually impaired.
The Holy Mother has appeared in visions to many blessed people around the world. Through these people she has given many important revelations, instructions and messages. One such person was Juan Diego, an ordinary man from Mexico who relayed the Holy Mother’s desire to have a church built in her honor on Tepayac Hill. The Marian apparition that Juan Diego witnessed has since been associated with Our Lady of Guadalupe, one of the most well known titles of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
One of God’s greatest teachings is to love our neighbors just as we love ourselves. It is impossible to be capable of love without feeling mercy and compassion.
Both mercy and compassion refer to the concern we feel for people in need. But although they seem synonymous in the surface, and their usage is sometimes interchanged, they have significant differences.
Our Catholic creed captures the essence of our faith and the truths that are at the heart of Catholic Church teachings. The Catholic creed is as relevant today as it was in the formative years of the church. To better appreciate the importance of our Catholic creed we need to understand what it really is.
The Nicene Creed is another common Catholic creed. This profession of faith is part of Mass and is recited at the start of Liturgy of the Eucharist and after the reading of the gospel and homily.
The Nicene Creed emphasizes many of the fundamental tenets of our faith. Its core affirmations include its statement of belief in the immortality of the soul, resurrection and forgiveness of sins through the baptismal process.
The Apostle’s Creed is perhaps one of the most well-known Catholic creed and is a summary of the apostles’ faith. Sometimes called the Symbol of the Apostles, it is an early statement of Christian belief and has been used by Christians since the fourth century.
