Communication Requests Communications Request Guidelines The staff communications team at St. Anthony utilizes Social Media posts, Mass announcements, Flocknotes and weekly parish bulletin to share information with our parish and community. We aim to serve as a source of communication for the 100+ ministries and organizations that meet on our campus as well as many outside organizations within the Archdiocese. In order to ensure a standard of excellence for these communications, please follow the submission guidelines below. Please note that the STAOP Communications Department reserves the right to edit all final submissions before publication. Due to the unpredictable nature of submissions, we are not able to reserve a ministry’s placement or timing on the parish’s communication channels. On occasion it is necessary to balance the number of requests with placement capacity. We appreciate your understanding. For all requests, please send the following information to communications@ap.church Name of Organization/Ministry: Name of Event: Date(s) of Event: Time(s) of Event: Location(s) of Event: Contact Persons Email for Event: Description of Event: Registration Process for Event: Indicate if you want an online registration form at ap.church/events to collect signups. If yes, include the following information: Describe the payment to be collected (if any) and other information/questions you wish to gather from the attendees. What day & time does your signup open and when is the deadline. Indicate what special details should be included in a confirmation message. If childcare is needed, remember you must send a separate request to our Nursery Coordinator, Kara Hofstede at khofstede@ap.church If you have a different registration process, please include those details Notes/Additional Needs: Copy your Staff Representative/Director on your email request. Previous Item Next Item

St. Giuseppe Moscati, born in 1880 in Benevento, Italy, was a brilliant physician and devout Catholic who viewed medicine as a mission of mercy. Inspired by caring for his injured brother, he pursued medicine, earning his degree with honors in 1903. Known for his humility, he treated the poor for free and saw the sacraments as essential to healing. He heroically saved patients during the 1906 Vesuvius eruption and pioneered treatments for cholera and diabetes. Revered for his miraculous diagnostic abilities, Moscati treated thousands, including soldiers in WWI. He died in 1927 at the age of 46. St. Guiseppe Moscati Time Period: 1880-1927 Feast Day: November 16 Title/Attributes: Confessor, Layman, Physician Location of Relic: Back Left Reliquary - Right Section Type of Relic: Clothing St. Giuseppe Moscati was an internationally acclaimed scientist who became the first modern doctor to be canonized a Saint. He was proficient in twenty different specialties, yet he turned down promotions and cared for the poor free of charge. He saw his medical practice as a ministry for the suffering, calling the sacraments the “first medicine,” and leading many of his patients back to the Church. He treated thousands of people in his lifetime and became known as a “miracle worker” in the medical world. Giuseppe was born on September 25, 1880, in Benevento, Italy. Although his father was a lawyer, Moscati decided at a young age to study medicine. This decision was heavily influenced by the tragic injury of his older brother Alberto, who fell from a horse and suffered incurable head trauma. Moscati was twelve years old at the time and cared for his brother for years at home, realizing the inseparable nature of spiritual and physical healing. Moscati enrolled in medical school in 1897 at the University of Naples. He earned a doctoral degree with honors in 1903 and began practicing medicine at the Hospital for Incurables. He quickly became an administrator there and conducted medical research in his spare time. There are many accounts that testify to Moscati’s humble and tireless work as a doctor. In April of 1906, he led an evacuation of a nursing home after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Moscati physically carried the disabled patients out of the building moments before it collapsed in ashes. He later insisted that those who helped in the evacuation would be rewarded, yet didn’t mention his own name. Moscati was extremely influential in researching the origins of the cholera epidemic and discovering effective ways to eradicate it. He also treated over 3,000 soldiers during WWI and became one of the first Neapolitan doctors to experiment with insulin as treatment for diabetes. Many people thought his extraordinary skill in diagnosing his patients’ ailments was miraculous. Giuseppe Moscati died on April 12, 1927 of natural causes at the age of forty-six. "Blessed are we doctors, often unable to remove illness, blessed are we if we remember that we have in the presence of sick people, not only bodies to cure, but also divine and eternal souls to love them as ourselves" Pingel, Jana Zuniga. Humans of Heaven . January Jane Shop, 2023. Hardback , 167 pp. Next Item Previous Item

Our Sacrament Preparation (First Reconciliation and First Communion) program is a collaboration between our Parish, the Family and the Child. Click below to find out more about the program, requirements, and registration.  First Reconciliation - Child Our Sacrament Preparation (First Reconciliation and First Communion) program is a collaboration between our Parish, the Family and the Child. Click below to find out more about the program, requirements, and registration. 2nd-8th Grade Preparation for First Reconciliation for children will occur while also preparing for First Communion. Please visit our First Communion Page for more information. First Communion (2nd-8th Grade) Program Contact Katy Nardone Sacramental Preparation Coordinator knardone@ap.church 832-482-4062 Diane Czerniak Elementary Faith Formation Manager dczerniak@ap.church 832-482-4037 Next Item Previous Item

St. Titus Brandsma was a Dutch Carmelite priest, philosopher, journalist, and martyr born in 1881. After joining the Carmelites in 1898, he was ordained in 1905 and earned a doctorate in philosophy in Rome. He taught and wrote extensively, becoming a professor and later Rector Magnificus at the Catholic University of Nijmegen. Fiercely opposed to Nazi ideology, he defended Catholic press freedom and urged resistance to Nazi propaganda. Arrested in 1942 for his stance, he endured harsh imprisonment before being killed by lethal injection at Dachau concentration camp on July 26, 1942. St. Titus Brandsma Time Period: 1881-1942 Feast Day: July 27 Title/Attributes: Martyr, Carmelite Location of Relic: Back Left Reliquary - Center Section Type of Relic: Clothing St. Titus Brandsma was born on the farm of Oegeklooster, near Bolsward, in the Netherlands, on February 23, 1881. His baptismal name was Anno Sjoerd. His father, Titus, was a well-off farmer, married to Tjitsje Postma; they had six children, four girls and two boys, of whom one married and the others became religious. Between 1892 and 1898, Anno Sjoerd attended the Franciscan gymnasium in Megen, North Brabant. He felt a growing vocation within him and wanted to join the Franciscans, but he was not accepted because of his poor health, which would not have allowed him to endure the harshness of Franciscan life. He then turned to the Carmelites, who accepted him: on 22 September 1898 he entered the novitiate in Boxmeer. In homage to his father, he took the religious name of Titus. At the end of the novitiate year, he took his religious vows on 3 October 1899. Between 1900 and 1905 he attended courses in philosophy and theology in the communities of Boxmeer, Zenderen and Oss. In 1901 he published his first book: an anthology of the writings of Saint Teresa of Jesus, which he himself had translated from the French, entitled Bloemlezing uit de werken der H. Teresia ( Anthology of the works of Saint Teresa ) . On June 17, 1905, at the age of 24, he was ordained a priest in the cathedral of Den Bosch, in Brabant. He was then sent to Rome, to the International College of Saint Albert, where he remained for three years, from 1906 to 1909. He attended the Faculty of Philosophy of the Pontifical Gregorian University and also took courses in sociology at the Leonine Institute. In the meantime, he continued his collaboration with several Dutch newspapers and magazines. During the summer holidays he stayed in Mainburg, Bavaria. During that period he suffered from a relapse of a stomach disease and, to recover, was sent for some time to the convent of Albano Laziale. On October 25, 1909, he was able to pass the doctoral examination. Having returned to Holland, he began teaching philosophy and mathematics at the Carmelite student house in Oss, where he remained from 1909 to 1923. In 1912 he founded the periodical Karmelrozen ( Roses of Carmel , later to become Speling ) and in 1918 he began publishing the works of Saint Teresa in Dutch in several volumes. From 1919 to 1923 he was editor-in-chief of the newspaper De Stad Oss ( The City of Oss ). In 1923 he became professor of philosophy and history of mysticism at the newly founded Catholic University of Nijmegen, where he remained until 1942. In the academic year 1932-1933 he was elected Rector Magnificus of the same University and, on the occasion of the opening of the academic year, he gave a famous speech on the concept of God. During that year he made an official trip to Milan and Rome. In 1935, the Archbishop of Utrecht, His Excellency Mgr. Johannes De Jong, appointed Father Titus ecclesiastical assistant to the Association of Catholic Journalists, with the task of following about thirty newspapers. It was on that occasion that the Blessed obtained his international journalist's card. He also traveled to Ireland and the United States, where he gave conferences on Carmelite spirituality and tradition, later collected in the volume The Beauty of Carmel . Father Titus was a gentle man, attentive to his interlocutors, capable of listening. He showed particular availability towards the students and was always ready to help anyone in need. Between 1938 and 1939 he held courses at the University, criticizing the pagan and anti-human nature of the National Socialist ideology, the danger of which he had well understood. Meanwhile, the war, which had begun in September 1939 with the invasion of Poland, also turned westwards: on 10 May 1940 Hitler's troops invaded Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg and France. On 26 January 1941, the Dutch Church, through its bishops, reacted firmly against the Nazi measures. Father Titus, who had also been entrusted with the presidency of the Association of Catholic Schools, actively collaborated with the episcopate. Archbishop Johannes De Jong, in a conversation with the Blessed, said he was concerned about the situation of the Catholic press, forced to publish proclamations issued by the occupation government, in clear contrast with Christian morality. For this reason, in the first ten days of January 1942, Father Titus toured Holland by train, visiting the editorial offices of Catholic newspapers, to bring the indications of the episcopate and encourage the directors to resist Nazi pressure. His Excellency Mgr. De Jong later declared that the religious was well aware of the danger to which he was exposing himself. As soon as he returned to Nijmegen, he gave his last lecture at the University. While he was returning to the convent, he was arrested. On 20 January 1942 he was taken to Scheveningen prison, where he remained until 12 March. When he was questioned about his activities and the reasons for his opposition to Nazism, Father Titus frankly reiterated his positions, even writing a nine-page memorial. The minutes of that interrogation, kept by the officer in charge, a secularized priest, were valuable material in the Cause of Blessed Brandsma. In prison he was able to keep two books with him: the life of Saint Teresa of Jesus written by Kwalkman ( Het leven van heiligen Theresia , 1908) and Jezus by Cyriel Verschaeve (1939). Father Titus decided to use the time of his imprisonment to write the life of Saint Teresa, as he had wanted since the time he was in Oss but had never managed to do because of too many commitments. Lacking paper, he used the book on the life of Jesus, writing, between the lines, that of the Saint of Avila. A diary, entitled My Cell, also remains from the days spent in Scheveningen . He also wrote the prayer Before the Image of Jesus . On March 12, he was taken to the penal camp in Amersfoort, where he remained until April 28, forced to work and live in very harsh conditions. On May 16, he was taken back to Scheveningen for further interrogation, which lasted until June 13. From Scheveningen he was transferred to the transit camp in Kleve, Germany, where he found some relief from the suffering he had endured in Amersfoort. In Kleve, in fact, he was able to attend Mass and had spiritual conversations with the camp chaplain. The attempts of his superiors to transform Father Brandsma's sentence into forced house arrest, to be served in a German convent, were to no avail. On June 13, the long train journey began, aboard a cattle car with many other prisoners, which took the Blessed One through Cologne, Frankfurt and Nuremberg to the Dachau camp. Built in the early 1930s, this concentration camp housed at least 110,000 people until the end of the war, of whom only 30,000 emerged alive. The majority of the inmates fell ill due to the terrible hygienic conditions and the inhuman rigors of life and work. The camp hospital was in fact only an antechamber to the crematorium. Medical experiments were also carried out there, using prisoners as guinea pigs, especially the disabled and weaker ones. From June 19 to July 18, 1942, Father Titus was in block 28, where many religious and priests were gathered. On July 18, he entered the camp hospital, called Revier , and remained there until Sunday, July 26. That day, at 2:00 p.m., he was killed by an injection of phenol acid. Shortly before dying, the Blessed had given the nurse who was killing him his rosary, made for him by an inmate. The woman, a young Dutch woman infatuated with Nazi ideology, told him that she did not know how to pray and Father Titus replied that to do so, she would have had to say: “Pray for us sinners.” She then converted and, during the Process for Beatification and Canonization, gave her precious testimony about the last hours of the Carmelite’s life. The body of Titus Brandsma, like that of thousands of other deceased prisoners, was likely cremated in the incinerators of the Dachau camp. https://www.causesanti.va/it/santi-e-beati/tito-brandsma.html Next Item Previous Item

St. Mark the Evangelist, author of the second Gospel, was a cousin of St. Barnabas and a companion of Sts. Paul and Peter. A Levite from Jerusalem, he likely knew Jesus personally and may have been the young man who fled during Jesus’ arrest. Mark accompanied Paul and Barnabas on missions and later became Peter’s interpreter. His Gospel, written around 60–70 AD, reflects Peter’s teachings and served as a source for Matthew and Luke. Mark was the first bishop of Alexandria and died a martyr there. His relics were later moved to Venice, where he is honored as the city’s patron. St. Mark the Evangelist Time Period: 1st Century Feast Day: April 25 Title/Attributes: Evangelist Location of Relic: Main Reliquary - Left Section Type of Relic: Bones St. Mark the Evangelist was the author of second Gospel. He was the son of Mary of Jerusalem and a cousin of St. Barnabas. Mark was a Levite and was possibly a minister in the local synagogue when he met Jesus. He is believed to have been the young man who fled naked when Jesus was arrested (Mark 14:51-52). Mark accompanied Sts. Paul and Barnabas to Antioch in 44 and then to Cyprus. He was a companion of St. Paul on his first missionary journey but returned to Jerusalem (Acts 13:13). He disagreed with St. Paul but was with him in Rome during St. Paul’s first imprisonment (Col 4:10). An early tradition states that Mark was the first bishop of Alexandria, Egypt, and is possible the “John Mark” of Acts 12:25. Mark’s Gospel was written probably between the years 60-70, based on the teaching of St. Peter. He was also called “the Interpreter of Peter” by his contemporaries. It is believed that Mark provided Sts. Matthew and Luke with the basic sources of their Gospels. He died as a martyr in Alexandria, Egypt, and in the ninth century his relics were transferred to Venice, Italy. There they are enshrined in a beautiful cathedral dedicated to his honor. He is the patron saint of Venice. His main symbol is a winged lion. Next Item Previous Item

St. Margaret of Antioch, an early virgin martyr and one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, was the daughter of a pagan priest. Raised by a Christian woman, she embraced the faith and consecrated her virginity to God, prompting her father to disown her. When Governor Olybrius proposed marriage and demanded she renounce Christianity, she refused and was tortured. Miracles reportedly occurred during her suffering, including defeating Satan in the form of a dragon. She was eventually beheaded. Margaret later appeared to St. Joan of Arc and is invoked for protection against dangers and diseases as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. St. Margaret of Antioch Time Period: 289-304 Feast Day: July 20 Title/Attributes: Virgin, Martyr, Holy Helper Location of Relic: Back Left Reliquary - Left Section Type of Relic: Bones St. Margaret of Antioch is one of the early virgin martyrs of the church and one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. Margaret was the daughter of a pagan priest and her mother died during childbirth. Margaret was raised and nursed by a Christian woman. She soon embraced Christianity and consecrated her virginity to God. Her father disowned her for her faith. Olybrius, a Governor in the Roman Empire asked to marry her and demanded that she renounce her faith. She refused and was tortured. During her torture, various miracles occurred, including defeating a Satan in the form of a dragon. Margaret was eventually beheaded. Margaret is one of the saints that spoke to St. Joan of Arc. She is also one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers who are a group of saints venerated together in Catholic tradition because their intercession is believed to be particularly effective against specific diseases and dangers. Each saint is invoked for aid regarding particular ailments or needs. The Fourteen Holy Helpers are: Acacius, Barbara, Blaise, Catherine of Alexandria, Christopher, Cyriacus, Denis, Erasmus of Formia, Eustace, George, Giles, Margaret of Antioch, Pantaleon, and Vitus. Next Item Previous Item

Saint Benedict the Moor lived a life of the Beatitudes. Born to two African slaves and illiterate, he later possessed a knowledge of Sacred Scripture and theology that astonished priests and scholars. Facing persecution throughout his life from being “il Moro,” or dark skinned, he is remembered for his racial tolerance. Joining a society of hermits at the age of 21, he eventually worked as a cook at a Franciscan friary before becoming the Guardian of the community. He endured the taunts of racial prejudice, refused to be hindered by illiteracy, and humbly served the Lord wherever he could. His feast day is April 4th. St. Benedict the Moor Time Period: 1526-1589 Feast Day: April 4 Title/Attributes: Confessor, Franciscan Location of Relic: Back Right Reliquary - Left Section Type of Relic: Bones Saint Benedict the Moor lived a life of the Beatitudes. Born to two African slaves and illiterate, he would later possess a knowledge of Sacred Scripture and complex theological questions that astonished priests and scholars alike. Growing in fame for his miracles and teachings, he was meek, and chose to travel at night to avoid recognition. Facing persecution throughout his life due to being “il Moro,” or dark skinned, he chose to be a peacemaker, and is remembered for his racial tolerance. Benedict was born in 1526 in Italy, most likely near San Fratello. His parents, Cristoforo and Diana Manasseri were Africans who were captured and taken as slaves to San Fratello, located near Sicily. After they arrived in Italy, they both converted to Catholicism, prior to the birth of Benedict. Thanks to his parents “loyal service” as slaves, Benedict was born free from slavery. Like most peasants, he didn’t attend school, and instead worked as a shepherd through his youth. Even at a young age, he had a heart for the poor, and gave most of what he earned to those in need. Benedict was often subject to persecution and ridicule due to his race and his parents’ servitude. Despite being the object of frequent humiliation, he bore these insults with dignity, patience and even cheerfulness. By the age of 10, he had become known as “The Holy Black” in Italy. It was Benedict’s gentleness and peaceful nature that one day attracted the attention of Jerome Lanzi, a member of a group of hermits from nearby Monte Pellegrino. The twenty-one-year-old Benedict was encouraged to join the independent society of hermits, who lived under the Rule of Saint Francis of Assisi. Lanzi, a former nobleman who had left his former life to join the hermits, succeeded in convincing Benedict to join and he soon sold the few possessions he had and joined their monastic group. For many years, he happily worked in the kitchen as a lay brother, serving as an exceptional cook. When the superior of the order passed away, 28 year-old Benedict, agreed to become the new superior, and the community prospered under his leadership. Following the third Council of Trent in 1564, Pope Pius IV announced a decree for all independent hermit societies to disband. Considering that the Benedict-led hermits were adhering to the Rule of St. Francis, they followed the Pope’s encouragement to join Franciscan orders. Benedict would become a member of the Order of the Friars Minor, and travel to Palermo to the Franciscan Friary of St. Mary of Jesus. He initially returned to the kitchen to continue his work as a cook, and he quickly became known for his miraculous ability to “multiply the food” and feed more people despite a limited amount of food available. Over the years, Benedict would rise in ranks at the friary, advancing to Master of Novices before becoming the Guardian of the community, a significant leadership role, in 1578. This was especially notable due to the fact that Benedict was still illiterate – and thus he was unable to become a priest due to the requirement of priests and religious figures being able to read and write. Nonetheless, he soon displayed a vast and deep understanding of theology and scripture, and word of his knowledge and sanctity began to spread outside Palermo. Benedict became known for his many gifts and miracles, one of them including the apparent ability to read the minds of others. This created large groups of lay people, clergy, and curious Italians far and wide flocking to his side, seeking his counsel. Benedict disliked the attention though, and always tried to travel at night when he could. When daytime trips were unavoidable, he would cover his face with a hood. Benedict continued to serve the friary faithfully as a lay person, drawing people every day to hear his teachings of the scripture, experience his healing abilities, and just be in the presence of a man of divine wisdom and compassion. Towards the end of his life, Benedict asked to be relieved of his offices, and return to his favorite work: cooking in the kitchen. He resumed his duties as cook but had nearly every day interrupted by crowds who continued to seek alms, advice, prayers and cures for their illnesses. Around the age of 63, it was Benedict himself who fell ill and on the exact date and time that he had predicted, he passed away in Palermo. He was initially buried in a large tomb inside the friary church, but would have his body exhumed twice, with King Phillip III of Spain creating a shrine for Benedict in Palermo, Italy, and his body was placed in the shrine in 1611. His remains were discovered to be without any noticeable signs of decay, and his relics are still considered incorrupt to this day. Saint Benedict the Moor showed others that God doesn’t always call the qualified, but he qualifies the called. He endured the taunts of racial prejudice, refused to be hindered by his illiteracy, and humbly served the Lord whether he was leading in the front or cooking in the back. He had every opportunity to become prideful, arrogant, angry or impatient – instead, he handed what he had to the Lord, and then leaned into the gifts the Lord provided in return. Next Item Previous Item

Saint Vincent de Paul had a clear plan for his life – ordained a priest at the age of 19, he was satisfied with a prestigious office in the Church and nothing more. What he didn’t expect was to be captured by pirates, sold into slavery, escape years later, found a religious order and become known as “The Apostle of Charity.” While his life didn’t play out the way he anticipated, Vincent de Paul served God faithfully, and allowed the Holy Spirit to work in his heart, change his aspirations, and direct his efforts to those that were most in need. His feast day is September 27th. St. Vincent de Paul Time Period: 1581-1660 Feast Day: September 27 Title/Attributes: Confessor, Founder Location of Relic: Back Right Reliquary - Center Section Type of Relic: Body Saint Vincent de Paul had a clear-cut plan for how his life would play out – becoming a priest at the age of just 19, he was perfectly content with attaining a prestigious office in the Church, earning copious amounts of money in order to retire early, and then return to his family in their home village in the south of France. What he probably didn’t expect though, was to be captured at sea by pirates, sold into slavery, escape a few years later, found a religious order and charity organizations, and become known as “The Apostle of Charity” from his dedication to caring for the poor. While his life didn’t play out the way he anticipated, Vincent de Paul served God faithfully, and allowed the Holy Spirit to work in his heart, change his aspirations, and direct his efforts to those that were most in need. Born on April 24, 1581, Vincent was the third child born to peasant farmers living in the French village of Pouy. His first formal education was by a group of Franciscan priests, and he displayed a profound talent for literacy early in his life, and at the age of 15, his father paid for him to enter a seminary by selling the family’s oxen. He attended a seminary in Dax, France and was ordained a priest on September 23, 1600. This was cause for some controversy though, due to the Council of Trent regulations that required men be at least 24 years old prior to ordination. Vincent was appointed a parish priest, but when his age came into question of violating the regulations, he decided to resign from the position, rather than fight the issue. He would go on to continue his studies at the University of Toulouse, where he received a Bachelor of Theology degree. Early biographies of Vincent de Paul tell of him receiving a piece of property in an inheritance from a wealthy patron he had met in Toulouse. In 1605, he was sailing to sell the property, when his ship was captured by Turkish pirates. Vincent was taken to Tunis and sold into slavery. Vincent spent two years in slavery, during which he was sold multiple times, eventually ending up with a former priest who had converted to Islam in order to gain his own freedom from slavery, and had Vincent attending to him and his three wives. One of his wives though would visit Vincent while he was in the fields and ask questions about his faith. Vincent was so genuine and passionate about his Catholic faith, the wife in turn began admonishing her husband for renouncing his Christianity. Vincent’s master was so filled with remorse, that he decided to not only set Vincent free, but to escape back to France with him. They crossed the Mediterranean in June of 1607, and Vincent de Paul was a free man. After returning to France, Vincent traveled to Rome for a year to briefly continue his studies, before moving to Paris, where he remained permanently. Not long after arriving in Paris, he made two acquaintances that would drastically alter his initial plans for wealth and early retirement. Pierre de Bérulle was a well-known French priest who would go on to become a cardinal and become Vincent’s spiritual director. Father André Duval was a French priest and a professor of the Sorbonne, one of the first established universities in the world. Both would have heavy influences on Vincent, with Cardinal Pierre appointing Vincent as the pastor of Saint-Medard in the town of Clichy, and Fr. Duval introducing Vincent to the “Rule of Perfection” by Benet Canfield, a book focused on mysticism and the spiritual life that he would quote regularly later in life. Vincent continued to grow in his faith while serving in Clichy, and his commitment to prayer and the priesthood helped deter him from continuing to pursue wealth and leisure. The most significant conversion of heart happened in 1617, when Vincent was recalled back to Paris less than a year after leaving, having been appointed chaplain to the Gondi family by Cardinal Pierre. The Gondi family were a prominent Florentine banking family who had an estate in Picardy. It was there, in January of 1617, that Vincent heard the confession of a dying servant, which would open his eyes to the drastic spiritual and financial needs of the poor in France. Later that year, Vincent left the Gondi family and was made the pastor of a parish in Châtillon-les-Dombes, a town in the southeast of France. Stories tell of Vincent preparing for a Sunday Mass when a parishioner arrived with news of the illness and financial struggles of a family in the parish. Vincent preached on their need that afternoon, and his parishioners responded with an overwhelming wave of support, bringing the family much-needed food, supplies, and generosity. He would go on to organize a group of affluent women in the area who helped collect funds for missionary projects, relief for victims of war, the foundation of hospitals, and even the ransom of 1,200 slaves to safety from North Africa. This group would become the first Confraternity of Charity, the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul. Madame Gondi, having seen firsthand Vincent’s faith in action (the dying servant Vincent attended to had told her his soul “would have been damned without Vincent’s ministry”), noticed Vincent’s local missions to the people, and began setting aside money to preach about missions on a greater scale. She, along with Fr. Duval, encouraged him to find a community that was willing and able to help Vincent spread the word about missions and serving the poor, but none were willing to take on this specific apostolate. So, with the mentorship of Fr. Duval, in April of 1625 he founded the Congregation of the Mission, a group of priests also known as “Vincentians” who were committed to lives of chastity, poverty, obedience, and devotion to the poor. This religious order sparked another passionate purpose for Vincent – the training and formation of priests. At the time, there were not many priests in France, and those that were present were not particularly faithful to their way of life. Vincent began conducting numerous retreats to help instruct and prepare men for the priesthood, which would serve as a precursor for the model of modern-day seminaries. Vincent was a pioneer in clerical training and at one point, the Vincentians were directing more than 50 different seminaries around the world. As the Congregation of the Mission continued to grow, so did the Confraternities of Charity. More and more laywomen were visiting, feeding, and caring for the sick and poor. With Louise de Marillac, who Vincent served as her spiritual advisor, they formed the Daughters of Charity in 1633, the first non-cloistered religious institute of women devoted to charitable works. They cared for prisoners, taught catechism to rural children, and took to the city streets to serve God through the poor. Vincent continued to oversee these various organizations for many years, while also serving as the spiritual director at the Convent of St. Mary of the Angels for 28 years. He served on the Queen’s Council for Ecclesiastical Affairs, combatted the rise of the Jansenism heresy, and served faithfully all the way up until his death on September 27, 1660. He was 79 years old. Two miracles were attributed to the work of Vincent de Paul, a nun cured of ulcers, and a laywoman who was healed of paralysis. Subsequently, Pope Benedict XIII beatified Vincent on August 13, 1729. Less than a decade later, Pope Clement XIII officially canonized him on June 16, 1737. He is the patron saint of charities, hospitals, volunteers, prisoners, and horses. Vincent’s legacy lives on throughout the world from his passionate charity. There are more than 4,000 Vincentians still serving in 86 countries, and more than 18,000 Daughters of Charity spread out across 94 countries. In 1833, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul was founded by Blessed Antoine Frédéric Ozanam, a French historian, scholar and lawyer, to serve the poor. Saint Vincent de Paul’s compassion, humility and generosity changed the world. He didn’t necessarily have grandiose plans to cover the globe with his image, teachings or writings; instead, he served those in need who were right in front of him. Once he did that, God did the rest, and the “Father of the Poor” changed the world through the training of priests in the French church, the service of the faithful Vincentians and Daughters of Charity, and the actions of every person who reads about the life of this great saint and commits themselves to doing their part to serve the poor too. Next Item Previous Item

Saint Maximilian Kolbe was born Raymund Kolbe on January 8th, 1894 in Zdunska-Wola, Poland. Despite being a troublesome youth, he developed a strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary before being ordained a priest in 1918. He created a Catholic newspaper, magazine, radio station, and city, founding Niepokalanów, the City of the Immaculate in 1927. Following the Nazi occupation of Poland in 1939, he was arrested and sent to Auschwitz. He was killed after willingly taking the place of a man condemned to death, and his devotion to Mary and heroic sacrifice still inspires millions of Catholics today. His feast day is August 14th. St. Maximilian Kolbe Time Period: 1894-1941 Feast Day: August 14 Title/Attributes: Confessor, Franciscan, Martyr Location of Relic: Back Left Reliquary - Left Section Type of Relic: Hair A fervent devotee to Mary. A master of new media. A pure, sacrificial soul. The brave Franciscan friar and eventual martyr St. Maximilian Kolbe was a man with a soldier’s heart, dedicating his life to fight in a spiritual war for souls. He accomplished a great deal in his 47 years alive – organizing the Militia Immaculata (Army of the Immaculate One), creating a monthly periodical titled “Rycerz Niepokalanej” (Knight of the Immaculate), founding monasteries across the world, and essentially building an entire city in Poland. He is a well-known saint for his heroic sacrifice in Auschwitz, volunteering to die in the place of a stranger in the German death camp, but there is much to learn from his life, starting at a very young age. Raymund Kolbe was born on January 8th, 1894 in Zdunska-Wola, Poland. One of five boys born to his parents, Julius Kolbe and Maria Dabrowska, he witnessed the effects of Poland’s political disunity at a young age, while growing in devotion to Jesus through Mary from the influence of his virtuous mother – who taught him to pray the Rosary, Angelus and other Marian prayers. These daily recitations couldn’t subdue Raymund’s mischievous nature though, with the young child drawing the ire of his mother one day in 1906. “I don’t know what’s going to become of you,” she said, shaking the disobedient youth to his core. He tearfully presented himself to Lord at his usual place of prayer, where he had a vision of the Virgin Mary. He described the incident: “That night I asked the Mother of God what was to become of me. Then she came to me holding two crowns, one white, the other red. She asked me if I was willing to accept either of these crowns. The white one meant that I should persevere in purity and the red that I should become a martyr. I said that I would accept them both.” Following this vision, his days as a troublesome youth were over, with Raymund and his older brother Francis joining the Conventual Franciscans the very next year. They were enrolled at a seminary in Lwow, with Raymund entering the novitiate on September 4th, 1910, where he was given the new name Maximilian. He briefly left the Order, with his Polish patriotism and love of Mary leading him to attempt to join the military forces in defense of Poland. God would soon make it clear that his mission was meant to be fought on the spiritual battlefield, and not a military one, and Friar Maximilian soon returned to the Order. He was sent to Rome in 1912 to further his theological studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University, earning a doctorate in philosophy in 1915 and another in theology a few years later. His dedication to Mary persisted throughout his time in Rome, where as a student, he witnessed vehement demonstrations against the Pope and the Catholic Church as a whole. With numerous Freemason pamphlets being distributed and other forms of media going out to shamefully attack the Holy Father, Kolbe knew something had to be done. On October 16th, 1917, Kolbe, along with six other friars, joined together to form the “Militia Immaculatae” (Army of the Immaculate One) to work for the conversion of all enemies of the Catholic Church. They consecrated themselves totally to the Immaculata and begin planning how to bring conversion to the Freemasons and beyond. Kolbe was officially ordained as a priest in 1918, and he returned home to Poland the following year to continue his work of promoting Mary throughout the newly independent country. He was appointed to serve as a professor at the Franciscan seminaries near Kraków, but a severe bout of tuberculosis, which also ailed Kolbe while in Rome, derailed those plans. He was forced to take a lengthy leave of absence from teaching, but while his physical body ailed greatly from this sickness, Kolbe’s zeal for souls never diminished. Not long after returning to Poland, Kolbe desired to start a Catholic newspaper, but lacked the funds. However, he had faith in Mary’s providence, and after praying for her intercession, he was able to collect enough donations to purchase an old printing press. After another spell of tuberculosis, Kolbe moved to a small friary in Grodno, where he operated a religious publishing press until 1926. Most notably, he founded a monthly periodical titled “Rycerz Niepokalanej” (Knight of the Immaculate) as a devotional publication to the Virgin Mary. Kolbe had seen how the enemies of the Church had utilized the media to spread hate – he knew he had the opportunity to utilize the same mediums of communication to instead spread Christ’s love, and this endeavor would change Kolbe’s life forever. The magazine began circulating widely around the country, with a daily newspaper, Maly Dziennik, also growing in popularity. At its peak, the Knight of the Immaculate was reported to have a press run of 750,000 copies printed a month. Soon, the growing number of subscribers forced Kolbe’s printing apostolate to start looking for a larger area to continue their missionary media efforts. At the same time, a Polish Prince Jan Drucko-Lubecki was selling a large plot of land outside of Warsaw, right by a railway. When Kolbe went to negotiate with the Prince in June of 1927, he brought with him a statue of the Virgin Mary. The negotiations reached a standstill, due to Kolbe not having the amount of money the Prince was asking for the land. The Prince was willing to reduce the price if the Order would offer perpetual Mass for him and his descendants, but when the Order refused, Kolbe departed, but left the statue on the property. When the Prince eventually told Kolbe to come collect the large statue, Kolbe merely responded with a request to let the statue remain there for awhile. After some time had passed, with the Prince constantly gazing upon the statue throughout the day, he came to realize that he was depriving the Virgin Mary of her rightful honor, and reached out to Fr. Maximilian Mary Kolbe, who he realized was a true ambassador of the Blessed Mother, to agree to his terms and sell the land. Twenty-two friars would be the founding residents of Niepokalanów, the City of the Immaculate. It was consecrated on December 8th, 1927, with a junior seminary starting in 1929, leading hundreds of men to flock to the area in pursuit of a radically Marian life. At one point, the monastery housed almost eight hundred people, not all priests or friars, but simply men dedicated to heroic lives of poverty, prayer, and sanctity. The city quickly became a major religious printing center, with Kolbe repeatedly pointing out that success was not measured in constructing more buildings or adding more printing presses; instead, it was found in the daily deepening of one’s love for the Immaculate. This love was further put into action by Kolbe when from 1930 to 1936, he traveled to Nagasaki, Japan alongside four other friars, in hopes of starting a mission there. His missionary heart had no bounds, and despite many barriers of language, opposition from local authorities and lack of finances, they were able to publish the Japanese version of their magazine, titled “Seibo no Kishi” as well as establish a new City of the Immaculate, named “Mugenzai no Sono”, or “Garden of the Immaculate.” Most notable about this monastery was that Kolbe prayerfully built it on a side of a mountain that he was advised against, due to Shinto beliefs viewing it as the side “not in tune with nature.” When the atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki in 1945, the monastery was untouched from the blast by the other side of the mountain, which bore the brunt of the explosion. Had he built the monastery on the preferred side, it would not still be standing to this day. Kolbe would become the superior at Mugenzai no Sono one year after their arrival to Japan, with the Japanese version of The Knight surging to 50,000 subscribers by 1933. However, health issues continued to assail Kolbe, and after a brief trip to Malabar, India in an attempt to open another monastery, he returned to Poland in 1936. By this time, Niepokalanów had an airport, medical facilities, and even its own fire brigade. In 1938, Kolbe also held an amateur radio license and started a radio station, Radio Niepokalanów, to continue to use modern media to spread the word of God. He hoped to one day build a motion picture studio, but those plans were halted in 1939, when during WWII, the Nazis occupied Poland. Kolbe was one of the few friars who remained at the monastery, which had been converted to a temporary hospital, when the Nazis raided Niepokalanów. Kolbe was arrested on September 19th, 1939, but released on December 8th. He refused to sign the Deutsche Volksliste, a Nazi institution translated to “German People’s List” which would have given him rights similar to those of German citizens, in exchange for recognizing his ethnic German ancestry. Instead, he returned to the ransacked monastery, undeterred, to continue his missionary work. The monastery would become a safe haven for refugees and displaced families, with Kolbe helping hide 3,000 Polish refugees, two-thirds being Jewish, from the Nazis. They also continued their publication work, including many materials that were critical of the Nazi party. On February 17th, 1941, the monastery was officially shut down, and Kolbe was arrested by the Gestapo alongside four others. They were imprisoned in the Pawiak prison, located in Warsaw, before being transferred to Auschwitz on May 28th, as prisoner 16670. Upon his arrest, Saint Maximilian said, “Courage, my sons. Don’t you see that we are leaving on a mission? They pay our fare in the bargain. What a piece of good luck! The thing to do now is to pray well in order to win as many souls as possible.” Kolbe continued to act as a priest while in Auschwitz, despite being subject to violent harassment for doing so. He received numerous beatings and lashings but continued to minister to all those around him in the dark, heartless prison. At one point he was beaten so badly, the prisoners had to smuggle him into the camp hospital, where he heard confessions as he recovered. It is said that Kolbe would conduct Mass within the prison, using smuggled bread and wine, and would step aside from the food line to allow others to eat, despite the rations being pitiful to begin with. He was unflinching in the midst of incredible harshness, and maintained the gentleness of Christ at all times, pleading with his fellow prisoners to mercifully forgive their persecutors. At the end of July 1941, a prisoner escaped from the camp. Nazi camp protocol required that ten men be killed in retribution for every one that escapes, prompting the Nazi commander to pick the ten souls to be slaughtered. Francis Gajowniczek, a married man with young children was chosen as one of the ten, and when selected he cried “”My wife! My children!” When Fr. Maximilian Mary Kolbe heard his anguished cries, he stepped forward. “What does this Polish pig want?” the Nazi commander asked, to which Kolbe replied that he was a Catholic priest wishing to take Gajowniczek’s place. Astonished, the commander granted the request, and Kolbe was led off to the starvation chamber. According to an eyewitness from the prison, an assistant janitor within Auschwitz, what happened next was beyond comprehension. Inside the prison cell, Kolbe led the prisoners in prayer each day. Whenever the guards would check on the condemned men, he was calmly standing or kneeling in the middle of the cell. Two terrible weeks of starvation and water deprivation followed, with Kolbe hearing the whispered prayers of his fellow prisoners as they passed away, leaving only him alive in the cell. The guards, wanting the bunker emptied for more future cruelty, decided Kolbe’s time was up. Kolbe was given a lethal injection of carbolic acid. Some eyewitnesses at the injection say that he calmly raised his left arm up, offering his arm to the executioner. He died on August 14th, 1941, and his remains were cremated on August 15th, the feast day of the Assumption of Mary. On January 30th, 1969, Kolbe was declared venerable by Pope Paul VI. He was also beatified by Pope Paul VI on October 17, 1971, who recognized him as a Confessor of the Faith, but not a martyr. On October 10, 1982, Pope John Paul II surprisingly arrived at Kolbe’s canonization wearing red vestments, to officially recognize him as a martyr. JPII wanted to make a point that the Nazi systematic hatred of entire categories of humanity was inherently a hatred of entire religious faiths. Francis Gajowniczek, the prisoner Kolbe replaced in the death chamber, was present for both his beatification and canonization ceremonies. He is the patron saint of journalists, media communications, the pro-life movement, recovering drug addicts, political prisoners, and families. At his canonization, JPII called Kolbe “the “patron for our difficult century.” In the midst of another difficult century, let us look to Kolbe’s devotion to Mary, his ability to embrace modern technology to spread God’s love, and his heroic sacrifice in the face of evil to inspire us forward in our heavenly journey. Next Item Previous Item

Saint Thomas Aquinas was an invaluable gift to both the Catholic Church and to the world for his ability to bridge the gap between faith and reason. A 13th century Dominican friar, he is recognized today as the most significant figure in scholastic theology, and an unparalleled voice on biblical interpretations during the Middle Ages. Thomas preached a revolutionary focus: viewing faith and reason not as contradicting opposites, but as complementary fountains of knowledge. “The Universal Teacher”, his timeless works and his relentless pursuit of knowledge and holiness are still benefiting the church and the world to this day. St. Thomas Aquinas Time Period: 1225-1274 Feast Day: January 28 Title/Attributes: Confessor, Doctor of the Church, Dominican Location of Relic: Back Right Reliquary - Center Section Type of Relic: Bones Saint Thomas Aquinas was an invaluable gift to both the Catholic Church and to the world for his ability to bridge the gap between faith and reason. A 13th century Dominican friar, he is recognized today as the most significant figure in scholastic theology, and an unparalleled voice on biblical interpretations during the Middle Ages. Thomas Aquinas was born in 1225, inside a castle owned by his parents, Count Landulf of Aquino and Theodora, the Countess of Teano. The family, with Thomas being the youngest child among his eight siblings, were descendant of Emperors Frederick I and Henry VI, though they were generally regarded as lower nobility in the Kingdom of Sicily. At the age of five, Thomas was sent to study among Benedictine monks at the Abbey of Monte Cassino. He was regarded as a “witty child” who was often quizzical and curious, posing questions to the monks such as “What is God?” to the surprised monks. Eventually the military conflict between the Emperor Frederick II and Pope Gregory IX reached the abbey in 1239, forcing 13-year-old Thomas to return to Naples. While studying at the University of Naples, he was attracted to the work of Aristotle and became greatly intrigued by philosophy. He also took interest in the newly founded Dominican order of friars, thanks to meeting John of St. Julian, a Dominican preacher who was part of an active effort to recruit more followers to their order. Thomas was attracted to their emphasis on academic learning, poverty, purity, and a life of spiritual service, and at the age of 19, he secretly joined the order of Dominican monks. When his family found out, they were outraged with his decision. His parents demanded that Thomas become a Benedictine instead, in order to enjoy a more affluent and influential position in the church; they couldn’t stand to imagine their son begging as a poor monk. The Dominicans attempted to prevent his parents from interfering with his decision and arranged to move him to Rome, but on their way to Rome, he was kidnapped by his own brothers and returned to his family’s castle, San Giovanni at Rocca Secca. His family tried desperately for an entire year to sway Thomas from his new beliefs as he was held captive, but instead he passed the time by tutoring his younger sisters and secretly communicating with the Dominicans. His family even went so far as to offer him a position as Archbishop of Naples and hire a prostitute to attempt to break his resolve. He resolutely rejected both, and legend tells of Thomas chasing the prostitute out of his room with a flaming iron, branding a cross into his door, and then seeing two angels appear in a dream to strengthen his resolve to remain celibate. When his mother realized their attempts were futile, Theodora arranged for him to escape through a window. So prideful was their family that they preferred a secret escape rather than appearing to accept his position at the sake of their family name. After his escape around the year 1245, Thomas returned to Naples, where he resumed his studies with the Dominicans. He began studying theology at the University of Paris – the leading center for academic studies in Europe at the time – and likely fell under the wing of another future saint, Albert the Great. Albert was by far the best theological teacher Thomas could have met, and when he was sent to teach at a new university in Cologne in 1248, Thomas would follow the theologian, declining the offer of Pope Innocent IV to become the abbot of Monte Cassino. Thomas was appointed magister studentium of the university by Saint Albert, but many were confused by the quiet, introverted friar with lopsided eyes, and he gained the nickname “the dumb ox.” Nonetheless, after reading Thomas’ thesis and finding it brilliant, Saint Albert proclaimed to the university, “We call this young man a dumb ox, but his bellowing in doctrine will one day resound throughout the world!” The next years of his life would find Thomas spending his time teaching and writing across Europe. He taught in Cologne as an apprentice professor, wrote commentaries on the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Lamentations, and rapidly gained prominence through his public speaking and preaching. At the time in Medieval thought, many were struggling to reconcile the relationship between faith and reason. Many great minds of Christianity and brilliant philosophers were present, but few sought to harmonize the two prior to Thomas Aquinas. Averroes, a Muslim Andalusian who wrote many books on philosophy and theology, had created a popular “theory of the double truth” at the time, which viewed the two types of knowledge, faith and reason, as being in direct opposition of each other. Thomas preached a revolutionary new focus on the theological aspects of faith and the philosophical principles of reason not as contradicting opposites, but instead as complementary fountains of knowledge that both flowed from God alone. Not only were the two compatible, according to Thomas, but he believed that “revelation could guide reason and prevent it from making mistakes, while reason could clarify and demystify faith.” To expand on the many teachings and defenses of faith that Thomas provided would require hours upon hours of explanation, but at its core, Thomas combined traditional principles of theology with modern philosophic thought to bring clarity and truth to the world, answering the questions of church authorities, medieval intellectuals, and common people alike. Thomas would later go on to receive a master’s degree in theology, and teach in Paris, Ostia, Bologna, Rome, Naples, and more. He would write more than 60 books, ranging from topics such as apologetics, philosophy, and Biblical commentaries. He was appointed regent master in theology at Paris in 1256, served as general preacher of Naples in 1260, and in 1261 traveled to Orvieto, where he worked to form friars who were unable to attend a university, while also producing works for Pope Urban IV, such as writing a newly created liturgy for the feast of Corpus Christi. In February of 1265, Thomas was called to Rome by the newly elected Pope Clement IV to serve as papal theologian. The same year, he began teaching deep theology courses at a newly established Dominican school at Santa Sabina, one of the first advanced schools for the province. It was while teaching at Santa Sabina that Thomas began his most famous work, the Summa Theologica, a timeless book on Christian doctrine that is also a highly practical guide for spiritual leaders. While it eventually would remain unfinished by Aquinas, to this day it is regarded as one of the most influential works of Western literature. In 1268, Thomas was called again to serve as regent master at the University of Paris, partly due to a sudden rise of “Averroism”, a resurgence of a “radical Aristotelianism” that opposed the combability of faith and reason. Thomas ended up penning two works which combatted these beliefs and reprimanded Averroism as being “incompatible with Christian doctrine.” The Catholic church would publicly condemn the works of Averroes in 1270 and later in 1277. At the end of his regency in Paris, the Dominicans requested Thomas to establish a university at the place of his choosing. He chose Naples for the new institution and moved there upon its founding to serve as regent master. He continued to write and preach in Naples, until two mystical experiences would change everything for Thomas. In 1273, during the Feast of St. Nicholas, Thomas Aquinas had a mystical vision at Mass where he heard the voice of Christ speak to him saying, “You have written well of me, Thomas. What reward would you have for your labor?” Thomas replied, “Nothing but you, Lord.” Stories tell of Thomas being found by a sacristan crying and levitating in front of an icon of the crucified Christ while praying, and following this mystical experience, Aquinas found himself unable to continue his writings, saying, “I can do no more. Such secrets have been revealed to me that all I have written now appears to be of little value.” After his confessor, Father Reginald of Piperno, urged him to continue writing, he refused, admitting that “all that I have written seems like straw to me.” He would never write again. In 1274, Thomas Aquinas was invited to participate in the Second Council of Lyons to help bridge the gap between Eastern and Western churches, which was rapidly widening at the time. While on his way to the council, Thomas hit his head on the branch of a fallen tree and became ill. He was ushered to Monte Cassino to rest, but after attempting to set out again, he was unable to continue and stopped at the Cistercian abbey in Fossanova, Italy. The monks there offered Thomas a spot inside the castle, but sensing his death was near, he requested to remain in the monastery saying, “If the Lord wishes to take me away, it is better that I be found in a religious house than in the dwelling of a layperson.” His health continued to dwindle for several days before receiving his last rites and praying “”I have written and taught much about this very holy Body, and about the other sacraments in the faith of Christ, and about the Holy Roman Church, to whose correction I expose and submit everything I have written.” He died on March 7, 1274, while giving commentary on the Song of Songs. Before half a century had passed, Thomas Aquinas was canonized a saint by Pope John XXII. In 1567, Pope Pius V named him a Doctor of the Church. In the 16th century, the University of Paris was renamed the College of Saint Thomas. In the 19th century, Pope Leo XIII declared the works of Aquinas were to be taught at all Catholic seminaries and theological institutions around the world. His original feast day was March 7, the day of his death, but due to that date often falling within Lent, it was moved to January 28th after a revision of the Roman Calendar in 1969. Saint Thomas Aquinas is the patron saint of academics, philosophers, students, publishers, and pencilmakers. “The Universal Teacher”, Saint Thomas Aquinas illuminated a compatibility of faith and reason and serves as a towering example of what it means to be a devout believer in Jesus Christ. His timeless works are still benefitting the church and the world to this day, and his relentless pursuit of knowledge and holiness, despite any opposition or degradation he faced, should inspire us all to use our gifts for the glory of God. A Doctor of the Church are certain men and women who are revered by the Church for the special value of their writings and preaching and the sanctity of their lives. They each made important and lasting contributions to the faith and are to be recognized for their great merits. To be declared a Doctor of the Church, you have to meet three basic requirements: First, you must have lived a life of exemplary holiness, or insignis vitae sanctitas (outstanding sanctity). In short, you have to be a saint. Second, to be a Doctor of the Church you must have deepened the whole Church's understanding of the Catholic Faith with emins doctrina (eminent teaching). Which is to say, sanctity isn't enough. There are thousands of saints, but only 37 Doctors of the Church. To be a Doctor one must do more than just live the Faith. Rather, one must significantly and profoundly contribute to our understanding of Divine Revelation, helping us to know more deeply some truth about God and His actions in the World. And third, a pope must officially declare you a Doctor. That being said, as the Church understands it, when a pope declares someone a Doctor of the Church, he's not so much making someone a Doctor as he is recognizing what the Holy Spirit has already done - that He has conferred the charism of Doctor upon them. Next Item Previous Item