St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

Have you experienced the possibility of God working through hardship or even tragedy in your life? Has your life taken an unexpected turn and do you wonder if God is still there for you?

Elizabeth Seton's comfortable life took a shocking turn for the worse when she lost her husband and fortune and was set on an unexpected course. Baptized Elizabeth Bayley, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, born in 1774, is the first American-born saint. Born into a wealthy Episcopalian family she was married at the age of twenty to a merchant of similar background, William Magee Seton and had five children. Her life was one of comfort and charm.

After the tragic death of her husband from tuberculosis she converted to Catholicism. Rejected by her own family, Elizabeth was forced to live on her own, unsupported financially. Rather than focusing on how truly different and challenging her life had become, Elizabeth felt called by God to action. She would spend the second half of her life founding many schools for girls (some specifically for poor children) and is credited with being foundational to the parochial school network in the United SStates.

Many other women would soon follow Elizabeth in her quest for educating children. Elizabeth Ann Seton turned her tragedy into triumph founding the first American religious society, formally known as the Daughters of Charity of St. Joseph. At the time of her death, there were 20 communities spread throughout the world.

Contemplation

Have you asked God to be with you in times of trouble or in your unexpected difficulties?

Consider a difficulty you may be having; ask God to meet you in this difficulty and do so throughout the week.

Closing Prayer

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, brave widow and convert, you lived your life as an example of one who lived for others. Through your prayers help me to live like you: committed to educating others, open to the call of God, brave enough to change complete directions in my life if called to do so.

Pray that I have eyes to see the open doors of opportunity, when the doors seem shut and all is dark.

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for me.

Maximilian Kolbe

Have you ever felt God calling you to act heroically?
Knowing that your actions might leave you vulnerable and bring about uncertainty in your life, you still go forward?

Auschwitz prisoner number 16670, Maximilian Kolbe, felt this call from God one July day in 1941. A Franciscan priest imprisoned for hiding thousands of Polish Jews during early World War II, Maximilian continued to live a life of faith within the confines of the prison camp. He would regularly preside at Mass using confiscated bread and wine; he heard the confessions of his fellow inmates and was a pastoral presence to those who needed him.

On the eventful day in July, there was an escape from the camp. The standard punishment was the execution of ten men for each escaped prisoner. One of the ten prisoners called out for execution that day was Francis Gajowniczek, a husband and father. He cried out in despair of never seeing his wife or children again. At that moment, Maximilian volunteered to take his place - offering his own life for Francis's. Maximilian's heroic actions offered Francis and his family a long future life together.

Francis Gajowniczek was present at the canonization of Maximilian Kolbe by Pope John Paul II in 1982.

Contemplation

Are there circumstances in my life calling me to act heroically? Can I say yes?

Have I too acted like Maximilian, acting bravely even in the face of uncertainty or adversity? How has God been present to me during these moments?

Closing Prayer

Saint Maximilian Kolbe, hero of all times, pray that I may live as you did, open to God's call to live bravely. May I be able to put another's life ahead of my own; may I, too, model saintly behavior in my life. Help me to live as you did, even in the face uncertainty, suffering, and death, continuously offering a face of God to those around me.

Saint Maximilian Kolbe, pray for me.

Thea Bowman

Have you or a loved one suffered from cancer?

Have you looked to God in the quest to live life to the fullest while living or caring daily for someone with illness?

This became the reality for Sister Thea Bowman who suffered from breast cancer. Thea Bowman, born in 1937, was an African American Franciscan known for her colorful preaching that left everyone who heard her filled with a spirit of joy. She was a well-traveled speaker whose love for life was contagious. Realizing her own need to blend her rich African heritage with the customs of her church, Thea's quest would lead her to found the Institute of Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University in New Orleans.

Diagnosed with breast cancer in 1984, Thea refused to give up on the gift of life she had from God, and continued her traveling and lecturing. Eventually when she was confined to a wheelchair, bald, dressed in her colorful robes, the story of her faith seemed to have more poignancy. Speaking of the suffering and glory of Christ, while she, herself, suffered daily from the cancer that was wracking her body, she told her listeners, "I don't make sense of suffering... I try to make sense of life." While living with her cancer, Thea is said to have asked God, "Lord, let me live until I die." Sister Thea Bowman died on March 30th 1990, six years after her diagnosis.

Contemplation

How can you live your life to the fullest, regardless of the sufferings that may exist in your life?

Try to focus on the day-to-day joys that exist in your life - big or small. Try naming a joy each day this week.

Closing Prayer

Sister Thea Bowman, modern woman of knowledge, faith and courage, pray that I may live as you did. Your extreme recognition of the gift of life is to be admired and imitated. Pray that I may embody your ability to focus on the good in the life I have, not the suffering that may be. I pray that towards the end of my own life, in the suffering that may surround me, that I may be like you, always looking toward God and living what God wants me to do.

Sister Thea Bowman, pray for me.

St. Paul Miki and Companions, martyrs of Japan

Have you ever forgiven someone who gravely wronged you?

Knowing that forgiveness won't change things, you still feel the desire to do?

Such was the desire of Jesuit missionary Paul Miki. Serving as a missionary in Japan, where Catholicism was viewed as contrary to popular politics, Paul Miki and his companions knowingly risked punishment in order to continue serving God's people. In underground communities they preached the good news of the Gospel and offered sacraments in secret to Christians throughout the country.

Paul Miki, remembered for his preaching, once said: "My religion teaches me to pardon my enemies and all who have offended me. I do gladly pardon the emperor and all who have sought my death. I beg them to seek baptism and be Christians themselves."

Contrary to Paul Miki's prayers for conversion of heart on behalf of the emperor, emperor Hideyoshi condemned Miki and 25 companions (two fellow Japanese Jesuits, six Franciscans and seventeen Japanese lay men) to death. They were publicly crucified in 1587 for deliberately continuing to spread Christianity.

Contemplation

Am I struggling with the desire to forgive someone in my life?

Can I ask God to help me open my heart to forgiveness this week? How does this feel?

Closing Prayer

St. Paul Miki and companions, just as Jesus forgave those who crucified him, so you, too, were able to call upon the spirit of generosity and forgive your enemies.

Pray that I also may be able to find peace and forgiveness in my own heart, in big and small ways. Help me to be models of forgiveness for others.

St. Paul Miki and companions, pray for me.

St. Mary, Mother of Jesus

Has the cruelty of the world ever hurt a loved one?

Does fear of the unknown prevent you from following a dream or living out a vocation?

We have only to look to Mary, the mother of Jesus, to find an example of someone whose life was marred by the violence of others, and yet was a person who remained extraordinarily trusting of God's plans for her son.

We find in Mary a mother whose love is not stifling, but courageous and encouraging. No doubt Mary would have liked to tell her son Jesus to keep quiet and not instigate others. Perhaps she would have wanted him to remain a little boy, someone whom she could protect and make decisions for. Yet, knowing that the world might be cruel to her son, she did not let fear rule, but having faith in God, she watched as He went out and ministered to others.

Relying on her faith in God that all was as it should be, Mary observed her son's public ministry. Surely her heart ached like any parent's would, as her son was doubted and criticized for His words and actions. Pain was most certainly part of Mary's experience as she witnessed perhaps one of the most tragic experiences of a parent, the torture and death of her own child. Mary's life was marred by the violence of the world and still her life stands as an example of faith in action - faith in relationship.

Contemplation

Am I diminishing the wishes and dreams of another by my words and actions?

Is fear standing in the way of my vocation?

Closing Prayer

Mary, brave and loving mother of Jesus, be with me in my struggle to live as a faith filled person. Help me to live as you did not hiding in fear but always trusting in God's love and plan and confident in the actions I take. As a parent, help me to be supportive of my child's vocation in life. Help me to be a supportive presence in the lives of my loved ones.

Compassionate Mary, pray for me.