St. Catherine of Siena

"Everything comes from love, all is ordained for the salvation of man, God does nothing without this goal in mind.... Charity is the sweet and holy bond which links the soul with its Creator: it binds God with man and man with God..." -St. Catherine of Siena

Catherine Benincasa (1347-1380) was the youngest child in a large family... with twenty-three siblings! Catherine had a twin sister, but she did not live very long....
When she was six years old, her mother sent her on an errand to deliver a package with her brother to her older sister who was already married. As they walked back home, they took a short cut through an open field. As they walked through, Catherine and her brother both agreed on picking the many beautiful flowers that grew there. There was also a Dominican church nearby, and as Catherine looked above it, she saw some people standing and kneeling in before a great throne. A King was seated there, and He seemed quite pleased with the people around Him, including Catherine. Then, she saw Him turn in her direction and smile. Catherine went down to her knees, as her brother stared at her, wondering what in the world she was doing. Her brother then asked her in a confused manner what was wrong with her. But Catherine did pay any attention to her brother, for she knew who the King was. Then Catherine saw the King raised His Hand to bless her. A few seconds later her brother started pulling her to her feet and at once the beautiful vision was gone.

Sometime later, she thought of the saints that had been hermits. St. John the Baptist, St. Anthony of Egypt, St. Paul, St. Romuald, and even St. Mary Magdalen! Catherine then made her decision to be like them too, since those hermits ended up being saints... and the saints are God's friends, right? Withough hesitation, she got up one early morning and took from the kitchen some food and drink, silently bid goodbye to her fast-asleep family, then set off to find her own place to be a hermit. Without looking back home, she let her thoughts run off... But before she thought of the possibility of her family looking for her, she spotted the perfect cave not so far away from where she was walking. Catherine gave a cry of joy, and ran to the cave, giving thanks to God on the way. She soon discovered that there was a little brook nearby, and inside the cave it felt much cooler than outside in the burning sun.
A little later, as she was spending quite some time kneeling in deep prayer, she her a voice lovingly asking her to go back to her home to be a saint there, and not in a cave. Catherine was disappointed at first, but she knew that God had special plans for her there. Catherine ran toward the village, desperately praying that her family would not be cross with her. Suddenly, her surroundings changed from a peaceful place, to a crowded street. Catherine's prayer was answered... Now, it was time to be a saint at home...

Novena Prayer to Saint Catherine of Siena
O marvelous wonder of the Church, seraphic virgin, Saint Catharine, because of your extraordinary virtue and the immense good which you accomplished for the Church and society, you are acclaimed and blessed by all people. Oh, turn your benign countenance to me who, confident of your powerful patronage, calls upon you with all the ardor of affection and begs you to obtain, by your prayer, the favors I so ardently desire.

You, who were a victim of charity, who in order to benefits your neighbor obtained from God the most stupendous miracles and became the joy and the hope of all, you cannot help but hear the prayers of those who fly into your heart - that heart which you received from the Divine Redeemer in a celestial ecstasy.

Yes, O seraphic virgin, demonstrate once again proof of you power and of your flaming charity, so that your name will be ever more blessed and exalted; grant that we, having experienced your most efficacious intercession here on earth, may come one day to thank you in heaven and enjoy eternal happiness with you. Amen.

info from the book, Saint Catherine of Siena, The Story of the Girl Who Saw Saints in the Sky, by Mary Fabyan Windeatt, and pic, quote, and prayer from here

St. Louis de Montfort

"How beautiful Our Lady was! How kind and motherly! If only people everwhere could come to know and love her!...As for the True Devotion--it could make saints of young and old; of good, bad and indifferent, just as he had always said. But how the Devil struggled to keep this fact a secret! How he schemed and plotted so that the True Devotion would be feared, misunderstood, shunned! Yet in spite of all his efforts there would always be childlike souls to discover the enormous power for good behind the words of the Act of Consecration to Our Lady...... I am all Thine, and all I have is Thine, O most loving Jesus, through Mary, Thy holy Mother..." -St. Louis de Montfort

Act of Consecration to Our Lady

I (name), a faithless sinner - renew and ratify today in thy hands, O Immaculate Mother, the vows of my Baptism; I renounce forever satan, his pomps and works; and I give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after Him all the days of my life, and to be more faithful to Him than I have ever been before.
In the presence of all the heavenly court, I choose thee this day for my Mother and Mistress. I deliver and consecrate to thee, as thy slave, my body and soul, my goods, both interior and exterior, and even the value of all my good actions, past, present, and future; leaving to thee the entire and full right of disposing of me, and all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God, in time and in eternity.

Amen.

He was canonized in the year 1947 by Pope Pius XII, and his cause for his declaration as a Doctor of the Church is being pursued.

Quote from the book, St. Louis de Montfort, The Story of Our Lady's Slave, by Mary Fabyan Windeatt, and prayer from here. Also, please be sure to visit Aunty Esther's blog and see the link about the total consecration to Mary!! :-D

St. Zita

(1218-1272)Ever since she was around 11 years old, she worked as a servant for a family in Italy... She gave away her food (and sometimes even her master's) to all those who were poorer than herself, somtimes causing her into trouble.
Sorry about the short information about her, but I thought it would interesting to post that she's the patroness of the people who have lost their keys... :-)
She was canonized on the 5th of September 1696

Memes

I'm still trying to remember who tagged me for what.... :-)

I was tagged by my mom (on that blog) and Cy for the following ones :-)

Here are the rules...
1. When tagged place the name and URL on your blog.
2. Post rules on your blog.
3. Write 7 non-important things/habit/quirks about yourself.
4. Name 7 of your favorite blogs.
5. Send an email/comment on their blog letting them know they have been tagged.

1. When I read when I'm half asleep I tend to read the same sentences all over and over again.
2. In a discussion group I can only find something interesting to say until after the meeting is finished...(hehe, sorry Pueo) ;-)
3. Whenever a song I know how to play on the piano is playing, I can't help myself but move my fingers as if I were playing too. :-)
4. For some reason, I cannot sleep until I have prayed a rosary or even a part of it...
5. When I spell words (for schoolwork) I move my fingers in the way that I would do on a keyboard.
6. When two voices are singing in a song, I can't help myself but hum the harmony, and not the melody...
7. If I hear a really nice song (with no words usually), I would try to memorize so that I could try to play it on the piano. :-)

Seven (only seven?) of my favorite blogs (sorry...I can't include the url due to the lack of computer time :-P :-D):

Therese's Roses
Mostly Prayers/A Tribute to Our Priests
A Catholic Mom in Hawaii
Hoe Wa'a o Hawaii
Nunblog
The Window Shows it All
View From the Pews

ps~ there's a lot more of my favorite blogs....

Now for Cy's "I got the urge to..." meme....

1. Figure out a few songs on the piano and practice,
2. Read a really great saint book!! :-D
3. Finish schoolwork earlier...
4. Draw or make something to keep myself busy...
5. Bake cookies for a family member :-)
6. Include more of my favorite blogs in the other list! ;-D
umm... I guess that's all for now.... :-)

kay, now I tag Pueo for the second meme and whoever would like to play!! :-D

St. Isidore of Seville

Patron saint of......

The internet!!... as well as the patron saint of computer technicians, computer users, and computers.

The soon to be called "Schoolmaster of the Middle Ages" (560-636) grew up with a very saintly family.... with parents known for their great piety, and his siblings... Saint Fulgentius, Saint Florentina, and Saint Leander of Seville! His future saint siblings raised him after their father's death. He wasn't exactly a bright student at first, but after leaving the problem up to God, he soon became so bright that his teacher had to wear sunglasses! ;-) Later, he became a priest, and helped his brother, St. Leander of Seville, (who was the archbishop of Seville around that time) with the conversion of the Visigoths. After that, he became a hermit....

After a few years when he learned that his brother passed away, he was ordained archbishop to take his place in 601. He started to teach, and announced that there should be seminaries in every diocese. He also wrote a rule for religious orders. Isidore founded, reformed, and wrote books....

Here's a part of a book he wrote that's entitled, Book of Maxims

....

"Prayer purifies us, reading instructs us. Both are good when both are possible. Otherwise, prayer is better than reading. If a man wants to be always in God's company, he must pray regularly and read regularly. When we pray, we talk to God; when we read, God talks to us. All spiritual growth comes from reading and reflection. By reading we learn what we did not know; by reflection we retain what we have learned.

Reading the holy Scriptures confers two benefits. It trains the mind to understand them; it turns man's attention from the follies of the world and leads him to the love of God.

The conscientious reader will be more concerned to carry out what he has read than merely to acquire knowledge of it. In reading we aim at knowing, but we must put into practice what we have learned in our course of study.

The more you devote yourself to study of the sacred utterances, the richer will be your understanding of them, just as the more the soil is tilled, the richer the harvest.

The man who is slow to grasp things but who really tries hard is rewarded, equally he who does not cultivate his God-given intellectual ability is condemned for despising his gifts and sinning by sloth.

Learning unsupported by grace may get into our ears; it never reaches the heart. But when God's grace touches our innermost minds to bring understanding, his word which has been received by the ear sinks deep into the heart...."

-from Book of Maxims by Saint Isidore

Info and image from here

St. Francis of Paola

Fix your minds on the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ. Inflamed with love for us, he came down from heaven to redeem us. For our sake he endured every torment of body and soul and shrank from no bodily pain. He himself gave us an example of perfect patience and love. We, then, are to be patient in adversity.

Take pains to refrain from sharp words. Pardon one another so that later on you will not remember the injury. The recollection of an injury is itself wrong. It adds to our anger, nurtures our sins and hates what is good. It is a rusty arrow and poison for the soul. It puts all virtue to flight.

Be peace-loving. Peace is a precious treasure to be sought with great zeal. You are well aware that our sins arouse God's anger. You must change your life, therefore, so that God in his mercy will pardon you. What we conceal from men is known to God. Be converted, then, with a sincere heart. Live your life that you may receive the blessing of the Lord. Then the peace of God our Father will be with you always.

from a letter by Saint Francis of Paola