saints Archives - Amazing Catechists

I’ve often wondered what my life would’ve been like by now had I followed the call of God’s voice as a young boy. Erroneously believing that a life of pain and hardship lay in that direction, I hardened my heart and adopted a more “realistic” attitude toward my future.

To the Heights, Mr. Brian Kennelly’s novelization of Bl. Pier Giorgio Frasseti’s life (1901-1925), showed me what such a life devoted to caring and loving, begun at a very early age, might have looked like. Pier Giorgio simply and humbly believed that no one is ever too young to love and to care for others, especially for the marginalized, the poor, and the disenfranchised.

I found the life of Bl. Pier Giorgio Frasseti incredibly inspiring. I admit that before reading To the Heights I had not heard of this popular third order Franciscan. Mr. Kennelly does a great job fleshing out Pier Giorgio Frasseti’s love for his family along with his passion for the Catholic Church; his pious devotions to praying the Rosary; attending daily Mass; and spending time in adoration of our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament.

It is important to show young Catholics the rewards of a strongly-lived faith. This book does just that. To the question: given the current state of the world, how can I believe in a God? Mr. Kennelly replies, through Pier Giorgio Frasseti’s humble actions and words: take account of all the graces in your life. How can you not believe in God?

As a Vincentian, I was heartened to read of Bl. Pier Giorgio Frasseti’s work in the St. Vincent de Paul Society. The spirit of caring and charity rings true on every page. In a moving passage, Pier Giorgio explains to someone seemingly indifferent to serving the poor, “There is a special light behind the poor and unfortunate, one we do not have, one that has nothing to do with riches and health. I urge you to see that light tonight, not with your eyes, but with your heart.”

There are many echoes of past saints and sanctifying grace in the young man’s life: his fondness for hiking reminded me of Pope St. John Paul II’s passion for the outdoors; Pier Giorgio’s love of the poor and the sick, and the selfless acts of kindness with which he filled his days, brought to mind St. Vincent de Paul and St. Thérèse of Lisieux (especially in his love of flowers); and his limitless charity towards the poor is exemplary of St. Francis’ concerns.

But Mr. Kennelly also shows us that the tenderhearted and pious young man was no stranger to physical confrontations. Pier Giorgio lived through WWI and the chaotic political aftermath in Italy which gave rise to Mussolini’s infamous fascist (and anti-Catholic) Black Shirts. Pier Giorgio did not back down from unjust confrontations, although he would only fight when all peaceful avenues had been exhausted. In reaction to the Black Shirts, he remarked, “It’s a sad day when Catholics cower to evil and treat the teachings of their Church as if they are merely suggestions, abandoning them without the slightest sign of a troubled conscience.” How prophetic and timely this warning, as our Church continues to face relentless assaults from the secular world.

I truly enjoyed To the Heights and I will be recommending it to everyone for years to come. Mr. Kennelly not only understood what was in Bl. Pier Giorgio Frasseti’s mind, he showed us the care, love and charity alive in the blessed’s heart. We are grateful to such a talented author for revealing these graces. I also enjoyed the book’s short chapters, and I liked that Mr. Kennelly includes some actual prayers in the text, introducing some of the Church’s treasures, such as the Tedeum, to readers.

If you know someone, especially a young person concerned about the plight of the poor or injustice in the world, you must inspire them to action with a copy of To the Heights.

JT Therrien is a Catholic Canadian fiction writer working in a variety of genres: literary; commercial; children’s and young adult; inspirational (mostly based on the Theology of the Body and traditional Catholic doctrine); art-themed; paranormal; romance and love stories. He plies his craft in short story, novella and novel-length works. Readers who enjoy Brian Kennelly’s To the Heights might also like JT’s art-themed, Theology of the Body, young adult, dystopian novella Sprainter, available at all online e-book retailers. Readers can also follow JT online: https://twitter.com/jttherrien – Twitter, https://jttherrien.blogspot.ca – blog, https://sites.google.com/site/jttherrienauthor – website, https://www.amazon.com/author/jttherrien – Amazon author’s page, and at many other social networking sites.

Happy Halloween for Tweens and Teens

By Mary Lou Rosien

The teen years can be tricky around Halloween. Perhaps your students are feeling a little old for trick-or-treating, but a little young for some of the adult themed parties. Giving this time of year a new meaning can help students to celebrate this month, while still enjoying themselves.

1. Have a Saint party. Everyone dresses up as their favorite Saint and learns a little bit about them to share. Play 20 questions to figure out who is representing what Saint.

2. Write letters to someone who has lost a loved one this year. People naturally think of Christmas as a tough time for people who are grieving, but I know from personal experience (my brother died when I was 21 years-old) that Halloween can be even worse. All those images of scary movies, dead people, ghosts and the like can be really disturbing for those who have lost a loved one. This is especially true for those whose loved ones died violently or suddenly. Reaching out to say we care and we are thinking of you can help. A friend stayed all evening with me that first Halloween and I still appreciate it many years later.

3. Encourage students to help with treat-giving at home. Every year my husband and I struggle with who gets to take the little ones trick-or-treating and who stays home to give out candy and protect the house for mischievous makers. Ask your students to consider staying home so parents can take out younger siblings, or volunteering to watch a neighbor’s house so they can take out their children. (Or they could offer to take out younger sibs or younger neighbors so that parents can stay home.)

4. Do the right thing. Talk to students about how defacing property is against God’s commandments. Give them the strength to go against what their peers may be doing (on Halloween night) if it involves hurting someone or their property. Teach them to stand up and say that behavior is not acceptable, even at the risk of getting laughed at.

5. Attend Mass for All Souls Day. Perhaps include all the departed family members and friends of your students in the Mass intentions. Talk to them about praying for the departed, including the poor souls in Purgatory and what the Church teaches on this subject.

6. Discuss the movies that are released this time of year. Investigate with your students whether we should, as Catholics, support movies that glorify murder, mass murder or evil.

7. Have a Happy Halloween!!

(Reprinted from my OSV.com YM column, photo credit to Darya Rosien)

Venerable Matt Talbot

By Steve McVey

Venerable Matt Talbot

As I was making my way out of Dublin’s Pro-Cathedral, I noticed a small shrine to a man named Matt Talbot. I didn’t pay much attention and moved on. Several weeks later, I attended Mass at my local parish near Castleknock. The Priest stood up to give the homily and began to speak about Matt Talbot. Low and behold it was Matt Talbot Sunday! I decided I better listen. I heard an inspiring story of a humble man who overcame addiction and turned to God completely.

Matt Talbot was born in 1856 in Dublin’s inner city. As his father drank heavily, the family was quite poor. He left school at age 12 and got a job at a local bottling company. By the age of 14, he was already drinking heavily and by 16, an alcoholic.

By age 26, he had stopped attending Mass. From his teen years to his late 20s, his only aim in life was drinking. At one point, he and his brother actually stole a fiddle from a street performer and sold it for the price of a drink.

One day in September 1884, he and his brothers were standing outside a pub, out of money and out of drink. Nobody would offer him anything either. He left the pub and while crossing a bridge, he stopped and came to the realization that he was wasting his life.

That day he went to Holy Cross college to take “the pledge”. While there, he attended confession and indeed vowed to no longer drink. The next morning, he returned to the sacraments. This was the beginning of a remarkable turnaround. He would attend daily Mass for the rest of his life.

The first three months were the hardest. One morning, he was at Mass but could not lift himself to receive communion. He heard a voice saying, “it’s no use”. In desperation, he made his way to the Pro Cathedral and prayed, “Jesus Mercy, Mary Help”. Help indeed came.

Over the coming years, he became focused on his spiritual life. Although he could barely read, he began to study Irish monasticism. He lived a very simple life. His bed was a plank and his pillow was made of wood, similar to the monks who would sleep on the floor with pillows of stone.

He never forgot his struggle though. He once said to his sister, “Never think harshly of a person because of the drink. It is easier to get out of hell then it is to give up the drink.” He then continued, “For me, it was only possible with the help of God and our Blessed Mother”.

Matt’s life had become one of prayer, penance, fasting and acts of charity. Over the years, he repaid all the debts he had incurred at the local pubs. He even searched for the fiddler to repay him for the stolen property. When he could not find him, he offered Masses for the soul of the poor fiddler.

In 1913, he discovered a book called True Devotion to Mary, by St. Louis de Montfort. The recommended chain intended to remind one of his bondage to Christ was not enough. Matt wore a chain that was uncomfortable enough to remind him of Christ’s suffering. When he died on June 7^th, 1925 while walking to Mass, he was found wearing that chain.

On October 3^rd, 1975, Matt Talbot was declared Venerable by Pope Paul VI. Matt is an example that ordinary people can do extraordinary things. He is a witness that we can say “no” to addictive behavior, change our life and return to God. In our world today, that is a message we desperately need.

As Matt would say to others, “if I can do it, so can you, with the grace of God”. And so, we can.

God Bless

Learn more about Matt Talbot at: www.matttalbot.ie

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G-Rated Saints

By Jennifer Fitz

I like to teach about the lives of saints, but I always run into one small hitch: Real life is R-rated. Teaching my own children is fairly easy. I know the child’s maturity level, I know what will and will not be disturbing . . . as a parent, I can delve into tough topics at a fairly young age. I also have the luxury of time — there’s always another chance to share more details, or answer more questions.

But in the classroom, my job’s a lot tougher. I need to hone in on the essentials, and avoid watering down the faith, but still keep my material suitable for all-audiences. Here’s how I do it.

Pick a Saint. Most saints are suitable for a g-rated classroom . . . but not all. There are tricks for toning down sensitive topics, for example by glossing over a gory death with a simple, “she died for her faith.” But as much as I love St. Maria Goretti, there’s no getting around the pivotal moment of her life — she died from injuries received while resisting rape. Not a topic suitable for pre-teen classrooms, and one that needs to be handled carefully even in high school.

Do your own research. If you are using the saint suggested in your textbook, teacher’s manual, or VBS curriculum, there may be a kid-friendly saints bio in your book. It’s worth the time to do some research of your own. My two favorite sources are Butler’s Lives of Saints and Wikipedia. Don’t laugh! They tend to provide concrete, action-based biographies — whereas more devotional-style works often skip over the story to focus on a deeper message. Children learn concretely. Not “Saint Martin de Porres was kind to animals,” but “St. Martin de Porres took care of injured cats and dogs.” As you research, look for those little details that will interest your students.

Look for a theme. Try to tie your talk into the wider topic for your class. For some saints, you’ll have way too much information. Focusing on just one aspect of your saint’s life can help pare down your talk to a manageable size. At the other extreme, if there is a scarcity of information about your saint, you can flesh out the lesson by taking the one or two available details, and tying them to a broader discussion of Christian virtue.

Write up your talk. You won’t want to read this aloud to the class, but write it down in complete sentences anyway. Why bother? You need to know in advance what words you’ll use. Is there new vocabulary you’ll need to teach? Is there a sensitive topic, such as a gruesome martyrdom, or a dispute over divorce and remarriage, that you’ll need to put into nightmare-resistant, child-friendly terms? Pick your wording in advance, so you aren’t caught trying to improvise. Ask your DRE, pastor, or another catechist if you are struggling for ways to share something delicately.

–> For Vacation Bible School, give a copy of your Saint-of-the-Day talking points to the other volunteers. That way other leaders can reinforce throughout the day what students have learned at your VBS station.

Anticipate difficult questions. In teaching St. Joan of Arc to a mixed-age group (1st grade and up) last summer, I intentionally glossed over the fact that St. Joan was condemned in an ecclesiastical court. It sufficed to explain that her enemy had tried her unfairly, and that Joan had stood firmly for the truth even if it meant her own death. But I’m glad I prepared an answer to the thornier question, because one of the parents asked it! Plan to either answer the tough question in a child-friendly way, or to politely demure. When a student asked me about the details of St. Josephine Bakhita’s early life, my answer was, “That is too disturbing to share in class, but your parents can research it and let you know what they find.”

How about you? Have you ever run into saintly disaster? Or have a success story you’d like to share? I’d love to hear from you.