Fr. Emil Kapaun: The Good Thief

On Easter morning, March 25, 1951, the Catholic priest mounted the steps of a partially destroyed church, and turned to face his congregation, some 60 men–gaunt, foul-smelling, in tattered clothing. Fr. Emil Kapaun raised a small, homemade, wooden cross to begin a prayer service, led the men in the Rosary, heard the … Read more

Saint Peter Armengol

Saint Peter Armengol 3

Peter Armengol was born in Guárdia dels Prats, a small village in the archdiocese of Tarragon, Spain in 1238. He belonged to the house of the barons of Rocafort, descendants of the counts of Urgel, whose ancestors were directly linked to the counts of Barcelona and the monarchs of Aragon and Castile. … Read more

The Marvels of Saint Bernadette

The Marvels of Saint Bernadette 2

After reading the life of any saint, we close the book exclaiming, “What a great saint! I did not think something like this could exist.” Indeed, as long as it is well written, the life of any saint is a unique marvel full of surprises. The life of Saint Bernadette Soubirous is … Read more

The Little-Known St. Thérèse

The Little-Known St. Thérèse

  On October 1, the liturgy of the Church celebrates the memory of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face, “the greatest saint of modern times,” in the words of Pope Saint Pius X. The charm of her “Little Way,” with all its sweetness and mercy, admirably harmonizes … Read more

Blessed Francisco: Contemplator of the Universe

Blessed Francisco: Contemplator of the Universe 1

In May 1946, Sister Lucia, then a Dorothean nun, went to Fatima to visit the sites of the apparitions of the angel (1916) and Our Lady (1917). At Valinhos, where the fourth apparition of Our Lady took place, a group was waiting for her that including her uncle Marto, the father of … Read more

The Rosary and Saint Dominic Defeat Heresy

The Rosary and Saint Dominic Defeat Heresy 1

The Rosary — as spiritual weapon against evil — has a very long and precious history. In twelfth and thirteenth century France, a group of heretics known as the Albigensians was destroying the minds of the Catholic laity with its erroneous ideas. The Albigensians’ teachings encouraged suicide, many times by self-induced starvation, … Read more

The First Apparitions of Our Lady

Virgin_of_Covadonga-Saint_James_the_Greater-Our_Lady_of_the_Pillar

Recently, several books enumerating the apparitions of Our Lady were published in Italy. When I had the opportunity to take a look at them on a recent trip to Rome, I was surprised. While in one epoch, there were numerous apparitions, in another they were very rare; in one epoch the Holy … Read more