Showing results by author "Penny Lord" in All Categories

Learn about the life of Saint Martin De Porres.

Children have always been uppermost in the mind of the Father, as they have been helpless and in need of protection. There have been orphans and street urchins from the beginning of time. Over the centuries, the Lord has provided for these little ones, by sending men and women to take care of them. An epidemic of exploitation of children began at the end of the 18th century, with the dawn of the Industrial Revolution.

Paray le Monial is a beautiful, quiet town nestled in the center of France. But the power that emanates from this town is pure Holy Spirit. You can still feel the presence of our Lord Jesus. For, it is here that our Lord appeared to a nun over a period of 17 years. He brought his faithful message of love to an unfaithful people who had grown cold. Here, he, once again, spoke of that tremendous love of his to become man and suffer death - even death on the cross.

As her illness had taken a toll on her strength, Saint Gemma Galgani was not able to return to school. She remained at home and taught her sisters and brothers. At her beatification, one of her brothers said, "Gemma always brought the olive branch." She lovingly cared for the needs, both spiritual and physical, of her family, often at the neglect of herself. She had no use for fancy clothes, and adorned herself in simple, extremely austere black dresses.

The Life of Sainit Gabriel Possenti, Co-Patron of Italian Catholic Youth: One of our powerful saints for the youth. Born in Assisi, he moved to Spoleto before a great Cholera epidemic broke out. Come to Morrovalle near the Adriatic Sea, where he spent most of his life as a brother, and then to Isola di Gran Sasso high on a mountain, where he died. Special scenes of his life and miracles from his Shrine in Teramo.

The story of Oscar Romero is one of transformation, from one born of poverty, to one living comfortably within the system, to one determined to change the system. The story of Oscar Romero is one of conversion, of Paul on the road to Damascus, of a man who was blinded, and whose eyes were opened by the Lord, to see his brothers and sisters in agony and misery. The story of Oscar Romero is one of a man who committed his life to right wrongs to his flock, or die trying. The story of Oscar Romero is one of a Martyr for Christ.

The devil uses any means to kill us. For so many years, in the United States, the Polish people have been the brunt of very poor ethnic jokes. It is true, every new group coming into our free society inherits the suffering that the minority group before them endured. It's like being a freshman in college. The only difference is, growing up out of the persecution is swifter, but the freshman is only degraded for a year, not a lifetime.

We could not think of writing a book about saints and powerful men who have changed the course of our lives and not include Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen. I must admit I never watched Fulton J. Sheen on television, nor was I influenced by him while he was alive. But, as we began to discover our Catholic faith as adults, his words and his living based out of those words, became a strong part of our journey of faith toward new life in the Lord.

Born of a very devout mother and father who, in times when families were feuding amongst themselves, were called by some, "Jesus Christ’s peacemakers," it would appear from the very moment of her birth, God had special designs on Rita. There is a tradition in Roccaporena that as an infant, while she slept in a basket, in the fields where her parents were working, white bees swarmed around Rita’s open mouth. Not only did the bees not sting her, but it is said that they dropped honey into her mouth without her uttering a cry of warning to her parents.

Fatima, the pleas of Our Lady, and the promises of Fatima have been repeated to and embraced by everyone she has touched. A new generation of believers, people like us who were not born when Our Lady gave us this gift, have become completely enthralled by the power of Jesus and the love of Mary, as revealed to us at Fatima.

We know Our Dear Lady was upset about how her priests and nuns, as well as the laity were being treated. She had always been so loving to her children. It was she whom Jesus allowed to intercede on our behalf. We drove him beyond reconciliation, and yet, because of her, he allowed his arms to be held back. It did not seem that mankind was going to get any better. It was time for tribulation. But the Mother, the loving Mother, asked again for one more chance to reason with her children, and again, the gift was given by the Son to the Mother.

Saint Vincent de Paul could have stayed and basked in the glory that was Rome, but knew he had to go on to Paris. News of his involvement in the conversion of the apostate came to the attention of Pope Paul V, and in 1608, Vincent was commissioned to go to Henry IV on a confidential mission. Vincent departed for Paris, posthaste.

The cold, biting air of the November morning sent a chill across his face. His hair blew in the wind. The sun was shining brightly. It was a glorious day. Miguel surveyed the situation in the courtyard. It was as he feared. Soldiers were lined up for a firing squad! All the eyewitnesses, various generals and dignitaries, as well as members of the press, came to attention as they saw for the first time, the famous Jesuit, who had made such fools of President Calles and his entire police force for so long.

We follow Mother Mary on a journey again to a far-off place high up in the mountains, where no one would consider going. We have never really paid much attention to what towns are located where in Japan, other than Tokyo, Nagasaki, and Hiroshima. In looking on a map, we find Akita to be a thriving metropolis in the north of the country, with a population of about 300,000 people - a lot more than you would consider for a small town in the mountains of Japan.

Prophetess of Germany, visionary, mystic, doctor of the Church. Come with us as we travel to Bingen, Germany, and the area of the beautiful Rhine River which is where St. Hildegard lived and had her visions. It was also here where she wrote her books on her visions and many other things, like a morality play put to music, which she also wrote. She wrote a book on herbal medicine, which is used to this day in that area of Germany.

Our story is not only about a saint, but about a land blessed by the blood of martyrs, its every mile named after the holy - Sacramento (after the Blessed Sacrament), San Francisco (St. Francis), San José (St. Joseph), Santa Ana (St. Ann, Mary’s mother), San Gabriel (St. Gabriel the Archangel), to mention just a few. History is history, and sometimes history can be offensive to certain peoples, but it does not make history less history. Our story is about Junípero Serra.

When Our Lord wants a message to get out to his church, he raises up a powerful saint to do the task. Such a saint was Gertrude the Great! She was the one to plant the seed which would bloom through the hands of another powerful saint and visionary St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, four centuries later, and subsequently through Saint Faustina Kowalska in the 20th century, through the Mission of Divine Mercy.

One of the most fascinating gifts the Lord has given us is His own burial cloth. How His image was projected onto that cloth, and how it has survived these 2,000 years is nothing short of miraculous. We have always had a great love for and devotion to this gift of Our Lord. Let us share with you the history and the journey of the Shroud.

St. John Bosco, better known as Don Bosco, is one of the great apostles of the 19th century. His ministry was to the children of Turin in Northern Italy, victims of the Industrial Revolution in that country at that time. Don Bosco was God's gift to the Church of that century. The magnetism of Don Bosco reached out and touched souls all over the world. He was one of the most multi-faceted diamonds the Lord has ever given us.

The life of Saint Augustine and his mother, Saint Monica, who brought about his conversion.