The feast day of St. Elizabeth of Hungary is celebrated on November 17. Elizabeth was a Princess born in 1207 to King Andrew II of Hungary. St. Elizabeth of Hungary is the patron saint of widows, charities, bakers and young brides.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary was born in 1207 in Hungary. She was the daughter of Alexander II who was the King of Hungary. She was betrothed at the age of four to be married to Louis of Thuringa (a German principality). At the age of 14 she married Louis who was 21.
Elizabeth was very pious from a young age. Louis, also was quite religious. Their marriage was a happy and fruitful union. They had three children. Louis was a brave soldier. While he was away Elizabeth devoted herself to charity. She helped to build a hospital which had 12 beds.
He encouraged her works of charity. After six years of marriage Louis was killed during the crusades while she was pregnant with their third child at the age of 20. Elizabeth’s relatives resented how generous she was with the family’s money. They mistrusted her and eventually threw her out of the palace.
Upon hearing the news of her husband’s death, Elizabeth cried out,
“The world with all its joys is now dead to me.”
After finding care for her children, Elizabeth left the castle and became a Third Order Franciscan, joining them on Good Friday. She devoted herself entirely to helping the sick and poor. A Franciscan hospital was built in which she was able to care for the sick and suffering.
St. Elizabeth died at the age of 24 in 1231. Soon after her death miracles of healing were reported at her grave site
A legend exists that her husband met her unexpectedly as she went secretly on an errand to help the poor. The bread she was carrying was turned into roses. Pictures of St. Elizabeth often show her carrying bread or roses.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary died at the age of 24 in 1231 at Marburg, Germany of natural causes. She was canonized on May 27, 1235 by Pope Gregory IX.
The feast day of Bl. Maria Restituta is celebrated on October 29. She was martyred by the Nazis when she refused to remove crucifixes from the hospital walls.
Helen Kafka was born in Vienna, Austria in 1894. Her father was a shoemaker. Helen’s first job was that of a salesgirl. She then became an assistant caregiver at the Lainz public hospital. It was at the hospital that she met the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity. She joined the Order at the age of 20. She took the name Restituta who was a marty in the 4th century.
Sister Restituta became a surgical nurse in 1919 working at the Moulding hospital. After the Nazi invasion of the country she became an opponent of the Nazis. When they ordered her to remove all the crucifixes on the walls of the hospital, she refused. The Nazis then arrested her and charged her for “aiding and abetting the enemy in the betrayal of the fatherland and for plotting high treason”.
The last days Sister Restituta spent in prison were spent caring for other prisoners. Even the communist prisoners spoke highly of her. She was offered freedom if she left her religious order but she refused.
Bl. Maria was beheaded at the age of 48 on March 30, 1943 in Vienna. Pope John Paul II beatified her on June 21, 1998.
Prayers, Quips and Quotes: Bl. Bonaventure of Potenza,
Feast Day October 26
Bl. Bonaventure was born Jan. 4, 1651 in Naples, Italy into a poor family. He studied Latin from a priest and became a Franciscanat the age of 15. He was sent to Amalfi to study and was ordained a priest.
As a priest Bl. Bonaventure was known for his simple but powerful sermons. When an epidemic broke out he served all who were sick without concern for his own health. He was known for miraculous cures. Bl. Bonaventure was a very effective priest. His humility was admired and his spirituality was focused on humility, service and obedience.
After 45 years of service as a priest he died from gangrene after asking for forgiveness for his faults. He was given a crucifix and died peacefully on October 26, after receiving the last sacrament.
Pope Pius VI beatified Bl. Bonaventure in 1775.
“No none has the right to sit down and feel helpless, there’s too much to do.”
The feast day of St. John Capistrano is celebrated on October 23. He is the patron saint of chaplains, military chaplains and judges.
St. John was born in 1386. He was the son of a German knight. He was well educated studying civil and church law. By the age of 26 he became governor of Perugia. When a battle broke out against the Malatestes he tried to broker peace. He became a prisoner of war. During his time in prison, he encountered St. Francis of Assisi in a dream and experienced a conversion. When released from prison he joined the Franciscansof Perugia. Four years later he was ordained a priest.
St. John Capistrano was known for his preaching. Great crowds gathered to hear him. He was instrumental in reviving the faith. He was a student of St. Bernadino of Sienawho introduced him to the devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus.
During the crusades he preached in Hungary. He visited the kings of Europe uniting them and their armies against invading forces. In 1456, he led a Christian army to Belgrade. When it appeared that they would be overpowered by the Muslims, he ran to the front line holding a crucifix crying
“Victory, Jesus, Victory!“
The Christian army won a great victory and Belgrade was freed from the siege. Several months later, St. John died at Villach in Austria after a painful infection. He was canonized in 1724.
The following quote is taken from the treatise written by St. John Capistrano called “Mirror of the Clergy”.
Those who are called to the table of the Lord must glow with the brightness that comes from the good example of a praiseworthy and blameless life. They must completely remove from their lives the filth and uncleanness of vice. Their upright lives must make them like the salt of the earth for themselves and for the rest of mankind. The brightness of their wisdom must make them like the light of the world that brings light to others. They must learn from their eminent teacher, Jesus Christ, what he declared not only to his apostles and disciples, but also to all the priests and clerics who were to succeed them, when he said: “You are the salt of the earth. But what if salt goes flat? How can you restore its flavor? Then it is good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”
The feast day of St. John XXIII is celebrated on October 11. He was known also known as “Good Pope John”.
Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli was born in 1881 near Borgano, Italy. He was the oldest of 13 children. Angelo joined the Secular Franciscan Order. After he was ordained a priest in 1904, he returned to Rome to study canon law. He became the bishop’s secretary, Church history teacher in the seminary and publisher of the diocesan paper.
During World War I, he served as a stretcher bearer for the Italian army. During World War II he was a papal diplomat, serving in Bulgaria, Turkey and France. With the help of Germany’s ambassador in Turkey, Archbishop Roncalli, he helped save approximately 24,000 Jewish people from death.
In 1953 he was named a cardinal and Bishop. He was elected Pope at the age of 77, taking the name of John. He soon called an ecumenical council and presided over the first session of the Second Vatican Council. The purpose of the Council was to bring the church into the modern world. It also was an effort to end hostilities between religions. Eastern Orthodox, Anglican and Protestant religious leaders were invited to attend.
One quote he is remembered for is:
“The Church has always opposed errors. Nowadays, however, the Spouse of Christ prefers to make use of the medicine of mercy rather than that of severity.”
Pope John XXIII earned the title Good Pope John because of his kind and cheerful demeanor.
He died on June 3, 1963. He was beatified November 15, 1881 by Pope John Paul II. He was canonized on the same day as Pope John Paul II by Pope Benedict on April 27, 2014.
In the Blessed Sacrament a heavenly school is open to me, with the best teacher one can possibly imagine…Jesus Christ himself.
The feast day of St. Francis of Assisi will be celebrated on October 4th. He is the patron saint of the environment, peacemakers, and animals.
St. Francis was born in 1181 in Assisi, Italy. His father was Pietro di Bernardone, a wealthy cloth salesman. Francis was indifferent to school. He enjoyed good times with his friends. He was attracted to the military and was a prisoner of war for two years. He returned home, probably ransomed by his family, returning to his old life, however he became very ill. When he recovered, he returned to the military, however, in a dream he was told to return home. He was told to “serve the Master rather that the man.” His dream changed him. He turned from his wild ways and began to serve God. While praying in a neglected chapel in San Damiano, Christ spoke to him from the crucifix, saying;
“Francis, go out and build up My house, for it is nearly falling down.”
Francis took this quite literally, and began to repair the old chapel. In need of money, he took some of his father’s cloth and sold it. His father accused Francis of theft. At the hearing before the bishop, he was told to return the money. Francis obeyed; however, he also removed his clothes returning them to Pietro and declaring:
“I have called you father on earth, but now I say, “Our Father, who art in heaven.”
St. Francis embraced poverty. “Love of Lady Poverty” was how he described his belief that possessions were a detriment to his spirituality. After two years of living as a hermit and begging for money to repair the church, he began to attract followers to his way of living. He owned nothing, wanting to live a life of complete poverty. He lived his life caring for the poor and preaching the gospel, primarily through example. He once said;
“Preach always, and when necessary, use words.”
The heart of St. Francis message was joy, based on the love of Christ. He served primarily the poor, including the lepers of the time. He had a strong devotion to the Eucharist and the Cross.
By 1210 his group had grown to a dozen men. He received permission to form an order from Pope Innocent III. Originally it was called the Humbler Brethren, or Friars Minor. They became known for the brown robes they wore. By 1219 they numbered 5,000.
Clare Sciffo was sixteen years old when she heard Francis preach. Against her parents will she became a nun under St. Francis care. Her order became known as the Poor Clares.
St. Francis became friends with St. Dominic, whom he met while begging. St. Dominic recognized him from a dream in which he had seen Francis. When Dominic met him he embraced him saying;
“You are my companion and must walk with me.
If we hold together, no earthly power can withstand us.”
The Franciscans and Dominicans had different spiritualities, but Francis and Dominic were lifelong friends.
Some of the Franciscans wanted to change the rule of poverty. They wanted to own books so they could study scripture like the other monasteries of the time. This was contrary to Francis’ love of Lady Poverty. He went to see St. Dominic, who came up with a solution. The Franciscans were allowed to have a library, loaned to them by the Dominicans!
The Franciscans today have several different orders. There rule of poverty is not as strict as the original order.
Later, in his life, St. Francis received the stigmata (the wounds of Christ). These wounds were real and painful, a sign of how close he had come to the cross. He also suffered from a painful eye disease.
St. Francis composed several hymns, includingCanticle of the Sun. He is also known for his love of nature. Animals and birds had no fear of him and he was known for his friendships with traditionally wild creatures. It is St. Francis who started the tradition of a Christmas Crèche which honored the animals present in the stable when Christ was born.
St. Francis died in the year 1226 at the age of 45, praying the 141st Psalm and his Canticle of the Sun. His final prayer was:
“O Lord, I thank You for the pains which I suffer.”
Two years after his death, St. Francis was canonized on July 16, 1228 by Pope Gregory IX.
“My Lord, I am all yours. You know I have nothing besides my tunic, cord and underpants. And even these three things are yours.
So what can I give You?”
Quote of St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis of Assisi in Art
St. Francis with Birds
St. Francis Embracing Crucifix
St. Francis in Ectasy by Caravaggio
St. Francis Christ on the Cross by Murillo
St Francis of Assisi Stigmata
St. Francis in Meditation
St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis Preaching to the Birds
St. Francis Supported by an Angel by Orazio
Public Domain Image
