World at Prayer blog
Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
Holy lives of inspiration | Why pray?
Over 15 years ago, a television series named Prison Break was quite famous. It grabbed my attention and kept me fully engaged, season after season. Today's first reading has a perfect setting of a prison break. But reflecting deeper on it will tell us that it is not really about a prison break.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Why pray?
Today’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles is a reminder of the important role that wives and mothers, grandmothers, and aunts play in our families, as demonstrated by Lydia, who listened to Paul after the Lord opened her heart. I love how the reading begins as if one of the Apostles is writing home to us, describing that they
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
In 8 AD, Ovid, a Roman author, penned a story about Greek Gods Zeus and Hermes, who took on human form and visited a thousand homes in Phrygia seeking hospitality. Zeus and Hermes disguised themselves as human travelers in Phrygia. They go from house to house searching for food and lodging but are refused a thousand times.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
For centuries, only four apostles were honored with special feasts in the Catholic Church: Saints Peter and Paul, Saint John the Evangelist, and Saint Andrew, the brother of Peter. June 29 was the day to remember the remaining apostles. But in the sixth century, the bodies of Saints Philip and James were brought to Rome from the East, where they were initially buried. Having arrived together at the same location, both apostles share a feast day.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Seasonal Reflections
In one of her Faith Formation classes, a teacher asked her students to write an essay on this topic—Which relic of which saint would you like to possess and why? On reading one of the masterpieces later, she brightened up. The budding writer said: “I would like to have some drops of the sweat of Saint Joseph in a vial, because his sweat would symbolize honest, humble, honorable work. It was by sweat of his brow that he could feed the Son of God, His Mother, and himself."
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
Two giant statues of Saints Peter and Paul stand as guards at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. St. Peter holds the key on the right side, while St. Paul holds a sword on the other. These two figures stand as giants in the faith. Born and educated as a Roman citizen and as a righteous Pharisee, Paul was cruel to the followers of Christ. He imprisoned women and men believers and murdered some with his sword.
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