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World at Prayer blog
Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
Holy lives of inspiration | Return to the Church
God has many ways of getting our attention. The angel appeared to Mary out of nowhere. Moses stumbled into a burning bush. Elijah heard whispers. Peter caught a boatload of fish. Saul of Tarsus hit the ground, stunned. Today we celebrate a knockdown.
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Be careful of birds landing on your head. That happened to Saint Fabian, and it was taken as a sign when a dove sat on his head, that he should be elected pope! Fabian was a Roman layman who came into the city from his farm one day as clergy and people were preparing to elect a new pope. So, he was! And he served for 14 years as a pope, until he was martyred in 250. It is an age-old argument: Do the events of history create the great (or evil) men who will change the world, or do great personalities come along at the right time to profoundly change history itself?
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Brief and contemporary inspiration focused on hope and family prayer will be delivered to your inbox! Articles include live video, written word, and links to resources that will lead you and your family deeper into faith.
Holy lives of inspiration | Why pray?
Recently I heard a Christian man on the radio say that he doesn’t really believe in religion; all he needs is his relationship with Jesus. He went on to say that he didn’t need stained glass or incense or the building we call a church or even the structure of the Church that provides governance and teaching. I was surprised and disappointed because I’d heard him before and was impressed with his knowledge of scripture and applying Jesus’ teaching to our everyday lives.
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Today, we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord, and in chapels around the world, we also give thanks to God for the birth of Venerable Patrick Peyton. (Founder of Holy Cross Family Ministries, a Holy Cross priest who touched countless families and souls around the world.) In today’s gospel, we hear those famous words from God the Father, “This is my beloved Son; with whom I am well pleased.” Every time we hear or read those words, it’s a chance to ask ourselves, “am I listening to Jesus?”
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Today we celebrate the memorial of Saint (Brother) André Bessette (1845–1937), the humble brother who was known as the "Miracle Man of Montreal” and who became the Congregation of Holy Cross’ first canonized Saint on October 17, 2010, in St. Peter’s Square in Rome. Like St. Therese of Lisieux, Brother André would humbly touch countless souls without leaving his city, first as doorkeeper of Notre Dame College in Montreal, then at the trolley station, and ultimately at the Oratory of St. Joseph that he helped build.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
Jesus' story is a human story. Although He lived two thousand years ago in a culture and climate different from ours, His story is our shared human story. Who has not suffered discrimination because of our family history, education, status, age, profession, social class, ethnicity, or simply the color of our skin? Jesus was discriminated against too.
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