29 minute read
Joining a secular institute
s a young Catholic growing up in the northern Twin Cities metro, Sister Maddie Shogren didn’t know any religious sisters. So, she attributes the fact that she now is one only to God’s grace and providence.
“I’m very happy,” said Sister Maddie, who professed first vows Oct. 15 as a sister of Pro Ecclesia Sancta. Her temporal vows were the first a woman has taken outside of Peru,
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Being able to profess vows in the Twin Cities meant that she was surrounded by family and friends who may not have been able to travel to Lima — and the opportunity for them to see something that many Catholics never personally witness in
The day brimmed with “lots of joy, lots of emotion,” said Sister Maddie, a 26-year-old alumna of the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. The superior of PES’ female branch, Mother Naeko Matayoshi, was present for Sister Maddie’s vows. She professed them during a Mass presided by Bishop Andrew Cozzens, bishop-designate of Crookston, at St. Mark in St. Paul, a parish where PES priests and sisters serve. Concelebrating were two of her relatives, both priests of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis: her uncle Father John Floeder of The St. Paul Seminary and her cousin Father Louie Floeder, associate pastor of Divine Mercy in Faribault. Frankie Floeder, Sister Maddie’s cousin and a seminarian, served at the altar.
“It was a beautiful moment where I could profess my vows before the Lord, and promise him to live and try to imitate (him) by living out the evangelical counsels, which are poverty, chastity and obedience,” Sister Maddie said. “That was a very beautiful and intimate moment between me
Sister Maddie’s white veil is a sign that she’s taken temporary vows. She’ll likely take final or permanent vows in four to five years. She is the second woman from the Twin Cities to take first vows with PES; Sister Laura Holupchinski took her first vows in 2018. She is also the fourth American to take first vows — two others, Sister Leann Luecke and Sister Lynn Luecke, are biological sisters from Cedar Falls, Iowa.
Sister Maddie grew up attending St. Paul in Ham Lake, and she was homeschooled until she entered Blaine High School. The PES sisters were the first religious sisters Sister Maddie got to know personally, and she was somewhat surprised to find that she had fun with them, and they were anything but dull. She met them while attending meetings of a Catholic women’s leadership group her sophomore year at St. Thomas. She was studying secondary math education, and she pictured her future self as a math teacher, married with children. However, the PES sisters were joyful and loved to laugh, and she was attracted to their mission to serve the family and devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
That year she got serious about her prayer life, dedicating more and more time to what she described as conversation with Jesus. She began by committing five minutes a day, eventually growing her daily prayer to a full hour. As she prayed, she felt God asking her to give herself to him as a religious sister.
That was 2015, the year Philadelphia hosted the World Meeting of Families. She traveled to the event with other St. Thomas students, and while there, she was struck by the array of Catholic women’s religious communities. But, she felt God draw her heart to where she first authentically met religious life: Pro Ecclesia Sancta. Her junior year, she told a PES sister that she wanted to join her community, and she told her family what she felt God was calling her to. Her parents and four younger siblings were supportive, she said.
Meaning “For the Holy Church,” Pro Ecclesia Sancta was established in Peru by a Jesuit in 1992. As an “ecclesial family,” the community includes both men and women religious. In the United States, PES members serve in the Twin Cities; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; and Sacramento, California.
Sister Maddie joined PES shortly after graduation in 2017 and spent a few months as an aspirant, wearing street clothes and entering into their way of life — including speaking Spanish. In 2018 she formally became a novice, and she went to Lima for two-and-a-half years of formation. She was surprised when she was sent back to Minnesota for her pastoral experience prior to first vows. For the past year, she taught religion at Nativity of Mary School in Bloomington and assisted at St. Mark with its Ignite youth program. Now, she continues her work with Ignite and also the parish’s faith formation program.
She lives with 10 other sisters at their convent in Bloomington. Their lives are rooted in prayer, with Mass, the rosary and two Holy Hours the non-negotiable aspects of their day, Sister Maddie said. She still loves to run, she said, and read — especially the lives of the saints. St. Faustina’s diary about Jesus’ divine mercy is among her favorite books, she said.
As she considers what her future with PES might look like, she doesn’t think about whether she’ll spend her years in the Twin Cities, or Peru, or somewhere else the community ministers.
“Every day is a gift from the Lord, and I know that I wake up and I say yes to him again,” she said. “My one desire is to be completely his and do his will.”
COURTESY PRO ECCLESIA SANCTA Pro Ecclesia Sancta Sister Maddie Shogren smiles following her profession of first vows Oct. 15 at St. Mark in St. Paul. Her vows were the first a woman has taken outside of Peru, where PES is based.
Choosing ability over disability helps secular institute entrant serve God
By Barb Umberger The Catholic Spirit
ather Paul Baker said he sees Natasha Sager as one of God’s spies — in a good way. “She’s able to … be more embedded in ordinary life in such a way that she can reach people in a different way” than by being a religious sister or nun, said Father Baker in a homily during a Sept. 14 Mass that included Sager’s first dedication to the Caritas Christi secular institute. The dedication was equivalent to first profession in a religious order.
Sager is not a religious sister, although some elements of her life are similar. Members of her secular institute, which is a form of consecrated life, live and work in society. They are also self-sufficient, different from religious sisters who live in community. But, like religious men and women, secular institute members share commitments to prayer and the apostolate of their institute.
Sager said members of her institute bring Jesus right into the heart of the secular world because they are meant to be “the leaven in the dough,” impacting people as they encounter them in work and family environments.
“One of the beautiful aspects of our vocation is its hiddenness,” she said. “We blend in with society and bring Jesus to places where priests and religious can’t.”
Sager, 34, completed three years of initial formation before her recent profession. Four years of renewal will follow before her commitment becomes perpetual, she said.
Father Baker, parochial vicar of Epiphany in Coon Rapids and Sager’s spiritual director, said she also dispels any notion that someone with a physical disability is hindered in dedicating his or her life to God.
He added that Sager, who uses a wheelchair because she cannot walk on her own, is approachable. She was born with a rare medical condition caused by a small cleft in her brain. Sager said two physicians thought she had an inoperable brain tumor, but a third correctly diagnosed her around age 1 with a rare form of cerebral palsy. “My parents were relieved to find out it wasn’t terminal,” she said.
She said a lot of people want to pray for her. “People always ask why I’m in a chair, and I feel like God put me in a chair to be a witness in a different way, because I feel like the whole Bible verse about God uses the weak to shame the strong,” she said.
Society looks at people with disabilities as burdens and having no purpose, she said. “It may not look exactly the same as an able-bodied person, but there is a purpose.”
Therese Druart, the national sponsor, or leader of Caritas Christi’s national council in the U.S., attended the Mass. The secular institute has 793 members in 37 countries, with 29 in the U.S., half of whom are at least age 80. Sager is the only member in Minnesota. Born in Belgium, Druart, 75, joined Caritas Christi after moving to the U.S. in 1978 to teach philosophy at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
Caritas Christi was founded in France in 1937 by Dominican Father Joseph-Marie Perrin, who was blind, and Juliette Molland, whom Druart said walked with a limp. Druart is not certain if their disabilities are related to the institute’s openness to members with physical limitations, but said that, from the very beginning, a disability was not a problem as long as members could sustain themselves financially.
“We have to live this life of ordinary people, with all the risk,” she said.
When Sager sought to join religious life, she feared her options would be limited if not impossible. She
Fdidn’t believe a religious order that lived in community would consider her because of her disability, so she did a lot of searching on the internet for an option. She started discerning with a different secular institute but decided it wasn’t the right fit. And when she saw Caritas Christi’s materials stating that having a physical disability does not necessarily preclude membership, she researched it further.
“Our charism is to love God and to make him loved in all providential circumstances,” Druart said. “And they vary a lot,” usually because of a member’s professional work. She mentioned “a very good member” who worked as a hairdresser. “Apparently some women confide a lot to their hairdresser,” she said.
Caritas Christi’s members aim to serve God and influence people they meet through their work and relationships, Druart said. “Quite a few are in teaching,” she said, and not necessarily in Catholic schools. The institute has also had a social worker and a woman who worked for an airline, she said. One member was dependent on an iron lung, yet spent a couple hours a day doing computer-aided design.
“(St.) John Paul II spoke of ... members of a secular institute being pioneers, because they go in every kind of milieu, even some where the Church usually is not very present,” she said.
Sager lives with her family in Andover. One way she serves God and influences others is through her volunteer service in parishes. Being part of the institute has deepened her prayer life and helped her bring God into others’ lives, she said.
Sager rides with friends each Sunday to Mass at Epiphany, and she attends daily Mass at St. Paul in Ham Lake. She regularly volunteers at St. Paul, most recently facilitating Synod Small Group sessions. She enjoys time with children, and has served as a catechist’s aide in the parish’s religious education program and with the parish’s vacation Bible school program.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Sager helped lead a young adult group at Epiphany. Today, she and others from that group meet weekly for Bible study.
Because Sager is experienced in social media, a friend recommended her to Father Kyle Kowalczyk for promoting “Catholic Young Adults: The Musical” on social media. She has also designed vocational materials for Caritas Christi and has helped her community and the U.S. Conference of Secular Institutes with their social media. Last year, Sager helped with the conference’s “virtual booth” for a FOCUS Expo.
Father Baker said Sager’s service through Caritas Christi has provided her a greater opportunity to live out the “fullest flowering” of the identity in Christ she received in her baptism. That’s the case when anyone responds positively to God’s call, he said, “whether that be the universal call to holiness, or a call to following in a closer way as a member of a secular institute, religious community, consecrated life or clergy.”
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT Natasha Sager (foreground) at her first dedication to the Caritas Christi secular institute during Mass Sept. 14 at Epiphany in Coon Rapids. By her side is close friend Samantha Herrlin, a member of Epiphany.
FAITH+CULTURE
Wrapping retired priests in quilts and prayers
By Christina Capecchi For The Catholic Spirit
The Seven Sisters Apostolate is a Twin Cities-based ministry dedicated to strengthening the Church by offering up a Holy Hour every day for a specific priest or bishop. Hence, each small group has seven women — one for every day of the week — and the 10-year-old apostolate now claims more than 2,000 groups spanning 23 countries.
Two years ago, Deb Thielen launched “Appreciated and Loved,” a new ministry within the apostolate. The 68-yearold grandma, a retired legal secretary who also worked for the Office of the Archbishop in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, belongs to St. Michael in Stillwater. She was attending Mass at a silent retreat when inspiration struck. She was filled with a strong sense of love for the elderly priest celebrating Mass and decided to make him a quilt. Then she heard a message from God: “Not just him, but you will make a quilt for every retired priest in the archdiocese.”
Q This quilt project was born during a moment of intense love. Do you think divine inspiration comes when a person is filled with love?
A I think so, because God is love. Anytime there is an inspiration from God, it’s going to come from love.
Q You estimate there are 70 retired priests in the archdiocese. That’s a lofty goal!
A Yes! We’ve made 13 quilts so far and have eight ready to give, but first we have to find prayer groups for them. Before a quilt is presented, we form a group of seven who will dedicate a Holy Hour a day to the priest receiving the quilt — so he is wrapped in the warmth of a homemade quilt and daily prayers. It’s a spiritual and a corporal work of mercy.
Our priests are under attack. We need to pray for them — especially for these retired priests. They’re cramming for the final. They’re getting closer and closer to meeting the Lord
Q Those two words — appreciated and loved — have such an impact.
A These retired priests have given their lives for God and now they could be forgotten. We need to let them know they are loved and appreciated. We try to take these priests to lunch and tell them: “We still remember you! We miss you!”
Q You design each quilt to match the priest’s interests.
A Right! Father Tiffany loves motorcycles, so the back of his quilt is motorcycle posters. One priest at the Byrne Residence loves blue, so his quilt was all blue. Another retired priest used to race horses. I asked him to give me some pictures of his horses and didn’t tell him why. He gave me about 50, and I went home and said, “OK, Holy Spirit, you know which pictures I’m supposed to use. I’m only picking six.” So, I printed six on fabric and sewed them on the back of a quilt. He called me three times to thank me, and he said, “Do you know you picked my favorite horse?”
Q What is it about quilts? Why are they so wonderful?
A You make it with love. There is an expense, with the fabric and the time, but it’s given out of love. Once my husband said, “Deb, this costs a lot of money, and we’re on a fixed income.” I said, “Has God ever refused us? Have we ever gone without?” God will put on my heart who I’m supposed to make a quilt for.
This woman I walked home from Mass at the Cathedral with, God wanted me to give her a harvest quilt I made. It was the hardest quilt I’ve ever made. I gave it to her, and she sobbed. She said, “This reminds me of when my mother took me to the fair, and I had a dress that was a similar pattern.” This is how God works! Q Do you believe everyone is creative? A I think so. We all can do it. Whether you’re a carpenter building a home or painting a picture or whether you think, “I don’t have any gifts in art” and yet you’re baking a cake. We all have creativity. We just have to ask God how he wants us to use it.
DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Q What helps you discern God’s will?
A I really try to live in the present moment. I don’t want to live in the past or the future. I want to live in
PLEASE TURN TO PRIESTS’ QUILTS ON PAGE 19
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Pilgrims pray for racial reconciliation on north Minneapolis walk
By Susan Klemond For The Catholic Spirit
Seeking the intercession of St. Martin de Porres, a 17thcentury saint who cured many while experiencing racism, pilgrims from different backgrounds prayed for racial reconciliation as they walked through north Minneapolis Nov. 6, stopping where a church bearing the saint’s name once stood.
“We recognize the sickness of racial injustice,” Will Peterson, the main organizer, told more than 130 people gathered at Ascension in Minneapolis prior to the walk. “We work for a cure. We walk together praying. But ultimately, God heals.”
On an unseasonably warm November morning, many Ascension confirmation students and their families joined parishioners from the Basilica of St. Mary and students from DeLaSalle High School, both in Minneapolis, as well as students from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul and others for prayer and dialogue during a more than 2-mile walk from Ascension to the Basilica of St. Mary.
Held three days after St. Martin’s Nov. 3 feast day, the pilgrimage combined the ancient Catholic tradition of walking pilgrimages with opportunities to meet and pray with different groups, said Peterson, cofounder and president of Modern Catholic Pilgrim, a San Diego-based nonprofit that has led more than 30 pilgrimages since 2017.
In addition to Ascension and the Basilica, St. Paul-based Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota, the University of St. Thomas and DeLaSalle sponsored the walk.
After a prayer service in English and Spanish, the first stop for reflection was the former site of St. Martin de Porres church, now a parking lot on Bryant Avenue. Built in 1940 and home to Black Catholics, the parish closed in the mid-1950s because of city redevelopment and declining membership. Lutheran churches later used the building. It was demolished in 2006. St. Martin de Porres was biracial and served for years as a Dominican lay helper in Lima, Peru, because he was not permitted to become a brother. A barber and surgeon, he had the gift of healing, showed charity and service to the poor and eventually professed solemn vows.
The pilgrimage concluded with prayer and lunch in the Basilica’s basement hall, which features stained-glass windows from St. Martin de Porres church. Archbishop Bernard Hebda was present, and expressed gratitude that different parishes and cultures were honoring the saint’s legacy.
“We know that we live in a society that needs great healing in the area of justice, especially in issues of racism,” the archbishop said. “St. Marin de Porres is such a great example of how it is that we can lead our lives in a way that helps other people to work for justice.”
The pilgrimage was designed to be a journey to raise individual consciousness and build bridges between groups to help dismantle racism, said Anne Attea, faith formation and social justice director at Ascension, which has many Latino parishioners. Peterson said he was aware of the pain following the police-related deaths in the Twin Cities of George Floyd and Daunte Wright, who were killed in 2020 and 2021, respectively. He talked to local Catholic leaders about organizing a pilgrimage to foster community healing.
With archdiocesan approval, Peterson led planning for a fall pilgrimage involving Ascension and Basilica parishes. That the visit to the site of the former St. Martin de Porres church coincided with his feast day was the Holy Spirit’s work, Peterson said.
The Basilica and St. Bridget parish in Minneapolis had organized separate north Minneapolis walks for racial reconciliation earlier this year. Including a meal with the St. Martin event helped emphasize relationships, Peterson said.
DeLaSalle student Martina Wolo, 16, said she advocates for racial justice and reconciliation, especially in light of the deaths of Floyd and Wright.
“I feel like when that was happening there was just a lot of fear, so I didn’t feel like there was much I could do, and with this, I feel like a little part of me is protesting, but with prayer,” she said.
Jessica Perez, 17, said she made the pilgrimage in part to be with her Ascension confirmation class. She said as a person of color, she identifies with St. Martin de Porres and hopes “to make people realize that it’s more than just walking. To bring more people together to face racial injustice.”
Basilica parishioners Rick and Kathy Hansen appreciated connecting with members of Ascension’s community. Sharing the experience could bring change, said Kathy Hansen, 75. “Maybe that sparks conversation and maybe it’s just something little like that, and talking about these issues.”
BOB CUNNINGHAM | FOR THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT Pilgrims praying for racial reconciliation walk through north Minneapolis from Ascension on their way to the Basilica of St. Mary.
In Venezuela, Father Dempsey remembered for joy, engagement in people’s lives
By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit
Father Greg Schaffer recalls Father Dennis Dempsey as a man on wheels. “During his second stint at the mission, Denny never drove a vehicle. He moved around solely by walking and riding his bike,” Father Schaffer said. “Denny fearlessly maneuvered through the streets where the traffic laws are not followed or enforced, where the colors on the streetlights are just suggestions to follow and everyone seems to drive aggressively and defensively at the same time.”
Father Dempsey died while cycling Oct. 25 after being struck by a motorist. The 73-year-old priest had ministered alongside Father Schaffer in Venezuela during the 1990s, and, in July 2019, he went back for two years to serve the people of Jesucristo Resucitado, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ mission parish in Ciudad Guayana. Although he had formally retired, Father Dempsey returned to the Twin Cities in July to be pastor of Risen Savior.
Ordained in 1980, Father Dempsey served as a missionary priest at Jesucristo Resucitado from 1993 to 1998, and then as the parish’s pastor for 18 months in 1998-1999. He also served as associate pastor and pastor to several parishes in the archdiocese during his ministry.
In an email to The Catholic Spirit, Father Schaffer, Jesucristo Resucitado’s current pastor, called Father Dempsey “a man filled with faith that was demonstrated by the closeness to the people.” He always accepted people where they were “in the moment and drew them closer to God,” he said. He described Father Dempsey as a promoter of vocations, with priests — especially younger ones — having lunch and spending the afternoon talking with him about the priesthood. Meanwhile, Father Schaffer said, “Father Denny was constantly busy with projects. The back patio was a repair shop for repairing bicycles — for priests, neighborhood kids — all for free.”
Father Jose Antonio Brito, a recently ordained priest of the Diocese of Ciudad Guayana, said there was no rectory neighbor who did not at some point visit with Father Dempsey. “Father Denny enjoyed talking about faith, God’s love, the difficult food situation, the politics of the country — whatever the people wanted to talk about,” he said by email. “Father Denny loved to visit with people in the street.”
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SUNDAY SCRIPTURES | FATHER TERRY BEESON
A lesson from the fig tree
“It’s the end of the world as we know it; it’s the end of the world as we know it; it’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine.” Every year at this time of the year, that R.E.M. tune rattles about my head. As we approach the end of the Church calendar, our readings speak to the End Times.
The first reading for the Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time is from the book of the prophet Daniel and describes Daniel’s vision of the resurrection and the last judgment. In this vision, Daniel presents the apocalyptic struggle between good and evil (spoiler alert: good will triumph).
In the Gospel reading, Jesus paints a picture with words about the second coming. But we must remember he is neither telling us what eternity will look like nor providing a timetable of the future. It is a frightening picture of a darkened sun and moon, and stars falling from the sky, and the powers of heaven being shaken. The angels will be sent to gather the elect.
Then, Jesus says something that is enigmatic: “Learn a lesson from the fig tree.” While it may seem out of context, this speaks to Chapter 11 of St. Mark’s Gospel, when Jesus and his disciples were going to the temple, encountered a fig tree full of leaves but no fruit because “it’s not time for figs.” Jesus cursed the tree, saying: “May no one ever eat your fruit again.” When Jesus cursed the fig tree, he knew there would be no fruit on it because of the season, but the leaves tell us that summer is near. Then they go into the Temple and Jesus cleanses the Temple of the money changers and livestock. The very next day they encounter the tree again and it is withered to its roots. The withered tree is symbolic of the eventual destruction of the Temple. When Peter points out the withered tree to him, Jesus replies by telling the disciples to have faith in God, pray and forgive anyone with whom they have a grievance, so the Father in heaven will forgive their transgressions.
Then Jesus says, “Heaven and earth will pass away but my words will not pass away.” Jesus’ words are eternal. Jesus is the Word who is eternal.
Over the centuries, there has been war after war, pandemic after pandemic, natural disaster after natural disaster. And while war, pandemic and natural disasters have happened in each generation after Jesus, there have been folks prognosticating that the current war, pandemic and natural disaster is a sign of the end of the world, and looking to the predictions of Nostradamus. In the 21st century, we have had the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the bird flu, the swine flu and COVID-19. We have had hurricanes, tornadoes and earthquakes that have devastated people’s lives and livelihoods. And the world keeps on turning. Jesus says of heaven and earth passing away, that no one knows the day or the hour.
Let us learn the lesson of the fig tree. Let us bear fruit for the kingdom of God. Let us be full of faith and forgiveness. Even if the time were to come, having faith and love of God and neighbor, we can say, “It’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine.”
Father Beeson is pastor of St. Pius V in Cannon Falls and St. Joseph in Miesville.
FAITH FUNDAMENTALS | FATHER MICHAEL VAN SLOUN
Sacrament of marriage in the Bible
The institution of marriage existed before the time of Jesus, and he raised it to the level of sacrament. He did this through his teaching on the ideals of marriage as well as his endorsement of marriage by his attendance at the Cana wedding feast. Moreover, as a child and a young man, he lived with a married couple, Mary and Joseph, and he was greatly blessed by the goodness of their marriage, and he experienced firsthand the beauty of married love.
The sacrament of marriage is a rich source of God’s grace. Initially, God seals the bond of love between the bride and the groom when they exchange their promises (Mk 10:9a). From that day forward, every day for the rest of their married lives, God provides a constant and uninterrupted flow of grace to help their love grow, intensify and flourish. Then it is up to the husband and wife to cooperate with the graces that God so generously provides.
The teachings of Jesus on marriage are found in the Gospels of Matthew (19:4-6) and Mark (10:6-9), and based upon God’s plan for marriage found in Genesis (1:27; 2:18, 21-24). Jesus explained that the Creator “made them male and female” (Mk 10:6; see Gn 1:24; 5:2), and because it was not good for either to be alone (Gn 2:18), God intended for a man to be joined to his wife (Mk 10:7), that they would be united as one (Mk 10:8; see Gn 2:24), and that their union would be permanent and indissoluble (Mk 10:9).
Jesus upended the ancient culture’s understanding of marriage when he declared that the two become “one flesh” (Mk 10:8). This coincides with the creation account when God took a rib from the man to fashion the woman (Gn 2:21-23). Man and woman are made of the same flesh. Then they become one flesh. The ancient mentality was that society is divided into four classes, each superior to and exercising a property right over the class below. Men were on the top tier, followed by women, children and slaves. When Jesus declared that a husband and wife are one flesh, he rejected the notion that a husband is over his wife and that he owns her. The good news is that a husband and wife are equals.
In the Gospel of John, Jesus began his public ministry at the Cana wedding feast (2:1-11). It is a statement of his priorities. By beginning at a wedding, Jesus showed that marriage is of utmost importance to him. It is a noble institution created by God. A holy marriage is a tremendous good to the couple themselves, their family, the Church and society. When Jesus attended, he blessed their union, and when he came to their rescue, he gave them his support.
Sacred Scripture features many married couples. The most important is Mary and Joseph. Matthew explains that they were betrothed (Mt 1:18), and after the customary waiting period, they were married. The Bible begins with the first couple, Adam and Eve. Genesis continues with the patriarchs and matriarchs: Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob and Rachel. Exodus highlights Moses and Zipporah. Other prominent couples in the Old Testament are Boaz and Ruth, Elkanah and Hannah, Tobiah and Sarah, Manasseh and Judith, and Hosea and Gomer, and the other prominent couple in the New Testament is Zechariah and Elizabeth.
The Bible begins and ends with marriage. Genesis is the first book of the Bible, and it opens with Adam and Eve (Gn 3:6b). Revelation is the last book of the Bible, and it closes with its description of heaven as the wedding feast of the Lamb (Rv 19:7, 9).
Father Van Sloun retired this year as pastor of St. Bartholomew of Wayzata. This column is one in a series on the sacrament of marriage. Previous series on the Eucharist and confirmation can be found at
TheCaTholiCSpiriT.Com.
DAILY Scriptures
Sunday, Nov. 14 Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time Dn 12: 1-3 Heb 10:11-14, 18 Mk 13:24-32
Monday, Nov. 15 1 Mc 1:10-15, 41-43, 54-57, 62-63 Lk 18:35-43
Tuesday, Nov. 16 2 Mc 6:18-31 Lk 19:1-10
Wednesday, Nov. 17 St. Elizabeth of Hungary, religious 2 Mc 7:1, 20-31 Lk 19:11-28
Thursday, Nov. 18 1 Mc 2:15-29 Lk 19:41-44
Friday, Nov. 19 1 Mc 4:36-37, 52-59 Lk 19:45-48
Saturday, Nov. 20 1 Mc 6:1-13 Lk 20:27-40
Sunday, Nov. 21 Solemnity of our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe Dn 7:13-14 Rv 1:5-8 Jn 18:33b-37
Monday, Nov. 22 St. Cecilia, virgin and martyr Dn 1:1-6, 8-20 Lk 21:1-4
Tuesday, Nov. 23 Dn 2:31-45 Lk 21:5-11
Wednesday, Nov. 24 St. Andrew Dung-Lac, priest, and companions, martyrs Dn 5:1-6, 13-14, 16-17, 23-28 Lk 21:12-19
Thursday, Nov. 25 Thanksgiving Day Sir 50:22-24 1 Cor 1:3-9 Lk 17:11-19
Friday, Nov. 26 Dn 7:2-14 Lk 21:29-33
Saturday, Nov. 27 Dn 7:15-27 Lk 21:34-36
Sunday, Nov. 28 First Sunday of Advent Jer 33:14-16 1 Thes 3:12–4:2 Lk 21:25-28, 34-36
KNOW the SAINTS
BLESSED MIGUEL PRO JUAREZ (1891-1927) This Mexican martyr began life in a large Catholic family. His schooling, interrupted by family moves and a serious illness, ended when he was 15. Following a spiritual crisis and the vocation of a beloved sister, Miguel entered a Jesuit novitiate in 1911. But the anti-Catholicism that attended the Mexican Revolution forced him to study abroad. He was ordained in 1925 in Belgium, where his recurring illness required surgeries. In 1926 he returned to Mexico City and ministered secretly because of the political situation. Though he did not support an armed insurrection, he was arrested and executed by firing squad without a trial. His feast day is Nov. 23.
