Saint Lucy of Syracuse (Dec. 13)

St. Lucy:

“If you were to lift my hand to your idol and so make me offer against my will, I would still be guiltless in the sight of the true God, who judges according to the will and knows all things."

Lord, help us to strengthen our faith in you no matter what others say.

God, thank you for giving us the strength and power to keep going no matter what others say and help us to find the courage in ourselves to stand up for what we believe in as Saint Lucy did.

Please protect us from the hatred in the world and to help us believe in ourselves to stay strong,   Amen. 

Reese

But how did a Catholic saint’s day come to be celebrated in the Lutheran Scandinavia? Read More HERE.

Saint Nicholas (December 6)

Lord, in the spirit of St. Nicholas who cares for children around the world. 
Please take care of all the orphans so they may find a home. 
Loving God, please hear my prayer. 

 Gavin

Russian icon depicting St Nicholas with scenes from his life.

Late 15th century or early 16th century.

National Museum, Stockholm.

 

 

Saint Andrew the Apostle (November 30)

Saint Andrew, Patron Saint of Fisherman, followed Jesus. Please help all fisherman and farmers so they may provide sustainable healthy food to all people throughout the world, especially for the poorest, the weakest and youngest among us, that they will be fulfilled, we pray to you Lord. Amen.

Christopher G.

The Calling of Saints Peter and Andrew by Caravaggio 

Learn about and pray the Saint Andrew Christmas Novena

Relics

Inside the church (Saint Andrew"s Cathedral in Patras, Greece) are kept relics of the apostle Saint Andrew, which consist of the small finger, part of the top of the cranium of the Apostle, and small portions of the cross on which he was martyred, all kept in a special shrine. The holy skull of the Apostle was sent there from St. Peter's Basilica, Rome in September 1964, on the orders of Pope Paul VI. Cardinal Bea led the party of 15 cardinals that presented the relic to Bishop Constantine of Patras on 24 September 1964. Thousands of people (among them prime minister George Papandreou) and many Greek Orthodox bishops participated in the reception ceremony of the precious skull. After a procession through the streets of the city, the precious skull was placed in a special silver mitre inside the church. The cross of. St. Andrew was taken from Greece during the Crusades by the Duke of Burgundy. Parts of the cross were kept since Middle Ages in the church of St. Victor in Marseilles. They were returned to Patras on 19 January 1980. ...

 

Saint Cecelia, Patron Saint of Music (November 22)

People tend to get stressed out. Loving God, through Saint Cecilia, we pray we may stay calm and not make wrong decisions from anxiety.  Help us find peace through prayer and Your holy music.  Merciful God, hear our prayer. 

Hunter

Since the time of the Renaissance she has usually been portrayed with a viola or a small organ. Read More about St Cecelia HERE

 

Saint Elizabeth of Hungary (November 17)

Dear God, thank you for the Guardian Angels who help us to stay strong in even the hardest situations. Those without homes must be so strong to live like that especially through the winter. I pray that those who are homeless be given shelter, food, drink, and means of warmth. We pray to The Lord.  

     Sydney     

In her short life Elizabeth manifested such great love for the poor and suffering that she has become the patroness of Catholic charities and of the Secular Franciscan Order. The daughter of the King of Hungary, Elizabeth chose a life of penance and asceticism when a life of leisure and luxury could easily have been hers.  Continued HERE  

More about St. Elizabeth HERE

Some of the saints were able to see angels, as St. Peter did (Acts 12:1-19), or to see their guardian angel, as St. Pio (Padre Pio) and St. Elizabeth of Hungary did.  She is also sometimes referred to as the Guardian Angel of Hungary.  More about Angels HERE.

Pope John Paul II (Oct. 22)

Saint Pope John Paul II, Patron Saint of World Youth Day, was very dedicated to God as a boy and then as Pope.  Please help people to accept and love others in both religion and in race so there can be peace in the world, we pray to you Lord, Amen.

Joshua A.
 

Saint Teresa of Avila (Oct. 15)

Saint Teresa, Patron Saint of the loss of parents, please protect and watch over everyone who is struggling with the loss of a loved one, we pray to you Lord, Amen.

Brooke D.

Teresa is one of the foremost writers on mental prayer, and her position among writers on mystical theology is unique. In all her writings on this subject she deals with her personal experiences. Her deep insight and analytical gifts helped her to explain them clearly. Her definition was used in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: "Contemplative prayer [oración mental] in my opinion is nothing else than a close sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with him who we know loves us." (Source: Catholics Online)

St. Teresa of Avila, patron saint of bodily ills, loss of parents, people in need of Grace, religious orders and founder the disgraced Carmelites. Pray for everyone who has a bodily ill or knows somebody with a bodily ill and that they will get better soon. Pray for those who have lost their parents and that they find their way back on the right path. St. Teresa we pray to you that you will help others in need who have lost a parent, have a bodily ill, in need of grace, or in the religious order.  Amen. 

 Caroline M.

 

"Mindfulness is known as sati in Buddhist writings in the dead language Pali. It is joined with two other qualities: sampajañña “altertness” and atappa, “being intent on what you’re doing”. All three together form the virtue of “appropriate attention”.   In Buddhism, in a nutshell, there is agnosticism about the “self”: about whether the soul is the same as the body, for example. For the Buddha, a well-taught disciple “regards feeling thus: 'This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self.’”

 

What has this got to do with St. Teresa’s practice of oración mental, mental prayer? She called this prayer trato con Dios, conversing or having communion with God, “with the one we know loves us”. She is not interested in speculating intellectually about God, even less in those distractions of the mind, like “unquiet little gnats, which buzz and whizz by night, here and there”." Source: Telegraph