St. Joseph

St. Joseph was the foster father of Jesus and husband to Mary.

St. Joseph's feast day is celebrated on March 19 (which is coming up soon). He is the patron saint of the universal church.

Everything known about St. Joseph is from the bible. We know he was a carpenter and a hard working man. He came from royal lineage as the gospel of Matthew and Luke (although they differ some) share that he descends from David, the greatest king of Israel. This can be found in Matthew Chapter 1 and Luke Chapter 3. 

St. Joseph was an obedient man and caring man. While Mary and Joseph were betrothed, Joseph discovered that she was pregnant and planned to divorce her quietly and to expose her to shame or cruelty. In his time, women who committed adultery could be stoned to death. An angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him the truth that Mary would bear a son who is the son of God. Joseph was obedient to God. Without question, he took Mary as his wife. 

Joseph loved Jesus and truly embraced him as his own son. Soon after Jesus was born, the news that a king of the Jews was born had spread to Herod, a bloody tyrant ruler. An angel appeared to Joseph and told him to take Mary and Jesus and flee to Egypt. The holy family remained in Egypt until it was safe to travel back to Nazareth.

St. Joseph was a humble Jewish man that supported himself and his family by his work and religious practices. There is not much known about St. Joseph as Jesus grew older and began his public life. Many assume that St. Joseph died before Jesus started his public ministry.

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St. Joseph is one of my favorite saints! He is such a great example of a good and holy man and father. He was obedient to the Lord and a hard worker. He provided for his family and I like to believe that he taught Jesus how to be strong and courageous. Even if those qualities were already knit into Jesus' being, one has to believe that his wonderful parents had some major influences on him, no? 

In college, I used to ask for St. Joseph to look after me a lot. I prayed for his intercession that I would find a husband, God willing, that was a good and faithful man. So, I like to think that me and St. Joe are pretty tight. Sure enough, I found a great and holy man who always seeks to do the right thing!

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Prayer to St. Joseph

Oh, St. Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the throne of God. I place in you all my interests and desires. Oh, St. Joseph, do assist me by your powerful intercession, and obtain for me from your divine Son all spiritual blessings, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. So that, having engaged here below your heavenly power, I may offer my thanksgiving and homage to the most loving of Fathers.

Oh, St. Joseph, I never weary of contemplating you, and Jesus asleep in your arms; I dare not approach while He reposes near your heart. Press Him in my name and kiss His fine head for me and ask him to return the Kiss when I draw my dying breath. St. Joseph, Patron of departing souls - Pray for me.

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History of the prayer: This prayer was found in the fiftieth year of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In 1505, it was sent from the Pope to Emperor Charles when he was going into battle. Whoever shall read this prayer or hear it or keep it about themselves, shall never die a sudden death, or be drowned, not shall poison take effect of them; neither shall they fall into the hands of the enemy; or shall be burned in any fire, or shall be overpowered in battle.

Say for nine mornings for anything you may desire. It has never been known to fail, so be sure you really want what you ask.

St. Joseph, Pray for us.

St. Paula of Rome

Today, we have a guest post from my friend, Alex. Alex is going to share a little bit about St. Paula!

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At the beginning of this year, at the advice of an amazing Catholic blog http://www.conversiondiary.com/2013/01/a-saint-for-the-year.html

and utilizing a Saint Name Generator from another blog http://jenniferfulwiler.com/saints/#.USwTh4511As

I decided to take on a patron saint for myself for the year 2013. This saint would be my partner in prayer, would intercede for me, and as they grew to know me spiritually, I would take the time to know them - to understand fully God's purpose for putting that name before me.

That saint is Saint Norma NO, Saint Paula. 

Saint Paula and I did not get off to a good start, which may be a lesson in and of itself. For the first few times in prayer, I kept accidentally referring to her as Saint Norma. 

Where did Norma come from? It's the name of a parishioner from my parish and it ends in an A, and Paula ends in an A, so naturally, I completely found a way to mess things up with St Paula right away. 

It's hard to remember someone's name, and it's even harder when you don't have a face to put to it.

Saint Paula, who I sometimes call Saint Norma, was an early Christian saint, and a Roman, which is awesome because the Romans are some of the earliest ancestors of our faith. The Romans completely acted counter-culturally to their country and made their faith their true citizenship. We could learn a lot from them.

Saint Paula was from a wealthy family. She married a rich senator guy named Toxotius and had 5 children - 4 of them daughters, Blaesilla, Paulina, Eustochium, and Rufina. And then a boy named Toxotius. 

Also, I love Roman names so naturally, I'm going to probably name my first child Eustochium.

Anyway, after becoming a widow at 32 years old, Paula still played an active role in her children's lives - marrying them off to various rich people and pagans who became Christians later on, and loving them as any mother should. She experienced an increased interest in her faith. Her love for her children consumed her to the degree that she didn't desire another husband; she only desired to grow further in love with her eternal spouse: Christ. 

She met her saintly friend, St. Marcella, and became the epitome of a Christian widow fully alive in Christ. After meeting St. Marcella, she met St. Jerome in 382, and became extremely drawn to monastic life. St. Jerome and St. Paula became close friends and ultimately, St. Paula became St. Jerome's number one. She helped him keep his affairs in order and assisted him in compiling his books. When Jerome translated the Bible from Greek and Hebrew into Latin, Paula helped him. She was fluent in Hebrew so she edited his works.

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I HAVE TO POINT OUT that this was one of the most amazing revelations I had about having St. Paula/Norma chosen as my saint for this year. I just graduated in August, and had been looking for a job doing what I love, doing what I studied to do: editing. I had never seen a patron saint of editors, or heard of any female saint that did editing, and here I was presented with probably the first female editor saint in the Church.

Also, very soon after having Paula assigned as my saint, I was BLESSED with an editing job that I love. Not only that, but the person who provided me with the means of obtaining this job is married to Norma the parishioner, which may explain why I keep confusing Paula and Norma. Both played an important role in bringing about my employment which was absolutely necessary for my livelihood. The fruits of my labor have allowed me to serve the Church in an even greater way than before. Back to Paula…

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St. Jerome and St. Paula were so close that their friendship became surrounded by scandal. They appeared to be far too intimate to just be friends. That's the kind of guy St. Jerome was. He was friends with lots of men and lots of women. But they did not let this sour their friendship. They organized monastic groups for men and women in the desert and pursued lives of poverty, virtue, and prayer. Being rich, St. Paula became very free with giving things away. In fact, she donated herself into financial ruin. She was completely impoverished when she died, but she left behind the legacy of their desert monastic groups, as well as her children and even grandchildren that in their marriages and celibate lives pursued religious virtue. They did this because of the example St. Paula set for them.

St. Paula was intelligent, charitable, a loving and devoted mother and wife, a cherished friend, a leader and a servant, and utterly devoted to Christ. She gave up a comfortable life to save her soul. She acted against the conventions of her time in order to pursue holy friendships with women and men. She saw beyond the fabric of this life into the depth of an eternity with Christ. And I'm absolutely honored to be served in prayer by such a saint.

This Lent, consider the people of the early church like St. Paula who quite literally gave up a home and all their belongings simply to pursue holiness. Look around your room and ask if you would do the same. What stops us from making such a bold move when so many before us did and reaped such glory from it? St. Paula went from wearing silks to wearing rags. Imagine taking that shopping money and mailing it off to a charity, or to a struggling Catholic radio station, or a pregnancy clinic.

We ask St. Paula to pray for us that we may desire to sacrifice everything in the pursuit of love for Christ. 

St. Giuseppe Moscati

A few years ago I used to work at Catholic Prayer Cards with my dear friend Kinsi, who blogs over at Anima Kinsi! Please Check out her blog and show her some Spicy Love! Today, Kinsi is sharing about 

St. Giuseppe Moscati

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Giuseppe Moscati: “The Holy Physician of Naples”

Patronage:Doctors, bachelors, and persons rejected by religious orders.

Quote: “Remember, that you must treat not only bodies, but also souls, with counsel that appeals to their minds and hearts rather than with cold prescriptions to be sent in to the pharmacist.”

Introduction:

I first heard of St. Giuseppe Moscati when I was working for a prayer card company.  As employees, we always got a sneak peek at upcoming cards and products.  When I first saw the holy card for Joseph Moscati (Joseph of course, being the English translation of his given name, Giuseppe) I found his photo intriguing.  Of course, he had quite the mustache, but beyond that, it is always striking to gaze upon a real photograph of a living Saint, rather than an artistic rendition.  This was the first photo that I’d ever seen of Giuseppe:

At the time, my husband was living in a separate city and going through military training.  I would send him letters, and in between the folded pages I’d always slip in a few of the newest prayer cards.  Though my husband had no connection to the medical field, he immediately felt a connection to Giuseppe, and tried to find more resources on the man. 

Biography:

Giuseppe Moscati was born on July 25, 1880 in Benevento, Italy to a noble family.  He had eight siblings in all, and soon after his birth the entire Moscati family relocated to Naples, where Giuseppe remained ultimately, until his death.  Though Giuseppe greatly admired his pious father, he did not choose to follow in his footsteps and study law.  Rather, Giuseppe was inspired by one of his siblings to study medicine.  When Giuseppe was 13, his older brother, Alberto fell from a horse during military service and sustained injury.  Giuseppe was inspired by the care given to his brother.  Giuseppe’s father died during the boy’s youth, and Giuseppe lived to see the passing of his mother and Alberto later in life.

At the age of 17, Giuseppe enrolled in the University of Naples, a secular and unabashedly anti-religion school.  While it was an unorthodox choice for the young Saint, Giuseppe successfully avoided pitfalls by disciplined study, earning his doctoral degree, summa cum laude, in 1903.  Giuseppe then began work at the Ospedale degli Incurabili (Hospital of Incurables) and quickly moved up in the ranks as an administrator.  He continued further study and research however, eager to make discoveries that could help his fellow man.  In coming years, Giuseppe was lauded for evacuating elderly and paralytic patients from a highly vulnerable location during the 1906 eruption of Mt. Vesuvius.  It is said that patients were evacuated mere moments before the roof collapsed under the weight of Vesuvius’ spewing ash.  In 1911, Giuseppe again acted valiantly when Naples was overcome with an outbreak of Cholera.  He was known for working night and day, often without pay, and for providing an atmosphere of awe and reverence for the victims of that outbreak.  Many were impressed not only by his selflessness in service (it is said that he often paid for medications for his patients out of his own pocket), but also by his uncanny ability to swiftly and accurately treat nearly any disease simply by listening intently to his patients’ symptoms.

In the same year as the cholera outbreak, Giuseppe became a member of the Royal Academy of Surgical Medicine.  He received his second doctorate in physiological chemistry.  In 1914, both Giuseppe’s chronically ill brother, Alberto, and his mother died.  Just months after, Italy became involved in World War I.  The government denied Moscati enlistment, believing that he would be most useful as a caregiver to wounded soldiers.  He was later honored as the head of a local school, and in 1922, granted the privilege to teach in institutions of higher learning.

Giuseppe Moscati died at the age of 46.  On the morning of April 12, 1927, Moscati attended daily Mass, as was his custom.  He received Holy Communion and returned to the hospital for the remainder of the day.  In the late afternoon, he felt exhausted and decided to rest in his armchair.  His sister discovered in there later, dead.  It is often speculated that Giuseppe died of sheer exhaustion, as he was well-known for working ceaseless hours without a thought of himself.  Though his work was primarily scientific in nature, Giuseppe railed against the nepotism of Naples’ medical system.  He made his secular work into a daily act of grace, saying that charity could have a greater impact on the world than science ever could.      

Some fun facts:

-One of Giuseppe Moscati’s favorite Bible verses is Hosea 13:14, which reads: “O death, I will be thy death.”

- Between the years 1903-1916, Giuseppe wrote 27 scientific publications.

- Giuseppe’s mother died from complications of diabetes.  He therefore became interested in modern treatments of the disease, and was one of the first doctors to administer insulin for this purpose.    

- He was rejected by the Jesuits, who insisted that his true calling was medicine.  As such, Moscati chose never to marry; instead taking a private vow of celibacy in 1913 so that he could focus entirely on the charitable works of his daily life.

- Not only would Moscati often provide medicine free-of-charge to his patients, but he even convinced his sister Nina (who acted as his secretary and assistant) to sell nearly all of their personal and familial possessions in order to pay for his charitable acts.

Beatification and Canonization:

Giuseppe Moscati was beatified in 1975 and canonized on October 25, 1987.  The miracle used for his cause was the cure of a dying man.  Giuseppe Fusco was an ironworker, and he was dying of leukemia.  His mother was distraught.  She had a vision of a doctor in her dreams, but thought little of it until her pastor showed her a photograph of Moscati.  She recognized him as the doctor from her dream! She decided to pray for his intercession, and Fusco became inexplicably well again.  He even soon returned to his physically demanding work.  Many other little miracles in recent years are attributed to the prayers of Giuseppe Moscati.

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Thanks Kinsi! St. Giuseppe Moscati, Pray for us.

St. Maximilian Kolbe

 Today we're talking about St. Maximilian Kolbe, a great and holy man.

Kolbe was born Raymund Kolbe on January 8, 1894 in Poland. His mother was Polish and his father was German. Kolbe was one of five brothers. For more about Kolbe's early life, you can read here.

Kolbe and his older brother decided to join the Conventual Franciscans in 1907. They illegally crossed the border between Russian and Austria-Hungary to enroll in minor seminary. As a novitiate, Kolbe was given the name Maximilian. In 1918, Kolbe was ordained a preist and soon after returned to Poland. He has a major influence in his own Franciscan Order in the form of the Friars of Mary Immaculate (O.F.M.I), a Franciscan religious institute whose Rule is influenced by the spirituality of St. Maximilian Kolbe.

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(Love his sweet beard here!)

When WWII started and the Nazi's invaded Poland, Kolbe gave shelter to 2000 Jews, which he hid in his friary. On February 17, 1941, he was arrested by German Gestapo and imprisoned. On May 28 of the same year, he was transferred to Auschwitz and became prisoner #16670. 

In July, 1941, three prisoners went missing from camp and the deputy camp commander came up with a solution to keep others from trying to escape. He was going to pick ten men to be starved to death in an underground bunker. One of the men that he selected was Franciszek Gajowniczek. Once selected, he cried out, "My wife! My children!", and Maximilian Kolbe volunteered to take his place.

Father Kolbe celebrated mass and sang hymns in his prison cell with the prisoners each day. He lifted up others and encouraged them by telling them that they would soon be with Mary in Heaven. Every time the guards would check on him, he was calmly, standing or kneeling in the middle of the cell. After two weeks of no food or drink, Maximilian Kolbe was the only prisoner left alive. The guards wanted to empty the bunker so they gave Kolbe a lethal injection of carbolic acid. Those who were present at the injection say that he raised his left arm and calmly waited for the injection. His remains were cremated on August 15, the feast day of the Assumption of Mary!

Koble was canonized as a martyr by Pope John Paul II on October 10, 1982 with Franciszek Gajowniczek (the man he offered his life for) in attendance. 

One of my favorite things about Maximilian Kolbe is that there are actual pictures of him available. He lived when my grandparents were alive. It's awesome to know that holy individuals can and do exist today. Everyday we can stand up for others and show Christ's love. Anyway, I just love him. He sacrificed his own life so that another man could live, what a true hero.

That's all for today! 

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If you are loving this #40daysofsaints, I'm still looking for some guest posters on your favorite saint! Email me at itsjustcalledspicy (at) gmail (dot) com if you are interested! I need your help because I just don't have time to write one of these every day and I'd really love to keep this up until Easter! Thanks!

St. Francis of Assisi

Hey there everyone! I took a day off #40daysofsaints to bring you a giveaway for Oofos yesterday! Check it out here if you haven't already. Also, I don't know if you noticed but Sundays are not included in Lent so I will not be posting on Sundays and if I do, it will not be a part of #40daysofsaints. Today, we are talking about St. Francis. I figured that we haven't talked about many men and there are plenty holy ones so let's talk about St. Francis of Assisi.

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Francis was born the son of a wealthy cloth merchant in Assisi (a town in Italy) around the year 1181. He was wealthy and lived the life of the rich and famous as a young man. He loved showy display and is said to have been a favorite individual amongst young nobles of Assisi. He was such a happy individual and a born leader. People loved him dearly. As a young adult, he was involved in wild parties. He is said by Thomas of Celano (his biographer) that, "he attracted to himself a whole retinue of young people addicted to evil and accustomed to vice" (source).

Francis loved to party but he wanted more. He wanted to be known as a knight and a hero. He knew that battle was the best place to win the glory and prestige in which he desired. Assisi declared war on a near by town of Perugia and Francis finally got his chance. Many of the troops were killed and the wealthy soldiers were taken prisoner to be held for ransom. It is believed from those who were with him that Francis never lost his happy manner while being imprisoned for an entire year. He was chained in a dark dungeon for one year and he remained still unchanged. He continue to party as much as before he went away to war.

He still had the deep desire for glory. The call for knights for the fourth crusade gave him the chance to meet the glory he so strongly wanted. Before Francis left, he put on his suit of armor decorated with gold and his magnificent cloak. Being the son of a wealthy farmer, he also took a horse. Francis left Assisi and one day's ride away, he had a dream. In his dream, he saw a vast hall hung with armour all marked with the cross. He was then told by God that he had it all wrong and was to return home to Assisi. Francis returned home and never made it to battle.

When he returned home, he spent more time in prayer, went to a cave and wept for forgiveness for his sins. One day he came across a leper, instinctively repelled with disgust, he embraced the man and gave him all the money he had. Francis was filled with joy.

Story from Catholic Online: His search for conversion led him to the ancient church at San Damiano. While he was praying there, he heard Christ on the crucifix speak to him, "Francis, repair my church." Francis assumed this meant church with a small c -- the crumbling building he was in. Acting again in his impetuous way, he took fabric from his father's shop and sold it to get money to repair the church. His father saw this as an act of theft -- and put together with Francis' cowardice, waste of money, and his growing disinterest in money made Francis seem more like a madman than his son. Pietro dragged Francis before the bishop and in front of the whole town demanded that Francis return the money and renounce all rights as his heir.

The bishop was very kind to Francis; he told him to return the money and said God would provide. That was all Francis needed to hear. He not only gave back the money but stripped off all his clothes -- the clothes his father had given him -- until he was wearing only a hair shirt. In front of the crowd that had gathered he said, "Pietro Bernardone is no longer my father. From now on I can say with complete freedom, 'Our Father who art in heaven.'" Wearing nothing but castoff rags, he went off into the freezing woods -- singing. And when robbers beat him later and took his clothes, he climbed out of the ditch and went off singing again. From then on Francis had nothing...and everything.

Francis went back and repaired the San Damiano church with his the work of his own hands. Eventually Francis realized that God wanted him to repair his Church --not in the building sense. Francis began to preach. Soon, others wanted to join Francis in the way he lived (sleeping in the open, begging for garbage to eat and loving God). Francis' brotherhood included individuals from all walks of life. There are so many great stories about Francis preaching to birds, another about Francis preaching to a wolf that had been eating human beings. Francis followed the Gospel literally sending his brothers out to preach two by two.

Francis never tried to abolish poverty, he made it holy. Francis and his companions were barefoot beggars wearing sacks and constantly filled with the joy of the Lord, celebrating the gift of life. People began asking themselves, “Could one be happy and own nothing?”

Francis’ order grew to 5000 in ten years. The order experienced a lot of pressure from outside control which made the order conform to the standards of others who believed Francis’ idea of radical poverty was too harsh. Francis gave up authority of the order.

Francis’ final years were filled with suffering as he prayed to share in Christ’s passion. Francis experienced stigmata (marks of the nails and the lance wound that Christ suffered) in his own body. After years of wandering, he became ill and began to go blind. He never recovered from his illness and died on October 4, 1226 at the age of 45. Francis is considered the founder of all Franciscan orders.

Feast Day: October 4

Patron Saint of animals, merchants and ecology

Prayer to St. Francis:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury,pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen

That's all for today,

OOFOS Giveaway

It's just called Spicy has teamed up with Got Giveaways, Xtreme Qpon and a few other awesome bloggers to bring you this Oofos Giveaway! One lucky winner will get their choice of Oofos Shoes! You can read the full Oofos Review at Got Giveaways. 

I also wrote my own review here if you would like to check it out!

Simply enter the Rafflecopter below for your chance to win. You do not have to complete all entries to be chosen, but the more entries you do complete, the better your chances are of being chosen! And remember, Sharing is Caring! Be sure to share with your friends! Good Luck!  

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St. Ita

My mother-in-law has written the guest post for St. Ita today! St. Ita, or Dorothea, is patron saint of my sister-in-law, Kirsten. Also, my grandmother-in-law was named Dorothy after Dorothea.

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Saint Ita is also known as the “Brigid of Munster”, “Foster Mother of the Saints of Ireland” and the patron Saint of Killeedy.  St. Ita was born before 484AD in County Waterford, in the Tramore area and died around 570. Her father was Cennfoelad or Confhaola and her mother was Necta.  Ita's name was originally Dorothea or Deirdre. She was a member of the Déisí tribe. Ita refused her father's wish that she should marry a local chieftain, as she believed that she had a calling from God and wanted to become a nun.  To convince her father to change his mind, she fasted for three days and three nights. On the third night, God gave out to her father in his sleep. The next morning, Cennfoelad agreed that Ita could do as she wished.

         (source for picture)                     

 At the age of sixteen, Ita set off on her journey. Bishop (St.) Declan of Ardmore conferred the veil on her. Legend has it that Ita was lead to Killeedy by three heavenly lights. The first was at the top of the Galtee mountains, the second on the Mullaghareirk mountains and the third at Cluain Creadhail, which is nowadays Killeedy. Her sister Fiona also went on to become a nun, settling down at a place known as Killeedy in a church that she set up known as the "Church of St. Ita" in County Limerick. There, she was the head of a community of women. That group seems to have had a school for little boys where they were taught "Faith in God with purity of heart; simplicity of life with religion; generosity with love".   Her austerities are told by St. Cuimin of Down, and numerous miracles are recorded of her. She is said to be the originator of an Irish lullaby for the infant Jesus, an English version of which was set for voice and piano by the American composer Samuel Barber. She was said to be endowed with the gift of prophecy and was held in great veneration by a large number of contemporary saints, men as well as women. When she felt her end approaching she sent for her community of nuns, and invoked the blessing of heaven on the clergy and laity of the district around Killeedy.  Not alone was St. Ita a saint, but she was the foster-mother of many saints, including St. Brendan the Voyager, St. Pulcherius (Mochoemog), and St. Cummian Fada. At the request of Bishop Butler of Limerick, Pope Pius IX granted a special Office and Mass for the feast of St. Ita, which is kept on 15 January.

St. Ita, Pray for us.

That's all for today! Thanks to my mom-in-law who wrote this!

St. Cecelia

Today's #40daysofsaints guest post about St. Cecelia is written by Jenna (great name, BTW). Jenna blogs over at Call Her Happy. For more info about Jenna you can check out her blog and mini bio at the bottom of this post!

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Biography {short and sweet}

Being one of the first Saints, there isn't a ton known about St. Cecilia. Here is what I know: St. Cecilia grew up in Italy and was later forced into marriage with a non-believing man. To put it lightly, she made the best of it, and she was able to convert her new husband as well as his brother. Later, when the men were outed as Catholics, they were put to death, and Cecilia gave them a proper burial. That wasn't looked upon well either, and she was sentenced to death by fire. Cecilia, protected by God, would not succumb to the fire, so they suffocated her. Again protected, they stabbed her in the neck in an attempt to behead her, and she was left to die. Sorry, but it's true. She is considered the patron of musicians because she played the organ on her wedding day as a way of declaring her love for God and asking for His help in the conversion of her husband. Feast Day: November 22 Random Fact: St. Cecilia is my Confirmation namesake. You're welcome.

Ideas for Commemorating

This past November, St. Cecilia's feast day fell on Thanksgiving. I wrote a post at CatholicMom.com on ways you can celebrate her life during the holiday. Bonus: The ideas are good all year round.

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Inspirational Songs

Like most people you ask, I would imagine, I love all kinds of music. Here are a few of my favorite Christian songs in honor of the Patron of Music. You Are More by Tenth Avenue North I can't say that I was always as strong in my faith as I am today. I can't say that I made the best choices in my life. Because I didn't. It took me a long time to come to terms with the fact that I am a sinner just like everyone else. I confessed my sins of pride (because that's what that is, you know?), and this song is a constant reminder that I am more than the sum of my past mistakes. Lead Me by Sanctus Real Whenever I hear this song, I pray for Mike. I think it is a really cool reminder about the roll that God plays in Mike's life and the roll that Mike plays in ours. A real good hubby song. This is the Stuff by Francesca Battistelli You know those days when your husband is away on business and your toddler refuses to take a nap or go to bed and then you just need coffee so you go to the store and get pulled over on the way and start crying uncontrollably in front of the officer and then eat raisins for dinner because you are out of energy and any sort of motivation? Whew. That may or may not have happened to me. This song puts that day in perspective. Oceans Above Ok, not actually a song. But, honestly, anything by this band I love. But just be careful. There is a death metal band by the same name. Don't download that cd. You've been warned. Anyway, Oceans Above reminds me of a Christian Postal Service. Mucho Love. If I Was Jesus by Paul Coleman Super fun song that always makes me happy when I hear it. It kind of makes Jesus into an even more relate-able person by breaking down his life into really simple terms. I don't know. It's just really fun. 

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Jenna is a former high school English teacher turned stay-at-home-mom from the Midwest. She spends her days taking care of her daughter and her uterus baby while freelancing and creating content for her blog, Call Her Happy. She wouldn't mind if you joined her.

St. Edith Stein

As a part of #40daysofsaints, we have a guest post about St. Edith Stein from Paige. Paige blogs over at S'aint Easy. For more about Paige, check out her blog and mini bio at the bottom of this post.

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I read a book a while back by Fr. James Martin about the Saints. He made the statement in it that he believed that Saints choose us, we don’t choose them.

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This is exactly what happened to me when I chose my confirmation Saint, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. I had already chosen the confirmation name of Theresa because it is a family name: I had a great-great Aunt whose birth name was Theresa who joined the O.Carms, and another who also joined the O.Carms and her religious name was Teresita. So, I knew I wanted to take that name in honor of both of my great-great aunts who chose a religious life and were very pious, faithful women (they never ditched their habits, even after they were allowed to.) So, I figured I should learn more about all the different St. Teresas to see if there was one that I could call my BFF in Heaven. I bought a book called The Four Teresas by Gina Loehr and dug in.

St. Teresa of Avila? Good, but maybe a bit too ambitious. Though I liked her worldly-to-pious conversion story.

St. Therese of Lisieux? Too popular, and a little too saccharine in general, though I could identify with the petulant child part of her personality.

Mother Teresa? Not touching that one with a stick.

And then I got to the fourth Teresa. St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. A Saint that, previously, I had never heard of, though I consider myself to be a bit of a Saint nerd.

St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross is also known as St. Edith Stein. She’s a virgin and martyr, but she’s a modern virgin and martyr, as she died under the Nazi regime in 1942. She was raised Jewish in Poland, but by the time she became a teenager was a full-blown atheist. She was a Truth seeker at heart, though, because her thirst to know things--as many things as she could-- lead her to earn her Doctorate in Philosophy,which was not a common thing for a woman to do in the early 20^th century!! She encountered the Catholic faith after reading St. Teresa of Avila’s The Interior Castle. The story goes that she was visiting some friends and found it on their bookshelf, she stayed up all night reading it, and when she was finished, she set the book down and said “This is Truth.” She finally went to a priest to become Catholic after studying everything she could get her hands on. When the priest asked her if she knew what it meant to be Baptized, she told him some form of “quiz me.” She was received into the Church in 1922. She wanted to join the Discalced Carmelites, but her spiritual director wanted her to stay and teach and help to further the education of women in particular. Edith Stein was a very big advocate of women’s rights and equality saying “One could say that in case of need, every normal and healthy woman is able to hold a position. And there is no profession which cannot be practiced by a woman.” She taught at a Dominican school in Speyer, Germany until she was no longer allowed to do so because of the political climate. She then joined the Carmelites, following her spiritual leader, St. Teresa of Avila. She was moved to Echt, Netherlandsto keep her safe, until 1940 when the Nazis invaded. They had been denounced by the Dutch Bishops and so rounded up all Jews who had converted to Christianity and sent them to the concentration camps. Edith Stein died at Auschwitzalong with her younger sister, Rosa, who also had converted and joined the convent on August 9, 1942. She was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1987 and canonized in 2000.

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St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross’ life message was, in my opinion, “seek the Truth and you will find it.” As someone who encounters Faith on a very intellectual level, she is a wonderful patron Saint for me. I was able to identify with her hunger for knowledge and Truth and admired her open willingness to believe when she saw something that made her believe again. As a martyr, she gave everything in order to pursue Truth wherever it took her. I only pray that, in the same situation, I would be able to do the same.

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Paige blogs at S’aint Easy (www.sainteasy.blogspot.com) where she likes to write about her search for Truth, particularly as it relates to the Catholic faith and her daily life. Re-written song lyrics are just a bonus. 

St. Felicity

Today, we have a guest post about St. Felicity as a part of the "40 days of Saints" series from Stacy who blogs over at Catholic and Crunchy! For more info about Stacy, read her mini bio at the bottom of this post and check out her blog!

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If you don't feel this way about your own confirmation, I bet you have heard it said: "I didn't pick my saint; my saint picked me". For any non-Catholic readers, the sacrament of confirmation is when a Catholic person receives the Holy Spirit. It generally happens around 9th or 10th grade, though in some rites it happens in infancy. During the confirmation process, you are asked to choose a saint whose name you will take when you become confirmed. When the bishop confirms you, he doesn't call you by your birth name, but by your saint's name. If you already have a saint's name (like my husband, Steven), you can use that one if you choose. When I was going through confirmation, the saints were relatively new to me. I didn't know much about them, and it started a frenzy of wanting to know more. I ended up getting a subscription in high school to a saint information card collection. Each month they'd send a few of these big information cards that I would collect in a binder. I would like to say that, through learning more about the saints, I chose one that I felt would guide me and that I could relate to.

Nope, not how it happened. Remember the late 90's tv show Felicity? Yes, I'm sure you can see where this is headed. Though I swore up and down that this was not the reason, I chose the name Felicity because I knew it from that show and thought it was sooo pretty (still do!). Thankfully, our confirmation teachers required us to write a paper and do a presentation on our chosen saint. Had they not done that, I might not have known anything about St. Felicity, besides the fact that someone with awesome curly hair who went and cut it all short and dramatic looking on the WB and who I really wanted to be with Noel and not Ben, shared the same name.

One of my favorite images of saints Perpetua and Felicity:

source

I learned that she was the co-martyr of Perpetua, which one of my friends chose as her saint. Each year on our shared feast day, we send each other a little facebook message. Felicty was the slave of Perpetua and was an expectant mother. She was arrested and imprisoned for her faith, and was afraid she would not be able to stand up for her faith because game rules stated that pregnant women could not participate. A few days before the games, she gave birth while the prison guards taunted and tormented her. Her daughter is believed to have been given up and raised by a Christian. She stood by her faith in the games, though the crowd became upset as it was obvious she had just given birth. Instead of being killed by the wild animals, she had her throat cut open. She executed in the games for not renouncing her Christian faith. There are other stories of her having 7 sons, all of whom were martyred for their faith as well. Now initially I thought, "how could you go to your death, knowing you have a days old daughter who needs you?". And then, the more I think about it, I hope and pray that I could be that brave and faithful as to stand up for my faith if I was put to a similar test. I certainly hope I would not renounce my faith for any reason.

But back to St. Felicity choosing me. So years later, after I had let my faith go stale and then a new interest was sparked, I thought about the fact that I had chosen St. Felicity, felt silly for the reasoning, and then wished I could have a 'do over'. I knew she was the patron saint of a few different things, including against death of children, against sterility, martyrs, male children, and widows. I didn't really know how that applied to me and thought it would be cool if I had a saint I felt I could relate to. But then in January of 2010, I was diagnosed with PCOS and told I would probably have trouble conceiving. And then in January of this year, my doctor told me that I am technically infertile and will need medical help conceiving.  I don't call it irony that I chose a patron saint of infertility all those years ago when I could have no clue that it would be a battle I would one day face myself. Since 2010, I have had a very strong feeling that St. Felicity chose me, because she knew I would need her intercession, her faith, and her strength. And knowing that I have the intercession and communion of saints in heaven, I have a lot of hope and I am able to look past a medical label and know that our family will one day be what it is meant to be.

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Stacy is a mid 20's Catholic newlywed who blogs about

almost everything, including faith, health, and learning 

to be crunchy. Feel free to drop by Catholic and Crunchy

to say hello!

St. Gerard Majella

Today, we are talking about St. Gerard Majella. I am so thankful because we have a guest post from Kiera, who is sharing an awesome personal story! If you want to learn more about Kiera, check out her mini-bio and blog info at the bottom of this post!

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I was nearing a week overdue with my second child in October of 2011.  I lamented this fact, because I was tired of being pregnant and just wanted this baby of mine to be born. A friend told me to ask St. Gerard to pray for me.  So I did, but in the process of doing so I looked the guy up. Before this, I  had known that he was the patron saint of Mothers, Motherhood, and unborn children, but I didn’t really know much else. The first thing I found was that his feast day was October 16^th, which was a day before my 41 week mark. This was definitely a God moment.

So knowing he was the go to guy for mothers, and those wanting to be mothers, I wanted to know why.  I found out that like most saints, there was a story behind it. 

It was said that in the last days of his life in the later 1700s, Gerard Majella visited a family and left a handkerchief behind with the family.  One of the daughters noticed this and called out to him as he had already left.  He told her to keep it saying she may need it some day.  Years later when the daughter was now married and was having a truly difficult labor where she was on the verge of losing her life, she remembered the handkerchief and went from almost dying to having a healthy birth with a healthy child and mama at the end of it. 

Great story, right?  I thought to myself, and my husband agreed, that this guy seems like a great advocate for life, which is something that we both felt and still feel strongly about.  So we thought, maybe if this child of ours is a boy, we should have Gerard be his middle name.  As you can tell we are the folks that like the surprise moment at birth for the gender of our children. We had a girl and boy name picked out, but this definitely changed our boy name. 

 The next few days, I kept asking St. Gerard to pray for me.  And well lo and behold I had an amazing labor that only lasted a few hours, just 8 days after my EDD.  I was able to keep myself composed and even walked myself through the hospital to the birthing center suite. On the way, we passed a statue of St. Gerard, and I told the attending nurse that if this baby was a boy that Gerard was going to be his middle name.

A mere ten minutes later, with about 3 pushes we had a healthy baby boy.  One, who now for the rest of his hopefully long life, has St. Gerard watching out for him.

You can learn more about St. Gerard and pray some of the prayers associated with him by checking out the St. Gerard website.http://www.saintgerard.com/stgerard.html

St. Gerard Majella

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About Kiera: I am a stay-at-home mom of two boys with a PhD in Chemistry and a Catholic convert who has a passion for building community. I enjoy reading books on my kindle, playing soccer, dancing in the kitchen with my children, hanging out with my husband and just being the over-thinking granola-like person that I am. I blog about my crazy life whenever the kiddos let me get a spare moment over at Contranaut Girl. 

http://contranautgirl.blogspot.com

St. Maria Goretti

If you are just checking in here at It's just called spicy, I'm posting 40 days of Catholic Saints. As a Catholic, I wanted to do something special this Lenten season (40 days before Easter) and get to know the saints better. You are welcome to read along and get to know about these great Christian role models. 

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St. Maria Goretti has been one of my favorite saints since I was in college. I went on a trip with some girls my freshman year at FSU to travel to EWTN and a retreat held in Nashville with the Nashville Dominicans, an order of sisters.

Anyways, on the way to this retreat, we stopped at a Catholic book store. I purchased a book about St. Maria Goretti and read the book in one day. I love her because even though she was so young, she still strived to do the right thing always. She had a kind heart.
Her Story: Maria Goretti was an Italian-virgin martyr (died for her faith).
The cool thing is that we know a lot about young Maria Goretti. She was born Corinaldo, Italy to Luigi Goretti and Assunta Carlini on October 16, 1890. 
The Goretti family moved to Ferriere, Italy in 1899. Her father, Luigi bargained with Signor Serenelli, who had a son named Alessandro. The two families lived together in a building owned by Count Mazzolini (http://www.mariagoretti.org/mariabio.htm). Maria's father died of malaria when she was only six years old. Maria's mother often struggled to feed her six children. 
In 1902, Alessandro Serenelli, who had often harassed Maria, grabbed her from her steps and tried to rape her. Maria is believed to have said, ""No! It is a sin! God does not want it!" Alessandro continued to fight Maria and stabbed her 14 times. She died at the age of eleven.
(I had to include this beautiful part from Wikipedia: The pharmacist of the hospital in which she died said to her, "Maria, think of me in Paradise." She looked at the old man: "Well, who knows, which of us is going to be there first?" "You, Maria," he replied. "Then I will gladly think of you," said Maria. Maria also expressed concern of her mother's welfare ^[9] The following day, twenty hours after the attack, having expressed forgiveness for her murderer and stating that she wanted to have him in Heaven with her, Maria died of her injuries, while looking at a very beautiful picture of the Blessed Mother, and clutching a cross to her chest.)

One of my favorite things about Maria Goretti is the story of repentance of her murderer Alessandro Serenelli. Originally sentenced to life, then re-evaluated since he was a minor, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison. After three years of imprisonment, Alessandro met with a bishop and later wrote this bishop a letter. In the letter, he stated that he had dreamed of young Maria Goretti. In his dream, she gave him lillies, which immediately burned in his hands. 
According to http://www.mariagoretti.org/likoudisarticle2.htm: "The dream was so vivid he could not distinguish it from reality. The prison bars and walls fell away and his cell was a sunlit garden blooming with flowers. Towards him came a beautiful girl dressed in pure white. He said to himself: 'How is this? Peasant girls wear darkish clothes.' But he saw it was Maria. She was walking among flowers, smiling, and without the least fear. He wanted to flee from her but could not. Maria picked white lilies and handed them to him saying, 'Alessandro, take them!' He accepted the lilies, one by one, fourteen of them. But a strange thing took place. As he received them from her fingers, the lilies did not remain lilies but changed into so many flaming lights. There was a lily turned to purifying flame for every one of the 14 mortal blows he struck her on the fatal day in Ferriere. Marietta said smilingly, 'Alessandro, as I have promised, your soul shall someday reach me in heaven." 

50 years after her death, Maria Goretti was canonized a saint by Pope Pius XII. Maria's mother and Alessandro attended the ceremony together. Alessandro became a laybrother of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, living in a monastery and working as its receptionist and gardener until death peacefully in 1970 at the age of 89. He spent the last years of his life praying to his protector, St. Maria Goretti.

For more info on St. Maria Goretti: http://www.mariagoretti.org/likoudisarticle2.htm 
Feast Day: October 16
Patron Saint of: Youth, Young women, Purity, and Victims of rape

Official Prayer to St. Maria Goretti: 

Oh Saint Maria Goretti who, strengthened by God's grace, did not hesitate even at the age of twelve to shed your blood and sacrifice life itself to defend your virginal purity, look graciously on the unhappy human race which has strayed far from the path of eternal salvation. Teach us all, and especially youth,with what courage and promptitude we should flee for the love of Jesus anything that could offend Him or stain our souls with sin. Obtain for us from our Lord victory in temptation, comfort in the sorrows of life, and the grace which we earnestly beg of thee (here insert intention), and may we one day enjoy with thee the imperishable glory of Heaven. Amen.

That's all for today,

Happy Valentines Day!

This kiddo has stolen our hearts this Valentines Day!

I  had a little mini-photo shoot with baby Noland and my new camera that I got for Christmas! Here are two of my favorite pictures! He is so sweet! 4 months old.

Hope you enjoy this day of love no matter what your relationship status is! 

From our house to yours, have a Happy Valentines Day!

Love, 

St. Valentine's Day

Hey Everyone! Happy St. Valentines Day! It's been almost a whole month since I've written on the blog. As you may already know, I am Catholic and Lent started yesterday. Although I haven't been blogging much lately, I'd really like to blog regularly for the next 40 days about the saints.

If you are not Catholic, you may not know what a saint is. A saint in the Catholic church is, "a person officially recognized, especially by canonization, as being entitled to public veneration and capable of interceding (praying) for people on earth." A saint is also defined as, "a person who has died and gone to heaven" (http://tiny.cc/eybisw). 

Anyways, for the next 40 days, I would really like to get to know more about the saints as my Lenten practice. I've asked some friends to guest post and share about their favorite saint and am doing a little saint series here until Easter. For those non-Catholic Christians, this might just be interesting for you to read about people who lived courage lives putting God first in everything. I promise the blog will not be a "all about saints" blog forever, just for the next 40 days and then it will return to it's regularly scheduled programs. Haha. Anyways, Valentines Day and St. Patrick's Day are based off of saints. 

For those who are concerned that Catholics "worship" saints, that is certainly NOT true. If you are interested in this being explained further to understand why saints are so important to Catholics, you can read here.

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Today, I thought I'd share a little bit about St. Valentine. Every year on February 14, we celebrate Valentines day and yet, many of us know absolutely nothing about St. Valentine. I would consider myself to be in this "know nothing about St. Valentine" category until today.

Who was St. Valentine?

So the truth is, there is not a lot known about St. Valentine.  Valentine was a priest in the Catholic church in Rome, who assisted the martyrs in persecution under Claudius II. (A martyr is someone who died for their faith.) It is believed that Valentine was executed on February 14 around the year 270. 

There are a few legends of St. Valentine which help explain why Valentine's Day is all about love! St. Valentine is the patron (protector) of affianced couples, bee keepers, engaged couples, epilepsy, fainting, greetings, happy marriages, love, lovers, people suffering from plague, travellers, and young people. 

According to the History Channel website, Claudius wanted to maintain a strong army and struggled to get new soldiers. He believed that Roman men were "unwilling to join the army because of their strong attachment to their wives and families." So Emperor Claudius made it illegal to get married or engaged in Rome.Valentine was caught marrying Christian couples and helping Christians who were being persecuted under Emperor Claudius II in Rome. St. Valentine was soon imprisoned and it is believed that the emperor became fond of him in the beginning of his imprisonment. Then Valentine tried to convert the emperor to Christianity and was then sentenced to death. 

Another story says that while in jail, Valentine healed the jailers daughter who was blind. And finally, Valentine is believed to have written a farewell note to the jailer's daughter on the night before his death. In the note he signed, "From your Valentine." More information can be found on St. Valentine here.

My thoughts? I think it is neat that we celebrate love on Valentine's Day. For all you singles out there, you can celebrate a love of family and the freedom to marry when love comes along. After all, that is exactly what St. Valentine was fighting for. So now we know why we celebrate all the mushy gushy lovey dovey stuff on Valentine's Day! Hope you all enjoy this time until Easter as we get to know more and more saints!

That's all for now,