Bravest Thing (He Ever Did)

I once went to a look-out spot which presented a stunning view of the Saskatchewan River. However, before I could get to the actual look-out spot, I had to stroll pass a fenced-in storage area. At that moment, there happened to be a deer within the fenced in area. Amused, I stood and watched. The deer looked up and saw me, and then utterly freaked out. In desperation to escape, he started ramming himself against the chain-link fence. With great violence he smashed his body towards the metal, harder and harder, all to no avail. Not wanting the animal to kill itself (which it surely would have), I quickly went out of sight. What happened afterwards? I imagine the deer calmed down, remembered where it was, and sheepishly walked out of the fenced in area by using the massive opening just a few feet away. * * * The deer story provides an example of what, according to St. Francis de Sales, is the greatest evil to befall a soul (besides sin). He is speaking of disquietude . Disquietude is as ...

The Feast of St. Joseph has always carried great significance for me. But even more so in recent years. Two years ago it was on March 19th that I finished my last in-person day at school before being sent home. A ridiculous 3.5 month lockdown ensued, followed by another 20.5 months of insanity.  That is, the past two years have been a roller coaster for us. For all of us. I'm not sure how much more my stomach can handle. Nevertheless, St. Joseph has been key to our family's sanity and wellbeing. Now it would take nearly a book-length post to describe what has led up to this year's St. Joseph's day post, but, speaking of books, I will state the obvious: Today I have just clicked "PUBLISH" at Amazon on my book, Disconnected: The Broken Path . NB: Amazon will take up to 72hours to review things, so my book will technically go live on March 22nd. It doesn't seem like much, but writing this book has been a journey filled with great risk and uncertainty. It migh...

  A re Canonizations Infallible? Revisiting a Disputed Question Edited by Dr. Peter Kwasniewski Arouca Press 274 Pages Are canonizations infallible? This is a loaded question. Your immediate answer will speak volumes about your life and experience as a Catholic. Being raised in the 1990s, it was evident that the Church was a mess. Vocations were dropping faster than the pull of gravity, orthodoxy was scorned, catechism classes were a disaster - unless you liked crafts, and the Mass was traumatic - think girls dancing in the sanctuary to Days of Elijah while old people wiggled their butts in movement to the a spirit. Hip-replacements were a frequent reality at our parish (oh those hippies). But through it all, there was a sentiment amongst the few faithful Catholics that the pope was against all of this, and that these liberals were simply being disobedient. We were the real Catholics, and this mess wouldn't last forever.  And so, we believed certain things. We believed that...

Blessed Charles of Austria: A Holy Emperor and His Legacy Charles A. Coulombe TAN Books (also available on Amazon ) 388 Pages In a dromocratic world where everything we do must be up-to-the-millisecond, why write a review of a book that came out *gasp* last year? Still more, why write a review for a book on the last Holy Emperor, as though a Catholic monarchy were, begrudgingly, anything more than a pipe dream in our current democratic - rule of the mob - days of Trudeau and Biden? A few thoughts on this: 1) I initially ignored this book. However, people just wouldn't stop talking about it, and so I finally read it. 2) I can see now why people have continued to talk about this book. It clearly is of immense quality, and it deserves to be enjoyed by many others. 3) Though signaling the end of an era, the life of Blessed Charles, as you will see, is most applicable to our own lives, and in our own times. Blessed Charles of Austria begins with a mini-history lesson on the Holy Roman...

  Ready for a little soul searching? Picking up on Cardinal Newman, the late John Senior asks these questions in The Restoration of Christian Culture   (pp. 58-59): "What would you have lost if the Catholic Faith were false - which it isn't, but supposing it were? How much of your life would have been spent in vain?" I thought about these questions as I read. What came to mind is how virtue is its own reward, and that living a Catholic life has been good either way. I don't see the people I know who chase after high-end vehicles, cabins at the lake, fancy vacations, prestige in their occupation, etc... I don't see them as glowing with joy and peace. One can argue that Catholicism is good, regardless of whether or not it is true (which it is). Am I really missing out that I have more children than what is socially acceptable? Quite the opposite! Am I really at a disadvantage for adhering to the disciplines of the Church? Again, quite the opposite - imagine having a...

Did you know that Canada once had a stigmatist in its midst?  On July 11, 1833, Aurelie Caouette was born in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. She was a devout girl, and by the age of six her parents saw her floating in prayer towards Jesus in the tabernacle. Alarmed, they consulted their parish priest. The priest remained calm, noting that young Aurelie was a normal child, of good humour, and very pious. In fact, he even permitted Aurelie to receive first Communion early, at the age of nine (the standard age was thirteen then). In 1852 Aurelie received the stigmata. It was mostly hidden, though at various times of the year blood would gush visibly from her head, side, and hands. Later in 1852 Aurelie vowed a life of virginity, and took on the name Catherine. Historian Charles Coloumbe states that she did so in honour of St. Catherine of Sienna, who also suffered the pain of the stigmata (p. 127). However, her biography states that it was actually in honour of the martyr St. Catherine of ...

Ask any devout Catholic what they like best about their faith and a reply of “the sacraments” will surely be a top answer. Unfortunately, if not maliciously, the sacraments are (mostly) unavailable at the moment. Yet if you ask a follow up to such Catholics about why they love their faith, surely “the saints” would be an eager secondary answer. Though the sacraments be absent, the saints remain. For every COVID-19 crisis we face, or imagine, there’s a saint who has our back. They intercede, inspire, and, yes, even entertain. Here are some saints who can, and do, intercede for us throughout our pandemic problems: While social isolation reigns supreme, the master of this craft is St. Symeon the Stylite. Unable to gain enough prayer time due to a following of devotees (he sounds like a parent at home with the children), he spent 47 years living atop a pillar - the last pillar being over 50 feet high. If such isolation bores you to death, St. Paul is a suitable aid. His preachi...

There are timely books, and then there are books planted at the most precise and necessary moment in history that, undoubtedly, they are Divinely inspired. From a personal perspective, seeing the world falling apart, I had an inner desire to get to know St. Joseph more closely. From a world's perspective, as it self-implodes in godlessness, it also is a time to "Go to Joseph." With that I introduce a review of Fr. Don Calloway's Consecration to St. Joseph. This book is best suited as a 33 day preparation for a consecration to St. Joseph. Now the consecration is not like one to Our Lady, but it still is a special entrustment to a more than special saint. Each day there are readings and prayers to be followed. It is structured, yet not overbearing. A word on the readings. Fr. Calloway has combined the best-of-the-best writings on St. Joseph. You will be amazed by some of the things St. Bernard, St. Eymard, Venerable Sheen, Mother Angelica ("old...

Mark Twain popularized the aphorism that truth is stranger than fiction, a verifiable fact when considering the lives of the saints. The stories of the saints are as eccentric as they are venerable. Take, for example, St. Symeon the Stylite. Unable to gain enough prayer time due to a following of devotees (he sounds like me with my children), he spent 47 years living atop a pillar - the last pillar being over 50 feet high. St. Denis, after being decapitated, picked up his head in his hands and walked six miles, all the while preaching a sermon on repentance. To the chagrin of the altar boy present, St. Lawrence of Brindisi would take upwards of sixteen hours to say a Mass. St. Philip Neri, in the pursuit of humility, once shaved only half of his beard. And perhaps my favorite story of all, St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows walked unarmed in the midst of twenty Garibaldi Red Shirt soldiers who had kidnapped a young woman. Gabriel swiped a couple of pistols from the nearby soldie...

GK Chesterton's cause for sainthood has met a major stumbling block. According to the Bishop of Northhampton, Most Reverend Peter Doyle: “That conclusion is that I am unable to promote the cause of GK Chesterton for three reasons. Firstly, and most importantly, there is no local cult. Secondly, I have been unable to tease out a pattern of personal spirituality. And, thirdly, even allowing for the context of G K Chesterton’s time, the issue of anti-Semitism is a real obstacle particularly at this time in the United Kingdom.” Ouch.  Now if you have ever been to a Catholic college (as in non-Jesuit, but rather truly Catholic), you will be familiar with the Chesterton crowd. They will smoke cigars, quote pithy from GK, and meet at pubs to discuss intellectual topics (while smoking more cigars). “In Catholicism, the pint , the pipe and the cross can all fit..." they will add, as a smoke ring rises to the rafters.   I'm not sure if these Chestertonians ever discus...