Angels—messengers from God—appear frequently in Scripture, but only Michael, Gabriel and Raphael are named.
Michael appears in Daniel’s vision as “the great prince” who defends Israel against its enemies; in the Book of Revelation, he leads God’s armies to final victory over the forces of evil. Devotion to Michael is the oldest angelic devotion, rising in the East in the fourth century. The Church in the West began to observe a feast honoring Michael and the angels in the fifth century.
Gabriel also makes an appearance in Daniel’s visions, announcing Michael’s role in God’s plan. His best-known appearance is an encounter with a young Jewish girl named Mary, who consents to bear the Messiah.
Raphael’s activity is confined to the Old Testament story of Tobit. There he appears to guide Tobit’s son Tobiah through a series of fantastic adventures which lead to a threefold happy ending: Tobiah’s marriage to Sarah, the healing of Tobit’s blindness, and the restoration of the family fortune.
The memorials of Gabriel and Raphael were added to the Roman calendar in 1921. The 1970 revision of the calendar joined their individual feasts to Michael’s.
Reflection
Each of the archangels performs a different mission in Scripture: Michael protects; Gabriel announces; Raphael guides. Earlier belief that inexplicable events were due to the actions of spiritual beings has given way to a scientific world-view and a different sense of cause and effect. Yet believers still experience God’s protection, communication, and guidance in ways which defy description. We cannot dismiss angels too lightly.
Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael are the Patron Saints of:
Death Germany Grocers Police Officers/First Responders Radiologists
Saint Gabriel is the Patron Saint of: Broadcasters/Communicators
Saint Raphael is the Patron Saint of: The Blind, Travelers
Superstition, idolatry, divination, and magic are all things we can encounter in our daily lives, and, with Fr. Mike, we unpack how they break the First Commandment. Fr. Mike reiterates that superstition represents an “excess of religion” and can affect the worship we offer to God. He points out that we can be superstitious even in our Catholic practices. He also explains that idolatry consists of divinizing anything that is not God. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2110-2117.
One of the things I like reading in my hometown newspaper is the obituaries. Up north, where I grew up, we call it the “Irish sports page.” Hey, you gotta have fun! I like reading about what people have done in their lives. Some people have done amazing things. At the end of the obituaries, the religious services for the deceased are announced. I find some of them incomprehensible. “A celebration of life will be held at a restaurant” or wherever. Really? You should have had that a week ago when the person was warmer and could have appreciated it. He’s dead! Unfortunately, the same is done for Catholics: “A celebration of life will be held to celebrate their life.” What the newspapers are printing is heresy and blasphemous. It denies what the Mass is. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is not a celebration of someone’s life. The Mass is not an “it.” It’s a “Who.” It is Christ offering Himself to the Father on our behalf for the forgiveness of our sins. And we all need that. Even my sainted mother, who suffered purgatory on Earth because she raised me, needed a savior. We had a Mass of Christian Burial for her, and I performed it.
Christ prays for us in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass because, unfortunately, we must leave this world through death. We all contemplate the end of life. I seem to be hurrying toward it a little quicker than I expected. In fact, I’ve been scoping out the best rooms in Hospice. We were never meant to die, and that’s why we fear death. Original sin and the sins we have committed since Baptism have that effect. In the Gospel, Christ said that after death comes judgment. People don’t like that word. Know why they don’t like it? Because they’ve done something wrong. Do you get nervous when you’re driving up Highway 52 to Salisbury and see a State Trooper or the Sheriff? People tend to hit their breaks. But if you’re not speeding, you have nothing to worry about. I just give the officers a blessing and move on. I’m grateful they are there like angels watching over us in case somebody gets hurt.
Sometimes obituaries will say that the deceased person has “gone to see Jesus.” And that’s true. When we leave this world, God, Himself, will look at us and ask, “Did you love Me?” “Did you keep My Commandments?” That is the standard because that is what He said. For some, it is not a pleasant meeting. They only stay for a cup of coffee and then go elsewhere. Others get to stay in Heaven forever. How long we stay depends on how we have lived. According to the Gospel of Matthew, we will be judged according to how we loved and responded to His love.
There is a course we take in seminary called Eschatology, a study of the last days. Within that course is a sub-course about the Four Last Things: Death, Judgement, Heaven, and Hell. Traditionally, we preach about the Four Last Things during Lent. When we leave this world, all of us will see Jesus. How that meeting goes is entirely up to us. The key thing to note is that God tells us exactly what to do. “If you love Me, keep My Commandments.” And He gives us the final exam questions further along in the Gospel of Matthew. So, you already know what He will ask when you stand before Him. “Did you love Me?” “Yes, Lord. You know I love You.” He’s not going to accept the same excuse that you give police officers: “Oh, I didn’t see the speed limit sign, Officer.” No! He knows what we’ve done because love is an action.
When I work with people who are passing, I ask them if they have made their peace with God. God always wants to save us even at the point of our death. Heaven was stolen once by the Good Thief on the Cross, and it can be stolen again. Many in my hospital work have been able to steal Heaven at the last minute. I have baptized several people while they were on their deathbeds, and one wasn’t even Catholic, but he wanted to be baptized. They realize that they want peace. I never mention the “D” word. The Hospice staff don’t understand how I do that. I just never bring it up. I let them bring it up because they have to accept it. You don’t take away someone’s crutch without giving them another one. If they are Catholic, I ask them if they would like to be anointed with the Last Rites “just in case.” I tell those who have made their peace with God, that at some point our good Lord will come for them. And they will see Him coming with a smile on His face and arms wide open to embrace them. So, open your arms and run to Him and know that there will never again be a risk of losing Him by sin.
The good news and bad news for us is the same . . . We are going to die. If I go to hospice care, I’m having bacon at every meal. What’s the worst that can happen, right? We are all going to die. But the good news for those who love God is that it is not bad news. We will be with the One who has loved us all our lives beyond all our imaginations and Who will forgive anything if we say we are sorry. That’s the good news. We will have joy and peace forever. We will be far more able to help those we love to come to the same place we are. Never be discouraged. The fear of death is normal. We were not supposed to die. But the more we love God, the more that fear recedes from us.
Father’s Afterthoughts . . . I want to thank everyone for my birthday party last week. I must be losing my situational awareness with age because I had no idea. Even though the party took four months of planning, it was a complete surprise. Now, at the Spanish Mass today, I’m going to yell at them. They know that I don’t understand a lot of Spanish, and so they talked about plans for the party right in front of me! But I want to thank you for your kindness. It was overwhelming, humbling, and a bit embarrassing.
Mary Connor, a shut-in from our parish, passed away on Saturday. She had all the Sacraments of the Church, and now she is at rest. When I saw her on Thursday, I asked her how she was feeling, to which she replied, “I feel like bleep!” I almost said, “Well, you look it.” But I didn’t. So, please pray for her soul.
How will you apply this message to your life? _______________________________________
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The social duty of religion and the right to religious freedom are presented to us in the Catechism. We examine what it means to have respect for other religions and the freedom, within limits, to exercise our convictions. Fr. Mike makes it clear that it is our calling as Christians to evangelize and bring our Catholic Christianity to the public square. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2104-2109.
How can we serve God? The Catechism identifies ways in which we can keep the first commandment through adoration, prayer, sacrifice, and promises and vows. Fr. Mike relates these to us and identifies how we can truly worship and serve the Lord throughout our daily lives. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2095-2103.
“You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.” Taking a look at the first commandment, we see how we are called to love and worship God above all else. The Catechism also lists the ways in which we may potentially fall into sins against faith, hope, and charity. Fr. Mike elaborates on these violations and reminds us that while it may seem overwhelming, God loved us first, and we must trust in him. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2083-2094.
We continue our overview of the Ten Commandments by looking at the two parts: love of God and love of neighbor. Together they form a “coherent whole,” and there is a unity between the two. While the Catechism shows us our obligation to follow the Commandments, it also reminds us that, “What God commands, he makes possible by his grace.” Fr. Mike emphasizes that even though it may be challenging at times, we are not alone. Jesus is here to help us keep his Commandments. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2064-2082.
If saints have been falsely characterized as “other worldly,” the life of Wenceslaus stands as an example to the contrary: He stood for Christian values in the midst of the political intrigues which characterized 10th-century Bohemia.
Wenceslaus was born in 907 near Prague, son of the Duke of Bohemia. His saintly grandmother, Ludmilla, raised him and sought to promote him as ruler of Bohemia in place of his mother, who favored the anti-Christian factions. Ludmilla was eventually murdered, but rival Christian forces enabled Wenceslaus to assume leadership of the government.
His rule was marked by efforts toward unification within Bohemia, support of the Church, and peace-making negotiations with Germany, a policy which caused him trouble with the anti-Christian opposition. His brother Boleslav joined in the plotting, and in September of 929 invited Wenceslaus to Alt Bunglou for the celebration of the feast of Saints Cosmas and Damian. On the way to Mass, Boleslav attacked his brother, and in the struggle, Wenceslaus was killed by supporters of Boleslav.
Although his death resulted primarily from political upheaval, Wenceslaus was hailed as a martyr for the faith, and his tomb became a pilgrimage shrine. He is hailed as the patron of the Bohemian people and of the former Czechoslovakia.
Reflection
“Good King Wenceslaus” was able to incarnate his Christianity in a world filled with political unrest. While we are often victims of violence of a different sort, we can easily identify with his struggle to bring harmony to society. The call to become involved in social change and in political activity is addressed to Christians; the values of the gospel are sorely needed today.
Saint Vincent de Paul’s Story (1580 – September 27, 1660)
The deathbed confession of a dying servant opened Vincent de Paul’s eyes to the crying spiritual needs of the peasantry of France. This seems to have been a crucial moment in the life of the man from a small farm in Gascony, France, who had become a priest with little more ambition than to have a comfortable life.
The Countess de Gondi—whose servant he had helped—persuaded her husband to endow and support a group of able and zealous missionaries who would work among poor tenant farmers and country people in general. Vincent was too humble to accept leadership at first, but after working for some time in Paris among imprisoned galley slaves, he returned to be the leader of what is now known as the Congregation of the Mission, or the Vincentians. These priests, with vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, and stability, were to devote themselves entirely to the people in smaller towns and villages.
Later, Vincent established confraternities of charity for the spiritual and physical relief of the poor and sick of each parish. From these, with the help of Saint Louise de Marillac, came the Daughters of Charity, “whose convent is the sickroom, whose chapel is the parish church, whose cloister is the streets of the city.” He organized the rich women of Paris to collect funds for his missionary projects, founded several hospitals, collected relief funds for the victims of war, and ransomed over 1,200 galley slaves from North Africa. He was zealous in conducting retreats for clergy at a time when there was great laxity, abuse, and ignorance among them. He was a pioneer in clerical training and was instrumental in establishing seminaries.
Most remarkably, Vincent was by temperament a very irascible person—even his friends admitted it. He said that except for the grace of God he would have been “hard and repulsive, rough and cross.” But he became a tender and affectionate man, very sensitive to the needs of others.
Pope Leo XIII made him the patron of all charitable societies. Outstanding among these, of course, is the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, founded in 1833 by his admirer Blessed Frédéric Ozanam.
Reflection
The Church is for all God’s children, rich and poor, peasants and scholars, the sophisticated and the simple. But obviously the greatest concern of the Church must be for those who need the most help—those made helpless by sickness, poverty, ignorance, or cruelty. Vincent de Paul is a particularly appropriate patron for all Christians today, when hunger has become starvation, and the high living of the rich stands in more and more glaring contrast to the physical and moral degradation in which many of God’s children are forced to live.
Saint Paul VI’s Story (September 26, 1897 – August 6, 1978)
Born near Brescia in northern Italy, Giovanni Battista Montini was the second of three sons. His father, Giorgio, was a lawyer, editor, and eventually a member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies. His mother, Giuditta, was very involved in Catholic Action.
After ordination in 1920, Giovanni did graduate studies in literature, philosophy, and canon law in Rome before he joined the Vatican Secretariat of State in 1924, where he worked for 30 years. He was also chaplain to the Federation of Italian Catholic University Students, where he met and became a very good friend of Aldo Moro, who eventually became prime minister. Moro was kidnapped by the Red Brigade in March 1978, and murdered two months later. A devastated Pope Paul VI presided at his funeral.
In 1954, Fr. Montini was named archbishop of Milan, where he sought to win disaffected workers back to the Catholic Church. He called himself the “archbishop of the workers” and visited factories regularly while overseeing the rebuilding of a local Church tremendously disrupted by World War II.
In 1958, Montini was the first of 23 cardinals named by Pope John XXIII, two months after the latter’s election as pope. Cardinal Montini helped in preparing Vatican II and participated enthusiastically in its first sessions. When he was elected pope in June 1963, he immediately decided to continue that Council, which had another three sessions before its conclusion on December 8, 1965. The day before Vatican II concluded, Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras revoked the excommunications that their predecessors had made in 1054. The pope worked very hard to ensure that bishops would approve the Council’s 16 documents by overwhelming majorities.
Paul VI had stunned the world by visiting the Holy Land in January 1964, and meeting Athenagoras, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople in person. The pope made eight more international trips, including one in 1965, to visit New York City and speak on behalf of peace before the United Nations General Assembly. He also visited India, Columbia, Uganda, and seven Asian countries during a 10-day tour in 1970.
Also in 1965, he instituted the World Synod of Bishops, and the next year decreed that bishops must offer their resignations on reaching age 75. In 1970, he decided that cardinals over 80 would no longer vote in papal conclaves or head the Holy See’s major offices. He had increased the number of cardinals significantly, giving many countries their first cardinal. Eventually establishing diplomatic relations between the Holy See and 40 countries, he also instituted a permanent observer mission at the United Nations in 1964. Paul VI wrote seven encyclicals; his last one in 1968 on human life—Humanae Vitae—prohibited artificial birth control.
Pope Paul VI died at Castel Gandolfo on August 6, 1978, and was buried in St. Peter’s Basilica. He was beatified on October 19, 2014, and canonized on October 14, 2018.
Reflection
Pope Saint Paul’s greatest accomplishment was the completion and implementation of Vatican II. Its decisions about liturgy were the first ones noticed by most Catholics, but its other documents—especially the ones about ecumenism, interfaith relations, divine revelation, religious liberty, the Church’s self-understanding and the Church’s work with the entire human family—have become the Catholic Church’s road map since 1965.
