Tag: Aleteia
What Padre Pio saw in the Spanish Flu of 1918
Many saints have faced the realities of pandemics. What can we learn from them? While the world continues to trudge through the devastating effects of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic – deaths, hospitalizations, and untold economic damage – it can be helpful to look at how the world was plagued by a similar virus and how… Read More ›
How to make a special consecration to St. Raphael the Archangel
The consecration prayer calls on St. Raphael’s assistance in the “struggle against the world, the flesh, and the devil.” Within the Catholic Church, there are various devotional traditions with which you can consecrate yourself and your family to God, invoking the special intercession of a saint. One of the most popular consecration prayers is that… Read More ›
Wondering about how to handle life at home? Contemplative monks and nuns have some advice
The coronavirus pandemic has forced us to slow down and spend more time together. Here are some ways we can make the most of it. Aleteia: As more and more people are spending more time at home during the current COVID-19 pandemic, especially since several U.S. governors are urging residents to not leave their homes… Read More ›
Haunted American History: The unexplainable events of 1779 that prompted so many Catholic conversions
An account from the “Father of American Catholic History” tells the spooky tale. For many – particularly those who have experienced religious persecution – the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of the United States is religious freedom. Here in our “melting-pot” people are free to follow any faith they choose and no one is… Read More ›
St. Teresa of Avila’s horrifying encounters with the devil
And how she was able to easily chase him away. St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (1 Corinthinas 10:13). Such was the… Read More ›
A forgotten prayer to St. Michael against the assaults of evil
The prayer dates to the 9th century and invokes the Archangel’s protection from the enemy of our souls. While many are familiar with the traditional “St. Michael Prayer” of Pope Leo XIII, it is not the only prayer of the Church to the Holy Archangel. In the Raccolta, a collection of prayers that dates to the early… Read More ›
She’s a Tertiary? He’s an Oblate? What Is That About?
The great religious orders have always included layfolk in their number, some of whom have become saints Not long ago, someone on Facebook messaged me: “If I didn’t know you were OSB, I’d think you were OP.” The person is a Lay Dominican — what used to be called a Dominican Tertiary (tertiary referring to… Read More ›
How St. Anthony the Abbot defeated the devil
He lived in solitude in the desert, but he wasn’t alone. St. Anthony the Abbot (sometimes called St. Anthony of Egypt or St. Anthony the Great), was inspired by the Gospels to sell all his possessions and live a life of solitude in the Egyptian desert. He established for himself a quiet hermitage away from… Read More ›
The patron of bikers: an early medieval monk
Motorcyclists (some of them, at least) might not want a saint praying for them, but they’ve got one anyway. Motorcyclists, on the whole, do not have an especially holy reputation. And many of them don’t seem to want one. However, bikers still have a patron saint in Columban, whose feast day is November 23. Columban… Read More ›
5 Steps to fight the wickedness: Remind yourself (and Satan) that you are not helpless
Perform a simple act of defiance against discouragement, self-pity, and resentment. Who said this? “Any idiot can survive a crisis—it’s the little things that will make you crazy.” I remember reading it on a greeting card more than 30 years ago. The card attributed the quote to philosopher Albert Camus, but I have never been… Read More ›