Journeying With The Saints

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims. Fog has set in and Mother thinks she has a rare skin disease on her face. Thankfully, on both accounts, things aren't as bad as they could be.   Mother has a few different conversations today, one with a Protestant and one with a Milanese man, who sounds like he has either lost his faith or never had it to begin with.   What is striking in today's reading is that Mother...

Hello, Catholic Pilgrims. Welcome back. We are still out on the Atlantic Ocean with Mother Cabrini and her daughters. Even though ice bergs are floating around, it's hot.   Today, we get a good glimpse into the life of prayer Mother has and, also, her constant focus on Christ.   Let's join her on the sea as we turn to page 29. Download: Reading List *Ave Maris Stella sung by the Benedictines of Ma...

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims. Today, as I mentioned at the end of the last episode, icebergs are all around in the water. This is some 22 years before the Titanic sinks because of hitting an iceberg. What's crazy is that Mother Cabrini is sailing in April of 1890 and the Titanic sunk in April of 1912. Watch out for icebergs in the North Atlantic in April.   These icebergs are slowing down their prog...

Land Ho, Catholic Pilgrims. Mother Cabrini spots Newfoundland which is on the far east side of Canada. Most of the daughters are down for the count given the roughness of the ocean. These poor ladies, they have had a rough go of it. Mother Cabrini takes this time to give a beautiful reflection on the ocean's image of God's grace.   Let's open to page 27 and see how things are out on the ocean.   D...

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims. Dear Mother Cabrini is worn out and tired today in her writings. As we read along, you will see exactly why. She and her daughters have quite a night.   Please turn to page 26. Download: Reading List

Hello, Catholic Pilgrims. Well, it was bound to happen as Mother and her daughters are at sea—a storm hits and it's rough waters. Everyone is sick.   Notice as we read how Mother Cabrini strives to maintain a positive attitude.   Let's open to page 24.  Download: Reading List  

Hello, Catholic Pilgrims. Welcome back to another day at sea with Mother Cabrini. Today, she is going to give us just daily insights to what it was like traveling across the ocean.   Then, she's going to move into spiritual talk with regards to God, creation, and the ocean of God's love. So, open to page 22 and let's begin.   Download: Reading List

Welcome aboard, Catholic Pilgrims. Today, Mother Cabrini and some of her daughters set sail for America. As you can imagine, there's some seasickness along the way. We are only a few readings in and I hope that you can see just how faithful and prayerful Mother is.   Download: Reading List

Hello, Catholic Pilgrims. Today, we arrive in Paris with Mother Cabrini after an eventful train ride.  Grab your books and turn to page 20 for Mother's entry titled, "Arrival to Paris." Download: Reading Checklist

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims, to the start of our journey with Mother Cabrini.   We start today with her second voyage to New York. The year is 1890. There are twelve separate entries for this letter, some are short, some are longer. Today, we will read the first entry.   Download: Reading Checklist

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims, to Season Five! This season we are going to be journeying with St. Frances Cabrini. She is the first missionary that we've read here on the podcast, so I think this season is going to have a very different flavor. Which is good. We need to see and learn from saints that were doing different things and living vocations and callings. So, how was it that I settled on Mothe...

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims, to the concluding episode of Season Four. Congratulations are in order for those that have made the journey through this book. I know that it can be hard to be methodical and take things slowly as we learn from the Saints, but it's important that we do so.   To purchase the book: From Catholic Treehouse From Amazon

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims. Welcome to our final reading from "Introduction to the Devout Life." We still will have the concluding episode, but today, we will finish the book.   The other day, I was thinking about how when I was younger, I thought holiness was lame and boring. I, also, didn't think it was for people like me. It was for people like Mother Teresa or St. Paul. Remember, I didn't grow...

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims, to our third to last episode for this season. Today, St. Francis is going to answer two objections to his Introduction, meaning, this book.   The first objection is that if we were to do all the things contained in this book, we would never do anything else and would have to give up "all other occupation."   The second objection is that St. Francis assumes that anyone r...

Hello, Catholic Pilgrims. Including today, just four more. Four more times together with this book. As always, I get a little sad when the end is drawing near.   This is a very short reading and it's basically St. Francis telling us how to retain our feelings after the reflections that we've just been through.   There isn't a whole lot for me to add, so I will read it and leave it at that. So, let...

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims. Only five more readings to go.   I want to take this time to remind you that next season—season five—we will be reading the book, "Letters from the Voyages of St. Frances Cabrini." I think you are really going to enjoy hearing Mother Cabrini write to her daughters—the women under her direction—as she travels the world setting up hospitals, orphanages, and schools. Since...

Welcome back, Catholic Pilgrims. Only six more readings to go.   One of the things that I love to do to is think about all the ways things had to work out for me to be born.   I think it's so cool to see how the "stars aligned" to use a common phrase. But, it isn't really star alignment, it's Divine Providence.   Today, on this fifth and final reflection, St. Francis is going to talk to us about G...

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims. Including this one, we only have seven more readings to go.   Today, St. Francis asks us to reflect on Jesus' love for us. There are many different religions out there and many different gods have been proposed up and down the millennia. But, none of those religions propose a God that loves you and would die for you except Christianity.   Let's open out books to Chapter...

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims. Only eight more readings to go.   Growing up Protestant, I didn't grow up with Saint stories, unless you count strictly those people found in the Bible. Even then, they weren't called Saints. Mary wasn't called a Saint, the Apostles, Stephen, Timothy, or Paul. Nobody was called a Saint.   This is just tragically sad.   When I looked around the church that I grew up in,...

Hello, Catholic Pilgrims. Thanks for joining me today. I hope you all know how much I appreciate you following along with me.   Today, is another short reading and we will be reflecting on the excellence of virtue.   So, let's open our books to Chapter Eleven of the Fifth Part.  

Welcome back, Catholic Pilgrims. We only have ten more readings together, if you can believe that.   Today, we start a series of short reflections which are designed to help us renew our resolutions to God.   So, let's hear what St. Francis says by turning to Chapter Ten of the Fifth Part.

Welcome back, Catholic Pilgrims, to the shortest reading in the book.   Essentially in this reading, St. Francis is saying, "Okay, you did the examinations that I just laid out. You looked at the state of your soul. Hopefully, you saw growth in devotion to God, in humility, in your relations to others, and, now, it is time to renew your devotion." So, the reading is just a preamble to the next fiv...

Hello, Catholic Pilgrims. Welcome back to a very short reading.   For the past seven readings, we've been examining the state of our souls with regards to different things: To God, to ourselves, to others, etc.   Today, St. Francis is going to tell us what to do now that we've done these examinations. So, let's turn to Chapter Eight of the Fifth Part.

Hello, Catholic Pilgrims. We are narrowing down our days, for sure. There are hardly any pages left here at the back of the book. It's looking pretty skimpy.   My son and I were talking the other day about the rich, young man that comes to Jesus and asks what he needs to do to order to inherit eternal life. Jesus ends up telling him to sell his stuff, give the money to the poor, and follow Him. Sa...

Welcome, Catholic Pilgrims. We've got a super short reading today and we've got some more soul searching questions. St. Francis has asked about the state of our devotion to God, he's asked about how we view ourselves, and, today, he's going to ask us about our souls with regards to our neighbors.   So, let's turn to Chapter Six of the Fifth Part.