Jesus Found in the Temple

Jesus Found in the Temple,  James Tissot

One of the secondary goals of the Joe Catholic apostolate is to groom men to be able to engage in catechetical teaching and writing. Today, we share a guest post from my younger brother Matt. 

-By Matthew Gonzales-

While reading my daily meditation from Opus Dei, I experienced an "aha" moment. It felt like the fog had been lifted and I could see and understand the writer more clearly. How appropriate being that where I live, there was some pretty heavy fog this morning. The title and heading of the daily message was: Mary Looks for the Son Who was Lost. "Mary spent three days and three nights looking for the son who was lost. May you and I also be able to say that our willingness to find Jesus knows no rest" (Furrow, 794). St Josemaria Escriva was explaining the pain and anxiety Mary and Joseph must have felt when they thought they "lost" Jesus (See Luke 2:42-51). Then they"found" him instructing the teachers of Israel and Jesus essentially scolds them for not knowing where He would be – "in my Father's house."

I know personally, I have had thoughts and feelings that I had lost Jesus from my life. This couldn't be further than the truth, but how awesome it is to share these feelings of despair with our Holy Mother Mary and Joseph. I find it very reassuring to say the least. When Jesus got after his parents, it made me feel like a kid all over again. We can learn from our own children sometimes. Why would we not know where He is? Jesus is always with us and He never leaves us. It is us who allow ourselves to be distracted and then in turn think we have lost Him. He is always doing His Father's work. A perfect place to start and "find" Him again, would be Church. Jesus is definitely at Church, especially in the Eucharist  There is no need to stay in the anxiety and pain when Jesus is always waiting for us to find him.

A Mother's Day Story on Prayer

$500 Short

A few years ago I was having lunch with my mom for mother's day when we started sharing book stories. Then, out of the blue, she told me a story that so floored me I just started crying. When I was a junior at Southern Methodist University, I had a semester when my financial aid fell short and I didn't have enough money to buy my books. I was about $500 short. I swallowed my pride and I called Mom and Dad asking for help. I didn't know at the time that money was tight and that they did not have the money to help me.

Candles, Prayers and Trees
Unbeknownst to me, my mother was upset because they couldn't help me. She never let on. Instead, my mother started praying for a solution. Around this same time, we had a magnolia tree growing in the front yard that was destroying the sidewalk. Mom had been pestering Dad for months to do something about it. The first day of classes were a few days away and I had told my parents that was the deadline for buying my books. I didn't want to fall behind. At this point, my mother probably lit a Sacred Heart candle and invoked the intercession of St. Jude, the patron saint of lost causes.

Magnolia Miracle
When it seemed like they weren't going to be able to get me the money, there was a knock on my parents' front door. It was a man who owned a landscaping company. He had driven by and saw the magnolia tree and he stopped to ask about it. At first, Mom thought he was asking for work to fix the sidewalk. Instead, he offered to buy the magnolia tree and remove it for $500! Her prayers had been answered and she now had the money to give me to buy my books. I never knew this story while I was attending school. Now, any time I see a magnolia tree, I think about how much my Mom loves me. It also reminds me that God answers prayers. 

The Gift of Prayer

The greatest gift my mother has given me (besides life) is the knowledge that God answers prayers. She has always been a prayer warrior and my prayer role model. Thanks, Mom. You are always in my prayers.

800+ Canonized Today

Largest Canonization
Pope Francis in one weekend has canonized more saints than any other Pope in history and the single most in one day. By the time this is posted, Pope Francis will have canonized the 813 Martyrs of Otranto. I just learned about this group yesterday morning during one of my IPT classes.

800 > 300
The events surrounding the martyrdom of Antonio Primaldo and the other 800+ men is fascinating and relevant to events of today. On August 14, 1480, the northern Italian town of Otranto was besieged by a massive invading army of Ottoman Turks. Their leader, offered the men of Otranto the choice of converting to Islam or death. If you are having trouble visualizing this, think of the soldiers in 300 only these were just regular guys from the town, not soldiers. Primaldo, who is the only member of the martyrs whose name is known, is recorded as saying in :

My brothers, until today we have fought in defense of our country, to save our lives, and for our lords; now it is time that we fight to save our souls for our Lord, so that having died on the cross for us, it is good that we should die for him, standing firm and constant in the faith, and with this earthly death we shall win eternal life and the glory of martyrs. (Obtained from Catholic Answers)

Last Man Standing
Primaldo was the first to be beheaded, but his body would not fall. This is portrayed in the painting above. One after another, each of the men of Otranto was told to convert to Islam and each declined All suffered the same fate as Primaldo of being beheaded, yet only his headless body remained standing despite the Turks' efforts to knock him over. Finally, when the last man from the city was slain, Primaldo's body fell to ground with his fellow martyrs. Some of the Muslim soldiers were so moved by the faith of the men that they converted to Catholicism.

Proof of Love
The Second Vatican Council in discussing the universal call to holiness, highlighted martyrdom as the "fullest proof of love." In Lumen Gentium they exhorted:

The Church, then, considers martyrdom as an exceptional gift and as the fullest proof of love. By martyrdom a disciple is transformed into an image of his Master by freely accepting death for the salvation of the world—as well as his conformity to Christ in the shedding of his blood. Though few are presented such an opportunity, nevertheless all must be prepared to confess Christ before men. They must be prepared to make this profession of faith even in the midst of persecutions, which will never be lacking to the Church, in following the way of the cross (LG, 42).

Relics of the Martyrs
The remains of the men were collected and placed in various churches in the area. Many are encased in the walls of the Cathedral of Otranto.

Otranto Cathedral with Relics of the Martyrs

Video From the Canonizations

St.Damien: The Leper Priest

St. Damien, known as the Leper Priest and Hero of Molokai, is the patron saint of those afflicted with leprosy, AIDS and HIV patients and those who care for them. We celebrate his feast day today, May 10th.

Another Joe Catholic
Father Damien was born in Belgium in 1840. He joined the order known as the Sacred Heart Fathers in 1860. He was born Joseph and received the name Damien as part of his religious life. Damien was assigned to work the missions on the big island of Hawaii where he was eventually ordained. In 1873, he was volunteered to serve the leper colony on the island of Molokai. There he served the sick, help build hospitals, clinics and churches.

Canonization
Father Damien decided to stay on the island working with sick, effectively guaranteeing he would contract the disease and die away from his home. He did. He contracted leprosy in 1885 and eventually died on April 15, 1889. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in June of 1995 and canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in February 2009.

Made for TV
I remember in the early 80's watching a made for TV movie entitled Father Damien, The Leper Priest, starring Ken Howard (aka the White Shadow and more recently known for his appearances on The Office and 30 Rock).  The movie struck a cord with me; I was moved by the mercy shown by this priest. I wanted to help find a cure for leprosy. Now, as an adult, I realized what I was feeling was compassion and empathy. This is precisely what our lives should evoke in others when they see the mercy and love in our lives that others feel drawn to this good which is truly manifested in Christ Jesus.

St. Damien's work can be summarized as a message of hope.

Iron Sharpens Iron

I saw this meme on Facebook yesterday. This weekend marked the opening of the new Iron Man 3 movie and Free Comic Book Day. You know I love any excuse to include a superhero reference in my posts. The scripture passage from Proverbs is the one we selected years ago to represent the mission of Joe Catholic. We can't promise a super cool armored suit with gadgets and such, but we can promise to help you get closer to the Lord so that you can clothe yourself in the armor of God (Eph 6:10-18).

Free Comic Book Saturday

Just One More Book

Today marks the annual Free Comic Book Day celebrated at comic book stores everywhere. As a comic book geek I love this day. Now I have come to love this day because it afforded me the opportunity to introduce the greatness of comics to my nephew and niece. Some of my fondest memories with my son Kevin are those of taking him to the comic book store or the book store. He knew how to play me. What father is going to tell their son they can't have "just one more book?"

Parents Who Read
One other reason I like this day is because I know that comics played a large role in me becoming a life long reader. My mother fostered that early by giving me comics and later by sharing her books. Stacey and I have passed that on to our children. Now Kevin is grown and married, but one of his prized possessions is his library of books. Without knowing it, Stacey and I were arming our children with some of the most important tools in developing early reading skills - children seeing their parents read and reading with their parents.

Early Childhood Literacy
A recent early childhood literacy study conducted by Harvard University concluded "young children exposed to lots of early reading began talking more and showing an interest in books that provoked further shared reading with the parent and, in turn, the momentum for additional cognitive and vocabulary growth" (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, Science Briefs: The Effects of Early Reading with Parents on Developing Literacy Skills, 2007). The flip side of this is that "the absence of early literary stimulation is the harbinger of sustained educational difficulties" (Jumpstart, 2009).

Vatican II & Parental Obligations
The Second Vatican Council teaches parents "that marriage and conjugal love are by their nature ordained toward the begetting and education of children."  Furthermore, the Council instructed parents that they “should regard as their proper mission the task of transmitting human life and educating those [to] whom it has been transmitted” (Gaudium et Spes, 50).

A Canonist's View
According to Benedict Nguyen, who is a Canon lawyer and my Canon Law professor at Ave Maria University:

In its Declaration on Christian Education, Gravissimum Educationis (GE) 3, the Vatican Council also forcefully reminds parents of this natural-law right and obligation to educate their children, teaching: “Since parents have given children their life, they are bound by the most serious obligation to educate their offspring and therefore must be recognized as the primary and principal educators.” Vatican II’s decree on the apostolate of the laity, Apostolicam Actuositatem (13), places a duty on Christian married partners “strenuously to affirm the right and duty of parents and guardians to educate children in a Christian manner.” Likewise, Pope John Paul II affirms the right and duty of parents to provide for the education of their children by calling the right not only “essential” but also “irreplaceable and inalienable and therefore incapable of being entirely delegated to others or usurped by others.” (Familiaris Consortio, 36)

Marching Orders
Parents, go out and get some free comics for your children. Help them develop a love for reading and love for learning. Helping them love reading will equip them to be life long learners. If you are worried that comics have become too "adult," the comic book publishers and stores have made kid friendly issues available for free too.

St. Joseph, The Worker

St. Joseph's Workshop

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Joseph, the Worker.  Pope Pius XII instituted the feast day in 1955. Additionally, May 1st was chosen to coincide with Labor Day celebrations throughout the world, thus elevating and sanctifying the observance.

St. Josemaria wrote often that St. Joseph was a role model for working men:

You, who celebrate with me today this feast of St Joseph, are men who work in different human professions; you have your own homes, you belong to so many different countries and have different languages. You have been educated in lecture halls or in factories and offices. You have worked in your profession for years, established professional and personal friendships with your colleagues, helped to solve the problems of your companies and your communities. 

Well then: I remind you once again that all this is not foreign to God’s plan. Your human vocation is a part — and an important part — of your divine vocation. That is the reason why you must strive for holiness, giving a particular character to your human personality, a style to your life; contributing at the same time to the sanctification of others, your fellow men; sanctifying your work and your environment: the profession or job that fills your day, your home and family and the country where you were born and which you love. (Christ is passing by, 46)

The Church teaches that work is not a punishment, but instead can be a means of sanctification. Today, the Catechism of the Catholic Church continues to teach the efficacy of work:

2427 Human work proceeds directly from persons created in the image of God and called to prolong the work of creation by subduing the earth, both with and for one another. Hence work is a duty: "If any one will not work, let him not eat." Work honors the Creator's gifts and the talents received from him. It can also be redemptive. By enduring the hardship of work in union with Jesus, the carpenter of Nazareth and the one crucified on Calvary, man collaborates in a certain fashion with the Son of God in his redemptive work. He shows himself to be a disciple of Christ by carrying the cross, daily, in the work he is called to accomplish. Work can be a means of sanctification and a way of animating earthly realities with the Spirit of Christ.

The Second Vatican Council also explained that work is an integral part of a Christian's life. In their Pastoral Consitution on the Church in the Modern World, Gaudium et spes, they explained:

Christians should rather rejoice that, following the example of Christ Who worked as an artisan, they are free to give proper exercise to all their earthly activities and to their humane, domestic, professional, social and technical enterprises by gathering them into one vital synthesis with religious values, under whose supreme direction all things are harmonized unto God's glory (GS, 43).

During these tough economic times, let us "go to Joseph" (Gen 41:55) in prayer and ask him to intercede for those who work and those in need of work.

Prayer to St. Joseph (from EWTN)

O blessed Joseph, faithful guardian of my Redeemer, Jesus Christ, protector of thy chaste spouse, the virgin Mother of God, I choose thee this day to be my special patron and advocate and I firmly resolve to honor thee all the days of my life. Therefore I humbly beseech thee to receive me as thy client, to instruct me in every doubt, to comfort me in every affliction, to obtain for me and for all the knowledge and love of the Heart of Jesus, and finally to defend and protect me at the hour of my death. Amen

For Further Reading:
Joseph of Nazareth by Federico Suárez (Oct 1, 2004)
Go to Joseph by Richard Gilsdorf (Sep 5, 2009)
In St. Joseph's Workshop, St. Josemaria Escriva, (Mar 19, 1963)