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“Saints Around the World” is a Welcome Gift for Both Children and Parents

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This is my column that appears in this week’s print edition of The Catholic Post.

When my now almost-grown kids were very young, we had a saints book written for children. Let’s just say it wasn’t a smashing success.

You see, I starting reading to them one saint every bedtime so the kids could learn about the women and men who lived lives of virtue and heroism. Edifying and inspiring? Not so much.

Unfortunately, many of the stories were written in an appalling way, describing in frightening detail their martyrdoms or terrible sufferings endured for Christ. Though it was written for a younger audience, the actual result was scared kids and a flummoxed mom.

Isn’t it good to introduce our kids to the saints? It’s good for our kids to know that you can be heroic?

But I knew something was wrong about how the content was conveyed, not the content itself.

I learned two lessons from this:

  1. Don’t read saint books at bedtime.
  2. Go carefully when you introduce children to tough topics.

Over the years, I learned to “rephrase” some of the saint stories—never at bedtime, mind you—so that I could share the truth of the saints’ heroism, while preserving youthful imagination. I wasn’t trying to “water it down,” but I wanted to communicate the lives of the saints in a way that young minds could absorb. Sometimes I did this well, and sometimes I fell short, but I did try.

That’s why I’m thrilled there is a saints book written in way that respects children, but is profound enough for adults to enjoy and pray with.

Saints Around the World by Meg Hunter-Kilmer

Meg Hunter-Kilmer’s Saints Around the World—charmingly illustrated by Lindsey Sanders—is that book.

Consider this description of St. Jerome, the 4th century monk who translated the Bible from Greek and Hebrew into Latin, and is also known for his strong temper.

“But he never stopped losing his temper. And he never stopped repenting and trying to be better. That’s what makes a Saint, after all; not that you never mess up, but that you always seek forgiveness. And Jerome was always asking for forgiveness. He wanted to be holy, he really did. It was just so hard.”

Or ponder the gentle guidance Hunter-Kilmer gives after sharing that St. Germaine Cousin, a 16th century French girl, was treated harshly by her stepmother:

“I hope that if someone is treating you very badly, you will tell a grown-up. And if that grown-up doesn’t fix the problem, I hope you will tell another grown-up and another and another until somebody helps you. God doesn’t want you to be treated badly, he wants you to be loved and cherished.”

Hunter-Kilmer will be familiar to many Catholics online: she is a self-described “hobo” for Christ’s kingdom, who travels the world sharing her love of Jesus and the Catholic faith, armed with two theology degrees and a rare gift for speaking and connecting with her audiences.

Saints Around the World is Hunter-Kilmer’s first book, and her writing style is just like she talks: approachable, enjoyable, and on fire with the Faith.

The front of the book features a map dotted with all the saints’ locations on a watercolor world map, overlaid with the Scripture from Isaiah: “I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

Each spread features on the left-hand side a saint story written by Hunter-Kilmer, and on the right-hand side an illustration by Lindsey Sanders.

Sanders’ illustrations are beautifully crafted and rich with imagery of the saints lives, what they loved, and by what they were known.

The icon-illustration of newly beatified teenager Blessed Carlos Acutis is almost crammed with things he loved, from skis, to the Eucharist in a monstrance, to his laptop and Playstation.

Each saint illustration contains a caption explaining the image. For instance, the illustration of Blessed Benedict Dawsa’ (a 20th century South African father of eight children, educator, and martyr) includes him wearing dress work clothes, holding a soccer ball in one hand and one of his children in the other. The caption tells readers that he “is wearing a tie, which he called ‘the rope of honor’ and required of all male teachers.”

This treasure of a resource includes 100 saints and blessed, with a diversity of time, geography, situation, and more.

The message of Saints Around the World? Anyone can be a saint, and everyone has friends and intercessors in the saints.

What a gift this book is—not just to parents & children, but to people in every walk of life.

“Humility Rules” Offers Timeless, Convivial Advice

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The members of my family, God bless them, have to put up with me sharing so many personal development tips, tricks, and hacks. 

I really, truly enjoy books, articles, and podcasts about ways to improve one’s time management, relationships, energy levels, and much more. If you’re a person like me, you know what I mean, and how much you love to share what you are learning.

But depending on the source, there is something missing from “self-improvement” references, and I try to incorporate Catholic belief and practice into these often helpful guides. (That is why a book like The Mindful Catholic is especially helpful, integrating our Catholic faith & practice with evidence-based information about the benefits of mindfulness, because God made us that way).

A recent book that also integrates these themes well is the engaging and well-written Humility Rules: Saint Benedict’s Twelve-Step Guide to Genuine Self-Esteem, by J. Augustine Wetta, O.S.B. 

Fr. Wetta, a Benedictine monk of St. Louis Abbey in St. Louis, is a longtime writer and teacher.

Self-improvement gurus might recoil at the word “humility” in the title, but rightly understood, it is the key to holiness and happiness. 

As Fr. Wetta writes, humility is:

 “not focused on the self at all, but on how to relate to one another and to God in light of our strengths and weaknesses… (S)such clarity of vision begins to develop only when you take the focus off yourself and devote yourself body and soul to a higher purpose. … Genuine self-esteem is a form of holiness.”

Humility Rules is a modern take on The Rule of Saint Benedict, the famous sixth-century plan of life for monks. Since that time, countless religious communities have used The Rule as a basis for their communal life. Even families and small groups use The Rule to help organize their life along Christian and practical human principles. 

At first glance, Humility Rules seems to be the antithesis of the self-improvement or personal development genre. 

Indeed, Fr. Wetta’s modern “description of Saint Benedict’s “Ladder of Humility” begins with rules that are the opposite of the typical, Disney-movie type advice. For example, Step 2 is “Self-Denial,” and its description is “Don’t be true to yourself.” And Step 3, “Obedience,” is “Don’t follow your dreams.”

But that’s what makes “Humility Rules” so refreshing and versatile: a keen sense that what is most important in “personal improvement” is not one’s self, but a dependence on God, healthy awareness of our own shortcomings, a willingness to keep trying; and optimism and confidence in that knowledge.

“Humility Rules” structures itself around Saint Benedict’s “Ladder of Humility,” (a chapter within “The Rule”) twelve virtues that help promote holiness and flourishing.

Each chapter of the book covers a virtue, with an introduction, and stories and thoughts about the virtue in thought, word, and deed.

Fr. Wetta’s style is conversational and accessible without being too simplistic, likely because of his work as a high school teacher and coach. 

This highly readable quality makes the book ideal for young people; or— let’s be honest—for many of the rest of us who wish for more manageable reading during these Covid days when attention spans have been shortened.  

In the section, “Fear of God”: 

“So yes, it’s better to love God; but when you are not feeling the love, at least try to feel the fear.. .. it’s not the ideal, but it’s a start.”

Prudence: 

“A prudent person knows when to keep an open mind, and when to close it.”

Silence: 

“When you meet a wise person, listen to him and you will learn wisdom; when you meet a foolish person, listen to him and you will learn patience; when you are alone, listen to God, and you will learn everything else.”

Each chapter section ends with “homework.” So, for instance, in “Fear of God in Deed” the homework reads: “Secretly do someone else’s chores.” In “Perseverance in Thought,” — “Spend the whole day without correcting anyone.”  The homework offers great small, manageable ideas.

In an unusual feature, Humility Rules includes charming illustrations. 

Every few pages contains an illustration, either a painting or icon, with a subtle something extra added—-something you might not even notice. For instance, on the front cover, Saint Benedict is holding a skateboard. In a portion of an illustrated manuscript, a monk is shown speaking on a cellphone. In another illustration, monks ride a rollercoaster, in a mash-up of a photo and artwork. And the artwork was created by the author using works from museums & churches around the world. (The cover image was created by the author’s mother, a well-known painter).

There are so many good, quotable sentences and passages in Humility Rules. Readers who delve into the book will encounter many of those.  Here is one from the section “Reverence,” an appropriate “last word” in these strange times:  

“Let the name of Jesus be that silver bell for you—a reminder of who you are, where you stand, and what you stand for. Then, in the midst of all the chaos of life, when you start to feel lost, just whisper that name, and it will bring you back to yourself.”

The Miracle in Bonnie Engstrom’s Awe-Inspiring Book is (Very) Local

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Following is my column that appears in the current print edition of The Catholic Post.

Bonnie Engstrom’s new book is literally awe-inspiring.

61 Minutes to a Miracle: Fulton Sheen and a True Story of the Impossible is part page-turning medical mystery story; part spiritual memoir, about faith, acceptance, and openness to the Holy Spirit; and part primer on the fascinating process of “saint-making” in the church.

“61 Minutes to a Miracle” is— true to its title—about Engstrom’s son James, who was born without a heartbeat and remained so for 61 minutes. Miraculously, he also did not suffer any brain damage or lasting effects from the trauma of his birth. The Engstrom family, friends, and people worldwide prayed for the intercession of Venerable Fulton Sheen, a Peoria diocese native, to heal James. Vatican approval of that miracle paved the way for Bishop Sheen’s beatification.

Full disclosure: at the time the miracle happened, I knew and had worked with Engstrom on several projects. We lived in nearby towns, so I got updates in real time as it was happening. So to read the amazing events in book form, told in Engstrom’s engaging voice, was both a bit of “deja vu” and a wonderful way to relive that incredible time.

There have been a few times when I have relatively close knowledge of something described in a book or online, and it irks me when details are changed. I understand why sometimes the narrative flow of a story means times might be conflated together or some details changed, but I still find it bothersome.

That is most certainly NOT the case for 61 Minutes to a Miracle. Everything is written exactly as it happened, as I heard about the story through Engstrom herself and many other local sources at the time. And because the events described are so amazing, it is reassuring to have minor (and of course major) details be accurate.

The honesty of the book is perhaps because, as described in 61 Minutes to a Miracle, the Engstrom family went through the process of the cause for beatification and canonization of Fulton Sheen. In those proceedings, literal truth is needed, and those interviewed in the case have to testify and swear that they are telling the truth.

But the book is not just a dry accounting of the medical facts or specific chronology. Because Engstrom writes in such a natural, candid voice, this book becomes a way for readers to join in the spiritual pilgrimage of the Engstrom family, and all those around them, as they experienced life, pregnancy, learning about saints, losing a child and then gaining him back, and just living life well.

How they managed to walk through this harrowing experience, through the grace of God, the help of their friends, family, and medical team, is the center of this book.

Probably my favorite part of 61 Minutes to a Miracle is how Engstrom likens her son James’ story with that of Lazarus from the Gospel of John. That is partially because the raising of Lazarus is replete with so many details to meditate on related to the mystery of life and death. And it may also be because I love St. Martha dearly, and her profession of faith (“You are the Christ, the Son of God”) to Jesus when he came to raise Lazarus is a particularly poignant moment in the life of Jesus.

It is also lovely that the miracle leading to Sheen’s beatification should not only occur in his home diocese, but also that Sheen, one of the most media-savvy people of his time, should intercede in a case whose prayer requests spread widely due to media. That is, specifically, social media, as Engstrom is a popular blogger and active online in Catholic spheres.

It is a kind of “virtuous circle” for Sheen to reach out to Engstrom in the healing of James, and Engstrom honors Sheen and makes him even more well known because of the miracle.

As Engstrom writes about why the miracle would have happened in their family, “It was Jesus Christ who brought James Fulton back to life. It was Christ’s death and resurrection that conquered death once and for all. I do not know why it happened this way. The only answer I can give is probably the only answer I should be concerned with: the glory of God.”

Reading 61 Minutes to a Miracle helps the reader explore the mystery of why miracles happen; how God can move in the hearts and lives of everyone; and how intercession to the saints is good for us and for our world.

Meet a Reader: Fr. Andru O’Brien {@TheCatholicPost}

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Following is the “Meet a Reader” feature that appears in the current print edition of The Catholic Post.

How you know me:

I am Fr. Andru O’Brien, one of the two men that Bishop Jenky ordained this past May. I am now serving at St. Jude Parish in Peoria. I graduated in 2010 from Normal Community and immediately entered seminary. During summers I have spent time in Peoria, LaSalle, Pontiac, Monmouth and Oglesby. For school, I was sent to Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary in Minnesota, Mundelein Seminary in Chicagoland, and then I finished my studies off at Mount St. Mary’s in Maryland. If one were to go back through all the seminarian posters from my time, they would notice a year I do not appear. I spend a year studying with the Archdiocese of Atlanta where my family lives, but immediately came home earning me the affectionate nickname amongst some of our older priests of “The kid who left and came back.”



Why I love reading:


When one sits down to write, the pages serve as a blank canvas. The boundaries are non-existent and the possibilities endless. The only thing an author puts down on the page is what moves them at the deepest level. Always approaching books with this mindset, reading has become for me an encounter with another’s most personal experience of reality. And when reading is done well, it also becomes a dialogue between the author and us. In non-fiction I always ask if my experience confirms what the author is saying or not. In fiction we are able to enter into the mind of a character to feel what they are feeling. While most modern entertainment has become a break from life, reading has always been more attractive to me because it allows me to engage life on an even deeper level.


What I’m reading now:  

I always have a few books going at a time. Right now I have going a biography of Don Luigi Giussani, the founder of the ecclesial community Communion and Liberation. For spiritual reading I am working through St. Gregory the Great’s Pastoral Rule. On the fiction side, I am reading Michael O’Brien’s Sophia House. This is the prequel to a trilogy focused around a priest named Father Elijah.

O’Brien is a master of character development, and this book is entirely devoted to the early life of Father Elijah. Growing up as a young Jewish boy, he escaped the Nazis and ended up in Israel where he would discover Catholicism and the Carmelite Order before being called to Rome on a special mission for the Pope. The storyline shows a young boy’s exposure to good and evil in a dramatic way that makes it difficult to put down.

Along with Sophia House, I am also reading A Devotional Journey into the Mass by my old professor Christopher Carstens. In it he breaks open the various parts of the Mass to show how one can more fully answer Vatican II’s call for ‘active participation’ in all the faithful. He successfully shows that Mass is only boring when we do not understand what is actually happening before us.

My favorite book:

It is difficult to name just one book as my favorite, so here is an overview of the favorites. Anything by Pope Benedict XVI is amazing, but topping the list are his work The Spirit of the Liturgy and the Jesus of Nazareth trilogy.

A book that I have found myself going back to again and again is Becoming Human by Jean Vanier. Vanier is a philosopher by trade, who left his position at university to work with the disabled in his organization L’Arche. In this work, he speaks of the lessons that he has learned from his time with the L’Arche community. To a world filled with competition and individualism, he shows a Christian perspective of human life and flourishing. It is absolutely brilliant.

Finally, I will throw out Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. In this book, Huxley depicts a society free of pain and full of stimuli, but when one character breaks from the mold he discovers a world much greater than the ‘perfect’ society he had previously known.

Meet a Reader: Sister Mary Core {@TheCatholicPost}

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Following is the “Meet a Reader” feature that appears in the current print edition of The Catholic Post.

How you know me:

My name is Sister Mary Core. I am a Benedictine Sister of St. Mary Monastery in Rock Island. I taught and ministered for many years in the Peoria Diocese at Ss. Peter and Paul and St. Mary’s Academy, Nauvoo; Immaculate Conception, Monmouth; Notre Dame (Bergan) Peoria; and St. Joseph, Pekin.

I also served at St. Columba in Chicago and as Youth Minister at Our Lady of Victory in Davenport, IA. More recently I served as Initial Formation Director for my community. At present I am the Liturgist for my community in Rock Island and enjoy leading the women’s Book Club for St. Maria Goretti, Coal Valley, and Mary, Our Lady of Peace in Orion.

Why I love reading:

Reading opens so many avenues to new ideas, information, imagination, creative thinking, and enjoyment. Reading helps me to put aside frustrations, worries, and criticism. I enter into the book and I relax and find myself being given bits of wisdom or thought-provoking ideas. I have a good laugh or am emotionally touched. Even books that didn’t particularly “hook me” often have a ‘pearl’ I can take away.

One of the joys of reading is being able to pause and reflect on a salient point, reread, and let the message soak in before progressing. As much as I love a good movie, it’s much more rewarding to pause when reading a book than to keep pushing the replay on a video.

What I’m reading now: 

I recently finished Pioneer Women: The Lives of Women on the Frontier by Linda Peavy and Ursula Smith. I purchased this book some years ago when traveling through South Dakota. It relates through narrative, personal letters and wonderful old photos, the hard and challenging life of the women who settled the west alone or with their often absent husbands.

I have just begun reading Holy Rover: Journeys in Search of Mystery, Miracles, and God by Lori Erickson. So far, so good. I may use it for my book club selection.

My favorite book:

Oh my! How difficult to choose one favorite book! I am indeed a John Steinbeck fan and have read all his novels and short stories, but I think the test of a “favorite” is how often we go back and read again a chapter or paragraph from a book.

That said, I believe there are three that remain at the top of my list. All three choices are old and enduring. Two are books: Hinds Feet On High Places by Hannah Hurnard, and A Tree Full of Angels: Seeing the Holy in the Ordinary by Macrina Wiederkehr, O.S.B.

 

The third, and number one on my list, is the Collected Lyrics of Edna St. Vincent Millay.

My copy has been with me for over fifty years and I still get inspired by her lyric poetry. My favorite is “The Blue-Flag In The Bog.”

This is a wonderful piece about the end of time, when God calls us to Heaven. Millay, who is walking with all humanity toward heaven, looks back at the earth as it burns.

She mourns the fact that her beautiful, beloved earth will be no more and wants some aspect of it to be in heaven also. Slipping out of the ranks, she returns to earth and is overjoyed to find an Iris (Blue Flag) standing proud and alive in the midst of earth’s demise. She uproots it and lovingly caresses it as she rejoins the march heavenward.

There she speaks to God and pleads for the life of the iris. God reassures her with the words: “In some moist and Heavenly place, We will set it out to grow.”  Hooray for our compassionate God!

Meet a Reader: Christine Pinheiro {@TheCatholicPost}

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Following is the “Meet a Reader” feature that appears in the current print edition of The Catholic Post.

How you know me:

I have been teaching Latin and Theology at Peoria Notre Dame High School for seven years. I grew up in Champaign, Illinois, and lived at the Newman Center for four years. After graduating from the University of Illinois with a degree in Classics, I got my Master’s in Theology at the University of Notre Dame. Now that I work at PND I sometimes affectionately call the University “the other Notre Dame.” I am a parishioner at St. Philomena in Peoria.

Why I love reading:

I learned how to read when I was very young, and by the time I was supposed to enter kindergarten I was reading young adult books. Some of my fondest childhood memories are of going to the library and checking out dozens of books at a time, reading them, and then going back for more! Reading gives me the opportunity to learn and to think more deeply. It’s also a wonderful activity because I can bring a book with me and read in a waiting room or doctor’s office with no worries about whether my cell phone will connect to a network.

What I’m reading now:

I’ve only gotten a few paragraphs in but I’m starting to reread Harrius Potter (Harry Potter translated into Latin) and plan to finish it over the summer. It’s a fun way to keep Latin at the forefront of my mind when the school year is over.

For a few months now, I’ve been reading Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache series (I’m currently reading The Beautiful Mystery). It’s a mystery series set in Quebec, mostly in the fictional town of Three Pines. Penny has quickly become one of my favorite authors. Her characters are compelling, her mysteries are tightly woven, and her prose is so beautiful that sometimes I just have to put the book down and take a moment to savor her words. Chief Inspector Gamache is reminiscent of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot in some ways because he solves crimes primarily through talking with people and he’s interested in the psychology of the crime. But he’s a much more fleshed out character than Poirot, with none of Poirot’s ego. He’s the kind of character I’d love to have coffee and a conversation with.

My favorite book:

My all-time favorite book is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve read it. Nothing compares to Austen’s sparkling wit and complex characters. It’s one of those books I wish I could forget all about so I could reread it as though for the first time.

My favorite book by a modern theologian is Introduction to Christianity by Joseph Ratzinger (who, of course, became Pope Benedict XVI). I took a class on him at Notre Dame and in addition to being a towering intellect, Benedict is a deeply humble and gentle man. This comes through very clearly in his writings. After reading Introduction to Christianity, I felt like I got to know better not only the subject matter but also the author.