"I cried over reports of crucified Christians," says Pope Francis

(CNA/EWTN News).- In his daily homily on May 2, Pope Francis said that he wept over recent news of Christians allegedly being crucified, reflecting that there are still many martyrs in today’s world.

“I cried when I saw reports on the news of Christians crucified in a certain country, that is not Christian,” the Pope said, according to Vatican Radio, during morning Mass in the chapel of his residence.

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Tekton pilgrimage priest walks in on burglar stealing relics

Rev. Andrew Dudzinski is a priest who has traveled with Tekton Ministries in the past.  He is also Pastor of St. Mary Catholic Church in Muncie, IN.

Police in Muncie say a burglar took what's believed to be a bone fragment  (relic) from a 15th century saint when he broke into a church rectory.

Police say a priest at St. Mary Catholic Church found the man rifling through his belongings when he returned to the rectory after a service Sunday afternoon. The priest told police that the man pulled out a hammer before fleeing.

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Tekton Ministries celebrates it's feast day

St. Joseph the Workman

by Fr. Robert Voigt

In 1955 Pope Pius XII instituted the Feast of St. Joseph the Workman and decreed that the new Mass in the saint's honor be said on May 1st. It is not by chance that this day was chosen. May 1st is May Day, a Communist legal holiday in honor of the radical workers. In contrast, the Holy Father sets aside May 1st to give honor to St. Joseph and to restore dignity to labor. The Church wants people to have private property and to work out a decent livelihood through their labors. She knows that through this private property a person will have more initiative and be more diligent. Labor will be more dignified as it was for St. Joseph.

St. Joseph worked from morning early till late at night in his carpenter shop repairing dinner couches and building shelves for the people of Nazareth. When he was summoned to Bethlehem for the census, even though he lost working days, he closed his shop and set out on the journey. When the angel in a vision instructed him to hide away in Egypt, he hearkened to the voice from Heaven even though he lost many more working days the next five years. During that time it was extremely hard for him to make a living for himself, his wife, and the Divine Child. But Joseph did not complain, because this trip and this sojourn were the will of God. The laborer today, imitating his model, will not complain about losing work on Sundays and holydays, for in leaving his work behind on those days he is doing the will of God.

The amateur, reading the Scriptures in the vernacular for the first time, will blithely remark, "Little is said in the Bible about St. Joseph." Others, more mature, realize that the most profound truths are so often couched in pithy sentences. St. Matthew remarked casually that Joseph was a just man. To be just, a person must observe all the commandments that relate to God as well as those that relate to man. The just man does right in the sight of God once and always. To say that Joseph was a just man is enough, both because the sacred writer weighs his words and because the phrase is so profound. In The Preparation of the Incarnation, Henry J. Coleridge, S.J., writes:

It may most truly be said that the Sacred Scripture is marvelous in the things which it tells us, and in the manner in which they are told . . . it is marvelous in the way in which, as to certain things, it seems to combine speech and silence at the same time, by saying in the fewest words, and in a manner which almost escapes attention, things which are found to have very deep and very full meanings, and to convey the most important truths.

Right reason assists a student in formulating a true picture of the foster father's holiness. Holiness rubs off on another just as does sinfulness. The Child Jesus could not sin, and His Mother was a living saint. The holiness of the Divine Child and of His Mother affected Joseph like a contagion. Further, God who chose a sinless virgin to nurture the Child would contemplate only a holy father to protect the two. God had the power to do that and would do no less.

His Power of Intercession

In the Litany of All Saints, Christians invoke the help of God and of the saints more or less in the order of their influence. After God is invoked in His triune form, the Christian calls upon the Blessed Mother; then upon the named angels and all the angels. After that he calls upon St. John the Baptist and St. Joseph. There was a debate whether to put St. Joseph ahead of St. John with some in favor of that position and others preferring the position after the Patriarchs. A compromise was reached in which St. Joseph is placed between St. John and the Patriarchs without any thought that the precursor takes precedence. At the Vatican Council a few bishops drew up a petition that St. Joseph comes next in rank to the Blessed Mother. Two hundred and fifty-six bishops and 38 cardinals signed the petition, but since the Council was brought to an untimely end, the petition remains in the archives.

A saint's power of intercession is in direct proportion to his holiness. St. Joseph's superlative degree of holiness spells only a universal power of intercession. Other saints have a limited power. Blessed Martin de Porres is good at driving out rats. St. John Nepomucene may be invoked by husbands against loquacious consorts. And any wife whose husband gambles away the family funds may pray to St. Camillus, the first to lose his shirt in a poker game. But for all-around help you call upon St. Joseph. St. Bernard says, "Power is given to some of the saints to help in particular necessities; but to St. Joseph power is given to help in all necessities . . ." St. Teresa of Avila explains that He who always did the will of St. Joseph on earth continues doing that will in heaven. In The Life of Mother Teresa of Jesus the great mystic writes of her particular devotion to Joseph.

The Knowledge of St. Joseph

It is clear to the Christians that the Blessed Mother had great knowledge (Luke 2, 19), that she was the library of the Apostles. It is not quite so clear that St. Joseph knew something too. It would be ridiculous to imagine that the Blessed Mother who gave the Apostles the information they needed about the Divine Son would keep her holy husband in unholy ignorance. It would be equally ridiculous to imagine that the Child Jesus who stood in the Temple to interpret the Scriptures for the learned doctors kept this knowledge away from His own father. Then, without any charity at all, we must say Joseph learned a few things by himself. In addition, God who gave Adam the knowledge needed to start the human race saw to it that holy Joseph had the proper knowledge to rear the Child Jesus. Writes Henri Rondet, S.J.:

No doubt it would be a mistake here to put Joseph on the same level with Mary; but it would also be a mistake to put him aside as knowing nothing, as quite ignorant of mysteries, past, present and future, and of God's purposes with regard to Jesus.

St. Francis de Sales says that St. Joseph surpassed Solomon in wisdom, and adds, "What must have been his wisdom, since the Eternal Father chose him to have responsibility for the training of His Divine Son?"

The Popes on St. Joseph

In the divine economy our knowledge of Christ develops first, then our knowledge of the Blessed Mother, and finally our knowledge of St. Joseph. First the Church develops a devotion to Our Lord; then to the Blessed Mother; and finally to St. Joseph. After the doctrines about Christ had been defined at Chalcedon and Ephesus, the doctrines of the Blessed Mother — the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption — were defined by Pope Pius IX and Pope Pius XII. Now it appears we are at the beginning of a period — it covers centuries — when doctrines about St. Joseph will be defined. But as devotions to Christ and the Blessed Mother developed before doctrines came out, so have the devotions to St. Joseph developed. In 1870 Pope Pius IX solemnly proclaimed St. Joseph the protector of the Universal Church. Leo XIII ended his encyclical on the Rosary, Quanquam pluries, with a thought on the surpassing holiness of St. Joseph. "No other saint . . . so nearly approaches that place of dignity which in the Mother of God is far above all created natures." Pius X, whose baptismal name was Joseph, authorized a Litany of St. Joseph for public usage in 1909. Benedict XV in 1919 issued a proper preface for the Feast of St. Joseph. In 1937 Pius XI proclaimed St. Joseph the patron against atheistic communism. Finally, in 1955, Pius XII instituted the Feast of St. Joseph the Workman.

The Assumption of St. Joseph

While the Assumption of the Blessed Mother was defined only in 1950, it was a popular belief all through the centuries back to the beginning. Now there is no definition about the Assumption of St. Joseph, nor is there a popular belief as strong as there was for the Blessed Mother. Nevertheless men of note have held this tenet. Francis Suarez maintained St. Joseph was taken up into heaven bodily. St. Bernardino of Siena, Gerson, and St. Vincent Ferrer held the same. St. Francis de Sales points out the fact that nobody claims the tomb of St. Joseph and that there are no relics of this saint. Then he continues in Les Vrais Entretiens Spirituels:

Surely, when Our Lord went down into Limbo, St. Joseph addressed Him in this wise: "Be pleased to remember, Lord, that when you came down from Heaven to earth I received you into my house and family, that I took you into my arms from the moment you were born. Now you are going back to Heaven, take me with you (body and soul). I received you into my family, receive me into yours; I took you in my arms; take me into yours; I looked after you and fed you and guided you during your life on earth; stretch forth your hand and lead me into life everlasting."

Note

The quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from Saint Joseph by Henri Rondet, S.J., translated by Donald Attwater (New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1956).

© Homiletic & Pastoral Review

This item 7970 digitally provided courtesy of CatholicCulture.org

Pope Francis' prayer intentions for May

Pope Francis' universal prayer intention for May is: “That the media may be instruments in the service of truth and peace”.

His intention for evangelization is: “That Mary, Star of Evangelization, may guide the Church in proclaiming Christ to all nations”.

Young Seminarian Murdered in Mexico during Holy Week doing missionary work

IND.CATH. NEWS REPORT/FIDES: A young seminarian was kidnapped and murdered as he carried out missionary work in a rural area of northwestern Mexico during Holy Week.

Church spokesman, Mgr Constancio Miranda Weckmann, said in a statement: "the Archdiocese of Chihuahua announces with deep regret the death of our brother in Christ, Samuel Gustavo Gómez Veleta... Samuel Gustavo was in the town of Aldama, in the community in which he carried out his missionary service and belonged to St Jerome Parish.

"Every year the archdiocesan Seminary of Chihuahua, on the occasion of the celebrations of Holy Week, sends seminarians as missionaries in different rural communities. It is a major educational and spiritual experience, which serves to strengthen our students’ vocation to priesthood".

Samuel Gustavo Gómez Veleta, 21, a native of the city of Chihuahua, grew up in the Parish of Divine Providence, he attended the first year of philosophy at the archdiocesan Seminary. On April 15, Holy Tuesday, he was found dead after being kidnapped the day before.

During the funeral the Archbishop launched an appeal: "To all the Catholics of Chihuahua I ask you to work together to put an end to this violence and disregard for life which creates more and more insecurity, fear, leaving us defenseless". The homily was given by the Rector of the Seminary, Father Martin Barraza.

1st Quarter 2014 sets new all-time high for Holy Land Tourism

Tekton Ministries pilgrims help make this happen.

New York - April 14, 2014: 284,000 tourists from around the world arrived in Israel in March 2014, a 13% increase compared to the same period last year and a new all-time high for tourism to Israel.

705,288 tourists arrived in Israel between January and March 2014, a 17% increase compared to the same period last year. The U.S. is the number one source of tourism to Israel (20% of tourists to Israel come from North America), followed by much closer destinations such as Russia, Germany, France and the U.K.

"We are thrilled to see a continual increase in tourism to Israel following last year's record-breaking figures," said Haim Gutin, Israel Commissioner for Tourism, North and South America, "which attests to Israel's growing reputation as one of the world's most unique and inspiring travel destinations."

A record 3.54 million tourists from around the world arrived in Israel in 2013. 

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Pope's Official Canonization Declaration

Video: When Pope meets retired Pope at 2 former Popes Canonizations

Nobody, in all human history, has ever had the chance to say that before.

Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis

Mass of Canonization, 27 April 2014

At the heart of this Sunday, which concludes the Octave of Easter and which John Paul II wished to dedicate to Divine Mercy, are the glorious wounds of the risen Jesus.

He had already shown those wounds when he first appeared to the Apostles on the very evening of that day following the Sabbath, the day of the resurrection. But, as we heard, Thomas was not there that evening, and when the others told him that they had seen the Lord, he replied that unless he himself saw and touched those wounds, he would not believe. A week later, Jesus appeared once more to the disciples gathered in the Upper Room, and Thomas was present; Jesus turned to him and told him to touch his wounds. Whereupon that man, so straightforward and accustomed to testing everything personally, knelt before Jesus with the words: “My Lord and my God!” (Jn 20:28).

The wounds of Jesus are a scandal, a stumbling block for faith, yet they are also the test of faith. That is why on the body of the risen Christ the wounds never pass away: they remain, for those wounds are the enduring sign of God’s love for us. They are essential for believing in God. Not for believing that God exists, but for believing that God is love, mercy and faithfulness. Saint Peter, quoting Isaiah, writes to Christians: “by his wounds you have been healed” (1 Pet 2:24, cf. Is 53:5).

Saint John XXIII and Saint John Paul II were not afraid to look upon the wounds of Jesus, to touch his torn hands and his pierced side. They were not ashamed of the flesh of Christ, they were not scandalized by him, by his cross; they did not despise the flesh of their brother (cf. Is 58:7), because they saw Jesus in every person who suffers and struggles. These were two men of courage, filled with the parrhesia of the Holy Spirit, and they bore witness before the Church and the world to God’s goodness and mercy.

They were priests, bishops and popes of the twentieth century. They lived through the tragic events of that century, but they were not overwhelmed by them. For them, God was more powerful; faith was more powerful – faith in Jesus Christ the Redeemer of man and the Lord of history; the mercy of God, shown by those five wounds, was more powerful; and more powerful too was the closeness of Mary our Mother.
In these two men, who looked upon the wounds of Christ and bore witness to his mercy, there dwelt a living hope and an indescribable and glorious joy (1 Pet 1:3,8). The hope and the joy which the risen Christ bestows on his disciples, the hope and the joy which nothing and no one can take from them. The hope and joy of Easter, forged in the crucible of self-denial, self-emptying, utter identification with sinners, even to the point of disgust at the bitterness of that chalice. Such were the hope and the joy which these two holy popes had received as a gift from the risen Lord and which they in turn bestowed in abundance upon the People of God, meriting our eternal gratitude.

This hope and this joy were palpable in the earliest community of believers, in Jerusalem, as we read in the Acts of the Apostles (cf. 2:42-47), as we heard in the second reading. It was a community which lived the heart of the Gospel, love and mercy, in simplicity and fraternity.

This is also the image of the Church which the Second Vatican Council set before us. John XXIII and John Paul II cooperated with the Holy Spirit in renewing and updating the Church in keeping with her pristine features, those features which the saints have given her throughout the centuries. Let us not forget that it is the saints who give direction and growth to the Church. In convening the Council, John XXIII showed an exquisite openness to the Holy Spirit. He let himself be led and he was for the Church a pastor, a servant-leader, led by the Spirit. This was his great service to the Church; he was the pope of openness to the Spirit.

In his own service to the People of God, John Paul II was the pope of the family. He himself once said that he wanted to be remembered as the pope of the family. I am particularly happy to point this out as we are in the process of journeying with families towards the Synod on the family. It is surely a journey which, from his place in heaven, he guides and sustains.


May these two new saints and shepherds of God’s people intercede for the Church, so that during this two-year journey toward the Synod she may be open to the Holy Spirit in pastoral service to the family. May both of them teach us not to be scandalized by the wounds of Christ and to enter ever more deeply into the mystery of divine mercy, which always hopes and always forgives, because it always loves.