What Figures Are On This Celtic Cross?

A reader writes,

Hi there my name is Mindy and I am trying to figure out the meaning of a particular Celtic Catholic cross that was my father-in-laws throughout his whole life. When he passed away it was handed down to my husband.

Dateline Long Beach: Stolen Relic of St. Anthony of Padua?

Photo Credit:
Fr. Brian Doran

Sounds like a case for G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown. AP reporter Raquel Maria Dillon has the story,

A 780-year-old religious relic of St. Anthony of Padua has been stolen, and parishioners at a Southern California Catholic church are praying to the patron saint of lost causes and missing objects for its speedy return.

The relic was stolen from inside a cabinet beside the altar at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Long Beach on Monday, the feast day of the church's namesake.

Because of Holy Water

When Catholics know someone is ill, we can do many things. We can offer a Mass in their name. We can add their name to a parish prayer list. Or we can do what my dear friend Meredith did: We can mail the person a bottle of holy water.

My octogenarian dad has been struggling recently with a puzzling array of health problems. Meredith mailed me a bottle of holy water for him. The gesture moved me; she never even has met my father.

For Faith In Action: the Way of the Cross in New York (Part II)

This morning, our sons and I, along with thousands of others, participated in the Way of the Cross procession from the Basilica Cathedral of Saint James in Brooklyn across the Brooklyn Bridge, (see us all crossing the bridge?)  to Saint Peter's Roman Catholic Church in Lower Manhattan, the oldest Catholic parish in New York City. Along the way, we walked in silence, stopping only at several stations to pray sing and reflect. The procession was sponsored  by Communion and Liberation, a lay ecclesiastical movement. What follows are some of the reflections, song and chants we heard. Thanks to our 14-year-old for shooting most of these photos with our family camera.

For Faith in Action: The Way of the Cross in New York

Friday morning, my two sons and I will travel from New Jersey  to Brooklyn's Cathedral Basilica of Saint James by train and by subway to participate in what promises to be a beautiful event. Thousands of believers are expected to walk in silence from Brooklyn, cross the Brooklyn Bridge, and into Lower Manhattan to commemorate the death of our Lord. If you live in the New York metropolitan area, I hope you will join us.

I also am wondering: What special way will you observe Good Friday?

For All the Sacramentals, The Way of the Cross

—Feast of St. Tarasius 

The Lenten season is just around the corner, and one of the devotions that I look forward to is that of the Stations of the Cross. Also known as the Way of the Cross, I was amazed to see Fr. Sullivan count this devotion as a sacramental. I had no idea, did you?

Last year both Allison and I wrote posts on the Stations of the Cross. Below, Fr. John fleshes out the history of this sacramental devotion for us.

For All the Sacramentals, The Vestments (Part II)

—Feast of St. John Teristus 

Prior to finding Fr. Sullivan's book The Visible Church, there is no way that I would have learned about the priestly vestments that will be discussed below. So again, for the clergy in the audience, this is nothing new.

But for the rest of us, unless you are a player of the Facebook game called Priestville (I kid you not!), you've probably never heard of most of this stuff. As for me, I don't have time for fun and games like that.

For All the Sacramentals, The Vestments (Part I)

—Feast of  St. Peter Damien 

Today, the series on Sacramentals continues with the vestments worn by the clergy. As a rookie Catholic, I understood some of the significance of the vestments, the colors, etc. But if I had to take a quiz and answer the question, "True or False: Are vestments a sacramental?," my answer would have been a guess, and I would have gotten this one wrong.

Now if the quiz would have been about Marine Corps uniforms, from Dress Blues, to Service (Greens), and Utilities (what you may know as "cammies") etc., I would have passed with flying colors.

For All the Sacramentals: Crosses and Crucifixes

—Septuagesima Sunday

Today I'm sharing more on sacramentals from Fr. John F. Sullivan's little text book called The Visible Church. What is a sacramental? They are "objects set apart and blessed by the Church to excite good thoughts and to increase devotion, and through these movements of the heart to remit venial sin."

Today we turn to the symbol that all Christians know, love, and revere.

For All the Sacramentals, Holy Water

—Feast of St. Alvarez of Corova 

Yesterday I shared the Sign of the Cross with you, and today I promised an explanation of Holy Water. I'm glad I found this little book The Visible Church by Fr. John F. Sullivan. And not just for trivial pursuit question ammunition either.

For All the Sacramentals, The Sign of the Cross

—Feast of St. Simon  

As a convert, when I was first considering becoming a Catholic, some of the little physical things Catholics did were of interest to me. I would think, why do they do that? The Sacramentals were mysterious to me.

I found a little book by Fr. John F. Sullivan entitled, The Visible Church. Published in 1920 as a text book for Catholic schools, it's perfect for a beginner like me.