Seven Saints for Seven Virtues - Jean M. Heimann

Seven Saints for Seven Virtues (eBook)

Jean M. Heimann (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2023 | 1. Auflage
144 Seiten
Servant (Verlag)
978-1-63582-478-0 (ISBN)

To live a virtuous life might seem like a daunting task, but we are fortunate to have examples to follow- the saints who have faced sin through the embodiment and exemplification of virtue. In this book, the reader will meet seven saints who lived seven virtues, and will discover concrete ways that they can live those virtues in their own lives. Each chapter will include: A quote from the saint; A personal reflection on each saint; A brief biography; A discussion on the spirituality of each saint, and concrete examples how to emulate this saint and grow in the virtue that saint models; A prayer to conclude each chapter, asking for the intercession of that saint. Seven Saints for Seven Virtues covers a wide range of spirituality and life circumstances, demonstrating that everyone, in every role of life, has the opportunity to live a virtuous life.

To live a virtuous life might seem like a daunting task, but we are fortunate to have examples to follow-the saints who have faced sin through the embodiment and exemplification of virtue. In this book, the reader will meet seven saints who lived seven virtues, and will discover concrete ways that they can live those virtues in their own lives. Each chapter will include: A quote from the saint A personal reflection on each saint A brief biography A discussion on the spirituality of each saint, and concrete examples how to emulate this saint and grow in the virtue that saint models A prayer to conclude each chapter, asking for the intercession of that saint. Seven Saints for Seven Virtues covers a wide range of spirituality and life circumstances, demonstrating that everyone, in every role of life, has the opportunity to live a virtuous life.

Introduction

Saints Show the Way

What comes to mind when you hear the word saint? Do you have an image of someone who is holy and pious who spends all day on his or her knees in prayer? Or, perhaps you view a saint as someone who has continual visions and ecstasies that enable him or her to be in constant communion with the Lord. Certainly these saints are much more advanced in spiritual virtue than you and me, right?

If you have any of these views, then you are only partly correct. The saints were certainly holy and virtuous people during their lives on earth, but they struggled to become virtuous. Virtue is not something that they were born with. The saints were ordinary people who wrestled with temptations and the same sins you and I face each day. They had family and financial problems similar to those we experience today and they cherished the blessings of life, as well . They were ordinary people, like you and me, who dealt with daily challenges in extraordinary ways—that is, they cooperated with the will of God, relying on the graces he gifted them with through the sacraments and their prayers, fasting, and almsgiving to deal with their trials and lead holy lives. The saints are those who have fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith (see 2 Timothy 4:7). The saints are those who persevered to the finish and have won the race.

These holy witnesses inspire us and guide us on this challenging journey of life. They have preceded us on the path, navigated it successfully, and are now in heaven for all eternity. There, in heaven, they are cheering us on to victory in our own race and interceding to the Father for us, offering up for us all the sacrifices they performed while on earth and uniting them with those of Jesus Christ.

The first time I opened a book on the saints was at age seven. My mother’s thick Lives of the Saints seemed like an immense volume to me. I was enchanted with this heavy, hardcover book, which was filled with detailed stories of the saints in adult words too difficult for me to read. It was beautifully illustrated with colorful paintings of the saints, and I admired the classic artwork in the book and knew there was something sacred about these people. The book initiated a dialogue between my mother and me that transcended our mundane lives and stirred up within me the desire to live like the saints—and to possibly even become one of them someday. The saints were my superheroes as a child. I looked to them with deep admiration and love.

Let me share a little about one saint who has been a close friend and powerful intercessor for me in my life: St. Thérèse of Lisieux. I first learned about St. Thérèse when I was fifteen years old, a sophomore in a Catholic high school. In English class, her autobiography, Story of a Soul, was one of the options on our required reading list. As I read about her love for Jesus and learned of her “Little Way,” I couldn’t help but desire to emulate this beautiful saint, who expressed so much joy in the midst of suffering. I cheered when this young woman, who at my age acted with such strong faith and determination, did the forbidden, speaking out when she was told to remain silent and pleading with the pope to let her enter the convent at Carmel. I was fascinated with the poetic way she expressed herself (being a poet myself ), her love for flowers, her deep insights into the faith, her strong love for God and for others, and the humor she interjected into her personal anecdotes. One thing I really liked about her was that she advocated the “Little Way” of performing small tasks with great love as the way to become holy. She taught that it is not necessary to do severe penances or perform great deeds in order to become a saint. Instead, we can attain sanctity by carrying out the ordinary duties of everyday life out of love for God and our neighbor. Her “Little Way” was her humble, simple, yet profound way of pleasing God through small acts of love and sacrifice offered up to him. The requirements necessary for one to perform these simple acts of love are total trust and surrender, as well as obedience to the will of a loving and merciful God.

Through her intercession, St. Thérèse has worked many miracles for me, as well as for others to whom I have entrusted to her. One of these miracles involved a dear friend who was miraculously healed of a cancerous tumor through the intercession of St. Thérèse. Others involved physical, emotional, and spiritual healing. About two years ago, St. Thérèse helped me complete my thesis, which was centered on the reason why she is a doctor of the Church. It was a stressful time, yet Thérèse came through for me and even exceeded my expectations. As I write the pages of this book, I am praying daily to St. Thérèse, my favorite saint and dear friend in heaven, for strength, guidance, and consolation. I am also praying that she touch each and every one of my readers in a special way and draw them nearer to the heart of Jesus. I am asking another dear saint, St. Francis de Sales, the patron of writers, to help me write in a way that makes sense to you and that stirs you to a renewed zeal for the Catholic faith.

St. Augustine is another favorite saint of mine. At age twelve, when I read his Confessions, I was fascinated with his great love and passion for the Lord. Little did I realize at that time that eleven years later, I would stop practicing my Catholic faith and, like Augustine, it would be the long-suffering and persistent prayers of my parents—particularly those of my mother—that would draw me to the heart of Jesus and bring me home to my Catholic faith. Like St. Monica, I am certain it was my mother’s tears, sacrifices, and pleading with God for me to return to the faith that brought me back. Like Augustine, I had been brought up in the faith but fell away, accepting the world’s false and heretical view of truth rather than God’s authentic truth.

Having a saint to pray to every day for special intentions draws us into a more intimate union with Jesus, who has blessed us with so many heavenly intercessors for all our needs. It is a great privilege to have someone in heaven who cares so much about our innermost desires and personal needs. The saints you will meet in this book are some of my favorite intercessors, and they were specifically chosen because they exemplify and embody the specific virtues to which they are matched—virtues that are necessary to avoid serious sin.

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the holy woman of the gutters, who cared for those who had been abandoned and rejected by everyone else—the poorest of the poor—is the model for charity. She not only cared for all those who approached her for help, but she sought out those souls whom society considered useless. To modern society, those she cared for were considered “throwaway” people simply because they were no longer capable of productive activity. But Mother Teresa did not view them that way. To her, each one of them was Jesus concealed in the distressing disguise of the poorest of the poor. She treated each one as Christ—the crucified Savior who thirsts for love, who yearns to be comforted in his affliction and need.

St. Agnes, the twelve-year-old, third-century martyr who gave her life to defend her purity, is the model of chastity. Her symbol is the lamb and, like the Lamb of God, she, too, was innocently slaughtered to defend her Christian beliefs. Can you imagine someone giving his or her life today for the virtue of chastity? I don’t know for certain how I would personally respond if I were in her place, but I am afraid that many of us would simply give in to our persecutors to avoid suffering and death.

St. John Paul II, the towering figure who is considered the most dynamic leader of the twentieth century, is a splendid example of diligence. I can still remember hearing the roaring crowds packing St. Peter’s Square, who insisted upon learning of his death: “Santo Subito!” “Sainthood Now!” There are many reasons this great saint was and will forever be so popular and loved and why he is an excellent model of diligence. First of all, he dealt with deaths in his family and his own personal challenges with great courage, always seeking out God. Second, he doggedly led the Church through a difficult period of history—one that included the sexual abuse crisis, the culture of death, and the rise of relativism and atheism throughout the world. In response to these and other issues, he wrote numerous encyclicals and traveled extensively to spread the Gospel message throughout the world. Last, he diligently used every gift and talent the Lord gave him to build up the body of Christ and spread the Gospel. Like Christ, he gave his own body for the Church. All the while, he diligently maintained great zeal and enthusiasm for his faith and refused to cease his seemingly endless desire to serve God, even amidst great suffering and pain.

St. Joseph, spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and foster father of Jesus, is our model of humility. This holy, simple carpenter, who had descended from royal blood, chose to work in a lowly trade rather than at an occupation of higher rank for his day. He chose to please God by living a hidden life. Can you imagine being the spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, ever immaculate and conceived without original sin and being the parent of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Second Person of...

Erscheint lt. Verlag	15.5.2023
Sprache	englisch
Themenwelt	Geisteswissenschaften ► Religion / Theologie ► Christentum
ISBN-10	1-63582-478-8 / 1635824788
ISBN-13	978-1-63582-478-0 / 9781635824780

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