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The 1920s brought a revolution to Mexico, along with the widespread persecution of Catholics. Portrait of the Mexican Martyrs at the Knights of Columbus Museum in New Haven. Missionaries were expelled from the country, Catholic seminaries and schools were closed, and the Church was forbidden to own property. Priests and laymen were told to denounce Jesus and their faith in public; if they refused, they faced not just punishment but torture and death.During this time of oppression and cruelty, the Knights of Columbus did not retreat in Mexico but grew dramatically, from 400 members in 1918 to 43 councils...

The Holy Father has given a new gift to the pro-life movement. You have likely seen the picture of Jesus standing with his hand pointed to his heart, from which red and pale rays emanate. The words “Jesus, I trust in you” are at the bottom. This image represents the devotion to Divine Mercy, based on revelations given to St. Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938). The image itself was revealed to her, as was the “Chaplet of Divine Mercy,” in which we pray the following words: Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved...

…… began to consider priesthood and religious life from the standpoint of a successful business career which provided everything I was supposed to have and which I found unfulfilling. …… have wanted to be a priest since I was five years old (I am now forty-seven!). …… have thought about the priesthood since my Confirmation retreat at 13. . . . have studied and traveled through Europe for a year. . . . have a sister who will graduate law school the day before I get ordained a priest (my only sibling). …… that I wanted to be a priest...

Wed, Jul 07, 04 newsletter events chaplain locator » our Shepherd-in-Chief » JPII to Military Fulton Sheen - NEW Q&A Forum military saints » military ethics on the issues » recommended » care package submit mass intention testimonials » prayers & meditations answering the call to chaplaincy » over there streamed video real audio photos archived articles email the webmaster   • Archbishop Prays for Fr. Timothy Vakoc at Military Chaplain Mass • Abortion vs. War by Fr. Frank Pavone • Major Paul Ross: from Egypt • Post-Modern Terrorism By Dr. Earl Tilford • George Weigel: Abu Ghraib and just war...

Theological Student Delivers Eucharist By Jackie Spinner Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, December 8, 2004; Page A16 HASWAH, Iraq -- His flak jacket was covered in dried blood, his blood. Look at the stains, Marine Lance Cpl. June N. Ramos said, pointing. There were dark red smears all over the front of his camouflage vest. Ramos reached into the pocket of the flak jacket and pulled out a small silver tin wrapped in a plastic bag. He opened the container, which held a half-dozen Communion wafers. "Instead of putting a grenade in here," Ramos said, fastening the pocket of his...

One Good Priest Can Make A Difference Father Seott Binet: Priest-Doctor Finds Cure for His Spiritual Longing  BY WAYNE TRYHUK    U.S. Camillian Father Scott Binet, a medical doctor from Milwaukee, examines a woman displaced by tsunamis in a camp near Banda Aceh, Indonesia, Jan. 19. The remedy for what was ailing Scott Francis Binet has led him to heal others in body and spirit — as a doctor and a priest. Though the route to his dual profession was not always clear, he now travels to many of the world's disaster areas fulfilling his vocation. Before becoming a family...

St. José María Robles Hurtado by Pedro A. MorenoPriest, Martyr and Knight : A Special Heart With a Special Beat In this article: A Heroic Priest Christ, the King of Mexico Help from the Vatican The Ultimate Witness Almost 80 years ago, on a hill outside of the small town of Quila, Jalisco, Mexico, there was a deafening and deadly silence. A special heart, a priestly heart united with Christ’s own, was stilled. Its special beat, a loving palpitation for the Eucharist, was now silent. The silence became one with the predawn darkness in which a group of soldiers finished...

Brothers in Christ The vocation to holiness expressed in the life and martyrdom of two Mexican brothers inspires their family today, including a grand knight in Guadalajara April 3 has become an unofficial feast day for Cristóbal Huerta Wilde. On that day, the grand knight of Fray Antonio Alcalde Council 3552 in Guadalajara, Central-South Mexico, remembers in a special way the heroic life and martyrdom of his grandfather, Ezequiel Huerta Gutiérrez. Ezequiel and his brother, Salvador, were executed by a government firing squad April 3, 1927, due to their involvement with the Cristeros, a group of rebels, including hundreds of...

Knights of the Eucharistby Marilyn KorpalskiKnights attest to the value of eucharistic adoration for themselves, their families, their councils and parishes In this article: Parish Renewal Faithful to Our Lord A Message for Young People A Year of the Eucharist Initiative Some respond with their time and others with their brawn. But every Knight committed to eucharistic adoration is motivated from his heart and his love for the Lord. Devotion to the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist is not a new initiative for many Knights. During this Year of the Eucharist, however, the spiritual riches for Knights, their...

Your Praises We Sing by Bill DoddsOn the eve of the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, a look at Mary's singular honor. In this article: St. Anne, St. Joachim and the Unborn Mary Lessons from the Bible and the Catechism Serious Doubts by Serious Saints St. Bernadette's Contribution Scour the Old and New Testaments and you'll find no definitive word on Mary's being conceived without the stain of original sin. Pore over the writings of early Christian theologians known as Church Fathers, or later saints and scholars, and you'll discover a jumble...

The Year of the Eucharistby Bishop Donald WuerlA time, Pope John Paul II says, for 'starting afresh from Christ' In this article: Spiritual Nourishment A Time for Outreach Nourishing Eucharistic Devotion Goals for the Coming Year In his homily at the Basilica of St. John Lateran on the solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, Thursday, June 10, Pope John Paul II announced a special Year of the Eucharist. He declared that it would begin with the International Eucharistic Congress, held in October in Guadalajara, Mexico, and would end with the next ordinary assembly of the Synod of Bishops...

Queen Isabella: Evangelizer of the New World by Cardinal Luis Aponte MartinezThe 500th anniversary of Queen isalbella's death this month prompts a Puerto Rican prelate to examine her faithful service In this article: A True Follower of Jesus A Reformer of Church and State Devotion to Jesus and Mary Bold, Decisive, Faith-Filled Action Detail from 1596 painting “King Ferdinand and Queen Isabelle of Spain Bidding Farewell to Christopher Columbus." Imagine that you have before your eyes a map of the world. Looking at the map from heaven's perspective, imagine that the places strong in the Catholic faith shine with special...

Faith In A Faraway PlacePrayer sustains a Knight in Afghanistan and connects him to his Muslim hosts By William J. Harkins It's a chilly morning in Paktika Province, Afghanistan, where I, a lieutenant colonel in the U.S.  Marines, am stationed with a U.S. Army unit. Part of my responsibilities is to meet with the village elders. The soldiers and I are almost always invited to drink hot tea, or chai, with the people we meet. No matter how poor the vil­lage is, the people always bring us tea and even feed us if we have time. I have been impressed...

distinction of entering and exiting the 20th century soaked in the blood of war. John Paul could have beatified Merz in the grandeur of St. Peter’s Basilica or the embracing splendor of St. Peter’s Square, as his predecessors would have during the last war. Thus, he added more t was a blistering June day in Banja Luka, the capital of the Serb Republic part of divided Bosnia-Herzegovina. The worst heat wave in many decades had enveloped the whole continent, from Moscow to the east to the Portuguese island of Madera to the west.Inside Banja Luka’s modern cathedral, the faithful...