Lent is upon us. I’m wondering if you have asked yourself how you will make your Lenten preparation for Easter? It’s a good question to ask.

Life being what it is, I have often found it beneficial to come up with a plan and a strategy to help me enter more deeply into the Lenten season.

In years past, I have planned and strategized how to “give up” —

Certain foods or treats  — don’t buy them;

Activities and recreations — don’t go to them;

Habits and behaviors — don’t do them.

One year I even gave up going to the mall — don’t drive by it.

That was my longest Lent ever!

Along with the exclusions, I have often added a few inclusions: more time in prayer, study, and adoration; additional acts of charity; exchanging a bad habit with a good one. Read the rest…

“My daughter, be diligent in writing down every sentence I tell you concerning My mercy, because this is meant for a great number of souls who will profit from it.” 

So said Our Lord Jesus Christ to Sister M. Faustina Kowalska, a religious sister of the Congregation of  Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy.  And so began one of the most influential spiritual movements of our day and time — Divine Mercy.

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Today is the Feast of the Guardian Angels.

Throughout history many poets have found the angels to be a topic of great inspiration and insight. My final post in this short study on the angels features just such a poem. It is written by J. Corson Miller, an American poet who was born in 1883. The time of his death is unknown.

However, we do know that J. Corson Miller was a devout Catholic of whom one critic wrote, “Imagination, passion, facility of musical and expressive word and phrase, lyrical tone — these natural endowments are augmented by education, vision and Catholic faith.”

Interestingly and not without note, Miller pledged his life to Our Lady and promised to be her “consecrated knight in deed and song.” Many of his poems were written about her and to her. 

As you read Miller’s poem, Hymn to the Guardian Angel, look for his profoundly Catholic worldview, his knowledge of the faith, and the imagination and passion he employs to communicate it.

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Today is the Feast Day of St. Therese of Lisieux, one of my favorite saints since childhood.

Since today is her special day and this week of my blog is dedicated to the angels, I am posting a poem St. Therese wrote to her guardian angel.

May it inspire you to seek the intercession of St. Therese and also that of your guardian angel!

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Today’s post continues our short study on the angels, a perfect week to consider these marvelous and holy creatures of God as we celebrate two feast days in their honor. We will be looking at their function and mission. I encourage you to read my earlier two posts on the angels if you haven’t done so already.  

St. Thomas Aquinas, called the Angelic Doctor because of his theological and philosophical study of the angels, tells us that the hosts of heaven are divided into three hierarchies of angels with three choirs in each hierarchy. The angel’s hierarchy and choir are directly related to his function and his divine office.

Read the rest…