What is This Saint of the Year Devotion All About?


This isn't superstition. St. Faustina and her religious order did the same thing!

I would like to explain to you about the practice of picking a saint at random to be your “holy protector and intercessor” for the year. Actually, the saint is the one who chooses us though.The tradition of letting a saint “pick you,”is not a new one. St. Faustina wrote about it in her diary, "Divine Mercy in My Soul".
The excerpt is below. . .

“There is a custom among us of drawing by lot, on New Year's Day, special Patrons for ourselves for the whole year. In the morning, during meditation, there arose within me a secret desire that the Eucharistic Jesus be my special Patron for this year also, as in the past. But, hiding this desire from my Beloved, I spoke to Him about everything else but that. When we came to refectory for breakfast, we blessed ourselves and began drawing our patrons. When I approached the holy cards on which the names of the patrons were written, without hesitation I took one, but I didn't read the name immediately as I wanted to mortify myself for a few minutes. Suddenly, I heard a voice in my soul: ‘I am your patron. Read.’ I looked at once at the inscription and read, ‘Patron for the Year 1935 - the Most Blessed Eucharist.’ My heart leapt with joy, and I slipped quietly away from the sisters and went for a short visit before the Blessed Sacrament,where I poured out my heart. But Jesus sweetly admonished me that I should be at that moment together with the sisters. I went immediately in obedience to the rule.”

Excerpt from "Divine Mercy in My Soul, the Diary of St. Faustina"

Saturday, March 2, 2013

Let's Be Catholic (and may I add, Saintly)
You and me.

  • Let's do what Catholics do. Or are supposed to do. Let's see Jesus in other people - even that person who annoys the devil out of us.
  • Let's be joyful and let's fill others with joy too.
  • Let's go to Mass every week. (and maybe an extra time or two during Lent)
  • Let's care for those who are hungry and for those who are homeless and then go a step further and join with others to end hunger and homelessness.
  • Let's insist that no one in our country will ever have to go without because they can't afford it.
  • Let's neither brag about our giving or complain about our taxes.
  • Let's do stuff at our parishes. When the call goes out for help at something that sounds like we could do, let's volunteer.
  • On the job, let's amaze people whose lives touch ours because we are so darn easy to work with.
  • Let's comfort those who mourn.
  • When we get the choice between conflict and compromise, let's choose the latter.
  • Let's be the kindest people in the building and the nicest neighbors.
  • Let's get a reputation for doing things for others without expecting anything in return.
  • Let's just be still at times and have a conversation with God ... and let's listen. Let us let God do most of the talking.
  • Let's be the friends others call when they need help because they always know we will imitate the Good Samaritan.
  • When we have an occasion to really give somebody a piece of our mind, let's be merciful instead.
  • Let's "invite" our children, grandchildren, neighbors, co-workers, to activities at our parish - the spiritual programs as well as the social ones.
  • Let's remember to say Grace before every meal - even at restaurants.
  • Let's vote for candidates to elected office who most nearly reflect Catholic values.
  • Let's say a prayer every morning when we wake and every night as we get into bed.
  • Let's be known as the most humble person everybody knows.
  • Let's apply Jesus' directive to welcome the stranger to those who come to our community - and our country - in search of freedom and a better life.
  • Let's say the Rosary at least once a week.
  • Every Lent, let's get ashes on Ash Wednesday morning and allow them to mark us as Catholic all day.
  • Let's decide on a Lenten sacrifice and action and let's keep that commitment.
  • Let's make time to go to the Stations of the Cross so we can walk the Lenten journey more closely with Jesus in His suffering.
  • Let's remember not to eat meat on Fridays during Lent.
  • Let's try our best to live out the Beatitudes.
  • Let's take advantage of opportunities to grow in our faith, to learn more about this God we claim to believe in.
  • Let's re-memorise the "Memorare" and pray it every day.
  • Let's see if we can repeat the Ten Commandments, and, if we can't, let's re-learn them.
  • Let's take advantage of the cleansing wonder of the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
  • When the parish pledge drive comes around, let's think not only of all the bills our parishes have to pay, but let's reflect on all that you and I have been blessed with by God and increase what we were thinking about giving this year.
  • Let's visit with some elderly folks.
  • Let's not find fault in others.
  • Let's trust in God's plan for each of us.
  • Let's listen to our conscience.
  • Let's be the ones who stand up for and protect life at every stage.
  • Let's not value money and things, but instead, let's value being respected.
  • Let's befriend someone - or a group of people - who no one else seems to want to even live near.
  • Let's love our spouses.
  • Let's honor our parents.
  • Let's cherish our children - and everybody elses' children too.
  • Let's forgive those who have hurt us.
  • Let's use our pro-creative abilities the way God intended them to be used.
  • Let's not gossip.
  • Let's love the Lord our God with all our heart and all our soul and and all our mind, and let's love our neighbors as ourselves.
  • Let's tell other people why we are Catholic.
A HUGE thank you to Bob Zyskowski, who is associate publisher of The Catholic Spirit, newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.!
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