Four Practical Ways to Ignite Our Catholic Faith
“You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” — Matthew 5:14-16
I first encountered Katie Peterson Warner years ago when she was a teenager in my parish. I have always been impressed with her zeal for the Catholic faith and the Christ-inspired joy she authentically shares with anyone she encounters. Some people have a “magnetic” personality, but Katie is something altogether different. People genuinely feel happier and more excited about their faith when they encounter her, and she is a natural at sharing her Catholic faith with others. This is a rare gift.
Katie grew up in a loving Catholic home with her parents and two sisters. Katie describes her early passion for the faith this way: “Ever since I was in junior high, I have wanted evangelization to be not only my personal mission as a baptized Catholic but also my career. I was raised in a devout Catholic home, but I received an even stronger calling to serve the Church during a profound heart-to-heart with Jesus in front of the Eucharist in the eighth grade. Since that time, I have not wavered in my desire to study theology and catechesis, so that I could articulately and knowledgably teach the faith.”
After graduating from Kennesaw State University with degrees in communication and writing, Katie pursued a graduate degree in Catholic theology, specializing in evangelization and catechesis, from the Augustine Institute in Denver, Colorado, where she graduated summa cum laude. She worked her way through school as the communications manager for CatholicsComeHome.org. Her intention upon graduation was to use her speaking, writing and teaching skills to serve the evangelization mission of the Church.
Katie shared with me that during her college and grad school years, the Holy Spirit presented her with numerous opportunities to speak and write—on a scale that was much larger and more frequent than she could have ever expected or was prepared to do. She has spent the past few years writing more frequently and speaking nationally, and she now realizes that this is part of the “little role God wants me to play in the building of His kingdom.” When I interviewed her for my book “Joyful Witness,” she had the humility to say she has been “undeservingly blessed in experiencing what it’s like to watch God’s will—albeit sometimes His seemingly scary will—unfold in my life in the most unexpected and adventurous way.”
We hear so much today about losing our Catholic young people into the spiritual wilderness for a long period of time with hopes that they will eventually come back, but Katie managed to stay true to the Catholic faith, even through the tumultuous teen and college years. It is remarkable that this young woman stayed on the right path. How?
Katie gives all the credit to God and says it has always been clear to her that God’s grace covered her like the “shield of faith” described in Ephesians 6:16, and this kept her focused on pursuing a relationship with Jesus Christ and His Church during a period of life generally filled with worldly temptation, insecurity and doubt. She says:
“I knew, however, that I had to cooperate with that grace, and so it was in high school that I discovered the treasure of daily Mass. I made an effort to go really early every morning before school started. I have been a daily Mass-goer for a joyous ten years now, and I cannot even begin to describe the spiritual riches I have received over the past decade as a result. Daily Mass was a game changer for me. When I was looking for more clarity and purpose in my life, answers to God’s plan for me, peace in the midst of school and work stress, comfort in the midst of social turmoil and now strength to live out my calling more virtuously as a wife and mother, I turned to the Eucharist in Holy Mass and in Adoration. I thank God that He helped me develop that habit in my teen years; I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the Sacraments.
In addition to frequenting the Sacraments I studied. I studied the faith, all the time. I scoured books and Catholic CDs. I attended frequent talks and practiced evangelizing my peers—and frankly anybody—when opportunities presented themselves. The more I learned about my faith, the more I knew about it. The more I knew about my faith, the more I loved it. The more I loved my faith, the more I shared it. The more I shared my faith, the more I treasured it. Finally, I prayed. A lot.”
Daily Mass for more than 10 years, devoted to the Sacraments, passion for studying the faith, a prayer warrior—who among us (or our children) would not be transformed by following Katie’s example? What would happen if Catholic parents, through their personal example, led their families to the same kind of devoted practice of our faith? When I asked Katie about the causes for this faith crisis among our youth, I was grateful for her direct answer, rooted in careful study and firsthand experiences from her travels around the country:
“It’s hard to say it, and people don’t like to hear it, but parents are arguably and statistically one of the greatest reasons for the loss of faith practice among young people today. Parents are meant to be the primary educators of the faith for their children—not Sunday school catechists, not Catholic schoolteachers, not the parish priest—parents and parents are dropping the ball big time. Researchers say that if you want to see what a young person’s faith life will look like as an older adult, just look at their parents. When parents aren’t living out their Catholic faith at home, their children suffer the consequences. They don’t see the importance of the faith; their parents don’t engage, so they don’t. The home is meant to be the nucleus of Catholic culture and parents need to take much more seriously their responsibility to make it so. When parents live like the secular culture around them, their kids start to think they can live adequate lives without the church, and they drift away.
Second, our post-modern, relativistic, materialistic culture poses a serious threat to young people today, convincing us to adhere to moral therapeutic deism, which makes the central goal of life to feel good about oneself, rather than to follow the path that Jesus Christ has for us, which is the only path that can offer us true happiness. Additionally, parishes around the country are facing a huge deficit in trained youth ministers. The vast majority of parishes don’t have a full-time youth minister at all. Finally, Catholic schools are now often places where young people say their faith is lost rather than nurtured.
All of these factors ultimately contribute to a weakened experience of authentic Catholicism in a young person’s formative years, which makes it easier for them to simply disengage when they confront the shallowness of their faith, marry outside the church, fail to have their questions and doubts addressed, misunderstand the church’s teachings on moral issues or the significance of the Mass, and so on.”
Katie’s own parents have been very influential in nurturing and encouraging her spiritual life. Her father, Tom Peterson, is well known for the evangelization work he does in helping invite souls home to the Catholic church through TV commercials from the Catholics Come Home apostolate. Countless babies have been saved from abortion through pro-life TV commercials from his VirtueMedia.org ministry. Katie witnessed her father go from being a successful, wealthy businessman to a pro-life Catholic ministry founder; this taught her from a young age that God has extraordinary plans for our lives if we are willing to say “yes” to His call. However, Katie says the hidden hero of her home is her mother Tricia. “I have never met anyone more prayerful, more trusting, more deeply in love with Jesus Christ in the most humble and profound way. She is a model of offering up sufferings to our Lord and laying one’s life entirely in His hands. Every day, she teaches me something more about love and joy and she, in my eyes, is a living saint.”
I asked Katie how we can do a better job of engaging our Catholic youth and helping them get back on track. She offered four specific actions for us to consider:
‘You simply cannot love the whys of Catholicism before you love the Who. Many young Catholics today have been catechized without being evangelized. They have not truly encountered an authentic relationship with Jesus or His Church, so all of the teachings and practices of the faith fall on deaf, uninterested ears. You simply cannot love the whys of Catholicism before you love the Who. Young people need to be re-evangelized and in the past few years, I have traveled to many Catholic groups convincing younger and older adults alike that they (and by that I mean we—each and every baptized Catholic) are the ones tasked with evangelizing them.
We need to become more convincing disciples of Christ. We need to talk more candidly about our Catholic faith when the Holy Spirit presents us with people and opportunities to do so (which is frequently when we ask Him to). We need to make love for young people our primary motivation and develop relationships—not just simple one-time evangelistic moments—with them through discipleship. We need to listen carefully and discerningly to their doubts and reasons for leaving or wanting to leave the Church, keeping in mind that the reasons they give are not often the real reasons keeping them at bay. This might require us to do a little digging to get to the root cause, so that we can effectively evangelize them “where they are.” We need to play offense, not just defense—we need to ask questions, not just answer them.
We need to pray like crazy. We should make it our daily mission to pray for the souls of our young people—through rosaries, chaplets, fasting and heartfelt love notes to God for the young individuals He has entrusted to our care in some way.
We need to exhibit authenticity and joy. There is so much inauthenticity in our lives today—pseudo relationships through social media, the constant barrage of advertising, false images of beauty and happiness on TV and in magazines—all aimed directly at young people. They need something that is real, and they need us to be the ones to show them that “realness.” Second (and my personal favorite) is the exhibition of joy—true, unbridled joy. I have had, thanks be to God, many people tell me that, even more than what I say about my faith, they notice the joy with which I say it. Joy is contagious. Be joyful and you will spread joy. Be joyful about your faith and your Catholic faith will catch fire in the lives of those you evangelize. Not enough people are joyful about their Catholic faith, when that is precisely the thing we should all be most joyful about, regardless of our age.
Now married, Katie and her husband, Raymond, have welcomed two beautiful children into the world in the last three years. Katie says without a doubt her favorite ministry work is family life.
“Nothing in my life could have prepared me for the spiritual journey that is marriage and motherhood. It is, without question, both the hardest and most rewarding work I have ever done. Speaking, writing, working for apostolates—I love that ministry. But it’s in building up the domestic church that I have realized that I have—everyone has—the greatest power to change the world. My husband and I can model the life of the Trinity in our relationship and be evangelists to our relatives, friends, neighbors and coworkers simply through the way we love each other. Through parenthood, we can raise saints who can go out and transform the culture in which we live. What a gift, and what a responsibility! The home is where the New Evangelization begins and the reason why it thrives.”
As a young married Catholic adult with young children, Katie is joyfully fulfilling the vocation of wife and mother. But how do her choices impact her role in the new evangelization? What lessons are here for others facing similar choices? She admits the road has been difficult at times:
“Over the past few years, I have had to make difficult decisions that meant me giving up jobs that I loved, places I wanted to be and ministry opportunities I wanted to take advantage of for the sake of my family. Despite my usual, uncomfortable initial reactions, when I make a choice that is for the benefit of our family, I am amazed at how God works through that. We grow in virtue and I grow more accustomed to following God’s will for me, rather than my will for myself. No matter how hard I sometimes resist, it is easy for me to see—albeit often in hindsight—that His will always makes me happier.
Dedicating yourself to your family often involves receiving intangible blessings, which can be difficult for people like me who are used to finishing job tasks on their running to-do list, being recognized for a project well completed and working in the field of evangelization (or any workplace for that matter) where people can see and acknowledge what you are doing. Committing myself to my home life first—to my spouse and to my children—helps me focus more on being. I try and ask myself every day, “How much a better wife and mother can I be today?” rather than, “How much can I get done today?” Transitioning to a mindset of seeing new growth in patience as a “job well done” for the day (rather than a work assignment neatly wrapped up, for example) is a regular struggle for me, but it’s a struggle that I need and desire in my life.
Family life helps us focus on the people we need to become in order to be saints. What a training program—what a gift! When my husband and I pray together, when my infant son smiles at me as I make the Sign of the Cross on his forehead (and eagerly await the day I can teach him what it means!), I feel the indescribable joy that Pope Francis articulated when he said in his Angelus address (July 26, 2013) “How precious is the family as the privileged place for transmitting the faith!”
In addition to her vocation as a wife and mother, Katie continues to work part time for Catholics Come Home, disseminates resources for Catholic individuals and couples through CatholicKatie.com and writes for online Catholic publications. She also published her first, inspiring book, “Head & Heart: Becoming Spiritual Leaders for Your Family” (Emmaus Road Publishing), which has offered countless couples practical strategies for living out their faith more intentionally at home, together with their families. This portion on Katie Peterson Warner’s life will stop here, for now, but please reflect on this powerful image shared by Katie as we consider what God’s plan is in our own lives:
“I’ve heard that Saint Teresa of Calcutta once described herself as a little pencil in the hand of God. I love that image. We’re just instruments, tools that God uses to communicate Himself to others. I think that God has placed a call on my heart to communicate Him to others—at least in some small way—through writing and speaking. Others are called to write God’s love on hearts in other unique ways. But all of us are special in as much as we are one of His pencils.”
Four Ways to Ignite Our Catholic Faith
There are basic lessons woven into Katie’s story that are doable for everyone. Here are four of them:
- Live up to the expectations of your vocation. What are we called to do? What is God’s will for our lives? Katie experienced a call to evangelization after much prayer and time before the Blessed Sacrament at an early age. She later added that her most important vocation is as a Catholic wife and mother. We, also, can spend time in prayer exploring God’s plan for our lives and responding to His call. In this way we gain an opportunity to draw closer to Him and set our feet securely on our journey to heaven.
- Be a lifelong student of Catholicism. Katie has been studying our faith since she was very young and has never stopped. Do we take advantage of the great teachings of our church? Do we read Scripture, the “Catechism,” lives of the saints with lives of the Saints, writings of our popes and other great theologians? If we want to learn about our faith, we must be students of our faith. If we wish to share our faith with others, it must come from a place of deep understanding and love for what we have learned.
- Recognize the power of personal example. Are we pursuing lives of holiness? Do we chase what the world offers or are we focused on our heavenly home? As Katie pointed out, we have an enormous responsibility to model the Catholic faith for our children—they will practice their faith much the way we do. Be aware of opportunities to be the light of Christ and a joyful witness to your children as they become adults—as well as friends, loved ones and anyone else we encounter.
- Be a Catholic multitasker. We are not meant to use our jobs and busy family lives as the excuse for not going deeper in our faith. Work and family life provide unique opportunities for bringing our authentic Catholic selves into every area of our lives. When we set our priorities with God, all the aspects of our lives begin to revolve around that center.
Questions for Reflection:
◗ Do I have a better idea of how to stay focused on growing my Catholic faith after reading Katie’s story? What resonated best with me?
◗ Am I making excuses for how I live out my Catholic faith because of work, family or other areas of stress? How might I lead a more integrated Catholic life?
◗ Do I spend time talking to God and deepening my relationship with Him? Do I faithfully observe the sacraments? If not, what is getting in the way?
◗ Do I know what I am called by God to do? If not, am I just guessing or am I asking God in prayer for help and guidance?
Randy Hain is the president of Serviam Partners Consulting/Coaching. He is the senior editor for the Integrated Catholic Life™, which he cofounded with Deacon Mike Bickerstaff in 2010. Hain is a prolific writer and frequent presenter on a number of topics including faith, family, Catholic men’s issues, fatherhood, faith/work integration, careers, authenticity, leadership and human capital. His latest work is “Special Children, Blessed Fathers: Encouragement for Fathers of Children with Special Needs.” A convert to the Catholic Faith in 2006, Hain and his wife have been married for twenty years and have two teenage sons.
Latest Articles
Christmas comes with the reminder of getting gifts for everyone, but is it really the gift that matters? Browsing in a local Christian bookstore many years ago with my boyfriend at the time, our eyes landed on a particular picture at exactly the same moment. It was a large, colorful depiction of Jesus, entitled The Laughing Christ; with His head tossed back slightly, somewhat disheveled, dark brown hair framed crinkled eyes, twinkling with delight! It was perfectly enchanting! We found ourselves staring at the slightly crooked smile beneath the subject of the portrait's engaging gaze. Oh, so inviting! So accepting! So attractive! Glancing up from this likeness toward each other, we shared the excitement the other felt at discovering this unique presentation of the person we had each come to know and trust in the last few years. We were both raised with statues and pictures of Jesus in our respective homes, but He was always portrayed as serious, somehow detached from life as we knew it. While we believed the person represented in these images had truly lived on this earth and even prayed to Him when we needed something, our faith individually had recently become something very real...alive, even. This artist’s impression reflected who we both discovered the Lord to be in our lives—someone with whom we could share life, someone who loved us in ways we had never known before, someone who revealed Himself to us when we prayed. As a result, our understanding of God was transformed from merely an intellectual assent of His existence to a new experience of a living, communicative, and wonderful friend; our very best friend. Even as we left the store a little while later, our animated conversation about this portrayal continued. It captured each of our hearts, yet neither of us had made a move to purchase it. As soon as I got home, I knew I had to go back and buy this picture. A few days later, I did just that, then carefully wrapped it, and waited excitedly for Christmas to arrive. Gift of Honor The days passed till finally, it was Christmas Eve. With carols playing in the background, we sat on the floor near the small straggly artificial tree given to me by my mother. Handing my gift to my beloved, I waited expectantly to hear his appreciation as he spied the new wristwatch I had placed on the paw of the little stuffed dog who would cleverly deliver the timepiece. A mumbled “thanks” was all the response I got. No worries, that wasn't the gift that I knew would be perfect. But first, I was to open his gift to me. Reaching to accept it, I felt a bit puzzled. It was large, rectangular, and flat. As I began to open it, pulling the wrapping paper away from the present, I suddenly saw...my picture?! The same one I secretively purchased for him? Yes, that was it! The Laughing Christ. The picture I loved so much but instead of being thrilled, I felt disappointed. This was supposed to be his present. The one I knew was exactly what he wanted. I tried to hide my disappointment, leaning over to give him a kiss while expressing my appreciation. Then pulling out the present I had carefully wrapped and hidden behind the tree, I gave it to the object of my love. He opened it, ripping the paper quickly, revealing the contents of the package. His face looked happy...didn't it? Or was it a bit crestfallen like I had felt mine would have looked if I hadn't worked so hard to hide my disappointment from him when it had been my turn to open a gift? Oh, we both said the all right words, of course, yet somehow we sensed the gift we received from each other was not nearly as meaningful to us as we had hoped. It was the giving of that present that we both looked forward to with such anticipation. It reflected the Christ we’d both experienced and our desire was to share who we each had come to know. That was where the joy was found, not in having our own desires met, but in fulfilling the desires of the other. In time, my relationship with that young man ended. While it was painful, the joyful image of Jesus continued to hold a place of honor on my wall. Now, it is so much more than just a depiction, and so much more than just a man. It stays as a reminder of the One who would never leave me, the One with whom I would always be in a relationship, the One who would dry my tears many times through the years. But more than that, the One who is always such a source of delight in my life. After all, He was my life. Those crinkling eyes met mine. Then, that engaging smile invited me to pull the corners of my own mouth upward. And just like that, I was laughing alongside my Best Friend.
I didn’t know their language or their emotional pain...How could I connect with them? Thursday, February 22, 2024, is a day I will never forget. At 05:15 AM, along with several of my colleagues in Catholic Social Services, I awaited the arrival of 333 refugees from Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, and Uganda. Egyptian Airlines was entrusted with flying them from Entebbe, Uganda, to Cairo, Egypt, and finally to their Canadian entry point, Edmonton. Suddenly, the doors at the other end opened and the passengers started walking toward us. Not knowing how to speak their languages, I felt extremely vulnerable. How would I, as one so privileged to be born in Canada, one who has never spent a moment in a refugee camp, be able to greet these exhausted, hopeful, apprehensive sisters and brothers in a way that would say: “Welcome to your new home”...? I asked one of my colleagues who speaks five languages: “What can I say?” “Just say, Salam, that will be enough”. Suddenly, the doors at the other end opened and the passengers started walking toward us. Not knowing how to speak their languages, I felt extremely vulnerable. How would I, as one so privileged to be born in Canada, one who has never spent a moment in a refugee camp, be able to greet these exhausted, hopeful, apprehensive sisters and brothers in a way that would say: “Welcome to your new home”...? I asked one of my colleagues who speaks five languages: “What can I say?” “Just say, Salam, that will be enough”. Extending a Hand After everyone was lined up in the Customs Hall, our team went downstairs and began passing out bottles of water, granola bars, and oranges. I noticed one older Muslim woman, perhaps 50-55 years of age, bent over her trolley, trying to push it. I went and greeted her with ‘Salam’ and smiled. With gestures, I tried to ask if I could help push her trolley. She shook her head: “No.” Six hours later, outside the Customs Hall, people were sitting in different cordoned-off areas; only 85 would be remaining in Edmonton and were waiting for family or friends to meet them and take them home. Some would be boarding a bus to be taken to other cities or towns, and still others would be overnighting in a hotel and would fly to their final destination the next day. For those who were being bussed to other cities in Alberta, a four to seven-hour trip awaited them. The elderly Muslim woman I had seen in the Customs Hall, I discovered, was to fly to Calgary the next day. I looked at her and smiled, and her whole face was radiant. As I approached her, she said in faltering English: “You love me.” I took her hands in mine, looked into her eyes, and said: “Yes, I love you and God/Allah loves you.” The young woman next to her, whom I discovered was her daughter, said to me: “Thank you. Now my Mom is happy.” With tears in my eyes, a heart full of joy, and very tired feet, I left the Edmonton International Airport, profoundly grateful for one of the most beautiful experiences of my life. I may never encounter her again, but I know with absolute certainty that our God who is the embodiment of tender, compassionate love was made visible and tangible to me through my beautiful Muslim sister. In 2023, there were 36.4 million refugees seeking a new homeland and 110 million people displaced because of war, drought, climate change, and more. Day in and day out, we hear comments like: “Build walls,” “Close the borders,” and “They are stealing our jobs.” I hope that my story will, in some small way, help people understand the scene of Matthew 25 better. The righteous asked Jesus: “When Lord, God, did we do all these for you?” and He replied: “Whenever you did it to one of these little ones of Mine, you did it to Me.”
Crosses came in one after the other, but the Lord’s mercy never failed this family! I gave birth to my firstborn ten years ago, and we were overjoyed! I still remember the day; we were so glad to know that it was a baby girl. I couldn’t thank the Lord enough for His blessings upon my family. Like every mother, I dreamt of buying cute frocks, clips, and booties for my little doll. We named her ‘Athalie,’ meaning ‘God is exalted.’ We were praising God for His beautiful gift. Little did we know that our joy would soon be turned into a deep heartache or that our prayer of gratitude would soon be replaced with petitions for His mercy for our precious baby. At four months old, she became severely sick. With multiple seizure attacks, she would cry for hours and couldn’t sleep or feed well. After multiple tests, she was diagnosed with brain damage; she was also suffering from a rare kind of severe childhood epilepsy named ‘West Syndrome,’ which affects one in 4,000 children. Repeated Blows The diagnosis was too shocking and heartbreaking for us. I didn’t know how I could face the storm. I wanted my heart to be numb to the emotional pain I was going through. Many questions ran through my mind. This was just the beginning of a long and painful journey that I was never prepared to take. My baby girl continued to suffer from seizures for almost two and a half years. Doctors tried multiple medicines, painful daily injections, and numerous blood tests. She would cry for hours and all I could do was to ask for God to bestow His mercy on my child. I felt helpless for not being able to comfort her in any way. Life felt like a deep and dark pit of agony and despair. Her seizures eventually subsided, but she suffered global developmental delays. As her treatment was progressing, another shocking news rattled our family. Our son Asher, who was having speech delay and behavioral issues, was diagnosed with high-functioning autism at the age of three. We were on the verge of losing hope; life felt too overwhelming for us as new parents. No one could understand or feel the pain we were going through. We felt lonely and miserable. However, this period of loneliness and the painful days of motherhood brought me closer to God; His Word provided solace to my weary soul. His promises, which I was now reading with a deeper meaning and fuller understanding, encouraged me. Spirit-led Penmanship It was during this difficult season of my life that God enabled me to write faith-filled and encouraging blogs for people going through challenges and suffering similar to mine. My articles, birthed from my daily devotions, shared the challenges of special parenthood and included my life experiences and insights. God used my words to heal many aching souls. I am truly grateful to Him for turning my life into a useful vessel for His love. I would say that the despair of our daughter’s sickness solidified our family’s faith in God. As my husband and I ventured onto the unknown path of this unique parenthood journey, all that we had to cling to were the promises of God and the faith in our hearts that God will never leave nor forsake us. What once appeared like heaps of ashes began to turn into beauty of strength as God extended His grace, peace, and joy to us during the most heart-wrenching and dark season of our life. In the loneliest moments, spending time at His feet brought us renewed hope and the courage to move ahead. Answered Prayers After years of treatment and unending prayers, Athalie’s seizures are now controlled, but she continues to have a severe form of cerebral palsy. She can’t talk, walk, see, or sit by herself and is completely dependent on me. Having recently moved from India to Canada, our family is currently receiving the best treatment. A substantial improvement in her health is making our lives more colorful. Asher is out of the spectrum, and he has caught up completely on his speech. After many schools had initially rejected him because of his inattentiveness, I home-schooled him till grade five. Though he shows a few traits of ADHD, by God’s grace, he is now enrolled in grade six in a private Christian school. He is a book lover who shows a unique interest in the solar system. He loves learning about different countries, their flags, and maps. Though life is still filled with challenges, the love of God is what makes us parent our children with love, patience, and kindness. As we continue to embrace the hope we have in Jesus and travel through this unique path of special-needs-parenting, I believe that there are times when we have answers to our prayers right away, and our faith works and produces results. In those times, God’s strength and power are revealed in what He does for us—the sure answer to our prayers. On other occasions, His strength continues to shine through us, enabling us to endure our pain with courage, letting us experience His loving mercies in our difficulties, showing us His power in our weaknesses, teaching us to develop the ability and wisdom to take the right steps ahead, empowering us to tell stories of His strength, and encouraging us to witness His light and hope amidst our challenges.
John Taylor was in his mid-50s when he came home one day from a game of golf and shared with his wife a strange pain he had begun to experience in his hands. He was soon diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a rare form of cancer that would slowly reduce his athletic body to mere skin and bones in a span of just 20 years. As the illness grew in strength, part of his tongue was removed; he couldn’t speak or eat, so he was fed directly through a tube. Though I had trouble understanding what he was saying, I enjoyed his company very much. He had a great sense of humor, and Anne was a beautiful cook, so I ended up spending many evenings with the family. In 2011, at the height of his illness, John, who belonged to the Church of Wales, expressed his desire to become a Catholic like his wife Anne! On Christmas Eve, a Mass was held for him in their living room. At the time of Holy Communion, I poured a little jug of the Precious Blood through his tube directly into his stomach so that he could celebrate his First Holy Communion. It was one of the most extraordinary First Holy Communions I've ever seen and one of the most beautiful Christmas Eve of my life. The memory of that day and that blessed couple still reminds me of what I am doing as a priest—bringing the Incarnation and the Precious Blood of Christ to the world. During his last days, John bled profusely every morning, so Anne had to repeatedly change his bedclothes. It was extraordinary—while John’s state reminded me of the crucified Christ, Anne was configured to the Virgin Mary who stood by and took care of Him in His passion. We buried Anne last year, more than a decade after John’s passing. Jesus said the Saints would shine like stars in the Kingdom of God; now, with two more, the night sky is brighter.
Want to be in the loop?
Get the latest updates from Tidings!