Regnum Christi

I consider St Therese of Lisieux a special spiritual sister. Her childlike relationship with Jesus has taught me the beauty of a life lived with simple love, and this has changed everything for me. I wanted to show her some brotherly devotion by attending the canonization Mass of her parents held in Rome this October 18^th. As providence would have it, not only would I be participating from the plaza of St Peter’s, but I would help distribute Communion along with a large number of my Legionary brothers. That meant I got a special blue ticket that could get me just about anywhere, or so they told me. Continue reading →

Christ not only offered himself on the cross for our sins, but He offered his whole life for us. Christ invites us to offer ourselves for others. This is how we can imitate Him and the best way to bring God’s grace to others. At times, service can get hard especially when others don’t seem to notice or help us in what we do. No matter how much we love them it can get tiring and we can feel alone. This is when it counts. Christ never stopped serving. He never measured how much He did for someone and neither should we. When it is hard to keep going, we need to turn to Him and know that He will be with us as we continue to help. I like to see it as doing what Christ would do if He were here, but since He isn’t, He needs us to do the good that He would want to have done. He will never leave us if we do his work. We need to take the time to turn to Him and see how He helped us so that we can do the same with those around us; because the best service doesn’t always mean to do things for them, but to be there for them.

The Eucharist is at the heart of our Catholic faith. That means it should also be at the heart of our lives. In the seminary we try to make this a reality in a very tangible way. There are small chapels on every floor. That means you are never more than down the hall from his presence in the Blessed Sacrament. What a blessing to be able to walk past and just drop in to say hello to the King of Kings. It’s so real and personal. Yet how humble God is to come down to dwell with us in our simple oratories: small, quiet, simple. Continue reading →

“We are called to know and show that God is able to fill our hearts to the brim with happiness; that we need not seek our happiness elsewhere…”

(Apostolic Letter of Pope Francis to all Consecrated People on the Occasion of the Year of Consecrated Life, November 21, 2014)

This past weekend, we attended the Encounter for the Year of Consecrated Life for the Madrid diocese. Saturday started with a conference of several speakers, followed by a concert and testimonies. On Sunday there was an overflowing Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Almudena. Continue reading →

Last night, I turned left from North Avenue onto Wolf Road in Northlake, Illinois.  Absent delays, my wife and I would be on time for the 7 p.m. Mass at St John Vianney Church.

It was at that moment that the unexpected loomed before me.  Police cruisers guarded the driveways to the church parking lot.  A pair of burly cops prevented people from entering the church.  Lights flashed from squad cars and fire vehicles.  A line of people stretched for several blocks.

The authorities seemed to have blocked all access to my place of worship.

But I was thrilled. A miracle! Continue reading →

Wisdom in the writings of the early Church is explained as being Christ. Therefore, when we read the first reading about the fruit of our prayer being wisdom, we can place Christ in its place. He is what we are all looking for. How different are our lives when we see everything in His light. When we open ourselves up to being touched by Him. It is amazing being Christ´s disciple! There is nothing else that can compare to having Him!  When we are filled with his love and open to letting Him direct our lives everything seems to fall right in place. It stops being about selling everything and questioning what we have to give up, but rather about responding to the opportunities to love God. No measurements, but rather having the freedom to give our hearts completely to Him.

The Courage of a Mother (2 Macc. 7:20-42)

What is courage? Etymologically it comes from Cor (Latin) Corage (French) Cardiac (Greek) =Heart. Instinctively we know that courage is worthy of praise and admiration. On the morning of 25 October 1415, shortly before the Battle of Agincourt, Henry V made a brief speech to the English army under his command and hence coined the St. Crispian’s Speech found in Shakespeare’s work, Henry V. His words in the play stoke the heart with power:

This day is called the feast of Crispian:

He that outlives this day, and comes safe home,

Will stand a tip-toe when the day is named,

And rouse him at the name of Crispian.

He that shall live this day, and see old age,

Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours,

And say ‘To-morrow is Saint Crispian:’

Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars.

And say ‘These wounds I had on Crispin’s day.’ Continue reading →

The past week we have had the opportunity to delve more deeply into the Heart of Christ our King and Spouse through a course on the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Cecilia Castañera, one of the consecrated women who were part of the team who drafted and wrote our Statutes, led us in a prayerful reflection on our vows according to our charism. Continue reading →

1. SURVIVING.
2. Listening to the people in just one of my classes introduce themselves as seminarians from 4 or 5 different seminaries, religious sisters from 2 or 3 different orders, moms and dads of families, members of other associations — and getting to introduce myself as a consecrated woman of Regnum Christi.
3. Adding more countries to my international experience: Spain, Italy, India, Honduras, Portugal, and Africa, to name a few.
4. Realizing that my classes at Mater Ecclesiae College prepared me very well for these classes in regards to material, critical thinking, and study skills. Also, reaping the benefits of so many transferred credits – having a very manageable schedule with plenty of time to keep up with studying in Spanish. Thank you, MEC!
5. Experiencing a prime moment of community life during our commute–both during the 45 minutes we spend in the car round-trip…and during the plentiful discussions about organizing around different class schedules.
6. Getting to sit in traffic for an hour in the middle of downtown Madrid, while the lady behind us decided to use her horn for a full five minutes of a red light. Oh wait, this is highlights…nevermind.
7. Getting called by my middle name instead of my first name during a roll call…guess they’re not used to middle names here…
8. Walking into class one day and seeing a group of 50 or more minor seminarians playing on the basketball and soccer courts.
9. The material in my classes (so far, anyway): Intro to Christianity, Intro to Scripture, Phenomenology, and History of the Church.
10. Today being Friday afternoon of a 4-day weekend. Viva Our Lady of Pilar and a class-free schedule on Tuesdays.

The burly workers crept onto the lawn of the government building under cover of darkness.  Guarded by more than two dozen state police, they removed a stone slab engraved with the Ten Commandments.

They moved as quickly and quietly as possible.  They were empowered by a court order, but their actions countered the will of the God-fearing, God-loving population.  The predominantly Christian populace saw this as further erosion of religious freedom, more evident of a government that had come to mock faith, family and all that Christians hold dear.

Is this Germany during Hitler’s rise?  Is it the Soviet Union under Stalin?  Are we in China under Mao? Continue reading →