Friday, April 17, 2015

April 17: St. Stephen Harding

History

Born in England, Stephen joined an abbey at a young age, but he later decided to travel around to learn from the smartest men in England, Scotland, Paris and Rome. He eventually became the abbot of a Cistercian monastery in France that was not doing well. After Saint Bernard of Clairvaux joined them with 30 other men, the monastery grew so fast, a dozen new houses were built in only 7 years. Because Stephen was very good at organizing things, he started new systems and wrote the Cistercian's "Charter of Charity." 

Activity

Just like a monastery, families need order and rules to live by so that everything runs smoothly. Today, tackle something that needs to be organized, asking for Saint Stephen Harding's prayers to support you. It might be a closet or a garage - or it might be your family's daily prayer times. 

Saint Stephen Harding, pray for us! 

More reading for parents:

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