December 22: Blessed Jacopone da Todi

Bl. Jacopone da Todi

History

Jacomo was a successful lawyer from a wealthy Italian family. He married a beautiful Christian lady named Vanna. When Vanna died in a tragic accident, Jacomo found out how much she had suffered because of his sinful ways. He changed his life immediately. He gave away everything he had and dressed in rags. People called him Jacopone, which means “Crazy Jim.” But he didn’t mind being teased or humiliated because he knew he was nothing without Jesus. When he wanted to join a religious community, he wrote a poem for Jesus that proved he wasn’t actually crazy. After that, he wrote many beautiful poems and hymns that we still use today. 

Activity

Blessed Jacopone wrote several different poems for Christmas. In fact, while he lay dying on Christmas Eve in the year 1306, he sang songs about Jesus. Here is one of his Christmas poems to read today:

The Beautiful Mother

"The beautiful Mother is bending
Low where her Baby lies
Helpless and frail, for her tending;
But she knows the glorious eyes.

"The Mother smiles and rejoices
While the Baby laughs in the hay;

She listens to heavenly voices:
   
'The child shall be King, one day.'

"O dear little Christ in the manger,
Let me make merry with Thee.

O King, in my hour of danger,
Wilt Thou be strong for me?"

Blessed Jacopone da Todi, pray for us!

More reading for parents:

Catholic Encyclopedia

SQPN

American Catholic

December 21: St. Peter Canisius

Bust of St. Peter Canisius
in Munich, Germany
Photo by Dominik Hundhammer

History

Peter Canisius was a great Jesuit priest and teacher. People listened to him and respected him because he was always so kind and loving. In the 1550, there was a terrible split in Christianity. Some people broke away from the Catholic Church and started their own churches, and they worked very hard to get other people to leave the Catholic Church, too. Sometimes they did this by making people confused about what the Catholic Church taught. The Church needed a way to help people understand the Catholic faith better, so they wouldn’t get confused. So, Peter helped write the first Catechism of the Catholic Church – a book that explained our beliefs clearly, with Bible verses to support it. It was a huge success, so he wrote two more shorter Catechisms, one for young teenagers (we would call them “tweens” today) to help them develop virtues, and one for small children to help them learn how to pray.

Activity

Since St. Peter Canisius died, the Catechism of the Catholic Church has been updated several times. Today, there is even a free online version of the Catechism in several different languages. There is also the Compendium to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which is set up as a question-and-answer book with easier language. This is especially helpful for families. And for teens, the YouCat is written to tackle the issues they are most concerned about. Today, look up a question in the Compendium (in your own copy or online) and read the answer out loud as a family. (Consider buying copies of the YouCat or the Compendium or the Catechism as Christmas gifts this year, too!)

St. Peter Canisius, pray for us!

More reading for parents: 

American Catholic

EWTN

Catholic Online

December 20: St. Dominic of Silos

St. Dominic of Silos
by Bartolomé Bermejo

History

Dominic was born in Spain. He became a Benedictine monk, later leading his community as abbot. A king tried to get Dominic to hand over some of the Benedictine property, but Dominic refused. So the king exiled him to a different kingdom, where Dominic became abbot of another community. There, he started a famous scriptorium – a special room for copying out the Bible. 

Activity

When Dominic was alive, the printing press had not been invented yet. That meant that the only way to make copies of the Bible was to write it out carefully by hand. Each page was checked over and if there was even one mistake, the whole page would be burned. This is how the Church made sure that every Bible was accurate. Today, choose a story in the Bible (or just a verse for little ones) and copy it out by hand in your very best handwriting. Imagine how long it would take to copy out the whole Bible! 

Saint Dominic of Silos, pray for us!

More reading for parents:

American Catholic

Catholic News Agency

Catholic Online

December 19: Blessed Pope Urban V

Pope Urban V
by Henri Segur

History

When Guillaume de Grimoard of France was elected pope, he chose the name Urban V because the four Urbans before him had all become saints, and he wanted to be a saint more than anything. Urban V resided in Avignon, France, instead of in Rome, because he was trying to bring peace to the area. He had many little wars to deal with and more tyrants (bad kings) than good leaders to work with. When he finally went back to Italy, things were so bad in Rome, he had to have an army and several princes in order to get to the basilica. He spent the rest of his life trying to bring wars to an end. 

Activity

You may not realize it, but even today, there are wars going on in different parts of the world. Today, pray that people will work for peace, and pray that God will bless our current holy father, Pope Francis, as he tries to convince people to live together peacefully instead of fighting. 

Blessed Urban V, pray for us!

More reading for parents:

Catholic Encyclopedia

American Catholic

Catholic Online

December 18: Saints Rufus and Zosimus

"Triumph of Faith" (Detail)
by Eugene Romain Thirion

History

Rufus and Zosimus were two of the earliest Christians, and they loved to tell people about Jesus. They lived in either Antioch or Philippi (nobody knows for sure) and were with Saint Ignatius when all three were arrested for being Christians. Rufus and Zosimus were taken to the Coliseum first, where they were thrown to hungry wild beasts and killed.

Activity

In most of the world today, Christianity is legal, so we don’t have to worry about being arrested and fed to wild animals. It’s exactly opposite of what things were like when Rufus and Zosimus were alive. So instead of being eaten by wild beasts, get yourself some animal crackers so you can eat the lions and tigers.

Saints Rufus and Zosimus, pray for us!

More reading for parents:

Catholic.Net 

Catholic Online

December 17: Saint Olympias

Statue of Saint Olympias
at St. Peter Square, Vatican City
Photo by Alfvan Beem

History

Olympias came from a rich family and married a rich man. When her husband died, many other men wanted to marry her, but she turned them all down. Instead, she and some other ladies started a religious community. Olympias had a lot of money to give to the poor. In fact, she gave so much money away, her friend Saint John Chrysostom told her she might want to slow down a little. She built a hospital and an orphanage and provided shelter for some monks who were kicked out of their country.

Activity

There’s an old saying, “No matter how much you give, you can’t out-give God.” Saint Olympias knew this, and we should know it, too. How much can you give today? If you don’t have money, think about giving away something you own to somebody who needs it.

Saint Olympias, pray for us!

More reading for parents:

Catholic Encyclopedia

EWTN

Catholic Online

SPECIAL NOTE: Today is the birthday of our Holy Father, Pope Francis! You can wish him a happy birthday via Twitter (@Pontifex). You can also honor his request that we all work together to end world hunger by making a donation to a local food bank or soup kitchen in Pope Francis' name, or by contributing to an on-line effort to buy food for hungry children over seas at Catholic Team Global.

December 16: Saint Ado of Vienne

St. Ado

History

Though he was born into a wealthy family, Ado left it all behind to become a Benedictine monk. He was very holy, which made other people so jealous, he had to leave town. He went to Rome on pilgrimage, but ended up staying for two years. Then he traveled more than 200 miles away to Ravenna. He found an old copy of the Roman Martyrology, a book that honors the people who died because of their faith in Jesus. Ado updated this book so more people could be inspired.

Activity

As part of your family prayers, read today’s entry in the Roman Martyrology. This is not the same one that Saint Ado wrote – it’s been updated since his ninth century version. 

Saint Ado, pray for us!

More reading for parents:

Catholic Encyclopedia

Catholic Online