Sunday we celebrate the feast day of St. Anthony of Padua. He is very special to me and I have felt his presence in my life for a long time. Did you know that he is regarded as the quickest person to be named a saint? Pope Gregory IX named him a saint less than a year after his death in 1231. Also, it is reported that when he died, the bells of the churches in Padua rang of their own accord. Many people said that the angels rang the bells to welcome Anthony to Heaven. St. Anthony has been a good prayer partner for me over the years and I continue to call on my friend to join me in prayer for various issues and conflicts. I encourage you to connect with one of the saints and build a relationship. Discover why they were selected to become a saint and ask them to pray for you and your needs. You may find the same comfort I do with St. Anthony, as I know he is always at my side. I just discovered that the Catholic Student Center at Lamar University is adding a new chapel to their on-campus facility. Apparently the Diocese of Beaumont made it a priority and raised the money to enhance the experience for the Catholic students. What a fantastic decision and commitment. I am praying that God bless this ministry and that hundreds of students discover the joy of living in communion with Jesus Christ everyday. As St. Paul writes in Philemon 1:20, "Refresh my heart in Christ."
The twelve apostles chosen by Jesus formed the bedrock of the early Church , and their Catholic identity is deeply rooted in their direct relationship with Christ and the mission He entrusted to them. The Catechism of the Catholic Church highlights this foundational role, stating that Jesus "instituted the Twelve as 'the seeds of the new Israel and the beginning of the sacred hierarchy'" ( CCC 860 ). These men were not simply followers; they were handpicked by Jesus, lived intimately with Him, witnessed His miracles and teachings firsthand, and were specifically commissioned to preach the Gospel to all nations ( Matthew 28:19-20 ). Their unique position as eyewitnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, and their reception of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, established them as the authoritative leaders of the nascent Church, a reality echoed in the writings of early Church Fathers like Ignatius of Antioch, who emphasized the apostles' authority as repre...
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