Saints and Angels Protect Us!
This Thursday, Sep. 24, is the day of the long-awaited beatification of Archbishop Fulton Sheen. Tens of thousands of American Catholics will gather for a special Mass at a football stadium in
St. Louis, Missouri, where Archbishop Fulton Sheen will be declared a Blessed among the saints in heaven. A miracle occurred in 2010, which was approved by the Vatican and opened the way for his beatification. If a second miracle is approved, he could then be canonized as a saint.
The miracle which led to his beatification occurred at a hospital less than a mile away from the church, where Fulton Sheen served as an altar boy and where his remains are now interred: the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria, Illinois. On September 16, 2010, Bonnie Engstrom went into labor at home and had a stillborn baby. Her husband rushed them to the hospital. Their family and friends “immediately began offering prayers, begging Bishop Fulton Sheen to intercede for their newborn child. . . . Despite receiving the most advanced medical treatment available, the infant continued to show no signs of life.” Then, 61 minutes after the baby had been stillborn, “suddenly and without any medical explanation, the infant’s heart began to beat normally, and the baby breathed normally.” Doctors warned the parents that the child would nevertheless suffer disabilities, but the child was completely healed and given the name “James Fulton.” His mother, Bonnie, wrote a book about the experience entitled,
“61 Minutes to a Miracle.”
In the 1950’s, Bishop Sheen helped many Americans understand the meaning of life. His weekly television show, “Life is Worth Living”, was watched by 30 million Americans, most of whom were non-Catholic. At that time television was a recent invention that was just becoming available in most American families in most American homes. It would be impossible for anyone to reach such a wide audience now that there are so many channels and diverse forms of media. God sent this inspiring, saintly man at just the right time to renew our Catholic faith and to strengthen us against the evils which would later be broadcast in the media.
To protect us against evil, God also sends us saints, and also angels. He defends us in battle against the snares of the Devil by sending St. Michael the Archangel. He is the powerful "Prince of the Heavenly Hosts” who casts out the evil spirits who prowl about the world. He’s got our back.
Many parishes have returned to the custom of praying the St. Michael Prayer at the end of Mass, and our bishop, Myron Cotta, has encouraged this practice. We have a beautiful statue of St. Michael the Archangel in our church, which was purchased for us by Fr. Joe Maghinay. As the crowning touch on our renovation project, we will install that statue in a niche high above the church entrance so that he can watch over us from above!
Today is the first day of a novena to
St. Michael, which will conclude on the Feast of St. Michael, Sep. 29. I invite everyone to take a copy of the novena prayers, which are available at the doors of the church (and on our parish website).
