Venerable Edward J. Flanagan, a Father to Forgotten Children

 

Venerable Edward J. Flanagan

Edward Joseph Flanagan was born on July 13, 1886, in County Roscommon, Ireland. The eighth of eleven children, he grew up in a farming family whose daily life included hard work and prayer. He emigrated to the United States in 1904 and pursued the priesthood despite recurring illness. On July 26, 1912, he was ordained in Innsbruck, Austria, before returning to serve in Nebraska.

In Omaha, Father Flanagan ministered to people suffering from poverty and homelessness. He provided food and shelter for men without work. Listening to their stories, he became increasingly concerned about the childhood neglect and family hardships that had shaped their lives. He began looking for ways to give vulnerable children a better beginning.

On December 12, 1917, with his bishop’s permission, he opened a home in Omaha with five boys. The work grew rapidly. In 1921, he purchased Overlook Farm, where the community that became Boys Town could expand. The boys received a home, schooling, and opportunities to develop responsibility.

Father Flanagan became known for his conviction that “there’s no such thing as a bad boy.” He believed children deserved protection, guidance, and a chance to flourish. He challenged institutions that treated young people as prisoners and worked to replace harsh treatment with attentive care. His approach gained national attention through the 1938 film Boys Town.

Prayer sustained his demanding ministry. He prayed the Rosary daily and maintained a particular devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. After the Second World War, his concern for children took him abroad to advise on their care. While working in Germany, he suffered a heart attack and died in Berlin on May 15, 1948, aged sixty-one.

On March 23, 2026, Pope Leo XIV recognized Father Flanagan’s heroic virtues, granting him the title Venerable. His life remains a witness to Christian charity expressed through patient, practical care for children who need someone to believe in them.

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Jan III Sobieski, Defender of the Faith

 

Jan III Sobieski

Jan Sobieski was born on August 17, 1629, at Olesko, in the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth. Raised in a noble family with a strong military tradition, he received a broad education and traveled abroad before beginning the career that would make him one of Poland’s most celebrated commanders.

In 1673, Sobieski defeated an Ottoman army at Khotyn. The victory strengthened his reputation, and the following year he was elected king of Poland and grand duke of Lithuania. His reign brought the demanding responsibilities of defending the Commonwealth and navigating its divided political life.

His most famous undertaking came in 1683. An Ottoman army under Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa besieged Vienna, placing the city in grave danger. Following an alliance with Emperor Leopold I, Sobieski marched to its relief with Polish troops. He assumed command of the combined Polish, Habsburg, and German forces assembled to rescue the city.

On September 12, the allied army defeated the besiegers and lifted the siege. Sobieski’s leadership won international renown. The victory held profound religious significance for Christians who understood their struggle as a defense of their countries and faith. Pope Innocent XI had supported the alliance through diplomacy, financial assistance, and appeals for prayer.

The triumph became associated with the words Venimus, vidimus, Deus vicit, meaning “We came, we saw, God conquered.” Traditionally attributed to Sobieski’s message to the pope, they expressed thanksgiving to God for the deliverance of Vienna.

Beyond warfare, Sobieski supported scholarship, art, and agriculture. His palace at Wilanów reflected these interests and his family life with Queen Maria Kazimiera. His later years brought political opposition, military disappointments, and declining health. He died at Wilanów on June 17, 1696, leaving an enduring place in European history as the king who helped deliver Vienna.

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Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, the Messenger of the Sacred Heart

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque

 Margaret Mary Alacoque was born on July 22, 1647, near Verosvres in Burgundy, France. Her childhood included both religious devotion and considerable suffering. Her father died when she was eight, and a serious illness later confined her to bed for several years. During these difficulties, she found consolation in prayer. She understood her recovery as a grace associated with a promise to the Blessed Virgin Mary that she would enter religious life.

In 1671, Margaret Mary entered the Visitation monastery at Paray-le-Monial. She made her religious profession on November 6, 1672. Her vocation took shape through community prayer, obedience, and ordinary work. While preparing for profession, she continued her assigned task of watching the monastery’s donkey and its young animal so that they would not damage the garden. The woman later remembered for extraordinary mystical experiences also lived the practical responsibilities of a cloistered sister.

Between December 1673 and June 1675, Margaret Mary reported a series of apparitions in which Jesus revealed his Sacred Heart. She described an overwhelming encounter with his love and his desire that people respond to it. The message included sorrow over human ingratitude and indifference. In words preserved from her account, Christ declared, “This is the heart that so loved human beings.” Her mission became closely associated with making that love better known.

According to her accounts, Jesus asked for particular expressions of devotion, including Holy Communion on the first Friday of each month and an hour of prayer on Thursday night in remembrance of his agony in Gethsemane. He also requested a feast honoring his Sacred Heart. These practices joined gratitude for Christ’s love with reparation for sin. They invited Catholics to respond through prayer, sacramental life, and a more faithful love of the Savior present in the Eucharist.

Her experiences initially met with doubts, and she needed guidance in discerning them. An important source of support arrived in 1675 with the Jesuit priest Claude de la Colombière, himself later canonized. He listened to her, examined her spiritual life, and supported the authenticity of her experiences. His counsel encouraged trust in Christ while keeping her rooted in humility and religious obedience. He also helped communicate the devotion beyond the monastery, giving assistance she could not have provided alone.

Margaret Mary continued living within her community as acceptance of the devotion gradually grew. In 1684, she became novice mistress, helping form younger sisters in religious life. At Father Ignace Rolin’s request, she wrote her autobiography in 1686. Her writings preserved the experiences and convictions that had shaped her vocation. Through teaching and correspondence, she encouraged others to give themselves to Christ and to answer his love with the offering of their own lives.

She died at Paray-le-Monial on October 17, 1690, aged forty three. Pope Pius IX beatified her in 1864, and Pope Benedict XV canonized her on May 13, 1920. Her feast is celebrated on October 16. Devotion to the Heart of Jesus had roots long before her lifetime, but her witness helped it spread throughout the world. Saint Margaret Mary’s enduring invitation is to contemplate the love of Christ, trust his mercy, and respond with a heart increasingly given to him.

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Saint Gerard Majella, a Brother Devoted to God

Saint Gerard Majella

Gerard Majella was born on April 6, 1726, in Muro Lucano, southern Italy, into a poor Catholic family. His father, a tailor, died when Gerard was twelve. Gerard learned the same trade and later worked as a servant for the Bishop of Lacedonia. These difficult years helped form his patience and determination to serve God.

Returning home, Gerard worked as a tailor and shared his earnings with his family and the poor. He longed to enter religious life, but his frail health proved an obstacle. In 1749, after hearing Redemptorist missionaries preach in Muro, he persistently sought admission to their congregation and was finally accepted.

Gerard professed his vows as a Redemptorist brother on July 16, 1752. He served his community through ordinary work, including tailoring, gardening, cooking, and caring for the sacristy. His devotion centered on Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and the Blessed Virgin Mary. Whatever task he received, his guiding desire was to fulfill God’s will.

In 1754, a false accusation against his chastity brought a painful trial. Gerard remained silent when questioned, and restrictions were imposed on him, including being denied Holy Communion. The woman responsible later admitted that her accusation was fabricated. Gerard’s innocence was established, and his life continued in faithful service.

His health deteriorated, and he died of tuberculosis at Materdomini, near Caposele, on October 16, 1755. He was twenty-nine. Pope Leo XIII beatified him in 1893, and Pope Saint Pius X canonized him on December 11, 1904. His feast is October 16.

Accounts of help received through Gerard’s prayers fostered particular devotion among mothers. He remains especially beloved as a patron of expectant mothers and childbirth. His short life offers an enduring example of generosity, patient faith, and holiness cultivated through daily duties.

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Saint Teresa of Ávila, a Life of Friendship with God

Saint Teresa of Ávila

Teresa was born in Ávila, Spain, on March 28, 1515. From childhood, stories of the saints stirred her desire for heaven. After her mother’s death, she turned to the Blessed Virgin Mary for motherly protection. At twenty, she entered the Carmelite Monastery of the Incarnation in her hometown, becoming Teresa of Jesus.

Religious life brought both joy and struggle. Teresa suffered serious illness and wrestled with distractions that divided her attention between God and worldly attachments. In 1554, an image of the wounded Christ moved her deeply and marked a decisive renewal of her commitment. In her writings, she described prayer as a friendship with God, cultivated through time spent with the One who loves us.

As her prayer deepened, Teresa sought to establish communities where the sisters could live with greater simplicity, poverty, and recollection. In 1562, she founded the Convent of Saint Joseph in Ávila. Despite opposition and persistent illness, she continued founding monasteries throughout Spain. With Saint John of the Cross, she also helped establish the reformed Carmelite life among the friars. Her work became the foundation of the Discalced Carmelite Order.

Amid these demanding responsibilities, Teresa wrote works that would guide generations in prayer. In The Way of Perfection, she instructed her sisters in humility, charity, and devotion. In The Interior Castle, she pictured the soul as a castle through whose dwelling places it journeys toward deeper union with God. Her teaching joined contemplation with love for the Church and practical concern for others.

Teresa died in Alba de Tormes in October 1582. Pope Gregory XV canonized her in 1622. On September 27, 1970, Pope Paul VI proclaimed her the first woman Doctor of the Church. Her feast is celebrated on October 15. Through her foundations and writings, Teresa continues to invite Christians to persevere in prayer and entrust their lives to God.

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Servant of God Michelle Duppong, a Missionary of Joy

Servant of God Michelle Duppong

Michelle Christine Duppong was born in 1984 and grew up on her family’s farm in Haymarsh, North Dakota. The fourth of six children, she helped with gardening, harvesting, and caring for sheep. Family life joined hard work with Catholic faith, preparing her for a vocation that would lead her to share the Gospel with others.

At North Dakota State University, Michelle studied horticulture and encountered the Fellowship of Catholic University Students, known as FOCUS. After graduating in 2006, she became a FOCUS missionary. For six years, she accompanied college students as they grew in faith, serving on four campuses, including the University of Mary. Those who knew her remembered her joy, generosity, and desire to help others develop a friendship with Jesus.

In 2012, Michelle became Director of Adult Faith Formation for the Diocese of Bismarck. She brought her missionary spirit to this work, helping organize opportunities for people to encounter Christ, including the diocese’s first Thirst Conference. Her mission now reached beyond college campuses into the wider Church.

On December 29, 2014, surgery revealed advanced cancer. The following year brought treatments, hospital stays, and severe pain. Michelle continued to pray for healing while entrusting herself to God. According to her family, she offered her suffering for others and remained attentive to the troubles of people around her, including hospital staff. Even during illness, her concern for souls continued.

Michelle died at home on Christmas Day, 2015, aged thirty-one. Her family gathered around her, singing, praying, and expressing their love.

On November 1, 2022, Bishop David Kagan formally opened her cause for beatification and canonization. She is known as Servant of God Michelle Duppong. Her life remains a witness to joyful discipleship and to the possibility of continuing to love and serve others through suffering.

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Blessed Gerard Sasso, Servant of the Sick

Blessed Gerard Sasso

In the eleventh century, pilgrims traveled great distances to reach Jerusalem. Their journeys could leave them exhausted, sick, and without resources. At a hospital established by merchants from Amalfi, Gerard devoted his life to welcoming them and caring for their needs. Many historians place his birth around 1040 in Scala, near Amalfi, although details of his early life remain uncertain.

Gerard became the hospital’s superior. His responsibilities included receiving travelers, organizing supplies, providing food, and arranging spiritual care. Together with his confreres, he served the poor and sick. Their work offered assistance to people of different backgrounds and faiths, making Christian charity visible through practical acts of mercy.

During the Crusader siege and conquest of Jerusalem in 1099, Gerard was in the city. Afterward, he cared for the wounded, sick, and dying. Others joined this service, and the community grew. Gerard taught that the sick and poor should be treated as their lords, deserving the devotion and reverence that servants owed their masters.

On February 15, 1113, Pope Paschal II formally recognized Gerard’s community through the papal bull Pie postulatio voluntatis. The Hospitallers of Saint John of Jerusalem received papal protection and the right to elect their own superiors. Their charitable work had already extended beyond Jerusalem to hospitals and hospices in Italy and France. This community would become the Order of Malta.

Gerard died in Jerusalem on September 3, 1120. His example helped shape the rule later written under his successor, Raymond du Puy. Venerated by the Church as Blessed Gerard, he is celebrated on October 13. His enduring legacy is a vocation to serve Christ through attentive care for the poor and sick.

For a devotional image of St. Gerard, click here: Maryvale Catholic Press