I decided to start my year of journeying with the Saints with Saint Francis of Assisi. When I started studying Catholicism in 2018, references to St. Francis came up often. As a dog mom and an animal lover, I was intrigued by his connection to animals. I had heard stories of him communicating with animals and being connected to God through nature. Many Catholic parishes hold an annual pet blessing in October in honor of St. Francis’s feast day. I was so thankful to bring my sweet dog, Wylie, to receive a pet blessing in October 2019, just before he died. Utilizing resources like Formed (basically Catholic Netflix!) and a book that came highly recommended, The Journey and the Dream, I spent January getting to know Saint Francis better, and I’m excited to share him with all of you.
Tag: 2022
Our Mother of Perpetual Help
January always feels like an extra long month to me. Maybe it’s because the holidays seem to rush by in a blur. Then once things slow down, they seem to really slow down. January in Western New York has been cold and snowy, with winter finally arriving. But sub-zero temperatures have never stopped anyone in Buffalo from enjoying life.
I’ve been enjoying my 2022 adventures with the Saints and the Blessed Mother and visited my first church of the year dedicated to the Blessed Mother. For January, I’ll be sharing about the Blessed Mother under the title Our Mother of Perpetual Help, also called Our Lady of Perpetual Help.
Before I get into specific titles, I’d like to address the two most common references to Mary, the Mother of Jesus Christ. When Catholics refer to Mary, we typically call her either the Blessed Mother or Our Lady. But why do we do that? Why not just call her Mary?
Catching Up
To say that this post is overdue is quite an understatement. So many times I meant to sit down and type out an update on my 2021 reading goals and progress, to mention new books I’d read, to share my spiritual journey. But life got busy and I began opting for self-care like naps, workouts, and attending daily Mass instead of blogging. I did share many of my adventures from 2021 on my social media pages, so if we’re connected there you’re in the loop on what I’ve been up to. My biggest accomplishments of 2021 were meeting my goals of reading the entire Bible and still accomplishing my Goodreads goal for the year! That’s a whole lotta reading, and I’m so thankful I was able to complete both goals.
Kait's Bookshelf