I’m writing more children’s content about Saints this fall!
When we converted to Catholicism seven years ago, I was skeptical about the Saints: “Who are all of these extra people?” Four years later, I was contracted to write a middle-grade (ages 8-12)1 devotional about Catholic Saints for a non-Catholic publishing company (it’s a strange but true story!). Writing that devotional was a crash course in “these extra people”—I realized that there was nothing “extra” about them.
That first Saint project was published in 2021. I’m excited to be writing about Saints again, and I can’t wait to share two projects with you—one project soon, the other project… not so soon. In the meantime, I’ll be poring over Saint biographies and writing first drafts I don’t like. I deeply appreciate any prayers for this phase of the writing process. Tendrils of this reading and writing will show up in Still Today. I’ll keep posting about family life, but I will also include “Saturday Saints.” Out of respect for Mariah’s sanity, I will not attribute quotes to Saints unless I read those quotes in a respectable, hard-copy book (or a scanned copy of a respectable book on the Internet Archive). “Will these intersect with the Saints’ actual feast days?” I hear the Catholic people wonder—ha. Hardly ever.
No matter what your faith background looks like, you’re invited along for this ride. The Saints show us what it means to be truly human, and their stories are for everyone.
Fall Teasers
But, today, before I get to our Saturday Saint, here’s what I’m writing about this Fall. Maybe you’ve realized by now that these teasers I post a few times a year are mostly for me to be held accountable to something, but I hope they pique some interest.
Eyes of Your Heart: Thoughts on Money—in which the author finally completes an essay based on a piece of junk mail and a friend’s really good observation.
Dr. Jesus, DDS—in which the author tests the bounds of the writing device known as the “analogy.”
Cheatcode Housekeeping—in which the author makes you feel a lot better about how often you clean your house (more than she does).
On the Efficacy of Short Prayers—in which the author explores the results of ineloquent prayers.
Spooky vs. Creepy: A Treatise on Halloween—in which the author writes about Zombie babies and explains what a “catafalque” is.
I’m always open to suggestions for topics—you can hit “reply” to this email. I’d love to hear from you!
Saturday Saint
Saint Francesca Xavier Cabrini
(Thanks for tuning in to the first ever Saturday Saint—this was longer than I meant for it to be, but here we are.)
On Sunday, April 20th, 1890, Mother Francesca Cabrini was sailing to New York City for the second time, bringing more missionary nuns with her to minister to the impoverished Italian community—Italians who, in addition to facing all of the difficulties of establishing themselves far from home, were often rejected by the already-existing Catholic parishes.
Here’s a piece of her letter to the nuns who remained in Italy: “God commands, the sea obeys. If also in Religion every Sister would obey her Superior, with perfect submission that is, without relying on her own judgment, what calmness, what tranquility, what a sweetness of Paradise would be hers!”
Mother Cabrini wasn’t feeding the nuns reasons to obey their Superior (who was, after all, her). She believed in “perfect submission” and lived it out. As a very young nun, Francesca lived for years in a small Italian convent under the rule of a horrible Superior—a woman who had been made to take vows because the bishop wanted her “out of the way” of the affairs of the town. Unsurprisingly, this did not work. The night before her final profession, Francesca met with the priest attempting to direct the convent. He said to her: “You know that woman is insane. Yet you are about to promise her obedience. What will you do if she orders you to throw yourself down the well?”
Francesca’s answer: “She is my superior and I will obey her.”
The next day, the priest installed Francesca as the Superior immediately after she took her final vows, rendering the other woman powerless (and furious).
Francesca proved to be an excellent leader who saw no contradiction between strength and submission: “My daughters--nothing is ever to daunt you. You are to press on, not of yourselves, but under obedience. I have already learned that whenever I failed in any undertaking it was because I trusted too much in my own powers. None of us will fail if we leave everything in the hands of God. Under Him the question of possible and impossible ceases to have any meaning.”
She never asked the other nuns to do anything that she wouldn’t have done herself, whether it was sweeping the drawing room or crossing the ocean. For this, their devotion to her was absolute. Her leadership style reminded me of another historical figure with global aspirations and a band of loyal followers: Alexander the Great, Macedonian King and conqueror of the known world (c. B.C. 300). During campaigns, Alexander slept on a cot, ate the same food as the men, and joined them in manual labor. At the Battle of Gaugamela (the battle for the Babylonian Empire), Alexander rode against King Darius III with one-twentieth the numbers. Darius was in a golden chariot, hidden behind one million soldiers. Alexander rode at the head of his cavalry charge.
Mother Cabrini led her missionary Sisters in the same way, always at the front, across the Atlantic Ocean, through the American West, down into Central and South America. Orphanages, hospitals, and schools sprang up in her footsteps. She led countless immigrants (Italian and otherwise) back to faith. Whenever she was told that her aspirations were too large, she would reply, “I think of the world as too small for me.”
It's a sentiment Alexander would have agreed with.
Saturday Sources:
For all St. Francesca Cabrini quotes, Theodore Maynard’s biography, Too Small a World, which was unbelievable. For the Alexander information: The Virtues of War by Steven Pressfield, which is not a biography or a historical work, it’s a novel. BUT—when it comes to research, no one does it like Pressfield (well, Sigrid Undset is in a league of her own, but that’s a topic for another time).
I heartily recommend Too Small a World to anyone who wants to know more about the First American Saint (she became an American citizen before she died). Pressfield novels are way too intense unless heavy military historical fiction is something you want more of in your life… in which case, you won’t find many better ones.
Our conversation this morning:
Jonny: “It’s more like for ages four to eight, don’t you think?”
Me: “I don’t know—it’s classified as middle grade, so that’s what I tell people.”
Jonny: “I would be disappointed if I bought it for a twelve-year-old.”
For all ages! (caveat emptor)
Hi Meredith, When your mom and I were in Dillon last month, I finished the third Kristin Lavransdattar book by Undset. You just referred to her as being the queen of historical research - so true. Our book group read the first one, The Wreath. I had heard of Undset for years, and now I know why.
I still can’t quite get my head around the Catholic understanding of saints... but Iove their stories and wish I knew more of them. The saint story my 7 year old son begs for? Perpetua and Felicity (one begs for it and the other wants to leave the room). I think we really need these stories and examples no matter our theological understanding of them. (Also, I googled catalfque).