Bri CampbellLast Updated: September 15th, 2020Saints
Throughout my life, I have been told that reading the stories of the saints is one of the surest paths to sainthood. It makes sense…analyzing their lives causes us to examine our own. To this end, we owe a great debt of gratitude to St. Vincent of Saragossa. Vincent was a third century hagiographer who … Read More
Bri CampbellLast Updated: June 4th, 2020Saints
As a high school senior, I was required to read The Canterbury Tales. I didn’t want to. I didn’t enjoy it then. And it wasn’t until my own son read it in high school that I understood much of its humor and lessons. If you’ve never read the book, or if it’s been a while … Read More
Bri CampbellLast Updated: December 19th, 2019Holy Land, Marian Shrines of Europe, Medjugorje, Saints
In the St. Wenceslas tale that is told around this time of year, we see a king’s mercy and compassion. Good King Wenceslas, who has had songs and story books made of his life, set out one winter’s night with his squire to take food and firewood to his poor subjects. The snow was deep, … Read More
Bri CampbellLast Updated: December 11th, 2019Priests, Saints, Spiritual Reflections, Upcoming Pilgrimages
The story of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a story about conversion. Our Lady wants nothing more than to bring souls to Jesus and therefore to His Body the Catholic Church. Our Lady appeared in 1531 to a humble Juan Diego. Remember, around that same time, many things were happening in the history of the … Read More
Bri CampbellLast Updated: November 20th, 2019Saints
The Virgin Mary has been honored with many titles by the Church over the centuries. One of my favorites is Our Lady of Hope. This title reminds me of her Presentation in the Temple that we celebrate on Nov. 21. From the beginning of her life, Our Lady was a vivid representation of hope. Tradition … Read More
Bri CampbellLast Updated: November 12th, 2019Saints
If there is one saint that has captured the Catholic imagination, it is St. Martin of Tours. He is celebrated in so many various countries in the greatest variety of ways that it is hard not to get excited about this saint! His feast is even given a special name: Martinmas. In Europe, people eat … Read More
St. Luke is a man after my own heart. He had the privilege of interviewing the Virgin Mary and thoughtfully recounting what she told him about her life with Jesus. As a journalist, this makes my heart want to sing. Any interview would pale in comparison to interviewing the Queen of Heaven. And that’s what … Read More
August 14 marks the feast of a saint whose lifetime is not far removed from our own. Born in 1894, small Rajmund would soon grow up to be St. Maximilian Kolbe – Franciscan, radio host, monastery founder, newspaper publisher, and most famously, victim of the Auschwitz death camp. As a young man, St. Maximilian Kolbe … Read More
It’s fitting that the Church of St. Alphonsus Liguori in Rome holds the sacred icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. St. Alphonsus wrote The Glories of Mary, one of the most used books of devotion to the Virgin Mary. In Rome, the church that houses his tomb, is a beautiful chapel that holds the … Read More
Bri CampbellLast Updated: February 17th, 2023Camino de Santiago, Saints
After pondering about the Way of St. James for several months, I thought maybe I was to take a pilgrimage to Spain, that beautiful trip of the mind and heart to the shrine of St. James of Compostela. But through prayer, it seems my “way” for now is to read the book of James in … Read More
It takes a family, and what a family this was! The marriage of Saints Louis and Zelie Martin led them to parent one saint, St. Therese of Lisieux; Leonie Martin, a Visitation nun on the path towards beatification; and three other daughters who became Carmelite nuns like St. Therese. “The holy spouses Louis Martin and … Read More
The back of the envelope had the initials S.A.G. with a cross on each side. Inside, was some money and the sender –a wise mother– had invoked St. Anthony of Padua to make sure it got to her daughter who was overseas. This was before cellphones, computers, and automatic transfers. It was just the 1980s, … Read More
Bri CampbellLast Updated: July 13th, 2020Camino de Santiago, Featured Pilgrimages, Saints
This saint is a true pilgrimage friend. While St. Bona of Pisa might not be as well known for walking the El Camino trail in Spain like St. Francis of Assisi or the Spanish war-hero El Cid, she is one powerful saint to ask for intercessions on your journey. St. Bona of Pisa’s feast day … Read More
The “Litany of Loreto” is a powerful prayer composed in the Middle Ages and embraced by pilgrims at the Marian Shrine in Loreto, Italy, where tradition claims the original house of the Virgin Mary was transported. For centuries, the shrine has attracted pilgrims from all over the world. As a result, many of these pilgrims … Read More
Bri CampbellLast Updated: March 19th, 2019Saints, Spiritual Reflections
The life of St. Joseph must have been extremely interesting. In the words of St. John Paul the Great, “Life with Christ is a wonderful adventure.” And from the viewpoint of St. Joseph, his life was quite literally an adventure with Christ. From being visited by angels in his sleep, to caring for a pregnant … Read More
