Brother Francis’ Obituary

As it appeared in the Local Newspaper

Brother Francis Maluf, M.I.C.M. (July 19, 1913 – September 05, 2009), founding member of the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, superior of Saint Benedict Center in Richmond, New Hampshire, philosopher, college professor, and published author died on Saturday, September 5, at the age of ninety-six.

Fakhri Boutros Maluf (his name before entering religion) was born in the town of Mashrah, Lebanon, about thirty miles from Beirut, in 1913. His father, Boutros Maluf, was an educational pioneer in Lebanon, and young Fakhri was educated at a school for poor children run out of the Maluf home. He would later teach there.

Fakhri graduated from the American University of Beirut with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics. From 1934 to 1939, he taught physics at that same university. In addition to his academic career, Fakhri was also involved in Lebanese statecraft, being the philosopher, and later, president of the Syrian National Party. He was, during this time, a friend, disciple, and associate of Dr. Charles Malik, the noted Lebanese philosopher and diplomat.

In 1939, he moved to the United States to attend the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where he received first an M.A. and, in 1942, a Ph.D. in philosophy. He then undertook post-doctoral studies at Harvard University and Saint Bonaventure University.

From 1942 to 1945, Dr. Maluf taught mathematics and science at Holy Cross College in Worcester, Massachusetts. From 1945 to 1949, he taught philosophy, theology, and mathematics at Boston College. In 1942, the young professor met Father Leonard Feeney, S.J., and soon became involved in the activities of Saint Benedict Center, a Catholic center operating in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Dr. Maluf married Mary Healy, of Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1943.

In 1949, Dr. Maluf became one of the pioneer members of Father Leonard Feeney’s religious order, the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. As has happened in rare cases in the Church’s history, by mutual consent, both Dr. Maluf and Mrs. Maluf took religious vows and lived separately in the monastery and convent, where they were known respectively as Brother Francis and Sister Mary Bernadette. Both participated in the publishing and missionary work of the fledgling congregation.

For the rest of his life, until overtaken by illness while in his nineties, Brother Francis taught Sacred Scripture, philosophy, theology, science, and mathematics at various levels. For almost twenty years he was the Superior of Saint Benedict Center in Richmond, New Hampshire, teaching in the Center’s high school, overseeing the Saint Augustine Institute of Catholic Studies, and the Center’s publishing apostolate. He authored four published books of poetry and philosophy, published scores of articles on various Catholic subjects, and gave thousands of lectures, many of which were taped and professionally produced. He has also left to posterity many notes for future volumes.

Besides his philosophical and poetical wisdom, Brother Francis was well known for his memory. He memorized all four Gospels, being able to recite the entirety of Matthew, Luke, and John each in Latin, and Saint Mark in Greek. He could name all the popes from Saint Peter to the present, and had numerous other lists of persons, dates, and facts equally at his command. But he was best known as a teacher.

On July 19, 2009, Brother Francis marked his ninety-sixth birthday. Although his order is of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, Brother Francis was a Melkite Rite (Byzantine) Catholic.
Brother Francis is survived by Sister Mary Bernadette Maluf, M.I.C.M., of Richmond, N.H.; by his children, Mariam Maluf of Leominster, MA., Peter Maluf, of Worcester, MA., Leonard Maluf, of Leominster, MA., Sister Anna Maria Maluf, M.I.C.M., of Vienna, OH, and Agnes Malouf-Hood of Halifax, Nova Scotia; and by one granddaughter, July Anne O’Brien, of Los Angeles, CA. The religious brothers and sisters at Saint Benedict Center also regard him as their father in God, and will mourn him accordingly.

Feastday Speech for Brother Francis

By Mr. John McManus
December 3, 1981

It is certainly my pleasure to be a part of this tribute to our wonderful teacher. I’m sure I speak for all in saying that we know the one, true Faith better because of him. And for that we are all deeply grateful.

You may wonder why it is that I am up here speaking on this wonderful occasion. Well, I’ve been wondering about that too. I’ve come up with a possible answer. It is that I was chosen because I’m the only person in this room — other than Brother himself — who has ever been to Lebanon.

I went there with the U.S. Marine Corps in 1958, and what I remember most about his native land is being shot at — twice. I’m delighted to report that Lebanese are poor marksmen. I even learned a few words in Arabic, like “Yankee, go home!” and “Coca Cola, $1.00.” I even encountered one very enterprising Lebanese who spoke English. He offered me $50.00 for my pistol!

One of my fondest memories of being in Lebanon was serving Mass on a hot August Sunday in 1958. The chaplain created a makeshift outdoor chapel on the hood of a jeep. The Gospel was about Jesus passing through Tyre and Sidon, two cities which are in Lebanon. It was quite a thrill to realize I was in a country that Christ Himself had once visited, the only country outside of the Holy Land where he travelled as an adult.

But that was in 1958 and our good friend had already been gone from his homeland for about two decades. I can be absolutely certain that it was not he who shot at me.

After graduating from the American University in Beirut and then teaching physics there for five years, he left Lebanon to accept a scholarship at the University of Michigan. And it wasn’t a football scholarship! On his way to America, he stopped in Paris to meet a friend named Gabriel Malik, a convert to the Faith who was studying to become a Jesuit priest. This man’s brother, Charles Malik, later became a high official at the United Nations. Charles seems to have discovered the truth about the UN in later years. We hope that he will also discover the truth about the Faith.

Gabriel Malik took our Fakhri Maluf to Notre Dame Cathedral and other religious sites in Paris. We have to remember that Fakhri was not yet a Catholic. Gabriel Malik was concerned about his friend’s eternal destiny and made Fakhri promise that no matter where he was, he would seek out and become friendly with a Catholic priest.

On the boat to America, Fakhri found a Mexican priest with whom he spent some profitable hours discussing the Faith. Once at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Fakhri became friendly with a priest named Father Barry and then Msgr. Babcock who later became the bishop of Grand Rapids, Michigan. He also benefited from some of his students who were urging him toward the Faith. It was in 1941 that Fakhri embraced the Faith on a day that he said was the happiest day of his life. Becoming a Catholic was a big event for him, as it certainly should be for anyone.

The year 1941 saw him receive his Master’s Degree in Philosophy. In 1942, he earned a doctorate with a dissertation on the Philosophy of Science. With his work finished in Michigan, he accepted a fellowship at Harvard University in the fall of 1942. A Harvard student named Father Vincent Flynn brought Fakhri to St. Benedict Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts on a Thursday evening shortly after he arrived at Harvard. After listening to Father Leonard Feeney, Fakhri remarked, “Father Feeney is exactly the priest I have been looking for. It is simply amazing.”

Some of us have heard Brother recount the story of Father Feeney seeking this young man out of that audience. Obviously, Father felt that Fakhri was also what he was looking for. That first encounter almost 40 years ago began a bond of friendship that was broken only by Father Leonard’s death a few years ago. Fakhri lectured every Tuesday at the Center; Father Leonard gave a talk every Thursday.

Within a short time, Fakhri was teaching at Holy Cross College in Worcester, a 45-mile trip. But he lived in Cambridge so as to be near St. Benedict Center where he taught, studied, counseled, and grew in the Faith. When the war ended in 1945 and there was more need for navigation instructors at the Holy Cross V-12 program (soon to become the NROTC), Fakhri began to teach philosophy at Jesuit-run Boston College.

In 1946, the Center began a publishing venture called “From The Housetops.” It was an instant success. In September 1947, the magazine published Fakhri’s “Sentimental Theology” which stirred up a fuss that has yet to die. Father Leonard has put his finger on the root cause of the liberalism in the Church, its denial of the dogma “Outside the Church, there is no salvation.” Fakhri’s article caused the Center to become the eye of a storm that raged furiously for a few years, and promises to rage even more furiously in the future.

In the years ahead, Dr. Maluf and three companions from St. Benedict Center were dismissed from their teaching positions at Boston College and Boston College High School for defending the dogma. Father Feeney was tossed out of the Jesuit order. The whole world was made to think about salvation, a persecution of anyone holding the dogma about salvation was begun by the Church’s authorities, the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary came into being, the Center relocated to Still River, Massachusetts, and a courageous few held fast to the foundational teaching of the Church.

Throughout those years, the Center and the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary had Father Leonard as the leader, with Catherine Goddard Clarke and Fakhri Maluf as co-founders. As you know of those founders, only Brother Francis still lives. There are a great many details about those years, many of which are personal in nature, that could be added here. But it is not my intention to dwell any further on the historical side of this story. I would rather take a few moments to paint a small picture of this man’s character.

Were ten or twenty of the people in this room to stand before this gathering and, in turn, each pay tribute to Brother Francis, we might hear ten or twenty different views of this man. It is possible, of course, that all would focus attention on the same element in his character. We will never know about that, of course, because it appears to be my privilege alone to pay public tribute to our wonderful friend. I do not exercise this privilege lightly. And I truly hope that the words I choose will suit all of you, for I know how highly regarded by each of you he surely is.

We all know that life is a test. If we pass the test, we spend eternity with God in heaven. If we fail, we shall languish in hell — and there’s no second chance. Part of the test amounts to God asking us to seek His kingdom, not the praises and material pleasures of this world. When someone learns that lesson and understands this part of the test, he or she becomes different. Now, instead of idle pleasures and small talk, the person who truly understands the Christian message becomes a zealot for Christ. He or she decides that true friendship is the kind that steers a friend toward heaven by steering him or her to the Church.

Father Feeney was always solicitous of souls. But even Sister Catherine said of him that, for all of his early years of writing, speaking and glad-handing, “he had delighted all and challenged none.” When he perceived what was happening to the Church, and why, he started challenging everyone.

So, too, did our brother Francis begin challenging everyone. Christ once said, “I have come to cast fire upon the earth, and what will I but that it be kindled.” Brother Francis has been lighting Christ’s fires ever since he became a Catholic. The price he has paid for doing so, in material terms, has been very high.

What has this cost him? Well, if you look at the picture through worldly eyes, you would consider him a failure. He certainly isn’t wealthy. He hasn’t won the favor of TIME, NBC or the New York Times. The most prestigious position he ever held saw him fired from it. If he ran for public office, he wouldn’t get elected. And he has spent lifetime seeing friends betray him. But is all of this the way he should be measured? Isn’t there a better way to judge the worth of him and his years?

We who are Catholics know the answer, don’t we! We know that it is impossible to tell the truth and not offend those don’t want truth. There is a story about St. Ignatius who, when he heard that there was no controversy in an area where he had sent some priests, wrote to them to say: “What is the matter? You can’t be telling the truth of Jesus Christ and be getting along so well. You must be compromising!”

But our dear friend has never compromised. Instead, he has challenged here, challenged there, and challenged everyone whom he has ever met. He wants everyone he meets to save his own soul. And the good Lord knows that there are too few issuing that challenge today.

So he isn’t rich; he isn’t famous; he once lost a job; he has lost many friends; and his worldly popularity is virtually non-existent. But he does have other friends. And he can rest assured that the challenge he offers to us has not fallen on deaf ears, or on ears too busy to listen. And, over the past several decades, there are others amongst the tens of thousands he has met while travelling through America who have benefited from the challenge he has given them. Even more, the effect he has caused in us has led to others being challenged by us.

Every age produces its scholars, even its learned churchmen. Even today, there are churchmen who can answer all the questions, quote all the Scripture passages, and recount all the significant events in history. But who among them lives what they know? Who among these scholars issues challenges to one and all to save their soul? Who spends his life kindling the fire that Christ said he came to bring to the earth? It is one thing to have knowledge; it is another to believe what you know and to act accordingly.

Of all the praiseworthy attributes of this man that could be mentioned — and there are many — I find myself most in admiration of his perseverance. He has a willingness to stand alone if need be. That is unique, and it should serve as an inspiration to all of us. He is not alone, of course. But don’t we all know that if every one of us would fade from the scene, he would keep going and keep challenging others.

No amount of false friends, determined enemies, or great multitudes who don’t care one way or the other can change his course. He will keep defending truth and challenging the human race to do God’s will.

The occasion for this special event is the feast day on December 3rd of the great saint who is his patron, St. Francis Xavier. They surely are alike in their zeal and unshakable constancy. St. Francis Xavier issued challenges in his missionary work and he baptized three million pagans. He destroyed 40,000 idols and built over 100 churches.

Our friend can claim no similar accomplishments. But I have often wished to liken him to another saint, one whom I feel he resembles even more than his patron. That saint’s name is Athanasius. What I find remarkable is that the condition of the world in the time of Athanasius is quite similar to what we find today.

Athanasius was a bishop in the fourth century. He lived at a time when the Arian heresy took hold of most of the Church. Later historians would note that 95 percent of the hierarchy was infected with the heresy during that period. But the Arians were wrong and Athanasius knew them to be wrong. His contemporaries repeatedly told him that everyone disagreed with him and he was too stubborn. His response: “If the whole world is wrong and Athanasius knows it to be wrong, then Athanasius stands against the world.” That sentiment has been memorialized as “Athanasius Contra Mundum!” (Athanasius against the world!).

His enemies sought to destroy Athanasius. They forced him to flee and they falsely excommunicated him. Five times he was exiled from his native Egypt. He was hunted like an animal but he kept ahead of his pursuers so that he could fight them on another day. He could have quit. He could have decided that no one would listen, or that evil had triumphed. He could have said that he had done his part and now it was time for others to do theirs.

But he fought on because refusal to defend God’s truth was unthinkable. In the end, he saw his cause vindicated and his enemies routed. He persevered. We are fortunate to have met and to have known a modern Athanasius. We all hope that his example will make each of us another Athanasius.

We thank God for sending Brother Francis to us, and us to Brother Francis. So much of our beloved Church is wandering around aimlessly today. Its roots have been damaged; its sons and daughters have been befogged; and it seems at times to have become determined to commit suicide.

But there has always been refuge in orthodoxy in this storm-tossed world. Just a few who stood firm, against — it seems — the whole world. For that we thank you, Brother Francis and, in thanking you, we also thank Father Leonard, Sister Catherine and Brother Hugh who have departed, as well as the brothers and sisters who are still part of this crusade.

We wish you, Brother Francis, many more years of good health because there are many more who need to be challenged to save their souls. We plan to help you issue those challenges. I ask now that all of you join me in saluting our teacher, our friend, our inspiration — Brother Francis.

Goodbye, O Gentle, Joyful, and Wise!

By Brother André Marie

Our beloved Brother Francis went to his reward on September 5. What follows in my column are some reflections on his death and funerary rites. Our other writers will also pay tribute to him in this issue of the Mancipia.

A Quiet Passage. Brother Francis had received Holy Communion at about 6:40 a.m. the day he died. Shortly afterward, I gave him some fruit juice to drink, since he had eaten nothing the previous day. We wanted him to have nutrition and hydration right to the end. He was alert at that time. The other brothers and I went to mental prayer and Mass. When we returned, I gave him more liquids, and he was alert enough to say, “Enough!” After that, I went to breakfast with the other brothers. We could all hear him clearing his throat a few times — anyone used to his recorded lectures will know the sound! I remarked to the other brothers that he still sounded strong. After breakfast, the other brothers all went off to their respective chores while I went back to give Brother Francis more to drink. As soon as I walked in the room, I knew he had left us. I cannot say what his last words were, but a few days earlier, he told Brother Louis Marie he hoped they would be, “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, may I breathe forth my soul in peace with you!”

Brother Francis left this world much the same as he entered it: on a Saturday, without noise (he did not cry when he was born, a sign that alarmed the midwife so much that she baptized him straightaway), and, curiously, the day after a full moon. We are consoled that he died on a First Saturday, a day especially dedicated to her that is “fair as the moon.”

Fitting Obsequies. The Mass and other ceremonies were offered in the traditional rite by our local pastor, Father Daniel O. Lamothe, a priest who has shown the Center — and particularly Brother Francis — much kindness. The funeral was a sung Requiem Mass (Missa Cantata), which took place at Saint Margaret Mary Church in Keene, where one of the Manchester Diocese’s regular Latin Masses is offered.

Present in the church were many clerics and religious, including eight priests “in choir,” seated close to the altar during the entire Mass, and assisting with candles in hand at various times. One of these was Abbot Gabriel Gibbs, O.S.B., of Saint Benedict Abbey in Still River. Three other monks were present in choir, two from Saint Benedict Abbey, and another from Saint Anselm’s Abbey in Manchester, New Hampshire. Two were Maronite priests, both long-time friends of Brother Francis: Father Anthony Weiler of the Saint Rafka Retreat Center in Vermont, and Chorbishop Joseph Lahoud, of Our Lady of the Cedars of Lebanon Parish in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts. An old friend of ours, Father Carlos Cassavantes, FSSP, was also there, all the way from Texas.

The display of the Church’s catholicity was wonderful to behold: Roman Rite secular priests in cassock and surplice, Benedictine Monks in habit and cuculla, and Maronite priests in their distinctive Oriental exorasons and iconic stoles.

In the loft, the choir of our brothers and sisters was supplemented by priests and layfolk who, with little time together to practice, sung the Gregorian chant and some sacred polyphony most beautifully. The servers were our boys who serve at the Center regularly. The Master of Ceremonies was your humble servant, a detail which makes me conclude that the angels must have been with us, for the ceremony went off virtually flawlessly.

Who is Next? Because we have a chapel and graveyard, we are on familiar terms with the funeral directors. In our conversations surrounding the arrangements, one of them mentioned to me that the same time he was preparing Brother Francis’ body for the wake, he had in his funeral home the remains of a young lady who died in a car accident. A few days later, I was informed that a man from my high school graduation class had also died. He was thirty-nine. When struck with this news, I could not help but think of Brother’s poem, “Who is Next?”

Pray for Brother. Brother Francis revealed to Brother Louis Marie only a few days before his death that he was afraid nobody would pray for him. The piles of Mass cards that have come in tell me that Brother’s fears were unfounded. However, I would urge our friends to pray for him daily. It is our duty in piety to do this for a man we love.

The Best Tribute. With the funeral now quite behind us, and resolved to pray for his dear soul, we think the best tribute we can make to our father, mentor, and teacher is to continue the work which he did, and which he inspired us to do. I mean, of course, our Crusade in all its facets: missionary, academic, and devotional. I’ve already made a promise to a dear friend that, on the anniversary of Brother Francis’ death, we will all be holding in our hands his logic course in book form. Brother considered the study of philosophy integral to the work we do. We have the recordings of all of his lectures on the eight courses, plus his handwritten notes. It will be our duty in the coming years to turn the materials he left to us into the complete set of philosophy books he envisioned. There are other gems in his personal notebooks, too.

Hopes for Unity. Present at the wake and funeral were religious from Saint Benedict’s Abbey, Saint Benedict Center in Still River, Saint Ann’s House, and Immaculate Heart of Mary Convent in Vienna, Ohio. Not present, because unable to be — but most solicitous in sending condolences and prayers — were the brothers with Brother Leonard Mary in Arcadia, California (“Saint Benedict Center West”). Brother Leonard Mary, one of the founding members of the M.I.C.M., has been very ill himself. It is no secret that there have been various divisions among Father Feeney’s disciples. Brother Francis always desired, prayed for, and worked toward unity. Personally, I hope that he is now in light eternal with Father Feeney, Sister Catherine, Brother Hugh, and all our deceased brothers and sisters, asking Our Lady for a greater unity among her Slaves. Ours would not be the first order riven by strife (read Church history if you don’t believe me: Franciscans, Redemptorists, and many others were afflicted with this). But old wounds are healing, and it appears that a unity of purpose, and of charity, is shared by all these groups — each of which has its unique gifts to contribute to the Crusade for Catholic truth and the conversion of America.

Memory Eternal! I have heard that the Arabs say, “Whoever does not have an old man should buy one.” Having the privilege of being close to such a sage “old man,” I very much appreciate this Oriental wisdom, which leads me to my conclusion. I think the following three verses aptly describe Brother Francis, the gentlest, most joyful, and wisest man I’ve ever known. Two of the verses are from the Old Testament’s Wisdom books. The third is from a book that relates wars and memorializes the virtues of warriors. Those who knew Brother will get it.

In the ancient is wisdom, and in length of days prudence — Job 12:12.

The just shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow up like the cedar of Libanus — Psalm 91:13.

His memory is blessed for ever — Maccabees 3:7.

Email Brother André Marie at bam@catholicism.org.

Please read Brother Francis’ Obituary and the Ad Rem, The Funeral of Brother Francis, in Thoughts and Pictures.

The first lecture of Introduction to Wisdom course is below.

My Ode to Brother Francis

By Sister Marie Thérèse, M.I.C.M., Prioress

This is Brother Francis,”
he said, as he introduced
the lady guest to Brother.
“What a sweet little old man!”
she cooed sugar-sweetly. Bending
over with a grandmothersmile,
she patted Brother on
the head. Brother nodded and
continued to smile graciously
as she proceeded to seat herself
beside another guest for a visit.
After several hours, she excused
herself and slipped out of the conversation. In hushed and surprised
tones, she confided to a sister how amazed she was at
just “how smart” Brother was!

Knock on his door;
He is always there.
Call his name: “Brother Francis?”
“Yes! Come in” cheerfully greets you.
Turning from his desk he is delighted it is you
And welcomes you — there is always time for you.
Yes, you who are unique and special to God,
Are unique and special to him too.
Do you have a question? His face shows delight!
His eyes close,
His fingers move slowly and methodically over his forehead
As though to help the thinking process

While he listens carefully to your perplexity,
And formulates an answer that is both wise and brief,
Carefully fitted to your understanding and need.
Yes, he truly knows all the answers . . .
And though never pretending knowledge,
Rarely gives the answer “I don’t know.”
This man loves Truth and his life beams it!
The ring of his voice when he speaks of Truth
Is strong and clear, joyful and lovingly challenging.
How about a problem?
No need to worry as he shoulders in fatherly fashion
The care you lay before him.
This too shall pass.
Our Blessed Lady is in charge.
What wise counsel then comes forth from his lips — his soul.
His love for God and Mary,
Enkindles love for souls.
Is there a hindrance to their happiness?
A deliberate hiding of Jesus’ Truth?
Crusade! God wills it!
Take up arms and fight!
Take the Rosary and the Truth!
Cry out, “From the Housetops”!
Not a minute to spare, it’s Our Lady’s time,
Go with haste into cities and towns.
Bring — on foot — this loved Truth to loved souls.
Look into their eyes, into windows, look inside
Where they hide from the Truth, and you find them.

“Why do you weep? He is risen!”
You encourage.
“Get up from your bed and walk!”
You challenge.
“See the lilies of the field, see the birds,”
And see God.
Cast the seed of Faith!
Kindle the Fire of Love!
Carry with you that Lord
Whom you received in the Host.
Lend Him your feet and lips.

Crusade! God wills it!
Plead with the shepherds of the flock
To do what they alone can do
For souls — whose value is yet unmatched.
“Please tell them that Truth
That will bring them to Him;
Fulfill the desire of His Heart.
Save them from fire, eternally.
Salvation of souls! God wills it!”

To Rome, the Eternal City, clearly focused on Our Lady’s cause
Minding the pain she bears in her Heart
The price of those children she loves.
Man to man — with great reverence —
Brother presents this beloved cause,
Most dear to his heart and to Theirs
Pleasing God
And maybe not men.

Don’t forget us Brother!
You promised to remember!
Yes, close to Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
And, of course, your Little Thérèse.
Help us as we continue this battle
Not compromising the challenging Truth!
The battle will only be won
When the Shepherd in Rome
Takes up the Crusade’s banner,
Joined by his shepherd generals,
And leads the crusaders in battle
To victory! to victory!
For souls! For Jesus! For Mary!
Crusade! God wills it!
And then . . .
PEACE. . . .
As the Immaculate Heart finally triumphs.
Peace to men of good will.

In Heaven we’ll be quite surprised
At “how smart” Brother really was.

Back Home After 40 Years Away from the Church

By Jack Koehler

One day, early last month, my friend Jim approached me at our workplace, and told me how worried he is about the things happening in the world today, especially with this new administration. I simply replied “Jim, don’t worry; whatever happens will happen.” He looked distraught as he told me his fear that the government would take everything he owns someday.

“Jack, how do you keep so calm?” he asked. “Well, Jim,’ I said, “I say the Rosary faithfully every day and I leave everything up to Our Lady. And I also go to Mass every Sunday.”

A couple of days went by before Jim approached me again. He asked me if I could do him a favor. I said, “Sure; what is it?” He said, “I’d like to come back to church, Jack. Can you help me to do that?” “You came to the right guy, Jim,” I said. “I can take you to the abbey where I usually go to Mass.” “Jack, it’s been over forty years since I’ve been to Mass,” he told me, “and it’s time to come back.”

I told him that I go to the Latin Mass, and that I am friendly with all the priests at the abbey in Still River, Massachusetts. “It’ll be like going to Mass as you remember it from forty years ago,” I assured him. “I can’t wait to go,” he said. “What about bringing your wife?” I asked. “No,” he said, “we were married in the Church, but I can’t tell her now.” “Okay, Jim,” I said, “in due time.” “My mother-in-law goes to Mass though,” he was quick to let me know. “All right, that’s good.” I replied, “Maybe someday your wife will come back; let’s both pray for that.”

Jim met me at my house the following Saturday morning. He knew that he had to go to confession, so he was not surprised when I gave him a copy of the Act of Contrition and the Ten Commandments to make it easier for him to examine his conscience and make a good confession. (Actually he had already done the examination.) When we got to the abbey, I brought Jim to the confessional. Father James was hearing the confessions. That was something; Father James would hear the sins and give absolution to another James. One must never dismiss these little signs of God’s goodness and providence!

I sat outside waiting and, even though it took a while, Jim finished in time so that we made the 8:00 Mass, which is always a High Mass at the abbey. Jim followed along as best he could in the missal. He was very happy to let me know that he remembered some of the prayers from when he was a youngster, a long time ago.

After Mass we went to St. Catherine’s House, where the congregation is invited to come and have coffee and sweet rolls. Strolling down the hallway on the way to the dining area, Jim was taking in all the religious statues, pictures, and icons of the Holy Family, Our Lady, and so many saints.

Later, when I asked him how he felt being back in the Church and the life of grace, he said very humbly, “It’s a relief in a way, Jack, but I feel I haven’t done enough to merit this grace after having avoided the Church all these years.” “Don’t worry, Jim,” I reassured him, “just continue going to Mass, learn the Rosary, and wear the scapular, and you’ll receive more and more graces from heaven.” “Thanks Jack,” he said, “I needed to hear that.”

I also told Jim that there are two Masses every morning at the abbey, and confession is available every morning as well. “That’s good to know,” he said.

We weren’t finished yet. “Come on, Jim,” — I didn’t need to prod him — “I want to introduce you to the sisters next door at Saint Anne’s House.” The door was open, so after making a visit in their beautiful chapel, I introduced Jim to some of the sisters. They were delighted to hear his story and told him to come back for Mass. I showed him the sisters’ garden and we continued taking a leisurely walk around the monastery grounds. “Jim, it’s a piece of heaven; there are three chapels all within a five-minute walk, each of them offering the Latin Mass every morning. It doesn’t get any better than that!”

As we were leaving Jim kept saying how good he felt, like a huge load had been lifted off his shoulders. “Well, be faithful in doing your part and it will only get better from here,” I assured him.

It’s been about two months now since Jim went back to Church. I’ve given him some sacramentals, the Miraculous Medal, the brown scapular, and a booklet on how to say the Rosary. He has the Rosary memorized, except for the Hail, Holy Queen.
I noticed my friend has been much calmer at work now and less stressed about things. It must be grace at work because it’s such a drastic change in such a short time. He goes to Mass now at a local church near his home in North Andover, Massachusetts. He told me that they say the Rosary before and after Mass there, which I was surprised and delighted to hear. “That’s great,” I said, adding, “did you know that if you say the Rosary with a group of people you’ll receive greater graces than you would saying it alone?” “No, Jack,” he replied, “I didn’t know that.” Every time I give Jim something about the Faith to read, or a religious item, he says he can’t get enough of such good things.

Just this past week, on May 4, Jim said he went to Mass and there happened to be a first holy communion scheduled. A cardinal from Spain had come to the parish, and he offered a Solemn High Mass that took over two hours. “It was really nice,” he said. Then he informed me that he had the Hail, Holy Queen memorized and all the mysteries of the Rosary. “Good, Jim,” I said, “now you can say it to or from work if you don’t have time during the day.” “Great idea, Jack, I’ll do that.” Then he said, “You know, I didn’t know each day was a different saint’s feast day. “That’s right, Jim;” I said, “Every day a saint is honored on the Church’s calendar and at Mass, and more than one if you count those who are not as well known. Sunday’s specific Mass, however, always take precedence over the feast days of saints, but they can still get a minor commemoration if the priest chooses to do so at the altar.”

“I have much to learn, Jack.” “And you will, Jim, you will,” I said with a smile, “and so will I.”

The Little Way of an Apostle

By The Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

In the feedback from the Catholic America Tour, a common recommendation is that more “practical” considerations be woven into the presentation. Many are saying that the history is interesting and the examples are motivating, but practical “methods” are not sufficiently expounded. To make up for the deficiency, some of us religious and layfolk here at the Center got together and jotted down a list. We hope you find it helpful.

General Dispositions

• Show the people you want to convert — family, friends, co-workers, etc. — that you care for them. This is done in “little ways” (like St. Thérèse) by showing interest in their interests: their families, jobs, hobbies, joys, sorrows, etc. If what interests them interests you, there is a “communion” established between you. That gives you leverage and credibility. If you show people no interest in any tangible way, how do you expect them to think you are interested in their eternal salvation?
• Remember to be pleasant and cheerful. Dour, sad people do not attract others.
• Don’t offend people needlessly. Always be a lady or a gentleman.
• Remember that your enthusiasm will speak to people of the importance of the Faith. If the Faith is truly important to you, this will show in a variety of ways.
• Make yourself a “helpful” person by volunteering in different religious and civic organizations (your parish, Boy Scouts, pro-life organizations, etc.). In these contexts, you can help to influence people.
• Give good example. Saint Peter himself endorsed this as a means to gaining converts: “Having your conversation good among the Gentiles: that whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by the good works, which they shall behold in you, glorify God in the day of visitation” (1 Peter 2:12).
• If you are the mother or father of a family, remember that your family comes first. Living properly the obligations of your state in life is a very effective and practical way to work for a Catholic America — it’s called raising it! Conversely, abandoning the home-base for otherwise noble purposes is sinful and, ultimately, ineffective.

The Soul of the Apostolate

• Live a wholesome Catholic spiritual life, fed on the Church’s sacraments and liturgy, the Rosary, spiritual reading and personal prayer. Ultimately it is holiness you are trying to spread, so work with Our Lord to get it yourself, first. Nemo dat quod non habet. (”No man can give what he does not have.”)
• Make, renew, and live your Marian Consecration according to the formula of Saint Louis de Montfort (Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe also has a good one). You can also consecrate your family to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
• Pray for the person you are trying to convert. Have Masses said. God is interested in what you are trying to do; He might like to hear about it.
• Pray for the grace to be a good apostle for the Faith. Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe’s prayer of consecration to Mary has this intention built into it.
• Pray to the guardian angels of those you’re trying to convert.

Good Habits

• Have “conversation starters” all around. Decorate your house with holy images. Do the same with your desk at work. If there is a rule at your place of employment that you can’t have “religious pictures” in your workspace, then make sure your family pictures have religious images (crucifix, Mary statue, etc.) in them. This is known as being wise as serpents.
• Carry around and hand out Miraculous Medals. Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe called these his “bullets.” (Remember the story of Alphonse Ratisbonne.) You can even leave them with the tip at a restaurant. And make sure it is a decent tip!
• With the knowledge you have of your would-be convert — remember, you’re interested in him, right? — offer him articles on his interests from Catholic sources. (E.g.: “Tom, I know you like U.S. History. Here’s a good article on the diplomat who secured peace with Sitting Bull”. . . and hand him something on Father De Smet.)
• Keep Catholic tracts and/or booklets with you. Hand them out when the occasion arises. (For those who have to be clever as serpents at your workplace, “accidentally” letting these fall out of your briefcase or remain open on your desk can help.
• Be a “public Catholic.” That is, say grace before meals (crossing yourself!), and do other visible acts of faith in a non-pompous manner. Your car can be Catholic, too, in a tasteful way, with a Rosary hanging in the right place, a mini-statue on the dash, and even a side-or rear window holy picture.
• Always show reverence for the Holy Name of Jesus. Bow your head when it is said. Do that and say “Blessed be God” if someone uses the Sacred Name irreverently.
• When someone tells you about his problems, promise him your prayers. You can even have a Mass said. This is a way to show (and act upon) your concern for that individual. In his mind, this will connect your Faith to your practical charity for that person.
• Chances are, the person you are speaking with has a Christian name. Tell him about his patron saint. (If there are multiple candidates — which Saint Andrew? — pick one for him!) You can direct him to a good book on the saint, and encourage him to pray to his patron.

Incidental Practices

• Put Catholic messages on your mail, e.g., “Saint Anthony Guide.”
• Get people to be regular readers of our web site. Send emails recommending particular articles. Put a link to the site on your email signature. If you use Facebook, post articles from our site and Catholic “status messages” on your wall.
• If you read the local paper and see good letters to the editor on hot-button moral issues, send the letter-writer a personal note with kudos and a recommendation to read something Catholic on the same issue (e.g., pro-life, pro-family).

Continuing Education/Formation

• Study as part of the Saint Augustine Institute. Your studies, however modest, will inform your conversations about the Faith, and make you a better apostle. If you organize a study circle — a very good personal apostolate — you can invite people to learn in a group setting.
• Joining the Third Order of the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary helps in many ways. For example, by working together at our own sanctity, we assist each other in becoming saints; and by remaining a school of thought with a common sense of purpose, we present a “united front” to the Church and the world. This can make us an organized force for the conversion of America.

“My brethren, if any of you err from the truth, and one convert him: He must know that he who causeth a sinner to be converted from the error of his way, shall save his soul from death, and shall cover a multitude of sins” (James 5:19-20).

The Catholic Key Blog: Anglican Bishop Confirms St. Therese is Behind Anglican Ordinariate

The Catholic Key Blog: Anglican Bishop Confirms St. Therese is Behind Anglican Ordinariate

Giuseppi

By Brian Kelly

He was probably in his seventies, a frail little man, maybe five feet-four inches tall or so. Always wore a suit and tie, he did — the same suit coat, every day, the shoulders overlapping his own, the sleeves ending half way down his fingers, and the hem of it almost reaching his knees. It may have fit him, more suitably, when he was younger but he would have had to have been a lot huskier, too.

His name was Giuseppi. I’ve long since forgotten his last name, as it was thirty-seven years ago that I knew him. He was the porter at the religious house where I was staying during the one year I spent studying in Rome. I don’t remember if he had any other duties; if he did it may have been as a dispatcher for the community’s phones, for there were about ten priests living in the house at the time. The system would have had to have been very simple because Giuseppi was a very simple man.

Every morning, at the same time we were saying Matins in the chapel before Mass, Giuseppi would come into the back of the chapel and drop down on his knees and proceed to say in alta voce the beginning of the Our Father in Latin, then he’d slip into Italian for the rest of the Lord’s Prayer, which he completed in sotto voce (almost in a whisper). Then, he’d intone in the very same manner the Hail Mary: “Ave Maria, gratia plena,” he’d bellow, continuing on with the prayer in more subdued Italian. That was about it for his prayers, and he was off to his office by the front door.

Giuseppi was always flashing his gold tooth with his perennial smile. He loved to greet us American students and we were always using him to test our conversational Italian. We would say: “Parla lungo, Giuseppi, lenta prego,” and he would accommodate us with the most affected, slow enunciation just to please us.

We had a tutor for some months who would stop by almost every day to teach us Tuscano Italian. She was a native Roman, a well educated matron, about Giuseppi’s age, and she would always chat with him before she left. She was a good woman and I remember how she was so courteous to the little porter who was always delighted to see her. I’ll call her Maria.

Giuseppi had such a good heart; his biggest joy was to greet us, even if it was just a passing “hello” and “goodbye.” He did not get along with the other employee, a younger man, who served in the refectory; his name was Gilberto, and with his occasional snide remarks — covertly delivered, of course — he let us know that he was more than a bit anti-clerical.

As I said, Giuseppi loved to talk to us. After a few weeks, he started to greet us with this endearing salutation: “Good morning, my dear.” And we would reciprocate: “Good morning, my dear,” with a chuckle. Giuseppi didn’t know why we found the greeting so funny. You see, to impress us, he had been listening to “Learning English” cassettes in his office. The speakers played the part of a husband and wife, and, in Italian, carrissima means “dear one,” so to Giuseppi we were all “my dear.”

I once met him walking down the street after he exited a nearby church. “Comé sta, Giuseppi,” I asked. “Bene, bene, grazie a Dio,” he replied. Then I said something that seemed to really upset him. I was young and it just slipped off my tongue without my thinking how such words, even though said half in jest, might affect someone as humble as Giuseppi was. I told him that I thought that God must love him very much — that much was fine — then I said that I considered him to be a saint.

“No, no,” he protested indignantly. “I am a miserable sinner. I have committed many, many sins.”

We were going in opposite directions, so he just kept walking ahead shaking his head, “No, no, not me, not me.” There was nothing I could say.
Giuseppi quickly forgave me for canonizing him, or he just forgot about it, because every day he continued to give me, and all the young Americans, the same unfeigned smile and the same hearty greeting. Every now and then he’d throw in a new word that he had learned, anxious to see if he understood its meaning correctly, and was pronouncing it right.

One day during Advent he couldn’t wait to talk to me. He was so excited and his face was beaming. He told me that he was taking a train to Florence to see his daughter during his Christmas vacation. Then the tears began pouring from his eyes: “I have not seen her since she was a child,” he said. “It’s been forty years. She is a nun in a convent.”

It was hard for Giuseppi to speak, his voice was choking so, and it was hard for me to understand what he was trying to explain. Somehow, during the World War, while he was stationed in Ethiopia, it seems that his wife and daughter were separated from him. I asked him why he could not find them when he returned home after the war. And this is where I could not understand his answer. Nor did I want to press him about it, for the pain, long buried in his heart, was not looking for words; it had found its escape in tears. All I could get from him was, “They were gone, they were gone. No one knew where they were.”

Well, at some point the daughter must have located her father, for he was going to see her for the first time in forty years. And she was a nun. He was so proud, so happy. “God bless you, Giuseppi,” I said. “You will surely have the most joyful Christmas of your life.” I don’t remember if I got choked up at the time, but if I am so now, just thinking about it, I must’ve been so back then.

When our diminutive porter returned to work sometime after Christmas he told us all about his bambina: “She is a nun, now,” he kept saying; “She’s all grown up, and very happy.” As he spoke he kept blessing himself over and over. But I don’t remember that he cried this time. He was perfectly content; he had received the answer to all those prayers that he offered for so many years, going from church to church (and Rome has one on every block) and stopping by one more church after work on his way home.

Home? Giuseppi didn’t have a home, a family to go to; he lived at a nursing facility for the elderly. It was about a half-mile away. One would have thought that he could’ve slept over at the monastery, at least during bad weather, for he did have a cot in his office on which he would take his daily siesta. Apparently, he never asked for this favor from the abbot or the prior, nor was it offered, as far as I know.

A few weeks later Giuseppi developed a bad cough. Each day it got worse. He tried to hide the fact that he was not well and he forced himself to be there at the door to say “hello” when we would come in from classes. There was no one on the first floor in the house to hear the worst of his fits. We were on the second floor, and there were a few priests on the third floor, but no one on the first. We knew that he must have had a bad cold, but the fact that he was up and about, at least when the doorbell rang, quieted any concerns that “maybe this old man has pneumonia.”

Maria was very upset when she came in to give us our lesson that week in Italian. “Don’t you realize that this man is gravely ill,” she chided us. “He belongs in a hospital.” She did not leave without telling the prior that Giuseppi needed a doctor right away.

He never got to see a doctor. In fact, he completed his usual work day, and then, around six o’clock, headed out into the night winter air for his half-mile walk to the hospice. And what about us students and seminarians? After our Italian class that day we had gone upstairs to our rooms for study period. Maria had spoken to the father in charge and, good man that he was, we assumed that he had heeded her admonition. I’ll never forget how upset she was that Giuseppi was working at all.

The next morning the prior told us that Giuseppi had collapsed against a wall on the way to the hospice and that he had died. It was a secluded spot where he fell, no streetlights, and, especially in the freezing cold, no strollers. His body wasn’t discovered until the sun rose.

Every Mass, at the Memento for the Dead, I still pray for Giuseppi. I should be praying to him. “For him,” “to him,” he knows what to do with the prayers. He was, by his own admission, “a miserable sinner.” And miserable sinners, when they are as humble as Giuseppi, make great saints.

Email Brian Kelly at bdk@catholicism.org.

A Tribute to Brother Hugh MacIsaac

By Brother Francis, M.I.C.M.

(Note: This was written on the occasion of the death of Brother Hugh, M.I.C.M. (+ July 11, 1979), one of the founding members of our Order, who went to his reward on July 11, 1979. The piece introduced From The Housetops No. 18, which featured the life of Saint John Bosco. Brother Hugh was a real giant of a man who left a deep impression on many souls, and was an intrepid leader at Saint Benedict Center during very difficult times. Brother Francis loved him deeply, and has cherished his memory all these years. We thought it fitting, on the thirtieth anniversary of Brother Hugh’s death, to publish this small tribute in our newsletter. It is especially so inasmuch as its author is now very close to entering eternity himself, where, we hope, he will join his old confrère in beatitude.)

The great apostle of youth in modern times, Saint John Bosco, whose inspiring and most exciting story is the feature of this issue, may be styled “The Saint of Enthusiasm.” But as I present the breathtaking epic to be narrated in the following pages, it is my sad duty to announce to our readers the death of another apostle of enthusiasm, our Superior, Brother Hugh MacIsaac, M.I.C.M., whose last cherished project on earth was to plan this very issue of our magazine, From The Housetops.

Brother Hugh is the one responsible, after God and our protectress in heaven, the Immaculate Mary, for the restoration of this magazine after twenty-five years of interruption; an interruption caused by the Liberal forces within the Church — the very forces that now seem so successful in effecting the demolition of faith and tradition.

Brother Hugh was also our most effective leader in our apostolate to bring the message of faith to all our cities and towns throughout the United States. One wonders how many hundreds, or even thousands, were waiting to meet him on his departure from this vale of tears in the early morning of July 11 of this year — souls who might owe their eternal salvation to the loving and enthusiastic challenge given to them by Brother Hugh during his long apostolate of over thirty years.

“When I go to heaven,” he said recently with his characteristic humor, “after I meet the Holy Family and my patron saint, I’ll ask to see Henry.” Henry was an industrial magnate in Chicago whom Brother Hugh met and sent back to the sacraments a few days before Henry went unexpectedly to meet his Creator.

Another person I am sure was there to welcome him is Professor Augusto Bersani, a leader of the Waldensians [also called the Waldenses]. Brother Hugh labored “with the patience of Job” for twenty-five long years before achieving the conversion of this brilliant man who somehow had wandered into the poisoned pastures of heresy. Professor Bersani finally sent for a priest on his deathbed, and made his peace with God.

I would like to bet that Brother Hugh holds the record for the number of miles on this great country’s highways and byways that he traveled on his own two feet, and also for the number of persons in all walks of life that he confronted with the message of salvation “eyeball to eyeball” (to use one of his favorite expressions) in, one might almost say, every city and town of the United States.

The Waldensian conversion forms another bond with the Italian apostle of enthusiasm, Don Bosco, the hero of this volume. The great saint also labored for the souls of the Waldensians in northern Italy.

And another bond that may be mentioned here is Saint John Bosco’s famous concern for the English-speaking world, the United States in particular. We have always known that in aiming at the conversion of America, we could count on the patronage of Don Bosco; now he will be assisted by his humble devotee, Brother Hugh, a Slave of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

We have been referring to that shining virtue common to these two Catholic apostles under the name of “enthusiasm.” But on the supernatural plane, that virtue should be called “zeal”.

The whole world has been talking about the fiery zeal of Saint John Bosco, and we feel confident that the world will one day be talking about the fiery zeal of our Brother Hugh.

And it is through such zeal, which we think will henceforth become infectious, that we hope to convert America.
“Who is the happiest man? He who loves God most.”
— Brother Hugh, M.I.C.M.

Secrets

By Brother John Marie Vianney

In today’s society, the teaching of the world ignores or obscures things that have been known since the beginning of time. It teaches a pagan philosophy and makes it attractive. It ignores history and emphasizes freedom and pleasure to the detriment of one’s life. This is so true, I dare say, that even the most simple truths are now hidden to the point of being secrets. You, dear reader, likely know of these matters, but I write not only for you, but for those who are in the dark. As a Catholic who knows his duty to convert his fellow man, I encourage you to teach the ignorant and I suggest a path for you to follow that guarantees success. It is up to you to reveal the secrets.
Begin slowly and patiently, as a parent with a child. It will do no good to cast your seed upon soil that is dried out and unprepared to receive the good word. You must first nurture the soil with the simple truths of faith and then wait and see if they take root.

Firstly, tell them that God made them in His image and likeness. Let them know that their soul is wholly unique and singular and that it belongs to a person who will live forever. Next explain that God is all-powerful and they belong to Him. They cannot have a better Friend who wills them only good and will give them His paternal protection. Tell them that everything good that they have in this world is a gift from God. Introduce them to their guardian angels, who will be with them at every moment, at every step of the way, while they are on earth. Assure them that the material things necessary for life will be provided if they “seek first the kingdom of God and His justice” (Matt. 6:33).

Explain how God created Adam and Eve and how He promised a Savior after they fell from grace by disobedience, a Savior so great that His birth would split time into what came before His advent and what came after. Show them that the Savior, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, actually gave up His own life on earth so that men would not perish. “For God so loved the world, as to give his only begotten Son; that whosoever believeth in him, may not perish, but may have life everlasting” (John 3:16). Describe how God acts daily in the lives of men and give examples of His extraordinary manifestations of grace in the lives of the saints and how these great men and women should be emulated.

Describe the place the Savior’s Mother holds in the plan of salvation. Explain to them how God wills that all His graces come through her, as from a mother to her children. Tell them how much Mary loves them and how they should show their fealty to God by offering themselves to her as slaves of love. Explain how the word “slave,” used in this sense of voluntary servitude to Jesus through Mary, is a good offering of filial submission, which devotion God inspired the great saint, Louis de Montfort, to reveal to the world.

Do not be hesitant to present the truth that there is only one way to God, the way Jesus revealed, through the Catholic Church which He established. Make it known to them that all other religions are man-made and can only lead their followers away from the true God. In a thought, give them the Faith, without which no man can ever be saved.

Now you have a plan. It can be put into act as easily as giving a Miraculous Medal to the bank teller who deposits your check, or by explaining what the medal is that you are wearing outside your shirt to the clerk who is checking out your groceries at the supermarket. It could be activated by giving a green scapular to the attorney you meet to help you write your will, or to the doctor who is treating you, or to anyone, anywhere, any time, who manifests a receptive heart by a kind word or gesture. As long as you are doing His will, even while doing the most ordinary of daily occupations, you are where God wants you to be. Don’t disappoint Him by hiding your light under a bushel basket. Try to help save souls. Tell them the secrets.

Email Brother John Marie Vianney at toprefect@catholicism.org.