Totus Tuus - Totus 2us

The Incredibles

.. because nothing is impossible to God.

_{Young people talk about their favourite saints: about their incredible lives and the very real help they've been given by their witness and their friendship from heaven.}

_{Music by Crossbeam.}

_{You can subscribe to this Totus2us podcast / download the free mp3s here on itunes or from Totus2us's web feed here. Plus, you can download individual mp3s by right clicking on this diamond symbol  ♦}

Saint Cajetan       ♦

_{Tom,  from the UK: "Why I like St Cajetan is a) because of this reliance on Divine Providence and b) because he's widely known as the helper of people who are unemployed or need jobs or who want to keep their jobs. And he's a great helper in that because his message of Divine Providence is that God will provide. Many, many people have prayed to him, for their jobs, to gain a job, and I think in these times of crisis we should all turn all together with same trust as St Cajetan towards God, just trusting Him that all will be well, however bad it might seem, all will be well. So I really commend to you to say a prayer to St Cajetan and all will be well."}

_{San Gaetano dei Conti di Tiene (1 October 1480 – 7 August 1547) - from Italy. Founder of the Theatines.
Feast day - 7th August}

_{O Glorious St Cajetan, Father of Divine Providence, help all those who are unemployed, who search for employment and who fear for their jobs, lead them towards what they are looking for and pray for us all that we may be courageous in the face of adversity.}

Saint Stephen       ♦

_{Joe, 14 & from the UK: "My favourite saint is St Stephen because he is the patron saint of altar servers and I'm an altar server; so after Mass, I pray to him. He's also my favourite saint because he was the first martyr."}

_{Stephen, the Protomartyr (died c 34) was the first Christian martyr, stoned to death outside the city walls of Jerusalem.
Feast day - 26th December (as close as possible to the birthday of Jesus Christ)}

Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus & the Holy Face  ♦ 

_{Heidi, 31 & from the USA: "St Thérèse is one of my favourite saints because of many reasons but one of the main reasons is her capacity to love. Whenever I think of her, I think of love. She was so loved by her family, growing up, and then as a Carmelite, her love for God and for the Church was so evident. And, as she promised, when she went to heaven she would do good on earth, which is her love for us. And it's apparent the whole time, when you say her novena or at least when I say her novena, I definitely feel her working and feel her intercessions."}

_{Thérèse of Lisieux (2 January 1873 - 30 September 1897 - from France) was a Carmelite nun who died of tuberculosis at the age of 24. In obedience to her Mother Superior she wrote the story of her life, which was published after her death. 'L'histoire d'une âme (Story of a Soul)' became an immediate 'best-seller' & has been read by millions of people since. In 1907 Pope Pius X called her "the greatest saint of modern times". She was canonised in 1925 & declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope John Paul II in 1997 (1 of 3 women Doctors of the Church, with St Teresa of Avila & St Catherine of Siena). In 1927 she was named Co-patron of the Missions with St Francis Xavier &, in 1944, Co-patron of France with St Joan of Arc.
Feast day - 1st October.}

Saint Aloysius Gonzaga    ♦ 

_{Amirah, 12 & from Congo: "One of the saints that inspires me is St Aloysius because he was a rich man and he gave it all up and acted poor just to understand how the poor people felt. So  he wasn't out partying all the time and he was actually considerate of other people. Like, most people take advantage of the amount of money they have, but he didn't do that. Even though he could get everything he wanted, he refused and like shared it all, and that's really inspiring."}

_{Aloysius Gonzaga (born 9th March 1568 - died 21st June 1591) - from Northern Italy, was a Jesuit novitiate. He took the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience, but died before becoming a priest, at the age of just 23. He was beatified only 14 years later by Pope Paul V. In 1726 he was canonized together with another Jesuit novice, Stanislaus Kostka, by Pope Benedict XIII. In 1729 he was also declared Patron Saint of young students and, in 1926, Patron of Christian youth by Pope Pius XI. His tomb is in the Jesuit Church of Sant'Ignazio in Rome.
Feast Day - 21st June}

Saint Augustine     ♦ 

_{Christopher, 17 & from the United States of America: "The way he lived his life proves to all of us that God never gives up on any of us. He didn't have a great life and he spent his money on drinking and women. His mother prayed for him every day and night for ever, so that one day he would share in her faith, and he did and he turned his life all the way around and became one of our great saints."}

_{Augustine of Hippo (13 November 354 - 28 August 430 - from Thagaste, Numidia (now Algeria)) was Bishop of Hippo. He was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Boniface VIII in 1298. His best known works are City of God, Confessions and On Christian Doctrine. Benedict XVI has given 5 catecheses about him. 
Feast Day - 28th August}

Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe      ♦ 

_{Gavin, 25 & a seminarian from England: "Maximilian Kolbe was a fantastic man who was a Franciscan priest and it was his passion to spread the Good News throughout the world. This saw him setting up a printing press in Poland and going as far as Japan to spread the Good News of the Gospel. During the Nazi regime that took hold, he was arrested and sent to Auschwitz for speaking out about human dignity. While he was at Auschwitz he continued to live that Gospel message of spreading truth and love. And he really did show hope where there was despair, he showed love where there was hatred. In his time at Auschwitz he would listen to confessions, where possible; he would celebrate Mass, when possible, and he lived a truly devout and holy life. He always had a massive passion for Our Lady as well and took her role as true disciple to heart. Father Maximilian Kolbe was a man who, through his passion for the Gospel, gave his life for another man in Auschwitz."}

_{Maximilian Maria Kolbe OFM Conv (8 January 1894 – 14 August 1941 - from Poland) was a Franciscan friar who was killed in Auschwitz during the Second World War. He was beatified in 1971 by Pope Paul VI & canonized on 10 October 1982 by Blessed John Paul II as a "martyr of charity", being described as the "Patron Saint of Our Difficult Century".
Feast Day - 14th August}

Saint Benedict       ♦   ♦

_{Sylvester, 16 & from Austria, gives his response in English & German: "I read a book about St Benedict and I was very interested and impressed by what he did; how he was able to communicate with God. He had such a strong faith that he was able to really understand what God wanted out of him and thereby really enabled great things to happen. Many of his monasteries still exist today, including Monte Cassino, and the Benedictine monks are around the world and their work is great."}

_{Benedict of Norcia (480–547, from Umbria in Italy) was the founder of the Benedictines; he died at Monte Cassino. He was canonized in 1220 by Pope Honorius III.
He is 1 of the Patron Saints of Europe (along with Saints Cyril and Methodius).
Feast day - 11th July}

Saint Dominic Savio       ♦ 

_{Richard, a seminarian from England: "He was an Italian boy, who with the salesians was under the direction of St John Bosco. He died at the age 14 but the reason why he was canonised was his life of virtue and resisting peer pressure .. He had a strong will and loved Jesus and Mary, and dedicated himself to them and so with their grace he was able to resist temptations .. He is a really great example of how one can put one's hands into Our Lord's and trust in Him to keep one pure and free from sin."}

_{Dominic Savio (2 April 1842 - 9 March 1857, from Turin in Italy). For his "heroic virtue" in his everyday life (documented in St John Bosco's biography, The Life of Dominic Savio), Pope Pius XII canonised him on June 12, 1954.
Feast day - 6th May}

Saint Nicholas Owen       ♦ 

_{Richard, who's 25 and a seminarian from England: "He is one of the 40 martyrs of England and Wales. He was a lay brother of the Jesuit order and built priest holes in recusant houses so that priests could be harboured in them - they could celebrate Mass there and escape into these holes when a raid happened. Arguably he's one of the saints that kept the faith alive in England, the key man really because if it wasn't for these holes then lots of priests would have been arrested .. He died whilst being tortured on a rack.. I think he's an inspiring character."}

_{Nicholas Owen (died 1606, from England) was a Jesuit lay brother. He was first arrested in 1582/3, after the execution of Edmund Campion, for publicly proclaiming Edmund's innocence, but was later released. He was arrested again in 1594 and, although tortured, revealed nothing. He was released after a wealthy Catholic family paid a fine on his behalf, the jailers believing that he was merely the insignificant friend of some priests. He resumed his work, and is believed to have masterminded the escape of Jesuit Father John Gerard from the Tower of London in 1597. He was arrested a final time in 1606 at Hindlip Hall, giving himself up voluntarily in the hope of distracting attention from some priests hiding nearby. Despite gruesome torture he revealed nothing to his inquisitors. He was canonized as 1 of the 40 Martyrs of England and Wales by Pope Paul VI on 25 October 1970.
Feast day - 25th October}

Saint Catherine of Siena       ♦ 

_{Frankie, who's 33 and a seminarian from England: "My incredible is St Catherine who was from Siena in Italy and she was quite an extraordinary lady. She was famous for saying: 'If you are what you are meant to be, you will set the whole world ablaze.' St Catherine certainly lived that message in her life even though she died at just 33. Catherine was a lay lady who was a Third Order of the Dominicans; she never quite joined an Order because she felt that God was telling her that He had plenty of work for her to do in the world. One of the most famous stories about Catherine is that she travelled to France to see Pope Gregory XI who at that time resided in Avignon and it was through Catherine exhorting him energetically that he effectively moved back to take his proper chair of Peter back in Rome, and she did this through a prophecy she had for him. She said to him: "Fulfill what you have promised to God.'"}

_{Catherine of Siena (25 March 1347 - 29 April 1380, from Italy) was a tertiary of the Dominican Order, and a Scholastic philosopher and theologian. Pius XII made her joint Patron Saint of Italy (along with St Francis of Assisi); Paul VI proclaimed her a Doctor of the Church in 1970 (along with St Teresa of Ávila) & Blessed John Paul II made her 1 of Europe's Patron Saints in 1999. You can visit her tomb at the Ciesa di Santa Maria sopra Minerva in Rome (her sarcophagus is beneath the high altar).
Feast day - 29th April}

Saint John the Disciple       ♦

_{Noelita, who's 26 & from England: "The saint who is very special to me is John the Disciple, I think for 3 reasons: the first being he was the youngest of all the disciples and he had a strong faith from a young age, which is something I felt I could resonate with, so somebody I could turn to and talk to in my youth, as a young person. The second thing is I've always admired how, when everyone else deserted him at the Cross, how he was there and how he managed to find the strength to keep his faith and to be there for Our Lord in his moment of weakness and pain is something I have always admired. And the third is the Last Supper, the idea of when he rested his head on Jesus's breast, the idea of how he surrendered his intellect, almost his mind, to be absorbed completely next to Jesus's heart which has always made me think how he surrendered his mind to his heart and to give his love completely to Jesus."}

Saint Francis of Assisi       ♦ 

_{Tom, who's 29 & from London: "I have been really caught up with St Francis of Assisi since being a teenager. One of the ways that I was inspired by him is the way that he tried to follow in the footsteps of Christ in 3 different areas: through the Incarnation, through the Cross and through the Eucharist. The Incarnation of Christ coming to us as a child, and the way he held the manger up to people, but also how God is in the world in the face of our neighbour, in creation, and is to praised in all things. The cross for St Francis was the centre part of his following of Christ, of taking up the cross, of that complete outpouring of love; so much so, that he talked about carrying the cross on his own back and he actually received the wounds of Christ on his own body, he was so enveloped in the passion of Christ. And the Eucharist for St Francis was the most important thing about is spirituality, about his relationship with Jesus, that meeting in the Eucharist which has been given to the Church and that wonderful opportunity of communion with Christ each day. And for me there are 3 simple words that sum that spirituality: blessed, broken and given - and that is what St Francis means to me."}

_{St Francis of Assisi (1181/2 - 3 October 1226, from Italy) founded the Franciscan Order and helped St Clare found the Order of St Clare. In 1223 he arranged for the first Christmas manger scene and in 1224 he received the stigmata (the 1st person known to have borne the wounds of Christ's passion). Thanks to his visit to Egypt and attempted rapprochement with the Muslim world, after the fall of the Crusader Kingdom it was the Franciscans who were allowed to stay on in the Holy Land and became recognised as the 'Custodians of the Holy Land' on behalf of Christianity. Pope Gregory IX pronounced Francis a saint on 16th July 1228. He is patron saint of Italy along with St Catherine of Siena.
Feast day - 4th October.}

Saint Pius X       ♦  

_{Andrew, who's 23 & from Wales: "Pius X died in 1914 at the time of the First World War. He couldn't comprehend the notion of Catholic fighting against Catholic and often seminarian being forced to fight against seminarian, whether they were German or English - that notion couldn't gel with his mind. He was said to have even prayed that God would accept him as a sacrifice, if to prevent the war. So we could say that he died of a broken heart almost."}

_{Pope St Pius X (2 June 1835 - 20 August 1914, from Italy) was the 257th Pope, serving from 1903 to 1914 (after Pope Leo XIII). He had a great love for Mary; in his encyclical Ad Diem Illum Laetissimum he wrote of renewing all things in Christ and that there was no surer or more direct road than by Mary. Pius X was canonised in 1954 by Pius XII who called him the "Pope of the Eucharist".}

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux       ♦

_{Erin-Thérèse, who's 28 & from America: "You never hear a phrase from Saint Thérèse that doesn't include the word 'love'. Her little way is to do small things with great love. Her motto was 'Love is repaid by love alone.' In speaking about God, she said 'I do not regret having given myself up to love.' This was her way of abandoning herself to God. She was in love with God, because she was in love with love. Even her last words were 'My God, I love you.'"}

_{Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face (2 January 1873 - 30 September 1897, from France) was a Carmelite nun in Lisieux who, in obedience, wrote her memoir 'The Story of a Soul'. She was canonized in 1925 and declared co-patron of the missions with St Francis Xavier in 1927, and co-patron of France with St Joan of Arc in 1944. In 1997, Pope John Paul II declared her a Doctor of the Church.}

Saint Dominic       ♦

_{Piers, 30 & from England: "St Dominic combined the spiritual with the intellectual, he brought that into the order that he founded [the Order of Preachers - Dominicans], so he and his followers were able to defend the faith at a time when there was the Albigensian heresy. It was a terrible heresy, some ways slightly similar to the culture of death today, but he managed through developing prayer and study, to defeat this great heresy."}

_{Dominic de Guzmán (1170 - 6 August 1221, from Spain) was the founder of the Dominicans (Order of Preachers). He was canonized by Pope Gregory IX in 1234. He is the patron saint of astronomers.
Feast Day - 8th August}

Saint Nikolaos       ♦

_{Markus, from Germany: "St Nicholas is important to me because of all the works he did and the wonders he worked. He was the bishop of Myra, and he was famous for helping the poor and giving in a very secret way .. Thinking about St Nicholas is about this saint who did something very secretly, with lots of love and was happy that the honour for what was done was given to God."
(You can listen to Markus's response in English or German.)}

_{Nikolaos (from 4th Century AD) was Bishop of Myra (in Lycia, now part of Turkey). He is the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, thieves, children, and students in Greece, Belgium, France, Romania, Bulgaria, Georgia, Albania, Russia, the Republic of Macedonia, Slovakia, Serbia, and Montenegro. He is also the patron saint of Aberdeen, Amsterdam, Barranquilla, Bari, Beit Jala, Fribourg, Huguenots, Liverpool, Siggiewi, and Lorraine. He was also a patron of the Varangian Guard of the Byzantine emperors, who protected his relics in Bari.
Feast Day - 6th December}

Saint Margaret Clitherow       ♦

_{Philip, 25 & a seminarian from England: "St Margaret was a wife and mother, martyred in 16th century York for helping Catholic priests in their mission to convert England back to the Catholic faith. She had a priest hole in her home and another elsewhere in York where she could hide priests so that local Catholics could receive the Sacraments. She was executed on 25th March 1586 by being squashed by a wooden board with heavy stones on it. She inspires me because she gave her life for the protection of priests, or, as I heard a priest put it recently in a homily, she died so that I could celebrate the Sacraments."}

_{Margaret Clitherow (1556 - 25 March 1586, from England) was beatified by Pope Pius II in 1929 and canonised, along with other martyrs from England & Wales, by Pope Paul VI on 25 October 1970.}

Saint Thomas More       ♦

_{John, from England: "I chose St Thomas More as my confirmation name and this was because I had watched the film, Man for All Seasons, and I was very inspired by his honesty and his openness to God, and where he was willing to give his life for the truth. I love the scene where his best friend, the Duke of Norfolk, comes to him and asks him to sign the Act of Succession, which would save his life, for friendship's sake. And he says to the Duke of Norfolk, 'When we get to heaven and you're allowed to stay because you've done your conscience and I'm going to hell because I haven't done my conscience, would you take my hand and come to hell with me for friendship's sake?' I really felt that was where someone was willing to stand up, against even his friends, for truth and for Christ."}

_{Thomas More (7 July 1478 - 6 July 1535, from England) was beatified by Pope Leo XIII in 1886 and canonised, with Bishop John Fisher, by Pope Pius XI on 19 May 1935. In 2000, Pope John Paul II declared St Thomas More the heavenly patron of statesmen and politicians: "The life and martyrdom of Saint Thomas More have been the source of a message which spans the centuries and which speaks to people everywhere of the inalienable dignity of the human conscience, which, as the Second Vatican Council reminds us, is "the most intimate centre and sanctuary of a person, in which he or she is alone with God, whose voice echoes within them". Whenever men or women heed the call of truth, their conscience then guides their actions reliably towards good. Precisely because of the witness which he bore, even at the price of his life, to the primacy of truth over power, Saint Thomas More is venerated as an imperishable example of moral integrity. And even outside the Church, particularly among those with responsibility for the destinies of peoples, he is acknowledged as a source of inspiration for a political system which has as its supreme goal the service of the human person."}

Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina       ♦

_{Niall, from England: "When I was growing up I had a lot of fear in my heart and, because for me it was normal, I didn't realise it could be any different. But as I started to pray I started to realise that God didn't want that, I remember I came across something that Padre Pio had said: 'Fear is a greater evil than evil itself.' In other words it's fear that stops us from being alive, it's fear that stops us from reallly enjoying the life that God has given us. And I always remember the words 'He is a good friend' because I really believe the saints aren't just people for us to admire and imitate, they're much more than that, they are actually friends and we shouldn't be afraid to speak to them like we would to a friend. And the love they have for us is so warm and so sincere and so compassionate .. For me, Padre Pio would be that, like a friend, I know that I can ask him for help, and I know that he is someone who suffered and who understands. He said a beautiful thing to his spiritual children: that when he got to heaven, he wouldn't go in, he'd hold the door open for them."}

_{Padre Pio OFM (25 May 1887 - 23 September 1968, from Italy) was canonised on 16th June 2002 by Pope John Paul II: "The life and mission of Padre Pio prove that difficulties and sorrows, if accepted out of love, are transformed into a privileged way of holiness, which opens onto the horizons of a greater good, known only to the Lord. Is it not, precisely, the "glory of the Cross" that shines above all in Padre Pio? How timely is the spirituality of the Cross lived by the humble Capuchin of Pietrelcina. Our time needs to rediscover the value of the Cross in order to open the heart to hope."}