St Cirilo Bertrán and Eight Companions, Martyrs of Turón

Regnum Christi Spirituality Center Uncle Eddy

Dear Bert,

If your Compass chapter is really doing its job, you’re not going to be able to avoid a few potholes and speed bumps.  You just have to keep going, that’s all. Don’t get me wrong, you don’t want to be out there looking for opposition, but if it comes to you while you’re engaged in defending Christian values and truth against vociferous ideologues, you can take it as an indication that you’re on the right track.  Didn’t our Lord emphasize that those who are persecuted for righteousness sake are “blessed”? If that’s what’s happening, you can rest assured you are in good company, like that of today’s saints.

Most of them were in their early twenties; St Cirilo was the superior of 7 Christian Brothers working at a school in the mining region of Asturias, Spain.  On the fateful day of their martyrdom they were joined by a Passionist Father who had come to hear confessions – they would be his last. At the time, civil unrest was rampant in Spain.  The freemasons and the communists were dead set on grasping all power in the country and doing away with the Church, among other things. The struggle ended up producing a bloody civil war and a slew of martyrs, something you don’t read about in most USA history books (just as you don’t read about the Cristero war in Mexico in the 1920s, a direct parallel, which also produced scores – if not hundreds – of martyrs).  So one fine day some of these rebels forced their way into the Christian Brothers’ School, right about dawn, took the religious captive, imprisoned them for a time in the “House of the People”, and decided to execute them as enemies of emerging order. All nine martyrs faced death with the courage and serenity of those who had placed their lives in the hands of the Lord of the universe; none compromised their faith or betrayed their King.

I hope you don’t have to face a literal firing squad – at least, not anytime soon, but against the ideological firing squad (which can be even more brutal sometimes, I know) you may be able to derive inspiration from these brave soldiers of Christ.  Remember the old saying: God will NEVER be outdone in generosity.

Your devoted uncle, Eddy

Uncle Eddy Introduces the Saints

Navigating today’s world is tough and all of us could use a nudge in the right direction. Figuring out the right path to take at work, at college, or in social situations is not always easy. Looking to the lives of the saints can give us the insights we need.

Written by Fr. John Bartunek, LC, Uncle Eddy’s Saint of the Day is a fictional series of letters written by a man who has been imprisoned for the Catholic Faith. Using the saints of the day as examples, Uncle Eddy pens a daily letter with spiritual advice to his many nieces and nephews.

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Alex Kucera

Atlanta

Alex Kucera has lived in Atlanta, GA, for the last 46 years. He is one of 9 children, married to his wife Karmen, and has 3 girls, one grandson, and a granddaughter on the way. Alex joined Regnum Christi in 2007. Out of the gate, he joined the Helping Hands Medical Missions apostolate and is still participating today with the Ghana Friendship Mission.

In 2009, Alex was asked to be the Atlanta RC Renewal Coordinator for the Atlanta Locality to help the RC members with the RC renewal process. Alex became a Group Leader in 2012 for four of the Atlanta Men’s Section Teams and continues today. Running in parallel, in 2013, Alex became a Team Leader and shepherded a large team of good men.

Alex was honored to be the Atlanta Mission Coordinator between 2010 to 2022 (12 years), coordinating 5-8 Holy Week Mission teams across Georgia. He also created and coordinated missions at a parish in Athens, GA, for 9 years. Alex continues to coordinate Holy Week Missions, Advent Missions, and Monthly missions at Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Cumming, GA.

From 2016 to 2022, Alex also served as the Men’s Section Assistant in Atlanta. He loved working with the Men’s Section Director, the Legionaries, Consecrated, and Women’s Section leadership teams.

Alex is exceptionally grateful to the Legionaries, Consecrated, and many RC members who he’s journeyed shoulder to shoulder, growing his relationship with Christ and others along the way. He knows that there is only one way, that’s Christ’s Way, with others!