St Maria Soledad Torres Acosta, S.M

Regnum Christi Spirituality Center Uncle Eddy

Dear Sally,

I’m sorry to hear that you’re still so sick.  I’m not just saying that. It pains me to think of you, the swimmer and dancer and life of the party last year, confined to bed.  You might think that God changed his mind: as if he endowed you with vigor and energy and then simply took it all away. I hope it’s only temporary, but even if it’s as serious as the doctors say, you and I both know that God has his reasons.

Today’s saint should encourage you.  She was one of the founding members of a congregation of nuns started in 1851, in Madrid, Spain.  They were dedicated to serving the sick in their own homes, especially the poor sick, who couldn’t afford to go to hospitals.  When St Soledad entered the convent, she was full of doubts. She had always wanted to lead a life of contemplation, but there was no room in the contemplative convents.  When she heard of Fr Michael Martinez’s new Congregation, the Servants of Mary, she felt a tug in her soul. But at the same time, she knew that serving the sick would be very different from a life of contemplation.  Then it occurred to her that long hours in the sick room with suffering souls would afford her long hours of solitude and quiet in which she could speak with her Lord – the sick rooms could be her cloister. So she became one of the first seven members of the fledgling Order – and the only one of those original seven to persevere.

She had to overcome her horror of dead bodies and her disgust at the festering sores and gross deformations of her charges, but she did.  And under her guidance the Congregation grew and grew. Today it serves the sick in over 21 countries.

Imagine what it was like for her in the early days, when the sisters were poorer than the people they served, sometimes eating only garlic soup for dinner.  Imagine what it was like for her during those long nights tending the sick. What was in her heart? Where did she find the strength to carry on? At one point the anti-clerical governor tried to disband the young Order.  But he soon fell sick himself and asked for one of the sisters to come and take care of him, and the testimony of the nun changed his mind. In the dark hours late at night, maybe she contemplated these mysterious ways of God, maybe she prayed for her work, for her patients, for her own soul…

In any case, perhaps you can imitate her example during your own sickness (may it pass quickly), and turn your bedroom into a cloister.  Fill it with love, and hope, and the light of your beautiful heart and soul, and I am sure our Lord will love to stay with you there. And maybe St Soledad (whose name means “solitude”) will keep you company.

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!