SAINT OF THE DAY
WITH UNCLE EDDY
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, 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.
St John Leonardi
Dear Leon, I don’t know why you are so discouraged by those difficulties you mention in your note. I would rather say that you should be glad about them. Any time we undertake some kind of work of evangelization, the quick appearance of obstacles is the most positive of signs: it means that the devil is worried about it and wants to nip it in the bud. Take today’s saint, for example. John was from the town of Lucca in central Italy. He was a pharmacist’s apprentice, but felt called to serve God and the Church. He began studies for ...
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St John Leonardi
Dear Leon, I don’t know why you are so discouraged by those difficulties you mention in your note. I would rather say that you should be glad about them. Any time we undertake some kind of work of evangelization, the quick appearance of obstacles is the most positive of signs: ...
St Pelagia the Penitent
Dear Penny, I just got a panicky note from your twin sister, who is extremely anxious about the state of your soul. I realize that she tends to overreact, but some of the things she mentioned are worth going over a bit, even though I need to be quick about ...
Our Lady of the Rosary
Dear Rose, I received a visit today from your guardian angel, who informed me that lately you have “opted out” of your commitment to pray the rosary (or at least a decade of it) every day. I do so dislike being the heavy hand among you and your cousins, but ...
St Bruno
Dear Bruce, I am quite exasperated with you. Your sister (God will bless her for it) has kept me duly informed of your deplorable dissipation in recent weeks. Why must you tempt Providence with your repeated relapses into dissolute living? I can only conclude that God has huge plans for ...
St Galla
Dear Gladys, Here’s a thought experiment for you: imagine that you are lying in bed dying from cancer. You can’t sleep because of the pain. Suddenly St Peter appears to you at the foot of the bed. He’s looking right at you, as if waiting for you to say something. ...
St Francis of Assisi
Dear Fran, You’ll never become a mature Christian (or a mature person, for that matter) if you don’t learn to control your emotions. I don’t mean eliminate them; I don’t mean repress them; I mean control them, train them, the way you control a powerful horse with a bridle and ...
St Hesychius
Dear Zeke, You probably feel so frazzled because you aren’t taking any time to spend alone with God in reflection, prayer, and silence. If you don’t make a point of doing so at least every week (better to do it for a little while every day, but you can work ...
Feast of the Guardian Angels
Dear Godfrey, When was the last time you thanked God for your guardian angel? When was the last time you thanked your guardian angel? When was the last time you asked your guardian angel for a favor? … I can hear you stammering for an answer halfway across the globe. ...
St Thérèse of the Child Jesus
Dear Therese, God is not a grim examiner, or a scorekeeper, or a statistician; he is your Father. To fall into discouragement and anxiety because of your sins and imperfections is not at all the way to please him. He is pleased by your love. He is pleased by your ...
St Jerome
Dear Jerry, All those temptations you mention in your note are quite normal, and you should be careful not to exaggerate their importance. Becoming obsessed with your spiritual battles is a tricky kind of egoism. Absence of temptation is not at all a sign of great spiritual progress (our Lord ...
St Michael, St Gabriel, St Raphael
Dear Angela, It sounds a bit like you have put your spiritual life on automatic pilot. That’s understandable, considering how many other things you have going on. Understandable, but not acceptable. It’s exactly what the devil wants you to do: fall into routine. You “say your prayers,” “go to Mass,” ...
St Wenceslaus of Bohemia
Dear Wendy, If you continue “being good” just in order to win praise and acclaim from your peers, you are doomed to frustration and anxiety. You cannot please everyone – to please some you will have to defy others, to please them you would have to defy the former. As ...
