The Saint we honored during the August First Saturday Rosary for Peace was a great Marian Saint; an example of someone who allowed Our Lady's holy influence in his life guide him in attaining exceptional virtue. That Saint was St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe.
For those not familiar with St. Maximilian, in a nutshell, he was a Polish Franciscan Priest who devoted his life to evangelizing for the Catholic Faith, via a written publication apostolate he founded called the "Militia Immaculata". As a child, he had a powerful spiritual experience during which the Blessed Virgin appeared to him holding two crowns: a white one representing Purity; a red one for Martyrdom. Our Lady invited him to choose a crown and the future priest asked for both.
The prophetic symbolism of the two crowns was later fulfilled by the edifying manner in which St. Maximilian lived and by the admirable manner in which he died. You see... he was executed in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp by the Nazis, in August 1941, after he willingly switched places with a family man who was condemned to die.
There are so many "layers" of faith-lessons to be gleaned from the life of St. Maximilian Kolbe, but the points I chose to emphasize to the people who came to pray this month was the Saint's love for Mary and his heroic spirit of charity; that we, too, through our personal devotion to the Holy Virgin, could attain a measure of holiness and increase within ourselves, through her guidance, the virtue of Charity. So as we prayed the Holy Rosary this evening, we did so in the spirit of sincere giving... offering our prayer for the entire world to find the Peace that only God can give us.
An actual photo of St. Maximilian Kolbe,
a "Martyr of Charity"... and rare relics from
the Saint's beard & habit that we had the
privilege of venerating tonight.
Our next monthly gathering at St. Anthony of Padua Church will be held on Saturday, September 6th, beginning at 4:25pm in the parish's Day Chapel. Mass follows in the main church at 5:00pm. All are welcome to participate.
"Greater love than this no
man hath, that a man lay down
his life for his friends."
~ Words of Jesus Christ,
John 15:13
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