Saint Benedict, father of western monasticism, is rather more known for his life and Rule than for a medal cast in his honor. The history of the image and the exorcism engraved on the medal, as well as the power of that Cross which the holy patriarch bears in his right hand, can be traced back to the eleventh century. Before he became Pope Saint Leo IX, one Bruno of Toul was cured of a mortal sickness after Saint Benedict appeared to him in the very guise we see depicted today on this sacramental. The Sisters of Charity under Saint Vincent de Paul also wore the blessed medal on their rosary. Abbot Gueranger, spiritual son of Saint Benedict, wrote this book to promote this very powerful devotion.
Br. Francis Maluf, M.I.C.M..
This is a book of seventy-two concise meditations each on a different subject. Whether it is an event, as the Day; or a virtue, as Gratitude; or a ravaging infidelity, as Islam; or a person, as Our Lady; our author zeroes in on the topic and, with an amazing depth of understanding, simplifies it in relation to time and eternity. The salient theme throughout Brother Maluf’s daily reflections is that every challenge one experiences in this wayfaring state has the capacity to elevate our human frailty to supernatural heights if we engage it with the magnanimous attitude of confident sons of God.
The words, spoken or written, of a soul that genuinely loves God have a tone to them which always rings true. Couple this truth with literary genius, deep spiritual discernment and childlike simplicity and you are close to describing Father Leonard Feeney, the author of Fish on Friday. These fourteen Catholic essays, Father Feeney’s youthful best, mirror a heart that is as light and humorous as it is religiously profound. Loreto Publications is delighted and proud to put this American Catholic classic back in print. Too many generations have been deprived of Father Feeney’s winsome literary sagacity when his poems and essays were mysteriously removed from Catholic schools on account of his heroic defense of a defined doctrine of the faith. No one can possibly read "Fish on Friday," The Queen of Hearts," "Charlie Maloney," or any of the other eleven essays in this book without frequent bursts of wholesome laughter and (be forewarned) without a welling of those kind of tears that expand the soul. After reading this book one will clearly see that our Lord and 0ur Lady were preparing this priest and theologian all along with superabundant graces to become what he became — one of the greatest apostles of the twentieth century. In the February 17, 1994 issue of Catholic New York, John Cardinal O’ Connor began "An Informal Pastoral on Lent" with this paragraph:
"Long before he ran into a bit of trouble, from which it was obvious that he would recover, given his whimsical sense of humor, Fr. Leonard Feeney, S.J., wrote some of the most delightful things ever published in our land. Fish on Friday was one of the best. It first appeared 60 years ago, and never a Lent goes by without my renewing my friendship with it . . ."
Rev. G. E. Phillips
This history of the Holy House of Loreto is the most decisive work in English defending the authenticity of this most hallowed shrine in all Christendom. Our Lady’s Holy House at Nazareth was taken by angels to Dalmatia (Croatia) in 1291 to prevent its desecration by the infidels. Three years later it took flight again to rest in Loreto, Italy, where it remains. Rev. Phillips provides the facts, and excitement behind the story. Many cures, apparitions, and miraculous conversions, have happened within the limestone walls of the Santa Casa.