Crisis Magazine’s Fanatical Ideas and Reasonable Convictions by Dr. Mitchell Kalpakgian will leave you with the conviction that we live in a world rife with fanatics. “In this narrow pursuit of one ruling idea, the fanatic ignores the greater world surrounding him and blinds himself to the rest of reality.” Wouldn’t you agree that today’s society is blinded to all else by its focus on the one ruling idea of, to put it in one word, “self?”
The fourth century martyr’s amazing story is recounted on A Catholic Life, St. Pantaleon. One of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, he is the patron of physicians and midwives. After being raised a Christian by his mother, the saint relapsed in his Faith for a time until brought back by a priest to the truth for which he then gave his life. Surely, Saint Pantaleon is one to whom we should have recourse with great confidence when praying for the return to the Catholic Faith of those who have apostatized.
A very thoughtful post, as always, from The Thinking Housewife, The Garden of the Soul, places the words of Saints Francis de Sales and Teresa of Avila before us as they use the analogy of a garden to demonstrate the attention that we must give to the preservation and development of our souls, a comparison that resonates deeply.
