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Wednesday, September 10, 2025
SEPTEMBER 10 Wednesday
The Beatification of
the Ulmas-World Suicide Prevention
Hebrews, Chapter 11, Verse 27
Moses was a warrior who was led by faith to
serve the one who is invisible. Although as the adopted son of pharaoh he could
have had the power of Egypt, yet he chose to follow Him who is. Moses was a
righteous man. A righteous man is one who leads a life that is pleasing to God.
I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your
rod and your staff comfort me. (Ps. 23:4)
Faith helps a warrior to focus himself and
conserve the warrior energy for where it is most effective. Ponder the fact
that Christ at any moment could have chosen to fight and the results would have
been the defeat of the Romans and the loss of man.
Resting with your Cross[1]
William Johnson a Jesuit writer suggests that
we must stay with our painful experiences and summit ourselves to the “Prayer
of the Suffering.” He suggests one must simply sit and accept one’s cross,
accept it totally, unreservedly whether it is physical, emotional, mental or
spiritual. It is the prayer of silent acceptance. The pain is not a distraction
but the substance of our prayer. One unites one’s suffering with that of Jesus
on the cross: for the salvation of the world or for particular people. The cross
may arise from the ache of loneliness, the torment of betrayal, failure, fear of dying or the loss of one’s good
name. Whatever the cause; Sit with it, don’t run away; don’t try to escape.
Don’t fight. Sit with your cross.
Copilot’s
Take
🕯️
Commentary on September 10
The Beatification of the Ulmas & World
Suicide Prevention Day
The reflection on Hebrews 11:27 offers a
compelling meditation on faith as fearless fidelity. Moses, who abandoned the
power and privilege of Egypt to follow the invisible God, becomes a spiritual
archetype of righteous courage. His decision to forsake worldly strength in
favor of divine obedience mirrors the witness of the Ulma family, beatified for
sheltering persecuted Jews during World War II. Their martyrdom—parents,
children, and unborn child—stands as a luminous testament to mercy over
self-preservation.
The pairing of this beatification with World
Suicide Prevention Day is providential. It draws attention to the sanctity of
life, especially in its most vulnerable expressions. The Ulmas’ home became a
sanctuary of compassion, a “domestic church” where love was chosen over fear.
Their story speaks directly to those who suffer silently, proclaiming that life
is sacred, suffering can be redemptive, and presence matters.
The reflection’s invocation of Psalm 23—“I will
fear no evil, for you are with me”—anchors this courage not in defiance but in
divine companionship. It reframes spiritual strength as disciplined presence,
not conquest. Even Christ, who could have fought and won, chose instead the
Cross, lest humanity be lost. This is warriorhood redefined: not by domination,
but by sacrificial restraint.
The meditation deepens with the inclusion of
Jesuit William Johnston’s “Prayer of the Suffering.” Pain is not treated as a
distraction but as the very substance of prayer. Whether born of loneliness,
betrayal, or loss, suffering becomes an altar of intercession. To sit with the
cross—without fleeing, fighting, or numbing—is to enter into Gethsemane. This
posture of silent acceptance transforms agony into offering, and isolation into
solidarity.
Together, these themes form a liturgical arc: a
call to live faithfully, suffer sacramentally, and love invisibly. The
reflection becomes not just a meditation, but a spiritual itinerary—one that
invites others to walk with Moses, pray with Christ, and stand with the Ulmas
in quiet, courageous fidelity.
The
Beatification of the Ulmas.[2]
The beatification of nine members of a single
family!
Written by: Kelly
Dudek, Poland
Józef and Wiktoria
were a couple of modest means living in a Polish village Markowa. Despite his
limited formal education, Józef was amazingly skillful: able farmer and fruit
grower, award-winning breeder of bees and silkworms, bookbinder, constructor of
a domestic power station. With a home library of over 300 books, he read a lot
and had a wide range of interests. One of his passions was photography, an
extraordinary thing in his time, even more so since his first camera was of his
own making. Wiktoria received basic schooling and attended courses at a folk
high school. She was a performer at the village amateur theatre, reportedly
cast as Mary in the Nativity play. When she married Józef, she dedicated
herself entirely to family life.
Faith was vital at
the Ulma home. A relative recalled that she would see Józef kneeling at the end
of the day, his wife and children joining him to pray together. In their Bible
they underlined the title of the Good Samaritan parable and wrote on the margin:
YES. Like Mary’s fiat, this one word speaks volumes.
Their story shows how
they took to heart Jesus’ answer to the question,
“Who is my neighbor?”
(Lk 10:29.) In 1939, Germany and Russia invaded Poland, having secretly
divided the country between them (Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact.) Germans made Poland
the center of their “death industry” creating death camps like Auschwitz and
introducing criminal legislation unprecedented in other occupied lands. Nowhere
else was there death penalty for the entire family whose member dared to help a
Jew in any way. The occupants clearly expected opposition since Poles and Jews
had lived on that land together for a thousand years, despite various winds of
history.
In 1942, the Ulmas
gave shelter to two Jewish families. German authorities learned about it and
stormed the house at night. In a matter of moments, all three families were
murdered, parents and children alike, including Wiktoria’s seventh child whose
birth had just begun.
God sends us saints when we most need them. The threefold lesson from the
Ulmas comes as family values are attacked, the Gospel is ridiculed, and the
state of historical memory in western Europe provokes a repetition of war
horrors (see Ukraine.) Thankfully, family is still a priority for many people
in Poland including the government, and the Gospel rooted in Polish hearts
inspired many
to shelter millions
of Ukrainian refugees recently. But this is far from enough, so Józef and
Wiktoria with their children come to encourage us all by their heroic example.
Blessed Ulmas Family, Pray for Us!
World Suicide Prevention Day[3]
There’s been a rising epidemic in the
US, and that epidemic is suicide. If we don’t know someone who had committed
suicide, it’s almost certain that we know someone who has attempted it. Suicide
is a problem that affects all age groups, genders, and social strata, and it
seems sometimes to be utterly inescapable. World Suicide Prevention Day raises
awareness about this tragic issue and works to prevent it through education and
support of those who struggle with suicidal ideation every day. It’s a tragic
situation, with the death toll coming in at 42,773 people committing suicide
each year in the United States alone, and for each one of those 25 people made
the attempt. Over the world it’s even greater, an estimated 800,000 people
commit suicide each year throughout the world, which is one every 40 seconds.
What’s incredible is that just like the US statistic, it’s estimated that 25
times that attempt it, 4 million people over the world every year. There’s
something of a ripple down effect that happens as well, those bereaved by the
loss of a loved one to suicide are themselves more likely to commit suicide.
Divine Mercy After Suicide[4]by Chris Alar
My grandmother, Mary Alar, was a special lady. My father told many stories about her, including how her family removed her from school in the sixth grade so she could work as a maid to help support them. Then, two days before her wedding day, her fiancé́ was killed in an auto accident. Later, she met my grandfather, but her life was still quite difficult. By 1993, she was suffering greatly — emotionally, spiritually, and physically. It became unbearable for her. At the time, I was finishing college and didn’t even know how much pain my grandmother was enduring. In a shock to me, my grandmother committed suicide on Father’s Day. Ten years later, I told my confessor that I was not “there for her” — even at the funeral. I mean, I was there physically, but not emotionally or spiritually. I was so concerned about my degree, my job, my new home, and my girlfriend, that I don’t even remember praying for her. I told him that this bothered me, because my grandmother had already been judged by God, and I missed my opportunity to pray for her and help her. What I really feared most arose from something I’d heard long ago about the Church teaching that if you commit suicide, you automatically go to hell.
Then the priest did something that changed
my life.
He said, “Go home tonight and pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for the salvation of your grandmother’s soul. This is an incredibly powerful prayer.” I had never heard of the Chaplet. I said, “Huh? Father, she’s already been judged, so it’s too late. She died 10 years ago! She’s in Heaven (I hope) or hell (I hope not). At best, my prayers might relieve some of her time in Purgatory, if she even made it that far, but her eternal fate has already been determined. There is nothing that can be done about that now.” He said, “Look, God is outside of time. There is no past or future for God, but only one big eternal present moment. God sees everything at one instant. From the beginning of time to the end of the world, He sees it all instantaneously without compromising our free will. How do you think that the Virgin Mary was immaculately conceived?” I said, “By the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.” He said, “Yes, but how could Mary be immaculately conceived by these merits when Jesus hadn’t even been born yet? Because God is outside of time. Your prayers are eternal, and the graces given by God from those prayers, because He is not constrained by space or time, can go in any direction: past, present, or future. Christ’s sacrifice is eternally present before the Father, and so are our prayers if we unite them to the Cross of Christ.”
I sat there shaking my head, saying, “Wow, Father, this is amazing.” But I still wasn’t totally getting it. It sounded too good to be true. He continued, “Think of it this way, Chris. God knew back in 1993 that you would be here today, in 2003, and tonight you would pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for your grandmother’s soul. And since God is so merciful, so loving, He will put those prayers into the hands of Mary, the Mediatrix of All Graces, and He will allow those prayers from today to be carried back in Mary’s hands and showered over your grandmother’s soul back in 1993, at the moment of her judgment, to help her.”
He continued, “You see, suicide is a grave sin, and she will need all the help she can get. So, with God’s grace, through your prayers, she may be better able to say ‘yes’ to God.” (That is why John Paul II called each of us “mini co-redeemers” — because we can share in Christ’s act of redemption).
The priest added, “In the Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, she records that Jesus visited the despairing soul three times to save it from hell (Diary, 1486), so we can infer that the souls of our loved ones have the chance to repent, say ‘yes’ to Him, and be saved.”
I said, “Father, we’re good here then, because there’s no way my grandmother will not say ‘yes’ to Jesus when she sees Him. This is awesome! Thank you, Father. Have a great day.”
Blinded by sin.
He stopped me: “Hold on — there’s a problem. You said she had fallen away from the Church. Do you know if she received the Sacraments?”
“I don’t know,” I replied.
“The problem,” he said, “is your grandmother, for whatever reason, may have turned her back on God. If this is the case, she may not recognize Jesus when He comes.”
“Oh, man,” I said. “I thought all was good, but now I am worried that she could be lost because she might not recognize Jesus, and therefore be unable to say ‘yes’ to Him!”
“You didn’t let me finish,” he said. “She may not recognize Him without your prayers. But with your prayers, she will be given more grace through intercessory prayer allowed by the mercy of God. That is why Mary said at Fatima that there are many souls lost to hell … because there is nobody to pray for them! Your prayers are like a squadron of dive bombers coming in from 2003, to aid in the war being fought for her soul back in 1993. They are coming in on the hands of Mary, back to your grandmother during her personal judgment (again, because God is outside of time). The graces from these Chaplets you pray for her may be enough grace for her to turn around and say ‘yes’ to God when otherwise she wouldn’t be able to.”
The priest went
on, “What happens when we sin and turn our backs on God? We put a veil between
God and ourselves, blurring our vision of Him. But your prayers can help to
lift that veil so that your grandmother may see God more clearly, and she has a
much better chance of recognizing God for who He is. But remember, she has to
say “yes” — you cannot say “yes” for her. But you can certainly help. This is
the whole point of intercessory prayer.”
My confessor continued, “Your grandmother is like a wounded soldier who cannot help herself as she lies on the battlefield, in danger of death. Your prayers come in like a fellow soldier, putting her on your shoulders, and taking her to safety. Now, she still has to cooperate and let you assist her, and she needs to have the will to live. That choice is hers. But your prayers, Chris, can offer her the help at the moment of her judgment to determine if she survives or not — meaning salvation.”
I said, “Father, this is absolutely amazing.”
Hope for those who’ve committed suicide.
I said, “I heard that the Church says that those who commit suicide are condemned to hell and lost forever.” He said, “The Church doesn’t teach that.” What does the Church say about suicide? The Catechism tells us:
Grave psychological disturbances, anguish, or grave fear of hardship, suffering, or torture can diminish the responsibility of the one committing suicide. We should not despair of the eternal salvation of persons who have taken their own lives. By ways known to him alone, God can provide the opportunity for salutary repentance. The Church prays for persons who have taken their own lives (2282- 2283; emphasis added).
“So, there is hope!” the priest said. “The Church says that we entrust these people to the mercy of God. So, your prayers even now, 10 years later, can make a difference. And the Chaplet of Divine Mercy is one of the most powerful prayers you can offer for someone in dire need of God’s mercy.”
We then talked about a relative who had died after 20 years in which we all prayed for a conversion — and this person never converted, never came back to the Church. I told the priest that my dad said, “Well, there’s 20 years of prayer wasted.”
Is that true? No! Again, he referenced St. Faustina’s Diary, and this added the final straw to the proverbial camel’s back that was my former life. I was now changed forever.
Saint Faustina wrote:
God’s mercy sometimes touches the sinner at the last moment in a wondrous and mysterious way. Outwardly it seems as if everything were lost. [This is what it looked like for my grandmother.] But it is not so. The soul illuminated by a ray of God’s powerful final grace turns to God in the last moment with such a power of love that, in an instant, it receives from God forgiveness of sin and punishment, while outwardly it shows no sign either of repentance or of contrition, because souls [at that stage] no longer react to external things. Oh, how beyond comprehension is God’s mercy! … Although a person is at the point of death, the merciful God gives the soul that interior vivid moment, so that if the soul is willing, it has the possibility of returning to God (Diary, 1698).
Share God’s Mercy
I broke down in
disbelief. I said, “Father, we have a God so merciful, so loving, so generous,
that He will allow my grandma this chance for salvation? And He will allow me
to still help her even though I missed my chance so many years ago?”
He said, “Yes,
this is the power of the Chaplet, even for those who have taken their own life
or who have died years ago.”
He made it clear
that a soul cannot be removed from hell — this is Church teaching. What he
was saying, however, is that as part of the Mystical Body of Christ, we can aid
in each other’s salvation through our prayers. As Jesus told St. Faustina, “Help Me, My daughter, to save souls. Join
your sufferings to My Passion and offer them to the heavenly Father for
sinners” (Diary, 1032).
I said, “Father, I
need to spend the rest of my life spreading this message of God’s Divine
Mercy.”
Now, this message is the foundation of my priesthood.
So, if you have ever known someone who appeared to be a lost soul, especially those who committed suicide, don’t give up! There is hope! You can help, and this is all possible because we are members of the Body of Christ.
Pray for the dead!
Therefore, I ask
you all to pray for your loved ones who have died, even if they’ve died 10, 20,
or 50 years ago. We should never conclude that a soul is definitely lost. As
Jesus said to St. Faustina, “There
are moments and there are mysteries of the divine mercy over which the heavens
are astounded. Let our judgment of souls cease, for God’s mercy upon them is
extraordinary” (Diary, 1684).
Jesus, I trust in You!
Quiet Day[1]
Noise
is everywhere, on the crowded train, in the busy office, in the pub, the school
playground, and even at home. We simply can’t seem to get away from the buzz of
everyday life. Sometimes it’s just all too much. We know that peace and quiet
are good for the both the body and the mind, but it’s increasingly difficult in
today’s world to experience real quiet, and that’s why a National Quiet Day is
so important.
” Everything that’s created comes out of
silence. Your thoughts emerge from the nothingness of silence. Your words come
out of this voice. Your very essence emerged from emptiness. All creativity
requires some stillness.”
~ Wayne Dyer
Every
day we are surrounded by the chatter of TV, the radio, even our friends and
family. Few are the opportunities we have to engage in a little quiet
contemplation, giving our vocal chords a rest to simply listen to the world
around us and simply experience it. Quiet Day is dedicated to taking a little
time to free your voice and mind from the rigors of conversation.
History of Quiet Day
Quiet
Day was established to remind us to slow down and give silence a chance. During
this celebration, you are encouraged to simply not speak, and preferably to
take a chance to not communicate at all. The sounds of our voices, and in fact
our active interaction with others has served to keep us spiritually silent and
separated from the world around us, and in some odd ways from the very people
we interact with every day. Quiet Day allows you to engage the world around you
by removing the shield that is the wall of words we use every day. In India,
there are meditation retreats where time is spent kneeling and in
contemplation, sometimes as many as 10 days in succession. These are called
Vipassana retreats, a word which means “to see things as they really are” and
comes from ancient Buddhist practices. While Quiet Day is just one day, the
principles included in these retreats can be applied to your one Day of
Silence. The peace and clarity it can bring has the possibility of opening your
mind to things about your life that have long since been buried in verbal
noise.
How to Celebrate Quiet Day
The best way to celebrate Quiet Day is to head somewhere to experience your time in silence uninterrupted. If the weather is pleasant, you can head out to a park or to walk among the trees, just getting out in nature and letting your mind wander and find peace. If you must go in and go to work or encounter other people, carry a card that says “I’m spending a day in silence.” that you can flash, letting people know that you are attempting to not speak for the day. Let Quiet Day be your vacation from vocalization!
Peace and quiet is good for you, both physically and mentally. Studies have shown that taking time for quiet can have a positive effect on your body and in some cases can even lower blood pressure and reduce the heart rate. However, it is increasingly difficult in today’s world to experience real quiet, and that’s why we are establishing the first ever Quiet Day. In these busy times, more people are suffering from stress. Often made worse by the relentless invasion of unwanted noise in our lives, stress levels can be lowered by reducing your exposure to noise and taking a little sanctuary in silence.
Silence is often the sound of humility.[2]
We
don’t pretend to have experience that we actually don’t. We don’t presume to
instruct someone who hasn’t asked for our help. We don’t assume that our own
lives and experiences are as interesting to others as they are to ourselves
(hint: they usually aren’t). The person who only asks one good question or
makes one insightful comment often does so to encourage others to participate
or to enrich the conversation.
When
we have an accurate assessment of our own abilities and an active interest in
others’ talents or experiences, we will frequently be silent.
Every
Wednesday is Dedicated to St. Joseph
The
Italian culture has always had a close association with St. Joseph perhaps you
could make Wednesdays centered around Jesus’s Papa. Plan an Italian dinner of
pizza or spaghetti after attending Mass as most parishes have a Wednesday
evening Mass. You could even do carry out to help restaurants. If you are
adventurous, you could do the Universal Man Plan: St. Joseph style. Make the
evening a family night perhaps it could be a game night. Whatever you do make
the day special.
·
Devotion to the 7 Joys and Sorrows of St. Joseph
·
Do the St. Joseph
Universal Man Plan.
[2]https://www.worldchallenge.org/silence-study-humility-and-strength
Daily Devotions
·
Unite
in the work of the Porters of St.
Joseph
by joining them in fasting: Today's Fast: Restoring the
Constitution
·
Religion
in the Home for Preschool: September
·
Litany of the Most Precious Blood
of Jesus
·
Offering to the
sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
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