May 4, 2017

Blessed Solanus Casey

Today in the daily Bulletin of the Holy See Press Office there has appeared the awaited news that Pope Francis has authorized the publication of the decree to recognize the miracle attributed to the intercession of our own Fr. Solanus Casey.

Of course I'm happy about this as a Capuchin, and as a member of one of the Provinces of the Order that descends from the one that Solanus, then called Bernard, had joined back in 1897. But I'm also grateful in a personal way.

At the beginning of my postulancy with the Capuchins we made a visit to Fr. Solanus's tomb in Detroit. I remember praying for his intercession as I began this new, Capuchin phase of my Franciscan journey.

More recently, I have been happy to be helpful on the peripheries of his cause for beatification. I have translated emails and been a communication go-between for our friars in the USA and the office of the General Postulator here at the Capuchin General Curia in Rome. Though I must confess that I wasn't a great success at this, I did some translating of pathologist's reports from English into Italian with regard to the investigation of the miracle attributed to Fr. Solanus's intercession.

Today I am happy to see that things are official, and the way forward to Fr. Solanus's beatification has been set. And I'm grateful for having had the chance to help in some small way.

Blessed Solanus Casey, pray for us!

14 comments:

Paul A. Zalonski said...

This is a great gift. I really never thought Casey was going to be beatified. The other day I was at a friend's house in Westville and he has a nice image of Solanus Casey on the wall; I wondered about his Cause. Now it is revealed. When and where is the beatification happening?

Blessed be God.

kam said...

Yes, pray for us in heaven, good brother, soon to be a saint!

Brother Charles said...

Thanks for the comments!

@Paul Yes, I had my doubts too. But the miracle was compelling. No official word on the date for the celebration of the beatification; maybe later this year.

Anonymous said...

Isn't there a somewhat similar story between Solanus Casey and André Bessette? It is good news.

Brother Charles said...

Yes! There are similarities!

Louis M said...

I never doubted for a minute. But I am always the optimist.
Fr Solanus prega per noi!

Unknown said...

I am delighted to learn about the forthcoming beatification of Fr. Solanus. I have read his biography and was very much impressed by his life. I believe that he has the kindest face I have ever seen. I'm sure that that alone attracted people to him. Do you know that down at the manor we had a tenant who bore close resemblance to Fr. Solanus. A couple of people commented on the resemblance. I think that one of them might have been Barbara Egan. Hope all is well with you.

Brother Charles said...

Thanks, Judy!

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

No,thanks. I am already aware what my Church teaches and by God's grace I am happy and secure in my belief. I thank God for the gift of Faith.. It is very precious and is nurtured by prayer and reception of the Sacraments. (As a theology student and teacher, I am already well versed in the various arguments and theories which are resurrected and rehearsed from time to time.) Veritas.

Brother Charles said...

The comment from anonymous above is--I presume--in response to the comment above it, now deleted, which I had not read closely enough to see it was against the comment policy. Thanks, anonymou. Take good care and God bless. ~ Br. Charles

Anonymous said...

Thank you, Bro. Charles. (I am the same poster as at 2.45 above-). You were correct certainly in that my comments were referring to the piece which has now been deleted. That piece was a highly disguised but nevertheless veiled attack on our beliefs and I am pleased to see it deleted. Thank you for your kind response to me and God bless all your efforts.

Lee Gilbert said...

In my view, at least, his parents Bernard and Ellen Casey deserve a very close look on the part of the Church, at least here in the United States. As you very probably know, Father, in response to the vocations crisis those in the vocation promotions biz have been pushing the "culture of vocation," which has come to mean "the vocations cross" being handed off to a new family at Sunday Mass every week, "come and see" weekends and the like. Yet in Avvenire many years ago I saw in italian an article heading which illuminated our situation vis a vis vocations perfectly: "The Culture of Vocation vs. The Culture of Distraction."

The Caseys implemented an authentic culture of vocation perfectly, with almost predictable results. And one might presume that a similar culture in many Catholic homes of that era gave many priests and nuns to the Church. Then came movies, radio, TV, the internet, Distraction on steroids. So, perhaps we have mistaken our crisis altogether and do not have a vocations crisis so much as a parenting crisis. One looks into the home of Louis and Zellie Martin some years earlier, and finds the same sort of thing in the evening,a family gathering around the parents, the lives of the saints being read . . .a culture of vocation.

“At a time when television and movies were not even imagined…stories and songs provided the Casey family with sufficient entertainment. Especially when snows landlocked the family, this kind of entertainment kept spirits from becoming morose. Often the children played games. Other times Barney Sr. and Ellen gathered everyone around the dining room for an evening of literature. Barney Sr. would read the poems of Tom Moore besides those of Longfellow and Whittier. Stories like Cooper’s The Deerslayer held the children fascinated for long periods of time.
“Bernard and Ellen Casey were creating a caring environment which enabled young Casey to become well-integrated and balanced. For their role in his spiritual formation, the future Solanus would be forever grateful… In many ways Solanus was able to be who he was precisely because of the way his parents nourished him in his youth."

THAT is the culture of vocation. It was surely the seedbed of Solanus Casey's vocation, the sine qua non of his sanctity and of his being raised to the altars.

Brother Charles said...

@Lee Thanks for the comment. Let's hope--and do what we can--to see that this aspect is remembered as we celebrate this moment.