Fall feasts
Fall, changing leaves, the arrival of all things pumpkin at Dunkin' and Starbucks, Halloween...there's lots to celebrate in October. Especially if you're Catholic and trying to live in tune with the Liturgical Calendar! Below is a selection of some October feast days and ideas for your family's celebrations. But they are by no means all the feasts of October, visit catholic.org for more.
October 1: St. Therese of Lisieux
St. Therese was one of nine children born to Sts. Louis & Zelie Martin- yes, her parents are canonized saints, too! She and four of her sisters survived childhood in 19th century France and they all entered religious life. The beatification process for Therese's sister, Leonie (also known as Sister Francoise-Therese) began in 2015. We can look at these little details of the Martin family's life and be intimidated by their holiness, or look deeper at the realities of their daily life and be inspired that holiness is possible for us as well.
Visit www.littleflower.org/ to learn more about the life of St. Therese. |
St. Therese is known for her "little way"- we cannot all do "great" things in life, but we can all do little things with great love. To forgive petty annoyances, to smile and speak kindly when someone is harsh to you, etc. In honor of St. Therese's feast day, help your children look for and recognize little ways they can share the love of Jesus, even when they may be on the receiving end of someone else's unkind or inconsiderate actions.
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Hang a calendar in a prominent place at home, and assign a color to each family member, keeping the colored markers or pens close by; when a family member witnesses a kind or loving act done by another member of the family, they anonymously put a heart on the day in the person's color. Each week at a family dinner, perhaps Sunday dinner, go around the table and have each person share an act of love, kindness or sacrifice that they witnessed someone else in the family do. This affirms the selfless acts of love you are trying to instill in your children, plus it teaches humility as they are giving praise to someone else instead of seeking it for themselves.
october 2: Guardian angels
Were you taught the Guardian Angel prayer when you were a child? If you haven't taught it to your children, the feast day of the Guardian Angels would be a good day to do so. And to teach them about our Guardian Angels. Angels are not fairy tales, but a reality of our faith. In the Nicene Creed of the Church we state: "I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible..." The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains this belief in angels, based in Scripture, in sections 328-336. Section 336 states: "From it's beginning until death, human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession. Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life."
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Guardian Angel Prayer |
Angels are a creation of God, just as we are, but a different kind of God's creation. Humans are body and spirit; angels are spirit only. When we die and go to heaven, we become saints, with a glorified body, we do not become angels.
To help your children learn to listen to the promptings and guide of their Guardian Angels, in the morning, when you greet the members of your family, include a greeting for their guardian angel: "Good morning, *Mia's angel!" And maybe a reminder to the angel, "Please help her today to..."
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*We do not have the authority to name our angels, only God does! |
October 4: St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis is one of the more well known saints of the Church. He came from a wealthy family; renouncing a life of wealth and comfort, he embraced a life of detachment from the things of this world. He had a great love of God's creation and composed the Canticle of the Sun in which he praises God through His creation.
God has given humans the task of being stewards of the earth- we have an obligation to responsibly use the earth's resources and preserve it for future generations. Because St. Francis was such a lover of nature, his feast day is an opportunity to teach this lesson of faith to your children. Brainstorm with them ways your family can be better stewards of God's creation: better choices when shopping, by making the effort to purchase items that can be re-used or recycled or that were made from recycled products; go out and pick up trash in the community; etc. If your children are animal lovers like St. Francis- buy some pet food or toys to donate to a shelter or make bird seed cakes.
october 7: Our lady of the rosary |
The rosary is a sacred and popular Catholic devotion; the use of prayer beads to facilitate meditation began in the early ages of the Church. In the early medieval period, bead strings were used to count Hail Marys or Our Fathers. In the Middle Ages, the prayers were grouped into 50 Hail Marys with verses from Psalms and vignettes from the lives of Jesus and Mary. By the 16th century, the Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious Mysteries were established. During his pontificate, Pope St. John Paul II added the Luminous Mysteries.
The rosary rose to prominence in the late 1500s. The Turkish Empire was spreading across eastern Europe, and pirates were raiding Christian ships. The Christian nations of Europe rallied for a battle at sea. Pope St. Pius V urged all Christians to pray the rosary for victory. While vastly outnumbered, the Christian fleet was victorious at the Battle of Lepanto. The pope established October 7th as the feast of the Holy Rosary. Later, all of October would come to be known as the Month of the Rosary, so why not teach your children how to pray the Rosary this month? For little ones, just start with the prayers of the Rosary: Hail Mary, Glory Be, Our Father, etc. You can get some supplies and have the kids make their own rosary.
The rosary rose to prominence in the late 1500s. The Turkish Empire was spreading across eastern Europe, and pirates were raiding Christian ships. The Christian nations of Europe rallied for a battle at sea. Pope St. Pius V urged all Christians to pray the rosary for victory. While vastly outnumbered, the Christian fleet was victorious at the Battle of Lepanto. The pope established October 7th as the feast of the Holy Rosary. Later, all of October would come to be known as the Month of the Rosary, so why not teach your children how to pray the Rosary this month? For little ones, just start with the prayers of the Rosary: Hail Mary, Glory Be, Our Father, etc. You can get some supplies and have the kids make their own rosary.
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october 22: Pope St. john paul iiPope St. John Paul II, born Karol Józef Wojtyła in Poland, became the first non-Italian pope in more than 400 years on October 22, 1978. His feast day is the day of his installation as pope, rather than his date of death as is the norm for saint's days, because April 2 usually falls during Holy Week and the observances of the Paschal Mystery take precedence over other feast days.
John Paul II was the third longest serving pope, with 26 years as shepherd of Christ's flock, the Church. During his pontificate, he visited 129 countries, he spoke 12 languages fluently, he loved skiing, hiking and the great outdoors... and the list goes on. |
There are so many things to discover about his life, both before and after he became pope, but if there is one lesson from his life that we can learn, it would be to love God and love others as he did. He spent much of his time with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament- take your children to church on John Paul's feast day and spend time together praying before the Blessed Sacrament. He forgave the man who attempted to assassinate him- talk about forgiveness with your children; how to be forgiving when others hurt us and how God forgives us as well.
End the day with a taste of John Paul's favorite dessert- a Polish pastry that has been renamed in his honor because he loved it so much: Kremówka Papieska (Papal Cream Cake).
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“There is no evil to be faced that Christ does not face with us. There is no enemy that Christ has not already conquered. There is no cross to bear that Christ has not already born for us, and does not now bear with us.” Pope St. John Paul II |
The staples
These are just of few of the feast days in October, there are many more you can celebrate. Whatever feast days and however your family chooses to observe them, have consistency to your celebrations. Prayer, learn something about the saint, do a fun activity and food. When the feast falls on a weekday, make the effort to go to daily Mass. We are lucky to be located so close to so many Catholic parishes that you are sure to find a Mass time that suits your schedule. If going to church isn't possible, look for virtual options and pray at home. Embrace the nature of a celebration and make the day fun with a craft or game. And food! Don't forget the food! Have the kids research a simple recipe from the saint's native country and involve them in the food prep or give them the task of setting and decorating the dinner table. It's a celebration, so celebrate!
Halloween
You didn't think I forgot Halloween, did you? How can I? The candy and decorations have been on the store shelves for over a month already! Some Christians grapple with the question of whether it is appropriate or not to celebrate Halloween. If your celebration is simply a night of fun with pumpkin carving, dressing up in costumes and trick-or-treating, there is no reason you can't celebrate.
The roots of Halloween are actually Catholic. The word Halloween is a slurring of the words All Hallow's Eve, Hallow meaning holy. All Hallows Day is now called All Saints Day, which is November 1, followed by All Souls Day on November 2. The poor and children would beg for soul cakes in exchange for praying for a person's deceased loved ones- not quite trick or treating, but that's where the asking for treats comes from. Jack-o'-lanterns are a tradition that came from Ireland; people carved gourds to scare away the souls of those they had wronged or to ward off evil spirits. Talk with your kids about the Catholic roots of Halloween as you carve your pumpkins and then you can move the discussion onto the holy days of All Saints and All Souls.