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A saint is largely recognized as a holy person believed to have a special relationship to the sacred, as well as moral perfection or exceptional teaching abilities. The phenomenon is widespread in the religions of the world, both ancient and contemporary.
In his book, Father McNamee acknowledges many people who have influenced his thinking and work over his four decades in the priesthood. Filmmaker Eugene Martin has also invented some saintly visitations for Father Mac in DIARY OF A CITY PRIEST. Using quotes from the film, we profile some of these saints and spiritual seekers.
St. Malachy
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St. Malachy was a 12th century Irish archbishop best-known for having written a set of prophecies regarding the popes which were discovered in Rome in 1597. St. Malachy had a particular zeal for ecclesiastical discipline, and replaced the Celtic liturgy with the Roman. In 1138 he resigned his position in Armagh and made a pilgrimage to Rome, where he supposedly penned the prophecies, although serious doubts exist about their authenticity. On the way to Rome for a second time in 1148, he fell sick at Clairvaux and died in St. Bernard's arms. Canonized in 1199 by Pope Clement III, many miracles have been attributed to him. |
St. Therese of the Child Jesus
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Known as the "Little Flower of Jesus," St. Therese was a cloistered Carmelite novice who entered the convent in 1888 at the very young age of 15, and died of tuberculosis at 24. Her parents were exceptionally devout, and all four of Therese's sisters took religious vows. Therese's autobiography, Story of a Soul, published post-humously, records her intention to achieve holiness through the perfect accomplishment of small duties: "I must stay little and become less and less." She has become an inspiration and model for millions of Catholics seeking holiness in ordinary lives, and her great popularity accelerated her canonization in 1925, only 28 years after her death. |
St. Francis of Assisi
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The much-loved founder of the Franciscan order was born in the late 12th century to wealthy and indulgent parents. He spent his youth in decadent pleasure-seeking, and decided in his early twenties to set out for a military career. Instead, a commanding voice in a dream turned him back to his home in Assisi, Italy. Francis set aside his old ways and began a life of prayer and radical self-abasement, finally completely renouncing his inheritance and position and becoming a beggar. Over time, he began to draw followers to his ascetic example, and he devised a rule for his brotherhood of "Friars Minor" centering around absolute poverty, manual labor, and brotherly love. In 1212, an 18-year-old heiress named Clare was moved by his charismatic preaching to run away from home and follow him; he founded a women's order for her, now known as the Poor Clares. Over time, Francis's travels throughout Europe drew enthusiastic crowds, and he eventually founded a third lay order, the Brothers and Sisters of Penance. St. Francis is often associated with his love for animals and nature, expressed in his poetic work, "Canticle of the Sun." |
Simone Weil
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Simone Weil was born in Paris in 1909 to secular Jewish parents who encouraged her studies. She left an early teaching career to express her solidarity with the working class by doing factory labor, but had to stop because of her chronic poor health. Throughout her life, Weil experienced eating disorders and malnutrition, related to her belief that eating was a moral act. In 1936 she joined the anarchist militia in the Spanish Civil War, working as a cook at the frontlines. She was injured and returned to France with her health so damaged that she never held another regular job. Soon afterward, Weil began to have mystical experiences and became obsessed with religion. She converted to Christianity in 1938. Her essays, journal entries and letters on faith were later compiled into the book Waiting on God. She fled to America with her family in 1942 to escape Hitler, but her sense of guilt at not suffering with her compatriots brought her back across the Atlantic to England after only seven months to join the Free French. She sought martyrdom single-mindedly, refusing food and medical treatment even after being diagnosed with tuberculosis, out of sympathy for the plight of the people of Occupied France. She died in 1943 at the age of 34, from the combined effects of illness and starvation. |
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