17 August 2026
Summa Contra Gentiles, Book II: LVI Method by Which an Intellectual Substance To Be United to the Body
Did Anne Boleyn Have a Pseudo Pregnancy in 1534?
This Italian Teenager Is a New Patron Saint of Workers
He may be a Patron of workers, but St. Joseph the Labourer (Feast Day 1 May) will always remain the ultimate model for workers.
From Aleteia
By Philip Kosloski
St. Nunzio Sulprizio was held up as an intercessor for all workers by Pope Leo XIII and was canonised in 2018 by Pope Francis.
While St. Joseph is widely known as the patron saint of workers, there are many examples of saints who worked diligently in their trade and sanctified it through the holiness of their lives.
Such was the case of St. Nunzio Sulprizio, an Italian blacksmith who died at the young age of 19 in the 19th century. He achieved the heights of sanctity at an early age and allowed his faith to permeate his daily work.
Holy blacksmith
Born in 1817, Sulprizio was born into an Italian Catholic family but experienced profound grief and loss during the early years of his life. A few years after his birth his father died, and then later his mother died. He was put into the care of his grandmother; she too died by the time he was nine years old.
His uncle, a blacksmith, took the responsibility of raising the young boy. This proved to be another cause of suffering, as his uncle was not religious and forbade him from attending school. Instead, Sulprizio was required to learn the trade of a blacksmith.
This added further stress to his fragile body and his uncle abused the young boy, making him do the most arduous tasks. It had a detrimental effect on his body, eventually leading to him being admitted to a hospital.
Despite all of the suffering he endured, all those around him were surprised at how he was able to smile during his work and instead of cursing or spewing foul language, he would pray to the Virgin Mary, "My Madonna, help me."
After Sulprizio was discharged from a hospital stay, a different uncle, a wealthy colonel, took him under his wing and felt compassion for him, wanting to nurse him back to health. Unfortunately, Sulprizio's health was already in an incurable state and so he was admitted to another hospital.
His Vatican biography explains how even in his suffering, he wanted to care for others:
Here too, despite his serious condition, he helped the other patients by bringing them even a simple glass of water. Many times he fasted voluntarily, prayed for others, or donated his meal, which the colonel had him bring from the castle, to those who were more alone and poor than him. As soon as he was admitted to hospital, Nunzio asked to receive his First Communion [which he had not received earlier].
He died on May 5, 1836, at the age of 19, and was immediately revered for his sanctity. His last words were, "Our Lady! See how beautiful she is!"
His cause for canonization was quickly opened and Pope Leo XIII held him in high esteem, as the Dicastery of Saints explains:
On June 21, 1891, Pope Leo XIII promulgated the Decree on the heroic nature of virtues, defining Nunzio as the exact copy of St. Aloysius Gonzaga and holding him up as a model for young people.
Before Pope Francis canonized Sulprizio in 2018, he pointed to his ability to offer up his suffering to God:
Let us consider that young man — blessed now and next month a saint — Sulprizio, who at 19 years of age ended his life reconciled, despite much suffering, with many issues, because his heart was at peace ...
Sulprizio is an example to all young people of how to suffer with God and to sanctify their work, no matter how arduous it may be.
Wicked Bishop Just Threatened Lay Catholics Attached to the SSPX
Bishop Olsen of Ft Worth, Texas, just went further than the DDF did in its handling of lay Catholics who attend Mass with the SSPX. This is at a time when a bishop loyal to Leo is asking whether Leo and Francis have destroyed Papal authority.
Archeologists Investigate the Medieval Masons Who Built Gothic Europe
Traditional Catholic Morning Prayers in English | August
Traditional Catholic morning prayers to help start your day in a godly way! The month of August is dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. I hope these prayers increase your devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary this month and draw you closer to her Divine Son, Jesus Christ. Begin each day with morning prayer! This video is a compilation of many traditional evening prayers Catholics say, and should not be considered a replacement for those who have an obligation to pray the Divine Office evening prayers.
Neuroscience Proves the Lord's Prayer Actually Rewires Your Brain!
From Totus Mind & Totus Catholica
Is the Lord's Prayer actually a precise blueprint for the human mind? Most of us learn it as children and recite it so often that the words fade into background noise. We treat it as a poem and rarely stop to consider its structure. But what if this ancient text was designed as a specific, ordered plan for the way the mind processes thought, rather than just a ritual to repeat? After hundreds of hours buried in both the neuroscience of prayer and the writings of the ancient church, I keep landing on the same conclusion. When Jesus was asked how to pray, he did not hand us a feeling. He handed us a set of construction drawings. By comparing the phrasing of the Lord's Prayer to current research on neural pathways, we can reconsider what these familiar words have been doing to our minds all along, and why they have persisted for 2,000 years. "Renew the whole mind." In this video: • Why "trying harder" never fixes an anxious, scattered mind • How your brain's alarm center and planning center fight for control • What 2003 and 2024 studies reveal about prayer, focus, and forgiveness • How the Lord's Prayer maps onto the way the brain actually rewires • The Five A's: a simple daily way to pray the prayer as a blueprint ⏱ CHAPTERS 0:00 Intro: the prayer you stopped hearing 0:54 Why "trying harder" never works 1:41 Your brain's alarm vs. your planning center 2:24 The science: focus and forgiveness 3:41 Why a brain scan can't heal you 4:05 The Our Father as a repair sequence 5:39 Forgive us our debts: the load-bearing move 6:33 The Five A's: how to build it 8:36 The simple daily practice 📖 SCRIPTURE REFERENCED • Luke 11:1: the disciples ask, "Teach us to pray." • Matthew 6:9-13: the Lord's Prayer given in full in the Sermon on the Mount. 🧠THE SCIENCE • Perceptual and Motor Skills (2003): a small, preliminary study found deep contemplative prayer went hand in hand with roughly a 7% rise in blood flow to the planning region behind the forehead. • BMJ Public Health (2024): a study across five countries with almost 4,600 people found that practicing forgiveness, letting go of a wrong done to them, measurably lowered anxiety and low mood. • Gratitude research: naming what you are thankful for is consistently linked to a calmer mind. ⛪ FROM THE CHURCH FATHERS • Tertullian (late 2nd / early 3rd century): called this prayer "a summary of the whole gospel." • Cyprian (3rd century): read the "daily bread" as the Eucharist, Christ himself, and noticed we are told to pray "Our Father," not "my Father," so the self-obsessed mind is pulled out of itself from the first word. ⚠️ A NOTE This video is not medical advice. If you are carrying real anxiety, depression, or addiction, the bravest thing you can do is talk to a doctor, a counsellor, or a trusted pastor. This is something to pray alongside that help, never a replacement for it.
How St Hyacinth Miraculously Fed a Crowd of Starving People With Pierogi
Today is his Feast Day. I'm surprised to learn tht one of my favourite foods has a patron saint all to itself! I just wish I could buy them here.
From Aleteia
By Philip Kosloski
He is known in Poland as the "patron saint of pierogi."
He is known in Poland as the “patron saint of pierogi.”Commonly referred to as the “Apostle of the North,” St. Hyacinth became a Dominican after witnessing a miracle performed by St. Dominic. After his ordination he was sent back to Poland as a missionary and tradition says he preached the Gospel in Lithuania, Denmark, Sweden and Norway, possibly even going through parts of Russia. One of his primary centers of evangelization was Kraków, where he eventually died and was buried.
According to The Observer, “Hyacinth invented the pierogi during a time of famine and served the hungry plate after plate of this hearty dish.” Some stories say this famine was in Kiev and was due to a siege of the city in the 13th century.
Another legend states that during one of his missionary journeys, he reached the village of Kościelec near Kraków and discovered they were in the midst of a great famine. Linda Lum in Delishably explains the miracle that happened next.
On July 13, 1238 … Hyacinth … visited the town of KoÅ›cielec. A storm raged, destroying all of the crops, dooming the populace to starvation. Hyacinth knelt with the villagers and prayed with them for divine intervention. The next day the crops rose back from the dead. In a show of gratitude, the people of the town created for him a meal of pierogi from those miracle crops.
Either way St. Hyacinth became known as the “patron saint of pierogi” — filled sweet or savory dumplings made from unleavened dough — and a common Polish phrase has been passed down through the ages, “Swiety Jacek z pierogami!” (St. Hyacinth and his pierogi!). It’s essentially the same as the English expression of “holy cow!”
St. Hyacinth is a dearly beloved saint of Poland and his pierogi remain a popular food item around the world.
“England Has Always Been Catholic” | The Coming ‘Third Spring’ With Monsignor John Armitage
Christ Is King: New Book Sets Out Full Doctrine Using Works of Cardinal Pie
Louis-Édouard-François-Desiré, Cardinal Pie was Bishop of Poitiers and a major proponent of the Social Reign of Christ the King.
From LifeSiteNews
By S.D. Wright
Stabat Mater Press' new edition of The Social Kingship of Christ According to Cardinal Pie gives comprehensive explanation of why Christ is King.
Stabat Mater Press just released a new translation of Fr. Théotime de Saint-Just’s classic work, The Social Kingship of Christ According to Cardinal Pie.
I had the honor of providing the foreword for this handsome new edition, available in both hardback and paperback. (NB: I am not receiving any commission or benefits from sales.)
Who was Cardinal Pie?
Louis-Edouard-Désiré Pie (1815-80) was born in Pontgouin, France, in 1815. He rose in the ecclesiastical ranks until he was made bishop of Poitiers in 1849 and was elevated to cardinal by Pope Leo XIII in 1879, almost exactly a year before he died. He was an extremely energetic prelate, and his legacy was appreciated by several popes – as is recounted in Capuchin monk Fr. Théotime de Saint-Just’s introduction to the work. Pope St. Pius X, in particular, praised Cardinal Pie’s work publicly, calling him “my master.”
Cardinal Pie is one of the great, neglected voices in Catholic theology. His work provides a comprehensive exposition of the Social Kingship of Christ – and yet he remains almost unknown to English-speaking Catholics.
This is a great loss to us because the questions Cardinal Pie addressed in the 19th century – the duties of states toward God, the rights of Christ over civil society, the consequences of national apostasy from the Faith – are precisely the questions that confront us today.
About the book
This book by Fr. Théotime is a synthesis of Cardinal Pie’s writings, sermons, and addresses on the topic. Fr Théotime provides an extensive selection of such texts that are presented at length and result in an extensive exposition of the doctrine in question.
LifeSiteNews has published many explanations of this doctrine and its implications for our day that are available here: Here's what 'Christ is King' REALLY means
- Leo XIV openly rejects the reign of Christ the King over states and nations
- Here’s what the Catholic Church actually teaches about ‘Christ is King’
At a time in which the Kingship of Christ is reduced to largely individualistic terms and the phrase “Christ is King” is thrown around as a slogan emptied of its original doctrinal content, this synthesis could not have been re-translated and published at a better time.
The central question that Christ’s Social Kingship answers is expressed by Fr. Théotime in the introduction to the work:
Our Lord Jesus Christ – did He come to earth to sanctify souls, or did He also come to impose His will upon social institutions, codes of law, assemblies, and sovereigns themselves, thus becoming the supreme King of nations and peoples?
Cardinal Pie sets out the nature of Christ’s Kingship, showing that Our Lord did not come solely for sanctification of souls but also to “impose His will upon social institutions,” etc.; indeed, the latter is a necessary consequence of the former. For if Christ is King over all individuals, then He is their King whether they are alone or gathered as families, societies, and nations. All such gatherings of men have a duty to recognize this Kingship, and Christ has a right to their homage.
The order of the book
Fr. Théotime’s work proceeds in an orderly manner, starting with Cardinal Pie’s exposition of the doctrine and its implications for societies and nations. He then proceeds to the cardinal’s analysis of the rebellion against Christ’s Kingship, and the consequences of this rebellion. He presents Cardinal Pie’s explanation of how Christ’s Social Kingship can be restored — examining the duties of different classes of men. The work ends with Cardinal Pie’s “prophecies” of the two outcomes that await mankind, depending on whether Christ is “allowed” to reign, or whether mankind replies by saying, “We will not have this man to reign over us.”
What makes this synthesis by Fr. Théotime so valuable is Cardinal Pie’s integration of Scripture, the Fathers, and the magisterium into a single, coherent manifesto. He demonstrates why Christ’s Kingship extends necessarily to civil society, how the refusal to acknowledge it leads to ruin, and what the restoration of this Kingship requires of each class of men.
In particular, Cardinal Pie’s analysis of these consequences of the rebellion against Christ’s Kingship reads like a description of our world – making this work especially important for our time.
How the book was received at the time
Fr. Théotime received much praise for this work.
Fr. Josephus Antonius a Persiceto, the Master General of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin praised it, speaking of the “greatest satisfaction” that he had reading this “fine work.” [1]
Fr. Théotime provides a number of reviews in the preface to the second edition. For example, Cardinal Mercier described it as “an illuminating synthesis,” and a professor at the Catholic University of Paris praised Fr. Théotime for having put Cardinal Pie’s work “into scholastic form,” and having given it “its full effectiveness against contemporary error.” [2]
He also provides the comments of a diocesan superior of a congregation:
Please accept my deepest gratitude and also my complete admiration for your perfect work. It is a well-organized, lively, illuminating, concise book which is both interesting and edifying to read. Not a word too many.
I read it with enthusiasm and with the desire that it be known and become the bedside book of all those who have authority over society, bishops, priests, legislators, and social leaders. [3]
Fr. Adhémar d’Alès, SJ, wrote the following in his review for Études [4] in 1924:
The Rev. Fr. Théotime de Saint-Just had the very happy idea of gathering (Cardinal Pie’s teachings on the Social Kingship) so that they might be heard by the present generation.
He establishes, through textual quotations borrowed from the Bishop of Poitiers: (1) the right of Jesus Christ to reign over societies; (2) the all-too-certain fact of general apostasy; (3) the means for a possible restoration of this reign; (4) the future that is promised to him.
We must hope for the widest possible dissemination of these pages of sound doctrine and valiant faith. [5]
La France franciscaine said:
The work will be read with great profit. [6].
The Nouvelle revue théologique (which has nothing to do with the nouvelle théologie) wrote:
In today’s society, which is in the throes of a profound crisis of authority, Fr. Théotime … presents an ideal program.
The Revue des lectures praised the work by explicitly linking it with the encyclical Quas Primas:
“We are pleased to recommend this book in the wake of the Encyclical (Quas primas) on the Social Kingship of Jesus Christ … Fr. Théotime’s work will be very useful to priests and educated laymen in understanding the views of the Pope.” [7]
Lastly, Polybiblion featured the following review:
(An) excellent work, so full of doctrine and piety … The relevance of the subject-matter and the sound, clearly expounded doctrine ensure this book’s apostolic success, which will be the best reward for the author. [8]
The Social Kingship in our time
My foreword situates Fr. Théotime’s work in our own ecclesiastical situation in which the doctrine of Christ’s Kingship has been so transformed as to constitute a denial of the original teaching.
It sets out why Vatican II’s doctrine of religious liberty is central to this transformation, how it has been interpreted by Vatican authorities (in ways quite contrary to those who seek to reconcile it with tradition), and the practical effects on our world – dealing with issues as varied as COVID-19, train crashes in Spain, and the original episcopal consecrations of the SSPX in 1988.
Fr. Théotime’s book ends with a discussion of whether we may reasonably hope for a restoration of Christ’s Kingship before the end of the world. While firmly teaching that it is the duty of Christians to work for this restoration, he was “neither overly optimistic nor discouragingly pessimistic about the future.” It seems that he did not expect a “very long period of social renewal in Christ before the end of the world” but that he nonetheless nurtured a hope for a possible “brilliant autumn for Christian society at the end of the world.” [9]
Also referring to Msgr. Delassus’ La Conjuration antichrétienne (The Anti-Christian Conspiracy, currently being translated and published by Shield of Faith Press), Fr. Théotime provided the following comments from Cardinal Pie:
What are the Lord’s thoughts on the Church, on society, on Rome, on France, on the world? Must we now descend a slippery slope to the bottom of the abyss? Must we climb back up to the light? It gives me pleasure to repeat: the predictions of the saints, the premonitions of the good, seem to allow us to hope yet for days of triumph, at least temporary, for the Church militant. [10]
The cardinal also issued the following warning, parts of which seems chillingly appropriate for our time:
(W)hat is certain is that as the world approaches its end, the wicked and the seducers will have more and more of an advantage. Faith will be almost impossible to find on earth – that is to say, it will have almost completely disappeared from all earthly institutions.
Believers themselves will hardly dare to make a public and social profession of their beliefs. The schism, the separation, the divorce of societies from God – which St. Paul gives as a sign preceding the end, nisi venerit discessio primum – will be consummated day by day.
The Church, a society that will undoubtedly always be visible, will be increasingly reduced to simply individual and domestic proportions. She, who said in her early days, ‘The place is too small for me, make room for me to dwell,’ Angustus mihi locus, fac spatium ut habitem, will find herself fighting for ground inch by inch, surrounded and hemmed in on all sides: as much as the centuries had made her great, so much will be done to restrict her.
Finally, there will be a veritable defeat for the Church on earth, and the Beast will be given power to wage war against the saints and defeat them. The insolence of evil will reach its peak.
Now, in this extreme situation, in this desperate state, on this globe given over to the triumph of evil and soon to be engulfed in flames, what should all true Christians, all good people, all saints, all men of faith and courage still do?
The very moving answer to this question will be found in the book.
Ultimately, Cardinal Pie’s teaching – as presented by Fr. Théotime – is both the accusation and the antidote for what has been ailing the world since Vatican II, and even before. As the Cardinal himself said:
The only hope for our social regeneration lies in the study of religion … the first step back to peace and happiness will be a return to the science of Christianity.
You can get Fr Théotime’s book here:
- The Social Kingship of Christ According to Cardinal Pie – Fr. Théotime de Saint‑Just O.M.C.
Postscript: About Stabat Mater Press
Stabat Mater Press was founded in 2024 as a publishing house for traditional Catholic books and “dedicated to the restoration and preservation of the Church’s intellectual and spiritual patrimony.”
“We prioritize,” they say, “works that are expressly related to, or can shed light on, the Social Kingship of Our Lord.”
They also are engaged in restoring older texts. With a few exceptions, publishers releasing OCR scans of old texts can have low standards – and publish their Catholic works indiscriminately with very bad books (occult, masonry, heresy, and so on). Stabat Mater Press’s editions are avoiding both problems.
Regarding big print-on-demand publishers of good and bad OCR scans indiscriminately, SMP says:
As a family-owned publishing house, we take seriously the idea that Catholic books should be made by Catholics and for Catholics — those formed by the Faith, obedient to the Church, and committed to tradition.
Stabat Mater Press has already put together a small but impressive range of books in nice editions, including:
- Freemasonry and the Anti-Christian Movement – Fr. Edward J. Cahill
- To Restore All Things: Essays of Catholic Political Thought – de Maistre, Belloc, Dononso Cortes
- The Heresy of Popular Sovereignty – Fr. Charles Maignen
- INFERNO: A Journey Through Modern Hell in Search of Eternal Truth – Augustine Virgil
You can get Fr. Théotime’s book here:
- The Social Kingship of Christ According to Cardinal Pie – Fr. Théotime de Saint‑Just, O.M.C.
References
| ↑1 | p. xxxix |
|---|---|
| ↑2, ↑3 | p. xli |
| ↑4 | 61st year, vol. 180 |
| ↑5 | Source, July-September 1924, p. 505. |
| ↑6 | Source, Vol. 9, 1926 |
| ↑7 | Revue des Lectures, 4th year, no. 1, 1926, pp. 60 f. |
| ↑8 | A. V., Polybiblion, revue bibliographique universelle, 2nd series, vol. 105, 1927, p. 105. |
| ↑9 | pp. 210-211 |
| ↑10 | p 215 |