Christian customs: Novena to the Holy Spirit

The Novena to the Holy Spirit is a long-standing custom through which the Church encourages the faithful to prepare for the descent of the Holy Spirit in the best possible way. Some prayers to the Holy Spirit, in preparation for Pentecost, are downloadable here in pdf and epub format. Tags: Holy Spirit, Prayer, God

Baytree Centre: a bright light on the Brixton Road

300 Brixton Road is a bright light on the horizon of Lambeth, one of London’s most deprived and troubled areas. It’s the home of the Baytree Centre where for 20 years now 1,000s of women and girls who are local residents yet come from all over the globe, have been receiving help with a host of skills ranging from literacy and numeracy to parenting and ballet! Tags: Education, Youth, equality, UK

Sonsoles, May 1935: Why the pilgrimage?

The shrine of Sonsoles in Avila, Spain, was the setting for an event in the history of St Josemaria and Opus Dei, the “May pilgrimage”. How did this custom first take root in Opus Dei? A study published in Studia et Documenta Tags: Our Lady

100th anniversary of St Josemaria’s First Holy Communion

Bishop Javier Echevarría

April 23, 2012, will be 100 years since St Josemaria made his First Holy Communion. In a letter dated April 1 the Prelate of Opus Dei recommends that we enter more deeply into some aspect of St Josemaria's Eucharistic devotion, and so "improve in how we approach Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament." Tags: Eucharist, Holy Communion

Translating The Man of Villa Tevere

Translating The Man of Villa Tevere, a biography of St Josemaria Escriva, presented challenges and brought its own rewards. An interview with Helena Scott, the translator. Tags: books, UK

Wife, Mother of Four and Business Owner

Maribeth Burger is a 42-year-old. She is a wife and mother of four. She is a physical therapist and owns an outpatient orthopedic physical therapy clinic in Virginia. Her oldest child, Chris, was born blind and suffers from other handicaps, including a form of autism. She and her husband adopted their second youngest child who was born in Vietnam. Maribeth decided she had a vocation to Opus Dei after she completed physical therapy school. She explains how it happened. Tags: Family and work, US, Women of Opus Dei

He had Cuba in his soul

"I'd just like to say that you, being Cuban, with your friends, are the fruit of St Josemaria's prayer." Bishop Javier Echevarria's response to a girl from La Habana, who asked him a question during the WYD in Madrid. Tags: Art, cuba

How did St Josemaria imagine St Joseph?

Meditating on the “sorrows and joys of St Joseph” is a popular Christian devotion that helps us get to know the Holy Patriarch better and to remember that he too had to face up to difficulties. Illustrated leaflet downloadable in pdf. Tags: St Joseph, Josemaria Escriva

January 9, 1902 - Josemaría Escriva's arrival into the world

Describing his arrival into the world, he says, "God our Lord was preparing things so that my life would be normal and everyday, nothing extraordinary. He had me born in a Christian home, as was typical in my country, of exemplary parents who practiced and lived their faith." Tags: Barbastro, The Escriva family

Blessed be Suffering

Behind this phrase, from one of the points in The Way, lies a long story that was deeply engraved on St Josemaria's soul, one which he often referred to in the course of his life. Tags: Cross, Suffering, sick