Yesterday, we celebrated the feast day of St Josaphat, a great saint who was born in the kingdom of Poland in the 16th century. Today, we celebrate St Stanislaus Kotska, another saint from Poland who also lived in the 16th century. He was a Jesuit novice who died at the young age of 17 in the year 1568. He was known for his devout faith and great piety in the face of opposition from his family for his religious vocation. A legend about St Stanislaus Kotska states that when he was living with his brother and his brother would not allow a priest to visit him when he was gravely ill, two angels and St Barbara, to whom he had a great devotion, appeared to him with communion to help him get better. St Stanislaus Kostka parish in Chicago is quite famous, as the Kennedy expressway in the city was built around this historic church so that it would not have to be demolished. In fact, when I did a mission appeal at this parish in 2014, the pastor told me that at one point in the early 20th century, with so many Polish immigrants flocking to Chicago, St Stanislaus Kotska parish would have been one of the largest Catholic parishes in the world.
We hear the 23rd psalm today: The Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want. As we have the great example of St Stanislaus and many members of the community of saints following the Lord as their Shepherd, may Jesus always be the good shepherd who leads us and guides us on our journey.
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