Calendar Class of September 20, 2025

A Carpe Diem Snapshot:

Carpe Crucem! On our way to Paradise yesterday, we passed by the Cross-in-the-Woods shrine at Indian River, a seemingly appropriate step on our way north. It was our first visit ever to this pilgrimage site in northern Michigan, which boasts the largest crucifix in the world. This trip is also the first time "over the bridge" to the Upper Peninsula for Ulysa and the girls, and only the second time ever for me, the first being many moons ago when I was just 18. Ulysa and I have been talking about making this trip since I was pregnant with the 8 year old she is cradling in this photo.

Liturgical: Memorial of Sts. Andrew Kim Tae-gon, Priest, & Paul Chong Ha-sang, & Companions, Martyrs; Ember Saturday

Luke 8:4-15

But that in the good soil are those who, hearing the word with a good and generous heart, hold it fast and bear fruit with endurance.

Sanctoral: Today is the Memorial of Saints Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn, Priest, and Paul Chŏng Ha-sang, and Companions, Martyrs. During the 17th century the Christian faith was brought to Korea through the zeal of lay persons. From the very beginning these Christians suffered terrible persecutions and many suffered martyrdom during the 19th century. Today's feast honors a group of 103 martyrs. Most were murdered during waves of persecutions in 1839, 1846 and 1867. Notable of these were Andrew Kim Taegon, the first Korean priest, and the lay apostle, Paul Chong Hasang. Also among the Korean martyrs were three bishops and seven priests, but for the most part they were heroic laity, men and women, married and single of all ages. They were canonized by Pope Saint John Paul II on May 6, 1984

Human: 66 AD – Roman emperor Nero created the Legio I Italica, which existed at the beginning of the fifth century BC, and was stationed on the border on the Danube. The emblem of the legion was a wild boar.

1519 Spanish expedition led by Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan sets off for the Spice Islands on the first successful circumnavigation of the globe (Magellan is killed en route)

1604 Siege of Ostend (Flanders) ends after Dutch and English forces surrender the city, allowing Ambrosio Spinola's Spanish army to recapture the devastated city and end one of the bloodiest sieges in history that caused an estimated 100,000 casualties.

1850 Slave trading abolished in Washington, D.C.

1854 Battle of the Alma-- British, French, and Ottoman alliance defeats the Russian Empire in the first major battle of the Crimean War

1870 Rome is captured by the Italian army after Pope Pius IX surrenders to King Victor Emmanuel II, unifying Italy and ending the 1,116-year reign of the Papal States

1990 East Germany and West Germany both ratify the reunification plan

2001 In an address to a joint session of Congress and the American people, US President George W. Bush declares a "war on terror"

Natural: It is Ember Saturday of the Autumn or September Embertide. The September Ember Days fall after the third Sunday of September near the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (September 14), and are days of thanksgiving for the completed harvest of fruits and grapes and historically commemorated as a "wine-press feast." But these Ember Days are also days of penance and atonement since the traditional liturgy connected them with the Jewish celebration of the New Year and Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur. The Stational churches were part of the quarterly Ember Days, with Ember Saturdays always being the Station with San Pietro in Vaticano (St. Peter's in the Vatican).

Italian: 15 Expressions with “Quattro” in Italian

Example: Essere in quattro gatti

Literally: To be four cats

Meaning: To be just a handful of people

Essere quattro gatti is a super common way to say that there are barely any people around, often with a touch of sarcasm. This phrase likely comes from the idea that wild cats tend to gather in large groups for safety. So, if only quattro gatti (four cats) show up, the group feels disappointingly small.

Quote: "Apart from the cross there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven." – Saint Rose of Lima

Links: Cross-in-the-Woods