4 Saints that you must invoke in your life in difficult times

Over the past year, it has at times felt like being over our heads. A global pandemic has sickened millions of people and claimed more than 400.000 lives. A challenging political season ended with an oncoming administration determined to promote women's "rights" - including abortion - nationally and globally. We struggled with isolation as the new "normal" when schools and businesses closed, more Americans started working from home and more parents found themselves doing their best but felt unprepared for the challenges of education. housekeeper. Where is a person to turn to for support? Whether you are stressed out by job loss and financial difficulties, health problems or other problems, you have a friend in heaven. Here are some of the holy men and women who sit before the throne of God and who are ready to help in times of need.

SAN GIUSEPPE

During his years on earth, it was the humble carpenter Joseph who helped Jesus learn how to use tools and help around the house, and who worked tirelessly to provide a comfortable home for baby Jesus and his mother Mary. We can turn to St. Joseph with confidence, to ask for help in our homes and with our families. Joseph accepted Mary's unexpected pregnancy and took her for his wife; therefore he is considered the patron saint of future mothers. He fled with his family to Egypt, so St. Joseph is the patron saint of immigrants. Because he is thought to have died in the presence of Jesus and Mary, Joseph is also the patron of a happy death. In 1870, Pope Pius IX declared Joseph the patron of the universal Church; and in 2020, Pope Francis declared the Year of Saint Joseph, which will last until December 8, 2021. Saint Teresa of Avila had a great affection for Saint Joseph, Autobiography: “I don't even remember now ever asking anything to [St. Joseph] who did not grant. … To other saints the Lord seems to have given the grace to help us in some of our needs, but my experience of this glorious saint is that he helps us all… ”Especially during this Year of Saint Joseph, we can ask for his intercession in times of need, confident that St. Joseph will listen to our prayer.

Prayer during the year of St. Joseph (2020-2021)

Hail, Guardian of the Redeemer,
Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
To you God has entrusted his only Son;
in you Mary has placed her trust;
with you Christ became man.

Blessed Joseph, also to us
show yourself father
and guide us on the path of life.
Obtain grace, mercy and courage for us
and defend us from all evil. Amen.

St. Michael the Archangel

Ah, sometimes it feels like we are in a political battle with no end in sight! St. Michael is a protector and leader of God's army against the forces of evil. In the Book of Revelation, Michael leads the angelic army, defeating the forces of Satan during the war in heaven. He is mentioned three times in the Book of Daniel and again in the Epistle of Jude, always as a warrior and defender. In 1886, Pope Leo XIII introduced the Prayer to St. Michael, begging the archangel to defend us in battle. In 1994, Pope John Paul II again urged Catholics to pray that prayer. When it seems that the divisions that plague our nation are too great, that Satan will have his way into our government and our world, St. Michael is ready to defend us from the forces of evil.

Prayer to Archangel Michael

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the evil and snares of the devil. May God reproach him, we humbly pray, and you, o Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God, cast Satan and all the evil spirits that roam the world, seeking the ruin of souls into hell. Amen.

HOLY DYMPHNA

You can't take it anymore! Stress, born from the fear of unemployment, reduced income, put the next meal on the table! Conflicts even within your own family as political opponents joke about the next presidential term! The risk of getting sick, even seriously, with coronavirus! Whatever the source of your anxiety, St. Dymphna can help you.

Dymphna was born in Ireland. Her mother was a devout Christian, but when Dymphna was only 14, her mother died and Dymphna was left in the care of her pagan father, who was mentally unstable. Driven to replace his missing wife, Dymphna's father asked her to marry him; but because she had consecrated herself to Christ, and because she did not want to marry her father, Dymphna fled across the English Channel to the city of Geel in present-day Belgium. Dymphna's father, relentless in his search, tracked her down to her new home; but when Dymphna still refused to give herself sexually to her father, she drew her sword and cut off her head.

Dymphna was only 15 when she died at the hands of her father, but her strong faith and conviction gave her the strength to reject his advances. She is the patroness of those suffering from nervous and mental afflictions and protector of those who have been victims of incest.

Prayer to Santa Dinfna

Good holy Dinfna, great prodigious in every affliction of mind and body, I humbly implore your powerful intercession with Jesus through Mary, the Health of the Sick, in my present need. (Mention it.) Saint Dinfna, martyr of purity, patroness of those who suffer from nervous and mental afflictions, beloved daughter of Jesus and Mary, pray for me and obtain my request. Saint Dinfna, virgin and martyr, pray for us.

SAINT JUDE THADDEUS

Do you feel ready to give up? Is there no way out of the problems you are in? Pray to St. Jude, the patron of hopeless causes.

Jesus called Judas, who was also called Thaddeus, along with his brother James to follow him as one of his twelve apostles. During the three years of Jesus' earthly ministry, Judas learned from the Master. After Jesus' death, Judas traveled through Galilee, Samaria, and Judea, preaching the Good News that the Messiah had come. With Simon, he traveled to Mesopotamia, Libya, Turkey and Persia, preaching and leading many people to Christ. His ministry took him far beyond the Roman Empire and helped create the Armenian Church. Saint Jude wrote a letter to recent converts in Eastern churches who have faced persecution, warning them that some teachers were spreading false ideas about the Christian faith. He encouraged them to keep their faith and resist the urge to abandon God. He was so helpful and sympathetic to early believers that he became known as the patron of desperate causes. Today it can be so useful to you.

Prayer to St. Jude

Most Holy Apostle, Saint Judas Thaddeus, friend of Jesus, I entrust myself to your care in this difficult moment. Help me know that I don't have to go through my problems alone. Please join me in my need, asking God to send me: consolation in my pain, courage in my fear and healing in the midst of my suffering. Ask our loving Lord to fill me with the grace to accept whatever may happen to me and my loved ones and to strengthen my faith in the healing powers of God. Thank you, St. Jude Thaddeus, for the promise of hope you offer to all. who believe, and inspire me to give this gift of hope to others as it was given to me.

Saint Jude, apostle of hope, ray for us!