Whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come. And all this is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and given us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. So we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.

– 2 Corinthians 5:17-21

Some people living carefree in the world have asked me: “We have wives and are beset with social cares, and how can we lead the solitary life?” I replied to them: “Do all the good you can; do not speak evil of anyone; do not steal from anyone; do not lie to anyone; do not be arrogant towards anyone; do not hate any one; be sure you go to church; be compassionate to the needy; do not offend anyone; do not wreck another man’s domestic happiness; and be content with what your own wives can give you. If you behave in this way you will not be far from the Kingdom of Heaven.”
 
– The Ladder of Divine Ascent, 21

Elijah was afraid and fled for his life, going to Beer-sheba of Judah. He left his servant there and went a day’s journey into the wilderness, until he came to a solitary broom tree and sat beneath it. He prayed for death: “Enough, LORD! Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” He lay down and fell asleep under the solitary broom tree, but suddenly a messenger touched him and said, “Get up and eat!” He looked and there at his head was a hearth cake and a jug of water. After he ate and drank, he lay down again, but the angel of the LORD came back a second time, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat or the journey will be too much for you!” He got up, ate, and drank; then strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God, Horeb. There he came to a cave, where he took shelter. But the word of the LORD came to him: Why are you here, Elijah? He answered: “I have been most zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts, but the Israelites have forsaken your covenant. They have destroyed your altars and murdered your prophets by the sword. I alone remain, and they seek to take my life.” Then the LORD said: Go out and stand on the mountain before the LORD; the LORD will pass by. There was a strong and violent wind rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the LORD—but the LORD was not in the wind; after the wind, an earthquake—but the LORD was not in the earthquake; after the earthquake, fire—but the LORD was not in the fire; after the fire, a light silent sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.

-- 1 Kings 19:3-13a

How often do we need to be shaken out of our complacency or even out of our ecstatic mountain top experiences? Truly following Christ will constantly rock our world to greater and greater joy.
I think about Moses seeing the burning bush. He had eschewed the pleasures of the palace and "was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian" (Exodus 3:1) when he happened upon an astonishing sight and was compelled, like people in a horror movie, to investigate. He had settled into his life and was content; a wife, a wealthy and well connected Father-in-law, even hopes of becoming the patriarch himself one day.
The blessings of God are not a reward for living His will but are a natural part of it. They can bring contentment, joy, peace.
But joy is not complacency. If we keep at it, the experience of God can also show us the darkness that still surrounds us, even though we are bathed in his marvelous light (cf. 1 Peter 2:9b); God is an ever brightening light in a dark and fallen world.
At the same time that can cause fear, a sense that there is no stability in the world. But these are the fears of the devil, the temptation in the desert. Think of it that way: in the midst of the privation of the desert, Jesus finds the fullness of God. But it is not a journey that ended at that moment -- there is always a deeper place to go where the marvels of God await us, as well as a deepening of the call that goes with it: a deeper call to bend our will to God's will.

Thus we quite easily and spontaneously come to spend much of the time...in these smooth flights of simple repose, gliding through the verses of the Psalms with our hearts absorbed in a simple gaze upon the God Who is invisible but near, and Whose love now holds us captive by its unworldly charm. But it also happens – and this is rarer – that under the pressure of a very great love, or in the darkness of a conflict that exacts a heroic renunciation of our whole self, or in the ecstasy of a sudden joy that does not belong to this earth, the soul will be raised out of itself. It will come face to face with Christ. In an experience that might be likened to a flash of dark lightning, a thunderclap over the surface of the abyss, its eyes will be opened and it will know him and he will vanish from its sight. This momentary blaze of recognition is not produced by a created species or image in the soul. It is the flash of a flame that is touched off by an immediate contact of the substance of the soul with God himself. In one terrific second that belongs not to time but to eternity, the whole soul is transfixed and illumined by the tremendous darkness which is the light of God.
 
– Thomas Merton, Bread in the Wilderness

When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you. In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him. “This is how you are to pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and do not subject us to the final test, but deliver us from the evil one. If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you.h But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions. “When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites. They neglect their appearance, so that they may appear to others to be fasting. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you may not appear to others to be fasting, except to your Father who is hidden. And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you. Treasure in Heaven. “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal. But store up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.

-- Matthew 6:5-21

This is updated for 2020.
I know that I will address this some tomorrow but in anticipation, and now in light of current events in the 2020 pandemic, I thought it might be something to think about more often.
We live in a wonderful time of connectivity. Especially during the pandemic we have the ability to connect with friends and loved ones in a marvelous way; we can conduct business, finances, even work in the comfort of our own homes; we can even celebrate Mass together - something that would not have been true five to ten years ago. The pervasiveness of technology and its use are nothing new but at this time in history we receive an unprecedented amount of capability to be present to one another in this day and age.
But it can be hard for social creature that we are. We are actually disconnected as well. Hype and lies spread (as they always have) but our lack of connection makes it difficult to separate truth from falsehood. We are anxious and scared because we cannot always see the faces of those who tell us things anonymously over the internet and hear and see the context for things that are said. We are told to and do look for experts but often it is hard to distinguish who they are from the slick presentation that can deceive.
How like sin and temptation it is. To paraphrase Maxwell Smart: "If only he had used his genius for goodness instead of evil."
To paraphrase another response: "We have an answer for that." We know how to be alone and yet completely connected - we are the Church, the Body of Christ and the people of God. Throughout time so many saints are molded from the community of hermits. Though physically separated, they were completely connected with God and with those that they taught, healed, and comforted. When I read some of their stories I am amazed at the patience and compassion they had and the devotion to prayer and self-denial they practiced.
We are given that same chance but if we use our "connectivity" as a way to keep us apart from others instead of truly bringing us together then we fail to be disciples. It is easy to deceive ourselves that all the time we spend on-line "connects" us when in reality we use it as a way of distancing ourselves, keeping us from reaching in and getting our hands dirty, of being smug, satisfied, and of living from our couch instead of serving justice and the needs of others. And now, if we let fear of what we are to eat, how we are to get money, even illness and death, then we have let the Devil succeed in his temptations. The pandemic is not from God (cf. John 9) but it can be used by both God and the Devil for their ends. For God, "it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him." (John 9:3b); for the devil, well the effects of that are obvious as well.
So now, as many of us "quarantine in place" and practice "social distancing", let us look to the hermits. Let us live in joy and not fear. Let us take in liturgies, bible studies, and prayers and give out light. Concentrate on our relationship with God and a loving relationship with others, knowing that frustration, anger, fear, greed, sloth, and any number of other temptations and  sin lie all around us. Let us come together in Christ and be one people in him.

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat [or drink], or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they? Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work or spin. But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat?’ or ‘What are we to drink?’ or ‘What are we to wear?’ All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom [of God] and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil."

-- Matthew 6:25-34

Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but [also] everyone for those of others. Have among yourselves the same attitude that is also yours in Christ Jesus, Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  So then, my beloved, obedient as you have always been, not only when I am present but all the more now when I am absent, work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For God is the one who, for his good purpose, works in you both to desire and to work. Do everything without grumbling or questioning...

-- Phillipians 2:3-14

Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, be courageous, be strong. Your every act should be done with love. I urge you, brothers—you know that the household of Stephanash is the firstfruits of Achaia and that they have devoted themselves to the service of the holy ones— be subordinate to such people and to everyone who works and toils with them. I rejoice in the arrival of Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, because they made up for your absence, for they refreshed my spirit as well as yours. So give recognition to such people. The churches of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Prisca together with the church at their house send you many greetings in the Lord. All the brothers greet you. Greet one another with a holy kiss.

-- 1 Corinthians 16:13-20

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?”* He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He then said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” [Jesus] said to him, “Feed my sheep.  Amen, amen, I say to you,j when you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.”

-- John 21:15-19

As they were going off, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John, “What did you go out to the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? Then what did you go out to see? Someone dressed in fine clothing? Those who wear fine clothing are in royal palaces. Then why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way before you.’ Amen, I say to you, among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

-- Matthew 11:7-11

But we hold this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us.
Therefore, we are not discouraged; rather, although our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to what is seen but to what is unseen; for what is seen is transitory, but what is unseen is eternal. For we know that if our earthly dwelling, a tent, should be destroyed, we have a building from God, a dwelling not made with hands, eternal in heaven. For in this tent we groan, longing to be further clothed with our heavenly habitation....
Consequently, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh; even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him so no longer. So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come. And all this is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and given us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. So we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.

-- 2 Corinthians 4:7, 16-5:2, 16-20

Photina (Φωτεινη - root of our word "photon"), as her name implies, is one of light, or more exactly an enlightened one. We do not know much about her except what we think we know about a woman whose name we really do not know. Photina is the name given to the Woman at the Well of John 4. It makes sense after you read the story that no matter what her name was before she met Jesus, like many who are transformed by him, including Simon and Saul, she has a new name afterwards.
In the East, known for its wonderful titles, she is known as "the holy and glorious Great-martyr Photine of Samaria, Equal-to-the-Apostles." Equal because of the meaning of "apostle" (ἀποστόλων): "messenger, one who is sent". She runs from her encounter with Jesus and spreads the news of the Messiah. She leads others to Jesus who then eventually proclaim that “We no longer believe because of your word; for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the savior of the world.” (John 4:42) Truly she is "Equal-to-the-Apostles." Truly she was enlightened.
Tradition (East and West) has her eventually ending up in Rome and dying there in the persecution of Nero. In the West, therefore, she is celebrated as "of Rome".
No matter what, all of us can claim ownership of her, as long as we emulate her and evangelize, sharing Christ with everyone we meet so that they too may come to believe in their own right. Let us ask her guidance and support in our efforts.

The woman left her water jar and went into the town and said to the people,  “Come see a man who told me everything I have done. Could he possibly be the Messiah?” They went out of the town and came to him.
...Many of the Samaritans of that town began to believe in him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me everything I have done.” When the Samaritans came to him, they invited him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. Many more began to believe in him because of his word, and they said to the woman, “We no longer believe because of your word; for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the savior of the world.”

-- John 4:29-30, 39-42

To follow up on my reflection of two days ago, we only have to look at the celebration of St. Joseph Day, to understand the attitude and call of these holy days. The world "celebrates" Patrick's day with wanton self-indulgence; Joseph's day is celebrated with service and corporal works of mercy. The World jumps at Patrick's day and ignores Joseph's day.
Perhaps this is a harsh judgment, but it is a call to us to celebrate both days in a manner befitting the saint.
Joseph was a man of no words that we can find, but the words we do know tell us enough. He was thought "righteous" by everyone. This is not self-righteousness, or being right about everything (even if he was a dad). If we look, he seems to need God to tell him everything! But that is the "righteousness" that we are talking about. Joseph was a true adherent to the Law, to his relationship with God and so he, like Abram his father before him,  "put his faith in the LORD, who attributed it to him as an act of righteousness." (Genesis 15:6).
It is Joseph's actions that we celebrate. His kind fatherhood and ardent teaching of the Law must have had a great influence on the humanity of his foster son, which allowed him to "advance in wisdom and age and favor before God and man". We can see the effects of Joseph's fathering actions in the actions of Jesus. To submit one's human will as Jesus did, as Joseph did, as Abram did -- this is a statement without words for each of us.
On a note, the submission of Joseph is in juxtaposition to the resistance of Zechariah (Luke 1:5-20) when the angel speaks; Zechariah is struck dumb when he fights God's will; Joseph never says a word as he submits and follows it.
Joseph pray for us to Jesus that we too may learn righteousness from you and do God's will without question.

Each year his parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover, and when he was twelve years old, they went up according to festival custom. After they had completed its days, as they were returning, the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Thinking that he was in the caravan, they journeyed for a day and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances, but not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions, and all who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, “Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.” And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said to them. He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus advanced [in] wisdom and age and favor before God and man.

-- Luke 2:41-52

But while honoring our heavenly Father let us honor also the fathers of our flesh (Hebrews 12:9) since the Lord Himself has evidently so appointed in the Law and the Prophets, saying, honor your father and your mother, that it may be well with you, and your days shall be long in the land (Deuteronomy 5:16). And let this commandment be especially observed by those here present who have fathers and mothers. Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing to the Lord (Colossians 3:20). For the Lord did not say: "He that loves father or mother is not worthy of Me," lest you from ignorance should perversely mistake what was rightly written, He added, "more than Me" (Matthew 10:37). For when our fathers on earth are of a contrary mind to our Father in heaven, then we must obey Christ's word. But when they put no obstacle to godliness in our way, if we are ever carried away by ingratitude, and, forgetting their benefits to us, hold them in contempt, then the oracle will have place which says: "He that curses father or mother, let him die the death." (Matthew 15:4)
The first virtue of godliness in Christians is to honor their parents, to requite the troubles of those who begot them , and with all their might to confer on them what tends to their comfort (for if we should repay them much, we shall never be able to return their gift of life), that they also may enjoy the comfort provided by us, and may confirm us in those blessings which Jacob the supplanter shrewdly seized; and that our Father in heaven may accept our good purpose, and judge us worthy to shine amid righteous as the sun in the kingdom of our Father (Matthew 13:43) To whom be the glory, with the Only-begotten our Savior Jesus Christ, and with the Holy and Life-giving Spirit, now and ever, to all eternity. Amen.

-- Lecture 7, 15-16

In this post-"Enlightenment" time, the idea of "holiday" being a secularization of "holy day" is not surprising. Nor should it be surprising that national pride for Irish-American Catholics should center about their patron saint. Patrick and the immigrant Irish experience in America fall directly into this.
What should surprise us is the nature of the celebration. As with the Tuesday before Lent (call it Mardi Gras/Carnival/Fat Tuesday, whatever you will), it is the attitude that has changed our holy days into holidays, and our holidays into debauchery.
"Everyone is Irish on St. Paddy's day," I often hear and see on signs and buttons. Apparently that means that the Irish are amoral bacchanalians and that Patrick is their Bacchus.
But I am confidently certain that was not what Patrick had in mind when he first returned to the shores of Ireland to bring those that brought him into slavery into Christ's wonderful light. And for us, the island of Ireland protected it from much of the scourges that ravaged Europe and the Western Church. Tis the luck of the Irish (and that of the Western Church) that allowed them to protect and then teach the Faith that came to them from Patrick back into the arms of those who gave it to him.
Let us remember on this "holy day" the gift of Patrick not only for Ireland but to the whole Church, and keep it as a holy-day.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.

I arise today
Through the strength of Christ's birth with His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion with His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection with His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.

I arise today
Through the strength of the love of cherubim,
In the obedience of angels,
In the service of archangels,
In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In the prayers of patriarchs,
In the predictions of prophets,
In the preaching of apostles,
In the faith of confessors,
In the innocence of holy virgins,
In the deeds of righteous men.

I arise today, through
The strength of heaven,
The light of the sun,
The radiance of the moon,
The splendor of fire,
The speed of lightning,
The swiftness of wind,
The depth of the sea,
The stability of the earth,
The firmness of rock.

I arise today, through
God's strength to pilot me,
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's host to save me
From snares of devils,
From temptation of vices,
From everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and near.

I summon today
All these powers between me and those evils,
Against every cruel and merciless power
that may oppose my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom,
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul;
Christ to shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
So that there may come to me an abundance of reward.

Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.

-- St. Patrick's Breastplate

How do we win hearts and minds? How do we evangelize? Is it with sword and whip or with compassion and empathy?
John approached it with a combination of spirituality and practicality.
John's success with the Huron people echoes in the success of the many Jesuits who made their way to North America to spread the Gospel.
His death (and theirs) also echoes the end of many of those who did.
But his death was not loss, because as Paul states: "[But] whatever gains I had, these I have come to consider a loss because of Christ. More than that, I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having any righteousness of my own based on the law but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God, depending on faith to know him and the power of his resurrection and [the] sharing of his sufferings by being conformed to his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead." (Philippians 3:7-11)
Honor to the North American Martyrs! Pray for us!

• You must love these Huron, ransomed by the blood of the Son of God, as brothers.
• You must never keep the Indians waiting at the time of embarking.
• Carry a tinder-box or a piece of burning-glass, or both, to make fire for them during the day for smoking, and in the evening when it is necessary to camp; these little services win their hearts.
• Try to eat the little food they offer you, and eat all you can, for you may not eat again for hours.
• Eat as soon as day breaks, for Indians when on the road, eat only at the rising and the setting of the sun.
• Be prompt in embarking and disembarking and do not carry any water or sand into the canoe.
• Be the least troublesome to the Indians.
• Do not ask many questions; silence is golden.
• Bear with their imperfections, and you must try always to appear cheerful.
• Carry with you a half-gross of awls, two or three dozen little folding knives, and some plain and fancy beads with which to buy fish or other commodities from the nations you meet, in order to feast your Indian companions, and be sure to tell them from the outset that here is something with which to buy fish.
• Always carry something during the portages.
• Do not be ceremonious with the Indians.
• Do not begin to paddle unless you intend always to paddle.
• The Indians will keep later that opinion of you which they have formed during the trip.
• Always show any other Indians you meet on the way a cheerful face and show that you readily accept the fatigues of the journey.

-- de Brebeuf's Instructions to the Missionaries, 1637

I am greatly consoled by all we have been told about you and for the graces that God has bestowed upon you in the duty of directing this work which His goodness has confided to you. May He be forever blessedl I beg the divine mercy to grant you the grace of being thankful to Him for all that He has done. I am certain, my dear Sister, that our three sisters' profit greatly from the good example and the advice which, in your charity, you give them. However, since you cannot always be with them, I beg the sisters, for the love of our Lord, not to allow themselves to be too distracted by the things they hear around them. They are dealing with all kinds of people. While it is true that some of them lead us to recollection and the awareness of human frailty, others can give rise to quite different thoughts because of the habits they have contracted by living as they do. The sisters must often renew their purity of intention which causes them to perform all their actions for the love of God. This will enable them to preserve the spirit which true Daughters of Charity must possess. Finally, I beg all of you not to allow the distance which separates you from us to cause you to forget the care with which you must observe your Rules and the virtues which the Daughters of Charity must possess.

-- From a letter To Sister Anne Hardemont

Who is there like you, the God who removes guilt and pardons sin for the remnant of his inheritance; Who does not persist in anger forever, but delights rather in clemency, And will again have compassion on us, treading underfoot our guilt? You will cast into the depths of the sea all our sins; You will show faithfulness to Jacob, and grace to Abraham, As you have sworn to our fathers from days of old.

-- Micah 7:18-20
(also recommend the Gospel: Luke 15:1-3, 11-32)

However, concerning the triple immersion of baptism, no truer reply can be made than what you yourselves feel, that in one faith, a different custom is in no way harmful to the Holy Church. But as we are immersed for the third time, we signify the sacraments of the burial that lasted three days, so that, while the infant is lifted out of the water for the third time, the resurrection of a three-day period is expressed. But if perhaps someone should also think that it happens for the sake of the veneration of the supreme Trinity, no objection is made to this, immersing in the water just once for baptism. For since there is one substance in three substances, it can in no way be reprehensible for an infant to be immersed either three times or once, when there is both a trinity of persons in three immersions, and the singularity of the divine can be signified in one. But if until now, an infant was immersed three times in baptism by heretics, I do not think that this should be done among you, in case they divide the divine while counting the immersions, boasting that they have defeated your custom, doing what they used to do.

-- Letter of Gregory the Great to Leander

Psalm 16 tells us "For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, nor let your devout one see the pit." (Psalm 16:10) which renders in the Greek (as we can see later in Acts) "because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld, nor will you suffer your holy one to see corruption." (Acts 2:27)
These passages remind us Christians of the nature of the Resurrection, and the promise of our own bodily resurrection. Sometimes though, we get a foretaste of the meaning of this: a saint, when exhumed for reasons of the canonization cause or for the transfer of relics, is found to be intact, not corrupted by the normal process of death and decay.
This can be a little freaky, especially to those of us who are not so used to death and its effects. We see the embalmed body, perhaps, but we do not see the peace of death upon it. It is often stiff and different than the person we knew when they were alive.
There is a sense, if you have ever visited an incorruptible, that they are merely asleep, peaceful and relaxed. That is the image of death we need to hold on to, as Paul says: those who sleep in Christ (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:18 ; 1 Thessalonians 4:14).
Luigi is one such incorruptible. He is the founder of several congregations and orphanages. As their founder, he traveled the world overseeing them. He devoted his life to the poor, abandoned, and homeless mentored by none other than Don Bosco. In poor health himself he was cured at Bosco's funeral, enabling him to serve whole for so many years, and then to remain whole even in death.
May we, during this time of Lent as we contemplate the Resurrection and our own, strive for incorruptibility.

Without Prayer nothing good is done. God's works are done with our hands joined, and on our knees. Even when we run, we must remain spiritually kneeling before Him.
-- attributed to the saint

Eulogius to Albarus my most dear brother in the Lord Jesus Christ:

Once, my brother, invigorated by domestic tranquillity and with family cares pacified I prospered and was rather comfortable. But when we were all suddenly thrown into disarray from the martyrdom of the blessed Isaac and the whole city was still reeling in shock from that, all - both clerics and laypersons alike - began to greatly revere that martyrdom and extol the constancy of such a great preacher with the greatest honor. And while the gathering righteous indignation was inflaming many and driving groups of the faithful to go into the forum and decry the enemy of the church with the profession of the faith sent forward, all those who had been terrified by the anger of the savage tyrant changed their opinions with unheard of alacrity, as they detracted and cursed and declared both those who do such things and those who support them to be guilty of great crime, with very few (as you yourself are not unaware) separated from the sacrilege of such things, as they had in no way changed their first opinion about the venerability of the saints. Concerning this matter I strove to engage in this effort and to shape the this humble little book to receive strength through the Lord's help, so that rendering its testimony about us to future generations I should either attain the infamy of being a liar or the title of praise from them, since we nonetheless hope to receive the prize of the defender of justice from the Lord on account of this. This work was almost finished when the decision of the furious governor sent me to the horrible prisons, with all my family in shock from the break-in by the state personnel. As the work had been written on various papers and leads, I thought that it had been dispersed through various means to many. But then with the Lord's preservation, now amid the narrow confinements of prison, and at last with His help, that work not only merited to be finished, but also to be transcribed elsewhere and then chose itself to be known to no one else other than you first, because it does not dare to be publicized to others, lest the raw draft should provide our adversaries an opportunity for detraction, lest the unpolished discourse display a source of ridicule for the hateful ones. Hence to you, most dear brother, who can judge my paltry knowledge, I arranged to first transmit the work still written as it is on cheap parchments, so that if you approve it, polished by brotherly judgement, it may be revealed. If you disapprove, it should be silent. And from there let the armed right-hand cut through the wedges of mutterings with a step that cannot fail and let it make its way to its faithful in victory, so that in imbuing the Catholic flock with simple exhortation, whatever it has merited of glory, may be subject to your praises and may you apply your blessing of it. But if you decree that it is inane, caught up in the whirlwinds of its sluggishness and should be put to sleep in eternal silence, then no one will be able to mock it when it is mute, no one will be able to defame it as it is silent. So I beseech your serenity, driven by the kindness by which we are both unshakably joined together, that you should peruse and emend this work we have decided to call Memoriale Sanctorum, and that you refine it through review, and if it will bear the merit of its name, you should strengthen it by your testimony so that you may rejoice with the very same saints about whom we speak with the memory of your name ascribed in the heavenly page, so long as the grace of their intervention has attained for me a place of resting in the last corner of paradise. Amen. Goodbye in the Lord Jesus Christ, most serene brother.

-- Letter of Eulogius to Albarus of Córdoba

If we look at all of the horrible religious back and forth in England and Europe before and after the upheaval of the Reformation, we can find plenty of martyrs. Many people used the sword rather than the Faith to win the hearts and minds of others.
There is always change for change's sake and resistance to change. When we flip toward the human and away from the divine then we only ask for trouble. When we think of religion before we think of God, politics before we think of morality, sex before love, any human thought or action before God's then we have create clay idols of human construct.
John bears the distinction of being the only official Scotsman martyr. Born a Calvinist, he was convicted for his insistence on the primacy of the Pope in spiritual matters, a position from which, even after torture, trials, and conviction, he never wavered. Before his hanging (he was the child of nobility) he remain openly defiant saying:  “If there be here any hidden Catholics, let them pray for me but the prayers of heretics I will not have.”
John strove to serve the "hidden Catholics" of his native land and while he may have made no friends with statements like that, his last actions did inspire some to re-look deeper at the mysteries of the Church.
Let us remember to put God first and personal feeling aside as we strive to serve all humanity and especially God's children.

Not to us, LORD, not to us but to your name give glory because of your mercy and faithfulness.
Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths but do not speak, eyes but do not see. They have ears but do not hear, noses but do not smell. They have hands but do not feel, feet but do not walk; they produce no sound from their throats. Their makers will be like them, and anyone who trusts in them. The house of Israel trusts in the LORD, who is their help and shield.

-- Psalm 115:1, 4-9

Is this not, rather, the fast that I choose: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking off every yoke? Is it not sharing your bread with the hungry, bringing the afflicted and the homeless into your house; Clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own flesh? Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; Your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer, you shall cry for help, and he will say: “Here I am!” If you remove the yoke from among you, the accusing finger, and malicious speech; If you lavish your food on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; Then your light shall rise in the darkness, and your gloom shall become like midday; Then the LORD will guide you always and satisfy your thirst in parched places, will give strength to your bones And you shall be like a watered garden, like a flowing spring whose waters never fail.

-- Isaiah 58:6-11

If we look forward to receiving God’s mercy, we can never fail to do good so long as we have the strength. For if we share with the poor, out of love for God, whatever he has given to us, we shall receive according to his promise a hundredfold in eternal happiness. What a fine profit, what a blessed reward! With outstretched arms he begs us to turn toward him, to weep for our sins, and to become the servants of love, first for ourselves, then for our neighbors. Just as water extinguishes a fire, so love wipes away sin.

-- From a letter

Martyrs die but it is not suicide. How can that be when one refuses to do the things that will keep one alive?
Not to lessen or minimize the issue, but in this sense, suicide is done in despair and out of a hopelessness. It is done without freedom.
Martyrdom is done not to die but to hold fast to Christ. The problem Perpetua deals with sounds simple - just make a sacrifice to the emperor to show that you are loyal to him. But it is more - the sacrifice is not for but to; if our only king is Christ then we cannot offer our allegiance to another for any price. And unlike for the emperor, we do not make sacrifice to Christ for his benefit! What benefit can we give him? We have only our homage and worship; we benefit from this worship, not Christ.
To not worship the emperor is to deny allegiance to him and is punishable by death. To not worship Christ bears a similar fate but at a much greater rate: "And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna." (Matthew 10:28)
So martyrdom shows "fear of the Lord", not fear of death. Perpetua and Felicity show that it is worse to abandon Christ then it is to abandon life, those we love, and who love us. But it is the same end that we all share whether by martyrdom or natural causes. Death has no more power over us - do we believe that?

One day while we were eating breakfast we were suddenly hurried off for a hearing. We arrived at the forum, and straight away the story went about the neighborhood near the forum and a huge crowd gathered. We walked up to the prisoner's dock. All the others when questioned admitted their guilt. Then, when it came my turn, my father appeared with my son, dragged me from the step, and said: 'Perform the sacrifice--have pity on your baby!'
Hilarianus the governor, who had received his judicial powers as the successor of the late proconsul Minucius Timinianus, said to me: 'Have pity on your father's grey head; have pity on your infant son. Offer the sacrifice for the welfare of the emperors.'
'I will not', I retorted.
'Are you a Christian?' said Hilarianus.
And I said: 'Yes, I am.'
When my father persisted in trying to dissuade me, Hilarianus ordered him to be thrown to the ground and beaten with a rod. I felt sorry for father, just as if I myself had been beaten. I felt sorry for his unhappiness in his old age.
Then Hilarianus passed sentence on all of us: we were condemned to the beasts, and we returned to prison in high spirits. But my baby had got used to being nursed at the breast and to staying with me in prison. So I sent the deacon Pomponius straight away to my father to ask for the baby. But father refused to give him over. But as God willed, the baby had no further desire for the breast, nor did I suffer any inflammation; and so I was relieved of any anxiety for my child and of any discomfort in my breasts....
Some days later, an adjutant named Pudens, who was in charge of the prison, began to show us great honour, realizing that we possessed some great power within us. And he began to allow many visitors to see us for our mutual comfort.

-- From the Acts of Perpetua and Felicitas