St. Patrick | St. Joseph | Routine
Peregrino Issue 16
St. Patrick
I’m a dual citizen of the U.S. and Mexico, and according to Ancestry.com, I’m 5% Irish. Of course, this would make a somewhat absurd Venn diagram. But the bit of history I have been thinking about this week—because of St. Patrick’s day—involves the U.S., Mexico, and Ireland.
But before that, a rant. Since when is St. Patrick’s day two weeks long? Diana and I went out to dinner, and the restaurant had a special St. Patrick’s menu from March 2 to the 17th—the actual feast day. I even saw people wearing green and shamrocks on March 11. If I see a “He is risen” sign on March 18, I may vandalize it with the words “Not yet.” OK, back to history.
In 1836, Texas was like, “No hablo Español. Y’all may call me The Republic of Texas now.” Mexico was like, “Qué?” Then, in 1845, most Anglo-American citizens of the Republic of Texas wanted to be annexed to the U.S., but Mexico was still in denial and didn’t want to recognize Texas had moved on. U.S. President James K. Polk sent a diplomatic mission to Mexico to settle the border between Texas and Mexico. Mexico claimed it was the Nueces river, while Texas said it was the Rio Grande. The U.S. sent troops to the Rio Grande, and Mexico attacked a group of 80 soldiers. This incident was enough for Polk to convince congress to declare war on Mexico, and thus war ensued from 1846 to 1848.
During this war, a group of deserters and defectors of the U.S. Army switched sides and fought for Mexico. The Battalion of St. Patrick—or Batallón de San Patricio in Spanish—, led by Irishman John Riley, was composed of primarily Irish immigrants but included German, Canadian, English, French, Italian, Polish, Scottish, Spanish, and Swiss; most of whom were Catholic. The fact that there was an anti-Catholic sentiment in the States made it easy for these men to join Mexico and participate in some of the bloodiest battles of this war, even though they were on the losing side. They were executed by hanging when the U.S. flag was raised at Castillo de Chapultepec in Mexico City on September 13, 1847. The San Patricios are regarded as heroes and martyrs in Mexican history.
In the aftermath of the war, Mexico lost about a third of its territory since it became a country in 1821. The Guadalupe Hidalgo treaty gave the U.S. undisputed control of Texas, established the U.S.-Mexican border along the Rio Grande, and ceded to the United States the present-day states of California, Nevada, and Utah, most of New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado, and parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Wyoming.
The border crossed people and not the other way around. On February 2, 1848—the war’s end—people went to bed in Mexico and woke up in the U.S. I mean, sort of; California was admitted to the union in 1850; for some others, it took a bit longer, like Arizona, which became state 48 in 1912.
You may be familiar with two names on the American side. It turns out that Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee fought together in this war only to lead the Union and the Confederate States 13 years later.
I find history fascinating. I’ve been doing my best to learn more about U.S. history, i.e., George Washington’s biography by Ron Chernow was a fantastic read. Studying the Mexican-American war from the U.S. side has given me greater insight. Mexico was a hyper-volatile country in its infancy, going against the U.S., which had been around three times longer and was looking to expand from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Many Catholic immigrants decided to join their brothers in Christ against a common enemy, even though they knew they weren’t likely to win. And 175 years later, you have a fool with a laptop writing about it.
St. Patrick, pray for us.
St. Joseph
The Solemnity of St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is usually celebrated on March 19 but has been transferred to March 20—this year—since the liturgy of the Lenten Sundays takes precedence.
I thought I’d share one of my favorite St. Joseph-centric art pieces. The image below is a fresco found on a side altar of a chapel in northern Italy. It was painted by 19th-century artist Francesco Grandi who created many works in churches around Rome and Italy, including pieces found in St. Paul Outside the Walls.
Michele Di Monte’s Biographical Dictionary of Italians (Volume 58, 2002) describes Grandi as follows: “In these works of great breadth and discoveries of didactic inclinations, Grandi shows himself to be a sober and thoughtful composer, easy and clear in the narrative cadences, but also attentive to the notes of color and reality, looking for a balance between theatrical effects of naturalism and noble composure….”
Several things caught my attention. First, how massive St. Joseph’s hands and feet look. Definitely getting patriarchal authority vibes coming from him. His posture seems to be that of someone ready to engage in battle while holding the infant Jesus. Second, even though St. Joseph looks like he’s about to throw down, his facial expression is that of one in control of his emotions. Third, he’s walking away from a stone throne. I have heard St. Joseph’s profession referred to as “Tektōn,” equivalent to a carpenter, woodworker, builder, and stone-worker or mason.
Lastly, the Latin inscription, “Tu eris super domum mean”—You are charged with my household— sums up St. Joseph’s mission in life. This man took his pregnant wife on a donkey to Bethlehem, protected the Holy Family on the way to and from Egypt, taught Jesus his trade, and, most importantly, how to pray.
My devotion to St. Joseph is relatively recent, I’d admit. However, at some point this year, I’d like to renew my consecration to St. Joseph using the book by Fr. Donald Calloway; if you haven’t read it, I highly recommend it.
St. Joseph, pillar of families, pray for us.
Routine
I like that, as a family, we have a routine in place. We wake up around the same time every day; the kids have first breakfast, we have coffee, and the kids have second breakfast; there’s time for school, lunch, naps, tv time, outside time, dinner, getting ready for bed, then it’s lights out.
That’s our flow most days. Of course, there might be some slight variations based on extracurriculars, but for the most part, we strive to be as structured as possible. We think it benefits us. Generally, the kiddos know what will happen next, so they don’t fight—as much—when we say no to certain things. We like our little rhythm of life.
The challenge I’ve been facing is keeping an horarium. By this, I mean a specific daily schedule for prayer. It’s difficult enough when I’m home. On the days I have tried to wake up before the kids so I can have some quiet time to pray, they’re up as soon as I try to get started. So except for Mondays—when I have a holy hour—I pencil in “prayer time” in my schedule after the kids go to bed. But it is the end of the day, and I’m tired and can’t concentrate well.
When we’re out of town, it’s even worse. I knew I was close to a perpetual adoration chapel when I was in California a couple of weeks ago. Did I make plans to spend time with the Lord? Of course not. I did manage to get to confession, and we went to Mass. Still, I feel I could’ve had a game plan for what I would do—prayer-wise—while out of town.
You would think I picked back up where I left my habit once I got home. But, nope. It took me a few days to get back into the groove. But I did get back into it! It took effort, but little by little, I jumped back in. A little bit of planning can go a long way.
I’m getting a little better. For example, I’m writing this 48 hours before you’ll receive it instead of 8 hours before it gets published. Hopefully, this translates into a better reading experience for you and fewer grammatical errors.
In the meantime, I ask you for your prayers. My family and I are taking all the kiddos on our first plane trip—uncharted territory—and you bet I will be praying we don’t get kicked out of the plane for being too loud.
Do you have an horarium? What has worked for you?
I enjoy Civil War history and prior to a recent move I lived in Virginia--ground zero for a lot of major battles of the Civil War.
Fun fact--almost all union and confederate generals began their careers during the Mexican American war. There's a fun anecdote in the biography of Robert E. Lee that his first introduction to Stonewall Jackson was seeing him furiously serving a cannon *by himself* during the battle of--I think--Buena Vista. Later Jackson was a brilliant artillerist and genius tactician prized by Lee during the war.
I have a nascent devotion to St. Joseph as well. I have a prayer card with that image on it--I need to find it, I am embarrassed to say.
I have been struggling to keep an horarium but have been praying more, little prayers, more frequently throughout the day, as I need them. I don't know whether that is better or not than a dedicated, scheduled time--but it helps at least for now. Good luck in your devotions and I'll be praying for you!