St. Therese and St. Francis–two spiritual giants celebrated this week

We celebrate two of the world’s most beloved saints this week–St. Thérèse of Lisieux (October 1) and St. Francis of Assisi (October 4). Time to break open some mobile apps (and other media resources) that can help us get better acquainted with these two spiritual giants popular with Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

Saint of the Day ($2.99) iOS  St. Anthony Messenger’s most popular Web feature since 1997 is now available as an app. Saint of the Day allows you to carry the wisdom of the saints with you everywhere you go. SPECIAL FEATURES: Audio option included; Saints for every day of the year; Revised and updated to include both new and classic saints; extensive searchable database (by saint or cause); list of patron saints; Interactive calendar.

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iPieta.($.99) Full version in iOS. Android version is split up into several lite apps. This major app is loaded with liturgical, catechetical and spiritual texts. Among the spiritual writings it contains: just about everything Thérèse of Lisieux wrote, including her letters. Remarkable that we can get all that stuffed into our little phones or tablets, is it not?

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Life of St. Francis of Assisi ($1.99) Blackberry. The Life of St. Francis by Fr. Candide Chalippe is packed with an easy to use functional book reader which means you can download the app and start reading. Full-length e-book.

St. Francis of Assisi app (Free) Android This is a cheesy little app with vintage holy card pictures but we can appreciate the thumbnail sketch it provides for this “patron saint of animals.” Yes, that kind of trivializes St. Francis, but for the price, you get some information about St Francis, a Daily Prayer, A Prayer for Animals, Franciscan Blessing of the Animals and The Canticle of the Sun.

The Life and Legends of Saint Francis of Assisi (Free) e-book The 1917 study of the stories surrounding Saint Francis. By Father Candide Chalippe, O.F.M. Granted, some of this scholarship is deficient, but you get a nice overview of the stories surrounding this remarkable holy man for your edification and meditation. To learn how to download e-books to your mobile device, click here.

+ Online Version
+ Compiled HTML Version (614 kb)
+ Microsoft Reader Version (495 kb)
+ Mobipocket Version (658 kb)

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Enjoy praying a novena to St. Francis or St. Therese using Novena ($.99) Apple

A Novena (Latin: Novem, meaning Nine) is a pious devotion of public or private prayers repeated for nine consecutive days calling on Our Lord and his saints for help with various earthly struggles. This app lists no less than 100 different dilemmas and concerns divided into four categories: health, occupation, situations and states of life. The app helps you locate the particular saint the Church has chosen for intercession in your concern along with his/her inspiring story–pious, vintage holy card artwork supplied for each saint. Don’t look for elaborate novenas that serve up a different prayer/reflection for each day with this app. You get a single simple prayer that you offer each day with your intention inserted. Search feature included. We would love to see future updates with new saints like St. Therese of Lisieux’s parents -Louis & Zelie Martin (October 18, 2015 canonization). Developers report that Android format and Spanish language option are in the works.

I don’t think Fr. Stephen Mimnaugh, OFM would mind our quoting parts of his eloquent review of this app on iTunes to help us understand the beauty of how a Novena works:

Often, we think of saints as having been very different from us. However, their lives and ours bear striking similarities. They suffered loss, disappointment, rejection, disease, heartache, or addiction just like us, the not-yet-so-saintly. Where they differed is perseverance. You and I are still in the thick of it. For the saints, obstacles were no less real, but they did not discourage their faith in a God who loved them, and through that love transformed ordinary human beings into exemplary models.

Audio Recordings

Audio Catholic Books MP3 ($8.99) iOS For the price of a single book you get 10 Catholic spiritual classics in MP3 format to enjoy listening to any time you have internet connection. These are not downloaded to your device, so you don’t have to take up valuable memory space. Beyond these books, you can add to your audio library with more selections at just .99 cents each. This audio collection includes:
– “The Story of a Soul”; The Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux (the Little Flower)
– “The Imitation of Christ” by Thomas a Kempis (a favorite book of St. Therese!)
– “Confessions” by St. Augustine
– “The Introduction to the Devout Life” by St. Francis de Sales
– “True Devotion to Mary” by St. Louis de Montfort
– “Practice of the Presence of God” by Br. Lawrence of the Resurrection
– “The Ascent of Mt. Carmel” by St. John of the Cross
– “The Friendship of Christ” by Mgsr. Robert Hugh Benson
– “The Interior Castle” by St. Teresa of Avila
– “The Way of Perfection” by St. Teresa of Avila

Listen to 14 audio recordings of devotional samples of the writings of St. Therese of Lisieux in Meditations from Carmel (Free) iTunes Podcast and on-line MP3 downloads–This is an apostolate of Secular Discalced Carmelites from the Carmel of St. Joseph in St. Louis, Missouri producing more than 100 recorded meditations from the writings of great Saints of Carmel (and from lesser known Carmelite Religious). The purpose of these recordings, according to their website, is to not only introduce you to Carmelite spirituality but to aid you in your education of the wonderful and historic tradition of mystical prayer found within the Catholic Church; these recordings are designed to help “jump start your prayer” and lead you into deeper prayer and quiet meditation. So, please relax as you listen to them and let the inspired words and ideas soak in. These meditations are serene by design.

Bishop Robert Barron’s Word on Fire web site features 10 resources on St. Therese including a couple video reflections like this one:

Finally, we remind you that October 4 is a feast day for the Pope! Jump on his Twitter account to send him warm wishes @Pontifex.