St. Maximilian Kolbe, canonized in 1982 by St. John Paul II, provides a model of selfless love and charity, as well as a living example of Jesus’ willingness to die in the place of another.

Caitlin Bootsma is working to fill a gap in Catholic publishing by writing unique stories for middle-grade readers. With extensive experience writing – and reading – Caitlin is uniquely positioned to strike the right tone with young readers, including the five she is raising! She uses her stories to share the beauty of the Catholic faith.

St. Ignatius of Loyola is well known for founding the Jesuit religious order and writing the Spiritual Exercises. Before he was a devout Catholic, he was a wealthy nobleman and soldier. He was badly wounded in battle. During his long recovery, he experienced a deep conversion while reading about Jesus and the Saints.

While we met Martha, Mary, and Lazarus in the Gospels, we don’t learn much about them, other than they were close friends and disciples of Jesus. We don’t know how they met Jesus or whether they were related to Him. Yet, our Church has designated July 29th as the day we celebrate their lives and the impact they have had on our faith.

“Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee . . .” We know the prayer, but do we know the prayer? How often do we sit and reflect with the Hail Mary? Do we say the prayer or do we pray the prayer? 

There are seasons in business when everything feels accelerated. Deadlines multiply. Opportunities expand. Visibility increases. People need answers, leadership, strategy, and execution — often all at once. For Catholic women entrepreneurs, these high-intensity seasons can become spiritually dangerous when productivity quietly replaces prayer and urgency begins to overpower interior peace.