Catholic Activity: Feast of St. Christopher

Suggestions for spiritual practices in the family on the feast of St. Christopher. His feast was formerly on the Universal Calendar, but because his life presents historical difficulties, he is now just celebrated locally in some areas.

DIRECTIONS

Every day of the year gives you a special opportunity to instill a great religious appreciation in your children, to broaden their knowledge of Our Lord, the Blessed Mother and the saints, and to strengthen their dedication to the laws of God and the Church. Each day is set aside by the Church to honor a particular event in the life of Our Lord or the Blessed Virgin, or to honor a particular saint. Consulting your religious calendar and one of the many books recounting the lives of the saints you can discuss these events with your children, stressing the qualities in the saints' lives which we might cultivate.

The feast of St. Christopher used to be on the Universal Calendar on July 25. If you carry a medal of St. Christopher in your car — as millions do — your children will be especially interested in his life. According to legend, he carried a child on his shoulders across a treacherous river one day, and in midstream almost collapsed under the weight. Only when he reached the other shore did he realize that he had carried the Savior upon his back. St. Christopher is widely venerated as the patron of travelers. In some places cars are blessed on his feast day.

Activity Source: Catholic Family Handbook, The by Rev. George A. Kelly, Random House, Inc., New York, 1959