My Cousin the Saint: A Story of Love, Miracles, and an Italian Family Reunited
4.5/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
An inspiring story of faith and family across two continents
Like millions of other Italians in the early twentieth century, Justin Catanoso's grandfather immigrated to America to escape poverty and hardship. Nearly a hundred years later, Justin, born and raised in New Jersey, knows little of his family beyond the Garden State.
That changes in 2001 when he discovers that his grandfather's cousin, Padre Gaetano Catanoso, is a Vatican-certified miracle worker. After a life of serving the poor and founding an order of nuns, Gaetano had been approved by Pope John Paul II to become a saint, the first priest from Calabria ever to be canonized. A typically lapsed American Catholic, Justin embarks on a quest to connect with his extended family in southern Italy and, ultimately, to awaken his slumbering faith.
My Cousin the Saint charts the parallel history of two relatives—Justin's grandfather, Carmelo, and his sainted cousin, Gaetano. While Carmelo leaves his homeland to pursue New World prosperity, Gaetano stays behind to relieve Old World misery. Justin reunites the two halves of a sundered family by both exploring the life of the saint in Calabria and uncovering the untold story of his grandfather's family, raised in New Jersey between two world wars.
Justin confronts his own tenuous spiritual moorings in the process. After meeting with Vatican officials in Rome, he is astonished by the complexity of saint-making. After hearing one miracle story after another, he struggles with the line between the mystical and the divine. After seeing his brother fall ill with terminal cancer, he questions the value of prayer. And after reveling in the charm and generosity of his newfound Italian relatives, he comes to learn what it means to have a saint in the family.
A compelling narrative written with grace and honesty, My Cousin the Saint is a testament to the challenge of being Catholic in twenty-first-century America. More than a biography, more than an immigrant memoir, more than a chronicle of renewed faith, it is a love letter to a family now reunited across oceans and years.
Related to My Cousin the Saint
Related ebooks
Ambassadors of God: Selected Obituaries from The Catholic Worker Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLittle Flowers for God: Collected Poetry Volume I Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMonk's Tale: The Pilgrimage Begins, 1941–1975 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsNumbering My Days: How the Liturgical Calendar Rearranged My Life Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Feast for Hungry Souls: Spiritual Lessons from the Church's Greatest Masters and Mystics Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Orthodoxy of Amoris Laetitia Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJesus and You, Woman Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHe Called: Selected Poems Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWork of Love: A Theological Reconstruction of the Communion of Saints Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings30-Day Journey with Julian of Norwich Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFrancis and Clare: A True Story Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Way of the Carmelites: A Prayer Journey Through Lent Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCalled: The Making & Unmaking of a Nun Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHoly Thirst: Essentials of Carmelite Spirituality Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Cradled in the Arms of Love: Childlike Confidence as the Heart of Holiness Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSt. Teresa of Avila: Her Life in Letters Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGale Researcher Guide for: Julian of Norwich's Revelation of Love Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsStraightening the Wayward Path: Online Chats About Discernment Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsUprooted: Dialogues on the Liquid Church Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChrist's Body, Christ's Wounds: Staying Catholic When You’ve Been Hurt in the Church Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHabits of Freedom: 5 Ignatian Tools for Clearing Your Mind and Resting Daily in the Lord Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSaints at Heart: How Fault-Filled, Problem-Prone, Imperfect People Like Us Can Be Holy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSome Counsels Of S. Vincent De Paul : To Which Is Appended The Thoughts Of Mademoiselle Le Gras Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRejoice in the Lord Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBecoming Flame: Uncommon Mother-Daughter Wisdom Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsClare of Assisi: Gentle Warrior Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEnvoy for Christ: 25 Years as a Catholic Apologist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bread That Is Broken Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Quiet Revolution of Pope Francis: A Synodal Catholic Church in Ireland Revised Edition Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Personal Memoirs For You
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, HER Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Solutions and Other Problems Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Everything I Know About Love: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Just Mercy: a story of justice and redemption Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Down the Rabbit Hole: Curious Adventures and Cautionary Tales of a Former Playboy Bunny Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I'm Glad My Mom Died Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Child Called It: One Child's Courage to Survive Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Be Alone: If You Want To, and Even If You Don't Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Diary of a Young Girl Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Stolen Life: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5You Could Make This Place Beautiful: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Becoming Free Indeed: My Story of Disentangling Faith from Fear Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Gift: 14 Lessons to Save Your Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Coreyography: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Son of Hamas: A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political Intrigue, and Unthinkable Choices Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Choice: Embrace the Possible Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression – and the Unexpected Solutions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Whiskey in a Teacup: What Growing Up in the South Taught Me About Life, Love, and Baking Biscuits Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mommie Dearest Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Me: Elton John Official Autobiography Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Stay Married: The Most Insane Love Story Ever Told Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: the heartfelt, funny memoir by a New York Times bestselling therapist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Man of Two Faces: A Memoir, A History, A Memorial Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for My Cousin the Saint
11 ratings1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5My Cousin the Saint is a wonderful memoir by Justin Catanoso. While a saint definitely inspired the book, this story is a travelogue, a history about Italian immigration to America, and a warm family story. Justin's writing is honest and poignant and I found myself unable to put it down, I was so deeply involved with his characters. As I do my holiday shopping, I am not only giving this book but encouraging others to do so too.