Liturgical Living at Home
October 2025
Catholic All Year Podcast - available through Ave Maria Press:
This month I checked out another Catholic podcast called "Everyday Fiat" and the episode I listened to was called "Liturgical Living IRL" and the ladies were humorous, realistic and honest. But the part that spoke most to me and I bet a lot of families can relate to went something like this:
The real question is how do I live liturgically as ME? If you sing, include that! If you like art, include that! If has to match YOU. One of the ladies said, "I am not going to buy extra stuff. It's not going to be something that's going to stress me out. I want it to be something I am already kind of doing-- I'm already making dinner so I like to tie in foods that relate to feast days."
We are presenting lots of ideas, but keep in mind that there are ideas for all of us--simple, more complex and some that are in between. If you're crafty, check out a craftier activity, if you like music--go that route, and if you prefer food related activities check out those kinds of ideas. We hope you find something that your family would like to try this month.
October is the month of the Holy Rosary
St. Hilary Girl Scouts recently created a beanbag rosary for our Religious Education Office to use and share with the parish while they worked to complete a Marian award through the Diocesan Committee for Scouting.
If your family would like to borrow the Bean Bag Rosary for a fun family rosary experience, contact the Religious Ed office to find an available date. The Rosary is not available on Monday evenings so we have it available for our PSR classes, but any other dates are available until they're not!
My family recently borrowed the Bean Bag Rosary for a special family rosary and it was such fun. The girls that created it have tiny bits of the fabric used for the bean bags so it's like a key on the large brown sheet so the children can match the colors.
This is a great resource for praying the rosary you may find helpful: https://cmri.org/about-cmri/fatima-apostolate/how-to-pray-the-rosary/
If you are interested in rosary themed food ideas to celebrate this month (and also Our Lady of the Rosary on October 7):
- Victory Vessels for the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary
- Cupcake Rosary
- In Honor of the Most Holy Rosary (Edible Rosary for a group)
- Pray, Eat, Love ~ The Rosary (Rosary Cake)
- Roses for Our Lady...
October 1- St. Therese of Lisieux
St. Therese of Lisieux is a Doctor of the Catholic Church and the patron saint of florists. She promised to use her time in heaven to shower the earth with roses. She believed love was a vocation. Her way of doing small act of kindness with great love is an easy lesson to teach to little ones.
The "Little Way": Her spirituality emphasizes finding holiness through simple acts of love and trust in God's mercy, especially during times of weakness.
Her Parents are Saints: Thérèse is the daughter of Saints Louis and Zélie Martin, a significant and rare example of a married couple being canonized.
Many creators have special recipes to celebrate St. Therese:
October 2- The Feast of the Guardian Angels
The Feast of the Guardian Angels is a special day to remember to acknowledge our guardian angels and thank them for their protection. The Catechism of the Catholic Church proclaims that “from infancy to death human life is surrounded by their [angels] watchful care and intercession. Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life. Already here on earth the Christian life shares by faith in the blessed company of angels and men united in God.” (CCC, 336). The Angel of God prayer is the perfect prayer to begin your day with.
Consider making a recipe to celebrate:
- Gluten-Free Feasting for the Angels
- Guardian Angel Cookies
- Make an angel food cake from a boxed cake mix
October 4- Feast of St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis of Assisi was born in Assisi (Italy) in 1181 or 1182; died nearby on 3 October 1226. The carefree son of a wealthy merchant who gave up his inheritance to embrace utter poverty. Under a simple gospel rule, he and his Friars Minor were authorized to be mendicant preachers. His “Canticle of the Sun” captures his lyrical spirit and sense of oneness with all creatures. An outstanding example of the beatitude “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” At the end of his life he bore in his flesh the marks of Christ’s suffering. Noted for preaching the poor and crucified Christ in both word and deed.
Try some fun new recipes to celebrate:
Two events to celebrate St. Francis in October:
- The Annual Pet Blessing at St. Hilary on Saturday, October 4 at 11:00 am on the Good Shepherd Patio--come with any and all pets (some families have even borrowed a pet from a neighbor or friend).
- The Pilgrimage of Hope for Creation on Sunday, October 12 from 2:30-3:30 pm starting and ending at St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Parish (164 W Market St, Akron, OH 44303)—A sacred opportunity to pray for the grace to encounter Christ in Creation and renew our relationships with God, the Earth, and one another. Participants will prayerfully walk from St. Vincent de Paul to Elizabeth Park, in the nearby Cascade Village neighborhood, and back, approximately 1.5 miles round-trip. Check out more details and register for this event here.
October 12- St. Carlo Acutis
Carlo was born into a wealthy family who were not overly religious. In his early years, Carlo was cared for by a nanny. He had a natural interest in the Catholic faith and received his First Holy Communion at the age of 7, even influencing his parents to turn to the faith. He never missed daily Mass, and from the age of 11, he began visiting Eucharistic Miracles across the world, which he always documented. At the age of only 14, Carlo created a Eucharistic display and website that would tour the world.
Carlo spent much of his time serving others. He helped children, the elderly, and the poor, spoke with migrants, befriended bullied school kids, and defended those who were too afraid.
In 2006, Carlo became sick with what was assumed to be the flu, but it soon deteriorated into something more severe. He was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 15 and given only days to live. He died soon after and has been popularly honored as the patron saint of youth and computer programmers. Carlo was named a blessed in 2020, served as a patron saint for World Youth Day 2023, was just canonized a saint on September 7, 2025!! The website he created to document the Eucharistic Miracles has been kept running and updated in his memory.
This year Carlo's feast day is a Sunday, so what better way to celebrate and honor Carlo than to attend Mass and receive the Eucharist: Carlo Acutis saw the Eucharist as his "highway to heaven," so participating in the Mass is a key way to honor him.
October 22- St. John Paul II
Karol Józef Wojtyla (1920-2005) served as Pope of the Catholic Church from 1978 to 2005. He was the second longest-serving pope in history after Pope Pius IX, who served for nearly 32 years (1846-1878). He helped to end Communist rule in Poland and eventually all of Europe. Doctrinally conservative, he quelled dissent on controversial issues such as artificial contraception and the ordination of women, but strongly emphasized the universal call to holiness. He canonized 483 saints, more than all of his predecessors combined. He was beatified in 2011 by his successor Pope Benedict XVI and canonized in 2014 by Pope Francis.
Pope John Paul II lived such an interesting life, your family may enjoy reading about saints of the month and here are a couple of suggested books about JPII:
- The Story of Saint John Paul II: A Boy Who Became Pope by Fabiola Garza 2014
- Lolek – The Boy Who Became Pope John Paul II by Mary Hramiec Hoffman 2008 (the two JPII books are both well-written and illustrated, but this one has more historical information)
Looking for a food-related way to celebrate?
- Make a polish favorite and celebrate with some frozen perogies (found in your grocery store freezer) or if you're more up a challenge make your own: Pope John Paul II Feast
Look who tried out a new tradition!
In September the Cheyney Family made devil's food cupcakes to celebrate the feast of the Guardian Angels and the upcoming feast of St. Michael. Some families celebrate Name Days with their children if they have a patron saint and/or are named for a saint, the family celebrates the saint on their feast day as a special tradition.
If your family tries out a special way to celebrate an October feast day, send it in to be in the running to be spotlighted here next month! We will try to include a few different submissions each month!