MSI Press Blog

  Tonight, as the sun sets on October 3rd, Franciscans around the world gather in quiet reverence to mark the Transitus of St. Francis of Assisi—the moment of his passing into eternal life in 1226. It is not a time of mourning, but of deep remembrance and recommitment to the values he embodied: humility, peace, kinship with creation, and radical love. For MSI Press, this threshold holds particular significance. Located in the historic town of San Juan Bautista , MSI Press is nestled within a landscape shaped by Franciscan legacy. The town itself was founded by Franciscan missionaries, and to this day, it remains home to an active Franciscan Mission and the beloved St. Francis Retreat Center , where seekers of all backgrounds come to rest, reflect, and renew. The rhythms of Franciscan spirituality—simplicity, hospitality, and contemplative presence—are woven into the very soil of this place. This evening is also deeply personal for MSI Press. Our editor is a Third Order Franci...

excerpt from Easter at the Mission (Sula) -  Life at the Mission Gift Shop The people I know best, those who take care of me, can be found at the Mission Gift Shop. There, I have quite a big staff. (You have heard that dogs have owners but cats have staff, right?) My staff is a group of wonderful people. Mary Anzar was the first person I met many years ago when I was called to my mission at the Mission. Benito Garcia used to work at the Mission Gift Shop but now works at the parish office; we are still attached to each other so I regularly walk over to the parish office to see my Benny. Stacey Gentry supervises my staff, takes good care of me, and most important, serves as my official photographer; you will see her beautiful pictures in this book. I have known Kaleena Scargill for many years. She used to clean the church, I would follow her around, and she would take pictures of me that ended up in some of my previous books. Marie Reed is very kind to me, and she makes sure that ...

Excerpt from Christmas at the Mission  Angels In the  Bible, Luke tells us about the important role that the angels played in the birth of Jesus. They were the voices and choir letting the shepherds know the good news. Angels are messengers from God. In fact, that is what the word, angel , means [B2]   : messenger . [VW3]   Jesus’s birth is not the only time that the angels been involved in the affairs of people. Think about some other times: ·        Three angels appeared to Abraham; he gave them food and rest, and they told him that his wife Sarah, who was very, very old, would have a child—and she did: Isaac. ·        Jacob wrestled with an angel. ·        It was two angels who saved Lott [VW4]   [B5]   from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. ·        An angel appeared to Joshua before the fight for Jericho—and we know ...

  Sula, parish cat at Old Mission San Juan Bautista and prolific MSI Press LLC author, has her own youtube series, the Sula Diaries. Listen to one of the diaries HERE Read more posts about Sula, her battle with cancer, and her books HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter.

  Yep, it's Caturday, and we want to share, somewhat anonymously for privacy reasons, a bit of the recent trials and tribulations of Sula, the parish cat at Old Mission who has written six books. Sula has both a big fan club -- you can even join it on her Face Book page HERE -- and quite some renown, thanks to both own publications and publications about here, which you can read about HERE (pick and choose the ones that might most tickle your fancy). To briefly encapsulate the history: 1. Sula arrived as a kitten, perhaps somewhere around age 1, at the Old Mission, which really is the only action in her little town. 2. After a few years spending much time outdoors in this sunny California town, Sula developed skin cancer on her ears. They were trimmed. The cancer came back. Her ears were removed. You can read her story about that experience in her book, Surviving Cancer, Healing People: One Cat's Story .  3. Elizabeth Mahlou related Sula's story to Guideposts Magazine , wh...