Saint of the Day – 7 March – Saint Gaudiosus (Died c445) Bishop and Confessor of Brescia. He was the 12th Bishop of Brescia and lived in the 4th and 5th Centuries. A devout apostle of the needy and sick,
The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Brescia, St Gladiosus, Bishop and Confessor.”
Little is known about his life but this slight le information allows us to sketch a profile of a holy and devout man. He was born in Brescia into a Christian family. From a young age, he distinguished himself for his piety and charity towards the needy.
He became a Priest and, after the death of Bishop Sisinnius, was elected his successor. Gaudiosus governed the See of Brescia for 13 years, during a period of great difficulty for the Church. The Western Roman Empire was in decline and barbarian invasions threatened Christianity. Gaudiosus, however, was a courageous and enlightened shepherd who protected and led his people with firmness and compassion.
The holy Bishop devoted himself to caring for the poor and the sick and zealously worked to preach the Gospel of Christ. He was also a great builder, constructing numerous Churches and charitable institutions.
Gaudiosus died in Brescia on 7 March, around 450/455. His body was buried in the Church of Sant’Alessandro, which he himself had built. His Liturgical Feast is celebrated today.
PRAYER O Saint Gaudiosus, Bishop of Brescia, who led your people with firmness and compassion, intercede for us with the Lord. Help us to be strong in faith, open in charity towards the needy and to do all for the glory of God. Obtain for us, through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, the grace we humbly seek of you… (Name the grace you wish to obtain) Amen.
St Ardo of Aniane Bl Daniel of Wichterich St Deifer of Bodfari St Drausinus of Soissons Bishop St Enodoch St Esterwine of Wearmouth Abbot St Eubulus of Caesarea St Gaudiosus (Died c445) Bishop and Confessor of Brescia
Bl German Gardiner Bl Henry of Austria Bl Jermyn Gardiner
Bl Volker of Segeberg OSA (Died c1135) Priest Martyr Bl William of Assisi
Martyrs of Carthage – 4 Saints: A catechist and three students Martyred together for teaching and learning the faith. We know little more than their names – Revocatus, Saturninus, Saturus and Secundulus. Mauled by wild beasts and beheaded 7 March 203 at Carthage, North Africa
Friday of the Second Week of Lent – 6 March – Our Lenten Journey With St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor of the Church
Friday of the Second Week Feast of the Holy Winding Sheet (the Shroud)
“Joseph taking the Body, wrapped It in a clean linen cloth and laid It in his own new monument.” Matthew xxvii. 59
By this clean linen cloth three elements are signified in a hidden way, namely:
(i) The Pure Body of Christ. For the cloth was made of linen which, by much pressing, is made white and,in like manner, it was after much pressure that the Body of Christ came to the brightness of the Resurrection. Thus it behoved Christ to Suffer and to Rise again from the dead on the third day (Luke xxiv. 46).
(ii) The Church, which without spot or wrinkle (Eph v. 27), is signified by this linen woven out of many threads.
(iii) A clear conscience, where Christ reposes.
And laid Him in his own new monument. It was Joseph’s own grave and certainly it was appropriate that He Who had Died for the sins of others, should be buried in another man’s grave!
Notice that it was a new grave. Had other bodies already been laid in it, there might have been a doubt which had arisen. There is another fitness in this circumstance, namely – He Who was buried in this new tomb, as He who was born of a virgin mother.
As Mary’s womb knew no child before Him nor after Him, so was it with this tomb. Again we may understand, it is in a renewed soul renewed where Christ is buried by faith, where Christ may dwell by faith in our hearts (Eph iii. 17).
St. John’s Gospel adds, Now there was in the place where He was crucified, a garden ; and in the garden a new sepulchre (John xix. 41). Which recalls to us that as Christ was taken in a garden and suffered His agony in a garden, so in a garden was He buried, and thereby we are reminded that it was from the sin committed by Adam in the garden of delightfulness that, by the power of His Passion, Christ set us free, and also that through the Passion the Church was consecrated, the Church which again is as a garden closed.
ST THOMAS AQUINAS (1225-1274) Priest, Theologian, Dominican Doctor Angelicus (Angelic Doctor) Doctor Communis (Common Doctor) Added by Pope Saint Pius V in 1568
Quote/s of the Day – 6 March – Friday of the Second Week in Lent and the Feast of the Holy Shroud – Ecclesiasticus Sir ach51:1-8; 51:12 – Matthew 21:33-46.– Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“He will bring those evil men to an evil end”
Matthew 21:41
“Little children follow and obey their father. They love their mother. They know nothing of covetousness, ill-will, bad temper, arrogance and lying. This state of mind opens the road to Heaven. To imitate our Lord’s own humility, we must return to the simplicity of God’s little ones.”
St Hilary (315-368) Father and Doctor of the Church
“Let us then depart, let us depart from Egypt, let us approach Our Lord, let us make provision of good works; let the feet of our affections be bare, let us clothe ourselves with innocence, let us not be satisfied with crying for mercy, let us go forth from Egypt, let us delay no longer. The hour is come to arise from sleep, since we know that He receives sinners; the Angels await our repentance, the Saints pray for it!”
St Francis de Sales 91567-1622) Doctor of the Church
“There is a golden rule which we should always remember as it will be helpful to us in fighting temptation and in resisting discouragement. It is simply this: As long as we implore God’s grace and do all we can and ought, in order to withstand the onslaught of temptation, God will do the rest! If God, nevertheless, allows us to fall, this will be in order to humble us and to make us understand, more clearly that we can do nothing without Him.”
Our Morning Offering – 6 March – The Feast of the Holy Shroud of Jesus
Faithful Cross! Above All Other By St Venantius Fortunatus (c 530 – c 609)
Faithful Cross! above all other, one and only noble tree! None in foliage, none in blossom, none in fruit thy peer may be; sweetest wood and sweetest iron, sweetest weight is hung on thee.
Bend thy boughs, O tree of glory! Thy relaxing sinews bend; for awhile the ancient rigour that thy birth bestowed, suspend and the King of heavenly beauty gently on thine arms extend.
Praise and honour to the Father, praise and honour to the Son, praise and honour to the Spirit, ever Three and ever One: One in might and One in glory while eternal ages run.
Saint of the Day – 6 March – Saint Marcian (Died c122) Bishop and Martyr of Tortona,in north-western Italy. He occupied his Office for 45 years and had been consecrated by St Barnabas. Patronages – of both the City and Diocese if Tortona, of Genola, also in Italy. Also known as – Marcianus, Martianus, Marzano, Marziano.
The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Tortona, St Marcian, Bishop and Martyr who received the Crown of immortality by being killed under Trajan, for the glory of Christ.”
Tradition states that he was born to a pagan family but was converted by St Barnabas and then confirmed in the Christian faith by St Sirus the 1st Bishop of Pavia.
St Secundus (Died c119) to become the Bishop of Asti is said to have met Marcian at Tortona, when the former was still a pagan and St Marcian converted him.
There is some disagreement about the year of St Marcian’s death. Some sources say it occurred in c17, under Trajan, while others say it was under Hadrian in c122 but all agree that he was Crucified.
St Balther of Lindisfarne St Basil (Died c335) Bishop of Bologna St Cadroë
St Chrodegang of Metz (c714-776) The First Bishop of Metz, Protector and Father of the poor and orphans, Reformer of the Clergy, a relative of King Pepin and of Prince Charles Martel, both of whom he was Court Chancellor, Royal Diplomat, Saint Opportuna of Montreuil was his brother. The Roman Martyrology states: “In Metz in Austrasia, in today’s France, St Crodegango, Bishop, who arranged for the Clergy to live as if within the walls of a cloister under an exemplary rule of life and greatly promoted liturgical chant.” An Ardemt Shepherd: https://anastpaul.com/2022/03/06/saint-of-the-day-6-march-saint-chrodegang-of-metz/
St Colette PCC (1381-1447) Abbess and Foundress of the Colettine Poor Clares, a reform branch of the Order of Saint Clare. Patronages – against eye disorders, against fever, against headaches, against infertility, against the death of parents, of women seeking to conceive, expectant mothers and sick children, craftsmen, Poor Clares, servants, Corbie, France, Ghent, Belgium. St Colette was Canonised on 24 May 1807 by Pope Pius VII. Lovely St Colette: https://anastpaul.com/2017/03/06/saint-of-the-day-6-march-st-colette/ AND: https://anastpaul.com/2019/03/06/saint-of-the-day-6-march-st-colette-2/
St Cyriacus of Trier St Cyril of Constantinople St Evagrius of Constantinople
Bl Guillermo Giraldi St Heliodorus the Martyr Bl Jordan of Pisa St Julian of Toledo St Kyneburga of Castor St Kyneswide of Castor St Marcian (Died c122) Bishop and Martyr of Tortona
St Ollegarius Bonestruga OSA (1060-1137) Bishop, Canon Regular of the Augustinians, Reformer, in both the religious sphere and the social one, Abbot, Diplomat, Peacemaker and Proptector of his people from possible violent incursions. The Roman Martyrology reads: “At Barcelona in Spain, the blessed St Ollegarius, who was first a Canon and afterwards the Bishop of Barcelona and Archbishop of Tarragona.” A Very Busy Shepherd https://anastpaul.com/2024/03/06/saint-of-the-day-6-march-st-ollegarius-bonestruga-osa-1060-1137-bishop/
Martyrs of Amorium – 42 Saints – Also known as Martyrs of Syria and Martyrs of Samarra; A group of 42 Christian senior officials in the Byzantine Empire who were captured by forces of the Abbasid Caliphate when the Muslim forces overran the City of Amorium, Phrygia in 838 and massacred or enslaved its population. The men were imprisoned in Samarra, the seat of the Caliphate, for seven years. Initially thought to be held for ransom due to their high position in the empire, all attempts to buy their freedom were declined. The Caliph repeatedly ordered them to convert to Islam and sent Islamic scholars to the prison to convince them; they refused until the Muslims finally gave up and killed them. Martyrs. We know the names and a little about seven of them: Aetios Bassoes Constantine Constantine Baboutzikos Kallistos Theodore Krateros Theophilos but details about the rest have disappeared over time. However, a lack of information did not stop several legendary and increasingly over-blown “Acts” to be written for years afterward. One of the first biographers, a monk name Euodios, presented the entire affair as a judgement by God on the empire for its official policy of Iconoclasm. Deaths: beheaded on 6 March 845 in Samarra (in modern Iraq) on the banks of the Euphrates river by Ethiopian slaves the bodies were thrown into the river, but later recovered by local Christians and given proper burial.
Thursday of the Second Week of Lent – 5 March – Our Lenten Journey With St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor of the Church
Thursday of the Second Week That the Passion of Christ brought about its effect because it was a Sacrifice
A sacrifice, properly so called, is something done to render God the honour specially due to Him, in order to appease Him. St Augustine teaches this, saying, “Every work done in order that we may, in a holy union, cleave to God, is a true sacrifice; every work, that is to say, related to that final Good Whose possession alone can make us truly happy.” Christ in the Passion offered Himself for us and it was just this circumstance – that He offered Himself wllingly which was to God the most precious thing of all, since the willingness came from the greatest possible Love. Whence it is evident, the Passion of Christ was a real Sacrifice.
And as He Himself adds later. The former sacrifices of the saints were so many signs, of different kinds, of this One True Sacrifice. … St Augustine speaks of four elements being found in every sacrifice, namely – Christ in the Passion offered Himself for us and it was just a person to whom the offering is made, one by whom it is made, the thing offered and those on whose behalf it is offered. These are all found in the Passion of Our Lord. It is the same Person, the only, true Mediator Himself, Who through the sacrifice of peace reconciles us to God, yet remains One with Him to Whom He offers, those for whom He offers and is Himself One Who both offers and is offered.
It is true in those sacrifices of the old law which were types of Christ, human flesh was never offered but, it does not follow from this that the Passion of Christ was not a sacrifice. For although the reality and that which typifies it must coincide in one point, it is not necessy that they coincide in every point, for the reality must go beyond that which typifies it. It was then very fitting that the Sacrifice in which the Flesh of Christ is offered for us was typified by a sacrifice not of the flesh of man but of other animals, to fores-shadow the flesh of Christ which is the Most Perfect Sacrifice of all.
(i) Because, since it is the flesh of human nature which is offered, it is a thing fittingly offered for men and fittingly received by men in a Sacrament.
(ii) Because, since the Flesh of Christ was able to Suffer and to Die it was suitable for immolation.
(iii) Because, since that Flesh was itself without sin, it had a power to cleanse from sin.
(iv) Because, being the Flesh of the very Offerer, it was acceptable to God by reason of the unspeakable Love of the One Who was offering His Own Flesh.
Whence St Augustine says, “What is there more suitably received by men, of offerings made on their behalf, than human flesh and what is so suitable for immolation as mortal flesh? And what is as clean for cleansing mortal viciousness, as that flesh born, without stain of carnal desire, in the womb and of the womb of a virgin? And what can be so graciously offered and received, as the Flesh of our Sacrifice, the Body so produced of our Priest?”
ST THOMAS AQUINAS (1225-1274) Priest, Theologian, Dominican Doctor Angelicus (Angelic Doctor) Doctor Communis (Common Doctor) Added by Pope Saint Pius V in 1568
Quote/s of the Day – 5 March – Ferial Day – Thursday of the Second Week in Lent – Jeremias 17:5-10 – Luke 16:19-31 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“There was a rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously everyday. And at his gate lay a poor man, named Lazarus…”
Luke 16:19–20
“Amen I say to you, as long as you did NOT do it for one of these least ones, you did NOT do it for Me.”
Matthew 25:45
“Give of your earthly goods and receive eternal ones; give earth and receive Heaven!”
St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of the Church
“What is a man’s treasure but the heaping up of profits and the fruit of his toil? For, whatever a man sows, this too will he reap and each man’s gain, matches his toil and where delight and enjoyment are found, there the heart’s desire is attached. Now, there are many kinds of wealth and a variety of grounds for rejoicing – every man’s treasure is that, which he desires. If it is based on earthly ambitions, its acquisition makes men not blessed but wretched. … By distributing what might be superfluous to support the poor, they are amassing imperishable riches, so that what they have discreetly given, cannot be subject to loss. They have properly placed those riches, where their heart is – it is a most blessed thing, to work to increase such riches, rather than to fear that they may pass away.”
St Pope Leo the Great (400-461) ather and Doctor of the Church
“If thou wouldst see well, pluck out thine eyes and be blind; if thou wouldst hear well, be deaf and if thou wouldst speak well, become dumb; if thou wouldst advance, stand still and advance with thy mind; if thou wouldst work well, cut off thy hands and work with thy heart; if thou wouldst love much, hate thyself; if thou wouldst live well, mortify thyself; if thou wouldst gain much and be rich, first lose all and become poor and if thou wouldst enjoy peace, afflict thyself and be ever in fear and suspect thine own self; if thou wouldst be exalted and have great honour, humble and abase thyself; if thou wouldst be held in great reverence, despise thyself and do reverence to him who reviles thee; if thou wouldst that it should be well with thee, suffer all evil things and if thou wouldst be blessed, desire that all should speak ill of thee and if thou wouldst have true and eternal rest, then toil and suffer and desire to have every temporal affliction. O what great wisdom it is to know how to do and to work out these things.”
Our Morning Offering – 5 March – Thursday of the Second Week of Lent
Daily Morning Prayer Of St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor Caritatis
Lord, I lay before Thee my weak heart, which Thou fills with good desires. Thou knows that I am unable to bring the same to good effect, unless Thou bless and prosper them and, therefore, O Loving Father, I entreat Thee to help me by the merits and Passion of Thy dear Son, to Whose honour I would devote this day and my whole life. Amen
Saint of the Day – 5 March – Saint Elouan (5th Century) Hermit and Irish Missionary to France. Also known as – Elouen, Elowan, Eluen, Elven, Llywan, Loan, Louan, Louen, Louenn, Luan, Youen, Youenn.
Statue St Elouan on the Fountain adjoining the Chapel of Sainte-Guen .
His history is obscure. Originally from Ireland, Elouan was a missionary to France, having been part of a company of Celtic Missionaries probably under the leadership of St Tugdual and later a Hermit in the forest which is now the Parishes of Mûr and Sainte-Guin . He lived there and died there. He is celebrated there both today and on the last Sunday of August.
His veneration is ensured particularly by a Chapel bearing his name which located at Saint-Guen, in the Côtes-d’Armor, near Mûr-de-Bretagne, in a very remote part of the See of Cornouaille.
In 1646 , Father Maunoir discovered the Saint’s Chapel in ruins and the Saint;s Tomb. This led to a revival of his cult, causing up to 80,000 pilgrims a year to this isolated place.
His sanctity has been recognizsd by the Church for centuries, as evidenced by the Statue and the Chapel erected in his honour and not forgetting the great number of pilgrims who come to pray at his Tomb.
St Adrian of Caesarea St Caron St Carthach the Elder Bl Christopher Macassoli of Vigevano St Clement (Died c800) Abbot of Santa Lucia Monastery in Syracuse, Sicily. St Colman of Armagh St Conon of Pamphylia Bl Conrad Scheuber
St Theophilus (Died c217) Bishopof Caesarea , Theologian, Writer , Apologist and Defender of the Faith. Born in Caesarea, Palestine and died c195 of natural causes. The Roman Martyrology reads: “At Caesarea, in Palestine, in the time of the Emperor, Severus, St Theophilus, Bishop, who was conspicuous for his wisdom and the purity of his life.” Wise St Theophilus: https://anastpaul.com/2024/03/05/saint-of-the-day-5-march-saint-theophilus-of-caesarea-died-c217-bishop/
Martyrs of Africa – A group of 304 Christians Martyred together for their faith. We know nothing else about them but five of their names Eusebius, Evolus, Hadrian, Julian and Octavian. They Died in 254 in Africa, exact location and date unknown.
Wednesday of the Second Week of Lent – 4 March – Our Lenten Journey With St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor of the Church
Wednesday of the Second Week The Passion of Christ brought about our Salvation because it was an Act of Satisfaction
“He is the propitiation for our sins and not for ours alone but also for those of the whole world.” I John ii. 2.
Satisfaction for offences ,is truly made, when there is offered ,to the person offended, something which he loves as much as, or more than, he hates the offences.
Christ, however, by Suffering through His Love and through His Obedience, offered to God something greater by far than the satisfaction needed by all the sins of all mankind and this for three reasons.
In the first place, there was the greatness of the Love which moved Him to Suffer. Then there was the worth of the Life which He laid down in satisfaction, the Life of God and Man. Finally, on account of the way in which His Passion involved every part of His Being and of the greatness of the Suffering he undertook. So it is that the Passion of Christ was not merely sufficient but superabundant as a satisfaction for man’s sins.
It would seem indeed to be the case that satisfaction should be made by the person who committed the offence. But Head and Members are, as it were, One Mystical Person and, therefore, the satisfaction made by Christ avails all the faithful as they are the Members of Christ. One man can always make satisfaction for another, as long as the two are one in charity.
Although Christ, by His Death, made sufficient Satisfaction for Original Sin, it is not unfitting that the penal consequences of Original Sin should still remain even in those who are made sharers in Christ’s Redemption. This has been done fittingly and usefully, so that the penalties remain even though the guilt has been removed.
(i) It has been done so that there might be conformity between the faithful and Christ, as there is conformity between members and Head. Just as Christ, first of all, suffered many pains and came in this way to His Glory, so it is only right that His faithful should also first be subjected to sufferings and thence enter into immortality themselves, bearing as it were, the livery of the Passion of Christ so as to enjoy a glory somewhat like to His.
(ii) A second reason is that if men coming to Christ were straightaway freed from suffering and the necessity of death, only too many would come to Him attracted rather by these temporal advantages than by spiritual virtues. And this would be altogether contrary to the intention of Christ, Who came into this world that He might convert men from a love of temporal advantages and win them to spiritual love and virtue.
(iii) Finally, if those who came to Christ were straightaway rendered immortal and impassible, this would, in a certain way compel men to receive the Faith of Christ and, therefore, the merit of believing would be lessened.
ST THOMAS AQUINAS (1225-1274) Priest, Theologian, Dominican Doctor Angelicus (Angelic Doctor) Doctor Communis (Common Doctor) Added by Pope Saint Pius V in 1568
Quote/s of the Day – 4 March – “The Month of St Joseph” – Sirach 31:8-11 – Luke 12:35-40 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“Be vigilant at all times and pray, that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man…”
Luke 21:36
“Watch” over your life. … Sheep will turn into wolves and love into hatred. With the increase of iniquity, people will hate, persecute and betray each other. Then the world deceiver will appear in the disguise of God’s Son. He will work “signs and wonders” and the earth will fall into his hands. He will commit outrages such as have never occurred before. Then humankind will come to the “fiery trial“ and many will fall away” and perish.”
Unknown 1st Century Author of this early Treatise (Didache, 16)
“Give me grace, to amend my life and to have an eye to mine end, without grudge of death, which, to them, who die in You, good Lord, is the gate of a wealthy life.”
Our Morning Offering – 4 March – “The Month of Saint Joseph”– On Wednesdays many Catholics make a special devotion to St Joseph by going to Mass on the 1st Wednesdays of 9 consecutive months and offering their Communions in his honour and for the salvation of the dying.
A Parent’s Prayer to St Joseph
O holy Joseph, thou faithful Spouse of the Blessed Mother, thou who didst protect her and her Divine Child with such care and didst devote thy whole life to them; I beseech thee to be also my and my children’s protector and advocate, with Jesus, thy adopted Son. Obtain for me the grace to fulfil my duties to my children, as thou and Mary have done to Jesus.
St Joseph Pray for all our Fathers and for our spiritual Fathers of Holy Mother Church Amen.
Saint of the Day – 4 March – St Leodevaldus (Died c614) Bishop and Confessor of Avranches in France, Penitent. Patronages – farmers and farm labourers. Also known as – Leonard, Léodowald, Keidevakdi, Leudeuald,
Unknown Bishop or Abbot
Leodovaldus was a Bishop of Avranches who lived between the 6th and 7th Centuries, remembered as a tireless Confessor.
In the list of Bishops, he is ranked 7th (or in some cases 8th) after Saint Synerius and before Ildoald.
Although some 12th Century manuscripts contain a very deficient and imprecise Episcopal catalogue of the Diocese of Avranches, regarding Bishops before the end of the 10th Century, Saint Leodevaldus is mentioned by St Gregory of Tours in the text ‘Virtutes Martini II’.
We know very little about his birth and Episcopate. Tradition holds that he led a reckless life during his youth, so much so that his excesses frightened good people. At a certain point in his life, he converted and repented, completely changing his ways, became a Priest, and was then appointed as a Bishop.
His devotion to Saint Martin is proverbial and his cult spread throughout Normandy, to which region he dedicated as many as 31 Churches.
Saint Leodevaldus, is mentioned after 576, in some cases gives the year of his death as 630, while others more likely date it to 614.
St Lucius I (Died 254) Pope and Martyr. The 22nd Bishop of Rome from 25 June 253 to his death on 5 March 254. He was banished soon after his consecration but gained permission to return. Patronage – Copenhagen, Denmark. Lucius I’s Tombstone is still extant in the Catacomb of Callixtus. His Relics were later brought to the Church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, along with the Relics of St Cecilia and others. His head is preserved in a reliquary in St. Ansgar’s Cathedral in Copenhagen, Denmark. This Relic was brought to Roskilde around the year 1100, after Lucius had been declared Patron Saint of the Danish region Zeeland. The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Rome, on the Appian Way. during the persecution of Valerian, the birthday of St Lucius, Pope and Martyr, who was first exiled for the Faith of Christ but, being permitted by Divine Providence to return to his Church, he suffered Martyrdom by decapitation, after having combated the Novatians. His praises have been published by the blesseed Saint Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage(200-258).” His Life and Death: https://anastpaul.com/2023/03/04/saint-of-the-day-4-march-st-lucius-i-died-254-pope-and-martyr/
St Adrian of May St Adrian of Nicomedia Bl Alexander Blake St Appian of Comacchio St Arcadius of Cyprus St Basinus of Trier Bl Christopher Bales
Blessed Humbert III Count of Savoy (1136–1189) Layman Prince. It is recorded of Humberto “who, forced to leave the cloister to deal with public affairs, practiced the monastic life with greater dedication, to which he later returned.” Born in 1136 in Avigliana, Italy and died on 4 March 1189 in Chambéry, France of natural causes. Beatified in 1838 by Pope Gregory XVI. Holy Humbert: https://anastpaul.com/2024/03/04/saint-of-the-day-4-march-blessed-humbert-iii-count-of-savoy-1136-1189/
St Leodevaldus (Died c614)Bishop and Confessor of Avranches Bl Nicholas Horner St Nestor the Martyr St Owen Bl Paolo of Brescia
Martyrs on the Appian Way – 900 Saints: Group of 900 Martyrs buried in the Catacombs of Saint Callixtus on the Appian Way, Rome.
Martyrs of Nicomedia – 20 Saints: A group of 20 Christians murdered together for their faith. The only details about them to survive are three of their names – Archelaus, Cyrillos and Photius. Nicomedia, Bithynia (in modern Turkey)
Martyrs of the Crimea – 7 Saints: A group of 4th century missionary Bishops who evangelised in the Crimea and southern Russia and were Martyred for their work. We know little else beyond the names – Aetherius, Agathodorus, Basil, Elpidius, Ephrem, Eugene and Gapito.
Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent – 3 March – Our Lenten Journey With St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor of the Church
Tuesday of the Second Week The Passion of Christ brought about our Salvation because it was a Meritorious Act
“They shall deliver Him to the Gentiles to be Mocked and Scourged and Crucified.” Matt xx. 19
Grace was given to Christ not only as to a particular person but also, as far as He is the Head of the Church, in order that the Grace might pass from Him to His Members. And the good works Christ performed, therefore, stand in this same way in relationship to Him and to His Members, as the good works of any other man in a State of Grace relate to himself.
Now it is evident that any man who, in a State of Grace, suffers for justice, merits for himself, by this very fact alone, salvation. As is said in the Gospel, “Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice sake” (Matt v. 10). Whence Christ, by His Passion, merited Salvation, not only for Himself but for all His Members.
Christ, indeed, from the very instant of His conception, merited eternal Salvation for us. But there still remained certain obstacles on our part, obstacles which kept us from possessing ourselves of the effect of what Christ had merited. Wherefore, in order to remove these obstacles, it behoved Christ to Suffer (Luke xxiv. 46).
Now although the love of Christ for us was not increased in the Passion and was not greater in the Passion than before it, the Passion of Christ had a certain effect which His previous meritorious activity did not. The Passion produced this effect, not on account of any greater Love shown thereby but because, it was an action designed to produce that effect, as is evident from what has already been said on the fitness of the Passion of Christ.
Head and Members belong to One and the same Person. Now Christ is our Head, according to His Divinity and to the fullness of His Grace which overflows upon others too. We are His Members. What Christ then meritoriously acquires, is not something external and foreign to us but, by virtue of the unity of the Mystical Body, it overflows upon us too.
We should know too, that although Christ, by His Death acquired merit sufficient for the whole human race, there are special elements needed for the particular Salvation of each individual soul and these each soul must itself seek out. The Death of Christ is, as it were, the cause of all Salvation, as the sin of the first man was the cause of all condemnation. But if each individual man is to share in the effect of a universal cause, the universal cause needs to be specially applied to each individual man.
Now the effect of the sin of the first parents is transmitted to each individual through his bodily origin (i.e., through his being a bodily descendant of the first man). The effect of the Death of Christ is transmitted to each man through a spiritual rebirth, a re-birth in which man is, as it were, conjoined to Christ and incorporated with Him.
Therefore, it is that each individual must seek to be born again through Christ and to receive those other elements in which works the power of the Death of Christ.
ST THOMAS AQUINAS (1225-1274) Priest, Theologian, Dominican Doctor Angelicus (Angelic Doctor) Doctor Communis (Common Doctor) Added by Pope Saint Pius V in 1568
Quote/s of the Day – 3 March – Tuesday in the Second Week of Lent – Feruial Day – 3 Kings 17:8-16; Matthew 23:1-12 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“Whoever exalts himself will be humbled and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
Matthew 23:12
“The one sole thing, in myself, in which I glory, is that I see in myself, nothing, in which I can glory.”
St Catherine of Genoa (1447-1510)
“Humility is not just about self-mistrust but about the entrusting of ourselves to God. Distrusting ourselves and our own strength produces trust in God and from that trust, generosity of soul is born.”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of Charity
“Keep your heart in peace and let nothing trouble you, not even your faults. You must humble yourself and amend them peacefully, without being discouraged or cast down, for God’s dwelling, is in peace.”
St Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690) “Visionary and Apostle of the Sacred Heart“
Our Morning Offering – 3 March – Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent –
Merciful Jesus! Stretch Forth Thy Hand of Mercy (Excerpt – Prayer in a Time of Anguish) By St Jerome (347-419) Father and Doctor of the Church
Merciful Jesus! Thou art my strength, my refuge and my deliverer; in Thee I have believed and hoped; in Thee have I loved. Call me now, I beseech Thee and I will answer. Stretch forth Thy Hand of mercy, to the work of Thy Hands and let me not perish, whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy Precious Blood. It is now time for dust to return to dust and my spirit to Thee Who gavest it. Open then, Lord, the Gate of Life and receive me. Receive me most merciful Lord, according to the multitude of Thy tender mercies, Who receivedst the thief on the cross and now prepare my soul for hearing the same promise of mercy which he did. I am ill, O Lord and Thee my Physician. Heal me then, my God and I shall be healed, let me not be confounded, for I put my trust in Thee. In Thee have I hoped – let me not be cast off forever! … Deal not with me, according to what I deserve, nor chastise me, according to my iniquities but help me, O God, my Saviour and for the glory of Thy Name deliver me. Now, at this hour, show mercy to me and whenever I depart, receive me into the number of Thy family that I, may be one of those, who are to praise Thee forever. Amen
Saint of the Day – 3 March – St Frederick (c1121-1175) O.Praem of Hallum Priest and Regular Canon, the Founder and 1st Abbot of Mariengaarde Abbey in Friesland in the Netherlands. Born in Münster, Germany in 1121 and died in Hallum in Holland in 1175, Patronages – against Rheumatism and Paralysis. Also known as – Frederick Feikone, Frederick of Mariengaarde, Friederich, Federico.
Frederick was a Premonstratensian Priest and Abbot who, thanks to his piety, charity and attention to the poor and sick, was prominent as an example of Christian virtue.
He was the son of a nobleman and received a religious education and was Ordained a Priest. After serving for several years as Parish Priest in the Town of Hallum, he was elected as the Abbot of the Premonstratensian Monastery of Mariengaarde, where he fervently devoted himself to the spiritual care of the Monks and the evangelisation of the Faith.
His charity was boundless and he did his utmost to help the poor and needy, donating money and his time to alleviate their suffering. He was also a man of great piety and spent long hours in prayer and meditation.
In 1175, Frederick visited the Monastery of Bethlehem, where he was struck by a serious illness. He returned to Hallum, where he died on 3 March of the same year. He was buried in a Chapel he had built himself. So many miracles were reported at his Tomb that it became a site of pilgrimage and he was soon venerated as a Saint. In 1938 his Relics were transferred to Leffe, Dinant, Belgium.
He was Canonised on 8 March 1728 by Pope Benedict XIII. and St Frederick is invoked against rheumatics and paralytics.
Blessed Benedetto Sinigardi da Arezzo OFM (1190-1282) Friar of the Order of Friars Minor, who received the Habit directly from St Francis of Assisi. Although rarely mentioned, Blessed Benedetto is the Author of the Angelus! Furthermore, the beautiful custom of reciting the Marian Antiphon “The Angelus Domini” is attributed to Blessed Benedetto, meditating on the saving Mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God in Mary’s virginal womb. The Angelus Domini became a pious practice firstly to the entire Franciscan Order, then to the whole Church, as it still is today. Lovely Fr Benedetto!: https://anastpaul.com/2023/03/03/saint-of-the-day-3-march-blessed-benedetto-sinigardi-da-arezzo-ofm-c1190-1282-the-author-of-the-angelus/
St Anselm of Nonantola St Arthelais of Benevento St Calupan St Camilla St Cele-Christ
St Cunegundes (c975-1040) Empress of the Holy Roman Empire, Nun, she took a vow of Virginity before her marriage, which, after a miracle was upheld by her husband, the King (also a Saint). Founder of Monasteries and Churches, Nun in one of her Convents, Apostle of Charity. Born in c 975 and died in 1040 of natural causes. Her Fervent Life: https://anastpaul.com/2022/03/03/saint-of-the-day-3-march-st-cunegundes-c-975-1040/
St Foila St Frederick (c1121-1175) O.Praemof Hallum Priest, Abbot St Gervinus
40 Martyrs in North Africa – A group of Christians Martyred together in North Africa, date unknown. No details have survived, but we know these names – Antonius, Artilaus, Asclipius, Astexius, Basil, Bosimus, Carissimus, Castus, Celedonius, Claudianus, Cyricus, Donata, Emeritus, Emeterius, Euticus, Felix, Fortunatus, Frunumius, Gajola, Georgius, Gorgonius, Hemeterus, Isicus, Janula, Julius, Luciola, Luciolus, Marcia, Marinus, Meterus, Nicephorus, Papias, Photius, Risinnius, Sabianus, Savinianus and Solus
Martyrs of Pontus – 3+ Saints – A large group of Christians Martyred together in the persecutions of Emperor Maximian Galerius and governor Ascleopiodato. We have some details on three of them – Basiliscus, Cleonicus and Eutropius. 308 in Pontus (in modern Turkey) Martyrs of Caesarea; Asterius Marinus
Martyrs of Calahorra: Cheledonius Emeterius
Martyrs of Gondar, Ethiopia: Bl Antonio Francesco Marzorati Bl Johannes Laurentius Weiss Bl Michele Pío Fasol
Monday of the Second Week of Lent – 2 March – Our Lenten Journey With St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor of the Church
Monday of the Second Week It was fitting that our Lord should Suffer at the hands of the Gentiles
“They shall deliver Him to the Gentiles to be Mocked and Scourged and Crucified.” Matt xx. 19
In the very manner of the Passion of Our Lord its effects are foreshadowed. In the first place, the Passion of Our Lord had, for its effect , the salvation of Jews, many of whom were baptised in His death.
Secondly, by the preaching of these Jews, the effects of the Passion passed to the Gentiles too. There was thus, a certain fitness in Our Lord’s Passion beginning with the Jews and then, the Jews handing Him on, that it should be completed at the hands of the Gentiles.
To show the abundance of the Love which moved Him to suffer, Christ, on the very Cross, asked mercy for His tormentors. And, since He wished Jew and Gentile alike, should realise this Truth regarding His Love, so He wished that both should have a share in His Suffering.
It was the Jews and not the Gentiles who offered the figurative sacrifices of the Old Law. The Passion of Christ was an Offering through Sacrifice, inasmuch as Christ underwent Death by His Own Will moved by Charity. But, insofar as those who put Him to Death were concerned, they were not offering a sacrifice but committing a Mortal Sin!
When the Jews declared, “It is not lawful for us to put any man to death” (John xix. 31), they may have had many areas of concern in mind. It was not lawful for them to put anyone to death on account of the holiness of the Feast they had begun to keep. Perhaps they wished Christ to be killed not as a transgressor of their own law but as an enemy of the state, because He had made Himself a King, a charge concerning which they had no jurisdiction. Or again, they may have meant that they had no power to crucify which was what they longed for but only to stone, as they later stoned St Stephen. Or, the most likely thing of all, that their Roman Conquerors had taken away their power of life and death!
ST THOMAS AQUINAS (1225-1274) Priest, Theologian, Dominican Doctor Angelicus (Angelic Doctor) Doctor Communis (Common Doctor) Added by Pope Saint Pius V in 1568
Quote/s of the Day – 2 March – “The Month of St Joseph”
“St Joseph, as the greatest of all the Saints next to Our Lady, had all the privileges of other Saints. Hence, we may piously believe that, like St John, he was cleansed from sin in his mother’s womb. He was to be Mary’s spouse, he was to occupy the first and foremost place in the family of Jesus, he was, hereafter, to be the Patron of the whole Church! It was, therefore, fitting that he should be endowed with this initial privilege of being, from his birth, a child of God, an heir of the Kingdom of Heaven. Thank God for this privilege bestowed on him!”
Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) From “The Devout Year”
Our Morning Offering – 2 March – Monday of the Second Week of Lent
Lord Jesus, Think on Me By St Synesius of Cyrene (375-430) Bishop of Ptolemais, Father
Lord Jesus, think on me and purge away my sin, from earth-born passions set me free, and make me pure within. Lord Jesus, think on me, With care and woe oppressed, let me Thy loving servant be and taste Thy promised rest. Lord Jesus, think on me, nor let me go astray, through darkness and perplexity point Thou the heav’nly way. Lord Jesus, think on me, that, when the flood is past, I may eternal brightness see and share Thy joy at last. Amen
Saint of the Day – 2 March – St Simplicius (c395-483) Pope and Confessor. His Papacy began on 25 February 468 and ended on 2 or 10 March 483. He combated the Eutychian heresy, ended the practice of Consecrating bBshops only in December and sought to offset the effects of Germanic invasions and contain the rebellion of Eastern Prelates who sought private power.
The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Rome, St Simplicius, Pope and Confessor.”
Etching of Pope Simplicius, 1636
SIMPLICIUS was the ornament of the Roman Clergy under Sts Leo the Great (400-461) and Hilarius (Died 468) and succeeded the latter as Pontiff in 468.
He was raised by God to comfort and support His Church amidst the greatest storms. All the Provinces of the Western Empire, had fallen into the hands of barbarians. The Emperors for many years, were rather shadows of power than sovereigns and, in the 8h year of the Pontificate of Simplicius, Rome itself fell a prey to foreigners. Italy, by oppressions and the ravages of barbarians, was left almost a desert without inhabitants and the Imperial armies consisted chiefly of barbarians, hired under the name of auxiliaries. These soon saw that their masters were in their power.
The Heruli demanded one third of the Italian lands and upon refusal chose for their leader Odoacer, one of the lowest extraction but a resolute and intrepid man, who was proclaimed King of Rome in 476. He put to death Orestes, who was Regent of the Empire for his son Augustulus, whom the Senate had advanced to the Imperial throne. Odoacer spared the life of Augustulus, appointed him a salary of six thousand pounds of gold and permitted him to live at full liberty near Naples.
Pope Simplicius was wholly taken up in comforting and relieving the afflicted and in sowing the seeds of the Catholic Faith among the barbarians. The East gave his zeal no less employment and concern. Peter Cnapheus, a violent Eutychian heretic, was made Patriarch of Antioch by the heretics and Peter Mengus, one of the most profligate men, Patriarch of Alexandria.
Acacius, the Patriarch of Constantinople, supported Mengus against Pope Simplicius and the Catholic Church. Pope Simplicius, at length discovered his artifices and redoubled his zeal to maintain the Holy Faith, which he saw betrayed on every side, whilst the patriarchal Sees of Alexandria and Antioch were occupied by furious wolves and there was not one Catholic King in the whole world.
St Simplicius, having reigned in faithful strife for 15 years, 11 months and 6 days, went to receive the reward of his labours in 483. He was buried in St Peter’s Basilica.
Blessed Charles the Good (c1083-1127) Martyr, Duke, Apostle, protector and defender of the poor, selling his and his kingdom’s riches to help those in need, wherever he could, a fair and just Ruler who made laws to accommodate the poor rather than the rich (the eventual cause of his Martyrdom), Knight who assisted in Secomd Crusade. Blessed Charles cultus was officially confirmed by his Beatification in 1883 by Pope Leo XIII. His Life and Death: https://anastpaul.com/2023/03/02/saint-of-the-day-2-march-blessed-charles-the-good-c1083-1127-martyr/
St Cynibild of Laestingaeu St Felix of Treves St Fergna the White
Martyrs of Campania – Approximately 400 northern Italian Christians Martyred for their faith by pagan Lombards. Their story was recorded by Pope Saint Gregory the Great, who reports that they people spent their final days supporting each other with prayer. c 579 in Camnpania, Italy.
Martyrs of Porto Romano – 4 Saints – Group of Christians Martyred in the persecution of Diocletian. The only other information that survives are the names of four of them – Heraclius, Januaria, Paul and Secondilla. c305 at Porto Romano at the mouth of the River Tiber, Rome.
DISCLAIMER: Please note: I cannot control the content of the Advertisements on this Site, or of pop-ups which may appear, The revenue from the Advertisements, however, does provide a little assistance in the support of the Site. I do apologise for any inappropriate content.
Quote of the Day – 1 March – The Second Sunday in Lent – Thessalonians 5:14-23, Matthew 17:1-9 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“You will begin to taste, even in this life, a foretaste of eternal life, for the principal beatitude of the soul in Heaven, is to be confirmed forever in the Will of the Father. Thus, it tastes the Divine sweetness. But it will never taste it in Heaven, if it is not clothed with it on earth, where we are pilgrims and travellers. When it is clothed with it, it tastes God by grace in its troubles; its memory will be full of the Blood of the Lamb without blemish; its mind will be opened and contemplate the ineffable Love that God has made known in the Wisdom of His Son and the love it finds, in the Holy Spirit’s goodness, casts out self-love and love for created things, to love only God. So do not be afraid … but suffer with joy, so as to conform yourself to the Will of God.””
The beloved Foster-Father and Guardian of Jesus and Protector of the Holy Family, is celebrated for this whole month and his Feast Day falls on 19 March .
“Quamquam Pluries” On the Devotion to St Joseph Pope Leo XIII
“On 10 March, we begin the Novena to St Joseph, entrusting so many of our woes and cares to his holy and fatherly care and intercession. His Patronages are numerous, as we know, one of them will fit our needs perfectly and if not, then we should all ask him to intercede on our behalf for our families and for a Happy and Holy Death.”
Indulgenced Prayer to St Joseph O St Joseph! Pray for Us Daily O Joseph! virgin father of Jesus, pure Spouse of the Virgin Mother, pray for us daily to the Son of God, that, armed with the weapons of His grace, we may fight as we ought in life and be crowned by Him in death. Amen (Indulgence of 100 days, twice a day St Pius X 26 November 1906)
Patronages in Alphabetical Order:
of Accountants • Bursars • Cabinetmakers • Carpenters • Catholic Church • Cemetery Workers • Children • Civil Engineers • against Communism • Confectioners • Craftsmen • against Doubt and Hesitation • the Dying • Emigrants • Exiles • Expectant Mothers • Families • Fathers • Furniture Makers • Grave diggers • Happy Death • Holy Death • House Hunters • House Sellers • Immigrants • Joiners • Labourers • all the Legal Profession • Married Couples • Oblates of Saint Joseph • Orphans • Pioneers • Social Justice • Teachers • Travellers • the Unborn • Wheelwrights • Workers • Americas • Austria • Belgium • Bohemia • Canada • China • Croatian people • Korea • Mexico • New France • New World • Peru • Philippines • Vatican City • VietNam • Canadian Armed Forces • Papal States • 46 Diocese • 26 Cities,States and Regions.
The Second Sunday of Lent – 1 March – Our Lenten Journey With St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor of the Church
The Second Sunday God the Father Delivered Christ to His Passion
“God spared not even His own Son but delivered Him up for us all.” Rom viii. 32.
Christ suffered willingly, moved by obedience to His Father. Wherefore, God the Father delivered Christ to His Passion and this, in three ways:
Because the Father, of His Eternal Will, preordained the Passion of Christ as the means whereby to free the human race. So it is said in Isaias, “The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all” (Isa liii. 6) and again, “The Lord was pleased to bruise Him in infirmity” (ibid liii. 10).
Because He inspired Our Lord with the willingness to suffer for us, pouring into His Soul the Love which produced the will to suffer. Whence the Prophet goes on to say, “He was offered because it was His Own Will” (Isa liii. 7).
Because He did not protect Our Lord from the Passion but exposed Him to His persecutors. Whence we read in St Matthew’s Gospel: as He hung on the cross Christ said, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me” (Matt xxvii. 46). For God the Father, that is to say, had left Him at the mercy of His torturers.
To hand over an innocent man to suffering and to death, against his will, compelling him to die as it were, would indeed be cruel and wicked. But it was not in this way God the Father delivered Christ. He delivered Christ by inspiring Him with the Will to suffer for us. By so doing, the severity of God is made clear – no sin is forgiven without punishment! which St Paul again teaches when he says, God spared not His Own Son.
At the same time God’s kindness and goodness is exhibited in the fact that whereas man could not, no matter what his punishment, sufficiently make satisfaction, God has given man someone Who is able to make that satisfaction for him. Which is what St Paul means by, He delivered Him up for us all and again when he says, God hath proposed Christ to be an appeasement through faith in His Blood (Rom iii. 25). The same activity in a good man and in a bad man is differently judged, inasmuch as the root from which it proceeds is different. The Father, for example, delivered Christ and Christ delivered Himself and this from love and, therefore, They are praised.
Judas delivered Him from love of gain, the Jews from hatred, Pilate from the worldly fear with which he feared Caesar and these are rightly regarded with horror. Christ, therefore, did not owe to death the debt of necessity but of Charity – the Charity to men by which He willed their Salvation and the Charity to God, by which He willed to fulfil God’s Will, as it says in the Gospel, “Not as I Will but as Thou Wilt (Matt xx vi. 39).
ST THOMAS AQUINAS (1225-1274) Priest, Theologian, Dominican Doctor Angelicus (Angelic Doctor) Doctor Communis (Common Doctor) Added by Pope Saint Pius V in 1568
AnaStpaul 
You must be logged in to post a comment.