LENTEN REFLECTION – The Fifth Week – Monday 3 April 2017
ALMSGIVING
Excerpt from a Homily of St John Chrysostum Doctor and Father of the Church (347-407
Nay, if you desire to honour the sacrifice, offer your soul, for which also it was slain; cause that to become golden; but if that remain worse than lead or potter’s clay, while the vessel is of gold, what is the profit?
Let not this therefore be our aim, to offer golden vessels only but to do so from honest earnings likewise. For these are of the sort that is more precious even than gold, these that are without injuriousness. For the church is not a gold foundry nor a workshop for silver but an assembly of angels. Wherefore it is souls which we require, since in fact God accepts these for the souls’ sake.
That table at that time was not of silver nor that cup of gold, out of which Christ gave His disciples His own blood; but precious was everything there….
Would you do honour to Christ’s body? Neglect Him not when naked; do not while here you honour Him with silken garments, neglect Him perishing without of cold and nakedness. For He that said, This is my body, and by His word confirmed the fact, This same said, You saw me an hungered, and fed me not; and, Inasmuch as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me. Matthew 25:42, 45 For this indeed needs not coverings, but a pure soul; but that requires much attention.
Let us learn therefore to be strict in life and to honour Christ as He Himself desires. For to Him who is honoured that honour is most pleasing, which it is His own will to have, not that which we account best. Since Peter too thought to honour Him by forbidding Him to wash his feet but his doing so was not an honour, but the contrary.
Even so do thou honour Him with this honour, which He ordained, spending your wealth on poor people. Since God has no need at all of golden vessels but of golden souls.
And these things I say, not forbidding such offerings to be provided; but requiring you, together with them and before them, to give alms………..
For what is the profit, when His table indeed is full of golden cups but He perishes with hunger? First fill Him, being an hungered and then abundantly deck out His table also. Do you make Him a cup of gold, while you give Him not a cup of cold water? And what is the profit? Do you furnish His table with cloths bespangled with gold, while to Himself you afford not even the necessary covering? And what good comes of it? For tell me, should you see one at a loss for necessary food and omit appeasing his hunger, while you first overlaid his table with silver; would He indeed thank you and not rather be indignant? What, again, if seeing one wrapped in rags and stiff with cold, you should neglect giving him a garment and build golden columns, saying, thou were doing it to His honour, would He not say that thou were mocking and account it an insult and that the most extreme?
Let this then be your thought with regard to Christ also, when He is going about a wanderer and a stranger, needing a roof to cover Him; and thou, neglecting to receive Him, deckest out a pavement, and walls, and capitals of columns and hangest up silver chains by means of lamps but Himself bound in prison you will not even look upon.
LENTEN REFLECTION – The Second Week- Saturday 18 March
St Cyril of Jerusalem, (315-386)
Father and Doctor of the Church
The symbolic meaning of the sacrament of baptism as sharing in Christ’s passion according to Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop of Jerusalem in the middle of the fourth century and one of the most important sources we have for how the church celebrated the sacraments during that era. In his Jerusalem Catechesis from which this excerpt comes, St. Cyril instructs new Christians in the days immediately before and after their initiation into the life of the Church at the Easter Vigil.
You were led down to the font of holy baptism just as Christ was taken down from the cross and placed in the tomb which is before your eyes. Each of you was asked, “Do you believe in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit?” You made the profession of faith that brings salvation, you were plunged into the water and three times you rose again. This symbolized the three days Christ spent in the tomb.
As our Saviour spent three days and three nights in the depths of the earth, so your first rising from the water represented the first day and your first immersion represented the first night. At night a man cannot see but in the day he walks in the light. So when you were immersed in the water it was like night for you and you could not see but when you rose again it was like coming into broad daylight. In the same instant you died and were born again; the saving water was both your tomb and your mother.
Solomon’s phrase in another context is very apposite here. He spoke of a time to give birth and a time to die. For you, however, it was the reverse: a time to die and a time to be born, although in fact both events took place at the same time and your birth was simultaneous with your death.
This is something amazing and unheard of! It was not we who actually died, were buried and rose again. We only did these things symbolically but we have been saved in actual fact. It is Christ who was crucified, who was buried and who rose again and all this has been attributed to us. We share in His sufferings symbolically and gain salvation in reality. What boundless love for men! Christ’s undefiled hands were pierced by the nails; he suffered the pain. I experience no pain, no anguish, yet by the share that I have in his sufferings he freely grants me salvation.
Let no one imagine that baptism consists only in the forgiveness of sins and in the grace of adoption. Our baptism is not like the baptism of John, which conferred only the forgiveness of sins. We know perfectly well that baptism, besides washing away our sins and bringing us the gift of the Holy Spirit, is a symbol of the sufferings of Christ. This is why Paul exclaims: Do you not know that when we were baptised into Christ Jesus we were, by that very action, sharing in his death? By baptism we went with him into the tomb.
These words of St. Cyril of Jerusalem on the symbolic meaning of the sacrament of baptism, a symbol of Christ’s passion, are read in the Roman Catholic liturgy’s Office of Readings on the Thursday in the Octave of Easter (Cat. 21 Mystagogica 3, 1-3 PG 33. 1087-1091) with the accompanying biblical reading of I Peter 3:1-17.
Saint of the Day – 12 March – St Seraphina/Fina – (1238-1253) – Virgin – Patron of physically challenged people, handicapped people and spinners
She was a little girl, very pretty, born into a very poor family, whose father died when she was very young. As a little girl she learned to sew and spin, spending most of her time at home.
After her father’s death, she was struck with a strange and paralyzing illness. She became misshapen and ugly, in constant pain, unable to get out of bed or even to move. Her mother took care of her but had to leave her for hours at a time to attend to her work. Seraphina’s only consolation was the crucifix and she realized that she was called to imitate the suffering Christ.
So she never complained. She managed to remain serene and something beautiful shone out of her face. Then she was struck another blow. Her mother died and she was left completely destitute, her neighbours repelled by her appearance and her sickness, her only friend a girl named Beldia who visited her and brought her food.
In her reading, St. Seraphina had heard of the great sufferings of Pope St. Gregory the Great and he became her special saint. She prayed to him, drew strength from the sufferings that he had to endure and prayed that he would obtain for her the patience she needed to bear her own sufferings. She was now so weak and helpless that it was clear to everyone she could not live very long.
Eight days before her death, alone and almost completely forsaken, St. Gregory appeared to her and told her: “Dear child, on my feast day, God will give you rest” (in those days his feast day was celebrated on March 12). On that day, she died. The whole city attended her funeral and from that moment everyone began to pray to her. On the place where she had lain, her neighbours found white violets growing and even today in the village of San Geminiano where she lived, the white violets that bloom in March are called Santa Fina flowers. She died on March 12,1253, at the age of fifteen.
We are ….. heirs of God, heirs of Christ, if only we suffer with him so as to be glorified with him……..Romans 8:17
REFLECTION – If we suffer with Christ, we will be glorified with Him. The fulfilment of the promised happiness is certain for those who share in the Lord’s Passion……St Pope Leo the Great
PRAYER – Grant me Your grace to overcome my natural fear of suffering Lord. Strengthen me to bear my sufferings in union with Your sacred Passion, for the salvation of the world. St John Ogilvie you are an example to me, please pray that this Lenten time will assist us all in overcoming our fear of sharing in the Passion of our God. Amen
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him…………Matthew 6:8
REFLECTION – “…….Remember that He permits every thing for your good and do not lose confidence:” ………. St Alphonso Maria de Liguori
PRAYER – Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Stay with us Lord God and give us courage as you did Sts Perpetua and Felicity, whose prayers and intercession we request, amen.
Purification of Spirit through fasting and almsgiving
by St Pope Leo the Great (died 461 AD) Doctor of the Church
Dear friends, at every moment the earth is full of the mercy of God and nature itself is a lesson for all the faithful in the worship of God. The heavens, the sea and all that is in them bear witness to the omnipotence of their Creator and the marvelous beauty of the elements as they obey him demands from the intelligent creation a fitting expression of its gratitude.
But with the return of that season marked out in a special way by the mystery of our redemption and of the days that lead up to the paschal feast, we are summoned more urgently to prepare ourselves by a purification of spirit.
The special note of the paschal feast is this: the whole Church rejoices in the forgiveness of sins. It rejoices in the forgiveness not only of those who are then reborn in holy baptism but also of those who are already numbered among God’s adopted children.
Initially, men are made new by the rebirth of baptism. Yet there is still required a daily renewal to repair the shortcomings of our mortal nature and whatever degree of progress has been made there is no one who should not be more advanced. All must therefore strive to ensure that on the day of redemption no one may be found in the sins of his former life.
Dear friends, what the Christian should be doing at all times should be done now with greater care and devotion, so that the Lenten fast enjoined by the apostles may be fulfilled, not simply by abstinence from food but above all by the renunciation of sin.
There is no more profitable practice as a companion to holy and spiritual fasting than that of almsgiving. This embraces under the single name of mercy many excellent works of devotion, so that the good intentions of the faithful may be of equal value, even where their means are not. The love that we owe both God and man is always free from any obstacle that would prevent us from having a good intention. The angels sang: Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth. The person who shows love and compassion to those in any kind of affliction is blessed, not only with the virtue of good will but also with the gift of peace.
The works of mercy are innumerable. Their very variety brings this advantage to those who are true Christians, that in the matter of almsgiving not only the rich and affluent but also those of average means and the poor are able to play their part. Those who are unequal in their capacity to give can be equal in the love within their hearts.
“And so we begin a new spiritual journey today – a journey of preparation to rise with the Risen Lord on the day of Easter. As part of our preparation, the Gospel sets before us reflections on three cardinal works necessary for our spiritual life: prayer, fasting and almsgiving. These three works deal with three important areas of our life. Prayer is our relationship with God; fasting aims at our personal growth and almsgiving reveals our relationship with our neighbour and our responsibilities toward them.
During the Eucharistic celebration today we will be marked with ashes. By imposing ashes on our foreheads, we are reminded to repent of our sins, to believe in the Gospel and to aim at what is permanent – life with the Risen Lord.” Fr Devasia Joseph SSP
“What the Christian should be doing at all times
should be done now (during Lent) with greater care and devotion,
so that the Lenten fast enjoined by the apostles
may be fulfilled, not simply by abstinence from food
but above all by the renunciation of sin.” – St Pope Leo the Great
We welcome you St Gregory of Narek as our newest Doctor of the Universal Church, with gratitude and joy! Gregory’s Book of Lamentations was the source of consolation and guidance for generations in times of immense suffering. His monastery survived for a thousand years but was destroyed by the Turks during the genocide. Armenians lost Narek but they still have the book they call by that name in his honour and many Armenians have traditionally slept with a copy of the work under their pillows. The words of Gregory, too, are consonant with Pope Francis’ call on all Catholics to reach out to God in our brokenness with humble and contrite hearts. Perhaps we should allow St Gregory to lead us through Lent this year? As Gregory wrote in the Lamentations, “Hear the prayers of my embattled heart for mercy, when I cry out to you, ‘Lord,’ in my time of need.”
St Gregory of Narek- Doctor of the Universal Church, pray for us!
All you Holy Martyrs and Saints of Armenia, pray for us!
“You found me, a sinner, lost in darkness
crying like the psalmist in prayer,
and because of Your willing care
you were called Shepherd, for not only
did You care, but You sought,
not only did You find, O worker of miracles
but with the goodness of Your love,
a love that defies description,
You rescued me,
lifting me upon Your shoulders,
to set down alongside Your heavenly army,
the heirs to Your fatherly legacy. ”
~~~~~ St Gregory of Narek (Book fo Lamentations) – Saint of the Day
You have drawn near …….. to the heavenly Jerusalem ……. to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant…..Hebrews 12:22-24
REFLECTION – “Hear the prayers of my embattled heart for mercy, when I cry out to you, ‘Lord,’ in my time of need.” …….St Gregory of Narek
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, amid the dizzying events and circumstances of daily life, let me keep my eyes on Jesus. Help me to rely on Him always, for He is my Redeemer. St Gregory of Narek, you who continue to lead and teach us the ways of true love, consolation and repentance, pray for all the souls of the Universal Church. Amen
I long not so much for the gifts
as for the Giver.
I yearn not so much for the glory
as the Glorified.
I burn not so much with the desire for life
as in memory of the Giver of Life.
I sigh not so much with the rapture of splendour
as with the heartfelt fervour for its Maker.
I seek not so much for rest
as for the face of our C omforter.
I pine not so much for the bridal feast
as for the distress of the Groom,
through whose strength I wait with certain
expectation believing with unwavering hope
that in spite of the weight of my transgressions
I shall be saved by the Lord’s mighty hand and
that I will not only receive remission of sins
but that I will see the Lord Himself
in His mercy and compassion.
Saint of the Day – 27 February -St Gregory of Narek/Doctor of the Church (951 – 1003) Armenian monk, poet, mystical philosopher, theologian and saint of the Armenian Apostolic Church and Catholic Church, born into a family of writers. Based in the monastery of Narek (Narekavank), he was “Armenia’s first great poet”and as “the watchful angel in human form”
Born circa 950 to a family of scholarly churchmen, St. Gregory entered Narek Monastery on the south-east shore of Lake Van at a young age. Shortly before the first millennium of Christianity, Narek Monastery was a thriving center of learning. These were the relatively quiet, creative times before the Turkic and Mongol invasions that changed Armenian life forever. Armenia was experiencing a renaissance in literature, painting, architecture and theology, of which St. Gregory was a leading figure. The Prayer Book is the work of his mature years. He called it his last testament: “its letters like my body, its message like my soul.” St. Gregory left this world in 1003, but his voice continues to speak to us.
Written shortly before the first millennium of Christianity, the prayers of St. Gregory of Narek have long been recognized as gems of Christian literature. St. Gregory called his book an “encyclopedia of prayer for all nations.” It was his hope that it would serve as a guide to prayer by people of all stations around the world.
A leader of the well-developed school of Armenian mysticism at Narek Monastery, at the request of his brethren he set out to find an answer to an imponderable question: what can one offer to God, our creator, who already has everything and knows everything better than we could ever express it? To this question, posed by the prophets, psalmist, apostles and saints, he gives a humble answer – the sighs of the heart – expressed in his Book of Prayer, also called the Book of Lamentations.
In 95 grace-filled prayers St. Gregory draws on the exquisite potential of the Classical Armenian language to translate the pure sighs of the broken and contrite heart into an offering of words pleasing to God The result is an edifice of faith for the ages, unique in Christian literature for its rich imagery, its subtle theology, its Biblical erudition and the sincere immediacy of its communication with God.
For my soul is filled with torment, and there is no cure for my body. I am tortured and laid low in the extreme, and I groan with the sighs of my heart.
Psalm 38:9-10
Gregory of Narek is recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church and is particularly venerated among Catholics of the Armenian rite. His name is listed among the saints for 27 February in the Martyrologium Romanum.
Pope John Paul II referred to Gregory of Narek in several addresses as well as in his encyclical Redemptoris Mater and in his Apostolic Letter for the 1,700th Anniversary of the Baptism of the Armenian People.
He is mentioned by name in Article 2678 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
On 21 February 2015, it was announced that Saint Gregory of Narek would be named a Doctor of the Catholic Church by Pope Francis. His being given this title was not an equipollent canonisation since he had already been listed as a saint in the Martyrologium Romanum. On 12 April 2015, Divine Mercy Sunday, during a Mass for the centenary of the Armenian Genocide, Pope Francis officially proclaimed Gregory of Narek as Doctor of the Church.
St. Gregory’s proclamation as a Doctor of the Church was commemorated by the Vatican City state with a postage stamp issued September 2, 2015.
St Abundius of Rome
St Alexander of Rome
St Alnoth
St Anne Line
St Antigonus of Rome
St Baldomerus of Saint Just
St Basilios of Constantinople
St Comgan
St Emmanuel of Cremona
St Fortunatus of Rome
St Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows/Gabriel Possenti
St Gregory of Narek – Doctor of the Church, Poet, Philosopher and Theologian
St Herefrith of Lindsey
St Honorina
St John of Gorze
Bl Josep Tous Soler
St Luke of Messina
Bl Maria Caridad Brader
Bl Mark Barkworth
St Procopius of Decapolis
Bl Roger Filcock
St Thalilaeus
Bl William Richardson
—
Martyrs of Alexandria: –
Besas of Alexandria
Cronion Eunus
Julian of Alexandria
“On this rock I will build my Church’,,,,,,,,,,Matthew 16:18
REFLECTION – “How blessed is the Church of Rome, on which the Apostles poured forth all their doctrine along with their blood!” (De Praescriptione Hereticorum, 36)…….Tertullian
“I decided to consult the Chair of Peter,
where that faith is found exalted by
the lips of an Apostle;
I now come to ask for nourishment for my soul there,
where once I received the garment of Christ.
I follow no leader save Christ,
so I enter into communion with Your beatitude,
that is, with the Chair of Peter,
for this I know is the rock upon which the Church is built”
(cf. Le lettere I, 15, 1-2)…………..St Jerome
PRAYER – Holy Father, send Your Divine Enlightener into the hearts of all Your faithful, filling us with the strength to fulfil our mission as the followers of the Chair of St Peter. And most of all, we pray Lord Holy God to inspire and light the way of our Holy Father, Francis. Sustain and guide him, keep him in health and strength, to lead Your people by the Light of the Way and the Truth. Holy Father, have mercy on us, Holy Spirit guide and lead us, Lord Jesus Christ be our intercessor and teacher, amen.
St Peter Damian was a reformer but he reformed his own life before he tried to reform others. Example is still the most powerful influence in changing others and preaching is useless if it is not joined to a holy life. Before we can change others, we have to change ourselves. Lent is nearly here – a great place to work on our progress or to begin all over again.
“He pours light into our minds, arouses our desire and gives us strength… As the soul is the life of the body, so the Holy Spirit is the life of our souls.”
“The best penance is to have patience with the sorrows God permits. A very good penance is to dedicate oneself to fulfill the duties of everyday with exactitude and to study and work with all our strength.”
“Through a woman [Eve] a curse fell upon the earth; through a woman [Mary] as well there returned to the earth, a blessing.”
For whom the Lord loves he reproves,
he chastises the one he favours………….Proverbs 3:12
REFLECTION – “When you are scorned by others and lashed by God, do not despair.
God lashes us in this life to shield us from the eternal lash in the next.”………..St Peter Damian
PRAYER – Infinitely just God, help me to accept Your corrections and turn them to my benefit. Let me never despair about my weaknesses but entrust myself to Your goodness and mercy. Help me Lord! St Peter Damian, pray for us, amen.
Saint of the Day – 21 February – St Peter Damian (c 1007-1072) Bishop, Confessor, Benedictine Monk, Cardinal, Theologian, Reformer, Writer, Teacher, Preacher, Poet and Doctor of the Church. Also known as – Petrus Damianus; Italian: Pietro or Pier Damiani was a reforming Benedictine Monk and Cardinal in the circle of Pope Leo IX. Dante placed him in one of the highest circles of Paradiso as a great predecessor of Saint Francis of Assisi. He was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1828 by Patronages – Spiritual warfare, Church Reformers and of Faenza, Italy.
Peter was born in Ravenna, Italy, around 1007, the youngest of a large noble but poor family. Orphaned early, he was at first adopted by an elder brother, who ill-treated and underfed him while employing him as a swineherd. After some years, another brother, Damianus, who was Archpriest at Ravenna, had pity on him and took him away to be educated. Adding his brother’s name to his own, Peter made such rapid progress in his studies of Theology and Canon Law, first at Ravenna, then at Faenza and finally at the University of Parma, that when about twenty-five years old he was already a famous teacher at Parma and Ravenna. As well as a good grounding in the field of law, he acquired a refined expertise in the art of writing the ars scribendi and, thanks to his knowledge of the great Latin classics, became “one of the most accomplished Latinists of his time, one of the greatest writers of medieval Latin” (J. Leclercq, Pierre Damien, ermite et homme d’Église, Rome, 1960, p. 172).
About 1035, however, he gave up his secular calling and, avoiding the compromised luxury of Cluniac Monasteries, entered the isolated hermitage of Fonte Avellana, near Gubbio. Both as a Novice and as a Monk, his fervour was remarkable but led him to such extremes of self-mortification in penance that his health was affected and he developed severe insomnia. On his recovery, he was appointed to lecture to his fellow Monks. Then, at the request of St Guy of Pomposa (Guido d’Arezzo) and other heads of neighbouring Monasteries, for two or three years he lectured to their brethren too and (about 1042) wrote the Vita of St. Romuald for the monks of Pietrapertosa. Soon after his return to Fonte Avellan, he was appointed Economus (manager or administrator) of the house by the Prior, who designated him as his successor. In 1043 he became Prior of Fonte Avellana and remained so until his death in February 1072.
Subject-hermitages were founded at San Severino, Gamogna, Acerreta, Murciana, San Salvatore, Sitria and Ocri. A zealot for monastic and clerical reform, he introduced a more-severe discipline, including the practice of flagellation (“the disciplina”), into the house, which, under his rule, quickly attained celebrity and became a model for other foundations, even the great abbey of Monte Cassino. There was much opposition outside his own circle to such extreme forms of penitence, but Peter’s persistent advocacy ensured its acceptance, to such an extent that he was obliged later to moderate the imprudent zeal of some of his own hermits. Another innovation was that of the daily siesta, to make up for the fatigue of the night office. During his tenure of the priorate a cloister was built, silver chalices and a silver processional cross were purchased, and many books were added to the library.
Reformer Although living in the seclusion of the cloister, Peter Damian closely watched the fortunes of the Church and like his friend Hildebrand, the future Pope Gregory VII, he strove for reforms in a deplorable time. When Benedict IX resigned the pontificate into the hands of the archpriest John Gratian (Gregory VI) in 1045, Peter hailed the change with joy and wrote to the new pope, urging him to deal with the scandals of the church in Italy, singling out the wicked bishops of Pesaro, of Città di Castello and of Fano. Extending the area of his activities, he entered into communication with the Emperor Henry III. He was present in Rome when Clement II crowned Henry III and his consort Agnes and he also attended a synod held at the Lateran in the first days of 1047, in which decrees were passed against simony. After this he returned to his hermitage.
Pope Benedict XVI described him as “one of the most significant figures of the 11th century … a lover of solitude and at the same time a fearless man of the Church, committed personally to the task of reform.”
Philosophy Peter often condemned philosophy. He claimed that the first grammarian was the Devil, who taught Adam to decline deus in the plural. He argued that monks should not have to study philosophy, because Jesus did not choose philosophers as disciples and so philosophy is not necessary for salvation. But the idea (later attributed to Thomas Aquinas) that philosophy should serve theology as a servant serves her mistress originated with him.
Papal envoy and Cardinal During his illness the pope died, and Frédéric, abbot of Monte Cassino, was elected pope as Stephen IX. In the autumn of 1057, Stephen IX determined to make Damian a cardinal. For a long time Damian resisted the offer, for he was more at ease as an itinerant hermit-preacher than a reformer from within the Curia but was finally forced to accept and was consecrated Cardinal Bishop of Ostia on 30 November 1057. In addition he was appointed administrator of the Diocese of Gubbio. The new cardinal was impressed with the great responsibilities of his office and wrote a stirring letter to his brother-cardinals, exhorting them to shine by their example before all. Four months later Pope Stephen died at Florence and the Church was once more distracted by schism. Peter was vigorous in his opposition to the antipope Benedict X but force was on the side of the intruder and Damian retired temporarily to Fonte Avallana.
Milan About the end of the year 1059 Peter was sent as legate to Milan by Pope Nicholas II. So bad was the state of things at Milan, that benefices (a reward received in exchange for services rendered and as a retainer for future services) were openly bought and sold and the clergy publicly married the women with whom they lived. The resistance of the clergy of Milan to the reform of Ariald the Deacon and Anselm, Bishop of Lucca rendered a contest so bitter that an appeal was made to the Holy See. Nicholas II sent Damian and the Bishop of Lucca as his legates. The party of the irregular clerics took alarm and raised the cry that Rome had no authority over Milan. Peter boldly confronted the rioters in the cathedral, he proved to them the authority of the Holy See with such effect that all parties submitted to his decision. He exacted first a solemn oath from the archbishop and all his clergy that for the future no preferment should be paid for; then, imposing a penance on all who had been guilty, he reinstated in their benefices all who undertook to live in celibacy. This prudent decision was attacked by some of the rigorists at Rome but was not reversed. Meanwhile, Peter was pleading in vain to be released from the cares of his office. Neither Nicholas II nor Hildebrand would consent to spare him.
Later career He rendered valuable assistance to Pope Alexander II in his struggle with the antipope, Honorius II. In July 1061 the pope died and once more a schism ensued. Peter Damian used all his powers to persuade the antipope Cadalous to withdraw but to no purpose. Finally Anno II, Archbishop of Cologne and acting regent in Germany, summoned a council at Augsburg at which a long argument by Peter Damian was read and greatly contributed to the decision in favour of Alexander II.
In 1063 the pope held a synod at Rome, at which Peter Damian was appointed legate to settle the dispute between the Abbey of Cluny and the Bishop of Mâcon. He proceeded to France, summoned a council at Chalon-sur-Saône, proved the justice of the contentions of Cluny, settled other questions at issue in the Church of France and returned in the autumn to Fonte Avellana. Having served the papacy as legate to France and to Florence, he was allowed to resign his bishopric in 1067. Early in 1072 or 1073 he was sent to Ravenna to reconcile its inhabitants to the Holy See, they having been excommunicated for supporting their archbishop in his adhesion to the schism of Cadalous. On his return thence he was seized with fever near Faenza. He lay ill for a week at the monastery of Santa Maria degl’Angeli, now Santa Maria Vecchia. On the night preceding the feast of the Chair of St. Peter at Antioch, he ordered the office of the feast to be recited and at the end of the Lauds he died. He was at once buried in the monastery church, lest others should claim his relics.
Find your delight in the LORD
who will give you your heart’s desire………….Psalm 37:4
REFLECTION – “Happiness is secured through virtue;
it is a good attained by man’s own will.” ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, St Thomas Aquinas
PRAYER – All-provident Lord, my God, You are my Father and in You is all my hope and trust. Teach me to live according to Your precepts, knowing that through them I will attain virtue and thus be filled with true joy. Blessed Jordan of Saxony, you were filled with love for your fellowman and through your virtue you assisted many to achieve holiness and happiness. Pray for us that we may too be filled with virtue, love and the true happiness of God which is joy, amen.
Father, keep us from vain strife of words.
Grant to us constant profession of the Truth!
Preserve us in a true and undefiled faith
so that we may hold fast to that
which we professed when we were baptised
in the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
that we may have Thee for our Father,
that we may abide in Thy Son
and in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.
Through Jesus Christ, Our Lord, amen.
Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered;………..Heb 5: 7-9
REFLECTION – “On this Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, the Church is celebrating the Day of Consecrated Life. This is an appropriate occasion to praise the Lord and thank him for the precious gift represented by the consecrated life in its different forms; at the same time it is an incentive to encourage in all the People of God, knowledge and esteem for those who are totally consecrated to God. Indeed, just as Jesus’ life in his obedience and dedication to the Father is a living parable of the “God-with-us”, so the concrete dedication of consecrated persons to God and to their brethren becomes an eloquent sign for today’s world of the presence of God’s Kingdom.”……..Pope Benedict XVI 2 February 2006
PRAYER – May the Lord renew in you and in all consecrated people each day the joyful response to His freely given and faithful love. Dear brothers and sisters, like lighted candles, always and everywhere shine with the love of Christ, Light of the world. May Mary Most Holy, the consecrated Woman, help you to live to the full, your special vocation and mission in the Church for the world’s salvation. And may we all follow our Lord in obedience. Amen!
For St Thomas, the goodness of God can be seen in everything and the whole of creation is a mighty love song of God. He learned more at the foot of the Crucifix and before the Blessed Sacrament, he said, than in all his readings and writings. We can look to Thomas Aquinas as a towering example of Catholicism in the sense of broadness, universality and inclusiveness. We should be determined anew to exercise the divine gift of reason in us, our power to know, learn and understand. At the same time we should thank God for the gift of His revelation, the incarnation of His Son, Jesus Christ who is here with us always in the Holy Sacrament.
Saint of the Day – 28 January – St Thomas Aquinas O.P. (1225-1274 aged 49) THE ANGELIC DOCTOR – DOCTOR of the CHURCH/Priest, Religious, Theologian, Philosopher, Write, Teacher, Jurist. Also known as: Angelic Doctor/Doctor Angelicus/Doctor Communis/Great Synthesizer/The Dumb Ox/The Universal Teacher. Patron of Academics, Theologians, against storms; against lightning; apologists; book sellers; Catholic academies, Catholic Schools – (proclaimed on 4 August 1880 by Pope Leo XIII), Catholic universities, Catholic Colleges, chastity, learning; pencil makers, philosophers; publishers; scholars; students; University of Vigo and of St. Tomas;, Batangas; theologians, Aquino, Italy; Belcastro, Italy, Diocese of Aquino, Falena, Italy.
St Thomas Aquinas was an Italian Dominican friar, Catholic priest and Doctor of the Church. He was an immensely influential philosopher, theologian and jurist in the tradition of scholasticism, within which he is also known as the Doctor Angelicus and the Doctor Communis. The name Aquinas identifies his ancestral origins in the county of Aquino in present-day Lazio.
He was the foremost classical proponent of natural theology and the father of Thomism. His influence on Western thought is considerable, and much of modern philosophy developed or opposed his ideas, particularly in the areas of ethics, natural law, metaphysics and political theory. Unlike many currents in the Church of the time, Thomas embraced several ideas put forward by Aristotle—whom he called “the Philosopher”—and attempted to synthesize Aristotelian philosophy with the principles of Christianity. The works for which he is best known are the Summa Theologiae and the Summa contra Gentiles. His commentaries on Scripture and on Aristotle form an important part of his body of work. Furthermore, Thomas is distinguished for his eucharistic hymns, which form a part of the Church’s liturgy.
The Catholic Church honours Thomas Aquinas as a saint and regards him as the model teacher for those studying for the priesthood, and indeed the highest expression of both natural reason and speculative theology. In modern times, under papal directives, the study of his works was long used as a core of the required program of study for those seeking ordination as priests or deacons, as well as for those in religious formation and for other students of the sacred disciplines (philosophy, Catholic theology, church history, liturgy, and canon law).
Thomas Aquinas is considered one of the Catholic Church’s greatest theologians and philosophers. Pope Benedict XV declared: “This (Dominican) Order … acquired new luster when the Church declared the teaching of Thomas to be her own and that Doctor, honoured with the special praises of the Pontiffs, the master and patron of Catholic schools.”
By universal consent, Thomas Aquinas is the preeminent spokesman of the Catholic tradition of reason and of divine revelation. He is one of the great teachers of the medieval Catholic Church, honoured with the titles Doctor of the Church and Angelic Doctor. (Image below – Benozzo Gozzoli – Triumph of St Thomas Aquinas)
At five he was given to the Benedictine monastery at Monte Cassino in his parents’ hopes that he would choose that way of life and eventually became abbot. In 1239, he was sent to Naples to complete his studies. It was here that he was first attracted to Aristotle’s philosophy. By 1243, Thomas abandoned his family’s plans for him and joined the Dominicans, much to his mother’s dismay. On her order, Thomas was captured by his brother and kept at home for over a year. Once free, he went to Paris and then to Cologne, where he finished his studies with Albert the Great. In class, his silence during discussions and his large size earned him the nickname “the dumb ox.” He held two professorships at Paris, lived at the court of Pope Urban IV, directed the Dominican schools at Rome and Viterbo, combated adversaries of the mendicants, as well as the Averroists and argued with some Franciscans about Aristotelianism.
Jean Fouquet
His greatest contribution to the Catholic Church are his writings. The unity, harmony and continuity of faith and reason, of revealed and natural human knowledge, pervades his writings. One might expect Thomas, as a man of the gospel, to be an ardent defender of revealed truth. But he was broad enough, deep enough, to see the whole natural order as coming from God the Creator, and to see reason as a divine gift to be highly cherished.
The Summa Theologiae, his last and, unfortunately, uncompleted work, deals with the whole of Catholic theology. But this brilliant man was very humble. He knew that all his gifts came from God. While celebrating Mass on December 6, 1273, he received a revelation from God. After that, he stopped writing. He said “I cannot go on…. All that I have written seems to me like so much straw compared to what I have seen and what has been revealed to me.” Thomas died at age 49 on his way to the Council of Lyons, France. Pope Gregory X had asked him to come. When asked why he stopped writing, he replied, He died March 7, 1274.
“Faith has to do with things that are not seen and hope with things that are not at hand.”
“The celebration of Holy Mass is as valuable as the death of Jesus on the cross.”
“To love is to will the good of the other.”
“If you can live amid injustice without anger, you are immoral as well as unjust.”
“In the life of the body a man is sometimes sick and unless he takes medicine, he will die. Even so in the spiritual life a man is sick on account of sin. For that reason he needs medicine so that he may be restored to health – and this grace is bestowed in the Sacrament of Penance.”
“To pretend angels do not exist because they are invisible is to believe we never sleep because we don’t see ourselves sleeping.”
“To bear with patience wrongs done to oneself is a mark of perfection but to bear with patience wrongs done to someone else is a mark of imperfection and even of actual sin.”
“All the efforts of the human mind cannot exhaust the essence of a single fly.”
So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord,
nor of me, a prisoner for his sake;
but bear your share of hardship for the Gospel
with the strength that comes from God………..2 Tm 1:1-8
…….to Titus, my true child in our common faith:
grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our saviour.
For this reason I left you in Crete
so that you might set right what remains to be done…………Ti 1:1-5
REFLECTION – …. we consider together the two figures of Timothy and Titus, we are aware of certain very significant facts………. it clearly appears that (Paul) he did not do everything on his own but relied on trustworthy people who shared in his endeavours and responsibilities. The sources concerning Timothy and Titus highlight their readiness to take on various offices that also often consisted in representing Paul in circumstances far from easy. In a word, they teach us to serve the Gospel with generosity realizing that this also entails a service to the Church herself..”………………Pope Benedict XVI
PRAYER – Father of light, let my life be illumined by the light of Christ and enable me to radiate the Gospel to others. Teach me, like Sts Timothy and Titus to give my all to the service of the Bride of Christ, His Mystical Body, the Church. Sts Timothy and Titus, pray for us. amen.
Saint of the Day – 24 January – St Francis de Sales CO, OM, OFM (Cap)- Doctor of the Church / “The Gentleman Saint” (1567-1622 aged 55) Bishop of Geneva – Patron of against deafness, authors, writers (proclaimed on 26 April 1923 by Pope Pius XI), Catholic press, confessors, deaf people, journalists (proclaimed on 26 April 1923 by Pope Pius XI), teachers, educators, Champdepraz, Aosta, Italy, 8 dioceses – Also known as “The Gentle Christ of Geneva”, Francis of Sales, Franz von Sales – His motto ‘Non-excidet’ – (no failure)
He became noted for his deep faith and his gentle approach to the religious divisions in his land resulting from the Protestant Reformation. He is known also for his writings on the topic of spiritual direction and spiritual formation, particularly the Introduction to the Devout Life and the Treatise on the Love of God.
Francis de Sales was born on 21 August 1567 in the Château de Sales into the noble Sales family of the Duchy of Savoy, in what is today Thorens-Glières, Haute-Savoie, France., the eldest of 13 children. His father was François de Sales, Lord of Boisy, Sales and Novel. His mother was Françoise de Sionnaz, the only child of prominent magistrate, Melchior de Sionnaz and a noblewoman. He was baptised Francis Bonaventura, after two great Franciscan saints. His father wanted him, the first of his six sons, to attend the best schools in preparation for a career as a magistrate. He therefore enjoyed a privileged education in the nearby town of La Roche-sur-Foron and at the age of eight, at the Capuchin college in Annecy.
From early youth, Saint Francis de Sales had a great desire to devote himself entirely to the service of God, although his father had other plans for him. With the pious Abbe Deage as his tutor, Francis was a student at the University of Paris from his fourteenth to his twentieth year; and after studying jurisprudence at the University of Padua for four more years, he was awarded the degree of Doctor of Law. Francis was also a skilled swordsman who enjoyed fencing, an expert horseman and a superb dancer. Then Francis studied at the University of Padua and received a doctorate in civil and canon law. His father wanted him to marry but Francis desired to be a priest. In 1593 he finally obtained the consent of his father to enter the sacred ministry; and since he had devoted much time to the study of theology during his student years, he was ordained a priest six months later.
Not long afterwards Saint Francis de Sales volunteered for the difficult and dangerous task of leading the people of the province of Chablais back to the fold of the Church, after the protestant reformation. Several times he miraculously escaped death at the hands of assassins. But he persevered in his heroic and patient efforts and after four years succeeded in converting a large number of Calvinists. It was here that Francis began to write and distribute a weekly essay, explaining some doctrines of faith. For two years, he and his friends had these essays printed. Francis preached with power and charm in simple, clear language. His gentleness and love drew many hearts to God. The majority of the Chablais inhabitants accepted the Catholic faith.
In 1599 he was appointed coadjutor to his bishop and in 1602 he became bishop of Geneva, a position which he filled in an exemplary manner for twenty years. When Francis was appointed bishop of Geneva, he not only wrote for and encouraged priests, but he also took an interest in the candidates for priesthood. Francis even conducted the examinations to see if the candidates were fit for this vocation. He also trained laypeople to teach catechism. Francis often gave spiritual guidance to people.
At Dijon, in 1604, Saint Francis de Sales became acquainted with St Jane de Chantal, for whom and through whom he founded the nursing and teaching order known as Visitation Nuns. He died at Lyons on December 28, 1622.
Francis de Sales and Jane Frances de Chantal, medal 1867
The body of the holy bishop was exhumed ten years after his death and was found perfectly preserved. When the body was once again exhumed at a later date, only bones and dust remained.
St Frances de Sales was beatified in 1661, and canonized in 1665. He was declared a doctor of the Church in 1877
God who is mighty, has done great things for me, holy is his name…….Lk 1:49
REFLECTION – “While remaining the Mother of our Judge, Mary is a mother to us, full of mercy.
She constitutes our protection. She keeps us close to Christ and she faithfully takes the matter of our salvation into her charge.”……………….St Peter Canisius (Saint of the Day)
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, You have filled Mary with grace and made her a Co-Redeemer with Christ Your Son. Grant that I may have constant recourse to her and attain the salvation she helped win for the world. St Peter Canisius Pray for us! Amen
St Peter Canisius (Optional Memorial)/Hammer of Protestantism/ Second Apostle of Germany
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Bl Adrian of Dalmatia
St Anastasius II of Antioch
St Anrê Tran An Dung
Bl Anton Durcovici
St Baudacarius of Bobbio
St Beornwald of Bampton
Bl Bezela of Göda
Bl Daniel of the Annunciation
St Dioscorus
St Festus of Tuscany
St Glycerius of Nicomedia
St James of Valencia
St John of Tuscany
St John Vincent
St Micah the Prophet
St Phêrô Truong Van Thi
St Severinus of Trèves
Bl Sibrand of Marigård
St Themistocles of Lycia
“For not eating and drinking makes friendship: such friendship even robbers have and murderers. But if we are friends, if we truly care for one another, let us in these respects help one another. This leads us to a profitable friendship: let us hinder those things which lead away to hell.”
AnaStpaul 
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