Saint of the Day – 27 March – Saint John Damascene (675-749) Confessor, Father & Doctor of the Church – Priest, Monk, Theologian, Writer, Defender of Iconography, Poet, a Polymath and more. Patronages – Pharmacists, Artists, Theologians and Theology Students.
John Damascene, was a Monk and Theologian, whose writings were crucially important in staunchly defending the value of visual art in communicating the Christian faith and in the acquisition and growth of devotion, piety and the worship of God alone..
John was born into an Arabic Christian family, around the year 675 in Damascus, in present-day Syria, ASas the son of Mansur, the Representative of the Christians to the Court of the Muslim Caliph. In the period following the Muslim Caliphs conquering of the City, most of the Christians who had lived in Damascus were either displaced, or forced to convert. John’s family, however, had worked with the Muslim rulers once they captured the City and John’s father had a position in the Court of the Caliphate, thus their family had been allowed to remain Christian. John’s father ensured that his son received the best education possible, providing his son with a Christian Monk as a tutor. The brilliant young John became a scholar of astronomy, mathematics, classical Greek and Arabic texts.
Some sources claim that John himself became the Chief Administrator of the Caliph’s Court. Eventually, however, John, hearing the call of Christ, resigned his life at the Court and made his way to Jerusalem, to become a Priest and Monk at the Monastery of Mar Saba, outside Jerusalem.
Wheile John was establishing himself at Mar Saba, a great debate, known as the Iconoclastic Controversy, continued to divide the Church. Emperor Leo III issued an Edict forbidding the use of images. John wrote vehemently in favour of the use of images and encouraged lay Christians to continue using them, in defiance of the Emperor’s edict. John’s treatises are beautiful defences of an Incarnation Theology and of the importance of the imagination in developing faith in Christ.
John wrote that art is appropriate for depicting a God Who became human: “I do not draw an image of the immortal Godhead, I paint the visible flesh of God, for it is impossible to represent a spirit, how much more God Who gives breath to the spirit. When the Invisible One becomes visible in the flesh, you may then draw a likeness of His form.” Indeed, “I do not worship matter,” wrote John, “I worship the God of matter, Who became matter for my sake. Do not despise matter, for it is not despicable.”
John continues to discuss the human imagination, “the mind, which is set upon getting beyond corporeal things, is incapable of doing it. For the invisible things of God, since the creation of the world, are made visible through images.” The imagination reaches towards God but needs faith, needs grace, to receive the image of God’s own self which God brings to the human being. And images are important for igniting the imagination, for “Image speaks to the sight, as words to the ear, it brings understanding.”
In 787, at the Second Council of Nicaea, forty years after John’s death in 749, John’s writings were essential arguments which were used, when the Iconoclastic Controversy was finally settled in favour of the Iconophiles—those who advocated the use of Sacred Images in Christian life.
St John Damascene at the Faculty of Theology, at the Convent of St Simplician in Milan
John wrote and adapted many Scriptural texts for musical use in the Liturgy —these texts still survive and are frequently used.
Known as the last of the Greek Fathers, John Damascene was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 1890 by Pope Leo XIII for his orthodox works and especially for his defence of Sacred Art.
St John of Damascus, saint who defended art’s power to move the heart and mind, to God—pray for us!
St Scholastica was the twin sister of St Benedict (480-547) and the Foundress of the Benedictine Nuns. As twins, St Scholastica and St Benedict were naturally born together and died within 6 weeks of each other. She is the Patron of Schools and Education, especially – tests and reading; of Convulsive children; Nuns; invoked against storms, lightening; rain. Normally prayed from 1 February until the 9th, in preparation for her Feast day on the 10 February.
O God, Thou caused the soul of Thy blessed virgin Scholastica, to enter heaven in the form of a dove, to show us the way of innocence. Grant us, by her prayers and merits, to live in such innocence that we may deserve to attain eternal joys. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen. V. By the example and intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, keep us faithful to Thy Word. R. Hear us, O Lord. V. By the example and intercession of St Scholastica, keep us rooted in Thy love. R. Hear us, O Lord. V. By the example and intercession of all the holy virgins, keep us firm in prayer and charity. R. Hear us, O Lord.
(Mention your request here…)
Lord our God, Thou robed the virgin St Scholastica with the beauty and splendour of love. Help us to walk blamelessly before Thee, so that in the company of virgins, we may praise Thy Name forever and find our delight in Thee, through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Saint of the Day – 28 December – The Holy Innocents. Patronages – • against ambition•against jealousy• altar servers•babies•children• children’s choir• choir boys• orphans• students.
The Feast of the Holy Innocents By Father Francis Xavier Weninger SJ (1805-1888)
By the Holy Innocents, who are honoured as Martyrs today by the Catholic Church, we understand those happy infants, who, by the command of King Herod, were put to death, for no other cause, than that the new-born King of the Jews might be deprived of life.
When Christ was born, Herod, well known for his cruelty, reigned at Jerusalem. He was not of the Jewish nation but a foreigner and was, therefore, hated by the Jews. Herod knew this well; hence, he feared that they would dethrone him and he had several illustrious persons executed, whom he suspected of aspiring to the throne.
Meanwhile, it happened, that the three Magi or Kings from the East came to Jerusalem, to find and adore the new-born King, Who had been announced to them by a star. They doubted not that they would learn more of Him in the capital of Judea and they, therefore, asked without hesitation: “Where is He that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to adore Him.”
This question seemed very strange to the Jews and the news of it spread through the whole City, until it reached the King. His fear can hardly be described, for he already believed his crown and sceptre lost. To escape the danger in which he supposed himself, he called the chief priests and scribes together,and inquired of them, where the Messiah should be born. They answered: “In Bethlehem, according to the Prophets.” Satisfied with this answer, Herod had the three wise men brought to court and speaking very confidentially with them, he asked diligently when and where the star had appeared to them. After this, he advised them to go to Bethlehem and inquire after the new-born Child and when they had found and adored Him, to return and inform Herod, as he wished to go and adore the Child too. These words of the king, who was not less cunning than cruel, were only a deceit, as he had already resolved to kill the new-born Babe.
Meanwhile, the Magi followed the advice of the king and, guided by the star, which again appeared to them when they had left Jerusalem, went to Bethlehem, found and adored the Divine Child and offered gold, frankincense and myrrh, as we read in Holy Writ. Having finished their devotion, they intended, in accordance with king Herod’s wish, to bring him word that they had happily found the Child. An Angel, however, appeared to them in their sleep and admonished them not to return to Jerusalem but to go into their own country by another way which they accordingly did.
The Massacre of the Innocents / Angelo Visconti
When Herod perceived that they had deluded him, it was too late and his rage was boundless. Hearing of what had taken place in the temple, at the Purification of Mary that the venerable Simeon had pronounced a Child which he had taken into his arms, the true Messiah, the Herod’s heart was filled with inexpressible fear and anxiety. The danger in which he was, as he imagined, of losing his crown, left him no peace day or night. He secretly gave orders to search for this Child but all was of no avail, He could not be found.
After long pondering how he might escape the danger, his unbounded ambition led him to an act of cruelty unprecedented in history. He determined to murder all the male children, in and around Bethlehem, who were not over two years of age, as he thought that thus, he could not fail to take the life of the Child so dangerous to him. This fearful design was executed amidst the despairing shrieks of the parents, especially the mothers.
How many children were thus inhumanly slaughtered is not known but the number must have been very large. Yet, the tyrant gained not his end for, the Divine Child was already in security. The Gospel tells us that an Angel appeared during the night to St Joseph, saying to him: “Arise, take the Child and His Mother and fly into Egypt and remain there until I tell thee. For, it will come to pass that Herod will seek the Child to destroy Him.” St Joseph delayed not to obey, and fled, the same night, with the Child and His Mother, into the land indicated to the Angel.
Guido Reni: Massacre of the Innocents
As this had happened before Herod executed his cruel determination, God thus frustrated the plot. Herod soon after, received his just punishment. Several terrible maladies suddenly seized him, as Josephus, the Jewish historian, relates. An internal fever consumed him and all his limbs were covered with abominable ulcers, breeding vermin. His feet were swollen, his neck, shoulders and arms drawn together, and his breast so burdened, that the unfortunate man could hardly breathe, while his whole body exhaled, so offensive an odour, that neither he nor others, could endure it. Hence, in despair, he frequently cried for a knife or a sword that he might end his own life. In this miserable condition, he ceased not his cruelties and only five days before his death, he had his son, Antipater, put to death.
As he had good reason to believe that the entire people would rejoice at his death, he wished at least, to take to the grave, the thought that many should grieve, if not for him, at least for their friends and relatives. Hence, he had the chief men of the nobility imprisoned and gave orders to his sister Salome that, as soon as he had closed his eyes, they were all to be murdered. This order, however, was not executed by Salome, who justly loathed its cruelty. In this lamentable condition, the cruel tyrant ended his life but began one in eternity, whose pains and torments were still more unendurable and from which he cannot hope ever to be released!
While the innocent children massacred by him, rejoice for all eternity in the glories of Heaven, giving humble thanks to God for having thus admitted them into His presence. The Catholic Church has always honoured them as Martyrs; because, although not confessing Christ with their lips, as many thousands of others have done, yet, they confessed Him with their death, by losing their lives for His sake. Amen.
Saint of the Day – 21 October – Saint Ursula and Companions: (Died c 238) Virgin Martyrs. Died on 21 October 238 in Cologne, Germany. Patronages – British Virgin Islands, Catholic education (especially of girls), Cologne, Germany, of a holy death, students, school children, teachers, University of Paris.
St Ursula and Her Companions, Virgin Martyrs By Father Francis Xavier Weninger SJ (1805-1888)
St Ursula by Bernardo Cavalino
To-day we commemorate the festival of St Ursula and her Companions. Although her life and Martyrdom are variously described, by different historians, we cannot, therefor,e conclude, with some heretical writers, that she never existed and that all that has been told of her, are fables; for, although historians differ in some points, yet all unanimously declare that St Ursula and her Companions sacrificed their lives for their faith and, in defence of their Virginity. The short sketch we give of this Saint is partly taken from the works of the celebrated Cardinal Cesare Baronius (1538-1607), the Historian and partly from the Roman Breviary.
The Roman General, Maximus, surnamed Flavius Magnus Clemens, who commanded the Imperial armies in Britain, caused himself, in 383, to be proclaimed Emperor by his soldiers, while the lawful Emperor Gratian was still alive. After this, he crossed the sea, landed on the shores of France, took possession of a large portion of it, drove the inhabitants away and occupied the land with his soldiers, among whom, he divided the conquered towns and villages.
Conanus, a tributary King in Great Britain, who commanded one part of the army of this new Emperor, advised him to bring, from England, Virgins, who might be given in marriage to the new inhabitants of the conquered land, in order to keep them in obedience and fidelity to their master. Maximus, pleased with this advice, sent an embassy to Britain and stating his reasons, demanded a great number of maidens. The Britons hesitated not to consent to the new Emperor’s demand because many of his soldiers were Britons and because, Maximus had given them considerable property. They, therefore, assembled the desired number of Virgins, placed them in several boats and sent them to France. The noblest among them was Ursula, daughter of the King of Wales, who was to become the spouse of Conanus.
By Moretto, 1530
The wisdom of the Almighty, however, had decreed otherwise; for, whilst the ships sailed from England to France, contrary winds arose, which drove them all to the shores of Germany. It is believed that they went up the Rhine and landed in the neighbourhood of Cologne.
Hans Memling, The Martyrdom of Saint Ursula
At that period, the wild Huns happened to be there, whom the Emperor Gratian had called to his aid against Maximus, who resided for some time at Treves. When these heathens beheld this large number of Virgins, they forced them to land and would have sacrificed them to their lust. Ursula, however, the Christian heroine, exhorted all, rather to suffer the most bitter death than consent to evil. All followed her admonition and courageously resisted the savages, who, in their furious rage, killed the defenceless Virgins with swords, arrows and clubs. Only one of the maidens, Cordula, had escaped and concealed herself during the massacre but repenting of her timidity, she revealed herself on the following day and last of all, she received the Crown of Martyrdom.
The Martyrdom of St Ursula by Nat Lamina
The bodies of the holy Virgins were buried, with great solemnities, by the inhabitants of Cologne. Their memory, however,and the veneration with which they were regarded, were not confined within the walls of this town but spread over the whole Christian world.
St Ursula encouraged and exhorted her companions to preserve their purity and to give up lif, rather than lose it. Heed it well, the Saint’s advice and exhort others to preserve purity.
Who, therefore, are those that tempt others to violate it? St Bonaventure says: “The mouth of him who tempts others to impurity, is the mouth of a devil!” Hence, those who tempt to impurity are incarnate devils or the devil speaks through their mouths. How senseless are you, therefore, when you listen to them and follow their advice. St Ursula and her Companions did not listen to the savage Huns and followed them not. Thus must you act and neither listen to them, nor obey them who would tempt you to the least sin against purity. “Shun and abhor,” says St Nilus, “all those who would prevent you from the practice of virtue and who tempt you to violate the laws of God and to sin against purity.” Detest them as you would the Evil One himself; for, in truth, “There is no difference between an evil spirit and a human being tempting you to impurity,” says St Cyril of Alexandria.
Bartholomeo Cavarozzi – St Ursula with Pope Symmachus and St Catherine of Alexandria
Saint of the Day – 10 June – St Margaret of Scotland (1045-1093) Queen Consort of Scotland. Born as an English Princess in c 1045 in Hungary and died on 16 November 1093 at Edinburgh Castle, Scotland, four days after her husband and son died in defence of the Castle. Patronages – against the death of children, for students in their studies, parents of large families, queens, widows, of Scotland and of Dunfermline, Scotland. Additional Memorial – 16 June in Scotland. Also known as Margaret of Wessex. Margaret was Canonised in 1251 by Pope Innocent IV.
The Roman Martyrology reads: “In Scotland, St Margaret, Queen, celebrated for her love of the poor and of her own voluntary poverty.”
St Margaret of Scotland By Fr Francis Xavier Weninger SJ (1805-1888)
“St Margaret, Queen of Scotland, was descended by her father’s side from royalty, by her mother’s side, from imperial blood. She was born in Hungary at the time of the holy King St Stephen, at whose Court her father, Edward and her mother, Agatha resided. Her after life proved how piously she had been educated. Edward was the rightful heir to the English crown, but the power of his enemies had deprived him of it. After his death, Agatha resolved to go to England with Prince Edgar and the two Princesses Margaret and Christine, as she had been made to hope that Edgar would be placed upon the throne. A heavy storm arose when they were at sea and drove their ship to Scotland. The reigning King Malcolm, received and entertained them most kindly and making the acquaintance of the beautiful and virtuous Princess Margaret, he asked her hand in marriage. Agatha gladly consented and Margaret was obedient to her mother’s wishes. The wedding was celebrated; and Margaret, in the 24th year of her age, was crowned Queen of Scotland.
She reigned for 30 years and became famed for her wisdom and piety. On the spot where she had been crowned, she had a magnificent Church built in honour of the Holy Trinity, in order that her own and her husband’s souls might not be lost and in case she should have male heirs, she might have grace, to educate them in such a manner, that they would not sacrifice eternal life for temporal goods. She also built or restored several other Churches and Monasteries and provided them with all things necessary, She desired to have every article used in Church, most splendid and was, therefore, constantly occupied with her maids of honour, in working for the Churches.
Her conduct towards the King, her husband, was exemplary and by it, she caused him to lead a Christian life. She changed everything at the Court, in such a way, that her husband was royally served and was honoured by his subjects, with increased respect. She exhorted him particularly to be impartial in the administration of justice; to be kind and liberal to the poor but above all, to be zealous for the true faith and to uproot many abuses which had crept into his kingdom. Following her counsel, the King assembled the Bishops and represented to them, those abuses which he wished them to abolish – which was accordingly done. The Queen herself was a bright light of Christian virtues to all.
In the midst of regal splendour, she led a very austere life and was so assiduous in her prayers, that she gave to them even a part of the night. The reading of devout books was her greatest delight,and she led others to it also. To the word of God she listened with avidity and joy. She observed the prescribed fasts and besides, kept a strict abstinence of forty days before Christmas, even when she was sick. She evinced a more than motherly heart towards the poor and needy. Incredible is the amount of alms which she gave with her own hands to the poor, for whose benefit she founded many charitable institutions. She valued neither her own clothing, nor her magnificent jewels ,where the poor were concerned. Almost daily did she wash the feet of some and provide them with money Nine little orphans were at her Court, to whom she often gave food with her own hands. Three hundred poor were daily fed in the Royal hall, where she and the King frequently served them at table and at times ,kissed their feet.
The Almighty, who seldom fails to reward such deeds of kindness, even, in this life, blessed the pious Queen with many children, whom she most carefully educated. She was not content with merely giving them to the care of such, as were famed for piety and learning but, she also taught them herself, as well in reading and writing,as in virtue and the fear if God. She reproved them for the smallest faults and never allowed one to pass unpunished. One of the best admonitions which she gave them was as follows: “My children, love and fear God; for they who fear God, have not to fear death and they who love God with their whole heart, will not only be happy for the short space of time we live on this earth but, will be eternally blessed in the life to come.” She also taught them to behave most respectfully and reverentially in Church and was in this, as in all other things, a bright example to them. She would not suffer one to address a single unnecessary word to another in Church: ” For,” said she, “the Church is a place to pray and weep over our sins.”
After the pious Queen had, for many years, taken the utmost care of the education of her children and great solicitude for the welfare of the land, God revealed to her the day of her death. For nearly half a year, she suffered from a very painful sickness, which she bore with perfect submission to the divine will, manifesting an invincible patience. Having cleansed her conscience by a general confession, she told her Confessor, that she would not live much longer but that he would survive her some years. She then requested him, first, that he would remember her in saying Mass as long as he lived and secondly, that he would take all possible pains in the further instruction of her children. Four days before her death, the King was murdered, at the siege of the castle of Allwick. One of the royal Princes arrived to inform his mother of the sad news. She asked him, before he had time to speak, how her husband was but he, seeing how ill she was, would have concealed the fact from her, fearing rightly, that agitation and grief would shorten her days. She, however, said: “My son, I know the worst but request you, by the love you owe me as your mother, to acquaint me with the whole occurrence.“
These words obliged the Prince to speak. Having given her an account of the melancholy event, the Christian heroine raised her heart and eyes to Heaven and exclaimed: “I praise Thee and give thanks to Thee, O great God, that it has pleased Thee to send me this great cross before my end, in order that by patiently bearing it, I may pay the debt I still owe Thee on account of my sins.” Soon after, she repeated the most fervent exercises of virtue and said at last: “Jesus Christ! Thou Who hast given life to the world by Thy death, release me from the bonds of the flesh and take my soul into everlasting joy.”
Having pronounced these words, she ended her holy life. Her face, which from austere fasting and long sickness, was emaciated and pale, shone, soon after her death, with a wonderful beauty. The many and great miracles which God wrought in favour of those who invoked the holy Queen, prove how powerful, is her intercession at the Throne of the Almighty.”
St Margaret’s Memorial Church is the home of a precious first-class Relic of St Margaret of Scotland. This Relic (a shoulder bone of the Saint) was returned to Dunfermline on the Feast Day of St Margaret in 2008 after appropriate negotiation with Church authorities by Father David Barr, Parish Priest at the time. The relic had been in the care of the Ursuline Sisters (based in Edinburgh) for some 145 years prior to this but was now returned home. The transfer of a reliquary holding the relic was made during the solemn celebration of Mass in St Margaret’s by Cardinal Keith O’Brien together with Father Barr.
Saint of the Day – 27 December – 27 December – St John the Apostle and Evangelist. Patronages – • against burns; burn victims• against epilepsy• against foot problems• against hailstorms• against poisoning• art dealers• authors, writers• basket makers• bookbinders• booksellers• butchers• compositors• editors• engravers• friendships• glaziers• government officials• harvests• lithographers• notaries• painters• papermakers• publishers• saddle makers• scholars• sculptors• tanners• theologians• typesetters• vintners• Asia Minor (proclaimed on 26 October 1914 by Pope Benedict XV)• 6 Diocese• 7 Cities.
St John, Apostle and Evangelist by Father Francis Xavier Weninger SJ (1805-1888)
St John, Apostle and Evangelist of Jesus Christ, a brother of St James and son of Zebedee and Salome, was born at Bethsaida, a Town in Galilee. Christ, our Lord, called him and his brother James to follow Him, at the time when they were mending their nets in a boat, on the shore of the Sea of Genesareth. John, without delay, left all he possessed, even his own father and, with his brother, followed the Lord. Although the youngest of the Apostles, he was beloved by the Saviour above all the others – whence he is several times mentioned in the Gospel, as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” The cause of this special love of Jesus for him, was, according to the Holy Fathers, his virginal purity, which he kept undefiled and the tender love he bore to the Lord. “He was more beloved than all the other Apostles,” writes St Thomas Aquinas, “on account of his purity.” “For the same reason,” says St. Anselm, “God revealed more mysteries to him, than to the other Apostles. Justly,” says he, “did Christ the Lord reveal the greatest mysteries to him, because he surpassed all in virginal purity.“
Anthony van Dyck
It is evident from the Gospel, that St John was one of the most intimate of the friends of the Lord, and was, in consequence, sometimes admitted into Christ’s presence, when, except Peter and James, no other Apostle was allowed to be near. Thus, he was with Christ when He healed the mother-in-law of Peter; when He raised the daughter of Jairus from the dead and when He was transfigured on Mount Thabor. He also accompanied Christ when He suffered His Agony in the Garden of Olives. The other two above-named Apostles ,shared these favours with John but none was permitted to lean upon the Saviour’s bosom, at the last supper, save John; none was recommended as son to the divine Mother but John. Only he, of all the Apostles, followed Christ to Mount Calvary,and remained there with Him, until His death. To recompense this love, Christ gave him to His Mother as her son, when He said: “Behold thy Mother!” Christ, who had lived in virginal chastity, would trust His Virgin Mother to no-one else but John, who himself lived in virginal purity. As St.Jerome says: “Christ, a virgin, recommended Mary, a virgin, to John, a virgin.” No greater grace could John have asked of Christ; no more evident proof could he have received of His love. The most precious thing which the Lord possessed on earth, His holy Mother, He commended to His beloved disciple. He took him as brother, by giving Him as son to His Mother. Who cannot see from all this, that Christ loved and honoured St John above all others?
How deeply this beloved disciple must have suffered by seeing his Saviour die, so ignominious a death, is easily to be conceived; and St Chrysostom hesitates not to call him, therefore, a manifold Martyr. After Christ had died on the Cross, had been taken from it, and interred with all possible honours, St John returned home with the divine Mother, who was now also his mother, and waited for the glorious Resurrection of the Lord. When this had taken place, he participated in the many apparitions of the Lord, by which the disciples were comforted and, doubtless received again, particular marks of love from the Saviour. He afterwards assisted, with the divine Mother and the Apostles and other disciples of Christ, at the wonderful Ascension of the Lord. With these, also, he received, after a ten days’ preparation, the Holy Ghost, on the great festival of Pentecost.
Soon after this, he and Peter had, before all others, the grace to suffer for Christ’s sake. For when these two Apostles had, in the name of Christ, miraculously healed a poor cripple who was lying at the door of the temple of Jerusalem and used this opportunity, to show to the assembled people, that Jesus of Nazareth was the true Messiah.
Fresco in the Cappella Brancacci, Florence, attributed to Masolino da Panicale (1383 – c.1447). It is part of the cycle of frescoes painted between 1425 and 1427 depicting the life of St. Peter. It shows the Apostle, accompanied by StJohn, giving his hand to a cripple seeking alms. The cripple is instantly cured.
They were seized, at the instigation of the chief priests,and were cast into prison. On the following day, the priests came together and John and Peter were called before them and asked in whose name and by what power, they had healed the cripple. Peter and John answered fearlessly, that it had been done in the Name of Jesus Christ. The high priest dared not do anything further to them but, setting them free, prohibited them from preaching, in future, the Name of Christ. The two holy Apostles, however, nothing daunted, said: “If it be just in the sight of God to hear you rather than God, judge ye: for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.“
Anthony van Dyck
St. John remained for some time in Jerusalem after this and, with the other Apostles, was zealous in his endeavors to convert the Jews. When the Apostles separated, to preach the Gospel over all the world, Asia Minor was assigned to St John. Going thither, he began with great zeal his apostolic functions and, by the gift of miracles, he converted many thousands to the Faith of Christ. The many Bishoprics which he instituted in the principal cities sufficiently prove this. In the course of time, he went also to other countries, preaching everywhere the Word of Christ, with equal success..
Anthony van Dyck
oil, oak
64,5 x 50 cm
The Emperor Domitian, who, after the death of the Emperor Nero, again began to persecute the Christians, ordered his officers to apprehend John and bring him to Rome. Hardly had the holy Apostle arrived there, when he was commanded by the Emperor to sacrifice to the gods. As the Saint refused this and fearlessly confessed Christ, the Emperor had him most cruelly scourged and afterwards, cast into a large caldron, filled with boiling oil. The Saint signed himself and the cauldron with the Holy Cross and remained unharmed, when he was cast into it. This gave him an opportunity to announce, with great energy, to the assembled people, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The tyrant, who could not suffer this, had him taken out of the cauldron, and sentenced him to banishment on the island of Patmos, to work in the mines and perform other hard labour, in company with other Christians. St John had, at that time, reached his ninetieth year but was willing to undergo the unjust sentence.
After his arrival on the island, he had many and wonderful visions, which, by command of God, he put down in writing. The book which contains them, is a part of Holy Writ, called the Apocalypse, or Revelation of St John, a book which,, according to St Jerome, contains almost as many mysteries as words. After the death of Domitian, St John was liberated and returning to Ephesus, remained there until his death. He outlived all the other Apostles, as he reached the age of 100 years. His great labours, wearisome travels and the many hardships he endured, at last enfeebled him to such an extent, that he could not go to the Church without being carried. F
Frequently he repeated, in his exhortations, the words: “My little children, love one another.” Some, annoyed at this, asked him why he so often repeated these words. He answered: “Because it is the commandment of the Lord and if that is done, it suffices.” By this he meant, that if we love each other rightly, we also love God and when we love God and our neighbour, no more is needed to gain salvation – as love to God and to our neighbour contains the keeping of all other commandments.
The holy Apostle, who had suffered and laboured so much for his beloved Master, was, at length, in the year 104, called by Him into heaven to receive his eternal reward.
Besides the Apocalypse, to which we referred above, St John also wrote three Epistles and his Gospel, on account of which, he is called Evangelist. In his Gospel he gives many more facts than the other Evangelists, to prove the Divinity of Jesus Christ; as, at that period, several heretics, as Cerinthus, Ebion and the Nicolaites, fought against this truth. In his Epistles, he exhorts particularly, to love God and our neighbour,and to avoid heretics. In the first, among other things, he explains that love to God consists in keeping the commandments of God, which are not difficult to keep. “For this is the charity of God,” writes he, “that we keep His commandments;and His commandments are not heavy.” Of the love of our neighbour he says, that it must manifest itself in works, that is, we must assist our brethren in their need and, if necessary, give even our lives for them, after the example of Christ. The holy Apostle exemplified his words by his actions.
Several holy Fathers relate the following of him. The Saint had given a youth in charge of a Bishop, with the commendation to instruct him carefully in virtue and sacred sciences. After some years, when the Saint returned to this Bishop and asked for the young man, he heard with deep sorrow, that he had secretly left and had joined the highwaymen and had even become their chief. The holy Apostle set out at once and went, not without danger to his life, into the woods, where the unhappy young man was said, to be. Finding him, he spoke most kindly to him and succeeded in bringing him back. It is touching to read how the holy, man promised to atone for the youth’s sins, if he would repent and lead a better life. The youth followed the Saint’s admonition and did penance with such fervour and zeal, that the Saint hesitated not to give him charge of the Church at Ephesus. (1876)
St John, Pray for Holy Mother Church, Pray for us all!
Saint of the Day – 17 October – Blessed Contardo Ferrini TOSF (1859-1902) Layman, Third Order Franciscan, Profesor, Civil and Canon Lawyer, Apostle of the poor, writer, A recognised specialist in Roman and Byzantine law, Contardo Ferrini was a Professor at several Universities but his name is mainly linked to the University of Pavia , where he studied in 1880 and later became a Professor. He was also a fervent Roman Catholic, who lived a devout life of prayer and service to the poor. Born on 4 April 1859 at Milan, Italy and died on 17 October 1902 at Suna, Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Italy of typhus, aged 43. Patronages – academics, colleges, schools, universities.
The Roman Martyrology mentions him today: “In Suna near Lake Maggiore, Blessed Contardo Ferrini, who, in educating young people, with his example of faith and Christian life, went far beyond human science.“
Contardo Ferrini was born on 5 April 1859 in Milan to Rinaldo Ferrini and Luigia Buccellati. He was Baptised at the font where Blessed Frédéric Ozanam, also a native of Milan, had been Baptised 46 years before. After receiving his First Holy Communion at age 12, he joined a Blessed Sacrament Confraternity.
Contardo’s father, a Professor of mathematics and science, taught his son at an early age. By the time he was a young man, he spoke several languages. His apparent love for his faith caused friends to call him by the nickname St. Aloysius (St. Aloysius Gonzaga). He entered University of Pavia at age 17 and, two years later, was appointed Dean of Students. At age 21 he became a Doctor of the law at the University. His doctoral thesis, which related penal law to Homeric poetry, was the basis of his being awarded a scholarship to the University in Berlin, where he specialised in Roman-Byzantine law, a field in which he became internationally acclaimed as expert.
Blessed Bartholomew Longo and Contardo Ferrini
During Contardo’s stay in Berlin, he wrote of his excitement at receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time in a foreign country. The experience brought home to him, he wrote, the universality of the Church.
Upon his return to Italy, he was a Lecturer in Universities at Messina, Modena and Pavia. He received his first Professorship at age 26. Contardo, atthis time, attempted to discern a vocation as a secular priest, a religious, or as a married person. Ultimately, he remained an unmarried layperson. He vowed himself to God, became a member of the Third Order of St. Francis in 1886 and was a member of the Saint Vincent de Paul Society, to which he had been introduced by his father, a member of a St Vincent de Paul Conference himself.
As a faculty member at the University of Pavia, he was considered an expert in Roman Law. Over the course of his career he published books, articles and reviews. He taught for a time at the University of Paris. He became a Canon Lawyer in addition to being a Civil Lawyer. Mountaineering was an favourite hobby.
An anecdote, unsourced, about Contardo is that he was asked to attend a dinner party and, once there, found it tedious. His resort was to invite all the guests to join him in praying the Rosary.
In 1900, Contardo developed a heart lesion. In Autumn 1902, he went to his country home in Suna in order to rest. There he became ill with typhus. He died at age 43 on 17 October 1902. Residents of Suna immediately declared him a saint. His fellow faculty members at the University of Pavia wrote letters in which he was described as a saint. In 1909 Pope Pius X appointed Cardinal Ferrari to open a cause. Contardo was declared Venerable by Pope Pius XI and he was Beatified by Pope Pius XII on 13 April 1947. His body is venerated in a Chapel of Milan’s Catholic University. He is a patron of universities, colleges and academics. Yesterday we read some of the history of Milan Duomo and the 3159 Saint Statues there. One of the 2245 Spire Saints, on one the lofty Spires of this breathtaking Cathedral, resides our Blessed Contardo.
Saint of the Day – 27 February – St Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows CP (1838-1862) Passionist Religious and student preparing for the Priesthood. Born as Francisco Giuseppe Vincenzo Possenti on 1 March 1838 at Assisi, Italy and died on 27 February 1862, just before his 24th birthday, at Abruzzi, Italy of tuberculosis. Gabriel was known for his great devotion to the Sorrows of the Virgin Mary. He is also known as Francesco Possenti, Francis Possenti, Gabriel of the Blessed Virgin, Gabriel of the Sorrowful Mother, Gabriel Possenti, Gabriel Marie Possenti, Gabriele dell’Addolorata. Patronages – Students, youth, seminarians, novices, clerics, Catholic Action, Abruzzi, Italy.
Francisco Possenti was born in Assisi on 1 March 1838, the eleventh child of thirteen children, to Sante Possenti and Agnes Frisciotti. The family were then resident in the town of Assisi where Sante worked for the local government. Francisco was Baptised on the day of his birth, in the same font in which Saint Francis of Assisi and St Clare had been Baptised and he was named after St Francis.
The first year of his life was spent away from his family with a nursing woman who cared for him because his mother was unable. In 1841 Sante, his father, moved the family to Spoleto where he was appointed Magistrate. In that same year, the youngest Possenti child died at just six months old; Francis’ nine-year old sister, Adele, soon followed. Just days later, his heartbroken mother was too called to eternal life. Francis had lost his mother at just 4 years old.
Tragedy continued to plague the family during his youth. In 1846 Francis’ brother, Paul, was killed in the Italian war with Austria. Another brother, Lawrence, later took his own life. Such events, however, did not rob Francis of his spirit and cheerfulness. During his formative years, Francis attended the school of the Christian brothers and then the Jesuit college in Spoleto. He was lively, intelligent and popular at school. At sixteen, he suffered a life-threatening illness. Praying for a cure, Francis promised to become a religious. With recovery, however, Francis quickly forgot his promise. But God’s call would not be denied and Francis soon turned his heart to the Congregation of the Passionists.
Sante Possenti was less than pleased with his teenage son’s decision. Determined to show Francis the joys of a secular life of theatre and society parties, Sante continued to hope Francis would find pleasure in a social life. But the young man was not to be dissuaded. Immediately after completion of his schooling, accompanied by his brother Aloysius, a Dominican friar, Francis set out for the novitiate of the Passionists at Morrovalle. During their journey they visited several relatives who had been enlisted by Sante to encourage Francis to return to Spoleto but this was to no avail. He arrived at the novitiate on 19 September1856. In the novitiate, he cultivated a great love for Christ Crucified.
Francis received the Passionist habit on 21 September 1856, which that year, was the Feast of the Sorrowful Mother. He was given the name: Gabriel of the Sorrowful Mother. Gabriel proved an excellent student and his excellence in academic life was only outdone by the great progress he was making in his spiritual life. At the same time Gabriel began to display the first symptoms of tuberculosis. The news did not worry Gabriel who was, in fact, joyful; he had prayed for a slow death so as to be able to prepare himself spiritually. Throughout his illness he remained cheerful and kept up all his usual practices. He was a source of great edification and inspiration to his fellow students, who later, would seek to spend time with him at his deathbed. Gabriel had proved himself an exemplary religious and a perfect follower of the Passionist Rule, being especially devoted to the Virgin Mary. A year later he took his vows. His monastic life preparing for the Priesthood, made Gabriel a secluded, non-public figure. His writings reflect his close relationship with God and His mother.
These were difficult and tumultuous times in Italy. The new Italian government issued decrees closing religious Orders in certain Provinces of the Papal States. The new Passionist province of Pieta, to which Gabriel belonged, was in the centre of this chaos. By 1860, the Passionists had ceased apostolic work due to the growing threats surrounding the community. During this period, various Italian Provinces were overrun by soldiers, who robbed and terrorised the towns with little mercy.
The people of Isola would always remember him as “their Gabriel.” Struck with tuberculosis at the age of 23, Gabriel died on 27 February 1862, before his Ordination to the Priesthood. His fidelity to prayer, joyfulness of spirit and habitual mortifications, stand out in his otherwise ordinary life. Pope Benedict XV Canonised Gabriel on13 May 1920 and declared him a patron of Catholic youth. His patronage is also invoked by the Church for students, seminarians, novices and clerics. Thousands of divine favours are attributed to his intercession with Christ Crucified and the Sorrowful Mother Mary.
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Gabriel was buried o the day of his death. His companion in the novitiate, Blessed Bernard Mary of Jesus (1831-1911), exclaimed:
“Tears come to my eyes and I am filled with shame for having been so far from the virtues which he attained, in such a short time.”
Millions of pilgrims visit St Gabriel’s Shrine in Isola del Gran Sasso d’Italia near Teramo each year, to venerate St Gabriel at his burial place and to visit the monastic house in which he lived out his final years. There is an ongoing tradition every March, when thousands of high school students, from the Abruzzo and the Marche regions of Italy, visit his Tomb 100 days before their expected graduation day and pray to him in order to achieve success in their final examinisations. Every two years, from mid-July to the beginning of October, the Italian Staurós ONLUS foundation hosts at St Gabriel’s Sanctuar,y a celebrated exposition of contemporary religious arts. With an average of 2 million visitors per year, this is one of the 15 most visited Sanctuaries in the world.
St Gabriel’s Shrine is in Isola del Gran Sasso d’Italia
Many miracles have been attributed to the Saint’s intercession; Saint Gemma Galgani proclaimed, that it was St Gabriel, who had cured her of a dangerous illness and led her to a Passionist vocation.
Saint of the Day – 27 December – St John the Apostle and Evangelist. Patronages – • against burns; burn victims• against epilepsy• against foot problems• against hailstorms• against poisoning• art dealers• authors, writers• basket makers• bookbinders• booksellers• butchers• compositors• editors• engravers• friendships• glaziers• government officials• harvests• lithographers• notaries• painters• papermakers• publishers• saddle makers• scholars• sculptors• tanners• theologians• typesetters• vintners• Asia Minor (proclaimed on 26 October 1914 by Pope Benedict XV)• 6 Diocese• 7 Cities.
The days following Christmas are full of symbolic meaning, as on 26 December we honour the first Martyr, St Stephen, who shed his blood for Jesus. 27 December, honours St John the Evangelist, the Disciple of Jesus who wrote the Gospel of John and the book of Revelation. Interestingly enough, he is the only Gospel writer to omit a narrative of Jesus’ birth. Based on this fact alone, it seems strange to include him during the Octave of Christmas. What is the Church’s reason behind this choice? Servant of God, Dom Prosper Guéranger in his Liturgical Year, points to St John’s pure chastity and his focus on the Divinity of Christ, as the reasons why he is honoured now at the Crib of Christ.
Dom Prosper Guéranger OSB (1805-1875)
The Disciple Whom Jesus Loved, the Eagle
“Nearest to Jesus’ Crib, after Stephen, stands John, the Apostle and Evangelist. It was only right, that the first place should be assigned to him, who so loved his God, that he shed his blood in his service; for, as this God Himself declares, greater love than this hath no man, that he lay down his life for his friends [1 John, 15:13] and Martyrdom has ever been counted, by the Church, as the greatest act of love and as having, consequently, the power of remitting sins, like a second Baptism. But, next to the sacrifice of Blood, the noblest, the bravest and, which most wins the heart of Him, who is the Spouse of souls, is the sacrifice of Virginity. Now, just as St Stephen is looked upon as the type of Martyrs, St John is honoured as the Prince of Virgins. Martyrdom won for Stephen the Crown and palm; Virginity merited for John most singular prerogatives, which, while they show how dear to God, is holy Chastity, put this Disciple among those, who, by their dignity and influence, are above the rest of men.
St. John was of the family of David, as was our Blessed Lady. He was, consequently, a relation of Jesus. This same honour belonged to St James the Greater, his Brother; as also to St James the Less and St Jude, both Sons of Alpheus. When our Saint was in the prime of his youth, he left, not only his boat and nets, not only has lather Zebedee but, even his betrothed, when everything was prepared for the marriage. He followed Jesus and never once looked back. Hence, the special love which our Lord bore him. Others were Disciples or Apostles, John was the Friend, of Jesus. The cause of this our Lord’s partiality, was, as the Church tells us in the Liturgy, that John had offered his Virginity to the Man-God. Let us, on this his Feast, enumerate the graces and privileges that came to St John from his being The Disciple whom Jesus loved.
This very expression of the Gospel, which the Evangelist repeats several times — The Disciple whom Jesus loved [John, 13:23, 19:26, 21:7, 21:20] — says more than any commentary could do. St Peter, it is true, was chosen by our Divine Lord, to be the Head of the Apostolic College and the Rock whereon the Church was to be built – he, then, was honoured most but St John was loved most. Peter was bid to love more than the rest loved and he was able to say, in answer to Jesus’ thrice repeated question, that he did love Him in this highest way and yet, notwithstanding, John was more loved by Jesus than was Peter himself, because his Virginity deserved this special mark of honour.
Chastity of soul and body brings him, who possesses i,t into a sacred nearness and intimacy with God. Hence it was, that at the Last Supper – that Supper, which was to be renewed on our Altars, to the end of the world, in order to cure our spiritual infirmities and give life to our souls – John was placed near to Jesus, nay, was permitted, as the tenderly loved Disciple, to lean his head upon the Breast of the Man-God. Then it was, that he was filled and from their very Fountain, with Light and Love, it was both a recompense and a favour and became the source of two signal graces, which make St John an object of special reverence to the whole Church.
Divine wisdom, wishing to make known to the world, the Mystery of the Word and commit to Scripture, those profound secrets, which, so far, no pen of mortal had been permitted to write — the task was put upon John. Peter had been crucified, Paul had been beheaded and the rest of the Apostles had laid down their lives in testimony of the Truths they had been sent to preach to the world; John was the only one left in the Church. Heresy had already begun its blasphemies against the Apostolic Teachings; it refused to admit the Incarnate Word as the Son of God, Consubstantial to the Father. John was asked by the Churches to speak and he did so in language heavenly above measure. His Divine Master had reserved to this, his Virgin-Disciple, the honour of writing those sublime Mysteries, which the other Apostles had been commissioned only to teach — THE WORD WAS GOD, and this WORD WAS MADE FLESH for the salvation of mankind.
Thus did our Evangelist soar, like the Eagle, up to the Divine Sun and gaze upon Him with undazzled eye, because his heart and senses were pure and, therefore, fitted for such vision of the uncreated Light. If Moses, after having conversed with God in the cloud, came from the divine interview with rays of miraculous light encircling his head – how radiant must have been the face of St John, which had rested on the very Heart of Jesus, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge! [Col. 2:3] how sublime his writings! how divine his teaching! Hence, the symbol of the Eagle, shown to the Prophet Ezechiel, [Ezechiel 1:10, 10:14] and to St John himself in his Revelations, [Apoc. 4:7] has been assigned to him by the Church and, to this title of The Eagle has been added, by universal tradition, the other beautiful name of Theologian. This was the first recompense given by Jesus to his Beloved John, a profound penetration into divine Mysteries. The second was the imparting to him a most ardent charity, which was equally a grace consequent upon his angelic purity, for purity unburdens the soul from grovelling egotistic affections and raises it to a chaste and generous love. John had treasured up in his heart the Discourses of his Master, he made them known to the Church and, especially, that divine one of the Last Supper, wherein Jesus had poured forth His whole Soul to His own, whom he had always tenderly loved but most so, at the end [John, 13:1]. He wrote his Epistles and Charity is his subject – God is Charity — he that loveth not, knoweth not God — perfect Charity casteth out fear — and so on throughout, always on Love. During the rest of his life, even when so enfeebled by old age as not to be able to walk, he was forever insisting upon all men loving each other, after the example of God, who had loved them and so loved them! Thus, he that had announced more clearly than the rest of the Apostles the divinity of the Incarnate Word, was by excellence, the Apostle of that divine Charity, which Jesus came to enkindle upon the earth.
But, our Lord had a further gift to bestow and it was sweetly appropriate to the Virgin-Disciple. When dying on His cross, Jesus left Mary upon this earth. Joseph had been dead now some years. Who, then, shall watch over His Mother? who is there worthy of the charge? Will Jesus send His Angels to protect and console her? — for, surely, what man could ever merit to be to her as a second Joseph? Looking down, he sees the Virgin-Disciple standing at the foot of the Cross – we know the rest, John is to be Mary’s Son — Mary is to be John’s Mother. Oh! wonderful Chastity, that wins from Jesus such an inheritance as this! Peter, says St Peter Damian, shall have left to him the Church, the Mother of men; but John, shall receive Mary, the Mother of God, whom he will love as his own dearest Treasure and to whom, he will stand in Jesus’ stead; whilst Mary will tenderly love John, her Jesus’ Friend, as her Son.
The Blessed Virgin in the House of St John by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, 1859
Can we be surprised after this, that St John is looked upon by the Church as one of her greatest glories? He is a Relative of Jesus in the flesh; he is an Apostle, a Virgin, the Friend of the Divine Spouse, the Eagle, the Theologian, the Son of Mary; he is an Evangelist, by the history he has given of the Life of his Divine Master and Friend; he is a Sacred Writer, by the three Epistles he wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost; he is a Prophet, by his mysterious Apocalypse, wherein are treasured the secrets of time and eternity. But, is he a Martyr? Yes, for if he did not complete his sacrifice, he drank the Chalice of Jesus [Matt. 20:22], when, after being cruelly scourged, he was thrown into a caldron of boiling oil, before the Latin Gate, at Rome. He was, therefore, a Martyr in desire and intention, though not in fact. If our Lord, wishing to prolong a life so dear to the Church, as well as to show how he loves and honours Virginity, — miraculously stayed the effects of the frightful punishment, St John had, on his part, unreservedly accepted Martyrdom.
Such is the companion of Stephen at the Crib, wherein lies our Infant Jesus. If the Protomartyr dazzles us with the robes he wears of the bright scarlet of his own blood — is not the virginal whiteness of John’s vestment fairer than the untrod snow? The spotless beauty of the Lilies of Mary’s adopted Son and the bright vermilion of Stephen’s Roses — what is there more lovely than their union? Glory, then, be to our New-Born King, whose court is tapestried with such heaven-made colours as these! Yes, Bethlehem’s Stable is a very heaven on earth and we have seen its transformation. First, we saw Mary and Joseph alone there — they were adoring Jesus in his Crib; then, immediately, there descended a heavenly host of Angels singing the wonderful Hymn; the Shepherds soon followed, the humble simple-hearted Shepherds; after these, entered Stephen the Crowned and John the Beloved Disciple; and, even before there enters the pageant of the devout Magi, we shall have others coming in and there will be, each day, grander glory in the Cave and gladder joy in our hearts. Oh! this Birth of our Jesus! Humble as it seems, yet, how divine! What King or Emperor ever received, in his gilded cradle, honours like these shown to the Babe of Bethlehem? Let us unite our homage with that given him by these the favoured inmates of his court. Yesterday, the sight of the Palm in Stephen’s hand animated us and we offered to our Jesus the promise of a stronger Faith: to-day, the Wreath, that decks the brow of the Beloved Disciple, breathes upon the Church the heavenly fragrance of Virginity — an intenser love of Purity must be our resolution and our tribute to the Lamb.
Saint of the Day – 1 February – St Brigid of Ireland/Kildare (c 453-523) Virgin, Abbess, Apostle of Charity and foundress of several Monasteries of Nuns, including that of Kildare in Ireland, which was famous and was greatly revered – born in 453 at Faughart, County Louth, Ireland and died on 1 February 523 at Kildare, Ireland of natural causes. Patronages – Ireland, babies, blacksmiths, sailors, brewers, cattle, chicken farmers, children whose parents are not married, children with abusive fathers, children born into abusive unions, Clan Douglas, dairy workers, Florida, fugitives, Leinster, midwives, Nuns, poets, the poor, printing presses, students, travellers.
Next to the glorious St Patrick, St Brigid, whom we may consider his spiritual daughter in Christ, has ever been held in singular veneration in Ireland.
Historians say we know a lot more about St Brigid than we have facts, a polite way of saying that legends swirl about Ireland’s most celebrated woman. But even legends may have cores of truth. And some miracle stories are not legends at all but true accounts of God’s interventions.
St Bride (Brigid) Carried By Angels, a painting by Scottish artist, John Duncan, 1913.
Brigid was the daughter of a slave woman and a chieftain, who liberated her at the urging of his overlord. As a girl she sensed a call to become a nun and St Mel, bishop of Armagh, received her vows. Before Brigid, consecrated virgins lived at home with their families. But the saint, imitating Patrick, began to assemble nuns in communities, a historic move which enriched the church in Ireland.
In 471, Brigid founded a monastery for both women and men at Kildare. This was the first convent in Ireland and Brigid was the abbess. Under her leadership Kildare became a centre of learning and spirituality. Her school of art fashioned both lovely utensils for worship and beautifully illustrated manuscripts. Again following Patrick’s model, Brigid used Kildare as a base and built convents throughout the island. The renown of Brigid’s unbounded charity drew multitudes of the poor to Kildare, the fame of her piety attracted thither many persons anxious to solicit her prayers or to profit by her holy example. In course of time the number of these so much increased that it became necessary to provide accommodation for them in the neighbourhood of the new monastery and thus was laid the foundation and origin of the town of Kildare.
Brigid’s hallmark was uninhibited, generous giving to anyone in need. Many of the saint’s earliest miracles seem to have rescued her from punishment for having given something to the poor that was intended for someone else. For example, once as a child she gave a piece of bacon to a dog and was glad to find it replaced when she was about to be disciplined. Brigid exhibited this unbounded charity all her life, giving away valuables, clothing, food—anything close by—to anyone who asked.
One of the most appealing things told of Brigid is her contemporaries’ belief that there was peace in her blessing. Not merely did contentiousness die out in her presence but just as by the touch of her hand she healed leprosy, so by her very will for peace she healed strife and laid antiseptics on the suppurating bitterness that foments it.
In the ninth century, the country being desolated by the Danes, the remains of St Brigid were removed in order to secure them from irreverence and, being transferred to Down-Patrick, were deposited in the same grave with those of the glorious St Patrick. Their bodies, together with that of St Columba, were translated afterwards to the cathedral of the same city but their monument was destroyed in the reign of King Henry VIII. The head of St Brigid is now kept in the church of the Jesuits at Lisbon.
Saint Brigid’s Cross
A special type of cross known as “Saint Brigid’s cross” is popular throughout Ireland. It commemorates a famous story in which Brigid went to the home of a pagan leader when people told her that he was dying and needed to hear the Gospel message quickly. When Brigid arrived, the man was delirious and upset, unwilling to listen to what Brigid had to say. So she sat with him and prayed and while she did, she took some of the straw from the floor and began weaving it into the shape of a cross. Gradually the man quieted down and asked Brigid what she was doing. She then explained the Gospel to him, using her handmade cross as a visual aid. The man then came to faith in Jesus Christ and Brigid baptised him just before he died.
Today, many Irish people display a Saint Brigid’s cross in their homes, since it is said to help ward off evil and welcome good. Brigid died in 523 and after her death people began to venerate her as a saint, praying to her for help seeking to heal from God, since many of the miracles during her lifetime related to healing.
Blessing of St Brigid’s Crosses
Father of all creation and Lord of Light,
You have given us life and entrusted Your creation to us, to use it and to care for it.
We ask You to bless these crosses made of green rushes in memory of holy Brigid,
who used the cross to recall and to teach Your Son’s life, death and resurrection.
May these crosses be a sign of our sharing in the Paschal Mystery of your Son
and a sign of Your protection of our lives, our land and its creatures,
through Brigid’s intercession, during the coming year and always.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
The crosses are sprinkled with holy water:
May the blessing of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit
be on these crosses and on the places where they hang
and on everyone who looks at them.
Amen
Saint of the Day -31 January – St John Bosco “Don Bosco” SDB (1815-1888) Founder of the Society of St Francis de Sales now known as the Salesians, the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Association of Salesian Co-operators. His body is incorrupt.
John Bosco’s theory of education could well be used in today’s schools. It was a preventive system, rejecting corporal punishment and placing students in surroundings removed from the likelihood of committing sin. He advocated frequent reception of the sacraments of Penance and Holy Communion. He combined catechetical training and fatherly guidance, seeking to unite the spiritual life with one’s work, study and play.
Encouraged during his youth in Sardinia to become a priest so he could work with young boys, John was ordained in 1841. His service to young people started when he met a poor orphan in Turin and instructed him in preparation for receiving Holy Communion. He then gathered young apprentices and taught them catechism.
After serving as chaplain in a hospice for working girls, Don Bosco opened the Oratory of St Francis de Sales for boys. Several wealthy and powerful patrons contributed money, enabling him to provide two workshops for the boys, shoe-making and tailoring.
By 1856, the institution had grown to 150 boys and had added a printing press for publication of religious and catechetical pamphlets. John’s interest in vocational education and publishing justify him as patron of young apprentices and Catholic publishers.
John’s preaching fame spread and by 1850 he had trained his own helpers because of difficulties in re-training young priests. In 1854, he and his followers informally banded together, inspired by Saint Francis de Sales.
With Pope Pius IX’s encouragement, John gathered 17 men and founded the Salesians in 1859. Their activity concentrated on education and mission work. Later, he organised a group of Salesian Sisters to assist girls.
Salesian Coat of Arms
Salesian Logo
John Bosco knew God wanted him to work with boys because of a dream he had when he was young. In this dream, boys who had been playing roughly suddenly began playing together as happily as lambs. John heard a voice saying, “Teach them right from wrong. Teach them the beauty of goodness and the ugliness of sin.” When John told his mother about his dream, she said it might mean God wanted him to be a priest and care for some of the sheep in his flock.
John Bosco spent so much time working that people who knew him well became worried about his health. They said he should take more time for rest and sleep. John replied that he’d have enough time to rest in heaven. “Right now,” he said, “how can I rest? The devil doesn’t rest from his work.”
Saints of the Day – Feast of the Holy Innocents: Martyrs – 28 December – 4th Day of the Christmas Octave. Patronages – • against ambition•against jealousy• altar servers•babies•children• children’s choir• choir boys• foundlings• students.
“A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more.”
Nicolas Poussin – The Massacre of the Innocents
During this octave of Christmas the Church celebrates the memory of the small children of the neighbourhood of Bethlehem put to death by Herod.
Sacrificed by a wicked monarch, these innocent lives bear witness to Christ who was persecuted from the time of His birth by a world which would not receive Him. It is Christ Himself who is at stake in this mass-murder of the children, already the choice, for or against Him, is put clearly before men. But the persecutors are powerless, for Christ came to perform a work of salvation that nothing can prevent, when He fell into the hands of His enemies at the time chosen by God, it was to redeem the world by His own Blood.
Our Christmas joy is tempered today by a feeling of sadness. But the Church looks principally to the glory of the children, of these innocent victims, whom she shows us in heaven following the Lamb wherever He goes.
Nicholas Poussin – The Holy Innocents
One of the most cherished carols of the Christmas season is often presented as a melody without lyrics. For this reason, the tune is familiar but the words of the carol are not. The carol of which I am referring to is known as the Coventry Carol, which originates in a 16th century “mystery play” called the Pageant of the Shearman and Tailors. The play and the song concern the massacre of the young children of Bethlehem at the command of King Herod, a story that is recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. The Coventry Carol is a lament that is imagined in the play to have been sung by the mothers whose children have been murdered by Herod’s cruelty, it combines the sound of their weeping with the gentle cadences of a lullaby:
Lullay thou little tiny child, Bye, bye lully lullay.
O sisters, too how may we do, For to preserve this day; This poor youngling for whom we sing, Bye bye lully lullay.
Herod the King, in his raging Charged he hath this day; His men of might in his own sight All young children to slay.
Then woe is me, poor child for thee And ever mourn and say; For thy parting, no say nor sing Bye bye lully lullay
The Holy Innocents saved the Child Jesus from death by King Herod, by the shedding of their own blood. The Holy Innocents are the special patrons of small children, who can please the Christ Child by being obedient and helpful to parents and by sharing their toys and loving their siblings and playmates.
The feast of the Holy Innocents is an excellent time for parents to inaugurate the custom of blessing their children. From the Ritual comes the form which we use on solemn occasions, such as First Communion. But parents can simply sign a cross on the child’s forehead with the right thumb dipped in holy water and say: “May God bless you and may He be the Guardian of your heart and mind—the Father, + Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.”
Saint of the Day – 7 December – St Ambrose (c 340-397) – Father and Doctor of the Church
Today the Catholic Church celebrates the memory of St Ambrose, the brilliant Bishop of Milan who influenced St Augustine’s conversion and was named a Doctor of the Church.
Like Augustine himself, the older Ambrose (born around 340) was a highly educated man who sought to harmonise Greek and Roman intellectual culture with the Catholic faith. Trained as a lawyer, he eventually became the governor of Milan. He manifested his intellectual gifts in defence of Christian doctrine even before his baptism.
While Ambrose was serving as the governor of Milan, a bishop named Auxentius was leading the diocese. Although he was an excellent public speaker with a forceful personality, Auxentius also followed the heresy of Arius, which denied the divinity of Christ. Although the Council of Nicaea had reasserted the traditional teaching on Jesus’ deity, many educated members of the Church – including, at one time, a majority of the world’s bishops – looked to Arianism as a more sophisticated and cosmopolitan version of Christianity. Bishop Auxentius became notorious for forcing clergy throughout the region to accept Arian creeds.
At the time of Auxentius’ death, Ambrose had not yet even been baptised. But his deep understanding and love of the traditional faith were already clear to the faithful of Milan. They considered him the most logical choice to succeed Auxentius, even though he was still just a catechumen. With the help of Emperor Valentinan, who ruled the Western Roman Empire at the time, a mob of Milanese Catholics virtually forced Ambrose to become their bishop against his own will. Eight days after his baptism, Ambrose received episcopal consecration on 7 December 374. The date would eventually become his liturgical feast.
St Ambrose consecrated as Bishop
Bishop Ambrose did not disappoint those who had clamoured for his appointment and consecration. He began his ministry by giving everything he owned to the poor and to the Church. He looked to the writings of Greek theologians like St Basil for help in explaining the Church’s traditional teachings to the people during times of doctrinal confusion.
Like the fathers of the Eastern Church, Ambrose drew from the intellectual reserves of pre-Christian philosophy and literature to make the faith more comprehensible to his hearers. This harmony of faith with other sources of knowledge served to attract, among others, the young professor Aurelius Augustinus – a man Ambrose taught and baptised, whom history knows as St Augustine of Hippo.
St Augustine and St Ambrose
Ambrose himself lived simply, wrote prolifically and celebrated Mass each day. He found time to counsel an amazing range of public officials, pagan inquirers, confused Catholics and penitent sinners. The people of Milan never regretted their insistence that the reluctant civil servant should lead the local church. His popularity, in fact, served to keep at bay those who would have preferred to force him from the diocese, including the Western Empress Justina and a group of her advisers, who sought to rid the West of adherence to the Nicene Creed. Ambrose heroically refused her attempts to impose heretical bishops in Italy, along with her efforts to seize churches in the name of Arianism.
Ambrose also displayed remarkable courage when he publicly denied communion to the Emperor Theodosius, who had ordered the massacre of 7,000 citizens in Thessalonica. The chastened emperor took Ambrose’s rebuke to heart, publicly repenting of the massacre and doing penance for the murders.
“Nor was there afterwards a day on which he did not grieve for his mistake,” Ambrose himself noted when he spoke at the emperor’s funeral. The rebuke spurred a profound change in Emperor Theodosius. He reconciled himself with the Church and the bishop, who attended to the emperor on his deathbed.
St. Ambrose died in 397. His 23 years of diligent service had turned a deeply troubled diocese into an exemplary outpost for the faith. His writings remained an important point of reference for the Church, well into the medieval era and beyond.
At the Catholic Church’s Fifth Ecumenical Council – which took place at Constantinople in 553, and remains a source of authoritative teaching for both Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians – the assembled bishops named Ambrose, along with this protege St Augustine, as being among the foremost “holy fathers” of the Church, whose teaching all bishops should “in every way follow.”
Saint of the Day – 6 December – St Nicholas (270-343) Bishop
The absence of the “hard facts” of history is not necessarily an obstacle to the popularity of saints, as the devotion to Saint Nicholas shows. Both the Eastern and Western Churches honour him and it is claimed that after the Blessed Virgin, he is the saint most pictured by Christian artists. And yet historically, we can pinpoint only the fact that Nicholas was the fourth-century bishop of Myra, a city in Lycia, a province of Asia Minor.
As with many of the saints, however, we are able to capture the relationship which Nicholas had with God through the admiration which Christians have had for him—an admiration expressed in the colourful stories which have been told and retold through the centuries.
Perhaps the best-known story about Nicholas concerns his charity toward a poor man who was unable to provide dowries for his three daughters of marriageable age. Rather than see them forced into prostitution, Nicholas secretly tossed a bag of gold through the poor man’s window on three separate occasions, thus enabling the daughters to be married. Over the centuries, this particular legend evolved into the custom of gift-giving on the saint’s feast.
Fra Angelico’s St Nicholas donating the dowries
In the English-speaking countries, Saint Nicholas became, by a twist of the tongue, Santa Claus—further expanding the example of generosity portrayed by this holy bishop.
Saint of the Day – 4 December – St John Damascene (675-749) Confessor, Father & Doctor of the Church – Priest, Monk, Theologian, Writer, Defender of Iconography, Poet, a Polymath whose fields of interest and contribution included law, theology, philosophy, music, Marian devotee. Also known as – Johannes Damascenus, John Chrysorrhoas (“golden-stream”), John of Damascus. Born in c 675 at Damascus, Syria and died in 749 of natural causes. Patronages – pharmacists, artists, theologians and theology students.
While the Churches of Rome and Constantinople were still united during St John’s life, the Byzantine Emperor Leo III radically separated from the ancient tradition of the Church, declaringthat the veneration of Sacred Imagery was a form of idolatry.
Saint John was born in the late 7th Century and is the most remarkable of the Greek writers of his time. His father was a Civil Authority who was Christian amid the Saracens of Damascus, whose caliph made him his minister. This enlightened man found, in the public square one day, amid a group of sad Christian captives, a Priest of Italian origin who had been condemned to slavery, he ransomed him and assigned him to his young son to be his tutor. Young John made extraordinary progress in grammar, dialectic, mathematics, music, poetry, astronomy but, above all, in theology, the discipline imparting knowledge of God. John became famous for his encyclopedic intellect and theological method, later a source of inspiration to Saint Thomas Aquinas.
During the 720s, the upstart theologian began publicly opposing the Emperor’s command against Sacred Images in a series of writings. The heart of his argument was twofold – firstly, that Christians did not actually worship images but rather, through them they worshipped God and honoured the memory of the Saints. Secondly, he asserted that by taking an incarnate physical form, Christ had given warrant to the Church’s depiction of Him in images.
By 730, the young public official’s persistent defence of Christian artwork had made him a permanent enemy of the emperor, who had a letter forged in John’s name offering to betray the Muslim government of Damascus. The ruling caliph of the city, taken in by the forgery, is said to have cut off John’s hand. The saint’s sole surviving biography states that the Virgin Mary acted to restore it miraculously. John eventually managed to convince the Muslim ruler of his innocence, before making the decision to become a monk and later a priest.
Although a number of imperially-convened synods condemned John’s advocacy of Christian iconography, the Roman church always regarded his position as a defence of apostolic tradition. Years after the priest and monk died, the Seventh Ecumenical Council vindicated his orthodoxy and ensured the permanent place of holy images in both Eastern and Western Christian piety.
St John Damascene’s other notable achievements include the “Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith,” a work in which he systematised the earlier Greek Fathers’ thinking about theological truths in light of philosophy. The work exerted a profound influence on St Thomas Aquinas and subsequent scholastic theologians. Centuries later, St John’s sermons on the Virgin Mary’s bodily assumption into heaven were cited in Pope Pius XII’s dogmatic definition on the subject.
The saint also contributed as an author and editor, to some of the liturgical hymns and poetry that Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholics still use in their celebrations of the liturgy.
“Show me the icons that you venerate, that I may be able to understand your faith.” – Saint John of Damascus.
Saint of the Day – 25 November – St Catherine of Alexandria (Died c 305) Virgin and Martyr, Philosopher – One of the Fourteen Holy Helpers – Patronages: unmarried girls and women, apologists, craftsmen who work with a wheel (potters, spinners), archivists, dying people, educators, jurists, knife sharpeners, lawyers, librarians, libraries, mechanics, millers, milliners, hat-makers, nurses, philosophers, preachers, schoolchildren, secretaries, stenographers, students, tanners, theologians, haberdashers, wheelwrights, 6 Universities worldwide, 12 Cities, 2 Diocese. It is important to note that whilst much of St Catherine’s history is regarded as apocryphal (by historians), St Catherine, like many of the early Martyrs, did exist though the details and circumstances of her life are probably partly unknown.
According to the traditional narrative, Catherine was the daughter of Constus, the governor of Egyptian Alexandria during the reign of the emperor Maximian (286–305). From a young age, she devoted herself to study. A vision of the Madonna and Child persuaded her to become a Christian. When the persecutions began under Maxentius, she went to the emperor and rebuked him for his cruelty. The emperor summoned 50 of the best pagan philosophers and orators to dispute with her, hoping that they would refute her pro-Christian arguments but Catherine won the debate. Several of her adversaries, conquered by her eloquence, declared themselves Christians and were at once put to death.
Catherine was then scourged and imprisoned. She was scourged so cruelly and for so long, that her whole body was covered with wounds, from which the blood flowed in streams. The spectators wept with pity but Catherine, strengthened by God, stood with her eyes raised to heaven, without giving a sign of suffering or fear. He ordered her to be imprisoned without food, so she would starve to death. During the confinement, angels tended her wounds with salve. Catherine was fed daily by a dove from Heaven and Christ also visited her, encouraging her to fight bravely and promised her the crown of everlasting glory.
During her imprisonment, over 200 people came to see her, including Maxentius’ wife, Valeria Maximilla – all converted to Christianity and were subsequently martyred. Twelve days later, when the dungeon was opened, a bright light and fragrant perfume filled it and Catherine came forth even more radiant and beautiful.
Upon the failure of Maxentius to make Catherine yield by way of torture, he tried to win the beautiful and wise princess over by proposing marriage. The saint refused, declaring that her spouse was Jesus Christ, to whom she had consecrated her virginity. The furious emperor condemned Catherine to death on a spiked breaking wheel but, at her touch, it shattered. Maxentius ordered her to be beheaded. Catherine herself ordered the execution to commence. A milk-like substance rather than blood flowed from her neck.
Angels transported her body to the highest mountain (now called Mount Saint Catherine) next to Mount Sinai, where God gave His Law. In 850, her incorrupt body was discovered by monks from the Sinai Monastery. The monks found on the surface of the granite on which her body lay, an impression of the form of her body. Her hair still growing and a constant stream of the most heavenly fragranced healing oil issuing from her body. This oil produced countless miracles.
Saint Catherine was one of the most important saints in the religious culture of the late Middle Ages and arguably considered the most important of the virgin martyrs, a group including Saint Agnes, Margaret of Antioch, Saint Barbara, Saint Lucy, Valerie of Limoges and many others. Her power as an intercessor was renowned and firmly established in most versions of her hagiography, in which she specifically entreats Christ at the moment of her death to answer the prayers of those who remember her martyrdom and invoke her name.
The pyrotechnic Catherine wheel, from which sparks fly off in all directions, took its name from the saint’s wheel of martyrdom.
Saint of the Day – 16 November – St Margaret of Scotland (1045-1093) Queen consort of Scotland – born in c 1045 in Hungary and died on 16 November 1093 at Edinburgh Castle, Scotland, four days after her husband and son died in defense of the castle. Patronages – Scotland, Dunfermline, Fife, Shetland, The Queen’s Ferry, queens, widows, against the death of children and Anglo-Scottish relations. St Margaret was the mother of three kings of Scotland, or four, if Edmund of Scotland, who ruled with his uncle, Donald III, is counted and of a queen consort of England. According to the Vita S. Margaritae (Scotorum) Reginae (Life of St Margaret, Queen (of the Scots), attributed to Turgot of Durham, she died at Edinburgh Castle in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1093, merely days after receiving the news of her husband’s death in battle.
Saint Margaret’s name signifies “pearl” “a fitting name,” says Bishop Turgot, her confessor and her first biographer, “for one such as she.” Her soul was like a precious pearl. A life spent amidst the luxury of a royal court never dimmed its lustre, or stole it away from him who had bought it with his blood. She was the grand-daughter of an English king and in 1070 she became the bride of Malcolm and reigned Queen of Scotland till her death in 1093.
Malcolm greeting Margaret at her arrival in Scotland – detail of a mural by Victorian artist William Hole
How did she become a Saint in a position where sanctity is so difficult?
Margaret’s biographer Turgot of Durham, Bishop of St Andrew’s, credits her with having a civilising influence on her husband Malcolm by reading him narratives from the Bible. She instigated religious reform, striving to conform the worship and practices of the Church in Scotland to those of Rome. This she did on the inspiration and with the guidance of Lanfranc, a future Archbishop of Canterbury. She also worked to conform the practices of the Scottish Church to those of the continental Church, which she experienced in her childhood. Due to these achievements, she was considered an exemplar of the “just ruler” and moreover influenced her husband and children, especially her youngest son, the future King David I of Scotland, to be just and holy rulers.
“The chroniclers all agree in depicting Queen Margaret as a strong, pure, noble character, who had very great influence over her husband and through him over Scottish history, especially in its ecclesiastical aspects. Her religion, which was genuine and intense, was of the newest Roman style and to her are attributed a number of reforms by which the Church [in] Scotland was considerably modified from the insular and primitive type which down to her time it had exhibited. Among those expressly mentioned are a change in the manner of observing Lent, which thenceforward began as elsewhere on Ash Wednesday and not as previously on the following Monday and the abolition of the old practice of observing Saturday (Sabbath), not Sunday, as the day of rest from labour (see Skene’s Celtic Scotland, book ii chap. 8).” The later editions of the Encyclopædia Britannica, however, as an example, the Eleventh Edition, remove Skene’s opinion that Scottish Catholics formerly rested from work on Saturday, something for which there is no historical evidence. Skene’s Celtic Scotland, vol. ii, chap. 8, pp. 348–350, quotes from a contemporary document regarding Margaret’s life but his source says nothing at all of Saturday Sabbath observance but rather says St Margaret exhorted the Scots to cease their tendency “to neglect the due observance of the Lord’s day.”
She attended to charitable works, serving orphans and the poor every day before she ate and washing the feet of the poor in imitation of Christ. She rose at midnight every night to attend the liturgy. She successfully invited the Benedictine Order to establish a monastery in Dunfermline, Fife in 1072 and established ferries at Queensferry and North Berwick to assist pilgrims journeying from south of the Firth of Forth to St Andrew’s in Fife. She used a cave on the banks of the Tower Burn in Dunfermline as a place of devotion and prayer. St Margaret’s Cave, now covered beneath a municipal car park, is open to the public. Among other deeds, Margaret also instigated the restoration of Iona Abbey in Scotland. She is also known to have interceded for the release of fellow English exiles who had been forced into serfdom by the Norman conquest of England.
Margaret was as pious privately, as she was publicly. She spent much of her time in prayer, devotional reading and ecclesiastical embroidery. This apparently had considerable effect on the more uncouth Malcolm, who was illiterate – he so admired her piety that he had her books decorated in gold and silver. One of these, a pocket gospel book with portraits of the Evangelists, is in the Bodleian Library in Oxford, England.[8]
Malcolm was apparently largely ignorant of the long-term effects of Margaret’s endeavours. He was content for her to pursue her reforms as she desired, which was a testament to the strength of and affection in their marriage.
St Margaret did not neglect her duties in the world because she was not of it. Never was a better mother. She spared no pains in the education of her eight children, 6 sons and 2 daughters and their sanctity was the fruit of her prudence and her zeal. Never was a better queen. She was the most trusted counsellor of her husband and she laboured for the material improvement of the country.
Her husband Malcolm III, and their eldest son Edward, were killed in the Battle of Alnwick against the English on 13 November 1093. Her son Edgar was left with the task of informing his mother of their deaths. Not yet 50 years old, Margaret died on 16 November 1093, three days after the deaths of her husband and eldest son. The cause of death was reportedly grief. After receiving Holy Viaticum, she was repeating the prayer from the Missal, “O Lord Jesus Christ, who by thy death didst give life to the world, deliver me.”At the words “deliver me,” says her biographer, she took her departure to Christ, the Author of true liberty.
She was buried before the high altar in Dunfermline Abbey in Fife, Scotland. In 1250, the year of her Canonisation, by Pope Innocent IV, her body and that of her husband were exhumed and placed in a new shrine in the Abbey. Her relics were dispersed after the Scottish Reformation and subsequently lost. Mary, Queen of Scots, at one time owned her head, which was subsequently preserved by Jesuits in the Scottish College, Douai, France, from where it was lost during the French Revolution.
Saint of the Day – 30 September – St Jerome (347-419) Father and Doctor of the Church
Saint Jerome, born in Dalmatia in 347, was sent to school in Rome. His boyhood was not free from fault, his thirst for knowledge was excessive and his love of books, a passion. He had studied under the best masters, visited foreign cities and devoted himself to the pursuit of learning.
But Christ had need of his strong will and active intellect for the service of His Church. He told him in a supernatural experience he never forgot, that he was not a Christian, but a Ciceronian – your heart is where your treasure is, said the Lord to him — that is, in the eloquent writings of antique times. Saint Jerome obeyed the divine call, making a vow never again to read profane works and another of celibacy.
In Rome he had already assisted a number of holy women to organise houses of retirement where they consecrated themselves to God by vow. Calumnies, arising from jealousy, made a certain headway against the scholar whose competence was beginning to attract honours.
He fled from Rome to the wild Syrian desert and there for four years learned in solitude, intense sufferings and persecution from the demons, new lessons in humility, penance and prayer and divine wisdom. I was very foolish to want to sing the hymns of the Lord on foreign soil and to abandon the mountain of Sinai to beg help from Egypt, he declared.
Pope Damasus summoned him back to Rome and there assigned to the famous scholar, already expert in Hebrew and other ancient languages, the task of revising the Latin Bible. Saint Jerome obeyed his earthly Head as he had obeyed his Lord. Retiring once more in 386 to Bethlehem, the eloquent hermit sent forth from his solitary cell not only a solidly accurate version of the Scriptures but during thirty years’ time, a veritable stream of luminous writings for the Christian world. He combated with unfailing efficacy several heresies being subtly introduced by various personages in his own region and elsewhere.
For fourteen years the hand of the great scholar could no longer write but Saint Jerome could still dictate to six secretaries at a time, to each on a different subject, in those final years. He died in his beloved Bethlehem in 420, when over 80 years old. His tomb is still in a subterranean chapel of its ancient basilica but his relics were transported to Saint Mary Major Basilica of Rome, where the crib of Bethlehem is conserved.
Saint of the Day – 3 September – St Pope Gregory the Great (540-604) – Father & Doctor of the Church – “Father of the Fathers” – Pope, Prefect of Rome, Monk, Abbot, Writer, Theologian, Teacher, Liturgist, Administrator, Diplomat, Political Negotiator, Apostle of Charity and Social Justice, Apostle of Pastoral Ministry, PeaceMaker. Patronages – • against gout • against plague/epidemics,• choir boys,• teachers• stone masons, stonecutters, • students, school children,• Popes, the Papacy,• musicians,• singers,• England, • West Indies,• Legazpi, Philippines, Diocese of,• Order of Knights of Saint Gregory, • Kercem, Malta,• Montone, Italy,• San Gregorio nelle Alpi, Italy.
Pier Francesco Sacchi – Dottori della Chiesa c 1516 Four doctors of the Church represented with attributes of the Four Evangelists: St Augustine with an eagle, St Gregory the Great with a bull, St Hieronymus with an angel, St Ambrosius with a winged lion.
Pope Benedict’s Catechesis on St Pope Gregory the Great
Today I would like to present the figure of one of the greatest Fathers in the history of the Church, one of four Doctors of the West, Pope St Gregory, who was Bishop of Rome from 590 to 604 and who earned the traditional title of Magnus/the Great. Gregory was truly a great Pope and a great Doctor of the Church!
He was born in Rome about 540 into a rich patrician family of the gens Anicia, who were distinguished not only for their noble blood but also for their adherence to the Christian faith and for their service to the Apostolic See. Two Popes came from this family : Felix III (483-492), the great-great grandfather of Gregory and Agapetus (535-536). The house in which Gregory grew up stood on the Clivus Scauri, surrounded by majestic buildings that attested to the greatness of ancient Rome and the spiritual strength of Christianity. The example of his parents Gordian and Sylvia, both venerated as Saints and those of his father’s sisters, Aemiliana and Tharsilla, who lived in their own home as consecrated virgins following a path of prayer and self-denial, inspired lofty Christian sentiments in him.
In the footsteps of his father, Gregory entered early into an administrative career which reached its climax in 572 when he became Prefect of the city. This office, complicated by the sorry times, allowed him to apply himself on a vast range to every type of administrative problem, drawing light for future duties from them. In particular, he retained a deep sense of order and discipline: having become Pope, he advised Bishops to take as a model for the management of ecclesial affairs the diligence and respect for the law like civil functionaries . Yet this life could not have satisfied him since shortly after, he decided to leave every civil assignment in order to withdraw to his home to begin the monastic life, transforming his family home into the monastery of St Andrew on the Coelian Hill. This period of monastic life, the life of permanent dialogue with the Lord in listening to His word, constituted a perennial nostalgia which he referred to ever anew and ever more in his homilies. In the midst of the pressure of pastoral worries, he often recalled it in his writings as a happy time of recollection in God, dedication to prayer and peaceful immersion in study. Thus, he could acquire that deep understanding of Sacred Scripture and of the Fathers of the Church that later served him in his work.
But the cloistered withdrawal of Gregory did not last long. The precious experience that he gained in civil administration during a period marked by serious problems, the relationships he had had in this post with the Byzantines and the universal respect that he acquired induced Pope Pelagius to appoint him deacon and to send him to Constantinople as his “apocrisarius” – today one would say “Apostolic Nuncio” in order to help overcome the last traces of the Monophysite controversy and above all to obtain the Emperor’s support in the effort to check the Lombard invaders. The stay at Constantinople, where he resumed monastic life with a group of monks, was very important for Gregory, since it permitted him to acquire direct experience of the Byzantine world, as well as to approach the problem of the Lombards, who would later put his ability and energy to the test during the years of his Pontificate. After some years he was recalled to Rome by the Pope, who appointed him his secretary. They were difficult years – the continual rain, flooding due to overflowing rivers, the famine that afflicted many regions of Italy as well as Rome. Finally, even the plague broke out, which claimed numerous victims, among whom was also Pope Pelagius II. The clergy, people and senate were unanimous in choosing Gregory as his successor to the See of Peter. He tried to resist, even attempting to flee but to no avail, finally, he had to yield. The year was 590.
Recognising the will of God in what had happened, the new Pontiff immediately and enthusiastically set to work. From the beginning he showed a singularly enlightened vision of realty with which he had to deal, an extraordinary capacity for work confronting both ecclesial and civil affairs, a constant and even balance in making decisions, at times with courage, imposed on him by his office.
Abundant documentation has been preserved from his governance thanks to the Register of his Letters (approximately 800), reflecting the complex questions that arrived on his desk on a daily basis. They were questions that came from Bishops, Abbots, clergy and even from civil authorities of every order and rank. Among the problems that afflicted Italy and Rome at that time was one of special importance both in the civil and ecclesial spheres – the Lombard question. The Pope dedicated every possible energy to it in view of a truly peaceful solution. Contrary to the Byzantine Emperor who assumed that the Lombards were only uncouth individuals and predators to be defeated or exterminated, St Gregory saw this people with the eyes of a good pastor and was concerned with proclaiming the word of salvation to them, establishing fraternal relationships with them in view of a future peace founded on mutual respect and peaceful coexistence between Italians, Imperials and Lombards. He was concerned with the conversion of the young people and the new civil structure of Europe – the Visigoths of Spain, the Franks, the Saxons, the immigrants in Britain and the Lombards, were the privileged recipients of his evangelising mission. Yesterday we celebrated the liturgical memorial of St Augustine of Canterbury, the leader of a group of monks Gregory assigned to go to Britain to evangelise England.
The Pope – who was a true peacemaker – deeply committed himself to establish an effective peace in Rome and in Italy by undertaking intense negotiations with Agilulf, the Lombard King. This negotiation led to a period of truce that lasted for about three years (598-601), after which, in 603, it was possible to stipulate a more stable armistice. This positive result was obtained also thanks to the parallel contacts that, meanwhile, the Pope undertook with Queen Theodolinda, a Bavarian princess who, unlike the leaders of other Germanic peoples, was Catholic deeply Catholic. A series of Letters of Pope Gregory to this Queen has been preserved in which he reveals his respect and friendship for her. Theodolinda, little by little was able to guide the King to Catholicism, thus preparing the way to peace. The Pope also was careful to send her relics for the Basilica of St John the Baptist which she had had built in Monza and did not fail to send his congratulations and precious gifts for the same Cathedral of Monza on the occasion of the birth and baptism of her son, Adaloald. The series of events concerning this Queen constitutes a beautiful testimony to the importance of women in the history of the Church. Gregory constantly focused on three basic objectives: to limit the Lombard expansion in Italy, to preserve Queen Theodolinda from the influence of schismatics and to strengthen the Catholic faith and to mediate between the Lombards and the Byzantines in view of an accord that guaranteed peace in the peninsula and at the same time permitted the evangelisation of the Lombards themselves. Therefore, in the complex situation his scope was constantly twofold: to promote understanding on the diplomatic-political level and to spread the proclamation of the true faith among the peoples.
Along with his purely spiritual and pastoral action, Pope Gregory also became an active protagonist in multifaceted social activities. With the revenues from the Roman See’s substantial patrimony in Italy, especially in Sicily, he bought and distributed grain, assisted those in need, helped priests, monks and nuns who lived in poverty, paid the ransom for citizens held captive by the Lombards and purchased armistices and truces. Moreover, whether in Rome or other parts of Italy, he carefully carried out the administrative reorganisation, giving precise instructions so that the goods of the Church, useful for her sustenance and evangelising work in the world, were managed with absolute rectitude and according to the rules of justice and mercy. He demanded that the tenants on Church territory be protected from dishonest agents and, in cases of fraud, were to be quickly compensated, so that the face of the Bride of Christ was not soiled with dishonest profits..
Gregory carried out this intense activity notwithstanding his poor health, which often forced him to remain in bed for days on end. The fasts practised during the years of monastic life had caused him serious digestive problems. Furthermore, his voice was so feeble that he was often obliged to entrust the reading of his homilies to the deacon, so that the faithful present in the Roman Basilicas could hear him. On feast days he did his best to celebrate the Missarum sollemnia, that is the solemn Mas, and then he met personally with the people of God, who were very fond of him, because they saw in him the authoritative reference from whom to draw security – not by chance was the title Consul Dei quickly attributed to him. Notwithstanding the very difficult conditions in which he had to work, he gained the faithful’s trust, thanks to his holiness of life and rich humanity, achieving truly magnificent results for his time and for the future. He was a man immersed in God – his desire for God was always alive in the depths of his soul and precisely because of this he was always close to his neighbour, to the needy people of his time. Indeed, during a desperate period of havoc, he was able to create peace and give hope. This man of God shows us the true sources of peace, from which true hope comes. Thus, he becomes a guide also for us today.
Pope Benedict XVI, General Audience, Wednesday 28 May 2008
More about Gregory here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/09/03/saint-of-the-day-3-september-st-pope-gregory-the-great-540-604-father-doctor-of-the-church/
Prayer to Saint Gregory, Pope and Confessor for the Universal Church and for Pope Francis
O invincible defender of Holy Church’s freedom,
Saint Gregory of great renown,
by that firmness you showed
in maintaining the Church’s rights
against all her enemies,
stretch forth from heaven your mighty arm,
we beseech you, to comfort her
and defend her in the fearful battle
she must ever wage with the powers of darkness.
May you, in a special manner,
give strength in this dread conflict,
to the venerable Pontiff Francis,
who has fallen heir not only to your throne
but likewise to the fearlessness of your mighty heart.
Obtain for him the joy of beholding
his holy endeavours crowned by the triumph of the Church
and the return of the lost sheep into the right path.
Grant, finally, that all may understand,
how vain it is to strive against that faith,
which has always conquered
and is destined always to conquer –
“this is the victory which overcomes the world, our faith.”
This is the prayer that we raise to you with one accord
and we are confident, that,
after you have heard our prayers on earth,
you will one day call us to stand with you in heaven,
before the eternal High Priest,
who with the Father and the Holy Spirit
lives and reigns, world without end.
Amen
Saint of the Day – 27 August – St Joseph Calasanz Sch.P. (1557-1648) (Also known as: Joseph Calasanctius, Joseph of Our Lady, Josephus a Matre Dei, Joseph Calsanza) was a Spanish Catholic Priest, Teacher, Lawyer, Founder of the Pious Schools, (providing free education to the sons of the poor) and the Religious Order that ran them, commonly known as the Piarists. He was born on 11 September 1556 at Peralta, Barbastro, Aragon, Spain in his father’s castle and died on 25 August 1648 at Rome, Italy of natural causes. Patronages – Catholic schools (proclaimed on 13 August 1948 by Pope Pius XII), schools, colleges, universities, students, schoolchildren, the Piarists and the Congregation of Christian Workers of Saint Joseph Calasanz.
Joseph Calasanz was born in Aragon, Spain, in 1556 of a noble family, who gave him a very Christian education. When only five years old, he led a troop of children through the streets to find the devil and slay him. He became a lawyer and then a Priest (after a serious illness caused his father to relent in his opposition) and was engaged in various reforms when he heard a voice saying, “go to Rome, Joseph” and had a vision of many children who were being taught by him and by a company of Angels. When he reached the Holy City, his heart was moved by the vice and ignorance of the children of the poor and he saw clearly that ignorance was the mother of vice and misery. Sunday Catechism lessons were insufficient to remedy the situation. When he could find no collaboration under the existing frameworks, the children’s need mastered his profound humility and he undertook to found personally, the Order of Clerks Regular of the Pious Schools, or the Piarists.
The parish priest of Saint Dorothy’s Church in Trastevere, placed two rooms at his disposition and assisted him in all things. Two other good priests joined the founders, and the school soon had several hundred children. He taught the children catechism, reading, writing and arithmetic and he himself provided all that was necessary for the program of instruction, receiving nothing in payment. Other schools were organised elsewhere in Rome and the holy priest had scholars of every rank under his care. Each lesson began with prayer. Every half-hour, piety was renewed by acts of faith, hope and charity. At the end of the day the children were escorted home by the masters, so as to escape all harm on the way. An annual retreat was given them during the Easter season. Clement XIII approved the new Congregation, which became an Order with the ordinary three vows and in addition a definitive commitment to the instruction of the indigent.
Calasanz was a friend of Galileo Galilei and sent some distinguished Piarists as disciples of the great scientist. He shared and defended his controversial view of the cosmos. When Galileo fell into disgrace, Calasanz instructed members of his congregation to provide him with whatever assistance he needed and authorised the Piarists to continue studying mathematics and science with him. Unfortunately, those opposed to Calasanz and his work used the Piarists’ support and assistance to Galileo as an excuse to attack them. Despite such attacks, Calasanz continued to support Galileo. When, in 1637, Galileo lost his sight, Calasanz ordered the Piarist Clemente Settimi to serve as his secretary. But enemies arose against Saint Joseph, however, from among his own subjects, thus imposing on the Founder the most sorrowful of all crosses, resembling that of the Lord Himself. They accused him to the Holy Office and at the age of eighty-six he was led through the streets to prison, where he was briefly held and interrogated by the Inquisition.
The Order was reduced to a simple Congregation under local episcopal authority and was not restored to its former privileges until after the Saint’s death. Yet he died full of hope. My work, he said, was done solely for the love of God. Saint Joseph is the first to have given gratuitous instruction to the children of the people. Religion can claim for its own the instruction of the poor, both by birthright and by right of conquest.
St Joseph died at the age of 90 having always remained faithful in all things, admired for his holiness and courage by his students, their families, his fellow Piarists and the people of Rome. The body of Saint Joseph Calasanz reposes in the church of Saint Pantaleon in Rome, his heart and tongue are conserved incorrupt in a devotional chapel in the Piarist Motherhouse in Rome. Eight years after his death, Pope Alexander VII cleared the name of the Pious Schools. Joseph Calasanz was beatified on 7 August 1748, by Pope Benedict XIV. He was Canonised by Pope Clement XIII in 1767 and on 13 August 1948, Ven Pope Pius XII declared him to be the “Universal Patron of all Christian schools in the world.”
Saint of the Day – 11 July – St Benedict of Nursia OSB (c 480-547) Patron of Europe and Founder of Western Monasticism. Some of his many Patronages – of Europe, Against Poison, Against Witchcraft, Agriculture, Cavers, Civil Engineers, Coppersmiths, Dying People, Farmers, Fevers, Inflammatory Diseases, Kidney Disease, Monks, Religious Orders, Schoolchildren, Temptations.
St Benedict founded twelve communities for monks about 40 miles east of Rome, before moving to Monte Cassino, in the mountains of southern Italy. St Benedict’s main achievement is his “Rule”, containing precepts for his monks. The unique spirit of balance, moderation and reasonableness influences it and this persuaded most religious communities founded throughout Middle Ages, to adopt it. As a result, the Rule of St Benedict became one of the most influential religious rules in western Christendom. For this reason, Benedict is often called the “founder” of western Christian Monasticism.
St Benedict is the twin brother of St Scholastica and is considered patron of many things. He was born in Nursia, Italy and educated in Rome.
St Benedict and hisd twin sister, St Scholastica
He was repelled by the vices of the city and around 500, fled to Enfide – thirty miles away. He decided to live the life of a hermit and lived in a cave for three years. Despite Benedict’s desire for solitude, his holiness became known and he was asked to be the Abbot by a community of monks at Vicovaro. He accepted but when the monks resisted his strict rule and tried to poison him, he returned to Subiaco and became a centre of spirituality and learning.
St Benedict and the Cup of Poison
He eventually moved back to Monte Cassino and destroyed a temple to Apollo on its crest and brought the people of the neighbouring area back to Christianity. In 530 he began to build the monastery that was to be the birthplace of western monasticism.
Monte Cassino in ruins after Allied bombing in February 1944.
Rebuilt Abbey
Soon, disciples again flocked to him as his reputation for holiness, wisdom and miracles spread far and wide. It wasn’t long and he organised his monks into a single monastic community and wrote his official Rule, prescribing common sense, a life of moderate asceticism, prayer, study, work and community under one superior. It stressed obedience, stability, zeal and had the Divine Office as the centre of monastic life. While ruling his monks, most of whom – including Benedict, were not ordained, he counselled rulers and Popes and ministered to the poor and destitute. He died at Monte Cassino on 21 March 547 and was named patron protector of Europe by Pope Paul VI in 1964. The Universal Church celebrates his feast day today.
The St Benedict medal is very popular among Christians to this day and are hung above doors and windows, for protection against evil. It is believed that evil cannot enter your house if you protect every opening with a St Benedict medal and Crucifix. The medal has an image of St Benedict, holding the Holy Rule in his left hand and a cross in his right. There is a raven on one side of him, with a cup on the other side. Around the medal’s outer margin are the words “Eius in obitu nostro praesentia muniamur” – “May we, at our death, be fortified by His presence”. The other side of the medal has a cross with the initials CSSML on the vertical bar which signify “Crux Sacra Sit Mihi Lux”“May the Holy Cross be my light” and on the horizontal bar are the initials NDSMD which stand for “Non Draco Sit Mihi Dux”“Let not the dragon be my overlord”. The initials CSPB stand for “Crux Sancti Patris Benedicti”“The Cross of the Holy Father Benedict” and are located on the interior angles of the cross. Either the inscription “PAX” Peace or the Christogram “HIS” may be found at the top of the cross in most cases. Around the medal’s margin on this side are the initials VRSNSMV which stand for “Vade Retro Satana, Nonquam Suade Mihi Vana” ”Begone Satan, do not suggest to me thy vanities” then a space followed by the initials SMQLIVB which signify “Sunt Mala Quae Libas, Ipse Venena Bibas”“Evil are the things thou profferest, drink thou thy own poison”.
The Medal of St Benedict can serve as a constant reminder of the need for us to take up our cross daily and “follow the true King, Christ our Lord,” and thus learn “to share in his heavenly kingdom,” as St. Benedict urges us in the Prologue of his Rule.
More on St Benedict, his Rule and the Medal here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/07/11/saint-of-the-day-11-july-st-benedict-of-nursia-o-s-b-abbot-patron-of-europe-patronus-europae/
Saint of the Day – 31 January – St John Bosco/Don Bosco (1815-1888) Founder of the Salesians, the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Association of Salesian Cooperators. Priest, Confessor, Founder, Teacher, Writer, “Father and Teacher of Youth”. St John Bosco was born Giovanni Melchiorre Bosco on 16 August 1815 and he died on 31 January 1888) at Turin, Italy of natural causes. Patronages – apprentices, boys, editors, Mexican younth, labourers, schoolchildren, students. His body is incorrupt.
While working in Turin, where the population suffered many of the effects of industrialisation and urbanisation, he dedicated his life to the betterment and education of street children, juvenile delinquents and other disadvantaged youth. He developed teaching methods based on love rather than punishment, a method that became known as the Salesian Preventive System.
A follower of the spirituality and philosophy of Saint Francis de Sales, Bosco was an ardent Marian devotee of the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title Mary Help of Christians. He later dedicated his works to De Sales when he founded the Salesians of Don Bosco, based in Turin. Together with Maria Domenica Mazzarello, he founded the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, a religious congregation of nuns dedicated to the care and education of poor girls. He taught St Dominic Savio, of whom he wrote a biography that helped the young boy be canonised.
On 18 April 1869, one year after the construction of the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Turin, Don Bosco established the Association of Mary Help of Christians (ADMA) connecting it with commitments easily fulfilled by most common people, to the spirituality and the mission of the Salesian Congregation. The ADMA was founded to promote the veneration of the Most Holy Sacrament and Mary Help of Christians.
In 1876 Bosco founded a movement of laity, the Association of Salesian Cooperators, with the same educational mission to the poor. In 1875, he began to publish the Salesian Bulletin. The Bulletin has remained in continuous publication and is currently published in 50 different editions and 30 languages.
John Bosco was born in August of 1815 into a family of peasant farmers in Castelnuovo d’Asti – a place which would one day be renamed in the saint’s honour as “Castelnuovo Don Bosco.” John’s father died when he was two years old but he drew strength from his mother Margherita’s deep faith in God. Margherita also taught her son the importance of charity, using portions of her own modest means to support those in even greater need. John desired to pass on to his own young friends the example of Christian discipleship that he learned from his mother.
At age nine, he had a prophetic dream in which a number of unruly young boys were uttering words of blasphemy. Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary appeared to John in the dream, saying he would bring such youths to God through the virtues of humility and charity. Later on, this dream would help John to discern his calling as a priest. But he also sought to follow the advice of Jesus and Mary while still a boy: he would entertain his peers with juggling, acrobatics and magic tricks, before explaining a sermon he had heard, or leading them in praying the Rosary.
John’s older brother Anthony opposed his plan to be a priest and antagonised him so much that he left home to become a farm worker at age 12. After moving back home three years later, John worked in various trades and finished school in order to attend seminary. In 1841, John Bosco was ordained a priest. From that time, John was known as “Don” Bosco, a traditional Italian title of honour for priests, which simply means “Father”. In the city of Turin, he began ministering to boys and young men who lived on the streets, many of whom were without work or education.
The industrial revolution had drawn large numbers of people into the city to look for work that was frequently grueling and sometimes scarce . Don Bosco was shocked to see how many boys ended up in prison before the age of 18, left to starve spiritually and sometimes physically. He was determined to save as many young people as he could from a life of degradation. He established a group known as the Oratory of St Francis de Sales, and became a kindly spiritual father to boys in need. His aging mother helped support the project in its early years.
In 1859, John’s boyhood dream came to pass: he became a spiritual guide and provider along with his fellow Salesian priests and brothers, giving boys religious instruction, lodging, educationand work opportunities. He also helped Saint Mary Dominic Mazzarello form a similar group for girls. This success did not come easily, as the priest struggled to find reliable accommodations and support for his ambitious apostolate. Italy’s nationalist movement made life difficult for religious orders and its anti-clerical attitudes even led to assassination attempts against Don Bosco.
But such hostility did not stop the Salesians from expanding in Europe and beyond. They were helping 130,000 children in 250 houses by the end of Don Bosco’s life. “I have done nothing by myself,” he stated, saying it was “Our Lady who has done everything” through her intercession with God.
John Bosco spent so much time working that people who knew him well became worried about his health. They said he should take more time for rest and sleep. John replied that he’d have enough time to rest in heaven. “Right now,” he said, “how can I rest? The devil doesn’t rest from his work.” St John Bosco died in the early hours of 31 January 1888, after conveying a message: “Tell the boys that I shall be waiting for them all in Paradise.” 40,000 people came to his funeral. Following his beatification in 1929, he was canonised on Easter Sunday of 1934 by Pope Pius XI.
Saints of the Day – Feast of the Holy Innocents – 28 December – 4th Day of the Christmas Octave – Patronages – • against ambition•against jealousy• altar servers•babies•children• children’s choir• choir boys• foundlings• students. The Massacre of the Innocents is the biblical account of infanticide by Herod the Great, the Roman-appointed King of the Jews. According to the Gospel of Matthew, Herod ordered the execution of all young male children in the vicinity of Bethlehem, so as to avoid the loss of his throne to a newborn King of the Jews whose birth had been announced to him by the Magi. In typical Matthean style, it is understood as the fulfilment of an Old Testament prophecy:
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet, saying, A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because her children are no more.’
The number of infants killed is not stated. The Holy Innocents, although Jewish, have been claimed as martyrs for Christianity and the Feast of the Holy Innocents has long been celebrated.
Taken from THE LITURGICAL YEAR, Christmas II, by Abbot Dom Guéranger. 1 A.D.
THE feast of the beloved Disciple, St John is followed by that of the Holy Innocents. The Crib of Jesus, where we have already met and venerated the Prince of Martyrs and the Eagle of Patmos, has today standing round it a lovely choir of little Children, clad in snow-white robes and holding green branches in their hands. The Divine Babe smiles upon them: He is their King and these Innocents are smiling upon the Church of God. Courage and Fidelity first led us to the Crib; Innocence now comes and bids us tarry there.
Herod intended to include the Son of God amongst the murdered Babes of Bethlehem. The Daughters of Rachel wept over their little ones and the land streamed with blood but the Tyrant’s policy can do no more, it cannot reach Jesus and its whole plot ends in recruiting an immense army of Martyrs for Heaven. These Children were not capable of knowing what an honour it was for them to be made victims for the sake of the Saviour of the world but the very first instant after their immolation, all was revealed to them, they had gone through this world without knowing it and now that they know it, they possess an infinitely better. God showed here the riches of His mercy, He asks of them but a momentary suffering and that over, they wake up in Abraham’s Bosom, no further trial awaits them, they are in spotless innocence and the glory due to a soldier who died to save the life of his Prince belongs eternally to them.
They died for Jesus’ sake, therefore, their death was a real Martyrdom and the Church calls them by the beautiful name of the Flowers of the Martyrs because of their tender age and their innocence. Justly then does the ecclesiastical Cycle bring them before us today, immediately after the two valiant Champions of Christ, Stephen and John. The connection of these three Feasts is thus admirably explained by St Bernard- “In St Stephen, we have both the act and the desire of Martyrdom; in St John, we have but the desire; in the Holy Innocents, we have but the act. . . . Will anyone doubt whether a crown was given to these Innocents?. . . If you ask me what merit could they have that God should crown them? Let me ask you what was the fault for which Herod slew them? What! is the mercy of Jesus less than the cruelty of Herod and whilst Herod could put these Babes to death, who had done him no injury, Jesus may not crown them for dying for Him?”
Stephen, therefore, is a Martyr by a Martyrdom of which men can judge, for he gave this evident proof of his sufferings being felt and accepted, that, at the very moment of his death, his solicitude both for his own soul and for those of his persecutors increased; the pangs of his bodily passion were less intense than the affection of his soul’s compassion, which made him weep more for their sins than for his own wounds. John was a Martyr, by a Martyrdom which only Angels could see, for the proofs of his sacrifice being spiritual, only spiritual creatures could ken them. But the Innocents were Martyrs, to none other eye save Thine, O God! Man could find no merit, Angel could find no merit, the extraordinary prerogative of Thy grace is the more boldly brought out. From the mouth of the Infants and the Sucklings Thou hast perfected praise. The praise the Angels give Thee is- Glory be to God in the highest and peace on earth to men of good will it is a magnificent praise, but I make bold to say that it is not perfect till He cometh Who will say: “Suffer little Children to come unto me, for of such is the kingdom of Heaven.”
Saint of the Day – 27 December – St John the Apostle and Evangelist – “The Disciple whom Jesus Loved” – (died c 101) Also known as • The Apostle of Charity • The Beloved Apostle • Giovanni Evangelista • John the Divine • John the Evangelist • John the Theologian. Patronages – • against burns; burn victims• against epilepsy• against foot problems• against hailstorms• against poisoning• art dealers• authors, writers• basket makers• bookbinders• booksellers• butchers• compositors• editors• engravers• friendships• glaziers• government officials• harvests• lithographers• notaries• painters• papermakers• publishers• saddle makers• scholars• sculptors• tanners• theologians• typesetters• vintners• Asia Minor (proclaimed on 26 October 1914 by Pope Benedict XV)• 6 Diocese• 7 Cities, Attributes – • book• cauldron• chalice• chalice with a serpent in allusion to the cup of sorrow foretold by Jesus• eagle, representing his role as the evangelist who most concentrated on Jesus’s divine nature• serpent. The author of five books of the Bible (the Gospel of John, the First, Second, and Third Letters of John and Revelation), Saint John the Apostle was one of earliest disciples of Christ. Commonly called Saint John the Evangelist because of his authorship of the fourth and final gospel, he is one of the most frequently mentioned disciples in the New Testament, rivaling Saint Peter for his prominence in the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. Yet outside of the Book of Revelation, John preferred to refer to himself, not by name but as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” He was the only one of the Apostles to die, not of martyrdom but of old age, around the year 101.
St John the Evangelist was a Galilean and the son, along with Saint James the Greater, of Zebedee and Salome. Because he is usually placed after St James in the lists of the apostles (see Matthew 10:3, Mark 3:17 and Luke 6:14), John is generally considered the younger brother, perhaps as young as 17-18 at the time of Christ’s death.
With St James, he is always listed among the first four apostles (see Acts 1:13), reflecting not only his early calling (he is the other disciple of St John the Baptist, along with St Andrew, who follows Christ in John 1:34-40) but his honoured place among the disciples. (In Matthew 4:18-22 and Mark 1:16-20, James and John are called immediately after the fellow fishermen Peter and Andrew.)
Like Peter and James the Greater, John was a witness to the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1 ) and the Agony in the Garden (Matthew 26:37). His closeness to Christ is apparent in the accounts of the Last Supper (John 13:23), at which he leaned on Christ’s breast while eating and the Crucifixion (John 19:25-27), where he was the only one of Christ’s disciples present. Christ, seeing St John at the foot of the Cross with His mother, entrusted Mary to his care. He was the first of the disciples to arrive at the tomb of Christ on Easter, having outraced Saint Peter (John 20:4) and while he waited for Peter to enter the tomb first, St John was the first to believe that Christ had risen from the dead (John 20:8).
As one of the two initial witnesses to the Resurrection, St John naturally took a place of prominence in the early Church, as the Acts of the Apostles attest (see Acts 3:1, Acts 4:3, and Acts 8:14, in which he appears alongside St Peter himself.) When the apostles dispersed following the persecution of Herod Agrippa (Acts 12), during which John’s brother James became the first of the apostles to win the crown of martyrdom (Acts 12:2), tradition holds that John went to Asia Minor, where he likely played a role in founding the Church at Ephesus.
Exiled to Patmos during the persecution of Domitian, he returned to Ephesus during Trajan’s reign and died there.
While on Patmos, John received the great revelation that forms the Book of Revelation and likely completed his gospel (which may, however, have existed in an earlier form a few decades before).
Traditional iconography has represented St John as an eagle, symbolising “the heights to which he rises in the first chapter of his Gospel.” Like the other Evangelists, he is sometimes symbolised by a book and a later tradition used the chalice as a symbol of St John, recalling Christ’s words to John and James the Greater, in Matthew 20:23, “My chalice indeed you shall drink.”
A MARTYR WHO DIED A NATURAL DEATH Christ’s reference to the chalice inevitably calls to mind His own Agony in the Garden, where He prays, “My Father, if this chalice may not pass away but I must drink it, thy will be done” (Matthew 26;42). It thus seems a symbol of martyrdom and yet John, alone among the apostles, died a natural death. Still, he has been honoured as a martyr from the earliest days after his death, because of an incident related by Tertullian, in which John, while in Rome, was placed in a pot of boiling oil but emerged unharmed.
More on today’s Saint – St Ambrose (c 340-397)Confessor, Bishop, Father and Doctor of the Church – Theologian, Apostle of Charity, Writer, Musician, Preacher, Reformer and protector – all-in-all a brilliant, charismatic, vibrant man. Patronages – • bee keepers• bees• Bishops• candle makers• chandlers• domestic animals• French Commissariat• geese• honey cake bakers• learning• livestock• police officers • students, school-children• security personnel• starlings• wax melters• wax refiners• Archdiocese of Milan, Italy• 8 Cities.
Traditionally, Ambrose is credited with promoting “antiphonal chant”, a style of chanting in which one side of the choir responds alternately to the other, as well as with composing Veni redemptor gentium, an Advent hymn. Ambrose is one of the four original Doctors of the Church and is the Patron saint of Milan. He is notable for his influence on St Augustine, whom he Baptised.
This politician-turned churchman was profoundly aware of his lack of preparation for this great responsibility as Bishop and so set himself immediately to prayer and the study of Scripture. His deep spirituality and love of God’s Word married together with the oratorical skill acquired in law and politics made St Ambrose one of the greatest preachers of the early church.
His feast day in the Roman calendar is 7 December, the day he was Ordained Bishop. From the Roman liturgy for the Feast of St. Ambrose: “Lord, you made Saint Ambrose an outstanding teacher of the Catholic faith and gave him the courage of an apostle. Raise up in your Church more leaders after your own heart, to guide us with courage and wisdom. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.”
Early mosaic of Ambrose that might be an actual portrait.
Here is Jimmy Akin’s article “St Ambrose: Strangest Life Story Ever?”
1) Who was St Ambrose?
St Ambrose of Milan was born around A.D. 338 and died in 397.
He was the bishop of Milan, Italy.
2) What makes is his life story so strange?
Originally, he was a government official, he became bishop in a most extraordinary way.
After the death of the local bishop, the Catholics and Arians got into a vehement conflict about who should be the new bishop.
Ambrose was trying to keep the peace and settle the two groups down when someone—allegedly a small boy—began chanting “Ambrose, bishop!”
Soon the two groups began chanting together that Ambrose should be the new bishop.
(The Arians, apparently, felt that although Ambrose was Catholic in belief he would be a kinder bishop than they otherwise would likely get.)
This set of circumstances is extraordinary enough, but what’s even more extraordinary is that Ambrose wasn’t even a Christian yet. He was an unbaptised catechumen!
3) Can it get any stranger?
Ambrose did not want to be bishop and so he went into hiding.
The Emperor Valentinian then got word of all this and declared severe penalties on anyone who would give Ambrose shelter.
He was thus forced to come out of hiding and accept his ordination as bishop.
They quickly ran him through the preliminary grades of orders and he was consecrated a bishop about a week later.
4) How did he do as bishop?
He was great! That’s part of why he ended up as a doctor of the Church.
He left many wonderful writings. He helped convert St Augustine. And he combated heresy.
He also introduced a practice into the West that has remained with us to this day.
5) What practice was that?
Lectio Divina. Pope Benedict XVI explained: Culturally well-educated but at the same time ignorant of the Scriptures, the new Bishop briskly began to study them. From the works of Origen, the indisputable master of the “Alexandrian School”, he learned to know and to comment on the Bible. Thus, Ambrose transferred to the Latin environment the meditation on the Scriptures which Origen had begun, introducing in the West the practice of lectio divina. The method of lectio served to guide all of Ambrose’s preaching and writings, which stemmed precisely from prayerful listening to the Word of God.
6) How did Ambrose help with Augustine’s conversion?
That also involved a rather dramatic story, in which Ambrose stood up to the emperor at the risk of his own life.
Pope Benedict explained: A passage from St Augustine’s Confessions is relevant. He had come to Milan as a teacher of rhetoric; he was a sceptic and not Christian. He was seeking the Christian truth but was not capable of truly finding it. What moved the heart of the young African rhetorician, sceptic and downhearted and what impelled him to definitive conversion was not above all Ambrose’s splendid homilies (although he deeply appreciated them). It was rather the testimony of the Bishop and his Milanese Church that prayed and sang as one intact body. It was a Church that could resist the tyrannical ploys of the Emperor and his mother, who in early 386 again demanded a church building for the Arians’ celebrations. In the building that was to be requisitioned, Augustine relates, “the devout people watched, ready to die with their Bishop”. This testimony of the Confessions is precious because it points out that something was moving in Augustine, who continues: “We too, although spiritually tepid, shared in the excitement of the whole people” (Confessions 9, 7).
7) Was Ambrose remarkable in other ways?
He was remarkable in many ways, one of them we today would find quite surprising.
Pope Benedict explained: [Augustine] writes in his text that whenever he went to see the Bishop of Milan, he would regularly find him taken up with catervae [Latin, “crowd”]of people full of problems for whose needs he did his utmost. There was always a long queue waiting to talk to Ambrose, seeking in him consolation and hope. When Ambrose was not with them, with the people (and this happened for the space of the briefest of moments), he was either restoring his body with the necessary food or nourishing his spirit with reading. Here Augustine marvels because Ambrose read the Scriptures with his mouth shut, only with his eyes (cf. Confessions, 6, 3). Indeed, in the early Christian centuries reading was conceived of strictly for proclamation and reading aloud also facilitated the reader’s understanding. That Ambrose could scan the pages with his eyes alone suggested to the admiring Augustine a rare ability for reading and familiarity with the Scriptures.
Got that?
Ambrose was known for the ability to read with his mouth shut, not using his voice or moving his lips.
We’re all taught to do this today, but it was rare in the ancient world! Back then, if you even could read, you usually had to at least move your lips.
Ambrose also passed on to Augustine a very famous piece of advice, that many people quote today without even knowing where it comes from.
8) What advice was that?
Augustine noted that the liturgical customs in Rome were different than those used in other places and Ambrose told him something we still quote today.
We paraphrase it in English, but it’s the same thought: “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.”
Saint of the Day – 6 December – St Nicholas (270-343) Confessor, Bishop, Miracle-Worker, Apostle of Charity. Also known as – • Nicholas of Bari• Nicholas of Lpnenskij • Nicholas of Lipno • Nicholas of Sarajskij • Nicholas the Miracle Worker • Klaus, Mikulas, Nikolai, Nicolaas, Nicolas, Niklaas, Niklas. Nikolaus, Santa Claus.
Patronages -• against fire • against imprisonment • against robberies • against robbers • against storms at sea • against sterility • against thefts • altar servers • archers • boys • brides • captives • children • choir boys • happy marriages • lawsuits lost unjustly • lovers • maidens • penitent murderers • newlyweds • paupers • pilgrims • poor people • prisoners • scholars • schoolchildren, students • penitent thieves • travellers • unmarried girls • apothecaries • bakers • bankers • barrel makers • boatmen • boot blacks • brewers • butchers • button makers • candle makers • chair makers • cloth shearers • coopers • dock workers • educators • farm workers, farmers • firefighters • fish mongers • fishermen • grain merchants • grocers • grooms • hoteliers • innkeepers • judges • lace merchants • lawyers • linen merchants • longshoremen • mariners • merchants • millers • notaries • parish clerks • pawnbrokers • perfumeries • perfumers • poets • ribbon weavers • sailors • ship owners • shoe shiners • soldiers • spice merchants • spinners • stone masons • tape weavers • toy makers • vintners • watermen • weavers • Greek Catholic Church in America • Greek Catholic Union • Varangian Guard • Germany • Greece • Russia • 3 Diocese • 78 Cities.
Attributes – • anchor • bishop calming a storm • bishop holding three bags of gold • bishop holding three balls • bishop with three children • bishop with three children in a tub at his feet • purse • ship • three bags of gold • three balls • three golden balls on a book • boy in a boat. Saint Nicholas’ reputation evolved among the faithful, as was common for early Christian saints and his legendary habit of secret gift-giving gave rise to the traditional model of Santa Claus through Sinterklaas. St Nicholas was generous to the poor and special protector of the innocent and wronged. Many stories grew up around him prior to his becoming associated with Santa Claus.
Some examples of the Miracles of St Nicholas and the reasons for various Patronages:
• Upon hearing that a local man had fallen on such hard times that he was planning to sell his daughters into prostitution, Nicholas went by night to the house and threw three bags of gold in through the window, saving the girls from an evil life. These three bags, gold generously given in time of trouble, became the three golden balls that indicate a pawn broker’s shop.
• He raised to life three young boys who had been murdered and pickled in a barrel of brine to hide the crime. These stories led to his patronage of children in general and of barrel-makers besides.
• Induced some thieves to return their plunder. This explains his protection against theft and robbery and his patronage of them – he’s not helping them steal but to repent and change. In the past, thieves have been known as Saint Nicholas’ clerks or Knights of Saint Nicholas.
• During a voyage to the Holy Lands, a fierce storm blew up, threatening the ship. He prayed about it and the storm calmed – hence the patronage of sailors and those like dockworkers who work on the sea.
St Nicholas died in 346 at Myra, Lycia (in modern Turkey) of natural causes and his relics are believed to be at Bari, Italy.
Here is the story of St Nicholas by Prosper Dom Gueranger:
Nicholas was born in the celebrated city of Patara, in the province of Lycia. His birth was the fruit of his parents’ prayers. Evidences of his great future holiness were given from his very cradle. For when he was an infant, he would only take his food once on Wednesdays and Fridays and then not till evening but on all other days he frequently took the breast: he kept up this custom of fasting during the rest of his life.
Having lost his parents when he was a boy, he gave all his goods to the poor. Of his Christian kindheartedness there is the following noble example. One of his fellow-citizens had three daughters but being too poor to obtain them an honourable marriage, he was minded to abandon them to a life of prostitution. Nicholas having learned of the case, went to the house during the night and threw in by the window a sum of money sufficient for the dower of one of the daughters; he did the same a second and a third time and thus the three were married to respectable men.
Having given himself wholly to the service of God, he set out for Palestine, that he might visit and venerate the holy places. During this pilgrimage, which he made by sea, he foretold to the mariners, on embarking, though the heavens were then serene and the sea tranquil, that they would be overtaken by a frightful storm. In a very short time, the storm arose. All were in the most imminent danger, when he quelled it by his prayers.
His pilgrimage ended, he returned home, giving to all men example of the greatest sanctity. He went, by an inspiration from God, to Myra, the Metropolis of Lycia,which had just lost its Bishop by death and the Bishops of the province had come together for the purpose of electing a successor. Whilst they were holding council for the election, they were told by a revelation from heaven, that they should choose him who, on the morrow, should be the first to enter the church, his name being Nicholas. Accordingly, the requisite observations were made, when they found Nicholas to be waiting at the church door: they took him and, to the incredible delight of all, made him the Bishop of Myra.
During his episcopate, he never flagged in the virtues looked for in a bishop; chastity, which indeed he had always preserved, gravity, assiduity in prayer, watchings, abstinence, generosity and hospitality, meekness in exhortation, severity in reproving. He befriended widows and orphans by money, by advice and by every service in his power. So zealous a defender was he of all who suffered oppression, that, on one occasion, three Tribunes having been condemned by the Emperor Constantine, who had been deceived by calumny and having heard of the miracles wrought by Nicholas, they recommended themselves to his prayers, though he was living at a very great distance from that place: the saint appeared to Constantine and angrily looking upon him, obtained from the terrified Emperor their deliverance.
Having, contrary to the edict of Dioclesian and Maximian, preached in Myra the truth of the Christian faith, he was taken up by the servants of the two Emperors. He was taken off to a great distance and thrown into prison, where he remained until Constantine, having become Emperor, ordered his rescue and the Saint returned to Myra. Shortly afterwards, he repaired to the Council which was being held at Nicaea: there he took part with the three hundred and eighteen Fathers in condemning the Arian heresy (Tradition has it that he became so angry with the heretic Arius during the Council that he struck him in the face).
Scarcely had he returned to his See than he was taken with the sickness of which he soon died. Looking up to heaven and seeing Angels coming to meet him, he began the Psalm, In thee, O Lord, have I hoped and having come to those words, Into your hands I commend my spirit, his soul took its flight to the heavenly country. His body, having been translated to Bari in Apulia, is the object of universal veneration.
For St Nicholas traditional biscuits see here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2016/12/06/st-nicholas-6-december/
Saint of the Day – 15 November – St ALBERTUS MAGNUS/Albert the Great OP (1200-1280) Bishop, Confessor, Doctor of the Church – Doctor universalis (Universal Doctor) – Priest and Friar of the Order of Preachers,Theologian, Scientist, Philosopher, Teacher, Writer. Born in c 1200 at Lauingen an der Donau, Swabia (part of modern Germany) – 15 November 1280 at Cologne, Prussia (part of modern Germany) of natural causes. Patronages – • Medical Technicians• Natural Sciences• Philosophers• schoolchildren• Scientists (proclaimed on 13 August 1948 by Pope Pius XII) Theology students. Scholars have referred to him as the greatest German philosopher and theologian of the Middle Ages.
Born around 1206 in Launingen, Germany, Albert was educated as a young man at the University of Padua, and joined the Dominican Order in 1223. He spent the following years engaged in various studies and teaching assignments in several German cities, most prominently Cologne. He left Cologne for the University of Paris in 1245.
It was there that one of his students, a brilliant if quiet and heavy-set young man was so impressed by him that he later accompanied him back to Cologne and later became his most famous pupil! Albert said of his student, St Thomas Aquinas, after St. Thomas’ remarkable explanation of a difficult treatise, “We call this young man a dumb ox but one day his bellowing in his teaching will be heard throughout the world.”
Not that St Albert wasn’t an intellectual heavyweight in his own right. He was known as Albertus Magnus (Albert the Great). St Albert can truly be called a Renaissance man, a century before the Renaissance actually began! This Dominican friar and bishop was also known for his scholarly contributions to the sciences and philosophy as well as theology. The publication of his complete writings in Paris in 1899 came to 38 volumes and covered his extensive knowledge of such diverse subjects as theology, botany, astronomy, mineralogy, alchemy (the forerunner of chemistry), justice and law among others! He was the first to comment on virtually all of the writings of Aristotle, thus making them accessible to wider academic debate. The study of Aristotle brought him to study and comment on the teachings of Muslim academics, notably Avicenna and Averroes and this would bring him into the heart of academic debate.
In 1254 Albert was made provincial of the Dominican Order and fulfilled the duties of the office with great care and efficiency. During his tenure he publicly defended the Dominicans against attacks by the secular and regular faculty of the University of Paris, commented on John the Evangelist and answered what he perceived as errors of the Islamic philosopher Averroes.
In 1259 he took part in the General Chapter of the Dominicans at Valenciennes together with Thomas Aquinas, masters Bonushomo Britto, Florentius, and Peter (later Pope Innocent V) establishing a ratio studiorum or program of studies for the Dominicans that featured the study of philosophy as an innovation for those not sufficiently trained to study theology. This innovation initiated the tradition of Dominican scholastic philosophy put into practice, for example, in 1265 at the Order’s studium provinciale at the convent of Santa Sabina in Rome, out of which would develop the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, the “Angelicum”
In 1260 Pope Alexander IV made him bishop of Regensburg, an office from which he resigned after three years. During the exercise of his duties he enhanced his reputation for humility by refusing to ride a horse, in accord with the dictates of the Order, instead traversing his huge diocese on foot. This earned him the affectionate sobriquet “boots the Bishop” from his parishioners. In 1263 Pope Urban IV relieved him of the duties of bishop and asked him to preach the eighth Crusade in German-speaking countries. After this, he was especially known for acting as a mediator between conflicting parties. In Cologne he is not only known for being the founder of Germany’s oldest university there but also for “the big verdict” (der Große Schied) of 1258, which brought an end to the conflict between the citizens of Cologne and the archbishop. Among the last of his labours was the defense of the orthodoxy of his former pupil, Thomas Aquinas, whose death in 1274 grieved Albert (the story that he travelled to Paris in person to defend the teachings of Aquinas can not be confirmed).
After suffering a collapse of health in 1278, he died on 15 November 1280, in the Dominican convent in Cologne, Germany. Since then 15 November 1954, his relics are in a Roman sarcophagus in the crypt of the Dominican St Andreas Church in Cologne. Although his body was discovered to be incorrupt at the first exhumation three years after his death, at the exhumation in 1483 only a skeleton remained.
Pope Pius XI, when he canonised him in 1931, said he had “that rare and divine gift, scientific instinct, in the highest degree.” Like St Thomas, he was very much influenced by Aristotle in seeing the compatibility of natural sciences and philosophy with theology. Also like his star pupil, he rightly saw God’s hand behind all creation!
Saint of the Day – 3 November – St Martin de Porres O.P. “Saint of the Broom” Dominican lay Brother, Miracle Worker, Apostle of Charity, Mystic – Also known as:• Martín de Porres Velázquez, • Martin of Charity, • Martin the Charitable, • Saint of the Broom (for his devotion to his work, no matter how menial). (9 December 1579 at Lima, Peru – 3 November 1639 in Lima, Peru of fever). Beatified in 1837 by Pope Gregory XVI and Canonised on 6 May 1962, by Pope John XXIII. Patronages – • African-Americans, • against rats, • barbers, • mixed-race people, • black people, • for inter-racial justice, • for social justice, • hair stylists, hairdressers, • hotel-keepers, innkeepers, • paupers, poor people, • public education, public schools, state schools, • public health, • race relations, racial harmony, • television, • Peru, • Archdiocese of Accra, Ghana, • Diocese of Biloxi, Mississippi. Attributes: a dog, a cat, a bird and a mouse eating together from a same dish; broom, crucifix, rosary, a heart. St Martin was noted for work on behalf of the poor, establishing an orphanage and a children’s hospital. He maintained an austere lifestyle, which included fasting and abstaining from meat. Among the many miracles attributed to him were those of levitation, bilocation, miraculous knowledge, instantaneous cures and an ability to communicate with animals.
Portrait of St Martin de Porres, c. 17th century, Monastery of Rosa of Santa Maria in Lima. This portrait was painted during his lifetime or very soon after his death, hence it is probably the most true to his appearance.
“Father unknown” is the cold legal phrase sometimes used on baptismal records. “Half-breed” or “war souvenir” is the cruel name inflicted by those of “pure” blood. Like many others, Martin might have grown to be a bitter man but he did not. It was said that even as a child he gave his heart and his goods to the poor and despised.
He was the son of a freed woman of Panama, probably black but also possibly of indigenous stock and a Spanish grandee of Lima, Peru. His parents never married each other. Martin inherited the features and dark complexion of his mother. That irked his father, who finally acknowledged his son after eight years. After the birth of a sister, the father abandoned the family. Martin was reared in poverty, locked into a low level of Lima’s society.
When he was 12, his mother apprenticed him to a barber-surgeon. Martin learned how to cut hair and also how to draw blood–a standard medical treatment then–care for wounds and prepare and administer medicines.
After a few years in this medical apostolate, Martin applied to the Dominicans to be a “lay helper,” not feeling himself worthy to be a religious brother. After nine years, the example of his prayer and penance, charity and humility, led the community to request him to make full religious profession. Many of his nights were spent in prayer and penitential practices; his days were filled with nursing the sick and caring for the poor. It was particularly impressive that he treated all people regardless of their colour, race, or status. He was instrumental in founding an orphanage, took care of slaves brought from Africa and managed the daily alms of the priory with practicality, as well as generosity. He became the procurator for both priory and city, whether it was a matter of “blankets, shirts, candles, candy, miracles or prayers!” When his priory was in debt, he said, “I am only a poor mulatto. Sell me. I am the property of the order. Sell me.”
Side by side with his daily work in the kitchen, laundry, and infirmary, Martin’s life reflected God’s extraordinary gifts: ecstasies that lifted him into the air, light filling the room where he prayed, bi-location, miraculous knowledge, instantaneous cures and a remarkable rapport with animals. His charity extended to beasts of the field and even to the vermin of the kitchen. He would excuse the raids of mice and rats on the grounds that they were underfed; he kept stray cats and dogs at his sister’s house.
Martin became a formidable fundraiser, obtaining thousands of dollars for dowries for poor girls so that they could marry or enter a convent.
Many of his fellow religious took Martin as their spiritual director, but he continued to call himself a “poor slave.” He was a good friend of another Dominican saint of Peru, Rose of Lima.
Saint Martin experienced the exclusion, derision and discrimination of racism. Instead of growing bitter, he used his experience to reach out and comfort others. Martin’s unwavering love of God and devotion to the Passion sustained him in his charitable works that often went unacknowledged.
“Compassion, my dear Brother, is preferable to cleanliness. Reflect that with a little soap I can easily clean my bed covers but even with a torrent of tears I would never wash from my soul the stain that my harshness toward the unfortunate would create.”
Saint of the Day – 30 September – St Jerome (347-419) Father and Doctor of the Church – Priest, Confessor, Theologian, Historian, Hermit, Mystic – born Eusebius Hieronymus Sophronius also known as Girolamo, Hieronymus, Jerom and the Man of the Bible – (347 at Strido, Dalmatia – 419 of natural causes). His body was interred in Bethlehem and his relics are now enshrined at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome, Italy. Patronages – Archeologist, archivists, Scripture scholars, librarians and libraries, schoolchildren; students, translators, Saint-Jérôme, Québec, City of, Saint-Jérôme, Québec, Diocese of, Taos Indian Pueblo. Attributes – • cardinal’s hat, often on the ground or behind him, indicating that he turned his back on the pomp of ecclesiastical life• lion, referring to the lion who befriended him after he pulled a thorn from the creature’s paw• man beating himself in the chest with a stone• aged monk in desert• aged monk with Bible• aged monk writing • old man with a lion• skull• hourglass.
St Jerome was a man of extremes. He lived to age 91 even though he undertook extreme penances. Jerome had a fierce temper but an equally intense love of Christ. This brilliant saint was born in Eastern Europe around 345. His Christian family sent him to Rome at age 12 for a good education. He studied there until he was 20. Then he and his friends lived in a small monastery for three years, until the group dissolved. Jerome set out for Palestine but when he reached Antioch, he fell seriously ill. He dreamed one night that he was taken before the judgment seat of God and condemned for being a heretic. This dream made a deep impression on him.
He is best known for his translation of the Bible into Latin mainly from the Hebrew (the translation that became known as the Vulgate) and his commentaries on the Gospels. His list of writings is extensive. Jerome was strong willed. His writings, especially those opposing what he considered heresy, were sometimes explosive. His temperament helped him do difficult tasks but it also made him enemies. Jerome was named a Doctor of the Church for the Vulgate, his commentaries on Scripture, his writings on monastic life and his belief that during a controversy on theological opinions, the See of Rome was where the matter should be settled.
In order to be able to do such work, Jerome prepared himself well. He was a master of Latin, Greek, Hebrew and Chaldaic. He began his studies at his birthplace, Stridon in Dalmatia. After his preliminary education, he went to Rome, the center of learning at that time and thence to Trier, Germany, where the scholar was very much in evidence. He spent several years in each place, always trying to find the very best teachers. He once served as private secretary to Pope Damasus.
Skilled in the study of languages and exegesis, he laboured for more than 20 years to translate most of the Bible into the Latin language. Jerome’s edition, the Vulgate, is arguably the most influential translation of the Bible. During the Council of Trent (1545–1563), the Vulgate was affirmed as the official text of the Church. He is still considered the Church’s greatest Doctor of Scriptures.
He conferred this praise upon St. Augustine: “As I have done, you applied all your energy to make the enemies of the Church your personal enemies.” This eulogy is consistent with the counsel of St. Augustine: “You must hate the evil, but love the one who errs.”
Regarding St. Jerome the Roman Breviary says: “He pummeled the heretics with his most harsh writings.”
St Jerome was orthodox in his theology and was a defender of historic Christianity. However, his greatest contributions to the faith came in terms of biblical studies and translation.
Jerome insisted that Bible translations should come from the languages Scripture was originally written in. For example, instead of relying on the popular Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures of the time (the Septuagint), Jerome utilized ancient Hebrew copies that he considered more reliable.
Jerome believed that Christians should be well grounded in and possess a good knowledge of Scripture. In his commentary on Isaiah, Jerome stated: “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.”
Jerome modeled and advocated the Christian ascetic and scholarly life. The life of a monk seems well suited for a Bible translator.
After these preparatory studies, he traveled extensively in Palestine, marking each spot of Christ’s life with an outpouring of devotion. Mystic that he was, he spent five years in the desert of Chalcis so that he might give himself up to prayer, penance and study. Finally, he settled in Bethlehem, where he lived in the cave believed to have been the birthplace of Christ. Jerome died in Bethlehem and the remains of his body now lie buried in the Basilica of St Mary Major in Rome.
“When the Latin Fathers are represented in a group, Saint Jerome is sometimes in a cardinal’s dress and hat,
although cardinals were not known until three centuries later than his time but as the other Fathers held exalted positions in the Church
and were represented in ecclesiastical costumes and as Saint Jerome held a dignified office in the court of Pope Dalmasius,
it seemed fitting to picture him as a cardinal.
The Venetian painters frequently represented him in a full scarlet robe, with a hood thrown over the head. When thus habited, his symbol was a church in his hand, emblematic of his importance to the universal Church.
Saint Jerome is also seen as a penitent, or again, with a book and pen, attended by a lion.
As a penitent, he is a wretched old man, scantily clothed, with a bald head and neglected beard, a most unattractive figure.
When he is represented as translating the Scriptures, he is in a cell or a cave, clothed in a sombre coloured robe and is writing, or gazing upward for inspiration. In a few instances, an angel is dictating to him. – from Saints in Art, by Clara Irskine Clement
Saint of the Day – 3 September – St Pope Gregory the Great (540-604) – Father & Doctor of the Church. Also known as “Father of the Fathers” (c 540 at Rome, Italy – Papal Ascension: 3 September 590 – 12 March 604 at Rome, Italy of natural causes). Pope, Prefect of Rome, Monk, Abbot, Writer, Theologian, Teacher, Liturgist. Patronages – • against gout • against plague/epidemics,• choir boys,• teachers• stone masons, stonecutters, • students, school children,• Popes, the Papacy,• musicians,• singers,• England, • West Indies,• Legazpi, Philippines, Diocese of,• Order of Knights of Saint Gregory, • Kercem, Malta,• Montone, Italy,• San Gregorio nelle Alpi, Italy. Attributes – • crozier
• dove,• pope working on sheet music,• pope writing,• tiara.
4 Original Latin Fathers – Jerome, Gregory, Ambrose, Augustine
Pope St. Gregory was born in Rome, the son of a wealthy Roman Senator. His mother was St. Sylvia. He followed the career of public service that was usual for the son of an aristocratic family, becoming Prefect of the City of Rome but resigned within a year to pursue monastic life.
He founded with the help of his vast financial holdings seven monasteries, of which six were on family estates in Sicily. A seventh, which he placed under the patronage of St. Andrew and which he himself joined, was erected on the Clivus Scauri in Rome. For several years, he lived as a good and holy Benedictine monk.
Then Pope Pelagius made him one of the seven deacons of Rome. For six years, he served as permanent ambassador to the Court of Byzantium. In the year 586, he was recalled to Rome and with great joy returned to St Andrew’s Monastery. He became abbot soon afterwards and the monastery grew famous under his energetic rule. When the Pope died, Gregory was unanimously elected to take his place because of his great piety and wisdom. However, Gregory did not want that honour, so he disguised himself and hid in a cave but was found and made Pope anyway.
He was elected Pope on 3 September 590, the first monk to be elected to this office. For fourteen years he ruled the Church. Even though he was always sick, Gregory was one of the greatest popes the Church has ever had. He reformed the administration of the Church’s estates and devoted the resulting surplus to the assistance of the poor and the ransoming of prisoners. He negotiated treaties with the Lombard tribes who were ravaging northern Italy and by cultivating good relations with these and other barbarians he was able to keep the Church’s position secure in areas where Roman rule had broken down.
His works for the propagation of the faith include the sending of St Augustine of Canterbury and his monks as missionaries to England in 596, providing them with continuing advice and support and (in 601) sending reinforcements. He wrote extensively on pastoral care, spirituality and morals and designated himself “servant of the servants of God”, a title which all Popes have used since that time.
He never rested and wore himself down to almost a skeleton. Even as he lay dying, he directed the affairs of the Church and continued his spiritual writing.
He codified the rules for selecting deacons to make these offices more spiritual. Prior to this, deacons were selected on their ability to sing the liturgy and chosen if they had good voices.
Because he loved the solemn celebration of the Eucharist, St. Grergory devoted himself to compiling the Antiphonary, which contains the chants of the Church used during the liturgy (the Gregorian Chant). He also set up the Schola Cantorum, Roman’s famous training school for chorusters.
St Gregory died on March 12, 604 and was buried in St Peter’s Church. He is designated as the fourth Doctor of the Latin Church. His feast is celebrated on the date of his election as Pope.
The Eucharistic Miracle of St Pope Gregory
St Gregory the Great is perhaps especially remembered by many for the Eucharistic Miracle that occurred in 595 during the Holy Sacrifice. This famous incident was related by Paul the Deacon in his 8th century biography of the holy pope, Vita Beati Gregorii Papae.
Pope Gregory was distributing Holy Communion during a Sunday Mass and noticed amongst those in line a woman who had helped make the hosts was laughing. This disturbed him greatly and so he inquired what was the cause of her unusual behaviour. The woman replied that she could not believe how the hosts she had prepared could become the Body and Blood of Christ just by the words of consecration.
Hearing this disbelief, St. Gregory refused to give her Communion and prayed that God would enlighten her with the truth. Just after making this plea to God, the pope witnessed some consecrated Hosts (which appeared as bread) change Their appearance into actual flesh and blood. Showing this miracle to the woman, she was moved to repentance for her disbelief and knelt weeping. Today, two of these miraculous Hosts can still be venerated at Andechs Abbey in Germany (with a third miraculous Host from Pope Leo IX [11th century], thus the Feast of the Three Hosts of Andechs [Dreihostienfest]).
During the Middle Ages, the event of the Miraculous Mass of St. Gregory was gradually stylised in several ways. First the doubting woman was often replaced by a deacon, while the crowd was often comprised of the papal court of cardinals and other retinue. Another important feature was the pious representation of the Man of Sorrows rising from a sarcophagus and surrounded by the Arma Christi, or the victorious display of the various instruments of the Passion.
The artistic representation of this Eucharistic Miracle became especially prominent in Europe during the Protestant Reformation in reaction to the heretical denial of the doctrine of the Real Presence.
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