Category: Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS

Posted in CARPENTERS, WOODWORKERS, JOINERS, CABINETMMAKERS, CHEFS and/or BAKERS, CONFECTIONERS, CHILDREN / YOUTH, GOLDSMITHS, SILVERSMITHS, GILDERS, MINERS, JEWELLERS, CLOCK/WATCH-MAKERS, METAL CRAFTSMEN, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Of a Holy DEATH & AGAINST A SUDDEN DEATH, of the DYING, FINAL PERSEVERANCE, DEATH of CHILDREN, DEATH of PARENTS, Of FATHERS, GRANDfathers, GRANDparents, Of LAWYERS & CANON Lawyers, Attorneys, Solicitors, Barristers, Notaries, Para-Legals, Of PARENTS & FAMILIES of LARGE Families, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, Of UNDERTAKERS, Morticians, Catholic Cemetaries, PALLBEARERS, PARTIAL Indulgence, PATRONAGE - HOUSE HUNTERS, HOUSE SELLERS, PATRONAGE - of MOTHERS, MOTHERHOOD, PATRONAGE - ORPHANS,ABANDONED CHILDREN, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, PRAYERS to the SAINTS, PREGNANCY, St JOSEPH, TEACHERS, LECTURERS, INSTRUCTORS, WORKERS

1 March – The Month of the St Joseph and a Daily Indulgenced Prayer

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Devotion for March
St Joseph

The beloved Foster-Father and Guardian of Jesus and Protector of the Holy Family, is celebrated for this whole month and his Feast Day falls on 19 March .

“Quamquam Pluries”
On the Devotion to St Joseph
Pope Leo XIII

“On 10 March, [11 MARCH THIS YEAR], we begin the Novena to St Joseph, entrusting so many of our woes and cares to his holy and fatherly care and intercession.
His Patronages are numerous, as we know, one of them will fit our needs perfectly and if not, then we should all ask him to intercede on our behalf for our families and for a Happy and Holy Death.
On the 19th FEAST  we pray the Consecration to St Joseph.”

Indulgenced Prayer
to St Joseph
O St Joseph! Pray for Us Daily
O Joseph!
virgin father of Jesus,
pure Spouse of the Virgin Mother,
pray for us daily
to the Son of God,
that, armed with the weapons
of His grace,
we may fight as we ought in life
and be crowned by Him in death.
Amen
(Indulgence of 100 days, twice a day
St Pius X 26 November 1906)

Patronages in Alphabetical Order:

  • of Accountants • Bursars • Cabinetmakers • Carpenters • Catholic Church • Cemetery Workers • Children • Civil Engineers • against Communism • Confectioners • Craftsmen • against Doubt and Hesitation • the Dying • Emigrants • Exiles • Expectant Mothers • Families • Fathers • Furniture Makers • Grave diggers • Happy Death • Holy Death • House Hunters • House Sellers • Immigrants • Joiners • Labourers • all the Legal Profession • Married Couples • Oblates of Saint Joseph • Orphans • Pioneers • Social Justice • Teachers • Travellers • the Unborn • Wheelwrights • Workers • Americas • Austria • Belgium • Bohemia • Canada • China • Croatian people • Korea • Mexico • New France • New World • Peru • Philippines • Vatican City • VietNam • Canadian Armed Forces • Papal States • 46 Diocese • 26 Cities,States and Regions.
Posted in Against EPIDEMICS, AVIATORS, PILOTS, AEROPLANE industry related WORKERS, Of a Holy DEATH & AGAINST A SUDDEN DEATH, of the DYING, FINAL PERSEVERANCE, DEATH of CHILDREN, DEATH of PARENTS, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, SAINT of the DAY, WIDOWS and WIDOWERS

Saint of the Day – 9 March – St Frances of Rome (1384-1440) Widow

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 9 March – St Frances of Rome Obl.S.B. (1384-1440) Widow, Founder, Wife, Mother, Mystic, Organiser of charitable services and a Benedictine Oblate who founded a religious community of Oblates, who share a common life without religious vows. Patronages – against plague/epidemics, of automobile drivers (given in 1951), aviators, taxi drivers, death of children, the laity, motorcyclists, motorists, people ridiculed for their piety, Roman housewives, widows, women, Rome, Italy.

Saint Frances of Rome, Widow
From the Liturgical Year, 1870

Frances, a noble lady of Rome, led a most virtuous life, even in her earliest years. She despised all childish amusements and worldly pleasures, her only delight being solitude and prayer. When eleven years old, she resolved on consecrating her virginity to God and seeking admission into a Monastery. But she humbly yielded to the wishes of her parents and married a young and rich nobleman, by name Lorenzo Ponziani.

As far as it was possible, she observed, in the married state, the austerities of the more perfect life to which she had aspired. She carefully shunned theatrical entertainments, banquets and other such amusements. Her dress was of serge and extremely plain. Whatever time remained after she had fulfilled her domestic duties, was spent in prayer and works of charity. But her zeal was mainly exercised in endeavouring to persuade the ladies of Rome, to shun the world and vanity in dress. It was with a view to this, that she founded, during her husband’s life, the House of Oblates of the Congregation of Monte-Oliveto, under the Rule of St Benedict.

She bore her husband’s banishment, the loss of all her goods and the trouble which befel her whole family, not only with heroic patience but was frequently heard to give thanks, saying with holy Job: “The Lord hath given and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the Name of the Lord!”

At the death of her husband, she fled to the aforesaid House of Oblates and there, barefooted, with a rope tied around her neck and prostrate on the ground, she humbly and with many tears, begged admission. Her petition being granted, she, though mother of the whole community, gloried in calling herself everyone’s servant and a worthless woman and a vessel of dishonour. She evinced the contempt she had for herself by her conduct, as well as by her expressions. Thus, when returning from a vineyard in the suburbs, she would go through the city, sometimes carrying faggots on her head, sometimes driving an ass laden with them.

She looked after, and bestowed abundant alms upon the poor. She visited the sick in the hospitals and consoled them, not only with corporal food but with spiritual advice. She was untiring in her endeavours to bring her body into subjection, by watchings, fasting, wearing a hair-shirt and an iron girdle and by frequent disciplines. Her food, which she took but once in the day, consisted of herbs and pulse and her only drink was water. But she would somewhat relent in these corporal austerities, as often as she was requested to do so by her Confessor, whom she obeyed with the utmost exactitude.

Her contemplation of the Divine Mysteries and especially of the Passion, was made with such intense fervour and abundance of tears that she seemed as though she would die with grief. Frequently, too, when she was praying and above all, after Holy Communion, she would remain motionless, with her soul fixed on God and rapt in heavenly contemplation.

The enemy of mankind seeing this, endeavoured to frighten her out of so holy a life, by insults and blows but she feared him not, invariably baffled his attempts and, by the assistance of her Angel Guardian, whose visible presence was granted to her, she gained a glorious victory.

God favoured her with the gift of healing the sick, as also with that of prophecy, whereby she foretold future events and could read the secrets of hearts. More than once, when she was intent on prayer, either in the bed of a torrent, or during a storm of rain, she was not touched by the water. On one occasion, when all the bread they had was scarcely enough to provide a meal for three of the Sisters, she besought our Lord and he multiplied the bread so that after fifteen persons had eaten as much as they needed, there was sufficient left to fill a basket.

At another time, when the Sisters were gathering wood outside the City walls, in the month of January, she amply quenched their thirst by offering them bunches of fresh grapes, which she plucked from a vine and which she had miraculously obtained.

Her virtues and miracles procured for her the greatest veneration from all. Our Lord called her to Himself in the fifty-sixth year of her age and she was Canonised in 1384 by Pope Paul the Fifth.

Posted in ACCOUNTANTS, MONEY MANAGERS etc, CARPENTERS, WOODWORKERS, JOINERS, CABINETMMAKERS, CHILDREN / YOUTH, EMMIGRANTS / IMMIGRANTS, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Of a Holy DEATH & AGAINST A SUDDEN DEATH, of the DYING, FINAL PERSEVERANCE, DEATH of CHILDREN, DEATH of PARENTS, Of LAWYERS & CANON Lawyers, Attorneys, Solicitors, Barristers, Notaries, Para-Legals, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, PAPAL APOSTOLIC LETTERS, PATRONAGE - HAPPY MARRIAGES, of MARRIED COUPLES, PATRONAGE - HOUSE HUNTERS, HOUSE SELLERS, PATRONAGE - ORPHANS,ABANDONED CHILDREN, PATRONAGE-INFERTILITY & SAFE CHILDBIRTH, PREGNANCY, St JOSEPH, TEACHERS, LECTURERS, INSTRUCTORS, WORKERS

Devotion for March – St Joseph

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Devotion for March
St Joseph

The beloved Foster-Father and Guardian of Jesus and Protector of the Holy Family, is celebrated for this whole month and his Feast Day falls in the middle of it – 19 March – this year moved to the 20th as the 19th is Laetare Sunday, the Fourth Sunday of Lent.

“Quamquam Pluries”
On the Devotion to St Joseph
Pope Leo XIII

“On 10 March, [11 MARCH THIS YEAR], we begin the Novena to St Joseph, entrusting so many of our woes and cares to his holy and fatherly care and intercession.
His Patronages are numerous, as we know, one of them will fit our needs perfectly and if not, then we should all ask him to intercede on our behalf for our families and for a Happy and Holy Death.
On the 20th [FEAST normally 19th] we pray the Consecration to St Joseph.”

Patronages in Alphabetical Order:

  • of Accountants • Bursars • Cabinetmakers • Carpenters • Catholic Church • Cemetery Workers • Children • Civil Engineers • against Communism • Confectioners • Craftsmen • against Doubt and Hesitation • the Dying • Emigrants • Exiles • Expectant Mothers • Families • Fathers • Furniture Makers • Grave diggers • Happy Death • Holy Death • House Hunters • House Sellers • Immigrants • Joiners • Labourers • all the Legal Profession • Married Couples • Oblates of Saint Joseph • Orphans • Pioneers • Social Justice • Teachers • Travellers • the Unborn • Wheelwrights • Workers • Americas • Austria • Belgium • Bohemia • Canada • China • Croatian people • Korea • Mexico • New France • New World • Peru • Philippines • Vatican City • VietNam • Canadian Armed Forces • Papal States • 46 Diocese • 26 Cities,States and Regions.
Posted in Against STORMS, EARTHQUAKES, THUNDER & LIGHTENING, FIRES, DROUGHT / NATURAL DISASTERS, All THEOLOGIANS, Moral Theologians, Of PILGRIMS, Of the SICK, the INFIRM, All ILLNESS, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, PATRONAGE - HEADACHES, PATRONAGE - PRISONERS, PATRONAGE - TOOTHACHE and Diseases of the TEETH,, of DENTISTS, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 15 January – Saint Romedius of Nonsberg (Died 4th Century or 11th Century)

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 15 January – Saint Romedius of Nonsberg/theologians Hermit, Penitent., Pilgrim. Born in Thaur, Tyrol, Austria and died in the 4th Century in Salzburg, Austria of natural causes. Also known as – Romedio of Hohenwart, Romedio of Salzburg, Romedio of Sanzeno, Romedio of Thaur. Romedio. Additional Memorial – 1st Sunday in October (translation of relics). Patronages – against accidents, against bone diseases, against danger at sea, against fever, against fire, against floods, against hail, against headaches, against toothaches, of prisoners, theology students/theologians, travellers/pilgrims. Canonised on 24 July 1907 by Pope Pius X (cultus confirmation).

The Roman Martyrology states: “In the Val di Non in Trentino, St Romedius, an anchorite, who, having given his possessions to the Church, led a life of penance in the hermitage that still bears his name today.”

Romedius was the son and heir of the wealthy Count of Thaur, the lord of a castle near Innsbruck and owner of salt pans in the valley of the River Inn. After a pilgrimage to Rome, Romedius gave all his possessions to the Church, withdrawing into a hermitage in grottoes in the Val di Non. he was accompanied by two companions, Abraham and David.

A later date emerges from the history of his works and extensive research. It is most likely that Romedius came from the family of the Counts of Andechs , lived in the 11th century, gave up his fortune in Thaur and joined the then spreading mendicant movement.  After a visit to the Bishop of Trento , he visited the Martyrs’ graves of Alexander , Martyrius and Sisinnius in Sanzeno. It is believed that he died at the age of 74.

Romedius is often depicted alongside or astride a bear. According to his hagiography he wanted to visit the friend of his youth, St Vigilius, Bishop of Trento (who died in 405) but his horse was torn to pieces by a wild bear. Romedius, however, had the bear bridled by his disciple David. The bear became docile and carried Romedius on its back to Trento.

Upon Romedius’ death, his body was laid to rest in a small tomb above his cave in the mountains, a site that was soon visited by pilgrims. The Sanctuary of San Romedio grew from the little Church that was built to venerate him, to a popular pilgrimage site. The Santuario di San Romedio is across the lake from Cles at the head of the Val di Non, above the village of Sanzeno. The Sanctuary where Romedius lived with his bear companion, is now a complex of several Churches, from the Romanesque period to the 20th century beyond a gateway on the forested slopes. Votive offerings of crutches line the walls of the narrow stone stairwell up to the highest chapel, said to mark the site of the Saint’s retreat.

Staircase with votive offerings in the 
Hermitage at Tavon, 1706

His local cult, which consolidated itself in the course of the 11th century, was officially recognised in the twelfth by the Bishop of Trento. In 1795, permission was given for special offices in his name in the Diocese of Brixen, which at that time, included the Northern Tyrol. His cult remains popular in Trentino, Bavaria, and the Tyrol.

Romedius’ Bear
In remembrance of this legend, in 1958 Italian Senator G. G. Gallarati Scotti, honorary member of the committee for the foundation of the World Wildlife Fund in Italy, purchased Charlie, a bear intended to be killed and donated it to the Sanctuary of San Romedius, in the Valle di Non.

Today, the Province of Trentino protects the last brown bears of the Alps in the Adamello-Brenta National Park and, near the Sanctuary, takes care of young bears born in captivity in Trentino.

Relief at the pilgrimage church near Thaur

In the work known as Illustrissimi, a collection of letters written by Pope John Paul I when he was Patriarch of Venice, Romedius’ bear is one of the “recipients” of the letters.

Posted in FRANCISCAN OFM, INCORRUPTIBLES, Of BUILDERS, CONSTRUCTION WORKERS, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS

Saint of the Day – 25 February – Blessed Sebastian of Aparicio OFM (1502-1600) “The Angel of Mexico.”

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 25 February – Blessed Sebastian of Aparicio OFM (1502-1600) “The Angel of Mexico,” Franciscan Lay brother, Confessor, Ascetic, apostle of the poor, builder of roads and bridges in Mexico and thus is honoured as the Founder of the transport and road system in Mexico. Born as Sebastiano de Aparicio y del Pardo on 20 January 1502 in La Gudiña, Orense, Spain and died on 25 February 1600 of natural causes, aged 98. Sebastian was a Spanish colonist in Mexico shortly after its conquest by Spain, who after a lifetime as a rancher and road builder, entered the Order of Friars Minor as a lay brother. He spent the next 26 years of his long life, as a beggar for the Order and died with a great reputation for holiness. Patronages – motorists, travellers, road builders and the Transport industry in Mexico. His body is incorrupt.

Sebastian was born in Spain into a peasant family in 1502,. He was a good looking young man with a reserved personality that attracted the interest of quite a few women. He was deeply religious and changed employment several times, before the age of 30, to avoid the temptations opened to him. He worked as a household servant and as a hired field hand.

Despite his illiteracy, he had absorbed the discourse on how to lead a pious and holy life that he could emulate models in hagiographic texts. According to his own account, his life was saved in a miraculous way during an outbreak of the bubonic plague in his town in 1514. Forced to isolate him from the community, his parents built a hidden shelter for him in the woods, where they left him. While lying there helpless, due to his illness, a she-wolf found the hiding spot and, poking her head into his hiding spot, sniffed and then bit and licked an infected site on his body, before running off. He began to heal from that moment.

At the age of 31, Sebastian left Spain for Mexico. He settled in the town of Puebla de los Angeles where he took employment as a field hand. However, he soon noticed a business opportunity for Puebla was an important crossroads and he noted, that the goods transported, were carried on the backs of pack animals or on the backs of the native people.

At first, Sebastian made and sold wheeled carts for the transport of goods. He then expanded into the improvement and building of roads and bridges to improve transport for goods and people. He was responsible for the building of a 460 mile road from Mexico City to Zacatecas, which took 10 years to build and was of enormous benefit to the local economy.

By the age of 50, Sebastian was a wealthy man. He lived very simply and gave his earnings to others, he bought food for the poor, made loans that he never reclaimed to poor farmers too proud to accept charity, he paid the dowries for poor brides and gave free training to Indians in skills that would assist them in earning a living. In addition, people brought him their problems and he had a reputation for his wisdom.

Sebastian became known as “The Angel of Mexico.” He retired at the age of 50 to a hacienda to raise cattle. He married at age 60 at the request of his bride’s parents. His bride was a poor girl and he agreed to the match, on condition that the couple lived as brother and sister, which they did. His wife died and he married again on the same condition. When he was 70, Sebastian’s second wife died and he himself contracted a serious illness.

Upon recovering, he decided to give everything he had to the poor and became a lay Franciscan brother. He undertook many responsibilities, including cook, sacristan, gardener and porter. He was then assigned to the large community of friars in the city of Puebla, at that time consisting of about 100 friars, most of whom, were doing their studies or were retired or recovering from illness. He was appointed to be the quaestor of the community, the one assigned to travel throughout the local community, seeking food and alms for the upkeep of the friars and those who came to them for help. The builder of Mexico’s highway system had become a beggar on it. Despite his advanced age, he felt the vigour needed for the task. This formerly rich man, loved his job and was loved by his fellow Franciscans, the townspeople and the poor that the Brothers helped. He also loved–and was loved–by animals, even the most stubborn mules and oxen would obey the Blessed, much like Saint Francis.

Though he had long suffered from a hernia, Aparicio marked his 98th birthday on the road, apparently in good health. On the following 20 February, he developed what was to be his final illness, as the hernia became entangled. He began to feel pain and nausea and, upon arrival at the friary, was immediately sent to the infirmary. It was the first time he had slept in a bed in 25 years. As his condition worsened, he became unable to swallow. His only regret was that, due to this, he was unable to receive Holy Communion. As he lay dying, he was consoled by the friars’ fulfilling his request that they bring the Blessed Sacrament to his cell.

On the evening of 25 February, Aparicio asked to be laid on the ground to meet his death, in imitation of St. Francis. He soon died in the arms of a fellow Galician, Friar Juan de San Buenaventura, with his last word being “Jesus.” When his body lay in state, the crowds that gathered were large and the miracles wrought were so numerous, that he could not be buried for several days. His habit had to be replaced repeatedly, as mourners would snip a piece of it off to keep as the relic of a saint.

The Blessed’s remains were never buried but at the request of the local people, exposed in a prominent place for veneration. His body, although darkened, has remained incorrupt and can be viewed in the Church of Saint Francis in Puebla.

Nearly 1,000 miracles were reported at his intercession, even before his death and such claims continue to this day. Pope Pius VI Beatified him on 17 May 1789.

A statue of the Blessed Sebastian outside the Franciscan Church of Puebla where his incorrupt body is preserved for veneration.
Posted in EPILEPSY, Of a Holy DEATH & AGAINST A SUDDEN DEATH, of the DYING, FINAL PERSEVERANCE, DEATH of CHILDREN, DEATH of PARENTS, Of GARDENERS, Horticulturists, Farmers, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 25 July – Saint Christopher (Died c 251) Martyr

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 25 July – Saint Christopher (Died c 251) Martyr and “Christ-Bearer” – Born at Canaan as Offero and Martyred in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman Emperor Decius (reigned 249–251) – Additional Memorials – 9 March (Greek calendar), 9 May (some Eastern calendars), 16 November (Cuba), 10 July (some areas of Spain).   Also known as Christobal, Christoval, Cristobal, Kester, Kitt, Kitts, Offero.   Patronages – against bad dreams, epileptics; against epilepsy, against floods, against hailstorms, against lightning, against pestilence, against storms, against sudden death, against toothache, Air Forces, archers, motorists, bachelors,bookbinders, bus drivers, taxi drivers, civil aeronautics, fruit dealers, fullers, gardener, of a holy death, truck drivers, mariners, sailors, market carriers, mountain climbers, porters, relief from pestilence, transportation, transportation workers, travellers, travellers in the mountains, Saint Christopher’s Island, Saint Kitts, 13 cities.Borgianni-Orazio-St-Christopher-carrying-the-infant-Christ-c1598-1602-oil-on-canvas-Museo-del-Prado-Madrid.jpg

He was a man of many names, Offero being one of them.   Born in the third century in Asia Minor, son of a king, he would grow to be a restless young man of considerable size. The early years of his life were spent in search of riches, of purpose, of a cause worthy of his allegiance.saint-christopher-carrying-the-christ-child-mateo-cerezo.jpg

As the story goes, a young Offero, looking for the strongest and boldest ruler to follow, briefly courted Satan.   When his new master cowered in fear at a holy cross on the side of a road, Offero abandoned Satan, choosing light over darkness.   During this period of transition, a holy hermit awakened the restless wanderer to Christianity, schooling and baptising him.   From then on, Offero pledged his life to Christ and vowed to serve God’s people along the banks of an untamed river.   So he built a hut and set up camp with a new purpose—to be a boatman to the world.st christopher 5.jpg

His popularity was solidified when a small child once approached him, wanting safe passage across the water.   He hoisted the boy on his shoulders and, with his trusty staff, began the journey.   As the river deepened, the child began to grow heavier.   Waters quickly rising, the precious cargo continued to weigh the giant down.   As he reached the banks of the river, Offero said, “Child, thou hast put me in great peril, thou weighest almost as if I had all the world upon me – I might bear no greater burden.”

“Christopher,” the little boy responded, “thou hast not only borne all the world upon thee but thou hast borne Him that created and made all the world, upon thy shoulders.”

The child instructed Christopher (meaning “Christbearer”) to cross the river again and plant his staff in the ground, telling the ferryman that life would spring forth.   To Christopher’s astonishment, by morning his staff had taken root—bright flowers and fruit grew from it.st christopher.jpg

The rest of Christopher’s life is even sketchier in detail.   One legend states that many in the immediate area converted to Christianity based on his encounter, which drew unwanted attention.   In Lycia—present-day Turkey—under Emperor Decius, he was imprisoned, shot with arrows, burned and then beheaded around 251.

st christopher and st peter
St Christopher and St Peter

Though the life of this mighty martyr was later questioned by historians, Saint Christopher’s story and his worldwide appeal have proven invulnerable.   Amen and alleluia, glory be to God!st christopher lg

Posted in BREWERS, CATHOLIC PRESS, DOCTORS, / SURGEONS / MIDWIVES., Of Catholic Education, Students, Schools, Colleges etc, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, PATRONAGE - NUNS, Religious SISTERS, Consecrated VIRGINS, PATRONAGE - SPOUSAL ABUSE / DIFFICULT MARRIAGES / VICTIMS OF ABUSE, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, SAILORS, MARINERS, NAVIGATORS, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – St Brigid of Ireland/Kildare (c 453-523)

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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. st brigid painting.jpg

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._bride2c_john_duncan_-_1913
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.st brigid.jpg

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.stbrigid-bigstbrigidglass

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.brigid-stained-glass

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.
brigid-prayer

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

Posted in ALTAR BOYS, DEACONS, SACRISTANS, BREWERS, BRIDES and GROOMS, ENGAGED COUPLES, Of BACHELORS, Of BANKERS, Of BEGGARS, the POOR, against POVERTY, Of Catholic Education, Students, Schools, Colleges etc, Of FISHERMEN, FISHMONGERS, Of GARDENERS, Horticulturists, Farmers, Of LAWYERS & CANON Lawyers, Attorneys, Solicitors, Barristers, Notaries, Para-Legals, Of PHARMACISTS / CHEMISTS, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, PATRONAGE - HAPPY MARRIAGES, of MARRIED COUPLES, PATRONAGE - ORPHANS,ABANDONED CHILDREN, PATRONAGE - PENITENTS, PATRONAGE - PRISONERS, PATRONAGE - VINTNERS, WINE-FARMERS, PATRONAGE-INFERTILITY & SAFE CHILDBIRTH, SAILORS, MARINERS, NAVIGATORS, SAINT of the DAY, Spinsters - Single LAYWOMEN

Saint of the Day – 6 December – St Nicholas (270-343) Bishop

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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.st nicholas - Jaroslav_Čermák_(1831_-_1878)_-_Sv._Mikuláš.jpg

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.

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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-nicholas4st nicholas - glass

Posted in Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, PATRONAGE - HOUSEWIVES, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 29 July – St Martha Virgin (1st century) 

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Saint of the Day – 29 July – St Martha Virgin (1st century) – Sister of Saint Lazarus and Saint Mary of Bethany. Friend of Jesus and hostess to him in her house.ACCS-Martha-e1469752916611Christ_in_the_House_of_Mary_and_Martha

St John tells us that “Jesus loved Martha and Mary and Lazarus” and yet but few glimpses are vouchsafed us of them.   First, the sisters are set before us with a word.   Martha received Jesus into her house and was busy in outward, loving, lavish service, while Mary sat in silence at the feet she had bathed with her tears.   Then, their brother is ill, and they send to Jesus, “Lord, he whom Thou lovest is sick.”   And in His own time the Lord came and they go out to meet Him and then follows that scene of unutterable tenderness and of sublimity unsurpassed:  the silent waiting of Mary, Martha strong in faith but realising so vividly, with her practical turn of mind, the fact of death and hesitating:  “Canst Thou show Thy wonders in the grave?”   And then once again, on the eve of His Passion, we see Jesus at Bethany.   Martha, true to her character, is serving; Mary, as at first, pours the precious ointment, in adoration and love, on His divine head.meeting-of-jesus-and-martha-corwin-knapp-linson

According the tradition we find the tomb of St Martha, at Tarascon, in Provence.   When the storm of persecution came, the family of Bethany, with a few companions, were put into a boat, without oars or sail and borne to the coast of France.    St Mary’s tomb is at S. Baume;  St Lazarus is venerated as the founder of the Church of Marseilles;  and the memory of the virtues and labours of St Martha is still fragrant at Avignon and Tarascon.

Reflection:  -When Martha received Jesus into her house, she was naturally busy in preparations for such a Guest.   Mary sat at His feet, intent alone on listening to His gracious words.   Her sister thought that the time required other service than this and asked our Lord to bid Mary help in serving.   Once again Jesus spoke in defence of Mary. “Martha, Martha,” He said, “thou art lovingly anxious about many things, be not over-eager, do thy chosen work with recollectedness.   Judge not Mary.   Hers is the good part, the one only thing really necessary.   Thine will be taken away, that something better be given thee.”   The life of action ceases when the body is laid down but the life of contemplation endures and is perfected in heaven.Cignaroli, Giambettino, 1706-1770; St Martha

Posted in Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 24 April – St Mary Euphrasia Pelletier (1796-1868)

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Saint of the Day – 24 April – St Mary Euphrasia Pelletier (1796-1868) Nun, Foundress of the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd.  St Mary Euphrasia was born on 31 July 1796 at Noirmoutier, Vendée, France as Rose Virginie Pelletier – Died 24 April 1868 at Angers, Maine-et-Loire, France of natural causes.   Patronages – Good Shepherd Sisters, travellers.

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Rose Virginie was born on 31 July 1796 on Noirmoutier a small island off the northwest coast of France.   Her parents had fled there thinking that they could escape the violence of the French Revolution.   She was the 8th child of Dr Julian and Anne Pelletier.   An elder sister and her father died when she was ten years old.   In 1810 her mother placed Rose Virginie in a boarding school in Tours.   Shortly after her eldest brother died and then her mother in 1813.   All these deaths were great tragedies and hardships for the young girl.

Near the boarding school was the convent of the Order of Our Lady of Charity of the Refuge, a religious Congregation founded by Saint John Eudes to provide care and protection for women and girls who were homeless and at risk of exploitation.   Despite her guardian’s reservations Rose Virginie was allowed to join the sisters provided that she not make her vows before she turned 21.   She made her profession in 1816, taking the name of Mary of Saint Euphrasia.   The sisters of the community had been dispersed at one point during the revolution;  the majority had been imprisoned.   Rose Virginie joined what was a community of elderly weary sisters.    A short time after her profession, she became first mistress of the penitents and about eight years later was made prioress of the house of Tours.    She founded a community, the “Sisters Magdalen” for women who wanted to lead a contemplative and enclosed life and would support, by their ministry of prayer, the different works of the Congregation.   It is now known as the Contemplatives of the Good Shepherd.

The city of Angers asked that Sister Mary Euphrasia establish a Convent of Refuge there. She established a house in an old factory and called it “Bon Pasteur” (Good Shepherd).   In 1831 she was appointed as Mother Superior of the House in Angers.   The congregation in Tours did not wish to expand to Angers, nor did the house in Nantes. St John Eudes had established his houses as separate and autonomous.   Mother Mary Euphrasia came to believe that if the work was to grow, that each house should be under the direction of a Generalate.   She founded additional convents in Le Mans, Poitiers, Grenoble and Metz.

In April 1835, Pope Gregory XVI granted approval of the Mother-House at Angers for the institute known as Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd of Angers. Convents that developed for Angers would be part of the institute while those houses that did not attach themselves to the General Administration would remain Refuges.  The development of the Generalate made possible the sending of the sisters to wherever they were needed.   Convents were also established in Italy, Belgium, Germany and England.  The institute is directly subject to the Holy See;   Cardinal Odescalchi was its first cardinal-protector.

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For some time, Mother Mary Euphrasia Pelletier had to deal with the opposition of the Bishop Angebault of Angers, who wished to exercise the authority of Superior General, although the constitutions of the Order did not provide for this.   She was accused of ambition, of innovation and of disobedience.   Sometimes she was put in the position of addressing conflicting instructions from Rome and the bishop.   Although she had the support of Rome, the local clergy tended to keep their distance from someone who had incurred the bishop’s displeasure.   According to Sister Norma O’Shea, the bishop’s opposition, coupled with the deaths of a number of sisters and longtime supporters, made Sister Mary Euphrasia’s last years very lonely.

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Mother Mary Euphrasia Pelletier devoted herself to the work entrusted to her. By 1868, she was Superior General of 3,000 religious, in 110 convents, in thirty-five countries.   She died of cancer on 24 April 1868.   She is buried on the property of the Motherhouse of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd in Angers, France.

On 11 December 1897, Pope Leo XIII declared her “Venerable.”   She was Beatified on 30 April 1933 and Canonised on 2 May 1940 by Venerable Pope Pius XII.

Posted in Against EPIDEMICS, Against STORMS, EARTHQUAKES, THUNDER & LIGHTENING, FIRES, DROUGHT / NATURAL DISASTERS, FRANCISCAN OFM, INCORRUPTIBLES, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, PATRONAGE-INFERTILITY & SAFE CHILDBIRTH, SAILORS, MARINERS, NAVIGATORS, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 2 April – St Francis of Paola O.M. (1416-1507)

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Saint of the Day – 2 April – St Francis of Paola O.M. (1416-1507) also known as “Saint Francis the Fire Handler” – Monk and Founder, inspired with the Gift of Prophecy and still called the “Miracle-Worker“, Apostle of the poor, Peacemaker – born on 27 March 1416 at Paola, Calabria, Kingdom of Italy (part of modern Italy) and died on 2 April 1507 (Good Friday) at Plessis, France of natural causes.   He was an Italian mendicant Friar and the Founder of the Order of Minims.   Unlike the majority of founders of men’s religious orders and like his Patron Saint, Francis was never Ordained a Priest  In 1562 Huguenots broke open his tomb, found his body incorrupt and burned it. The bones were salvaged by Catholics and distributed as relics to various churches.    Patronages – against fire, against plague/epidemics, against sterility,  mariners, sailors,  naval officers, travellers, 7 Cities.

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St Francis founded the Hermits of St Francis which Rule was formally approved by Pope Alexander VI, who, however, changed their title into that of “Minims”.   Their name refers to their role as the “least of all the faithful”.   Humility was to be the hallmark of the brothers as it had been in Francis’s personal life.   bstinence from meat and other animal products became a “fourth vow” of his religious order, along with the traditional vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.   Francis instituted the continual, year-round observance of this diet in an effort to revive the tradition of fasting during Lent, which many Roman Catholics had ceased to practice by the 15th century.   The rule of life adopted by Francis and his religious was one of extraordinary severity.   He felt that heroic mortification was necessary as a means for spiritual growth.   They were to seek to live unknown and hidden from the world.   After the approbation of the order, Francis founded several new monasteries in Calabria and Sicily.   He also established monasteries of nuns and a third order for people living in the world, after the example of St Francis of Assisi.HEADER - StFrancisdePaola-FounderStatue

Francis was born in the town of Paola, which lies in the southern Italian Province of Cosenza, Calabria.   In his youth he was educated by the Franciscan friars in Paola.   His parents were remarkable for the holiness of their lives, having remained childless for some years after their marriage, they had recourse to prayer and especially commended themselves to the intercession of St Francis of Assisi, after whom they named their first-born son.   Two other children were eventually born to them.

When still in the cradle, Francis suffered from a swelling which endangered the sight of one of his eyes.   His parents again had recourse to Francis of Assisi and made a vow that their son should pass an entire year wearing the “little habit” of St Francis in one of the friaries of his Order, a not-uncommon practice in the Middle Ages.   The child was immediately cured.

From his early years Francis showed signs of extraordinary sanctity and at the age of 13, being admonished by a vision of a Franciscan friar, he entered a friary of the Franciscan Order to fulfil the vow made by his parents.   Here he gave great edification by his love of prayer and mortification, his profound humility and his prompt obedience.   At the completion of the year he went with his parents on a pilgrimage to Assisi, Rome, and other places of devotion.   Returning to Paola, he selected a secluded cave on his father’s estate and there lived in solitude;  but later on he found an even-more secluded cave on the sea coast.   Here he remained alone for about six years, giving himself to prayer and mortification.

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Soon others joined him and they took the name Hermits of Saint Francis of Assisi and followed the practices of the Franciscans, or the Franciscan Minim Friars.   The order attracted many candidates within a sort space of time.

Francis later felt God calling him to defend those who were poor and oppressed.   He scolded King Ferdinand of Naples and his sons for their wrongdoing.   In 1482, when King Louis XI of France was dying, he begged that Francis come to cure him.   Francis at first refused but Pope Sixtus IV ordered him to care for the king and prepare him for death.   When the king saw Francis, he pleaded for a miracle.   Francis rebuked him, saying that the lives of kings are in the hands of God.   Francis restored peace between France and Great Britain and between France and Spain.jusepe-de-ribera-saint-francis-of-paolast francis of paola

Famous Miracles:

According to a famous story, in the year 1464, he was refused passage by a boatman while trying to cross the Strait of Messina to Sicily.   He reportedly laid his cloak on the water, tied one end to his staff as a sail and sailed across the strait with his companions following in the boat.   The second of Franz Liszt’s “Legendes” (for solo piano) describes this story in music.

After his nephew died, the boy’s mother—the saint’s own sister—appealed to Francis for comfort and filled his apartment with lamentations.   After the Mass and divine office had been said for the repose of his soul, St Francis ordered the corpse to be carried from the church into his cell, where he continued praying until, to her great astonishment, the boy’s life was restored and Francis presented him to his mother in perfect health.   The young man entered his order and is the celebrated Nicholas Alesso who afterwards followed his uncle into France and was famous for sanctity and many great actions.St_Francis_of_Paola_Blessing_the_Son_of_Louisa_of_Savoy

St Francis also raised his pet lamb, Martinello, from the dead after it had been eaten by workmen. “Being in need of food, the workmen caught and slaughtered Francis’ pet lamb, Martinello, roasting it in their lime kiln.   They were eating when the Saint approached them, looking for his lamb.   They told him they had eaten it, having no other food.   He asked what they had done with the fleece and the bones.   They told him they had thrown them into the furnace.   Francis walked over to the furnace, looked into the fire and called ‘Martinello, come out!’   The lamb jumped out, completely untouched, bleating happily on seeing his master.”

Pope Leo X canonised him in 1519.   He is considered to be a patron saint of boatmen, mariners and naval officers.   His liturgical feast day is celebrated by the universal Church today, the day on which he died. In 1963, Pope John XXIII designated him as the patron saint of Calabria.   Though his miracles were numerous, he was canonised for his humility and discernment in blending the contemplative life with the active one.

Devotion of the Thirteen Fridays:
Pope Clement XII, in the brief “Coelestium Munerum Dispensatio” of 2 December 1738, promulgated an indulgence to all the faithful who, upon 13 Fridays continuously preceding the Feast of St Francis of Paola (2 April), or at any other time of the year, shall, in honour of this Saint, visit a church of the Minims and pray there for the Church.   In this brief, mention is made of a devotion which originated with St Francis himself, who, on each of 13 Fridays, used to recite 13 Pater Nosters (Our Fathers) and as many Ave Marias (Hail Marys) and this devotion he promulgated by word of mouth and by letter to his own devout followers, as an efficacious means of obtaining from God the graces they desired, provided they were for the greater good of their souls

Posted in DOMESTIC ANIMALS, Of BEGGARS, the POOR, against POVERTY, Of GARDENERS, Horticulturists, Farmers, Of HOSPITALS, NURSES, NURSING ASSOCIATIONS, Of PILGRIMS, Of the SICK, the INFIRM, All ILLNESS, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, PATRONAGE - MENTAL ILLNESS, PATRONAGE - PRISONERS, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 17 March – St Gertrude of Nivelles O.S.B. (626-659)

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Saint of the Day – 17 March – St Gertrude of Nivelles O.S.B. (626-659) was a 7th-century Religious Abbess who, with her mother Itta, founded the Abbey of Nivelles located in present-day Belgium.   She was born in 626 at Landen, Belgium and died on 17 March 659 at Nivelles, Belgium of natural causes.   Patronages – against fear of mice and rates, against suriphobia, fever, mental disorders, insanity, of cats, of gardeners, innkeepers, hospitals, the mentally ill, pilgrims, travellers, suriphobics, sick, poor, prisoners, Landen, Belgium, Nivelles, Belgium, Wattenscheid, Germany.   Attributes – a nun with a crosier, with cats, with mice, a woman spinning.st gertrude of nivelles - patron of cats.2Nivelles_JPG00_(1)

Our Saint was born at Landen, Belgium in 626 and died at Nivelles, 659;  she was just thirty-three, the same age as Our Lord.   Both her parents, Pepin of Landen and Itta were held to be holy by those who knew them;  her sister Begga is numbered among the Saints.   On her husband’s death in 640, Itta founded a Benedictine monastery at Nivelles, which is near Brussels and appointed Gertrude its abbess when she reached twenty, tending to her responsibilities well, with her mother’s assistance and following her in giving encouragement and help to monks, particularly Irish ones, to do missionary work in the locale.nivelles

Saint Gertrude’s piety was evident even when she was as young as ten, when she turned down the offer of a noble marriage, declaring that she would not marry him or any other suitor:  Christ alone would be her bridegroom.

She was known for her hospitality to pilgrims and her aid to missionary monks.   She gave land to one monk so that he could build a monastery at Fosse.   By her early thirties Gertrude had become so weakened by the austerity of abstaining from food and sleep that she had to resign her office and spent the rest of her days studying Scripture and doing penance.   It is said that on the day before her death she sent a messenger to Fosse, asking the superior if he knew when she would die.st-gertrude-of-nivelles6xgertrude nivelles

His reply indicated that death would come the next day during holy Mass-the prophecy was fulfilled.   Her feast day is observed by gardeners, who regard fine weather on that day as a sign to begin spring planting.

Devotion to St. Gertrude became widely spread in the Lowlands and neighbouring countries.

Commonly seen running up her pastoral staff or cloak are hopeful-looking mice representing Souls in Purgatory, to which she had an intense devotion, just as with St Gertrude the Great.   Even as recently as 1822, offerings of mice made of gold and silver were left at her shrine.   Another patronage is to travellers on the high seas.   It is held that one sailor, suffering misfortune while under sail, prayed to the Saint and was delivered safely.

Just before her death in 659, Gertrude instructed the nuns at Nivelles to bury her in an old veil left behind by a travelling pilgrimess and Gertrude’s own hair shirt.   Gertrude’s choice of burial clothing is a pattern in medieval hagiography as an expression of humility and piety.   Her death and the image of her weak and humble figure is in fact a critical point in her biographer’s narrative.   Her monastery also benefited from this portrayal because the hair cloth and veil in which Gertrude was interred became relics.  At Nivelles, her relics were only publicly displayed for feast days, Easterand other holy days.

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Shrine of St Gertrude of Nivelles, originally made in 1272-1298; this reproduction, in the Pushkin Museum, was cast from the original.   In 1940, a German bomb smashed the original reliquary into 337 fragments.   It was subsequently rebuilt.

Posted in ADVENT, Against STORMS, EARTHQUAKES, THUNDER & LIGHTENING, FIRES, DROUGHT / NATURAL DISASTERS, ALTAR BOYS, DEACONS, SACRISTANS, BREWERS, BRIDES and GROOMS, CHEFS and/or BAKERS, CONFECTIONERS, MORNING Prayers, Of BACHELORS, Of BANKERS, Of BEGGARS, the POOR, against POVERTY, Of Catholic Education, Students, Schools, Colleges etc, Of FISHERMEN, FISHMONGERS, Of GARDENERS, Horticulturists, Farmers, Of LAWYERS & CANON Lawyers, Attorneys, Solicitors, Barristers, Notaries, Para-Legals, Of PHARMACISTS / CHEMISTS, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, ON the SAINTS, PATRONAGE - HAPPY MARRIAGES, of MARRIED COUPLES, PATRONAGE - ORPHANS,ABANDONED CHILDREN, PATRONAGE - PENITENTS, PATRONAGE - PRISONERS, PATRONAGE - VINTNERS, WINE-FARMERS, PATRONAGE-INFERTILITY & SAFE CHILDBIRTH, SAILORS, MARINERS, NAVIGATORS, SAINT of the DAY, Spinsters - Single LAYWOMEN

Saint of the Day – 6 December – St Nicholas (270-343)

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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.   st nicholas header

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.bari-shrine3-detail

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).St Nicholas of Myra slapping Arius at the Council of Nicaea.

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.

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For St Nicholas traditional biscuits see here:  https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2016/12/06/st-nicholas-6-december/

Posted in Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, PATRONAGE - HOUSEWIVES, SAINT of the DAY, Spinsters - Single LAYWOMEN

Saint of the Day – 29 July – St Martha (1st Century) Virgin Martyr

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 29 July – St Martha  (1st century), Virgin Martyr – sister of St Lazarus and St Mary of Bethany. Friend of Jesus, and hostess to him in her house.    May have been part of an early mission to France.   Died – c.80 of natural causes.   Patronages –  butlers• Congregation of Martha and Mary (founded in 1979)• cooks (proclaimed on 1 July 1963 by Pope Paul VI)• dieticians • domestic servants• homemakers • hotel-keepers• housemaids• housewives• innkeepers (proclaimed on 1 July 1963 by Pope Paul VI) • laundry workers • maids• manservants • servants• servers• single laywomen• travellers• Villajoyosa, Spain (chosen after a flash flood saved the village from Moorish invaders on her feast day in 1538).  

Christ at the House of Martha and Mary of Bethany, Jacob Jordaens

One of the most precious things in life is to have a home where you can go at any time and find people who accept, love, and understand you.   Jesus found such a home in Bethany, at the house of a woman named Martha.   She welcomed Him and served Him and they developed a special bond of friendship.   One of these visits has ever remained dear to Christian memory.   On that occasion Martha, busily serving the Master, asked Him to persuade Mary to help her.   Without in any way reproaching Martha, Jesus explained to her that certain souls, called by God, should choose a better part still — the primary duty of listening to Him and contemplating Him.

Martha lived with her sister Mary.   Like many other pairs of sisters, these two women were different in personality.   Martha was energetic and outspoken, while Mary was quiet and reflective.   Jesus loved both of them and appreciated the gifts that each one had.

The Gospel of Luke records that once, when Jesus was visiting, Martha prepared the meal while Mary sat talking to their visitor.   Martha complained that Jesus should tell Mary to help her.   Jesus said that because Martha was worrying so much about the work, she did not have time to enjoy being with Him and listening to His words.

Christ in the House of Martha and Mary, by Jan Vermeer Van Delft, 1654
Christ with Martha and Mary
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Another time recorded in John’s Gospel, the sisters sent a message to Jesus that their brother, Lazarus, was ill.   They knew Jesus would come and cure him; they trusted in His loving care for them.   When Jesus finally came, Lazarus had already been dead for four days.   As soon as she heard that Jesus was nearby, Martha, a woman of action, went out to meet Him, while Mary stayed in the house.   In her grief, Martha told Jesus honestly what she had expected from Him.   Jesus asked her to believe that He was the resurrection and that He had power to give eternal life to all who believe in Him. Without really understanding this mystery, Martha trusted Jesus totally and said,  “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who was to come into this world” (John 11:27).   That day Jesus raised her brother Lazarus from the dead, showing that He has power over life and death and power to give eternal life.

The home Jesus found in Bethany was not only in the house but in the faithful heart of a woman named Martha.

Giovanni Bagliione - St. Martha
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St. Martha by Francesco Mochi
St. Martha [Large]
Posted in Against EPIDEMICS, AVIATORS, PILOTS, AEROPLANE industry related WORKERS, Of a Holy DEATH & AGAINST A SUDDEN DEATH, of the DYING, FINAL PERSEVERANCE, DEATH of CHILDREN, DEATH of PARENTS, Of TRAVELLERS / MOTORISTS, SAINT of the DAY, The LAITY, WIDOWS and WIDOWERS

Saint of the Day – 9 March – St Frances of Rome

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 9 March – St Frances of Rome Obl.S.B. (1384-1440)  Wife, Mother, Mystic, Organiser of charitable services and a Benedictine Oblate who founded a religious community of Oblates, who share a common life without religious vows – Patronages – against plague/epidemics, of automobile drivers (given in 1951), aviators, taxi drivers, death of children, the laity, motorcyclists, motorists, people ridiculed for their piety, Roman housewives, widows, women, Rome, Italy.

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Frances was born in 1384 in Rome to a wealthy and aristocratic couple, Paolo Bussa and Iacobella dei Roffredeschi, in the up-and-coming district of Parione and christened in the nearby Church of St Agnes on the famed Piazza Navona.   When she was eleven years old, she wanted to be a nun but, at about the age of twelve, her parents forced her to marry Lorenzo Ponziani, commander of the papal troops of Rome and member of an extremely wealthy family.   Although the marriage had been arranged, it was a happy one, lasting for forty years, partly because Lorenzo admired his wife and partly because he was frequently away at war.

With her sister-in-law Vannozza, Frances visited the poor and took care of the sick, inspiring other wealthy women of the city to do the same.   Soon after her marriage, Frances fell seriously ill.   Her husband called a man in who dabbled in magic but Frances drove him away and later recounted to Vannozza that St Alexis had appeared to her and cured her.

When her mother-in-law died, Frances became mistress of the household.   During a time of flood and famine, she turned part of the family’s country estate into a hospital and distributed food and clothing to the poor.   According to one account, her father-in-law was so angry that he took away from her the keys to the supply rooms but gave them back when he saw that the corn bin and wine barrel were replenished after Frances finished praying.

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St Frances of Rome Giving Alms by Baciccio

During the wars between the pope in Rome and various anti-popes in the Western Schism of the Church, Lorenzo served the former.   According to one story, their son, Battista, was to be delivered as a hostage to the commander of the Neapolitan troops.   Obeying this order on the command of her spiritual director, Frances brought the boy to the Campidoglio.   On the way, she stopped in the Church of the Aracoeli located there and entrusted the life of her son to the Blessed Mother.   When they arrived at the appointed site, the soldiers went to put her son on a horse to transport him off to captivity.   The horse, however, refused to move, despite heavy whipping.   The superstitious soldiers saw the hand of God in this and returned the boy to his mother.

During a period of forced exile, much of Lorenzo’s property and possessions were destroyed.   In the course of one occupation of Rome by Neapolitan forces in the early part of the century, he was wounded so severely that he never fully recovered.   Frances nursed him throughout the rest of his life.

Frances experienced other sorrows in the course of her marriage with Lorenzo Ponziani. They lost two children to the plague.   Chaos ruled the city in that period of neglect by the pope and the ongoing warfare between him and the various forces competing for power on the Italian peninsula devastated the city.   The city of Rome was largely in ruins—wolves were known to enter the streets.   Frances again opened her home as a hospital and drove her wagon through the countryside to collect wood for fire and herbs for medicine.   It is said she had the gift of healing, and more than sixty cases were attested to during the Canonisation proceedings.

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, “With her husband’s consent St Frances practised continence and advanced in a life of contemplation. Saint_Frances.jpg

Her visions often assumed the form of drama enacted for her by heavenly personages.   She had the gift of miracles and ecstasy, as well as the bodily vision of her guardian angel, had revelations concerning Purgatory and Hell and foretold the ending of the Western Schism.   She could read the secrets of consciences and detect plots of diabolical origin.   She was remarkable for her humility and detachment, her obedience and patience”.francescaromana.jpg

On August 15, 1425, the feast of the Assumption of Mary, she founded the Olivetan Oblates of Mary, a confraternity of pious women, under the authority of the Olivetan monks of the Abbey of Santa Maria Nova in Rome but neither cloistered nor bound by formal vows, so they could follow her pattern of combining a life of prayer with answering the needs of their society.

In March 1433, she founded a monastery at Tor de’ Specchi, near the Campidoglio, in order to allow for a common life by those members of the confraternity who felt so called.    This monastery remains the only house of the Institute.   On 4 July of that same year, they received the approval of Pope Eugene IV as a religious congregation of oblates with private religious vows.  The community later became known simply as the Oblates of St. Frances of Rome.

Frances herself remained in her own home, nursing her husband for the last seven years of his life from wounds he had received in battle.   When he died in 1436, she moved into the monastery and became the superior.   She died in 1440 and was buried in Santa Maria Nova.

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st-frances-of-rome-02On 9 May 1608, she was Canonised by Pope Paul V and in the following decades a diligent search was made for her remains, which had been hidden due to the troubled times in which she lived.   Her body was found incorrupt some months after her death.   Her grave was identified on 2 April 1638, (but this time only the bones remained) and her remains were reburied in the Church of Santa Maria Nova on 9 March 1649, which since then has been her feast day.   Again, in 1869, her body was exhumed and has since then been displayed in a glass coffin for the veneration of the faithful.   The Church of Santa Maria Nova is now usually referred to as the Church of St Frances.
In 1925, Pope Pius XI declared her the patron saint of automobile drivers because of a legend that an angel used to light the road before her with a lantern when she travelled, keeping her safe from hazards.   Within the Benedictine Order, she is also honoured as a patron saint of all oblates.

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St Frances of Rome Founder Statue at St Peter’s