Show forth Your power Lord and come. Come in Your great strength and save us.
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew and beat on that house but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.” … Matthew 7:24-25
REFLECTION – “The just, (that is to say those who in baptism have put on the new man created in justice) live, insofar as they are just, by faith, by the light that the sacrament of illumination brings to them. The more they live by faith, the more they realise in themselves, the perfection of His divine adoption. Notice this expression carefully: ‘EX fide,’ the exact meaning of this is that faith ought to be the root of all our actions, of all our life. There are souls who live with faith (CUM fide). They have faith and one cannot deny that they practise it. But it is only on certain occasions … that they remember their faith to any purpose. … But when faith is living, strong, ardent, when we live by faith, that is to say, when in everything, we are actuated by the principles of faith, when faith is the root of all our actions, the inward principle of all our activity, then we become strong and steadfast, in spite of difficulties within and without, in spite of obscurities, contradictions and temptations. Why so? Because, by faith, we judge, we estimate all things as God sees and estimates them – we participate in the divine immutability and stability. Is not this what our Lord said? “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them” – that is to live by faith – “will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse.” For Jesus Christ immediately adds: “it had been set solidly on rock” (Mt 7:24-25).” … Bl Columba Marmion (1858-1923) Abbot – Our Faith, the Victory over the World (Christ, the Ideal of the Monk)
PRAYER – God our Father, You open the gates of the kingdom of heaven to those who are born again of water and the Holy Spirit. Increase the grace You have given, so that the people who have been purified from all sin, may not forfeit the promised blessing of Your love. Grant that we may ever keep Your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, before our eyes and do all in Him and through Him and for Him. And may the prayers of Your great missioner, St Francis Xavier, he who lived Your words, strengthen our faith.
Our Morning Offering – 3 December – Thursday of the First week of Advent and The Memorial of St Francis Xavier SJ (1506-1552)
I Love Thee, God, I Love Thee By St Francis Xavier Translated by Gerard Manley Hopkins SJ (1844-1889)
I love Thee, God, I love Thee— Not out of hope for heaven for me Nor fearing not to love and be In the everlasting burning. Thou, my Jesus, after me Didst reach Thine arms out dying, For my sake suffered nails and lance, Mocked and marred countenance, Sorrows passing number, Sweat and care and cumber, Yea and death and this for me, And Thou could see me sinning. Then I, why should not I love Thee, Jesu so much in love with me? Not for heaven’s sake, not to be Out of hell by loving Thee, Not for any gains I see, But just the way that Thou didst me I do love and will love Thee. What must I love Thee, Lord, for then? For being my king and God. Amen
Saint of the Day – 3 December – Saint Emma of Bremen (c 975–1038) Married Laywoman, Princess, mother and widow, apostle of the poor, founder of Churches. Also known as Emma of Lesum, Emma of Stiepel, Hemma, Imma. Born in c 975 and died on 3 December 1038 of natural causes.
Emma was born into the Saxon noble family of the Immedinger, descendants of Widukind. She married Liudger, a son of the Saxon duke Hermann Billung and brother of Bernard I, Duke of Saxony. Emperor Otto III made the couple a present in 1001 of the Pfalz or palatium in Stiepel), where, in 1008 Emma had a church built dedicated to the Virgin Mary, which later became a popular place of pilgrimage. The only child of the marriage was Imad, who was Ordained a Priest and later was consecrated as the Bishop of Paderborn in 1051.
After the early death of her husband in 1011, Emma withdrew to the estate of Lesum (now Bremen-Burglesum) and with her fortune, generously supported Bremen Cathedral and granted the Cathedral chapter her property at Stiepel with its church.
She was portrayed as a great benefactress of the Church and indeed, founded a number of Churches in the Bremen area, although her greatest care was for the poor.
Emma was later venerated as a Saint, although there is no evidence that she was formally ever either beatified or canonised. She was buried in Bremen Cathedral, where her tomb was still to be seen in the 16th century. Her tomb is one of the biggest in the cemetery. When the tomb was opened, her body had crumbled to dust except for her right hand (the hand that dispensed the help to the needy and the poor). That relic was placed in the Abbey of Saint Ludger at Werden.
There is a well-known Bremen legend concerning her gift of a meadow to the town in 1032. When a delegation of the townspeople approached her with a request for more meadowland, Emma promised them as much meadow as a man could run round in an hour. Her brother-in-law Bernard or Benno, Duke of Saxony, with an appraising eye on his inheritance, suggested mockingly that she might as well give them as much land as a man could run round in a day. Emma agreed to this but Bernard asked to choose the man who was to do the running and when Emma agreed to that too, picked out a legless cripple past whom they had just walked. This man proved, however, to have extraordinary strength and endurance and by the end of the day had succeeded in making his way round a very substantial area, bigger even than the present Bremen town meadow.
This story has been current in various forms since at least the 18th century, although there is no documentary evidence for it but gives a whole meaning to the inclusion of the figure of the “cripple” at the feet of the statue of Bremen Roland, the protector of the City of Bremen.
“Cripple” at the feet of the Roland statue in Bremen
St Abbo of Auxerre St Abran St Agapius St Agricola of Pannonia St Alvaro González López St Anthemius of Poitiers St Attalia of Strasbourg Bl Bernard of Toulouse OP Martyr St Birinus of Dorchester St Cassian of Tangiers St Claudius of Africa St Claudius the Martyr St Crispin of Africa St Edward Coleman St Eloque of Lagny St Emma of Bremen (c 975–1038) St Ethernan St Francisco Delgado González St Francisco Fernández Escosura St Hilaria the Martyr St Jason the Martyr Blessed Johann Nepomuk von Tschiderer (1777-1860) His Life: https://anastpaul.com/2019/12/03/saint-of-the-day-3-december-blessed-johann-nepomuk-von-tschiderer-1777-1860/ St John of Africa St Juan Bautista Ferris Llopis St Julián Heredia Zubia St Lucius St Lucy the Chaste St Magina of Africa St Mamas St Manuel Santiago y Santiago St Marcos García Rodríguez St Maurus the Martyr St Seleucus St Stephen of Africa St Theodore of Alexandria St Theodulus of Edessa St Valeriano Rodríguez García St Veranus Zephaniah the Prophet
Martyrs of Nicomedia: Christians martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian – Ambicus, Julius and Victor. c 303 in Nicomedia, Bithynia (modern Izmit, Turkey).
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: Thousands of people were murdered in the anti-Catholic persecutions of the Spanish Civil War from 1934 to 1939. • Blessed Alvaro González López • Blessed Francisco Delgado González • Blessed Francisco Fernández Escosura • Blessed Juan Bautista Ferris Llopis • Blessed Julián Heredia Zubia • Blessed Manuel Santiago y Santiago • Blessed Marcos García Rodríguez • Blessed Valeriano Rodríguez García
Quote of the Day – 2 December – Wednesday of the First Week of Advent and The Memorial of Bl Jan/John van Ruusbroec(k) (c 1293-1382)
“If we would God discern The world we must despise, His love and hate must learn, See all things with His eyes. And we must self forgo If God we would attain, His grace must in us grow And ease us from all pain. So shall we sing His praise And be at one with Him, In peace our voices raise In the celestial hymn, That with quadruple harmony And all mellifluous melody, In Heaven resounds eternally.”
Advent Reflection – 2 December – Wednesday of the First Week of Advent, Readings: Isaiah 25:6-10,Psalms 23:1-3, 3-4, 5, 6, Matthew 15:29-37 and the Memorial of Bl Jan/John van Ruysbroec(k) (c 1293-1382)
Come to us and save us, Lord God Almighty Let Your face smile on us and we shall be safe.
Jesus summoned his disciples and said, “My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, for they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, for fear they may collapse on the way.” … Matthew 15:32
REFLECTION – “The second coming of Christ our Bridegroom takes place daily in good persons; indeed, it takes place frequently and repeatedly, with new gifts and graces, in all those who prepare themselves for it to the best of their ability. We do not intend to speak here of a person’s initial conversion or of the graces, which were first bestowed when he turned from sin to virtue. Rather, we wish to speak of a day-to-day increase in new gifts and new virtues and of a present, daily coming of Christ our Bridegroom into our soul. (…)
This is [a] coming of Christ our Bridegroom which takes place daily with an increase in graces and new gifts, for when a person receives any of the sacraments with a humble heart and without placing any obstacle in the way of the sacrament’s effects, then he receives new gifts and an increase of grace because of his humility and because of the mysterious working of Christ in the sacraments. (…) It is, then, another coming of Christ our Bridegroom which is present to us everyday. We should reflect on it with a heart full of desire so that it might take place in ourselves, for this coming is necessary, if we are to remain steadfast or go forward into eternal life.” … Bl Jan van Ruysbroec (1293-1381) Canon Regular – The Spiritual Espousals, Pt. 2
PRAYER – Prepare our hearts, Lord, by the power of Your grace. When Christ comes, may He find us worthy to receive from His hand, the Bread of Heaven at the feast of eternal life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ Your Son, with the Holy Spirit, God now and for all eternity, amen.
Saint of the Day – 2 December – Saint Chromatius of Aquileia (Died c 407) Bishop of Aquileia, Theologian, Exegete, Writer and friend of St Ambrose and Jerome, defender of St John Chrysostom. Chromatius opposed Arianism with much zeal and rooted it out in his Diocese.
Chromatius was brought up in the city of Aquileia, at the head of the Adriatic Sea. In all likelihood, he was born here as well. His father died when he was young and he lived with his mother, older brother and unmarried sisters. His mother had the good opinion of St Jerome, which the Saint expressed in a letter to her, quoted below, in 374. His brother, Eusebius, also became a Bishop and he is also a Saint. Chromatius, had learned at home to know and love Christ. Jerome himself spoke of this in terms full of admiration and compared Chromatius’ mother to the Prophetess Anna, his two sisters to the Wise Virgins of the Gospel Parable and Chromatius himself and his brother Eusebius, to the young Samuel (cf. Ep. VII: PL XXII, 341). Jerome wrote further of Chromatius and Eusebius: “Blessed Chromatius and St Eusebius were brothers by blood, no less than by the identity of their ideals” (Ep. VIII: PL XXII, 342).
After his ordination, Chromatius took part in the synod against Arianism in 381. On the death of St Valerian in 388, he was elected Bishop of Aquileia and became one of the most distinguished prelates of his time. After receiving episcopal ordination from Bishop Ambrose, he dedicated himself courageously and energetically to an immense task because of the vast territory entrusted to his pastoral care – the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of Aquileia, in fact, stretched from the present-day territories of Switzerland, Bavaria, Austria and Slovenia, as far as Hungary.
How well known and highly esteemed Chromatius was in the Church of his time, we can deduce from an episode in the life of St John Chrysostom. When the Bishop of Constantinople was exiled from his See, he wrote three letters to those he considered the most important Bishops of the Wes,t seeking to obtain their support with the Emperors – he wrote one letter to the Bishop of Rome, the second to the Bishop of Milan and the third to the Bishop of Aquileia. Those were difficult times also for Chromatius because of the precarious political situation.
Situated at one of the busiest crossroads of the Roman Empire, Aquileia was a major center of trade and commerce. Under Chromatius’ care, guidance and influence, it also became renowned as a centre of learning and orthodoxy. He baptised the monk, theologian and historian, Rufinus in his early manhood.
He kept up an extensive correspondence with both Sts Ambrose and Jerome and also with Rufinus. A scholarly theologian himself, Chromatius encouraged the Bishop of Milan to write exegetical works and also supported St Jerome in his own writings. He helped St Heliodorus of Altino to finance St Jerome’s translation of the Bible. It was also owing to Chromatius’ encouragement that Rufinus undertook the translation of Eusebius’ Ecclesiastical History and other works.
In the bitter quarrel between St Jerome and Rufinus concerning Origenism, Chromatius, while rejecting the false doctrines of Origen of Alexandria, attempted to make peace between the disputants.
St Sebastian and St Chromatius
“Chromatius was a wise teacher and a zealous shepherd. His first and main commitment was to listen to the Word, to be able to subsequently proclaim it – he always based his teaching on the Word of God and constantly returned to it. Certain subjects are particularly dear to him – first of all, the Trinitarian mystery, which he contemplated in its revelation throughout the history of salvation. Then, the theme of the Holy Spirit – Chromatius constantly reminds the faithful of the presence and action, in the life of the Church, of the Third Person of the Most Holy Trinity. But the holy Bishop returned with special insistence to the mystery of Christ. The Incarnate Word is true God and true man – He took on humanity in its totality to endow it with His own divinity. These truths, which he also reaffirmed explicitly in order to counter Arianism, were to end, up about 50 years later in the definition of the Council of Chalcedon. The heavy emphasis on Christ’s human nature led Chromatius to speak of the Virgin Mary. His Mariological doctrine is clear and precise. To him we owe evocative descriptions of the Virgin Most Holy – Mary is the “evangelical Virgin capable of accepting God”; she is the “immaculate and inviolate ewe lamb” who conceived the “Lamb clad in purple” (cf. Sermo XXIII, 3: Scrittori dell’area santambrosiana 3/1, p. 134). The Bishop of Aquileia often compares the Virgin with the Church – both, in fact, are “virgins” and “mothers.” Chromatius developed his ecclesiology above all in his commentary on Matthew. These are some of the recurring concept -: the Church is one, she is born from the Blood of Christ; she is a precious garment woven by the Holy Spirit; the Church is where the fact that Christ was born of a Virgin is proclaimed, where brotherhood and harmony flourish. One image of which Chromatius is especially fond is that of the ship in a storm – and his were stormy times, as we have heard: “There is no doubt,” the Holy Bishop says, “that this ship represents the Church” (cf. Tractatus XLII, 5: Scrittori dell’area santambrosiana 3/2, p. 260).
St Chromatius preaching
… Let us include an exhortation of Chromatius which is still perfectly applicable today: “Let us pray to the Lord with all our heart and with all our faith,” the Bishop of Aquileia recommends in one of his Sermons, “let us pray to Him to deliver us from all enemy incursions, from all fear of adversaries. Do not look at our merits but at His mercy, at Him ,who also in the past deigned to set the Children of Israel free, not for their own merits but through His mercy.May He protect us with His customary merciful love and bring about for us, what holy Moses said to the Children of Israel – The Lord will fight to defend you and you will be silent. It is He who fights, it is He who wins the victory…. And so that He may condescend to do so, we must pray as much as possible. He himself said, in fact, through the mouth of the prophet – Call on me on the day of tribulation; I will set you free and you will give me glory” (Sermo XVI, 4: Scrittori dell’area santambrosiana 3/2, pp. 100-102).
Thus, at the very beginning of the Advent Season, St Chromatius reminds us that Advent is a time of prayer in which it is essential to enter into contact with God. God knows us, He knows me, He knows each one of us, He loves me, He will not abandon me. Let us go forward with this trust in the liturgical season that has just begun.” (QUOTE – Pope Benedict XVI General Audience, 5 December 2007).
Chromatius was also an active exegete. Seventeen of his treatises on St Matthew’s Gospel survive, as well as a fine homily on the Eight Beatitudes. In all likelihood, Chromatius died in exile, in Grado, while he was attempting to escape the incursions of the Barbarians in 407, the same year in which St Chrysostom also died.
Our Lady of Liesse/Our Lady, Cause of our Joy: 2 December – An ancient statue of the Madonna and Child. It was brought from Egypt to France during the Crusades by three Knights of Malta who had been briefly captured by Saracens. It was enshrined at Liesse, diocese of Soissons. The original statue was destroyed during the French Revolution. A duplicate was installed and crowned in 1857. Patronage – Diocese of Soissons, France.
Bl Robert of Matallana St Silvanus St Pope Silverio — Greek Martyrs of Rome – (9 saints): Several Greek Christians martyred in the persecutions of Valerian – Adria, Aurelia, Eusebius, Hippolytus, Marcellus, Mary Martana, Maximus, Neon and Paulina. They were martyred by various means between 254 and 259 in Rome, Italy and are buried in the Callistus catacombs, Rome.
Martyrs of Africa – (4 saints): Four Christians martyred in Africa in the persecutions of Arian Vandals – Januarius, Securus, Severus and Victorinus.
One Minute Reflection – 1 November – The Solemnity of All Saints, Readings: Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14, Psalms 24:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 1 John 3:1-3, Matthew 5:1-12
“Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.” – Matthew 5:12
REFLECTION – “Rejoice in the Lord without ceasing (cf. Phil 4:4), my dear children. I beg you rejoice, citizens of heaven but exiles on earth, inhabitants of the Jerusalem on high (cf. Gal 4:26) but banished from affairs here below, inheritors of the kingdom of heaven but disinherited from taking any part at all, in earthly pleasures! Rejoice, ardent travellers, at undergoing exile and maltreatment in a foreign land in the name of the commandment of God! Rejoice, you who are last in this world but lords of blessings that exceed our understanding (cf. Phil 4:7). Rejoice, noble company, brought together by God, assembly united in heart and soul, who give life to filial and fraternal love, a replica on earth of the host of angels! (…) Rejoice, God’s workers, apostolic men. (…) Rejoice, you who set your joy in each other, each making his own the reputation of his brother, you in whom is found neither jealousy, rivalry nor envy but, in their place, peace and charity and life in common. In truth, I do not say that we are not attacked – indeed, who is crowned if not the one who struggles and fights, who exchanges thrusts and wounds with his assailants? – but I say that we should not let ourselves be brought down by the machinations of Satan. Yes, my children, assembly of God, nourish yourselves with the food of the Spirit and drink the water given by the Lord: whoever comes to possess this water will never thirst again but it will become, in Him, a spring of living water welling up to eternal life (cf. Jn 4:14). (…) Yet a little while and we shall have vanquished. And blessed shall we be; blessed also, it shall be said, are the places, family and countries that have borne you (cf. Lk 11:27-28).” – St Theodore the Studite (759-826) – Catechesis 47 (The Great Catecheses)
PRAYER – Father, All-Powerful and ever-living God, today we rejoice in the holy men and women of every time and place. May their prayers bring us your forgiveness and love. Blessed Virgin, Mother of God, our trusted guide and loving mother and all you holy Saints of the Church Triumphant, pray for us! We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in union with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Saint of the Day – 1 November – Blessed Peter Paul Navarra SJ (1560-1622) Priest, Martyr, Missionary, Writer – born as Pietro Paolo in 1560 at Laino Borgo, Cosenza, Italy and died by being burned alive on 1 November 1622 at Ximabara, Nagasaki, Japan. As he was burning he prayed aloud the Litany of Our Lady. He is also known as Paul Navarro and Pietro Paolo Navarro. Additional Feast with the 205 Martyrs of Japan is 10 September.
Peter Paul Navarro was born in the small town of Laino, Basilicata in southern Italy. In 1579 when he was eighteen, he entered the Jesuit novitiate in Nola and requested to be sent to the Japanese mission. His request was granted and in 1584 he was sent to Goa, India for his studies and was Ordained in 1585. A year later in August, 1586 he arrived in Hirado, western Japan. There he spent a year studying Japanese and served in mission posts in Shikoku and Honshu. Fr Navarro knew that to be successful in evangelising the Japanese, he himself, must become one of them and this motivated him to speak and write fluently in the language. To prove to the Japanese that they did not have to relinquish their customs and cultural traditions to become Christians, he dressed like them, ate their food and used their type of furniture.
Fr Navarro went to northern Kyushu which became the centre of his missionary activity after he was expelled from his Hirado missions because of persecutions against Christians. Later, in 1614 when all foreign missionaries from Japan were expelled by the edict of Shogun Iyeyasu, Fr Navarro was one of the two dozen Jesuits who went underground rather than leave the country, as more than eighty other Priests had to. For the next seven years, he went about his priestly duties in Shimabara, western Kyushu, disguised as a beggar, wood seller, tradesman or farmer. In these disguises, Fr Navarro was able to enter the homes of Christians to celebrate Mass or administer the Sacraments at night to avoid being captured, since he was being hunted. During this period he wrote in Japanese, “An apology of the Christian Faith against the Calumnies of the Pagans.”
Peter Onizuka and Dennis Fujishima were the two lay Catechists helping Fr Navarro during his final years in Shimabara. Peter was a teenager whose father housed fugitive Priests. Dennis was in his forties and had been a Christian as a young man. Both of them were with Fr Navarro and his servant, Clement Yuemon, after Christmas in 1621 when they were all captured by priest-hunters. They were brought before the daimyo of Arima who treated the captives with great respect. The daimyo detained them in a house owned by a Christian where they were cared for by Christians and he even allowed Fr Navarro to celebrate Mass. He also came frequently to converse with Fr Navarro. The daimyo was prepared to release them if they could renounce Christianity, an offer which they turned down. The daimyo wanted to transfer them secretly to Macao where they could be set free. But before he could do anything, he received orders from the shogun that the three were to die by slow fire.
When Fr Navarro was informed of his impending death, he was happy that his prayers had been answered and wrote to his Jesuit friend, Fr John Baptist Zola, saying: “I give infinite thanks to the Lord and I ask you to thank him with me. I also ask your prayers for perseverance until my final breath.”
On the day of execution, 1 November, Fr Navarro celebrated the Mass of All Saints and the two Catechists, Peter and Dennis, who had asked to enter the Society, pronounced their Jesuit vows during that final Mass. While waiting for the executioners, Fr Navarro wrote his last letter to Fr Matthew de Couros: “For many years I have prayed for this great grace from God but always with some fear, that I would not be heard because of my many sins. The Father of mercies now gives me this long-desired grace. May he be blessed forever.”
In the afternoon the four prisoners escorted by fifty soldiers and a large crowd of Christian,s made their way to the place of execution, with Fr Navarro chanting the Litany of Our Lady and his companions joyfully sang the responses. As they approached the shore, the Martyrs saw the standing stakes awaiting them. The daimyo had instructed the soldiers to place the wood around the stakes so as not to prolong the prisoners’ suffering.
The three Jesuits, Frs Peter Paul Navarro, Peter Onizuka and Dennis Fujishima and their faithful servant, Clement Yeumon, alight in flames, gave final heroic witness of their great love for God.
They were beatified by Blessed Pope Pius IX together with another 201 Martyrs of Japan on 7 May 1867.
All Saints Day – 1 November (Solemnity) – (a Holy Day of Obligation) Instituted to honour all the saints, known and unknown. It owes its origin in the Western Church to the dedication of the Roman Pantheon in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the Martyrs by Pope Saint Boniface IV in 609, the anniversary of which was celebrated at Rome on 13 May. Pope Saint Gregory III consecrated a Chapel in the Vatican Basilica in honour of All Saints, designating 1 November as their feast. Pope Gregory IV extended it’s observance to the whole Church. It has a vigil and octave and is a holy day of obligation – the eve is popularly celebrated as Hallowe’en. Patronage – Arzignano, Italy.
St Amabilis of Auvergne St Austremonius St Benignus of Dijon St Cadfan St Caesarius of Africa St Caesarius of Damascus St Ceitho St Cledwyn of Wales Bl Clemens Kyuemon St Cyrenia of Tarsus St Dacius of Damascus St Deborah the Prophetess St Dingad Bl Dionysius Fugixima St Floribert of Ghent St Gal of Clermont St Genesius of Lyon St Germanus of Montfort St Harold the King St James of Persia St Jerome Hermosilla St John of Persia St Julian of Africa St Juliana of Tarsus St Lluís Estruch Vives St Marcel of Paris St Mary the Slave St Mathurin St Meigan St Nichole St Pabiali of Wales St Pere Josep Almató Ribera Auras St Peter Absalon Blessed Peter Paul Navarra SJ (1560-1622) Priest and Martyr Bl Petrus Onizuka Sadayu St Rachel the Matriarch St Ruth the Matriarch St Salaun of Leseven St Severinus of Tivoli St Valentin Faustino Berri Ochoa St Vigor of Bayeux
Saint of the Day – 31 October – Blessed Thomas Bellacci TOSF (1370-1447) Lay Friar of the Third Order of St Francis, Penitent, Confessor, renowned Missionary Preacher, Papal legate – born as Tommaso in 1370 at Florence, Italy and died on 31 October 1447 in Rieti, Italy of natural causes. Patronages – butchers, penitents, missionaries. He is also known as Thomas of Florence, Tommaso Bellacci. Blessed Thomas is venerated by the Franciscans on 25 October.
Bellacci was a butcher and became a religious after turning his life around from one of sin to one of penance and servitude to God. He travelled across the Middle East and the Italian peninsula to preach the Gospel and against heresies. He drew many young men to follow in his path of penitence.
Tommaso Bellacci was born in Florence in 1370 in the neighbourhood of the Ponte alle Grazie. His parents came from Castello di Linari in Val d’Elsa. His father was a butcher. He got into a good deal of trouble on various occasions during his youth and led such a wild and dissolute life as an adolescent, that parents warned their sons to keep their distance from him. Persuaded by a friend to change his ways, he tried to enter some religious order but found strong resistance to being accepted. He became a butcher like his father.
Bellacci was accused of having committed a serious crime in 1400, which, in fact he had not committed and so, he wandered the streets of Florence in great turmoil and fear, until he met a Priest who listened to his story, took him in and helped clear his name. The incident shocked him so much – coupled with his great gratitude to the Priest – that he shed his life of sin and decided to live a life of total penance and service to God. He joined the Third Order of Saint Francis in Fiesole under the spiritual guidance of Friar Giovanni da Stronconio. He entered as a lay brother Friar and became noted for keeping vigils and fasting. He was known for his diet of water and vegetables.
So great was Thomas’ adherence to the literal interpretation and implementation of the Franciscan Rule, that he was made the Novice Master, despite the fact that he was not a Priest. In this role, he led by example. He became part of the Observant reform and in 1414 accompanied another Friar to Naples to introduce the Observant practice in the Franciscan houses there. He remained in Naples for six years, preaching and helping to spread the reform.
After his sojourn and work in Naples, Thomas founded Monasteries in Corscia. Pope Martin V called him to preach in the northern cities against the “Fraticelli” who were a group of heretical Franciscans and was also made Vicar General at the Pope’s behest. In 1438, he and Albert Berdini of Sarteano were sent to the Middle East to cities such as Damascus and Cairo in order to promote the reunification of the Eastern and Western Churches when he was over 70. Alberto had to return home due to his ill health which left Bellacci to continue the mission alone.
He attempted to travel to Ethiopia but the Turks captured him three times. The Florentine merchants helped to secure his release twice. The third time he was again captured and suffered enslavement and persecution for several years, by now, he was perhaps in his eighties. Pope Eugene IV helped secure his release. He returned home in 1444 and spent his time in a Convent in Abruzzo until he died in 1446.
Nevertheless, Thomas still wished to return to the Orient but he died in Rieti while on a visit to Rome to request the Pope’s permission to return there.
All Hallow’s Eve: Eve of the Feast of All Hallows, that is, All Saints Day. Halloween is a day on which many quaint customs are revived. It is popular in the United States and Scotland and in the US has become the second largest secular holiday of the year.
St Ampliatus St Antoninus of Milan St Apelles of Eraclea Sintica St Arnulf of Novalesa St Begu of Hackness Bl Christopher of Romagna Bl Dominic Collins St Epimachus of Melusio St Erth of Cornwall St Foillan of Fosses Bl Irene Stefani St Jesús Miquel Girbau Bl Leon Nowakowski St Lucilla of Rome Bl Maria de Requesens Bl Modesta Moro Briz St Narcissus St Notburga of Cologne St Quentin Bl Pilar Isabel Sánchez Suárez St Stachys of Constantinople Blessed Thomas Bellacci TOSF (1370-1447)Lay Friar
Saint of the Day – 30 October – Saint Germanus of Capua (Died c 541) Bishop of Capua, Italy, Confessor, Papal Legate. St Germanus was a close friend of St Benedict of Nursia. The Roman Matyrology states: St Germanus, Bishop and Confessor, a man of great sanctity, whose soul, at the hour of death, was seen by St Benedict taken to heaven by angels.
Of Germanus’s life before he was Bishop, nothing is known with certainty. The only source to provide information about this period is a hagiography penned in the ninth century. It records his father’s name as Amantius and his mother’s as Juliana. He was born in Capua in the 470s. After his father’s death, he sold his inheritance with his mother’s blessing in order to devote himself to the ascetic life. When on the death of Bishop Alexander the Capuans elected him their Bishop, Germanus at first refused the honour before being persuaded to accept.
shortly after his election, he was made a member of the legation sent by Pope Hormisdas to the court of the Emperor Justin I in Constantinople, the purpose of which was to negotiate an end to the Acacian schism between the western and eastern churches. The legation consisted of Germanus, the Alexandrian Deacon Dioscorus, a Bishop named John, a Roman Deacon named Felix, a Roman Priest named Blandus and a notary named Peter. They gathered in Rome between January and March 519. In both the Liber pontificalis and the letters of Pope Hormisdas, Germanus is always named first, indicating that he was the leader of the group.
Although the two previous missions had yielded no results, that of 519 took place in propitious circumstances. It had the support of the Ostrogothic king Theoderic and of the new Emperor and Patriarch in Constantinople, Justin I and John of Cappadocia. In a letter to Justin’s nephew, Count Justinian, Pope Hormisdas specifies that the members of his legation were selected for their “quality.”
Tjhis image is from the Ghent Altarpiece – “Popes and Bishops”
Germanus’s itinerary on his legation is known primarily from various letters. They crossed the Adriatic to Vlorë, then passed through Ohrid on their way to Thessaloniki, where Germanus celebrated Holy Mass. They were met by Justinian ten miles outside of Constantinople. According to a letter from Germanus to Hormisdas dated 22 April 519, the population of the city received them with cheering. They met the Emperor and separately the Senate on the Monday of Holy Week (24–31 March). On Thursday, they met with the Eemperor, Senate and Patriarch together in the Palace to present the libellus Hormisdae, the document entrusted to them by the Pope outlining his conditions for the healing of the schism. The conditions were accepted. Germanus and his colleagues remained in the east for another year securing the acceptance of the Patriarchs outside of Constantinople. On 9 July 520, the Emperor wrote to Pope Hormisdas to commend his legates. The Liber pontificalis credits Germanus with deftly handling the controversy, the calculation of the date of Easter and the reintegration of Bishops deposed by the Emperor Anastasius I.
Little is known of Germanus’s life in his own Diocese after the end of his successful mission to the east. According to the tenth-century Chronicon Salernitanum, Germanus changed the dedication of the Basilica of Capua, from the Apostles, to Saints Stephen and Agatha, after depositing there some of their relics that he had obtained as a reward, from the Emperor himself. According to his eighth- or ninth-century biography, Bishop Sabinus of Canosa was an acquaintance of Germanus. Both went on papal missions to fight monophysitism in the eastern churches, Sabinus in 536. Sabinus was also close to Benedict of Nursia. Pope Gregory the Great in his Dialogues mentions how Benedict, praying atop Monte Cassino, had a vision of the soul of Germanus in the form of a ball of fire being carried to heaven by angels. He later learned that this vision coincided with Germanus’s death.
The death of Germanus can be placed in early 541 because of an inscription which gives the start of his successor Victor’s pontificate in that year. After his death, Germanus was venerated as a saint in southern Italy throughout the early Middle Ages. In his Dialogues, Gregory the Great prays to Germanus to intercede on behalf of the soul of a Deacon, named Paschasius in Purgatory. The image below shows St Germanus and Paschasius meet in the afterlife (upper left corner), from De balneis Puteolanis by Peter of Eboli (twelfth century).
When Count Lando I of Capua relocated the city of Capua in 849, Germanus’s body was moved with it. In late 873, following a campaign against the Arabs harassing Capua, the Emperor Louis II of Italy took some of Germanus’s relics to Monte Cassino. The village at the foot of the hill, ancient Casinum, became known as San Germano. The Empress Engelberga took another part of his relics to endow the Monastery of San Sisto that she founded in Piacenza in 874. Since the Vita sancti Germani episcopi Capuani (Life of Saint Germanus) mentions neither of these transfers, it was probably finished before 873
St Arilda St Asterius of Amasea Blessed Benvenuta Bojani OP (1254-1292) Biography: https://anastpaul.com/2019/10/30/saint-of-the-day-30-october-blessed-benvenuta-bojani-op-1254-1292/ St Egelnoth the Good St Eutropia of North Africa St Gerard of Potenza St Germanus of Capua (Died c 541) Bishop St Herbert of Tours Bl Jean-Michel Langevin Bl John Slade St Lucanus of Lagny St Marcellus the Centurion St Marcian of Syracuse St Maximus of Cumae St Nanterius of Saint-Mihiel Bl Oleksa Zarytsky (1912-1963) Martyr Bl Raymond of Cardona St Saturninus of Cagliari St Serapion of Antioch St Talarica of Scotland Bl Terrence Albert O’Brien St Theonestus of Philippi St Zenobia of Aegea St Zenobius of Aegea — Martyrs in Africa: A group of 100 to 200 Christians murdered in the early persecutions, and about whom we know nothing except that they died for their faith.
Quote/s of the Day – 29 October – the Memorial of Blessed Chiara “Luce” Badano (1971 –1990)
“I care only about doing the will of God, doing it well, in the present moment.”
“I must not exploit Him but just love Him and nothing else.”
“I discovered that Forsaken Jesus is the key to unity with God and I want to choose Him as my first Spouse and be prepared for when He comes.”
“Just as its easy for me to learn the alphabet, so must it also be, to live the Gospel. I have re-discovered this phrase that says: “Give and it shall be given to you.”
“I have nothing left but I still have my heart and with that, I can always love.”
One Minute Reflection – 29 October – Thursday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time, Ephesians 6:10-20, Psalms 144:1, 2, 9-10, Luke 13:31-35 and the Memorial of Blessed Chiara “Luce” Badano (1971 –1990)
“How often would I have gathered your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings and you were not willing!” – Luke 13:34
REFLECTION – “Thus shall the spiritual thirst of Christ be quenched. This is His thirst – His love and longing for us that goes on enduring until we see the Day of Judgement. For of us who are to be saved and be Christ’s joy and bliss, some are alive now, while others- are ‘yet unborn and so, it will go on until that Day. His thirst and loving longing, is to have us all, integrated in Himself, to His great enjoyment. At least, so I see it (…) Because He is God, He is ‘supreme blessedness and never has been nor ever shall be other. His eternal blessedness can neither be increased nor diminished (…) Because He is human – this too is known by the creed and by the revelations – it was shown, that He, though God, suffered pain, passion, and death, for love of us and to bring us to blessedness (…) Since Christ is our Head, He must be both glorious and impassable. But since He is also the Body, in which all His members are joined (Eph 1:23), He is not yet fully either of these. Therefore, the same desire and thirst that He had upon the cross (Jn 19:28) – and this desire, longing and thirst was with Him from the very first, I believe He has still and shall continue to have, until the last soul to be saved has arrived at it’s blessedness. For just as there is in God the quality of sympathy and pity, so too in Him is there, that of thirst and longing. And in virtue of this longing which is in Christ, we in turn, long for Him too. No soul comes to heaven without it. This quality of longing and thirst springs from God’s eternal goodness just as pity does (…) and, this thirst will persist in Him, as long as we are in need, drawing us up, to His blessedness.” – Blessed Julian of Norwich (c 1342-c 1416) (aged 73–74) Anchorite, Mystic (Revelations of divine love, ch. 31)
PRAYER – Shed Your clear light on our hearts, Lord, so that walking continually in the way of Your commandments, we may never be deceived or misled. May Your loving Heart draw us more and more to Itself, so that Your love may be ours. Grant that the prayers of Blessed Chiara Badano, who always held Your Light up for others to see by, give us strength. Through Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 29 October – Thursday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time and the Memorial of St Gaetano Errico (1791-1860), Founder of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary
Prayer to the Two Loving Hearts By St John Eudes (1501-1680)
O Jesus, only Son of God, only Son of Mary, I offer You the most loving Heart of Your divine Mother which is more precious and pleasing to You than all hearts.
O Mary, Mother of Jesus, I offer you the most adorable Heart of your well-beloved Son, who is the life and love and joy of your Heart.
Blessed be the Most Loving Heart and Sweet Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the most glorious Virgin Mary, His Mother, in eternity and forever. Amen
Saint of the Day – 29 October – Blessed Chiara “Luce” Badano (1971 –1990) Laywoman – born on 29 October 1971 in Sassello, Italy and died on 7 October 1990 (aged 18) at the place of her birth. At age nine she joined the Focolare Movement and received the nickname “Luce” by the founder Chiara Lubich. When she was 16 she was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma, a painful bone cancer. Chiara succumbed to the cancer on October 7, 1990, after a two-year battle with the disease. She was Beatified on 25 September 2010 at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Divine Love in Rome. Patronages – Youth.
n 1971, after praying and hoping for a baby for more than 10 years, Ruggero and Teresa Badano of in the small village of Sassello, in Italy, welcomed a little girl whom they named Chiara.
Even at the age of four, Chiara seemed aware of the needs of others. She would sort through her toys to give some to poor children and she would never give away just the old or broken ones. She invited less-fortunate people into the family’s home for holidays and visited the elderly at a retirement centre. When other children were sick and confined to bed, Chiara visited them. She loved the stories of the Gospel and loved to attend Mass.
When she was 9, Chiara became involved with the Focolare movement and it’s branch for young people. The group focused on the image of the forsaken Christ as the means to overcome difficult times. Chiara later wrote that, “I discovered that Jesus, forsaken, is the key to unity with God and I want to choose Him as my only spouse. I want to be ready to welcome Him when He comes. To prefer Him above all else.”
While Chiara was a conscientious student, she struggled in school and even failed her first year of high school. She was often teased in school for her strong beliefs and was given the nickname “Sister” but, she was also very popular. She had a lot of friends, she played sports and she loved to sing and dance. But when asked, she said she did not try to bring Jesus to her friends with words. She tried to bring Jesus to them with her example and how she lived her life.
During the summer of 1988, when she was 16 years old, Chiara had a life-changing experience in Rome with the Focolare Movement. She wrote to her parents, “This is a very important moment for me – it is an encounter with Jesus Forsaken. It hasn’t been easy to embrace this suffering but this morning Chiara Lubich explained to the children that they have to be the spouse of Jesus Forsaken.” After this trip she started to correspond regularly with Chiara Lubich. She then asked for her new name as this was going to be the start of a new life for her. Chiara Lubich gave her the name Chiara Luce. This was a kind of a play on words since in Italian “Chiara” is a common girl’s name, taken for example from the name of St Clare of Assisi but it is also an everyday word meaning “clear.” “Luce” is occasionally found as a girl’s name in Italy, though it is mostly secular rather than religious and it, too, is also an everyday word meaning “light.” So “Chiara Luce” means “clear light.” Lubich wrote to Chiara that “your luminous face shows your love for Jesus,” which is why she gave her the name Luce.
In this same summer of 1988, Chiara felt a sting of pain in her shoulder while playing tennis. At first she thought nothing of it but when the pain continued to be present, she underwent a series of tests. The doctors then discovered she had a rare and painful form of bone cancer, osteogenic sarcoma. In response, Chiara simply declared, “It’s for you, Jesus; if you want it, I want it, too.”
Throughout the treatment process, Chiara refused to take any morphine so she could stay aware. She felt it was important to know her illness and pain so she could offer up her sufferings. She said, “It reduces my lucidity and there’s only one thing I can do now: to offer my suffering to Jesus because I want to share as much as possible in His sufferings on the cross.” During her stays in the hospital, she would take the time to go on walks with another patient who was struggling with depression. These walks were beneficial to the other patient but caused Chiara great pain. Her parents often encouraged her to stay and rest but she would simply reply, “I’ll be able to sleep later on.”
One of her doctors, Dr Antonio Delogu, said, “Through her smile, and through her eyes full of light, she showed us that death doesn’t exist; only life exists.” A friend from the FocColare Movement said, “At first we thought we’d visit her to keep her spirits up but very soon we understood that, in fact, we were the ones who needed her. Her life was like a magnet drawing us to her.”
While undergoing a painful medical procedure, Chiara was visited by a lady, “When the doctors began to carry out this small but quite demanding, procedure, a lady with a very beautiful and luminous smile came in. She came up to me and took me by the hand and her touch filled me with courage. In the same way that she arrived, she disappeared, and I could no longer see her. But my heart was filled with an immense joy and all fear left me. In that moment I understood that if we’re always ready for everything, God sends us many signs of his love.”
Chiara’s faith and spirit never dwindled even after the cancer left her unable to walk and a CAT scan showed that any hope of remission was gone. In response, she simply said, “If I had to choose between walking again and going to heaven, I wouldn’t hesitate. I would choose heaven.” On 19 July 1989, Chiara almost died of a haemorrhage. Her faith did not falter as she said, “Don’t shed any tears for me. I’m going to Jesus. At my funeral, I don’t want people crying but singing with all their hearts.”
Cardinal Saldarini, Archbishop of Turin, Italy, heard about Chiara’s illness and visited her at the hospital. He asked her, “The light in your eyes is splendid. Where does it come from?” Chiara simply replied, “I try to love Jesus as much as I can.”
Before she died, she told her mother, “Oh Mama, young people…young people…they are the future. You see, I can’t run anymore but how I would like to pass on to them the torch, like in the Olympics! Young people have only one life and it’s worthwhile to spend it well.”
When Chiara realised she was not going to get better, she started to plan for her “wedding” (her funeral) with her mother. She chose the music, songs, flowers and the readings for Mass. She wanted to be buried in her “wedding dress” a white dress with a pink waist, because her death would allow her to become the bride of Christ. She told her mother, “When you’re getting me ready, Mum, you have to keep saying to yourself, ‘Chiara Luce is now seeing Jesus.’“
During her final hours, Chiara made her final confession and received the Eucharist. She had her family and friends pray with her, “Come Holy Spirit.” Chiara Badano died at 4AM on 7 October 1990, The Feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, with her parents at her bedside. Her final words were, “Bye, Mum, be happy, because I am.” Two thousand people attended her funeral; the mayor of Sassello shut down the town so people would be able to attend.
Chiara’s cause for sainthood was promoted by the Most Reverend Livio Maritano, the former Bishop of Acqui Terme, Italy, beginning in 1999. It was through this process that she was declared a “Venerable” on 3 July 2008. In December 2009, Pope Benedict XVI acknowledged the miracle of a young Italian boy whose parents interceded to Chiara to heal him from meningitis that was destroying his organs. His doctors could not medically explain his sudden healing. 25000 people attended her Beatification ceremony which was held at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Divine Love in Rome.
She was a normal, everyday girl and possibly a normal, everyday saint. Chiara’s brief life showed us how much one person can accomplish in God’s name.
St Abraham Kidunaia St Abraham of Rostov St Achahildis of Wendelstein St Anne of Mount Olympus Blessed Chiara “Luce” Badano(1971 –1990) Laywoman
St Colman of Kilmacduagh St Dodone of Wallers-en-Fagne St Donatus of Corfu St Ermelinda of Meldaert St Eusebia of Bergamo St Felician of Carthage St Gaetano Errico (1791-1860) Biography: https://anastpaul.com/2018/10/29/saint-of-the-day-29-october-st-gaetano-errico-1791-1860/ St Honoratus of Vercelli St John of Autun St Kennera St Mary of Edessa St Narcissus of Gerona St Narcissus of Jerusalem (c 99-c 215) His Life: https://anastpaul.com/2019/10/29/saint-of-the-day-29-october-st-narcissus-of-jerusalem-c-99-c-215/ St Sigolinus of Stavelot St Stephen of Cajazzo St Terence of Metz St Theodore of Vienne St Zenobius of Sidon — Martyrs of Douai – (160 saints and beati): 160 priests, laymen and religious who studied at the English College in Douai, France, then returned to minister to covert Catholics in England during a period of government persecution of the Church, and were murdered for their work.
Martyrs of Lucania – (4 saints): A group of Christians executed together for their faith. Only their names have survived – Felician, Hyacinth, Lucius and Quintus. Their martyrdom occurred in Lucania, southern Italy.
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: • Blessed Arsenio Merino Miguel • Blessed Benito Paradela Novoa • Blessed Joaquina Rey Aguirre • Blessed José Ruiz Bruixola • Blessed Maurilio Tobar González • Blessed Ponciano Nieto Asensio • Blessed Victoria Arregui Guinea
“In those days he departed to the mountain to pray and he spent the night in prayer to God.” – Luke 6:12
REFLECTION – “So the Lord prays, not to entreat for Himself but to intercede for me. Although the Father placed all things in the power of His Son, yet the Son, in order to fulfil the form of a man, thinks that the Father must be entreated for us because He is our Advocate. If He is an Advocate, He must intercede on account of my sins.
It says, “He passed the whole night in prayer.” A model is given to you. A form is prescribed which you must imitate. Unless I am mistaken, it is nowhere found that He prayed with the apostles. Everywhere He entreats alone, for human prayers do not grasp the counsels of God, nor can anyone share with Christ, in the inward mysteries.” – St Ambrose (340-397) Father and Doctor (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke, 5.)
PRAYER – Lord God, You taught us to call upon Your name, through the preaching of the Apostles. Open our eyes each day, grant that we may see Jesus Your Son at our side, open our ears that we may hear His voice, open our mouths, that we may beg forgiveness and proclaim the good news, as we follow the way Your Son carved out for us. At the intercession of Sts Simon and Jude, may Your Church continue to grow and to hope in Your love. We make our prayer through Jesus our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Saint of the Day – 28 October – Saint Fidelis of Como (Died c 304) Soldier-Saint Martyr during the reign of Emperor Maximian.
The name of Fidelis is often repeated in Como, where an ancient, beautiful Romanesque Church, with apses and dome, is dedicated to the Saint of today. A saint, therefore, typical of the region and the city of Como, almost as much as St Abundius, patron saint of Como.
Faithful was this Martyr in the first centuries and the news about him is much scarcer than what his clear fame would suggest. He was probably a Christian missionary, sent by the Bishop of Milan to the shores of the lake, still inhabited by infidels. In fact, a somewhat late Passion gives the name of Materno, Bishop of Milan, who, in the third century, would have sent Fidelis to convert the idolaters of the region.
Preaching and teaching, St Fidelis would have reached the northern end of the lake basin. Here he would suffer a quick death, perhaps in the persecution of Maximian.
Another tradition says that he was a soldier of the imperial legions, a deserter, with two companions, when Diocletian and Maximian published the first edicts of persecution against Christians, aimed at purging the army and putting public officials under investigation.
Arrested in Como, Fidelis was allegedly tried, sentenced and finally beheaded. After his death, the references to St Fidelis are, if not more numerous, at least more precise. Ennodio, narrating the life of Saint Anthony of Lérins, remembers that his first refuge was at the burial of St Fidelis, where, he adds, “the Lario puts down the threat of its white rams, when the earth opposes its harsh rest of the banks.”
This description may suggest that the Martyr’s burial was actually in Como, on the narrowest and steepest end of the large, often stormy lake. But other sources testify in favour of the burial of St Fidelis in Samolaco, that is, at the other end of the lake, in the very place of the beheading. It is certain that even before the year 1000, the relics of Fidelis were transferred to Como, in that Church – until then dedicated to Santa Eufemia – which was to take the name of the Martyr and honour him over the centuries.
Church of St Fidelis in Como
But it seemed that the glory of the city by the lake was not enough for the ancient Martyr. In 1572, St Charles Borromeo solemnly transported the remains to Milan, to a Church then built in the centre of the city. And in the name of the Church of St Fidelis, the memory of the Martyr of Como also survives in the Lombard metropolis, from where he left a confident and faithful missionary.
At Milan, in 1559, St Charles Borromeo commissioned the church of St Fidelis by the artist/architect Pellegrino Tibaldi.
Church of St Fidelis in Milan, commissioned by St Charles Borromeo
In the Diocese of Como, St Fidelis’ memory is celebrated today.
Lord of Miracles/Señor de los Milagros de Nazarenas: A mid-17th-century painting of the Crucifixion that is venerated in Lima, Peru and its celebration involves one of the largest processions in the world.
It was painted by an unnamed African taken to Peru as a slave from what is now Angola. Above the Cross is the Holy Spirit and God the Father. Below and to the right of Jesus, is His mother, the Virgin Mary with her heart pierced by a sword of sorrow. Kneeling and weeping at the foot of the cross is St Mary Magdalene.
The name originated on 13 November 1655 when everything around it was destroyed in an earthquake that left the painting standing and undamaged. Christ is shown enduring the pain of crucifixion. Every year in October, hundreds of thousands of devotees from all races and economic backgrounds participate in a procession honouring the image through the streets of Lima. Boulevards are decorated in purple on 18,19 and the final Feast 28 October to celebrate the Lord of Miracles.
St Abdias of Babylon St Abraham of Ephesus St Alberic of Stavelot St Anastasia the Elder St Anglinus of Stavelot St Cyril of Rome St Cyrilla of Rome St Diomedes the Younger St Dorbhene of Iona St Eadsin of Canterbury St Elius of Lyon St Faro of Meaux St Fidelis of Como (Died c 304) Soldier-Saint Martyr St Genesius of Thiers St Gioan Dat St Godwin of Stavelot St Maria Ascuncion St Remigius of Lyons St Rodrigo Aguilar Aleman St Salvius of Amiens — Martyrs of Avila – 3 saints: Two sisters and a brother who, during a period of persecution, fled Talavera de la Reina, Spain, were caught and executed. Martyrs: Christeta, Sabina and Vincent. 303 in Avila, Spain.
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: • Blessed Claudio Julían García San Román • Blessed Maria Asuncion
One Minute Reflection – 27 October – Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 5:21-33,Psalms 128:1-2, 3,4-5, Luke 13:18-21 and the Memorial of St Emeline of Boulancourt (c 1115-c 1178)
Again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch of dough was leavened.” … Luke 13:20-21
REFLECTION – “There are three measures – of the flesh, of the soul and of the spirit. This is truer of the spirit in which we all live. The woman, who prefigures the church, mixes with them the virtue of spiritual doctrine, until the whole hidden inner person of the heart is leavened and the heavenly bread arises to grace.
The doctrine of Christ is fittingly called leaven because the bread is Christ. The apostle said, “For we, being many, are one bread, one body.” Leavening happens, when the flesh does not lust against the Spirit, nor the Spirit against the flesh. We mortify the deeds of the flesh and, the soul, aware that through the breath of God, it has received the breath of life, shuns the earthly germs of worldly needs.” – St Ambrose (340-397) (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke, 7)
PRAYER – True light of the world, Lord Jesus Christ, as You enlighten all men for their salvation, give us grace, we pray, to herald Your coming by preparing the ways of justice and of peace. Help us Lord, that we may sprout and bear fruit, fitting to grow and be a home of comfort to our neighbour. By the prayers of St Emeline of Boulancourt, may we too be beacons of Your Light and of the glory of Your Kingdom. Through Jesus our Lord, Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Saint of the Day – 27 October – Saint Emeline of Boulancourt (c 1115- c 1178) Virgin, Lay Sister, Hermitess, living according to Cistercian rule, Penitent, Prophetess – born as Emeline d’Yèvres in c 1115 in the Diocese of Troyes, France and died in c 1178 at Longeville, France of natural causes. Patronage – single lay women.
Born in the 12th century in France, Emeline was a devout soul who deeply desired to do God’s will. She was led to the male Cistercian Abbey of Boulancourt at Longeville, France, where she established herself, with the Monks approval in a barn of Perte-Sèche which belonged to the Abbey.
There, Emeline led a solitary life a few kilometres from the Abbey and followed the Cistercian rule as much as she could, including sharing in the hours of labour. The rest of her days were given to the Lord in prayer and meditation, enhanced by fasting, she fasted totally three days of the week, wore the hair shirt and engaged in other forms of mortification, for example, Emeline went barefoot in both summer and winter.
Emeline’s prophetic gifts soon attracted the attention of many who came to find her to consult with her for spiritual guidance, for her reputation for holiness was great.
She was known to predict with accuracy, future events but was most concerned with the visitor’s relationship with God. Humility marked her interaction with everyone and she never used her heavenly gifts for selfish gain.
Emeline died in c 1178 and was buried under the altar of the Couvent des Dames, attached to the Abbey of Boulancourt where a perpetual flame was maintained at her tomb. Then, when the chapel was destroyed, her remains were transferred, along with those of Sainte Asceline and Saint Gossuin, to the Church of Boulancourt. Sadly, nothing remains of these tombs today after the violent excesses of the French Revolution.
Since she neither married nor professed vows with any religious community, St Emeline is known as the patron saint of single lay women.
Prayer O God, who called Your handmaid blessed Emeline, to seek You before all else, grant that, serving You, through her example and intercession, with a pure and humble heart, we may come at last to Your eternal glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen
Note 1: The first Cistercian Monastery for women, Le Tart Abbey, was established at Tart-l’Abbaye in the Diocese of Langres (now Dijon), in the year 1125, by nuns from the Benedictine Monastery of Juilly and with the co-operation of Saint Stephen Harding, Abbot of Cîteaux. At Juilly, a dependence of Molesme Abbey, Humbeline, the Saint Bernard of Clairvaux’ sister, lived and died. The sisters became known as the Trappistines.
Note 2: Today we have “extern sisters” who are members of the Monastic family. They make perpetual rather than solemn profession. Theirs is a vocation within a vocation. They are contemplatives but they are called to serve the monastic community, so that the contemplative life and the observance of enclosure, can be better lived by the nuns. Externs serve the community and act as liaisons of the community to those outside.
St Capitolina St Colman of Senboth-Fola St Colman of Templeshambo St Desiderius of Auxerre St Elesbaan of Ethiopia St Emeline of Boulancourt (c 1115-c 1178) Virgin, Lay Sister, Hermitess St Erotheides St Florentius of Trois-Châteaux St Frumentius (Died c 383) “Apostle to Ethiopia“ St Frumentius’ Biography: https://anastpaul.com/2018/10/27/saint-of-the-day-27-october-st-frumentius-died-c-383-apostle-to-ethiopia/ St Gaudiosus of Naples Bl Goswin of Clairvaux St Namatius of Clermont St Odrian of Waterford Bl Salvador Mollar Ventura St Thraseas of Eumenia St Uni
Saint of the Day – 26 October – Blessed Damian dei Fulcheri OP (Died 1484) Dominican Priest and Friar, renowned Preacher – born at Fulcheri, Liguria, Italy and died in 1484 at Modena, Reggio d’Emilia, Italy of natural causes.
One of the bright lights of the fifteenth century was Damian dei Furcheri. Unfortunately we know very little about him, expect that he lived at a time and place not noted for sanctity and he was known as a holy man.
Damian was born in Furcheri, near Genoa, at the end of the fourteenth century. His people were rich and noble and also pious. We know nothing of his youth, except the not-too-revealing fact, that when he was a baby, he was kidnapped by a lunatic. His parents prayed to Our Lady and the baby was returned unharmed.
Damian entered the Order of Preachers at Genoa and became a diligent student and a model Dominican. He was to be known especially for his preaching. The field of his endeavours was Italy. He seems never to have left the country.
By the force of his preaching, he inspired many hundreds of sinners to repentance and, since the fifteenth century produced many sinners who needed such preaching, he was kept supplied with works for a long lifetime.
Damian died in a little village near Modena, in 1884 and immediately became the object of much pious speculation, because of the miracles worked at his tomb. He was not, however, Beatified until 1848, though his relics were by that time widely distributed and his cult well known.
Blessed Damian was Beatified on 4 August 1848 by Blessed Pope Pius IX.
Dominican Saints
Prayer God of truth, for the salvation of the faithful You endowed Blessed Damian with wondrous virtues and powers of speech. Through his prayers, may we hear Your word with an open heart and hold fast to it with patience. 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
St Adalgott of Einsiedeln St St Alanus of Quimper St Albinus of Buraburg St Alfred the Great St Alorus of Quimper St Amandus of Strasburg St Amandus of Worms St Aneurin St Aptonius of Angouleme St Arnold of Queralt St Bean of Mortlach St Bernard de Figuerols Blessed Bonaventura of Potenza OFM Conv (1651-1711) His Story: https://anastpaul.com/2019/10/26/saint-of-the-day-26-october-blessed-bonaventura-of-potenza-ofm-conv-1651-1711/ St Cedd Bl Celina Chludzinska St Cuthbert of Canterbury Blessed Damian dei Fulcheri OP (Died 1484)
St Eadfrid St Eata of Hexham St Pope Evaristus – (c 44 – c 107) Martyr Biography: https://anastpaul.com/2018/10/26/saint-of-the-day-26-october-st-pope-evaristus-c-44-c-108/ St Felicissimus of Carthage St Fulk of Piacenza St Gaudiosus of Salerno St Gibitrudis St Gwinoc St Humbert St Lucian St Marcian St Quadragesimus of Policastro St Rogatian of Carthage St Rusticus of Narbonne St Sigibald of Metz — Martyrs of Nicomedia – 5 saints
One Minute Reflection – 25 October – Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Readings: Exodus 22:20-26, Psalms 18:2-3, 3-4,47, 51, 1 Thessalonians 1:5-10, Matthew 22:34-40 and the Memorial of St Maurus of Pécs OSB (c 1000-c 1075)
“Master, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” … Matthew 22:36
REFLECTION – “O Lord, what is it that you require of Your servants? “Take my yoke upon you,” you say. And what sort of yoke is this? “My yoke is easy and my burden light.” Now who would not willingly bear a yoke that does not press down but gives strength; a burden that does not weigh heavily but refreshes? As You rightly added: “And you will find rest” (Mt 11:29). And what is this yoke of Yours that does not tire but gives rest? It is the first and greatest of the commandments: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart.” What could be easier, better or more agreeable than to love the goodness, beauty and love that is most perfectly Yours, O Lord my God?
Do You not offer a reward to those who keep the commandments, which are “more desirable than a heap of gold and sweeter than honey from the comb?” (Ps 19[18]:11) So in every way You offer a very ample reward, as James the apostle says: “The Lord has prepared the crown of life for those who love him” (Jas 1:12) (…) And Paul quotes these words from Isaiah: “No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor has the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9).
That first and great commandment is not only profitable for the man who keeps it or for God who commands it – the other commandments of God also make perfect, him who obeys them, improves him, instructs him and makes him illustrious; in a word, they make him good and holy. If you understand this, realise that you have been created for the glory of God and for your own eternal salvation; this is your end, this is the object of your soul and the treasure of your heart. You will be blessed if you reach this goal but miserable if you are cut off from it.” – St Robert Bellarmine (1542-1621) Doctor of the Church – The Ascent of the Mind to God, 1
PRAYER – Lord God, You fill us with Your grace and teach us true faith. Strengthen in our hearts that faith that no trials may quench the fire, that we may seek Your face in every moment and accept AND LIVE all of Your will. May You be our first thought and our last each day. Send us Your Spirit to keep the fire blazing. May the humble love and intercession of Mary Mother of our faith, be our succour and may St Maurus of Pecs intercede for us on our pilgrim way. Through Jesus Christ, Your Son our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Saint of the Day – 25 October – Saint Maurus of Pécs OSB (c 1000-c 1075) Bishop, the first Hungarian Benedictine Monk and Abbot (Ordo Sancti Benedicti – OSB), Peace-maker, Writer and Hagiographer – born in c 1000, probably in the territory of modern Hungary and died in c 1075 in Pécs, Hungary of natural causes. Patronage – Diocese of Pécs. Also known as – Maurus of Nitra, Maurus of Pannonhalma, Maurice, Mauricio, Mauro, Mór. Additional Memorial – 4 December (Benedictines).
Saint Maurus was born around the year 1000 in Hungary. The legend of Saint Emeric (1007-1031) relates that Maurus was still a child when his parents sent him to the Benedictine Monastery of St Martin in Pannonhalma for schooling.
St Maurus and St Emeric attend the Benedictine Monastery as children
St Maurus and St Emeric
At an early age, Maurus joined the Benedictine Order in Pannonhalma and became the first Hungarian-born Benedictine.
St Maurus is clothed as a Benedictine
St King Stephen I of Hungary and his son St Emeric held Maurus in very high esteem because of his piety and allegiance to the Benedictine rule. Legend has it, that Maurus was the only Monk who Emeric greeted with seven kisses on the occasion of a visit to the Monastery and, with this he wanted to demonstrate his conviction, that Maurus had kept his vow of celibacy. Apparently Emeric always used to greet with an odd number of kisses (one, three, five and thus seven to Maurus).
St Emeric greets St Maurus
St Emeric’s father, Stephen I, the first king of Hungary, appointed Maurus Abbot of the Monastery in 1029 at the latest. According to the Greater Legend of Saint Gerard, Maurus sent four monks from Pannonhalma to assist Gerard, the first Bishop of Csanád (now Cenad, Romania) in organising the new Diocese. Maurus was appointed the second Bishop of Pécs in 1036.
St Stephen appoints St Maurus as Abbot
Maurus was the prelate who finished the construction of the earliest Cathedral in Pécs in the reign of Stephen I’s successor, Peter I. He was one of the three Bishops who survived the pagan uprising that put an end to King Peter’s rule, thus the three Bishops together, celebrated the coronation of the new king, Andrew I in Székesfehérvár in 1046. Maurus’s prestige in the new king’s court is demonstrated by the deed of founding of the Benedictine Tihany Abbey from 1055 on which his signature is only preceded by that of the archbishop of Esztergom. The contemporary Palatine of the kingdom, Radó also bequeathed a part of his possessions to Maurus and the bishopric of Pécs in his last will in 1056. The Palatine’s will was confirmed by both King Andrew I and his brother and successor, Béla I.
After Béla Is’ death, Maurus succeeded in negotiating peace between the sons of the late King Géza I and Saint Ladislas and King Andreas’ son Solomon, who celebrated his treaty at Pécs Easter 1064. There, Géza and Ladislas accepted Solomon’s right to the throne and Prince Géza personally placed the crown on King Solomon’s head. Maurus was also the first ecclesiastical writer in the Kingdom of Hungary and a significant hagiographer and he wrote the biography that the prince requested. In addition to the account of Abbot Philip of Zobor, Maurus was able to base his work on his own conversations with Benedict of Hungary, in his youth in the Monastery of Pannonhalma.
St Maurus the Peace-maker
Maurus died around 1070 in Pécs. His cult began shortly after his death, and he was officially Canonised by the confirmation of his cult “from time immemorial” on 4 August 1848 by the Blessed Pope Pius IX (1846-78) (some sources call it a “beatification,” obviously incorrect, since the Martyrologium Romanum calls him Sanctus). The Canonisation took place at the request of the then Bishop of Pécs, János Scitovszky (1839-49), later Archbishop of Esztergom (1849-66) and apostolic administrator of Pécs (1849-52), Cardinal from 1853. He was the one who built the Cathedral in Esztergom, Hungary’s largest church.
Pope Pius IX emphasised that “there are Mass books from 1499 that sing the praises of Blessed Maurus and his name also appeared in martyrologies.”
Pope Pius XI declared him Co-Patron of the Diocese of Pécs on 4 December 1925.
Saint Maurus at the Bishop’s Pillar in Székesfehérvár
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