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
Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time +2020 Christ the King (Traditional Calendar)
St Alfons Arimany Ferrer St Bernard of Calvo St Canna verch Tewdr Marw St Chrysanthus St Crispin & St Crispian – (†285 or 286) Martyrs Their Story: https://anastpaul.com/2018/10/25/saints-of-the-day-25-october-sts-crispin-crispinian-%e2%80%a0285-or-286-martyrs/ St Cyrinus of Rome St Daria St Dulcardus Bl Edmund Daniel St Fronto of Périgueux St Fructus of Segovia St Gaudentius of Brescia St George of Périgueux St Goeznoveus of Leon St Guesnoveus Bl Henry of Segusio St Hilary of Javols St Hilary of Mende St Hildemarca of Fecamp St Januarius of Sassari St Lucius of Rome St Lupus of Bayeux St Mark of Rome St Maurus of Pécs OSB (c 1000-c 1075) Bishop St Miniato of Florence St Peter of Rome St Protus of Sassari St Recaredo Centelles Abad St Tabitha Blessed Thaddeus McCarthy (c 1455–1492) “White Martyr of Munster” – Bishop The Pain of Earthly Rejection but Beloved of the Lord: https://anastpaul.com/2019/10/25/saint-of-the-day-25-october-blessed-thaddeus-mccarthy-c-1455-1492-the-white-martyr-of-munster/ St Theodosius of Rome — Martyrs of Constantinople: Marciano Martirio
Martyrs of Cruz Cubierta – 5 beati: A mother, Blessed María Teresa Ferragud Roig de Masiá and her four daughters, Blessed María Joaquina Masiá Ferragud, Blessed María Vicenta Masiá Ferragud, Blessed María Felicidad Masiá Ferragud and Blessed Josefa Ramona Masiá Ferragud, all nuns, who were Martyred in the Spanish Civil War, on 25 October 1936 in Cruz Cubierta, Alzira, Valencia, Spain. They were Beatified on 11 March 2001 by St Pope John Paul II.
Forty Martyrs of England and Wales – 40 saints: Following the dispute between the Pope and King Henry VIII in the 16th century, faith questions in the British Isles became entangled with political questions, with both often being settled by torture and murder of loyal Catholics. In 1970, the Vatican selected 40 martyrs, men and women, lay and religious, to represent the full group of perhaps 300 known to have died for their faith and allegiance to the Church between 1535 and 1679. They each have their own day of memorial, but are remembered as a group on 25 October.
• Alban Roe • Alexander Briant • Ambrose Edward Barlow • Anne Line • Augustine Webster • Cuthbert Mayne • David Lewis • Edmund Arrowsmith • Edmund Campion • Edmund Gennings • Eustace White • Henry Morse • Henry Walpole • John Almond • John Boste • John Houghton • John Jones • John Kemble • John Lloyd • John Pain • John Plesington • John Rigby • John Roberts • John Southworth • John Stone • John Wall • Luke Kirby • Margaret Clitherow • Margaret Ward • Nicholas Owen • Philip Evans • Philip Howard • Polydore Plasden • Ralph Sherwin • Richard Gwyn • Richard Reynolds • Robert Lawrence • Robert Southwell • Secular Clergy • Swithun Wells • Thomas Garnet. Canonised on 25 October 1970 by St Pope Paul VI
Martyrs of Rome – 67 saints: A group of 46 soldiers and 21 civilians martyred together in the persecutions of Claudius II. 269 in Rome, Italy.
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: • Blessed Alfons Arimany Ferrer • Blessed Recaredo Centelles Abad
Quote/s of the Day – 24 October – The Memorialof St Anthony Mary Claret CMF (1807-1870) Archbishop and Founder of the Claretians
“The sole reason why society is perishing is because, it has refused to hear the word of the Church, which is the word of God. All plans for salvation will be sterile, if the great word of the Catholic Church, is not restored in all it’s fullness!”
“Humility, obedience, meekness and love are the virtues that shine through the Cross and the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. O my Jesus, help me imitate you!”
“To labour and to suffer for the One we love, is the greatest proof of our love.”
“Woe to me if I do not preach and warn [sinners], for I would be held responsible for their condemnation.”
One Minute Reflection – 24 October – Saturday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 4:7-16, Psalms 122:1-2, 3-4, 4-5, Luke 13:1-9 and the Memorial of St Anthony Mary Claret CMF (1807-1870)
And he said to the vinedresser, “Lo, these three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and I find none. Cut it down, why should it use up the ground? ” – Luke 13:7
REFLECTION – “The Lord also has something very fitting to say about a fruitless tree, “Look, it is now three years that I have been coming to it. Finding no fruit on it, I will cut it down, to stop it blocking up my field.” The gardener intercedes.
This tree is the human race. The Lord visited this tree in the time of the patriarchs, as if for the first year. He visited it in the time of the law and the prophets, as if for the second year. Here we are now, with the gospel the third year has dawned. Now it is as though it should have been cut down but the merciful one intercedes with the merciful one. He wanted to show how merciful he was and so he stood up to himself with a plea for mercy. “Let us leave it,” he says, “this year too. Let us dig a ditch around it.” Manure is a sign of humility. “Let us apply a load of manure, perhaps it may bear fruit.” Since it does bear fruit in one part and in another part does not bear fruit, it’s Lord will come and divide it. What does that mean, “divide it?” There are good people and bad people now in one company, as though constituting one body.” – St Augustine (354-430)Doctor of Grace – Sermon 254
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, help me to keep my death constantly before my eyes, for this is my final account. I pray You for a holy life that my death may be holy and that I may come to You and live for all eternity with You. May each moment of my life bear abundant fruit for love of You. When my hour is come, bid me come to You, Lord. Hear the prayers of your Saints, Anthony Mary Claret, who lived each moment of his life for the glory of Your Kingdom. We ask this through Christ, our Lord with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Saint of the Day – 24 October – Saint Proclus of Constantinople (Died c 446) Confessor, Archbishop of Constantinople, Defender of the Church and of the Blessed Virgin, Writer, renowned Preacher – born in Constantinople (modern Istanbul, Turkey) and died in c 446 in the area of modern Turkey of natural causes. He defended the divine maternity of Mary, fought against the heresy of Nestorius and, after Nestorius’ deposition, became Bishop of Constantinople. Roman Martyrology: In Constantinople, St Proclus, Bishop, who courageously proclaimed Blessed Mary as the Mother of God and brought the body of St John Chrysostom back from exile to the city with a solemn procession, thus deserving the title of the Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon, as “Great.”
The friend and disciple of Saint John Chrysostom, Proclus became secretary to Archbishop Atticus of Constantinople (406–425), who ordained him Deacon and Priest. Atticus’ successor, Sisinnius I (426–427), consecrated him Bishop of Cyzicus but the Nestorians there, refused to receive him and he remained at Constantinople. On the death of Sisinnius, the infamous Nestorius succeeded as Archbishop of Constantinople (428–431) and early in 429, on a festival of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Proclus preached his celebrated sermon on the Incarnation, which was later inserted in the beginning of the Acts of the Council of Ephesus. Below is an excerpt from St Proclus sermon:
“Our present gathering in honour of the Most Holy Virgin inspires me, brethren, to offer her a word of praise, of benefit also for those who have come to this holy celebration. It is a praise of women, a glorification of their gender, which (glory) she brings to it, she who is both Mother and Virgin at the same time.
O desired and wondrous gathering! O nature, celebrate that whereby honour is rendered to woman! Rejoice, O human race, that in which the Virgin is glorified. “But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound” [Romans 5:20]. The Holy Mother of God and Virgin Mary has gathered us here. She is the pure treasure of virginity, the intended paradise of the Second Adam, the place where the union of natures (divine and human) was accomplished and the Counsel of salvific reconciliation was affirmed.
Who has ever seen, who has ever heard, that the Limitless God would dwell within a womb? He Whom the Heavens cannot circumscribe is not limited by the womb of a Virgin! He Who is born of woman is not just God and He is not just Man. He Who is born has made woman the gateway of salvation. Where evil poured forth its poison, bringing on disobedience, there the Word made a living temple for Himself, bringing obedience there. From the place where the archsinner Cain sprang forth, there Christ the Redeemer of the human race was born without seed. The Lover of Mankind did not disdain to be born of woman, since She gave Him life (in His human nature). He was not subject to impurity by being in the womb which He Himself arrayed free from all harm. If this Mother had not remained a Virgin, then the Child born of her might be a mere man and the birth would not be miraculous in any way. Since she remained a Virgin after giving birth, then how is He Who is born not God? It is an inexplicable mystery, for He Who passed through locked doors without hindrance was born in an inexplicable manner. Thomas cried out, “My Lord, and my God!” [John 20:28], thus confessing the union of two natures in Him.”
When Archbishop Maximianus (431–434) died on Holy Thursday, Proclus was immediately enthroned by the permission of the Emperor Theodosius II and the Bishops gathered at Constantinople. His first care was the funeral of his predecessor and he then sent to both Bishops, St Cyril of Alexandria and St John of Antioch, the usual synodical letters announcing his appointment, both of whom approved of it.
In 436 the Bishops of Armenia consulted Proclus upon certain doctrines prevalent in their country and attributed to Theodore of Mopsuestia, asking for their condemnation. Proclus replied the next year in the celebrated letter known as the Tome to the Armenians, which he sent to the Eastern Bishops, asking them to sign it and to join in condemning the doctrines arraigned by the Armenians. They approved the letters but from admiration of Theodore, hesitated to condemn the doctrines attributed to him. Proclus replied that while he desired the extracts subjoined to his Tome to be condemned, he had not attributed them to Theodore or any individual, not desiring the condemnation of any single person.
A rescript from Theodosius procured by Proclus, declaring his wish that all should live in peace and that no imputation should be made against anyone who died in communion with the church, appeased the storm. The whole affair showed, conspicuously, the moderation and tact of Proclus. In 438, he transferred the relics of his old master, Saint John Chrysostom, from Comana back to Constantinople, where he interred them with great honour in the Church of the Twelve apostles. This action reconciled to the church those of Saint John’s adherents, who had separated themselves in consequence of his unjust removal as Archbishop.
In 439, at the request of a deputation from Caesarea in Cappadocia, Proclus selected as their new Bishop Thalassius, who was about to be appointed praetorian prefect of the East.
Proclus died most probably in October, 446. He appears to have been wise, moderate and conciliatory, desirous, while strictly adhering to Orthodoxy himself, to win over those who differed from him by persuasion rather than force.
The works of Proclus consist of 20 sermons. Five were published by Cardinal Mai, of which 3 are preserved only in a Syriac version, the Greek being lost; 7 letters, along with several addressed to him by other persons and a few fragments of other letters and sermons.
Proclus was cited by St John Henry Newman for his work on Mariology and his strong support of the conciliar dogma on the Mother of God. With his Marian doctrine, St Proclus opened the door to the further development of Marian doctrine during the period following the Council of Ephesus. Thanks to him, the faithful understood in a clearer way the great dignity of Mary, the power of her intercession and the need to honour her with special devotion.
St Maglorius of Wales St Marcius of Monte Cassino St Martin of Vertou St Proclus of Constantinople (Died c 446) Bishop St Senoch St Senócus of Tours St Septimus of Thibiuca — Martyrs of Ephesus – 3 saints: Three Christians martyred together. All we know about them are the names Mark, Sotericus and Valentina. They were stoned to death near Ephesus, Asia Minor (in modern Turkey). Their relics are enshrined on the island of Tasos.
One Minute Reflection – 23 October – Friday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 4:1-6, Psalms 24:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, Luke 12:54-59 and the Memorial of Blessed John Angelo Porro OSM (1451-1505)
“You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?”… Luke 12:56
REFLECTION – “The gospel tells us that some people were rebuked by the Lord because, clever as they were at reading the face of the sky, they could not recognise the time for faith when the kingdom of heaven was at hand. It was the Jews who received this reprimand but it has also come down to us. The Lord Jesus began His preaching of the gospel with the admonition: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mt 4:17). His forerunner, John the Baptist, began his in the same way: “Repent,” he said, “for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mt 3:2). Today, for those who will not repent at the approach of the kingdom of heaven, the reproof of the Lord Jesus is the same… As for when the end of the world will be, that is God’s concern… Even so, the time is very near for each of us, for we are mortal. There are hazards all around us. We should be in less danger from them were we made of glass. What more fragile than a vessel of glass? And yet it can be kept safe and last indefinitely. Of course it is exposed to accidents but it is not liable to old age and the suffering it brings. We, therefore, are the more frail and infirm. In our weakness we are haunted by fears of all the calamities that regularly befall the human race and if no such calamity overtakes us, still, time marches on. We may evade the blows of fortune but shall we evade death? We may escape perils from without but shall we escape what comes from within us? Now, suddenly, we may be attacked by any malady. And if we are spared? Even so, old age comes at last and nothing will delay it.”… St Augustine (354-430) – Father & Doctor of the Church – Sermon 109
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. Send us Your Spirit to keep the fire blazing. By the inspiration and prayers of Blessed John Angelo Porro, may we grow in sanctity and may the humble love and intercession of Mary Mother of our faith, be our succour. Through Jesus Your Son our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Saint of the Day – 23 October – Blessed John Angelo Porro OSM (1451-1505) Priest, Religious of the Order of Servants of Mary, Penitent, Catechist, Hermit – born in 1451 in Seveso, Duchy of Milan and died on 23 October 1505 (aged 54) Milan, Italy. Patronage – Sick children. Blessed John’s tomb became a place of pilgrimage where miracles were said to have occurred. One mother bought her ill son, Charles Borromeo, for a cure to his illness and he was cured. Borromeo removed a small bone from Porro’s foot – he was incorrupt – and St Charles always carried it as a reminder of that miracle.
John Angelo was born in 1451 in the Duchy of Milan of Protasio Porro and Franceschina de Guanzate, good Christians from Barlassina near Seveso. In 1468 he received the habit of the Servants and lived for five years in the Priory of Saint Mary in Milan. According to some of the Order’ s writers, he then retired to the solitude of Cavacurta on the right bank of the River Adda to lead a life of contemplation and penance.
In 1474 John Angelo was sent to the Annunziata in Florence where he was noted for his regular observance. During this period he completed his studies and was Ordained to the Priesthood. He continued to consider the possibility of a hermit’s life and eventually went to Monte Senario which had been restored at the beginning of the fifteenth century by a group of friars who had desired the solitary life.
Blessed John Angelo’s stay on Monte Senario was of such particular importance in his life and spiritual development, he even came to be known as “John of the Mountain.” Whenever he had to leave Senario for reasons of health or obedience he would always return to its solitude with great personal joy.
In 1484 Antonio Alabanti, the Prior of the Annunziata, called John Angelo to Florence to instruct the novices for whom he seems to have written some “useful instructions.” Three years later, Alabanti, who was now Prior General, named John Angelo Rector of the hermitage of Monte Senario, a position which he filled with responsibility, competence and holy wisdom. The Prior General greatly esteemed his prudence and religious spirit and often sought his help in directing the hermitage in Chianti as well.
After Alabanti’s death, John Angelo returned to Milan about 1495 and it seems that he was elected Prior. Even in the centre of that famous city, he managed to preserve something of the solitary life which he so loved. His biographer Fra Filippo Ferrari tells us that “he lived in a room a little removed from the others.”
It was during this period that another important aspect of John Angelo’s apostolate developed – the education of children in Christian doctrine. Ippolito Porro writes that “even though he was Prior, every feast day he would stand at the church doors or wander through the streets attracting the children to himself that he might teach them Christian doctrine.”
Corroboration for this comes from the marble bas-relief of the mid-sixteenth century which shows the Blessed in church teaching children.
John Angelo died on 23 October 1505, in the priory of Milan and was mourned by both friars and laity.
In Blessed John Angelo we see the image and model of a life centred on contemplation and the knowledge of God, which has found a way to express itself throughout the Order’s history. John Angelo had a special love for prayer and silence. He sought an ever deepening intimacy with God in prayer and was, therefore, drawn to solitude and away from associations which “wasted time.”
Not infrequently, though, his fraternal charity won out over his love for solitude. He loved the Order and was always concerned for it’s individual members. Though somewhat frail physically, he gained control over his body through constant renunciation. Poverty and simplicity of life were especially important for him. He had great reverence for Our Lady and composed a prayer in her honour, which he recited daily.
On 15 July 1737 Pope Clement XII proc1aimed John Angelo blessed. His incorrupt body is venerated in Milan in the Church of San Carlo, formerly known as the Church of Saint Mary of the Servants. Following a very old custom, sick children are still brought to his tomb to ask his intercession for their cure.
Prayer O Lord, John Angelo was faithful in his religious life and zealous in teaching Christian doctrine. May he pray for us, that we may always be close to You, observe the counsels of the gospel and be fervent in apostolic work. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen
St Benedict of Sebaste St Clether St Domitius St Elfleda St Ethelfleda St Gratien of Amiens St Henry of Cologne St Ignatius of Constantinople Blessed John Angelo Porro OSM (1451-1505) Bl John Buoni St John of Syracuse St Oda of Aquitaine St Phaolô Tong Viet Buong St Romanus of Rouen Bl Severinus Boethius St Severinus of Cologne Syra of Faremoutiers St Theodoret of Antioch Bl Thomas Thwing St Verus of Salerno — Martyrs of Cadiz – 2 saints Germanus Servandus Martyrs of Hadrianopolis – 2 saints Dorotheus Severus Martyrs of Nicaea – 3 saints Euerotas Socrates Theodota
Martyrs of Valenciennes – 6 beati: A group of Urusuline and Briggittine nuns murdered together in the anti-Christian excesses of the French Revolution. They were guillotined on 23 October 1794 in Valenciennes, Nord, France and Beatified on 13 June 1920 by Pope Benedict XV. • Anne-Joseph Leroux • Clotilde-Joseph Paillot • Jeanne-Louise Barré • Marie-Augustine Erraux • Marie-Liévine Lacroix • Marie-Marguerite-Joseph Leroux
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War including Martyrs of Manzanares (7 beati): • Agapit Gorgues Manresa • Agustín Nogal Tobar • Andrés Navarro Sierra • César Elexgaray Otazua • Cristóbal González Carcedo • Dorinda Sotelo Rodríguez • Eduardo Valverde Rodríguez • Felipe Basauri Altube • José María Fernández Sánchez • Juan Nuñez Orcajo • Leonardo Olivera Buera • Manuel Navarro Martínez • Roque Guillén Garcés • Toribia Marticorena Sola
“I have come to set the earth on fire and how I wish it were already blazing!” – Luke 12:49
REFLECTION – “Everything we are about to do, even if it were a supremely heroic action destroying the foundations of all evil on earth, that act will have no value, except to the extent, with which our will accords with the will of the Immaculate and, through her, with the will of God … It is love in all it’s profundity (beyond feelings, even though that is also beautiful) that must transform us … It should consume us and, through us, set fire to the world and destroy and burn all the evil it finds there. This is the fire of which the Saviour said: “I have come to cast fire on the earth and what how I wish that it were already burning!” (Lk 12:49). Consumed by this fire of divine love (I repeat, it is not a question here of sweet tears or of feelings but of the will, even in the midst of disgust and antipathy), we will set the whole world ablaze! Love never rests but spreads like fire that burns everything. And all of us human beings should tend towards being set alight by this fire of love and that it may burn all souls that are and will be in the world. This is the ideal towards which we should tend. We must remember the words of Jesus: “I have come to set the earth on fire” (Lk 12:49). On our part we should do all we can to make this fire light up more and more everyday.” – St Maximilian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Priest, Martyr – Conferences
PRAYER – Father, grant that we may be, bearers of Christ Jesus, Your Son. Allow us to fill with Your light the world around us. Strengthen us by Your Holy Spirit to carry out our mission of living and following the path of Jesus, our Lord. Help us to understand, that by Your grace our gifts are Your blessings, to be shared with others. Fill us with Your Spirit of love to give glory to You in loving all and preaching by our love. Nourish in us the desire to go forth as the bearers of Your Son fearless and gentle, loving and merciful. Make us true Christ bearers, that in seeing us only He is visible. Amen (The Christopher Prayer)
Saint of the Day – 22 October – St Donatus of Fiesole (Died 874) Bishop – 9th century Irish Nobleman, Monk, Priest, Poet, Confessor, Writer, Scholar, Professor, Bishop of Fiesole, Adviser to Emperors Louis the Pious and Lothair I, Founder of San Martino a Mensola Abbey and leader of two military expeditions against the Saracens. Born in Ireland and died in Fiesole, Italy. St Donatus is also known as Donat, Donato, Donagh. Patronage – Fiesole.
Donatus was born in Ireland of noble parents towards the end of the eighth century. There is good reason to believe that he was educated in the monastic school of Inishcaltra, a little island in Lough Derg, near the Galway shore, now better known as Holy Island: so he was probably a native of that part of the country. Here he studied with great industry and success. He became a Priest and, in course of time, a Bishop. He was greatly distinguished as a professor. Having spent a number of years teaching, he resolved to make a pilgrimage, visiting many holy shrines and then to arrive at his final destination, in Rome, to venerate the great Apostles who are buried there.
In 816 he achieved his goal and visited the tombs of the Apostles in Rome with his friend, St Andrew Scotus, the brother of St Brigid, both siblings had studied under our Saint. They remained in Rome for a considerable time and then having obtained the Pope’s blessing, set out once more, directing their steps now towards Tuscany, till at length they reached Fiesole, where they entered the hospice of the monastery, intending to rest there for a week or two and then to resume their journey.
He was led by Divine Providence to the Cathedral of Fiesole, which he entered at the moment when the people were grouped around their altars praying for a Bishop to deliver them from temporal and spiritual evils. When Donatus entered, the bells spontaneously began ringing and the candles lit themselves. The people believed God meant this stranger to be their Bishop! They elected him, although some said it’s possible no local wanted the position because the feudal lords had drowned the previous bishop. Raised by popular acclaim to the See of Fiesole, Donatus instituted a revival of piety and learning in the church over which he was placed. Donatus made Andrew his Deacon. This was in or about the year 824.
He founded the Abbey of San Martino di Mensola. He was a teacher in service to the Frankish kings; there is a record, from 850, of his giving a church and hospice, St Brigid’s at Piacenza, to the abbey founded by St Columban at Bobbio. Donatus not only battled sin, he was also a military leader, organising armies to lead two expeditions against the Saracens. He was an adviser to Emperor Louis and Frankish King Lothair I. He judged a disagreement between the Bishops of Arezzo and Siena. He also attended the Roman synod of Pope Nicholas I on 18 November 861.
During the last years of his life he built a church at his own expense in Piacenza and dedicated it to St Brigid. This church he left in his will to the Abbey of Bobbio, with the obligation of maintaining a hospice for Irish pilgrims. The work and constructive ability of St Donatus have always remained an example to members of the Church. He is still remembered in Tuscany and many boys are christened with his name in the provinces of Florence, Pisa, Leghorn and Lucca.
According to St Donatus, St Brigid visited his deathbed to give him spiritual strength and comfort. His story, preserved in manuscript in the Laurentian Library in Florence, tells of this miracle – the great saint flew to his deathbed and before she touched him, she hung her cloak on a sunbeam to dry. He was buried in the Cathedral of Fiesole, where his epitaph, dictated by himself, may still be seen. And here it is:
“Here I, Donatus, sprung from Scottish blood, Alone in this tomb, among the worms and dust dissolve. For many years I served the kings of Italy, Lothair the Great and Louis the Good.’ For more than eight lustrums and seven years I was ruler in the city of Fiesole; I dictated exercises in grammar to my pupils, Metrical schemes and the lives of the blessed saints. You traveller, whoever you are, for Christ’s sake Be not unwilling to behold my tomb. And pray to God, who rules in highest heaven, That He may grant to me His blessed kingdom.”
The old biographer of Donatus, at the conclusion of his history, adds this prayer : — ” Let us, therefore, all unite and say. Oh, Saint of God and beloved confessor. Father and pontiff. Educator and nourisher, ruler and shepherd. Help with thy prayers the destitute and fallen. Have pity on the widow and the captive. Help the orphan and the weak. Help those who live today and those who will come after, Give aid to those who live and those who die; Refuse not, we beseech thee, to listen to our prayers, Who, though imprisoned in the bonds of iniquity, Yet so far as their ignoble nature may permi,. Make offering of these things to their superiors. Them we implore with all our might To amend that which is faulty and to be indulgent to All that, which is worthless, and to pity our presumption, And since we cannot of ourselves mount to the pastures of Paradise, Help us to pray that so we may entreat the aid of Jesus Christ, To whom, with the Holy Trinity, are all things, world without end.”
The numerous locations and churches incorporating his name, St Donatus, provide evidence of his influence and popularity throughout Tuscany.
St Abericus Marcellus St Alodia of Huesca St Apollo of Bawit St Benedict of Macerac St Bertharius of Monte Cassino St Cordula St Donatus of Fiesole (Died 874) Bishop Bl Esclaramunda of Majorca St Hermes of Adrianople St Ingbert St Leothade of Auch St Lupenzius St Mark of Jerusalem St Mary Salome (First Century) Mother of Sts James and John, Apostles of Christ: https://anastpaul.com/2019/10/22/saint-of-the-day-22-october-saint-mary-salome-first-century-disciple-of-jesus/ St Maroveus of Precipiano St Mellon St Moderan of Rennes St Nepotian of Clermont St Nunctus of Mérida St Nunilo of Huesca St Philip of Adrianople St Philip of Fermo St Rufus of Egypt St Symmachus of Capua St Valerius of Langres St Verecundus of Verona — Martyrs of Heraclea – 4 saints: A group of four clerics in Heraclea (modern Marmara Ereglisi, Turkey) who were arrested in the persecutions of Diocletian. They were imprisoned, abused and ordered to turn over all the scriptures that they had hidden from authorities; they refused and were executed together. Martyrs. – Eusebius, Hermes, Philip and Severus. They were burned at the stake in 304 in Adrianople (modern Edirne, Turkey).
Martyrs of Adianople: • Blessed Alexander • Blessed Anna • Blessed Elisabeth • Blessed Glyceria • Blessed Heraclius • Blessed Theodota
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: • Blessed Álvaro Ibáñez Lázaro • Blessed Andrés Zarraquino Herrero • Blessed Estanislao García Obeso • Blessed Germán Caballero Atienza • Blessed José Menéndez García • Blessed Josep Casas Lluch • Blessed Luis Minguel Ferrer • Blessed Pedro Lorente Vicente • Blessed Victoriano Ibañez Alonso
One Minute Reflection – 21 October – Wednesday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 3:2-12, Responsorial Psalm: Isaiah 12:2-3, 4,5-6, Luke 12:39-48 and the Memorial of Blessed Karl of Austria (1887 – 1922)
“You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” – Luke 12:40
REFLECTION – “Watch!” Our Saviour gave this warning when He was leaving this world—leaving it, that is, as far as His visible presence is concerned. He looked forward to the many hundred years which were to pass before He came again. He knew His own purpose and His Father’s purpose gradually to leave the world to itself, gradually to withdraw from it the tokens of His gracious presence. He contemplated, as contemplating all things, the neglect of Him, which would spread, even among his professed followers … He foresaw the state of the world and the Church, as we see it this day, when His prolonged absence has made it practically thought, that He never will come back in visible presence.
Today, He mercifully whispers into our ears, not to trust in what we see, not to share in that general unbelief, not to be carried away by the world but to “take heed, watch and pray,” (Lk 21:34.36) and look out for His coming. Surely this gracious warning should be ever in our thoughts, being so precise, so solemn, so earnest.
Our Saviour foretold His first coming, yet He took His Church by surprise when He came; much more will He come suddenly the second time and overtake men, now that He has not measured out the interval before it, as then He did but left our watchfulness to the keeping of faith and love … We are not simply to believe but to watch; not simply to love but to watch; not simply to obey but to watch; to watch for what? for that great event, Christ’s coming … we seem to see a special duty enjoined on us … – most of us have a general idea what is meant by believing, fearing, loving and obeying but, perhaps we do not contemplate or apprehend what is meant by “watching.” – St John Henry Newman (1801-1890) Cardinal, Founder of the Oratory in England, Theologian – Sermon “ Watching ” PPS, t. 4, n° 22
PRAYER – Holy Father, grant me an operative faith, a faith that will move mountains. Enlighten my soul with Your Light, Goodness, Power and Wisdom. Let my faith be an image of You by lively deeds and love and by conforming myself to Your Will in all things. Blessed Karl of Austria, amidst the fineries of your earthly kingship, you longed only to serve the God of all and searched for complete closeness and abandonment to Him, teach us by your prayer, to serve God alone with upright hearts and thus manifest a true faith, through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
AnaStpaul 
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