Thought for the Day – 21 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)
Detachment from the World
“St John Bosco said, that we should ork as if we never had to die. But, we should also be as detached from worldly things, as if we had to die in one hour. A man who works like this, can accomplish wonders because, he is not working for himself but, for God. We should work and pray with our feet on the earth and our minds in heaven. We should seek God, not ourselves, in everything which we do. Let us remember, that one moment in Heaven, is worth infinitely more than all the pleasure, love and vanity of this world!”
Day Five of our Lenten Journey – 21 February – The First Sunday of Lent, Readings: Genesis 9:8-15, Psalms 25:4-5, 6-7,8-9, 1 Peter 3:18-22, Mark 1:12-15
Imitating Christ with Thomas à Kempis CRSA (1380-1471)
In Your Light Lord, we see light
“The kingdom of God is within you,” says the Lord (Luke 17:21).
Turn, then, to God with all your heart. Forsake this wretched world and your soul shall find rest. Learn to despise external things, to devote yourself to those that are within and you will see the kingdom of God come unto you, that kingdom which is peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, gifts not given to the impious. Christ will come to you offering His consolation, if you prepare a fit dwelling for Him in your heart, whose beauty and glory, wherein He takes delight, are all from within. His visits with the inward man are frequent, His communion sweet and full of consolation, His peace great and His intimacy wonderful indeed. Therefore, faithful soul, prepare your heart for this Bridegroom that He may come and dwell within you. He Himself says: “If anyone love Me, he will keep My word and My Father will love him and We will come to him and will make Our abode with him”. (John 14:23). Give place, then, to Christ but deny entrance to all others, for when you have Christ you are rich and He is sufficient for you. He will provide for you. He will supply your every want, so that you need not trust in frail, changeable men. Christ remains forever, standing firmly with us to the end. […] Place all your trust in God, let Him be your fear and your love. He will answer for you, He will do what is best for you. You have here no lasting home. You are a stranger and a pilgrim wherever you may be and you shall have no rest, until you are wholly united with Christ. Why do you look about here when this is not the place of your repose? Dwell rather upon heaven and give but a passing glance to all earthly things. They all pass away and you together with them. Take care, then, that you do not cling to them lest you be entrapped and perish. Fix your mind on the Most High, and pray unceasingly to Christ. If you do not know how to meditate on heavenly things, direct your thoughts to Christ’s passion and willingly behold His sacred wounds. If you turn devoutly to the wounds and precious stigmata of Christ, you will find great comfort in suffering, you will mind but little the scorn of men and you will easily bear their slanderous talk. (Book 2, Ch 1)
Quote/s of the Day – 21 February – First Sunday of Lent, Readings: Genesis 9:8-15, Psalms 25:4-5, 6-7,8-9, 1 Peter 3:18-22, Mark 1:12-15 and the Memorial of St Peter Damian OSB (1007-1072) Doctor of the Church and St Robert Southwell SJ (1561-1595) Priest and Martyr
“We … are under an obligation to be the light of the world by the modesty of our behaviour, the fervour of our charity, the innocence of our lives and the example of our virtues. Thus shall we be able to raise the lowered prestige of the Catholic Church and, to build up again, the ruins that others by their vices have caused. Others, by their wickedness, have branded the Catholic Faith with a mark of shame, we must strive, with all our strength, to cleanse it from its ignominy and to restore it to its pristine glory!”
St Robert Southwell SJ (1561-1595) Priest and Martyr
“This is the time of fulfilment. The kingdom of God is at hand” – Mark 1:14
REFLECTION – “After John had been arrested, Jesus came into Galilee…” According to our interpretation, John stands for the Law and Jesus the Gospel. Indeed, John says: “One mightier than I is coming after me…” (Mk 1,7) and elsewhere: “He must increase, I must decrease” (Jn 3,30): in this way he compares the Law with the Gospel. And afterwards he says: “I – that is, the Law – baptise you with water; he – that is the Gospel – will baptise you in the Holy Spirit” (Mk 1,8). And so Jesus comes because John had been put in prison. In effect, the Law is finished, it has been brought to an end, it no longer has its former freedom. But we have passed from the Law to the Gospel…
“Jesus came into Galilee preaching the gospel, the Good News of the Kingdom of God”… When I read the Law, prophets and psalms, I never heard them speak of the Kingdom of heaven – only in the gospel. For only when He came, of whom it is said “the Kingdom of God is in your midst” (Lk 17,21) that God’s Kingdom was thrown open… In fact, before the Saviour’s coming and the Light of the Gospel, before Christ opened the gate of paradise with the thief (Lk 23,43), all holy souls descended to the place of the dead. Jacob himself said: “I will go down weeping and mourning to the nether world” (Gn 37,35)… In the Law, Abraham rests with the dead; in the gospel, the thief is in paradise. We are not denigrating Abraham, we all want to rest in his bosom (Lk 16,23 but we prefer Christ to Abraham, the Gospel to the Law.
We read that after Christ’s Resurrection many saints appeared in the holy city (Mt 27,53). Our Lord and Saviour preached on earth and preached, too, to the underworld. He died and descended to hell to free the souls held captive there (1Pt 3,18f.).” – St Jerome (347-420), Priest, Translator of the Bible, Father and Doctor of the Church – Homilies on Saint Mark’s Gospel, no.2A ; SC 494
PRAYER – Through our annual Lenten observance Lord, deepen our understanding of the mystery of Christ and make it a reality in the conduct of our lives,. Teach us by the example and doctrine of St Peter Damian to prefer nothing whatever to Christ and to make the service of Your Church our chief concern and so, come to the joy of Your eternal Kingdom. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 21 February – First Sunday of Lent
Anima Christi
Soul of Christ, sanctify me Body of Christ, save me Blood of Christ, inebriate me Water from the side of Christ, wash me Passion of Christ, strengthen me Good Jesus, hear me Within Your wounds, shelter me from turning away, keep me From the evil one, protect me At the hour of my death, call me Into Your presence lead me to praise You with all Your saints Forever and ever, Amen
For many years the Anima Christi was popularly believed to have been composed by Saint Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556) , as he puts it at the beginning of his Spiritual Exercises and often refers to it. In the first edition of the Spiritual Exercises Ignatius merely mentions it, evidently supposing that the reader would know it. In later editions, it was printed in full. It was by assuming that everything in the book was written by Ignatius that it came to be looked upon as his composition. On this account the prayer is sometimes referred to as the Aspirations of St. Ignatius Loyola and so my image shows St Ignatius at prayer.
However, the prayer actually dates to the early fourteenth century and was possibly written by Pope John XXII but its authorship remains uncertain. It has been found in a number of prayer books printed during the youth of Ignatius and is in manuscripts which were written a hundred years before his birth. The English hymnologist James Mearns found it in a manuscript of the British Museum which dates back to about 1370. In the library of Avignon there is preserved a prayer book of Cardinal Pierre de Luxembourg (died 1387), which contains the prayer in practically the same form as we have it today. It has also been found inscribed on one of the gates of the Alcázar of Seville, which dates back to the time of Pedro the Cruel (1350–1369).
The invocations in the prayer have rich associations with Catholic concepts that relate to the Eucharist (Body and Blood of Christ), Baptism (water) and the Passion of Jesus (Holy Wounds).
Saint of the Day – 21 February – Blessed Caterina Dominici/Maria Enrichetta (1829–1894) Nun of the Sisters of St Anne – whose main charism is the care and education of street children, Mystic with an extraordinary devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, close friend and adviser to St John Bosco in establishing the Rule of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, also “lending” two nuns to the new Congregation. During the 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak, she cared for and ministered to countless people. She then went on to serve for over three decades as the Superior General of her Congregation. Born on 10 October 1829 in Borgo Salsasio, Carmagnola, Turin, Italy and died on 21 February 1894, aged 64, in Turin, Italy of natural causes. Also known as Mother Maria Enrichetta (her religious name), Anna Caterina, Maria Henrich Dominici, Mother Maria Enrica Dominici.
Caterina Dominici was born on 10 October 1829 near Turin, as the fourth daughter. One brother would become a Priest. She was four when her parents separated and she went with her mother and siblings to live with her Priest uncle.
As a child she grew into the habit of regular Confession and Holy Communion. She moved in 1848 and in November 1850 became a non-cloistered religious of the Sisters of Saint Anne. She assumed the name of “Maria Enrichetta.” Pope Pius IX visited Loreto in 1857 and Sr Maria was present along with St Madeleine Sophie Barat when the Pope met with the professed religious.
Sr Maria Enrichetta was appointed as the Superior General of her Congregation and she at first attempted to discourage her fellow sisters from the appointment.
Now Mother Maria, she founded about thirty houses, reaching Rome and Sicily. With each term of office confirmed, it did not seem possible to have another mother general. As a girl she had dreamed of becoming a missionary to India, now, she could fulfill the vow indirectly, sending her nuns. In February 1871 six of them left, which the Mother entrusted to the Holy Trinity of which she was very devoted. Her new foundation in India opened a path that would bear great fruit. In October 1879 she went in person to distant India, to Secunderabad, to visit the Institute’s first Missionary home.
On 14 July 1884 she was received at an audience by Pope Leo XIII.
Her health started to decline from November 1893 and Caterina was confined to bed. She continued to lead the institute, despite suffering and pain. She spent her last week in drowsiness and despite this, she continued to speak in a weak voice to those around her bedside.
Affable and kind, however, she was reserved and of a few words. She meditated for hours before the Tabernacle and she obtained permission from the Holy See, for her nuns to make daily communion.
Her writings, autobiography and copious letters, speak her total abandonment to God. She wrote: “Oh how happy lives the soul that lives totally abandoned in God. Oh if everyone knew this happiness …”
Sr Maria Enrichetta died in 1894 and her remains were transferred in 1926 to the chapel of the mother house.
The investigation for a miracle attributed to her intercession, spanned from 1949 to 1950 and was validated in 1952. Paul VI approved it in 1977 and Beatified her on 7 May 1978.
There are currently Houses of St Anne in Italy, Switzerland, Cameroon, Argentina, Peru, Philippines, Mexico, Brazil, USA. In India there are eighty houses, more than in Italy.
Notre-Dame de Bon-Port / Our Lady of Bon Port/Good Haven, Paimpol, France (1838) – 21 February:
In 1838, the crew of a vessel which had just arrived at Paimpol, in France, forty-eight in number, accomplished a vow they had made in a most perilous voyage from Newfoundland. A terrific tempest had arisen, their sails were tor, and for three days they were in continual danger of finding a watery grave. The ship began to fill with water and all hope of safety seemed lost, when the crew, by common consent, turned their eyes to Mary, Star of the Sea and asked for good haven. They promised if she saved them, they would visit in the most supplicant manner, the Church at Paimpol, where there is an image of Our Lady much venerated by the people. They had scarcely ended their prayer, when the weather became more calm and the waves began to subside. Profiting by this providential change, they repaired their sails and had a favourable wind, until they reached the coasts of Brittany. They landed in safety at Knod, toward the decline of day and their first act was to prostrate themselves on the ground and give God thanks for their safe return. They then intoned the Litany of the Blessed Virgin and advanced barefooted and bare-headed along the banks and through the streets of Paimpol, to the Church of the Good Haven. The people attracted in crowds by the novelty of the sight, followed them. There were parents who went to give thanks to Our Lady of Good Haven for the return of their sons and wives, to thank Mary for restoring their husbands to them. Tears streamed down from every eye, and the immense multitude knelt down before the Altar of that powerful Virgin, who had received from her Son, the power to command wind and wave. The torches shed a dim light on the recessed of the sanctuary, where stood the image of the Blessed Virgin, Our Lady of Good Haven, whose inclined head and exteneded arms seemed to say to all, “Come to me, I am your Mother.” These pious mariners with the most touching expression of sentiment, chanted the hymn, “Ave Maria Stella” in which they were joined in gratitude by the people.
“Bright Mother of our Maker, hail! Thou Virgin ever blest, The ocean’s star, by which we sail, And gain the port of rest.”
St Avitus II of Clermont Blessed Caterina Dominici/Maria Enrichetta SSA (1829–1894) Nun Bl Claudio di Portaceli St Daniel of Persia Bl Eleanora St Ercongotha St Eustathius of Antioch St Felix of Metz St George of Amastris St Germanus of Granfield St Gundebert of Sens Blessed Noel Pinot (1747-1794) Priest and Martyr His Life and Death: https://anastpaul.com/2020/02/21/saint-of-the-day-21-february-blessed-noel-pinot-1747-1794-priest-and-martyr/ St Paterius of Brescia (Died 606) Bishop St Pepin of Landen St Peter Mavimenus St Randoald of Granfield
St Severian of Scythopolis St Severus of Syrmium Bl Thomas Pormort St Valerius of San Pedro de Montes St Verda of Persia — Martyrs of Sicily – 79 saints – Seventy-nine Christians martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian. They were martyred in c 303 on Sicily.
Martyrs of Hadrumetum – A group of 26 Christians martyred together by Vandals. We know little more than eight of their names – Alexander, Felix, Fortunatus, Saturninus, Secundinus, Servulus, Siricius and Verulus. c 434 at Hadrumetum (modern Sousse, Tunisia)
Martyrs Uchibori – Three Japanese laymen, all brothers, all sons of Paulus Uchibori Sakuemon, one a teenager, one only five years old and all martyred for their faith in the persecutions in Japan. 21 February 1627 in Shimabara, Nagasaki, Japan. Beatified 24 November 2008 by Pope Benedict XVI. Antonius Balthasar Ignatius
Thought for the Day – 20 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)
Doing Everything for the Love of God
“The beginning of perfection consists in doing the will of God, even in our smallest actions. But, to do everything for the love of God, is the summit of Christian perfection. If we aimed always at doing God’s will and acting from the motive of love for Him, we should be contented and at peace, because we should be holy. The saints are the only people who remain calm and undisturbed in the midst of worldly adversity. They are always content, because they live in God. Their lives are in full conformity with His Will, guided by His Love and dedicated to His Service. As a result, they live in a kind of spiritual stratosphere far above the storms of this world. There they are above the clouds of pride, ambition, avarice and all the other major vices. There they see and contemplate everything in the Light of God. Let us become saints. Then we shall have solved all the problems of life!.” Amen
Day Four of our Lenten Journey – 20 February – Saturday after Ash Wednesday, Readings: Isaiah 58: 9-14, Psalms 86:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, Luke 5:27-32
Imitating Christ with Thomas à Kempis CRSA (1380-1471)
In Your Light Lord, we see light
“Those who are well, have no need of a physician but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” – Luke 5:31-32
The holy Martyr, Lawrence, with his priest, conquered the world because he despised everything in it that seemed pleasing to him and for love of Christ patiently suffered the great high priest of God, Sixtus, whom he loved dearly, to be taken from him. Thus, by his love for the Creator, he overcame the love of man and chose instead of human consolation the good pleasure of God. So you, too, must learn to part with an intimate and much-needed friend for the love of God. Do not take it to heart when you are deserted by a friend, knowing that in the end we must all be parted from one another.
A man must fight long and bravely against himself before he learns to master himself fully and to direct all his affections toward God. When he trusts in himself, he easily takes to human consolation. The true lover of Christ, however, who sincerely pursues virtue, does not fall back upon consolations nor seek such pleasures of sense but prefers severe trials and hard labours for the sake of Christ. …
In what can I hope, then, or in Whom ought I trust, save only in the great mercy of God and the hope of heavenly grace? For though I have with me good men, devout brethren, faithful friends, holy books, beautiful treatises, sweet songs and hymns, all these help and please but little when I am abandoned by grace and left to my poverty. At such times there is no better remedy than patience and resignation of self to the will of God.
The devil does not sleep, nor is the flesh yet dead, therefore, you must never cease your preparation for battle, because on the right and on the left are enemies who never rest. (Book 2, Ch9, 2-3,6,8)
Quote/s of the Day – 20 February – Saturday after Ash Wednesday, Readings: Isaiah 58: 9-14, Psalms 86:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, Luke 5:27-32
“Follow me.”
Luke 5:27
“This is the glory of man – to persevere and remain in the service of God. For this reason, the Lord told His disciples: ‘You did not choose Me but I chose you.’ He meant that His disciples did not glorify Him by following Him but, in following the Son of God, they were glorified by Him. As He said: ‘I wish that where I am they also may be, that they may see My glory.’”
St Irenaeus (130-202) Father of the Church and Martyr
From his Against Heresies (Book 4)
“Christ is the artist, tenderly wiping away all the grime of sin that disfigures the human face and restoring God’s image to its full beauty.”
St Gregory of Nyssa (c 335–C 395) Father of the Church
“To welcome the Word of God into the interior depths of one’s heart is to be revived by food in plenty and the eternal spring. It is to hunger and thirst no more (Jn 6,35).”
St Ambrose (340-397) Bishop of Milan Father & Doctor of the Church
Commentary on Saint Luke’s gospel, 5, 16 ; SC 45
“Where, then, is true freedom? It is in the heart of one who loves nothing more than God. It is in the heart of one who is attached neither to spirit nor to matter but only to God. It is in that soul which is not subject to the “I” of egoism, which soars above its own thoughts, feelings, suffering and enjoyment. Freedom resides in the soul whose one reason for existence is God, whose life is God and nothing else but God.”
Saint Raphael Arnaiz Baron (1911-1938) Spanish Trappist Monk
One Minute Reflection – 20 February – Saturday after Ash Wednesday, Readings Isaiah 58: 9-14, Psalms 86:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, Luke 5:27-32 and the Memorial of St Elutherius of Tournai (c 456-532) Bishop and Martyr and Saints Francisco (1908-1919) and Jacinta (1910-1920)
“Those who are well, have no need of a physician but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” – Luke 5:31-32
REFLECTION – “The Apostle Paul said: “Take off the old self with its practices and put on the new self” (Col 3,9-10)… This was the work Christ accomplished when He called Levi; He refashioned him into a new man. Similarly, it is as a new person, that the former publican prepares a banquet for Christ since Christ takes pleasure in him and he himself, merits to have a share in happiness with Christ… He followed him now, happy, light-hearted and overflowing with joy.
“I have the aspect of a publican no more,” he said, “I don’t carry around the old Levi any longer; I put off Levi when I put on Christ. I flee from my earlier life; my Lord Jesus, you alone, who heal my wounds, I desire to follow. Who shall separate me from the love of God … ? tribulation? anguish? hunger? (Cf Rom 8,35). I am bound to You by faith as by nails, I am held fast by the worthy bonds of love. All Your commandments will be like a cautery that I will apply firmly to my wound; the remedy stings but it takes away the ulcerous infection. Lord Jesus, with Your powerful sword, cut away the corruption of my sins: come quickly, lance my hidden and varied passions. Purge away all infection in the new bath.
“Listen to me, you people who are fixed to the earth, you whose thoughts are intoxicated by your sins. I, Levi, was also wounded by similar passions. But I found a doctor who dwells in heaven and pours out His remedies on earth. He alone can cure my wounds since He Himself has none. He alone can remove the heart’s pain and the soul’s lethargy, for He knows everything that lies hidden.” – St Ambrose (340-397) Bishop of Milan and Doctor of the Church – Commentary on Saint Luke’s Gospel, 5, 23.27
PRAYER – Come my all-powerful, ever-living God, look with compassion on our frailty and for our protection, stretch out to us Your strong right hand. Grant that by the prayers of Mary, our Mother and all your angels and saints we may change our ways, leave everything behind, proclaim the glory of Your kingdom and come safely home to You. St Eleutherius and Sts Jacinta and Francisco, pray for us. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 20 February – Saturday after Ash Wednesday and always a Marian Saturday
Most Holy Mary, Virgin Mother of God Act of Consecration By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Indulgence of 300 days, for each recitation St Pius X, 17 November 1906
Most Holy Mary, Virgin Mother of God, I ………., most unworthy though I am to be thy servant, yet touched by thy motherly care for me and longng to serve thee, do, in the presence of my Guardian Angel and all the court of heaven, choose thee this day to be my Queen, my Advocate and my Mother and I firmly purpose to serve thee evermore myself and, to do what I can, that all may render faithful service to thee. Therefore, most devoted Mother, through the Precious Blood thy Son poured out for me, I beg thee and beseech thee, deign to take me among thy clients and receive me as thy servant forever. Aid me in my every action and beg for me the grace never, by word or deed or thought, to be displeasing in thy sight and that of thy most holy Son. Think of me, my dearest Mother and desert me not at the hour of death. Amen
Saint of the Day – 20 February – Saint Eleutherius of Tournai (c 456-532) the first Bishop of Tournai, Martyr. Confessor. Born in c 456 at Tournai, western Belgium and died by being murdered by Arian heretics in 532 while leaving his Church in Tournai. Additional Memorial – 25 August (translation of relics). He was a lifelong friend of St. Medard (c 456-545) and the two saints had been courtiers before becoming Bishops. (St Medard’s life here: https://anastpaul.com/2020/06/08/saint-of-the-day-8-june-saint-medard-c-456-545-bishop/).
Eleutherius is venerated as a Martyr although this legend is considered an invention of the Canon Priest Henri of Tournai, who wrote a Vita of Eleutherius in 1141. At the end of the 11th century the Church of Tournai had been trying to become independent from the Diocese of Noyon and Henri had been motivated by the need to prove the antiquity of the Church of Tournai.
Henri’s account states that Eleutherius was a native of Tournai who was born during the reign of Childeric I. Eleutherius’ parents were Christians and were named Terenus and Blanda; Terenus was a descendant in the family of Irenaeus of Lyons. Persecutions of Christians forced the family to flee to a village named Blandain but after the conversion of Clovis to Christianity, the family built a Church at Blandain.
Church of Saint Eleuthère at Blandain
Eleutherius eventually became Bishop of Tournai and was consulted by Pope Hormisdas on the matter of eradicating Arianism. Eleutherius convened a Church Council and argued effectively against the Arians, who were angered by this.
The Cathedral of Tournai
One day, as he was going to his Cathedral Church, he was beaten by a group of Arians and left for dead. He subsequently died from the wounds he received, on his death-bed confiding, his flock to St Medard. There exists a testimony recording the recovery of his relics during the episcopate of Bishop Hedilo of Tournai, in 897 or 898. Bishop Baudoin translated Eleutherius’ relics in 1064 or 1065. Eleutherius’ relics were translated again in 1247, when the great reliquary shrine was commissioned by Bishop Walter de Marvis. In its gable end. St Eleutherius appears, holding his crozier in one hand and in the other a model of the Cathedral with its five spires.
The Reliquary Shrine of Saint Eleutherius, 1247, in the Cathedral of Tournai
The Monastery of St. Martin at Tours and the Cathedral of Bruges, also claimed some of the saint’s relics.
Notre-Dame de Bolougne-sur-Mer / Our Lady of Bolougne-sur-Mer, France (633) – 20 February:
In the year 636, a small group of people standing on the seashore witnessed a ship without oars or sails came into the harbour of Boulogne. It finally came to rest in the estuary, seemingly of its own accord. One of the witnesses boarded the boat and confirmed that there was no-one aboard and that the vessel had no rudder, oars or sails. The ship, however, bore a luminous statue of Our Lady. Taking hold of it to bring it to land, a voice was heard saying, “I choose your City as a place of grace.” The citizens welcomed Mary to their city by erecting a Shrine to her, which reached its height of glory in the 12th Century.
King Henry VIII is reported to have stolen the Statue of Our Lady of Boulogne and taken it to England. After many negotiations, the French managed to get it back. The image had been stolen and hidden many other times but always saved and returned. World War II almost completely destroyed the Statue. In modern times, four exact replicas of Our Lady of Boulogne toured France for more than seven years, as a symbol of French devotion to Mary. One of these was taken to Walsingham, England in 1948 and carried in procession by the “Cross-bearing pilgrimate” when many other Statues and images of the Virgin visited England. Bologne was one of the most important Lady shrines of medieval France; among its noted pilgrims have been: Henry III, Edward II, the Black Prince, John of Gaunt. Marian Feast Day, 10 July: The dedication of a new Church built in honour of Our Lady of Boulogne was consecrated in the year 1469 by Bishop Chartier of Paris. The confraternity of Our Lady of Boulogne was so celebrated, that six French kings have chosen to belong to it.
At the French Revolution, the Statue was burnt to ashes and the Church pulled down. A new Shrine and Statue was made in 1803 and pilgrimages began again. The image represents the Mother with the Child in her arms, standing in a boat, with an angel on either side. At the Marian Congress in Bolougne in 1938, a custom began to take replicas of this Statue “in turn” in France and abroad. A branch of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Compassion at Bolougne has been established for the reconciliation of the Church of England. The Sanctuary Church at Bolougne was badly damaged during World War II and Mary’s image smashed but the return, the “Great Return” of one of the copies of the Statue which had been sheltered at Lourdes, took place in 1943 and the occasion will long be remembered by lovers of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The shrine of Our Lady of Boulogne-sur-Mer, built in 1866.
Most remarkable about the Grand Return was the unprecedented avalanche of graces, especially of conversions and penance. Thousands upon thousands of atheists, communists, freemasons and fallen-away Catholics converted on the spot when they saw Our Lady enter their village. One bishop described the effect on the faithful:
“The passing of Our Lady in my Diocese is the most extraordinary contemporary religious event of our times and the most significant. Crowds of people rose up, motivated and enthusiastic. In fact, the confessionals and communion rails were besieged during the holy vigils, while the recitation of the mysteries of the Rosary kept the faithful praying in the Churches. In some Parishes, there were tremendous conversions like never seen before on the missions.”
Young men of the French Boy Scouts, barefoot in the spirit of penance, carry Our Lady of the Grand Return in February 1946.
Thought for the Day – 19 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)
Purification
“God has given us two supernatural means of purifying ourselves after we have sinned – the Sacrament of Penance and Indulgences. The Sacrament of Penance is the plank of salvation to which we can cling when we have been shipwrecked by sin and, by means of Indulgences, we can draw on the infinite treasury of the merits of Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Saints, in order to make partial or total satisfaction for the temporal punishment due to our sins. In this way, we can shorten our purgatory in this life and escape it in the next!
We should make good use of the Sacrament of Penance. If we fall into mortal sin, let us have recourse at once to this fount of grace. Even when we are not in mortal sin, let us be faithful to the practice of weekly or at least, fortnightly, confession.
We should not abuse this great gift simply because it seems such a simple method of obtaining pardon. God is infinitely just, we must remember and, He expects us to co-operate with His graces.”
Day Three of our Lenten Journey – 18 February – Friday after Ash Wednesday, Readings: Isaiah 58:1-9, Psalms 51:3-4, 5-6, 18-19, Matthew 9:14-15
Imitating Christ with Thomas à Kempis CRSA (1380-1471)
In Your Light Lord, we see light
“Then they will fast” – Matthew 9:15
Consider the glowing examples of the holy Fathers, in whom shone true religion and perfection; compared with them, we do little or nothing. Alas, how can our life be compared with theirs! The Saints and friends of Christ served Our Lord in hunger and thirst, in cold and nakedness, in toil and weariness: in watching and fasting, in prayer and meditation, in persecutions and insults without number (Heb.9:38, 1 Cor.4:11).
How countless and constant were the trials endured by the Apostles, Martyrs, Confessors, Virgins and all those others, who strove to follow in the footsteps of Christ. These all hated their lives in this world, that they might keep them to life eternal (Jn 12:35). How strict and self-denying was the life of the holy Fathers in the desert! How long and grievous the temptations they endured! How often they were assaulted by the Devil! How frequent and fervent their prayers to God! How strict their fasts! How great their zeal and ardour for spiritual progress! How valiant the battles they fought to overcome their vices! How pure and upright their intention towards God!
All day long they laboured and the night they gave to continuous prayer; even as they worked, they never ceased from mental prayer. They spent all their time with profit, every hour seeming short in the service of God. They often forgot even their bodily needs in the great sweetness of contemplation. They renounced all riches, dignities, honours, friends and kindred; they desired to possess nothing in this world. Scarcely would they take the necessities of life and only with reluctance would they provide for the needs of the body. Thus, though destitute of earthly goods, they were abundantly rich in grace and all virtues. Outwardly they were poor but inwardly they were refreshed with grace and heavenly consolation. They were strangers to the world but to God, they were dear and familiar friends (Ex 33:11). To themselves they were nothing but in the eyes of God, they were precious and beloved. Grounded in true humility, they lived in simple obedience, they walked in charity and patience; (Eph 5:2) and thus daily increased in the Spirit, and received great grace from God.
… Oh, the carelessness and coldness of this present time! Sloth and lukewarmness makes life wearisome for us and we soon lose our early fervour! May the longing to grow in grace not remain dormant in you … (Book 1, Ch 18:1-4a,6)
Quote/s of the Day – 18 February – Friday after Ash Wednesday, Readings: Isaiah 58:1-9, Psalms 51:3-4, 5-6, 18-19, Matthew 9:14-15
“Then they will fast”
Matthew 9:15
“The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them and then they will fast in that day.”
Mark 2:20
“Fasting cleanses the soul, raises the mind, subjects one’s flesh to the spirit, renders the heart contrite and humble, scatters the clouds of concupiscence, quenches the fire of lust and kindles the true light of chastity. Enter again into yourself!”
St Augustine (354-430) Bishop of Hippo Father and Doctor of Grace
“Prayer, mercy and fasting: These three are one and they give life to each other. Fasting is the soul of prayer; mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. Let no-one try to separate them; they cannot be separated. If you have only one of them, or not all together, you have nothing.”
“So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heared, hear the petition of others. When you fast, see the fasting of others. If you hope for mercy, show mercy. If you look for kindness, show kindness. If you want to receive, give.”
St Peter Chrysologus (400-450) Bishop of Ravenna Father and Doctor of Homilies
“Let my fasting be based on temperance, my soul in a state of grace, my intention solely to please God, then my efforts will ring true, fit to enlarge my store of charity.”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Bishop of Geneva OFM, Cap. Doctor Caritatis
One Minute Reflection – 19 February – Friday after Ash Wednesday, Readings: Isaiah 58:1-9, Psalms 51:3-4, 5-6, 18-19, Matthew 9:14-15 and the Memorial of Blessed Alvarez of Cordova OP (c 1350–c 1430)
“Then they will fast” – Matthew 9:15
REFLECTION – “Although it is true, that the washing of regeneration is what chiefly makes “people new” (cf. Eph 4,24 – Col 3,10) nevertheless, because there is still for all of us, a daily renewal against the rust of mortality and in the path of progress, there is no-one, who ought not always to be better. In general, we still have to struggle, so that in the Day of Redemption, no-one may be found in sins of long standing.
What, therefore, dearly beloved, any Christian ought, at all times to do, should now be pursued more carefully and more devotedly, to fulfil the apostolic institution of forty days of fast, not only by scant food but especially by fasting from sins…To these reasonable and holy fasts, nothing is joined more carefully, than the works of almsgiving, which under the one name of mercy, includes many praiseworthy acts of devotion, so that the spirits of all the faithful can be equal in merit, even with unequal means.” – St Pope Leo the Great (400-461) Father and Doctor – 6th Sermon for Lent, 1-2; SC 49
PRAYER – Lord God, bestow a full measure of Your grace upon us, who seek to make our lenten journey fruitful. Confirm us in Your service and help us to bear witness to You in the society in which we live by our lives, our fasting and prayer, our gift of self. Listen kindly we pray, to the prayers of Bl Alvarez who so avidly followed in the footsteps of our Saviour, Lord Jesus Christ, in whose name, with the Holy Spirit, we pray, one God forever, amen.
Saint of the Day – 19 February – Blessed Alvarez of Cordova OP (c 1350–c 1430) Priest of the Order of Preachers, Confessor, Ascetic, Royal Advisor and Tutor, founder of many Churches and Convents, miracle-worker – born in c 1350 in either Lisbon, Portugal or Cordova, Spain (sources vary) and died in c1430 at Escalaceli near Cordova, Spain of natural causes, aged around 80 and is buried there. By his preaching and contemplation of the Lord’s Passion he spread the practice of the Way of the Cross, throughout the West.
Blessed Alvarez is claimed by both Spain and Portugal. He received the habit in the Convent of Saint Paul in Cordova in 1368 and had been preaching there for some time in Castile and Andalusia, when Saint Vincent Ferrer began preaching in Catalonia. Having gone to Italy and the Holy Land on a pilgrimage, Alvarez returned to Castile and preached the crusade against the infidels. He was spiritual advisor to the Queen-mother of Spain, Catherine daughter of John of Gaunt and tutor to her son who would become King John II. Alvarez had the work of preparing the people spiritually, for the desperate effort to banish the Moors from Spain. He also opposed the Avignon Pope Peter de Luna nd encouraged all to resist him.
Blessed Alvarez is remembered and honoured as a builder of Churches and Convents, an activity which was symbolic of the work he did in the souls of those among whom he preached. He founded, in one place, a Convent to shelter a famous image of Our Lady, which had been discovered in a miraculous manner. Near Cordova he built the famous Convent of Scala Coeli, a haven of regular observance. It had great influence for many years. His building enterprises were often aided by the angels, who, during the night, carried wood and stones to spots convenient for the workmen.
The austerities of Alvarez were all the more remarkable in that they were not performed by a hermit but by a man of action. He spent the night in prayer, as Saint Dominic had done; he wore a hairshirt and a penitential chain and he begged alms in the streets of Cordova, for the building of his churches, despite the fact, that he had great favour at court and could have obtained all the money he needed from the Queen. He had a deep devotion to the Passion and had scenes of the Lord’s sufferings made into small oratories in the garden of Scala Coeli.
On one occasion, when there was no food for the community but one head of lettuce, left from the night before, Blessed Alvarez called the community together in the refectory, said the customary prayers and sent the porter to the gate. There, the astonished brother found a stranger, leading a mule; the mule was loaded with bread, fish, wine and all things needed for a good meal. The porter turned to thank the benefactor and found that he had disappeared.
At another time, Blessed Alvarez was overcome with pity, at the sight of a dying man who lay untended in the street. Wrapping the man in his mantle, he started home with the sufferer and one of the brothers asked what he was carrying. “A poor sick man,” replied Alvarez. But when they opened the mantle, there was only a large Crucifix in his arms. This Crucifix is still preserved at Scala Coeli.
Blessed Alvarez died and was buried at Scala Coeli. An attempt wads made later to remove the relics to Cordova, but it could not be done because violent storms began each time the journey was resumed and stopped when the body was returned to its original resting place.
Blessed Alvarez founded Escalaceli (Ladder of Heaven), a Dominican house of strict observance in the mountains around Cordova. It became a well known centre of piety and learning. Alvarez spent his days there preaching, teaching, begging alms in the streets and spending his nights in prayer. In the gardens of the house, he set up a series of oratories with images of the Holy Lands and Passion, similar to modern Stations of the Cross.
A bell in the Chapel of Blessed Alvarez, in the Convent of Cordova, rings of itself when anyone in the Convent, or of special note in the Order, is about to die (Benedictines, Dorcy).
Alvarez was Beatified on 22 September 1741 At St Peter’s by Pope Benedict XIV.
Notre Dame-de-Bonne Nouvelle / Our Lady of Good Tidings, Lempdes, France (1500’s) – 18 February:
The Abbot Orsini wrote: “Our Lady of Good Tidings, near Rouen, where a great number of people are seen, particularly on Saturdays.”
It was on 23 December 1563, when the Bishop of Lucon, Jean-Baptiste Tiercelin, consecrated the Church under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin, Notre-Dame-de-Bonne-Nouvelle. This first Chapel came into the world in the midst of religious convulsions that were then taking place in Switzerland, Germany and England, by the leaders of the ‘Reformation’ and must necessarily be seen, as an action bravely going against the tide. The religious wars that began raging in France ten years after its erection, began to be another reason for some concern for faithful Catholics but the pilgrimages to the Church of Notre-Dame-de-Bonne-Nouvelle continued undisturbed. From time immemorial, there had been venerated at Notre Dame a Statue of the Blessed Virgin, holding in her arm the Infant Jesus. Many went to her in procession, especially children, who came each year to ask Mary for perseverance after their first Communion. The revolutionary turmoil in France, which was to take the throne and the altar, could not leave behind the parish of Our Lady of Good Tidings. In 1790 the National Assembly decreed a new law in which the Church of Our Lady of Good Tidings was dissolved. As the Priest, Fr M Fabre, had the courage to refuse the oath of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, he was thrown into the street. A short time later, on 22 May 1791, the Abbot Fourquet de Damalis, convened in the Church an assembly of the faithful and there were very many who responded. This occurred under the noses of twelve national guardsmen and so the Police Commissioner, a man named Cafin, responded there quickly. He asked the Abbot why there was such a meeting and the Abbot answered him, that he was explaining to the faithful the decrees of the National Assembly for the public good. The Police Commissioner accepted the explanation and the meeting, having been perfectly peaceful, the police commissioner was obliged to agree to the monthly meetings and record it in his minutes. One might think that the worship would be suspended at Notre-Dame-de-Bonne-Nouvelle during the Terror but we have evidence to the contrary. As at Chartres, a great number of the faithful remained active and opposed the removal of the sacred ornaments of the Church and defended their Priests and eager to fulfil their religious duties, they were not to be intimidated by the fear of imprisonment and even death. From the registry of marriages and baptisms, including a few that date back to 1793, we know that there were religious ceremonies such as baptisms and weddings held there secretly, sometimes in an oratory, sometimes in the Church. In the year 1818, a severe epidemic was ravaging the country. The faithful vowed, with the agreement of their Bishop, to go in procession to Our Lady of Good Tidings and celebrate in perpetuity the feast of the Visitation, which was the feast of the Chapel. The procession took place and God quickly put an end to the scourge of the plague. At about that time, a young boy began making regular visits to the Church of Our Lady of Good Tidings, who was the patroness of the village. He was a poor boy materially, for Lempdes was one of the poorer villages in France and he had been born into a peasant family, that was struggling to eke out a living in the wreck of post-revolutionary France. He kept the faith and when he grew up, Jean Baptiste Lamy was Ordained a Priest, eventually becoming the first Archbishop of Sana Fe, New Mexico.
Bl Józef Zaplata St Lucia Yi Zhenmei St Mansuetus of Milan St Odran St Proclus of Bisignano St Quodvultdeus St Valerius of Antibes St Zambdas of Jerusalem
Thought for the Day – 18 February – A Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)
The Hour of Trial
“Everybody, even a Saint, has his hour of trial. God wants it this way. so that if we are victorious with the help of His grace, we can receive our reward. “One who enters a contest is not crowned unless he has competed according to the rules” (Cf 2 Tim 2:5). Even the Angels were put on trial and those haughty spirits who rebelled against God, were damned forever.
Our first parents were placed on trial and because they disobeyed God’s command, were deprived of their supernatural gifts and exiled from their earthly paradise. Even Jesus willed to endure His hour of trial in the Garden of Gethsemane, before the Sanhedrin, before the judgement seat of Pilate and on Mount Calvary. He desired to be tried in this way, in order to teach us how to be victorious.
Our trials are of various kinds, some of which recur frequently during our lives. They may be physical, such as suffering, disease, disgrace or poverty. They may be moral trials, which affect mainly the heart – the neglect of those whom we love, calumny, misunderstanding, or malice. There are also spiritual trials, such as discouraging lapses into sin, or aridity of soul when it seems that the Heavenly Father has abandoned us as He abandoned Jesus in His last agony on the Cross.
How should we behave when we are tried? Jesus showed us the way, when He took upon Himself, the sins of all mankind and His passion began in the Garden of Gethsemane. Even before He ascended Mount Calvary and was nailed to the Cross, He experienced here all the agony and terror of His redemptive mission. Prostrate with suffering, He prayed three times: “Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass away from me; yet not as I will but as thou willest” (Cf Mt 26:39-42). When we are tried, we should fervently repeat this prayer of complete resignation to the will of God.”
Day Two of our Lenten Journey – 18 February – Thursday after Ash Wednesday, Readings: Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Psalms 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6, Luke 9:22-25
Imitating Christ with Thomas à Kempis CRSA (1380-1471)
In Your Light Lord, we see light
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me” – Luke 9:23
To many the word seems harsh; “Deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Jesus”… (Mt 16:24) Why do you fear then to take up the cross, the way that leads to the kingdom? In the cross you are saved, revived, protected. In the cross you are showered with sweetness from on high, your mind is strengthened, your spirit rejoiced. In the cross is virtue’s sum and perfect holiness. In the cross alone, is the hope of life eternal, the soul’s salvation. So take up your cross and follow Jesus and you will enter eternal life… For if you die with Him, you shall also likewise live with Him. If you are His companion in punishment, so shall you be in glory.
Everything is founded on the cross… There is no other way to life, nor to true inner peace… Walk where you will, seek what you will, you will find neither a loftier way above, nor a safer way below but only the way of the Holy Cross.
Plan as you will, arrange as you see fit; all you will ever find is suffering, you cannot help but bear and so you will always find the cross. You will either have bodily pain or mental and spiritual affliction. Now God will leave you, again your fellow will provoke you and what is more, you will often weigh heavy on yourself. There is neither remedy to free you, nor comfort to ease you… For God will have you learn to endure affliction with total submission to Himself and become more humble… You must endure with patience everywhere, if you would be at peace within and earn the lasting crown. (Book II, Ch 12:1,2,3-4)
Quote/s of the Day – 18 February – Thursday after Ash Wednesday, Readings: Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Psalms 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6, Luke 9:22-25
“The servant is not greater than his Master”
John 13:16
“Only let it be in the name of Jesus Christ, that I may suffer together with Him! I endure everything because He Himself, Who is perfect man, empowers me.”
St Ignatius of Antioch (c 35 – 107)
“Oh cherished cross! Through thee my most bitter trials are replete with graces!”
St Paul of the Cross (1604-1775)
“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.”
St Anthony Mary Claret (1807-1870)
“It is only through suffering that we become holy. And to become holy is our only purpose in life, our only preparation for heaven.”
One Minute Reflection – 18 February – Thursday after Ash Wednesday, Readings Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Psalms 1:1-2, 3, 4, and 6, Luke 9:22-25 and the Memorial of St Theotinius (1082-1162) The First Saint of Portugal
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me” – Luke 9:23
REFLECTION – “What joy to live in the Cross of Christ! Who could complain of suffering? Only the insensate man who does not adore the Passion of Christ, the Cross of Christ, the Heart of Christ, can in his own griefs, give way to despair… How good it is to live united with the Cross of Christ. Christ Jesus… teach me that truth, which consists in rejoicing in scorn, injury, degradation; teach me to suffer with that humble, silent joy of the saints; teach me to be gentle towards those who don’t love me or who despise me; teach me that truth, which from the mound of Calvary You reveal to the whole world. But I know: a very gentle voice within me explains it all; I feel something in me which comes from You and which I don’t know how to put into words; so much mystery is revealed that man cannot apprehend it. I, Lord, in my way, do understand it. It is love. In that is everything. I know it, Lord, nothing more is needed, nothing more, it is love! Who shall describe the love of Christ? Let men, creatures and all things, keep silent, so that we may hear in the stillness, the whisperings of love, meek, patient, immense, infinite, which from the Cross, Jesus offers us with His arms open. The world, mad, doesn’t listen.” – St Raphael Arnaiz Baron (1911-1938) a Spanish Trappist Monk – Spiritual writings 07/04/1938
PRAYER – God of mercy, teach us to live as You have ordained. Help us to follow Your commandments with courage and steadfast devotion. Let our Saviour be our Master, help us to learn from Him, the ways of prayer in silence, the ways of love. Fill us with the fire of the Holy Spirit, that we may learn. Grant blessed Trinity, that by the prayers of St Theotonius, we may grow in holiness. Through Jesus our Lord, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 18 February – Thursday after Ash Wednesday
Jesus, Pierce My Soul with Your Love By St Bonaventure OFM (1221-1274) The Seraphic Doctor
Jesus, pierce my soul with Your love so that I may always long for You alone, the fulfilment of the soul’s deepest desires. May my heart always hunger and feed on You, my soul thirst for You, the source of life, wisdom, knowledge, light and all the riches of God. May I always seek and find You, think about You, speak about You and do everything for Your honour and glory. Be always my hope, my peace, my refuge and my help, in whom my heart is rooted, so that I may never be separated from You. Amen
Saint of the Day – 18 February – Saint Theotinius OSC (1082-1162) Priest of the Canons Regular, Reformer of religious life in Portugal, Royal Counsellor, Apostle of the poor, Founder of the Canons Regular of the Holy Cross, now known as “The Crosiers,” abbreviation OSC..Theotinius had a great devotion to the Passion, the Blessed Virgin and to Holy Souls in Purgatory and instituted a regular Friday devotion. He is the first Portuguese Saint. Born in 1086 at Gonfeo, Spain and died in 1162 of natural causes. Patronages – the Cities of Viseu and Valença, Portugal.
Born in 1082 into a wealthy and pious family in northern Portugal. His parents, Oveco and Eugenia were both wealthy and pious. He was called “Theotonius,” a Greek name meaning ‘godly.’ His uncle Dom Crescónio, Abbot of the Benedictine Monastery near Tuy, was his first teacher. When Dom Crescónio became Bishop of Coimbra in 1092, he brought the ten-year-old Theotonius with him and entrusted his further education to the care of a young seminarian, Tello.
After the death of Bishop Crescónio in 1098, Theotonius went to Viseu, where his Uncle named Teodorico was Prior of the Cathedral Chapter of Santa Maria. During his time of preparation for the priesthood, Theotonius progressed through the minor ecclesiastic orders with great diligence and piety. The first of these was that of porter, with the responsibility to open the Church and Sacristy and ring the bell. After serving a period of time as a Lector, he became an Exorcist. One of the chief duties of Exorcists was to take part in the Baptismal Exorcism of Catechumens. Completing his term as an Acolyte, Theotonius was ordained a Sub-deacon. Holy Orders were conferred upon him sometime before the year 1109, by the Bishop of Coimbra. The young Priest was appointed a Canon of the Cathedral Chapter of Viseu – though not without reluctance – which was a college of clerics who served as Advisors to the Bishop.
The Countess Teresa of Portugal (referred to by Pope Paschal II in 1116 as “Queen,” a title that remained from that time onwards) and her husband, Henry of Burgundy, with the consent of the clergy and at the urging of the people, often sought to appoint Theotonius as Bishop of Coimbra but he always refused.
In an effort to dissuade the Queen from her intentions, Theotonius resigned his office as Prior of the Cathedral Chapter and made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. After he returned to Portugal, he resumed his work as a Priest and Chapter member in Viseu but refused to take up again the office of Prior.
Theotonius was a trusted advisor of Portugal’s first King, Afonso Henriques (ruled 1139-85). The King attributed his success at the Battle of Ourique to the prayers of Theotonius, who was thus able to persuade the King to release Mozarabic Christians captured during forays into land held by the Moors.
Although his counsel was sought by Afonso Henriques, Theotonius did not hesitate to reprove the King or Queen if he thought them in the wrong. Theotonius was fearless in rebuking sinful behaviour, in public or in private. In one instance, the now widowed Queen was attending Holy Mass celebrated by Theotonius. She was accompanied by the Galician nobleman Fernando Pérez de Traba and the nature of their scandalous relationship had become well-known. Theotonius’ sermon, though not naming them, was clearly directed at their conduct.
On another occasion, Theotonius was about to begin Holy Mass when the Queen had a message sent asking him to say the Mass quickly. He replied simply that there was another Queen in heaven, far more noble, for whom he ought to say the Mass with the greatest reverence and devotion. If the Queen did not wish to stay, she was free to leave but he would not rush – Theotonius was ever insistent on the exact and reverent recitation of holy prayers.
Theotonius left his Parish with a large number of pilgrims and set out once more to Jerusalem. His experience in the Holy Land resulted in both an increased devotion to the Passion and an intention to found a religious order following the Augustinian Rule. Theotonius helped to found the Canons Regular of the Holy Cross in Coimbra. Archdeacon Tello (his former tutor), purchased the site of the Monastery. The construction gained the backing of the Infante and Bernardo, Bishop of Coimbra. Work began on the Monastery of the Holy Cross and of the Blessed Mary Mother of God, on 28 June 1131. On 22 February 1132, the Monastery was completed and the community took the habit and rule of Saint Augustine. It opened with 72 members, with Theotonius as Prior.
Theotonius’s priestly life was distinguished by a great love for the poor and for the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for whom he offered Mass every Friday. The Mass was followed by a procession to the cemetery and large sums were donated to the Priest but Theotonius distributed the money to the poor.
Theotonius retired from his pastoral office of Prior, after 30 years of service. He then became a Hermit in solitude. He kept with him through his old age a shepherd’s staff which St Bernard, the first Abbot of Clairvaux, had sent to him as a present when he heard of his sanctity. On Saturday, 18 February 1162, Theotonius died at the age of 80. The entire city of Coimbra showed their admiration and grief for him. King Afonso I of Portugal, Queen Teresa’s son and the first King of Portugal, who was a good friend of Theotonius’ was taken by such grief, that he said of him, “His soul will be in Heaven before his body is in the tomb.”
During his life, St Theotonius was known for his humility and piety. His cultus was approved and he was Canonised by Pope Benedict XIV. His feast day is 18 February. Portugal issued postal stamps with the image of St. Theotonius that circulated from July 1958 to October 1961.
The Royal Confraternity of Saint Theotonius, founded on 2 November 2000, under the Royal protection of Dom Miguel de Bragança, Duke of Viseu, Infante of Portugal, is a secular organisation of the faithful with common ends, a group of men willingly desiring to defend the origins and Christian values, maintain and honour the spirit of and remember and promote, devotion to Saint Theotonius.
Notre-Dame de Laon / Our Lady of Laon, Rheims, France (500), founded by St Remigius – 18 February:
Our Lady with St Gabriel at the Annunciation on the North-west Entrance
The Abbot Orsini wrote: “The Shrine or Chapel of Our Lady of Laon was erected into a Cathedral and founded by Saint Remigius, Archbishop of Rheims, about the year 500, where he consecrated as his first Bishop Saint Geneband, his nephew. Miracles were wrought there and, among others, we read that in the year 1395, there was seen on the steeple, the picture of a Crucifix, the wounds of which bled.” The present Cathedral located in Laon, Picardy, France, the Laon Cathedral, or Notre-Dame de Laon, was begun in about 1155 and completed in 1235. It was built on the foundation of an earlier Cathedral that was consecrated in the year 800 but burned to the ground in the year 1111 during an uprising, and was, therefore, not the same Cathedral founded by Saint Remigius. The people of Laon took pride in their Cathedral and tried to make it rival the great shrine of Chartres. They did not succeed but the result is the sum of an emotion, clear and strong as love and much stronger than logic and clearer; the charm of the Laon cathedral lies in its unstable balance; which without doubt Our Lady accepted in love as it was meant by her devoted children. It was one of the first Cathedrals constructed in the new Gothic style.
One other unusual aspect of the Cathedral, is that there are sixteen carved bullocks carved in stone like gargoyles. There is a tradition that once when some of the stone was being hauled up the slope for use in the construction of the Church, at one point, the animals hauling the wagon could go no further under the strain of the load. A huge ox appeared at that moment and assisted them in moving the load up into position but then disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.
Much of the stained-glass is original and, as at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, there is a beautiful rose window dating from the 13th century. It depicts the Blessed Virgin seated on a throne with her Divine Child between Saint John the Baptist and the prophet Isaiah. The interior of the Cathedral was finished with white stone, it is considerably brighter than Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.
St Gertrude Caterina Comensoli St Helladius of Toledo St Ioannes Chen Xianheng St Ioannes Zhang Tianshen St Jean-François-Régis Clet St Jean-Pierre Néel Bl Jerzy Kaszyra Bl John Pibush – one of the Martyrs of Douai St Leo of Patera St Martinus Wu Xuesheng Bl Matthew Malaventino St Paregorius of Patara St Sadoth of Seleucia St Simeon St Tarasius of Constantinople St Theotonius (1082-1162) Priest Bl William Harrington — Martyrs of North Africa – 7 saints: Group of Christians who were martyred together, date unknown. We know nothing else but seven of their names – Classicus, Fructulus, Lucius, Maximus, Rutulus, Secundinus and Silvanus. They were born and martyred in North Africa.
Martyrs of Rome – 5 saints: A group of Christians martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian. We know nothing else but their names – Alexander, Claudius, Cutias, Maximus and Praepedigna. They were martyred in 295 in Rome, Italy.
Thought for the Day – 17 February – Ash Wednesday – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)
The Will
“It is necessary, that our resolutions should be accompanied by the grace of God. We should pray fervently and make firm decisions. We must pray for divine grace but, it depends on our own will to ensure, that God’s grace produces results in us. This is the only way in which we can become perfect.
We are assured of this by St Paul and by all the Saints. “I can do all things in him who strengthens me,” wrote the Apostle of the Gentiles (Phil 4:13). “By the grace of God, I am what I am and his grace in me has not been fruitless – in fact, I have laboured more than any of them, yet, not I but the grace of God with me” (1 Cor 15:10).
So, let us go forward. Be determined. Work hard. Above all, pray humbly and fervently for the grace of God, without which, we can do nothing that is good!”
Ash Wednesday – 17 February- Day One of our Lenten Journey
Imitating Christ with Thomas à Kempis CRSA (1380-1471)
In Your Light Lord, we see light
“HE WHO follows Me, walks not in darkness,” (John 8:12) says the Lord. By these words of Christ, we are advised to imitate His life and habits, if we wish to be truly enlightened and free from all blindness of heart. Let our chief effort, therefore, be to study the life of Jesus Christ. (Book 1, Ch 1:1)
DISCIPLE: IT IS the mark of a perfect man, Lord, never to let his mind relax in attention to heavenly things and to pass through many cares as though he had none; not as an indolent man does but, having by the certain prerogative of a free mind, no disorderly affection for any created being.
Keep me, I beg You, most merciful God, from the cares of this life, lest I be too much entangled in them. Keep me from many necessities of the body, lest I be ensnared by pleasure. Keep me from all darkness of mind, lest I be broken by troubles and overcome. I do not ask deliverance from those things, which worldly vanity desires so eagerly but, from those miseries which, by the common curse of humankind, oppress the soul of Your servant, in punishment and keep him from entering into the liberty of spirit as often as he would.
My God, Sweetness beyond words, make bitter all the carnal comfort that draws me from love of the eternal and lures me to its evil self, by the sight of some delightful good in the present. Let it not overcome me, my God. Let not flesh and blood conquer me. Let not the world and its brief glory deceive me, nor the devil trip me by his craftiness. Give me courage to resist, patience to endure and constancy to persevere. Give me the soothing unction of Your spirit, rather than all the consolations of the world and in place of carnal love, infuse into me the love of Your Name.
Behold, eating, drinking, clothing and other necessities that sustain the body are burdensome to the fervent soul. Grant me the grace to use such comforts temperately and not to become entangled in too great a desire for them. It is not lawful to cast them aside completely, for nature must be sustained but Your holy law forbids us to demand superfluous things and things that are simply for pleasure, else the flesh would rebel against the spirit. In these matters, I beg, let Your hand guide and direct me, so that I may not overstep the law in any way. (Book 3 Ch 26:1-4)
AnaStpaul 
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