Our Morning Offering – 28 October – Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B
Make Me Pure (Prayer for the Sanctification of our bodies by Christ’s Body) By Blessed John Henry Newman (1801-1890)
O my God,
teach me to live as one
who truly believes
in the great dignity,
the great sanctity
of this material body
in which You have lodged me.
And, therefore, dear Saviour,
I come often and earnestly,
to be a partaker of Your Holy Body and Blood,
so that by Your unutterable holiness,
I too may be made holy.
O my Lord Jesus,
I believe that our bodies
are the temples
of the Holy Spirit.
Should we not venerate that body
which You feed miraculously
with Your risen Body
and which the Spirit of God,
Your Spirit, inhabits.
O my God, who was nailed to the cross,
‘pierce my flesh with fear of you’
crucify my soul and body
in all that is sinful in them
and make me pure,
as You are pure.
Amen
Feast of the Apostles – Sts Simon and Jude – 28 October
St Simon Apostle of Christ – Apostle, Martyr, Preacher, Evangelist, Missionary – also known as St Simon the Zealot. Patronages – curriers, sawmen, sawyers, tanners, woodcutters, Monterchi, Italy. St Simon was called the Cananean or Zealot because of his zeal for the Jewish law; he was not from Cana, nor a member of the Zealot party.
Like all the Apostles, he was a convert and was trained by Saint Peter the Apostle. He evangelised in Egypt and Mesopotamia, though there are traditions of him being in several other locations. He was a Martyr for the faith but several places claim to have been the site of his martyrdom and in several different ways too. St Simon’s main attribute is a serrated saw as it is believed that he was he was sawn in half at Suanir, Persia. Many locations claim to have relics including Toulouse, France and Saint Peter’s Basilica, Rome, Italy.
St Jude Apostle of Christ – Martyr, Evangelist, Preacher, Missionary, Writer – also known as – Jude of James, Judas Thaddaeus, Jude, brother of Jesus – Patronages – Armenia, lost cause, desperate situations, hospitals, the Chicago Police Department, 13 cities, the Philippines. Saint Jude’s attribute is a club. He is also often shown in icons with a flame around his head. This represents his presence at Pentecost, when he received the Holy Spirit with the other apostles. Another common attribute is Jude holding an image of Jesus Christ, known as the Image of Edessa. In some instances, he may be shown with a scroll or a book (the Epistle of Jude) or holding a carpenter’s rule.
His patronage of lost or impossible causes traditionally derives from confusion by many early Christians between Jude and the traitor Judas Iscariot – not understanding the difference between the names, they never prayed for Jude’s help and devotion to him became something of a lost cause.
He was beaten to death with a club, then beheaded post-mortem in 1st century Persia. His relics are at Saint Peter’s Basilica, Rome, Italy, at Rheims, France and at Toulouse, France.
Simon was a simple Galilean, a brother of Jesus, as the ancients called one’s close relatives — aunts, uncles, first cousins. He was one of the Saviour’s four first cousins, with James the Less, Jude and Joseph, all sons of Mary, the wife of Alpheus, or Cleophas, either name being a derivative of the Aramaic Chalphai. The latter was the brother of Saint Joseph, according to tradition. All the sons of this family were raised at Nazareth near the Holy Family. (See the Gospel of Saint Matthew 13:53-58.) Simon, Jude and James were called by Our Lord to be Apostles, pillars of His Church and Joseph the Just was His loyal disciple.
Saint Simon the Zealot or the Zealous, was the name this Apostle bore among the twelve. He preached in Egypt, Mauritania (Spain) and Lybia, leaving behind him the fertile hills of Galilee, where he had been engaged in the healthful cultivation of the vineyards and olive gardens. He later rejoined his brother, Saint Jude, in Persia, where they laboured and died together (other traditions of their deaths in different locations exist too). At first they were respected by the king, for they had manifested power over two ferocious tigers who had terrorised the land. With the king, sixty thousand Persians became Christians and churches rose over the ruins of the idolatrous temples. But the ancient enemy, who never sleeps, rose up and when the two went elsewhere the pagans commanded them to sacrifice to the sun which led to their martyrdom.
Saint Jude has left us a short but powerful epistle, written after the death of his brother James, bishop of Jerusalem and addressed to the new Christians being tempted by false brethren and heretics.
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 Ferrutius
St Fidelis of Como
St Genesius of Thiers
Bl Germain of Talloires
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 China:
St Francis Serrano
St Francisco Díaz del Rincón
St Joaquin Royo-Perez
St Juan Alcober Figuera
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
• Blessed Claudio Julían García San Román
• Blessed José Ruiz Bruixola
• Blessed Leoncio Lope García
• Blessed Salvador Damián Enguix Garés
Saint Louis-Marie de Montfort’s Total Consecration to Jesus Through Mary – Day Eleven – 27 October
Readings and Prayers
12 Day Preparation
Day 11 of 33
Imitation of Christ, by Thomas á Kempis: Book 1, Chapter 25
On the Fervent Amendment of our Whole Life
When a certain anxious person, who often times wavered between hope and fear, once overcome with sadness, threw himself upon the ground in prayer, before one of the altars in the Church and thinking these things in his mind, said “Oh, if I only knew how to persevere,” that very instant he heard within him, this heavenly answer: “And if thou did know this, what would thou do? Do now what you would do and thou shall be perfectly secure.” And immediately being consoled and comforted, he committed himself to the Divine Will and his anxious thoughts ceased. He no longer wished for curious things, searching to find out what would happen to him but studied rather to learn what was the acceptable and perfect will of God for the beginning and the perfection of every good work.
“Hope in the Lord,” said the Prophet, “And do all good and inhabit the land and thou shall be fed of the riches thereof.”
There is one thing that keeps many back from spiritual progress and from fervour in amendment, namely – the labour that is necessary for the struggle. And assuredly they especially advance beyond others in virtues, who strive the most manfully to overcome the very things which are the hardest and most contrary to them. For there a man does profit more and merit more abundant grace, when he does most to overcome himself and mortify his spirit. All have not, indeed, equal difficulties to overcome and mortify but a diligent and zealous person will make a greater progress though he have more passions than another, who is well regulated but less fervent in the pursuit of virtues.
Thought for the Day – 27 October – Today’s Gospel: Luke 13:1-9 – Saturday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year B
“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
Answering God’s call to repent at last
St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church – Confessions Bk. 8
Those trifles of all trifles and vanities of vanities, my one-time mistresses, held me back, plucking at my garment of flesh and murmuring softly: “Are you sending us away?” And ” From this moment shall we not be with you, now or forever?” And: ” From this moment shall this or that not be allowed you, now or forever?” What were they suggesting to me, O my God?… I hesitated to shake them off and leap upwards on the way I was called, for the strong force of habit said to me: “Do you think you can live without them?” But by this time its voice was growing fainter. In the direction towards which I had already turned my face and was quivering in fear of going, I could see the austere beauty of Continence honourably soliciting me to come to her and not linger, her hands full of multitudes of good examples… “The Lord their God gave me to them. Why do you rely on yourself and so fail to stand at all? Cast yourself upon Him and do not be afraid, He will not draw back and let you fall. Cast yourself on Him without fea,; He will receive you and heal you”…
This disputation within my heart was nothing other than a struggle between myself against myself… When my most searching scrutiny had drawn up all my vileness from the secret depths of my soul and heaped it in my heart’s sight, a mighty storm rose up in me bringing a mighty rain of tears. In order to give release to my tears and lamentations, I got up and went out… I flung myself down somehow under a certain fig tree and no longer tried to check my tears, which poured from my eyes in a flood, an acceptable sacrifice to Thee. And I spoke to You freely: “And Thou, O Lord, how long? How long, Lord, will You be angry forever? Remember not our former iniquities.” (Ps 6:4; 78:5)… And I continued my miserable complaining: “How long, how long shall I go on saying tomorrow and again tomorrow? Why not now, why not this very hour?”
And suddenly I heard a voice from some nearby house, a boy’s voice or a girl’s voice, a sort of sing-song repeated again and again: “Take and read, take and read.” I stopped weeping and immediately began to search my mind most carefully as to whether children were accustomed to chant these words in any kind of game and I could not remember that I had ever heard any such thing. Damming back my flood of tears I rose up again, interpreting the incident as quite certainly a divine command to open the book of the apostle Paul and read the first passage on which my eyes should fall… I returned hastily and took up the book and read what I had seen before: “Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and impurities, not in contention and envy but put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make not provision for the flesh in its concupiscence,” (Rom 13:13). I had no wish to read any further and no need. For in that instant, with the very ending of the sentence, it was as though a light of utter confidence shone in my heart, and all the darkness of uncertainty vanished away.
Quote/s of the Day – 27 Oct – Saturday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year B
Speaking of: Marian Gems
“She (Mary) is like a fiery chariot, because she conceived within her the Word, the only-begotten Son of God. She carries and spreads, the fire of love, because her Son IS love.”
St Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) Doctor of the Church
“If every woman were an image of the Mother of God, a spouse of Christ and an apostle of the divine Heart, she would fulfil her feminine vocation no matter in what circumstances she lived and what her external activities might be.”
St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross/Edith Stein (1891-1942)
“O Blessed Rosary of Mary, sweet chain which binds us to God, bond of love which unites us to the angels, tower of salvation against the assaults of hell, safe port in our universal shipwreck, we shall never abandon you.”
Bl Bartholomew Longo (1841-1926)
“Mary is the image and model of all mothers, of their great mission to be guardians of life, of their mission to be teachers of the art of living and of the art of loving.”
One Minute Reflection – 27 October – Today’s Gospel: Luke 13:1-9 – Saturday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year B
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 – “Unfortunately, each of us strongly resembles the tree that, over many years, has repeatedly shown that it’s infertile. But, fortunately for us, Jesus is like a farmer who, with limitless patience, still obtains a concession for the fruitless vine. “Let it alone this year” the invincible patience of Jesus! Have you thought about the patience of God? Have you ever thought as well of His limitless concern for sinners? How it should lead us to impatience with ourselves! It’s never too late to convert, never. God’s patience awaits us until the last moment.”…Pope Francis – Angelus, 28 February 2016
PRAYER – Come to help us in our weakness, God of mercy, forgive the sins of Your people and as nothing we can do is worthy in Your sight, save us through the intercession of the Mother of our Lord, Jesus Christ. We make our prayer through Jesus with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 27 October – Saturday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year B
A Morning Salutation to Mary A Coptic Catholic Prayer
We greet you,
glorious Mother of the Light
O Blessed Mary,
from the rising of the sun
to its setting
praise is due to you,
O Mother of God.
You are the second heaven,
the bright unfading flower,
the ever-virgin mother.
For the Father chose you
and the Holy Spirit overshadowed you
and the Son humbled Himself
and took flesh from you.
Therefore, ask Him to give peace
to the world He has created
and to deliver it from every tribulation.
And we shall sing to Him a new song
and bless Him,
now and forever,
Amen
Saint of the Day – 27 October – St Frumentius (Died c 383) Bishop, Confessor and Apostle to Ethiopia – born in Tyre, Eastern Roman Empire, in the early fourth century, died circa 383, Kingdom of Aksum was the first bishop of Aksum and is credited with bringing Christianity to the Kingdom of Aksum. He is sometimes known by other names, such as Abuna (“Our Father”) and Aba Salama. Patronage : Kingdom of Aksum.
Saint Frumentius was still a child when his uncle, a Christian philosopher of Tyre in Phoenicia, took him and his brother Edesius on a voyage to Ethiopia. In the course of their voyage the vessel anchored at a certain port and the barbarians of that country slew with the sword all the crew and passengers, except the two children.
Because of their youth and beauty they were taken to the king at Axuma, who, charmed with the wit and sprightliness of the two boys, took special care of their education and later made Edesius his cup-bearer and Frumentius, who was a little older, his treasurer and secretary of state. The king, on his deathbed, thanked them for their services and in reward gave them their liberty.
After his death the queen begged them to remain at court and assist her in the government of the state until the young prince came of age; this they did, using their influence to spread Christianity. When the young king reached his majority, Edesius desired to return to Tyre and Frumentius accompanied him as far as Alexandria. There he begged Saint Athanasius (297-373), its Patriarch, to send a bishop to the country where they had spent many years and the Patriarch, considering him the best possible candidate for this office, in the year 328 consecrated him bishop for the Ethiopians.
Vested with this sacred character he gained great numbers to the Faith by his discourses and miracles and the entire nation embraced Christianity with its young king, thus fulfilling a famous prophecy of Isaiah, uttered 800 years before Christ. (Isaiah 45:14) Saint Frumentius continued to feed and defend his flock until it pleased the Supreme Pastor to call him home and reward his fidelity and labours, in about the year 383.
We may note that the date of 27 October is also the feast day of a king of Ethiopia, Saint Elesbaan, who after overcoming the enemies of Christ, sent his royal diadem to Jerusalem in the time of the Emperor Justinus and embraced monastic life. He died 250 years after Saint Frumentius, in 523.
St Abban of Magh-Armuidhe
St Abraham the Poor
Bl Bartholomew of Vicenza
St Capitolina
St Colman of Senboth-Fola
St Colman of Templeshambo
St Desiderius of Auxerre
St Elesbaan of Ethiopia
St Emilina of Boulancourt
St Erotheides
St Florentius of Trois-Châteaux
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
“There is nothing more worthwhile than to pray to God and to converse with Him, for prayer unites us with God as His companions. As our bodily eyes are illuminated by seeing the light, so in contemplating God our soul is illuminated by Him. Of course, the prayer I have in mind is no matter of routine, it is deliberate and earnest. It is not tied down to a fixed timetable – rather it is a state which endures by night and day.
Our soul should be directed in God, not merely when we suddenly think of prayer but even when we are concerned with something else. If we are looking after the poor, if we are busy in some other way, or if we are doing any type of good work, we should season our actions with the desire and the remembrance of God. Through this salt of the love of God we can all become a sweet dish for the Lord. If we are generous in giving time to prayer, we will experience its benefits throughout our life.
Prayer is the light of the soul, giving us true knowledge of God. It is a link mediating between God and man. By prayer the soul is borne up to heaven and in a marvellous way embraces the Lord. This meeting is like that of an infant crying on its mother and seeking the best of milk. The soul longs for its own needs and what it receives is better than anything to be seen in the world.
Prayer is a precious way of communicating with God, it gladdens the soul and gives repose to its affections. You should not think of prayer as being a matter of words. It is a desire for God, an indescribable devotion, not of human origin but the gift of God’s grace. As Saint Paul says : we do not know how to pray as we ought but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words.
Anyone who receives from the Lord the gift of this type of prayer possesses a richness that is not to be taken from Him, a heavenly food filling up the soul. Once he has tasted this food, he is set alight by an eternal desire for the Lord, the fiercest of fires lighting up his soul.
To set about this prayer, paint the house of your soul with modesty and lowliness and make it splendid with the light of justice. Adorn it with the beaten gold of good works and, for walls and stones, embellish it assiduously with faith and generosity. Above all, place prayer on top of this house as its roof so that the complete building may be ready for the Lord. Thus He will be received in a splendid royal house and by grace, His image will already be settled in your soul.”
A reading from the homilies of St John Chrysostom (347-407) Father & Doctor, (Hom 6 on Prayer)
Prayer: Give us the grace, Lord, to be in constant prayer so all of our lives, may be accomplished in sincerity of heart.
Saint Louis-Marie de Montfort’s Total Consecration to Jesus Through Mary – Day Ten – 26 October
Readings and Prayers
12 Day Preparation
Day 10 of 33
Imitation of Christ, by Thomas á Kempis: Book 3, Chapter 10
That it is sweet to despise the world and to serve God.
Now, will I speak again, O Lord and will not be silent, I will say in the hearing of my God and my King Who is on high: Oh, how great is the abundance of Your sweetness, O Lord, which You have hidden for those that fear You!
But what are You, for those who love You? What, to those who serve You with their whole heart? Unspeakable indeed is the sweetness of Your contemplation, which You bestow on those who love You. In this most of all, have You shown me the sweetness of Your love, that when I had no being, You did make me and when I was straying far from You, You brought me back again, that I might serve You and You have commanded me to serve You.
O Fountain of everlasting love, what shall I say of You? How can I forget You, Who have vouchsafed to remember me even after I was corrupted and lost?
Beyond all hope, You show mercy to Your servant and beyond all desert, have You manifested Your grace and friendship. What return shall I make to You for this favour? For it is granted to all who forsake these things, to renounce the world and to assume the monastic life. Is it much that I should serve You, Whom the whole creation is bound to serve? It ought not to seem much to me to serve You but this does rather appear great and wonderful to me, that You vouchsafe to receive one so wretched and unworthy as Your servant. It is a great honour, a great glory, to serve You and to despise all things for You for they who willingly subject themselves to Your holy service, shall have great grace. They shall experience the most sweet consolation of the Holy Spirit, Who for the love of You, have cast aside all carnal delight.
“A priest goes to Heaven or a priest goes to Hell with a thousand people behind.”
St John Vianney (1786-1859)
“The issue is now clear. It is between light and darkness and every one must choose his side.”
G K Chesterton (1874-1936) (Chesterton’s last words)
“The doors of Hell are locked from the inside!”
C S Lewis (1898-1963)
“Each and everyone of us, at the end of the journey of life, will come, face to face with either one or the other of two faces… And one of them, either, the merciful face of Christ or the miserable face of Satan, will say, “Mine, mine.”
May we be Christ’s!”
Ven Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)
“We’ve all got a terminal illness. It’s called life.”
Servant of God Fr Benedict Groeschel (1933-2014)
“The national anthem of Hell is “I Did It My Way”.”
Peter Kreeft
“Many who plan to seek God at the eleventh hour die at 10:30.”
One Minute Reflection – 26 October – Today’s Gospel: Luke 12:54-59 – Friday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year B
“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. 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.
Lord Jesus, May we Seek Your Face By Pope Benedict XVI
Lord Jesus,
grant us restless hearts,
hearts which seek Your Face.
Keep us from the blindness of heart
which sees only the surface of things.
Give us the simplicity and purity
which allows us to recognise
Your Presence in the world.
When we are not able
to accomplish great things,
grant us the courage
which is born of humility and goodness.
Impress Your Face on our hearts.
May we encounter You along the way
and show forth Your image to the world.
Amen
Saint of the Day – 26 October – St Pope Evaristus (c 44 – c 108) – Martyr, Bishop of Rome – Pope Evaristus accounted as the fifth Bishop of Rome, holding office from c 99 to his death c 108. He was also known as Aristus.
He succeeded Saint Anacletus on the throne of Saint Peter, elected during the second general persecution, under the reign of Domitian. That emperor no doubt did not know that the Christian pontificate was being perpetuated in the shadows of the catacombs. The text of the Liber Pontificalis, says of the new pope:
“Evaristus, born in Greece of a Jewish father named Juda, originally from the city of Bethlehem, reigned for thirteen years, six months and two days, under the reigns of Domitian, Nerva and Trajan, from the Consulate of Valens and Veter (96) until that of Gallus and Bradua (108). This pontiff divided among the priests the titles of the city of Rome. By a constitution he established seven deacons who were to assist the bishop and serve as authentic witnesses for him. During the three ordinations which he conducted in the month of December, he promoted six priests, two deacons and five bishops, destined for various churches. Evaristus received the crown of martyrdom. He was buried near the body of Blessed Peter in the Vatican, on the sixth day of the Calends of November (25 October 108). The episcopal throne remained vacant for nineteen days.”
It was at the same time as Saint Ignatius, the illustrious bishop of Antioch, that Pope Saint Evaristus gave his life by martyrdom. The acts of his martyrdom are lost but we perceive that the same faith, heroism and devotion united the churches of the East and of the West. He is often represented with a sword because he was decapitated, or with a crib, because it is believed that he was born in Bethlehem, from which his father migrated.
St Adalgott of Einsiedeln
St St Alanus of Quimper
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
Bl Bonaventura of Potenza
St Cedd
Bl Celina Chludzinska
St Cuthbert of Canterbury
Bl Damian dei Fulcheri
St Eadfrid
St Eata of Hexham
St Pope Evaristus – (c 44 – c 107) Martyr
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
Saint Louis-Marie de Montfort’s Total Consecration to Jesus Through Mary – Day Nine – 25 October
Readings and Prayers
12 Day Preparation
Day 9 of 33
Imitation of Christ, by Thomas á Kempis: Book 1, Chapter 13, cont.
Fire tries iron and temptation a just man.
We often know not what we are able to do but temptations discover what we are. Still, we must watch, especially in the beginning of temptation, for then the enemy is more easily overcome, if he be not suffered to enter the door of the mind but is withstood upon the threshold the very moment he knocks. Whence a certain one has said “Resist beginnings; all too late the cure.” When ills have gathered strength, by long delay, first there comes from the mind a simple thought, then a strong imagination, afterwards delight and the evil motion and consent and so, little by little the fiend does gain entrance, when he is not resisted in the beginning. The longer anyone has been slothful in resisting, so much the weaker he becomes, daily in himself and the enemy, so much the stronger in him.
Some suffer grievous temptations in the beginning of their conversion, others in the end and others are troubled nearly their whole life. Some are very lightly tempted, according to the wisdom and the equity of the ordinance of God who weighs man’s condition and merits and pre-ordains all things for the salvation of His elect.
We must not, therefore, despair when we are tempted but the more fervently pray to God to help us in every tribulation – Who, of a truth, according to the sayings of St Paul, will make such issue with the temptation, that we are able to sustain it.
Let us then humble our souls under the hand of God in every temptation and tribulation, for the humble in spirit, He will save and exalt. In temptation and tribulations, it is proved, what progress man has made and there also, is great merit and virtue made more manifest.
Thought for the Day – 25 October – The Memorial of Saints Crispin & St Crispinian – (†285 or 286) Martyrs
From the example of the saints, it appears how foolish the pretences of many Christians are, who imagine the care of a family, the business of a farm or a shop, the attention which they are obliged to give to their worldly profession, are impediments which excuse them from aiming at perfection. Such, indeed, they make them but this is altogether owing to their own sloth and malice. How many saints have made these very employments the means of their perfection! Saint Paul made tents; Saints Crispin and Crispinian were shoemakers,the Blessed Virgin was taken up in the care of her poor cottage, Christ Himself worked with His foster father and those saints who renounced all commerce with the world, to devote themselves totally to the contemplation of heavenly things, made mats, tilled the earth, or copied and bound good books.
The secret of the art of their sanctification was, that fulfilling the maxims of Christ, they studied to subdue their passions and die to themselves; they, with much earnestness and application, obtained of God and improved daily in their souls, a spirit of devotion and prayer; their temporal business they regarded as a duty which they owed to God and sanctified it by a pure and perfect intention, as Christ on earth directed everything He did to the glory of His Father.
In these very employments, they were careful to improve themselves in humility, meekness, resignation, divine charity and all other virtues, by the occasion which call them forth at every moment and in every action. Opportunities of every virtue and every kind of good work never fail in all circumstances and the chief means of our sanctification may be practised, in every state of life, which are self-denial and assiduous prayer, frequent aspirations and pious meditation or reflections on spiritual truths, which disengage the affections from earthly things and deeply imprint in the heart, those of piety and religion….by Father Alban Butler
Quote of the Day – 25 October – The Memorial of Saints Crisp in & St Crispinian – (†285 or 286) Martyrs
The feast day of Saints Crispin and Crispinian is 25 October. Although this feast was removed from the Roman Catholic Church’s universal liturgical calendar following the Second Vatican Council, the two saints are still commemorated on that day in the most recent edition of the Roman Martyrology. Sts Crispin and Crispinian were the first “band of brothers,” who fought bravely on the battlefield of the soul.
The historian and bishop, St Gregory of Tours (538-594) refers twice in his History of the Franks to a Basilica of Sts Crispin and Crispinian in the northern French city of Soissons, if the Church was already well-established at that time, the commemoration of the martyrs dates from much closer to their martyrdom.
The St Crispin’s Day speech was delivered on 25 October 1415 by King Henry V of England to rouse his soldiers on the morning of the Battle of Agincourt and later chronicled by William Shakespeare in his play, Henry V, in Act IV Scene iii 18–67. In the speech, which fell on Saint Crispin’s Day, Henry V urged his men — who were vastly outnumbered by the French — to recall how the English had previously inflicted great defeats upon the French.
The speech by Shakespeare has been famously portrayed by Sir Laurence Olivier to raise British spirits during the Second World War, and by Sir Kenneth Branagh in the 1989 film Henry V (see video below) and it made famous the phrase “band of brothers.” The play was written around 1600 and several later writers have used parts of it in their own texts.
Note: the text is Shakespeare’s, as the wording of Henry’s historical speech is not known.
WESTMORLAND. O that we now had here
But one ten thousand of those men in England
That do no work to-day!
KING. What’s he that wishes so?
My cousin, Westmorland? No, my fair cousin,
If we are mark’d to die, we are enough
To do our country loss; and if to live,
The fewer men, the greater share of honour.
God’s will! I pray thee, wish not one man more.
By Jove, I am not covetous for gold,
Nor care I who doth feed upon my cost,
It yearns me not if men my garments wear,
Such outward things dwell not in my desires.
But if it be a sin to covet honour,
I am the most offending soul alive.
No, faith, my coz, wish not a man from England.
God’s peace! I would not lose so great an honour
As one man more methinks would share from me
For the best hope I have. O, do not wish one more!
Rather proclaim it, Westmorland, through my host,
That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart, his passport shall be made,
And crowns for convoy put into his purse,
We would not die in that man’s company
That fears his fellowship to die with us.
This day is call’d the feast of Crispian.
He that outlives this day and comes safe home,
Will stand a tip-toe when this day is nam’d,
And rouse him at the name of Crispian.
He that shall live this day and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours,
And say “To-morrow is Saint Crispian.”
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars,
And say “These wounds I had on Crispin’s day.”
Old men forget; yet all shall be forgot,
But he’ll remember, with advantages,
What feats he did that day. Then shall our names,
Familiar in his mouth as household words—
Harry the King, Bedford and Exeter,
Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester—
Be in their flowing cups freshly rememb’red.
This story shall the good man teach his son,
And Crispin, Crispian shall ne’er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be rememberèd— We few, we happy few, we band of brothers, For he to-day that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother, be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition,
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.
One Minute Reflection – 25 October – Today’s Gospel: Luke 12:49–53 – Thursday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year B and the Memorial of Saints Crispin & St Crispinian – (†285 or 286) Martyrs
“Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division…”…Luke 12:51
REFLECTION – “In all our affections, order is necessary. Love your father, love your mother, love your children after God. If it becomes inevitable to place love of one’s relatives and children in the balance with love of God, without it being possible to preserve them both, then not to prefer one’s own family, is piety towards God.”…St Jerome (343-420) Father & Doctor of the Church
PRAYER – Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, You glorious Trinity are our lesson in love and unity. Grant us this day the grace of true love for You and true order in all our affections. May the intercession of Sts Crispin and Crispinian, strengthen us. Amen.
O Lord the House of My Soul is Narrow By St Augustine ((354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church
O God, the Light of the heart that sees You,
The Life of the soul that loves You,
The Strength of the mind that seeks You,
May I ever continue to be steadfast in Your love.
Be the joy of my heart;
Take all of me to Yourself and abide therein.
The house of my soul is, I confess, too narrow for You.
Enlarge it that You may enter.
It is ruinous but do repair it.
It has within it what must offend Your eyes,
I confess and know it,
But whose help shall I seek in cleansing it but Yours alone?
To You, O God, I cry urgently.
Cleanse me from secret faults.
Keep me from false pride and sensuality
That they not get dominion over me.
Amen
Saints of the Day – 25 October – Sts Crispin & Crispinian (†285 or 286) Martyrs – twin brother cobblers – Patronages – cobblers; curriers; glove makers; lace makers; lace workers; leather workers; saddle makers; saddlers; shoemakers; tanners; weavers, San Crispin, San Pablo City, Philippines.
These two glorious martyrs came from Rome to preach the Faith in Gaul toward the middle of the third century. Fixing their residence at Soissons, they instructed many in the Faith of Christ, which they preached publicly in the day and at night they worked at making shoes, though they are said to have been nobly born and brothers.
The infidels listened to their instructions and were astonished at the example of their lives, especially of their charity, disinterestedness, heavenly piety and contempt of glory and all earthly things and the effect was the conversion of many to the Christian faith.
The brothers had continued their employment several years when a complaint was lodged against them. The emperor, to gratify their accusers and give way to his savage cruelty, gave orders that they should be convened before Biotin’s Varus, the most implacable enemy of the Christians.
The martyrs were patient and constant under the most cruel torments and finished their course by the sword about the year 286. A Christian brother and sister buried their bodies on their own terrain, where later a public oratory was constructed.
St Alfons Arimany Ferrer
St Bernard of Calvo
St Canna verch Tewdr Marw
St Chrysanthus
St Crispin & St Crispian – (†285 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
Bl Maurus of Pécs
St Miniato of Florence
St Peter of Rome
St Protus of Sassari
St Recaredo Centelles Abad
St Tabitha
Bl Thaddeus McCarthy
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
Saint Louis-Marie de Montfort’s Total Consecration to Jesus Through Mary – Day Eight – 24 October
Readings and Prayers
12 Day Preparation
Day 8 of 33
Imitation of Christ, by Thomas á Kempis: Book 1, Chapter 13 Of Resisting Temptations
As long as we live in this world, we cannot be without temptations and tribulations. Hence it is written in Job “Man’s life on earth is a temptation.” Everyone, therefore, should be solicitous about his temptations and watch in prayer lest the devil find an opportunity to catch him – who never sleeps but goes about, seeking whom he can devour.
No-one is so perfect and holy as sometimes not to have temptations and we can never be wholly free from them. Nevertheless, temptations are very profitable to man, troublesome and grievous though they may be, for in them, a man is humbled, purified and instructed. All the Saints passed through many tribulations and temptations and were purified by them. And they that could not support temptations, became reprobate, and fell away.
Many seek to flee temptations and fall worse into them. We cannot conquer by flight alone but by patience and true humility we become stronger than all our enemies. He who only declines them outwardly and does not pluck out their root, will profit little, nay, temptations will sooner return and he will find himself in a worse condition.
By degrees and by patience you will, by God’s grace, better overcome them than by harshness and your own importunity. Take council the oftener in temptation and do not deal harshly with one who is tempted but pour in consolation, as thou would wish to be done unto yourself.
Inconstancy of mind and little confidence in God, is the beginning of all temptations. For as a ship without a helm is driven to and fro by the waves, so the man who neglects and gives up his resolutions is tempted in many ways.
Thought for the Day – 24 October – The Memorial of St Luigi Guanella (1842-1915)
St Luigi and St Joseph – “The Pious Union of St Joseph”
In his daily life, Fr Guanella had a great devotion to St Joseph, custodial father of Jesus and safeguard of the virginity of Mary, his wife, the Mother of God. He reminded his priests and nuns that St Joseph is the administrator of all their homes. All superiors must have the love and care of St Joseph, as well as the kindness and gentleness of Mary, in dealing with the residents.
His love and care had no limit. His dear impaired people were assisted to the very end. When he was home, it was his duty to give his blessing for the dying. His motto was, “Let us give them bread and paradise” and this was implanted in the hearts of all his nuns and priests.
In Rome, six years before his death and physically tired by his work, Fr Guanella was inspired to build a Church and start an Association in honour of St Joseph, patron of the dying. Pope Pius X, a very close friend, expressed a desire to have a church in Trionfale, a very poor area near the Vatican. The Pope’s desire strengthened Fr Guanella’sown ideas. Trusting to divine providence, he put a down payment on the land and the foundation was immediately begun. On the property, there was a barn which became the first Chapel of St Joseph. The people called it the ‘Basilichetta’ (small Basilica.) In 1912, Fr Guanella announced to the Pope that the Church was completed in honour of St Joseph and His Holiness, whose baptismal name was Joseph Sarto.
The Pope admired Fr Guanella for his courage and devotion to St Joseph and when he heard about the Pious Union Association of prayers for the dying, he said to Fr Luigi, “Please make me the first member.”
In 1913, Pope Pius X gave his approval, making the Church of the Pious Union the main centre for all the universal church. His beloved Pope Pius X died in 1914, one year before Fr Guanella’s own death. The two saints understood each other so well.
Quote/s of the Day – 24 October – The Memorial of St Luigi Guanella (1842-1915)
“The sun of our lives is the Eucharist.”
“The fountain of holy love is in Jesus Christ and we have Jesus with us, in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. From that throne of love, how often He enlightens the minds of His children and how many again find their peace of heart.”
“The earth is filled with tabernacles – Praise Him!”
“Our union in heaven will depend upon our communion with God on earth.”
“Plant your heart in Jesus Crucified and all the thorns will seem like roses.”
“Whoever finds Mary, finds the way to Salvation.”
“Charity lights the path to divine love.”
“Imitate the Heart of Christ in love for the poor.”
One Minute Reflection – 24 October – Today’s Gospel: Luke 12:39–48 – Wednesday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time. Year B and The Memorial of St Anthony Mary Claret CMF (1807-1870) and St Luigi Guanella (1842-1915)
“But know this, that if the householder had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into…”…Luke 12:39
REFLECTION – “There is need of living well but, there is even more need of dying well. A good death is everything, especially today, where people think only of things and enjoyment here on earth, rejecting eternity.” … St Luigi Guanella (1842-1915)
“The disciple is one, who awaits the Lord and His Kingdom. May the Virgin Mary help us, not to be people and communities dulled by the present, or worse, nostalgic for the past but striving toward the future of God, toward the encounter with Him, our life and our hope.”...Pope Francis – Angelus, 7 August 2016
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. When my hour is come, bid me come to You, Lord. Hear the prayers of your Saints, Anthony Mary Claret and Luigi Guanella, who lived each moment of their lives for the glory of Your Kingdom. We ask this through Christ, our Lord with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 24 October – The Memorial of St Anthony Mary Claret CMF (1807-1870)
I Wish to Love Thee, My God By St Anthony Mary Claret (1807-1870)
I wish to love Thee, my God, with all my heart, with all my being, with all my strength. I consecrate to Thee, my thoughts, desires, words and actions, whatever I have and whatever I can be. Let me use what I have for Thy greater honour and glory, according to Thy will. Amen
Saint of the Day – 24 October – St Luigi Guanella (1842-1915) – Priest, Founder, Apostle of Charity, Marian devotee, Eucharistic Adorer and passionate apostle – born Aloysius Guanella on 9 December 1842 in Fraciscio di Campodolcino, Sondrio, diocese of Como, Italy and died on 24 October 1915 (aged 72) in Como, Italy of complications from a stroke he suffered on 27 September 1915. Founder of the Daughters of Saint Mary of Providence (1890) and the Servants of Charity (24 March 1908) alongside his friends Fr David Albertario (1846-1902) and Blessed Giuseppe Toniolo (1845-1918). Guanella also founded the Pious Union of Saint Joseph (1914) with his supporter and first member St Pope Pius X. These religious communities focused on the relief of the poor throughout the world. The Servants of Charity motto reads “In Omnibus Charitas” – “In all things Love”which became the cornerstone for Guanella’s own life. Patronages – Daughters of Saint Mary of Providence, Servants of Charity and the Pious Union of Saint Joseph.
Louis Guanella was born in Fraciscio di Campodolcino in Val San Giacomo (Sondrio) on 19 December 1842. The particular geographical location where he grew up, formed Louis into a solid character – firm, temperate and with a spirit of sacrifice. He was always distinguished for his great faith, strengthened by popular piety, a faith alive for its closeness to the poor and simple.
He studied at the Gallio College in Como and in various diocesan seminaries. In 1866 he was ordained priest and, soon after, appointed parish priest at Savogno. He dedicated himself zealously to young people busying himself with helping them in their schooling and revitalising Catholic Action.
He was in contact with St Don Bosco SDB (1815-1888) at the time. Fascinated by the Salesian charism, he tried opening a College for the young but the operation didn’t go ahead. However, he wanted to stay with Don Bosco and in 1875 became a Salesian. He was in charge of the “Saint Aloysius” Oratory in Turin and soon after was appointed Rector of the “Dupraz” College in Trinità (Cuneo). He remained in the Salesian Congregation for just three years, because the Lord had arranged otherwis -: the bishop in fact called him back to the diocese. Louis had no fear of defending young people and the poor even in front of the powerful and the politicians.
This was another reason why he had to close the school he had opened for poor children in Traona. Sent by the bishop to look after a hostel for poor elderly people, he founded a group of Ursulines there, whom he organised into a Congregation – the Daughters of Holy Mary of Providence. The new Congregation was dedicated to the education of youth, especially those who were poor and on the margins but also, to support and be with poor elderly folk. In Como he founded the House of Divine Providence, at the centre of which he built a Shrine to the Sacred Heart. With support from the bishop he also founded a male branch – The Servants of Charity, with the same aims.
His Congregations flourished in Italy, Switzerland and the United States. In support of the dying he founded the Pia Unione del Transito – Pious Union of Saint Joseph. He built various churches and works for emigrants and fringe-dwellers.
What he gained from his experience with Don Bosco was not only a love for the young that he carried with him all his life but in particular, blind obedience and sacrifice in his relationships with his superiors. Like Don Bosco he was obedient to the bishop even when it meant suffering and misunderstanding. He died at Como 24 October 1925.
Declared Venerable on 6 April 1962, Beatified on 25 October 1964 by Paul VI and Canonised on 23 October 2011 by Pope Benedict XVI.
His older sister was the Servant of God Caterina Guanella (25 March 1841 – 13 June 1891).
AnaStpaul 
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