Quote/s of the Day – 5 May – St Pius V OP (1504-1573) Pope, Confessor
“In preparing and instructing men in the teachings of Christ the Lord, the Fathers began by explaining the meaning of faith. Following their example, we have thought it well to treat first what pertains to that virtue.”
“If troubled by poverty, by sickness, by persecution, or afflictions and anxieties of any sort, let us be convinced that none of these things can happen to us without the permission of God, who is the supreme Arbiter of all things.””
“Neither sanctity, nor salvation, can be found outside the Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, Roman Church.”
One Minute Reflection – 5 May – “The Month of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – St Pius V OP (1504-1573) – 1 Peter 5:1-4; 5:10-11 – Matthew 16:13-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“Upon this rock I will build my church” … Matthew 16:18
REFLECTION – “Nothing escaped the Wisdom and Power of Christ, the elements of nature lay at His service, spirits obeyed Him, Angels served Him. … And yet, out of all the world, Peter alone was chosen to stand at the head, for the calling of all the peoples and the oversight of all the Apostles and Fathers of the Church. Thus, even though there are many Priests and shepherds among the People of God, Peter governed them all in person, while Christ also governs them in the capacity of Head. …
The Lord asks all the Apostles what people think of Him and they all say the same thing, so long as they are making known the doubts deriving from human ignorance. But when the Lord demands to know, what the disciples themselves think, the first to confess the Lord, is he, who is the first in dignity of the Apostles. As he had said: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God,” Jesus answers him: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.” That is to say, blessed are you because my Father taught this to you. Earthly opinion has not led you astray but it is heavenly inspiration that has instructed you. It is not flesh and blood that enabled you to discover Me but He, Whose only Son I am.
“And so I say to you,” that is to say- just as my Father has manifested My Divinity to you, so, I Am making known your superiority to you. “You are Peter” namely, I am the unshakeable Rock, the Cornerstone who makes two peoples one (Eph 2:14), the foundation other than which, no-one can lay any other (1 Cor 3:11). But you also, you are rock, since you are impregnable by My Strength and, what I have by virtue of My Power, you have in common with Me, by the fact,, that you participate in it. “On this rock I will build my Church” … On the firmness of this foundation, He says, will I build an everlasting temple and my Church, whose summit is to reach to Heaven, will be raised on the strength of that faith.” … Saint Pope Leo the Great (400-461) Father and Doctor of the Church ( 4th sermon for the Anniversary of his Consecration).
PRAYER – O, God, Who graciously chose the blessed Pius as Supreme Pontiff, to crush the enemies of Your Church and to restore divine worship, grant that we may be guarded by his help and remain so steadfast in Your service, that, having overcome the snares of all enemies, we may enjoy a lasting peace. T hrough Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).
St Pius V OP (1504-1573) changed in 1969 this Feast which had been celebrated on this day of his birth into Heaven since 1713. Bishop of Rome, Ruler of the Papal States, Pope of the Council of Trent, the Counter-Reformation, the Battle of Lepanto, the Holy Rosary and the Pope who declared St Thomas Aquinas as a Doctor of the Church (Optional Memorial) The Roman Martyrology states of St Pius V today: “At Rome, Pope St Pius V, of the Order of Preachers, who laboured zealously and successfully for the re-establishment of Ecclesiastical discipline, the extirpation of heresies, the destruction of the enemies of the Christian name and, governed the Catholic Church by holy laws and the example of a saintly lfe.” His Most Arfdent Life of Grace: https://anastpaul.com/2019/04/30/saint-of-the-day-saint-pope-pius-v-1504-1572/ Lepanto by G K Chesterton: https://anastpaul.com/2019/04/30/lepanto-30-april/
St Avertinus of Tours Bl Benvenuto Mareni St Britto of Trier
St Crescentiana St Echa of Crayke St Eulogius (Died c387) Bishop and Confessor of Edessa St Euthymius of Alexandria St Geruntius of Milan St Godehard of Hildesheim Bl Grzegorz Boleslaw Frackowiak
St Hilary (c400-449) Bishopof Arles, Monk, learned Scholar and Writer, Reformer and although extremely gentle and kind, Hilary was also a strict leader of his flock, Miracle-worker. Born in c 400 at Lorraine, France and died in 449 of natural causes. The Roman Martyrology states: “At Arles in France, the blessed Bishop Hilary, noted for his great learning and holiness.” His Holy Life: https://anastpaul.com/2022/05/05/saint-of-the-day-5-may-saint-hilary-of-arles-c-400-449-hilary-of-holy-memory/
St Hydroc St Irenaeus of Thessalonica St Irenes of Thessalonica Bl John Haile St Jovinian of Auxerre St Jutta Kulmsee St Leo of Africo St Maurontius of Douai
St Maximus (Died c350) Bishop of Jerusalem and Confessor, Defender of the Faith. He was the third Maximus to become the Bishop of the See of Jerusalem. The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Jerusalem, the Bishop and confessor, whom the Caesar, Maximian Galerius, condemned to work in the mines, after having plucked out one of his eyes and branded him on the foot with a redhot iron.” His Zealous Life: https://anastpaul.com/2025/05/05/saint-of-the-day-5-may-st-maximus-died-c350-bishop-of-jerusalem-and-confessor/
St Nectarius of Vienne St Nicetas (Died c449) Bishop of Vienne
St Peregrinus of Thessalonica St Sacerdos of Limoges St Sacerdos of Saguntum St Silvanus of Rome St Theodore of Bologna St Waldrada of Metz
Quote/s of the Day – 5 May – St Pius V OP (1504-1573) Pope, Confessor
“All the evils of the world, are due to lukewarm Catholics.”
“O Lord, increase my sufferings and my patience!”
“Following the example of our predecessors, seeing that the Church Militant which God has placed in our hands, in these our times, is tossed this way and that by so many heresies and, is grievously troubled and afflicted by so many wars and by the depraved morals of men, we also raise our eyes, weeping but full of hope, unto that same mountain, whence every aid comes forth and we encourage and admonish, each member of Christ’s faithful to do likewise in the Lord.”
One Minute Reflection – 5 May – “The Month of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – St Pius V OP (1504-1573) – 1 Peter 5:1-4; 5:10-11 – Matthew 16:13-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” – Matthew 16:16
REFLECTION – “God presents Himself to us as an object of faith, especially in the person of Jesus Christ. He desires that we believe firmly that the Infant born of Mary, the Tradesman of Nazareth, the Master disputing with the Pharisees, the Man Who was Crucified on Calvary –,is truly His Son, His Equal and that, we adore Him as such. The great work, God has appointed to Himself in the economy of salvation, is to establish among men, faith in the Incarnate Word (cf. Jn 6:29). Nothing can take the place of this faith in Jesus Christ, true God, consubstantial with the Father, Whose Envoy He is. It is the synthesis of all our belief because, Christ is the synthesis of all Revelation! …
The life of the Church presupposes, in everything and in all things, the adoration of her Divine Spouse. In the face of the world which denies Him and disowns Him, she repeats unceasingly, with Saint Peter: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16). This penetrating vision of faith, which pierces the veil of the Humanity of Christ and pierces the depth of His Divinity, is wanting to many intellects. They see Jesus, they reach Him but, like the crowds of Galilee, they see only the externals, their approach is superficial and does not transform souls. For others, on the contrary, Jesus is transfigured; grace illuminates their faith in His Divinity. For them, Jesus is the Sun of Justice; He surpasses all the beauties of the earth and His vision delights their hearts so much, no other attraction can separate them from His Love. They can say with Saint Paul: “I am convinced, neither death, nor life… nor any other creature, will be able to separate me from the love which God shows us in Christ Jesus our Lord!” (Rm 8:38). .
Such faith truly fixes Jesus Christ in our hearts. It is not a simple adherence of the mind; it involves love, hope, the total consecration of oneself to Christ, to live His Life, participate in His Mysteries, imitate His Virtues.” – Abbot Columba Marmion OSB (1858-1923) a Benedictine Irish Monk and the 3rd Abbot of Maredsous Abbey in Belgium. He was one of the most popular and influential Catholic Authors of the 20th Century. His books are considered spiritual classics. (This excerpt from a compilation ‘To Live by Faith, Christ the Ideal of the Priest’).
PRAYER – O, God, Who graciously chose the blessed Pius as Supreme Pontiff, to crush the enemies of Your Church and to restore divine worship, grant that we may be guarded by his help and remain so steadfast in Your service, that, having overcome the snares of all enemies, we may enjoy a lasting peace. T hrough Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).
AnaStpaul 
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