  Saints of this Day April 26 Sexto
Kaléndas Maji Et álibi aliórum plurimórum sanctórum Mártyrum et Confessórum, atque sanctárum Vírginum. And elsewhere in divers places, many other holy martyrs, confessors, and holy virgins. Пресвятая Богородице спаси нас! (Santíssima Mãe de Deus, salva-nos!) The saints are a “cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible. Mary Mother of GOD 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary Mary's Divine Motherhood Called in the Gospel "the Mother of Jesus," Mary is acclaimed by Elizabeth, at the prompting of the Spirit and even before the birth of her son, as "the Mother of my Lord" (Lk 1:43; Jn 2:1; 19:25; cf. Mt 13:55; et al.). In fact, the One whom she conceived as man by the Holy Spirit, who truly became her Son according to the flesh, was none other than the Father's eternal Son, the second person of the Holy Trinity. Hence the Church confesses that Mary is truly "Mother of God" (Theotokos). Catechism of the Catholic Church 495, quoting the Council of Ephesus (431): DS 251. Our Lady of Perpetual Help The original icon of Our Lady of
Perpetual Help, of Byzantine style, is
one of the many icons attributed to Luke. This image shows the Mother
of God holding the Christ Child in her arms. The Child has a frightened
look on His face caused by the instruments of His future passion
presented to Him by the archangels Michael and Raphael. Jesus is tucked
up against His mother who presses Him on her heart and He has lost His
sandal out of fear.
This icon was revered for centuries on the island of Crete. In the 15th century, the island was invaded by the Turks, but a Christian managed to get a hold of the icon and flee. When the man arrived in Rome, he fell seriously ill and asked a friend to put the icon in a church. Instead, the latter kept it and his wife hung it up in their bedroom. The Blessed Virgin appeared several times to the owner to tell him she was not happy, but man paid no heed. Then, Mary appeared to the couple's daughter and asked her to have the icon placed in a church located between the two major basilicas of St Mary Major and St John Lateran. Following his daughter's pleas, the father finally acquiesced and the icon was installed in 1499 in the Church of St Matthew where it remained until Napoleon's army destroyed the church three hundred years later. Fortunately, the image was saved and Pope Pius IX gave it to the Redemptorists on April 26, 1866--who had the church of Saint Alphonsus rebuilt where the Church of St Matthew was formerly located. The Pope added solemnly: "Make her known! Make her loved! She will save the world!" Many miracles are attributed to this famous image, copies of which are now found throughout the world (cf. logo of "A Moment with Mary"). |
| 91
St. Cletus
Pope eminent virtue martyr canon of the Roman mass among St.
Peter's 1st disciple 3rd Pope after Linus  91 St.
Anacletus Romæ
sancti
Anacléti, Papæ et Mártyris, qui, post sanctum
Cleméntem Ecclésiam Dei regens, eam glorióso
martyrio decorávit.At Rome, St. Anacletus, pope and martyr, who governed the Church of God after St. Clement, and shed lustre upon it by a glorious martyrdom. Pope St. Anacletus The second successor of St. Peter. |
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A
prolific writer, author of several biblical commentaries,
a Life
of Abbot Adalhard, the well known De
Corpore et Sanguine Domini,
the first ever
treatise on the Eucharist, commentary on Saint Matthew's Gospel
(12 volumes), long exposition on Psalm, and another on the Lamentations
of Jeremiah, author of epistle
IX of Pseudo Jerome, which
is an important document in the development of the doctrine of the
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin= defended her perpetual
virginity:.
St. Paschasius Radbertus abandoned:
reared by nuns; Benedictine theologian abbot 865
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91 St. Cletus
Pope eminent virtue martyr canon of the Roman mass among St.
Peter's 1st disciple 3rd Pope after Linus 304 Marcellinus Pope M (RM) 4th v. Bishop Lucidius of Verona famous for his life of prayer and study; revered for his holiness and learning B 319 St. Basileus Bishop martyr of Amasea in Pontus angel found his body 350? ST PETER, Bishop of BRAGA 500? St. Peter of Braga Martyred bishop of Braga Portugal 620 Clarentius of Vienne succeeded Saint Etherius in that see B (RM) 644 St. Trudpert Irish pilgrim Benedictine hermit 645 St Richarius young pagan protected 2 Irish missionaries Cadoc & Frichor; fast strenuously; cry copiously for sins pray without ceasing; Abbot; 1st to work ransoming captives 860 Paschasius Radbertus abandoned at convent asked to be forgotten simply asks for prayers to God left works dealing with the body and blood of Christ the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist (De Corpore et Sanguine Christe) commentary on Saint Matthew's Gospel (12 volumes) composed treatise on the Virgin defend her perpetual virginity long exposition on Psalm 44 and another on the Lamentations of Jeremiah wrote biographies of 2 abbots-Corbie OSB Abbot (AC) Trecis, in Gállia, sanctæ Exsuperántiæ Vírginis. At Troyes in France, St. Exuperantia, virgin. 1146 Blessed John of Valence canon of Lyons forced to be bishop of Valence OSB Cist. B (AC) 1218 St. Franca Visalta Benedictine Convent at 7 yr Cistercian nun foundress 1300 Blesseds Dominic & Gregory Dominican preachers died in cavein cave surrounded by lights and angelic music Miracles surrounded burials and tombs at Besians diocese of Barbastro 1309 St Aldo Aldobrandesca she gave away all possessions ministering to sick visions and ecstasies Siena 1396 Stephen of Perm great Russian missionary bishop invented alphabet for Zyrians using for letters parts of the traditional elements of Zyrian carvings and embroidery to teach the Bible 1667 St. Pedro de San José Betancur "St. Francis of the Americas," Pedro de Betancur is the first saint to have worked and died in Guatemala. |
and all the families of the nations shall worship before him" (Psalm 21:28)
| Saints of this Day April 26 Sexto
Kaléndas Maji Et álibi aliórum plurimórum sanctórum Mártyrum et Confessórum, atque sanctárum Vírginum. And elsewhere in divers places, many other holy martyrs, confessors, and holy virgins. Пресвятая Богородице спаси нас! (Santíssima Mãe de Deus, salva-nos!) The saints are a “cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible. BENEDICT XVI'S Holy Father's Prayer Intentions For 2011 April 2011 General Intention: That the Church may offer new generations, through the believable proclamation of the Gospel, ever-new reasons of life and hope. Missionary Intention: That missionaries, with the proclamation of the Gospel and their witness of life, may bring Christ to all those who do not yet know Him.  The Rosary html Mary Mother of GOD -- Her Rosary Here Mary Mother of GOD 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary Mary's Divine Motherhood Called in the Gospel “the
Mother of Jesus,” Mary is acclaimed by Elizabeth, at the prompting of
the Spirit and even before the birth of her son, as “the Mother of my
Lord” (Lk 1:43; Jn 2:1; 19:25; cf. Mt 13:55; et al.). In fact, the One
whom she conceived as man by the Holy Spirit, who truly became her Son
according to the flesh, was none other than the Father's eternal Son,
the second person of the Holy Trinity. Hence the Church confesses that
Mary is truly “Mother of God”
(Theotokos).
breviary.net/martyrology/mart04/mart0426
stlukeorthodox.com/html/saints/
usccb.org ewtn.com St Patricks 0426Catechism
of the Catholic
Church 495, quoting the Council of Ephesus (431): DS 251.
“The
Blessed Virgin was eternally predestined, in conjunction with the
incarnation of the divine Word, to be the Mother of God. By decree of
divine Providence, she served on earth as the loving mother of the
divine Redeemer, an associate of unique nobility, and the Lord's humble
handmaid. She conceived, brought forth, and nourished Christ.” (Dogmatic Constitution on the
Church, 61).
domcentral.org/life/martyr March syriac oca.org glaubenszeugen.de/tage/Apr/26 Serbian http://www.copticchurch.net Melkite Monthly Saints with pics here http://www.stfrancisenid.com/memorials.htm antiochian.org/AW-WomenSaints--wonderful icons Lutheran Saints One Saint per day stthomasirondequoit.com/SaintsAlive/index.htm stjohndc.org God's Humourous Saints
THE EUCHARIST, A MYSTERY TO BE BELIEVED POST-SYNODAL
APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION
Morning
Prayer and Hymn Meditation
of
the Day
Prayer
for Priests
Our Bartholomew Family Prayer
List HereSACRAMENTUM CARITATIS OF THE HOLY FATHER BENEDICT XVI How to Stay Out of PURGATORY -- How to Get others Out POPES html Parents of Saints html The_Litany_of_the_Blessed_Virgin.html
We are called upon with the whole Church militant on earth
to join in praising and thanking God for the grace and glory he has
bestowed on his saints. At the same time we earnestly implore Him to
exert His almighty power and mercy in raising us from our miseries and
sins, healing the disorders of our souls and leading us by the path of
repentance to the company of His saints, to which He has called us.
THE saints and just, from the beginning of time and throughout the
world, who have been made perfect, everlasting monuments of God’s
infinite power and clemency, praise His goodness without ceasing;
casting their crowns before His throne they give to Him all the glory
of their triumphs: “His gifts alone in us He crowns.” They were once what we are now, travellers on earth they had the same weaknesses, which we have. We have difficulties to encounter so had the saints, and many of them far greater than we can meet with; obstacles from kings and whole nations, sometimes from the prisons, racks and swords of persecutors. Yet they surmounted these difficulties, which they made the very means of their virtue and victories. It was by the strength they received from above, not by their own, that they triumphed. But the blood of Christ was shed for us as it was for them and the grace of our Redeemer is not wanting to us; if we fail, the failure is in ourselves. |
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| Miracles 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 Lay Saints |
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The POPES HTML
“The answers to many of life's questions can be found by reading the Lives of the Saints. They teach us how to overcome obstacles and difficulties, how to stand firm in our faith, and how to struggle against evil and emerge victorious.” 1913 Saint Barsanuphius Popes
mentioned in articles of
Saints today
“Christianity
is not a moral code or a philosophy, but an encounter with a
person” -- Benedict XVI
 Quote: Pope
Paul
VI’s 1969 Instruction
on the Contemplative Life includes this passage: Benedict_XVI_Patriarch_Bartholomew
 Benedict XVI_Archbishop_Hilarion  Benedict
XVI receives Orthodox Archbishop Hilarion n September 18th, Pope
Benedict XVI; Archbishop Hilarion, president of the Department
for
External Church Affairs of the Patriarchate of Moscow.The Orthodox Archbishop is currently visiting the Vatican at the invitation of Cardinal Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. This Pontifical Council underlined that the visit will confirm the ties of friendship between the Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Church, with a view to closer collaboration and to favor the presence of the Church in the lives of the peoples of Europe and the world. In addition, a further step in ecumenical relations is scheduled for the month of October in Cyprus: the meeting of the Joint International  Commission for the
Theological
Dialogue between the Catholic Church and
the Orthodox Church, which will address the theme of Petrine Primacy.Benedict
XVI
met with Aram I Catholicos of Cilicia,
the highest authority of the Orthodox Church. The
Pope remembered the martyrs of the Armenian Church and the Armenian
genocide, without explicitly mentioning it, and denounced the
persecution of Christians in modern times. Benedict
XVI
Aram I CatholicosThat testimony culminated in the twentieth century, which proved a time of Unspeakable suffering for your people. Most recently we have all been saddened by the escalation of persecution and violence against Christians in parts of the Middle East and elsewhere. The Catholicos is based in Lebanon. That is why, the Pope said, he prays every day for peace in this country and throughout the Middle East. Benedict XVI said there will only be peace in the region when each country is free to decide its own destiny and when every ethnic and religious group accepts and respects the others. Aram I emphasized that the churches must be means for peace and to achieve that they must recognize “all” genocides, even the Armenian.. The Catholicos recalled his meeting with John Paul II, adding that this visit represents a new step for ecumenical dialogue. Our meeting is an opportunity to pray and reflect together, and to renew our commitment and efforts for Christian unity. Armenian church members from all over the world join with Catholicos in making pilgrimages to Rome. |
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| The
great psalm of the Passion, Chapter
22, whose first verse “My
God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me?” Jesus pronounced on the cross, ended with the vision: “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord; and all the families of the nations shall worship before him” For kingship belongs to the LORD, the ruler over the nations. All who sleep in the earth will bow low before God; All who have gone down into the dust will kneel in homage. And I will live for the LORD; my descendants will serve you. The generation to come will be told of the Lord, that they may proclaim to a people yet unborn the deliverance you have brought. |
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| Pope
Benedict XVI to The Catholic
Church In China {whole
article here} 2000 years Catholic
Church in China The saints “a cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible. Patron_Saints.html THE PSALTER OF THE
BLESSED VIRGIN MARY PSALM 41
As the hart longs for the water-brooks, so doth my soul pine for thy love. For thou art the mother of my life: and the sublime repairer of my flesh. For thou art the feeder of the Savior of my soul: the beginning and the end of all my salvation. Hear me, O Lady, let my stains be cleansed: enlighten me, O Lady, that my darkness may be illuminated. Let my tepidity be enkindled by thy love: let my torpor be expelled by thy grace. Glory
be to
the Father who created the
Universe, and the Son who gave up His life so that we may live forever,
and the Holy Spirit the Lord giver of life, Who proceeds from the Father and Son, with the Father and Son He is Worshiped and Glorified, and He has spoken through the prophets: Amen. Join us on CatholicVote.org. Be part of a
new movement committed to using powerful media projects to
create a Culture of Life. We can help shape the movement and have a
voice in its future. Check it
out at www.CatholicVote.org
Saint Frances Xavier Seelos Practical
Guide to Holiness
1. Go to Mass with deepest devotion.
2. Spend a half hour to reflect upon your main
failing & make resolutions to avoid it.3. Do daily spiritual reading for at least 15 minutes, if a half hour is not possible. 4. Say the rosary every day. 5. Also daily, if at all possible, visit the Blessed Sacrament; toward evening, meditate on the Passion of Christ for a half hour, 6. Conclude the day with evening prayer & an examination of conscience over all the faults & sins of the day. 7. Every month make a review of the month in confession. 8. Choose a special patron every month & imitate that patron in some special virtue. 9. Precede every great feast with a novena that is nine days of devotion. 10. Try to begin & end every activity with a Hail Mary My
God, I believe, I adore, I trust and I love Thee. I beg pardon
for
those who do not believe, do not adore, do not
O most Holy trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the Tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference by which He is offended, and by the infite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. I beg the conversion of poor sinners, Fatima Prayer, Angel of Peace The
voice of the Father is heard, the Son enters the water, and the Holy
Spirit appears in the form of a dove.
THE
spirit and example of the world imperceptibly instil the error into
the minds of many that there is a kind of middle way of going to
Heaven; and so, because the world does not live up to the gospel, they
bring the gospel down to the level of the world. It is not by this
example that we are to measure the Christian rule, but words and life
of Christ. All His followers are commanded to labour to become perfect
even as our heavenly Father is perfect, and to bear His image in our
hearts that we may be His children. We are obliged by the gospel to die
to ourselves by fighting self-love in our hearts, by the mastery of our
passions, by taking on the spirit of our Lord.
These
are the conditions under which Christ makes His promises and
numbers us among His children, as is manifest from His words which the
apostles have left us in their inspired writings. Here is no
distinction made or foreseen between the apostles or clergy or
religious and secular persons. The former, indeed, take upon themselves
certain stricter obligations, as a means of accomplishing these ends
more perfectly; but the law of holiness and of disengagement of the
heart from the world is general and binds all the followers of Christ.
DECREES
OF THE CONGREGATION FOR THE CAUSES OF SAINTS
VATICAN CITY, 2 APR 2011 (VIS)Today, during a private audience with Cardinal Angelo Amato S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, the Pope authorised the congregation to promulgate the following decrees: MIRACLES - Venerable Servant of God Serafino Morazzone, Italian diocesan priest (1747-1822). - Venerable Servant of God Clemente Vismara, Italian professed priest of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (1897-1988). - Venerable Servant of God Elena Aiello, Italian foundress of the Minim Sisters of the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ (1895-1961). - Venerable Servant of God Maria Catalina Irigoyen Echegaray (Sr. Maria Desposorios), Spanish professed nun of the Congregation of Servants of Mary, Ministers of the Sick (1848-1918). - Venerable Servant of God Enrica Alfieri (nee Maria Angela), Italian professed nun of the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of St. Jeanne-Antide Thouret (1891-1951). MARTYRDOM - Servant of God Peter Adrian Toulorge, French professed priest of the Premonstratensian Regular Canons, killed in hatred of the faith at Coutances, France (1757-1793). - Servants of God Francisco Esteban Lacal, Spanish professed priest of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, and twenty-one companions, and Candido Castan San Jose, Spanish layman, killed in hatred of the faith in Spain in 1936. HEROIC VIRTUES - Servant of God Thomas Kurialacherry, Indian, first bishop of Changanacherry and founder of the Sisters of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament (1873-1925). - Servant of God Adolphe Chatillon (Br. Theophanius-Leo), Canadian professed religious of the Brothers of Christian Schools (1871-1929). - Servant of God Maria Chiara of St. Teresa of the Child Jesus (nee Vincenza Damato), Italian professed nun of the Order of St. Clare (1909-1948). - Servant of God Maria Dolores Inglese (nee Maria Libera Italia), Italian professed nun of the Congregation of Sisters Servants of Mary Reparatrix (1866-1928). - Servant of God Irene Stefani (nee Aurelia), Italian professed nun of the Institute of Missionary Sisters of the Consolata (1891-1930). - Servant of God Bernhard Lehner, German layman (1930-1944). CSS/ VIS 20110404 (340 |
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God
loves variety. He doesn't
mass-produce his saints. Every
saint is
unique each the result of a new idea.
As the liturgy says: Non
est inventus similis illis--there are no two exactly alike.
It is we with our lack of imagination, who paint the same haloes on all the saints. Dear Lord, grant us a spirit not bound by our own ideas and preferences. Grant that we may be able to appreciate in others what we lack in ourselves. O Lord, grant that we may understand that every saint must be a unique praise of Your glory. Catholic saints are holy people and human people who lived extraordinary lives. Each
saint the Church honors
responded to God's invitation to use his
or her unique gifts.
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The 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who
recite the Rosary ) Revealed to St. Dominic and Blessed Alan)
1.
Whoever
shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall
receive signal graces. 2. I promise my special
protection and the greatest graces to all those who shall recite the
Rosary. 3. The Rosary shall be a powerful armor
against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies.
4. It will cause virtue and good works to flourish;
it will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw
the hearts of people from the love of the world and its vanities, and
will lift them to the desire of eternal things. Oh, that soul
would sanctify them by this means. 5. The soul
that recommends itself to me by the recitation of the Rosary shall not
perish. 6. Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly,
applying themselves to the consideration of its Sacred Mysteries shall
never be conquered by misfortune. God will not chastise them in
His justice, they shall not perish by an unprovided death; if they be
just, they shall remain in the grace of God, and become worthy of
eternal life. 7. Whoever shall have a true devotion
for the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church.
8. Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall
have during their life and at their death the light of God and the
plentitude of His graces; at the moment of death they shall participate
in the merits of the Saints in Paradise. 9. I shall
deliver from purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary.
10. The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a
high degree of glory in Heaven. 11. You shall
obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary.
12. I shall aid all those who propagate the Holy
Rosary in their necessities. 13. I have obtained from
my Divine Son that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for
intercessors the entire celestial court during their life and at the
hour of death. 14. All who recite the Rosary are my
children, and brothers and sisters of my only Son, Jesus Christ.
15. Devotion to my Rosary is a great sign of
predestination.
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Aramaic dialect of Edessa, now known as
Syriac
The exact date of the
introduction of Christianity into Edessa
{Armenian Ourhaï in Arabic Er
Roha, commonly Orfa or Urfa, its present name} is
not known. It is certain, however, that the Christian community was at
first made up from the Jewish population of the city. According to an
ancient legend, King Abgar V, Ushana, was converted by Addai, who was
one of the seventy-two disciples.
In fact, however, the first King of
Edessa to embrace the Christian Faith was Abgar IX (c. 206)
becoming official kingdom religion.
 Christian
council
held at Edessa early as 197
(Eusebius,
Hist.
Eccl., V,xxiii). In 201 the city was
devastated by a great flood, and
the Christian church was destroyed (“Chronicon Edessenum”, ad. an.
201).
In 232 the relics of the Apostle St.
Thomas were brought from
India, on which occasion his Syriac Acts were written.
Under Roman
domination martyrs suffered at Edessa: Sts.
Scharbîl and
Barsamya,
under Decius; Sts. Gûrja,
Schâmôna, Habib, and others
under Diocletian.
In the meanwhile
Christian priests from Edessa evangelized
Eastern
Mesopotamia and Persia, established the first Churches in the
kingdom of the Sassanides. Atillâtiâ,
Bishop of Edessa, assisted at the Council of
Nicæa (325). The “Peregrinatio Silviæ” (or
Etheriæ) (ed. Gamurrini,
Rome, 1887, 62
sqq.) gives an account of the many sanctuaries at Edessa about 388.
Although Hebrew had been
the language of the ancient Israelite
kingdom, after their return from Exile the Jews turned more and more to
Aramaic, using it for parts of the books of Ezra and Daniel in the
Bible. By the time of Jesus,
Aramaic was the main language of Palestine, and quite a number of texts
from the Dead Sea Scrolls are also written in Aramaic.
Aramaic
continued to be an important language for Jews, alongside Hebrew, and
parts of the Talmud are written in it. After Arab
conquests of
the seventh century, Arabic quickly
replaced
Aramaic as the main language of those who converted to Islam, although
in out of the way places, Aramaic continued as a vernacular language of
Muslims.
Aramaic, however,
enjoyed its greatest success in
Christianity. Although the New Testament
wins written in Greek, Christianity had come
into existence in an Aramaic-speaking milieu, and it was the Aramaic
dialect of Edessa, now known as Syriac, that became the literary
language of a large number of Christians living in the eastern
provinces of the Roman Empire and in the Persian Empire, further east.
Over the course of the centuries the influence of the Syriac Churches
spread eastwards to China (in Xian, in western China, a Chinese-Syriac
inscription dated 781 is still to be seen); to southern India
where the
state of Kerala can boast more Christians of Syriac liturgical
tradition than anywhere else in the world.
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 Meeting of the
Saints walis (saints of Allah)Great men covet to embrace
martyrdom for a cause and principle.
So was
the case with Hazrat Ali. He
could have made a compromise with the evil
forces of his time and, as a result, could have led a very
comfortable,
easy and luxurious life. But he was not a person who would
succumb to
such temptations. His upbringing, his education and his training
in the lap of the holy Prophet made him refuse such an offer.Rabia Al-Basri (717–801 C.E.) She was first to set forth the doctrine of mystical love and who is widely considered to be the most important of the early Sufi poets. An elderly Shia pointed out that during his pre-Partition childhood it was quite common to find pictures and portraits of Shia icons in Imambaras across the country. Shah Abdul Latif: The Exalted Sufi Master born 1690 in a Syed family; died 1754. In ancient times, Sindh housed the exemplary Indus Valley Civilisation with Moenjo Daro as its capital, and now, it is the land of a culture which evolved from the teachings of eminent Sufi saints. Pakistan is home to the mortal remains of many Sufi saints, the exalted among them being Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, a practitioner of the real Islam, philosopher, poet, musicologist and preacher. He presented his teaching through poetry and music - both instruments sublime - and commands a very large following, not only among Muslims but also among Hindus and Christians. Sindh culture: The Shah is synonymous with Sindh. He is the very fountainhead of Sindh's culture. His message remains as fresh as that of any present day poet, and the people of Sindh find solace from his writings. He did indeed think for Sindh. One of his prayers, in exquisite Sindhi, translates thus: “Oh God, may ever You on Sindh bestow abundance rare! Beloved! All the world let share Thy grace, and fruitful be.” Shia Ali al-Hadi, died 868 and son Hassan al-Askari 874. These saints are the 10th and 11th of Shia's 12 most revered Imams. Baba Farid Sufi 1398 miracle, Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki renowned Muslim Sufi saint scholar miracles 569 A.H. [1173 C.E.] hermit gave to poor, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti greatest mystic of his time born 533 Hijri (1138-39 A.D.), Hazrat Ghuas-e Azam, Hazrat Bu Ali Sharif, and Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Sufi Saint Hazrath Khwaja Syed Mohammed Badshah Quadri Chisty Yamani Quadeer (RA) 1236-1325 welcomed people of all faiths & all walks of life |
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To
Save A Life is Earthly; Saving A Soul is Eternal
Donation by mail,
please send check or money order to: Catholic Television Network Supported entirely by donations from viewers help spread the Eternal Word, online Here  Colombia was among the
countries Mother
Angelica visited. In Bogotá, a Salesian priest - Father Juan Pablo Rodriguez - brought Mother and the nuns to the Sanctuary of the Divine Infant Jesus to attend Mass. After Mass, Father Juan Pablo took them into a small Shrine which housed the miraculous statue of the Child Jesus. Mother Angelica stood praying at the side of the statue when suddenly the miraculous image came alive and turned towards her. Then the Child Jesus spoke with the voice of a young boy: “Build Me a Temple and I will help those who help you.” Thus began a great adventure that would eventually result in the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament, a Temple dedicated to the Divine Child Jesus, a place of refuge for all. Use this link to read a remarkable story about The Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament Father Reardon, Editor of The
Catholic Bulletin for 14 years Lover of the poor;
“A very Holy Man
of God.”
 Monsignor
Reardon Protonotarius
Apostolicus Pastor 42 years BASILICA OF SAINT MARY Minneapolis MN 
America's First Basilica Largest Nave in the World
August 7, 1907-ground broke for the
foundation
by
Archbishop Ireland-laying cornerstone May
31, 1908
Brief History of our Beloved Holy Priest Here and his published books of Catholic History in North America Reardon, J.M. Archbishop Ireland; Prelate, Patriot, Publicist, 1838-1918. A Memoir (St. Paul; 1919); George Anthony Belcourt Pioneer Catholic Missionary of the Northwest 1803-1874 (1955); The Catholic Church IN THE DIOCESE OF ST. PAUL from earliest origin to centennial achievement 1362-1950 (1952); The Church of Saint Mary of Saint Paul 1875-1922; (1932) The Vikings in the American Heartland; The Catholic Total Abstinence Society in Minnesota; James Michael
Reardon Born in Nova Scotia,
1872; Priest, ordained by
Bishop Ireland;
Affiliations
and Indulgences Litany of Loretto in Stained
glass windows here. Nave
Sacristy and Residence Here
Member -- St. Paul
Seminary faculty. Sanctuary spaces between them filled with grilles of hand-forged wrought iron the life of our Blessed Lady After the crucifixon Apostle
statues Replicas
of those in St
John
Lateran--Christendom's earliest Basilica.
Ordered by Rome's first Christian Emperor, Constantine the Great, Popes' cathedral and official residence first millennium of Christian history. The only
replicas ever made: in order from west to east {1932}.
Saints
Simon
(saw), Bartholomew
(knife), James
the Lesser (book), John
(eagle),
Andrew
(transverse cross), Peter
keys), Paul
(sword), James
the
Greater
(staff), Thomas
(carpenter's square), Philip
(serpent), Matthew
(book),
and Jude
sword
Every Christian
must be a living
book wherein
one can read the teaching
of the
gospel
It Makes No Sense Not To Believe In GOD |
||
|
THE
BLESSED MOTHER AND ISLAM
By
Father John Corapi,
SOLT Society of Our
Lady of the Most Holy Trinity Site http://www.fathercorapi.com
 As
we watch the
spectacle of the world
seeming to self-destruct before our eyes, we can’t help but be saddened
and even frightened by so much evil run rampant. Iraq, Lebanon,
Afghanistan, Somalia, North Korea—It is all a disaster of epic
proportions displayed in living color on our television screens. These are not ordinary times and this is
not business as usual. We are at a crossroads in human history and the
time for Catholics and all Christians to act is now. All evil can
ultimately be traced to its origin, which is moral evil. All of the
political action, peace talks, international peacekeeping forces, etc.
will avail nothing if the underlying sickness is not addressed. This is
sin. One person at a time hearts and minds must be moved from evil to
good, from lies to truth, from violence to peace.Islam, an Arabic word that has often been defined as “to make peace,” seems like a living contradiction today. Although it is supposed to be a religion of peace, Islam has been hijacked by Satan and now operates in the dark space of international terrorism. As we celebrate the birthday of Our Lady, I am proposing that each one of us pray the Rosary for peace. Prayer is what must precede all other activity if that activity is to have any chance of success. Pray for peace, pray the Rosary every day without fail. There is a great love for Mary among Muslim people. It is not a coincidence that a little village named Fatima is where God chose to have His Mother appear in the twentieth century. Our Lady’s name appears no less than thirty times in the Koran. No other woman’s name is mentioned, not even that of Mohammed’s daughter, Fatima. In the Koran Our Lady is described as “Virgin, ever Virgin.” Archbishop Fulton Sheen prophetically spoke of the resurgence of Islam in our day. He said it would be through the Blessed Virgin Mary that Islam would be converted. We must pray for this to happen quickly if we are to avert a horrible time of suffering for this poor, sinful world. Turn to our Mother in this time of great peril. Pray the Rosary every day. Then, and only then will there be peace, when the hearts and minds of men are changed from the inside. A
New Series by Fr.
Corapi! The Moon Under Her Feet CD-Audio
Set: $39.00 DVD-Video Set:
$45.00 call
1-888-800-7084 or go to Site http://www.fathercorapi.com
The “War to end all wars” is the moral and spiritual combat that rages in the hearts and minds of human beings. The outcome of that unseen fight largely determines how the battle in the realm of the seen unfolds. The title talk, “With the Moon Under Her Feet,” is taken from the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation, and deals with the current threat to the world from radical Islam, and the Blessed Virgin Mary's role in the ultimate victory that will result in the conversion of Islam. Few Catholics are aware of the connection between Islam, Fatima, and Guadalupe. Presented in Father Corapi's straight-forward style, you will be both inspired and educated by this four part series on topics more timely than ever. The four titles are: 1. The Real War We Fight 2. The Battle for Hearts & Minds 3. Leadership: Essential for Victory 4. With the Moon Under Her Feet. About Father John Corapi, S.O.L.T. Father Corapi is a
perpetually professed priest member of the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity:
S.O.L.T.
The pillars of father's
preaching are basically:
Love for and a relationship with the Blessed Virgin
Mary Leading a vibrant and loving relationship with Jesus Christ Great love and reverence for the Most Holy Eucharist from Holy Mass to adoration of the Blessed Sacrament An uncompromising love for and obedience to the Holy Father and the teaching of the Magisterium of the Church |
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| LINKS: Marian Apparitions (over 2000) India Marian Shrine Lourdes of the East Lourdes Feb 11- July 16, Loreto, Italy 1858 China Marian shrines May 23, 1995 Zarvintisya Ukraine Lourdes Kenya national Marian shrine Quang Tri Vietnam La Vang 1798 Links to Related Marian Websites Angels and Archangels |
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| Doctors_of_the_Church Acts_Of_The_Apostles
Roman Catholic Popes
Purgatory Uniates
|
|
91
St. Cletus Pope eminent virtue martyr canon of the Roman mass among
St. Peter's 1st disciple 3rd Pope
Romæ natális beáti Cleti, Papæ et Mártyris; qui, secúndus post Apóstolum Petrum, rexit Ecclésiam, et martyrio in persecutióne Domitiáni coronátus est. At Rome, the birthday of St. Cletus, the pope who governed the Church the second after the apostle St. Peter, and was crowned with martyrdom in the persecution of Domitian. 91
St. CLETUS POPE AND MARTYRTHE exact order in the succession of the earliest popes has never been satisfactorily established, and it is still a moot point whether St Cletus was the third or the fourth occupant of the chair of St Peter. The fact that he is sometimes referred to by the name of Cletus and sometimes by the Greek equivalent of Anicetus has further confused the issue. It is now, however, agreed that the names belong to the same pope, and that he died about the year 91—probably as a martyr during the reign of Domitian. Nothing else is known about him. He is named, as the third pope, in the present Canon of the Mass, and the name Anacletus has now been expunged from the list of popes in the Annuario Pontifico. The Liber Pontificalis with Mgr
Duchesne’s
introduction and notes supplies the most reliable information
concerning the
early popes. See also Grisar, Geschicte
Roms und der
Päpste (Eng.
trans.), §§ 185 and 467; and B. Casper, Die
älteste röm. Bischofsliste (1926).
It is curious that the name of Marcellinus does not occur in the list
of A.D. 354
headed “Depositio Episcoporum”; his name is omitted from the new
Benedictine
calendar approved in 1915.
St. Cletus Pope Martyr April 26 A.D. 91 St. Cletus was the third bishop of Rome, and succeeded St. Linus, which circumstance alone shows his eminent virtue among the first disciples of St. Peter in the West. He sat twelve years, from 76 to 89. The canon of the Roman mass, (which Bossuet and all others agree to be of primitive antiquity,) Bede, and other Martyrologists, style him a martyr. He was buried near St. Linus, on the Vatican, and his relics still remain in that church. Cletus, Pope M (RM) (also known as Anacletus) The Roman Cletus, elected pope in the year 76, was the second successor to Saint Peter after Saint Linus. Like Peter, he was fated to be a martyr. He divided Rome into 25 parishes, and was put to death under the Emperor Domitian around 91 AD. He was buried near Saint Linus on the Vatican, where his relics remain. His name is mentioned in the Canon of the Mass (Attwater, Benedictines, Bentley, Delaney, Encyclopedia, Farmer, Husenbeth). |
 304
Marcellinus Pope M (RM)Sancti Marcellíni, Papæ et Mártyris, cujus dies natális octávo Kaléndas Novémbris recensétur. St. Marcellinus, pope and martyr, whose birthday is commemorated on the 25th of October. St Marcellinus followed St Caius in the bishopric of Rome in 296, and reigned eight years. Theodoret states that he acquired great glory in the stormy times of Diocletian’s persecution; on the other hand it was generally believed throughout the middle ages that under fierce trial he yielded up the holy books and offered incense to the gods. The legend, fostered by the Donatists, that he afterwards acknowledged his guilt at a certain Council of Sinuessa, pronouncing at the same time his own deposition, is now universally discredited, no such council having ever taken place but ancient breviaries and catalogues of popes certainly allude to the fall of Marcellinus and to his subsequent repentance crowned by martyrdom. If, as seems mote than probable, he was guilty of a temporary lapse, he expiated it by a holy death and is honoured as a saint and a martyr, though his actual martyrdom is far from certain. He was buried in the cemetery of St Priscilla which he built or enlarged. The Liber Pontificalis with Mgr
Duchesne’s
introduction and notes supplies the most reliable information
concerning the
early popes. See also Grisar, Geschicte
Roms und der
Päpste
(Eng.
trans.), §418 and 467; and B. Casper, Die
älteste röm. Bischofsliste (1926).
It is curious that the name of Marcellinus does not occur in the list
of A.D. 354
headed “Depositio Episcoporum”; his name is omitted from the new
Benedictine
calendar approved in 1915.
Born in Rome; died there on October 25, 304, his second feast day. Marcellinus was the son of Projectus. After his election to succeed Pope Saint Caius on June 30, 296, he witnessed the beginnings of Emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christians. According to an ancient legend that may have been Donatist-inspired and which was included in the Roman Breviary until 1883 (since discredited), Marcellinus seems to have apostatized and surrendered the sacred books and offered incense to pagan gods but later repented. He may have died a martyr's death by beheading, but this is still very uncertain; the Liberian calendar places him among those popes who were not put to death for the faith (Benedictines, Delaney, Husenbeth). |
 Eustas_Basil_Glaphyria Amaséæ, in Ponto,
sancti Basiléi, Epíscopi et Mártyris, qui, sub
Licínio Imperatóre, illústre martyrium
consummávit. Ipsíus autem corpus, in mare
projéctum, et ab Elpidíphoro, Angeli mónitu
repértum, honorífice tumulátum fuit.
At Amasea in Pontus, St. Basileus, bishop and martyr, whose illustrious martyrdom occurred under Emperor Licinius. His body was thrown into the sea, but was found by Elpidiphorus, through the revelation of an angel, and was honorably buried. The Hieromartyr Basil, Bishop of Amasea, lived at the beginning of the fourth century in the Pontine city of Amasea. He encouraged and comforted the Christians suffering persecution by the pagans. During this time the Eastern part of the Roman Empire was ruled by Licinius (311-324), the brother-in-law of the holy emperor Constantine the Great (May 21). Licinius deceitfully signed St Constantine's Edict of Milan (313), which granted religious toleration to Christians, but he hated them and continued to persecute them. The Virgin Glaphyra.
Licinius
burned with passion for Glaphyra, a maidservant of his wife Constantia.
The holy virgin reported
this to the empress and sought her help.
Dressing her in men's attire and providing her with money, the empress
Constantia sent her to Pontus in the company of a devoted servant. They
told the emperor that Glaphyra had gone mad and lay near death. On her
way to Armenia, St Glaphyra stopped in Amasea, where the local bishop,
St Basil, gave her shelter.
At this time the saint was building a church in the city. St Glaphyra donated all the money that she had received from Constantia for its construction, and in a letter to the empress she asked her to send additional funds to complete the church. The empress fulfilled her request. However, St Glaphyra's letter fell into the hands of the emperor. The enraged Licinius ordered the governor of Amasea to send him the hierarch and the maidservant. St Glaphyra died before the edict arrived in Amasea, and St Basil was sent to the emperor. Two deacons, Parthenius and Theotimos, followed after him and lodged near the prison where the saint was held. The pious Christian Elpidephoros bribed the jailer and each night he visited the saint with Parthenius and Theotimos. On the eve of the saint's trial, he sang Psalms and chanted, "if I should sojourn at the extremity of the sea... even there Thy hand would guide me, and Thy right hand would hold me" (Ps 138/139:9-10). These were prophetic words. Three times he broke down in tears. The deacons were afraid that the saint would not be able to endure the coming torments, but he calmed them. At the trial St Basil resolutely refused the emperor's offer to become a pagan priest, and so he was sentenced to death. Elpidephoros gave the soldiers money, and they allowed the saint to pray and to speak with his friends before execution. Then the saint said to the executioner, "Friend, do as you have been ordered." Calmly, he bent his neck beneath the sword. When the martyr had been beheaded, Elpidephoros tried to ransom his relics from the soldiers. But the soldiers were afraid of the emperor and they threw the saint's body and head into the sea. After this, an angel of God appeared to Elpidephoros three times in a dream, saying, "Bishop Basil is in Sinope and awaits you." Heeding this call,
Elpidephoros and the deacons sailed to Sinope, and
there they hired fishermen to lower their nets. When they lowered the
net on the suggestion of the deacons Theotimos and Parthenius, they
came up with nothing. Then Elpidephoros declared that he would ask them
to lower the net in the name of the God Whom he worshiped. This time,
the net brought up the body of St Basil. The saint's head was attached
to his body once more, and only the gash on his neck indicated the blow
of the sword. The relics of St Basil were taken to Amasea and buried in
the church he built.
Basileus
was drowned in a persecution of the Church.
Tradition states
that one of his disciples, Elidiphorus, was directed by an angel in
finding his body and giving the martyr a Christian burial.
Basileus of Amasea BM (RM) Basileus, a zealous bishop of Amasea in Pontus, was cast into the sea under Licinius. The Roman Martyrology adds that one of his disciples, Elpidiphorus, was directed to his body by an angel which he recovered and gave Christian burial (Benedictines, Encyclopedia). |
| 350?
ST PETER, Bishop of BRAGA Brácari, in Lusitánia, sancti Petri Mártyris, qui fuit primus ejúsdem civitátis Epíscopus. At Braga in Portugal, St. Peter, martyr, the first bishop of that city. THE principal patron of Braga in Portugal is one of its former bishops, Peter by name, who probably lived in the fourth century and whose relics were translated in 1552 by Balthasar Limpo, archbishop of Braga, from Rates to Braga, where the body was placed in a marble tomb and the head in a silver casket. Nothing is known of his real history, but local tradition represents him to have been a disciple of St James the Greater, consecrated as the first bishop of Braga, and to have suffered martyrdom after he had baptized and had cured of leprosy the daughter of the king of the  district.It is
plain that if St Peter had been a disciple
of St James the Greater, he could not
have died in 350; but see the Acta Sanctorum,
April, vol. iii, and
Florez, España Sagrada, vol. iii,
pp. 404—405.
500? St. Peter
of
Braga Martyred bishop of Braga Portugal
Brácari, in Lusitánia, sancti Petri Mártyris, qui fuit primus ejúsdem civitátis Epíscopus. At Braga in Portugal, St. Peter, martyr, the first bishop of that city According to tradition, Peter had some connection with the St. James the Great while the Apostle was in Spain and that he was martyred at Braga after becoming the city’s first bishop. Recent scholarship puts the actual date of Braga’s life and work to the fifth or sixth century. Peter of Braga BM (RM) . Allegedly, Peter was the first bishop and martyr of Braga, Portugal. The local tradition connects him with the apostolate of Saint James the Great (Santiago) in Spain. However, historians believe he lived in the 5th or 6th century (Benedictines). |
| 4th v. Bishop
Lucidius of Verona famous for his life of prayer and study revered for
his holiness and learning B (RM) Verónæ sancti Lucídii Epíscopi. At Verona, St. Lucidius, bishop. Bishop Lucidius was famous for his life of prayer and study (Benedictines, Encyclopedia). |
| 620 Clarentius of
Vienne succeeded Saint Etherius in that see B (RM) Viénnæ, in Gállia, sancti Claréntii, Epíscopi et Confessóris. At Vienne in France, St. Clarence, bishop and confessor. Clarentius succeeded Saint Etherius in the see of Vienne (Benedictines). |
 645 Richarius young
pagan protected 2 Irish missionaries Cadoc & Frichor fast
strenuously cry copiously for sins pray without ceasing Abbot 1st to
work ransoming captives (RM)In monastério Céntula, in Gállia, sancti Richárii, Presbyteri et Confessóris. In the monastery of Centula in France, St. Richarius, priest and confessor. (also known as Riquier) Born in Centula (Celles) near Amiens, France; died at Forêt- Moutier, April 26, c. 645; feast of his translation is October 9. 645 ST RICHARIUS, OR RIQUIER, ABBOT THE town of Abbeville claims to derive its name from the abbey of St Richarius or Riquier, which once owned the land upon which the city now stands. The saint was born at Celles, near Amiens, at a period when the population of the district was still largely pagan. Two Irish priests who landed on the coast and sought to pass through the country met with a hostile reception, and would have been seriously ill-treated had not Richarius protected them. In return they gave him instruction, as a result of which he was inspired with a desire to become a priest. After a very penitential preparation he received holy orders and then made a stay of some length in England, apparently to perfect himself in the science of the saints. Upon his return to France, he began to preach with extraordinary zeal and with great success. He strongly influenced St Adalbald and St Rictrudis, and to King Dagobert he spoke on the dangers and vanities of this world, warning him of his responsibilities. “He who has to obey will only have to render account to God of himself”, he declared, “but he who commands will also have to answer for all his subjects”. With increasing age came the desire to yield up the charge of the abbey he bad founded at Celles, and so Richarius withdrew to a hermitage, in which he spent the rest of his life in the company of a disciple, called Sigobard. Over this cell afterwards rose the monastery of Forest-Montiers, between Rue and Créçy. We have
two noteworthy accounts of St Riquier,
the one by Alcuin, the other by Angilramnus; they are printed both
in the Acta Sanctorum,
April, vol. iii, and by Mabillon. See also Corblet, Hagiographie
d’Amiens, vol. iii, pp. 417—462; and MGH., Scriptores
Merov., vol. vii, pp.
438—453, for the rhymed vita by
Hariulf.
As a young pagan, Richarius protected two Irish missionaries--Cadoc and Frichor--who were in danger from the local people. They then instructed him in the Christian faith. From that time he began to fast strenuously, cry copiously for his sins, and pray without ceasing. He became a priest and went to England for several years. Upon his return to France, Richarius founded an abbey in Centula in 638, afterwards called Celles, became famous preacher admonished King Dagobert and other luminaries. The gifts he received from the wealthy he handed on to the poor. He was the first to devote himself to the work of ransoming captives. After some years as abbot he resigned and spent the rest of his life as a hermit. His relics were moved to the town now called Saint- Riquier (Somme), where a monastery was later founded. Saint Riquier appears frequently in ancient calendars and litanies. His reputation extended across the Channel: A church in Aberford, West Yorkshire, England, is dedicated to his memory (Benedictines, Farmer, Husenbeth). 645 St. Riquier priest fast strenuously cry copiously for his sins pray without ceasing 1st to devote himself to the work of ransoming captives Abbot hermit also called Richarius. Born at Celles, near Amiens, France, he became a priest after rescuing two Irish missionaries from a murderous band of local pagans. After studying in England, he was ordained and returned home, where he founded an abbey at Celles over which he presided as abbot. He later resigned from his office and spent his remaining days as a hermit on the site of Forest Montiers Monastery. Abbeville is the modern site of Riquier’s foundation. |
|
644 St. Trudpert Irish
pilgrim Benedictine hermit
The site of his original hermitage in Munstehal became a monastery. According to a discounted tradition, Trudpert was martyred. Trudpert of Münstethal, Abbot (AC) also known as Trudbert Irish pilgrim who, upon his return from Rome, began a solitary in Münstethal. Here (or at Neumagen) some day- laborers, paid by the local lord to clear an impossible terrain to establish a foundation for Trudpert, became fed up with their hard job, killed him. Trudpert, therefore, is venerated as a martyr, though his vita is considered a legend (Benedictines, Encyclopedia). |
|
860 Paschasius
Radbertus abandoned at convent asked to be forgotten simply asks for
prayers to God left works dealing with the body and blood of Christ the
real presence of Christ in the Eucharist (De
Corpore et Sanguine Christe)
commentary on Saint Matthew's Gospel (12 volumes) composed treatise on
the Virgin defend her perpetual virginity long exposition on Psalm 44
and another on the Lamentations of Jeremiah wrote biographies of 2
abbots-Corbie OSB Abbot (AC)
860 ST PASCHASIUS RADBERTUS, ABBOT ST RADBERTUS was adopted, when left as a motherless babe on their doorstep, by the nuns of Notre-Dame at Soissons, who sent him to be educated by the monks of St Peter in that same city. He seems to have become engrossed in the Latin classics, and he lived for several years in the world before deciding to enter the A short
life of Paschasius Radbertus has been
edited by Mabillon and in Pertz, MGH., Scriptores, vol.
xv, pp. 452—454. See also the Acta
Sanctorum, April, vol. iii. Paschasius’s eucharistic teaching has
been much
discussed: on this see Ernst, Die Lehre
d. h. Paschasius Radbertus (1896).
Died April 26, 860. Radbertus was a monk who thought about the future, about eternity, to be sure, and equally about the time that would follow his death. He dictated a last will and testament that is considered precious. He had no possessions to bequeath. Instead, he requested only that no one write the story of his life. He asked to be forgotten, which makes him an original in a Church that forgets nothing. Radbertus simply asks for prayers to God. Radbertus, who allowed himself to be called Paschasius, was probably born in Soissons, France, without a known father or mother. He was found one day on the doorstep of Notre Dame Convent in Soissons. He was a little baby who was waiting for someone to take him in. Thus, he was raised by the good sisters, educated by the monks at nearby Saint Peter's, received the Benedictine habit at an early age, and was ordained a deacon. But he, thinking that the community was exaggerating the nature of the world, left the monastery to live his own life. He tried an easy lifestyle and was very uncomfortable with it, so, when he was about 22, he returned to the monastery of Corbie and began to pray, read, and write. The abbot of the monastery was named Adebard (Adalard 753-827), the brother of Theodrade, the abbess who had given a home to the abandoned infant. Both of them were first cousins to Charlemagne (742-814) and belonged to the fashionable world. Being educated--Radbertus knew Greek and Hebrew--he was involved in the Carolingian Renaissance. He was sent to Saxony on his first assignment, where Charlemagne spent 30 years trying to subdue the people. Charlemagne organized 18 expeditions and beheaded 4,500 hostages in order to baptize the rest by force and in order to issue edicts, for example, mandating observance of fasts under pain of death. During this period, Radbertus and Adalard founded monasteries in Saxony. After Charlemagne it was the turn of Louis the Pious to have recourse to Radbertus: it wasn't easy to get along with a man like Louis. He was big, strong, and trembled like a leaf; he was lost in pater nosters, and on the lookout for cosmic events. Louis had hesitated to become a monk and to the detriment of his country, he did not follow his vocation. It was a difficult assignment to engage in missionary and political activities with a man of this kind, in perpetual conflict with his children who several times amused themselves by degrading him in public. It required an uncommon dose of common sense to attempt to calm down all these people. Radbertus did not grow vain over his successes; although a simple deacon, in 822, he was sent to help found New Corbie in Westphalia. Radbertus considered himself as dishwater, scrapings, or as the scum of monastic life: it is the translation of the word "Peripsema" which he used, the same word used by Paul in his splendid tirade addressed to the pride of the Corinthians. Radbertus preached to the
monks on Sundays and holidays, and gave
public lectures daily on the sacred sciences. Under his
direction the schools of Corbie became famous. Among his
scholars were Blessed Adalard the
Younger (800-824), and Saints
Anscharius(801-865), Hildemar(Died c. 700),
and Odo(801-880),
who were successively bishop of Beauvais.
His busy schedule never
prevented him from assisting at the public
office in the choir, and all other general observances of the rule. Humble though he was,
Radbertus helped make the Corbie schools famous
while he served there as master of novices.
He then accepted the uncomfortable position as abbot in 844. The distractions of this station made him earnestly endeavor to resign, but he could not do so until seven years later, in 851. Being freed from administrative tasks, he retired to the abbey of Saint- Riquier to finish some of his works; but after some time he returned to Corbie to die. When Radbertus was not busy pacifying the kings of France, he was engaged in writing. He had finished a treatise on the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist (De Corpore et Sanguine Christe), which raised some questions about 15 years after its initial publication. Some took offense at certain expressions, chiefly taken from the writings of Saint Ambrose (340-397), in which the author so strongly affirmed the body of Christ present in the Eucharist to be the same flesh which was born of the Virgin Mary and nailed to the cross that they imagined Radbertus taught a heresy. They thought he meant that Christ in the Eucharist is in the same mortal state in which he suffered, and that he understood this sacred mystery in the carnal sense of the Capharnaits. In a letter to the Brother Frudegard at New Corbie, Radbert defended the manner in which he had expressed himself and showed his orthodoxy. Radbertus left other works dealing with the body and blood of Christ. His principal work is a commentary on Saint Matthew's Gospel (12 volumes), which was preached before it was read. In it he refutes the errors assumed by Felix of Urgel, Claudius of Turin, Gotteschalk, and, especially, John Scotus Erigena against mystery of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. He also composed a treatise on the Virgin to defend her perpetual virginity: He was probably the author of epistle IX of Pseudo Jerome, which is an important document in the development of the doctrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin; a long exposition on Psalm 44; another on the Lamentations of Jeremiah, in order to practice crying over his own miseries. In general this last is a long, detailed work, very well documented. He also wrote biographies of two abbots of Corbie: Adalard and his brother Wala, who had been Radbertus's friend and confidant. In subscribing to the
council of Paris, in 846, he took only his own
name, Radbert; but in the works which he composed after that time, he
always prefixed to it that of Paschasius. This he took according to the
custom which then prevailed among men of letters in France, for every
one to adopt some Roman or scriptural name.
He was also probably the author
of epistle IX of Pseudo Jerome, which
is an important document in the development of the doctrine of the
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin.Thus, in his epitaph or panegyric on his second abbot, Wala, he styles him Arsenius. Radbertus was buried in Saint John's Chapel. His body was translated into the great church, in 1073, by authority of the Pope Saint Gregory VII In art, angels bring a monstrance to Paschasius Radbertus. There will be books on a table (Roeder). Paschasius was left as an infant upon the door of Notre Dame convent in Soissons, France, and was raised by the nuns there before receiving an education from the monks of St. Peter’s, Soissons. After entering the Benedictine monastery of Corbie under St. Adalard, he was ordained a deacon. In 822, he was sent with other monks under Adalard to establish the monastery of New Corbie in Westphalia, Germany. He served for a number of years as master of novices and headmaster at both Corbie and New Corbie and in 844 was made abbot of Corbie. Never ordained a priest and finding the office against his nature, Paschasius resigned about 849. He went to the abbey of Saint Riquier, but returned to Corbie where he eventually died. A prolific writer, he was the author of several biblical commentaries, a Life of Abbot Adalhard, and the well known De Corpore et Sanguine Domini, the first ever treatise on the Eucharist. (1021-1085). From that time he has been honored as a saint at Corbie, and in the Gallican and Benedictine Martyrologies (Benedictines, Delaney, Encyclopedia, Husenbeth). |
| Trecis,
in Gállia, sanctæ Exsuperántiæ
Vírginis. At
Troyes in France, St. Exuperantia, virgin. |
|
1146 Blessed
John of
Valence canon of Lyons forced to be bishop of Valence OSB Cist. B (AC)
1146 BD JOHN I BISHOP OF VALENCE LYONS was the birthplace of this John, who when a young canon in the cathedral of his native city made a vow to join the community of Citeaux, but mistrust of his power of perseverance led him to seek to compound with his conscience by a pilgrimage to Compostela instead. Vocation, however, was too strong: he had a dream or vision of so terrifying a character that he set off for Citeaux in the middle of the night. He proved himself an exemplary monk, and was sent to found the abbey of Bonnevaux. A life
of this holy bishop, written by one
Giraudus, has been printed by Martène and Durand in their Thesaurus novus anecdotorum, vol. iii, pp. 1693—1702.
See also
Nadal, Histoire hagiologique de Valence,
pp. 273 seq., and such Cistercian
historians as Manrique and Le Nain.
Born in Lyons, France; cultus approved in 1901. John, a canon of Lyons, entered Clairvaux under Saint Bernard following a pilgrimage to Compostella. In 1117, he was sent to found Bonneval (Bona Vallis) on the Loire, and proved to be an excellent abbot. In 1141, he was elevated to bishop of Valence but had to be carried by force to the altar for his consecration (Benedictines). |
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1218 St. Franca
Visalta
Benedictine Convent at 7 yrs old; Cistercian nun foundress
1218 ST FRANCA OF PIACENZA, VIRGIN AND ABBESS FRANCA VISALTA was only seven years old when she was placed in the Benedictine convent of St Syrus at Piacenza and fourteen when she was professed. Young though she was, she had already outstripped all her sisters in obedience, devotion and self-denial. After the death of the abbess she was chosen superior, and for a short time all went well. But the zealous young abbess soon began to tighten the reins of discipline, prohibiting amongst other luxurious innovations the practice of cooking vegetables in wine. So bitter was the opposition that Franca was actually deposed in favour of the bishop’s sister, who did not share her reforming spirit. For years Franca had to suffer calumny and misrepresentation, as well as severe interior trials. Her one earthly solace was a young girl called Carentia who used to visit her. By her advice Carentia underwent a year’s novitiate in the Cistercian convent at Rapallo, and then persuaded her parents to build for the order a house at Montelana which she entered, while it was arranged that St Franca should be transferred from St Syrus to rule the new foundation. Later the community settled at Pittoli. They kept the Cistercian rule in all its poverty and austerity, but even that was not enough for the abbess. Night after night she would go to the chapel to spend in prayer hours which others devoted to sleep. Her daughters, marking with dismay her failing health, bade the sacristan withhold the key, but it would have required more than a key to keep her from her vigil. She died in 1218, and Pope Gregory X, Carentia’s kinsman, sanctioned her cultus for Piacenza. In the Acta
Sanctorum, April, vol. iii, are printed a letter of a contemporary
Cistercian
prior recounting a vision of one of his monks to whom was revealed the
glory of
St Franca Visalta, and also a lengthy biography by Father Bertram
Recoldi,
written in 1336.
Born in 1170 in Piacenza, Italy, she entered the St. Syrus Benedictine Convent at the age of seven. Later elected abbess, she was ousted because of her strictness. After several years she became abbess of a convent at Montelana, which adopted the Cistercian rule. Moving the foundation to Pittoli, she died there. She was canonized by Pope Gregory X. Franca Visalta, OSB Cist. Abbess (AC) also known Franca of Piacenza Born in Piacenza, Italy, in 1170; died 1218; cultus confirmed with the title of saint by Gregory X. Franca was offered to God at the Benedictine convent of Saint Syrus when she was seven. At age 14, she was professed and while still very young, she became abbess. Apparently, she was overly severe, which led to her deposition. After some years she was made abbess of the Cistercian convent at Pittoli, where she exhibited a remarkable patience (Benedictines, Encyclopedia). |
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1300 Blesseds Dominic
&
Gregory Dominican preachers died in cavein cave surrounded by lights
and angelic music Miracles surrounded burials and tombs at Besians
diocese of Barbastro OP (AC) cultus approved
by Pope Pius IX in 1854.
1300 BD. DOMINIC AND GREGORY Dominic and Gregory were two Dominican friars, living in the first century of the order, who were impelled by zeal for souls to leave their Castilian priory to preach the gospel in Aragon. Their labours lay specially in out-of-the-way districts among the hill folk inhabiting the steep southern spurs of the Pyrenees. Penniless and barefoot they went from hamlet to hamlet, giving spiritual instruction and receiving frugal hospitality. They had taken refuge under a cliff during a severe thunderstorm when a fall of rock buried them beneath it. The ringing of bells startled the inhabitants of the nearest villages, and a strange light is said to have revealed the scene of the catastrophe. The bodies of the two missionaries were recovered and buried at Besiano, where they have ever since been venerated, and their cultus was confirmed in 1854. There is
a short account of these beati in Seeböck, Die Herrlichkeit der Katholischen Kirche, p. 139, and in
Procter, Lives of Dominican Saints, pp. 106—107.
For a fuller bibliography see Taurisano, Catalogus
Hagiographicus OP., p. 23.
Very little is known about these two Dominican preachers. Their legend tells us that they evangelized the mountainous Somontano region of Moorish Spain near Barbastro, Aragon. One day they were caught in a storm as they travelled from one village to another. The storm loosed the rocks of the cave in which they had sought shelter and they were buried in a landslide. The bells of Perarúa rang out of their own accord, indicating that something remarkable was afoot, and villagers, who ventured out after the storm, found the cave surrounded by lights and angelic music. Digging into the rubble, they found the two Dominicans crushed to death. Miracles surrounded their burials and their tombs at Besians in the diocese of Barbastro, where pilgrims came to pray, especially against the danger from storms. Formerly on Rogation days, and in times of drought, their relics were carried in procession (Benedictines, Dorcy). |
| 1309
St. Aldo (Aldobrandesca) Widow she gave away all possessions
ministering to
sick visions almsdeeds and mortification and ecstasies Siena (also known as Aldobrandesca,
Aude, Blanca, Bruna) 1309 BD ALDA, OR ALDOBRANDESCA, Widow won the veneration of all, and many were the cures attributed to her ministrations. THE tomb of Bd Alda was formerly a great centre of devotion in the church of St Thomas at Siena. She was a matron of good position who, upon finding herself a childless widow, retired into a little house outside the walls of Siena. There she devoted herself to almsgiving, and by mortifications tried to fill up the chalice of the sufferings of Christ. She had many visions in which she beheld scenes in the earthly life of our Lord. Gradually she gave away all her possessions and finally she determined to sacrifice her solitude, and went to live in the hospital that she might devote herself to nursing the sick poor. She still continued to be subject to ecstasies. When first she was seen in a state of trance resembling catalepsy, some members of the staff were sceptical and scoffed—even going so far as to pinch her, pierce her with needles, and apply lighted candles to her hands. When she recovered consciousness she felt intense pain from the wounds thus made, but all she said to her tormentors was, “God forgive you”. The experiments were not repeated. Before her death Bd Alda won the veneration of all, and many were the cures attributed to her ministrations. A short
life was published in 1584 by C.
Lombardelli this has been translated into Latin and printed in the Acta Sanctorum, April, vol. iii.
Born in Siena, Italy, 1249; Blessed Alda married a very pious man and lived with him in conjugal continence. Upon his death, Alda joined the third order of the Humiliati and devoted her life to almsdeeds and mortification. She is greatly honored in Siena (Benedictines). (also known as Esperance, Exuperance) A virgin whose relics are venerated in Troyes, France. Nothing else is known about her (Benedictines, Encyclopedia). 28 febbraio 1245 - Siena, 26 aprile 1309 A native of Siena, and also known as Aude and Aldobrandesca, she gave away all her possessions on the death of her husband and devoted herself to aiding the poor. She spent the last part of her life ministering to the sick in the hospital at Siena, subjecting herself to great mortifications. She experienced visions and ecstasies during her lifetime. Nacque il 28 febbraio 1245 dal nobile Pietro Francesco Ponzi e da Agnese Bulgarini, alla quale Dio aveva mostrato in sogno di aver scelto la nascitura per sé; dopo essere stata educata e istruita con ogni cura, fu data in sposa al concittadino Bindo Bellanti, uomo «virtutibus ornatissimus», dal quale, però, non ebbe figli. Dopo la morte prematura del marito, A. vestì l'abito del Terz'Ordine degli Umiliati e si diede, ancor più di prima, a far vita penitente nella solitudine di una sua piccola proprietà, dove operò miracoli ed ebbe estasi e visioni. Passò gli ultimi anni nell'ospedale di S. Andrea, che in seguito fu detto di S. Onofrio, dedicandosi tutta al servizio dei poveri, degli infermi e dei pellegrini. Alda morì il 26 aprile 1309 e fu sepolta nella chiesa di S. Tommaso in Siena, appartenente agli Umiliati. Le sue ossa nel 1489 furono levate da terra e poste in una parete a lato di un altare, da dove nel 1583 furono trasferite. Il suo culto, oltre che a Siena e in altre città, ebbe molta diffusione nell'Ordine degli Umiliati. February 28 was born 1245 from the noble Pietro Francesco Ponzi and from Agnese Bulgarini, to which God had shown in dream of to have chosen the nascitura for oneself; after to to be been educated and taught with every care, was given in bride to the fellow-citizen Bindo Bellanti, man «virtutibus ornatissimus», from which, however, not ebbe sons. After the premature death of the husband, TO. dressed the clothing of the Terz' Order of the Humiliated and it is given, even more of first, to make life penitente in the solitude of an its small property, where operò miracles and ebbe ecstasy and sights. It passed the last years in the hospital of S. Andrea, that later on had said of S. Onofrio, dedicating itself all to the service of the poor, of the ill and of the pilgrims. Alda 26 April 1309 died and was buried in the church of S. Tommaso in Siena, belonging to the Humiliated. His bone in 1489 had been easts from land and mail in a wall to side of an altar, from where in 1583 had been transferred. Its religion, beyond that to Siena and in other town, much ebbe spread in the order of the Humiliated. |
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1396 Stephen of Perm
great Russian missionary bishop invented alphabet for Zyrians using for
letters parts of the traditional elements of Zyrian carvings and
embroidery to teach the Bible B
1396 ST STEPHEN, BISHOP OF PERM IT is related in the life of St Sergius of Radonezh that a bishop was one day travelling to Moscow and, coming level with Sergius’s monastery, but some seven miles away, he stopped on his road, bowed low in the direction of Sergius, and said, “Peace be with you, brother in God”. At the same moment St Sergius stood  up in
the refectory and,
bowing towards the far-off road, said, “Be of good cheer, shepherd of
Christ’s flock. The peace of God be always with you.” Later he
explained to his brethren that the Bishop Stephen on his way to Moscow
had saluted their monastery and called down blessings on them.From their early Christian days the Russians had sent out missions to the heathen, such as the Mongols and Finns, and in the revival of this zeal during the fourteenth century the outstanding figure was this bishop St Stephen. He was a monk of Rostov, who sometime after 1370 went to preach the gospel to the Zyriane or Permiaks, a people who lived far to the east of the Volga river but south-west of the Ural mountains, among whom he had been born though himself a Russian. St Stephen was a very worthy successor of St Cyril and St Methodius and his missionary methods are reminiscent of theirs. He believed, as his biographer tells us, that every people should worship God in its own tongue, since languages also are from God, and so one of his first undertakings was to translate the necessary parts of the liturgical services into the language of the Zyriane, and portions of the Holy Scriptures likewise. So convinced was Stephen that every people has its own peculiar contribution to make to God’s service that he would not give his converts even the Russian characters instead he invented an alphabet of letters based on details in the patterns of their embroideries and carvings. And he established schools wherein the use of this alphabet could be learned. Like other Russian missionaries St Stephen used the celebration of public worship as an initial means of attracting the heathen by its beauty and impressive solemnity. He distinguished himself not only as a missionary, but also as a champion of the downtrodden and oppressed so far away as Novgorod and Moscow. In 1383 his work was recognized by die conferring of episcopal orders, and he became the first bishop of Perm, where he had to oppose by writing and preaching the people called Strigolniks, the first Russian dissenters, who had much in common with the Lollards and Hussites. St Stephen died at Moscow in 1396. For bibliographical notes on Russian saints, see under St Sergius of Radonezh on September 25. There
is a large
manuscript literature of Russian saints’ lives, of which the medieval
ones
belong to three distinct areas. Those of Kiev
and the Ukraine are the earliest, and are concerned particularly
with the
“holy princes” and the “holy monks”. The monastery of the Caves at Kiev
led in
this work, and there was produced the first paterik, that
is, a collection of short lives of saints concerned with
one
particular district or monastery. But there are extant only two
detailed lives
of pre-Mongol saints, viz, of St
Theodosius and of St Abraham of Smolensk. After the Tartar conquest a
new
hagiographical “school” developed in the North, with
its centres at Novgorod and further north. Its accounts
are
distinguished by their shortness and austerity of manner, often
containing no
more than is said in the proper office “hymn”. The third, Central,
school grew up around Moscow
Saint Stephen the Enlightener of Perm, and Apostle to the
Zyrians, was
born around the year 1340 into the family of Simeon, a cleric of the
Ustiug cathedral. He was greatly influenced by his pious mother Maria.
Endowed with great abilities, he already displayed an unusual zeal for
the service of the Church: in a single year he learned to read the Holy
Books and he assisted his father in church during services, fulfilling
the duty of canonarch, and also that of reader. The young saint received monastic tonsure at the Monastery of St Gregory the Theologian at Rostov. The monastery was famed for its fine library. Since St Stephen wanted to read the holy Fathers in their original language, he studied Greek. In his youth, when he had assisted his father in church, he frequently spoke with the Zyrian people. Now, having been immersed in the rich culture of the Church, St Stephen burned with a desire to convert the Zyrians to Christ. To facilitate the enlightenment of the Zyrians, he compiled an alphabet of their language and translated some of the Church books. For this pious work Bishop Arsenius of Rostov (1374-1380), ordained him to the rank of hierodeacon. Having prepared himself for missionary activity, St Stephen journeyed to Moscow (1379) to see Bishop Gerasimus of Kolomna, who then oversaw the affairs of the metropolitanate. The saint implored him, "Bless me, Master, to go into a pagan land, Perm. I want to teach the holy Faith to the unbelieving people. I am resolved either to lead them to Christ, or to lay down my life for them and for Christ." The bishop joyfully blessed him and ordained him as a hieromonk. He provided him with an antimension for the altar table, holy chrism and service books, and Great Prince Demetrius gave him a document of safe passage. From Ustiug St Stephen made his way along the North Dvina River up to the confluence of the Vychegda into it, where settlements of the Zyrians began. The proponent of faith in Christ suffered many toils and struggles, deprivation and sorrow, living among the pagans who worshipped idols "with fire, water, trees, a stone and golden woman-figure, and shaman, and wizard, and wood." Father Stephen was sad to see that the Zyrians continued to worship a "sacred birch tree." Immense in its thickness and height, the birch tree grew on an elevated spot. The Zyrians gathered there and brought wild animals there for sacrifice. St Stephen's cell was not
far from the birch tree. He prayed and set
fire to the tree in order to end the superstition. The Zyrians, seeing
that the tree had been destroyed, meant to kill him. The saint said to
them, "Judge for yourselves whether or not your gods have any power,
since they are not able to defend themselves from the fire. Can they be
gods, when they are so powerless? They have no mind, neither can they
see or hear. Your idol could not defend itself against me, a weak man.
Are all your other gods so powerless? The Christian God is not like
this. He sees everything, knows everything and is Almighty, since He
created the whole world and foresees everything. How good He is,
particularly to those who know Him! I desire only what is good for you,
to bring you to the true God. He will love you and bless you, when you
sincerely begin to honor Him." On the site of the "sacred birch tree,"
St Stephen built a church in honor of the Archangel Michael, the
vanquisher of the spirits of darkness.
The newly-baptized Zyrians themselves began to remove that which they once worshiped. They cut down sacred trees, they destroyed idols, and they brought to St Stephen the rich gifts set aside for the pagan sacrifices. He told his Zyrian helper Matthew to throw everything into the fire, except the linen cloth which was used for foot wrappings. But things came to a head among the Zyrians after St Stephen got the better of their chief priest Pama, who rose up against the spread of Christianity. The pagan priest entered into a debate with St Stephen. "Christian, you have only one God," said Pama, "but we have many helpers on the land, and in the water, granting us good hunting in the forests, and with its abundance providing food and pelts to Moscow, the Horde and faraway lands. Our gods reveal to us the magic mysteries, inaccessible to you." St Stephen answered that the true God is one; the Almighty is one, but experience has proven that the idols are powerless. After a lengthy dispute the pagan priest Pama challenged St Stephen to pass through fire and water in a test of faith. St Stephen humbly replied, "Great is the Christian God. I accept your challenge." Pama, however, lost his nerve and entreated the saint to save him from certain death. "You are witnesses," said St Stephen to the people "how he wished to resolve the dispute about faith by fire and water, but he does not wish to be baptized. Who has regard for Pama now? What is to be done with him?" "Let the deceiver be put to death," the people said, "for if Pama is set free, he will make mischief for you." "No," the saint replied, "Christ has not sent me to hand anyone over to death, but to teach. Since Pama does not wish to accept the saving Faith, let his stubbornness punish him, but I will not." Pama was banished. In thanksgiving for his victory over the chief pagans, St Stephen built a church in honor of St Nicholas at Vishero. After this, the saint's preaching of Christ was more successful. In 1383, St Stephen was
consecrated Bishop of Malaya Perm [Lesser
Perm]. Like a loving father he devoted himself to his flock. To
encourage the newly-converted, St Stephen opened schools adjacent to
the churches, where they studied the Holy Scriptures in the Permian
language. The saint supervised the instructions, and taught them what
they needed to know in order to become priests and deacons. St Stephen
taught several of his students how to write in the Permian language.
The saint built churches, in which he placed Zyrian priests, and
services were conducted in the Zyrian language.
St Stephen translated the HOROLOGION [Book of Hours], the PSALTER, and other liturgical books into the Zyrian language. During a crop failure the saint provided the Zyrians with bread. Many times he protected them from the trickery of corrupt officials, gave them alms, and defended them from the incursions of other tribes, interceding for them at Moscow. The fruit of his efforts and good deeds came in the conversion of all of Perm to Christianity. This great deed was accomplished by his strength of faith and Christian love. The life of the saint was a victory of faith over unbelief, of love and meekness over malice and impiety. There was a touching "meeting in absence" of St Stephen of Perm with St Sergius of Radonezh, occurring in the year 1390 as St Stephen journeyed to Moscow on church business. St Stephen fervently loved the Radonezh ascetic and very much wanted to pay him a visit, but had no time to do so. Ten versts from the monastery of St Sergius, St Stephen turned in the direction of the monastery and with a bow he said, "Peace to you, my spiritual brother!" St Sergius, who was eating a meal with the brethren, stood up, made a prayer and, bowing towards the direction where the saint rode, answered, "Hail also to you, pastor of the flock of Christ, may the peace of God be with you!" The deep spiritual connection of St Stephen of Perm and St Sergius of Radonezh is recalled even today in a certain prayer recited each day in the trapeza. Besides building churches, St Stephen also founded several monasteries for the Zyrians: the Savior Ulianov wilderness monastery 165 versts from Ust-Sysolsk, the Stephanov 60 versts from Ust-Sysolsk, the Ust-Vym Archangel, and the Yareng Archangel. In the year 1395 St Stephen again went to Moscow on affairs of his flock, and died there. His body was placed in the Church of the Transfiguration in the Moscow Kremlin. The Zyrians bitterly lamented the death of their archpastor. They earnestly entreated the Moscow prince and the Metropolitan to send the body of their patron back to Perm, but Moscow did not wish to part with the relics of the saint. The glorification of St Stephen began already at the beginning of the fiftenth century. The Life of the saint was written soon after his death. The hieromonk Pachomius the Serb composed the service to him, with the hieromonk Epiphanius the Wise, who was a disciple of St Sergius of Radonezh. He also knew St Stephen and loved to converse with him. Born at Ust Yug in 1345;
died in Moscow in 1396. In the early days of
Christianity in the region, the Russian Church had sent out
missionaries to preach the Gospel to the Mongols and Finns. But it
wasn't until the 14th century that this zeal was revived.
Saint Stephen, one of the great Russian missionary bishops, had been born among the Zyriane people (Permiaks or Komi), who lived southwest of the Ural mountains but east of the Volga, and he longed to convert his own folk to Christianity. After about 15 years in a monastery at Rostov preparing himself for a missionary work, he set out on a preaching mission among them. Soon Saint Stephen, a worthy successor to Saints Cyril and Methodius, realized that he needed to make a translation of the Scriptures and liturgy into their tongue. His biographer tells us that he believed that every people should worship God in its own tongue, because languages also are from God. Because the Zyrians at that time did not possess even an alphabet, and Stephen was so convinced that every people has its own peculiar contribution to make to God's service that he would not give his converts even the Russian characters. Instead, this Russian invented an alphabet for them using for letters parts of the traditional elements of Zyrian carvings and embroidery. He set up schools to teach this alphabet to his converts. Like many other Russian missionaries, Stephen used the celebration of public worship as an initial means of attracting the heathen by its beauty and impressive solemnity. Having distinguished himself as a missionary and as a champion of the downtrodden and oppressed as far away as Novogorod and Moscow, he was recognized by being name the first bishop of Perm (now Molotov) in 1383. As bishop, he had to oppose the first Russian dissenters, known as Strigolniks, who had much in common with the Lollards and Hussites (Attwater, Bentley, Walsh). |
| 1667 St. Pedro de San José Betancur "St. Francis of the Americas," Pedro de
Betancur is the first saint to have worked and died in Guatemala. (1626-1667) Central America can claim its first saint with the July 30 canonization of Pedro de Betancur by Pope John Paul II in Guatemala City. Known as the "St. Francis of the Americas," Pedro de Betancur is the first saint to have worked and died in Guatemala. Calling the new saint an “outstanding example” of Christian mercy, the Holy Father noted that St. Pedro practiced mercy “heroically with the lowliest and the most deprived.” Speaking to the estimated 500,000 Guatemalans in attendance, the Holy Father spoke of the social ills that plague the country today and of the need for change. “Let us think of the children and young people who are homeless or deprived of an education; of abandoned women with their many needs; of the hordes of social outcasts who live in the cities; of the victims of organized crime, of prostitution or of drugs; of the sick who are neglected and the elderly who live in loneliness,” he said in his homily during the three-hour liturgy. Pedro very much wanted to become a priest, but God had other plans for the young man born into a poor family on Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Pedro was a shepherd until age 24, when he began to make his way to Guatemala, hoping to connect with a relative engaged in government service there. By the time he reached Havana, he was out of money. After working there to earn more, he got to Guatemala City the following year. When he arrived he was so destitute that he joined the bread line which the Franciscans had established. Soon, Pedro enrolled in the local Jesuit college in hopes of studying for the priesthood. No matter how hard he tried, however, he could not master the material; he withdrew from school. In 1655 he joined the Secular Franciscan Order. Three years later he opened a hospital for the convalescent poor; a shelter for the homeless and a school for the poor soon followed. Not wanting to neglect the rich of Guatemala City, Pedro began walking through their part of town ringing a bell and inviting them to repent. Other men came to share in Pedro's work. Soon they became the Bethlehemite Congregation, which went on to earn official papal approval after Pedro's death. He is sometimes credited with originating the Christmas Eve posadas procession in which people representing Mary and Joseph seek a night's lodging from their neighbors. The custom soon spread to Mexico and other Central American countries. Pedro was beatified in 1980. Comment: As humans, we often
pride ourselves on our
ability to reason. But, as Pedro’s life shows, other skills may be an
even more crucial element of our humanity than a clever mind:
compassion, imagination, love. Unable to master studies for the
priesthood despite his efforts, Pedro responded to the needs of
homeless and sick people; he provided education to the poor and
salvation to the rich. He became holy—as fully human as any of us can
ever be.
Quote: Speaking of Pedro and
the four others
beatified with him, Pope John Paul II said: "God lavished his kindness
and his mercy on them, enriching them with his grace; he loved them
with a fatherly, but demanding, love, which promised only hardships and
suffering. He invited and called them to heroic holiness; he tore them
away from their countries of origin and sent them to other lands to
proclaim the message of the gospel, in the midst of inexpressible toil
and difficulties" (L'Osservatore Romano).
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