The fourth day of the
Afterfeast of Theophany
falls on January
10.
Some hymns
of this period compare streams of Jordan to life-giving waters of Baptism.
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In Thebáide natális beáti Pauli, primi Eremítæ,
Confessóris, qui, a sextodécimo ætátis suæ
anno usque ad centésimum décimum tértium, solus in erémo
permánsit; cujus ánimam, inter Apostolórum et Prophetárum
choros, ad cælum ferri ab Angelis sanctus Antónius vidit.
Ejus autem festívitas décimo octávo Kaléndas
Februárii celebrátur.
In Thebais, the birthday of St. Paul, the first hermit
who lived alone in the desert from the sixteenth to the one hundred and thirteenth
year of his age. His soul was seen by St. Anthony carried by angels
among the choirs of apostles and prophets. His feast is kept on the
15th of this month.
St. Nicanor Early
martyr 1/7 deacons of Jerusalem
In Cypro beáti Nicánoris, qui fuit unus de septem primis
Diáconis; atque, grátia fídei et virtúte admirándus,
gloriosíssime coronátus est.
In Cyprus, blessed Nicanor, one of the first
seven deacons, a man of admirable faith and virtue, who received the crown
of glory.
A resident of Jerusalem,
he was chosen by the Apostles to minister to the needs of those requiring
assistance in the Holy City. According to tradition, he went to Cyprus where
he was put to death during the reign of Emperor Vespasian, although this
is now believed unlikely.
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385 Saint Theosebia the Deaconess;
virgin served the Holy
Church caring for the sick, distributing food to vagrants, raising orphans
and preparing women for holy Baptism; sister of Sts Basil the
Great, Gregory of Nyssa, and Peter, Bishop of Sebaste
She was
the sister of Sts Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa, and Peter, Bishop of
Sebaste. She was a virgin and served the Holy Church as a deaconess, caring
for the sick, distributing food to vagrants, raising orphans and preparing
women for holy Baptism.
When her brother, St Gregory of Nyssa, was in exile for three years, St Theosebia
was with him and she shared in all the tribulations of a life of wandering.
St Theosebia died in 385, and St Gregory the Theologian praised her in a
eulogy.
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395 St. Gregory of Nyssa
{lower Armenia where Nathaniel was martyred) January 10 (Eastern Christianity,
Lutheranism) Catholic, March 9
The son
of two saints, Basil
and Emmilia, young Gregory was born
330,raised by his older brother, St. Basil
the Great,
and his sister, Macrina, in modern-day Turkey.
Gregory's
success in his studies suggested great things were ahead for him. After becoming
professor of rhetoric, he was persuaded to devote his learning and efforts
to the Church. By then married, Gregory went on to study for the priesthood
and become ordained (this at a time when celibacy was not a matter of law
for priests).
He was
elected Bishop of Nyssa (in Lower Armenia) in 372, a period of great tension
over the Arian heresy, which denied the divinity of Christ. Briefly arrested
after being falsely accused of embezzling Church funds, Gregory was restored
to his see in 378, an act met with great joy by his people.
Gregory
really came into his own. after the death of his beloved brother, Basil.
He wrote with great effectiveness
against Arianism and other questionable doctrines, gaining a reputation as
a defender of orthodoxy. He was sent on missions to counter other heresies
and held a position of prominence at the Council
of Constantinople. His fine reputation
stayed with him for the remainder of his life, but over the centuries it
gradually declined as the authorship of his writings became less and less
certain. But, thanks to the work of scholars in the 20th century, his stature
is once again appreciated. Indeed, St. Gregory of Nyssa is seen not simply
as a pillar of orthodoxy but as one of the great contributors to the mystical
tradition in Christian spirituality and to monasticism itself.
Comment: Orthodoxy
is a word that raises red flags in our minds. It connotes rigid attitudes
that make no room for honest differences of opinion. But it might just as
well suggest something else: faith that has settled deep in one’s bones.
Gregory’s faith was like that. So deeply imbedded was his faith in Jesus
that he knew the divinity that Arianism denied. When we resist something
offered as truth without knowing exactly why, it may be because our faith
has settled in our bones.
Saint Gregory, Bishop of Nyssa, was a younger brother of St Basil the Great
(January 1). His birth and upbringing came at a time when the Arian disputes
were at their height. Having received an excellent education, he was at one
time a teacher of rhetoric. In the year 372, he was consecrated by St Basil
the Great as bishop of the city of Nyssa in Cappadocia.
St Gregory was an ardent advocate for Orthodoxy, and he fought against the
Arian heresy with his brother St Basil. Gregory was persecuted by the Arians,
by whom he was falsely accused of improper use of church property, and thereby
deprived of his See and sent to Ancyra.
In the following year St Gregory was again deposed in absentia by a council
of Arian bishops, but he continued to encourage his flock in Orthodoxy, wandering
about from place to place. After the death of the emperor Valens (378), St
Gregory was restored to his cathedra and was joyously received by his flock.
His brother St Basil the Great died in 379.
Only with difficulty did St Gregory survive the loss of his brother and guide.
He delivered a funeral oration for him, and completed St Basil's study of the six days of Creation,
the Hexaemeron. That same year St Gregory participated in the Council
of Antioch against heretics who refused to recognize the perpetual virginity
of the Mother of God. Others at the opposite extreme, who worshipped the
Mother of God as being God Herself, were also denounced by the Council. He
visited the churches of Arabia and Palestine, which were infected with the
Arian heresy, to assert the Orthodox teaching about the Most Holy Theotokos.
On his return journey St Gregory visited Jerusalem and the Holy Places.
In the year 381 St Gregory was one of the chief figures of the Second Ecumenical
Council, convened at Constantinople against the heresy of Macedonius, who
incorrectly taught about the Holy Spirit. At this Council, on the initiative
of St Gregory, the Nicean Symbol of Faith (the Creed) was completed.
Together with the other bishops St Gregory affirmed St Gregory the Theologian
as Archpastor of Constantinople.
In the year 383, St Gregory of Nyssa participated in a Council at Constantinople,
where he preached a sermon on the divinity of the Son and the Holy Spirit.
In 386, he was again at Constantinople, and he was asked to speak the funeral
oration in memory of the empress Placilla. Again in 394 St Gregory was present
in Constantinople at a local Council, convened to resolve church matters
in Arabia.
St Gregory of Nyssa was a fiery defender of Orthodox dogmas and a zealous
teacher of his flock, a kind and compassionate father to his spiritual children,
and their intercessor before the courts. He was distinguished by his magnanimity,
patience and love of peace.
Having reached old age, St Gregory of Nyssa died soon after the Council of
Constantinople. Together with his great contemporaries, Sts Basil the Great
and Gregory the Theologian, St Gregory of Nyssa had a significant influence
on the Church life of his time. His sister, St Macrina, wrote to him: "You
are renowned both in the cities, and gatherings of people, and throughout
entire districts. Churches ask you for help." St Gregory is known in history
as one of the most profound Christian thinkers of the fourth century. Endowed
with philosophical talent, he saw philosophy as a means for a deeper penetration
into the authentic meaning of divine revelation.
St Gregory left behind many remarkable works of dogmatic character, as well
as sermons and discourses. He has been called "the Father of Fathers."
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463 St. Petronius Monk bishop
of Die
Petronius was
the son of a Roman senator from the area of modern Avignon who became a monk
at Lerins. He later became bishop of Die about 456.
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471 St. Marcian Confessor
hymnist - Constantinople famous for miracles; received a gift of wonderworking,
St Marcian healed the sick and cast out devils
Constantinópoli
sancti Marciáni Presbyteri. At Constantinople,
St. Marcian, priest.
He was
a member of a Roman family of Constantinople, related to Emperor Theodosius
II. Ordained in 455, he was so ascetical that he was wrongly accused of Novatianism.
Marcian was
the treasurer of Hagia Sophia, was appointed Oikonomos - second only to the
patriarch and restored several churches. He is also believed to
have composed hymns and was a famous miracle worker.
471 ST MARCIAN
M ARCIAN was
born, and spent his life, in Constantinople, of a Roman family related to
the imperial house of Theodosius. From his childhood he served God, and he
secretly gave away great sums to the poor. About the year 455 the Patriarch Anatolius,
disregarding the saint’s protests of unworthiness, ordained him priest.
In this new state Marcian saw himself under a stricter obligation than before
of labouring to reach the summit of Christian perfection; and whilst he made
the instruction of the poor his favourite employment, he redoubled his earnestness
in providing for their bodily needs, and was careful to relax no part of
his own austerities. The severity of his morals was made a handle, by those
who resented the tacit censure of such an example, to fasten upon him a suspicion
of Novatianism, but his meekness at length triumphed over the slander. This
persecution served more and more to purify his soul. His virtue only shone
forth with greater lustre than ever when the cloud was dispersed, and the
Patriarch Gennadius, with the great applause of the whole body of the clergy
and people, conferred on him the dignity of Oikonomos, which was the second in
that church. St Marcian built or restored a number of churches in Constantinople,
notably that known as the Anastasis, and was famous for miracles both before
and after his death, which probably occurred in 471. He has been regarded
by some as a writer of liturgical hymns.
He is honoured both in the Greek Menaion
and Roman Martyrology. See his ancient anonymous life in Surius and in the
Acta Sanctorum, January 10. Cf. also
DCB., vol. iii, p. 185; and K. Krumbacher, Geschichte der Byzantinischen
Literatur, p. 663.
Saint
Marcian, Presbyter of the Great Church
Born at Rome and in his youth he received a first-rate education in Constantinople.
After the death of his parents, St Marcian used his inheritance on the building,
renovation and embellishment of churches. Thus, he built a church dedicated
to the holy Martyr Anastasia (December 22), richly adorned it, and had the
holy relics of the saint transferred to it. He also built a church of the
Great Martyr Irene (May 5), and the church of St Isidore.
His moral purity and strict asceticism were resented by those who were slothful
and avaricious, for they regarded his life as an unspoken criticism of their
own lack of virtue. However, his meekness and silence overcame their slanders
and brought him to the attention of the Patriarch, who ordained St Marcian
a presbyter and appointed him treasurer of the Church of Constantinople.
From his wealth St Marcian distributed generous alms, and distinguished himself
by non-covetousness, denying himself in everything. In accord with the command
of the Savior, he did not even have an extra set of clothes, which he might
need should he be caught in inclement weather. Having received a gift of
wonderworking, St Marcian healed the sick and cast out devils. St Marcian
died between 472-474 and was buried at the monastery of St John the Forerunner
at Constantinople.
Saint Marcian, Presbyter of the Great Church, was born at Rome and in his
youth he received a first-rate education in Constantinople. After the death
of his parents, St Marcian used his inheritance on the building, renovation
and embellishment of churches. Thus, he built a church dedicated to the holy
Martyr Anastasia (December 22), richly adorned it, and had the holy relics
of the saint transferred to it. He also built a church of the Great Martyr
Irene (May 5), and the church of St Isidore.
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6th v. St. Dermot
Abbot monastery founder
on Innis-Closran Island, Ireland.
He is listed also as Diarmis or Diarmaid. Dermot trained St. Kiernan of Clonrnacnois. |
601 Saint Dometian, Bishop
of Melitene Armenia glorified by God with miracles
was born and lived during the sixth century, in the time of the emperor Justin
the Younger. He was married, widowed, thereafter a monk and lived a strict
and holy life.
At thirty years of age he was chosen bishop of the city of Melitene (in Armenia).
Wise and zealous in questions of faith, strong in word and deed, St Dometian
quickly gained fame as a good and dedicated pastor. More than once he carried
out government commissions in Persia to avoid conflict with the Greeks. Beloved
by all, St Dometian often received rich gifts, which he distributed to the
poor. Both during his life and after his death in 601, St Dometian was glorified
by God with miracles.
Saint
Dometian, Bishop of Melitene, was born and lived during the sixth century,
in the time of the emperor Justin the Younger. He was married but was widowed,
and thereafter he became a monk and lived a strict and holy life.
At thirty years
of age he was chosen bishop of the city of Melitene (in Armenia). Wise and
zealous in questions of faith, strong in word and deed, St Dometian quickly
gained fame as a good and dedicated pastor. More than once he carried out
government commissions in Persia to avoid conflict with the Greeks. Beloved
by all, St Dometian often received rich gifts, which he distributed to the
poor. Both during his life and after his death in 601, St Dometian was glorified
by God with miracles.
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660 St.
Saethryth Benedictine abbess
also called Sethrida. The stepdaughter of a local king of the Angles, she
entered a convent in Gaul (modern France) eventually becoming abbess. Sts.
Ethelburga and Ethelfreda were
half-sisters.
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660 St. Thomian Armagh
Archbishop
Sometimes called
Toiman Ireland, from about 623. He is
remembered for a letter he composed to the Holy See concerning the paschal
controversy, namely the date to be followed for the celebrating of Easter.
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660 St. John Camillus
the Good Bishop of Milan
Medioláni
sancti Joánnis Boni, Epíscopi et Confessóris.
At Milan, St. John the Good, bishop and confessor.
The Lombard
invasion had left Milan a vacant see, and John was chosen to fill the position.
He was a relentless enemy of the heresies of his era and was called “the
Good” for conspicuous holiness.
660 St
John The Good, Bishop of Milan
The see of
the leading bishopric of Liguria had been transferred in the earlier part
of the seventh century from Milan to Genoa. In the pontificate of St John
Camillus Bonus it was again restored to Milan. We are told that he was a
strenuous defender of orthodoxy against the monothelites, and that he took
part in the Council of the Lateran in 649. Beyond this we know very little
of the saint who is commemorated in the Roman Martyrology on this day. There
is not much indication of cultus until after Archbishop Aribert in the eleventh
century discovered the body of St John. A second translation was carried
out by St Charles Borromeo in 1582. St John is said to have died on January
3, 660.
See Acta Sanctorum, January 10; and Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xv (1896),
p. 357. Cf. P. Olcese, Biografia di S.
Giovanni Bono (1894).
681 Pope St. Agatho 678-681
a holy death, concluded
a life remarkable for sanctity and learning.
Romæ sancti
Agathónis Papæ, qui, sanctitáte et doctrína conspícuus,
quiévit in pace.
At Rome, Pope St. Agatho, who, by a holy
death, concluded a life remarkable for sanctity and learning.
681 ST AGATHO, POPE
AGATHO, a Sicilian
Greek by birth, was remarkable for his benevolence and an engaging sweetness
of temper. He had been married and engaged in secular pursuits for twenty
years before he became a monk at Palermo; and was treasurer of the Church
at Rome when he succeeded Donus in the pontificate in 678. He presided by
his three legates at the sixth general council (the third of Constantinople)
in 680 against the monothelite heresy, which he confuted in a learned letter
by the tradition of the apostolic church of Rome “acknowledged”, says he,
“by the whole Catholic Church
to be the mother and mistress of all churches, and to derive her superior
authority from St Peter, the prince of the apostles, to whom Christ committed
His whole flock, with a promise that his faith should never fail”. This epistle
was approved as a rule of faith by the same council, which declared, “Peter
spoke by Agatho”.
This pope restored St Wilfrid to the
see of York, and granted privileges to several English monasteries. A terrible
plague, which devastated Rome at this period may have been at least, the
indirect cause of his own death, which occurred in 681.
St Agatho lived in troubled times.
The reason he alleges in excusing the bad Greek of the legates whom he sent
to Constantinople was that the graces of speech could not be cultivated amidst
the incursions of barbarians, whilst with much difficulty they earned their
daily subsistence by manual labour; “but we preserve”, said he with simplicity
of heart, “the faith which our fathers have handed down to us”. The bishops,
his legates, say the same thing: “Our countries are harassed by the fury
of barbarous nations. We live in the midst of battles, raids and devastations:
our lives pass in continual alarms, and we subsist by the labour of our hands.”
Pope Agatho himself had died before the council concluded its sessions.
See the Acta Sanctorum for January 10, and especially
Duchesne, Liber
Pontificalis, vol. i, pp. 350—358 cf. Mann, Lives of the Popes, vol. ii, pp. 23—48.
987 St. Peter Orsini Venetian Admiral Benedictine
hermit
In monastério Cuxanénsi, in Gállia, natális
sancti Petri Urséoli Confessóris, qui, antea Venetiárum
Dux et deínde Mónachus ex Ordine sancti Benedícti, pietáte
et virtútibus cláruit.
In the monastery of Cusani in France, the
birthday of St. Peter Orsini, confessor, previously the Doge of Venice and
afterwards monk of the Order of St. Benedict, renowned for piety and miracles.
Also called
Peter Orseolo, he was a member of one of the most noble houses of Venice
born 928 and, at the age of twenty, became an admiral in the Venetian Navy.
After a series of successful campaigns against the Dalmatian pirates, he
was elected Doge of Venice in 967, supposedly securing his elevation by poisoning
his predecessor Peter Candiani IV, as was charged by St. Peter Damian.
For two
years Peter ruled with consummate skill, assisting Venice to weather a series
of political crises. Then, without any warning and without informing his
family, he disappeared from Venice and secretly entered the Benedictine abbey
of Cuxa, in the Spanish Pyrenees. There he devoted himself to a life of severe
austerity and asceticism, working as a humble sacrist until St. Romuald
suggested
that he become a hermit. He lived alone until his death.
987 ST PETER ORSEOLO
THE vocation of St Peter Orseolo (Urseolus) must count among the strangest
of those recorded in ecclesiastical history. Born in 928 of a distinguished
Venetian family, he seems already at the age of twenty to have been appointed
to the command of the fleet of the city of the lagoons, in which office he
conducted a successful campaign against the Dalmatian pirates who infested
the Adriatic. How far he was personally involved in the popular outbreak
of 976, which ended in the violent death of the Doge Peter Candiani IV, and
in the destruction by fire of a large part of the city, cannot be clearly
determined. The testimony of St Peter Damian, which attributes the responsibility
to Orseolo, can only be accepted with reserve.
It was, however, Orseolo who was chosen
doge in place of the murdered Candiani, and the best modern authorities pay
a high tribute to his energy and tact during his brief administration. “He
was”, we are told, “a man of saintly character, but like all his race possessing
higher qualities of statesmanship than were to be found in his predecessors
in the ducal chair. His first care was to repair the damage wrought by the
fire. He began the building of a new palace and church. He renewed the treaty
with Istria. But his great service to the state lay in this, that he met
and settled, to the nominal satisfaction of Otto II, the claims of the widowed
dogaressa Gualdrada. . . . On these terms Gualdrada signed a quittance of
all claims against the State of Venice.” The grievances of Gualdrada had
created a great political crisis, but this was now safely tided over.
Then an astounding thing happened.
On the night of September 1, 978, Peter Orseolo secretly
left Venice and took refuge in the Benedictine abbey of Cuxa, in Roussillon
on the borders of France and Spain. His wife, to whom he had been married
for thirty-two years, and his only son, who was himself destined to become
one of the greatest of the Venetian doges, were apparently for a long time
in entire ignorance of the place of his retreat. Still, Peter’s apparently
sudden resolution may not have been so entirely unpremeditated as it seems.
There is early evidence for the belief that he and his wife had lived as
brother and sister ever since the birth of their only child, and it has also
been suggested that a letter of Ratherius, addressed to him possibly as early
as 968, shows that Peter had already entertained the idea of becoming a monk.
There is in any case no doubt that at Cuxa Orseolo led for a while a life
of the strictest asceticism and self-effacement under the holy Abbot Guarinus;
and then, desirous of still greater solitude, he built a hermitage for himself,
probably at the urging of St Romuald, whom he met at Cuxa, and who was the
great propagator of this particular development of the Benedictine vocation.
St Peter died in 987, and many miracles were said to have taken place at
his tomb.
See Mabillon, vol. v,
pp. 851 seq.;
Tolra,
Saint Pierre
Orseolo (1897); Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xvii (1898), P. 252 BHL., n. 986.
And cf. H. F. Brown in the Cambridge Mediaeval
History, vol. iv, p. 403 (quoted above).
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1209 St. William
of Bourges canon monk Cistercian many miracles deaf and dumb, the blind, the
mentally ill became sound.
Bitúricis, in Aquitánia, sancti Willhélmi, Epíscopi
et Confessóris, signis et virtútibus clari; quem Honórius
Papa Tértius in Sanctórum cánonem adscrípsit.
At Bourges in Aquitaine, St. William, archbishop
and confessor, renowned for miracles and virtues. He was canonized
by Pope Honorius III.
William de Don Jeon was
born at Nevers France. He was educated by his uncle Peter, archdeacon of
Soissons, became a canon of Soissons and of Paris and then became a monk
at Grandmont Abbey. He became a Cistercian at Pontigny, served as Abbot at
Fontaine-Jean in Sens, and in 1187 became Abbot at Chalis near Senlis. He
was named Archbishop of Bourges in 1200, accepted on the order of Pope
Innocent III and his Cistercian superior, lived a life of great austerity,
was in great demand as a confessor, aided the poor of his See, defended ecclesiastical
rights against seculars, even the king, and converted many Albigensians during
his missions to them.
When he drew near his end, he was, at his request, laid on ashes in his hair
cloth, and in this posture expired on the 10th of January, 1209. While this
holy bishop was laid out for veneration, an infirm young boy who wanted to
venerate him, but had to be carried to the church by his mother, was completely
cured of his infirmities, and ran about proclaiming the miracle. The stone
of his tomb in the Cathedral Church of Bourges cured mortal wounds and illnesses
and delivered possessed persons; the deaf and dumb, the blind, the mentally
ill became sound. So many miracles occurred there that the monks could not
record them all, and he was canonized nine years after his death, in 1218,
by Pope Honorius III.
1209 St William, Archbishop of Bourges
William De DonJeon belonging to an illustrious family of Nevers, was educated
by his uncle, Peter, Archdeacon of Soissons, and he was early made canon,
first of Soissons and afterwards of Paris; but he soon took the resolution
of abandoning the world altogether, and retired into the solitude of Grandmont
Abbey, where he lived with great regularity in that austere order, till,
seeing its peace disturbed by a contest which arose between the choir monks
and lay-brothers, he passed into the Cistercians, then in wonderful repute
for sanctity. He took the habit in the abbey of Pontigny, and was after some
time chosen abbot, first of Fontaine-Jean, in the diocese of Sens, and secondly
in 1187 of Châlis, near Senlis, a much more numerous monastery, also
a filiation of Pontigny, built by Louis the Fat in 1136, a little before his
death. St William always reputed himself the last among his brethren; and
the sweetness of his expression testified to the joy and peace that overflowed
his soul, and made virtue appear engaging even in the midst of formidable
austerities.
On the death of Henry de Sully, Archbishop of Bourges, the clergy of that
church requested his brother Eudo, Bishop of Paris, to assist them in the
election of a pastor. Desirous to choose some abbot of the Cistercian Order,
they put on the altar the names of
three, written on as many slips of parchment. This manner of election by
lot would have been superstitious had it been done relying on a miracle without
the warrant of divine inspiration. But it did not deserve this censure, when
all the persons proposed seemed equally worthy and fit, as the choice was
only recommended to God, and left to this issue by following the rules of
His ordinary providence and imploring His light.
Eudo accordingly, having made his
prayer, drew first the name of the abbot William, to whom also the majority
of the votes of the clergy had been already given. It was on November 23, 1200. This news overwhelmed William.
He never would have acquiesced had he not received a double command in virtue
of obedience, on~ from Pope Innocent III, the other from his superior, the
Abbot of Citeaux. He left his solitude with tears, and soon after was consecrated.
In this new dignity St William’s first
care was to bring both his exterior and interior life up to the highest possible
standard, being very sensible that a man’s first task is to honour God in
his own soul. He redoubled his austerities, saying it was now incumbent on
him to. do penance for others as well as for himself. He always wore a hair-shirt
under his religious habit, and never added or diminished anything in his
clothing whatever the season of the year; and he never ate any flesh-meat,
though he had it at his table for guests. The attention he paid to his flock
was no less remarkable, especially in assisting the poor both spiritually
and corporally, saying that he was chiefly sent for them. He was most gentle
in dealing with penitent sinners, but inflexible towards the impenitent,
though he refused to have recourse to the civil power against them, the usual
remedy of that age. Many such he at last reclaimed by his sweetness and charity.
Certain great men abusing his leniency, usurped the rights of his church;
but William strenuously defended them even against the king himself, notwithstanding
his threats to confiscate his lands. By humility and patience he overcame,
on more than one occasion, the opposition of his chapter and other clergy.
He converted many Albigensian heretics, and was preparing for a mission among
them at the time he was seized with his last illness. He persisted, nevertheless,
in preaching a farewell sermon to his people, which increased his fever to
such a degree, that he was obliged to postpone his journey and take to his
bed. The night following, perceiving his last hour was at hand, he desired
to anticipate the Nocturns, which are said at midnight; but having made the
sign of the cross on his lips and breast, he was unable to pronounce more
than the first two words. Then, at a sign, which he made, he was laid on ashes,
and thus St William died, a little past midnight, on the morning of January
lo, 1209. His body was interred in his cathedral, and being
honoured by many miracles it was enshrined in 1217, and in the year following
he was canonized by Pope Honorius III.
See the Acta Sanctorum for January 10, and the
Analecta
Bollandiana, vol.
iii (1884), pp. 271—361 BHL., nn. 1283—1284.
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1276 Teobaldo Visconti
Pope St. Gregory
X 1210-1276;
Arriving in Rome in March, he was first ordained priest, then consecrated
bishop, and crowned on the 27th of the same month, in 1272. He took
the name of Gregory X, and to procure the most effectual succour for the
Holy Land he called a general council to meet at Lyons. This fourteenth general
council, the second of Lyons, was opened in May 1274. Among those assembled
were St Albert the Great and St Philip Benizi; St Thomas Aquinas died on
his way thither, and St Bonaventure died at the council. In the fourth session
the Greek legates on behalf of the Eastern emperor and patriarch restored
communion between the Byzantine church and the Holy See.; miraculous
cures performed by him
Arétii, in
Túscia, beáti Gregórii Décimi, civis Placentíni,
qui, ex Archidiácono Leodiénsi Summus Póntifex renuntiátus,
Concílium Lugdunénse secúndum celebrávit, Græcísque
ad unitátem fídei recéptis, compósitis Christianórum
dissídiis, Terræ Sanctæ recuperatióne institúta,
de universáli Ecclésia, quam sanctíssime gubernávit,
óptime méritus est.
At Arezzo in Tuscany, blessed Gregory X, a native of Piacenza, who
was elected Sovereign Pontiff while he was archdeacon of Liege. He
held the second Council of Lyons, received the Greeks into the unity of the
Church, appeased discords among the Christians, made generous efforts for
the recovery of the Holy Land, and governed the Church in a most holy manner.
1283 BD JOHN
OF VERCELLI Immediately on his election
to the see of Rome, Bd Gregory X imposed on John of Vercelli and his friars
the task of again pacifying the quarrelling states of Italy, and three years
later he was ordered to draw up a schema for the Second Ecumenical Council
of Lyons. At the council he met Jerome of Ascoli (afterwards Pope Nicholas IV), who had succeeded St
Bonaventure as minister general of the Franciscans, and the two addressed
a joint letter to the whole body of friars. Later on they were sent together
by the Holy See to mediate between Philip III of France and Alfonso X of
Castile, continuing the work of peace-maker, in which John excelled.
1276 Bd Gregory
X, Pope
Theobald Visconti belonged
to an illustrious Italian family and was born at Piacenza in 1210. In his
youth he was distinguished for his virtue and his success as a student. He
devoted himself especially to canon law, which he began in Italy and pursued
at Paris and Liege. He was acting as archdeacon of this last church when
he received an order from Pope Clement IV to preach the crusade for the recovery
of the Holy Land. A tender compassion for the distressed situation of the
servants of Christ in those parts moved the holy archdeacon to undertake
a dangerous pilgrimage to Palestine, where Prince Edward of England then was.
At this time the see of Rome had been vacant almost three years, from the
death of Clement IV in November 1268, since the cardinals who were assembled
at Viterbo could not come to an agreement in the choice of a pope. At last,
by common consent, they referred the election to a committee of six amongst
them, who on September 1, 1271 nominated Theobald Visconti.
Arriving in
Rome in March, he was first ordained priest, then consecrated bishop, and
crowned on the 27th of the same month, in 1272. He took the name of
Gregory X, and to procure the most effectual succour for the Holy Land he
called a general council to meet at Lyons. This fourteenth general council,
the second of Lyons, was opened in May 1274. Among those assembled were St
Albert the Great and St Philip Benizi; St Thomas Aquinas died on his way
thither, and St Bonaventure died at the council. In the fourth session the
Greek legates on behalf of the Eastern emperor and patriarch restored communion
between the Byzantine church and the Holy See. Pope Gregory, we are told,
shed tears whilst the Te Deum was sung. Unhappily the reconciliation was short-lived.
After the council,
Bd Gregory devoted all his energies to concerting measures for carrying its
decrees into execution, particularly those relating to the crusade in the
East, which, however, never set out. This unwearied application to business,
and the fatigues of his journey across the Alps on his return to Rome brought
on a serious illness, of which he died at Arezzo on January 10, 1276. The
name of Gregory X was added to the Roman Martyrology by Pope Benedict XIV;
his holiness was always recognized, and had he lived longer he would doubtless
have left a deeper mark on the Church.
The account
of his life and miracles in the archives of the tribunal of the Rota may
be found in Benedict XIV, De canoniz., bk ii, appendix 8.
See likewise his life, copied from the MS. history of several popes by Bernard
Guidonis, published by Muratori, Scriptor. Ital., vol. iii,
p. 597, and another life, written before 1297, in which mention
is made of miraculous cures performed by him (ibid., pp.
599--604). There is also, of course, a copious modern literature regarding
Bd Gregory X, dealing more especially with his relation to politics and his
share in the election of the Emperor Rudolf of Hapsburg. It may be sufficient
to mention the works of Zisterer, Otto and Redlich. The Regesta
of Gregory X have been edited by Jean Guiraud.
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1429 Saint Paul of Obnora
famed disciple of St Sergius of Radonezh; spent years as a hermit;
His final words were,
"Brethren, have love one for another
and keep to the rule of the monastic community."; died after 112 years
on earth
Born at
Moscow in the year 1317. From his youth he distinguished himself by his piety
and kindliness towards the poor and suffering. His rich parents prepared
him for a secular life, but at twenty-two years of age he secretly left his
parental home and received tonsure at the Nativity monastery on the Volga
(in the Yaroslav diocese).
From there Paul transferred to the Holy Trinity monastery to St Sergius of
Radonezh, spending several years with him as his disciple, obeying the holy
Elder in all things. With the blessing of St Sergius, he settled a short
distance from the monastery in a separate cell, where he spent fifteen years
as a hermit. Having asked the blessing of St Sergius to go off into the wilderness
for a quiet and solitary life, St Paul wandered about for a long while, seeking
a place of solitude. He wandered a great deal in the wilderness.
He spent time with St
Abraham of Chukhloma (July 20) and finally, he remained in the Komel forest.
At the
Gryazovitsa River, in the hollow of an old linden tree, the monk built a
small cell and dwelt there for three years in complete silence, "not giving
his body rest, that he might receive future rest." Then he moved on to the
River Nurma, where he built a hut and dug a well, spending his days in vigil
and prayer.
Five days out of the week he went without food, and only on Saturday and
Sunday did he partake of some bread and water. The news about the hermit
spread abroad, and those wishing spiritual guidance began coming to him.
Despite his love for the solitary life, St Paul never refused anyone spiritual
consolation and guidance. He was also visited by St Sergius of Nurma (October
7), who sought solitude with the blessing of St Sergius of Radonezh, and
who also spent his ascetic life in these places.
With the blessing of St Sergius and the agreement of Metropolitan Photius,
St Paul built the Holy Trinity church in 1414, around which a monastery sprang
up (later called the Monastery of St Paul of Obnora). Having written a strict
monastic Rule for the brethren, St Paul entrusted the guidance of the new
monastery to his disciple Alexis, while he himself continued as before to
live in a solitary cell on a hill. He remained a responsive and good counsellor
for anyone needing his help. St Paul died at 112 years of age. His final
words were, "Brethren, have love one for another and keep to the rule of
the monastic community."
The Life of the saint
was written in about the year 1546, and his glorification occurred in 1547.
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15th v. Saint Macarius of
Pisma and Kostroma A fellow ascetic of St Paul of Obnora. In the second half
of the 15th century, he founded the Makariev Transfiguration monastery at
the River Pisma on the outskirts of Kostroma.
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1882 Saint Antipas of Romania;
came to Valaam Monastery from Mt Athos 1865;
spent rest of life in the skete at Valaam, living like a hermit. Blessed
with the gift of clairvoyance
Born in Moldavia, Romania
in 1816. His father was a deacon in the village church, and his mother ended
her life in a women's monastery as a schemanun.
St Antipas came to Valaam Monastery from Mt Athos on November 6, 1865. He
spent the rest of his life in the skete at Valaam, living like a hermit.
Blessed with the gift of clairvoyance, St Antipas fell asleep in the Lord
on January 10, 1882.
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Mary Mother of GOD 
Saints of this Day January 10 Quarto Idus Januárii. 
The fourth
day of the Afterfeast of Theophany; The fourth day of the Afterfeast
of Theophany falls on January 10. Some of the hymns of this period compare
the streams of the Jordan to the life-giving waters of Baptism.
God loves variety. He doesn't
mass-produce his saints. 
Quote: Pope
Paul VI’s 1969 
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
Among the most important
titles we have in the Catholic Church for the Blessed Virgin Mary are
Our Lady of Victory and Our Lady of the Rosary. These titles can be traced
back to one of the most decisive times in the history of the world and
Christendom. The Battle of Lepanto took place on October 7 (date of feast
of Our Lady of Rosary), 1571. This proved to be the most crucial battle
for the Christian forces against the radical Muslim navy of Turkey. Pope
Pius V led a procession around St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City praying
the Rosary. He showed true pastoral leadership in recognizing the danger
posed to Christendom by the radical Muslim forces, and in using the means
necessary to defeat it. Spiritual battles require spiritual weapons, and
this more than anything was a battle that had its origins in the spiritual
order—a true battle between good and evil.