Isaiah_Michelangelo
701 BC Jesaja ist neben Jeremia,
Ezechiel und anderen einer der großen Schriftpropheten des Tanach, der
Hebräischen Bibel. Er wirkte im damaligen Südreich Juda zwischen
740 und 701 v. Chr. in der Zeit der Bedrohung durch die antike Großmacht
Assyrien.
Hierosólymis sancti Isaiæ Prophétæ, qui, sub
Manásse Rege, in duas sectus partes occúbuit, sepultúsque
est sub quercu Rogel, juxta tránsitum aquárum.
In Jerusalem, the holy prophet Isaias. During
the reign of King Manasses he was put to death by being sawn in two and was
buried beneath the oak of Rogel, near a running stream.
Orthodoxe Kirche: 09. Mai Katholische Kirche:
06. Juli
Jesaja wurde wohl um 739 in das Prophetenamt berufen. Aus seinen
Worten läßt sich entnehmen, daß er der gebildeten Oberschicht
Jerusalems entstammte, verheiratet war (auch seine Frau war wohl Prophetin)
und mehrere Kinder hatte. Seine Aufzeichnungen wurden von Schülern kommentiert
und erweitert. So besteht das Buch Jesaja aus mehreren Teilen, die in einem
langen Zeitraum entstanden sind. Von dem Buch Jesaja liegt aber auch die älteste
erhaltene Handschrift vor, die in Qumran gefunden wurde und auf das 2. Jahrhundert
vor Christus datiert werden kann.
Nach orthodoxer Tradition wurde Jesaja unter König Manasse
hingerichtet. Sein Leichnam wurde nahe dem Teich Siloah begraben. Von hier
gelangten die Reliquien unter Kaiser Theodosius in die Laurentiuskirche in
Blacherna (Konstantinopel). Der Kopf Jesajas wird heute im Chilandarionkloster
auf dem Athos bewahrt.
Jesaja ist neben Jeremia, Ezechiel und anderen einer der großen
Schriftpropheten des Tanach, der Hebräischen Bibel. Er wirkte im damaligen
Südreich Juda zwischen 740 und 701 v. Chr. in der Zeit der Bedrohung
durch die antike Großmacht Assyrien.
Er verkündete Juda, Israel und Assur Gottes Gericht, aber
auch eine endzeitliche Wende zu universalem Frieden, Gerechtigkeit und Heil.
Als erster Prophet Israels verhieß er den Israeliten einen zukünftigen
Messias als gerechten Richter und Retter der Armen (vgl. Jesaja-Apokalypse).
Das gleichnamige biblische Buch wurde im Mittelalter in 66 Kapitel
unterteilt. Davon weist historisch-kritische Bibelforschung die ersten 39
Kapitel dem Propheten Jesaja zu, Kapitel 40 bis 55 führt sie auf einen
spätexilischen Propheten zurück, den sie Deuterojesaja nennt, die
restlichen Kapitel auf den nachexilischen Tritojesaja.
Isaias (Isaiah), Prophet (RM) Died c. 681 BC. Isaiah is the
great poet and believer of the Old Testament, and one of the four major prophets
of the Old Testament. He lived at a time when the people of Israel had settled
in Canaan; David and Solomon had formed the Hebrew religion, the temple had
been built and Josiah had just ended a long and useful reign.
In 740 BC, the year of Josiah's death, Isaiah had a vision of
the Lord sitting on a throne surrounded by seraphim. Each had six wings: "And
one cried to another, and said, 'Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the
whole earth is full of His glory"--words which today form part of the Mass.
The God of Isaiah was a God of Holiness, and the beginnings of his vocation
were marked by majesty, piety, and grandeur.
Tradition tells us that Isaiah was sawn in two by order of King
Manassas of Judah, and buried under an oak tree. His tomb was still venerated
in the 5th century AD (Benedictines).
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St. Noyala Virgin martyr.
A much revered martyr in Brittany said to have crossed to Brittany on the
leaf of a tree, accompanied by her nurse.
She was originally from Britain and was beheaded at Beignan, Brittany Noyala
walked from the site of her martyrdom to Pontivy, holding her head in her
hands.One rather striking instance of miraculous crossing is that of St Noyala,
who is said to have crossed to Brittany on the leaf of a tree, accompanied
by her nurse.
A chapel at Pontivy is dedicated to her, and was remarkable in the eighteenth
century for several interesting paintings on a gold ground depicting this
legend. |
90 St Romulus, Bishop Of
Fiesole, Martyr a Roman convert of St Peter
Fæsulis, in Túscia, sancti Romuli, Epíscopi et Mártyris,
qui fuit beáti Petri Apóstoli discípulus. Hic,
ab eódem Apóstolo missus ad prædicándum Evangélium,
in multis Itáliæ locis Christum annuntiávit; ac tandem,
Fæsulas regréssus, ibi, sub Domitiáno Príncipe,
martyrio coronátus est cum áliis Sóciis.
At Fiesole in Tuscany, St. Romulus, bishop and martyr,
disciple of the blessed apostle Peter, who commissioned him to preach the
Gospel. After announcing Christ in many parts of Italy, he returned
to Fiesole, and was crowned with martyrdom along with other Christians in
the reign of Domitian.
Acording to a late tradition, the apostle and
first bishop of Fiesole was Romulus, a Roman convert of St Peter, who was
martyred under Domitian. Nothing is known of him historically, and his name
was added to the Roman Martyrology only in the sixteenth century.
St Romulus is the hero of a rather tiresome romance, of uncertain
provenance, but seemingly a work of fiction of not earlier than the eleventh
century. In this we are told that a certain citizen of Rome had a daughter
named Lucerna who gave her affections and herself to one of her father's slaves,
Cyrus. By him a son was born to her, whom she abandoned in a wood, where
the baby was adopted and suckled by a wolf. The unnatural sight, was seen
by some verderers of the Emperor Nero, who reported it to him and were ordered
to capture the child. For three days the hunt pursued the couple without
catching them, whereupon the emperor consulted St Peter. Peter provided himself
and some fellow Christians with fishing nets and went into the wood, where
they were confronted by the child and his foster-mother. Peter adjured the
boy, " If you are born of a wolf, go hence; but if of a human woman, come
to me". The quarry did not stir, the Christians shot their nets, and the
two were caught and safely shut up. To eat they gave them a sheep, which the
wolf straightway killed and both fed on its raw flesh. Thereupon St Peter
ordered the wolf to be liberated and driven off, and the child was baptized;
at the suggestion of Peter's companion Justin it was, with a nice appropriateness,
given the name of Romulus. He was civilized and educated first by a noble
Roman lady and then by the same justin, and at eight years of age this prodigy
was preaching, exorcizing and working miracles. Romulus was later consecrated
bishop, he evangelized at Fiesole, Sutri, Nepi, Florence, Pistoia, etc., and
after sundry adventures and doing of marvels he was ordered to be put to
death by the governor Repertian. On the way to execution Romulus begged a
drink of water from a girl at a wayside spring; she, for fear of the soldiers,
refused, and the martyr rebuked her and ordained that for the future the spring
should still run fresh water for Christians, but to every heathen man drinking
of it should be turned to blood. With St Romulus were executed Carissimus,
Dulcissimus and Crescentius.
It is a curious fact that despite
the wild extravagance of the above legend, there is evidence of the historical
existence and early cultus of a St Romulus at Fiesole. The story has been
critically studied by A. Cocchi, San Romolo,
vescovo di Fiesole; Storia e Leggende
(1905). The one element of historical interest is a fragmentary epitaph
said to be of the end of the fourth century. But cf. M. C. Cipolla in Rivista storico-critica delle scienze teologiche,
vol. i, pp. 422-428
90
St. Romulus and Companions
A group of martyrs put to death by Emperor Domitian. According
to tradition, Romulus was named by St. Peter to be bishop of the community
of Christians at Fiesole, Italy. He was the subject of many legends during
the Middle Ages.
Romulus of Fiesole BM and Companions (RM). According to tradition,
Romulus was a Roman converted by Saint Peter who became the first bishop
of Fiesole, Italy, and suffered martyrdom there with Carissimus, Dulcissimus,
and Crescentius during the reign of Emperor Domitian.
A worthless 11th-century fiction has him the illegitimate son
of Lucerna and her father's slave Cyrus. Romulus was abandoned, suckled by
a wolf, and captured by Saint Peter when Emperor Nero was unable to do so.
Romulus later performed all kinds of extravagant miracles after being instructed
by Peter's companion Justin. After evangelizing much of central Italy, Romulus
was put to death by the governor, Repertian (Benedictines, Delaney).
In art, Saint Romulus is portrayed
as a bishop with an arrow broken above his breast.
He may also be shown at their martyrdom or enthroned among four
martyrs (Roeder).
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268-270 The Holy Martyrs
Marinus, Martha, Audifax, Habakkuk, Cyrenus, Valentinus the Presbyter, Asterius,
and many others with them at Rome.
During the reign of the emperor Claudius II (268-270), St Marinus
together with his wife Martha and their sons Audifax and Habakkuk journeyed
from Persia to Rome, to pray at the graves of the holy Apostles Peter and
Paul. During this time fierce persecutions and executions befell the Roman
Church. St Marinus and his wife and sons helped Christians locked up in the
prisons, and also to request the bodies of executed martyrs. At one of these
jails they met a prisoner named Cyrenus and they helped him, since he had
endured many torments for faith in Christ.
The persecution spread, and even more Christians were arrested.
During this time 260 Christians, among whom was the tribune Vlastus, had been
sent under the court sentence to dig ground along the Salerian Way, and were
executed by archers. When they learned about this vicious murder, Marinus,
his family, and the presbyter John went by night and took the bodies of the
martyrs to be buried in the catacombs. They returned later to the prison
where St Cyrenus was incarcerated, but did not find him. He had been executed
the day before and his body was thrown into the Tiber River. Doing their
holy duty, Sts Marinus and Martha and their sons took the body of the holy
martyr from the river and committed it to the earth.
The holy workers were among Christians, who continued secretly
to perform the divine services under the leadership of the holy Bishop Callistus,
and hid them from their pursuers.
In consummation of their great
charitable deeds the holy family was deemed worthy to glorify the Lord by
martyrdom. The pagans beheaded the courageous confessor Valentinus the Presbyter,
and the imperial gardener Asterius who had been converted by him, and the
holy ascetics from Persia were arrested and given over to torture. By order
of the emperor, Sts Marinus, Audifax and Habakkuk were beheaded in the year
269, and St Martha was drowned in a river.
The relics of the holy saints
are in Rome at the Church of St John the Hut-Dweller, a
nd the relics of St Valentinus are in the Church of the holy
Martyr Paraskeva.
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283-284 The Holy Martyrs
Isaurius the Deacon, Innocent, Felix, Hermias, Basil, Peregrinus were Athenians,
suffering for Christ in the Macedonian city of Apollonia & two city officials,
Rufus and Ruphinus
under the emperor Numerian (283-284). Beheaded with them for believing
in Christ were two city officials, Rufus and Ruphinus.
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288 St. Tranquillinus Roman martyr. He is affiliated with the legends
surrounding St. Sebastian.
Romæ natális sancti Tranquillíni Mártyris, patris
sanctórum Marci et Marcelliáni, qui, ad prædicatiónem
sancti Sebastiáni Mártyris convérsus ad Christum, a beáto
Polycárpo Presbytero baptizátus est, et a sancto Cajo Papa
Présbyter ordinátus. Ipse, die Octavárum Apostolórum,
cum ad confessiónem beáti Pauli oráret, ibídem,
sub Diocletiáno Imperatóre, a Pagánis tentus est, et,
ab eis lapidátus, martyrium consummávit.
At Rome, the birthday of St. Tranquillinus, martyr,
father of Saints Mark and Marcellianus, who had been converted to Christ
by the preaching of the martyr St. Sebastian. Baptized by the blessed
priest Polycarp, he was ordained priest by Pope St. Caius. As he prayed
at the tomb of blessed Paul on the octave of the apostles, he was arrested
and stoned to death by the pagans, and thus completed his martyrdom.
Tranquillinus of Rome M (RM). The Roman Saint Tranquillinus
is connected with the legend of Saint Sebastian (Benedictines).
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300 Holy Martyrs Lucy (Lucia)
the Virgin, Rexius, Antoninus, Lucian, Isidore, Dion, Diodorus, Cutonius,
Arnosus, Capicus and Satyrus: twenty-four martyrs suffered with Sts Lucy and
Rexius
Eódem die sanctæ Lúciæ Mártyris, quæ,
natióne Campána, a Ríxio Varo Vicário tenta et
ácriter cruciáta, eúndem convértit ad Christum;
quibus adjúncti sunt Antonínus, Severínus, Diodórus,
Dion, et álii decem et septem, qui in passióne collégæ
et in coróna fuére consórtes.
The same day, St. Lucia, martyr, a native of Campania.
Being arrested and severely tortured by the lieutenant-governor Rictiovarus,
she converted him to Christ. To them were added Antoninus, Severinus,
Diodorus, Dion, and seventeen others who shared their sufferings and their
crowns.
St Lucy, a native of the Italian
district of Campania, from the time of her youth dedicated herself to God
and lived in an austere and chaste manner. While still quite young, she was
taken captive and carried off into a foreign land by Rexius, who had the title
of Vicarius (a substitute for a dead or absent provincial governor). Rexius
at first tried to compel St Lucy to sacrifice to idols but, she remained firm
in her faith and was ready to accept torture for the sake of Christ. Rexius
was inspired with profound respect for her and even permitted her and her
servants the use of a separate house, where they lived in solitude, spending
their time in unceasing prayer. Whenever he left to go on military campaigns,
Rexius reverently asked for St Lucy's prayers, and he returned victorious.
After 20 years St Lucy, having learned that the
emperor Diocletian had begun a persecution against Christians, entreated Rexius
to send her back to Italy. She wanted to glorify the Lord together with her
fellow countrymen. Rexius, under the influence of St Lucy, had already accepted
Christianity by this time, and even longed for martyrdom. Leaving behind
his retinue and family, he went to Rome with St Lucy. The Roman prefect Aelius
sentenced them to be beheaded with a sword. After them the holy martyrs Antoninus,
Lucian, Isidore, Dion, Diodorus, Cutonis, Arnosus, Capicus and Satyrus were
also beheaded. In all, twenty-four martyrs suffered with Sts Lucy and Rexius.
This St Lucy should not be confused
with the Virgin Martyr Lucy of Syracuse (December 13).
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Martyrdom of the
Seven Ascetic Saints in Tounar Mount.
On this day, the seven ascetic
saints in Tounar Mount (Tona), were martyred. These were:
Basadi, Cotolus, Ardama, Moses,
Esey, Parkalas (Mikalas), and a monk called Cotolus.
The angel of the Lord had appeared to Sts. Basadi
and Cotolus and commanded them to confess the name of the Lord Christ. They
rose up straightway to go to the governor. They met the five saints embarking
a ship going to the governor to also confess the Lord Christ. They all agreed
together on receiving the crown of martyrdom. They went to the governor and
confessed the Lord Christ. He tortured them excessively, then hung stones
from their necks, and shut them up in prison. The Lord appeared to them, comforted,
strengthened, and promised them the kingdom.
The governor then sent them to Alexandria, where they were
tortured severely. He threw them into cauldrons full of sulphur and pitch,
and lighted a great fire under them, then he took them out and threw them
away.
The Lord sent His angel who healed them. They came back to
the governor and confessed the Lord Christ before him. One hundred thirty
persons witnessed that. They confessed the Lord Christ, were martyred, and
they received the crown of martyrdom. The Governor intensified the torture
on the seven saints, and finally cut off their heads with the sword, and they
received the crown of martyrdom. May their intercession be with us.
Amen.
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Martyrdom of Sts. Abba
Hour and his Mother Theodora.
On this day also, Sts. Abba Hour and his mother Theodora, were martyred.
Abba Hour was a soldier in the army of Antioch. He came to Alexandria, and
confessed the Lord Christ before its governor. He commanded that Abba Hour's
hands be cut off, that he be tied to the tail of an ox and dragged through
the city. Then he was thrown into a pit filled with snakes which did not harm
him. During all that torture, he cried out to the Lord Christ, who healed
and strengthened him. His mother came to see him and she rejoiced in his strife.
They told the governor about her, and he had her brought to him. He asked
her to sacrifice to the idols but when she refused he became enraged at her,
and frightened her but she was not afraid of his raging. He commanded to put
red-hot iron rods in her sides. When they did so she rejoiced and sang hymns
to venerate the Lord for He made her worthy to suffer for His Holy Name.
Later on she delivered up her soul and received the crown of martyrdom.
As for St. Abba Hour (Hor), they placed him in a cauldron of boiling oil
and tar, and he praised God until he delivered up his soul and received the
crown of martyrdom. His brother Abba Bishai (Pishai) was martyred on the 1st
day of Nasi (Intercalary days). May their prayers be with us and Glory
be to God forever. Amen.
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303 St Dominica, Virgin And Martyr; It
is possible that she must be identified with St Cyriaca (Kvp'aKa} = Dominica),
a virgin martyr whom the Byzantines venerate on July 7; her acts are worthless,
but they state that she suffered by beheading at Nicomedia in Bithynia. What
started her cultus at Tropea, or whether there is a confusion of
two Dominicas, is not known.
In Campánia sanctæ
Domínicæ, Vírginis et Mártyris, quæ, sub
Diocletiáno Imperatóre, cum fregísset idóla,
hinc ad béstias damnáta, sed ab illis nil læsa, demum,
cápite obtruncáta, migrávit ad Dóminum.
Ipsíus vero corpus Tropéæ, in Calábria, summa
veneratióne asservátur.
In Campania, St. Dominica, virgin and martyr, in the
time of Emperor Diocletian. For having destroyed idols, she was condemned
to the beasts, but being left uninjured by them, she was beheaded and departed
for heaven. Her body is kept with great veneration at Tropea in Calabria.
This is the best known of several saints of the
name, but her existence, so far as the Western legend is concerned, is more
than doubtful. Baronius inserted her name in the Roman Martyrology with this
notice: "In Campania, of the holy Dominica, virgin and martyr, who was a
breaker of idols under the Emperor Diocletian and was therefore condemned
to the beasts; but being not at all hurt by them she was at last beheaded
and passed to the Lord. Her body is preserved with great honour at Tropea
in Calabria." The lessons of her office tell us further that she was born
in the Campagna, suffered on the banks of the Euphrates, and that her body
was carried by angels to Tropea. But in that city it is said that she was
born, lived and died there-whereas actually she seems to have been unheard
of there before the sixteenth century. It is possible that she must be identified
with St Cyriaca (Kvp'aKa} = Dominica), a virgin martyr whom the Byzantines
venerate on July 7; her acts are worthless, but they state that she suffered
by beheading at Nicomedia in Bithynia. What started her cultus at
Tropea, or whether there is a confusion of two Dominicas, is not known.
See the Acta Sanctorum, July, vol. ii. What little
can be said in defence of th,: legend will be found in a booklet of Mgr Taccone-Gallucci,
Memoria storica di Santa Domenico
(1893).
300 St. Dominica Martyr in Campania, Italy, during the reign of co-Emperor Diocletian
. She is venerated in the East as having been martyred in Nicomedia. After
wild beasts refused to harm her, she was beheaded .
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429 St Sisoes After death
of St Antony, St Sisoes was one of the most shining lights of the Egyptian
deserts; Egyptian by birth; quit the world in his youth he retired to the
desert of Skete.
After the death of St Antony, St Sisoes was one of the most
shining lights of the Egyptian deserts. He was an Egyptian by birth, and having
quitted the world inhis youth he retired to the desert of Skete. The desire
of finding a more unfrequented retreat induced him to cross the Nile and
hide himself in the mountain where St Antony died. The memory of that great
man's virtues wonderfully supported his fervour and encouraged him to persevere.
He imagined he saw him and heard the instructions he was wont to deliver
to his disciples. He strained every nerve to imitate his most heroic exercises:
the austerity of his penance, the rigour of his silence, the ardour of his
prayer, so that the reputation of Sisoes spread among the neighbouring solitaries,
and some came a great distance to be guided in the ways of perfection, and
he was forced to submit his love of silence and retreat to the greater duty
of charity.
Saint Sisoes, Schemamonk of
the Kiev Caves (XIII), is commemorated in the general service of the Monastic
Fathers of Kiev Caves whose relics rest in the Far Caves. He is mentioned
together with St Gregory the Faster: "Sisoes the wondrous and Gregory, a name
courageous, having by fasting both restrained their passions, humble the
fierce lust of our flesh: for unto you is given the grace to help us in our
passions" (5th Ode of the Canon).
His zeal against vice
was without bitterness; and when his disciples fell into faults he did not
affect astonishment or the language of reproach, but helped them to rise again
with patience and tenderness. Sisoes in all his advice and instruction held
out humility constantly as a most necessary virtue. A recluse saying to him
one day, " Father, I always place myself in the presence of God ", he replied.
"It would be much better for you to put yourself below every creature, in
order to be securely humble." Thus, while he never lost sight of the divine
presence, it was ever accompanied with the consciousness of his own worthlessness.
To another who complained that he had not yet arrived at the perfection of
St Antony, he said, " Ah! if I had but one only of that man's feelings, I
should be one flame of divine ?love". On a visit of three solitaries wanting
instruction, one of them said, " Father, what shall I do to avoid hell-fire?"
Sisoes made no reply. " How shall I ", asked another, "escape the gnashing
of teeth and the worm that dieth not? " " What will become of me ? " asked
the third, " for every time I think of outer darkness I am ready to die with
fear." Then the saint answered: "I confess that these are subjects which
I never think about, and as I know that God is merciful, I trust He will
have compassion on me. You are happy", he added, " and I envy your virtue.
You speak of the torments of Hell, and your fears must be strong guards against
sin. It is I should exclaim, What shall become of me? for I am so insensible
as never even to reflect on the place of torment. This perhaps is the reason
I am guilty of so much sin." He said another time: "I am now thirty years
praying daily that my Lord Jesus may preserve me from saying an idle word,
and yet I am always relapsing."
Being at length worn out with
sickness and old age, Sisoes yielded to his disciple Abraham's advice, and
went to reside a while at Clysma, a town near the Red Sea. Here he received
a visit from Ammon, abbot of Raithu, who, seeing him miserable at being absent
from his retreat, tried to comfort him by pointing out that his present state
of health wanted the remedies which could not be had in the desert. "What
do you say?" replied the saint. "Was not the ease of mind I enjoyed there
everything for my comfort?" and he was not at ease till he returned to his
retreat.
The solitaries assisting at his death-bed heard him cry out,
"Behold! Abbot Antony, the choir of prophets, and the angels are come to
take my soul!" At the same time his countenance shone, and being some time
interiorly recollected with God, he cried out anew, "Behold! our Lord comes
for me!" And so he died, about the year 429, after a retreat of at least
sixty-two years in St Antony's Mount. His feast is observed in the Byzantine
calendar.
This saint must not be confused with another SISOES, surnamed
the Theban, who lived in the same age at Calamon, in the territory of Arsinoe.
It is related of him that a certain recluse, having received some offence,
went to tell him that he must be avenged. The holy old man recommended him
to leave his revenge to God, to pardon his brother, and forget the injury.
But seeing that his advice had no weight, "At least", said he, "let us both
join in speaking to God". Then, standing up, he prayed thus aloud: "0 Lord,
we no longer want your care of our interests or your protection, since this
monk maintains that we can and ought to be our own avengers."
What we know of St Sisoes comes
to us mainly through the Apophthegmata
Patrum, a collection of utterances of the fathers of the desert, to
which of late years much attention has been devoted. See particularly W.
Bousset, Apophthegmata; Studien zur Geschichte des ältesten Mônchtums
(1923), with the review of this in the Analecta
Bollandiana, vol. xlii (1924), pp. 430-435; Wilmart in Revue Bénédictine, vol.
xxxiv (1922), pp. 185-198. The Greek text is in Migne, PG., vol. lxv, cc.
71-440. The Latin, differently arranged, is in Migne, PL., vol. lxxiii,
cc. 855-1022 .
Saint Sisoes the Great a solitary
monk, pursuing asceticism in the Egyptian desert in a cave sanctified by the
prayerful labors of his predecessor, St Anthony the Great (January 17).
For his sixty years of labor
in the desert, St Sisoes attained to sublime spiritual purity and he was granted
the gift of wonderworking, so that by his prayers he once restored a dead
child back to life.
Extremely strict with himself, Abba Sisoes was very merciful
and compassionate to others, and he received everyone with love. To those
who visited him, the saint first of all always taught humility. When one
of the monks asked how he might attain to a constant remembrance of God,
St Sisoes remarked, "That is no great thing, my son, but it is a great thing
to regard yourself as inferior to everyone else. This leads to the acquisition
of humility." Asked by the monks whether one year is sufficient for repentance
if a brother sins, Abba Sisoes said, "I trust in the mercy of God that if
such a man repents with all his heart, then God will accept his repentance
in three days."
When St Sisoes lay upon his deathbed,
the disciples surrounding the Elder saw that his face shone like the sun.
They asked the dying man what
he saw. Abba Sisoes replied that he saw St Anthony, the prophets, and the
apostles. His face increased in brightness, and he spoke with someone. The
monks asked, "With whom are you speaking, Father?" He said that angels had
come for his soul, and he was entreating them to give him a little more time
for repentance. The monks said, "You have no need for repentance, Father"
St Sisoes said with great humility, "I do not think that I have even begun
to repent."
After these words the face of the holy abba shone so brightly
that the brethren were not able to look upon him. St Sisoes told them that
he saw the Lord Himself.
Then there was a flash like lightning,
and a fragrant odor, and Abba Sisoes departed to the Heavenly Kingdom.
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518
St. Monennaa Irish abbess also called Darerca. She resided at Sliabh Cuillin
in Ireland noted for her austerities.
ST MODWENNA, VIRGIN (SEVENTH CENTURY?)
THE St Modwenna, or Monenna,
formerly venerated at Burton-on-Trent and elsewhere, may have lived in the
middle of the seventh century and been a recluse on an islet called Andresey
in the Trent.
But not only are other and conflicting
things alleged of her, but her legend has been conflated with that of the
Irish St Darerca, or Moninne, said to have been the first abbess of Killeavy,
near Newry, and to have died in 517; and she has perhaps been confused with
others as well. Capgrave and others speak of St Modwenna as having charge
of St Edith of Polesworth, which were it true would throw no useful light
on either saint.
The most valuable information we possess
about St Moninne seems to be the entry in the Félire of Oengus:
"Moninne of the mountain of Cuilenn was a fair pillar; she gained a triumph,
a hostage of purity, a kinswoman of great Mary ", with the gloss.
It would seem hopeless to unravel
the tangle. Baring-Gould and Fisher (LBS., vol. iii, pp. 490-497, and
cf. i, pp. 286-287) only seem to make confusion worse confounded. Two
Latin lives are printed in the Acta Sanctorun,
under July 6-the one is anonymous, from the Codex Salmanticensis, the other
attributed to Conchubranus. The latter has been again edited by M. Esposito
in the Proceedings of the Royal
Irish Academy, vol. xxxviii
(1910), pp. 202-251. There is a later vita in manuscript by Geoffrey
of Burton. For those who can read Anglo-Norman texts "le romanz de la vie
seinte Modwenne noneyne", ed. A. T. Baker and A. Bell (St Modwenna; 1947), will be of interest.
See also KSS., pp. 404-407; and for Moninne, J. Ryan, Irish Monasticism (1931), p. 136
.
St. Modwenna The St.
Modwenna, or Monenna, formally venerated at Burton-on-Trent and elsewhere,
may have lived in the middle of the seventh century and been a recluse on
an islet called Andresey in the Trent. But not only are other and conflicting
things alleged of her, but her legend has been confused with that of the Irish
saint Darerca, or Moninne, said to have been the first abbess of Killeavy,
near Nerwy and to have died in 517; and she has perhaps been confused with
others as well. Capgrave and others speak of St. Modwenna as having charge
of St. Edith of Polesworth, which were it true would throw no useful light
on either saint. The most valuable information we possess about St. Moninne
seems to be the entry in the Felire of Oengus: "Moninne of the mountain of
Cuilenn was a fair pillar; she gained a triumph, a hostage of purity, a
kinswoman of great Mary", with the gloss.
|
St. Merryn hermitess on the island of Andresey in the Trent
River in England
Modwenna is believed to have been a hermitess
on the island of Andresey in the Trent River in England and
also known as Monenna. The facts of her life are hopelessly confused with
those of other saints, among them, the Irish Darerea (also known as Moninna
and is said to be the first Abbess of Killeavy, who died about 517), Modwenna
(St. Hilda's successor as Abbess of Whitby, who died about 695), and Modwenna
(Abbess of Polesworth, Warwickshire, who died about 900). The name is also
spelled Moninne and Merryn. |
575
St. Goar Priest of Aquitaine, France, honored by Charlemagne. A parish priest,
Goar became a hermit at Oberwesel, Germany, on the Rhine River.
In
pago Trevirénsi sancti Góaris, Presbyteri et Confessóris.
In the vicinity of Treves, St. Goar, priest and confessor.
The local bishop, Rusticus of Trier, accused him falsely of
sorcery, but Goar was cleared of the charge by King Sigebert I of Austrasia
in Metz. Rusticus was deposed because of this attack and because he lived
luxuriously. Goar was offered Rusticus’ see but returned to his hermitage.
Emperor Charlemagne later erected a church over St. Goar’s former hermitage.
He heard the call of solitude and eventually settled down on the banks
of the Rhine near the small town of Oberwesel. Here he lived for years in
quietness till it happened to him as it has happened to so many other solitaries-he
was" discovered" and people came to consult him. The peasants of the neighbourhood
were particularly fond of him: they listened to his preaching, wondered at
his way of life, marvelled at his holiness and patience, and then went away
and attributed all sorts of miracles to him. Probably no notice would have
been taken had he not been a priest, but some busybody reported his irregular
ministry to the bishop of Trier, and evil-disposed persons added the information
that the holy hermit was a humbug, who over-ate himself, got drunk, and deceived
the people. The bishop, Rusticus, thereupon sent for Gear, who obediently
came and was accused not only of hypocrisy but of sorcery and other crimes.
How he cleared himself is not known: according to the legend God Himself interfered
and caused a three-day-old child not only to vindicate the hermit but also
to convict the bishop of most irregular living. There was at once an outcry,
and Sigebert I, King of Austrasia, hearing what had happened, sent for St
Goar to come to him at Metz. The hermit's modesty and innocence greatly impressed
the king, and having deposed the unworthy Rusticus, he wished to put him
in his place. But the idea of being a bishop so upset Goar that he was taken
ill; he asked for time to think it over, and went back to his cell, where
death overtook him before the king succeeded in getting his acceptance. His
home became a place of pilgrimage, and is now marked by a small town which
bears his name and has a church dedicated in his honour.
The curious legend of St Goar,
in the form in which we have it, is probably older than 768, but it cannot
be regarded as a historical document. There can have been no Rusticus, bishop
of Trier, in the time of Childebert and Sigebert I. The primitive text, in
very barbarous Latin, has been critically edited by B. Krusch in MGH., Scriptores Merov., vol. iv, pp. 402-423;
a more readable recension is in the Acta
Sanctorum, July, vol. ii, See also J. Depoin, La legende de S. Goar in the Revue des Etudes
historiques, vol. lxxv (1909), pp. 369-385 .
|
699 St Sexburga, Abbess
Of Ely, Widow daughter of Anna, King of the East Angles; sister of SS. Etheldreda,
Ethelburga and Withburga, and half-sister of St Sethrida
She was given in marriage to Erconbert, King of Kent, a prince of excellent
dispositions which she contributed for twenty-four years to improve by her
counsels and example. Her virtue commanded the reverence, and her humility
and devotion raised the admiration, of her subjects; and her goodness and
charity gained her the love of all. She became the mother of two princes and
of two saints, Ercongota and Ermenilda. Because she had a longing to consecrate
herself wholly to God in religious retirement, and that others might attend
divine service without impediment, she began in her husband's lifetime to
found a monastery at Minster in the isle of Sheppey, which she finished after
his death in 664. Here she assembled seventy-four nuns, and herself joined
them. After some years she appointed her daughter Ermenilda to rule the house,
and, being desirous to live in greater obscurity and to be more at liberty
to employ all her thoughts on Heaven, she left Kent and went to the abbey
of Ely, where she was chosen to succeed her sister St Etheldreda in the government
of that house. Sixteen years after she caused the body of that saint to be
taken up, when it was found incorrupt, and was enshrined in a white marble
coffin found at Cambridge. Sexburga herself passed to bliss in a good old
age, on July 6, at the end of the seventh century. Her monastery of Minsterin-Sheppey
was destroyed by the Danes, but rebuilt in 1130, and consecrated in honour
of our Lady and St Sexburga, continuing to be occupied by Benedictine nuns
until the dissolution. She was also honoured in Sweden.
See Bede's Ecclesiastical History, bk iii, cap. 8
and iv, 19. A Latin life of Sexburga described by Hardy, Catalogue of British History (vol. i,
pp. 361-362), seems to be of no historical value apart from its quotation
from Bede. There is some mention of Sexburga in certain Anglo-Saxon
fragments printed by Cockayne in vol. iii of his Leechdoms. See also the Acta Sanctorum, July, vol. ii, and Stanton's
Menology, p. 313.
|
1070 St Godeleva,
Martyr The scene of the murder of Godeleva soon had a reputation for miracles
According to the narrative written
by a contemporary priest, Drogo, the story of Godeleva is an example of that
wanton persecution and cruelty shown towards an innocent victim which is as
shocking to reasonable, not to say Christian, human beings as it is unexplainable;
no adequate motive is given or even suggested for the behaviour of the offender
at first, though afterwards his desire to get rid of his wife is clear enough.
Godeleva was born at Londefort-lez-Boulogne about 1049, of noble
parentage. She grew up beautiful both in person and character, and was particularly
beloved by the poor, to whose welfare she constantly devoted herself. At age
eighteen she married a Flemish lord, Bertulf of Ghistelles, who conducted
his bride home, where she was received with insults by his mother; apparently
she had had other plans for her son, and was furious that he had disregarded
them in favour of this girl from the Boulonnais.
Bertulf, the days of the wedding festivities yet unfinished,
deserted Godeleva, leaving her in charge of his mother, who was not content
with petty persecutions, but treated her who should have been mistress of
the house with fanatic brutality. She at length contrived to escape and returned
to her parents, who took the case to the count of Flanders and the bishop
of Tournai. It was ruled that Bertulf should receive back his wite, and henceforward
treat her properly, which he promised to do.
But once she was back at Ghistelles, Bertulf was
first indifferent and then again openly violent to her, and to get rid of
her he resolved on more direct action. First of all he shammed penitence
and a desire for reconciliation, with the object both of averting suspicion
from himself and to enable him the more easily to entrap the girl.
Then at the appointed time Godeleva was induced by a trick to go out of the
castle by a back-door at night; she was seized by two of Bertulf's servants
and smothered by having her head held down in a pond, with a thong drawn tight
round her neck. When she was dead, the ruffians replaced her
body in bed, meaning it to be supposed she had died a natural death.
It was obvious that she had not, but Bertulf had absented himself in Bruges
at the time of the crime and Godeleva's parents were unable to bring it home
to him. He at once married again, but his wickedness haunted him, and he ended
his days in a monastery at Bergues- St-Winoc.
The scene of the murder of Godeleva soon had a
reputation for miracles, and the sudden recovery of sight by Bertulf's blind
daughter by his second wife was attributed to her intercession.
In 1084 her body was dug up and enshrined in the church, which is still a
place of pilgrimage, the people drinking the water of her well and appropriately
invoking her intercession against sore throats.
It is difficult to see why (except in popular estimation)
Godeleva is venerated as a martyr: she did not endure death for any article
of the faith or for the preservation of any Christian virtue or for any other
act of virtue relating to God-unless indeed her supernatural patience finally
provoked her husband to his wicked violence.
The Bollandists in the Acts Sanctorum (July, vol. ii) have treated
St Godeleva at great length, printing not only the life by Drogo, but also
another, more diffuse, narrative of her history. A copy of the formal verification
of the saint's relics made when they were elevated " in 1084, shortly after
her death, has been preserved, and its authenticity has been established by
the tattered fragments of a later deed which recites it. This was found
when the shrine was examined in 1907. See the Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xliv (1926),
pp. 102-137, for an earlier text of the Drogo vita, ed. by Father Coens, and vol. lxii
(1944), pp. 292-295 ; and also the charming little book of M. English, Les quatre couronnes de Ste Godelieve de Gistel
(1953) .
|
1433 Johannes Hus
Evangelische Kirche: 6. Juli 1990 bedauerte Papst Johannes Paul II. den
grausamen Tod von Johannes Hus.
Hus wurde um 1370 in Tschechien geboren. Er war ein Anhänger Wyclifs
und predigte unerschrocken das Evangelium. Er fand breite Unterstützung
in der Bevölkerung und bei König Wenzel. Dadurch verbanden sich
das Streben nach einer Reform der Kirche mit dem starken tschechischen Nationalbewußtsein.
Als der Papst durch einen großen Ablaß Geld für einen Kriegszug
des Vatikans einholen wollte, erhob Hus seine Stimme gegen den Ablaß.
In seiner Schrift 'De ecclesia' kündigte er der Kirche den Gehorsam.
Der Papst verhängte den Bann über ihn, aber er fand weiter breite
Unterstützung in der Bevölkerung und übte deshalb sein Amt
an der Bethlehemskirche in Prag auch nach der Verhängung des Bannes aus.
Erst als der Bann über die ganze Stadt ausgesprochen wurde, verließ
Hus Prag und zog sich nach Südböhmen zurück. Hier übersetzte
er die Bibel in die Volkssprache. Seine Anhänger feierten indessen das
Abendmahl in beiderlei Gestalt. Der deutsche König Siegmund, designierter
Erbe Böhmens, wollte die Parteien versöhnen. Er drang deshalb
in Hus, zum Konstanzer Konzil zu reisen und sicherte ihm sicheres Geleit
zu. Hus wurde dort sofort verhaftet. Als Siegmund seine Freilassung forderte,
drohten die Konzilsteilnehmer mit der Abreise. Der König gab nach, um
das Konzil zu retten. Hus weigerte sich zu widerrufen und wurde daraufhin
am 6.7.1415 verbrannt. 1420 begannen die Anhänger von Hus die Hussitenkriege.
1433 konnten sie auf dem Konzil von Basel einen Teilerfolg erringen: ihnen
wurde die Komminikation in beiderlei Gestalt zugestanden. Nach dem Beginn
der Reformation wechselten einige Hussiten zu den Lutheranern, andere bildeten
die Böhmische Brüderkirche, die später in der Herrnhuter Gemeine
aufging. 1990 bedauerte Papst Johannes Paul II. den grausamen Tod von Johannes
Hus.
|
1535 Thomas More
mit Kardinal John Fisher
Londíni, in Anglia, sancti Thomæ More, regni Cancellárii,
qui, pro fide cathólica ac beáti Petri primátu, jubénte
Henríco Octávo Rege, decollátus est.
At London in England, on Tower Hill, St. Thomas More,
chancellor of the entire realm, who was beheaded by order of King Henry VIII
for the defence of the Catholic faith and the primacy of blessed Peter.
Katholische Kirche: 22. Juni Anglikanische Kirche: 6. Juli
Thomas More (oder latinisiert Morus) wurde am 7.2.1478 in London geboren.
Er studierte in Oxford zunächst Geisteswissenschaften, dann Rechtswisenschaften.
Er wurde ein angesehner Jurist und bekannter Humanist. Er war verheiratet
und lebte mit seiner Ehefrau und vier Kindern in Chelsea. 1504 wurde er in
das Parlameent gewählt. Nachdm er sich wegen seines Freimuts das Mißfallen
des Königs Heinrich VII. zugezogen hatte, zog er sich aus dem öffentlichen
Leben zurück. Est nach dem Tod des Königs nahm er wieder öffentliche
Äter wahr. Heinrich VIII. adelte ihn 1514 und ernannte ihn 1529 zum Lordkanzler.
Nachdem More den König nicht von seinen kirchenfeindlichen Tendenzen
abbringen konnte, legte er 1532 sein Amt nieder und zog sich zurück.
Der König und Anna Boleyn versuchten seitdem, ihn zu beseitigen. Als
More sich 1534 weigerte, den Suprematseid zu leisten, wurde er verhaftet
und in einem Schauprozess wegen Hochverrats zum Tode verurteilt. More wurde
am 6.7.1535 enthauptet. Die römisch-katholische Kirche begeht sein Gedächtnis
gemeinsam mit Kardinal John Fisher am 22. Juni.
|
1585 Bl. Thomas Alfield
English martyr native of Gloucester educated at Eton and Cambridge; raised
as an Anglican converted to Catholicism and left England to study for the
priesthood at Douai and Reims, France, receiving ordination in 1581
Returning to England, he was soon arrested while handing out copies of
the polemic True and Modest Defence by Dr. Allen. Condemned, he was hanged
at Tybum. Thomas was beatified in 1929.
THOMAS ALFIELD (his name is variously spelt) was born in Gloucester and
educated at Eton and King's College, Cambridge.
He was brought up a Protestant, and on becoming a Catholic
went to Douay in 1576 to study for the priesthood. He was ordained at
Rheims in 1581 and sent on the English mission, where he was associated with
Bd Edmund Campion. By spring of 1582 he was already in the Tower
of London, and here he endured torture without failing; later for a
short time he succumbed to temptation and outwardly conformed to the Established
Church. After his release he withdrew to Rheims, where he made amends,
and then came back to England.
In the early part of 1584 Alfield was concerned in a curious episode.
He was employed by John Davys, the navigator who explored for the
NorthWest Passage, to communicate an offer of his (Davys's) services to the
court of Spain-a proposal that may be assumed not to have been seriously
meant. Later in the year, with the help of Thomas Webley, also
of Gloucester, and a dyer by trade, Alfield was busy circulating copies
of Dr Allen's True and modest Defence,
written in answer to Execution of Justice,
in which Burghley had sought to prove that Catholics were being proceeded
against in England not for their religion but for treason. This soon landed
him in the Tower again, and both he and Webley were tortured, with the object
of making them disclose to whom they had distributed the book. They were
both tried and condemned for this offence, and were hanged at Tyburn on July
6, 1585, after being offered their freedom if they would acknowledge the
queen's ecclesiastical leadership. A reprieve had in fact been issued for
Bd Thomas-it is not known why-but it arrived too late. A third man who had
been corrcerned with them, one Crabbe, purchased his life by apostasy; Alfield's
brother, Robert, also became a renegade.
Bd Thomas Alfield was beatified
in 1929; the Venerable Thomas Webley's cause is still under consideration.
See MMP., pp. 105-106; Burton and PolIen, LEM.; and Catholic Record Society's Publications,
vol. v.
|
1599-1624 Virgin Juliana,
Princess of Olshansk Uncovering of the Relics of; Many miracles have been
worked by St Juliana, and she helps those who venerate her holy relics with
piety and faith
St Juliana lived during the first quarter of the sixteenth century. Her
father, Prince Yurii Dubrovitsky-Olshansky, was one of the benefactors of
the Kiev Caves Lavra. The God-pleasing virgin died at the age of sixteen.
Her body, which was buried at the Kiev Caves Lavra near the great church,
was found incorrupt during the time of Archimandrite Elisha Pletenets (1599-1624).
The holy relics were in a fire at the great church in
the year 1718, and were put into a reliquary and placed in the church of the
Near Caves.
St Juliana appeared to Archimandrite Peter Moghila (afterwards
Metropolitan of Kiev) in a dream, reproaching him for the carelessness and
lack of respect shown to her relics. He ordered a new reliquary to be made,
for which a suitable covering was made by pious nuns. On the reliquary was
the inscription: "By the will of the Creator of heaven and earth Juliana,
patroness and great intercessor to Heaven, rests here for all time. Here are
the bones ... healing against all passions ... You adorn Paradise, Juliana,
like a beautiful flower ..."
Many miracles have been worked by St Juliana, and she helps those who venerate
her holy relics with piety and faith. She is also commemorated on October
10 with the seven saints of Volhynia .
|
1794
Blessed Mary Rose entered Benedictine convent of Caderousse 1762 French
Revolution martyr, OSB M (AC)
Born at Sérignan (near Orange), in 1741; beatified in 1925. Baptized
Susanne-Agatha de Loye, she took the name Mary Rose when she entered the Benedictine
convent of Caderousse in 1762. At the outbreak of the French Revolution,
she was expelled from the convent and, in May 1794, she was arrested and
guillotined, the first of a band of 31 martyrs put to death at Orange (Benedictines).
Orange, 32 Blessed Martyrs of (AC) Died 1794; beatified in 1925. Thirty-two
nuns were imprisoned during the French Revolution at Orange for several months
before their execution by guillotine. They included one Benedictine, two Cistercians,
13 members of the Institute of Perpetual Adoration, and 16 Ursulines (Benedictines)
.
|
1902 St.
Maria Goretti Devotion to the young martyr grew, miracles were worked, and
in less than half a century she was canonized
Neptúni, in Látio, sanctæ Maríæ Gorétti,
piíssimæ adolescéntis, in defendénda virginitáte
crudelíssime necátæ, quam Pius Papa Duodécimus
sanctárum Mártyrum catálogo solémniter accénsuit.
At Nettuno in Lazio, St. Maria Goretti, a most devout
young girl, who was savagely murdered for the defence of her virginity,
and whom Pope Pius XII solemnly added to the catalogue of holy martyrs.
One of the largest crowds ever assembled for a
canonization—250,000—symbolized the reaction of millions touched by the simple
story of Maria Goretti.
Born in 1890, the daughter of a poor Italian tenant farmer,
had no chance to go to school, never learned to read or write. When she made
her First Communion not long before her death at age 12, she was one of the
larger and somewhat backward members of the class.
On a hot afternoon in July, Maria was sitting at the top of
the stairs of her house, mending a shirt. She was not quite 12 years old,
but physically mature. A cart stopped outside, and a neighbor, Alessandro,
18 years old, ran up the stairs. He seized her and pulled her into a bedroom.
She struggled and tried to call for help, gasping that she would be killed
rather than submit. “No, God does not wish it. It is a sin. You would go to
hell for it.” Alessandro began striking at her blindly with a long dagger.
She was taken to a hospital. Her last hours were marked by the
usual simple compassion of the good—concern about where her mother would sleep,
forgiveness of her murderer (she had been in fear of him, but did not say
anything lest she cause trouble to his family) and her devout welcoming of
Viaticum. She died about 24 hours after the attack.
Her murderer was sentenced to 30 years in prison. For a long
time he was unrepentant and surly. One night he had a dream or vision of
Maria, gathering flowers and offering them to him. His life changed. When
he was released after 27 years, his first act was to go to beg the forgiveness
of Maria’s mother.
Devotion to the young martyr grew, miracles were worked, and
in less than half a century she was canonized. At her beatification in 1947,
her mother (then 82), two sisters and a brother appeared with Pope Pius XII
on the balcony of St. Peter’s. Three years later, at her canonization, a 66-year-old
Alessandro Serenelli knelt among the quarter-million people and cried tears
of joy.
Comment: Maria may have had
trouble with catechism, but she had no trouble with faith. God's will was
holiness, decency, respect for one's body, absolute obedience, total trust.
In a complex world, her faith was simple: It is a privilege to be loved by
God, and to love him—at any cost. As the virtue of chastity dies the death
of a thousand qualifications, she is a breath of sweet fresh air. Quote:
"Even if she had not been a martyr, she would still
have been a saint, so holy was her everyday life" (Cardinal Salotti).
MARY GORETT! was born in 1890 at Corinaldo, a village
some thirty miles from Ancona, the daughter of a farm-labourer, Luigi Goretti,
and his wife Assunta Carlini. They had five other children, and in 1896 the
family moved to Colle Gianturco, near Galiano, and later to Ferriere di
Conca, not far from Nettuno in the Roman Campagna. Almost at once after settling
down here, Luigi Goretti was stricken with malaria and died. His widow had
to take up his work as best she could, but it was a hard struggle and every
small coin and bit of food had to be looked at twice. Of all the children
none was more cheerful and encouraging to her mother than Mary, commonly called
Marietta .
On a hot afternoon
in July 1902 Mary was sitting at the top of the stairs in the cottage, mending
a shirt. She was not yet quite twelve years old, and it must be remembered
that in Italy girls mature earlier than in more northern countries. Presently
a cart stopped outside, and a neighbour, a young man of eighteen named Alexander,
ran up the stairs. He beckoned Mary into an adjoining bedroom; but this sort
of thing had happened before and she refused to go. Alexander seized hold
of her, pulled her in, and shut the door.
Mary struggled and tried to call for help, but she
was being half-strangled and could only protest hoarsely, gasping that she
would be killed rather than submit. Whereupon Alexander half pulled her dress
from her body and began striking at her blindly with a long dagger. She
sank to the floor, crying out that she was being killed: Alexander plunged
the dagger into her back, and ran away.
An ambulance fetched Mary to hospital, where it
was seen at once that she could not possibly live. Her last hours were most
touching-her concern for where her mother was going to sleep, her forgiveness
of her murderer (and she now disclosed that she had long been going in fear
of him, but did not like to say anything lest she cause trouble with his
family), her childlike welcoming of the holy viaticum. Some twenty-four hours
after the assault, Mary Goretti died. Her mother, the parish priest of Nettuno,
a Spanish noblewoman and two nuns, had watched by her bed all night.
Alexander was sentenced to thirty years' penal servitude.
For long he was surly, brutal and unrepentant. Then one night he had a dream
or vision in which Mary Goretti appeared gathering flowers and offering them
to him. From then on he was a changed man, and so exemplary a prisoner that
at the end of 27 years he was released. His first act when free was to visit
Mary's mother to beg her forgiveness.
Meanwhile the memory of his victim had become more
and more revered.
The sweetness and strength of her life before her
untimely end was recalled, people prayed for her intercession in Heaven, answers,
even miracles, were attributed to that intercession, and in response to a
widespread wish the cause of her beatification was introduced. On April 27,
1947, Mary Goretti was declared blessed by Pope Pius XII. When he afterwards
appeared on the balcony of St Peter's he was accompanied by Mary's mother,
Assunta Goretti, then eighty-two years old, together with two of Mary's sisters
and a brother. Pilgrims came from all over Italy and the pope addressed them,
presenting Bd Mary as a new St Agnes and calling down woe on the corrupters
of chastity in press and theatre and cinema and fashion-studios "in our day",
he said, "women have been thrown even into military service-with grave consequences."
Three years later the same pope
canonized Mary Goretti, in the piazza of St Peter's,
before the biggest crowd ever assembled for a canonization. Her murderer
was still alive.
A number of "popular" canonizations
of early times notwithstanding, a violent and unjust death alone is not sufficient
to constitute martyrdom. (The common idea that St Joan of Arc, for example,
was a martyr is mistaken.) But St Mary Goretti was killed in defence of a
Christian virtue, and so was every bit as much a martyr as if she had died
for the Christian faith. It was Cardinal Salotti's opinion
that, "Even had she not been a martyr she would still have been a saint, so
holy was her everyday life".
The
case of Mary Goretti seems to be unique in hagiology, end at the time of
the beatification her short and moving story was noticed in the newspaper
press of the world, from the London Times downwards. Among the published accounts
of her in English are those of Mother C. E. Maguire, Father J. Carr and Marie
C. Buehrle. In L'art sacre, May-June
1951, p. 14, are printed some pictures illustrating the iconographical evolution
of the saint. There is a good essay by Eric B. Strauss in Saints and Ourselves (1953)
|
Mary Mother of GOD
Saint of the Day July 06 Prídie Nonas Júlii
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
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.