St. John the
Baptist son of Zachary Jerusalem Temple priest in and Elizabeth kinswoman
of Mary
Natívitas sancti Joánnis Baptístæ, Præcursóris
Dómini, ac sanctórum Zacharíæ et Elísabeth
fílii, qui Spíritu Sancto replétus est adhuc in útero
matris suæ.
The Nativity of St. John Baptist, precursor of our Lord,
son of Zachary and Elizabeth, who, while yet in the womb of his mother, was
filled with the Holy Ghost.
THE BIRTHDAY OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST
ST AUGUSTINE, remarking that the Church celebrates the festivals of saints
on the day of their death, which in the true estimate of things is their great
birthday, their birthday to eternal life, adds that the birthday of St John
the Baptist forms an exception because he was sanctified in his mother's womb,
so that he came into the world sinless. Indeed, the majority of divines are
disposed to think that he was already invested with sanctifying grace, which
would have been imparted by the invisible presence of our divine Redeemer
at the time that the Blessed Virgin visited her cousin, St Elizabeth. But
in any case the birth of the Forerunner was an event which brought great joy
to mankind, announcing that their redemption was at hand. - [* To-day is
of course the general feast day of the Baptist, and not simply a commemoration
of his birth. But for convenience an account of his life is deferred herein
until the commemoration of his beheading, on August 29. ]
John's father, Zachary, was a priest of the Jewish law, and Elizabeth his
wife was also descended of the house of Aaron; and the Holy Scriptures assure
us that both of them were just, with a virtue which was sincere and perfect-
“and they walked in all commandments and justifications of the Lord without
blame." It fell to the lot of Zachary in the turn of his ministration to offer
the daily morning and evening sacrifice of incense; and on a particular day
while he did so, and the people were praying outside the sanctuary, he had
a vision, the angel Gabriel appearing to him standing on the right side of
the altar of incense. Zachary was troubled and stricken with fear, but the
angel encouraged him, announcing that his prayer was heard, and that in consequence
his wife, although she was called barren, should conceive and bear him a
son. The angel told him: "Thou shalt call his name John, and thou shalt have
joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice in his birth, for he shall be great
before the Lord." The commendations of the Baptist are remarkable in this
that they were inspired by God Himself. John was chosen to be the herald
and harbinger of the world's Redeemer, the voice to proclaim to men the eternal
Word, the morning star to usher in the sun of justice and the light of the
world. Other saints are often distinguished by certain privileges belonging
to their special character; but John eminently excelled in graces and was
at once a teacher, a virgin and a martyr. He was, moreover, a prophet, and
more than a prophet, it being his office to point out to the world Him whom
the ancient prophets had foretold obscurely and at a distance.
Innocence undefiled is a precious grace, and the first-fruits of the heart
are particularly due to God. Therefore the angel ordered that the child should
be consecrated to the Lord from his very birth, and as an indication of the
need to lead a mortified life if virtue is to be protected, no fermented liquor
would ever pass his lips. The circumstance of the birth of John proclaimed
it an evident miracle, for Elizabeth at that time was advanced in years and
according to the course of nature past child-bearing. God had so ordained
all things that the event might be seen to be the fruit of long and earnest
prayer. Still, Zachary was amazed, and he begged that a sign might be given
as an earnest of the realization of these great promises. The angel, to grant
his request, and in a measure to rebuke the doubt which it implied, answered
that he should continue dumb until such moment as the child was born. Elizabeth
conceived; and in the sixth month of her pregnancy received a visit from the
Mother of God, who greeted her kinswoman: "and it came to pass that when Elizabeth
heard the salutation of Mary, the infant leaped in her womb."
Elizabeth, when the nine months of her pregnancy were accomplished, brought
forth her son, and he was circumcised on the eighth day. Though the family
and friends wished him to bear his father's name, Zachary, the mother urged
that he should be called John. The father confirmed the desire by writing
on a tablet "John is his name"; and immediately recovering the use of speech,
he broke into that great canticle of love and thanksgiving, the Benedictus,
which the Church sings every day in her office and which she finds it not
inappropriate to repeat over the grave of every one of her faithful children
when his remains are committed to the earth.
The Birthday of St John the Baptist was one of the earliest feasts to find
a definite place in the Church's calendar, no other than where it stands now,
June 24. The Hieronymianum locates it there, the first edition stressing the
point that this commemorates the earthly birthday of the Forerunner. The
same day is indicated in the Carthaginian Calendar, and before that we have
sermons of St Augustine delivered on this particular festival which sufficiently
indicate the precise time of year by referring to those words of John reported
in the Fourth Gospel: "He must increase, but I must decrease." St Augustine
finds this appropriate, for he tells us that after the birthday of St John
the days begin to get shorter, whereas after the birthday of our Lord, the
days begin to grow longer. Duchesne is probably right in urging that the
connection of the feast with June 24 must have originated in the West and
not in the East. He says: "It is to be noted that the festival is on the
24th and not on the 25th of June, and we may well ask why the latter
figure was not adopted, since it would have given the exact interval of six
months between the Baptist and Christ. The reason is [he 'goes on] that the
calculation was made according to the Roman calendar; the 24th of June
is the octavo kalendas Julii, just as the 25th of December is octavo
kalendas Januarii." At Antioch, and in the East generally, the days of the
month were numbered continuously forward from the first day just as we do,
and June 25 would have corresponded with December 25 without attention being
paid to the fact that the former month counted thirty days and the latter
thirty-one. But just as the Roman date of Christmas was adopted at Antioch
(very possibly through St John Chrysostom's acquaintance with St in the last
quarter of the fourth century, so it was not very long before the birthday
of the Baptist was celebrated at Antioch, Constantinople, and in the other
great Eastern churches on the same day as it was in Rome.
St John the Baptist was a very
popular saint in the middle ages, and much might be written about the religious
orders, institutions, churches and shrines which were placed under his patronage;
but all that we know for certain about his life is to be found in the pages
of the four gospels. The story told in the apocryphal Protevangelium, otherwise
known as the Gospel of James, which represents Zachary in the capacity of
high priest, and as taking a prominent part in the marriage of Mary and Joseph,
is altogether unreliable. Neither can we place unqualified trust in the little
additional information which may be gleaned from the historian Josephus;
Dr. Robert Eisler's book, The Messiah Jesus
and John the Baptist (1931), which purports to be founded on the Slavonic
text of Josephus, raises far too many doubts to be taken as a serious contribution
to the subject. There are a number of books on St John the Baptist more or
less devotional in character. One, that of the Abbe Denis Buzy, which has
been translated into English, The Life of
St John the Baptist, discusses the question very fully from the theological
and exegetical point of view, and also contains an adequate bibliography.
On liturgical aspects of the subject, see Duchesne's Christian Worship; Schuster, The Sacramentary, vol. iv, pp. 265-271;
DAC., vol. vii,. cc. 2167-2184; and on the folklore associated especially
with Midsummer night, Bächtold-Stäubli, Handwörterbuch des deutschen Aberglaubens,
vol. iv, pp. 704 seq.
John the Baptist was the son of Zachary, a priest of the Temple in Jerusalem,
and Elizabeth, a kinswoman of Mary
who visited her. He was probably born at Ain-Karim southwest of Jerusalem after
the Angel
Gabriel told Zachary that his wife would bear a child even though
she was an old woman. He lived as a hermit in the desert of Judea until about
A.D. 27. When he was thirty, he began to preach on the banks of the Jordan
against the evils of the times and called men to penance and baptism "for
the Kingdom of Heaven is close at hand". He attracted large crowds, and when
Christ came to him, John recognized Him as the Messiah and baptized Him, saying,
"It is I who need baptism from You".
When Christ left to preach in
Galilee, John continued preaching in the Jordan valley. Fearful of his great
power with the people, Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Perea and Galilee, had him
arrested and imprisoned at Machaerus Fortress on the Dead Sea when John denounced
his adultrous and incestuous marriage with Herodias, wife of his half brother
Philip. John was beheaded at the request of Salome, daughter of Herodias,
who asked for his head at the instigation of her mother.
John inspired many of his followers to follow
Christ when he designated Him "the Lamb of God," among them Andrew
and John, who came to know Christ
through John's preaching.
John is presented in the New Testament as the last of the Old
Testament prophets and the precursor of the Messiah. The feast for his beheading
is August 29th.
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Romæ commemorátio
sanctórum plurimórum Mártyrum, qui a Neróne Imperatóre,
ut a se incénsæ Urbis ódium avérteret, calumnióse
accusáti, divérso mortis génere jussi sunt sævíssime
intérfici. Horum síquidem álii, ferárum
tergis contécti, laniátibus canum expósiti sunt; álii
crúcibus affíxi; aliíque incéndio tráditi,
ut, ubi defecísset dies, in usum noctúrni lúminis deservírent.
Erant hi omnes Apostolórum discípuli, et primítiæ
Mártyrum, quas Romána Ecclésia, fértilis ager
Mártyrum, ante Apostolórum necem transmísit ad Dóminum.
At Rome, in the time of Nero, the commemoration
of many holy martyrs. Being falsely accused of having set fire to the
city, they were cruelly put to death in various manners by the emperor's order.
Some were covered with the skins of wild beasts and torn to pieces by dogs,
other were fastened to crosses, others again were delivered to the flames
to serve as torches in the night. All these were disciples of the apostles,
and the first fruits of the martyrs which the Roman Church, a field so fertile
in martyrs, offered to God even before the death of the Apostles.
THE MARTYRS UNDER NERO (A.D.
64)
THESE confessors, whose number
and names are known only to God, are described in the Roman Martyrology as
"the first fruits with which Rome, so fruitful in that seed, had peopled heaven".
It is interesting to note that the first of the Caesars to persecute Christians
was Nero, perhaps the most unprincipled of them all.
In July 64, the tenth year of his reign, a terrible fire devastated
Rome. It began near the Great Circus, in a district of shops and booths full
of inflammable goods, and quickly spread in all directions. After it had raged
for six days and seven nights and had been got under by the demolition of
numerous buildings, it burst forth again in the garden of Tigellinus, the
prefect of the praetorian guard, and continued for three days more. By the
time it had finally died down, two-thirds of Rome was a mass of smouldering
ruins. On the third day of the fire Nero came from Antium to survey the scene.
It is said that, clad in theatrical costume, he went to the top of the Tower
of Maecenas, and to the accompaniment of his lyre recited Priam's lament
over the burning of Troy. His savage delight at watching the flames gave
rise to the belief that he had ordered the conflagration, or at any rate
had prevented it from being extinguished.
The belief rapidly gained ground. It was said that flaming torches
were thrown into houses by mysterious individuals who declared themselves
to be acting under orders. How far Nero was responsible remains a moot point
to this day. In view of the numerous destructive fires which have afflicted
Rome throughout the ages, it is more than likely that this, perhaps the worst
of them all, was due to accident. At the time, however, suspicion was so widespread
that Nero was alarmed, and sought to divert it from himself by accusing the
Christians of setting fire to the city.
Although, as we know from the historian Tacitus, no one believed
them to be guilty of the crime, they were seized, exposed to the scorn and
derision of the people, and put to death with the utmost cruelty. Some were
sewn up in the skins of wild beasts and delivered to hungry dogs who tore
them to pieces; some were crucified; others again were smeared Over with wax,
pitch and other combustible material, and after being impaled with sharp stakes
under their chins were ignited to serve as torches. All these barbarities
took place at a public nocturnal fete which Nero gave in his own gardens.
They served as side-shows whilst the emperor diverted his guests with chariot
races, mixing with the crowd in plebeian attire or driving himself in a chariot.
Hardened though the Romans were to gladiatorial shows, the savage cruelty
of these tortures aroused horror and pity in many of those who witnessed them.
Tacitus, Suetonius, Dio Cassius,
Pliny the Elder, and the satirist Juvenal, all make reference to the fire;
but it is only in Tacitus that we have a mention of Nero's attempt to fasten
the outrage upon a particular sect. Tacitus definitely specifies the Christians
by name, but Gibbon and others maintain that under that designation he included
the Jews, because those who had adopted the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ
were not yet sufficiently numerous in Rome to be a source of alarm. This view,
however, which seems only prompted by a desire to belittle the influence of
Christianity, has not won many adherents. There is an excellent article on
the subject in DCeB., vol. iv, pp. 24-27.
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St.
Faustus and Companions
Item Romæ sanctórum Mártyrum Fausti et aliórum
vigínti trium.
In the same city, the holy martyrs Faustus and twenty-three
others.
Roman martyrs, 24. Possibly they can be identified
with the martyrs commemorated on June 25, Lucilla, Flora, etc.
Faustus and Companions MM (RM). The acta of this group of 24 Roman martyrs
headed by Faustus have been lost. They may be identical to the Roman martyrs,
including Saint Lucy, celebrated on June 25 (Benedictines). |
Sátalis, in Arménia,
sanctórum Mártyrum septem fratrum, scílicet Oréntii,
Heróis, Pharnácii, Firmíni, Firmi, Cyríaci et
Longíni mílitum; qui a Maximiáno Imperatóre, eo
quod Christiáni essent, cíngulo militári priváti
sunt, et, ab ínvicem separáti atque in divérsa loca
abdúcti, in dolóribus et ærúmnis pósiti,
quievérunt in Dómino.
At Satalis in Armenia, seven saintly brothers, all martyrs:
Orentius, Heros, Pharnacius, Firminus, Firmus, Cyriacus and Longinus, who
owe their martyrdom to Emperor Maximian. Because they were Christians,
they were deprived of the military belt by his command, then separated from
one another, hurried away to different places, and in the midst of painful
trials found their repose in the Lord.
According to the pre-1970
Roman Martyrology, they were seven brothers who were stripped of their positions
in the Roman army and executed during the reign of co-Emperor Maximian.
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304 St. Amphibalus Martyr traditional companion
of St. Alban of Verulam
According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, Amphibalus was the name
of the underground Christian priest, sheltered by Britain's protomartyr,
St. Alban, at his house in
the Roman town of Verulamium (now St. Albans). The latter took his place
when the authorities arrived to arrest Amphibalus. He suffered execution
for his trouble. Bede describes these
events as occurring during the religious persecutions of the Emperor Diocletian
(c.AD 304), though modern historians have argued the reigns of Decius (c.254)
or Septimus Severus (c.209).
Unfortunately, though Amphibalus may have existed in person,
this was almost certainly not his name. Rather, the word is a misunderstanding
of the Latin used for the cloak from which Alban created his disguise. All
other details of the man's life are, no doubt, later medieval embellishments.
He was supposedly a native of Isca (Caerleon), converted numerous Romano-Britons
after his brush with death - including SS. Stephanus & Socrates - and
fled with them to western Britannia Superior (Wales). He was, later, caught
and returned to Verulamium where he too suffered martyrdom.
Amphibalus' body was supposedly discovered at Redbourne, in 1178,
and translated to a fitting shrine in the Abbey Church of St. Albans. He
is, doubtfully, said to have had a church dedicated to him in post-Roman
Winchester.
Amphibalus of Verulam M (AC) Died c. 304. The original acta
of Saint Alban say only that the protomartyr put on the cloak (amphibalus)
of the priest, was arrested in his stead, and was martyred. Geoffrey of Monmouth
took the word amphibalus as the name of the priest. Thus, in later versions
of the story, the priest is martyred with or just after Saint Alban (Benedictines).
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360 Simplicius of Autun B (RM)
Augustodúni deposítio sancti Simplícii,
Epíscopi et Confessóris.
At Autun,
the death of St. Simplicius, bishop and confessor.
4th 5th v. ST
SIMPLICIUS, BISHOP OF AUTUN
EXCEPT that he was bishop of Autun, highly esteemed for his integrity and
charity, nothing definite is known about this St Simplicius. He would seem
to have succeeded Bishop Egemonius about the year 390. On the other hand,
it is possible that he was the Bishop Simplicius mentioned by St Athanasius
as one of the signatories to the decrees of the Council of Sardica in 347.
According to his legend, as related by Gregory of Tours, he came of a distinguished
Gallo-Roman family and married a maiden, young and wealthy like himself, with
whom he made a pact that they should live in continence and devote themselves
to good works. After Simplicius had been elected bishop, misunderstandings
arose and some scandal was caused in the still largely pagan city because
the hew prelate and his wife continued to dwell under the same roof. To vindicate
themselves they voluntarily submitted to an ordeal by fire. They took red-hot
coals, laid them in the folds of their clothing, and stood up before the people
for an hour without sustaining any injury to themselves or to their garments.
So convincing was this miracle that it led over a thousand pagans to seek
baptism.
Another wonder, and one equally fruitful in conversions, was wrought by
St Simplicius on the day of the goddess Berecynthia, which was always an
occasion for disgraceful orgies. The holy bishop met the statue of the deity
as it was being conveyed in a chariot to bless the fields, and with a prayer
for divine assistance he upraised his hand to make the sign of the cross.
Instantly the image fell to the ground, from which no efforts could dislodge
it. Moreover, the beasts which drew the chariot refused to proceed any further.
The fantastic story just recounted
is to be found in Gregory of Tours, De Gloria Conf., nn. 73-76. There is also
a short medieval life of Simplicius (it is printed in the Catalogus of Brussels Hagiographical MSS.,
vol. i, pp. 127-129), and it has been held that this was the source from
which Gregory derived his information, but Bruno Krusch (in the Neues Archiv, vol. xxxiii, pp. 18-19)
denies this. A Simplicius, Bishop of Autun, is commemorated in the Hieronymianum, not only today but also
on November 19, and there are certain chronological data which suggest that
there may have been two bishops of Autun of that name. See also Duchesne,
Fastes Épiscopaux, vol.
ii, pp. 174-178.
Saint Simplicius lived in continence with his wife, prior to
being made bishop of Autun. He worthily bore the pastoral staff as he zealously
and successfully uprooted paganism (Benedictines).
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5th v. Agoard, Agilbert,
and Others MM (RM)
In vico Christólio, in território Parisiénsi, pássio
sanctórum Mártyrum Agoárdi et Aglibérti, cum áliis
innúmeris promíscui sexus.
In the diocese of Paris, at Creteil, the martyrdom of
the Saints Agoard and Aglibert, with a great multitude of others of both sexes.
5th-7th century. The Roman Martyrology repeats
the legend: "In the neighborhood of Paris, in the village of Creteil, the
passion of the holy martyrs Agoard and Aglibert, and numberless others of
both sexes." The Jesuit Bollandists date their martyrdom between the 1st
and 3rd centuries, but some claim it was more likely to have occurred at
a later date--perhaps about AD 400. They were said to have migrated to Creteil,
been converted by Saint Altinus, pulled down a pagan temple, and suffered
the consequence of death by the sword. A church was later erected over their
burial site, where their relics are now enshrined.
There feast is kept in the
diocese of Paris on June 25 (Benedictines, Husenbeth).
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575 St. Germoc Confessor
of the faith Irish chieftain
He was the brother of St. Breaca.
Germoc settled in Cornwall, England. |
640 Saint Alena of
Brussels invoked for eye troubles and toothache VM (AC)
Born near Brussels, Belgium; Saint Alena was baptized without the knowledge
of her pagan parents. She was killed while secretly travelling to hear Mass
(Benedictines). Saint Alena is depicted in art as a princess with one arm
torn off. She might also be portrayed healing a blind man or with an angel
encouraging her (Roeder). She is venerated in Brussels and is invoked for
eye troubles and toothache (Roeder).
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775 St. Rumold Bishop
martyr patron saint of Malines, Flanders, Belgium
Mechlíniæ, in Brabántia, pássio sancti Rumóldi,
Epíscopi Dublinénsis et Mártyris, e Scotórum Rege
progéniti.
At Mechlin in Brabant, the passion of St. Rumold, bishop
of Dublin and martyr. He had been the son of the king of the Scots.
Also called Rombaut. He was an Irish monk who was
consecrated a bishop in Rome and then joined St. Willibrord on the Continent.
He was martyred in the area of Malines by two men that he had denounced for
their evil ways. Rumold is also commemorated as a bishop of Dublin, Ireland,
the son of a Scottish king.
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776 St. Theodulphus Abbot of
the Benedictine monastery of Lobbes, near Liege, Belgium
Láubiis, in Bélgio, sancti Theodúlphi
Epíscopi. At Lobbes in Belgium, St. Theodulphus,
bishop.
Theodulphus is also called Thiou. He had the rank of bishop
as well. Prelate, poet, and one of the leading theologians of the Frankish
Empire.
A member of Charlemagne's court, Theodulf became bishop of
Orléans in 775 and abbot of Saint-Benoît-sur-Loire in 781. He
worked for reform of the clergy within his diocese and established a hospice.
In 800 he was in Rome for Charlemagne's coronation, and in 804 he succeeded
the English scholar Alcuin as Charlemagne's chief theological adviser. Charlemagne
involved Theodulf in the dispute concerning the Filioque clause in the Nicene
Creed, which describes the procession of the Holy Ghost from the Father "and
from the Son" and which is one of the causes of the division between the
Greek and Roman churches. At Charlemagne's request, Theodulf defended the
Filioque clause in his treatise De Spiritu Sancto ("Concerning the Holy
Spirit"). It was also at Charlemagne's urging that Theodulf wrote his treatise
on Baptism, De ordine Baptismi ("Concerning the Ordinance of Baptism").
Theodulf received the pallium, the symbol of episcopal authority,
from Pope Stephen IV in 816. Charlemagne's son and successor Louis I the Pious,
deposed Theodulf in 818 for participation in a revolt by Louis's nephew Bernard
and imprisoned him in a monastery in Angers, where he died.
Theodulf's poem Ad Carolum regem ("To Charles the King")
depicts Charlemagne surrounded by family and courtiers. A patron of the arts
and a builder and restorer of churches, Theodulf had a palace and chapel built
at Germigny-des-Prés c. 806 that survives in the département
of Loiret as an important example of Carolingian architecture.
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880 Henry (Heric)
of Auxerre Benedictine monk and the headmaster of Saint-Germain abbey school
OSB (AC)
Born in Hery (Yonne); Saint Henry was a Benedictine monk and the headmaster
of Saint-Germain abbey school at Auxerre. He was also a hagiographer (Benedictines).
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845
Saint Ivan of Bohemia, Hermit renounced brilliant career as courtier hermit
life Bohemia (AC)
Saint Ivan renounced a brilliant career as a courtier to live as a hermit
in Bohemia. He was buried by Duchess Saint
Ludmilla of Bohemia (Benedictines, Encyclopedia).
In art, Saint Ivan is a hermit with a horse near him. He is venerated in
Bohemia (Roeder).
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1050 Blessed Erembert
I of Kremsmünster, OSB Abbot (AC)
Erembert was elected abbot, in 1050, of Kremsmünster monastery in
Austria (Benedictines).
|
1193 St. Bartholomew of Farne
Benedictine hermit on the island of Farne 42 yrs miracle worker
ST BARTHOLOMEW OF FARNE (A.D. 1193)
OF the many pious men who were led by the example of St Cuthbert to become
solitaries on the island of Farne, off the Northumbrian coast, not the least
remarkable was this Bartholomew, for he spent no less than forty-two years
upon that desolate haunt of birds. He was a north-countryman, a native of
Whitby. His parents, who may have been of Scandinavian origin, called him
Tostig, but because the name made him a laughing-stock it was changed to William.
He determined to go abroad, and his wanderings led him to Norway, where he
remained long enough to receive ordination as a priest. He returned home,
and went to Durham, where he took the monastic habit, assuming the name of
Bartholomew. A vision he had of St Cuthbert inspired him to dedicate the
rest of his life to God in the cell which Cuthbert had once occupied at Farne.
Upon his arrival he found another hermit already installed-a certain Brother
Ebwin, who strongly resented his intrusion and who strove by petty persecution
to drive him away. Bartholomew attempted no reprisals, but made it quite evident
that he had come to stay, and Ebwin eventually retired, leaving him in solitary
possession. The mode of life he embraced was one of extreme austerity, modelled
upon that of the fathers in the desert. Later he was joined by a former prior
of Durham called Thomas; but they could not agree. Their chief cause of dissension
-sad to relate-was the amount of the food ration. Thomas could not manage
with as little as Bartholomew, and he went so far as to question the genuineness
of what appeared to be his brother's extraordinary abstemiousness. Bartholomew,
who seems to have been sensitive to criticism, was so offended at being charged
with hypocrisy that he left the island and returned to Durham. There he remained
in spite of the apologies of Thomas, until the bishop, a year later, ordered
him back to Farne, when a reconciliation then took place. Forewarned of his
approaching death, Bartholomew announced it to some monks, who were with
him when he died, and buried him in the island. He left a reputation for
holiness and miracles, but there is no evidence of liturgical cultus.
There is a medieval life which
gives Bartholomew's history in some detail, and which was apparently written
by a contemporary. It is printed in the Acta Sanctorum, June, vol. v. See also
Stanton's Menology, pp. 287-288;
T. D. Hardy, Catalogue of Materials
(Rolls Series), vol. ii, pp. 226-227, where a very different date is suggested
for his death; and a short life in the Hermit
Saints in the Anglican series edited by J. H. Newman (1844). The Latin
text of the saint's miracles is given in Analecta Bollandiana, vol. lxx (1952),
pp. 5-19.
A Benedictine hermit
and miracle worker associated with Durham, England. He was born in Whitby, in Northumbria,
England, and was called Tostig. After going to Norway, Bartholomew was ordained
and returned to Durham, where he entered the Benedictine Order. He became
a hermit on the island of Farne, on the coast of Northumbria, remaining there
for forty-two years. Bartholomew was noted as a miracle worker.
Of the many pious men who were led by the example of Saint Cuthbert to become solitaries on
the island of Farne, off the Northumbrian coast, not the least remarkable
was this Bartholomew, for he spent no less than 42 years upon that desolate
haunt of birds. His parents, who may have been of Scandinavian origin, called
him Tostig, but because the name made him a laughing-stock it was changed
to William. He determined to go abroad, and his wanderings led him to Norway,
where he remained long enough to receive ordination as a priest. He returned
home, and went to Durham, where he took the monastic habit and took the name
Bartholomew. A vision he had of Saint Cuthbert inspired him to dedicate the
rest of his life to God in the cell which Cuthbert had once occupied at Farne.
Upon his arrival he found another hermit already installed--a
certain Brother Ebwin, who strongly resented his intrusion and who strove
by petty persecution to drive him away. Bartholomew attempted no reprisals,
but made it quite clear that he had come to stay. Ebwin eventually retired,
leaving him in solitary possession.
The mode of life he embraced was one of extreme
austerity, modelled upon that of the desert fathers. Later he was joined by
a former prior of Durham called Thomas; but they could not agree. Their chief
cause of dissension--sad to relate--was the amount of food ration. Thomas
could not manage with as little as Bartholomew, and he went so far as to
question the authenticity of what appeared to be his brother's extraordinary
abstemiousness.
Bartholomew, who seems to have been sensitive
to criticism, was so offended at being charged with hypocrisy that he left
the island and returned to Durham. There he remained in spite of the apologies
of Thomas, until the bishop, a year later, ordered him back to Farne, when
a reconciliation took place. Forewarned of his approaching death, Bartholomew
announced it to some monks, who were with him when he died, and buried him
on the island.
He left a reputation for holiness
and miracles, but there is no evidence of a liturgical cultus (Benedictines,
Encyclopedia, Walsh).
"From ancient time
long past, this island has been inhabited by certain birds whose name and
race miraculously persists. At the time of year for building nests, they gather
here. And such gracious gentleness have they learned from the holiness of
the place, or rather from those who made the place holy by their way of living
there, that they have no shrinking from the handling or the gaze of men.
They love quiet, and yet no clamor disturbs them. Their nests are built everywhere.
Some brood above their eggs beside the altar. No man presumes to molest them
or touch the eggs without leave... And they in turn do harm to
no man's store for food. They seek it with their mates upon the waves of
the seas. The ducklings, once they are reared, follow behind their mothers
who lead the way, and once they have entered their native waters, come no
more back to the nest.
"The mothers too, their mild and
gentle way of life forgotten, receive their ancient state and instinct with
the sea. This is the high prerogative of the island, which, had it come to
the knowledge of the scholars of old time, would have had its fair fame blazoned
through the earth.
"But at one time it befell, whilst a mother was
leading her brood, herself going on before that one of the youngsters fell
down a cleft of a creviced rock. The mother stood by in distress, and let
no one doubt but that she was then endowed with human reason. For she forthwith
turned about, left her youngsters behind, came to Bartholomew, and began tugging
at the hem of his cloak with her beak, as if to say plainly: 'Get up and
follow me and give me back my son.'
"He rose at once for her,
thinking that he must be sitting on her nest. But as she kept on tugging more
and more, he perceived at last that she was asking something from him that
she could not come at by voice. And indeed her action was eloquent, if not
her discourse. On she went, she first and he after, till coming to the cliff
she pointed to the place with her bill, and gazing at Bartholomew, intimated
with what signs she could that he was to peer inside. "Coming closer, he
saw the duckling, with its small wings clinging to the rock, and climbing
down he brought it back to its mother, who in high delight seemed by her
joyous look to give him thanks. Whereupon she took to the water with her sons,
and Bartholomew, dumb with astonishment, went back to his oratory" (Geoffrey).
Bartholomew of Farne, OSB Hermit (AC) (also known as Bartholomew
of Durham) Born at Whitby, England; died c. 1193. Of the many pious men who
were led by the example of Saint Cuthbert to become solitaries on the island
of Farne, off the Northumbrian coast, not the least remarkable was this Bartholomew,
for he spent no less than 42 years upon that desolate haunt of birds. His
parents, who may have been of Scandinavian origin, called him Tostig, but
because the name made him a laughing-stock it was changed to William. He determined
to go abroad, and his wanderings led him to Norway, where he remained long
enough to receive ordination as a priest. He returned home, and went to Durham,
where he took the monastic habit and took the name Bartholomew. A vision
he had of Saint Cuthbert inspired him to dedicate the rest of his life to
God in the cell which Cuthbert had once occupied at Farne.
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9th v. St.
John of Tuy
Hermit of Spanish Galicia who lived near Tuy. His relics are enshrined
in the Dominican church there.
|
1292 St. Kunegunda
founded Poore Clare Convent of Sandeck built churches hospitals ransomed Christians
served the poor and ill.
b. 1224 Daughter of King Bela IV and niece of St. Elizabeth
of Hungary, she married King Boleslaus V of Poland at sixteen. On his death
in 1279 she became a Poore Clare at the Convent of Sandeck, which she had
founded. She also built churches and hospitals, ransomed Christians captured
by the Turks, and served the poor and ill. She is also known as St. Kinga.
Her cult was confirmed in 1690.
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1815 Bl. Joseph Yuen Martyr of Tonkin, Vietnam. A native priest,
he was imprisoned, then strangled. Joseph was beatified in 1900.
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Mary
Mother of GOD
Saint of the Day June 24 Octávo
Kaléndas 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.