Inauguration
of the New St. Mark Cathedral in the Monastery of Anba Rowais. {Coptic}
On this day, of the year 1684 A.M., that coincided with Tuesday the 25th
of June, 1968 A.D., and in the tenth year of the papacy of Pope Kyrillos
the Sixth, 116th Pope of Alexandria, the holy church celebrates the inauguration
of the new St. Mark Cathedral in Dair El-Anba Rowais, which was known also
as Dair El-Khandaq.
For this occasion and for the return of the relics of St. Mark the Apostle
from Rome, after being in the city of Venice in Italy for eleven centuries,
i.e. since the ninth century, a great religious celebration was organized.
The celebration was headed by H.H. Pope Kyrillos the Sixth and was attended
by President Gamal Abdel Naser, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt,
Emperor Haile Selassie the First, Emperor of Ethiopia, and many of the heads
of different religions and representatives of churches from all around the
world. Among those religious leaders was Mari Ignatius Yacoub the Third,
the Antiochian Patriarch for the Syrian Orthodox.
Many momentous speeches, were delivered in different languages for this occasion.
The speakers were, Pope Kyrillos the Sixth, the Patriarch of the Syrian Orthodox,
Cardinal Doval, the head of the Roman Papal delegation, the Catholicos Patriarch
of Ethiopia, the secretary general of the World Council of Churches, and
the Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia. They all expressed their joy on this
happy and blessed day, saluting the church of Alexandria, which had a glorious
history, with salutation of appreciation and respect.
At the end of the speeches the Pope along with the President of Egypt and
the Emperor of Ethiopia went to the entrance of the new Cathedral. They unveiled
the curtains from the commemorative plaque that was prepared to perpetuate
this historical day.
This celebration was attended by the journalists, the international news
agencies' reporters, radio, television and more than six thousand Egyptians
and foreigners.
May the blessings of St. Mark
be with us all. Amen.
|
65 Departure of St.
Damianos, 35th Pope of Alexandria. {Coptic}
On this day also, of the year 321 A.M. (June 25th, 65 A.D.) St. Damianos,
35th Pope of Alexandria, departed. He became a monk in his early years in
the desert of Scete. He continued to fight and to devote himself to God for
sixteen years. He was ordained a deacon in the monastery of St. John the
Short. Then he went to the monastery of the fathers which is to the west
of Alexandria, and there he increased his asceticism.
When Pope Peter (34) was enthroned on the See of St. Mark, he brought and
appointed Damianos a private secretary. Damianos pursued a good course of
life and everyone loved him. When Pope Peter departed, the bishop unanimously
agreed to ordain him a patriarch. He was enthroned a patriarch on the second
of Abib 285 A.M. (June 26th, 569 A.D.). He cared for his flock well and he
wrote many epistles and discourses.
In the wilderness of Scete, there were some followers of Melitius El-Assyuty,
who drank wine a few times during the night before they intended to partake
of the Holy Communion. They claimed that the Lord Christ gave to His disciples
two cups: the first He did not say, "This is My Blood" but when he gave them
the second cup he said, "This is My Blood." St. Damianos showed them their
error. He clarified to them that the first cup was the cup of the Jewish
passover, and He nullified it with the second cup. He also told them that
the canons of the church ban those that eat before communion from partaking
of the Holy Eucharist. Some of them turned from their evil, but those that
did not turn from their evil council were driven out of the wilderness.
When Anba Theophanius, the Antiochian Patriarch departed, they ordained a
successor to him called Peter, who sent a letter to Pope Damianos which said,
"There is no need for us to say that God is the three Persons." When Pope
Damianos read this letter he became enkindled with zeal. He wrote him a letter
which explained that God is, in no doubt, one in His Godhead, one in essence,
but He is Three persons, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit,
One God. He wrote to him many testimonies from the Holy Scriptures and from
the sayings of the holy fathers. Nevertheless, Peter refused to return to
the truth, and insisted on his error. Pope Damianos ordered that his name
not be mentioned in the Divine Liturgy for twenty years until the heretic
died.
Pope Damianos remained for thirty five years, eleven month, and sixteen days,
teaching and preaching to his flock. He departed at a good old age. May his
prayers be with us and Glory be to God forever. Amen.
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2nd
v. Sosipater (Sopater) son of Pyrrhus, kinsman of Saint Paul, and Christian
of Beroea, accompanied Saint Paul on his journey from Greece to Jerusalem
(Acts 20:4) (RM)
Apud Berœam natális sancti Sosípatris, qui fuit discípulus
beáti Pauli Apóstoli.
At Beraea, the birthday of St. Sosipater, disciple of
the blessed apostle Paul.
2nd century. Sopater, son of Pyrrhus, kinsman of
Saint Paul, and Christian of Beroea, accompanied Saint Paul on his journey
from Greece to Jerusalem (Acts 20:4). Many scholars believe that he is the
Sosipater whom Paul calls a compatriot and includes his greetings to the
Romans from Corinth (Romans 16:21). According to tradition, he later went
to Corfu (Benedictines, Delaney, Encyclopedia).
|
304 Febronia of Nisibis
nun of extraordinary beauty VM (RM)
Sibápoli, in Mesopotámia, sanctæ Febróniæ,
Vírginis et Mártyris; quæ, in persecutióne Diocletiáni,
sub Siléno Júdice, ob fidem et pudicítiam servándam,
primo virgis cæsa et equúleo torta, deínde pectínibus
laniáta atque igne succénsa, demum, excússis déntibus
ac mammis pedibúsque abscíssis, cápitis damnáta,
tot passiónum ornáta monílibus migrávit ad Sponsum.
At Sibapolis in Syria, under the governor Silenus, in
the persecution of Diocletian, St. Febronia, virgin and martyr. She
was scourged and racked for defending her faith and her chastity, then torn
with iron combs and exposed to fire. Finally her teeth were broken
out, her breasts and feet cut away, and she was condemned to capital punishment,
going to her Spouse adorned with sufferings as with so many jewels.
Febronia Orthodoxe und Katholische
Kirche: 25. Juni
ST FEBRONIA, VIRGIN AND MARTYR (A.D. 304?)
IT must be frankly admitted that the virgin martyr St Febronia is in all
probability a purely fictitious personage, but she is venerated by all the
churches of the East, including that of Ethiopia, and in the West by such
towns as Trani, in Apulia, and Patti, in Sicily. which claim to possess some
of her relics. She is supposed to have suffered at Nisibis in Mesopotamia,
somewhere about the year 304, in the persecution under Diocletian. No genuine
records of her life and passion are available, but the legend attributed
to her survives in the form of an attractive romance purporting to have been
written by Thomaîs, a nun of her convent, who is said to have witnessed
the events she describes. Only a mere outline of the story can be given here.
Febronia, as a child of two, was placed by her parents under the charge of
her aunt, Bryene, who ruled a convent of nuns at Nisibis. There she grew
up, lovely in body and in soul, in ignorance of the outside world, and intent
only upon adorning herself with virtues to fit her for her heavenly Bridegroom.
Bryene took great pains with her education, and, in order to guard her against
the temptations likely to assail her, she allowed her niece food only every
other day and made her sleep upon a narrow plank of wood. So well did Febronia
profit by the instruction she received that when she was eighteen she was
set to read and expound the Holy Scriptures to the nuns every Friday. Great
ladies from the town also attended these readings, but Bryene veiled her
from their sight lest their attention should be distracted by Febronia's
amazing beauty and also because the girl had never seen anyone but her fellow
nuns.
The peaceful life of the convent was brought to a sudden termination by the
outbreak of persecution. At Nisibis the cruel edicts of Diocletian were enforced
with great ferocity by the prefect Selenus. The clergy, together with their
bishop, took refuge in flight and their example was followed by all the nuns
with the exception of Bryene, of Febronia, who was recovering from a serious
illness, and of Thomais. When the prefect's officials came to search the
convent, they did not trouble to arrest the two old women, but they carried
off Febronia.
The following day she was brought up for trial and Selenus told his nephew,
Lysimachus, to cross-examine her. This the young man proceeded to do courteously
and somewhat diffidently, for he was the son of a Christian mother and all
his sympathies were with the prisoner. Selenus interrupted him impatiently
and prompted perhaps by a touch of malice, he offered to give Febronia liberty
and wealth if she would renounce her religion and consent to marry Lysimachus.
She replied that she had treasure in Heaven-not made with hands: that she
was already espoused to an immortal Bridegroom, and possessed a dowry which
was the kingdom of Heaven. Infuriated by her reply, Selenus ordered her to
be stripped, to be fastened to four posts over a slow fire, and to be scourged.
Seventeen of her teeth were then pulled out and her breasts were cut off-regardless
of the indignant protests of the crowd that filled the court-house. As the
martyr survived all these tortures her limbs were lopped off and she was
finally despatched by blows from an axe. Retribution promptly overtook Selenus:
in a sudden fit of madness he struck his head against a marble pillar and
fell down, dead. By order of Lysimachus, Febronia's remains were then reverently
gathered up and she was given a magnificent funeral. Her martyrdom led immense
numbers of pagans to seek baptism, amongst them Lysimachus, who became a
monk in the days of the Emperor Constantine.
This story, as stated above, had
an immense diffusion. It is to be found not only in Syriac, Greek and Latin,
but also in Armenian, Georgian, and other tongues. In an important article
in the Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xlii (1924), pp. 69-76, J. Simon has shown
that the original was almost certainly Syriac. He conjectures that the people
of Nisibis, in opposition to the monophysites, were anxious to show that
they had ancient martyrs who formed part of the old orthodox Byzantine tradition;
and so they, at the end of the sixth or the beginning of the seventh century,
invented Febronia. No trace of such a martyr exists before that period. The
Greek and Latin texts of the story will be found in the Acta Sanctorum, June,
vol. vii; the Syriac is printed by Bedjan, Acta Martyrum et Sanctorum vol.
v, pp. 573-615.
The Virgin Martyr Febronia suffered during the reign of Diocletian
(284-305). She was raised at a monastery in the city of Sivapolis (Assyria).
The head of the women's monastery was the abbess Bryaena, the aunt of St
Febronia. Being concerned about her niece's salvation, she assigned her a
stricter form of life than the other nuns. According to their monastic rule,
on Fridays the sisters put aside their other duties and spent the whole day
in prayer and the reading of Holy Scripture. The abbess usually assigned
the reading to St Febronia. News of her pious life spread
throughout the city. The illustrious young widow Hieria, a pagan, began to
visit her, and under the influence of her guidance and prayer she accepted
holy Baptism, bringing her parents and kinsfolk to the Christian Faith.
Diocletian sent a detachment of soldiers to Assyria under
the command of Lysimachus, Selinus and Primus for the destruction of Christians.
Selenos, the uncle of Lysimachus, was noted for his fierce attitude against
Christians, but Lysimachus was of a different frame of mind from him, since
his mother had sought to inspire love for the Christian faith in her son,
and she had died a Christian. Lysimachus had discussed with his kinsman Primus
how it would be possible to deliver Christians from the hands of the torturer.
When the detachment of soldiers approached the convent, its inhabitants hid.
There remained only the abbess Bryaena, her helper Thomais and St Febronia,
who was seriously ill at the time.
It grieved the abbess terribly that her niece might fall into
the hands of the torturers, who might defile her. She prayed fervently that
the Lord would preserve her and strengthen her in the confession of Christ
the Savior. Selinus gave orders to bring him all the nuns of the convent.
Primus with the detachment of soldiers found no one, except the two old women
and St Febronia. He regretted that they had not hidden, and he suggested
to the nuns that they flee. But the nuns decided not to leave the place of
their labors and they entrusted themselves to the will of the Lord. Primus
told Lysimachus about the particular beauty of St Febronia and advised him
to take her for himself. Lysimachus said that he would not seduce a virgin
dedicated to God, and he asked Primus to hide the other nuns somewhere so
that they would not fall into the hands of Selinus. One of the soldiers overheard
the conversation and told Selinus. They led St Febronia off to the military
commander with her hands bound and a chain around her neck. Selinus urged
her to deny Christ, promising her honors, rewards, and marriage with Lysimachus.
The holy virgin firmly and fearlessly answered that she had an Immortal Bridegroom,
and she would not exchange Him for any mortal man. Selinus subjected her
to fierce torture. The saint prayed, "My Savior, do not abandon me in this
terrible hour!" They beat the martyr for a long
time, and blood flowed from her wounds. In order to intensify the suffering
of St Febronia, they tied her to a tree and set a fire under it. The tortures
were so inhuman, that the people began to demand an end to the torture, since
there was no confession of guilt by the girl. Selinus continued to mock and
jeer at the martyr, but St Febronia became silent. Because of weakness she
was unable to utter a word. In a rage Selinus gave orders to tear out her
tongue, smash her teeth, and finally, to cut off both hands and feet. The
people were unable to bear such a horrid spectacle and they left the scene
of the torture, cursing Diocletian and his gods. Among the crowd
was the nun Thomais, who afterwards recorded St Febronia's martyrdom in detail,
and also her student Hieria. She came forth out of the crowd and in the hearing
of all reproached Selinus for his boundless cruelty. He gave orders to arrest
her, but learning that Hieria was of illustrious standing whom he could not
readily subject to torture, he said, "By your speech you have brought on
Febronia even greater torment." Finally, they beheaded the holy Martyr Febronia.
Departing the place of execution, Lysimachus wept and withdrew
to his quarters. Selinus made ready to eat, but he was not able to take food,
and went off to the quiet of his own chambers. Suddenly, he became like one
deranged. Looking up to the heavens, he raved and bellowed like a bull, then
fell down and struck his head on a marble column and died. When Lysimachus
learned of this, he said, " Great is the God of the Christians, Who has avenged
Febronia's blood, so unrighteously shed!" He prepared a coffin, placed the
martyr's body in it, and took it to the convent. Abbess Bryaena
fell senseless, seeing the mutilated remains of St Febronia. Later, she recovered
her senses and gave orders to open the convent gates so that all would be
able to come and venerate the holy martyr and glorify God Who had given her
such endurance in suffering for Christ. Lysimachus and Primus renounced their
idol worship and accepted both Baptism and monasticism. Hieria gave her wealth
to the convent and petitioned Abbess Bryaena to accept her at the convent
in place of St Febronia.
Every year, on the day of the martyric death of St Febronia, a
solemn feast was celebrated at the convent . During the time of the all-night
Vigil the nuns always saw St Febronia, at her usual place in church. From
the relics of St Febronia occurred numerous miracles and healings. The Life
of St Febronia was recorded by the nun Thomais, an eyewitness to her deeds.
In the year 363 the relics of St Febronia were transferred to
Constantinople.
Soon after the death of St Febronia, St James the Bishop of Nisibis
(January 13) built a church and transferred into it a portion of the of the
holy martyr's relics.
Our Holy Mother, the
Martyr Fevronia (June 25) SerbianOrthodoxChurch.net
She was the daughter of Prosphorus, a Roman
senator. In order to escape marriage with a mortal man, she betrothed herself
to Christ and became a nun in the East, in Assyria, in a monastery where her
aunt, Bryaena, was abbess. Lysimachus, a nobleman's son, was desirous of
entering into marriage with Fevronia, but the Emperor Diocletian, suspecting
him of being a secret Christian, sent him to the East with his uncle, Silenus,
to seize and kill the Christians. Silenus was as ferocious as a wild beast
and mercilessly exterminated the Christians wherever he could. Lysimachus,
on the contrary, protected the Christians whenever possible and hid them
from his bestial uncle. Having emptied Palmyra of Christians, Silenus came
to the city of Nisibis, close to which there was the monastery of fifty ascetic
virgins in which Fevronia was a nun. Although she was barely twenty years
old, Fevronia was held in respect both in the monastery and in the city for
her meekness, wisdom and restraint. The monastery followed the rule of a
former abbess, Blessed Platonida, and every Friday the nuns would spend their
time in prayer and reading sacred books, with no other work. Bryaena had
appointed Fevronia to read to the other sisters while standing behind a curtain,
so that no-one would be distracted or captivated by the beauty of her face.
When Silenus heard about Fevronia, he ordered that she be brought before
him. When the holy maiden refused to renounce Christ and enter into marriage
with a mortal man, he ordered them to whip her and then cut off her hands,
breasts and feet and finally to slay her with the sword. But a fearful divine
punishment came upon her tormentor that very day. n demon entered into him,
and a fearful terror took hold of him. In his terror, he struck his head
on a marble pillar and fell down dead. Lysimachus ordered that Fevronia's
body be gathered together and brought to the monastery for solemn burial,
and he, together with many of the soldiers, was baptised. Many healings were
wrought through Fevronia's holy relics, and she herself appeared on the day
of her Feast, standing in her usual place among the sisters. They beheld
her with both fear and joy. St Fevronia suffered and went to eternal blessedness
in the year 310, and her relics were translated to Constantinople in 363.
Febronia Orthodoxe und Katholische
Kirche: 25. Juni
Febronia war Nonne in einem
Frauenkloster in Nisibis (Nusaybin) und in der Stadt wegen ihrer Frömmigkeit
bekannt. Der Präfekt Lysimachus und der Richter Selenus wurden von Kaiser
Diokletian beauftragt, die Christen hinzurichten. Die Nonnen des Klosters
konnten fliehen, nur die Äbtissin und Febronia, die krank war, blieben
zurück. Febronia wurde gefoltert und, da sie standhaft blieb, enthauptet.
Sie starb um 305. Schon kurz nach ihrem Tod ereigneten sich Wunder an ihrem
Grab. Ihr Leben wurde von einer Nonne aus dem Kloster aufgezeichnet, Bischof
Jakobus (Gedenktag 13.01. - gestorben 350) errichtete eine Kirche zu ihren
Ehren. Reliquien kamen 363 nach Konstantinopel.
Saint Febronia is the heroine of a ghastly tale that relates that
she was a nun of extraordinary beauty at Nisibis in Mesopotamia (not at Sybapolis
in Syria). During Diocletian's persecution the prefect Selenus offered her
freedom if she would renounce her religion and marry his nephew Lysimachus,
a young man suspected of inclining towards Christianity. When Febronia refused
she was tortured, mutilated, and battered to death; whereupon Selenus went
mad and killed himself.
Lysimachus and many of the spectators were converted and baptized.
This story, which gained immense popularity, is not heard of before the 7th
century and there is nothing to suggest that Febronia was more than a fictional
character (Attwater, Benedictines). In art, Saint Febronia holds the palm
and shears with which her breasts were cut off. At times there may be a crown
and sword (Roeder).
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362 Saint Gallicanus
of Ostia high officer in the army of Constantine and consul at Rome (RM)
The whole of this story must have been fabricated
at a late date, not before the seventh century.
Alexandríæ sancti
Gallicáni Mártyris, viri Consuláris, qui, sublimátus
ínfulis triumphálibus et Constantíno Augústo
carus, a sanctis Joánne et Paulo ad Christi fidem convérsus
est; eáque suscépta, cum sancto Hilaríno secéssit
ad Ostia Tiberína, atque ibi hospitalitáti et infirmórum
servítio totum se dedit. Cujus rei fama in toto Orbe divulgáta,
multi úndique illuc veniéntes vidébant virum ex
Patrício et Cónsule laváre páuperum pedes, pónere
mensam, aquam mánibus effúndere, languéntibus sollícite
ministráre et cétera pietátis offícia exhibére.
Ipse póstmodum, sub Juliána Apóstata, inde expúlsus,
Alexandríam perréxit; ibíque, cum a Rauciáno
Júdice sacrificáre cogerétur et contémneret,
ideo, percússus gládio, Christi Martyr efféctus est.
At Alexandria, St. Gallicanus, exconsul and martyr who
had been honoured with a triumph, and was held in affection by the emperor
Constantine. Converted by Saints John and Paul, he withdrew to Ostia
with St. Hilarinus, and consecrated himself entirely to the duties of hospitality
and to the service of the sick. The report of such an event spread
throughout the whole world, and from all sides many people came to see a
man who had been a senator and consul now washing the feet of the poor, preparing
their table, serving them, carefully waiting on the infirm, and exercising
other works of mercy. Driven from this place by Julian the Apostate,
he repaired to Alexandria, where, for refusing to sacrifice to idols, at
the command of the judge Raucian, he was put to the sword, and thus became
a martyr of Christ.
ST GALLICANUS (A.D. 352?)
THERE was a Gallicanus who was an illustrious Roman patrician, and possibly
a great benefactor to the Church, in the fourth century. He was not, however,
a martyr, as is asserted in the Roman Martyrology. In all probability he
was the Gallicanus who was consul with Symmachus in 330. A record has been
preserved in the Liber Pontificalis of the generosity of Gallicanus to the
church of SS. Peter, Paul and John the Baptist, which Constantine had built
at Ostia. Amongst his donations were a silver crown with dolphins, weighing
twenty pounds, and a silver cup or chalice with bas-reliefs, weighing fifteen
pounds. He also endowed the church with four landed estates. This is all
that is actually recorded of the patrician of that name. Despite the abnormally
long notice accorded to him in the Roman Martyrology, his reputed "acts"
are spurious; they are a late compilation and abound with anachronisms and
inaccuracies. According to them Gallicanus was a great general who, in the
days of Constantine, routed first the Persians and then the Scythians, in
two victorious campaigns. Whilst he was engaged in the second expedition,
he was converted to Christianity by the brothers SS. John and Paul.
Retiring from Rome, Gallicanus settled down at Ostia. He built a church,
liberated his slaves, and enlarged his house to make it a hospice for pilgrims.
In all his good works he was assisted by a companion named Hilarinus. "His
fame" , we read, "spread throughout the world, and men came from the east
and from the west to see the ex-patrician and ex-consul, the friend of the
emperor, washing the feet of pilgrims, laying the table, pouring water on
their hands, ministering to the infirm, and generally giving an example of
sublime virtue." These activities are supposed to have been brought to an
end by Julian the Apostate, who commanded Gallicanus to sacrifice to the gods
or to go into exile. The saint chose banishment, and withdrew to Egypt, where
he joined a group of hermits. Persecution, however, followed him even into
the desert, and he was beheaded, while his friend Hilarinus was scourged
to death.
The whole of this story must have
been fabricated at a late date, not before the seventh century. Mgr Duchesne
(Liber Pontificalis, vol. i, p. 199) has shown that the Acts of Gallicanus
were in all probability evolved out of a misinterpretation of what is recorded
in the account of St Silvester regarding the donations to the churches made
at that time. In reality, the generous benefactor who here figures as Gallicanus
was an entirely different historical personage, viz. St Pammachius (August
30), and the hospice for pilgrims mentioned above is an idea borrowed from
the xenodochium which Pammachius organized, not in Ostia, but at Perto. What
lends point to this interpretation is the fact that the story of Gallicanus
is bound up with that of the martyrs SS. John and Paul, whose church in Rome
on the Coelian Hill was known as the titulus Pammachii. The gift of the four
landed estates is also borrowed from the Liber Pontificalis, which mentions
such an endowment immediately before the name of Gallicanus occurs, connecting
it with the basilica built at Ostia, but the donor was in this case not Gallicanus,
but the Emperor Constantine. The legend of Gallicanus. which really forms
part of the Acts of SS. John and Paul, is printed by the Bollandists in the
Acta Sanctorum, June, vol. vii. See also J. P. Kirsch, Die römischen
Titelkirchen im Altertum (1918), pp. 156-158; and H. Quentin, Les Martyrologes
historiques, pp. 431 and 533.
Gallicanus is described as a high officer in the army of Constantine
and consul at Rome. In 330, he retired to Ostia, where he founded a hospital
and ministered to the sick. The Roman Martyrology makes him a martyr at Alexandria
under Julian the Apostate; but both his banishment to Alexandria and his
martyrdom are questioned by historians (Benedictines). Saint Gallicanus is
depicted in art as a Roman patrician washing the feet of the poor. He is
venerated at Longchamps near Paris (Roeder) .
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434 Saint Solomon
of Brittany husband of Saint Gwen and father of Saints Cuby and Cadfan M
(AC)
Born in Cornwall; King Solomon of Brittany was the husband of Saint Gwen
and father of Saints Cuby and Cadfan. He was murdered by heathen malcontents
among his subjects (Benedictines, Encyclopedia) .
|
463
Saint Prosper of Aquitaine study of theological questions wrote poetry and
treatises, notably his Chronicle, a universal history from creation to the
Vandal capture of Rome in 455 (RM)
Prosper von Aquitanien Katholische
und Evangelische Kirche: 25. Juni
ST PROSPER OF AQUITAINE (c. A.D. 465)
ST PROSPER of Aquitaine, whose feast is kept at Tarbes as The Aquitainian
Doctor, is well known in his writings but little known in his life, though
there are several ancient references to him as "learned and holy" and the
like. He was neither bishop nor priest (the Roman Martyrology calls him bishop
of Reggio by confusion with another Prosper: see below); he seems always
to have been a layman, possibly married-a point not settled by the disputed
attribution to him of a Poem from a Husband to his Wife, expressive of trust
in God whatever befalls.
Prosper went from Aquitaine into Provence, and from Marseilles in 428 wrote,
at the instance of his friend Hilary, to St Augustine at Hippo. The matters
raised drew from St Augustine his treatises Concerning Predestination and
Concerning the Gift of Perseverance, and Prosper thus became involved in
the semi-Pelagian controversy, opposing St John Cassian and perhaps St Vincent
of Lérins. Prosper and Hilary went to Rome, and returned with a letter
from Pope St Celestine I to the bishops of Gaul, praising the zeal of the
bearers and calling for peace. But the disputes continued. Prosper eventually
went again to Rome, where he is said to have been secretary to Pope St Leo
the Great. He died there some time after 463.
The writings of Prosper of Aquitaine, whether in verse or prose, are mostly
concerned with the controversy about grace and free will in defence of St
Augustine's doctrine. His longest poem is a dogmatic treatise of 1002 hexameters,
"A Song about the Graceless"; but the most widely known of his works is his
Chronicle, from the Creation to the capture of Rome by the Vandals in A.D.
455.
L. Valentin, St Prosper d'Aquitaine
(1900); G. Bardy in DTC.; H. W. Phillott in DCB. Cf. also note to St Prosper
of Reggio, below. An English translation of his treatise on Divine Grace
and Free Will, against Cassian, was published in New York in 1950.
Born in Aquitaine, France, c. 390; died in Rome, Italy, c. 463.
Saint Prosper was probably a layman who may have been married. He left Aquitaine
for Provence and settled at Marseilles. Prosper devoted his fine intellect
to the study of theological questions. He wrote to Saint Augustine in 428, and in response,
Augustine wrote his treatises on perseverance and predestination.
Prosper opposed the semi-Pelagianism of Saint John Cassian (which is why he has
never been canonized in the West), accompanied his friend Hilary, who had
asked him to write to Augustine, on a trip to visit Pope Saint Celestine I in Rome. He is said
to have become a secretary to Pope Saint
Leo the Great in Rome, where Prosper died. He wrote poetry and treatises,
notably his Chronicle, a universal history from creation to the Vandal capture
of Rome in 455. Saint Prosper was a prolific writer and a powerful controversialist
(Benedictines, Delaney, Encyclopedia).
Prosper von Aquitanien Katholische
und Evangelische Kirche: 25. Juni
Prosper wurde um 390 in der gallischen Provinz Aquitanien geboren.
In Marseille führte er ein mönchisches Leben nach dem Vorbild des
Paulinus von Nola. Er studierte die Schriften Augustins und betonte mit ihm,
daß der Mensch allein durch Gottes Gnade erwählt werde. Viele
Geistliche vertraten dagegen die Auffassung, der Mensch müsse an der
Erlangung des Heils mitwirken. Prosper wurde Sekretär Leo des Großen
und bekämpfte auch hier diese Lehre, die schließlich als Pelagianismus
verworfen wurde. Er starb an einem 25.6. nach 455 (um 463?) .
|
466 Saint Prosper of Reggio
renown for his charity B (RM)
ST PROSPER, BISHOP OF REGGIO (A.D. 466?)
THERE is evidence that from the ninth century St Prosper, known as bishop
of Reggio (not the Reggio in Calabria), has been much venerated in the Italian
province of the Emilia. He appears to have flourished in the fifth century,
but history can tell us little that is definite about him. An unreliable
tradition asserts that he distributed all his goods to the poor in order
to fulfil our Lord's precept to the rich young man, and that he died on June
25, 466, in the midst of his priests and deacons after a beneficent episcopate
which had lasted twenty-two years. He was buried in the church of St Apollinaris,
which he had built and consecrated, outside the walls of Reggio. In the year
703 his relics were translated to a great new church erected in his honour
by Thomas, Bishop of Reggio, and he is the principal patron of the city.
The Roman Martyrology is here gravely at fault, in that it identifies Prosper
of Reggio with Prosper of Aquitaine (above). The two were entirely distinct,
and there is no trace of any attempt to identify them earlier than the tenth
century.
The whole matter has been convincingly
dealt with in an article by Dom Germain Morin, in the Revue Benedictine, vol. xii (1895), pp.
241-257, entitled “St Prosper de Reggio". No serious scholar now defends
the identity of these two Prospers, nor did the Bollandists and Tillemont
in the eighteenth century. See also J. M. Mercati, in the Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xv (1896),
pp. 161-256; and Lanzoni, Le Diocesi d’Italia,
vol. i, pp. 615-618.
Died in Reggio, Emilia, Italy, on June 25, c. 466. Little is known
of Saint Prosper, except that he was renown for his charity. Visitors to Reggio
Nell'Emilia, Italy, will be surprised to find that the city's patron saint,
Bishop Prosper, is commemorated not by the great cathedral but by the little
church of San Prospero, which he had built in honor of Saint Apollinaris, tucked away behind
the cathedral in the market square.
None of this would have troubled the humble Saint Prosper. He cared so little
about his own glory that he built and consecrated this church outside the
walls of Reggio, and directed that he should be buried there. But, far from
forgetting about him, the people of Reggio claimed them for their own.
When a rich young man asked Jesus, "What have I to do to inherit eternal
life?" Jesus replied, "Sell all that you own and distribute the money to
the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven: then come, follow me."
Tradition holds that Prosper, a true follower of Jesus, took His command
seriously. He distributed his goods to the poor and died after ruling as
bishop of Reggio, Emilia, Italy, for 22 years. His relics were translated
in 703 to a new church built in his honor by Thomas, the bishop of Reggio.
This Saint Prosper should not be confused with Prosper of Aquitaine (above),
his contemporary (Attwater, Benedictines, Bentley, White) .
|
470
Saint Maximus of Turin Bishop indefatigable in his preaching B (RM)
ST MAXIMUS, BISHOP OF TURIN (c. A.D. 467)
MUCH of the literary work of St Maximus of Turin survives, but very little
is known about its writer. He appears to have been born about the year 380,
and, from inferences drawn from some of his writings, it is conjectured that
he was a native either of Vercelli or of some place in the province of Rhaetia.
He states that in 397 he witnessed the martyrdom of three missionary bishops
at Anaunia, in the Rhaetian Alps. The historian Gennadius in the Book of
Ecclesiastical Writers, which he compiled towards the end of the fifth century,
describes St Maximus, Bishop of Turin, as a profound student of the Bible,
a preacher well able to instruct the people, and the author of many books,
the titles of some of which he specifies. The notice concludes by saying
that St Maximus flourished in the reigns of Honorius and of Theodosius the
Younger. As a matter of fact he long survived them. In 451 he attended the
synod of Milan, presided over by his metropolitan, St Eusebius, and with
the other prelates of northern Italy he signed the letter addressed to Pope
St Leo the Great, which declared the assembly's adhesion to the orthodox
doctrine of the Incarnation as set forth in his so-called "Dogmatic Epistle".
St Maximus was also present at the Council of Rome in 465. His signature
on that occasion follows immediately after that of Pope St Hilarus and, as
precedence was then regulated by age, it is clear that he must have been
a very old man. He is believed to have died shortly afterwards."
A collection made of his reputed writings, as edited by Bruno Bruni in 1784,
comprises some 116 sermons, 118 homilies, and six treatises; but this classification
is very arbitrary, and of these probably a considerable number should be
assigned to other authorship. They are chiefly interesting for the light
they throw on curious old customs and on the condition of the people of Lombardy
at the time of the Gothic invasions. He mentions the destruction of Milan
by Attila in one of his homilies: in another, which treats of the martyrs
Octavius, Solutor and Adventus, whose relics were preserved at Turin, he
says: “All the martyrs are to be honoured by us, but especially those whose
relics we possess: they preserve us as to our bodies in this life and receive
us when we depart hence." In two homilies on thanksgiving he inculcates the
duty of daily giving praise to God, and recommends the psalms as being a
particularly suitable means to that end. No one, he insists, should ever
omit morning and evening prayer, or thanksgiving before and after meals.
Maximus exhorts all Christians to make the sign of the cross before every
action, “that by the sign of Jesus Christ (devoutly used) a blessing may
be insured to us in all things". Dealing in one of his sermons with abuses
in connection with New Year's day, he deprecates the practice of giving presents
to the well-off at that season without bestowing alms also on the poor, and
denounces the hypocritical semblance of friendship in which the heart has
no share. Elsewhere he attacks " heretics who sell the pardon of sins", whose
pretended priests exacted money for absolving penitents instead of bidding
them do penance and weep for their offences.
In the Journal of Theological Studies, vol.
xvi, pp. 161-176, and pp. 314-322, as well as in vol. xvii, pp. 225-232,
Professor C. H. Turner was inclined to attribute to St Maximus certain Latin
pieces, the text of which he there edited; but Dom Capelie, in the Revue Benedictine, vol. xxxiv, pp. 81-108,
has shown pretty conclusively that these are the work of the Arian bishop
Maximinus. There is a short but good article on St Maximus by E. Amann, in
DTC., vol. x, cc. 464-466. See also DCB., vol. iii, pp. 881-882; and Bardenhewer,
Geschichte der altkirchlichen Literatur,
vol. iv, pp. 610-613. Cf. E. Dekkens, Clavis
Patrum Latinorum.
Born in Vercelli, Italy; Bishop Saint Maximus of Turin (Italy)
was indefatigable in his preaching. Many of his famous homilies about the
primary feasts, several saints (Stephen, Agnes, Cyprian, Laurence, and others,
especially the martyrs of Turin), and other associated writings are still
available for our study. He writes: "All the martyrs are to be honored by
us, but especially those whose relics we possess. They assist us by their
prayers; they preserve us as to our bodies in this life, and receive us when
we depart hence."
In his two homilies on thanksgiving, he earnestly inculcates the duty of
praising God daily, especially using the Psalms. He strongly insists that
no one ought ever to neglect morning and evening prayer, or his thanksgiving
before and after every meal. This saintly bishop exhorts us to make the sign
of the cross before every action, saying, "that by the sign of Jesus Christ
(devoutly used) a blessing is ensured to us in all things." The saint criticizes
the abuses of New Year's Day, especially the then prevalent custom of giving
presents to the rich without at the same time giving alms to the poor, and
the hypocritical formalities of friendship in which the heart has no share.
He also wrote "Against heretics who sell the pardon of sins," whose pretended
priests exacted money for absolving penitents instead of bidding them do
penance, and weep for their offenses.
Maximus participated in the council
of Milan in 451, and at that of Rome under Pope Saint Hilary, in 465, in which latter
he subscribed just after the pope. He had to endure much during his episcopacy
because of the barbarian incursions into Italy (Benedictines, Encyclopedia,
Husenbeth). In art, Saint Maximus is a bishop with a hind near him (Roeder)
.
|
460 b. Saint Selyf
Saint Salom, King of Cerniw holding
the post of Chief Military Officer of the British
(Welsh-Selyf, Latin-Solomanus, English-Solomon) Hermit in Cornwall. He is perhaps to be
identified with Saint Solomon, who has the same feast day.
King Salom appears to have succeeded his cousin, Mark as King of Cerniw in
the early 6th century. Little is known about his reign, though he has been
recorded as holding the post of Chief Military Officer of the British. He
was a younger son of King Erbin of Dumnonia and married Saint Wenna, the
daughter of an Irish Prince who had settled at Caer-Goch near Mynyw (Saint
Davids). Their son was the
famous Saint Cybi.
Salom seems to have been considered something of a holyman
himself, who founded the Church of Lansalos in Cerniw. His memorial
may be the Chi-Rho inscribed stone to be seen at Saint Just-in-Penwith recording
"Selus lies here". Salom should not, however, be confused with his nephew,
Saint Selevan. |
467
Saint Maximus of Turin
Bishop of Turin and an outstanding Biblical scholar and preacher. He was
born probably in Vercelli, Italy, and became famous before being named to
his see. Maximus attended the Synod of Milan in 451 and the Council of Rome
in 465. He is revered for his writings. Several hundred sermons and other
ascetical treatises and homilies are extant. |
475 Saint Tiro Prosper
of Aquitaine b. 403
Probably a layman who may have been
married, Prosper left Aquitaine for
Provence and settled at Marseilles. He wrote to Saint Augustine in 428, and in response, Augustine
wrote his treatises on perseverance and predestination. It was about this
time that, Prosper wrote what was really a short treatise on grace and free
will, under the form of a letter to a certain Rufinus, and his great dogmatic
poem of over a thousand hexameter lines, "De Ingratis", on the semi-Pelagians,
who were enemies of grace and are represented as reviving the errors of Pelagianism.
Prosper opposed the semi-Pelagianism of Saint John Cassian, accompanied
his friend Hilary, who had asked
him to write to Augustine, on a trip to visit Pope
St. Celestine I in Rome, 431,and is said to have become
a secretary to Pope
St. Leo the Great 440 in Rome, where Prosper died. He wrote poetry
and treatises, notably his Chronicle, a universal history from creation to
the Vandal capture of Rome in 455. |
541
Saint Gallicanus 5th bishop of Embrun France founded hospital spent remainder
of his life caring for sick
Nothing else is known. Second Referrence to Saint Gallicanus Ranking officer in the imperial
army of Constantine. Roman consul. In 330 he retired from his military and
political duties, moving to Ostia where he founded a hospital and spent the
remainder of his life caring for the sick. In earlier times times he was
described as being exiled to Alexandria, and martyred, but this was apparently
not the case.
Gallicanus of Embrun B (AC) Died after 541. The fifth bishop of Embrun in
France (Benedictines).
|
572
Saint Moloc Scottish bishop missionary
ST MOLOC, OR LUAN, BISHOP (A.D. 572 ?)
ST MOLOC, Molluog, or Murlach was formerly honoured throughout Scotland,
and his widespread cultus may be traced in the numerous place-names of which
he is the eponym. Whether he was a native of Britain or of Ireland is still
a moot point. However, the notice in the Aberdeen Breviary, to the effect
that he was of noble Scottish extraction and a native of Scotland, seems
to be borne out by an entry under the date of June 25 in the Félire
of Oengus. It runs: “Sinchell's feast, Telle's feast: they were heights of
Ireland, with Moluoc pure-fair sun of Lismore of Alba." The name of the saint's
father was Lanneon, and his own was originally Lugaidh, but it was modified
to Moloc, or Moluanus, in Ireland, where he received his education. He is
said to have been trained at Birr, under St Brendan the Elder. At what date
he returned to Scotland is not known. Landing in Argyllshire, he evangelized
the inhabitants of Lismore in Loch Linnhe, and, after preaching at Tyle-wherever
that may be-and visiting islands as far north as the Hebrides, he appears
to have devoted the rest of his life to missionary work in Ross and in the
province of Mar. He died at Rossmarkie, probably about the year 572, but
his relics were translated to Murlach. King Malcolm II attributed his victory
over the Danes, near Murlach, to the intercessions of our Lady and of St Murlach.
As an act of thanksgiving, he founded in 1010, at Murlach (Mortlach), under
their joint patronage, an abbey, a cathedral church and an episcopal see.
The bishopric was subsequently transferred to Aberdeen. He was apparently
a bishop, and the Duke of Argyll claims to possess the bacul, or crozier,
of St Moloc, it having been for generations an heirloom in the family of
Livingstone of Lismore. His feast, under the form of his name Luan, is still
observed in the diocese of Argyll and the Isles.
It would hardly seem probable
that the Moluoc, commemorated in the Félire
on this day, June 25, can be identical with the Molua of August
4. Of the latter, we have three
recensions of a Latin life. Moreover, in this ease the story printed by Whitley
Stokes tells us distinctly that he was “Moluoc of Lismore in Scotland." Consult,
in any case, Forbes, KSS., pp. 409-411, where the lesson in the Aberdeen
Breviary is quoted at length.
Sometimes called Lugaidh, Molvanus, Molluog, or Murlach. The son
of a Scottish noble, he was educated in Ireland under St. Brendan the Elder
and evangelized the Hebrides region of Scotland. He died at Rossmarkie, Scotland.
His shrine was at Martlach, and he is venerated in Argyll.
Moloc of Mortlach B (AC) (also known as Lua, Luan, Lugaidh, Moloag, Molluog,
Molua, Murlach) Born in Scotland; died at Rossmarkie, c. 572. Saint Moluag
was educated in the monastery school of Bangor in Ireland and then returned
to his native land as a missionary. (Some say that he was actually from Ulster
and may have been an O'Neill.) Saint Bernard of Clairvaux in his biography
of Saint Malachy tells us that the monk Moluag of Bangor was the founder
of 100 monasteries in Scotland. In fact, Moluag ranked alongside Saint Columba
as a missionary: While Columba was the apostle to the Gaels; Moluag evangelized
the Picts. His main work as a bishop was the evangelization of the Hebrides.
Inevitably, legends have grown around his name according to which there was
a bitter rivalry between Moluag and Columba, but it appears that they worked
among to distinct national groups.
Moluag actually arrived about a year before Columba in Scotland. He was accompanied
by Saint Comgall, an Irish Pict, who presented him to King Brude to obtain
his authority for the mission. Columba, incidentally, had Comgall perform
the same service for him. It is possible that King Brude preferred Moluag
to Columba, and that is what led Moluag to concentrate more on the Picts.
It would be quite natural that the Pictish king might have some reservations
about the Ulster prince Columba, who was a natural leader of the Gaelic people
in Scotland. Whatever happened, the two missionaries gradually brought an
end to the armed conflict between the two nations.
The blackthorn crozier (Bachuill Mor) of Saint Moluag is in the possession
of the Campbells, dukes of Argyle, who traditionally carried it with them
into battle. His shrine was at Mortlach. On the island of Lewis, the custom
persisted, despite the Scottish reformers' attempts to stop it, until the
19th century of conducting a ritual service of intercession to Moluag at
his titular church Teampall Mo Luigh. Although the cultus of Moluag decreased
together with the power of the Pictish people he evangelized, there are many
memorials to Moluag in the form of ancient churches and placenames. Kilmoluag
is a common example. The name "Luke," which is very common among men in Scotland,
is reliably stated to be derived from Moluag.
Saint Moluag is invoked against insanity and his intercession sought to heal
wounds and to send wooden replicas of the cured limbs (Benedictines, Montague)
|
7th
v. Molonachus of Lismore Saint Brendan became bishop of Lismore in Argyle
B (AC)
7th century. Molonachus, a disciple of Saint Brendan, became bishop of Lismore
in Argyle (Benedictines).
|
714 Eurosia (Orosia) of
Jaca VM she is venerated patron saint of Jaca diocese (AC) Although
relics reputed to be hers are preserved in Jaca cathedral, it is not improbable
that Eurosia was an entirely fictitious character.
8th v. ST EUROSIA, VIRGIN AND MARTYR
IN a modem German essay entitled, "An Apocryphal Saint of the Late Middle
Ages", its scholarly writer deals exhaustively and convincingly with St Eurosia,
and with the devotion of which she became the centre, first at Jaca in Spain,
where it originated in the fifteenth century; and afterwards in Lombardy
also. Father Delehaye, whose own conclusions coincided with those of the
author, reviewing the treatise in the Analecta Bollandiana, says: "Everything
is suspect in the origins of this cultus which was propagated in the north
of Italy, thanks to the political relations between Spain and Lombardy....
A considerable number of places in the dioceses of Como, Cremona, Pavia and
Novara possess chapels, altars, images and relics of St Eurosia, who is honoured
as the protector of the fruits of the field." Devotion to the new saint would
seem to have been spread by Spanish soldiers, and by the religious congregation
of the Somaschi, whose headquarters were in the diocese of Cremona. According
to the popular tradition, Eurosia was a noble maiden from the province of
Bayonne, who, at some time during the eighth century, refused to marry a
Moorish chieftain, and was slain by the Saracens in the cavern to which she
had fled for safety. Although relics reputed to be hers are preserved in
Jaca cathedral, it is not improbable that Eurosia was an entirely fictitious
character. She is invoked against bad weather.
Without going quite so far as
to say that Eurosia is a pure myth, Fr Papebroch in the Acta Sanctorum, June, vol. vii, points
out the lack of all early evidence, as well as the contradictions in the
legends which were circulated regarding her. The essay above referred to
is that of the Swiss E. A. Stückelberg, "Eine apokryphe Heilige des
späten Mittelalters", which appeared in the Archiv fur Religionswissenschaft, vol.
xvii (1914), pp. 159-164. It would seem that already in the sixteenth century
there was an office and Mass in honour of Eurosia, though the celebration
was then confined to the town of Jaca alone.
Born in Bayonne; cultus confirmed
by Leo XIII in 1902. According to the legend, Eurosia was martyred by the
Saracens at Jaca in the Aragonese Pyrenees, close to the French border. Even
today she is venerated at the patron saint of the diocese of Jaca, and her
cultus has spread throughout
southern France and northern Italy. Her existence, however, is doubtful.
Some versions of the story make her a native of Bohemia (Benedictines)
.
|
740 Saint Adalbert missionary in Ireland whose
tomb became a center for pilgrims miracles after his death
ST ADALBERT OF EGMOND (A.D. 705 OR AFTER 714 ?)
AMONGST the band of missionaries who left the monastery of Rathmelsigi in
690, under the leadership of St Willibrord, to evangelize Friesland, was
a deacon named Adalbert. He was a Northumbrian, and had followed 8t Egbert
to Ireland in order to obey out' Lord's counsels of perfection. It was that
same aspiration, coupled with a great love for souls, which prompted him
to volunteer for missionary work amongst the heathen. The messengers of the
Gospel were assisted by the protection of Pepin of Herstal, and also by the
fact that they found little difficulty in making themselves understood by
the Frieslanders, but their personality had much to do with their ultimate
success. Adalbert's gentleness, his patience and his humility made a deep
impression upon those to whom he brought the Christian faith. The nucleus
of his activities was Egmond, and he converted the greater part of its inhabitants.
It was perhaps out of humility that Adalbert does not seem to have offered
himself for the priesthood. St Willibrord is said, indeed, to have appointed
him archdeacon of Utrecht, but an archdeacon in those days was simply a chief
deacon, and St Willibrord may well have wished to confer upon him some authority.
St Adalbert died in an unknown year. His tomb afterwards became a place of
pilgrimage and the scene of many reported miracles. In the tenth century
Duke Theodoric built at Egmond a Benedictine abbey dedicated under the name
of this Adalbert, and when in recent times the Benedictines of Solesmes restored
monastic life at Egmond the same titular was chosen.
The sources upon which we depend
for our knowledge of St Adalbert's life are very unsatisfactory. The Latin
biography written about 200 years after his death by Rupert, a monk at Mettlach-it
is printed in the Acta Sanctorum,
June, vol. vii-contains little but generalities and the miracles said to
have been worked after his death. Another Latin life has been published by
C. Pijnacker Hordijk in Bijdragen voor Vaderlandsche
Geschiedenis (1900), pp. 145-174, but it is little better than an
abridgement of the first. Adalbert's claim to the title of archdeacon has
been contested by Holder-Egger and others, but, on the other hand, they are
disposed to identify him with the Adalbert who succeeded St Willibrord as
abbot of Epternach. This last conjecture is rejected by W. Levison. The date
of Adalbert's death is quite uncertain. See also DHG., vol. i, C. 441; and
W. Levison, "Wilhelm Procurator von Egmond..." in Neues Archiv, vol. xl (1916), pp. 793-804.
Adalbert was born in Northumbria, England, and was educated at
Rathmelgisi Monastery. Accompanying Saint
Willibrord and others to Friesland, he gained many converts in an
area called Egmont. Adalbert was also a companion of Saint Egbert to Ireland. It is believed
that he became Saint Willibrord's
successor as the abbot of Epternach. Adalbert's shrine was noted for miracles
after his death.
Adalbert of Egmond, OSB (RM) Born in Northumberland, England; Saint Adalbert,
a prince by birth, became a monk at Rathmelgisi and accompanied Saint Willibrord
as one of his deacons to Friesland. He labored especially around Egmont,
of which Benedictine abbey he is the patron (Benedictines). Adalbert is venerated
in Friesland. Depicted as a deacon with a crown and scepter at his feet;
sometimes in dalmatic, crowned, and holding the scepter (Roeder) .
|
843 Saint Gohardus
Bishop of Nantes, France, martyred by marauding Normans
SS. GOHARD, BISHOP OF NANTES, AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS (A.D. 843)
THE heathen Northmen who raided the coasts of Anglo-Saxon England and of
contemporary France seem especially to have singled out for attack religious
foundations of all kinds. In so doing they were animated partly by a hatred
to the Christian faith, partly by the expectation of securing, without serious
opposition, treasure belonging to the communities or entrusted to their care.
If they met with disappointment or resistance-sometimes if they met with
neither-they would destroy the buildings and massacre all connected with
them.
In the year 843 a number of Norman ships appeared at the mouth of the Loire,
and were piloted up the river by a traitor named Larabert, who had aspired
to the countship of Nantes but had been driven out by the citizens. Great
was the alarm felt by the inhabitants when the foreigners reached Nantes.
The monks of a neighbouring monastery carried their ecclesiastical treasure
into the church of SS. Peter and Paul, where Gohard, the bishop, was actually
engaged in celebrating the feast of the Birthday of St John the Baptist.
Although the sacred edifice was filled with people who had fled there for
safety, the Northmen broke down the doors and the windows. Forcing their
way to the altar, they slew St Gohard just as he had reached Sursum corda
at the beginning of the preface, and the priests who surrounded him were killed
by his side. The monks also were murdered. After setting fire to the church,
the barbarians kidnapped the leading citizens, setting a ransom upon their
heads. Before they finally retired, they had pillaged the whole city. The
body of St Gohard was rescued, and his relics were taken to Angers, his native
town.
There is a short Latin life printed
in the Acta Sanctorum, June, vol.
vii (in the Appendix, pp. 682-683), but of no great authority. See Duchesne,
Fastes Épiscopaux,
vol. iii, p. 369.
Gohardus was celebrating Mass in Sts. Peter and Paul Church in
Nantes when the Normans attacked. He was slain as were many priests, monks,
and laity when the city was looted and destroyed.
Gohard(us) of Nantes B and Companions MM (AC) When Northmen raided the coasts
of Anglo-Saxon England and France, they attacked religious foundations, motivated
by distaste for Christianity and greed for the treasure held by the foundations.
Massacres of the inhabitants were common.
In 843, a Norman named Lambert, who had wished for the countship of Nantes
but had been driven out by the citizens, returned to Nantes on a ship. The
monks of a local monastery carried their ecclesiastical treasure to the church
of SS. Peter and Paul, where Bishop Gohard was celebrating a feast of Saint
John the Baptist.
The church was filled with people who had gathered there in fear of the Normans.
The Normans broke down the doors and windows and murdered Gohard and the
priests and monks who were present. They burned the church, sacked the city,
and kidnapped leading citizens, placing a ransom on their heads.
The body of Gohard was recovered, and his relics were taken to his native
town of Angers. He is portrayed in art being beheaded on an altar (Benedictines,
Encyclopedia, White) .
|
874 Saint Solomon (Selyf)
III warrior against Franks Norsemen his own rebellious subjects M (AC)
Several centuries after the death of Solomon I of Brittany, this saint was
born to be king of Brittany during a brutal time. He was a warrior against
the Franks, Norsemen, and his own rebellious subjects, which has made him
a hero among the Bretons. During his early years he committed many crimes,
but later did penance for them. When he was assassinated, his people immediately
acclaimed him a martyr (Benedictines) .
|
1122 Blessed Burchard
of Mallersdorf monk of the Benedictine abbey of Saint Michael at Bamberg,
OSB Abbot (AC)
Burchard was a monk of the Benedictine abbey of Saint Michael at Bamberg,
Germany, and the first abbot of Mallersdorf in Bavaria (Benedictines)
.
|
1142 Saint
William of Vercelli hermit on Monte Vergine founded monasteries through out
Naples
In território Guléti, prope Nuscum, sancti Guliélmi
Confessóris, Patris Eremitárum Montis Vírginis.
In the territory of Guletto near Nusco, St. William, confessor,
founder of the hermits of Monte Vergine.
ST WILLIAM OF VERCELLI, ABBOT OF MONTE VERGINE
(A.D. 1142)
THE founder of the religious congregation known as the Hermits of Monte Vergine
came of a Piedmontese family and was born at Vercelli in 1085. After the
death of his parents, whom he lost in infancy, he was kindly cared for by
relations, but at the age of fourteen he abandoned his home and set out as
a poor pilgrim for Compostela in Spain. Not satisfied with the hardships
such a journey entailed, he had two iron bands fastened round his body. How
long William remained in Spain is not recorded. We hear of him next in 1106,
when he was at Melfi in the Italian Basilicata, and then at Monte Solicoli,
on the slopes of which he remained for two years, leading a penitential life
with a hermit. To this period belongs St William's first miracle, the restoration
of sight to a blind man. The cure made him famous, and to avoid being acclaimed
as a wonder-worker he left the neighbourhood to stay with St John of Matera.
They were kindred spirits and became close friends. It was St William's intention
to proceed on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and he would not allow himself to
be deterred by John's assurance that God had other work for him to do. He
actually started, but he had not got far when he was attacked by robbers.
He took this as a sign that John was right, and relinquished his journey.
He now betook himself to a height between Nola and Benevento, which was then
called Monte Virgiliano-possibly after the great Virgil, who is said to have
sojourned there. At first William attempted to live there as a hermit, but
he was soon joined by would-be disciples, both priests and laymen. He formed
them into a community and from the church which he built in 1124, under the
name of our Lady, the mountain has derived its present name of Monte Vergine.
The rule he instituted was most austere: no wine, meat or dairy produce was
allowed, and on three days of the week only vegetables and dry bread. After
the first fervour had cooled, murmurs arose and there was a general demand
for relaxation. William had no desire to constrain the malcontents, though
for himself any relaxation seemed unthinkable. He therefore chose a prior
to rule the community, and then departed with five faithful followers. With
St John of Matera, who now joined him, he made a second settlement at Monte
Laceno, in Apulia. Here, however, the barrenness of the soil, the exposed
position and the high altitude made life a misery to all but the most hardy,
and even they could with difficulty hold out through the winter. St John
had more than once urged removal, when a fire which destroyed their huts
compelled them to descend into the valley. There the two holy men parted:
John to go east and found one monastery at Pulsano on Monte Gargano, and
William to found another on Monte Cognato in the Basilicata.
When that community was well established St William treated it as he had
treated the monastery at Monte Vergine-he gave it a prior and left it to
govern itself. At Conza, in Apulia, he founded a monastery for men, and at
Guglietto, near Nusco, he established two communities, one of men and the
other of women. King Roger II of Naples afterwards drew him to Salerno, in
order that he might have the benefit of his counsel and help. St William's
beneficent influence over the monarch was, however, resented by some of the
courtiers who lost no opportunity of discrediting and decrying him as a hypocrite
and a humbug. With the knowledge of the king, they set a trap by sending
to him, on some specious excuse, a woman of loose life, charged with the
task of luring him to sin. William received her in a room at one end of which
a great fire was burning; and as soon as she began to exercise her blandishments
he walked away to the fireplace, parted the glowing coals with his bare hands,
and then stretched himself down at full length in the space he had cleared,
inviting her to lie down with him. Her horror was only exceeded by her amazement,
when he presently arose, completely unharmed. The miracle led to her conversion:
she gave up her life of sin and took the veil in the convent of Venosa. As
for King Roger, he continued to patronize William's foundations, and endowed
other houses which he placed under the saint's control.
St William died at Guglietto on June 25, 1142. He left no written constitutions,
but a code of regulations bringing the order into conformity with the Benedictine
rule was drawn up by the third abbot general, Robert. The only monastery
of William's foundation which exists at the present day is that of Monte
Vergine. It now belongs to the Benedictine congregation of Subiaco, and has
a much venerated picture of our Lady of Constantinople, to which pilgrimages
are frequently made.
There is a biography, not devoid
of personal touches, which purports to have been written by the saint's disciple,
John of Nusco. It is printed from a faulty manuscript in the Acta Sanctorum, June, vol. vii. A better
text, which fills certain lacunae in the earlier copy. was discovered in
the present century at Naples and was edited by Dom C. Mercuro in the Rivista Storica Benedettina, vol. i (1906),
vol. ii (1907), and vol. iii (1908), in several articles, which include an
historical commentary, as well as the document itself. Cf· also P.
Lugano, L'Italia Benedettina (1929),
pp. 379-439; and E. Capobianco, Sant' Amato
da Nusco (1936), pp. 145-164.
William of Vercelli, founder, born 1085 in Vercelli Italy he was
brought up as an orphan became a hermit on Monte Vergine, Italy after a pilgrimage
to Compostella and attracted so many followers that a monastery was buillt.
By 1119 his followers were united in the Benedictine congregation, the Hermits
of Monte Vergine (Williamites) which he headed. The austerity of his rule
led to dissension among his monks to restore peace he left and was taken
under the protection of Roger I of Naples who built a monastery for him in
Salerno. He founded monasteries through out Naples, and died at the Guglielmo
monastery near Nusco Italy. He is also called William of Monte Vergine.
William of Vercelli (Monte Vergine), Abbot (RM) Born at Vercelli, Italy,
1085; died at Guglietto (near Nusco), Italy, June 25, 1142; feast day formerly
celebrated on April 25.
Saint William was born to noble parents. He was orphaned while still an infant
and was raised by relatives. When he was 14, William made a pilgrimage to
Santiago de Compostella, Spain. William was at Melfi in 1106 and then spent
two years as a hermit on Monte Solicoli, where he imposed rigorous penances
on himself.
Thereafter he decided to go on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. His friend,
Saint John of Matera tried to dissuade him but William insisted on going.
After abandoning a pilgrimage to Jerusalem when attacked by robbers, he became
a hermit on Monte Virgiliano (Vergine) between Nola and Benevento and attracted
so many disciples that he organized them into a community that by 1119 became
known as the Hermits of Monte Vergine (in honor of the Blessed Virgin), and
he built a monastery. Under his Rule, based on that of Saint Benedict, the
monks led a life of extreme austerity, with special emphasis on fasting and
manual labor.
When objections arose against the strictness of his rule based on that of
Saint Benedict, he and his friend Saint John of Matera with five followers
founded a community on Monte Laceno in Apulia, one of the most inhospitable
places in the region. The soil was so poor that almost nothing could grow
in it and in winter the weather was so bitter that the monks, who were living
in wooden huts, could barely survive. William was urged to move to a more
sheltered location, but refused. When fire destroyed their hermitages, William
moved to Monte Cognato in the Basilicata. Again he left and founded monasteries
at Conza, Guglietto, and Salerno opposite the palace where he became advisor
to King Roger I of Naples. He died at Guglietto, while visiting the nuns of
San Salvatore. Though his other foundations have disappeared, his monastery
at Monte Vergine still exists (Benedictines, Delaney, Encyclopedia).
Saint William is depicted in art as an abbot near a wolf wearing a saddle.
He may also be portrayed as he saddles the wolf that killed his ass, as a
pilgrim, or with Christ appearing to him (Roeder). He is venerated at Benevento,
Giuleto (near Nusco), Nola, and Vercelli (Roeder) .
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1150 Blessed Henry Zdik
elected bishop of Olmütz founded an abbey O. Praem. B (PC)
BD HENRY ZDIK, BISHOP OF OLOMUC (A.D. 1150)
ALTHOUGH Bishop Henry Zdik's cultus has never been officially approved, yet
the great services he rendered to the Church in his own diocese and beyond
it have caused him to be honoured as a beatus in what is now known as Czechoslovakia.
He is said to have been closely connected with the rulers of Bohemia, but
what the relationship actually was is a contested point. All that seems certain
about his origin is that he was born in Moravia. In 1126 he became bishop
of Olomuc (Olmütz), and under his auspices Duke Wenceslaus I undertook
the rebuilding of the cathedral. The completion and decoration of the basilica
were the bishop's own doing. In 1137 or 1138 Bd Henry made a pilgrimage to
Jerusalem. While he was there he took the Premonstratensian habit and experienced
a spiritual awakening which, in the words of his biographer, led him to return
home “a new man". His zeal for the Church now expressed itself in various
ways. In 1141 he joined a mission or crusade to convert the Prussians-with
what result we are not told. Two years later we find him associated with
others in founding the abbey of Strahov. He entitled it Mount Sian and brought
to it Premonstratensians from Steinfeld, near Cologne. At a later date he
restored the monastery of Litomerice, of which he was reckoned the second
founder. To this community he gave another name reminiscent of his Palestinian
pilgrimage: he called it Mount Olivet. The difficulty he found in bringing
his clergy back to regular observance, and especially in enforcing the rule
of celibacy, decided him to go to Rome to confer with the pope. Scarcely
had he started, however, when he was set upon by would-be assassins, from
whose hands he barely escaped with his life. He made no second attempt, for
it was rendered unnecessary by the timely arrival in Bohemia of a papal legate,
who gave him the support and authority he required to enable him to carry
out his reforms. Bd Henry Zdik died in 1150 or 1151, and was buried at Strahov,
a monastery that still exists.
An account will be found in the
Acta Sanctorum, June, vol.
vii, but there seems to be no formal biography of this holy bishop dating
from the middle ages. See. further, I. van Spilbeeck, Hagiologium Norbertinum (1887); and A.
Zark in Annales de L’Ordre de Prémontré,
1908 and 1910.
Blessed Henry, son of King Wratislas I of Bohemia, was elected
bishop of Olmütz. He became a Premonstratensian during a visit to Jerusalem
in 1137. When he returned home, he introduced the order in many places and
founded an abbey for them at Strahov (Benedictines) . |
1160 Blessed John
the Spaniard drew up the first constitutions for the Carthusian sisters
O. Cart. (AC)
BD JOHN THE SPANIARD (A.D. 1160)
THIS John was born in 1123, probably at Almanza, in Leon. He was a studious
boy, and at the age of thirteen he went to France with a companion to seek
the educational advantages he could not obtain nearer home. The two lads
made their way to Arles, where they found excellent teachers, but where they
were occasionally reduced to great straits. Later, however, John was befriended
by a wealthy man, who took him to live in his own house. His studies completed,
John bade farewell to his kind friends, and betook himself to a hermit, under
whom he trained for two years and a half. He then obtained admittance to
the Carthusian priory of Montrieu, or Mons Rivi, and from the moment he entered
the noviciate he set himself to tread faithfully in the footsteps of St Bruno.
For six years he filled the office of sacristan, and afterwards he was chosen
to be prior. In that capacity he strove to encourage learning, and with his
own hand copied and corrected manuscripts-from which last activity it may
be judged he was a man of strong nerves.
At the close of his tenure of office-which he appears to have resigned-he
was transferred to the Grande Chartreuse. St Anthelm, who was then the superior
of that great monastery, held him in very high esteem; and when Haymo de
Fulciano asked that some Carthusians might be sent to make a foundation on
one of his estates near the Lake of Geneva, St Anthelm selected Bd John to
go as their prior. Not without considerable difficulty was this new charterhouse
started, but once it was established it was called Reposoir, from the atmosphere
of peace that pervaded it. Another work John performed at the request of
St Anthelm was the compilation of a constitution for Carthusian nuns. After
ruling the community of Reposoir for nine years, Bd John died in the year
1160. By his express desire he was interred beside two shepherds who had
been killed by an avalanche, and whom he had buried. A chapel was built over
his tomb, but in 1649 his remains were translated to the sacristy of the
monastery church. This was done by Charles Augustus de Sales, Bishop of Geneva,
the nephew of St Francis de Sales; and the formal instrument drawn up by
him, with a description of what occurred, is still preserved. Bd John’s cultus
was confirmed in 1864.
There is a very simple straightforward
life, containing, however, little detail, which seems to have been compiled
at the charterhouse where he died. It is printed both in the Acta Sanctorum, June, vol. vii and in
the Annales Ordinis Cartusiensis
of Dam Le Couteulx, vol. ii, pp. 199-212.
Born in Almanza, Spain, in 1123; cultus approved in 1864. When
John was a boy he studied at Arles, France, then became a Carthusian monk
at Montreuil. Later he migrated to the Grand Chartreuse under Saint Anthelmus,
who sent him to found the charterhouse of Reposoir near Lake Geneva. He drew
up the first constitutions for the Carthusian sisters (Benedictines)
.
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1264 Blessed Jutta of Thuringia
patroness of Prussia began her life amidst luxury and power became a Secular
Franciscan, taking on the simple garment of a religiousdied the death of
a simple servant of the poor
1260 St. Jutta Widowed
noblewoman of Thuringia: Jutta received wonderful graces, for besides being
favoured with many visions and revelations, she was given an infused understanding
of the Holy Scriptures. She once said that three things could bring one very
near to God— painful illness, exile from home in a remote corner of a foreign
land, and poverty voluntarily assumed for God’s sake
1260 ST JUTTA, Widow
AMONGST the numerous women who were inspired by the example of St Elizabeth
of Hungary, one of the most remarkable was St Jutta, or Judith, patroness
of Prussia. Like her great exemplar she was
a native of Thuringia, having been born at Sangerhausen, to the south-west
of Eisleben. Married at the age of fifteen to a man of noble rank, she proved
an admirable wife, besides being a great benefactress to the poor. Once, in a vision, our Lord had said to her, “Follow me”;
and she strove not only to obey Him herself, but to lead her household to
do the same. In the early days of her married life, her husband had remonstrated
with her for the simplicity of her dress, but she gradually won him over
to her own point of view. He was actually on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land
when he died—to the great grief of his widow, who was left to bring up her
children alone.
As they grew up, one after another entered religious orders, and Jutta was
left free to follow the call which she had long cherished in her heart. She
gave everything she possessed to the poor, and then, clad in a miserable
dress, she begged bread for herself and the poor from those who had been
her dependents. Though some scoffed, others treated her with reverence, knowing
what she had given up, and she resolved to go forth among strangers in order
that she might be despised by all. As she wandered on, walking barefoot in
summer and winter, she relieved on the road many tramps by dressing their
wounds and feeding them with food supplied to her in charity. At last she
made her way into Prussia, the land of the Teutonic Knights, whose grand-master,
Hanno of Sangerhausen, was a relation of her own. There she settled as a
solitary in a ruinous building on the shore of a sheet of water called the
Bielcza, half a mile or so from Kulmsee.
St Jutta received wonderful graces, for besides being favoured with many
visions and revelations, she was given an infused understanding of the Holy
Scriptures. She once said that three things could bring one very near to
God— painful illness, exile from home in a remote corner of a foreign land,
and poverty voluntarily assumed for God’s sake. The inhabitants of the neighbouring
villages who passed her dwelling declared that they had often seen her raised
from the ground, as if upheld by angels. On Sundays she attended the church
at Kulmsee, and she had as her directors at first a Franciscan, John Lobedau,
and afterwards a Dominican, Henry Heidenreich. For four years she remained
in her solitude, praying fervently for the conversion of the heathen and
the perseverance of the newly baptized. Then she was seized by a fever which
proved fatal. Many miracles were recorded as having taken place at her grave,
and she has been associated in the veneration of the Prussian Catholics with
Bd John Lobedau and with another female recluse, Bd Dorothy of Marienwerder.
The very full
account of this recluse printed in the Acta Sanctorum is
a translation of a Polish life by Father Szembek. This claims to have been
based upon a mass of materials collected for the process of canonization,
but the originals unfortunately could not be traced by the Bollandists at
the date at which they wrote. See also the Mittheilungen des
Vereins f. Gesch., etc., v. Sangerhausen, vol. i (1881),
pp. 82 seq.; P. Funk, in Festschrift für
W. Goetz (1927), pp. 81--44; and a sketch by H. Westpfahl, Jutta
von Sangerhausen (1938).
June 25, 2010 Blessed Jutta of Thuringia (d. 1264?)
Today's patroness of Prussia began her life amidst luxury and power but died
the death of a simple servant of the poor.
In truth, virtue and piety were always of prime importance to Jutta and her
husband, both of noble rank. The two were set to make a pilgrimage together
to the holy places in Jerusalem, but her husband died on the way. The newly
widowed Jutta, after taking care to provide for her children, resolved to
live in a manner utterly pleasing to God. She disposed of the costly clothes,
jewels and furniture befitting one of her rank, and became a Secular Franciscan,
taking on the simple garment of a religious.
From that point her life was utterly devoted to others: caring for the sick,
particularly lepers; tending to the poor, whom she visited in their hovels;
helping the crippled and blind with whom she shared her own home. Many of
the townspeople of Thuringia laughed at how the once-distinguished lady now
spent all her time. But Jutta saw the face of God in the poor and felt honored
to render whatever services she could.
About the year 1260, not long before her death, Jutta lived near the non-Christians
in eastern Germany. There she built a small hermitage and prayed unceasingly
for their conversion. She has been venerated for centuries as the special
patron of Prussia.
Comment: Jesus once said that
a camel can pass through a needle’s eye more easily than a rich person can
enter God’s realm. That’s pretty scary news for us. We may not have great
fortunes, but we who live in the West enjoy a share of the world’s goods
that people in the rest of the world cannot imagine. Much to the amusement
of her neighbors, Jutta disposed of her wealth after her husband’s death
and devoted her life to caring for those who had no means. Should we follow
her example, people will probably laugh at us, too. But God will smile.
Germany, noted for visions and miracles. She married at fifteen
and raised children. When her husband died on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land,
Jutta moved to Prussia, becoming a recluse at Kulmsee. She is the patroness
of Prussia, in eastern Germany.
Jutta of Kulmsee, Widow (AC) Born at Sangerhausen, Thuringia; died at Kulmsee,
Prussia, in 1250 or 1260. The written life of this young noblewoman, bears
a curious resemblance to that of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, who was almost
her contemporary. Jutta, too, was happily married with a family of children
and she was prostrated by the loss of her husband, who died on a pilgrimage
or crusade to the Holy Land. Thereafter, she provided for her children, divested
herself of her property, and passed her few remaining years in religious
retirement and care for the poor. In Jutta's case this was in the territory
of the Teutonic Knights, whose grand-master was a relative of hers. After
her death at her hermitage near Kulmsee a strong local cultus of her grew
up in Prussia, where she is venerated as patroness (Attwater, Benedictines).
Today's patroness of Prussia began her life amidst luxury and
power but died the death of a simple servant of the poor.
In truth, virtue and piety were always of prime importance to Jutta and her
husband, both of noble rank. The two were set to make a pilgrimage together
to the holy places in Jerusalem, but her husband died on the way. The newly
widowed Jutta, after taking care to provide for her children, resolved to
live in a manner utterly pleasing to God. She disposed of the costly clothes,
jewels and furniture befitting one of her rank, and became a Secular Franciscan,
taking on the simple garment of a religious.
From that point her life was utterly devoted to others: caring for the sick,
particularly lepers; tending to the poor, whom she visited in their hovels;
helping the crippled and blind with whom she shared her own home. Many of
the townspeople of Thuringia laughed at how the once-distinguished lady now
spent all her time. But Jutta saw the face of God in the poor and felt honored
to render whatever services she could.
About the year 1260, not long before her death, Jutta lived near the non-Christians
in eastern Germany. There she built a small hermitage and prayed unceasingly
for their conversion. She has been venerated for centuries as the special
patron of Prussia.
Comment: Jesus once said that a camel can pass through a needle’s eye
more easily than a rich person can enter God’s realm. That’s pretty scary
news for us. We may not have great fortunes, but we who live in the West
enjoy a share of the world’s goods that people in the rest of the world cannot
imagine. Much to the amusement of her neighbors, Jutta disposed of her wealth
after her husband’s death and devoted her life to caring for those who had
no means. Should we follow her example, people will probably laugh at us,
too. But God will smile.
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1228
Holy Prince Peter (David in monasticism) and Holy Princess Febronia (Euphrosyne
in monasticism), Wonderworkers of Murom The holy couple was famous for their
piety and charity. They died on the same day and hour, June 25, 1228, having
received the monastic tonsure
Prince Peter was the
second son of the Murom prince Yuri Vladimirovich. He entered upon the throne
of Murom in the year 1203. Several years before this St Peter had fallen
ill with leprosy, from which no one was able to heal him. In a vision it
was revealed to the prince that the daughter of a bee-keeper would be able
to heal him: the pious maiden Febronia, a peasant of Laskova village in Ryazan
gubernia. St Peter sent his emissaries to this village.
When the prince saw
St Febronia, he fell in love with her because of her piety, wisdom and virtue,
and vowed to marry her after being healed. St Febronia healed the prince
and became his wife. The holy couple loved each other through all their ordeals.
The haughty boyars did not wish to have a princess of common origin, and
they urged that the prince leave her. St Peter refused, and so they banished
the couple. They sailed off on a boat from their native city along the River
Oka, and St Febronia continued to console St Peter. Soon the wrath of God
fell upon the city of Murom, and the people begged the prince return together
with St Febronia.
The holy couple was
famous for their piety and charity. They died on the same day and hour, June
25, 1228, having received the monastic tonsure with the names David and Evphrosyne.
The bodies of the saints were put in the same grave.
Sts Peter and Febronia
showed themselves exemplary models of Christian marriage, and are considered
as the patron saints of newly-weds.
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1391 Blessed Guy
Maramaldi Dominican Guy Maramaldi taught philosophy and theology OP (AC)
BD GUY MARAMALDI (A.D. 1391)
AMONG the Dominicans who preached and taught in Italy during the second half
of the fourteenth century, Guy Maramaldi deserves a prominent place. He came
of a Neapolitan family, and each of his three brothers-like himself-was a
man of mark. Guy was still a mere stripling when he presented himself at
the Neapolitan house of the Order of Preachers, and asked for the habit.
His request was granted, after some hesitation due to the fear that his delicate
upbringing would unfit him for the stern discipline of a friary. The apprehension
proved groundless, and in his austerities and obedience, as well as in his
studies, he soon outstripped his fellow novices. In later life he became
a great theologian and preacher. After teaching theology and philosophy at
Naples, he went to Ragusa, where the success of his preaching and his fame
as a wonder-worker caused him to be acclaimed as an apostle. Upon his return
home he was appointed inquisitor general for the kingdom of Naples-a post
which brought him on several occasions into serious danger. He died in the
year 1391, and his cultus was approved in 1612.
A short account is to be found
in the Acta Sanctorum, June, vol.
vii. See also Touron, Hommes illustres
Dominicains (1745), vol. ii, pp. 627-631; and Année Dominicaine, vol. vi (1893),
pp. 534-536.
Born in Naples, Italy; cultus confirmed in 1612. The Dominican
Guy Maramaldi taught philosophy and theology, established a friary at Ragusa,
and died as inquisitor general for the Kingdom of Naples (Benedictines)
.
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1838 Saint Dominic Henares
Bishop martyr of Vietna; Spanish Dominican beheaded with Saint Francis
Chien; canonized in 1988.
He became coadjutor to Saint Ignatius Delgado,
vicar apostolic of Vietnam.
Blessed Dominic Henares, OP, and Francis Chien MM (AC) Died in Tonkin (Vietnam)
in 1838; beatified in 1900 by Pope Leo XIII; they may be included in the
list of those canonized as Martyrs of Vietnam. Nearly 100 years after the
death of Blessed Peter Sanz, two more Dominicans died for the faith, one
of whom is celebrated today. Bishop Dominic Henares and the tertiary catechist
Francis Chien died together with many others during the Annamite persecution.
Bishop Henares was born in Spain in 1765. He became bishop- coadjutor to
Blessed Ignatius Delgado in
1803. In 1838, Bishop Henares, Bishop Ignatius Delgado, the apostolic-vicar
of Tonkin, and Francis Chien were captured during a persecution stirred up
by the mandarin. The prelates and a young priest had been hidden in the village
of Kien-lao, and were accidentally betrayed by a little child who was cleverly
questioned by a pagan teacher searching for the foreigners.
Alarmed at the sudden activities, the captors of Bishop Delgado put him into
a small cage which was locked around him, and then put into jail with criminals.
Delgado was tortured but refused to hint at the location of the others and
was eventually killed. The young priest escaped.
Bishop Henares was captured at the same time. He had hidden himself in a
boat, and the nervousness of the boatmen gave him away. Five hundred soldiers
were detached to bring in the two dangerous criminals--the bishop and his
catechist. They, too, were questioned endlessly. Two weeks after the death
of Bishop Delgado, Henares was led out and beheaded in company with Chien.
The relics of all three martyrs were recovered in part, and were honorably
buried by the next Dominicans to come on the scene-- Bishop Hermosilla and
his companions, who would, as they knew, also be the next to die. Many of
the records of these brave men were lost or deliberately destroyed, and many
of them--we hope--may still be found in various neglected spots which war
and trouble have caused to be overlooked (Benedictines, Dorcy) .
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1931 Saint Nikon a priest
1917; remembered prophecy of Fr Barsanuphius made before Russian Revolution
foresaw times of difficulty for monasteries when Christians would be persecuted
and suffer martyrdom; predicted he would be dead before this happened, and
that Fr Nikon would live through those terrible times; jailed 9/18/1919 because
he was a monk; released return to Optina. The
Moscow Patriarchate authorized local veneration of the Optina Elders on June
13, 1996, glorifying them for universal veneration on August 7, 2000.
Born on September 26, 1888, the son of Metrophanes and Vera Belyaev,
and was named Nicholas at his Baptism. His parents, who were both very devout,
belonged to one of Moscow's merchant families.
The Belyaev family received a visit from St John of Kronstadt
when Nicholas was in his first year. He blessed Vera and gave her a signed
photograph of himself.
Both Nicholas and his brother John loved going to church and reading
the Holy Scriptures and other spiritual books. When John and Nicholas decided
to embrace monasticism, they cut up a list of Russia's monasteries from an
old book, and Nicholas was asked to pick one of the strips after praying
to God. The strip he selected read, "The Optina Hermitage of the Entry of
the Theotokos into the Temple, Kozelsk." Until that moment, neither of them
had ever heard of this monastery.
The brothers traveled to Optina on February 24, 1907 with their
mother's blessing, and were accepted into the monastery on December 9, the
commemoration of the "Unexpected Joy" Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Nicholas was assigned as secretary to Fr Barsanuphius, the Superior of the
Skete, in October 1908. Except for reading and serving in church, this became
his chief monastic obedience for the rest of his life. St Barsanuphius (April
1) foresaw that he would become an excellent monk as well as a worthy disciple.
Nicholas was devoted to the Elder, and followed his will in all matters.
Fr Barsanuphius gave him the benefit of his knowledge and experience, guiding
him to ascend the spiritual ladder of virtues.
Nicholas was tonsured into the Lesser Schema on May 24, 1915 with
the new name Nikon in honor of the martyr St Nikon (September 28). He was
ordained as a deacon on April 30, 1916, and as a priest on November 3, 1917.
Fr Nikon could not help but remember the prophecy of Fr Barsanuphius made
several years before the Russian Revolution. St Barsanuphius foresaw times
of difficulty for monasteries when Christians would be persecuted and suffer
martyrdom. He predicted that he himself would be dead before this happened,
and that Fr Nikon would live through those terrible times.
Fr Nikon was arrested and jailed on September 18, 1919 without the benefit
of a trial, just because he was a monk. He was later released and permitted
to return to Optina, where the monks had formed a farming cooperative.
The Soviets closed the cooperative
in 1923, and the monastery was turned into a museum. Two monks were allowed
to stay and work in the museum, while the others were expelled and told to
go wherever they wished. Fr Nikon was blessed by Fr Isaac to serve in the
church dedicated to the Kazan Icon and to receive visitors. When people came
to him for advice, he always quoted the words of the Optina Elders.
The last church at Optina was closed early in 1924, and Fr Nikon
was obliged to leave in June. He went to live at Kozelsk with Father Cyril
Zlenko. There he continued to receive visitors and offer spiritual counsel,
sharing money and food with those who were too old, or too sick to work.
Fr Nikon was a wise spiritual Father, who was able to help people overcome
their shame and reveal the sins which had troubled them for a long time.
People would leave Fr Nikon feeling cleansed and renewed.
Fr Nikon, Fr Cyril, and Fr Agapitus Taub were arrested and thrown
into prison in June of 1927. Fr Nikon and Fr Agapitus were sent to the "Kemperpunkt"
camp, where Fr Nikon was assigned the duty of guarding the storehouses.
St Nikon wrote to his spiritual children from the camp with cheerful
words of encouragement. Although he accepted his imprisonment as God's will,
it was nevertheless difficult for him to endure. When their prison term ended,
the two monks were sent into exile at Archangelsk. Before leaving the camp,
Fr Nikon was examined and found to have tuberculosis. The doctors advised
him to request that his place of exile be changed to a place with a more
suitable climate.
He asked the advice of Fr Agapitus, who told him not to make such
a request. At Archangels, Fr Nikon lodged in the home of an elderly woman
who gave him little rest or peace. Every week he had to travel three kilometers
to present himself before the authorities in the city of Pinyega.
While shoveling snow at the beginning of Great Lent, Fr Nikon's
leg began to hemorrhage, and he developed a high fever. His landlady did not
feel any pity for him, but told him that he must leave her house so that
the others would not become infected with tuberculosis.
Soon, Fr Nikon was visited by Fr Peter, who had once lived at
Optina. He begged Fr Peter to take him in, which he did. Fr Peter cared for
the Elder to the best of his ability. For the last two months of his life,
Fr Nikon received Holy Communion almost every day, and his sufferings seemed
to grow less severe. He often dictated letters to his spiritual children
to Fr Peter. One day, Fr Nikon saw St Macarius of Optina (September 7) in
a vision and told Sister Irene to pull up a chair for him. She was slow to
obey him so he said, "Forgive her, Father, for she is not very experienced."
On June 25, 1931 Fr Nikon was so weak that he could not speak.
Archimandrite Nikita was called to bring him Communion, and to read the Canon
for the Departure of the Soul. That night the Elder fell asleep in the Lord
at the age of forty-three.
The Moscow Patriarchate authorized local veneration of the
Optina Elders on June 13,1996, glorifying them for universal veneration on
August 7, 2000.
|
Mary Mother of GOD
Saint of the Day June 25 Séptimo 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.