Et álibi aliórum plurimórum sanctórum Mártyrum et Confessórum, atque sanctárum Vírginum.
And elsewhere in divers places, many other holy martyrs, confessors, and holy virgins.
Пресвятая Богородице спаси нас!  (Santíssima Mãe de Deus, salva-nos!)
R.  Deo grátias. R.  Thanks be to God.
March is the month of Saint Joseph since 1855;
2023
22,600 lives saved since 2007
Haitian Help Funding Seeds Haitian Geology AND Haitian Paintings
http://www.haitian-childrens-fund.org/

For the Son of man ... will repay every man for what he has done.

We are the defenders of true freedom.
  May our witness unveil the deception of the "pro-choice" slogan.
  Campaign saves lives Shawn Carney Campaign Director www.40daysforlife.com , 
Please help save the unborn they are the future for the world

 It is a great poverty that a child must die so that you may live as you wish -- Mother Teresa
 Saving babies, healing moms and dads, 'The Gospel of Life'
Our Bartholomew Family Prayer List
Joyful Mystery on Monday Saturday   Glorius Mystery on Sunday Wednesday
   Sorrowful Mystery on Friday Tuesday   Luminous Mystery on Thursday Veterens of War

Acts of the Apostles

Nine First Fridays Devotion to the Sacred Heart From the writings of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
 How do I start the Five First Saturdays?
Mary Mother of GOD 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary
The saints are a “cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible.

March 23 – Mater Domini (Italy, 1650)
 Like Mary, let God surprise you
 The Angel Gabriel arrived without being announced; he entered Mary's home to greet her and called her “full of grace.” This was a totally unexpected visit. God always comes to us at a time and in a way when we least expect it. This kind of visit supposes a lifetime of listening to the Word of God and waiting for his will (…) an expectation that requires a humble heart, open to God's surprises.
Mary knew the texts that spoke of God's fidelity and mercy towards his people and the whole human race, including those who walk away from him. These words from the Scriptures had shaped Mary's heart—a heart that was able to grasp and understand things, events and people from the inside—now ready to welcome the Lord intimately.

But Mary “remained troubled,” probably puzzled, and she wondered: “Why? Why me? Why now? Why in this way?” God often surprises us and we must, like Mary, let ourselves be surprised by him (…).
 Fr. François-Xavier Dumortier S.J.  Rome, October 10, 2013, Zenit.org
 
March 23 – Mater Domini (Italy, 1650)  
Instead of snow under his feet he found …. soft and plentiful grass 
 The church of Santa Maria Mater Domini (Holy Mary Mother of God) is a church in Laterza, Italy.

Historical records report that in March 1650, during a long period of snowstorms, the people ran out of fodder for the cattle, and animals died in large numbers. A shepherd named Paul Tria, who was a good man and a devout Catholic, was deeply moved by the plight of these animals and went to pray for them to the Virgin in an old abandoned church in the area, after having cleared the brambles that had blocked the entrance.

Paul had barely knelt down and started praying as hard as he could, when the Madonna holding the Child in her arm, appeared and said, "Go and graze your sheep now, the snow has melted and there is plenty of grass in the countryside. And tell the people that here in front of my image, all those who will come to me for graces will be comforted."

Paul stood up, left the old chapel, and instead of snow under his feet he found a soft and plentiful grass. As for the chapel, it had a plaque on the back wall inscribed with
 "Mat. Dni. IC. XC" (Mater Domini Jesu Christi), Latin for Holy Mary Mother of God.
www.santuariomaterdominilaterza.it

3rd Sunday of Great Lent: Veneration of the Cross
The Third Sunday of Lent is that of the Veneration of the Cross. The cross stands in the midst of the church in the middle of the lenten season not merely to remind men of Christ’s redemption and to keep before them the goal of their efforts, but also to be venerated as that reality by which man must live to be saved. “He who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Mt.10:38). For in the Cross of Christ Crucified lies both “the power of God and the wisdom of God” for those being saved (1 Cor.1:24).

The Time of the Resurrection (II) March 23 - The Mother of the Lord (Italy, 1650) - Easter Sunday
The Virgin got up and said: "These witnesses to the time of my Son's Resurrection are enough for me..." Then she looked out the window and saw that the dawn was beginning to break. Her joy was great: "My son will soon resuscitate," she said. Then, kneeling down, she prayed: "Awake, stand in front of me and look, and you, Lord God Sabaoth, awake." Immediately, Christ sent the angel Gabriel to her saying, "You once announced to my mother the Incarnation of the Word, announce to her now His resurrection." Then the Angel flew to Mary and said to her, "Queen of Heaven, rejoice, because the One you deserved to carry in your womb is risen as He said." And Christ greeted His mother, saying: "Peace be with you"... And Mary said to her Son: "Before, my Son, I worshipped on Saturday, in honor of the holy rest after the creation of the world. Now I will worship on Sunday in memory of your Resurrection, and your rest and glory." And Christ approved.
Saint Vincent Ferrer Spanish Dominican (d. 1419)
Mary Mother of GOD 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary

Vigilance and prayer are the safeguards of chastity. You should pray often and fervently
 to be preserved from temptations against purity, and for the grace to overcome them.
-- St. John Baptist de la Salle

March 23 – Wednesday of Holy Week – Mater Domini (Italy, 1650)
 
A Unique Shrine
In 2004, Father Baudouin, an avid deep sea diver, decided to create a one-of-kind religious shrine off the coast of Calvi in Corsica.
With a few of his diver friends (who were not too interested in religion!), the priest had the idea of taking a statue of Mary down to a cave buried 25 meters deep. "There was no way to bring those men to church. A pilgrimage was too much for them. I had to set up a chapel where they least expected it," he joked.
Since then, every August 15th, Father Baudouin accompanies about thirty young people for an
 "underwater procession." His friends help out.
"They keep us safe, and we try to make them holy. In both cases, there is work to do!"
Laure-Marie Schaer, François-Xavier Maigre and Bruno Bouvet
www.la-croix.com

"Time is not our own and we must give a strict accounting of it."
1606 St. Toribio Alfonso de Mogrovejo Bishop defender of the native Indians in Peru's rights
       St Philetus dignitary at court of emperor Hadrian (117-138), a persecutor of Christians
 250 St. Nicon  and Companions Martyred distinguished Roman soldier monk
 361 St. Domitius Martyr with Aquila Esparchius Pelagia & Theodosia at Caesarea in Palestine
 460 Gwinear & Comp martyrs miracles contemporary Saint Patrick  Maidoc of Fiddown Abbot highly esteemed
 484 St. Victorian Carthage Martyr with 4 other miraculously bodies bore no sign of scars or bruises
 484 Liberat and Companions (RM)
       St. Fidelis Martyr of Africa, probably one of the 21-24 companions of St. Felix
5th v. St. Felix African martyr with twenty companions, believed to have been persecuted by Vandals
 550 St. Benedict of Campania hermit contemporary of St. Benedict of Nursia and Monte Cassino miraculously escaped burning
       St. Julian Martyr and confessor
       St. Theodulus A priest ftom Antioch, (in modern Turkey)
1000 Saint Felix of Montecassino Many miracles were recorded at his tomb OSB (AC)
1080 Aldemar the Wise, OSB, Abbot  popular because of the miracles (AC)
1088 Saint Nikon of the Kiev Caves 1st disciple/fellow-ascetic of St Anthony founder of the Kiev Caves monastery
1250-1350(?) Blessed Peter Ghisengi many miracles were reported at his tomb
1367 Blessed Sibyllina Biscossi blind (at 12) saw Saint Dominic in ecstasy MANY GOOD miracles anchorite 67 years
1564 Lukas von Mytilene diese Beschneidung als Zeichen des Satans, das er nur durch das Martyrium löschen könne
1599 Righteous Basil of Mangazea incorrupt Many miracles
1606 St. Toribio Alfonso de Mogrovejo Bishop defender of the native Indians in Peru's rights
See Also April 27 HERE
1702 St. Joseph Oriol Apostle of Barcelona miracle worker healings & prophet faith, hope, love of God and neighbor
1914 Blessed Rafqa (Rebecca) Shabaq al-Rayes  God's gift to the universal Church from the Maronites  revelations by voices, dreams, and visions many miracles V (AC)

Frequent and daily Communion is greatly desired by our Lord and the Church. Pope St. Pius X
 
A meditation during the Great Fast...
“It is necessary most of all for one who is fasting to curb anger,
to accustom himself to meekness and condescension,
to have a contrite heart,
to repulse impure thoughts and desires, to examine his conscience,
to put his mind to the test and to verify what good has been done by us in this or any other week,
and which deficiency we have corrected in ourselves in the present week.
This is true fasting.” – Saint John Chrysostom


St Philetus dignitary at court of emperor Hadrian (117-138), a persecutor of Christians
For openly confessing his faith in Christ the Savior, St Philetus was brought to trial with his wife St Lydia and their sons Macedonius and Theoprepius. By Hadrian's order, St Philetus was sent with his family to Illyria to the military governor Amphilochius to be tortured.

Amphilochius gave orders to suspend them from a tree and to torture them with knives. After this, they were locked up in prison with the jailer Cronides, who believed in Christ. An angel came to them by night and eased their sufferings.

On the following day the martyrs were plunged into a cauldron of boiling oil, but the oil cooled instantly, and the saints remained unharmed. The military governor Amphilochius was so astonished at this miracle that he himself believed in Christ and went into the boiling oil saying, "Lord, Jesus Christ, help me!" and he remained unharmed. The tortures were repeated when the emperor Hadrian came to Illyria. They threw the holy martyrs into the boiling oil again and again, but by the power of God they remained alive.

The humiliated emperor returned to Rome, and the holy martyrs gave thanks to God, then they surrendered their holy souls to Him.

Holy Martyrs Lydia, Philetus, Macedonius and Theoprepius, and those with them: St Philetus was a dignitary at the court of the emperor Hadrian (117-138), a persecutor of Christians. For openly confessing his faith in Christ the Savior, St Philetus was brought to trial with his wife St Lydia and their sons Macedonius and Theoprepius. By Hadrian's order, St Philetus was sent with his family to Illyria to the military governor Amphilochius to be tortured.

Amphilochius gave orders to suspend them from a tree and to torture them with knives. After this, they were locked up in prison with the jailer Cronides, who believed in Christ. An angel came to them by night and eased their sufferings.

Saint Cronides was a notary who believed in Christ. For this crime he was thrown into prison with the holy martyrs Philetus, Macedonius, Theoprepius and others.

On the following day the martyrs were plunged into a cauldron of boiling oil, but the oil cooled instantly, and the saints remained unharmed. The military governor Amphilochius was so astonished at this miracle that he himself believed in Christ and went into the boiling oil saying, "Lord, Jesus Christ, help me!" and he remained unharmed. The tortures were repeated when the emperor Hadrian came to Illyria. They threw the holy martyrs into the boiling oil again and again, but by the power of God they remained alive.
Saint_Amphilochius

The humiliated emperor returned to Rome, and the holy martyrs gave thanks to God, then they surrendered their holy souls to Him.
250 St. Nicon  and Companions Martyred distinguished Roman soldier monk
Cæsaréæ, in Palæstína, sanctórum Mártyrum Nicónis et aliórum nonagínta novem. At Caesarea in Palestine, the holy martyrs Nicon and ninety-nine others.

Orthodoxe und Katholische Kirche: 23. März
Nikon wurde in Neapel geboren. Sein Vater war Heide, seine Mutter Christin und Nikon blieb Heide und wurde Soldat. Als seine Truppe von Feinden umzingelt war, entsann sich Nikon der christlichen Lehren seiner Mutter, betete zu Gott und gelobte, sich taufen zu lassen, wenn er gerettet würde. Er wurde aus der ausweglosen Situation gerettet und beschloß mit seiner Mutter, Priester zu werden. Da die Christen verfolgt wurden und es keine Priesterschulen gab, reiste Nikon nach Chios und zog sich hier in die Einsamkeit zurück. Nach 8 Tagen Fastens und Betens erschien ihm ein Engel und sandte ihn zum Berg Ganos, wo sich eine große Gruppe Mönche unter Leitung des Bischofs von Kyzikos Theodosius verbarg. Nikon erhielt hier Unterricht vom Bischof und wurde Mönch. Nach drei Jahren erhielt Theodosius von einem Engel den Auftrag, Nikon zum neuen Bischof zu weihen und ihn mit den Mönchen nach Sizilien zu senden. Theodosius erfüllte diesen Auftrag und starb. Nikon reiste, nachdem Theodosius begraben war, mit 189 Mönchen nach Sizilien. Ihr Schiff gelangte aber zunächst nach Neapel, wo Nikon seine Mutter, die in seinen Armen starb, und 10 alte Kampfgefährten aus der Armee wiedertraf. Die 10 bekehrten sich und reisten mit den Mönchen nach Sizilien. Hier liessen sie sich in einer Einöde nieder. Nach mehreren Jahren setzte eine neue Verfolgung ein und der Gouverneur von Sizilien Quintilian ließ alle 199 Mönche köpfen. Nikon wurde erst schwer gefoltert und dann auch geköpft. Die 200 Märtyrer wurden vom Bischof von Messina und seinen Priestern, die von ihrem Schicksal erfuhren, begraben. In einigen Martyrologien wird irrtümlicherweise das palästinensische Caesarea als Ort ohres Martyriums genannt.

Nicon was serving in the East when he was converted to Christianity. Eventually he became a monk. Gathering disciples to his side, he fled with them to Sicily to escape the persecutions under Emperor Trajanus Decius. On the island, he and his followers were arrested and executed. 

Nicon and Companions MM (RM) Nicon, a distinguished Roman soldier, was converted to Christianity while traveling in the East. His master, Theodosius of Cyzicus, left him in charge of 200 disciples. When persecution threatened Palestine, they fled to Sicily where they were martyred under Decius.
In error, the Roman Martyrology assigns their suffering to Caesarea in Palestine (Benedictines).

The Monk Martyr Nikon was born at Neapolis (Naples). His father was a pagan, and his mother a Christian. He was not baptized, but his mother secretly instructed him in the tenets of Christianity. Nikon was still a pagan when he reached adulthood. He served as a soldier, and showed unusual courage and strength.
Once, Nikon and his military company were surrounded by enemies. In deadly peril, he remembered the Christian precepts of his mother and, signing himself with the Sign of the Cross, he prayed to God, vowing to be baptized if he were saved. Filled with unusual strength, he killed many of the enemy, and put the rest to flight.  He managed to return home, giving thanks to God for preserving his life. With the blessing of his mother, he set off in search of a priest. This was no easy thing to do in a time of persecution.
St Nikon took a ship to the island of Chios. He went up on a high mountain and spent eight days in fasting and prayer, entreating the Lord to help him.  An angel of God appeared to St Nikon in a dream, showing him the way. St Nikon went to Mount Ganos, where many monks were hidden, headed by Theodosius the Bishop of Cyzicus. St Nikon received from the bishop both the mystery of Baptism and the angelic schema (i.e., monastic tonsure). Living in the cave church, St Nikon became an example for all the brethren.

When St Nikon had lived on the mountain for three years, an angel revealed to the bishop that St Nikon should be consecrated bishop, and should move to the province of Sicily with all the monks. Bishop Theodosius obeyed the angel, and then died after he had entrusted the 190 monks to St Nikon. After he buried Bishop Theodosius, St Nikon sailed to Sicily with the brethren, and so was saved from approaching barbarians.  By God's grace, St Nikon came to his native city Neapolis. He found his mother still alive, and he remained with her for the final day of her life. His mother collapsed on his chest with tears of joy and kissed him. Making a prostration to the ground, she said, "I give thanks to You, O Lord, for You have permitted me to see my son as a monk, and as a bishop. Now, my Lord, hear Your servant, and receive my soul." When she had finished this prayer, the righteous woman died. Those present glorified God and buried her with psalmody.

Rumors of St Nikon's arrival spread through the city, and ten soldiers, his former companions, came to see him. After conversing with the saint they believed and were baptized, and went with him to Sicily. Having arrived on the island, St Nikon settled with the monks in a desolate area, called Gigia, near the river Asinum. Many years passed, and there was another persecution against Christians. Quintilian, the governor of Sicily, was informed that Bishop Nikon was living nearby with many monks. All 199 monks were seized and beheaded, but they left St Nikon alive in order to torture him.

They burned him with fire, yet he remained unharmed. They tied him to the tails of wild horses to be dragged over the ground, but the horses would not budge from the spot. They cut out the saint's tongue, threw him off a high cliff, and finally beheaded him. The body of the hieromartyr Nikon was left in a field to be eaten by wild beasts and birds.

A certain shepherd, possessed by an evil spirit, went to that place, and finding the body of the saint, he immediately fell to the ground on his face. The unclean spirit, vanquished by the power of the saint, had thrown him to the ground and gone out from him with a loud shriek: "Woe is me, woe is me, where can I flee from Nikon?" The healed shepherd related this to the people. The bishop of the city of Messina also learned of this, then he and his clergy buried the bodies of St Nikon and his disciples.
Antiochíæ sancti Theodúli Presbyteri. At Antioch, the priest St. Theodulus. 
361 St. Domitius Martyr with Aquila Esparchius Pelagia & Theodosia at Caesarea in Palestine.
Item corónæ sanctórum Mártyrum Domítii, Pelágiæ, Aquilæ, Epárchii et Theodósiæ. Likewise, the crowning of the holy martyrs Domitius, Pelagia, Aquila, Eparchius, and Theodosia.
Domitius was a Phrygian. He entered the circus in Caesarea, where he exhorted the people to deny the gods of Rome. He and his companions were struck by swords.

Domitius, Pelagia, Aquila, Eparchius & Theodosia MM (RM). Saint Domitius was a Phrygian who was martyred by Julian the Apostate, probably at Caesarea in Palestine. It is possible that he is the unnamed martyred in the acta of Saint Basil of Ancrya. He publicly attacked the public entertainments in the circus, which were dedicated to the heathen gods (Benedictines).
460 Gwinear, Phiala & Companions, martyrs; celebrated miracles contemporary Saint Patrick. MM (AC).  
(Gwinear is also known as Fingar, Guigner, Gwinnear) This saint's vita was not written by Anselm, probably a Cornish canon, until about eight centuries after his death. There is evidence that the basics of the story are true. When Saint Patrick was evangelizing Ireland, he came to the court of King Clito and was treated with scorn. But the king's son Gwinear was more courteous than his father. Though not yet a Christian, he recognized Patrick's piety and rose to his feet to offer the saint his own seat.
Later, as he was hunting and at the same time meditating on Christianity, he was converted. Gwinear let his horse go free and began to live as a hermit. After King Clito's death, the saint returned home, but not to assume the throne. Instead he took 770 men and women (including his converted sister Piala) to spread the Christian faith in Wales and Brittany. At first they landed at the mouth of the Hayle River.

Among the celebrated miracles alleged to have been performed by the saint, one--at Puvigner in Brittany--indicates his reputation for loving animals. Short of water the saint struck the ground and created not one fountain but three: one for himself, the other two for his dog and his horse.

The saint and many of his followers died as martyrs. The Cornish tyrant Teudar had long hated the Christians. He kept a lake filled with reptiles in amongst which he threw those he disliked. It is said that Teudar came upon a band of Gwinear's Christian friends "from behind" and killed them.

Later Gwinear and some companions came across their bodies. The saint knew his own martyrdom could not be far off. "Here brethren is the place of our rest," he told his companions. "Here God has appointed that we should cease from our labors. Come therefore and let us gladly sacrifice our lives for him. Let us not fear them that kill the body. Rather let us fear him who has power to cast both body and soul into hell."

Shortly afterwards the saint was caught by Teudar and beheaded at Hayle near Penzance. A basilica was built in later years over his grave. And the Cornish village of Gwinear bears his name to this day. He is also still venerated in Pluvigner (diocese of Vannes), Brittany, as Saint Guigner, where his legend has adapted to local conditions. At Pluvigner, there is a stained glass window of Gwinear hunting a stag with a cross between its antlers (reminiscent of Saint Eustace) and a well near the church to which processions go on the day of Pardon.

Some of Gwinear's company escaped and gave their names to churches from Saint Ives to Porthleven. While there is no reliable evidence that Gwinear and his companions were Irish or missionaries nor that they were massacred by a tyrant, the historical record suggests that he came from Wales with another local saint, Meriadoc, evangelized the district of Comborne and Gwinnear (Cornwall), and went to Brittany (Attwater, Benedictines, Bentley, Encyclopedia, Farmer).
5th v. Maidoc of Fiddown, Abbot very highly esteemed (AC) . Saint Maidoc, the Irish abbot of Fiddown in Kilkenny, was very highly esteemed (Benedictines, Encyclopedia).
484 SS. VICTORIAN AND Liberat and Companions (RM).  HUNERIC, the Asian king of the Vandals, succeeded his father Genseric in 477. He at first showed a certain moderation in regard to his orthodox Catholic subjects in Mauretania, but in 480 a policy of relentless persecution was again resorted to. Amongst the more conspicuous victims were a group of martyrs who are honoured on this day. Victorian, in particular, a native of Hadrumetum, who was one of the wealthiest citizens of Carthage, had been appointed proconsul by Huneric himself. When the persecuting edicts were published, the Vandal king did all in his power to induce this representative Catholic to conform to Arianism. When promises and threats alike failed to shake his adherence to the true faith, the courageous witness to Christ was subjected to horrible torments, but persevered gloriously until death released him.
With Victorian the Roman Martyrology associates four others who suffered about the same time. Two of these, who were brothers, were subjected to the same torture which, more than a thousand years later, was employed by the priest-hunter, Topcliffe, to test the constancy of the Elizabethan martyrs. The two brothers were hung up by the wrists and heavy weights were attached to their feet. We are told that when one of them gave signs that his resolution was weakening, the other exhorted him so powerfully to endure further that the faint-hearted brother cried out to the executioners not to diminish but to augment his pains. Both were afterwards seared with red-hot plates of iron, but bore all patiently to the end.
         Our authority for these facts is the Historia Persecutionis Vandalicae by St Victor, Bishop
         of Vita, a contemporary.
Saint Liberat, who was a physician, his wife, and children were exiled by the Vandals under Hunneric. When they had been arrested, their infant children were taken from them. His wife stemmed his tears by saying: "Think no more of them, Jesus Christ himself will take care of them, and protect their souls."
While in prison she was told by the heretics that her husband had conformed. For this reason, when she met him at their trial, scolded him in open court for having abandoned God.
He told her that their tormentors had lied in an attempt to persuade her to do likewise. Twelve young children, when dragged away by the persecutors, held their companions by the knees till they were torn away by violence. They were beaten and scourged daily for a long time; yet by God's grace every one of them persevered until they were allowed to escape into exile. (Encyclopedia, Husenbeth).
5th v. St. Fidelis Martyr of Africa, probably one of the 21-24 companions of St. Felix
Item in Africa sancti Fidélis Mártyris. Also in Africa, St. Fidelis, martyr.
Ibídem sancti Felícis et aliórum vigínti Mártyrum. In the same place, St. Felix and twenty other martyrs.
Fidelis M (RM) Date unknown. He may be a member of the group of 21 martyrs led by Saint Felix (Benedictines).
St. Felix African martyr with twenty companions believed persecuted by Vandals 5th v
Felix and Companions MM (RM) 5th century. This group of 21 martyrs may have suffered in the same Vandal persecution as Saint Victorian and Companions. All that is certain is that they died in Africa (Benedictines).
484 St. Victorian Martyr in Carthage with four other miraculously their bodies bore no sign of scars or bruises.
In Africa sanctórum Mártyrum Victoriáni, Procónsulis Cartháginis, et duórum germanórum, Aquisregénsium; item Fruméntii et altérius Fruméntii, mercatórum.  Hi omnes, in persecutióne Wandálica (ut scribit Victor, Africánus Epíscopus), sub Ariáno Rege Hunneríco, pro constántia cathólicæ confessiónis, immaníssimis supplíciis cruciáti, egrégie coronáti sunt.
   In Africa, the holy martyrs Victorian, proconsul of Carthage, and two brothers from Aquaregia.  Also two merchants, both named Frementius, who (as Bishop Victor Africanus relates) were subjected to the most atrocious torments for their courageous confession of the Catholic faith, and who were gloriously crowned martyrs under the Arian king Hunneric, during the persecution of the Vandals.
wealthy fellow merchants, including Frumentius. Initially named proconsul by Hunneric, the Arian king of the Vandals, he was seized and put under pressure to convert to Arianism. When he refused, he was executed with the other merchants after being tortured at Adrumetum.

484 SS. VICTORIAN AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS
HUNERIC, the Arian king of the Vandals, succeeded his father Genseric in 477. He at first showed a certain moderation in regard to his orthodox Catholic subjects in Mauretania, but in 480 a policy of relentless persecu­tion was again resorted to. Amongst the more conspicuous victims were a group of martyrs who are honoured on this day. Victorian, in particular, a native of Hadrumetum, who was one of the wealthiest citizens of Carthage, had been appointed proconsul by Huneric himself. When the persecuting edicts were published, the Vandal king did all in his power to induce this representative Catholic to conform to Arianism. When promises and threats alike failed to shake his adherence to the true faith, the courageous witness to Christ was subjected to horrible torments, but persevered gloriously until death released him. With Victorian the Roman Martyrology associates four others who suffered about the same time. Two of these, who were brothers, were subjected to the same torture which, more than a thousand years later, was employed by the priest-hunter, Topcliffe, to test the constancy of the Elizabethan martyrs. The two brothers were hung up by the wrists and heavy weights were attached to their feet. We are told that when one of them gave signs that his resolution was weakening, the other exhorted him so powerfully to endure further that the faint-hearted brother cried out to the executioners not to diminish but to augment his pains. Both were afterwards seared with red-hot plates of iron, but bore all patiently to the end.

Our authority for these facts is the Historia Persecution is Vandalicae by St Victor, Bishop of Vita, a contemporary.
Victorian, Frumentius & Comps. MM (RM) Died at Hudrumetum in 484. When Huneric succeeded his father Genseric as the Arian king of the Vandals in 477, the African Catholics were extended a degree of toleration. But in 480, he again began persecuting priests and virgins and by 484 extended his rage to simple believers.
 
Victorian, a wealthy Catholic of Adrumetum, was appointed proconsul by Hunneric. He always behaved with fidelity toward the king until the day Hunneric sent a message to him demanding that he conform to the Arian perversity of the Faith. Victorian immediately gave his answer: "Tell the king that I trust in Christ. If his majesty pleases, he may condemn me to the flames, or to wild beasts, or to any torments: but I shall never consent to renounce the Catholic church in which I have been baptized. Even if there were no other life after this, I would never be ungrateful and perfidious to God, who hath granted me the happiness of knowing him, and who hath bestowed on me his most precious graces."

Of course, Hunneric did not take this answer well. Victorian was subjected to torture, which he suffered with joy, ending in his martyrdom. The Roman Martyrology records that four other wealthy merchants were martyred on that same day. The two of them were merchants of Carthage, both named of Frumentius. The other two were brothers of the city of Aquae-regiae, Byzacona, who were apprehended for the faith, and conducted to Tabaia. They had promised each other and begged God to allow them to suffer and die together. The persecutors hung them in the air with great weights at their feet. One of them, under the excess of pain, begged to be taken down for a little ease.

His brother feared that he might be losing the will to remain faithful. From his rack he cried out: "God forbid, dear brother, that you should ask such a thing. Is this what we promised to Jesus Christ? Should not I accuse you at His terrible tribunal? Have you forgotten what we have sworn upon his body and blood, to suffer death together for his holy name?"
These words encouraged the other: "No, no; I ask not to be released: on the contrary, add new weights, if you please, increase my tortures, exert all your cruelties till they are exhausted upon me."
They were then subjected to new tortures including being burnt with red-hot plates of iron, but miraculously their bodies bore no sign of scars or bruises. Finally, their tormentors left them saying: "Everybody follows their example, no one now embraces our religion" (Attwater2, Benedictines, Husenbeth)
550 St. Benedict of Campania Benedictine hermit contemporary of St. Benedict of Nursia and Monte Cassino.
In Campánia sancti Benedícti Mónachi, qui, a Gothis in ardénti clíbano inclúsus, sequénti die invéntus est illæsus.
 In Campania, St. Benedict, monk, who was shut up in a burning furnace by the Goths, but who was found uninjured the next day.

 550 ST BENEDICT THE HERMIT
ST GREGORY the Great, in his Dialogues, has preserved the memory of a hermit or solitary monk, named Benedict, who resided in some part of the Campagna and was barbarously shut up in an oven by the Goths when, under the leadership of Totila, they were devastating Italy. By a miracle, he was preserved from death, and was liberated unhurt the next day. He lived at the time of St Benedict of Nursia, who was personally acquainted with him. The holy man appears to have died a natural death in 543 or 550, and he may perhaps be identified with a St Benedict whose relics are venerated at Lavello, in the diocese of Venosa, who is also commemorated upon this day.
The Dialogues of St Gregory the Great (bk iii, ch. 18) are here our only authority, but the Roman Martyrology registers the name of St Benedict the Hermit on this day.
Benedict lived in the Campania region of Italy. When captured by Totila the Goth, he was saved miraculously from the flames Of an execution fire. He is also called Benedict the Hermit and is mentioned in the Dialogues of St. Gregory.

Benedict of Campania (RM) (also known as Benedict the Hermit) Died c. 550. This saint was a contemporary of Saint Benedict of Monte Cassino. He lived as a hermit in the Campagna region of Italy. The Goths tried to burn the monk alive, but he miraculously escaped the next day (Attwater2, Benedictines, Encyclopedia).
St. Julian Martyr and confessor.  
 Cæsaréæ sancti Juliáni Confessóris.       At Caesarea, St. Julian, confessor.
Nothing else is known of him with certainty. Julian M (RM). The Roman Martyrology calls Julian a confessor, but it appears that he was also a martyr (Benedictines).
St. Theodulus A priest from Antioch, (in modern Turkey).  
Antiochíæ sancti Theodúli Presbyteri. At Antioch, the priest St. Theodulus.
The details of his ministry are no longer known with certainty. In some lists he is called Theodore and Theodoricus.
Theodolus of Antioch (RM) (also known as Theodore, Theodoricus) Date unknown. The only fact known about this saint is that he was a priest of Antioch, Syria. He does not appear to have been martyred (Benedictines).
1000 Saint Felix of Montecassino Many miracles were recorded at his tomb OSB (AC).  
Saint Felix was a Benedictine who lived his life in one of the daughter houses of Monte Cassino. Many miracles were recorded at his tomb. For this reason his remains were raised for veneration by the bishop of Chieti, Italy (Benedictines).
1080 Aldemar the Wise, OSB, Abbot  popular because of the miracles (AC). see March 24.
Born at Capua, Italy; Saint Aldemar became a monk at Monte Cassino. From there he was sent to Saint Laurence's convent, Capua, as spiritual director but he became so popular because of the miracles he performed that he was recalled to Monte Cassino. Aldemar founded the Abbey of Bocchignano in the Abruzzi and several other houses that he ruled with much success. He was also a great lover of animals (Attwater2, Benedictines).
1088 Saint Nikon of the Kiev Caves 1st disciple/fellow-ascetic of St Anthony founder of the Kiev Caves monastery to which he came as a priest. At the monastery he tonsured all the new monks, and among their number was St Theodosius of the Caves (May 3 and August 14).

For tonsuring the favorites of the Great Prince Izyaslav, Sts Barlaam (November 19) and Ephraim (January 28 ), St Nikon brought the wrath of the prince down upon himself, but he refused to force the new monks to leave the monastery. The princess calmed Izyaslav, and he left St Nikon in peace.

When the number of brethren in the monastery had increased, St Nikon desired to go into seclusion and live as a hesychast. He went to the Tmutarakan peninsula (on the eastern banks of the Kerchensk straits) and settled in an unpopulated spot. When news of his holy life and spiritual gifts spread throughout the region, many gathered about him, wishing to follow his example. Thus a monastery and a church were founded in the name of the Most Holy Theotokos.

When he returned to the Kiev Caves monastery, St Nikon was obedient to St Theodosius as his spiritual Father. According to St Nestor the Chronicler (October 27), when St Theodosius had to go somewhere, he entrusted all the brethren to the care of St Nikon. Sometimes he asked St Nikon to offer instruction to the brethren in place of himself. Often, when St Nikon was binding books, St Theodosius sat near him and spun the thread for the binding.

When Prince Svyatoslav drove out his brother Izyaslav from Kiev, St Nikon returned to the monastery he founded. He returned under the igumen Stephen. When St Stephen (April 27) left the Kiev Caves monastery, St Nikon was chosen as igumen of the monastery. He toiled much to adorn his monastery with spiritual books and icons. He died at a great old age (+ 1088) and was buried in the Near Caves of St Anthony.
1250-1350(?) Blessed Peter Ghisengi many miracles were reported at his tomb OSA (AC).  
(also known as Peter of Gubbio) Born at Gubbio, Umbria, Italy; died c. 1250-1350(?); cultus confirmed by Pope Pius IX. Blessed Peter was a scion of the distinguished Ghisleni family. He became an Augustinian hermit and later the provincial of his congregation. He is venerated at Gubbio, where his relics rest and where many miracles were reported at his tomb (Attwater2, Benedictines).

1250? BD PETER OF GUBBIO
No particulars have been preserved about the life of Bd Peter, a member of the Ghisengi family of Gubbio, who joined the Brictinian Hermits of St Augustine and is said to have become provincial. Attention was directed to him because of the wonders which were reported to have taken place at his tomb. During the night office a voice was heard chanting the alternate verses of the Te Deum, and when the community traced the sound and discovered that it proceeded from the vault where he was buried, they found his body in a kneeling posture with open mouth and joined hands. It was translated to a more honourable resting-place, where it remained incorrupt. Hence pilgrims, even from distant places, flocked to Gubbio to venerate his relics. The last translation of his body took place in 1666. Pope Pius IX confirmed his cultus.

See the Acta Sanctorum, March, vol. iii.
1367 Blessed Sibyllina Biscossi blind (at 12) but saw Saint Dominic in ecstasy worked MANY GOOD miracles as an anchorite for 67 years OP Tert. (AC)
(also known as Sybillina) Born in Pavia, Italy, in 1287; cultus approved in 1853; beatified in 1854.
"All things work for the good of those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28). How many of us would have the faith to trust in God's providence as did this holy woman? As Mother Angelica has witnessed, true faith is knowing that when the Lord asks you to walk into the void, He will place a rock beneath your feet. True faith is to be able to praise God in all things; to say with Job, "The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21).

Sybillina's parents died when she was tiny and as soon as she was old enough to be of use to anyone, the neighbors, who had taken her in at the time she was orphaned, put her out to work. She must have been very young when she started to work, because at the age of 12, when she became blind and could not work any more, she already had several years of work behind her.

The cause of her blindness is unknown, but the child was left doubly destitute with the loss of her sight. The local chapter of the Dominican tertiary sisters took compassion on the child and brought her home to live with them. After a little while of experiencing their kind help, she wanted to join them. They accepted her, young though she was, more out of pity than in any hope of her being able to carry on their busy and varied apostolate.

They were soon agreeably surprised to find out how much she could do. She learned to chant the Office quickly and sweetly, and to absorb their teaching about mental prayer as though she had been born for it. She imposed great obligations of prayer on herself, since she could not help them in other ways. Her greatest devotion was to Saint Dominic, and it was to him she addressed herself when she finally became convinced that she simply must have her sight back so that she could help the sisters with their work.

Praying earnestly for this intention, Sybillina waited for his feast day. Then, she was certain, he would cure her. Matins came and went with no miracle; little hours, Vespers--and she was still blind. With a sinking heart, Sybillina knelt before Saint Dominic's statue and begged him to help her. Kneeling there, she was rapt in ecstasy, and she saw him come out of the darkness and take her by the hand.

He took her to a dark tunnel entrance, and she went into the blackness at his word. Terrified, but still clinging to his hand, she advanced past invisible horrors, still guided and protected by his presence. Dawn came gradually, and then light, then a blaze of glory. "In eternity, dear child," he said. "Here, you must suffer darkness so that you may one day behold eternal light."

Sybillina, the eager child, was replaced by a mature and thoughtful Sybillina who knew that there would be no cure for her, that she must work her way to heaven through the darkness. She decided to become a anchorite, and obtained the necessary permission. In 1302, at the age of 15, she was sealed into a tiny cell next to the Dominican church at Pavia. At first she had a companion, but her fellow recluse soon gave up the life. Sybillina remained, now alone, as well as blind.

The first seven years were the worst, she later admitted. The cold was intense, and she never permitted herself a fire. The church, of course, was not heated, and she wore the same clothes winter and summer. In the winter there was only one way to keep from freezing--keep moving--so she genuflected, and gave herself the discipline. She slept on a board and ate practically nothing. To the tiny window, that was her only communication with the outside world, came the troubled and the sinful and the sick, all begging for her help. She prayed for all of them, and worked many miracles in the lives of the people of Pavia.

One of the more amusing requests came from a woman who was terrified of the dark. Sybillina was praying for her when she saw her in a vision, and observed that the woman--who thought she was hearing things--put on a fur hood to shut out the noise. The next day the woman came to see her, and Sybillina laughed gaily. "You were really scared last night, weren't you?" she asked. "I laughed when I saw you pull that hood over your ears." The legend reports that the woman was never frightened again.

Sybillina had a lively sense of the Real Presence and a deep devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. One day a priest was going past her window with Viaticum for the sick; she knew that the host was not consecrated, and told him so. He investigated, and found he had indeed taken a host from the wrong container.

Sybillina lived as a recluse for 67 years. She followed all the Masses and Offices in the church, spending what few spare minutes she had working with her hands to earn a few alms for the poor (Attwater2, Benedictines, Dorcy).

 1367 BD SIBYLLINA OF PAVIA, VIRGIN
SIBYLLINA Biscossi, left an orphan in early childhood, constrained to earn her bread as a servant-maid before she was ten years old, unable to read or write, and afflicted with total blindness at the age of twelve, can have known little of comfort or joy in the sense which the world attaches to these terms. When her blindness rendered her incapable of doing any useful work, some kind Dominican tertiaries of Pavia, in which city she was born and died, took her to live with them. Intensely devout and full of faith, the child was at first convinced that if she prayed hard enough St Dominic would restore her sight. The days slipped by and nothing happened, but at last, when all hope of cure seemed to have left her, she had a dream, or perhaps a vision. She thought that St Dominic took her by the hand and led her through a long, long passage in pitchy darkness where the felt presence of evil beings would have caused her to faint with terror had it not been for the hand-clasp of her guide. But a glimmer of light showed itself beyond, which became more intense as they struggled forwards, and in the end they emerged into glorious sunshine in a home of ineffable peace. When she awoke Sibyllina was at no loss for an interpretation. God meant her to remain blind; and so she determined to second the divine purposes which had already made her so pointedly an exile in this world. She made arrangements to become a recluse and was enclosed in an anchorage beside the Dominican church. At first she had a companion living with her, who died after three years and no one took her place. Sibyllina as a solitary led a life of incredible austerity, but she lived until the age of eighty. People of all classes came to consult her in their troubles and conversed with her through the window of her cell, while many miracles were ascribed to her intercession. It is recorded of her that she was specially devout to the Holy Ghost and that she regarded Whitsunday as the greatest feast of the year. When she died in 1367 she had been a recluse for sixty-five years. Her body was still incorrupt in 1853 when her cult was confirmed.

See G. M. Pio, Delle vile degli huomini illustri di S. Domenico (1607), cc. 467—469; Procter, Lives of the Dominican Saints, pp. 72—74 M. C. de Ganay, Leg Bienheureuses Dominicaines, pp. 179—195.
1564 Lukas von Mytilene diese Beschneidung als Zeichen des Satans, das er nur durch das Martyrium löschen könne.
Orthodoxe Kirche: 23. März (24. April)

Lukas wurde in Jedren (Adrianopolis in Serbien) geboren. Als Kind wurde er in Konstantinopel von Türken gefangengenommen und beschnitten. Lukas sah diese Beschneidung als Zeichen des Satans, das er nur durch das Martyrium löschen könne. Er ging zum Athos, wurde Mönch und zog dann mit einem älteren Mönch (Bessarion) nach Mytilene. Hier wurde er am 23.3.1802 von den Türken erhängt. Sein Leichnam soll, als er am Galgen hing, ein wohlriechendes Öl (Chrisam) abgesondert haben. Er wird nach seinem Athoskloster auch Lukas von der Hl. Annenskete und in der bulgarischen orthodoxen Kirche Lukas von Odrin genannt.

Die orthodoxe Kirche gedenkt am 23.03. eines weiteren Märtyrers Lukas von Mytilene, der 1384 starb, sowie am 24.04. des Neu-Märtyrers Lukas von Mytilene, er war Schneider und starb 1564.
1599 Righteous Basil of Mangazea incorrupt Many miracles.
St Basil was born in the town of Yaroslavl around 1587. His father was a merchant, but the family was very poor. As a child, Basil spent much of his time in church, praying fervently and participating in the divine services.

When he was twelve, the boy set out to earn his living. After a difficult journey through wild forests, he came to the Russian village of Mangazea in Siberia on the River Taz. This was an area inhabited by Mongols and indigenous peoples of Siberia.

After stopping to pray in the village church, St Basil found a job with a local merchant. The merchant was a person of low moral character and did not believe in God, so while he appreciated Basil's work, he did not care for the boy's religious inclinations. Soon the cruel merchant came to hate his clerk and began to mistreat him.

During the Matins of Pascha, thieves robbed the merchant's shop. The merchant discovered the theft and went to the governor, accusing Basil of being one of the thieves. So great was the merchant's hatred of Basil that he falsely accused the young man. The governor did not even bother to investigate the charges, but had Basil arrested and tortured to make him admit his guilt. In spite of unbearable tortures, the saint kept saying, "I am innocent."

Enraged by Basil's endurance and meekness, the merchant struck him in the head with a ring of keys. St Basil fell to the floor and surrendered his soul to God. The governor ordered that the saint's body be placed in a coffin and buried in a swamp.

After several years, the servants who disposed of the body began to speak about the child's murder. Soon all the residents of Mangazea knew that the saint's relics were in the swamp. Because of many signs that took place, people began to address prayers to St Basil. Forty-two years after the unjust murder of the saint, his coffin was removed from the swamp and his holy relics were found to be incorrupt. A chapel was built over his grave, and in 1670 the relics were placed in the church of Holy Trinity Monastery near Turakhanov.

In 1719 the holy Metropolitan Philotheus of Siberia (May 31) sent a carved reliquary to the monastery. Many miracles took place there, and St Basil helped Metropolitan Philotheus on many occasions

A new stone church was built at Holy Trinity Monastery in 1787, and the relics were transferred there.

In iconography, St Basil is portrayed as a young man with light brown hair, bare-footed and wearing only a shirt. He is also depicted on the Abaletsk Icon "Of the Sign" (July 20, November 27).
1606 St. Toribio Alfonso de Mogrovejo; Bishop defender of the native Indians in Peru's rights
Limæ, in Perúvia, sancti Turíbii Epíscopi, cujus virtúte fides et disciplína ecclesiástica per Amerícam diffúsæ sunt.
 At Lima in Peru, Archbishop St. Turibius, through whose labours both faith and ecclesiastical discipline were spread through America.
Turibio von Mongrovejo  Katholische Kirche: 23. März
Toribio Alfonso Mongrovejo (auch Turibius von Lima genannt) wurde am 15.11.1538 in Leon (Spanien) geboren. Seine adeligen Eltern ermöglichten ihm das Studium in Valladolid und Salamanca. Er war ein hervorragender Student und wurde nach wenigen Studienjahren Professor der Rechte in Salamanca. 1571 ernannte ihn - obwohl er Laie war - König Philipp II. zum Vorsitzenden des Inquisitionsgerichts in Granada. 1580 wurde er zum Erzbischof von Lima gewählt, um dort die Bekehrung der Peruaner mit aller Strenge voranzubringen. Tribio lehnte die Berufung unter Hinweis auf seinen Laienstand ab, aber er wurde im Schnellvefahren zum Priester geweiht und zum Bischof gesalbt. Am 24.5.1581 traf er in Lima ein. Seine Diözese umfaßte ein riesiges Gebiet, das mangels Straßen nur zu Fuß bereist werden konnte. Dennoch führte er drei Visitationsreisen in seiner Diözese durch - die erste dauerte sieben Jahre. Er lernte die Dialekte der Quechuans, der Ureinwohner und nahm sie vor Übergriffen und Mißhandlungen in Schutz. Es gelang ihm einige der schlimmsten Ausschreitungen zu beenden und unfähige Mitarbeiter - in der Priesterschaft wie in der Verwaltung - abzulösen, der Klerus, besonders die Orden und die Kolonialregierung behinderten ihn aber oft in seiner Arbeit. Er mußte auch feststellen, daß viele der Getauften keinen Unterricht erhalten hatten und begann eine umfangreiche Evangelisationsarbeit. Er taufte und firmierte fast eine Million Menschen, gründete Schulen und Hospitäler und 1591 das erste Priesterseminar in Lima. Er starb auf einer Visitationsreise am 23.3.1606. Zu seiner Gemeinde gehörten die Heiligen Rosa von Lima, Franz Solano (Gedenktag 14.7.), Martin von Porres und Johannes Massias (Gedenktag 16.9.). Sein Festtag wurde in Lateinamerika am 27.4.begangen, bis sein Fest in den Universalkalender aufgenommen wurde. Turibio ist Patron Perus und der lateinamerikanischen Bischöfe.

Born in Mayorga, Spain, he studied law and became a lawyer and then professor at Salamanca, receiving appointment-despite being a layman-as chief judge of the court of Inquisition at Granada under King Philip II of Spain. The king subsequently appointed him in 1580 to the post of archbishop of Lima, Peru. After receiving ordination and then consecration, he arrived in Peru in 1581 and soon demonstrated a deep zeal to reform the archdiocese and a determination to do all in his power to aid the poor and defend the rights of the Indians who were then suffering severely under Spanish occupation. He founded schools, churches, hospitals, and the first seminary in the New World. To assist his pastoral work among the Indians, he also mastered several Indian dialects. He was canonized in 1726.

Turibius Mongrovejo B (RM) (also known as Toribio of Turribius of Lima) Born in Mayorga, León, Spain, on November 16, 1538; died at Santa (Sana) near Lima, Peru, on March 26 (or 23), 1606; beatified by Pope Innocent XI ( 1676-1689 ) on June 28, 1679; canonized by Pope Benedict XIII ( 1724-1730 ) in 1726; feast day formerly on April 27.
Turibius (Toribio) Alphonsus was the son of Don Luis Alfonso de Mogrovejo and Dona Ana de Robles y Moran. Although he was devoted from a young age, he had no plans to become a priest. He studied at Valladolid and Salamanca, and was such a successful student that he became a professor of law at the University of Salamanca. In February 1571, although he was still a layman, King Philip II appointed him the chief judge of the ecclesiastical court of the Inquisition at Granada.

In 1580, when the authorities required an archbishop of strong character to work to convert the Peruvians of Lima, they selected Turibius. He was horrified by this decision, and he presented the canons forbidding the promotion of laymen to Church offices to support his contention. He was overruled, however, was ordained priest, consecrated bishop, and arrived in Lima, Peru, on May 24, 1581.

The saint proved to be a wise selection because he was a most zealous shepherd of souls. Upon his arrival he was confronted with an enormous diocese of 18,000 square-miles--his first visitation took him seven years--and one in which the Spanish were guilty of mistreatment of the native population. Undaunted he began his work, traversing his entire diocese three times, generally on foot because there were no roads, defenseless, and often alone, exposed to tempests, torrents, deserts, wild beasts, tropical heat, and fevers.

He came into immediate conflict with the secular authorities over the treatment of the Quechuans, whose rights he defended and whose dialects he learned to speak. He found that many of the baptized Indians knew little or nothing about Christianity and proceeded to evangelize them. He fought injustice and vice, among the clergy as well as the laymen, and succeeded in eliminating many of the worst abuses. At the same time, he helped Spaniards who were too proud to ask for help in such a way that they were not aware of his assistance.

He himself baptized and confirmed nearly a million souls. He continuously studied the various Indian dialects to assist in converting the native population. Among his flock were Saint Rose of Lima, whom he befriended and confirmed, Saint Francis Solanus, Saint Martin de Porres, and Saint John Massias.

He founded many churches, religious houses, and hospitals, and, in 1591, founded the first American seminary in Lima. He also assembled 13 diocesan synods. His favorite topic when preaching was:
"Time is not our own and we must give a strict accounting of it."

Turibius fell ill at Pacasmayo but worked to the end. On one of his journeys he arrived at Sana in dying condition; he dragged himself to the sanctuary and there received the viaticum, dying almost immediately thereafter. He left his belongings to his servants and the rest of his property to the poor.

His cultus was strongly celebrated in Latin America on April 27, until his feast was added to the universal calendar on March 23. He was selected for this worldwide cultus as a type of pioneering missionary, reforming bishop, and representative of South America, whose enormous Catholic population is often forgotten (Attwater, Benedictines, Delaney, Farmer, Schamoni, White).

In art, Saint Turibius is portrayed as a bishop kneeling on the altar steps, surrounded by angels (Roeder). Saint Turibius is the patron saint of bishops of Latin American (White).

St. Turibius of Mogrovejo (1538-1606) 
Together with Rose of Lima, Turibius is the first known saint of the New World, serving the Lord in Peru, South America, for 26 years.
Born in Spain and educated for the law, he became so brilliant a scholar that he was made professor of law at the University of Salamanca and eventually became chief judge of the Inquisition at Granada. He succeeded too well. But he was not sharp enough a lawyer to prevent a surprising sequence of events.

When the archbishopric of Lima in Spain’s Peruvian colony became vacant, it was decided that Turibius was the man needed to fill the post: He was the one person with the strength of character and holiness of spirit to heal the scandals that had infected that area.  He cited all the canons that forbade giving laymen ecclesiastical dignities, but he was overruled. He was ordained priest and bishop and sent to Peru, where he found colonialism at its worst. The Spanish conquerors were guilty of every sort of oppression of the native population. Abuses among the clergy were flagrant, and he devoted his energies (and suffering) to this area first.

He began the long and arduous visitation of an immense archdiocese, studying the language, staying two or three days in each place, often with neither bed nor food. He confessed every morning to his chaplain, and celebrated Mass with intense fervor. Among those to whom he gave the Sacrament of Confirmation was St. Rose of Lima, and possibly St. Martin de Porres. After 1590 he had the help of another great missionary, St. Francis Solanus.

His people, though very poor, were sensitive, dreading to accept public charity from others. Turibius solved the problem by helping them anonymously.

Comment:  The Lord indeed writes straight with crooked lines. Against his will, and from the unlikely springboard of an Inquisition tribunal, this man became the Christlike shepherd of a poor and oppressed people.
God gave him the gift of loving others as they needed it.
1702 St. Joseph Oriol  Apostle of Barcelona; miracle worker healings & prophet faith, hope, and love of God and neighbor
Barcinóne, in Hispánia, sancti Joséphi Oriol Presbyteri, Ecclésiæ sanctæ Maríæ Regum Beneficiárii, omnígena virtúte ac præsértim córporis afflictatióne, paupertátis cultu atque in egénos et infírmos caritáte célebris; quem, in vita et post mortem miráculis gloriósum, Pius Papa Décimus in Sanctórum númerum recénsuit.
At Barcelona in Spain, the priest St. Joseph Oriol, pastor of the church of St. Mary of the Kings, famous for every virtue, especially mortification of the body, his rule of poverty, and his love towards the poor and the sick.  Because he was known for his miracles both in life and after death, Pope Pius X placed his name in the number of the saints.
 
who lived on bread and water for twenty-six years. He was born at Barcelona, Spain. A priest and doctor of theology, he was a canon of Santa Maria del Pino. In 1686, he made a pilgrimage on foot to Rome. A beloved figure in Barcelona, Joseph was also a famed confessor, miracle worker, and prophet. Pope St. Pius X canonized him in 1909.
1702 ST JOSEPH ORIOL
ST JOSEPH ORIOL, was born in Barcelona and spent almost all his life in that city. His father having died while he was still in the cradle, his mother contracted a second marriage with a shoemaker, who loved his little stepson as though he had been his own child. Joseph early became a choirboy at the church of St Mary-of-the-Sea, and the clergy, noticing that he spent hours in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, taught him to read and write, foreseeing in him a vocation to the priesthood. They subsequently enabled him to follow the university courses. At the death of her second husband, Joseph’s mother was left very poor, and the son went to live with his foster-mother, who was tenderly attached to him. The young man’s life as a student was most exemplary. After he had taken his doctor’s degree and had been raised to the priesthood, Joseph accepted some tutorial work in a family of good position to enable him to support his mother. Here also he gained all hearts and was looked upon as a saint, but he remained under no illusions about himself, for God made known to him how far he was from perfection. In consequence of that revelation, he took a vow of perpetual abstinence, and lived for the rest of his days on bread and water. He also increased his bodily penances and wore such miserable clothes that he was often insulted in the streets of Barcelona.

Relieved of the support of his mother by her death in 1686, Joseph started for Rome to venerate the tombs of the apostles, and made the whole journey on foot. Here he was presented by Pope Innocent XI (1676-1689 )to a benefice in his native Barcelona, and as a priest with the cure of souls he continued to live in the most complete self-abnegation. The one little room which he hired at the top of a house contained only a crucifix, a table, a bench and a few books—it was all he needed. The income of his cure went for the relief of the poor, being expended in alms to the living and in Masses for the dead. No bed was necessary for one who never slept for more than two or three hours at night.
    St Joseph had a great gift for direction, and whatever time he could spare was spent in the confessional. At one time, indeed, he was accused of over-severity and of inflicting penances which were injurious to health. His critics succeeded in gaining the ear of the bishop, who forbade him to hear confessions, but the prohibition did not last long. The prelate in question died soon afterwards and his successor reinstated Joseph in all his faculties. Throughout his ministry his zeal was all-embracing, including the most opposite extremes. He was fond of teaching little children, but he also had a great influence over soldiers, whom he won by his gentleness and sympathy. Strangely enough, in the midst of this busy life, St Joseph was suddenly seized with an ardent desire for martyrdom, and decided to go at once to Rome to place himself at the disposal of the Congregation de Propaganda Fide. In vain did the people of Barcelona entreat him not to leave them in vain did two wise priests urge him to take time for reflection. His decision was made his purpose unalterable and he started off for Italy. At Marseilles, however, he fell ill, and the Blessed Virgin in a vision told him that his intention was accepted but that it was God’s will that he should go back to Barcelona and spend the rest of his life in caring for the sick.

His return was attended with extraordinary demonstrations of joy. The fame of his wonderful healing powers spread far and wide, and sufferers came from long distances to be cured of their infirmities. Miracle after miracle was reported, and at one time the saint’s confessor forbade him to perform such cures in church because of the disturbance which they caused. As a matter of fact St Joseph always sought to direct attention away from himself and to associate bodily cures with the tribunal of penance, but powers such as his could not be hidden. Like many other wonder-workers, he also possessed the gift of prophecy, and amongst other predictions he foretold the time of his own death. After receiving the last sacraments he asked for the Stabat Mater to be said aloud, and died on March 23, 1702. He was in his fifty-third year. Immense crowds collected round the bier of the dead saint, and on the day of the funeral it became necessary to close the cathedral before his burial could be proceeded with. His few little possessions were eagerly sought for as relics, and the tribute of popular veneration only aug­mented with the lapse of years. St Joseph Oriol was canonized in 1909.

The bull of canonization (Acta Apostolicae Sedis, vol. (1909), pp. 605—622, of almost unprecedented length, gives a full summary of his career. The principal published life is that of J. Ballester de Claramunt, Vida de San José Oriol, presbitero (1909) but there are others both in Spanish and Catalan by M. E. Anzizu and by Masden, and one in Italian by Salotti.
Joseph Oriol (RM) (also known as José Orioli) Born in Barcelona, Spain, on November 23, 1650; died there on March 23, 1702; beatified by Pope Pius VII ( 1800-1823 ) on May 15, 1896; canonized in 1909 (Pius X 1903-1914). Father Joseph Oriol is remembered for the heroism of his virtues, for the example he proposes to Christians, and for the singular favors God accorded him.
Joseph is a saint among thousands of saints; but, for more than three centuries, history and legend together have justified the cognomen his parishioners gave him, even before he died: "wonder- worker of Barcelona." A saint among thousands of saints; but, for about three centuries, history and legend have emphasized the healings, the prophecies, the miracles of all kinds of which Joseph Oriol was the instrument.

Joseph Oriol was born of a poor family. His good conduct, his particular devotion to the Blessed Sacrament persuaded his parish priest to prepare him for the priesthood. He earned a doctorate in theology. In 1675, he was ordained and soon Innocent XI granted him a benefice at Santa Maria del Pino in his native city. In spite of his attempts and temptations, Joseph Oriol never left his parish.

Although he hoped to evangelize the infidels, God showed him that he had another vocation. On his way to Rome, Father Joseph fell ill and experienced a vision that outlined his new mission: He was to reinvigorate the faith of lukewarm hearts in Barcelona. Thus, Joseph Oriol instructed children, evangelized soldiers, and prayed and urged others to pray for the living and the dead.

He wore a hair-shirt, lived only on bread and water for 26 years, and used the discipline on himself. Nevertheless, he is not remembered for his austerity, but rather for his faith, hope, and love of God and neighbor. He epitomized the exercise of these virtues to such a high degree of perfection that the Devil was worried, persecuted him and even left his imprint on his flesh. But only on the flesh. Joseph Oriol remained firm on the path of justice and God manifested his Power and favors through his servant with extraordinary gifts. Death finally ended his life on the date he had announced.
Others would prefer, perhaps, that for the above conventional picture we substitute the one of the wonder-worker, the image of a veritable "medium," worthy heir of the charlatans of paganism, worthy rival of the sorcerers of fetishism, a conjurer as well as a man contemptuous of natural laws. But that kind of picture does not deal with holiness. Holiness takes hold of man and utilizes him. It takes hold of the conscious and the unconscious, it takes hold of the miracle-man who, without holiness, would be less than a man, the inverted reflection of a saint (Attwater2, Benedictines, Encyclopedia).
1914 Blessed Rafqa (Rebecca) Shabaq al-Rayes  God's gift to the universal Church from the Maronites  revelations by voices, dreams, and visions many miracles V (AC)
(also known as Rafka, Rebecca, Pierina, or Boutrosiya)
Born in Hemlaya, Lebanon, June 29, 1832; died October 23, 1914; beatified November 17, 1985 St John Paul II 1978- 2005
Too often we forget that there are other rites within the Catholic Church beyond the Roman Rite. Blessed Rafqa (Rebecca) is God's gift to the universal Church from the Maronites, which hale from Lebanon. Raqfa, like the bride in the Song of Songs, listened to her Beloved's call: "Come from Lebanon, my promised bride, Come from Lebanon, come on your way. Look down from the heights of Amanus, From the crests of Senir and Hermon, The haunt of lions, The mountains of leopards. The scent of your garments Is like the scent of Lebanon. She is a garden enclosed, My sister, my promised bride; a garden enclosed A sealed fountain Fountain of the garden, Well of living water, Streams flowing down from Lebanon!" [vv. 4:1-15].

Pierina (Petronilla), the only child Mourad Saber Shabaq al-Rayes and his wife Rafqa Gemayel, was named after Saint Peter on whose feast she was born in the land of the Canaanites and Phoenicians. This blind seer, known as the "Little Flower of Lebanon," the "Purple Rose," and the "Silent, Humble Nun," related the story of her life to her mother superior months before her death.

Life in Lebanon was not easy even in the 19th century and was made more difficult for Pierina by the death of her mother when she was six years old. She worked as a house maid in Syria for four years (1843-1847) and a few years later (1853) entered the Marian Order of the Immaculate Conception as a postulant at the convent of Our Lady of Liberation in Bikfaya. Saint Maron's Day 1855 she was received as a novice and took the name Anissa (Agnes). Five years later she witnessed the massacre of Christians in Deir-el-Qamar. In 1871, her order was united with that of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to form the Order of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Each nun was given the choice of entering the new order, another existing order, or being dispensed from her vows.

Throughout her life, Raqfa was gifted with extraordinary revelations by voices, dreams, and visions. In 1871, Sister Anissa went to Saint George's Church in Batroun to pray about the future of her vocation. That night she dreamed that Saint Antony the Hermit told her to become a nun in the Baladiya Order of the Maronites. At the age of 39 (July 12, 1871), she responded to the dream by entering the ascetic Baladiya Order at the cloistered convent of Saint Simon in El-Qarn, where she was known as Boutrosiya from Hemlaya. She made her perpetual vows and received the veil from Father Superior Ephrem Geagea al-Bsherrawi on August 25, 1873, and took the name Rafqa (Rebecca).
As a member of an ascetic order, in 1885, Rafqa asked our Lord to let her share in His suffering. From that night on her health began to deteriorate. Shortly she was blind and crippled and still she imposed greater penances upon herself, such as eating only the leftover scraps of food. She continued to share in the prayers of the community and its work by spinning wool and knitting of stockings. By 1907, Sister Rafqa was totally paralyzed and in constant pain, but by uniting her suffering with Christ's she was able to bear all with joy, without complaint.

Four days after her death, her superior, Sister Doumit experienced the first of many miracles wrought at the intercession of Blessed Rafqa (Hourani, Zayek).



THE PSALTER OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY PSALM 293

Bless, O my soul, the Virgin Mary: her honor and her magnificence forever.

Thou hast clothed thyself with beauty and comeliness: thou art clad, O Lady, with a shining garment.

From thee proceeds the healing of sins: and the discipline of peace, and the fervor of charity.

Fill us, thy servants, with holy virtues: and let the wrath of God not come nigh unto us.

Give eternal joy to thy servants: and forget them not in the death struggle.

Let every spirit praise Our Lady

Rejoice, ye Heavens, and be glad, O Earth: because Mary will console her servants and will have mercy on her poor.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost as it was in the beginning and will always be.

God loves variety. He doesn't mass-produce his saints. Every saint is unique, for each is the result of a new idea.  As the liturgy says: Non est inventus similis illis--there are no two exactly alike. It is we with our lack of imagination, who paint the same haloes on all the saints. Dear Lord, grant us a spirit that is not bound by our own ideas and preferences.  Grant that we may be able to appreciate in others what we lack in ourselves. O Lord, grant that we may understand that every saint must be a unique praise of Your glory. Catholic saints are holy people and human people who lived extraordinary lives.  Each saint the Church honors responded to God's invitation to use his or her unique gifts.   God calls each one of us to be a saint in order to get into heaven:  only saints are allowed into heaven. The more "extravagant" graces are bestowed NOT for the benefit of the recipients so much as FOR the benefit of others.
There are over 10,000 named saints beati  from history
 and Roman Martyology Orthodox sources
Patron_Saints.html  Widowed_Saints html  Indulgences The Catholic Church in China
LINKS: Marian Shrines   India Marian Shrine Lourdes of the East   Lourdes 1858  China Marian shrines 1995
Kenya national Marian shrine  Loreto, Italy  Marian Apparitions (over 2000)  Quang Tri Vietnam La Vang 1798
  Links to Related MarianWebsites  Angels and Archangels  Saints Visions of Heaven and Hell
Widowed Saints  html
Doctors_of_the_Church   Acts_Of_The_Apostles  Roman Catholic Popes  Purgatory  Uniates  Chalcedon
Mary the Mother of Jesus Miracles_BC  Lay Saints  Miraculous_Icons  Miraculous_Medal_Novena Patron Saints
Miracles by Century 100   200   300   400   500   600   700    800   900   1000    1100   1200   1300   1400  1500  1600  1700  1800  1900 2000
Miracles 100   200   300   400   500   600   700    800   900   1000  
 1100   1200   1300   1400  1500  1600  1700  1800   1900 Lay Saints

The great psalm of the Passion, Chapter 22, whose first verse “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
Jesus pronounced on the cross, ended with the vision: “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord;
and all the families of the nations shall worship before him” For kingship belongs to the LORD, the ruler over the nations. All who sleep in the earth will bow low before God; All who have gone down into the dust will kneel in homage. And I will live for the LORD; my descendants will serve you. The generation to come will be told of the Lord, that they may proclaim to a people yet unborn the deliverance you have brought.
Pope Benedict XVI to The Catholic Church In China {whole article here} 2000 years of the Catholic Church in China
The saints “a cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible.

Join us on CatholicVote.org. Be part of a new movement committed to using powerful media projects to create a Culture of Life. We can help shape the movement and have a voice in its future. Check it out at www.CatholicVote.org

Saint Frances Xavier Seelos  Practical Guide to Holiness
1. Go to Mass with deepest devotion. 2. Spend a half hour to reflect upon your main failing & make resolutions to avoid it.
3. Do daily spiritual reading for at least 15 minutes, if a half hour is not possible.  4. Say the rosary every day.
5. Also daily, if at all possible, visit the Blessed Sacrament; toward evening, meditate on the Passion of Christ for a half hour, 6.  Conclude the day with evening prayer & an examination of conscience over all the faults & sins of the day.
7.  Every month make a review of the month in confession.
8. Choose a special patron every month & imitate that patron in some special virtue.
9. Precede every great feast with a novena that is nine days of devotion. 10. Try to begin & end every activity with a Hail Mary
My God, I believe, I adore, I trust and I love Thee.  I beg pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not
O most Holy trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore Thee profoundly.  I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the Tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference by which He is offended, and by the infite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  I beg the conversion of poor sinners,  Fatima Prayer, Angel of Peace
The voice of the Father is heard, the Son enters the water, and the Holy Spirit appears in the form of a dove.
THE spirit and example of the world imperceptibly instil the error into the minds of many that there is a kind of middle way of going to Heaven; and so, because the world does not live up to the gospel, they bring the gospel down to the level of the world. It is not by this example that we are to measure the Christian rule, but words and life of Christ. All His followers are commanded to labour to become perfect even as our heavenly Father is perfect, and to bear His image in our hearts that we may be His children. We are obliged by the gospel to die to ourselves by fighting self-love in our hearts, by the mastery of our passions, by taking on the spirit of our Lord.
   These are the conditions under which Christ makes His promises and numbers us among His children, as is manifest from His words which the apostles have left us in their inspired writings. Here is no distinction made or foreseen between the apostles or clergy or religious and secular persons. The former, indeed, take upon themselves certain stricter obligations, as a means of accomplishing these ends more perfectly; but the law of holiness and of disengagement of the heart from the world is general and binds all the followers of Christ.
God loves variety. He doesn't mass-produce his saints. Every saint is unique each the result of a new idea.
As the liturgy says: Non est inventus similis illis--there are no two exactly alike.
It is we with our lack of imagination, who paint the same haloes on all the saints.
Dear Lord, grant us a spirit not bound by our own ideas and preferences.
 Grant that we may be able to appreciate in others what we lack in ourselves.
O Lord, grant that we may understand that every saint must be a unique praise of Your glory.
 Catholic saints are holy people and human people who lived extraordinary lives.
Each saint the Church honors responded to God's invitation to use his or her unique gifts.
The 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary ) Revealed to St. Dominic and Blessed Alan)
1.    Whoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall receive signal graces. 2.    I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all those who shall recite the Rosary. 3.    The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies. 4.    It will cause virtue and good works to flourish; it will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of people from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire of eternal things.  Oh, that soul would sanctify them by this means.  5.    The soul that recommends itself to me by the recitation of the Rosary shall not perish. 6.    Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying themselves to the consideration of its Sacred Mysteries shall never be conquered by misfortune.  God will not chastise them in His justice, they shall not perish by an unprovided death; if they be just, they shall remain in the grace of God, and become worthy of eternal life. 7.    Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church. 8.    Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plentitude of His graces; at the moment of death they shall participate in the merits of the Saints in Paradise. 9.    I shall deliver from purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary. 10.    The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in Heaven.  11.    You shall obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary. 12.    I shall aid all those who propagate the Holy Rosary in their necessities. 13.    I have obtained from my Divine Son that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors the entire celestial court during their life and at the hour of death. 14.    All who recite the Rosary are my children, and brothers and sisters of my only Son, Jesus Christ. 15.    Devotion to my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.
His Holiness Aram I, current (2013) Catholicos of Cilicia of Armenians, whose See is located in Lebanese town of Antelias. The Catholicosate was founded in Sis, capital of Cilicia, in the year 1441 following the move of the Catholicosate of All Armenians back to its original See of Etchmiadzin in Armenia. The Catholicosate of Cilicia enjoyed local jurisdiction, though spiritually subject to the authority of Etchmiadzin. In 1921 the See was transferred to Aleppo in Syria, and in 1930 to Antelias.
Its jurisdiction currently extends to Syria, Cyprus, Iran and Greece.
Aramaic dialect of Edessa, now known as Syriac
The exact date of the introduction of Christianity into Edessa {Armenian Ourhaï in Arabic Er Roha, commonly Orfa or Urfa, its present name} is not known. It is certain, however, that the Christian community was at first made up from the Jewish population of the city. According to an ancient legend, King Abgar V, Ushana, was converted by Addai, who was one of the seventy-two disciples. In fact, however, the first King of Edessa to embrace the Christian Faith was Abgar IX (c. 206) becoming official kingdom religion.
Christian council held at Edessa early as 197 (Eusebius, Hist. Ecc7V,xxiii).
In 201 the city was devastated by a great flood, and the Christian church was destroyed (“Chronicon Edessenum”, ad. an. 201).
In 232 the relics of the Apostle St. Thomas were brought from India, on which occasion his Syriac Acts were written.

Under Roman domination martyrs suffered at Edessa: Sts. Scharbîl and Barsamya, under Decius; Sts. Gûrja, Schâmôna, Habib, and others under Diocletian. 
In the meanwhile Christian priests from Edessa evangelized Eastern Mesopotamia and Persia, established the first Churches in the kingdom of the Sassanides.  Atillâtiâ, Bishop of Edessa, assisted at the Council of Nicæa (325). The “Peregrinatio Silviæ” (or Etheriæ) (ed. Gamurrini, Rome, 1887, 62 sqq.) gives an account of the many sanctuaries at Edessa about 388.
Although Hebrew had been the language of the ancient Israelite kingdom, after their return from Exile the Jews turned more and more to Aramaic, using it for parts of the books of Ezra and Daniel in the Bible. By the time of Jesus, Aramaic was the main language of Palestine, and quite a number of texts from the Dead Sea Scrolls are also written in Aramaic.
Aramaic continued to be an important language for Jews, alongside Hebrew, and parts of the Talmud are written in it.
After Arab conquests of the seventh century, Arabic quickly replaced Aramaic as the main language of those who converted to Islam, although in out of the way places, Aramaic continued as a vernacular language of Muslims.
Aramaic, however, enjoyed its greatest success in Christianity. Although the New Testament wins written in Greek, Christianity had come into existence in an Aramaic-speaking milieu, and it was the Aramaic dialect of Edessa, now known as Syriac, that became the literary language of a large number of Christians living in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire and in the Persian Empire, further east. Over the course of the centuries the influence of the Syriac Churches spread eastwards to China (in Xian, in western China, a Chinese-Syriac inscription dated 781 is still to be seen); to southern India where the state of Kerala can boast more Christians of Syriac liturgical tradition than anywhere else in the world.

680 Shiite saint Imam Hussein, grandson of Islam's Prophet Muhammad Known as Ashoura and observed by Shiites across the world, the 10th day of the lunar Muslim month of Muharram: the anniversary of the 7th century death in battle of one of Shiite Islam's most beloved saints.  Imam Hussein died in the 680 A.D. battle fought on the plains outside Karbala, a city in modern Iraq that's home to the saint's shrine.  The battle over a dispute about the leadership of the Muslim faith following Muhammad's death in 632 A.D. It is the defining event in Islam's split into Sunni and Shiite branches.  The occasion is the source of an enduring moral lesson. "He sacrificed his blood to teach us not to give in to corruption, coercion, or use of force and to seek honor and justice."  According to Shiite beliefs, Hussein and companions were denied water by enemies who controlled the nearby Euphrates.  Streets get partially covered with blood from slaughter of hundreds of cows and sheep. Volunteers cook the meat and feed it to the poor.  Hussein's martyrdom recounted through a rich body of prose, poetry and song remains an inspirational example of sacrifice to many Shiites, 10 percent of the world's estimated 1.3 billion Muslims.
Meeting of the Saints  walis (saints of Allah)
Great men covet to embrace martyrdom for a cause and principle.
So was the case with Hazrat Ali. He could have made a compromise with the evil forces of his time and, as a result, could have led a very comfortable, easy and luxurious life.  But he was not a person who would succumb to such temptations. His upbringing, his education and his training in the lap of the holy Prophet made him refuse such an offer.
Rabia Al-Basri (717–801 C.E.) She was first to set forth the doctrine of mystical love and who is widely considered to be the most important of the early Sufi poets. An elderly Shia pointed out that during his pre-Partition childhood it was quite common to find pictures and portraits of Shia icons in Imambaras across the country.
Shah Abdul Latif: The Exalted Sufi Master born 1690 in a Syed family; died 1754. In ancient times, Sindh housed the exemplary Indus Valley Civilisation with Moenjo Daro as its capital, and now, it is the land of a culture which evolved from the teachings of eminent Sufi saints. Pakistan is home to the mortal remains of many Sufi saints, the exalted among them being Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, a practitioner of the real Islam, philosopher, poet, musicologist and preacher. He presented his teaching through poetry and music - both instruments sublime - and commands a very large following, not only among Muslims but also among Hindus and Christians. Sindh culture: The Shah is synonymous with Sindh. He is the very fountainhead of Sindh's culture. His message remains as fresh as that of any present day poet, and the people of Sindh find solace from his writings. He did indeed think for Sindh. One of his prayers, in exquisite Sindhi, translates thus: “Oh God, may ever You on Sindh bestow abundance rare! Beloved! All the world let share Thy grace, and fruitful be.”
Shia Ali al-Hadi, died 868 and son Hassan al-Askari 874. These saints are the 10th and 11th of Shia's 12 most revered Imams. Baba Farid Sufi 1398 miracle, Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki renowned Muslim Sufi saint scholar miracles 569 A.H. [1173 C.E.] hermit gave to poor, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti greatest mystic of his time born 533 Hijri (1138-39 A.D.), Hazrat Ghuas-e Azam, Hazrat Bu Ali Sharif, and Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Sufi Saint Hazrath Khwaja Syed Mohammed Badshah Quadri Chisty Yamani Quadeer (RA) 1236-1325 welcomed people of all faiths & all walks of life.
801 Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya Sufi One of the most famous Islamic mystics
(b. 717). This 8th century saint was an early Sufi who had a profound influence on later Sufis, who in turn deeply influenced the European mystical love and troubadour traditions.  Rabi'a was a woman of Basra, a seaport in southern Iraq.  She was born around 717 and died in 801 (185-186).  Her biographer, the great medieval poet Attar, tells us that she was "on fire with love and longing" and that men accepted her "as a second spotless Mary" (186).  She was, he continues, “an unquestioned authority to her contemporaries" (218).
Rabi'a began her ascetic life in a small desert cell near Basra, where she lost herself in prayer and went straight to God for teaching.  As far as is known, she never studied under any master or spiritual director.  She was one of the first of the Sufis to teach that Love alone was the guide on the mystic path (222).  A later Sufi taught that there were two classes of "true believers": one class sought a master as an intermediary between them and God -- unless they could see the footsteps of the Prophet on the path before them, they would not accept the path as valid.  The second class “...did not look before them for the footprint of any of God's creatures, for they had removed all thought of what He had created from their hearts, and concerned themselves solely with God. (218)
Rabi'a was of this second kind.  She felt no reverence even for the House of God in Mecca:  "It is the Lord of the house Whom I need; what have I to do with the house?" (219) One lovely spring morning a friend asked her to come outside to see the works of God.  She replied, "Come you inside that you may behold their Maker.  Contemplation of the Maker has turned me aside from what He has made" (219).  During an illness, a friend asked this woman if she desired anything.
"...[H]ow can you ask me such a question as 'What do I desire?'  I swear by the glory of God that for twelve years I have desired fresh dates, and you know that in Basra dates are plentiful, and I have not yet tasted them.  I am a servant (of God), and what has a servant to do with desire?" (162)
When a male friend once suggested she should pray for relief from a debilitating illness, she said,
"O Sufyan, do you not know Who it is that wills this suffering for me?  Is it not God Who wills it?  When you know this, why do you bid me ask for what is contrary to His will?  It is not  well to oppose one's Beloved." (221)
She was an ascetic.  It was her custom to pray all night, sleep briefly just before dawn, and then rise again just as dawn "tinged the sky with gold" (187).  She lived in celibacy and poverty, having renounced the world.  A friend visited her in old age and found that all she owned were a reed mat, screen, a pottery jug, and a bed of felt which doubled as her prayer-rug (186), for where she prayed all night, she also slept briefly in the pre-dawn chill.  Once her friends offered to get her a servant; she replied,
"I should be ashamed to ask for the things of this world from Him to Whom the world belongs, and how should I ask for them from those to whom it does not belong?"  (186-7)
A wealthy merchant once wanted to give her a purse of gold.  She refused it, saying that God, who sustains even those who dishonor Him, would surely sustain her, "whose soul is overflowing with love" for Him.  And she added an ethical concern as well:
"...How should I take the wealth of someone of whom I do not know whether he acquired it lawfully or not?" (187)
She taught that repentance was a gift from God because no one could repent unless God had already accepted him and given him this gift of repentance.  She taught that sinners must fear the punishment they deserved for their sins, but she also offered such sinners far more hope of Paradise than most other ascetics did.  For herself, she held to a higher ideal, worshipping God neither from fear of Hell nor from hope of Paradise, for she saw such self-interest as unworthy of God's servants; emotions like fear and hope were like veils -- i.e., hindrances to the vision of God Himself.  The story is told that once a number of Sufis saw her hurrying on her way with water in one hand and a burning torch in the other.  When they asked her to explain, she said:
"I am going to light a fire in Paradise and to pour water on to Hell, so that both veils may vanish altogether from before the pilgrims and their purpose may be sure..." (187-188)
She was once asked where she came from.  "From that other world," she said.  "And where are you going?" she was asked.  "To that other world," she replied (219).  She taught that the spirit originated with God in "that other world" and had to return to Him in the end.  Yet if the soul were sufficiently purified, even on earth, it could look upon God unveiled in all His glory and unite with him in love.  In this quest, logic and reason were powerless.  Instead, she speaks of the "eye" of her heart which alone could apprehend Him and His mysteries (220).
Above all, she was a lover, a bhakti, like one of Krishna’s Goptis in the Hindu tradition.  Her hours of prayer were not so much devoted to intercession as to communion with her Beloved.  Through this communion, she could discover His will for her.  Many of her prayers have come down to us:
       "I have made Thee the Companion of my heart,
        But my body is available for those who seek its company,
        And my body is friendly towards its guests,
        But the Beloved of my heart is the Guest of my soul."  [224]
To Save A Life is Earthly; Saving A Soul is Eternal Donation by mail, please send check or money order to:
Eternal Word Television Network 5817 Old Leeds Rd. Irondale, AL 35210  USA
  Catholic Television Network  Supported entirely by donations from viewers  help  spread the Eternal Word, online Here
Mother Angelica saving souls is this beautiful womans journey  Shrine_of_The_Most_Blessed_Sacrament
Colombia was among the countries Mother Angelica visited. 
In Bogotá, a Salesian priest - Father Juan Pablo Rodriguez - brought Mother and the nuns to the Sanctuary of the Divine Infant Jesus to attend Mass.  After Mass, Father Juan Pablo took them into a small Shrine which housed the miraculous statue of the Child Jesus. Mother Angelica stood praying at the side of the statue when suddenly the miraculous image came alive and turned towards her.  Then the Child Jesus spoke with the voice of a young boy:  “Build Me a Temple and I will help those who help you.” 

Thus began a great adventure that would eventually result in the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament, a Temple dedicated to the Divine Child Jesus, a place of refuge for all. Use this link to read a remarkable story about The Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament
Father Reardon, Editor of The Catholic Bulletin for 14 years Lover of the poor; “A very Holy Man of God.”
Monsignor Reardon Protonotarius Apostolicus
  Pastor 42 years BASILICA OF SAINT MARY Minneapolis MN
America's First Basilica Largest Nave in the World
August 7, 1907-ground broke for the foundation
by Archbishop Ireland-laying cornerstone May 31, 1908
James M. Reardon Publication History of Basilica of Saint Mary 1600-1932
James M. Reardon Publication  History of the Basilica of Saint Mary 1955 {update}

Brief History of our Beloved Holy Priest Here and his published books of Catholic History in North America
Reardon, J.M. Archbishop Ireland; Prelate, Patriot, Publicist, 1838-1918.
A Memoir (St. Paul; 1919); George Anthony Belcourt Pioneer Catholic Missionary of the Northwest 1803-1874 (1955);
The Catholic Church IN THE DIOCESE OF ST. PAUL from earliest origin to centennial achievement 1362-1950 (1952);
The Church of Saint Mary of Saint Paul 1875-1922;  (1932)
The Vikings in the American Heartland;
The Catholic Total Abstinence Society in Minnesota;
James Michael Reardon Born in Nova Scotia, 1872;  Priest, ordained by Bishop Ireland;
Member -- St. Paul Seminary faculty.
Affiliations and Indulgences  Litany of Loretto in Stained glass windows here.  Nave Sacristy and Residence Here
Sanctuary spaces between them filled with grilles of hand-forged wrought iron the life of our Blessed Lady After the crucifixon
Apostle statues Replicas of those in St John Lateran--Christendom's earliest Basilica.
Ordered by Rome's first Christian Emperor, Constantine the Great, Popes' cathedral and official residence first millennium of Christian history.
The only replicas ever made:  in order from west to east {1932}.
Every Christian must be a living book wherein one can read the teaching of the gospel
 It Makes No Sense Not To Believe In GOD
THE BLESSED MOTHER AND ISLAM By Father John Corapi. 
  June 19, Trinity Sunday, 1991: Ordained Catholic Priest under Pope John Paul II;
then 2,000,000 miles delivering the Gospel to millions, and continues to do so.
By Father John Corapi
THE BLESSED MOTHER AND ISLAM By Father John Corapi. 
  June 19, Trinity Sunday, 1991: Ordained Catholic Priest under Pope John Paul II;
then 2,000,000 miles delivering the Gospel to millions, and continues to do so.
By Father John Corapi
Among the most important titles we have in the Catholic Church for the Blessed Virgin Mary are Our Lady of Victory and Our Lady of the Rosary. These titles can be traced back to one of the most decisive times in the history of the world and Christendom. The Battle of Lepanto took place on October 7 (date of feast of Our Lady of Rosary), 1571. This proved to be the most crucial battle for the Christian forces against the radical Muslim navy of Turkey. Pope Pius V led a procession around St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City praying the Rosary. He showed true pastoral leadership in recognizing the danger posed to Christendom by the radical Muslim forces, and in using the means necessary to defeat it. Spiritual battles require spiritual weapons, and this more than anything was a battle that had its origins in the spiritual order—a true battle between good and evil.

Today we have a similar spiritual battle in progress—a battle between the forces of good and evil, light and darkness, truth and lies, life and death. If we do not soon stop the genocide of abortion in the United States, we shall run the course of all those that prove by their actions that they are enemies of God—total collapse, economic, social, and national. The moral demise of a nation results in the ultimate demise of a nation. God is not a disinterested spectator to the affairs of man. Life begins at conception. This is an unalterable formal teaching of the Catholic Church. If you do not accept this you are a heretic in plain English. A single abortion is homicide. The more than 48,000,000 abortions since Roe v. Wade in the United States constitute genocide by definition. The group singled out for death—unwanted, unborn children.

No other issue, not all other issues taken together, can constitute a proportionate reason for voting for candidates that intend to preserve and defend this holocaust of innocent human life that is abortion.
As we watch the spectacle of the world seeming to self-destruct before our eyes, we can’t help but be saddened and even frightened by so much evil run rampant. Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Somalia, North Korea—It is all a disaster of epic proportions displayed in living color on our television screens.  These are not ordinary times and this is not business as usual. We are at a crossroads in human history and the time for Catholics and all Christians to act is now. All evil can ultimately be traced to its origin, which is moral evil. All of the political action, peace talks, international peacekeeping forces, etc. will avail nothing if the underlying sickness is not addressed. This is sin. One person at a time hearts and minds must be moved from evil to good, from lies to truth, from violence to peace.
Islam, an Arabic word that has often been defined as “to make peace,” seems like a living contradiction today. Islam is a religion of peace.  As we celebrate the birthday of Our Lady, I am proposing that each one of us pray the Rosary for peace. Prayer is what must precede all other activity if that activity is to have any chance of success. Pray for peace, pray the Rosary every day without fail.  There is a great love for Mary among Muslim people. It is not a coincidence that a little village named Fatima is where God chose to have His Mother appear in the twentieth century. Our Lady’s name appears no less than thirty times in the Koran. No other woman’s name is mentioned, not even that of Mohammed’s daughter, Fatima. In the Koran Our Lady is described as “Virgin, ever Virgin.”

Archbishop Fulton Sheen prophetically spoke of the resurgence of Islam in our day. He said it would be through the Blessed Virgin Mary that Islam would be converted. We must pray for this to happen quickly if we are to avert a horrible time of suffering for this poor, sinful world. Turn to our Mother in this time of great peril. Pray the Rosary every day. Then, and only then will there be peace, when the hearts and minds of men are changed from the inside.
Talk is weak. Prayer is strong. Pray!  God bless you, Father John Corapi

Father Corapi's Biography

Father John Corapi is what has commonly been called a late vocation. In other words, he came to the priesthood other than a young man. He was 44 years old when he was ordained. From small town boy to the Vietnam era US Army, from successful businessman in Las Vegas and Hollywood to drug addicted and homeless, to religious life and ordination to the priesthood by Pope John Paul II, to a life as a preacher of the Gospel who has reached millions with the simple message that God's Name is Mercy!

Father Corapi's academic credentials are quite extensive. He received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Pace University in the seventies. Then as an older man returned to the university classrooms in preparation for his life as a priest and preacher. He received all of his academic credentials for the Church with honors: a Masters degree in Sacred Scripture from Holy Apostles Seminary and Bachelor, Licentiate, and Doctorate degrees in dogmatic theology from the University of Navarre in Spain.
Father John Corapi goes to the heart of the contemporary world's many woes and wars, whether the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Somalia, or the Congo, or the natural disasters that seem to be increasing every year, the moral and spiritual war is at the basis of everything. “Our battle is not against human forces,” St. Paul asserts, “but against principalities and powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness...” (Ephesians 6:12). 
The “War to end all wars” is the moral and spiritual combat that rages in the hearts and minds of human beings. The outcome of that  unseen fight largely determines how the battle in the realm of the seen unfolds.  The title talk, “With the Moon Under Her Feet,” is taken from the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation, and deals with the current threat to the world from radical Islam, and the Blessed Virgin Mary's role in the ultimate victory that will result in the conversion of Islam. Few Catholics are aware of the connection between Islam, Fatima, and Guadalupe. Presented in Father Corapi's straight-forward style, you will be both inspired and educated by him.

About Father John Corapi.
Father Corapi is a Catholic priest .
The pillars of father's preaching are basically:
Love for and a relationship with the Blessed Virgin Mary 
Leading a vibrant and loving relationship with Jesus Christ
Great love and reverence for the Most Holy Eucharist from Holy Mass to adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
An uncompromising love for and obedience to the Holy Father and the teaching of the Magisterium of the Church

God Bless you on your journey Father John Corapi


Records on life of Father Flanagan, founder of Boys Town, presented at Vatican
Jul 23, 2019 - 03:01 am .- The cause for canonization of Servant of God Edward Flanagan, the priest who founded Nebraska's Boys Town community for orphans and other boys, advanced Monday with the presentation of a summary of records on his life.

Archbishop Fulton Sheen to be beatified
Jul 6, 2019 - 04:00 am .- Pope Francis approved the miracle attributed to Archbishop Fulton Sheen Friday, making possible the American television catechist's beatification.

Brooklyn diocese advances sainthood cause of local priest
Jun 25, 2019 - 03:01 am .- The Bishop of Brooklyn accepted last week the findings of a nine-year diocesan investigation into the life of Monsignor Bernard John Quinn, known for fighting bigotry and serving the African American population, as part of his cause for canonization.

Fr. Augustus Tolton, former African American slave, advances toward sainthood
Jun 12, 2019 - 05:03 am .- Fr. Augustus Tolton advanced along the path to sainthood Wednesday, making the runaway slave-turned-priest one step closer to being the first black American saint.

Pope Francis will beatify these martyred Greek-Catholic bishops in Romania
May 30, 2019 - 03:01 pm .- On Sunday in Blaj, Pope Francis will beatify seven Greek-Catholic bishops of Romania who were killed by the communist regime between 1950 and 1970.
 
Woman who served Brazil’s poorest to be canonized
May 14, 2019 - 06:53 am .- Pope Francis Tuesday gave his approval for eight sainthood causes to proceed, including that of Bl. Dulce Lopes Pontes, a 20th-century religious sister who served Brazil’s poor.

Seven 20th-century Romanian bishops declared martyrs
Mar 19, 2019 - 12:01 pm .- Pope Francis declared Tuesday the martyrdom of seven Greek-Catholic bishops killed by the communist regime in Romania in the mid-20th century.

Pope advances sainthood causes of 17 women
Jan 15, 2019 - 11:12 am .- Pope Francis approved Tuesday the next step in the canonization causes of 17 women from four countries, including the martyrdom of 14 religious sisters killed in Spain at the start of the Spanish Civil War.
 
Nineteen Algerian martyrs beatified
Dec 10, 2018 - 03:08 pm .- Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, were beatified Saturday during a Mass in Oran.

The Algerian martyrs shed their blood for Christ, pope says
Dec 7, 2018 - 10:02 am .- Ahead of the beatification Saturday of Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, Pope Francis said martyrs have a special place in the Church.
Algerian martyrs are models for the Church, archbishop says
Nov 16, 2018 - 03:01 am .- Archbishop Paul Desfarges of Algiers has said that Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, are “models for our lives as disciples today and tomorrow.”
 
Francesco Spinelli to be canonized after healing of a newborn in DR Congo
Oct 9, 2018 - 05:01 pm .- Among those being canonized on Sunday are Fr. Franceso Spinelli, a diocesan priest through whose intercession a newborn was saved from death in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Algerian martyrs to be beatified in December
Sep 14, 2018 - 06:01 pm .- The Algerian bishops' conference has announced that the beatification of Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in the country between 1994 and 1996, will be held Dec. 8.

Now a cardinal, Giovanni Angelo Becciu heads to congregation for saints' causes
Jun 28, 2018 - 11:41 am .- Newly-minted Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu will resign from his post as substitute of the Secretariat of State tomorrow, in anticipation of his appointment as prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints later this summer.

Pope Francis creates new path to beatification under ‘offering of life’
Jul 11, 2017 - 06:22 am .- On Tuesday Pope Francis declared a new category of Christian life suitable for consideration of beatification called “offering of life” – in which a person has died prematurely through an offering of their life for love of God and neighbor.
 
Twentieth century Polish nurse among causes advancing toward sainthood
Jul 7, 2017 - 06:14 am .- Pope Francis on Friday approved a miracle attributed to the intercession of the Venerable Hanna Chrzanowska, a Polish nurse and nursing instructor who died from cancer in 1973, paving the way for her beatification.
 
Sainthood causes advance, including layman who resisted fascism
Jun 17, 2017 - 09:22 am .- Pope Francis on Friday recognized the heroic virtue of six persons on the path to canonization, as well as the martyrdom of an Italian man who died from injuries of a beating he received while imprisoned in a concentration camp for resisting fascism.
 
Solanus Casey, Cardinal Van Thuan among those advanced toward sainthood
May 4, 2017 - 10:47 am .- Pope Francis on Thursday approved decrees of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints advancing the causes for canonization of 12 individuals, including the American-born Capuchin Solanus Casey and the Vietnamese cardinal Francis Xavier Nguen Van Thuan.
 
Pope clears way for canonization of Fatima visionaries
Mar 23, 2017 - 06:44 am .- On Thursday Pope Francis approved the second and final miracle needed to canonize Blessed Francisco and Jacinta Marto, two of the shepherd children who witnessed the Fatima Marian apparitions.
Surgeon and father among sainthood causes moving forward
Feb 27, 2017 - 11:03 am .- Pope Francis recognized on Monday the heroic virtue of eight persons on the path to canonization, including an Italian surgeon and father of eight who suffered from several painful diseases throughout his life.

Records on life of Father Flanagan, founder of Boys Town, presented at Vatican
Jul 23, 2019 - 03:01 am .- The cause for canonization of Servant of God Edward Flanagan, the priest who founded Nebraska's Boys Town community for orphans and other boys, advanced Monday with the presentation of a summary of records on his life.

Archbishop Fulton Sheen to be beatified
Jul 6, 2019 - 04:00 am .- Pope Francis approved the miracle attributed to Archbishop Fulton Sheen Friday, making possible the American television catechist's beatification.

Brooklyn diocese advances sainthood cause of local priest
Jun 25, 2019 - 03:01 am .- The Bishop of Brooklyn accepted last week the findings of a nine-year diocesan investigation into the life of Monsignor Bernard John Quinn, known for fighting bigotry and serving the African American population, as part of his cause for canonization.

Fr. Augustus Tolton, former African American slave, advances toward sainthood
Jun 12, 2019 - 05:03 am .- Fr. Augustus Tolton advanced along the path to sainthood Wednesday, making the runaway slave-turned-priest one step closer to being the first black American saint.

Pope Francis will beatify these martyred Greek-Catholic bishops in Romania
May 30, 2019 - 03:01 pm .- On Sunday in Blaj, Pope Francis will beatify seven Greek-Catholic bishops of Romania who were killed by the communist regime between 1950 and 1970.
 
Woman who served Brazil’s poorest to be canonized
May 14, 2019 - 06:53 am .- Pope Francis Tuesday gave his approval for eight sainthood causes to proceed, including that of Bl. Dulce Lopes Pontes, a 20th-century religious sister who served Brazil’s poor.

Seven 20th-century Romanian bishops declared martyrs
Mar 19, 2019 - 12:01 pm .- Pope Francis declared Tuesday the martyrdom of seven Greek-Catholic bishops killed by the communist regime in Romania in the mid-20th century.

Pope advances sainthood causes of 17 women
Jan 15, 2019 - 11:12 am .- Pope Francis approved Tuesday the next step in the canonization causes of 17 women from four countries, including the martyrdom of 14 religious sisters killed in Spain at the start of the Spanish Civil War.
 
Nineteen Algerian martyrs beatified
Dec 10, 2018 - 03:08 pm .- Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, were beatified Saturday during a Mass in Oran.

The Algerian martyrs shed their blood for Christ, pope says
Dec 7, 2018 - 10:02 am .- Ahead of the beatification Saturday of Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, Pope Francis said martyrs have a special place in the Church.
Algerian martyrs are models for the Church, archbishop says
Nov 16, 2018 - 03:01 am .- Archbishop Paul Desfarges of Algiers has said that Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, are “models for our lives as disciples today and tomorrow.”
 
Francesco Spinelli to be canonized after healing of a newborn in DR Congo
Oct 9, 2018 - 05:01 pm .- Among those being canonized on Sunday are Fr. Franceso Spinelli, a diocesan priest through whose intercession a newborn was saved from death in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Algerian martyrs to be beatified in December
Sep 14, 2018 - 06:01 pm .- The Algerian bishops' conference has announced that the beatification of Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in the country between 1994 and 1996, will be held Dec. 8.

Now a cardinal, Giovanni Angelo Becciu heads to congregation for saints' causes
Jun 28, 2018 - 11:41 am .- Newly-minted Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu will resign from his post as substitute of the Secretariat of State tomorrow, in anticipation of his appointment as prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints later this summer.

Pope Francis creates new path to beatification under ‘offering of life’
Jul 11, 2017 - 06:22 am .- On Tuesday Pope Francis declared a new category of Christian life suitable for consideration of beatification called “offering of life” – in which a person has died prematurely through an offering of their life for love of God and neighbor.
 
Twentieth century Polish nurse among causes advancing toward sainthood
Jul 7, 2017 - 06:14 am .- Pope Francis on Friday approved a miracle attributed to the intercession of the Venerable Hanna Chrzanowska, a Polish nurse and nursing instructor who died from cancer in 1973, paving the way for her beatification.
 
Sainthood causes advance, including layman who resisted fascism
Jun 17, 2017 - 09:22 am .- Pope Francis on Friday recognized the heroic virtue of six persons on the path to canonization, as well as the martyrdom of an Italian man who died from injuries of a beating he received while imprisoned in a concentration camp for resisting fascism.
 
Solanus Casey, Cardinal Van Thuan among those advanced toward sainthood
May 4, 2017 - 10:47 am .- Pope Francis on Thursday approved decrees of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints advancing the causes for canonization of 12 individuals, including the American-born Capuchin Solanus Casey and the Vietnamese cardinal Francis Xavier Nguen Van Thuan.
 
Pope clears way for canonization of Fatima visionaries
Mar 23, 2017 - 06:44 am .- On Thursday Pope Francis approved the second and final miracle needed to canonize Blessed Francisco and Jacinta Marto, two of the shepherd children who witnessed the Fatima Marian apparitions.
Surgeon and father among sainthood causes moving forward
Feb 27, 2017 - 11:03 am .- Pope Francis recognized on Monday the heroic virtue of eight persons on the path to canonization, including an Italian surgeon and father of eight who suffered from several painful diseases throughout his life.
8 Martyrs Move Closer to Sainthood 8 July, 2016
Posted by ZENIT Staff on 8 July, 2016

The angel appears to Saint Monica
This morning, Pope Francis received Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Cardinal Angelo Amato. During the audience, he authorized the promulgation of decrees concerning the following causes:

***
MIRACLES:
Miracle attributed to the intercession of the Venerable Servant of God Luis Antonio Rosa Ormières, priest and founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Guardian Angel; born July 4, 1809 and died on Jan. 16, 1890
MARTYRDOM:
Servants of God Antonio Arribas Hortigüela and 6 Companions, Missionaries of the Sacred Heart; killed in hatred of the Faith, Sept. 29, 1936
Servant of God Josef Mayr-Nusser, a layman; killed in hatred of the Faith, Feb. 24, 1945
HEROIC VIRTUE:

Servant of God Alfonse Gallegos of the Order of Augustinian Recollects, Titular Bishop of Sasabe, auxiliary of Sacramento; born Feb. 20, 1931 and died Oct. 6, 1991
Servant of God Rafael Sánchez García, diocesan priest; born June 14, 1911 and died on Aug. 8, 1973
Servant of God Andrés García Acosta, professed layman of the Order of Friars Minor; born Jan. 10, 1800 and died Jan. 14, 1853
Servant of God Joseph Marchetti, professed priest of the Congregation of the Missionaries of St. Charles; born Oct. 3, 1869 and died Dec. 14, 1896
Servant of God Giacomo Viale, professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor, pastor of Bordighera; born Feb. 28, 1830 and died April 16, 1912
Servant of God Maria Pia of the Cross (née Maddalena Notari), foundress of the Congregation of Crucified Sisters Adorers of the Eucharist; born Dec. 2, 1847 and died on July 1, 1919
Sunday, November 23 2014 Six to Be Canonized on Feast of Christ the King.

On the List Are Lay Founder of a Hospital and Eastern Catholic Religious
VATICAN CITY, June 12, 2014 (Zenit.org) - Today, the Vatican announced that during the celebration of the feast of Christ the King on Sunday, November 23, an ordinary public consistory will be held for the canonization of the following six blesseds, who include a lay founder of a hospital for the poor, founders of religious orders, and two members of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See:
-Giovanni Antonio Farina (1803-1888), an Italian bishop who founded the Institute of the Sisters Teachers of Saint Dorothy, Daughters of the Sacred Hearts
-Kuriakose Elias Chavara (1805-1871), a Syro-Malabar priest in India who founded the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate
-Ludovico of Casoria (1814-1885), an Italian Franciscan priest who founded the Gray Sisters of St. Elizabeth
-Nicola Saggio (Nicola da Longobardi, 1650-1709), an Italian oblate of the Order of Minims
-Euphrasia Eluvathingal (1877-1952), an Indian Carmelite of the Syro-Malabar Church
-Amato Ronconi (1238-1304), an Italian, Third Order Franciscan who founded a hospital for poor pilgrims
CAUSES OF SAINTS July 2015.
Pope Recognizes Heroic Virtues of Ukrainian Archbishop
Recognition Brings Metropolitan Archbishop Andrey Sheptytsky Closer to Beatification
By Junno Arocho Esteves Rome, July 17, 2015 (ZENIT.org)
Pope Francis recognized the heroic virtues of Ukrainian Greek Catholic Archbishop Andrey Sheptytsky. According to a communique released by the Holy See Press Office, the Holy Father met this morning with Cardinal Angelo Amato, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

The Pope also recognized the heroic virtues of several religious/lay men and women from Italy, Spain, France & Mexico.
Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky is considered to be one of the most influential 20th century figures in the history of the Ukrainian Church.
Enthroned as Metropolitan of Lviv in 1901, Archbishop Sheptytsky was arrested shortly after the outbreak of World War I in 1914 by the Russians. After his imprisonment in several prisons in Russia and the Ukraine, the Archbishop was released in 1918.

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic prelate was also an ardent supporter of the Jewish community in Ukraine, going so far as to learn Hebrew to better communicate with them. He also was a vocal protestor against atrocities committed by the Nazis, evidenced in his pastoral letter, "Thou Shalt Not Kill." He was also known to harbor thousands of Jews in his residence and in Greek Catholic monasteries.
Following his death in 1944, his cause for canonization was opened in 1958.
* * *
The Holy Father authorized the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees regarding the heroic virtues of:
- Servant of God Andrey Sheptytsky, O.S.B.M., major archbishop of Leopolis of the Ukrainians, metropolitan of Halyc (1865-1944);
- Servant of God Giuseppe Carraro, Bishop of Verona, Italy (1899-1980);
- Servant of God Agustin Ramirez Barba, Mexican diocesan priest and founder of the Servants of the Lord of Mercy (1881-1967);
- Servant of God Simpliciano della Nativita (ne Aniello Francesco Saverio Maresca), Italian professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor, founder of the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Hearts (1827-1898);
- Servant of God Maria del Refugio Aguilar y Torres del Cancino, Mexican founder of the Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament (1866-1937);
- Servant of God Marie-Charlotte Dupouy Bordes (Marie-Teresa), French professed religious of the Society of the Religious of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary (1873-1953);
- Servant of God Elisa Miceli, Italian founder of the Rural Catechist Sisters of the Sacred Heart (1904-1976);
- Servant of God Isabel Mendez Herrero (Isabel of Mary Immaculate), Spanish professed nun of the Servants of St. Joseph (1924-1953)
October 01, 2015 Vatican City, Pope Authorizes following Decrees
(ZENIT.org) By Staff Reporter
Polish Layperson Recognized as Servant of God
Pope Authorizes Decrees
Pope Francis on Wednesday authorised the Congregation for Saints' Causes to promulgate the following decrees:

MARTYRDOM
- Servant of God Valentin Palencia Marquina, Spanish diocesan priest, killed in hatred of the faith in Suances, Spain in 1937;

HEROIC VIRTUES
- Servant of God Giovanni Folci, Italian diocesan priest and founder of the Opera Divin Prigioniero (1890-1963);
- Servant of God Franciszek Blachnicki, Polish diocesan priest (1921-1987);
- Servant of God Jose Rivera Ramirez, Spanish diocesan priest (1925-1991);
- Servant of God Juan Manuel Martín del Campo, Mexican diocesan priest (1917-1996);
- Servant of God Antonio Filomeno Maria Losito, Italian professed priest of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (1838-1917);
- Servant of God Maria Benedetta Giuseppa Frey (nee Ersilia Penelope), Italian professed nun of the Cistercian Order (1836-1913);
- Servant of God Hanna Chrzanowska, Polish layperson, Oblate of the Ursulines of St. Benedict (1902-1973).
March 06 2016 MIRACLES authorised the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees:
Pope Francis received in a private audience Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, during which he authorised the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees:
MIRACLES

– Blessed Manuel González García, bishop of Palencia, Spain, founder of the Eucharistic Missionaries of Nazareth (1877-1940);
– Blessed Elisabeth of the Trinity (née Elisabeth Catez), French professed religious of the Order of Discalced Carmelites (1880-1906);
– Venerable Servant of God Marie-Eugène of the Child Jesus (né Henri Grialou), French professed priest of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, founder of the Secular Institute “Notre-Dame de Vie” (1894-1967);
– Venerable Servant of God María Antonia of St. Joseph (née María Antonio de Paz y Figueroa), Argentine founder of the Beaterio of the Spiritual Exercise of Buenos Aires (1730-1799);
HEROIC VIRTUE

– Servant of God Stefano Ferrando, Italian professed priest of the Salesians, bishop of Shillong, India, founder of the Congregation of Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians (1895-1978);
– Servant of God Enrico Battista Stanislao Verjus, Italian professed priest of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, coadjutor of the apostolic vicariate of New Guinea (1860-1892);
– Servant of God Giovanni Battista Quilici, Italian diocesan priest, founder of the Congregation of the Daughters of the Crucified (1791-1844);
– Servant of God Bernardo Mattio, Italian diocesan priest (1845-1914);
– Servant of God Quirico Pignalberi, Italian professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor Conventual (1891-1982);
– Servant of God Teodora Campostrini, Italian founder of the Minim Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Sorrows (1788-1860);
– Servant of God Bianca Piccolomini Clementini, Italian founder of the Company of St. Angela Merici di Siena (1875-1959);
– Servant of God María Nieves of the Holy Family (née María Nieves Sánchez y Fernández), Spanish professed religious of the Daughters of Mary of the Pious Schools (1900-1978).

April 26 2016 MIRACLES authorised the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees:
Here is the full list of decrees approved by the Pope:

MIRACLES
– Blessed Alfonso Maria Fusco, diocesan priest and founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. John the Baptist (1839-1910);
– Venerable Servant of God John Sullivan, professed priest of the Society of Jesus (1861-1933);
MARTYRDOM
– Servants of God Nikolle Vinçenc Prennushi, O.F.M., archbishop of Durres, Albania, and 37 companions killed between 1945 and 1974;
– Servants of God José Antón Gómez and three companions of the Benedictines of Madrid, Spain, killed 1936;
HEROIC VIRTUES
– Servant of God Thomas Choe Yang-Eop, diocesan priest (1821-1861);
– Servant of God Sosio Del Prete (né Vincenzo), professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor, founder of the Congregation of the Little Servants of Christ the King (1885-1952);
– Servant of God Wenanty Katarzyniec (né Jósef), professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor Conventual (1889-1921);
– Servant of God Maria Consiglia of the Holy Spirity (née Emilia Pasqualina Addatis), founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Addolorata, Servants of Mary (1845-1900);
– Servant of God Maria of the Incarnation (née Caterina Carrasco Tenorio), founder of the Congregation of the Franciscan Tertiary Sisters of the Flock of Mary (1840-1917);
– Servant of God , founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Family of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (1851-1923);
– Servant of God Ilia Corsaro, founder of the Congregation of the Little Missionaries of the Eucharist (1897-1977);
– Servant of God Maria Montserrat Grases García, layperson of the Personal Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei (1941-1959).
LINKS:
Marian Apparitions (over 2000)  India Marian Shrine Lourdes of the East   Lourdes Feb 11- July 16, Loreto, Italy 1858 
China Marian shrines May 23, 1995 Zarvintisya Ukraine Lourdes Kenya national Marian shrine    Quang Tri Vietnam La Vang 1798  
Links to Related Marian Websites  Angels and Archangels
Doctors_of_the_Church   Acts_Apostles  Roman Catholic Popes  Purgatory  Uniates, PSALTER  BLESSED VIRGIN MARY 293 2023