 810 B.C. The Prophet Jonas; God commanded him to go to Nineveh, the
great city of the
Assyrians, and to proclaim that its destruction was nigh at hand
because of the sins of its people. But he, as a Prophet who knew
the
great compassion of God, feared that at his preaching the Ninevites
would repent; that God, accepting their repentance in His love for man,
would not fulfill Jonas' threats; and that he would be branded a false
prophet. So he disobeyed the divine command, and boarded a ship and
departed elsewhere.
In terra Saar sancti Jonæ Prophétæ, qui
sepúltus est in Geth.
In the land of the Saar, the holy prophet Jonas, who
was buried in Geth.
Son of Amathi, of the town of Geth-hopher (IV Kings
14:25), was of the tribe of Zabulon; he prophesied during the years
838-810 before Christ. God commanded him to go to Nineveh, the great
city of the Assyrians, and to proclaim that its destruction was nigh at
hand because of the sins of its people. But he, as a Prophet who
knew the great compassion of God, feared that at his preaching the
Ninevites would repent; that God, accepting their repentance in His
love for man, would not fulfill Jonas' threats; and that he would be
branded a false prophet. So he disobeyed the divine command, and
boarded a ship and departed elsewhere. Yet, the sudden and fearful
sea-storm and the revelation of Jonas' disbedience caused the sailors
to cast him into the sea. A great sea-monster appeared straightway by
divine providence, and swallowed him up. For three days and nights he
was found in its belly and he prayed, saying the words, "I cried aloud
in my affliction unto the Lord my God..." (Jonas 2:3, the Sixth ode of
the Holy Psalter). The sea-monster then vomited him up on dry land and
he again heard God's command. Wherefore, he went and preached, saying,
"In three days, Nineveh shall be destroyed." The people became
terrified and all repented. The great, the small, babes at the breast,
and even the irrational beasts themselves fasted, and thus, having
found mercy from God, they were spared His wrath.
Jonas' book of
prophecy is divided into four chapters, and is placed fifth in order
among the twelve minor Prophets. His three-day sojourn in the
sea-monster's belly is an image of our Saviour's three-day burial and
His life-bringing Resurrection (Matt. 12:39-40). His name
means "dove."
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 1st
V. St Matthew, Apostle And Evangelist; The story of Matthew’s call is told in his
own gospel. Jesus
had just confounded some of the Scribes by curing a man who was sick of
the palsy, and passing on saw the despised publican in his customhouse.
“And He saith to him, ‘ Follow me’. And he arose up and followed him.”
In Æthiópia natális sancti Matthæi,
Apóstoli et Evangelístæ; qui, in ea regióne
prædicans, martyrium passus est. Hujus Evangélium,
Hebræo sermóne conscríptum, ipso Matthæo
revelánte, invéntum est, una cum córpore
beáti Bárnabæ Apóstoli, témpore
Zenónis Imperatóris.
The birthday of St. Matthew, apostle and evangelist,
who suffered martyrdom in Ethiopia while engaged in preaching.
The Gospel written by him in Hebrew was found by his own revelation
during the time of Emperor Zeno, together with the relics of the
blessed apostle Barnabas.
St Matthew is called by two evangelists Levi, and by St Mark
“the son of Alpheus”; it is probable that Levi was his original name
and that he took, or was given, that of Matthew (“ the gift of Yahveh”)
when he became a follower of our Lord.
But Alpheus his father was not he of the same name
who was father of St James the Less.
He seems to have been a Galilaean by birth, and was by
profession a publican, or gatherer of taxes for the Romans, a
profession which was infamous to the Jews, especially those of the
Pharisees’ party. Generally, they were in so grasping and extortionate
that they were no more popular among the Gentiles. The Jews abhorred
them to the extent of refusing to marry into a family, which had a
publican among its members, banished them from communion in religious
worship, and shunned them in all affairs of civil society and commerce.
But it is certain that St Matthew was a Jew, as well as a publican.
The story of Matthew’s call is told in his own gospel.
Jesus had just confounded some of the Scribes by curing a man who was
sick of the palsy, and passing on saw the despised publican in his
customhouse. “And He saith to him, ‘ Follow me’. And he arose up and
followed him.”
Matthew left all his interests and relations to become our
Lord’s disciple and to embrace a spiritual commerce. We cannot suppose
that he was before wholly unacquainted with our Saviour’s person or
doctrine, especially as his office was at Capharnaum, where Christ had
resided for some time and had preached and wrought many miracles, by
which no doubt Matthew was in some measure prepared to receive the
impression which the call made upon him. St Jerome says that a certain
shininguess and air of majesty which appeared in the countenance of our
divine Redeemer pierced his soul and strongly attracted him. But the
great cause of his conversion was, as St Bede remarks that “He who
called him outwardly by His word at the same time moved him inwardly by
the invisible instinct of His grace”.
The calling of St Matthew happened in the second year of
the public ministry of Christ, who adopted him into that holy family of
the apostles, the spiritual leaders of His Church. It may be noted that
whereas the other evangelists in describing the apostles by pairs rank
Matthew before St Thomas, he places that apostle before himself and in
this list adds to his own name the epithet of “the publican”.
He followed our Lord throughout His earthly life, and
wrote his gospel or short history of our blessed Redeemer, doubtless at
the entreaty of the Jewish converts, in the Aramaic language which they
spoke. We are not told that Christ gave any charge about committing to
writing His history or doctrine, but it was nevertheless by special
inspiration of the Holy Ghost that this work was undertaken by each of
the four evangelists, and the gospels are the most excellent part of
the sacred writings. For in them Christ teaches us, not by His prophets
but by His own mouth, the great lessons of faith and of eternal life;
and in the history of His life the perfect pattern of holiness is set
before our eyes for us to strive after.
It is said that St Matthew, after having made a harvest of souls in
Judea, went to preach Christ to the nations of the East, but of this
nothing is known for certain. The Church venerates him as a martyr,
although the time, place and circumstances of his end are unknown.
The fathers find a figure of the four evangelists in the
four living animals mentioned by Ezechiel and in the Apocalypse of St
John. The eagle is generally said to represent St John himself, who in
the first lines of his gospel soars up to the contemplation of the
eternal generation of the Word.
The ox agrees to St Luke, who begins his gospel with the mention of the
sacrificing priesthood.
Some made the lion the symbol of St Matthew, who
explains the royal dignity of Christ;
but St Jerome and St Augustine
give it to St Mark, and the man to St Matthew, who begins his gospel
with Christ’s human genealogy.
The
account of St Matthew furnished in the Acta Sanctorum, September,
vol. vi, is
largely taken up with the discussion of his alleged relics and their
translations to Salerno and other places. How little trust can be
placed in
such traditions may be judged from the fact that four different
churches in
France have claimed to be in possession of the head of the apostle. A
long
apocryphal narrative of his preaching and martyrdom has been edited by
M.
Bonnet, Acta Apostolorum apocrypha (1898), vol. ii, Pt 1, pp.
217—262, and there is another, much shorter, in the Bollandists. The
Roman
Martyrology describes his martyrdom as having taken place “in
Ethiopia”, but in
the Hieronymianum he is said to have
suffered “in Persia in the town of Tarrium”. This, according to von
Gutschmid,
is a misreading for Tarsuana, which Ptolemy places in Caramania, the
region
east of the Persian Gulf. In contrast to the varying dates assigned to
the
other apostles, St Matthew’s feast seems uniformly to have been
kept in the
West on this day (September 25). Already in the time of Bede, we find a
homily
of his assigned for this particular feast: see Morin in the Revue
Bénédictine, vol. ix (1892), p. 325. On the symbols of the evangelist see DAC., vol. v, cc.
845—852.
Matthew was a Jew who worked for the occupying Roman forces,
collecting
taxes from other Jews. Though the Romans probably did not allow
extremes of extortion, their main concern was their own purses. They
were not scrupulous about what the "tax-farmers" got for themselves.
Hence the latter, known as "publicans," were generally hated as
traitors by their fellow Jews. The Pharisees lumped them with
"sinners." So it was shocking to them to hear Jesus call such a man to
be one of his intimate followers.
Matthew got Jesus in further trouble by having a sort of going-away
party at his house. The Gospel tells us that "many" tax collectors and
"those known as sinners" came to the dinner. The Pharisees were still
more badly shocked. What business did the supposedly great teacher have
associating with such immoral people? Jesus' answer was, "Those who are
well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning
of the words, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' I did not come to call
the righteous but sinners" (Matthew 9:12b-13). Jesus is not setting
aside ritual and worship; he is saying that loving others is even more
important.
No other particular
incidents about Matthew are found in the New
Testament.
Comment: From such an
unlikely situation, Jesus chose one
of the
foundations of the Church, a man others, judging from his job, thought
was not holy enough for the position. But he was honest enough to admit
that he was one of the sinners Jesus came to call. He was open enough
to recognize truth when he saw him. "And he got up and followed him"
(Matthew 9:9b).
Quote: We imagine Matthew,
after the terrible events surrounding the
death of Jesus, going to the mountain to which the risen Lord had
summoned them. "When they saw him, they worshipped, but they doubted.
Then Jesus approached and said to them [we think of him looking at each
one in turn, Matthew listening and excited with the rest], 'All power
in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make
disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I
have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of
the age'" (Matthew 28:17-20).
Matthew would never forget
that day. He proclaimed the Good News by his
life and by his word.
Our faith rests upon his
witness and that of his
fellow apostles .
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In
Æthiópia sanctæ
Iphigéniæ Vírginis, quæ, baptizáta a
beáto Matthæo Apóstolo et Deo dicáta, sancto
fine quiévit.
In Ethiopia, St. Iphigenia, virgin, who was baptized
and consecrated to God by the blessed apostle Matthew, and who ended
her holy life in peace.
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 1st v. Saint
Quadratus, Apostle of the Seventy preached the Word of God at Athens
and at Magnesia (eastern peninsula of Thessaly), and was Bishop of
Athens. His biographer called him "a morning star" among the clouds of
paganism. He converted many pagans to the true faith in Christ the
Savior, and his preaching aroused the hatred of the pagans.
Once, an angry mob fell upon the saint to pelt him with
stones. Preserved by God, St Quadratus remained alive, and they threw
him into prison, where he died of starvation. His holy body was buried
in Magnesia.
In the year 126, St Quadratus wrote an Apologia in defence of
Christianity. Presented to the emperor Hadrian (117-138), the Apologia
affected the persecution of Christians, since the emperor issued a
decree saying that no one should be convicted without just cause. This
Apologia was known to the historian Eusebius in the fourth century. At
the present time, only part of this Apologia survives, quoted by
Eusebius:
"The deeds of our Savior were always witnessed, because they
were true. His healings and raising people from the dead were visible
not only when they were healed and raised, but always. They lived not
only during the existence of the Savior upon the earth, but they also
remained alive long after His departure. Some, indeed, have survived to
our own time."
St Quadratus is also
commemorated on January 4.
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St.
Meletius Bishop and martyr Bishop of Cyprus
Romæ sancti Pámphili
Mártyris. At Rome, St Pamphilius, martyr.
listed in the Menology of Basil. Bishop of Cyprus, Meletius
is
described as suffering for Christ with St. Isacius, another bishop.
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The martyrdom of St.
Alexander, bishop.
Eódem die, via
Cláudia, vigésimo ab Urbe milliário, pássio
sancti Alexándri Epíscopi, qui, sub Antoníno
Imperatóre, pro Christi fide, víncula fustes,
equúleum, lámpades ardéntes, ungulárum
laniatiónem, béstias ac fornácis superávit
flammas, ac tandem, gládio cæsus, vitam adéptus est
gloriósam. Ejus corpus póstea beátus
Dámasus Papa in Urbem tránstulit sexto Kaléndas
Decémbris.
On the Claudian Way, twenty miles from Rome, in the
time of Emperor
Antoninus, the martyrdom of St. Alexander, bishop. For the faith
of Christ he was loaded with fetters, scourged, tortured, burned with
torches, torn with iron hooks, exposed to the beasts, and cast into the
flames, but having overcome all these torments, he was finally
beheaded, and thus attained the glory of eternal life. His body
was afterwards carried into the city by blessed Pope Damasus on the
26th of November.
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St.
Pamphilus martyr in Rome of whom
virtually nothing is known.
|
 Sedúni, in
Gállia, in loco Agáuno, natális sanctórum
Mártyrum Thebæórum Maurítii,
Exsupérii, Cándidi, Victóris, Innocéntii et
Vitális, cum Sóciis ejúsdem legiónis; qui,
sub Maximiáno, pro Christo necáti, gloriósa
passióne mundum illustrárunt.
At
St. Maurice, near Sion in Switzerland, the birthday of the holy
Theban martyrs Maurice, Exuperius, Candidus, Victor, Innocent, and
Vitalis, with their companions of the same legion, whose martyrdom for
the faith during the time of Maximian filled the world with the glory
of their sufferings.
In
Phœnícia sancti Eusébii Mártyris, qui, cum ultro
Præféctum adísset et se Christiánum esse
denuntiásset, ab eo, multis torméntis afflíctus,
cápite cæsus est.
In Phoenicia, St. Eusebius, martyr, who of his own
accord went to the prefect and declared himself a Christian. He
was subjected by him to many torments, and finally beheaded.
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6th century St.
Mabyn Welsh
and Cornish saint
with Mabon and Mabenna. All associated with St. Teilo. St.
Mabenna was the daughter of Chieftain Brychan of Brecknock, Wales. They
arel revered in various places bearing their names, but no details
of their lives are extant.
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657
St. Hieu English abbess of Northumbria
England, who received the veil from St. Aidan. She governed Tadcaster Abbey,
in Yorkshire. She may be identical with St. Bega or Bee.
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8th v. Hieromartyr
Hypatius, Bishop of Ephesus, and the Priest Andrew suffered in the
eighth century under the iconoclast emperor Leo the Isaurian (717-741).
As young men, they studied together in one of the monasteries. St
Hypatius accepted monasticism, and St Andrew became a clergyman and
zealously instructed people in the Christian Faith.
When the emperor Leo the Isaurian began to persecute those who
venerated holy icons, and the holy icons were thrown out of the
churches, to be trampled underfoot and burned, Sts Hypatius and Andrew
rose up in defence of icon veneration, urging their flock to maintain
faithfulness to Orthodoxy.
The emperor, wanting to persuade the saints, summoned them to him and
arranged a debate about the veneration of icons, at which Sts Hypatius
and Andrew were consistently able to defend the Orthodox veneration of
icons.
They threw the martyrs into prison and for a long time they held them
there, hoping that this would force the saints to renounce their
convictions, but the saints remained steadfast. Then the emperor gave
orders to torture the martyrs. They beat them, flayed the skin and hair
from their heads, smeared their beards with tar and set it afire, and
they burned holy icons upon the heads of the martyrs.
The saints bore all their tortures patiently and remained alive. The
emperor gave orders to drag the saints through the city to be mocked by
the people, and only after this to kill them. They threw the bodies of
Sts Hypatius and Andrew to be eaten by dogs, but believers reverently
gave them burial.
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746 St.
Gerulph
Martyred young nobleman
slain after receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. Flemish by descent and heir to a
vast estate, Gerulph was killed by a greedy relative, whom he pardoned
with his dying breath.
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850 St. Maura Virgin God performed many
miracles in her favor
850 ST MAURA OF
TROYES, VIRGIN
SHE was born at
Troyes in Champagne in the year 827, and in her youth obtained of God
by her
prayers the conversion of her father, who had tilt then led a worldly
life.
After his death, Maura continued to live in dutiful obedience to her
mother,
Sedulia, and by the fervour of her example was the sanctification of
her
brother Eutropius, who became bishop of Troyes, and of the whole
family.
The maiden’s whole
time was consecrated to prayer, to offices of obedience or charity in
attending
on her mother and serving the poor, or to her work, which was devoted
to the
service of the needy and of the Church.
As order in what we
do leads a soul to God, according to the remark of St Augustine, Maura
was
regular in the distribution of her time and in all her actions.
She spent
almost the whole morning in the church worshipping God, praying to her
divine
Redeemer, and meditating on His passion. Every Wednesday and Friday she
fasted,
allowing herself no other food than bread and water and she sometimes
walked
barefoot to the monastery of Mantenay, two leagues from the town, to
open the
secrets of her soul to the holy abbot of that place.
The profound respect
with which she was penetrated for the word of God is not easily to be
expressed, and so wonderful was her gift of tears that she seemed never
to fall
upon her knees to pray but they streamed from her eyes. God performed
miracles
in her favour, but it was her care to conceal His
gifts, because she
dreaded human applause. In her last moments she said the Lord’s Prayer,
and
died as she pronounced the words, “Thy kingdom come”, being
twenty-three years
old.
The
Acta Sanctorum, September, vol. vi, prints a short
life by St Prudentius of
Troyes, who
died in 861. See also E. Socard, Ste
Mauve de Troyes (1867).
She was nobly born at Troyes in Champagne in the ninth
century, and in
her youth obtained of God by her prayers the wonderful conversion of
her father, who had till then led a worldly life. After his happy
death, Maura continued to live in the most dutiful subjection and
obedience to her mother, Sedulia and by the fervor of her example was
the sanctification of her
brother Eutropius and of the whole family.
The greatest part of the revenues of their large estate was converted
into the patrimony of the poor. The virgin's whole time was consecreted
to the exercises of prayer, to offices of obedience or charity, in
attending on her mother and serving the poor, or to her work, which was
devoted to the service either of the poor or of the church; for it was
her delight in a spirit of religion to make sacred vestments, trim the
lamps, and prepare wax and other things for the altar.
As order in what we do leads a soul to God, according to the remark of
St. Austin, she was regular in
the distribution of her time, in all her actions. She spent almost the
whole morning in the church, adoring God, praying to her divine
Redeemer, and meditating on the circumstances of his sacred life and
passion. Every Wednesday and Friday she fasted, allowing herself no
other sustenance than bread and water, and she walked barefoot to the
monastery of Mantenay, two leagues from the town, where she prayed a
long time in the church, and with the most perfect humility and
compunction laid open the secrets of her soul to the holy abbot of that
place, her spiritual director, without whose advice she did nothing.
The profound respect with which she was penetrated for the word of God,
and whatever regarded the honor of his adorable name, is not to he
expressed. So wonderful was her gift of tears, that she seemed never to
fall upon her knees to pray hut they streamed from her eyes in
torrents.
God performed many miracles in
her favor but it was her care to conceal his gifts, because she
dreaded the poison of human applause. In her last sickness she received
the extreme unction and viaticum with extraordinary marks of divine joy
and love and reciting often the Lord's Prayer, expired at those words,
Thy kingdom come, on the 21st of September, 850 being twenty-three
years old. Her relics and name are honored in several churches in that
part of France, and she is mentioned in the Gallican Martyrology. See
her life written by Saint Prudentius
of Troves, who was acquainted with her, also Goujet and Mezangui, Vies des
Saints.
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1246 ST MICHAEL OF
CHERNIGOV AND ST THEODORE, MARTYRS
THE Church in Russia
had no martyrs, properly speaking, before the Tartar invasions of the
thirteenth century. The number who then gave their lives for Christ was
very
large, and the first to receive both popular and liturgical veneration
were
those among them who were also nobles and military leaders against the
barbarian
invaders. Thus was reinforced the regard already felt for these men,
hot as
aggressive “crusaders against the infidels”, but as selfless warriors
who were
ready to give their lives in defence of their people the palm of
martyrdom for
Christ was added to the halo of self-sacrifice for others. Outstanding
in
popularity among these was Michael, Duke of Chernigov.
The first we hear of
him is unpromising. He showed cowardice in face of the enemy and fled
from
Kiev, abandoning the city to the Tartas. But then, hoping to attract
their
violence to himself and distract it from the people, he returned of his
own
will and made his way into the camp of the Horde. Their leader, Bati,
tried to
persuade Michael to treachery, making great promises if he would only
make an
act of idolatrous worship. St Michael refused he was not willing to be
a
Christian only in name. His friends then formed a plan for his escape
from the
camp, but this also he refused, lest they should suffer Bati’s
reprisals. So
the Tartan tortured and then beheaded him, on September 20. 1246, and
there
suffered with him one of his nobles, St Theodore.
The Russians looked
on such martyrs as their special representatives before the throne of
God at a
time when all the people were crushed by the most hideous sufferings.
St
Michael and St Theodore of Chernigov and others responded by
anticipation to
the challenge of another martyred prince, St Michael of Tver,
seventy-five
years later. “It is not a. matter of
giving one’s life for one friend or for two, but for a whole enslaved
people.
Many of them are murdered, their wives and daughters are outraged by
the foul
heathen—and nobody offers his life for them.”
For
bibliographical notes on Russian saints, see under
St Sergius on September 25; and cf. C.
Dawson, The Mongol Mission, (1955), p. 10.
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 13th v. In July of
1274, the Byzantine Emperor Michael VIII accepted a union with the
Roman Church at Lyons, France. Faced with dangers from Charles of
Anjou, the Ottoman Turks, and other enemies, the emperor found such an
alliance with Rome expedient. The Union of Lyons required the Orthodox
to recognize the authority of the Pope, the use of the Filioque in the
Creed, and the use of azymes (unleavened bread) in the Liturgy.
Patriarch Joseph was deposed because he would not agree to these
conditions. The monastic clergy and many of the laity, both at home and
in other Orthodox countries, vigorously opposed the Union, denouncing
the emperor for his political schemes and for his betrayal of Orthodoxy.
On January 9, 1275 a Liturgy was celebrated in Constantinople in which
the Pope was commemorated as "Gregory, the chief pontiff of the
Apostolic Church, and Ecumenical Pope." The emperor's sister remarked,
"It is better that my brother's empire should perish, rather than the
purity of the Orthodox Faith." Recalling the infamous Crusade of 1204
when Latin crusaders sacked Constantinople, many of the people also
preferred to submit to the infidels than to abandon the Orthodox Faith.
Twenty-six martyrs of Zographou Monastery on Mt. Athos were among those
who were persecuted by Emperor Michael VIII Paleologos (1261-1282) and
Patriarch John Bekkos (1275-1282) because they would not obey the
imperial command to recognize the Union of Lyons. They steadfastly kept
the teachings of the Fathers of the Church, and fearlessly censured
those who accepted Catholic doctrines.
When the authorities came to Mt. Athos to enforce the imperial policy,
the monks of Zographou shut themselves up in their monastery. From the
tower they reproached those in favor of the Union, calling them lawless
men and heretics. The attackers set the monastery on fire and burned
the twenty-six martyrs alive.
The names of the martyrs are: Igumen Thomas, the monks Barsanuphius,
Cyril, Micah, Simon, Hilarion, James, Job, Cyprian, Sava, James,
Martinian, Cosmas, Sergius, Menas, Joasaph, Joannicius, Paul, Anthony,
Euthymius, Dometian, Parthenius, and four laymen who died with them.
These holy martyrs are also
commemorated on October 10.
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1323 Saint Cosmas was born in Bulgaria toward
the end of the thirteenth century, and entered the Zographou Monastery
when he was young. Through
humility, the God-pleasing ascetic attained the heights of
virtue, regarding all of his own efforts as nothing, and ascribing
whatever good he had accomplished to God's mercy and grace. Therefore,
he acquired spiritual gifts from the Lord, including the gift of
prophecy.
Distinguishing himself by his ascetical life, he also acquired the
virtues of humility and obedience. After a time, St Cosmas satisfied
his superiors that he had attained a level of experience and perfection
in monasticism which would permit him to live in solitude without
danger. St John of the Ladder (Step 8:18) describes the type of person
who should not be permitted to live alone following his own will, and
the pitfalls of such a life for those who have not cleansed themselves
of the passions. With the blessing of his spiritual Father, St Cosmas
left the monastery in order to begin even more intense spiritual
struggles.
Through humility, the God-pleasing ascetic attained the heights of
virtue, regarding all of his own efforts as nothing, and ascribing
whatever good he had accomplished to God's mercy and grace. Therefore,
he acquired spiritual gifts from the Lord, including the gift of
prophecy.
St Cosmas of Zographou fell
asleep in the Lord on Mount Athos in 1323.
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1612 Saint Joseph of Zaonikiev, a fool-for-Christ; he suffered a disease of the eyes and he
fervently prayed for the
help of the Lord, to the Most Holy Theotokos, and to the Saints, in
particular the holy Unmercenaries Cosmas and Damian. His prayer
was heard, and in 1588, by a revelation of St Cosmas,
Hilarion went into the forest into a swampy place, to an icon of the
Mother of God, from which he received healing. In gratitude the monk
cleared a forest thicket at the place of the appearance of the
wonderworking icon and built a chapel, in which he placed the icon. He
himself settled close by, taking the monastic schema with the name of
Joseph.
He was named Hilarion in the world, a pious peasant
from the village of Obukhovo Kubensk in the region of the Vologda
gubernia. For a long time he suffered a disease of the eyes and he
fervently prayed for the help of the Lord, to the Most Holy Theotokos,
and to the Saints, in particular the holy Unmercenaries Cosmas and
Damian. His prayer was heard, and in 1588, by a revelation of St
Cosmas, Hilarion went into the forest into a swampy place, to an icon
of the Mother of God, from which he received healing. In gratitude the
monk cleared a forest thicket at the place of the appearance of the
wonderworking icon and built a chapel, in which he placed the icon. He
himself settled close by, taking the monastic schema with the name of
Joseph.
Afterwards, with the blessing of St Anthony, Bishop of Vologda, on the
place of Joseph's ascetic exploits the Zaonikiev monastery emerged, so
named from the brigand Anikios who once dwelt in this forest. When the
monastery expanded and the number of monks grew, upon the advice of St
Joseph, Anthony was chosen as igumen. Joseph did not accept the
leadership himself out of humility. Since he concealed his own strict
exploits from the others, he was perceived as a fool-for-Christ. He
stood on his feet at prayer in his chapel, and he went about barefoot
in the fierce cold.
St Joseph reposed on
September 21, 1612 at age 83, and was buried in the monastery founded
by him.
|
 1709 Saint Demetrius, Metropolitan of Rostov;
After uncovering of his holy relics many healings were worked, which
were reported to the Synod, by whose order Metropolitan Sylvester of
Suzdal and Archimandrite Gabriel of Simonov arrived at Rostov to
examine the relics of St Demetrius, and investigate incidents of
miraculous healings. A decree was issued by the Synod on April
29, 1757 numbering St Demetrius, Metropolitan of Rostov among the
saints, and establishing his feastdays for October 28 (the day of his
repose) and September 21 (the uncovering of his relics).
In 1702, Saint Demetrius, Metropolitan of Rostov,
arrived at the Rostov cathedral and also visited the monastery of St
James, Bishop of Rostov (November 27 and May 23). He served
Liturgy at the cathedral church of the Conception of the Most Holy
Theotokos, after which he indicated to those present the site of his
future burial on the right side of the temple. "Behold my resting
place," he said, "here I will settle for eternity." St Demetrius
reposed on October 28, 1709.
Contrary to the saint's wishes, which he expressed in his will, the
clergy and people of Rostov asked the locum tenens of the patriarchal
throne, Metropolitan Stephen Yavorsky of Ryazan, who had come for the
funeral, to conduct the burial at the cathedral church of the
city. Metropolitan Stephen insisted on burying the body of his
deceased friend beside St Joasaph, who was St Demetrius's predecessor.
However, a grave was not prepared until the arrival of Metropolitan
Stephen, even lthough about a month had elapsed since the saint's death.
Due to the urgent departure of Metropolitan Stephen from Rostov, a
hastily constructed wooden frame was placed into the grave, in which
the body of the saint was buried on November 25. This circumstance,
foreseen by the Providence of God, led to a quick uncovering of the
relics.
In 1752 repairs were being done at the cathedral church of the
monastery, and on September 21, the incorrupt body of St Demetrius was
discovered. The place of burial had been affected by dampness, the
oaken coffin and the writing on it were decayed, but the body of the
saint, and even the omophorion, sacchos, mitre and silken prayer rope
were preserved undamaged.
After the uncovering of the holy relics many healings were worked,
which were reported to the Synod, by whose order Metropolitan Sylvester
of Suzdal and Archimandrite Gabriel of Simonov arrived at Rostov to
examine the relics of St Demetrius, and to investigate the incidents of
miraculous healings. A decree was issued by the Synod on April
29, 1757 numbering St Demetrius, Metropolitan of Rostov among the
saints, and establishing his feastdays for October 28 (the day of his
repose) and September 21 (the uncovering of his relics).
|
1764 Saint Daniel of Shugh Hill; he left the Komel monastery and continued a solitary ascetic life
in the unpopulated and forested White Lake hinterland, on a mountain
named Shugh Hill. Here the holy ascetic founded his monastery in honor
of the Transfiguration of the Lord. St Daniel was buried at a temple in
honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord at the monastery that he
founded.
He was born born in the Moscow dominion in the sixteenth
century. He performed his ascetic labors in northern Rus, where he
became a monk at the Komel monastery, founded by St Cornelius of Komel
in 1498.
St Daniel left the monastery and continued a solitary ascetic life in
the unpopulated and forested White Lake hinterland, on a mountain named
Shugh Hill. Here the holy ascetic founded his monastery in honor of the
Transfiguration of the Lord. St Daniel was buried at a temple in honor
of the Transfiguration of the Lord at the monastery that he founded. In
1764, the monastery was turned into a parish.
|
1838 St.
Thomas Dien
Vietnamese martyr native
He entered the seminary program of the Paris Foreign Missions but was
put to death before he could complete his studies.Thomas was flogged
and strangled. Pope John Paul 11 canonized him in 1988.
|
1838
St. Francis Jaccard Martyr of Vietnam
Born in Onnion, Savoy, France,
Francis was sent by the Seminary for Foreign Missions in Paris to
Vietnam in 1826. He was martyred by strangulation. Francis was
canonized in 1988.
|
1839
Sts.
Chastan & Imbert beatified as the Martyrs of Korea
1839 BD. LAURENCE
IMBERT AND HIS COMPANIONS, THE Martyrs of Korea
KOREA is
one of the few countries in the world to
which Christianity was first introduced otherwise than by Christian
missionaries. During the eighteenth century some Chinese Christian
books were
brought into the country, and a man who had read them joined the
embassy from
Seoul to Peking in 1784, sought out Mgr de Gouvea there, and from him
received
baptism. He returned to his own country and when, ten years later, a
Chinese
priest came to Korea he found four thousand Christians awaiting him. He
was
their only pastor for seven years, and after he was killed
in 1801 they were without a priest for thirty years. A letter is extant
written
by the Koreans to Pope Pius VII, imploring him to send them
priests at once;
their little flock had already given martyrs to the Church. In 1831 the vicariate apostolic of Korea was
created, but the first vicar never reached there. His successor, Mgr
Laurence
Joseph Mary Imbert, Titular Bishop of Capsa and a member of the Paris
Foreign
Missions, who had been in China for twelve years, entered the country
in
disguise at the end of 1837, having been preceded by Bd PETER PHILIBERT
MAUBANT
and BD JAMES HONORÉ CHASTAN, priests
of the same missionary society.
Christianity was now
definitely proscribed in Korea, and for two years the missionaries went
about
their work with complete secrecy.
Of its
circumstances and difficulties Mgr
Imbert wrote: “I am overwhelmed with fatigue and in great danger. I get
up at half-past
two every morning. At three I call the people of the house to prayers,
and at
half-past I begin the duties of my ministry by baptizing, if there are
any
converts, or by giving confirmation. Then come Mass, communion, and
thanksgiving. The fifteen to twenty people who have received the
sacraments can
thus get away before daybreak. During the day about as many come in,
one by
one, for confession, and do not go until the next morning after
communion. I
stay two days in each house, where I get the Christians together, and
before it
is light I go on to another. I suffer a great deal from hunger: for it
is no
easy matter in this cold and wet climate to get up at half-past two and
then
wait until noon for a meal which is poor, insufficient, and lacking in
nourishment.
After dinner I rest a little until I have to take my senior scholars in
theology, and finally I hear confessions again until nightfall. At nine
o’clock
I go to bed—on a mat on the floor with a Tartary-wool blanket; there
are no
bedsteads or mattresses in Korea. In spite of my weak body and poor
health I
have always led a hard and very busy life: but here I think I have
reached the
positive limit of work. You will well understand that, leading a life
like
this, we scarcely fear the sword-stroke that may at any time end it.”
By
these heroic means the Christians in Korea were
increased by a half, roughly from 6000 to 9000, in less
than two years. What was going on soon became known, and a
decree for their extermination was published. An example of the horrors
that
took place is provided by Bd AGATHA KIM, one of the seventy-six Koreans
beatified with the three priests. She was asked if it were true that
she
practised the Christian religion. “I know Jesus and Mary”, she replied,
“but I
know nothing else.”—“If you are tortured you will give up this Jesus
and
Mary.”— “If I have to die I will not.” She was long and cruelly
tormented and
at last sentenced to death. A tall cross of wood was fixed to a cart
and to
this cross Agatha was hung by her arms and hair. The cart was driven
off and at
the top of a steep and very rough slope the oxen were pricked up and
the cart
sent lurching and jolting down, the woman swinging at every movement
with all
her weight on her hair and wrists. At the place of execution she was
stripped
naked, her head forced down on to a block, and there cut off.
BD JOHN RI wrote from prison “Two or
three
months passed before the judge sent for me, and I became sad and
anxious. The
sins of my whole life, when I had so often offended God from sheer
wickedness,
seemed to weigh me down like a mountain, and I wondered to myself,
‘What will
be the end of all this?’ But I never lost hope. On the tenth day of the
twelfth
moon I was brought before the judge and he ordered me to be
bastinadoed. How
could I have borne it by my own strength alone? But the strength of God and the
prayers of Mary and the saints and all our martyrs upheld me, so that I
believe
I scarcely suffered at all. I cannot repay such a mercy, and to offer
my life
is only just.”
To avert a general
massacre and its attendant danger of apostasy, Mgr Imbert
allowed himself to be
taken and recommended M. Maubant and M. Chastan to do the same. This
they did,
after writing letters to Rome explaining their action and giving an
account of
their charge. They were all three bastinadoed, then carried on chairs
to the
banks of the river which flows around Seoul, tied back to back to a
post, and
there beheaded. This was on September at,
1839, but their feast is kept by the Paris Foreign Missions on the
26th. In the
year 1904 the relics of eighty-one martyrs of Korea were translated to
the
episcopal church of the vicar apostolic at Seoul, and in 1925 Bd
Laurence and
his companions were beatified. The first Korean priest martyr was BD
ANDREW KIM
in 1846.
In C. Dallet, L’histoire de
l’Eglise de Corée (1874), especially vol. ii, pp. 118—185,
the life and
sufferings of these martyrs are recounted in detail. See also A.
Launay, Les Missionnaires français en Corée (1895),
and Martyrs français et coréens (1925);
and E. Baumann in The Golden Legend
Overseas (1931).
A native of Aix-en-Provence, France,
Laurence Imbert joined the Paris Foreign Missionary Society and
was sent to China in 1825.
He worked there as a missionary for twelve years and was named titular
bishop of Capsa.
In 1837, he was sent to Korea
and entered the country secretly, as Christianity was forbidden there.
He was successful in his missionary activities, but in 1839 a wave of
violent persecutions of the Christians swept the country. In the hope
of ending the persecution of native Christians, he, Fr. Philibert
Maubant, and Fr. James Honore' Chastan, who had preceded him into
Korea, surrendered to the authorities. They were bastinadoed and then
beheaded at Seoul on September 21. During the same persecution, John Ri
was bastinadoed and suffered martyrdom, and Agatha Kim was hanged from
a cross by her arms and hair, driven over rough country in a cart, and
then stripped and beheaded. In 1925, Laurence and his companions and
many others, eighty-one in all, who had been executed for their faith,
were beatified as the Martyrs of Korea. They were canonized by Pope
John Paul II in 1984.
|
Saints Day 21 September Undécimo Kaléndas Octóbris
1838 St. Francis
Jaccard Martyr of Vietnam
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.