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!)
RDeo grátias. R.  Thanks be to God.
December is the month of the Immaculate Conception.
2022
22,810 lives saved since 2007
Sunday_Before_Nativity.jpg


CAUSES OF SAINTS April  2014  

Oh Mary pray for us sinners who have recourse to thee.

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
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 Mary Mother of GOD 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary
Sunday of the Holy Fathers Sunday before the Nativity of the Lord (December 18-24)
On this day the Church commemorates all those who were well-pleasing to God from all ages, from Adam to St Joseph the Betrothed of the Most Holy Theotokos, those who are mentioned in the geneology of Luke 3:23-38. The holy prophets and prophetesses are also remembered today, especially the Prophet Daniel and the 3 holy youths (December 17).

Pope Benedict XVI to The Catholic Church In China {whole article here }
The saints “a cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible.

  Decrees of Vatican's Saint Congregation
Testify to 10 Miracles; 10 Cases of Heroic Virtue; 1 Martyrdom

The highest perfection consists not in interior favors or in great raptures, but in the bringing of our wills so closely into conformity with the Will of God that, as soon as we realize that he wills anything, we desire it ourselves with all our might.
-- St. Teresa of Avila


Our soul has been delivered as a sparrow out of the snare of the fowlers. The snare is broken: and we are delivered. Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.  -- Ps. 124: 7,8
Sunday of the Holy Fathers Sunday before the Nativity of the Lord (December 18-24)
  250 St. Theodulus Martyr with Saturninus on Crete and still revered there
  303 St. Migdonius & Mardonius Martyred officials of the Roman court
 304 St. Victoria sister Anatolia guard martyred
4th v. Saint Paul, Bishop of Neocaesarea First Ecmenical Council at Nicea
6th v. St. Servulus  beggar in Rome palsy thanked God all his life
 679 St. Dagobert II Martyred king of Austrasia son of King Sigebert II
 890 St. Vintila Benedictine monk hermit  great holiness
 910 Saint Nahum Cyril and Methodius disciple wonderworker man of prayer translate Scriptures Greek to Slavonic
1164 Bd Hartman, Bishop of Brixen; canon; highly respected by the Emperors Conrad III and Frederick I
1193 St Thorlac, Bishop Of Skalholt; daily rule of life, which began with the singing of the Credo, Pater noster, and a hymn directly he awoke; he recited a third of the psalter every day, and had an especial devotion to the titular saints of the churches in which he ministered; formed a community of canons regular, of which he was abbot;
14th v. Saint Theoctistus, Archbishop of Novgorod
14thv. Saints Niphon, Bishop of Cyprus devils often attacked overcame with the help of God received from God gift to discern evil spirits and defeat them, also saw departure of the soul after death.
1464 BD MARGARET OF SAVOY, WIDOW; took the habit of the third order of St Dominic and with other ladies formed a community at Alba. This retired life of prayer, study and charitable works lasted for some twenty-five years; Pope Eugenius IV gave permission for the tertiary sisters to become nuns, in the same place and under the rule of Bd Margaret. During the last sixteen years of her life ecstasies and miracles are alleged in abundance, among them a vision of our Lord offering her three arrows, labelled respectively Sickness, Slander and Persecution
1473 St. John of Kanty professor of sacred Scripture pius generous humble  care for the poor   
1550 St. Nicholas Factor Franciscan preacher native of Valencia
Advent's Great O Antiphons (VII): O Emmanuel December 23 - OUR LADY OF ARDILLIERS (Anjou, France, 1454)
O Emmanuel! King of Peace! Today you enter into Jerusalem, your chosen city; for it is there that your Temple stands. Soon you will have in that place your Cross and your Sepulcher; and the day will come when you will establish there your formidable tribunal. Now you are entering silently and without fanfare in this city of David and Solomon.
It is only the place of your passage on your way to Bethlehem.
However, your mother Mary and her husband Joseph do not traverse it without going up to the Temple, to offer to the Lord their prayers and homage: and so is accomplished, for the first time, the oracle of the Prophet Aggeus who had announced that the glory of the second Temple would be greater than the first.  {(Haggai) Aggeus means feasting, (St. Jerome) or pleasant.
For the Temple, at this moment, possessed an Ark of the Covenant much more precious than that of Moses, but most of all incomparable to any other sanctuary because of the dignity of the One she contains. The Legislator himself is here, not only the stone tablet on which the Law was engraved. But soon the living Ark of the Lord descends the steps of the Temple, and prepares to leave for Bethlehem where different oracles are calling her.
Dom Gueranger The Liturgical Year - Advent - December XXIII

December 23 - The Espousals of the Virgin Mary   Mary in the Midst of Israel's Waiting (XIII)
"This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened for the God of Israel has entered in by it" (Ezek 44:2)

The prophecy of Isaiah foretold the marvelous coming of the Messiah from the womb of a virgin of Israel, but there were also other prophecies that mysteriously evoked the mother of the Savior, her virginity, and the Messiah's birth, as well as his birthplace. First, Isaiah prophesied on a miraculous, painless birth:
"Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man-child.
Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things?" (Is 66:7-8)

The prophecies were also spoken about a perpetually closed gate, reserved for the Lord: "The man brought me back to the outer gate of the shrine, one that faces east; it was closed. The Lord said to me: 'This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, neither shall any man enter in by it; for the God of Israel has entered in by it; therefore it shall remain closed'" (Ezek 44:1-2). "A locked up garden is my sister, my bride; a locked up spring, a sealed fountain" (Song 4:12).

And the prophet Micah had also foretold of the Messiah coming from Bethlehem: "But you, Bethlehem Ephrata, being small among the clans of Judah, out of you one will come forth to me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting. Therefore he will abandon them until the time that she who is in labor gives birth" (Mic 5:2-3).
December 23 - Our Lady of the Rouvre (Italy)
An Absolute Novelty Broke the Daily Monotony

Something that people had never imagined—an absolute novelty broke the daily monotony—something that had never before entered into their hearts! Something that their reason had not even conceived!

Something completely disconcerting: Christmas! God incarnated in a baby’s body. And that disconcerting something—which is beyond human comprehension—is manifested in someone so small. A God who makes gurgling sounds, cries, smiles, and is fed at his mother’s breasts. (…)

This descent of God to the level of our humanity in its most fragile and disconcerting aspect reveals the price that he paid to overturn our history, like a plough tills the soil.

Msgr Dominique Rey, Bishop of Fréjus-Toulon
In Les mytères du Rosaire, (The Mysteries of the Rosary), Editions de l’Emmanuel


   
1473 St. John of Kanty professor of sacred Scripture pius generous humble care for the poor b. 1390
See October 20 Here
The people of Olkusz in Bohemia in 1431 had every reason to be suspicious of their new pastor. They knew what a Cracow professor would think of their small rural town. But even more insulting, their town was once again being used as a dumping ground for a priest who was "in disgrace."

John had indeed been kicked out of his university position -- unjustly. Rivals who resented John's popularity with the students had cooked up a false charge against him. John was not even allowed to appear at his own hearing or testify in his own defense. So at age 41, he was shipped off to be an apprentice pastor.

Certainly no one would have blamed John if he was furious at such injustice. However, he was determined that his new parishioners would not suffer because of what he happened to him.

But there was no overnight miracle waiting of him in Olkusz. He was nervous and afraid of his new responsibilities. Despite the energy he put into his new job, the parishioners remained hostile. But John's plan was very simple, and came not from the mind but from the heart. He let his genuine interest and concern for these people show in everything he did. Despite working for years without any sign of success, he was very careful not to demonstrate impatience or anger. He knew that people could never be bullied into love, so he gave them what he hoped they would find in themselves.

After eight years, he was exonerated and transferred back to Cracow. He had been so successful that these once-hostile people followed him several miles down the road, begging him to stay.

For the rest of his life, he was professor of sacred Scripture at the university. He was so well-liked that he was often invited to dinner with nobility. Once, he was turned away at the door by a servant who thought John's cassock was too frayed. John didn't argue but went home, changed into a new cassock, and returned. During the meal, a servant spilled a dish on John's new clothes. "No matter," he joked. "My clothes deserve some dinner, too. If it hadn't been for them I wouldn't be here at all."

Once John was sitting down to dinner when he saw a beggar walk by outside. He jumped up immediately, ran out, and gave the beggar the food in his bowl. He asked no questions, made no demands. He just saw someone in need and helped with what he had.

John taught his students this philosophy again and again, "Fight all error, but do it with good humor, patience, kindness, and love. Harshness will damage your own soul and spoil the best cause."
In His Footsteps:

John put all his effort into a new and frightening job, that others might have considered beneath him. Today do something you have never done before or do something in a new way, perhaps something that has frightened you or you felt was beneath you. This can be something as simple as trying a different type of prayer or as complex as serving others in a new way.
Patron saint of Poland and Lithuania, also called John of Kanti or John of Kenty. He was born in Kanti, Poland, and was ordained after studies at the University of Cracow. John was ap­pointed a lecturer on Scriptures and was a popular preacher and parish priest for a few years before retaming to his university position. Attacks had been made by jealous associates about his abilities. Famous for his austerities and care for the poor, he was canonized in 1767 and was declared a patron of Poland and Lithuania by Pope Clement XII in 1737.
Prayer: Saint John of Kanty, you were unjustly fired from your work. Please pray for those who are jobless or in danger of losing their jobs that they may find work that is fulfilling in every way. Guide us to ways to help those looking for work. Amen
Sunday of the Holy Fathers Sunday before the Nativity of the Lord (December 18-24)
is known as the
Sunday of the Holy Fathers. On this day the Church commemorates all those who were well-pleasing to God from all ages, from Adam to St Joseph the Betrothed of the Most Holy Theotokos, those who are mentioned in the geneology of Luke 3:23-38. The holy prophets and prophetesses are also remembered today, especially the Prophet Daniel and the three holy youths (December 17).

The Troparion to the Prophet Daniel and the three holy youths ("Great are the accomplishments of faith…) is quite similar to the Troparion for St Theodore the Recruit (February 17, and the first Saturday of Great Lent). The Kontakion to St Theodore, who suffered martyrdom by fire, reminds us that he also had faith as his breastplate (see I Thessalonians 5:8).\\At Compline on this fourth day of the prefeast of the Nativity we sing, "Let us purify our minds, washing ourselves with the divine Mysteries; let us draw near in soul and body to Bethlehem, that we may behold the fearful dispensation of the birth of the Lord" (Ode Five of the Canon).

250 St. Theodulus Martyr with Saturninus on Crete and still revered there
  In Creta sanctórum Mártyrum Theodúli, Saturníni, Eupori, Gelásii, Euniciáni, Zétici, Leóminis, Agathópodis, Basílidis et Evarísti; qui, in Décii persecutióne, crudélia passi sunt et cápite cæsi.
       In Crete, the holy martyrs Theodulus, Saturninus, Euporus, Gelasius, Eunicianus, Zeticus, Leomines, Agathopodes, Basilides, and Everistus, who were beheaded after suffering cruel torments in the persecution of Decius.

250 THE TEN MARTYRS OF CRETE
UPON the publication of the edict against Christians under Decius the activity of a barbarous governor soon made victims in the isle of Crete. Among the martyrs who there triumphed none were more conspicuous than Theodulus, Saturninus, Euporus, Gelasius, Eunician, Zoticus, Cleomenes, Agathopus, Basilides and Evaristus, commonly called the Ten Martyrs of Crete. The three first were citizens of Gortyna, the capital. United in their confession of Christ, they were arrested, dragged along the ground to prison, beaten, stoned by the mob, and at length presented to the governor at Gortyna. As soon as they appeared in court they were ordered to sacrifice to Jupiter, because on that very day their countrymen celebrated a festival in his honour. They answered that they would never sacrifice to idols. The president said, “You shall know the power of the gods; you show no respect to this great assembly, which worships the omnipotent Jupiter, Juno, Rhea and the rest”.
   The martyrs replied that they were only too well acquainted with the history of the life and actions of Jupiter, and that those who look upon him as a god must look upon it as a divine thing to imitate his wickedness.
The people were ready to tear them to pieces on the spot if the governor had not restrained them and commanded the martyrs to be tortured. They endured all with joy, and answered to the cries of the mob, who pressed them to spare themselves by obeying and sacrificing to their gods, “We are Christians and would rather die a thousand times”. The governor at length, seeing himself vanquished, condemned them to die by the sword. They went forth triumphantly to the place of execution, praying that God would have mercy on them and on all mankind, and would deliver their countrymen from the blindness of idolatry. When their heads were struck off, and the crowds dispersed, other Christians buried their bodies, which were afterwards taken to Rome. The fathers who composed the Council of Crete in 458, writing to the Emperor Leo I, claimed that through the intercession of these martyrs their island had been till that time preserved from heresy.
The Greek passio of these martyrs is preserved in two forms. The more trustworthy is that edited by A. Papadopoulos-Kerameus in his Analecta, vol. iv, pp. 224—237. The second belongs to the class usually attributed to the Metaphrast and it is printed in Migne, PG., vol. cxvi, pp. 565-573. The tradition of their martyrdom still seems very strong in the neighbourhood of Gortyna. The village in which they actually suffered bears the name Hagioi Deka (Ten Saints): a broken slab is shown with ten hollow depressions, which is said to mark the places where they knelt to receive the fatal stroke. See the Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xviii (1899), p. 280.  
Euporus, Gelasius, Eunician, Leomenes (or Cleomenes), Basilides, Agathopus, Zeticus, and Evaristus. They were put to death on Crete during the persecutions of Emperor Trajanus Decius (r. 249-251) and are revered on Crete. Ten martyrs of the island of Crete who suffered during the persecution of Emperor Trajanus Decius. They are named Agathopus, Basilides, Eunician, Euporus, Evaristus, Cleomenes, Gelasius, Saturninus, Theodulus, and Zoticus.
The Ten Holy Martyrs of Crete: Theodulus, Saturninus, Euporus, Gelasius, Eunician, Zoticus, Pompius, Agathopus, Basilides and Evaristus suffered for Christ during the third century under the emperor Decius (249-251). The governor of Crete, also named Decius, fiercely persecuted the Church, and arrested anyone who believed in Christ. Once, ten Christians were brought before him from various cities of Crete, who at the trial steadfastly confessed their faith in Christ and refused to worship idols.

For thirty days they were subjected to cruel tortures, and with the help of God they all persevered, glorifying God. Before their death they prayed that the Lord would enlighten their torturers with the light of the true Faith. Since pain did not influence them, the saints were beheaded.
St. Servulus a beggar in Rome palsy thanked God all his life.
Romæ beáti Sérvuli, qui (ut sanctus Gregórius Papa scribit), a primæva sui ætáte usque ad finem vitæ, paralyticus jácuit in pórticu prope Ecclésiam sancti Cleméntis, et demum, Angelórum cántibus invitátus, ad paradísi glóriam transívit; ad cujus túmulum Deus mirácula crebérrime osténdit.
       At Rome, blessed Servulus of whom St. Gregory writes that from his early years to the end of his life he was a paralytic and had remained lying in a porch near St. Clement's Church, and being invited by the chant of angels, he went to enjoy the glory of Paradise.  At his tomb frequent miracles are wrought by God.

590 ST SERVULUS
IN this holy man was exemplified what our divine Redeemer taught of Lazarus, the poor man full of sores who lay at the gate of the rich man’s house. Servulus was a beggar, afflicted with the palsy from his infancy, so that he had never been able to stand, sit upright, lift his hand to his mouth, or turn himself from one side to another. His mother and brother carried him to the porch of St Clement’s church at Rome, where he lived on the alms of those that passed by, and whatever was left over he distributed among other needy persons. And for all that he was able to save enough to buy some books of Holy Scripture, which, as he could not read himself, he got others to read to him; and he listened with such attention as to learn them by heart. Much time he passed singing hymns of praise and thanksgiving to God in spite of continual pain. After years thus spent he felt his end draw near, and in his last moments he asked the poor and pilgrims who had often shared his charity to sing hymns and psalms by his bed. Whilst he joined his voice with theirs he on a sudden cried out, “Do you hear the great and wonderful music in heaven?” When he had spoken these words he died, and angels into everlasting bliss carried his soul. The body of Servulus was buried in St Clement’s church, and his feast is annually celebrated in that church on the Coelian Hill outside of which he was wont to lay.
St Gregory the Great concludes the account he gives of Servulus, in a sermon to his people, by observing that the behaviour of this poor sick beggar loudly condemns those who, when blessed with good health and fortune, neither do good works nor suffer the least cross with tolerable patience. He speaks of him as one who was well known both to himself and his hearers, and says that one of his monks, who was present at his death, used to speak of the fragrant smell which came from the dead beggar’s body. Servulus was a true lover of God, not careful and troubled about his own life, but solicitous that God be honoured, and all that he could suffer for this end he looked upon as reward. By his constancy and fidelity he overcame the world and all bodily afflictions.
We know nothing about Servulus but what we learn from St Gregory the Great. See his Dialogues, bk iv, ch. 14, and also one of his homilies, printed in Migne, PL., vol. lxxvi, g. 1333.

According to St. Gregory the Great (b. 540 d. 12 March 604), Servulus was a beggar in Rome, afflicted with palsy since infancy, who lived on alms he solicited from people passing St. Clement's Church. He spent his lifetime giving thanks to God for His goodness, despite the squalor and pain of his life.
Sixth Century

Pope St. Gregory the Great is the only writer who has recorded the touching story of this humble Roman saint of his own day. Like the Lazarus of our Lord's parable of the rich man and the poor man, St. Servulus was a crippled beggar whose piety won him a place "in Abraham's bosom."

Servulus, the pope tells us, was paralyzed from infancy. He could not stand. He could not sit up. He could not carry his hand to his mouth. He could not turn himself about. For even the basic services of life he had to depend on others.

The poor cripple could do nothing to support himself but beg alms. (There was no state welfare in those days, nor was there any system of private charities for the badly disabled.) So his mother and brother carried him daily to a spot in the porch of St. Clement's Church in Rome. There he besaught the charity of churchgoers and passersby.

What was remarkable about this poor man was his devout acceptance of disability. True to his name ("Servulus" means "little servant"), he did not use his ailments as an excuse to neglect the love of God and neighbor. Whatever alms he received beyond his own needs, he passed on to others. With some of the gifts, he brought books on sacred scripture. Although unable to read himself, he had others read to him; and he memorized, pondered and prayed over what he heard. He likewise learned a number of hymns of praise and thanksgiving, and often sang them as he lay on the cold threshold. Singing served the double effect of honoring God and dulling pain.

All this went on, we are told, for a good many years. Eventually, however, Servulus sensed that his life was coming to an end. Confined to his bed at home, he asked that the poor and the pilgrims whom he had come to know, gather at his bedside and join him in singing hymns. Suddenly he cried out. "Do you hear the great and beautiful music in heaven?" These were his last words. His soul, ever beautiful and agile, left the prison of his contorted frame.

The devout beggar of St. Clement's was buried in the very church where he had begged. Each year on December 23, St. Clement's celebrates the feast day of its own special mendicant.

St. Gregory speaks of St. Servulus as if he knew him well. He says that one of his own monks who attended the death and funeral commented on the sweet fragrance that arose from the body of the dead cripple.

The pope found a profound lesson in the virtues of this wise paralytic. He cried shame upon those people gifted with health and wealth who complained of far lighter crosses and were stingy with their possessions.
For St. Servulus, life itself was a gift beyond compare. Father Robert F. McNamara
303 St. Migdonius & Mardonius Martyred officials of the Roman court.
 Nicomedíæ pássio sanctórum Migdónii et Mardónii, quorum alter, in Diocletiáni persecutióne, igne cremátus, alter in fossam projéctus occúbuit.  Tunc étiam Diáconus sancti Anthimi, Epíscopi Nicomediénsis, passus est; qui, cum lítteras perférret ad Mártyres, a Gentílibus tentus est, atque, lapídibus óbrutus, migrávit ad Dóminum.
       At Nicomedia, the passion of Saints Migdonius and Mardonius, one of whom was burned alive in the same persecution of Diocletian, and the other died in a pit where he had been thrown.  A deacon of St. Anthimus, bishop of Nicomedia, suffered at the same time.  He had been arrested by the heathen when he was carrying letters to the martyrs, and being overwhelmed with stones, went to our Lord.
in the reign of Emperor Diocletian. Migdonius was burned at the stake and Mardonius was drowned in a well.
304 St. Victoria sister Anatolia guard martyred
 Romæ sanctæ Victóriæ, Vírginis et Mártyris, quæ, in persecutióne Décii Imperatóris, cum esset desponsáta Eugénio pagáno et nec núbere vellet neque sacrificáre, ídeo, post multa facta mirácula, quibus plúrimas Deo Vírgines aggregáverat, a carnífice percússa est gládio in corde, rogátu sui sponsi.
       At Rome, St. Victoria, virgin and martyr, during the persecution of Emperor Decius.  She had been promised in marriage to a pagan named Eugene, but because she had refused to marry him and to offer sacrifice to idols, and because by working many miracles she had brought many virgins to the service of God, the executioner thrust a sword into her heart at the request of her spouse.

SS. VICTORIA AND ANATOLIA, VIRGINS AND MARTYRS
THE valueless passio of St Anatolia relates that when she refused, in consequence of a vision, to accept her suitor Aurelius he went to her sister, Victoria,
and asked
her to persuade Anatolia to marry him. Victoria’s efforts were not only unsuccess­ful, but she herself was converted to her sister’s views and broke off her own betrothal with one Eugenius. The young men then removed the maidens from Rome to their respective country villas and tried to starve them into a different frame of mind. Anatolia was denounced as a Christian, and her end is thus summarized in the Roman Martyrology on July 9: “After she had healed many throughout the province of Picenum who were suffering from various diseases and had brought them to believe in Christ, she was afflicted with several punishments by order of the judge Faustinian; and after she had been freed from a serpent that was set upon her and had converted [the executioner] Audax to the faith, lifting up her hands in prayer, she was pierced with a sword.”
Victoria met with a similar fate, perhaps at Tribulano in the Sabine hills. “She refused either to marry Eugenius or to sacrifice and, after working many miracles whereby numerous maidens were gathered to God, she was smitten to the heart by the executioner’s sword at the request of her betrothed”.
Both St Anatolia and St Victoria had a cultus in various parts of Italy, but the real circumstances of their martyrdom are not known. The sentiments regarding marriage expressed in their passio are of the exaggerated and unguarded kind, which, though often found in Christian documents, approximate more to the heretical doctrines of Encratism than to the teaching of the Catholic Church. Like the passio of St Lucy, St Aldhelm of Sherborne utilized that of St Victoria in his works De laudibus virginitatis. 

Although the passio of these martyrs, preserved to us in varying and inconsistent texts (see BHL., nn. 417—420 and 8591—8593), is historically valueless, still there are grounds for believing in their real existence. See P. Paschini, La passio delle martire Sabine Vittoria ed Anatolia (1919); Lanzoni, Le diocesi d’Italia, pp. 347—350; Schuster, Bolletino diocesano per Sabina, etc. (1917), pp. 163—167; and especially Delehaye’s CMH., pp. 364 and 654, with his Etude sur le Légendier romain (1936), pp. 59-60

There is very little known about St. Victoria. With her sister Anatolia, she refused importunate suitors. Both were imprisoned and starved by their suitors but persisted in refusing marriage. Anatolia was converted to Christianity and converted many in Picenum before being denounced for her faith, for which she was tortured and executed at Thora on Lake Velino in Italy. When Victoria refused to sacrifice to pagan gods, she too was executed, perhaps at Tribulano. The guard was converted by their example and was also martyred. Their whole story is probably a pious myth, though they did actually live.
4th v. Saint Paul, Bishop of Neocaesarea First Ecmenical Council at Nicea,
suffered under the emperor Licinius (311-324) At his trial he firmly confessed his faith, and was subjected to beatings. They tortured him also with hunger, but he remained steadfast. Then they scorched his hands with red-hot iron and locked him in a prison at the banks of the Euphrates.

After Licinius was executed in the year 324, when St Constantine became the sole ruler of the Roman Empire, and Christians in prison received their freedom, St Paul returned to his flock. He was a participant at the First Ecmenical Council at Nicea, convened in the year 325, at which the Arian heresy was condemned and the Symbol of Faith adopted. At the end of the Council, the Emperor Constantine solemnly received the Council participants and kissed St Paul's burned hand. After long years of guiding his flock, St Paul peacefully fell asleep in the Lord.

679 St. Dagobert II Martyred king of Austrasia son of King Sigebert II

ST DAGOBERT II OF AUSTRASIA (A.D. 679)
Two French dioceses keep the feast of King Dagobert II, who was the son of another sainted king, Sigebert III ; but there seems no particular reason except popular tradition why he should be regarded as a saint, much less as a martyr.
   He was still a child when he succeeded to the throne of Austrasia in 656, and his guardian, Grimoald, the unworthy son of Bd Pepin of Landen, who gave the crown to his own son, Childebert, exiled him. Dido, Bishop of Poitiers, took Dagobert to Ireland.

 We learn from Eddi’s Life of St Wilfrid of York that that saint befriended Dagobert, who in 675, on the murder of Childeric II, was repatriated by the good offices—and “in style
—of St. Wilfrid and recovered his kingdom. When Wilfrid was on his way to Rome to appeal against St Theodore of Canterbury and King Egfrid, he came to the court at Metz and the king wished to reward his services by bestowing on him the vacant see of Strasburg; but Wilfrid refused it.
 When Dagobert met his death on December 23, 679, while hunting in the forest of Woëvre in Lorraine, it was attributed to “the treachery of dukes with the consent of bishops
. He was buried near by at Stenay. As in the several other similar instances, e.g. St Sigismund of Burgundy, the circum­stances of his death caused Dagobert to be regarded as a martyr and this led to his cultus as a saint.
The tenth-century Life of Dagobert (best edited by B. Krusch in MGH., Scriptores Merov., vol. ii, pp. 511—524) is of little value, but see Krusch’s supplement in vol. vii, pp. 474 and 494. Eddi’s references to Dagobert are of great interest. They may conveniently be consulted in Colgrave’s edition of the Life of St Wilfrid (1927), and cf. Vacandard, Vie de St Ouen, pp. 283—286. See further Bede’s Eccles. Hist., in Plummer’s edition, vol. ii, pp. 318 and 325; F. Lot, Histoire du moyen âge (5928), vol. i, pp. 282 and 286; B. Krusch in Historische Aufsätze K. Zeumer gewidmet (1910), pp. 411—438; and Gougaud, Christianity in Celtic Lands, p. 153. Referring to the many years Dagobert is said to have spent in Ireland, Gougaud remarks “No doubt this fact accounts for the presence of these Irishmen in Aquitaine at a later time.” Cf. also W. Levison, England and the Continent (1946), pp. 49—51. Dagobert took the throne as a child and was forced into exile. Bishop Dido of Poitiers, France, took him to Ireland when Childebert was named king. Dagobert regained his throne in 675, but he was murdered only four years later. Ebroin, the mayor of the palace, slew him on December 23 while on a hunt­ing trip. Dagobert was a friend of St. Wilfrid.
890 St. Vintila Benedictine monk hermit.
He was a recluse who had a hermitage in Pugino, Galicia, Spain. Vintila drew many disciples and pilgrims because of his great holiness and austere ways.

910 Saint Nahum disciple of Sts Cyril and Methodius wonderworker man of prayer translate Scriptures from Greek to Slavonic.
(May 11), one of their coworkers known as the Five Followers.
St Nahum was a man of great learning, and he spoke several languages.
After a visit to Rome, he settled on the shores of Lake Ochrid. There he built a monastery at the time when St Clement of Ochrid (July 27) was serving as a bishop.
Many monks gathered around St Nahum, who was known as a great wonderworker and a man of prayer.
He also labored to translate the Holy Scriptures from Greek into Slavonic.

St Nahum fell asleep in the Lord in 910, and his holy relics continue to work miracles of healing for those who venerate them in faith.


1164 Bd Hartman, Bishop of Brixen; canon; highly respected by the Emperors Conrad III and Frederick I.
Hartman was born at Polling and educated at the Augustinian monastery of St Nicholas at Passau, wherein he eventually became a canon. His virtues and talents were unusual, and when Conrad, archbishop of Salzburg, wished to introduce regular discipline and the common life among his clergy he invited Hartman to become dean of the metropolitan chapter. This was in 1122. When Hartman had formed these canons to the regular life, Conrad transferred him to the provost-ship of the monastery of Herrenchiemsee in order that it might be reformed, and from there he was called by St Leopold, Margrave of Austria, to the house of canons he had founded at Klosterneuburg.
When the see of Brixen in Tirol became vacant in 1140, Bd Hartman was called to be its bishop, and two years later he founded the regular chapter of Neustift in his cathedral city and liberally endowed it. Shortly after, with one of his cathedral canons, he established the hospice of the Holy Cross for poor pilgrims in Brixen.

Bd Hartman was highly respected by the Emperors Conrad III and Frederick I. He was involved in the troubles between the Frederick I and Pope Alexander III, but neither threats nor promises could alienate him from the Holy See.

After governing his church most holily for twenty-four years he died—in a bath—on December 23, 1164. In 1784 Pope Pius VI confirmed the cultus of Bd Hartman.

There is a medieval Latin Life of Bd Hartman which is printed in Pez, Scriptores rerum austriacarum, vol. i, and which was also edited by H. Zeibig, Vita b. Hartmanni (1846). See upon this H. R. von Zeissberg in the Archiv f. österreich Geschichte, vol. lvi (1878), pp. 447—464. A more modern biography, in German, is that of A. Sparber (1910).

1193 St Thorlac, Bishop Of Skalholt; daily rule of life, which began with the singing of the Credo, Pater noster, and a hymn directly he awoke; he recited a third of the psalter every day, and had an especial devotion to the titular saints of the churches in which he ministered; formed a community of canons regular, of which he was abbot; Two books of the miracles of Thorlac Thorhallsson were written down within a few years of his death.
Christianity was planted in Iceland at the end of the tenth and the beginning of the eleventh century, and made such progress that the island was soon divided into two dioceses, Skalholt and Holar, which in 1152 were made suffragans of Nidaros (Trondhjem): Iceland had been colonized and evangelized from Norway.
   During the twelfth century two bishops, one from each see, were venerated as saints locally and in Norway, namely, John of Holar and Thorlac of Skalholt. The life of Thorlac is narrated in the Thorlakssaga by a cleric of Skalholt. We are told that Thorlac Thorhallsson was a deacon when he was fifteen and a priest three years later, and then, being a promising young man, was sent abroad to study:  he is said to have visited Lincoln.
After ten years, in 1161, Thorlac returned to Iceland full of reforming zeal. He was joyfully received by his mother and sisters, who expected him to settle down to the semi-secular life led by most of the clergy there in those days, but instead he devoted himself to study and the ministry. His biographer gives an account of Thorlac’s daily rule of life, which began with the singing of the Credo, Pater noster, and a hymn directly he awoke; he recited a third of the psalter every day, and had an especial devotion to the titular saints of the churches in which he ministered.
   Some years later an heirless farmer died, leaving his land and house to the Church with instructions that Thorlac should establish a monastery there, and he accordingly formed a community of canons regular, of which he was abbot. We are told that Thorlac’s mother went with him to Thykkviboer to be cook and housekeeper for the new community. In 1178 he became bishop of Skalholt, and was consecrated by Archbishop St Eystein in Nidaros.
The way was now clear for Thorlac to introduce and promote the higher spiritual standards and improved ecclesiastical discipline, which he knew that the good of souls required and the Church demanded. On the side of discipline this resolved itself chiefly into endeavours to impose the observance of clerical celibacy and to abolish lay patronage and impropriation, with their associated abuse of simony, and his episcopal career is a record of his efforts in these directions and the
successes, difficulties and checks with which he met. He received far more opposition than encouragement, often from men of goodwill or from those to whom he could reasonably look for support, but to the end he did not withdraw from the struggle or modify his policy.
   He had the encouragement of his metropolitan, the forceful St Eystein Jan 26, who was fighting a similar battle in Norway, and with his approval used the weapon of excommunication for the first time in Iceland. In his sixtieth year Thorlac determined to resign his see and retire to the abbey of Thykkviboer, but death overtook him before he could put this resolution into effect, on December 23, 1193. Five years later he was canonized by the althing (assembly) of Iceland. This proceeding of course had no valid ecclesiastical effect, but it encouraged the popular and liturgical cultus that was undoubtedly accorded to Thorlac until the change of religion. The Holy See has not confirmed this cultus. Two books of the miracles of Thorlac Thorhallsson were written down within a few years of his death.

There are certain fragments of Latin lives or breviary lessons relating to St Thorlac, which have been printed by Langebek in his Scriptores rerum Danicarum, vol. iv, pp. 624—630, as well as the Thorlakssaga. A pretty full notice is devoted to him by Gley in the Biographie universelle, but otherwise it seems difficult for any who are not specialists in the Scandinavian languages to learn much about Bishop Thorlac that is reliable. Cf. also Baumgartner in Kirchenlexikon, s.v. Island. The Saga of Thorlac may be read in a German translation by W. Baetke, Islands Besiedlung und älteste Geschichte (1928).

14th v. Saint Theoctistus, Archbishop of Novgorod
Prior to becoming a bishop, was igumen of the Annunciation monastery near Novgorod. After the death of Archbishop Clement in the year 1300, the people of Novgorod chose him as their Archbishop, and Metropolitan Maximus with the bishops Simeon of Rostov and Andrew of Tver consecrated St Theoctistus as Archbishop of Novgorod.

One of St Theoctistus' concerns was the renovation and building of churches. He consecrated cathedrals in the name of Sts Boris and Gleb, and in the name of the Holy Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council. The monastery of Valaam was set in good order during his time.

In the year 1307, because of poor health, the saint withdrew to the Annunciation monastery, where he lived until his death, devoting himself to the ascetic deed of silence. St Theoctistus was glorified in 1664, because of the miraculous healings at his relics. In 1786, the relics of the saint were transferred to Yuriev, where Archimandrite Photius built a chapel in his honor at the local cathedral.

14thv. Saint Niphon, Bishop of Cyprus; devils often attacked, overcame with the help of God received from God gift to discern evil spirits and defeat them, also saw departure of the soul after death.
Born in Paphlagonia, and was educated at Constantinople. In childhood he was gentle and good, and he often attended church services, but in his youth he began to lead a prodigal and sinful life. He sometimes came to his senses, and he was horrified by the extent of his fall; but believing that he was lost and could not receive forgiveness, he resumed his impious life.

He once met a friend who gazed into his face for a long time with astonishment. When Niphon asked why he was staring, the friend replied, "I have never seen your face like this before. It is black, like that of an Ethiopian." These words showed to Niphon his fallen state, and he began to cry out to the Mother of God, begging Her intercession.

After an intense and long prayer he saw that the face of the Mother of God on the holy icon was radiantly bright with a smile. From that time Niphon prayed incessantly to the Queen of Heaven. If he fell into sin, the face of the Mother of God turned away from him, but after tears and prayers, She mercifully turned toward him again. Finally, Niphon completely turned his life around and began to spend his time in prayer and repentance. After an illness, from which he received healing from the Mother of God, he received the Holy Mysteries, and then accepted monastic tonsure and intensified his efforts, exhausting his body in the struggle against the passions.

This struggle lasted for many years, and devils often attacked St Niphon, but with the help of God he overcame them.
He received from God the gift to discern evil spirits and defeat them, and alsoto see the departure of the soul after death.
Already advanced in age, and arriving at Alexandria, he was pointed out to the Patriarch in a vision as one worthy to assume the office of bishop. They made him bishop of the city of Constantia on the island of Cyprus. However, he did not remain there for long. St Niphon knew the time of his death three days beforehand. St Athanasius the Great visited him before his blessed repose. On his deathbed the saint was granted to see angels and the All-Pure Mother of God.
1464 BD MARGARET OF SAVOY, WIDOW; took the habit of the third order of St Dominic and with other ladies formed a community at Alba. This retired life of prayer, study and charitable works lasted for some twenty-five years; Pope Eugenius IV gave permission for the tertiary sisters to become nuns, in the same place and under the rule of Bd Margaret. During the last sixteen years of her life ecstasies and miracles are alleged in abundance, among them a vision of our Lord offering her three arrows, labelled respectively Sickness, Slander and Persecution.
BD MARGARET was allied in blood to the principal royal houses of Europe, her father being Amadeus of Savoy and her mother a sister of the Clement VII who claimed to be pope at Avignon during the “great schism”. In 1403 she made a marriage befitting this high rank, with Theodore Palaeologus, Marquis of Montferrat, a widower with two children, a headstrong soldier but a good Christian at heart. Margaret herself had no children but was devoted to those of her husband, and soon endeared herself on all hands, working selflessly for the people during a plague and the famine that followed it in Genoa.
In 1418 the Marquis of Montferrat died. Margaret, after endeavouring for a time to bring the unhappy marital affairs of her stepdaughter to a successful issue, went to live on her estate at Alba in Piedmont, where she bound herself by vow to widowhood and a life of good works. But she was still young, thirty-six at the most, and politically a most desirable match, and Philip Visconti of Milan wanted to marry her. He was an old enemy of the Montferrats, a man of deplorable character, and Margaret refused him, pleading her vow. So Visconti went off to Pope Martin V and came back with a dispensation for her, but she remained firm in her determination not again to change her state.
In her youth she had been friendly with St Vincent Ferrer, and to strengthen her position she took the habit of the third order of St Dominic and with other ladies formed a community at Alba. This retired life of prayer, study and charitable works lasted for some twenty-five years. There is in the royal library at Turin a volume of the letters of St Catherine of Siena and other matters copied and bound “by order of the illustrious lady, Margaret of Savoy, Marchioness of Montferrat” during this time.
Then Pope Eugenius IV gave permission for the tertiary sisters to become nuns, in the same place and under the rule of Bd Margaret. During the last sixteen years of her life ecstasies and miracles are alleged in abundance,
among them a vision of our Lord offering her three arrows, labelled respectively Sickness, Slander and Persecution. Certainly Margaret suffered from all three. She was accused of hypocrisy, of tyrannizing over her nuns, and her ill-health was attributed to self-indulgence, and Philip Visconti spread the rumour that the convent was a centre of the Waldensian heresy. This was a peculiarly shocking charge to bring against children of St Dominic, and the innocent friar who was their confessor and director found himself in prison. Margaret went to demand his release, but only had her hand brutally crushed between the heavy doors of the castle for her pains, and it was some time before the man was vindicated from the malicious accusation of having corrupted both the faith and morals of his charges.

Bd Margaret of Savoy died on November 23, 1464, strengthened by a vision, seen by others besides herself, of St Catherine of Siena. Her cultus was confirmed in 1669. 

Four or five lives of Bd Margaret seem to have been published in the seventeenth century, that by G. Baresiano appearing in 1638. In more modern times we have an Italian biography by F. G. Allaria (1877), another without the author’s name (Torino, 1883), and a shorter notice included in M. C. de Ganay’s book, Les Bienheureuses Dominicaines (1914), pp. 251—277. See also Procter, Lives of Dominican Saints, pp. 334—337.

1550 St. Nicholas Factor Franciscan preacher native of Valencia Spain, he entered the Franciscans in 1537 and subsequently labored as a preacher. It was his custom to scourge himself before delivering each sermon. In the process of his beatification in 1786, St. Paschal Baylon and Blessed Louis Bertrand were summoned to act as witnesses.



THE PSALTER OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY PSALM 214

Our foolish enemy hath said in his heart: I will follow after and take him, and my hand shall slay him.

Arise, O Lady, and prevent him, and supplant him: destroy all his machinations.

Thy beauty astonishes the sun and the moon; the angelic powers serve and obey thee.

By thy gentle touch the sick are healed: by thy rose-sweet fragrance the dead revive.

Virgin Mother of God, He whom the whole world cannot contain was enclosed within thee, being made Man.


Let every spirit praise Our Lady


For thy spirit is kind: thy grace fills the whole world.

Thunder, ye heavens, from above, and give praise to her: glorify her, ye earth, with all the dwellers therein.


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 heavenonly 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 htmIndulgences 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 2000Quang 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  UniateChalcedon

Mary the Mother of Jesus Miracles_BLay Saints  Miraculous_IconMiraculous_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
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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.

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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
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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 Indulgence 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 Paqualina 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).
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