1st v. Ampliatus, Urban & Narcissus 3 disciples of our Lord preachers of the Gospel with Saint Andrew in the

Balkans MM (RM)
Romæ sanctórum Ampliáti, Urbáni et Narcíssi, quorum méminit sanctus Paulus ad Romános scribens, qui, ob Evangélium Christi, a Judæis et Gentílibus cæsi sunt.
At Rome, the Saints Ampliatus, Urbanus, and Narcissus, who are mentioned by St. Paul in his Epistle to the Romans. They were put to death by the Jews and Gentiles for the Gospel of Christ.

Saint Paul mentions these three saints in Romans 16:8ff. Later, chiefly Greek, traditions have made Ampliatus a bishop, and all three disciples of our Lord, and preachers of the Gospel with Saint Andrew in the Balkan countries. The Roman Martyrology adds "they were slain by Jews and Gentiles" (Benedictines).

The Holy Apostles of the Seventy: Stachys, Amplias, Urban, Narcissus, Apelles and Aristobulus: Saint Amplias was a bishop in the city of Diospolis.

Saint Urban, one of the Seventy Apostles, was made a bishop by St Andrew (November 30), and was active in Macedonia. They were killed by Jews and pagan Greeks because of their zeal in preaching the Gospel.

Saint Aristobulus, one of the Seventy Apostles, was the brother of St Barnabus (June 11) and proclaimed the Gospel in Britain, where he died in peace. He is also commemorated on March 16.
Saint Narcissus, one of the Seventy Apostles, was made Bishop of Athens by the Apostle Philip.
Saint Apelles, one of the Seventy Apostles, was bishop at Heraclion in Trachis.

1st v. Stachys of Byzantius saluted by Saint Paul as "my beloved." B (RM)
Constantinópoli sancti Stachis Epíscopi, qui a beáto Andréa Apóstolo primus ejúsdem civitátis Epíscopus ordinátus est.
At Constantinople, St. Stachis, bishop who was consecrated first bishop of that city by the blessed apostle Andrew.
Stachys was the Christian saluted by Saint Paul (Rom. 16:9) as “my beloved.” The tradition is that Saint Andrew consecrated him bishop of Byzantium (Benedictines).
Saint Stachys, one of the Seventy Apostles, was made Bishop of Byzantium by St Andrew (November 30). He built a church at Argyropolis, and many people gathered there to hear him preach. He was a good shepherd to his flock, tirelessly laboring for their salvation. He died in peace

2nd v. St. Nemesius and Lucilla Two Roman martyrs translation of blessed Nemesius, deacon, and his daughter, the virgin Lucilla
Romæ Translátio beáti Nemésii Diáconi, et fíliæ Lucíllæ Vírginis, qui octávo Kaléndas Septémbris decolláti sunt.
At Rome, the translation of blessed Nemesius, deacon, and his daughter, the virgin Lucilla, who were beheaded on the 25th of August.

250 Holy Martyr Epimachus of Alexandria Egypt native; For a long time he lived in seclusion on Mount Peleusium

During a persecution against Christians at Alexandria (about the year 250), St Epimachus in his fervent zeal came into the city, destroyed pagan idols, and fearlessly confessed Christ. For this the saint was put to torture. Among the people watching the torture was a woman who was blind in one eye. A drop of blood from the martyr healed her infirmity.

After fierce tortures, the saint was beheaded by the sword.St Epimachus is also commemorated on March 11.

287 St. Quentin Patron of bombardiers, chaplains, locksmiths, porters, tailors, and surgeons; Invoked against coughs, sneezes, dropsy
martyred Roman went to Gaul as missionary with St. Lucian of Beauvais
Apud Augústam Veromanduórum, in Gállia, sancti Quinctíni, civis Románi et ex órdine Senatório viri, qui sub Maximiáno Imperatóre martyrium passus est; cujus corpus post annos quinquagínta quinque, revelánte Angelo, invéntum est incorrúptum.
At Saint Quentin in France, the martyr St. Quentin, a Roman citizen and senator, who suffered under Emperor Maximian. By the revelation of an angel, his body was found incorrupt after a lapse of fifty-five years.

ST QUINTINUS, OR QUENTIN, MARTYR
ST QUINTINUS was Roman who, his legend tells us, left his country and, attended by St Lucian of Beauvais, made his way to Gaul. They preached the faith together in that country till they reached Amiens in Picardy, where they parted. St Quintinus stayed at Amiens, endeavouring by his prayers and labours to make that country a portion of the Lord’s vineyard, and the reward of his labours was the crown of martyrdom.
The prefect Rictiovarus heard what great progress the Christian faith had made at Amiens, and he ordered Quintinus thrown into prison. The next day the holy preacher was brought before the prefect, who tried to win him over with promises and threats; finding him proof against both, he ordered him to be whipped and confined to a dungeon without the liberty of receiving assistance from the faithful. The passio of St Quintinus is a worthless recital of tortures and marvels. It says that his limbs were stretched with pulleys on the rack till his joints were dislocated; his body torn with iron wire, boiled pitch and oil were poured on his back and lighted torches applied to his sides. By the ministry of an angel he escaped from prison but was taken again while preaching in the market place. When Rictiovarus left Amiens he commanded Quintinus to be conducted to Augusta Veromanduorum (now Saint-Quentin), where he made fresh attacks upon the confessor of Christ.
Ashamed to see himself vanquished by his courage, Rictiovarus ordered him tortured anew, and at last his head to be cut off, whereupon a dove issued from the gaping neck and flew away into the heavens. The martyr’s body was thrown into the river Somme but it was recovered by the Christians and buried near the town.

Since St Gregory of Tours already speaks of a church dedicated in honour of St Quintinus, there can be little reason for questioning the fact that he was an authentic martyr. But the story has been embellished with all sorts of legendary excrescences and is preserved to us in a great variety of forms, of which a list is given in BHL., nn. 6999—7021. Several of these texts, including accounts of the translations of relics, are reproduced in the long article devoted to St Quintinus in the Acta Sanctorum, October, vol. xiii. Others have since been discovered, notably a number of Carolingian metrical effusions which have been printed in the Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xx (1905), pp. 1-44. It is interesting to note that Bede already knew the legend of Quintinus for his notice, see the Martyrologes historiques of Dom Quentin, who believes it to be authentic.

Quentin was also known as Quintinus. According to legend, he settled at Amiens in Picardy. He was so successful in preaching that he was imprisoned by prefect Rictiovarus, tortured, and then brought to Augusta Veromanduorum (Saint-Quentin), where he was again tortured and then was beheaded

Quentin of Amiens M (RM) (also known as Quintinus)

Died 287. When we read the lives of the martyrs who offered their lives as a testimony to a grateful heart--a heart that humbly acknowledges the sacrifice of our Lord for a sinner--we are forced to question our own lives. Are we witnesses to God's infinite love at least by lives of self-denial, humility, and self-giving? We may never be called to shed our blood, but what about our time, talent, and treasure?

According to legend Quentin was a Roman, the son of Zeno of senatorial rank. It is said that filled with apostolic zeal, Quentin travelled to Gaul as a missionary with Saint Lucian of Beauvais. Quentin settled at Amiens in Picardy, while Lucian continued to Beauvais, where he won the martyr's crown.

By his multitudinous prayers and continuous hounding of heaven, Quentin wrought many miracles that confirmed the truth of the Gospel he preached among the heathen. He was so successful in preaching that he was imprisoned by Prefect Rictovarus (Rictius Varus), who had travelled there from Trier. Quentin was manacled, tortured repeatedly, and thrown into a dungeon. When Rictovarus left Amiens, he commanded Quentin to be brought to Augusta Veromanduorum (later Somme, now St-Quentin), through which Rictovarus would pass upon his return to Trier. Here Quentin was again tortured, beheaded, and thrown into (or drowned in) the River Somme.

The body was recovered by Christians several days later and buried on a mountainside. One-half century later, it was discovered by a devout woman named Eusebia. A blind women recovered her sight by the sacred relics. During the reign of Julian the Apostate, the place of his burial was again lost to memory, though a chapel which was built near it remained. When Saint Eligius found the relics in 641 after a concerted effort, he distributed the nails with which Quentin's body had been pierced, as well as the saint's teeth and hair. The remainder Eligius placed in a rich shrine made by his own hands. This was placed behind the high altar at Noyon. The relics have been translated several times since then and are now kept in Laon.

There is no doubt that he is a historical person; however, his story has been much embellished (Benedictines, Delaney, Encyclopedia, Husenbeth).

He is shown as a young man with two spits (1) as a deacon; (2) with a broken wheel; (3) with a chair to which he is transfixed; (4) with a sword; or (5) beheaded, a dove flying from his severed head. He is venerated at Amiens.
Patron of bombardiers, chaplains, locksmiths, porters, tailors, and surgeons; Invoked against coughs, sneezes, dropsy (Roeder).

5th v. Saint Maura pursued asceticism at Constantinople, where she founded a monastery, where she died in the fifth century.

512 Erth of Cornwall Patrick ordained him priest and bishop (AC)
(also known as Erc, Ercus, Herygh, Urith of Cornwall or Slane)

feast in Ireland is November 2. Saint Erth, the brother of Saint Uny and Saint Ia (Ives), was the only person to give homage to Saint Patrick during the latter's confrontation with the druids on the Hill of Slane. Patrick later ordained him a priest and bishop. A distich ascribed to Saint Patrick relates:

       “Bishop Erc,
        Whatever he judged was rightly judged:
        Whosoever gives a just judgment
        Shall receive the blessing of bishop Erc.”

Erth is said to have trained the young Saint Brendan the Navigator at his church in Tralee. Saint Erth is also responsible for establishing the famous school at Slane, where King Dagobert II is said to have received his early education. The 12th-century martyrology of Gorman calls him 'Erc of Slane, bishop of Lilcach and from Ferta Fer Feic beside Sid Truim from the West.' He apparently crossed from Ireland to Cornwall, where a church and the village of Saint Erth are dedicated under his patronage (Benedictines, Farmer, Montague).

655 Saint Foillan of Fosses; Foillan is the patron of children's nurses, dentists, surgeons, and truss-makers
kept up close relations with Saint Gertrude's establishment at Nivelles OSB Abbot (RM) (also known as Faillan)

St FOILLAN was the brother of St Fursey, of whom an account is given herein under January 16. They came to England, together with another brother, St Ultan, after the year 630 and established a monastery at Burgh Castle, near Yarmouth, from which they did missionary work among the East Angles.

After a time Fursey crossed over to Gaul, where he died about the year 648. The Mercians under Penda overran East Anglia, when the invaders had pillaged the monastery at Burgh Castle, and Foillan and Ultan determined to follow the example of their brother. They came into Neustria where, like Fursey before them, they were well received by Clovis II. From Péronne St Foillan went to Nivelles, where Bd Itta, widow of Bd Pepin of Landen, who had founded the monastery at Nivelles of which their daughter St Gertrude was abbess, gave him land at Fosses.

Here he established a monastery, and was in close contact with the abbey of Nivelles, where he exercised a great influence. St Foillan also engaged himself in missionary work among the Brabanters, and left a strong impression upon the religious life of the place and time. He is one of the best remembered of the lesser Irish missionary monks on the continent.

About the year 655 on the eve of the feast of St Quintinus, St Foillan sang Mass at Nivelles and then set out with three companions. While passing through the forest of Seneffe they were set upon by outlaws, robbed, murdered, and their bodies left lying. These were not found till the following January 16, when St Gertrude ordered them to be buried at the abbey which St Foillan had founded. As he was slain while journeying on the business of the Church, St Foillan is commemorated as a martyr in several places of Belgium; he is said also to have been a bishop, though there appears to be no good authority for this.

A number of texts have been printed in the Acta Sanctorum bearing on the history of St Foillan, but one still more valuable is a short document which appears in some manuscripts as an appendix to the earliest Life of St Fursey. B. Krusch who has edited it in MGH., Scriptores Merov., vol. iv, pp. 449—451, believes it to have been written by an eyewitness, probably an Irish monk in the service of the nuns at Nivelles. It describes the death and burial of St Foillan. See also Kenney, Sources for the Early History of Ireland, vol. i, pp. 503—504; Crépin, “Le Monastère des Scots de Fosses” in La Terre Wallonne, vols. viii (1923), pp. 357—385, and ix (1923), pp. 16—26; and L. Gougaud, Christianity in Celtic Lands, pp. 147—148.

Born in Ireland; died in Belgium, c. 655. Among the brothers of Saint Fursey were Foillan and Saint Ultan, who went to England with Fursey about 630. There they built a monastery at Burgh Castle in Suffolk near Yarmouth, and were missionary monks under him among the East Angles.
When Fursey departed for Gaul, Foillan succeeded him as abbot, but the destruction of their monastery and the depredations of the Mercians under Penda, drove Foillan and Ultan to follow their brother across the sea.
They were welcomed to Neustria by King Clovis II. Abbess Blessed Ida of Nivelles gave Foillan land at Fosses, Belgium, where he set up a monastery and did missionary work among the Brabanters of the surrounding country, on whom he made a lasting impression.
He kept up close relations with Saint Gertrude's establishment at Nivelles, and this was the occasion of his untimely end: It was when returning from saying Mass at Nivelles that he was set upon by robbers in the forest of Seneffe and murdered with three companions. Their bodies were not found until nearly three months later.

Ultan succeeded Foillan as abbot of Fosses, and he too was revered as a saint.

In September every seventh year at Fosses, there is a spectacular procession, called the March of Foillan, to honor the saint. Foillan's relics are honored by an official mounted guard and salutes are fired seven times along the route of the procession. (Attwater, Delaney, Encyclopedia, Montague).
Foillan is depicted as a bishop with two armed men under his feet. Sometimes he is shown (1) refusing the cup at the table of Pepin; (2) carrying hot coals in his vestment for incense; (3) praying before the church while the city burns; (4) kneeling, pierced by a spear; (5) beaten with a club; or (6) with sword and palm (Roeder).

Foillan is the patron of children's nurses, dentists, surgeons, and truss-makers (Roeder).

He is widely honored in both Ireland and northern France (Montague).

660 St. Antoninus Archbishop of Milan

Medioláni sancti Antoníni, Epíscopi et Confessóris. At Milan, St. Antoninus, bishop and confessor.

Italy, for one year. In 1581, his relics were enshrined in St. Simplician's church in Milan by St. Charles Borromeo.
Antoninus Fontana B (RM). He was archbishop of Milan for one year. In 1581, Saint Charles Borromeo enshrined his relics beneath a magnificent altar in the church of Saint Simplician (Benedictines).

681 St. Bega A princess of Ireland and hermitess-foundress
also listed as Bee. Bega fled the royal court rather than marry a prince from Norway. Tradition states that she was miraculously transported to Cumberland, in England.There St. Oswald counseled her in a hermitage, and St. Aidan received her vows as a nun. Bega founded St. Bee's Monastery. She served as abbess there until her death. She is also remembered in the village of Kilbees, in Scotland.

Bega V (AC) (also known as Begh, Begha, Begu, Bee)
Died in Cumberland, 681; see also Bega. This is another of those problematic saints, mixing fact and fiction and, perhaps, the stories of more than one person of the same name. One Bega is Irish; the other Anglo-Saxon. As always, there appears to be some basis for the stories, but it is impossible to sort or determine to whom each element of the story relates. So, I give you what each of the sources has said.

The Irish maiden Saint Bega, in legend a princess, fled on the eve of her marriage to a son of the king of Norway with a miraculous bracelet presented by an angel as a token of her betrothal to Jesus. She was miraculously transported across the Irish Sea to Cumberland, England.

She lived as a hermit for a while but on the advice of King Saint Oswald, she received the veil from Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne. Thereafter she founded a convent on the promontory of Saint Bee's Head (Copeland), in Cumberland, which flourished for 900 years with grants from Kings Saint Oswald, Saint Oswin, and others. As an abbess, she was venerated for her aid to the poor and the oppressed. The abbey still perpetuates her memory, as does also the name of the village, Kilbees, in Scotland.

Two other saints of the same name are mentioned by hagiographers in Yorkshire and an abbess at Kilbees. An Anglo-Saxon nun, called Heiu or Begu, was also professed by Saint Aidan. According to Saint Bede, she abdicated her abbacy of Hartlepool Abbey in favor of the royal princess Saint Hilda. He also notes that while Begu was novice mistress in another convent, she saw a vision of her beloved Hilda, surrounded by heavenly light, ascend to heaven as the bells tolled to call the sisters to prayer. The community was immediately gathered in the chapel to pray for the repose of Hilda's soul. The following morning messengers arrived was the news of the death of the abbess of Whitby.

About 1125, the monks of Whitby sought relics to replace those of Hilda, who had been translated to Glastonbury (they possessed those of Saint Caedmon, but few were interested in him). Through a supposed revelation, a sarcophagus was found at Harkness with the inscription Hoc est sepulchrum Begu and its contents transferred to Whitby, where miracles were reported.

The origin of the name of the village of Kilbees and headland on the coast of Cumberland is a matter of uncertainty. It seems more likely that they are named after the Irish Bega than after either of the two 7th century Northumbrian nuns, Begu and Heiu, mentioned by Bede. There is a medieval legend that oaths sworn on her bracelet were accepted without further question (Attwater, Benedictines, D'Arcy, Encyclopedia, Farmer, Montague, Moran).

714 St. Notburga Benedictine nun in the Abbey of St. Mary
in the Capitol, in Calogne.
Notburga of Cologne, OSB V (AC) (also known as Noitburgis) Died c. 714. Notburga, the daughter of Dagobert I, became a Benedictine nun in the convent of Saint Mary in Cologne (Benedictines). In art she is depicted as a princess with one arm missing and a snake in her right hand. Venerated at Hochausen (Baden, Germany) (Roeder). (This may be a different Notburga.)

840 St. Arnulf Benedictine monk martyred by Saracens
Arnulf was at Novalese, in Piedmont, Italy. When the area was overrun by the Saracens, he was put to death.
Arnulfus of Novalese, OSB M (AC). A monk of Novalese, in the Piedmont, Arnulfus was put to death by the Saracens (Benedictines).

5th v. Departure of the Great St. John Colobos (the Short) Coptic
On this day, the great light and saint, the hegumen Abba John (Yoannis) Colobos (the Short), departed. He was a native of Betsa in upper Egypt and he had one brother. His parents were righteous and God-fearing people, rich in faith and good deeds.

When he was 8 years old, his heart turned away from the futility of this world, its lusts and its glory, and he desired the monastic life. The grace of God moved him to go to the desert of Scete and there he came upon a tried and holy man whose name was Abba Pemwah from El-Bahnasa. John asked Abba Pemwah to allow him to stay with him. The old man answered, trying him, "My son, you cannot stay with us for this is a very hard desert and those who dwell in it eat from the work of their hands, besides observing many fasts, prayers, and sleeping on the floor and many other forms of asceticism. Go back to the world and live in the fear of God." Abba John told him, "Do not send me away, for God's sake, because I came to be in your obedience and prayers. If you accept me, I believe that God will make your heart well-pleased with me."

Abba Pemwah was in the habit of not doing anything hastily. He asked the Lord Christ to reveal to him the matter of this young man. The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, "Accept him, for he shall become a chosen vessel." Abba Pemwah brought him and he shaved the hair of his head. He laid out the garb of the monk, and he prayed over it for three days and three nights and when he put the garb on him, he saw an angel making the sign of the Cross over it. Saint John started his monastic life with great asceticism and splendid works. One day Abba Pemwah wanted to test him, so he expelled him from his cell saying, "I cannot live with you." Abba John stayed out by the door of his cell for seven days. Every day Abba Pemwah went out and smote him with a palm branch and Abba John bowed down before him saying, "I have sinned." On the seventh day, the old man went out to go to the church and he saw seven angels with seven crowns placing them on the head of Abba John. Since that day, he was held by him in honor and reverence.

One day Abba Pemwah found a piece of dry wood and gave it to Abba John and said to him, "Take this wood, plant and water it." St. John obeyed and went on watering it twice a day even though the water was about 12 miles from where they lived. After three years, that piece of wood sprouted and grew into a fruitful tree. Abba Pemwah took some of that fruit and went around to all the elder monks saying, "Take, eat from the fruit of obedience." This tree still exists in its place in his monastery.

Abba Pemwah fell sick for 12 years and Abba John ministered unto him all this time during which he never heard from his teacher that he fell short in his service. Abba Pemwah was an experienced old man who had been tried much, and sickness had emaciated him until he became like a piece of dry wood, so that he would be a chosen offering.

When Abba Pemwah was about to die, he gathered together the elder monks and he held the hand of Abba John and gave him to them saying, "Take him and keep him, for he is an angel, not a man." He commanded Abba John to stay in the place where he had planted the tree. After that Abba John's older brother came to the monastery and was ordained a monk with him. He also became an honorable monk.

It happened when the father the Patriarch Abba Theophilus was ordaining Abba John hegumen and abbot over his church, and as he placed his hand over his head, a voice from heaven was heard by the people present saying, "Axios, Axios, Axios (That is to say he is worthy)." When this saint consecrated the offering, he was able to know those who were worthy to partake of it and those who were not worthy.

Abba Theophilus the Patriarch built a church for the Three Young Men in Alexandria, and he wished to bring their bodies and place them in it. He brought Abba John and asked him to travel to Babylon, and to bring the holy bodies. After much forebearing, Abba John accepted to go on this mission. When he left the Patriarch, a cloud carried him away to Babylon. He entered the city and saw its monuments, rivers, and palaces and found the bodies of the saints. When he started moving them from their place, a voice came out from the holy bodies and said to him, "This is the Will of God that we do not leave this place until the day of the Resurrection. Nevertheless, because of the love of Abba Theophilus the Patriarch, and your labor, too, you should inform the Patriarch to gather the people in the church and to put oil in the lamps without lighting them and we will appear in the church and a sign will be made manifest to you."

Then Abba John left and went back to Alexandria and told the Patriarch what the saints had said. It happened when the Patriarch and the people were in the church, the lamps were lit up suddenly and they all glorified the Lord.

One day, a monk came into the cell of Abba John. He found him lying down with angels waving their wings over him.

Later on, the Berbers attacked the desert of Scete and he left it. When he was asked why he left, he replied that he did not leave because he was afraid of death, but because he feared a Berber would slay him and go to hell, for though he is against his worship, he is his brother in form. Then he went to the mountain of Abba Anthony on the Red Sea. There he dwelt by the side of a village and God sent him a believer who served him.

When the Lord wished to grant him rest and to end his strife in this world, He sent him His two righteous saints Abba Macarius and Abba Anthony to comfort him and to inform him about his departure. On the eve of Sunday, he fell sick and sent his attendant to bring him something from the village. The angels and the host of saints came and received his pure soul and took it up to heaven.

At that time, his servant came back and saw the soul of the saint surrounded by the host of saints and angels singing before them. Before them all, there was one shining like the sun and singing. The servant marvelled at this magnificent sight. An angel came to him and told him the name of each one of the saints. Then the servant asked the angel, "Who is this one in front of them all, who is shining like the sun?" The angel replied, "This is Abba Anthony, the father of all the monks."

When the servant went into the cell, he found the body of the saint kneeling to the ground, as he had given up his soul while kneeling. The attendant wept sorrowfully over him and went in a hurry to the people of the village and told them what had happened. They came and carried his holy body with great honor. When they brought him into the village, great wonders and miracles were performed through his body.

His prayers be with us and Glory be to our God, forever. Amen.

994 St. Wolfgang Benedictine Bishop and reformer of Regensburg; Patron of carpenters, shepherds, woodsmen.

Invoked against gout, hemorrhage, lameness, stomach troubles, and wolves renowned for his charity and aid to the poor,

Wolfgang
994 ST WOLFGANG, Bishop of REGENSBURG
ST WOLFGANG came of a Swabian family and was born about the year 930. In his youth he was sent to the abbey of Reichenau, on an island in Lake Constance, which was at that time a flourishing school of learning; here he became friendly with a young nobleman called Henry, brother to Poppo, Bishop of Würzburg, who had set up a school in that city. This Henry persuaded Wolfgang to bear him company to this new school at Wurzburg, where the ability of the young Swabian soon provoked jealousy as welt as admiration.

In 956 Henry was elected archbishop of Trier, and took Wolfgang with him, making him a teacher in the cathedral school. At Trier he came under the influence of the reforming monk Ramuold, and entered wholeheartedly into Henry’s efforts for the improvement of religion in his diocese. Upon the death of the archbishop in 964 Wolfgang became a Benedictine in the monastery of Einsiedeln, governed at that time by Gregory, an Englishman. The abbot soon found the reputation of Wolfgang to be less than his merit, and appointed him director of the school of the monastery.

St Ulric, Bishop of Augsburg, now ordained St Wolfgang priest; and with his ordination he received an apostolic missionary spirit, and was sent to preach the gospel to the Magyars in Pannonia. The results of this undertaking did not correspond to his zeal, and he was recommended to the Emperor Otto II as a person qualified to fill the see of Regensburg (Ratisbon) which was then vacant. He was conducted to the emperor at Frankfurt, who gave him the investiture of the temporalities, though Wolfgang entreated him to allow him to return to his monastery.

Being sent back to Regensburg, at Christmas 972 he was consecrated.

St Wolfgang never quitted the monastic habit, and practised all the austerities of Conventual life when in the episcopal dignity. The first thing he did after regulation of his own household was to settle a thorough reformation among all his clergy, and in all the monasteries of his diocese, especially two disorderly nunneries. One of the sources of revenue of the see was the abbey of St Emmeram at Regensburg, which the bishops held in commendam, with the usual bad results.

Wolfgang restored its autonomy and called Ramuold from Trier to be its abbot. He was indefatigable in preaching and, being a man of prayer, possessed the art of touching the hearts of his hearers. Every duty of his office he discharged with vigilance and fidelity during twenty-two years’ administration. Several miracles are recorded of him and his generosity to the poor was proverbial. Once when the vintage had failed, some ignorant priests took to using water in the chalice at Mass. The bishop was naturally horrified, and distributed wine from his household stocks throughout the diocese.

At one time St Wolfgang deserted his see and retired to a solitary place, where he was found by some huntsmen and brought back. But his desire for a monastic quiet did not prevent him from a careful discharge of his secular duties, and he attended several imperial diets as well as accompanying the emperor on a campaign into France. The territory of Bohemia being part of his vast diocese, he gave up a part of it for a bishopric in that country, the see being set up at Prague. Henry, Duke of Bavaria, held St Wolfgang in the highest veneration, and entrusted to him the education of his son Henry, afterwards emperor and canonized saint. Wolfgang was taken ill while travelling down the Danube into Lower Austria and died at a little place called Puppingen, not far from Linz. He was canonized in 1052. The Canons Regular of the Lateran keeps his feast in many dioceses of central Europe, and also because he restored the canonical life for his clergy.

We are well informed regarding St Wolfgang. The book of Arnold the monk concerning St Emmeram and the biography of Wolfgang by Othlo, with some other supplementary materials, are reliable sources, and they have been edited very carefully in the Acta Sanctorum, November, vol. ii, pt 1. See also a popular, but not uncritical, volume by Otto Häfner De, hi. Wolfgang, an Stern des X. Jahrhunderts (1930); and also the archaeological study of J. A. Endres, Beiträge zur Kunst- und Kulturgeschichte des, mittelalterlichen Regensburgs, as well as I. Zibermayr, Die St Wolfganslegende in ihrem, Entstehen und Einflusse auf die österreichische Kunst (1924).

Born in Swabia, Germany, he studied at Reichenau under the Benedictines and at Wurzburg before serving as a teacher in the cathedral school of Trier. He soon entered the Benedictines at Einsiedeln (964) and was appointed head of the monastery school, receiving ordination in 971. He then set out with a group of monks to preach among the Magyars of Hungary, but the following year (972) was named bishop of Regensburg by Emperor Otto II (r. 973-983). As bishop, he distinguished himself brilliantly for his reforming zeal and his skills as a statesman. He brought the clergy of the diocese into his reforms, restored monasteries, promoted education, preached enthusiastically, and was renowned for his charity and aid to the poor, receiving the title Eleemosynarius Major (Grand Almoner). He also served as tutor to Emperor Henry II (r. 1014-1024) while he was still king. Wolfgang died at Puppingen near Linz, Austria. He was canonized in 1052 by Pope St. Leo IX (r. 1049-1054).

October 31, 2009 St. Wolfgang of Regensburg (c. 924-994)
Wolfgang was born in Swabia, Germany, and was educated at a school located at the abbey of Reichenau. There he encountered Henry, a young noble who went on to become Archbishop of Trier. Meanwhile, Wolfgang remained in close contact with the archbishop, teaching in his cathedral school and supporting his efforts to reform the clergy.

At the death of the archbishop, Wolfgang chose to become a Benedictine monk and moved to an abbey in Einsiedeln, now part of Switzerland. Ordained a priest, he was appointed director of the monastery school there. Later he was sent to Hungary as a missionary, though his zeal and good will yielded limited results.

Emperor Otto II appointed him Bishop of Regensburg (near Munich). He immediately initiated reform of the clergy and of religious life, preaching with vigor and effectiveness and always demonstrating special concern for the poor. He wore the habit of a monk and lived an austere life.

The draw to monastic life never left him, including the desire for a life of solitude. At one point he left his diocese so that he could devote himself to prayer, but his responsibilities as bishop called him back.

In 994 he became ill while on a journey; he died in Puppingen near Linz, Austria. His feast day is celebrated widely in much of central Europe. He was canonized in 1052.

Comment: Wolfgang could be depicted as a man with rolled-up sleeves. He even tried retiring to solitary prayer, but taking his responsibilities seriously led him back into the service of his diocese. Doing what had to be done was his path to holiness—and ours.

Wolfgang of Ratisbon, OSB B (RM) (also known as Wolfgang of Regensburg)
Born in Swabia (Germany) c. 925; died at Puppingen near Linz (Austria) in 994; canonized 1052 by Pope Leo IX.

As a little boy, Wolfgang was taught by a friendly priest. Thereafter, he was sent to the abbey of Reichenau on Lake Constanz to continue his schooling. There he became the best friend of a young nobleman named Henry whose elder brother Poppo was bishop of Würzburg. The bishop set up a great school there, employing a brilliant Italian named Stefano of Novara to teach in it, and Henry persuaded Wolfgang to journey with him to study at the Italian's feet.

Wolfgang was incomparably the better pupil, though both young men were devout. After finishing his formal studies, Wolfgang taught at the school. When, in 956, Henry was made archbishop of Trier (Trèves), he asked Wolfgang to go there with him to teach in the cathedral school. In Trier, Wolfgang met the reforming monk, Saint Rambold, and Wolfgang joined Henry in his efforts to strengthen the faith of the see.

Henry died in the year 964. Wolfgang had stayed by his side faithfully, but now left Trier to become a Benedictine monk at Einsiedeln. The abbot, an English Benedictine named George, soon saw that he had with him a teacher of genius, and he put Wolfgang in charge of the abbey school. It became the best in the land.

In 971, Wolfgang was ordained to the priesthood by Saint Ulric, after which he engaged in a short and discouraging mission in Pannonia (Hungary). But the Emperor Otto II recognized his worth, and, upon the recommendation of Saint Rambold, named Wolfgang to fill the vacant see of Regensburg. Although Wolfgang would have preferred to retire to his monastery, he was taken to the emperor at Frankfurt and invested in the temporalities. On Christmas Day 972 he was consecrated bishop of the city over which he presided until his death.

He at once initiated a reform of the clergy and the monasteries in his diocese, including two disorderly convents. He encouraged the canons to return to a regular life. One of the sources of revenue for the see was the abbey of Saint Emmeram at Regensburg, which the bishops held in commendam, with the usual bad results. Wolfgang restored ts autonomy and made Rambold its abbot.

Saint Wolfgang earned the love of his people. He continued to preach widely and vigorously. Known for his generosity to the poor, he became known as "Eleemosynarius Major" (the "Great Almoner"). He never abandoned his monastic habits. On one occasion he attempted to leave his see in order to seek a life as a hermit but was compelled to return by popular demand. He ceded part of his see in Bohemia to set up a new diocese--Prague.
He also earned the respect of the imperial court. He accompanied the emperor on a trip to France. He was for a time tutor to the future emperor, Saint Henry II of Bavaria.

Wolfgang became ill while travelling down the Danube into Lower Austria and died at a little place called Puppingen, not far from Linz (Attwater, Bentley, Delaney, Encyclopedia, Walsh, White).

In art Saint Wolfgang is portrayed as a bishop with a hatchet and model cathedral. Sometimes he is shown (1) with the little emperor (Henry II) near him with words 'post sex' over him; (2) with the devil who holds the book while Wolfgang reads the Gospel; (3) building the church of Saint Wolfgang, Regensburg; (4) giving alms; (5) tormented by devils; or (6) striking a fountain from the ground with his crosier (Roeder, White); or (7) praying for a miracle (by Michael Pacher).
St. Wolfgang Image of Saint Wolfgang courtesy of Saint Charles Borromeo Church
Patron of carpenters, shepherds, woodsmen. Invoked against gout, hemorrhage, lameness, stomach troubles, and wolves (Roeder).

1141 Saints Spyridon and Nicodemus, the Prosphora-bakers of the Kiev Caves, Near Caves Spyridon was glorified by miracles
fulfilled their obedience of baking prosphora for thirty years. St Spyridon came to the monastery in the time of Igumen Pimen (1132-1141), when he was no longer a young man. The ascetic combined his work with unceasing prayer and the singing of Psalms. Even during his life St Spyridon was glorified by miracles. He was illiterate, but knew the entire Psalter by heart.

Once, his mantle caught fire from the oven. The fire was put out, but the mantle remained whole. St Nicodemus labored with St Spyridon and led a very strict life. Their relics are in the Kiev Caves of St Anthony. The fingers of St Spyridon's right hand are positioned to make the Sign of the Cross with three fingers. They are also commemorated on September 28, and the second Sunday of Great Lent.

1227 One hundred thousand Georgians sacrificed their lives to venerate the holy icons
In 1227 Sultan Jalal al-Din of Khwarazm and his army of Turkmen attacked Georgia. On the first day of the battle the Georgian army valorously warded off the invaders as they were approaching Tbilisi. That night, however, a group of Persians who were living in Tbilisi secretly opened the gates and summoned the enemy army into the city.

According to one manuscript in which this most terrible day in Georgian history was described: “Words are powerless to convey the destruction that the enemy wrought: tearing infants from their mothers’ breasts, they beat their heads against the bridge, watching as their eyes dropped from their skulls.…”

A river of blood flowed through the city. The Turkmen castrated young children, raped women, and stabbed mothers to death over their children’s lifeless bodies. The whole city shuddered at the sound of wailing and lamentation. The river and streets of the city were filled with death.

The sultan ordered that the cupola of Sioni Cathedral be taken down and replaced by his vile throne. And at his command the icons of the Theotokos and our Savior were carried out of Sioni Cathedral and placed at the center of the bridge across the Mtkvari River. The invaders goaded the people to the bridge, ordering them to cross it and spit on the holy icons. Those who betrayed the Christian Faith and mocked the icons were spared their lives, while the Orthodox confessors were beheaded.

One hundred thousand Georgians sacrificed their lives to venerate the holy icons. One hundred thousand severed heads and headless bodies were carried by the bloody current down the Mtkvari River.

1272 Blessed Christopher of Romagnola joined Saint Francis of Assisi OFM (AC)
Born c. 1172; died at Cahors, Gascony, 1272; cultus approved in 1905. Christopher was a parish priest in the diocese of Cesena, who resigned his office, and joined Saint Francis of Assisi. He was sent to establish the order in Gascony, where he died (Benedictines).

1447 Blessed Thomas Bellaci Fransciscan lay-brother made novice master When over 70, he went to preach in Syria and Abyssinia where, to his sorrow, he narrowly escaped martyrdom by the Islamics OFM
Born in Florence, Italy, in 1370; cultus approved 1771. Thomas joined the Franciscan friary at nearby Fiesole, where, though only a lay-brother, he was made novice master. Later he worked successfully to introduce the Franciscan Observance into Corsica and southern Italy, and combatted the condemned Fraticelli in Tuscany. When over 70, he went to preach in Syria and Abyssinia where, to his sorrow, he narrowly escaped martyrdom by the Islamics (Benedictines).

1617 St. Alphonsus Rodriguez a Jesuit lay-brother porter forty-six years; influenced St. Peter Clavier; left a considerable number of manuscripts some published as “Obras Espirituales del B. Alonso Rodriguez” See Also October 30 here
Palmæ, in Majórca ínsula, sancti Alfónsi Rodríguez, Coadjutóris temporális formáti e Societáte Jesu et Confessóris, humilitáte ac jugi mortificatiónis stúdio insígnis; quem Leo Décimus tértius, Póntifex Maximus, Sanctórum fastis adscrípsit.
At Palma, in the island of Majorca, St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, a lay brother of the Society of Jesus, whom Leo XIII canonized because of his remarkable humility and constant love of mortification.

Born at Segovia in Spain, 25 July, 1532; died at Majorca, 31 October, 1617. On account of the similarity of names he is often confounded with Father Rodriguez the author of “Christian Perfection”, who though eminent in his holiness was never canonized. The Saint was a Jesuit lay-brother who entered the Society at the age of forty. He was the son of a wool merchant who had been reduced to poverty when Alfonso was still young. At the age of twenty-six he married Mary Francisco Suárez, a woman of his own station, and at thirty-one found himself a widower with one surviving child, the other two having died previously. From that time he began a life of prayer and mortification, although separated from the world around him. On the death of his third child his thoughts turned to a life in some religious order.

Previous associations had brought him into contact with the first Jesuits who had come to Spain, Bl. Peter Faber among others, but it was apparently impossible to carry out his purpose of entering the Society, as he was without education, having only had an incomplete year at a new college begun at Alcalá by Francis Villanueva. At the age of thirty-nine he attempted to make up this deficiency by following the course at the College of Barcelona, but without success. His austerities had also undermined his health. After considerable delay he was finally admitted into the Society of Jesus as a lay-brother, 31 January, 1571. Distinct novitiates had not as yet been established in Spain, and Alfonso began his term of probation at Valencia or Gandia -- this point is a subject of dispute -- and after six months was sent to the recently-founded college at Majorca, where he remained in the humble position of porter for forty-six years, exercising a marvelous influence on the sanctification not only of the members of the household, but upon a great number of people who came to the porter's lodge for advice and direction. Among the distinguished Jesuits who came under his influence was St. Peter Clavier, who lived with him for some time at Majorca, and who followed his advice in asking for the missions of South America.

The bodily mortifications which he imposed on himself were extreme, the scruples and mental agitation to which he was subject were of frequent occurrence, his obedience absolute, and his absorption in spiritual things even when engaged on most distracting employments, continual. It has often been said that he was the author of the well known “Little Office of the Immaculate Conception”, and the claim is made by Alegambe, Southwell, and even by the Fathers de Backer in their Bibliothèque de la Compagnie de Jésus. Apart from the fact that the brother did not have the requisite education for such a task, Father Costurer says positively that the office he used was taken from an old copy printed out of Spain, and Father Colin asserts that it existed before the Saint's time. It may be admitted, however, that through him it was popularized.

He left a considerable number of manuscripts after him, some of which have been published as “Obras Espirituales del B. Alonso Rodriguez” (Barcelona, 1885, 3 vols., octavo, complete edition, 8 vols. in quarto). They have no pretense to style; they are sometimes only reminiscences of domestic exhortations; the texts are often repeated; the illustrations are from every-day life; the treatment of one virtue occasionally trenches on another; but they are remarkable for the correctness and soundness of their doctrine and the profound spiritual knowledge which they reveal. They were not written with a view to publication, but put down by the Saint himself, or dictated to others, in obedience to a positive command of his superiors. He was declared Venerable in 1626. In 1633 he was chosen by the Council General of Majorca as one of the special patrons of the city and island. In 1760 Clement XIII decreed that “the virtues of the Venerable Alonso were proved to be of a heroic degree”; but the expulsion of the Society from Spain in 1773, and its suppression, delayed his beatification until 1825. His canonization took place 6 September, 1887. His remains are enshrined at Majorca.

1917 The Life of St John Kochurov, Hieromartyr Missionary in America First Clergy Martyr of the Russian Revolution

On October 31, 1917, in Tsarskoye Selo, a bright new chapter, full of earthly grief and heavenly joy, was opened in the history of sanctity in the Russian Church: the holiness of the New Martyrs of the twentieth century. The opening of this chapter is linked to the name of the Russian Orthodox pastor who became one of the first to give his soul for his flock during this twentieth century of fighters against God: Archpriest John Kochurov.

They regarded their father as a radiant image of the parish priest, full of deep humility and high inspiration.

Fr John's upbringing, based on the remarkable traditions of many generations of the clergy and bound with the people's natural following after Orthodox piety, foretold that he would set out on the path of preparation for pastoral service.
Father John's study (initially at Danky Theological School and afterward at Ryazan Theological Seminary) was marked not only with outstanding success in the mastery of theological and secular disciplines, but with remarkable examples of churchly piety which he demonstrated at a time when the everyday life of a provincial theological school was not always spotless in the moral sense.

The future Father John successfully graduated from the Theological Seminary in Ryazan in 1891. Having passed the entrance exams for the St Petersburg Theological Academy, he became a student at one of the best theological schools in Russia.

During the time that Fr John studied at the St Petersburg Theological Academy, his inclination to regard theological education as a preparation primarily for future service as a parish priest became clearly defined. Already during his student days Fr John combined the possibility of his service as a parish priest with that of missionary activity, which he saw as the embodiment of the ideal of an Orthodox pastor. After his graduation from St Petersburg Theological Academy (1895) with the distinction of a true student, Fr John was sent to the Diocese of the Aleutians and Alaska in accordance with his long-standing desire for missionary service.

Soon after his marriage to Alexandra Chernisheva, Fr John's arrival in Protestant America put him in touch with a life dissimilar in many respects to his accustomed life in Orthodox Russia. For his first sojourn in the U.S.A. Fr John arrived in New York, which with its mundane ways, was so different from the spiritual life of the Russian cities. Though he had not yet learned the English language, Fr John, thanks to the brotherly support of the New York Orthodox community (of modest size at that time) did manage to adjust himself to the life of the country, till then unknown to him, without any particular psychological or other complications. It must be noted that Church life in the Diocese of Alaska and the Aleuts was very different in character from that in other parts of the country, which was vast in its territory but rather small in the number of clergy. Specifically, the Russian Orthodox missions in Northern California, on the Aleutian Islands, and in Alaska had at that time already existed for about a hundred years, and Church life was conducted on a foundation of rather numerous parish communities which possessed significant financial resources. After several generations in America, the parishes had become accustomed to life in their new home. Orthodox life in the rest of the country, however, was only in its initial stages. It required a great deal of evangelical activity by the clergy to create normal Orthodox parishes within the multinational and multi-confessional local population. It was precisely to that part of the diocese that Fr John was destined to be sent when he was ordained to the holy priesthood on August 27, 1895, by the Most Reverend Nicholas, Bishop of Alaska and the Aleuts.

The beginning of Fr John's parish service was associated with the opening of an Orthodox parish in Chicago in 1892 by Bishop Nicholas. Assigned in 1895 by order of the Holy Synod to be a parish priest at St Vladimir's Cathedral in Chicago. Fr John was put in touch with a parish life that was strikingly different from the Orthodox parishes in Russia, which were organized and rooted in a living tradition many centuries old.

Being a remote island of Orthodox Christian life, many hundreds of miles from the other scattered Orthodox parishes in North America, St Vladimir's Church in Chicago, and the Church of the Three Hierarchs in the town of Streator with which it was affiliated, required heroic labors from the young Fr John to be established in a proper way. Almost three years after its founding, the parish still had not managed to achieve full parish status.

Beginning his work at the parish of Chicago and Streator, which was rather small and multinational in its constituency, Fr John nourished these people, who represented a rather poor class of immigrants, in the Orthodox faith. He was never able to be supported in his work by a sound parish community with sufficient material resources at its disposal.

In an article written in December 1898, Fr John gave the following vivid description of the Chicago-Streator parish community: The Orthodox parish of St Vladimir's Church in Chicago consists of a small number of the original Russians, Galician and Hungarian Slavs, Arabs, Bulgarians, and Aravians. The majority of the parishioners are working people who earn their bread by toiling not far from where they live, on the outskirts of the city. Affiliated with this parish in Chicago is the Church of the Three Hierarchs in the city of Streator. This place, together with the town called Kengley, are situated ninety-four miles from Chicago, and they are famous for their coal mines. The Orthodox parish there consists of the Slovaks who work there who have been converted from the Unia.

The unique characteristics of the Chicago-Streator parish community demanded of Fr John a deft combination of pastoral-liturgical skills, as well as missionary ones. These abilities would permit him not only to stabilize the membership of his parish community spiritually and administratively, but to enlarge his flock continually by means of conversions, or by the return to Orthodoxy of the ethnically diverse Christians living in Illinois. Already during the first three years of Fr John's parish service 86 Uniates and five Catholics were added to the Orthodox Church, bringing the number of permanent parishioners up to 215 men in Chicago, and 88 in Streator. There were two functioning church schools affiliated with the parishes, with more than twenty pupils enrolled in them. The course consisted of Saturday classes during the school year, and daily classes during the school vacations.

In his work, Fr John continued the best traditions of the Russian Orthodox Diocese in North America. He organized, in Chicago and Streator, the St Nicholas and Three Hierarchs Brotherhoods, which established a goal of setting up a program of social and material mutual aid among the parishioners of the Chicago-Streator parish, as members of the Orthodox Mutual Aid Society.

Father John's abundant labors for the building of a healthy, flourishing parish life in the communities entrusted to him did not hinder him from fulfilling other important diocesan responsibilities that were laid upon him. So it was that on April 1, 1897, Fr John was appointed to be one of the members of the newly-created Censorship Committee of the Diocese of Alaska and the Aleutians to review texts in the Russian, Ukrainian, and English languages. On May 22, 1899, Fr John was appointed Chairman of the Board of the Mutual Aid Society by a decree of Bishop Tikhon of Alaska and the Aleutians, who had recently arrived in the diocese.

The varied labors of Fr John were soon rewarded; after just the first years of his pastoral service, he received awards of priestly distinction from the Most Reverend Bishop Nicholas.

A significant obstacle to the normal functioning of the Church liturgical cycle at the Chicago-Streator parish was the condition of the buildings, which were unfit for the purpose. St Vladimir's Church in Chicago occupied a small part of a rented edifice located in the southwestern part of the city. On the ground floor of the house a wall separated the church from the kitchen and a room where an attendant lived. On the first floor there were several small rooms which were occupied by Fr John together with his family, and by the church Reader. The church of the Three Hierarchs in Streator employed the lobby of the Russian section of the Chicago World Exhibition the Columbian Exposition of 1892.

The assignment of Bishop Tikhon, the future Patriarch of Moscow, to the Diocese of Alaska and the Aleutians on November 30, 1898, was especially significant for the resolution of problems of church life in the parish entrusted to Fr John.

Zealously fulfilling his hierarchal obligations, Bishop Tikhon in his first months as diocesan bishop had already managed to visit almost all the Orthodox parishes scattered throughout the vast territory of the Diocese of Alaska and the Aleutians, in an effort to discern the most fundamental needs of the diocesan clergy.

Arriving in Chicago for the first time on April 28, 1899, Bishop Tikhon gave his archpastoral blessing to Fr John and to his flock. By the next day he had already inspected a plot of land proposed as the site where the new church, so necessary for the parish in Chicago, would be constructed. On April 30, Bishop Tikhon visited the Three Hierarchs Church in Streator and presided at the Vigil service at St Vladimir's Church in Chicago. On the following day, after serving the Divine Liturgy, he approved the minutes of the meeting of the committee for the construction of the new church in Chicago, which was chaired by Fr John.

The limited financial resources of the Chicago-Streator parish, where the people being ministered to were primarily poor, did not permit Fr John to begin construction immediately. And since more than five years had passed from the time of Fr John's arrival in North America, his great desire to visit his beloved Orthodox Russia, at least for a brief time, prompted him to submit an application to Bishop Tikhon requesting leave for the journey to his motherland.

Mindful of the needs of the parish entrusted to him, Fr John decided to use the vacation granted to him from January 15 to May 15, 1900, to collect money in Russia which would allow the Chicago parish to begin construction of the new church building, and of the first Orthodox cemetery in the city. Successfully combining his journey to his motherland with raising significant funds for the parish, Fr John began the construction of the church soon after his return from leave. Bishop Tikhon arrived on March 31, 1902, for the ceremony of the laying of its foundation.

With true pastoral inspiration, combined together with sober, practical record-keeping, Fr John managed to build the new church, which was completed in 1903. The church cost fifty thousand dollars, a very significant sum of money for that time.

The consecration of the new temple, which was named in honor of the Holy Trinity, was performed by Bishop Tikhon, and it became a real festival for the whole Russian Orthodox diocese in North America. Two years later, in greeting Fr John on the occasion of his first ten years of service as a priest in the Church, the highest praise went to his careful pastoral labors in the construction of the Holy Trinity Church, which had become one of the most remarkable Orthodox churches in America. "The year has been filled with the most vivid of impressions, sometimes agonizing, sometimes good. A year of endlessly trying fund-raising in Russia, a year of sleepless nights, worn-out nerves, and countless woes; and here is the testimonial of your care: a temple made with hands, in the image of a magnificent Russian Orthodox temple, shining with its crosses in Chicago, and the peace and love not made with hands that are springing up in the hearts of your flock!"

For his inspiring labors, Fr John was awarded the Order of St Anna (Third Class) on May 6, 1903 at Bishop Tikhon's recommendation.

Zealously fulfilling his numerous obligations as a parish priest, he was the only priest there during the first nine years of his service in the parishes of Chicago and Streator. At the same time, Fr John continued to participate actively in resolving various issues in the life of the North American diocese. In February 1904, Fr John was assigned as a chairman of the Censor Committee of the Diocese of Alaska and the Aleutians, where he had already participated as a member of the council for seven years. In June 1905, he was an active participant in the preparatory meetings of diocesan clergy, held in Old Forge PA. under the guidance of Bishop Tikhon, where issues were discussed in connection with preparation for the first Council in the history of the Diocese of North America and the Aleutians. It was in the solemn atmosphere of the sessions of this Council, on July 20, 1905, that Fr John celebrated his first decade of priestly service The actual date of the anniversary was August 27.

In St Michael's Church in Old Forge, before a large group of diocesan clergy with the Most Reverend (now St) Raphael, Bishop of Brooklyn presiding, Fr John was awarded a gold pectoral cross, and the speeches offered a perceptive and thoroughly objective description of the whole period of Fr John's pastoral service in North America.

"Directly after your study at seminary, having left the motherland, you came to this strange land to expend all your youthful energy, to devote all your strength and inspiration to that holy concern to which you were attracted in your vocation. A hard legacy was left for you: the church in Chicago was then located in an untidy church setting, in a wet, half-ruined building. The parish, with its loosely defined parish membership, was scattered over the huge city with a heterodox population torn asunder by the wild beasts. All that might fill the soul of a young laborer with great confusion, but you bravely accepted the task of selecting a precious spark from the pile of rubbish, to fan the sacred fire into a small group of faithful! You were forgetful of yourself: calamities, illnesses, the poor location of your house, with its ramshackle walls, floors, and cracks that gave open access to the outer elements, with destructive effects on your health, and the health of your family members.... Your babies were sick, your wife was not quite healthy, and bitter bouts of rheumatism seemed to wish to destroy your confidence, to exhaust your energy.... We greet you, remembering another of your good deeds, the performance of which is plaited as an unfading laurel in the crown of honor of your decade of sacred service: we have in mind here your sacrificial service in the office of Chairman of our beloved Mutual Aid Society, in the office of Censor to our enlightening missionary publishing house, and in extending our evangelical efforts, organizing the parishes in Madison [IL] and Hartshorne [OK]. To complete your tribute, let us mention another circumstance, which magnifies the valor of your labor and the grandeur of its results. The remoteness of your parish in Chicago has torn you from your bonds with your colleagues in America, depriving you during these years of the chance to see your brother-pastors.... You were bereft of that which, for the majority of us, adorns the missionary service through which we pass. How touching, and how great a degree of isolation was yours, is witnessed by the fact that you had to baptize your children yourself, because of the absence of the other priests around you.... Let this Holy Cross we present serve you as a sign of our brotherly love, and the image of our Lord's Crucifixion on it permit you to accept the hardships, misfortunes, and sufferings that are so often met with in the life of a missionary priest, and let it encourage you to more and more labors for the glory of the Giver of Exploits and the Chief Shepherd, our Lord Jesus Christ."

Less than a year after the celebration of the tenth anniversary of Fr John's priestly service, the highest Church authority granted him one of the most honorable priestly orders, which deservedly crowned his genuine exploits in the Diocese of North America and the Aleutians. By order of the Holy Synod, Fr John was elevated to the dignity of Archpriest on May 6, 1906.

Now a new period in Fr John's service began. As one of the most respected archpriests of the Diocese, thanks to his outstanding pastoral work in his parish and in diocesan administrative activities, Fr John, at the initiative of Bishop Tikhon, who valued him highly, became more and more deeply involved in resolving the most pressing issues of diocesan administration. In May 1906, Fr John was appointed Dean of the New York area of the Eastern States, and in February 1907, he was destined to be one of the most energetic participants of the first North American Orthodox Council in Mayfield, which dealt with the rapidly increasing conversions within the Diocese of North America and the Aleutians in the Russian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church in America, which was the basis on which the Orthodox Church in America was later founded.

During the period 1903-1907, the Chicago-Streator parish, built by his labors, was transformed into one of the most self-sufficient and flourishing diocesan parishes. But however successful the external circumstances of Fr John's service in North America may have seemed, his deep, fervent homesickness for his beloved Russia, which he had only seen once for a few months' leave since he came to America, and the necessity of providing his three elder children with an undergraduate education in Russia, compelled Fr John to think about the possibility of continuing his priestly ministry in his native Russian land. A rather significant circumstance furthering Fr John's submission of an application for transfer back to Russia was the insistent request of his elderly and seriously ailing father-in-law, who was a clergyman of the Diocese of St Petersburg, and who dreamed of handing over his parish to the guidance of such a deserving priest as Fr John had shown himself to be. In accordance with his application, Fr John received a release from his service in the Diocese of North America and the Aleutians on May 20, 1907, whereupon he began preparing himself for his move back to Russia. The week before their departure, however, Fr John and his family had to bear some sudden startling news from Russia: Alexandra's beloved parent had succumbed before they could return.

In July 1907, leaving the Chicago-Streator parish which was so dear to his heart, and where he had given twelve years of missionary service, Fr John set out for the unknown future that awaited him in his motherland, where he would spend the rest of his priestly service.

Fr John's return to Russia in the summer of 1907 signified for him not only the beginning of his service in the Diocese of St Petersburg, familiar to him from his student years, but it challenged him with the need to apply the pastoral skills he had earlier acquired in America in the field of theological education. By order of the St Petersburg Church Consistory, in August 1907 Fr John was assigned to the clergy of Holy Transfiguration Cathedral in Neva, and beginning August 15, 1907, he began to perform his duties as a teacher of Law in the male and the female gymnasia in Narva. By order of the chief of the St Petersburg Area Educational Department, effective October 20, 1907, Fr John was confirmed in his service in the male gymnasium as a teacher of God's Law [this Russian term refers to the totality of Orthodox teaching - Ed.] and was a hired teacher of the same subject in the female gymnasium of Narva, which became the main sphere of his Church service for the next nine years of his life.

The common way of life in small, provincial Neva, where the Russian Orthodox inhabitants made up scarcely half the population, reminded Fr John, in some measure, of the atmosphere familiar to him in America, where he performed his pastoral service in a social environment permeated with heterodox influences. However, the circumstances of his work as a teacher of God's Law in two secondary schools where the Russian cultural element and Orthodox religious ethos indisputably dominated, permitted Fr John to feel that he was breathing an atmosphere of Russian Orthodox life reminiscent of his childhood.

In those years, Father John's teaching load usually consisted of sixteen hours a week in the male gymnasium and ten hours in the female gymnasium. This required of him a fairly significant effort, taking into account that to teach God's Law in the different classes, because of the breadth of the subject, a teacher had to be familiar with various matters of theological as well as of a mundane character. However, inasmuch as the twelve years of his labors at the Chicago-Streator parish had transformed Fr John from an inexperienced beginner into one of the most authoritative pastors in the diocese, his nine years service of teaching God's Law (not marked by any spectacular events, but filled with concentrated work in imparting spiritual enlightenment) was one in which Fr John became a most conscientious practical Church teacher and learned Orthodox preacher. After just five years of teaching Divine Law in the Neva schools, Fr John was awarded the Order of St Anna (Second Class) on May 6, 1912. Four years later, Fr John's achievements in the field of theological education were recognized by his award of the Order of St Vladimir (Fourth Class) which (added to his numerous Church and State awards) gave the deserving archpriest the right of receiving the title of nobility.

The manifest successes of Fr John in his activity as a teacher during all these years were supplemented by his joy at the fact that all of his four elder sons, while studying in Neva gymnasium, had the opportunity to receive their spiritual upbringing under his immediate guidance.

However, along with undeniable advantages of this new period of the pastoral service of Fr John, after his return to his fatherland following many years of absence, there still existed a circumstance which could not help but burden the heart of such a genuine parish pastor as Fr John was for the whole of his life. Being only attached to the Holy Transfiguration Cathedral in dreamed, and not being a member of its staff clergy, Fr John, because of the peculiarity of this situation, on account of his fulfilling his duties as a teacher of Gods Law at the gymnasium, was deprived not only of the chance to lead, but even to participate fully in the parish life of Holy Transfiguration Cathedral in Narva. Only in November of 1916, by order of the St Petersburg Church Consistory, was Fr John assigned as a parish priest to the vacant second position at St Catherine's Cathedral in Tsarskoye Selo, whereby his dream of resuming service as a parish pastor in the motherland was fulfilled.

Tsarskoye Selo, which had become the remarkable incarnation of a whole epoch in the history of Russian culture, happily combined in itself the qualities of a quiet provincial town with those of the resplendent capital of St Petersburg. St Catherine's Cathedral occupied a special place in the town; of the parish churches there, which were predominantly parishes of the imperial court and of the military, it was the largest. In becoming a member of the clergy at St Catherine's Cathedral, and taking up residence there together with his matushka and five children (the oldest son, Vladimir, was at the time fulfilling his military service), Fr John received, at last, his longed-for chance to be immersed fully in the life of a parish priest in one of the most notable churches of the St Petersburg diocese. Having been warmly and respectfully received by the flock of St Catherine's, Fr John, from the first months of his service there, showed himself to be zealous and inspiring not only as a celebrant of the divine service, but also as an eloquent and well-informed preacher, who gathered under the eaves of St Catherine's Cathedral Orthodox Christians from all around the town of Tsarskoye Selo. It seemed that so successful a beginning of parish service at St Catherine's Cathedral would open for Fr John a new period in his priestly service. In this period, Fr John's pastoral inspiration and sacrificial demeanor, so characteristic of him in his former activity, might be combined with the daily routine of the outward conditions of his service and with the spiritual and harmonious personal relationships between a diligent pastor and his numerous pious flock. But the cataclysms of the February Revolution that burst out in Petrograd just three months after Fr John's assignment to St Catherine's began little by little to involve Tsarskoye Selo in the treacherous vortex of revolutionary events.
The soldiers' riots that had taken place in the military headquarters at Tsarskoye Selo already during the first days of the Revolution, and the imprisonment of the royal family at Alexandrovsky palace over a period of many months, brought the town to the attention of representatives of the most extreme revolutionary elements. These circles had propelled the country toward the path of civil war, and eventually, complete internal political division, the beginnings of which lay in Russia's participation in the bloodshed of World War I. These developments gradually changed the quiet atmosphere of Tsarskoye Selo, diverting the inhabitants' attention, day by day, from the conscientious fulfillment of their Christian and civil responsibilities to Church and fatherland. And during all these troubled months the inspiring message of Fr John continued to sound forth from the ambo of St Catherine's Cathedral, as he strove to instill feelings of reconciliation into the souls of the Orthodox Christians of Tsarskoye Selo, calling them to the spiritual perception of their own inner life, so that they might understand the contradictory changes taking place in Russia.

For several days after the October 1917 seizure of power by the Bolsheviks in Petrograd, reverberations from the momentous events happening in the capital were felt in Tsarskoye Selo. Attempting to drive Gen. Paul Krasnov's Cossack troops, which were still loyal to the Provisional Government, out of Tsarskoye Selo, the armored groups of the Red Guard (the soldiers and sailors supporting the Bolshevik upheaval) were on their way from Petrograd.

On the morning of October 30, 1917, stopping at the outskirts of Tsarskoye Selo, the Bolshevik forces subjected the town to artillery fire. The inhabitants of Tsarskoye Selo, like those in all of Russia, still did not suspect that the country was involved in a civil war. A tumult erupted, with many people running to the Orthodox churches, including St Catherine's, in hopes of finding prayerful serenity at the services, and of hearing a pastoral exhortation from the ambo pertaining to the events taking place. All the clergy of St Catherine's Cathedral eagerly responded to their flock's spiritual entreaties. A special prayer service, seeking an end to the civil conflict, was offered beneath the arches of the church, which was jammed with worshipers Later, the dean of the Cathedral, Archpriest N. Smirnov, with two other priests, Fr John and Fr Steven Fokko, reached a decision to organize a sacred procession in the town, with the reading of fervent prayers for a cessation of the fratricidal civil strife.

For several days, the newspaper All-Russian Church Social Messenger presented the testimony of a certain Petrograd newspaper correspondent describing the events which had taken place, as follows: "The Sacred Procession had to be relocated under the conditions of an artillery bombardment, and notwithstanding any predictions it was rather crowded. The lamentations and cries of women and children drowned out the words of the prayer for peace. Two priests delivered sermons during the procession, calling the people to preserve tranquility in view of the impending trials. I was fortunate enough to understand clearly that the priests' sermons did not contain any political tinges."

"The Holy Procession lingered. Twilight changed into darkness. Candles were lit in the hands of the praying people. Everybody was singing."

"Precisely at that time the Cossacks were withdrawing from the town. The priests were warned about it. 'Isn't it time to stop the prayers?' 'We shall carry our duties to completion,' they declared. 'These have departed from us, and those who are coming are our brothers! What kind of harm will they do us?'"

Wishing to prevent an outbreak of fighting in the streets of Tsarskoye Selo, the Cossack leadership began to withdraw troops from the town on the evening of October 30, and on the morning of the 31st the Bolshevik forces entered Tsarskoye Selo, encountering no opposition. One of the anonymous witnesses to the aftermath of these tragic events wrote a letter to the prominent St Petersburg Archpriest F. Ornatsky, who himself was destined to receive martyrdom at the hands of the godless authorities. The writer told in simple but profound words of the passion-bearing that became Fr John's destiny. "Yesterday (on October 31)," he wrote, "when the Bolsheviks entered Tsarskoye Selo with the Red Guard, they began to make the rounds of the apartments of the military officers, making arrests. Fr John (Alexandrovich Kochurov) was conveyed to the outskirts of the town, to St Theodore's Cathedral, and there they assassinated him because of the fact that those who organized the sacred procession had allegedly been praying for a victory by the Cossacks, which surely was not, and could not have been, what actually happened. The other clergymen were released yesterday evening. Thus, another Martyr for the Faith in Christ has appeared. The deceased, though he had not been in Tsarskoye Selo for long, had gained the utmost love of all, and many people used to gather to listen to his preaching."

The Petrograd journalist mentioned earlier reconstructed a terrifying picture of Fr John's martyrdom and its aftermath, ascertaining these details: "The priests were captured and sent to the headquarters of the Council of the Workers and Soldier Deputies. A priest, Fr John Kochurov, was trying to protest and to clarify the situation. He was hit several times on his face. With cheers and yelling the enraged mob conveyed him to the Tsarskoye Selo aerodrome. Several rifles were raised against the defenseless pastor. A shot thundered out, then another, after which the priest fell down on the ground, and blood spilled upon his cassock. Death did not come to him immediately... He was pulled by his hair, and somebody suggested, Finish him off like a dog. The next morning the body was brought into the former palace hospital. According to the newspaper The Peoples' Affair, the head of the State Duma, and one of its members, saw the priest's body, but his pectoral cross was already gone...."

This latter circumstance accompanying Fr John's martyrdom, as mentioned by the reporter, takes on a particular spiritual significance when viewed against the background of some words spoken by Fr John twelve years before his death, which proved to be prophetic. In faraway America, when he received his gold pectoral cross at the ceremony marking the tenth anniversary of his priestly service, he said with emphasis, "I kiss this Holy Cross, a gift of your brotherly love for me. Let it be my support in times of tribulation. I will utter no pathetic comments about my intention not to be separated from it even till my grave.That would have a grandiloquent sound, but would not be prudent. It does not have any place in a grave. Let it remain here on earth for my children and posterity as a holy family relic, and as a clear proof that brotherhood and friendship are the most sacred things on the earth...."

In this manner did Fr. John express his gratitude towards his colleagues and his flock, not suspecting that this very prayer about that brotherhood and friendship would descend on the Russian Orthodox people at a time when love and clemency were scarce in long-suffering Russia, provoking a pitiless hatred toward him on the part of the apostates, who deprived him of his earthly life and snatched away the pectoral cross from his chest, but were not able to rob him of the imperishable glory of Orthodox martyrdom.

At the beginning of November 1917, the Bolshevik power could not yet secure unfettered control even over the suburbs of Petrograd, and terror on a state level had not yet become an unavoidable part of Russian life. So, with the populace of Tsarskoye Selo and Petrograd in a state of complete horror and exasperation, this first malicious execution of a Russian Orthodox priest inspired the former organs of power, who were not yet ousted by the Bolsheviks, to form an investigating commission which included the two representatives of the Petrograd city council. It was soon abolished by the Bolsheviks, without having managed to identify Fr. John's murderers.

For Russian Church life, however, this first martyrdom of a Russian Orthodox pastor in the twentieth century was deeply significant.

It aroused a profound spiritual response within the hearts of many laity, clergy, and hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Church. The Church service for the departed, and his burial in the crypt of St Catherine's Cathedral in Tsarskoye Selo[39] were served by the shocked local clergy in an atmosphere of great dismay and anxiety. At the time, the Most Reverend Benjamin, Metropolitan of Petrograd, the future Holy Martyr, was attending the All-Russian Church Council being held in Moscow. Within a few days after the burial, the leadership of the Petrograd diocese, with Metropolitan Benjamin's blessing, published the following announcement in the newspaper All-Russian Church-Social Herald:

"On Wednesday, November 8, the ninth day after the death of Fr. John Kochurov who was murdered October 31 in Tsarskoye Selo, a hierarchal Memorial Service will be served in Our Lady of Kazan Cathedral at 3 p.m. for the eternal memory of Archpriest John and of all the Orthodox Christians who have perished in a time of civil conflict. Parish clergy free of serving obligations are invited for the Memorial Service. Vestments should be white."

"Soon after this hierarchal Memorial Service served in Our Lady of Kazan Cathedral, the diocesan council of Petrograd published a proclamation "To the Clergy and the Parish Councils of the Diocese of Petrograd." This became the first official recognition of the martyric character of the Fr. John's death pronounced in the name of the Church, but also the first Church statement to specify concrete measures of assistance to the families of clergymen persecuted and assassinated by the theomachists in Russia. In this remarkable document of church history, eloquently expressed with deep humility in the face of the anticipated future persecution of the Church, and embodying genuine sympathy for Fr. John's bereaved family, the leadership of the Petrograd diocese reacted to the death of the first diocesan Holy Martyr.

"Dear brothers," the statement by the Petrograd diocesan council began. "On October 31 of this year the town of Tsarskoye Selo suffered the martyrdom of one of the good shepherds of the Petrograd diocese, the Archpriest of the local Cathedral, John Alexandrovich Kochurov. Without any blame or justification for this on his part, he was seized in his apartment, conveyed to the suburbs, and there, in an open field, was shot by the possessed mob...."

"It was with feelings of profound sorrow that the Petrograd diocesan council received this news; the grief has been considerably augmented by the realization that, with the Archpriest's demise, a large family is left behind, consisting of six members who now are without food, shelter, or any means of subsistence."

"God is the Judge of the cunning villains who violently ended the life that was still young. Even if they flee unpunished from trial at the hands of men, they can never elude the judgment of God. But our obligation now is not only to pray for the peace of this innocent sufferer's soul, but with all our sincere love, attempt to treat the deep and incurable wound that has been inflicted on the very hearts of the poor, bereaved family. The diocese and the diocesan clergy are directly obligated to provide for the martyred pastor's orphaned family, to give them the opportunity to live in material comfort, and to provide the children with a proper education."

"The diocesan Church Council, being moved by the loftiest of sentiments, now appeals to the clergy, parish councils, and all the Orthodox faithful of the diocese of Petrograd with an ardent entreaty, asking most earnestly, for the sake of Christ's love, that you stretch forth a brotherly helping hand, and by whatever amount you can offer, support a poor family left to be at the mercy of fate. Great is the need, and it should not be delayed!"

". . . His martyrdom is, for each of us, a dire reminder, an ominous warning. Therefore, we must be ready for anything. And to prevent such situations of destitution as we now have, we must prepare, between the times of trial, an assistance fund to be allotted for the defenseless, persecuted, and tormented clergy that those in such cases, and in similar ones, may have material aid from their kindred in spirit."

". . . Though the deans, special lists will be sent to each parish in the diocese for the collection of donations, those that are voluntary and from the Church funds, to help the family of the deceased Archpriest John Kochurov, and also for the establishment of the special fund for the assistance of clergy in all similar cases."

"...An immense task requires means commensurate with it. The Diocesan Church Council hopes that with God's help such means will be found. The modest offering of the diocese and clergy, made voluntarily and laid on the Christian conscience of each person, will provide an opportunity to dry the tears of unhappy orphans, and to make a beginning of that concern for good brotherly assistance, for which our clergy have a great need particularly now...." "It has thundered; now is the time to make the sign of the Cross!"

On one of his regular visits to his diocese during the All-Russian Church Council in Moscow, Metropolitan Benjamin served the Divine Liturgy on November 26, for the patronal feast at St Catherine's Cathedral in Tsarskoye Selo. "The Liturgy ended with a fervent exhortation from the hierarch, during which he appealed to the people for unity, love, and brotherhood," wrote a correspondent for the All Russian Church-Social Herald. "The Metropolitan also mentioned the terrible event, the assassination of the beloved pastor of the local Church, Fr. John Kochurov. He noted that though it is a very sad occasion, it has been a cause of reconciliation as well, through the realization that the pastor had laid down his life for love of God and of neighbor, providing an example of martyrdom."

The archpastoral message had a strong effect on everyone, and tears were seen on many faces. Following the liturgy, the Litya for the departed took place at Fr. John's tomb in the burial vault of the cathedral. After the service the Metropolitan visited the rectory, where he met the family of the deceased. Thus, for a second time, and now from the mouth of the diocesan hierarch who remembered the slain clergyman of his diocese, the Russian Orthodox Church characterized Fr. John's death as a martyrdom.

The All-Russian Church Council was just then taking place in Moscow, and this death had deeply touched the hearts of the delegates, arousing loud lamentation. Archpriest P. Mirtov was commissioned to compose a proclamation expressing the sense of the Council, giving information about the untimely death of the deceased Fr. John Kochurov, who fell victim (to violence) while zealously fulfilling the obligations of his rank.

The Most Holy Patriarch Tikhon had become well acquainted with Fr. John during the many years they worked together in the diocese of North America and the Aleutians, and therefore felt a deep respect for him. Expressing a genuine conviction formed at the Council that the Russian Orthodox Church had gained a new martyr saint by Fr. John's death, the Patriarch sent a letter of sympathy to Alexandra Kochurova, the deceased pastor's widow: "With great sadness the Most Holy Council of the Russian Orthodox Church has received a report concerning the martyrdom of Father John Alexandrovich Kochurov, who has fallen victim (to violence) while zealously fulfilling the obligations of his rank," wrote the future Confessor, the Most Holy Patriarch Tikhon. "Joining our prayers with those of the Holy Council for the repose of the soul of the slain Archpriest John, we share your great grief, and we do so with a special love, because we knew the deceased Archpriest well, and have always held his inspiring and strong pastoral activity in high esteem."

"We bear in our hearts the sure hope that the deceased pastor, adorned with the wreath of martyrdom, now stands at the Throne of God among the elect of Christ's true flock. The holy Council, with earnest sympathy for your bereaved family, has decided to petition the Holy Synod to give you the proper assistance."

"May the Lord help you to endure the trial sent to you by God's Providence, and preserve you and your children unharmed amid the storms and calamities of our time."

"We invoke God's blessing on you and on your family." - Patriarch Tikhon[44]

Exactly five months after Fr. John's death, on March 31, 1918, by which time the number of murdered clergymen known to the Holy Synod had already reached fifteen, the first Memorial Liturgy for the New Hieromartyrs and Martyrs in the history of the Russian Orthodox Church in the twentieth century was served in the church of the Moscow Theological Seminary, by the Most Holy Patriarch Tikhon, four other hierarchs, and ten archimandrites and protopresbyters. At the Memorial Liturgy and Memorial Service, when the supplicatory prayer was pronounced "For the repose of the servants of God who have perished for the Faith and the Orthodox Church, after mentioning the first-slain hierarch, Metropolitan Vladimir, the first-slain Archpriest, Father John Kochurov was remembered, who by his passion-bearing death ushered in the service offered by the confessors, the assembly of the Russian New-Martyrs of the twentieth century.[45]

Translated from the Russian by Anatoly Antonov

Sources and Literature [1]The Central State Historical Archive of St. Petersburg (CSHA of S.-P.), F. 14 University of Petrograd, 3, f.31575, 1.8, 10. The personal folder of the student Dmitry Alexandrovich Kochurov. [2]CSHA of S.-P., F. 277, 1, f. 3220, par. 1,2,3,4,5,6,8. [3]CSHA of S.-P., F. 19, 113, f. 4167, par. 37. [4]American Orthodox Messenger (AOM), 1907, N14, p. 269. [5]CSHA of S.-P., F. 19, 113, f. 4167, par. 37. [6]AOM, 1898, N24, pp. 681-682. [7]AOM, 1896, N7, p. 117 [8]AOM, 1898, N24, p. 682. [9]Ibid. [10]AOM, 1897, N14, p. 290. [11]AOM, 1900, N10, p. 215. [12]AOM, 1896, N1, p. 14; CSHA of S.-P., F. 19, 113, f. 4167, par. 38-39. [13]AOM, 1898, N24, p. 682. [14]AOM, 1899, N11, pp. 305-306. [15]AOM, 1901, N1, pp. 26, 32. [16]AOM, 1902, N8, pp. 171-173. [17]A. Maltsev, The Russian Orthodox Churches and Institutions Abroad. St. Petersburg, 1906, p. 419 (in Russian) [18]AOM, 1905, N17, pp. 340-341. [19]CSHA of S.-P., F.19, 113, f.4167, par. 40. [20]AOM, 1904, N5, p. 81. [21]AOM, 1905, N17, pp. 340-342. [22]AOM, 1906, N10, p. 206. [23] AOM, 1906, N10, p.206. [24] AOM, 1907, N14, pp. 269-270. [25]CSHA of S.-P., F. 19, 113, f. 4167, par. 37. [26] Circular of the Department of Education of St. Petersburg, from 1907, p. 294. [27]CSHA of S.-P., F.139, 1, f. 11305, par. 28. [28]Tserkovniye Vedomosty, a newspaper, 1912, N18, p. 128. [29]Ibid, 1916, N18-19, p. 167. [30]CSHA of S.-P., F. 19, 113, f. 4333, par. 12. [31]Tsarskoselskoye Delo, 1916, 18 Nov. [32]CSHA of S.-P., F. 19, 113, f. 4366, 1.20. [33]Vserosiysky Tserkovno-Obschestvenniy Vestnik (VTOV), 1917, 5 Nov. [34]Ibid. [35]Ibid. [36]Ibid. [37] AOM, 1905, N17, pp. 340-342. [38]VTOV, 1917, 5 Nov. [39] VTOV, 1917, 1 Dec. [40] VTOV, 1917, 7 Nov. [41] Tserkovniye Vedomosty, 1917, N48-50, pp. 2-3. [42] VTOV, 1917, 1 Dec. [43] VTOV, 1917, 2 Nov. [44] VTOV, 1917, 15 Dec. [45] Pribavleniye k Tserkovnym Vedomostyam, 1918, N15-16, p. 519.

To Save A Life is Earthly; To Save A Soul is Eternal

THE PSALTER OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY PSALM 111

I trust in our Lady; because of the sweetness of the mercy of her name.

Her eyes look upon the poor: and her hands are stretched out to the orphan and the widow.

Seek after her from your youth: she will glorify you before the face of the peoples.

Her mercy will deliver us from the multitude of our sins: and will bestow on us fruitfulness of merits.

Stretch out to us thy arm, O glorious Virgin: and do not turn away from us thy glorious face.

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 heaven: only saints are allowed into heaven. The more "extravagant" graces are bestowed NOT for the benefit of the recipients so much as FOR the benefit of others.

There are over 10,000 named saints beati from history
and Roman Martyology Orthodox sources
Patron_Saints.html Widowed_Saints html Indulgences The Catholic Church in China
LINKS: Marian Shrines India Marian Shrine Lourdes of the East Lourdes 1858 China Marian shrines 1995
Kenya national Marian shrine Loreto, Italy Marian Apparitions (over 2000) Quang Tri Vietnam La Vang 1798
Links to Related MarianWebsites Angels and Archangels Saints Visions of Heaven and Hell
Widowed Saints html
Doctors_of_the_Church Acts_Of_The_Apostles Roman Catholic Popes Purgatory Uniates Chalcedon

Mary the Mother of Jesus Miracles_BC Lay Saints Miraculous_Icons Miraculous_Medal_Novena Patron Saints
Miracles by Century 100   200   300   400   500   600   700    800   900   1000    1100   1200   1300   1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 2000
Miracles 100   200   300   400   500   600   700    800   900   1000
1100   1200   1300   1400 1500 1600 1700 1800   1900 Lay Saints

The great psalm of the Passion, Chapter 22, whose first verse “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
Jesus pronounced on the cross, ended with the vision: “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord;
and all the families of the nations shall worship before him” For kingship belongs to the LORD, the ruler over the nations. All who sleep in the earth will bow low before God; All who have gone down into the dust will kneel in homage. And I will live for the LORD; my descendants will serve you. The generation to come will be told of the Lord, that they may proclaim to a people yet unborn the deliverance you have brought.

Pope Benedict XVI to The Catholic Church In China {whole article here} 2000 years of the Catholic Church in China
The saints “a cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible.

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

Saint Frances Xavier Seelos Practical Guide to Holiness

1. Go to Mass with deepest devotion. 2. Spend a half hour to reflect upon your main failing & make resolutions to avoid it.
3. Do daily spiritual reading for at least 15 minutes, if a half hour is not possible. 4. Say the rosary every day.
5. Also daily, if at all possible, visit the Blessed Sacrament; toward evening, meditate on the Passion of Christ for a half hour, 6. Conclude the day with evening prayer & an examination of conscience over all the faults & sins of the day.
7. Every month make a review of the month in confession.
8. Choose a special patron every month & imitate that patron in some special virtue.
9. Precede every great feast with a novena that is nine days of devotion. 10. Try to begin & end every activity with a Hail Mary

My God, I believe, I adore, I trust and I love Thee. I beg pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not

O most Holy trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the Tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference by which He is offended, and by the infite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. I beg the conversion of poor sinners, Fatima Prayer, Angel of Peace

The voice of the Father is heard, the Son enters the water, and the Holy Spirit appears in the form of a dove.

THE spirit and example of the world imperceptibly instil the error into the minds of many that there is a kind of middle way of going to Heaven; and so, because the world does not live up to the gospel, they bring the gospel down to the level of the world. It is not by this example that we are to measure the Christian rule, but words and life of Christ. All His followers are commanded to labour to become perfect even as our heavenly Father is perfect, and to bear His image in our hearts that we may be His children. We are obliged by the gospel to die to ourselves by fighting self-love in our hearts, by the mastery of our passions, by taking on the spirit of our Lord.

These are the conditions under which Christ makes His promises and numbers us among His children, as is manifest from His words which the apostles have left us in their inspired writings. Here is no distinction made or foreseen between the apostles or clergy or religious and secular persons. The former, indeed, take upon themselves certain stricter obligations, as a means of accomplishing these ends more perfectly; but the law of holiness and of disengagement of the heart from the world is general and binds all the followers of Christ.

God loves variety. He doesn't mass-produce his saints. Every saint is unique each the result of a new idea.

As the liturgy says: Non est inventus similis illis--there are no two exactly alike.
It is we with our lack of imagination, who paint the same haloes on all the saints.
Dear Lord, grant us a spirit not bound by our own ideas and preferences.
Grant that we may be able to appreciate in others what we lack in ourselves.
O Lord, grant that we may understand that every saint must be a unique praise of Your glory.
Catholic saints are holy people and human people who lived extraordinary lives.

Each saint the Church honors responded to God's invitation to use his or her unique gifts.

The 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary ) Revealed to St. Dominic and Blessed Alan)

1. Whoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall receive signal graces. 2. I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all those who shall recite the Rosary. 3. The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies. 4. It will cause virtue and good works to flourish; it will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of people from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire of eternal things. Oh, that soul would sanctify them by this means. 5. The soul that recommends itself to me by the recitation of the Rosary shall not perish. 6. Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying themselves to the consideration of its Sacred Mysteries shall never be conquered by misfortune. God will not chastise them in His justice, they shall not perish by an unprovided death; if they be just, they shall remain in the grace of God, and become worthy of eternal life. 7. Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church. 8. Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plentitude of His graces; at the moment of death they shall participate in the merits of the Saints in Paradise. 9. I shall deliver from purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary. 10. The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in Heaven. 11. You shall obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary. 12. I shall aid all those who propagate the Holy Rosary in their necessities. 13. I have obtained from my Divine Son that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors the entire celestial court during their life and at the hour of death. 14. All who recite the Rosary are my children, and brothers and sisters of my only Son, Jesus Christ. 15. Devotion to my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.

His Holiness Aram I, current (2013) Catholicos of Cilicia of Armenians, whose See is located in Lebanese town of Antelias. The Catholicosate was founded in Sis, capital of Cilicia, in the year 1441 following the move of the Catholicosate of All Armenians back to its original See of Etchmiadzin in Armenia. The Catholicosate of Cilicia enjoyed local jurisdiction, though spiritually subject to the authority of Etchmiadzin. In 1921 the See was transferred to Aleppo in Syria, and in 1930 to Antelias.

Its jurisdiction currently extends to Syria, Cyprus, Iran and Greece.

Aramaic dialect of Edessa, now known as Syriac

The exact date of the introduction of Christianity into Edessa {Armenian Ourhaï in Arabic Er Roha, commonly Orfa or Urfa, its present name} is not known. It is certain, however, that the Christian community was at first made up from the Jewish population of the city. According to an ancient legend, King Abgar V, Ushana, was converted by Addai, who was one of the seventy-two disciples. In fact, however, the first King of Edessa to embrace the Christian Faith was Abgar IX (c. 206) becoming official kingdom religion.

Christian council held at Edessa early as 197 (Eusebius, Hist. Ecc7V,xxiii).

In 201 the city was devastated by a great flood, and the Christian church was destroyed (“Chronicon Edessenum”, ad. an. 201).

In 232 the relics of the Apostle St. Thomas were brought from India, on which occasion his Syriac Acts were written.

Under Roman domination martyrs suffered at Edessa: Sts. Scharbîl and Barsamya, under Decius; Sts. Gûrja, Schâmôna, Habib, and others under Diocletian.

In the meanwhile Christian priests from Edessa evangelized Eastern Mesopotamia and Persia, established the first Churches in the kingdom of the Sassanides. Atillâtiâ, Bishop of Edessa, assisted at the Council of Nicæa (325). The “Peregrinatio Silviæ” (or Etheriæ) (ed. Gamurrini, Rome, 1887, 62 sqq.) gives an account of the many sanctuaries at Edessa about 388.

Although Hebrew had been the language of the ancient Israelite kingdom, after their return from Exile the Jews turned more and more to Aramaic, using it for parts of the books of Ezra and Daniel in the Bible. By the time of Jesus, Aramaic was the main language of Palestine, and quite a number of texts from the Dead Sea Scrolls are also written in Aramaic.

Aramaic continued to be an important language for Jews, alongside Hebrew, and parts of the Talmud are written in it.

After Arab conquests of the seventh century, Arabic quickly replaced Aramaic as the main language of those who converted to Islam, although in out of the way places, Aramaic continued as a vernacular language of Muslims.

Aramaic, however, enjoyed its greatest success in Christianity. Although the New Testament wins written in Greek, Christianity had come into existence in an Aramaic-speaking milieu, and it was the Aramaic dialect of Edessa, now known as Syriac, that became the literary language of a large number of Christians living in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire and in the Persian Empire, further east. Over the course of the centuries the influence of the Syriac Churches spread eastwards to China (in Xian, in western China, a Chinese-Syriac inscription dated 781 is still to be seen); to southern India where the state of Kerala can boast more Christians of Syriac liturgical tradition than anywhere else in the world.

680 Shiite saint Imam Hussein, grandson of Islam's Prophet Muhammad Known as Ashoura and observed by Shiites across the world, the 10th day of the lunar Muslim month of Muharram: the anniversary of the 7th century death in battle of one of Shiite Islam's most beloved saints. Imam Hussein died in the 680 A.D. battle fought on the plains outside Karbala, a city in modern Iraq that's home to the saint's shrine. The battle over a dispute about the leadership of the Muslim faith following Muhammad's death in 632 A.D. It is the defining event in Islam's split into Sunni and Shiite branches. The occasion is the source of an enduring moral lesson. "He sacrificed his blood to teach us not to give in to corruption, coercion, or use of force and to seek honor and justice." According to Shiite beliefs, Hussein and companions were denied water by enemies who controlled the nearby Euphrates. Streets get partially covered with blood from slaughter of hundreds of cows and sheep. Volunteers cook the meat and feed it to the poor. Hussein's martyrdom recounted through a rich body of prose, poetry and song remains an inspirational example of sacrifice to many Shiites, 10 percent of the world's estimated 1.3 billion Muslims.

Meeting of the Saints walis (saints of Allah)

Great men covet to embrace martyrdom for a cause and principle.

So was the case with Hazrat Ali. He could have made a compromise with the evil forces of his time and, as a result, could have led a very comfortable, easy and luxurious life. But he was not a person who would succumb to such temptations. His upbringing, his education and his training in the lap of the holy Prophet made him refuse such an offer.
Rabia Al-Basri (717–801 C.E.) She was first to set forth the doctrine of mystical love and who is widely considered to be the most important of the early Sufi poets. An elderly Shia pointed out that during his pre-Partition childhood it was quite common to find pictures and portraits of Shia icons in Imambaras across the country.
Shah Abdul Latif: The Exalted Sufi Master born 1690 in a Syed family; died 1754. In ancient times, Sindh housed the exemplary Indus Valley Civilisation with Moenjo Daro as its capital, and now, it is the land of a culture which evolved from the teachings of eminent Sufi saints. Pakistan is home to the mortal remains of many Sufi saints, the exalted among them being Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, a practitioner of the real Islam, philosopher, poet, musicologist and preacher. He presented his teaching through poetry and music - both instruments sublime - and commands a very large following, not only among Muslims but also among Hindus and Christians. Sindh culture: The Shah is synonymous with Sindh. He is the very fountainhead of Sindh's culture. His message remains as fresh as that of any present day poet, and the people of Sindh find solace from his writings. He did indeed think for Sindh. One of his prayers, in exquisite Sindhi, translates thus: “Oh God, may ever You on Sindh bestow abundance rare! Beloved! All the world let share Thy grace, and fruitful be.”
Shia Ali al-Hadi, died 868 and son Hassan al-Askari 874. These saints are the 10th and 11th of Shia's 12 most revered Imams. Baba Farid Sufi 1398 miracle, Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki renowned Muslim Sufi saint scholar miracles 569 A.H. [1173 C.E.] hermit gave to poor, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti greatest mystic of his time born 533 Hijri (1138-39 A.D.), Hazrat Ghuas-e Azam, Hazrat Bu Ali Sharif, and Hazrat Nizamuddi n 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]

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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

Index to Part I and Part II 1932

James M. Reardon Publication History of the Basilica of Saint Mary 1955 {update}

Brief History of our Beloved Holy Priest Here and his published books of Catholic History in North America
Reardon, J.M. Archbishop Ireland; Prelate, Patriot, Publicist, 1838-1918.
A Memoir (St. Paul; 1919); George Anthony Belcourt Pioneer Catholic Missionary of the Northwest 1803-1874 (1955);
The Catholic Church IN THE DIOCESE OF ST. PAUL from earliest origin to centennial achievement 1362-1950 (1952);
The Church of Saint Mary of Saint Paul 1875-1922; (1932)
The Vikings in the American Heartland;
The Catholic Total Abstinence Society in Minnesota;

James Michael Reardon Born in Nova Scotia, 1872; Priest, ordained by Bishop Ireland;

Member -- St. Paul Seminary faculty.

Affiliations and Indulgences Litany of Loretto in Stained glass windows here. Nave Sacristy and Residence Here
Sanctuary spaces between them filled with grilles of hand-forged wrought iron the life of our Blessed Lady After the crucifixon

Apostle statues Replicas of those in St John Lateran--Christendom's earliest Basilica.
Ordered by Rome's first Christian Emperor, Constantine the Great, Popes' cathedral and official residence first millennium of Christian history.

The only replicas ever made: in order from west to east {1932}.

Saints Simon (saw), Bartholomew (knife), James the Lesser (book), John (eagle), Andrew (transverse cross), Peter keys), Paul (sword), James the Greater (staff), Thomas (carpenter's square), Philip (serpent), Matthew (book), and Jude sword

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).

LINKS:
Marian Apparitions (over 2000) India Marian Shrine Lourdes of the East   Lourdes Feb 11- July 16, Loreto, Italy 1858
China Marian shrines May 23, 1995 Zarvintisya Ukraine Lourdes Kenya national Marian shrine    Quang Tri Vietnam La Vang 1798
Links to Related Marian Websites Angels and Archangels
Doctors_of_the_Church   Acts_Apostles Roman Catholic Popes Purgatory Uniates, 111 2023