text:
Mary Mother of GOD
Et álibi aliórum plurimórum sanctórum Mártyrum et Confessórum, atque sanctárum Vírginum.Пресвятая Богородице спаси нас! Santíssima Mãe de Deus, salva-nos!
And elsewhere in divers places, many other holy martyrs, confessors, and holy virgins.
R. Deo grátias. R. Thanks be to God.
Sixth Week of Easter
We are the defenders of true freedom.
May our witness unveil the deception of the "pro-choice" slogan.
Campaign saves lives Shawn Carney Campaign Director www.40daysforlife.com ,
Please help save the unborn they are the future for the world
It is a great poverty that a child must die so that you may live as you wish -- Mother Teresa
Saving babies, healing moms and dads, 'The Gospel of Life.
Mary's Divine Motherhood
Called in the Gospel "the Mother of Jesus," Mary is acclaimed by Elizabeth, at the prompting of the Spirit and even before the birth of her son, as "the Mother of my Lord" (Lk 1:43; Jn 2:1; 19:25; cf. Mt 13:55; et al.). In fact, the One whom she conceived as man by the Holy Spirit, who truly became her Son according to the flesh, was none other than the Father's eternal Son, the second person of the Holy Trinity. Hence the Church confesses that Mary is truly "Mother of God" (Theotokos).
Catechism of the Catholic Church 495, quoting the Council of Ephesus (431): DS 251.
May 27 - Our Lady of Naples (Italy, 533)
Saint of the Day May 27 Sexto Kaléndas Júnii
605 St. Augustine of Canterbury respected monastery prior Monk and abbot of Saint Andrew's abbey in Rome Apostle to the Anglo-Saxons; Apostle to the English; called himself Austin; birthday mentioned on 26 May.
735 Saint Bede was a church historian who recorded the history of Christianity in England up to his own time
There are over 10,000 named saints beati from history;
Roman Martyology, Orthodox sources, Islam, Luthran, + others
Acts of the Apostles
Everyone Should Have a Genuine Devotion to Her
Perfect model of this apostolic spiritual life is the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Apostles. While on earth her life was like that of any other, filled with labours and the cares of the home; always, however, she remained intimately united to her Son and cooperated in an entirely unique way in the Savior's work. And now, assumed into heaven, "her motherly love keeps her attentive to her Son's brothers still on pilgrimage amid the dangers and difficulties of life, until they arrive at the happiness of the fatherland."
Everyone should have a genuine devotion to her and entrust his life to her motherly care.
Decree On The Apostolate Of Lay People - Apostolicam Actuositatem,
Vatican II Council, November 18, 1965.
Sancti Joánnis Primi, Papæ et Mártyris; cujus dies natális quintodécimo Kaléndas Júnii refértur,
sed festívitas hac die, ob Translatiónem córporis ejus, potíssimum celebrátur.
St. John I, pope and martyr. His birthday is observed on the 18th of May,
but his feast is celebrated today because of the translation of his revered body.
|May 27 – Our Lady of the People (Italy,
Give Jesus to your brothers and sisters, like our Mother Mary didMary's total gift of herself is great because she gave all control to the Lord. Going against the aspirations of young girls of her time, she resolved to remain a virgin. And the Lord let her be both a virgin and a mother: the Mother of God, and the mother of mankind.
Your heart may be big, but your wallet is limited. There is only one gift that you can offer at all times, one that will please your heart, so precious that no one can buy it and to which nothing compares: give Jesus to your brothers and sisters, like our Mother Mary did.
François-Xavier Cardinal NGUYEN VAN THUAN Sur le chemin de l'espérance (The Road to Hope), Le Sarment, Fayard 1991 Chapter 35
| 3rd v. Therapon,
Bishop of Sardis Hieromartyr suffered for Christ Sardis was in Lydia,
Asia Minor miraclulous curative powers from his blood
270 St. Restituta of Sora fled Rome to Sora, Campania, Italy, aid of an angel to escape the persecution of the Church
304 Theodora the Virgin and Didymus the Soldier The Holy Martyrs suffered for Christ during the persecution against Christians in the city of Alexandria
476 ST EUTROPIUS, BISHOP OF ORANGE repute for piety and learning
526 St. Pope John I Martyr succeeded persuading Emperor Justin I mitigate treatment of Arians avoid reprisals against Catholics in Italy visit also brought reconciliation of Western and Eastern Churches plagued by a schism since 482 when Zeno's Henoticon had been published590 St. Melangell Welsh virgin founded a community of women, serving as abbess for thirty-seven years
605 St. Augustine of Canterbury respected monastery prior Monk and abbot of Saint Andrew's abbey in Rome Apostle to the Anglo-Saxons; Apostle to the English; called himself Austin
700 St. Ranulphus Martyred confessor father of St. Haduiph, bishop of Arras Cambrai, France, He suffered for the faith at Thelvs, near Arras
735 Saint Bede was a church historian who recorded the history of Christianity in England up to his own time
9th v. Saint Michael of Parekhi native of the village Norgiali in Shavsheti region of southern Georgia tonsured a monk in the Midznadzori Wilderness miracles at grave
1045 St. Bruno Bishop of Würzburg Germany killed in an accident starting parishes throughout Würzburg, projects for which he used his personal wealth revered as a scholar and author
11th v. Saint Basil son of King Bagrat III Lived in the and labored at Khakhuli Monastery (in southwestern Georgia, present-day Turkey) a major figure in the spiritual and educational life of southern Georgia.
1121 St. Frederick Bishop of Liege, Belgium, believed poisoned by the count of Louvain.
1426 Saint Therapon of White Lake Wonderworker of Luzhetsk raised in faith and piety throughout his life as a holy ascetic
1472 Cyprian, Photius and Jonah Uncovering and Transfer of Relics of Holy Hierarchs
1554 Saint Nilus of Stolobensk icon of St Nilus was painted by the monks of the Orshin monastery, and numerous miracles of healings of the sick began to occur at the saint's grave incorrupt relics
1597 Saint Therapon of Monza
1730 John the Russian The Holy Confessor kind and gentle nature effect souls of both the turkic master and slaves (Compare the story of Habakkuk, who miraculously brought a dish of porrage to Daniel in the lions' den [Dan. 14:33-39], in the Septuagint).
May 27 - OUR LADY OF NAPLES (Italy)
Mary and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit: The Gift of Wisdom
The most perfect of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is the gift of wisdom. It is the perfection of the virtue of charity, and it resides at the same time in the intelligence and the will, because it spreads some light and warmth, truth and love in the soul. It is the summary of all the other gifts, as charity summarizes all the other virtues.
As Mary received a large part in the participation in the virtue of the divine charity, she possessed more than anyone else, with an incomparable perfection, the gift of wisdom. Through this gift, she was able to discern, almost instinctively, divine things from human things. This heavenly wisdom filled her soul with an infinite sweetness, since "there is nothing bitter about wisdom, and to live with her doesn't cause boredom but consolation and felicity."
Excerpt from Gabriele M. ROSCHINI, OSM, Dizionario di mariologia, editrice studium - Rome 1961
Pentecost is "the last and great day in the Church's annual liturgical cycle. " It is the celebration by the Church of the coming of the Holy Spirit as the end - the achievement and fulfillment - of the entire history of salvation. For the same reason, however, it is also the celebration of the beginning: it is the "birthday" of the Church as the presence among us of the Holy Spirit, of the new life in Christ, of grace, knowledge, adoption to God and holiness.
This double meaning and double joy is revealed to us, first of all, in the very name of the feast. Pentecost in Greek means fifty, and in the sacred biblical symbolism of numbers, the number fifty symbolizes both the fulness of time and that which is beyond time: the Kingdom of God itself. It symbolizes the fulness of time by its first component: 49, which is the fulness of seven (7 x 7): the number of time. And, it symbolizes that which is beyond time by its second component: 49 + 1, this one being the new day, the "day without evening" of God's eternal Kingdom. With the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Christ's disciples, the time of salvation, the Divine work of redemption has been completed, the fulness revealed, all gifts bestowed: it belongs to us now to "appropriate" these gifts, to be that which we have become in Christ: participants and citizens of His Kingdom.
The all-night Vigil service begins with a solemn invitation:
"Let us celebrate Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, The appointed day of promise, and the fulfillment of hope,In the coming of the Spirit, the very essence of the Church is revealed:
The mystery which is as great as it is precious."
"The Holy Spirit provides all, Overflows with prophecy, fulfills the priesthood, Has taught wisdom to illiterates,
has revealed fishermen as theologians, He brings together the whole council of the Church."
In the three readings of the Old Testament (Numbers 11:16-17, 24-29; Joel 2:23-32; Ezekiel 36:24-28) we hear the prophecies concerning the Holy Spirit. We are taught that the entire history of mankind was directed towards the day on which God "would pour out His Spirit upon all flesh." This day has come! All hope, all promises, all expectations have been fulfilled. At the end of the Aposticha hymns, for the first time since Easter, we sing the hymn: "O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth…," the one with which we inaugurate all our services, all prayers, which is, as it were, the life-breath of the Church, and whose coming to us, whose "descent" upon us in this festal Vigil, is indeed the very experience of the Holy Spirit "coming and abiding in us."
Having reached its climax, the Vigil continues as an explosion of joy and light for "verily the light of the Comforter has come and illumined the world." In the Gospel reading (John 20:19-23) the feast is interpreted to us as the feast of the Church, of her divine nature, power and authority. The Lord sends His disciples into the world, as He Himself was sent by His Father. Later, in the antiphons of the Liturgy, we proclaim the universality of the apostles' preaching, the cosmical significance of the feast, the sanctification of the whole world, the true manifestation of God's Kingdom.
The liturgical peculiarity of Pentecost is a very special Vespers of the day itself. Usually this service follows immediately the Divine Liturgy, is "added" to it as its own fulfillment. The service begins as a solemn "summing up" of the entire celebration, as its liturgical synthesis. We hold flowers in our hands symbolizing the joy of the eternal spring, inaugurated by the coming of the Holy Spirit. After the festal Entrance, this joy reaches its climax in the singing of the Great Prokeimenon:
"Who is so great a God as our God?"
Then, having reached this climax, we are invited to kneel. This is our first kneeling since Easter. It signifies that after these fifty days of Paschal joy and fulness, of experiencing the Kingdom of God, the Church now is about to begin her pilgrimage through time and history. It is evening again, and the night approaches, during which temptations and failures await us, when, more than anything else, we need Divine help, that presence and power of the Holy Spirit, who has already revealed to us the joyful End, who now will help us in our effort towards fulfillment and salvation.
All this is revealed in the three prayers which the celebrant reads now as we all kneel and listen to him. In the first prayer, we bring to God our repentance, our increased appeal for forgiveness of sins, the first condition for entering into the Kingdom of God.
In the second prayer, we ask the Holy Spirit to help us, to teach us to pray and to follow the true path in the dark and difficult night of our earthly existence. Finally, in the third prayer, we remember all those who have achieved their earthly journey, but who are united with us in the eternal God of Love.
The joy of Easter has been completed and we again have to wait for the dawn of the Eternal Day. Yet, knowing our weakness, humbling ourselves by kneeling, we also know the joy and the power of the Holy Spirit who has come. We know that God is with us, that in Him is our victory.
Thus is completed the feast of Pentecost and we enter "the ordinary time" of the year. Yet, every Sunday now will be called "after Pentecost" - and this means that it is from the power and light of these fifty days that we shall receive our own power, the Divine help in our daily struggle. At Pentecost we decorate our churches with flowers and green branches - for the Church "never grows old, but is always young." It is an evergreen, ever-living Tree of grace and life, of joy and comfort. For the Holy Spirit - "the Treasury of Blessings and Giver of Life - comes and abides in us, and cleanses us from all impurity," and fills our life with meaning, love, faith and hope. Father Alexander Schmemann (1974)
v. Therapon, Bishop of Sardis Hieromartyr suffered for Christ Sardis was
in Lydia, Asia Minor miraclulous curative powers from his blood
In fulfilling his priestly service, St Therapon enlightened many of the pagan Greeks with the light of the Christian Faith and baptized them. For this, he was brought to trial before the governor Julian and fearlessly declared himself a Christian bishop. They threw him into prison, where he languished with hunger and thirst, and then they gave him over to cruel tortures. These torments did not break the saint's valiant confession of faith. They led the saint off in chains to the city of Sinaion in Phrygia, and then to Ancyra.
In these cities they tortured him again. They took him to the River Astala, where they stretched him naked upon the ground, fastened to four stakes, and fiercely beat him. After this torture, they took the passion-bearer to the outskirts of the Satalia diocese, part of the Sardis metropolitanate, and here after long beatings St Therapon ended his martyric contest.
The stakes to which the saint had been tied, and which were soaked with his blood, put forth green shoots and grew into large trees, whose leaves were found to have curative powers. Many people received healing through them.
|304 Theodora the
Virgin and Didymus the Soldier The Holy Martyrs suffered for Christ during
the persecution against Christians in the city of Alexandria
under the emperor Diocletian (284-305).
The Virgin Martyr Theodora, standing trial before the prefect Eustratius of Alexandria, bravely confessed herself a Christian. When the prefect asked why she had not married, the saint replied that she had dedicated herself to God, and had resolved to remain a virgin for the name of Christ. Eustratius ordered the holy virgin to be taken to prison, giving her three days to make up her mind, and he threatened to have her taken to a brothel if she persisted in her disobedience. Brought again to trial three days later, St Theodora remained as resolute in her faith as before. The saint was taken to the brothel, where dissolute youths began to argue which of them should be the first to have her. At this moment the Christian Didymus, dressed in soldier's garb, entered the brothel without hindrance. He chased the frightened profligates out and saved the holy virgin, giving her his clothes so she could escape.
Upon learning what had happened, Eustratius interrogated St Didymus. Brought before the angry judge, St Didymus told how he had set the holy virgin free, and for this he was sentenced to death. St Theodora appeared at the place of execution, and said that she wanted to die with St Didymus. The prefect gave orders to execute both of them . The first to bend the neck beneath the sword was the holy martyr Theodora, and then the holy Martyr Didymus. The bodies of the martyrs were then burned.
270 St. Restituta of Sora fled Rome to Sora, Campania, Italy, with the aid of an angel to escape the persecution of the Church
Apud Soram sanctæ Restitútæ, Vírginis et Mártyris; quæ, sub Aureliáno Imperatóre et Agáthio Procónsule, fídei certámine suscépto, dǽmonum ímpetus, paréntum blandítias et tortórum sævítiam superávit, ac demum, cum áliis Christiánis, cápite truncáta, martyrio decoráta est.
At Sora, in the time of Emperor Aurelian and the proconsul Agathius, St. Restituta, virgin and martyr, who overcame in a trial for the faith the violence of the demons, the affections of her family, and the cruelty of the executioners. Being finally beheaded with other Christians, she obtained the honour of martyrdom.
Roman virgin martyr. She was a Roman noble maiden who fled Rome to Sora, Campania, Italy, with the aid of an angel to escape the persecution of the Church by Emperor Aurelian.
Arrested in Sora, she was tortured and thrown into a prison. After being released by an angel, she and several companions, including a priest named Cyril, were beheaded.
ST RESTITUTA was a Roman maiden of patrician rank who is said to have suffered martyrdom about the year 271 in the town of Sora, in Italy, of which she is the principal patroness and which claims to possess her relics. Her so-called "acts" are altogether fabulous. According to this legend, she was told by our Lord to go to Sora and an angel transported her there. She lodged in the house of a widow whose son she cured of leprosy. Thereupon the young man, his mother and thirty-nine other persons were converted to Christianity. The proconsul Agathius, when he was informed of her activities, cast her into prison. As she refused to sacrifice to the gods she was scourged and sent back to her dungeon, where she was left without food or drink for seven days, heavy chains having been bound round her. Upon the appearance of an angel in the prison the chains melted like wax, her wounds were healed, and she felt neither hunger nor thirst. This miracle converted several of her guards, who suffered martyrdom for the Christian faith. St Restituta herself, the priest Cyril, whom she had converted, and two other Christians were decapitated, their bodies being cast into the River Liri from whence they were afterwards recovered.
In the Acta Sanctorum, May, vol. vi, these fabulous acts are printed in full, together with the report of a number of miracles said to have been worked by her intercession, and also the description of the recovery of her relics in the seventeenth century after they had long been lost. The miracles, real or supposed, seem to have resulted in a considerable local cultus. Although we know little about either, this Roman saint would seem to be entirely different from the African Restituta commemorated on May 17 in the Roman Martyrology, whose relics are said to be in Naples cathedral.
Doróstori, in Mysia inferióre, pássio beáti Júlii, qui, témpore Alexándri Imperatóris, cum esset veteránus et eméritæ milítiæ, comprehénsus est ab officiálibus, et Máximo Prǽsidi oblátus; quo præsénte, cum exsecrarétur idóla, et Christi nomen constantíssime confiterétur, capitáli senténtia punítus est.
At Silistria in Bulgaria, during the reign of Emperor Alexander, the martyrdom of blessed Julius, a veteran soldier in retirement, who was arrested by the officials and presented to the governor Maximus. Having denounced the idols in his presence, and confessed the name of Christ with utmost constancy, he was condemned to capital punishment.
ST JULIUS was a veteran soldier and was arraigned by his officers for the Christian faith before Maximus, governor of Lower Moesia, at Durostorum, now Silistria in Bulgaria. Pasicrates and Valentio, men belonging to the same legion, had received the crown of martyrdom a short time before. The judge used threats and promises, but Julius declared that he desired nothing more than to die for Christ in order to live eternally with Him. Thereupon he was sentenced to be beheaded, and was led forth to the place of execution. As he went, Hesychius, a Christian soldier who was also a prisoner and suffered martyrdom a few days after him, said, "Go with courage, and remember me who am about to follow you. Commend me to the servants of God, Pasicrates and Valentio who, for confessing the holy name of Jesus, are gone before us." Julius, embracing Hesychius, replied,"Dear brother, make haste to come to us: those whom you salute have already heard you."
In the Roman Martyrology Pasicrates and Valentio are commemorated separately on May 25 but the story is all one piece, and the historical value of these Acts, as Delehaye points out (Analecta Bollandiana, vol. xxxi, 191 a, pp. 268—269), has never been called in question. The portion relating to Pasicrates and his companion has only been preserved to us in the summary of the Greek synaxaries, but the section which deals primarily with St Julius is extant and has been printed in Ruinart, Acta Sincera, and in the Acta Sanctorum, May, vol. vi. See P. Franchi de' Cavalieri in the Nuovo Bullettino di arch. crist., vol. x (1904), pp. 22—26, and especially CMH., p. 272, where it is pointed out that Pasicrates is probably to be recognized in a mention of "Polycarp" in the early Syriac breviarium; "Policratus" which appears in the Epternach text, suggests how the confusion has arisen. The word "coronatorum" in the same notice has been transformed into the name of a town, Gortyna in Crete.
476 ST EUTROPIUS, BISHOP OF ORANGE repute for piety and learning
Aráusicæ, in Gálliis, sancti Eutrópii Epíscopi, virtútibus atque miráculis illústris.
At Orange in France, St. Eutropius, a bishop illustrious for virtues and miracles.
ALTHOUGH Eutropius, a native of Marseilles, seems to have led a careless life at the beginning of his career in that city, still he sobered down after marriage, and when his wife died, he was induced by Bishop Eustachius to enter the ranks of the clergy. His conversion, aided, we are told, by heavenly favours, was very thorough. He gave himself up to prayer and fasting, and when Justus, the bishop of Orange, departed this life, Eutropius was chosen as his successor. The see of Orange had just been ravaged by the Visigoths, and the material and moral desolation of the people was such that Eutropius, losing heart at the sight of the burden imposed upon him, meditated taking refuge in flight. But a holy man whom he consulted showed him where his duty lay, and from that time forth the new bishop set an admirable example. The terms in which he is addressed by St Sidonius Apollinaris in a letter still preserved plainly indicate the repute for piety and learning in which he was held.
A fragmentary biography by Verus, his successor in the see of Orange, is printed in the Acta Sanctorum, May, vol. vi. A sepulchral inscription described him as innocentissimus, meaning, probably, that his conduct as a bishop was faultless, and his name is commemorated in the Hieronymianum. See also Duchesne, Fastes Épiscopaux, vol. i, pp. 265—266.
A Tuscan by birth, John I joined the Roman clergy while still young and was archdeacon when, after the death of St Hormisdas in 523, he was chosen pope. Italy had been for some thirty years ruled by Theodoric the Goth who, though an Arian by birth and by conviction, treated his Catholic subjects with toleration and even with favour during the greater part of his reign. About this time, however, his policy changed—partly as the result of what he regarded as treasonable correspondence between leading members of the Roman Senate and Constantinople, partly in consequence of severe measures against Arians enacted by the Emperor Justin I.
Appealed to by his co-religionists in the East, Theodoric decided to send an embassy to negotiate with the emperor. Much against his own wishes, John was made head of this mission, and his arrival in Constantinople was greeted with enthusiasm: all the inhabitants went out to meet him, headed by Justin, and on Easter day he pontificated in the cathedral. Accounts vary as to the exact nature of the message he bore and the manner in which he carried out his mission, but he appears to have induced the emperor to moderate his measures against the Arians lest reprisals should be made at the cost of the orthodox in Italy. But Theodoric's suspicions had been growing. During the absence of the embassy he had ordered the execution of the philosopher St Severinus Boethius and his father-in-law Symmachus on a charge of high treason, and he seems to have regarded the friendly relations between the pope and the emperor as part of a great conspiracy against him. No sooner had the mission reached Ravenna, Theodoric's capital, than Pope John was cast into prison, where he died not many days later from the treatment he received.
The text and notes of Duchesne's edition of the Liber Pontificalis, vol. i, pp. 275—278, tell us almost all that is known of Pope John I; cf. however, what is said in the Acta Sanctorum, May, vol. vi, and in Hartmann, Geschichte Italiens im Mittelalter, vol. i, pp. 220—224. Pope John's title to be regarded as a martyr has been contested by G. Pfeilschifter, Theodorich des Grosse, etc. (1896), pp. 184—203, and defended by Fr Grisar, Geschichte Röms and des Päpste, vol. i, pp. 481—483. See also F. X. Seppelt, Der Aufstieg des Papsttums (1931), pp. 274—276.
|590 St. Melangell Welsh
virgin founded a community of women, serving as abbess for thirty-seven
ST MELANGELL (whose name has been latinized as Monacella) is interesting because the incident for which she is known is a Welsh version of one that is known in various forms in several European countries. She appears in the pedigrees as a descendant of Macsen Wledig (the usurping Roman emperor Magnus Maximus), and according to her legend her father was an Irish king (probably Scottish, in its later meaning, is intended). She vowed herself to God, and when pressed to marry fled to the part of central Wales called Powys, where she remained hidden for fifteen years. Then one day the prince of Powys, Brochwel Ysgythrog, came hunting in her neighbourhood, and pursued a hare into a clearing of the forest where Melangell was at prayer. The hare ran for the shelter of her garments, and turned to face its pursuers from a fold of her skirt. Brochwel urged on his hounds, but they drew off, howling; the huntsman tried to wind his horn, but it stuck mute to his lips; and Brochwel approached the girl for an explanation When he had heard Melangell's story of herself, he made her a present of the land on which they were standing as a "perpetual refuge and place of sanctuary", in recognition of God's protection of the "little wild hare" in the shadow of His servant Melangell.
Accordingly she lived the rest of her life there, another thirty-seven years, gathering a community round her which she directed as abbess. But it was also a meeting-place for hares, who never showed any fear of their protectress, so that they came to be called "Melangell's lambs".
The church of Pennant Melangell in Montgomeryshire claims to stand on the site of this happening, and it formerly contained St Melangell's shrine. It still has some medieval carving relating the story of the hare, and the shrine chapel at the east end.
The extant Historia Divae Monacellae cannot be traced further back than a manuscript of the early sixteenth century (Archaeologia Cambrensis, 1848). See Pennant's Tours in Wales, cap. iii, and Gould and Fisher, LBS., vol. iii, who give examples from Pennant. Melangell and elsewhere of the continuing reverence for the hare shown in Celtic folk lore. There is a more extended treatment of hare mythology in Dr John Layard's The Lady of the Hare (1944), but he does not mention the Melangell story.
605 St. Augustine
of Canterbury respected monastery prior Monk and abbot
of Saint Andrew's abbey in Rome Apostle to the Anglo-Saxons; Apostle to
the English; called himself Austin
Sancti Augustíni, Epíscopi Cantuariénsis et Confessóris, cujus dies natális ágitur séptimo Kaléndas Júnii.
St. Augustine, bishop of Canterbury and confessor, whose birthday is mentioned on the 26th of May.
At the end of the sixth century anyone would have said that Augustine had found his niche in life. Looking at this respected prior of a monastery, almost anyone would have predicted he would spend his last days there, instructing, governing, and settling even further into this sedentary life.Alle Kirchen: 26. Mai Katholische Kirche auch 27. Mai (gebotener Gedenktag)
Also known as Apostle to the Anglo-Saxons; Apostle to the English; Austin Memorial 27 May; 28 May on some calendars, 26 May in England and Wales
605 St Augustine, or Austin, archbishop of Canterbury
Anglo-Saxon monk and scholar, Bede, known as:
Bede was the author of many works of various type – biblical commentaries, saints' 'Lives', homilies, hymns; educational, scientific and historical texts. Into this last category falls the work for which he is best known today: the 'Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum' (Ecclesiastical History of the English People). Bede dedicated the work to Ceolwulf, king of Northumbria (729–737), indeed, he had submitted a draft for the king's criticism prior to finalising it. It is clear that Bede was anxious to record only information which he considered to have reliable origins, and his scrupulous approach has lead to him being referred to as 'the Father of English History'. In the Preface, he writes:"... to the end that I may remove all occasion of doubting what I have written, both from yourself [Ceolwulf] and other readers or hearers of this history, I will take care briefly to intimate from what authors I chiefly learned the same.
"My principal authority and aid in this work was the learned and reverend Abbot Albinus; who, educated in the Church of Canterbury by those venerable and learned men, Archbishop Theodore of blessed memory, and the Abbot Hadrian, transmitted to me by Nothhelm, the pious priest of the Church of London, either in writing, or by word of mouth of the same Nothhelm, all that he thought worthy of memory, that had been done in the province of Kent, or the adjacent parts, by the disciples of the blessed Pope Gregory, as he had learned the same either from written records, or the traditions of his ancestors. The same Nothhelm, afterwards going to Rome, having, with leave of the present Pope Gregory, searched into the archives of the holy Roman Church, found there some epistles of the blessed Pope Gregory, and other popes; and returning home, by the advice of the aforesaid most reverend father Albinus, brought them to me, to be inserted in my history. "
"Thus, from the beginning of this volume to the time when the English nation received the faith of Christ, have we collected the writings of our predecessors, and from them gathered matter for our history; but from that time till the present, what was transacted in the Church of Canterbury, by the disciples of St.Gregory or their successors, and under what kings the same happened, has been conveyed to us by Nothhelm through the industry of the aforesaid Abbot Albinus. They also partly informed me by what bishops and under what kings the provinces of the East and West Saxons, as also of the East Angles, and of the Northumbrians, received the faith of Christ. In short I was chiefly encouraged to undertake this work by the persuasions of the same Albinus. In like manner, Daniel, the most reverend Bishop of the West Saxons, who is still living, communicated to me in writing some things relating to the Ecclesiastical History of that province, and the next adjoining to it of the South Saxons, as also of the Isle of Wight. But how, by the pious ministry of Cedd and Ceadda, the province of the Mercians was brought to the faith of Christ, which they knew not before, and how that of the East Saxons recovered the same, after having expelled it, and how those fathers lived and died, we learned from the brethren of the monastery, which was built by them, and is called Lastingham. "
"What ecclesiastical transactions took place in the province of the East Angles, was partly made known to us from the writings and tradition of our ancestors, and partly by relation of the most reverend Abbot Esi. What was done towards promoting the faith, and what was the sacerdotal succession in the province of Lindsey, we had either from the letters of the most reverend prelate Cyneberht, or by word of mouth from other persons of good credit. But what was done in the Church throughout the province of the Northumbrians, from the time when they received the faith of Christ till this present, I received not from any particular author, but by the faithful testimony of innumerable witnesses, who might know or remember the same; besides what I had of my own knowledge. Wherein it is to be observed, that what I have written concerning our most holy father, Bishop Cuthbert, either in this volume, or in my treatise on his life and actions, I partly took, and faithfully copied from what I found written of him by the brethren of the Church of Lindisfarne; but at the same time took care to add such things as I could myself have knowledge of by the faithful testimony of such as knew him. And I humbly entreat the reader, that if he shall in this that we have written find anything not delivered according to the truth, he will not impute the same to me, who, as the true rule of history requires, have laboured sincerely to commit to writing such things as I could gather from common report, for the instruction of posterity."
WHEN Pope St Gregory the Great decided that the time had come for the evangelization of Anglo-Saxon England, he chose as missionaries some thirty or more monks from his monastery of St Andrew on the Coelian Hill. As their leader he gave them their own prior, Augustine, whom St Gregory must have esteemed highly to have made him responsible for a scheme so dear to his heart. The party set out from Rome in the year 596; but no sooner had they arrived in Provence than they were assailed with warnings about the ferocity of the Anglo-Saxons and the dangers of the Channel. Greatly discouraged, they persuaded Augustine to return to Rome and obtain leave to abandon the enterprise. St Gregory, however, had received definite assurance that the English were well disposed towards the Christian faith; he therefore sent Augustine back to his brethren with words of encouragement which gave them heart to proceed on their way. They landed in the Isle of Thanet in the territory of Ethelbert, king of Kent. How the missionaries sent messengers to Ethelbert, how he received them sitting under an oak and listened to their words, how he made over to them a dwelling-place in Canterbury with the use of the old church of St Martin, and how he gave them leave to preach among his subjects, has been already described on February 25, under the article on St. Ethelbert.
[{616 Ethelbert of Kent, King Not since conversions of Constantine and Clovis hadThe king was baptized at Pentecost 597, and almost immediately afterwards St Augustine paid a visit to France, where he was consecrated bishop of the English by St Virgilius, metropolitan of Arles. At Christmas of that same year, many of Ethelbert's subjects were baptized in the Swale, as St Gregory joyfully related in a letter to Eulogius, the patriarch of Alexandria. Augustine sent two of his monks, Laurence and Peter, to Rome to give a full report of his mission, to ask for more helpers and obtain advice on various points. They came back bringing the pallium for Augustine and accompanied by a fresh band of missionaries amongst whom were St Mellitus, St Justus and St Paulinus. With these "ministers of the word", says Bede, "the pope sent all things needed in general for divine worship and the service of the Church, sacred vessels, altar cloths, furniture for churches, and vestments for clergy, relics, and also many books." Gregory outlined for Augustine the course he should take to develop a hierarchy for the whole country, and both to him and to Mellitus gave very practical instructions on other points. Pagan temples were not to be destroyed, but were to be purified and consecrated for Christian worship. Local customs were as far as possible to be retained, days of dedication and feasts of martyrs being substituted for heathen festivals since, as St Gregory wrote, "he who would climb to a lofty height must go by steps, not leaps."
Christendom known an event so momentous}
In Canterbury itself St Augustine rebuilt an ancient church which, with an old wooden house, formed the nucleus for his metropolitan basilica and for the later monastery of Christ Church. These buildings stood on the site of the present cathedral begun by Lanfranc in 1070. Outside the walls of Canterbury he made a monastic foundation, which he dedicated in honour of St Peter and St Paul. After his death this abbey became known as St Augustine's, and was the burial place of the early archbishops.
The evangelization of Kent was proceeding apace, and Augustine turned his attention to the bishops of the ancient British church which had been driven by the Saxon conquerors into the fastnesses of Wales and Cornwall. Cut off from much communication with the outside world, the British church, though sound in doctrine, clung to certain usages at variance with those of the Roman tradition. St Augustine invited the leading ecclesiastics to meet him at some place just on the confines of Wessex, still known in Bede's day as Augustine's Oak. There he urged them to comply with the practices of the rest of Western Christendom, and more especially to co-operate with him in evangelizing the Anglo-Saxons. Fidelity to their local traditions, however, and bitterness against their conquerors made them unwilling, even though he wrought a miracle of healing in their presence to demonstrate his authority. A second conference proved a sad failure. Because St Augustine failed to rise when they arrived, the British bishops decided that he was lacking in humility and would neither listen to him nor acknowledge him as their metropolitan. Whereupon it is said that Augustine, most unfortunately, threatened them that "if they would not accept peace with their brethren, they should have war with their enemies". Some claimed that this prediction was fulfilled, about ten years after Augustine's death, when King Ethelfrith of Northumbria attacked and defeated the Britons at Chester, after massacring the monks who had come from Bangor Iscoed to pray for victory.
The saint's last years were spent in spreading and consolidating the faith throughout Ethelbert's realm, and episcopal sees were established at London and Rochester. About seven years after his arrival in England, St Augustine passed to his reward, on May 26, C. 605. His feast is observed on this date in England and Wales, but elsewhere on May 28.
St Augustine wrote frequently to Pope St Gregory, consulting him in the least difficulties which occurred in his ministry. This shows the tenderness of his conscience: for in many things which he might have decided by his own learning and prudence he desired to render his conscience more secure by the advice and decision of the chief pastor. On one occasion Gregory wrote exhorting Augustine to beware of pride and vainglory in the miracles God wrought through him: "You must needs rejoice with fear, and fear with joy concerning that heavenly gift. You will rejoice because the souls of the English are by outward miracles drawn to inward grace: but you will fear lest, amidst the wonders that are done, the weak mind may be puffed up by self-esteem; and so the thing whereby it is outwardly raised to honour cause it to fall through vainglory. . . All the elect do not work miracles, and yet the names of all are written in Heaven. Those who are the disciples of truth ought not to rejoice save for that good thing which all enjoy as well as they, in which their joy shall be without end."
The text and notes of Plummer's edition of Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica supply almost all that can be regarded as trustworthy material for the life of St Augustine. Such later biographers and chroniclers as Goscelin (in the Acta Sanctorum, May, vol. vi), William of Malmesbury, Thomas of Elmham and John Brompton add nothing of value. The Welsh sources are equally late and unreliable. There is an excellent account of St. Augustine of Canterbury and his Companions (Eng, trans., 1897), by Fr A. Brou. The longest contribution to Newman's Lives of the English Saints, that devoted to St Augustine by Canon F. Oakeley, is thorough and sympathetic it was written, of course, in his Anglican days. See also F. A. Gasquet, The Mission of St Augustine (1925); F. M. Stenton, Anglo-Saxon England (1943), pp. 104—112; A. W. Wade-Evans, Welsh Christian Origins (1934), for a sensible discussion of the "British trouble"; and an important work by S. Brechter, Die Quellen zur Angelsachsenmission Gregors der Grossen (1941), reviewed in Analecta Bollandiana, vol. lx (1942) cf. W. Levison, England and the Continent . . (1946), p. 17, and St. Nothelm herein, October, 17.
Augustin wurde um 546 in Italien geboren. Er war Benediktinermönch und dann Prior des Andreasklosters, das Gregor der Große auf seinem Grundbesitz errichten ließ. 596 sandte ihn Gregor mit 40 Mönchen zur Mission nach England. Britannien war zwar christlich gewesen. Nach dem Abzug der römischen Besatzer um 410 eroberten aber heidnische Angelsachsen das Land. In Frankreich hörte Augustin Geschichten über die wilden Inselbewohner und kehrte nach Rom zurück um das Unternehmen aufzugeben. Gregor ernannte ihn daraufhin zum Abt und sandte ihn erneut nach England. Er kam mit seinen Mönchen 597 nach Kent und landete in der Nähe von Canterbury. Ethelbert der König von Kent (Gedenktag 24.2.) nahm die Missionare freundlich auf und gab ihnen freie Hand. Die Missionstätigkeit Augustins war sehr erfolgreich, er wurde zum Bischof geweiht und baute in Canterbury die Christ Church. Weihnachten 597 taufte er 10.000 Engländer. 601 ernannte ihn Papst Gregor zum Erzbischof.
Gregor gab Augustin zur Errichtung der Kirche weitreichende Freiheiten. So durften heidnische Festbräuche übernommen werden und es war den Gemeinden freigestellt, nach welcher Liturgie sie Gottesdienste abhielten (neben der von Gregor erneuerten römischen Liturgie wurden die fränkische und die keltische Liturgie gefeiert). Die Geistlichen wurden aber der strengen römischen Disziplin unterstellt. In der Heidenmission war Augustin mit diesem Vorgehen erfolgreich, aber er scheiterte mit dem Versuch, die altbritische Kirche in die römische Kirche einzugliedern. Die alte Kirche, die vor allem aus Mönchen bestand, wollte die römischen Riten und Liturgien nicht übernehmen. Augustin prophezeite der altbritischen Kirche ihre Vernichtung durch die heidnischen Angelsachsen - und zehn Jahre später fielen 1200 Mönche in Bangor den Angeln zum Opfer. Augustin der 604 starb, gilt als der Apostel der Angelsachsen.
Sent by Pope Gregory the Great with 40 brother monks, including Saint Lawrence of Canterbury to evangelize the British Isles in 597. Before he reached the islands, terrifying tales of the Celts sent him back to Rome in fear, but Gregory told him he had no choice, and so he went. He established and spread the faith throughout England; one of his earliest converts was King AEthelberht who brought 10,000 of his people into the Church. Ordained a bishop in Gaul (modern France) by the archbishop of Arles. Bishop of Canterbury. First Archbishop of Canterbury. Helped re-establish contact between the Celtic and Latin churches, though he could not establish his desired uniformity of liturgy and practices between them. Worked with Saint Justus of Canterbury. Anglican Archbishops of Canterbury are still referred to as occupying the Chair of Augustine.But Pope St. Gregory the Great had lived under Augustine's rule in that same monastery. Gregory, living in Rome, upon seeing English children being sold in the Roman Forum, he became a missionary to England.
When he decided it was time to send missionaries to Anglo-Saxon England, he didn't choose those with restless natures or the young looking for new worlds to conquer. He chose Augustine and thirty monks to make the unexpected, and dangerous, trip to England. Missionaries had gone to Britain years before but the Saxon conquest of England had forced these Christians into hiding. Augustine and his monks were to bring these Christians back into the fold and convince the warlike conquerors to become Christians themselves.
Every step of the way they heard the horrid stories of the cruelty and barbarity of their future hosts. By the time they had reached France the stories became so frightening that the monks turned back to Rome. Gregory had heard encouraging news that England was far more ready for Christianity than the stories would indicate, including the marriage of King Ethelbert of Kent to a Christian princess, Bertha. He sent Augustine and the monks on their way again fortified with his belief that now was the time for evangelization.
King Ethelbert himself wasn't as sure, but he was a just king and curious. So he went to hear what the missionaries had to say after they landed in England. But he was just as afraid of them as they were of him! Fearful that they would use magic on them, he held the meeting in the open air. There he listened to what they had to say about Christianity. He did not convert then but was impressed enough to let them continue to preach -- as long as they didn't force anyone to convert.
They didn't have to -- the king was baptized in 597. Unlike other kings who forced all subjects to be baptized as soon as they were converted, Ethelbert left religious a free choice. Nonetheless the following year many of his subjects were baptized.
Augustine was consecrated bishop of the English and more missionaries arrived from Rome to help with the new task. Augustine had to be very careful because, although the English had embraced the new religion they still respected the old. Under the wise orders of Gregory the Great, Augustine aided the growth from the ancient traditions to the new life by consecrating pagan temples for Christian worship and turning pagan festivals into feast days of martyrs. Canterbury was built on the site of an ancient church.
Augustine was more successful with the pagans than with the Christians. He found the ancient British Church, which had been driven into Cornwall and Wales, had strayed a little in its practices from Rome. He met with them several times to try to bring them back to the Roman Church but the old Church could not forgive their conquerors and chose isolation and bitterness over community and reconciliation.
Augustine was only in England for eight years before he died in 605. His feast day is celebrated on May 26 in England and May 28 elsewhere. He is also known as Austin, a name that many locations have adopted.
May 27, 2010 St. Augustine of Canterbury (d. 605?)
In the year 596 a small party of some 40 monks set out from Rome to evangelize the Anglo-Saxons in England. Leading the group was Augustine, the prior of their monastery in Rome. Hardly had he and his men reached Gaul (France) when they heard stories of the ferocity of the Anglo-Saxons and of the treacherous waters of the English Channel. Augustine returned to Rome and to the pope who had sent them—St. Gregory the Great—only to be assured by him that their fears were groundless.
Augustine again set out and this time the group crossed the English Channel and landed in the territory of Kent, ruled by King Ethelbert, a pagan married to a Christian. Ethelbert received them kindly, set up a residence for them in Canterbury and within the year, on Pentecost Sunday, 597, was himself baptized. After being consecrated a bishop in France, Augustine returned to Canterbury, where he founded his see. He constructed a church and monastery near where the present cathedral , begun in 1070, now stands. As the faith spread, additional sees were established at London and Rochester.
Work was sometimes slow and Augustine did not always meet with success. Attempts to reconcile the Anglo-Saxon Christians with the original Briton Christians (who had been driven into western England by Anglo-Saxon invaders) ended in dismal failure. Augustine failed to convince the Britons to give up certain Celtic customs at variance with Rome and to forget their bitterness, helping him evangelize their Anglo-Saxon conquerors
Laboring patiently, Augustine wisely heeded the missionary principles—quite enlightened for the times—suggested by Pope Gregory the Great: purify rather than destroy pagan temples and customs; let pagan rites and festivals be taken over into Christian feasts; retain local customs as far as possible. The limited success Augustine achieved in England before his death in 605, a short eight years after he arrived in England, would eventu ally bear fruit long after in the conversion of England. Truly Augustine of Canterbury can be called the "Apostle of England."
Comment: Augustine of Canterbury comes across today as a very human saint, one who could suffer like many of us from a failure of nerve. For example, his first venture to England ended in a big U-turn back to Rome. He made mistakes and met failure in his peacemaking attempts with the Briton Christians. He often wrote to Rome for decisions on matters he could have decided on his own had he been more self-assured. He even received mild warnings against pride from Pope Gregory, who cautioned him to "fear lest, amidst the wonders that are done, the weak mind be puffed up by self-esteem." Augustine's perseverance amidst obstacles and only partial success teaches today's apostles and pioneers to struggle on despite frustrations and be satisfied with gradual advances. Quote: In a letter to Augustine, Pope Gregory the Great wrote: "He who would climb to a lofty height must go by steps, not leaps."
|700 St. Ranulphus Martyred confessor father of St. Haduiph,
bishop of Arras Cambrai, France, He suffered for the faith at Thelvs, near
In pago Atrebaténsi sancti Ranúlfi Mártyris. In the district of Arras, St. Ralph, martyr.Also called Ragnulf. lie was the father of St. Haduiph, bishop of Arras Cambrai, France, He suffered for the faith at Thelvs, near Arras
735 Saint Bede was a church historian who recorded the history of Christianity in England up to his own time
He was probably born around 673 in Northumbria. We do not know exactly where he was born, but it is likely that it was somewhere near Jarrow. When he was seven, Bede was sent to St Benedict Biscop (January 12) at the monastery of St Peter at Wearmouth to be educated and raised. Then he was sent to the new monastery of St Paul founded at Jarrow in 682, where he remained until his death. There he was guided by the abbot St Ceolfrith (September 25), who succeeded St Benedict in 690, ruling both Wearmouth and Jarrow.
There is an incident in the anonymous Life of Ceolfrith which may refer to the young Bede. A plague swept through Ceolfrith's monastery in 686, taking most of the monks who sang in the choir for the church services. Only the abbot and a young boy raised and educated by him remained. This young boy "is now a priest of the same monastery and commends the abbot's admirable deeds both verbally and in writing to all who desire to learn them."
Grieved by this catastrophe, Ceolfrith decided that they should sing the Psalms without antiphons, except at Matins and Vespers. After a week of this, he went back to chanting the antiphons in their proper place. With the help of the boy and the surviving monks, the services were performed with difficulty until other monks could be brought in and trained to sing.
St Bede was ordained as a deacon when he was nineteen, and to the holy priesthood at the age of thirty by St John of Beverley (May 7), the holy Bishop of Hexham (687), and later (705) of York. Bede had a great love for the church services, and believed that since the angels were present with the monks during the services, that he should also be there. "What if they do not find me among the brethren when they assemble? Will they not say, 'Where is Bede?'
Bede began as a pupil of St Benedict Biscop, who had been a monk of the famous monastery at Lerins, and had founded monasteries himself. St Benedict had brought many books with him to England from Lerins and from other European monasteries. This library enabled Bede to write his own books, which include biblical commentary, ecclesiastical history, and hagiography.
Bede was not an objective historian. He is squarely on the Roman side in the debate with Celtic Christianity, for example. He was, however, fair and thorough. His books, derived from "ancient documents, from the traditions of our ancestors, and from my own personal knowledge" (Book V, 24) give us great insight into the religious and secular life of early Britain. To read St Bede is to enter a world shaped by spiritual traditions very similar to those cherished by Orthodox Christians. These saints engage in the same heroic asceticism shown by saints in the East, and their holiness fills us with love and admiration. Christians were expected to fast on Wednesdays and Fridays, and there was a forty day Nativity Fast (Book IV, 30).
Anglo-Saxon monk and scholar, Bede, known as:
Bede was the author of many works of various type – biblical commentaries, saints' 'Lives', homilies, hymns; educational, scientific and historical texts. Into this last category falls the work for which he is best known today: the 'Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum' (Ecclesiastical History of the English People). Bede dedicated the work to Ceolwulf, king of Northumbria (729–737), indeed, he had submitted a draft for the king's criticism prior to finalising it. It is clear that Bede was anxious to record only information which he considered to have reliable origins, and his scrupulous approach has lead to him being referred to as 'the Father of English History'. In the Preface, he writes:"... to the end that I may remove all occasion of doubting what I have written, both from yourself [Ceolwulf] and other readers or hearers of this history, I will take care briefly to intimate from what authors I chiefly learned the same.
My principal authority and aid in this work was the learned and reverend Abbot Albinus; who, educated in the Church of Canterbury by those venerable and learned men, Archbishop Theodore of blessed memory, and the Abbot Hadrian, transmitted to me by Nothhelm, the pious priest of the Church of London, either in writing, or by word of mouth of the same Nothhelm, all that he thought worthy of memory, that had been done in the province of Kent, or the adjacent parts, by the disciples of the blessed Pope Gregory, as he had learned the same either from written records, or the traditions of his ancestors. The same Nothhelm, afterwards going to Rome, having, with leave of the present Pope Gregory, searched into the archives of the holy Roman Church, found there some epistles of the blessed Pope Gregory, and other popes; and returning home, by the advice of the aforesaid most reverend father Albinus, brought them to me, to be inserted in my history. Thus, from the beginning of this volume to the time when the English nation received the faith of Christ, have we collected the writings of our predecessors, and from them gathered matter for our history; but from that time till the present, what was transacted in the Church of Canterbury, by the disciples of St.Gregory or their successors, and under what kings the same happened, has been conveyed to us by Nothhelm through the industry of the aforesaid Abbot Albinus. They also partly informed me by what bishops and under what kings the provinces of the East and West Saxons, as also of the East Angles, and of the Northumbrians, received the faith of Christ. In short I was chiefly encouraged to undertake this work by the persuasions of the same Albinus. In like manner, Daniel, the most reverend Bishop of the West Saxons, who is still living, communicated to me in writing some things relating to the Ecclesiastical History of that province, and the next adjoining to it of the South Saxons, as also of the Isle of Wight. But how, by the pious ministry of Cedd and Ceadda, the province of the Mercians was brought to the faith of Christ, which they knew not before, and how that of the East Saxons recovered the same, after having expelled it, and how those fathers lived and died, we learned from the brethren of the monastery, which was built by them, and is called Lastingham. What ecclesiastical transactions took place in the province of the East Angles, was partly made known to us from the writings and tradition of our ancestors, and partly by relation of the most reverend Abbot Esi. What was done towards promoting the faith, and what was the sacerdotal succession in the province of Lindsey, we had either from the letters of the most reverend prelate Cyneberht, or by word of mouth from other persons of good credit. But what was done in the Church throughout the province of the Northumbrians, from the time when they received the faith of Christ till this present, I received not from any particular author, but by the faithful testimony of innumerable witnesses, who might know or remember the same; besides what I had of my own knowledge. Wherein it is to be observed, that what I have written concerning our most holy father, Bishop Cuthbert, either in this volume, or in my treatise on his life and actions, I partly took, and faithfully copied from what I found written of him by the brethren of the Church of Lindisfarne; but at the same time took care to add such things as I could myself have knowledge of by the faithful testimony of such as knew him. And I humbly entreat the reader, that if he shall in this that we have written find anything not delivered according to the truth, he will not impute the same to me, who, as the true rule of history requires, have laboured sincerely to commit to writing such things as I could gather from common report, for the instruction of posterity."
St Bede became ill in 735. For about two weeks before Pascha, he was weak and had trouble breathing, but experienced little pain. He remained cheerful and gave daily lessons to his students, then spent the rest of the day singing Psalms and giving thanks to God. He would often quote the words of St Ambrose, "I have not lived in such a way that I am ashamed to live among you, and I do not fear to die, for God is gracious." (Paulinus, Life of Saint Ambrose, Ch. 45).
In addition to giving daily lessons and chanting the Psalms, St Bede was also working on an Anglo-Saxon translation of the Gospel of St John, and also a book of extracts from the writings of St Isidore of Seville (April 4). On Tuesday before the Feast of the Lord's Ascension, the saint's breathing became more labored, and his feet began to swell. "Learn quickly," he told those who were taking dictation from him, "for I do not know how long I can continue. The Lord may call me in a short while."
After a sleepless night, St Bede continued his dictation on Wednesday morning. At the Third Hour, there was a procession with the relics of the saints in the monastery, and the brethren went to attend this service, leaving a monk named Wilbert with Bede. The monk reminded him that there remained one more chapter to be written in the book which he was dictating. Wilbert was reluctant to disturb the dying Bede, however. St Bede said, "It is no trouble. Take your pen and write quickly.""
At the Ninth Hour, Bede paused and told Wilbert that he had some items in his chest, such as pepper, incense, and linen. He asked the monk to bring the priests of the monastery so that he could distribute these items to them. When they arrived, he spoke to each of them in turn, requesting them to pray for him and to remember him in the services. Then he said, "The time of my departure is at hand, and my soul longs to see Christ my King in His beauty."
That evening, Wilbert said to him, "Dear Master, there is one sentence left unfinished."
Bede said, "Very well, write it down."
Then the young monk said, "It is finished now."
St Bede replied, "You have spoken truly, it is well finished." Then he asked Wilbert to raise his head so that he could see the church where he used to pray. After chanting, "Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit" to its ending, St Bede fell asleep in the Lord Whom he had loved.
Although St Bede reposed on May 25, the eve of the Ascension, he is commemorated on the 27th, since the Feast of St Augustine of Canterbury is appointed for the 26th. His body was first buried in the south porch of the monastery church, then later transferred to a place near the altar. Today his holy relics lie in Durham Cathedral, in the Galilee chapel. St Bede is the only Englishman mentioned by Dante in the DIVINE COMEDY (Paradiso).
Bede championed the use of Christ's incarnation as a method of dating events, and, despite the incompleteness of it's record, his 'Ecclesiastical History' remains an indispensable source of early Anglo-Saxon history. In a short biographical section, at the end of the work, he writes:"Thus much of the Ecclesiastical History of Britain, and more especially of the English nation, as far as I could learn either from the writings of the ancients, or the tradition of our ancestors, or of my own knowledge, has, with the help of God, been digested by me, Bede, the servant of God, and priest of the monastery of the blessed apostles, Peter and Paul, which is at Wearmouth and Jarrow; who being born in the territory of that same monastery, was given, at seven years of age, to be educated by the most reverend Abbot Benedict, and afterwards by Ceolfrith; and spending all the remaining time of my life in that monastery, I wholly applied myself to the study of Scripture, and amidst the observance of regular discipline, and the daily care of singing in the church, I always took delight in learning, teaching, and writing. In the nineteenth year of my age, I received deacon's orders; in the thirtieth, those of the priesthood, both of them by the ministry of the most reverend Bishop John, and by order of the Abbot Ceolfrith."
'Historia Ecclesiastica' Book V Chapter 24
Bede completed the 'Historia Ecclesiastica' in 731, and implies that he was in his "fifty-ninth year" at the time. He had concluded with a set of brief annals reprising the events already covered at length. Preserved in a group of eight manuscripts (of the 12th century and later) is a 'Continuation' of the annals from 732–766. The entry for 735 ends: "...and the priest Bede died."
The oldest extant copy of the 'Historia Ecclesiastica' is the 'Moore Manuscript', which was probably made at Wearmouth-Jarrow soon after 737. This copy, however, seems to have been hastily produced. A more careful product of the monastery, made not later than 747, is to be found in St.Petersburg, National Library of Russia MS lat Q v I 18.
It is apparent from a letter, written by Cuthbert – a pupil of Bede's, and future (by 764) abbot of Wearmouth-Jarrow – that Bede died on Wednesday 25th May 735. Cuthbert's description of Bede's last days concludes:
"And thus on the pavement of his little cell, singing: 'Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,' when he had named the Holy Ghost, he breathed his last, and so departed to the heavenly kingdom. All who were present at the death of the blessed father, said they had never seen any other person expire with so much devotion, and in so tranquil a frame of mind."
Translations: 'Cuthbert's Letter on the Death of Bede' by J.A. Giles Bede 'Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum' by J.A. Giles Appendix A ANNO DOMINI
Using the year of Christ's incarnation as a method of dating was not originated by Bede – the individual usually accorded that honour is a monk resident in Rome, one Dionysius Exiguus, in 525 – but Bede's adoption of the system ensured its popularity.
Dionysius Exiguus was continuing an existing Easter Table. The years in this Table were defined in Anni Diocletiani (Years of Diocletian) – years since Emperor Diocletian's accession – and, as it stood, it concluded in the 247th year of Diocletian:
"... we, starting from the 248th [year] of the same tyrant – a better [word] than prince – do not wish to bind to our circles the memory of this impious man and persecutor, but choose rather to count the time of the years from the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that the beginning of our hope will appear better known to us, and the cause of the restoration of mankind, i.e. the passion of our Redeemer, may shine forth more clearly."
Dionysius Exiguus 'On Easter' Preface
Dionysius says that he was working on the Easter Table during "the consulship of Probus Junior" – the 'consular year', beginning 1st January, was the normal Roman method of dating – and that this was "525 ... years since the incarnation of the Lord". His extension to the Table begins, not as the 248th Year of Diocletian, but, as Anno Domini Nostri Jesu Christi (Year of Our Lord Jesus Christ) 532. Dionysius does not, however, explain the reasoning behind his conclusion that the year of Probus' consulship equated to Anno Domini 525. According to the 'Gospel of Matthew' (2:1), Jesus was born "in the days of King Herod". Using Dionysius' datum, though, Herod seems to have died four years before Jesus' birth (i.e. in 4BC). Anyway, it was through Dionysius' Easter Table that Bede became aware of Anno Domini dating. He adopted it, accepting its apparently inaccurate basis, for his 'Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum', and the rest, as they say, is history.*
It is widely (though by no means universally) accepted that, in the 'Historia Ecclesiastica', Bede chose to begin each year in September (preceding the January which would now define the beginning of the year), and acceptance of this convention does remove some, though not all, chronological inconsistencies within the work.
Bede had to reconcile the various methods of recording the date he was presented with. The 'indiction' is a fifteen-year cycle, starting from September 312 (hence, it is suggested, Bede's adoption of September as the beginning of the year). A year is defined within a cycle (i.e. the first year, second year and so on, up to fifteenth – and then the cycle repeats), but the cycle itself is not identified in any way – so knowing the indiction year is helpful only if there are other clues to the particular cycle meant. Commonly, events would be related to the 'regnal year' of a particular king. In 'Northumbria in the Days of Bede' (1976), Peter Hunter Blair writes: "The days of earlier events were calculated in various different ways and the adaptation of these ways to the Christian Annus Domini could lead to error. We may be told that a king reigned for, say, fifteen years, but we may not have any direct evidence even for the year, let alone the day of the month, at which the reign began or ended. The years have to be calculated from indirect evidence. Those who kept records were often content with figures rounded off to whole numbers of complete years. We do not know whether account was taken of any interregnum between the death of one king and the accession of another. It is only very rarely that we can establish a date of birth with accuracy. I do not believe that we can now improve upon Bede's own chronology for the main events, but some scholars will not agree."
The homilist Ælfric, writing at the end of the 10th century, says that 1st January was often, in the tradition of "the old Romans", considered to be the start of the year: "not for any religious reason, but from old custom". In the Christian Calendar, 1st January is the Feast of the Circumcision. It is understandable that the day of Jesus' birth would be seen as being more appropriate, so 25th December, Christmas Day – also the year's natural turning-point: midwinter – was, likewise, widely regarded as the start for the year. However, the Feast of the Annunciation (25th March), which marks the conception of Jesus, came to be considered even more appropriate, and in England, for instance, by the late 12th century, the succeeding 25th March (even though logic would dictate that it should be the preceding March–as indeed was espoused elsewhere) was in common use as the beginning of the year.
During much of the 'Anglo-Saxon Chronicle' Christmas seems to mark the beginning of the year, though there are times when it is clear that September and the Annunciation are being used (the latter as early as the mid-11th century).
Different conventions were adopted across Europe:
"If we suppose a traveller to set out from Venice on 1 March 1245, the first day of the Venetian year, he would find himself in 1244 when he reached Florence; and if after a short stay he went on to Pisa, the year 1246 would already have begun there. Continuing his journey westward, he would find himself again in 1245 when he entered Provence, and on arriving in France before Easter (16 April) he would be once more in 1244."
R.L. Poole 'Medieval Reckonings of Time', 1918
Following the calendrical reforms authorised by Pope Gregory XIII, in 1582, there began the process of fixing 1st January as the beginning of the year. Scotland fell into line on 1st January 1600, but in England, Wales and Ireland, the change was not effected until 1st January 1752.
Ælfric 'Catholic Homilies' by Benjamin Thorpe
Dionysius Exiguus 'On Easter' by Roger Pearse
Clement of Alexandria 'Stromata' by William Wilson
v. Saint Michael of Parekhi native of the village Norgiali in Shavsheti
region of southern Georgia tonsured a monk in the Midznadzori Wilderness
miracles at grave
Fr. Michael journeyed to Khandzta Monastery, and with the blessing of the brotherhood, he built a small chapel and dwelling for the monks nearby. Built in a cave on the side of a cliff, St. Michael's establishment was difficult to reach (the new monastery was called "Parekhi," or "Cave"). God was pleased with his good works, and He granted St. Michael the gift of working wonders. In a divine revelation, St. Michael was instructed to send his disciples Serapion and John to the region of Samtskhe. There they established a beautiful monastery in the village of Zarzma.
After some time Father Michael abandoned his cell and settled at the top of a large boulder. Once the devil caused him to stumble off the rock, but the Lord protected him and he remained unharmed. Frightened by the incident, Michael sent his disciples to bring St. Gregory of Khandzta, and he related to him all that had happened. The blessed Gregory assuaged his brother's fears, erected a cross on either side of Michael's cell, and told him, "These two crosses of Christ will protect you, and the mercy of the Most Holy Trinity and the Precious Cross will be upon you."
St. Michael lived to an old age, and he was buried at Parekhi Monastery. Many faithful pilgrims who have visited his grave have been healed of their infirmities.
According to Basil of Zarzma, St. Michael's disciples wrote accounts of his labors, wisdom, and miracles after his repose, but these works have unfortunately not been preserved. What we know about the life of St. Michael of Parekhi was preserved in the hagiographical writings of the 10th and 11th centuries.
St. Bruno Bishop
of Würzburg Germany killed in an accident starting parishes
throughout Würzburg, projects for which he used his personal wealth
revered as a scholar and author
Herbípoli, in Germánia, sancti Brunónis, Epíscopi et Confessóris. At Wurzburg in Germany, St. Bruno, bishop and confessor.
Killed in an accident while dining with Emperor Henry III Bruno became a bishop in 1033, and was known for starting parishes throughout Würzburg, projects for which he used his personal wealth. While dining with Emperor Henry III at Bosenberg on the Danube, Bruno was killed when a gallery gave way. He was the son of Duke Conrad of Carinthia and Baroness Matilda, and was revered as a scholar and author.
11th v. Saint Basil son of King Bagrat III Lived in the and labored at Khakhuli Monastery (in southwestern Georgia, present-day Turkey) a major figure in the spiritual and educational life of southern Georgia.
The famous 19th-century scholar Prince John Bagrationi describes St. Basil in his work Kalmasoba: (the tradition of monks journeying throughout the land to collect alms for the Church. In his book Prince John follows a fictional monk traveling throughout the country on kalmasoba. With this literary device he describes the contemporary situation, the life of the people, diverse branches of knowledge, and Georgian literature and folk culture, creating a veritable Georgian encyclopedia.) "Basil Bagrationi was highly educated in philosophy and theology.
He was fluent in several languages and translated many books.
He was the composer of many distinguished rhetorical works.
Perfected in the monastic life and in the spiritual learning of the Church, our Holy Father Basil was known among the people as the 'Jewel of the Georgian Church.'"
The 18th-century historian and geographer Prince Vakhushti Bagrationi examined the cultural development of Georgia during the rule of King Bagrat IV in his book The Ancient History of Georgia, and Basil is among the major Church figures he mentions: "The great translators of the time were Basil, son of Bagrat.…" In his work The Life of St. Giorgi of the Holy Mountain, Giorgi the Lesser recalls the pious laborer of Khakhuli Monastery: "The great Basil, son of King Bagrat III, shepherd and enlightener of our country at that time."
St. Basil eventually moved from Georgia to Mt. Athos and labored there until his death. It was there that he composed his "Praises to Holy Father Ekvtime."
1426 Saint Therapon of
White Lake Wonderworker of Luzhetsk raised in faith and piety throughout
life as a holy ascetic
In the world Theodore, born in 1337 at Volokolamsk into the noble Poskochin family. From his childhood, he was raised in faith and piety, which he displayed throughout his life as a holy ascetic.
At the age of forty he was tonsured a monk by the igumen of Moscow's Simonov monastery, St Theodore, a nephew of St Sergius (November 28).As a monk in this monastery Therapon became close to St Cyril of White Lake (June 9). Together they passed through their ascetic struggles of prayer and fasting.
They were under the spiritual guidance of St Sergius of Radonezh (September 25 and July 5), who visited the monastery to instruct the brethren.
St Therapon went north, to the frontier of White Lake, on monastery matters. The harsh northern land attracted the ascetic, and he decided to remain there for his ascetic endeavors.After returning with St Cyril, to whom the Mother of God had appeared, also ordering him to go to the north, St Therapon received the blessing of the igumen to go to White Lake. For a while the ascetics lived together in a cell they built; later and by mutual consent, St Therapon moved to another place fifteen versts away from Cyril, between two lakes, Borodava and Pava.
Having cleared a small plot for a garden, and building a cell in the deep forest near a river, St Therapon continued his ascetic efforts as a hermit in silence. At first he endured much deprivation and tribulation in his solitude. More than once he was set upon by robbers, who tried to chase away or even kill the ascetic. In time monks began to gather to the saint, and the wilderness place was gradually transformed into a monastery, afterwards called the Theraponov.
In 1398 St Therapon built a wooden church in honor of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos, and the monastery was gradually set in order. The monks toiled together with their saintly guide building cells, copying books, and adorning the church. (At the end of the fifteenth century on the place of the former wooden church a stone cathedral was built in honor of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos. It was painted in the years 1500-1501 by the renowned Russian iconographer Dionysius and his sons, Vladimir and Theodosius. The frescoes are devoted to the Praise of the Most Holy Theotokos. The unique frescoes of the St Therapon monastery have been preserved up to the present time and are an outstanding memorial of Russian church art and painting, having world significance).
A cenobitic monastic rule was introduced at the monastery, strictly observed by the monks. St Therapon declined to head the monastery out of humility, and instead entrusted the position of igumen to one of his disciples. The holy ascetic, endowed with the gift of counsel, turned to his friend, St Cyril of White Lake for spiritual guidance just as before. News about the ascetic deeds of the saint spread far beyond the White Lake frontier.
At the beginning of the fifteenth century, the lands on which the St Cyril and St Therapon monasteries were built, were part of the holdings of the Mozhaisk prince Andrew (1382-1432), son of Great Prince Demetrius Donskoy (1363-1389). In the year 1408 Prince Andrew Dimitrievich, learning of the high level of spiritual life of the White Lake ascetic, asked the monastic Elder Therapon to establish a monastery in the city of Mozhaisk.
It was difficult for the saint to leave his own monastery, where he had labored for more than ten years. St Therapon was met at Mozhaisk with great honor. Soon, not far from Mozhaisk, in the locality of Lushko, St Therapon founded his second monastery on a hilly part of the right bank of the Moscow River. Its chief temple was in honor of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos, in memory of the White Lake monastery. Prince Andrew, esteeming the saint for his true humility, provided generous help in the construction and establishment of the monastery. With the blessing of St Photius, Metropolitan of Moscow (July 2 and May 27), the monastery was to be headed by an archimandrite, and St Therapon was elevated to the rank of archimandrite.
St Therapon dwelt at this new monastery for eighteen years. He reposed at an advanced age, on May 27, 1426. His body was buried at the north wall of the cathedral of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos. Over his grave a church was built in honor of St John of the Ladder (March 30), and renamed in 1730 for St Therapon.
Veneration of the saint began soon after his death. In 1514, the incorrupt relics of the holy ascetic were uncovered and glorified by numerous miracles. After the Moscow Council of 1547 the canonization of St Therapon of Mozhaisk took place after the igumen of the St Therapon monastery brought to Metropolitan Macarius (1543-1564) a Life of the saint.
Among the numerous disciples and conversers of St Sergius of Radonezh, the Russian Church venerates the memory of St Therapon, who in following the counsel of his great teacher and guide, combined the ascetic feats of silence and solitude with active service to his neighbor and the spiritual enlightenment of his Fatherland.
The memory of St Therapon is celebrated twice, May 27 (his repose in 1426), and December 27 (Uncovering of his relics, 1514).
Uncovering and Transfer of Relics of Holy Hierarchs Cyprian, Photius and
occured on May 27, 1472 during the construction of the new stone Dormition cathedral in the Kremlin, under Metropolitan Philip (January 9) and Great Prince Ivan III (1462-1505).
The saints are also commemorated separately: Metropolitan Cyprian (September 16), Metropolitan Photius (July 2), Metropolitan Jonah (March 31).
1554 Saint Nilus of
Stolobensk icon of St Nilus was painted by the monks of the Orshin monastery,
and numerous miracles of healings of the sick began to occur at the saint's
grave incorrupt relics.
Nilus of Stolobensk reposed on December 7, 1554 (see his Life under December 7).
Many years afterwards, hieromonk Germanus came to the island of Lake Seliger, where the holy ascetic had struggled, and immediately after him the hill-dweller and wanderer Boris. They settled together on the island and built a church in honor of the Theophany, with a chapel dedicated to St Basil of Moscow (August 2).
On the site where St Nilus had struggled, a monastery named for him was built. An icon of St Nilus was painted by the monks of the Orshin monastery, and numerous miracles of healings of the sick began to occur at the saint's grave.
Later, St Nectarius, Archbishop of Sibirsk and Tobolsk lived at the monastery, and he decided to build a stone church to replace the former wooden one. When the foundations were dug, the earth crumbled away and revealed the incorrupt relics of St Nilus.
The Uncovering of the Relics occurred on May 27, 1667, and a Feast day was established in honor of the event.
1597 Saint Therapon
of Monza
Today the holy ascetic's namesake St Therapon of Sardis is celebrated.
See account of St Therapon under December 12, the day of his repose.
1730 John the Russian The Holy Confessor kind and gentle nature effect souls of both the turkic master and slaves (Compare the story of Habakkuk, who miraculously brought a dish of pottage to Daniel in the lions' den [Dan. 14:33-39], in the Septuagint).
Born in Little Russia around 1690, raised in piety and love for the Church of God. Upon attaining the age of maturity he was called to military service, and he served as a simple soldier in the army of Peter I and took part in the Russo-Turkish War. During the Prutsk Campaign of 1711 he and other soldiers were captured by the Tatars, who handed him over to the commander of the Turkish cavalry. He took his Russian captive home with him to Asia Minor, to the village of Prokopion.
The Turks tried to convert the Christian soldiers to the Moslem faith with threats and flattery, but those who resisted were beaten and tortured. Some, alas, denied Christ and became Moslems, hoping to improve their lot. St John was not swayed by the promise of earthly delights, and he bravely endured the humiliation and beatings.
His master tortured him often in the hope that his slave would accept Islam. St John resolutely resisted the will of his master saying, "You cannot turn me from my holy Faith by threats, nor with promises of riches and pleasures. I will obey your orders willingly, if you will leave me free to follow my religion. I would rather surrender my head to you than to change my faith. I was born a Christian, and I shall die a Christian."
St John's bold words and firm faith, as well as his humility and meekness, finally softened the fierce heart of his master. He left John in peace, and no longer tried to make him renounce Christianity. The saint lived in the stable and took care of his master's animals, rejoicing because his bed was a manger such as the one in which the Savior was born. From morning until late evening the saint served his Turkish master, fulfilling all his commands. He performed his duties in the winter cold and summer heat, half naked and barefoot. Other slaves frequently mocked him, seeing his zeal. St John never became angry with them, but on the contrary, he helped them when he could, and comforted them in their misfortune. The saint's kindness and gentle nature had its effect on the souls of both the master and the slaves. The Agha and his wife came to love him, and offered him a small room near the hayloft. St John did not accept it, preferring to remain in the stable with the animals. Here he slept on the hay, covered only by an old coat. So the stable became his hermitage, where he prayed and chanted Psalms.
St John brought a blessing to his master simply by living in his household. The cavalry officer became rich, and was soon one of the most powerful men in Prokopion. He knew very well why his home had been blessed, and he did not hesitate to tell others.(Compare the story of Habakkuk, who miraculously brought a dish of pottage to Daniel in the lions' den [Dan. 14:33-39], in the Septuagint).
Sometimes St John left the stable at night and went to the church of the Great Martyr George, where he kept vigil in the narthex. On Saturdays and Feast days, he received the Holy Mysteries of Christ.
During this time St John continued to serve his master as before, and despite his own poverty, he always helped the needy and the sick, and shared his meager food with them. One day, the officer left Prokopion and went to Mecca on pilgrimage. A few days later, his wife gave a banquet and invited her husband's friends and relatives, asking them to pray for her husband's safe return. St John served at the table, and he put down a dish of pilaf, his master's favorite food. The hostess said, "How much pleasure your master would have if he could be here to eat this pilaf with us." St John asked for a dish of pilaf, saying that he would send it to his master in Mecca. The guests laughed when they heard his words. The mistress, however, ordered the cook to give him a dish of pilaf, thinking he would eat it himself, or give it to some poor family.
Taking the dish, St John went into the stable and prayed that God would send it to his master. He had no doubt that God would send the pilaf to his master in a supernatual manner. The plate disappeared before his eyes, and he went into the house to tell his mistress that he had sent the pilaf to his master. After some time, the master returned home with the copper plate which had held the pilaf. He told his household that on a certain day (the very day of the banquet), he returned from the mosque to the home where he was staying. Although the room was locked, he found a plate of steaming pilaf on the table. Unable to explain who had brought the food, or how anyone could enter the locked room, the officer examined the plate. To his amazement, he saw his own name engraved on the copper plate. In spite of his confusion, he ate the meal with great relish. When the officer's family heard this story, they marveled. His wife told him of how John had asked for a plate of pilaf to send to his master in Mecca, and how they all laughed when John came back and said that it had been sent. Now they saw that what the saint had said was true
Toward the end of his difficult life St John fell ill, and sensed the nearness of his end. He summoned the priest so that he could receive Holy Communion. The priest, fearing to go to the residence of the Turkish commander openly with the Holy Gifts, enclosed the life-giving Mysteries in an apple and brought them to St John.
St John glorified the Lord, received the Body and Blood of Christ, and then reposed. The holy Confessor John the Russian went to the Lord Whom he loved on May 27, 1730. When they reported to the master that his servant John had died, he summoned the priests and gave them the body of St John for Christian burial. Almost all the Christian inhabitants of Prokopion came to the funeral, and they accompanied the body of the saint to the Christian cemetery.
Three and a half years later the priest was miraculously informed in a dream that the relics of St John had remained incorrupt. Soon the relics of the saint were transferred to the church of the holy Great Martyr George and placed in a special reliquary. The new saint of God began to be glorified by countless miracles of grace, accounts of which spread to the remote cities and villages. Christian believers from various places came to Prokopion to venerate the holy relics of St John the Russian and they received healing through his prayers. The new saint came to be venerated not only by Orthodox Christians, but also by Armenians, and even Turks, who prayed to the Russian saint, "Servant of God, in your mercy, do not disdain us."
In the year 1881 a portion of the relics of St John were transferred to the Russian monastery of the holy Great Martyr Panteleimon by the monks of Mount Athos, after they were miraculously saved by the saint during a dangerous journey. Construction of a new church was begun in 1886, through the contributions of the monastery and the inhabitants of Prokopion. This was necessary because the church of the holy Great Martyr George, where the relics of St John were enshrined, had fallen into disrepair. On August 15, 1898 the new church dedicated to St John the Russian was consecrated by the Metropolitan John of Caesarea, with the blessing of the Ecumenical Patriarch Constantine V.
In 1924, an exchange of the populations of Greece and Turkey took place. Many Moslems moved out of Greece, and many Christians moved out of Turkey. The inhabitants of Prokopion, when they moved to the island of Euboia, took with them part of the relics of St John the Russian.
For several decades the relics were in the church of Sts Constantine and Helen at New Prokopion on Euboia, and in 1951 they were transferred into a new church dedicated to St John the Russian. Thousands of pilgrims flocked here from all the corners of Greece, particularly on his Feast, May 27. St John the Russian is widely venerated on Mount Athos, particularly in the Russian monastery of St Panteleimon.
St John's help is sought by travelers, and by those transporting things.
Mary's Divine Motherhood
Pope Francis PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR MAY
Christians in Africa.
That Christians in Africa, in imitation of the Merciful Jesus,
may give prophetic witness to reconciliation, justice, and peace.
Marian spirituality: all are invited.
Et álibi aliórum plurimórum sanctórum Mártyrum et Confessórum, atque sanctárum Vírginum.Пресвятая Богородице спаси нас! Santíssima Mãe de Deus, salva-nos!
And elsewhere in divers places, many other holy martyrs, confessors, and holy virgins.
R. Deo grátias. R. Thanks be to God.
May, the month of Mary, is the oldest and most well-known Marian month, officially since 1724;
On Death and Life
"Man Needs Eternity -- and Every Other Hope, for Him, Is All Too Brief"
Пресвятая Богородице спаси нас! (Santíssima Mãe de Deus, salva-nos!)
We are the defenders of true freedom.
May our witness unveil the deception of the "pro-choice" slogan.
Campaign saves lives Shawn Carney Campaign Director www.40daysforlife.com ,
Please help save the unborn they are the future for the world
It is a great poverty that a child must die so that you may live as you wish -- Mother Teresa
Saving babies, healing moms and dads, 'The Gospel of Life'
"Man Needs Eternity -- and Every Other Hope, for Him, Is All Too Brief"
It Makes No Sense Not To Believe In GOD
wherein one can read the teaching of the gospel
Jesus brings us many Blessings
The more we pray, the more we wish to pray. Like a fish which at first swims on the surface of the water, and afterwards plunges down, and is always going deeper; the soul plunges, dives, and loses itself in the sweetness of conversing with God. -- St. John Vianney
The Rosary html Mary Mother of GOD -- Her Rosary Here
Mary Mother of GOD Mary's Divine Motherhood: FEASTS OF OUR LADY
of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary
May 9 – Our Lady of the Wood (Italy, 1607)
Months of Dedication
January is the month of the Holy Name of Jesus since 1902;
March is the month of Saint Joseph since 1855;
May, the month of Mary, is the oldest and most well-known Marian month, officially since 1724;
June is the month of the Sacred Heart since 1873;
July is the month of the Precious Blood since 1850;
August is the month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary;
September is the month of Our Lady of Sorrows since 1857;
October is the month of the Rosary since 1868;
November is the month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory since 1888;
December is the month of the Immaculate Conception.
In all, five months of the year are dedicated to Mary.
The idea of dedicating months came from Rome and promotion of the month of Mary owes much to the Jesuits. arras.catholique.fr
Pray that the witness of 40 Days for Life bears abundant fruit, and that we begin again each day to storm the gates of hell until God welcomes us into the gates of heaven.
either when one patiently suffers much, or when one suffers things which one is able to avoid and yet does not avoid.
Christ endured much on the cross, and did so patiently, because when he suffered he did not threaten;
he was led like a sheep to the slaughter and he did not open his mouth.-- St. Thomas Aquinas
We begin our day by seeing Christ in the consecrated bread, and throughout the day we continue to see Him in the torn bodies of our poor. We pray, that is, through our work, performing it with Jesus, for Jesus and upon Jesus.-- Mother Teresa
The poor are our prayer. They carry God in them. Prayer means praying everything, praying the work.We meet the Lord who hungers and thirsts, in the poor.....and the poor could be you or I or any person kind enough to show us his or her love and to come to our place.
Because we cannot see Christ, we cannot express our love to Him in person.
But our neighbor we can see, and we can do for him or her what we would love to do for Jesus if He were visible.
I believe,
I adore,
I trust
I love Thee.
I beg
for those
who do
not believe,
do not
do not love
most Holy
Son and
I adore
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, Amen Fatima Prayer, Angel of PeaceMary's Divine Motherhood
Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI { 2013 } Catholic Church In China { article here}
1648 to1930 St. Augustine Zhao Rong and 120 Companions Christianity arrived in China by way of Syria -- 600s.
Depending on China's relations with outside world,
Christianity for centuries was free to grow or forced to operate secretly.
Nine First Fridays Devotion to the Sacred Heart From the writings of St. Margaret Mary AlacoqueHow do I start the Five First Saturdays?
From the writings of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
Called in the Gospel "the Mother of Jesus," Mary is acclaimed by Elizabeth, at the prompting of the Spirit and even before the birth of her son, as "the Mother of my Lord" (Lk 1:43; Jn 2:1; 19:25; cf. Mt 13:55; et al.). In fact, the One whom she conceived as man by the Holy Spirit, who truly became her Son according to the flesh, was none other than the Father's eternal Son, the second person of the Holy Trinity. Hence the Church confesses that Mary is truly "Mother of God" (Theotokos).
Catechism of the Catholic Church 495, quoting the Council of Ephesus (431): DS 251.
"The Blessed Virgin was eternally predestined, in conjunction with the incarnation of the divine Word, to be the Mother of God. By decree of divine Providence, she served on earth as the loving mother of the divine Redeemer, an associate of unique nobility, and the Lord's humble handmaid. She conceived, brought forth, and nourished Christ."
of the Father
the Son enters
and the
Holy Spirit
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 geeral and binds all the followers of Christ.
Feasts of Our Lady.html January to December ICONS
stlukeorthodox.com/html/saints/ usccb.org ewtn.com St Patricks 05 27
domcentral.org/life/martyr Dec syriac oca.org glaubenszeugen.de/tage/kai/ 05 27
Serbian http://www.copticchurch.net Melkite
Monthly Saints with pics here http://www.stfrancisenid.com/memorials.htm antiochian.org/AW-WomenSaints--wonderful icons
Lutheran Saints One Saint per day stthomasirondequoit.com/SaintsAlive/index.htm stjohndc.org God's Humourous Saints
Join Mary of Nazareth
us build
THE EUCHARIST, A MYSTERY TO BE BELIEVED POST-SYNODAL APOSTOLIC EXHORTATIONMorning Prayer and Hymn Meditation of the Day Prayer for Priests Our Bartholomew Family Prayer List Here
There are over 10,000 named saints beati from history
and Roman Martyology Orthodox sources
Miracles by Century 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500 1600 1700 1800 1900 Miracles_BC Lay Saints
|We are
called upon with the whole
Church militant on earth
to join
in praising
and thanking
God for
the grace
and glory
he has bestowed
on his saints.
At the
same time
we earnestly
to exert
His almighty
in raising
us from our
sins, healing
of our souls and
us by the path
of repentance
to the company
His saints,
to which He has
They were once what we are now, travellers on earth they had the same weaknesses, which we have. We have difficulties to encounter so had the saints, and many of them far greater than we can meet with; obstacles from kings and whole nations, sometimes from the prisons, racks and swords of persecutors. Yet they surmounted these difficulties, which they made the very means of their virtue and victories. It was by the strength they received from above, not by their own, that they triumphed. But the blood of Christ was shed for us as it was for them and the grace of our Redeemer is not wanting to us; if we fail, the failure is in ourselves.
THE saints and just, from the beginning of time and throughout the world, who have been made perfect, everlasting monuments of God's infinite power and clemency, praise His goodness without ceasing; casting their crowns before His throne they give to Him all the glory of their triumphs: "His gifts alone in us He crowns."
"The saints must be honored as friends of Christ and children and heirs of God, as John the theologian and evangelist says: 'But as many as received him, he gave them the power to be made the sons of God....' Let us carefully observe the manner of life of all the apostles, martyrs, ascetics and just men who announced the coming of the Lord. And let us emulate their faith, charity, hope, zeal, life, patience under suffering, and perseverance unto death, so that we may also share their crowns of glory" Exposition of the Orthodox Faith
Called in the Gospel "the Mother of Jesus," Mary is acclaimed by Elizabeth, at the prompting of the Spirit and even before the birth of her son, as "the Mother of my Lord" (Lk 1:43; Jn 2:1; 19:25; cf. Mt 13:55; et al.). In fact, the One whom she conceived as man by the Holy Spirit, who truly became her Son according to the flesh, was none other than the Father's eternal Son, the second person of the Holy Trinity.
Hence the Church confesses that Mary is truly "Mother of God" (Theotokos).
Catechism of the Catholic Church 495, quoting the Council of Ephesus (431): DS 251.
Nine First Fridays Devotion to the Sacred Heart ... From the writings of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
On Friday during Holy Communion, He said these words to me, His unworthy slave, if I mistake not:
"I promise you in the excessive mercy of my Heart that its all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on nine first Fridays of consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they will not die under my displeasure or without receiving their sacraments, my divine Heart making itself their assured refuge at the last moment."
Margaret Mary was inspired by Christ to establish the Holy Hour and to pray lying prostrate with her face to the ground from eleven till midnight on the eve of the first Friday of each month, to share in the mortal sadness.
He endured when abandoned by His Apostles in His Agony, and to receive holy Communion on the first Friday of every month. In the first great revelation, He made known to her His ardent desire to be loved by men and His design of manifesting His Heart with all Its treasures of love and mercy, of sanctification and salvation.
He appointed the Friday after the octave of the feast of Corpus Christi as the feast of the Sacred Heart; He called her "the Beloved Disciple of the Sacred Heart", and the heiress of all Its treasures. The love of the Sacred Heart was the fire which consumed her, and devotion to the Sacred Heart is the refrain of all her writings. In her last illness she refused all alleviation, repeating frequently: "What have I in heaven and what do I desire on earth, but Thee alone, O my God", and died pronouncing the Holy Name of Jesus.
With regard to this promise it may be remarked: (1) that our Lord required Communion to be received on a particular day chosen by Him; (2) that the nine Fridays must be consecutive; (3) that they must be made in honor of His Sacred Heart, which means that those who make the nine Fridays must practice the devotion and must have a great love for our Lord; (4) that our Lord does not say that those who make the nine Fridays will be dispensed from any of their obligations or from exercising the vigilance necessary to lead a good life and overcome temptation; rather He implicitly promises abundant graces to those who make the nine Fridays to help them to carry out these obligations and persevere to the end; (5) that perseverance in receiving Holy Communion for nine consecutive First Firdays helps the faithful to acquire the habit of frequent Communion, which our Lord eagerly desires; and (6) that the practice of the nine Fridays is very pleasing to our