Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop, Confessor and Doctor of the Church (315-386)
by VP
Posted on Monday March 18, 2024 at 12:00AM in Saints
"The accomplishment of Prophecies: St. Cyril, bishop of Jerusalem, is one of the greatest prelates that the Church has ever possessed; pious and learned in all sciences human and divine; inflexible in the doctrines of faith, and, for that reason, twice sent into exile; benevolent and charitable beyond measure, abounding with a zeal truly apostolic, such, in brief, was this holy bishop.
His episcopate was marked by two great events, first, the appearance of a luminous cross above Mount Calvary, which was visible to the whole of Judea and Samaria; and next, the accomplishment of the prophecy of Jesus Christ relative to the temple of Jerusalem.
Julian the Apostate, having wished to rebuild it in order to set the Gospel at naught, the Jews were all jubilant and the Christians borne down with dread; but Cyril reassured them, and scoffed at the enterprise. In fact, on the last stone being torn from the foundations, flames burst forth, which trice consumed the separate relays of workmen. The apostate having died, the undertaking was suspended, and since then never has there been a stone upon a stone. St. Cyril died in 386.
Moral reflection: If our faith grow timid, those words of the Divine Master should suffice to calm our disquietude, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not fail." (Matt. XXIV. 35) Source: Pictorial half hours with the saints, by Rev. Fr. Auguste François Lecanu 1865
