"A SERVANT of God who in solitude sought security against the dangers of his youthful years; and having lived a long time in the exercise of prayer and mortification, was called forth to undertake the charge of the apostolic see. In this exalted station, he wholly applied himself to perform the duties of a good pastor. But he felt the weight of his dignity every day more and more insupportable; and at length determined to resign his charge. He found the infinite cares of that function a hindrance to his accustomed recollection. Wherefore, he held a consistory of cardinals, and read before them the solemn act of his abdication. He then laid aside his pontifical robes, put on his religious habit, came down from his throne, and cast himself at the feet of the assembly, begging pardon for his faults, and exhorting them to choose a more worthy successor of St. Peter. He returned to his hermitage, and eminent in all virtues, died in retirement in 1296.

Pray for all who are engaged in the public concerns of the Church, that in their solicitude for others, they be not wanting in that charity, which is due to themselves. This charity is due to them from the flock, who receive the benefit of their care. Pray for yourself, and see that no excess of worldly solicitude may so take up your heart and thoughts, as to rob your soul of that care, which is necessary for its eternal good. You may have a variety of business; but remember that the business of eternity is your greatest; and ought to take place of all the rest. If for this, you are forced to be wanting to some others, you will be no loser in the end.

But who can promise this, if you neglect heaven for earth? And what think you of unlawful employments, which are inconsistent with your spiritual duties? What of that perpetual dissipation of mind occasioned by thrusting yourself into the affairs of others, through your busy temper, by your pride, vanity, and immoderate diversions? Take care to remove all such distractions. The rule of the Gospel is to forsake all for Christ; all at least that hinders you from being a good Christian."

"A HOLY man, who having employed the years of his youth in exercises of piety, put himself into an hospital, among the number of those who were to take care of the sick. There he satisfied all the duties of that place with wonderful charity, and in the practice of great mortification. He declared his aversion so much against whatever savoured of impurity, that no one dared to speak an unbecoming word in his presence. He afterwards entered the order of St. Francis, where endeavouring to outgo all in humility and other exercises of a religious life, and by his zealous preaching to reclaim the world from vice, he ended his days in the year 1444.

Learn from this servant of God to shew your charity to the sick, as occasion shall offer. There are many ways in which you may bring them comfort; and if at any time their weakness proves a trial of your patience, see that you be not wanting in it. Bearing with the infirmities of the miserable, is a sure means of finding mercy with God. Pray daily for all that are thus visited by the hand of God with distempers of mind or body, especially for the poor who are destitute of help, that heaven would be their comfort, and mercifully supply their wants. Learn something of the zeal of this saint, in prudently making war against vice, and in particular discountenancing whatever offends against chastity. St. Paul commands you to avoid all filthy communication, and that no indecent word should be so much as named among Christians. Be exact, even to a niceness, in observing this precept. Carefully avoid all expressions of double meaning, which no pious Christian can employ, or tolerate in others, without denouncing that purity, which the Gospel requires, and evidently hazarding his salvation. Can there be innocence in being the devil's instrument, and conveying poison into the souls of others, which penetrates deeper, the more wit it carries with it? All such discourse and expressions are a breach of the commandments, and contrary to the Gospel; and must be renounced by all, who pretend to be Christians. Make firm resolutions upon this matter; discourage all such pernicious practice in others, and pray for all who place their diversion in what is so serviceable to the devil." The Catholic Year by Fr. John Gother

-"And I say that the priest doth more grievous wrong by giving bad example merely by scandalizing his neighbor by a wicked life, than if a layman where to go out to rob in the highway.The reason is this: that he who standeth in the highway doth rob the man who passeth by, and doth take from him his money, his horse, his garments, and all that which he findeth, but the other with his evil example doth make away with both soul and body of the man whom he doth scandalize thereby, and leaveth him to say and to do evil and to commit sin."Source: Sermons (iv backbiters are treated of with most beautiful examples, page 28) Saint Bernardine of Siena

-"Whenever you hear sodomy mentioned, each and every one of you spit on the ground and clean your mouth out as well. If they don't want to change their ways by any other means, maybe they will change when they're made fools of. Spit hard! Maybe the water of your spit will extinguish their fire." Lenten sermon preached in Santa Croce, 1424

Prayer:

"Apostle of peace! Italy, whose factions were so often quelled by thee, may well number thee among her protectors. Behold her now a prey to the enemies of Jesus, rebellious against the Church of God, and abandoned to her fate. Oh! Forget not, that she is thy native land, that she was obedient to thy preaching, and that thy memory was long most dear to her. Intercede in her favor; deliver her from her oppressors; and show, that when earthly armies fail, the hosts of heaven can always save both cities and countries.

Illustrious son of the great Patriarch of Assisi! The seraphic Order venerates thee as one of its main supports. Thou didst re-animate it to its primitive observance; continue, now from heaven, to protect the work thou commenced here on earth. The Order of St. Francis is one of the grandest consolations of holy Mother Church; make this Order for ever flourish, protect it in its trials, give it increase in proportion to the necessities of the Faithful; for thou art the second Father of this venerable family, and thy prayers are powerful with the Redeemer, whose glorious Name thou confessed upon earth." Source: Dom Gueranger

Ten Commandments

“Thou shalt not have strange gods before me.”—Exod. XX. 2.

"There are some sinful practices forbidden in these words which it is well to consider to-day, beside fortune-telling and the observing of dreams and omens. These are the use of charms, and the consulting of spirits, or seeking of the truth from the dead.

First, then, with regard to charms, amulets, and the like. Christians are unfortunately to be found, even at the present day, who use, in a superstitious way, and it may be for sinful purposes, things which can have no natural power to accomplish the end desired, but must derive any efficacy which they can be supposed to have from the devil, whose aid is therefore implicitly invoked by those who possess such things. Let every one, then, understand that the use of these charms and amulets, though it might be even for a good object, as the preservation of one's life, is a great sin, and will bring a curse instead of a blessing on any one who perseveres in it. If any one, then, has any such object which he has been told will keep him from danger, give him success in his undertakings, or anything of that kind, let him cast it aside or burn it up without delay. Doubly sinful, of course, is it to keep or use such objects with the hope of working harm to others, or of exciting evil passions in them; and the sin will in no case be avoided by the absurd character of the things employed in this way.

Scarsellino:  Martyrdom of St. Venantius of Camerino

"A YOUTH of fifteen, of Camerino in Italy, who was accuesd under Decius the emperor, for his faith in Christ. He suffered many martyrdoms, being scourged, hung up by the heels over smoke, cast upon a dunghill with his teeth beaten out, and his jaws broken. He was also exposed to lions, dragged by horses, thrown off a rock, and at length beheaded with many others, who, moved by that divine power, which appeared so visibly in his protection, had believed in Christ. Pray for all those, who throughout the world suffer for their faith, for truth, or for justice. Pray for all of both sexes, who at the age of this martyr, being charmed with the follies and vanities of the world, are solicitous to please themselves, but forget God. It is an afflicting thought to consider the great corruption of youth; how early a knowledge they have of evil, and how ripe they are for vice. It is the care and duty of parents to prevent this mischief, by sweetly inspiring them with good principles, by teaching them the art of employing themselves usefully, of loving business and home. Reasonable diversions are not to be denied them; but care must be taken that they grow not too much in love with them. When diversions are allowed as an encouragement to duty, they are very commendable, and have a very good effect. But if a person is fond of idle conversation, loves gaming, plays, romances, entertainments, and late hours, is averse to all employment, to the methods of good discipline, and to whatever is serious and moderate; such a one is in the highway to ruin. It must be therefore the care of parents discreetly to moderate such inclinations in their children, and by easy self-denials insensibly lead them to the practice of overcoming themselves. This is laying in them the first seeds of martyrdom, and teaching them to be Christians.

Pray for patience and courage for yourself in all difficulties and troubles: and let the great sufferings of this martyr in his tender years be a subject of reproach and confusion to you, that you yet understand so little, what it is to suffer with resignation and patience." The Catholic Year by Fr. John Gother

Practise the humility of this saint. For though you are not obliged to follow him in habit, yet, unless, like him, you are truly humble and poor in spirit, you cannot be a true disciple. Pride has many subtle ways, and requires your best observation to discover it, and yet greater care to overcome it. Study all its ways, and by prayers call in heaven to your assistance." The Catholic Year by Fr. John Gother

"His parents neglected nothing to give him a good education; nor could a child give more promising hopes of future greatness by his mildness, gentleness, docility, devotion, and application to his studies. He had from his tender years regarded the priesthood as the great object of his pious ambition, that he might devote himself in the most perfect manner to promote the divine honour. Having produced great fruit after his ordination in extirpating vice, and recalling many who had strayed from the paths of virtue, he was chosen a canon of Prague, and afterwards called to preach at court before the Emperor Wenceslaus. He was much applauded by the court and by the emperor himself, whose wicked passions the saint was for some time enabled to check. The emperor offered him great dignities, but he constantly refused them all. He would only accept the office of almoner, which enabled him to assist the poor, and gain souls to God.

The empress chose him for her director, and under his guidance, made great progress in virtue and piety. But Wenceslaus, the emperor, was a man of savage and vicious inclinations, and only grew more impatient and extravagant by the piety of the empress, and by the tenderness and condescension with which she behaved towards him. In a fit of mad jealousy, he made her virtuous conduct an argument for suspicion; and made an impious attempt to extort from St. John what she had disclosed to him in the secret of confession. The saint was struck with horror at such a question; and could never be brought, either by promises or threats, or torments, to betray the confidence reposed in him. By the wicked emperor's command he was thrown into a dungeon, and afterwards released and tempted again by the same impious proposal. The saint firmly refused, and was again put into prison and inhumanly tortured. He was stretched on a sort of rack; burning torches were applied to his body; he was burnt at a slow fire, and tormented in other ways. Under his tortures, he pronounced no other words but the sacred names of Jesus and Mary, and when loosened from the rack, was left half dead. But our Lord visited his servant with the sweetest consolations. Soon after the barbarous emperor ordered the holy man to be thrown off a bridge into the river with his hands tied, which was executed on the 16th of May, 1383. A heavenly light appeared over his body in the waters. It was taken out of the river with great honour, and every one flocked to kiss the hands and feet of the glorious martyr, and recommend themselves to his prayers.

Implore his intercession this day; and pray that you may ever, like him, be firm and faithful to your duty to God, unmoved by any fear of men." The Catholic Year by Fr. John Gother

"AFTER a pious education in a seminary at Gubio, a city in the ecclesiastical states, he was made by the bishop prior of his cathedral. After some time he was consecrated bishop of Gubio, by the pope himself. He made it his whole business to adorn his high station with all the virtues of a true successor of the apostles. But the mildness and patience, by which he appeared insensible to injuries and affronts, was one of the brightest parts of his character. The two last years of his life, he laboured under a complication of painful distempers, which he bore with the patience of a saint. On Easter day, his devotion to the glorious mystery of that festival, made him forget his infirm condition, so that he got up, said Mass, and gave the people a discourse on eternal life. He continued till the feast of the Ascension to prepare himself for death, and having received the rites of the Church, expired on the 16th of May, 1160.

HORROR OF UNCHASTITY. It was at Lampsacus, a town of the Hellespont, during the persecution of the emperor Decius, that a youth, named Peter, was denounced to the proconsul as a Christian. He was ordered to burn incense in honour of the goddess Venus. "Would you have me," replied the generous confessor of the faith, "honour her whom you yourselves acknowledge to be dishonoured by her vices? The actions you impute to her strike me with disgust, and are punishable even by your own laws. No! I despise a woman of bad life, and I honour only the One God, my Lord Jesus Christ, the God made man for the expiation of the sins of the world." The proconsul caused torture to be applied, which racked, his limbs while wrenching them with most cruel grasp; but, at length, seeing his perseverance and the joy he manifested to suffer for the name of Jesus Christ, he shortened his torments by causing his head to be struck off.

MORAL REFLECTION. -How is it that, while despising vice, the worldly-minded hold in respect the persons of the vicious; and, while condemning vice, pardon it in their own case? "Know you not," says the Apostle, "that the unchaste shall not enter the kingdom of Heaven?"-(1 Cor. vi. 9.) The Pictorial Half Hours with the Saints by Abbe Lecanu