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St. Olympias, Widow, A.D. about 410

by VP


Posted on Saturday December 16, 2023 at 11:00PM in Saints


File:Olimpiada diakonissa.jpg

"This saint lived at Constantinople in the time of St. John Chrysostom. Her husband having been dead some time, the Emperor Theodosius proposed to her to marry Elpidius, his own near relation: to whom she answered, that God having taken away her husband, because she was not fit for the duties of the married state, she was resolved no more to engage in it. She was true to her resolution; and employed both her money and time in the relief of widows, orphans, and the sick. Her austerities were great, her habit mean, her humility edifying, her tears continual: and that nothing might be wanting to consummate her virtue, she was persecuted by the Emperor Arcadius, for espousing the cause of oppressed innocence in the person of her pastor, St. John Chrysostom. For this, being forced into banishment, she found her way by a happy death, to a better country which she had long desired.

Make use of this example as your state requires. There are difficulties in all conditions, and that of marriage cannot properly be Christian, without the self-denials of the cloister. If humility and charity helped her to heaven, will not prodigality and vanity shut you out from it? Take not your measures from the world, but from the Gospel; and then say who has given you power so much to dispense with it. Follow the Gospel, if you hope to come to the promises of the Gospel. The saints all studied to husband every moment to the best advantage, knowing that life is very short, and that the night is coming on apace when no man can work. Let no moments be spent merely to pass away time. Diversions and corporal exercise ought to be used with moderation, only as much as may seem requisite for bodily health and the vigour of the mind. Every one is bound to apply himself to some serious employment. This, and his necessary recreations, must be referred to God, sanctified by a holy intention, and seasoned by humility, patience, prayer, and other virtues. Thus will our lives be an uninterrupted sacrifice of divine praise and love." The Catholic Year; Or Daily Lessons on the Feasts of the Church  by Rev. Fr. John GOTHER


St. Eusebius, BISHOP AND MARTYR, A.D. 371.

by VP


Posted on Friday December 15, 2023 at 11:00PM in Saints


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The Virgin Mary in Glory with Archangel Gabriel, and Saints Eusebius of Vercelli (seated), Saint Sebastian, and Saint Roch, Sebastiano Ricci.

"He was a bishop: pray for all the bishops in God's Church. Who knows, but if the faithful constantly joined in presenting their most earnest petitions to Almighty God, as often as the festivals of holy prelates return throughout the year, he might bless the Church with a succession of holy pastors, who by word and example might be as so many lights to the faithful, to conduct them to a happy eternity?

St. Eusebius was bishop of Vercelli, and a powerful opponent of the Arian heresy, which at that time desolated the Church, under the protection of the Emperor Constantius By this emperor, he was sent into banishment for defending the Nicene Creed, and refusing to subscribe to the condemnation of St. Athanasius. The holy man suffered much in his exile from hunger, thirst, scourging, and various kinds of cruel treatment; but he had learned to undervalue his own life for the cause of Christ, and he cheerfully abandoned his body to his persecutors. Neither torments, nor enticements, could ever move him to consent to the enemies of his faith.

On the death of Constantius, he was permitted to return to his see, and came to Alexandria to concert measures with St. Athanasius for applying proper remedies to the evils of the Church. He afterwards travelled over the East, and through Illyricum, confirming in the faith those that were wavering, and bringing back many that were gone astray. St. Jerom places his death in 371; and he is styled a martyr, and honoured as such in the offices of the Church.

Pray for patience in all sufferings for yourself, and others who are under any trials. If you honour a martyr, suffer something this day with more than ordinary meekness. Consider how often you are in a passion, how easily you are disquieted, how inconsiderable a thing provokes you, how ordinary temptations overcome you. Are these the steps of a martyr? Is this according to the Gospel? Blush then, and be confounded at your weakness: pray for new strength, and beseech this holy martyr to pray for you."


Saint John of the Cross

by VP


Posted on Thursday December 14, 2023 at 07:44PM in Saints


John of the Cross - Wikipedia

Saint John of the Cross, by Zurbaran

"Live in faith and hope, though it be in darkness, for in this darkness God protects the soul. Cast your care upon God for you are His and He will not forget you. Do not think that He is leaving you alone, for that would be to wrong Him." St. John of the Cross.

"This saint was born near Avila in Spain. From his tender years, he showed great devotion to the Blessed Virgin, and was preserved from many dangers through her intercession. He had so great a love of suffering, that he slept on a hollow board and wore a rough hair shirt, besides practising severe fasts, and almost incredible mortifications. His constant prayer was to be allowed to suffer, and be despised for his Savour's sake. He embraced the reformed Order of barefooted Carmelites; and his example and exhortations inspired the religious with a perfect spirit of solitude, humility, and mortification. Almighty God, to purify his heart, allowed him to pass through most severe trials of spiritual dryness and desolation: but, after some time, rays of light, comfort and divine sweetness scattered these mists, and filled his soul with heavenly delights. This comfort was succeeded by other trials of various kinds, which this holy servant of God endured with invincible constancy, always rejoicing when he shared the cross of his Redeemer. It had always been his prayer that he might die in humiliation and contempt; and his prayer was granted. He died at Ubeda in the year 1591, being forty-nine years old.

The spirit of Christianity is the spirit of the cross. To attain to the pure love of God we must live and die in the spirit of the cross. Our divine Redeemer merited the graces, which we receive, by suffering for us: and it is by suffering with Him, that we are best prepared for His graces. This all the saints assure us by their own example. But in the divine love, they found a recompense, which amply repaid them for all their sufferings.

Impatience and dejection make ill impressions on all who witness these infirmities. Be careful to prevent them, and by your good example in your sufferings, endeavour to teach others how to suffer. Be watchful in suppressing the first motions of fretfulness and impatience, and pray for the true spirit of a Christian." The Catholic Year, Fr. John Gother


Saint Odo of Cluny, abbot

by VP


Posted on Friday November 17, 2023 at 11:00PM in Saints



St. Odo of Cluny

"The Mass" says St. Odo, Abbot of Cluny, "is the act on which is based the salvation of the World."

The Holy Mass: The Sacrifice for the Living and the Dead, by Rev. Fr Michael Müller 1875 p 288.


When and how was this yearly commemoration of the departed introduced?

The time of the introduction of this commemoration cannot be determined; for as easily as the time of Tertullian he mentions that the Christians of his day held a yearly commemoration of the dead. Towards the end of the tenth century St. Odo, abbot of the Benedictines, at Cluny, directed this feast to be celebrated yearly, on the 2nd of November in all the convents of his Order, which usage was afterwards enjoined upon the whole Christian world by Pope John XVI. The feast of this day was probably established in order that, after having on day before rejoiced over the glory of the saints in heaven, we should this day remember in love those who are sighing in purgatory for deliverance.

Prayer:
O God, the Creator and Redeemer of all the faithful, grant to the souls of Thy servants departed the remission of all their sins, that, by our pious supplications, they may obtain the pardon which they have always desires. Who livest and reignest,etc.


All Souls' Day. p456  Devout Instructions on the Epistles and Gospels for the Sundays and Holydays Front Cover Leonhard Goffiné Benziger, 1896


Saint Laurence O'Toole, Archbishop of Dublin

by VP


Posted on Monday November 13, 2023 at 11:00PM in Saints



"The Lost Sheep: The Good shepherd seeks the lost sheep, and, having found it, brings it home rejoicing to the fold. Such was the main business of St. lawrence, archbishop of Dublin, his whole life long. Although wealthy by his own income and the revenues of his diocese, he reduced himself to a state of indigence for the advantage of the poor, so as to touch their hearts by dint of benefactions. Seeing his diocese a prey to disorderly living and immorality, he withdrew occasionally into solitude, to attemper his zeal anew and come forth animated with ardor for the salvation of his people, like another Moses. He assumed himself and induced his canons to adopt the habit and rule of St. Augustine, in order to begin through the reform of the
clergy. He pursued by land and sea King Henry II, who had vowed vengeance against one of the kings of Ireland, and did not desist from his purpose until he had achieved a victory, that is, had brought about the reconciliation of the two monarchs. He died at Eu, France  in 1081, whole returning home after having accomplished his charitable mission.'

Moral reflection: "As the tree is known by its fruit", even so are Catholic pastors distinguished from those who are non-Catholic (Matt vii. 16)
Pictorial half hours with the saints. Abbe Auguste Francois Lecanu


SS. Crispin and Crispinian

by VP


Posted on Wednesday October 25, 2023 at 12:00AM in Saints


SS. Crispin and Crispinian, pd

"The sanctification of Labor .

-Labor is regarded by men in general as a thing of penance; for the greater number it is a matter of pure necessity, and to many has proved the powerful means of procuring sanctification. Hence it was that SS. Crispin and Crispinian, who accompanied St. Quentin to Gaul to preach the Gospel there, labored with their hands, although of noble and illustrious lineage, to support themselves, after the manner of St. Paul, thereby to avoid burthening the faithful and to enable them to contribute by their earnings to the maintenance of the poor. They took up their abode at Soissons, and occupied their vacant hours in making and repairing shoes. Having been denounced in 287 to Maximian Hercules, they were by his order transferred to the tribunal of the prefect Rictius Varus, the most inveterate enemy of the Christians. The prefect vainly employed in turn all the devices of persuasion, threats, and tortures to induce them to renounce Christianity; being unable to overcome them, he condemned them to be beheaded. They are held in great veneration throughout France, or rather through the Church at large, and their names are met with in the most ancient martyrologies.

MORAL REFLECTION.-Of how many may it be said that "they labor in vain," since God is not the end and purpose that inspires the labor!-(Wisd. iii. 2.)

Source: Pictorial half hours with the saints. by Rev. Fr. Auguste François Lecanu



Saint Hilarion de Gaza, Monk

by VP


Posted on Saturday October 21, 2023 at 12:00AM in Saints



"ST. HILARION was born of heathen parents, near Gaza, and was converted while studying grammar in Alexandria. Shortly after, he visited St. Antony, and, still only in his fifteenth year, he became a solitary in the Arabian desert. A multitude of monks, attracted by his sanctity, peopled the desert where he lived. In consequence of this, he fled from one country to another, seeking to escape the praise of men; but everywhere his miracles of mercy betrayed his presence. Even his last retreat at Cyprus was broken by a paralytic, who was cured by St. Hilarion, and then spread the fame of the Saint. He died with the words, "Go forth, my soul; why dost thou doubt? Nigh seventy years hast thou served God, and dost thou fear death?" Little Pictorial Lives of the Saints, Rev. Fr. John Gilmary Shea.

"While Saint Hilarion was at prayer, the devil appeared to him, at times as a wolf that howls, at times as a fox that barks, and once set before him the awful spectacle of a band of gladiators; and it seemed to him that one of them, having received a death-wound, fell at his feet imploring the rites of burial. Another time, while the Saint was praying prostrate on the ground, some distraction or other passed through his mind. The devil, taking this opportunity, sat astride on his back, and driving spurs into his sides, and whipping him on the head, exclaimed, "Come, come; why art thou so sleepy?" As the servant of God grew faint under the weight and blows, the demon began to scoff and deride him, saying, "Would you like a little corn to restore your strength?"

  I have alluded to these few examples, among many others that might be alleged, that the reader may see with what constancy we should struggle and persevere in mental prayer when the devil comes, either with inward suggestions or outward terrors, to assail us. Let me now conclude in the words of St Cyprian: "In the time of prayer, let the heart be opened to God, but closed against the devil, so as to leave him not even the least aperture by which he may enter; for this deceiver uses a thousand wiles to effect a stealthy entrance, and having made good his position, deludes us and hinders our praying to God." Source: Guide to the Spiritual Life. By Rev. Fr. Giovanni Battista Scaramelli, SJ 1870


Prayer for Parish Priest to St. John Vianney

by VP


Posted on Friday August 04, 2023 at 09:15AM in Saints




Dear Saint John Vianney, your childhood dream was to be a Priest, to win souls for God. You endured years of toil and humiliation to attain the Priesthood. You became a Priest truly after Godʼs own heart, outstanding in humility and poverty; prayer and mortification. Totally devoted to the service of Godʼs people.

The Church has exalted you as model and patron saint of all Parish Priest, trusting that your example and prayers will help them to live up to the high dignity of their vocation to be faithful servants of Godʼs people, to be perfect imitators of Christ the Savior Who came not to be served but to serve, to give His Life in ransom for many.

Pray that God may give to His Church today many more Priests after His own Heart. Pray for all the Priests under your patronage, that they may be worthy representatives of Christ the Good Shepherd. May they wholeheartedly devote themselves to prayer and penance; be examples of humility and poverty; shining models of holiness; tireless and powerful preachers of the Word of God; zealous dispensers of Godʼs Grace in the Sacraments.

May their loving devotion to Jesus in the Eucharist and to Mary His Mother be the Twin Fountains of fruitfulness for their ministry. Amen


Saint Pope Innocent I

by VP


Posted on Friday July 28, 2023 at 12:00AM in Saints


"All Ecclesiastical matters throughout the world are, by divine right, to be referred to the apostolic see, that to St. Peter, the author of its name and honor" Pope Innocent I

Source: The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints, Butler




Saint Lupus, Bishop

by VP


Posted on Monday July 24, 2023 at 11:15AM in Saints


File:Le Lou-du-Lac (35) Église 19.JPG

French furniture patrimony of the French ministry of culture, under the reference PM35002875.


The Guardianship of God: There is no protection comparable with that of God and his Saints; the life of St. Lupus, bishop of Troyes, is about to afford us an example thereof. Lupus had been raised, despite all opposition on his part, and by reason of his sanctity, to the see of Troyes. He had been directed by the bishop of Gaul to proceed in company with St. Germain of Auxerre to England, in order to combat the Pelagian heresy, and had the glory of entirely uprooting it there. Having returned to his diocese, he was surprised in the midst of his apostolic labors by the invasion of Attila. Thrace, Syria, and Greece, had been laid waste; Rheims, Cambrai, Besancon, Auxerre, and Langres were merely heaps of ruin; the turn of the town of Troyes had come. Lupus prayed himself, and got his people to pray during three days and three nights; he placed his flock under the protection of God, and went forward to meet the ferocious conqueror. "I am the scourge of God!" said the king of the Huns, "and am come to destroy you." "Beware!" replied the bishop; "God crushes the instruments He has made use of." Attila, astonished at such boldness, turned his army aside from its onward march, and was defeated in the plains of Mery. St. Lupus died in 478.

Moral reflection: "God is wonderful in His saints, and will give power and strength to His people." (Psalm LXVII. 36)

Source: Pictorial half hours with the saints, Abbe Auguste François Lecanu