Saint Peter Damian, BISHOP AND CONFESSOR, A.d. 1072.
by VP
Posted on Thursday February 22, 2024 at 11:00PM in Saints
Saint Peter Damian by Andrea Barbiani (1708-1779)
"I might also add, that if blasphemy is a terrible thing, I am not aware that sodomy is any better. The former indeed causes a man to err; the latter brings him to perdition. The one separates the soul from God; the other joins it to the devil. The former expels one from heaven; the latter buries him in hell. The one blinds the eyes of the soul; the other hurls one into the abyss of ruin. And if we are careful to investigate which of these crimes is the weightier in the scales of divine scrutiny, a search of Sacred Scripture will provide a satisfactory answer. There, indeed, we find that the children of Israel who blaspheme God and worshiped idols were taken into captivity; but we notice that sodomites were devoured in the sulfurous flames of a fire from heaven." Source: Saint Peter Damian: Book of Gomorrah
PRAYER OF SAINT PETER DAMIAN:
Holy Virgin, Mother of God, succour those who implore thy aid. O turn towards us. Hast thou, perhaps, forgotten men, because thou hast been raised to so close a union with God? Ah no, most certainly. Thou knowest well in what danger thou didst leave us, and the wretched condition of thy servants; ah no, it would not become so great a mercy as thine to forget such great misery as ours is. Turn towards us then with thy power; for He who is powerful has made thee omnipotent in heaven and on earth. Nothing is impossible to thee, for thou canst raise even those who are in despair to the hope of salvation. The more powerful thou art, the greater should be thy mercy.
Turn also to us in thy love. I know, O my Lady, that thou art all benign, and that thou lovest us with a love that can be surpassed by no other love. How often dost thou not appease the wrath of our Judge, when He is on the point of chastising us! All the treasures of the mercies of God are in thy hands. Ah never cease to benefit us; thou only seekest occasion to save all the wretched, and to shower thy mercies upon them; for thy glory is increased when, by thy means, penitents are forgiven, and thus reach heaven. Turn then towards us, that we also may be able to go and see thee in heaven; for the greatest glory we can have will be, after seeing God, to see thee, to love thee, and be under thy protection. Be pleased then to grant our prayer; for thy beloved Son desires to honour thee, by denying thee nothing that thou askest." The glories of Mary, by st. Alphonsus de Liguori,
Biography:
"He was the youngest of many children, and losing his parents when very young, was very cruelly treated by one of his brothers, and when grown up was sent to keep swine. Another of his brothers however treated him kindly, and gave him an education. He was soon qualified to teach others, which he did with great applause. To arm himself against the allurements of pleasure and the artifices of the devil, he wore a rough hair shirt, and inured himself to fasting, watching, and prayer. At length he resolved entirely to leave the world, and embrace a monastic life; and soon after this, he became a religious of the order of St. Benedict, in an hermitage at the foot of the Apennines. His obedience was so perfect, that the least word of any superior made him run that moment to discharge what was enjoined, with the utmost exactness. After some time he was commanded by his abbot to take upon himself the government of the hermitage, which he governed with great wisdom and sanctity.
St. Peter Damian was much employed for twelve years in the service of the Church, by many bishops and by four popes successively. At length Pope Stephen IX. prevailed on him to quit his desert, and made him cardinal bishop of Ostia. Having rendered great services to the Church in this dignity for some years, he begged with great importunity to be allowed to resign it, and return to his solitude. Pope Alexander II. out of affection for the holy man, allowed him to do so. In his retirement he edified the Church by his penance and compunction, and by his numerous writings. God was pleased to call him to the crown of his labours in the year 1072, when he was 83 years old. (...) Those who expect the favours of heaven
are required to fit themselves for them by spending it in a suitable
manner. Our great indispositions are pride and self-love; and these are
best cured by penance and humiliation. There are many kinds of mortification, by which you may answer the design of the Church. Make not this day, at least, a day of liberty and diversion, but let these give place to recollection and prayer." The Catholic Year by Rev. Fr. John Gother
Prayer:
"Thy soul was inflamed by the zeal of God's house, O Peter! God gave thee to His Church in those sad times when the wickedness of the world had robbed her of well-nigh all her beauty. Thou hadst the spirit of an Elias within thee, and it gave thee courage to waken the servants of the Lord: they had slept, and while they were asleep, the enemy came, and the field was over-sown with tares. (St. Matt. 13. 25) Then did better days dawn for the bride of Christ; the promises made by our Lord were fulfilled; but who was the friend of the bridegroom? (St. John 3. 29) Who was the chief instrument used by God to bring back to His house its ancient beauty? A saint who bore the glorious name of Peter Damian! In those days, the sanctuary was degraded by secular interference. The princes of the earth said: "Let us possess the sanctuary of God for an inheritance."(Ps. Lxxxii. 13) The Church, which God intended to be free, was but a slave, in the power of the rulers of this world; and the vices, which are inherent to human weakness, defiled the temple But God had pity on the bride of Christ, and for her deliverance He would use humane agency: He chose thee, Peter, as His principal co-operator in restoring order. Thy example and thy labor prepared the way for Gregory, the faithful and dauntless Hildebrand, into whose hands the keys were no sooner placed, than the work of regeneration was completed.
Thou hast fought the good fight; thou art now in thy rest; but thy love of the Church, and thy power to help, are greater than ever. Watch, then over her interests. Obtain for her pastors that apostolic energy and courage, which alone can cope with enemies so determined as hers are. Obtain for her priests the holiness which God demands from them that are the salt of the earth. (St. Matt. v. 13) Obtain for the faithful the respect and obedience they owe to those who direct them in the path of salvation. Thou wast not only the apostle, thou wast moreover the model, of penance in the midst of a corrupt age; pray fro us, that we may be eager to atone for our sins by works of mortification. Excite within our souls the remembrance of the sufferings of our Redeemer, that so His Passion may urge us to repentance and hope. Increase our confidence in Mary, the refuge of sinners, and make us, like thyself, full of filial affection towards her, and of zeal that she may be honored and loved by those who are around us." Source: Saint Peter Damian by Don Gueranger, page 294 The liturgical year 1909
