Saint of the day and Feast days.

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30 April

Today is the Feast day of
Pope Saint Pius V,
Among many other saints.

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Saint Pius V, Pope( 1504-1572)

Pope Pius V, said to be one of the foremost leaders of the Catholic Reformation, was born at Bosco, a little town in the diocese of Tortona, Italy, on the 27th of January 1504. He was descended of a noble Bolognese family, by then reduced to poverty. His given name was Antonio Ghislieri.
From his early years, Antonio was taught the ways of the Lord; and he never swerved from those principles during the whole of his life. He studied grammar under the care of the Dominican friars at Voghera. He also worked as a shepherd. At the age of fourteen, he joined the Dominican Order. He was ordained in 1528, taking the name of Michele Ghislieri (Michael Ghisleri).
He was called Brother Michele according to the book, Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints-Revised.

He studied at Bologna and Genoa, and then taught theology and philosophy for sixteen years before holding the posts of master of novices as well as prior for several Dominican houses.
He was named inquisitor for Como and Bergamo , and was so capable in fullfilling the duties of his office that by 1551, and at the urging of the powerful Cardinal Carafa, he was named by Pope Julius III, commisionary general of the Inquisition.
In 1555, Carafa was elected Pope Paul IV and was responsible for Ghislieri’s swift rise as bishop of Nepi and Sutri in 1556, cardinal in 1557, and grand inquisitor in 1558.

Under Pope Pius IV (1559–65) Ghisleri fell out of favour with the pope who disliked his reputation for excessive zeal. His opposition to that pontiff had procured his dismissal from the palace and the abridgment of his authority as inquisitor. Before Michele Ghislieri could return to his episcopate, Pope Pius IV died. On 7 January 1566, and that very same day, January 7, 1566, Ghisleri was unanimously elected to the Papal chair as Pope Pius V. He was crowned ten days later, on his 62nd birthday.
As pope, Pius saw his main course of action as the continuation of the massive programe of reform for the Church, in particular, the full implementation of the decrees of the Council of Trent.

He published the Roman Catechism -1566.
The revised Roman Brieviary-1568.
And the Roman Missal. He also declared Saint Thomas Aquinas a Doctor of the Church, commanded a new edition of the works of Saint Thomas Aquinas-1570, and created a commission to revise the Vulgate.

The decrees of Trent were published throughout all Catholic lands. The pope insisted on strict adherence to the decrees.

In 1571, Pope Pius V created the Congregation of the Index to give strength to the Church;s resistance to Protestant and heretical writings and he used the inquisition to prevent any Protestant ideas from gaining a foot hold in Italy.

In dealing with the threat of the Ottoman Turks, who were advancing steadly across the Mediterranean, Pius organised a formidable alliance between Venice and Spain, culminating in the battle of Lepanto in October 5, 1571, which saw a complete and shattering defeat of the Turks, a triumph over them.
That day; the day of the victory, was declared a feast day of Our Lady of Victory( This was later changed to the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary)The day was dedicated to Our Lady in recognition of her intercession in answer to the saying of the Rosary all over Catholic Europe. Pope Pius V also spurred the reforms of the Church by example. He insisted upon wearing his coarse Dominican robes(thereby inaugurating the custom of popes wearing white), even beneath the magnificient vestments worn by the popes, and was wholeheartedly devoted to the religious life.

It is noted, however, that Pope Saint Pius V’s reign was blemished only by the continuing oppression of the Inquisition and the often brutal treatment of the Jews of Rome and the ill-advised decision to excommunicate Queen Elizabeth I of England in February 1570.

These blemishes were , however, overshadowed by his contributions to the Catholic Reformation, that is, according to the book cited at the below.

Pope Pius V died on the 1st of May 1572.He was sixty-eight years, three months, and fifteen days old, having governed the church six years and almost four months. He was beatified by Clement X in 1672 and canonized by Clement XI in 1712. His precious remains lie in the church of St. Mary Major.

Pope Saint Pius V
Pray for us!

Ref:1. Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints-Revised.

2.Eternal Word Television Network.

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May 1

This year May 1 has combined a number of celebrations:
1: It is Mercy Sunday; The Liturgical celebration of The Divine Mercy.
2: It is the Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker.
3: It is the Beatification Day of Pope John Paul II in Rome

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Today is Mercy Sunday.

The Liturgical celebration of The Divine Mercy.
The Devotion to the Divine Mercy dates back to a Polish nun, Sister Faustina Kowalska,(1905 - 1938), described as the Apostle of Divine Mercy. To this nun, Jesus appeared bringing the message of God's Mercyful Love for all mankind in a series of revelations. Her spiritual director advised her to write down all the revelations she received from Jesus. She wrote a diary of about 600 pages.Even before she died, the devotion to Divine Mercy had started to spread.
The "Devotion to The Divine Mercy involves a total commitment to God as Mercy. It is a decision to trust completely in Him, to accept His mercy with thanksgiving, and to be merciful as He is merciful"
Remember when Pope John Paul II went to the prison to meet the man who had shot him in 1986 ? He was leading us in being "merciful as He is merciful"

According to Saint Faustina, Jesus Himself,, had requested, not once, but severally, that Christians honor the Divine Mercy on the Sunday after Easter.
On 30 April 2000, at the Canonization of Sr. Faustina,Pope John Paul II, responded to this request because it was then that he established this liturgical celebration.
Note this : John Paul II died on April 2, 2005, just after a vigil Mass for Divine Mercy Sunday, and six years later, he’s being beatified on the very day.

So brothers and sisters in Our Lord Jesus Christ,
Ask for the Lord's Mercy in constant prayer. He is merciful and full of love for us .
Be merciful as He Himself is merciful.
"Trust the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding."
Proverbs 3:5

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May 1
Today is also the day Pope John Paul II is beatified in Rome.

The late pope died in April 2005. All over the world, Catholics grieved and those who knew him best, we are told that, in their grief, they demanded that he be made saint immediataly, "Santo Subito!" we are told, they mourned the departed pontiff. Well, today marks another step towards that eventuality.
In preparation for today, last Friday, the coffin of the late pope was exhumed from "the crypts below St. Peter's Basilica." where it had been kept. It will be placed in front of St. Peter's Basilica's main altar for the ceremony. After all the visitors have viewed the coffin, "it will be moved to a new crypt under an altar in a side chapel near Michelangelo's statue of the Pieta."

During the beatification process, a vial of blood drawn from the late pontiff will serve as a relic.
It will be presented to Pope Benedict XVI and exposed for veneration during the Mass in St. Peter’s Square this. "The vial will then be stored in a shrine by the Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, along with other relics."
Four vials of blood had been drawn from John Paul II before his death on April 2, 2005 by his personal physician. This was done precautionarily in case the pontiff needed blood transfusion.

"One vial will remain in the custody of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul at the Vatican-owned Bambino Gesu Hospital in Rome.

The remaining two vials are now in the possession of Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, the Archbishop of Krakow and former secretary of John Paul II and will be installed in a Polish church soon after the beatification.
Piotr Sionko, the spokesman for the John Paul II Center in Krakow, said the vials will be encased in crystal and built into the altar of a church in the city. The church, which is still under construction in Krakow’s Lagiewniki district, will open sometime after the May 1 beatification. The building is part of a planned center devoted to cultivating the memory and teachings of the late Pope, a former archbishop of Krakow.
Sionko said that Cardinal Dziwisz proposed the idea of using the blood as a relic, saying that the cardinal “is of the opinion that this is the most precious relic of John Paul II and should be the focal point of the church.”

Blessed John Paul II
Pray for us!

From Vativan News

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May 1

Today is also the Feast day of
Saint Joseph the Worker.
Among many other saints.

May I has long been the day dedicated to the working class. Labor Day as it is known internationally.
On this day, in 1055, members of the Catholic Association of Italian Workers had converged in Saint Peter’s Square, to celebrate the 10 th anniversary of their society, and to pledge their loyalty to the Social Programme of the Church. Here, Pope Pius XII granted them audience. It was then that the Pope instituted the liturgical feast of Saint Joseph the Worker, assigning it to the 1st day of May.The Pope assured his audience and the “working people of the entire world”: “ You have at your side a Shepherd, a defender and a Father.”

On March 19, we celebrated the Feast day of Saint Joseph, spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and foster father of Jesus. Today however, It is Joseph the working man whom we have before us. The contemplation of Joseph is meant to enable us to understand how our daily labor is important in building a more just and Christian society.

Saint Joseph,
Pray for us!

“Whether you eat or drink, or whatever else you do, do all for the glory of God”

(1 Corinthians 10:31)

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May 2

Today we remember.
Saint Athanasius
Among many other saints
in the Holy Catholic Church.

Today’s saint is reputed for being one of the most dedicated opponents of Arianism, the heresy which originated with Arius, a priest from Alexandria, and which denied the divinity of Christ.

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Saint Athanasius

Bishop of Alexandria.
Doctor of the Church.

Athanasius was born in Alexandria, Egypt most probably between 296 and 298. Not much is known about his family circumstances or his early education. It seems that while still a boy, he came within the influence of his predecessor Bishop Alexander of Alexandria. The Bishop , it appears, became his patron, and , in 313 or 318 ,employed him as his secretary after he was ordained as a deacon.
He accompanied Alexander to the Council of Nicaea in 325.
Of note is the fact that the Council condemned Arius as an heretic and reaffirmed Christ’s divinity.
On his return to Alexandria, and after the death of Alexander in 328, Athanasius was unanimously elected bishop of the see.
The Arian heresy was the chief crisis for Athanasius in the early years of his episcopacy.
In 330, Emperor Constantine I ( Constantine the Great) , commanded Athanasius to allow Arians to communion; Athanasius refused.
The heretics then falsely accused him. He was tried and found innocent but still, the heretics, who at the time had political influence, had him exiled.
The saint spent 17 years in banishment, being exiled from Alexandria on five different occasions.
Undaunted, he remained, through it all,the ardent and fearless “champion of Christ’s divinity”.
During one of the period of exiles, he spent 6 years in the Egyptian desert as a hermit , writing his Apology to Constantine, the Apology for His Flight, the Letter to the Monks and the History of the Arians.
Athanasius spent his last years consolidating the doctrine of the Council of Nicaea.
He died in Alexandria on May 2, 373

The following is an excerpt from Our Sunday Visitor Encyclopedia Of Saints.

‘‘Athanasius is called “the Father of Orthodoxy”

“the Pillar of the Church” and “ “Champion of Christ Divinity” His efforts in defeating Arianism helped lay the groundwork for the triumph of Orthodox Christianity at the Council of Constantinople in 381, years after Athanasius’ death. He did not compose the Athanasian Creed, but it was drawn from his writings. He is a Doctor of the Church, and his most important theological writings include: Contra Gentes and De IncarnationeVerbi Dei”

Saint Athanasius,
Pray for us!

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June 3

Today is the Feast day of
Martyrs of Uganda
Among many other saints.

This feast day is also referred to as
Saint Charles Lwanga and Companions,
The Uganda Martyrs or the Holy Martyrs of Uganda.

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The Holy Martyrs of Uganda.

We will begin the story of these martyrs from April 1875. This was the time when Henry Morton Stanley, a journalist and explorer, arrived at the court of Mutesa I, Kabaka (King) of Buganda, an area in the South-central region of Uganda. He went to pay his respects to the king.
The Kabaka was very interested and wanted to know more about the civilization of the white man and also about Christianity. He was a pagan. His interest was so great that he asked Stanley to arrange for Missionaries to come to Uganda.
And so it was that a party of Protestant missionaries arrived on June 30, 1877 and on
February17, 1879, the Catholics, represented by a group from the Society of Missionaries of Africa, founded by Charles Cardinal Lavigerie in 1868, (known as the White Fathers), arrived in Uganda. The Arabs too, from the East Africal island of Zanzibar, had found their way into Uganda and they too were busy spreading Islam. For a time, all lived peacefully together. Many Mohammedans abandoned Islam to embrace Christianity. That was when the peace was shattered. There was now hostilities from the Arabs who in September 1881, urged the king to declare Islam the religion of the state and everyone had to accept it. Father Lourdel, the leader of the Catholic missionaries, courageously and successfully pleaded with the king against such an edict.
The kabaka yielded and declared that everyone was free to pray as they chose. Many people from the court of the kabaka continued to flock to the missionaries.Young pages in their teens, soldiers, gate keepers, etc, all went to be baptized Christians, abandoning the pagan practices still followed by their king.
There was Charles Lwanga, a skilled wresler.
Jean Marie Mugei, a page.
Bruno Serunkuma, a soldier, and so on.

Then Mutesa I died and his eighteen year old son, Prince Mwanga, suceeded him. Although Mwanga had shown some love for the missionaries as a young prince, his attitude changed when he became king egged on by his chief adviser, the Katikiro, who slowly convinced him that Christians were a threat to his rule.
The king turned into an intolerant and vicious persecutor of Christians and all foreigners. He was convinced that the powers and authority which his predecessors had enjoyed were dwindling, and he blamed it all on the influence of the missionaries and their converts.
The ultimate humiliation for Mwanga was when he realised the pages were being protected from his immoral advances....

It continues with the next post

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The Holy Martyrs of Uganda-Part 2

The king was the center of power and authority, and he could dispense with any life as he felt. Although "the unmentionable practices we read of in Sodom and Gomorrah is abhorred among the locals, it was unheard of for mere pages to reject the wishes of a king. (It is alleged that Mwanga learnt or acquired his "abomination." behavior from other foreigners in Uganda at the time).
Mwanga became determined to rid his kingdom of the new teaching and its followers.
In October of 1885 the Anglican Bishop James Hannington recently dispatched to head the Eastern Equatorial Africa, headquartered in Buganda, was murdered on his way to Buganda. Mwanga had ordered his death.

Joseph Mukasa Balikuddembe, a senior advisor to the king and a Catholic convert, condemned Mwanga for ordering Hannington's death without giving the Bishop a chance to defend himself as was customary. Mwanga was annoyed that Mukasa would question his actions, and he had him arrested and on Nov. 15 1885; Mukasa became the first Catholic martyr, when he was first beheaded and then burnt at a place called Nakivubo.
Christians were not cowed by this violent death. Between December of 1885 and May of 1886 many more converts were wantonly murdered.
Then one day in May 1886, Mwanga precipitated a show down. He learnt from a young page that he had been receiving religious instructions from another page called Denis Sebuggwawo.
Denis was sent for and the king simply thrust a spear through his throat.
Guards were then posted round the royal residence to prevent any Christians from escaping. Sorcerers were summoned and war drums beaten to assemble the professional excecutioners. The pages were all brought up before Mwanga and the Christians ordered to separate themselves from the rest. Led by Lwanga and Kizito, the oldest and the youngest, they did so.
There were 15 young men, all under 25 years old. They were joined by two soldiers and two others already under arrest. Mwanga ordered the converts to choose between their new faith, and complete obedience to his orders. They courageosly chose their faith. He asked them if they intended to remain Christians, “Till death” , came their prompt response. “Then put them to death” was the order.
The appointed place of execution, a place called Namugongo, was 37 miles away. The convoy set out at once. Three of the youths were killed on the way. The others were imprisoned for seven days at the site of execution while a huge pyre was built.
On Ascention Day, June 3, they were brought out, stripped of their clothing, bound and each wrapped in a mat of reed. They were then placed on the pyre and it was set alight.
Above the ritual chants of the executioners, their voices could be heard calling on God (Katonda!), the Kiganda word for "God!"
And so they died; a most cruel death.
The list of forty five known Catholic and Protestant martyrs includes only those who could be formally accounted for, many more murders went unreported. Of these 45 Christians, 22 were Catholics.
They were beatified in 1920 by Pope Benedict XV and canonized by Pope Paul VI on October 18, 1964; during Vatican II conference.

Thus these martyrs were now recognised by the universal church as being worthy of being honored as Saints. This was a first for modern Africa.

Rather than deter the growth of Christianity, the martyrdom of these early believers seems to have sparked its growth instead.
The blood of these martyrs proved to be the seed of faith. Christianity is now the dominant faith in Buganda and Uganda as a whole.
The Holy Martyrs of Uganda,
Pray for us!

From Saints for All
Lives of Saints for Every Week.
A Paulines Publications Africa.

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Prayer…
Almighty Father,
 in your love, grant that your Church,
the field that was fertilised by the blood of Saint Lwanga and his Companions,
 may always yield a fertile harvest for You.
We ask You this through the Holy Name of Jesus Christ Your Son.
Amen!

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June 3

Today is the Feast day of
Martyrs of Uganda
Among many other saints.

This feast day is also referred to as
Saint Charles Lwanga and Companions,
The Uganda Martyrs or the Holy Martyrs of Uganda.

Apologies dear readers !
The Uganda Martyrs feast is on June 3, Seems I have jumped the gun 
What is done, however, is done! 
Will simply link you to it on the appropriate date.
Sorry again!

[Shin]

I remember the stories of the martyrs of Uganda well.

St. Athanasius is very popular nowadays. He persisted in the right faith despite tremendous corruption everywhere.

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May 3

Today is the Feast day of
Saints Philip and James.
Among many other saints

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Saints Philip and James.

"Today  the Church celebrates the feast of two apostles.Philip and James.
Their relics are kept together in the Church of the twelve apostles in Rome and, from the day of its dedication, in 565, these two apostles have been celebrated together…”

Saint Philip.
Apostle and Martyr.

Philip was born at Bethsaida in Galilee
He was initially a disciple of Saint John the Baptist but later, became an apostle of Jesus. Philip was also instrumental in the call of Nathaniel who was his friend. After his call, he went to Nathaniel and said: “We have found the one whom Moses wrote about in the book of the Law and whom the prophets also wrote about, He is Jesus, son of Joseph from of Nazareth.” Nathaniel then asked: “can anything good come from Nazareth?”, “come and see” Philip answered   (Jn 1:45-46 Good News Bible)

After the descent of the Holy Spirit on Pentesost Day, when the disciples dispersed to all parts of the world, Philip went to preach the Gospel in Phrygia in Asia Minor.
It is reported that Philip died a martyr during the reign of Domitian. It is widely accepted that he was crucified upside down at Hierapolis in Phrygia.

Saint James.
Also known as James the Just.

James , son of Alphaeus, was a brother of Saint Jude Thaddaeus and a cousin of the Lord. His mother, Mary of Cleopas was a sister of the Blessed Virgin.

Although no prominence is given to Saint James in the Gospel, we learn from Saint Paul that he was favoured with a special appearing of Our Lord, just before Ascension. He subsequently became a very prominebt leader among the Nazarenes in Jerusalem. When Saint Paul, three years after his conversion, went up to Jerusalem, and was still regarded with some suspicion by the apostles who were there, James and Saint Peter welcomed him. James, together with Saint Peter, presided over the Council of Jerusalem that decided to permit Paul’s mission among the Gentiles.( Acts 15). James weilded even greater influence after the departure of Peter from the city.

Saint James was the first Bishop of Jerusalem. He is also noted for the “Epistle” he wrote, possibly in 47 A.D.and thought to have been addressed to Churches in Syria, whose members were discriminated against and oppressed because of their new Faith.

James led such an upright and holy life that he was named “the Just”. Motivated by jealousy because of the great following he had, he was martyred by the Sanhedrin about the year 62. He was supposedly hurled from a pinnacle of the great temple. The headlong fall did not kill him, so his acusers stoned him to death. He was buried near the temple   where he was martyred.

Saint Philip and Saint James,
Pray for us!