Saint of the day and Feast days.

[odhiambo]

November 11

Today is the Memorial of
Saint Martin of Tours
Among many other saints.

[odhiambo]

Saint Martin of Tours.
Martin was born in Sabaria, Pannonia , on the Danube, modern Hungary.
His father was a pagan army officer.
While still a child, the family moved to Pavia, Italy.
Even as a young boy, Martin was interested in Christianity.
When he was ten years old, he found his way into a Christian Church and asked to receive instructions in preparation for baptism.
When his father discovered that Martin was receiving Christian instructions, he determined to take him away.
At the age of fifteen, Martin was forced to serve in the army against his will. Soon, however, he became an officer and was stationed at Amiens, a city in Gaul.
One day as his regiment was marching through the city gate, they met a poor man, almost naked, trembling and shaking with cold. As the soldiers passed by, he held out his hands for charity. Officers and well clad soldiers passed him without a second thought; neither dropping a coin in his outstretched hands nor asking about his needs.
At last, Martin rode through the gate.
He was moved to pity. He wanted to help but had no money. All he had was the cloack on his back!
He drew out his sword, cut the cloack in half and handed one half to the beggar while he wrapped the remaining half around himself. Some of the bystanders laughed at the figure he cut, but others were ashamed for not helping the beggar themselves.
That night, Martin had a dream.
Jesus appeared to him surrounded by a dazzling light and wearing the half of his cloak he had given to the beggar!
Martin was baptized soon after this incident.
When he was twenty three, Gaul was invaded by Barbarians.
After the war was won, Martin, together with his companions appeared before the general to receive a war bounty. Martin refused to accept his saying: “Until today I have served you; from now on I wish to serve only the Lord Jesus”.
The general accused him of being a coward and threw him in prison, hoping that Martin would change his mind. He did not.
After a while, he was released from prison and discharged from the army.
Martin returned to his birthplace Pannonia. He was able to convert his mother and others, but not his father who remained a pagan.
Because of his strong opposition to Arian heretics, Martin had to go into exile.
He joined Saint Hilary of Poitiers and became a hermit around the year 360.
They established the first French monastery ever, in Liguge. Martin lived here for 10 years, preaching throughout the countryside.
He was made Bishop of Tours in 371.
His elevation to bishop did not change Martin. He continued to live as plainly as before and continued to practice austere asceticism.
He was always very kind to the poor and the unfortunate.
The fruit of his piety was the great decrease of paganism in the district of Tours and all that part of Gaul. He destroyed many temples of idols and felled trees and other objects that were held sacred by the pagans.
Martin had the gift of revelations, visions, and the spirit of prophesy. He is said to have miraculously cured Saint Paulinus of Nola of an eye problem.
Martin died on November 8, 397 in a small town on the very border of his diocese, but the city of Tours claimed his relics. Consequently, on November 11, he was buried at Tours where his successor built a chapel over his grave. The chapel was later replaced by a magnificent basilica.
Many churches and towns throughout Western Europe have been placed under his patronage.
Saint Martin,
Pray for us!

[odhiambo]

"I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me"
Matthew 25:36
We should never forget that when we help the poor,  the homeless, the orphans etc, we are really helping Jesus. Saint Martin of Tours' vision of the Lord wearing the half  cloak he had given the beggar earlier that day brings this fact home very clearly.

[Shin]

'Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

This blessedness, dearly beloved, does not derive from any casual agreement or from any and every kind of harmony, but it pertains to what the Apostle says: Be at peace before the Lord, and to the words of the prophet: Those who love your law shall enjoy abundant peace; for them it is no stumbling block. Even the most intimate bonds of friendship and the closest affinity of minds cannot truly lay claim to this peace if they are not in agreement with the will of God.

Alliances based on evil desires, covenants of crime and pacts of vice - all lie outside the scope of this peace. Love of the world cannot be reconciled with love of God, and the man who does not separate himself from the children of this generation cannot join the company of the sons of God. But those who keep God ever in their hearts, and are anxious to preserve the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace, never dissent from the eternal law as they speak the prayer of faith. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.'

Pope St. Leo the Great

[odhiambo]

November 12

Today is the Memorial of
Saint Josaphat of Polotsk
Among many other saints.

[odhiambo]

Saint Josaphat of Polotsk
Martyr
Saint Josaphat was born in 1580 or 1584 in Vladimir, a city of ancient Poland. He was the son of Gabriel Kuncerwicz. His parents were honorable Christians. Josaphat was raised in the Orthodox Ruthenian Church.
In 1596, the Ruthenian Church was divided into two contending parties.
There was The Unionates who wanted union with Rome; and there was the group that wanted the Schism to continue.
Josephat studied Philosophy and Theology under two famous Jesuits and decided to enter the religious life.
He had an opportunity to make a business partner and to marry well but this was not his calling.
He instead entered the Convent of the Trinity at Vilna, where Basilian religious, submissive to the Holy See, were residing.
He received the religious habit and was professed in 1604.
Saint Josaphat was ordained a priest and began to preach in various churches of the city, bringing back many dissidents to the Union
He was invited to preach in various regions of the land.
He was made head of monastery at Bytene.
In 1614, Josaphat’s friend, a certain Joseph Routski, became Archbishop of Vilna.
He recalled Saint Josaphat to Vilna, confiding the monastery of the Trinity to him.
He continued to convert the separated Christians bringing them back to Rome. He was so successful in this that he was called The Scourge of the Schimatics by the Uniates. The Schimatics on the other hand called him The Ravisher of Souls.
In 1617, at the age of 38, Saint Josaphat became the Archbishop of Polotsk.
Because of his beliefs and pro union activities, the Saint earned himself a very powerful enemy in the person of one Melece Smotritski.
He was assassinated on November 12, 1623 in Vitebsk.
His remains were recovered after five days from the waters of a river.
He was exposed for nine days and his body was said to be constantly emitting a fragrance of roses and lilies.
It is said that a councilor of Polotsk, where the body was returned, abandoned the Schism merely at the sight of the Saint’s beautiful countenance.
Four years after his death, the author of the troubles that caused his assassination, Smotritski, consecrated his life to penance, prayer and the defense of the Union.
About 5 years after Saint Josaphat’s martyrdom, his body was found intact though the clothing had rotten away.
Yet, again in 1637 it was found to be still white and supple.
The body was again exposed in 1767 and found to be intact.
It was eventually taken to the Basilica of Saint Peter in Rome.
Pope Leo X111 canonized Saint Josaphat in 1867.
Saint Josaphat,
Pray for us!

[Patricia]

You people of Vitebsk want to put me to death. You make ambushes for me everywhere, in the streets, on the bridges, on the highways, and in the marketplace. I am here among you as a shepherd, and you ought to know that I would be happy to give my life for you. I am ready to die for the holy union, for the supremacy of Saint Peter, and of his successor the Supreme Pontiff.

-- Saint Josaphat Kuncevyc

[martin]

It is said that a councilor of Polotsk, where the body was returned, abandoned the Schism merely at the sight of the Saint’s beautiful countenance.

I've read of this regarding a few other saints too (St Vincent Ferrer was one such) where the mere sight of them walking by caused people to convert.

St. Josaphat of Polotsk ora pro nobis.

[Shin]

Yes Martin, that reminds me that if I recall correctly, I once heard of a story about a saint whose modesty was so great, a ruler who wished to speak to the saint refused to speak to him directly, but only through a screen, for fear of being converted by the sight of him.

St. Josaphat of Polotsk, ora pro nobis!

[odhiambo]

It is said that a councilor of Polotsk, where the body was returned, abandoned the Schism merely at the sight of the Saint’s beautiful countenance.

I've read of this regarding a few other saints too (St Vincent Ferrer was one such) where the mere sight of them walking by caused people to convert.

St. Josaphat of Polotsk ora pro nobis.

God touches us all in different ways

[odhiambo]

Today is the Memorial of
Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini
Among many other saints

[odhiambo]

Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini.
Frances was born in Sant’Angelo Lodigiano, Italy on July 15, 1850.
She was the youngest of thirteen children of Augustine Cabrini, a farmer and his wife, Stella Oldini Cabrini.
Frances wanted to become a nun but because her health was poor, she was not accepted.
In 1874, Monsignor Serrati, the parish pastor, asked Frances, (she was called Maria Francesca at the time) to take over the house of Providence Orphanage at Codogno, which was then, very poorly operated. After six years, this particular institution was closed, one of the reasons for the closure being that the founder did not get on well with Frances.
Frances was not deterred, with seven others, she moved into an abandoned friary at Codogno and founded The Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, devoted to teaching young girls.
The congregation expanded to Rome and Milan in 1880. She was now called Mother Cabrini.
She wanted to send sisters to China but Pope Leo X111 advised her to send them to the United States of America instead.
She was invited by Archbishop Corrigan of New York.
She went to the States in 1889 with six nuns.
Soon she founded Schools, hospitals, and orphanages and saw them flourish.
In twenty seven years, her congregation had spread across the United States, Italy, England, France, and Spain and into Central and South America.
She founded as many as sixty (more by other accounts) religious houses and charitable organizations.
In 1909, Frances became an American citizen.
She died in Columbus Hospital in Chicago Illinois on December 22, 1907.
She was canonized by Pope Pius X11 in 1946.
In 1950, the Pope declared her patroness of immigrants worldwide.
Frances was, reportedly, the first American citizen to become a saint.
Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini,
Pray for us!

[odhiambo]

14th November.

Today is the Feast day of
Saint Gertrude
Among many other saints.

[odhiambo]

Saint Gertrude The Great.
St. Gertrude was born at Eisleben in Saxony.
At the age of five, she was placed in the care of the Benedictine nuns at Rodalsdorf and later became a nun in the same monastery. She was elected Abbess there in 1251.
The following year she was obliged to take charge of the monastery at Helfta, to which she moved with her nuns.
St. Gertrude had enjoyed a good education.
She wrote and composed in Latin, and was versed in Sacred Literature.
She is the author of the Exercita Spiritualia, a collection of prayers .
She also wrote the highly respected Legatus Divinae Pietatis, an expression of Christian mysticisms.
Together with Saint Mechtilde, she wrote prayers that spread the devotion to the Sacred Heart.
Gertrude died on November 17th 1302 at Helfta.
In liturgical art, Saint Gertrude is depicted as an abbess , holding a flaming heart.
Saint Gertrude,
Pray for us!
Sorry!
Saint Gertrude's Memorial day is actually November 16.

[odhiambo]

15 th November.

Today is the Memorial of
Saint Albert the Great
Among many other saints.

[odhiambo]

Saint Albert the Great.
Doctor of the Church
Saint Albert, also referred to as Albertus Magnus, Doctor Expertus and Doctor Universalis, was born in 1206  in Lauingen, Swabia now modern Germany.
He was the eldest son of a powerful and wealthy German nobleman, Count Bollstadt.
He was raised in the Castle of Lauingen.
From an early age he had the mark of an intellectual.
He studied at the University of Padua in Italy.
Despite opposition from his family, Albert entered the Dominican Order.
After completing his studies, he taught at Cologne and in Hildesheim, Regensburg and Strasbourg.
He was in Cologne, working on the Book of Sentence by Peter Lombard when he received orders to go to Paris in 1245.
One of Albert’s students in Cologne as well as in Paris was Saint Thomas Aquinas.
In 1254. Albert was elected Provincial or Regional Superior of the Dominicans in Germany.
He went to Rome soon after to defend the Dominicans and the Franciscans against attacks by a certain William of Saint Amour.
While in Rome, Albert became the master of the sacred palace, an office instituted by Saint Dominic, serving as a theologian for the papal court.
He resigned that office as and the  provincialate in order to devote himself to study and teaching.
At the general meeting of the Dominicans 1259, Albert worked with Saint Thomas Aquinas and Peter of Tarentaise to draw up the rules and schedules of academic education for the Dominicans. In 1260, Albert was appointed the Bishop of Ratisbon (or Regensburg). He served only for two years then resigned and returned to Cologne to teach.
In 1270, Albert aided Saint Thomas Aquinas against the Averroists, an heretical group that advocated an extreme form of Aristotelianism (? So many heretical groups, one can hardly keep count!  )
Four years later he was called to the Council of Lyons, which was called to seek a reunion with the Greek Church.
On his way there, Albert received the bad news of the death of Saint Thomas Aquinas. His response was: “The Light of the Church is gone”
Towards the end of his life, Saint Albert suffered memory lapses and body weakness.
He died on 15 November 1280 at Cologne.
He was canonized and declared a doctor of the Church by Pope Pius XI in 1931.
Saint Albert the Great.
Pray for us!