Saint of the day and Feast days.

[eschator83]

As you see I've learned to bring forward a quote, but not how to comment on it.  I hope to bring forward a quote about St Anselm on 4/21.

[Shin]

As you see I've learned to bring forward a quote, but not how to comment on it.  I hope to bring forward a quote about St Anselm on 4/21.

When you cite a quote, you can comment on it afterwards, if you type in below the last [/quote] tag.

[eschator83]

As you see I've learned to bring forward a quote, but not how to comment on it.  I hope to bring forward a quote about St Anselm on 4/21.

When you cite a quote, you can comment on it afterwards, if you type in below the last

tag.
[/quote]

Thank you very much.  I pray you are feeling better.

[eschator83]

St Stephen Harding (d1134) joined a group of hermits led by St Robert and St Alberic near Molesmes.  In 1094 they were given permission to found a more spiritual order at Citeaux.  St Stephen was elected abbot in 1109, and wrote the Charter of Charity, which organized the Cistercian Order, and was joined in 1112 by St Bernard and a group of 30 friends.

[eschator83]

Saint Peter Chanel
Priest and Martyr.

Peter was born in 1803 at Cluet( Clet) in the diocese of Belley, France. His parents were peasants. At the age of seven, he was a shepherd boy. His intelligence and simple piety brought him to the attention of the local priest, Father Trompier. The priest convinced his parents to let him study, in a little school he had started locally. From there Peter went on to the seminary. Here, at the diocesan Seminary, Peter won the affection and the esteem of both students and professorst It was said of him: "He had a heart of gold with the simple faith of a child, and he led the life of an angel."
He was ordained a priest in 1827 and assigned to a parish at Crozet. In three years he had transformed the parish. In 1831, he joined the newly founded Society of Mary( Marist Fathers).He had always wanted to become a missionary. He was, however, assigned to teach at the seminary in Belley. He did this for five years. Finally, in 1836, his dream was realized, and he was sent with other Marists to the islands of the Pacific. St. Peter was appointed Superior of this little band of missionaries.
After strenous ten month journey, the team reached their destination. They split up and St. Peter went to the Island of Futuna ( ? Marshall Islands) accompanied by a lay brother and an English layman, Thomas Boog. They were at first well received by the pagans and their king Niuliki who had only recently forbidden canabalism. However, the king's jealousy and fear was aroused when the missionaries learned the language and gained the people's confidence. He realized the adoption of the Christian Faith would lead to the abolition of some of the powers he enjoyed as highpriest and also as king.
The last straw, was when the chief's son asked for baptism. This so angered the chief that he sent warriors to kill the missionary.
On April 18, 1841, a band of native warriors entered the hut of Father Peter Chanel on the island of Futuna in the New Hebrides islands near New Zealand. They clubbed the missionary to death and cut up his body with hatchets.
Two years after this detestible murder of Saint Peter, we are told that the whole island was Catholic!
Here is a very appropriate commentary from Eternal Word Television Network on the martyrdom of Saint Peter.

“St. Peter Chanel's death bears witness to the ancient axiom that "the blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians." He is the first martyr from Oceania, that part of the world spread over the south Pacific, and he came there as the fulfillment of a dream he had had as a boy”

Saint Peter was canonized in 1954 by Pope XII.

Saint Peter Chanel,
Pray for us!

This witness has a very strong emotional draw for me.  Foley begins with a statement that anyone who has worked in loneliness, with great adaptation required, and little apparent success, will feel in St Peter a kindred Spirit.  Curiously, Foley concludes by saying the entire island was converted within two years of Peter's death, which Foley and Delaney agree occurred on 4/28. 
Foley says one other Christian remained on the island with Peter, and Delaney says there were to lay brothers with him, but strangely neither mentions the fate of these brothers.  St Peter pray for us.

[eschator83]

    Little is known of his early life. Legend says that at age twelve he began to live as a hermit in a hollow oak tree; the name Stock is believed derived from the old English for tree trunk. Itinerant preacher. Pilgrim to the Holy Lands, but left when invading Muslims chased out Christians. Joined the Carmelite Order soon after its arrival in England.

    Lived and studied for several years in Rome and Mount Carmel. Elected sixth general of the Carmelites in 1247 around age 82. Helped the Order spread through England, southern and western Europe. Founded houses in Cambridge, England in 1248, Oxford in 1253, Paris in 1260, and Bologna in 1260. Revised the Rule of the Order to make them mendicant friars instead of hermits.

    Regardless of these successes, the Order was oppressed on all sides, including by the clergy and other orders. The friars took their woes to their patroness, the Virgin Mary. Tradition says that in answer, she appeared to Simon bringing him the brown scapular of the Carmelites. "This shall be the privilege for you and for all the Carmelites," she told him, "that anyone dying in this habit shall be saved." On 13 January 1252 the Order received a letter of protection from Pope Innocent IV, protecting them from harassment.

There were several other posts about Simon Stock with this one.  According to Delaney he was never formally canonized, although veneration and celebration of his feast 5/16 was authorized by the Holy See for Carmelites.  Pray for us.

[eschator83]

Saint Peter Chrysologus
Bishop of Ravenna.
Doctor of the Church.

Peter was born about the year 406 at Imola in the region of Emilia, Italy. He studied under the watchful eyes of Bishop Cornelius of Imola. He was an excellent student, always first among his schoolmates. He studied theology among his subjects and, in time, he was ordained deacon by Bishop Cornelius.
When Cornelius died, Pope Saint Sixtus III named Peter Bishop of Ravenna in 433 in place of another clergy who had been elected by the people. Legend has it that the Pope acted this way in response to a vision which he had, telling him to do so.
Little reliable information about St. Peter's life survived. What we know is that he began his reign at a time when there was a strong pagan influence in Ravenna and many of the faithful had elapsed. He at once embarked on measures to eradicate paganism from his diocese and to bring people back to the Church. This he did through pastoral care and very practical yet passionate preaching. His sermons were always said to be brief but so inspiring that he was given the title "Chrysologus" (Greek for "Golden-worded or, of golden words).
( Compare with Saint John Chrysostom for “ golden-mouthed”)
Through this efforts, many people returned to the faith and paganism was eradicated in Ravenna.
Peter died at Imola on July 31 450, during the reign of Pope Leo the Great.
He was declared a "Doctor of the Church" by Pope Bendict XIII in 1729.

Saint Peter Chrysologus,
Pray for us!

Delaney's dictionary of Saints reports that Empress Galla Placidia was so impressed by Peter's sermons that she contributed generously to Church building projects.

[eschator83]

August 7

Today is the Feast day of
Saint Sixtus II and Companions
Among many other Saints

I pray I can add another quote or copy here.

Saint Sixtus II and Companions
Pope and martyr, martyrs.
Sixtus was a Greek and a philosopher. He converted to Christianity in his adult years and was deacon in Rome Italy before his election to pope on August 30, 257. He succeeded Pope Stephen I. During his short era which lasted just one year, Saint Sixtus was known for his conciliatory and peaceful nature. He was able to restore relations with the African and Eastern churches following strained relations under Pope Stephen I. The problem was a controversy about the validity of Baptism by heretics.

"Pope St. Sixtus II believed that anyone who was baptized with a desire to be a Christian, even if the Baptism was performed by a heretic, was truly baptized into the faith; the validity of his faith was based on his own desire and actions, not the errors of the person who performed the sacrament."

The Seventh Persecution, that under Emperor Decius, that started in 250 A.D and continued by his successor, Valerian, was one of the most violent faced by the Church. In 257, there was an imperial edict that forbade Christians to assemble to prayer and demanding them to worship pagan gods.
The Pope used to meet secretly with his clergy for the Eucharist in the catacombs or underground caverns which were used as cemeteries. On 6 August 258 they were found in the cemetery by Praetextatus on the Appain Way. Sixtus, together with four of his deacons, Sts Januarius, Vincent, Magnus and Stephen were seized and beheaded. Another deacon, St Lawrence was martyred 4 days later. Sixtus was buried in the nearby cemetery of St Callistus.

Saint Sixtus II and Companions
Pray for us!

Delaney adds that two other deacons were also seized and executed, St Agapitus and Felicissimus.  Pray for us.

[eschator83]

Saint Maximillian  Mary Kolbe
Martyr

Saint Maximilian Mary Kolbe was born in Zdunska Wola, in Russian Occupied Poland on 8 January 1894 to  a poor weaver named Julius, and his wife Maria Kolbe (Marianne Dabrowska). Although the couple was poor they were devout; both were Franciscan lay tertiaries and had a special devotion to Our Lady. He was baptized Raymond at the Parish Church.
As a child, he was said to be wild and troublesome. One day, when he was about 12 years old, his mother scolded him for a wrong he had done. He must have given a lot of thought to his life then because something happened that changed the course of his life. This is how he puts it as found in SQPN:

I asked the Mother of God what was to become of me. Then she came to me holding two crowns, one white, the other red. She asked if I was willing to accept either of these crowns. The white one meant that I should persevere in purity, and the red that I should become a martyr. I said that I would accept them both. - Saint Maximilian

In 1907, Raymond and his elder brother entered a Franciscan seminary in Lwow. He took the name of Maximilian. In 1911, Maximilian made his temporary vows. He was then sent to Rome to study phylosophy at the Jesuit Gregorian College. He also studied theology at the Franciscan Collegio Serafico in Rome from 1915 to 1919.

 In 1917, one year before his ordination to the priesthood, Maximilian founded the Militia of Mary Immaculate in Rome, to advance Marian devotion. He was ordained in Rome in 1918.
Father Maximilian returned to Poland in 1919 and began spreading his Militia of the Mary Immaculata movement whose members are also called MIs. About one year after returning to Poland from Rome, Maxililian was diagnosed with , and treated for tuberculosis. The disease left its toll on him. Because of his subsequent ill health, he was freed to devote his time exclusively to the promotion of the Militia.
First,  he founded the "Knight of the Immaculate," a monthly Roman Catholic Magazine promoting the knowledge, love and service of the Immaculate Virgin, in the conversion of all souls to Christ Our Lord. The magazine was initially in Polish, but other languages soon followed.
The rapid growth of this apostolate led to the foundation of  an evangelization center near Warsaw called Niepokalanow, the "City of the Immaculate." This was a monastery
 of Franciscan priests and brothers engaged in the use of all kinds of modern equipment so as to promote, via the mass media the Militia through all parts of Poland.
In 1930, Maximilian and four brothers volunteered to go to Japan as missionaries. Soon, Maximillian was printing a Japanese version of the Knight; the magazine, Seibo no Kishi. He also founded  another city of the Immaculate, Mugenzai No Sono in Nagasaki,  comparable to Niepokalanow.
In 1936, Maximilian  returned to Niepokalanow, as its spiritual father.
On 19 September 1939, following the Nazi invasion of Poland, the monks dispersed and Niepokalanow was ransacked. Maximilian and about 40 others were taken to holding camps, first in Germany, and later in Poland. On the feast of the Immaculate Conception of that year, they were all released and allowed to return home. When World II broke out, the friars started caring for Jewish refugees.
In February of 1941, the Gestapo came to Niepokalanow and arrested Maximlian. He was taken to Pawiak Prision in German Occupied Warsaw, Poland, and later was transferred to Auschwitz and branded as prisoner 16670.
In the camp, Maximillian returned the vicious hatred and brutality of the prison guards, with obedience, meekness, and a forgiving attitude. He advised all his fellow prisoners to "Trust in the Immaculate!";  to "Forgive!"; to "Love your enemies and pray for your persecutors!". He was noted for his generosity in surrendering his food despite the fact that all were suffering from starvation; to cap it all, he was a sick man  suffering from the chronic ill health brought about by tuberculosis.

On the night of August 3, 1941 a prisoner successfully escaped from the same section of the camp in which  Maximilian was detained. It was the Nazi policy to kill ten prisoners every time one inmate escaped. In reprisal for the successful escape, the commandant ordered death by starvation for 10 men chosen at random from the same section. what follows is an excerpt from  Feast of all Saints .

"One of these, named Franciszek Gajowniczek, a father of nine, wailed: “No, God! Not me, please! What will become of my poor wife and children?” Deeply moved, Fr Kolbe stepped out of the ranks and standing before Commandant Fritsch, pointed to Sergeant Gajowniczek and said: “I am a Catholic priest from Poland. I am old. I want to take his place because he has a wife and children”,

Thus, Maximilian volunteered to die in the place of the married prisoner.
According to SQPN, Maximilian died on 14 August 1941 by lethal injection of carbolic acid after three weeks of starvation and dehydration at the Auschwitz, Poland death camp.
He was pronounced venerable on 30 January 1969 by Pope Paul VI; beatified on 17 October 1971 by Pope Paul VI. His beatification miracles include the July 1948 cure of intestinal tuberculosis of Angela Testoni, and August 1950 cure of calcification of the arteries/sclerosis of Francis Ranier.
He was canonized on 10 October 1982 by Pope John Paul II and declared a martyr of charity.
He is patron of the following:
against drug addiction
 drug addicts
  imprisoned people
   journalists
   political prisoners
   pro-life movement
and more.

Saint Maximillian  Mary Kolbe
Pray for us!
 

St Maximilian's monastery at Niepolalanow housed 700 Franciscan brothers in 1939 when it was severely bombed by the National Socialists.  Pray for us St Max.  Today's celebration is a memorial.

[eschator83]

Saint Louis IX
King of France
Louis was born on April 25, 1214 at Poissy, France. He was the son King Louis VIII of France and Queen Blanche ( Blanche of Castile). He was raised in a pious manner by his mother. It is said that when Prince Louis was small, his mother hugged him saying: "I love you, my dear son, as much as a mother can love her child, but I would rather see you dead at my feet than ever to have you commit a mortal sin."
Louis never forgot those words.
His father died in 1226 when he was 12 years old. His mother became regent until he reached his majority.
Louis was reportedly, a remarkable king, deeply religious and a model of prayer, kindness and compassion.
He married Margaret, the daughter of count Raymund Berenger of Provence in 1224 and they were blessed with eleven children.
Saint Louis ruled his country well, fought many just wars and won many of them including the defeat he handed King Henry III of England at Taillebourg in 1242.
He led two Crusades. The first was in 1248 and captured Damietta in 1249. Unfortunately, he suffered a disastrous defeat at the hands of the Saracens at El Mansura in 1250 and was taken prisoner. He ransomed himself and his men. He then went to the Holy Land where he stayed until 1254 when his mother died. He returned to France then.
In 1270, Louis started off on his second Crusade. He contracted typhoid soon after landing in Tunisia. He died there near Tunis on 25 August 1270 .
His relics were in the Basilica of Saint Denis, Paris, France but were destroyed in 1793 during the French Revolution.
Louis was canonized in 1297 by Pope Boniface VIII.
The Saint was noted for his justice, charity and personal piety. He founded many religious and educational institutions.
He is said to be one of the greatest of all French Kings
Saint Louis,
Pray for us!

Foley adds that Louis regularly had 13 guests of poor to eat with him, and a large number were served meals near the palace.  During Advent and Lent all who presented themselves were fed, and Louis often fed them in person.

[eschator83]

Beheading of Saint John The Baptist.
We read about the cruel death of Saint John in the Gospels.
According to the Gospel of Saint Mark, When Herod Antipas married Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip who was yet living, Saint John the Baptist boldly reprimanded him. Afraid that John's preaching would start a revolt, Herod had him arrested and imprisoned.
Although Herod feared John, he knew John was a holy and rightous man. He had no intention of killing him. Not so, however for Herodius, a woman, full of vengeance and  jealousy. She looked for any chance to have him killed. This opportunity came when Herod gave a grand birthday party to the elite of Galilee and her daughter Salome danced to entertain the revellers.
Salome's dancing so pleased Herod that he promised her anything she desired. Herodias prompted her daughter to ask for the head of John the Baptist. Herod granted her wish and John was killed.
Here is how the Evangelist Saint Mark puts it:
Quote
"The king was greatly distressed but because of his oaths and the guests he did not wish to break his word to her. So he promptly dispatched an executioner with orders to bring back his head. He went off and beheaded him in prison. He brought the head back on a platter and gave it to the girl. The girl in turn gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard about it they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb."
Mk 6:26-29
Thus John died, beheaded at Machaerus. He was buried at Sebaste in Samaria.
His relics are in Saint Sylvester’s church, Rome, Italy, and at Amiens, France .
The day for this feast is taken from the date when the Church of St. John was dedicated at Sebaste, in Samaria. This church is located at what is traditionaly thought to be the burial site for Saint John.
Saint John the Baptist,
Pray for us!

The foregoing post was by Odhiambo on 8/29/11.  Many thanks.  According to Foley, today's celebration is a Memorial, and St John's birthday (June 24) is a Solemnity.  I'm still hoping to find the basis for these terms.

[eschator83]

How time flies.
It is already one year since we started this thread on March 7, 2011.
So it is goodbye, so long, fare well to “Saint of the day and Feast days”  
And hello to “Saint of the day and Feast days-Part 2”  

I deeply regret how foolishly slow I've been to appreciate what a wonderful thread and contribution this was/is by Odhiambo; a very complete full year of Saints Lives.  My deepest thanks to you for this enormous and wonderful effort.  I haven't found part 2, but I'll keep looking.  Perhaps there is an alternate format where we can best join Cyril in his great idea to periodically add comments to the lives so they periodically get updated.

[CyrilSebastian]

How time flies.
It is already one year since we started this thread on March 7, 2011.
So it is goodbye, so long, fare well to “Saint of the day and Feast days”  
And hello to “Saint of the day and Feast days-Part 2”  

I deeply regret how foolishly slow I've been to appreciate what a wonderful thread and contribution this was/is by Odhiambo; a very complete full year of Saints Lives.  My deepest thanks to you for this enormous and wonderful effort.  I haven't found part 2, but I'll keep looking.  Perhaps there is an alternate format where we can best join Cyril in his great idea to periodically add comments to the lives so they periodically get updated.

     

It is nice to add information to the lives of the Saints.

[eschator83]

Odhiambo's posts for the Feast of the birth of our Holy Mother Mary (Sept and the Memorial of St Peter Claver are both listed in the proper sequence above (with many other great posts).  It is time consuming to scroll through many posts to find them, but well worth the effort.  I have some temptation to copy or quote them here, but I hate to make duplicate entries.  For some reason I could not find the St Peter entry with the search icon.
We thank you and praise you Holy Mother and St Peter, please pray for us.

[eschator83]

Saint Peter Canisius
Peter Canisius or Peter kanis, was born in the Dutch town of Nijmegen on May 8, 1521, the year that Martin Luther left the Church. His father was wealthy, being the mayor of Nijmegen. He studied at the Latin school of St. Stephen there, and at 15 years of age he entered the University of Cologne where he studied theology. At 19, he was awarded his Master’s degree and three years later he became the first German to enter the Society of Jesus. He soon made a name for himself as a teacher at the University and an orator of note.
Peter was ordained a priest in 1546 by which time he was 25 years old. He was next employed as theologian by the Cardinal Bishop of Augsburg at the great Council of Trent.
After spending some months in Rome with Saint Ignatius, he made his solemn profession as a Jesuit in 1549 and was sent to Vienna, where he taught theology at the University, preached in the cathedral and at the court of Ferdinand I.
Peter worked hard to restore the true Catholic doctrine. The church in Vienna was in a deplorable state  with no priests having been ordained there for nearly 20 years and many country Parishes had to be abandoned.
Peter was convinced that many had fallen away simply out of ignorance, he avoided narrow minded arguments. His exemplary humility, moderation and tact, made him the most influential leader of the Counter Reformation in those lands.
As his talents were recognized by the Jesuit Order, Peter was used as a teacher in Cologne, Vienna and Ingolstadt. He established Jesuit colleges in Munich, Innsbruck, Augsburg, Vienna, Wurzburg and Dillington. He was by now very well known for his preaching, his superb defense of Catholic doctrine, and his resistance to Protestantism, especially in Bavaria, Bohemia and parts of Austria.
Peter was named provincial of Upper Germany in 1556. He took part in the Discussion at Worms in 1557, the council of Trent and the Diet of Augsburg in 1559.
Peter concentrated his efforts on establishing colleges, promoting reform throughout Catholic lands and halting the tide of the Protestant Reformation.
Credit is given to him for revitalizing Catholicism in Austria and Germany at a time when they were in danger of being lost to Protestantism.
For his achievements he is honored as the Second Apostle of Germany.

Noted as a brilliant theologian, Peter was the author of several catechisms, the most famous being the Summa Doctrinae Christianae (or the Catechismus Major), published in 1555. It presents Catholic dogma through two hundred and eleven questions and answers. The Summa was the chief writing of the Catholic Reformation (with the exception of the Spiritual Exercises).
Peter died on Dec. 21, 1597 at Fribourg, Switzerland at the age of 76.
He was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1925, and declared Doctor of the Church at the same time.
Saint Peter Canisius,
Pray for us!
References:
1.Our Sunday Visitor's encyclopedia of saints Revised.
2. Saint Companions for each day by A.J.M. Mausolfe and J.K. Mausolfe

Despite a paralytic seizure, St Peter continued to write and preach for 6 years until his death.  St Peter, pray for us.

[eschator83]

Elizabeth Ann Seton
Elizabeth was born on 28 August 1774, in a distinguished Protestant family of New York City.
My Reference book tells me that she was the first American born-born saint ( I am open to correction here.) Her father was a physician of repute and a professor of Anatomy at King’s College (Columbia College according to another source). He was also an official of the health authority of the Port of New York. Her mother, Catherine Bayley, was the daughter of an Anglican minister ( Episcopalian parson by another source)
Elizabeth’s mother died while she was still young and so her upbringing was left to her father alone. He did not fail her! Elizabeth was given a sound education and careful character training. She grew up with a special concern for the poor and the sick. She tended to them so tenderly that she was called the “Protestant Sister of Charity”
Her writings, even as a child, revealed her deep religious conviction and spiritual character.
Even as a teenager, she had taken up certain practices that had nothing to do with her Episcopalian affiliation.
She wore a crucifix, did daily examination of conscience and read The Imitation of Christ along with the Bible.
On 25 January 1794, Elizabeth married William Magee Seton, a young wealthy merchant. They had 5 children.
Her father in law died in 1798, followed by her own father in 1801.
Financial difficulties soon beset her life and her husband’s health deteriorated rapidly. So as to help divert William’s mind from his family misfortune and his failing health, they were invited over by family friends in Italy, the Filicchi family of Leghorn. William, Elizabeth and their eldest child sailed off to Italy, reaching Leghorn in 1803. Six weeks later, William died in Pisa.
Elizabeth spent her first month of widowhood in the Catholic household of Felicchi, where she came to know and appreciate the Catholic faith. The family, who had a private Chapel in the house, nurtured a special devotion to the Blessed Virgin. Elizabeth participated in all their devout practices with such fervor that when she returned home from Italy, she was already a Catholic at heart!
On 4March 1805 she was received into the Catholic Church. Her relatives and Protestant friends deserted her completely, even depriving her of the bare necessities of life.
Facing all opposition calmly, she went to Canada where she was invited by the Superior of the Baltimore Suplicians, Fr. Dubourg, to found a school for girls near St. Mary’s Seminary, Paca Street. She complied. Soon, many women volunteered assistance and students flocked to her; many of these women wanted the school to be changed into a convent. The Bishop of Baltomore gave her a set of rules and directed her to start a convent. He received her vows, allowed her to adopt the religious habit and made her the Superioress of the Community.
In 1809, Elizabeth moved to Emmitsburg, a village in Maryland, where she formed the Sisters of Charity, under the rule of St. Vincent de Paul.
She laid the foundation of the American Parochial school system, trained teachers and prepared textbooks, and wrote many spiritual treatises. She helped the sick and the poor, and converted many to the faith. She opened an orphanage in Philadelphia and another in New York.
Worn out by the rigors of sickness and labors, Mother Seton died on 4 January 1821.
She was canonized by Pope Paul VI on 14 September 1975. Her day of canonization was officially designated as the Holy Year “ Women’s Day” by the Vatican because “she was a woman who had passed all stages of womanhood: youth, maidenhood. Widowhood and religious life.”
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton,
Pray for us!
Saint Companion for each day
A.J.M.Mausolfe
J.K.Mausolfe.

I'm sorry I keep failing to refer back effectively to some of our great posts.  Is there a best way to do it?  St Elizabeth, again we ask your prayers for us.