Saint of the day and Feast days - Part 2

[odhiambo]

November 22
Today is the Memorial of
Saint Philemon
Among many other Saints

[odhiambo]

Saint Philemon
Martyr with his wife Apphia.
Philemon lived in the 1st century. He was a Christian in Colossae, Phrygia.
Married to a woman named Apphia. He was converted by Saint Paul, probably at Ephesus. Philemon was the master of the the runaway slave, Onesimus. He was also a leader in the Colossian church and the recipient of Saint Paul’s letter, “the Epistle of Paul to Philemon” which deals with forgiveness. In this private , personal letter to Philemon, Paul tells him he is sending back his runaway slave Onesmus so that he could have him back, not as a slave but as a dear brother. According to tradition, Philemon freed Onesmus. He was later stoned to death with his wife Apphia at Colossae, Phrygia, for being Christians.
Canonization was Pre-Congragation
Saint Philemon,
Pray for us!

[odhiambo]

November 23
Today is the Memorial of
Saint Trudo
Among many other Saints

[odhiambo]

Saint Trudo.
Benedictine monk, also known as Tron and as Trond.
Trudo was born some time in the 7th century in Hasbeye, Belgium.
He was the son of Frankish parents. He studied at the Metz Cathedral school in France where he was ordained by Saint Clodulf ( Clodulphus) of Metz. As a priest, Trudo returned to his birth place to preach the Gospel. He built a church and monastery on his estate around the year 656. It is now known as Saint Trond.
In 660, he founded a convent near Bruges, Belgium.
Saint Trudo was a noted preacher and worked hard to convert the pagans of Hasbaye. He is infact  known both as the "Apostle to the  Pagans" and the "Apostle of Hesbaye."
He died in 695 and was buried in the church of Saint Quintinus and Saint Remigius that he had built.
His canonization was Pre-Congregation.
Saint Trudo,
Pray for us!

[Shin]

Good morning from the States odhiambo!

Happy St. Trudo day to you!

I am thinking St. Onesimus probably had a part in helping to sainthood St. Philemon and his wife St. Apphia.

[odhiambo]

Good morning from the States odhiambo!

Happy St. Trudo day to you!

I am thinking St. Onesimus probably had a part in helping to sainthood St. Philemon and his wife St. Apphia.

Good morning Shin and Happy Thanksgiving Day!

[Shin]

Thank you odhiambo! It's been a fine one!

Today, the 24th of November, is St. Portianus's day. He died in the year of Our Lord 533.

St. Gregory of Tours writes of him:

'The blessed Portianus strove always, from the start of his life, to seek the God of Heaven, even among earthly servitude. For he is said to have been the salve of a certain barbarian. He fled several times into a monastery, so that the abbot had to obtain a pardon for him and return him to his master. In the end he fled yet again; his master followed his tracks, and began to insult the abbot, accusing him of enticing his slave away from his service. And when, as was the custom, he rudely pressed the abbot to surrender him the abbot said to Portianus, "What do you want me to do?" And he said, "Give me back, pardoned." And a pardon was obtained, and he was returned, and his master wishes to bring him back into his house. But the master becomes so blind that he can no longer recognise anything. In great pain he calls the abbot and says, "Plead to the Lord on my behalf, I beg you, and take this slave into His service: perhaps I then deserve to recover the light that I have lost."

Then the abbot called the blessed Portianus and said to him, "I beg you, place your hands on the eyes of this man." And when he refused, the abbot eventually prevailed upon him to make the sign of the cross over the eyes of his master; and immediately the darkness was dissolved, and the pain appeased, and he was restored to his original health.

Eventually the blessed Portianus became a cleric, and he was so famous for his great virtues, that when the abbot died he succeeded him. [ed: The monastery received his name and the place is now called Saint-Pourcain]

It is said of him that at the height of summer, when the heat of the sun consumed everything and exhausted even the bodies that food and drink had made the most robust, Portianus, who because of his fasts had no saliva in his mouth, woudl chew salt when he was hot, which brought him some freshness to moisten his dried gums a little. And although he thereby refreshed his dry palate, nevertheless he brought greater torment to himself by increasing his thirst. Indeed, as everyone knows, salt rather excites the ardour of thirst than extinguishes it; but, by God's grace, this did not happen to him.

At this time Theuderic had entered the Auvergne and was exterminating and laying waste everything. When he had established his camp in the meadows of Artonne, the old man hastened to go before him, as he wished to plead on the people's behalf. And he entered the camp int he morning, while the king still slept in his tent, and came to the tend of Sigivald, who was then the king's chief man. And while he was complaining about the army's occupation, Sigivald begged him to wash his hands and take wine with him, saying "The kindness of God will bring me great joy and great favour today, if you enter my tend and deign to say a prayer and then to take some wine." For he had in fact heard of the sancity of this man, and that is why he honoured him, through respect for God.

But the saint excused himself in various ways, saying that it was not possible, because it was not yet time for a meal, because he ought first to greet the king, and which was the most important thing, because he had not yet sung the psalms which he owned to the Lord. But Sigivald ingored all these excuses, and forced him to drink; he brought him a full cup and demanded that the saint take it and bless it. The holy man lifted his right hand to make the sign of the cross, and immediately the cup split down the middle, and the wine which was inside spilt onto the ground, together with a huge serpent. Those who were present were terrified and threw themselves at the feet of the saint, touching the marks of his footsteps and kissing his feet. All admired the power of the old man, and were amazed that they had been divinely saved from the venom of the serpent. The whole army ran up to see this miracle, and a great multitude surrounded the holy man, each person wishing only to touch the fringe of his robe with his hand, if he were not allowed the honour of kissing it. The king leapt from his bed and ran to the blessed confessor, and without waiting for him to say a word, he freed all the captives that he had asked for, and thereafter he did what the saint requested. And thus, by the grace of God, Portianus received a double benefit, bringing some from death and redeeming others from the yoke of captivity. I believe truly, and it has been confirmed by others, that those saved from this danger were as if brought back from the dead.'

[odhiambo]

Amen!
What grace! So that is why he is said to be represented by a monk breaking a cup from which a snake slithers off 
Saint Portianus,
Pray for us!

[odhiambo]

November 24 is also  the Memorial of
Saint Flora of Cordoba
Among many other Saints.

[odhiambo]

Saint Flora
Flora was born in Cordoba. Her parents were Mohammedans but the mother converted to Christianity and secretly raised Flora a Christian. She apparently had a son who was raised Muslim. Flora was betrayed by her brother as being Christian. She was scourged and put into his custody so that he might persuade her to apostatize. She escaped. Later, while praying in Saint Acislus Church. She met a Christian named Mary. Mary was the sister of a deacon who had just been martyred. The two decided to stop running and to give themselves up as Christians. They were sent to a brothel. When their ordeal there did not shake their constancy, they were beheaded.
The year was 851.
Among other patronages, Flora is the patron of abandoned people and
betrayal victims.
Saint Flora,
Pray for us!

[odhiambo]

Flora was betrayed by her own brother with the full knowledge that this could lead to her death. It seems that this scenario is alive and well in some Muslim countries even today.  I hear of devout Muslims killing family members who convert to other religion, or  want  or marry outside their religion. I do not know if this is true, or just rumors.

[Patricia]

It is true and called 'honor' killings.  Not to generalize though.

[odhiambo]

It is true and called 'honor' killings.  Not to generalize though.

Wow. I thank God we have freedom of worship. Life gets to be pretty complicated without it 

[odhiambo]

November 25, 2012
Today is the Feast of
Christ the King.

[odhiambo]

"That in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those
that are in Heaven,
on earth and under the earth:
And that every tongue should confess that
the Lord Jesus Christ
is in the glory of God the Father."

Philippians 2:10-11

[odhiambo]

Today is also the Memorial of
Saint Moses of Rome
Among many other Saints