Paul Zalonski – Page 15

Saint Remi

The Church recalls the French saint who very evangelical in the face of pagan belief arguing for the worship of the One, Triune God. He was a persuasive preacher and teacher.

Remi was elected bishop of Rheims in 459 when he was only 22 years old, and guided his flock for more than 70 years. Clovis ruled northern Gaul in those days and despite the constant urgings of his wife, St Clotilde, whose father was the Christian king of Burgundy, he refused to abandon his tribal gods. When bishop Remi joined his power of argument to the efforts of the queen, and after an impressive military victory, the king finally agreed to be baptized. But as St Remi led Clovis into the font, he warned him to be humble and “worship what you have burned and burn what you have worshipped!” Following this event Remi was quick to spread the good news among the Franks, and tradition relates many miracles that accompanied his preaching.

St Remi was also a supporter of Nicaean Orthodoxy and was vigorous in opposing Arianism. France honors this saint on October 1. (NS)

IMAGE BY FR LAWRENCE LEW, OP

Saint Helen, Empress, Mother, Pilgrim

In Rome and Jerusalem especially, and especially for me in the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, we celebrate today Saint Helen (d. 327 A.D.), empress, mother, pilgrim of the Holy Land, who made worship places and relics of the history, the mystery of salvation.

Several years ago I was privileged to live at the Basilica of Santa Croce in Rome where the relics of the Lord’s passion reside. It was a beautiful thing to have some daily prayer in this holy place.

Let us pray for the Church and the Order of the Holy Sepulchre.

Image of St Helena at the Basilica of Santa Croce in Rome.

The Dormition of the Holy Mother of God, the Theotokos

The hagiographers for this feast write:

This feast originated in the fourth century at the dedication of a temple in honor of the Mother of God. This church was located between Jerusalem and Bethlehem, which tradition hallowed as the place where Mary and Joseph stopped on their journey to the city of David.

By the fifth century in the Byzantine East, and by the sixth century in the Roman Church, this day celebrated the death of Mary, her dormition or “falling asleep” as it is called in liturgical poetry.

Apocryphal accounts, iconography, and texts of the feast are embellished with a persistent pious tradition that all the apostles returned to her deathbed from their missionary journeys.

Through the feast of the Dormition, the Church regards Mary as the first to participate in the final deification of all creation. This is only fitting for the Mother of Life, through whom God became one of us, to die and, by his rising, make the passage from death to life an eternal reality. (NS)

St Clare of assisi

The spiritual fathers and mothers frequently advise their juniors to look to the saints as examples of those who adhere closely to Jesus Christ. The saints and blesseds of our Catholic Church –East and West– show us that living the gospel fully is possible, is reasonable, is beautiful. I also look in the canon of saints and blesseds for the complements: Benedict and Scholastica, Francis de Sales and Jane de Chantal, Dominic and Catherine of Siena. Today, it is Clare’s feast day and it is entirely appropriate to think of her in light of her spiritual friendship with the great Francis. The Lord has given to us the virtue of complementarity to see the brilliance of holiness. Hence, we honor our venerable mother, Clare of Assisi.

“Clare was born in 1193 into a noble family. Her marriage had been arranged, according to custom, since childhood.

When St Francis began to preach, she followed his intense career with growing interest. Eventually, at the age of eighteen, she left home secretly and took refuge in the broken-down chapel of San Damiano, where Francis received her into monastic life and clothed her in the habit. They decided that she would stay with nearby Benedictine nuns until the chapel could be made into a monastery for her.

Clare herself soon had a following, and the life she charted for these nuns stressed simplicity and poverty according to the ideal of Francis.

Clare’s rich admiration and clear understanding of Francis gave her the spark and drive to persevere. She outlived Francis by 27 years, and during this time she guided her community with such compassion and discretion that her life can be seen as the most authentic expression of evangelical perfection as understood by St Francis.

The relationship between Clare and Francis is, perhaps, the best reflection in the western monastic tradition of the Orthodox tradition of spiritual father and disciple. (NS)

Procession of the Holy Cross

According to the Synaxarion, the feast celebrates the veneration of the Holy Cross in Constantinople. The early days of August were dangerous in antiquity. Because of the heat, many diseases became strong, and so the Cross was displayed in various places in the city for fourteen days. This feast was then introduced into Rus in the fifteenth century.

Today it announces the coming of the great feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on September 14, approximately forty days from now. I think in may ways we misunderstand the Cross, we equate it with pain and suffering, as a negative sign that Christians were made to be miserable. That is not what St. Paul says in today’s epistle, “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God …. The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 18:18.23-24).

St. John calls the Cross the glory of Jesus, not because of its ugliness, but because it witnesses to the infinite love of God for his people. Because of love the cross is a “trophy of victory.”

In the Ambon Prayer of the Feast of the Exaltation, we pray, “You are glorified by the exaltation of your venerable Cross and by it accomplish our purification from the pride of demons.” As the people of Constantinople centuries ago looked to the Cross for deliverance from illness, we look at it today as our hope for deliverance from sin and evil.

Meditation by Archpriest David Petras

What the emblem of Order stands for?

The badge of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, formed by a large Greek cross surrounded by four small crosses, symbolically represents the five wounds of Christ which are like the “Gates of Heaven”. This emblem is not a decoration but a mission whose spiritual meaning is illuminated in the light of the teaching of Pope Francis.

Indeed, since his election, the Holy Father urges us to touch the wounds of Christ, like the Apostle Thomas did after the resurrection, to welcome the mercy that radiates from Him as a source of peace. “If we put our hands together into these wounds and confess that Jesus has risen, and if we proclaim Him as our Lord and our God, if recognizing our shortcomings, we dive into His wounds of love, we can find the truth.” Joy of forgiveness and getting a foretaste of the day when, with God’s help, we will be able to celebrate on the same altar the Passover mystery,” he emphasized, especially from an ecumenical perspective, during a pontifical trip.

“A saint was saying that the body of Jesus crucified is like a bag of mercy, reaching us all through his wounds,” he also explained on the occasion of Mercy Sunday.”

“We all need mercy, we know it.” Let us draw closer to Jesus and touch his wounds in our suffering brothers. Jesus’ wounds are a treasure: that’s where mercy flows. Let us be brave and touch the wounds of Jesus. With these wounds, he stands before the Father, he shows them to the Father, as if he were saying, “Father, this is the price, these wounds are what I paid for my brothers.” Through his wounds, Jesus intercedes before the Father. He gives us mercy if we draw near, and intercede for us. Do not forget the wounds of Jesus” (Regina Cæli, April 28, 2019).

Each member of the Order is therefore called to first carry in his heart the symbols of the badge sewn on his mantle and to spread the veneration of the Holy Wounds of Christ, sources of forgiveness and mercy. They cleanse and heal. If we embrace them, they can truly change our lives. (EOHSJ)

Roger Sherman remembered

The Committee of Five presenting their work on the Declaration of Independence in June 1776 and memorialized this painting by John Trumbull (1819). Sherman on the right.

Roger Sherman of Connecticut is remembered on this day in history 23 July 1793. He was one of the members of the Committee of Five to draft the Declaration of Independence. However, we ought to recall that he was the only person to sign all four great state papers of the United States: the Continental Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. It is said that Sherman’s state-craft was influenced by the isolationist politics of the time. That is, Connecticut was not very involved in the politics of the region.

A shoemaker educated in his father’s library became a civic leader. Married twice and father of 15. Sherman died of typhoid in New Haven, CT and is now buried in Grove Street Cemetery. Jonathan Edwards Jr. delivered the funeral sermon on July 25, 1793. Edwards recalled Sherman’s “contributions to his friends, family, town, and country, noting Sherman’s piety and excellence in study.”

St Andrei Rublev, monk and iconographer

Today Byzantine Church recalls the memory of the monk and iconographer St. Andrei Rublev, monk and iconographer. His birth and death dates are not known precisely, but he is known to have lived in the 14th century. His iconography is well-appreciated world—wide; much of his sacred art resides in Russia. Rublev is buried at the Andronikov Monastery.

The troparion for St. Andrei reads:

Shining with the rays of divine light, O venerable Andrew, You knew Christ the wisdom and power of God. By means of the image of the Holy Trinity You preached to all the world the Holy Trinity in unity. And we, with amazement and joy, cry out to you: As you have boldness before the Most Holy Trinity. Pray that the Uncreated Light may illumine our souls!

New bishop for the Malabar Eparchy in the USA

Second Eparch for the Syro-Malabar Eparchy of St. Thomas in Chicago

Pope Francis has appointed Mar Joy Alappat, 66, as the second Bishop of the St. Thomas Eparchy of Chicago, succeeding Mar Jacob Angadiath (who reached retirement age of 75 according to canon law).

You can read today’s announcement of the Holy See here: https://press.vatican.va/…/2022/07/03/0514/01049.html

As the first Syro Malabar Eparchy to be established outside of India in 2001, the St. Thomas Eparchy serves more than 49 thousand Syro Malabar Catholics in the United States, which includes 80+ parishes and missions. There are two Malabar parishes in Connecticut.

Gratitude for the good work of Mar Jacob Angadiath for his service. And may God bless Bishop-designate Mar Joy!

Some twenty years ago I worked with Father Joy at Georgetown University Hospital. I rejoice in this appointment!

Saints John Fisher and Thomas More

O God, who in martyrdom have brought true faith to its highest expression, graciously grant, that, strengthened through the intercession of Saints John Fisher and Thomas More, we may confirm by the witness of our life, the faith we profess with our lips. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Fisher and More are key models of holiness for our time of weirdness of politics and civil and ecclesial life. As we all know we are pressured to compromise our faith and virtue even in Church life. All the more that we need these two saints because of their clear witness to Jesus Christ when others pressure us to reject the sovereignty of the Lord in all things. Belief in one’s mind and heart needs to coordinated with one’s lips. Can’t believe one thing and say another, and vice versa.