Category: Saints

Blessed Otto Neururer

Today is the feast of Blessed Otto Neururer: Austrian Catholic priest, opponent of Nazism, and martyr—tortured to death at Buchenwald concentration camp on this day in 1940, for performing a baptism but also for defending the sacrament of Marriage. He endured 34 hours hanging upside down, during which he prayed continually.

Though unknown to many in the USA, Blessed Otto stands out not only because of his opposition to Nazism, he is a clear witness to the truth of Jesus Christ and doing the right thing for the sheep under his care. Blessed Otto showed himself a pastor in to his fellow prisoners even baptizing a man due to die. Otto was killed in odium fidei (in hatred of the faith). He was beatified by St John Paul II in 1996.

Read this brief biography of Blessed Otto Neururer.

Blessed Maria Assunta Pallotta

Today’s the liturgical memorial of Blessed Maria Assunta Pallotta (1878-1905), a missionary sister with the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary. A biographer notes that Blessed Maria Assunta was happy to be assigned to do farmwork —working with chickens, goats and the pigs. I can relate to her happiness in this service. What was striking was her letter to her parents where she wrote of her mission: “I ask the Lord for the grace to make known to the world purity of intention—which consists in doing everything for the love of God, even the ordinary of actions.”

May we follow Blessed Maria Assunta’s lead.

St Patrick

The Churches honor the great missionary bishop and preacher of Jesus Christ, Patrick. His famous Litany is noted below which is rich scope and detail reflecting a deep relationship with the Holy Trinity. Most Christians only acknowledge one member of the Trinity forgetting the perichoresis which exists. We Catholics and Orthodox, as a point of fact, always pray addressing God the Father, through the Son under the power of the Holy Spirit.

Blessed feast to my family (on the maternal side) and to the people of Ireland.

The Lorica

I arise today, through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity, through belief in the threeness, through confession of the oneness, of the Creator of Creation.

I arise today, through the strength of Christ’s birth with his baptism, through the strength of his crucifixion with his burial, through the strength of his resurrection with his ascension, through the strength of his descent for the judgment of Doom.

I arise today, through the strength of the love of the Cherubim, in obedience of angels, in the service of archangels, in the hope of the resurrection to meet with reward, in the prayers of patriarchs, in prediction of prophets, in preaching of apostles, in faith of confessors, in innocence of holy virgins, in deeds of righteous men.

I arise today, through the strength of heaven; light of sun, radiance of moon, splendor of fire, speed of lightning, swiftness of wind, depth of sea, stability of earth, firmness of rock.
I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me: God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me, God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me, God’s word to speak to me, God’s hand to guard me, God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me, God’s host to save me, from the snares of devils, from temptations of vices, from every one who shall wish me ill, afar and anear, alone and in a multitude.

I summon today, all these powers between me and those evils, against every cruel merciless power that may oppose my body and soul, against incantations of false prophets, against black laws of pagandom, against false laws of heretics, against craft of idolatry, against spells of women and smiths and wizards, against every knowledge that corrupts man’s body and soul.

Christ to shield me today, against poisoning, against burning, against drowning, against wounding, so there come to me abundance of reward. Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of every one who speaks of me, Christ in the eye of every one that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me.

I arise today, through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity, through belief in the threeness, through confession of the oneness, of the Creator of Creation. Salvation is of the Lord. Salvation is of the Lord. Salvation is of Christ. May Thy Salvation, O Lord be ever with us. Amen.

Icon: Marek Czarnecki, 2020

St Gregory of Narek

Saint Gregory of Narek, a monk of the tenth century, knew how to express the sentiments of your people more than anyone. He gave voice to the cry, which became a prayer, of a sinful and sorrowful humanity, oppressed by the anguish of its powerlessness, but illuminated by the splendor of God’s love and open to the hope of his salvific intervention, which is capable of transforming all things. “Through his strength I wait with certain expectation believing with unwavering hope that… I shall be saved by the Lord’s mighty hand and… that I will see the Lord himself in his mercy and compassion and receive the legacy of heaven”

Pope Francis’ announcement proclaiming St Gregory a Doctor of the Church

St Theodosius of the common life (cenobite)

Today we liturgically recall our venerable father, Theodosius, called a leader of the common life.

At the end of the 5th century, Theodosius founded a cenobium near Bethlehem. In his day many had come from as far away as Georgia and Armenia to enter monastic life in Palestine. He accommodated his multi-ethnic community by having the Liturgy of the Word served in separate chapels in Syriac, Armenian and Georgian, after which all the monks came together for the Eucharistic Liturgy in Greek in the main church. His monastery was large enough to staff a hospice for the elderly, and for the poor and sick as well as one for the mentally ill.

His organizational skills were recognized in Jerusalem, where the Patriarch made him cenobiarch, the leader of all the monasteries of the common life under his protection. Theodosius along with Sabbas upheld the decisions of the Council of Chalcedon in the midst of the strife this council engendered, even in the monastic settlements.

He died in 529 at the age of 105. His monastery was sacked twice in the 9th century, and was completely destroyed in the 15th. (NS)

St Thomas Becket

“A martyrdom is never the design of man; for the true martyr is he who has become the instrument of God, who has lost his will in the will of God, not lost it but found it, for he has found freedom in submission to God. The martyr no longer desires anything for himself, not even the glory of martyrdom. So thus as on earth the Church mourns and rejoices at once, in a fashion that the world cannot understand; so in Heaven the Saints are most high, having made themselves most low, seeing themselves not as we see them, but in the light of the Godhead from which they draw their being.” (Archbishop’s Sermon, “Murder in the Cathedral” by T.S. Eliot)

St Nicholas

The Troparion for today’s feast of the great St Nicholas, wonderworker, teacher, model of sanctity and bishop reads:

Nicholas, holy hierarch, your flock has recognized you by the brilliance of your works. You are a model of kindness and rule of faith, a teacher of self-control. Your lowliness has raised you to the heights of fame, and your poverty has filled your hands with riches. Beg Christ, our God, to save our souls.

Nicholas has captured the imagination of many through the years because of charity which morphed into gift-giving. He’s not remembered in popular culture as a teacher of the Christian Gospel, the bishop who faithfully served the Divine Mysteries, for saving the innocent from death, and for calming storms nor challenging the false teachers. And yet, he’s more than all these things. He allowed the Lord to speak eloquently through his life and thus comes to us in 2020 as a friend and disciple of the Lord Jesus.

Would that we could live and act as Nicholas did in the face of false teaching by a life of virtue and charity, by worthily receiving the Divine Mysteries. Nicholas is asked to beg Christ to save us. May we, in fact, have our sins forgiven and be brought one day into perfect communion with the most holy Trinity.

St Catherine of Alexandria

Today’s patron saint of students, philosophers, lawyers, librarians, and unmarried women is liturgically venerated by the Latin Catholic Church. St Catherine of Alexandria has a remarkable following even with a sparse historical of her life. One will recall that she was banished from the Roman liturgical calendar at the reform of the calendar in the 1960s. As a well formed Benedictine monk said, “God measures our prayer by its sincerity, not by the historical accuracy of our knowledge!” Though banished now re-instituted by John Paul II in 2004 as an optional memorial. Catherine is included in the group called the Fourteen Holy Helpers.

St Catherine had reputation of learning. Tradition says that she defeated in debate fifty pagan philosophers assigned to her by the Roman emperor. The philosophers then embraced Christian faith and preceded Catherine in martyrdom. Iconography of Catherine included a spiked wheel on which she would have suffered death for Jesus Christ –except that it broke apart upon touching the saint. She was then beheaded.

An alive and thriving monastery today named in Catherine’s honor, the sixth century monastery was built on the site said to be where Mount Sinai was located. There rest her relics and an extraordinary collection of manuscripts and incredible icons. And by the way, those manuscripts are being preserved with the help of the Benedictines at St John’s Abbey in Minn.

My friend the Benedictine monk referenced above says, “She also played an indirect role in the Hundred Years War, by being one of the three saints (the others were St. Margaret and the Archangel Michael) to appear to the peasant girl who became France’s St. Joan of Arc. The trio of saints allegedly inspired Joan to the mission that played so large a role in the survival of a France independent of the English crown.”

While it may be true that Catherine’s historical path is a bit scant, historical biography is not the key we have in the saints. As John Paul realized the mistake of the liturgical reformers was to concentrate on an overly intellectualized approach to the spiritual life. Generations of Christians –nearly 1500 years worth– have a strong devotion to Catherine. Saints show us a path to Christ that is certain; saints like Catherine show us the face of Christ crucified and risen. Hers is a discipleship I am interested in imitating.

St Catherine, pray for us.

All Saints

We are called to be saints. “The saint is not an isolated individual. There is no sanctity without belonging.” Today is the feast proposed by the Latin Church by which we realize that sanctity is the vocation to which we all are called. (The Byzantine Church celebrates the Sunday after Pentecost as All Saints Day.)

From a sermon by St. Bernard: “Calling the saints to mind inspires, or rather arouses in us, above all else, a longing to enjoy their company, so desirable in itself. We long to share in the citizenship of heaven, to dwell with the spirits of the blessed.

Come, brothers, let us at length spur ourselves on. We must rise again with Christ, we must seek the world which is above and set our mind on the things of heaven. Let us long for those who are longing for us, hasten to those who are waiting for us, and ask those who look for our coming to intercede for us.”

Here’s the point of the Christian life on earth and in heaven, and the point of sanctity which we recognize in the saints: “a longing to enjoy their company” in the communio of the Divine Majesty.  But in order to get to the point of a communio with God there are things we have to work on. What are our desires? Are our desires purified or are they riddled with disordered affections? Do we have a poverty of spirit? Do we want to dwell with the spirits of the blessed? Or, are we satisfied with our current circumstances? Do we speak of divine things, things of God, or are we obsessed with the things of this world (gossip, self-centeredness, personal sin, anger, etc.)?

Saying ‘yes’ to Christ is saying yes to being in communion with Him, to love Him above all else, to follow in the footsteps of the saints. Having the companionship of the saints shows us the path to the beatific life. The saint is the ‘the saint is the true man.’ Do you want to be true?