The Portiuncula Indulgence

On a night in July 1216, St. Francis was at prayer in the little church of Portiuncula, devoured by love for God and a thirst to save souls. He prayed for the forgiveness of sins of mankind. Suddenly a brilliant light shone all around. In great splendor Jesus and Mary appeared in the midst of a dazzling cloud surrounded by a multitude of radiant angels. ...Then Jesus said to him: "Francis you are very zealous for the good souls. Ask me what you want for their salvation." St. Francis was rapt in ecstasy before Our Lord. When he regained his courage, he said, "Lord, I, a miserable sinner, beg you to concede an indulgence to all those who enter this church, who are truly contrite and have confessed their sins. And I beg Blessed Mary, your mother, intercessor of man, that she intercede on behalf of this grace."

The Merciful Virgin at once began to beseech her Son on behalf of Francis. Jesus answered: "It is a very great thing you ask me; but you are worthy of even greater things, Friar Francis, and greater things you will have. So I accept your request, but I want you to go to my Vicar, to whom I have given the power to bind and loose in heaven and on earth, to ask him on my behalf for this indulgence."

The Pope granted this petition, and this indulgence has been extended to all parish churches throughout the world for one day each year. The date has been set from noon on August 1 until midnight August 2, the feast of Our Lady of the Angels. It is said that St. Francis was given this day by Our Lord because of the feast of the Chains of St. Peter, celebrated on August 1, commemorating Peter's being released from prison, his chains removed. This is an extraordinary demonstration of God's mercy in removing the chains of sin from those who devoutly and faithfully seek to gain the indulgence by completing its requirements.

The conditions to obtain the Plenary Indulgence of the Forgiveness of Assisi (for oneself or for a departed soul) are as follows:

- Sacramental Confession (during eight days before or after).
- Participation in the Mass
- Recitation of the Apostle's Creed, Our Father, and a prayer for the pope's intentions.

St. Alphonsus Liguori, Bishop and Doctor

Alphonsus Liguori, born in 1696, was the son of an ancient Neapolitan family. His father was an officer in the Royal Navy. At the age of sixteen, Alphonsus received his doctorate in both canon and civil law and for nearly ten years practiced law. When he found that one of the legal cases he was defending was not based on justice but on political intrigue, he gave up the practice of law and dedicated his life to God.

Ordained to the priesthood in 1726, St. Alphonsus Liguori joined a group of secular priests dedicated to missionary activities. He involved himself in many kinds of pastoral activities, giving missions and organizing workers, and had a part in the founding of an order of contemplative nuns.

In 1732, he founded the Redemptorists, a congregation of priests and brothers, to work especially among the country people of Italy who often lacked the opportunity for missions, religious instruction, and spiritual retreats. His first companions deserted him, but Alphonsus stood firm, and soon vocations multiplied and the congregation grew.

The Redemptorists were approved by Pope Benedict XIV in 1749, and St. Alphonsus was elected superior general. In 1762, he was appointed bishop of Sant' Agata near Naples, and as bishop he corrected abuses, restored churches, reformed seminaries, and promoted missions throughout his diocese. During the famine of 1763-64, his charity and generosity were boundless, and he also carried on a huge campaign of religious writing.

In 1768, he was stricken with a painful illness and resigned his bishopric. During the last years of his life, problems in his congregation caused him much sorrow and when he died on August 1, 1787, at Pagani, near Salerno, the Congregation of the Redemptorists was in a state of division. 

St. Alphonsus was beatified in 1816, canonized in 1839, and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1871.

O God, who didst inflame blessed Alphonsus, thy Confessor and Bishop, with zeal for souls, and didst through him enrich thy Church with a new offspring: we beseech thee; that being taught by his wholesome precepts and strengthened by his example, we may be enabled to attain in gladness unto thee; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

St. Ignatius of Loyola

The Shrine of St. Ignatius
at the Church of the Gesu in Rome.

St. Ignatius of Loyola was born at Loyola in the mountains of northern Spain in 1491. A member of the minor nobility, Ignatius spent his youth and early adulthood as a courtier and soldier. He occasionally vowed to dedicate himself more fully to God, but never quite followed through. It was only after he read the lives of the saints while convalescing from a leg wound incurred during a battle that he finally began his spiritual pilgrimage with real intent at the age of 30.

Soon after this, St. Ignatius began to experience ecstatic visions, but within a year suffered a period of intense spiritual dryness (what St. John of the Cross termed the “dark night of the soul”), which nearly drove him to despair. He persevered, however, and out of this was born Spiritual Exercises, one the most important Catholic spiritual works of all time. Ignatius was a true mystic. He centered his spiritual life on the essential foundations of the Faith - the Trinity, Christ, the Eucharist. His spirituality is expressed in the Jesuit motto, Ad majorem Dei gloriam - “for the greater glory of God.” 

In spite of his noble origins, St. Ignatius lived an astonishingly humble lifestyle, which others often resented. Yet he attracted several followers (including St. Francis Xavier), and in 1540 received approval from Pope Paul III for his new order, The Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits. In a very short time, this order would go on to become one of the best known of all Catholic religious orders, taking the Gospel to the four corners of the world.

O God, who for the greater glory of thy Name, didst endue thy Church militant with an increase of strength through the life and labours of blessed Ignatius: grant us, by his help and example, so to wage our earthly warfare; that with him we may be found worthy of a heavenly crown; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

Church of the Gesu, Rome.

The Most Important Thing

 

Jesus said to the crowds, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

- St. Matthew 13:44-46

Frequently Christ would start a statement by saying, “The Kingdom of heaven is like…” and we hear Him saying exactly that in this brief portion of St. Matthew’s Gospel: “The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field…” “The Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls…”

The Kingdom is a constant in the teaching of our Lord.  From His words we know it is the doing of God’s Will. It is the triumph of God’s divine Will in all things. It is that state of being in which God truly reigns.

As we hear Christ’s words, it is evident that God’s Kingdom is not like any earthly kingdom. Rather, it is mystical. It is spiritual. And it is far more important than any of the kingdoms or governments of this world.

Our Lord’s words show us that God’s Kingdom, rather than being something optional for us, is really something essential to our very existence as children of God. It is the thing which is to be desired and sought above anything else, and Christ gives us a couple of brief examples to lay out for us the priority of the Kingdom of heaven; namely, the man who finds the treasure in the field, and the merchant who discovers a rare pearl.

They each sold all they had so they could purchase what they had found. Both examples contain the same feeling of happiness at the discovery, and the need to take immediate action to claim what was found, and the preference for one thing above everything else. The man who found the treasure and the merchant are both surprised by their discoveries, and everything else seems unimportant in comparison. So they liquidate what they have accumulated up to that point, sacrificing every other possession, and they use every means they can to make this exclusive investment. Their actions mean that there is no turning back later. If the venture should fail, they would have nothing. The risk they take is total.

That is what it is like to seek the Kingdom, Jesus tells us. And when we find it, it is all we could ever want. In comparison to God’s kingdom, everything else loses its value. So one of the tests for us, in the light of Christ’s words, is this: if we are holding on to anything else as being more important than living in God’s presence, and in the desire to please God and to obey Him in everything, then we are not really seeking the Kingdom of heaven.

Finding God’s kingdom means sacrifice, because we cannot possess anything else if we want to possess the Kingdom of God. It is a kingdom which is all-embracing and completely absorbing. Possession of the Kingdom, and service to God in His kingdom, allows for no turning back, no seeing other things as being more important than our relationship with God.

And this also is true: to choose God’s kingdom is to find real contentment, real happiness. We might think that if finding the kingdom of heaven is that demanding, making us exclude everything else, it would be something difficult. But once we are on the path to God’s kingdom, it is something we want more than anything else.

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Painting: “The Pearl of Great Price”

by Domenico Fetti (1588-1623)

Ss. Martha, Mary, and Lazarus

In a decree issued in 2021 by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, the liturgical calendar was changed to reflect the combining of veneration of the three saints of Bethany – Martha, Mary, and Lazarus – on the 29th of July.

In part, the decree states, "In the household of Bethany, the Lord Jesus experienced the family spirit and friendship of Martha, Mary and Lazarus, and for this reason the Gospel of John states that he loved them. Martha generously offered him hospitality, Mary listened attentively to his words and Lazarus promptly emerged from the tomb at the command of the one who humiliated death."

It is apparent from the Gospel accounts that Martha, Mary, and their brother Lazarus were close friends of Jesus. He visited their home in Bethany frequently as a welcomed guest. The sisters felt free to call on Jesus at their brother’s death, even though His return to Judea at that time was very dangerous.

Martha’s great glory is her simple and strong statement of faith in Jesus after her brother’s death, when Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” Martha replied to Him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world.” (John 11:25-27)

We know St. Martha to be an active person, most famously when she was preparing the meal for Jesus and wanted to know why her sister Mary wasn’t helping her. The Lord recognized that Martha was “anxious about many things,” after which He made the observation that Mary, who had spent the preparation time at His feet listening to His words “has chosen the better part.” In another place, St. John’s Gospel describes Mary’s anointing of Jesus’ feet at Bethany, which was an act He highly praised.

Immediately after we are told that the chief priests plotted to kill Lazarus “because many of the Jews were turning away and believing in Jesus because of him.” In fact, it was in the sight of many of these Jewish leaders that Jesus raised His friend Lazarus from the dead. They had witnessed Jesus weeping over the death of Lazarus, and they had said, “See how much he loved him.”

There are many legends about Lazarus after the death and resurrection of Jesus, including an account of what he saw in the next world before he was called back to life. It was held by some that he followed Peter into Syria, but there is also an account that he and his sisters were put into a leaking boat at Jaffa, but they were able to safely land in Cyprus, where he died peacefully after serving as bishop for 30 years.

O ALMIGHTY God, who willest to be glorified in thy Saints, and didst raise up thy servants Martha, Mary, and Lazarus to shine as a light in the world: shine, we pray thee, in our hearts; that aided by their prayers we also in our generation may show forth thy praises, who hast called us out of darkness into thy marvellous light; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

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Pictured: "Raising of Lazarus" by Giotto (1267-1337)

St. Joachim and St. Anne

According to tradition, St. Joachim and St. Anne have come to us as being the names of the parents of Mary, the Mother of God. They are not named in the canonical Scriptures, but this tradition dates back to the early years of the Church, as does the story which tells us that after many years of not having a child, an angel appeared to them and told them that God would be granting them this blessing.  

They had prayed for a child, and part of their prayer was the promise that they would dedicate their child to the service of God. Little did they know at that time what great service would be given by their infant daughter.

When Mary reached the age of three, her parents fulfilled their vow. Together with their family and friends, they took her to the Temple. The High Priest and other Temple priests greeted the procession, and tradition says that the child was brought before the fifteen high steps which led to the sanctuary. It is said that the child Mary made her way to the stairs and, strengthened by the Holy Spirit, ascended all fifteen steps, coming to the Holy of Holies where only the High Priest could enter. Tradition then says that the High Priest, acting outside every rule he knew, led the Holy Virgin into the Holy of Holies, astonishing everyone present in the Temple. So it was that she, whose own womb would become the Holy of Holies, came into the presence of the God Whom she would bear.

St. Joachim and St. Anne returned to their home, but their daughter, the Handmaid of the Lord, remained in the Temple until her espousal, where she was prepared by God.  As the grandparents of our Saviour Jesus Christ, they serve as examples and intercessors for all parents and grandparents.

O God, who didst choose blessed Joachim and holy Anne that of them might be born the Mother of thine Only Begotten Son: grant unto us, at their intercession, a place in the fellowship of thine elect, wherein for ever to praise thee for thy lovingkindness; through the same Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

St. Christopher, Martyr

I would be remiss if I didn't remember St. Christopher today. He is my primary patron, and he is linked with St. George, whose name I was also given when I was baptized.

It is generally agreed that St. Christopher did live in the late third and early fourth century. He was taken prisoner in a war with the Romans in North Africa, in present day Libya. He was forced to travel a great distance back to Rome and was assigned as a Roman army officer during the reign of Emperor Diocletian.

A terrible persecution of Christians took place at the command of this emperor. It was one of Diocletian's own guards who refused to participate in the persecution and proclaimed himself a Christian. This guard was St. George. The emperor ordered that St. George be tortured and killed. St. Christopher, who was a soldier there at the time, watched the torture and killing of St. George, and shortly after declared himself also to be a Christian, an admission which caused him to be put to death.

It is thought that his name originally was Reprobus, but was changed to Christopher, meaning "Christ-bearer," because of the story which tells of a child approaching St. Christopher by a river, who asked to be helped across. St. Christopher obliged. However, as he entered midstream, the river rose and the child's weight grew and became extremely heavy. It was only by great exertion that St. Christopher safely delivered the child to the other side. When St. Christopher asked the child why He was so heavy, the child explained that He was the Christ and when St. Christopher carried Him, he also carried the weight of the whole world on his shoulders. The child then vanished.

Although St. Christopher is no longer included in the Church's general liturgical calendar, he is commemorated on July 25th in those places dedicated to him, as well as by those who bear his name. He continues to be invoked as a patron for travellers, and is counted as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, a group of saints known for their particularly powerful intercession.

This Collect is from the Sarum Missal:

Concede, quaesumus, omnipotens et misericors Deus, ut qui beati Christophori martyris tui memoriam agimus, ejus piis meritis et intercessionibus a morte perpetua, subitanea peste, fame, timore, paupertate, et ab omnibus insidiis inimicorum liberemur in terris; per te Jesu Christe, salvator mundi, rex gloriae, quem idem Christophorus meruit in suis humeris portare. Qui vivis et regnas cum Deo Patre, in unitate Spiritus sancti Deus: per omnia secula seculorum. Amen.

[Grant, we ask, almighty and merciful God, that we who keep the memory of Thy blessed martyr Christopher, by his pious merits and intercession may be delivered on earth from perpetual death, sudden plague, famine, fear, poverty, and from all the snares of our enemies; through Thee, Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, and King of glory, whom the same Christopher merited to bear upon his shoulders. Who livest with the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.]

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Painting: "St. Christopher Carrying the Infant Jesus" 

by Edmond Lechevallier-Chevignard (1825-1902)

St. James the Greater, Apostle

St. James the Greater (meaning the Elder) and his brother John were partners in the fishing business with two other brothers, Peter and Andrew.  They all lived in Bethsaida, a village on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. His mother was a sister of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and he would have known Jesus from childhood. He is one of those that Jesus called Boanerges, "sons of thunder," the brother of St. John the Evangelist and the son of Zebedee the fisherman from Galilee.

Along with Peter and John, James was part of the inner circle of Jesus, the ones who witnessed the Transfiguration, and who were witnesses to certain of His miracles, such as the raising of the daughter of Jairus. Like his brother, James was active in the work of evangelization after the death of Jesus, and there is some evidence that he went to Spain after our Lord's resurrection.  In fact, the great Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela witnesses to that probability.

St. James' prominence and his presence in Jerusalem was well known.  Scarcely a dozen years after the Resurrection he was arrested and executed by King Herod Agrippa. This was followed by the arrest of Peter also, so his death must have been part of a purge of Christian leaders by Agrippa, who saw the new Christian movement as a threat.

Jesus had foretold this kind of fate when He prophesied that James and his brother John would "drink of the same chalice" of suffering as Himself. Along with their mother's request, the two brothers had asked to be seated at the right of Jesus and at His left in His kingdom, and Jesus told them that they would be with Him, but it turned out to be in a far different way than they expected.

Grant, O merciful God, that as thine holy Apostle Saint James, leaving his father and all that he had, without delay was obedient unto the calling of thy Son Jesus Christ, and followed him: so we, forsaking all worldly and carnal affections, may be evermore ready to follow thy holy commandments; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

St. Sharbel Makhluf

St. Sharbel Makhluf is a Maronite saint, a member of the ancient Eastern Catholic Church of Antioch.  It was in Antioch that Christ's followers were first called Christians, and St. Peter ministered there before going to Rome.  The Maronites have their own liturgy and discipline, and have always been in full communion with the See of Peter.  They take their name from St. Maron, a fifth century monk and patriarch of Antioch.

Although this saint never traveled far from the Lebanese village of Beka-Kafra where he was born, his influence has spread widely.

Joseph Zaroun Makluf was raised by an uncle because his father, a mule driver, died when Joseph was only three. At the age of 23, Joseph joined the Monastery of St. Maron at Annaya, Lebanon, and took the name Sharbel in honor of a second-century martyr. He professed his final vows in 1853, and was ordained six years later.

Following the example of the fifth-century Saint Maron, Sharbel lived as a hermit from 1875, until his death. His reputation for holiness prompted people to seek him to receive a blessing and to be remembered in his prayers. He followed a strict fast and was very devoted to the Blessed Sacrament. When his superiors occasionally asked him to administer the sacraments to nearby villages, Sharbel did so gladly.

He died in the late afternoon on Christmas Eve. Christians and non-Christians soon made his tomb a place of pilgrimage and of cures. He was beatified in 1965, and canonized 12 years later.

O God, who didst call the Priest Saint Sharbel Makhluf to the solitary combat of the desert and imbued him with all manner of devotion: grant us, we pray thee; that, being made imitators of the Lord’s Passion, we may merit to be coheirs of his kingdom; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

Wheat and Weeds

Jesus put another parable before the crowds, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the householder came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then has it weeds?' He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he said, ‘No; lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”

- St. Matthew 13:24-30

God is the King of the whole universe, although sometimes it seems that His kingship isn't all that evident. Indeed, right now things appear to be at a low ebb, but this isn't the first time in history, and it won’t be the last. In fact, our Lord Jesus Christ is referring to these very times when He speaks about weeds which grow up, seeming to choke the good seed.

In the Gospel parable the servants couldn’t understand where the weeds had come from, and we ask the same question: How can it be that there seems to be so much evil in the world? How is it that God can be pushed out of public life? How can wickedness bare its teeth, gnawing on what is good and spitting it out before trampling on it?

As we ask those things, our immediate desire is like that of the servants.  We want to rip up the weeds immediately. We want to rush in and condemn and get even and make everyone and everything be the way we know it should be, and we want it now. But then, there are the words Jesus puts into the mouth of the householder in the parable: “Let both grow together until the harvest.”

One of the hardest things for us in this life is to have patience, particularly when we think God should be doing things according to our plan, rather than us attempting to conform ourselves to His plan. “Let both grow together until the harvest...” and Jesus explains that the harvest is “the close of the age” – the end of the world. It’s then that God will do the judging and the sorting. It’s His task, not ours. Until then, we’re called to use His grace for the transformation of our own lives, knowing that if others have fallen short of God’s requirements, so have we.

We get impatient and discouraged. And yet, those feelings come to us mainly when we forget that it’s God’s Kingdom that we’re supposed to be building, and not our own. It’s our task to take care of our own little corner of the garden, and we need to let the God of the Universe see to the whole field.

So what’s the message to us for today? Be faithful. Be vigilant. Be holy. And know that, in the end, God’s Kingdom will triumph.

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Painting: "Buckwheat Harvest: Summer" 

by Jean-François Millet (1814-1875)

St. Mary Magdalene

Mystery surrounds St. Mary Magdalene. Was she one and the same as Mary of Bethany? Had she been an immoral woman in her past life, or simply a woman from Magdala who was delivered from evil spirits? Whatever the case, we know she stood with the Blessed Mother and St. John at the foot of the cross; we know she was the first witness of the risen Lord Jesus Christ; and it was St. Mary Magdalene who ran to tell the apostles this Good News.

When Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and did not find the Lord’s body, she thought it had been taken away and so she told the disciples. After they came and saw the tomb, they too believed what Mary had told them. The text then says: "The disciples went back home," and it adds: "but Mary wept and remained standing outside the tomb."

We should reflect on Mary’s attitude and the great love she felt for Christ.  Even though the disciples had left the tomb, she remained. She was still seeking the one she had not found, and as she looked, she wept.  Burning with the fire of love, she longed for him whom she thought had been taken away. The woman who stayed behind, was the only one to see him. Perseverance is essential to any good act, as the Scriptures tell us: Whoever perseveres to the end will be saved.

At first she sought but did not find, but when she persevered it happened that she found what she was looking for. Even in our own lives, when our desires are not satisfied, they grow stronger, and becoming stronger those feelings make us try even harder. Holy desires likewise grow with anticipation. Anyone who succeeds in attaining the truth has had to burn with such a great love for the truth.

O Almighty God, whose blessed Son did call and sanctify Mary Magdalene to be a witness to his Resurrection: mercifully grant that by thy grace, and assisted by her prayers, we may be healed of all our infirmities, and always serve thee in the power of his endless life; who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

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 Painting: “The Sorrows of Mary Magdalene” by Jules Joseph Lefebvre (1836-1911)

St. Margaret of Antioch

Over the years I have collected a number of icons, and among them are some which depict particularly interesting saints. The one pictured here is kept near the altar in our family's Chapel of St. George, and shows a young virgin-martyr known as St. Margaret of Antioch-in-Pisidia in the West, and as St. Marina the Great-Martyr in the East.

She is commemorated on July 20th in the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham. Although she is an actual martyr, almost all the stories about her are apocryphal. In fact, in the year 494 Pope Gelasius I cautioned the Faithful about some of the fantastic stories which had grown up around her.

What is historical is that she was a native of Antioch-in-Pisidia, and was the daughter of a pagan priest. Her mother died soon after giving her birth, and she was then nursed by a pious Christian woman. Margaret embraced the Christian faith and was disowned by her father, after which her Christian nurse adopted her. She was asked by a local official to marry him, but she would have to renounce her Christian faith. Refusing to do so, she was tortured and eventually beheaded in 304.

Although many of the stories which grew up around the accounts of her torture were fanciful, (including a story of her being swallowed by Satan in the shape of a dragon, from which she escaped alive when the cross she carried irritated the dragon's innards), nonetheless there is still spiritual truth to be gained from these wondrous accounts.

The icon pictured here illustrates the story of a demon approaching her in her prison cell, attempting to convince her to renounce her faith. According to the story, a hammer was at hand, which she picked up and beat the demon senseless. I like this picture, and I think it serves as an icon of where we are now. Demons are nipping at us, and we can either give in or we can take the revealed Truth which has been given to us and we can use it to beat the stuffing out of satan and his demonic little friends.

Devotion to St. Margaret of Antioch was greatly strengthened during the crusades, when soldiers would hear stories of local saints and then bring them back to their homelands. Devotion to her became widespread in England, where more than 250 churches are dedicated to her, most famously St. Margaret's, Westminster, the church of the British Houses of Parliament in London. St. Margaret is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, and is one of the saints who spoke to Joan of Arc.

Even though this remarkable young woman is no longer commemorated in the general liturgical calendar, we can still look to her as a marvelous example and as an intercessor for us in these difficult days.

Grant, O Lord, that, like as blessed Margaret, thy Virgin and Martyr, by the merits of her chastity and the godliness of her conduct, did ever walk acceptably in thy sight: so she may at all times effectually intercede for our forgiveness; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

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Pictured: Icon of St. Margaret, also known as St. Marina the Great Martyr. Photo of St. Margaret's Church, Westminster, dedicated to the Martyr St. Margaret. The church is located in the shadow of the great Abbey in London.

St. Lawrence of Brindisi

Born on 22 July 1559, and dying on 22 July 1619, St. Lawrence of Brindisi lived exactly sixty years. In that time he became a brilliant scholar, a devout and holy priest, a renowned linguist, an outstanding diplomat – and for many of those years he served as the Minister General of the Franciscan Order of Capuchins.

His writings fill fifteen volumes, and his knowledge of Hebrew allowed him to preach so effectively to the Jewish people in Italy that the rabbis were certain that Lawrence must have been a Jew who had become a Christian. His skills in dealing with people meant that he served as a papal emissary to many countries, but he never forgot that he was first and foremost a priest.

There is a very special title accorded by the Church to certain saints, who are named “Doctor of the Church,” and this title indicates that the writings and preaching of such a person are useful to Christians "in any age of the Church." Such men and women are also particularly known for the depth of understanding and the orthodoxy of their theological teachings. St. Lawrence of Brindisi was given this title, and he is one of the thirty-six saints to be named “Doctor.”

For some reason, his father insisted that his baptismal name was to be Julius Caesar, and that was done shortly after his birth at Brindisi in the kingdom of Naples in 1559. Educated in Venice at the College of St. Mark, he entered the Capuchins, and it was upon entering the monastery that he was given the name Lawrence. During his studies at the University of Padua, he showed an aptitude for languages, mastering Hebrew, Greek, German, Bohemian, Spanish, and French, and he also showed an extraordinary knowledge of the text of the Bible.

While still a deacon, St. Lawrence of Brindisi became known as an excellent preacher and after his ordination captured the whole of northern Italy with his amazing sermons. He was sent into Germany by the pope to establish Capuchin houses. While there, he became chaplain to Emperor Rudolf II and had a remarkable influence on the Christian soldiers fighting the Muslims who were threatening Hungary in 1601. Through his efforts, the Catholic League was formed to unify Catholics for the purpose of strengthening the Catholic cause in Europe. Sent by the emperor to persuade Philip III of Spain to join the League, he established a Capuchin friary in Madrid. He also brought peace between Spain and the kingdom of Savoy.

His compassion for the poor, the needy, and the sick was legendary. Elected minister-general of his order in 1602, he made the Capuchins a major force in the Catholic Restoration, visiting every friary in the thirty-four provinces of the order and directing the work of nine thousand friars. He himself was a dominant figure in carrying out the work of the Council of Trent and was described by Pope Benedict XV as having earned "a truly distinguished place among the most outstanding men ever raised up by Divine Providence to assist the Church in time of distress."

St. Lawrence was canonized by Pope Leo XIII in 1881 and declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope John XXIII in 1959.

O God, who didst bestow on blessed Lawrence of Brindisi, thy Confessor and Doctor, the spirit of wisdom and fortitude to endure every labour for the glory of thy Name and the salvation of souls: grant us, in the same spirit, both to perceive what we ought to do, and by his intercession to perform the same; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

St. Apollinaris, Bishop and Martyr

St. Apollinaris was one of the great martyrs in the early years of the Church. He was made Bishop of Ravenna by St. Peter. The miracles he conducted in Ravenna soon attracted official attention, for they and his preaching won many converts to the faith. However, at the same time, his words and works brought upon him the fury of the pagan people, who beat Apollinaris viciously on several occasions.

During one beating, Apollinaris was cut with knives, and scalding hot water poured over his wounds.  In this state of suffering he was then put on a ship to be sent to Greece.

In Greece St. Apollinaris carried on the same course of preaching, and miracles, and sufferings. In fact, after a cruel beating by Greek pagans, he was sent back to Italy.

When Emperor Vespasian issued a decree of banishment against the Christians, Apollinaris was kept hidden for some time, but as he was leaving, passing through the gates of the city, he was attacked and savagely beaten. He lived for seven days, foretelling that the persecutions would increase, but that the Church would ultimately triumph.

Almighty God, by whose grace and power thy holy martyr St. Apollinaris triumphed over suffering and was faithful even unto death: Grant to us, who now remember him with thanksgiving, to be so faithful in our witness to thee in this world, that we may receive with him the crown of life; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Basilica of St. Apollinaris in Ravenna, 6th century.

St. Camillus de Lellis

By almost any standard, Camillus de Lellis wasn’t a very likely candidate for sainthood. His mother died when he was a child, his father neglected him, and he grew up with an excessive love for gambling. At 17, he was afflicted with a disease of his leg that remained with him for life. In Rome he entered the San Giacomo Hospital for Incurables as both patient and servant, but after nine months he was dismissed for his constant fighting. With no other alternative he served in the Venetian army for three years.

Then in the winter of 1574, when he was 24, Camillus gambled away everything he had – his savings, his weapons, literally down to his shirt. He accepted work at a Capuchin friary. One day he was so moved by a sermon of the superior that he began a conversion that changed his life. He entered the Capuchin novitiate, but was dismissed because of the apparently incurable sore on his leg. He went back to the San Giacomo hospital, and he gave himself completely to the care of the sick. He was so dedicated to the work that he was eventually made superintendent of the hospital.

Camillus devoted the rest of his life to the care of the sick. Along with Saint John of God he has been named patron of hospitals, nurses, and the sick. With the advice of his friend Saint Philip Neri, he studied for the priesthood and was ordained at the age of 34. He founded a congregation of his own, dedicated to the care of the sick. Unlike many hospitals of the day, St. Camillus insisted on cleanliness and that those who served the sick were trained in the basics of medical care.

Camillus himself suffered the disease of his leg through his life. In his last illness, he left his own bed to see if other patients in the hospital needed help. And so this unlikely saint was made holy by the grace of God, and he was able to bring that divine grace into the lives of countless people.

O God, who for the comfort of souls striving in their last agony, didst adorn Saint Camillus with singular gifts of charity: we beseech thee, by his merits, to pour upon us the spirit of thy love; that in the hour of our death, we may be worthy to overcome the enemy and to attain to the heavenly crown; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.