SS. Nazarius and Celsus, Martyrs Click here for more information |
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About the Year 68.
St. Nazarius’s father was a heathen, and enjoyed a considerable post in the Roman army. His mother Perpetua was a zealous Christian, and was instructed by St. Peter, or his disciples, in the most perfect maxims of our holy faith. Nazarius embraced it with so much ardour that he copied in his life all the great virtues he saw in his teachers; and out of zeal for the salvation of others left Rome, his native city, and preached the faith in many places with a fervour and disinterestedness becoming a disciple of the apostles. Arriving at Milan he was there beheaded for the faith, together with Celsus, a youth whom he carried with him to assist him in his travels. These martyrs suffered soon after Nero had raised the first persecution. Their bodies were buried separately in a garden without the city, where they were discovered and taken up by St. Ambrose in 395. In the tomb of St. Nazarius a vial of the saint’s blood was found as fresh and red as if it had been spilt that day. The faithful stained handkerchiefs with some drops, and also formed a certain paste with it; a portion of which St. Ambrose sent to St. Gaudentius, bishop of Brescia. St. Ambrose conveyed the bodies of the two martyrs into the new church of the apostles, which he had just built. A woman was delivered of an evil spirit in their presence. St. Ambrose sent some of these relics of St. Paulinus of Nola, who received them with great respect, as a most valuable present, as he testifies. |
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| The martyrs died as the outcasts of the world, but are crowned by God with immortal honour. The glory of the world is false and transitory, and an empty bubble or shadow; but that of virtue is true, solid, and permanent, even in the eyes of men; for, to use the comparison of St. Basil, 2 as the more we look upon the sun the more we admire it, and by reviewing it never find it less bright or less beautiful; so the memory of the martyrs which we celebrate, after so many years, is only more fresh in our minds, and will be more flourishing in all ages to come. |
Category Archives: The Divine Will of God
7/26 St. Anne and St. Joachim, parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Sts. Joachim and Ann
Click here for more information on the picture above,
and Click here for more information from the selection below,
Who does not know about the great shrine of Ste. Anne de Beaupre in Canada, where miracles abound, where cured cripples leave their crutches, and where people come from thousands of miles to pray to the grandmother of Jesus? At one time, July 26 was the feast of St. Anne only, but with the new calendar the two feasts of the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary have been joined and are celebrated today. Our information about Mary’s parents comes from an apocryphal Christian writing, the Protoevangelium Jacobi (or Gospel of James), written about the year 170. According to this story, Joachim was a prominent and respected man who had no children, and he and his wife, Anne, looked upon this as a punishment from God. In answer to their prayers, Mary was born and was dedicated to God at a very early age.
From this early Christian writing have come several of the feast days of Mary, particularly the Immaculate Conception, the Nativity of Mary, and her Assumption into Heaven. Very early also came feast days in honor of SS. Joachim and Anne, and in the Middle Ages numerous churches, chapels, and confraternities were dedicated to St. Anne. The couple early became models of Christian marriage, and their meeting at the Golden Gate in Jerusalem has been a favorite subject of Christian artists.
Anne is often shown in paintings with Jesus and Mary and is considered a subject that attracts attention, since Anne is the grandmother of Jesus. Her two great shrines — that of Ste. Anne d’Auray in Britanny, France, and that of Ste. Anne de Beaupre near Quebec in Canada — are very popular. We know little else about the lives of Mary’s parents, but considering the person of Mary, they must have been two very remarkable people to have been given such a daughter and to have played so important a part in the work of the Redemption.
There is a church of St. Anne in Jerusalem and it is believed to be built on the site of the home of SS. Joachim and Anne, when they lived in Jerusalem.
Excerpted from The One Year Book of Saints by Rev. Clifford Stevens
7/25 Traditional Feast Day of St. Christopher
From the Catholic Encyclopedia:
A martyr, probably of the third century. Although St. Christopher is one of the most popular saints in the East and in the West, almost nothing certain is known about his life or death.
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5/28/37 – Vol. 34
Living in the Divine Volition continues, so much is His Love, that He (Our Lord Jesus Christ) hides me (Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta) in Its Light so that nothing but His Most Holy Will is seen, felt, touched. Rather, this morning My Celestial Mother made me a sweet and dear surprise. Having received Holy Communion, She made seen in my interior that She was as harmonized with Baby Jesus. She held Him so clasped to Her Maternal Heart, covered with Her arms, that in order to see Him and delight Him with my little love, I had to abandon myself in Her arms in order that I too was harmonized with Them so that I could Love as Jesus and the Queen Mama Loved. O! how content They were that I wanted to Live together with Them.
Now, while I was clasped with Them, the Sovereign Queen, all Goodness and Tenderness, told me: “My beloved daughter, you must know that I am the Bearer of Jesus. This was a Gift that the Supreme Being entrusted to Me. And when He was certain that I had Grace, Love, Power, and the Divine Will Itself, in order to keep Him guarded, defended, and Loved, then He consigned the Gift to Me, that is, the Eternal Word, who Incarnated Himself in My Womb, telling Me: ‘Our daughter, We make You the Great Gift of the Life of the Son-God, such that You are Mistress of Him. And You, give Him to whomever You want. However, know Him, keep Him defended, never leave Him alone with whomever You give Him to, in order to fill in if they do not love Him, in order to make reparation to Him if they offend Him. You will act in a way that nothing is lacking to the Decency, to the Sanctity, to the Purity that befits Him. Be attentive, He is the Greatest Gift that We make You. And We give You the Power of Bilocating Him however many times You want, so that one who wants Him can receive this Great Gift and posses Him.’
Theotokos
(detail from the Virgin of the Sign Icon)
7/25 Feast Day of St. James the Greater, the Apostle
St. James the Greater
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Nothing is known of St. James the Greater’s early life, though it has been established that he is the son of Zebedee and Salome and brother of John the disciple.
The title “the Greater” was added to St. James’ name to help distinguish him from the Apostle James “the Less,” who is believed to have been shorter than James “the Greater.”
Saint James the Greater was one of Jesus’ first disciples. James was fishing with his father and John the Apostle when Jesus came to the shores of the Sea of Galilee and called for the fisherman, who were unable to catch any fish that day, to dip their nets in the water once again.
When the fishermen followed Jesus’ instructions, they found their nets full, and after emptying the fish on board, the boats nearly sank from their weight.
Later, James was one of only three called by Jesus to witness his Transfiguration, and when he and his brother wanted to call fire upon a Samaritan town, both were rebuked by Jesus.
Following Christ’s Ascension, James spread the Gospel across Israel and the Roman kingdom as well. He traveled and spread the Word for nearly forty years in Spain.
It is said that one day, as he prayed, The Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to him and asked him to build her a church, which he did.
Later, James returned to Jerusalem but was martyred for his faith by King Herod, who decapitated him. Saint James the Greater is known as the first apostle to die.
As he was not allowed to be buried following his martyrdom, his remains were taken to Compostela, Spain, by some of his followers, who buried him.
In the ninth century his remains were discovered and moved to a tomb in Santiago de Compostela. Today, his remains can still be found in the Cathedral of Santiago.
Because Santiago de Compostela is the most frequently visited place pilgrims migrate to following Rome and Jerusalem, Pope Leo declared it a shrine.
St. James the Greater Prayer
O glorious Apostle,
St. James, who by reason of thy fervent and generous heart
wast chosen by Jesus to be a witness of His glory on Mount Tabor,
and of His agony in Gethsemane;
thou, whose very name is a symbol of warfare and victory:
obtain for us strength and consolation in the unending warfare of this life,
that, having constantly and generously followed Jesus,
we may be victors in the strife and deserve to receive the victor’s crown in heaven.
Amen.
7/24 St. Sharbel (St. Charbel) Makhluf, Priest; Feast Day
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Great Healings
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St. Sharbel (Charbel) Makhluf, Priest
1828 – 1898
Feast Day July 24th
Youssef Antoun Makhlouf was born in 1828, in Bekaa Kafra (North Lebanon). He had a true Christian upbringing, which had given him a passion for prayer. Then he followed his two hermit uncles in the hermitage of the St Antonious Kozhaya monastery and was converted to monastic and hermetical life.
In 1851, he left his family village and headed for the Our Lady of Maifouk monastery to spend his first monastic year, and then he went to the St Maron monastery in Annaya, where he entered the Maronite Order, carrying the name Charbel, a name of one of theAntioch church martyrs of the second century. On November 1st. 1853, he exposed his ceremonial vows in St Maron’s monastery – Annaya. Then he completed his theological studies in the St Kobrianous and Justina monastery in Kfifan, Batroun.
He was ordained a priest in Bkerky, the Maronite Patriarchate, on July 23rd, 1859. He lived 16 years in the St Maron’s monastery – Annaya. From there, he entered, on February 15th, 1875, the St Peter & Paul hermitage, which belongs to the monastery. He was a typical saint and hermit, who spent his time praying and worshipping. Rarely had he left the hermitage where he followed the way of the saintly hermits in prayers, life and practice.
St Charbel lived in the hermitage for 23 years. On December 16th, 1898 he was struck with an illness while performing the holy mass. He died on Christmas’ eve, December 24th, 1898, and was buried in the St Maron monastery cemetery in Annaya.
Few months later, dazzling lights were seen around the grave. From there, his corpse, which had been secreting sweat and blood, was transferred into a special coffin. Hordes of pilgrims started swarming the place to get his intercession. And through this intercession, God blessed many people with recovery and spiritual graces.
In 1925, his beatification and canonization were proposed for declaration by Pope Pious XI. In 1950, the grave was opened in the presence of an official committee which included doctors who verified the soundness of the body. After the grave had been opened and inspected, the variety of healing incidents amazingly multiplied. A multitude of pilgrims from different religious facets started flocking to the Annaya monastery to get the saint’s intercession.
Prodigies reached beyond the Lebanese borders. This unique phenomenon caused a moral revolution, the return to faith and the reviving of the virtues of the soul.
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From the Catholic.org website
Note: Wikipedia identifies the Feast Day of St. Sharbel (Charbel) Makhluf as July 17, so that is probably why Catholic.org also did.
Another website for St. Sharbel (Charbel) Makhulf can be found here.
7/24 God Our Father Novena (note: they will be redoing their website so the links might have changed)
Information on God the Father
and Short Biography of Mother Eugenia Elisabette Ravasio
God Our Father: Consecration
and Feast Day for the Father of All Mankind,
The Feast Day for the Father of All Mankind
is celebrated the first Sunday in August
7/23 On July 23, 2010 Sister Assunta Marigliano, President of the Pious Association announced unoficially ‘great news which brings great joy’:
Closing of the Cause Mass on 10/29/2005
On this day in 2010 Sr. Assunta Marigliano*, President of the Pious Association “Luisa Piccarreta – Little Children of the Divine Will”, based in Corato, Italy, who was responsible for promoting the Cause for Beatification and Canonization of the Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta, unofficially released the news that the second Theologian commissioned by the Holy See for the review of the writings of the Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta has completed his work and has given his official verdict: POSITIVE.
On July 24, 2010 it was officially announced that the two Theological Censors appointed by the Holy See to review the Writings of the Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta had given their approval.
“We are glad to inform you that the second Theologian, which the Holy See had appointed to review the Writings of the Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta, has completed his task and given his approval.”
From the Association Luisa Piccarreta on December 29, 2023: On December 29, 2023 Sister Assunta Marigliano serenely pronounced her last and conscious “Fiat” to the call of the Father. The funeral will take place on December 30th (2023) in the Church of S. Maria Greca at 4.00 pm. The burial will take place on Tuesday, January 2, 2024 at the Corato cemetery and will be preceded by the Holy Mass at 8.30 am in the Regina di All Saints Chaplaincy.