Commemoration of St. Sixtus II & Companions

Commemoration (1954 Calendar): August 6

Just days before the great feast of St. Lawrence on August 10, the Church commemorates today Pope Sixtus II (also spelled Xystus II) and Felicissimus and Agapitus, his deacons. They were martyred at Rome on the same day, in the year 258. Pope Sixtus' archdeacon St. Lawrence met his death three days later, as he had prophesied to the younger man.

While today is the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, these three holy martyrs are commemorated in the Traditional Liturgy today. And we should not forget their powerful example of fidelity to the True Faith.

St. Sixtus II, reigned as the Vicar of Christ from August 30, 257 - August 6, 258 AD, following Pope Stephen I. Even though his reign was short, he restored relations with the African and Eastern churches following strained relations under Pope Stephen I. The issue that caused the dispute was the re-baptism of heretics. Pope St. Sixtus II believed that anyone who was baptised with a desire to be a Christian, even if the Baptism was performed by a heretic, was truly baptised into the faith; the validity of his faith was based on his own desire and actions, not the errors of the person who performed the sacrament. This view has become the dogmatic teachings of the Church. Thankfully, St. Sixtus II restored relations with the churches that disagreed with Rome. Remember, at this time all churches still remained in union with Rome - the Holy Catholic Church.

Yet, not one year after his elevation to the papacy, he was beheaded by order of Emperor Valerian I in 258. Emperor Valerian I had issued a decree shortly before the pontificate of Sixtus II forbidding Christians to gather in cemeteries and demanding them to worship pagan gods. In early August 258, Emperor Valerian ordered the execution of priests, bishops, and deacons. Pope Sixtus II was one of the first victims of the persecutions of Emperor Valerian I. Four deacons, Januarius, Vincentius, Magnus, and Stephanus, were apprehended at the same cemetery as Pope Sixtus II. Pope Sixtus II was beheaded in his chair, which was later enshrined behind his tomb. Two other deacons, Felicissimus and Agapitus, were martyred the same day as the four aforementioned deacons.

Before Pope St. Sixtus II was martyred, his deacon St. Lawrence, came to him. St. Lawrence said: "Father, where are you going without your son? Where are you hastening, O priest, without your deacon? Never before did you offer the holy Sacrifice without assistants. In what way have I displeased you? In what way have you found me unfaithful in my office? Oh, try me again and prove to yourself whether you have chosen an unworthy minister for the service of the Church. So far you have been trusting me with distributing the Blood of the Lord." 

To this Pope Sixtus II replied, "I am not forsaking you, my son; a severer trial is awaiting you for your faith in Christ. The Lord is considerate toward me because I am a weak old man. But for you a most glorious triumph is in store. Cease to weep, for already after three days you will follow me"

Collect:

O God, who has granted us the grace to celebrate the birthday of Your blessed martyrs Sixtus II, Felicissimus, and Agapitus, grant that we may also share their eternal happiness in heaven. Through our Lord . . .

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"Catechism on Confession" by St. John Vianney

My children, as soon as ever you have a little spot upon your soul, you must do like a person who has a fine globe of glass, which he keeps very carefully. If this globe has a little dust on it, he wipes it with a sponge the moment he perceives it, and there is the globe clear and brilliant. In the same way, as soon as you perceive a little stain on your soul, take some holy water with respect, do one of those good works to which the remission of venial sins is attached -an alms, a genuflection to the Blessed Sacrament, hearing a Mass. My children, it is like a person who has a slight illness; he need not go and see a doctor, he may cure himself without. If he has a headache, he need only go to bed; if he is hungry, he has only to eat. But if it is a serious illness, if it is a dangerous wound, he must have the doctor; after the doctor come the remedies. In the same way, when we have fallen into any grievous sin, we must have recourse to the doctor, that is the priest; and to the remedy, that is confession.

My children, we cannot comprehend the goodness of God towards us in instituting this great Sacrament of Penance. If we had had a favour to ask of Our Lord, we should never have thought of asking Him that. But He foresaw our frailty and our inconstancy in well-doing, and His love induced Him to do what we should not have dared to ask. If one said to those poor lost souls that have been so long in Hell, "We are going to place a priest at the gate of Hell: all those who wish to confess have only to go out, " do you think, my children, that a single one would remain? The most guilty would not be afraid of telling their sins, nor even of telling them before all the world. Oh, how soon Hell would be a desert, and how Heaven would be peopled! Well, we have the time and the means, which those poor lost souls have not. And I am quite sure that those wretched ones say in Hell, "O accursed priest! if I had never known you, I should not be so guilty!"

It is a beautiful thought, my children, that we have a Sacrament which heals the wounds of our soul! But we must receive it with good dispositions. Otherwise we make new wounds upon the old ones. What would you say of a man covered with wounds who is advised to go to the hospital to show himself to the surgeon? The surgeon cures him by giving him remedies. But, behold! this man takes his knife, gives himself great blows with it and makes himself worse than he was before. Well, that is what you often do after leaving the confessional.

My children, some people make bad confessions without taking any notice of it. These persons say, "I do not know what is the matter with me:' . . . They are tormented, and they do not know why. They have not that agility which makes one go straight to the good God; they have something heavy and weary about them which fatigues them. My children, that is because of sins that remain, often even venial sins, for which one has some affection. There are some people who, indeed, tell everything, but they have no repentance; and they go at once to Holy Communion. Thus the Blood of Our Lord is profaned! They go to the Holy Table with a sort of weariness. They say, "Yet, I accused myself of all my sins. . . I do not know what is the matter with me. " There is an unworthy Communion, and they were hardly aware of it!

My children, some people again profane the Sacraments in another manner. They have concealed mortal sins for ten years, for twenty years. They are always uneasy; their sin is always present to their mind; they are always thinking of confessing it, and always putting it off; it is a Hell. When these people feel this, they will ask to make a general confession, and they will tell their sins as if they had just committed them: they will not confess that they have hidden them during ten years -- twenty years. That is a bad confession! They ought to say, besides, that they had given up the practice of their religion, that they no longer felt the pleasure they had formerly in serving the good God.

My children, we run the risk again of profaning the Sacrament if we seize the moment when there is a noise round the confessional to tell the sins quickly which give us most pain. We quiet ourselves by saying, "I accused myself properly; so much the worse if the confessor did not hear. " So much the worse for you who acted cunningly! At other times we speak quickly, profiting by the moment when the priest is not very attentive to get over the great sins. Take a house which has been for a long time very dirty and neglected -- it is in vain to sweep out, there will always be a nasty smell. It is the same with our soul after confession; it requires tears to purify it. My children, we must ask earnestly for repentance. After confession, we must plant a thorn in our heart, and never lose sight of our sins. We must do as the angel did to Saint Francis of Assisi; he fixed in him five darts, which never came out again.

Read more on St. John Vianney

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Assumption Novena: Day Two

Mary, Assumed into Heaven, we venerate you as the Queen of Heaven and earth. Your own Son led you to a throne of glory in Heaven next to His own. As you tasted the bitterness of pain and sorrow with Him on earth, you now enjoy eternal bliss with Him in Heaven. As our loving Queen, intercede for us in our needs (mention your request). We thank Jesus for having put a most beautiful crown upon you head, while all the Angels and Saints acclaim you as their Queen. O Queen Assumed into Heaven, pray for us. Amen.

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Pray for Cardinal George

Update 2: On Saturday, August 5, 2006, the Cardinal underwent another surgery - an upper endoscopy and a flexible sigmoidoscopy at 10 a.m.

Send an electronic get-well card to Cardinal George.


Update: Cancer tests show that the surgery succeeded! Tests show no cancer remains in the Cardinal!


Original Post (7/30/2006): My cardinal, Francis Cardinal George (69 years old) of the Archdiocese of Chicago, underwent surgery this past Thursday, July 27, 2006, to treat bladder cancer that was diagnosed two weeks ago. Wednesday, July 26, Cardinal George released this statement:

"Tomorrow morning I will undergo surgery at Loyola University Medical Center to remove cancer discovered very recently in my bladder. I am informed that I can expect to make a full recovery from this cancer and the surgery to remove it. I have asked my doctors and archdiocesan officials to fully brief you after the surgery on the specifics of the operation and my recovery."

Thursday, Cardinal George went into surgery that was to remove his bladder, prostate, some lymph nodes and part of his right ureter. However, Cardinal George was taken back into a second surgery just before midnight Thursday when physicians noticed a drop in George's blood pressure and blood count. Doctors accidentally nicked an artery in the pelvis during the removal of the lymph nodes.

Cardinal George is a much more orthodox cardinal than previous ones. And, he is a very generous and amiable person. Please say a prayer for his recovery.

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Assumption Novena: Day One

Please join me in praying the nine-day Novena that leads up to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (August 15), a holy day of obligation.

Novena Day One:

Immaculate Virgin, Mother of Jesus and our Mother, we believe in your triumphant assumption into heaven where the angels and saints acclaim you as Queen of Heaven and earth. We join them in praising you and bless the Lord who raised you above all creatures. With them we offer you our devotion and love. We are confident that you watch over our daily efforts and we pray that you may intercede for us in our needs (mention your request). We take comfort from the faith in the coming Resurrection and we look to you, our life, our sweetness and our hope. After this earthly life, show us Jesus, the blest fruit of your womb, O kind, O loving, O sweet virgin Mary. O Queen Assumed into Heaven, pray for us. Amen.

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The Feast of the Transfiguration

Feast (1969 Calendar): August 6
Double of the II Class (1955 Calendar): August 6

Today is the celebration of the Feast of the Transfiguration, when we recall Christ's divinity showing forth on Mount Tabor. This event foreshadowed the glorious Resurrection and Ascension of Christ that would occur after His death on the Cross.

Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother John, and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them. Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus.Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified. Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them; from the cloud came a voice, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.” Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them. As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what rising from the dead meant. Mk 9:2-10

Yet, the greatest mystery in this was not that Christ shone forth in glory. The true mystery is in that Christ kept that light and divinity hidden all during his earthly ministry to save our souls.

Prayers:
 
Novena to Our Lord of Transfiguration

Collect:

O God, Who in the glorious Transfiguration of Thine only-begotten Son didst confirm the mysteries of the faith by the witness of the fathers, and in the voice which came down from the shining cloud, didst wondrously foreshow the perfect adoption of sons: vouchsafe in Thy loving kindness, to make us coheirs with this King of glory, and to grant that we may be made partakers of that same glory. Through the same our Lord.

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

Image Source: Transfiguration by Giovanni Gerolamo Savoldo, 16th century

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Dedication of St. Mary Major in Rome

Greater Double (1955 Calendar): August 5
Optional Memorial (1969 Calendar): August 5

Each year on August 5th the Church celebrates the Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome. This is one of only three such universally held feastdays. There is a separate feast to celebrate the Dedication of St. John the Lateran (on November 9th) and a third that celebrates the Dedication of both St. Peter’s Basilica and the Basilica of St. Paul outside the walls (on November 18th). These four basilicas are the four major basilicas. Many other minor basilicas have been designated as such by the Popes throughout the world, but these four basilicas are held in universal esteem by the faithful. They are the highest-ranking church buildings in the world.

And the story behind St. Mary Major is the story of one of the earliest miracles attributed to our Blessed Lady. 

According to Tradition, the Virgin Mary appeared in a dream to two faithful Catholics, the patrician John and his wife, as well as to Pope Liberius who reigned from 352 – 366 AD, asking them to build a church in her honor where the snow would fall on the night of August 4th into the 5th. On the night announced in 358 AD, snow began to fall on the location where St. Mary Major is presently located. This of course is a miracle considering it fell on that small location in the heat of August, a notoriously warm period in Rome.

Pope Liberius went and traced the outlines of the church in the snow himself, and the first basilica was built on that site. However, it was completed nearly a century later by Pope Sixtus III following the Council of Ephesus in 431 during which Mary was declared to be the Mother of God. The feastday kept by the Church on August 5th is known as both the Feast of the Dedication of St. Mary Major but also as the Feast of Our Lady of the Snows, on account of the miracle attributed to our Lady.

The Importance of the Basilica of St. Mary Major:

St. Mary Major is important to Christendom for three reasons: 

(a) It stands as a venerable monument to the Council of Ephesus (431), at which the dogma of Mary's divine Motherhood was solemnly defined; the definition of the Council occasioned a most notable increase in the veneration paid to Mary. 

(b) The basilica is Rome's "church of the crib," a kind of Bethlehem within the Eternal City; it also is a celebrated station church, serving, for instance, as the center for Rome's liturgy for the first Mass on Christmas. In some measure, every picture of Mary with the divine Child is traceable to this church.

(c) St. Mary Major is Christendom's first Marian shrine for pilgrims. It set the precedent for the countless shrines where pilgrims gather to honor our Blessed Mother throughout the world. Here was introduced an authentic expression of popular piety that has been the source of untold blessings and graces for Christianity in the past as in the present.

 Source: The Church's Year of Grace by Pius Parsch via Catholic Culture

Prayer:

Grant to us Thy servants, we beseech Thee, O Lord God, that we may enjoy perpetual health of mind and body: and through the intercession of blessed Mary ever Virgin may be delivered from present sorrow and possess eternal joy. Through our Lord.

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

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Comedy Central Re-airs "Bloody Mary"

On December 31, 2005, I was happy to post that Comedy Central promised to not re-run the "Bloody Mary" episode. This blasphemous, insulting, and disgusting episode attacks the Pope and the Blessed Virgin Mary. But, the people that made such a promise are liars!

Comedy Central re-aired the episode on August 2, 2006! If you are tired of seeing our faith insulted, register a protest: tony.fox[at]comedycentral.com

Source: Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights

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Pray for Michael's Heart Surgery

A very faithful Catholic that visits my blog under the nickname "St. Michael" is in great need of your prayers. This is from his blog:

Hey all,

I will not be posting much, if any for the next month or two. I am going in this friday the 4th for Open heart Surgery. It will be my 11th! Yes, I am a frequent flyer when it comes to this. Please keep me in your prayers that all will go as God wills.

Pax Christi,

Michael

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St. John Vianney

Memorial (1969 Calendar): August 4
III Class (1962 Calendar): August 8

Double (1955 Calendar): August 9

The Devil told St. John Vianney, "If there were three such priests as you, my kingdom [in France] would be ruined."

St. John Vianney (1786-1859) was born in Dardilly, Lyons, France, and died in Ars, France. He was a farmhand that taught other children their prayers and catechism. St. John Vianney felt the calling to follow Our Lord as a priest, but he was not a very good student. And, with all classes still being taught in Latin, he did poorly because he was horrible at Latin. But, God guided him and St. John Vianney was ordained in 1815.

St. John Vianney was briefly assigned for a while to Ecully as a parish priest, but in 1818 he was assigned to the parish of Ars, a tiny village near Lyons, which suffered from lax attendance. St. John Vianney immediately began visiting his parishioners, especially the sick and poor. St. John Vianney would spend days in prayer and penance for his parishioners.

But, the devil did not want St. John Vianney to continue his ministry; some estimate that St. John Vianney saved 25,000 souls. And for this, the devil frequently tormented St. John Vianney when he tried to get his 2-3 hours of sleep a night.

Because of his priestly zeal, St. John Vianney has been recognized as the patron saint of parish priests. The man that barely completed his education is now the patron saint of parish priests. By 1855 there were 20,000 pilgrims a year to Ars. They came to hear him and receive the Sacrament of Confession from him. St. John Vianney heard confessions for 16 hours each day in a small confessional. St. John Vianney was also gifted with discernment of spirits, prophecy, hidden knowledge, and working miracles.

St. John Vianney died on August 4, 1859, at Ars, France, of natural causes. He was canonized on May 31, 1925. He is known as the Curé of Ars. Pope Pius XI declared him the patron saint of all diocesan priests in 1929. His body remains incorruptible. His feastday was transferred from August 9th to August 8th in 1960 to be closer to the day of his death.

Here is one conservation he had with a penitent because of his gift of discernment:

- Do you remember that you went to a ball on such-and-such occasion?
- Yes, I remember. 

 

- Do you remember that at a certain moment a handsome young man entered the ballroom? He was quite elegant, appeared very upright and danced with several young ladies?
- Yes, I do. 

 

- Do you recall that you had a great desire to dance with him?
- I recall that. 

 

- Do you recollect that you became sad because he didn’t ask you to dance?
- Yes, I do. 

 

- Do you remember that by chance you looked down at his feet and saw a strange blue light coming from them?
- Yes. I remember. 

 

- That young man was none other than the devil who had taken that shape to tempt several of the young women there. He was unable to approach you because you are a Daughter of Mary protected by her, and you were wearing the Miraculous Medal. 

 

From “Saints to Remember from January to December,” by the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary:

This glorious parish priest was born in eastern France, three years before the French Revolution broke out. He was a simple farmer’s boy. He received his first Holy Communion secretly in a barn when he was thirteen years of age. He later began studies or the priesthood. Because of the simple innocence of his mind, he found it very hard to pass the seminary examinations. His great devotions were to the Blessed Sacrament and to Our Blessed Lady. After months of prayer to Our Blessed Lady, he finally obtained the favor of being ordained a priest in 1815. He got encouragement to pursue his vocation to the priesthood at the tomb of Saint John Francis Regis. He was first made an assistant pastor at Ecully, and later a pastor at the little village of Ars. He stayed there for forty-one years, until he died. He is always referred to as the Cur’e of Ars. So great was his sanctity that people from all over Europe came to see him. He used to spend from sixteen to eighteen hours in the confessional every day. Heads of the State, army officers, university professors, bishops and priest, all went to him for direction. Toward the end of his life, nearly 20,000 pilgrims visited him every year. Pope Pius XI proclaimed him the patron of all parish priests. He was one of the most loved priests in the history of the Catholic Church. Everyone remembers him either as siting in the confessional or kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament or before an image of Our Blessed Mother, always with the rosary beads in his hand.

Writing Excerpts from St. John Vianney Available Online:

• Catechism on Communion
• Catechism on Confession
• Catechism on Frequent Communion
• Catechism on Hope
• Catechism on Impurity
• Catechism on Prayer
• Catechism on Pride
• Catechism on Salvation
• Catechism on Sin
• Catechism on Suffering
• Catechism on the Blessed Virgin
• Catechism on the Cardinal Virtues
• Catechism on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
• Catechism on the Holy Spirit
• Catechism on the Love of God
• Catechism on the Prerogatives of the Pure Soul
• Catechism on the Priesthood
• Catechism on the Real Presence
• Catechism on the Sanctification of Sunday
• Catechism on the Word of God
• On Anger
• On Avarice
• On Death
• On Envy
• On Gluttony
• On Grace
• On Lust
• On Paradise
• On Prayer
• On Pride
• On Salvation
• On Sin
• On Sloth
• On Temptations
• On the Last Judgment
• On the Love of God
• Sermon on Purgatory

Highly Recommended Reading:

• The Little Catechism of the Cure of Ars
• The Sermons of the Cure d'Ars: For the Sundays and Feasts of the Year

Collect:

Almighty and merciful God, Who didst make St. John Mary wonderful in his pastoral zeal and constant prayer and penance: grant, we beseech Thee, that by his example and intercession we may be able to win the souls of our brethren for Christ, and together with them attain to everlasting glory. Through the same our Lord.

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

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