Blog Post - April 23rd
S. George the Dragon Slayer| S. Adalbert of Prague| Daily Meditation| Daily Quote by S. Padre Pio| Divine Mercy Reflection
St. George
(d. c. 303)
Both Calendars
If Mary Magdalene was the victim of misunderstanding, George is the object of a vast amount of imagination. There is every reason to believe that he was a real martyr who suffered at Lydda in Palestine, probably before the time of Constantine. The Church adheres to his memory, but not to the legends surrounding his life.
That he was willing to pay the supreme price to follow Christ is what the Church believes. And it is enough.
The story of George's slaying the dragon, rescuing the king's daughter and converting Libya is a 12th-century Italian fable. George was a favorite patron saint of crusaders, as well as of Eastern soldiers in earlier times. He is a patron saint of England, Portugal, Germany, Aragon, Catalonia, Genoa and Venice.
Comment:
Human nature seems to crave more than cold historical data. Americans have Washington and Lincoln, but we somehow need Paul Bunyan, too. The life of St. Francis of Assisi is inspiring enough, but for centuries the Italians have found his spirit in the legends of the Fioretti, too. Santa Claus is the popular extension of the spirit of St. Nicholas. The legends about St. George are part of this yearning. Both fact and legend are human ways of illumining the mysterious truth about the One who alone is holy.
Quote:
"When we look at the lives of those who have faithfully followed Christ, we are inspired with a new reason for seeking the city which is to come" (Vatican II,Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, 50).
Patron Saint of:
Boy Scouts
England
Germany
Portugal
Soldiers
St. Adalbert of Prague
(956-997)
Ordinary Time
Opposition to the Good News of Jesus did not discourage Adalbert, who is now remembered with great honor in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Germany.
Born to a noble family in Bohemia, he received part of his education from St. Adalbert of Magdeburg. At the age of 27 he was chosen as bishop of Prague. Those who resisted his program of clerical reform forced him into exile eight years later.
In time, the people of Prague requested his return as their bishop. Within a short time, however, he was exiled again after excommunicating those who violated the right of sanctuary by dragging a woman accused of adultery from a church and murdering her.
After a short ministry in Hungary, he went to preach the Good News to people living near the Baltic Sea. He and two companions were martyred by pagan priests in that region. Adalbert's body was immediately ransomed and buried in Gniezno cathedral (Poland). In the mid-11th century his relics were moved to St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague.
Comment:
Preaching the Good News can be dangerous work whether the audience is already baptized or not. Adalbert fearlessly preached Jesus' gospel and received a martyr's crown for his efforts. Similar zeal has created modern martyrs in many places, especially in Central and South America. Some of those martyrs grew up in areas once evangelized by Adalbert.
Quote:
“O God, [you] bestowed the crown of martyrdom on the Bishop St. Adalbert, as he burned with zeal for for souls, grant, we pray, by his prayers, that the obedience of his flock may never fail the shephered, nor the care of the shepherd be ever lacking to the flock.” (Roman Missal, Common of a Martyr in the Easter season).
Daily Meditation
Vibrant Dialogue:
Going to adoration gives me an opportunity to hang out with Jesus. I get to engage in a real and vibrant dialogue that brings all of me to Him. It helps me grow in my understanding of His presence at every moment of my life.
Quote by S. Padre Pio:
This beautiful day (of God's coming) cannot be the work of anyone but God, and God will make it be for the resurrection of many and the triumph of His glory.
Divine Mercy Reflection
Reflections on Notebook Two: 112-188
We now enter into Notebook Two of the six notebooks that make up the Diary of Saint Faustina. The reason for having more than one notebook is simply that when one notebook was filled by Saint Faustina she began with a new one. Therefore, there is nothing particularly different from one notebook to the other. However, for the purpose of this current book of daily reflections, each reflection will begin to be lengthened, starting here with Notebook Two, so as to help you, the reader, enter more deeply into the beautiful mysteries of faith and our shared spiritual life that have been revealed in these writings of Saint Faustina.
You are invited once again to take one reflection each day and to ponder it throughout the day. Try to pray the prayer for each reflection each morning, noon and evening. Allow each mystery reflected upon to become a source of wisdom and understanding for you.
Reflection 113: An Offering to the Everlasting Father
The greatest prayer we can make is the “prayer of offering.” A prayer of offering is a sacrifice offered to the Father in union with the One Sacrificial Offering of Christ on the Cross. We do not offer ourselves, by ourselves. We offer ourselves in union with Christ Jesus. Specifically, we must offer our prayers, fasting, mortification and daily work to God. Pray prayers every day. Mortify your fleshly desires regularly through fasting and other forms of self-denial. And do all your daily work as a gift to God and as a result of His daily Will. Offer all of these to the Father with the Son, and God will accept your offering as a pure and holy sacrifice (See Diary #531).
When you pray, do you make your prayer an offering? Too often we pray for this need or that and stop there. It is good to present our needs before God. He knows our needs even before we present them, but He still wants us to ask Him to meet our specific needs. But don’t stop there in your prayer. The Lord wants you to go further. He wants sacrifice from you. Reflect upon whether your prayer becomes a daily sacrifice to God. If this sacrificial language is not part of your daily thinking, begin to make it so. Think and act sacrificially in your daily life and prayer and the Lord will receive your sacrifice, using it in powerful ways for your own holiness and for the holiness of the entire Church.
Lord, You not only offered the perfect sacrifice of Your life to the Father, You also set for me a perfect example of true prayer. Help me to daily offer to You the sacrifice of my life so that, through this sacrifice, You may make me holy and bring greater holiness to Your Church. Jesus, I trust in You.