May
From Dom Guéranger's The Liturgical Year.
THIS day is honoured by the triumph of two sainted Popes; and Gregory VII, when he quitted this earth, was introduced into the court of Heaven by one of his predecessors. Urban was a martyr by the shedding of his blood; Gregory was a martyr by the sufferings he had to endure during his whole pontificate. Both fought' for the same glorious cause. Urban laid down his life rather than obey an earthly potentate, who bade him degrade himself by adoring an idol; Gregory preferred to endure every temporal suffering rather than allow the Church to be the slave of Cæsar. Both of them adorn the Paschal season with their beautiful palms. Our Risen Jesus said to Peter: Follow me![1]—and Peter followed him, even to the cross. Urban and Gregory were Peter’s successors, and like him, they were the devoted disciples of the same divine Master. We honour them both on this day; and, in their triumph, we have a proof of the invincible power which, in every age, the Conqueror of death has communicated to them whom he appointed to bear testimony to the truth of his Resurrection.
The labours and merits of the holy Pope Urban are thus commemorated in the Liturgy:
Urbanus Romanus, Alexandro Severo Imperatore, doctrina et vitæ sanctitate multos ad Christi fidem convertit: in illis Valerianum, beatæ Caeciliae sponsum, et Tiburtium Valeriani fratrem, qui postea martyrium forti animo subierunt. Hic de bonis Ecclesiae attributis scripsit his verbis: Ipsae res fidelium, quæ Domino offeruntur, non debent in alios usus quam ecclesiasticos, et Christianorum fratrum, vel indigentium, converti: quia vota sunt fidelium, et pretia peccatorum, ac patrimonia pauperum. Sedit annos sex, menses septem, dies quatuor: ac martyrio coronatus, sepultus est in coemeterio Praetextati, octavo Kalendas junii. Ordinationibus quinque habitis mense decembri, creavit presbyteros novem, diaconos quinque, episcopos per diversa loca octo.
Urban, a Roman by birth, governed the Church during the reign of the Emperor Alexander Severus. By his learning and holy life, he converted many to the Christian faith. Among these were Valerian, the husband of St Cecily, and Tiburtius, Valerian’s brother; both of whom, afterwards, courageously suffered martyrdom. Urban wrote these words regarding property that is given to the Church: ' Things that have been offered to the Lord by the faithful should not be put to any other use than such as is for the benefit of the Church, the Brethren in the Christian faith, or the poor: because they are the offerings of the faithful, the return made for sin, and the patrimony of the poor.’ He reigned six years, seven months, and four days. He was crowned with martyrdom, and was buried in the cemetery of Praetextatus, on the eighth,of the Calends of June (May 25). In five ordinations held in the Decembers of different years, he ordained nine priests, five deacons, and eight bishops for divers places.
Holy Pontiff! the joy of this day of thy triumph is enhanced by its being the anniversary of the entrance into heaven of thy illustrious successor Gregory. Thou hadst watched his combats here on earth, and his courage delighted thee, as being equal to that of the martyrs. He, when dying at Salerno, thought of thy martyrdom, and the thought inspired him with energy for his last trial. How admirable is the union that exists between the Church triumphant and militant! How sublime the brotherhood that exists between the Saints! What a joy it is for us to know that we may share in it! Our Risen Jesus invites us to be united with him for all eternity. Each generation is sending him its elect, and they cluster around him, for he is their Head, and they are the members that complete his mystical body. He is the first-born of the dead;[2] and he will give us to share in his life, in proportion to our having imitated him in his sufferings and death. Pray, O Urban, that we may become more and more inflamed with the desire of being with him who is the way, the truth, and the life;[3] that we may be detached from earthly things, and comport ourselves here below as men who believe themselves to be exiles, absent from the Lord.[4]
[1] St John xxi 19.
[2] Apoc. i 5.
[3] St John xiv 6.
[4] 2 Cor. v 6.
From Dom Guéranger's The Liturgical Year.
AS we have already said, joy is the leading feature A of the Paschal season—a supernatural joy which springs from our delight at seeing the glorious triumph of our Emmanuel, and from the happiness we feel at our own being delivered from the bonds of death. This interior joy was the characteristic of the Saint whom we honour to-day. His heart was ever full of a jubilant enthusiasm for what regards God; so that we could truly apply to him those words of Scripture: A secure mind is like a continual feast.[1] One of his latest disciples, the illustrious Father Faber, tells us in his beautiful treatise, Growth in Holiness, that cheerfulness is one of the chief means for advancing in Christian perfection. We will therefore welcome with gladness and veneration the benevolent and light-hearted Philip Neri, the Apostle of Rome, and one of the greatest Saints produced by the Church in the sixteenth century.
Love of God—but a love of the most ardent kind, and one that communicated itself to all that came near him—was our Saint’s characteristic virtue. All the Saints loved God; for the love of God is the first and greatest of the commandments: but Philip’s whole life was, in an especial manner, the fulfilment of this divine precept. His entire existence seemed to be but one long transport of love for his Creator; and had it not been for a miracle of God’s power and goodness, this burning love would have soon put an end to his mortal career. He was in his twenty-ninth year, when one day—it was within the octave of Pentecost—he was seized with such a vehemence of divine charity that two of his ribs broke, thus making room for the action of the heart to respond freely to the intensity of the love of the soul. The fracture was never healed; it caused a protrusion which was distinctly observable; and, owing to this miraculous enlargement of the region of the heart, Philip was enabled to live fifty years more, during which time he loved his God with a fervour and strength which would do honour to one already in heaven.
This seraph in human flesh was a living answer to the insults heaped upon the Catholic Church by the so-called Reformation. Luther and Calvin had called this Holy Church the harlot of Babylon; and yet she had, at that very time, such children as Teresa of Spain, and Philip Neri of Rome, to offer to the admiration of mankind. But Protestantism cared little or nothing for piety or charity; its great object was the throwing off the yoke of restraint. Under pretence of religious liberty, it persecuted them that adhered to the true faith; it forced itself by violence where it could not enter by seduction; but it never aimed at or thought of leading men to love their God. The result was that wheresoever it imposed its errors, devotedness was at an end—we mean that devotedness which leads man to make sacrifices for God or for his neighbour. A very long period of time elapsed after the Reformation before Protestantism ever gave a thought to the infidels who abounded in various parts of the globe: and if, later on, it organized what it calls its missions, it chose a strange set of men to be the apostles of its Bible Societies. It has made a recent discovery; it has found out that the Catholic Church is prolific in Orders and Congregations devoted to works of charity. The discovery has excited it to emulation; and among its other imitations, it can now boast of having Protestant Sisters of Charity. To a certain point, success may encourage it to persevere in these tardy efforts; but anything like the devotedness of Catholic institutions is an impossibility for Protestantism, were it only for this reason, that its principles are opposed to the Evangelical Counsels, which are the great sources of the spirit of sacrifice, and are prompted by a motive of the love of God.
Glory, then, to Philip Neri, one of the worthiest representatives of charity in the sixteenth century! It was owing to his zeal that Rome and Christendom at large were replenished with a new life by the frequentation of the sacraments and by the exercises of Catholic piety. His word, his very look, used to excite people to devotion. His memory is still held in deep veneration, especially in Rome, where his feast is kept with the greatest solemnity on this twenty-sixth day of May. He shares with Saints Peter and Paul the honour of being patron of the Holy City. Formerly, on his feast, the Pope went, with great solemnity, to the Church of St Mary in Vallicella, and paid the debt of gratitude which the Holy See owes to the Saint who accomplished such great things for the glory of our holy Mother the Church.
Philip had the gift of miracles; and though seeking to be forgotten and despised, he was continually surrounded by people who besought him to pray for them, either in their temporal or spiritual concerns. Death itself was obedient to his command, as in the case of the young prince Paul Massimo. The young prince, when breathing his last, desired that Philip should be sent for, in order that he might assist him to die happily. The Saint was saying Mass at the time. As soon as the holy Sacrifice was over, he repaired to the palace; but he was too late; he found the father, sister and the whole family in tears. The young prince had died after an illness of sixty-five days, which he had borne with most edifying patience. Philip fell upon his knees; and, after a fervent prayer, he put his hand on the head of the corpse, and called the prince by his name. Thus awakened from the sleep of death, Paul opened his eyes, and looking at Philip, said to him: ‘My Father!’ He then added these words: ‘I only wished to go to confession.’ The assistants left the room, and Philip remained alone with the prince. After a few moments the family were called back; and in their presence, Paul began to speak to Philip regarding his mother and sister who had been taken from him by death, and whom he loved with the tenderest affection. During the conversation, the prince's face regained all it had lost by sickness. His animation was that of one in perfect health. The saint then asked him if he would wish to die again. ‘Oh! yes,’ answered the prince, ‘most willingly; for I should then see my mother and sister in heaven.’ ‘Take then’ said Philip, ‘take thy departure for heaven, and pray to the Lord for me.’ At these words, the young prince expired once more, and entered into the joys of eternal life, leaving his family to mourn his departure, and venerate a Saint such as Philip.
He was almost continually visited by our Lord with raptures and ecstasies; he was gifted with the spirit of prophecy, and could read the secrets of the conscience. His virtues were such as to draw souls to him by an irresistible charm. The youth of Rome, rich and poor, used to flock to him. Some he warned against danger; others he saved, after they had fallen. The poor and sick were the object of his unceasing care. He seemed to be everywhere in the city by his works of zeal, which gave an impulse to piety that has never been forgotten.
Philip was convinced that one of the principal means for maintaining the Christian spirit is preaching the word of God: hence he was most anxious to provide the faithful with apostolic men, who would draw them to God by good and solid preaching. He established, under the name of The Oratory, an institute which still exists, the object of which is to encourage Christian piety among the people. By founding it, Philip aimed at securing the services, zeal, and talent of priests who are not called to the Religious life, but who, by uniting their labours together, would produce great good to the souls of men.[2]
Thus did he afford to priests, whose vocation does not lead them to the Religious state, the great advantages of a common rule and mutual good example, which are such powerful aids both in the service of God and in the exercise of pastoral duties. But the holy Apostle was a man of too much faith not to have an esteem of the Religious life as a state of perfection. He never lost an opportunity of encouraging a vocation to that holy state. The Religious Orders were indebted to him for so many members, that his intimate friend and admirer, St Ignatius of Loyola, used playfully to compare him to a bell, which calls others to Church, yet never goes in itself!
The awful crisis of the sixteenth century, through which the Christian world had to pass, and which robbed the Catholic Church of so many provinces, was a source of keenest grief to Philip during the whole of his life. His heart bled at seeing so many thousand souls fall into the abyss of error and heresy. He took the deepest interest in the efforts that were made to reclaim those that had been led astray by the pretended Reformation. He kept a watchful eye on the tactics wherewith Protestantism sought to maintain its ground. The ‘Centuries of Magdeburg,’ for example, suggested to his zeal a counterbalance of truth. The ‘Centuries’ was a series of historical essays, whereby the Reformers sought to prove that the Roman Church had changed the ancient faith, and introduced superstitious practices in the place of those that were used in the early ages of Christianity. A work like this, with its falsified quotations, its misrepresentation and its frequent invention of facts, was destined to do great injury; and Philip resolved to meet it by a work of profound erudition—a true history, compiled from authentic sources. One of the fathers of his Oratory, Cæsar Baronius, was just the man for such an undertaking; and Philip ordered him to take the field against the enemy. The Ecclesiastical Annals were the fruit of this happy thought; and Baronius himself, at the beginning of Book VIII, acknowledges that Philip was the originator of the work. Three centuries have passed away since then. It is easy for us, with the means which science now puts into our hands, to detect certain imperfections in the Annals; at the same time, it is acknowledged on all sides that they form by far the truest and finest History of the Church of the first twelve hundred years—which is as far as the learned Cardinal went. Heresy felt the injury it must needs sustain by such a History. The sickly and untrustworthy erudition of the Centuriators could not stand before an honest statement of facts; and we may safely assert that the progress of Protestantism was checked by the Annals of Baronius, which showed that the Church was then as she had ever been—the pillar and ground of the truth.[3] Philip's sanctity and Baronius’ learning secured the victory. Numerous conversions soon followed, consoling the Church for the losses she had sustained. And if in these our own days there are so many returning to the ancient faith, it is but fair to attribute the movement, in part at least, to the success of the historical method begun by the Annals.
Let us now read the liturgical account of the virtues and holy deeds of the Apostle of Rome in the sixteenth century:
Philippus Nerius piis honestisque parentibus Florentiae natus, ab ipsa ineunte ætate non obscura dedit futuræ sanctitatis indicia. Adolescens ampla patrui hereditate dimissa, Romam se contulit; ubi philosophia ac sacris litteris eruditus, totum se Christo dicavit. Ea fuit abstinentia, ut sæpe jejunus triduum permanserit. Vigiliis et orationibus intentus, septem Urbis ecclesias frequenter visitans, apud Cœmeterium Callisti in cœlestium rerum contemplatione pernoctare consuevit. Sacerdos ex obedientia factus, in animarum salute procuranda totus fuit, et in confessionibus audiendis ad extremum usque diem perseverans, innumeros pene filios Christo peperit; quos verbi Dei quotidiano pabulo, sacramentorum frequentia, orationisassiduitate, aliisque piis exercitationibus enutriri cupiens, Oratorii congregationem instituit.
Charitate Dei vulneratus languebat jugiter: tantoque cor ejus æstuabat ardore, ut cum intra fines suos contineri non posset, illius sinum confractis atque elatis duabus costulis mirabiliter Dominus ampliaverit. Sacrum vero faciens, aut ferventius orans, in aera quandoque sublatus, mira undique luce fulgere visus fuit. Egenos et pauperes omni charitatis officio prosequebatur: dignus qui et angelo in specie pauperis eleemosynam erogaret, et dum egentibus noctu panem deferret, in foveam lapsus, inde pariter ab angelo incolumis eriperetur. Humilitati addictus, ab honoribus semper abhorruit, atque ecclesiasticas dignitates, etiam primarias, non semel ultro delatas, constantissime recusavit.
Prophetiæ dono fuit illustris, et in animorum sensibus penetrandis mirifice enituit. Virginitatem perpetuo illibatam servavit: idque assecutus est, ut eos qui puritatem colerent, ex odore; qui vero secus, ex fœtore dignosceret. Absentibus interdum apparuit, iisque periclitantibus opem tulit. Ægrotos plurimos et morti proximos sanitati restituit. Mortuum quoque ad vitam revocavit. Cœlestium spirituum, et ipsius Deiparae Virginis, frequenter fuit apparitione dignatus, ac plurimorum animas splendore circumfusas in cœlum conscendere vidit. Denique anno salutis millesimo quingentesimo nonagesimo quinto, octavo Kalendas Junias, in quem diem inciderat festum Corporis Christi, Sacro maxima spiritus exsultatione peracto cæterisque functionibus expletis, post mediam noctem, qua prædixerat hora, octogenarius obdormivit in Domino. Quem Gregorius Decimus quintus miraculis clarum in Sanctorum numerum retulit.
Philip Neri was born at Florence, of pious and respectable parents. From his very childhood he gave evident promise of future sanctity. Whilst yet a young man, he gave up an ample fortune which he inherited from an uncle, and went to Rome, where he studied theology and philosophy, and devoted himself wholly to the service of Christ Jesus. Such was his abstemiousness that he frequently passed three days without eating anything. He spent much time in watching and prayer. He frequently made the visit of the Seven Churches of the city, and was in the habit of spending the night in the Cemetery of Calixtus, in the contemplation of heavenly things. Being ordained priest under obedience, he devoted himself without reserve to saving souls, and even to the last day of his life he was assiduous in hearing confessions. He was the spiritual father of a countless number of souls; and in order to nourish them with the daily food of God’s word, with the frequency of the sacraments, with application to prayer, and with other pious exercises, he instituted the congregation of the Oratory.'
He was ever languishing with the love of God, wherewith he was wounded. Such was the ardour that glowed within him, that his heart was not able to keep within its place, and his breast was miraculously enlarged by the breaking and expansion of two of his ribs. Sometimes, when celebrating Mass, or engaged in fervent prayer, he was seen to be raised up in the air, and encircled with a bright light. He served the needy and the poor with an allproviding charity. He was once rewarded by a visit from an angel, who appeared to him in a beggar’s garb, and received an alms from him. On another occasion, when carrying loaves to the poor during the night, he fell into a deep hole, but was drawn forth by an angel without having sustained any injury. So humble was he, that he had an abiding dread of everything that savoured of honour; and he was most resolute in refusing every ecclesiastical dignity, though the highest offices were more than once offered to him.
He possessed the gift of prophecy, and could miraculously read the inmost thoughts of others’ souls. Throughout his whole life he preserved his chastity unsullied. He had also a supernatural power of distinguishing those who were chaste from those who were not so. He sometimes appeared to persons who were at a distance, and assisted them in moments of danger. He restored to health many that were sick and at death’s door. He also restored a dead man to life. He was frequently favoured with apparitions of heavenly spirits and of the blessed Mother of God. He saw the souls of several persons ascending, amidst great brightness, into heaven. At length, being in his eightieth year, he slept in the Lord; it was in the year of our Redemption 1595, the eighth of the Calends of June (May 25), the Feast of Corpus Christi, after having said Mass with extraordinary spiritual joy, and at the very hour which he had foretold, which was shortly after midnight. The miracles wherewith he had been honoured being authentically proved, he was canonized by Pope Gregory the Fifteenth.
Thy whole life, O Philip, was one long act of love of Jesus; but it was also one untiring effort to make others know and love him, and thus secure the end for which they were created. Thou wast the indefatigable Apostle of Rome for forty years, and no one could approach thee without receiving something of the divine ardour that filled thy heart. We too would fain receive of thy fulness of devotion; and therefore we pray thee to teach us how to love our Risen Jesus. It is not enough that we adore him and rejoice in his triumph—we must love him; for he has permitted us to celebrate the various mysteries of his life on earth, with a view to our seeing more and more clearly how deserving he is of our warmest love. It is love that will lead us to the full appreciation of his Resurrection, that bright mystery which shows us all the riches of the Sacred Heart. The new life which he put on by rising from the tomb, teaches us more eloquently than ever how tenderly he loves us, and how earnestly he importunes us to love him in rerum. Pray for us, O Philip, that our heart and our flesh may rejoice in the Living God![4] Now that we have relished the mystery of the Pasch, lead us to that of the Ascension; prepare our souls to receive the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; and when the august mystery of the Eucharist beams upon us, with all its loveliness, in the approaching festival, the very day that ushered thee into the unveiled vision of thy Jesus, intercede for us, that we may receive and relish that Living Bread, which giveth life to the world![5]
The sanctity that shone on thee, O Philip, was marked by the impetuosity of thy soul's longing after her God; and all they that held intercourse with thee, quickly imbibed thy spirit—which, in truth, is the only one that contents our Redeemer’s Heart. Thou hadst the talent of winning souls, and leading them to perfection by the path of confidence and generosity. In this great work, thy method consisted in having none; thus imitating the Apostles and ancient Fathers, and trusting to the power of God’s own word. It was by thee that the frequentation of the sacraments was restored—that surest indication of the Christian spirit. Pray for the faithful of our times, and come to the assistance of so many souls that are anxiously pursuing systems of spirituality which have been coined by the hands of men, and which but too frequently retard or even impede the intimate union of the creature with his Creator.
Thy love of the Church, O Philip, was most fervent: there can be no true sanctity without it. Though thy contemplation was of the sublimest kind, yet did it not make thee lose sight of the cruel trials which this holy Spouse of Christ had to endure in those sad times. The successful efforts of heresy stimulated thy zeal: oh! obtain for us that keen sympathy for our holy faith which will make us take an interest in all that concerns its progress. It is not enough for us that we save our own souls; we must, moreover, ardently desire and do our utmost to obtain the advancement of God’s kingdom on earth, the extirpation of heresy, and the exaltation of our holy Mother the Church: if these are not our dispositions, how can we call ourselves children of God? May thy example urge us to take to heart the sacred cause of our common Mother. Pray too for the Church militant, of which thou wast one of the bravest soldiers. Shield with thy protection that Rome which loves thee so devoutly because of the services which she received at thy hands. Thou didst lead her children to holiness during thy mortal career; bless her and defend her now that thou art in heaven.
[1] Prov. xv 15.
[2] The Oratory founded by St Philip is not to be confounded with the Orutoirc de France.
[3] 1 Tim. iii 15.
[4] Ps. lxxxiii 2.
[5] St John vi 33.
From Dom Guéranger's The Liturgical Year.
THIS twenty-sixth of May is also honoured by the memory of one of those early Pontiffs who, like Urban, were the foundations of the Church in the age of persecution. Eleutherius ascended the papal throne in the very midst of the storm that was raised by Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. It was he that received the embassy sent to Rome by the martyrs of Lyons; and at the head of them that were thus sent was the great St Irenæus. This illustrious Church, which was then so rich in martyrdom, would offer its palms to Christian Rome, in which, to use St Irenæus’ own expression, it recognized ‘the highest sovereignty.’[1]
Peace, however, was soon restored to the Church, and the remainder of Eleutherius’ pontificate was undisturbed. In the enjoyment of this peace, and with his name, which signifies a freeman, this Pontiff is an image of our Risen Jesus, who, as the Psalmist says of him, is free among the dead.[2]
The Church honours St Eleutherius as a martyr, as she does the other Popes who hved before Constantine, and of whom almost all shed their blood in the persecutions of the first three centuries. Sharing, as they did, in all the sufferings of the Church, governing it amidst perils of every description, and seldom or never knowing what peace was, these three and thirty Pontiffs have every right to be considered as martyrs.
It is a special glory for Eleutherius that he was the Apostle of our own dear country. The Romans had made Britain one of their colonies, and thus brought the island into intercourse with the rest of the world. Divine Providence chose the peaceful years of Eleutherius as the time for uniting it to the Church, at least in some measure. This was in the second century. But later on, our England was to become the Island of Saints; and this same day gives us our second Apostle, St Augustine.
Eleutherius, Nicopoli in Græcia natus, Aniceti Pontificis diaconus, Commodo Imperatore, præfuit Ecclesiæ. Huic initio pontificatus supplices litteræ venerunt a Lucio, Britannorum rege, ut se ac suos in Christianorum numerum reciperet. Quamobrem Fugatium et Damianum, doctos et pios viros, misit in Britanniam, per quos rex et reliqui fidem susciperent. Hoc Pontifice Irenæus, Polycarpi discipulus, Romam veniens, ab eo benigne acceptus est. Quo tempore summa pace et quiete fruebatur Ecclesia Dei: ac per totum orbem terrarum, maxime Romæ, fides propagabatur. Vixit Eleutherius in pontificatu annos quindecim, dies viginti tres. Fecit ordinationes tres mense Decembri, quibus creavit presbyteros duodecim, diaconos octo, episcopos per diversa loca quindecim: sepultusque est in Vaticano prope corpus sancti Petri.
Eleutherius was born at Nicopolis in Greece. He was a deacon of Pope Anicetus, and was chosen to govern the Church during the reign of the emperor Commodus. At the beginning of his pontificate he received letters from Lucius, king of the Britons, begging him to receive himself and his subjects among the Christians. Wherefore Eleutherius sent into Britain Fugatius and Damian, two learned and holy men; through whose ministry the king and his people might receive the faith. It was also during his pontificate that Irenæus, a disciple of Polycarp, went to Rome, and was kindly received by Eleutherius. The Church of God was then enjoying great peace and calm, and the faith made progress throughout the whole world, but nowhere more than at Rome. Eleutherius governed the Church fifteen years and twenty-three days. He thrice held ordinations in December, at which he made twelve priests, eight deacons, and fifteen bishops for divers places. He was buried in the Vatican, near the body of St Peter.
Thy name, O Eleutherius, is the name of every Christian that has risen with Christ. The Pasch has delivered us all, emancipated all, made us all freemen. Pray for us that we may ever preserve that glorious liberty of the children of God, of which the Apostle speaks.[3] By it were we freed from the chains of sin, which consigned us to death; from the slavery of Satan, who would fain have robbed us of our last end; and from the tyranny of the world, which was deceiving us by its false maxims. The new life given to us by our Pasch is one that is all of heaven, where our Jesus is awaiting us in glory; to lose it would be to return to slavery. Holy Pontiff! pray for us, that when the Pasch of next year comes, it may find us in that happy liberty which is the fruit of our having been redeemed by Christ.[4]
There is another kind of liberty of which the world boasts, and for the acquiring whereof it sets men at variance with men. It consists in avoiding as a crime all subjection and dependence, and in recognizing no authority except the one appointed by our own elections, which we can remove as soon as we please. Deliver us, O holy Pontiff, from this false liberty, which is so opposed to the Christian spirit of obedience, and is simply the triumph of human pride. In its frenzy, it sheds torrents of blood; and with its pompous cant of what it calls the rights of man, it substitutes egoism for duty. It acknowledges no such thing as truth, for it maintains that error has its sacred rights; it acknowledges no such thing as good, for it has given up all pretension to prevent evil. It puts God aside, for it refuses to recognize him in those who govern. It puts upon man the yoke of brute force: it tyrannizes over him by what it calls a Majority; and it answers every complaint that he may make against injustice by the jargon of Accomplished Facts. No, this is not the liberty into which we are called by Christ, our Deliverer. We are free, as St Peter says, and yet make not liberty a cloak for malice.[5]
O holy Pontiff! show thyself still a Father to the world. During thy peaceful reign thy throne was near to that of the Cæsars, who governed the city of the Seven Hills. They were the rulers of the world, and yet thy name was revered in every part of their Empire. Whilst the material power held the sword suspended over thy head, the faithful of various distant lands were flocking to Rome, there to venerate the Tomb of Peter, and pay homage to thee his successor. When Lucius sent ambassadors from his island, they turned not their steps to the Emperor's palace, but to thy humble dwelling. They came to tell thee that a people was called by divine grace to receive the Good Tidings, and become a portion of the Christian family. The destinies of this people, which thou wast the first to evangelize, were to be great in the Church. The Island of Britain is a daughter of the Roman
Church; and the attempts she is now making to disown her origin are useless. Have pity on her, O thou who wast her first Apostle! Bless the efforts which are being everywhere made to bring her back to unity with the Church. Remember the faith of Lucius and his people; and show thy paternal solicitude for a country which thou didst lead to the faith.
[1] Adversus Hæreses, lib. iii, cap. iii.
[2] Ps. lxxxvii 6.
[3] Rom. viii 21.
[4] Gal. iv 31.
[5] 1 St Pet. ii 16.
From Dom Guéranger's The Liturgical Year.
THE blessing given by our Lord as he ascended into heaven has revealed its power in the most distant pagan lands, and during these days the liturgical cycle bears witness to a concentration of graces upon the west of Europe.
The band of missionaries begged of Pope Eleutherius by the British king Lucius has been followed by the apostolate of Augustine, the envoy of Gregory the Great, and to-day, as though impatient to justify the lavish generosity of heaven, England brings forward her illustrious son, the Venerable Bede. This humble monk, whose whole life was spent in the praise of God, sought his divine Master in nature and in history, but above all in holy Scripture, which he studied with a loving attention and fidelity to tradition. He who was ever a disciple of the ancients, takes his place to-day among his masters as a Father and Doctor of the Church.
He thus sums up his own life: 'I am a priest of the monastery of the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul. I was bom on their land, and ever since my seventh year I have always lived in their house, obserying the Rule, singing day by day in their church, and making it my delight to learn, to teach or to write. Since I was made a priest, I have written commentaries on the holy Scripture for myself and my brethren, using the words of our venerated Fathers and following their method of interpretation. And now, good Jesus, I beseech thee, thou who hast given me in thy mercy to drink of the sweetness of thy word, grant me now to attain to the source, the fount of wisdom, and to gaze upon thee for ever and ever.’[1]
The holy death of the servant of God was one of the most precious lessons he left to his disciples. His last sickness lasted fifty days, and he spent them, like the rest of his life, in singing the psalms and in teaching. As the Feast of the Ascension drew near, he repeated over and over again with tears of joy the Antiphon: ‘O king of glory, who hast ascended triumphantly above the heavens, leave us not orphans, but send us the promise of the Father, the Spirit of truth.’ He said to his disciples in the words of St Ambrose: ‘I have not lived in such a sort as to be ashamed to live with you, but I am not afraid to die, for we have a good Master.’ Then, returning to his translation of the Gospel of St John and a work, which he had begun, on St Isidore, he would say: ‘I do not wish my disciples to be hindered after my death by error nor to lose the fruit of their studies.’
On the Tuesday before the Ascension he grew worse, and it was evident that the end was near. He was full of joy and spent the day in dictating and the night in prayers of thanksgiving. The dawn of Wednesday morning found him urging his disciples to hurry on their work. At the hour of Terce they left him to take part in the procession made on that day with the relics of the saints. One of them, a child, who stayed with him, said: 'Dear master, there is but one chapter left; hast thou strength for it?’ ‘It is easy,' he answered with a smile; ‘take thy pen, cut it and write—but make haste.' At the hour of None, he sent for the priests of the monastery and gave them little presents, begging them to remember him at the altar. All wept. But he was full of joy, saying: ‘It is time for me, if it so please my Creator, to return to him who made me out of nothing, when as yet I was not. My sweet Judge has well ordered my life, and now the time of dissolution is at hand. I desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ. Yea, my soul longs to see Christ my king in his beauty.’
So did he pass this last day. Then came the touching dialogue with Wibert, the child mentioned above. ‘Dear master, there is yet one sentence more.' 'Write quickly.' After a moment: ‘It is finished,’ said the child. 'Thou sayest well,' replied the blessed man. ‘It is finished. Take my head in thy hands and support me over against the Oratory, for it is a great joy to me to see myself over against that holy place where I have so often prayed.’ They had laid him on the floor of his cell. He said: ‘Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,’ and when he had named the Holy Ghost, he yielded up his soul.
The following account of this holy monk is given in the Breviary:
Beda presbyter Girvi in Britanniæ et Scotiæ finibus ortus, septennis sancto Benedicto Biscopo abbati Wiremuthensi educandus traditur. Monachus deinde factus vitam sic instituit, ut dum se artium et doctrinarum studiis totum impenderet, nihil umquam de regulan disciplina remitteret. Nullum fuit doctrinæ genus, in quo non esset diligentissime versatus; sed præcipua illi cura divinarum scripturarum meditatio, quarum sententiam ut plenius assequeretur, græci hebraicique sermonis notitiam est adeptus. Tricesimo ætatis anno, abbatis sui jussu sacerdos initiatus, statim suasore Acca Hagulstadensi episcopo, sacros explanare libros aggressus est: in quo sanctorum Patrum doctrinis adeo inhæsit, ut nihil proferret nisi illorum judicio comprobatum, eorumdem etiam fere verbis usus. Otium perosus semper, ex lectione ad orationem transibat ac vicissim ex oratione ad lectionem: in qua adeo animo inflammabatur, ut sæpe inter legendum et docendum lacrymis perfunderetur. Ne autem rerum fluxarum curis distraheretur, delatum abbatis munus constantissime detrectavit.
Scientiae ac pietatis laude Bedæ nomen sic breve claruit, ut sanctus Sergius Papa de eo Romam arcessendo cogitaverit; quo difficillimis scilicet, quæ de rebus sacris exortæ erant, quæstionibus definiendis conferret operam. Emendandis fidelium moribus, fidei vindicandæ atque adserendæ libros plures conscripsit: quibus tantum sui apud omnes opinionem fecit, ut ilium sanctus Bonifacius episcopus et martyr Ecclesiæ lumen prædicaverit, Lanfrancus Anglorum doctorem, Concilium Aquisgranense doctorem admirabilem dixerit. Quin ejus scripta eo adhuc vivente, publice in ecclesiis legebantur. Quod cum fieret, quoniam ipsum sanctum minime appellare liceret, venerabilis titulo efferebant: qui deinde veluti proprius sequutis etiam temporibus semper habitus est. Ejus autem doctrinæ eo vis efficacior erat, quod artæ sanctimonia religiosisque virtutibus confirmabatur. Quamobrem discipulos, quos multos et egregios imbuendos habuit. studio et exemplo non litteris modo atque scientiis, sed etiam sanctitate fecit insignes.
Ætate demum et laboribus fractus, gravi morbo correptus est. Quo cum amplius quinquaginta dies detentus esset, consuetum orandi morem Scripturasque interpretandi non intercepit: eo namque tempore Evangelium Joannis in popularium suorum usum anglice vertit. Cum autem in Ascensionis præludio instare sibi mortem persentiret, supremis Ecclesiæ Sacramentis muniri voluit: tum sodales amplexatus, atque humi super cilicio stratus, cum ilia verba ingeminaret, Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto, obdormivit in Domino. Ejus corpus, suavissimum, uti fertur, spirans odorem, sepultum est in monasterio Girvensi, ac postea Dunelmum cum sancti Cuthberti reliquiis translatum. Eum tamquam doctorem a Benedictinis aliisque religiosis familiis ac diœcesibus cultum, Leo decimus tertius Pontifex Maximus, ex Sacrorum Rituum Congregationis consulto, universalis Ecclesiæ doctorem declaravit, et festo ipsius die Missam et Officium de Doctoribus ab omnibus recitari decrevit.
Bede, a priest, was born at Jarrow, on the borders of England and Scotland. At the age of seven he was placed under the care of St Bennet Biscop, Abbot of Wearmouth, to be educated. He became a monk, and so ordered his life that, whilst devoting himself wholly to the pursuit of learning, he did in no way relax the discipline of his Order. There was no branch of learning in which he was not thoroughly versed, but his chief care was the study of the Holy Scriptures, and in order to understand them better, he learnt Greek and Hebrew. At the age of thirty he was ordained priest at the command of his Abbot, and, on the advice of Acca, bishop of Hexham, immediately undertook the work of expounding the Sacred Books. In his interpretations he adhered to the teachings of the holy Fathers so strictly that he advanced nothing which they had not taught, and even made use of their very words. He ever hated sloth, and by habitually passing from reading to prayer and from prayer to reading, he so maintained the fervour of his soul that he was often moved to tears while reading or teaching. He persistently refused the office of Abbot, lest his mind should be distracted by the cares of transitory things.
The name of Bede soon became so famous for learning and piety that Pope St Sergius thought of calling him to Rome so that he might help to solve the difficult questions which had then arisen concerning sacred things. He wrote many books to reform the lives of the faithful, and to defend and propagate the faith. By these he gained such a reputation in all parts that the holy Bishop Boniface, who was later martyred, called him a 'light of the Church.' Lanfranc styled him the * teacher of the English,' and the Council of Aix-la-Chapeile ‘the admirable Doctor.' But as his writings were publicly read in the churches during his lifetime, and as it was not yet allowable to call him ‘saint,' they named him the ‘Venerable,’ a title which has ever remained peculiarly his. The power of his teaching was the greater because it was confirmed by holiness of life and the observance of religious discipline. Hence his own earnestness and example made his disciples, who were many and distinguished, eminent not only in learning, but also in sanctity.
Worn out at length by age and labour, he was seized by a serious illness. Though his sufferings lasted more than seven weeks, he ceased not from his prayers and interpretation of the Scripture, for he was engaged in translating the Gospel of St John into English for the use of his people. But when, on the eve of the Ascension, he perceived that death was near, he asked for the last sacraments of the Church; then after he had embraced his companions and was laid on a piece of sackcloth on the ground, he repeated the words: 'Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,’ and fell asleep in the Lord. His body, which, as they say, gave forth a very sweet odour, was buried in the monastery of Jarrow, and afterwards translated to Durham with the relics of St Cuthbert. Bede, who was already venerated as a Doctor by the Benedictines and other religious Orders, was declared by Pope Leo XIII, after consultation with the Sacred Congregation of Rites, to be a Doctor of the universal Church, and the Mass and Office of Doctors was ordered to be said by all on his feast.
‘Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost’ is the hymn of eternity. Before the creation of the angels and of man, God, in the concert of the three divine Persons, sufficed for his own praise, and this praise was adequate, infinite and perfect, like the divinity. This was the only praise worthy of God. However magnificently the world may hymn its Creator in the thousand voices of nature, its praise is always below the divine Object. But, in the designs of God, creation was one day to send up to heaven an echo of that melody which is threefold and yet one, for the Word was to take flesh, through the operation of the Holy Ghost, in the womb of Mary, and was to be Son of Man as truly as he is Son of God. Then the canticle of creation fully and perfectly re-echoed the adorable harmonies once known only to the blessed Trinity. Since that day a man who has understanding finds his perfection in such conformity to the Son of Mary, that he may be one with the Son of God in the divine concert wherein God is glorified.
This, O Bede, was thy life, for understanding was given thee. It was fitting that thy last breath should be spent in that song of love which had filled thy mortal life, and that thus thou shouldst enter at once into a glorious and blessed eternity. May we profit by that supreme lesson, which sums up all the teaching of thy grand and simple life!
Glory be to the almighty and merciful Trinity! These words form the close of the cycle of the mysteries which terminate at this time in the glorification of the Father, our sovereign Lord, by the triumph of the Son our Redeemer, and the inauguration of the reign of the Holy Ghost, our sanctifier. How splendid were the triumph of the Son and the reign of the Holy Ghost in the Isle of Saints in the days when Albion, twice given by Rome to Christ, shone like a priceless jewel in the diadem of the Spouse! O thou who wast the teacher of the English in the days of their fidelity, do not disappoint the hopes of the supreme Pontiff who has in our days extended thy cult to the Universal Church; but rekindle in the hearts of thy countrymen their former love for the Mother of all mankind.
[1] Bede, Hist, Eccl. cap. ult.
From Dom Guéranger's The Liturgical Year.
THE palm of martyrdom was won by this holy Pope, not in a victory over a pagan persecutor, but in battling for the Church’s liberty against a Christian king. But this king was a heretic, and therefore an enemy of every Pontiff that was zealous for the triumph of the true faith. The state of Christ’s Vicar here on earth is a state of combat; and it frequently happens that a Pope is veritably a martyr, without having shed his blood. St John I, whom we honour to-day, was not slain by the sword; a loathsome dungeon was the instrument of his martyrdom; but there are many Popes who are now in heaven with him, martyrs like himself, who never even passed a day in prison or in chains: the Vatican was their Calvary. They conquered, yet fell in the struggle with so little appearance of victory, that heaven had to take up the defence of their reputation, as was the case with that angelic Pontiff of the eighteenth century, Clement XIII.
The Saint of to-day teaches us, by his conduct, what should be the sentiment of every worthy member of the Church. He teaches us that we should never make a compromise with heresy, nor approve the measures taken by worldly policy for securing what it calls the rights of heresy. If the past ages, aided by the religious indifference of Governments, have introduced the toleration of all religions, or even the principle that ‘all religions are to be treated alike by the state,’ let us, if we will, put up with this latitudinarianism, and be glad to see that the Church, in virtue of it, is guaranteed from legal persecution; but as Catholics, we can never look upon it as an absolute good. Whatever may be the circumstances in which Providence has placed us, we are bound to conform our views to the principles of our holy faith, and to the infallible teaching and practice of the Church—out of which, there is but contradiction, danger and infidelity.
The holy Liturgy thus extols the virtues and courage of our Saint:
Joannes Etruscus, Justino seniore Imperatore rexit Ecclesiam: ad quem profectus est Constantinopolim auxilii causa, quod Theodoricus rex hæreticus divexabat Italiam: cujus etiam iter Deus miraculis illustravit. Nam cum ei nobilis vir ad Corinthum equum, quo ejus uxor mansueto utebatur, itineris causa commodasset; factum est, ut domino postea remissus equus ita ferox evaderet, ut fremitu et totius corporis agitatione semper deinceps dominam expulerit: tamquam indignaretur mulierem recipere, ex quo sedisset in eo Jesu Christi vicarius. Quamobrem illi equum pontifici donaverunt. Sed illud majus miraculum, quod Constantinopoli in aditu portæ aureæ, inspectante frequentissimo populo, qui una cum Imperatore Pontifici honoris causa occurrerat, cæco lumen restituit. Ad cujus pedes prostratus etiam Imperator eum veneratus est. Rebus cum Imperatore compositis, in Italiam rediit, statimque epistolam scripsit ad omnes Italiæ episcopos, jubens eos Arianorum ecclesias ad Catholicum ritum consecrare, illud subjungens: Quia et nos quando fuimus Constantinopoli, tam pro religione Catholica, quam pro regis Theodorici causa, quascumque illis in partibus eorum ecclesias reperire potuimus, Catholicas eas consecravimus. Quod iniquissimo animo ferens Theodoricus, dolo accersitum Pontificem Ravennam in carcerem conjecit: ubi squalore inediaque afflictus, paucis diebus cessit e vita, cum sedisset annos duos, menses novem, dies quatuordecim: ordinatis eo tempore episcopis quindecim. Paulo post moritur Theodoricus: quem quidam eremita, ut scribit sanctus Gregorius, vidit inter Joannem Pontificem et Symmachum Patritium, quem idem occiderat, demergi in ignem Liparitanum, ut videlicet illi, quibus mortem attulerat, tamquam judices essent ejus interitus. Joannis corpus Ravenna Romam portatum est, et in Basilica sancti Petri sepultum.
John, by birth a Tuscan governed the Church during the reign of the Emperor Justin the Elder. He undertook a journey to Constantinople, in order to solicit the Emperor's protection against the heretical king Theodoric, who was persecuting the faithful of Italy. God honoured the Pontiff, during this journey, by several miracles. When about to visit Corinth, a certain nobleman lent him a horse, which he kept for his wife’s use, on account of its being so gentle. When the Pontiff afterwards returned, and gave the horse back to the nobleman, it was no longer a tame creature as before; but, as often as its mistress attempted to ride it, would snort and prance, and throw her from its back, as though it scorned to bear a woman's weight, after it had carried the Vicar of Christ. They therefore gave the horse to the Pontiff. But a greater miracle was that which happened at Constantinople. Near to the Golden Gate, and in the presence of an immense concourse of people, who had assembled there together with the Emperor to show honour to the Pontiff, he restored sight to a blind man. The Emperor also prostrated before him, out of a sentiment of veneration. Having arranged matters with the Emperor, he returned to Italy, and immediately addressed a letter to all its bishops, commanding them to consecrate the churches of the Arians, that they might be used for Catholic services. He added these words: 'For, when at Constantinople, for the interests of the Catholic religion and on account of king Theodoric, we consecrated all the Arian churches we could find in that country, and made them Catholic.' Theodoric was exceedingly angry at this; and, having craftily induced the Pontiff to come to Ravenna, put him in prison. There, from the filth of the place, and from starvation, he died in a few days. He reigned two years, nine months, and fourteen days; during which time he ordained fifteen bishops. Theodoric died soon after; and St Gregory relates that a certain hermit saw him plunged into a pit of fire at Lipari, in the presence of John the Pontiff, and the Patrician Symmachus, whom he had murdered: thus they whom he had put to death stood as judges condemning him to punishment. The body of St John was taken from Ravenna to Rome, and buried in the Basilica of Saint Peter.
Thy fair palm, O holy Pontiff, was the reward of proclaiming the spotless holiness of the Church of Christ. She is the glorious Church, as St Paul calls her, having neither spot nor wrinkle;[1] and, for that very reason she can never consent to yield to heresy any of the inheritance given her by her divine Lord. Nowadays, men form their calculations on the interests of this passing world, and are resolved to regulate society independently of the rights of the Son of God, from whom proceeds all social order, as well as all truth. They have deprived the Church of her external constitution and influence; and at the same time, they give encouragement to the sects that have rebelled against her. O holy Pontiff, teach us to realize what divine truth is, and how error can never create prescription against her rights. Then shall we submit to the unhappy necessities handed down to us by the fatal triumph of heresy, without accepting, as a sign of progress, the principle and law that ‘all religions are on an equality.’ In thy prison, brave martyr, thou didst proclaim the rights of the one only Church; preserve us, who are living during that revolt which was foretold by the Apostle,[2] from those cowardly compromises, dangerous prejudices, and culpable want of solid instruction, which are the ruin of so many souls; and may our last words, on leaving this world, be those that were taught us by our Jesus himself: Heavenly Father! Hallowed be thy Name! May thy Kingdom come!
[1] Eph. v 27.
[2] 2 Thess. ii 3.