Happy Saint Valentine's Day!!

 According to tradition, Saint Valentine risked his life to marry couples in a Christian way during times of persecution. He finally gave his life in martyrdom, which is the highest manifestation of love. The love of this holy priest for Jesus Christ and for defending the Sacrament of Marriage inspires us to elevate human love to the heights of divine love for which we were created. Christians should take advantage of this feast to recover the Christian sense of love and marriage in the light of Christ.

FEAST OF ALL SAINTS

This is the great celebration of those who share the triumph and glory of Christ for all eternity, for having been faithful to the Grace of God, striving to following the Divine Master closely, in many cases to the point of martyrdom.

This feast has its origins in the 4th century, when the number of martyrs of the Church became such that it was impossible to devote each day of the year to remember a single martyr. So, the Church chose to have one feast to honor all those who had reached Heaven, on a single day, once a year.

When on May 13, 610, Pope Boniface IV dedicated the Roman Pantheon to Christian worship, he consecrated the new temple to the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the martyrs. From then on, the Feast of All Saints was fixed on that date and would remain that way for many years, until Pope Gregory IV, in the 7th century, moved the celebration to the first day of the month of November. 

It is very likely that Pope Gregory's decision responded to the desire to counteract the pagan festival of “Samhain” or the Celtic New Year, which was celebrated on the night of October 31 and whose current equivalent is Halloween.

May these heroes and heroines of God intercede for us and help us achieve eternal happiness like them!

BLESSED HENRY SUSO (OR SUSSO)

Beatification date: In 1831 by Gregory XVI.

German mystic, he was born at Constance on March 21, probably 1295; he died at Ulm, January 25, 1366.

HIS LIFE

His father belonged to the noble family of Berg; his mother, a holy woman from whom he took his name, to a family of Sus (or Süs). When thirteen years of age, he entered the Dominican convent at Constance, where he made his preparatory, philosophical, and theological studies.

From 1324 to 1327 he took a supplementary course in theology in the Dominican studium generale at Cologne, where he sat at the feet of Johann Eckhart, "the Master", and probably at the side of Tauler, both celebrated mystics. Returning to Constance, he was appointed to the office of lector, from which he seems to have been removed some time between 1329 and 1334. In the latter year he began his apostolic career. About 1343 he was elected prior of a convent, probably at Diessenhofen. Five years later he was sent from Constance to Ulm where he remained until his death.

Suso's life as a mystic began in his eighteenth year, when giving up his careless habits of the five preceding years, he made himself "the Servant of the Eternal Wisdom", which he identified with the Divine essence and, in a concrete form, with the personal Eternal Wisdom made man. Henceforth, a burning love for the Eternal Wisdom dominated his thoughts and controlled his actions. He had frequent visions and ecstasies, practised severe austerities (which he prudently moderated in later years), and bore with rare patience corporal afflictions, bitter persecutions and grievous calumnies.

In the world he was esteemed as a preacher, and was heard in the cities and towns of Swabia, Switzerland, Alsace, and the Netherlands. His apostolate, however, was not with the masses, but rather with individuals of all classes who were drawn to him by his singularly attractive personality, and to whom he became a personal director in the spiritual life.

It has often been incorrectly said that he established among the Friends of God a society which he called the Brotherhood of the Eternal Wisdom. The so-called Rule of the Brotherhood of the Eternal Wisdom is but a free translation of a chapter of his "Horologium Sapientiae", and did not make its appearance until the fifteenth century.

HIS WRITINGS

The first writing from the pen of Suso was the "Büchlein der Wahrheit", which he issued while a student at Cologne. Its doctrine was unfavourably criticized in some circles — very probably on account of its author's close relations with Eckhart, who had just been called upon to explain or to reject certain propositions — but it was found to be entirely orthodox.

As in this, so in his other writings Suso, while betraying Eckhart's influence, always avoided the errors of "the Master". The book was really written in part against the pantheistic teachings of the Beghards, and against the libertine teachings of the Brethren of the Free Spirit. Father Denifle considers it the most difficult "little book" among the writings of the German mystics.

Whereas in this book Suso speaks as a contemplative and to the intellect, in his next, "Das Büchlein der ewigen Weisheit", published early in 1328, he is eminently practical and speaks out of the fullness of his heart to "simple men who still have imperfections to be put off". Bihlmeyer accepts Denifle's judgment that it is the "most beautiful fruit of German mysticism", and places it next to the "Homilies" of St. Bernard, and the "Imitation of Christ" by Thomas à Kempis. In the second half of the fourteenth and in the fifteenth century there was no more widely read meditation book in the German language.

In 1334, Suso translated this work into Latin, but in doing so added considerably to its contents, and made of it an almost entirely new book, to which he gave the name "Horologium Sapientiae". Even more elevating than the original, finished in language, rich in figure, rhythmic in movement, it became a favourite book in the cloisters at the close of the Middle Ages, not only in Germany, but also in the Netherlands, France, Italy, and England.

To the same period of Suso's literary activity may belong "Das Minnebüchlein" but its authenticity is doubtful.

After retiring to Ulm Suso wrote the story of his inner life ("Vita" or "Leben Seuses"), revised the "Büchlein der Wahrheit", and the "Büchlein der ewigen Weisheit", all of which, together with eleven of his letters (the "Briefbüchlein"), and a prologue, he formed into one book known as the "Exemplar Seuses".

Besides the above-mentioned writings we have also five sermons by Suso and a collection of twenty-eight of his letters (Grosses Briefbuch), which may be found in Bihlmeyer's edition.

Suso is called by Wackernagel and others a "Minnesinger in prose and in the spiritual order." The mutual love of God and man which is his principal theme gives warmth and colour to his style. He used the full and flexible Alamannian idiom with rare skill, and contributed much to the formation of good German prose, especially by giving new shades of meaning to words employed to describe inner sensations. His intellectual equipment was characteristic of the schoolmen of his age. In his doctrine there was never the least trace of an unorthodox tendency.

For centuries he exercised an influence upon spiritual writers. Among his readers and admirers were Thomas à Kempis and Bl. Peter Canisius.

By A.L. McMahon | Source: Santopedia.com

WE DON’T CONFUSE THE CREATOR WITH THE CREATURE

"But we, Catholics, never confuse the Creator with the creature. Their irrevocable distinction is a dogma of our faith. We know and teach and make available to the humblest learner of the Catechism that the actual cult of adoration, which is called latria, is for God alone; that the cult of the saints and the Virgin Mary is of veneration, and therefore has a different meaning and name. It is an offensive nonsense -repeated with monotonous stubbornness in Protestant propaganda- that we Catholics adore Mary as if she were God. No less offensive is to call us idolaters for the reverence we give to images: because it is an elementary truth that in them we reverence the person they represent, not the stone or the wood or the canvas; as when saluting the flag we do it for our country and not for the piece of cloth; as when kissing the portrait of our mother, we kiss our mother and not the cardboard". 

 ALFONSO JUNCO, historian and poet. 

Saint Bernadette

 Let us remember Saint Bernardette Soubirous (1879), the visionary of Our Lady in Lourdes-France, whose body has been preserved incorrupt by Our Lord until His Second Coming, for devotion of the faithful.

 Bernadette Soubirous was born in Lourdes (France) in 1844, being the daughter of extremely poor parents. On the day of her baptism they named her María Bernarda (name she would use later when she became a religious) but everyone called her Bernadette. 

 She was the eldest of several brothers. His parents lived in a damp and poor basement, and her father worked as a garbage man for the hospital. The girl was always very weak in health because of the lack of food, and the unfortunately poor state of the room where she lived. In her first years, she suffered from cholera disease that left her extremely weakened. Because of the terribly cold weather in winter, in that region, Bernadette also suffered from asthma since she was ten, which when compressing the bronchial tubes produces continuous drowning and shortness of breath.

This disease tormented her all her life. At the end of her existence she also suffered from tuberculosis. In her, the words of Our Lord were fulfilled: "Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, my Father will take away: and every one that beareth fruit, he will purge it (through sufferings), that it may bring forth more fruit” (Jn. 15:2). 

 In Bernadette, the words of Saint Paul were fulfilled: “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong." 

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EXAMPLES TO BE FOLLOWED

"We must know the life of the saints, to be able to correct our own life (...) and thus the fire of spiritual youth, which tends to be extinguished by tiredness, revives with the testimony and example of those who have preceded us."

Saint Gregory the Great

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The Reason for Saint Augustine's Conversion

Thou know'st the baseness of my soul

The Catholic Church remembers and venerates, on this day, all the Saints who are in Heaven

The purpose of this celebration is to thank God for the grace He has granted to His chosen ones and move us to imitate their virtues and to follow their example, or to implore Divine Mercy through the intercession of such powerful lawyers.

All who are in the presence of the Lord are holy. Some in the altars, others anonymous, but not less close to the heart of the Eternal Father.

The "Feast of All Saints" began to be celebrated in the East. It can be found in the West on different dates as early as the 8th century. The Roman Martyrology praises Pope Gregory IV (827 - 844) for having extended it to all Christendom; it seems, however, that Pope Gregory III (731-744) had preceded him in this decision.

On the other hand, in Rome, on May 13, the dedication of the Basilica of Santa Maria and all the martyrs was already celebrated; that is to say, the Pantheon, Temple of Agrippa, dedicated to all the gods of paganism, to which Pope Boniface IV had moved numerous bones from the catacombs. This explains why so many texts of today's Mass have been taken from the liturgy of the martyrs. Pope Gregory VII moved the anniversary of this feast to November 1.

The Church, which in the course of the year celebrates the feasts of its saints one by one, gathers them all today in a common celebration. In addition to those she can call by their names, she evokes in a great vision a whole countless crowd of Saints "of all nations, tribes, peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the lamb, clothed in white robes and with palms in hand ", who acclaim the one who with His Blood rescued them.

Condemnation to Anyone Who Tries to Change the Doctrine of Christ. Nobody Has Authority for That.

Those who do so seek to please men, not God. Such is the case of Modernists, who change and pervert the doctrine or authorize sacrilegious practices such as giving Communion to the divorced and remarried.

PRAYER OF SAINT BERNADETTE

Biography of His Holiness, Saint Pius X

But as we were approved by God that the gospel should 

be committed to us: even so we speak, not as pleasing 

men but God, who proveth our hearts. 1 Thess 2:4.

Saint Pius X, Pope (1835 – 1914)

Childhood

Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto was born 2nd June 1835, at the village of Riese, Province of Treviso, in Venice.

He was the oldest of eight children; his parents were Giovanni Battista Sarto and Margarita (née Sanson); the former, a postman, died in 1852 when he was 17, but Margarita lived to see her son a cardinal. They were a poor family. Their house at the centre of Riese had just eight rooms (four up and four down). The floors were earthen on the ground floor and rickety staircase led from the kitchen to the upstairs hall. The house is now and preserved in its original state with the original furniture and even  plates, cutlery and cooking utensils.

Guiseppe Sarto as a youth was a bright student and pious too. One of his pleasures when he had the time was to walk 2km to assist at Mass in his favourite church Santa Maria in Cendrolli in a neighbouring village. In order to save his shoes, for they were the only ones he possessed, he walked bare foot whenever he could. He tied his shoe laces together and hung his shoes around his neck.

After finishing his primary education, Giuseppe at first received private lessons in Latin from the arch-priest of his town, Don Tito Fusaroni, after which he studied for four years at the gymnasium of Castelfranco Veneto, walking to and fro every day.

Seminarian

Having being recognised as having a possible vocation, in 1850 at 15 years old he received the tonsure from the Bishop of Treviso, and was given a scholarship of the Diocese of Treviso in the seminary of Padua, where he finished his classical, philosophical, and theological studies with distinction. It is a credit to Don Tito Fusaroni that he was singled out and found a scholarship for Guiseppi Sarto, for his family were too poor to support him themselves and would not have dreamt of an honour so high for their son.

Priest

 

Guiseppi Sarto was ordained in 1858 at 23 years old, and was sent to a village called Tombolo as a curate. This was a difficult posting for the village was a poor one and the faith was dying among its inhabitants and what-is-more the parish priest was an invalid and required much care and attention. Father Sarto worked and prayed tirelessly. He was gifted in that he could survive on just four of sleep a night. The housekeeper for the parish priest reproached him on one occasion for leaving the oil lamp burning at night. She had seen it a 4 o’clock in the morning from the street. But Father Sarto was not sleeping at his time - he was already at his desk.

He not only performed the functions of the parish priest in Tombolo, he found time to study, seeking to perfect his knowledge of theology by assiduously studying Saint Thomas and canon law; and, at the same time he established a night school for adult students, and devoted himself to the ministry of preaching in other towns to which he was called.

In 1867, after his parish priest had signalled to the local bishop that Father Sarto had extraordinary talents and was wasted in a place like Tombolo, he was named arch-priest of Salzano, a large borough of the Diocese of Treviso. Here he restored the church, and provided for the enlargement and maintenance of the hospital by his own means, consistently with his habitual generosity to the poor; he especially distinguished himself by his abnegation during the cholera epidemic.

He also cared and provided much for the religious instruction of adults.

In 1878, on the death of Bishop Zanelli, he was elected vicar-capitular – which made him successor to the bishop.

Bishop

And then on 10th November, 1884, he was named Bishop of Mantua, then a very troublesome see, and was consecrated on 20th November.

His chief care in his new position was for the formation of the clergy at the seminary. “Love your seminary” was his motto among the faithful. In one year the number of seminarians rose from about 9 to 149. Bishop Sarto himself taught dogmatic theology for several years at the seminary. At the seminary he insisted that the doctrine and method of St. Thomas be followed, and to many of the poorer students he gave copies of the "Summa theologica". He also cultivated the Gregorian Chant among the seminarians.

The temporal administration of his see imposed great sacrifices upon Bishop Sarto. He visited every parish of his diocese and, despite his gentle disposition towards others, he insisted on strict discipline among his clergy ensuring that their spiritual lives were in order and that their duties to study be fulfilled.

It was not unknown for Bishop Sarto, when visiting the presbyteries of his diocese, to select moral theology textbooks from the libraries of his priests, blow the dust off them and then fix the trembling priest with an inquisitive glare.

By his attendance at the confessional, he gave the example of pastoral zeal. He never ceased to promote the catechism as the principal tool for Catholic education and encouraged the Catholic political movement "Opera dei Congressi".

Pope Pius X

 

On the death of Pope Leo XIII, the princes of the Church, the cardinals, entered into conclave. Mgr Merry de Val, the young sophisticated and brilliant diplomat was unexpectedly made Secretary of the Conclave and after the dramatic attempt to veto the liberal Cardinal Rampolla by the Emperor Franz-Joseph, and after several ballots Cardinal Giuseppe Sarto was elected on 4th August by a vote of 55 out of a possible 60 votes. He was under no illusions about the task that faced him so that when the Cardinal Dean asked Cardinal Sarto what name he would assume the answer was: “Since the Popes who have suffered most for the Church in this age have borne the name of Pius, I will to take this name.” His coronation took place on the following Sunday, 9 August, 1903.

The election of St. Pius X was a surprise to the world. He was not from the Roman Curia, he had no diplomatic experience, he was of humble origin, the son of a postman, and virtually unknown outside of Italy. He didn’t even speak French (imagine!). He was the first to ascend the throne of Peter having passed through every clerical rank from curate to pope. It was only after the official reception of the Diplomatic Corps, where the ambassadors of the nations of the world, were officially presented to the new pope that the wisdom of the conclave became apparent.

Pope St. Pius X ascended the Papal throne at a critical stage in Church history. The Church had lost the last of its Papal States in 1870 to the Italian Revolutionaries; the major secular powers of the world were controlled by the enemies of the Church; the morals of the age were in deplorable decline; and the Church herself was being corrupted from within by pernicious errors.

While Leo XIII had done much the to increase the prestige of the Church in the eyes of the world, and while he had made some reforms and encouraged a rekindling of the intellectual and spiritual life among Catholics, the situation was still near desperate.

Modernism

 

The biggest battle of all was one of ideas. While the Church possesses the integral truth, there have been times during the Church’s history where her children have veered away from the perennial doctrine of the Church. The error of his time and of our time is the most pernicious of all errors. It was not like Arianism, Pelagianism, or any of the heresies that denied some aspect of the Church’s doctrine in the preceding centuries. This heresy was a synthesis of all heresies, it challenged not one doctrine but everything together. The heresy was called Modernism.

Modernism destroys the order of man to God. God made man with an intellect, with a will and with passions. When man is ordered to God his passions are submitted to his will, his will is submitted to his intellect and his intellect is submitted to God. Modernism destroys this order, it consists of two elements:

The first element is to separate the intellect of man from God. This error is called Agnosticism and claims that whatever is unknowable by the direct experience of man cannot be the object of science. Revelation is discredited as is natural theology. In effect, it holds that it is folly to search for God using our intellects because God cannot be seen, touched or heard.

The second element is to submit the intellect and the will to the passions by holding that the supernatural virtue of faith, instead of being an infused virtue that moves the intellect to adhere to divinely revealed truth, is really a religious sentiment, a feeling, a movement of the passions resulting from the subconscious innate need of man for God. It is called Vital Immanence and not only does it deny the origins of faith, it denies the distinction between natural and supernatural because it claims that faith is natural to man.

In 1907, he caused the publication of the Decree Lamentabili (called also the Syllabus of Pius X), in which sixty-five propositions are condemned. The greater number of these propositions concern the Holy Scriptures, their inspiration, and the doctrine of Jesus and of the Apostles, while others relate to dogma, the sacraments, and the primacy of the Bishop of Rome.

Soon after that, on 8th September 1907, there appeared the famous EncyclicalPascendi, which expounds and condemns the system of Modernism. It points out the danger of Modernism in relation to philosophy, apologetics, exegesis, history, liturgy, and discipline, and shows the contradiction between that innovation and the ancient faith; and, finally, it establishes rules by which to combat efficiently the pernicious doctrines in question.

Among other measures (the Motu Proprio Sacrorum Antistitum on the regulation of teaching in ecclesiastical institutions, and the prescription of the anti-modernist oath [abandoned at the time of Vatican II - when it was most needed!]) Pope Pius X established a committee to censor books and to root out Modernism in the dioceses and especially in the seminaries.

It was a liberal age and the errors of modernism found ready adherents in the young seminarians. New and exciting ideas, the promise of freedom from the sound discipline of the past were causing many to adhere to Modernist ideas. Pius X was ruthless in weeding out these pernicious elements. The danger to the faith was so great that he encouraged those with responsibility to expel without scruple anyone who showed signs of sympathy towards Modernist ideas.

Catechism

 

In the Encyclical Acerbo nimis (15th April 1905) he treated of the necessity of catechismal instruction, not only for children, but also for adults, giving detailed rules, especially in relation to suitable schools for the religious instruction of students of the public schools, and even of the universities. He caused a new catechism to be published for the Diocese of Rome and subsequently the Catechism of Saint Pius X.

The catechism is the most efficient means of teaching the fundamental truths of the faith. While is might appear dry and uninteresting, if it is memorised it provides the Catholic with a starting point in meditation, discussion and defence of every aspect of the faith.

Canon Law

 

Another invaluable contribution Pope Pius X effected was the codification of Canon Law. Canon Law is the law of the Church. Just as every society needs laws to govern itself, the Church which is the perfect society, also needs laws. Until that time the system of Canon Law had evolved haphazardly on a regional basis. Every country, every diocese and every religious community had its own laws which overlapped; there was no unity within the Church. Pius X, therefore, on 19th March 1904, created a special congregation of cardinals, of which Mgr Gasparri, later a cardinal, became the secretary. The most eminent authorities on canon law, throughout the world, collaborated in the formation of the new code. He died before the completion of the project which terminated in the 1917 Code of  Canon Law published under Pope Benedict XV.

Death

Many say that the outbreak of war broke his heart. On 18th August he contracted fever and died on 20th August 1914.  Miracles were worked. In June, 1951, Pius XII beatified and on May 29, 1954, canonized this great Pope of the Eucharist.

 The inscription on his tomb, in St. Peter's reads: "Born poor and humble of heart, Undaunted champion of the Catholic faith, Zealous to restore all things in Christ, Crowned a holy life with a holy death."

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Source: http://fsspx.uk/en/news-events/news/st-pius-x-man-restore-all-things-christ-17539

666

Saint Bernard, Doctor of the Church, dixit:

On Anxiety by Saint Francis of Sales

Anxiety of mind is not so much an abstract temptation, as the source whence various temptations arise. Sadness, when defined, is the mental grief we feel because of our involuntary ailments;—whether the evil be exterior, such as poverty, sickness or contempt; or interior, such as ignorance, dryness, depression or temptation. Directly that the soul is conscious of some such trouble, it is downcast, and so trouble sets in. Then we at once begin to try to get rid of it, and find 316 means to shake it off; and so far rightly enough, for it is natural to us all to desire good, and shun that which we hold to be evil.

If anyone strives to be delivered from his troubles out of love of God, he will strive patiently, gently, humbly and calmly, looking for deliverance rather to God’s Goodness and Providence than to his own industry or efforts; but if self-love is the prevailing object he will grow hot and eager in seeking relief, as though all depended more upon himself than upon God. I do not say that the person thinks so, but he acts eagerly as though he did think it.

Then if he does not find what he wants at once, he becomes exceedingly impatient and troubled, which does not mend matters, but on the contrary makes them worse, and so he gets into an unreasonable state of anxiety and distress, till he begins to fancy that there is no cure for his trouble. Thus you see how a disturbance, which was right at the outset, begets anxiety, and anxiety goes on into an excessive distress, which is exceedingly dangerous.

This unresting anxiety is the greatest evil which can happen to the soul, sin only excepted. Just as internal commotions and seditions ruin a commonwealth, and make it incapable of resisting its foreign enemies, so if our heart be disturbed and anxious, it loses power to retain such graces as it 317 has, as well as strength to resist the temptations of the Evil One, who is all the more ready to fish (according to an old proverb) in troubled waters.

Anxiety arises from an unregulated desire to be delivered from any pressing evil, or to obtain some hoped-for good. Nevertheless nothing tends so greatly to enchance the one or retard the other as over-eagerness and anxiety. Birds that are captured in nets and snares become inextricably entangled therein, because they flutter and struggle so much. Therefore, whensoever you urgently desire to be delivered from any evil, or to attain some good thing, strive above all else to keep a calm, restful spirit,—steady your judgment and will, and then go quietly and easily after your object, taking all fitting means to attain thereto. By easily I do not mean carelessly, but without eagerness, disquietude or anxiety; otherwise, so far from bringing about what you wish, you will hinder it, and add more and more to your perplexities.

“My soul is alway in my hand, yet do I not forget Thy Law,” 186 David says. Examine yourself often, at least night and morning, as to whether your soul is “in your hand;” or whether it has been wrested thence by any passionate or anxious emotion. See 318 whether your soul is fully under control, or whether it has not in anywise escaped from beneath your hand, to plunge into some unruly love, hate, envy, lust, fear, vexation or joy. And if it has so strayed, before all else seek it out, and quietly bring it back to the Presence of God, once more placing all your hopes and affections under the direction of His Holy Will. Just as one who fears to lose some precious possession holds it tight in his hand, so, like King David, we ought to be able to say, “My soul is always in my hand, and therefore I have not forgotten Thy Law.”

Do not allow any wishes to disturb your mind under the pretext of their being trifling and unimportant; for if they gain the day, greater and weightier matters will find your heart more accessible to disturbance. When you are conscious that you are growing anxious, commend yourself and resolve steadfastly not to take any steps whatever to obtain the result you desire, until your disturbed state of mind is altogether quieted;—unless indeed it should be necessary to do something without delay, in which case you must restrain the rush of inclination, moderating it, as far as possible, so as to act rather from reason than impulse.

If you can lay your anxiety before your spiritual guide, or at least before some trusty and devout 319 friend, you may be sure that you will find great solace. The heart finds relief in telling its troubles to another, just as the body when suffering from persistent fever finds relief from bleeding. It is the best of remedies, and therefore it was that S. Louis counselled his son, “If thou hast any uneasiness lying heavy on thy heart, tell it forthwith to thy confessor, or to some other pious person, and the comfort he will give will enable thee to bear it easily.”

“Introduction to the Devout Life” by Saint Francis of Sales

Five paths of Repentance by Saint John Chrysostom

“Would you like me to list the paths of repentance? They are numerous and quite varied, and all lead to heaven.

A first path of repentance is the condemnation of your own sins: Be the first to admit your sins and you will be justified. For this reason, too, the prophet wrote: I said: I will accuse myself of my sins to the Lord, and you forgave the wickedness of my heart. Therefore, you too should condemn your own sins; that will be enough reason for the Lord to forgive you, for a man who condemns his own sins is slower to commit them again. Rouse your conscience to accuse you within your own house, lest it become your accuser before the judgment seat of the Lord.

CLICK HERE

That, then, is one very good path of repentance. Another and no less valuable one is to put out of our minds the harm done us by our enemies, in order to master our anger, and to forgive our fellow servants’ sins against us. Then our own sins against the Lord will be forgiven us. Thus you have another way to atone for sin: For if you forgive your debtors, your heavenly Father will forgive you.

Do you want to know of a third path? It consists of prayer that is fervent, careful and comes from the heart.

If you want to hear of a fourth, I will mention almsgiving, whose power is great and far-reaching. If, moreover, a man lives a modest, humble life, that, no less than the other things I have mentioned, takes sin away. Proof of this is the tax-collector who had no good deeds to mention, but offered his humility instead and was relieved of a heavy burden of sins.

Thus I have shown you five paths of repentance: condemnation of your sins, forgiveness of our neighbor’s sins against us, prayer, almsgiving and humility.

Do not be idle, then, but walk daily in all these paths; they are easy, and you cannot plead your poverty. For, though you live out your life amid great need, you can always set aside your wrath, be humble, pray diligently and condemn your own sins; poverty is no hindrance. Poverty is not an obstacle to our carrying out the Lord’s bidding, even when it comes to that path of repentance which involves giving money (almsgiving, I mean). The widow proved that when she put her two mites into the box!

Now that we have learned how to heal these wounds of ours, let us apply the cures. Then, when we have regained genuine health, we can approach the holy table with confidence, go gloriously to meet Christ, the king of glory, and attain the eternal blessings through the grace, mercy and kindness of Jesus Christ, our Lord.”

St. John Chrysostom, Homily on the tempting devil (2, 6: PG 49, 263-264).

NO ONE CAN BE PLEASING TO GOD AND TO GOD’S ENEMIES AT THE SAME TIME: Saint Gregory the Great

• “Amen I say to you that no prophet is accepted in his own country”: Our Lord Jesus Christ (Luke, 4:24).
• In giving in to the temptation of adapting Christ’s doctrine to “modern times”, seriously deforming the essence of the Gospel in the process, we are conforming to the world
• If the world hated Christ, it will also hate his true disciples.
• What Christ needs now are brave souls and not mediocre ones, souls that swim against the current and do not agree with the world.

“At that time Jesus said to his disciples: If the world hates you, know ye that it hath hated me before you. If you had been of the world, the world would love its own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember my word that I said to you: The servant is not greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they have kept my word, they will keep yours also.” (John, 15: 18-20).

You can reproduce this post provided you quote this site.

Source of information: Blog CATOLICIDAD http://www.catolicidad.com/2016/02/nadie-puede-ser-agradable-dios-y-sus.html Translated from Spanish by Fabiola Lozano.

THE TEMPTATION OF MERCY, by Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

You can reproduce this post provided you quote this site.

Source of information: Blog CATOLICIDAD http://www.catolicidad.com/2016/02/la-tentacion-de-la-misericordia-por-san.html . Translated from Spanish by: Fabiola Lozano.

SAINT PAUL’S REBUKE TO THE FIRST POPE IN ANTIOCH

The Pharisees, who had converted to Christianity and were of Jewish origin, argued that the Mosaic Law should be maintained (the Jewish law was a compendium of legal regulations that should not be confused with the Ten Commandments of God’s law, which summarize natural law). The Council of Jerusalem, headed by Saint Peter, determines that all gentiles converted to Christianity should not embrace the prescriptions of the Mosaic Law (however, they do have to adhere to the Commandments of God’s law, as these are of a natural law and were given by God Himself).

The aforementioned can be read in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 15: “And some coming down from Judea, taught the brethren: That except you be circumcised after the manner of Moses, you cannot be saved.” That is why the Council of Jerusalem took place. “But there arose some of the sect of the Pharisees that believed, saying: They must be circumcised, and be commanded to observe the law of Moses.” But Saint Peter refutes this opinion and determines the opposite with these words: “But by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, we believe to be saved, in like manner as they also.” In the same sense, James added: “I judge that they, who from among the Gentiles are converted to God, are not to be disquieted.”

As can be noted, the Council of Jerusalem defines that salvation comes from faith in Jesus Christ and not from the practice of the Jewish law that, as we have said earlier, should not be confused with God’s law established in the Ten Commandments, which must be observed to attain eternal salvation, for the Bible itself teaches that “Faith without work is dead” (James, chapter 2) (see note 1). Therefore, good deeds, in accordance with the natural law and summarized by divine revelation in the Ten Commandments, are necessary for Faith to be alive, and thus with the combination of faith and good deeds we can attain eternal salvation. However, the prescriptions of the Jewish Law are not necessary for salvation, as the Pharisees who had converted to Christianity erroneously argued. The first Council of the Church takes a stand against their opinion.

In the same vein of the Council of Jerusalem, Saint Paul says: “For I, through the law, am dead to the law, that I may live to God.” (Ga. 2:19). The Jewish law is a PREPARATION that leads to Jesus Christ, who is the end of the law. Thanks to that same law, we were freed from it by the death of Christ: His merits are applied to us by the Grace, as if we were nailed to the cross with Him and dead to that Jewish law.

Some time later, in Antioch, Saint Peter agrees, only IN PRACTICE, and maybe due to human prudence and in good faith, with the Judaizers (that is to say, those who advocated for keeping the Jewish law). This action contradicted what had been established by the Council of Jerusalem. In practice, he proceeded against the doctrine defined by the Church (included Saint Peter as a Pope).

As doctrine prevails over practice, Saint Paul, who was Saint Peter’s subordinate, withstood him to the face for not following the way and truth of the Gospel. Saint Peter admitted his mistake and agreed with Saint Paul, acting with great humility and accepting that an inferior could not only depart from an erred action of his superior but even rebuke him; that is to refute his error out of love for the truth of the Gospel.

Let us quote the most important things of this event, narrated by Saint Paul himself:

“But when Cephas (Saint Peter) was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed. For before that some came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them who were of the circumcision. And to his dissimulation the rest of the Jews consented, so that Barnabas also was led by them into that dissimulation. But when I saw that they walked not uprightly unto the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all: If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of the Gentiles, and not as the Jews do, how dost thou compel the Gentiles to live as do the Jews? We by nature are Jews, and not of the Gentiles sinners. But knowing that man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ; we also believe in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: because by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.” (Ga. 2: 11-16)

Saint Paul reminds to Saint Peter that Christians are justified by faith in Jesus Christ and not by acting in accordance with the prescriptions of the Jewish law, as defined by the Council of Jerusalem. It is evident that Saint Paul is talking about the Jewish law (and not about the Ten Commandments). The latter is withheld by some conniving Protestants, who also suppress Saint James’ biblical passage about the necessity of both, good works and faith to be saved, and not only of faith, as it is proposed by the Protestant heresy, which also dishonestly quotes the previous text as though it referred to the Ten Commandments. In this manner, they deceive by suppressing the texts that do not suit them, and interpreting the other ones outside of their historical context. That is why the incident in Antioch must be necessarily related to what was defined by the Council of Jerusalem. What Saint Paul demands is the observance of the doctrine as defined in the mentioned Council.

About this incident, Saint Thomas points out that Saint Paul’s confrontation was in regard to THE EXERCISE and not the authority of the power, and that Saint Peter was reprehensible due to his dissimulation and disordered fear, which led him to abandon the truth and follow the deceit of the faithful. He does not consider the cause of the rebuke to be something minor, but rather fair and convenient. If this had not been done, the knowledge of the truth of the Gospel would have been in danger, and had Gentiles been forced to keep the legal precepts of the Jewish law, this truth would have perished. Saint Thomas also notes that Saint Peter’s dissimulation constituted a danger to everyone and, for that reason, it was convenient for Saint Paul’s rebuke to be public and manifest.

For his part, Saint Augustine observes in his letter to Saint Jerome (letter LXXXII-CXVI-22) the following: “Paul, therefore, as a faithful steward doubtless is to be regarded as approving his fidelity in his writings; for he was a steward of truth, not of falsehood. Therefore, he wrote the truth when he wrote that he had seen Peter walking not uprightly, according to the truth of the gospel, and that he had withstood him to the face because he was compelling the Gentiles to live as the Jews did. And Peter himself received, with the holy and loving humility which became him, the rebuke which Paul, in the interests of truth, and with the boldness of love, administered. Therein Peter left to those that came after him an example, that, if at any time they deviated from the right path, they should not think it beneath them to accept correction from those who were their juniors,— an example more rare, and requiring greater piety, than that which Paul's conduct on the same occasion left us, that those who are younger should have courage even to withstand their seniors if the defense of evangelical truth required it, yet in such a way as to preserve unbroken brotherly love. For while it is better for one to succeed in perfectly keeping the right path, it is a thing much more worthy of admiration and praise to receive admonition meekly, than to admonish a transgressor boldly. On that occasion, therefore, Paul was to be praised for upright courage, Peter was to be praised for holy humility.”

Let us not forget that whenever a Pope, complying with all the requirements necessary, defines a doctrine regarding faith or morals, is indeed infallible. That is why pastoral matters are not infallible, but doctrines that have been defined by the Catholic Church are. If the former contradicts the latter, it should not be followed, as defined doctrine must always prevail.

Doctrine Prevails Over Practice

The main teaching about the incident in Antioch is the following: a doctrine that has been defined (which is the infallible and revealed truth) always prevails over acting against it, even if this was carried out by the most important person of the Church. The doctrine is superior to the practice.

Finally, let us not forget that Saint Paul (inferior to the Pope) confronts Saint Peter (first Pope), but always with due respect and as a SUBORDINATE. The fact that Saint Paul was right did not entitle him to confront without respect the head of the Church. He does it publicly and face to face because Saint Peter’s error was public, but always with respect and acting as his SUBJECT. Moreover, Saint Paul’s rebuke was not to defend a personal opinion of his, but in defense of the truth of the Gospel. In this way, Saint Paul’s example sets a precedent and is always worth following in similar cases.

Written by Oscar Méndez Casanueva

Note 1:

The Word of God teaches that: “FAITH without WORK is dead” (James, chapter 2), and asserts that the devils, that are eternally condemned, “believe and tremble”, for Faith is not enough to be saved, both are necessary; faith and good works are essential for salvation.

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Source of information: Blog CATOLICIDAD http://www.catolicidad.com/2009/07/la-reprension-de-san-pablo-al-primer_10.html Translated from Spanish by: Fabiola Lozano.