St. Peter Canisius
Feastday: December 21
b: 1521 d: 1597
In 1565, the Vatican was looking for a secret agent. It was shortly after the Council of Trent and the pope wanted to get the decrees of the Council to all the European bishops. What would be a simple errand in our day, was a dangerous assignment in the sixteenth century. The first envoy who tried to carry the decrees through territory of hostile Protestants and vicious thieves was robbed of the precious documents. Rome needed someone courageous but also someone above suspicion.
They chose Peter Canisius.
At 43 he was a well-known Jesuit who had founded colleges that even Protestants respected. They gave him a cover as official "visitor" of Jesuit foundations. But Peter couldn't hide the decrees like our modern fictional spies with their microfilmed messages in collar buttons or cans of shaving cream. Peter traveled from Rome and crisscrossed Germany successfully loaded down with the Tridentine tomes -- 250 pages each -- not to mention the three sacks of books he took along for his own university!
Why did the Vatican choose Peter Canisius for this delicate task?
Born in Holland in 1521, Peter had edited and written several volumes on Church history and theology, been a delegate to the Council of Trent, and reformed the German universities from heresy. Called to Vienna to reform their university, he couldn't win the people with preaching or fancy words spoken in his German accent. He won their hearts by ministering to the sick and dying during a plague. The people, the king, and the pope all wanted to make Peter bishop of Vienna, but Peter declined vigorously and administered the diocese for a year.
For many years during the Reformation, Peter saw the students in his universities swayed by the flashy speeches and the well-written arguments of the Protestants. Peter was not alone in wishing for a Catholic catechism that would present true Catholic beliefs undistorted by fanatics. Finally King Ferdinand himself ordered Peter and his companions to write a catechism. This hot potato got tossed from person to person until Peter and his friend Lejay were assigned to write it. Lejay was obviously the logical choice, being a better writer than Peter. So Peter relaxed and sat back to offer any help he could. When Father Lejay died, King Ferdinand would wait no longer. Peter said of writing: "I have never learned to be elegant as a writer, but I cannot remain dumb on that account." The first issue of the Catechism appeared in 1555 and was an immediate success. Peter approached Christian doctrine in two parts: wisdom -- including faith, hope, and charity -- and justice -- avoiding evil and doing good, linked by a section on sacraments.
Because of the success and the need, Peter quickly produced two more versions: a Shorter Catechism for middle school students which concentrated on helping this age group choose good over evil by concentrating on a different virtue each day of the week; and a Shortest Catechism for young children which included prayers for morning and evening, for mealtimes, and so forth to get them used to praying.
As intent as Peter was on keeping people true to the Catholic faith, he followed the Jesuit policy that harsh words should not be used, that those listening would see an example of charity in the way Catholics acted and preached. However, his companions were not always as willing. He showed great patience and insight with one man, Father Couvillon. Couvillon was so sharp and hostile that he was alienating his companions and students. Anyone who confronted him became the subject of abuse. It became obvious that Couvillon suffered from emotional illness. But Peter did not let that knowledge blind him to the fact that Couvillon was still a brilliant and talented man. Instead of asking Couvillon to resign he begged him to stay on as a teacher and then appointed him as his secretary. Peter thought that Couvillon needed to worry less about himself and pray more and work harder. He didn't coddle him but gave Couvillon blunt advice about his pride. Coming from Peter this seemed to help Couvillon. Peter consulted Couvillon often on business of the Province and asked him to translate Jesuit letters from India. Thanks to Peter , even though Couvillon continued to suffer depression for years, he also accomplished much good.
Peter died in December 21, 1597. He is known as the Second Apostle of Germany and was named a Doctor of the Church.
In His Footsteps
Peter believed in the importance in learning and understanding the Catholic faith. If it is available to you, resolve to read a portion of the new Catechism of the Catholic Church. Don't try to read too much but consider reading a page a day. Before we can spread our faith we must have a solid foundation in ourselves.
Prayer:
Saint Peter Canisius, you saw the good in even the most troublesome of people. You found their talents and used them. Help me to see beyond the behavior of others that may bother me to the gifts God has given them.
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Monday, July 11, 2005
St Benedict July 11
St Benedict July 11 (480 - 547)
Benedict was born at Nursia, in Umbria, and studied in Rome; but he was unable to stomach the dissolute life of the city, and he became a solitary hermit at Subiaco. His reputation spread, and some monks asked him to be their abbot, but they did not like the discipline he imposed and tried to poison him.
Benedict organised various small communities of monks and nuns in various places, including the great monastery of Monte Cassino. He drew up a set of rules to guide the communal life of monasteries, and, though not the first monastic rule ever, the Rule of St Benedict has proved so wise and balanced that it has served as the foundation of practically every attempt at communal living ever since.
It recognises that people aim at perfection but often fall well short of it, and aims to be a “rule for beginners” in which even the least perfect and least able can grow in spiritual stature. To visit a Benedictine monastery of almost any kind is to find oneself spending time among a group of people who, by their strivings to live and grow together, have become more and more themselves, as God intended them, instead of being crushed into false uniformity by some idealistic and authoritarian regime.
For those of us in the world, too, the Rule of St Benedict has much to say: it drags our eyes up to the stars but keeps our feet firmly on the ground; it calls us to perfection but keeps us sane
Benedict was born at Nursia, in Umbria, and studied in Rome; but he was unable to stomach the dissolute life of the city, and he became a solitary hermit at Subiaco. His reputation spread, and some monks asked him to be their abbot, but they did not like the discipline he imposed and tried to poison him.
Benedict organised various small communities of monks and nuns in various places, including the great monastery of Monte Cassino. He drew up a set of rules to guide the communal life of monasteries, and, though not the first monastic rule ever, the Rule of St Benedict has proved so wise and balanced that it has served as the foundation of practically every attempt at communal living ever since.
It recognises that people aim at perfection but often fall well short of it, and aims to be a “rule for beginners” in which even the least perfect and least able can grow in spiritual stature. To visit a Benedictine monastery of almost any kind is to find oneself spending time among a group of people who, by their strivings to live and grow together, have become more and more themselves, as God intended them, instead of being crushed into false uniformity by some idealistic and authoritarian regime.
For those of us in the world, too, the Rule of St Benedict has much to say: it drags our eyes up to the stars but keeps our feet firmly on the ground; it calls us to perfection but keeps us sane
Saturday, July 09, 2005
FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT ; JOIN IN
Canonical hours:
Are ancient divisions of time (also called "offices"), developed by the Christian Church, serving as increments between prayers.
In the book of Acts, Peter and John visit the temple for the afternoon prayers. Psalm 119:164 states: "Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws."
This practice is believed to have been passed down through the centuries from the Apostles. In 525, St. Benedict wrote the first official manual for praying the Hours, and the Vatican wrote the first official breviary in the 11th century.
Already well-established by the ninth century, these canonical offices consisted of eight daily prayer events and three (or four) nightly divisions (called "nocturnes", "watches," or "vigils"). Building on the recitation of psalms and canticles from Scripture, the Church has added (and, at times subtracted) hymns, hagiographical readings, and other prayers.
The daily events were:
(at dawn) Matins ("MATT'-inz") called "Orthros" in Eastern Churches
(at dawn) Lauds ("lawds") later separate from Matins in the West; aka "Morning Prayer" or "The Praises."
(at ~6 AM) Prime (the "first hour")
(at ~9 AM) Terce (the "third hour")
(at Noon) Sext (the "sixth hour")
(at ~3 PM) Nones (the "ninth hour")
(at sunset) Vespers (aka "Evensong" or "Evening Prayer")
(at bedtime) Compline ("COMP'-lin", aka "Night Prayer")
Catholic usage in the Roman Rite following the Second Vatican Council
Following the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church's Roman Rite simplified the observance of the canonical hours and sought to make them more accessible to the laity, hoping to restore their character as the prayer of the entire Church.
The office of Prime was abolished, and the character of Matins changed so that it could be used at any time of the day as an office of Scriptural and hagiographical readings. Furthermore, the period over which the entire Psalter is recited has been expanded from one week to four.
Formerly referred to popularly as "The Divine Office", and published in four volumes according to the meteorological seasons "Spring", "Summer", "Fall", and "Winter", the Church now publishes the related liturgical books under the title "The Liturgy of the Hours", and issues them in four volumes according to the liturgical season: "Advent and Christmas", "Lent and Easter", "Ordinary Time Vol. I", "Ordinary Time Vol. II".
Current Catholic usage focuses on two major hours and from three to five minor hours:
Morning prayer (Lauds)
Evening prayer (Vespers)
the Office of Readings (formerly Matins)
Daytime prayer, which can be one or all of
Midmorning prayer (Terce)
Midday prayer (Sext)
Midafternoon prayer (None)
Night Prayer (Compline)
The major hours
The major hours consist of Morning and Evening Prayer (or Vespers). The character of Morning Prayer is that of praise; of Evening Prayer, that of thanksgiving. Both follow the same format:
a hymn, composed by the Church
two psalms, or one long psalm divided into two parts, and a scriptural canticle (taken from the Old Testament in the morning and the New Testament in the evening)
a short passage from scripture
a responsory, typically a verse of scripture, but sometimes liturgical poetry
a canticle taken from the Gospel of Luke: the Canticle of Zechariah (Benedictus) for morning prayer, and the Canticle of Mary (Magnificat) for evening prayer
intercessions, composed by the Church
the Our Father
the concluding prayer, composed by the Church
The minor hours
The daytime hours follow a simpler format:
a hymn
three short psalms, or, three pieces of longer psalms; in the daytime hours it is usual to begin one part of the longest psalm, psalm 119
a very short passage of scripture, followed by a responsorial verse
the concluding prayer
The office of readings expands on the format of the daytime hours:
a hymn
one or two long psalms divided into three parts
a long passage from scripture, usually arranged so that in any one week, all the readings come from the same text
a long hagiographical passage, such as an account of a saint's martyrdom, or a theological treatise commenting on some aspect of the scriptural reading, or a passage from the documents of the Second Vatican Council
on nights preceding Sundays and feast days, the office may be expanded to a vigil by inserting three Old Testament canticles and a reading from the gospels
the hymn Te Deum (on Sundays and feast days)
the concluding prayer
Night prayer has the character of preparing the soul for its passage to eternal life:
a hymn
a psalm, or two short psalms, or simply Psalm 91
a short reading from scripture
the responsory In manus tuas, Domine (Into Your Hands, O Lord)
the Canticle of Simeon, Nunc dimittis, from the Gospel of Luke, framed by the antiphon Protect us, Lord
a concluding prayer
a hymn to Mary, the mother of Jesus
In each office, the psalms and canticle are framed by antiphons, and each concludes with the traditional Catholic doxology.
Liturgical variation
In addition to the basic four-week cycle of prayers for each of the canonical hours, the Church also provides an alternate collection of hymns, readings, psalms, canticles and antiphons, for use in marking specific dates on the Roman Calendar, which sets out the order of celebrations for the liturgical year. These alternate selections are found in the 'Proper of Seasons' (selections for Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter), and the 'Proper of Saints' (selections for feast days of the Saints). A breviary is generally keyed to help the user navigate these overlays in the liturgy.
Are ancient divisions of time (also called "offices"), developed by the Christian Church, serving as increments between prayers.
In the book of Acts, Peter and John visit the temple for the afternoon prayers. Psalm 119:164 states: "Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws."
This practice is believed to have been passed down through the centuries from the Apostles. In 525, St. Benedict wrote the first official manual for praying the Hours, and the Vatican wrote the first official breviary in the 11th century.
Already well-established by the ninth century, these canonical offices consisted of eight daily prayer events and three (or four) nightly divisions (called "nocturnes", "watches," or "vigils"). Building on the recitation of psalms and canticles from Scripture, the Church has added (and, at times subtracted) hymns, hagiographical readings, and other prayers.
The daily events were:
(at dawn) Matins ("MATT'-inz") called "Orthros" in Eastern Churches
(at dawn) Lauds ("lawds") later separate from Matins in the West; aka "Morning Prayer" or "The Praises."
(at ~6 AM) Prime (the "first hour")
(at ~9 AM) Terce (the "third hour")
(at Noon) Sext (the "sixth hour")
(at ~3 PM) Nones (the "ninth hour")
(at sunset) Vespers (aka "Evensong" or "Evening Prayer")
(at bedtime) Compline ("COMP'-lin", aka "Night Prayer")
Catholic usage in the Roman Rite following the Second Vatican Council
Following the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church's Roman Rite simplified the observance of the canonical hours and sought to make them more accessible to the laity, hoping to restore their character as the prayer of the entire Church.
The office of Prime was abolished, and the character of Matins changed so that it could be used at any time of the day as an office of Scriptural and hagiographical readings. Furthermore, the period over which the entire Psalter is recited has been expanded from one week to four.
Formerly referred to popularly as "The Divine Office", and published in four volumes according to the meteorological seasons "Spring", "Summer", "Fall", and "Winter", the Church now publishes the related liturgical books under the title "The Liturgy of the Hours", and issues them in four volumes according to the liturgical season: "Advent and Christmas", "Lent and Easter", "Ordinary Time Vol. I", "Ordinary Time Vol. II".
Current Catholic usage focuses on two major hours and from three to five minor hours:
Morning prayer (Lauds)
Evening prayer (Vespers)
the Office of Readings (formerly Matins)
Daytime prayer, which can be one or all of
Midmorning prayer (Terce)
Midday prayer (Sext)
Midafternoon prayer (None)
Night Prayer (Compline)
The major hours
The major hours consist of Morning and Evening Prayer (or Vespers). The character of Morning Prayer is that of praise; of Evening Prayer, that of thanksgiving. Both follow the same format:
a hymn, composed by the Church
two psalms, or one long psalm divided into two parts, and a scriptural canticle (taken from the Old Testament in the morning and the New Testament in the evening)
a short passage from scripture
a responsory, typically a verse of scripture, but sometimes liturgical poetry
a canticle taken from the Gospel of Luke: the Canticle of Zechariah (Benedictus) for morning prayer, and the Canticle of Mary (Magnificat) for evening prayer
intercessions, composed by the Church
the Our Father
the concluding prayer, composed by the Church
The minor hours
The daytime hours follow a simpler format:
a hymn
three short psalms, or, three pieces of longer psalms; in the daytime hours it is usual to begin one part of the longest psalm, psalm 119
a very short passage of scripture, followed by a responsorial verse
the concluding prayer
The office of readings expands on the format of the daytime hours:
a hymn
one or two long psalms divided into three parts
a long passage from scripture, usually arranged so that in any one week, all the readings come from the same text
a long hagiographical passage, such as an account of a saint's martyrdom, or a theological treatise commenting on some aspect of the scriptural reading, or a passage from the documents of the Second Vatican Council
on nights preceding Sundays and feast days, the office may be expanded to a vigil by inserting three Old Testament canticles and a reading from the gospels
the hymn Te Deum (on Sundays and feast days)
the concluding prayer
Night prayer has the character of preparing the soul for its passage to eternal life:
a hymn
a psalm, or two short psalms, or simply Psalm 91
a short reading from scripture
the responsory In manus tuas, Domine (Into Your Hands, O Lord)
the Canticle of Simeon, Nunc dimittis, from the Gospel of Luke, framed by the antiphon Protect us, Lord
a concluding prayer
a hymn to Mary, the mother of Jesus
In each office, the psalms and canticle are framed by antiphons, and each concludes with the traditional Catholic doxology.
Liturgical variation
In addition to the basic four-week cycle of prayers for each of the canonical hours, the Church also provides an alternate collection of hymns, readings, psalms, canticles and antiphons, for use in marking specific dates on the Roman Calendar, which sets out the order of celebrations for the liturgical year. These alternate selections are found in the 'Proper of Seasons' (selections for Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter), and the 'Proper of Saints' (selections for feast days of the Saints). A breviary is generally keyed to help the user navigate these overlays in the liturgy.
Thursday, June 09, 2005
Bl. Franciscan Martyrs of China-Feastday: June 5 1900
Bl. Franciscan Martyrs of China-Feastday: June 5 1900
Twenty-nine Franciscans and Franciscan tertiaries who became victims of the Boxer Rebellion.
They represent more than 100,000 Christians of China who were martyred in the reign of Empress Tz’u hsi.
These martyrs are recorded as being slain in the palace of the viceroy of Taiyuan-fu of Xian-fu Province.
The martyrs are: Bishop Gregory Grassie, Bishop Francis Fognolla, Father Elias Facchini, Father Theodore Balat, Father Franco Benedictine hermit. He was born in Castel Regni, in Abruzzi, Italy. Entering the Benedictine monastery at Colimento, he lived as a hermit there for twenty years. He spent the last decade and a half of his life at Asserigo.
Twenty-nine Franciscans and Franciscan tertiaries who became victims of the Boxer Rebellion.
They represent more than 100,000 Christians of China who were martyred in the reign of Empress Tz’u hsi.
These martyrs are recorded as being slain in the palace of the viceroy of Taiyuan-fu of Xian-fu Province.
The martyrs are: Bishop Gregory Grassie, Bishop Francis Fognolla, Father Elias Facchini, Father Theodore Balat, Father Franco Benedictine hermit. He was born in Castel Regni, in Abruzzi, Italy. Entering the Benedictine monastery at Colimento, he lived as a hermit there for twenty years. He spent the last decade and a half of his life at Asserigo.
Sunday, May 29, 2005
Sunday, January 30, 2005
Most Important Issue Today is Christian Unity
The most important issue facing the western world and especially all English speaking Christians is Christian unity. Pope John XXIII and Pope Paul VI brought about drastic changes in The Church to facilitate the unity of all people, especially Christians. As history has been our teacher in the filed of education it has also been the teacher of the religious in The Church. The lack of Christian unity has been a horrid mistake and has caused much unnecessary suffering. We must unify now or pay a even greater price. Perhaps the destruction of the western world as we know it.
The leaders of the west should not be worried about bringing democracy to the middle east- democracy is not going to save them or us. What the leaders of the west should be doing is trying to bring about Christian unity. That all Christians should speak with one voice and that one voice is the voice of The Pope and The Catholic Church.. There can be no other. Followers of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I or Martin Luther have no basis for their belief- Martin Henry or Elizabeth cannot save them or us.
The leaders of the west should not be worried about bringing democracy to the middle east- democracy is not going to save them or us. What the leaders of the west should be doing is trying to bring about Christian unity. That all Christians should speak with one voice and that one voice is the voice of The Pope and The Catholic Church.. There can be no other. Followers of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I or Martin Luther have no basis for their belief- Martin Henry or Elizabeth cannot save them or us.
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