CATHOLIC NEWS WORLD: TUES. APRIL 19, 2011: HEADLINES-
VATICAN: POPE: TELEGRAM FOR DEATH OF CARDINAL SALDARINI OF TURIN
AFRICA: SIERRA LEONE: 50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE
AMERICA: USA: CARDINAL WUERL CALLS FOR ACCEPTANCE OF REVELATION
EUROPE: ITALY: DOCUMENTARY ON MARTYRS FROM 3RD CENTURY
ASIA: KOREA SEMINARY EXCHANGE PROGRAM
AUSTRALIA: CHRISM MASS WITH BISHOP POWER
TODAY'S SAINT: APR. 19: ST. LEO IX
AUSTRALIA: CHRISM MASS WITH BISHOP POWER
TODAY'S GOSPEL: APR. 19: JOHN 13: 21- 38
2011
TELEGRAM ON THE DEATH OF CARDINAL SALDARINIVATICAN CITY, 19 APR 2011 (VIS REPORT) - The Pope sent the following telegram of condolence to Archbishop Cesare Nosiglia of Turin, Italy on the death yesterday at the age of 86 of Cardinal Giovanni Saldarini, Archbishop Emeritus of that diocese.(IMAGE SOURCE: RADIO VATICANA)
"It is with sorrow that I have received the news of the death of Cardinal Giovanni Saldarini, after a long illness lived with faithful abandon to the Lord. I desire to express to Your Excellency and to the entire diocesan community, as well as to the family of the lamented cardinal, that I participate deeply in their grief, thinking affectionately of this dear brother who has generously served the Gospel and the Church. I recall with gratitude his intense pastoral work extended first as a fervid priest and auxiliary bishop of Milan and then as an attentive and amiable archbishop of Turin. I offer fervent prayers to the Lord so that He might welcome him into His peace. To all those who are mourning his death I cordially impart the comfort of apostolic blessing, with particular thoughts for those who have lovingly cared for him in these last years of his illness."
TGR/
TWO CARDINALS TAKE POSSESSION OF THEIR TITULAR CHURCHES
VATICAN CITY, 19 APR 2011 (VIS) - Today, the Office of Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff announced that:
- Friday 29 April, at 6:00pm, Cardinal Kazimierz Nycz, archbishop of Warsaw, will take possession of the title of Sts. Sylvester and Martin of Tours at Via del Monte Oppio 28, Rome.
- Friday 29 April, at 7:00pm, Cardinal Jose Manuel Estepa Llaurens, archbishop military ordinary emeritus of Spain, will take possession of the title of Saint Gabriel the Archangel all'Acqua Traversa at Viale Cortina d'Ampezzo 144, Rome.
AFRICA: SIERRA LEONE: 50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE
It was thanks to the network of contacts among the different ethnic groups with the British authorities that the network of relationships was established which form the living fabric of the modern state. It all began with some leaders in the north of the country, who asked the colonial Power to mediate the conflicts and to resolve difficult disputes. Peace treaties and agreements with the British thus became the platform of the future nation. On August 24, 1895 these territories were joined to the territory of the Colony to become in 1961, the modern State of Sierra Leone.
To celebrate this Independence means first of all to recognize that a path , that of the unification of many parts into a single unit was made. Secondly, to recognize a nation able to decide their own fate. Finally, to have common values to be believed in.
It does not mean however that they have reached their goal or perfection, but they need to make - every day - coherent choices that lead them to a better life. If, on the street, they can seek help from others, the basic choices will only be theirs (Sierra Leoneans). They cannot expect to change their lives (to improve it) if not through self-determination and an ongoing commitment for themselves.
From what I hear - as well as the official organization that has provided a budget of several million for the various celebrations – there is a spreading sense of dissatisfaction with the difficult economic situation which is across the country. This painful situation still hurts too much. The cost of food is too high and wages are poor, education is at a low level and the country's destiny is uncertain and insecure. It is true that many things have improved in recent years, especially after the terrible civil war, but a few - through the ongoing debate in the national media - say that this party cannot be celebrated, because in 1961, so some interventions state, it was perhaps better and people today are still not able to do things for themselves. Some critics also go to the rulers, who often solve family problems better than national problems.
I believe that the country is not helped with too much negative criticism, even if the common feeling is important at a time like this. The possibilities of the country and the human and natural resources are certainly vast. Sierra Leone must find a way to invest in these securities and, with optimism and good will, fight for a better Nation. Today it needs heroes and positive role models that lead people to safe shores, with the blessing of the Lord. The Christian Churches have given a good boost of preparation and valuable staff, in many sectors, for this essential growth. We hope that the occasion of the celebrations of the 50th year is the beginning of this real process. Happy Birthday Sierra Leone!
AMERICA: USA: CARDINAL WUERL CALLS FOR ACCEPTANCE OF REVELATION
- Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl, chairman of the U.S. bishops' doctrine committee, reaffirmed the role of bishops as teachers of the faith in an April 18 statement on the work of a controversial feminist theologian. He explained that theologians must accept divine revelation, which is not open to revision.
“In continuing the mission of Christ the Teacher,” Cardinal Wuerl explained, “the bishops in union with the Pope are therefore ministers of a free and wonderful gift of God – the assurance that we adhere to the true faith.” The possession of this truth, he said, is so valuable that “the believer … would be willing to die rather than deny it.”
The cardinal's statement came in response to concerns that some members of the Catholic Theological Society of America raised in an April 8 statement defending the work of Sister Elizabeth Johnson. On March 24, the U.S. bishops' doctrine committee came out with a document stating that her book “Quest for the Living God” did not accurately present or interpret Catholic teaching in key areas.
Members of the theological society cited a 1989 document entitled “Doctrinal Responsibilities,” which suggests that bishops and theologians should resolve their differences through private discussions. But Cardinal Wuerl noted that the document, which addresses disagreements at the local level, clearly affirms the bishops' right to make doctrinal judgments.
“Theologians also acknowledge,” he pointed out, quoting from the text of the document, “that it is the role of bishops, as authoritative teachers in the Church, to make pastoral judgments about the soundness of theological teaching, so that the integrity of Catholic doctrine and the unity of the faith community may be preserved.”
But the cardinal also said that the disagreement between the doctrine committee and Sr. Johnson was not simply a matter of legitimate authority. He explained that both bishops and theologians are, in different ways, servants of God and his revelation to the Church.
“It is the privilege of theologians to delve more profoundly and systematically into the meaning of the faith, according to the ancient adage 'faith seeking understanding.' Since this faith is handed on by the Church through the ministry of the magisterium, the bishop and the theologian have a special relationship that can and should be mutually enriching.”
When this relationship functions well, “bishops benefit from the work of theologians, while theologians gain a deeper understanding of revelation under the guidance of the magisterium … The Church's teaching office, when grasped in the context of faith is a great assistance to the scholarly research of theologians, since its judgments are determinative of good theology.”
But the relationship between bishops and theologians can also break down, tempting theologians to disregard the boundaries set by the magisterium.
“When a theologian does not understand his or her role within the communion of the Church – the role of a servant, like that of the bishop, to the truth – he or she risks usurping the bishop's central role of leading people to salvation.”
“Isolated from the community of faith, the theologian seriously endangers the faithful by proposing 'a different gospel,' which is no longer salvific.”
Cardinal Wuerl explained that the bishops had the good of the faithful in mind, especially young people, when they decided to publish their critique of “Quest for the Living God.”
“The book in question is an already published work, not primarily directed to professional theologians for theological speculation, but rather one used as a teaching instrument of undergraduate students – many of whom are looking for grounding in their Catholic faith.”
He also acknowledged the “generally recognized catechetical deficiencies of past decades, beginning with the 1970s,” which had given rise to “a generation or more of Catholics, including young adults today, who have little solid intellectual formation in their faith.”
“It is in this context that books used in religious studies and theology courses at Catholic colleges and universities must be seen as de facto catechetical and formational texts,” Cardinal Wuerl stated.
“While many of these texts can be quite helpful in presenting the faith and teaching of the Catholic Church, there are others that cause confusion and raise doubt among students. Some texts can even be understood as offering an alternative pastoral and spiritual guidance to students, in contrast to the teaching magisterium.”
“In light of this changed academic situation, special attention must now be given as to how to address theological works that are aimed at students and yet do not meet criteria for authentic Catholic teaching.”
Cardinal Wuerl also responded to Sr. Johnson's own objections to the doctrine committee's statement. She said on March 30 that she “would have been glad to enter into conversation to clarify critical points” in her 2007 book, “but was never invited to do so.”
But the cardinal stated that the time for such discussions had already passed.
“Once a theological work is published … it is, by that very fact, open to response,” he observed. “The initiation of dialogue by an author is not only welcome but recommended, before the work is published and the bishop may be constrained to make a public appraisal of it.”
EUROPE: ITALY: DOCUMENTARY ON MARTYRS FROM 3RD CENTURY
- Two skeletons attributed to two married martyrs from the third century could be authentic, say researchers taking part in a new National Geographic Society documentary.
“All of the evidence we have gathered points toward the relics having belonged to Chrysanthus and Daria,” said investigation leader Ezio Fulcheri of the University of Genoa. “This has been a very rare opportunity to be able to study bones and other relics that relate directly back to a legend that has been passed on for almost 2,000 years. The completeness of the skeletons is also rare for martyrs of this era, implying that these relics were protected and venerated in their entirety at a very early point in history.”
The remains of the saints, martyred around 283 A.D. for spreading Christianity, are said to have been interred in the crypt of the cathedral in the northern Italian city of Reggio Emilia since the 10th century.
A 2008 renovation at the cathedral caused the dismantling of the altar which had been undisturbed since 1651. The remains, nearly 150 bones, underwent tests dating them to between 80 and 340 A.D.
Fulcheri led a team of scientists who considered the authenticity of the relics. Their investigations are the subject of the National Geographic Channel documentary “EXPLORER: Mystery of the Murdered Saints,” which airs on April 19 at 10 p.m. Eastern time.
Max Salomon, senior producer and series writer for EXPLORER, spoke about the documentary with CNA on April 18.
He thought the investigation was one of the first times that the Catholic Church has done a full investigation into a pair of saints dating from their period.
“This is the first time that we can really test the authenticity of what is believed to be the body of a saint. For us, it was really a privilege to have a seat at that table and see its risks,” he said.
Salomon noted that it’s risky for a Church to ask “hard scientific questions” about reputed relics that have been in its possession for perhaps 1,000 years.
“There’s a very good chance when you’re dealing with relics that the relics aren’t real,” he said, noting that the “huge” public interest in relics in the Middle Ages generated a black market for forgeries and false relics.
Auxiliary Bishop Lorenzo Ghizzoni of Reggio Emilia, Italy acknowledged this risk.
“We might discover that these relics are fake. That would be a huge problem for us,” the bishop said in the documentary. “If we find out we have bones like that, then we have to throw them out, destroy them. That would certainly be a scandal for the faithful.”
Salomon said he was impressed that Church leaders intended to remove the relics if the tests did not support their authenticity.
The intersection of faith and science is “always a complicated one,” he explained, because their answers haven’t always been in agreement. He thought the research on the saints’ remains was an opportunity for faith and science to intersect in a different way.
“In a sense, it’s a very modern thing for the Church to do, to embrace science and take on the risks of asking scientific questions,” he remarked.
The presence of two complete bodies presented “a huge opportunity for science” to determine the relics’ possible authenticity, Salomon explained. Often, relics leave “very little to work with” because there is too little material for a dating method like a Carbon 14 test.
The lives of Sts. Chrysanthus and Daria present an inspiring story.
Tradition holds that Chrysanthus was the only son of a Roman senator from Alexandria. He grew up in Rome and converted to Christianity. His father disapproved of his conversion and arranged a marriage between his son and a high priestess named Daria to try to bring him back to the Roman religion.
However, Daria embraced her husband’s religion and worked with him to convert thousands more to Christianity.
Roman authorities arrested the two for proselytizing and buried them alive in a sand mine in Rome around 283 A.D. While a wall was erected around the burial site to protect the grave, their remains were moved numerous times between 757 and 946, when the Diocese of Reggio Emilia entombed them beneath the cathedral altar.
ASIA: KOREA SEMINARY EXCHANGE PROGRAM
A seminarian exchange program between the Japanese and Korean Churches has produced its first Korean priest in Oita diocese in Japan.
Father John Choi Jae-kyeong of Daejeon diocese in South Korea begins his pastoral ministry as an assistant priest at Miyazaki Church today.
He was ordained at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Oita City on March 21.
Father Choi went to Japan as a seminarian in June, 2007 after Daejeon diocese agreed to send seminarians to Oita diocese earlier the same year.
The program came about at the request of Oita diocese during the annual Korean-Japanese bishops’ exchange meetings. The diocese has had a shortage of priests for several years.
“I had difficulty in adjusting to the culture, because Japanese people are unfamiliar with Catholicism as most people follow Shintoism in Japan,” Fr. Choi said.
Nevertheless, he said, “Japanese children have a lot of opportunities to meet Catholics because there are many Catholic schools in Oita now.”
Also, “I would like to initiate a Japanese and Korean youth exchange program,” he said.
Father Choi entered the Catholic University of Daejeon in 2000. After being sent to Oita diocese in 2007, he studied theology at Japan Catholic Seminary Fukuoka Campus from April 2008, and was ordained a deacon in March 2010.
The number of Catholics at the Miyazaki Church number around 1,100 and the total number of Korean priests in Japan is about 10, Father Choi says.
http://www.ucanews.com/2011/04/19/joint-program-produces-first-priest/
AUSTRALIA: CHRISM MASS WITH BISHOP POWER
CATH NEWS REPORT- Bishop Pat Power was the principal celebrant at the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn's Chrism Mass this week, in recognition of his 25th anniversary of ordination as a bishop, reports the archdiocese.
Bishop Power said he was delighted when he discovered his anniversary of ordination would fall on the date of the Chrism Mass, as he saw it as the perfect celebration. When Archbishop Mark Coleridge asked him to be the principal celebrant, he was even more honoured.The Chrism Mass is also the time when the priests of the Archdiocese renew their commitment to priestly service and ask the congregation to pray for them.
During his homily, Bishop Power reflected on his ministry as auxiliary bishop and his priestly vocation, and cited the motto of his ordination as bishop, "God is Love".
The full text of Bishop Power's homily can be found at:
Chrism Mass 'an honour' (Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn News & Events)
And in keeping with the silver anniversary theme, Fr Frank Brennan sj, adjunct fellow in the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies at the ANU, professor of law in the Institute of Legal Studies at the Australian Catholic University, and professor of human rights and social justice at the University of Notre Dame Australia, also recently celebrated the 25th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood. He wrote about it here:
TODAY'S SAINT: APR. 19: ST. LEO IX
st. Leo IX
POPE
Feast: April 19
| (1049-54), b. at Egisheim, near Colmar, on the borders of Alsace, 21 June, 1002; d. 19 April, 1054. He belonged to a noble family which had given or was to give saints to the Church and rulers to the Empire. He was named Bruno. His father Hugh was first cousin to Emperor Conrad, and both Hugh and his wife Heilewide were remarkable for their piety and learning. As a sign of the tender conscience which soon began to manifest itself in the saintly child, we are told that, though he had given abundant proofs of a bright mind, on one occasion he could not study out of an exceptionally beautiful book which his mother had bought and given to him. At length it transpired that the book had been stolen from the Abbey of St. Hubert in the Ardennes. When Heilewide had restored the volume to its rightful owners, the little Bruno's studies proceeded unchecked. When five years of age, he was committed to the care of the energetic Berthold, Bishop of Toul, who had a school for the sons of the nobility. Intelligent, graceful in body, and gracious in disposition, Bruno was a favourite with his schoolfellows. Whilst still a youth and at home for his holidays, he was attacked when asleep by some animal, and so much injured that for some time he lay between life and death. In that condition he saw, as he used afterwards to tell his friends, a vision of St. Benedict, who cured him by touching his wounds with a cross. This we are told by Leo's principal biographer, Wibert, who was his intimate friend when the saint was Bishop of Toul. Bruno became a canon of St. Stephen's at Toul (1017), and though still quite young exerted a soothing influence on Herimann, the choleric successor of Bishop Berthold. When, in 1024, Conrad, Bruno's cousin, succeeded the Emperor Henry I, the saint's relatives sent him to the new king's court "to serve in his chapel". His virtue soon made itself felt, and his companions, to distinguish him from others who bore the same name, always spoke of him as "the good Bruno". In 1026 Conrad set out for Italy to make his authority respected in that portion of his dominions, and as Herimann, Bishop of Toul, was too old to lead his contingent into the peninsula, he entrusted the command of it to Bruno, then a deacon. There is reason to believe that this novel occupation was not altogether uncongenial to him, for soldiers seem always to have had an attraction for him. While he was thus in the midst of arms, Bishop Herimann died and Bruno was at once elected to succeed him. Conrad, who destined him for higher things, was loath to allow him to accept that insignificant see. But Bruno, who was wholly disinclined for the higher things, and wished to live in as much obscurity as possible, induced his sovereign to permit him to take the see. Consecrated in 1027, Bruno administered the Diocese of Toul for over twenty years, in a season of stress and trouble of all kinds. He had to contend not merely with famine, but also with war, to which as a frontier town Toul was much exposed. Bruno, however, was equal to his position. He knew how to make peace, and, if necessary, to wield the sword in self-defence. Sent by Conrad to Robert the Pious, he established so firm a peace between France and the empire that it was not again broken even during the reigns of the sons of both Conrad and Robert. On the other hand, he held his episcopal city against Eudes, Count of Blois, a rebel against Conrad, and "by his wisdom and exertions" added Burgundy to the empire. It was whilst he was bishop that he was saddened by the death not merely of his father and mother, but also of two of his brothers. Amid his trials Bruno found some consolation in music, in which he proved himself very efficient. The German Pope Damasus II died in 1048, and the Romans sent to ask Henry III, Conrad's successor, to let them have as the new pope either Halinard, Archbishop of Lyons, or Bruno. Both of them were favourably known to the Romans by what they had seen of them when they came to Rome on pilgrimage. Henry at once fixed upon Bruno, who did all he could to avoid the honour which his sovereign wished to impose upon him. When at length he was overcome by the combined importunities of the emperor, the Germans, and the Romans, he agreed to go to Rome, and to accept the papacy if freely elected thereto by the Roman people. He wished, at least, to rescue the See of Peter from its servitude to the German emperors. When, in company with Hildebrand he reached Rome, and presented himself to its people clad in pilgrim's guise and barefooted, but still tall, and fair to look upon, they cried out with one voice that him and no other would they have as pope. Assuming the name of Leo, he was solemnly enthroned 12 February, 1049. Before Leo could do anything in the matter of the reform of the Church on which his heart was set, he had first to put down another attempt on the part of the ex-Pope Benedict IX to seize the papal throne. He had then to attent to money matters, as the papal finances were in a deplorable condition. To better them he put them in the hands of Hildebrand, a man capable of improving anything. He then began the work of reform which was to give the next hundred years a character of their own, and which his great successor Gregory VII was to carry so far forward. In April, 1049, he held a synod at which he condemned the two notorious evils of the day, simony and clerical incontinence. Then he commenced those journeys throughout Europe in the cause of a reformation of manners which gave him a pre- eminent right to be styled Peregrinus Apostolicus. Leaving Rome in May, he held a council of reform at Pavia, and pushed on through Germany to Cologne, where he joined the Emperor Henry III. In union with him he brought about peace in Lorraine by excommunicating the rebel Godfrey the Bearded. Despite the jealous efforts of King Henry I to prevent him from coming to France, Leo next proceeded to Reims, where he held an important synod, at which both bishops and abbots from England assisted. There also assembled in the city to see the famous pope an enormous number of enthusiastic people, "Spaniards, Bretons, Franks, Irish, and English". Besides excommunicating the Archbishop of Compostela (because he had ventured to assume the title of Apostolicus, reserved to the pope alone), and forbidding marriage between William (afterwards called the Conqueror) and Matilda of Flanders, the assembly issued many decrees of reform. On his way back to Rome Leo held another synod at Mainz, everywhere rousing public opinion against the great evils of the time as he went along, and everywhere being received with unbounded enthusiasm. It is apparently in connexion with this return journey that we have the first mention of the Golden Rose. The Abbess of Woffenheim, in return for certain privileges bestowed by the pope, had to send to Rome "a golden rose" before Lætare Sunday, on which day, says Leo, the popes are wont to carry it. Also before he returned to Rome, he discussed with Adalbert, Archbishop of Bremen, the formation of all the Scandinavian countries, including Iceland and Greenland, into a patriarchate, of which the see was to be Bremen. The scheme was never accomplished, but meanwhile Leo authorized the consecration by Adalbert of the first native bishop for Iceland. In January, 1050, Leo returned to Rome, only to leave it again almost immediately for Southern Italy, whither the sufferings of its people called him. They were being heavily oppressed by the Normans. To the expostulations of Leo the wily Normans replied with promises, and when the pope, after holding a council at Spoleto, returned to Rome, they continued their oppressions as before. At the usual paschal synod which Leo was in the habit of holding at Rome, the heresy of Berengarius of Tours was condemned&#mdash;a condemnation repeated by the pope a few months later at Vercelli. Before the year 1050 had come to a close, Leo had begun his second transalpine journey. He went first to Toul, in order solemnly to translate the relics of Gerard, bishop of that city, whom he had just canonized, and then to Germany to interview the Emperor Henry the Black. One of the results of this meeting was that Hunfrid, Archbishop of Ravenna, was compelled by the emperor to cease acting as though he were the independent ruler of Ravenna and its district, and to submit to the pope. Returning to Rome, Leo held another of his paschal synods in April, 1051, and in July went to take possession of Benevento. Harassed by their enemies, the Beneventans concluded that their only hope of peace was to submit themselves to the authority of the pope. This they did, and received Leo into their city with the greatest honour. While in this vicinity, Leo again made further efforts to lessen the excesses of the Normans, but they were crippled by the native Lombards, who with as much folly as wickedness massacred a number of the Normans in Apulia. Realizing that nothing could then be done with the irate Norman survivors, Leo retraced his steps to Rome (1051). The Norman question was henceforth ever present to the pope's mind. Constantly oppressed by the Normans, the people of Southern Italy ceased not to implore the pope to come and help them. The Greeks, fearful of being expelled from the peninsula altogether, begged Leo to co-operate with them against the common foe. Thus urged, Leo sought assistance on all sides. Failing to obtain it, he again tried the effect of personal mediation (1052). But again failure attended his efforts. He began to be convinced that appeal would have to be made to the sword. At this juncture an embassy arrived from the Hungarians, entreating him to come and make peace between them and the emperor. Again Leo crossed the Alps, but, thinking he was sure of success, Henry would not accept the terms proposed by the pope, with the result that his expedition against the Hungarians proved a failure. And though he at first undertook to let Leo have a German force to act against the Normans, he afterwards withdrew his promise, and the pope had to return to Italy with only a few German troops raised by his relatives (1053). In March, 1053, Leo was back in Rome. Finding the state of affairs in Southern Italy worse than ever, he raised what forces he could among the Italian princes, and, declaring war on the Normans, tried to effect a junction with the Greek general. But the Normans defeated first the Greeks and then the pope at Civitella (June, 1053). After the battle Leo gave himself up to his conquerors, who treated him with the utmost respect and consideration, and professed themselves his soldiers. Though he gained more by defeat than he could have gained by victory, Leo betook himself to Benevento, a broken-hearted man. The slain at Civitella were ever before him, and he was profoundly troubled by the attitude of Michael Cærularius, Patriarch of Constantinople. That ambitious prelate was determined, if possible, to have no superior in either Church or State. As early as 1042, he had struck the pope's name off the sacred diptychs, and soon proceeded, first in private and then in public, to attack the Latin Church because it used unfermented bread (azymes) in the Sacrifice of the Mass. At length, and that, too, in a most barbarous manner, he closed the Latin churches in Constantinople. In reply to this violence, Leo addressed a strong letter to Michael (Sept., 1053), and began to study Greek in order the better to understand the matters in dispute. However, if Michael had taken advantage of the pope's difficulties with the Normans to push his plans, the Greek Emperor, seeing that his hold on Southern Italy was endangered by the Norman success, put pressure on the patriarch to make him more respectful to the pope. To the conciliatory letters which Constantine and Cærularius now dispatched to Rome, Leo sent suitable replies (Jan., 1054), blaming the arrogance of the patriarch. His letters were conveyed by two distinguished cardinals, Humbert and Frederick, but he had departed this life before the momentous issue of his embassy was known in Rome. On 16 July, 1054, the two cardinals excommunicated Cærularius, and the East was finally cut off from the body of the Church. The annals of England show that Leo had many relations with that country, and its saintly King Edward. He dispensed the king from a vow which he had taken to make a pilgrimage to Rome, on condition that he give alms to the poor, and endow a monastery in honour of St. Peter. Leo also authorized the translation of the See of Crediton to Exeter, and forbade the consecration of the unworthy Abbot of Abingdon (Spearhafor) as Bishop of London. Throughout the troubles which Robert of Jumièges, Archbishop of Canterbury, had with the family of Earl Godwin, he received the support of the pope, who sent him the pallium and condemned Stigand, the usurper of his see (1053?). King Macbeth, the supposed murderer of Duncan, whom Shakespeare has immortalized, is believed to have visited Rome during Leo's pontificate, and may be thought to have exposed the needs of his soul to that tender father. After the battle of Civitella Leo never recovered his spirits. Seized at length with a mortal illness, he caused himself to be carried to Rome (March, 1054), where he died a most edifying death. He was buried in St. Peter's, was a worker of miracles both in life and in death, and found a place in the Roman Martyrology. |
soure: http://www.ewtn.com/saintsHoly/saints/L/stleoix.asp#ixzz1K7OF70O6
TODAY'S GOSPEL: APR. 19: JOHN 13: 21- 38
21When Jesus had thus spoken, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, "Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me."22The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke.23One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was lying close to the breast of Jesus;24so Simon Peter beckoned to him and said, "Tell us who it is of whom he speaks."25So lying thus, close to the breast of Jesus, he said to him, "Lord, who is it?"26Jesus answered, "It is he to whom I shall give this morsel when I have dipped it." So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.27Then after the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, "What you are going to do, do quickly."28Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him.29Some thought that, because Judas had the money box, Jesus was telling him, "Buy what we need for the feast"; or, that he should give something to the poor.30So, after receiving the morsel, he immediately went out; and it was night.31When he had gone out, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of man glorified, and in him God is glorified;32if God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once.33Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, `Where I am going you cannot come.'36Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, where are you going?" Jesus answered, "Where I am going you cannot follow me now; but you shall follow afterward."37Peter said to him, "Lord, why cannot I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."38Jesus answered, "Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the cock will not crow, till you have denied me three times.
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