St Romuald OSB (June 19; Feb 7)

Fr Angelico

Today is the feast of St Romuald in some calendars - in the 1962 calendar his feast is celebrated in Feburary, but he actually died on June 19 and his feast has been restored to the date in most modern calenars.  The Martyrology says:

At Ravenna, St. Romuald, anchoret, founder of the monks of Carnaldoli, who restored and greatly extended monastic discipline, which was much relaxed in Italy. He is also mentioned on the 7th of February.

You can read more about the saint here.

Tuesdays of St Benedict

 Spinello Aretino, 1387 Fresco S. Miniato al Monte, Florence 

Traditionally, Benedictines devoted the first free Tuesday of each month to a Votive Office of St Benedict.

Votive Offices, were, alas, abolished under the first of the twentieth century liturgical wreckovators popes, Pius X, but have been revived in the modern Liturgy of the Hours.

I've previously provided all of the texts for the hours:

• I Vespers of St Benedict on Tuesdays;
• Matins of St Benedict on Tuesday;
• Lauds of St Benedict on Tuesdays;
• Prime to None of St Benedict on Tuesdays.

But at Matins the readings are for the particular month.  Even if you don't say Matins, it is well worth reading and meditating on the Life of St Benedict, so here are the readings for June are as follows:

Reading 1: From chapter 2 of the first letter of St Paul to the Corinthians -  As it is written: That eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man, what things God hath prepared for them that love him.  But to us God hath revealed them, by his Spirit. For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, but the spirit of a man that is in him? So the things also that are of God no man knoweth, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of this world, but the Spirit that is of God; that we may know the things that are given us from God. Which things also we speak, not in the learned words of human wisdom; but in the doctrine of the Spirit, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.  But the sensual man perceiveth not these things that are of the Spirit of God; for it is foolishness to him, and he cannot understand, because it is spiritually examined.  But the spiritual man judgeth all things; and he himself is judged of no man.  For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

R: Sanctus Benedictus plus appetiit mala mundi  perpeti quam laudes pro Deo laboribus fatigari * Quam vitae hujus favoribus extolli V: Divina namque praeventus gratia magis ac magis ad superna animo suspirabat R: Quam vitae hujus favoribus extolli

R St Benedict desiring rather the miseries of the world than the praises of men: rather to be wearied with labor for God's sake * than to be exalted with transitory commendation V: For filled greatly with divine grace, his soul aspired to even higher things R: Than to be exalted with transitory commendation

Reading 2: From Book II of St Gregory's Dialogues, chapter 16  - At the same time a certain clergyman, that served in the church of Aquinum, was possessed: whom the venerable man Constantius, Bishop of the same city, sent to many places of holy martyrs for help: but God's holy martyrs would not deliver him, to the end that the world might know what great grace was in the servant of God, Benedict: wherefore at length he was brought to him, who, praying for help to Jesus Christ our Lord, forthwith cast the old enemy out of the possessed man's body, giving him this charge: "Go your way, and hereafter abstain from eating of flesh, and presume not to enter into holy orders, for whenever you shall attempt any such thing, the devil again will have power over you." The man departed safe and sound, and because punishment fresh in memory used to terrify the mind, he observed for a time what the man of God had given him in commandment. But after many years, when all his seniors were dead, and he saw his juniors preferred before him to holy orders, he neglected the words of the man of God, as though forgotten through length of time, and took on him holy orders: whereupon immediately the devil that before had left him entered again, and never ceased to torment him, until he had separated his soul from his body.

R: O laudanda sancti Benedicti merita gloriosa qui dum pro Christo patriam mundique sprevit pompam adeptus omnium contubernium beatorum * Et particeps factus praemiorum aeternorum V: Inter choros confessorum splendidum possidet locum ubi ipsum fontem omnium intuetur bonorum R: Et particeps factus praemiorum aeternorum

O praise the glorious merits of St Benedict who for Christ left his fatherland and the pomp of the world, and arrived at the companionship of all the blessed * And was made a partaker of eternal rewards  V: He holds a splendid place among the chorus of confessors, where he gazes upon the font of all good R: And was made a partaker of eternal rewards

Reading 3: [Peter] This holy man, as I perceive, knew the secret counsel of God: for he saw that this clergyman was delivered to the power of the devil, to the end he should not presume to enter into holy orders. [GREGORY]: Why should he not know the secrets of God, who kept the commandments of God: when as the scripture says: "He that cleaves to our Lord, is one spirit with him?" [PETER:] If he that cleaves to our Lord, be one spirit with our Lord, what is the meaning of that which the Apostle says: "Who knows the sense of our Lord, or who hath been his counselor?" for it seems very inconvenient to be ignorant of his sense, to whom being so united he is made one thing. [GREGORY:] Holy men, in that they be one with our Lord are not ignorant of his sense: for the same Apostle says: "For what man knows those things which belong to man, but the spirit of man which is in him? Even so, the things which belong to God, no man knows, but the spirit of God." And to show also that he knew such things as belong to God, he added straight after: "But we have not received the spirit of this world, but the spirit which is of God." And for this cause, again he says: "that eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor it hath ascended into the heart of man, those things which God hath prepared for them that love him, but God hath revealed to us by his spirit."

R: Sanctissime confessor Christi Benedicte monachorum pater et dux *  Intercede pro nostra omniumque salute V: Devotae plebi subveni sancta intercessione ut tuis adjuta precibus regna caelestia consequatur R: Intercede pro nostra omniumque salute V: Gloria Patri... R: Intercede...

R: O Benedict, Most holy confessor of Christ, father and leader of monks, * Intercede for us and the salvation of all V: Assist your devoted people with holy intercession so that with the help of your prayers they may reach the heavenly kingdom R: Intercede for us and the salvation of all V: Glory be... R: Intercede...

SS John and Paul, martyrs (memorial, June 26)

The original Roman house below the present-day
Basilica of Santi Giovanni e Paolo

SS John and Paul were martyred under Julian the Apostate circa 361-3.  The Martyrology says:

At Rome, on Mount Coelius, the holy martyrs John and Paul, brothers. The former was steward, the other secretary of the virgin Constantia, daughter of the emperor Constantine. Afterwards, under Julian the Apostate, they received the palm of martyrdom by being beheaded. 

SS Gervase and Protasius (Memorial, 19 June)

c14th

SS Gervase and Protasius were martyred in the second century.  They are the patron saints of Milan and of haymakers and are invoked for the discovery of thieves. Their relics were discovered by St Ambrose as a result of a vision (which he records in a letter to his sister; the story is also narrated by St Augustine), who built a church to house them and is buried with them there, and their feast day marks the translation of their relics (you can read more on this over at New Liturgical Movement..

According to their Acts, Gervasius and Protasius were the twin sons of martyrs. Their father Saint Vitalis of Milan, a man of consular dignity, suffered martyrdom at Ravenna, possibly under Nero. The mother Saint Valeria died for her faith at Milan. Gervasius and Protasius were imprisoned, and visited in prison by Saint Nazarius.

The sons are said to have large hands and had been scourged and then beheaded, during the reign of the Emperor Nero, under the presidency of Anubinus or Astasius, and while Caius was Bishop of Milan.

The Martyrology says:

At Milan, the holy martyrs Gervasius and Protasius, brothers. The former, by order of the judge Astasius, was so long scourged with leaded whips, that he expired. The latter, after being scourged with rods, was beheaded. Through divine revelation their bodies were found by St. Ambrose. They were partly covered with blood, and as free from corruption as if they had been put to death that very day. When the translation took place, a blind man recovered his sight by touching their relics, and many persons possessed by demons were delivered. 

St Ephrem of Syria; SS Mark and Marcellianus, memorials (18 June)

St Ephrem (ca. 306 – 373) was a Syriac deacon and a prolific Syriac-language hymnographer and theologian of the 4th century from the region of Assyria, and is a doctor of the Church.

The readings for his feast in the Roman Office are as follows:

Ephraem was of Syrian descent, and son of a citizen of Nisibis. While yet a young man he went to the holy bishop James, by whom he was baptized, and he soon made such progress in holiness and learning as to be appointed master of a flourishing school at Nisibis, a city of Mesopotamia. After the death of the bishop James, Nisibis was captured by the Persians, and Ephraem went to Edessa. Here he settled first on the mountain among the monks, and then, that he might avoid the great numbers of men who flocked to him, he adopted the eremitical life. He was ordained deacon of the Church of Edessa, but refused the priesthood out of humility. He was conspicuous with the splendour of every virtue and strove to acquire piety and religion by professing true wisdom. He placed all his hope in God alone, despised all human and transitory things, and always longed for the divine and eternal.

 When, led by the Spirit of God, he went to Caesarea in Cappadocia, there he saw Basil, that mouthpiece of the Church, and both enjoyed mutual companionship in a suitable manner. In order to refute the countless errors which were rife at that time, and which were troubling the Church of God, and in order to expound zealously the divine mysteries of our Lord Jesus Christ, he wrote many studies in Syrian, almost all of which have been translated into Greek. St. Jerome beareth witness that he attained such fame, that his writings were read publicly in certain churches after the reading from the Scriptures.

His works taken as a whole, so infused with the bright light of learning, brought it about that this holy man, while yet alive, was held in great honour, and was even considered a Doctor of the Church. He also composed songs in verse, in honour of the most blessed Virgin Mary, and of the Saints, and for this reason he was appropriately named by the Syrians the Harp of the Holy Ghost. He was noted for his great and tender devotion towards the immaculate Virgin. He died, rich in merits, at Edessa in Mesopotamia on the 18th day of June in the reign of Valens. Pope Benedict XV, at the instance of many Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church, Patriarchs, Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots, and religious communities, declared him by a decree of the Congregation of Sacred Rites to be a Doctor of the universal Church.

You can read more about him in Pope Benedict XVI's General Audience on him. 

C15th (the saints are at the right)

Theigtheenth of June is also the memorial of SS Mark and Marcellian, matyrs under Diocleian c286.  According to their legend, they were twin brothers who were deacons, and refused to offer pagan sacrifices.  In prison their parents attempted to persuade them to apostasize; St Sebastian, however, convinced them to stand firm.  The entry in the martyrology reads:

At Rome, on the Ardeatine road, in the persecution of  Diocletian, the birthday of the saintly brothers Marcus and Marcellian, martyrs, who were arrested by the judge Fabian, tied to a stake, and had sharp nails driven into their feet. As they ceased not to praise the name of Christ, they were pierced through the sides with lances, and thus went to the kingdom of heaven with the glory of martyrdom. 

St Vitus (memorial, 15 June)

circa 1515

St Vitus was from Sicily and was martyred during the persecution of Christians by co-ruling Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian in 303. The entry in the Martyrology reads:

In Basilicata, near the river Silaro, the birthday of the holy martyrs Vitus, Modestus, and Crescentia, who were brought thither from Sicily, in the reign of Diocletian, and after being plunged into a vessel of melted lead, after being exposed to the beasts, and on the pillory, from which torments they escaped uninjured through the power of God, they ended their religious combats. 

St Vitus is counted as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers of medieval Roman Catholicism.

In the late Middle Ages, people in Germany and countries such as Latvia celebrated the feast of Vitus by dancing before his statue. This dancing became popular and the name "Saint Vitus Dance" was given to the neurological disorder Sydenham's chorea. It also led to Vitus being considered the patron saint of dancers and of entertainers in general.

Feast of St Basil the Great (Class III, June 14)

The readings in the Roman Office for the feast are set out below.  The sections omitted for the one reading in the Benedictine Office are indicated by square brackets:

This Basil was a noble Cappadocian who studied earthly learning at Athens, in company with Gregory of Nazianzus, to whom he was united in a warm and tender friendship. He afterwards studied things sacred in a monastery, where he quickly attained an eminent degree of excellence in doctrine and life, whereby he gained to himself the surname of the Great. He was called to Pontus to preach the Gospel of Christ Jesus, and brought back into the way of salvation that country which before had been wandering astray from the rules of Christian discipline. He was shortly united as coadjutor to Eusebius, Bishop of Cassarea, for the edification of that city, and afterwards became his successor in the see. One of his greatest labours was to maintain that the Son is of one Substance with the Father, and when the Emperor Valens, moved to wrath against him, was willing to send him into exile, he so bent him by dint of the miracles which he worked that he forced him to forego his intention.

[The chair upon which Valens sat down, in order to sign the decree of Basil's ejectment from the city, broke down under him, and three pens which he took one after the other to sign the edict of banishment, all would not write and when nevertheless he remained firm to write the ungodly order, his right hand shook. Valens was so frightened at these omens, that he tore the paper in two. During the night which was allowed to Basil to make up his mind, Valens' wife had a severe stomach-ache, and their only son was taken seriously ill. These things alarmed Valens so much that he acknowledged his wickedness, and sent for Basil, during whose visit the child began to get better. However, when Valens sent for some heretics to see it, it presently died.]

The abstinence and self-control of Basil were truly wonderful. [He was content to wear nothing but one single garment.] In observance of fasting he was most earnest, and so instant in prayer, that he would oftentimes pass the whole night therein. [His virginity he kept always unsullied]. He built monasteries, wherein he so adapted the institution of monasticism, that he exquisitely united for the inmates the advantages of the contemplative and of the active life. He was the author of many learned writings, and, according to the witness of Gregory of Nazianzus, no one hath ever composed more faithful and edifying explanations of the books of the Holy Scripture. He died upon the 1st day of January, (in the year of our Lord 379,) at which time so essentially spiritual was his life, that his body showed nothing but skin and bones.

St Basil is a key saint from a Benedictine perspective, since St Benedict knew and drew on several of his works.  His shorter rule and several of his homilies were translated into Latin very early, and circulated widely in the West.  St Ambrose, for example, drew heavily on his sermons on the dyas of creation to produce a similar work of his own.  According to the Wikipedia:

Basil was born into the wealthy family of Basil the Elder, a famous rhetor, and Emmelia of Caesarea, in Pontus, around 330. His parents were renowned for their piety. His maternal grandfather was a Christian martyr, executed in the years prior to Constantine I's conversion. His pious widow, Macrina, herself a follower of Gregory Thaumaturgus (who had founded the nearby church of Neocaesarea), raised Basil and his four siblings (who also can be venerated as saints): Macrina the Younger, Naucratius, Peter of Sebaste and Gregory of Nyssa.

Basil received more formal education in Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia (modern-day Kayseri, Turkey) around 350-51. There he met Gregory of Nazianzus, who would become a lifetime friend. Together, Basil and Gregory went to Constantinople for further studies, including the lectures of Libanius. The two also spent almost six years in Athens starting around 349, where they met a fellow student who would become the emperor Julian the Apostate. Basil left Athens in 356, and after travels in Egypt and Syria, he returned to Caesarea, where for around a year he practiced law and taught rhetoric.

Basil's life changed radically after he encountered Eustathius of Sebaste, a charismatic bishop and ascetic. Abandoning his legal and teaching career, Basil devoted his life to God. A letter described his spiritual awakening:

“I had wasted much time on follies and spent nearly all of my youth in vain labors, and devotion to the teachings of a wisdom that God had made foolish. Suddenly, I awoke as out of a deep sleep. I beheld the wonderful light of the Gospel truth, and I recognized the nothingness of the wisdom of the princes of this world."

You can read more on the saint in Pope Benedict VI's two General Audiences on him, here and here.

St Barnabas, Apostle, Class III (June 11)

The Matins readings in the Roman Office for the feast are set out below:

Joseph, who by the Apostles was surnamed Barnabas, (which is, being interpreted, the Son of Consolation,) a Levite and of the country of Cyprus, [having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the Apostles' feet. (Acts iv. 36, 37.) When Paul, after his conversion, was come to Jerusalem, the disciples were all afraid of him, but Barnabas took him, and brought him to the Apostles, (ix. 26, 27,) When tidings that a great number believed and turned unto the Lord at Antioch came unto the ears of the Church which was at Jerusalem, they sent forth Barnabas that he should go as far as Antioch. Who, when he came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost, and of faith, and much people was added unto the Lord. xi. 21-24.

Then departed Barnabas to Tarsus for to seek Paul, and, when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass that a whole year they assembled themselves with the Church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. And in these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch. And there stood up one of them, named Agabus, and signified, by the Spirit, that there should be great dearth throughout all the world which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar. Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judea, which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Paul. xi. 25-30. And Barnabas and Paul returned from Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their ministry, and took with them John, whose surname was Mark. xii. 25.

Now there were in the Church that was at Antioch, certain Prophets and teachers and, as Paul and Barnabas, together with them, ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Ghost said Separate Me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia and from thence they sailed to Cyprus xiii. 1-4 in the which island, and in many other cities and countries, they journeyed about, preaching the Gospel with great gain to them that heard them. Nevertheless, at last, Paul and Barnabas departed asunder one from the other. And so Barnabas took Mark and sailed unto Cyprus, xv. 39, once more. And there it was that upon a certain nth of June, in or about the seventh year of the reign of Nero, Barnabas crowned the dignity of the Apostolate with the glory of martyrdom. During the reign of the Emperor Zeno, his body was found in its grave in Cyprus on his breast lay a copy of the Gospel according to Matthew, written by the hand of Barnabas himself.

A cousin of St Mark the Evangelist, St Barnabas may have been one of the seventy disciples sent out to evangelise by Jesus.  He was martyred in Cyprus around 61 AD  at the hands of a Jewish mob enraged by his preaching in the synagogue.  He was dragged out, tortured and then stoned him to death. His kinsman, John Mark, who was a spectator of this barbarous action, privately interred his body.

In 478 Barnabas appeared in a dream to the Archbishop of Constantia (Salamis, Cyprus) Anthemios and revealed to him the place of his sepulchre beneath a carob-tree. The following day Anthemios found the tomb and inside it the remains of Barnabas with a manuscript of Matthew's Gospel on his breast. Anthemios presented the Gospel to Emperor Zeno at Constantinople and received from him the privileges of the Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus, that is, the purple cloak which the Greek Archbishop of Cyprus wears at festivals of the church, the imperial sceptre and the red ink with which he affixes his signature.  Anthemios then placed the venerable remains of Barnabas in a church which he founded near the tomb. Excavations near the site of a present-day church and monastery, have revealed an early church with two empty tombs, believe to be that of St. Barnabas and Anthemios.

An epistle ascribed to Barnabas, though non-canonical is perfectly orthodox and worth reading, though its attribution to him is disputed.

St. Barnabas is venerated as the Patron Saint of Cyprus.

St Norbert (June 6)

Martin Pepijn

The readings on the life of St Norbert for the feast in the Roman Office are set out below.  In the Benedictine Office, the feasts has one reading only, and the sections of the text that are omitted are indicated in square brackets:

Norbert, born in the year 1080 of parents of the highest rank, thoroughly educated in his youth in worldly knowledge, and a member of the Imperial court, turned his back upon the glory of the world, and chose rather to enlist himself as a soldier of the Church. Being ordained Priest, he laid aside all soft and showy raiment, clad himself in a coat of skins, and made the preaching of the Word of God the one object of his life. [He had the right to rich revenues of the Church but these he renounced and to an ample fortune from his father; but this he gave to the poor. He ate only once a day, and that in the evening, and then his meal was of the fare of Lent. His life was one of singular hardness, and he was used even in the depth of winter to go out with bare feet and ragged garments.] Hence came that mighty power of his words and deeds, whereby he was enabled to turn countless heretics to the true faith, sinners to repentance, and enemies to peace and brotherly love.

Being one while at Laon, the Bishop besought him not to leave his diocese,] and he therefore made choice of a wilderness at the place called Prémontré, whither he withdrew himself with thirteen disciples, and thus founded the Order of the Praemonstratensian Canons, [whereof he, by the will of God, received the Rule, in a vision, from St. Austin. When, however, the fame of his holy life became every day more and more noised abroad, and great numbers sought to become his disciples, and the Order had been approved by Honorius II., and other Popes, many more monasteries were built by him, and the Institute wonderfully extended.

Being called to Antwerpen, he there gave the death-blow to the shameful heresy of Tanchelm. He was remarkable for the spirit of prophecy and for the gift of miracles.] He was created (albeit he would rather not have had it so) Archbishop of Magdeburg, and as such he was a strong upholder of the discipline of the Church, especially contending against the marriage of the clergy. At a Council held at Rheims he was a great help to Innocent II., and went with some Other Bishops to Rome, where they stamped out the schism of Peter Leoni. It was at last at Magdeburg that this man of God, full of good works and of the Holy Ghost, fell asleep in the Lord, on the 6th day of June, in the year of salvation 1134.

SS Marcellius and Peter (memorial)

C4th from the catacomb of Marcellinus and Peter,
,showing Christ between Peter and Paul, and below them
the martyrs Gorgonius, Peter, Marcellinus, and Tiburtius

Today the calendar marks the feast of two martyrs from the persecution of Diocletian, who died around 304 AD.  The martyrology entry goes as follows:

At Rome, the birthday of the holy martyr Marcellinus, priest, and Peter, exorcist, who instructed in the faith many persons detained in prison. Under Diocletian, they were loaded with chains, and, after enduring many torments, were beheaded by the judge Serenus, in a place which was then called the Black Forest, but which was in their honor afterwards known as the White Forest. Their bodies were buried in a crypt near St. Tiburtius, and Pope St. Damasus composed for their tomb an epitaph in verse. 

As noted in the entry above, their cult was originally fostered by Pope Damasus I, who learnt thier story from their executioner, who became a Christian after their deaths. 

Pope Damasus states that they were killed at an out-of-the-way spot by the magistrate Severus or Serenus so that other Christians would not have a chance to bury and venerate their bodies. The two saints happily cleared the spot chosen for their death: a thicket overgrown with thorns, brambles, and briers three miles from Rome. They were beheaded and buried in that spot.  Two women, Lucilla and Firmina, assisted by divine revelation, found the bodies, however, and had them properly buried. They buried their bodies near the body of St. Tiburtius on the Via Labicana in what became known as the Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter.

Constantine the Great built a church in honor of them as the earlier church built by Pope Damasus had been destroyed, and had his mother St. Helena buried there.  Their relics were subsequently transferred to Germany in the ninth century under the monk Eginhard, who had previously been Charlemagne's secretary.

June 29: SS Peter and Paul, Class I

c13th Siena

From the Homily of Pope Benedict XVI on the feast, 2005:

The Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul is at the same time a grateful memorial of the great witnesses of Jesus Christ and a solemn confession for the Church: one, holy, catholic and apostolic. It is first and foremost a feast of catholicity. The sign of Pentecost - the new community that speaks all languages and unites all peoples into one people, in one family of God -, this sign has become a reality. Our liturgical assembly, at which Bishops are gathered from all parts of the world, people of many cultures and nations, is an image of the family of the Church distributed throughout the earth.

Strangers have become friends; crossing every border, we recognize one another as brothers and sisters. This brings to fulfilment the mission of St Paul, who knew that he was the "minister of Christ Jesus among the Gentiles, with the priestly duty of preaching the Gospel of God so that the Gentiles [might] be offered up as a pleasing sacrifice, consecrated by the Holy Spirit" (Rom 15: 16).
The purpose of the mission is that humanity itself becomes a living glorification of God, the true worship that God expects: this is the deepest meaning of catholicity - a catholicity that has already been given to us, towards which we must constantly start out again. Catholicity does not only express a horizontal dimension, the gathering of many people in unity, but also a vertical dimension: it is only by raising our eyes to God, by opening ourselves to him, that we can truly become one.

Like Paul, Peter also came to Rome, to the city that was a centre where all the nations converged and, for this very reason, could become, before any other, the expression of the universal outreach of the Gospel. As he started out on his journey from Jerusalem to Rome, he must certainly have felt guided by the voices of the prophets, by faith and by the prayer of Israel.

The mission to the whole world is also part of the proclamation of the Old Covenant: the people of Israel were destined to be a light for the Gentiles. The great Psalm of the Passion, Psalm 22[21], whose first verse Jesus cried out on the Cross: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?", ends with the vision: "All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord; all the families of the nations shall bow down before him" (Ps 22[21]: 28). When Peter and Paul came to Rome, the Lord on the Cross who had uttered the first line of that Psalm was risen; God's victory now had to be proclaimed to all the nations, thereby fulfilling the promise with which the Psalm concludes.

Catholicity means universality - a multiplicity that becomes unity; a unity that nevertheless remains multiplicity. From Paul's words on the Church's universality we have already seen that the ability of nations to get the better of themselves in order to look towards the one God, is part of this unity. In the second century, the founder of Catholic theology, St Irenaeus of Lyons, described very beautifully this bond between catholicity and unity and I quote him. He says: "The Church spread across the world diligently safeguards this doctrine and this faith, forming as it were one family: the same faith, with one mind and one heart, the same preaching, teaching and tradition as if she had but one mouth. Languages abound according to the region but the power of our tradition is one and the same. The Churches in Germany do not differ in faith or tradition, neither do those in Spain, Gaul, Egypt, Libya, the Orient, the centre of the earth; just as the sun, God's creature, is one alone and identical throughout the world, so the light of true preaching shines everywhere and illuminates all who desire to attain knowledge of the truth" (Adv. Haer. I 10, 2). The unity of men and women in their multiplicity has become possible because God, this one God of heaven and earth, has shown himself to us; because the essential truth about our lives, our "where from?" and "where to?" became visible when he revealed himself to us and enabled us to see his face, himself, in Jesus Christ. This truth about the essence of our being, living and dying, a truth that God made visible, unites us and makes us brothers and sisters. Catholicity and unity go hand in hand. And unity has a content: the faith that the Apostles passed on to us in Christ's name...

St Peter, in his First Letter, described himself as "a fellow elder" of the presbyters to whom he writes (5: 1). And with this he expressed the principle of apostolic succession: the same ministry which he had received from the Lord now continues in the Church through priestly ordination. The Word of God is not only written but, thanks to the testimonies that the Lord in the sacrament has inscribed in the apostolic ministry, it remains a living word...

Today's Gospel tells of the profession of faith of St Peter, on whom the Church was founded: "You are the Messiah... the Son of the living God" (Mt 16: 16). Having spoken today of the Church as one, catholic and apostolic but not yet of the Church as holy, let us now recall another profession of Peter, his response on behalf of the Twelve at the moment when so many abandoned Christ: "We have come to believe; we are convinced that you are God's holy one" (Jn 6: 69). What does this mean?

Jesus, in his great priestly prayer, says that he is consecrating himself for his disciples, an allusion to the sacrifice of his death (cf. Jn 17: 19). By saying this, Jesus implicitly expresses his role as the true High Priest who brings about the mystery of the "Day of Reconciliation", no longer only in substitutive rites but in the concrete substance of his own Body and Blood. The Old Testament term "the Holy One of the Lord" identified Aaron as the High Priest who had the task of bringing about Israel's sanctification (Ps 106[105]: 16; Vulgate: Sir 45: 6). Peter's profession of Christ, whom he declares to be the Holy One of God, fits into the context of the Eucharistic Discourse in which Jesus announces the Day of Reconciliation through the sacrificial offering of himself: "the bread I will give is my flesh, for the life of the world" (Jn 6: 51). So this profession is the background of the priestly mystery of Jesus, his sacrifice for us all. The Church is not holy by herself; in fact, she is made up of sinners - we all know this and it is plain for all to see. Rather, she is made holy ever anew by the Holy One of God, by the purifying love of Christ. God did not only speak, but loved us very realistically; he loved us to the point of the death of his own Son. It is precisely here that we are shown the full grandeur of revelation that has, as it were, inflicted the wounds in the heart of God himself. Then each one of us can say personally, together with St Paul, I live "a life of faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Gal 2: 20).

Let us pray to the Lord that the truth of these words may be deeply impressed in our hearts, together with his joy and with his responsibility; let us pray that shining out from the Eucharistic Celebration it will become increasingly the force that shapes our lives.

June 25: St William of Monte Vergine OSB

Today is the Feast in the Roman Calendar (but not the Benedictine) of a Benedictine saint. Here is the entry on St William from the Catholic Encyclopedia:

"The founder of the Hermits of Monte Vergine, or Williamites, born 1085; died 25 June, 1142.

He was the son of noble parents, both of whom died when he was still a child, and his education was entrusted to one of his kinsmen. At the age of fifteen he made up his mind to renounce the world and lead a life of penance.

With this end in view, he went on a pilgrimage to St. James of Compostella, and, not content with the ordinary hardships of such a pilgrimage, he encircled his body with iron bands to increase his suffering.

After this journey he started on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, but it was revealed to him that he would be of greater service to God if he remained in Italy.

He built himself a hut on Monte Vergine, wishing to become a hermit and live in solitude, but it was not long before many people flocked to him to put themselves under his guidance, being attracted by the sanctity of his life and the many miracles which he performed.

Soon a monastery was built, and by 1119 the Congregation of Monte Vergine was founded. St. William lived at Monte Vergine until the brethren began to murmur against him, saying that the life was too austere, that he gave too much in alms, and so on. He therefore decided to leave Monte Vergine and thus take away from the monks the cause of their grievances.

Roger I of Naples took him under his patronage, and the saint founded many monasteries, both of men and of women, in that kingdom. So edified was the king with the saint's sanctity of life and the wisdom of his counsels that, in order to have him always near him, he built a monastery opposite his palace at Salerno. Knowing by special revelation that his end was at hand, William retired to his monastery of Gugieto, where he died, and was buried in the church."

According to the Wikipedia:

"Besides Monte Vergine, St. William of Vercelli founded a considerable number of monasteries, especially in the Kingdom of Naples, including a double monastery for men and women at Guglieto (near Nusco). Pope Celestine III confirmed the congregation by a Bull (4 November 1197). In 1611 there were twenty-six larger and nineteen smaller Williamite houses. Benedict XIV confirmed new constitutions in 1741 to be added to the declarations on the Rule of St. Benedict prescribed by Clement VIII.

The mother-house, the only surviving member of the congregation, was affiliated to the Cassinese Congregation of the Primitive Observance in 1879. The community at Monte Vergine retains the white colour of the habit, which is in other respects like that of the black Benedictines.

There are said to have been some fifty Williamite nunneries, of which only two survived at the beginning of the eighteenth century. The habit was white with a black veil, and their rule very severe in the matter of fasting and abstinence."

June 24: Birthday of St John the Baptist, Class I

St John the Baptist is regarded as the last of the Old Testament prophets; he is the only saint apart from Our Lady whose earthly birth, by virtue of its significance in foreshadowing that of Our Lord's, is celebrated in the calendar.  

He has a special significance for Benedictines, as St Benedict dedicated one of the chapels at Monte Cassino to the saint.

The famous Vespers hymn (the first note of each line forms doh-ray-me etc):

June 21: St Aloysius Gonzaga, Memorial

Saint Aloysius Gonzaga (1568 - 1591) was an Italian Jesuit. 

The eldest son of a noble family, he was expected to be a soldier.  But to the horror of his family, he renounced his inheritance and became a Jesuit with the aim of being a missionary.  His confessor was St Robert Bellarmine.  He died after contracting the plague through his service of the stricken in Rome. You can read about his life here.

His martyrology entry reads:

At Rome, St. Aloysius Gonzaga, of the Society of Jesus, most renowned for his contempt of the princely dignity, and the  innocence of his life.

June 5: St Boniface OSB, Apostle to Germany, Class III

St Boniface was born around 672 in Devon, St Boniface OSB was actually an English monk called Winfrid until he changed his name when commissioned by the Pope as a missionary in 719. He was made a bishop in 722, and eventually became Archbishop of Germany, which he was primarily responsible for evangelizing.

His methods were, shall we say, rather direct - he famously chopped down Thor's Oak, a pagan sacred tree, daring Thor to strike him down if he was real. The saint is credited with the invention of the Christmas Tree as a replacement symbol for the locals...a classic version of inculturation!

He seems to have also played a key role in the politics of the time, helping the Carolingian dynasty along its way to stardom.

His life has many modern resonances - the picture to the left shows him baptising new converts, but one of his concerns early on was the validity of baptisms being conducted by illiterate priests who couldn't quite get the Trinity to have the correct gender...

He was martyred in 754 at the age of 79 (the lower panel of the picture), making one last attempt to convert Frisia. His attackers were apparently enraged at his destruction of their shrines - their blows cut into a book of the Gospels he held before him.

June 1 - St Inigo (Eneco) OSB

St Inigo and the Ascension of the BVM
de Goya, 1746-1828

The Roman Martyrology (though not the OSB calendar) today lists St Inigo, a hermit turned Benedictine abbot, amongst the saints of the day, so I thought I'd provide a little background on him.

The Martyrology says:

"Near Burgos in Spain, in the monastery of Onia, St Inigo, A Benedictine Abbot, famous for holiness and the glory of miracles."

Catholic Online provides a few more details:

"Inigo, also known as Eneco, born in the eleventh century, was a native of Bilbao, Spain. Early in his life he became a hermit. Next he went to Aragon where he became a monk at San Juan de Pena, and eventually he was elected Prior. When his term was completed, Inigo again took up the life of a hermit in the Aragon mountains.

However, in 1029, King Sancho the Great convinced Inigo to become Abbot of a group of monks in a monastery at Ona. The monastery, founded by Sancho's father-in-law, was in need of reform, and he wanted Inigo to lead the process. Inigo was very successful in the reform movement, and he developed a reputation as a peacemaker. Moreover, some attributed miracles to his intercession.

He died at Ona on June 1, 1057, and was canonized by Pope Alexander IV in 1259.

St. Inigo from his earliest years was drawn to both the contemplative and the eremitical life. A man of God, he was able to bring peace and harmony to the monastery at Ona, and he won over others to the reasonableness and satisfaction of leading the monastic life to its fullest. What is more, the good example of the monks helped the people who lived in the area to become convinced of the beauty and satisfaction of a life lived in God's presence and love."

St Ignatius of Loyola was named after him (he adopted Ignatius as an easier to use Europeanized version of his name for use in France and Italy).