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odhiambo
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June 5
Today is the Feast day of
Saint Boniface
Among many other saints
Today is the Feast day of
Saint Boniface
Among many other saints
- Status
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odhiambo
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Saint Boniface
Bishop, Apostle to Germany.
Martyr.
Saint Boniface was born in Devonshire, England in 680. He was baptized Winfrid, which name is said to mean “Joy and Peace”.From the age of fourteen, Boniface was educated by the Benedictines, first at Exeter, then at Nursling Abbey in Winchester. He was ordained a priest in 710, by which time he was 30 years old. He was a good teacher as well as a good preacher.
Boniface wished very much to become a missionary. In 716, he asked to be sent to Germany but this was not granted. He then traveled to Rome to seek the Pope’s blessing . He was given the authority to preach to the German tribes.
He went to the Netherlands and took the name of Boniface. He worked in Netherlands, Bavaria, and others. Then he went to Germany. In 723, the Pope consecrated him regional bishop of Germany. He was able to get a pledge of protection from the powerful Frankish leader, Charles Martel. The pagans in Giesmar, where Boniface was, worshipped a tree they held as sacred. They called this tree, the Oak of Thor.
Boniface felled the Oak of Thor, and used the wood from it to build a church which he dedicated to Saint Peter. Next he founded a monastery at Ohrduf and imported English missionary monks there. Then the Pope named him metropolitan bishop of Germany in 731, a position which enabled him to extend his reach within Germany and Bavaria.
In 754, Boniface resigned his see to renew missionary work in the Netherlands. One day, on June 5, 754, Boniface and some companions were on their way to attend a confirmation at a place called Dokkum. They were suddenly attacked by pagans and martyred.His body was taken to Mainz.
His tomb is in Fulda, and relics are in Utrecht, Netherlands, and in Mainz Cathedral.
He is known as the apostle of the Germans.
Saint Boniface,
Pray for us!
Bishop, Apostle to Germany.
Martyr.
Saint Boniface was born in Devonshire, England in 680. He was baptized Winfrid, which name is said to mean “Joy and Peace”.From the age of fourteen, Boniface was educated by the Benedictines, first at Exeter, then at Nursling Abbey in Winchester. He was ordained a priest in 710, by which time he was 30 years old. He was a good teacher as well as a good preacher.
Boniface wished very much to become a missionary. In 716, he asked to be sent to Germany but this was not granted. He then traveled to Rome to seek the Pope’s blessing . He was given the authority to preach to the German tribes.
He went to the Netherlands and took the name of Boniface. He worked in Netherlands, Bavaria, and others. Then he went to Germany. In 723, the Pope consecrated him regional bishop of Germany. He was able to get a pledge of protection from the powerful Frankish leader, Charles Martel. The pagans in Giesmar, where Boniface was, worshipped a tree they held as sacred. They called this tree, the Oak of Thor.
Boniface felled the Oak of Thor, and used the wood from it to build a church which he dedicated to Saint Peter. Next he founded a monastery at Ohrduf and imported English missionary monks there. Then the Pope named him metropolitan bishop of Germany in 731, a position which enabled him to extend his reach within Germany and Bavaria.
In 754, Boniface resigned his see to renew missionary work in the Netherlands. One day, on June 5, 754, Boniface and some companions were on their way to attend a confirmation at a place called Dokkum. They were suddenly attacked by pagans and martyred.His body was taken to Mainz.
His tomb is in Fulda, and relics are in Utrecht, Netherlands, and in Mainz Cathedral.
He is known as the apostle of the Germans.
Saint Boniface,
Pray for us!
O
odhiambo
Guest
June 6
Today is the Feast day of
Saint Norbert
Among many other saints
Today is the Feast day of
Saint Norbert
Among many other saints
O
odhiambo
Guest
Saint Norbert
Bishop.
Founder of the Premonstratensians.
Norbert was born in 1080 at Xanten, Germany. He was the son of Count Heribert of Gennes and Hedwig of Guise.He was raised around the royal court and served as almoner for Emperor Henry V. Although he was made a canon of the Church at Xanten, he spent his youth frivolously, abandoning himself to the pleasures and vanities of the world round him. This state of affaires continued until 1115 when a dramatic incident served to bring about a total conversion in him.
Norbert was caught in the midst of a terrible thunderstorm. There was a flash of lightening. His horse was badly frightened. He was thrown off the animal, stunned. Half an hour later, after recovering his senses, he was a new man. He underwent a complete conversion.
He went to the Archbishop of Cologne and humbly asked to receive Holy Orders. He was ordained a priest. He then returned to Xanten where he tried to reform his fellow canons. He also preached against all the abuses and vices of his time. All he got for his efforts were persecutions and ridicule. Norbert resigned his canonry, gave all his possessions to the poor and went to Pope Galasius II who was at Languedoc at the time. The pope gave Saint Norbert permission to preach anywhere he wished. He started traveling and preaching throughout northern France and soon acquired a reputation for eloquence and miracles.
In 1120, he received some land from Bartholomew, bishop of Leon. With 13 followers, Norbert used this land to establish the Order of the Premonstratensians also known as the Norbertines.He founded this Order at Premontre, France, under the Augustinian rule. The Order grew very rapidly. Within a year, the number of monks increased to forty and soon, other houses were established, largely through the preaching of Norbert across France, Belgium and Germany. Within the first five years, ten houses were founded. The year 1126 brought recognition of the Order by Pope Honorius II and the same year, Saint Norbert was named archbishop of Magdeburg, Germany. As archbishop, he carried out several reforms in the religious life and clergy despite the risk to his life
He died on 6 June 1134 at Magdeburg, Germany. His relics are in Prague.
He was canonized on 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII.
Saint Norbert,
Pray for us!
Bishop.
Founder of the Premonstratensians.
Norbert was born in 1080 at Xanten, Germany. He was the son of Count Heribert of Gennes and Hedwig of Guise.He was raised around the royal court and served as almoner for Emperor Henry V. Although he was made a canon of the Church at Xanten, he spent his youth frivolously, abandoning himself to the pleasures and vanities of the world round him. This state of affaires continued until 1115 when a dramatic incident served to bring about a total conversion in him.
Norbert was caught in the midst of a terrible thunderstorm. There was a flash of lightening. His horse was badly frightened. He was thrown off the animal, stunned. Half an hour later, after recovering his senses, he was a new man. He underwent a complete conversion.
He went to the Archbishop of Cologne and humbly asked to receive Holy Orders. He was ordained a priest. He then returned to Xanten where he tried to reform his fellow canons. He also preached against all the abuses and vices of his time. All he got for his efforts were persecutions and ridicule. Norbert resigned his canonry, gave all his possessions to the poor and went to Pope Galasius II who was at Languedoc at the time. The pope gave Saint Norbert permission to preach anywhere he wished. He started traveling and preaching throughout northern France and soon acquired a reputation for eloquence and miracles.
In 1120, he received some land from Bartholomew, bishop of Leon. With 13 followers, Norbert used this land to establish the Order of the Premonstratensians also known as the Norbertines.He founded this Order at Premontre, France, under the Augustinian rule. The Order grew very rapidly. Within a year, the number of monks increased to forty and soon, other houses were established, largely through the preaching of Norbert across France, Belgium and Germany. Within the first five years, ten houses were founded. The year 1126 brought recognition of the Order by Pope Honorius II and the same year, Saint Norbert was named archbishop of Magdeburg, Germany. As archbishop, he carried out several reforms in the religious life and clergy despite the risk to his life
He died on 6 June 1134 at Magdeburg, Germany. His relics are in Prague.
He was canonized on 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII.
Saint Norbert,
Pray for us!
O
odhiambo
Guest
June 7
Today is the Feast day of
Saint Robert of Newminster
Among many other saints.
Today is the Feast day of
Saint Robert of Newminster
Among many other saints.
O
odhiambo
Guest
Saint Robert of New Minster.
Robert was born in Yorkshire, England in the year 1100. He studied at the University of Paris. While at the University, he is said to have written a commentary on the Psalms but unfortunataly it was not preserved for posterity. He became parish priest at Gargrave, and later a Benedictine monk at Whitby, England.
In 1132 he learnt that thirteen religious had been expelled from the Abbey of Saint Mary in York. The reason for their ejection from the Abbey was that they had proposed to restore the strict Benedictine rule. Robert asked permission from his abbot to join them and was allowed.
For two years the group struggled in extreme poverty and the fame of their sanctity spread. After two years, they were joined by Hugh, Dean of York. He gave the Community all his wealth. With this they ware able to lay the foundation for the Cistercian monastery of Fountains.
In 1137 Raynulph, Baron of Morpeth was so touched by the example of the monks at Fountains, their adoption of the Cistercian rule that was gaining prominence at the time, that he built them a monastery in Northumberland, called Newminster.
Robert became the first Abbot of the monastery.
Within ten years, three new communities migrated from this one house, to become centers of holiness in other parts.The holiness of Robert’s life, more than his words, guided his community to perfection.
Here is an interesting excerpt from Alban Butler’s Life of Saints
" The abstinence of St. Robert in refectory alone sufficed to maintain the mortified spirit of the community. One Easter Day, his stomach, weakened by the fast of Lent, could take no food, and he at last consented to try to eat some bread sweetened with honey. Before it was brought, he felt this relaxation would be a dangerous example for his subjects, and sent the food untouched to the poor at the gate. The plate was received by a young man of shining countenance, who straightaway disappeared. At the next meal the plate descended empty, and by itself, to the abbot’s place in the refectory, proving that what the Saint sacrificed for his brethren had been accepted by Christ."
ST. ROBERT OF NEWMINSTER.
Saint Robert was reputed to have had supernatural gifts, received visions, and suffered encounters with demons.
Robert died on 7 June 1159 at Newminster England of natural causes. At the moment of his death,
Saint Godric, the hermit of Finchale, said that he "saw his soul, like a globe of fire, borne up by the angels in a pathway of light; and as the gates of heaven opened before them, a voice repeated twice, “Enter now, my friend.”
He was buried in Newminster, and miracles were reported at the tomb. Later, the body was entombed in the church of Newminster. It became an object of pilgrimage.
Saint Robert,
Pray for us!
Robert was born in Yorkshire, England in the year 1100. He studied at the University of Paris. While at the University, he is said to have written a commentary on the Psalms but unfortunataly it was not preserved for posterity. He became parish priest at Gargrave, and later a Benedictine monk at Whitby, England.
In 1132 he learnt that thirteen religious had been expelled from the Abbey of Saint Mary in York. The reason for their ejection from the Abbey was that they had proposed to restore the strict Benedictine rule. Robert asked permission from his abbot to join them and was allowed.
For two years the group struggled in extreme poverty and the fame of their sanctity spread. After two years, they were joined by Hugh, Dean of York. He gave the Community all his wealth. With this they ware able to lay the foundation for the Cistercian monastery of Fountains.
In 1137 Raynulph, Baron of Morpeth was so touched by the example of the monks at Fountains, their adoption of the Cistercian rule that was gaining prominence at the time, that he built them a monastery in Northumberland, called Newminster.
Robert became the first Abbot of the monastery.
Within ten years, three new communities migrated from this one house, to become centers of holiness in other parts.The holiness of Robert’s life, more than his words, guided his community to perfection.
Here is an interesting excerpt from Alban Butler’s Life of Saints
" The abstinence of St. Robert in refectory alone sufficed to maintain the mortified spirit of the community. One Easter Day, his stomach, weakened by the fast of Lent, could take no food, and he at last consented to try to eat some bread sweetened with honey. Before it was brought, he felt this relaxation would be a dangerous example for his subjects, and sent the food untouched to the poor at the gate. The plate was received by a young man of shining countenance, who straightaway disappeared. At the next meal the plate descended empty, and by itself, to the abbot’s place in the refectory, proving that what the Saint sacrificed for his brethren had been accepted by Christ."
ST. ROBERT OF NEWMINSTER.
Saint Robert was reputed to have had supernatural gifts, received visions, and suffered encounters with demons.
Robert died on 7 June 1159 at Newminster England of natural causes. At the moment of his death,
Saint Godric, the hermit of Finchale, said that he "saw his soul, like a globe of fire, borne up by the angels in a pathway of light; and as the gates of heaven opened before them, a voice repeated twice, “Enter now, my friend.”
He was buried in Newminster, and miracles were reported at the tomb. Later, the body was entombed in the church of Newminster. It became an object of pilgrimage.
Saint Robert,
Pray for us!
S
Shin
Guest
The story of the abstinence of St. Robert is very uplifting! ;D
O
odhiambo
Guest
O
odhiambo
Guest
June 8
Today is the Feast day of
Saint Medard
Among many other saints.
Today is the Feast day of
Saint Medard
Among many other saints.
O
odhiambo
Guest
Saint Medard.
Also knpwn as
Saint Medard of Noyon.
Medard was born in Picardy, France around the year 456. He was born in a noble family. His father was Nectardus, a Frankish nobleman and his mother was Protagia, also of the nobility. He was the brother of Saint Gildardus, archbishop of Rouen France. Saint Medard was educated at Saint-Quentin. Even as a youth, he was well known for his piety.
He was ordained to the priesthood in 502 at the age of 33 years.He then worked as a missionary until 530 when he was elected bishop of Vermandois. It is said that Medard may have been consecrated by Saint Remigius of Rheims.
According to tradition, Medard moved his see from Saint-Quentin to Noyon after a raid by the Huns; he then united it with the diocese of Tournai and became Bishop of Tournai in 532; the union of the two dioceses lasted until 1146.
In his History of the Franks Gregory of Tours reported that King Clotaire killed Queen Saint Radegund’s brother unjustly. Radegund then asked Médard, then bishop of Noyon, to allow her to become a nun. Médard finally agreed, and she entered a convent; later she founded the nunnery of the Holy Cross at Poitiers.
Medard was one of the most honored bishops of his time. His memory has always been venerated in northern France.
I do not know whether this custom still goes on but it appears that each year on his feast day at Rosiere, the young girl who had been judged the most exemplary in the district was escorted by 12 boys and 12 girls to the church, where she was crowned with roses and given a gift of money. This was a continuation of a yearly stipend or "scholarship” which he apparently instituted when he was bishop.
He was the hero of numerous legends, for instance, legend says that when he was a child, Medard was once sheltered from the rain by a hovering eagle. This is his most common depiction in art, and led to his patronage of good weather, against bad weather.
Legend also had it that if it rained on his feast day, the next 40 days would be wet; if the weather was good, the next 40 would be fine as well.
In art, he was also depicted as laughing aloud with his mouth wide open; this led to his patronage against toothache.
Saint Medard died on 8 June 545 at Noyon, France.
His canonization was Pre-Congregation.
Saint Medard,
Pray for us!
Also knpwn as
Saint Medard of Noyon.
Medard was born in Picardy, France around the year 456. He was born in a noble family. His father was Nectardus, a Frankish nobleman and his mother was Protagia, also of the nobility. He was the brother of Saint Gildardus, archbishop of Rouen France. Saint Medard was educated at Saint-Quentin. Even as a youth, he was well known for his piety.
He was ordained to the priesthood in 502 at the age of 33 years.He then worked as a missionary until 530 when he was elected bishop of Vermandois. It is said that Medard may have been consecrated by Saint Remigius of Rheims.
According to tradition, Medard moved his see from Saint-Quentin to Noyon after a raid by the Huns; he then united it with the diocese of Tournai and became Bishop of Tournai in 532; the union of the two dioceses lasted until 1146.
In his History of the Franks Gregory of Tours reported that King Clotaire killed Queen Saint Radegund’s brother unjustly. Radegund then asked Médard, then bishop of Noyon, to allow her to become a nun. Médard finally agreed, and she entered a convent; later she founded the nunnery of the Holy Cross at Poitiers.
Medard was one of the most honored bishops of his time. His memory has always been venerated in northern France.
I do not know whether this custom still goes on but it appears that each year on his feast day at Rosiere, the young girl who had been judged the most exemplary in the district was escorted by 12 boys and 12 girls to the church, where she was crowned with roses and given a gift of money. This was a continuation of a yearly stipend or "scholarship” which he apparently instituted when he was bishop.
He was the hero of numerous legends, for instance, legend says that when he was a child, Medard was once sheltered from the rain by a hovering eagle. This is his most common depiction in art, and led to his patronage of good weather, against bad weather.
Legend also had it that if it rained on his feast day, the next 40 days would be wet; if the weather was good, the next 40 would be fine as well.
In art, he was also depicted as laughing aloud with his mouth wide open; this led to his patronage against toothache.
Saint Medard died on 8 June 545 at Noyon, France.
His canonization was Pre-Congregation.
Saint Medard,
Pray for us!
O
odhiambo
Guest
O
odhiambo
Guest
June 9
Today is the feast day of
Saint Ephrem
Among many other saints.
Today is the feast day of
Saint Ephrem
Among many other saints.
O
odhiambo
Guest
Saint Ephrem
Doctor of the Church.
Also known as
Saint Ephrem the Syrian
and Saint Ephraim
Saint Ephrem was born around the year 306 at Nisibis, a city which was under Roman rule at that time.( I am not sure whether Nisibis was in present day Turkey, Syria of Iraq. some sources talk of " Nisibis, in Mesopotamia; others talk of Nisibis “The modern Turkish town Nusaybin, on the border of Syria”
He was the son of a pagan priest.( Here also some sources I have read claim that Ephrem was born into a Christian family. The main reason for this school of thought is from this quotation from his writings: “I was born in the way of truth: though my childhood was unaware of the greatness of the benefit, I knew it when trial came.”
Ephrem’s parents were poor. As a child he tended the herds in the fields. There is an interesting story about an incident which happened to him while still an adolescent and which he later recounted to his followers. Here it is:
One day, as a youngster, he chased a neighbour’s cow, just for the fun of it. He was chasing the poor beast and throwing stones at it to see it run even faster and enjoying himself hugely. Unfortunataly for him, the cow dropped dead, literally. Ephrem then denied all knowledge of the beast’s whereabouts when the owners missed it and came searching. About one month later, he found himself detained in prison supposedly for a crime of which he was completely innocent. He accepted this as Divine Justice. He was
being punished for the crime that had remained unpunished. He accepted his punishment. He was released after two months.
It seems that as a youth, Ephrem was driven from his home by his pagan father when he realized that his son was tending towards Christianity. He must have found refuge at the Church because Saint James, the famous Bishop of Nisibis saw to his spiritual instruction. He was baptized at the age of eighteen (or twenty-eight).
He headed the local catechetical school and served under Saint James. In 325, he accompanied the bishop to the Council of Nicaea.
In 363, the city of Nisibis came under Persian control. There were fierce persecutions of Christians going on in all Persian territories. The faithful fled the city in droves. Ephrem was one of the many who left Nisibis. He went to Edessa (Turkey). It was here that he became a deacon (he was by now in his sixties or fifties.) and started preaching. Sometime in 364 he settled as a solitary ascetic on Mount Edessa.
The Saint had no formal education and knew only his own language, the Syriac Aramaic language which was a dialect of the same language, Aramaic, spoken by Our Lord and the apostles. Edessa was at that time, a hotbed of heresy; there were no less that ten heretical sects. Ephrem confronted them all; both by preaching and by writing. His writings support the Immaculate Conception. It is said that the Saint
“He had the gift of tears and for years he wept, literally without ceasing, according to the testimony of Saint Gregory of Nyssa, who wrote: “At times he was weeping over the sins of men, and again over his own. His sighs succeeded his tears, and then brought them forth again.” It was also said that the tears he shed so profusely, instead of disfiguring his face, seemed to augment its serenity and grace; all who had seen or heard Saint Ephrem were inspired to venerate his holiness.”
According to tradition, Ephrem began to write hymns in order to counteract the heresies that were rampant at that time.
Those of us who think of hymns simply as the song at the end of Mass that keeps us from leaving the church early, it may come as a surprise that Ephrem and others recognized and developed the power of music to get their points across. Tradition tells us that Ephrem heard the heretical ideas put into song first and in order to counteract them made up his own hymns. It is said he wrote over five hundred hymns.
In 370 Ephrem visited Saint Basil in Caesarea. He returned to Edessa to serve the poor and the needy during the famine that hit Edessa in 372. The famine ended in a year of abundant harvest the following year and Ephrem died shortly thereafter, as we are told, at an advanced age. We do not know the exact date or year of his death but June 9, 373 is accepted by many.
Saint Ephrem is credited with introducing hymns into public worship.
He was declared Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XV in 1920. He is referred to as the “Sun of the Syrians" and the “Harp of the Holy Spirit” because he was the most prolific writer of Bible commentaries in the Syrian Church and composed a large number of liturgical hymns as already mentioned. His influence among both the Syrians and the Persians was so great that some twenty years after his death, Saint Jerome had this to say of him:
" Ephrem, a deacon of the Church at Edessa, wrote many works in Syriac and became so famous that in some churches his writings are read out publicly after sacred Scripture"
Saint Ephrem,
Pray for us!
Ref:
Saint Companions for each day
A. J. M. Mausolfe.
J. K. Mausolfe
Our Sunday Visitor Encyclopedia Of Saints.
By Matthew Bunson, Stephen Bunson, Margaret Bunson:
The Catholic Encyclopedia.
And Others.
Doctor of the Church.
Also known as
Saint Ephrem the Syrian
and Saint Ephraim
Saint Ephrem was born around the year 306 at Nisibis, a city which was under Roman rule at that time.( I am not sure whether Nisibis was in present day Turkey, Syria of Iraq. some sources talk of " Nisibis, in Mesopotamia; others talk of Nisibis “The modern Turkish town Nusaybin, on the border of Syria”
He was the son of a pagan priest.( Here also some sources I have read claim that Ephrem was born into a Christian family. The main reason for this school of thought is from this quotation from his writings: “I was born in the way of truth: though my childhood was unaware of the greatness of the benefit, I knew it when trial came.”
Ephrem’s parents were poor. As a child he tended the herds in the fields. There is an interesting story about an incident which happened to him while still an adolescent and which he later recounted to his followers. Here it is:
One day, as a youngster, he chased a neighbour’s cow, just for the fun of it. He was chasing the poor beast and throwing stones at it to see it run even faster and enjoying himself hugely. Unfortunataly for him, the cow dropped dead, literally. Ephrem then denied all knowledge of the beast’s whereabouts when the owners missed it and came searching. About one month later, he found himself detained in prison supposedly for a crime of which he was completely innocent. He accepted this as Divine Justice. He was
being punished for the crime that had remained unpunished. He accepted his punishment. He was released after two months.
It seems that as a youth, Ephrem was driven from his home by his pagan father when he realized that his son was tending towards Christianity. He must have found refuge at the Church because Saint James, the famous Bishop of Nisibis saw to his spiritual instruction. He was baptized at the age of eighteen (or twenty-eight).
He headed the local catechetical school and served under Saint James. In 325, he accompanied the bishop to the Council of Nicaea.
In 363, the city of Nisibis came under Persian control. There were fierce persecutions of Christians going on in all Persian territories. The faithful fled the city in droves. Ephrem was one of the many who left Nisibis. He went to Edessa (Turkey). It was here that he became a deacon (he was by now in his sixties or fifties.) and started preaching. Sometime in 364 he settled as a solitary ascetic on Mount Edessa.
The Saint had no formal education and knew only his own language, the Syriac Aramaic language which was a dialect of the same language, Aramaic, spoken by Our Lord and the apostles. Edessa was at that time, a hotbed of heresy; there were no less that ten heretical sects. Ephrem confronted them all; both by preaching and by writing. His writings support the Immaculate Conception. It is said that the Saint
“He had the gift of tears and for years he wept, literally without ceasing, according to the testimony of Saint Gregory of Nyssa, who wrote: “At times he was weeping over the sins of men, and again over his own. His sighs succeeded his tears, and then brought them forth again.” It was also said that the tears he shed so profusely, instead of disfiguring his face, seemed to augment its serenity and grace; all who had seen or heard Saint Ephrem were inspired to venerate his holiness.”
According to tradition, Ephrem began to write hymns in order to counteract the heresies that were rampant at that time.
Those of us who think of hymns simply as the song at the end of Mass that keeps us from leaving the church early, it may come as a surprise that Ephrem and others recognized and developed the power of music to get their points across. Tradition tells us that Ephrem heard the heretical ideas put into song first and in order to counteract them made up his own hymns. It is said he wrote over five hundred hymns.
In 370 Ephrem visited Saint Basil in Caesarea. He returned to Edessa to serve the poor and the needy during the famine that hit Edessa in 372. The famine ended in a year of abundant harvest the following year and Ephrem died shortly thereafter, as we are told, at an advanced age. We do not know the exact date or year of his death but June 9, 373 is accepted by many.
Saint Ephrem is credited with introducing hymns into public worship.
He was declared Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XV in 1920. He is referred to as the “Sun of the Syrians" and the “Harp of the Holy Spirit” because he was the most prolific writer of Bible commentaries in the Syrian Church and composed a large number of liturgical hymns as already mentioned. His influence among both the Syrians and the Persians was so great that some twenty years after his death, Saint Jerome had this to say of him:
" Ephrem, a deacon of the Church at Edessa, wrote many works in Syriac and became so famous that in some churches his writings are read out publicly after sacred Scripture"
Saint Ephrem,
Pray for us!
Ref:
Saint Companions for each day
A. J. M. Mausolfe.
J. K. Mausolfe
Our Sunday Visitor Encyclopedia Of Saints.
By Matthew Bunson, Stephen Bunson, Margaret Bunson:
The Catholic Encyclopedia.
And Others.
O
odhiambo
Guest
Reflection:
“Virginity will serve as a chariot, lifting heavenward all those who guard it, as did Elias”
Saint Ephrem
“Virginity will serve as a chariot, lifting heavenward all those who guard it, as did Elias”
Saint Ephrem
K
kelvinf
Guest
What does it mean?
S
Shin
Guest
‘If you have loved virginity, you will be favored by the Lord in all things.’
St. Ephrem of Syria
Here are from some of the Beatitudes St. Ephraem wrote…
'Blessed the one who has become wholly free in the Lord from all the earthly things of this vain life and loved God alone, the good and compassionate.
Blessed the one who has become a good ploughman of the virtues and raised a harvest of fruits of life in the Lord, like a ploughed field bearing wheat.
Blessed the one who has become a good husbandman of the virtues and planted a spiritual vine, plucked the grapes and filled his presses with fruits of life in the Lord.
Blessed the one who has made his fellow servants glad with spiritual gladness from the fruit of the virtues, which he planted by toiling to give back the fruit of life in the Lord.
Blessed the one who stands in the assembly and prays like an Angel from heaven, keeping his thoughts pure day by day, and has given no entrance to the Evil One to make his soul a prisoner, far from God his Saviour.
Blessed the one who with understanding has loved weeping and with compunction rained tears upon the ground, like fair pearls before the Lord.
Blessed the one who loves holiness like the light and has not defiled his body with dark deeds of the Evil One in the sight of the Lord.
Blessed the one who keeps his body for holiness for the Saviour and has not shamed his soul by unnatural deeds, but remained well-pleasing to the Lord.
Blessed the one who has hated evil-doing that is full of shame and presented himself as a living sacrifice, well-pleasing to the Lord.
Blessed the one who always keeps the memory of God in himself, he will be wholly like an Angel from heaven upon earth, ministering to the Lord with fear and love.
Blessed the one who loves repentance that saves sinners and has not thought of doing ill, like someone ungrateful before God our Saviour.
Blessed the one who seated in his cell, like a noble warrior, guards the treasure of the kingdom, that is his body with his soul, blameless in the Lord.
Blessed the one who seated in his cell like Angels in heaven keeps his thoughts pure and with his mouth sings praise to the One who has authority over everything that breath.
Blessed the one who has become like the Seraphim and the Cherubim and never wearied in his spiritual ministry, unceasingly giving glory to the Lord.’
St. Ephrem of Syria
Here are from some of the Beatitudes St. Ephraem wrote…
'Blessed the one who has become wholly free in the Lord from all the earthly things of this vain life and loved God alone, the good and compassionate.
Blessed the one who has become a good ploughman of the virtues and raised a harvest of fruits of life in the Lord, like a ploughed field bearing wheat.
Blessed the one who has become a good husbandman of the virtues and planted a spiritual vine, plucked the grapes and filled his presses with fruits of life in the Lord.
Blessed the one who has made his fellow servants glad with spiritual gladness from the fruit of the virtues, which he planted by toiling to give back the fruit of life in the Lord.
Blessed the one who stands in the assembly and prays like an Angel from heaven, keeping his thoughts pure day by day, and has given no entrance to the Evil One to make his soul a prisoner, far from God his Saviour.
Blessed the one who with understanding has loved weeping and with compunction rained tears upon the ground, like fair pearls before the Lord.
Blessed the one who loves holiness like the light and has not defiled his body with dark deeds of the Evil One in the sight of the Lord.
Blessed the one who keeps his body for holiness for the Saviour and has not shamed his soul by unnatural deeds, but remained well-pleasing to the Lord.
Blessed the one who has hated evil-doing that is full of shame and presented himself as a living sacrifice, well-pleasing to the Lord.
Blessed the one who always keeps the memory of God in himself, he will be wholly like an Angel from heaven upon earth, ministering to the Lord with fear and love.
Blessed the one who loves repentance that saves sinners and has not thought of doing ill, like someone ungrateful before God our Saviour.
Blessed the one who seated in his cell, like a noble warrior, guards the treasure of the kingdom, that is his body with his soul, blameless in the Lord.
Blessed the one who seated in his cell like Angels in heaven keeps his thoughts pure and with his mouth sings praise to the One who has authority over everything that breath.
Blessed the one who has become like the Seraphim and the Cherubim and never wearied in his spiritual ministry, unceasingly giving glory to the Lord.’
S
Shin
Guest
I cannot explain it, but I would venture to say that only the pure of heart will ascend into the heights of Heavenly contemplation of the Lord.
And this, rapidly, on wheels of fire, if they are virgins and love virginity.
The_Reginator
Active member
The_Reginator
Active member
Hmmm…
That’s food for thought. I’ve been hearing/reading for a long time of how the Lord values virginity.
On the other hand, being called to a life of marriage and raising children is a true blessing and calling.
This is something to ponder in our times of prayer and study.
- Reg.
K
kelvinf
Guest
- Status