St. Perpetua and St. Felicity (+202-203)

St. Perpetua and St. Felicity (+202-203)
by Fe Marina S. Siacon

These two saints faced martyrdom hand in hand at Carthage in North Africa during the Persecution of Septimus Severus. The account of their deaths was probably written by Tertullian. The account was so highly esteemed that in the fourth century it was read publicly in the Churches of Northern Africa.

Perpetua, 22 years of age, was the daughter of a pagan nobleman and she was the mother of an infant still in swaddling clothes. Felicity, a slave, gave birth to a child prematurely while in prison. Three other catechumens were imprisoned with Perpetua and Felicity and they were soon joined by their teacher, Saturus. They were baptized while in prison, prior to their death in the amphitheater. The detailed account of their martyrdom is one of the greatest literary treasures that have come down to us from the early Church.



Reflection Their martyrdom highlights the intensity of their love for God. Felicity was asked by a prison guard to avoid martyrdom for the sake of her unborn child, but she refused, standing firmly for her faith. She said that even if she was going through the pains of labor she will never give up. Her love for God transcends one of the most powerful of human love. Her response to the prison guard can serve as a protest today against the widespread slaughter of the unborn through abortion. Today even the government officials are trying to propose a health bill leading to abortion in the guise of family planning. Let us pray for their enlightenment. Perpetua although from a pagan upbringing, grew in faith after her baptism. The account of her imprisonment would still be relevant today, for she said, “The Spirit inspired me to ask from the water of baptism nothing more than constancy of the flesh.” Both of them were given by the Holy Spirit the courage to endure the torments of martyrdom. Prayer: Father, Your love gave saints Perpetua and Felicity courage to suffer a cruel martyrdom. We too, are suffering from martyrdom; martyrdom in poverty, injustice, and inequality; degradation of values, and high level of political maneuvering. Help us grow in love for You despite our sufferings. Let Sts. Perpetua and Felicity intercede for us before You. Amen.

St. Polycarp

St. Polycarp

How would you feel having heard first hand information from a person who had been with Jesus, who had walked with Jesus, seen Him and touched Him. Polycarp became part of these historical events through St. John the Evangelist. He was a bishop of Smyrna (modern Izmir, Turkey), disciple of St. John the Apostle and friend of St. Ignatius of Antioch who was a revered Christian leader during the first half of the second century.

With the apostles gone, heresies sprang up pretending to be the true teaching. Persecution was strong, and controversies arose over how to celebrate liturgy that Jesus never laid down rules for.

Polycarp, as a holy man and bishop of Smyrna, found there was only one answer -- to be true to the life of Jesus and imitate that life. Saint Ignatius of Antioch told Polycarp, "Your mind is grounded in God as on an immovable rock."



When faced with heresy, he showed the "candid face" and imitated Jesus' response to the Pharisees. Marcion, the leader of the Marcionites who followed a dualistic heresy, confronted Polycarp and demanded respect by saying, "Recognize us, Polycarp." Polycarp responded, "I recognize you, yes, I recognize the son of Satan."

St. Ignatius, on his way to Rome to be martyred, visited Polycarp at Smyrna, and later at Troas wrote him a personal letter. The Asia Minor Churches recognized Polycarp’s leadership by choosing him as a representative to discuss with Pope Anicetus the date of the Easter celebration in Rome—quite a controversy in the early Church. One day, during a bloody martyrdom when Christians were attacked by wild animals in the arena, the crowd became so mad that they demanded more blood by crying, "Down with the atheists; let Polycarp be found." (They considered Christians "atheists" because they didn't believe in their pantheon of gods.) Since Polycarp was not only known as a leader but as someone holy "even before his grey hair appeared", this was a horrible demand. Polycarp was calm but others persuaded him to leave the city. He spent his time in prayer for people he knew and for the Church. During his prayer he saw a vision of his pillow turned to fire and announced to his friends that the dream meant he would be burned alive. Later he was caught.

As he entered the arena, the crowd cheered and roared like animals. Those around Polycarp heard a voice from heaven above the crowd, "Be brave, Polycarp, and act like a man."

The proconsul begged the eighty-six-year-old bishop to give in because of his age. Say, 'Away with the atheists'. Polycarp calmly turned to face the crowd, looked straight at them, and said, "Away with the atheists." The proconsul continued to plead with him. When he asked Polycarp to swear by Caesar to save himself, Polycarp answered, "If you imagine that I will swear by Caesar, you do not know who I am. Let me tell you plainly, I am a Christian." Finally, when all else failed the proconsul reminded Polycarp that he would be thrown to the wild animals unless he changed his mind. Polycarp answered, "Change of mind from better to worse is not a change allowed to us."

When he was tied up to be burned, Polycarp prayed, "Lord God Almighty, Father of your beloved and blessed Son Jesus Christ, through whom we have received knowledge of you, God of angels and powers, of the whole creation and of the whole race of the righteous who live in your sight, I bless you, for having made me worthy of this day and hour, I bless you, because I may have a part, along with the martyrs, in the chalice of your Christ, to resurrection in eternal life, resurrection both of soul and body in the incorruptibility of the Holy Spirit. May I be received today, as a rich and acceptable sacrifice, among those who are in you presence, as you have prepared and foretold and fulfilled, God who is faithful and true. For this and for all benefits I praise you, I bless you, I glorify you, through the eternal and heavenly High Priest, Jesus Christ, your beloved Son, through whom be to you with him and the Holy Spirit glory, now and for all the ages to come. Amen."

The fire was lit as Polycarp said Amen and then the eyewitnesses who reported said they saw a miracle. The fire burst up in an arch around Polycarp, the flames surrounding him like sails, and instead of being burned he seemed to glow like bread baking, or gold being melted in a furnace. When the captors saw he wasn't being burned, they stabbed him. The blood that flowed put the fire out. The flames did not harm him and he was finally killed by a dagger. The centurion ordered the saint’s body burned. The “Acts” of Polycarp’s martyrdom are the earliest preserved, fully reliable account of a Christian martyr’s death. He died in 156 at the age of 86.

Reflection: I had faced so many trials in life. Upon reading St. Polycarp’s life, I was inspired by his holiness and strong mind grounded in God. Belonging to a Christian community I invite you to pray his prayer for martyrdom daily to strengthen our faith. This prayer includes the true doctrine of the church we must learn by heart. (See the above prayer .) St. Polycarp help us to be close to Jesus Christ whom we felt seemed so far away from us. Inspire us, so that he will be close to us, and be near us by imitating His Life as you did.

St. Peter Damian

St. Peter Damian
(1007-1072)
The feast was placed in the liturgical calendar and Peter Damian was declared a Doctor of the Church only in 1828. Born at Ravenna, Italy, and after manifesting unusual intellectual gifts, he began to teach in the university at the age of 21. Seven years later he retired to the solitude of Fonte Avellana to live a penitential life. There he composed the Rule for the Camaldolese hermits and was elected prior. However, he was called out of the eremitical life by Emperor Henry III and by Pope Stephen X, who made him Bishop of Ostia and a Cardinal. He resigned from the See of Ostia in 1067 after failing to reconcile the papacy and the empire. At various times he served as papal legate in France, Germany and numerous places in Italy. In addition to his theological treatises, he is the author of the life of St. Romuald, founder of the Camaldolese hermits. He worked zealously to overcome the two principal vices of the clergy of his time: simony and immorality.

As a peacemaker and reformer, Peter Damian was a forerunner of the reforms instituted by Pope Gregory VII. He died on February 22, 1072, and his cult was popular in the area of Ravenna and in the Camaldolese Order. In the Divine Comedy Dante places St. Peter Damian in the seventh heaven, among the comtemplatives.

Reflection

St. Peter Damian was a teacher and model of Christian life. We are urged to imitate his life “by making Christ and the service of His Church the first love of our lives. In one of his works he stated: “Monastic discipline is lax and far removed from its customary perfection; the majority of the clergy live mundane lives and laity fight and plunder one another.” He denounced the vices which increased hostility of his adversaries. He was even coldly rebuffed by Pope Leo IX, who had capitulated to the very persons that Peter was denouncing. Today we need most another Peter Damian who is courageous and can pass judgment on the decadence or corruption of public morality. We must never compromise the gospel.

Another point which encourages us to imitate Peter Damian was his dedicated service to the Church. For him every Christian is a “little church”, capable of realizing in himself/herself the relationship of Christ to His Church. Lastly, “Do not prefer anything to the love of Christ.” This is not only ideal for the monastic life but an imperative for every true Christian who lives according to the gospel. (From the Rule of St. Benedict.)

Prayer: Lord Jesus, help us live our life according to the teachings and example of St. Peter Damian, by making Christ and the service of His Church our first love so that through this first love we come to the joys of eternal Light. Amen.

by Fe Marina S. Siacon

St. Cyril of Alexandria

St. Cyril of Alexandria
A.D. 444

Si St. Cyril gintawag nga “Doctor of the Incarnation.” Iya ginasaysay kag ginapaathag ang doktrina sang misterio sang “Pulong sang Dios nga nangin-Tao.”

Sang tuig 428 may isa ka pari nga monghi, kag nangin arsobispo sang Constantinople. Siya amo si Nestorius nga nagtudlo nga may duha ka natures si Kristo, ini amo ang nature Niya bilang tao kag ang ikaduha amo ang nature Niya bilang Dios. Ining duha Niya ka natures natingub lang tungod sinang “moral union” nga sa diin ang Dios nagpuyo sa sining pagkatao ni Kristo bilang templo lang sang pagkabalaan indi tungod nga ining duha ka “natures”– ang pagka Dios kag ang PagkaTao isa lang, nga amo ang ika-duha nga Persona sang Dios, ang Pulong sang Dios nga nangin Tao. Suno pa gid kay Nestorius ang Mahal nga Birhen indi dapat tawgon nga Iloy sang Dios (Theotokos), tungod siya iloy lang ni Kristo nga Tao kag indi bilang iloy ni Kristo, nga Dios kag tao nga matuod (hypostatic union) kag ika-duha nga Persona sang Dios. Ining nga pagtulun-an nga ginduso ni Nestorius nangin daku nga sala (error) sa bahin sang pagtuluohan sang Simbahan. Madamo ang nagtalang. Gani nagpadala si St. Cyril sa iya sang isa ka sulat nga nagapamatok sa sini nga pagtuluohan ni Nestorius. Apang wala siya sini ginsapak kundi labi pa gani nga nagpalabi-labi, kag maisog nga nagpanindugan sa iya ginatuohan. Ginhingyo kuntani sia ni St. Cyril nga akuon ang iya kasaypanan kag tadlungon ang sala niya nga pagtuo. Wala gid sia magsapak subong bala nga wala sia sing pagtaha kay St. Cyril.

Tungod sang indi paghinangpanay sa tunga ni Nestorius kag Cyril nahanugod sa sini nga doktrina gintukod ang 3rd General Council of Ephesus sang anyo 431. Ini nga Council gintambungan sang duha ka gatos nga mga obispos sa diin si Cyril amo ang nagpangulo kag bilang representante ni Pope Celestine. Diri sini nga pagtilipon gindiskusyonan ang doctrina nahanungod sang pagkaDios kag pagkaTao ni Kristo (human and divine nature of Jesus Christ). Ang mga doctrina ni Nestorius nahanunngod sa pagkaTao ni Kristo kag ang pagka Iloy ni Birhen Maria kay Kristo nga Tao wala ginbaton sa council kag ila ini gincondenar. Diri man sini nga Council gin-excommunicate kag gin-depose si Nestorius tungod sang daku nga error ukon heresy sang iya doktrina. Ini nga heresy nagadala sang iya ngalan “Nestorianism”.

Nagdaug si Cyril sa pagpangapin sa pagtuo. Si Pope Celestine nagtawag sa iya nga “the generous defender of the Catholic faith” Siya ang tao nga may mabaskog sing panindugan, maisog kag madali mag-akto sa mga kahigayunan nga kinahanglanon. Sang iya panahon, Nestorianism kag Pelagianism ang nagasulay sa Simbahan apang wala ini magmadinalag-on.

Reflection by Fe Marina S. Siacon:

Utang naton kay St. Cyril ang maathag nga paghangup sang sini nga mga doktrina kon sa diin nangin mabaskog pa gid ang aton pagtuo kay Ginoong Jesus. Kon indi tungod sa iya ayhan nagtalang man kita. Dapat magmapinasalamaton kita sa iya subong nga panahon kay nangin masanag na sa aton ang misterio sang “Pulong sang Dios nga nangin Tao.” Ara na kita sa kasanag sang pagtuluohan sa simbahan nga Katoliko. Ang iya ginbilin sa aton amo ang debosyon sa Santo Sacramento. Amo ini ang iya pagpati sa Santo Sacramento nga dapat man naton tularan. “in holy communion we are made concorporeal with Christ.” His letter to Nestorius stated: Proclaiming the death according to the flesh of the only begotten Son of God, and confessing His resurrection from the dead and ascent into Heaven, we celebrate the bloodless sacrifice in our churches; and thus approach the mystic blessings, and are sanctified by partaking of the holy flesh and the precious blood of Christ the Savior of us all. And we receive it, not as common flesh (God forbid), nor as the flesh of a man sanctified and associated with Word according to the unity of merit, or as having a divine indwelling, but as really the life-giving and very flesh of the Word Himself.

Halin sang una tubtub subong mabatyagan ko nga kulang ang akon pagsimba kon indi ako maka-pangalawat. May hollow nga part sa akon heart. Ini tungod nga ang aton heart natunga sa duha – ginkuha ni God ang sangkatunga ang tunga nabilin sa aton nga mga tao. Ti sa pagbaton naton kay Jesus sa aton heart nangin whole na ini tungod ang ½ nga Iya kag ½ nga aton nabuo, nangin bilog kag wala na sing hollowness. Siling ni San Agustin – “Our heart is restless, till it finds rest in You, O Lord.”

St. Thomas Aquinas

St. Thomas Aquinas
Feastday: January 28

St. Thomas Aquinas, was a priest and doctor of the Church, patron of all universities and of students. His feast day is January 28. He was born toward the end of the year 1226. He was the son of Landulph, Count of Aquino, who, when St. Thomas was five years old, placed him under the care of the Benedictines of Monte Casino. His teachers were surprised at the progress he made, for he surpassed all his fellow pupils in learning as well as in practice of virtue.

When he became of age to choose his state of life, St. Thomas renounced the things of this world and resolved to enter the Order of St. Dominic in spite of the opposition of his family. In 1243, at the age of seventeen, he joined the Dominicans of Naples. Some members of his family resorted to all manner of means over a two year period to break his constancy. They even went so far as to send an impure woman to tempt him. But all their efforts were in vain and St. Thomas persevered in his vocation. As a reward for his fidelity, God conferred upon him the gift of perfect chastity, which has merited for him the title of the “Angelic Doctor:.
After making his profession at Naples, he studied at Cologne under the celebrated St. Albert the Great. Here he was nicknamed the “dumb ox” because of his silent ways and huge size, but he was really a brilliant student. At the age of twenty-two, he was appointed to teach in the same city. At the same time, he also began to publish his first works. After four years he was sent to Paris. The saint was then a priest. At the age of thir-one, he received his doctorate.

At Paris he was honored with the friendship of the King, St. Louise, with whom he frequently dined. In 1261, Urban IV called him to Rome where he was appointed to teach, but he positively declined to accept any ecclesiastical dignity. St. Thomas not only wrote his writings (filled twenty hefty times characterized by brilliance of thought and lucidity f language), but he preached often and with greatest fruit Clement IV offered him the Archbishopric of Naples which he also refused. He left the great monument of his learning, the “Summa Theologica”, unfinished, for on his way to the second Council of Lyons, ordered there by Gregory X, he fell sick and died at the Cistercian monastery of Fossa Nuova in 1274.
St. Thomas was one of the greatest and most influential theologians of all time. He was canonized in 1323 and declared Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius V.

Reflection:
I was struck by the way St. Thomas of Aquinas lived his life. He renounced the things of this world. In our part it is hard to renounce the sweet and sugar-coated attractiveness of life on earth. Most especially if we are in the midst of a flourishing success, wealth and happy life. But sometimes we wonder, are we really happy in its true sense of the word “happy” enjoying our wealth (honestly acquired or…)? Don’t we feel so empty at times? I came across an article, “The Poor Rich Girl” story of the daughter of Aristotle Onassis, the famous billionaire and husband of Jackie Kennedy. Isn’t it contradicting? She was rich yet poor, in what sense? If we think being wealthy is true happiness, then it may not be true in some circumstances. This girl experienced it in her life. She did not feel happy. Her father was away from her. She felt unloved because people around her were busy. She has nobody to turn to in times of her ups and downs. She felt so lonely and alone. We can say then that what she lacked in life was love. Love makes us happy. St. Thomas renounced all earthy things because he found true happiness by following Jesus. Thus as this song goes: “True, true happiness will follow, if you only follow me.” He found true happiness in serving the Lord and being with Him always. He was so strong in preserving his vocation despite the strong temptations before him. He was very faithful to God, and because of his fidelity, God conferred upon him the gift of perfect chastity, which has merited for him the title of the "Angelic Doctor".

Dear St. Thomas, I owe you the five ways to prove God’s existence. I owe from you this strong foundation in my belief of the existence of God. I owe you my faith. By studying deeply your five ways to prove God’s existence in our course Creed and Apologetics, I was given the gift of faith through your teaching. Thank you. In believe that in any approach to impart knowledge it is best to communicate something abstract in concrete. This was how you presented God’s existence. There is something moving. Everything that moves is put into motion by something else. But this series of antecedent movers cannot reach back infinitely. Therefore, there must be a first mover (which is God). The order and arrangement of the natural world (not merely its existence) bespeaks the deliberate design of an intelligent creator. All these facts can be felt, seen, observed around us. It is therefore a must for us to protect these gifts of an Intelligent Creator, the First Mover.

by Fe Marina Siacon