#Patron Saint of Advent

[momentsbeforemass]

A heart that’s truly free

(by request)

Today is the feast of the Immaculate Conception.

Right in the middle of Advent. We’re supposed to be waiting in hope. Focused on the One who is to come.

But no.

We’re messing it up. With some random thing about Mary. Because, why not?

Just more of the Mary stuff we do as Catholics. We drag Mary into everything. Why not Advent? Even if it makes no sense, right?

Actually, the truth goes something like this:

“Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

Let earth receive her King!

Let every heart prepare Him room,”

Today is all about the first heart to “prepare Him room.”

The Immaculate Conception is about Mary. That Mary was conceived free from original sin. Why?

So that Mary’s answer to the angel, the one we hear in today’s Gospel, could be a truly free choice. Not clouded by ego and pride. Not made desperate by separation from God through sin.

But an answer freely given. From a heart that’s truly free.

Some people think that Mary, being conceived free from original sin, means that Mary was God’s perfect robot. That Mary really had no choice.

Okay. Let’s look at the history of choices made by people conceived free from original sin.

Mary. Free from original sin. Said “yes” to God.

Jesus. Free from original sin. Said “yes” to God.

Adam. Free from original sin. Said “no” to God.

Eve. Same thing.

That’s 50%. Half the people born free from original sin used that freedom to say no to God.

Clearly, lack of a sinful nature does not mean lack of a free choice.

Great, but what does this have to do with Advent?

Advent has its roots in the Prophets. Isaiah, Elijah, and the others who foretold the One who is to come. The longing of age after age for a Savior.

Mary is the patron saint of Advent.

Because the Immaculate Conception grabs hold of the longing of the ages. And takes it from dreamtime. To our time.

Mary’s “yes” to God takes it from someday. To today.

Because she said “yes.” Because she first, prepared Him room, we can say,

“Joy to the world, the Lord is come!”

Mary shows us the power of saying yes to God.

Imagine what could happen if we said yes.

Today’s Readings

[fictionadventurer]

The independent religious bookstore is the only place you can go on an overpriced shopping spree and feel good about it.

[black-rose-irl]

You know what's kinda fucked up?

Having your cutesy book about Christmas time saints feature a story about three girls in danger of being sold to a brothel because of their father's debts. (St. Nicolas, whose myth of saving those 3 girls from being forced into prostitution by giving them money has turned into the story of Santa Claus)

I mean, it's accurate to the supposed story, but also, looking back at it, it was kind of a fucked up thing to have your kid (like 8 or 9) read out loud to your other children (6 or younger), when you're trying to learn where your names came from.

[reaperfromtheabyss]

Calling All Catholics!

Weird thing for a Jew to post I know I know but hear me out here.

I would like to hear from Catholics (current and ex/raised),

what do you feel separates your religion from others (both other sects of Christianity and other religions as a whole? what feels unique or specific to you/your culture/your beliefs/your church? this can be theological beliefs, practices, or even aesthetics

what things feel "inherently Catholic" or "Catholic coded" to you?

if you don't mind, would you also include what subset of Catholicism you are/were raised in (Roman, Byzantine, Irish, Opus Dei, etc)?

As you may have guessed, this is for research, and I personally only have experience with Roman Catholicism (and limited experience at that, more cultural than truly religious). I would love to hear from a larger subset of people. My family is extremely Italian Catholic but that's just one very specific version, and I don't have much/any experience with any others. I'm curious to see what the common ground is.

Reblogs/signal boosts are appreciated as I doubt I have like a SUPER broad Catholic following myself lol!

[whencyclopedia]

Grossmunster

Grossmünster (“large cathedral” in German) is a Romanesque ex-cathedral situated in the heart of Zürich, Switzerland, which was built over the course of the 11th and 13th centuries CE. According to legend, the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne founded Grossmünster around c. 810 CE to house the bones and relics of the early Christian martyrs St. Felix, St. Regula, and St. Exuperantius who were believed to have fled to Zürich and died in city during the 3rd century CE. Grossmünster is Zürich's most recognizable and famous landmark by virtue of its iconic twin towers, and it retains a place of prominence in Protestant Christianity due to its role in the Protestant Swiss Reformation, which began at the direction of Ulrich Zwingli in 1519-1520 CE. Along with Fraumunster, Predigerkirche, and St. Peterskirche, Grossmünster is one of the oldest and largest churches in Zürich. Its triple-aisled crypt is also the largest in Switzerland.

Legends & Medieval History

Legend has it that the patron saints of Zürich - Felix, Regula, and their servant Exuperantius - were once members of the Christian Thebaic Legion, which had its base in what is now the Swiss canton of Valais. Due to the intense persecution of Christians by Roman authorities in the region, Felix, Regula, and Exuperantius fled to Zürich at some point in the late 3rd century CE. When Roman authorities in Zürich discovered their Christian beliefs, the Roman governor of Turicum - Roman Zürich - forced the three Christians to be boiled in oil and drink molten lead. Soon thereafter, he ordered the three Christians beheaded. Folklore has it that after their executions, Felix, Regula, and Exuperantius calmly picked up their severed heads and walked 40 paces - or about 27 m (30 yards) - to the place where they wished to find eternal rest and ascend to heaven. About 500 years later, Charlemagne (r. 800-814 CE) came to Zürich in pursuit of a large stag that he had seen while out hunting around Aachen, Germany. Upon arrival in Zürich, Charlemagne's horse stumbled over the graves of the three saints, and it was there that Charlemagne ordered the construction of a new church along the Limmat River: the Grossmünster Cathedral.

The basilica of Grossmünster was constructed in six stages from c. 1090-1230 CE and was erected over a 9th-century CE Carolingian building of similar dimensions. Architects made periodic renovations and structural alterations to Grossmünster in later centuries; most notably, increasing the cathedral's southern tower to match the height of the northern tower in the late 15th century CE. Grossmünster's organization and activities were overseen by the bishopric of Konstanz, Germany until the advent of the Reformation in the 16th century CE, and Grossmünster was both part of a secular canon's monastery and a parish church until that time too.

During the Middle Ages, Grossmünster's fortunes were intricately connected to those of Fraumünster, which was the nearby Benedictine convent located only 180 m (551 ft) across the Limmat River. These two churches stood facing from one another, dominating Zürich's skyline as the two largest structures in the city and as pillars of the influence and power of the Catholic Church in northern Switzerland. The two churches were, however, in perpetual rivalry with one another for control over the relics of St. Felix, St. Regula, and St. Exuperantius. The two churches shared and publically showcased these relics in an elaborate urban procession held annually on September 11th. (That day is the feast day of the three saints; this day is still celebrated as a holiday in the city of Zürich.) Zürich emerged as an important pilgrimage center by the late Middle Ages as the faithful visited the relics of the three saints while en route to other pilgrimage centers like Santiago de Compostela in Spain, the Vatican in Rome, Italy, and the Benedictine Abbey in Einsiedeln, Switzerland, which lies only 40 km (25 miles) to Zürich's southeast.

Continue reading...

[scotianostra]

January 3rd the year 671 saw the birth in Ireland of Saint Maelrubha, a monk who founded a monastery at what is now Applecross.

On his father's side Maelrubha was eighth in descent from the famous Niall of the Nine Hostages, King of Ireland, and through his mother he belonged to the kindred of St Congal of Bangor. He was born on 3rd January 642 AD, probably in the south-east part of what is now Londonderry.

After residing for some time in the monastery at Bangor, he embarked for Scotland in 671 AD. His early missionary enterprises were concentrated in districts now included in Argyll, planting churches at Kilarrow in Islay, and on the mainland at Killarow in the modern Killean and Kilchenzie parish; Kilmory, now Strathlachlan parish; and Kilmorrie near Dunstaffnage Castle.

In 673AD St Maelrubha arrived at Apercrossan, now Applecross, in Ross-shire, and made it the nucleus of his Christian missionary work throughout that part of the west coast and eastwards as far as the shores of the North Sea. He continued to be the abb of the muinntir for an incredible fifty-one years and died on 21st April 722AD. The privileged ground around the monastery, its garth or sanctuary, extended six miles in all directions and came to be known in the Gaelic as A'Chomraich, i.e. the sanctuary, a name still applied in the Highlands to the present parish of Applecross.

Not surprisingly, Maelrubha was considered to be, "the patron of all the coast, from Applecross to Loch Broom." Traditions in the Black Isle tell us that St Maelrubha was martyred in the parish of Urquhart and that his body was carried back to Applecross for interment.

According to another tradition, he was killed by Scandinavian pirates in Strathnaver in Sutherland, and was buried at a spot close to the river Naver, about nine miles from its mouth. It is said that the spot was marked by a rough stone bearing an incised cross.

You have to make your choices in these matters but personally, I favour the Strathnaver version of the story. The churches of Forres in Moray and Fordyce in Banffshire were dedicated to St Laurence and St Talarican respectively but, since there was, in each of these parishes, a fair - known as Samareve's in the former,and New Summaruff's in the latter - the reader might conclude that there must have been some dedication to St Maelrubha in both parishes. There was also a Samarive's Fair in the parish of Keith, whose church was under the invocation of Maelrubha, giving the township its ancient name of 'Kethmalruf'. These are possible exaamples of old "Celtic dedications" being supplanted with new dedications which were more acceptable to the medieval Church as it became more Roman in its outlook.

The community at Applecross played a major rôle in the advent of Christianity in the north and north-west of Scotland. It acted, in those parts, in the same way that Iona did in Dalriada and the western isles. It is not surprising to find that its influence spread as far as the north east.

Pics are of thev 15th century ruined chapel at Applecross and St Maelrubha's Scottish Episcopal Church, Poolewe.

[nogetron]

Ogun, Orisha of iron and combat. As the son of the creator of earth, Oduduwa, Ogun is one of the most revered deities of the Orishas. After Oduduwa had created the lands, Ogun lead the way for the other Orishas, clearing a path to earth. Together the Orishas brought the many aspects of the world to earth, with Ogun as the embodiment of metal and minerals, he brought the land its hardiest materials. With these metals Ogun gave humanity the gift of technology. All tools, from blades and wrenches to guns and cars, derive from Ogun’s source. Ogun is straightforward and aggressive, often being compared to a hound in personality, able to face danger head on. However it is because of his nature that he is the patron of war. Being incredibly adept in battle, he is prone to starting conflict. Like his father/mother Oduduwa before him, Ogun incarnated into a human form in the physical world. Son of his father’s incarnation also named Oduduwa, Ogun inherited the throne of the Yoruba city Ife. However after killing two subjects who disrespected him, he was forced to surrender kingship to his son Oranmiyan. Despite leaving the physical world, Ogun promised to aid those who called to him.

Ogun is one of the most popular and well known members of the Yoruba Orishas, with his worship transmitting to large portion of west Africa. One can find west African counterparts of Ogun in the Dahomey Gu and the Ewe Vodun Egu who is also referred to as Gu. Due to the slave trade, Ogun’s worship was transmitted and spread to the americas. His American theological descendants lay across the practices of the Brazilian Candomblé, Santeria, Dominican Vudu, New Orleans Voodoo, and Haitian Vodou. In Candomblé practices Ogun, known to them as Ogum, is synchronous with the Christian Saint George, Sebastian, Anthony and Peter. Ogun is the patron deity of many professions, with blacksmiths, drivers, soldiers and engineers being some of the many people who call upon Ogun’s protection. Ogun holds two festivals in his honor, the Ogun festival is called by a priest on the advent of a new moon, nine days later the festival starts and lasts seven days on the fourth they they sacrifice a dog an animal closely associated with Ogun. The second is the Elefon festival which celebrates the return of Yoruba warriors and the start of a new crop season, these celebrations hold a ceremony in which an individual wearing an Epa mask jumps off a mound, losing balance or falling is said to be an omen fortelling a bad crop year. Ogun’s many names include Ogou, Gou, Ogu and Oggun. Yoruba legends states that Ogun was an earthly king that ruled over Ife along with other earthly Orishas, some have claimed that this could mean that the Orishas are deified kings whose exploits were turned into legend. However others have countered saying that adopting the name of a Yoruba god when taking the throne of Ife may have been a tradition, with those rulers exploits being woven into the already existing deity’s narrative.

[incomingalbatross]

Top 5 tropes, top 5 dog breeds, top 5 saints

Ooh, good questions! Thank you for the ask :)

tropes:

Happy endings emerging from the jaws of despair; eucatastrophe

When you have two guys who are friends but they like pretending to hate each other (I was a sucker for this at eleven when I saw Star Trek: TOS, and I have remained a sucker ever since)

Mortal-immortal friendships, in all their variations

Characters getting trapped in their nightmares and other characters having to save them

Anything with memory loss/wipes, especially if it's thoroughly explored

dog breeds:

Labradors are a classic kind of dog.

Cocker spaniels are very different but also classic, and I think they're cute.

Terriers! Is this partly because of Snowy from Tintin? yes.

Newfoundlands are BIG and FLUFFY and I appreciate this.

Beagles because the only dog I've taken care of long-term was a beagle. She IS loud and she IS an inveterate food thief but I love her anyway <3

Saints:

Mary, Mother of God. Of course she's at the top of the list. She's Our Lady.

Saint Joseph is equally clearly next! Most valiant, most humble, most obedient, guardian of virgins, protector of family life, model of laborers, patron of the dying... Chaste Guardian of the Virgin and Foster-Father of the Son of God.

St. Mary Magdalene - I don't know if I exactly have a special devotion to her, but I do love remembering her life. Model of penitents and one of the holiest and most beloved of Christ's followers. (I do also adhere to the belief that she is the same person as Mary sister of Lazarus; this is a long-standing tradition, and it makes sense to me.)

St. Alphonsus Liguouri - his month's worth of daily meditations for Adoration are beautiful and have made him familiar to me, even though I know very little about his life. (He also wrote a set of prayers/reflections for the Stations of the Cross that a lot of parishes use.)

St. Frances of Rome - my confirmation saint, a 14-century Roman noblewoman who was wife and mother over a large household, and founded a religious order for widows after her husband's death. Is the patron saint of automobile drivers, because an angel is said to have lighted the way for her when she went out on charitable works at night. I love how well she followed God while fulfilling her duties in the world.

Secret sixth spot (because Our Lady's spot is hardly information): Blessed Herman the Cripple, 11th-century Benedictine polymath who wrote Salve Regina, the Advent and Christmas Marian antiphon Alma Redemptoris Mater, and Veni Sancte Spiritus. If you ask me, that alone should qualify him for canonization, but I suppose his cause is waiting for more posthumous miracles.

[maypoleman1]

13th December

St Lucy’s Day

Saint Lucia’s Day. Source: The Book of Christmas, The Enchanted World, Time-Life Books

Today is St Lucy’s Day. Lucy, or Lucia, was a devout Christian virgin on the island of Sicily in the fourth century AD who was pursued by an ardent suitor who told her he was in love with her eyes. In a desperate attempt to get her admirer to lose interest, Lucia plucked out her own eyes and handed them to the horrified man with the words ‘Now let me live in God’. God recognised her sacrifice and restored Lucia’s eyes soon afterwards. Lucia however was eventually executed by the pagan Roman authorities who burned her alive.

Lucia’s death by flame is the only discernible link between her and the festivities in Scandinavia to celebrate her day. These celebrations have entirely pagan roots and derive from winter sun festivals held on the northern solstice to brighten the darkest nights of the year. On the morning of 13th December, girls would dress as Lucia in a plain white shift and bring their parents festive cheer, their heads crowned with a wreath of lingonberry or holly mounted with the four Advent candles. St Lucia’s Day traditionally marks the beginning of the Christmas season.

St Lucia’s Day coincided with the Norse festival of Yule and was marked by the old rhyme : ‘Lucy light, the shortest day and the longest night’ . St Lucy was also the patron saint of people suffering poor eyesight which is partially a reference to the saint’s self blinding but also to the long dark night of her named day.

[holyguardian]

I’m feeling so validated about my portrayal of Aerith the deeper I get into Rebirth. It’s difficult to explain, I started to write this gremlin at a weird point in time where a lot of people only knew her through the Kingdom Hearts franchise or the Advent Children movie. She tends to be a character who’s given the patron saint / kindness and rainbows treatment, or at least she was during those years before Remake. I’m a lot more confident in my own take.

[abmediumaevum]

(BL Egerton MS 2781; The "Neville of Hornby Hours"; 14th c. f.76v)

Today (Nov. 30th) is Andermas, the feast day of Saint Andrew: apostle, martyr, and patron saint of Scotland (amongst many other patronages). Traditionally, Saint Andrew's Day marks the beginning of Advent (starting the Sunday closest to November 30th) in both the Eastern and Western Christian liturgical calendar.

Saint Andrew has been the patron saint of Scotland for some 700 years, beginning in 1320 with the Declaration of Arbroath addressed to Pope John XXII. Written and sealed by fifty-one Scottish barons and magnates in the reign of King Robert I - popularly known as 'the Bruce' - (r.1306-1329) the Declaration was part of a broader diplomatic effort to assert Scotland's position as an independent kingdom during the First War of Scottish Independence (1296-1328) in spite of the Pope's recognising of King Edward I of England's claim to overlordship of Scotland in 1305 and his excommunication of Robert from the Church in 1306.

(National Records of Scotland; The Declaration of Arbroath [Online], URL: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/Declaration)

Elsewhere in the United Kingdom, such as in Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Northamptonshire, 'Tandrew' or 'Tandry' - as St. Andrew's Day was colloquially known - was traditionally once a major festival in many rural villages. Thomas Sternberg, describing popular customs in mid-19th-century Northamptonshire writes that "the day is one of unbridled license [...] drinking and feasting prevail to a notorious extent. Towards evening the villagers walk about and masquerade, the women wearing men's dress and the men wearing female attire, visiting one another's cottages and drinking hot elderberry wine, the chief beverage of the season." (Sternberg, 1851: pp.183-85).

--

As the nights grow longer, Christmas steadily begins to come into our view, be sure to think upon this old folk-rhyme on this chilly night.

(Northfall, G.F. (1892), "English Folk Rhymes: A collection of traditional verses relating to places and persons, customs, superstitions, etc.", (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co. Ltd.), p.455)

[momentsbeforemass]

A heart that's truly free

(by request)

Today is the feast of the Immaculate Conception.

Right in the middle of Advent. We’re supposed to be waiting in hope. Focused on the One who is to come.

But no.

We’re messing it up. With some random thing about Mary. Because, why not?

Just more of the Mary stuff we do as Catholics. We drag Mary into everything. Why not Advent? Even if it makes no sense, right?

Actually, the truth goes something like this:

“Joy to the world, the Lord is come!

Let earth receive her King!

Let every heart prepare Him room,”

Today is all about the first heart to “prepare Him room.”

The Immaculate Conception is about Mary. That Mary was conceived free from original sin. Why?

So that Mary’s answer to the angel, the one we hear in today’s Gospel, could be a truly free choice. Not clouded by ego and pride. Not made desperate by separation from God through sin.

But an answer freely given. From a heart that’s truly free.

Some people think that Mary, being conceived free from original sin, means that Mary was God’s perfect robot. That Mary really had no choice.

Okay. Let’s look at the history of choices made by people conceived free from original sin.

Mary. Free from original sin. Said “yes” to God.

Jesus. Free from original sin. Said “yes” to God.

Adam. Free from original sin. Said “no” to God.

Eve. Same thing.

That’s 50%. Half the people born free from original sin used that freedom to say no to God.

Clearly, lack of a sinful nature does not mean lack of a free choice.

Great, but what does this have to do with Advent?

Advent has its roots in the Prophets. Isaiah, Elijah, and the others who foretold the One who is to come. The longing of age after age for a Savior.

Mary is the patron saint of Advent.

Because the Immaculate Conception grabs hold of the longing of the ages. And takes it from dreamtime. To our time.

Mary’s “yes” to God takes it from someday. To today.

Because she said “yes.” Because she first, prepared Him room, we can say,

“Joy to the world, the Lord is come!”

Mary shows us the power of saying yes to God.

Imagine what could happen if we said yes.

Today’s Readings

[lord-aldhelm]

Saint Aldhelm of Malmesbury

Although most of the characters in The Last Kingdom and The Saxon Stories were based on real historical people, Aldhelm was a completely fictional character just made up for the story. However, there was a Saint Aldhelm, a man of historical significance in Anglo-Saxon England. He is the patron saint of musicians and songwriters.

Aldhelm was born in 639 in Wessex. As a young boy he was educated in Canterbury and studied Latin and Greek literature, and could also read and write Hebrew. When he returned to Wessex, he joined the monks at Malmesbury and became a popular teacher, and people would journey from as far as France and Scotland to learn from him. He also loved to write poetry, and composed music and sang. He could play the harp, fiddle, and pipes. Aldhelm was well known for his theatrical way of preaching, and would sing in addition to preach to get the attention of the commonfolk outside of church. Over a century later, King Alfred regarded him highly as one of the great poets and bards of his time, and wrote stories about him.

In 683, Aldhelm was appointed the Abbot of Malmesbury, where he continued to make it a seat of education. He enlarged the monastery and built several churches and founded more monasteries in the area. In 705 he was made Bishop of Sherborne, where he rebuilt the church and oversaw the construction of more churches and a nunnery.

On 25th May 709, Aldhelm died at Doulting in Somerset, and after his death he was sainted. May 25 is a feast day for St Aldhelm. The Church of St Aldhelm (built in the 12th century) and St Aldhelm's Well in Somerset are dedicated to him. St Aldhelm has a flag in his honor, with a white cross on a red background.

Name Meaning

The name Aldhelm and the Old English version "Ealdhelm", is derived from the Germanic elements ald "old" and helm "helmet, protection".

Links:

Wikipedia Article about Saint Aldhelm

Aethelstan Museum

New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia

St Aldhelm's

Early British Kingdoms biography

Catholic Online article about Aldhelm

OrthoChristian.com article about St Aldhelm

[cetra]

I felt inspired by this post to use the general strike as an opportunity to share Palestinian art. Sadly i myself am not an artist but as you guys do know I'm a Christian and I thought on this day of global strike for Palestine during the Advent/Nativity season we could celebrate the land's rich religious history and enjoy these photos of the beautiful St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Beit Jala, Bethlehem in Palestine.

St. Nicholas is the patron saint of Beit Jala, and each year on December 19th the people of the town celebrate a festival in his name as part of a three-day celebration beginning on the 17th. There's concerts, parades, plays and even a bazaar. Although Beit Jala's populace is said to be around 65% Christian many Muslims partake in the festivities as well.

It appears as though this year there will be no Christmas celebrations held in Bethlehem due to the ongoing genocide in Gaza. I hope that the Palestinians, whether they be in the occupied territories or in Gaza, or in the diaspora worldwide, of any or no faith, know that God and all the saints and all the prophets are with them. May they one day return to their homes. May they one day never know the sound of an Israeli airstrike. May they one day know only peace and love here on earth as their martyrs do in the kingdom of heaven, Amen

I'm ending this post with a prayer from Sabeel: "Emmanuel, God with us, Advent in Palestine this year feels like a paradox. We meditate on the hope of the incarnation whilst we live in a hopeless reality where children are killed, lives lost become mere numbers and statistics, women have no safe place to give birth, and injustice is celebrated. Lord, this is your story. As we meditate on your incarnation, let it be a time of active waiting which feeds the hungry, clothes the naked, heals the sick, and struggles with the oppressed for their liberation."

Thanks for reading 🧡🇵🇸

[czerwonykasztelanic]

I'm very much aware that I complain about it every time I leave a bookstore (so: on an almost monthly basis), but popular perception of historical and contemporary events alike is a product of siege mentality.

In Poland, specifically: a keen but suppressed awareness of the West's decline and inevitable collapse, paired with a visceral fear of the nebulous Orient, leads the average citizen of this liberal Christian democracy to believe that he must seek out a Noah to build him an ark, lest the coming deluge drown him alongside the unenlightened. He sees the downfall of the prevailing order as a natural outcome of his class's social decomposition, of its descent into mindless self indulgence, and perhaps of its too-lenient attitude towards deviants and saboteurs. His fortress will succumb to the horde of infidels because its watchmen abandoned their posts and opened the gates to carriers of the plague; it is a conquest well-deserved. For all that, the impending catastrophe may still be averted, but only through the advent of a Great Man, this long-awaited tyrant Noah, an individual force capable of delivering the ingenuous townsfolk from the Mongol swarm, rallying a holy legion against the rotten of the Earth. He will be crowned patron saint of the enterprising and lord-protector of industry. And he will reign over the besieged with an iron fist, turning boys into men and men into machines, crushing underfoot anyone who refuses to bow before him, paying no heed to the cries of the destitute, weeding out the weak and lathering himself in gold. All this - in the name of an abstract freedom. Triumphant! Order prevails in the Western world. The citadel becomes an empire.

And so the bookshelves are lined with the works of the prophets du jour, variations on the theme of Why China is going to destroy us and War with the East; right next to them, the biographies of Hitler, Mussolini, Churchill, Bismarck and Bonaparte. Voilà the free market.

[cruger2984]

THE DESCRIPTION OF SAINT GERTRUDE THE GREAT The Patron of the West Indies Feast Day: November 16

"O Sacred Heart of Jesus, fountain of eternal life, Your Heart is a glowing furnace of Love. You are my refuge and my sanctuary. O my adorable and loving Savior, consume my heart with the burning fire with which Yours is aflamed."

The Catholic Church celebrates the memory of a distinguished medieval nun and writer in the Benedictine monastic tradition, Saint Gertrude of Helfta, better known as 'St. Gertrude the Great.'

One of the most esteemed woman saints of the Christian West, she was a notable early devotee of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

"She was an exceptional woman, endowed with special natural talents and extraordinary gifts of grace, the most profound humility and ardent zeal for her neighbor's salvation," Pope Benedict XVI said of St. Gertrude in an October 2010 general audience.

"She was in close communion with God both in contemplation and in her readiness to go to the help of those in need."

Born in Germany on January 6, 1256, Gertrude was sent at age 5 to a monastery in Helfta, to receive her education and religious formation. Under the leadership of the abbess Gertrude of Hackeborn, the monastery was highly regarded for its spiritual and intellectual vitality. The young Gertrude's teacher, later canonized in her own right, was the abbess' sister Saint Matilda of Hackeborn.

A gifted student with a great thirst for knowledge, Gertrude excelled in her study of the arts and sciences of her day, while living according to her community's strict practice of the Rule of Saint Benedict. By her own account, however, something seems to have been lacking in Gertrude's personal devotion, which suffered due to her overemphasis of intellectual and cultural pursuits.

A change in her priorities began near the end of the year 1280, in the season of Advent. Gertrude was 24 and had greatly distinguished herself in many fields of study. But her accomplishments began to seem meaningless, as she considered the true meaning and goal of her monastic vocation. Anxious and depressed, Gertrude felt she had built a 'tower of vanity and curiosity' rather than seeking to love God above all things and live in union with him.

In January of the following year, she experienced a vision of Christ, hearing him declare: "I have come to comfort you and bring you salvation."

During 1281, her priorities shifted dramatically, away from secular knowledge and toward the study of Scripture and theology. Gertrude devoted herself strongly to personal prayer and meditation, and began writing spiritual treatises for the benefit of her monastic sisters.

Understanding the love of Christ as the supreme and fundamental reality, Gertrude communicated this truth in her writings and strove to live in accordance with it. Though acutely aware of her own persistent faults, she also came to understand the depths of God's mercy. She accepted the illness and pain of her final years in a spirit of personal sacrifice, while recalling the goodness of God that had transformed her life.

St. Gertrude the Great died on November 16, though it is not known whether this was in the year 1301 or 1302. While some of her written works were lost, others survive: "The Herald of Divine Love," "The Life and Revelations," and St. Gertrude's "Spiritual Exercises."

Source: Catholic News Agency