- James 3:9-12 -
With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse
men,
who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise
and
cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt
water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives,
or
a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.
______________________________________________________________________________
Our contradictory speech often puzzles us. At times our words are right
and
pleasing to God, but at other times they are crude, vicious and
destructive.
Which of these speech patterns reflects our true identity? The tongue
gives
us a picture of our basic human nature. We were made in God's image but we
have also fallen into sin. God works to change us from the inside out.
When
the Holy Spirit purifies a heart, he gives self-control so that person
will
speak words that please God.
<<>><<>><<>>
October 16th - St. Hedwig, Religious (RM)
Born in Bavaria c. 1174; died in Silesia, 1243; canonized 1267.
Hedwig was one of the eight children born to Berthold IV, the count of
Andechs, who ruled over Tyrol and Istria (Croatia and Dalmatia). Two of
her
brothers became bishops and two of her sisters became queens. One of them,
Gertrude, who married Andrew II of Hungary, was the mother of Saint
Elizabeth (of Hungary). As a child she was placed in the Benedictine
monastery of Kitzingen in Franconia.
In 1186, when she was 12 years old, Hedwig was married to 18-year-old
Henry
the Bearded, prince of Poland and future duke of Silesia. She bore him 6
(some say 7) children and the family was closely knit. But from 1209
onwards
she and her husband agreed to live in perpetual continence. Hedwig was
then
35 and Duke Henry was barely past 40, but he submitted to the austere
disciple without complaint or resistance.
After succeeding to his father's dukedom in 1202, and under Hedwig's
influence, Henry founded the monastery of Cistercian nuns at Trebnitz
(near
Breslau, now Wroclaw), the first convent of women in Silesia. The convent
was built with the labor of those convicted of crimes. It was the first of
a
large number of such establishments founded by the couple, including
houses
of Augustinian canons, Cistercian monks, and Dominican and Franciscan
friars, by which religion and German culture were spread over their
territories. Henry also founded the Hospital of the Holy Ghost in Breslau,
and Hedwig founded a hospital for female lepers.
Following the example of his wife, he was sustained by a great and
ennobling
piety. He let his beard grow in the manner of Cistercian converts (hence
his
name Henry the Bearded) and greatly reduced his household expenses,
devoting
the money that he saved to charitable purposes. After their separation
Henry
never again wore gold, silver, or purple.
There have been few duchesses like her. She was humble, serving the poor
and
the lepers, pardoning offenses, helping her enemies, and bringing aid to
even the most insolent and hardened sinners. She kept barely a hundredth
part of her income, giving the rest away with an open hand. Beneath her
tattered cloak she wore a hair ****rt. She went about with ****d feet in
all
weather, and when, in obedience to her confessor, she bought a pair of new
shoes, she carried them under her arms. She scourged herself and subjected
her soul and her body to countless mortifications.
Towards the end of her life she had the gift of working cures and making
predictions. Several miracles are recorded of her-she fell asleep, it was
said, one night while reading the Bible by candlelight; the book caught
fire
and burned, but was undamaged. A blind man's sight was restored because of
her blessing.
As for Henry I, her good and faithful husband, she outlived him by five
years. In 1227, Henry engaged in fighting Conrad of Masovia for the land
of
Ladislaus of Sandomir who had been killed in battle. Henry triumphed and
established himself at Cracow, but he was kidnapped during Mass and taken
by
Conrad to Plock. Hedwig followed and helped bring the two to a peaceful
agreement, which included the marriage of her two granddaughters to
Conrad's
sons. Upon Duke Henry's death in 1238 Hedwig moved into the monastery at
Trebnitz. Hedwig did not cry at her husband's death; she consoled the
sorrowing nuns instead.
God treats harshly those whom he loves. All her children died before she
did, except for one daughter, Gertrude, who was the abbess of the convent
of
Trebnitz. Two of her sons dishonored the family name by engaging in
fratricidal wars, and another son, Henry the Pious who succeeded his
father,
was killed in 1241 by the Tartars at the battle of Liegnitz. Again, Hedwig
comforted the others.
She took the habit of the nuns but not the vows, wi****ng to administer her
property as she wished to help the needy. She predicted her own death,
insisting on being anointed before anyone else would acknowledge she was
in
danger. Worn out by the hard****ps she had endured, she died in 1243, in
her
seventieth year.
Riches have never been able to buy entrance into heaven. Hedwig, the
duchess
with the ****d feet and workworn hands, had no need to knock on the gates
which, at her approach, swung open of themselves. And someone was on the
threshold to greet with open arms the woman who had freely given of her
heart, her wealth, and her light, and who had been a supreme example of
the
life of poverty in the example of God (Attwater, Bentley, Delaney,
Encyclopedia, White).
The policies and foundations of Duke Henry and Saint Hedwig were im****tant
in Silesian history through the increase of German influence they brought
to
the country (Attwater).
She is the patroness of Silesia, and venerated in Franconia.
Depicted in art with the church and a statue of the Virgin Mary in her
hands; or wa****ng the feet of the poor; or barefoot with her shoes in her
hands; or in a religious habit with the robes and crown of a princess near
her (White). Sometimes she is seen holding a picture of the Virgin and
Child
in her hand or Christ blessing her from the Cross (Roeder).
Saint Quote:
He has great tranquility of heart who cares neither for the praises nor
the
fault-finding of men. He will easily be content and pacified, whose
conscience is pure. You are not holier if you are praised, nor the more
worthless if you are found fault with. What you are, that you are;
neither
by word can you be made greater than what you are in the sight of God.
-St. Thomas à Kempis
Bible Quote
And he said to them: You are they who justify yourselves before men, but
God
knoweth your hearts; for that which is high to men, is an abomination
before
God. (Luke 16:15)
<><><><>
Prayer-song of St. Rose of Lima
St. Rose, like many saints, had a special relation****p with
nature. She had a natural talent for singing and she composed a song
in praise of God. The family she stayed with would listen at her
door each evening for a unique duet sung by St. Rose-yes a duet!
At sunset a small bird came and sang (chirped?) with her the song
she composed. They sang alternately for an hour. Then at her signal
the bird would leave. Here are some of the verses of her song-prayer:
Tiny singer, flit your wings;
Bow before the King of kings.
Let your lovely concert rise
To Him Who gave you songs and skies.
Let your throat, full of carols sweet,
Pour them before the Eternal's feet
That we His praise may magnify
Whom birds and angels glorify.
I shall sing to Him who saved me:
You will sing to Him who made ye.
Both together, we shall bless
The God of love and happiness.
Sing, sing with bursting throat and heart!
In turn our voices will take part
To sing together, you and I,
A canticle of holy joy.
As the bird flew away:
The little bird abandons me:
My playmate's wings ascend.
Blessed be my God, Who faithfully
Stays with me to the end.
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