ABSTAIN FROM ALL EVIL
The LORD is at hand.
The LORD HIMSELF shall descend from Heaven with
a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with
the trump of GOD: and the dead in CHRIST shall rise
first: then we which are alive and remain, shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet
the LORD in the air: and so shall we ever be with
the LORD. Wherefore comfort on another with these
words.HE which testifieth these things saith, Surely
I come quickly; Amen. Even so, come, LORD JESUS.
Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such
things, be diligent that ye may be found of HIM in
peace, without spot, and blameless. Abstain from all
appearance of evil. And the very GOD of peace sanctify
you wholly; and I pray GOD your whole spirit and soul
and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of
our LORD JESUS CHRIST. Faithful is HE who calleth you,
who also will do it.
Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming
of the LORD draweth nigh.
AMEN and AMEN
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March 19th - Blessed Clement of Dunblane, OP (AC)
Died 1256-58. One of the pioneers about whom we hear little is the
colorful
and resourceful Bishop Clement of Dunblane, who received his habit from
Saint Dominic's hands and introduced the Dominicans as he preached in
Scotland. The monasteries he founded within a few years of the beginning
of
the Dominican Order served the Church well, and the Church annals are
begemmed with the names of the people who made history in that interesting
country.
We read the names of Robert Bruce and Lord Douglas on the rolls of
benefactors of the Blackfriars. James Beaton, archbishop of Saint Andrews,
fled for sanctuary to the Dominican church in 1517; and in 1554, John Knox
was called to give an account of his strange doctrines in the Blackfriars
Church of Edinburgh.
Clement was Scottish by birth, and having met Saint Dominic at the
University of Paris and being received into the order, he was vocal and
active in bringing the friars to his homeland. Tradition holds that the
Scottish king, Alexander II, in Paris on a diplomatic mission, made a
personal appeal to Saint Dominic for missionaries. It is an historical
fact
that this monarch was their first benefactor when the mission band at last
arrived, shortly after Dominic's death.
The priory in the lovely, seaside town of Ayr was founded in 1230, and
seven
other large houses soon followed. There is record of transactions with the
rulers of the region at this time, and, a few years later, King Robert
Bruce
granted the Dominicans the privilege of grinding their grain at his mill.
Clement was appointed bishop of Dunblane in 1233, by Pope Gregory IX, a
devoted friend of Saint Dominic. He worked in this see for 23 years, and,
according to an old record, he "labored with unflagging zeal to uproot
superstition and destroy vice, to make true and solid piety known and
practiced, and to draw the faithful entrusted to his charge to the
imitation
of all the virtues of Christian perfection, as he himself fulfilled all
the
duties of a watchful and loving pastor"-a description of a bishop that can
hardly be bettered. He is described as being poor himself, and the father
of
the poor, and all the old writers speak of his zeal in restoring the
ruined
churches and the neglected rights of the Church.
According to surviving records, he must have been a busy man, this rugged
missionary in an equally rugged land. He rebuilt Dunblane Cathedral,
visited
tirelessly among the outlying regions of his diocese, setting things in
order, and solicited most of the funds for reconstruction himself. He was
appointed on several papal commissions, once to inquire into the heroic
virtues of Margaret of Scotland, another time to determine the validity of
a
bishop's appointment. He was sent to collect alms for the Holy Land in
1247,
at a time when he badly needed the money to rebuild his own diocese.
Through his influence, the episcopal see was transferred from the Isle of
Iona, which was frequently inaccessible and always in danger from stormy
seas, to a place where it could be readily in touch with the rest of
Scotland. He attended the general chapter of the Order held in London in
1250. At one time he had to pronounce a sentence of excommunication on all
those who had tried to murder the king.
In spite of these varied and absorbing labors, we are interested to find
that he wrote at least three books: a life of Saint Dominic, a book on
pilgrimages to the Holy Land, and the history of the Dominican Order in
Scotland.
When Clement died, he left a legacy of personal holiness so great that
even
a Protestant historian would say of him: "This man was an excellent
preacher, learned above many of that time, and of singular integrity of
conversation" (Benedictines, Dorcy).
Saint Quote:
If there be a true way that leads to the Everlasting Kingdom, it is most
certainly that of suffering, patiently endured.
-Saint Colette
Bible Quote:
31. But he said to him: Son, thou art always with me, and all I have is
thine. 32. But it was fit that we should make merry and be glad, for this
thy brother was dead and is come to life again; he was lost, and is found.
(Luke 15:31-32)
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A POWERFUL NOVENA TO ST. JOSEPH
This novena has proven to be highly efficacious. It seems to be pleasing
to
St. Joseph and helpful to souls. This form of novena was originally
devised
by the celebrated Fr. Louis Lallemant, S.J. (1587-1633). It has proved
particularly effective in obtaining favors through the intercession of St.
Joseph. In the Life of this saintly priest and great master of the
spiritual
life, to whom St. Joseph never refused anything he asked, the story is
told
that on one occasion he urged two young priests to make this novena,
promising that they would obtain everything they asked through the
intercession of St. Joseph if, in turn, they would show him special honor
and spread devotion to him among others. Both did as Fr. Lallemant
suggested. One of them asked for grace to speak and write worthily of Our
Lord. But the next day he came to Fr. Lallemant to tell him that, upon
reflection, he wished to ask for a different grace, which he considered
more
conducive to his perfection. Fr. Lallemant replied, "It is too late now to
ask for another grace. The first one has already been granted." This grace
was conspicuously displayed throughout the whole course of the priest's
life, as he became one of the most noted preachers and writers of his day.
How to Make this Novena
No particular prayers need be said for this novena. Every day for nine
days,
turn to St. Joseph in spirit four times during the day and honor him in
the
following four points. (These "visits" may be made anywhere-at home, at
work, on the street, in the car or bus-and at any time.)
1. During the first visit, consider St. Joseph's fidelity to grace.
Reflect
upon the action of the Holy Ghost in his soul. At the conclusion of this
brief meditation, thank God for so honoring St. Joseph, and ask, through
his
intercession, for a similar grace.
2. Later in the day, consider St. Joseph's fidelity to the interior life.
Study his spirit of recollection. Think, thank God, and ask.
3. Later still, consider St. Joseph's love for Our Lady. Think, thank God,
and ask.
4. Finally, in a fourth visit, reflect upon St. Joseph's love for the
Divine
Child. Think, thank God, and ask.
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The first sorrowful mystery prayer of the Eucharistic Rosary,
to be offered before the Blessed Sacrament:
The Agony in the Garden, offered for fervor in prayer and
sorrow for sin:
Divine Saviour, under the weight of sorrow and sadness
caused by our sins, Thou fallest, bathed in a sweat of blood,
and Thou endurest a mortal agony. In the Blessed Sacrament,
also, Thou art still more humbled and annihilated on account
of our sins.
We adore Thee and we compassionate Thy agony of suffering
in the Garden of Gethsemane, as well as Thy agony of
humiliation in the Eucharist, and we beg of Thee, through the
intercession of Thy holy Mother, a heartfelt sorrow for our
sins.
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