April 17th - Saint Anicetus, Pope, Martyr
(d. 161)
Saint Anicetus, the eleventh successor of Saint Peter, succeeded to Saint
Pius I
and reigned for eleven years. During that time he had to combat in
particular
the dangerous errors of gnosticism, Christ's ancient enemy, already
rampant
in
the days when Saint John the Apostle wrote his letters to the churches of
Asia.
Saint Anicetus was visited in Rome by Saint Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna,
who
desired to consult with him, and whom he in turn asked to celebrate the
feast of
Easter in the Church of Rome, as Saint Ireneus, Polycarp's disciple,
relates.
They had not been able to find a solution to the question of a difference
in
the
date of Easter in the Orient and the Occident, which Pope Saint Victor
would
later settle, but remained close friends. Saint Anicetus' vigilance
protected
his flock from the wiles of the false preachers Valentine and Marcion, who
were
attempting to corrupt the faith in the capital of the empire.
Saint Anicetus established the tonsure for the clergy as a practice of
ecclesiastical discipline; a letter to this purpose, which he wrote to the
bishops of the churches of Gaul, is still extant.
The Roman Breviary tells us that he received the palm of martyrdom for the
Christian faith, one month after the death of the Emperor Antoninus the
Pious.
Of the first fifty-four bishops of Rome, as they are seen portrayed in the
Basilica of Saint Paul in Rome, fifty-three are honored among the Saints;
and of
two hundred and forty-eight popes, from Saint Peter to Clement XII (d.
1740),
seventy-eight are named in the Roman martyrology. In the primitive ages
the
spirit of fervor and perfect sanctity was conspicuous in most of the
faithful,
and especially in their pastors. The whole tenor of their lives breathed
it,
in
such wise as to render them living miracles, angels on earth, breathing
copies
of their Divine Redeemer, the odor of whose virtues and holy law and
religion
they spread on every side.
Reflection. We find an example of true friendship in the fashion Saint
Anicetus
honored Saint Polycarp, in the absence of a complete understanding. Let us
judge
by this rule whether our love and our friendship for God is sovereign.
Does
inconstancy, manifested in our words or acts, never betray the insincerity
of
our heart? If, after making protestations of inviolable friendship and
affection
for a fellow-creature, we ceased to honor him when our reason and his did
not
perfectly concur, would not the whole world justly call our pretended
friendship
a mockery?
Sources: Les Petits Bollandistes: Vies des Saints, by Msgr. Paul Guérin
(Bloud
et Barral: Paris, 1882), Vol. 4; Little Pictorial Lives of the Saints, a
compilation based on Butler's Lives of the Saints and other sources by
John
Gilmary Shea (Benziger Brothers: New York, 1894).
Saint Quote:
You, O eternal Trinity, are a deep sea, into which the more I enter the
more
I
find, and the more I find the more I seek. The soul cannot be satiated in
your
abyss, for she continually hungers after you, the eternal Trinity,
desiring
to
see you with the light of your light. As the hart desires the springs of
living
water, so my soul desires to leave the prison of this dark body and see
you
in
truth.
-Catherine of Siena
Bible Quote
4 For whatsoever is born of God, overcometh the world: and this is the
victory
which overcometh the world, our faith. 5 Who is he that overcometh the
world,
but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? (1 John 5:4-5)
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Daily Thoughts and Prayers for Our Beloved Dead
"Have pity on me, have pity on me, at least you my friends, because the
hand
of
the Lord hath touched me" Job. 19-21.
TWENTY-FIRST DAY
To find ourselves forgotten on earth by those whom we love, and who have
loved
us is a cruel trial - but to find ourselves in Purgatory - forgotten by
all
whom
we loved and helped on earth, must be a most painful sorrow.
Prayers: Our Father, Three Hail Marys, Gloria, De Profundis.
De Profundis
Out of the depths, I have cried to Thee,
O Lord, Lord, hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive to the
voice of my supplication.
If Thou, O Lord, shalt mark my iniquities,
O Lord, who shall stand it?
For with Thee there is merciful
forgiveness: and by reason of Thy
law I have waited for Thee, O Lord.
My soul hath relied on His word;
my soul hath hoped in the Lord.
From the morning watch even until
night; let Israel hope in the Lord.
Because with the Lord there is mercy;
And with Him plenteous redemption.
And He shall redeem Israel from
all its iniquities.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
And let perpetual light shine upon them:
May they rest in peace. Amen.
O my God, infinitely just, hear our payers in reparation for the souls
suffering
in Purgatory for want of charity. Release them from their pains that they
may
evermore praise Thee and intercede at Thy Judgement Seat for us at the
hour
of
our death.
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