- 2 Corinthians 4:17 -
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal
glory that far outweighs them all
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Our troubles should not diminish our faith or disillusion us. We should
realize that there is a purpose in our suffering. Problems and human
limitations have several benefits: (1) they remind us of Christ's
suffering
for us; (2) they keep us from pride; (3) they cause us to look beyond this
brief life; (4) they prove our faith to others; (5) they give God the
op****tunity to demonstrate his power. See your troubles as op****tunities.
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May 12th - St. Aethelheard of Louth and Canterbury
On entering the Temple in Louth one is soon confronted by St. Aethelheard.
In the icon one sees a patient, resilient and tough person. There is more
than a slight hint of the inner life of a monk in his eyes. So who is he?
He
was the fourteenth Archbishop of Canterbury who died on 12th May, 805.
Very
little is known of his life before he became Archbishop but he is
described
as "Abbas Hludensis Monasterii", i.e. Abbot of the Monastery of Louth.
He lived through very troubled times. The powerful King Offa of Mercia
(757-796) had enlarged his kingdom until there was only Mercia,
Northumbria,
and Wes*** left in what we now know as England. The kingdom stretched down
into Kent but to some extent the king felt threatened by Canterbury and
its
powerful Archbishop Jaenbert (766-791). The king decided to give his
kingdom
an independent Archdiocese based in Litchfield. This would weaken
Canterbury's influence by dividing the province. This was successfully
accomplished when the Papal Legates George and Theophylact, sent by Pope
Hadrian I in 786-788 arrived. Bishop Higbert received the pallium
(Archbishop's Omophorion) as Archbishop of Lichfield, and the Archbishop
of
Canterbury was left with only London, Winchester, Sherborne, Rochester,
and
Selsey as suffragan sees. On the death of Archbishop Jaenbert (12 Aug.,
791), Aethelheard was moved from Louth to Canterbury through the direct
influence of King Offa. He was clearly a man the King felt he could trust.
Problems for Archbishop designate Aethelheard began immediately. Although
he
was elected in 791, his consecration and enthronement took place on 21
July,
793: the delay was almost certainly due to the clergy and faithful in Kent
being most unwilling to have a foreign Archbishop. Then three years later
the nobles of Kent rebelled against King Offa and their Archbishop and
rallied round one Eadbert Praen, a priest and a member of their ex-royal
house (what a strange priest this man must have been!). Life gradually
became increasingly unbearable and dangerous. Although the famous St.
Alcuin
wrote furiously to St. Aethelheard telling him not to desert his Church,
and
after deposing and excommunication Eadbert Praen, the Archbishop was
forced
to flee to the continent. King Offa died on 26 July. His successor Egfrith
died after a very short reign, about 13 Dec.; Cenwulf succeeded in Mercia,
but the uprising continued in Kent until the capture of Eadbert in 798.
St. Aethelheard had been most helpful to King Cenwulf in deposing Eadbert,
and in remaining loyal to him in Kent. This enormously increased his
standing in the Royal court and as a result the Archbishopric of Lichfield
began to look superfluous. The King wrote in 798 to Pope Leo asking him to
look into the need for a second Archbishopric and enclosed a petition from
Aethelheard and his suffragan Bishops. Meanwhile St. Aethelheard returned
home and received another furious letter from St. Alcuin telling him to do
penance for having left his Church. The King's letter was received
favourably and St. Aethelheard decided to set out for Rome in 801 to speak
to his chief pastor himself. In Rome he was just as successful: Pope Leo
III
(795-816) solved the problem of Canterbury and Lichfield by returning
Lichfield to a suffragan diocese. The Council of Clovesho on 12 Oct., 803,
officially acknowledged the pope's decision in presence of Cenwulf and his
Witan (parliament). An unfortunate result of this was that Bishop Higbert
was deprived of his pallium (Omophorion), in spite of Alcuin's plea that
so
good a man should not be humiliated.
So what makes St. Aethelheard so im****tant for us? A number of things:
St. Aethelheard insisted that those who were to be made Bishop should make
a
formal profession of their Orthodox faith and obedience. This was
enormously
im****tant in maintaining the teaching of the Church incorrupt and it had a
second effect that affected the history of this land:
If King Offa had been successful in founding a permanent Archdiocese in
Lichfield the attainment of national unity would have been set back by
generations. With a unified Church (with York becoming a Metropolitan See
UNDER Canterbury (!)) it was easier to make a spiritual unit a political
one.
He is a local! There are no other communities or parishes with him as
their
patron. This is not as strange as it seems for, although his shrine was
immensely popular until the Norman Invasion, both it and he were
suppressed
cruelly by the conquerors.
Holy father Aethelheard of Louth and Canterbury pray to God for us!
From:
http://www.antiochian-orthodox.co.uk/lincoln****re_paterikon_may.htm
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Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the earth. -Matt. 5:4
"We ought to deal kindly with all, and to manifest those qualities which
spring naturally from a heart tender and full of Christian charity; such
as
affability, love, and humility. These virtues serve wonderfully to gain
the
hearts of men, and to encourage them to embrace things that are more
repugnant to nature"
-St. Vincent de Paul
St. Francis Xavier treated everyone with great mildness and kindness,
which drew to him all both small and great, won the hearts of all and
induced all to do what he wished.
(Taken from the book "A Year with the Saints". May - Meekness)
Bible Quote
21 What will you? shall I come to you with a rod; or in charity, and in
the
spirit of meekness? (1 Corinthians 4:21)
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Prayer to the Holy Ghost
Cardinal Mercier said about this prayer: "I am going to reveal to you the
secret of sanctity and happiness. Every day for five minutes control your
imagination and close your eyes to the things of sense and your ears to
all
the noises of the world, in order to enter into yourself. Then, in the
sanctity of your baptized soul (which is the temple of the Holy Ghost)
speak
to that Diving Spirit, saying to Him:
"Holy Ghost, beloved of my soul, I adore Thee. Enlighten me, guide me,
strengthen me, console me. Tell me what to say and do. Give me Your
orders.
I promise to submit myself to all that You desire of me and to accept all
that You permit to happen to me. Let me only know Your Will. Amen."
If you do this, your life will flow along happily, serenely, and full of
consolation, even in the midst of trials. Grace will be pro****tioned to
the
trial, giving you the strength to carry it and you will arrive at the Gate
of Paradise, laden with merit. This submission to the Holy Spirit is the
secret of sanctity.
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