St John Bosco, 31st January

John Bosco, also known as Giovanni Melchiorre Bosco and Don Bosco, was born in Becchi, Italy, on August 16, 1815. His birth came just after the end of the Napoleonic Wars which ravaged the area. Compounding the problems on his birthday, there was also a drought and a famine at the time of his birth.

At the age of two, John lost his father, leaving him and his two older brothers to be raised by his mother, Margherita. His "Mama Margherita Occhiena" would herself be declared venerable by the Church in 2006.

Raised primarily by his mother, John attended church and became very devout. When he was not in church, he helped his family grow food and raise sheep. They were very poor, but despite their poverty his mother also found enough to share with the homeless who sometimes came to the door seeking food, shelter or clothing.

When John was nine years old, he had the first of several vivid dreams that would influence his life. In his dream, he encountered a multitude of boys who swore as they played. Among these boys, he encountered a great, majestic man and woman. The man told him that in meekness and charity, he would "conquer these your friends." Then a lady, also majestic said, "Be strong, humble and robust. When the time comes, you will understand everything." This dream influenced John the rest of his life.

Not long afterwards, John witnessed a traveling troupe of circus performers. He was enthralled by their magic tricks and acrobatics. He realized if he learned their tricks, he could use them to attract others and hold their attention. He studied their tricks and learned how to perform some himself.

One Sunday evening, John staged a show for the kids he played with and was heartily applauded. At the end of the show, he recited the homily he heard earlier in the day. He ended by inviting his neighbors to pray with him. His shows and games were repeated and during this time, John discerned the call to become a priest.

To be a priest, John required an education, something he lacked because of poverty. However, he found a priest willing to provide him with some teaching and a few books. John's older brother became angry at this apparent disloyalty, and he reportedly whipped John saying he's "a farmer like us!"

John was undeterred, and as soon as he could he left home to look for work as a hired farm laborer. He was only 12 when he departed, a decision hastened by his brother's hostility.

John had difficulty finding work, but managed to find a job at a vineyard. He labored for two more years before he met Jospeh Cafasso, a priest who was willing to help him. Cafasso himself would later be recognized as a saint for his work, particularly ministering to prisoners and the condemned.

In 1835, John entered the seminary and following six years of study and preparation, he was ordained a priest in 1841.

His first assignment was to the city of Turin. The city was in the throes of industrialization so it had slums and widespread poverty. It was into these poor neighborhoods that John, now known as Fr. Bosco, went to work with the children of the poor.

While visiting the prisons, Fr. Bosco noticed a large number of boys, between the ages of 12 and 18, inside. The conditions were deplorable, and he felt moved to do more to help other boys from ending up there.

He went into the streets and started to meet young men and boys where they worked and played. He used his talents as a performer, doing tricks to capture attention, then sharing with the children his message for the day.

When he was not preaching, Fr. Bosco worked tirelessly seeking work for boys who needed it, and searching for lodgings for others. His mother began to help him, and she became known as "Mamma Margherita." By the 1860s, Fr. Bosco and his mother were responsible for lodging 800 boys.

For the full article, click here.

St Thomas Aquinas, Doctor of the Church, 28th January

St Thomas Aquinas, the Angelic Doctor

“We exhort you, venerable brethren, in all earnestness to restore the golden wisdom of St. Thomas, and to spread it far and wide for the defense and beauty of the Catholic faith, for the good of society, and for the advantage of all the sciences.”

These words of Leo XIII are no less certain today than when the Holy Father promulgated them 150 years ago. Indeed, while the neo-scholastic revival flourished for several decades in the wake of Leo’s encyclical Aeterni Patris, the “golden wisdom” of the Angelic Doctor has been conspicuously absent from many Catholic schools and even seminaries in the decades following the Second Vatican Council.

The early years of the 21st century have seen a tremendous growth of interest in the thought of St. Thomas, and many excellent books have been published for both academic and popular audiences. Nevertheless, for the average Catholic sitting in the pews of the average parish, Aquinas remains distant and largely inaccessible in his own writings. Technical jargon as well as the logical structure of the saint’s work cause many to despair of understanding.

To remedy this, on the feast of St. Thomas, we herein offer a very brief introduction to the life of this indispensable Catholic theologian, and his most famous work the Summa Theologiae, and pray that in so doing Leo’s exhortation may again be heeded in our own day...

For the full article, an introduction to St Thomas Aquinas, his biography and teachings view the National Catholic Reporter link here. 

Grant me, O Lord my God, a mind to know you, a heart to seek you, wisdom to find you, conduct pleasing to you, faithful perseverance in waiting for you, and a hope of finally embracing you. - St Thomas Aquinas

An article on the Miracles of St Thomas Aquinas can be read here.

St Thomas Aquinas also composed two hymns dedicated to the Most Blessed Sacrament, which can be listened to in the following YouTube videos:

Homily for the 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sunday of the Word of God)

Persecution of the Church in Cameroon

 

Our newsletter this week highlights the persecution of the Church in Cameroon by Islamic forces of Boko Harem. The full article can be read here.

A Day with Mary, Saturday 15th February 2020

A Day with Mary will held at Arundel Cathedral on Saturday 15th February 2020. Click here for more details of the day. If you are able, go and make reparation for sins committed against the most pure and Immaculate Heart of Mary..

The Conversion of St Paul, 25th January

From the Office of Readings:

'Paul, more than anyone else, has shown us what man really is, and in what our nobility consists, and of what virtue this particular animal is capable. Each day he aimed ever higher; each day he rose up with greater ardour and faced with new eagerness the dangers that threatened him. He summed up his attitude in the words: I forget what is behind me and push on to what lies ahead. When he saw death imminent, he bade others share his joy: Rejoice and be glad with me! And when danger, injustice and abuse threatened, he said: I am content with weakness, mistreatment and persecution. These he called the weapons of righteousness, thus telling us that he derived immense profit from them.

Thus, amid the traps set for him by his enemies, with exultant heart he turned their every attack into a victory for himself; constantly beaten, abused and cursed, he boasted of it as though he were celebrating a triumphal procession and taking trophies home, and offered thanks to God for it all: Thanks be to God who is always victorious in us!

This is why he was far more eager for the shameful abuse that his zeal in preaching brought upon him than we are for the most pleasing honours, more eager for death than we are for life, for poverty than we are for wealth; he yearned for toil far more than others yearn for rest after toil. The one thing he feared, indeed dreaded, was to offend God; nothing else could sway him. Therefore, the only thing he really wanted was always to please God.

The most important thing of all to him, however, was that he knew himself to be loved by Christ. Enjoying this love, he considered himself happier than anyone else; were he without it, it would be no satisfaction to be the friend of principalities and powers. He preferred to be thus loved and be the least of all, or even to be among the damned, than to be without that love and be among the great and honoured.

To be separated from that love was, in his eyes, the greatest and most extraordinary of torments; the pain of that loss would alone have been hell, and endless, unbearable torture.

So too, in being loved by Christ he thought of himself as possessing life, the world, the angels, present and future, the kingdom, the promise and countless blessings. Apart from that love nothing saddened or delighted him; for nothing earthly did he regard as bitter or sweet.

Paul set no store by the things that fill our visible world, any more than a man sets value on the withered grass of the field. As for tyrannical rulers or the people enraged against him, he paid them no more heed than gnats. Death itself and pain and whatever torments might come were but child’s play to him, provided that thereby he might bear some burden for the sake of Christ.'

(Copyright: Universalis.com)

St Francis de Sales, Bishop, 24th January

St. Francis de Sales was born to a noble family at Chateau de Sales in the Kingdom of Savoy near Geneva, Switzerland on August 21, 1567. He was a Bishop and Doctor of the Church.

Francis was both intelligent and gentle. From a very early age, he desired to serve God. He knew for years he had a vocation to the priesthood, but kept it from his family. His father wanted him to enter a career in law and politics.

In 1580, Francis attended the University of Paris, and at 24-years-old, he received his doctorate in law at the University of Padua. All the time, he never lost his passion for God. He studied theology and practiced mental prayers, but kept quiet about his devotion. To please his father, he also studied fencing and riding.

God made his will clear to Francis one day while he was riding. Francis fell from his horse three times that day. Every time he fell, the sword came out of the scabbard, and every time it came out, the sword and scabbard came to rest on the ground in the shape of the Christian cross.

After much discussion and disagreement from his father, Francis was ordained to the priesthood and elected provost of the Diocese of Geneva, in 1593, by the Bishop of Geneva. During the time of the Protestant reformation, Francis lived close to Calvinist territory. He decided he should lead an expedition to bring the 60,000 Calvinists back to the Catholic Church.

Pope Clement VIII

For three years, he trudged through the countryside, had doors slammed in his face and rocks thrown at him. In the bitter winters, his feet froze so badly they bled as he tramped through the snow. Francis' unusual patience kept him working. No one would listen to him, no one would even open their door. So, Francis found a way to get under the door. He wrote out little pamphlets to explain true Catholic doctrine and slipped them under the doors. This is one of the first records we have of religious tracts being used to communicate the true Catholic faith to people who had fallen away from the Church.

The parents wouldn't come to him, so Francis went to the children. When the parents saw how kind he was as he played with the children, they began to talk to him. By the time Francis returned home, it is believed he brought 40,000 people to the Catholic Church.


He forged wonderful alliances with Pope Clement VIII and Henry IV of France, and in 1601 Francis joined Henry IV on a diplomatic mission. He was to give Lenten sermons at the Chapel Royal. Henry grew attached to Francis and saw him as a "rare bird" who was devout, knowledgeable and a gentleman.

In 1602, Bishop Granier died and Francis was consecrated Bishop of Geneva, although he continued to reside in Annecy. He only set foot in the city of Geneva twice -- once when the Pope sent him to try to convert Calvin's successor, Beza, and another when he traveled through it.

In 1604, Francis took one of the most important steps in his life -- the step toward extraordinary holiness and mystical union with God. In Dijon, Francis saw a widow listening closely to his sermon -- a woman he had seen already in a dream. Jane de Chantal was a dedicated Catholic Christian on her own, as Francis was, but it was only when they became friends they began to become saints.

Jane wanted him to take over her spiritual direction, but, not surprisingly, Francis wanted to wait. "I had to know fully what God himself wanted. I had to be sure that everything in this should be done as though his hand had done it." Jane was on a path to mystical union with God and, in directing her, Francis was compelled to follow her and become a mystic himself. Years after working with Jane, he made up his mind to form a new religious community. In 1610, he founded The Order of Visitation.

Francis was overworked and often ill because of his constant load of preaching, visiting, and instruction -- even catechizing a deaf man so he could take first Communion. He believed the first duty of a bishop was spiritual direction and wrote to Jane, "So many have come to me that I might serve them, leaving me no time to think of myself. However, I assure you that I do feel deep-down- within-me, God be praised. For the truth is that this kind of work is infinitely profitable to me." For him active work did not weaken his spiritual inner peace but strengthened it.

He gave spiritual direction to most people through letters, which attested to his remarkable patience.

"I have more than fifty letters to answer. If I tried to hurry over it all, I would be lost. So, I intend neither to hurry or to worry. This evening, I shall answer as many as I can. Tomorrow I shall do the same and so I shall go on until I have finished."

During this time, it was wrongly thought that achieving real holiness of life was a task reserved for only for the clergy and those in religious life, and not for lay men and women. In addition, that only contemplatives, people who withdraw from active participation in the world, could really achieve holiness. Francis insisted that every Christian was called to holiness and sanctity, lived within their own state in life. In holding that belief, he reflected the teaching of Jesus and the early Church Fathers.

Francis laid the groundwork for the teaching of the Second Vatican Council on what is now called the 'universal call to holiness'. It reaffirms the teaching of Jesus and the early Church that every Baptized Christian is called to sanctity, no matter what their career or state in life. In every career and state in life, Christians can become more and more like Jesus Christ. That is, after all, what holiness really means.

Francis gave spiritual direction to lay people who were living real lives in the real world. He had proven with his own life that people could grow in holiness while involved in a very active occupation. He also recognized that Christian marriage and family life is itself a call to holiness.

His most famous book, INTRODUCTION TO THE DEVOUT LIFE, was written for ordinary lay people in 1608, not just the clergy and religious. Written originally as letters, it became an instant success all over Europe -- though some clergy rejected the notion that lay men and women could achieve holiness in the experience of their daily life. Some tore it up because Francis encouraged dancing and jokes!

For Francis, the love of God was like romantic love. He said,

"The thoughts of those moved by natural human love are almost completely fastened on the beloved, their hearts are filled with passion for it, and their mouths full of its praises. When it is gone, they express their feelings in letters, and can't pass by a tree without carving the name of their beloved in its bark. Thus, to those who love God can never stop thinking about him, longing for him, aspiring to him, and speaking about him. If they could, they would engrave the name of Jesus on the hearts of all humankind."

The key to love of God was prayer.

"By turning your eyes on God in meditation, your whole soul will be filled with God. Begin all your prayers in the presence of God."

For busy people living in the world, he advised, "Retire at various times into the solitude of your own heart, even while outwardly engaged in discussions or transactions with others and talk to God."

The test of prayer was a person's actions.

"To be an angel in prayer and a beast in one's relations with people is to go lame on both legs."

He believed the worst sin was to judge someone or to gossip about them. Even if we say we do it out of love we're still doing it to look better ourselves. We should be as gentle and forgiving with ourselves as we should be with others.

As he became older and more ill he said, "I have to drive myself but the more I try the slower I go." He wanted to be a hermit but he was more in demand than ever. The Pope needed him, then a princess, then Louis XIII. "Now I really feel that I am only attached to the earth by one foot..." He died on December 28, 1622, after giving a nun his last word of advice: "Humility."

St. Francis de Sales was beatified on January 8, 1661 and canonized on April 19, 1665 by Pope Alexander VII. He is often featured with the Heart of Jesus and a Crown of Thorns. In 1923, Pope Pius XI named St. Francis de Sales the patron saint of Catholic writers and the Catholic press because of the tracts and books he wrote. He is also the patron saint of the deaf, journalists, adult education, and the Sisters of St. Joseph. His feast day is celebrated on January 24.

(Copyright: Catholic Online)

Tuesday 21st January: St Agnes of Rome

Tuesday 21st January is the Memoria of St Agnes, Mass, as usual on Tuesdays, will be at 7pm.

Almost nothing is known of this saint except that she was very young—12 or 13—when she was martyred in the last half of the third century. Various modes of death have been suggested—beheading, burning, strangling.

Legend has it that Agnes was a beautiful girl whom many young men wanted to marry. Among those she refused, one reported her to the authorities for being a Christian. She was arrested and confined to a house of prostitution. The legend continues that a man who looked upon her lustfully lost his sight and had it restored by her prayer. Agnes was condemned, executed, and buried near Rome in a catacomb that eventually was named after her. The daughter of Constantine built a basilica in her honor.

Reflection

Like that of Maria Goretti in the 20th century, the martyrdom of a virginal young girl made a deep impression on a society enslaved to a materialistic outlook. Also like Agatha, who died in similar circumstances, Agnes is a symbol that holiness does not depend on length of years, experience, or human effort. It is a gift God offers to all.  

(Copyright: Franciscan Media)

Pray for the Persecuted Church in China and Around the World

Image Credit: Getty Images

Worldwide Persecution of Christians

Christian persecution is increasing around the world.

According to Open Doors, a non-profit organization with more than 60 years of experience supporting persecuted believers in more than 60 countries, has published its World Watch List for Christian persecution around the world. The two main culprits are Communism and Islam.

In its 2020 report, Open Doors notes that one in eight Christians around the world are under serious threat. Here are some of its findings, in a nutshell:

• Every day eight Christians are killed because of their faith
• Each day 23 Christians are raped or sexually harassed
• Every week 182 Christian churches or buildings are attacked
• Each week 102 Christian homes, shops or businesses are attacked, burned, or destroyed
• Every month 309 Christians are imprisoned unjustly

North Korea and Afghanistan are the two biggest perpetrators.

North Korea has topped the list since 2002, when Open Doors began its official persecution-watch list. The totalitarian Communist government sees any allegiance besides that directed to "Dear Leader" Kim Jong-un as a threat to the state. The mere possession of a Bible is grounds for arrest, torture and life imprisonment in a labor camp, which often ends up to be a death sentence. Currently, according to reports, 50,000–75,000 Christians live inside North Korea's prison system. Starvation and physical and mental abuse are part and parcel of their sentence.

In the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Christians are also seen as traitors; however, they are "traitors" to Islam rather than to the (atheist) state. Afghanistan is 99% Muslim — 90% Sunni and 10% Shia. Open Doors reports that the Taliban continues to increase in strength, threatening the lives of secret Christians across the area.

Rounding out the top 10 Christian persecutors are Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, Eritrea, Sudan, Yemen, Iran and India.

Vatican News reported Wednesday that a Catholic priest in Nigeria released a new appeal to the international community to take action as Christians continue to be persecuted and murdered in his country.

"Every day our brothers and sisters are slaughtered in the streets," says Fr. Joseph Bature Fidelis of the Maiduguri diocese. He made his plea directly the papal charity, Aid to the Church in Need.

Fidelis informs the world that the situation in northern Nigeria, about which Church Militant reported last month, continues to deteriorate. His latest appeal follows the abduction of four young seminarians in the city of Kaduna, in northwestern Nigeria.

This abduction is the latest in a long line of attacks and murders of Christians in the region; an estimated 1,000 Nigerian Christians were murdered in 2019 for their faith and 6,000 have been killed since 2015.

Fidelis pleaded in a video message:

"I ask the government of Italy, the country where I studied, and all European governments to put pressure on our government to do something to defend us. Otherwise we risk extermination ... Our people are suffering so much. Please help us not be silent in the face of this immense extermination that is taking place in silence."

Tribal animists in eastern India threatened to "chop" Christians "to pieces" before burning the church to the ground amid escalating persecution. And in Harobele, an Indian village of 3,500 where Christians form a majority, hardline Hindus gathered to protest a planned statue of Jesus that will rival the size of Rio de Janeiro's "Christ The Redeemer." It will go "against the spirit of communal harmony," the protestors claim. The land on which the statue will be placed is owned by the archdiocese of Bangalore.

Thousands becoming martyrs in Nigera, Severe Restrictions in China

Church Militant reports extensively on the growing persecution in China of Catholics and other Christians.

"The Chinese government has now placed severe restrictions and policies on the house churches [where faith is practiced in secret] asking neighbors to spy on one another, pressuring school teachers and college professors to betray and sign a statement to denounce their own faith as well to do the same to students," said Jian Zhu, pastor of a church in China.

David Curry, the president and CEO of Open Doors USA, stated: "The drivers of persecution are still very significantly entrenched. Islamic extremism is spreading in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. Then you add this rise of surveillance technology and strategy by China."

Though it is not recorded in Open Doors' World Watch List, western observers see a growing movement of "soft persecution" in formerly Christian nations where secular progressivism has permeated the culture and government. Ireland, Spain, Canada and the United States are among those that have been in the news of late for violations of basic human rights and religious freedom.

(Copyright: Church Militant)

Welcome to the Catholic Parish of St Mary Magdalen, Brighton

Welcome to the website of the Catholic Parish of

St Mary Magdalen, Brighton.

May God bless all who visit our site and who visit our parish.