The Holy Martyrs Sergios and Bakkhos were appointed to high positions in the army by the emperor Maximian (284-305), who did not know that they were Christians. Malevolent persons made a denunciation to Maximian, that his two military-commanders did not honour the pagan gods, and this was considered a crime against the state.
The emperor, wanting to convince himself of the veracity of the denunciation, ordered Sergios and Bakkhos to offer sacrifice to the idols, but they answered, that they honoured but the One God and Him only did they worship.
Maximian commanded that the martyrs be stripped of the insignia of military rank, and then having dressed them in feminine clothing to lead them through the city with an iron chain on the neck, for the mockery by the people. Then he again summoned Sergios and Bakkhos to him and in a friendly approach advised them not to be swayed by Christian fables and instead return to the Roman gods. But the saints remained steadfast. Then the emperor commanded that they be dispatched to the governor of the eastern part of Syria, Antiochus, a fierce hater of Christians. Antiochus had received his position with the help of Sergios and Bakkhos. "My fathers and benefactors! – he addressed the saints, – have pity not only upon yourself, but also on me: I want not to condemn ye to martyrdom". The holy martyrs replied, that for them life – is Christ, and death for Him – its acquisition. In a rage Antiochus ordered Bakkhos to be mercilessly beaten, and the holy martyr expired to the Lord. They shod Sergios with iron shoes inset with nails and sent him off to another city, where he as beheaded with the sword (c. year 300).
My question is why did these two serve in the Roman army? Why did they serve a government that would persecute them for their faith? I'm going to ponder this.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Sunday, September 4, 2011
THE HOLY MARTYRS AGATHONICUS, ZOTICUS AND OTHERS WITH THEM
1. THE HOLY MARTYRS AGATHONICUS, ZOTICUS AND OTHERS WITH THEM
St. Agathonicus was a citizen of Nicomedia and a Christian by faith. With great zeal he converted the Hellenes from idolatry and instructed them in the true Faith. By order of Emperor Maximian, the emperor's deputy cruelly persecuted the Christians. During the persecution, the deputy captured St. Zoticus in a place called Carpe, crucified his disciples and brought Zoticus to Nicomedia where he also captured and bound St. Agathonicus, Princeps, Theoprepius, (Bogoljepa), Acindynus, Severianus, Zeno and many others. Securely bound, they were all taken to Byzantium. However, along the way, Saints Zoticus, Theoprepius and Acindynus died of their many wounds and exhaustion. They killed Severianus near Chalcedon and, Agathonicus with the others were taken to Thrace to the town of Silybria where, after torture before the emperor himself, they were beheaded and entered into eternal life and into the joy of their Lord.
2. THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR EULALIA
During the time of a terrible persecution against Christians in Spain, there lived a virgin Eulalia, born of Christian parents in the town of Barcelona. Completely dedicated to Christ as her Bridegroom, completely immersed in Holy Scripture, Eulalia ceaselessly disciplined herself in voluntary mortification of the body and spirit. When the torturer Dacian who mercilessly killed the Christians throughout Spain and then came to Barcelona, Eulalia slipped away from her parents at night, came before the torturer and in the presence of many people rebuked him for slaughtering innocent people, along with this ridiculing the lifeless idols and openly confessing her faith in Christ the living Lord. The enraged Dacian ordered that Eulalia be disrobed and beaten with rods. But the holy virgin expressed that she did not feel the pains of the tortures for her Christ. The torturer then bound her to a piece of wood in the form of a cross and ordered that her body be burned with torches. Then the torturer asked her: "Where is your Christ now to save you?" Eulalia answered: "He is here with me but you are unable to see Him because of your impurity." In great pain did Eulalia give up her soul to God. When she died, the people saw a white dove emerge from her mouth. At that moment, snow unexpectedly fell and covered the naked body of the martyr as a white garment. The third day, St. Felix came and sadly wept before Eulalia's hanging body and on the lifeless face of the saint there appeared a smile. Her parents came and, together with other Christians, honorably buried the body of this holy virgin. Eulalia suffered and died for her Lord and entered into eternal joy at the beginning of the fourth century.
3. THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR ANTHUSA AND OTHERS WITH HER
Anthusa was the daughter of wealthy but pagan parents from Seleucia in Syria. Learning about Christ, Anthusa believed in Him with all her heart and secretly went to Bishop Athanasius who baptized her. At the time of her baptism, angels of God appeared to her. After that, Anthusa set out for the wilderness to live a life of asceticism for she was afraid to return to her parents. Anthusa lived a life of asceticism in the wilderness for twenty-three years. While praying to God, she gave up her soul kneeling on a stone under which, according to her last testament, she wished to be buried. Bishop Athanasius and two of Anthusa's servants, Charismus and Neophytus, were slain after that because of their faith in Christ at the time of Emperor Valerian about the year 257 A.D. They all died honorably and were crowned with wreaths.
HYMN OF PRAISE
THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR EULALIA
God's white dove,
And martyr of Christ,
Eulalia, torture desires,
That by torture, to whiten the spirit.
What is the body? A potter's weak clay,
When, from it, the soul breaks forth,
To its own dust, dust returns,
The soul, to the angelic world.
Eulalia bears Christ.
Without sighing, tortures she endures,
Tortures endures, prays to God,
The torturer, to withstand.
And, the dove withstood,
And the martyr conquered.
Her body wounded,
By white snow is covered,
The soul a dove from within her, flies,
To her Creator, it flies,
On her lifeless face,
By white snow covered,
Behold, the smile of the victor,
Behold, the smile of the avenger!
With a smile, she found
And a new life proclaimed.
By the prayers of Eulalia
That God also have mercy on us!
REFLECTION
When a man once truly repents, he need not think any more about the sins he committed so that he will not sin again. St. Anthony counsels: "Be careful that your mind not be defiled with the remembrance of former sins and that the remembrance of those sins not be renewed in you." Again, in another place, St. Anthony says: "Do not establish your previously committed sins in your soul by thinking about them so that they not be repeated in you. Be assured that they are forgiven you from the time that you gave yourself to God and repentance. In that, do not doubt." It is said of St. Ammon that he attained such perfection that from much goodness he was not aware that evil exists anymore. When they asked him what is that "narrow and difficult [sorrowful] path" (St. Matthew 7:14), he replied: "That it is the restraining of one's thoughts and severing of one's desires in order to fulfill the will of God." Whoever restrains sinful thoughts, does not think of his own sins or the sins of others neither of anything corruptible nor of anything earthly. The mind of such a man is continually in heaven where there is no evil. Thus, in him, sin gradually ceases to be, even in his thoughts.
CONTEMPLATION
To contemplate the wondrous help of God to David (1 Samuel 19 1 Kings 19):
1. How David played the harp before Saul;
2. How an evil spirit attacked Saul and Saul hurled a spear at David in order to kill him;
3. How Saul, even from the closest distance, did not hit David.
HOMILY
About the prophecy of the miracles of Christ
"Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as a hart and the tongue of the dumb sing" (Isaiah 35: 5-6).
Come, brethren, let us be amazed at the power of our living God Who opened the eyes of mortal men to see in the greatest distance of time that which will come to pass. And still to see in the minutest details as though this prophet [Isaiah] himself was an apostle of Christ, walked with the Lord, witnessed the miracles of miracles, how he gives sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, the lame to walk and to the dumb, voice and speech. When John the Baptist in prison sent his disciples to ask Christ: "Are You He who is to come or do we look for another?" (St. Matthew 11:3), the Lord Christ answered them in the words of His prophet Isaiah: "Go and show John again those things which you do hear and see: The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up "
(St. Matthew 11: 4-5). Look and see how wonderful the Lord planned our salvation! That which was prophesied about Him through His Prophet Isaiah, that is what He fulfilled. At one time, the Prophet Isaiah spoke His words inspired by the Holy Spirit and now He [Jesus Christ] speaks the words of His prophet. At one time, the prophet quoted Him and now He [Jesus Christ] quotes the prophet. To show by this that when He speaks His words or when He speaks the words of the prophet, He always speaks only His words. To show that even then it was He who spoke and not the prophet and that it is now He who speaks and not anyone else and to justify His prophet as His faithful servant so that no one would be able to say that the prophet spoke falsely. Thus, the prophets served to the glory of Christ the Lord and Christ the Lord glorified His prophets, His true servants.
O Lord Jesus, glorified by Your servants and the Glorifier of Your servants, help us also so that by word, deed and thoughts we may be able to serve the majestic glory of Your Name.
To You be glory and thanks always. Amen.
St. Agathonicus was a citizen of Nicomedia and a Christian by faith. With great zeal he converted the Hellenes from idolatry and instructed them in the true Faith. By order of Emperor Maximian, the emperor's deputy cruelly persecuted the Christians. During the persecution, the deputy captured St. Zoticus in a place called Carpe, crucified his disciples and brought Zoticus to Nicomedia where he also captured and bound St. Agathonicus, Princeps, Theoprepius, (Bogoljepa), Acindynus, Severianus, Zeno and many others. Securely bound, they were all taken to Byzantium. However, along the way, Saints Zoticus, Theoprepius and Acindynus died of their many wounds and exhaustion. They killed Severianus near Chalcedon and, Agathonicus with the others were taken to Thrace to the town of Silybria where, after torture before the emperor himself, they were beheaded and entered into eternal life and into the joy of their Lord.
2. THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR EULALIA
During the time of a terrible persecution against Christians in Spain, there lived a virgin Eulalia, born of Christian parents in the town of Barcelona. Completely dedicated to Christ as her Bridegroom, completely immersed in Holy Scripture, Eulalia ceaselessly disciplined herself in voluntary mortification of the body and spirit. When the torturer Dacian who mercilessly killed the Christians throughout Spain and then came to Barcelona, Eulalia slipped away from her parents at night, came before the torturer and in the presence of many people rebuked him for slaughtering innocent people, along with this ridiculing the lifeless idols and openly confessing her faith in Christ the living Lord. The enraged Dacian ordered that Eulalia be disrobed and beaten with rods. But the holy virgin expressed that she did not feel the pains of the tortures for her Christ. The torturer then bound her to a piece of wood in the form of a cross and ordered that her body be burned with torches. Then the torturer asked her: "Where is your Christ now to save you?" Eulalia answered: "He is here with me but you are unable to see Him because of your impurity." In great pain did Eulalia give up her soul to God. When she died, the people saw a white dove emerge from her mouth. At that moment, snow unexpectedly fell and covered the naked body of the martyr as a white garment. The third day, St. Felix came and sadly wept before Eulalia's hanging body and on the lifeless face of the saint there appeared a smile. Her parents came and, together with other Christians, honorably buried the body of this holy virgin. Eulalia suffered and died for her Lord and entered into eternal joy at the beginning of the fourth century.
3. THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR ANTHUSA AND OTHERS WITH HER
Anthusa was the daughter of wealthy but pagan parents from Seleucia in Syria. Learning about Christ, Anthusa believed in Him with all her heart and secretly went to Bishop Athanasius who baptized her. At the time of her baptism, angels of God appeared to her. After that, Anthusa set out for the wilderness to live a life of asceticism for she was afraid to return to her parents. Anthusa lived a life of asceticism in the wilderness for twenty-three years. While praying to God, she gave up her soul kneeling on a stone under which, according to her last testament, she wished to be buried. Bishop Athanasius and two of Anthusa's servants, Charismus and Neophytus, were slain after that because of their faith in Christ at the time of Emperor Valerian about the year 257 A.D. They all died honorably and were crowned with wreaths.
HYMN OF PRAISE
THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR EULALIA
God's white dove,
And martyr of Christ,
Eulalia, torture desires,
That by torture, to whiten the spirit.
What is the body? A potter's weak clay,
When, from it, the soul breaks forth,
To its own dust, dust returns,
The soul, to the angelic world.
Eulalia bears Christ.
Without sighing, tortures she endures,
Tortures endures, prays to God,
The torturer, to withstand.
And, the dove withstood,
And the martyr conquered.
Her body wounded,
By white snow is covered,
The soul a dove from within her, flies,
To her Creator, it flies,
On her lifeless face,
By white snow covered,
Behold, the smile of the victor,
Behold, the smile of the avenger!
With a smile, she found
And a new life proclaimed.
By the prayers of Eulalia
That God also have mercy on us!
REFLECTION
When a man once truly repents, he need not think any more about the sins he committed so that he will not sin again. St. Anthony counsels: "Be careful that your mind not be defiled with the remembrance of former sins and that the remembrance of those sins not be renewed in you." Again, in another place, St. Anthony says: "Do not establish your previously committed sins in your soul by thinking about them so that they not be repeated in you. Be assured that they are forgiven you from the time that you gave yourself to God and repentance. In that, do not doubt." It is said of St. Ammon that he attained such perfection that from much goodness he was not aware that evil exists anymore. When they asked him what is that "narrow and difficult [sorrowful] path" (St. Matthew 7:14), he replied: "That it is the restraining of one's thoughts and severing of one's desires in order to fulfill the will of God." Whoever restrains sinful thoughts, does not think of his own sins or the sins of others neither of anything corruptible nor of anything earthly. The mind of such a man is continually in heaven where there is no evil. Thus, in him, sin gradually ceases to be, even in his thoughts.
CONTEMPLATION
To contemplate the wondrous help of God to David (1 Samuel 19 1 Kings 19):
1. How David played the harp before Saul;
2. How an evil spirit attacked Saul and Saul hurled a spear at David in order to kill him;
3. How Saul, even from the closest distance, did not hit David.
HOMILY
About the prophecy of the miracles of Christ
"Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as a hart and the tongue of the dumb sing" (Isaiah 35: 5-6).
Come, brethren, let us be amazed at the power of our living God Who opened the eyes of mortal men to see in the greatest distance of time that which will come to pass. And still to see in the minutest details as though this prophet [Isaiah] himself was an apostle of Christ, walked with the Lord, witnessed the miracles of miracles, how he gives sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, the lame to walk and to the dumb, voice and speech. When John the Baptist in prison sent his disciples to ask Christ: "Are You He who is to come or do we look for another?" (St. Matthew 11:3), the Lord Christ answered them in the words of His prophet Isaiah: "Go and show John again those things which you do hear and see: The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up "
(St. Matthew 11: 4-5). Look and see how wonderful the Lord planned our salvation! That which was prophesied about Him through His Prophet Isaiah, that is what He fulfilled. At one time, the Prophet Isaiah spoke His words inspired by the Holy Spirit and now He [Jesus Christ] speaks the words of His prophet. At one time, the prophet quoted Him and now He [Jesus Christ] quotes the prophet. To show by this that when He speaks His words or when He speaks the words of the prophet, He always speaks only His words. To show that even then it was He who spoke and not the prophet and that it is now He who speaks and not anyone else and to justify His prophet as His faithful servant so that no one would be able to say that the prophet spoke falsely. Thus, the prophets served to the glory of Christ the Lord and Christ the Lord glorified His prophets, His true servants.
O Lord Jesus, glorified by Your servants and the Glorifier of Your servants, help us also so that by word, deed and thoughts we may be able to serve the majestic glory of Your Name.
To You be glory and thanks always. Amen.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
A Renewed Spirit within Me
A couple of things have happened in the past few weeks. The first: Ben took my car in for an oil change. Well, Ben listens to the Catholic radio station 1450 AM. I had never really found anything interesting on this station, but the next morning I decided to listen to it as I drove to work. I listened for the entire hour long drive to work. They were taking people's calls and answering their questions. Not only did I listen to that station that morning, but that afternoon as well and then for an entire week after that. Then, after hearing all of these stories of people making things happen in the Catholic faith, I started to wonder how I could make things happen in our church.
The second thing that happened:
For some time now, I have been thinking about finding my biological father and introducing him to Ben and eventually to the boys. Well, I found a guy on Facebook with the same last name and decided to contact him and see if maybe he had any connections. Turns out he doesn't, but he is the older brother to a girl I was friends with in high school. We became Facebook friends and I started to see his posts daily. Everyday he posts a piece of scripture. I was inspired by this and began looking forward to his daily posts.
One day, he asked if anyone had a spare laptop to borrow so that he could share his story and inspire others to see God's light. Instantly, I knew that this was a task God was setting before me. I looked on Craigslist and several store websites before deciding on one. Then I presented Ben with the idea and the laptop. He gave the okay, we bought the laptop and I set up a time to meet him the next day. So, I met him in the parking lot of a Walgreens. He began to talk and he talked and he talked and before either of us knew it, I had been crouching in heels for almost an hour. He has fought addictions and endured many tribulations but has come home. He cannot absorb God's word fast enough and this totally inspired me.
So, it seems as if God has 'turned up' the flame on the passion for Him in my heart over the last few weeks. I've started becoming so hungry for His word and teachings that I can't even concentrate at work.
One of the people on 1450 AM that inspired me was a woman who has written many books on her Catholic faith geared towards women, mothers, wives - just like me (except Catholic, of course). And I thought. . . I want a resource like that. I want someplace that I can go and read about the particular saints and readings of the day. Well, thanks to my FANTASTIC! husband, I have that resource, on our church's very own website. Ben has a calendar that sits on the front page that has the saint(s) and reading for the day. Then I thought, why not be a beacon and share this with those who read my Facebook page. Why doesn't the church have a Facebook page? A means of communication with those we know that can't always be at church whether they've moved or because of schedules or just because that is the way the communicate - those that are Ben and I's age and younger. (Ben also thinks that if we start the bible study with the college students, the Facebook page will serve as a communication page to interact with them daily.) Also, it's a fantastic way to get noticed by people looking for the faith.
So, each evening, I post the saint(s) of the day link from Ben's site. Each night I spend a few minutes sharing my faith, our church's faith with the people who view our page. Right now, that number is much closer to 1 than 70 times 7 but soon, with prayer, it will grow and so will we.
Thus, concludes my first post.
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