 St. Ignatius of Loyola, with his new and dynamic conception of the religious life, has left an impress on the Church unparalleled in modern times. The founder of the Society of Jesus was a pragmatic idealist who devoted his mature years to revitalizing Catholicism and meeting the challenge of the Protestant Reformation. He was born on December 24, 1491, the year before Columbus discovered a New World and claimed it for Ferdinand and Isabella. His birthplace was the great castle of Loyola in Guipuzcoa, in the Basque country of northwest Spain. Both his father, Don Beltran, lord of Onaz and Loyola, and his mother were of ancient and illustrious lineage. There were three daughters and eight sons in the family, and Inigo, as Ignatius was christened, was the youngest. He was a slight, handsome, high-spirited boy, with the Spaniard's pride, physical courage, and ardent passion for glory. As a youth, Inigo was sent by his father to go and live in the household of Juan Velasquez de Cuellar, one of King Ferdinand's provincial governors, at Arevalo, a town of Castile. Here he remained for many years, but like most young men of his class, he was taught little more than how to be a good soldier, an accomplished horseman and courtier. This long period of training, inculcating the soldierly virtues of discipline, obedience, and prudence, probably exerted some influence on the form and general tone of the society he founded. When he was twenty-five, he enlisted under a kinsman, the Duke of Najera, saw service in border warfare against the French in northern Castile and Navarre, and won a captaincy. The event that utterly changed the course of his life was the defense of the fortress of Pampeluna, the capital of Navarre. During this hotly contested battle, which Inigo led, he showed great bravery against heavy odds, but when he was hit by a cannon ball that broke his right shin, the Spanish capitulated. The French looked after the young captain's wounds and then sent him in a litter to his father's castle, some fifty miles away. The shattered bone, badly set, was now rebroken and set again, a crude operation which left the end of a bone protruding. Anaesthesia was still in the distant future, and Inigo endured this, as well as having the bone sawed off, without being bound or held. Afterwards his right leg was always shorter than the left. One day, while he was confined to his bed, he asked his sister-in-law for a popular romantic book, <Amadis of Gaul>, to while away the hours. This book about knights and their valorous deeds could not be found, and instead he was given <The Golden Legend>, a collection of stories of the saints, and a <Life of Christ>. He began to read with faint interest, but gradually became so immersed and so moved that he spent entire days reading and rereading these books. He had fallen in love with a certain lady of the court; he also at this time retained his strong feeling for knightly deeds. Now he gradually came to realize the vanity of these worldly passions and his dependence on things of the spirit. He observed that the thoughts which came from God filled him with peace and tranquillity, while the others, though they might delight him briefly, left his heart heavy. This cleavage, as he was to write in his book <Spiritual Exercises>, helps one to distinguish the spirit of God from that of the world.[1] Towards the end of his convalescence he reached the point of dedication; henceforth he would fight for victory on the battlefield of the spirit, and achieve glory as the saints had done.
He began to discipline his body, rising at midnight to spend hours mourning for his sins. How grave these sins may have been we do not know, but as a young soldier he may well have shared in the loose and careless life around him. His eldest brother, Don Martin, who on the death of their father had become lord of Loyola, now returned from the wars. He tried his best to keep Inigo in the world, for he needed the strength and intelligence of this young brother in the management of their great estate. Inigo, however, was now set on his course. As soon as his condition permitted, he mounted a mule and went on pilgrimage, always the great resource of persons in trouble or in a state of indecision, to Our Lady of Montserrat,[2] a shrine in the mountains above Barcelona. One episode of this journey shows us that his understanding of Catholicism was still far from perfect. He fell in with a Moorish horseman, and as they jogged along they talked of their respective faiths. When the Moslem spoke slightingly of the Virgin Mary, Inigo was aroused to fury. After the two had angrily separated at a certain crossroad, Inigo let the mule follow its own bent: if it took the road towards Montserrat, he would forget the Moor; if it followed after him, he would fight and, if possible, kill the man. The mule, we are told, providentially took the road that led to the pilgrimage place. On arriving, Inigo took off his rich attire, left his sword at the altar, donned the pilgrim's sackcloth, provided himself with a staff and gourd. After full Confession, he took a vow to lead henceforth a life of penance and devotion to God. He soon met a holy man, Inez Pascual, who became his lifelong friend. A few miles away was the small town of Manresa, where Inigo retired to a cave for prayer and penance. He lived in the cave, on alms, through most of the year 1522. As frequently happens, exaltation was followed by trials of doubt and fear. Depressed and sad, Inigo was at times tempted to suicide. He began noting down his inner experiences and insights, and these notes slowly developed into his famous book, Spiritual Exercises. At length his peace of mind was fully restored and his soul again overflowed with joy. From this experience came the wisdom that helped him to understand and cure other men's troubled consciences. Years later he told his successor in the Society of Jesus, Father Laynez, that he learned more of divine mysteries in one hour of prayer at Manresa than all the doctors of the schools could ever have taught him. In February, 1523, Ignatius, as he was henceforth known, started on a long-anticipated journey to the Holy Land, where he proposed to labor and preach. He took ship from Barcelona and spent Easter at Rome, sailed from Venice to Cyprus and thence to Jaffa. His zeal was so conspicuous as he visited the scenes of Christ's life that the Franciscan Guardian of the Holy Places ordered him to depart, lest he antagonize the fanatical Turks and be kidnapped and held for ransom. He returned to Barcelona by way of Venice. Feeling the need of more education, he entered a class in elementary Latin grammar, since all serious works were then written in Latin. A pious lady of the city, Isabel Roser, helped to support him. At thirty-three, he found the study of Latin difficult. His life as a soldier as well as his more recent period of retirement had prepared him poorly for such an undertaking. Only by viewing his concentration on religion as a temptation was he able to make progress. He bore with good humor the taunts of his school fellows. After two years of study at Barcelona Ignatius went to the University of Alcala, near Madrid, newly founded by the Grand Inquisitor, Ximenes de Cisneros. He attended lectures in logic, physics, and theology, and though he worked hard he learned little. Living at a hospice for poor students, he wore a coarse gray habit and begged his food. A part of his time was spent in holding services in the hospice and in teaching children the Catechism. Sinof. he had no training or authority for this, the vicar-general accused him of presumption and had him imprisoned for six weeks. At the end of that time the vicar declared Ignatius innocent and released him, but still forbade him to give instruction in religion for three years or to wear any distinguishing dress. On the advice of the archbishop of Toledo, Ignatius went to the ancient University of Salamanca. Here too, mainly because he could not temper his zeal for reform, he was suspected of harboring dangerous ideas. The vicar-general of Salamanca imprisoned him for a time, and afterward pronounced him innocent, orthodox, and a person of sincere goodness. Ignatius looked upon these sufferings as trials by which God was sanctifying his soul, and spoke no word against his persecutors. However, on recovering his liberty, he resolved to leave Spain, and in the middle of winter traveled on foot to Paris, where he arrived in February, 1528. He studied at the College of Montaigu and later at the College of St. Barbara, where he perfected himself in Latin, and then took the undergraduate course in philosophy. In his vacations he went to Flanders, and once or twice over to England, to ask help of Spanish merchants who had settled there. For three and a half years he studied philosophy; but such was his desire to make the Catholic religion a vital force in men's lives that he was never content to be merely a student. He persuaded a few of his fellows, most of them much younger than himself, to spend their Sundays and holy days with him in prayer, and also to engage in good works on behalf of others. Several of these men were to form the inner core of the Society of Jesus. The highly conservative authorities were not slow in asserting themselves. Pegna, a master, thought these activities interfered with studying and complained of Ignatius to Govea, principal of the college. As a result, Ignatius was to be punished by a public flogging, that his disgrace might deter anyone from following his example. He was ready to suffer all things, but he feared that this scandal and his condemnation as a corrupter of youth would make the young souls he had reclaimed lose faith in him. He therefore went to the principal and modestly explained what he was trying to do. Govea listened intently, and, when Ignatius had finished, took him by the hand and led him into the hall where the whole college was assembled. There he turned and asked Ignatius' pardon, and said he now knew that Ignatius had no other aim than the salvation of souls. After this dramatic vindication, Pegna appointed another student, Peter Faber, to assist him in his studies, and with his help Ignatius finished the course in philosophy, took the degree of Master of Arts in 1535, and began work in theology. Ill health prevented him from going on to his doctorate. By this time six other students of theology at Paris were associating themselves regularly with him in what he called his Spiritual Exercises. They were Peter Faber, Francis Xavier, a young Spaniard of noble family, Nicholas Bobadilla, Diego Laynez and Alfonso Salmeron, also Spaniards and fine scholars, and Simon Rodriguez, a Portuguese. They now agreed to take a vow of perpetual poverty and chastity and, as soon as their studies were completed, preach in Palestine, or, if that proved impossible, to offer themselves to the Pope to be used as he saw fit. This vow they solemnly took in a chapel on Montmartre on the feast of the Assumption in August, 1534, after having received Communion from Peter Faber, who had recently been ordained priest. Not long after, Ignatius went back to his native land for the sake of his health. He left Paris in the beginning of the year 1535, and was joyfully welcomed in Guipuzcoa. Instead of staying in his family's castle, however, he took up quarters in a hospital nearby, where he went on with his work of teaching Christian doctrine. The seven men did not lose touch with one another and two years later they all met in Venice. Because of the war then raging between the Venetians and the Turks, they could find no ship sailing for Palestine. Ignatius' companions now went to Rome, where Pope Paul III received them graciously, and gave those who were not yet priests permission to receive Holy Orders from any bishop they pleased. All having been ordained, they retired together to a cottage near Vicenza to prepare themselves by fasting and prayer for taking up the ministry of the altar. Soon all had said Mass save Ignatius, who deferred the step until he had spent over a year in preparation. He said Mass for the first time in Rome, in the church of Santa Maria Maggiore, December, 1538, more than fifteen years after his "conversion." Still unable to go to the Holy Land, they resolved to place their services at the disposal of the Pope. If anyone asked what their association was, they would reply, "the Company of Jesus,"[3] for their purpose was to fight against heresy and vice, apathy and decadence, under the standard of Christ. While praying in a little chapel at La Storta, on the road to Rome, Ignatius had a vision. God appeared, commending him to His Son, who shone radiantly beside Him, though burdened with a heavy cross, and a voice said, "I will be helpful to you at Rome." On this second visit, the Pope did in fact receive them cordially and accepted their services: Faber was appointed to teach the Scriptures and Laynez to expound theology in the Sapienza,[4] and Ignatius to continue to develop his Spiritual Expercises and to teach among the people. The four remaining members were assigned to other employment. With a view to perpetuating and defining their ideas, it was now proposed that the seven form themselves into a religious order with a rule and organization of their own. After prayer and deliberation, they all agreed to this, and resolved to add to the vows of poverty and chastity a third vow, that of perpetual soldierly obedience. At their head should be a general who should hold office for life, with absolute authority over every member, himself subject only to the Pope. A fourth vow should require them to go wherever the Pope might send them for the salvation of souls. Professed Jesuits could own no real estate or revenues, either as individuals or in common; but their colleges might use incomes and rent for the maintenance of students. The teaching of the Catechism was to be one of their special duties. The cardinals appointed by the Pope to examine the new organization were at first inclined to disapprove it, on the ground that there were already too many orders in the Church. Eventually they changed their minds, and Pope Paul approved it by a bull, dated September 27, 1540. Ignatius, unanimously chosen general on April 7, 1541, reluctantly accepted the office in obedience to his confessor. A few days later his brothers all took the full vows, in the basilica of St. Paul-Outside-the-Walls. Ignatius set himself to write out the constitutions of the Society. Its aims were to be, first, the sanctification of their own souls by a union of the active and the contemplative life; and, secondly, instructing youth in piety and learning, acting as confessors of uneasy consciences, undertaking missions abroad, and in general propagating the faith. They should wear the dress of the secular clergy. They should not be compelled to keep choir,[5] because their special business was evangelical work, not the services of the cloister. Before anyone could be admitted he must make a general Confession, spend a month going through the Spiritual Exercises, then serve a novitiate of two years, after which he might take the simple vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. By these vows he consecrated himself irrevocably to God, but the general still had power to dismiss him. Dismissal, if it came, would free him from all obligation to the Society. The higher rank of Jesuits, called the "professed," after more years of study, took the same vows again, but this time publicly and with no reservations; they were forever binding on both sides. To them was added a vow to undertake any mission, whether to Christians or to infidels, at the Pope's command. Ignatius was now fifty years old. The remainder of his life was passed in Rome, where he directed the activities of the Society of Jesus and interested himself in other foundations. He established a house for the reception of converted Jews during their period of instruction, and another for loose women who were anxious to reform but felt no call to the religious life. When told that the conversion of such women was seldom sincere or permanent, he answered, "To prevent only one sin would be a great happiness, though it cost ever so much pain." He set up two houses for poor orphans' and another as a home for young women whose poverty exposed them to danger. Many princes and cities in Italy, Spain, Germany, and the Low Countries begged Ignatius for workers. He made it a rule that anyone sent abroad should be fluent in the language of the country, so that he could preach and serve effectively. As early as 1540, Fathers Rodriguez and Xavier had been sent to Portugal, and the latter had gone on to the Indies, where he won a new world for Christ. Father Gonzales went to Morocco to teach and help the enslaved Christians there. Four missionaries made their way into the Congo, and, in 1555, eleven reached Abyssinia; others embarked on the long voyage to the Spanish and Portuguese settlements of South America. Doctor Peter Canisius, famed for learning and piety, founded Jesuit schools in Germany, Austria, and Bohemia. Fathers Laynez and Salmeron assisted at the momentous Council of Trent.[6] Before their departure, Ignatius admonished them to be humble in all their disputations, to shun contentiousness and empty displays of learning. Jesuits landed in Ireland in 1542, while others bravely undertook the hazardous mission to England. In Elizabethan England and Scotland Protestantism was now firmly established and adherents of the Roman Church suffered persecution. Ignatius prayed much for the conversion of England, and his sons still repeat in their prayers the phrase, "for all Northern nations." Many were the brothers who risked death to keep Mass said in places where it had been forbidden. Of the English and Welsh Catholic martyrs of the period, subsequently beatified, twenty six were Jesuits. The activity of the Society in England was, however, but a small part of the work of Ignatius and his followers in the movement which came to be known as the Counter-Reformation. The Jesuits carried encouragement to Catholics of other European countries where a militant Protestantism was in control. "It was," says Cardinal Manning, "exactly what was wanted at the time to counteract the revolt of the sixteenth century. The revolt was disobedience and disorder in the most aggressive form. The Society was obedience and order in its most solid compactness." In 1551 Francis Borgia,[7] a minister of Emperor Charles V, joined the Society and donated a large sum to start the building of the Roman College of the Jesuits; later Pope Gregory XIII contributed to it lavishly. Ignatius planned to make it a model for all Jesuit institutions, taking great pains to secure able teachers and excellent equipment. The German College in Rome he designed for students from countries where Protestantism was making headway. Other colleges, seminaries, and universities were soon established. The type of academic, psychological, and spiritual education for which the Jesuits became so famous was well worked out before the founder's death. The tone remained religious; students must hear Mass every day, go to Confession every month, and begin their studies with prayer. Their master should take every fit occasion to inspire them with love of heavenly things, and encourage a fervent habit of prayer, which otherwise might easily be crowded out by the school routine. Ignatius' chief work, <Spiritual Exercises>, begun at Manresa in 1522, was finally published in Rome in 1548, with papal approval. In essence, it is an application of Gospel precepts to the individual soul, written in such a way as to arouse conviction of sin, of justice, and judgment. The value of systematic retirement and religious meditation, which the book sets forth, had always been known, but the order and method of meditation prescribed by Ignatius were new, and, though many of the maxims he repeats had been laid down before by the Fathers, they were here singularly well arranged, explained, and applied. To perform the Exercises as directed requires a month. The first week is given to consideration of sin and its consequences; the second, to our Lord's earthly life; the third, to His Passion, and the fourth, to His Resurrection. The object is to induce in the practitioner such a state of inner calm that he can thereafter make a choice "either as to some particular crisis or as to the general course of his life," unbiased "by any excessive like or dislike; and guided solely by the consideration of what will best forward the one end for which he was created—the glory of God and the perfection of his own soul." A warning contained in the book runs as follows: "When God has appointed a way, we must faithfully follow it and never think of another under pretense that it is more easy and safe. It is one of the Devil's artifices to set before a soul some state, holy indeed, but impossible to her, or at least different from hers, so that by a love of novelty, she may dislike, or be slack in her present state in which God has placed her and which is best for her. In like manner, he represents to her other acts as more holy and profitable to make her conceive a disgust of her present employment." Ignatius' tender regard for his brothers won the heart of each one of them. He was fatherly and understanding, especially with the sick. Obedience and self-denial were the two first lessons he taught novices. In his famous letter to the Portuguese Jesuits on the virtue of obedience, he says that it brings forth and nourishes all the other virtues; he calls it the distinguishing virtue of the Jesuits. True obedience reaches to the understanding as well as to the will, and does not suffer a person even secretly to complain of or to criticize any command of his superior, whom he must look upon as vested with the authority of Jesus Christ. Even when broken with age and infirmities, Ignatius said that, if the Pope commanded it, he would with joy go on board the first ship he could find, though it had neither sails nor rudder, and immediately set out for any part of the globe. When someone asked what his feelings would be if the Pope should decide to suppress the Company of Jesus, "A quarter of an hour of prayer," he answered, "and I should think no more about it." His perpetual lesson was: "Sacrifice your own will and judgment to obedience. Whatever you do without the consent of your spiritual guide will be imputed to willfulness, not to virtue, though you were to exhaust your bodies by labors and austerities." Humility, the characteristic trait of all the saints, was to Ignatius the sister virtue of obedience. For a long time he had gone about in threadbare garments, and lived in hostels for the poor, despised and ignored, but finding joy in his humiliation. When he lived in a house with his brothers, he always shared in the humble daily tasks in an unobtrusive fashion. In matters where he did not feel competent, Ignatius always readily accepted the judgment of others. As he received rebuke with cheerfulness and thanks, he allowed no false delicacy to restrain him from rebuking those who stood in need of it. Although he encouraged learning, he was quick to reprimand anyone whose learning made him conceited, tedious, or lukewarm in religion. He would have each member of the Society take up whatever work, whether teaching, preaching, or missions abroad, that he could do best. Notwithstanding the fatigue which the government of the Society imposed on him, Ignatius was always on fire to help others. The motto, "<Ad majorem Dei gloriam>" (To the greater glory of God), was the end for which he and the Society existed. When asked the most certain way to perfection, he answered: "To endure many and grievous afflictions for the love of Christ. Ask this grace of our Lord; to whomever He grants it, He does many other signal favors that always attend this grace." The French historian Guizot, in his <History of Civilization>, wrote of the members of the order, "Greatness of thought as well as greatness of will has been theirs." Ignatius directed the Society of Jesus for fifteen years. At the time of his death there were 13,000 members, dispersed in thirty-two provinces all over Europe, and soon they were to be established in the New World. The Society of Jesus served as the chief instrument of the Catholic Reformation. Its pursuits as a trading firm, followed for some years, reaped high returns but were disapproved by the papacy. Exclusive of the period of its suppression by papal brief, 1776-1814, and its suppression by various countries at different periods, largely by reason of these commercial activities, it has flourished in virtually all parts of the globe; its educational institutions are famous, and many individual Jesuits have achieved distinction as teachers and writers. Towards the end of his life Ignatius became so worn and feeble that he was assisted by three fathers. He died, after a brief illness, on July 31, 1556. The brilliant Father Laynez succeeded him; he and Father Francis Borgia gave the Society its direction for years to come. In 1622 Ignatius was canonized by Pope Gregory XV, and in our own time Pope Pius XI declared him the patron of all spiritual exercises. His emblems are a chasuble, communion, a book, and the apparition of the Lord. <Excerpts from> Spiritual Exercises Principle And Foundation <Man was created to praise, do reverence to and serve God> our Lord, and thereby to save his soul; and the other things on the face of the earth were created for man's sake and to help him in the following out of the end for which he was created. Hence it follows that man should make use of creatures so far as they do help him towards his end, and should withdraw from them so far as they are a hindrance to him with respect to that end. Wherefore it is necessary to make ourselves indifferent toward all created things, in whatever is left to the liberty of our free choice and is not forbidden, so that we on our part should not wish for health rather than sickness, for riches rather than poverty, for honor rather than ignominy, for a long life rather than a short life, and in all other matters should desire and choose solely those things which may better lead us to the end for which we were created. First Week. Second Exercise . . . The first point is the indictment of sins, that is to say, to bring to mind all the sins of my life, looking through it year by year or period by period. For this purpose three things are helpful; the first to look at the place and house where I have lived; the second at the dealings I have had with others; the third at the calling in which I have lived. The second point is to weigh the sins, looking at the foulness and malice that any mortal sin committed has in itself, even though it was not forbidden. The third, is to see who I am, belittling myself by examples; first, what am I in comparison with all mankind; secondly, what are all mankind in comparison with all the Angels and Saints in paradise; thirdly, to see what all creation is in comparison with God,---therefore in myself alone, what can I be? fourthly, to see all my corruption and foulness of body; fifthly, to look at myself as a sort of ulcer and abscess, from which have sprung so many sins and so many wickednesses and most hideous venom. The fourth is to consider who God is against whom I have sinned, according to His attributes, comparing them with their contraries in me-His wisdom with my ignorance, His omnipotence with my weakness, His justice with my iniquity, His goodness with my malice. The fifth, is a cry of wonder with a flood of emotion, ranging in thought through all creatures, how they have suffered me to live and have preserved me in life-how the Angels, being the sword of divine justice, have borne with me and guarded and prayed for me, how the Saints have interceded and prayed for me, and the heavens, sun, moon, stars and elements, fruits, birds, fishes and animals . . . and the earth, how it has not opened to swallow me up, creating new hells for my eternal torment therein. To conclude with a colloquy on mercy, casting a reckoning and giving thanks to God that He has granted me life hitherto, proposing amendment for the time to come with His grace. Our Father. Second Week, First Day. First Contemplation The usual preparatory prayer. The first prelude is to recall the history of what I have to contemplate, which is here how the three Divine Persons were looking down upon the whole flat or round of the world full of men; and how, seeing that all were going down to hell, it was decreed in their eternity that the Second Person should become man to save the human race. And so it was done, when the fullness of time came, by sending the angel Saint Gabriel to our Lady. The second, the composition (act of imagination), seeing the place. Here it will be to see the great room and round of the world, where dwell so many and such diverse nations. In like manner afterwards in particular, the house and apartments of our Lady, in the city of Nazareth, in the province of Galilee. The third, to ask for what I want. It will be here to ask for an intimate knowledge of the Lord who was made man for me, that I may love Him more and follow Him.... The first point is to see the persons, each and all of them; and, first, those on the face of the earth, in such variety both in dress and in mien, some white and others black, some in peace and others at war, some weeping and others laughing, some healthy, others sick, some just born and others dying, etc. Secondly, to see and consider the three Divine Persons as on the royal seat or throne of the Divine Majesty, how they regard the whole face and circuit of the earth and all nations in such blindness, and how they are dying and going down to hell. Thirdly, to see our Lady and the angel who salutes her, and to reflect how I may gather fruit from such a sight. The second point, to hear what the persons on earth are saying to wit, how they talk to one another, how they swear and blaspheme, etc. In like manner what the Divine Persons are saying, to wit: "Let us work the redemption of mankind"; and afterwards what our Lady and the angels are saying; and then to reflect so as to gather fruit from their words. The third then, to study what the persons on the face of the earth are doing, to wit, smiting, slaying, going to hell, etc.; likewise what the Divine Persons are doing, namely, working the most holy Incarnation, etc.; and in like manner what the angel and our Lady are doing, to wit, the angel performing his office of Ambassador, and our Lady humbling herself and returning thanks to the Divine Majesty; and afterwards to reflect so as to gather some fruit from each of these things. At the end a colloquy is to be made, thinking what I ought to say to the three Divine Persons, or to the Eternal Word Incarnate, or to the Mother and our Lady, asking according as one feels in oneself how better to follow and imitate our Lord, so newly Incarnate, saying Our Father. Second Week. Exercise Let the preparatory prayer be as usual. The first prelude is the composition, seeing the place. It will be here to see with the eye of the imagination the synagogues, towns, and country places through which Christ our Lord preached. The second, to ask the grace which I want. It will be here to ask grace of our Lord that I be not deaf to His call, but prompt and diligent to fulfill His most holy will. The first point is to put before my eyes a human king, chosen by God the Lord Himself, to whom all Christian princes and all Christian men pay reverence and obedience. The second, to mark how this king addressed all his people, saying: "My will is to conquer the whole land of the unbelievers; therefore whoever shall wish to come with me must be content to eat as I do, and to drink and dress, etc. as I do. In like manner he must labor as I do by day, and watch at night, etc., so that in like manner afterwards he may share with me in the victory as he shall have shared in the labours." The third, to consider what should be the answer of good subjects to a king so generous, such a man indeed; and how consequently, if anyone would not answer the request of such a king, how worthy he would be of being despised by the whole world, and reckoned a recreant knight, no gentleman, but a "skulker." The second part of the Exercise consists of applying the aforesaid example of a temporal king to Christ our Lord according to the said three points. And touching the first point, if we pay regard to such a call of a temporal king on his subjects, how much more it is worth our consideration to see Christ our Lord, the eternal King, and before Him the whole world, to which and to every man in particular He cries and says: "My will is to overcome the whole world and all mine enemies and so to enter into the glory of my Father; therefore he who shall wish to come with me must labour with me, that following me in hardship he may likewise follow me in glory." The second, to consider that all who have judgment and reason will offer their whole persons to labor.... For the Second Week and thereafter it is very profitable to read at times from the books of the Imitation of Christ, and of the Gospels and the Lives of the Saints. Fourth Week. A Contemplation To Obtain Love . . . The usual prayer. First prelude is a composition, which is here to see how I stand before God our Lord, the Angels, and the Saints interceding for me. The second, to ask for what I want; it will be here to ask for an inward knowledge of the great good received, in order that I, being fully grateful for the same, may in all things love and serve His Divine Majesty. The first point is to recall to memory the benefits received of creation, redemption, and particular gifts, pondering with deep affection how much God our Lord has done for me, and how much He has given me of what He has, and further, how the same Lord desires to give Himself to me so far as He can, according to His divine ordinance; and therewithal to reflect within myself, considering with much reason and justice what I on my part ought to offer for them, as one who offers with deep affection:-Take, O Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and all my will, all I have and possess; you have given it me; to you, Lord, I return it; all is yours, dispose of it entirely according to your will. Give me your love and grace, because that is enough for me.... (<Spiritual Exercises>, translated by Father Rickaby, S. J.) Endnotes: 1 St. Antony of Egypt, twelve hundred years before, had told his disciples to use a similar test. 2 Both Manresa and Montserrat, a Benedictine abbey, have locations of great natural beauty in the mountains of Catalonia and both have become pilgrim shrines of prime importance. A church dedicated to St. Ignatius was built above his cave at Manresa. 3 This early military form of their title is still used in France, Spain, and Italy. "Company" was altered to "Society" in the bull of foundation. "Jesuit" was at first a rather hostile nickname, never used by Ignatius himself. 4 The Sapienza (literally, the Wisdom) was the name given in the sixteenth century to the University of Rome, founded by Pope Boniface in 1303. It is now a secular institution. 5 That is. to say the Divine Office daily in choir. 6 The Council of Trent, held in the Austrian Tyrol (1545-1563), was one of the longest and most important of all oecumenical councils. Summoned for the purpose of combating Protestantism (Luther died the year before it was called), clarifying doctrine, and reforming the discipline of the Church, it adopted far-reaching decrees of reformation in discipline and morals. 7 St. Francis Borgia, a Spaniard of famous lineage, became in time the third general of the Jesuit Order; so effective was he in spreading its influence in Western Europe that he is sometimes called its "second founder." Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Founder of the Society of Jesus, Confessor. Celebration of Feast Day is July 31. Taken from "Lives of Saints", Published by John J. Crawley & Co., Inc.  Reading 1 Is 55:1-3 Thus says the LORD: All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat; Come, without paying and without cost, drink wine and milk! Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to satisfy? Heed me, and you shall eat well, you shall delight in rich fare. Come to me heedfully, listen, that you may have life. I will renew with you the everlasting covenant, the benefits assured to David. Responsorial Psalm Ps 145:8-9, 15-16, 17-18 R. (cf. 16) The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs. The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness. The LORD is good to all and compassionate toward all his works. R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs. The eyes of all look hopefully to you, and you give them their food in due season; you open your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing. R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs. The LORD is just in all his ways and holy in all his works. The LORD is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth. R. The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs. Reading II Rom 8:35, 37-39 Brothers and sisters: What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Gospel Mt 14:13-21 When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist, he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. The crowds heard of this and followed him on foot from their towns. When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick. When it was evening, the disciples approached him and said, “This is a deserted place and it is already late; dismiss the crowds so that they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.” Jesus said to them, “There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves.” But they said to him, “Five loaves and two fish are all we have here.” Then he said, “Bring them here to me, ” and he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds. They all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the fragments left over-- twelve wicker baskets full. Those who ate were about five thousand men, not counting women and children.  Reading 1 Lv 25:1, 8-17 The LORD said to Moses on Mount Sinai, “Seven weeks of years shall you count–seven times seven years– so that the seven cycles amount to forty-nine years. Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month, let the trumpet resound; on this, the Day of Atonement, the trumpet blast shall re-echo throughout your land. This fiftieth year you shall make sacred by proclaiming liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when every one of you shall return to his own property, every one to his own family estate. In this fiftieth year, your year of jubilee, you shall not sow, nor shall you reap the aftergrowth or pick the grapes from the untrimmed vines. Since this is the jubilee, which shall be sacred for you, you may not eat of its produce, except as taken directly from the field. “In this year of jubilee, then, every one of you shall return to his own property. Therefore, when you sell any land to your neighbor or buy any from him, do not deal unfairly. On the basis of the number of years since the last jubilee shall you purchase the land from your neighbor; and so also, on the basis of the number of years for crops, shall he sell it to you. When the years are many, the price shall be so much the more; when the years are few, the price shall be so much the less. For it is really the number of crops that he sells you. Do not deal unfairly, then; but stand in fear of your God. I, the LORD, am your God.” Responsorial Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 7-8 R. (4) O God, let all the nations praise you! May God have pity on us and bless us; may he let his face shine upon us. So may your way be known upon earth; among all nations, your salvation. R. O God, let all the nations praise you! May the nations be glad and exult because you rule the peoples in equity; the nations on the earth you guide. R. O God, let all the nations praise you! The earth has yielded its fruits; God, our God, has blessed us. May God bless us, and may all the ends of the earth fear him! R. O God, let all the nations praise you! Gospel Mt 14:1-12 Herod the tetrarch heard of the reputation of Jesus and said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why mighty powers are at work in him.” Now Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, for John had said to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.” Although he wanted to kill him, he feared the people, for they regarded him as a prophet. But at a birthday celebration for Herod, the daughter of Herodias performed a dance before the guests and delighted Herod so much that he swore to give her whatever she might ask for. Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.” The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and the guests who were present, he ordered that it be given, and he had John beheaded in the prison. His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who took it to her mother. His disciples came and took away the corpse and buried him; and they went and told Jesus.  St Olaf (Óláfr Haraldsson), King of Norway (995-1030). He has long been called Rex Perpetuus Norvegiæ, and the great historian, Christopher Dawson, has called him ‘the type and representative of the new [mediæval] ideal of Christian kingship in the Northern lands’ (Religion and the Rise of Western Culture: Gifford Lectures in the University of Edinburgh, 1948-1949 [Garden City, NY: Image, 1958], pp. 95-6).
St Olaf was the son of King Harald Grenske of Norway, but was raised by his mother and stepfather. According to Snorri Sturluson’s ‘Saga of Olaf Haraldson’ in the Heimskringla, ‘Olaf came early to manhood, was handsome in countenance, middle-sized in growth, and was even when very young of good understanding and ready speech’ (Olaf I.1, Samuel Laing’s 1844 translation, here). At the age of twelve he was taken on a viking expedition, and Sturluson quotes the poet Ottar Svarte (Olaf I.4): Young was the king when from his home He first began in ships to roam, His ocean-steed to ride To Denmark o’er the tide. Well exercised art thou in truth-- In manhood's earnest work, brave youth! Out from the distant north Mighty hast thou come forth. Concerning St Olaf’s first battle, when his men threw grappling irons onto the ships of a larger viking force and ‘cleared them of men’, Sturluson quotes Sigvat the Skald (Olaf I.5): They launch his ship where waves are foaming-- To the sea shore Both mast and oar, And sent his o’er the seas a-roaming. Where did the sea-king first draw blood? In the battle shock At Sote’s rock; The wolves howl over their fresh food. After other battles on the Baltic Sea, Sturluson describes St Olaf’s extensive campaigns fighting the Danes in England, and a sojourn of some months in Normandy. He was said to have planned a voyage to Jerusalem, when he had a dream ‘that there came to him a great and important man, but of a terrible appearance withal, who spoke to him, and told him to give up his purpose of proceeding to that land. “Return back to thy udal, for thou shalt be king over Norway for ever”’ (Olaf I.17). He did not return to Norway until 1015, when he sailed back through ‘waves mast-high . . . breaking round’ (Olaf I.27) and declared himself King. St Olaf obtained the support of the many petty kings of the Norwegian Uplands, whom he promised ‘his perfect friendship, and that he would hold by and improve the country's laws and rights, if he became supreme king of Norway’ (Olaf I.34), and was made King by the general acclamation of a Thing (Olaf I.35). St Olaf joined battle with the forces of Earl Svein, who had been de facto ruler, on the sea at Nesjar in early 1016, exhorting his men, ‘when the fight becomes hot and the ships are bound together, then let each man show what is in him of manly spirit’ (Olaf I.46). In the end, though Earl Svein escaped, St Olaf dealt him a crushing blow. Sigvat the Skald, who was present, wrote (Olaf I.48): The shields we brought from home were white, Now they are red-stained in the fight: This work was fit for those who wore Ringed coats-of-mail their breasts before. Where for the foe blunted the best sword I saw our young king climb on board. He stormed the first; we followed him-- The war-birds now in blood may swim. It’s a bit unclear, but apparently at some point in England, St Olaf ‘became earnestly interested in Christianity’ and was eventually baptised, perhaps at Rouen (Catholic Encyclopedia). Thus, after he became King, Sturluson writes, ‘It was King Olaf's custom to rise betimes in the morning, put on his clothes, wash his hands, and then go to the church and hear the matins and morning mass’ (Olaf II.56). St Olaf ‘bent his whole mind to uprooting heathenism, and old customs which he thought contrary to Christianity’ (Olaf II.56). Although Olaf Trygvason (King of Norway, 995-1000) had begun the work of Christianising Norway, St Olaf Haraldson completed it, ‘breaking the stubborn resistance of the pagan chiefs and countryfolk with fire and sword’ (Dawson, p. 96). He is the great Norwegian legislator for the Church, and like his ancestor (Olaf Trygvesson), made frequent severe attacks on the old faith and customs, demolishing the temples and building Christian churches in their place. He brought many bishops and priests from England, as King Saint Cnut later did to Denmark. Some few are known by name (Grimkel, Sigfrid, Rudolf, Bernhard). He seems on the whole to have taken the Anglo-Saxon conditions as a model for the ecclesiastical organization of his kingdom. (CE) Sturluson quotes Sigvat the Skald (in Olaf II.56): The king, who at the helm guides His warlike ship through clashing tides, Now gives one law for all the land-- A heavenly law, which long will stand. One of the most famous of St Olaf’s Christianising activities is the destruction of an idol of Thor at Gulbrandsdal, in central Norway. Before attending a Thing there, ‘the king was in prayer all the night, beseeching God of His goodness and mercy to release him from evil. When mass was ended, and morning was grey, the king went to the Thing’ (Olaf IV.119). St Olaf saw the locals bearing an enormous wooden idol of Thor, to which it was their custom to offer food and golden jewelry. A local chief then challenged the King and his bishop: Where now, king, is thy god? I think he will now carry his head lower; and neither thou, nor the man with the horn whom ye call bishop, and sits there beside thee, are so bold to-day as on the former days; for now our god, who rules over all, is come, and looks on you with an angry eye; and now I see well enough that ye are terrified, and scarcely dare to raise your eyes. Throw away now all your opposition, and believe in the god who has all your fate in his hands. But St Olaf retorted: Much hast thou talked to us this morning, and greatly hast thou wondered that thou canst not see our God; but we expect that he will soon come to us. Thou wouldst frighten us with thy god, who is both blind and deaf, and can neither save himself nor others, and cannot even move about without being carried; but now I expect it will be but a short time before he meets his fate: for turn your eyes towards the east,—behold our God advancing in great light. Thus, as all of the people stared at the rising sun, St Olaf’s right-hand man-at-arms struck the idol with an oversized club. As Michael Scott Rohan and Allan Scott describe it in this Christian History article, ‘The rotten wood broke, scattering the gold and spilling out rats (as large as cats) and vermin that had fed on the offerings. The horrified pagans bolted.’ According to Sturluson, however, St Olaf called them back to speak to them, saying: I do not understand what your noise and running mean. Ye see yourselves what your god can do,—the idol ye adorned with gold and silver, and brought meat and provisions to. Ye see now that the protecting powers who used it were the mice and adders, reptiles and paddocks; and they do ill who trust to such, and will not abandon this folly. Take now your gold and ornaments that are lying strewed about on the grass, and give them to your wives and daughters; but never hang them hereafter upon stock or stone. Here are now two conditions between us to choose upon,—either accept Christianity, or fight this very day; and the victory be to them to whom the God we worship gives it. (Olaf IV.119) In this way, all of those people were converted to the Christian faith. But unfortunately, St Olaf’s rule did not last long. The Danish king, Canute, bribed his subjects to revolt against him (Olaf VI.166), and he was forced to flee to Kiev, first prophesying the fall of his rival (Olaf VI.190). In Kiev St Olaf was received by his cousin, St Yaroslav the Wise, ‘in the kindest manner, and made him the offer to remain with him, and to have so much land as was necessary for defraying the expense of the entertainment of his followers’ (Olaf VI.191). Sturluson writes: King Olaf accepted this offer thankfully, and remained there. It is related that King Olaf was distinguished all his life for pious habits, and zeal in his prayers to God. But afterwards, when he saw his own power diminished, and that of his adversaries augmented, he turned all his mind to God's service; for he was not distracted by other thoughts, or by the labour he formerly had upon his hands, for during all the time he sat upon the throne he was endeavouring to promote what was most useful: and first to free and protect the country from foreign chiefs' oppressions, then to convert the people to the right faith; and also to establish law and the rights of the country, which he did by letting justice have its way, and punishing evil-doers. (Olaf VI.191) Sturluson also relates a miracle performed by St Olaf while in Kiev. When a widow’s son become ill from a boil on his neck and was close to death, his mother went to Queen Ingegerd of Kiev, who sent her to St Olaf, saying, ‘Go to King Olaf, he is the best physician here; and beg him to lay his hands on thy lad, and bring him my words if he will not otherwise do it’ (Olaf VI.200). Although he at first told her to go to a doctor, upon hearing the Queen’s words he layed his hand on the boy’s neck, feeling the boil. ‘Then the king took a piece of bread, laid it in the figure of the cross upon the palm of his hand, and put it into the boy's mouth’, who swallowed it. Immediately the soreness left, and after a few days the boy made a full recovery. According to Sturluson, ‘Then first came Olaf into the repute of having as much healing power in his hands as is ascribed to men who have been gifted by nature with healing by the touch . . . .’ (there is an interesting article here that mentions, among other things, the idea that kings possess a miraculous healing power by virtue of their anointing). In the end, although St Olaf contemplated going on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and perhaps becoming a monk, ‘yet the thought lay deep in his soul to recover again, if there should be any opportunity for him, his kingdom in Norway’ (Olaf VI.198). Thus, when Canute’s vassal in Norway was lost at sea, St Olaf returned in an attempt to regain the throne. St Olaf landed with a small force, giving his men the battle cry, ‘Forward, forward, Christian men! cross men! king’s men!’ (Olaf VII.216). He entrusted a large sum of money to one man to be offered for the commemoration of the souls of his enemies who would fall in the battle, trusting that God would make provision for all of those who fought on his side (Olaf VIII.219). He met Canute’s force at Stiklestad on 29 June 1030, his own force of 3,500 strongly outnumbered by Canute’s 13,000, and told his men, ‘With this we may encourage ourselves, that we have a more just cause than the bondes; and likewise that God must either protect us and our cause in this battle, or give us a far higher recompense for what we may lose here in the world than what we ourselves could ask’ (Olaf VIII.223). Many of his subjects blanched to fight the man they knew to be their king, and Sturluson quotes Sigvat (Olaf VIII.238): I think I saw them shrink with fear Who would not shrink from foeman’s spear, When Olaf’s lion-eye was cast On them, and called up all the past. Clear as the serpent’s eye—his look No Throndhjem man could stand, but shook Beneath its glance, and skulked away, Knowing his king, and cursed the day. At last, however, St Olaf was struck in the leg by an axe and staggered over to a rock. Then, being pierced through the belly by a spear weilded by Kalf Arnason and struck through the neck by an unknown assailant, he gave up his soul: ‘These three wounds were King Olaf’s death; and after the king’s death the greater part of the forces which had advanced with him fell with the king’ (Olaf VIII.240). According to Sturluson, after the remaining supporters of the King began to fall back, one of those who fought against him became the first to testify to a post-mortem miracle: Thorer Hund went to where King Olaf’s body lay, took care of it, laid it straight out on the ground, and spread a cloak over it. He told since that when he wiped the blood from the face it was very beautiful; and there was red in the cheeks, as if he only slept, and even much clearer than when he was in life. The king’s blood came on Thorer’s hand, and ran up between his fingers to where he had been wounded, and the wound grew up so speedily that it did not require to be bound up. This circumstance was testified by Thorer himself when King Olaf’s holiness came to be generally known among the people; and Thorer Hund was among the first of the king’s powerful opponents who endeavoured to spread abroad the king’s sanctity. (Olaf VIII.242) Concerning the battle, Dawson has commented: Thus it was an historical realization of the dominant motive of the old epic poetry—the tragedy of loyal heroism defeated by treachery and gold. . . . But in the case of Olaf this ancient tradition of Nordic heroism was united with a new spirit of religious faith. As Olaf’s retainers kept their faith with their lord, so Olaf himself kept faith with the Lord of Heaven. And thus the new religion became the object of a deeper loyalty than the religion of the old gods had ever evoked. (p. 96) St Olaf’s relics were taken to a nearby house, and later to the town of Nidaros (modern-day Trondheim). A miraculous spring appeared where his body had lain, to be later covered by a chapel. By the winter of 1031, ‘many in the Throndhjem land began to declare that Olaf was in reality a holy man, and his sanctity was confirmed by many miracles’ as people began to ask for his intercessions (Olaf VIII.254). When his relics were disinterred that year, he was found to be wholly incorrupt, with cheeks ‘as red as if he had but just fallen asleep’ (Olaf VIII.258), and his hair found to be impervious to fire. Sigvat wrote (Olaf VIII.259): I lie not, when I say the king Seemed as alive in every thing: His nails, his yellow hair still growing, And round his ruddy cheek still flowing, As when, to please the Russian queen, His yellow locks adorned were seen; Or to the blind he cured he gave A tress, their precious sight to save. According to Sturluson, the Thing, the bishop, and the Danish usurper alike determined that King Olaf should be considered a man truly holy’ (Olaf VIII.258). He was moved into St Clement’s Church in Nidaros and interred near the high altar, under an elabourate shrine, where ‘Many kinds of miracles were soon wrought by King Olaf’s holy remains.’ Dawson points out: St Olaf quickly took the place of Thor as the patron of the farmers, their champion against trolls and witches, and the ideal type of the Northern warrior. The national code of law became known as the laws of St Olaf, and the kings of Norway were regarded as the heirs and representatives of St Olaf . . . . (p. 98) The great American poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, wrote a beautiful ‘Saga of King Olaf’ (1863) which highlights the confrontation between paganism and Christianity (Favorite Poems of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow [Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1947], pp. 64-110). In part X, ‘Raud the Strong’, he writes: ‘All the old gods are dead, All the wild warlocks fled; But the White Christ lives and reigns, And throughout my wide domains His Gospel shall be spread!’ On the Evangelists Thus swore King Olaf. (p. 83) In conclusion, here is the Idiomelon in Tone 6 at Matins, from the Akolouthia for St Olaf by Reader Isaac Lambertsen: Let us bless wondrous Olav the King, the warrior of Christ, courageous in battle, who in virtue was harder than adamant, the valiant champion of the Church of God, the unshakable tower of piety, who was shown to be a martyr for the Christian Faith, and standeth ever before the throne of Christ, praying on our behalf.  Reading 1 Lv 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34b-37 The LORD said to Moses, “These are the festivals of the LORD which you shall celebrate at their proper time with a sacred assembly. The Passover of the LORD falls on the fourteenth day of the first month, at the evening twilight. The fifteenth day of this month is the LORD’s feast of Unleavened Bread. For seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first of these days you shall hold a sacred assembly and do no sort of work. On each of the seven days you shall offer an oblation to the LORD. Then on the seventh day you shall again hold a sacred assembly and do no sort of work.” The LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the children of Israel and tell them: When you come into the land which I am giving you, and reap your harvest, you shall bring a sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest, who shall wave the sheaf before the LORD that it may be acceptable for you. On the day after the sabbath the priest shall do this. “Beginning with the day after the sabbath, the day on which you bring the wave-offering sheaf, you shall count seven full weeks, and then on the day after the seventh week, the fiftieth day, you shall present the new cereal offering to the LORD. “The tenth of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement, when you shall hold a sacred assembly and mortify yourselves and offer an oblation to the LORD. “The fifteenth day of this seventh month is the LORD’s feast of Booths, which shall continue for seven days. On the first day there shall be a sacred assembly, and you shall do no sort of work. For seven days you shall offer an oblation to the LORD, and on the eighth day you shall again hold a sacred assembly and offer an oblation to the LORD. On that solemn closing you shall do no sort of work. “These, therefore, are the festivals of the LORD on which you shall proclaim a sacred assembly, and offer as an oblation to the LORD burnt offerings and cereal offerings, sacrifices and libations, as prescribed for each day.” Responsorial Psalm 81:3-4, 5-6, 10-11ab R.Sing with joy to God our help. Take up a melody, and sound the timbrel, the pleasant harp and the lyre. Blow the trumpet at the new moon, at the full moon, on our solemn feast. R. Sing with joy to God our help. For it is a statute in Israel, an ordinance of the God of Jacob, Who made it a decree for Joseph when he came forth from the land of Egypt. R. Sing with joy to God our help. There shall be no strange god among you nor shall you worship any alien god. I, the LORD, am your God who led you forth from the land of Egypt. R. Sing with joy to God our help. Gospel Jn 11:19-27 Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother [Lazarus, who had died]. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him; but Mary sat at home. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise.” Martha said to him, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and anyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.” or Lk 10:38-42 Jesus entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”  Feastday: July 29
Patron of cooks "Jesus loved Martha and Mary and Lazarus." This unique statement in John's gospel tells us of the special relationship Jesus had with Martha, her sister, and her brother. Apparently Jesus was a frequent guest at Martha's home in Bethany, a small village two miles from Jerusalem. We read of three visits in Luke 10:38-42, John 11:1-53, and John 12:1-9. Many of us find it easy to identify with Martha in the story Luke tells. Martha welcomes Jesus and his disciples into her home and immediately goes to work to serve them. Hospitality is paramount in the Middle East and Martha believed in its importance. Imagine her frustration when her sister Mary ignores the rule of hospitality and Martha's work in order to sit and listen to Jesus. Instead of speaking to her sister, she asks Jesus to intervene. Jesus' response is not unkind, which gives us an idea of his affection for her. He observes that Martha is worried about many things that distract her from really being present to him. He reminds her that there is only one thing that is truly important -- listening to him. And that is what Mary has done. In Martha we see ourselves -- worried and distracted by all we have to do in the world and forgetting to spend time with Jesus. It is, however, comforting to note that Jesus loved her just the same. The next visit shows how well Martha learned this lesson. She is grieving the death of her brother with a house full of mourners when she hears that Jesus has just come to the area. She gets up immediately and leaves the guests, leaves her mourning, and goes to meet him. Her conversation with Jesus shows her faith and courage. In this dialogue she states clearly without doubt that she believes in Jesus' power, in the resurrection, and most of all that Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus tells her that he is the resurrection and the life and then goes on to raise her brother from the dead. Our final picture of Martha in Scripture is the one that sums up who she was. Jesus has returned to Bethany some time later to share a meal with his good friends. In this home were three extraordinary people. We hear how brother Lazarus caused a stir when was brought back to life. We hear how Mary causes a commotion at dinner by annointing Jesus with expensive perfume. But all we hear about Martha is the simple statement: "Martha served." She isn't in the spotlight, she doesn't do showy things, she doesn't receive spectacular miracles. She simply serves Jesus. We know nothing more about Martha and what happened to her later. According to a totally untrustworthy legend Martha accompanied Mary to evangelize France after Pentecost. But wouldn't it be wonderful if the most important thing that could be said about us is "They served"? Martha is the patron saint of servants and cooks. In Her Footsteps Dorothy Day said: "If everyone were holy and handsome, it would be easy to see Christ in everyone. But it was not Christ's way for himself. Ask honestly what you would do when a beggar asked at your house for food. Would you give it on an old cracked plate, thinking that was good enough? Do you think that Martha and Mary thought that the old and chipped dish was good enough for their guest? It is not a duty to help Christ -- it is a privilege." In what ways do you serve Christ others grudgingly or sparingly? How can you serve them the way Martha served Christ, putting her whole self into it? Prayer: Saint Martha, pray for us that we might serve Jesus better. Help us to overcome our distractions and worries to listen to his words and be present to him this day. Amen
 Feastday: July 28
She was born as Annakkutty (little Anna) in Kudamaloor, a village in the princely state of Travancore which was under the British Raj (now present day Kottayam district, Kerala, India) to Joseph and Mary Muttathupadathu. She was baptized on 27 August 1910 at Saint Mary's Church in Kudamaloor under the patronage of Saint Anna. Anna's mother died when she was young, so her maternal aunt raised her. Anna was In 1916 Anna started her schooling in Arpookara. She received First Communion on 27 November 1917. In 1918 she was transferred to the school in Muttuchira. In 1923 Anna was badly burned on her feet when she fell into a pit of burning chaff. This accident left her permanently disabled. When it became possible, Anna joined the Franciscan Clarist Congregation. She arrived at the Poor Clares convent at Bharananganam on Pentecost 1927. She received the postulant's veil on 2 August 1928 and took the name Alphonsa. In May 1929 she entered the Malayalam High School at Vazhappally. Her foster mother died in 1930. On 19 May 1930 she received her religious habit at Bharananganam. Three days later she resumed her studies at Changanacherry, while working as a temporary teacher at the school at Vakakkad. On 11 August 1931 she joined the novitiate. Anna took her permanent vows on 12 August 1936. Two days later she returned to Bharananganam from Changanacherry. She taught elementary school, but was often sick and unable to teach. In December 1936, it is claimed that she was cured from her ailments through the intervention of Blessed Kuriakose Elias Chavara, but on 14 June 1939 she was struck by a severe attack of pneumonia, which left her weakened. On 18 October 1940, a thief entered her room in the middle of the night. This traumatic event caused her to suffer amnesia and weakened her again. Her health continued to deteriorate over a period of months. She received extreme unction on 29 September 1941. The next day it is believed that she regained her memory, though not complete health. Her health improved over the next few years, until in July 1945 she developed a stomach problem that caused vomiting. She died on 28 July 1946, aged 35. She is buried at Bharananganam, Travancore (present day Kerala) in the Diocese of Palai. Her tomb in Bharananganam has become a pilgrimage site as miracles have been reported by some faithful. The miracle attributed to her intercession and approved by the Vatican for the canonization was the healing of the club foot of an infant in 1999.  Reading 1 Ex 40:16-21, 34-38 Moses did exactly as the LORD had commanded him. On the first day of the first month of the second year the Dwelling was erected. It was Moses who erected the Dwelling. He placed its pedestals, set up its boards, put in its bars, and set up its columns. He spread the tent over the Dwelling and put the covering on top of the tent, as the LORD had commanded him. He took the commandments and put them in the ark; he placed poles alongside the ark and set the propitiatory upon it. He brought the ark into the Dwelling and hung the curtain veil, thus screening off the ark of the commandments, as the LORD had commanded him. Then the cloud covered the meeting tent, and the glory of the LORD filled the Dwelling. Moses could not enter the meeting tent, because the cloud settled down upon it and the glory of the LORD filled the Dwelling. Whenever the cloud rose from the Dwelling, the children of Israel would set out on their journey. But if the cloud did not lift, they would not go forward; only when it lifted did they go forward. In the daytime the cloud of the LORD was seen over the Dwelling; whereas at night, fire was seen in the cloud by the whole house of Israel in all the stages of their journey. Responsorial Psalm 84:3, 4, 5-6a and 8a, 11 R. How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord, mighty God! My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the LORD. My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. R. How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord, mighty God! Even the sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest in which she puts her young– Your altars, O LORD of hosts, my king and my God! R. How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord, mighty God! Blessed they who dwell in your house! continually they praise you. Blessed the men whose strength you are! They go from strength to strength. R. How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord, mighty God! I had rather one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I had rather lie at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. R. How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord, mighty God! Gospel Mt 13:47-53 Jesus said to the disciples: “The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away. Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” “Do you understand all these things?” They answered, “Yes.” And he replied, “Then every scribe who has been instructed in the Kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.” When Jesus finished these parables, he went away from there.  Reading 1 Ex 34:29-35 As Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the commandments in his hands, he did not know that the skin of his face had become radiant while he conversed with the LORD. When Aaron, then, and the other children of Israel saw Moses and noticed how radiant the skin of his face had become, they were afraid to come near him. Only after Moses called to them did Aaron and all the rulers of the community come back to him. Moses then spoke to them. Later on, all the children of Israel came up to him, and he enjoined on them all that the LORD had told him on Mount Sinai. When he finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face. Whenever Moses entered the presence of the LORD to converse with him, he removed the veil until he came out again. On coming out, he would tell the children of Israel all that had been commanded. Then the children of Israel would see that the skin of Moses’ face was radiant; so he would again put the veil over his face until he went in to converse with the LORD. Responsorial Psalm 99:5, 6, 7, 9 R. Holy is the Lord our God. Extol the LORD, our God, and worship at his footstool;fa holy is he! R. Holy is the Lord our God. Moses and Aaron were among his priests, and Samuel, among those who called upon his name; they called upon the LORD, and he answered them. R. Holy is the Lord our God. From the pillar of cloud he spoke to them; they heard his decrees and the law he gave them. R. Holy is the Lord our God. Extol the LORD, our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for holy is the LORD, our God. R. Holy is the Lord our God. Gospel Mt 13:44-46 Jesus said to his disciples: “The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant searching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”  Feastday: July 27
Not much is known about St. Natalie, except that she was martyred for her Faith with her husband Aurelius. According to his biography by St. Eulogius of Toledo, Aurelius was the son of a Moor and a Spanish woman, and was orphaned as a child. He was secretly raised a Christian by his aunt during the Moorish persecution of Christians. He married a half Moorish woman, Sabigotho, who took the name Natalie when he converted her to Christianity. They were both beheaded for practicing their religion openly together with George, a monk from Jerusalem whom Aurelius had befriended. Their feast day is July 27th.
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