Dominic of Silos, O.S.B., was a Spanish monk, to whom the Abbey of Santo Domingo de Silos, where he served as the abbot, is dedicated. He is revered as a saint in the Catholic Church. For more about this saint, please click on the image. Peace be with you!
In today's Office of Readings we encounter a reading from a sermon by St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090 - 1153). Bernard was born near Dijon, in France, in 1090, of a noble family. In 1112 he joined the new monastery at Cîteaux. This had been founded fourteen years before, in a bid to reject the laxity and riches of much of the Benedictine Order of the time (as exemplified by the great monasteries such as Cluny) and to return to a primitive poverty and austerity of life. Bernard was a man of great holiness and wisdom, and although he was often in very poor health, he was active in many of the great public debates of the time. He strongly opposed the luxurious lives of some of the clergy, and fought against the persecution of the Jews. He was also a prolific writer, and the Liturgy of the Hours uses extracts from many of his sermons. For a reflection, "The whole world awaits Mary's reply," please click on the image. Peace be with you!
Pope St. Anastasius I was a 4th century Bishop of Rome. The writings of the Church Fathers tell us that he was a distinguished Roman Christian known for his charity and holiness. He was elevated to the Chair of St. Peter in 399 A.D., succeeding Pope Siricius, and his pontificate lasted not quite four years. For more about this saint, please click on the image. Peace be with you!
In today's Office of Readings we encounter a reading from the treatise "Against the Heresies" by St. Irenaeus (ca. 130 - 202 A.D.). Whenever we take up a Bible we touch Irenaeus’s work, for he played a decisive role in fixing the canon of the New Testament. It is easy for people nowadays to think of Scripture – and the New Testament in particular – as the basis of the Church, but harder to remember that it was the Church itself that had to agree, early on, about what was scriptural and what was not. For a reflection, "The operation of the redeeming Incarnation," please click on the image. Peace be with you!
St. Winebald was a Saxon prince born into a holy and royal family in England. His father, St. Richard the King, and his mother, St. Wunna of Wessex, are both saints, as well as his brother, St. Willibald, his sister, St. Walburga, and his uncle, St. Boniface. After making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land with his father and brother, and then spending many years in Rome, Winebald was recruited by his uncle, Boniface, to join him in evangelizing Germany. Winebald was ordained a priest and worked as a missionary across Germany, Holland, France, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg, leaving behind many flourishing churches and monasteries under the Rule of St. Benedict. St. Winebald was an important figure in laying the foundations of Christianity across much of Europe. After his death, his tomb became a pilgrimage shrine.
For more about this saint, please click on the image.
Peace be with you!
