May 13th – St. John the Silent.

John was born in the year 454 in Nicopolis, Armenia, apparently to a wealthy family whose ancestors included governors and generals. His parents died when he was eighteen. He built a monastery, gave away the rest of his fortune to the poor and with ten companions strove to live the monastic life with fervor and dedication.

John’s reputation for holiness as well as his leadership abilities drew the attention of many and at the age of 28 he was appointed bishop of Colonia. He spent the next nine years exercising his episcopal duties. He would work tirelessly instructing his flock and often went without the necessities of life to relieve the burdens of the poor.

Unable to successfully combat some of the evils he saw and desiring a more secluded life, John fled his diocese and entered the monastery of St. Sabas outside Jerusalem. Here he lived the life of simplicity and austerity that he felt God had called him to. The remainder of his life would be spent doing whatever work he was asked to do willingly and quietly. Tradition tells us that he lived the last forty years of his life in total silence unless, under obedience, he was obliged to speak. John died in 558 after having lived some seventy-six years in solitude.

The overt persecutions of Christians had ended. Many Christians began to become lax in the practice of their faith. John chose a different form of martyrdom. He felt called by God to dedicate his whole life to living the Way of Jesus. His martyrdom was to give up all his wealth, comfortable surroundings and way of life, and to take on a life of total simplicity. He gave up his own will and desires to live in obedience to his superiors. His food and shelter were the bare minimum needed for survival. His work was manual labor and continuous prayer and praise of God.

How many people in our world today, without choosing to do so, live in conditions even more primitive? May God grant us the grace to live more simply in order that others may simply live.

<><><><> Other Martyrs of the Faith

Today is the Feast of St. Robert Bellarmine, Confessor and Doctor of the Church. Robert lived in the 17th century, and was famous throughout Europe as a theologian, and as a strenuous defender of the Faith in the controversy of protestantism. He joined the Society of Jesus, and was later made Cardinal, the Archbishop of Capua. His numerous writings include works of devotion and instruction, as well as of controversy. Saint Robert died in AD 1621, and was canonized and declared Doctor in AD 1931.

At Bologna, a commemoration of the precious death of Blessed Imelda, virgin, of the Order of Preachers After receiving the sacrament of the Most Holy Eucharist, which she most ardently desired, she could not sustain the most intense fire of love. Her journey in life ended, she happily entered heaven to reign as a victim of love. A duplex feast.

At Rome, the dedication of the church of St. Mary of the Martyrs. In the reign of the Emperor Phocas, Pope St. Boniface IV purified the Pantheon, the ancient temple of all the gods, and consecrated it in honor of our Lady and all the holy martyrs. But later, the Sovereign Pontiff, Gregory IV, decreed that the annual solemnity, now extended to honor all saints, should be observed by the Universal Church on November 1.

At Constantinople, Blessed Mucius, priest and martyr. At the time of the Emperor Diocletian and the proconsul Laudicius, he was subjected to many penalties and tortures because of his faith. He was first tortured at Amphipolis in Macedonia; then he was taken to Constantinople where he was beheaded.

At Alexandria, the commemoration of many holy martyrs, who were slain by the Arians in the church at Theonas on account of their Catholic faith.

At Heraclea in Thrace, St. Glyceria, a Roman martyr. She suffered many grievous torments from the hands of the governor Sabinus in the reign of the Emperor Antoninus; but she escaped unharmed from them all by the help of God. At length she was cast to the wild beasts; when one of them had bitten her, she gave up her soul to God.

At Utrecht, St. Servatius, Bishop of the Church of Tongres. His merits were made plain to all men by the fact that, in winter, when snow covered all the earth round about, it never fell upon his tomb, until by the zeal of the citizens a basilica was built thereon. His feast is observed May 22.

<><><><><><> Prayer:

Father, you called St. John to the solitary life in which he prayed for others. Grant us the signs we seek for discerning Your Will and purify our hearts, dear Lord, that we may serve You more perfectly. In Christ’s Name we pray. Amen.

<><><><> A prayer to Saint Raphael, the Archangel:

Holy Ghost. Amen. Glorious archangel, St. Raphael, great prince of the heavenly court, illustrious by thy gifts of wisdom and grace, guide of travelers by land and sea, consoler of the unfortunate and refuge of sinners, I entreat thee to help me in all my needs and in all the trials of this life, as thou didst assist the young Tobias in his journeying. And since thou art the “physician of God”, I humbled pray to thee to heal my soul of its many infirmities and my body of the ills that afflict it, if this favor is for my greater good. I ask, especially, for angelic purity, that I may be made fit to be the living temple of the

Traditional indulgence of 100 days, Leo XIII – 1890 Imprimatur: +John M. Farley, Archbishop of New York, Sept. 19, 1908

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