King St. Louis IX. Painted by Emile Signol in 1839 and preserved at Versailles, Musée national du château and Trianon.

Saint Louis tried to avoid waging war against Christians every way possible, only resorting to war when every peaceful means to solve the dispute had been exhausted.

He recommended the same, in writing, to his son: “Dear son, I encourage you to avoid waging war on Christians by every means possible. If you suffer some loss at their hands, try various approaches, searching for a way that will permit you to recover what is yours by right, without resort to war.”

Marius Sepet, Saint Louis (Paris: Victor Lecoffre, 1913), p. 207 (Nobility.org translation.)

Short Stories on Honor, Chivalry, and the World of Nobility—no. 21

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Treasures of the Orient

November 30, 2023

Something of the luxury of the orient shows that the soul of the people was involved in it.

The Persian carpet was not thought up by some nabob; not the designs, nor the colors, nor the manner of weaving them.

Weaving a Persian carpet in Esfahan, Iran. Photo by Julia Maudlin.

Happy are the modest artisans who, on the shores of the Caspian Sea, make and sell those carpets; as it is that they are the ones that dream these carpets up, they are much happier than those that use them.

They are the nabobs of dreams.

Those of the West feel represented when they hold elections and select deputies. Those of the East feel represented when a man of genius among them elaborates a dream.

The photograph shows us the fairylike towers of the famous church of St. Basil, in Moscow.

This admirable edifice, built by Ivan the Terrible in the XVI century, evokes that which is most typical of Czarist Russia.It is divided into two parts, separated by a line ideal and common to them both. The part that goes from the ground to the lower part of the towers is solid, massive, and extremely heavy. It is an enormous architectonic ensemble, the stones of which are laid in such a way as to form a most dense block, that even seems to be sinking into the earth.

Above the common line, the towers suddenly contrast with the heavy foundation and, as if they were slender needles, raise themselves gracefully skyward. The byzantine domes seem so light and delicate that to those of us who come from the modern West they appear to be balloons ready at any moment to soar into the sky. The dainty dome on high, that seems to draw its immense triangular tower behind it like the tail of a comet, precedes the others with stupendous daring.

Close up of the towers of Saint Basil’s Cathedral. Photo by Robert Brumter.

In this masterpiece, severity, stability, and strength are reconciled with and complemented by grace, imagination, and levity.

The first impression one receives from this crown-shaped mitre, used by ecclesiastical dignitaries in official ceremonies, in one of richness. A detailed analysis shows that this richness was enobled by a sense of harmony and proportion, and evident taste and majesty.

It is a splendid manifestation of an exalted idea of the sublime dignity of the Priesthood and of Religion.

O Universo é uma Catedral: Excertos do pensamento de Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira recolhidos por Leo Daniele, Edições Brasil de Amanhã, São Paulo, 1997.

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RIP – King Leka I

November 30, 2023

On November 30, 2011, His Majesty King Leka I died of heart failure in Tirana, Albania.

Albanian President Bamir Topi, Prime Minister Berisha and political parties sent condolences to the Royal family. “His active efforts and role to topple the communist system and, during transition, to heighten Albania’s national values and promote the integrating process remain alive in the nation’s memory,” President Topi said.

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St. Andrew

Our Lord calling St. Peter and St. Andrew. Painting by Duccio di Buoninsegna.

Our Lord calling St. Peter and St. Andrew. Painting by Duccio di Buoninsegna.

The name “Andrew” (Gr., andreia, manhood, or valour), like other Greek names, appears to have been common among the Jews from the second or third century B.C. St. Andrew, the Apostle, son of Jonah, or John (Matt., xvi, 17; John, i, 42), was born in Bethsaida of Galilee (John, i, 44). He was brother of Simon Peter (Matt., x, 2; John, i, 40). Both were fishermen (Matt., iv, 18; Mark, i, 16), and at the beginning of Our Lord’s public life occupied the same house at Capharnaum (Mark, i, 21, 29). From the fourth Gospel we learn that Andrew was a disciple of the Baptist, whose testimony first led him and John the Evangelist to follow Jesus (John, i, 35-40). Andrew at once recognized Jesus as the Messias, and hastened to introduce Him to his brother, Peter, (John, i, 41).

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The present Soviet-Cuban aggression against the African continent has been prepared by decades of infiltration, propaganda, and communist inspired terrorist activity. The lives of the African people have been systematically disrupted, the land has been devastated, and religious and shrines of the Church have been desecrated.

These assaults have at times, by way of reaction, providentially called forth great proofs of love of the Church and truly noble and transcendent counter-revolutionary triumphs. One of the most heroic and legendary of these, one which will continue to reverberate across the centuries, was written in blood by a grail woman in Northeastern Zaire. She is [Blessed Marie-Clémentine*] Sister Anuarita of Bafwabaka, faithful bride of Christ, who gave her life to preserve the kingdom of Christ in Africa without spot or stain.

The Reign Of Terror In Stanleyville

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December 1 – The Virgin Mary appears to General Gaston de Sonis after his army’s losses at Patay promising that France would survive

Général de Charette

Général de Charette

On the night of December 1 [1870], the Zouaves were ordered to advance to Patay [France], where Joan of Arc had won a renowned victory against the English. [General Louis-Gaston de] Sonis asked [Colonel Athanase de] Charette, who had no flag of his own, to lend him the Zouaves’. This banner had a curious history….  [I]n September, the Benedictine nuns of Paray-le-Monial had made a banner bearing a crowned Sacred Heart, with the motto, “Heart of Jesus, Save France.” Given the importance of that symbol to the Zouaves when it was made a gift to them in Tours, they heartily embraced it. This was the flag that would lead Sonis’s men into battle.

The Flag of Sacre-Coeur, borne by the Pontifical Zouaves who fought (victoriously) at Patay, had been first placed overnight in St. Martin’s Tomb before being taken into battle on October 9, 1870. The banner read "Heart of Jesus Save France" and on the reverse side Carmelite Nuns of Tours embroidered "Saint Martin Protect France".

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Bl. Ralph Sherwin

Bl. Ralph SherwinEnglish martyr, born 1550 at Rodesley, near Longford, Derbyshire; died at Tyburn, 1 December, 1581. In 1568 Sir William Petre nominated him to one of the eight fellowships which he had founded at Exeter College, Oxford, probably acting under the influence of the martyr’s uncle, John Woodward, who from 1556 to 1566 had been rector of Ingatestone, Essex, where Sir William lived. There Blessed Ralph took the degree of M.A., 2 July, 1574, and was accounted “an acute philosopher, and an excellent Grecian and Hebrician”. In 1575 he fled abroad and went to the English College at Douai, where 23 March, 1577, he was ordained priest by the Bishop of Cambrai. On 2 August, 1577, he left for Rome, where he stayed at the English College nearly three years, becoming leader of the movement, which placed it under the supervision of the Jesuits. On 18 April, 1580, he set out for England, a member of a party of fourteen; at Milan they were guests of St. Charles for eight days, and Blessed Ralph preached before him.

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General Baron Athanase Charles Marie de Charette de la Contrie 1832 -1911

Battle of Loigny-Poupry. Painting by Charles Castellani

The battle of Loigny, one of the most bloody encounters of that terrible winter, was made memorable by the heroic attitude of the Pontifical Zouaves, commanded by Charette, who was himself under the orders of General de Sonis, an eminent leader and a fervent Catholic. After the battle, Abbé Theuré’s house was filled with wounded soldiers, whose sufferings were increased by the bitter cold, for during the night snow had fallen heavily on the frozen ground.

Early on December 3d, General de Sonis, who had spent the night on the frozen ground, was carried into the presbytery. Abbé Theuré never forgot the sight, “I seem to see him now,” he used to say, “pale as death, his face and clothes covered with snow and frost. With much difficulty he was undressed and laid on a bed in my room.”

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Our Lady of Joy – December 2

November 30, 2023

Our Lady of Joy

Our Lady of Liesse

Our Lady of Liesse

(aka Notre Dame de Liesse, or Causa Nostrae Laetitiae)

In 1134 three Knights of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, prisoners of the Muslims in Egypt, miraculously found or received in their prison a statue of Our Lady, which they named Our Lady of Joy, or Notre Dame de Liesse.

 

Painting of the Basilica of Notre Dame de Liesse where the Image of Our Lady of Liesse is enthroned.

Painting of the Basilica of Notre Dame de Liesse where the Image of Our Lady of Liesse is enthroned.

In response to their prayers, a young Muslim princess named Ismerie took an interest in the Knights, and through the intercession of Our Lady and the mercy of God, the princess was converted. The princess arranged the escape of the pious crusaders and joined them on their journey to France. They carried the statue with them, and in the region of Laon, about 35 miles northwest of Reims, they founded a church as a resting place for the statue.

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St. Francis Xavier

Born in the Castle of Xavier near Sanguesa, in Navarre, 7 April, 1506; died on the Island of Sancian near the coast of China, 2 December, 1552.

In 1525, having completed a preliminary course of studies in his own country, Francis Xavier went to Paris, where he entered the collège de Sainte-Barbe. Here he met the Savoyard, Pierre Favre, and a warm personal friendship sprang up between them. It was at this same college that St. Ignatius Loyola, who was already planning the foundation of the Society of Jesus, resided for a time as a guest in 1529. He soon won the confidence of the two young men; first Favre and later Xavier offered themselves with him in the formation of the Society. Four others, Lainez, Salmerón, Rodríguez, and Bobadilla, having joined them, the seven made the famous vow of Montmartre, 15 Aug., 1534.

Castillo de Javier, in the province of Navarra, España.The castle of the Xavier family was later acquired by the Company of Jesus.

After completing his studies in Paris and filling the post of teacher there for some time, Xavier left the city with his companions 15 November, 1536, and turned his steps to Venice, where he displayed zeal and charity in attending the sick in the hospitals. On 24 June, 1537, he received Holy orders with St. Ignatius. The following year he went to Rome, and after doing apostolic work there for some months, during the spring of 1539 he took part in the conferences which St. Ignatius held with his companions to prepare for the definitive foundation of the Society of Jesus. The order was approved verbally 3 September, and before the written approbation was secured, which was not until a year later, Xavier was appointed , at the earnest solicitation of the John III, King of Portugal, to evangelize the people of the East Indies.

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Clovis

Son of Childeric, King of the Salic Franks; born in the year 466; died at Paris, 27 November, 511. He succeeded his father as the King of the Franks of Tournai in 481. His kingdom was probably one of the States that sprang from the division of Clodion’s monarchy like those of Cambrai, Tongres and Cologne. Although a Pagan, Childeric had kept up friendly relations with the bishops of Gaul, and when Clovis ascended the throne he received a most cordial letter of congratulation from St. Remigius, Archbishop of Reims. The young king early began his course of conquest by attacking Syagrius, son of Aegidius, the Roman Count. Having established himself at Soissons, he acquired sovereign authority over so great a part of Northern Gaul as to be known to his contemporaries as the King of Soissons. Syagrius, being defeated, fled for protection to Alaric II, King of the Visigoths, but the latter, alarmed by a summons from Clovis, delivered Syagrius to his conqueror, who had him decapitated in 486. Clovis then remained master of the dominions of Syagrius and took up his residence at Soissons. It would seem as if the episode of the celebrated vase of Soissons were an incident of the campaign against Syagrius, and it proves that, although a pagan, Clovis continued his father’s policy by remaining on amicable terms with Gaulish episcopate.

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Siege of Jasna Góra, November 28-December 27, 1655

This account of the siege of  Częstochowa is based on the Memoirs of the Siege of Czestochowa by Father Augustine Kordecki (Pamietnik oblezenia Częstochowy, edited and with a preface by Jan Tokarski, London, Veritas, 1956.) Written by Friar Kordecki in response to a wish of King Casimir, these memoirs were originally published in Latin in 1658. The analysis and subtitles are by Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira.

 

Jasna Góra Monastery

“When God the most High decided to chastise the Poles, in His goodness He first sent various signs warning of the catastrophe which approached.”

So He permitted that, the 10th of February 1654, the high tower of the Sanctuary of Czestochowa be struck by lighting and consumed by fire.

In that same year, on the 9th of July, everyone saw a miracle which occurred in the face of the sun: “In the nose of the sun there appeared a cross, which gradually became transformed into a heart, this latter pierced by a sword moved to one side and halted at the position of an eye. In the place of the other eye, one saw a hand holding a mace, which moved toward the forehead, dividing into four parts, and then on reaching the rim of the solar disk, became a scourge”(pg. 97).

“The following year God’s scourge against the Poles, Charles X Gustav, king of the Swedes, set out from the north.”

This king was one of the most outstanding generals of his time and one of the most ferocious of the Protestant leaders.

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Count Louis de Baude Frontenac

November 27, 2023

November 28 – Count Louis de Baude Frontenac

Statue of Frontenac at the National Assembly of Québec.

Statue of Frontenac at the National Assembly of Québec.

A governor of New France, born at Paris, 1662; died at Quebec, 28 Nov., 1698.
His father was captain of the royal castle of St-Germain-en-laye; his mother, née Phelypeaux, was the daughter of the king’s secretary of state; Louis XIII was his godfather. By his valour and skill he won the rank of marshall of the king’s camps and armies. He served in Holland, France, Italy and Germany, and also in Candia where Turenne had sent him to command a contingent against the Turks. A brilliant military reputation, therefore, preceeded him to Canada. During his first administration (1672-1682) he built a fort at Cataracouy (now Kingston) to awe the Iroquois and facilitate communications with the West. To explore the course of the Mississippi, previously discovered by Joliet and Marquette, he sent Cavelier de La Salle, who named the country watered by that river Louisiana, in honour of Louis XIV. Although intelligent and magnanimous, brave and unflinching in peril, he was proud, imperious, and ready to sacrifice all to personal animosity.

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St. Radbod, Bishop of Utrecht, Confessor

This holy prelate was, by his father, of noble French extraction; and, by his mother, Radbod, the last king or prince of the Frisons was his great grandfather, whose name was given him by his mother.

The first tincture of learning and piety he received under the tuition of Gunther, bishop of Cologne, his uncle by the mother: his education was completed in the courts of the emperors Charles the Bald, and his son Louis the Stammerer, to which he repaired not to aspire after honors, but to perfect himself in the sciences, which were taught there by the ablest masters.

The hymns and office of St. Martin, an eclogue on St. Lebwin, a hymn on St. Swidbert, and some other pious poems which are extant, are monuments of his piety and application to polite literature, as it was then cultivated: but the sacred duties principally employed him.

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St. Louis being crowned King of France at Reims, November 29, 1228.

St. Louis being crowned King of France at Reims, November 29, 1228.

Traditionally, new sacred music was composed for a coronation. The motet…which was sung for the anointing of Louis IX has come down to us. It was called Gaude, felix Francia…. The boy who was to be anointed and crowned was already on a platform built in front of the chancel, surrounded by the great lords of the realm. He declaimed the solemn oath required: to maintain the Church, do justice to his people, keep the peace. The slender figure knelt, then stretched itself prone before the altar, as the chorus took up the Litany of the Saints….

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St. Saturninus – November 29

November 27, 2023

Stained glass window of the martyrdom of St. Saturnin of Toulouse. Photo by Reinhardhauke

Stained glass window of the martyrdom of St. Saturnin of Toulouse. Photo by Reinhardhauke

St. Saturninus was, says Tillemont, one of the most illustrious martyrs France has given to the Church. We possess only his Acts, which are very old, since they were utilized by St. Gregory of Tours. He was the first bishop of Toulouse, whither he went during the consulate of Decius and Gratus (250). Whether there were already Christians in the town or his preaching made numerous conversions, he soon had a little church. To reach it he had to pass before the capitol where there was a a temple, and according to the Acts, the pagan priests ascribed to his frequent passings the silence of their oracles. One day they seized him and on his unshakeable refusal to sacrifice to the idols they condemned him be tied by the feet to a bull which dragged him about the town until the rope broke.

Tomb of St. Saturnin at the Basilique Saint-Sernin in Toulouse. Photo by PierreSelim.

Tomb of St. Saturnin at the Basilique Saint-Sernin in Toulouse. Photo by PierreSelim.

Two Christian women piously gathered up the remains and buried them in a deep ditch, that they might not be profaned by the pagans. His successors, Sts. Hilary and Exuperius, gave him more honourable burial. A church was erected where the bull stopped. It still exists, and is called the church of the Taur (the bull). The body of the saint was transferred at an early date and is still preserved in the Church of St. Sernin (or Saturninus), one of the most ancient and beautiful of Southern France. His feast was entered on the Hieronymian Martyrology for 29 November; his cult spread abroad. The account of his Acts was embellished with several details, and legends linked his name with the beginning of the churches of Eauze, Auch, Pamplona, and Amiens, but these are without historic foundations.

Ruinart, Acta Martyrum (Ratisbon, 18569), 177-80; Gregorii Turonensis opera Hist. Francorum, ed. ARNDT AND KRUSCH, I (Hanover, 1884), xxxix; TILLEMONT, Hist. ecclesiastique, III (Paris, 1701), 297; LABAN, Vie de Saint Saturnin (Toulouse, 1864); DUCHESNE, Fastes épiscopaux de l ancienne Gaule (Paris, 1894), 25, 295.

Antoine Degert.

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The Giralda in Seville, which is the bell tower for the Cathedral of Seville.

The Moors had no choice but to accept the iron will of that King Ferdinand, who, like a curse of Allah, crossed Andalusia exterminating Islam. The ambassadors returned with broader powers to act, and then Don Ferdinand received them. After they had been conducted to his tent, they found him waiting surrounded by his whole cortege. The King was wearing his mail coat, broken and mended, and his well darned coat of arms, as he said, “It is not right for a king to dress poorly unless it is a consequence of combat against his enemies.” His coif was thrown back over his shoulders, and his head uncovered. His hair, well kept, had become brown through the years with touches of copper. Toil had emaciated his face, tanned like that of an Andalusian Moor by the sun and the open air, but well-shaved and with an expression of kindness and nobility that simultaneously inspired respect, love and trust. His appearance was so attractive, and he had such an air of serene majesty that, in spite of being dressed like his nobles, the Moors had no trouble in recognizing him as the King.

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Notre Dame Cathedral on fire, April 15, 2019. Photo by GodefroyParis.

As regards France, I am like a Jew in relation to the Chosen People. I love the Temple, I love the ruins of the Temple, and if these ruins were to turn to dust, I would love the dust that came from these ruins.

I have the impression that France will continue to be key among the nations.

The Roman Senate

But, as in days gone by both the Western and Eastern Empires existed, as in Christendom itself there were two empires, the Byzantine and Roman/German, so also alongside the pre-eminence of France in relation to the older nations we will also have the cultural empire, dominion, and hegemony of other nations, profoundly imbibed with the best of the Latin and French spirit, but also bearing of itself other saps.

In my opinion, these will be the Latin-American nations.

O Universo é uma Catedral: Excertos do pensamento de Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira recolhidos por Leo Daniele, Edições Brasil de Amanhã, São Paulo, 1997.

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Remembering this fight for the unborn…

Duke Paul in Luxembourg before the country’s fatal legalization of abortion on demand

Duke Paul of Oldenburg, distributing flyers in protest against Luxembourg’s new abortion law.

LUXEMBOURG, November 23, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The tiny principality of Luxembourg has adopted abortion on demand in a vote yesterday of 39 to 21 in the Chamber of Deputies.

The bill’s promoters in the Chamber of Deputies of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg said that the relaxation of the law will provide “punishment-free termination” and the “self-determination of women.” It was also intended to bring the country into line with the demands of the Council of Europe to “decriminalize abortion” and “to provide barrier-free access to a legal abortion.”

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Joseph Marchand

Joseph MarchandJoseph Marchand (August 17, 1803 – November 30, 1835) was a French missionary in Vietnam, and a member of the Paris Foreign Missions Society.

Born August 17, 1803, in Passavant, in the Doubs department of France, in 1833 he joined the Lê Văn Khôi revolt by Lê Văn Khôi, son of the late governor of southern Vietnam Lê Văn Duyệt. Khoi and Marchand vowed to overthrow Emperor Minh Mạng and replace him with My Duong, the son of Minh Mạng’s late elder brother Nguyễn Phúc Cảnh, who were both Catholics. Marchand and Khoi appealed to the Catholics to join in overthrowing Minh Mạng and installing a Catholic emperor. They quickly seized the Citadel of Saigon and the uprising lasted two years.

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The Battle of Montgisard

November 23, 2023

The Battle of Montgisard was fought between the Ayyubids and the Kingdom of Jerusalem on November 25, 1177. The 16 year old King Baldwin IV, seriously afflicted by leprosy, led an out-numbered Christian force against the army of Saladin. The Islamic force was routed and their casualties were massive, only a fraction managed to flee […]

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November 25 – She Defied the Emperor

November 23, 2023

St. Catherine of Alexandria A virgin and martyr whose feast is celebrated in the Latin Church and in the various Oriental churches on 25 November, and who for almost six centuries was the object of a very popular devotion. Of noble birth and learned in the sciences, when only eighteen years old, Catherine presented herself […]

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How a Catholic Queen gave Spain its Golden Age

November 23, 2023

Queen Isabella I (“The Catholic”) Queen of Castile; born in the town of Madrigal de las Altas Torres, 22 April, 1451; died a little before noon, 26 November, 1504, in the castle of La Mota, which still stands at Medina del Campo (Valladolid). She was the daughter of John II, King of Castile, by his […]

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RIP – HIRH Otto of Hapsburg-Lorraine (1912-2011)

November 20, 2023

His Imperial and Royal Highness Otto of Hapsburg-Lorraine passed away in the early hours of July 4. Born on November 20, 1912, Archduke Otto of Austria was the firstborn of the last monarchs of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Blessed Karl and Empress Zita. As head of the Hapsburg imperial family, Archduke Otto presided over what Prof. […]

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November 20 – Memorial of Queen Elizabeth II Wedding

November 20, 2023
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November 20 – St. Ambrose of Camaldoli

November 20, 2023

St. Ambrose of Camaldoli An Italian theologian and writer, born at Portico, near Florence, 16 September, 1386; died 21 October, 1439. His name was Ambrose Traversari. He entered the Order of the Camaldoli when fourteen and became its General in 1431. He was a great theologian and writer, and knew Greek as well as he […]

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Pope St. Gelasius I

November 20, 2023

Died at Rome, 19 Nov., 496. Gelasius, as he himself states in his letter to the Emperor Anastasius (Ep. xii, n. 1), was Romanus natus. The assertion of the “Liber Pontificalis” that he was natione Afer is consequently taken by many to mean that he was of African origin, though Roman born. Others, however, interpreting […]

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November 22 – The Eternal Glory of the Caecilia Family

November 20, 2023

St. Cecilia Virgin and martyr, patroness of Church music, died at Rome. This saint, so often glorified in the fine arts and in poetry, is one of the most venerated martyrs of Christian antiquity. The oldest historical account of St. Cecilia is found in the “Martyrologium Hieronymianum”; from this it is evident that her feast […]

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Christ the King? Or Christ the President?

November 20, 2023

Christ the King? Or Christ the President? A heavenly King above all, but a King whose government is already exercised in this world. A King who by right possesses the supreme and full authority. The King makes laws, commands and judges. His sovereignty becomes effective when his subjects recognize his rights, and obey his laws. […]

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One must fight to the last…

November 16, 2023

The Duke of Guise: One must fight to the last even amidst seemingly impossible odds During the battle for La Rochelle, the ship of the Duke of Guise caught fire.  La Rochefoucault approached to inform him:  “Sir, everything is lost!” The Duke immediately turned to the pilot and commanded:  “Turn the ship around. There’s no […]

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Without tradition, there is neither a destination nor a course to follow

November 16, 2023

The past prepares the present, the present protects the past, and both of them elaborate the future. A course followed is analogous to order in moving from one point to the next. Stability is not immobility, but rather mobility in a single direction. To continue is analogous to living, and changing is something analogous to […]

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Commissioned to preach the Sixth Crusade

November 16, 2023

November 16 – St. Edmund Rich Archbishop of Canterbury, England, born 20 November, c. 1180, at Abingdon, six miles from Oxford; died 16 November, 1240, at Soissy, France. His early chronology is somewhat uncertain. His parents, Reinald (Reginald) and Mabel Rich, were remarkable for piety. It is said that his mother constantly wore hair-cloth, and […]

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In the Middle Ages, the Marvelous Was Something Achievable

November 16, 2023

November 16 – St. Margaret of Scotland Commentaries made by Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira   … Sovereign and patroness of Scotland, 11th century. Although it is a very good intention to comment on the life of St. Margaret, at times one does not have the slightest biographical data on a saint. For lack of […]

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November 17 – This Queen Cared for the Sick and Suffering

November 16, 2023

St. Elizabeth of Hungary Also called St. Elizabeth of Thuringia, born in Hungary, probably at Pressburg, 1207; died at Marburg, Hesse, 17 November (not 19 November), 1231. She was a daughter of King Andrew II of Hungary (1205-35) and his wife Gertrude, a member of the family of the Counts of Andechs-Meran; Elizabeth’s brother succeeded […]

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Mary Tudor

November 16, 2023

November 17 – Mary Tudor Queen of England from 1553 to 1558; born 18 February, 1516; died 17 November, 1558. Mary was the daughter and only surviving child of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. Cardinal Wolsey was her godfather, and amongst her most intimate friends in early life were Cardinal Pole and his mother, […]

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Sincere, intense, generous, austere, yet affectionate

November 16, 2023

November 18 – St. Philippine-Rose Duchesne Founder in America of the first houses of the society of the Sacred Heart, born at Grenoble, France, 29 August, 1769; died at St. Charles, Missouri, 18 November, 1852. She was the daughter of Pierr-Francois Duchesne, an eminent lawyer. Her mother was a Périer, ancestor of Casimir Périer, President […]

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Luke Wadding

November 16, 2023

Historian and theologian, born at Waterford, Ireland, 16 October, 1588; died at St. Isidore’s College, Rome, 18 November, 1657. I. BIRTH AND EDUCATION He was the son of Walter Wadding, a citizen of eminence, and Anastasia Lombard, a near relation of Peter Lombard, Archbishop of Armagh. He was the eleventh of fourteen children and was […]

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St. Nerses I, Bishop of Armenia, Martyr

November 16, 2023

November 19 – St. Nerses I Armenian patriarch, surnamed “the Great”. Died 373. Born of the royal stock, he spent his youth in Caesarea where he married Sanducht, a Mamikonian princess. After the death of his wife, he was appointed chamberlain to King Arshak of Armenia. A few years later, having entered the ecclesiastical state, […]

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The Crusades – Part I

November 16, 2023

The Crusades – Part I The Crusades were expeditions undertaken, in fulfilment of a solemn vow, to deliver the Holy Places from Mohammedan tyranny. The origin of the word may be traced to the cross made of cloth and worn as a badge on the outer garment of those who took part in these enterprises. […]

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November 13 – Patroness of missionaries

November 13, 2023

St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, M.S.C. Also called Mother Cabrini, she founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, a religious institute which was a major support to the Italian immigrants to the United States. She was the first citizen of the United States to be canonized by the Catholic Church. She was born in Sant’Angelo […]

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St. Stanislas Kostka

November 13, 2023

November 13 – Pure and noble, he received Holy Communion from the hands of angels Born at Rostkovo near Prasnysz, Poland, about 28 October, 1550; died at Rome during the night of 14-15 August, 1568. He entered the Society of Jesus at Rome, 28 October, 1567, and is said to have foretold his death a […]

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He calmed the fear of the end of the world

November 13, 2023

November 13 – St. Abbon (or Abbo), born near Orléans c. 945; died at Fleury, 13 November, 1004, a monk of the Benedictine monastery of Fleury sur Loire (Fleuret), conspicuous both for learning and sanctity, and one of the great lights of the Church in the stormy times of Hugh Capet of France and of […]

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November 14 – Charles Antoniewicz

November 13, 2023

(Botoz.) A Polish Jesuit and missionary, born in Lwów (Lemberg), 6 November 1807; died 14 November, 1852. He was the son of Joseph Antoniewicz, a nobleman and lawyer. His pious mother Josephine (Nikorowicz) attended to his early training on their estate at Skwarzawa, whither they moved in 1818. After the death of his father (1823), […]

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Saint Erconwald

November 13, 2023

November 14 – Saint Erconwald Bishop of London, died. about 690. He belonged to the princely family of the East Anglian Offa, and devoted a considerable portion of his patrimony to founding two monasteries, one for monks at Chertsey, and the other for nuns at Barking in Essex. Over the latter he placed his sister, […]

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St. Desiderius of Cahors

November 13, 2023

November 15 – St. Desiderius of Cahors Bishop, born at Obrege (perhaps Antobroges, name of a Gaulish tribe), on the frontier of the Provincia Narbonnensis, of a noble Frankish family from Aquitaine, which possessed large estates in the territory of Albi; died 15 Nov., 655—though Krusch has called this date in question. In his childhood […]

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Bl. Richard Whiting

November 13, 2023

November 15 – Martyred for God (and Money…) Bl. Richard Whiting Last Abbot of Glastonbury and martyr, parentage and date of birth unknown, executed 15 Nov., 1539; was probably educated in the claustral school at Glastonbury, whence he proceeded to Cambridge, graduating as M.A. in 1483 and D.D. in 1505. If, as is probable, he […]

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What happened at the State Opening of Parliament 2023?

November 9, 2023

The King…has opened Parliament for the first time since his Accession in a ceremony steeped in tradition and symbolism. The Imperial State Crown is processed to Westminster. The King and Queen process to Westminster in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach, escorted by the Household Cavalry. His Majesty retires to the Robing Room, emerging shortly afterwards […]

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Charlemagnes give rise to Rolands

November 9, 2023

During the Middle Ages, it was usual for French soldiers as they marched to sing the Chanson de Roland (Song of Roland) which exalts the valor of Charlemagne. One day, hearing his troops singing, John II, a weakly king, stated: “It’s been a long time since a Roland appeared among French soldiery.” “There would be […]

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The masses arise

November 9, 2023

The world will be terribly vulgar and life unendurable when authentic gentlemen nor genuine ladies are no longer to be found on the earth. Propaganda as if standardizes all souls, removing their peculiarities, and almost life itself. Even the psychological and attitudinal differences between sexes tend to diminish as much as possible. Because of this, […]

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St. Theodore of Amasea

November 9, 2023

November 9 – He burned the pagan temple while out on bail St. Theodore of Amasea Surnamed Tyro (Tiro), not because he was a young recruit, but because for a time he belonged to the Cohors Tyronum (Nilles, Kal. man., I, 105), called of Amasea from the place where he suffered martyrdom, and Euchaita from […]

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Pope Paul III

November 9, 2023

November 10 – Pope Paul III (ALESSANDRO FARNESE). Born at Rome or Canino, 29 Feb., 1468; elected, 12 Oct., 1534; died at Rome, 10 Nov., 1549. The Farnese were an ancient Roman family whose possessions clustered about the Lake at Bolsena. Although counted among the Roman aristocrats, they first appear in history associated with Viterbo […]

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Giuliano Cesarini

November 9, 2023

November 10 – Giuliano Cesarini (Also known as CARDINAL JULIAN) Born at Rome, 1398; died at Varna, in Bulgaria 10 November, 1444. He was one of the group of brilliant cardinals created by Martin V on the conclusion of the Western Schism, and is described by Bossuet as the strongest bulwark that the Catholics could […]

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St. Andrew Avellino

November 9, 2023

November 10 – St. Andrew Avellino Born 1521 at Castronuovo, a small town in Sicily; died 10 November, 1608. His baptismal name was Lancelotto, which out of love for the cross he changed into Andrew when he entered the Order of Theatines. From his early youth he was a great lover of chastity. After receiving […]

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Patron of Veterans and Soldiers

November 9, 2023

November 11 – Patron of Veterans and Soldiers St. Martin of Tours Bishop; born at Sabaria (today Steinamanger in German, or Szombathely in Hungarian), Pannonia (Hungary), about 316; died at Candes, Touraine, most probably in 397. In his early years, when his father, a military tribune, was transferred to Pavia in Italy, Martin accompanied him […]

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Constable of France: Anne de Montmorency

November 9, 2023

November 12 – Constable of France: he fought his entire life and died in battle at age 74 Anne de Montmorency had proven many times before that his race does not degenerate and the brave blood of an illustrious line of ancestors flowed in his veins. Imperious, severe, of a stern mood, he had undeniable […]

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Purgatory in Painting

November 2, 2023

I have read in the Dictionary of Education a very amusing anecdote, which may, nevertheless, be cited of what I have said of All Souls’ Day. Certain canons over 1,000 years ago, having had to repair their Church, added to it a chapel dedicated to the Souls in Purgatory. The Sculptor who was charged with […]

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The Institution Of All Souls’ Day

November 2, 2023

It was St. Odilo of Cluny who first appointed one day every year to be set aside in a special manner for prayer for the faithful departed. It happened that a certain religious belonging to France was returning home from Palestine, where he had gone to visit the places consecrated by the foot steps of […]

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November 2 – His mother celebrated his death as if it were a wedding

November 2, 2023

Blessed John Bodey, Martyr, born at Wells, Somerset: 1549; died at Andover, Wilts., 2 November, 1583. He studied at Winchester and New College, Oxford, of which he became a Fellow in 1568. In June, 1576, he was deprived, with seven other Fellows, by the Visitor, Horne, Protestant Bishop of Winchester. Next year he went to […]

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November 3 – Patron of Buckingham

November 2, 2023

St. Rumwold of Buckingham His father was king of Northumberland, his mother a daughter of Penda, king of the Mercians. He was born at Sutthun, and baptized by Widerin, a bishop, the holy priest Eadwold being his godfather. He died very young on the 3rd of November and was buried in Sutthun by Eadwold. The […]

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November 3 – Patron of hunting

November 2, 2023

St. Hubert, Confessor, thirty-first Bishop of Maastricht, first Bishop of Liège, and Apostle of the Ardennes, born about 656; died at Fura (the modern Tervueren), Brabant, 30 May, 727 or 728. He was honored in the Middle Ages as the patron of huntsmen, and the healer of hydrophobia (rabies). He was the eldest son of […]

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