Scanderbeg: the hero of Christendom

February 16, 2012

In a history, where so much is spoken of the regions, from whence the miraculous Image of Our Lady of Good Counsel came, it will be of great use to take a brief glance at the once entirely Catholic nation in which it so long remained, and at the great client of its Sanctuary in […]

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Origins and effects of the American paradox

February 16, 2012

The American paradox was born with the republic itself. Consistent with the republican ideology, the Founding Fathers of the new nation developed a legal and institutional framework that provided no place for aristocratic privilege. The first article of the Constitution, for example, prohibits the republican government from granting any titles of nobility; nor can titles […]

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February 17 – Marvelous Apparition of Our Lady To Seven Young Nobles

February 16, 2012

St. Alexis Falconieri Born in Florence, 1200; died 17 February, 1310, at Mount Senario, near Florence. He was the son of Bernard Falconieri, a merchant prince of Florence, and one of the leaders of the Republic. His family belonged to the Guelph party, and opposed the Imperialists whenever they could consistently with their political principles. […]

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Threatening the Prince

February 13, 2012

  The Taliban says it is gunning for Prince Harry just days after Britain’s defence ministry confirmed that the 27-year-old royal will redeploy to Afghanistan.

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February 14 – Renounced Earthly Nobility To Obtain Heavenly Nobility

February 13, 2012

Sts. Cyril and Methodius These brothers, the Apostles of the Slavs, were born in Thessalonica, in 827 and 826 respectively. Though belonging to a senatorial family they renounced secular honors and became priests. They were living in a monastery on the Bosphorus, when the Khazars sent to Constantinople for a Christian teacher. Cyril was selected […]

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Christianity quells the fires of revenge and elicits heroic acts of valor and nobility

February 13, 2012

The perilous situation of the Christian cavaliers pent up and beleaguered within the walls of Alhama, spread terror among their friends, and anxiety throughout all Andalusia. Nothing, however, could equal the anguish of the Marchioness of Cadiz, the wife of the gallant Roderigo Ponce de Leon. In her deep distress, she looked round for some […]

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The history of the United States is the history of its directing elites

February 13, 2012

After establishing the normative existence of elites in all societies, including the United States, the sociologists of the elitist school proceed to the next logical conclusion. Contrary to the egalitarian myth that social transformations are initiated by the masses, they affirm that it is the elites, not the masses, who establish the tone of national […]

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February 13 – Mystic and Counselor to Future Popes

February 13, 2012

St. Catherine de Ricci, Virgin (AD 1522 – 1589) The Ricci are an ancient family, which still subsists in a flourishing condition in Tuscany. Peter de Ricci, the father of our saint, was married to Catherine Bonza, a lady of suitable birth. The saint was born at Florence in 1522, and called at her baptism […]

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Video – Queen Margrethe II of Denmark speaks about leadership

February 9, 2012

Forty years ago, on January 15, 1972, Princess Margrethe of Denmark became Queen of this Scandinavian state. She belongs to the House of Glücksburg, a junior branch of the House of Oldenburg.

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A nobility and loyalty put to the severest test

February 9, 2012

Doña Magdalena de Ulloa, Toledo, Osorio and Quiñones was one of the greatest ladies of the Spanish nobility of the sixteenth century. She was the sister of D. Rodrigo de Ulloa, first Marqués de la Mota, San Cebrián, and the Vega del Condado, and of Doña Maria de Toledo, of the ancient and noble house […]

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American society is hierarchical

February 9, 2012

American society, as all others, is hierarchical. It could not be otherwise, since the existence of elites is not only a natural occurrence in every organized social body, but constitutes an element essential to its proper functioning. According to William Domhoff, professor of psychology at the University of California at Santa Cruz, “scholars also have […]

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February 9 – Banished From the Court

February 9, 2012

St. Ansbert Archbishop of Rouen in 695, Confessor He had been chancellor to King Clotair III. in which station he had united the mortification and recollection of a monk with the duties of wedlock, and of a statesman. Quitting the court, he put on the monastic habit at Fontenelle under St. Wandregisile, and when that […]

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February 10 – God Gave Her What Her Brother Would Not

February 9, 2012

St. Scholastica, Virgin (c. 480 – 10 February 547) This saint was sister to the great St. Benedict. She consecrated herself to God from her earliest youth, as St. Gregory testifies. Where her first monastery was situated is not mentioned; but after her brother removed to Mount Cassino, she choose her retreat at Plombariola, in […]

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Today is the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

February 6, 2012

Today, as I mark 60 years as your Queen, I am writing to thank you for the wonderful support and encouragement that you have given to me and Prince Philip over these years and to tell you how deeply moved we have been to receive so many kind messages about the Diamond Jubilee. In this […]

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A Special Drink in Honor of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee

February 6, 2012

Gordon & MacPhail in Elgin, Moray, has released 85 bottles of Glen Grant 60 Years Old, which were distilled on February 2 1952, four days before the Queen acceded to the throne. The limited-edition bottles are being put on the market for a recommended retail price in the UK of £8000 (A$11,835) each. More here

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The “Ave Maria” that was nailed to the door of Granada’s mosque

February 6, 2012

When the Moorish knights beheld that all courteous challenges were unavailing, they sought various means to provoke the Christian warrior to the field. Sometimes a body of them, fleetly mounted, would gallop up to the skirts of the camp, and try who should hurl his lance farthest within the barriers, having his name inscribed upon […]

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Commentaries on how Don Alonso Peres de Guzman sacrificed his own son rather than surrender to the Muslims

February 6, 2012

Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira In September 1292, Yacub Ben Yussuf, King of Morocco, took over the stronghold of Tarifa. Infant Dom João, brother of Sancho IV the brave, king of Castile and Leon, in fact made a pact with Yacub that enabled him to conquer Tarifa, defended by Alonso Perez de Guzman. Rather than surrender, […]

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Pope Blesses Artillery

February 6, 2012

“The place for me, as a minister of peace, might not be so much in the midst of arms and artillery pieces. “But I am the minister of God, and one must remember that this God who calls himself the God of Peace is also the God of Armies. “And one must always fight against […]

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February 7 – Liberal to Anti-liberal

February 6, 2012

Pope Blessed Pius IX (GIOVANNI MARIA MASTAI-FERRETTI). Pope from 1846-78; born at Sinigaglia, 13 May, 1792; died in Rome, 7 February, 1878. BEFORE HIS PAPACY His early years. After receiving his classical education at the Piarist College in Volterra from 1802-09 he went to Rome to study philosophy and theology, but left there in 1810 […]

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February 7 – This Saintly King Is Father To Three More Saints

February 6, 2012

St. Richard, King and Confessor This saint was an English prince, in the kingdom of the West-Saxons, and was perhaps deprived of his inheritance by some revolution in the state: or he renounced it to be more at liberty to dedicate himself to the pursuit of Christian perfection. His three children, Winebald, Willibald, and Warburga, […]

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Marie Antoinette: Ever majestic, though anxious as she discerns the approaching Revolution

February 2, 2012

After his presentation to Louis XVI, Chateaubriand passed through the gallery to meet the Queen returning from chapel. “She soon came in sight,” he says, “surrounded by a large and brilliant suite; she made a dignified courtesy, appearing enchanted with life. And those fair hands, which then held so gracefully the scepter of so many […]

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Weak authority and unbridled liberty

February 2, 2012

The architect of his own ruin, Louis XVI proceeded to forge his own chains. The fault lay with the theorists who deluded him, with those men who were forever talking about necessary liberties and forgot indispensable authority; who, when once in power, were compelled to abandon the theories they had held when in opposition. We […]

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February 3 – Half Fierce Pagan Princess, Half Gentle Christian Princess

February 2, 2012

St. Werburgh of Chester (WEREBURGA, WEREBURG, VERBOURG). Benedictine, patroness of Chester, Abbess of Weedon, Trentham, Hanbury, Minster in Sheppy, and Ely, born in Staffordshire early in the seventh century; died at Trentham, 3 February, 699 or 700. Her mother was St. Ermenilda, daughter of Ercombert, King of Kent, and St. Sexburga, and her father, Wulfhere, […]

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February 3 – The Stuff of Which Saints Are Made

February 2, 2012

St. Anschar (Or Saint Ansgar, Anskar or Oscar.) Called the Apostle of the North, was born to the French nobility in Picardy, 8 September, 801; died 5 February, 865. He became a Benedictine of Corbie, whence he passed into Westphalia. With Harold, the newly baptized King of Denmark who had been expelled from his kingdom […]

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January 31 – St. John Bosco Meets His First Noble Patroness

January 30, 2012

Juliette Colbert, a native of Vendée, had married Marquis Tancredi Falletti of Barolo, and of her it could be said, even as we read of Tabitha in the Acts of the Apostles: “This woman had devoted herself to good works and acts of charity.” Indeed, she used her abundant wealth to help the working classes […]

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The widowed Duchess de Montmorency who became a nun to follow St. Jane Frances de Chantal

January 30, 2012

Among the crowd of eminent or remarkable women called to the Visitation Order had been the widowed Duchess de Montmorency. She was by birth Maria Felicia Orsini, a niece of Pope Sixtus V., and a greatniece and goddaughter of Queen Marie de Medici. She had married at fourteen the Duke de Montmorency, the representative of […]

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Inequalities Are a Condition of Social Organicity

January 30, 2012

[From Leo XIII’s encyclical Humanum genus, of April 20, 1884]: Just as a perfect condition of the body results from the conjunction and composition of its various members, which, though differing in form and purpose, make, by their union and the distribution of each one to its proper place, a combination beautiful to behold, firm […]

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January 31 – The Glory of the Ladies

January 30, 2012

St. Marcella (325–410)  She was a Christian ascetic in ancient Rome. Growing up in Rome, she was influenced by her pious mother, Albina, an educated woman of wealth and benevolence. Childhood memories centered around piety, and one in particular related to Athanasius, who lodged in her home during one of his many exiles. He may […]

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Is Jubilee cooking contest illegal?

January 30, 2012

“The anti-monarchy group Republic is warning schools they may break the law if they take part in a cooking contest to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. The contest, launched by the Duchess of Cornwall, is for 10 to 15-years-olds. But Republic says involving children in celebrations of the monarchy without teaching them about republicanism as […]

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El Cid is banished from the kingdom of Castile

January 26, 2012

My Cid sighed for his heart was heavy. My Cid spoke, well and measuredly: “Blessed be the Lord Our God, Our Father who art on high! See now what my wicked enemies have wrought!”… “Rejoice with me, O Alvar Fañez!” he cried. “We are cast out of our land! But we shall return, with honor, […]

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The Equality Myth, a Founding Legend

January 26, 2012

by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira All epochs have a founding legend, a myth that reflects the underlying zeitgeist [spirit of the times]. Those, who like us, live in the contemporary West, are living in the shadow of the Equality Myth. Our political and social institutions operate on the premise that all human beings are fundamentally […]

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January 28 – Fifty Years of War

January 26, 2012

Charlemagne (French for Charles the Great, Carolus Magnus, or Carlus Magnus; German Karl der Grosse). The name given by later generations to Charles, King of the Franks, first sovereign of the Christian Empire of the West; born 2 April, 742; died at Aachen, 28 January, 814. At the time of Charles’ birth, his father, Pepin […]

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No Man Has Greater Love Than This

January 26, 2012

St. Peter Nolasco Born at Mas-des-Saintes-Puelles, near Castelnaudary, France, in 1189 (or 1182); died at Barcelona, on Christmas Day, 1256 (or 1259). He was of a noble family and from his youth was noted for his piety, almsgiving, and charity. Having given all his possessions to the poor, he took a vow of virginity and, […]

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The Tragedy of Marie Adelaide

January 23, 2012

by Diane Moczar Of all the rulers of western European countries in the first quarter of the twentieth century, few are as unknown to British and American historians as Marie Adelaide, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg during World War I. The small size of her realm alone does not explain history’s neglect; by all accounts Marie […]

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Jesus Christ Willed to Be Born of Royal Stock

January 23, 2012

From the allocution of Leo XIII to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility on January 24, 1903: And Jesus Christ, although He chose to spend His private life in the obscurity of a lowly dwelling, passing for the son of a laborer, and although in public life He so loved to associate with the common people, […]

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January 24 – Aristocrat Saint

January 23, 2012

St. Francis de Sales Bishop of Geneva, Doctor of the Universal Church; born at Thorens, in the Duchy of Savoy, 21 August, 1567; died at Lyons, 28 December, 1622. His father, François de Sales de Boisy, and his mother, Françoise de Sionnaz, belonged to old Savoyard aristocratic families. The future saint was the eldest of […]

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January 24 – Ironmonger Was His Alias

January 23, 2012

Blessed William Ireland (Alias Ironmonger.) Jesuit martyr, born in Lincolnshire, 1636; executed at Tyburn, 24 Jan. (not 3 Feb.), 1679; eldest son of William Ireland of Crofton Hall, Yorkshire, by Barbara, a daughter of Ralph Eure, of Washingborough, Lincolnshire (who is to be distinguished from the last Lord Eure) by his first wife. He was […]

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Charlemagne and his army of iron, conquers Lombardy

January 19, 2012

The Monk of St. Gall, who wrote a most entertaining Life of Charles at the end of the ninth century, has left in his pages a vivid picture of what the armed might of Charlemagne meant in the imaginations of his contemporaries and immediate successors. The Monk says that he was told these things as […]

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Pius XII: Allocution of January 19, 1944 to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility

January 19, 2012

Little was your worry, beloved Sons and Daughters, that the present trials, which interrupt and disturb the calm continuation of family and social life, might prevent you from coming, as in past years, to offer Us, with filial devotion, the homage of your best wishes. This tragic, sorrowful time, so full of anxieties and cares, […]

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Commentaries on Charlemagne and St. Willehad of Bremen:

January 19, 2012

by Prof. Plinio Correa de Oliveira “Saint Willehad, bishop and confessor was the first bishop of Bremen, diocese created by Emperor Charlemagne after his conquests. In the year 788, the 21st  of his reign, Charlemagne gave that see a certificate that read: “In the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Charles, by the […]

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The “king of cheeses” gets a Royal Approval

January 19, 2012

While the origins of French brie are veiled in the mists of history, some accounts link it to the indomitable Emperor Charlemagne. Like all great kings, Charlemagne showed great interest not just in the protection of the realm and the administration of justice but in fostering the betterment of his people through education, culture, and […]

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January 19 – Saintly King

January 19, 2012

St. Canute IV Martyr and King of Denmark, date of birth uncertain; d. 10 July 1086, the third of the thirteen natural sons of Sweyn II surnamed Estridsen. Elected king on the death of his brother Harold about 1080, he waged war on his barbarous enemies and brought Courland and Livonia to the faith. Having […]

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The Prince of Wales becomes Patron of the oversubscribed Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant

January 19, 2012

HRH The Prince of Wales has agreed to become Patron of the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant. The Pageant, one of the major celebrations of Her Majesty The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee central weekend in June 2012, will see the largest flotilla ever assembled on the Thames in modern times. A thousand boats from across the UK, […]

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Scanderbeg defeats Mahomet II and dies leaving Albania orphan

January 16, 2012

In 1464, we find [Scanderbeg] in a position to disturb the armed repose of Mahomet. The latter sent his best generals as usual, but as usual, only to hear of their defeat, with incalculable slaughter. At last, the haughty conquerer determined to go himself, at the head of the most numerous and best equipped army […]

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God will laugh at them…

January 16, 2012

Ed.: By a super-majority, Hungary recently approved a new constitution. This amazing new fundamental law opens with the phrase “God bless the Hungarians.” It changes the country’s name from “The Hungarian Republic” to simply “Hungary.” It defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman; stipulates that life is to be protected from […]

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January 17 – She Opposed Her Father the Count

January 16, 2012

St. Roseline of Villeneuve (or Rossolina.) Born at Château of Arcs in eastern Provence, 1263; d. 17 January, 1329. Having overcome her father’s opposition Roseline became a Carthusian nun at Bertaud in the Alps of Dauphiné. Her “consecration” took place in 1288, and about 1330 she succeeded her aunt, Blessed Jeanne or Diane de Villeneuve, […]

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Video: Crowds gather on The Mall for Golden Jubilee celebrations

January 16, 2012
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Prince Charles Saves Historic House

January 16, 2012

“Just weeks before the auction, however, Dumfries’s plight came to the attention of Prince Charles—a tireless, and rather fearless, advocate of British heritage… Upon hearing more about Dumfries’s dire situation, the prince promptly sent his representatives to Scotland to negotiate the estate’s purchase. The auction was called off, and several truckloads of treasure already en […]

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A floating orchestra will be one of central features for the highlight of June’s celebrations to mark the Queen’s 60 years on the throne

January 16, 2012

“As the Queen and senior members of the Royal Family sail down the Thames aboard a Royal Barge, they will be accompanied by a musical score from the London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO), including Handel’s Water Music and other ‘well-loved classics’. Lead by their principal conductor, Vladimir Jurowski, the LPO, usually based at the Royal Festival […]

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Death is preferable to the telling of a lie

January 12, 2012

The days of revolution and schism were bearing heavily upon France, and the head of the Loras family had occasion to show of what stern stuff he was made. John Mathias Loras, the father of the future bishop [Bishop Loras, first bishop of Dubuque, Iowa], was imprisoned for loyalty to social order and religious unity. […]

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St. Thérèse of the Little Flower: “God did not want me as a simple soldier; I was immediately made a knight”

January 12, 2012

by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira This excerpt is from Novíssima Verba of St. Thérèse of the Little Flower, a testimony written by Sister Agnes on August 3rd. Here it is: “A text about the life of Blessed Henry Suso on corporal penance came to my attention. He had done frightening penances that had ruined his […]

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January 13 – Intrepid Reformer

January 12, 2012

Saint Berno of Cluny (c. 850 – 13 January 927) was first abbot of Cluny from its foundation in 910 until he resigned in 925. He was subject only to the pope and began the tradition of the Cluniac reforms which his successors brought to fruition across Europe. Berno was first a monk at St. […]

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January 13 – The Opponent of Bishop Lucifer

January 12, 2012

St. Hilary of Poitiers Bishop, born in that city at the beginning of the fourth century; died there 1 November, according to the most accredited opinion, or according to the Roman Breviary, on 13 January, 368. Belonging to a noble and very probably pagan family, he was instructed in all the branches of profane learning, […]

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January 13 – The Count Who Converted the King

January 12, 2012

St. Remigius of Rheims Apostle of the Franks, Archbishop of Rheims, b. at Cerny or Laon, 437; d. at Rheims, 13 January 533. His father was Emile, Count of Laon. He studied literature at Rheims and soon became so noted for learning and sanctity that he was elected Archbishop of Rheims in his twenty-second year. […]

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The duke and duchess of Montmorency: dazzling, sweeping, sublime leadership

January 9, 2012

I like to think that Pezenas, La Grange des Pres, Beziers and Montpellier come out ahead by having served as the stage where the dramatic story of Marie-Felice des Ursins takes place, both in its happy and somber hours. No sooner did she set foot on the ground of her adoptive motherland than the young […]

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The upper classes must set the tone, not vulgarize their manners

January 9, 2012

An aristocracy and a bourgeoisie that vulgarize their manners and dress in order to disarm the Revolution harm themselves. A social authority that degrades itself is comparable to the salt that has lost its savor. It is good for nothing save to be cast out and trodden on by men (cf. Matt. 5:13). In most […]

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On this day, 54 years ago, Pope Pius XII spoke these words to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility:

January 9, 2012

With great satisfaction We welcome you, beloved Sons and Daughters, into Our house, which is still pervaded by the holy fragrances of the Christmas holiday. You have come to reconfirm your devout fidelity to this Apostolic See, and with the heart of a father anxious to surround himself with his children’s affections, We comply most […]

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January 10 – Patient to the Penitent, Inflexible to the Impenitent

January 9, 2012

St. William, Confessor, Archbishop of Bourges (c. 1155 – January 10, 1209) William Berruyer, of the illustrious family of the ancient counts of Nevers, was educated by Peter the hermit, archdeacon of Soissons, his uncle by the mother’s side. He learned from his infancy to despise the folly and emptiness of the riches and grandeur […]

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Saint Joan of Arc: Enduring Power

January 9, 2012

“She roused an exhausted, underequipped and impotent army into a fervor that carried it from one unlikely victory to the next. She raised the siege of Orléans by defying the cautious strategies of seasoned generals to follow inaudible directions from invisible beings. Illiterate and uncouth, Joan moved purposefully among nobles, bishops and royalty.” Read more

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January 6 – St. Joan of Arc was born on this day over 600 years ago

January 5, 2012

St. Joan of Arc In French Jeanne d’Arc; by her contemporaries commonly known as la Pucelle (the Maid). Born at Domremy in Champagne, probably on 6 January, 1412; died at Rouen, 30 May, 1431. The village of Domremy lay upon the confines of territory which recognized the suzerainty of the Duke of Burgundy, but in […]

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