FEAST OF ST. SEBASTIAN-MLK DAY-PENGUIN DAY
1 Peter, Chapter 3, Verse 13-16
13 Now who is going
to harm you if you are enthusiastic for what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer because of righteousness, blessed are
you. Do not be afraid or terrified
with fear of them, 15 but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to give
an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, 16 but do it with
gentleness and reverence, keeping your conscience clear, so that, when you are
maligned, those who defame your good conduct in Christ may themselves be put to
shame.
Archbishop Sheen
explained that suffering is an integral part of becoming a new person in Christ
by the giving up the self and ego in sacrifice to the other.
On the marriage of
my oldest son his little brother was asked to say something at the reception.
Vincent got up (he is 6’6”) and while all eyes were on him stated, “First Chris
called Kate and there was the telephone ring:
then there was a bond establish and the trust ring began: then after
some time came the engagement ring:
and naturally followed the wedding ring:
but Chris I have to warn you that after today there is one more ring; for now
begins the suffer ring.
St. Sebastian[1]
The name of Sebastian is enveloped in a wreath of legends. By birth he was a Milanese. Perhaps the persecutor of Christians had left Milan, or had not yet arrived, or had become momentarily more tolerant. Sebastian believed that here there was no opportunity for combat, or that it had already passed. So, he went to Rome, the scene of bitter opposition arising from the Christians' zeal for the faith. There he suffered; there he gained the crown." St. Sebastian was widely venerated during the Middle Ages, particularly as a protector against the plague. Paul the Deacon relates that in 670 a great pestilence at Rome ceased when an altar was dedicated in his honor. The Breviary account of the saint is highly legendary; in part it reads: "Diocletian tried by every means to turn Sebastian from the faith of Christ. After all efforts had proven fruitless, he ordered him tied to a post and pierced with arrows. When everyone thought him dead, a devout woman named Irene arranged for his burial during the night; finding him still alive, she cared for him in her own house. After his recovery he appeared again before Diocletian and boldly rebuked him for his wickedness. Enraged by the saint's sharp words, the emperor ordered him scourged until he expired. (Remember that in our Lords scourging; He paid particularly for the sins of the flesh) His body was thrown into a sewer."
Things to Do:[2]
·
Read
a longer account of St. Sebastian's life.
·
St.
Sebastian's Day is marked in Sicily and in Kerala, India with huge
celebrations. Try a Sicilian or Kerala dish for dinner tonight in honor of the
saint.
·
If
you have an athlete in your family teach them the prayer to St. Sebastian.
We celebrate
today the legacy of a man who died and lived to create a culture of justice
that ensures the dignity of all men, women and children in America. Our church
also recognizes the need for dignity not only for mankind but also in marriage
and it is only when we recognize the grandeur of His works that we begin to
realize that every man, woman and child is a wonder wroth by His hands.
The reverend
Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968) championed a movement that was based on
love and his ideal was to obtain justice by nonviolent means as expressed in
this speech.
Hate begets hate; violence begets violence; toughness begets
a greater toughness. We must meet the forces of hate with the power of love.
Our aim must never be to defeat or humiliate the white man, but to win his
friendship and understanding. “The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is
a descending spiral begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy, instead of
diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you may murder the liar,
but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth. Through violence you
may murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. In fact, violence merely
increases hate. Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding
deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out
darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do
that.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
Character
is Destiny[4]
According to John McCain a person or nations character
determines its destiny. McCain points out in his book Character is Destiny the
person who most exemplifies the characteristic of fairness is that of Martin
Luther King, Jr.
John said of King:
From a jail cell he wrote a letter that is one of the most celebrated documents
in American history and summoned his country to the cause of justice. “My Dear Fellow Clergymen,” it began. Recognizing that his correspondents
were “men of genuine good will and your criticisms sincerely set forth,” he
promised to respond in patient and reasonable terms. They were reasonable
terms, and undeniably fair, but patient they were not.
We have waited for more than
340 years for our constitutional and God-given rights. . . . Perhaps it is easy
for those who have never felt the stinging dark of
segregation to say, “Wait.” But when
you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown
your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate-filled policemen
curse, kick and even kill your black brothers and sisters; when you see the
vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight
cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society; when you suddenly find
your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your
six-year-old daughter why she can’t go to the public amusement park that has
just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when
she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds
of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky, and see her
beginning to distort her personality by developing unconscious bitterness
toward white people; when you have to concoct an answer for a five-year-old son
who is asking: “Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?”; when
you take a cross-country drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night
in the uncomfortable corners of your automobile because no motel will accept
you; when you are humiliated day in and
day out by nagging signs reading “white” and “colored”; when your first name
becomes “nigger,” your middle name becomes “boy” (however old you are) and your
last name becomes “John,” and your wife and mother are never given the
respected title “Mrs.”; when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the
fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite
knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer
resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of “nobodiness”
then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. There comes a time
when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be
plunged into the abyss of despair.
America still struggles internally and externally to
arrive at the place Dr. King had summoned us to, that exalted place that had
been the highest ambition of our Founding Fathers and the highest value we
recommend to the rest of the world; the place where all people are recognized
as equal and endowed by their Creator with inalienable rights. African
Americans recognize the debt they owe Dr. King’s courage, wisdom, and
unshakable sense of fairness. But Americans of European descent owe him a
greater one. At the cost of his life, he helped save us from a terrible
disgrace, the betrayal of our country, and the principles that have ennobled
our history. And that is a debt we must
happily bear forever.
·
Martin Luther King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in
1964. He was 35 years old, which made him the youngest Peace Prize winner
at that time.
·
I have a dream that my four little children will one
day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin,
but by the content of their character. - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., August 28,
1963.
·
Life's most persistent and urgent question is: 'What
are you doing for others?' - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
·
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice
everywhere. - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
·
Hate is too great a burden to bear. - Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Top Events and Things to Do
·
Visit thekingcenter.org to find out about local events and ways you can
help promote unity, justice, and fight racism.
·
Become a mentor to an underprivileged person in your
community through Big Brothers, or another similar organization.
·
Donate to the United Negro College Fund or other charities that
promote college degree attainment by minorities.
·
Watch a movie about MLK. Some popular films include:
Our Friend Martin (1999), Selma (2014) and The Witness (2008)
Penguin Awareness Day[6] was created to celebrate
everybody’s favourite zoo animal! Find out more about penguins, explore what
others have to say about penguins, why not visit your local zoo to share the
penguin love! You don’t have to wait until Penguin Awareness Day, because penguins
can be loved all year long!
Daily
Devotions
[1]http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2017-01-20
[4] McCain, John and Salter, Mark. (2005) Character is destiny. Random
House, New York.
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