Monday, October 30, 2023
Monday Night at the Movies
Pavel Lungin, The Island, 2006
I am a God-fearing man.
“We make
ourselves rich by making our wants few.” (Henry David Thoreau)
Do you consider yourself richer or poorer than average?
1 Maccabees, Chapter 8, Verse 12
They subjugated kings
both near and far, and all who heard of their fame were AFRAID of them.
This verse is
referring to the Romans (150 B.C.) and Judas Maccabee was impressed with the
romans for, “Judas had heard of the reputation of the Romans. They were valiant
fighters and acted amiably to all who took their side. They established a
friendly alliance with all who applied to them. He was also
told of their battles and the brave deeds that they performed against the Gaul’s.”
(1 Maccabees 8:1-2) Judas sent envoys to Rome, probably before the death of
Nicanor, to conclude a treaty of alliance between Rome and the Jewish nation.
Without precise chronology, the pertinent data are gathered into a unified
theme. The image of the Roman Republic greatly impressed the smaller Eastern
peoples seeking support against their overlords, because of Roman success in
war and effective aid to their allies. Numerous interventions by Rome in the
politics of the Near East bear witness to its power and prestige in the second
century B.C. With the increased Roman control of Palestine after 63 B.C., the
Republic and later the Empire became heartily detested. The eulogy of Rome in
this chapter is one of the reasons why 1 Maccabees was not preserved by the
Palestinian Jews of the century that followed.[1]
Fall of the Roman Republic[2]
In 133 BC, Rome was a
democracy. Little more than a hundred years later it was governed by an
emperor. This imperial system has become, for us, a by-word for autocracy and
the arbitrary exercise of power. At the end of the second century BC the Roman
people was sovereign. True, rich aristocrats dominated politics. In order to
become one of the annually elected 'magistrates' (who in Rome were concerned
with all aspects of government, not merely the law) a man had to be very rich.
Even the system of voting was weighted to give more influence to the votes of
the wealthy. Yet ultimate power lay with the Roman people. Mass assemblies
elected the magistrates, made the laws and took major state decisions. Rome
prided itself on being a 'free republic' and centuries later was the political
model for the founding fathers of the United States. The system was weighted to
give more influence to the votes of the wealthy. By 14 AD, when the first
emperor Augustus died, popular elections had all but disappeared. Power was located
not in the old republican assembly place of the forum, but in the imperial
palace. The assumption was that Augustus's heirs would inherit his rule over
the Roman world - and so they did. This was nothing short of a revolution,
brought about through a century of constant civil strife, and sometimes open
warfare. This ended when Augustus - 'Octavian' as he was then called - finally
defeated his last remaining rivals Mark Antony and Cleopatra in 31 BC and
established himself on the throne.
St.
Marcellus
It
is believed that St. Marcellus was born in Arzas of Galicia. A brave pagan, he
entered the military, hoping to gain a large fortune. He married a young lady
named Nona and they were blessed with twelve children. Saint Marcellus was a
valorous soldier and was promoted to the charge of centurion; he had no thought
for any advancement except the sort pertaining to his military life when he
heard the fervent preaching of a holy bishop of the church of Leon. He was
converted with his entire family to the Christian religion. All of them except
his wife would soon give their blood in honor of their Faith.
The
birthday of Emperor Maximian Herculeus was celebrated in the year 298 with
extraordinary feasting and solemn rites. Marcellus, as a centurion of the army,
a captain in the legion of Trajan then posted in Mauritania or Spain, in order
not to defile himself in these impious sacrifices, left his company, throwing
down his cincture and his arms and declaring aloud that he was a soldier of
Jesus Christ, the eternal King. He was at once committed to prison. When the
festival was over, he was brought before a judge, and having reiterated his
faith, was sent under a strong guard to a prefect, Aurelian Agricolaus. This
Roman officer passed upon him a sentence of death by the sword. Marcellus was
immediately led to execution and beheaded on the 30th of October of the year
298. Cassian, the secretary or notary of the court, refused to record the
sentence pronounced against the martyr, because of its injustice. He was
immediately taken to prison and was beheaded in his turn on the 3rd of
December.
The
children of Saint Marcellus imitated his constancy, and all lost their lives
for the defense of the Gospel; three of the boys were hanged and then
decapitated at Leon. Their pious mother bought back their bodies for money and
buried them secretly; they were later transferred to a church built in their
honor in the city of Leon.
Patronage: conscientious objectors; city of
León, Spain; Province of León, Spain
Highlights
and Things To Do:
- Read
more about St. Marcellus:
- St. Marcellus' relics were later brought to and enshrined at the Church of San Marcelo in León, Spain (dating from the 10th century), and he became a patron saint of the city. The Plaza de San Marcelo in this city is named for him.
The Spirits of Darkness[3]
The ethereal we live in is filled with the angels of God but not all of them are seeking our good. There are some spirits that are not filled with the light of God; just as there are some men which are not. Angels are no more impeccable than men. They are free as men to choose and like men underwent a trial. Every trial must be essentially costly or painful. God submitted to the angels the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word of God; made man for their adoration. At this revelation Lucifer known as the angel of light from the highest choir of angels a Seraph rebelled, “I protest is my throne to be lowered?” At the same instance one of the lesser Archangels, cried out, “Who is like God?” Who can refuse to believe and to adore that which He proposes, “I believe and I adore.” Pride brought the fall of the angels. The door of penance, through the merits of the Precious Blood, is open to men during the whole time of their life, while the corrupt angels found themselves immediately after their fall in the state in which sinful men will find themselves immediately after their death, facing the truth of their own trials. This thought should increase our devotion to the Precious Blood which is ever ready to cleanse us from our sins, especially in the Sacrament of Penance, and restore us to the friendship of God which is denied to the angels of darkness.
Therefore, let our personal battle cry be that of St. Michael, the archangel, “I believe, and I adore!”
The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a
dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife
into your home.
Catechism of the Catholic
Church
PART TWO: THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN
MYSTERY
SECTION TWO-THE SEVEN
SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH
CHAPTER TWO-THE SACRAMENTS OF HEALING
Article 5 THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK
1499 "By the sacred anointing of the sick
and the prayer of the priests the whole Church commends those who are ill to
the suffering and glorified Lord, that he may raise them up and save them. and
indeed she exhorts them to contribute to the good of the People of God by
freely uniting themselves to the Passion and death of Christ."
Daily
Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: The
lonely and destitute.
·
Humility
was Basis of Mary's Holiness | Pope Saint John Paul II
·
Religion
in the Home for Preschool: October
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
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