August 10 – Defiant under torture, he inspires noble souls until today

August 10, 2026

St. Lawrence

Martyr; died 10 August, 258.

St. Lawrence Print by Wenzel Hollar

St. Lawrence, one of the deacons of the Roman Church, was one of the victims of the persecution of Valerian in 258, like Pope Sixtus II and many other members of the Roman clergy. At the beginning of the month of August, 258, the emperor issued an edict, commanding that all bishops, priests, and deacons should immediately be put to death (“episcopi et presbyteriet diacones incontinenti animadvertantur” — Cyprian, Epist. lxxx, 1). This imperial command was immediately carried out in Rome. On 6 August Pope Sixtus II was apprehended in one of the catacombs, and executed forthwith (“Xistum in cimiterio animadversum sciatis VIII id. Augusti et cum eo diacones quattuor.” Cyprian, ep. lxxx, 1). Two other deacons, Felicissimus and Agapitus, were put to death the same day. In the Roman Calendar of feasts of the fourth century their feast day is on the same date. Four days later, on the 10th of August of that same year, Lawrence, the last of the seven deacons, also suffered a martyr’s death. The anniversary of this holy martyr falls on that day, according to the Almanac of Philocalus for the year 354, the inventory of which contains the principal feasts of the Roman martyrs of the middle of the fourth century; it also mentions the street where his grave is to be found, the Via Tiburtina (“III id. Aug. Laurentii in Tibertina”; Ruinart, “Acta sincera”, Ratisbon, 1859, 632). The itineraries of the graves of the Roman martyrs, as given in the seventh century, mention the burial-place of this celebrated martyr in the Catacomb of Cyriaca in agro Verano (De Rossi, “Roma Sott.”, I, 178).

St. Lawrence before Valerianus. Painting by Bl. Fra Angelico

Since the fourth century St. Lawrence has been one of the most honoured martyrs of the Roman Church. Constantine the Great was the first to erect a little oratory over his burial-place, which was enlarged and beautified by Pope Pelagius II (579-90). Pope Pope Sixtus III (432-40) built a large basilica with three naves, the apse leaning against the older church, on the summit of the hill where he was buried. In the thirteenth century Honorius III made the two buildings into one, and so the basilica of San Lorenzo remains to this day. Pope St. Damasus (366-84) wrote a panegyric in verse, which was engraved in marble and placed over his tomb. Two contemporaries of the last-named pope, St. Ambrose of Milan and the poet Prudentius, give particular details about St. Lawrence’s death. Ambrose relates (De officiis min. xxviii) that when St. Lawrence was asked for the treasures of the Church he brought forward the poor, among whom he had divided the treasure, in place of alms; also that when Pope Sixtus II was led away to his death he comforted Lawrence, who wished to share his martyrdom, by saying that he would follow him in three days. The saintly Bishop of Milan also states that St. Lawrence was burned to death on a gird-iron (De offic., xli). In like manner, but with more poetical detail, Prudentius describes the martyrdom of the Roman deacon in his hymn on St. Lawrence (“Peristephanon”, Hymnus II).

The grill of St. Lawrence and his mortal remains, along with the body of St. Stephen the proto-martyr at the Basilicia of St. Lawrence-Outside-the-Walls.

However, in spite of this criticism of the later accounts of the martyrdom, there can be no question that St. Lawrence was a real historical personage, nor any doubt as to the martyrdom of that venerated Roman deacon, the place of its occurrence, and the date of his burial.

Pope Damasus built a basilica in Rome which he dedicated to St. Lawrence; this is the church now known as that of San Lorenzo in Damaso. The church of San Lorenzo in Lucina, also dedicated to this saint, still exists. The feast day of St. Lawrence is kept on 10 August.

(cfr. Catholic Encyclopedia)

____________________________

Meeting of Pope Sixtus II and St. Lawrence.

St Lawrence is especially honoured in the city of Rome, where he is one of the city’s patrons. There are several churches in Rome dedicated to him, including San Lorenzo in Panisperna, traditionally identified as the place of his execution. He is invoked by librarians, archivists, cooks, and tanners as their patron. His celebration on 10 August has the rank of feast throughout the entire Catholic world. On this day, the reliquary containing his burnt head is displayed in the Vatican for veneration.

El Escorial

The Escorial Palace, situated at the foot of Mt. Abantos in the Sierra de Guadarrama, was built by King Philip II of Spain to commemorate the victory of Spanish forces over those of King Henry II of France at the Battle of St Quentin, which took place on the feast of St Lawrence on 10 August 1557. To honour the martyr, the entire floor plan of this imposing edifice was laid out in the form of a gridiron, the means by which St Lawrence was martyred.

St. Lawrence River at Trois-Rivières, Canada

French explorer Jacques Cartier gave the name of Saint Lawrence to the widest river estuary in the world. At the mouth of this river is the large Gulf of Saint Lawrence, surrounded by all the Canadian Maritime provinces. Closer to the source of this river are the Laurentian mountains (north of the city of Montreal), the major Montreal borough of Saint-Laurent (borough), as well as the famed Saint Lawrence Boulevard that spans the full 11.25 km width of the island of Montreal. Further upstream, on the south side of the river near its source at Lake Ontario, is St. Lawrence County, New York.

{ 0 comments }

August 10 – His sister founded the Conceptionists

August 10, 2026

João Mendes de Silva

Blessed Amadeu da Silva, also called Amadeus of Portugal.

Better known as Amadeus of Portugal, O.F.M., (1420–1482), was a Portuguese nobleman who became first a monk, then left that life to become a friar of the Franciscan Order. Later he became a reformer of that Order, which led to his founding of a distinct branch of the Friars Minor that was named after him, later suppressed by the Pope in order to unite them into one great family of Friars Minor Observants (1568).

He was born João de Menezes da Silva in 1420 in Campo Maior, Portugal, the youngest of the eleven children of Rui Gomes da Silva, the first Magistrate of Campo Maior, on the border of Spain and Portugal, and of Isabel de Menezes, an illegitimate daughter of Dom Pedro de Menezes, 1st Count of Vila Real and 2nd Count of Viana do Alentejo, under whom Silva served in Ceuta. One of his sisters was Saint Beatrice of Silva, a noted Marian mystic and the foundress of the monastic Order of the Immaculate Conception.

His sister was Saint Beatrice of Silva, a noted Marian mystic and the foundress of the monastic Order of the Immaculate Conception.

He began his religious life in the Hieronnymite monastery of Notre-Dame de Guadalupe (Spain), where he spent about ten years. Desirous of joining the Franciscans, he went to Italy, where after some delay he was received into the order and, living in various convents, chiefly at Milan, attracted attention by his virtue and miracles.

Under the protection of the Archbishop of Milan, he established the convent of Notre-Dame de la Paix (1469) which became the centre of a Franciscan reform. The minister general of the order Francesco della Rovere, later pope under the name of Sixtus IV, extended his protection to him. Other foundations were made in Italy, among one at Rome.

Supernatural favours obtained through his intercession aided in the spread of his cult, and the Bollandists testify to the authenticity of the title “Blessed” bestowed on him. He composed a yet published treatise entitled “De revelationibus et prophetiis”, two copies of which are mentioned by Nicholas Antonio. The work of another Amadeus, “Homilies on the Blessed Virgin”, has been erroneously attributed to him.

Notre-Dame de la Paix, Milan

The convents he founded continued after his death to form a distinct branch of the Franciscans, the friars were called the Amadeans or Amadists, and they had twenty-eight houses in Italy, the chief one, Saint Peter de Montorio, in Rome. Innocent VIII gave them the convent of Saint Genesto near Cartagena in Spain (1493). The successors of Blessed João, Georges de Val-Camonique, Gilles de Montferrat, Jean Allemand, Bonaventura de Cremona, preserved his foundation in its original spirit until Saint Pius V suppressed it along with similar branches of the Franciscan Order uniting them into one great family of Friars Minor Observants (1568).

(Cfr: Catholic Encyclopedia, Acta SS., August. II, .562-606; ANTONIO, Bibliotheca vetus hispana, II, 217-18; WADDING, Annales Minorum, VI, VII, VIII; HELYOT, Histoire des ordres religieux, VII, 106-12.)

{ 1 comment }

Many members of the Society of the Cincinnati were killed during the Terror

August 10, 2026

Marshal of France Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, Comte de Rochambeau, pictured with the medal from the Society of the Cincinnati.

One of the more agreeable duties that took [the Count of] Rochambeau to Paris was the organization of the French members of the Society of the Cincinnati…. Some difficulties had to be ironed out, since no foreign order was then allowed in France, but the King was so much interested in the whole proceeding that he waived all objections….

Rochambeau distributed the golden eagles…. It was the kind of ceremony he liked, commemorating as it did the links of friendship forged on the battlefield. Rochambeau took great pride in the Cincinnati, but not everybody in France or in America agreed with him about its importance. Benjamin Franklin indulged in some ridicule of the institution and condemned the members as “forming an order of Hereditary Knights….” Jefferson felt that the Society was incompatible with the natural equality of men, and advised the members to “distribute their funds, renounce their existence, and melt up their eagles….”

The Society of the Cincinnati Insignia

By the time Robespierre came into power, when every sign of personal and hereditary distinction was being wiped out, any man known to be in possession of the eagle of the Cincinnati was in grave danger. A Society with so many aristocrats on its rolls was obviously a threat to the Republic. With the overthrow of the French monarchy on August 10, 1792, l’Ordre de Cincinnatus dropped out of sight, not to be heard of again until it was officially reconstituted in 1923. Many of the original members, including the President, Admiral d’Estaing, perished on the scaffold.

Charles Henri Jean-Baptiste, Comte d’Estaing

Arnold Whitridge, Rochambeau: America’s Neglected Founding Father (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1965), pp. 259-260.

Short Stories on Honor, Chivalry, and the World of Nobility—no. 202

 

{ 0 comments }

Paris pours out its heart in welcoming the brother of the King it executed

August 10, 2026

King Charles X of France in his coronation robes by Jean-Baptiste Paulin Guérin.

Meanwhile, Monsieur [the Count of Chambord, the future Charles X], invested with the Lieutenancy-general of the kingdom, slowly advanced from Nancy to Paris. The formation of a royal guard greatly occupied the capital. Such devotion was shown that it was improvised in a week. In seven days seven hundred men belonging the best families in France were accepted, equipped, clothed, and furnished with horses, all at their own expense, and were in fairly good exercise. The handsome Duc de Mouchy sought after the command—to what do you not aspire when you are a Noailles? But Comte Charles de Damas was preferred to him. As regards myself, military glory consisted in putting on again that coat of a national guardsman which I had take off on August 10, 1792.

Charles X Enters Paris

It was on Easter Sunday, April 10, that Monsieur entered Paris. He came by way of the Rue Saint Denis, escorted by his new guard. The number of windows and roofs were insufficient to hold the enthusiastic crowd that was shouting itself hoarse. Everything was adorned with flags and flowers, and every handkerchief was waving. It was a touching spectacle, and one full of hope for the future had people only wished. I went with the crowd to see it at the Porte Saint Denis, where the prince stopped and saluted the figure of his ancestor. This act of homage was loudly applauded. As the procession turned on to the boulevards, I ran at full speed to Mme. De Vindé’s to get a place on her terrace, where I could once more see it at my ease. Everybody there was of one heart and voice.

Arthur Chuquet, ed., Recollections of Baron de Frénilly, Peer of France (1768-1828) (London: William Heinemann, 1909), p.248.

Short Stories on Honor, Chivalry, and the World of Nobility—no. 207

Nobility.org Editorial comment: 

How can one explain the Terror? France was the heart of culture, refinement, civilization. How could it sink into such barbarity? A determined and organized minority carried out the Revolution, while a “silent majority” let it happen. It would seem that most Frenchmen were under anesthesia or something during the revolutionary years, for this enthusiastic acclaim to welcome the brother of Louis XVI into Paris and the Restoration of the Throne in 1814,  was undoubtedly sincere and general.

 

{ 0 comments }

August 11 – St. Attracta

August 10, 2026

St. Attracta

(Or ST. ARAGHT).

Stained glass window of St. Attracta in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Ballymote, County Sligo, Ireland. Photo taken by Andreas F. Borchert.

Stained glass window of St. Attracta in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Ballymote, County Sligo, Ireland. Photo taken by Andreas F. Borchert.

A contemporary of St. Patrick from whom she received the veil. She is known as the foundress of several churches in the Counties of Galway and Sligo, Ireland. Colgan’s account of her life is based on that written by Augustine Magraidin in the last years of fourteenth century, and abounds in improbable statements. However, the fact of St. Attracta receiving the veil from St. Patrick is corroborated by Tirechán, in the “Book of Armagh”, as is evident from the following passage in the “Documenta de S. Patricio” (ed. Edmund Hogan, S.J.): “Et ecclesiam posuit in cella Adrachtae, filiae Talain, et ipsa accepit pallium de manu Patricii.” A native of the County Sligo, she resolved to devote herself to God, but being opposed by her parents, fled to South Connacht and made her first foundation at Drumconnell, near Boyle, County Roscommon, whence she removed to Greagraighe or Coolavin, County Sligo. At Killaraght, St. Attracta established a hospice for travellers, which existed as late as 1539. Her name was so great that numerous places were named after her, e.g. Killaraght (Cill Attracta), Toberaraght, Cloghan Araght, etc., and a large village which grew up around her oratory at Killaraght in Coolavin. Colgan gives an account of the Cross of St. Attracta which was famed during the Middle Ages, and of which the O’Mochain family were hereditary keepers. A striking confirmation of the existence of this relic in the early years of the fifteenth century is afforded by an entry in the “Calendar of Papal Letters” (VI, 45l) from which we learn that in 1413 the cross and cup of St. Attracta (Crux ac Cuach Aracht) were then venerated in the church of Killaraght, in the Diocese of Achonry. By an Indult of 28 July, 1864, Pius IX authorized the Office and Mass of St. Attracta, which had lapsed into desuetude, to be again celebrated in the Irish Church. The feast of St. Attracta, on 11 August, is given special honour in the Diocese of Achonry, of which she is the patroness. The prayers and proper lessons for her Office were drawn up by Cardinal Moran.

W. H. Grattan-Flood (Catholic Encyclopedia)

Subscription4

{ 0 comments }

August 11 – Feast of the Crown of Thorns and the Five Sacred Wounds

August 10, 2026

Feast of the Crown of Thorns

Reliquary of the Crown of Thorns.

The first feast in honour of the Crown of Thorns (Festum susceptionis coronae Domini) was instituted at Paris in 1239, when St. Louis brought thither the relic of the Crown of Thorns, which was deposited later in the Royal Chapel, erected in 1241-8 to guard this and other relics of the Passion. The feast, observed on 11 August, though at first special to the Royal Chapel, was gradually observed throughout the north of France. In the following century another festival of the Holy Crown on 4 May was instituted and was celebrated along with the feast of the Invention of the Cross in parts of Spain, Germany, and Scandinavia. It is still kept in not a few Spanish dioceses and is observed by the Dominicans on 24 April. A special feast on the Monday after Passion Sunday was granted to the Diocese of Freising in Bavaria by Clement X (1676) and Innocent XI (1689) in honour of the Crown of Christ. It was celebrated at Venice in 1766 on the second Friday of March. In 1831 it was adopted at Rome as a double major and is observed on the Friday following Ash Wednesday. As it is not kept throughout the universal Church, the Mass and Office are placed in the appendices to the Breviary and the Missal. The hymns of the Office, which is taken from the seventeenth-century Gallican Breviary of Paris, were composed by Habert. The “Analecta hymnica” of Dreves and Blume contains a large number of rhythmical offices, hymns, and sequences for this feast.

ROHAULT DE FLEURY, Instruments de la Passion (Paris, 1870); NILLES, Kalendarium manuale (Innsbruck, 1897); GROTEFEND, Zeitrechnung, II, 2, 88.

________________

The Feast of the Five Sacred Wounds

Devotion. The revival of religious life and the zealous activity of St. Bernard and St. Francis in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, together with the enthusiasm of the Crusaders returning from the Holy Land, gave a wonderful impulse to devotion to the Passion of Jesus Christ and particularly to practices in honour of the Wounds in His Sacred Hands, Feet, and Side. The reason for this devotion was well expressed at a later period in the memorial of the Polish bishops to Clement XIII:

Piercing of Christ’s Side, painting by Fra Angelico.

“Moreover, the Five Wounds of Christ are honoured by a Mass and an Office, and on account of these wounds we venerate also the feet, hands and side of the most loving Redeemer, these parts of Our Lord’s most holy body being held more worthy of a special cult than the others, precisely because they suffered special pains for our salvation, and because they are decorated with these wounds as with an illustrious mark of love. Therefore, with living faith they cannot be looked upon without a special feeling of religion and devotion” (Nilles, “De rat. fest. SS. Cord. Jesu et Mariae”, I, 126).

The Chaplet of the Holy Wounds (or “Holy Wounds Rosary”) was first introduced at the beginning of the 20th century by Marie Martha Chambon (1841 – 1907), Sister of the Monastery of the Visitation Order in Chambéry, France.

Many beautiful medieval prayers in honour of the Sacred Wounds, including some attributed to St. Clare of Assisi (indulgenced on 21 November, 1885), have been preserved. St. Mechtilde and St. Gertrude of Helfta were devoted to the Holy Wounds, the latter saint reciting daily a prayer in honour of the 5466 wounds, which, according to a medieval tradition, were inflicted on Jesus during His Passion. In the fourteenth century it was customary in southern Germany to recite fifteen Pater Nosters each day (which thus amounted to 5475 in the course of a year) in memory of the Sacred Wounds. Corresponding to the Mass “Humiliavit” in the Roman Missal, there was in the medieval Missals a special Mass in honour of Christ’s Wounds, believed to have been composed by St. John the Evangelist and revealed to Boniface II (532). It was known as the Golden Mass, and was indulgenced by Innocent VI (1362) or John XXII (1334); during its celebration five candles were always lighted. It was popularly held that if anyone should say or hear it on five consecutive days he should never suffer the pains of hell fire (Franz, “Messe im Mittelalter”, 159).

An illumination in an antiphonary of the Sacred Wounds of Our Lord.

The Dominican Rosary also helped to promote devotion to the Sacred Wounds, for while the fifty small beads refer to Mary, the five large beads and the corresponding Pater Nosters are intended to honour the Five Wounds of Christ (Beissel, “Verehrung Marias”, I, 525). Again, in some places it was customary to ring a bell at noon on Fridays, to remind the faithful to recite five Paters and Aves in honour of the Holy Wounds. A corona, or rosary, of the Five Wounds was approved by the Holy See on 11 August, 1823, and again in 1851. It consists of five divisions, each composed of five Glories in honour of Christ’s Wounds and one Ave in commemoration of the Sorrowful Mother. The blessing of the beads is reserved to the Passionists.

Portugal’s shield. Within the white inescutcheon, the five small blue shields with their five white bezants representing the five wounds of Our Lord. The sum of all bezants (doubling the ones in the central shield) would give thirty, symbolizing the betrayal of Jesus by Judas Iscariot with thirty pieces of silver.

Feast. The earliest evidence of a feast in honour of the Wounds of Christ comes from the monastery of Fritzlar, Thuringia, where in the fourteenth century a feast was kept on the Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi. The Office was rhythmical (Dreves, “Anal. hymnica”, XXIV, 20; Grotefend, “Zeitrechnung”, II, 1, 115). In the fifteenth century it had spread to different countries, to Salisbury (England), Huesca and Jaca (Spain), Vienna, and Tours, and was included in the Breviaries of the Carmelites, Franciscans, Dominicans,and other orders (Dreves, op. cit., XXIV, XL, XLII). The Feast of the Five Wounds, celebrated since the Middle Ages at Evora and elsewhere in Portugal on 6 February (at Lisbon on the Friday after Ash-Wednesday) is of historical interest. It commemorates the founding of the Portuguese kingdom in 1139, when, before the battle on the plains of Ourique, Christ appeared to Alfonso Henriquez, promising victory over the Moors and commanding him to insert into the coat of arms of the new kingdom the emblem of the Five Wounds (“Propr. Portugalliae” in Weiss, “Weltgeschichte”, III, 251).

The Miracle of Ourique), by Domingos Sequeira.

This feast is celebrated to-day in all Portuguese-speaking countries. The Proprium of Venice of 1766, which contains perhaps the earliest series of movable feasts in honour of Christ’s Passion, has the Feast of the Five Wounds on the second Sunday in March; it was granted in 1809 to Leghorn for the Friday after Ash-Wednesday, on which day it is still kept in many dioceses of Tuscany, and elsewhere (Mexico). Since 1831, when the feasts in honour of the Passion were adopted at Rome by the Passionists and the city, this feast was assigned to the Friday after the third Sunday in Lent. The Office is one of those bequeathed to us by the Middle Ages. As this feast is not celebrated in the entire Church, the Office and Mass are placed in the appendix of the Breviary and the Missal.

NILLES, Kalendarium manuale, II, 140; HELLER in Zeitschr. fur kath. Theol. (1895), 582-5; BENEDICT XIV, De festus D. N. J. Christi, I, 279; BERINGER, Die Ablasse (Paderborn, 1906), 173, 174, 277, 382.

F.G. HOLWECK (Catholic Encyclopedia)

{ 0 comments }

August 11 – Charcoal Burner

August 10, 2026

St. Alexander the Charcoal Maker.

Alexander, Saint, known as “The charcoal burner,” was Bishop of Comana, in Pontus, Whether he was the first to occupy that see is open to discussion. The Bollandists have also a long paper as to the exact location of Comana as there were several places of that name, but decide for Pontus, near Neo-Cæsarea. The curious name of the saint comes from the fact that he had, out of humility, taken up the work of burning charcoal, so as to escape worldly honours. He is called a philosopher, but it is not certain that the term is to be taken literally. His philosophy consisted rather in his preference of heavenly to earthly things. The discovery of his virtues was due to the very contempt with which he had been regarded. St. Gregory Thaumaturgus had been asked to come to Comana to help select a bishop for that place. As he rejected all the candidates, someone in derision suggested that he might accept Alexander, the charcoal-burner. Gregory took the suggestion seriously, summoned Alexander, and found that he had to do with a saint and a man of great capabilities. Alexander was made bishop of the see, administered it with remarkable wisdom and ultimately gave up his life for the Faith, being burned to death in the persecution of Decius. The vagueness of the information we have about him comes from the fact that his name is not found in any of the old Greek or Roman calendars. He would have been absolutely unknown were it not for a discourse pronounced by St. Gregory of Nyssa, on the life of St. Gregory Thaumaturgus, in which the election of Alexander is incidentally described. In the modern Roman Martyrology his name occurs, and he is described as a “philosophus disertissimus.” His feast is kept on 11 August.

Acta Sanctorum, August I.

Thomas Joseph Campbell (Catholic Encyclopedia)

{ 0 comments }

Columbus, and how to make Key Lime Pie

August 10, 2026

Christoper Columbus arrives in America. Painting by by Gergio Deluci

When Christopher Columbus discovered the New World on October 12, 1492–a feat that earned for him the title of Admiral of the Indies and for his grandson Louis and his descendants in perpetuity the noble title of Duke of Veragua–he introduced into the Americas the greatest treasure possible: the Catholic Faith.

Flowers of a key lime plant.

However, his epic Atlantic crossing also introduced what has been called The Columbian Exchange. Columbus’s deed was the first step in the mutually enriching exchange of numerous animals and plants between the two hemispheres.
From the Americas, the potato, corn, tobacco, squash, tomato, bell peppers, new types of beans, cocoa, rubber, pineapple, and many other crops improved life for countless millions in Europe, Africa and Asia. Wheat, rice, barley, onions, coffee, sugar, grapes, apples, bananas, and many other plants from the Old World came westward, greatly enhancing the Americas.

Key Lime, Citrus aurantifolia. A tree-ripened key lime’s color is a bright yellow, unlike the more common green Persian limes.

All forms of citrus fruits were among the westbound plants, and among these, the Key lime. It is believed that Columbus himself brought the first limes. They became known as Key limes when planted on the Florida Keys, the chain of islands that, starting from Miami, sweeps southwesterly in a gentle curve, like the graceful train of a queen’s dress on her Coronation Day.

When making and enjoying your next Key Lime Pie, think for a moment of Christopher Columbus and his heroic Discovery of the Americas. Think of the almost superhuman courage of so many hidalgos, nobles and gentry who came behind him, extending the reach of the Christian Faith, culture and civilization to these lands. There would be no limes in the Florida Keys today without them.

 

Key Lime Pie

      Makes 1 – 9 inch pie

Graham Cracker Crust:

  • 1 ¼ cup graham cracker crumbs

  • 2 tablespoons granulated white sugar

  • 5 – 6 tablespoons butter, melted

 

Filling:

  • 4 (white) egg yolks, (don’t use brown eggs)  Use the 4 egg whites if you wish to make the Meringue topping.

  • One 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk

  • 4 oz (1/2 cup) key lime juice (if you like it a bit more tart, add 3/4 cup) You will need between 25 to 28 Key limes; approximately 1 bag. The Key Limes are very small and not to be confused with the Persian Limes which are sometimes sold near by. Ripe Key Limes are yellow, not green.

 

Whipping Cream Topping:

  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream

  • 2 tablespoons granulated white sugar

 

Recipe

Graham Cracker Crust:

You can make the Graham Cracker Crust as directed or use a ready made. If ready-made, skip to filling directions. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Butter or lightly spray a 9 inch pie or tart pan. In a small bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pie pan. Bake for 8 minutes (the crust will be lightly browned). Remove from oven and place on wire rack to cool for 1 hour before filling.

 

Key Lime Juice:

There is no substitute for fresh Key Lime Juice. Before you cut a lime, roll it on a hard surface, applying pressure to loosen the skin from the pulp. You will get more juice out of it this way. Cut the lime in half and either hand squeeze or use a lime juicer (pictured). With the key lime there will be seeds. Before adding the juice to the filling, take a little strainer so you can catch any seeds that are in the juice.

A Lime Juicer with a key lime cut in half, with another key lime near by.

 

Filling:

In a glass bowl, beat the egg yolks until pale and fluffy (2-3 minutes). Gradually add the condensed milk and beat until light and fluffy (3-5 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then beat in the lime juice. (A true Key Lime Pie is not green, so no food coloring is used for this recipe.)

Pour the filling over the crust and bake for 20 minutes. If you prefer a meringue topping, skip this next step and go to Meringue Topping. Cool on a wire rack. Once it has completely cooled, cover and refrigerator for several hours or overnight. The pie tastes better when cooled.

 

Whipped Cream topping:

Once the filling has chilled, in a bowl, beat the whipping cream and sugar until stiff peaks form and decorate the pie top as you wish.

 

Meringue topping:

While the pie filling is baking, beat (4) eggs whites in a mixer bowl on high speed until soft peaks form, then gradually add ½ cup sugar until meringue forms hard peaks. Spoon the meringue over the top of the hot pie and use a spoon to form peaks. Bake (again) at 350°F for about 10-15 minutes, or until meringue begins to brown.

Can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days.

 

Taken from various recipe sources. There are several other ways to make this recipe and you can try some others here: http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/course/desserts/key-lime-pie/

Florida Governor Bob Graham in 1983, serving world’s largest Key Lime Pie, which is the “Official Pie of the State of Florida”.

{ 1 comment }

August 12 – St. Jane Frances de Chantal

August 10, 2026

St. Jane Frances de Chantal at the age of 30.

Born at Dijon, France, 28 January, 1572; died at the Visitation Convent Moulins, 13 December, 1641.

Her father was president of the Parliament of Burgundy, and leader of the royalist party during the League that brought about the triumph of the cause of Henry IV. In 1592 she married Baron de Chantal, and lived in the feudal castle of Bourbilly. She restored order in the household, which was on the brink of ruin, and brought back prosperity. During her husband’s absence at the court, or with the army, when reproached for her extremely sober manner of dressing, her reply was: “The eyes which I must please are a hundred miles from here”. She found more than once that God blessed with miracles the care she gave the suffering members of Christ. St. Francis de Sales’s eulogy of her characterizes her life at Bourbilly and everywhere else: “In Madame de Chantal I have found the perfect woman, whom Solomon had difficulty in finding in Jerusalem”. Baron de Chantal was accidently killed by an arquebus while out shooting in 1601. Left a widow at twenty-eight, with four children, the broken-hearted baroness took a vow of chastity. In all her prayers she besought God to send her a guide and God, in a vision, showed her the spiritual director He held in reserve for her. In order to safeguard her children’s property, she was obliged to go and live at Monthelon in the home of her father-in-law, who was ruled over by an arrogant and wicked servant. This was real servitude, which she bore patiently and gently for seven years. At last her virtue triumphed over the ill will of the old man and house keeper.

St. Jane Frances de Chantal and her family. Stained glass window in the Basilica in Annecy, France.

During Lent, 1604, she visited her father at Dijon, where St. Francis de Sales was preaching at the Sainte Chapelle. She recognized in him the mysterious director who had been shown her, and placed herself under his guidance. Then began an admirable correspondence between the two saints. Unfortunately, the greater number of letters are no longer in existence, as she destroyed them after the death of the holy bishop. When she had assured the future security of her children, and when she had provided the education of Celse-Bénigne, her fourteen year old son, whom she left to her father and her brother, the Archbishop of Bourges, she started for Annecy, where God was calling her to found the Congregation of the Visitation. She took her two remaining daughters with her, the elder having recently married the Baron of Thorens, a brother of St. Francis de Sales. Celse-Bénigne, impetous like those of her race, barred his mother’s way by lying across the threshold. Mme de Chandal stopped, overcome: ” Can the tears of a child shake her resolution? ” said a holy and learned priest, the tutor of Celse-Benigne. “Oh! no”, replied the saint, “but after all I am a mother!” And she stepped over her child’s body.

The Congregation of the Visitation was canonically established at Annecy on Trinity Sunday, 6 June, 1610. Its aim was to receive, with a view to their spiritual advancement, young girls and even widows who had not the desire or strength to subject themselves to the austere ascetical practices in force in all the religious orders at that time. St. Francis de Sales was especially desirous of seeing the realization of his cherished method of attaining perfection, which consisted in always keeping one’s will united to the Divine will, in taking so to speak one’s soul, heart, and longings into one’s hands and giving them into God’s keeping, and in seeking always to do what is pleasing to Him. “I do always the things that please him” (John, viii, 29). The two holy founders saw their undertaking prosper. At the time of the death of St. Francis de Sales in 1622, the order already counted thirteen houses; there were eight-six when St. Jane Frances died; and 164 when she was canonized.

St. Frances de Sales giving the Rule of the Visitation to St. Jane Frances de Chantal. Painting by Noël Hallé

The remainder of the saint’s life was spent under the protection of the cloister in the practice of the most admirable virtues. If a gentle kindness, vivified and strengthened by a complete spirit of renunciation, predominates in St. Francis de Sales, it is firmness and great vigor which prevails in St. Jane Frances; she did not like to see her daughters giving way to human weakness. Her trials were continuous and borne bravely, and yet she was exceedingly sensitive. Celse-Bénigne was an incorrigible duelist. She prayed so fervently that he was given the grace to die a Christian death on the battlefield, during the campaign against the Isle of Ré (1627). He left a daughter who became the famous Marquise de Sévigné. To family troubles God added interior crosses which, particularly during the last nine years of her life, kept her in agony of soul from which she was not freed until three months before her death.

Her reputation for sanctity was widespread. Queens, princes, and princesses flocked to the reception-room of the Visitation. Wherever she went to establish foundations, the people gave her ovations. “These people”, she would say confused, “do not know me; they are mistaken”. Her body is venerated with that of St. Francis de Sales in the church of the Visitation at Annecy. She was beatified in 1751 and canonized in 1767.

Painting of St. Jane Frances de Chantal by Fr. Michael Fuchs of the Province of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales in Vienna, Kaasgraben

The life of the saint was written in the seventeenth century, with inimitable charm, by her secretary, Mother de Chaugy. Monsignor Bougaud, who died Bishop of Laval, published in 1863 a “Histoire de Sainte Chantal” which had a great and well-deserved success.

The words of the saint comprise instructions on the religious life, various minor works, among which is the admirable “Deposition for the Process of Beatification of St. Francis de Sales”, and a great many letters. The Saint’s qualities are seen in her precise and vigorous style, void of imagery but betraying a repressed emotion, and bursting forth spontaneously from the heart, anticipating in its method the beautiful French of the seventeenth century. The book which may be called her masterpiece, “Réponses sur les Régles, Constitutions et Coutumes”, a truly practical and complete code of the religious life, is not in circulation.

RAPHAL PERNIN 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

{ 3 comments }

August 12 – His pontificate was spent in opposing royal absolutism

August 10, 2026

Pope Blessed Innocent XI

(Benedetto Odescalchi)

Birthplace of Benedetto Odescalchi at Como

Born at Como, 16 May, 1611; died at Rome, 11 August, 1689. He was educated by the Jesuits at Como, and studied jurisprudence at Rome and Naples. Urban VIII appointed him successively prothonotary, president of the Apostolic Camera, commissary at Ancona, administrator of Macerata, and Governor of Picena. Innocent X made him Cardinal-Deacon of Santi Cosma e Damiano on 6 March, 1645, and, somewhat later, Cardinal-Priest of Sant’ Onofrio. As cardinal he was beloved by all on account of his deep piety, charity, and unselfish devotion to duty. When he was sent as legate to Ferrara in order to assist the people stricken with a severe famine, the pope introduced him to the people of Ferrara as the “father of the poor”, “Mittimus patrem pauperum”. In 1650 he became Bishop of Novara, in which capacity he spent all the revenues of his see to relieve the poor and sick in his diocese. With the permission of the pope he resigned as Bishop of Novara in favour of his brother Giulio in 1656 and went to Rome, where he took a prominent part in the consultations of the various congregations of which he was a member.

He was a strong candidate for the papacy after the death of Clement IX on 9 December, 1669, but the French Government rejected him. After the death of Clement X, King Louis XIV of France again intended to use his royal influence against the election of Odescalchi, but, seeing that the cardinals as well as the Roman people were of one mind in their desire to have Odescalchi as their pope, he reluctantly instructed the cardinals of the French party to acquiesce in his candidacy. After an interregnum of two months, Odescalchi was unanimously elected pope on 21 September, 1676, and took the name of Innocent XI.

Pope Innocent XI

Immediately upon his accession he turned all his efforts towards reducing the expenses of the Curia. He passed strict ordinances against nepotism among the cardinals. He lived very parsimoniously and exhorted the cardinals to do the same. In this manner he not only squared the annual deficit which at his accession had reached the sum of 170,000 scudi, but within a few years the papal income was even in excess of the expenditures.

The whole pontificate of Innocent XI is marked by a continuous struggle with the absolutism of King Louis XIV of France. As early as 1673 the king had by his own power extended the right of the régale over the provinces of Languedoc, Guyenne, Provence, and Dauphiné, where it had previously not been exercised, although the Council of Lyons in 1274 had forbidden under pain of excommunication to extend the régale beyond those districts where it was then in force. Bishops Pavillon of Alet and Caulet of Pamiers protested against this royal encroachment and in consequence they were persecuted by the king. All the efforts of Innocent XI to induce King Louis to respect the rights of the Church were useless. In 1682, Louis XIV convoked an Assembly of the French Clergy which, on 19 March, adopted the four famous articles, known as “Déclaration du clergé français”. Innocent annulled the four articles in his rescript of 11 April, 1682, and refused his approbation to all future episcopal candidates who had taken part in the assembly. To appease the pope, Louis XIV began to pose as a zealot of Catholicism. In 1685 he revoked the Edict of Nantes and inaugurated a cruel persecution of the Protestants. Innocent XI expressed his displeasure at these drastic measures and continued to withhold his approbation from the episcopal candidates as he had done heretofore. He irritated the king still more by abolishing the much abused “right of asylum” in a decree dated 7 May, 1685. By force of this right the foreign ambassadors at Rome had been able to harbour in their palaces and the immediate neighbourhood any criminal that was wanted by the papal court of justice. Innocent XI notified the new French ambassador, Marquis de Lavardin, that he would not be recognized as ambassador in Rome unless he renounced this right. But Louis XIV would not give it up. At the head of an armed force of about 800 men Lavardin entered Rome in November, 1687, and took forcible possession of his palace. Innocent XI treated him as excommunicated and placed under interdict the church of St. Louis at Rome where he attended services on 24 December, 1687.

Louis XIV, painted by Charles Le Brun

The tension between the pope and the king was still increased by the pope’s procedure in filling the vacant archiepiscopal See of Cologne. The two candidates for the see were Cardinal Wilhelm Fürstenberg, then Bishop of Strasburg, and Joseph Clement, a brother of Max Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria. The former was a willing tool in the hands of Louis XIV, and his appointment as Archbishop and Elector of Cologne would have implied French preponderance in north-western Germany. Joseph Clement was not only the candidate of Emperor Leopold I of Austria but of all European rulers, with the exception of the King of France and his servile supporter, King James II of England. At the election, which took place on 19 July, 1688, neither of the candidates received the required number of votes. The decision, therefore, fell to the pope, who designated Joseph Clement as Archbishop and Elector of Cologne. Louis XIV retaliated by taking possession of the papal territory of Avignon, imprisoning the papal nuncio and appealing to a general council. Nor did he conceal his intention to separate the French Church entirely from Rome. But the pope remained firm. The subsequent fall of James II of England destroyed French preponderance in Europe and soon after Innocent’s death the struggle between Louis XIV and the papacy was settled in favour of the Church. Innocent XI did not approve the imprudent manner in which James II attempted to restore Catholicism in England. He also repeatedly expressed his displeasure at the support which James II gave to the autocratic King Louis XIV in his measures hostile to the Church. It is, therefore, not surprising that Innocent XI had little sympathy for the Catholic King of England, and that he did not assist him in his hour of trial. There is, however, no ground for the accusation that Innocent XI was informed of the designs which William of Orange had upon England, much less that he supported him in the overthrow of James II. It was due to Innocent’s earnest and incessant exhortations that the German Estates and King John Sobieski of Poland in 1683 hastened to the relief of Vienna which was being besieged by the Turks. After the siege was raised, Innocent again spared no efforts to induce the Christian princes to lend a helping hand for the expulsion of the Turks from Hungary. He contributed millions of scudi to the Turkish war fund in Austria and Hungary and had the satisfaction of surviving the capture of Belgrade, 6 Sept., 1688.

Palais des Papes in Avignon, France

Innocent XI was no less intent on preserving the purity of faith and morals among the clergy and the faithful. He insisted on a thorough education and an exemplary life of the clergy, reformed the monasteries of Rome, passed strict ordinances concerning the modesty of dress among Roman ladies, put an end to the ever increasing passion for gambling by suppressing the gambling houses at Rome and by a decree of 12 February, 1679, encouraged frequent and even daily Communion. In his Bull “Sanctissimnus Dominus”, issued on 2 March, 1679, he condemned sixty-five propositions which favoured laxism in moral theology, and in a decree, dated 26 June, 1680, he defended the Probabiliorism of Thyrsus González, S.J. This decree (see authentic text in “Etudes religieuses”, XCI, Paris, 1902, 847 sq.) gave rise to the controversy, whether Innocent XI intended it as a condemnation of Probabilism. The Redemptorist Francis Ter Haar, in his work: “Ben. Innocentii PP. XI de probabilismo decreti historia” (Tournai, 1904), holds that the decree is opposed to Probabilism, while August Lehmkuhl, S.J., in his treatise: “Probabilismus vindicatus” (Freiburg, 1906), 78-111, defends the opposite opinion. In a decree of 28 August, 1687, and in the Constitution “Cœlestis Pastor” of 19 November, 1687, Innocent XI condemned sixty-eight Quietistic propositions of Miguel de Molinos. Towards the Jansenists Innocent XI was lenient, though he by no means espoused their doctrines. The process of his beatification was introduced by Benedict XIV and continued by Clement XI and Clement XII, but French influence and the accusation of Jansenism caused it to be dropped. His “Epistolæ ad Principes” were published by Berthier (2 vols., Rome, 1891-5), and his “Epistolæ ad Pontifices”, by Bonamico (Rome, 1891).

The body of Innocent XI in St Sebastian Chapel at St Peter’s Basilica.

IMMICH, Papst Innocenz XI. (Berlin, 1900); MICHAUD, Louis XIV et Innocent XI (4 vols., Paris, 1882 – ) written from Gallican standpoint; GÉRIN, Le Pape Innocent XI et la révolution anglaise de 1688 in Revue des questions historiques, XX (Paris, 1876); IDEM, Le Pape Innocent XI et la Révocation de l’Edit de Nantes, ibidem, XXIV (1878); IDEM, Le pape Innocent XI et l’Election de Cologne en 1688, ibidem, XXXIII (1883); IDEM, Le Pape Innocent XI et le siège de Vienne en 1683, ibidem, XXXIX (1886); FRAKNOI, Papst Innocenz XI. und Ungarns Befreiung von der Türkenherrschaft, translated into German from the Hungarian by JEKEL (Freiburg im Br., 1902); GIUSSANI, Il conclave di Innocenzo XI (Como, 1901). A contemporary biography by LIPPI was newly edited by BERTHIER (Rome, 1889). Sea also HORVARTH in Catholic University Bulletin, XV (Washington, 1909), 42-64; cf. ibid., IX 1903, 281.

MICHAEL OTT

Ed. note: Innocent XI was beatified by Pope Pius XII on October 7, 1956

{ 2 comments }

Battle of Petrovaradin

August 6, 2026

The Battle of Petrovaradin 1716 by Georg Philipp Rugendas the Elder.

The Battle of Petrovaradin also known as the Battle of Peterwardein, took place on 5 August 1716 during the Austro-Turkish War when the Ottoman army besieged the Habsburg-controlled fortress of Petrovaradin on the Military Frontier of the Habsburg monarchy (today Novi Sad, Vojvodina, Serbia). The Ottomans attempted to capture Petrovaradin, the so-called Gibraltar on the Danube, but experienced a great defeat by an army half the size of their own, similar to the defeat they had experienced in 1697 at the Battle of Zenta. Ottoman Grand Vizier Damad Ali Pasha was fatally wounded, while the Ottoman army lost 20,000 men and 250 guns to the Habsburg army led by Field Marshal Prince Eugene of Savoy. The Austrians consolidated this victory by marching into the Banat and conquering Temesvár, the last remaining Turkish fortress in Hungary, followed by Belgrade.[11]

Petrovaradin Fortress. Photo by Pudelek (Marcin Szala)

Background

In the summer of 1715, the Ottoman Empire started to reclaim the Peloponnese, which had been ceded to the Republic of Venice by the Karlowitz Treaty in 1699. The Turks, led by Grand Vizier Damat Ali Pasha, easily reconquered the Venetian Kingdom of the Morea (the Greek Peloponnese). Having made an alliance with Venice in April 1716, Austria demanded full withdrawal from the Ottoman Empire as well as compensation to Venice for the continued violation of the stipulations of the Karlowitz treaty; the Ottoman grand-vizier, confident that he could defeat the Habsburgs and even regain Hungary, responded by declaring war on 15 May 1716. [12]

A Diorama of the Battle of Petrovaradin, Photo by DjordjeMarkovic

Prelude

Damat Ali Pasha, the Sultan’s son-in-law, left Constantinople with a 120,000 strong Turkish Army taking nearly three months to cover the 710 kilometres (440 miles) to Belgrade. There he consolidated an Ottoman force of 150,000 soldiers, at the core of which were 41,000 elite Janissaries and 30,000 Sipahi Ottoman cavalry, along with Tatar and Wallachian auxiliaries.[2] They crossed the Sava at Zemun on 26 July, and moved on the right bank of the Danube towards Sremski Karlovci in Habsburg territory.[13] The commander of the Austrian forces, Prince Eugene of Savoy, decided to engage the Ottomans at Petrovaradin. Eugene arrived at the fortress on 9 July. He had arranged for the construction of a fortified encampment within the Petrovaradin fortress which was nicknamed Gibraltar on the Danube.[14] Eugene set the 60,000-strong Imperial army on the march from their quarters in Futog.[3] Inside the Petrovaradin garrison were 8,000 men consisting primarily of Serbs. Serving in the Austrian army were Croatian and Hungarian infantry and cavalry regiments (approx. 42,000 men); Serbian border soldiers from Vojvodina; and the auxiliaries from Württemberg.[1] On 2 August, the first skirmish between the Imperial vanguard and Ottoman horsemen occurred when Field Marshal Count János Pálffy, with a small body of men, lead a group on reconnaissance but ran into more than 10,000 Turkish cavalry in the area of Karlowitz. The Austrian forces managed to make it back to camp but lost 700 men in the engagement and Field Marshal Count Siegfried Breuner was captured.[13] By the next day, the Grand Vizier had reached Petrovaradin and immediately dispatched 30,000 Janissaries against the imperial positions. The Janissaries dug saps and began to bombard the fortress. The bulk of the Austrian army crossed the Danube on 4 August by two pontoon bridges of boats, after which on the night of 4–5 August they encamped south of Petrovaradin. Their arrival was made under the cover of an unusual summer snowstorm.[15]

The Battle

Given their numerical disadvantage, Prince Eugene decided to station his men with one flank on the Danube and the other on the fortifications, using an entrenchment left from a battle that occurred outside Petrovaradin’s southern walls. A storm had damaged the bridges on the Danube delaying the deployment of the Imperial forces. Eugene took a high position from where he could command his troops.[16] Ready for battle were 64 battalions, 187 cavalry squadrons and 80 guns.[10] The infantry behind the foremost entrenchment formed the centre in three lines under the command of Field Marshal Sigbert Heister and Guido Starhemberg; to the left most of the cavalry under János Pálffy; and on the right wing a separate group of four cavalry regiments under Sigbert Heister and General of Cavalry Ebergenyi. A completely independent group of six battalions outside the ramparts, under the command of Alexander von Württemberg, acted as a liaison between the centre army and the left wing cavalry, ready to advance in support. [10] The Ottoman commander, feeling confident after defeating the reconnaissance group, demanded the surrender of the fortress. [13] Eugene responded, “We will attack!” [17]

On 5 August at seven o’clock in the morning, Eugene launched the Austrian offensive with a massive attack supported by frigates in the Danube river. 1716 location of the battle with positions of both armies [3] The Imperial left wing infantry of Württemberg easily took the first Ottoman positions and a battery of ten guns while the cavalry of Pálffy drove the opposite riders from the field. At the same moment, the Imperial centre ran into over-powering numbers of Janissaries who managed to push Starhemberg’s troops back into their entrenchments. Another infantry charge from Heister this time was again repulsed despite help from the Imperial cuirassiers; when the Austrian lines started breaking up, the Janissaries decided to push forward at the Habsburg centre but in doing so exposed both their flanks. [18] At this decisive moment, Eugene sent Ebergenyi’s cavalry to attack the left wing while ordering Württemberg’s battalions to attack the right supporting by cuirassiers. At the same time Eugene sent the reserve of Lõffelholz to secure the centre that was now moving forward. Meanwhile, the cannons of the fortress started ripping into the Turkish lines. János Pálffy with the Habsburg cavalry pushed back the Ottoman cavalry blocking simultaneously the escape route of the Janissaries, the Habsburg infantry moved in after the remaining Turks. [7] Eugene launched a general attack leading the charge himself against the Ottoman’s encampment. Damat Ali Pasha who, at the head of his bodyguard, plunged into the battle in a desperate charge, was killed, [f] as well as the governors of Anatolia and Adana, Türk Ahmed Pasha and Hüseyn Pasha, along with 20,000 men. [20] The Imperial losses were 3,695 common soldiers and 469 officers. [6] The battle was over by 2 pm. Eugene of Savoy had taken only five hours to rout the Ottomans. Eugene wrote his report on the battle from Damad Ali’s tent, reporting the seizure of 172 cannons, 156 banners, and five horse-tail standards as well as the Turkish war chest. [7]

Turkish state tent captured in the battle, on display in the Museum of Military History, Vienna.

Aftermath

The Austrian Army spent 5 and 6 August on the battlefield, on 7 August it crossed the left bank of the Danube. A cavalry group made up of 1,400 riders, including 200 hussars, under General Carl Graf von Eckh set out in pursuit of the Turks. [1] Within 20 days, Eugene had marched his army into the Serbian irregulars [21] and besieged the on 16 October, after a siege of 43 days, Banat, subduing the countryside with the help of fortress of Temeşvar, which had been in Ottoman hands since 1552; Temeşvar surrendered. It was followed by Belgrade, which fell to the Habsburg armies on 18 August 1717, when once again Eugene led the Austrian army to victory against superior forces, advancing for the first time deep into Ottoman territory. [22]

Memorial at the site of the Battle of Petrovaradin, Vojvodina, Serbia. Photo by saskafoto.

Legacy

A pilgrimage church was built at Tekije (part of Petrovaradin), on the hill overlooking the battlefield. It houses the shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. The site is a place of pilgrimage every 5 August. [14] At the place of the battlefield on Vezirac hill in Petrovaradin, a monument that honours the victory of the Austrian army was erected in 1902, designed by Zagreb architect Hermann Bollé. [23]

Notes

a. As part of auxiliary troops [2] b. Included Hungarian and Croat Hussars [2] c. Of which 40,000 were Janissaries, 30,000 Sipahis, and the rest being Tartars, Walachians and troops of Asia and Egypt [6] d. Habsburg battle casualties included the deaths of numerous Field Marshals, most notably; Siegfried Breuner, Bertram Gehlen, Hannibal Schilling, Friedrich Lanken, Johann Wallenstein,
and Ernst Lanckhen. [8] e. The Ottoman high number likely included camp followers indiscriminately killed in the chaotic
rout; the Janissaries alone suffered between 6,000 and 10,000 casualties [10] f. Damad Ali was buried in the Belgrade Fortress, Kalemegdan, his tomb is known as
Paša’s Turbeh [19]

Citations

1. A military history of the Hungarian nation.
2. McKay, Baker & von Savoyen 1977, p. 223.
3. Tucker 2010, p. 721.
4. Campbell 1737, p. 216
5. Campbell 1737, p. 214.
6. Harris 1841, p. 5.
7. Ágoston 2011, p. 104.
8. Andreas Thürheim: Gedenkblätter aus der Kriegsgeschichte der K. K. oesterreichischen
Armee. Vol. 2. Verlag der Buchhandlung für Militär-Literatur, Vienna, 1880, p. 480 (https://g.co/k
gs/gdcZ9vr).
9. Harbottle & Bruce 1979, p. 197.
10. Heinrich Dyck 2020.
11. Finkel 2012, p. 647.
12. Shaw & Shaw 1976, p. 232.
13. Setton 1991, p. 435.
14. Wheatcroft 2009, p. 233.
15. Urban & Showalter 2013, p. 39.
16. Henderson 2002, p. 224.
17. Henderson 2002, p. 223.
18. Upton 2017, p. 41.
19. Srđan Rudić et al. 2018, p. 480.
20. McKay, Baker & von Savoyen 1977, p. 160.
21. Aksan 2014, p. 101.
22. Setton 1991, p. 436.
23. I love Novi Sad 2016

{ 0 comments }

August 6 – He told his assassins “God does not die!”

August 6, 2026

Garcia Moreno

Ecuadorean patriot and statesman; born at Guayaquil, 24 December, 1821; assassinated at Quito, 6 August, 1875.

His father, Gabriel García Gomez, a native of Villaverde, in Old Castile, had been engaged in commerce at Callao before removing to Guayaquil, where he married Dona Mercedes Moreno, the mother of the future Ecuadorean martyr president. Gabriel García Gomez died while his son was still young, and the boy’s education was left to the care of his mother, who appears to have been a woman of unusual ability for her task; she was, moreover, fortunate in securing…

Read more here.

Subscription5

{ 0 comments }

August 6 – Garcia Moreno: Heroic President of Ecuador

August 6, 2026

by José Maria dos Santos

Gabriel Garcia Moreno, heroic President of Ecuador, assassinated for his Faith and Christian Charity.

Manly Catholic of intransigent principles, slain by the enemies of the Faith because of his consistency and courage in defense of the Church and Papacy

Gabriel Garcia Moreno was born in Guayaquil, in southern Ecuador on December 24, 1821. His father, Gabriel Garcia Gómez was Spanish, while his mother, Doña Mercedes Moreno, was a member of the local aristocracy. Tragedy visited the family when the father died suddenly in his youth, shortly after losing his fortune. His young widow employed a priest to teach her son his first letters. Later, Gabriel continued his studies at the Colegio de San Fernando in Quito.

Moved by religious fervor, Garcia Moreno received minor orders in 1838, but became convinced that he did not have a priestly vocation and ended up studying law. After his schooling, Gabriel devoted his life to politics.

He became Commissioner of War in the northern jurisdiction, but in 1846 was involved with some periodicals that were highly critical of Ecuador’s government. Nevertheless, he collaborated with the regime during the threat of invasion by General Flores in 1847. He was an active member of the Municipal Council of Quito and later became Governor of Guayas.
Due to political turmoil, he was exiled in 1848 and traveled to Europe the following year.
When he returned, he dedicated himself to politics once again. In 1853, he successfully lobbied for Ecuador to receive the Jesuits expelled from Colombia.
He soon won a senatorial election, but was exiled a second time before taking his seat. During his deportation, he diligently applied himself to study in France. He worked so hard that his health began to suffer. During this time, he wrote: “I recognize that I have abused my strength and nearly did myself more damage. Neither my head nor my strength are proportional to the energy of my will.”1
Returning, he got involved in the cultural life of the country, where he fulfilled many important functions. In 1857, he was elected mayor of Quito and rector of the local university. Shortly, as a senator, he gained notoriety for his fiery speeches. On April 2, 1861, he became President of Ecuador.


A Providential Mission: Free the Country from Chaos
Originally, Ecuador and Venezuela were part of a larger nation called Great Colombia, which was created by Bolívar in the early 1800s, after the war of independence.
When Great Colombia collapsed in 1830, Ecuador became a nation. Revolutions followed that threw the nation into chaos. Bad government and sectional resentments ravaged the country to such an extent, that the Catholic Church was the only unifying factor in Ecuador.
Garcia Moreno took advantage of this situation to mold the government after the Faith, which was deeply rooted throughout the nation.
His work was difficult because Catholics had been practically orphaned by a lax clergy that often failed in its duties. Seminaries were decadent, religious instruction was wanting and whole sections of the population were left without guidance. Ecuador needed a strong leader. Garcia Moreno was so well suited for this task that even his detractors admit that he was the man Ecuador needed at that critical time.
Historian Calderón García described Garcia Moreno’s character and work as: “Indefatigable, stoic, just, energetic in his decisions, admirably logical in his life, Garcia Moreno is one of the greatest personalities in the history of the Americas.…In fifteen years he completely transformed his little country according to a vast political system that only death prevented him from completing. He was a mystic of the Spanish type, not satisfied with sterile contemplation, he needed action. He was an organizer and a creator.”2
Throughout his entire administration, Church doctrine guided his actions. “His philosophy was inspired in the classical doctrine of Thomism.”3

The cross carried by President Garcia Moreno during Ecuador’s Holy Week procession.


Resolution of the President: Concordat with the Holy See
When Garcia Moreno assumed the presidency, the Church in Ecuador was beset with insubordination, immorality and laxity, due largely to an abuse of authority that limited the power of the Holy See regarding religious affairs. The president immediately drafted a concordat to correct this abuse.
The document’s first article gives the tonic note of the whole. It stipulates that the Catholic Church would continue to be the State religion and preserve the rights and prerogatives afforded Her by the Law of God and cannon law. All dissident worship was prohibited.
It states: “the instruction of the youth in the universities, high schools, colleges, public and private schools will all be in accordance with the Catholic Religion,”4 because “The Catholic Religion was one of the few bonds of Ecuadorian nationality…Catholicism is a force of political cohesion.”5 Thus, “the fundamental articles [of the concordat] were not attacked, nor were amendments proposed to them.”6


Consecration of Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
However, Garcia Moreno’s adhesion to the Faith was not limited to internal affairs. When the Papal States were invaded in 1870, Garcia Moreno was the only ruler in the world to protest. He wrote to the Minister of Foreign Relations of Italy, decrying the Italian government’s robbery of pontifical land.
The grateful Pope sent him a Decoration of the First Class in the Order of Pius IX with a brief commendation, dated March 27, 1871.7
“As a manifestation of solidarity with the Holy See, [Garcia Moreno] decreed in 1873, that the Supreme Pontiff be sent ten percent of the state’s tithes.”8
However, the most symbolic act of Garcia Moreno’s government was the ecclesiastical and civil consecration of the Republic to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. During its ceremonial consummation, the president affirmed: “I recognize the faith of the Ecuadorian people, and that Faith imposes on me the sacred obligation of conserving its deposit intact.”9
Years before, a decree of the Constitutional Convention had declared the Virgin of Mercies Patroness of Ecuador.

Garcia Moreno’s tomb in the crypt of the Cathedral of Quito


Assassinated for His Devotion to the Catholic Faith

This government, led by the religious fervor of its president, worried the Masonic sects, which immediately began planning his assassination.
Perhaps Garcia Moreno foresaw his demise. During this time, he wrote to Pius IX: “What a treasure it is for me Holy Father, to be hated and calumniated for my love for Our Divine Redeemer. What happiness, if your blessing were to obtain for me from Heaven the grace of shedding my blood for Him, Who, being God, willed to shed His Blood for us on the Cross!”10
On August 6, 1875, Garcia Moreno entered the Cathedral to make a visit to the Blessed Sacrament. Conspirators interrupted his prayer to tell him he was urgently needed next door at the presidential palace.
Garcia Moreno immediately left the Church. While climbing the steps in front of the palace, a ruffian named Royo struck him in the back of the head with a machete, crying out: “death to the tyrant!” He then almost hacked off the president’s arms as he tried to fend off his assassin’s blows. Meanwhile, three accomplices shot him in the chest.
Mortally wounded, Garcia Moreno was then thrown down onto the plaza, where Royo struck him several more times on the head. While agonizing, he managed to wet his finger in his own blood and write on the ground: “Dios no muere” (God does not die).
He was carried quickly to the Cathedral, where he received Extreme Unction and died.

Learning the sad news, Pius IX declared that Ecuador:

distinguished itself miraculously by the spirit of justice and the unshakable faith of its president, who showed himself always a submissive son of the Church, full of devotion to the Holy See and of zeal to maintain Religion and piety in his whole nation…
So it was, that in the councils of darkness organized by the sects, those villains decreed the assassination of the illustrious President. He fell under the steel of an assassin as a victim of his Faith and of his Christian Charity.11

Footnotes

1. Cartas Inéditas. Garcia Moreno to Roberto Ascásubi. Piura, April 20, 1855: in Ricardo Pattée, trans. Cecília F. Vargas, Garcia Moreno e o Equador de seu tempo (Editoria Vozes: Petrópolis, 1956) p. 126.
2. Calderón García, Latin America: Its Rise and Progress (London: Unwin) p. 220, in Ricardo Pattée, p. 15.
3. Ricardo Pattée, p. 329.
4. 3rd article, in Ricardo Pattée, p. 151.
5. Belisário Quevedo, Sociologia Política y moral (Quito: Editorial Bolívar) 1932, p. 54, in Ricardo Pattée, p. 152.
6. J. Tobar Donoso, La Iglesia Ecuatoriana en el siglo XIX, Vol. I, in Ricardo Pattée, p. 159.
7. “El National,” n° 300, October 10, 1873, in Ricardo Pattée, p. 294.
8. José Felix Heredia, La Consagración de la República del Ecuador al Sagrado Corazón de Jesús, Quito, Editorial Ecuatoriana, 1935, p, 198; in Ricardo Pattée, p. 295.
9. E. MacPherson.
10. E. MacPherson.
11. The words of Pius IX, in a public audience in Rome, on September 20, 1875, in Gary Potter, Garcia Moreno, Statesman and Martyr, http://www.fisheaters.com/moreno.html.

{ 3 comments }

August 7 – Octogenarian martyr

August 6, 2026

Ven. Nicholas Postgate

St Hedda’s Church, Egton Bridge. Ven. Nicholas Postgate, who was born in this area, also contains his relics. Photo by Trish Steel.

English martyr, b. at Kirkdale House, Egton, Yorkshire, in 1596 or 1597; d. at York, 7 August, 1679. He entered Douay College, 11 July, 1621, took the college oath, 12 March, 1623, received minor orders, 23 December, 1624, the subdiaconate, 18 December, 1827, the diaconate, 18 March, 1628, and the priesthood two days later. He was sent to the mission, 29 June, 1630, and laboured in his native country with great benefit to hundreds of souls. Thomas Ward, who later wrote about him, knew him well. He was apprehended by the exciseman Reeves, at the house of Matthew Lyth, of Sleights, Little Beck, near Whitby, and was condemned under 27 Elizabeth, c. 2, for being a priest. His quarters were given to his friends and interred. One of the hands was sent to Douay College. His portable altar-stone is now venerated at Dodding Green, Westmoreland.

WARD, England’s Reformation (London, 1747), 200; CHALLONER, Missionary Priests, II, no. 204; GILLOW, Bibl. Dict. Eng. Cath. s. v.

John B. Wainewright (Catholic Encyclopedia)

 

{ 0 comments }

August 7 – Three martyrs of Lancaster

August 6, 2026

Ven. Edward Bamber

(Alias Reading).

Priest and martyr, b. at the Moor, Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire; executed at Lancaster 7 August, 1646. Educated at the English College, Valladolid, he was ordained and sent to England. On landing at Dover, he knelt down to thank God, which act, observed by the Governor of the Castle, was the cause of his apprehension and banishment. He returned again, and was soon afterwards apprehended near Standish, Lancashire; he had probably been chaplain at Standish Hall. On his way to Lancaster Castle he was lodged at the Old-Green-Man Inn near Claughton-on-Brock, and thence managed to escape, his keepers being drunk. He was found wandering in the fields by one Mr. Singleton of Broughton Tower (who had been warned in a dream to help him), and was assisted and sheltered by him.

One of the oldest Catholic parishes in the Archdiocese – Church of St Marie of the Annunciation in Standish. Here they have a stained glass window depicting Ven. Edward being pushed off a ladder, which served as a gallows for his execution, by two soldiers. Photo by Martinevans123.

Arrested the third time, he was committed to Lancaster Castle, where he remained in close confinement for three years, once escaping, but recaptured. At his trial with two other priests, Whitaker and Woodcock, two apostates witnessed against him that he had administered the sacraments, and he was condemned to die. He suffered with great constancy, reconciling to the Church a felon executed with him, and encouraging his fellow-martyrs to die bravely. His conduct so enraged the persecutors that they urged the executioner to butcher him in a more than usually cruel and savage manner. An ode composed on his death is still extant.

Challoner, Memoirs (1750); Watson, Decacordon of ten Quodlibet Questions (1602); Gillow, Bibl. Dict. Eng. Cath. (London, 1885).

Bede Camm (Catholic Encyclopedia)

_____________

Ven. Thomas Whitaker

Born at Burnley, Lancashire, 1614; martyred at Lancaster, 7 August, 1646. Son of Thomas Whitaker, schoolmaster, and Helen, his wife, he was educated first at his father’s school. By the influence of the Towneley family he was then sent to Valladolid, where he studied for the priesthood. After ordination (1638) he returned to England, and for five years laboured in Lancashire. On one occasion he was arrested, but escaped while being conducted to Lancaster Castle. He was again seized at Place Hall in Goosenargh, and committed to Lancaster Castle, 7 August, 1643, being treated with unusual severity and undergoing solitary confinement for six weeks.

Arrival of Prisoners at Lancaster Castle.

For three years he remained in prison, remarkable for his spirit of continual prayer and charity to his fellow-captives. Before his trial he made a month’s retreat in preparation for death. Though naturally timorous, and suffering much from the anticipation of his execution, he steadfastly declined all attempts made to induce him to conform to Anglicanism by the offer of his life. He suffered with Ven. Edward Bamber and Ven. John Woodcock, O.S.F., saying to the sheriff: “Use your pleasure with me, a reprieve or even a pardon upon your conditions I utterly refuse”.

CHALLONER, Memoirs of Missionary Priests (London, 741-2), following KNARESBOROUGH who had before him a contemporary account of the three martyrs.

Edwin Burton (Catholic Encyclopedia)

_____________

Ven. John Woodcock

John Woodcock (alias Farington). From NPG D26899.

English Franciscan martyr, b. at Leyland, Lancashire, 1603; suffered at Lancaster, 7 August, 1646. His parents, Thomas and Dorothy Woodcock, the latter a Catholic, were of the middle class. He was converted about 1622, and after studying at Saint-Omer for a year was admitted to the English College, Rome, 20 October, 1629. On 16 May, 1630, he joined the Capuchins in Paris, but soon afterwards transferred himself to the English Franciscans at Douai. He received the habit from the Venerable Henry Heath in 1631 and was professed by the Venerable Arthur Bell a year later. For some years he lived at Arras as chaplain to Mr. Sheldon. Late in 1643 he landed at Newcastle-on- Tyne, and was arrested on the first night he spent in Lancashire. After two years’ imprisonment in Lancaster Castle, he was condemned, on his own confession, for being a priest, together with two seculars, Edward Bamber and Thomas Whittaker, 6 August, 1646. When he was flung off the ladder the rope broke. Having been hanged a second time, he was cut down and diembowelled alive. The Franciscan nuns at Taunton possess an arm-bone of the martyr.

FOLEY, Records English Province S.J., VI (London, 1878-83), 322; CHALLONER, Missionary Priests, II (Edinburgh, 1877), no. 185; STANTON, Menology of England and Wales (London, 1887), 383-4; THADDEUS, Franciscans in England 1600-1859 (London and Leamington, 1898), 69, 70; POLLARD in Dict. Nat. Biog. s.v. Woodcock, Martin.

John B. Wainewright (Catholic Encyclopedia)

{ 0 comments }

August 7 – Pope St. Sixtus II

August 6, 2026

Pope St. Sixtus II

(XYSTUS)

Painting of Pope Saint Sixtus II. by Leopold Schulz 1858. Photo by Wolfgang Sauber.

Painting of Pope Saint Sixtus II. by Leopold Schulz 1858. Photo by Wolfgang Sauber.

Elected 31 Aug., 257, martyred at Rome, 6 Aug., 258. His origin is unknown. The “Liber Pontificalis” says that he was a Greek by birth, but this is probably a mistake, originating from the false assumption that he was identical with a Greek philosopher of the same name, who was the author of the so-called “Sentences” of Xystus. During the pontificate of his predecessor, St. Stephen, a sharp dispute had arisen between Rome and the African and Asiatic Churches, concerning the rebaptism of heretics, which had threatened to end in a complete rupture between Rome and the Churches of Africa and Asia Minor (see SAINT CYPRIAN OF CARTHAGE). Sixtus II, whom Pontius (Vita Cyprian, cap. xiv) styles a good and peaceful priest (bonus et pacificus sacerdos), was more conciliatory than St. Stephen and restored friendly relations with these Churches, though, like his predecessor, he upheld the Roman usage of not rebaptizing heretics.

Shortly before the pontificate of Sixtus II the Emperor Valerian issued his first edict of persecution, which made it binding upon the Christians to participate in the national cult of the pagan gods and forbade them to assemble in the cemeteries, threatening with exile or death whomsoever was found to disobey the order. In some way or other, Sixtus II managed to perform his functions as chief pastor of the Christians without being molested by those who were charged with the execution of the imperial edict. But during the first days of August, 258, the emperor issued a new and far more cruel edict against the Christians, the import of which has been preserved in a letter of St. Cyprian to Successus, the Bishop of Abbir Germaniciana (Ep. lxxx). It ordered bishops, priests, and deacons to be summarily put to death (“episcopi et presbyteri et diacones incontinenti animadvertantur”). Sixtus II was one of the first to fall a victim to this imperial enactment (“Xistum in cimiterio animadversum sciatis VIII. id. Augusti et cum eo diacones quattuor”-Cyprian, Ep. lxxx). In order to escape the vigilance of the imperial officers he assembled his flock on 6 August at one of the less-known cemeteries, that of Prætextatus, on the left side of the Appian Way, nearly opposite the cemetery of St. Callistus. While seated on his chair in the act of addressing his flock he was suddenly apprehended by a band of soldiers. There is some doubt whether he was beheaded forthwith, or was first brought before a tribunal to receive his sentence and then led back to the cemetery for execution. The latter opinion seems to be the more probable.

Saint Lawrence Receiving the Treasures of the Church from Pope Sixtus II, by Blessed Fra Angelico.

Saint Lawrence Receiving the Treasures of the Church from Pope Sixtus II, by Blessed Fra Angelico.

The inscription which Pope Damasus (366-84) placed on his tomb in the cemetery of St. Callistus may be interpreted in either sense. The entire inscription is to be found in the works of St. Damasus (P.L., XIII, 383-4, where it is wrongly supposed to be an epitaph for Pope Stephen I), and a few fragments of it were discovered at the tomb itself by de Rossi (Inscr. Christ., II, 108). The “Liber Pontificalis” mentions that he was led away to offer sacrifice to the gods (“ductus ut sacrificaret demoniis”-I, 155). St. Cyprian states in the above-named letter, which was written at the latest one month after the martyrdom of Sixtus, that “the prefects of the City were daily urging the persecution in order that, if any were brought before them, they might be punished and their property confiscated”. The pathetic meeting between St. Sixtus II and St. Lawrence, as the former was being led to execution, of which mention is made in the unauthentic “Acts of St. Lawrence” as well as by St. Ambrose (Officiorum, lib. I, c. xli, and lib. II, c. xxviii) and the poet Prudentius (Peristephanon, II), is probably a mere legend. Entirely contrary to truth is the statement of Prudentius (ibid., lines 23-26) that Sixtus II suffered martyrdom on the cross, unless by an unnatural trope the poet uses the specific word cross (” Jam Xystus adfixus cruci”) for martyrdom in general, as Duchesne and Allard (see below) suggest. Four deacons, Januarius, Vincentius, Magnus, and Stephanus, were apprehended with Sixtus and beheaded with him at the same cemetery. Two other deacons, Felicissimus and Agapitus, suffered martyrdom on the same day. The feast of St. Sixtus II and these six deacons is celebrated in the Roman Rite on 7 August, the day after their martyrdom. The remains of Sixtus were transferred by the Christians to the papal crypt in the neighbouring cemetery of St. Callistus. Behind his tomb was enshrined the bloodstained chair on which he had been beheaded. An oratory (Oratorium Xysti) was erected above the cemetery of St. Prætextatus, at the spot where he was martyred, and was still visited by pilgrims of the seventh and the eighth century.

The martyrdom of Pope St. Sixtus II and his deacons.

The martyrdom of Pope St. Sixtus II and his deacons.

For some time Sixtus II was believed to be the author of the so-called “Sentences”, or “Ring of Sixtus”, originally written by a Pythagorean philosopher and in the second century revised by a Christian. This error arose because in his introduction to a Latin translation of these “Sentences”. Rufinus ascribes them to Sixtus of Rome, bishop and martyr. It is certain that Pope Sixtus II is not their author (see Conybeare, “The Ring of Pope Xystus now first rendered into English, with an historical and critical commentary”, London, 1910). Harnack (Texte und Untersuchungen zur altchrist. Literatur, XIII, XX) ascribes to him the treatise “Ad Novatianum”, but his opinion has been generally rejected (see Rombold in “Theol. Quartalschrift”, LXXII, Tübingen, 1900). Some of his letters are printed in P.L., V, 79-100. A newly discovered letter was published by Conybeare in “English Hist. Review”, London, 1910.

Acta SS., Aug., II, 124-42; DUCHESNE, Liber Pontificalis, I, 155-6; BARMBY in Dict. Christ. Biog., s. v. Xystus; ROHAULT DE FLEURY, Les Saints de la messe, III (Paris, 1893): HEALY, The Valerian Persecution (Boston and New York, 1905); 176-9; ALLARD, Les dernières persécutions du troisième siècle (Paris, 1907), 80-92, 343-349; DE ROSSI, Roma Sotteranea, II (Rome; 1864-77), 87-97; WILPERT, Die Papstgräber und die Cäciliengruft in der Katakombe des hl. Callistus, supplement to De Rossi’s Roma Sotteranea (Freiburg im Br., 1909).

MICHAEL OTT (Catholic Encyclopedia)

{ 0 comments }

August 8 – They hated him because he enforced celibacy of the clergy

August 6, 2026

Bl. Altmann

Stained glass window of Bl. Altmann in Saint Stephen parish church in Upper Austria. Photo by Wolfgang Sauber.

The friend of Gregory VII and Anselm, conspicuous in the contest of the Guelphs and Ghibellines, as Bishop of Passau and Papal Legate. He was born at Paderborn about the beginning of the eleventh century, presided over the school there, was chaplain at the court of Henry III, and then became Bishop of Passau. The Bollandists find that, because of these successive occupations, it is impossible to make him out a Benedictine monk. As a Bishop he was famous for his care of the poor, his vigour in the reformation of relaxed monasteries, the building of new ones, and the splendour with which he invested divine worship — Henry IV himself contributing lavishly to enrich the church of Passau, chiefly through the intervention of the Empresses Agnes and Bertha, his wife and mother — and finally for the opposition which he aroused in enforcing Gregory’s decree of celibacy of the clergy. With the help of Henry the recalcitrants succeeded in driving him from his see. He was recalled, however, shortly after the death of Hermann the intruder, at whose death-bed he is said to have appeared. Hermann begged for absolution, and asked not to be buried as a Bishop.

Relics of Bl. Altmann of Passau in the Church of Göttweig Abbey. Photo by Bwag.

Altmann’s second possession of his see lasted only a short time. He was again expelled, and died in exile ten years after. He was one of the four South German bishops who sided with Gregory, and defied Henry, in refusing to take part in the Diet of Worms to depose the Pope.

Acta SS., II, August; BARING-GOULD, Lives of the Saints, 8 August (London, 1872).

T.J. CAMPBELL (Catholic Encyclopedia)

{ 0 comments }

August 8 – The Rosary is really a weapon

August 6, 2026

St. Dominic

Painting of St. Dominic by Blessed Fra Angelico

Painting of St. Dominic by Blessed Fra Angelico

Founder of the Order of Preachers, commonly known as the Dominican Order; born at Calaroga, in Old Castile, c. 1170; died 6 August, 1221. His parents, Felix Guzman and Joanna of Aza, undoubtedly belonged to the nobility of Spain, though probably neither was connected with the reigning house of Castile, as some of the saint’s biographers assert. Of Felix Guzman, personally, little is known, except that he was in every sense the worthy head of a family of saints. To nobility of blood Joanna of Aza added a nobility of soul which so enshrined her in the popular veneration that in 1828 she was solemnly beatified by Leo XII. The example of such parents was not without its effect upon their children. Not only Saint Dominic but also his brothers, Antonio and Manes, were distinguished for their extraordinary sanctity. Antonio, the eldest, became a secular priest and, having distributed his patrimony to the poor, entered a hospital where he spent his life minis ministering to the sick. Manes, following in the footsteps of Dominic, became a Friar Preacher, and was beatified by Gregory XVI.

The birth and infancy of the saint were attended by many marvels forecasting his heroic sanctity and great achievements in the cause of religion. From his seventh to his fourteenth year he pursued his elementary studies tinder the tutelage of his maternal uncle, the archpriest of Gumiel d’lzan, not far distant from Calaroga. In 1184 Saint Dominic entered the University of Palencia. Here he remained for ten years prosecuting his studies with such ardour and success that throughout the ephemeral existence of that institution he was held up to the admiration of its scholars as all that a student should be. Amid the frivolities and dissipations of a university city, the life of the future saint was characterized by seriousness of purpose and an austerity of manner which singled him out as one from whom great things might be expected in the future. But more than once he proved that under this austere exterior he carried a heart as tender as a woman’s. On one occasion he sold his books, annotated with his own hand, to relieve the starving poor of Palencia. His biographer and contemporary, Bartholomew of Trent, states that twice he tried to sell himself into slavery to obtain money for the liberation of those who were held in captivity by the Moors. These facts are worthy of mention in view of the cynical and saturnine character which some non-Catholic writers have endeavoured to foist upon one of the most charitable of men. Concerning the date of his ordination his biographers are silent; nor is there anything from which that date can be inferred with any degree of certainty. According to the deposition of Brother Stephen, Prior Provincial of Lombardy, given in the process of canonization, Dominic was still a student at Palencia when Don Martin de Bazan, the Bishop of Osma, called him to membership in the cathedral chapter for the purpose If assisting in its reform. The bishop realized the importance to his plan of reform of having constantly before his canons the example of one of Dominic’s eminent holiness. Nor was he disappointed in the result. In recognition of the part he had taken in converting its members into canons regular, Dominic was appointed sub-prior of the reformed chapter. On the accession of Don Diego d’Azevedo to the Bishopric of Osma in 1201, Dominic became superior of the chapter with the title of prior. As a canon of Osma, he spent nine years of his life hidden in God and rapt in contemplation, scarcely passing beyond the confines of the chapter house.

Spanish painting from the 1400s by Pedro Berruguete showing the miracle of Fanjeaux. The books of the heretical Albigensian and those of the Catholics were thrown together into the fire before Saint Dominic. The Catholic books were miraculously preserved, being rejected three times by the flames, while the heretical ones burned.

Spanish painting from the 1400s by Pedro Berruguete showing the miracle of Fanjeaux. The books of the heretical Albigensian and those of the Catholics were thrown together into the fire before Saint Dominic. The Catholic books were miraculously preserved, being rejected three times by the flames, while the heretical ones burned.

In 1203 Alfonso IX, King of Castile, deputed the Bishop of Osma to demand from the Lord of the Marches, presumably a Danish prince, the hand of his daughter on behalf of the king’s son, Prince Ferdinand. For his companion on this embassy Don Diego chose Saint Dominic. Passing through Toulouse in the pursuit of their mission, they beheld with amazement and sorrow the work of spiritual ruin wrought by the Albigensian heresy. It was in the contemplation of this scene that Dominic first conceived the idea of founding an order for the purpose of combating heresy and spreading the light of the Gospel by preaching to the ends of the then known world. Their mission having ended successfully, Diego and Dominic were dispatched on a second embassy, accompanied by a splendid retinue, to escort the betrothed princess to Castile. This mission, however, was brought to a sudden close by the death of the young woman in question. The two ecclesiastics were now free to go where they would, and they set out for Rome, arriving there towards the end of 1204. The purpose of this was to enable Diego to resign his bishopric that he might devote himself to the conversion of unbelievers in distant lands. Innocent III, however, refused to approve this project, and instead sent the bishop and his companion to Languedoc to join forces with the Cistercians, to whom he had entrusted the crusade against the Albigenses. The scene that confronted them on their arrival in Languedoc was by no means an encouraging one. The Cistercians, on account of their worldly manner of living, had made little or no headway against the Albigenses. They had entered upon their work with considerable pomp, attended by a brilliant retinue, and well provided with the comforts of life. To this display of worldliness the leaders of the heretics opposed a rigid asceticism which commanded the respect and admiration of their followers. Diego and Dominic quickly saw that the failure of the Cistercian apostolate was due to the monks’ indulgent habits, and finally prevailed upon them to adopt a more austere manner of life. The result was at once apparent in a greatly increased number of converts. Theological disputations played a prominent part in the propaganda of the heretics.

Read More Here

{ 1 comment }

August 9 – Pope St. Victor I

August 6, 2026

Pope St. Victor I

Pope St. Victor I(189-198 or 199), date of birth unknown. The “Liber Pontificalis” makes him a native of Africa and gives his father the name of Felix. This authority, taking the “Liberian Catalogue” as its basis, gives the years 186-197 as the period of Victor’s episcopate. The Armenian text of the “Chronicle” of Eusebius (Leipzig, 1911, p. 223) places the beginning of Victor’s pontificate in the seventh year of the reign of the Emperor Commodus (180-87) and gives it a duration of twelve years; in his “Church History” (V, xxxii, ed. Schwarts, Leipzig, 1902, p. 486) Eusebius transfers the beginning of the pontificate to the tenth year of the reign of Commodus and makes it last ten years. During the closing years of the reign of Commodus (180-192) and the early years of Septimius Severus (from 193) the Roman Church enjoyed in general great external peace. The favourable opinion of the Christians held by Commodus is ascribed to the influence of a woman named Marcia. According to the testimony of Hippolytus (“Philosophumena”, IX, 12) she had been brought up by the presbyter Hyacinthus, was very favourably inclined towards the Christians, perhaps even a Christian herself (Hippolytus, loc. cit., calls her philotheos God-loving). One day she summoned Pope Victor to the imperial palace and asked for a list of the Roman Christians who had been condemned to forced labour in the mines of Sardinia, so that she might obtain their freedom. The pope handed her the list and Marcia, having received from the emperor the required pardon, sent the presbyter Hyacinthus to Sardinia with an order of release for the Christian confessors. Callistus, afterwards pope, who had been among those deported, did not return to Rome, but remained at Antium, where he received a monthly pension from the Roman Christians. Irenaeus (“Adv. Haerses”, IV, xxx, 1) points out that Christians were employed at this period as officials of the imperial Court. Among these officials was the imperial freedman Prosenes, whose gravestone and epitaph have been preserved (De Rossi, “Inscriptiones christ. urbis Romae”, I, 9, no. 5). Septimius Severus, also, during the early years of his reign, regarded the Christians kindly, so that the influence of Christian officials continued. The emperor retained in his palace a Christian named Proculus who had once cured him. He protected Christian men and women of rank against the excesses of the heathen rabble, and his son Caracalla had a Christian wet nurse (Tertullian, “Ad Scapulam”, IV). Christianity made great advances in the capital and also found adherents among the families who were distinguished for wealth and noble descent (Eusebius, “Hist. eccl.”, V, xxi).

Internal dissensions during this era affected the Church at Rome. The dispute over the celebration of Easter grew more acute. The Christians at Rome, who had come from the province of Asia, were accustomed to observe Easter on the 14th day of Nisan, whatever day of the week that date might happen to fall on, just as they had done at home. This difference inevitably led to trouble when it appeared in the Christian community of Rome. Pope Victor decided, therefore, to bring about unity in the observance of the Easter festival and to persuade the Quartodecimans to join in the general practice of the Church. He wrote, therefore, to Bishop Polycrates of Ephesus and induced the latter to call together the bishops of the province of Asia in order to discuss the matter with them. This was done; but in the letter sent by Polycrates to Pope Victor he declared that he firmly held to the Quartoceciman custom observed by so many celebrated and holy bishops of that region. Victor called a meeting of Italian bishops at Rome, which is the earliest Roman synod known. He also wrote to the leading bishops of the various districts, urging them to call together the bishops of their sections of the country and to take counsel with them on the question of the Easter festival. Letters came from all sides: from the synod in Palestine, at which Theophilus of Caesarea and Narcissus of Jerusalem presided; from the synod of Pontus over which Palmas as the oldest presided; from the communities in Gaul whose bishop of Irenaeus of Lyons; from the bishops of the Kingdom of Osrhoene; also from individual bishops, as Bakchylus of Corinth. These letters all unanimously reported that Easter was observed on Sunday.. Victor, who acted throughout the entire matter as the head of Catholic Christendom, now called upon the bishops of the province of Asia to abandon their custom and to accept the universally prevailing practice of always celebrating Easter on Sunday. In case they would not do this he declared they would be excluded from the fellowship of the Church.

Pope St. Victor IThis severe procedure did not please all the bishops. Irenaeus of Lyons and others wrote to Pope Victor; they blamed his severity, urged him to maintain peace and unity with the bishops of Asia, and to entertain affectionate feelings toward them. Irenaeus reminded him that his predecessors had indeed always maintained the Sunday observance of Easter, as was right, but had not broken off friendly relations and communion with bishops because they followed another custom (Eusebius, “Hist. eccl.”, V, xxiii-xxv.) We have no information concerning the further course of the matter under Victor I so far as it regards the bishops of Asia. All that is known is that in the course of the third century the Roman practice in the observance of Easter became gradually universal. In Rome itself, where Pope Victor naturally enforced the observance of Easter on Sunday by all Christians in the capital, an Oriental named Blastus, with a few followers, opposed the pope and brought about a schism, which, however, did not grow in importance (Eusebius, loc. cit., B, xx). Pope Victor also had difficulties with a Roman priest named Florinus, who probably came from Asia Minor. As an official of the imperial court, Florinus had become acquainted in Asia Minor with St. Polycarp, and later was a presbyter of the Roman Church. He fell into the Gnostic heresy and defended the false learning of Valentine. St. Irenaeus wrote two treatises against him: “On the Monarchy [of God] and that God is not the Author of Evil”, and “On the Ogdoad”. Irenaeus also called Victor’s attention to the dangerous writings of Florinus, who was probably degraded from his priestly functions by the pope and expelled from the Church (Eusebius, “Hist. eccl.”, V, xv, 20).

During the pontificate of Victor a rich Christian, Theodotus the Leather-seller, came from Constantinople to Rome and taught false doctrines concerning Christ, Whom he declared to be merely a man endowed by the Holy Ghost, at baptism, with supernatural power. The pope condemned this heresy and excluded Theodotus from the Church. The latter, however, would not submit, but, together with his adherents, formed a schismatic party, which maintained itself for a time at Rome. Victor may also have come into contact with the Montanists. Tertullian reports (“Ad Praceam”, 1) that a Roman bishop, whose name he does not give, had declared his acceptance of the prophecies of Montanus, but had been persuaded by Praxeas to withdraw. Duchesne (“Histoire ancienne de l’église”, I, 278) and others think Tertullian means Pope Eleutherius, but many investigators consider it more probable that he meant Pope Victor, because the latter had had much to do with the inhabitants of Asia Minor, and because, between 190 and 200, Praceas had gone from Rome to Carthage, where he was opposed by Tertullian. The question cannot be decided positively.

Subscription7Jerome calls Pope Victor the first Latin writer in the Church (Chronicon, ad an. Abr. 2209); he mentions small treatises (mediocria de religione volumina, loc. cit.; cf. “De viris illustribus”, XXXIV: “Victor, thirteenth bishop of the Roman city, the writer of certain opuscula on the paschal question and others, ruled the Church ten years under Severus”). Besides the letters touching the Easter controversy none of St. Victor’s works is known. Harnack tried to prove that he was the author of the treatise against the dice-throwers (“De alcatoribus”), erroneously ascribed to St. Cyprian (see “Texte und Untersuchungen,” V, Leipzig, 1899), though the opinion is how universally rejected (cf. Harnack, “Geschichte der altchristl. Literatur”, II, pt. II, 370). It was during Victor’s administration, perhaps, that the canon of Scripture used at Rome, and which has been partially preserved in the Muratorian Fragment, was drawn up. In the note concerning him in the “Liber Pontificalis” (ed. Duchesne, I, 137) the Easter controversy is also mentioned; in addition, the introduction of sequentes among the clergy is also attributed to him. It is not certain what this means, whether it applies to the acolytes, or to the assistants who appeared later at Rome for such clergy as were much occupied with the administration of their cures. In any case the note is one of those which the author arbitrarily inserted into the biographies of the various popes, and has, accordingly, no historical value. The same is true of the ordinance respecting the administration of baptism in cases of necessity ascribed to Pope Victor by the same author.

EUSEBIUS, Hist. eccl., V, xx-xxvii; Liber Pontificalis, ed. DUCHESNE, I, 137-138; Acta SS., July, VI, 534-542; LANGEN, Geschichte der römishen Kirche, I (Bonn, 1881), 176 sqq., 179 sq., 182 sqq.; DUCHESNE, Histoire ancienne de l’église, I (Paris, 1906), 251 sq., 277 sq., 289 sqq.

J.P. KIRSCH (Catholic Encyclopedia)

{ 0 comments }

August 3 – The day the bishop cursed his country

August 3, 2026

Bl Clemens August von Galen
On August 3, 1941, Bishop Clemens August Graf von Galen informed his listeners in a third sermon about the continued desecration of Catholic churches, the closing of convents and monasteries, and the deportation and murder of mentally ill people (who were sent to undisclosed destinations), while a notice was sent to family members stating that the person in question had died. This is murder, he exclaimed, unlawful by divine and German law, a rejection of the laws of God. He informed them that he had forwarded his evidence to the State Attorney. “These are people, our brothers and sisters; maybe their life is unproductive, but productivity is not a justification for killing.” If that were indeed a justification for execution, he reasoned, everybody would have to be afraid to even go to a doctor for fear of what might be discovered. The social fabric would be affected. Von Galen then remarked that a regime which can do away with the Fifth Commandment (thou shalt not kill) can destroy the other commandments as well.

“A curse on men and on the German people if we break the holy commandment ‘Thou shalt not kill’ which was given us by God on Mount Sinai with thunder and lightning, and which God our Maker imprinted on the human conscience from the beginning of time! Woe to us German people if we not only license this heinous offense but allow it to be committed with impunity!”

The sermons were reproduced and sent all over Germany to families, and to German soldiers on the Western and Eastern Fronts. The resulting local protests in Germany broke the secrecy which had hitherto surrounded the euthanasia program Aktion T4. The local Nazi Gauleiter was furious and demanded the immediate arrest of von Galen. However, Joseph Goebbels, Bormann and others preferred to wait until the end of World War II, to avoid undermining German morale in a heavily Catholic area. Of von Galen’s remarks, perhaps the most effective was his question asking whether permanently injured German soldiers would fall under the programme as well. A year later, the euthanasia program was still active, but the regime was conducting it in greater secrecy.

Source

______________

Also of interest:

March 22 – He Stood Up to Hitler Without Flinching

June 8 – The Noble Countess Who Dedicated Her Life to Bringing Dissolute Women to Repentance

{ 0 comments }

August 3 – Secretive Leader

August 3, 2026

St. Nicodemus A prominent Jew of the time of Christ, mentioned only in the Fourth Gospel. The name is of Greek origin, but at that epoch such names were occasionally borrowed by the Jews, and according to Josephus (Ant. of the Jews, XIV, iii, 2) Nicodemus was the name of one of the ambassadors sent […]

Read the full article →

August 4 – St. Eleutherius

August 3, 2026

St. Eleutherius (Fr. Eleutière), Bishop of Tournai at the beginning of the sixth century. Historically there is very little known about St. Eleutherius, but he was without doubt the first Bishop of Tournai. Theodore, whom some give as his immediate predecessor, was either a bishop of Tours, whose name was placed by mistake on the […]

Read the full article →

August 4 – Carthusian Martyrs: The Lone Survivor

August 3, 2026

May 4 – First Group of Carthusian Martyrs June 19 – Second Group of Carthusian Martyrs May-June – Third and Fourth Groups August 4 – The Lone Survivor For some reason Brother William Horne was kept alive. Refusing to abandon his religious habit, he was not attainted till 1540, when he was hanged, disembowelled, and […]

Read the full article →

August 5 – Valor in a King

August 3, 2026

St. Oswald of Northumbria, King and Martyr The English Saxon kingdom of Northumbria was founded by Ida in 547. After his death the northern part called Bernicia was preserved by his children; but Deira, that is, the southern part, comprising Yorkshire and Lancashire, was occupied by Ælla or Alla, and after his death was recovered […]

Read the full article →

Recipe – A Delicious Mistake

August 3, 2026

As with many culinary successes, a mistake led to the world famous Crepes Suzette. In 1895, Henri Charpentier, a 14-year old assistant at Monte Carlo’s Cafe in Paris, was preparing dessert for the Prince of Wales and his party. Inadvertently, the brandy and Grand Marnier liqueur he put into his crepe pan caught fire and […]

Read the full article →

Our Lady of Deliverance, Empress of China

July 30, 2026

Our Lady of Deliverance, Empress of China In 1900, the Catholic Church was healthy and growing in China. There were forty bishops, about 800 European missionaries, 600 native Chinese priests, and the number of native Catholics throughout the whole of China proper was estimated at 700,000. It was during this time that the Boxer Uprising […]

Read the full article →

July 30 – Patron of Charcoal

July 30, 2026

St. Theobald Born at Provins in the Province of Champagne, France, in 1017; died at Salanigo in Italy 30 June, 1066. He was a member of a noble family. In 1054 without the knowledge of his parents he and his friend Walter gave themselves to the life of hermits at Sussy in the Ardennes, then […]

Read the full article →

July 30 – St. Peter Chrysologus

July 30, 2026

St. Peter Chrysologus Born at Imola, 406; died there, 450. His biography, first written by Agnellus (Liber pontificalis ecclesiae Ravennatis) in the ninth century, gives but scanty information about him. He was baptised, educated, and ordained deacon by Cornelius, Bishop of Imola, and was elevated to the Bishopric of Ravenna in 433. There are indications […]

Read the full article →

July 31 – Militant Means Something

July 30, 2026

St. Ignatius Loyola Youngest son of Don Beltrán Yañez de Oñez y Loyola and Marina Saenz de Lieona y Balda. Born in 1491 at the castle of Loyola above Azpeitia in Guipuscoa; died at Rome, 31 July, 1556. The saint was baptized Iñigo, after St. Enecus (Innicus), Abbot of Oña: the name Ignatius was assumed […]

Read the full article →

July 31 – St. Germain

July 30, 2026

St. Germain Bishop of Auxerre, born at Auxerre c. 380; died at Ravenna, 31 July, 448. He was the son of Rusticus and Germanilla, and his family was one of the noblest in Gaul in the latter portion of the fourth century. He received the very best education provided by the distinguished schools of Arles […]

Read the full article →

August 1 – From impoverished Neapolitan nobility to Doctor of the Church

July 30, 2026

St. Alphonsus Liguori Born at Marianella, near Naples, 27 September, 1696; died at Nocera de’ Pagani, 1 August, 1787. The eighteenth century was not an age remarkable for depth of spiritual life, yet it produced three of the greatest missionaries of the Church, St. Leonard of Port Maurice, St. Paul of the Cross, and St. […]

Read the full article →

August 2 – St. Pierre-Julien Eymard

July 30, 2026

Founder of the Society of the Blessed Sacrament, and of the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, born at La Mure d’Isere, Diocese of Grenoble, France, February 4, 1811; died there August 1, 1868. From early childhood he gave evidence of great holiness and most tender devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. In 1829, he entered the […]

Read the full article →

July 27 – Hunted Priest

July 27, 2026

John Gerard Jesuit; born 4 October, 1564; died 27 July, 1637. He is well known through his autobiography, a fascinating record of dangers and adventures, of captures and escapes, of trials and consolations. The narrative is all the more valuable because it sets before us the kind of life led by priests, wherever the peculiar […]

Read the full article →

July 27 – St. Pantaleon

July 27, 2026

St. Pantaleon Martyr, died about 305. According to legend he was the son of a rich pagan, Eustorgius of Nicomedia, and had been instructed in Christianity by his Christian mother, Eubula. Afterwards he became estranged from Christianity. He studied medicine and became physician to the Emperor Maximianus. He was won back to Christianity by the […]

Read the full article →

July 27 – Wanted: Noble Men for the Missions, Never to Return Home

July 27, 2026

Martyrs of Cuncolim On Monday, 25 July, 1583 (N.S.), the village of Cuncolim in the district of Salcete, territory of Goa, India, was the scene of the martyrdom of five religious of the Society of Jesus: Fathers Rudolph Acquaviva, Alphonsus Pacheco, Peter Berno, and Anthony Francis, also Francis Aranha, lay brother. Rudolph Acquaviva was born […]

Read the full article →

July 28 – Nepotism Sometimes Bears Good Fruit

July 27, 2026

Pope Victor II (GEBHARD, COUNT OF CALW, TOLLENSTEIN, AND HIRSCHBERG.) Born about 1018; died at Arezzo, 28 July, 1057. The papal catalogues make him a native of the Bavarian Nordgau, while most German sources designate Swabia as his birthplace. His parents were Count Hartwig and Countess Baliza; the Emperor Henry III recognized him as a […]

Read the full article →

July 28 – St. Samson

July 27, 2026

St. Samson Bishop and confessor, born in South Wales; died 28 July, 565 (?). The date of his birth is unknown. His parents whose names are given as Amon of Dyfed and Anna of Gwynedd, were of noble, but not royal, birth. While still an infant he was dedicated to God and entrusted to the […]

Read the full article →

Father Jean Le Vacher: Hero and Missionary, Blasted to Death by Muslims

July 27, 2026

In 1647, St. Vincent de Paul sent Father Jean Le Vacher to do missionary work among the Catholics enslaved by the Barbary Coast’s Muslim corsairs and he arrived in Tunis during an epidemic of the plague and did much to comfort the captives. Upon the death of the French consul, the Bey appointed Father Le […]

Read the full article →

Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Saves the Philippines from the Invading Dutch

July 27, 2026

THE BATTLES OF LA NAVAL DE MANILA Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary Saves the Philippines from the Invading Dutch Fleet Inside the Dominican church of Santo Domingo in Quezon City sits in celestial splendor and glory one of the most venerated and beloved image of the Most Holy Virgin in the Philippines. Among […]

Read the full article →

July 29 – When he finished preaching, the nobles and knights responded with a thunderous “Deus Vult”

July 27, 2026

Pope Blessed Urban II (Otho, Otto or Odo of Lagery), 1088-1099, born of a knightly family, at Châtillon-sur-Marne in the province of Champagne, about 1042; died 29 July, 1099. Under St. Bruno (afterwards founder of the Carthusians) Otho studied at Reims, where he later became canon and archdeacon. About 1070 he retired to Cluny and […]

Read the full article →

July 29 – He only regained the hearts of his people after his death

July 27, 2026

St. Olaf Haraldson Martyr and King of Norway (1015-30), b. 995; d. 29 July, 1030. He was a son of King Harald Grenske of Norway. According to Snorre, he was baptized in 998 in Norway, but more probably about 1010 in Rouen, France, by Archbishop Robert. In his early youth he went as a viking […]

Read the full article →

We’ve all forgotten our manners, so I asked a former royal butler to teach me some

July 23, 2026

h/t: www.telegraph.co.uk Enter Julius F Smith, a man who spent three decades gliding around royalty with a silver tray in hand. He served Elizabeth II on countless occasions, managed aristocratic households and looked after heads of state visiting the UK… But now he’s turned his attention to a far greater challenge: teaching Gen Z how […]

Read the full article →

July 23 – St. Bridget of Sweden

July 23, 2026

St. Bridget of Sweden The most celebrated saint of the Northern kingdoms, born about 1303; died 23 July, 1373. She was the daughter of Birger Persson, governor and provincial judge (Lagman) of Uppland, and of Ingeborg Bengtsdotter. Her father was one of the wealthiest landholders of the country, and, like her mother, distinguished by deep […]

Read the full article →

July 24 – St. John Boste

July 23, 2026

St.  John Boste (Or JOHN BOAST.) Priest and martyr, born of good Catholic family at Dufton, in Westmoreland, about 1544; died at Durham, 24 July, 1594. He studied at Queen’s College, Oxford, 1569-72, became a Fellow, and was received into the Church at Brome, in Suffolk, in 1576. Resigning his Fellowship in 1580, he went […]

Read the full article →

July 24 – Chaste Queen

July 23, 2026

Saint Kinga of Poland (also known as Cunegunda, Kunigunda, Kunegunda, Cunegundes, Kioga, Zinga; Polish: Święta Kinga, Hungarian: Szent Kinga) Poor Clare and patroness of Poland and Lithuania; born in 1224; died 24 July, 1292, at Sandeck, Poland. She was the daughter of King Bela IV and niece of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, and from her infancy […]

Read the full article →

July 24 – She Was Fearless, Courageous, and Unswerving

July 23, 2026

Matilda of Canossa Countess of Tuscany, daughter and heiress of the Marquess Boniface of Tuscany, and Beatrice, daughter of Frederick of Lorraine, b. 1046; d. 24 July, 1114. In 1053 her father was murdered. Duke Gottfried of Lorraine, an opponent of the Emperor Henry III, went to Italy and married the widowed Beatrice. But, in […]

Read the full article →

July 25 – St. Apollinaris

July 23, 2026

St. Apollinaris The most illustrious of the Bishops of Valence, b. at Vienne, 453; d. 520. He lived in the time of the irruption of the barbarians, and unhappily Valence, which was the central see of the recently founded Kingdom of Burgundy, had been scandalized by the dissolute Bishop Maximus, and the see in consequence […]

Read the full article →

St. Joachim and Confidence

July 23, 2026

By Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira (*) The excerpts about Our Lady’s father, Saint Joachim, are taken from The Liturgical Year, by Abbot Gueranger, OSB. Joachim’s wealth, like that of the first patriarchs, consisted chiefly in flocks and herds. The holy use he made of it drew down God’s blessing upon it. But the greatest of […]

Read the full article →

July 26 – Blessed John Ingram

July 23, 2026

Blessed John Ingram English martyr, born at Stoke Edith, Herefordshire, in 1565; executed at Newcastle-on-Tyne, 26 July, 1594. He was probably the son of Anthony Ingram of Wolford, Warwickshire, by Dorothy, daughter of Sir John Hungerford. He was educated first in Worcestershire, then at the English College, Reims, at the Jesuit College, Pont-a-Mousson, and at […]

Read the full article →

July 26 – St. Anne

July 23, 2026

Anne (Hebrew, Hannah, grace; also spelled Ann, Anne, Anna) is the traditional name of the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary. All our information concerning the names and lives of Sts. Joachim and Anne, the parents of Mary, is derived from apocryphal literature, the Gospel of the Nativity of Mary, the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew and […]

Read the full article →

July 20 – Carolingian Reformer

July 20, 2026

St. Ansegisus Born about 770, of noble parentage; died 20 July, 833, or 834. At the age of eighteen he entered the Benedictine monastery of Fontanelle (also called St. Vandrille after the name of its founder) in the diocese of Rouen. St. Girowald, a relative of Ansegisus, was then Abbot of Fontanelle. From the beginning […]

Read the full article →

July 21 – He raised the king’s son back to life, but wished to be buried among the criminals

July 20, 2026

St. Arbogast (Gaelic Arascach). St. Arbogast has been claimed as a native of Scotland, but this is owing to a misunderstanding of the name “Scotia”, which until late in the Middle Ages really meant Ireland. He flourished about the middle of the seventh century. Leaving Ireland, as so many other missionaries had done, he settled […]

Read the full article →

July 22 – The Siege of Belgrade (1456)

July 20, 2026

The Siege of Belgrade (or Battle of Belgrade, or Siege of Nándorfehérvár) occurred from July 4 to July 22, 1456. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the Ottoman sultan Mehmed II was rallying his resources in order to subjugate the Kingdom of Hungary. His immediate objective was the border fort of the town of […]

Read the full article →

July 22 – With his lady’s permission, this lord left court to become a monk, then abbot

July 20, 2026

St. Wandrille, or Wandregisilus, Abbot [Abbot of Fontenelles, in Normandy.]  He was nearly related to Pepin of Landen and Erchinoald, the two first lords in the kingdom of Austrasia; and in his youth was made count of the palace under Dagobert I. He was humble on the highest pinnacle of honors, and mortified amidst pleasures. […]

Read the full article →

The Traditional Burial Ceremony of a Hapsburg Prince

July 16, 2026

This traditional ceremony for the burial of Hapsburg emperors and princes is a glorious specimen of the profound influence of Christianity on this “first family of Christendom” and a luminous example of faith for Christians not just in Austria, but throughout the world. It will be used on July 16, 2011 for the burial of […]

Read the full article →

July 19 – Her whole family became saints

July 16, 2026

St. Macrina the Younger Born about 330; died 379. She was the eldest child of Basil the Elder and Emmelia, the granddaughter of St. Macrina the Elder, and the sister of the Cappadocian Fathers, Sts. Basil and Gregory of Nyssa. The last-mentioned has left us a biography of his sister in the form of a […]

Read the full article →

July 19 – Penitent Nobility

July 16, 2026

St. Arsenius Anchorite; born 354, at Rome; died 450, at Troe, in Egypt. Theodosius the Great having requested the Emperor Gratian and Pope Damasus to find him in the West a tutor for his son Arcadius, they made choice of Arsenius, a man well read in Greek literature, member of a noble Roman family, and […]

Read the full article →

July 18 – After he captured Jerusalem, he refused the crown

July 16, 2026

Godfrey of Bouillon Duke of Lower Lorraine and first King of Jerusalem, son of Eustache II, Count of Boulogne, and of Ida, daughter of Godfrey the Bearded, Duke of Lower Lorraine; b. probably at Boulogne-sur-Mer, 1060; d. at Jerusalem, 18 July, 1100 (according to a thirteenth-century chronicler, he was born at Baisy, in Brabant; see […]

Read the full article →

July 18 – “Don’t drink water, drink beer” said the bishop

July 16, 2026

Saint Arnulf of Metz Statesman, bishop under the Merovingians, born c. 580; died c. 640. His parents belonged to a distinguished Frankish family, and lived in Austrasia, the eastern section of the kingdom founded by Clovis. In the school in which he was placed during his boyhood he excelled through his talent and his good […]

Read the full article →

Moving God, Moving History

July 16, 2026

Written by John Horvat II There are times when history is seen from an all-too-human perspective. Granted, man is the principal agent in history. His great deeds and misdeeds fill the history books, blending fact, myth, and legend to intrigue future generations. However, man is not the only agent. There are times when men perform […]

Read the full article →

← Previous Entries