Is somebody watching you?
- From: "Waldtraud" <richarra@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 18 Mar 2010 11:47:55 -0500
Is somebody watching you?
Are there younger Christians who need
to see that it is possible to live for Jesus
every day and in every way? Challenge
them -- and yourself. Challenge them to
"just watch." Then show them the way.
Imitate me, just as
I also imitate Christ.
I Corinthians 11:1
Be aware that someone's watching
As you go along your way;
Your example is remembered
More than anything you say.
<<>><<>><<>>
March 18th - St. Cyril of Jerusalem
Cyril was born in Jerusalem in 315. From his youth he dedicated himself to
the
study of the Holy Scriptures and acquired a great knowledge of Church
doctrine
by reading the Fathers who came before him. When St. Maximus died, Cyril
succeeded him in the See of Jerusalem in 349.
At the beginning of his episcopacy, he became famous for a dispute with
Acacius,
Archbishop of Caesarea, an ardent follower of Arianism who abhorred Cyril
and
his orthodoxy. Because of the plots of Acacius, he was exiled twice from
Jerusalem. But after Julian the Apostate was raised to the throne of the
Empire,
a general amnesty was granted for Prelates who had been exiled; therefore,
he
entered the city and re-assumed his see.
From there, he witnessed the miraculous obstacles send by God that made itimpossible to rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem. Julian, who took the side of
the
Jews against the Catholics, tried to rebuild the Temple two times. The first
time the recently laid foundation was destroyed by an earthquake; the second
time the groundwork was destroyed by flames of fire that burst forth from
the
ground. During these attempts of reconstruction, St. Cyril calmly affirmed
that
the prophecy of Christ would remain true, and that not one stone of the
Temple
would be left standing upon another.
He was exiled for a third time when Emperor Valens, a follower of Arianism,
decreed the expulsion of all Prelates recalled by Julian. Under Theodosius,
he
returned from this exile to find his flock torn by heresies and schisms. He
made
great efforts to achieve doctrinal unity and peace.
In 381 he took part in the Council of Constantinople and signed the
condemnation
of semi-Arianism. He died in 386. His great work, The Catecheses, or
Catechetical Lectures, is turned toward the preparation of catechumens and
neophytes.
Comments of the late Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira: (died 1995)
Parallel to Bishops that were founder of nations, like St. Patrick, whose
life
we have already commented on [click here], there were also Bishops whom we
can
call columns of the Church. They existed primarily in the East, and St.
Cyril of
Jerusalem was one of them.
When the Church left the Catacombs, many of her members were contaminated by
a
spirit of tepidness and spiritual decadence that propitiated the
infiltration of
paganism into Catholic milieus. It was a subtle penetration that stimulated
them
to accept diverse heresies. It was an attempt of the Devil to shake the easy
yoke of Our Lord placed by Constantine over the entire Empire.
In the West heresies popped up, one more harmful than the other, until the
fall
of the Roman Empire. In the East those heresies would continue. Such
heresies,
however, gave rise to numerous heroic and saintly Bishops who fought like
lions
against them. These heroes often ended by being defeated, but they filled
the
Church with splendor. They wrote works; they took positions that later would
be
admired and serve as a base to build the magnificent edifice of the Middle
Ages.
Considering the example of St. Cyril of Jerusalem and so many other Saints,
we
understand what the fight for the Church should be. One must fight expending
all
his strength and resources. At times, he will die in the battle without
fully
realizing the effect of his effort, for often only the immediate defeat is
apparent. But afterwards, that effort is remembered and treasured by others
as a
precious legacy, and it gives great fruits.
The Fathers and the Doctors of the Church - St. Cyril is one of them -
played an
enormous role in setting the foundations for Scholasticism and establishing
the
Catholic State in the Middle Ages. They were received with ingratitude by
their
contemporaries, but they formed the basis for the great triumph of Catholic
Civilization.
From such examples, we can understand that we should fight for the cause ofthe
Church by assuming a similar state of spirit that can appear paradoxical:
First, we must fight with the certainty that we are defeating the
Revolution,
which will fall under the blows we are giving it. We feel an appeal of
Divine
Providence calling us to do this and a promise that Our Lady wants to use us
to
accomplish this work.
Second, we must have such a great dedication to this fight that, even if we
were
to die without having defeated the Revolution and seeing the Reign of Mary,
we
would close our eyes in peace knowing that our effort will have an effect.
Third, even if this effort were not to have any effect in the future and
would
never be known to future generations, even if it would be lost in anonymity,
we
should be at peace because we will know that in the Book of the Life, our
fight
was written for the Day of the Judgment. It will be recognized that at the
moment in History when Our Lady was prisoner there were some few who came to
fight for her. In a world where truth was no longer welcome, there were some
who
proclaimed it. In this epoch of darkness, there were some who glorified God.
Therefore, our fight - which is motivated by these three certainties - is
always
a work that gives fruit. And if it is an incessant, indomitable fight in
which
we use every legitimate means, it will be an invincible one.
Let us pray to the great St. Cyril of Jerusalem to obtain for us the spirit
of
Faith he showed and left as an example so that we might destroy the
Revolution
in our days.
See Images at:
http://www.traditioninaction.org/SOD/j171sd_CyrilJerusalem_3-18.shtml
Saint Quote:
When death comes, and we stand before God, no king can command Him, no
authority
can restrain Him, no riches can hire Him to wait past his appointed time
even
one monent of an hour. Therefore let us speak what we are bound to speak and
do
the deeds we are called to do. No empty time is allowed to any of us.
-- Saint Thomas More
Bible Quote:
"Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over
unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every
sickness"
(Matthew 10:1).
<><><><>
Irish Night Time Prayer
Four corners to my bed
Four apostles at my head.
Mark, Matthew, Luke and John.
God bless the bed I lie upon.
Before I lay me down to sleep,
I give my soul to Christ to keep.
Four corners to my bed,
Four angels there a spread,
Two to foot, and two to head,
And two to carry me, when I'm dead.
If any danger come to me,
Sweet Jesus Christ, deliver me!
And if I die before I wake,
I pray that Christ my soul will take.
Amen.
.
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