Saints of the Month -

April 2012

 

Every saint has a past. Every sinner has a future.

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SAINT OF THE MONTH

St. Richard of Chichester

Richard was born into a prosperous farming family. After his parents died, the young man took care of the farm. Refusing an offer of marriage to a well-to-do lady, he went to study at Oxford University. His hard work won him prestigious appointments, first as Oxford’s chancellor and later as chancellor to his old tutor, Edmund of Abingdon, the Archbishop of Canterbury.

At the time, King Henry III was in the habit of keeping important bishoprics vacant and taking the income for himself. When Edmund sought to end this practice, the king forced him into exile. Richard went with him and after Edmund’s death he was ordained a priest in 1243. He returned to England and one year later he was elected Bishop of Chichester.

King Henry viewed Richard as an enemy and locked him out of the bishop’s palace, seizing the revenues due to the diocese. Undeterred, Richard moved in with a humble parish priest, making the rounds of the church under his care barefoot. A reformist, he ended the practice of priests demanding payment to perform the Sacraments and enforced the rules of celibacy.

Richard also insisted that clergy educate themselves and their congregations about their faith. After two years of patient ministry, the king finally allowed Richard to officially take up his duties. Despite his high rank, Richard continued to preach to the poor. Toward the end of his life, he organized a new crusade, with the object of forcing the Turks, who occupied Jerusalem, to allow Christian pilgrims to visit the holy sites. Just as he was about to embark on his journey, Richard died.

Feast day: April 3rd

Bishop of Chichester

Reference: Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives

The 13th century was a time of great conflict among some of the religions of the world. Often, religious crusades were military attempts to crush the Muslims. At one point, some 30,000 children were led off on a “Children’s Crusade” to seize the Holy Land, a cause for which most of them ended up as slaves or dead. Richard was unique in trying to organize a peaceful crusade and persuade Muslim authorities to allow Christians to visit holy sites in Palestine without the threat of war or violence.

In the modern world, the Interfaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington similarly seeks to encourage cooperation among different religious groups. It hopes to:

• Increase understanding among people of diverse faiths and cultures.

• Address issues of both social and economic justice.

• Create a society that balances the needs of the community and the rights of individuals.

By opening our minds to others we can try to achieve peaceful coexistence.

 

SAINT OF THE MONTH

St. Gemma Galgani

Gemma was born on March 12, 1878 as the fifth child of pharmacist Enrico Galgani and his wife, Aurelia. When she was eight, her mother died of tuberculosis. The girl found solace in taking Holy Communion in 1887, which required a special consent from the bishop at that time. Since then, Bishop of Lucca, Giovanni Volpi was Gemma’s spiritual guide and one of the confidants of her unusual experiences.

In the girls’ school that she attended from 1889-1893, Gemma was a talented student. She was even expected to go to college, which was a rare case for women in the 19th century. But her father was afraid that studies might affect her health.

In 1896 she had to undergo a painful surgery due to tuberculosis of the spine, a life-threatening condition. In addition, health problems brought her father to bankruptcy and to death in 1897. So Gemma became an orphan at the age of 19.

She was ill and had no property. She lived with relatives who did not understand her suffering and often humiliated and ridiculed her. She would bear it with patience because she had passionate love for Crucified Jesus. She wanted to experience that love as a nun. However, she was not accepted to a nunnery due to her poor health and a lack of dowry. Still, she led a nun’s life filled with penance. Her health continued to deteriorate and on June 8, 1899 her suffering increased further. She received the stigmata. Although in great pain, she was happy to be so close to her beloved Savior. In 1900, Fr. Germano, a Passionist, became her spiritual guide who appreciated the significance of her mystic experiences.

Gemma died on Holy Saturday, April 11, 1903 and was canonized on May 2, 1940.

Feast day: April 11th or May 16th

A stigmatic

Reference: Ordinary People, Extraordinary Lives

Over her 25-year life Gemma suffered due to poor health - she had tuberculosis, spine problems, paralysis and deafness resulting from meningitis. These ailments might break someone else’s spirit, pushing them into doubt and despair. Sick and suffering people usually provoke compassion or pity and healthy people feel better than those who are weak and decrepit. There is often talk about solving problems caused by old sick people, retirees and the disabled, as if their age or disability pushed them to the margins. It was due to her suffering that Gemma underwent intensive spiritual development. She consciously chose a life filled with suffering, treating it as penance for the world’s sins. She treated all the wrongdoing of other people, all the adversity in life, as another step on her path to salvation.

 

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