Universalis: Today

Universalis

Thursday 7 August 2008
Thursday of week 18 of the year
or Saints Sixtus II, Pope, and his Companions, Martyrs
or Saint Cajetan, priest

[About today]

*Let us exult in the Lord’s presence.* Office of Readings \| Morning Prayer \| Evening Prayer \| Night Prayer \| Mass \| Calendar Using the Liturgy \| Local calendars \| About Universalis \| Blog \| Site map Online: Web · · Email \| Your website: Banners · Syndication (RSS feed) Your PC or Mac: Download/Install \| Mobile phone: WAP \| Handheld: AvantGo · Download/Install	Tomorrow: Saint Dominic, priest NEW: Universalis for the iPhone

Let us exult in the Lord’s presence.

Pope St Sixtus II and his companions ( - 258): Sixtus was elected Pope in 257. Twelve months later, on 6th August, as he was celebrating Mass in the catacomb of St Calixtus, he was seized by the authorities (it was the time of Valerian’s persecution) and beheaded along with four of his deacons. He was buried in the same catacomb.
St Laurence, another deacon, was captured and executed four days later.
We know most of the details of this martyrdom from a letter of St Cyprian, who was himself martyred later in the same year.
See the article in the Catholic Encyclopaedia.

St Cajetan (1480 - 1547): He was born in Vicenza and became a priest at the age of 36. He worked hard for the poor and the sick and for the reform of the Church; with this last aim in mind, he founded a congregation of secular priests which became known as the Theatines. These had three functions: preaching, the administration of the sacraments, and the celebration of the liturgy.
He encouraged the growth of pawn-shops as a means of helping the poor out of temporary financial difficulties and keeping them out of the hands of usurers. His congregation also cared for incurable syphilitics (a particularly virulent form of syphilis was sweeping Europe, having been imported from the Caribbean by Columbus’s men).
His example encouraged many others on the path to active sanctity. He said [in a letter to Elisabeth Porto]: “Do not receive Christ in the Blessed Sacrament so that you may use him as you judge best, but give yourself to him and let him receive you in this Sacrament, so that he himself, God your saviour, may do to you and through you whatever he wills.”
See the article in the Catholic Encyclopaedia.

Mid-morning reading (Terce)	Galatians 5:13 - 14 ©
My brothers, you were called, as you know, to liberty; but be careful, or this liberty will provide an opening for self-indulgence. Serve one another, rather, in works of love, since the whole of the Law is summarised in a single command: Love your neighbour as yourself.

Noon reading (Sext)	Galatians 5:16 - 17 ©
Let me put it like this: if you are guided by the Spirit you will be in no danger of yielding to self-indulgence, since self-indulgence is the opposite of the Spirit, the Spirit is totally against such a thing, and it is precisely because the two are so opposed that you do not always carry out your good intentions.

Afternoon reading (None)	Galatians 5:22 - 25 ©
What the Spirit brings is very different: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness and self-control. Since the Spirit is our life, let us be directed by the Spirit.

September 2008
Thu 4	Thursday of week 22 of the year
Fri 5
Sat 6
Sun 7	23rd Sunday of the year
Mon 8	The Birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary Feast
Tue 9	Tuesday of week 23 of the year or Saint Peter Claver
Wed 10
Thu 11
Fri 12	Friday of week 23 of the year or The Most Holy Name of Mary

Calendar used: General Calendar

Scripture readings taken from the Jerusalem Bible, published and copyright © 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd and Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc, and used by permission of the publishers. For on-line information about other Random House, Inc. books and authors, see the Internet web site at http://www.randomhouse.com.

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