Saints + Scripture — Saturday, 2 June

The Long Road Back, Part II of VI
Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

Saturday, 2 June was the Optional Memorial of Saints Marcellinus & Peter, Martyrs (died circa 304), martyred in the reign of the Roman emperors Diocetian & Maximian, victims of the Great Persecution: Martyrs-link, Martyr-link Mike, Martyr-link Papa, & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Persecution.

Commentary: Wayback Machine. Quoth the Holy Redeemer bulletin:

Very little is known abou the two martyrs' lives. Marcellinus, a priest, & Peter, an exorcist, died in the year 304, during the Diocletianic Persecution.

'Twas also the festival of Saint Erasmus of Formia, Bishop & Martyr (died circa 303, A.K.A. Elmo), martyred in the reign of the Roman emperors Diocetian & Maximian, a victim of the Great Persecution; one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers; after whom is named Saint Elmo's Fire: Martyr-link ūnus, Martyr-link duo, & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Persecution; Helpers-link XIV & Wikipedia-link XIV; Wikipedia-link Saint Elmo's Fire.

'Twas also the festival of Saint Eugene I, Pope (died 657), seventy-fifth (LXXV) Bishop of Rome, who opposed the Monothelite heresy: Saint-link ūnus, Saint-link duo, & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Pontiff & Wikipedia-link Heresy.

'Twas also the festival of Blessed Joseph Thąo Tiěn, Priest, & Companions, Martyrs (died 1954-1970), martyred by the Pathet Lao Communists, fifteen of the seventeen Martyrs of Laos: Martyr-link & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Laos.

Scripture of That Day
Mass Readings—Saturday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
The Letter of Jude, chapter seventeen, verses twenty(b) thru twenty-five;
Psalm Sixty-three, verses two, three & four, & five & six;
The Gospel according to Mark, chapter eleven, verses twenty-seven thru thirty-three.

Commentary: Reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders approach Jesus and ask him, "By what authority are you doing these things?"

The first witnesses of Jesus were astonished by the authority of his speech and his actions. This wasn’t simply because he spoke and acted with conviction and enthusiasm; it was because he refused to play the game that every other rabbi played, tracing his authority finally back to Moses. He went, as it were, over the head of Moses, as he did at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount: "You’ve heard it said...but I say..."

His listeners knew they were dealing with something qualitatively different than anything else in their religious tradition or experience. They were dealing with the prophet greater than Moses.

And Jesus had to be more than a mere prophet. Why? Because we all have been wounded, indeed our entire world compromised, by a battle that took place at a more fundamental level of existence. The result is the devastation of sin, which we all know too well. Who alone could possibly take it on? A merely human figure? Hardly. What is required is the power and authority of the Creator himself, intent on remaking and saving his world, binding up its wounds, and setting it right.

Video reflection by Deacon Bernard Nojadera: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Mass Readings—Optional Memorial of Ss. Marcellinus & Peter
The Second Letter to the Corinthians, chapter six, verses four thru ten;
Psalm One Hundred Twenty-four, verse seven;
The Gospel according to John, chapter seventeen, verses eleven(b) thru nineteen.

Liturgical Readings—Sacrament of Matrimony: Alpha Echo & Delta Lima
The Book of Tobit, chapter eight, verses four(b) thru eight;
Psalm One Hundred Three, verses one & two, eight & thirteen;
The First Letter to the Corinthians, chapter twelve, verse thirty-one thru chapter thirteen, verse eight(a);
The Gospel according to Matthew, chapter seven, verses twenty-one & twenty-four thru twenty-nine.

Papal Quote o' That Day

"If we wish to follow Christ closely, we cannot choose an easy, quiet life. It will be a demanding life, but full of joy."
—Pope Francis (born 1936, reigning since 2013)

Little Flower Quote o' That Day

"Oh! how much is the pure love of Jesus able to do, when it is not mixed with any self-interest or self-love!"
—St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Doctor of the Church (1873-1897, feast day: 1 October)

Saint Quote o' That Day

"Let me go to the house of the Father."
—Pope St. John Paul II (the Great, 1920-2005; feast day: 22 October)