Saints + Scripture — Tuesday, 5 June

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

Tuesday, 5 June was the Memorial of Saint Boniface, Bishop & Martyr, O.S.B. (circa 675-754, the "Apostle to the Germans;" of Mainz, of Crediton; A.K.A. Winfrid), martyred by pagan Frisians; who cut down Donar's Oak: Martyr-link ūnus, Martyr-link duo, & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Oak.

Commentary: Wayback Machine. Quoth the Holy Redeemer bulletin:

He was a leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organized Christianity in many parts of germania & was made archbishop of Mainz by Pope [St.] Gregory III [10 December]. He was martyred in Frisia in 754, along with fifty-two others.

'Twas also the festival of Saint Illidius of Clermont, Bishop (died 385): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link.

'Twas also the festival of Blessed Meinwerk of Paderborn, Bishop (circa 975-1036, the "Builder Bishop"): Blessed-link & Wikipedia-link.

'Twas also the festival of Blessed Łucja Szewczyk, Religious, T.O.S.F. (1828-1905, A.K.A. Małgorzata Szewczyk), foundress of the Seraphic Sisters, formally the Daughters of the Sorrowful Mother of God: Blessed-link & Wikipedia-link.

Scripture of That Day
Mass Readings—Tuesday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
The Second Letter of Peter, chapter three, verses twelve thru fifteen(a), seventeen, & eighteen;
Psalm Ninety, verses two, three & four, ten, & fourteen & sixteen;
The Gospel according to Mark, chapter twelve, verses thirteen thru seventeen.

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

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus escapes from a trap with one of his most famous one-liners: “Render to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” We should not read this as though there is a clearly demarcated political realm that belongs to the Caesars of the world and a clearly demarcated spiritual realm that belongs to God. And we certainly shouldn’t read it in the modern mode—that the public arena belongs to politics, while religion is relegated to the private dimension.

No, this won’t do, precisely because God is God. He’s not a being in or above the world, nor one reality among many. God is the sheer act of being itself, which necessarily pervades, influences, grounds, and has to do with everything, even as he transcends everything in creation.

God is the deepest source for everything in life, from sports to law to the arts to science to medicine. What has seized the lawyer (at his best) is a deep passion for justice—and God is justice itself. What has seized the doctor (at his best) is a deep passion for alleviating suffering—and God is love itself. Everything comes from God and returns to God.

Video reflection by Father Bill Quinlivan: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Mass Readings—Memorial of St. Boniface
The Acts of the Apostles, chapter twenty-six, verses nineteen thru twenty-three;
The Gospel according to Mark, chapter sixteen, verse fifteen;
The Gospel according to John, chapter ten, verses eleven thru sixteen.

Papal Quote o' That Day

We must conform our lives to the Gospel in all its fullness, accepting its demands & trusting its wisdom."
—Pope St. John Paul II (the Great, 1920-2005; feast day: 22 October)

Little Flower Quote o' That Day

"Charity took possession of my soul & filled me with the spirit of self-forgetfulness, & from that time I was always happy."
—St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Doctor of the Church (1873-1897, feast day: 1 October)

Saint Quote o' That Day

"How stands your mighty god? My God is stronger than he."
—St. Boniface (675-754, feast day: 5 June)