'Tis the festival of Saint Vitus, Martyr (died circa 303), martyred in the reign of the Roman emperors Diocletian & Maximian, a victim of the Great Persecution; one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers: Martyr-link ūnus, Martyr-link duo, & Wikipedia-link; Helpers-link & Wikipedia-link Helpers, Persecutions-link & Wikipedia-link Persecution.
Commentary: Wayback Machine.
'Tis also the festival of Saint Alice of Schaerbeek, Virgin, O.Cist. (circa 1220-1250, A.K.A. the Leper, also spelt Adelaide, Aleydis): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link.
'Tis also the festival of Blessed Thomas Scryven, Religious & Martyr, O.Cart. (died 1537), martyred in the reign of the English king Henry VIII, one of the Carthusian Martyrs of London: Martyr-link & Wikipedia-link (List); Martyrs-link Charterhouse & Wikipedia-link Charterhouse.
'Tis also the festival of Blessed Albertina Berkenbrock, Virgin & Martyr (1919-1931), martyred by her attempted rapist, Maneco Palhoça: Martyr-link & Wikipedia-link.
Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Saturday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time
The Second Letter to the Corinthians, chapter five, verses fourteen thru twenty-one;
Psalm One Hundred Three, verses one & two, three & four, nine & ten, & eleven & twelve;
The Gospel according to Matthew, chapter five, verses thirty-three thru thirty-seven.
Commentary: Reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):
Friends, today’s Gospel speaks of vows. It calls to mind the story of Ann Russell Miller, a fabulously wealthy San Francisco socialite. Ann had ten children and nineteen grandchildren, was a denizen of the finest clubs, and liked to vacation on her yacht in the Mediterranean.Video reflection by Marc DelMonico, Ph.D.: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
But Ann was also a very devout Catholic, and she and her husband made a vow that whoever died first, the surviving partner would dedicate his or her life to God. So when Ann’s husband died relatively young of cancer, Ann resolved to give her life to God in the most dramatic way.
She threw one more huge party for her friends—and then gave everything away and joined the cloistered Carmelite sisters in Des Plaines, Illinois. She now wears the simple brown habit of a Carmelite religious and lives a life of utter devotion, in poverty, chastity, and obedience. She sleeps on wooden planks covered by a thin mattress; she eats the simplest meatless dishes served in the convent refectory. She is no longer Ann Russell Miller; she is Sr. Mary Joseph of the Trinity.
Sr. Mary fulfilled the vow she made to her husband by taking new vows as a religious. The new vows she now appreciates not as burdens but as a means to freedom. For now, in the most radical sense, she is free to give her life utterly to God.
Now, I realize that her path is a radical one, and that not everyone is called to this sort of total surrender. But everyone is indeed called to the spirit of the evangelical counsels, for we must all become detached from wealth, pleasure, power, and honor. They don’t matter at the end of the day. Only God matters.
Papal Quote o' the Day
"Faithfulness is the reason for living. It is not a chain restraining the boldness of talent & love. When it consists of adherence to our creed, which never ages & never is exhausted, it opens a path to order, always positive, strong, & happy."Saint Quote o' the Day
—Pope St. Paul VI (1897-1978, feast day: 29 May)
"There is a world of difference between personality & individuality. A piece of chalk is individual, not personal. When you go to the grocery store to buy oranges, you may say to the grocer, ‘This is a bad one. Give me another.’ When a tube burns out in your television set, you buy another. In other words, individuals are replaceable. Persons are not. No one can take the place of another."
—Ven. Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)
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