January 20--St. Fabian, Pope and Martyr

What would you do if a dove landed on you and the people around you then declared you pope? According to a Church historian of the fourth century, that is exactly what happened to St. Fabian. The previous pope had died and St. Fabian had come into the city of Rome. Many men were proposed as popes, but when a dove landed on St. Fabian, the people took it as a sign and he was elected pope then and there. Besides this story we know very little about him. He was martyred in 250 at the start of a major persecution under the emperor, Decius.

Signs are indicators of what is or what should be done. A “Stop” sign means we should stop at an intersection. A “Sale” sign indicates that there is something that can be bought for a lower price than usual. For the people of Rome, a dove landing on St. Fabian was a sign to choose him pope.

What other signs does God send to us? We have the “Sign of the Cross” which demonstrates our faith in the Trinity and the redemptive death of Jesus. We have the sign of the sacraments, symbols which bring about what they indicate: Baptism, new life in Christ; Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Jesus; Reconciliation, a return to a loving relationship with God. God places other signs in front of us every day: his presence in each one of us. We are signs of his love to others. We are signs of his efforts to bring about his Kingdom, as we pray, “Thy kingdom come.” When we look in the mirror do we see his love in our faces? Do we mirror his love? As St. Fabian was chosen by a sign, let us be a sign of choosing God’s love.

January 20--St. Sebastian, Martyr

St. Sebastian—January 20

St. Sebastian died a martyr during the worst persecution of the early Church, under the Emperor Diocletian.  He was a soldier in the emperor’s own Praetorian Guard and comforted those who were sentenced to death.  He was eventually discovered and also sentenced to death.  He was shot through with arrows, but did not die.  He is often depicted with the arrows in his body and his arms tied behind his back.  Although left for dead, a saintly woman came to bury him, but discovered he was alive and brought him back to health.  Once he was strong enough, he came before the emperor and denounced him to his face for his cruelty to Christians.  He was then beaten to death on the emperor’s orders.  St. Sebastian is the patron saint of archers, athletes (for his physical endurance), and of soldiers.  He is a model to us of courage and faithfulness and standing up for truth in the face of great opposition.  

We also live in a time of opposition to the truths of the faith: of the sanctity of life from conception to natural death; of the sacredness of marriage as God intended between a man and a woman; of the right to avoid government interference with respect to freedom of religion.  We are often shot through with the arrows of false civil rights and absolute personal autonomy.  We need to pray for the intercession of St. Sebastian for moral endurance and fortitude as we proclaim the good news of love and steadfastly denounce Satan, the father of lies.