March 31--St. Benjamin, Deacon and Martyr

 Saint Benjamin

Vatican II reestablished the order of the diaconate as a “proper and permanent rank of the hierarchy:” “It is the duty of the deacon... to administer baptism solemnly, to be custodian and dispenser of the Eucharist, to assist at and bless marriages in the name of the Church, to bring Viaticum to the dying, to read the Sacred Scripture to the faithful, to instruct and exhort the people, to preside over the worship and prayer of the faithful, to administer sacramentals, to officiate at funeral and burial services” (Lumen gentium, 29).

Today’s saint was a deacon in this same manner in Persia in the 4th and 5th centuries. St. Benjamin was martyred in AD 424 during a persecution through two kings of Persia and for about forty years. The Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius II was able to obtain his release after being imprisoned but with the condition that he not preach. St. Benjamin “declared it was his duty to preach about Christ and that he could not be silent.” He was then subjected to brutal torture, which killed him.

Today’s deacons may not be called to martyrdom, but they are called to preach the Gospel, to witness, and to serve the People of God in the ways directed by Vatican II. According to a study commissioned by the USCCB in 2021-2022, there were over 20,000 permanent deacons, with more than half of them in active ministry. We have been blessed by this ministry. Thus, we need to continue to promote vocations to the diaconate as well as to the priestly and religious vocations. The People of God need men and women to dedicate themselves to serving others so we may come closer to God. Be open to God’s call. St. Benjamin, pray for us.

January 23--St. Vincent of Saragossa, Deacon and Martyr

St. Vincent of Saragossa by Tomás Giner licensed under public domain. 

As St. Stephen, a deacon, was the first martyr of the Church, so St. Vincent of Saragossa, also a deacon, was the first martyr of Spain. St. Vincent was commissioned by his bishop, St. Valerius, to preach throughout his diocese because he had a speech impediment. When the Roman Emperor Diocletian began his empire-wide persecution in the late third century both St. Vincent and St. Valerius were brought before the governor. St. Vincent was promised freedom if he would throw the Bible into a fire. He refused. “Speaking on behalf of his bishop, he informed the judge that they were ready to suffer everything for their faith, and that they could pay no heed either to threats or promises.” Thus, St. Vincent was tortured and cast into prison and died. St. Valerius was exiled. St. Vincent fulfilled his vocation as a Christian in dying for Christ and as a deacon in assisting and preaching on behalf of his bishop.

Vatican II restored the permanent diaconate and Pope St. Paul VI implemented the restoration in 1967. As of 2022 there were about 13,500 active permanent deacons in the United States. Deacons assist the bishop or priest at the altar and bring communion to the sick and shut-ins. They may preach the Gospel and give a homily. They are ordinary ministers of Baptism and can assist at and bless marriages, officiate at funeral and burial services. Many deacons are involved in pastoral care for parishes or work in parish ministerial and non-ministerial positions. However, 95% of active deacons are at least 50 years old, and their numbers are declining. “Permanent deacons are essential to the Church’s ministry of love and service, especially to the poor and vulnerable,” said Bishop Boyea of Lansing. Please pray for vocations. St. Vincent, pray for us.

October 9--St. John Henry Newman, Priest

John Henry Newman, by Sir John Everett Millais, 1st Bt (died 1896), licensed under Public Domain.

“God has created me to do him some definite service; He has committed some work to me which he has not committed to another. I have my mission; I never may know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. I have a part in a great work; I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for naught. I shall do good, I shall do His work; I shall be an angel of peace, a preacher of truth in my own place, while not intending it, if I do but keep His commandments and serve Him in my calling.”

St. John Henry Newman was a late-comer to Catholicism. Born in 1801, he became an Anglican priest in 1825 and leader of the Oxford Movement, which tried to move the Church of England closer to Catholicism. Eventually, he saw that he could not be an Anglican and converted to Catholicism in 1845 and ordained a Catholic priest in 1847. He wrote extensively in theology, apologetics, education, and more. He is known today for his teachings on the development of doctrine, which were taken up in Vatican II in the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, Dei verbum: ″[T]he understanding of the things and words handed down grows, through the contemplation and study of believers, [...] [which] tends continually towards the fullness of divine truth” (8). He was created cardinal in 1879 without becoming a bishop and died in 1890. He was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010 and canonized by Pope Francis in 2019.

St. John Henry Newman was a brilliant, humble, and holy man. Saints like him are models for us, so that we may “keep His commandments and serve Him in [our] calling.”

October 11--St. John XXIII (Angelo Roncalli), Pope

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"Habemus papam."  "We have a pope!"  We also have a saint!  St. John XXIII was canonized saint along with St. John Paul II on April 27, 2014.  St. John XXIII was an unlikely candidate for pope.  He was almost 78 years old when elected.  Many believe that he was elected to be a care-taker pope, to serve and not make waves until the next pope could be elected.  But he surprised everyone when he called for an ecumenical council, which became Vatican II.  About his decision to call the council, he said, "I want to throw open the windows of the Church so that we can see out and the people can see in."

He was called "Good Pope John", a term of endearment for a loving man.  He visited the imprisoned in Regina Coeli prison and told the prisoners, "You could not come to me, so I came to you."  He had a warmth and wit that the Church had not seen before in such a high office.  When asked how many people worked in the Vatican, he said, "About half of them."  He also quipped, "Anyone can become a pope, look at me!"  Concerning his role as pope, he once remarked, "It often happens that I wake up at night and begin to think about the serious problems afflicting the world and I tell myself, I must talk to the pope about it.  Then the next day when I wake up I remember that I am the pope."

Humor is often an unappreciated virtue.  God gave us  the ability to laugh and to joke and to make fun of the foibles of life.  St. Teresa of Avila once said, "From silly devotions and sour-faced saints, Lord deliver us."  Yes, there is much sadness and travail in the world, but there is much to rejoice in.  God is good.  He gave us the portly and holy, happy man, Pope St. John XXIII.
*https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pope_John_XXIII_-_Time_Magazine_Cover_-_January_4,_1963.jpg