February 14--Sts. Cyril and Methodius, Missionaries

February 14—Sts. Cyril and Methodius

February 14 is thought of only as St. Valentine’s Day.  However, the Church’s official feast day on the 14^th is that of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, two brothers who brought Christianity to the Slavic countries.  Cyril and Methodius grew up in Greece, which was then a part of the Byzantine Empire, in the ninth century.  They were chosen by the emperor to go to Moravia to spread Christianity when a Moravian prince requested missionaries.  They spoke Slavonic, the language of the people, and subsequently translated the Mass and the Scripture into Slavonic for the people.  Cyril even developed a written form for the language, which was the forerunner of the Cyrillic alphabet, used in Russia today.  This was an unusual step, since the dominant languages of the Church were Latin and Greek.  But the pope gave his approval.

Some may think that when missionaries go to different lands they bring Western culture and customs to the people.  Missionaries spend much time learning about the culture and the language and customs of the people they minister to in order to fully bring the Good News to them in a way that matches their culture.  The Good News is universal—catholic—in that it is for everyone, everywhere.  Missionaries like the Columban fathers of Bellevue, or the Maryknoll missionaries, spread the Gospel by living with and teaching the people, meeting their corporal and spiritual needs as best they can.  We can join in the missionary apostolate by praying on behalf of missionaries and by adapting the Gospel to meet the needs of the people we know and love.  That is the essence of the New Evangelization proclaimed for this Year of Faith.

February 5--St. Agatha, Virgin and Martyr

St. Agatha—February 5

St. Agatha is one of the virgin-martyrs of the early Church in 251.  As with many virgin-martyrs, she attracted the attention of a Roman official, who wanted to marry her.  She refused because she vowed herself to Christ.  Thus, she was tortured and eventually killed.  Her name is in the first Eucharistic prayer along with the other virgin-martyrs:  Lucy, Anastasia, Agnes, and Cecilia.

Virginity was a way of life in the early Church, even to the point of being set apart through consecration.  They were not nuns, but rather, women who lived their everyday lives dedicated to God.  The Church honored their choice and celebrates their purity and chastity.  Today, the Church has a rite of consecration for virgins and there are over 3000 consecrated virgins in the world today and in about 86 U.S. dioceses.

Virginity and the sanctity of sexuality are not well respected in our society today.  The Centers for Disease Control regularly issue reports on sexual activity and sexually transmitted diseases.  Virginity is often scoffed at and sexual activity is often promoted as an inalienable right of the individual.  However, Jesus calls us to a higher standard, the standard of love.  The Catechism states:  “Both the sacrament of Matrimony and virginity for the Kingdom of God come from the Lord himself.  It is he who gives them meaning and grants them the grace which is indispensable for living them out in conformity with his will” (par. 1620).  We would do well to be joyful for the gift of sexuality as it is lived out in marriage and virginity.

January 28--St. Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor of the Church

St. Thomas Aquinas—January 28

St. Thomas Aquinas lived in the thirteenth century, during the High Middle Ages in Europe.  St. Thomas was a Dominican priest who found his calling writing and teaching theology.  He is considered by many to be the greatest theologian in Catholicism.  He believed that as God gave us intellect, we need to use it in order to know who God is; as God gave us free will, we need to use it to choose to love God with all our hearts.  In order to help us know, love, and serve God more, God gives us his grace.  Grace builds on nature.  He also taught that the truths of faith cannot contradict the truths of reason for both are from God.  This can help us as we note that the natural moral law that is written in our hearts by God cannot conflict with the guidance in morals that the Church’s Magisterium offers us as we strive to become holier in our daily lives.  When our consciences come into conflict with the authoritative truths of the Church we should look at ourselves and pray for a willing and faithful submission to truth, the truth that Jesus gives to us through our shepherds, the pope and bishops.

St. Thomas Aquinas is the patron saint of Catholic schools, an appropriate saint during Catholic Schools Week because of his extensive scholarship and teaching.  As we celebrate the gift of Catholic schools, it is appropriate to keep in mind that Catholic schools teach the truths of faith and morals that St. Thomas expounded on so long ago; the truths of revelation that cannot, and do not, conflict with the truths of reason.

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.