Above:  The Flag of England

Image in the Public Domain

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BLESSED THOMAS ROWSHAM (CIRCA 1555-APRIL 3, 1587)

English Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1587

Alternative feast day = April 3

December 1 = Feast of the Martyrs of Oxford University

November 22 = Feast of the Martyrs of England, Scotland, and Wales

October 29 = Feast of the Martyrs of Douai

Blessed Thomas Rowsham comes to this, A Great Cloud of Witnesses:  An Ecumenical Calendar of Saints’ Days and Holy Days, via the Roman Catholic Church.  His main feast day is August 11.

Rowsham went from being an Anglican priest to a Roman Catholic priest and martyr.  Our saint, born in Oxfordshire, England, circa 1555, matriculated at Oriel College, Oxford, in 1572.  He, ordained in The Church of England, served as the Vicar of the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin about 1578.  However, he became convinced that the Roman Catholic Church was the true church .  Therefore, Rowsham matriculated at the English College, Rheims, France, in May 1582.  He, ordained to the Roman Catholic priesthood on September 29, 1581.  The Church dispatched our saint to England, on a perilous mission, in late April 1582.  Rowsham, as a Roman Catholic priest, was legally an enemy of the state.  Our saint, arrested in May 1582, was a prisoner in the Tower of London (1582-1584) then at Marshalsea (1584-1585).  Rowsham, exiled to France, returned to England in February 1586.  He worked as an underground priest for about a year before authorities arrested him again, in Gloucester.  Tried and convicted of treason, Rowsham died by hanging at Gloucester on April 3, 1587.

Pope John Paul II declared Rowsham a Venerable in 1986 then beatified him the following year.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MAY 8, 2021 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF JULIANA OF NORWICH, ENGLISH ROMAN CATHOLIC MYSTIC AND SPIRITUAL WRITER

THE FEAST OF SAINT ACACIUS OF BYZANTIUM, MARTYR, 303

THE FEAST OF HENRI DUMONT, ROMAN CATHOLIC COMPOSER AND ORGANIST

THE FEAST OF SAINT MAGDALENA OF CANOSSA, FOUNDRESS OF THE DAUGHTERS OF CHARITY AND THE SONS OF CHARITY

THE FEAST OF SAINT PETER OF TARENTAISE, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP

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Almighty God, who gave to your servant Blessed Thomas Rowsham

boldness to confess the Name of our Savior Jesus Christ before the rulers of this world,

and courage to die for this faith:

Grant that we may always be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in us,

and to suffer gladly for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ;

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

2 Esdras 2:42-48

Psalm 126 or 121

1 Peter 3:14-18, 22

Matthew 10:16-22

–Adapted from Holy Women, Holy Men:  Celebrating the Saints (2010), 713

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To fulfill my vocation to leave the world and devote myself entirely to the service of souls to lead them to God, and save myself.

Above:  Blessed Maurice Tornay

Image in the Public Domain

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BLESSED MAURICE TORNAY (AUGUST 31, 1910-AUGUST 11, 1949)

Swiss Roman Catholic Missionary to Tibet, and Martyr, 1949

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–Blessed Maurice Tornay, 1932

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One of the recurring problems in Christian history has been that imperial incursions have led to hostility to foreigners, thereby making life and work more perilous for missionaries.  Another reason for this has been that many missionaries have, unfortunately, been more agents of their empire than of Christ.  That reality has made matters worse for the missionaries who have not been imperial agents.  The British invasion of Lhasa, Tibet, in 1904 led to anti-Christian sentiment and violence in Tibet.  Buddhist monks attacked missionaries.  Blessed Maurice Tornay had to contend with such hostility.

Tornay, born in Rosière, Valais, Switzerland, on August 31, 1910, was devout from an early age.  The seventh child (of eight) of Jean-Joseph Tornay and Faustina Dossier grew up in a pious family.  He was also a fine student, especially of French literature, as well as the writings of St. Francis de Sales and St. Therésè of Lisieux.

Tornay joined the Canons Regular of Saint Augustine, Hospitallers of Saint Nicholas and Grand-St-Bernard of Mont Joux.  He, a novice from August 25, 1931, made his first vows on September 8, 1932, and his final vows in 1935.  Surgery for a stomach ulcer, followed by recuperation, interrupted preparation for missionary work in 1934, but he, healed, headed for the borderlands of Tibet and China in 1936.

At Weixi, Yunnan, China, Tornay continued preparation.  He learned the local language, studied dentistry, medicine, and theology, and prepared for the priesthood.  Our saint, ordained in Hanoi on April 24, 1938, founded and led the Houa-Lo-Pa seminary.  The Japanese invasion of 1939 forced him to resort to begging to acquire food for his students.

In 1945 Tornay became the pastor of the Yerkalo mission in Tibet.  The Thirteenth Dalai Lama had died in 1933.  The Fourteenth Dalai Lama, born in 1935, although enthroned in 1940, did not begin to rule until 1950.  Anti-Christian persecution forced Tornay to leave Tibet and seek diplomatic pressure to intervene with the Tibetan government.  All diplomatic intervention failed.  On August 11, 1949, our saint was en route to Lhasa, to seek a meeting with the Tibetan government, when guards ambushed and shot him at To-Thong, Tibet.  He was 37 years old.

Pope John Paul II declared Tornay a Venerable in 1992 then a Blessed the following year.

I recall a scene from The Needs of Earth, an episode of Crusade (1999), a series the TNT channel never gave a chance.  In the scene Captain Matthew Gideon of the Starship Excalibur tells an alien,

When Mozart was my age, he was dead.

When Blessed Maurice Tornay was my age, he was dead.  And what he had done for the glory of God puts me to shame.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JUNE 15, 2018 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF JOHN ELLERTON, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER AND TRANSLATOR

THE FEAST OF CARL HEINRICH VON BOGATSKY, HUNGARIAN-GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF DOROTHY FRANCES BLOMFIELD GURNEY, ENGLISH POET AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF SAINT LANDELINUS OF VAUX, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT; SAINT AUBERT OF CAMBRAI, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP; SAINT URSMAR OF LOBBES, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT AND MISSIONARY BISHOP; AND SAINTS DOMITIAN, HADELIN, AND DODO OF LOBBES, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONKS

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Almighty and everlasting God we thank you for your servant Blessed Maurice Tornay,

whom you called to preach the Gospel to the people of China and Tibet.

Raise up in this and every land evangelists and heralds of your kingdom,

that your church may proclaim the unsearchable riches of our Savior Jesus Christ;

who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns with

you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

Isaiah 52:7-10

Psalm 96 or 96:1-7

Acts 1:1-9

Luke 10:1-9

–Adapted from Holy Women, Holy Men:  Celebrating the Saints (2010), 716

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Above:  St. Equitius of Valeria

Image in the Public Domain

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SAINT EQUITIUS OF VALERIA (BETWEEN 480 AND 490-CIRCA 570)

Benedictine Abbot and Founder of Monasteries

St. Equitius of Valeria was a protégé of St. Benedict of Nursia (circa 480-circa 550).

St. Equitius, born in the area of Valria Suburbicarla (now L’Aquila-Rieti-Tivoli, near Abruzzi, Italy) between 480 and 490, was a Benedictine monk and a famous preacher.  He founded many monasteries on the Italian peninsula and served as the Abbot of San Lorenzo di Pizzoli, Valeria Suburbicarla.  He died there circa 570.

Sts. Benedict and Equitius were crucial to Western civilization.  Monasticism preserved knowledge and provided social services.  Monasteries were also orphanages, homes for abandoned children, hospitals, and centers of learning, as well as hubs for missionary activity.  The indirect legacy of St. Benedict and Equitius has long been staggering.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JUNE 14, 2018 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF CHARLES AUGUSTUS BRIGGS, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, EPISCOPAL PRIEST, AND ALLEGED HERETIC; AND HIS DAUGHTER, EMILIE GRACE BRIGGS, BIBLICAL SCHOLAR AND “HERETIC’S DAUGHTER”

THE FEAST OF SAINT METHODIUS I OF CONSTANTINOPLE, DEFENDER OF ICONS AND ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH OF CONSTANTINOPLE; AND SAINT JOSEPH THE HYMNOGRAPHER, DEFENDER OF ICONS AND THE “SWEET-VOICED NIGHTINGALE OF THE CHURCH”

THE FEAST OF WILLIAM HIRAM FOULKES, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER

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O God, by whose grace your servant Saint Equitius of Valeria,

kindled with the flame of your love, became a burning and a shining light in your Church:

Grant that we also may walk before you as children of light;

through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.

Acts 2:42-47

Psalm 133 or 34:1-8 or 119:161-168

2 Corinthians 6:1-10

Matthew 6:24-33

–Adapted from Holy Women, Holy Men:  Celebrating the Saints (2010), 723

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Above:  City Hall, Columbus, Ohio, Between 1900 and 1910

Publisher and Copyright Claimant = Detroit Publishing Company

Image Source = Library of Congress

Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-det-4a23314

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MATTHIAS LOY (MARCH 17, 1828-JANUARY 26, 1915)

U.S. Lutheran Minister, Educator, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator

predecessor of

CONRAD HERMANN LOUIS SCHUETTE (JUNE 17, 1843-AUGUST 11, 1926)

German-American Lutheran Minister, Educator, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator

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Usually my multisaint posts add related people to the Ecumenical Calendar of Saints’ Days and Holy Days.  This one, however, recognizes two unrelated men who had much in common:

1. Both ministered at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, Delaware, Ohio, in immediate succession;
2. Both wrote and translated hymns;
3. Both taught at Capital University, Columbus, Ohio, at the same time;
4. Both served as the President of Capital University, Capital University, in immediate succession;
5. Both wrote and published on theological topics; and
6. Both served as the President of the Evangelical Lutheran Joint Synod of Ohio and Other States (1818-1930), which I will refer to hereafter as the Ohio Synod, in immediate succession.

Both men were also Confessional Lutherans during a different time and a cultural milieu distinct from mine.  We would have agreed and disagreed on much.  My Anglican sense of collegiality has led me to admit the existence of areas of profound disagreement while emphasizing the theological common ground.  Despite major differences I have encountered while reading some of their writings, I recognize Loy and Schuette and coreligionists and add them to the Ecumenical Calendar enthusiastically.  Christian faith is far more than a matter of theological Twenty Questions; it is a pilgrimage of following Jesus.

Matthias Loy had help achieving his vocation.  His impoverished childhood began near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on March 17, 1828.  The Loys, a Lutheran family with ultimately seven children (of which Matthias was the fourth), moved to Hogestown in 1834.  Our saint’s mother provided his elementary education.  He became an apprentice to Baab and Hummel, printers at Harrisburg, during his fourteenth year of life.  This apprenticeship lasted for about six years, during which he attended school–first as a private student in Latin and Greek of the Principal of Harrisburg Academy, then as a regular student at that institution.  Our saint’s pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, Harrisburg, Charles William Schaeffer (1813-1896), who met him via Mr. Hummel, encouraged the young man to enter the ordained ministry.  Health concerns led Loy to move westward to Circleville, Ohio, in August 1847, where he entered into a contract to print a German-language semi-monthly newspaper for the United Brethren Publishing House.  However, the Lutheran pastor at Circleville arranged for financial assistance which permitted our saint to leave for Capital University, Columbus, to study theology in the near future.  Loy got out of his contract and embarked on his vocation.  He graduated in 1849 and became an ordained minister of the Ohio Synod.

Loy’s ministerial career played out on the synodical and academic fields:

1. His one pastorate was St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, Delaware, Ohio, from 1849 to 1865.
2. He was twice the President of the Ohio Synod.  Loy’s first tenure was 1860-1868.  During this time he kept the Ohio Synod out of the General Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America (1867-1918), a relatively conservative body which his mentor, Charles William Schaeffer, cofounded then led for a time.  Loy framed the Four Points–Premillennialism, altar fellowship, pulpit fellowship, and secret societies–which troubled the General Council during the early years of its existence.
3. He edited the Lutheran Standard from 1864 to 1891.
4. He taught theology at Capital University from 1865 to 1878.
5. In 1868 Loy vacated the Presidency of the Ohio Synod in favor of the Vice President, William F. Lehmann, who died two years later.
6. In 1870 Loy returned to the Presidency of the Ohio Synod for his second tenure, which ended in 1894.  During this tenure he helped to form the Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America (1871-1963) (hereafter the Synodical Conference), which was more conservative than the General Council, in 1872.  Ten years later, however, Loy led the Ohio Synod out of the Synodical Conference over a dispute regarding the Missouri Synod’s theology of predestination.
7. He served as the President of Capital University from 1870 to 1890.
8. He founded the Columbus Theological Magazine in 1881.
9. In 1890 he rejoined the theology faculty at Capital University, retiring in 1902 due to bad health.

Loy’s published works included the following:

1. Life and Deeds of Dr. Martin Luther, by Hermann Fick (1868, as translator);
2. The Doctrine of Justification (first edition, 1869; second edition, 1882);
3. “Essay on the Ministerial Office” (1870);
4. Sermons on the Gospels (1888);
5. Christian Prayer (1890);
6. The Story of My Life (third edition, 1905);
7. The Augsburg Confession (1908);
8. The Sermon on the Mount:  A Practical Study of Chapters V-VII of St. Matthew’s Gospel (1909); and
9. Sermons on the Epistles (1910).

Then, as one of my sources informed me, “the softening of his brain” set in.  Loy, the husband of Mary Willey of Delaware, Ohio, from 1853 and the father of seven children (five of whom outlived him) died at Columbus, Ohio, on January 26, 1915.

Loy’s written legacy persists, however.  I have listed some of his books and an essay, but I would be remiss if I failed to mention his twenty original hymns and his translations of German hymns.  One may find many of them in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal (1880) and the Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal (1908).  I have added part of his contribution to hymnody to my GATHERED PRAYERS weblog.

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Conrad Hermann Louis Schuette succeeded Loy as pastor at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, Delaware, Ohio, serving there from 1865 to 1873.  Schuette, born at Varrel, Hanover, on June 17, 1843, emigrated to the United States with his family in 1854. He attended Capital University then became a minister of the Ohio Synod.  The newly ordained clergyman’s first posting was at Delaware, Ohio.  His wife (from September 4, 1865) was Victoria M. Wirth of Columbus, Ohio.  His immediate successor at St. Mark’s was Emanuel Cronenwett (1841-1931), who served there from 1873 to 1877.

Schuette’s career was mostly synodical and academic:

1. He was Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy at Capital University from 1873 to 1880.
2. He was Professor of Theology at Capital University from 1880 to 1890.
3. He succeeded Matthias Loy as the President of Capital University in 1890, serving until 1894.
4. He served as the pastor of Christ Lutheran Church, Pleasant Ridge (now Bexley), Ohio, from 1891 to 1894.
5. He served as the President of the Ohio Synod from 1894 to 1924.
6. He cofounded the National Lutheran Council (1918-1966) and served as its President from 1923 to 1925.

He died at Columbus, Ohio, on August 11, 1926.

Schuette wrote books, composed hymn texts, and translated hymns.  His books included the following:

1. The Church Members’ Manual;
2. Church, State, and School;
3. Before the Altar; and
4. Exercises Unto Godliness.

Some of his texts, original and translated, appeared in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal (1880) and the Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal (1908).  I have added one of his hymns, “Great God, a Blessing from Thy Throne” (1880), to my GATHERED PRAYERS weblog.

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These two men make fine additions to the Ecumenical Calendar of Saints’ Days and Holy Days.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

FEBRUARY 8, 2015 COMMON ERA

THE FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY, YEAR B

THE FEAST OF SAINT JOSEPHINE BAKHITA, ROMAN CATHOLIC NUN

THE FEAST OF SAINTS JOHN OF MATHA AND FELIX OF VALOIS, FOUNDERS OF THE ORDER OF THE MOST HOLY TRINITY

THE FEAST WINFIELD SCOTT HANCOCK, U.S. ARMY GENERAL

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O God, you have endowed us with memory, reason, and skill.

We thank you for the faithful legacy of [Matthias Loy, Conrad Hermann Louis Schuette, and all others]

who have dedicated their lives to you and to the intellectual pursuits.

May we, like them, respect your gift of intelligence fully and to your glory.

In the Name of God:  Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

Psalm 103

Philippians 4:8-9

Mark 12:28-34

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 6, 2013 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINT CHRODEGANG OF METZ, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP

THE FEAST OF EDMUND KING, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF LINCOLN

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Above:  The Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr., 1964

Photograph by Dick DeMarsico, World Telegraph and Sun

Image Source = Library of Congress

Active, Abrahamic Faith

The Sunday Closest to August 10

Ninth Sunday After Pentecost

AUGUST 11, 2019

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The Assigned Readings:

Isaiah 1:1, 10-20 and Psalm 50:1-8, 23-24

or 

Genesis 15:1-6 and Psalm 33:12-22

then 

Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16

Luke 12:32-40

The Collect:

Grant to us, Lord, we pray, the spirit to think and do always those things that are right, that we, who cannot exist without you, may by you be enabled to live according to your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

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Some Related Posts:

Proper 14, Year A:

http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/01/31/proper-14-year-a/

Proper 14, Year B:

http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/10/03/proper-14-year-b/

Prayer of Praise and Adoration:

http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/03/21/prayer-of-praise-and-adoration-for-the-twelfth-sunday-after-pentecost/

Prayer of Confession:

http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/03/21/prayer-of-confession-for-the-twelfth-sunday-after-pentecost/

Prayer of Dedication:

http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/03/21/prayer-of-dedication-for-the-twelfth-sunday-after-pentecost/

Isaiah 1:

http://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2012/02/22/devotion-for-november-27-in-advent-lcms-daily-lectionary/

http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2010/10/28/twelfth-day-of-lent/

http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/09/15/week-of-proper-10-monday-year-2/

Genesis 15:

http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2012/05/14/devotion-for-the-tenth-day-of-lent-lcms-daily-lectionary/

http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2012/05/14/second-sunday-in-lent-year-c/

http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2010/12/11/week-of-proper-7-wednesday-year-1/

Hebrews 11:

http://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2010/10/05/week-of-3-epiphany-saturday-year-1/

http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2012/06/02/devotion-for-the-fifth-day-of-easter-thursday-in-easter-week-lcms-daily-lectionary/

http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2010/11/13/week-of-proper-1-saturday-year-1/

http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2010/12/18/independence-day-u-s-a-july-4/

Luke 12:

http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2012/06/15/devotion-for-the-twenty-ninth-thirtieth-and-thirty-first-days-of-easter-lcms-daily-lectionary/

http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2012/06/16/devotion-for-the-thirty-second-day-of-easter-lcms-daily-lectionary/

http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/05/09/week-of-proper-24-tuesday-year-1/

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We human beings use the same word in different ways, with a variety of meanings.  Consider, O reader, the word “day,” for example.  People say,

In my day…

and

Back in the day…,

as well as

There is a new day coming.

Or “day” might apply literally, as in when today separates yesterday from tomorrow.

The same principle applies to “faith” in the New Testament.  The Apostle Paul, in Romans, used it to mean something inherently active, which leads to works.  A Pauline formula is that as a person thinks, so he or she is.  The Letter of James contains a different definition, that of intellectual assent to a proposition or set of propositions.  So, according to that definition, faith without works is dead.  Both epistles agree on the imperative of active faith, so one need not imagine a discrepancy between their conclusions.

And there is the definition of faith from Hebrews 11:1-3:

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.  Indeed, by faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is was made from things that are not visible.

–New Revised Standard Version

In other words, faith applies in circumstances in which one can neither prove nor disprove a proposition according to scientific methods or documentary evidence.  That is an anachronistic definition, I know, but it works well.  Science can tell us much; I respect it and reject all anti-scientific sentiments and statements.  God gave us brains; may we use them as fully and critically as possible.  And documents form the basis of the study of history as I practice it.  Objective historical accuracy and the best scientific data available ought to override dogma, superstition, and bad theology.  So, no matter what the Gospels say, demon possession does not cause epilepsy, for example.  Yet there does exist truth which these twin standards of modernism (as opposed to postmodernism) cannot measure.  Such truth is good theology, which one can grasp by faith.

We read in Hebrews of the faithful example of Abram/Abraham (and by implication, of Sarai/Sarah), which harkens back to Genesis.  Theirs is a fantastical story, one which challenges understandings of biology.  But that is not the point.  The point is that God does unexpected things, and that the people of God should accept this reality.  And whether a certain unexpected thing is good news or bad news depends upon one’s spiritual state, as in Luke 12.

The reading from Isaiah 1 caught and held my attention most of all.  I, as an observant Episcopalian, am an unrepentant ritualist.  The text does not condemn ritualism itself.  No, the text damns insincere ritualism mixed with the neglect of vulnerable members of society:

Wash yourselves clean;

Put your evil things

Away from my sight.

Cease to do evil;

Learn to do good.

Devote yourselves to justice;

Aid the wronged.

Uphold the rights of the orphan;

Defend the cause of the widow.

–Isaiah 1:16-17, TANAKH:  The Holy Scriptures

Do it 0r else, the text says.  This is a call t0 society; Enlightenment notions of individualism do not apply here.  The Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr., on April 4, 1967, called for

…a true revolution of values

from a society focused on things to one which places the priority on people.  In the same speech, the one in which he opposed the Vietnam War without equivocation, he said:

A nation that continues to spend year after year more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.

–A Testament of Hope:  The Essential Writings and Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr.  (Edited by James M. Washington, 1986), page 241

The Prophet Isaiah would  have agreed.

Eternal God, heavenly Father,

you have graciously accepted us as living members

of your Son our Savior Jesus Christ,

and you have fed us with spiritual food

in the sacrament of his Body and Blood.

Send us now into the world in peace,

and grant us strength and courage

to love and serve you

with gladness and singleness of heart;

through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

–The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 365

Do we have the Abrahamic faith to do that?  And how much better will our societies be for all their members if we do?

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

OCTOBER 16, 2012 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF ALL CHRISTIAN MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS

THE FEAST OF HUGH LATIMER, NICHOLAS RIDLEY, AND THOMAS CRANMER, ANGLICAN MARTYRS

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Above:  Pontus and Syria in the Roman Empire, 150 Common Era

SAINT GREGORY THAUMATURGUS (CIRCA 213-268)

Also known as Saint Gregory of Neocaesarea and Saint Gregory the Wonder-Worker

Roman Catholic Bishop of Neocaesarea

His feast transferred from November 17

ordained

SAINT ALEXANDER OF COMANA “THE CHARCOAL BURNER” (DIED CIRCA 251)

Roman Catholic Martyr and Bishop of Comana, Pontus

His feast = August 11

St. Gregory Thaumaturgus (circa 213-268) was born at Neocaesarea, Pontus, Asia Minor, where he studied law.  About 233 the saint, his brother, his sister, and her husband were en route to Beirut when they stopped at Caesarea, Syria.  There they met Origen, who converted them to Christianity.  They remained there for years instead of going on to Beirut.  And they became disciples of Origen.

About 238 St. Gregory returned to Neocaesarea, where he intended to practice law.  But all seventeen Christians there named him their bishop instead.  He tended to the flock for three decades, helping his parishioners survive a plague, a siege, and the Decian persecution.  And, when the saint died, he still had only seventeen members in his flock.

St. Gregory earned his great reputation.  He was allegedly a wonder-worker, hence his surname.  But he did argue against two heresies.  The first was Tritheism, which was, as the term indicates, three deities instead of one one in the Trinity.  The other heresy was Sabellianism, which argued that God the Father projected Himself as God the Spirit on some occasions and as God the Son on others.  This understanding of the Holy Trinity contradicted the unchanging, stable divine transcendence upon which Origen insisted.  (Origen favored the Son and the Spirit as being generated eternally from the Father.)  Speaking of Origen, St. Gregory defended his controversial teacher against strong criticisms.

St. Gregory needed to appoint a Bishop of Comana, Pontus (not to be confused with Comana, Cappadocia), some time prior to 251.  He interviewed various candidates and found none of them acceptable.  Then someone suggested sarcastically that the Bishop of Neocaesarea speak to St. Alexander the Charcoal Burner.  St. Gregory did and behold, he found that St. Alexander was a wise and holy man suited to serve as bishop.  St. Alexander died for his faith circa 251, during the Decian persecution.

Sometimes we labor hard for God and do not see spectacular results.  How often might St. Gregory have become discouraged because of the lack of church growth, other than to replace people who died, moved away, or fell way?  But, as Mother Teresa of Calcutta said, God calls us to be faithful, not successful.  Today churches around the world bear the name “St. Gregory the Wonder-Worker.”  Perhaps keeping the faith was his greatest wonder.  Certainly his legacy has endured.

And, as for St. Alexander, I propose him as the patron of all with unexpected vocations, of everyone whom others underestimate and scorn unjustly.  Each of us has a variety of spiritual gifts and vocations, some of them not obvious even to us.  The man who suggested sarcastically that St. Gregory interview that charcoal burner had no idea what he setting in motion.

Wherever we are, whomever we are, regardless of the challenges we face, may we find our vocations in God.  The may we live into them, for the glory of God and the benefit of others.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JUNE 29, 2012 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINTS PETER AND PAUL, APOSTLES AND MARTYRS

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Heavenly Father, shepherd of our people,

we thank you for your holy servants

Saints Gregory Thaumaturgus and Saint Alexander of Comana “the Charcoal Burner,”

who were faithful in the care and nurture of your flock.

We pray that, following their example and the teaching of their holy lives,

may by your grace attain our full maturity in Christ,

through the same Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

Ezekiel 34:11-16 or Acts 20:17-35

Psalm 84

1 Peter 5:1-4 or Ephesians 3:14-21

John 21:15-17 or Matthew 24:42-47

—Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 60

Poppies

Image Source = Santosh Namby Chandran

1 (JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA, DISCIPLE OF JESUS)

2 (Georg Weissel, German Lutheran Pastor and Hymn Writer)

• Anna Bernadine Dorothy Hoppe, U.S. Lutheran Hymn Writer and Translator
• Carroll O’Connor, U.S. Roman Catholic Actor and Screen Writer
• Christian Gottfried Gebhard, German Moravian Composer and Music Educator
• Frederick William Foster, English Moravian Bishop, Liturgist, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator
• Peter Julian Eymard, Founder of the Priests of the Blessed Sacrament, the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, and the Priests’ Eucharistic League; and Organizer of the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament

3 (JOANNA, MARY, AND SALOME, WITNESSES TO THE RESURRECTION)

4 (John Brownlie, Scottish Presbyterian Minister, Hymn Writer, and Translator of Hymns)

• Frédéric Janssoone, French Roman Catholic Priest and Friar
• Lambert Beauduin, Belgian Roman Catholic Priest and Pioneer of Liturgical Renewal
• Sarah Platt Doremus, Founder of the Women’s Union Missionary Society

5 (Alfred Tennyson, English Poet)

• Adam of Saint Victor, Roman Catholic Monk and Hymn Writer
• Albrecht Dürer, Matthias Grünewald, and Lucas Cranach the Elder, Renaissance Artists
• Francisco Zanfredini and Michelina of Pesaro, Co-Founders of the Confraternity of the Annunciation
• George Frederick Root, Poet and Composer

6 (TRANSFIGURATION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST)

7 (Colbert S. Cartwright, U.S. Disciples of Christ Minister, Liturgist, and Witness for Civil Rights)

• Guglielmo Massaia, Italian Cardinal, Missionary, and Capuchin Friar
• John Scrimger, Canadian Presbyterian Minister, Ecumenist, and Liturgist
• Maxim Sandovich, Russian Orthodox Priest and Martyr, 1914
• Victricius of Rouen, Roman Conscientious Objector and Roman Catholic Bishop

8 (Mary MacKillop, Founder of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart)

• Altman, Roman Catholic Bishop of Passau
• Bonifacia Rodriguez Castro, Co-Founder of the Congregation of the Servants of Saint Joseph
• Dominic, Founder of the Order of Preachers
• Raymond E. Brown, U.S. Roman Catholic Priest and Biblical Scholar

9 (Edith Stein, Roman Catholic Nun and Philosopher)

• Florence Spearing Randolph, First Female Ordained Minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
• Herman of Alaska, Russian Orthodox Monk and Missionary to the Aleut
• John Dryden, English Puritan then Anglican then Roman Catholic Poet, Playwright, and Translator
• Mary Sumner, Founder of the Mothers’ Union

10 (William Walsham How, Anglican Bishop of Wakefield and Hymn Writer; and his sister, Frances Jane Douglas(s), Hymn Writer)

• Catherine de Hueck Doherty, Founder of the Madonna House Apostolate
• Cyriaca, Roman Catholic Martyr at Rome, 249; and Sixtus II, His Companions, and Laurence of Rome, Roman Catholic Martyrs at Rome, 258
• Edward Grzymala and Franciszek Drzewiecki, Polish Roman Catholic Priests and Martyrs, 1942
• John Athelstan Laurie Riley, Anglican Ecumenist, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator

11 (Gregory Thaumaturgus, Roman Catholic Bishop of Neocaesarea; and Alexander of Comana “the Charcoal Burner,” Roman Catholic Martyr, 252, and Bishop of Comana, Pontus)

• Equitius of Valeria, Benedictine Abbot and Founder of Monasteries
• Matthias Loy, U.S. Lutheran Minister, Educator, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator; and Conrad Hermann Louis Schuette, German-American Lutheran Minister, Educator, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator
• Maurice Tornay, Swiss Roman Catholic Priest, Missionary to Tibet, and Martyr, 1949
• Stephen Rowsham, English Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1587

12 (Thaddeus Stevens, U.S. Abolitionist, Congressman, and Witness for Civil Rights)

• Charles Inglis, Anglican Bishop of Nova Scotia
• Jane Frances de Chantal, Co-Founder of the Congregation of the Visitation
• Józef Stepniak and Józef Straszewski, Polish Roman Catholic Priests and Martyrs, 1942
• Karl Leisner, German Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1945

13 (Jeremy Taylor, Anglican Bishop of Down, Connor, and Dromore)

• Elizabeth Payson Prentiss, U.S. Presbyterian Hymn Writer
• Irene of Hungary, Hungarian Princess and Byzantine Empress
• Octavia Hill, English Social Reformer

14 (William Croft, Anglican Organist and Composer)

• G. Bromley Oxnam, U.S. Methodist Bishop
• John Bajus, U.S. Lutheran Minister and Hymn Translator
• John Henry Hopkins, Jr., Episcopal Priest and Hymnodist; and his nephew, John Henry Hopkins, III, Episcopal Priest and Musician

• Maximilian Kolbe, Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1941; and Jonathan Myrick Daniels, Episcopal Seminarian and Martyr, 1965
• Sarah Flower Adams, English Unitarian Hymn Writer; and her sister, Eliza Flower, English Unitarian Composer

15 (MARY OF NAZARETH, MOTHER OF GOD)

16 (John Diefenbaker and Lester Pearson, Prime Ministers of Canada; and Tommy Douglas, Federal Leader of the New Democratic Party)

• Alipius, Roman Catholic Bishop of Tagaste, and Friend of Saint Augustine of Hippo
• John Courtney Murray, U.S. Roman Catholic Priest and Theologian
• John Jones of Talysarn, Welsh Calvinistic Methodist Minister and Hymn Tune Composer
• Matthias Claudius, German Lutheran Writer

17 (Samuel Johnson, Congregationalist Minister, Anglican Priest, President of King’s College, “Father of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut,” and “Father of American Library Classification;” Timothy Cutler, Congregationalist Minister, Anglican Priest, and Rector of Yale College; Daniel Browne, Educator, Congregationalist Minister, and Anglican Priest; and James Wetmore, Congregationalist Minister and Anglican Priest)

• Baptisms of Manteo and Virginia Dare, 1587
• Eusebius of Rome, Bishop of Rome, and Martyr, 310
• George Croly, Anglican Priest, Poet, Historian, Novelist, Dramatist, Theologian, and Hymn Writer
• William James Early Bennett, Anglican Priest

18 (Artemisia Bowden, African-American Educator and Civil Rights Activist)

• Erdmann Neumeister, German Lutheran Minister and Hymn Writer
• Francis John McConnell, U.S. Methodist Bishop and Social Reformer
• Jonathan Friedrich Bahnmaier, German Lutheran Minister and Hymn Writer
• Petter Dass, Norwegian Lutheran Minister, Poet, and Hymn Writer

19 (Sixtus III, Bishop of Rome)

• Blaise Pascal, French Roman Catholic Scientist, Mathematician, and Theologian
• Geert Groote, Founder of the Brethren of the Common Life
• Ignaz Franz, German Roman Catholic Priest, Hymn Writer, and Hymnal Editor
• Magnus and Agricola of Avignon, Roman Catholic Bishops of Avignon
• William Hammond, English Moravian Hymn Writer

20 (ZACCHAEUS, PENITENT TAX COLLECTOR AND ROMAN COLLABORATOR)

21 (Bruno Zembol, Polish Roman Catholic Friar and Martyr, 1942)

• Camerius, Cisellus, and Luxorius of Sardinia, Martyrs, 303
• Martyrs of Edessa, Circa 304
• Maximilian of Antioch, Martyr, Circa 353; and Bonosus and Maximianus the Soldier, Martyrs, 362
• Victoire Rasoamanarivo, Malagasy Roman Catholic Laywoman

22 (Jack Layton, Canadian Activist and Federal Leader of the New Democratic Party)

• John David Chambers, Anglican Hymn Writer and Translator
• Hryhorii Khomyshyn, Symeon Lukach, and Ivan Slezyuk, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Bishops and Martyrs, 1947, 1964, and 1973
• John Kemble and John Wall, English Roman Catholic Priests and Martyrs, 1679
• Thomas Percy, Richard Kirkman, and William Lacey, English Roman Catholic Martyrs, 1572 and 1582

23 (Martin de Porres and Juan Macias, Humanitarians and Dominican Lay Brothers; Rose of Lima, Humanitarian and Dominican Sister; and Turibius of Mogrovejo, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Lima)

• Franciszek Dachtera, Polish Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1944
• Theodore O. Wedel, Episcopal Priest and Biblical Scholar; and his wife, Cynthia Clark Wedel, U.S. Psychologist and Episcopal Ecumenist
• Thomas Augustine Judge, U.S. Roman Catholic Priest; Founder of the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity, the Missionary Servants of the Most Blessed Trinity, and the Missionary Cenacle Apostolate

24 (BARTHOLOMEW THE APOSTLE, MARTYR)

25 (Michael Faraday, English Scientist)

• Andrea Bordino, Italian Roman Catholic Lay Brother
• María del Tránsito de Jesús Sacramentado, Founder of the Congregation of the Franciscan Tertiary Missionaries of Argentina
• Maria Troncatti, Italian Roman Catholic Nun
• William John Copeland, Anglican Priest and Hymn Translator

26 (John Paul I, Bishop of Rome)

• Frederick William Herzberger, U.S. Lutheran Minister, Humanitarian, and Hymn Translator
• Levkadia Harasymiv, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Nun, and Martyr, 1952
• Luigi Beltrame Quattrocchi and Maria Corsini Beltrame Quattrocchi, Italian Roman Catholic Humanitarians
• Teresa of Jesus, Jornet y Ibars, Catalan Roman Catholic Nun and Co-Founder of the Little Sisters of the Abandoned Elderly

27 (Thomas Gallaudet and Henry Winter Syle, Episcopal Priests and Educators of the Deaf)

• Amadeus of Clermont, French Roman Catholic Monk; and his son, Amadeus of Lausanne, French-Swiss Roman Catholic Abbot and Bishop
• Dominic Barberi, Roman Catholic Apostle to England
• Henriette Luise von Hayn, German Moravian Hymn Writer

28 (Ambrose of Milan, Roman Catholic Bishop; Monica of Hippo, Mother of Saint Augustine of Hippo; and Augustine of Hippo, Roman Catholic Bishop of Hippo Regius)

• Denis Wortman, U.S. Dutch Reformed Minister and Hymn Writer
• George Thomas Coster, English Congregationalist Minister, Hymn Writer, and Humanitarian
• Laura S. Coperhaver, U.S. Lutheran Hymn Writer and Missionary Leader
• Moses the Black, Roman Catholic Monk, Abbot, and Martyr

29 (BEHEADING OF SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST)

30 (Jeanne Jugan, Founder of the Little Sisters of the Poor)

• Carlton C. Buck, U.S. Disciples of Christ Minister, Musician, and Hymn Writer
• Edmond L. Budry, Swiss Reformed Minister, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator
• Gerald Kennedy, U.S. Methodist Bishop and Hymn Writer
• John Leary, U.S. Roman Catholic Social Activist and Advocate for the Poor and Marginalized
• Karl Otto Eberhardt, German Moravian Organist, Music Educator, and Composer

31 (NICODEMUS, DISCIPLE OF JESUS)

 

Lowercase boldface on a date with two or more commemorations indicates a primary feast.