MEMORIAL OF SAINT CLEMENT I, POPE AND MARTYR; SAINT COLUMBAN, ABBOT AND BLESSED MIGUEL AGUSTIN PRO, PRIEST AND MARTYR – FEAST DAY ~ NOVEMBER 23RD: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Clement I, Pope and Martyr; Saint Columban, Abbot and Blessed Miguel Agustín Pro, Priest and Martyr. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and all the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for God’s deliverance from impossible causes or situations. We pray for the sick and dying, especially sick children, those who are mentally and physically ill, strokes, heart diseases, and those suffering from cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for the souls in Purgatory and the repose of the souls of the faithful departed and we pray for all widows and widowers. We pray for torture victims, the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world. We pray for all parents and children, for peace, love, justice and unity in our marriages, our families and our world. And we continue to pray for our Holy Father, the Bishops, the Clergy, for vocations to the priesthood and religious life, for the Church, for persecuted christians, for the conversion of sinners, and Christians all over the world… Amen🙏
SAINT CLEMENT I, POPE AND MARTYR: St. Clement I of Rome (92-101), also known as Pope St. Clement I, was one of the first popes; according to St. Ireneus, he was the third after St. Peter. He is considered the first Apostolic Father of the Church. He is mentioned by name in the Bible by the Apostle Paul in Philippians 4:3 as his companion. St. Clement is also said to be one of the band of seventy followers of Jesus’ ministry as described in the Gospels. Clement was a disciple of St. Peter and was ordained by him, and became the fourth Bishop of Rome. Of his life and death little is known, but he has left one definite writing: a letter to the Church in Corinth, Greece. St. Clement most probably died as a martyr. St. Clement’s letter to the Corinthians is authentic; in it he authoritatively intervenes in that strife-torn community, a memorable act in the early history of the papacy.
The breviary gives these legendary details. Because of his zeal for souls, Pope Clement was banished to distant Chersonese; there he found two-thousand Christians who had received a similar sentence. When he came to these exiles he comforted them. “They all cried with one voice: Pray for us, blessed Clement, that we may become worthy of the promises of Christ. He replied: Without any merit of my own, the Lord sent me to you to share in your crowns.” When they complained because they had to carry the water six miles, he encouraged them, “Let us all pray to the Lord Jesus Christ that He may open to His witnesses a fountain of water.” “While blessed Clement was praying, the Lamb of God appeared to him; and at His feet a bubbling fountain of fresh water was flowing.” Seeing the miracle, “All the pagans of the neighborhood began to believe.”
When Trajan heard of these marvels, he ordered St. Clement to be drowned with an iron anchor about his neck. “While he was making his way to the sea, the people cried with a loud voice: Lord Jesus Christ, save him! But St. Clement prayed in tears: Father, receive my spirit.” At the shore the Christians asked God to give them the body. The sea receded for three miles and there they found the body of the saint in a stone coffin within a small marble chapel; alongside lay the anchor. “You have given a dwelling to Your martyr Clement in the sea, O Lord, a temple of marble built by the hands of angels.” The body was taken to Rome under Nicholas 1 (858-867) by Sts. Cyril and Methodius and placed in a church dedicated to his honor (S. Clemente). The Basilica of St. Clement is one of the earliest parish churches of Rome and was built on the site of his home. This is one of the most venerable of the churches in Rome because it retains all the liturgical arrangements of ancient times. He’s Patron Saint of Boatmen; marble workers; mariners; sailors; sick children; stonecutters; watermen. His feast day is celebrated on November 23rd.
PRAYER: Almighty and ever-living God, You show forth Your glory in the strength of Your Saints. Help us to be filled with joy in the annual celebration of St. Clement who by his death bore witness to the Death of Jesus, which he proclaimed and which he commemorated in the sacrifice of the Mass. Amen 🙏
SAINT COLUMBAN, ABBOT: St. Columban was born in West Leinster, Ireland, sometime between 540 and 550, and decided when he was a youth, to dedicate himself to God despite his mother’s opposition. He lived for a time on Cluain Iris, an island in Lough Erne, with a monk named Sinell, and then became a monk at Bangor. With twelve other monks he was sent as a missionary to Gaul about 585. He built his first monastery at Annegray about 590, and it was so successful that he followed with two more, at Luxeuil and Fontes (Fontaines). Soon his followers spread all over Europe, building monasteries in France, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy. He aroused much opposition, especially from the Frankish bishops, by the Celtic usages he installed in his monasteries and for refusing to acknowledge bishops’ jurisdiction over them. He defended his practices in letters to the Holy See and refused to attend a Gallican synod at Chalons in 603 when summoned to explain his Celtic usages.
In 610 King Theodoric II of Burgundy, angered by Columban’s denunciation of his refusal to marriage and his practice of keeping concubines, ordered all Irish monks banished from his realm. Columban was shipwrecked on the way to Ireland but was offered refuge by King Theodebert II of Neustria at Metz and began to evangelize the Alemanni in the area around Bregenz on Lake Constance. Though successful, he was again banished in 612, when Burgundy warred against and conquered Neustria; Theodoric now ruled over the area in which Columban was working. Columban decided to flee his old adversary and crossed the Alps to Italy, where he was welcomed to Milan by Arian King Agilulf of the Lombards. Columban founded a monastery at Bobbio, between Milan and Genoa, which became one of the great monasteries of its time—a center of culture, learning, and spirituality. He died there on November 23. Columban wrote his Monastic Rule, sermons, poetry, and treatises against Arianism. He’s Patron Saint against floods; motorcyclists
PRAYER: God, in St. Columban You joined the gift of proclaiming the Gospel with a love for the monastic life. Through his intercession and example, help us to seek You above all things and labor to increase the company of believers. Amen.🙏
BLESSED MIGUEL AGUSTIN PRO, PRIEST AND MARTYR: Miguel Pro was born January 13, 1891, at Guadalupe Zacatecas, Mexico. From his childhood, high spirits and happiness were the most outstanding characteristics of his personality. The loving and devoted son of a mining engineer and a pious and charitable mother, Miguel had a special affinity for the working classes which he retained all his life. At 20, he became a Jesuit novice and shortly thereafter was exiled because of the Mexican revolution. He traveled to the United States, Spain, Nicaragua and Belgium, where he was ordained a priest on August 31, 1925. Father Pro suffered greatly from a severe stomach problem and when, after several operations his health did not improve, in 1926 his superiors allowed him to return to Mexico in spite of the religious persecution in the country. The churches were closed and priests were in hiding. Father Pro spent the rest of his life in a secret ministry to the sturdy Mexican Catholics. In addition to fulfilling their spiritual needs, he also carried out the works of mercy by assisting the poor of Mexico City with their temporal needs. He adopted many disguises to carry out his secret ministry. In all that he did, he remained filled with the joy of serving Christ, his King, and obedient to his superiors.
Falsely accused in a bombing attempt on the President-elect, Pro became a wanted man. He was betrayed to the police and sentenced to death without the benefit of any legal process. On the day of his death, Father Pro forgave his executioners, prayed, bravely refused the blindfold, and died proclaiming “Viva Cristo Rey!” (Long Live Christ the King!). The sentence was carried out by shooting on November 23, 1927. Known for his religious piety and innocence, Miguel was beatified by Pope John Paul II as a Catholic martyr on September 25, 1988.
PRAYER: Lord, You gave Blessed Miguel the grace to seek Your glory and the salvation of souls. Through his prayers, may we serve and glorify You by faithfully performing our daily duties and helping our neighbors. Amen.🙏