MEMORIAL OF SAINT JOHN HENRY NEWMAN, CARDINAL; SAINT DENIS, BISHOP AND COMPANIONS, MARTYRS; SAINT JOHN LEONARDI, PRIEST; SAINT LOUIS BERTRAND, PRIEST AND SAINT DIONYSIUS THE AREOPAGITE, BISHOP AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS – FEAST DAY – OCTOBER 9TH: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint John Henry Newman, Cardinal; Saint Denis, Bishop and Companions, Martyrs and Saint John Leonardi, Priest; Saint Louis Bertrand, Priest and Saint Dionysius the Areopagite, Bishop and his companions, Martyrs. Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for God’s Divine Grace and Mercy upon us all. We pray for the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable. We pray for the sick and dying, especially those who are mentally and physically ill 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. We pray for all widows and widowers. We pray for peace, love, 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 JOHN HENRY NEWMAN, CARDINAL: Saint John Henry Newman (1801 – 1890) was an English theologian, academic, intellectual, philosopher, polymath, historian, writer, scholar and poet, a convert to Catholicism. First an Anglican priest and later a Catholic priest and made a Cardinal. He was one of the great Christian intellectuals, who was an important and controversial figure in the religious history of England in the 19th century. St. John Henry Newman was born in London, United Kingdom in February 21, 1801. He was the eldest of six children born to Jemina Fourdrinier, John Newman, a nominal Protestant family in London, England. As a child he loved reading the Scriptures and experienced a conversion to Christianity at the age of fifteen. His spiritual quest having begun in adolescence, he later went on to study theology at Oxford University. He became a brilliant academic, an extremely influential Oxford scholar, and subsequently an Anglican priest. He was a fellow of Oriel College and leader in what was called the “Oxford Movement,” which studied the Catholic roots of the faith in England and argued for a revival of traditional religious practice in the Church of England. Once anti-Catholic in his religious sentiments, sentiments that were common in England, St. Newman was increasingly impacted by the Church Fathers and other Catholic writers. In 1842, while writing his “Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine”, he began to mature his conversion to Catholicism. His theological views gradually aligned with the Catholic Church in opposition to Anglican doctrine. Through his continued study of Church history he became unable to remain a Protestant in good faith. He made the decision to convert to Catholicism and was admitted into the Catholic Church in 1845, which exposed him to much ridicule in his academic and religious circles. Two years later he was ordained a Catholic priest in Rome on June 1, 1847. Following his ordination, and with the encouragement of Pope Pius IX, he founded the first Oratory of St. Philip Neri in England.
In 1852, St. Newman was appointed rector of the Catholic University of Dublin, Ireland, a post he held until 1854. Pope Leo XIII made him a cardinal in 1879 and he died on August 11, 1890, at the Oratory of Edgbaston, Birmingham, United Kingdom. The process for his beatification began in 1958. St. Newman’s miraculous intercession in the cure of Dean Jack Sullivan, who suffered a serious complaint of the spinal column, was officially recognized and approved by Benedict XVI in July 2009 and beatified on September 19, 2010. Pope Francis canonized John Henry Newman on October 13, 2019. St. John Henry Newman is remembered for his influential writings on theology and philosophy as well as his founding of the famous London Oratory. Newman wrote forty books and 21,000 letters, some of which had profound influence on the Second Vatican Council, making him one of the most important theologians of his day. His most famous work is his Apologia in which he defends his conversion to the truths of the Catholic Church. His feast day is October 9th.
Saint John Henry Newman, Cardinal ~ Pray for us 🙏
SAINT DENIS, BISHOP AND COMPANIONS, MARTYRS: St. Denis was born in Italy. About the middle of the 3rd century, in 250, St. Denis was sent to France with six other missionary Bishops by Pope Fabian to preach the faith in Gaul. St. Denis who brought the faith to Lutetia Parisiorum (the present Paris) and organized a church. St. Denis became the first bishop of Paris. In carrying out his duties as the first Bishop of Paris, he was aided by a priest named Rusticus and a deacon called Eleutherius. So effective were these holy men in converting the people to Christ that the pagan priests became alarmed over their loss of followers. At their instigation, the Roman governor arrested the missionaries, and after a long imprisonment the three servants of God suffered martyrdom together by beheading at a place called Vicus Catulliacus, the present St. Denis, during the persecution of Decius (250) of Valerian (258).
The site of their death provided the foundation for the Abbey of St. Denis which went on to become the burial place for the King of France. One of the many legends about St. Denis torture and death was that his body carried his severed head some distance from his execution site. St. Denis is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers who was invoked particularly in the Middle Ages against the Black Plague, emergencies or afflictions. He’s Patron Saint against frenzy; against strife; headaches; against diabolical possession; France; Paris, France.
PRAYER: God, You sent St. Denis and his Companions to proclaim Your glory to the nations and strengthened them with the virtue of constancy in their passion. Help us, after their example, to despite worldly prosperity and adversity. Amen 🙏
SAINT JOHN LEONARDI, PRIEST: St. John Leonardi (1541-1609), an Italian who studied to be a pharmacist, but became a priest is a model for today’s clergy. He was born in Tuscany, Italy in 1541, during the time of upheaval in the Church due to Martin Luther. From childhood he manifested a desire to seed solitude and give himself to prayer and meditation. He studied to be a pharmacist, then became a priest at the age of thirty-two and guided many youths in the way of perfection. As a young priest, he devoted himself to teaching catechism to youths. In 1574, he founded the Order of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca, a congregation of diocesan priests. The order was founded to convert sinners and restore Church discipline in Italy. He worked in hospitals and prisons caring for the sick, physically and spiritually. He suffered many tribulations for this work, including exile. A contemporary of St. Philip Neri and St. Joseph Calasanz, St. John labored zealously for the defense of the faith. St. Philip Neri, was a great friend and spiritual guide, and helped him particularly in his time of exile. Gradually his influence as a champion of the Catholic faith against Protestantism became known throughout Italy.
In 1603, St. John together with Cardinal Vives, he founded a Vatican department, the College of the Propaganda in Rome, what became the Institute De Propaganda Fide (Society for the Propagation of the Faith) and the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine for the promotion of the Catholic Faith and the formation of missionaries. St. John Leonardi died at Rome on October 9, 1609, while caring for the victims of the great plague and was canonized in 1938 by Pope Pius XI. He is the Patron Saint of Pharmacists, Clerics Regular of the Mother of God, Lucca.
PRAYER: God, the Giver of all good things, You had the Gospel preached to the people through St. John, Your Priest. Grant, through his intercession, that the true faith may spread always and everywhere. Amen 🙏
SAINT LOUIS BERTRAND, PRIEST: St. Louis Bertrand (1526 – 1581), priest, missionary, confessor was a Spanish Dominican friar who preached in South America during the 16th century, and is known as the “Apostle to the Americas”. He was born at Valencia, in Spain, on January 1, 1526, of the same family as St. Vincent Ferrer. In 1545, after severe trials, he was professed in the Dominican Order, and at the age of twenty-five was made master of novices, and trained up many great servants of God. When the plague broke out in Valencia he devoted himself to the sick and dying, and with his own hands buried the dead. In 1562 he obtained leave to embark for the American mission, and there converted vast multitudes to the Faith. He was favored with the gift of miracles, and while preaching in his native Spanish was understood in various languages. After seven years he returned to Spain, to plead the cause of the oppressed Indians, but he was not permitted to return and labor among them. He spent his remaining days toiling in his own country, till at length, in 1580, he was carried from the pulpit in the Cathedral at Valencia to the bed from whence he never rose. He died on the day he had foretold-October 9, 1581.
Saint Louis Bertrand, Priest ~ Pray for us 🙏
SAINT DIONYSIUS THE AREOPAGITE, BISHOP AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS: Saint Dionysius the Areopagite was the first Bishop of Athens and of Paris. Born during the first century AD, Dionysius grew up in a wealthy Athenian family. Before his conversion to Christianity, he was known to have studied both in Greece and abroad. When Dionysius heard Paul preach on Christ on the Areopagus Hill in Athens, he recalled this experience which reinforced his conviction that Paul was speaking the truth on Christ as the Savior of the World. Saint Dionysius or Denys the Areopagite was converted by Saint Paul in Athens, he carried the Faith farthest into the west, fixing his see at Paris. France claims him as one of her greatest glories. He was baptized, with his family in 52 AD. His acceptance of Christ is referred to in Acts 17:34.
Historical accounts wrote that when St. Dionysius learned that the Mother of Christ, Mary, lived in Jerusalem, he travelled to Jerusalem to meet her. When Dionysius learned the news that Saint Paul had been executed by beheading outside Rome, he wholeheartedly desired to sacrifice his own life to honor Jesus. Along with his friends Eleutherius and Rusticus, Dionysius made the courageous decision to go and preach Jesus’ Gospel openly in public. After managing to convert many pagans to Christianity, St. Dionysius, the former judge, along with Eleutherius and Rusticus, were finally beheaded during the reign of Emperor Domitian, in 96 AD. Saint Dionysius the Areopagite is the patron saint of the city of Athens, and is also known as the protector of judges and the judiciary.
Saint Dionysius the Areopagite, Bishop and His Companions, Martyrs ~ Pray for us 🙏