Vol 11 Issue 4 ~ Editor: Rev. Fr. Courtney Edward Krier
January 27, 2018 ~ Saint John Chrysostom, opn!

1. What is the Sacrament of Confirmation
2. Septuagesima Sunday
3. Saint Peter Nolasco
4. Family and Marriage
5. Articles and notices

Dear Reader:

This week I am introducing two new subjects. I want, first, to continue on the subject of the Sacraments, especially as the faithful have been confronted with various articles written since Vatican II that have brought confusion regarding both what the Sacrament is as also what is necessary for validity. Having lost the authority of an ordinary and the Holy Office to confirm or correct theological writings, a profusion of opinions have been disseminated without censure. In this series I will take up the teachings of the Church on Confirmation. As I hope the treatise on Baptism can be used as a compendium of reference to answer questions concerning that Sacrament, so I hope also to do the same for Confirmation.

The second new series will be in the Family section. Today it is necessary to remind our girls and young women what a woman is as the world they live in has completely lost any sense and rationality as to the dignity and role of a woman. There is no way one can accept a Manichean outlook of woman that places her beneath a man, or simply the maid or even the source of man’s downfall which some want to promote. There must be a true sensibility in treating the subject that allows these girls and young women to see their importance and role in life without demanding they feel responsible for man’s temptations, nor that they should assume the man’s position. The world will place woman on a pedestal as matriarch and prostitute and claim she can choose, because in both she is a goddess. The Church places the woman on a pedestal with the proclamation she is the mother of a child and a virgin, because she is a woman. The so-called Woman’s March should have horrified everyone when those marching and screaming obscenities represented not real women, but rather lesbians, child murderers and prostitutes—but the media tells our girls and young ladies that this is what, in their definition, a woman is supposed to be: a lesbian, child murderer and prostitute. Under these circumstances there must be an opposing voice that these, our girls and young women, can hear to support them in their natural inclination to be a woman as opposed to an environment that tells them what they are by nature is wrong, what the diabolical media and public schools tell them is right. It stands to be true that if our present mothers would cultivate womanly virtues in their girls, being first and foremost a model, it would be a foundation their daughters could build on.

As always, enjoy the readings and commentaries provided for your benefit. —The Editor

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WHAT IS THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION?

by Rev. Courtney Edward Krier

Introduction

The profession of faith in the Father, in the Son, and in the Holy Ghost is an essential faith in the Three Persons in One God and encompasses a comprehension of God and the relationship of man with the Godhead. Faith presents the unique relationship man is to have with each divine Person through the Sacraments of Baptism, Holy Eucharist, and Confirmation. Man establishes in Baptism his adopted sonship with the Father. He is united with the Son in Holy Communion through the Holy Eucharist. Man receives the Spirit of God in fullness through the Sacrament of Confirmation. In this sense, reception of these three sacraments are required to possess in completeness the union with the Three Divine Persons Christ came to establish—though Baptism only is the only Sacrament necessary for salvation.

Having spoken of Baptism in the treatise Baptism, Means of Salvation: Sacrament of Baptism (published 2015-16), this next treatise is directed toward the Sacrament of Confirmation. Though Confirmation is perhaps not as disputed as the Sacraments of Baptism, Holy Eucharist and Holy Orders, still it is of importance because it pertains to the three Sacraments which the Church has always held to be a requirement of reception by all Christians in the attainment of Christian perfection along with Baptism and Holy Eucharist. These three, Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Eucharist have been called Sacraments of Christian Initiation since in the Early Church (and even till today in the Oriental Rites) all three were received at the same time (the beginning, or initiation, of a Christian’s life); and in the Latin Rite, if an adult is baptised and a bishop is present, the bishop administers Confirmation and the baptized adult then receives Holy Communion at Mass immediately following up to this day, thereby still receiving all three Sacraments.

First come the three sacraments of Christian initiation, those that make a man purely and simply a Christian: Baptism corresponds to birth; Confirmation, which sanctions growth and the attainment of the adult state, corresponds to the Christian’s social capacity; the Eucharist is the food without which life cannot be sustained and perfected. (Henry, 27)

This threefold reception is mirrored when one observes that the Last Rites—Penance, Holy Viaticum, and Extreme Unction—are all administered at the same time.

Confirmation also has significance, for being the Sacrament of the Holy Ghost, the topic of the Holy Ghost must also be undertaken to have a clearer understanding of this Sacrament in relation to that of Baptism.

Finally, in the desire to have all Catholics receive this Sacrament (cf. CIC 787), Confirmation deserves to be presented more earnestly to all the faithful to instill in them the necessity to seek the opportunity to obtain its reception despite the scarcity of bishops and lack of Catholic schools. Since the sacramental graces bestowed are necessary, not only in the ordinary life of a Catholic, but more so when the Catholic is confronted with a daily battle for persevering in faith, a deeper understanding to cooperate with the grace of the Sacrament is of utmost importance. May Our Lady, the spouse of the Holy Ghost, intercede for her children whom Christ has entrusted to her on Calvary.

I

The Holy Ghost and Grace

When one speaks of the Holy Ghost, one must first understand that a comprehension of the Holy Ghost cannot be encapsulated in the ideas of images used to express His presence. As one reads at the Baptism of Our Lord, recorded by all four Evangelists, the Holy Ghost descended above Him in the form of a dove:

And Jesus being baptized, forthwith came out of the water: and lo, the heavens were opened to him: and he [John the Baptist] saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon him. And behold a voice from heaven, saying: This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (Matt. 3:16-17; cf. Mark 1:10, Luke 3:22 and John 1:32).

In this vision John the Baptist recognized that the Holy Ghost descended in the appearance of a dove as a visible manifestation of His presence, not that the Holy Ghost was a dove. The dove is a biblical symbol of love and peace, which allows us to identify the Holy Ghost’s presence. In the opening words of the Book of Jonas (1:1), one reads: Now the word of the Lord came to Jonas the son of Amathi. Though the writing is of an historical event, the words utilized are not without significance. Jonas is Hebrew for dove, and Amathi is a form of ‘emeth, meaning Truth (from which is derived the Aramaic word, amen—truly or verily). Christ speaks of the Holy Ghost as the Spirit of Truth (cf. John 14:17, 15:26 and 16:13; also 1 John 4:6.). One can also understand Jonas as a lover of truth, or a wise man (philosophia). Even before, it is the dove that brings the olive branch to Noe, a sign that peace was re-established between God and man: And having waited yet seven other days, he again sent forth the dove out of the ark. And she came to him in the evening, carrying a bough of an olive tree, with green leaves, in her mouth. Noe therefore understood that the waters were ceased upon the earth. (Gen. 8:10-11) As Holy Scripture has used the dove to manifest the presence of the Holy Ghost, so the Church continues to use this symbol. It is not the only symbol, wind or breath is also a symbol, but it is not so easily expressed in a visible form. One reads in the opening of Genesis (1:2): And the earth was void and empty, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God moved over the waters. The Hebrew for spirit is rū-aḥ (ר֣וּחַ) meaning wind or breath, as one reads in Ezechiel 37:1ff, where the Hebrew word is used interchangeably according to context:

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and brought me forth in the spirit of the Lord: and set me down in the midst of a plain that was full of bones. And he led me about through them on every side: now they were very many upon the face of the plain, and they were exceeding dry. And he said to me: Son of man, dost thou think these bones shall live? And I answered: O Lord God, thou knowest. And he said to me: Prophesy concerning these bones; and say to them: Ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will send spirit [breath] into you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to grow over you, and will cover you with skin: and I will give you spirit and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord. And I prophesied as he had commanded me: and as I prophesied there was a noise, and behold a commotion: and the bones came together, each one to its joint. And I saw, and behold the sinews, and the flesh came up upon them: and the skin was stretched out over them, but there was no spirit in them. And he said to me: Prophesy to the spirit [wind], prophesy, O son of man, and say to the spirit [wind]: Thus saith the Lord God: Come, spirit [breath], from the four winds, and blow upon these slain, and let them live again. And I prophesied as he had commanded me: and the spirit came into them, and they lived: and they stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.

The commentary in the Challoner Douay-Rheims reminds the reader, Spirit: That is, soul, life, and breath. The presence of God’s Life is also expressed by fire: And the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he saw that the bush was on fire and was not burnt. (Exod. 3:2) Again, Exodus states: And the Lord went before them to shew the way by day in a pillar of a cloud, and by night in a pillar of fire: that he might be the guide of their journey at both times. (13:21) As Moses received the Commandments on Mount Sinai, commemorated in the feast of Pentecost (Shavuot), where the Law was written on stone, sealing the Old Covenant, with loud noise and fire, And all mount Sinai was on a smoke: because the Lord was come down upon it in fire, and the smoke arose from it as out of a furnace: and all the mount was terrible (Exod. 19:18), so it was appropriate the Holy Ghost should be given on Pentecost in fire and noise to write the Law on hearts and seal the New Covenant: And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty wind coming, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting, and there appeared to them parted tongues as it were of fire, and it sat upon every one of them (Acts 2:2-3). As one reads in Deuteronomy 4:24: The Lord thy God is a consuming fire, a jealous God; and, again, in Canticles 8:6: Put me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy as hard as hell, the lamps thereof are fire and flames.

Our Lord did not want to simply leave His Apostles with the concept imagery to understand the Holy Ghost. Rather, Christ expressly explained to them while giving His discourse at the Last Supper that the Holy Ghost, the third Person in God, was to be understood as a Person. Instructing the Apostles to expect the coming of the Holy Ghost, Our Lord said His Spirit would be a Paraclete (John 14:16; 15:26; 16:7), an Advocate, a Consoler, a Teacher, and a Protector. When one reflects who is a consoler, an advocate, a teacher, a protector in one’s life, it is acknowledge that it is one’s best friend. In this way, Our Lord indicates the Holy Ghost should be understood. One would fail to communicate with the Holy Ghost if one conceived Him as simply a dove or phantom (Ghost) as some may interpret Ghost. We must realize the word, Ghost or Spirit, is from the Greek word meaning life, and the Holy Ghost is not a personification of life, but is Life everlasting.

The Holy Ghost is equal with the Father and Son. He is co-eternal. He proceeds from the Father and the Son, not in time, but in the nature of God. In this sense Our Lord said: I will ask the Father, and he shall give you another Paraclete, that he may abide with you for ever. . .But the Paraclete, the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring all things to your mind, whatsoever I shall have said to you. (John 14:16, 26).

This introduces the next consideration: Grace. Grace is a gift and the word, grace, used in the theological sense, indicates that it is a gift from God. The greatest gift from God is His love, which establishes a relationship that makes a person His adopted child. The grace, called sanctifying grace, is a participation in His Divine Life for the person receives His Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost. As the Holy Ghost is given through the Sacrament of Baptism, His Life in the person increases as the gift of His Love increases—which is an increase in sanctifying grace. It is true that God gives other gifts, called actual grace, that helps the person to do good and avoid evil, such as the grace of faith, or hope. But these cease when one is in heaven (cf. 1 Cor. 13:8, 13).

With this explanation, we hopefully can better understand the work of the Holy Ghost in the Sacrament of Confirmation.

(To be continued)

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Dr. Pius Parsch

The Church’s Year of Grace (1957)

SEPTUAGESIMA SUNDAY

Station at St. Lawrence

God invites us to enter the vineyard of His Kingdom

From the Roman Martyrology: “The Sunday of Septuagesima; from this day on the praise of God with Alleluia is discontinued.”

1. Septuagesima—Seventy. Whatever the historical explanation for this name may be, the term itself links the Sunday to the central feast of the Church year, Easter. Accordingly it forms the first step in the process of preparation for Easter. During the Middle Ages, when allegory stood in good repute, people frequently associated this period with the seventy-year Babylonian captivity of the Old Testament. Like the Jews we now hang our alleluia-harps on the willow trees.

The Easter season must affect our life more profoundly than Christmas did. Now we are to be transformed into a new nation; we are to be baptized anew and become God’s new handiwork. The morning of this great day of conversion has arrived. We can understand, then, why the Church hastens to give us a program for the coming weeks.

She places before us five considerations: a) we must realize once again that we are sinners; our first objective must be to acquire a deep consciousness of sin. Therefore, as we enter God’s house, the Church puts these words on our lips, “The groans of death have surrounded me, the pains of hell have laid hold on me” (Intr.). In the Office we read of Adam’s fall. Yet this awareness of sin is not without hope, for we are likewise conscious of redemption, “Then in my distress I called upon the Lord, and from His holy temple He heard my voice.” Already from a distance we see the gleam of the Easter moon.

b) The second consideration is God’s invitation. God, the Father and Lord of the vineyard, is calling for workers. How consoling! It is never too late. He directs His call to every age group; whether you are a child, a young boy or girl, a man or woman, or one advanced in years—you are now invited. Accept the summons!

c) Today we are given a preview of our task as Christians. It is not a life of ease, of dolce far niente, but hard work in the heat of day, a close contest on the race track. And in order to teach us this lesson vividly, the Church takes us to the grave of the great fighter, St. Lawrence. His battle for Christ on the grill should become our model.

d) During the struggle the wreath of victory beckons; the laborer deserves his pay. The Gospel penny is eternal life, the unwithering wreath of heavenly glory. If the children of this world expend so much effort to obtain a garland that withers, what ought we not do to acquire an eternal crown?

e) Finally the Church sets a warning sign at the entrance to the Easter cycle. You are now approaching that which is most sacred: baptism and Eucharist, the heart of the paschal mystery. Woe unto you, if your life fails to correspond to God’s will; then you will fare as did the fathers in the desert. They too received a baptism and a heavenly food, but they died in the wilderness, they never saw the Promised Land.

2. Holy Mass (Circumdederunt). We gather at the grave of St. Lawrence, the approach to the martyr’s tomb creating the proper spirit. What difference between last Sunday’s Introit and today’s! There joy, a picture of the Epiphany, here a dramatic initiation into the season of penance! Who is praying the Introit? It is Lawrence who is praying, Lawrence on the grill “in the groans of death and the torments of hell”; it is Christ who is praying, Christ, as He begins His bitter suffering; it is the Church and the soul of man who are praying, for the Church and the soul will be joined both to Lawrence and Christ by mortifying the flesh in the coming Lenten season. This Introit epitomizes the whole period of Lent, and already now permits a glimpse of Easter, “He heard my voice from His holy temple.”

Humbly we accept suffering as punishment for our sins (Coll.), while in the same breath we beg deliverance. The sentiments expressed presuppose a time of great distress; the prayer could well have been occasioned by the evils attendant upon the great migrations — (are conditions different today?).

The Epistle outlines our Lenten program. Christian life is a battle; two warriors are struggling for my soul, Christ and the devil. Christ must win. Lent is a period of conflict: we must fight our battles anew. By Easter the beginning of final victory must be ours. But let us look more deeply: see, Christ, the new David, steps into the arena to meet Goliath. His victory includes ours. In His triumph that of Lawrence too is contained. The figure may be extended to the great conflict of spirits which began with the exaltation of Lucifer and will not end until the end of time.

The Epistle contains still other thought units: the two paschal sacraments, baptism and the Eucharist, are at the heart of the coming season; through them the Church will be rejuvenated and renewed. Today we are warned against misuse of these sacraments; baptism and the Eucharist without moral conduct pleasing to God lead to destruction. In the Gradual man again stands in dire need of redemption, he is the “poor man” who looks up from the deep dungeon of sin to his Redeemer. How touching the De Profundis is as an expression of man’s longing for heaven!

The Gospel parable of the workers in the vineyard is a solemn invitation to begin work today in God’s kingdom of the soul. Why do you stand there idle? Do not look at other people; follow the call yourself! As the sacrifice proceeds I receive the strength needed for battle; with holy Communion I obtain in advance the wreath of victory with Lawrence, an earnest of the penny of heaven. Already the transfiguring light enveloping Lawrence is beginning to shine upon me.

The Secret was cast from the common mold; may God receive our gifts and prayers as a pledge of responding to us and purifying us through the heavenly mysteries. The Eucharist is, as it were, God’s shining face which turns towards us and effects our salvation and deliverance (Comm.). May the sacred repast bring strength to the faithful! For this reason they should always cherish a desire for the Eucharist and receive it frequently (Postc.).

The design attempts to illustrate Septuagesima’s leading themes. At the bottom we see what happened in paradise: our first parents are driven from the garden by the cherub with flaming sword. Behind them remain the tree of life and the lily of innocence. In their path are thorns and thistles, and beside them a hissing serpent. But there is still room for hope – already the Sun of redemption shines from afar. In the center picture our heavenly Father is inviting all of us into His vineyard. At top the station saint, Lawrence, encourages us ro fight the holy battle for the good of God’s kingdom by waving to us with crown and palm.

3. Scripture Reading (Gen. 1: 1-13). In the early Middle Ages three lessons from the first Book of Moses were solemnly read in choir at the end of Vespers. Thereby the Church wished to emphasize the significance of beginning anew the course of Scripture lessons as well as to express reverence for the old Law. With special devotion, then, we open to the first page of Genesis and read the first half of the creation account:

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth; the earth was waste and void; darkness covered the abyss, and the spirit of God was stirring above the waters.

God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. God saw that the light was good. God separated the light from the darkness, calling the light Day and the darkness Night. And there was evening and morning, the first day. . . . ”

This is not the proper place to discuss what is meant by the “days” of creation. With gratitude we accept God’s revelation, the kernel and essence of which is the dogma of creation. However, let us not overlook the beautiful symmetry displayed in the description. The six days are divided into two groups; the first three days show the work of separation, the last three that of ornamentation. In both groups a descending order is followed, viz., light, air, water, earth.

4. Divine Office. At Matins the readings from Genesis and the Gospel on the laborers in the vineyard are the two focal points to which all thoughts, like the radii of an ellipse, converge. All the responsories are from Genesis; this is an indication that the Church wants our attention to be riveted upon the doctrine of creation and the fall. Yesterday’s Magnificat antiphon, culled from Genesis, is brief and to the point: “The Lord said to Adam: Of the tree which stands in the middle of paradise you shall not eat. As soon as you taste of it, you shall certainly die.”

Here we stand, at the beginning of the story of salvation. It is the point from which all pain and sorrow goes forth upon the earth, likewise all salvation and happiness. Our thoughts pass to another tree in the midst of the kingdom of God, the tree upon which the second Adam died. From this tree comes fruit that contains God’s life within itself. The Magnificat antiphon links the Bible reading directly to the Lenten season. During the day the Church occupies our minds with the Gospel. She makes an effort to dramatize the parable by distributing the main events and words over the corresponding hours of the day. At Lauds, primo mane, we are engaged by God to work in the vineyard. At Prime God makes a contract with us and sends us out to work. At Terce, tertia hora, He invites the stragglers. At None, toward evening, He calls us to receive our pay. Vespers are the eleventh hour.

Two resolutions. The Scripture lessons describe the work of creation; daily the ferial Vesper hymn takes its inspiration from the Bible story and applies its message spiritually. Resolution: this week we will reflect carefully upon the individual days of creation following these hymns as our guide. The Gospel provides material for a second resolution. The parable of the workers in the vineyard is easily aligned with the Day Hours of the Divine Office. Beginning today we will give greater attention to these periods of prayer, and the theme that is proper to each.

5. The Sunday. Guided by divine inspiration Moses sacramentalized the week by making it a magnificent symbol of the work of creation. The seven days of work and rest are an imitation of as well as a participation in God’s creative activity. The Sabbath, the Lord’s day, typifies the eternal day of divine rest.

Christianity introduced a radical change by hallowing the beginning rather than the end of the seven day sequence. The Jew works and earns a day of rest as his reward. The Christian consecrates the initial day of the week as a firstfruit to God and thereby sanctifies all that follows. For this reason the weekdays are called feria, i.e., feast days. Sunday is dedicated to the most Blessed Trinity (therefore the Credo, Gloria, Athanasian Creed). God the Father, to whom the creation of the world is ascribed, receives special honor. On Sunday Jesus rose from the dead; the first Christians therefore called Sunday the Lord’s Day. On Sunday too the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the infant Church.

Our most profound insights into the meaning of Sunday derive from the Easter mystery. Easter is the feast of redemption par excellence, here objective and subjective redemption coalesce. In the Cross and resurrection the work of redemption is consummated; baptism, confirmation, and Eucharist are Easter sacraments. Every Sunday brings a renewal of baptism. Lastly, Sunday is a day of rest, a foretaste of the parousia.

The Sundays of the year play an important role in the expansion of God’s kingdom; on these days God exercises His pastoral work for the care of souls in a special manner. Do not miss the sacramental power inherent in this day consecrated to God. The special Sunday hymn reflects the work assigned to the first day, the creation of light; our thoughts dwell on divine light and spiritual darkness:

Night comes with all its darkling fears.

Regard Thy people’s prayers and tears

Lest, sunk in sin and whelmed with strife,

They lose the gift of endless life.

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28 *: ST PETER NOLASCO, FOUNDER OF THE ORDER OF OUR LADY OF RANSOM (A.D. 1258)

PETER, of the noble family of Nolasco in Languedoc, was born about the year 1189. At the age of fifteen he lost his father, who left him heir to a great estate; and he remained at home under the tutelage of a mother who encouraged all his good aspirations. Being solicited to marry, he set himself first to ponder seriously the vanity of earthly things; and rising one night full of those thoughts, he prostrated himself in prayer which continued till morning, consecrating himself to God in the state of celibacy and dedicating his whole patrimony to His service. Some authors affirm that Peter took part in the campaign of Simon de Montfort against the Albigenses. The count vanquished them, and in the battle of Muret defeated and killed Peter, King of Aragon, and took his son James prisoner, a child of six years old. The conqueror is further said to have given him Peter Nolasco, then twenty-five years old, for a tutor, and to have sent them both together into Spain. But it is now generally admitted that there is no adequate evidence for connecting St Peter with the Albigensian campaign or with the education of the future King James.

The Moors at that time were masters of a great part of Spain, and numbers of Christians who had been made slaves groaned under their tyranny both there and in Africa. Compassion for the poor had always been the distinguishing virtue of Peter. The pitiful spectacle of these unfortunates, and the consideration of the dangers to which their faith and virtue stood exposed under their Mohammedan masters, touched his heart, and he soon spent his estate in redeeming as many as he could. Whenever he saw any slaves, he used to say, “Behold eternal treasures which never fail”. By his fervent appeals he moved others to contribute large alms towards this charity, and at last formed the project of instituting a religious order to maintain a constant supply of men and means whereby to carry on so charitable an undertaking. This design encountered many difficulties; but it is said that our Lady appeared to St Peter, to the king of Aragon and to St Raymund of Peñafort in distinct visions on the same night, and encouraged them to carry the scheme into effect under the assurance of her patronage and protection. St Raymund was the spiritual director both of St Peter and of King James, and a zealous promoter of this work. The king declared himself the protector of the order, and assigned them quarters in his own palace by way of a commencement. On August 10, 1223 the king and St Raymund conducted St Peter to the church, and presented him to Berengarius, Bishop of Barcelona, who received his three religious vows, to which the saint added a fourth, to devote his whole substance and his very liberty, if necessary, to the work of ransoming slaves. The like vow was exacted of all his followers. St Raymund preached on the occasion, and declared that it had pleased Almighty God to reveal His will to King James, to Peter Nolasco and to himself, enjoining the institution of an order for the ransom of the faithful detained in bondage among the infidels. [Members of the Order of Our Lady of Ransom are commonly called Mercedarians: Spanish merced = ransom. They now engage in general apostolic and charitable work, though the vow to ransom captives is still taken at profession.] This was received by the people with acclamation. St Peter received the new habit from St Raymund, who established him first master general of the order, and drew up for it rules and constitutions. Two other gentlemen were professed at the same time with St Peter. When Raymund went to Rome, he obtained from Pope Gregory IX in 1235 the confirmation of the foundation and its rule.

King James having conquered the kingdom of Valencia, founded in it several houses of the order, one of which was in the city of Valencia itself. The town had been taken by the aid of Peter Nolasco’s prayers, when the soldiers had despaired of success, and it was in fact to the prayers of the saint that the king attributed the great victories which he obtained over the infidels, and the entire conquest of Valencia and Murcia. St Peter, touching the main work of the order, ordained that two members should always be sent together amongst the infidels, to treat about the ransom of captives, and they are hence called ransomers. One of the two employed at the outset in this way was the saint himself, and Valencia was the first place which was blessed with his labours; the second was Granada. He not only comforted and, ransomed a great number, but by his charity and example was the instrument of inducing many Mohammedans to embrace the faith of Christ. He made several other journeys to those regions of the coast of Spain which were held by the Moors, besides a voyage to Algiers, where he underwent imprisonment. But the most terrifying dangers could never make him desist from his endeavours for the conversion of the infidels, burning as he was with a desire of martyrdom.

St Peter resigned the offices of ransomer and master general some years before his death, which took place on Christmas day 1256. In his last moments he exhorted his religious to perseverance, and concluded with those words of the psalmist: “The Lord hath sent redemption to His people; He hath commanded His covenant for ever”. He then recommended his soul to God, appealing to the charity which brought Jesus Christ from Heaven to redeem us from the captivity of the Devil, and so died, being in the sixty-seventh year of his age. His relics were honoured by many miracles, and he was canonized in 1628.

(Butler’s Lives of the Saints)

Girls, you’re Important
Instructions for Catholic Girls

By the Reverend T. C. Siekmann

(1948)

Introduction

Every girl wants to get the most out of life, but not every girl knows just how to go about doing that. This little book is intended for you, girls, to help you realize your important place in the plan of God. It aims also to guide you in choosing the things that will make your own life happy, and that will make you pleasing and useful to others. There is no reason to live an unpleasant life when by following certain simple advice you can find happiness right now, and forever. Girls, you’re important. God has great plans for you.

T.C.S.

…

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