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02 October 2020

St. Leger October 2

 St. Leger


Feastday: October 2

Birth: 615

Death: 679



Image of St. Leger

Leger was raised at the court of King Clotaire II and by his uncle, Bishop Didon of Poitiers. Leger was made archdeacon by Didon, was ordained, and in about 651, became abbot of Maxentius Abbey, where he introduced the Rule of St. Benedict. He served Queen Regent St. Bathildis and helped her govern when Clovis II died in 656, and was named bishop of Autun in 663. He reconciled the differing factions that had torn the See apart, introduced reforms, fortified the town, and was known for his concern for the poor. On the death of Clotaire III, he supported young Childeric II for King against his brother Thierry, who had been backed by Ebroin, mayor of the palace. Ebroin was exiled to Luxeuil and became a bitter enemy of Leger, who became Childeric's adviser. When Leger denounced the marriage of Childeric to his uncle's daughter, he also incurred the enmity of Childeric, and in 675 Leger was arrested at Autun and banished to Luxeuil. When Childeric was murdered in 675, his successor, Theodoric III, restored Leger to his See. Ebroin was also restored as mayor of the palace after he had had the incumbent Leudesius murdered and pursuaded the Duke of Champagne and the bishops of Chalons and Valence to attack Autun. To save the town, Leger surrendered. Ebroin had him blinded, his lips cut off, and his tongue pulled out. Not satisfied, several years, he convinced the King that Childeric had been murdered by Leger and his brother Gerinus. Gerinus was stoned to death, and Leger was tortured and imprisoned at Fecamp Monastery in Normandy. After two years Leger was summoned to a court at Marly by Ebroin, deposed, and executed at Sarcing, Artois, protesting his innocence to the end. Though the Roman Martyrology calls him Blessed and a martyr, there is doubt among many scholars that he is entitled to those honors. His feast day is October 2.


Leodegar of Poitiers (Latin: Leodegarius; French: Léger; c. 615 – October 2, 679 AD) was a martyred Burgundian Bishop of Autun. He was the son of Saint Sigrada and the brother of Saint Warinus.


Leodegar was an opponent of Ebroin, the Frankish Mayor of the Palace of Neustria and the leader of the faction of Austrasian nobles in the struggle for hegemony over the waning Merovingian dynasty. His torture and death made him a martyr and saint.[1]



Early life

Leodegar was the son of a high-ranking Burgundian nobleman, Bodilon, Count of Poitiers and Paris and Sigrada of Alsace, who later became a nun at Sainte-Marie de Soissons. His brother was Warinus.[1]


He spent his childhood in Paris at the court of Clotaire II, King of the Franks and was educated at the palace school. When he was older he was sent to Poitiers, where there was a long-established cathedral school, to study under his maternal uncle, Desiderius (Dido), Bishop of Poitiers. At the age of 20 his uncle made him an archdeacon.[1]


Shortly afterwards he became a priest, and in 650, with the bishop's permission, became a monk at the monastery of St Maxentius in Poitou.[2] He was soon elected abbot, and initiated reforms including the introduction of the Benedictine rule.[1]


Career

Around 656, about the time of the usurpation of Grimoald in Austrasia and the banishment of the boy-heir Dagobert II, Leodegar was called to the Neustrian court by the widowed Queen Bathilde to assist in the government of the united kingdoms and in the education of her children. Then in 659 he was named to the see of Autun, in Burgundy. He again undertook the work of reform and held a council at Autun in 661. The council denounced Manichaeism and was the first to adopt the Trinitarian Athanasian Creed. He made reforms among the secular clergy and in the religious communities, and had three baptisteries erected in the city. The church of Saint-Nazaire was enlarged and embellished, and a refuge established for the indigent. Leodegar also caused the public buildings to be repaired and the old Roman walls of Autun to be restored.[3] His authority at Autun placed him as a leader among the Franco-Burgundian nobles.


Meanwhile, in 660 the Austrasian nobles demanded a king, and young prince Childeric II was sent to them through the influence of Ebroin, the mayor of the palace in Neustria. The queen withdrew, from a court that was Ebroin's in all but name, to an abbey she had founded at Chelles, near Paris. On the death of King Clotaire III in 673, a dynastic struggle ensued, with rival claimants as pawns; Ebroin raised Theoderic to the throne, but Leodegar and the other bishops supported the claims of his elder brother Childeric II, who, by the help of the Austrasians and Burgundians, was eventually made king. Ebroin was interned at Luxeuil and Theoderic sent to St. Denis.[3]


Leodegar remained at court, guiding the young king. In 673 or 675, however, Leodegar was also sent to Luxeuil. The cause, a protest against the marriage of Childeric and his first cousin, is a hagiographic convention;[4] as a leader of the Austrasian and Burgundian nobles, Leodegar was easily represented as a danger by his enemies. When Childeric II was murdered at Bondi in 675, by a disaffected Frank, Theoderic III was installed as king in Neustria, making Leudesius his mayor. Ebroin took advantage of the chaos to make his escape from Luxeuil and hasten to the court. In a short time Ebroin caused Leudesius to be murdered and became mayor once again, still Leodegar's implacable enemy.[3]



The martyrdom of St. Leger

About 675 the Duke of Champagne, the Bishop of Châlons-sur-Marne and the Bishop of Valence, stirred up by Ebroin, attacked Autun, and Leodegar fell into their hands. At Ebroin's instigation, Leodegar's eyes were gouged out and the sockets cauterized, and his tongue was cut out. Some years later Ebroin persuaded the king that Childeric had been assassinated at the instigation of Leodegar. The bishop was seized again, and, after a mock trial, was degraded and condemned to further exile, at Fécamp, in Normandy. Near Sarcing he was led out into a forest on Ebroin's order and beheaded.[5]


A dubious[4] testament drawn up at the time of the council of Autun has been preserved as well as the Acts of the council. A letter which he caused to be sent to his mother after his mutilation is likewise extant.


In 782, his relics were translated from the site of his death, Sarcing in Artois, to the site of his earliest hagiography – the Abbey of St Maxentius (Saint-Maixent) near Poitiers. Later they were removed to Rennes and thence to Ebreuil, which place took the name of Saint-Léger in his honour. Some relics are still kept in the cathedral of Autun and the Grand Séminaire of Soissons. In 1458 Cardinal Rolin caused his feast day to be observed as a holy day of obligation.


For sources to his biography, there are two early (though not contemporaneous) Lives,[6] drawn from the same lost source (Krusch 1891), and also two later ones (one of them in verse).


Cultural significance

Historically there was a custom among wealthy British merchants to sell in May, spend the summer outside of London, then to return on St Leger's Day. This gave rise to the saying used in regards to financial trading markets, "Sell in May and go away, and come on back on St. Leger's Day".[7]

St. Beregisius October 2

 St. Beregisius


Feastday: October 2

Death: 725

Confessor of Pepin of Heristal and founder of the abbey of Saint-Hubert in the Ardennes region of France. There is some doubt as to whether he was a monk.


St. Eleutherius of Nicomedia October 2

St. Eleutherius of Nicomedia


Feastday: October 2

Death: 303

A


A soldier in the army of co­Emperor Diocletian in Nicomedia. He was accused of setting fire to the emperor's palace and was burned to death after being tortured with companions.


St. Eleutherius of Nicomedia (died 303) was a soldier who was martyred under Diocletian. He was accused of trying to burn the palace of Diocletian. His feast day is October 2.[1] 

Bl. Francis Chakichi October 2

 Bl. Francis Chakichi


Feastday: October 2

Death: 1622


Four-year-old martyr of Japan. He was beheaded in Nagasaki, Japan, with his mother, Blessed Lucy, and his brother Blessed Andrew. His father, Blessed Louis, was burned at the stake. He was beatified in 1867.

St. Gerinus October 2

 St. Gerinus


Feastday: October 2

Death: 676


Martyred brother of St. Leger or Leogarius. Ebroin, mayor of the palace, martyred the brothers. Gerinus was stoned to death near Arras, France.

St. Leudomer October 2

 St. Leudomer


Feastday: October 2

Death: 585




Bishop of Chartres, France. He is often listed as a Frenchman, and is sometimes called Lomer. No other details are extant.

Bl. Louis Shakichi October 2

 Bl. Louis Shakichi


Feastday: October 2

Death: 1622



 

Martyr of Japan, a layman who released Blessed Louis Flores from prison. Louis was burned alive in Nagasaki, and his wife and children were beheaded. He was beatified in 1867.


Bl. Lucy Chakichi October 2

 Bl. Lucy Chakichi


Feastday: October 2

Death: 1622


Martyr of Japan, the wife of Blessed Louis Chakichi. She was beheaded with her sons, Andrew and Francis, at Nagasaki, Japan. She was beatified in 1867

St. Theophilus October 2

 St. Theophilus


Feastday: October 2

Death: 750


Monk and martyr. Originally from Bulgaria, he joined a monastery in Asia Minor (modern Turkey) and was an outspoken opponent of the imperial policies of lconoclasticism. For this he was sent into exile by Emperor Leo III the Isaurian (r. 717-741) and was brutally mistreated.

St. Thomas of Hereford October 2

 St. Thomas of Hereford


Feastday: October 2

Death: 1282

Image of St. Thomas of Hereford

Bishop of Hereford, also called Thomas Cantilupe. Born at Buckinghamshire, England, circa 1218, he studied at Oxford, Paris, and Orleans. Returning to England, he became chancellor of Oxford University in 1261, using his influence to aid the barons in their struggle against King Henry III        (r. 1216-1272). In 1265, after the defeat of Henry's forces at the battle of Lewes, Thomas was named chancellor of England, although he was soon compelled to retire to Paris after the barons lost their grip on power. Returning to Oxford, he served once more as chancellor of the university in 1273. Two years later he was appointed bishop of Hereford, acquiring a wide reputation for sanctity and charity and serving as one of the most capable counselors of King Edward I (r. 1272-1307). He also was a stern opponent of simony and all forms of secular encroachment upon his episcopal rights. His relationship with Thomas John Peckham, archbishop of Canterbury, deteriorated over matters of jurisdiction, culminating in Thomas' excommunication by the archbishop in 1282. He appealed to the papal court but died before any decision was reached by the pope. Despite the controversy, Thomas was revered in England and miracles were reported at his tomb; in 1320, he was canonized.



"Modern" arms of Thomas de Cantilupe: Gules, three leopard's faces reversed jessant-de-lys or. These arms were subsequently assumed by the See of Hereford

Thomas de Cantilupe (c. 1218 – 25 August 1282) (alias Cantelow, Cantelou, Canteloupe, etc., Latinised to de Cantilupo)[2] was Lord Chancellor of England and Bishop of Hereford. He was canonised in 1320 by Pope John XXII.




Origins

Thomas was the third son of William II de Cantilupe (died 1251) (anciently Cantelow, Cantelou, Canteloupe, etc, Latinised to de Cantilupo), 2nd feudal baron of Eaton Bray in Bedfordshire,[3] who was steward of the household to King Henry III (as his father William I de Cantilupe (died 1239) had been to Henry's father King John). Thomas's mother was Millicent (or Maud) de Gournai (d.1260), a daughter of Hugh de Gournai and widow of Amaury VI of Montfort-Évreux (d. 1213), Earl of Gloucester.[4] He was born at Hambleden in Buckinghamshire, a manor belonging to his mother's first husband but awarded to her during her lifetime as her dowry.[5] Thomas's uncle was Walter de Cantilupe (d. 1266), Bishop of Worcester.


Career

Cantilupe was educated at Oxford, Paris and Orléans, and was a teacher of canon law at the University of Oxford, where he became Chancellor in 1261.[6]


During the Second Barons' War, Cantilupe favoured Simon de Montfort and the baronial party. He represented the barons before King Louis IX of France at Amiens in 1264.


On 25 February 1264, when he was Archdeacon of Stafford, Cantilupe was made Lord Chancellor of England,[7] but was deprived of the office after de Montfort's death at the Battle of Evesham, and lived abroad for a while. Following his return to England, he was again appointed Chancellor of Oxford University, where he lectured on theology and held several ecclesiastical appointments.[6]


Bishop of Hereford


Mandorla-shaped seal of Bishop Thomas de Cantilupe. Legend: TOMAS DEI GRATIA HEREFORDENSIS EP(ISCOPU)S (Thomas by the grace of God Bishop of Hereford). The arms of Cantilupe ancient are displayed on each side of the bishop: three fleurs-de-lys. Hereford Cathedral Archives 6460. He stands on a wolf (Latin lupus), a canting charge seen on pre-heraldic seals of the Cantilupe family[8]

In 1274 Cantilupe attended the Second Council of Lyons[9] and on 14 June 1275 he was appointed Bishop of Hereford, being consecrated on 8 September 1275.[10]


Cantilupe was now a trusted adviser of King Edward I and when attending royal councils at Windsor Castle or at Westminster he lived at Earley in Berkshire. Even when differing from the king's opinions, he did not forfeit his favour.


Cantilupe had a "great conflict" in 1290 with the "Red Earl", Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Gloucester, 6th Earl of Hertford, concerning hunting rights in Malvern, Worcestershire, and a ditch dug by de Clare. The issue was settled by costly litigation.[11]


After the death in 1279 of Robert Kilwardby, Archbishop of Canterbury, a friend of Cantilupe's, and formerly his confessor, a series of disputes arose between him and John Peckham, the new archbishop.[6] The disagreements culminated in Peckham excommunicating Cantilupe, who proceeded to Rome to pursue the matter with the pope.[12]


Death, burial, and canonisation


The restored tomb of Thomas de Cantilupe in Hereford Cathedral

Cantilupe died at Ferento, near Orvieto, in Italy, on 25 August 1282.[6][10] He is buried in Hereford Cathedral.[6] Part of the evidence used in his cause of canonisation was the supposed raising from the dead of William Cragh, a Welsh rebel who was hanged in 1290, eight years after Cantilupe's death. A papal inquiry was convened in London on 20 April 1307 to determine whether or not Cantilupe had died excommunicate, since this would have precluded his being canonised. Forty-four witnesses were called and various letters produced, before the commissioners of the inquiry concluded that Cantilupe had been absolved in Rome before his death.[12] It was difficult for his cause of death to be determined as much of his body had disintegrated.


After a papal investigation lasting almost 13 years, Cantilupe was canonised by Pope John XXII on 17 April 1320.[13] His feast day was fixed on 2 October.[14] His shrine became a popular place of pilgrimage, but only its base survived the Reformation until a new upper section (a feretory) was recently[when?] recreated under the guidance of architect Robert Chitham. The new section is in vivid colours with a painted scene of the Virgin and Child holding the Mappa Mundi. A reliquary containing his skull has been held at Downside Abbey in Somerset since 1881.


In the current Latin edition of the Roman Martyrology (2004 edition), Cantilupe is listed under 25 August as follows: "At Montefiascone in Tuscia, the passing of Saint Thomas Cantelupe, Bishop of Hereford in England, who, resplendent with learning, severe toward himself, to the poor however showed himself a generous benefactor".[15]


Legacy

Cantilupe appears to have been an exemplary bishop in both spiritual and secular affairs. His charities were large and his private life blameless. He was constantly visiting his diocese, correcting offenders and discharging other episcopal duties, and he compelled neighbouring landholders to restore estates which rightly belonged to the see of Hereford. Cantilupe has been lauded as the "Father of Modern Charity," and is cited as an inspiration by Mother Teresa and Melinda Gates.[16]


The Cantilupe Society was a text publication society founded in 1905 to publish the episcopal registers of the See of Hereford, of which Cantilupe's is the earliest to survive, and other records relating to the cathedral and diocese. It fell into abeyance after 1932.[17][18]


Cantilupe is referenced in Graham Greene's novel Travels With My Aunt (1969), when the narrator's sharp-tongued aunt opines "I would have thought he was very lucky to die in Orvieto rather than in Hereford. A small civilized place even today with a far, far better climate and an excellent restaurant in the Via Garibaldi."[19]

✠ புனிதர் லியோடெகர் அல்லது லெகர் ✠(St. Leodegar Or Leger)அக்டோபர் 2

† இன்றைய புனிதர் †
(அக்டோபர் 2)

✠ புனிதர் லியோடெகர் அல்லது லெகர் ✠
(St. Leodegar Or Leger)
ஆடொன் மறைமாவட்ட ஆயர் & மறைசாட்சி:
(Bishop of Autun & Martyr) 

பிறப்பு: கி.பி. 615
ஆடொன், ஸாவொன்-எட்-லொய்ர், பர்கண்டி, ஃபிரான்ஸ்
(Autun, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France) 

இறப்பு: அக்டோபர் 2, 679 
சார்சிங், சொம், பிக்கார்டி, ஃபிரான்ஸ்
(Sarcing, Somme, Picardie, France)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்: 
ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை
(Roman Catholic Church)
கிழக்கு மரபுவழி திருச்சபை
(Eastern Orthodox Church)

நினைவுத் திருநாள்: அக்டோபர் 2

பாதுகாவல்: 
குருட்டுத்தனத்திற்கு எதிராகத் தூண்டுதல்; கண் நோய்; கண் பிரச்சினைகள்;
ரணமான கண்கள்.

புனிதர் லியோடெகர் அல்லது லெகர், ஒரு மறைசாட்சியாக கொல்லப்பட்ட “பர்கண்டியன்” (Burgundian) “ஆடொன்” மறைமாவட்ட ஆயர் (Bishop of Autun) ஆவார்.

இவரது தந்தை “பர்கண்டி'யின்” உயர்குடியைச் சேர்ந்த “போடிலோன்” (Bodilon) ஆவார். இவரது தாயார், பின்னாளில் அருட்சகோதரியான “புனிதர் சிக்ராடா” (Saint Sigrada) ஆவார். புனிதர் “வாரினஸ்” (Saint Warinus) இவரது சகோதரர் ஆவார்.

அந்நாளில், “நியோஸ்ட்ரியா அரண்மனையின் ஃபிரான்கிஷ் மேயரான” (Frankish Mayor of the Palace of Neustria) 'எப்ராய்ன்' (Ebroin) என்பவருக்கு எதிராக லியோடெகர் செயல்பட்டதால் அவரால் சித்திரவதை செய்யப்பட்டு கொல்லப்பட்டார்.

தமது சிறுவயதை பாரிஸ் நகரில் செலவிட்ட லியோடெகர், அங்கே அரச அரண்மனையிலுள்ள பள்ளியில் கல்வி கற்றார். தமது பள்ளிக் கல்வியை நிறைவு செய்த லியோடெகர், அங்கிருந்து 'பாய்டியர்ஸ்' (Poitiers) எனும் நகரிலுள்ள பேராலய கல்விச் சாலைக்கு உயர் கல்விக்காக அனுப்பப்பட்டார். அங்கே அவர் 'பாய்டியர்ஸ்' மறைமாவட்ட ஆயரும் தமது ஞானத் தந்தையுமான “டெசிடேரிய'ஸின்” (Desiderius) மேற்பார்வையில் கல்வி கற்றார். பின்னர், அவரது இருபதாவது வயதில் அவரே லியோடெகாரை திருத்தொண்டராக்கினார்.

கி.பி. சுமார் 650ம் ஆண்டில் குருத்துவ அருட்பொழிவு பெற்ற லியோடெகர், தமது ஞானத்தந்தை “டெசிடேரிய'ஸின்” பரிந்துரையின்பேரில் “போய்ட்டோ” (Poitou) என்னும் நகரிலுள்ள “புனித மாக்சென்ஷியஸ்” துறவு மடத்தின்' (Monastery of St. Maxentius) மடாதிபதியாக பதவியேற்றார். அங்கே, அந்த துறவு மடத்தில் அவர் “பெனடிக்ட்டைன் ஆட்சிமுறையை” (Benedictine rule) அமல்படுத்தினார்.

கி.பி. 656ம் ஆண்டு, “ஆஸ்ட்ராசியா'வின்” (Austrasia) அரசன் “இரண்டாம் டகோபர்ட்டின்” (Dagobert II) மரணத்தின் பிறகு, அவருக்கு வாரிசுகள் யாருமில்லாததால், அவரது கைம்பெண்ணான “அரசி பட்டில்டா” (Queen Bathilde) தமது ஐக்கிய அரசின் ஆட்சியில் உதவவும், தமது பிள்ளைகளின் கல்விக்காகவும் லியோடெகரை அழைத்தார். அங்கே அரசியின் அரசாட்சியில் பலவிதமாக உதவிய லியோடெகர், மதச்சார்பற்ற மத குருமார்கள் மற்றும் மத சமூகங்கள் மீது பல சீர்திருத்தங்களைக் கொண்டுவந்தார்.

இதற்கிடையே, கி.பி. 660ம் ஆண்டு, “ஆஸ்ட்ராசியா” (Austrasia) பெருங்குடியினர், தமக்கு ஒரு அரசன் வேண்டுமென வேண்டுகோள் வைத்ததால், 'நியோஸ்ட்ரியா' மேயர் ''எப்ராய்னின்” பரிந்துரையால் அங்கே இளம் “இரண்டாம் சைல்டேறிக்” அனுப்பப்பட்டார். கி.பி. 673ம் ஆண்டு, “மூன்றாம் க்ளாடேய்ரின்” (Clotaire III) மரணம் காரணமாக அரசு உரிமை கோரி அங்கே ஒரு புரட்சிப் போராட்டம் வெடித்தது. எப்ராய்ன், “தியோடேரிக்” (Theoderic) ஆட்சிக்கு வர ஊக்குவித்தான். ஆனால், லியோடெகர் மற்றும் அங்குள்ள ஆயர்கள் அதற்கு எதிர்ப்பு தெரிவித்தனர். “தியோடேரிக்'கின்” மூத்த சகோதரர் “இரண்டாம் சைல்டேறிக்” அரசாள ஆதரவு தந்தனர். “தியோடேரிக்” அரசு பொறுப்பேற்றார். லியோடெகர் இளம் அரசருக்கு உதவ அங்கேயே தங்கினார்.

கி.பி. சுமார் 675ம் ஆண்டில் சில எதிர் ஆயர்கள் துணையுடன் லியோடெகருக்கு எதிராக கலகம் விளைவித்த எப்ராய்ன், லியோடெகரை கைது செய்வித்தான். எப்ராய்னின் தூண்டுதலின் பேரில், லியோடெகரின் கண்கள் பிடுங்கப்பட்டன. கால்கள் எரிக்கப்பட்டன. நாக்கு வெட்டப்பட்டது. அங்கேயுள்ள காட்டில் அவர் கொல்லப்பட்டார்.
† Saint of the Day †
(October 2)

✠ St. Leodegar ✠

French Bishop:

Born: 615 AD
Autun, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France

Died: October 2, 679
Sarcing, Somme, Picardie, France

Venerated in:
Roman Catholic Church
Eastern Orthodox Church

Major Shrine :
Cathedral of Autun and the Grand Séminaire of Soissons

Feast: October 2

Patronage:
Millers, Invoked against blindness, Eye disease, Eye problems, Sore eyes

St. Leodegar of Poitiers was a martyred Burgundian Bishop of Autun. He was the son of Saint Sagrada and the brother of Saint Warinus.

Leodegar was an opponent of Ebroin, the Frankish Mayor of the Palace of Neustria and the leader of the faction of Austrasian nobles in the struggle for hegemony over the waning Merovingian dynasty. His torture and death made him a martyr and saint.

Early life:
Leodegar was the son of a high-ranking Burgundian nobleman, Bodilon, Count of Poitiers and Paris and Sagrada of Alsace, who later became a nun at Sainte-Marie de Soissons. His brother was Warinus.

He spent his childhood in Paris at the court of Clotaire II, King of the Franks and was educated at the palace school. When he was older he was sent to Poitiers, where there was a long-established cathedral school, to study under his maternal uncle, Desiderius (Dido), Bishop of Poitiers. At the age of 20, his uncle made him an archdeacon.

Shortly afterwards he became a priest, and in 650, with the bishop's permission, became a monk at the monastery of St Maxentius in Poitou. He was soon elected abbot and initiated reforms including the introduction of the Benedictine Rule.

Career:
Around 656, about the time of the usurpation of Grimoald in Austrasia and the banishment of the boy-heir Dagobert II, Leodegar was called to the Neustrian court by the widowed Queen Bathilde to assist in the government of the united kingdoms and in the education of her children. Then in 659, he was named to the see of Autun, in Burgundy. He again undertook the work of reform and held a council at Autun in 661. The council denounced Manichaeism and was the first to adopt the Trinitarian Athanasian Creed. He made reforms among the secular clergy and in the religious communities and had three baptisteries erected in the city. The church of Saint-Nazaire was enlarged and embellished, and a refuge established for the indigent. Leodegar also caused the public buildings to be repaired and the old Roman walls of Autun to be restored. His authority at Autun placed him as a leader among the Franco-Burgundian nobles.

Meanwhile, in 660 the Austrasian nobles demanded a king, and young prince Childeric II was sent to them through the influence of Ebroin, the mayor of the palace in Neustria. The queen withdrew, from a court that was Ebroin's in all but name, to an abbey she had founded at Chelles, near Paris. On the death of King Clotaire III in 673, a dynastic struggle ensued, with rival claimants as pawns; Ebroin raised Theoderic to the throne, but Leodegar and the other bishops supported the claims of his elder brother Childeric II, who, by the help of the Austrasians and Burgundians, was eventually made king. Ebroin was interned at Luxeuil and Theoderic sent to St. Denis.

Leodegar remained at court, guiding the young king. In 673 or 675, however, Leodegar was also sent to Luxeuil. The cause, a protest against the marriage of Childeric and his first cousin, is a hagiographic convention; as a leader of the Austrasian and Burgundian nobles, Leodegar was easily represented as a danger by his enemies. When Childeric II was murdered at Bondi in 673, by a disaffected Frank, Theoderic III was installed as king in Neustria, making Leudesius his mayor. Ebroin each took advantage of the chaos to make his escape from Luxeuil and hasten to the court. In a short time, Ebroin caused Leudesius to be murdered and became mayor once again, still Leodegar's implacable enemy.

About 675 the Duke of Champagne, the Bishop of Châlons-Sur-Marne and the Bishop of Valence, stirred up by Ebroin, attacked Autun, and Leodegar fell into their hands. At Ebroin's instigation, Leodegar's eyes were gouged out and the sockets cauterized, and his tongue was cut out. Some years later Ebroin persuaded the king that Childeric had been assassinated at the instigation of Leodegar. The bishop was seized again, and, after a mock trial, was degraded and condemned to further exile, at Fécamp, in Normandy. Near Sarcing he was led out into a forest on Ebroin's order and beheaded.

✠ தூய காவல் தேவதூதர்களின் நினைவு ✠(Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels). அக்டோபர் 2

† இன்றைய திருவிழா †
(அக்டோபர் 2)

✠ தூய காவல் தேவதூதர்களின் நினைவு ✠
(Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels)

நினைவுத் திருவிழா: அக்டோபர் 2
தூய காவல் தேவதூதர்களின் நினைவுத் திருநாள் என்பது, கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபையினால் அனுசரிக்கப்படும் நினைவுத் திருநாட்களில் ஒன்றாகும். அக்டோபர் மாதம் 2ம் தேதி அனுசரிக்கப்படும் இந்நினைவுத் திருநாளானது, சில இடங்களில், “தெய்வீக வணக்கத்திற்கான சபையின்” (Congregation for Divine Worship) அனுமதியுடன் செப்டம்பர் மாதத்தின் முதல் ஞாயிறன்று அனுசரிக்கப்படுகின்றது. கத்தோலிக்கர்கள், கி.பி. 4ம் நூற்றாண்டின் ஆரம்பத்தில் பாதுகாவல் தேவதூதர்களை நினைத்து பலிபீடங்களை அமைத்தனர். மற்றும், காவல் தேவதூதர்களை கௌரவப்படுத்துவதற்கான உள்ளூர் கொண்டாட்டங்கள், கி.பி. 11ம் நூற்றாண்டிற்கு பின்னோக்கிச் செல்கின்றன. இந்நினைவுத் திருவிழாவானது, “ஆங்கிலிகன் சமூகத்திலுள்ள” (Anglican Communion) சில “ஆங்கிலோ-கத்தோலிக்கர்களாலும்” (Anglo-Catholics), தொடர்ந்து “ஆங்கிலிகன் இயக்கத்தின்” (Anglican movement) பெரும்பாலான சபைகளாலும் பின்பற்றப்படுகிறது.

தேவதூதர்களுக்கான பக்தி என்பது, யூத மதத்திலிருந்து கிறிஸ்தவ திருச்சபைகளுக்குப் பெறப்பட்ட ஒரு பண்டைய பாரம்பரியம் ஆகும். இந்நினைவுத் திருநாளானது, ஆரம்பத்தில் “ஃபிரான்சிஸ்கன் சபையினரால்” (Franciscan Order) கி.பி. 1500ம் ஆண்டில் அனுசரிக்கப்பட்டது. கி.பி. 1607ம் ஆண்டு “பொது ரோம நாள்காட்டியில்” திருத்தந்தை “ஐந்தாம் பவுல்” (Pope Paul V) அவர்களால் இந்நினைவுத் திருவிழா நிலை நிறுத்தப்படும்வரை, இன்ன பிற நினைவுத் திருவிழாக்கள் போலவே, இதுவும் உள்ளூர் கொண்டாட்டமாகவே இருந்தது. 1976ம் ஆண்டிலிருந்து இது நினைவுத் திருநாளாக கொண்டாடப்படுகிறது.

ஒரு தேவதூதர் தமது சிறு குழந்தைகளை உண்மையான, மற்றும் கற்பனையான ஆபத்துகளிலிருந்து காப்பாற்றுகிறார் என்பது கத்தோலிக்க பெற்றோரிகளின் பெரும் ஆறுதலளிக்கும் அம்சமாக அமைந்துள்ளது. பாதுகாவல் தேவதூதர் என்பவர், சிறு பிள்ளைகளுக்கானவர் மட்டுமல்லர்.

காவல் தேவதூதர்களின் முக்கிய பணிகளாவது, கடவுளுக்கு முன்பாக தாம் பாதுகாப்பவர்களை பிரதிநிதித்துவம் செய்வதுவும், எப்பொழுதும் அவர்களைக் கண்காணிப்பதுவும், அவர்களுக்கு அவர்களுடைய ஜெபத்திற்கு உதவுவதும், மற்றும் அவர்கள் மரித்தபோது அவர்களுடைய ஆன்மாவை கடவுளுக்கு முன்நிறுத்துவதுமாகும்.

ஒரு காவல் தேவதூதனின் எண்ணமானது, ஒவ்வொரு மனிதனையும் வழிநடத்துவதும், வளர்ப்பதுமாகும். இது கத்தோலிக்கக் கோட்பாடு மற்றும் புனித நூல்களை அடிப்படையாகக் கொண்ட பக்திவிருத்தியாகும். 

மத்தேயு 18:10-ல் இயேசுவின் வார்த்தைகள் இவ்விசுவாசத்தை ஆதரிக்கின்றன:
“இச்சிறியோருள் ஒருவரையும் நீங்கள் இழிவாகக் கருதவேண்டாம்; கவனமாயிருங்கள்! இவர்களுடைய வானதூதர்கள் என் விண்ணகத் தந்தையின் திருமுன் எப்பொழுதும் இருக்கின்றார்கள் என நான் உங்களுக்குச் சொல்லுகிறேன்.”

இது துறவற மரபுகளின் பிறப்புடன் வளரத் தொடங்கிய நினைவுத் திருநாளாகும். புனிதர் பெனடிக்ட் (Saint Benedict) அதை ஊக்கப்படுத்தினார். மற்றும் 12ம் நூற்றாண்டின் பெரிய சீர்திருத்தவாதியான “கிளைர்வாஸின் புனிதர் பெர்னார்ட்” (Saint Bernard of Clairvaux) தமது நாட்களில் தேவதூதர்களின் பக்தியை எடுத்துக் கொண்டதற்கான சிறந்த சொற்பொழிவாளர் ஆவார்.

விடுதலைப் பயண நூலிலிருந்து வாசகம் 23: 20-23ய
ஆண்டவர் கூறுவது: வழியில் உன்னைப் பாதுகாக்கவும், நான் ஏற்பாடு செய்துள்ள இடத்தில் உன்னைக் கொண்டு சேர்க்கவும், இதோ நான் உனக்கு முன் ஒரு தூதரை அனுப்புகிறேன். அவர்முன் எச்சரிக்கையாயிரு; அவர் சொற்கேட்டு நட; அவரை எதிர்ப்பவனாய் இராதே. உன் குற்றங்களை அவர் பொறுத்துக் கொள்ளார். ஏனெனில், என் பெயர் அவரில் உள்ளது. நீ அவர் சொல் கேட்டு நடந்தால், நான் சொல்வது யாவற்றையும் கேட்டுச் செயல்பட்டால், நான் உன் எதிரிகளுக்கு எதிரியும், உன் பகைவர்க்குப் பகைவனும் ஆவேன். ஏனெனில், என் தூதர் உனக்கு முன் செல்வார்.

மறையுரைச் சிந்தனை:
கடவுள் நம்பிக்கையுள்ள ஒருவர் காட்டுவழியாக பயணம் மேற்கொண்டார். அது ஓர் அடர்ந்த, கொடிய மிருகங்கள் வாழக்கூடிய காடு. அவர் தன் பயணத்தைத் தொடர்கையில் திடிரென்று இருள்சூழ்ந்து கொண்டது; மழைபெய்யும் அறிகுறிகள் வேறு தென்பட்டன. இடிமுழக்கத்துடன், காட்டுவிலங்குகளின் சத்தமும் ஒருசேர அவரை பீதிக்கு உள்ளாக்கியதால், அவருக்குள்ளே ஒருவிதமான பய உணர்வு ஏற்பட்டது. முடிவில் அவர் மயங்கி கீழே விழுந்தார்.

அவர் மீண்டும் கண்விழித்துப் பார்த்தபோது, அவர் செல்லவேண்டிய இடத்தை அடைந்திருந்தார். அவருக்கு ஆச்சரியம் தாங்கமுடியவில்லை. என்ன நிகழ்ந்தது என அவர் சிந்தித்த போது அவருக்கு ஒரு அசரீரி ஒலி கேட்டது.
”மகனே நீ உன் பயணத்தைத் தொடர்ந்தபோது, அதன் பாதுகாப்பை என்னிடம் ஒப்படைத்துச் செபித்தாய், அக்கணம் முதலே நான் உன்னைப் பின்தொடர்ந்து வந்தேன். நீ பயணித்த பாதையின் பாதச்சுவடுகளை உற்றுப்பார், உன்பின்னே மேலும் இரு பாதப்பதிவுகளைக் காணலாம். நான்காகத் தொடர்ந்த பாதச்சுவடுகள் நீ மயங்கிய இடத்திலிருந்து இரண்டாகக் குறைந்துள்ளதை காண்பாய். நீ நிலைகுலைந்து, மயங்கி, நிலத்தில் விழ நான் இடமளிக்கவில்லை. மாறாக, நான் உன்னை என் கரங்களில் தாங்கிக் கொண்டேன். அதன்பின் உன்னால் நடந்து உன் பயணத்தைத் தொடர முடியாததால், என் தோள்களில் உன்னைச் சுமந்துவந்தேன். அந்த இரண்டு பாதச்சுவடுகளும் உன்னுடையதல்ல, உன்னைச் சுமந்த என்னுடையதே. உனக்குத் தெரியாமலே நான் உன்னுடன் பயணித்தேன் என்றது” அந்த அசரீரி.

நீ செல்லும் இடமெல்லாம் உன்னைக் காக்கும்படி அவர் தம் தூதர்களுக்குக் கட்டளையிட்டுள்ளார் என்ற இறைவார்த்தையை (திபா 91:11) உறுதி செய்வதாக இருக்கிறது மேலே சொல்லப்பட்ட நிகழ்வு. ஆம், இறைத்தூதர்கள் நம்மை பாதுகாக்கக்கூடியவர்கள்; நமக்குத் துணையாய் இருப்பவர்கள், நம்மோடு வழிநடப்பவர்கள். அப்படிப்பட்ட சிறப்புகளுக்குச் சொந்தக்காரர்களான காவல் தூதர்களின் விழாவை இன்று நாம் கொண்டாடுகின்றோம்.

திருச்சபையின் தந்தையர் என அழைக்கப்படுகின்ற அகுஸ்தினார், அக்வினாஸ், எரேனியு போன்றவர்கள் ஒவ்வொருவருக்கும் ஒரு காவல் தூதர் இருக்கிறார் என்று சொல்வார்கள். ஆனால் விவிலியத்திலே அதற்கான ஆதாரம் கிடையாது. “இச்சிறியோருள் ஒருவரையும் நீங்கள் இழிவாகக் கருதவேண்டாம். கவனமாயிருங்கள்! இவர்களுடைய வானதூதர்கள் என் விண்ணகத் தந்தையின் திருமுன் எப்பொழுதும் இருக்கின்றார்கள் என நான் உங்களுக்குச் சொல்கிறேன்” (மத்தேயு 18:10) என்னும் இயேசுவின் வார்த்தைகள்தான் காவல்தூதர்கள் இருக்கிறார்கள் என்பதற்கான மையக் கருவாக இருக்கின்றது.

இந்த காவல்தூதர்கள் வழியாக இறைவன் நமக்கு உணர்த்தும் வாக்குறுதி 'உன்னை விட்டு விலகுவதுமில்லை, உன்னைக் கைவிடுவதுமில்லை' என்பதுதான். காவல் தூதர்கள் நம்மோடு இருக்கிறார்கள், நம்மை என்றும் வழிநடத்துகிறார்கள். மேலும் இவர்கள் கடவுளின் செல்லப்பிள்ளைகளைக் காப்பாற்றுபவர்களாகவும் (2 அரசர்கள் 6:13-17), தகவல்களை வெளிப்படுத்துபவர்களாகவும் (லூக் 1:11-20), வழிகாட்டுபவர்களாகவும் (மத் 1:20-21), பராமரிப்பவர்களாகவும் (1 அர 19:5-7), பணிவிடை செய்பவர்களாகவும் (எபி 1:14) வலம் வருகின்றனர். ஆதலால் இவ்வளவு பணிகளை நமக்காக செய்துவரும் காவல் தூதர்களை நினைத்து இறைவனுக்கு நன்றி செலுத்தவேண்டும்; அவருக்கு என்றும் பிரமாணிக்கமாய் இருக்கவேண்டும்.

சிறுவன் ஒருவன் விடுமுறைக்கு தன்னுடைய பாட்டியின் வீட்டிற்குச் சென்றிருந்தான். பாட்டியின் வீட்டில், ஒரு அறையில் கடவுளின் படம் ஒன்று மாட்டப்பட்டிருந்தது. அதற்கு கீழே, “கடவுள் உன்னை கவனித்துக் கொண்டிருக்கிறார் என்று எழுதியிருந்தது.

இது சிறுவனுக்கு மிகப்பெரிய மன உளைச்சலைத் தந்தது. “கடவுள் என்னைக் கவனித்துக் கொண்டிருக்கிறார் என்றால், என்னால் சேட்டைகள் செய்ய முடியாது, நான் ஒழுக்கமுடையவனாக அல்லவா வாழவேண்டும்” என்று தன்னுடைய பாட்டியிடம் முறையிட்டான் அவன். அதற்கு அவனுடைய பாட்டி, “கடவுள் உன்னைக் கவனித்துக் கொண்டிருக்கிறார் என்பதற்கு அது விளக்கமல்ல, மாறாக கடவுள் உன்னை சிறு நொடிப்பொழுதும் கைவிடாமல் பாதுகாத்து அன்பு செய்கிறார் என்பதே இதன் அர்த்தம்” என்று விளக்கமளித்தார்.

ஆம், காவல் தூதர்கள் நம்மோடு இருக்கிறார்கள் என்றால் கடவுள் எப்போதும் கண்காணித்துக்கொண்டே இருக்கிறார் என்று அர்த்தமல்ல, மாறாக அவர் நம்மை சிறுபொழுதும் பிரியாமல் பாதுகாத்து அன்பு செய்கிறார் என்பதே அர்த்தம்.

எனவே நம்மை காவல் தூதர்கள் வழியாக பராமரித்து வரும் இறைவனுக்கு நன்றி செலுத்துவோம். அத்தோடு காவல்தூதர்களின் உடனிருப்பை உணர்வோம்; இறைவழியில் நடந்து, இறையருள் பெறுவோம்.

† Feast of the Day †
(October 2)

✠ Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels ✠

Observed by: Catholic Church

Feast Day: October 2

The Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels is a memorial of the Catholic Church officially observed on 2 October. In some places, the feast is observed on the first Sunday in September with the permission of the Congregation for Divine Worship. Catholics set up altars in honour of guardian angels as early as the 4th Century, and local celebrations of a feast in honour of guardian angels go back to the 11th Century. The feast is also observed by some Anglo-Catholics within the Anglican Communion and most churches of the Continuing Anglican movement.

Devotion to the angels is an ancient tradition which the Christian Church inherited from Judaism. It began to develop with the birth of the monastic tradition. The feast was first kept by the Franciscan order in 1500. This feast, like many others, was local before it was placed in the General Roman Calendar in 1607 by Pope Paul V. The papal decree establishing the feast was cosigned by Robert Bellarmine, which has led some scholars to speculate that the feast was created under the influence of the Society of Jesus. It was originally ranked as a double, and is believed that the new feast was intended to be a kind of supplement to the Feast of St. Michael, since the Church honoured on that day (29 September) the memory of all the angels as well as the memory of St. Michael. Clement X elevated it to the rank of an obligatory double, and, finally, Leo XIII raised the feast to the rank of a double major. Since 1976, it has been ranked an obligatory memorial.

The Church has never formally declared that every individual has a protecting angel. However, a writer as far back as St Jerome said it was the “mind of the Church”. “How great the dignity of the soul, since each one has from birth an angel commissioned to guard it,” he wrote in his commentary on the gospel of Matthew.

Belief in guardian angels was common among many cultures in ancient times. Examples can be given from Menander, Plutarch, Plotinus as well as from the Babylonians and Assyrians. In fact, it was their belief which was taken up by the Jews following their periods of conquest and exile.

In the Old Testament, the evidence of protecting angels is frequent. Some examples: an angel led Lot to safety before the destruction of Sodom; during the Exodus, an angel is appointed as leader of the Israelites and God tells Moses, “My angel will go before you” (today’s First Reading). There is the lovely story of the angel (Raphael) who took protective care of Tobias as he went in search of a bride and for the medicine to heal his blind father (Book of Tobit).

In Psalm 90:11 we read: “For to his angels he has given command about you, that they guard you in all your ways.” (Ironically, words used by Satan tempting Jesus to jump from the top of the Temple.) In the Book of Daniel (chap. 10) angels are entrusted to take care of particular districts. It is clear the Old Testament understood God’s angels as messengers carrying out his will, including the protection of people.

In the New Testament angels are frequently the links between God and his people. So we have Jesus say: “See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father” (Matthew 18:10). There is the angel who consoled Jesus during his Agony in the Garden; it was an angel who delivered Peter from prison (Acts12:6-10). And in the Letter to the Hebrews, we read: “Are they not all ministering spirits sent to serve, for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?” (Heb 1:14)

As children, many of us remember the prayer we were taught to say every night before sleep:

Angel of God, my guardian dear
to whom God’s love commits me here.
Ever this day/night be at my side
to light, to guard, to rule and guide.
Amen!

Comments:
Your Guardian Angel is your companion and your friend. He is given to you at the first moment of existence and stays with you to the end. He inspires you with good and holy thoughts. He protects you from many dangers and accidents and assists you in a thousand ways throughout your life. The Angels are most desirous to be our friends and they love us with all the intensity of their angelic natures. "He hath given His Angels charge over thee: to keep thee in all thy ways. In their hands, they shall bear thee up lest thou dash thy foot against a stone" (Psalm 91). 

The Angels are pure spirits, mighty Princes of Heaven who stand before God. They are burning fires of love, filled with the plenitude of happiness. No two Angels are alike and there are too many to be numbered. All of them are indescribably beautiful. "Thousands and thousands ministered to Him and ten thousand times a hundred thousand stood before him" (Dan 7:10). 

St. Frances of Rome saw her own Angel. She said the splendour of her Angel dimmed the light of the sun and moon and stars in comparison. Often she could read her prayers by the light of her Angel. When the Angel rolled back the stone from the holy sepulchre, Sacred Scripture says that the countenance of the Angel was like lightning and his clothing white as snow. His appearance was so full of majesty that the soldiers at the tomb were terrified and could not look at him. "For an Angel of the Lord descended from Heaven, and coming, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it. And his countenance was as lightning and his raiment as snow" (Matt 28: 2,3).

Angelic intelligence is immeasurably superior to our own. We plod from truth to truth, studying, steadily investigating in order to understand a topic, but they understand the entire subject at a single glance. In that same glance, they immediately see all the nuances and consequences of a particular action. It is easy to see how important their assistance would be for us, who need help in making decisions each day of our lives. 

There are angels in Heaven and also on earth, each with different jobs to do. Nations, cities, families, towns - all have their special Angels. St Thomas Aquinas teaches us that there are Angels that guide the stars, the moon, the sun, and the planets, keeping everything in harmony according to God's plan. Scripture tells us of the Angels that perform duties that some attribute to chance.

It was an Angel that gave its medicinal quality to the pool at Bethesda; an Angel generated the fires on Mount Sinai; the thunder and lightning were the work of Angels, and in the Apocalypse, we read of the Angels restraining the winds. Thus, we learn that the course of nature, so marvellous and at times so fearful, is moved by these unseen beings.

Angels act as messengers as in the Annunciation when the Archangel Gabriel came to Mary, or as protectors as when Archangel Raphael helped to guide young Tobias on a dangerous journey, or as avengers as when God sent an Angel who killed 70,000 Egyptians in one night as a punishment for the Pharaoh not releasing the Hebrews from slavery. 

They are also powerful protectors against the tricks of the devil. They will fight by your side and inspire you on how to resist the temptations of the devil. "Be sober and watch: because of your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, goeth about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Pet 5: 8). The Angels protect us from falling into temptations and avert natural disasters from befalling us – often the person never even realizes the tragedy he narrowly missed. 

It is interesting to note that at the time of the Renaissance, Angels began to be portrayed as fat, sweet babies with wings. This artistic style continues to our day. It is a shame for such militant warriors to be reduced to these weak, infantile representations. In the mind of the viewer, the role of the Angel as protector and avenger fades away, replaced by a different idea. It is a subtle way of gradually changing the notion of the principle that life is a war between good and evil with the agents of each side fighting to win the souls of men. There is no spirit of fight in the fat baby angels – in fact, they are so smiling and happy that it appears nothing is amiss in their world.

And yet, there are many incidences in the lives of the Saints that show the militant, protective mission of the Angels toward men. St John Bosco, for example, was a man who fought vigorously against the Waldensian heresy. Many of the heretics hated him for his unrelenting fight and tried to kill him many times. During this dangerous period of his life, a large grey dog appeared and would accompany him as he walked the streets of the city, fighting off any attackers. When the danger passed, the dog disappeared. In his writings, Don Bosco called this dog Grigio [Grey], and he believed that it was an angelic intervention protecting him so many times over a period of 30 years. 

Angels also reflect God's goodness, kindness, and generosity. He gave us these Angels to "level out the playing field." A man by himself is no match for the wily Devil, a fallen angel that still retains all his intellectual prowess and powers. Without some kind of supernatural help, we would be certain to make many mistakes, some irreparable. 

God in His goodness gave us Angels. Knowing this, wouldn't it be foolish to ignore our Guardian Angels and not ask often for their help? 

"Ask us and we will give you a share of all our treasures, all our graces, all our happiness," they seem to say. The only thing standing between us and these benefits is our forgetfulness of these wonderful beings.
~ Christine Fitzgerald