St. Flavian of Constantinople
Feastday: February 18
Death: 449
Patriarch of Constantinople from 446 or 447, succeeding St. Proclus. Refusing to give Emperor Theodosius II a bribe upon becoming patriarch and making the emperor's sister Pulcherius a deaconess, Flavian received hostile treatment from the imperial court. Flavian also started the condemnation of Eutyches, who began the heresy of Monophysitism. This led to his being deposed and exiled at the so-called "Robber Synod" at Ephesus in 449, whereupon the famous "Tome" of dogmatic letters of Pope Leo I the Great was ignored. Appealing to the Pope, Flavian was beaten so mercilessly that he was mortally wounded and died three days later in exile. He was proclaimed a saint and martyr by the Council of Chalcedon in 451
St. Lucius
Feastday: February 18
Death: unknown
Deacon Keith FournierToday, we humbly ask you to defend Catholic Online's independence. 98% of our readers don't give; they simply look the other way. If you donate just $5.00, or whatever you can, Catholic Online could keep thriving for years. Most people donate because Catholic Online is useful. If Catholic Online has given you $5.00 worth of knowledge this year, take a minute to donate. Show the volunteers who bring you reliable, Catholic information that their work matters. If you are one of our rare donors, you have our gratitude and we warmly thank you. Help us do more >
African martyr with Classicus, Fructulus, Maximus, Rutulus, Secundinus, and Silvanus.
Bl. Martin
Feastday: February 18
Martyr of China, a native Chinese who sheltered Blessed John Peter Neel. Martin was beheaded and beatified in 1909.
St. Maximus
Martyr with Alexander, Claudius, Cutias, and Praepedigna. Nothing can be documented about their sufferings under Emperor Diocletian.
St. Theotonius
Feastday: February 18
Patron: of Viseu, Portugal
Birth: 1088
Death: 1166
Augustinian canon and royal advisor. Born in Gonfeo, Spain, in 1088, he studied at Coimbra, Portugal, and served for a time as archpriest of Viseu. After undertaking a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and the Holy Land, he returned home and entered the Augustinian Canons at Coimbra. He held a trusted position as advisor to King Alfonso I Henriquez of Portugal (r. 1128-1181) and was a dedicated opponent of all forms of royal corruption. Theotonius rebuked the queen for an adulterous affair and refused a bishopric from her.
St. Angilbert
புனித ஆன்கெல்பெர்ட் Angelbert
பிறப்பு
750
இறப்பு
18 பிப்ரவரி 814,
ரிக்குயர் Riquier, பிரான்சு
இவர் பிரெஞ்சு நாட்டை பாதுகாக்கும் போர்படையில் பணிபுரிந்தவர். அப்போது டெனிஸ் Danes என்பவன் பிரெஞ்சு நாட்டின் ஆற்றங்கரை ஒன்றில் தங்கி, அந்நாட்டிற்கு எதிராகப் போர் புரிந்தான். அவனை எதிர்த்து ஆன்கெல்பெர்ட் போரிட வேண்டியிருந்தது. அச்சமயத்தில் அவர் புனித ரிக்குயர் என்ற புனிதரின் கல்லறைக்குச் சென்று இப்போரில்தான் டெனிஸ்சிற்கு எதிராக வெற்றிபெற்றால் தான் ஓர் துறவியாகிறேன் என்று செபித்தார். பிறகு இடி, மின்னல் புயல் என்று பாராமல் திடீரென்று டெனிஸ் படையெடுத்தான். ஆன்கெல்பெர்ட் அவனை எதிர்த்து போரிட்டு தன் படையுடன் வெற்றி பெற்றார்.
அவர் பெற்ற வெற்றியானது, அந்நாட்டை எவ்விதத்திலும் பாதிக்காமல் காப்பாற்றப்பட்டது. இதன் விளைவாக கடவுள் இவரின் மன்றாட்டை ஏற்று வெற்றிப் பெறச் செய்ததால் செயிண்ட் ரிக்குயிர் அவர்களின் துறவற இல்லத்திற்குச் சென்று துறவியானார். பின்னர் அச்சபையின் மடாதிபதி பொறுப்பையும் ஏற்று மிகச் சிறப்பாக அச்சபையை வழிநடத்தினார். இவர் தன் வாழ்நாள் முழுவதும் இடைவிடாது இரவும் பகலும் செபம் செய்து திருப்பாடல்களைப்பாடி இறைவனை போற்றி புகழ்ந்து இறைவழியில் தன் சபையை வழிநடத்தினார்.
அதன்பிறகு இவர் 24 மணிநேரமும் துறவிகள் கட்டாயமாக செபம் செய்ய வேண்டுமென்பதை வலியுறுத்தினார். கடுமையான விதிமுறை கடைப்பிடிக்கச் செய்தார். புனித கன்னிமரியாள், சூசையப்பர் இவர்களின் செப வாழ்வை வாழ தன் சபைத் துறவிகளிடத்தில் வலியுறுத்தினார். இவர் இறந்தபி
Benedictine abbot and advisor to Charlemagne. He was raised in the court of Emperor Charlemagne, and studied under the great English scholar, Alcuin. Receiving minor orders, Angilbert accompanied King Pepin to Italy in 782. Returning to the court, he became known as "Homer" because of his literary and language skills. He also served as an envoy of the court to the pope. In 790, Angilbert was named the abbot of Saint-Riquier in Picardy, France. Angilbert either rebuilt or restored the abbey and endowed it with two hundred books. In the year 800, Charlemagne came to visit him. Angilbert also fathered two children, having had an affair with Bertha, Charlemagne's daughter. Angilbert did penance for this relationship, and Bertha entered a convent. Nithard, a noted historian of the era and Angilbert's son, wrote of the penance's and austerities undertaken. Angilbert died on February 18, 814. Some years after his burial, his body was found to be incorrupt.
For the author of "Verses on the Battle that was Fought at Fontenoy", see Angelbert.
Angilbert (c. 760 – 18 February 814),[1] sometimes known as Saint Angilbert or Angilberk or Engelbert, was a noble Frankish poet who was educated under Alcuin and served Charlemagne as a secretary, diplomat, and son-in-law. He was venerated as a pre-Congregation saint and is still honored on the day of his death, 18 February.
Life
Angilbert seems to have been brought up at the court of Charlemagne at the palace school in Aquae Grani (Aachen). He was educated there as the pupil and then friend of the great English scholar Alcuin. When Charlemagne sent his young son Pepin to Italy as King of the Lombards Angilbert went along as primicerius palatii, a high administrator of the satellite court.[1] As the friend and adviser of Pepin, he assisted for a while in the government of Italy. Angilbert delivered the document on Iconoclasm from the Frankish Synod of Frankfurt to Pope Adrian I, and was later sent on three important embassies to the pope, in 792, 794, and 796.[2] At one time, he served an officer of the maritime provinces.[3] He accompanied Charlemagne to Rome in 800[4] and was one of the witnesses to his will in 811.[2]
There are various traditions concerning Angilbert's relationship with Bertha, daughter of Charlemagne. One holds that they were married,[4] another that they were not.[3] They had, however, at least two sons and one daughter, one of whom, Nithard, became a notable figure in the mid-9th century,[2] and the daughter Bertha, went on to marry Helgaud II, count of Ponthieu. Control of marriage and the meanings of legitimacy were hotly contested in the Middle Ages. Bertha and Angilbert are an example of how resistance to the idea of a sacramental marriage could coincide with holding church offices. On the other hand, some historians have speculated that Charlemagne opposed formal marriages for his daughters out of concern for political rivalries from their potential husbands; none of Charlemagne's daughters were married, despite political offers of arranged marriages.
In 790, Angilbert retired to the abbey of Centulum, the "Monastery of St Richarius" (Sancti Richarii monasterium) at present-day Saint-Riquier in Picardy.[4] Elected abbot in 794,[4] he rebuilt the monastery and endowed it with a library of 200 volumes.[1] It was not uncommon for the Merovingian, Carolingian, or later kings to make laymen abbots of monasteries; the layman would often use the income of the monastery as his own and leave the monks a bare minimum for the necessary expenses of the foundation. Angilbert, in contrast, spent a great deal rebuilding Saint-Riquier; when he completed it, Charlemagne spent Easter of the year 800 there. In keeping with Carolingian policies, Angilbert established a school at Saint-Riquier to educate the local boys.[5]
Angilbert's Latin poems reveal the culture and tastes of a man of the world, enjoying the closest intimacy with the imperial family.[2] Charlemagne and the other men at court were known by affectionate and jesting nicknames. Charlemagne was referred to as "David", a reference to the Biblical king David.[6] Angilbert was nicknamed "Homer" because he wrote poetry,[3] and was the probable author of an epic, of which the fragment which has been preserved describes the life at the palace and the meeting between Charlemagne and Leo III. It is a mosaic from Virgil, Ovid, Lucan and Venantius Fortunatus, composed in the manner of Einhard's use of Suetonius.[2] Of the shorter poems, besides the greeting to Pippin on his return from the campaign against the Avars (796), an epistle to David (i.e., Charlemagne) incidentally reveals a delightful picture of the poet living with his children in a house surrounded by pleasant gardens near the emperor's palace. The reference to Bertha, however, is distant and respectful, her name occurring merely on the list of princesses to whom he sends his salutation.
St. Agatha Lin
#புனித_ஆகத்தா_லின் (1817-1858)
பிப்ரவரி 18
இவர் (#StAgatha_Lin) சீனாவைச் சார்ந்தவர். இறைவன்மீது ஆழமான நம்பிக்கை கொண்டிருந்த ஒரு கத்தோலிக்க குடும்பத்தில் பிறந்த இவர், தனது பெற்றோரைப் போன்றே இறை நம்பிக்கையில் வளர்ந்து வந்தார்.
இவர் சிறுவயது முதலே தன்னை ஆண்டவருக்கு அர்ப்பணித்து வாழ்ந்து வந்தார். சிசிலி நகர்ப் புனித ஆகத்தாவைத் தன் முன்மாதிரியாகக் கொண்ட இவர் வாழ்ந்த காலத்தில், சீனாவில் கிறிஸ்தவர்களுக்கு எதிரான அடக்குமுறைகள் மிகுதியாக இருந்தன. அந்நிலையிலும் இவரும் இவரது பெற்றோரும் ஆண்டவர் இயேசுவில் உறுதியாக இருந்தார்கள்.
ஒருமுறை எதிரிகள் இவரது தந்தையைப் பிடித்துக்கொண்டு போய், சிறையில் அடைத்து வைத்துப் பலவாறாகச் சித்திரவதை செய்து அனுப்பி வைத்தனர். அப்போதும் இவர் இயேசுவில் நம்பிக்கையோடு இருந்தார்.
இவர் வளர்ந்து பெரியவரான போது ஆசிரியராகி மாணவர்களுக்கு அடிப்படைக் கல்வியையும் மறைக்கல்வியையும் கற்றுக் கொடுத்தார். இதனால் பலரும் இயேசுவின் மீது நம்பிக்கை கொண்டார்கள். இச்செய்தியை அறிந்த எதிரிகள் இவரைக் கைது செய்து துன்புறுத்தினார்கள். மேலும் இவரை 1858 ஆம் ஆண்டு தலைவெட்டிக் கொன்று போட்டார்கள்.
இவருக்கு 1909 ஆம் ஆண்டு திருத்தந்தை பத்தாம் பயஸ் அவர்களால் அருளாளர் பட்டமும், 2000 ஆம் ஆண்டு திருத்தந்தை இரண்டாம் ஜான்பால் அவர்களால் புனிதர் பட்டமும் அளிக்கப்பட்டன.
Feastday: February 18
Birth: 1817
Death: 1858
Canonized: Pope John Paul II
Chinese martyr. She was born in 1817 at Ma-Tchang, China. A teacher at a Christian school, Agatha was beheaded for the faith in Mao-kin on January 28, 1858. She was beatified on May 2, 1909.
This article is about the Catholic martyrs of the Boxer Rebellion. For the Protestant martyrs, see China Martyrs of 1900. For other martyrs, see Chinese Martyrs.
The Martyr Saints of China, or Augustine Zhao Rong and his 119 companions, are saints of the Catholic Church. The 87 Chinese Catholics and 33 Western missionaries[1] from the mid-17th century to 1930 were martyred because of their ministry and, in some cases, for their refusal to apostatize.
Many died in the Boxer Rebellion, in which anti-colonial peasant rebels slaughtered 30,000 Chinese converts to Christianity along with missionaries and other foreigners.
In the ordinary form of the Latin Rite, they are remembered with an optional memorial on July 9.
The 17th and 18th centuries
On January 15, 1648, during the Manchu Invasion to Ming China, Manchu Tatars, having invaded the region of Fujian and Francisco Fernández de Capillas, a Dominican priest aged 40.[2] After having imprisoned and tortured him, they beheaded him while he recited with others the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary. Father de Capillas has since been recognised by the Holy See as the protomartyr of China.
After the first wave of missionary activities in China during the late Ming to early Qing dynasties, the Qing government officially banned Catholicism (Protestantism was considered outlawed by the same decree, as it was linked to Catholicism) in 1724 and lumped it together with other 'perverse sects and sinister doctrines' in Chinese folk religion.[3]
While Catholicism continued to exist and increase many-fold in areas beyond the government's control (Sichuan notably), and many Chinese Christians fled the persecution to go to port cities in Guangdong or to Indonesia, where many translations of Christian works into Chinese occurred during this period, there were also many missionaries who broke the law and secretly entered the forbidden mainland territory.[3] They eluded Chinese patrol boats on the rivers and coasts; however, some of them were caught and put to death.
Towards the middle of the 18th century five Spanish missionaries, who had carried out their activity between 1715–1747, were put to death as a result of a new wave of persecution that started in 1729 and broke out again in 1746. This was in the epoch of the Yongzheng Emperor and of his successor, the Qianlong Emperor.
Peter Sanz, O.P., bishop, was martyred on May 26, 1747, in Fuzhou.
All four of the following were killed on October 28, 1748:
Francis Serrano, O.P., vicar apostolic and bishop-elect
Joachim Royo, O.P., priest
John Alcober, O.P., priest
Francis Diaz, O.P., priest.
Early 19th-century martyrdoms
A new period of persecution in regard to the Christian religion occurred in the 19th century.
While Catholicism had been authorised by some Chinese emperors in the preceding centuries, the Jiaqing Emperor published, instead, numerous and severe decrees against it. The first was issued in 1805. Two edicts of 1811 were directed against those among the Chinese who were studying to receive sacred orders, and against priests who were propagating the Christian religion. A decree of 1813 exonerated voluntary apostates from every chastisement – that is, Christians who spontaneously declared that they would abandon their faith – but all others were to be dealt with harshly.
In this period the following underwent martyrdom:
Peter Wu, a Chinese lay catechist. Born of a pagan family, he received baptism in 1796 and passed the rest of his life proclaiming the truth of the Christian religion. All attempts to make him apostatize were in vain. The sentence having been pronounced against him, he was strangled on November 7, 1814.
Joseph Zhang Dapeng, a lay catechist, and a merchant. Baptised in 1800, he had become the heart of the mission in the city of Guiyang. He was imprisoned, and then strangled to death on March 12, 1815.
Also in the same year, there came two other decrees, with which approval was given to the conduct of the Viceroy of Sichuan who had beheaded Monsignor Dufresse, of the Paris Foreign Missions Society, and some Chinese Christians. As a result, there was a worsening of the persecution.
The following martyrs belong to this period:
Gabriel-Taurin Dufresse, M.E.P., Bishop. He was arrested on May 18, 1815, taken to Chengdu, condemned and executed on September 14, 1815.
Augustine Zhao Rong, a Chinese diocesan priest. Having first been one of the soldiers who had escorted Monsignor Dufresse from Chengdu to Beijing, he was moved by his patience and had then asked to be numbered among the neophytes. Once baptised, he was sent to the seminary and then ordained a priest. Arrested, he was tortured and died in 1815.[4]
John da Triora, O.F.M., priest. Put in prison together with others in the summer of 1815, he was then condemned to death, and strangled on February 7, 1816.
Joseph Yuan, a Chinese diocesan priest. Having heard Monsignor Dufresse speak of the Christian faith, he was overcome by its beauty and then became an exemplary neophyte. Later, he was ordained a priest and, as such, was dedicated to evangelisation in various districts. He was arrested in August 1816, condemned to be strangled, and was killed in this way on June 24, 1817.
Paul Liu Hanzuo, a Chinese diocesan priest, killed in 1819.
Francis Regis Clet of the Congregation of the Mission (Vincentians). After obtaining permission to go to the missions in China, he embarked for the Orient in 1791. Having reached there, for 30 years he spent a life of missionary sacrifice. Upheld by an untiring zeal, he evangelised three immense Chinese provinces: Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan. Betrayed by a Christian, he was arrested and thrown into prison where he underwent atrocious tortures. Following sentence by the Jiaqing Emperor he was killed by strangling on February 17, 1820.
Thaddeus Liu, a Chinese diocesan priest. He refused to apostatize, saying that he was a priest and wanted to be faithful to the religion that he had preached. Condemned to death, he was strangled on November 30, 1823.
Peter Liu, a Chinese lay catechist. He was arrested in 1814 and condemned to exile in Tartary, where he remained for almost twenty years. Returning to his homeland he was again arrested, and was strangled on May 17, 1834.
Joachim Ho, a Chinese lay catechist. He was baptised at the age of about twenty years. In the great persecution of 1814 he had been taken with many others of the faithful and subjected to cruel torture. Sent into exile in Tartary, he remained there for almost twenty years. Returning to his homeland he was arrested again and refused to apostatize. Following that, and the death sentence having been confirmed by the Emperor, he was strangled on July 9, 1839.
John Gabriel Perboyre, C.M., entered the Vincentians as a high school student. The death of his younger brother, also a Vincentian priest, moved his superiors to allow him to take his brother's place, arriving in China in 1835. Despite poor health, he served the poverty-stricken residents of Hubei. Arrested during a revival of anti-Christian persecution, upon imperial edict, he was strangled to death in 1840.
Augustus Chapdelaine, M.E.P., a priest of the Diocese of Coutances. He entered the Seminary of the Paris Foreign Missions Society, and embarked for China in 1852. He arrived in Guangxi at the end of 1854. Arrested in 1856, he was tortured, condemned to death in prison, and died in February 1856.
Lawrence Bai Xiaoman, a Chinese layman, and an unassuming worker. He joined Blessed Chapdelaine in the refuge that was given to the missionary and was arrested with him and brought before the tribunal. Nothing could make him renounce his religious beliefs. He was beheaded on February 25, 1856.
Agnes Cao Guiying, a widow, born into an old Christian family. Being dedicated to the instruction of young girls who had recently been converted by Blessed Chapdelaine, she was arrested and condemned to death in prison. She was executed on March 1, 1856.
Martyrs of Maokou and Guizhou
Saint Paul Chen
Three catechists, known as the Martyrs of Maokou (in the province of Guizhou) were killed on January 28, 1858, by order of the officials in Maokou[citation needed]:
Jerome Lu Tingmei
Laurence Wang Bing
Agatha Lin
All three had been called on to renounce the Christian religion and having refused to do so were condemned to be beheaded.
In Guizhou, two seminarians and two lay people, one of whom was a farmer, the other a widow who worked as a cook in the seminary, suffered martyrdom together on July 29, 1861. They are known as the Martyrs of Qingyanzhen (Guizhou):
Joseph Zhang Wenlan, seminarian
Paul Chen Changpin]], seminarian
John Baptist Luo Tingyin]], layman
Martha Wang Luo Mande]], laywoman
In the following year, on February 18 and 19, 1862, another five people gave their life for Christ. They are known as the Martyrs of Guizhou.
Jean-Pierre Néel, a priest of the Paris Foreign Missions Society,
Martin Wu Xuesheng, lay catechist,
John Zhang Tianshen, lay catechist,
John Chen Xianheng, lay catechist,
Lucy Yi Zhenmei, lay catechist.
19th-century social and political developments
In June 1840, Qing China was forced to open to open the borders and afforded multiple concessions to European Christian missions after the First Opium War, including allowing the Chinese to follow the Catholic religion and restoring the property confiscated in 1724.[3] The 1844 treaty also allowed for missionaries to come to China, provided if they come to the treaty ports opened to Europeans.
The subsequent Taiping Rebellion significantly worsened the image of Christianity in China. Hong Xiuquan, the rebel leader, claimed to be a Christian and brother of Jesus who received a special mission from God to fight evil and usher in a period of peace. Hong and his followers achieved considerable success in taking control of a large territory, and destroyed many Buddhist and Taoist shrines, temples to local divinities and opposed Chinese folk religion.[3] The rebellion was one of the bloodiest armed conflicts in human history, accounting for an estimated number of 20-30 million deaths. As missionary activities became increasingly associated with European imperialism, violence against missionaries arose.[3]
In 1856, the death of missionary Augustus Chapedelaine trigged a French military expedition during the Second Opium War, which China lost. The resulting Treaty of Tientsin, granted Christian missionaries the freedom of movement throughout China and the right to land ownership.[3]
As missionaries started to build churches or schools in offensive locations like old temples or near official buildings, tensions with the local Chinese population arose. The missionaries also abolished indigenous Chinese Catholic institutions that had survived the imperial ban.[3] In some regions, Catholic missionaries started "quarantining" new Chinese converts from the hostile social environment as they see the mission as "enclaves of Christianity in an alien world". The separation sparked conspiracy theories about the Christians and eventually accumulated in a the massacre of 60 people in a Catholic orphanage.[3] In comparison, Protestant missions were less secretive and treated more favorably by the authorities.[3]
Chinese literati and gentry produced a pamphlet attacking Christian beliefs as socially subversive and irrational. Incendiary handbills and fliers distributed to crowds were also produced, and were linked to outbreaks of violence against Christians. Sometimes, no such official incitement was needed in order to provoke the populace to attack Christians. For example, among the Hakka people in southeastern China, Christian missionaries frequently flouted village customs that were linked with local religions, including refusal to take part in communal prayers for rain (and because the missionaries benefitted from the rain, it was argued that they had to do their part in the prayers) and refusing to contribute funds to operas for Chinese gods (these same gods honoured in these village operas were the same spirits that the Boxers called to invoke in themselves, during the later rebellion).[3]
Catholic missions offered protection to those who came to them, including criminals, fugitives from the law, and rebels against the government; this also led to hostile attitudes developing against the missions by the government.[3]
Boxer Rebellion
And so passed an era of expansion in the Christian missions, with the exception of the period in which they were struck by the uprising by the "Society for Justice and Harmony" (commonly known as the "Boxers"). This occurred at the beginning of the 20th century and caused the shedding of the blood of many Christians.
It is known[citation needed] that mingled in this rebellion were all the secret societies and the accumulated and repressed hatred against foreigners in the last decades of the 19th century, because of the political and social changes following the Second Opium War and the imposition of the so-called unequal treaties on China by the Western Powers.
Very different, however, was the motive for the persecution of the missionaries, even though they were of European nationalities. Their slaughter was brought about solely on religious grounds. They were killed for the same reason as the Chinese faithful who had become Christians. Reliable historical documents provide evidence of the anti-Christian hatred which spurred the Boxers to massacre the missionaries and the Christians of the area who had adhered to their teaching. In this regard, an edict[citation needed] was issued on July 1, 1900, which, in substance, said that the time of good relations with European missionaries and their Christians was now past: that the former must be repatriated at once and the faithful forced to apostatize, on penalty of death.
Following the failure of the Boxer Rebellion, China was further subject to Western spheres of influence, which in turn led to a booming conversion period in the following decades. The Chinese developed respect for the moral level that Christians maintained in their hospital and schools.[3] The continuing association between Western imperialism in China and missionary efforts nevertheless continued to fuel hostilities against missions and Christianity in China. All missions were banned in China by the new communist regime after the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, and officially continue to be legally outlawed to the present.
St. Charalampias
Feastday: February 18
Death: 203
Martyr of Magnesia, in Asia Minor, with companions. He was a priest taken in the persecution of Emperor Septimius Severus. He was martyred with two soldiers and three women.
Saint Jean-François-Régis Clet
Profile
Tenth of fifteen children; his father was a farmer and merchant, and the boy was named after Saint John Francis Regis. He was raised in a pious family; one brother became a priest, one sister a nun. Studied at the Jesuit Royal College at Grenoble, France. Joined the Congregation of the Mission (Vincentians) in Lyons, France on 6 March 1769, making his final vows in 1771. Ordained in 1773. Professor of moral theology at the Vincentian seminary in Annecy, France. Nicknamed "the walking library" due to his encyclopedic knowledge. Rector of Annecy in 1786. Director of novices in Paris in 1788. Director of the internal seminary at mother-house of the Congregation of the Lazarists in Paris, France. His community was disbanded, and their house destroyed by the French Revolutionists. Missionary to China in 1791. Assigned to Kiang-si in October 1792, the only European in the area; in 28 years of work, he never mastered the language. In 1793 Clet moved to Hou-Kouang in the Hopei Province where he served as superior of an international group of Vincentian missioners scattered over a very large territory; his pastoral area covered 270,000 square miles. In 1811 government anti-Christian persecutions intensified; the missionaries were accused of inciting rebellion, and had to pursue their work while on the run, often hiding in the mountains. On 16 June 1819, with a bounty on his head, Francis was betrayed by a Christian schoolmaster whose behavior the missionary had tried to correct. Force marched hundreds of miles in chains to trial. On 1 January 1820 he was found guilty of deceiving the Chinese people by preaching Christianity. Martyr.
Born
1748 at Grenoble, France
Died
• slowly strangled to death with a rope while tied on a cross on 18 February 1820 at Au-tshung-fu, China
• buried on Red Mountain by local Christians
• re-interred at the Vincentian motherhouse, Paris, France
• relics moved to Saint Lazare church, Paris
Canonized
1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II
Saint Theotonius of Coimbra
Also known as
Teotonio
Profile
Nephew of the bishop of Coimbra, Portugal. Educated at the University of Coimbra. Parish priest, assigned to Viseu, Portugal. His powerful and outspoken preaching against vice gained him a great reputation, the animosity of the ruling class, and the affection of the king and queen. Counselor to the throne. Rebuked the queen for adultery, and refused a bishopric from her, seeing it as an attempt to buy his affection. He was once asked by the queen to shorten a Mass so she could attend to other business; he send back word that he answered to true sovereigns, and the queen was free to stay or go as she liked.
Theotinus had a great devotion to the poor, and to souls in purgatory. Each Friday he combined these devotions by singing a Solemn Mass for the dead, leading a large procession to the cemetery to pray for the local dead, collecting alms there, and distributing the money to the local poor.
Twice a pilgrim to the Holy Lands. Augustinian Canon Regular, which order he helped bring to Portugal in 1131, entering the monastery at Coimbra. Spent his last 30 years there as monk and prior. Devoted to the daily offices, never allowing the monks to hurry through them. King Alphonsus attributed his victories to the prayers of Theotonius and his brothers, and in gratitude, free all his Mozarabic Christian captives. First Portuguese saints canonized by the modern method.
Born
1086 at Gonfeo, Spain
Died
1166 of natural causes
Canonized
• 1167 by the Portguese bishops
• cultus confirmed by Pope Benedict XIV
Blessed Jerzy Kaszyra
Also known as
• George Kashira
• George Kaszyra
• Juryj Kašyra
• Giorgio, Jerzy, Yuri
Additional Memorial
12 June as one of the 108 Martyrs of World War II
Profile
Raised in an Orthodox family, George converted to Roman Catholicism in 1922 at age 18. He joined the Marians of the Immaculate Conception in 1924 in Druya, Belarus, and made his profession on 2 August 1929. He studied theology and philosophy in Rome, Italy, then at the seminary of Vilnius, Lithuania. Ordained a priest on 20 June 1935. He taught catechism in Druja, and in the seminary in Vilnius.
In 1938, Polish authorities ordered Father George to end his pastoral work in western Belarus; he moved to the monastery of Rasno in eastern Belarus and continued his work. In 1940, Soviet authorities, in line with their atheist ideology, kicked him out of the monastery; Father George travelled the area of Belarus and Lithuania, staying at assorted monasteries and continuing his work. On 18 February 1943 the occupation Nazis accused him of helping the partisans, and with several other Catholics, he was locked in the basement of a church which was then set on fire, killing them all. Martyr.
Born
4 April 1904 in Aleksandravele, Vilniaus rajonas, Lithuania
Died
burned alive on 18 February 1943 in Rositsa (Rosica), Vitebskaya voblasts', Belarus
Beatified
13 June 1999 by Pope John Paul II
Saint Tarasius of Constantinople
Also known as
Tarasio, Tarasios
Additional Memorial
25 February (Byzantine Rite)
Profile
Born to the Byzantine nobility. Consul and then Secretary of State to Emperor Constantine IV and Empress Irene. Though a courtier in the most political of empires, he led the life of a monk. Unanimously chosen Patriarch of Constantinople; Tarasius said that he could not accept such a trust when his see was cut off from full commuion with Rome, which had happened under his predecessor. He convoked a Council on 1 August 786 to settle the dispute of the use of holy images, but Iconoclasts rioted, and the Council was reconvened in 787 in Nicea; the Council determined that the Church was in favour of images, and the Pope approved. Tarasius lived an ascetic life, eating simply and little, sleeping little, reading, praying, working for the Church. When the emperor put away his wife and got a priest to “marry” him to a servant, Tarasius condemned the action and was briefly imprisoned for his defiance.
Born
c.750 at Constantinople
Died
• 25 February 806 of natural causes
• relics preserved in the church of San Zaccaria, Venice, Italy
Saint Simon
† இன்றைய புனிதர் †
(ஃபெப்ரவரி 18)
✠ எருசலேம் நகர் புனிதர் சிமியோன் ✠
(St. Simeon of Jerusalem)
ஆயர் மற்றும் மறைசாட்சி:
(Bishop and Martyr)
பிறப்பு: தெரியவில்லை
கலிலேயா, யூதேயா பிராந்தியம்
(Galilee, Judaea Province)
இறப்பு: கி.பி. 107 அல்லது கி.பி. 117
ஜெருசலேம், யூதேயா பிராந்தியம்
(Jerusalem, Judaea Province)
ஏற்கும் சமயம்:
ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை
(Roman Catholic Church)
கிழக்கு மரபுவழி திருச்சபை
(Eastern Orthodox Church)
லூதரன் திருச்சபை
(Lutheran Church)
நினைவுத் திருநாள்: ஃபெப்ரவரி 18
புனிதர் சிமியோன், ஒரு யூத கிறிஸ்தவ தலைவரும் (Jewish Christian Leader), பெரும்பாலான கிறிஸ்தவ பாரம்பரியங்களின்படி, ஜெருசலேம் நகரின் இரண்டாவது ஆயரும் ஆவார்.
புனிதர் யூசேபியஸ் (St. Eusebius of Caesarea) இங்கே ஆயர்களின் அட்டவணையைத் தருகின்றார். அகில உலக பாரம்பரியங்களின்படி, "ஆண்டவரின் சகோதரர் எனப்படும் புனிதர் ஜேம்ஸ்" (Saint James the Just, the "brother of the Lord) ஜெருசலேம் நகரின் முதலாவது ஆயராவார். புனிதர் ஜேம்சை ஜெருசலேமின் முதலாவது ஆயராக நியமனம் செய்தது, அப்போஸ்தலர்கள் புனிதர் பேதுருவும் புனிதர் யோவானும் (Apostles St. Peter and St. John) ஆவர் என்று புனிதர் யூசேபியஸ் கூறுகிறார்.
புனிதர் ஜேம்ஸ் மறைசாட்சியாக மரித்ததன் பிறகு, ஜெருசலேமின் வெற்றிக்குப் பிறகு, புனிதர் ஜேம்ஸின் பின்வருபவராக புனிதர் சிமியோன் ஜெருசலேமின் ஆயராக தேர்வு செய்யப்பட்டார்.
புனிதர் ஜேம்ஸ் மறைசாட்சியாக மரித்து, ஜெருசலேம் வெற்றிபெற்றதும் பல்வேறு திசைகளிலிருந்தும் அப்போது உயிருடனிருந்த ஆண்டவரின் சீடர்களும் அப்போஸ்தலர்களும் ஜேம்சுக்குப் பிறகு ஜெருசலேமின் ஆயராக பொறுப்பேற்கப் போவது யார் என்று ஆலோசனை செய்வதற்காக ஜெருசலேம் நகரில் ஒன்றுகூடினர். அவர்களது ஆலோசனையின் முடிவில், சிமியோனை ஒருமனதாக தேர்வு செய்தனர்.
கி.பி. சுமார் 107 அல்லது 117ம் ஆண்டு, ரோமப் பேரரசன் "ட்ராஜன்" (Roman emperor Trajan) என்பவரது கட்டளைப்படி, பண்டைய ரோம் நாட்டில் ஏகாதிபத்திய அதிகாரம் கொண்ட ஆளுநராக இருந்த "டிபேரியஸ்" (Tiberius Claudius Atticus Herodes) என்பவன் சிமியோனை சிலுவையில் அறைந்து கொன்றான்.
Also known as
Simeon
Profile
A relative of Jesus, possibly a first cousin. He is mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew, and was one of the 72 disciples. He was present at the Ascension, and is one of the brethren of Christ mentioned in Acts who was present at the birth of the Church on the first Pentecost. Reported to have been at the martyrdom of Saint James the Lesser, he was chosen to succeed James as bishop of Jerusalem where he served for over 40 years. In 66, before the city fell to the Romans, the Christians received a divine warning, and evacuated to nearby Pella with Simon as their leader. In the aftermath of the destruction of Jerusalem, Simon led the Christians back to the city where they flourished, performed miracles, and converted many. Simon was eventually arrested, tortured and martyred for the twin crimes of being Jewish and Christian during the persecutions of Trajan.
Died
crucified in 106
Blessed Fra Angelico
Also known as
• Angelico of Fiesole
• Beato Angelico
• Fra Giovanni
• Giovanni da Fiesole
• Guido di Pietro
• John of Fiesole
• Painter of the Angels
Profile
Joined the Dominicans in Fiesole, Italy in 1407, taking the name Fra Giovanna. He was taught to illuminate missals and manuscripts, and immediately exhibited a natural talent as an artist. Today his works can be seen in the Italian cities Cortona, Fiesole, Florence, and in the Vatican. His dedication to religious art earned him the title Angelico.
Born
1387 in Vicchio di Mugello near Florence, Italy as Guido di Pietro
Died
18 February 1455 in the Dominican convent in Rome, Italy of natural causes
Beatified
3 October 1982 by Pope John Paul II
Saint Angilbert of Centula
† இன்றைய புனிதர் †
(ஃபெப்ரவரி 18)
✠ புனிதர் ஆங்கில்பெர்ட் ✠
(St. Angilbert)
பிறப்பு: கி.பி. 760
இறப்பு: ஃபெப்ரவரி 18, 814
ரிக்குயர் (Riquier), ஃபிரான்ஸ்
ஏற்கும் சமயம்:
ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை
(Roman Catholic Church)
புனிதர் பட்டம்: கி.பி. 1100
திருத்தந்தை இரண்டாம் அர்பன்
(Pope Urban II)
நினைவுத் திருநாள்: ஃபெப்ரவரி 18
புனிதர் ஆங்கில்பெர்ட், “நார்தும்ப்ரியா’வைச்” (Northumbria) சேர்ந்த பிரபல ஆங்கிலேய அறிஞரும், கவிஞரும், ஆசிரியருமான “அல்குயின்” (Alcuin) என்பவரிடம் கல்வி கற்ற ஒரு உன்னதமான ஃபிரான்கிஷ் கவிஞர் ஆவார். இவர், “ஃபிராங்க்ஸ்” (Franks) மற்றும் “லொம்பார்ட்ஸ்” (Lombards) அரசனும், கி.பி. 800ம் ஆண்டுமுதல் தூய ரோமப் பேரரசருமான (Holy Roman Emperor) “சார்ல்மக்ன்” (Charlemagne) என்றழைக்கப்படும் “முதலாம் சார்லசின்” (Charles I) மருமகனும், அவரது அரசவையில் பணியாற்றிய அரசு செயலாளரும், ராஜதந்திரியுமாவார்.
அரசன் முதலாம் சார்லசால் (Charles I) வளர்க்கப்பட்ட ஆங்கில்பெர்ட், அரண்மனை பள்ளியிலேயே கல்வியும் கற்றார். பிரபல ஆங்கிலேய அறிஞர் “அல்குயின்” (Alcuin) மாணவரான இவர், பின்னாளில் அவரது நண்பருமானார். அரசன் முதலாம் சார்லஸ், தமது இளைய மகனான “பெபின்” (Pepin) என்பவரை “லொம்பார்ட்ஸ்” (King of the Lombards) அரசனாக பதவியேற்க இத்தாலி அனுப்பினார். அப்போது, அவருக்கு துணையாகவும், அரசவையின் உயர் நிர்வாகியாகவும் ஆங்கில்பெர்ட்டை உடன் அனுப்பினார். அரசன் பெபினின் நண்பராகவும், ஆலோசகராகவும் இத்தாலியின் ஆட்சியிலும், அரசாங்கத்திலும் உதவினார். இவர், மேற்கு ஜெர்மனியின் (Western Germany) “ஃபிரான்க்ஃபர்ட்” (Frankfurt) நகரில் நடந்த ஆலோசனை சபையின் (Synod) அறிக்கைகளை (Document on Iconoclasm) திருத்தந்தை முதலாம் அட்ரியானிடம் (Pope Adrian I) கையளித்தார். பின்னர், கி.பி. 792, 794, மற்றும் 796ம் ஆண்டுகளின் நடந்த மூன்று முக்கிய வெளிநாட்டு தூதரகங்களுக்கு அனுப்பப்பட்டார். ஒரு சமயம், அவர் கடல் மாகாணங்களில் ஒரு அதிகாரியாகவும் பணியாற்றினார். அவர் கி.பி. 800ம் ஆண்டு, முதலாம் சார்லசுடன் ரோமுக்குச் சென்றார். கி.பி. 811ம் ஆண்டு, “சார்ல்மக்ன்” (Charlemagne) என்றழைக்கப்படும் தூய ரோமப் பேரரசர் (Holy Roman Emperor) “முதலாம் சார்லசின்” (Charles I) சொத்து உரிமை ஏற்பாடுகளான மரண சாசனத்தை (Testament of Charlemagne) நேரில் பார்த்த பதினோரு சாட்சிகளின் இவரும் ஒருவராவார்.
முதலாம் சார்லசின் மகளான “பெர்த்தா’வுக்கும்” (Bertha) ஆங்கில்பெர்ட்டுக்குமான உறவுகளைப் பற்றின வெவ்வேறு மரபுகள் உள்ளன. அவர்கள் திருமணம் செய்து கொண்டார்கள் என்று ஒரு மரபும், இல்லையென்று பிறிதொன்றும் கூறுகின்றன. எவ்வாறாயினும், அவர்களுக்கு இரண்டு மகன்களும் ஒரு மகளும் பிறந்தனர். அதிலொருவர், ஒன்பதாம் நூற்றாண்டின் மத்தியில் பிரபலமான “நிதார்ட்” (Nithard) ஆவார். பின்னர், பெர்த்தா, பிரபுவான “இரண்டாம் ஹெல்கௌட்” (Helgaud II, count of Ponthieu) என்பவரை திருமணம் செய்து கொண்டார். திருமணத்தின் கட்டுப்பாடுகள் மற்றும் சட்டபூர்வமான அர்த்தங்கள் மத்திய காலங்களில் கடுமையாக போட்டியிட்டன. பெர்த்தா மற்றும் ஆங்கிள்ட்பெர்ட், திருச்சபைகள் நடத்தும் புனிதமான திருமண அருட்சாதன யோசனைக்கு எவ்வாறு எதிர்ப்புத் தெரிவிப்பது என்பதற்கான ஒரு எடுத்துக்காட்டு ஆவர். மறுபுறம், சார்ல்மக்ன் தனது மகள்களுக்கான தகுதிவாய்ந்த திருமணங்களை எதிர்த்து நின்றார் என்று, சில வரலாற்றாசிரியர்கள் யூகிக்கின்றனர். திருமண ஏற்பாடுகளின் அரசியல் வாய்ப்புகள் இருந்தாலும், சார்ல்மக்ன் மகள்களில் யாரும் திருமணம் செய்து கொள்ளவில்லை.
கி.பி. 790ம் ஆண்டு, அவர் தமது பரபரப்பான அரசியல் வாழ்க்கையிலிருந்து ஓய்வு பெற்று, “சென்டுலும் மடாலயம்” (Abbey of Centulum) என்றழைக்கப்படும் “தூய ரிச்சாரியஸ் துறவு மடம்” (Monastery of St Richarius) சென்றார். கி.பி. 794ம் ஆண்டு, மடாதிபதியாக தேர்வு செய்யப்பட்டார். அவர் மடாலயத்தை மீண்டும் கட்டியெழுப்பினார் மற்றும் 200 பாகங்களுடன் கூடிய ஒரு நூலகத்தையும் அதற்கு வழங்கினார். உள்ளூர் சிறுவர்களுக்காக ஒரு பள்ளியையும் நிறுவி நடத்தினார்.
அவரது லத்தீன் கவிதைகள், அரச குடும்பங்களுடன் நெருங்கிய உறவை அனுபவிக்கும் உலகின் மனிதனின் கலாச்சாரம் மற்றும் சுவைகளை வெளிப்படுத்துகின்றன.
Also known as
Homer
Profile
Raised at the court of Charlemagne, and became his friend and confidante. Studied under Alcuin. Nicknamed "Homer" because of his Latin poetry. Married to Charlemagne's daughter Bertha. With her permission he turned to religious life when prayers for a successful resistance to a Danish invasion were answered and a storm scattered the Danish fleet; Bertha became a nun. Benedictine monk. Court chaplain, privy councilor, and diplomat. As a reward for his help in court, Charlemagne gave Angilbert the abbey of Saint Riquier in Centula where he served as abbot. He established a library at Centula, and introduced continuous chanting in the abbey using 300 monks and 100 boys in relays. Executor of the emperor's will.
Born
c.740
Died
18 February 814 of natural causes
Saint Colman of Lindisfarne
Also known as
Colman of Mayo
Profile
Spiritual student and disciple of Saint Columba. Monk at Iona. Bishop of Lindisfarne, England in 661. Friend of king Oswy of Northumbria. Defended Celtic church practices against Saint Eilfrid and Saint Agilbert at the Synod of Whitby, and when King Oswy insisted on the use of Latin rites, Colman refused, resigned his see, and in 664 led a group of dissident Irish and English monks first to Scotland, then to the Isle of Innishboffin, and then to Mayo, Ireland. Founded the abbey and diocese of Mayo. One of the great heroes of the faith about whom the Venerable Bede wrote.
Born
c.605 at Connaught, Ireland
Died
8 August 676 at Inishboffin abbey of natural causes
Blessed John Pibush
Additional Memorial
29 October as one of the Martyrs of Douai
Profile
Son of Thomas and Jane Pibush. Educated at Rheims, France beginning 4 August 1580. Deacon in 1586. Ordained on 14 March 1587. Returned to England as missioner on 14 January 1588. Arrested at Morton-in-Marsh, Gloucester, England in 1593 for the crime of priesthood. Spent a year in Gatehouse prison, Westminster. Returned to Gloucester, he escaped on 19 February 1594; he was captured the next day at Matson. Sent back to Westminster, he was convicted on 1 July 1595 for the treason of Catholic priesthood. He spent over five years in Queen's Bench prison awaiting execution, ministering to fellow prisoners whenever he could.
Born
at Thirsk, Yorkshire, England
Died
hanged on 18 February 1601 at Saint Thomas's Waterings, Camberwell, England
Beatified
15 December 1929 by Pope Pius XI
Saint Sadoth of Seleucia
Also known as
Sadosh, Sadot, Sadota, Sahdost, Schadost, Schiadustes, Shahdost, Zadok
Profile
Deacon in service to Saint Barbasymas in the diocese of Seleucia-Ctesiphon. Attended the Council of Nicaea in 325. After Saint Barbasymas was martyred, Sadoth was chosen the new bishop of Seleucia-Ctesiphon. He and his priests went into hiding, covertly ministering to his flock. The forces of King Shapur returned to Seleucia, and Sadoth was arrested along with 128 of his priests, deacons and nuns. Most were immediately executed, but Sadoth and some companions were imprisoned, repeatedly tortured, and offered relief if they would obey the king and worship the sun; they refused.
Died
beheaded c.342 outside the walls of Seleucia, Mesopotamia
Saint Gertrude Caterina Comensoli
Profile
One of a family of eleven children. Member of the Society of Saint Angela Merici. Founder of the Institute of Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament on 15 December 1882.
Born
18 January 1847 in Biennio, Brescia, Italy
Died
18 February 1903 in Bergamo, Italy of natural causes
Canonized
• 26 April 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI
• her canonization miracle involved the cure of 4 year old Vasco Ricchini of life threatening meningitis in 2001 through the prayers of the Sacramentine Sisters for her intercession
Blessed William Harrington
Additional Memorial
29 October as one of the Martyrs of Douai
Profile
After meeting Saint Edmund Campion, William travelled to Rheims, France were he studied for the priesthood. Ordained in 1592, he returned to England to minister to covert Catholics. Arrested in 1593, he was held for several months before being executed for the crime of being a priest. Martyr.
Born
Felixkirk, Borth Yorkshire, England
Died
hanged, drawn, and quartered on 18 February 1594 at Tyburn, London, England
Beatified
15 December 1929 by Pope Pius XI
Saint Jean-Pierre Néel
Also known as
• John Néel
• John Peter Néel
Profile
Jesuit priest. Missionary to Kuy-tsheu, China in 1858. Arrested, tortured and martyred with three of his converts.
Born
18 October 1832 in Soleymieux, Sainte-Catherine-sur-Riviere, France
Died
dragged by his hair by a horse, then beheaded at Kuy-tsheu (Kai-chou), China on 18 February 1862
Canonized
1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II
Saint Helladius of Toledo
Also known as
Eladio, Eladius
Profile
Minister in the court of Visigoth kings in Toledo, Spain, his heart was in the nearby abbey of Agali. He eventually resigned his position and became a monk there. Abbot in 605. Archbishop of Toledo in 615.
Born
at Toledo, Spain
Died
632 of natural causes
Saint Ioannes Zhang Tianshen
Also known as
• John Zhang Tianshen
• Ruowang
Profile
Married layman in the apostolic vicariate of Guizhou, China. Convert. Catechist. Martyr.
Born
c.1805 in Jiashanlong, Kaiyang City, Guizhou, China
Died
beheaded on 18 February 1862 at Kaiyang, Guizhou, China
Canonized
1 October 2000 by PopeJohn Paul II
Saint Martinus Wu Xuesheng
Also known as
Mading, Martin
Profile
Layman in the apostolic vicariate of Guizhou, China. Convert. Catechist. Martyred for sheltering Blessed John Peter Neel.
Born
c.1817 in Chuchangbo, Qingzhen, Guizhou, China
Died
beheaded on 18 February 1862 at Kaiyang, Guizhou, China
Canonized
1 October 2000 by PopeJohn Paul II
Saint Ioannes Chen Xianheng
Also known as
• John Chen Xianheng
• Ruowang
Profile
Layman in the apostolic vicariate of Guizhou, China. Convert. Catechist. Martyr.
Born
c.1820 in Chengdu, Sichuan, China
Died
beheaded on 18 February 1862 at Kaiyang, Guizhou, China
Canonized
1 October 2000 by PopeJohn Paul II
Saint Constance of Vercelli
Profile
Nun. Sister of Saint Costanzo, bishop of Piedmont, Italy. We know little else about her.
Died
• early 6th century
• relics re-discovered in the 16th century reconstruction of the basilica of Eusebius of Vercelli, interred in the foundations with a placque naming and praising her
Blessed Matthew Malaventino
Profile
Mercedarian friar assigned to ransom Christians from slavery in Muslim north Africa. Along the way, he preached Christianity until he was seized and murdered. Martyr.
Died
thrown off a mountain
Saint Esuperia of Vercelli
Profile
Nun. Sister of Saint Costanzo, bishop of Piedmont, Italy. We know little else about her.
Died
• early 6th century
• relics re-discovered in the 16th century reconstruction of the basilica of Eusebius of Vercelli, interred in the foundations with a placque naming and praising her
Saint Leo of Patera
Profile
Martyred for protesting a pagan festival being held near the grave of Saint Paregorius.
Died
260 at Patara, Lycia
Saint Paregorius of Patara
Profile
Martyr.
Died
260 at Patara, Lycia
Saint Ethelina
Also known as
Eudelme
Profile
No information has survived.
Patronage
Little Sodbury, England
Martyrs in North Africa
Profile
Group of Christians who were martyred together, date unknown. We know nothing else but seven of their names - Classicus, Fructulus, Lucius, Maximus, Rutulus, Secundinus and Silvanus.
Born
African
Died
North Africa
Martyrs of Rome
Profile
A group of Christians martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian. We know nothing else but their names - Alexander, Claudius, Cutias, Maximus and Praepedigna.
Died
295 in Rome, Italy
