#beatification — Public Fediverse posts

Quote of the day, 3 November: St. Titus Brandsma

The Security Office of the Reich in Berlin published the official accusation against Professor Brandsma: he had obstructed the plans of the victorious German nation for the Netherlands through his influence on the Catholic press. Providentially, all the documentation of the entire process against Titus Brandsma was preserved. It concludes:

The arrest of Professor Brandsma was necessary and it took place on January 19, 1942. The following day he was interrogated in this office concerning his activities. As Brandsma himself admits, Archbishop De Jong and he himself are the individuals principally responsible for the sabotage of the uniform orientation we are attempting to provide for the Dutch people through the press. The directive for all Catholics to cancel their subscriptions to periodicals that obeyed our orders would have a deleterious effect on the Dutch people. The security measures that we Germans have taken with regard to the press have been systematically sabotaged due to the activity of Professor Brandsma, who has no other purpose than to discredit the German government and Dutch National-Socialism. It is my recommendation that this case result in the prolonged preventive arrest (Schutzhaft) of the Professor.

In spite of his role in Titus’s condemnation, [Nazi judge Paul Hardegen] appeared to respect him. A few months later, Hardegen himself told one of Titus’ friends: “He was a real man. He was convinced that he was defending Christianity against National-Socialism.”

In all probability, Hardegen did not realize that he could have given Titus no greater praise; his words confirmed that Titus was worthy of the crown of a Christian martyr.

Miguel María Arribas, O.Carm.

The Price of Truth, ch. 8

Note: It was ten o’clock on the morning of Sunday, 3 November 1985, when Pope John Paul II proclaimed the words of beatification: “We, by our apostolic authority, declare that the Venerable Servant of God, Titus Brandsma, may from now on be called Blessed, and that his feast may be celebrated…” 

Arribas O.Carm., M 2021, The Price of Truth: Titus Brandsma, Carmelite, Carmelite Media, Darien, Illinois.

Featured image: Newsclip from the 26 February 1942 edition of the New York Daily News. Clipping courtesy of newspapers.com

#beatification #martyr #Nazism #StTitusBrandsma #WorldWarII

Quote of the day, 10 September: St. John Paul II

This morning, dear Brothers and Sisters, our thoughts turn to the sixty-four French priests who died with hundreds of others on the “prison ships of Rochefort.” As Saint Paul exhorted Timothy, they “fought the good fight of faith.” They even endured a long calvary for remaining faithful to their faith and to the Church. If they died, it was for having maintained to the end their close communion with Pope Pius VI.

In profound moral solitude, they took care to maintain a spirit of prayer. “Prey to the torture” of hunger and thirst, they did not have a single word of hatred toward their executioners. Slowly, they allowed themselves to be identified with the sacrifice of Christ which they celebrated by virtue of their ordination. Henceforward, they are offered to our gaze as a living sign of the power of Christ who acts in human weakness.

In the depths of their distress, they maintained the sense of forgiveness. In their eyes, the unity of faith and the unity of their homeland were more important than anything else. We can therefore joyfully take up the words of Sacred Scripture: the souls of these righteous ones are in the hand of God. “They seemed to perish. Their departure was considered a misfortune, but they are at peace” [cf. Wis 3:1–3].

Saint John Paul II

Homily for the Beatification of 64 Victims of the French Revolution (excerpt)
1 October 1995

Note: Blessed Hubert of Saint Claude (Jacques Gagnot) was among three Discalced Carmelite martyrs imprisoned on the ship Les Deux Associés in Rochefort bay during 1794. While his two companions died aboard ship in July, Blessed Hubert endured through the summer months. When plague broke out, the survivors were transferred to Île Madame, where Blessed Hubert died and was buried on 10 September 1794. Witnesses observed that “compared to the hell of the ships, the island seemed a veritable paradise.”

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: Île Madame, Port des Barques, sunrise over the ox path, low tide. Image credit: © Thierry Llansades / Flickr (Some rights reserved)

#beatification #BlessedHubertOfSaintClaude #BlessedMartyrsOfRochefort #martyrdom #StJohnPaulII

Estonia celebrates its first beatification ceremony in historic moment for Catholic community https://www.byteseu.com/1354481/ #Beatification #CardinalChristophSchönborn #CardinalStanislawDziwisz #EduardProfittlich #Estonia #EstonianCitizenship #PhilippeJourdan #tallinn #TheCatholicChurch

Estonia celebrates its first beatification ceremony in historic moment for Catholic community

In a historic event for Estonia and its small Catholic community, the beatification Mass of Archbishop Eduard Profittlich…
#Estonia #EE #Europe #Europa #EU #beatification #CardinalChristophSchönborn #CardinalStanislawDziwisz #EduardProfittlich #Eesti #estonia #Estoniancitizenship #PhilippeJourdan #tallinn #theCatholicChurch #Uudised
https://www.europesays.com/2389743/

Quote of the day, 26 June: Blessed Mary Josephine

It has always been my heart’s burning desire to fulfill the will of God; I have never wanted anything else. I have lived and am living the divine will. It is something I need more than the food I eat and the air I breathe.
— Blessed Mary Josephine of Jesus Crucified
Autobiography

Looking more closely at the history and message of Blessed Mary Josephine, we better understand the inescapable need for a contemplative dimension in every Christian life. Her example shows us a concrete path for cultivating it. Her very existence was a true school of charity—toward her fellow sisters and, through her cloistered life, toward a wide apostolic field she served only to help others love the Lord more deeply.

She, too, like Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, did not want to “become a saint by halves.”

With her own unique character and mystical gifts—marked by extraordinary spiritual experiences—she embodied a life entirely rooted in one guiding conviction: “I want to live by feeding on the will of God… I want my will to be made one with His.”

Again, in her Diary, she wrote: “I ardently desire to live in the will of God. I know that this is how saints are made, and I want to become a saint to give glory to God.”

This program of life should be the great aspiration of every Christian, in perfect harmony with the words of Christ, our only and supreme model: “My food is to do the will of the Father” (Jn 4:34), because “whoever does the will of God lives forever” (1 Jn 2:17).

Cardinal José Saraiva Martins

Message at the Beatification of Blessed Mary Josephine of Jesus Crucified
Naples, 1 June 2008

Translation from the Italian text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: A nun kneels before Blessed Mary Josephine in the cloister of the Carmel at Ponti Rossi. Image credit: Discalced Carmelites (Used by permission).

⬦ Reflection Question ⬦
What would it mean for you to feed on the will of God in your daily life?
⬦ Join the conversation in the comments.

#beatification #BlessedMaryJosephineOfJesusCrucified #gloryToGod #homily #willOfGod

Quote of the day, 5 June: Madame Acarie

Ah, how much we must love God who is so good, who has loved us so much! If we find difficulty in anything, it’s because we don’t love God.

When will we finally give him everything and hold nothing back for ourselves? There is nothing owed to us and everything is due to God. Let’s serve him for who he is.

How happy we are to be able to do something for the service of God!

Blessed Mary of the Incarnation
(Madame Acarie)

2020 Carmelite Online Advent Retreat

Note: We recall the beatification of Madame Acarie on 5 June 1791 in Rome at a liturgy presided by Pope Pius VI.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: Madame Acarie kneels before Our Lady in this oil painting by Delestres, ca. 1750, which is a treasure in the Carmel of Pontoise. Image credit: Discalced Carmelites, used by permission.

⬦ Reflection Question ⬦
Am I growing in the freedom of loving God for who He is—not what He gives?
⬦ Join the conversation in the comments.

#beatification #BlessedMaryOfTheIncarnation #CarmelOfPontoise #MadameAcarie #prayer #surrender

Quote of the day, 27 May: St. Elizabeth of the Trinity

Throughout her stay in Carmel, Elizabeth lived with the very real threat of being expelled from France, along with her entire community. The liturgical calendar of Carmel, composed in 1905 (for the year 1906) mentions that, out of the 117 French Carmels, 38 actually were expelled.

On 1 July 1901, one month before Elizabeth entered Carmel, the Waldeck-Rousseau government promulgated the law concerning associations, which was aimed primarily at religious congregations. They had to ask for legal authorization before October 3, present their financial balance sheet, and an inventory of their goods.

For decades, the Catholic Church in France had been facing a headwind. The painful memory of the French Revolution and its martyrs a century earlier was still alive and, in the minds of young Christian idealists like Elizabeth, the idea of martyrdom could resurface from time to time, following the example of the Carmelites of Compiègne who were guillotined. She entered Carmel with this readiness for martyrdom, as she had declared to Marguerite Gollot when they were postulants “outside the walls”: “So, what happiness to go together to martyrdom!… I can hardly think of it… it’s too good!” (Letter 57).

Conrad De Meester, O.C.D.

Chapter 22, Partir en exil à l’étranger?

Note: The Mass and rite of beatification of Mother Teresa of St. Augustine and the Martyrs of Compiègne took place in Rome on Sunday, 27 May 1906. Later that year, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity attended a triduum celebrated in mid-October by the Carmel of Dijon in their honor. Their canonization—formally approved by Pope Francis on 18 December 2024—was the final one he authorized before his death.

de Meester, C 2017, Rien moins que Dieu: sainte Elisabeth de la Trinité, Presses de la Renaissance, Paris.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

⬦ Reflection Question ⬦
How am I inspired by the Holy Martyrs of Compiègne in my own faith and witness?
⬦ Join the conversation in the comments.

#anniversary #beatification #CarmelOfDijon #history #inspiration #martyrdom #MartyrsOfCompiègne #StElizabethOfTheTrinity

Quote of the day, 26 April: Pope Francis & Blessed Anne of Jesus

These stanzas, Reverend Mother, were obviously composed with a certain burning love of God.

Saint John of the Cross to Blessed Anne of Jesus
Prologue to the Spiritual Canticle

The history of the Belgian Church is rich in examples of holiness. Let us consider Saint Gudula, the patron saint of this country (650–712 ca.), Saint Guy of Anderlecht, the pilgrim and friend of the poor (+1012), Saint Damien de Veuster, better known as Damien of Molokai, the apostle to the lepers (1840-1889), and the many Belgian missionaries who have proclaimed the Gospel in various parts of the world over the centuries, sometimes to the point of sacrificing their lives.

The witness of a Carmelite nun has also blossomed in this fertile land: Anne of Jesus, Anna de Lobera, whose Beatification we celebrate today. In the Church of her time, this woman was among the protagonists of a great reform movement. She followed in the footsteps of a “giant of the spirit”, Teresa of Avila, and helped spread her ideals throughout Spain, France, here, in Brussels, and in what was then called the Spanish Netherlands.

In a time marked by painful scandals, within and outside of the Christian community, she and her companions brought many people back to the faith through their simple lives of poverty, prayer, work, and charity. Some have called their foundation in this city a “spiritual magnet”.

She intentionally left no writings to posterity. Instead, she committed herself to putting into practice what she had learned (cf. 1 Cor 15:3), and by her way of life she helped lift up the Church at a time of great difficulty.

Let us then gratefully welcome the example she has given us of “feminine styles of holiness” (cf. Gaudete et Exsultate, 12), gentle but strong. Her testimony, together with those of so many brothers and sisters who have gone before us, our friends and fellow pilgrims, is not far from us: it is near us, indeed it is entrusted to us so that we may also make it our own, renewing our commitment to walk together in the footsteps of the Lord.

Pope Francis

Homily, Mass of Beatification of Anne of Jesus
Brussels, 29 September 2024

John of the Cross, St. 1991, The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross, Revised Edition, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K and Rodriguez, O with revisions and introductions by Kavanaugh, K, ICS Publications, Washington DC.

Featured image: Pope Francis passing through a jubilant crowd in St. Peter’s Square minutes before his Inaugural Mass, 19 March 2013 [Inizio Del Ministero Petrino Del Vescovo Di Roma]. Photo by Jeffrey Bruno (Some rights reserved).

⬦ Reflection Question ⬦
Is my life quietly bearing witness—or am I waiting to say something before I live it?
⬦ Join the conversation in the comments.

#beatification #BlessedAnneOfJesus #Brussels #founder #homily #PopeFrancis #StJohnOfTheCross

Come si costruisce un santo: il caso di Carlo Acutis - A tu per tu con Biagio Carrano

https://youtube.com/watch?v=3MEImPsxkKc&si=i71zzZbCTLRJs_3f

#CarloAcutis #beatification #beatificazione #chiesacattolica #ateismo #atheism

Come si costruisce un santo: il caso di Carlo Acutis - A tu per tu con Biagio Carrano

https://youtube.com/watch?v=3MEImPsxkKc&si=i71zzZbCTLRJs_3f

#CarloAcutis #beatification #beatificazione #chiesacattolica #ateismo #atheism

Come si costruisce un santo: il caso di Carlo Acutis - A tu per tu con Biagio Carrano

https://youtube.com/watch?v=3MEImPsxkKc&si=i71zzZbCTLRJs_3f

#CarloAcutis #beatification #beatificazione #chiesacattolica #ateismo #atheism

Come si costruisce un santo: il caso di Carlo Acutis - A tu per tu con Biagio Carrano

https://youtube.com/watch?v=3MEImPsxkKc&si=i71zzZbCTLRJs_3f

#CarloAcutis #beatification #beatificazione #chiesacattolica #ateismo #atheism

Come si costruisce un santo: il caso di Carlo Acutis - A tu per tu con Biagio Carrano

https://youtube.com/watch?v=3MEImPsxkKc&si=i71zzZbCTLRJs_3f

#CarloAcutis #beatification #beatificazione #chiesacattolica #ateismo #atheism

Quote of the day, 13 November: St. John Paul II

“Listen, daughter”… (Psalm 45:11).

1. Today the Church applies these words of the Psalm to Sister Mary of Jesus Crucified, a Discalced Carmelite nun, born in the land that saw the unfolding of the life of Jesus of Nazareth; a land situated in a region that, even today, remains at the center of grave concerns and painful tensions.

“Listen, daughter.” Behold, Sister Mary’s journey toward the divine Bridegroom is now profoundly inscribed in the memory of the People of God. Today, the Church crowns her with the act of beatification. This act bears witness to the unique spiritual “beauty” of this daughter of the Holy Land—a “beauty” that has matured in the glow of the mystery of Redemption: in the rays of the birth and teaching, the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The liturgy says to the new Blessed: “He is your Lord: bow down to him” (Ps 45:11–12).

And at the same time, with the words of the same Psalm, the liturgy manifests the joy for the elevation to the altar of the humble Servant of God.

“The princess is decked in her chamber with gold-woven robes…” (Ps 45:13–14): the golden fabric of faith, hope, and love; of the theological and moral virtues that she practiced to a heroic degree as a daughter of Carmel.

2. In this Year that the Church experiences as an extraordinary Jubilee of the Redemption, many times we have gathered around figures who have reached the glory of the altar. It is a special sign of the inexhaustible power of the Redemption, which works in the souls of the Servants of God, allowing them to continue tenaciously on the path of the vocation to holiness.

This vocation has its eternal beginning in the salvific plan of the Most Holy Trinity, of which the second reading of the Mass speaks: “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Rom 8:29–30).

In this grandiose Pauline vision, we penetrate, so to speak, into the very depths of divine thought, grasping in some way the “logic” of the plan of salvation, in the progression of the mysterious actions that lead to its full implementation. Thus, the vocation to holiness is God’s eternal plan with regard to man: with regard, today, to our sister Mary of Jesus Crucified.

True wisdom and intelligence presuppose “littleness,” understood as docility to the Holy Spirit. It is only through this littleness that one can, in the Son, for the Son, and with the Son, come to know the mysteries of the Father. These remain hidden from the wise and learned of this world, who are blinded by foolishness and pride (Cf. 1 Cor 1:18–21).

3. The vocation to holiness is carried out by those “infants” of the Gospel who accept divine Revelation with all their hearts. Thanks to this, they “know the Son,” and thanks to the Son, they “know the Father.”

Such knowledge is, in fact, at the same time, the acceptance of the vocation: “Come to me… Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me…” (Mt 11:28–29).

And so we go to Christ just as Sister Mary of Jesus Crucified came to him, that is, taking his yoke upon ourselves, learning from him, because he is meek and humble of heart, and finding solace for our souls (Cf. Mt 11:28–29).

4. And all this is the work of love. Holiness, first of all, is based on love. It is its mature fruit. And in today’s liturgy, in a particular way, love is exalted:

• “love, as strong as death”;
• “the love that floods cannot drown”;
• “love, in exchange for which one must give all the wealth of one’s house” (Cf. Song 8:6–7).

Thus speaks the author of the Song of Songs. And Saint Paul, in his Letter to the Romans, teaches that “all things work together for good for those who love God” (Rom 8:28). Precisely this cooperation traces the path of holiness, one might say, day by day throughout one’s life. On this path, holiness is realized as the eternal vocation of those “who have been called according to God’s plan” (Cf. Rom 8:28).

5. The readings of today’s Liturgy are a splendid commentary on the life of Sister Mary, who was born near Nazareth and died in the Carmel of Bethlehem at the age of 33. Her love for Christ was as strong as death; the most painful trials did not extinguish it, but on the contrary, purified and strengthened it. She gave everything for this love.

The entire life of the little Arab girl, filled with extraordinary mystical gifts, was, in the light of the Holy Spirit, the conscious and irrevocable response to a vocation of holiness, that is, to that eternal plan of salvation, of which St. Paul speaks, which divine mercy has established for each of us.

Her whole life is the fruit of that supreme evangelical “wisdom” with which God delights in enriching the humble and the poor, confounding the powerful. Endowed with great clarity of mind, a fervent natural intelligence, and that poetic imagination characteristic of the Semitic peoples, little Mary did not have the opportunity to gain access to advanced studies, but this did not prevent her, thanks to her eminent virtue, from being filled with that “knowledge” that has the greatest value, and to give us the knowledge that Christ died on the cross: knowledge of the Trinitarian Mystery, such an important perspective in that Eastern Christian spirituality in which the little Arab girl had been educated.

6. As we read in the Canonical Decree of Beatification, “the humble servant of Christ, Mary of Jesus Crucified, belonging by lineage, rite, vocation, and wanderings to the peoples of the East and being in some way a representative of them, is like a gift from the peoples of the East to the universal Church. These peoples, suffering in miserable conditions of struggle and bloodshed, especially now, turn with great trust to her fraternal intercession, in the hope that, thanks also to the Servant of God’s prayers, peace and harmony finally will be restored in those lands where ‘the Word became flesh’ (Jn 1:14) since he himself is our peace.”

Blessed Mary was born in Galilee. That is why our prayerful thought wants to go today in a special way to the Land where Jesus taught love and died so that humanity might have reconciliation. “That Land,” as I recalled on another occasion, “for decades has seen two peoples opposed in a hitherto irreducible antagonism. Each of them has a history, a tradition, a story of their own, which seem to make it difficult to reach an agreement” (John Paul II, Allocutio occasione oblata orationis dominicae Angelus Domini habita, 5, domenica 4 aprile 1982: Insegnamenti di Giovanni Paolo II, V/1 [1982] 1110).

Today more than ever before, the threats looming over us urge us to make love and brotherhood the fundamental law of social and international relations, in a spirit of reconciliation and forgiveness, taking inspiration from the way of life of which Blessed Mary of Jesus Crucified is an example not only for her people but for the whole world. May this new way of life give us peace based not on terror, but on mutual trust.

7. We rejoice today at the altar of the Confession of St. Peter for the beatification of Sister Mary. We inscribe this joy of the Church in the record of the Jubilee Year of Redemption. Together with Christ, we praise the Father, who revealed to the soul of Sister Mary of Jesus Crucified the mystery of truth and love, making her a sharer in the glory of his Kingdom.

With the Psalmist, let us pray to the new Blessed that the Lord may grant peace to her land: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: ‘May they prosper who love you. Peace be within your walls, and security within your towers.’ For the sake of my relatives and friends I will say, ‘Peace be within you.’ For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your good” (Ps 122:6–9).

Saint John Paul II

Homily, Beatification of St. Mary of Jesus Crucified
13 November 1983, St. Peter’s Basilica

Translation from the Italian text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified (Mariam Baouardy). Image credit: Discalced Carmelites

#beatification #DiscalcedCarmelite #homily #mariamBaouardy #nun #StJohnPaulII #StMaryOfJesusCrucified

At Mass in Brussels, Pope Francis beatified Blessed Anne of Jesus, praising her witness of holiness through poverty, prayer, and charity. #Beatification #Carmelite

http://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/29/beatific-anne/

At Mass in Brussels, Pope Francis beatified Blessed Anne of Jesus, praising her witness of holiness through poverty, prayer, and charity. #Beatification #Carmelite

http://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/29/beatific-anne/

At Mass in Brussels, Pope Francis beatified Blessed Anne of Jesus, praising her witness of holiness through poverty, prayer, and charity. #Beatification #Carmelite

http://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/29/beatific-anne/

This following of the Master, which should lead us to imitate him to the point of giving our lives for his love, has been almost a constant call for Christians of the earliest times and throughout history to give this supreme witness of love—martyrdom—to everyone, especially persecutors.

Thus the Church, down through the centuries, has preserved as a precious legacy the words that Christ spoke: “No disciple is above his teacher” (Mt 10:24), and “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you” (Jn 15:20).

Thus we see that martyrdom—the ultimate witness in defense of the faith—is considered by the Church to be an exalted gift and the supreme proof of love, by which a Christian follows in the footsteps of Jesus, who freely accepted suffering and death for the salvation of the world.

And although martyrdom is a gift granted by God to a few, nevertheless, all must—and should—be ready to confess Christ before men, especially in the periods of trial that are never—even today—lacking for the Church.

In honoring her martyrs, the Church recognizes them both as a sign of her fidelity to Jesus Christ until death, and as a clear sign of her immense desire for forgiveness and peace, harmony, mutual understanding, and respect.

The three Carmelite martyrs had, without doubt, very present, as we know from their testimonies, those words written by their Holy Mother and Doctor of the Church, Teresa of Jesus:

“If someone is a true religious or a true person of prayer… he must not turn his back upon the desire to die for God and suffer martyrdom” (Way of Perfection, 12:2).

Saint John Paul II

Homily, Beatification of Five Servants of God
29 March 1987

Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.

Translation from the Spanish text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: Detail from a historic photograph of Republican soldiers in the Church of Sigüenza, Guadalajara during the early months of the Spanish Civil War (1936). From the photojournalism collection in the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid. Image credit: Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/07/23/jp2-29mar87/

#beatification #BlessedMartyrsOfGuadalajara #gift #homily #martyrdom #StJohnPaulII #StTeresaOfAvila #witness

We are going to have very beautiful feast days in honor of our blessed martyrs of Compiègne on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.

I will be able to attend them in a little tribune, for Sister Thérèse of the Child Jesus granted my prayer three months ago by giving me the strength to take a few steps, which had been impossible for me.

That is a great consolation to me, for I can spend many hours in the dear little tribune, which has a grille opening on the sanctuary; I go to seek strength there, close to Him who has suffered so much because “he loved us exceedingly” [Eph 2:4], as the Apostle says.

Saint Elizabeth of the Trinity

Letter 324 to Germaine de Gemeaux (excerpt)
Around 10 October 1906

Biographer and editor Conrad de Meester, O.C.D. mentions that the Carmelites of Dijon celebrated the beatification of the Martyrs of Compiègne for three consecutive days: Saturday through Monday, 13 through 15 October 1906.

Mother Teresa of St. Augustine Lidoine and the Martyrs of Compiègne were beatified on 27 May 1906 by St. Pius X in St. Peter’s Basilica. Father de Meester notes that during this October triduum, Père Vallée, the prior of the Dominican friars at Dijon, preached at Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament on 13 and 14 October.

Then Bishop Dadolle of Dijon celebrated a pontifical Mass in the morning on Monday 15 October for the solemnity of St. Teresa of Avila; he also was the preacher for Benediction later in the day.

There was a window with a grille in the second-floor infirmary that permitted Elizabeth to look down on the sanctuary during the Mass and Benediction and to pray near the tabernacle whenever she desired (Cf. Photograph 191 on page 126 in Light, Love, Life: a look at a face and a heart).

Elizabeth attributes her ability to walk from her infirmary bed to this window to the intercession of St. Thérèse of Lisieux.

Elizabeth enclosed a holy card of the newly-beatified Martyrs in her letter to her young friend Germaine.

de Meester, C 2017, Rien moins que Dieu: sainte Elisabeth de la Trinité, Presses de la Renaissance, Paris.

Elizabeth of the Trinity, S 2003, The Complete Works of Elizabeth of the Trinity volume 2: Letters from Carmel, translated from the French by Nash, A, ICS Publications, Washington DC.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: In the background, we see a detail of the renowned stained glass depiction of the martyrdom of the Carmelites of Compiègne, masterfully designed and executed by Sr. Margaret Agnes Rope, O.C.D. for the Carmel of Quidenham, England. In the foreground are two newsclips from the New Orleans Times-Democrat (seen on the left) and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on the right) announcing celebrations in the Discalced Carmelite monasteries in New Orleans and St. Louis to mark the beatification of the Martyrs of Compiègne. Image credit: newspapers.com (Public domain), Discalced Carmelites

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/07/16/sabeth-ltr324-3/

#beatification #benediction #HighMass #infirmary #MartyrsOfCompiègne #prayer #sanctuary #StElizabethOfTheTrinity #StThereseOfLisieux #triduum

In giving thanks to God—together with all of you, beginning with the Most Eminent and Venerable Brother Archbishop Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe—for the great gift to the Church of Naples, the new Blessed Maria Giuseppina of Jesus Crucified, Thomas Merton’s reflection comes to mind. He stated: “There is no member of the Church who does not owe something to Carmel,” which finds further confirmation in this Solemn Rite [Merton, 1951].

Indeed, today the Church of Naples owes to Carmel, as a place and school of holiness, not only the precious gift of one of its daughters elevated to the honor of the altars, but also the most authoritative reminder of the universal vocation to holiness, its irreplaceable value, and its perennial relevance.

As the Representative of the Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI in presiding over today’s beatification, I feel honored and delighted to witness the marvelous works of God, and even more so to admire His masterpieces, which are always the saints and the blessed. This venerable archdiocese, with its considerable and growing number of Blesseds and Saints, offers them to the admiration of the entire Church.

The great, biblical words of the Servant of God Pope Paul VI, addressed precisely to the Discalced Carmelite friars [during a general audience on July 11, 1973], fit like a glove: “You are ‘sons of saints,’ look carefully at the immense spiritual inheritance that is handed down to you…” [Original text: Vos estis «filii sanctorum» (Tob 2:18): immensam intuemini hereditatem spiritualem] Words that I like to apply to the men and women brought forth in the faith in this Neapolitan Church.

Yes, dear people of Naples, you too are children of saints: from them we learn to elevate the horizons of hope to heavenly realities, without setting aside our commitment to building up the earthly city, despite all its urgent and disturbing problems. The more we contemplate the Lord among His Saints, entering into living communion with Him, the stronger the hope within us grows for an active and effective commitment to improving and changing the world around us.

Looking particularly at the story and message of Blessed Giuseppina, we better understand the inescapable need for the contemplative dimension in the life of every Christian. Her example also shows us the concrete way to cultivate it. Her existence was a true school of charity, both toward her fellow sisters and toward the vast field of the apostolate, which she, though a cloistered nun, cultivated solely to make people love the Lord more. She, too, like St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, did not want “to be a saint by halves” [cf. LT 247 to Abbé Bellière], albeit with her peculiarities and mystical gifts, and various extraordinary spiritual experiences.

Everything is summed up in a phrase that constituted the unifying program of the Blessed’s entire life: “I want to live by feeding on God’s will… I want my will to be united with God’s will as one.” And again in her Diary: “I ardently desire to live in the will of God; I know that saints are made in this way, and I want to make myself saintly to give glory to God.”

Such a program must be the great aspiration of every Christian, in full conformity with the word of Christ, the One, Supreme Model: “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work” (Jn 4:34), because “The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 Jn 2:17).

I end with the great honor of sharing with you the special apostolic blessing and greeting of Benedict XVI, who, as he has shown, carries Naples, this Church, its Venerable Pastor, and all the members of the People of God in his heart. I entrust you to the powerful intercession of the new Blessed, that she may protect you all and lead you on the path of holiness.

José Cardinal Saraiva Martins

Prefect, Congregation of the Causes of the Saints
Homily, Mass of Beatification of Blessed Maria Giuseppina
1 June 2008, Cathedral of St. Januarius, Naples

Note: Cardinal Saraiva Martins opens his homily with a quote from Thomas Merton. This quote is from the Author’s Note before the Prologue of Merton’s book, The Ascent to Truth. In context, Merton wrote: “There is no member of the Church who does not owe something to Carmel. But there are few who owe more to the saints of Carmel and to its Queen than does the author. Above all, this book was written, so to speak, under her direction and tutelage.”
Later in the homily, Cardinal Saraiva Martins quotes Blessed Maria Giuseppina, who said: “I want my will to be united with God’s will as one.” The Blessed uses the Italian word impasto, which literally translates to “dough” or “paste.” In the context of Blessed Giuseppina’s writings, impasto metaphorically conveys a deep, active blending and molding of one’s will with God’s will, much like the process of kneading dough until it becomes a cohesive, unified substance. This vivid imagery emphasizes the dynamic and transformative nature of aligning oneself completely with the divine will.

Translation from the Italian text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: This is a detail from an artist’s rendering of a well-known photo of Blessed Maria Giuseppina, who was captured seated outdoors, smiling broadly. Image credit: Discalced Carmelites

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/05/31/giuseppina-1jun08homily/

#beatification #BlessedMariaGiuseppinaOfJesusCrucified #CardinalJoséSaraivaMartins #DiscalcedCarmelites #GiuseppinaCatanea #homily #Naples #sanctity #StThérèseOfLisieux #ThomasMerton #unionWithGod #willOfGod

Throughout her stay in Carmel, Elizabeth lived with the very real threat of being expelled from France, along with her entire community. The liturgical calendar of Carmel, composed in 1905 (for the year 1906) mentions that, out of the 117 French Carmels, 38 actually were expelled.

On 1 July 1901, one month before Elizabeth entered Carmel, the Waldeck-Rousseau government promulgated the law concerning associations, which was aimed primarily at religious congregations. They had to ask for legal authorization before October 3, present their financial balance sheet, and an inventory of their goods.

For decades, the Catholic Church in France had been facing a headwind. The painful memory of the French Revolution and its martyrs a century earlier was still alive and, in the minds of young Christian idealists like Elizabeth, the idea of martyrdom could resurface from time to time, following the example of the Carmelites of Compiègne who were guillotined. She entered Carmel with this readiness for martyrdom, as she had declared to Marguerite Gollot when they were postulants “outside the walls”: “So, what happiness to go together to martyrdom!… I can hardly think of it… it’s too good!” (Letter 57).

Conrad De Meester, O.C.D.

Chapter 22, Partir en exil à l’étranger?

Note: The Mass and rite of beatification of Mother Teresa of St. Augustine and the Martyrs of Compiègne took place in Rome on Sunday, 27 May 1906. Elizabeth was present for the triduum in mid-October 1906 that the Carmel of Dijon celebrated in honor of the martyrs’ beatification.

de Meester, C 2017, Rien moins que Dieu: sainte Elisabeth de la Trinité, Presses de la Renaissance, Paris.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/05/26/meester-exile/

#anniversary #beatification #CarmelOfDijon #history #inspiration #martyrdom #MartyrsOfCompiègne #StElizabethOfTheTrinity

Throughout her stay in Carmel, Elizabeth lived with the very real threat of being expelled from France, along with her entire community. The liturgical calendar of Carmel, composed in 1905 (for the year 1906) mentions that, out of the 117 French Carmels, 38 actually were expelled.

On 1 July 1901, one month before Elizabeth entered Carmel, the Waldeck-Rousseau government promulgated the law concerning associations, which was aimed primarily at religious congregations. They had to ask for legal authorization before October 3, present their financial balance sheet, and an inventory of their goods.

For decades, the Catholic Church in France had been facing a headwind. The painful memory of the French Revolution and its martyrs a century earlier was still alive and, in the minds of young Christian idealists like Elizabeth, the idea of martyrdom could resurface from time to time, following the example of the Carmelites of Compiègne who were guillotined. She entered Carmel with this readiness for martyrdom, as she had declared to Marguerite Gollot when they were postulants “outside the walls”: “So, what happiness to go together to martyrdom!… I can hardly think of it… it’s too good!” (Letter 57).

Conrad De Meester, O.C.D.

Chapter 22, Partir en exil à l’étranger?

Note: The Mass and rite of beatification of Mother Teresa of St. Augustine and the Martyrs of Compiègne took place in Rome on Sunday, 27 May 1906. Elizabeth was present for the triduum in mid-October 1906 that the Carmel of Dijon celebrated in honor of the martyrs’ beatification.

de Meester, C 2017, Rien moins que Dieu: sainte Elisabeth de la Trinité, Presses de la Renaissance, Paris.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/05/26/meester-exile/

#anniversary #beatification #CarmelOfDijon #history #inspiration #martyrdom #MartyrsOfCompiègne #StElizabethOfTheTrinity

The Embarassing #Beatification of Mr #Berlusconi, or the loss of #dignity of the entire #Italian #Media conglomerate, https://www.ilfattoquotidiano.it/2023/06/13/silvio-berlusconi-travaglio-a-la7-ce-stata-una-beatificazione-imbarazzante-lui-non-avrebbe-voluto-essere-dipinto-come-un-santino/7192335/ #politics #italy #media #journalism #autocracy #autoritharian

At her beatification, St John Paul II lifted up the example of Teresa of the Andes as a model for holiness for all the laity, especially the youth.

Visit our blog to read an excerpt from his homily:
http://carmelitequotes.blog/2023/01/28/jp2-andes/

#stteresaoftheandes #stjohnpaulii #beatitudes #joy #perfection #example #jesuschrist #homily #santiagodechile #beatification #mass #catholic #carmelite #quotes #inspiration

At her beatification, St John Paul II lifted up the example of Teresa of the Andes as a model for holiness for all the laity, especially the youth.

Visit our blog to read an excerpt from his homily:
http://carmelitequotes.blog/2023/01/28/jp2-andes/

#stteresaoftheandes #stjohnpaulii #beatitudes #joy #perfection #example #jesuschrist #homily #santiagodechile #beatification #mass #catholic #carmelite #quotes #inspiration