From: richarra@gmail.com   
      
   The Lord sows good seeds in our heart   
      
   "The Lord clearly points out that he is the sower of good seeds. He   
   does not cease to sow in this world as in a field. God’s word is like   
   good seed in the hearts of people, so that each of us according to the   
   seeds sown in us by God may bear spiritual and heavenly fruit."   
   -- by Chromatius (excerpt from TRACTATE ON MATTHEW 51.1)   
      
   <<>><<>><<>>   
   September 28th - St. Wenceslas or Vaclav   
      
   Duke, sovereign and patron saint of Bohemia, Wenceslas practiced the   
   most beautiful virtues. He conserved intact all his life the treasure   
   of virginity. His brother Boleslas, inspired by his own mother,   
   murdered him as he prayed one night before the tabernacle in the   
   palace chapel. Hungary, Poland and Bohemia all chose him as their   
   patron saint.   
      
   St. Wenceslas is one of the most brilliant lights of the 10th century,   
   called the iron century. Grandson of a saint and son of a fanatical   
   pagan mother, he was the purest expression of the Christian royalty of   
   his epoch. His royal birth ensured him the highest honors and made him   
   the lieutenant of Christ and His authentic representative on earth.   
      
   As chief of the great Bohemian family, the king was the father of his   
   people, and all--from greatest to smallest--had the right to appeal to   
   his justice. King Wenceslas was known as the irrefutable arbiter of   
   justice, whose decisions were unmarked by personal interest. Indeed,   
   having received everything from God, he gave no account for his   
   actions to any save God. He became known as a great peacemaker in the   
   many disputes of his people, with the aim of uniting all in the common   
   good. He ended his short term as King by receiving the crown of   
   martyrdom.   
      
   The fame of the virtues of St. Wenceslas spread everywhere. He was   
   admired and beloved throughout Christendom. He was known as a friend   
   of his people, dedicated to the service of his nation, austere and   
   generous, protector of the poor, defender of the Faith, and a faithful   
   subject of the Church. He was also a fearless and loyal warrior.   
      
   In 961 Emperor Otto I of Germany called Wenceslas to the Diet of Worms   
   and conferred every attention on him. One day Wenceslas was at prayer   
   in church and lost track of the time. When he finally arrived at the   
   assembly, the Emperor and other Princes, irritated by his delay, had   
   resolved to not rise--as was the custom for Sovereigns--at his   
   entrance.   
      
   When the Duke appeared at the threshold of the hall, however, the   
   nobles saw that he was flanked by two Angels. Overcome by admiration   
   and respect, the Emperor stood to receive him and gave him the place   
   of honor at his right. How could the nobles deny this honor to him   
   when the Angels themselves paid him their respects? As a sign of his   
   consideration, the Emperor gave him two precious relics: an arm of St.   
   Vitus and the bones of another valiant warrior-sovereign, St.   
   Sigismund, King of Burgundy.   
      
      
   Comments of the late Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira: (died 1995)   
      
   This last episode is so expressive that it surpasses anything else in   
   the selection. So I will analyze it.   
      
   Let us recompose the scene. Wenceslas was the Duke and King of   
   Bohemia, and he probably had some authority in Poland, since this   
   nation also took him as their patron. Thus his government covered a   
   large territory. The highest Princes in the Holy Roman German Empire   
   were called together to meet at the Diet of Worms. Wenceslas was also   
   invited to this Diet, since his territories were probably subject in   
   some way to the Holy Empire. It was a very important meeting because   
   it was not just a gathering of a King with his subjects, but a meeting   
   where the Emperor met with Kings and Sovereigns. It was an assembly of   
   sovereigns, manly and courteous.   
      
   There was a beautiful custom already established at that time. When a   
   sovereign would enter, even if he had a lower standing than the   
   Emperor, all the sovereigns present--including the Emperor--would   
   rise. In this particular case, since Wenceslas was late, the other   
   sovereigns decided to not pay him this tribute. He was late because he   
   was praying in the church. But there is an infallible rule: those who   
   do not pray much take a stern attitude toward those who do: whenever   
   they can, they take their revenge. So, those nobles, who probably knew   
   that the Bohemian King had lost track of time in prayer, resolved to   
   punish him. To teach him a lesson, they would remain seated when he   
   entered.   
      
   How did Divine Providence respond to this decision? God sent two   
   Angels to accompany him so that, when he entered the hall, all the   
   nobles gathered there saw them flanking St. Wenceslas. Thus, instead   
   of meeting disgrace, the Saint was covered with glory and honor. The   
   Emperor gave him two precious relics, one of a Warrrior King who, like   
   St. Wenceslas, had defended the Faith. How many beautiful things there   
   are in this episode!   
      
   Just one question remains to be answered: Why don’t things like this   
   happen today? Why don’t we have manifestations of the supernatural   
   that cover the good with glory and smash the evil?   
      
   It is because the sins of mankind have reached such an apex that men   
   no longer deserve such apparitions....   
      
      
   Saint Quote:   
   Whatsoever we do, we can never be true children of Mary, unless we are humble.   
   --St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori   
      
   Bible Quote:   
   Wherefore you are witnesses against yourselves, that you are the sons   
   of them that killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your   
   fathers. You serpents, generation of vipers, how will you flee from   
   the judgment of hell?  (Mt. 23:31-33)  DRB   
      
      
   <><><><>   
   To Jesus Abandoned:   
      
   With Mary Immaculate, let us adore, thank, implore and console, the   
   Most Beloved and Sacred Heart of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.   
   O Divine Jesus, lonely tonight in so many Tabernacles, without visitor   
   or worshipper, I offer Thee my poor heart. May its every throb be an   
   act of love for Thee. Thou art always watching beneath the Sacramental   
   Veils; in Thy love Thou dost never sleep and Thou art never weary of   
   Thy vigil for sinners. O lonely Jesus, may the flame of my heart burn   
   and beam always in company with Thee.   
   O Sacrament most holy, O Sacrament divine!   
   All praise and all thanksgiving be every moment Thine!   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)