From: richarra@gmail.com   
      
   August 11th - St. Alexander the Charcoal-Burner   
      
   In the mid-third century the Christians of Comana, in Pontus, sent   
   representatives to St. Gregory Thaumaturgus, Bishop of Neocaesarea,   
   requesting a Bishop for their city. So St. Gregory went to Comana to look   
   for a shepherd for the new Diocese.   
      
   A city commission had sought out candidates of noble birth, great eloquence,   
   or other such qualities. When all these were presented to him, St. Gregory   
   advised the commission that they should consider virtue first, and not   
   despise those of more humble appearance. One of these officials, deriding   
   the counsel of St. Gregory, replied: 'If you don't want one from among our   
   most distinguished citizens, perhaps we should choose a Bishop from among   
   the plebeians. In this case, I counsel you to bring forth Alexander the   
   charcoal-burner so that we can all acquiesce in the matter.'   
      
   St. Gregory asked: 'Who is this Alexander?' Laughing, they brought Alexander   
   to him.   
      
   Because of the charcoal dust, his face, hands, and modest clothing were   
   black with dirt. The assembly laughed at seeing such a figure among the   
   candidates for Bishop. Alexander remained self-composed, unembarrassed at   
   his modest condition. In fact, contrary to appearances, he was a gifted   
   philosopher, a truly wise man. It was not need that caused him to take up   
   that profession, but his will to practice a life of virtue removed from   
   public admiration. Young and handsome, he desired to live chastely avoiding   
   occasions of sin. The charcoal dust disguised his face and, like a mask,   
   prevented his features from being noticed. The work provided just enough for   
   him to live and practice small works of charity.   
      
   St. Gregory ordered Alexander to take a bath and put on his own episcopal   
   robes. In a short time, a completely different man appeared, attracting the   
   attention of all who were assembled there. St. Gregory told them: "Do not be   
   surprised if you were fooled in your judgment, which you only made according   
   to what you could see. The Devil wanted to hide this vessel of election and   
   keep him from being a Bishop."   
      
   He consecrated Alexander as Bishop. In his first sermon, Alexander   
   astonished the whole assembly with the wisdom and eloquence of his words. An   
   Athenian who was present criticized him for lacking Greek elegance, but was   
   reprehended by an apparition.   
      
   St. Alexander became famous for his preaching and governed the church of   
   Comana in a dignified way until the persecution under Emperor Decius, when   
   he was burned to death, dying a martyr for the Catholic Faith.   
      
      
   Comments of the late Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira: (died 1995)   
      
   It is a very beautiful life! One could say that in this life one wonder is   
   added to another. The handsome young man was at the same time a skilled   
   philosopher, a truly wise man who had decided to flee the world. He went to   
   the small town of Comana and became a charcoal-burner.   
      
   The profession of charcoal-burner is a very humble profession. It consists   
   of cutting wood, burning it until it is transformed into charcoal, then   
   stopping the burning process, and selling the charcoal. Because of the dust   
   of the charcoal, the man who works at this profession is completely dirty,   
   completely black.   
      
   So, St. Alexander decided to be a charcoal-burner to disguise his features   
   and avoid admiring eyes. Doing that, he had to work hard at a job that kept   
   him poor, but he lived innocent without occasion of sin. And so he lived   
   there in Comana in his world divided between charcoal and philosophy.   
      
   You can imagine what the end of a day would be like for St. Alexander. After   
   returning from a day of hard work, he sits outside his modest house,   
   situated at a point where the open field ends and the forest where he cuts   
   his wood begins. He sits in silence; it is hot; some simple food is cooking   
   on the stove. While he waits, he thinks, he makes distinctions, he raises   
   abstract questions, he constructs intellectual edifices until he reaches the   
   heights of theology.   
      
   While he thinks, he prays to Our Lady. It is time to go in and eat. After   
   the simple meal he goes to a church to visit the Blessed Sacrament, to visit   
   a special statue of Our Lady that he likes. Then he returns and has a   
   chaste, pious and tranquil night in his little Comana. When one compares his   
   life with our lives in this revolutionary world, one has a serious   
   inclination to leave aside everything modern and go off to a retired place   
   to live a life like that of St. Alexander.   
      
   Well, there he was following a normal day's routine when he was called to   
   come before an assembly. It was an extraordinary thing for him. He arrived   
   at the assembly and people began to laugh at him. He didn't mind. He was   
   secure and content about who he was and what he was doing. He was a man who   
   practiced what the Imitation of Christ teaches us to do: To be happy to be   
   ignored and considered as nothing in the eyes of the world.   
      
   He was there, composed and happy, probably admiring the great St. Gregory   
   Thaumaturgus who was present. Thaumaturgus is a Greek word that means 'one   
   who works miracles.' You can easily image the great eminence of St. Gregory,   
   famous for his miracles - incomparably more than any of the small   
   celebrities of Comana who had gathered there. What the text does not say,   
   but what is very probable to have happened, is that the two saints   
   immediately discerned the sanctity and the human value of one another. When   
   St. Gregory first heard about St. Alexander, he probably had a premonition   
   telling him who he was. So, he was checking the man. It did not take very   
   long for St. Gregory to confirm his presentiment. He was right. He ordered   
   that a bath be given to St. Alexander and his own episcopal clothing be   
   placed on him.   
      
   A short time passed, and St. Alexander re-entered, but now he was a svelte,   
   distinguished and spotless man wearing episcopal robes. He was consecrated   
   Bishop and gave a sermon that astonished those present by its profound   
   thought and elegant form. Only a pompous Athenian criticized it, saying it   
   did not follow the Greek style. It was only reasonable that St. Alexander's   
   style should not necessarily be Greek, since he was not a Greek. At any   
   rate, a vision from heaven reprehended the man, and that put a stop to his   
   criticisms.   
      
   How did this life end? It ended in martyrdom. He was called to shed his   
   blood in holocaust to Our Lord Jesus Christ and as testimony to his adhesion   
   to the Catholic Faith. He went from being covered with black charcoal dust   
   to being drenched in the red blood of martyrdom. How admirable!   
      
   It is a life that shines with the marvelous. Today we live in a   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)