From: richarra@gmail.com   
      
   August 19th - St. Louis of Toulouse   
      
   The son of Charles II of Naples and Sicily, Louis was born in 1274 and named   
   after his uncle, the holy king of France. It was the great concern of his   
   mother, the niece of St. Elizabeth, to rear her many children as true   
   servants of the King of Kings.   
      
   The devout queen observed in her son Louis particularly blessed results of   
   his maternal solicitude. He loved prayer, was reserved and gentle, and his   
   whole conduct radiated angelic purity. Even as a child he practiced   
   mortification. On a certain occasion, after he had retired, his mother found   
   him sleeping on a rug on the floor of his room instead of in his comfortable   
   bed.   
      
   Sweets and delicious foods he carried to the poor and sick with his mother's   
   permission. It is related that once he was leaving the dining room with a   
   roasted pullet under his mantle and so met his father. The king wished to   
   see what he was carrying. Timidly the boy laid back his mantle, and lo, it   
   was a beautiful bouquet of flowers!   
      
   When he was 14 Louis was taken to Barcelona with two of his brothers, as a   
   hostage for the release of his father, who had been taken a prisoner of war.   
   Gladly did Louis accept this misfortune to obtain his father's freedom; but   
   at the same time, the disposition with which he accepted it was astonishing   
   in a boy of his age. "Misfortune," he said, "is more useful to the friends   
   of God than good fortune, for on such occasions they can prove their loyalty   
   to their Lord."   
      
   Under the guidance of several excellent Franciscan friars who were appointed   
   teachers to the young princes, Louis made remarkable progress in virtue as   
   well as in secular knowledge. In public debates he manifested his mastery of   
   the various branches of knowledge, both sacred and profane. Theology was his   
   favorite subject. So devoid was he of ambition that he planned to renounce   
   his claims to the throne in order to devote himself entirely to the service   
   of God.   
      
   About this time he became seriously ill. He made a vow that if he recovered,   
   he would join the Order of Friars Minor. The sickness immediately took a   
   turn for the better, but the superiors of the order hesitated to receive the   
   young prince without the consent of the king, his father. Louis was thus   
   obliged to defer his pious design.   
      
   At the end of six years his captivity ended. On returning home, after much   
   pleading he finally obtained the permission of his father to settle his   
   claims on his brother Robert, and to become a priest. Not very long after   
   his ordination, and although he was only 21 years old, he was selected by   
   Pope Boniface VIII for the bishopric of Toulouse. "Whatever is lacking to   
   the young priest in age and experience, " said the pope, "his extraordinary   
   knowledge, his maturity of mind, and his holiness of life will amply   
   supply."   
      
   Louis had to yield to the pope's wishes, but he requested that he might   
   first be admitted into the Order of Friars Minor. That request was granted.   
   The royal prince was overjoyed to be permitted, for a time at least, to   
   perform the humblest exercises in the garb of a son of St. Francis; in Rome   
   he went from door to door gathering alms.   
      
   The pope himself officiated at the ceremony of episcopal consecration, and   
   shortly afterwards Louis left to assume the government of his diocese. His   
   noble birth and above all the fame of his sanctity caused him to be received   
   at Toulouse like a messenger from heaven. The entire city went out to meet   
   him, and everybody was enchanted with his modesty, sweetness, and angelic   
   virtue which radiated from his face and bearing. A sinner who for many years   
   had lived a wicked life, cried out at the sight of him: "Truly, this man is   
   a saint!" and then turned away from his sinful habits and led a better life.   
   A woman who doubted the sanctity of the young man went to church one morning   
   to attend the Mass which the bishop was celebrating. Then she, too, cried   
   out: "Ah, yes, our bishop is a saint!"   
      
   Bishop Louis led the poor and rigorous life of a Friar Minor and devoted   
   himself with all solicitude to the welfare of his diocese. The poor were his   
   best friends, and he fed 25 of them daily at his own table. His ministry,   
   however, was destined to be short-lived. He died in the 24th year of his   
   life, having been bishop no longer than a year and a half.   
      
   He received the last sacraments on the feast of the Assumption of Our Lady;   
   and on the 19th of August, 1297, while pronouncing the holy name of Mary, he   
   yielded his soul to God. Because of the many miracles that were wrought at   
   his tomb, he was canonized as early as 1317, during the lifetime of his   
   mother.   
      
   A PATRON FOR YOUTHFUL STUDENTS   
   1. What better example than that of St. Louis could be held up to youthful   
   students. He distinguished himself from his youth by modesty and docility,   
   and throughout his life he preserved his purity unsullied. He appreciated   
   and loved his teachers, and applied himself diligently to his studies, in   
   which he was very successful. He directed all his efforts to the honor of   
   God and the salvation of his fellowmen, and preserved a cheerful disposition   
   even in adversity. That is the type of student every Christian youth should   
   desire to be. The saint, who gave them so brilliant an example on earth,   
   will also be a powerful patron and intercessor for them in heaven.   
   2. Consider how important the good behavior of youthful students is to human   
   society. They will be the future teachers and governors, the directors and   
   leaders of society. Their predominant sentiments will be the dominating   
   policies of the majority of the people. For that reason much depends on how   
   youthful students grow up. They are encompassed by many dangers, and how   
   many of them lose their innocence and their faith to the detriment of the   
   many over whom they later exercise influence. Those who are associated with   
   students and can offer them guidance have the obligation to direct them   
   toward virtue and to point out to them such saintly examples as St. Louis of   
   Toulouse. But, it is likewise the duty of every Christian frequently to   
   recommend youthful students to so powerful a patron as St. Louis.   
   3. Consider how the example and the protection of St. Louis can help   
   youthful students especially in two grave dangers that threaten them:   
   sensuality and ambition. How frequently the one vice wrecks the body and the   
   other gnaws at the young soul! The mortification which Louis practiced from   
   his earliest years and the childlike devotion be fostered to our Blessed   
   Lady made him secure in temperance and purity. His love for the poor and his   
   lively faith kept him so far away from ambition that he chose the lesser   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)