From: richarra@gmail.com   
      
   Like a tree, I must be pruned     
      
    Like a tree, I must be pruned of a lot of dead branches before I will   
   be ready to bear good fruit. Think of changed people as trees that   
   have been stripped of their old branches, pruned, cut, and bare. But   
   through the dark, seemingly dead branches flows silently, secretly,   
   the new sap, until with the sun of spring comes new life. There are   
   new leaves, buds, blossoms, and fruit, many times better because of   
   the pruning. I am in the hands of a Master Gardener, who makes no   
   mistakes in His pruning.   
      
      
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   April 5th - Saint Vincent Ferrer   
   (1350-1419)   
      
   Born in Valencia, Spain to a noble English father and Spanish mother,   
   his birth was heralded with excitement. His mother, prior to her birth   
   had been told by a blind beggar woman that within her grew “an angel”   
   who would restore her sight (which Vincent did years later). During   
   childbirth, Vincent’s mother was overcome with astounding joy, and   
   experienced no pain. Vincent’s father, doubtful of these predictions,   
   had his own prophetic dream in which a Dominican preacher told him   
   that his son would experience great fame.   
      
   Vincent grew up a devout boy, eager to enter the religious life   
   despite the many other opportunities that were presented to him. From   
   a young age, his heart and mind were centered in the Lord, and he   
   considered all of his actions, whether they be studies, work, or play,   
   to be heartfelt prayers of gratitude to God. In his book, “A Treatise   
   on the Spiritual Life”, he would later write: "Do you desire to study   
   to your advantage? Let devotion accompany all your studies, and study   
   less to make yourself learned than to become a saint. Consult God more   
   than your books, and ask him, with humility, to make you understand   
   what you read. Study fatigues and drains the mind and heart. Go from   
   time to time to refresh them at the feet of Jesus Christ under his   
   cross. Some moments of repose in his sacred wounds give fresh vigor   
   and new lights. Interrupt your application by short but fervent and   
   ejaculatory prayers; never begin or end your study but by prayer.   
   Science is a gift of the Father of lights; do not therefore consider   
   it as barely the work of your own mind or industry."   
      
   At age 18, he entered the Dominican Order, and there studied   
   philosophy and theology. His life became one of prayer and penance,   
   reading the Holy Scriptures, eventually committing them to memory. He   
   wrote several scholarly works during this time, drawing upon his great   
   faith, discipline, and knowledge of the Bible. Eventually, he achieved   
   his doctorate in theology. Saint Vincent delivered lectures and   
   homilies, always preaching gratitude and praise of the Lord. These   
   public addresses were composed at the foot of a crucifix, both to” beg   
   light from Christ crucified and to draw from that object sentiments   
   wherewith to animate his auditors to penance and the love of God.”   
      
   The political and spiritual uncertainty of the great schism affected   
   Vincent’s health and he fell seriously ill. During his illness, while   
   he had a dangerous fever, Vincent was visited by Saints Dominic and   
   Francis of Assisi. As they comforted him, Jesus himself appeared,   
   surrounded by a host of angels. Our Lord touched Vincent on the cheek,   
   leaving a mark he would bear the remainder of his life, and told him   
   to rise and preach to the people a warning about the end of time and   
   the last judgment. Vincent awoke, completely cured of his fever, his   
   life having been changed. He refused various promotions, including   
   that of the position of cardinal. Rather, from that time on, he was   
   content with “going through the world preaching Christ.” He was   
   referred to as the “Angel of the Apocalypse,” so convincing were his   
   sermons on penance and preparation for the Last Judgment.   
      
   Vincent traveled throughout Spain, France, Italy, Germany, the   
   Netherlands, England, Scotland, and Ireland, converting thousands. He   
   was invited to speak in Muslim Granada, which he did, converting 8,000   
   in one day. He would enter synagogues holding a crucifix, preaching to   
   those present, and entire congregations would convert, also converting   
   their synagogues into churches. Given that Saint Vincent only spoke   
   Catalan, it is assumed that he had the gift of tongues, as wherever he   
   went, the local peoples could understand his message. He also worked   
   numerous miracles, including bringing a dead murderer back to life as   
   evidence of the awesome power of the Lord. He healed many through   
   prayer alone.   
      
   Above all, Saint Vincent Ferrer was a man filled with humility, which   
   he wrote is the precursor and prerequisite for all virtue: "For   
   whosoever will proudly dispute or contradict, will always stand:   
   without the door. Christ, the master of humility, manifests his truth   
   only to the humble, and hides himself from the proud."   
      
   Saint Vincent practiced what he preached regarding humility. He slept   
   on the floor, traveled only by foot, lived in constant fast, and   
   glorified God through the Eucharist daily. Each day he served the   
   poorest of the poor, and the sickest around, especially children. He   
   remained acutely aware of his humanity, humbly writing, “My whole life   
   is nothing but stench: I am all infection both in soul and body; every   
   thing in me exhales a smell of corruption, caused by the abominations   
   of my sins and injustices: and what is worse, I feel this stench   
   increasing dally in me, and renewed always more insupportably." He   
   also said, "Regard yourself as more vile and miserable in the sight of   
   God because of your faults than any sinner whatever, no matter what   
   his sins... and consider closely that any grace or inclination to good   
   or desire of virtue you may have, is not of yourself but of the sole   
   mercy of Christ."   
      
   Stricken again with fever at 69 years of age, Saint Vincent died   
   peacefully, and met his Lord in heaven. He is interred at the   
   Cathedral in Vannes. At his canonization, 800 approved miracles were   
   read aloud. Given his tireless work to build the church, Saint Vincent   
   Ferrer is recognized as the patron saint of builders and laborers. He   
   is often pictured in art with the flame of the Holy Spirit resting in   
   his hand.   
      
   Saint Vincent wrote prodigiously on the virtues of the Church.   
   Regarding charity, he wrote: “If you truly want to help the soul of   
   your neighbor, you should approach God first with all your heart. Ask   
   him simply to fill you with charity, the greatest of all virtues; with   
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)