BL. RAFAEL CHYLINSKI - 2 DECEMBER

 

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN DECEMBER

Saints celebrated on the 2nd of December 

Prayer to the Angels and the Saints

Heavenly Father, in praising Your Angels and Saints we praise Your glory, for by honouring them we honour You, their Creator. Their splendour shows us Your greatness, which infinitely surpasses that of all creation.

In Your loving providence, You saw fit to send Your Angels to watch over us. Grant that we may always be under their protection and one day enjoy their company in heaven.

Heavenly Father, You are glorified in Your Saints, for their glory is the crowning of Your gifts. You provide an example for us by their lives on earth, You give us their friendship by our communion with them, You grant us strength and protection through their prayer for the Church, and You spur us on to victory over evil and the prize of eternal glory by this great company of witnesses.

Grant that we who aspire to take part in their joy may be filled with the Spirit that blessed their lives, so that, after sharing their faith on earth, we may also experience their peace in heaven. Amen.

BL. RAFAEL CHYLINSKI, PRIEST AND RELIGIOUS

Melchor Chylinski was born on January 8, 1694 in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland to Jan Chylinski and Marianna Malgorzata; his relations often nicknamed him as "the little monk" due to his pious nature. 

He later graduated from the Jesuit-run college in Poznan and decided to enter the armed forces in its cavalry section where he was made an officer three years later.

HE JOINED THE ORDER OF FRIARS MINOR CONVENTUAL

On April 4, 1715 - despite the objections of his comrades - he joined the Order of Friars Minor Conventual in Krakow and changed his name during the course of his novitiate to "Rafal". 

He was ordained to the priesthood in December 1717 after having made his perpetual profession on April 26, 1716. 

MINISTERING TO EPIDEMIC VICTIMS

He was assigned to parishes in nine separate cities before being sent to the place that he would spend the remainder of his life in and he distributed food and clothing to the poor and sick people there; he also played the harp and the lute as well as the mandolin for liturgical hymns and spent 20 months in Warsaw ministering to epidemic victims. 

He was also known for his simple and candid sermons and for being an apt confessor. He died on December 2, 1741.

(Information from Wikipedia - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melchor_Chyli%C5%84ski)