SAINT FEAST DAY 17 MAY: ST PASCHAL BAYLON

SAINT PASCHAL BAYLON, RELIGIOUS

[On 17th May] one of the saints celebrated by the Church is Saint Pascal Baylon [Paschal Baylon]. Saint Pascal was born in 1540 at the border of Castile and Aragon. As a youth he tended his family’s sheep on the mountain. He had to grow accustomed to the loneliness of a shepherd’s life and taught himself to read so that he could pray the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin, a popular prayer book at the time. Saint Pascal always tried to do the right thing, so whenever his sheep caused any damage to a neighbour’s property he would admit the damage and pay for it out of his meagre resources.

"I HAVE NEVER NOTICED THE LEAST FAULT IN HIM"

At the age of twenty-one, Saint Pascal joined the reformed Franciscans of St Peter of Alcantara at Loreto. As a lay brother, Saint Pascal served for many years in the religious house as the doorkeeper and porter. He tried his best always to do this work with cheerfulness and saw it as his way of serving Jesus in the people who called at the door. Someone wrote that, ‘In no single case do I remember to have noted even the least fault in him, (Pascal), though I lived with him and travelled with him on long journeys.’

SAINT OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT

Saint Pascal is often remembered as the ‘Saint of the Blessed Sacrament’. Typically, he spent many hours of the day as his work allowed praying and worshipping before the Blessed Sacrament in the chapel. Saint Pascal died in 1592 at the age of fifty-two and was canonised a Saint in 1890.

"IT WOULD BE A LIE"

There is a lovely story about Saint Pascal and how he never wanted to do the wrong thing. A group of women came to the door and asked that the superior come to speak with them. Saint Pascal went to his superior who told him to go back and tell the women that he was out of the house. ‘I can’t tell them that,’ Saint Pascal replied, ‘because it would be a lie.’ The superior insisted that he tell them that he was not at home. ‘Forgive me, but I refuse to lie to them,’ Saint Pascal said. He went back to the women and told them instead that the superior was at home, but that the superior wasn’t able to speak to them.”

From: Spiritual Thought from Fr Chris / Spring 2015

WELCOME

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BL. LUKE KIRBY, PRIEST AND MARTYR - 30 MAY

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN MAY Saints celebrated on the 30th of May WELCOME! BLESSED LUKE KIRBY, PRIEST AND MARTYR 16th century houses, painted by Auguste Mayer He was born in the bishopric of Durham, according to Raissius ; others say at Richmond, in Yorkshire. He was master of arts in one of our universities; but going abroad to Douay, in Flanders, was received into the English college there, 1576, and made priest in 1577; and the year following sent upon the mission. Where he had not been long before he again went abroad, and travelled to Rome, partly for devotion, and partly for further improvement in learning. Here he remained in the English college till 1580, when he returned into England, and was not long after apprehended: for I find by a printed diary of things transacted in the Tower of London from 1580 till 1585, that on the 5th of December, 1580, Luke Kirby, Thomas Cottam , and other priests, were brought to the Tower from other prisons; and that these two, on the 10th...

BL. RICHARD NEWPORT, PRIEST AND MARTYR - 30 MAY

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN MAY Saints celebrated on the 30th of May WELCOME! BLESSED RICHARD NEWPORT, PRIEST AND MARTYR Richard Newport, alias Smith , was born in Northamptonshire and performed his studies abroad, partly in the college of Rheims (if he be the Richard Smith whom I find in the Douay diary sent to Rome in 1586) and partly in that of Rome, where he was made priest. From thence he was sent upon the English mission, and behaved himself in such a manner as justly to acquire the character of a laborious missionary; being withal remarkably successful in bringing home many strayed sheep to the fold of Christ, to which his apostolical way of living did not a little contribute. He was several times apprehended and cast into prison, and twice banished. His name occurs amongst those who were transported in 1606; at which time, we are told, he took that opportunity of making a pilgrimage to Rome, there to pour forth his prayers at the tombs of the apostles, in behalf of thi...

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