ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN AUGUST
Saints celebrated on the 18th of August
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. RAINALDUS OF RAVENNA, BISHOP
This blessed one, born in Milan, came from the Grancorreggi (Congoreggi) family and, because of his knowledge and virtues, became a canon of the Church of Lodi at an early age.
Pope Boniface VIII sent him to France as a mediator to reconcile the kings Philip of France and Edward of England; on his return he became President of the Province of Aemilia and, soon afterwards, was appointed Bishop of Vicenza (in 1296).
IMPROVEMENT OF MORALS AMONG THE CLERGY
After the death of Archbishop Opizo of Ravenna, Pope Benedict IX moved him to this chair in 1304. In this his new role, Bl. Rainaldus diligently exercised the most faithful pastoral care and devoted his attention especially to the improvement of the morals among the clergy and the people.
HE DID MUCH TO PROMOTE WORSHIP
He did much to promote worship, and held a Provincial Council in 1307. Emperor Henry VII asked his advice, and Pope Clement V entrusted him with the decision of the pending trial of the Templars in Italy. Thereupon, in 1310, Rainaldus gathered a synod, and proclaimed the innocence of the terribly slandered and cruelly persecuted order. Only a few knights were found guilty of criminal offences.
ANOTHER SYNOD WAS HELD IN 1311
Another synod was held by this zealous Shepherd in 1311, at which, among other things, he decreed that the bishops should carefully examine the relics venerated in the individual churches and that those found unsafe should be removed, that the worship service, sacred vessels and clothes, altars, bells, and church registers should be carefully checked.
Furthermore, certain ecclesiastical laws were established: that no one, whoever he was, should be allowed to preach before the age of thirty, and that church sanctions should should be enforced against blasphemers and adulterers. Likewise, in 1317 he celebrated a provincial council at which the same resolutions were renewed and new ordinances of a disciplinary nature were issued.
ONCE HE COMMANDED FROGS TO BE SILENT, AND THEY OBEYED HIM
The proclamation of the Word of God was another important priority of his. Once Bl. Rainaldus commanded the frogs to be silent, and they immediately obeyed him. During this and many other labours, he calmly endured all the toil to obtain the promised crown of righteousness.
MANY MIRACLES OCCURRED AT HIS TOMB
He fell asleep in the Lord on August 17 or 18, 1321, and soon after his death, many miracles occurred at his tomb. Pope Pius IX on January 15, 1852 confirmed his cultus, which had been around from since Bl. Rainaldus had gone to his eternal reward.
(Information from Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints, 1858)
Comments
Post a Comment