ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN JANUARY
Saints celebrated on the 23rd of January
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. THOMAS ALLEMANNUS, PENITENT
Blessed Thomas Allemannus was converted by John (Johannes Allemannus), member of the Servite Order, former abbot of Lucca. German by descent, he had become vicar general for Germany and worked there as a penitential preacher.
JOHN HAD A STRONG DEVOTION TO OUR BLESSED LADY
John had a strong devotion to our Blessed Lady, and following her guidance, he sought out Thomas. The latter had been born in Frankfurt/Main as son of poor parents, had sought fame and fortune in the army and afterwards became a notorious highway robber.
HE ENTERED THE DENSE FOREST
John entered the dense forest where Thomas lived with his gang. He had to penetrate thick undergrowth, and when he saw signs of human dwellings, he called out, as our Lady had inspired him to do. He called him by his name, "Thomas, Thomas!" The highway robber, not recognising the voice of the stranger, showed himself nonetheless, hoping for an opportunity to rob somebody - anybody.
THE SOLITARY FIGURE OF THE FRIAR WEARING A THREADBARE ROBE
Great was the thief's surprise when he set eyes on the solitary figure of the friar in a threadbare robe. His astonishment turned into dread and awe when John, evidently completely fearless and unruffled, began to talk kindly to him. He told Thomas about the heavenly riches, which impressed Thomas deeply. On his own accord, he dropped his weapons and asked his comrades - who had appeared from between the branches and the foliage, intrigued, one by one - to do the same.
HEAVENLY RICHES
Thomas felt that this had been the moment he had secretly - though unaware of it until now - been waiting for. He immediately made a confession, and John gave him absolution, there and then, in the forest.
PRAYER AND PENANCE
Bl. Thomas gladly followed John's offer to accompany him if he so wished, and after some time he entered the Servite Order, where he led a life as an ascetic with prayer and penance. He regarded Dismas, the penitent thief, as his model. Seven years after Thomas, with God's most bountiful grace, had been given the opportunity to turn his life around, had seized the chance, and had kept up a holy life since then, died a holy and happy death on January 23, 1288.
(Information from Fr Georg Ott's Marianum, Holy Servants of Our Lady, 1862)
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