ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN JANUARY
Saints celebrated on the 18th 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.
ST LIBERATA, VIRGIN
Saint Liberata, also called Libera, was a Virgin who is venerated at Como (Novocomum) in Italy, along with her sister Faustina.
A NOBLE FAMILY BACKGROUND
These saintly sisters came from a very noble family in Italy. Their father John was lord of Rocca d'Alges (Arx Genesina), a town at the foot of the Apennines, not far from Piacenza (Placentia).
A WIDOW'S GRIEF
One day, when the pious sisters saw a woman weeping inconsolably over the death of her husband, they resolved to abstain from conjugal life and to live out their days in holy virginity instead.
THEIR RESOLUTION
They therefore escaped secretly from their parental home, taking with them some of their valuable treasures. Accompanied by a pious priest named Marcellus, they made their way to Como, three days' journey away. There they took the vow of eternal chastity and accepted the religious habit and the Benedictine Rule in front of Bishop Agrippinus.
THE FATHER CAME TO TERMS WITH THEIR DECISION
At first their father was very sad about their flight and tried every possible avenue to get them to return. But after he had convinced himself of their steadfastness, he was happy about their profession and even gave them a considerable fortune, with which they built an oratory under the name of the Virgin Mary. This was later dedicated to St Ambrose.
A SECOND CONVENT
As the number of nuns increased to such an extent that they ran out of space, they built another convent outside the town and dedicated the adjacent church to St John the Baptist. Later this house of God became known as St Margaret's Church.
THEIR HOLY DEATH
After having led a strict, holy life there, also glorified by miracles, for many years, they died around the year 580. The younger sister Faustina passed to her eternal reward on January 15, while the older sister Liberata died but three days after her on January 18.
THE TRANSLATIONS OF THEIR RELICS
They were both buried in St Margaret's Church. Around the year 1096 their mortal remains were brought to the city by Bishop Guido and buried in the cathedral church. On May 13, 1317, Bishop Leo Lambertengus encased their relics most solemnly under the high altar of the same.
(Information from Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints)
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