BL. MAURITIUS OF CHAK, RELIGIOUS - 26 MARCH

ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN MARCH

Saints celebrated on the 26th of March

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. MAURITIUS OF CHAK, RELIGIOUS 

It is unknown where Blessed Mauritius was born. Certainly in Hungary, since he belongs to the princely family of the Chaks there. His father is said to have been Ban Demerius, prince of Chak.  

Even as a child he showed great inclination to the pious life. When he read about the lives and works of the saints, tears often came to his eyes. Carefully nurturing the holy feelings which divine grace aroused in him on such occasions, even as a youth he was willing to consecrate himself to God in a monastery. 

THEIR LOVE FOR GOD

But the circumstances of his high birth were stronger than his wishes, and he was told to get married in his twentieth year. The bride, Alberta de Luna, a daughter of Palatinus Magnus Amadeus, was worthy of him. Although they loved each other dearly, their love for God overcame any carnal affection. Their marriage was and remained unconsummated for three years, after which they separated. 

THEY MADE A LIFE-CHANGING DECISION

Husband and wife entered the monastery voluntarily and with mutual consent. He chose the Convent of Dominicans on the island of St Margaretha. This step caused tremendous ripples. Ladislaus, the governor of Pesth-Ofen, to test the liberty of his resolve, had him imprisoned for five months. 

After his release, his fellow monks took him to Bologna, where he studied for a while before returning to his homeland as an apostle of peace. 

A PEACEMAKER

His high lineage did not prevent him from devoting himself to lesser duties with undivided joy. For a long time he was a sacristan, and used this position almost continuously to worship the divine Saviour.  In addition to the office of peacemaker (he often threw himself between the disputants and brought them back to unity), the service of the poor was close to his heart. So he died, rich in merits, on March 20, 1336 in the Convent of Javarin (Conventus Javarinensis). His relics were also found here. In 1540 they were desecrated by the Turks. 

(Information from Stadler's Complete Encyclopedia of Saints - 📷 March 26, Stammenbuch aller Heyligen und Seeligen... Fortunatus Hueber)