Subj : =?UTF-8?Q?18_May_=E2=80=93_Blessed_William_of_Toulouse_OSA?= To : All From : rich Date : Mon May 17 2021 10:20:55 From: rich 18 May =E2=80=93 Blessed William of Toulouse OSA =C2 Augustinian Priest, Preacher, apostle of prayer and charity, spiritual adviser =E2=80=93 born in c 1297 in Toulouse, France and died on = 18 May 1369 in Toulouse, France of natural causes. Today we remember a French Augustinian who excelled in preaching the word of God. By means of his own deep interior life and attentiveness to Scripture, his influence on the people of his day through this preaching and pastoral work, as well as through the gift of spiritual direction, was significant and widespread He was loved and admired by the people, who recognised his holiness and the power of his intercession. William was born in Toulouse, France, around the year 1297 At the age of 19 he entered the Augustinian monastery in his native city and was sent to study in Paris where he received the title of lector in theology. Afterwards he devoted himself especially to the ministry of preaching, for which he became well known and respected, and through which he drew many others to embrace the religious life. Except for a brief period when he was Prior in Pamiers, he seems to have spent his whole religious life in Toulouse, in the monastery of Saint'Etienne, where, in 1341, the Order's General Chapter = was held. William died in Toulouse on 18 May 1369 and was buried in the cemetery of his monastery Not long after, because of the veneration of the people who regarded him as a saint and wonder-worker, his remains were transferred to the chapel of Saint Mary Magdalene where he was accustomed to celebrate Mass=C2 Pope Leo XIII confirmed his cult in 1893. William's methodology as a preacher was =E2=80=93 pray, contemplate= and only then speak of God, otherwise the preacher's words will not touch th= e heart of his listeners but become lost in the rafters of the church As a man of prayer and recollection, he was much sought after as a spiritual director and after his death, his people continued to revere and pray to him for his intercession. https://anastpaul.com/2019/05/18/ Saint Quote: On behalf of Christ crucified I tell you: refuse to believe the counsels of= the devil, who would hinder your holy and good resolution. Be manly in my = sight, and not timorous. Answer God, who calls you to hold and possess the = seat of the glorious Shepherd St. Peter, whose vicar you have been. And rai= se the standard of the holy Cross. --Saint Catherine of Siena to Pope Gregory XI Bible Quote: But Jesus called them to him, and said: You know that the princes of the Gentiles lord it over them; and they that are the greater, exercise power upon them.=C2 It shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be the greater among you, let him be your minister: And he that will be first among you, shall be your servant. 28. Even as the Son of man is not come to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a redemption for many.=C2 (Matthew 20:25-28) DRB <><><><> God Our Creator Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory, and honor, and power, because Thou. hast created all things.--(Apoc. iv. 11.) Why is it that God has such an absolute and all-embracing claim to ourselves and to all that is ours? It is because we are made by Him, and not only made, but created. We are His, not only as the statue is the sculptor's and the picture the painter's, but He made out of nothing the very materials of which we consist. There is therefore nothing in us which is not God's. Every sort of excellence, strength, virtue, talent, beauty, skill, energy, affection--all are God's not our own. God created everyone with certain gifts of his own that He did not give to another, and He gave him those gifts to do a special work that God had for him to do. He created me with a certain object; from all eternity He had been planning my soul and body, and providing me with all that I needed, that both one and the other might serve Him. Have I on the whole carried out God's plan? Shall I be able to say, when I come to die: "I have finished the work Thou gavest me to do?" What a serious thought this is, that God had a plan for my life! He meant me to occupy a certain position in society and to have certain employments; to influence certain persons for good; to overcome certain temptations; to practise certain virtues beyond the rest to attain a certain place in Heaven. Has my life been ordered by God's holy inspirations; has not my own self-will too often had part in it? Pray that you may not fail in fulfilling God's intentions concerning you. --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2 * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4) .