Subj : =?UTF-8?Q?July_30th_=2D_Blessed_Man=C3=A9s_de_Guzm=C3=A1n?= To : All From : rich Date : Thu Jul 29 2021 10:50:39 From: rich July 30th - Blessed Man=C3=A9s de Guzm=C3=A1n Also known as Mamerto Mam=C3=A9s Manez d. 1230 Of the three sons of Felix de Guzman and Bl. Joan of Aza, Mannes was the middle one, Antony being the elder, and St. Dominic, founder of the Friars Preachers, the younger.=C2 Mannes was born at Calaruega, in the province of Burgos, in the middle of the twelfth century and had already devoted himself to God when Dominic was born in 1170. Of most of his life nothing is known, but he was among his younger brother's first followers, one of the 16 who adopted the Rule of St. Augustine in 1216 and made their profession at Prouille in the following year. These men were "all in fact and in name excellent preachers", and Mannes had already shared his brother's labours in Languedoc. After they had made their vows Dominic decided on the bold stroke of sending them straight out into the world, and Mannes with six others went to Paris and made the first French foundation, under Brother Matthew of France, near the university. He is next heard of as chaplain to the nuns at Prouille, whom St. Dominic had established in 1207, and later on was put in charge of their new convent at Madrid; the founder refers to him in a letter to the sisters: "Our very dear brother, Brother Mannes, who has spared no pains to bring you to this high state, will take what steps seem to him necessary to secure its continuance. He has authority from us to make visitation of the convent, to correct what he finds amiss, and if he so judge fitting, to change the prioress, so long as the greater number of the sisters consent thereto." =C2 Dominic evidently had a very high opinion of the qualities of his brother, who had always had an attraction to the contemplative life, making him a particularly suitable director for the Madrid nuns, an office he filled for a dozen years.=C2 He clearly shared the peaceful gentle disposition and personality which strongly attracted men to St. Dominic, and had a similar serene and reasonable knowledge of the difficulties of souls. Bl. Mannes outlived his great brother, but the year of his death is not certain; it is generally given as 1230, but there is a story that he visited Calaruega after St. Dominic's canonization in 1234 and urged the people to build a chapel in his honour, saying, "Be satisfied with a small one for the present: my brother will know how to enlarge it when he chooses to", a prophecy fulfilled by King Alfonso X thirty years after. Bl. Mannes was buried at the Cistercian church of St. Peter at Gamiel d'Izan, and his cult was approved in 1834. See Mortier, Ma=C3=AEtres, G=C3=A9n=C3=A9raux 0.P., vol. i, pp. 2, 29, 90; = Procter, Dominican Saints, pp. 213-215=C2 Ann=C3=A9e Dominicaine, vol. vii, p. 81= 9. Saint Quote: He who is kind is free, even if he is a slave. He who is evil is a slave, even if he is king! -- Saint Augustine of Hippo Bible Quote: =C2 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of charity, if any society of the spirit, if any bowels of commiseration: 2. Fulfill ye my joy, that you may be of one mind, having the same charity, being of one accord, agreeing in sentiment. 3. Let nothing be done through contention, neither by vainglory: but in humility, let each esteem others better than themselves: 4. Each one not considering the things that are his own, but those that are other men's. 5. For let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: (Philippians 2:1-5) <><><><> Be simple as doves.=C2 [Matt. 10:16 ]=C2 July: Simplicity 31. God is a Being most simple in His essence, admitting no composition whatever. If, then, we desire to render ourselves as much like Him as possible, we should endeavor to be by virtue what He is by nature; that is, we ought to have a simple heart, a simple soul, a simple intention, a simple mode of action. We ought to speak simply, and to act frankly, without deceit or artifice, always letting our exterior reflect our interior, and never regarding anything in all our actions except God, Whom alone we endeavor and desire to please. --St. Vincent de Paul Such, in fact, was the simplicity of this Saint, for his exterior was always in entire conformity to his interior. Whoever heard his words could immediately know what was in his heart, which he always kept upon his lips. And however numerous and varied might be his occupations, they all had the same end, which was to please God alone. It might be truly said that he possessed this virtue to such a degree that the faculties of his soul were wholly steeped in it, and whatever he said or did proceeded from this source. (Taken from the book "A Year with the Saints". --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2 * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4) .