Subj : April 8th - Saint Perpetuus To : All From : rich Date : Sat Apr 07 2018 10:13:20 From: rich April 8th - Saint Perpetuus, Bishop of Tours (461-494) Saint Perpetuus was the eighth Bishop of Tours, who governed that see for more than thirty years, from 461 to 494. During all that time he labored by zealous sermons, many synods and wholesome regulations, to lead souls to virtue. Saint Perpetuus had great veneration for the Saints and respect for their relics; he adorned their shrines and enriched their churches. As there was a continual succession of miracles at the tomb of Saint Martin, Perpetuus, finding the church built by Saint Bricius too small for the concourse of people coming there, directed its enlargement. When the building was finished, the good bishop solemnized the dedication of this large new church, which a writer of that time said was one of the marvels of the world and worthy to be compared with the temple of Solomon. The translation of the body of Saint Martin was carried out on the 4th of July in 491. It is believed that either Saint Martin or his Angel assisted on this occasion, for the coffin was so heavy that no means were found to move it, until an unknown elderly gentleman came forward and offered his aid, immediately efficacious. Saint Perpetuus had made and signed his last will, which is still extant, on the 1st of March, 475, a number of years before his death. In this testament of love, he remitted all debts owing to him; and having bequeathed to his church his library and several farms, and establishing a fund for the maintenance of lamps and the purchase of sacred vessels, he declared the poor his heirs for all the rest. He added exhortations to concord and piety, and begged a remembrance in prayer. His ancient epitaph equals him to the great Saint Martin. He died on the 8th of April, 494. Reflection. The sting of poverty, says a spiritual writer, is allayed even more by a word of true sympathy than by the alms we give. Alms given coldly and harshly irritate rather than soothe. Even when we cannot give, words of kindness are like a precious balm; and when we can give, they are salt and seasoning for our alms. Source: Little Pictorial Lives of the Saints, a compilation based on Butler's Lives of the Saints and other sources by John Gilmary Shea (Benziger Brothers: New York, 1894). Saint Quote "O ye souls who wish to go on with so much safety and consolation, if you knew how pleasing to God is suffering, and how much it helps in acquiring other good things, you would never seek consolation in anything; but you would rather look upon it as a great happiness to bear the Cross after the Lord" l--St. John of the Cross Blessed William the Abbot saw, one night in a dream, some angels who were weaving a crown of marvelous richness and beauty; and when he asked them for whom they were making it, they said that it was for him, and would be finished when he had suffered enough. ("A Year with the Saints". April - Patience) Bible Quote: Wherefore I say to thee: Many sins are forgiven her, because she hath loved much. But to whom less is forgiven, he loveth less. (Luke 7:47) <><><><> Short prayers to the Holy Trinity: O Most Holy Trinity, I adore Thee who art dwelling by Thy grace within my soul. O Most Holy Trinity, who art dwelling by Thy grace within my soul, make me love Thee more and more. O Most Holy Trinity, who art dwelling by Thy grace within my soul, sanctify me more and more. Abide with me, O Lord, be Thou my true joy. <><><><> The story He is the One who brought us out of slavery into freedom, out of darkness into light, out of death into life, out of tyranny into an eternal kingdom; who made us a new priesthood, a people chosen to be his own for ever. He is the Passover that is our salvation. It is he who endured every kind of suffering in all those who foreshadowed him. In Abel he was slain, in Isaac bound, in Jacob exiled, in Joseph sold, in Moses exposed to die. He was sacrificed in the Passover lamb, persecuted in David, dishonored in the prophets. It is he who was made man of the Virgin, he who was hung on the tree; it is he who was buried in the earth, raised from the dead, and taken up to the heights of heaven. He is the mute lamb, the slain lamb, the lamb born of Mary, the fair ewe. He was seized from the flock, dragged off to be slaughtered, sacrificed in the evening, and buried at night. On the tree no bone of his was broken; in the earth his body knew no decay. He is the One who rose from the dead, and who raised us from the depths of the tomb. --Melito of Sardis --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2 * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4) .