Subj : October 19th - St. Peter of Alcantara To : All From : rich Date : Thu Oct 18 2018 08:55:24 From: rich October 19th - St. Peter of Alcantara Peter was born at Alcantara in Spain in 1499. Already as a child he manifes= ted a remarkable gift of prayer, so that at times, when he became absorbed = in prayer, the servants were unable to get any response from him. At the University of Salamanca Peter resolved to join the Franciscan Order.= The tempter left nothing undone to depict the comfortable life he could le= ad in the world and still have time for the practices of piety. But humble = prayer overcame the seductions of the evil one. Peter set out for the quiet= convent of Monjarez. On the way our Lord gave him a signal assurance of hi= s vocation. Peter came to a stream which, because of heavy rains, had overf= lowed its banks considerably. Seeing no means at hand with which to cross, = he knelt down and asked God for help. Suddenly, without knowing how, he fou= nd himself on the other side. Once received into the order, he gave himself up completely to union with G= od. He kept so strict a guard over his senses, that a year later he could n= ot say whether the church in which he prayed each day had a vaulted roof or= a flat one. His body seemed to have given to him only to inflict pain upon= it. The mortifications he practiced upon divine impulse were amazing. For = more than 20 years he wore an iron belt studded with sharp points which pie= rced his flesh, and for more than 40 years he daily scourged himself till h= e bled. At first he was much troubled with sleepiness, but he so mortified = himself that in time he got along with one and a half hours sleep in a day;= and this rest he took while sitting on the floor. God showed His approval of these mortifications by sustaining Peter's stren= gth in a remarkable way. He never tired of going from place to place to giv= e missions, and his success was so astounding that St. Francis Borgia once = wrote to him: "Your remarkable success is a special comfort to me." His var= ious activities, however, in no way diminished his spirit of prayer. He liv= ed and toiled in this spirit, and endeavored to impart it to others. The sufferings of Christ were the special object of his devotion. As Christ= sacrificed Himself for us, Peter found nothing too difficult in His servic= e; and as Christ atoned so severely for our sins, Peter practiced the most = rigorous penance. The custom of erecting a cross at the close of a mission = had its origin with St. Peter of Alcantara. Whenever feasible, he had the c= ross erected on an elevation, so that it could be seen all over the parish.= On one occasion he was so literally carried away with devotion that he spe= d through the air to such a cross, where with arms outstretched he prayed a= long time, while rays brighter than sunlight proceeded from his person. He wrote a little treatise on prayer and meditation which is celebrated the= world over. Pope Gregory XV declared that it was written under the inspira= tion of the Holy Spirit. The great mistress of prayer, St. Theresa, who liv= ed at that time, wished to have the saint for her spiritual director; and h= e aided her in reforming the order of Carmel. He was a very humble man, and fled from honors. Emperor Charles V wanted hi= m for his confessor, but Peter begged him not to press his request since he= could easily secure more learned and eminent men. In the order itself he w= as obliged to accept the position of provincial, and due to his efforts his= province rose to a flourishing state of religious discipline. Provincial t= hough he was, he did not hesitate on occasion to perform the lowliest dutie= s in the house. He was humble and charitable in his judgements. A nobleman was once decryin= g the various evils which were rampant. The saint said: "Truly, matters in = the world are in a bad state; but if you and I begin in earnest to reform o= urselves, a really good beginning will have been made." On October 18, 1562, he died peacefully in the Lord. St. Theresa saw his so= ul take its flight to heaven. Later he appeared to her and said: O happy pe= nance that has merited for me such wondrous glory!" Many miracles, includin= g the raising of six dead persons to life, occurred in answer to prayers ad= dressed to him. Pope Clement IX enrolled him among the saints. <><><><> ON THE REWARD OF PENANCE 1. St. Peter practiced rigorous penance all his life, and what a marvelous = reward it merited for him! He used to say: "I have made a contract with my = body: it has promised to accept harsh treatment from me on earth, and I hav= e promised that it shall receive eternal rest in heaven." The reward of pen= ance can be ours if we wish it. And we have more reason to practice penance= , since we have not lived from our youth as did St. Peter, but have committ= ed many sins. It is not necessary to imitate him in his unusual penances --= without the consent of our confessor it would not even be right to do so -= - but we can renounce sensuality and atone for our sins by a penitential li= fe. Then our present tribulation will obtain for us "above measure exceedin= gly an eternal weight of glory" (2 Cor 4:17). 2. Consider that none of us can say we have no need of penance; only a luke= warm soul could make such a statement. Even if we were stainless from birth= , we should still be obliged to mortify ourselves. Blessed Brother Giles wa= s once asked why St. John the Baptist lived so penitential a life. Brother = Giles asked by way of reply: "Why do we salt fresh fish? Is it not for the = purpose that it may not decay?" Though you may be quite unspoiled and blame= less, yet you should apply the salt of Christian mortification and penance,= that you may persevere and appear faultless before the judgement-seat of G= od. 3. Consider that the spirit of penance and mortification also nourishes the= spirit of prayer and devotion. He who serves the appetites of the flesh an= d grants them all they desire, cannot raise his heart to God in prayer. "Th= e sensual man perceives not those things that are of the spirit of God" (1 = Cor 2:14). To be able to pray, you must bridle your senses -- eyes, ears, t= ongue -- and withdraw from the world. "When you are about to pray, enter in= to your chamber and shut the door" (Matt 5:6). If you shut the door of your= heart in the spirit of penance, you will easily raise it to God and enjoy = His Consolations. Pray to St. Peter of Alcantara for this purpose. St. Ther= esa says that God revealed to her, that whatever would be requested in the = name of St. Peter would be granted. PRAYER OF THE CHURCH O God, who didst bestow on St. Peter, Thy confessor, the gifts of marvelous= penance and lofty contemplation, grant, we beseech Thee, that with his mer= its pleading for us, we may so mortify the flesh as to embrace more readily= the things of heaven. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2 * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4) .