Subj : March 29th - Saint Mark of Arethusa
To   : All
From : rich
Date : Thu Mar 28 2019 09:04:12

From: rich <richarra@gmail.com>

March 29th - Saint Mark of Arethusa

In a startling departure from the script expected of a saint who has
died in martyrdom, St. Mark miraculously managed to survive an ordeal
of torture to transform his tormentors into compassionate human beings
and go on to great glory in the name of Jesus Christ. Just when he was
about to die a remarkable reversal of the customary ending of a
saintly life served to make the invincible St. Mark unique among those
who have suffered and died for the Messiah.

After the proclamation of Constantine the Great granting Christianity
toleration, the transition from paganism to Christianity was not
accomplished immediately. Mark of Arethusa lived in a period of
turmoil in the early fourth century, during which time he was of
inestimable value as a young priest who shouldered the responsibility
of bringing order out of religious chaos and conflict.

With the mandate from the emperor several priests came forward to
replace pagans and temples with Christians and churches, but nowhere
in the empire could they find a more capable promoter for the Prince
of Peace than the ebullient Mark. He was a young priest with great
promise when he emerged from his small parish near the city of
Arethusa (in the province of Thessalonike) to undertake the
spiritually rewarding, but ever hazardous, chore of physically
transforming pagan temples into Christian churches. He left the
tranquility of his parish on the banks of the river Strymon, later
called Rendina, to assume much more awesome and demanding duties in
the name of the Savior. These duties eventually brought him glory and
grief, but eventually brought him the highest in spiritual attainment.
He was well into this laudable campaign when he was appointed bishop
of Arethusa, an office whose influence he would bring to many other
areas in the course of his holy work.

Specially appointed to direct the changeover, Mark countered the
expected resistance in some areas with compelling oratory which won
enough converts to acquire a strength in numbers sufficient to offset
the last=E2=80=93ditch defenders of paganism. Then came the actual
transformation whereby temples became churches with the replacement of
the sacred cross of Jesus Christ for idols. When the architecture of a
temple did not allow for conformity with a church, it was simply taken
down piece by piece and rebuilt to Christian standards. Those edifices
that posed too many problems were made into hospitals or places of
refuge for the needy.

Mark showed not only a bold administrative capacity while these
proceedings were taking place, but a genuine concern for the populace
as a whole. Thus he acquired a reputation for generosity, compassion
and humility which stamped him as a rare human being and dedicated
servant of God and man. Even those who opposed him grudgingly admitted
that for all of his quiet demeanor he was not a man to be trifled
with, nor one who would slacken the pace of his mission.

Years of devotion to this procedure brought Mark and his Christian
community a hitherto unknown tranquility. But this peace was shattered
when the Emperor Julian the Apostate succeeded to the throne in AD 361
and disavowed Jesus to revert to paganism. Almost overnight the
advances of Christianity were stemmed. With this shabby disavowal came
a persecution of Christians.

Mark found himself the target of the rabble he had put to rout. These
people had been given heart by a perfidious ruler who was not the
least interested in having his people live in harmony. Instead, he
encouraged the pagans to vent their spleen on Christians once again.
Mark was dragged into the streets by a frenzied mob who tortured him
without mercy, again and again inflicting the cruelest of punishment
they could devise. Their rage subsided in the face of the durability
of the holy Mark who summoned renewed strength and convinced the mob
that the Lord had given him a seeming indestructibility. He went on
about conversion until he died on 28 March 389.


Bible Quote:
There is one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to
destroy. But who are you that you judge your neighbor?=C2  [James 4:12]
RSVCE


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Pious Invocations

Eternal Father, we offer Thee the infinite merits of Our Lord
Jesus Christ, of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary and of all the
Saints, in expiation for the sins of the world and for the
salvation of souls.

Lord Jesus, may Thy Precious Blood purify souls, For whom
Thou hast died with so much love.


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