Subj : May 25th - St. Bede the Venerable To : All From : rich Date : Fri May 24 2019 09:22:41 From: rich May 25th - St. Bede the Venerable St. Bede is a confessor and doctor of the Church. He rivaled St. Isidore of Seville as one of the wisest and more illustrious men of his time. Because his great sanctity was widely recognized during his lifetime and he could not be called saint, he was known as Bede the Venerable. The name was conserved after his death and canonization. He was born in 672 at Jarrow, on the borders of England and Scotland, and died in 735. Comments of the late Prof. Plinio Corr=C3=AAa de Oliveira: (died 1995) Given that this selection is very short I will comment on the title of venerable conferred upon St. Bede. What does venerable means? When can a person be said to be venerable? First, venerable was a title of honor attributed by the Church to a person whose process of canonization was underway. The application of this title has varied through the centuries. For some time, a person whose process had been introduced was called venerable. Later, the Church replaced this with the title servant of God to refer to the first stage of the process of canonization. The next levels of this process are beatification and canonization. The person was beatified and received the title of blessed after the Church had exhaustively examined his or her life and works and concluded that the person practiced the theological and cardinal virtues in a heroic degree. A first miracle was also required to be declared blessed. Since the beatification included a moral certainty that the person was in Heaven, the Church used to permit some kind of cult in the place where the person had lived or exerted influence, for instance his city or religious order. The person was canonized and declared a saint, the last step, when new miracles, usually two in number, were verified. When they were confirmed by an exacting board of scholars, the person was canonized, i.e., he or she was declared saint and pointed to as a model for Catholics and presented for the cult of the universal Church. Venerable was used, therefore, for one whose process had been introduced. In the good times--before Vatican II--when everything was serious, the word signified that the person was worthy of great consideration and respectability, in a word, worthy of veneration. It was already a great honor to have one's name introduced for the process of canonization. Second, in common usage, without any canonical implication, one can say that a person is venerable in many cases. Let me give some examples: =C2 =C2 * A man or woman is called venerable when he or she has advan= ced in years and conserved the seriousness and dignity that this age requires. So, we venerate an 80-year-old man who always fulfilled his duties in the formation of his numerous family. To call him venerable means that his long and continuous practice of these virtues generates respect. =C2 =C2 * A man who displayed heroic behavior in combat or a general = who won many battles also deserves to be called venerable, because such men carried out valiant actions that deserve respect. In principle, anyone who risks his life for the Church or the State has realized an outstanding action and is venerable in this respect. =C2 =C2 * Another example would be a religious woman who took care of lepers for a long period of time, running the imminent risk of being contaminated by the disease. We call her venerable for her long selfless service. Therefore, in common usage, venerable is used for the person who has an extraordinary will, temper of spirit, and constancy that enabled him to exercise an upright behavior for a long period of time even in face of adverse circumstances and at the risk of his life, health, and comfort. This person inspires a special admiration in those who deal with him. They feel that justice demands that they pay him some tribute of respect. This kind of respectability results from seriousness, strength and abnegation. To reach such a high level of fulfillment of his duties, the person must have been serious, strong and abnegated. A good example of venerability can be found in the statue of St. Benedict that is placed in downtown S=C3=A3o Paulo outside the grandiose Monastery of St. Benedict. The statue of St. Benedict stands outdoors looking at the city that stirs and passes at his feet. He is portrayed in his sixties or seventies with a great long beard and a shepherd's staff in his hand. His person inspires meditation, profound thoughts, seriousness, and stability. He is the faithful image of the venerable patriarch. Unfortunately, a large number of statues we have in our churches do not inspire veneration, due to either the sentimental style of such statues influenced by the Sulpician movement of the 19th century, or the modern style that was imposed everywhere after the Council. But we can still find venerable statues worthy of our admiration here and there. http://www.traditioninaction.org/SOD/j074sdBede5-27.htm Saint Quote: Never read books you aren't sure about. . . even supposing that these bad books are very well written from a literary point of view. Let me ask you this: Would you drink something you knew was poisoned just because it was offered to you in a golden cup? --St. John Bosco Bible Quote "Cruel is wrath, overwhelming is anger; but jealousy, who can withstand that? [Proverbs 27:4] <><><><> PRAYER Loving Father, faith in Your Word is the way to wisdom. Help me to think about Your Divine Plan that I may grow in the truth. Open my eyes to Your deeds, my ears to the sound of Your call, so that my every act may help me share in the life of Jesus. Give me the grace to live the example of the love of Jesus, which I celebrate in the Heart and see in the Gospel. Form in me the likeness of Your Son and deepen His Life within me. --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2 * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4) .