Subj : =?UTF-8?Q?August_16th_=E2=80=93_Bl=2E_Laurence_Loricatus=2C_Solitary?= To : All From : rich Date : Thu Aug 15 2019 09:24:17 From: rich August 16th =E2=80=93 Bl. Laurence Loricatus, Solitary Born at Fanello or Facciolo, Apulio, Italy, c. 1190; died at Subiaco in 1243; cultus approved in 1778 by Pius VI., and while still a young man had the misfortune accidentally to kill another. In expiation he made a pilgrimage of penance to Compostela, and on his return in 1209 went to Subiaco, where he joined a community but was soon given permission to be a solitary.=C2 He lived in a mountain cave near by the Sacro Speco of St. Benedict for 33 years, and practised terrific mortifications of the body: the name Loricatus, "the cuirassier", was given to him because of the coat of mail studded with sharp points which he wore next his skin.=C2 His cultus was approved in 1778. An account of him is given in the Acta Sanctorum, August, vol. iii, which possesses interest from the fact that it embodies documents compiled in 1244 during an investigation undertaken at the insistence of Pope Innocent IV. Laurence was raised to be a soldier, but when he accidentally killed a man, he was overcome with remorse. Laying aside his arms, he made a pilgrimage of penance and expiation to Santiago de Compostella. Upon his return to Italy, he entered the Benedictine monastery of Subiaco. He obtained permission to begin his 34 years of eremitical life among the ruins of one of the 12 monasteries founded on the mountain by Saint Benedict. There he practiced the strictest poverty by giving away any offerings left by visitors to the poor. Shepherds and pilgrims who discovered his hiding place soon joined him in building a small community. He was given the surname "loricatus" because he wore a coat of chain mail next to his skin as an act of penance. His fame attracted Cardinal Hugolino (a.k.a. Pope Gregory IX) who persuaded Laurence in 1224 to take off his breastplate. =C2 At the death of Laurence, Amico de Canterano, who had shared his life for 24 years, succeeded him as the leader. He wrote a book of prayers that is still extant. Although Pope Innocent IV opened the canonization process for Laurence in 1244--just a year after his death, it was never completed. His relics, including a manuscript in his own hand and his breastplate, are enshrined at the Sagro Speco (Saint Benedict's Cave) at Subiaco (Benedictines, Farmer) . Saint Quote: =C2 =C2 Jesus is working on the ups and downs of human existence: prep= aring his three leaders for the trials of the Passion by giving them something to remember, a moment of glory. Peter wants it to go on for ever, to settle down there where it felt so good. Instead Jesus brings them down the mountain, bracing them for the bad times ahead. =C2 =C2 We must pray without tiring, for the salvation of mankind does= not depend on material success, but on Jesus alone. --St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Bible Quote: =C2 =C2 "Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help, trusting in hors= es, and putting their confidence in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; and have not trusted in the Holy One of Israel, and have not sought after the Lord. Egypt is man, and not God; and their horses flesh, and not spirit; and the Lord shall put down his hand, and the helper shall fall, and he that is helped shall fall, and they shall all be confounded together." (Isa. 31:1,3). <><><><> Angels--Their Unclouded Happiness Happiness consists in the unimpeded activity of every part of our nature. The nobler our nature, the greater our capacity for happiness. Perfect happiness consists in full activity of a perfect nature. The Angels have a nature perfect in its order and degree, and their whole nature is occupied with the joy of seeing God face to face. Hence their happiness is perfect. So too will my happiness be one day, if I am faithful to God. Happiness requires that we should look forward to the future without any misgivings or fear lest we should forfeit our present joy. The Holy Angels know that for all eternity nothing in Heaven or on earth can cloud the brightness of their vision of God, or hinder the streams of delight that flow thence to them unceasingly. We on the other hand dread coming evils. Yet why should we do so, when all things work together for good to those who love God? If we loved God more, what we now fear as evil would lose all its power to terrify us. What we now dread most would be gladly accepted by us as certain in the end to work for our good. The Holy Angels never have their wills crossed, never are thwarted, never are disappointed, because they have no will save God's. Before they know His will, they tend to do what seems to them the greatest good. But they always do so under the condition that God does not will otherwise. Their own will disappears when His is known to them. This is the secret of happiness in this world as well as in the next. --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2 * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4) .