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Daily Readings for: September 11, 2013
(Readings on USCCB website)

Collect: O God, by whom we are redeemed and receive adoption, look graciously upon your beloved sons and daughters, that those who believe in Christ may receive true freedom and an everlasting inheritance. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

RECIPES

o Cabbage and Meat Rolls

ACTIVITIES

o Elementary Parent Pedagogy: Two Homes, Heaven and Earth — Building up Family Unity and Security

o Homemade Prayer Book for Preschool Children

PRAYERS

o September Devotion: Our Lady of Sorrows

o Collect from the Feast of Sts. Protus and Hyacinth

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Old Calendar: Sts. Protus and Hyacinth, martyrs

According to tradition Sts. Protus and Hyacinth were Romans by birth, brothers and servants in the house of St. Basilla. They were burned alive around 257, during the persecution of Valerian and Gallian. St. Hyacinth is unique among Roman martyrs in that his epitaph and grave in the cemetery of Basilla on the Old Salarian Way were found intact in modern time (1845); in it were the charred bones of the martyr, who had been put to death by fire. Part of the empty tomb of St. Protus was also found. According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is their feast.

Sts. Protus and Hyacinth
The story of most martyrs of the first three centuries is so obscured by legend that it is difficult for us to cull out the historical kernel; this is true of today's saints. Tradition tells us that the brothers Protus and Hyacinth were chamberlains to the holy virgin Eugenia (listed as a martyr on December 25 in the Roman Martyrology) and were baptized along with their patron by Bishop Helenus. They devoted themselves zealously to the study of Sacred Scripture and lived for a time with the hermits in Egypt, illustrious for humility and holiness of life. At a later date they accompanied Eugenia to Rome and were arrested by Emperor Gallienus (260-268) for their profession of the Christian faith. In no manner could they be persuaded to deny the faith or worship the gods. Accordingly, after an inhuman scourging, they were beheaded on September 11.

Veneration of the two martyrs in the Church of Rome dates to venerable antiquity. Ancient registers contain their names, Pope Damasus praises them in verse at the end of the age of martyrs. The cemetery of Basilla marked the site of their graves; relics of St. Hyacinth were discovered there in 1845 and now are honored in the chapel of the Propaganda.

Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch

Things to Do:

The unshakable fortitude of the martyrs throughout the Christian ages should serve as a stimulating reproach to us when we are tempted to lose patience under the most ordinary trials. Offer your Mass or Rosary for the grace of final perseverance.

Meditation: Colossians 3:1-11

23rd Week in Ordinary Time

Put on the new self. (Colossians 3:10)

If the Apostle Paul ever needed a second job, he could have easily found a position writing technical manuals. He could be clear and concise when he needed to, and he never minced his words. Just as a manual tells you how to use a particular appliance or gadget, Paul tells us clearly how to take hold of the new life that Jesus has won for us. It’s as simple as 2+2=4. Look to heaven, put off the “old self,” and put on the “new self.” He even gives real-life examples of what the old self looks like so that we can identify it and deal with it. It’s just like the illustrations in a user’s manual!

If Paul is so clear, why are we so muddled? Why do we find it hard to put into practice what he lays out in such step-by-step detail? We want to do good. We want to overcome our old lives. But we don’t always get very far.

One answer is that it takes time. We can’t afford to think our sin and all temptation will go away overnight. That’s why God has given us the gift of Confession, as well as the spiritual nourishment of the Eucharist. We need all the mercy we can get. And we sorely need the strength, comfort, and grace that come from receiving Jesus in his Body and Blood!

But there is another answer. Paul was so clear because he spoke out of his own experience. His clarity did not come only from deep theology or intellectual inquiry. It was also forged in his own spiritual battle.

If we follow Paul’s lead and take up the battle ourselves, we will be transformed over time. We will discover the power of the Holy Spirit encouraging us, strengthening us, cheering us on, and convincing us more and more of God’s love for us. That will make us clear about the gospel as well, ready to share it with everyone we meet.

“Lord, I yield to you today. I want to follow the example of all your saints and enter into the spiritual battle. So come, Holy Spirit, and clothe me in the armor of God. I so want to become like Jesus!”

Psalm 145:2-3, 10-13; Luke 6:20-26