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Old Calendar: St. Vincent Ferrer, confessor
St. Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419) was born in Valencia, Spain, and died in Vannes, Britany. He was a great scholar and became Master of Theology he knew the entire Bible by heart. He was also a great preacher, preaching throughout Europe. Jews, infidels and heretics were converted by his sermons on the true faith. The most obdurate sinners embraced a life of holiness. The favorite topic of his sermons was the final judgment. He repeated over and over the words of the prophet, "Arise, ye dead, and come to the judgment." He is often called the "Angel of the Judgment." A renowned wonder-worker, St. Vincent cured the sick, the blind and the lame.
Vincent Ferrer
St. Vincent Ferrer's father was an Englishman, who had been knighted at the siege of the city. On February 5th, 1367, having completed his studies in philosophy, he became a Dominican. He was moved to Barcelona in the next year, and in 1370 became lecturer in philosophy at the Dominican house in Lerida. In 1373, when he returned to Barcelona to the 'Studium Arabicum et Hebraicum', he was already a famous public preacher.
In 1377 he was sent to Toulouse for further study; there he attracted the attention of the Legate of the future Avignon antipope, Cardinal Pedro de Luna, whose suite he joined, being himself a strong advocate of the claims of the Avignon popes as against those of Rome. He preached a great deal, particularly to Jews and Moors, and converted a rabbi of Valladolid, who, later became Bishop Paul of Burgos, and associated with St. Vincent in his strenuous and successful attempts to convert the Jews of Spain.
Disillusioned in his attempts to heal the schism between Rome and Avignon, St. Vincent saw a vision of our Lord standing between St. Dominic and St. Francis, commissioning him directly to go about preaching penance. He was released by Benedict XIII in November 1399 to do this, and continued his preaching and wandering throughout western Europe until his death, being followed by a crowd of penitents and flagellants which varied from 300 to 10,000. He was in Aragon when the throne became vacant and with his brother, Boniface, a Carthusian, was instrumental in choosing Ferdinand of Castille as prince.
In 1416 he withdrew his own allegiance and that of the kingdom of Aragon from Benedict XIII, because the Avignon antipope had made no serious attempt to heal the schism and had refused the request made by the council of Constance that he should resign in order to make possible a new and undisputed election to the papacy. St. Vincent's decision had the effect of deposing Benedict and of making possible an end to the schism. St. Vincent died on April 5th, 1419, at Vannes in Brittany, where his relics are venerated. He was canonized by Pope Calixtus II in 1455.
Excerpted from The Saints edited by John Coulson
Patron: Brick makers, builders construction workers, pavement workers, plumbers, tile makers.
Symbols: Dominican holding an open book while preaching; Dominican with a cardinal's hat; Dominican with wings; cardinal's hat; pulpit; trumpet; Dominican with a crucifix; Dominican preacher with a flame on his head; flame; Dominican preacher with a flame on his hand.
Things to Do:
Saint Vincent Ferrer, Priest (Optional Memorial)
They knew not the hidden counsels of God. (Wisdom 2:22)
Cant you just hear these words describing the religious leaders who were opposed to Jesus? The very things they plotted against him would be turned upside down by Gods hidden counsels. Jesus death would not stop him; it would vindicate his righteousness and show Gods power to deliver us and save us!
Gods mysterious ways are at work in your life as well. When you face a challenge or trial, you might be tempted to think it means that God isnt with you or that he isnt paying attention to your prayers for help. But more likely than not, he is just moving in ways you cant perceive at that moment.
This is the challenge of faith: to believe that God sees a much bigger picture than we do, and to trust that he knows what he is doing. So how can we do that?
One way is to look at the Scriptures. The Old Testament is full of stories of how Gods hidden counsels took something evil and turned it around for the good. Think about Joseph, sold into slavery by his brothers. God used him to preserve the Israelites during a severe famine (Genesis 37). Or think of Abraham taking his son, Isaac, up the mountain to sacrifice him—at Gods command. God saved Isaac at the very last minute and showed Abraham (and us) just how much he appreciates our faith (22:1-19).
Perhaps you can recall a difficult time in your own life where you now understand how God deepened your faith or brought about an outcome better than you expected. With hindsight, you can see he was clearly at work. Let these insights serve as a foundation for you when challenging events arise in the future.
Whenever you are facing a trial, ask your heavenly Father to show you his hidden counsels. You probably wont get an answer right away—thats why theyre called hidden. Still, take the situation as an opportunity to strengthen your faith. Remember, you are Gods precious child. So keep trusting him, and ask him to show you how near he is and how much he loves you. Even if you dont understand his ways now, ask him to fill you with peace in not knowing everything.
Lord God, I trust in you. Open my eyes to see your hand in all things.
Psalm 34:17-21, 23
John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30