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January 21, 2006

St. Agnes

(d. 258?)

Almost nothing is known of this saint except that she was very young—12 or 13—when she was martyred in the last half of the third century. Various modes of death have been suggested—beheading, burning, strangling.

Legend has it she was a beautiful girl whom many young men wanted to marry. Among those she refused, one reported her to the authorities as being a Christian. She was arrested and confined to a house of prostitution. The legend continues that a man who looked upon her lustfully lost his sight and had it restored by her prayer. She was condemned, executed and buried near Rome in a catacomb that eventually was named after her. The daughter of Constantine built a basilica in her honor.

Comment:

Like that of modern Maria Goretti, the martyrdom of a virginal young girl made a deep impression on a society enslaved to a materialistic outlook. Like Agatha, who died in similar circumstances, Agnes is a symbol that holiness does not depend on length of years, experience or human effort. It is a gift God offers to all.

Pope blesses lambs in traditional ceremony

Pope blesses lambs in traditional ceremony

Vatican, Jan. 23 (CWNews.com) - Following a Vatican tradition for the feast of St. Agnes, on January 21, Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news) blessed two lambs whose wool will be used for the palliums that are worn by metropolitan archbishops.

The pallium, a white woolen strip worn around the shoulders, is a liturgical vestment worn by archbishops as a sign of their authority and their ties with the Bishop of Rome. Each year the Pope bestows the pallium on every new archbishop appointed during the past year, on the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, the patrons of Rome.

By tradition, the vestments are made from wool shorn from lambs blessed on the feast of St. Agnes, a Roman martyr. The palliums are then kept in an urn at the altar of St. Peter's Basilica until they are given to the new metropolitans.