October 27th - Blessed Contardo Ferrini

[Rich]

October 27th - Blessed Contardo Ferrini

Contardo was born in 1859. His father was a teacher of mathematics and
physics. Mr. Ferrini began very early to teach his little son his own
love for study. As a young man, Contardo could speak many languages
besides Italian. He did very well in every school and college he went
to. His great love for study and for his Catholic faith made his
friends nickname him their own "St. Aloysius." (St. Aloysius Gonzaga
was a young Jesuit saint known for the goodness and generosity of his
life.) It was Contardo who first started clubs for college students to
help them become good Christians.

When he was 21, he was offered a chance to study at the University of
Berlin in Germany. It was hard for him to leave his home in Italy, but
he was happy to meet devout Catholics at the university. He wrote down
in a little book what he felt the first time he received the sacrament
of Reconciliation in a foreign land. It thrilled him to realize that
the Catholic Church is really the same everywhere a person goes.

By the next year, Contardo was trying to decide whether he should
become a priest or a monk, or whether he should marry. He kept asking
himself just what he should do. As it turned out, he took a vow to
give himself only to God. He lived that vow as a lay person; he never
became a priest or brother. He went on teaching and writing. He tried
always to become a more perfect Christian. While enjoying his favorite
sport of mountain-climbing, he would think of God, the Creator of all
the beauty he saw. People noticed that there was something different
about Professor Ferrini. Once when he had passed by with his usual
warm smile, someone exclaimed, "That man is a saint!"

Contardo Ferrini died of typhoid fever on October 17, 1902. He was
only forty-three years old. He was declared "blessed" by Pope Pius XII
in 1947.


Reflection: Gifted with great intelligence, Bl. Contardo put his
learning at the service of others.

Bible Quote:
4 Yea, thou art my rock and my fortress; for thy name's sake
lead me and guide me,
5 take me out of the net which is hidden for me,
for thou art my refuge.
7 Thou hatest those who pay regard to vain idols;
but I trust in the LORD.
9 and hast not delivered me into the hand of the enemy;
thou hast set my feet in a broad place.
18 Let me not be put to shame, O LORD, for I call on thee;
let the wicked be put to shame,
let them go dumbfounded to Sheol. [Psalms 31: 3 - 4, 6, 8, 17]


<><><><>
Eternal Father, by the Blood of Jesus have mercy; sign us with the
Blood of the Immaculate Lamb Jesus Christ, as Thou didst sign the
people of Israel, in order to deliver them from death: and do thou,
Mary, Mother of Mercy, pray to God and appease Him for us, and obtain
for us the grace we ask. (Glory be to the Father etc.)

Eternal Father, by the Blood of Jesus have mercy; save us from the
shipwreck of the world, as Thou didst save Noe from the universal
deluge: and do thou, Mary, Ark of salvation, pray to God and appease
Him for us, and obtain for us the grace we ask. (Glory be to the
Father etc.)

Eternal Father, by the Blood of Jesus have mercy; deliver us from the
plagues which we have deserved for our sins, as Thou didst deliver Lot
from the flames of Sodom. And do thou, Mary, our Advocate, pray to God
and appease Him for us, and obtain for us the grace we ask. (Glory be
to the Father etc.)

Eternal Father, by the Blood of Jesus have mercy; comfort us under our
present necessities and troubles, as Thou didst comfort Job, Anna and
Tobias in their afflictions. And do thou, Mary, Comforter of the
afflicted, pray to God and appease Him for us, and obtain for us the
grace we ask. (Glory be to the Father etc.)

Eternal Father, by the Blood of Jesus have mercy; Thou who wouldst not
the death of a sinner, but rather that he should be converted and
live, grant us through thy mercy time for penance; that, filled with
contrition and penance for our sins, which are the cause of all our
evils, we may live in the holy faith, hope, charity and peace of our
Lord Jesus Christ. And do thou, Mary, Refuge of sinners, pray to God
and appease Him for us, and obtain for us the grace we ask. (Glory be
to the Father etc.)

Precious Blood of Jesus, our Love, cry unto the Divine Father for
mercy, pardon, grace and peace for us, for N., and for all the world.
(Glory be to the Father etc.)

Mary, our Mother and our Hope, pray to God for us, for N., and for
all, and obtain for us the grace we ask. (Glory be to the Father etc.)

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Blood of Jesus Christ in discharge of
all my debt of sin, for the wants of Holy Church, and for the
conversion of sinners. (Glory be to the Father etc.)

Mary Immaculate, Mother of God, pray to Jesus for us, for N., and for
all. Jesus, Mary, mercy ! St. Michael Archangel, St. Joseph, SS. Peter
and Paul, protectors of all the faithful in the Church of God, and all
ye Angels and Saints of Paradise, men and women, pray to God, and by
your intercession obtain grace and mercy for me, for N., and for all.
Amen.