The cross of Christ as victory

[Weedy]

The cross of Christ as victory

"It is not difficult, therefore, to see how the devil was conquered
when he, who was slain by him, rose again. But there is something
greater and more profound of comprehension: to see how the devil was
conquered precisely when he was thought to be conquering, namely, when
Christ was crucified. For at that moment the blood of him who had no
sin at all, was shed for the remission of our sins (Matthew 26:28, 1
John 3:5). The devil deservedly held those whom he had bound by sin to
the condition of death. So it happened that One who was guilty of no
sin freed them justly from this condemnation (Hebrews 2:14). The
strong man was conquered by this paradoxical justice and bound by this
chain, that his vessels [booty] might be taken away. Those vessels
which had been vessels of wrath were turned into vessels of mercy
(Romans 9:22-23)."
--St. Augustine-- (excerpt ON THE TRINITY 13.15.19)

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February 28th - Saint Oswald, Archbishop of York

(Died. 992)
Oswald was of a noble Saxon family; he was endowed with a very rare
and handsome appearance and with a singular piety of soul. Brought up
by his uncle, Saint Odo, Archbishop of Canterbury, he was jto reform
them was a failure, and he saw, with that infallible instinct which so
often guides the Saints in critical times, that the true remedy for
the corruption of the clergy was the restoration of monastic life.

He therefore went to France and took the habit of Saint Benedict. When
he returned to England it was to receive the news of Odo’s death. He
found, however, a new patron in Saint Dunstan, Archbishop of
Canterbury, through whose influence he was nominated to the see of
Worcester. To these two Saints, together with Ethelwold of Winchester,
the monastic revival of the tenth century is mainly due.

Oswald’s first care was to deprive of their benefices all disorderly
secular clerics, whom he replaced as far as possible by religious
priests. He himself founded seven religious houses. Considering that
in the hearts of the secular canons of Winchester there were yet some
sparks of virtue, he would not at once dismiss them, but rather
reformed them through a holy artifice. Adjoining their cathedral
church he built a chapel in honor of the Mother of God, causing it to
be served by a body of strict religious. He himself assisted at the
divine Office there, and his example was followed by the people. The
canons, finding themselves isolated and the church deserted, chose
rather to embrace the religious life than continue to injure their own
souls, and be also a mockery to their people, through the contrast
offered by their worldliness and the regularity of their religious
brethren.

Later, as Archbishop of York, Saint Oswald met a like success in his
efforts. God manifested His approval of his zeal by discovering to him
the relics of his great predecessor at Worcester, Saint Wilfrid, which
he reverently translated to the church of that city. He died while
washing the feet of the poor, as he did daily during Lent, on February
29, 992.

Source: Little Pictorial Lives of the Saints, a compilation based on
Butler’s Lives of the Saints and other sources by John Gilmary Shea

Reflection.
A soul without discipline is like a ship without a helm: it must
inevitably strike unawares upon the rocks, founder on the shoals, or
float unawares into the harbor of the enemy.

Bible Quote:
... "Then Jesus said to them: Amen, amen, I say to you; Moses gave
you not bread from heaven, but my Father giveth you the true bread
from heaven. For the bread of God is that which cometh down from
heaven and giveth life to the world. They said therefore unto him:
Lord, give us always this bread. And Jesus said to them: I am the
bread of life. He that cometh to me shall not hunger: and he that
believeth in me shall never thirst. But I said unto you that you also
have seen me, and you believe not." [John 6:32-36] DRB


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Reflection: from Introduction to the Devout Life

Undertake all of your duties with a calm mind and try to do them one at a
time. If you try to do them all at once, or without order, your spirits will be
so overcharged and depressed that they will likely sink under the burden and
nothing will be done.

In all of your affairs, rely on the Providence of God through which alone you
must look for success. Strive quietly to cooperate with its designs. If you
have a sure trust in God, the success that comes to you will always be that
which is most useful to you, whether it appears good or bad in your private
judgment.

Think of the little children who with one hand hold fast to their father
while with the other they gather berries. If you handle the goods of this world
with one hand, you must also always hold fast with the other to your heavenly
Father's hand, and turn toward him from time to time to see if you are pleasing
him. Above all, be sure that you never leave his hand and his protection,
thinking that with your own two hands you can gather more or get some other
advantage.
--Saint Francis de Sales, from Introduction to the Devout Life