Angels--St. Gabriel

[Weedy]

Angels--St. Gabriel

The name Gabriel means, 'The Strength of God.' St. Gabriel is strong,
not with his own strength, but with God's, and he imparts this
strength to the servants of God on earth. It is his office to show how
out of weakness God brings strength. If I am weak by nature, I have
only to beg of God and He will send an Angel to make me strong in Him
and in the power of His grace.

For this reason St. Gabriel was the messenger of the Incarnation. God,
made Man, was the utmost limit of which strength in weakness was
capable. The infinite power of God was joined to the feebleness of the
lowest rational nature that God had created. Hence it was Gabriel who
prophesied to Daniel of the coming of the Messias. It was Gabriel who
announced to our Blessed Lady at Nazareth that she was to be the
Mother of God. Adore God's strength made perfect in infirmity, and
learn to admire in the Saints of God the Divine power imparted to
them.

St. Gabriel is also generally believed to have been the Angel sent to
comfort Our Lord in His sacred Agony. Then, more than ever, was the
Humanity of the Son of God emptied of all its strength, and St.
Gabriel came to minister strength to Him in His human weakness. Pray
that your times of infirmity may prove the occasion of God's strength
in you, and that He may console you and help you to persevere to the
end, and to pass safely through your last agony.

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April 18: - Saint Apollonius the Apologist

(died 186)
Today, April 18, we celebrate the feast of Saint Apollonius the
Apologist, a Roman Senator and member of the Roman elite. Apollonius
had found the truth of Christ, and was unable to deny his faith and
confidence in the Lord, earning him a martyr’s death. His heroic
defense of the truth, and unwillingness to compromise his beliefs to
save himself, is an example and inspiration to both civic leaders and
the faithful throughout the world!

Apollonius had spent years in study and was extremely familiar with
the major philosophers and schools of thought in the second century
Roman empire. He developed an interest in the Jewish scriptures and
this led him to Christian writings. Eventually, Apollonius converted
to Christianity because of the witness and testimonies of the early
Church members, but continued to study the beliefs and convictions of
those he had left behind, hoping to bring them to conversion with
himself. As a member of the Roman Senate, he knew well the law
forbidding the practice of Christianity. However, he felt drawn to
live a life rich in the grace and love of Christ, and was confident
that the Roman rulers would not punish him for this.

Apollonius had been baptized, fully embracing his faith. During this
period of time, the Emperor Commodus had informally halted the
persecution of Christians, out of regard for his Empress Marcia, who
was an admirer of the Faith. The laws of his father, Marcus Aurelius,
who had persecuted Christians, had not been repealed officially,
however. Therefore, when one of Apollonius’ slaves publicly accused
him of being a Christian, he was arrested under the laws of the time.
The slave, for his part, was condemned to have his legs broken, and
also be put to death, as the anti-Christian laws of Marcus Aurelius
also ordered the accusers of Christians to be put to death.

Apollonius was brought before the courts to defend himself. As
Perennis, the Praetorian prefect who had arrested him, brought
Apollonius to his trials he pleaded with him to renounce his faith. He
insisted that if he said the words and apostatized, even if he "didn't
mean it,” those in power were all too willing to find him not guilty
of the crime. He reminded Apollonius that the punishment for being a
Christian was death and insisted that the right course of action for a
senator like Apollonius was to renounce his faith and maintain his
influence and power in the world.

Apollonius, of course, refused to renounce his faith before the court,
and was led to the Senate to defend himself before his peers. This was
the moment that Apollonius had been counting on, and he eloquently
testified to his faith before his friends and colleagues. He ended his
great testimony by praying, "O Lord Jesus Christ, give us a bit of
your spirit so that we might be helped to obey your teachings to: make
peace over anger, join in pity with others and for others, temper our
desires, always increase in love, put away our sorrow, cast aside our
foolish pride, not love vengeance, and not fear death. Help us to
trust our spirit to God the Father who lives and reigns with You and
the Holy Spirit now and forever."

Perennis, as well as his fellow Senators, could not understand why
Apollonius wasn't taking the easy and reasonable way out of death and
yelled at him, "Are you determined to die today?"
Apollonius responded, "Oh no." He continued, "I very much enjoy life
but my love of life does not make me afraid to lose it. There's
something better waiting for me: eternal life! There is something
better given to the person who has lived well on earth."

Apollonius admonished the listening crowd to cast aside their pride
and self-obsession, but they were unwilling to pay the price of faith.
He was convicted for his crime not because the senate was willing to
convict one of its own but because he was unwilling even to pretend
not to trust God. For his crime his legs were crushed and he was
beheaded. He died a martyr who had been given a rare chance to preach
the Gospel to his executioners.

Saint Apollonius’ Apologia, or defense of the faith, is considered one
of the most priceless documents of the early Church. Four separate
sources record his historical debate in front of the Roman Senate,
including Saint Eusebius and Saint Jerome, as well as Greek and
Armenian texts which were discovered late in the 19th century.


The Roman Martyrology records the martyrdom of Saint Apollonius as follows:

At Rome, commemoration of Saint Apollonius, philosopher and martyr.
Under the Emperor Commodus, he defended, before the Prefect Perennius
and the Senate, the cause of the Christian faith in a finely argued
address, and then, after being condemned to death, confirmed it by the
witness of his blood.

The life of Saint Apollonius is a courageous reminder for each of us,
that earthly money, power, and prestige pale in comparison to the
riches and rewards that await us in heaven. As we approach Good
Friday, we might consider more fully and deeply that which ties us to
the earth, certain in the fact that our Lord and Savior gave up all
earthly connections—including those to his friends, followers, and
Blessed Mother—to die for our sins, ensuring our everlasting peace and
happiness in the next life.
by Jacob

Saint Quote:
An evil thought defiles the soul
when it is deliberate and consented to.
Our Lord placed evil thoughts at the head of all crimes,
because they are their principle and source.
--St. John Baptist de la Salle

Bible Quote:
Since we have a kingdom nothing can destroy, let us please God by
serving him with thankful hearts, and with holy fear and awe. For our
God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:28-29)


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God's spirit is all about you all day long

God's spirit is all about you all day long. You have no thoughts, no
plans, no impulses and no emotions that He does not know about. You
can hide nothing from Him. Do not make your conduct conform only to
that of the world and do not depend on the approval or disapproval of
others. God sees in secret, but He rewards openly. If you are in
harmony with the Divine Spirit, doing your best to live the way you
believe God wants you to live, you will be at peace. I pray that I may
always feel God's presence. I pray that I may realize this Presence
constantly all through the day.
--From Twenty-Four Hours a Day