Cardinal John Henry
Newman wrote:
No one is a martyr for
a conclusion, no one is a martyr for an opinion; it is faith that
makes martyrs.
We know little about Saints Nereus and Achilleus except that they
were among the first martyrs to be venerated as saints. It is said
that they are buried in a cemetery on the Ardeantine Way (an ancient
road of Rome) where a basilica was built in their honor. In the
fourth century Pope Damasus wrote an epitaph for their tombstone
which noted that they were soldiers in the Roman army and persecuted
Christians until they were converted to Christianity.
Other sources say that they resigned from the army and left Rome.
Eventually Nereus and Achilleus were captured and put to death for
their beliefs.
Let us pray for the many unknown Christians today who still suffer
persecution for their faith.
Sources:
IN HIS LIKENESS by Rev. Charles E. Yost, SCJ, STL and SAINTS AND
FEAST DAYS, Christ Our Life Series )
THOUGHTS FROM THE CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
Ascension
 #
662 “And I, when
I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.” The
lifting up of Jesus on the cross signifies and announces his lifting up
by his Ascension into heaven, and indeed begins it. Jesus Christ, the
one priest of the new and eternal Covenant, “entered, not into a
sanctuary made by human hands…but into heaven itself, now to appear in
the presence of God on our behalf.” There Christ permanently exercises
his priesthood, for he “always lives to make intercession” for “those
who draw near to God through him.” As “High priest of the good things to
come” he is the center and the principal actor in the liturgy that
honors the Father in heaven.
Mary, Mother of
Evangelization
There is a
Marian “style” to the Church’s work of evangelization. Whenever we look
to Mary, we come to believe once again in the revolutionary nature of
love and tenderness. In her we see that humility and tenderness are not
virtues of the weak but of the strong who need not treat others poorly
in order to feel important themselves. Contemplating Mary, we realize
that she who praised God for “bringing down the mighty from their
thrones” and “sending the rich away empty”
(Lk 1:52-53),
is also the one who brings a homely warmth to our pursuit of justice.
She is also the one who carefully keeps “all these things, pondering
them in her heart”
(Lk 2:19).
Mary is able
to recognize the traces of God’s Spirit in events great and small. She
constantly contemplates the mystery of God in our world, in human
history and in our daily lives. She is the woman of prayer and work in
Nazareth, and she is also Our Lady of Help, who sets out from her town
“with haste” (Lk
1:39)
to be of service to others. This interplay of justice and tenderness, of
contemplation and concern for others, is what makes the ecclesial
community look to Mary as a model of evangelization.
We implore
her maternal intercession that the Church may become a home for many
peoples, a mother for all peoples, and that the way may be opened to the
birth of a new world. It is the Risen Christ who tells us, with a power
that fills us with confidence and unshakable hope: “Behold, I make all
things new”
(Rev 21:5).
With Mary we advance confidently toward the fulfillment of this promise.
by Pope Francis “Evangelii Gaudium”, Chapter Five,
Part II, #288. |
Lietuvi
REFLECTION