August 26 Feria; SAINT ZEPHYRINUS, Pope and Martyr; SAINT JOHN WALL; BLESSED THOMAS PERCY, Martyrs; OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA

 

 

SAINT ZEPHYRINUS
Pope and Martyr

OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA
[Historical]

SAINT JOHN WALL

Martyr

BLESSED THOMAS PERCY

Martyr

IV Class
INTROIT Ps. 69:2-3

O God, come to my assistance; O Lord, make haste to help me. Let my enemies who seek my life be put to shame and confounded.
Ps. 69:4. Let those who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace.
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
Almighty and merciful God, it is
through Your grace that the faithful are able to serve You fittingly and
laudably. Grant that we may hurry, without faltering, toward the
rewards You have promised to us. Through our Lord . . .

 

Commemoration of SAINT ZEPHYRINUS
A native of Rome, Zephyrinus was Pope from 199 to 217. During part of his rule, the Church endured the bloody persecution of Emperor Septimus Severus. Pope Zephyrinus rejoiced in the triumphs of the martyrs, but he had much to suffer from current heresies and apostasies. It was his glory that the heretics called this holy Pope the principle defender of Christ's divinity.

O Eternal Shepherd, who appointed blessed Zephyrinus shepherd of the whole Church, let the prayers of this martyr and supreme pontiff move You to look with favor upon Your flock and to keep it under Your continual protection.

 

 Commemoration of SAINT JOHN WALL, BLESSED THOMAS PERCY

O Lord, we beseech Thee, pour down upon us the spirit of constancy and fortitude wherewith Thou strengthened Thy blessed Martyrs John and Thomas in the defence of the Catholic Faith, so that, filled therewith, we, who rejoice on earth for their triumphant martyrdom, may deserve to be partakers of their glory in heaven. Through our Lord .  . .

EPISTLE II Cor. 3:4-9
Brethren: And such confidence we have, through Christ, towards God. Not that we are sufficient to think any thing of ourselves, as of ourselves: but our sufficiency is from God. Who also hath made us fit ministers of the new testament, not in the letter but in the spirit. For the letter killeth: but the spirit quickeneth. Now if the ministration of death,
engraven with letters upon stones, was glorious (so that the children of
Israel could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses, for the glory of
his countenance), which is made void: How shall not the ministration of
the spirit be rather in glory? For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more the ministration of justice aboundeth in glory.

GRADUAL Ps. 33:2-3
I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall ever be in my mouth.
V. My soul shall glory in the Lord; the humble will hear and be made glad.
Alleluia, alleluia! V. Ps. 87:2
O Lord, God of my salvation, I have cried out by day and by night in Your presence. Alleluia!

GOSPEL Luke 10:23-37
At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: "Blessed are the eyes that see the things which you see. For I say to you that many prophets and kings have desired to see the things that you see and have not seen them; and to hear the things that you hear and have not heard them." 
And behold a certain lawyer stood up, tempting him and saying, "Master, what must I do to possess eternal life?" But he said to him: "What is written in the law? How readest thou?" He answering, said: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart
and with thy whole soul and with all thy strength and with all thy
mind: and thy neighbour as thyself." And he said to him: "Thou hast answered right. This do: and thou shalt live." But he willing to justify himself, said to Jesus: "And who is my neighbour?"
And Jesus answering, said: "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among robbers, who also stripped him and having wounded him went away, leaving him half dead. And it chanced, that a certain priest went down the same way: and seeing him, passed by. In like manner also a Levite, when he was near the place and saw him, passed by. But a certain Samaritan, being on his journey, came near him: and seeing him, was moved with compassion:
And going up to him, bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine: and
setting him upon his own beast, brought him to an inn and took care of
him. And the next day he took out two pence and gave to the host and
said: 'Take care of him; and whatsoever thou shalt spend over and above, I, at my return, will repay thee.' "Which of these three, in thy opinion, was neighbour to him that fell among the robbers?" But he said: "He that shewed mercy to him." And Jesus said to him: "Go, and do thou in like manner."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ex. 32:11, 13, 14
Moses prayed before the Lord his God,
saying, "Why, O Lord, should Your wrath blaze up against Your own
people? Let Your anger die down. Remember Abraham, Issac, and Jacob, how You swore to give them a land flowing with milk and honey." And the Lord relented in the punishments He had threatened to inflict of His people.

SECRET 
O Lord, look with mercy upon the
offerings we have placed upon Your altar. May they win pardon for our
sins and give glory to Your name. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT ZEPHYRINUS
We have offered our gifts to You, O Lord. Let Your light graciously shine upon Your Church, so that this flock may everywhere prosper, and its pastors under Your guidance, may be truly pleasing to You.

 

Commemoration of SAINT JOHN WALL, BLESSED THOMAS PERCY

Stand by us, O Lord, while we commemorate Thy saints and humbly pray, that by their merits these Thy friends may assist us who dare not rely on our own. Through our Lord . . .

 
COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 103:13, 14-15
The earth is filled with the fruit of
Your works, O Lord, that You may bring forth food from the earth and
wine to cheer the heart of man, oil to make his face gleam, and bread to
sustain his strength.

POSTCOMMUNION 
May the reception of this Sacrament
bring us life, O Lord, and win for us Your pardon and Your protection.
Through our Lord . . .

 Commemoration of SAINT ZEPHYRINUS
O Lord, govern the Church, which You have been pleased to nourish with Your Heavenly Food. Guide her by Your powerful direction so that she may enjoy greater freedom and remain unshaken in the fullness of faith.

 

Commemoration of SAINT JOHN WALL, BLESSED THOMAS PERCY

Well satisfied with these saving mysteries, O  Lord, we beseech Thee that those whose feast we celebrate may aid us by their prayers. Though our Lord . . .

English: The Black Madonna of Czestochowa Polski: Ikona Matki Boskiej z Jasnej Góry w Częstochowie zwana Czarną Madonną (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Feast Day: August 26 - Our Lady of Czestochowa

History:

The origin of this miraculous image in Czestochowa, according to tradition, the painting was a portrait of Our Lady done by St. John sometime after the Crucifixion of Our Lord and remained in the Holy Land until discovered by St. Helena of the Cross in the fourth century. The painting was taken to Constantinople, where St. Helena's son, the Emperor Constantine, erected a church for its enthronement.  During the siege by the Saracens, the invaders became frightened when the people carried the picture in a procession around the city; the infidels fled. Later, the image was threatened with burning by an evil emperor, who had a wife, Irene, who saved it and hid it from harm. The image was in that city for 500 years, until it became part of some dowries, eventually being taken to Russia to a region that later became Poland.

After the portrait became the possession of the Polish prince, St. Ladislaus in the 15th century, it was installed in his castle. Tartar invaders besieged the castle and an enemy arrow pierced Our Lady's image, inflicting a scar. Interestingly, repeated attempts to fix the image, artistically have all failed.

Tradition says that St. Ladislaus determined to save the image from repeated invasions, so he went to his birthplace, Opala, stopping for rest in Częstochowa; the image was brought nearby to Jasna Góra (bright hill")and placed in a small wooden church named for the Assumption. The following morning, after the picture was carefully placed in the wagon, the horses refused to move. St. Ladislaus understood this to be a sign from Heaven that the image should stay in Częstochowa; thus he replaced the painting in the Church of the Assumption, August 26, 1382, a day still observed as the Feast Day. The Saint wished to have the holiest of men guard the painting, so he assigned the church and the monastery to the Pauline Fathers, who have devoutly protected the image for the last six hundred years.

Having survived two attacks upon it, Our Lady's image was next in peril by the Hussites. The Hussites successfully stormed the Pauline monastery in 1430, plundering the sanctuary. Among the items stolen was the image. After putting it in their wagon, the Hussites went a little ways but then the horses refused to go any further. Recalling the former incident that was so similar, the heretics threw the portrait down to the ground, which shattered the image into three pieces. One of the plunderers drew his sword and slashed the image twice, causing two deep gashes; while attempting a third gash, he was overcome with a writhing agony and died.

The two slashes on the cheek of the Blessed Virgin, together with the one on the throat, have always reappeared after artistic attempts to fix them. The portrait again faced danger in 1655 by a Swedish horde of 12,000, which confronted the 300 men guarding the image. The band of 300 routed the 12,000 and the following year, the Holy Virgin was acclaimed Queen of Poland.

Prayer

(to be said each day upon rising)

HOLY MOTHER of Czestochowa, Thou art full of grace,
goodness and mercy. I consecrate to Thee all my thoughts,
words and actions----my soul and body. I beseech Thy
blessings and especially prayers for my salvation.
Today, I consecrate myself to Thee, Good Mother, totally
 ----with body and soul amid joy and sufferings to obtain
for myself and others Thy blessings on this earth and
eternal life in Heaven. Amen.

Imprimatur: Cardinal O' Boyle, Washington, DC