Saint Bruno - letter to Cartusians

COMMENT: Night Office.

Moving by the letter to his Carthusian sons by Saint Bruno

San Bruno (Bruno) Priest and monk

October 6 - Optional Memory

iBreviary

Tuesday, 6 October 2015

Tuesday of the Twenty-Seventh Week in Ordinary Time

Tipo: Feriale - Tempo: Ordinario

Office of Readings

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For the Memorial of Saint Bruno:

SECOND READING

From a letter to his Carthusian sons by Saint Bruno, priest
(Nn. 1-3: SC 88, 82-84)

My spirit rejoices in the Lord

From the frequent and pleasant reports of our most blessed brother, I know of your reasoned and truly praiseworthy discipline, carried out with unwavering rigor. Since I have heard of your holy love and constant pursuit of honesty and virtue, my spirit rejoices in the Lord. I rejoice and am drawn to praise and give thanks to God, and still I long to love him. I rejoice, as I should, in the growing fruits of your strength, and yet I grieve and grow ashamed that I lie idle and senseless in the mire of my sins.

Therefore rejoice my dearest brothers, because you are so blessed and because of the bountiful hand of God’s grace upon you. Rejoice, because you have escaped the various dangers and shipwrecks of the stormy world. Rejoice, because you have reached the quiet and safe anchorage of a secret harbor. Many wish to come into this port, and many make great efforts to do so, yet do not achieve it. Indeed many, after reaching it, have been thrust out, since it was not granted them from above.

Therefore, my brothers, you should consider it certain and well-established that whoever partakes of this desirable good, should he in any way lose it, will grieve to his death, if he has any regard or concern for the salvation of his soul.

My dearest lay brothers, of you I say: My soul magnifies the Lord. For I have learned of the generosity of his mercy toward you from the report of your prior and dearest father; he rejoices and takes great pride in you. And let us rejoice that since you are unacquainted with the knowledge of letters, almighty God will inscribe in your hearts with his finger not only his love but also the knowledge of his holy law. By your work you show what you love and what you know. When you observe true obedience with prudence and enthusiasm, it is clear that you wisely pick the most delightful and nourishing fruit of divine Scripture.
RESPONSORY
Psalm 55:7-8; 1 John 2:17

Had I but wings like a dove
to fly away and find my rest,
– I would flee far away
and encamp in the wilderness.

The world and all its allurements will pass away,
but whoever does God’s will shall live for ever.
– I would flee far away
and encamp in the wilderness.

CONCLUDING PRAYER

Let us pray.

Father,
you called Saint Bruno to serve you in solitude.
In answer to his prayers
help us to remain faithful to you
amid the changes of this world.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
– Amen.

San Bruno (Bruno) Priest and monaco October 6 - Optional Memory

Cologne (Germany), around 1030 - Serra San Bruno (Vibo Valentia), October 6, 1101 Born in Germany in 1030 and then lived between his country, France and Italy, where he died in 1101, Bruno and Bruno, a professor of theology and philosophy, soon chooses the way of life of a hermit. Find so six companions who think like him and Bishop Hugh of Grenoble helps them settle in a place called wild "chartusia" (chartreuse in French). There they build an environment for common prayer, and seven barracks where everyone lives praying and working: a life of a hermit, with community events. When Bruno taught in Reims, one of his students was the Benedictine Odo of Chatillon. In 1090 if it finds as Pope Urban II, who chose him as an adviser. Get him recognition and autonomy for the monastery founded at Grenoble, then known as the Grande Chartreuse. In Calabria in Forest Tower (now in the province of Vibo Valentia) founded a new community. Later, at a short distance, it will build another monastery for the community life. It is the place next to which will arise then the first houses of the Serra San Bruno.(Avvenire) Etymology: Bruno = alludes to the color of complexion Martyrology: San Bruno, a priest, who, born in Cologne in Lotharingia, in the territory of today's Germany, after having taught theology in France, eager to lead a solitary life, founded with a few disciples in the deserted valley Chartroux an Order in where the solitude of a hermit you could combine with a minimal form of community life. Called to Rome by Pope Blessed Urban II, to help him in the needs of the Church, however, he was able to spend the last years of his life in a hermitage near the monastery of La Torre in Calabria.

Pachomius, Abbot, May 15.Prayer Rule of St Pachomius

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   15:31

   The Jesus Prayer as practiced within the Prayer Rule of St Pachomius

   by jpage99999

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   This was given to St. Pachomius of Egypt by an Angel, and was the rule he used at each hour of the day and night. St. Seraphim of ...

        

Published on 1 Dec 2013

This was given to St. Pachomius of Egypt by an Angel, and was the rule he used at each hour of the day and night. St. Seraphim of Sarov faithfully followed this prayer rule. It is a prayer rule that especially lends itself to memorization, and as such is one that can be done in situations in which it is impractical for one to pray using a prayer book. The Jesus prayer is recited without interruptions or pauses so as not to allow any logismoi to enter the mind and heart. It is said 100 times using the Orthodox prayer rope (chotki). If you desire to practice this prayer rule make sure to get a blessing from your spiritual father or parish priest so that they may guide you along the Way.

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Thursday, 15 May 2014

St. Pachomius the Great. 'Around Him, the Monks Swarm'

   

Mass and Night Office
 Every May 11th a Monastic Office of Vigils on St. Pachomius we are indebted courtesy of Websites.

St. Pachomius - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online

www.catholic.org400 × 432Search by image

Saints Fun Facts for St. Pachomius

'Around Him, the Monks Swarm'—St Pachomius the Great

15 May 2012

"St Pachomius the Great was both a model of desert dwelling, and with Sts Anthony the Great (January 17), Macarius the Great (January 19), and Euthymius the Great (January 20), a founder of the cenobitic monastic life in ...

http://nunraw.blogspot.com/

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http://full-of-grace-and-truth.blogspot.co.uk/2009/05/st-pachomius-great.html 

FRIDAY, MAY 15, 2009

St. Pachomius the Great

Christ is risen! Truly He is risen!

Agios Paxomios

Icon of St. Pachomius (Icon courtesy of www.eikonografos.comused with permission)

St. Pachomius the Great - Commemorated on May 15 (text taken from: http://ocafs.oca.org/FeastSaintsViewer.asp?SID=4&ID=1&FSID=101384)

"St Pachomius the Great was both a model of desert dwelling, and with Sts Anthony the Great (January 17), Macarius the Great (January 19), and Euthymius the Great (January 20), a founder of the cenobitic monastic life in Egypt.

St Pachomius was born in the third century in the Thebaid (Upper Egypt). His parents were pagans who gave him an excellent secular education. From his youth he had a good character, and he was prudent and sensible.

When Pachomius reached the age of twenty, he was called up to serve in the army of the emperor Constantine (apparently, in the year 315). They put the new conscripts in a city prison guarded by soldiers. The local Christians fed the soldiers and took care of them.

When the young man learned that these people acted this way because of their love for God, fulfilling His commandment to love their neighbor, this made a deep impression upon his pure soul. Pachomius vowed to become a Christian. Pachomius returned from the army after the victory, received holy Baptism, moved to the lonely settlement of Shenesit, and began to lead a strict ascetic life. Realizing the need for spiritual guidance, he turned to the desert-dweller Palamon. He was accepted by the Elder, and he began to follow the example of his instructor in monastic struggles.

Once, after ten years of asceticism, St Pachomius made his way through the desert, and halted at the ruins of the former village of Tabennisi. Here he heard a Voice ordering him to start a monastery at this place. Pachomius told the Elder Palamon of this, and they both regarded the words as a command from God.

They went to Tabennisi and built a small monastic cell. The holy Elder Palamon blessed the foundations of the monastery and predicted its future glory. But soon Palamon departed to the Lord. An angel of God then appeared to St Pachomius in the form of a schemamonk and gave him a Rule of monastic life. Soon his older brother John came and settled there with him.

St Pachomius endured many temptations and assaults from the Enemy of the race of man, but he resisted all temptations by his prayer and endurance.

Gradually, followers began to gather around St Pachomius. Their teacher impressed everyone by his love for work, which enabled him to accomplish all kinds of monastic tasks. He cultivated a garden, he conversed with those seeking guidance, and he tended to the sick.

St Pachomius introduced a monastic Rule of cenobitic life, giving everyone the same food and attire. The monks of the monastery fulfilled the obediences assigned them for the common good of the monastery. Among the various obediences was copying books. The monks were not allowed to possess their own money nor to accept anything from their relatives. St Pachomius considered that an obedience fulfilled with zeal was greater than fasting or prayer. He also demanded from the monks an exact observance of the monastic Rule, and he chastized slackers.

Add caption

The Angel of God revealing the monastic dress to St. Pachomius(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZEUmoKu2DsYqHU1hKZ8W1txMGTVVO_-vntPLBKWt9fNl5ohHmogwsXOR8bZ3jF0Ewwi1sUa9vcTShOAHqnW2vfuJi3liEoX6N-btKilUe0dbddx6EpymI0thQRKZfnvWqhz_j8Q4DHP1M/s1600/Monaxos-Aggelos-strof-nef.png)

   

His sister Maria came to see St Pachomius, but the strict ascetic refused to see her. Through the gate keeper, he blessed her to enter upon the path of monastic life, promising his help with this. Maria wept, but did as her brother had ordered. The Tabennisi monks built her a hut on the opposite side of the River Nile. Nuns also began to gather around Maria. Soon a women's monastery was formed with a strict monastic Rule provided by St Pachomius. The number of monks at the monastery grew quickly, and it became necessary to build seven more monasteries in the vicinity.

The number of monks reached 7,000, all under the guidance of St Pachomius, who visited all the monasteries and administered them. At the same time St Pachomius remained a deeply humble monk, who was always ready to comply with and accept the words of each brother.

Severe and strict towards himself, St Pachomius had great kindness and condescension toward the deficiencies of spiritually immature monks. One of the monks was eager for martyrdom, but St Pachomius turned him from this desire and instructed him to fulfill his monastic obedience, taming his pride, and training him in humility.

Once, a monk did not heed his advice and left the monastery. He was set upon by brigands, who threatened him with death and forced him to offer sacrifice to the pagan gods. Filled with despair, the monk returned to the monastery. St Pachomius ordered him to pray intensely night and day, keep a strict fast and live in complete solitude. The monk followed his advice, and this saved his soul from despair.

The saint taught his spiritual children to avoid judging others, and he himself feared to judge anyone even in thought.

St Pachomius cared for the sick monks with special love. He visited them, he cheered the disheartened, he urged them to be thankful to God, and put their hope in His holy will. He relaxed the fasting rule for the sick, if this would help them recover their health. Once, in the saint's absence, the cook did not prepare any cooked food for the monks, assuming that the brethren loved to fast. Instead of fulfilling his obedience, the cook plaited 500 mats, something which St Pachomius had not told him to do. In punishment for his disobedience, all the mats prepared by the cook were burned.

St Pachomius always taught the monks to rely only upon God's help and mercy. It happened that there was a shortage of grain at the monastery. The saint spent the whole night in prayer, and in the morning a large quantity of bread was sent to the monastery from the city, at no charge. The Lord granted St Pachomius the gift of wonderworking and healing the sick.

The Lord revealed to him the future of monasticism. The saint learned that future monks would not have such zeal in their struggles as the first generation had, and they would not have experienced guides. Prostrating himself upon the ground, St Pachomius wept bitterly, calling out to the Lord and imploring mercy for them. He heard a Voice answer, "Pachomius, be mindful of the mercy of God. The monks of the future shall receive a reward, since they too shall have occasion to suffer the life burdensome for the monk."

Toward the end of his life St Pachomius fell ill from a pestilence that afflicted the region. His closest disciple, St Theodore (May 17), tended to him with filial love. St Pachomius died around the year 348 at the age of fifty-three, and was buried on a hill near the monastery." (taken from:http://ocafs.oca.org/FeastSaintsViewer.asp?SID=4&ID=1&FSID=101384)

See the following link for the prayer rule that St. Pachomius received from the Angel, and which forms the backbone of almost every service of the Orthodox church: http://www.saintjonah.org/services/stpachomius.htm. May St. Pachomius intercede for all of us and help us!

Icon of St. Pachomius the Great receiving the tradition of the monastic habit and coenobitic rule from an Angel (Icon courtesy of http://www.eikonografos.com/ used with permission)

   

Apolytikion in the Plagal of the First Tone
Thou didst prove a chief pastor of the Chief Shepherd, Christ, guiding the flocks of monastics unto the heavenly fold, whence thou learntest of the habit and the way of life that doth befit ascetic ranks; having taught this to thy monks, thou now dancest and rejoicest with them in heavenly dwellings, O great Pachomius, our Father and guide.

Kontakion in the Second Tone
Since thou hadst shown forth the life of the Angels while in a body, O God-bearing Pachomius, thou wast also counted worthy of their glory; and with them thou standest before the Lord's throne, interceding that divine forgiveness be granted unto all.

(taken from: http://goarch.org/chapel/saints_view?contentid=55&type=saints&date=5/15/2009&D=F)
   

Christ is risen from the dead, by death, trampling down upon death, and to those in the tombs, bestowing life!
Truly the Lord is risen!

SAINT RAPHAEL 243 Around the Tabernacle all the activity of the Cistercian monastery turns.

COMMENT:  

      

Fr. Raymond, among the Abbots, was at Rome for the canonisation of Saint Raphael. He remembers the feast at the large outside celebration and shared with by the group from Spain. In the company the friends rejoiced for their own new saint. 

At the community Maas, Fr. Raymond asked if us monks might be included in the Saints.

I love to add a couple of pages from St. Rafael.  especially, the focus on, "Tabernacles; In La 'Trapa, the thing which is accounted of least regard is La Trapa and the Trappists. The first, the only thing, is a Tabernacle in which is concealed the greatness and the immensity of God."   

243 Around the Tabernacle all the activity of the Cistercian monastery turns. 

 

78      TO KNOW HOW TO WAIT THE EUCHARISTIC LIFE     79

... I suffer I cease to do so in realizing that He wants it is thus.

234 Ah, Lord Jesus, how I love You! Were I to have a thousand lives, a thousand I would give You. With Your divine grace and the help of Mary I can do it all.   May You be blest. .

235 True humiliation is our inability to receive God elsewhere; it has to be here, within our wretchedness, in our soul which is subject to matter, to this matter which drags us clown when the eyelids heavy with sleep wan t to close.

236 Jesus is in the Tabernacle, there He receives His friends, consoles, heals and forgives them. How great is the intimacy of .Jesus with those who sorrow!

237 Everywhere on earth there is strife, but there is this difference among the combatants; the triumphs of those who while fighting are united with the Tabernacle, will only be seen in Heaven.

238 In La 'Trapa, the thing which is accounted of least regard is La Trapa and the Trappists. The first, the only thing, is a Tabernacle in which is concealed the greatness and the immensity of God.

239 Let us hide ourselves with Jesus in the Mystery of the Sacrament; may we live with our hearts united with the Tabernacle ..

240 May your life be a continued act of love for Jesus.

   

 

241 There arc a multitude of Tabernacles all round the world, bur only one God; who is Jesus in the most holy Sacrament, Jesus the true comforter, who unites the monk in his choir, the missionary in pagan lands, the layman in his parish, regardless of distance, age. At the foot of the Tabernacle we are all united by God, let us ask Him through the mediation of Mary that one day, there in Heaven, we may gaze upon that God who for love of man, conceals Himself under the species of bread and wine.

I would like to make reparation for the forsaken Tabernacle.

242 If this God who veils Himself in a little piece of bread weren't so forsaken, men would be happier, but they don't want that.

243 Around the Tabernacle all the activity of the Cistercian monastery turns.

244 The sorrows and the tears which overwhelm me for Him, have turned into peace and calm, for I have the Lord; let me live united with His Tabernacle, pick...

Sunday, 26 April 2015 St. Raphael Arnáiz Barón, monk (1911-1938)
Other saints of the day
SAINT RAPHAEL ARNÁIZ BARÓN Monk (1911-1938)         Raphael Arnáiz Barón was born in Burgos (Spain) April 9, 1911, into a prominent, deeply Christian family. He was baptised and confirmed in Burgos and began his schooling at the Jesuit college in the same city where, in 1919, he was admitted to first Communion.         It was at this time that he had his first experience of illness: persistent fevers due to colibacillosis forced him to interrupt his studies. To mark his recovery, which he attributed to a special intervention of the Virgin Mary, his father took him to Zaragoza and consecrated him to the Virgin of Pilar. This experience, which took place in the late summer of 1921, profoundly marked Raphael.         When the family moved to Oviedo, he continued his secondary schooling with the Jesuits there, obtaining a diploma in science. He then enrolled in the School of Architecture in Madrid, where he succeeded in balancing his studies with a life of fervent piety.         Possessing a brilliant and eclectic mind, Raphael also stood out because of his deep sense of friendship and his fine features. Blessed with a happy and jovial nature he was also athletic, had a gift for drawing and painting as well a love for music and the theatre. But as he matured, his spiritual experience of the Christian life deepened.         Although the study of architecture required a great deal of hard work and discipline, at that time he began the practice of making a long daily visit to the Blessed Sacrament in the Chapel of "Caballero de Gracia". He even joined the Nocturnal Adoration Association, and faithfully took his turn before the Blessed Sacrament.         In this way his heart became well disposed to listening, and he perceived an invitation from God to lead the contemplative life.         Raphael had already been in contact with the Trappist monastery of San Isidro de Dueñas, and he felt strongly drawn to this place, responding to his deepest desires. In December of 1933 he suddenly broke off his professional studies and on January 16, 1934 entered the monastery of San Isidro.         After the first months of the noviciate and his first Lent, which he lived with great enthusiasm, embracing all the austerities of Trappist life, God mysteriously chose to test him with a sudden and painful infirmity: a serious form of diabetes mellitus which forced him to leave the monastery immediately and return to his family in order to receive the proper care.         Barely recovered, he returned to the monastery, but his illness forced him to leave the monastery for treatment again and again. But whenever he was absent he wanted to return, responding faithfully and generously to what he understood to be a call from God.         Sanctified by his joyful and heroic fidelity to his vocation, in his loving acceptance of the Divine will and the mystery of the Cross, in his impassioned search for the Face of God, fascinated by his contemplation of the Absolute, in his tender and filial devotion to the Virgin Mary-"the Lady", as he liked to call her-his life came to an end on April 26, 1938. He was barely 27 years old. He was buried in the monastery cemetery, and later in the Abbey church.         The fame of his sanctity rapidly spread beyond the walls of the monastery. The example of his life together with his many spiritual writings continue to spread and greatly profit those who get to know him. He has been described as one of the great mystics of the twentieth century.         On August 19, 1989, the Holy Father John Paul II, on World Youth Day at Santiago de Compostella, proposed him as a model for young people today, and beatified him on September 27, 1992.         Pope Benedict XVI canonized him on October 11, 2009 and presented him as a friend and intercessor for all the faithful, especially for the young. - Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana

May the Martyr Saint Boniface be our advocate 5th June 2014

Monk Saint Mass

Memorial of St. Boniface, bishop and martyr

Daily Readings for:June 05, 2014
(Readings on USCCB website)

Collect: May the Martyr Saint Boniface be our advocate, O Lord, that we may firmly hold the faith he taught with his lips and sealed in his blood and confidently profess it by our deeds. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

PRAYERS

• June Devotion: The Sacred Heart
• Litany of Saint Boniface

LIBRARY

• Ecclesiae Fastos (On St. Boniface) | Pope Pius XII
• In Hac Tanta (On St. Boniface) | Pope Benedict XV
• Saint Boniface, the Apostle of the Germans | Pope Benedict XVI

St. Boniface, a monk of Exeter in England, is one of the great figures of the Benedictine Order and of the monastic apostolate in the Middle Ages. Gregory II sent him to preach the Gospel in Germany. He evangelized Hesse, Saxony and Thuringia and became Archbishop of Mainz. He well earned the title of Apostle of Germany, and Catholic Germany in our own times still venerates him as its father in the faith. He was put to death by the Frisians at Dokkum in 754 during the last of his missionary journeys. The famous abbey of Fulda, where his body lies, has remained the national shrine of Catholic Germany.

Third Sunday of Easter. Emmaus Journey. Homily: Fr. Raymond

Comment: Cleophas and Unnamed disciple at Emmaus. Next-door at Latroun Abbey is the Chapel of the names of both of the disciples at Emmaus.

Chronicle and Blog

http://nunraw.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/emmaus-easter-monday.html

 Incidentally, St. Cleophas’s companion is not left anonymous in the Liturgy of the Holy Land, - The name of St. Simeon appears on the stage at this point in the prayers. When it is said to be apocryphal I begin to see that the word is not entirely negative. Taken in the technical sense of an Apocryphal source it can be understood among other respected traditions.  

Wednesday, 11 April 2012

Latroun Abbey, St Cleophas Chapel  

Emmaus Easter Monday

Homily: Fr. Raymond. 

Easter 2014 – Emmaus Journey    

“There should be something of an “Emmaus Journey” about our life for every Christian.  We’re all on a journey; a great journey; a journey that’s going to end, hopefully, in our arrival at our heavenly home.  We are all heading for our own particular Jerusalem.  But even this journey of the whole of our own lives is also a journey that’s really quite short.  In that sense it’s just like that original Emmaus journey.  The Gospel tells that that was a short one too. 

As we get older and further along that journey there’s quite a significance for us in its shortness.   But we must realise that there’s always that invisible Companion we have with us too: that very same Risen Lord.  “Behold, I am with you always even to the end of time” Jesus said, and that was no idle remark.  It was a solemn promise.  In fact, growth in the Christian life could be defined as a growth in the awareness of that daily, hidden companionship we have with our Risen Lord.

In practical terms, how can we set about growing in this awareness?  What can we do to foster it?  What can we do to nourish it?  What can we do to build it into our daily lives?   Or to put it into the terms of the Gospel scene – How can we get into step with this hidden companion of ours?  How can we strike up a conversation with him?  The first thing to notice is that the disciples didn’t approach the Lord, they weren’t looking for him.  It was he who approached them.  Yet, in a sense, they did approach him, because their minds were full of him; their hearts were, aching for him, looking everywhere for him.  And that’s precisely how we approach him too – by our thinking about him; by our desiring of him. Then we can be sure that he in his turn will most certainly approach us too. Then he will accompany us too all along our own particular ways.

We approach the Lord every time we read or hear the Gospels.   We approach the Lord every time we join in charitable and kind conversation with his brothers and sisters.  We approach the Lord every time we share in his sufferings.  We approach the Lord every time we rejoice in his triumphs.  We approach the Lord every time we look forward in hope to his promises.  But especially, we approach the Lord every time we turn to him in prayer.