Thursday, January 22nd, 2009
Daily Archive
Blessed Anthony della Chiesa (1394-1459)
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 22 Jan 2009 | Tagged as: Dominican Saints, Liturgical Feasts
From the Dominican Ordo:
A member of the noble della Chiesa family, Blessed Anthony was born at San Germano, Italy, in 1394 and received the Dominican habit at Vercelli in 1417. He served as prior in several convents of the Order and labored to restore the regular life. He was known for his gentle, yet firm treatment of human frailty. He died on January 22, 1459.
Click here for more on the holy and fruitful life of Blessed Anthony.
God of mercy and compassion,
you gave Blessed Anthony the gift of divine love.
By the help of his prayers
may our hearts burn with that same charity
and may our lives like his
be witnesses to the faith
and to the ministry of service.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Pope Benedict on Christian Unity
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 22 Jan 2009 | Tagged as: Miscellaneous
Halfway 
through the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Pope Benedict XVI used his weekly general audience address yesterday to remind of us that ecclesial union rooted in the words and sacraments of Christ remains a goal for which all Christian hearts must yearn. The Gospel itself commands this desire. As Christ revealed at the Last Supper, it is his will that our unity may the the great witness to the world of the truth and efficacy of his redemptive work: “May they all be one . . . so that the world may believe that you sent me” (Jn 17:21).
GENERAL AUDIENCE ADDRESS
January 21, 2009
Dear brothers and sisters:
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity began last Sunday and will conclude this Sunday, feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, the Apostle. This is a beautiful spiritual initiative, which is spreading more and more among Christians, in harmony, and we could say, in response to the pressing invocation that Jesus directed to the Father from the Upper Room: “That they may all be one, that the world may believe that you sent me” (John 17:21).
On four occasions during this priestly prayer, the Lord asks that his disciples be one, according to the image of the unity between the Father and the Son. This is a unity that can only grow in the example of the surrender of the Son to the Father, that is, going out of oneself and uniting oneself to Christ. Twice, moreover, in this prayer, Jesus adds as the objective of this union: That the world may believe. Full unity is connected, therefore with the life and the very mission of the Church in the world. [The Church] should live a unity that can only be derived from her unity with Christ, with its transcendence, as a sign that Christ is the truth.
This is our responsibility: That the gift of unity be visible for the world, in virtue of which our faith is made credible. For this, it is important that each Christian community become aware of the urgency of working in every way possible to reach this grand objective. Only going out of ourselves and toward Christ, only in this relationship with him can we come to be truly united among ourselves. This is the invitation that, with the present week [of prayer], is directed to believers in Christ of every Church and ecclesial community; to him, dear brothers and sisters, we should respond with generosity.