November 10 2023 - Pope Leo the Great and the Barbarians

 Today we honor the first Bishop of Rome to have been called Leo, a name used subsequently by 12 later Popes, the latest being Leo XIII at the turn of the 20th century.

Leo was a native of Tuscany. Around the year 430, he was ordained a deacon of the Church of Rome. 10 years later, he was sent by Pope Sixtus III on a diplomatic mission to Gaul to resolve a difficult conflict. While Leo was carrying out this mission of Peace, Pope Sixtus died. Leo was elected Pope to succeed him, and his Pontificate lasted for 21 years, which is quite long for a papacy, the ninth longest, in fact.

Constant barbarian invasions and the gradual disintegration of the Roman Empire, certainly made the papacy of Pope Leo the First a challenging one. And yet, his papacy was so effective, and his holiness so evident, that he is the first Pope to be given the title, “The Great”. Leo Magnus, Leo the Great.

In 452, the Pope received reports that Attila the Hun was invading northeastern Italy with his horde of barbarians. So, the 52 year old Pope rode on horseback to meet the barbarian leader and pleaded with Attila to call off his invasion. The leader of the Huns, impressed by the Pope, left Italy.  Unfortunately, a few years later, another barbarian horde, the Vandals, attacked and sacked Rome. Again, the Pope, defenseless went forth to meet the invader to implore him to desist. The Vandal leader promised to spare the great Basilicas of St Peter, St Paul and St John Lateran, in which the terrified population of Rome sought refuge and were spared.  

We live in barbarous times, again no? The barbarians may not be riding in on horses and laying waste to our beautiful structures and ransacking our treasures. Rather, modern culture—through mass media and even the so-called education system, breeds attitudes which are antithetical to culture and civilization itself. (As a priest friend of mine recently said) and the barbarians are not just at the gates, they are in the seats of power collecting their spoils of war from good honest people. They traffic human beings and murder babies. And they are proving to be quite resistant to the Gospel.

And yet, we ride out to meet them, not with swords of steel, but with the sword of the Spirit and the Word of God. For maybe, some of them will be converted. And after, they have laid waste to our land, the Church will remain, as our Lord promised in the Gospels, “the gates of hell shall not prevail”—the Church has endured barbarians before, and we’ll do it again. Our task is to keep the faith until the Lord returns, to keep the flame of faith alive during the difficult times, and to spread it as we are able, to stave off cultural decay as we can, to turn away the barbarians from their destructive ways as we are able through pleas of peace, to preserve the faith when peace is rejected, and keep our souls from sinful discouragement, to witness to the truth of the Gospel with our lives and work always for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For Pope Francis all Bishops and clergy: that they may always lead us in fidelity to the saving Gospel of Christ. 

In reparation for sins against the innocent unborn, for an overturning of laws which disregard human life and dignity, and for courage in bearing witness to the Gospel of Life.

For the strength to be faithful to all of the Lord’s commands and the grace and humility to repent of our failings.

For the impoverished and sick and those experiencing any sort of trial: that Jesus the Bread of Life will be their sustenance, and that Christians will be instruments of God’s mercy for all those in need.  

We pray in a special way during this Month of November for all of the faithful departed; for the deceased members of our family, friends, and parish, for deceased clergy and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, you know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

November 10 2020 - Pope St. Leo the Great - Confronting the New Barbarism

Pope Benedict XVI called Pope Leo the Great, whom we honor today, “truly one of the greatest Pontiffs to have honored the Roman See.” He was the first Bishop of Rome to have been called Leo, a name used subsequently by another 12 Supreme Pontiffs. He is also the first Pope to be given the title “great” and is known for his great administration of the Church during chaotic times and for his writing, which confronted and corrected the many heresies arising in his day.

Constant barbarian invasions and the gradual weakening of the Roman Empire’s authority made the time in which Pope Leo reigned quite difficult.

There is a famous encounter between Leo and the barbarian warlord Atilla the Hun. In 452, Attila and his Huns were vanquishing city after city. Attila had already devastated the northeastern regions of Italy and reports circulated that Attila was setting his sights on the rest of Italy.  The 52 year old Pope, rode on horseback to meet the barbarian leader and pleaded with Attila to spare Italy. The leader of the Huns was so impressed by the Pope, that he agreed to leave Italy. 

Unfortunately, a few years later, another barbarian horde, the Vandals, attacked and sacked Rome. Again, the Pope, defenseless went forth to meet the invader to implore him to desist. The Vandal leader promised to spare the great Basilicas of St Peter, St Paul and St John, whose dedication we celebrated yesterday, in which the terrified population of Rome sought refuge and were spared.  

Today, it seems, the barbarians are again at the gate, in fact they’ve entered it—disregard for law and order, right religion, and moral precepts threaten the very fundamentals of society.  You cannot have civilization without civility and civics, and therefore civilization is threatened by a new barbarism that seeks to tear down and plunder—through political and even physically violent means. 

What are Catholics to do? We do well to hold fast to that which is good. Hold fast to our right doctrines, persevere in prayer, engage in sacrificial service, and maybe we’ll even convert a barbarian or two by the constant and faithful witness we give to Christ. Pope Benedict writes, "Dear Friends, may no adversity paralyze you. Be afraid neither of the world, nor of the future, nor of your weakness. The Lord has allowed you to live in this moment of history so that, by your faith, his name will continue to resound throughout the world."

Pope Leo reminds us to fear no adversity, not even a hoard of barbarians and the crumbling of society, but to be people of sound doctrine, people of civility, and people who see even the human dignity of barbarians. Let us be good to one another, and work always for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

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For the purification of Holy Church, and for all Bishops and clergy, that they may always lead us in fidelity to the saving Gospel of Christ.

That the Christian faithful may continue to nurture and discover their spiritual gifts for the building up of the Church.

For those who have left the Church, for those who have grown lukewarm, for those in mortal sin, for their conversion and the conversion of all hearts.

For the healing of all those afflicted with physical, mental, emotional illness, for those in hospitals, nursing homes, hospice care, those struggling with addictions, for those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today.

For the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, and all the poor souls in purgatory, for deceased priests and religious, and for those who have fought and died for our freedom.

O God, you know that our life in this present age is subject to suffering and need, hear the prayers of those who cry to you and receive the prayers of those who believe in you. Through Christ our Lord.

July 13 2020 - St. Henry - Holy Roman Emperor and Husband

When most people hear the name King Henry, they probably think of King Henry VIII, who ruled in England in the 1500s and brought about a break with the Roman Catholic Church. 

The King Henry who we honor today wasn’t King of England at all. Rather, he was crowned King of Germany on July 9, 1002 and 12 years later was crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Benedict VIII. 

One of the great goals of Henry’s reign was to establish a stable peace in Europe.  He knew that the Gospel of Christ was indispensable for society, and he devoted himself to the spread of Christianity by rebuilding churches. He promoted monastic reform where needed, believing monasteries to be indispensable centers of prayer and focal points for the civilization of people.  He himself was a Benedictine Oblate.

Though wealthy, he had a great concern for the poor of his lands.  He saw material possessions as blessings from God meant to help others.  And it was his custom to undertake nothing without prayer and often saw angels and martyrs guiding him—protecting him and his army who guarded his lands from the encroaching barbarian hoards. 

When Saint Henry was not ruling over his empire and leading his army to stabilize Europe, he was cultivating a holy marriage with his wife.  He and his wife St. Cunegunda are among the dozen or so pairs of married canonized saints.

Here is a man who balanced his earthly responsibilities with this Christian vocation, and his vocation as husband. If a Holy Roman Emperor can do it, so can we.  St. Henry shows us that holiness is possible when we strive to give glory to God whether as a king or farmer, priest or monk or husband or wife.

He used the time he had and his social position to spread the kingdom of God; he put his time, talent, and treasure to build up and preserve what was good, to guard his realm against those powers which tear down what is holy.  May St. Henry’s prayers help us to do the same for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
 
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Through the intercession of Saint Henry, we pray for all rulers of nations and those in governance, may they use their temporal power to build up, promote, and protect what is good and holy.

That our young people on summer vacation may be kept safe from the poisonous errors of our culture, and that their families may be places where the faith is practiced and cherished.

For all the needs of the sick and the suffering, the homebound, those in nursing homes and hospitals, the underemployed and unemployed, victims of natural disaster, war, and terrorism, for all those who grieve the loss of a loved one, and those who will die today, for their comfort, and the consolation of their families.

For the repose of the souls of our beloved dead, for all of the poor souls in purgatory, for the deceased members of our families, friends, and parish, for the deceased priests and religious, and for N. for whom this mass is offered.

Grant, we pray, O Lord, that your people may turn to you with all their heart, so that whatever they dare to ask in fitting prayer they may receive by your mercy. Through Christ our Lord.

Homily: Nov 10 2016 - Pope St. Leo the Great - When the facing the gates of hell...

Pope Saint Leo the great is famous for several reasons: he was certainly one of the intellectually gifted Popes we’ve ever had, he’s certainly one of the most prolific writers we’ve ever had as well, and of course he saved Rome from Attila the Hun. 

Rome had been sacked in 410, and the Roman Government was in shambles and incapable of defending the country from invaders. As Attila was making his way toward Rome, sacking city and city along the way, what was left of the Roman Senate begged Leo to dissuade the barbarian warlord from taking Rome.

Pope Leo had no army, he simply had courage and faith. So, the Holy Father rode on horseback to meet the oncoming army. Leo began to persuade Attila to turn his army away from Rome. Legend states that as Leo spoke, heaven opened and St. Peter and St. Paul with his blades appeared basically saying, “If you want to get to Rome, you are going to have to go through us.” Attila then ordered his army to turn north, away from the Holy City.

Initially, the people of Rome rejoiced and praised God. But, about six months later, the people of Rome began to come up with alternative explanations for why the barbarians had turned away. The claimed it was the old pagan gods had come to their aid, and it was the power of astrology. They were like the Israelites, who fashioned and worshiped the golden calf at Sinai.

So, Leo gathered the people of Rome together and began to preach a homily to them. He told them that the reason why you were spared the barbarian invasion is not because of horoscopes or the pagan gods, but that the One True God loves you and cares for you. Don’t look to these superstitious reasons and false gods, look to the One God.

The Gospel and the Opening prayer for this Mass both speak of how God does not allow the gates of hell to prevail against His Church. We are spared countless evils because of the love of God that protects us. Were not evil constantly being kept at bay by the hand of the Almighty, we would certainly be destroyed. From his hand, we also receive countless blessing, yet, we are still tempted at times to wonder if God is really with us.

He offers us forgiveness every day, he offers us truth every day, we have the gift of family and the brotherhood of our fellow Christians, we have clothes, food, shelter, the healing of our illnesses and the strength to endure them.  Perhaps, we sometimes struggle to see God because we do not seek Him where he is found, or adequately thanked Him the blessings which He has given us.

Like Pope Leo, filled with faith, who courageously went to face the barbarian hordes, we are to face the evils of the world firm in God’s truth. Never be ashamed of your Catholic faith, but allow it to give you strength and to help you know God’s guidance and protection for the glory of God and salvation of souls.