From: rich <richarra@gmail.com>

January 12th - St. Arcadius, Martyr
d. 304

THE time of this saint=E2=80=99s martyrdom is not mentioned in his acts; so=
me
place it under Valerian, others under Diocletian; he seems to have
suffered in some city of Mauritania, probably the capital, Caesarea.
The fury of the persecutors was at its height. Upon the least
suspicion they broke into houses, and if they found a Christian they
treated him upon the spot with the greatest cruelty, their impatience
not suffering them to wait for his formal indictment. Every day new
sacrileges were committed; the faithful were compelled to assist at superstitious sacrifices, to lead victims crowned with flowers through
the streets, to burn incense before idols. Arcadius, seeing the
terrible conditions prevailing, withdrew to a solitary place in the
country, but his flight could not be long a secret for his
non-appearance at the public sacrifices made the governor send
soldiers to his house, who, finding one of his relations there, seized
him, and the governor ordered him to be kept in custody till Arcadius
should be taken.

The martyr, informed of his friend=E2=80=99s danger, went into the city, an=
d
presenting himself to the judge, said, =E2=80=9CIf on my account you detain=
my
innocent kinsman in chains, release him; I, Arcadius, am come in
person to give an account of myself, and to declare to you that he
knew not where I was.=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CI am willing=E2=80=9D, answered the=
judge, =E2=80=9Cto pardon
not only him, but you also, on condition that you will sacrifice to
the gods.=E2=80=9D Arcadius refused firmly; whereupon the judge said to the executioners, =E2=80=9CTake him, and let him desire death without being abl=
e
to obtain it. Cut off his limbs joint by joint, but do this so slowly
that the wretch may know what it is to abandon the gods of his
ancestors for an unknown deity=E2=80=9D. The executioners dragged Arcadius =
to
the place where many other victims of Christ had already suffered; and
he stretched out his neck expecting to be decapitated; but the
executioner bid him hold out his hand, and, joint after joint, chopped
off his fingers, arms and shoulders. In the same barbarous manner were
cut off his toes, feet, legs and thighs. The martyr held out his limbs
one after another with invincible courage, repeating, =E2=80=9CLord, teach =
me
thy wisdom=E2=80=9D for the tormentors had forgotten to cut out his tongue. After so many martyrdoms, his body lay a mere trunk. But Arcadius
surveying his scattered limbs all around him, and offering them to
God, said, =E2=80=9CHappy members, you at last truly belong to God, being a=
ll
made a sacrifice to Him=E2=80=9D Then to the people he said, =E2=80=9CYou w=
ho have
been present at this bloody tragedy, learn that all torments seem as
nothing to one who has an everlasting crown before his eyes. Your gods
are not gods; renounce their worship. He alone for whom I suffer and
die is the true God. To die for Him is to live.=E2=80=9D Discoursing in thi=
s
manner to those about him, he died, the pagans being struck with
astonishment at such a miracle of patience. The Christians gathered
together his scattered limbs and laid them in one tomb.

See the Acta Sanctorum for January 12, where the passio is printed, as
well as a panegyric preached by St. Zeno of Verona. In spite of the
fact that the passio is included by Ruinart in his Acta Sincera, the
document belongs rather to the category of historical romances. Cf.
Delehaye, Origines du culte des martyrs (1933), p. 391.


Saint Quote:
Prudence must precede every action which we undertake; for, if
prudence be wanting, there is nothing, however good it may seem, which
is not turned into evil.
-- St. Basil

Bible Quote
=C2=A0Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according
to his great mercy begat us again unto a living hope by the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, (1 Peter 1:3) DRB


<><><><>
TO THE BLESSED MOTHER FOR HUMILITY
From HIS FAVORITE PRAYERS: St. John Neumann, C. SS. R.

O Mary, Mother of Mercy, pray to thy Divine Son for me, a poor sinner;
beg Him to make me humble. Oh, how humble art thou, the purest of
Virgins; thou, my powerful mediatrix; thou, O most holy among the
children of Adam, who art the exalted Mother of God! Thou didst
declare thyself the handmaid of Him Whose Mother thou art. Behold, my
dear heavenly Mother, how gladly I would dedicate myself to thy Divine
Son, that His Will may also be mine. But my pride, my self-esteem, my
vanity, are always against me. I struggle against them, and yet I
allow them to surprise and deceive me so often. Oh, how this afflicts
me! Mary, Refuge of Sinners, if I were only sincere when I beg of thee
to obtain humiliation for me. But alas, whilst praying for such helps
to humility, I fear the granting of my prayer. I clearly see better
things; I even desire their possession and yet I shrink from what
alone can give me true humility. Behold my trials, my combats in this
valley of tears! O my dearest Mother, if to be freed from this body
would give glory to God, how gladly would I not lay down my life.
Amen.

--- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
* Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4)