From: rich <
richarra@gmail.com>
June 27th =E2=80=93 St. Ladislaus I of Hungary, King
=C2 (also known as Lancelot, Lalo, Laszlo)
IF Hungary owed the establishment of its monarchy and the organization
of its church to St. Stephen I, it was almost equally indebted to
another sainted king of the same house of Arpad. For Ladislaus
extended its borders, kept its enemies at bay, and made it politically
a great state. But it is not for such activities that men are
canonized (if, indeed, Ladislaus ever was formally canonized, which
appears to be doubtful); and it is for his private life and work for Christianity that reverence is due to his memory.
After a childhood and youth whose background was political intrigue
and dynastic violence, Ladislaus (Laszlo) came to the Hungarian throne
in 1077; but his rights were contested by his kinsman Solomon, whom
eventually he defeated in battle. The young prince was said to be the embodiment of the outward graces and inner virtues of the ideal knight
of chivalry. Towering head and shoulders above the crowd, he had the
strength and courage of a lion, combined with a courteous affability
that endeared him to all. His piety, which was as fervent as it was
well balanced, expressed itself in his zeal for the faith, in the
punctilious fulfilment of his religious obligations, in the strictness
of his morals, and in the austerity of his life. Entirely devoid of
personal ambition, he accepted the dignity thrust upon him from a
sense of duty. In pursuance of a policy dictated alike by his
religious and his patriotic instincts, Ladislaus allied himself
closely with Pope Gregory VII and the other opponents of the German
emperor, Henry IV.
He espoused the cause of Henry's rival, Rupert of Swabia, and married
Adelaide, the daughter of Rupert's chief supporter, Duke Welf of
Bavaria. Within the boundaries of Hungary itself he had to face
repeated invasions from the Kumans and others, but he successfully
repulsed them all and did his best to win barbarian tribes to
Christianity and civilization; at the same time he allowed civil and
religious liberty to the Jews and the Ishmaelites, i.e. Mohammedans.
It was at his solicitation that King Stephen I, his son Emeric, and
the martyred bishop Gerard
were recognized by the Holy See as worthy of veneration as saints.
Ladislaus governed with a firm hand in both civil and ecclesiastical
affairs, as was seen at the diet of Szabolcs and when, in 1091, his
sister Helen, the widowed queen of Croatia, appealed to him for help
against the murderers of her husband. He marched in, restored some
sort of order, and established the see of Zagreb. When Helen died
childless he annexed Croatia and Dalmatia, in the face of
remonstrances from the emperor at Constantinople, the republic of
Venice and the Holy See. Nevertheless Blessed Urban II looked for his
help in organizing the First Crusade, and it was Ladislaus who was
chosen by the kings of France, Spain and England to be the
commander-in-chief of that expedition. However he was not destined to
march with the rest, for he died rather suddenly at Nitra in Bohemia
in 1095. He was fifty-five years old.
The body of St. Ladislaus was taken for burial to Nagy Varad (Oradea
Mare in Transylvania)-to the city and the cathedral which he had
founded. From the moment of his death he was honoured as a saint and a
national hero, and his deeds have formed the theme of many popular
Magyar ballads and tales. His relics were solemnly enshrined in 1192.
The Bollandists in the Acta Sanctorum, June, vol. vii, print a set of liturgical legendae, accompanied with the usual historical
dissertation. A more reliable source is probably the life edited by S.
L. Endlicher, in his Rerum Hungaricarum Monumenta Arpadiana (1849),
pp. 235-244, and 324-348. See also Archiv f. =C3=B4ster. Geschichte (1902),
pp. 46-53, and an article, "St. Laszlo", translated by E. Lindner in
the Ungarische Revue for 1885. are several lives published in Magyar,
of which that by J. Karacsonyi (1926) is said the best. See also Revue arch=C3=A9ologique, 1925, pp. 315-327, and C. A. Macartney Medieval
Hungarian Historians (1953).
Saint Quote:
"Ask of God his graces in the name of Jesus Christ, and you shall
obtain whatsoever you desire. This our Saviour has promised, and his
promise cannot fail"
--St. Alphonsus de Liguori - "The True Spouse of Jesus Christ=E2=80=9D
Bible Quotes:
"if you ask the Father anything in my name, he will give it you"=C2 (Joh=
n 16:23)
"If you then being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children:
how much more will your Father who is in heaven, give good things to
them that ask him?"=C2 (Matthew 7:11)
<><><><>
A Prayer of Commendation
I commend you, my dear brother (sister), to Almighty God,
and entrust You to your Creator.
May you return to Him
Who formed you from the dust of the earth.
May Holy Mary, the Angels, and all the Saints
come to meet you as you go forth from this life.
May Christ, who was crucified for you
bring you freedom and peace.
May Christ, who died for you
admit you into His garden of paradise.
May Christ, the true Shepherd,
acknowledge you as one of His flock.
May He forgive all your sins,
and set you among those He has chosen.
May You see your Redeemer face to face,
and enjoy the vision of God for ever. - Amen.
--- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
* Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4)