MARCH 4TH 2003 ST.CASIMIR
PRINCE CONFESSOR(1458-1484) LIFE: St.Casimir was the second son of King Casimir IV of Poland and the virtuous Elizabeth of Austria , recieved his early education from the deeply religious Canon John Dugosz, the polish historian, who later become Archbishop of Lemberg.At the age of 9 he was already a remarkable for his piety , and a young Prince he would often spend long night hours kneeling before locked doors of churches , oblivious to the inclemency of the weather.His charity towards the poor knew no bounds, which earned him the title of *The father and Defender of the poor and wretched** Casimir had a particularly ardent devotion to our Lady, whom he addressed as his "Good Mother", and he would daily recite on his knees St.Anselm of Canterbury`s tender hymn " Daily daily sing to Mary ..." During his Father`s prolonged absence in Luthiania, the saintly young prince administered the State of Poland from 1481 to 1483 with pronounced success, Returned to prayer and study, maintained his decision to remain celibate even under pressure to marry the emperor's daughter. He died at the age of 26 at the very hour which had been revealed to him.He was canonized by Pope Adrean VI in 1522. One hundred and twenty -two years after his death his body was found to be still incurrupt. PATRONAGE: bachelors, kings, Lithuania, Poland, princes , invoked against plague REFLECTION: ** As a stout staff supports the trembling limbs of a feeble old man, so does faith sustain our vacillating mind, lest it be tossed about by sinful hesitation and perplexity***( St.John Chrysostom) COMMENT: What is there on earth which can engage the affections of a Christian, or be the object of his ambition, in whose soul God desires to establish his kingdom? Whoever has conceived a just idea of this immense happiness and dignity must look upon all the glittering bubbles of this world as empty and vain, and consider every thing in this life barely as it can advance or hinder the great object of all his desires. Few arrive at this happy and glorious state, because scarce any one seeks it with his whole heart, and has the courage sincerely to renounce all things and die to himself: and this precious jewel cannot be purchased upon any other terms. The kingdom of God can only be planted in a soul upon the ruins of self-love: so we adore Thee O Christ and we bless Thee,Because of Thy Holy Cross Thou ha s redeemed the world....!!!!! S.THOMAS NOTTINGHAM ENGLAND --------------------------------- With Yahoo! Mail you can get a bigger mailbox -- choose a size that fits your needs =============================================================================== This mail is generated from JOYnet, a Jesus Youth mailing list. For more info on the list visit http://www.jesusyouth.org/joynet To unsubscribe from the list send a mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe to the list visit http://www.jesusyouth.org/joynet/join In case of any issue related to the mailing list contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] ===============================================================================