Mid-November Feasts
10/November/2007 Filed in:
JottingsMid-November is rich in feasts. On Friday we had the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica; today we have St Leo; tomorrow, were it not Sunday, we'd have St Martin; and on Tuesday, we'll celebrate All Benedictine Saints. Each feast has its own special take on sanctity. The liturgy for the dedication of a church, for example, speaks of the holiness of the living stones that make up God's temple; St Leo wrote splendidly about the Incarnation and the holiness of Christ's humanity; St Martin was the first to live the "white martyrdom" of the monk-bishop in the west; and the sheer number and variety of those who have been led to holiness through the teaching of St Benedict is a great encouragement to those of us who are hobbling along in their footsteps. Newman saw holiness as one of the essential notes of the Catholic Church, but as today's podcast reminds us, he was not the first to make the connection.