The name of St. Cecilia has always been most illustrious in the church, and ever since the primitive ages is mentioned with distinction in the canon of the mass, and in the sacramentaries and calendars of the church. Her spouse Valerian, Tiburtius, and Maximus, an officer, who were her companions in martyrdom, are also mentioned in the same authentic and venerable writings. St. Cecilia was a native of Rome, of a good family, and educated in the principles and perfect practice of the Christian religion. In her youth she by vow consecrated her virginity to God, yet was compelled by her parents to marry a nobleman named Valerian. Him she converted to the faith, and soon after gained to the same his brother Tiburtius.

The men first suffered martyrdom, being beheaded for the faith. St. Cecilia finished her glorious triumph some days after them. Their acts, which are of very small authority, make them contemporary with Pope Urban I, and consequently place their martyrdom about the year 230, under Alexander Severus; others, however, place the triumph of these martyrs under Marcus Aurelius, between the years 176 and 180. Their sacred bodies were deposited in part of the cemetery of Calixtus, which part, from our saint, was called St. Cecilia's cemetery. Mention is made of an ancient Church of St. Cecilia in Rome in the fifth century, in which Pope Symmachus held a council in the year 500.

This church being fallen to decay, Pope Paschal I began to rebuild it but was in some pain how he should find the body of the saint, for it was thought that the Lombards had taken it away, as they had many others from the cemeteries of Rome, when they besieged that city under King Astulphus in 755. One Sunday, as this pope was assisting at matins as was his wont, at St. Peter's, he fell into a slumber, in which he was advised by St. Cecilia herself that the Lombards had in vain sought for her body, and that he should find it and he accordingly discovered it in the cemetery called by her name, clothed in a robe of gold tissue, with linen cloths at her feet, dipped in her blood.

With her body was found that of Valerian, her husband; and the pope caused them to be translated to her church in the city; as also the bodies of Tiburtius and Maximus, martyrs, and of the popes Urban and Lucius, which lay in the adjoining cemetery of Praetextatus, on the same Appian road. This church of St. Cecilia is called In Trastevere, or Beyond the Tiber, to distinguish it from two other churches in Rome which bear the name of this saint. St. Cecilia, from her assiduity in singing the divine praises (in which, according to her Acts, she often joined instrumental music with vocal), is regarded as patroness of church music. The psalms, and many sacred canticles in many other parts of the holy scripture, and the universal practice both of the ancient Jewish and of the Christian church, recommend the religious custom of sometimes employing a decent and grave music in sounding forth the divine praises. By this homage of praise we join the heavenly spirits in their uninterrupted songs of adoration, love, and praise. And by such music we express the spiritual joy of our hearts in this heavenly function, and excite ourselves therein to holy jubilation and devotion. Divine love and praise are the work of the heart, without which all words or exterior signs are hypocrisy and mockery. Yet as we are bound to consecrate to God our voices and all our organs and faculties, and all creatures which we use, so we ought to employ them all in magnifying his sanctity, greatness, and glory, and sometimes to accompany our interior affections of devotion with the most expressive exterior signs. St. Chrysostom elegantly extols the good effects of sacred music, and shows how strongly the fire of divine love is kindled in the soul by devout psalmody.

St. Charles Borromeo in his youth allowed himself no other amusement but that of grave music, with a view to that of the church.

By: Fr. Alfons muema

St. Peter Claver was born in 1580 into a prosperous farming family in the Spanish village of Verdu, Cataluña about 54 miles from Barcelona, 70 years after King Ferdinand of Spain had set in motion the colonial slavery culture by authorizing the purchase of 250 African slaves in Lisbon for his territories in New Spain. Claver's parents were devout Catholics and taught Peter from earliest childhood to let nothing come between him and the love of God. As a student at the University of Barcelona, Claver was noted for his piety and high intelligence. He was given permission to enter the Jesuit College at Palma, Majorca in 1602, and after two years of study there, he wrote these words in a notebook which he kept with him throughout his life: "I must dedicate myself to the service of God until death, on the understanding that I am like a slave."

Claver arrived in Cartagena in 1610. He was still a novice at the time and he needed to wait five years to be ordained as a priest, living in the Jesuit monasteries of Tunja and Bogotá. In those years of preparation he was deeply disturbed by the hard treatment and living conditions of the black slaves being brought from Africa.

By his time the slave trade had been established in the Americas for about 100 years and Cartagena was a chief center for it. Ten thousand slaves poured into the port yearly; crossing the Atlantic from West Africa under conditions so foul and inhuman that an estimated one-third of them died in transit. Although slave-trading was condemned by Pope Paul III and later labeled "supreme villainy" by Pius IX, there were fortunes to be made and it continued to flourish. Claver's predecessor, Alonso de Sandoval, was his mentor and inspiration. Sandoval had devoted himself to the service of the slaves for 40 years before Claver arrived to continue his work. Sandoval tried to learn about their customs and their languages and he learned so much about them that when he went back to Spain he authored a book in Seville in 1627 about the nature, customs, rites and superstitions of the Africans.

Sandoval taught Claver all he knew about the slaves. When finally in 1622 Claver was ordained, he added along with his ordination signature another vow: -- Peter Claver, slave of the Negro, for ever. Where Sandoval was wont to visit the slaves in the places where they were working Claver's practice was to head for the wharf as soon as a slave ship entered the port. Boarding the ships he moved into the filthy and diseased holds to doctor and minister to their ill-treated and terrified human cargo. These had suffered a voyage that lasted several months under horrible conditions. It was difficult to move around on the ships because the slave traffickers filled them to the maximum.

They were often told they were being taken to a land where they would be eaten. Claver always wore a cloak that he would lend to anyone who was in need. Legend says that whoever wore the cloak inherited eternal health and was cleansed of any disease. After the slaves were herded from the ship and penned in nearby yards to be studied by crowds and buyers, Claver plunged in among them with medicines, food, bread, brandy, lemons and tobacco. With the help of interpreters and pictures which he carried with him, he gave basic instruction and assured the slaves of their human dignity and God's saving love.

Claver had conflicts with some of his Jesuit brothers who viewed the slaves merely as slaves. Claver saw them as fellow Christians and encouraged others to do so. During the 40 years of his ministry, it is estimated he single-handedly catechized and baptized 300,000 slaves. His apostolate extended beyond his care for slaves. He preached in the city square, gave missions to sailors and traders as well as country missions - returning every spring to visit those he had baptized and to ensure that they were being treated humanely.

During these missions he avoided, whenever possible, the hospitality of the planters and overseers, and would lodge instead in the slave quarters His work on behalf of the slaves did not prevent him from caring also for the souls of the more well-to-do members of society and for the traders and visitors (including Muslims and English Protestants) to Cartagena, or for condemned criminals, many of whom he prepared for death.

He was also a frequent visitor to the city's hospitals. Through years of unrelenting toil and the force of his own extraordinary personality the situation of the slaves slowly improved. He himself became a moral force, indeed the apostle of Cartagena.

Illness finally forced the saint into his room. He was attacked by a paralytic illness resembling Parkinson's disease. He lingered another four years, largely forgotten and neglected, and died on September 9, 1654.

The city magistrates, who'd previously considered him something of a nuisance for his frequent petitions on behalf of the slaves, ordered a public funeral and he was buried with great pomp and ceremony. It was only after his death that the vast scope of Claver's ministry began to be realized; which was weighty even before the astronomical numbers of people he personally baptized - more than anyone else - is considered. He was canonized in 1888, and Pope Leo XIII declared him the worldwide patron of missionary work among black slaves.

By:- Fr. Alfons Muema

One of the Twelve Apostles, mentioned sixth in the three Gospel lists (Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14), and seventh in the list of Acts (1:13). The name (Bartholomaios) means "son of Talmai" (or Tholmai) which was an ancient Hebrew name, borne, e.g. by the King of Gessur whose daughter was a wife of David (2 Samuel 3:3). It shows, at least, that Bartholomew was of Hebrew descent; it may have been his genuine proper name or simply added to distinguish him as the son of Talmai. Outside the instances referred to, no other mention of the name occurs in the New Testament. Nothing further is known of him for certain.

Many scholars, however, identify him with Nathaniel (John 1:45-51; 21:2). The reasons for this are that Bartholomew is not the proper name of the Apostle; that the name never occurs in the Fourth Gospel, while Nathaniel is not mentioned in the synoptics; that Bartholomew's name is coupled with Philip's in the lists of Matthew and Luke, and found next to it in Mark, which agrees well with the fact shown by St.

John that Philip was an old friend of Nathaniel's and brought him to Jesus; that the call of Nathaniel, mentioned with the call of several Apostles, seems to mark him for the apostolate, especially since the rather full and beautiful narrative leads one to expect some important development; that Nathaniel was of Galilee where Jesus found most, if not all, of the Twelve. Finally, that on the occasion of the appearance of the risen Savior on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias, Nathaniel is found present, together with several Apostles who are named and two unnamed Disciples who were, almost certainly, likewise Apostles (the word "apostle" not occurring in the Fourth Gospel and "disciple" of Jesus ordinarily meaning Apostle) and so, presumably, was one of the Twelve.

This chain of circumstantial evidence is ingenious and pretty strong; the weak link is that, after all, Nathaniel may have been another personage in whom, for some reason, the author of the Fourth Gospel may have been particularly interested, as he was in Nicodemus, who is likewise not named in the synoptics. No mention of St. Bartholomew occurs in ecclesiastical literature before Eusebius. He mentions that Pantaenus, the master of Origen, while evangelizing India, was told that the Apostle had preached there before him and had given to his converts the Gospel of St. Matthew written in Hebrew, which was still treasured by the Church. "India" was a name covering a very wide area, including even Arabia Felix.

Other traditions represent St. Bartholomew as preaching in Mesopotamia, Persia, Egypt, Armenia, Lycaonia, Phrygia, and on the shores of the Black Sea; one legend, it is interesting to note, identifies him with Nathaniel. The manner of his death, said to have occurred at Albanopolis in Armenia, is equally uncertain; according to some, he was beheaded, according to others, flayed alive and crucified, head downward, by order of Astyages, for having converted his brother, Polymius, King of Armenia. On account of this latter legend, he is often represented in art (e.g. in Michelangelo's Last Judgment) as flayed and holding in his hand his own skin. His feast is celebrated on 24 August.

By: Fr. Alphonse Muema

She is called "the Penitent".

St. Mary was given the name 'Magdalene' because, though a Jewish girl, she lived in a Gentile town called Magdalene, in northern Galilee, and her culture and manners were those of a Gentile. St. Luke records that she was a notorious sinner, and had seven devils removed from her. Fourteen years after Our Lord's death, St. Mary was put in a boat by the Jews without sails or oars - along with Sts. Lazarus and Martha, St. Maximin (who baptized her), St. Sidonius ("the man born blind"), her maid Sera, and the body of St. Anne, the mother of the Blessed Virgin.

They were sent drifting out to sea and landed on the shores of Southern France, where St. Mary spent the rest of her life as a contemplative in a cave known as Sainte-Baume. She was given the Holy Eucharist daily by angels as her only food, and died when she was 72. St. Mary was transported miraculously, just before she died, to the chapel of St. Maximin where she received the last sacraments. She was very beautiful and very proud, but after she met Jesus, she felt great sorrow for her evil life. When Jesus went to supper at the home of a rich man named Simon, Mary came to weep at His feet. Then with her long beautiful hair, she wiped His feet dry and anointed them with expensive perfume. Some people were surprised that Jesus let such a sinner touch Him, but Our Lord could see into Mary's heart, and He said: "Many sins are forgiven her, because she has loved very much."

Then to Mary He said kindly, "Your faith has made you safe; go in peace." From then on, with the other holy women, Mary humbly served Jesus and His Apostles. When Our Lord was crucified, she was there at the foot of His cross, unafraid for herself, and thinking only of His sufferings. No wonder Jesus said of her: "She has loved much." After Jesus' body had been placed in the tomb, Mary went to anoint it with spices early Easter Sunday morning. Not finding the Sacred Body, she began to weep, and seeing someone whom she thought was the gardener, she asked him if he knew where the Body of her beloved Master had been taken. But then the person spoke in a voice she knew so well: "Mary!" It was Jesus, risen from the dead! He had chosen to show Himself first to Mary Magdalene, the repentant sinner.

By Fr. Alphonse Muema

Pentecost is the great festival that marks the birth of the Christian church by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Pentecost means "fiftieth day" and is celebrated fifty days after Easter.

WHAT HAPPENED ON PENTECOST? Ten days after Jesus ascended into heaven, the twelve apostles, Jesus' mother and family, and many other of His disciples gathered together in Jerusalem for the Jewish harvest festival that was celebrated on the fiftieth day of Passover.  While they were indoors praying, a sound like that of a rushing wind filled the house and tongues of fire descended and rested over each of their heads.  This was the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on human flesh promised by God through the prophet Joel (Joel 2:28-29). 

The disciples were suddenly empowered to proclaim the gospel of the risen Christ.  They went out into the streets of Jerusalem and began preaching to the crowds gathered for the festival.  Not only did the disciples preach with boldness and vigour, but by a miracle of the Holy Spirit they spoke in the native languages of the people present, many who had come from all corners of the Roman Empire.  This created a sensation.  The apostle Peter seized the moment and addressed the crowd, preaching to them about Jesus' death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins.  The result was that about three thousand converts were baptized that day.  (You can read the Biblical account of Pentecost in Acts 2:1-41).

Anselm was a native of Piedmont Italy. When a boy of fifteen, being forbidden to enter religion, for a while he lost his fervor, left his home and went to various schools in France. The fame of his sanctity in this cloister led William Rufus, when dangerously ill, to take him for his confessor, and to name him to the vacant See of Canterbury. Now began the strife of Anselm's life. With new health, the king relapsed into his former sins, plundered the Church lands, scorned the Archbishop's rebukes, and forbade him to go to Rome for the pallium.

 Anselm went, and returned only to enter into a more bitter strife with William's successor, Henry I. This sovereign claimed the right of investing prelates with the ring and crozier, symbols of the spiritual jurisdiction which belongs to the Church alone.

The worldly prelates did not scruple to call St. Anselm a traitor for his defense of the Pope's supremacy; on which the Saint rose, and with calm dignity exclaimed, "If any man pretends that I violate my faith to my king because I will not reject the authority of the Holy See of Rome, let him stand forth, and in the name of God I will answer him as I ought" No one took up the challenge; and to the disappointment of the king, the barons sided with the Saint, for they respected his courage, and saw that his cause was their own.

The Feast Day of Saint Anselm is April 21.  The feast days first arose from the very early Christian custom of the annual commemoration of martyrs on the dates of their deaths at the same time celebrating their birth into heaven.

By: Fr. Alphonse Muema

Our Lady of Lourdes is the name used to refer to the Marian apparition that appeared before various individuals on separate occasions around Lourdes, France.

The apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes began on 11 February 1858, when Saint Bernadette Soubirous, a 14-year-old peasant girl from Lourdes admitted, when questioned by her mother, that she had seen a "lady" in the cave of Massabielle, about a mile from the town, while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend. Similar appearances of the "lady" took place on seventeen further occasions that year.

Bernadette Soubirous was canonized as a saint and many Christians believe her apparitions to have been of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Pope Pius IX authorized the local bishop to permit the veneration of the Virgin.

The Solemnity of Mary Mother of God commemorates the divine motherhood of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the God-Bearer, Mother of our Lord and God Jesus Christ. It is celebrated on January 1st, one week after Christmas.

In the 4th and 5th centuries debates about the nature of Christ raged in the Church. The debate was about the relationship of Christ's divine and human natures. At the center of this debate was a title of Mary. Since at least the 3rd century, Christians had referred to Mary as theotokos, meaning "God-bearer."

The first documented usage of the term is in the writings of Origen of Alexandria in AD 230. Related to theotokos, Mary was called the mother of God. Referring to Mary this way was popular in Christian piety, but the patriarch of Constantinople from 428-431, Nestorius, objected. He suggested that Mary was only the mother of Jesus' human nature, but not his divine nature. Nestorius' ideas (or at least how others perceived his arguments) were condemned at the Council of Ephesus in AD 431, and again at the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451. The Church decided that Christ was fully God and fully human, and these natures were united in one person, Jesus Christ.

From: Internet Collection.

Widow; born of Christian parents at Tagaste, North Africa, in 333; died at Ostia, near Rome, in 387. We are told but little of her childhood. She was married early in life to Patritius who held an official position in Tagaste. He was a pagan, though like so many at that period, his religion was no more than a name; his temper was violent and he appears to have been of dissolute habits.

Consequently Monica's married life was far from being a happy one, more especially as Patritius's mother seems to have been of a like disposition with himself. There was of course a gulf between husband and wife; her alms deeds and her habits of prayer annoyed him, but it is said that he always held her in a sort of reverence. Monica was not the only matron of Tagaste whose married life was unhappy, but, by her sweetness and patience, she was able to exercise a veritable apostolate amongst the wives and mothers of her native town; they knew that she suffered as they did, and her words and example had a proportionate effect.

Three children were born of this marriage, Augustine the eldest, Navigius the second, and a daughter,

Perpetua. Monica had been unable to secure baptism for her children, and her grief was great when Augustine fell ill; in her distress she besought Patritius to allow him to be baptized; he agreed, but on the boy's recovery withdrew his consent. All Monica’s anxiety now centered in Augustine; he was wayward and as he himself tells us, lazy.

He was sent to Madaura to school and Monica seems to have literally wrestled with God for the soul of her son. A great consolation was vouchsafed her -- in compensation perhaps for all that she was to experience through Augustine -- Patritius became a Christian. Meanwhile, Augustine had been sent to Carthage, to pursue his studies, and here he fell into grievous sin. Patritius died very shortly after his reception into the Church and Monica resolved not to marry again.

At Carthage Augustine had become a Manichean and when on his return home he ventilated certain heretical propositions she drove him away from her table, but a strange vision which she had urged her to recall him. It was at this time that she went to see a certain holy bishop, whose name is not given, but who consoled her with the now famous words, "the child of those tears shall never perish." There is no more pathetic story in the annals of the Saints than that of Monica pursuing her wayward son to Rome, whether he had gone by stealth; when she arrived he had already gone to Milan, but she followed him. Here she found St. Ambrose and through him she ultimately had the joy of seeing Augustine yield, after seventeen years of resistance.

Mother and son spent six months of true peace at Cassiacum, after which time Augustine was baptized in the church of St. John the Baptist at Milan. Africa claimed them however, and they set out on their journey, stopping at Civit' Vecchia and at Ostia. Here death overtook Monica and the finest pages of his "Confessions" were penned as the result of the emotion Augustine then experienced.

St. Monica was buried at Ostia, and at first seems to have been almost forgotten, though her body was removed during the sixth century to a hidden crypt in the church of St. Aureus. In 1430 Martin V ordered the relics to be brought to Rome. The Office of St. Monica however does not seem to have found a place in the Roman Breviary before the sixteenth century. In 1850 there was established at Notre Dame de Sion at Paris an Association of Christian mothers under the patronage of St. Monica, its object was mutual prayer for sons and husbands who had gone astray. This Association was in 1856 raised to the rank of an arch confraternity and spread rapidly over all the Catholic world, branches being established in Dublin, London, Liverpool, Sidney, and Buenos Ayres. Eugenius IV had established a similar Confraternity long before.

By: Fr. Alphonse Muema

Joachim and Anne were the parents of Mary and the grandparents of Jesus. The name "Hannah" means grace. In Galilee, where she lived, Mary's mother was probably called "Hannah" even though we know her as Saint Anne. So, if you are named "Hannah" or "Anne" you are named after the mother of Our Blessed Mother.

It was in the womb of Saint Anne that Mary was immaculately conceived. From the first instant of her life, she was in a state of grace and free from all stain of Original Sin. It was her parents, Anne and Joachim that raised her to be faithful to God's word and remain free of sin. Anne is the patron of Christian mothers, and Joachim the patron of fathers.  Joachim the husband of Saint Anne and the father of the Blessed Virgin Mary belonged to the tribe of Judah and the house of David. Tradition tells us that he and his wife came from Galilee.

Anne and Joachim were childless for many years. At the time that they lived, this was considered to be a punishment of God among the Jews. They continued to pray and finally God answered their prayers when the Virgin Mary was born. This was their greatest honor, to be the parent's of Mary, the Mother of God and the Grandparents of Jesus. The couple offered their little daughter to God in the Temple. When the Angel Gabriel came to her at the Annunciation, Mary knew the prophecies of Jesus' life and death.

She knew the full extent of the honor and pain she would experience when she gave her 'fiat.' There is another Mary mentioned in the Gospels as being the 'sister' of the Mother of God, but this was probably her cousin. Two Mary’s in one family stretches reason and this was a customary way of designating relatives in the East. Saint Anne has been honored from early Christian times. Churches were dedicated in her honor, and the Fathers, especially of the Eastern Churches, loved to speak both of her sanctity and her privileges of being chosen to raise the Mother of God.

Saint Joachim has also been honored from the beginning in the Churches of the East.  .

Some traditions grounded in very old testimonies, tells us that Saints Joachim and Anne in their old age came from Galilee to settle in Jerusalem.  As a childless couple, they may have simply wished to spend their old age close to the Temple.

But God, in his Wisdom and Mercy, granted them a child, and Mary was born and raised in Jerusalem.

By: - Fr. Alphonse Muema

St. John the Baptist, the kinsman of Jesus and the son of the priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth, is the only saint other than the Virgin Mary whose birthday is celebrated by the Church in a liturgical feast.  Other saints are remembered by the day of their death when they entered the kingdom of heaven.

Like the announcement of the birth of the Savior, St. John's birth was announced by the archangel Gabriel (Lk 1:19, 26).  John's father Zachariah  received the news of his son's impending birth while he was serving in his priestly duties at the Temple in Jerusalem. 

Since the time of King David, the descendants of Aaron, who were the priests of the Sinai Covenant, were divided into twenty-four clans of priests (1 Chr 24:7-17 All the twenty-four clans served in the Temple during the celebrations of the three great pilgrim feasts:

The week-long Feast of Unleavened Bread, The Feast of Weeks (which was also  as Pentecost), and the week-long Feast of  Shelters (also called Tabernacles) (Ex 23:14-17; Deut 16:5-17; 2 Chr 8:13), but during ordinary time in the liturgical calendar, each priestly clan took turns serving in the Temple for one week from Sabbath to Sabbath.

It was during the weekly course of the priestly clan of Abijah (1 Chr 24:11; Lk 1:5), when the priest Zechariah was chosen by the drawing of lots to be the one with the honour of lighting the golden Altar of Incense which stood in front of the Holy of Holies. 

This honor was probably a once-in-a-life-time event for a priest.  It was during the daily Tamid service (Ex 29:38-42; Num 28:4-10; Sir 50:1-21), when the designated priest lights the golden Altar of Incense with coals from the sacrificial alter and prepares to burn the sacred incense (Ex 30:1-9), that the angel suddenly approached Zechariah: Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, it fell to him by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.  And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense.  And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense (Lk 1:8-11). 

The angel boldly announced to the elderly priest that God had heard his prayers, and he and his barren wife would become the parents of a son.  The angel instructed the terrified Zechariah that he was to name this child ‘John’ which means "Yahweh is gracious" in Hebrew.  Then the angel told Zechariah that the child would be filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb, and his life would be dedicated entirely to God's service in the spirit of the great prophet Elijah (Lk 1:13-17).

When Zechariah protested in disbelief, the angel silenced the priest striking him dumb and telling him that his inability to speak would continue until the birth of the child. 

 However, just before silencing Zechariah, the angel revealed his name: And the angel answered him, I am Gabriel, who stand in the presence of God (Lk 1:19).

The revelation of the name of the angel was all Zechariah needed, coupled with the reference to the prophet Elijah, to understand the significance of the birth of his son and the promise of the Anointed One who was to follow.  This was the same angel who revealed the coming of "the end" to the prophet Daniel (Dan 8:16) and prophesied to Daniel, at the time of the afternoon Tamid sacrifice (Dan 9:21), the coming of the Anointed One, the Messiah (Dan 9:25-26). 

Zechariah now understood that his son was the one who was promised to prepare the covenant people.

According to the Tradition of the Church, John, the last of the Old Testament prophets, was born June the 24^th circa 3/2 BC.  

He was thirty years old when he began his mission to call the covenant people to a baptism (ritual purification) of repentance in order to prepare them for the coming of the Messiah and the promised "new covenant" (Jer 31:31-34).  St. Luke recorded that John was thirty years old in the fifteenth year of the Roman Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea (26 – 36 AD).  The Roman Emperor Augustus Caesar died on the 19^th of August in 14 AD. 

 He was succeeded by his adopted step-son Tiberius.  The fifteenth year of Tiberius' reign therefore was from the 19^th of August 28 AD to the 19^th of August 29 AD. 

Thirty years earlier gives the date of 3/2 BC (depending upon whether the year is counted from the liturgical year in the spring or the civil year in the fall).  Scripture tells us that John was six months older than Jesus (Lk 1:36-37).  Since the early fourth century AD the Church has celebrated Jesus' birthday in a special Christ-Mass on December the 25^th and St. John's birthday six months earlier on June the 24^th. 

The "afternoon" Tamid service was an "evening" service for the Old Covenant people; the lamb was sacrificed at the ninth hour (3PM: Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, 14.4.3) and the liturgical service ended at about the eleventh hour (5PM).  The next day began at sundown and therefore from noon onwards until sundown the day descended into evening.

By: Fr. Alphonse Muema

Forty Days after the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Acts of the Apostles records Jesus' ascension into heaven. The ascension is an important Christian feast attesting and celebrating the reality of the God-Man Jesus Christ's returning to the Father, to return again in the future.

The Ascension is the final component of the paschal mystery, which consists also of Jesus' Passion, Crucifixion, Death, Burial, Descent  among the Dead, and Resurrection. Along with the resurrection, the ascension functioned as a proof of Jesus' claim that he was the Messiah.

The Ascension is also the event whereby humanity was taken into heaven. Finally, the ascension was also the "final blow" so-to-speak against Satan's power, and thus the lion (Jesus) conquering the dragon (Satan) is a symbol of the ascension. Early Christian art and iconography portrayed the ascension frequently, showing its importance to the early Church. The Catholic Catechism summarizes three important theological aspects (with which most Christian churches agree) of the Ascension concisely: Christ's Ascension marks the definitive entrance of Jesus' humanity into God's heavenly domain, whence he will come again (cf. Acts 1:11); this humanity in the meantime hides him from the eyes of men

(cf. Col 3:3).
Jesus Christ, the head of the Church, precedes us into the Father's glorious kingdom so that we, the members of his Body, may live in the hope of one day being with him for ever.
Jesus Christ, having entered the sanctuary of heaven once and for

all, intercedes constantly for us as the mediator who assures us of the permanent outpouring of the Holy Spirit .

The Paschal Candle (lighted at the Easter Vigil) which symbolizes the risen lord as the Light of the World, was extinguished on Ascension Day. 

In many Catholic dioceses, the Ascension is celebrated on the 7th Sunday of Easter, which is the Sunday following the traditional date. Likely, this is done to make it easier for the faithful to fulfill their obligation to attend Mass on this day.

By Rev. Fr. Benedict Mwavu.

The Lord has made His salvation known to the whole world”

Epiphany is the climax of the Advent/Christmas season.

Epiphany is Christian feast celebrating the “Shining forth” or revelation of God to humankind in human form in the person of Jesus Christ. Its observation finds its origins in the Eastern Christian churches and included the birth of Jesus Christ the visit of the three magi (the wisemen traditionally refered with names :Casper, Melchior and Balthasar), who arrived in Bethlehem and all of Jesus childhood events up to his baptism in the Jordan by John the Baptist.  After man and woman sinned, God did not abandon them to the power of death. Therefore through His loving providence, he determined that in the last days he would aid the world, which was in the verge of  destruction. In the persons of the Magi (from the east) let all people adore the creator of the universe, let God be known, not in Judea only but in the whole world so that his name may be great in all Israel.

Epiphany is the day prophesied by David in the Psalms that all the nations that you have brought into being will come and fall down in adoration in your presence, Lord, and glorify your name.  Again the Lord has made known His salvation in the sight of the nations he has revealed His justice. All these came to be fulfilled as we know from the time when the star beckoned the three Wise Men out of their distant country and led them to recognize and adore the King of heaven and the earth.

 May Christ the true light of the world guide us throughout this year, in our families, Vocations, church, villages, institutions and wherever we go. May he drive away from us all the darkness of sin that we may live as true sons and daughters in the light. Amen

Rev. Fr. Alfons Muema

Diocesan Communication Secretary.

 Let us make haste to our brethren who are waiting for us

Why should our praise and glorification, or even the celebration of this feast day mean anything to the saints? What do they care about earthly honours when their heavenly Father honours them by fulfilling the faithful promise of the Son? What does our commendation mean to them?

The saints have no need of honour from us; neither does our devotion add the slightest thing to what is theirs. Clearly if we venerate their memory, it serves us, not them. But I tell you, when I think of them, I feel myself inflamed by tremendous yearning.

Calling the saints to mind inspires, or rather arouses in us, above all else, a longing to enjoy their company, so desirable in itself.

We long to share in the citizenship of heaven, to dwell with the spirits of the blessed, to join the assembly of patriarchs, the ranks of the prophets, the council of apostles, the great host of martyrs, the noble company of confessors and the choir of virgins. In short, we long to be united in happiness with all the saints. But our dispositions change.

The Church of all the first followers of Christ awaits us, but we do nothing about it. The saints want us to be with them, and we are indifferent. The souls of the just await us, and we ignore them.

Come brothers and sisters let us at length spur ourselves on.

 We must rise again with Christ, we must seek the world which is above and set our mind on the things of heaven. Let us long for those who long for us, hasten to those who are waiting for us, and ask those who look for our coming to intercede for us. We should not only want to be with the saints, we should also hope to experience their happiness. While we desire to be in their company, we must also earnestly seek to share in their glory. Do not imagine that there is anything harmful in such an ambition as this; there is no danger in setting our hearts on such glory.

When we commemorate the saints we are inflamed with another yearning: that Christ our life may also appear to us as He appeared to them and that we may one day share in His Glory. Until then we see Him , not as He is , but as he became for our sake. He is our Head , crowned, not with glory but with thorns of our sins. As members of the head, crowned with thorns, we should be ashamed to live in luxury: his purple robes are a mockery rather than an honour. When Christ comes again, his death shall no longer be proclaimed, and we shall know that we also have died, and that our life is hidden with him.

The glorious head of the Church will appear and his glorified members will shine in splendor with him, when he forms this lowly body a new in to such glory as belongs to himself as head.

Therefore, we should aim at attaining this glory with a wholehearted and prudent desire.

That we may rightly hope and strive for such blessedness, we must above all seek the prayers of the saints. Thus, what is beyond our own powers to obtain will be granted through their intercession

ALL SOULS DAY

Let us die with Christ, to live with Christ

We see that, death is gain, life is loss. Paul says: “for me life is Christ and death a gain.”

What does “Christ” mean but to die in the body, and receive the breath of life?

Let us then die with Christ, to live with Christ. We should have a daily familiarity with death, a daily desire for death. By this kind of detachment our soul must learn to free itself from the desires of the body.

It must soar above earthly lusts or a place where they cannot come near, to hold it fast. It must take on the likeness of death, to avoid the punishment of death.

The law of our fallen nature is at war with the law of our reason and subjects the law of reason to the law of error. What is the remedy? Who will set me free from this dead body? The grace of God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

We have a doctor to heal us. Let us use the remedy he prescribes. The remedy is the grace of Christ, the dead body our own. Let us then be exiles from our body, so as not to exiles from Christ. Though we are still in the body, let us not reject the natural rights of the body, but we must desire before all else the gifts of grace. What more need be said: it was by death of one man that the world was redeemed.

Christ did not need to die if he did not want to, but he did not look on death as something to be despised, something to be avoided, and He has found no better means to save us than by dying. Thus His death is life for all. We are sealed with the sign of his death; when we pray and preach His death: when we offer sacrifice we proclaim his death. His death is victory: his death is a sacred sign: each year His death is celebrated with solemnity by the whole world. What more should we say about His death since we use this divine example to prove that it was His death alone that won freedom from death, and death itself was its own redeemer? Death is then no cause of mankind’s salvation. Death is not something to be avoided, for the Son of God did not think it beneath his dignity, nor did he seek to escape it.

Death was no part of nature: it became part of nature. God did not decree death from the beginning: he prescribed it as a remedy. Human life was condemned because of sins to unremitting labour and unbearable sorrow and so began to experience the burden of wretchedness.

There had to be a limit to its evils: death had to restore what life had forfeited. Without the assistance of grace, immorality is more of a burden than a blessing.

The soul has to turn away from the aimless paths of this life, from the defilement of an earthly body: it must reach out to those assemblies in heaven (though it is given only to the saints to be admitted to them) to sing the praises of God. We learn from Scripture how God’s praise is sung to the music of the harp: Great and wonderful are your deeds, Lord God Almighty: just and true are your ways, King of the nations. Who will not revere and glorify your name: You alone are holy: all nations will bow and worship before you. The soul must also desire to witness your nuptials, Jesus, and to see your bride escorted from earthly to heavenly realities, as all rejoice and sing: All flesh will come before you. No longer will bride be held in subjection through this passing world but will be made one with the spirit.

Above all else,  David prayed that he might see and gaze on this: one thing I have asked of the Lord, this I shall pray for: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, and see how gracious is the Lord.

By: Fr. Afons Muema

The harvest is rich, but the labourers are few”. Luke was born of a pagan family but later converted to Christianity, a Doctor who accompanied Paul on his second and third Missionary journeys. He stayed with him in Rome while Paul was in captivity. Luke wrote his Gospel in accordance with the Apostle’s preaching and also wrote the account of the early days of the church, up to the time of Paul’s First sojourn in Rome, in the book of the Acts of the Apostles.

From the preface to the Gospel, it indicates that Luke was not an eye witness or immediate disciple of the Lord; He himself states that he had carried out an extensive research and had written an orderly account about Jesus.  The extra – ordinary feature of Luke’s work is the presence of Acts, which conveys the distinctive and comprehensive perspectives of Luke – which is the actual fulfilling of the prophecies of Isaiah in the proclamation of the Gospel to the ends of the earth. This inclusion of the gentiles is often referred to as Luke’s Universalism or concern for all humanity (Lk: 2: 14, 24:47).

The Gospel according to St. Luke displays a keen interest in individuals, social out casts, women, children and social relationships especially situations involving poverty or wealth. The Gospel has special stress on prayer and the Holy Spirit which results in a striking note of Joyfulness and praise. These features tell us something about Luke as a person and his understanding of Christianity. Being a companion to Paul tells us that Luke was in Philippi (his home town) and that  he joined Paul on his way to Jerusalem and stayed with Philip at Caesarea (Acts 21: 1-18), then after Paul’s two years imprisonment in Caesarea, Luke sailed with him to Rome (Acts 27: 1 – 28: 16). Luke died at the age of 84 Years.

REFLECTIONS

From Luke’s Gospel, it is very clear that he valued those rejected, out casts and considered of low class. Do we value them in our society and come close to them like Jesus to assist them in their need? According to Luke, prayer and the presence of the Holy Spirit in oneself, results into Joyfulness and praise. What attitude do we have for prayer and does the Holy Spirit dwell in us such that we are moved to do good? Luke fulfilled the will of God in his life, then what is my purpose here on earth and what does God want me to do? “The harvest is rich and the labourers are few”. May the prayer of St. Luke strengthen us in our mission.

 By:  Fr. Alphonse K. Muema

St. Joseph was a simple village carpenter, the husband of Mary and guardian of the Child Jesus.   He has become the guardian and patron of Christ’s universal church. Being the foster father of our Lord Jesus Christ and husband to the Blessed Virgin Mary, he is said to have died in the first century.  All that is known of him for certain is contained in the gospel (Mt: 1-2, 13:55, Lk: 1-2, 4:22). 

He was of Davidic descent, but his trade as a carpenter shows us that he was betrothed to Mary at the time of the virgin birth, His doubt about her conception, the decisions to go to Egypt and return from Egypt were all the objects of a father and husband. By protection he offered to the Holy family and in the care and upbringing of the Jesus Christ.  Of great importance to learn from the life of St. Joseph is that God grants/gives his graces to his people according to their call, whenever the divine favour chooses someone to receive a special grace or to accept a lofty vocation, God adorns the person chosen with all the gifts of the spirit needed to fulfill the task at hand. 

St. Joseph was chosen by the eternal father as the trustworthy guardian and protector of His greatest treasures, namely his Divine Son, and Mary Joseph’s wife.  He carried out his vocation with complete fidelity until at last God called him saying; Good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord.  In the church, St. Joseph is the chosen one of God and one who is set apart. Because though him Christ was   honorably introduced into the world, in him, the Old Testament finds its fitting close. 

He brought the noble line of patriarch and prophets to its promised fulfillment, obviously, Christ does not now deny to Joseph that intimacy reverence and very high honour which He gave him on earth, as a son to his father.  Rather we must say that in heaven Christ completes and perfects all that he gave at Nazareth.

Now we can see how the last summoning wards of the Lord appropriately apply to St. Joseph, enter into the joy of your Lord.  Such words convey not only that this holy Man possesses an inward joy, but also that it surrounds him and engulfs him like an infinite abyss.

St. Joseph is the patron saint of all fathers of families, of bursars and procurators, of Manual workers especially carpenters and of all who desire a holy death.  Many churches, hospitals, religious Congregations and Christians are called and dedicated to Joseph – Happy Feast Day.

As we celebrate this feast day, we say:  Remember us St. Joseph and plead for us to your foster child.  Ask your most Holy bride, the Virgin Mary, to look kindly upon us, since she is the mother of him who with the father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns eternally – Amen.

Reflections

Like St. Joseph, have you taken your vocation serious to realize the will of God and accomplish it?

If we make a close examination of our lives, then, are we worthy to hear the words of Christ “enter into the Kingdom of your father?’

You have been called by God and set apart for a Mission, ask the Lord to know his will, make it yours and ask the strength to accomplish it as St. Joseph.

Rev. Fr. Alfonse Muema

Day Star University

During the presentation of the Lord, we celebrate the close of the Christmas festival of light.  In the celebration, candles are blessed and Christians carry them in procession to welcome Christ, who is the light to enlighten the gentiles and the glory of his people.  It is a device mystery where Christians hasten to meet Christ.

The lighted candles are a sign of the divine splendor of the one who comes to expect the dark shadows of evil and to make the whole universe radiant with the brilliance of his eternal light. Our Candles also show how bright our souls should be when we go to meet Christ.

The blessed virgin Mary, the Mother of God carried the true light in her arms and brought him to those who lay in darkness.  Therefore, we too should carry a light for all to see and reflect the radiance of the true light as we hasten to meet him.  That light which has come has shone upon a world enveloped in shadows; the dayspring from on high has visited us and given light to those who lived in darkness.  Being our celebration, we need to join the procession with lighted candles to reveal the light that has shone upon us and the glory that is yet to come to us through him.

That true light which has come, enlighten everyman who is born into this world.  Let’s share the splendor of this light and be so filled with it that no one remains in darkness.  Let us be shining ourselves as we go together to meet and to receive with the aged Simeon the light whose brilliance is eternal.  Just as Simeon sang the song of thanksgiving, we need to sing to God, the father of the light, who sent the true light to dispel the darkness and to give us all a share in his splendor.   

As Simeon was released from the bonds of this life when he had seen Christ, so we too were at once freed from our old state of sinfulness. By faith, we too embrace Christ, the salvation of God the father, as he came to us from Bethlehem.  Gentiles before, we have now belong to the people of God.  Our eyes have seen God incarnate, and because we have seen him present among us and have mentally relieved him into our arms, we are called the new Israel.

Reflections

Since our baptism, have we allowed Christ, the true light to shine upon our lives and lead us to our true home in heaven?

Having embraced that true light in our lives, do we allow it to spread its rays to others by enabling them to live meaningful lives.

Rev. Fr. Alphonse Muema

Day star University

"Joy to you, O Virgin Mary, Mother of the Lord".

When the Angel Gabriel visited Mary to announce to her that she was to bear Christ, she got shocked and the Gospel tells us that Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. Mary easily saw the will of God in all that was happening to her. She never got disappointed but knew how to "treasure and ponder" every thing and she was capable of discovering the loving plan of God in all that happened.

The Lord Jesus Christ took our nature from Mary. He had to take a body like ours. Mary was to provide him with that body of his own, which later was offered for our sake. When the Angel said to Mary "What will be born from you...." Makes us know by faith that her child originated within her and from her. God was not to introduce a body into her womb from outside.

By taking our nature and offering it in sacrifice, the Word was to destroy it completely and then renew it with His own nature and so prompt the apostle to say "this corruptible body must put on incorruption; this mortal body must put on immortality".

Our Saviour truly became man, and from this has followed the salvation of man as a whole. Therefore our salvation in no way fictious nor does it apply only to the body. The salvation of the whole man, (soul and body) has truly been achieved in the Word himself.

What was born of Mary was therefore human by nature, and the body of the Lord was a true body as ours. The words of St. John "The Word was made flesh", bear the same meaning. Man's body has acquired something great through its communion and union with the Word from mortal it has been made immortal. Though it was a living body, it has become a spiritual one; through it was made from the earth, it has passed through the gates of heaven.

Even when the Word takes a body from Mary, the Trinity remains a Trinity, with neither increase nor decrease, it is for ever perfect. In the Trinity we acknowledge one God Head, and thus one God, the Father of the Word, is proclaimed in the Church.

This celebration is dedicated to all Mothers. This is because Mary is a model of all Mothers. Her son was a man of peace; he spoke words and acted with love. He preached reconciliation and hope for others. Christian Mothers should know that they have a special mission, that of turning their children into peacemakers.

Reflections:

Like the Blessed Virgin Mary, how have we tasted God and especially when he made us know his will here on earth?

Has the Word of God that took flesh in the womb of Mary found a place in our hearts?

Fr. Alphonse K Muema
Day Star University

“Worthy is the lamb that was sacrificed, to receive power, riches, wisdom, strength, honor, glory and blessing” (Rev. 6:120) Christ the King is the Feast that Marks the end of liturgical year (34^th Sunday).  It is of great importance to note that this is a medieval feast which uses the metaphors of a “King” a powerful one in those days to describe the role of Jesus.  The Kingdom which Christ preached was that of His Father in heaven, a Kingdom which had always been there but which now (through Jesus) were beginning to recognize for the first time. 

The kingdom of Jesus Christ is summarized in the words of our Father.  Forgive us as we forgive no matter how many times we say that prayer, the meaning seems to allude us, we expected to be forgiven, but we don’t want to forgive.  Jesus proclaimed it clearly that, kingdom He came to preach is written within us, for the word of God is very near in our mouth and heart.

Therefore, Christians who pray for the coming of God’s Kingdom prays rightly to have it within themselves that it may grow and bear fruit and become perfect.  God’s Kingdom cannot exist along side the reign of Sins.

Therefore, if we wish God to reign in us, in no way should sin reign in our mortal body; rather we should mortify our members on earth and bear fruit in the spirit.  There should be in us a kind of spiritual paradise where God may walk and be our sole ruler with His Christ. All this can happen in us all, until the last enemy, death, can be destroyed, then Christ will say in us” Oh death, where is your sting?  O hell, where is your victory?  And so what is corruptible in us must be clothed in holiness and incorruptibility, and  what is mortal must be clothed, now that death has been conquered, in the fathers immortality, then God will reign in us and we shall enjoy even now the blessings of rebirth and resurrection.

Brethren, we give to God the father, who has made us worthy to be partakers of the lot of the Saints in light, who has delivered us from the power of darkness and has transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of his in whom we have redemption through his blood, the remission of sins, who is the image of the invisible God, the first born of every creature; for in him were all things created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, Whether thrones or dominations or prinupalities or powers.

All things were created by him and in Him and he is before all, and by him all things consists and he is the head of the body the church, who is the beginning, the first born from the dead, that in all things he may hold the primary; because in him it has well pleased the Father, that all fullness should dwell and through Him to reconcile all things unto Himself, making peace through the blood of his cross, both to the things that are on earth and things in heaven, in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Reflections:

How do we contribute to the growth of the Kingdom proclaimed by Jesus Christ?

What kind of God do we worship, is he the King and Lord of our lives?

Have we allowed Him to rule in our hearts, families, and villages? Then lets all fight the evil in the society through the power of Christ the King.

“We are sons and daughters of Christ the King”   

By Rev. Fr. Alphonse Muema K
Day Star University

It is very clear that from November onwards, it is impossible to forget that Christmas is coming in many countries.  This celebration of Christmas on December 25^th is a high point of the year.  Coloured lights decorate many town centers and shops, along with shiny decorations and artificial snow painted on shop windows.  In streets and shops Christmas trees will also be decorated with lights and Christmas ornaments. It is of great importance to know that since 400 AD, Christians have celebrated the birth of Jesus.  ‘Christ’ means ‘Messiah’ or ‘anointed one’ the title given to Jesus and ‘mass was a religious festival. 

The real Christmas story is found in the Christian bible.  It is told in the gospel of Mathew and Luke chapter 1 and 2.  These chapters tell how Jesus was born as a baby of many.  This was no ordinary birth since Mary was not married and a virgin.  An angel breaks the story to her.  When they had to travel from their home in Nazareth to Bethlehem to register their names with the ruling Roman Government, they probably escaped many hard words from other people.  Arrival in Bethlehem brought worry and upset because there was no room for them to stay in the hotel. 

 Jesus was born that right and as they had no bed for him, they used an animal feeding box, filled with the dry grass the animals ate.  This was a very poor place for Jesus to start his life on earth.  Christians believe that it was exactly God’s plan that things happen this way.  They say that it shows that Jesus came as a humble, poor person and not as a strong, rich king.  What is the real message of Christmas? The message is “that the word of God became flesh and dwelt among us.”  He was made man like us and lived among us to tell us about the Father, what we are for the father and his plan for us.  If we want to know the father,   we need to behold Christ, see what he does, listen to what he says and teachers, watch how he believes, the people he goes with, where he takes his meals and with whom, the persons he chooses,  those he rebukes and those he defends, because this is what the Father does.  Jesus makes the father visible.   Christmas reveals to us that God loves human kind. 

He is a God who likes human company, and saves rather than finishing.  As Christians, Christmas festival calls us to love other people just like the Father loves us, no hatred, jealousy, killing etc, “The word which became flesh” is also a light which overpowers darkness (sin).  Jesus is the beginning of a new creation.  Creation that is filled with the light of God, the darkness represent the forces of evil; sin, selfishness, exploitation, oppression, bribery, corruption, violence, hatred, unfaithfulness etc.  The light fights this darkness without doing away with it immediately, but the darkness cannot overpower the light.  Such a struggle will continue until the light will be fully victorious and this victory has already been assured by the resurrection of Christ.

Reflections

How have we prepared ourselves for the birth of Christ spiritually or will he be born in a dirty place? (Our hearts filled with evils)?  Are we ready to share with the other people what we have, as a sign of that love for which God lives humanity and we are called for the same? Let us allow Christ, the new star to show us the way to the Father.

Wishing you a Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year 2007.

 By Rev. Fr. Alphonse K. Muema

Day star University