Monday, January 21, 2019

Jan 21 - St Agnes


+ St. Agnes was one of the most popular saints of the early Church. At age 12, during the persecution of Diocletian, she was ordered to sacrifice to pagan gods and lose her virginity by rape. She made the Sign of the Cross and then was threatened and tortured when she refused to turn against the One God. Several young men presented themselves, offering to marry her (some out of pity to save her life), but she said that to do so would be an insult to her heavenly Spouse, and that she would keep her consecrated virginity intact, accept death, and see Christ. She was martyred then (the exact method is not known) on January 21, 304 at Rome. She became immediately popular as a model Christian during this very difficult time in Church history. Her name is mentioned in the First Eucharist Prayer – the Roman Canon.



On her feast day two lambs are blessed at her church in Rome, Italy and then their wool is woven into the palliums (bands of white wool) which the pope confers on newly appointed archbishops as a symbol of their jurisdiction. Her name means lamb, chaste or pure one.



The gospel passage tells of the treasure and the pearl of great price that are worth all we have to obtain them: both the treasure and the pearl represent all that goes with being a fully committed member of the Kingdom of Heaven: members of Christ the most treasured One of all: the heavenly Spouse who will live very happily forever with all of us one day, after we, like St. Agnes, suffer all that still needs to be suffered in order to perfect his Church and thus make it fully presentable on the Last Day.



May we boast in the Lord today, who strengthens us to do what we need to be righteous, holy and redeemed people of God.


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