A Carpe Diem Snapshot:
This morning Pope Francis issued a new Encyclical, Dilexit Nos, on the Human and Divine Love of the Heart of Jesus Christ. I knew right away that this would be the feature of today's Snapshot, and so, later in the day, headed to my favorite church dedicated to the Sacred Heart in Rome, Sacro Cuore del Suffragio in Prati, along Lungotevere. By the time I arrived it was already six in the evening and the church was virtually empty. A few minutes later, I was surprised to see our residential director and two students walk through the door, having their own "Carpe Diem" moment, but being unaware of the link with today's encyclical announcement. They had come to see something else that draws in visitors during the months of October and November-- the Purgatory museum. Although the church was named for the Sacred Heart before the purgatory museum was put together by a parish priest, it's an ideal pairing.
Brothers and sisters:
I kneel before the Father,
from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,
that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory
to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self,
and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith;
that you, rooted and grounded in love,
may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones
what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge,
so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Bishop Barron's Gospel reflections today.
Sanctoral: St. Anthony Mary Claret
Anthony was born at Salent in the Diocese of Vich in Catalonia, Spain, in the year in which Napoleon invaded Spain. He was trained for manual labor, since his father was a weaver, but in 1829 he entered the seminary at Vich. Ordained to the priesthood in 1835, he was assigned as pastor in his home parish. Later he went to Rome to work for the Propagation of the Faith. He also entered the novitiate of the Jesuits but had to leave because of ill health, so he returned to Spain and was assigned as pastor of a parish. His apostolate consisted of rural preaching, conferences for the clergy and publications (he wrote more than 150 books). Because of his successful apostolate he aroused the animosity of some of the clergy and as a result he left Catalonia for the Canary Islands (1848). After a year he returned to Catalonia and resumed his preaching apostolate.
In 1849 Anthony gathered together five priests who formed the basis of the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (popularly known as Claretians). At the suggestion of the Queen of Spain, Isabella II, Anthony was named archbishop of Santiago, Cuba (1850). For the next seven years he made pastoral visitations, preached against the slavery of the Negroes, and regularized numerous marriages. As a result of his activity he was frequently threatened with death and on one occasion an attempt was actually made on his life. In 1857 he was recalled to Spain as confessor to the queen. In this way he was able to exert some influence in the naming of bishops, set up a center of ecclesiastical studies at the Escorial, and work towards the recognition of religious orders in Spain. In 1869 he was in Rome, preparing for the First Vatican Council. He followed Isabella II into exile and at the insistence of the Spanish ambassador, was placed under house arrest in the Cistercian monastery at Fontfroide, where he died at the age of 63. His remains were ultimately returned to Vich.
—Excerpted from Saints of the Roman Calendar by Enzo Lodi
An audio on his interesting and international life can be found here.
Human: 79 AD – the eruption of Vesuvius destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum. The volcanic ash which flooded Pompeii, perfectly preserved buildings and objects, which allowed us to get to know quite accurately the appearance of a Roman medium-sized city and the lives of its inhabitants. At that time, Pliny the Elder, a Roman writer and historian, was killed. Other suggested date of eruption is 24th of August.
51 AD – Domitian, Roman emperor, second son of Vespasian and the last member of the Flavian dynasty was born. During his reign he took the title of perpetual censor. He took part in the wars in Britain, Germania and against the Dacians. He contributed to the expansion of the defense system along the Danube and the Rhine. He wanted to introduce absolute power, which along with suspiciousness and proclivity for violence led to his murder.
The Writer's Almanac edition today.
Natural: First photos of Earth taken from space– 1946
Italian: Matita (pencil)
Quote: The heart appears as the locus of desire and the place where important decisions take shape. In Plato, the heart serves, as it were, to unite the rational and instinctive aspects of the person, since the impulses of both the higher faculties and the passions were thought to pass through the veins that converge in the heart. From ancient times, then, there has been an appreciation of the fact that human beings are not simply a sum of different skills, but a unity of body and soul with a coordinating centre that provides a backdrop of meaning and direction to all that a person experiences. --Pope Francis, Dilexit Nos
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