From: rich <
richarra@gmail.com>
September 16th - Pope Saint Cornelius
(died 253)
Pope Saint Cornelius was a leader during a difficult time, and
eventual martyr of the Church. Pope Saint Cornelius ascended to the
Chair of Peter following a 14 year absence of papal authority (during
which time the Church was governed by a committee of bishops) during
the harsh persecution of Christians by Emperor Decius. To ascend to
the papacy at that time was almost a certain death sentence, but
Cornelius, although reluctant, obediently accepted his calling. Like
so many before him, his efforts to unite the Church, welcoming back
the many strayed souls through penance, allowed the faith to grow
despite inhospitable conditions.
Decius himself is reported to have said that he would prefer to have a
rival emperor in Rome, as opposed to the pope. His hatred of
Christians was so extreme that while he was in full control of his
government, there was little chance for a replacement to martyred Pope
Fabian to be elected. Eventually, Decius became distracted by rebels
attacking his empire, and the fledgling Christian community (estimated
at 50,000 congregants, 46 priests, 7 deacons, 7 subdeacons, 42
acolytes, and 52 clerics) elected Cornelius. He was a Roman bishop, a
man of strong mind and character. Little more is known of him prior to
his papacy.
At his elevation to pope, Cornelius was declared "by the judgment of
God and of Christ, by the testimony of almost all the clergy, by the
vote of the people then present, by the consent of aged priests and of
good men, at a time when no one had been made before him, when the
place of Fabian, that is the place of Peter, and the step of the
sacerdotal chair were vacant." Saint Cyprian, an African bishop (whose
feast is also celebrated today) wrote: "What fortitude in his
acceptance of the episcopate, what strength of mind, what firmness of
faith, that he took his seat intrepid in the sacerdotal chair, at a
time when the tyrant in his hatred of bishops was making unspeakable
threats, when he heard with far more patience that a rival prince was
arising against him, than that a bishop of God was appointed at Rome=E2=80=
=A6
Is he not to be numbered among the glorious confessors and martyrs who
sat so long awaiting the sword or the cross or the stake and every
other torture?=E2=80=9D
The years of Christian persecution had left the Church on unsteady
ground. Many of the faithful had wavered, weakly denying their faith, sacrificing to idols, or bribing officials to say that they had=E2=80=94all=
to
escape imprisonment and death. With the persecution over, these lapsed Christians returned to the Church, seeking forgiveness and wishing to
gain readmission to the congregation. Cornelius was criticized and
attacked from both sides=E2=80=94from those who felt that allowing these individuals back into the Church was too lax a stance (rigorists), and
those who would readmit anyone without sufficient penance (laxists)
The papal declarations and orders that Cornelius enacted to ensure
that proper confessions and penances were undertaken were met with
opposition, namely from a Roman bishop named Novatian, who eventually
declared himself the first antipope. This set up the Novatian schism,
which lasted for approximately two centuries. During this time, Pope
Saint Cornelius upheld the unity of the Church, and fairly and justly
worked toward the saving of the souls of those who had strayed.
Despite it being a time of great upheaval, the Church steadily grew
under his unwavering influence, and the heretical attacks of the
Novatians were defended against.
With Emperor Decius replaced by Trebonianus Gallus, the persecution of Christians returned=E2=80=94this time in response to a plague which spread through Rome, a plague that was blamed upon the Christians. Due to the restorative work that Cornelius had undertaken in the intervening
years, the practice of apostasy (renouncing the faith) was not
repeated by the congregation this time, who stood firm in their faith
and beliefs. Throughout the persecution, Pope Saint Cornelius kept the
Roman Christians in high morale, and was eventually exiled to Centum
Cellae, where he was martyred in 253.
Pope Saint Cornelius is one of many of the great early leaders of the
Church who withstood persecution from both within and without the
ranks of the faithful. Outnumbered and outflanked, he maintained a
rigorous moral course marked by equity and justice for all=E2=80=94practici=
ng
the rules of forgiveness and reconciliation as modeled by Jesus. His
leadership prepared the faithful for further persecution, and in the
process, ensured the salvation of their souls through their reaffirmed
faith. We pray today, on the feast of Pope Saint Cornelius, for a
steady and unwavering faith despite the many obstacles we encounter in
our daily lives.
During his papacy, Cornelius was assisted and supported by Saint
Cyprian the Bishop of Carthage. Below, one of the letters sent to Pope
Saint Cornelius by Saint Cyprian:
by Jacob
Saint Quote:
So we must either love or die, because he who does not love remains a
dead person.
--St. Francis de Sales
Bible Quote:
"But I am poor and needy; Make haste to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O Lord, do not delay." [Psalm 70:5]
<><><><>
Like fishermen--we are called to gather in people for the kingdom of Christ
When Jesus preached the gospel message he called others to follow as
his disciples and he gave them a mission--"to catch people for the
kingdom of God." What kind of disciples did he choose? Smelly
fishermen! In the choice of the first apostles we see a characteristic
feature of Jesus' work: he chose very ordinary people. They were non-professionals, had no wealth or position. They were chosen from
the common people who did ordinary things, had no special education,
and no social advantages. Jesus wanted ordinary people who could take
an assignment and do it extraordinarily well. He chose these
individuals, not for what they were, but for what they would be
capable of becoming under his direction and power.
When the Lord calls us to serve, we must not think we have nothing
to offer. The Lord takes what ordinary people, like us, can offer and
uses it for greatness in his kingdom. Do you believe that God wants to
work in and through you for his glory?
--- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
* Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4)