SAINT OF THE DAY WEDNESDAY, 9 SEPTEMBER, 2026 SAINT PETER CLAVER CONFESSOR (June 26, 1581 - September 8, 1654) Peter was born of a distinguished family in Catalonia, Spain in 1581. He joined the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), and after his novitiate in Taragona was sent to the college of Montesione, at Palma in Majorca. There he met Brother Alphonse Rodriguez (also a saint), the humble porter of the convent. Alphonse set Peter's soul on fire to save the souls of the African slaves — thousands being lost because there was no one to minister to them. His superiors finally sent Peter to New Granada in April of 1610. He was never to return to his native Spain. By 1615 Peter finished his studies and was ordained a priest in Cartagena. When he made his final vows, he added a personal one: Peter, slave of the slaves for ever. Here in this busy seaport city, in a hot, humid, tropical climate, Father Claver spent most of his priestly life. Cartegena was the principal slave market for the New World. Thousands of blacks were brought there, herded into warehouses and auctioned to the highest bidder. Captured in Africa, these slaves were chained in groups of six and crammed into the lower holds of ships designed to hold 100-200, but holding 600-800 humans. Their treatment was so inhumane that 1/3 of the slaves died in the sea journey. It was to these people that Peter would minister. He would meet each slave ship as it arrived. Peter would go to the warehouses and bring them food, water, medicine and clothing, for, as he said "We must speak to them with our hands, before we try to speak to them with our lips". But most of all, he brought them God. While nursing them back to health, he would teach them of Christ, explain to them that they were loved by God more than they were abused by man, and that evil outraged God. He offered their only consolation: hope in the promises of God. Nearly three hundred thousand of them received baptism at his hands. After twenty-seven years of devotion to the black slaves, St. Peter Claver died at Cartagena on September 8, 1654. Leo XIII canonized him on January 15, 1888, proclaiming him special patron and protector of the negroes. St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, porter of the college, who inspired Peter to become a missionary for the slaves was canonized at the same time. PATRON: Against slavery; foreign missions; black people; race relations; Colombia; diocese of Shreveport, Louisiana; diocese of Lake Charles, Louisiana. PRAYER: O God, who made Saint Peter Claver a slave of slaves and strengthened him with wonder charity and patience as he came to their help, grant, through his intercession, that, seeking the things of Jesus Christ, we may love our neighbor in deeds and in truth. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
How wonderful to see that St Peter took care of these poor slaves. I wonder sometimes about our Fellow Catholics who supported slavery and even kept slaves themselves. They went to Mass, they read the Bible , they had the teachings of the Church but still they were slavers. I suppose it all had to do with money. It reminds me that we as societies can suffer from a real communal blindness in seeing the truth. It is not that long ago , for instance, that black people in various parts of the World were refused admittance to Catholic seminaries and Catholic schools. It is a young Catholic priest who says the Mass every morning here in Spain and the three novice nuns are all from Africa. Sp strange but nice. What else as Catholics have we and are we being blind about as a Church? I suppose one of them is Clerical sexual abuse. Another would be homosexual priests, Bishops , Cardinals and (maybe) Popes. Another thing we may be blind to as a Church is the Great Apostacy, that many if not most of those who rule over us are no longer Catholics and are building a False Church. Psalm 119:18: "Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from Your law."
SAINT OF THE DAY THURSDAY, 10 SEPTEMBER, 2026 SAINT NICHOLAS OF TOLENTINO CONFESSOR (1245 - September 10, 1305) Nicholas was born in 1245, in answer to the prayer of his holy mother. The same mother vowed him, before his birth, to the service of God. Nicholas' parents had made a pilgrimage to the shrine of Saint Nicholas of Myre and had asked his intercession to obtain a child; the infant granted them was given the same name in his honor. St. Nicholas of Tolentino never lost his baptismal innocence. His austerities as a very young religious were conspicuous even in the austere Order to which he belonged, the Hermits of Saint Augustine. To the remonstrances of his superiors he only replied, How can I be said to fast, while every morning at the altar I receive my God? The demons undertook a war against his spirit of prayer, going so far as to beat him and leave him inert on the floor, but they could not separate his soul from his Lord. He did, however, remain lame for life. He conceived an ardent charity for the holy souls of purgatory, so near and yet so far from their Saviour. Often, after his Mass, it was revealed to him that the souls for whom he had offered the Holy Sacrifice had been admitted to the presence of God. He received visions, including images of Purgatory, which friends ascribed to his lengthy fasts. He had a great devotion to the recently dead, praying for the souls in Purgatory as he traveled around his parish, and often late into the night. Like many of the saints, Nicholas received from God a particular calling. It was not to feed the poor, although he did, nor to be zealous for the salvation of souls, although he was. His call was to help the Holy Souls in Purgatory. St. Nicholas had a great love for the Holy Souls. He would offer Mass, pray and do penance for them so they could more quickly enter Heaven. On a certain Saturday night as he lay in bed, Nicholas heard the voice of someone who identified himself as Fra Pellegrino of Osimo, a deceased friar whom Nicholas had known. Fra Pellegrino revealed that he was in Purgatory and begged Nicholas to offer Mass for him and for other suffering souls so that they might be set free. For the next seven days Nicholas did so and was rewarded with a second vision in which the deceased confrère expressed his gratitude and assurance that a great number of people were now enjoying the presence of God through Nicholas' prayers. As this event became known, many people approached Nicholas, asking his intercession on behalf of their own deceased relatives and friends. Saint Nicholas frequently went out of his monastery to beg for aid to the poor. He visited prisoners and the dying to administer the Last Sacraments. And this great Saint resurrected over one hundred children, on one occasion bringing back to life several who had been under water for several days. During an illness, he was ordered to eat meat by a physician, which he had made a vow never to do. A plate containing well-prepared fowl was brought to him. In the presence of several witnesses, he made the sign of the cross over it, and the bird flew away out the window. During the year preceding his death, a star always appeared over the altar where he said his Mass; afterwards it would conduct him to his cell, or lead him back again, later, to the altar. Amid his loving labors for God and man, he was haunted by thoughts of his own unworthiness. The heavens, said he, are not pure in the sight of Him whom I serve; how then shall I, a sinful man, stand before Him? One day, as he pondered on the greatness of God and his own nothingness, Mary, Queen of all Saints, appeared before him. Fear not, Nicholas, She said, all is well with you: My Son bears you in His Heart, and I am your protection. Then his soul was at rest.At the hour of his death, which occurred on September 10, he heard, it is said, the songs which the Angels sing in the presence of their Lord. He died and was buried in the chapel where he was accustomed to offer Holy Mass and say his prayers. He was canonized in 1446 by Pope Eugene IV. Three hundred and one miracles were recognized during the process. His tomb has become renowned by many more, despite the fact that his relics have been lost, save for two arms from which blood still exudes when the Church is menaced by a great danger. This occurred, for example, when the island of Cyprus was taken over by infidels in 1570. The religious of Saint Augustine continue to maintain the service of the large basilica of Saint Nicholas in Tolentino. Saint Nicholas of Tolentino, like Saint Joseph, virginal father of Jesus, has been declared a Patron of the Universal Church. PATRON: Lost souls; mariners; infants; animals; dying people; souls in purgatory. PRAYER: Assist us mercifully, O Lord, in these our supplications which we make before Thee on the feast of blessed Nicholas, thy holy Confessor: that we, who put not our trust in our own righteousness, may be succoured by the prayers of him that found favour in thy sight. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who being God, lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen. PRAYER FOR THE DECEASED BY ST. NICHOLAS: Lord, God of holiness and light. You do not allow any shadow of darkness or evil in your sight, and so in your mercy you grant to those who have left this world burdened with sin, a time of purification, applying to them the spiritual treasurers of your holy Church. Hear my prayer and through the merits of Christ, the Blessed Virgin, the saints, and all your faithful people bring to an end this time of waiting for our beloved dead, especially . In your providence you have chosen Saint Nicholas as a special intercessor on behalf of the departed. Hear also his fervent prayer for those whom I recommend to you through his intercession. Amen.
I so love the Saints who had special devotion to the Holy Souls. All Catholics should have such a Devotion, they say that above all else our very first acts of Charity should be towards the Holy Souls. I had a dream last night. I dreamt a man with a shirt and trousers that looked like he came from the 18th or nineteenth centuries stood before me. He looked slightly blackened as though covered slightly in soot and was in a cell where he was locked as though in prison. In the dream I asked him if he suffered very much and he said only as much as people suffer when they mourn someone they love very much. I was praying for a priest who died recently and he came to urgently asking prayers as he was suffering very much where he was. But it did not last long. A brief purgatory is very much to be hoped for no matter how sore.
SAINTS OF THE DAY FRIDAY, 11 SEPTEMBER, 2026 SAINTS PROTUS AND HYACINTH MARTYRS (3rd CENTURY AD) The story of most martyrs of the first three centuries is so obscured by legend that it is difficult for us to cull out the historical kernel; this is true of today's saints. Tradition tells us that the brothers Protus and Hyacinth were chamberlains to the holy virgin Eugenia (listed as a martyr on December 25 in the Roman Martyrology) and were baptized along with their patron by Bishop Helenus. They devoted themselves zealously to the study of Sacred Scripture and lived for a time with the hermits in Egypt, illustrious for humility and holiness of life. At a later date they accompanied Eugenia to Rome and were arrested by Emperor Gallienus (260-268) for their profession of the Christian faith. In no manner could they be persuaded to deny the faith or worship the gods. Accordingly, after an inhuman scourging, they were beheaded on September 11. Veneration of the two martyrs in the Church of Rome dates to venerable antiquity. Ancient registers contain their names, Pope Damasus praises them in verse at the end of the age of martyrs. The cemetery of Basilla marked the site of their graves; relics of St. Hyacinth were discovered there in 1845 and now are honored in the chapel of the Propaganda. PRAYER: May the glorious profession of faith of your blessed martyrs Protus and Hyacinth strengthen us, O Lord, and may the power of their intercession shield us. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who being God, lives and reigns with You in the unity of the same Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.
Scourging is a terrible, terrible thing. I often think of it when praying the sorrowful mystery. It was so severe that people very often died of it because their insides fell out. Very naturally people who are being whipped turn yo the front in order to spare their back and they get whipped on the front as well. The poor victim totally relies on the mercy of the one doing the whipping and mercy is very often not given. How much more terrible when it is a woman rather than a man who is the victim. Very often it is clear that the person doing this is possessed, a human demon. No mercy can be expected from a demon. Yet, incredibly, they kept the Faith. Would we?
FEAST OF THE DAY SATURDAY, 12 SEPTEMBER, 2026 MOST HOLY NAME OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY In accordance with Jewish custom our Lady's parents named her eight days after her birth, and were inspired to call her Mary. The feast of the Holy Name of Mary therefore follows that of her Birthday, as the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus follows Christmas. The feast originated in Spain and was approved by the Holy See in 1513; Innocent XI extended its observance to the whole Church in 1683 in thanksgiving to our Lady for the victory on September 12, 1683 by John Sobieski, king of Poland, over the Turks, who were besieging Vienna and threatening the West. This day was commemorated in Vienna by creating a new kind of pastry and shaping it in the form of the Turkish half-moon. It was eaten along with coffee which was part of the booty from the Turks. The ancient Onomastica Sacra have preserved the meanings ascribed to Mary's name by the early Christian writers and perpetuated by the Greek Fathers. "Bitter Sea," "Myrrh of the Sea," "The Light Giver," "The Enlightened One," "Lady," "Seal of the Lord," and "Mother of the Lord" are the principal interpretations. These etymologies suppose that the Hebrew form of the name is Maryãm, not Miryãm. From the time of St. Jerome until the 16th century, preferred interpretations of Mary's name in the West were "Lady," "Bitter Sea," "The Light Giver," and especially "Star of the Sea." Stella Maris was by far the favored interpretation. The revival of Hebraic studies, which accompanied the Renaissance, led to a more critical appraisal of the meanings assigned to Our Lady's name. Miryãm has all the appearance of a genuine Hebrew name, and no solid reason has been discovered to warrant rejecting the Semitic origin of the word. The Hebrew name of Mary, Miryãm, (in Latin Domina) means lady or sovereign; this Mary is in virtue of her Son's sovereign authority as Lord of the World. We call Mary our Lady as we call Jesus our Lord, and when we pronounce her name we affirm her power, implore her aid and place ourselves under her protection. ST. BONAVENTURE SAYS ON THE MOST HOLY NAME OF MARY: “That thy name, O Mary, cannot be pronounced without bringing some grace to him who does so devoutly… Grant, O Lady, that we may often remember to name thee with love and confidence; for this practice either shows the possession of divine grace, or else is a pledge that we shall soon recover it.” “That Mary is the salvation of all who call upon her.” THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY TOLD ST. BRIDGET OF SWEDEN: “that there is not on earth a sinner, however devoid he may be of the love of God, from whom the devil is not obliged immediately to fly, if he invokes her holy name with a determination to repent.” “that all the devils venerate and fear her name to such a degree, that on hearing it they immediately loosen the claws with which they hold the soul captive.” “that in the same way as the rebel angels fly from sinners who invoke the name of Mary, so also do the good angels approach nearer to just souls who pronounce her name with devotion.” JESUS SPOKE TO SAINT BRIDGET SAYING THAT HIS MOST BLESSED MOTHER WOULD GRANT 3 SPECIAL GRACES TO THOSE WHO INVOKE HER HOLY NAME WITH CONFIDENCE: That He would grant them perfect sorrow for their sins. That their crimes should be atoned for. That He would give them strength to attain perfection, and at length the glory of paradise. And Jesus further added, “For thy words, O My Mother, are so sweet and agreeable to Me, that I cannot deny what thou askest.” SAINT ALPHONSUS MARY DI LIGUORI ASSERTED: “In every danger of forfeiting divine grace, we should think of Mary, and invoke her name, together with that of Jesus; for these two names always go together. O, then, never let us permit these two most sweet names to leave our hearts, or be off our lips; for they will give us strength not only not to yield, but to conquer all our temptations.” WE MUST KNOW THAT TO SAY THE MOST HOLY NAME OF MARY IS A PRAYER IN ITSELF. THOMAS À KEMPIS, A PRIEST, MONK, AND WRITER OF THE POPULAR BOOK THE IMITATION OF CHRIST, SAID THAT “The invocation of the sacred names of Jesus and Mary is a short prayer which is as sweet to the mind, and as powerful to protect those who use it against the enemies of their salvation, as it is easy to remember.” SAINT BONAVENTURE EXCLAIMED THAT “Blessed is the man who loves thy name, O Mary. Yes, truly blessed is he who loves thy sweet name, O Mother of God! For thy name is so glorious and admirable, that no one who remembers it has any fears at the hour of death.” PATRON: People named Stella Maris, Estelle, Astrid, Astra, Muriel or Mary. PRAYER: Grant, we pray, almighty God, that, for all who celebrate the glorious Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary, she may obtain your merciful favor. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
'Miryam', 'exalted one', is such a perfect name for the Queen of Heaven. She abased herself in humility and God raised her up. The perfect example for us all. “... the three divine Persons had decreed and formulated, since eternity, the sweetest names of Jesus and Mary for the Son and the Mother; and they were pleased with them, keeping them sculpted in their eternal mind, and present in all the things to which they had given existence, since for their service they had created them. As the holy angels came to know these and other mysteries, they heard a voice from the throne, which, in the person of the eternal Father, said: Our chosen one shall be called Mary and this name is to be powerful and magnificent. Those that shall invoke it with devout affection shall receive the most abundant graces. Those that shall honour and pronounce it with reverence shall be consoled and vivified and will find in it the remedy of their evils, the treasures for their enrichment, the light that will guide them to Heaven. It shall be terrible against the powers of hell. It will crush the head of the serpent and it shall win glorious victories over the princes of hell”. Ven Mary of Agreda
"Today we celebrate the feast of the "Most Holy Name of Mary". To all those women who bear that name - my own mother and my sister were among them, - I offer my heartfelt good wishes for their feast day. Mary, the Mother of the Lord, has received from the faithful the title of Advocate: she is our advocate before God. And this is how we see her, from the wedding-feast of Cana onwards: as a woman who is kindly, filled with maternal concern and love, a woman who is attentive to the needs of others and, out of desire to help them, brings those needs before the Lord. The Lord gave Mary as a Mother to the beloved disciple and, in him, to all of us. In every age, Christians have received with gratitude this legacy of Jesus, and, in their recourse to his Mother, they have always found the security and confident hope which gives them joy in God and makes us joyful in our faith in him. May we too receive Mary as the lodestar guiding our lives, introducing us into the great family of God! Truly, those who believe are never alone!" Pope Benedict XVI, 12 September 2006.
SAINT OF THE DAY SUNDAY, 13 SEPTEMBER, 2026 SAINT JOHN CHRYSOSTOM BISHOP, CONFESSOR, FATHER AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH (c. 349 - September 14, 407) John Chrysostom was the son of a Latin father and a Greek mother; his mother, Anthusa, was widowed at the age of twenty, soon after his birth. Putting aside all thought of remarriage, Anthusa gave all of her attention to her son: she gave him the best classical education of the day, and enrolled him as a catechumen when he was eighteen. He came under the influence of Meletius, patriarch of Antioch, who sent him to the monastic school of Diodore, then baptized him and ordained him lector. At this time, St. John Chrysostom decided to take his future into his own hands and became a monk-hermit, living in a cave, studying the Scriptures, and putting himself under the discipline of an old hermit named Hesychius. However, his health broke under this austere regimen and he returned to Antioch, was ordained a priest, and began his remarkable career as a preacher. During the next twelve years, he electrified Antioch with his fiery sermons, filled with a knowledge and an eloquence that were astonishing. It was during this period that he received the nickname Chrysostom, or golden mouth, for his words seemed to be pure gold. In 397, when the see of Constantinople became vacant, the Emperor Arcadius appointed John patriarch, and since it was feared that he would refuse the honor, he was lured to Constantinople and consecrated bishop of the city in 398. John found himself in a nest of political intrigue, fraud, extravagance, and naked ambition. He curbed expenses, gave lavishly to the poor, built hospitals, reformed the clergy, and restored monastic discipline. But his program of reform made him enemies, in particular the Empress Eudoxia and the Patriarch Theophilus of Alexandria. The city in turmoil, his life threatened, John was exiled by the emperor in the year 404. The papal envoys were imprisoned, and John — defended by the pope and ordered restored to his see — was sent further into exile, six hundred miles from Constantinople, across the Black Sea. Worn out and sick, he died of his hardships at Comana in Pontus. His last words were, "Glory to God for all things." PATRON: Constantinople; epilepsy; orators; preachers. PRAYER: O God, strength of those who hope in you, who willed that the Bishop Saint John Chrysostom should be illustrious by his wonderful eloquence and his experience of suffering, grant us, we pray, that, instructed by his teachings, we may be strengthened through the example of his invincible patience. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Poor St John was murdered for telling the Truth to power. It was the Empress in particular had it in for him. It reminds me of Herodias who plotted and schemed to have John the Baptist killed. The anger of a evil powerful woman is very much to be feared. So many evil women are in positions of huge power at the moment. For instance , 'Catholic' Governor Maura Healy who recently brought in murder of the unborn up to birth and laughed with joy as she did so. I always thought if I had choice of a evil man or an evil woman being after me I would choose a evil man. An evil man might forget or be distracted in his hate. Evil homosexual men can be the same way. Never forgetting, implacable , relentless. The fact that the Vatican in full of homosexual men explains a lot of what is going on there at the minute. As well so many homosexual Bishops and Cardinals. All of them by definition, evil. If St John Chrysostom was alive today it would be an exact replay. He would tell the truth about what is going on in the Vatican. The homosexual, modernist clergy there would throw a fit and of the poor saint would go into exile once again as they do to anyone who tells the truth to power. It's so interesting what he had to say about the Jews:
FEAST OF THE DAY MONDAY, 14 SEPTEMBER, 2026 EXALTATION OF THE HOLY CROSS This day is also called the Exaltation of the Cross, Elevation of the Cross, Holy Cross Day, Holy Rood Day, or Roodmas. The liturgy of the Cross is a triumphant liturgy. When Moses lifted up the bronze serpent over the people, it was a foreshadowing of the salvation through Jesus when He was lifted up on the Cross. In the year 627, during the reign of the emperor Heraclius I of Constantinople, the Persians conquered the city of Jerusalem and removed from its venerable Sanctuary the major part of the true Cross of Our Lord, which Saint Helen, mother of the emperor Constantine, had left there after discovering it on Calvary. The emperor resolved to win back by combat this precious object, the new Ark of the Covenant for the new people of God. Before he left Constantinople with his army, Heraclius went to the church wearing black in the spirit of penance; he prostrated himself before the altar and begged God to sustain his courage. And on leaving he took with him a miraculous image of the Saviour, determined to combat with it even unto death. Heaven visibly assisted the valiant emperor, for his army won victory after victory. One of the conditions of the peace treaty was the return of the Cross of Our Lord, in the same condition as when it was removed. Heraclius on his return was received in Constantinople by the acclamations of the people; with olive branches and torches, they went out to meet him. And the true Cross was honored, on this occasion, in a magnificent triumph. The emperor wished to give thanks to God by going in person to Jerusalem to return this sacred wood, which had been in the power of the pagans for fourteen years. When he reached the Holy City, he placed the precious relic on his shoulders, but when he came to the gate leading out to Calvary, it became impossible for him to go forward. He was greatly astonished, and those in attendance were stupefied. Take care, O Emperor! said the Patriarch Zachary to him. Certainly the imperial clothing you are wearing does not sufficiently resemble the poor and humiliated condition of Jesus carrying His cross. Heraclius was touched on hearing this; he removed his shoes and his imperial robes, adorned with gold and jewels. Wearing a poor man's tunic, he was able to go up to Calvary and depose there his glorious burden. To give greater brilliance to this triumphant march, God permitted several miracles to occur by the power of the Cross of Christ. A dead man returned to life, four paralytics were cured; ten lepers recovered their health and fifteen blind persons their sight; many possessed persons were delivered from the evil spirit, and a large number of sick persons were completely cured. In those days the greatest power of the Catholic world was the Empire of the East, and that bulwark against the eastern pagans was verging toward its ruin, before God put forth His hand to save it in this way. The re-establishment of the Cross at Jerusalem, by means of the emperor's Christian valor, was a sure pledge of its protection. It was after these events that the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross was instituted, to perpetuate their memory in the Church. Our Mother Church sings of the triumph of the Cross, the instrument of our redemption. To follow Christ we must take up His cross, follow Him and become obedient until death, even if it means death on the cross. We identify with Christ on the Cross and become co-redeemers, sharing in His cross. We made the Sign of the Cross before prayer which helps to fix our minds and hearts to God. After prayer we make the Sign of the Cross to keep close to God. During trials and temptations our strength and protection is the Sign of the Cross. At Baptism we are sealed with the Sign of the Cross, signifying the fullness of redemption and that we belong to Christ. Let us look to the cross frequently, and realize that when we make the Sign of the Cross we give our entire self to God — mind, soul, heart, body, will, thoughts. O CROSS, YOU ARE THE GLORIOUS SIGN OF VICTORY. THROUGH YOUR POWER MAY WE SHARE IN THE TRIUMPH OF CHRIST JESUS. PRAYER: O God, who willed that your Only Begotten Son should undergo the Cross to save the human race, grant, we pray, that we, who have known his mystery on earth, may merit the grace of his redemption in heaven. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
I have the most lovely Cross on my wall before me now which my parents got as a wedding present I would guess about 75 years ago. Every time I look at a Cross my heart beats a little faster so I suppose it is exalted in my heart. If we were to shorten all we know and believe as Catholics in one image it would be the Cross. They say that for the first few centuries of Christianity there were no Crosses. This was because it was still such a scandal that Jesus died on the Cross it actually offended people. At night times for many years I have had a large brass crucifix I hold in my hands, rather like a little child might hold onto a Teddy bear. The nights can be a time of struggle and night mares. Rather like a little ship in a stormy sea and the Crucifix is such a light house in the storms. It is such a strange thing but the old Vampire films the Cross was shown as a Signal Weapon against evil. I don;t suppose this is an accident as the author of the original Dracula was an Irish guy, Bram Stoker who was Church of Ireland would have been very familiar with the Crucifix. It is no accident that when Protestant clergymen encounter the praeternatural they turn to Catholic priests and exorcists and they in turn turn to the Cross. I love those old vampire films!!
Protestants around here sanitize the cross. No body of Christ on it just plain wood. Bishop Sheen was very precise about the Crucifix snd : "the Man on the Cross". He said it began at Calvary --this desire to not have a Cross. " Come down off that Cross and we will believe in you." And so it has been throughout the ages since.
Padraig, I also love the old vampire films, in fact I just watched Salems lot not too long ago. They had the Crucifix and Holy water to destroy them and garlic lol. For lon Chaney Jr, as the Werewolf, they had a silver bullet, blessed, I'm pretty sure, by the Pope. At least we had reassurances of God's power and might. Movies today don't give us that armor. That wonderful fact that God wins.
