Jun 22 – Memorial for St. Paulinus of Nola, bishop; Memorial for St. John Fisher, Bishop & St. Thomas More, martyrs
Paulinus (c.354–431) was a friend of St. Augustine of Hippo, and St. Nicetas of Remesiana, and was mentioned for his holiness by at least six of his contemporary saints.
He was a distinguished lawyer who held several public offices in the Empire, then retired from public ministry with his wife, Therasia, first to Bordeaux, where they were baptised, and then to Therasia’s estate in Spain. After the death of their only son at the age of only a few weeks, the couple decided to spend the rest of their lives devoted to God. They gave away most of their estates and dedicated themselves to increasing their holiness.
Paulinus became a priest and with Therasia, moved to Nola and gave away the rest of their property. They dedicated themselves to helping the poor. Paulinus was chosen bishop of Nola by popular demand. He governed the diocese for more than 21 years while living in his own home as a monk and continuing to aid the poor. His writings contain one of the earliest examples of a Christian wedding song.
- Patron Saint Index
John Fisher (1469–1535) studied theology at Cambridge University, receiving degrees in 1487 and 1491. He was parish priest in Northallerton, England from 1491–1494. He gained a reputation for his teaching abilities. He was proctor of Cambridge University. He was confessor to Margaret Beaufort, mother of King Henry VII, in 1497. He was ordained Bishop of Rochester, England in 1504; he worked to raise the standard of preaching in his see. He became chancellor of Cambridge. He was tutor of the young King Henry VIII. He was an excellent speaker and writer.
When in 1527 he was asked to study the problem of Henry’s marriage, he became the target of Henry’s wrath by defending the validity of the marriage and rejecting Henry’s claim to be head of the Church in England. He was imprisoned in 1534 for his opposition, and he spent 14 months in prison without trial. While in prison, he was created cardinal in 1535 by Pope Paul III. He was martyred for his faith.
- Patron Saint Index
Thomas More (1478–1535) studied at London and Oxford, England. He was a page for the Archbishop of Canterbury. He was a lawyer. Twice married, and a widower, he was the father of one son and three daughters, and a devoted family man. He was a writer, most famously of the novel which coined the word ‘utopia’. It was translated with the works of Lucian.
He was known during his own day for his scholarship and the depth of his knowledge. He was a friend to King Henry VIII, and Lord Chancellor of England from 1529–1532, a position of political power second only to the king.
He fought any form of heresy, especially the incursion of Protestantism into England. He opposed the king on the matter of royal divorce, and refused to swear the Oath of Supremacy which declared the king the head of the Church in England. He resigned the Chancellorship, and was imprisoned in the Tower of London. He was martyred for his refusal to bend his religious beliefs to the king’s political needs.
- Patron Saint Index
2 Chr 24:17-25
Mt 6:24-34
Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself.
Worrying is a very crippling activity. At work, I’ve seen countless projects unnecessarily delayed because of worries. Even if people have prepared more than enough, there is still something to worry about. There is a point where no amount of planning can compensate for the delay caused by worrying, because answers will only be known once the plan is put in motion.
Worrying is just as crippling in our personal life. How many decisions or activities have we postponed because we have worried so much? Can things really get that bad? Maybe a few things here and there, but if we have taken reasonable preparation, we can be sure that almost all things that didn’t go well were things we could not do anything about. Those are things that are out of our control. That’s why it’s so good that God assured us that he is in control, that he will take care of us.
Every moment, God is inviting us to truly live in the present. That’s what worrying is preventing us from. We worry about hundreds of things that may go wrong when most of the time, things don’t go wrong. So instead of us enjoying the present God has given us, we become filled with anxiety. That’s why God tells us not to worry because he has things under control. It’s in his hands.
For some, worrying has become a habit. Once it has become a habit, it becomes difficult not to be anxious. How do we break free from this habit? Of course, we need to ask God to teach us how to trust him so we don’t worry. This is where I am really humbled by people who have very little financial means. I hesitate to refer to them as poor because while they are financially poor, they are some of the spiritually richest people I’ve met in my life! They would probably have so many things to worry about, but you can hear the resounding trust in their voices. And because of that, they enjoy a good night’s sleep.
And maybe, we can ask God for a trust phrase. It’s a phrase we can repeat as a prayer of trust to God — Jesus take the wheel. I lift everything in your hands. Lord, you know what’s good. Or maybe we can derive inspiration from Pope St John XXIII’s night time prayer: He tells God that he has done his best, and that the Catholic Church is God’s Church so he should take care of it. Once we have this trust phrase, let’s pray it whenever worry creeps in.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Stephanie Villa)
Prayer: Lord, please help me discover a trust phrase. (Repeat your trust phrase three times).
Thanksgiving: Thank you, Lord, for being with me so I don’t have to worry.
OXYGEN 
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