Oct 14 – Memorial for St. Callistus I, Pope and Martyr
St. Callistus (d. 223) was born a slave, owned by Carpophorus, a Christian in the household of Caesar. His master entrusted a large sum to Callistus to open a bank, which took in several deposits, made several loans to people who refused to pay them back, and went broke. Knowing he would be personally blamed and punished, Callistus fled, but was caught and returned to his owner. Several depositers begged for his life, believing that he had not lost the money, but had stolen and hid it.
They were wrong; he wasn’t a thief, just a victim, but he was sentenced to work the tin mines. By a quirk of Roman law, the ownership of Callistus was transferred from Carpophorus to the state, and when he was later ransomed out of his sentence with a number of other Christians, he became a free man. Pope St. Zephyrinus put Callistus in charge of the Roman public burial grounds, today still called the Cemetery of Saint Callistus. He later became an archdeacon and the 16th pope.
Most of what we know about him has come down to us from his critics, including an anti-Pope of the day. He was, on more than one occasion, accused of heresy for such actions as permitting a return to Communion for sinners who had repented and done penance, or for proclaiming that differences in economic classes were no barrier to marriage.
This last put him in conflict with Roman civil law, but he stated that in matters concerning the Church and the sacraments, Church law trumped civil law. In both cases he taught what the Church has taught for centuries, including today, and though a whole host of schismatics wrote against him, his crime seems to have been to practice orthodox Christianity. He was martyred for his faith.
- Patron Saint Index
Gal 4:22-24,26-27,31-5:1
Lk 11:29-32
…when Jonah preached they repented.
It seems natural, as people, to look out for signs at various points in our lives. They could help with one’s indecision, serve as motivators to proceed with a course of action, or could make one feel better or worse about things. When it comes to faith in God, the signs could be interpreted in a very black-and-white manner. If a greatly desired miracle happens against all odds, then God must exist. If a great loss occurs that brings about immense suffering and grief, then God must not exist. Even if He does, He does not care, or He is not listening.
In the gospel reading for today, Jesus had just performed a miracle of driving out a demon from a mute person. Even after witnessing the miracle, the crowd demanded a sign from Him, wanting to test Him and refusing to accept Jesus as the Messiah. In response to hostile first-century Jews who cannot recognise their salvation when He is standing right among them, Jesus says that the people of that generation will only receive the sign of Jonah. Jonah was a prophet who reluctantly accepted his mission of preaching a message of doom to the people of Nineveh, which was the capital city of the ancient Assyrian empire, an enemy of Israel. At Jonah’s words, the king of Nineveh proclaimed a city-wide fast and repentance, which led to the people being spared by God. Such is the sign of Jonah — the message of conversion and repentance as we die to sinful ways and embrace a new life in Christ.
In my youth, I spent several years struggling with my belief in the existence of God. I was being told about Him, but lacked tangible encounters with God, causing my faith to be superficial at best. As I went along in my journey with various faith communities, opening myself to experiencing the love of God and learning to rely on Him through times of struggle and suffering, I somehow went past the stage of doubting in His existence. A deep, inner conversion of heart had taken place. Although I obviously still experience weakness in my faith, I don’t question whether God is there or whether He loves me. I know the problem lies with me and my tendency to rely on myself, rather than on God, in times of difficulty and temptation.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Edith Koh)
Prayer: We pray that as believers in Christ, we will not need to rely on signs to affirm our basic faith that Jesus is our light and our salvation.
Thanksgiving: We give thanks for the steadfast, gratuitous love of God.
OXYGEN 
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