Saint Benedict Medal

Traditional Catholic Latin Exorcism and Blessing of Saint Benedict’s Medal.

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One of the greatest protectors against the assaults of the devil is the St. Benedict’s Medal. In order for it to have this power over the devil, it needs to be exorcised and blessed. The Latin Exorcism and Blessing is:
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V. Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini.
R. Qui fecit caelum et terram.
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Exorcizo vos, numismata, per Deum + Patrem omnipotentem, qui fecit caelum et terram, mare et omnia, quae in eis sunt. Omnis virtus adversarii, omnis exercitus diaboli, et omnis incursus, omne phantasma satanae, eradicare et effugare, ab his numismatibus: ut fiant omnibus, qui eis usuri sunt, salus mentis et corporis: in nomine Patris + omnipotentis, et Jesu + Christi Filii ejus, Domini nostri, et Spiritus + Sancti Paracliti, et in caritate ejusdem Domini nostri Jesu Christi, qui venturus est judicare vivos et mortuos, et saeculum per ignem. R. Amen.
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V. Domine exaudi orationem meam.
R. Et clamor meus ad te veniat.
V. Dominus vobiscum.
R. Et cum spiritu tuo.
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Oremus: Deus omnipotens, bonorum omnium largitor, supplices te rogamus, ut per intercessionem sancti Benedicti his sacris numismatibus tuam beneditionem + infundas, ut omnes qui ea gestaverint ac bonis operibus intenti fuerint, sanitatem mentis et corporis, et gratiam sanctificationis, atque indulgentias (nobis) concessas consequi mereantur, omnesque diaboli insidias et fraudes, per auxilium misericordiae tuae, studeant devitare et in conspectu tuo sancti et immaculati valeant apparere. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. R. Amen.
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Then the medal is sprinkled with Holy Water.
medgrev

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This is the blessing in English:
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V. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
R. Who made heaven and earth.
In the name of God the Father + Who made heaven and earth, the seas and all that is in them, I exorcise this medal against the power and attacks of the evil one. May all who use this medal devoutly be blessed with health of soul and body. In the name of the Father + almighty, of the Son + Jesus Christ our lord, and of the Holy + Spirit the Paraclete, and in the love of the same Lord Jesus Christ Who will come on the last day to judge the living and the dead, and the world by fire. Amen.
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Let us pray: Almighty God, the boundless source of all good things, we humbly ask that, through the intercession of St. Benedict, Thou pour out Thy blessings + upon this medal. May those who use it devoutly and earnestly strive to perform good works, be blessed by Thee with health of soul and body, the grace of a holy life, and remission of the temporal punishment due to sin. May they also with the help of Thy merciful love, resist the temptation of the evil one and strive to exercise true charity and justice toward all, so that one day they may appear sinless and holy in Thy sight. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen.
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(Then medal is sprinkled with Holy Water).
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When asking for the St. Benedict medal to be blessed, many priests and people do not know that it needs to be exorcised and blessed with this prayer. Most priests just bless it in the form of a cross. So when you ask for your medal to be blessed, be sure to print up this blessing to have on hand and take Exorcised Holy Water along with you. The priest may not want to do it in Latin so have the English one ready too.
It is a big sacrifice for us priests to continually be interrupted to do blessings, especially long blessings. But that is what we are here for, to save souls and sanctify things. Try to ask for the exorcism and blessing when you see that the priest is a little free.
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Many times the St. Benedict’s medal is in a crucifix. The crucifix has to be blessed too. Here is that blessing:
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V. Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini.
R. Qui fecit caelum et terram.
V. Dominus vobiscum.
R. Et cum spiritu tuo.
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Oremus: Rogamus te, Domine sancte, pater omnipotens, aeterne Deus: ut digneris benedicere + hoc signum Crucis, ut sit remedium salutare generi humano; sit soliditas fidei, profectus bonorum operum, redemptio animarum; sit solamen, et protectio, ac tutela contra saeva jacula inimicorum. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. R. Amen.
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Oremus: Benedic, + Domine Jesu Christe, hanc Crucem, per quam eripuisti mundum a potestate daemonum, et superasti passione tua suggestorem peccati, qui gaudebat in praevaricatione primi hominis per ligni vetiti sumptionem. (Hic aspergatur aqua benedicta). Santificetur hoc signum Crucis in nomine Patris + et Filii + et Spiritus + Sancti; ut orantes, inclinantesque se propter Dominum ante istam Crucem, inveniant corporis et animae sanitatem. Per eumdem Christum Dominum nostrum. R. Amen.

Prayer of St. Benedict of Nursia.
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O Lord, I place myself in Thy hands and dedicate myself to Thee. I pledge myself to do Thy will in all things: To love the Lord God with all my heart, all my soul, all my strength. Not to kill. Not to steal. Not to covet. Not to bear false witness. To honor all persons. Not to do to another what I would not wish done to myself. To chastise the body. Not to seek after pleasures. To love fasting. To relieve the poor. To clothe the naked. To visit the sick. To bury the dead. To help in trouble. To console the sorrowing. To hold myself aloof from worldly ways. To prefer nothing to the love of Christ. Not to give way to anger. Not to foster a desire for revenge. Not to entertain deceit in the heart. Not to make a false peace. Not to forsake charity. Not to swear, lest I swear falsely. To speak the truth with heart and tongue. Not to return evil for evil. To do no injury: yea, even to bear patiently any injury done to me. To love my enemies. Not to curse those who curse me, but rather to bless them. To bear persecution for justice’ sake. Not to be proud. Not to be given to intoxicating drink. Not to be an over-eater. Not to be lazy. Not to be slothful. Not to be a murmured. Not to be a detractor. To put my trust in God. To refer the good I see in myself to God. To refer any evil in myself to myself. To fear the Day of Judgment. To be in dread of hell. To desire eternal life with spiritual longing. To keep death before my eyes daily. To keep constant watch over my actions. To remember that God sees me everywhere. To call upon Christ for defense against evil thoughts that arises in my heart. To guard my tongue against wicked speech. To avoid much speaking. To avoid idle talk. To read only what is good to read. To look at only what is good to see. To pray often. To ask forgiveness daily for my sins, and to seek ways to amend my life. To obey my superiors in all things rightful. Not to desire to be thought holy, but to seek holiness. To fulfill the commandments of God by good works. To love chastity. To hate no one. Not to be jealous or envious of anyone. Not to love strife. Not to love pride. To honor the aged. To pray for my enemies. To make peace after a quarrel, before the setting of the sun. Never to despair of Thy mercy, O God of Mercy. Amen.

The Twelve Degrees of Humility According to St. Benedict:
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The first degree of humility, then, is that a person keep the fear of God before his eyes and beware of ever forgetting it. Let him be ever mindful of all that God has commanded; let his thoughts constantly recur to the hell-fire which will burn for their sins those who despise God, and to the life everlasting which is prepared for those who fear him. […] Let a man consider that God is always look at him from heaven, that his actions are everywhere visible to the divine eyes and are constantly being reported to God by the Angels.
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The second degree of humility is that a person love not his own will nor take pleasure in satisfying his desires, but model his actions on the saying of the Lord, I have come not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me.
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The third degree of humility is that a person for love of God submit himself to his Superior in all obedience, imitating the Lord, of whom the Apostle says, He became obedient even unto death.
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The fourth degree of humility is that he hold fast to patience with a silent mind when in this obedience he meets with difficulties and contradictions and even any kind of injustice, enduring all without growing weary or running away.
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The fifth degree of humility is that he hid from his Abbot none of the evil thoughts that enter his heart or the sins committed in secret, but that he humbly confess them.
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The sixth degree of humility is that a monk be content with the poorest and worst of everything, and that in every occupation assigned him, he consider himself a bad and worthless workman.
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The seventh degree of humility is that he consider himself lower and of less account than anyone else, and this not only in verbal protestation but also with the most heartfelt inner conviction.
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The eighth degree of humility is that a monk do nothing except what is commended by the common Rule of the monastery and the example of the elders.
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The ninth degree of humility is that a monk restrain his tongue and keep silence, not speaking until he is questioned.
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The tenth degree of humility is that he be not ready and quick to laugh.
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The eleventh degree of humility is that when a monk speaks he do so gently and without laughter, humbly and seriously, in few and sensible words, and the he be not noisy in his speech.
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The twelfth degree of humility is that a monk not only have humility in his heart but also by his very appearance make it always manifest to those who see him. That is to say that whether he is at the Work of God, in the oratory, in the monastery, in the garden, on the road, in the fields or anywhere else, and whether sitting, walking or standing, he should always have his head bowed and his eyes toward the ground.
Having climbed all these steps of humility, therefore, the monk will presently come to that perfect love of God which casts out fear. And all those precepts which formerly he had not observed without fear, he will now begin to keep by reason of that love, without any effort, as though naturally and by habit. No longer will his motive be the fear of hell, but rather the love of Christ, good habit and delight in the virtues which the Lord will deign to show forth by the Holy Spirit in his servant now cleansed from vice and sin.
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From the Holy Rule of St. Benedict, chapter VII. On Humility.

March 21 Saint Benedict of Nursia (Benedict of Narsia, Benedict of Norsia, Benedetto da Norcia, Founder of Western Monasticism): Father of Western Monasticism:
(480-543)
Patronage
Against poison
Against witchcraft
Agricultural workers
Cavers
Civil engineers
Coppersmiths
Dying people
Erysipelas
Europe
Farmers
Fever
Gall stones
Heerdt (Germany)
Heraldry and Officers of arms
the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest
Inflammatory diseases
Italian architects
Kidney disease
Monks
Nettle rash
Norcia, (Italy)
People in religious orders
Schoolchildren
Servants who have broken their master’s belongings
Speliologists (those who study caves)
Spelunkers
Temptations
Saint Benedict, blessed by grace as his prophetic name seemed to foretell, was born of a noble Italian family in Umbria, in the year 480. As a boy he showed great inclination for virtue, and maturity in his actions. He was sent to Rome at the age of seven, to be placed in the public schools. At the age of fourteen, alarmed by the licentiousness of the Roman youth, he fled to the desert mountains of Subiaco, forty miles from Rome, and was directed by the Holy Spirit into a deep, craggy, and almost inaccessible cave, since known as the Holy Grotto. He lived there for three years, unknown to anyone save a holy monk named Romanus, who clothed him with the monastic habit and brought him food.
He was eventually discovered, when, one Easter day, God advised a priest who lived about four miles from there, to take food to His servant, who was starving. The priest searched in the hills and finally found the solitary, and they took their meal together. Some shepherds also knew of his retreat, and soon the fame of this hermit’s sanctity began to spread. The demon persecuted him, but to no avail; when a temptation of the flesh assailed him, he rolled in a clump of thorns and nettles, and came out of it covered with blood but sound in spirit.
Disciples came to him, and under his direction, numerous monasteries were founded. The rigor of the rule he drew up, however, brought upon him the hatred of some of the monks, and one of them mixed poison with the Abbot’s drink. When the Saint made the sign of the cross on the poisoned bowl, it broke and fell in pieces to the ground.
Saint Benedict resurrected a boy whose father pleaded for that miracle, saying Give me back my son! He replied, Such miracles are not for us to work, but for the blessed apostles! Why will you lay upon me a burden which my weakness cannot bear? But finally, moved by compassion, he prostrated himself upon the body of the child, and prayed: Behold not, O Lord, my sins, but the faith of this man, and restore the soul which Thou hast taken away! And the child rose up, and walked to the waiting arms of his father. When a monk lost the iron head of his axe in a river, the Abbot told him to throw the handle in after it, and it rose from the river bed to resume its former place.
Six days before his death, Saint Benedict ordered his grave to be prepared, then fell ill of a fever. On the sixth day he asked to be carried to the chapel, and, having received the sacred Body and Blood of Christ, with hands uplifted and leaning on one of his disciples, he calmly expired in prayer, on the 21st of March, 543.
Reflection. The Saints never feared to undertake any work for God, however arduous, because distrusting self they relied for assistance and support wholly upon prayer.
Eternal Father, I wish to honor St. Benedict, and I give Thee thanks for all the graces Thou hast bestowed upon him. I ask Thee to please increase grace in my soul through the merits of this saint, and I commit the end of my life to him by this special prayer, so that by virtue of Thy goodness and promise, St. Benedict might be my advocate and provide whatever is needed at that hour. Amen.

How St. Benedict Overcame a Great Temptation of the Flesh.
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Upon a certain day being alone, the tempter was at hand: for a little black bird, commonly called a merle or an ousel, began to fly about his face, and that so near as the holy man, if he would, might have taken it with his hand: but after he had blessed himself with the sign of the cross, the bird flew away: and forthwith the holy man was assaulted with such a terrible temptation of the flesh, as he never felt the like in all his life.
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A certain woman there was which some time he had seen, the memory of which the wicked spirit put into his mind, and by the representation of her did so mightily inflame with concupiscence the soul of God’s servant, which did so increase that, almost overcome with pleasure, he was of mind to have forsaken the wilderness. But, suddenly assisted with God’s grace, he came to himself; and seeing many thick briers and nettle bushes to grow hard by, off he cast his apparel, and threw himself into the midst of them, and there wallowed so long that, when he rose up, all his flesh was pitifully torn: and so by the wounds of his body, he cured the wounds of his soul, in that he turned pleasure into pain, and by the outward burning of extreme smart, quenched that fire which, being nourished before with the fuel of carnal cogitations, did inwardly burn in his soul: and by this means he overcame the sin, because he made a change of the fire.
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From which time forward, as himself did afterward report unto his disciples, he found all temptation of pleasure so subdued, that he never felt any such thing. Many after this began to abandon the world, and to become his scholars. For being now freed from the vice of temptation, worthily and with great reason is he made a master of virtue: for which cause, in Exodus, commandment is given by Moses that the Levites from five-and-twenty years and upward should serve, but, after they came to fifty, that they should be ordained keepers of the holy vessels.

March 21 Saint Benedict, Abbot: From The Liturgical Year by Dom Prosper Louis Paschal Guéranger, O.S.B., 1904. . White Greater Double. . Forty days after the white dove of Cassino had mounted to heaven, Benedict, her glorious Brother, ascended by a bright path to the blissful abode where they were to be united forever. Both of them reached the heavenly country during that portion of the year which corresponds with the holy Season of Lent. It frequently happens, however, that St. Scholastica’s feast is kept before Lent has begun; whereas St. Benedict’s day, the twenty-first of March, always comes during the Season of Penance. God, Who is the Sovereign Master of time, willed that the Faithful, while practicing their exercises of penance, should always have before their eyes a Saint whose example and intercession should inspire them with courage. . With what profound veneration ought we not to celebrate the Festival of this wonderful Saint who, as St. Gregory says, “was filled with the spirit of all the Just!” If we consider his virtues, we find nothing superior in the annals of perfection presented to our admiration by the Church. Love of God and man, humility, the gift of prayer, dominion over the passions—form him into a masterpiece of the grace of the Holy Ghost. Miracles seem to constitute his life: he cures the sick, commands the elements, casts out devils, and raises the dead to life. The spirit of prophecy unfolds futurity to him; and the most intimate thoughts of men are not too distant for the eye of his mind to scan. These superhuman qualifications are heightened by a sweet majesty, a serene gravity, and a tender charity which shine in every page of his wonderful life; and it is one of his holiest children who wrote it, St. Gregory the Great. It is this holy Pope and Doctor who had the honor of telling posterity all the wonders which God vouchsafed to work in his servant Benedict. . Yes, posterity had a right to know the life and virtues of a man whose salutary influence upon the Church and society has been so observable during the ages of the Christian era. To describe the influence exercised by the spirit of St. Benedict, we should have to transcribe the annals of all the nations of the Western Church, from the 7th century down to our own times. Benedict is the Father of Europe. By his Benedictines, numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sands of the seashore, he rescued the last remnants of Roman vigor from the total annihilation threatened by the invasion of Barbarians; he presided over the establishment of the public and private laws of those nations which grew out of the ruins of the Roman Empire; he carried the Gospel and civilization into England, Germany, and the Northern countries, including Sclavonia; he taught agriculture; he put an end to slavery; and to conclude, he saved the precious deposit of the arts and sciences from the tempest which would have swept them from the world, and would have left mankind a prey to a gloomy and fatal ignorance. . And Benedict did all this by that little book which we call his “Rule.” This admirable code of Christian perfection and prudence disciplined the countless legions of Religious, by whom the Holy Patriarch achieved all these prodigies. During the ages which preceded the promulgation of this “Rule,”—so wonderful in its simple eloquence—the Monastic Life in the Western Church had produced some few saintly men; but there was nothing to justify the hope that this kind of life would become, even more than it had been in the East, the principal means of the Christian regeneration and civilization of so many nations. This “Rule” once written—and all others gradually give place to it, as the stars are eclipsed when the sun has risen. The West was peopled with Monasteries; and from these Monasteries flowed upon Europe all those blessing which have made it the privileged quarter of the globe. . An incredible number of Saints, both men and women, who look up to Benedict as their Father, purify and sanctify the world, which had not yet emerged from the state of semi-barbarism. A long series of Popes, who had once been Novices in the Benedictine Cloister, preside over the destinies of this new world, and form for it a new legislation which, being based exclusively on the moral law, is to avert the threatening prevalence of brutal despotism. Bishops innumerable, trained in the same School of Benedict, consolidate this moral legislation in the provinces and cities over which they are appointed. The Apostles of twenty barbarous nations confront their fierce and savage tribes and, with the Gospel in one hand and the “Rule” of their Holy Father in the other, lead them into the fold of Christ. For many centuries, the learned men, the Doctors of the Church and the instructors of you, belong almost exclusively to the Order of the great Patriarch, who by the labors of his children pours forth on the people the purest beauty of light and truth. This choir of heroes in every virtue, of Popes, of Bishops, of Apostles, of holy Doctors, proclaiming themselves as his Disciples, and joining with the universal Church in glorifying that God whose holiness and power shine forth so brightly in the life and actions of Benedict—what a corona, what an aureola of glory for one Saint to have! . Let us now read the sketch of his life, as given us in the Liturgy. . Benedictus, Nursiæ nobili genere ortus, Romæ liberalibus disciplinis eruditus, ut totum se Jesu Christo daret, ad eum locum qui Sublacus dicitur, in altissimam speluncam penetravit: in qua sic per triennium delituit, ut unus id sciret Romanus monachus, quo ad vitæ necessitatem ministro utebatur. Dum igitur ei quadam die ardentes ad libidinem faces a diabolo subjicerentur, se in vepribus tamdiu volutavit, dum lacerato corpore, voluptatis sensus dolore opprimeretur. Sed jam erumpente ex illis latebris fama ejus sanctitatis, quidam monachi se illi instituendos tradiderunt: quorum vivendi licentia cum ejus objurgationes ferre non posset, venenum in potione ei dare constituunt. Verum poculum ei præbentibus, crucis signo vas confregit, ac relicto monasterio in solitudinem se recepit. . Benedict was born of a noble family at Nursia. He was sent to Rome, that he might receive a liberal education; but not long after, he withdrew to a place called Subiaco, and there his himself in a very deep cave, that he might give himself entirely to Jesus Christ. He passed three years in that retirement, unknown to all save to a Monk, by name Romanus, who supplied him with the necessaries of life. The devil having one day excited him to a violent temptation of impurity, he rolled himself amidst prickly brambles, and extinguished within himself the desire of carnal pleasure by the pain he thus endured. The fame of his sanctity, however, became known beyond the limits of his hiding place, and certain monks put themselves under his guidance. He sharply rebuked them for their wicked lives; which rebuke so irritated them, that they resolved to put poison in his drink. Having made the sign of the Cross over the cup as they proffered it to him, it broke, and he, leaving that monastery, returned to his solitude. . Sed cum multi ad eum quotidie discipluli convenirent, duodecim monasteria ædificavit, eaque sanctissimis legibus communivit. Postea Cassinum migravit, ubi simulacrum Apollinis, qui adhuc ibi colebatur, comminuit, aram evertit, et lucis succendit: ibique sancti Martini sacellum et sancti Joannis ædiculam exstruxit: oppidanos autem et incolas christianis præceptis imbuit. Quare augebatur in dies magis divina gratia Benedictus, ut etiam prophetico spiritu ventura prædiceret. Quod ubi accepit Totila Gothorum rex, exploraturus an res ita esset, spatharium suum regio ornatu et comitatu præmittit, qui se regem simularet. Quem ut ille vidit: Depone, inquit, fili, depone quod geris; nam tuum non est. Totilæ vero prædixit adventum ejus in Urbem, maris transmissionem, et post novem annos mortem. . But whereas many daily came to him, beseeching him to take them as his disciples, he built twelve monasteries, and drew up the most admirable rules for their government. He afterwards went to Monte Cassino, where he destroyed an image of Apollo, which was still adored in those parts; and having pulled down the altar and burnt the groves, he built a chapel, in that same place, in honor of St. Martin, and another in honor of St. John. He instructed the inhabitants in the Christian religion. Day by day did Benedict advance in the grace of God, and he also foretold, in a spirit of prophecy, what was to take place. Totila, the King of the Goths, having heard of this, and being anxious to know if it were the truth, went to visit him; but first sent his sword-bearer, who was to pretend that he was the king, and who, for this end, was dressed in royal robes and accompanied by attendants. As soon as Benedict saw him, he said: “Put off, my son, put off this dress, for it is not thine.” But he foretold to Totila, that he would reach Rome, cross the sea, and die at the end of nine years. . Qui aliquot mensibus antequam e vita migraret, præmonuit discipulos quo die esset moriturus: ac sepulchrum, in quo suum corpus condi vellet, sex diebus antequam eo inferretur, aperiri jussit: sextoque die deferri voluit in ecclesiam: ubi sumpta Eucharistia, sublatis in cœlum oculis orans, inter manus discipulorum efflavit animam: quam duo monachi euntem in cœlum viderunt pallio ornatam pretiossimo, circum eam fulgentibus lampadibus, et clarissima et gravissima specie virum stantem supra caput ipsius dicentem audierunt: Hæc est via, qua dilectus Domini Benedictus in cœlum ascendit. . Several months before he departed from this life, he foretold to his disciples the day on which he should die. Six days previous to his death, he ordered the to open the sepulchre wherein he wished to be buried. On the sixth day, he desired to be carried to the Church, and there having received the Eucharist, with his eyes raised in prayer towards heaven, and held up by his disciples, he breathed forth his soul. Two monks saw it ascending to heaven, adorned with a most precious robe, and surrounded by shining lights. They also saw a most beautiful and venerable man, who stood above the saint’s head, and they heard him thus speak: “This is the way, whereby Benedict, the beloved of the Lord, ascended to heaven.” . The Benedictine Order celebrates the praises of its illustrious Patriarch in these three Hymns: . . 1st Hymn . Laudibus cives resonent canoris, Tampla solemnes modulentur hymnos; Hac die summi Benedictus arcem Scandit Olympi. . Let the Faithful give forth their songs of praise; let our Temples echo with solemn hymns: for on this day, Benedict ascended to the highest heavens. . Ille florentes peragebat annos, Cum puer dulcis patriæ penates Liquit, et solus latuit silenti Contidus antro. . When a boy, and in the flower of youth, he left his sweet home, and hid himself from the sight of all in a lonely cave. . Inter urticas rigidosque sentes Vicit altricem scelerum juventam: Inde conscripsit documenta vitæ Pulchra beatæ. . He conquered the passions of youth by rolling amidst nettles and prickly thorns. After this, he wrote a beautiful Rule of a holy life. . Æream turpis Clarii figuram, Et nemus stravit Veneri dicatum, Atque Baptistæ posuit sacrato Monte sacellum. . He destroyed a brazen statue of the vile Apollo, and a grave that was sacred to Venus: and on the holy mount, he built an oratory in honor of the Baptist. . Jamque felici residens Olympo, Inter ardentes Seraphim catervas, Spectat, et dulci reficit clientum Corda liquore. . Now he dwells in the happy land above, amidst the burning Seraphim: he looks down on those that invoke him, and refreshes their hearts with a nectar of sweetness. . Gloria Patri, genitæque Proli, Et tibi, compar utriusque semper Spiritus alme, Deus unus, omni Tempore sæcli. Amen. . Glory be to the Father, and to the Son that is Begotten of Him! To Thee, also, O Spirit of Love, co-equal with them, One God, be glory for endless ages. Amen. . . 2nd Hymn . Quidquid antique cecinere Vates, Quidquia æternæ monimenta legis, Continet nobis celebranda summi Vita Monarchæ. . All that the ancient Prophets preached, and all that the books of the Divine Law tell us of holiness, is contained in the life of the great Patriarch, which we are now extolling. . Extulit Mosen pietas benignum, Inclytum proles Abraham decorat, Isaac sponsæ decus, et severi Jussa parentis. . Moses was celebrated for his meekness; Abraham, for his being Father of all believers; Isaac for the beauty of his Spouse, and his obedience to the trying commands of his father. . Ipse virtutum cumulis onustus, Celsior nostri Patriarcha cœtus Isaac, Mosen, Abraham sub uno Pectore clausit. . The sublime Patriarch of our Family was richly laden with every virtue; and in his single self, represented Isaac, Moses, and Abraham. . Ipse, quos mundi rapuit procellis, Hic pius flatu statuat secundo, Pax ubi nullo, requiesque gliscit Mista pavore. . May he have a loving care of those whom he has delivered from this stormy world, and lead them with prosperous gales to the port, where there is no fear that can ruffle Peace and repose. . Gloria Patri, genitæque Proli, Et tibi compar utiusque semper Spiritus alme, Deus unus, omni Tempore sæcli. Amen. . Glory be to the Father, and to the Son that is Begotten of him! To thee, also, O Spirit of Love, co-equal with them, One God, be glory for endless ages. Amen. . The third Hymn was composed by the celebrated Peter the Venerable, Abbot of Cluny, and friend of St. Bernard. . . 3rd Hymn . Inter æternas Superum coronas, Quas sacro patras retinent agone, Emicas celsis meritis coruscus, O Benedicte. . Amidst the Saints that glitter with the crowns they have won in thy holy contest, thou, O Benedict, shinest resplendent with thy sublime merits. . Sancta te compsit puerum senectus, Nil sibi de te rapuit voluptas, Aruit mundi tibi flos ad alta Mente levato. . Thy boyhood was graced with the holy gravity of old age; the pleasures of the world had no hold on thee, and its flowers seemed but as withered weeds to a soul like thine, that was fixed on heavenly things. . Hinc fuga lapsus, patriam, parentes Deseris, fervens nemorum colonus, Edomas carnem, subigisque Christo Tortor acerbus. . Therefore didst thou flee from the world, leaving thy country and thy parents, and becamest a fervent solitary. Thou didst tame the rebellion of the flesh, and by sharp mortification, thou didst bring it into subjection to Christ. . Ne diu tutus latebras foveres, Signa te produnt operum piorum, Spargitur felix celeri per orbem Fama volatu. . But thy fond hope of concealment was to be cut short; thy holy miracles betrayed thee, and the glorious fame of thy sanctity swiftly spread through the world. . Gloria Patri, genitæque Proli, Et tibi, compar utriusque semper Spiritus alme, Deus unus, omni Tempore sæcli. Amen. . Glory be to the Father, and to the Son that is Begotten of Him! To Thee, also, O Spirit of Love, co-equal with them, One God, be glory for endless ages. Amen. . . The Monastic Missal contains the following Sequence in honor of St. Benedict. . . Sequence . Læta quies magni ducis, Dona ferens novæ lucis, Hodie recolitur. . We celebrate, this day, the happy death of our great Leader, which brings us the blessings of new light. . Charis datur piæ menti, Corde sonet in ardenti Quidquid foris promitur. . On this day, grace is given to the souls of his loving children. Oh! may the fervent heart re-echo what the voice sings forth! . Hunc per callem Orientis Admiremur ascendentis Patriarchæ speciem. . Let us admire the beauty of our Patriarch, as he ascends to heaven by the path of the East. . Amplum semen magnæ prolis Illum fecit instar solis, Abrahæ persimilem. . He shines as a sun in the world, he is most like to Abraham, for he is the rich seed from which a countless race hath sprung. . Corvum cernis ministrantem; Hinc Eliam latitantem Specu nosce parvulo. . When thou seest him fed by the crow, thou thinkest of Elias, that hid himself in the little cave. . Eliseus dignoscatur, Cum securis revocatur De torrentis alveo. . He reminds us of Eliseus, when he makes the head of the axe return from the bed of the stream. . Illum Joseph candor morum, Illum Jacob futuororum Mens effecit conscia. . He is like Joseph by the purity of his life, and like Jacob by the spirit of prophecy. . Ipse memor suæ gentis, Nos perducat in manentis Semper Christi gaudia. Amen. . May he be mindful of his children, and lead us safe to the joys of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who abideth forever. Amen. . . The Greek Church has not forgotten, in her Liturgy, the praise of the great Patriarch of the Monks of the West. We take from the Menæa some of the stanzas in which she celebrates the name of St. Benedict. . . Hymn (Die XXI. Martii) . Mihi laudabilem memoriam tuam, o sancte, hymnis celebrare aggresso gratiam ac peccatorum omnium remissionem tribui, Benedicte, Sancto deprecare. . O holy Benedict! pray to the holy God for me, who now begin to sing a hymn to thy praiseworthy name. Obtain for me, that I may receive grace and the forgiveness of all my sins. . In eremo tuam a pueritia crucem tollens, Omnipotentem insecutus es, atque carne mortificata vitam, o beatissime, promeruisti. . From thy childhood, O most Blessed one, thou didst carry thy cross in the desert, walking in the footsteps of the Omnipotent. Thou didst merit life, by putting thy flesh to death. . Angusta semita calcata pedem in Paradisi latitudine fixisti, o prorsus beate, ac dæmonum calliditates et insidias elusisti. . Treading the narrow path, O truly Blessed, thou didst take thy stand in the spaciousness of Paradise, and didst elude the craft and snares of the devils. . Lacrymarum tuarum profluviis fructiferi ligni instar irrigatus, o Benedicte, divinos virtutum ac miraculorum fructus, Dei virtute, ubertim attulisti. . Watered by the streams of thy tears, O Benedict, thou, like unto a fruitful tree, didst, by God’s power, bring forth in abundance the divine fruits of virtues and miracles. . Per continentiæ certamina, o beate, carnis membris mortificatis, moruos precibus exsuscitasti, ac debilibus expeditam gradiendi vim tradidisti, morbumque omnem curasti, cum fide in admiratione habitus, o Pater. . O Blessed one! by the struggle of continency, thou didst mortify thy bodily members: thy prayers raised the dead to life, gave to the lame the power to walk, and cured every disease, for men were in admiration with thee and had faith in thee, O Father! . Siccas, atque aridas animas vivifico sermone tuo, o beate, frugiferas reddidisti, miraculorum exhibitione, et pastor divinitus inspiratus, et speciosissimus monachorum decor effectus. . Thy life-giving words, O Blessed one, and the sight of thy miracles, gave fruitfulness to souls that, before, were parched and dry. Thou wast the divinely inspired Shepherd, and the fairest glory of the monastic life. . Misericordem Deum deprecatus, sapiens pater, olei thecam, quemadmodum Elias, illico replevisti, o beatissime, a videntibus cum fide in admiratione habitus. . O wise Father! thou didst beseech the God of mercy, and, like Elias, thou didst suddenly fill the vessel with oil, for men were in admiration with thee, and had faith in thee, O most blessed Benedict! . Utpote mente purus, utpote extra te raptus, universam terram conspexisti, ceu ab unico radio Dei te honorantis illustratus, o beatissime Benedicte. . Because of thy clean-heartedness, and because thou wast out of thyself with rapture, thou didst behold the whole earth, for God honored thee with a ray of his own light, O most blessed Benedict! . In Christo imperans fontis aquam, precibus bonorum datorem obsecrans, emanare fecisti, quæ miraculum deprædicans, o Benedicte, adhuc perseverat. . Thou didst command in the name of Christ, thou didst pray to the Giver of all good gifts, and a fountain of water sprang up at thy bidding: it still exists, O Benedict, the abiding witness of thy miracle. . Spiritus splendore collustratus, pravorum etiam dæmonum tenebras dissipasti, o miraculorum patrator Benedicte, splendidissimum monachorum luminare. . Enlightened by the bright rays of the Holy Spirit, thou didst dispel the darkness of the wicked devils, O Benedict, thou worker of miracles, thou fairest light of monasticism! . Te, o beate, venenatis potionibus interimere insipienter volentes, quem divina universi Creaturis manus custodiebat, insipientes confusi sunt. Quos prævia tua per Spiritum scientia deprehendit. . Those foolish men, that madly plotted to destroy thy life, by poison, were confounded, for thou was guarded, O Blessed one, by the divine hand of the great Creator. The knowledge thou hadst from the Holy Spirit forewarned thee of their plot. . Te monachroum turbæ a te convocatæ diu noctuque concelebrant, corpus tuum in medio positum servantes, quod largos miraculorum fluvios effundit, o pater sapiens, eorumque gressus perenni lumine collustrat. . The choirs of monks, whom thou hast called, celebrate thy name day and night. Thy possess thy body, which is enshrined in their midst, and from which flow abundant streams of miracles, and an unfading light that illumines the path, O Father, full of wisdom! . Divinis mandatis obsecutus, o Pater, super solares radios effulsisti, atque ad inocciduum translatus es, exorans propitiationem peccatorum concedi iis, qui te cum fide colunt, celebris Benedicte. . By thine obedience to the divine precepts, O Father! thou hast been made brighter than the sun, and hast been taken to the land where the light sets not. Pray for them that have confidence in thee and honor thee; pray that they may receive the forgiveness of their sins, O Benedict, thou whose name is known throughout the world! . O Benedict! thou Vessel of Election! thou Palm of the Wilderness! thou Angel of Earth!—we offer thee the salutation of our love! What man was ever chosen to work on the earth more wonders than thou hast done! The Savior has crowned thee as one of his principal cooperators in the work of the salvation and sanctification of men. Who could count the millions of souls who owe their eternal happiness to thee?—thy immortal Rule having sanctified them in the Cloister, and the zeal of thy Benedictines having been the means of their knowing and serving the great God, Who chose thee. Around thee, in the realms of glory, a countless number of the Blessed acknowledge themselves indebted to thee, after God, for their eternal happiness; and upon the earth, whole nations profess the true faith, because the Gospel was first preached to them by thy disciples. . . O Father of so many people! look down upon thine inheritance, and once more bless this ungrateful Europe, which owes everything to thee, yet has almost forgotten thy name! The light, which thy Children imparted to it, has become dimmed; the warmth they imparted to the societies they founded and civilized by the Cross has grown cold; thorns have covered a large portion of the land into which they sowed the seed of salvation. Come and forward thine own work; and by thy prayers, keep in its expiring life. Give firmness to what has been shaken. May a new Europe—a Catholic Europe—spring up in place of that which heresy and false doctrines have formed. . O Patriarch of the Servants of God! look down from heaven on the Vineyard, which thy hand hath planted, and see into what a state of desolation it has fallen. There was a time when thy name was honored as that of a Father in thirty thousand Monasteries, from the shores of the Baltic to the borders of Syria, and from the green Erin to the steppes of Poland. Now, alas! few and feeble are the prayers that ascend to thee from the whole of that immense patrimony, which the faith and gratitude of the people had once consecrated to thee. The blight of heresy and the rapaciousness of avarice have robbed thee of these harvests of thy glory. The work of sacrilegious spoliation is now centuries old, and unceasingly has it been pursued; at one time, having recourse to open violence, and at another, pleading the urgency of political interests. Sainted Father of our Faith! thou hast been robbed of those thousands of sanctuaries which, for long ages, were fountains of life and light to the people. The race of thy children has become almost extinct: watch over them that still remain, and are laboring to perpetuate thy Rule. An ancient tradition tells us how our Lord revealed to thee that thy Order would last to the end of the world, and that thy children would console the Church of Rome and confirm the faith of many in the last great trials—deign to protect, by thy powerful intercession, the remnants of that Family which still calls thee its Father. Raise it up again; multiply it; sanctify it: let the Spirit, which thou hast deposited in thy Holy Rule, flourish in its midst, and show, by thus blessing it, that thou art ever “Benedict,” the servant of God. Support the Holy Church by thy powerful intercession, dear Father! Assist the Apostolic See, which has been so often occupied by Disciples of thy School. Father of so many Pastors of the people! obtain for us Bishops like those sainted ones, whom thy Rule has formed. Father of so many Apostles! ask for the countries, which have no faith, preachers of the Gospel, who may convert the people by their blood and by their words, as did those who went out Missioners from thy Cloisters. Father of so many holy Doctors! pray that the science of sacred literature may revive, to aid the Church and confound error. Father of so many sublime Ascetics! rekindle the zeal for Christian perfection, which has grown so cold among the Christians of our days. Patriarch of the Religious Life in the Western Church! bless all the Religious Orders, which the Holy Spirit has given successively to the Church; they all look on thee with admiration, as their venerable predecessor: do thou pour out upon them the influence of thy fatherly love. . Last, O Blessed favorite of God! pray for all the Faithful of Christ during these days which are consecrated to thoughts and works of penance. It was in the midst of the holy austerities of Lent that thou didst mount to the abode of everlasting delight; ah! help us Christians, who are at this very time in the same campaign of penance. Rouse our courage by thy example and precepts. Teach us to keep down the flesh, and subject it to the spirit, as thou didst. Obtain for us a little of thy blessed spirit, that turning away from this vain world, we may think on the eternal years. Pray for us, that our hearts may never love, nor our thoughts ever dwell, on joys so fleeting as are those of time. . Catholic piety invokes thee as one of the patrons, as well as one of the models, of a dying Christian. It loves to tell men of the sublime spectacle thou didst present at thy death, when standing at the foot of the Altar, leaning on the arms of thy disciples, and barely touching the earth with thy feet, thou didst give back, in submission and confidence, thy soul to its Creator. Obtain for us, dear Saint! a death courageous and sweet as was thine. Drive from us, at our last hour, the cruel enemy, who will seek to ensnare us. Visit us by thy presence, and leave us not, till we have breathed forth our soul into the bosom of the God Who has made thee so glorious a Saint.

Lessons 4-6 from the Divine Office of St. Benedict, Abbot. . Benedict was born of a noble family at Norcia, and studied letters at Rome. Desiring to give himself to Christ Jesus, he betook himself to a very deep cave at the place now called Subiaco. In this place he lay hid for three years, unknown to all except the monk Romanus, by means of whom he received the necessaries of life. While he was in the cave at Subiaco, the devil one day assailed him with an extraordinary storm of impure temptation, and to get it under, he rolled himself in brambles till his whole body was lacerated, and the sting of pain drove out the sallies of lust. At last the fame of his holiness spread itself abroad from the desert, and some monks came to him for guidance, but the looseness of their lives was such that they could not bear his exhortations, and they plotted together to poison him in his drink. When they gave him the cup, he made the sign of the Cross over it, whereupon it immediately broke, and Benedict left that monastery, and retired to a desert place alone. Nevertheless his disciples followed him daily, and for them he built twelve monasteries, and set holy laws to govern them. Afterwards he went to Cassino, and brake the image of Apollo which was still worshipped there, overturned the altar, and burnt the groves. There, he built the Church of St. Martin and the little chapel of St. John; and instilled Christianity into the townspeople and inhabitants. He grew in the grace of God day by day, so that being endowed with the spirit of prophecy he foretold things to come. When Totila, King of the Goths, heard of it, and would see whether it really were so, he sent his spatharius before him, with the kingly ensigns and attendance, and feigning himself to be Totila. But as soon as Benedict saw him he said: My son, put off that which thou wearest, for it is not thine. To Totila himself he foretold that he would go to Rome, would cross the sea, and would die after nine years. Some months before he departed this life, Benedict forewarned his disciples on what day he was to die; and he ordered his grave to be opened six days before he was carried to it. On the sixth day, he would be carried into the Church, where he received the Eucharist, and then, in the arms of his disciples, with his eyes lifted up to heaven, and wrapt in prayer, he gave up the ghost. Two monks saw his soul rising to heaven, clothed in a most precious garment and surrounded with lights, and One of a most glorious and awful aspect standing above, whom they heard saying: This is the way whereby Benedict, the beloved of the Lord, goeth up to heaven.Lessons 1 – 3 from the Divine Office of St. Benedict, Abbot: Ecclesiasticus 44: 1 – 15 . Let us now praise men of renown, and our fathers in their generation. The Lord hath wrought great glory through His magnificence from the beginning. Such as have borne rule in their dominions, men of great power, and endued with their wisdom, shewing forth in the prophets the dignity of prophets, And ruling over the present people, and by the strength of wisdom instructing the people in most holy words. Such as by their skill sought out musical tunes, and published canticles of the scriptures. Rich men in virtue, studying beautifulness: living at peace in their houses. All these have gained glory in their generations, and were praised in their days. They that were born of them have left a name behind them, that their praises might be related: And there are some, of whom there is no memorial: who are perished, as if they had never been: and are become as if they had never been born, and their children with them. But these were men of mercy, whose godly deeds have not failed: Good things continue with their seed, Their posterity are a holy inheritance, and their seed hath stood in the covenants. And their children for their sakes remain for ever: their seed and their glory shall not be forsaken. Their bodies are buried in peace, and their name liveth unto generation and generation. Let the people shew forth their wisdom, and the church declare their praise.