Rome Newsroom, Dec 16, 2020 / 12:00 pm (CNA).- In Naples, the blood of St. Januarius remained solid Wednesday, after having liquefied both in May and September this year.
“When we took the reliquary from the safe, the blood was absolutely solid and remains absolutely solid,” said Fr. Vincenzo de Gregorio, abbot of the Chapel of St. Januarius in Naples Cathedral.
De Gregorio displayed the reliquary and the solidified blood inside to those gathered after morning Mass Dec. 16 in the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary.
The abbot said that the miracle sometimes occurred later in the day. In a video he could be seen saying “a few years ago at five in the afternoon, the home stretch, it liquefied. So we don’t know what’s going to happen.”
“The actual state, as you can see well, is absolutely solid. It does not give any sign, not even a little drop, as sometimes falls,” he added. “It’s alright, we will await the sign with faith.”
By the end of the day’s evening Mass, however, the blood was still solid.
Dec. 16 marks the anniversary of Naples’ preservation from the 1631 eruption of Mount Vesuvius. It is just one of three days per year the miracle of the liquefaction of St. Januarius’ blood often occurs.
The reputed miracle has not been officially recognized by the Church, but is known and accepted locally and is considered to be a good sign for the city of Naples and its region of Campania.
In contrast, the failure of the blood to liquefy is believed to signal war, famine, disease, or other disasters.
“Mi raccomando state a distanza tutti quanti…mi raccomando. Abbiate pazienza.”?
“E quindi…va bene…Aspettiamo ?con fiducia il segno. Vi auguro buona giornata…”
Che bella voce, e che gentilezza Mons. De Gregorio!#sangennaro https://t.co/JVuV7FYMTo
— Sunny ?? se_vi_spinate_per_hobby_non_seguitemi (@Sunny77) December 16, 2020
But according to an Italian journalist, it is not very common for the miracle to take place on Dec. 16. The blood has liquefied most often on St. Januarius’ feast day of Sept. 19, and on the Saturday before the first Sunday of May.
Vatican journalist Francesco Antonio Grana told CNA that the liquefaction “almost never” happens on Dec. 16 and that in the last 34 years the number of times it has happened “can be counted on one hand.”
The blood also did not liquefy in December 2016.
Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, the archbishop emeritus of Naples, said Mass in the cathedral to mark the feast day.
When the miracle still did not occur, Sepe told those gathered, “we want to make an act of true and profound devotion to our St. Januarius, we are united in his name.”
“It is he who helps us to live, to bear witness to the faith, and even if the blood does not liquefy, it does not mean goodness knows what,” the cardinal continued. “The important thing is that we feel truly united, participating in this very special event which is our devotion to our patron saint.”
Sepe’s resignation as archbishop of Naples was accepted by Pope Francis on Saturday. The 77-year-old archbishop has led the important Italian archdiocese for 14 years.
The 57-year-old Bishop Domenico Battaglia, known as a “street priest” who is close to the poor, was named as his successor.
St. Januarius, or San Gennaro in Italian, is the patron saint of Naples. He was bishop of Benevento in the third century, and his bones and blood are preserved in the Naples cathedral as relics. He is believed to have been martyred during the Christian persecution of Emperor Diocletian.
When St. Januarius’ blood liquefied in September, Cardinal Sepe addressed a mostly empty cathedral, due to coronavirus restrictions.
He announced that the blood had “completely liquefied, without any clots, which has happened in past years.”
The miracle also occurred in May, when Naples was under lockdown together with the rest of Italy.
Speaking after a livestreamed Mass at the cathedral May. 2, Sepe said: “I have a big announcement to make: even in this time of coronavirus, the Lord through the intercession of St. Januarius has liquefied the blood!”
This story was updated at 12:32 p.m. Mountain Time to reflect the fact that St. Januarius’ blood had still failed to liquefy by the end of the day’s celebrations.
[…]
Where are the voices of moderate Muslim leaders condemning the violence of Islamists?
“Moderate Muslim Leaders”?
How to Tell the Difference Between Radical Islamic Doctrine and Moderate Islamic Doctrine
The terms “radical Islam” and “moderate Islam” have been bandied about in the Western world for many years, and the presumption in the use of these terms is that “radical Islam” teaches violence and terrorism and anti-Western values while “moderate Islam” teaches peace and harmony and pro-Western values. Below is a handy comparison chart so you can actually see some of the differences for yourself.
Radical Islam Teaches the Following
1. Muhammad is the ideal human being. One way we know this is because he married Aisha when she was 6 years old, but he considerately waited until she was 9 before consummating his marriage to her.
2. Muhammad is Allah’s prophet.
3. Muhammad is superior to Jesus Christ who was only a prophet and not God.
4. Jesus Christ was not crucified.
5. Sharia Law should be the law of every land.
6. Death is the punishment for apostasy from Islam.
7. The Qur’an is the perfect word of Allah that was dictated word for word to Muhammad.
8. All true Muslims follow the commands of the Qur’an.
9. Muslim husbands are commanded to beat disobedient wives.
10. Muslims are commanded to wage jihad against non-believers in Islam. This includes killing them, torturing them, and humiliating them…unless they convert to Islam.
But on the other hand….
Moderate Islam Teaches the Following
1. Muhammad is the ideal human being. One way we know this is because he married Aisha when she was 6 years old, but he considerately waited until she was 9 before consummating his marriage to her.
2. Muhammad is Allah’s prophet.
3. Muhammad is superior to Jesus Christ who was only a prophet and not God.
4. Jesus Christ was not crucified.
5. Sharia Law should be the law of every land.
6. Death is the punishment for apostasy from Islam.
7. The Qur’an is the perfect word of Allah that was dictated word for word to Muhammad.
8. All true Muslims follow the commands of the Qur’an.
9. Muslim husbands are commanded to beat disobedient wives.
10. Muslims are commanded to wage jihad against non-believers in Islam. This includes killing them, torturing them, and humiliating them…unless they convert to Islam.
__________________
Now that you know some of the “differences,” it should be easy to understand what people mean when they refer to the teachings of “radical Muslims” and the teachings of “moderate Muslims.” It’s pretty obvious, isn’t it? No wonder many people declare that Islam is a “religion of peace.” They are basing this claim on the significant “differences” between the teachings of “radical Islam” and “moderate Islam.”
It should also be easy to now understand why we are not at war with Islam itself or “moderate Islam,” nor should we even criticize or question any of its doctrines. It’s only “radical Muslims” with their “different teachings” that we in the West can oppose. Otherwise, we are simply bigots engaging in Islamophobia. Clear?!
While considering the listed differences between “radical Islam” and “moderate Islam,” recall a similar distinction between “radical Nazism” and “moderate Nazism” that was prevalent during the Nazi regime in Germany from 1933 to 1945. Thank God we only went to war with “radical Nazism” and not Nazism or “moderate Nazism” – the “ideology of peace.”
But let us not use these isolated and very uncommon acts of inexplicable violence, perhaps motivated (as per Francis) by a generic religious fundamentalism (you know, the attacker could have just as easily have been a Latin Mass attendee) as an excuse to even think about curbing migration from the Muslim world. These young men of military age are simply looking for a better life for themselves and their families (wherever they may be). Besides, there are a couple million residents of Gaza whom, we are being told by supporters of the only democracy in the Middle East, will be looking for a new home in Europe or North America. Now is absolutely not the time to shut the door, not that ever would be a good time.
Dr. Veritatis above – I realize the problem of trying to differentiate between moderate and radical Islam.
However, I am of the understanding that there are two parts of the Koran, the first when Mohammed was in Mecca and the second when he was in Medina. It is the second part in which he stopped trying to play nice.
I agree that Pope Francis’ references to Islam as “a religion of peace” are naive/dishonest/dangerous – take your pick or combinations.
Gilberta:
In and of itself, there is only Islam; not a radical nor a moderate Islam. As such, there is no legitimate distinction between a so-called radical and a so-called moderate Islam, and no real problem in trying to make such a bogus distinction that should not be tried (just like there is only Catholicism; not a radical nor a moderate Catholicism). People who push the false distinction do so in order to pretend that the fundamental doctrines of violence in Islam are only a fringe part of Islam practiced only by “radical Muslims” who have “hijacked the religion of peace.” This narrative is pure rubbish, but way too many gullible people continue to drink this Kool-Aid.
With respect to the so-called Meccan/earlier part of the Qur’an and the Medinan/later part of the Qur’an, note the Islamic principle of abrogation wherein later passages and teachings (in time; not how they are often arranged in popular selling Qur’ans) take precedence and abrogate or make null and void earlier passages and teachings on the same topics. As such, the more violent or Medinan passages take precedence over and abrogate the more peaceful passages on the same topics.
A great irony: the most fervent and faithful Muslims are those who practice and/or support Jihadi terrorism and seek to impose Islam on the world via a worldwide Caliphate. Many ignorantly refer to these Muslims as radical and not representative of true Islam when in point of fact they are among the best representatives of Islam in many respects. At the same time, the less fervent and less faithful Muslims are hailed as the best representatives of true Islam when in point of fact they do not fully practice their religion as they are commanded to do by Islam.
Book Recommendation:
1. “What Catholics Need to Know About Islam” by Dr. William Kilpatrick.