Summary: Today I spoke with Christopher West, author of the recently released book, At the Heart of the Gospel and a new book coming out in January, Fill These Hearts. We discussed both Theology of the Body in general as well as the new book and a wonderful film that you really need to see. (These are show prep notes so grammar and spelling aren't checked) One thing I love about having a calendar of saints is learning about obscure people with funny names. In our family we have a tradition of giving our kids two middle names – one that sounds good with their first name and one for the saint's feast they were born on. For example, one of my sons was born on the Feast of St. Nicholas so we added Nicholas as a middle name. You might think that this makes it easier to remember when the kids' birthdays are, but with ten of them running around the house it's hard enough to get their names right let alone remember what day a saint's feast is. Today is October 27th, Feast of St. Frumentius, patron of the Aksumite Empire. Give yourself bonus points if you have ever heard of either Frumentius or the Aksumite Empire. In spite of their current obscurity, both are important to Church and world history. The Aksumite empire consisted of Northern Ethiopia, and parts of Yemen, Eretria and Saudi Arabia. It flourished from the 3rd century until the rise of Islam in the seventh when the Muslims cut the empire off from its trade routes in the Red Sea and Nile River. St. Frumentius was born in Tyre, Lebanon and while on a voyage on the Red Sea with St. Aedesius the ship was either shipwrecked or seized by pirates who took the two boys to the court of the king of Axum. They eventually were given their freedom and became part of the royal court. When the king died and his son Ezana became king, the brothers left Axum to bring missionaries back to the land to spread Christianity. St. Aedesius went back to Tyre and became a priest while St. Frumentius went to Alexandria to ask St. Athanasius to send a bishop and missionaries to Axum. Instead, St. Athanasius consecrated St. Frumentius as a bishop around the year 328 and sent him back where he established his see in Axum. He baptized the king of the Aksumite empire and built many churches in the country. He is also credited with translating the New Testament into the native language. In spite of being cut off from the rest of the Christian world by the Muslims, the Coptic Orthodox church flourished and still exists today as one of the oldest Christian churches in the world. St. Frumentius's feast is celebrated in the Orthodox Church on November 30th. The city of Axum is no longer the seat of a great empire but it does still hold a distinction unique in the world and one that would make Indiana Jones and the Nazis envious of – a small chapel watched by a single monk who stays on the grounds until his death, is the traditional resting place of the ark of the covenant where it has been kept safe for almost 3000 years. Upcoming feasts include: Christ the King on Oct 28 (ef) All saints (nov 1) – don't forget to go to Mass All souls (nov 2) Dedication of St. John Lateran (11/9) While the secular world is out celebrating death, as Catholics we celebrate the resurrection and life after death. There are two plenary indulgences that you can earn for the souls in purgatory during this time. The first can be obtained by receiving communion, going to confession and reciting the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be six times either on All Saints or All Souls Day. The second can be obtained any time during the eight days following all saints by visiting a cemetery and praying for the dead. The eight days following major feasts used to be called octaves and were basically an extension of the feast day. The doctrine of Purgatory is commonly misunderstood and dismissed by Protestants as a Catholic fiction but it really does make sense.
