Today, 31 January, is the feast of ...
* Cyrus and John, martyrs (c. 303)
- like the better-known Cosmas and Damian, these two were physicians
who took no fees
* Marcella, widow (410)
- even though Jerome called her 'the glory of Roman women', she did
not hesitate, without much success, to try to convince Jerome to
chill his hot temper
* Aidan or Maedoc of Ferns, bishop (626)
- when he went to a Welsh monastery, he took with himself a certain
quantity of beer (as the others there abstained from such a drink)
- his bell and shrine, with its satchel, are on display in the
National Museum in Dublin
* Adamnan of Coldingham (c. 680)
- an Irish monk of Coldingham, on the coast of Berwick, he had a gift
of prophecy
* Ulphia, virgin (c. 750)
- she lived as a solitary under the direction of the hermit, St
Domitius; one night, as she could not sleep due to the croaking of
frogs, she ordered them to be quiet -- and according to local
folklore, they have remained quiet until this very day
* Eusebius, martyr (884)
- an Irish hermit living in the Vorarlberg, he was killed by some
peasants who were being upbraided by him
* Nicetas, bishop of Novgorod (1107)
- was so enamoured of the Old Testament that others had to spend
years in prayer for him to start reading the New Testament
* Paola Gambara-Costa, matron (1515)
- as a baby, she instinctively abstained from drinking milk on
Fridays; when she married, she followed a set of personal guidelines
(among them: 'I will always obey my husband, and take a kindly view
of his failings, and I will do all I can to prevent their coming to
the knowledge of anyone.'); she eventually converted her evil
husband's ways
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Carolyn Muessig
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