Dec 23 – Advent Feria / S Servulus
1Description
It’s the Feast of Advent Feria, 2nd Class, with the color of Violet. In this episode: the meditation: “The O Antiphons: O Emmanuel, Humility and Charity”, today’s news from the Church: “The Grotto of the Nativity to Receive a Makeover”, and today’s thought from the Archbishop.
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Sources Used Today:
- “The O Antiphons: O Emmanuel, Humility and Charity” – From Advent to Epiphany
- “The Grotto of the Nativity to Receive a Makeover” (FSSPX.news)
- The Spiritual Life – Archbishop Lefebvre (Angelus Press)
Saint Servulus is one of the most quietly moving saints of the early Church, a man whose holiness was forged not through travel or public preaching, but through suffering accepted with love. He lived in sixth century Rome and was known to the city simply as a beggar, carried daily to the porch of the Basilica of Saint Clement. From birth he was paralyzed and unable to walk. He possessed no property, no education, and no worldly influence. Yet those who passed him each day soon learned that Servulus was rich in faith and unshakable joy.
Servulus survived entirely on alms, but he used what little he received to buy scrolls of Scripture and books of devotion. Because he could not read, he paid others to read aloud to him. He listened attentively, memorizing long passages and reflecting on them in prayer. People began to stop beside him not only out of pity, but because his words carried wisdom and peace. He spoke freely of God’s mercy and encouraged those burdened by illness or poverty to trust in Christ. His disability did not make him bitter. It made him attentive to suffering in others.
Saint Gregory the Great, who knew of him personally, recorded Servulus’s life in his Dialogues. Gregory described him as a man of continual prayer who filled the church porch with hymns and psalms, often singing loudly even when pain overwhelmed him. Toward the end of his life, Servulus sensed that death was near. He asked those around him to sing with him, praising God until his final breath. Gregory notes that as Servulus died, those present heard heavenly singing, as if the prayers he had offered for so many years were being answered at once.
Servulus never held office, founded no monastery, and left no writings of his own. Yet his witness made a deep impression on Rome. He showed that sanctity does not require strength of body or prominence of position. It requires trust, perseverance, and love offered daily in whatever condition God allows. Gregory held him up as a model for Christians tempted to complain about lesser inconveniences while overlooking the grace hidden in suffering.
Devotion to Saint Servulus remained modest and local, but enduring. His feast on December 23 was remembered especially by the poor and the sick, who saw in him a companion in weakness rather than a distant hero. He came to be invoked by those living with chronic illness and disability, and by caregivers who learned from his patience and gratitude.
Saint Servulus reminds us that holiness can flourish in the smallest spaces, that praise can rise even from pain, and that God’s strength is made perfect in weakness.
Saint Servulus, faithful witness of hope and patience, pray for us!
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