The Case for "Saint" Dositheus II of Jerusalem

The strange story and rumors surrounding St. Feodor Kuzmich

I have been intrigued for years by the rumors and conspiracy theories surrounding this famous Russian saint. Was he really Czar Aleksandr I? The idea that a Russian czar might have faked his own death to live his life as a quasi-hermit makes for a very pious (and entertaining) story. But as with most conspiracy theories, I am at least slightly skeptical. The first question I ask whenever a conspiracy theory comes my way is, how many people would have had to been in on the plot, and then kept their mouths shut for the rest of their lives? Ben Franklin once famously observed that three people can keep a secret if two of them are dead. 

In this case, the number would have had to have been pretty high. And while a lot of rumors did start to crop up, most did not do so until quite a while after the czar's death. To the best of my knowledge none of those who attended the czar in his final days, or his funeral arrangements, ever made any statement that might have implied that things were not as they had been made to appear. I have also been on the lookout for years for a reliable source confirming the story about the Communists opening his grave, only to find it empty. Empty is also a good word for the results of that search thus far. If anyone has a reliable source for that story, please share it in the comments.

None of this is to say that I firmly disbelieve the stories. Only that hard evidence is extremely lacking and that commonsense inclines me towards a certain degree of skepticism. Unlike with some other popular conspiracy theories, such as the Kennedy assassination, or the alleged faking of the moonshot, both of which don't pass the laugh test when you consider the mountains of confirmed evidence; here there is no hard evidence on either side of the debate. And yes, there is some interesting, mostly circumstantial evidence that lends itself to the rumors. As such, while I remain skeptical, I am also keeping an open mind pending a DNA test or some other really hard proof one way or the other.

Man of God

Well worth watching and highly recommended. Unfortunately, I can't embed the video. But you can watch it here.

Pope Francis Calls 21 Coptic Martyrs "Saints for All Christians"

Vatican City, Feb 15, 2021 / 11:01 am MT (CNA).- Pope Francis has praised the courageous witness of the 21 Coptic Orthodox Christians killed by ISIS in 2015, calling them “saints of all Christians.”

In a video message for the “Day of Contemporary Martyrs” Feb. 15, the pope said, “I hold in my heart that baptism of blood, those twenty-one men baptized as Christians with water and the Spirit.”

“I thank God our Father because he gave us these courageous brothers. I thank the Holy Spirit because he gave them the strength and consistency to confess Jesus Christ to the point of shedding blood. I thank the bishops, the priests of the Coptic sister Church which raised them and taught them to grow in the faith. And I thank the mothers of these people, of these 21 men, who ‘nursed’ them in the faith,” he said.

Read the rest here.

Bones found in Kent church likely to be of 7th-century saint

Saint Eanswythe Abbess of Folkstone

Bones discovered more than a century ago in a Kent church are almost certainly the remains of an early English saint who was the granddaughter of Ethelbert, the first English king to convert to Christianity, experts have concluded.

Saint Eanswythe, the patron saint of the coastal town of Folkestone, is thought to have founded one of the first monastic communities in England, probably around AD660. She died a few years later, while still in her teens or early 20s.

n 1885, workers renovating the parish church of St Mary and St Eanswythe close to Folkestone harbour found a lead container of human remains in an alcove – probably hidden to avoid the destruction of relics during the Reformation.

The bones, which comprised about half of a skeleton, were assumed to belong to Eanswythe. But it was not until January this year, following a grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, that a team of experts set up a temporary laboratory in the church, which was closed for five days.

Initial analysis suggested the bones were consistent with Eanswythe: they came from one person, probably female, probably aged between 17 and 20, and with no signs of malnutrition, so potentially a person with high status.

A tooth and a foot bone were sent to Queen’s University Belfast for radiocarbon dating. The tests confirmed it was highly probable the person died in the mid-seventh century. Fears that the remains might be part of a medieval fad for fake relics were allayed.

Andrew Richardson, of the Canterbury Archaeological Trust, said: “It was a brave move by the church. We could have come out and said: ‘Folks, it’s not her.’ I was 50-50 about it, and a lot of colleagues were sceptical. But everything is consistent with it being her.”

He said the result of the analysis was of national significance. “It now looks probable that we have the only surviving remains of a member of the Kentish royal family, and one of the earliest Anglo-Saxon saints.

Read the rest here.

Russian Church to continue adding Western saints to its calendar

At its March 9 session, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church decided to add St. Patrick, the Enlightener of Ireland, St. Alban the Protomartyr of Britain, St. Genevieve of Paris, and twelve other Western saints from the first millennium, before the West departed into heresy, to its official calendar.

As Interfax-Religion reports, the Russian Orthodox Church intends to continue adding such revered Western Church figures to its calendar for annual celebration. Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) of Volokolamsk stated on the “Church and the World” television program that “This process is not completed. It has only started.”

According to the bishop, St. Patrick and the others were added to the calendar at the request of Russian dioceses in the diaspora which have already been venerating such saints. “There are other Western saints whom I hope will also soon be included in the calendar of our Church,” His Eminence stated.

Read the rest here.

Pope Francis to proclaim Fatima visionaries saints during Portugal trip

ROME - Two of the visionaries of the Marian apparitions of Fatima - young shepherds Jacinta and Francisco Marto - will be canonized by Pope Francis when he visits the Portuguese shrine in May.

The Vatican announced the pontiff approved the miracle attributed to their intercession on Thursday, the final step necessary before they could be made saints.
Francis had already been scheduled to be in Fatima for a two-day trip from May 12-13.

Italian media reports say he will canonize them at the Mass already scheduled for May 13, the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima and the 100th anniversary of the date when the two children - along with their cousin Lúcia Santos - said the Virgin Mary first appeared to them.

Read the rest here.

Revesting the Incorrupt Relics of King St. Stefan Milutin of Serbia

Dallas has a Saint!

The incorrupt body of Archbishop Dimitri (OCA) exhumed almost five years after his burial. He was not embalmed per-Orthodox burial custom.

See the story from Rod Dreher.

Quote of the day...

"The goal of human freedom is not in freedom itself, nor it is in man, but in God. By giving man freedom, God has yielded to man a piece of His Divine authority, but with the intention that man himself would voluntarily bring it as a sacrifice to God, a most perfect offering. "

- St. Theophan the Recluse

Glorification of St. Alexis of Wilkes Barre 21 years ago

Reports: ISIS has begun killing Christian prisoners

I am unsure of the reliability of the reports, but given their track record there is no reason to believe that anything other than martyrdom awaits these tragic victims. Through the prayers of the Great and Holy New Martyrs, may God give them the strength to endure their Calvary.

HT: Blog reader John L.

Pope Francis Proclaims Oriental Orthodox Saint a "Doctor of the Church"

Did Pope Francis just declare a non-Chalcedonian (Oriental Orthodox) monk and saint to be a Doctor of the Church?

Details.

Coptic Orthodox Pope Canonizes the 21 New Martyrs of Egypt & Libya

The Coptic Orthodox Church has announced that the murder of the 21 Egyptian Christians killed by the so-called Islamic State in Libya will be commemorated in its Church calendar.

Pope Tawadros II announced that the names of the martyrs will be inserted into the Coptic Synaxarium, the Oriental Church’s equivalent to the Roman Martyrology. This procedure is also equivalent to canonization in the Latin Church.
 
According to terrasanta.net, the martyrdom of the 21 Christians will be commemorated on the 8th Amshir of the Coptic calendar, or February 15th of the Gregorian calendar. The commemoration falls on the feast day of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple.

Read the rest here.

Well that was quick. But honestly, sometimes there is just no need for prolonged hearings and investigations. Great New Martyrs of Egypt and Libya pray for us!

Italian Media: Pope Paul VI to be beatified

The Vatican has recognised a supposed miracle attributed to Paul VI's intercession and will beatify the late Italian pope in October, a Vatican source said on Tuesday.

According to the Italian news agency ANSA, the apparent miracle identified by the Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Saints was the healing of an unborn baby from an otherwise incurable illness.

ANSA said the beatification could occur on 19 October after the synod of bishops' meeting.

Paul VI, who reigned between 1963 and 1978, was praised for his efforts to seek closer ties with other Christian denominations but his 1968 encyclical Humanae Vitae was controversial for spelling out a ban on all forms of artificial contraception.

Source.
Via: The Deacon's Bench

The World's First Church Dedicated to the Thief Confessor of Golgotha

From here where you may also read the story of the holy priest who inspired its construction.

John Paul II to be Canonized

The late Pope John Paul II has had a second miracle attributed to his intercession by authorities in the Roman Catholic Church. This appears to be the final hurdle for his canonization. All that remains now is for the paperwork to be bottom-lined by Pope Francis and a date set for the ceremony. Sources report that the ceremony could occur late this year.

Feast of the Holy Royal Martyrs of Russia

Three Eastern Orthodox Saints That Every Catholic Should Read...

From the blog Ascending Mount Carmel.

Constantinople Glorifies 11 New Martyrs of Communist Persecution

The Synod of Constantinople has canonized 11 clerics and lay persons who perished during the first two years of the Soviet occupation of Estonia.

Read the rest here.