Lex orandi, lex credendi

 Lex orandi, lex credendi, lex vivendi 

As we pray, so we believe, so we live.

What makes Henry a saint? A better question is WHO made Henry a saint. 

Of course it is God who ultimately makes saints. And most saints in heaven are not widely known. However, God uses the Church to give us saints to imitate, be inspired by, and ask for intercession. Henry was declared a saint in 1146 by Pope Eugene III. He was added to the calendar in 1631 as a commemoration. He was given his own feast day in 1668 at which time it was moved from July 13 to July 15, the first open day. Currently, it is back to July 13. Through many centuries, the Church has seen it worthwhile to present Henry as an example to the faithful. Pope Eugene III was beatified in 1872 by Pope Pius IX. 

That is who. The next question is WHY does the Church give us St. Henry? To answer that, let's look at the Collect prayers the Church has composed for the mass when St. Henry is remembered. The old prayer (translated from Latin):

O God, who on this day brought blessed Henry, your confessor, from the summit of earthly sovereignty into the eternal kingdom, humbly we implore you, that, as you, going before him with the abundance of your grace, granted him to overcome the enticements of the age, so may you grant us, through imitation of him, to shun the allurements of this world and attain unto you with pure minds.

A prayer from 1871:

O God, who didst this day (July 13) remove blessed Henry

Thy confessor from his earthly throne to an eternal kingdom:

we humbly beseech Thee, that as by the assistance of Thy grace,

he was proof against all the temptations of the world,

so we may follow his example in withstanding

all the flatteries of this world,

and serve Thee with clean hearts.

Through Christ our Lord.


Amen.


[Source: Father Leonard Goffine, 1871]


From a 1962 Roman Catholic missal:

Collect:

O God, on this day You raised the blessed confessor Henry from earthly royalty to an eternal kingdom. May his example enable us to turn aside from the enticements of the world and come to You with a pure heart, even as he was strengthened by Your grace to withstand the fascination of worldly attractions. Through our Lord . . .

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

The Mass Collect prayer for the Memorial of St. Henry as found on a prayer card dated 2016:

 O God, whose abundant grace prepared Saint Henry to be raised by you in a wonderful way from the cares of earthly rule to heavenly realms, grant, we pray, through his intercession, that amid the uncertainties of this world we may hasten towards you with minds made pure. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. 

And the current 2024 prayer:

O God, who having gone before blessed Henry with the abundance of your grace wondrously raised him from care of earthly government unto things celestial, grant, through his intercession, that amid the diverse things of this world we may hasten toward/unto you with pure minds.

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