From: rich <richarra@gmail.com>

September 6th =E2=80=93 SS. Donatian, Laetus and Others, Bishops,Martyrs

There were thousands of Christians exiled, tortured and martyred in
the late 5th century by the Arian King Hunneric. Six of them, all
bishops, are remembered today; however, we really know nothing about
them except their names and their deaths for the faith.

Donatian
Fusculus
Germanus
Laetus
Mansuetus
Praesidius

In the year 484 the Arian king of the Vandals, Huneric, ordered that
all the Catholic churches of Africa were to be closed and the goods of
the clergy to be taken from them and given to the Arian clergy; the
bishops, in particular, who had assembled at the royal command were
turned out of the city. Outside of the gates Huneric met a party of
them, who appealed against his injustice and cruelty. "Ride them
down!" he said to his mounted followers, and that was all the answer
he gave. St. Donatian with four others, all bishops in the province of Byzacene, were cruelly beaten, and then driven into the desert, and
died of hunger, thirst and exposure.

St. Laetus, Bishop of Leptis Minor, whom the Roman Martyrology calls
"a zealous and very learned man", had made himself particularly
obnoxious to Huneric by his opposition to Arianism. He was thrown
into a filthy dungeon, from which he only emerged to be burnt alive,
one of the first martyrs of the persecution.

The feast of these martyrs, with St. Laetus in chief, is kept by the
Canons Regular of the Lateran.

See the Acta Sanctorum September, vol. ii, where we are referred to
the Historia pesecutionis provinciae Africana by Victor of Vita, but
it is difficult to identify the particular names set down in the
martyrology.


Saint Quote:
Be assured that he who shall always walk faithfully in God's presence,
always ready to give Him an account of all his actions, shall never be separated from Him by consenting to sin.
-- St. Thomas Aquinas

Bible Quote:
24 but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues for
ever. 25 Consequently he is able for all time to save those who draw
near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession
for them. 26 For it was fitting that we should have such a high
priest, holy, blameless, unstained, separated from sinners, exalted
above the heavens. 27 He has no need, like those high priests, to
offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of
the people; he did this once for all when he offered up himself.
[Hebrews 7:24-27] RSVCE


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PRAYER TO SAINT MICHAEL FOR POWERFUL AID

Glorious Prince of the heavenly hosts
and victor over rebellious spirits,
be mindful of me who am so weak and sinful
and yet so prone to pride and ambition.
Lend me, I pray,
thy powerful aid in every temptation and difficulty,
and above all do not forsake me
in my last struggle with the powers of evil.

Amen.
--- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
* Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4)