Calendar Class of June 3, 2025

A Carpe Diem Snapshot:

Transversing Piazza San Pietro inevitably provides any number of Carpe Diem moments with the sheer number of interesting individuals you might meet from any number of countries around the world. This couple certainly stood out from the crowd! When they literally crossed my path, and I couldn't help but ask them about the origin of their attire and what motivated them to endure the discomfort of wearing these heavy garments in the heat of Rome. Unsurprisingly, they hail from northern lands-- the city of Antwerp in Belgium, to be exact (Ando Verpia at time of the Roman Empire). They were in Rome to meet the new Pope, as one does when in Rome, and to represent the Guild of Crossbowmen, who, since 1490, have been protecting and maintaining order in that prosperous city. As with the Pope of Rome, the guild represents continuity and tradition, but even here in the Vatican times have necessitated a bit of change over the years. In the case of our bearded friend, modern security laws required him to relinquish his sword and walking stick to the Swiss Guard during the Papal audience (fortunately both were returned to him afterwards). I took a video of the costumed couple maneuvering through the crowd, and one can quickly perceive why swords are just not as practical to wear on one's hip as they used to be, what with the tourist phenomena and all. If you watch the video on Instagram, you will see why...

Liturgical: Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Easter

All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.

John 17:1-11a

Sanctoral: Charles Lwanga and Companion (d. between November 15, 1885 – January 27, 1887)

Human: Death of Pope John XXIII – 1963, and Dr. Jack Kevorkian (pathologist known as Dr. Death” due to his role in assisting the suicides of terminally ill people”) – 2011. Click on the links above to read about how they died.

350 AD – the usurper Nepotian attempted to take control over Rome and proclaimed himself emperor. He was the nephew of Constantine the Great and the cousin of the legal emperor ruling in the east – Constantius II. Nepotian tried to obtain Constantius’ offer to appoint him a co-emperor promising to defeat Magnentius (usurper in Italy) and plead his influence in Rome and Italy. Despite the lack of response on June 3, Nepotian attempted to take control over Rome and proclaimed himself an emperor based largely on gladiators and criminals. For a few weeks the city was in chaos. On June 30, Magnentius entered Rome with his army. Nepotian was killed and the city pacified.

Natural: Discover the Edible, the Beautiful, and the Good All Around Us--Teaching children what is beautiful begins with helping them see the good in what’s often overlooked (Nature Notes blog post by Sheila Carroll)

Italian: Tatuaggio (tattoo)

Quote: "Jesus was, in his very person, the meeting of heaven and earth. God and humanity came together in him, and his entire ministry was the outward expression of that inward identity. By calling a scattered Israel to unity, inviting the poor to table fellowship, healing the sick in body and heart, and embodying the path of forgiveness and love, Jesus was bringing God’s will and purpose to earth.

Now, in his Passion and death, Jesus brought heaven all the way down into the world. He carried the divine light into the darkest places of the human condition—hatred, cruelty, violence, corruption, stupidity, suffering, and death itself—and thereby transformed them. And the proof that heaven is able to transform earth is, of course, the Resurrection. 

Now we know that cruelty, hatred, violence, fear, suffering, and death are not the most powerful forces in the world. Now we know that the divine love is more powerful. God’s kingdom has, in principle, broken the kingdoms of the world, which thrive upon, and in turn produce, those very negativities."

-- Bishop Barron in his homily for today's Gospel