[Rank]
S. Joannis Gualberti Abbatis;;Duplex;;3;;vide C5

[Rule]
vide C5;
9 lectiones

[Oratio]
May the pleading of blessed John the Abbot make us acceptable unto thee, O Lord,~
we pray; that what we may not have through any merits of ours, we may gain by~
means of his patronage.
$Per Dominum.

[Commemoratio]
!Commemoration of Ss. Nabor and Felix, Martyrs
@Commune/C3:Oratio proper
$Oremus
Grant, we beseech thee, O Lord, so that as the birthday of thine holy martyrs~
Nabor and Felix faileth not to come round for our keeping, so their prayers may~
never fail to accompany it.
$Per Dominum

[Lectio4]
John Gualberto was the son of a noble family at Florence. In accordance with the~
wishes of his father, he became a soldier. While he was in that profession, his~
only brother, Hew, was slain by a cousin. On a certain Good Friday, John, armed~
and accompanied by soldiers, met the murderer, alone and defenceless, in a~
narrow way, where neither could turn aside. As he was at the point to kill him,~
the wretch fell on his knees, and stretched out his arms in the form of the~
Cross, adjuring him, for the sake of that sign, to forgive him and out of~
reverence for the Cross he had mercy on him and spared his life. After pardoning~
his enemy, he went into the Church of St. Minias, which was hard by, to pray. And~
there he saw the image of Jesus crucified, which had that day received the~
worship of the faithful, bow its head to him. By this miracle John was so moved,~
that he laid aside soldiering, even against his father's wishes cut off his~
hair with his own hands, at the Convent of St. Minias, and clad himself in the~
garb of a monk. In a short while he so shone with all godly and monkish graces,~
that he became a pattern of excellency to many. When the Abbat of that house~
died, the monks all chose John to succeed him. But the servant of God desired to~
obey, more than to command, and, being kept by God for greater things, he betook~
himself to one Romuald, a dweller in the hermitage at Camaldoli. Through Romuald~
he received a revelation from heaven, and forthwith founded an Order of his own~
under the Rule of St. Benedict, in the valley called Vallombrosa.

[Lectio5]
Many gathered themselves to him, drawn by the fame of his holy life. Them he~
took for his comrades, and laboured earnestly among them to cleanse the Church~
in those parts from the pollution of heresy and simony, and spread abroad the~
Apostolic Faith. He and his had to fight with almost countless hardships.~
Certain enemies broke by night into the monastery of San Salvi, to destroy John~
and his monks, set the church on fire, pulled down the huts, and mortally~
wounded all the monks but the man of God perfectly healed them all by the sign~
of the Cross. One of his monks named Peter also passed unhurt through a vast and~
raging fire. At length John and his disciples got the peace which they longed~
for. He purged Tuscany of the pollution of simony, and restored the faith~
throughout all Italy to its first purity.

[Lectio6]
He entirely built several monasteries, and furnished them and others with~
buildings. He restored in them the strict observance of the Rule, and gave them~
holy laws. He sold the furniture of the Church to feed the poor, and found the~
very elements subject to him to bend stubborn hearts withal. He used the Cross~
like a sword to drive out devils. In his old age, worn out by abstinence,~
watching, fasts, prayers, and punishing of the flesh, his strength utterly gave~
way, and he often repeated the words of David My soul thirsteth for God, for~
the mighty God, for the living God when shall I come and appear before God~
~(Ps. xli. 2.) When he was at the point of death, he gathered his disciples~
together and exhorted them to love one another, and, after a little while,~
ordered the following words to be written down, which he wished should be buried~
with him I, John, do believe and confess that Faith which the Holy Apostles~
preached, and which the Holy Fathers have ratified in the four Councils. At~
length, at Passignano, where he is held in the highest reverence, after a vision~
of angels which lasted three days, he passed away to be with the Lord, upon the~
12th day of July, in the 78th year of his own age, and in that of salvation~
1073. He is illustrious for countless miracles, and Celestine III. enrolled his~
name among those of the Saints.

[Lectio7]
From the Holy Gospel according to Matthew
!Matt 5:43-48
At that time, Jesus said unto His disciples: Ye have heard that it hath been~
said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy. And so on.
_
Homily by St. Jerome, Priest at Bethlehem.
!Bk. i., Cowan. on Matth. v. and vi.
But I say unto you Love your enemies, do good to them that hate you. There~
are many who judge of the commandments of the Lord by their own weakness, and~
not by the strength of His Saints and so deem Him to have commanded things~
impossible. These are they who think that not to hate their enemies is all that~
they are able to do and that to command us to love them, is to command more~
than man's nature can bear. It behoveth then to know, that this which Christ~
commandeth is not impossible, albeit perfect. This is what David did in respect~
of Saul and Absalom the martyr Stephen also prayed for his enemies, even while~
they were stoning him and Paul could wish that himself were accursed from~
Christ for his persecutors. (Rom. ix. well as taught, when He said Father,~
forgive them for they know not what they do. (Luke xxiii. 34.)

[Lectio8]
For the leaving undone other good works, some excuse can sometimes be given~
but no man can give an excuse for being loveless. Such and such an one may say~
to me, I am not able to fast but can he say, I am not able to love Such and~
such an one may say, I am not able to remain a virgin, I am not able to sell all~
that I have and give to the poor but can he say, I am not able to love my~
enemies

[Lectio9]
This is a work wherein the feet are not wearied with running, nor the ears with~
hearing, neither do the hands fail from labour, that we should set up thereby an~
excuse to rid us of the duty. It is not said unto us Go to the East, and~
search for charity sail to the West, and ye shall find love. It is into our~
own inner hearts that we are to go, as saith the Prophet Bring it again to~
mind, O ye transgressors. (Isa. xlvi. 8.) What is asked of us is not to be found~
afar off.
&teDeum

[Lectio94]
John Gualbert, born of a noble Florentine family, took up a military career at his father's wish. His only brother, Hugh, was slain by a relative, and it happened that on Good Friday, attended by armed soldiers, John met the slayer alone and unarmed on the road where they could not avoid each other. Because of John's reverence for the sign of the holy Cross, which his enemy, seeing death at hand, made with his arms in supplication, John graciously spared him and received him as a brother. Then he went to the Church of St. Minias, where, as he adored the Crucified, the image bent its head to him. Moved by this, he gave up the military life and, at the persuasion of St. Romuald, then living in the hermitage of Camaldoli, he put on the monastic habit. Later he founded a monastic Order under the Rule of St. Benedict in Vallombrosa, which had as its primary aims to do away with the stain of simony and to promulgate the apostolic faith. Full of virtues and merits and blessed with the companionship of Angels, he went to the Lord in his seventy-eighth year, the 12th day of July, 1073, at Passignano.
&teDeum