Mayol, Clieza B.

BFA FD 2

St. Gertrude the Great

St. Gertrude the great was a Benedictine and a mystic writer. She was born on the 6th of January 1256 in Germany. Her parents were never known. At the age of five she entered the Alumnate of Hefta and was confined to the care of St. Mechtilde, mistress of the alumnate. In her twenty-sixth year there was granted her the first of that series of visions of which the wonderful sequence ended only with life. She now gauged in its fullest extent the void of which she had been keenly sensible for some time past, and with this awakening came the realization of the utter emptiness of all transitory things. She passed from alumnate to the community. Outwardly her life was that of simple Benedictine nun, of which she stands forth preeminently as the type. Her boundless charity embraced rich and poor, learned and simple, the monarch on his throne and the peasant in the field; it was manifested in tender sympathy towards the souls in purgatory, in a great yearning for the perfection of souls consecrated to God.

St. Gertrude believed the Eucharist was a divine saving power that united man to God and drew one closer to His love. Through Jesus visions to her, she was given a special prayer that if recite would release 1000 souls in purgatory. It was her compassion through her life for the souls who are suffering that drew her closer to the Father and with it, she encourages everyone to pray for the holy souls and attend mass for them. St. Gertrude the great was also told that every time one hears mass fervently, God sends a saint to comfort him or her upon death. With this, we are assured of Gods unending love and compassion for His children on earth. Through the visions of St. Gertrude, it is evident that if only we pray to God, He will surely not fail us. His message is not only to divulge into attending the Eucharist but offering it to Him, to the suffering and the sinners. So that the Eucharist may serve a purpose in an individuals life, by listening to His word, offering ones life and giving it whole like how Jesus had given it on the cross. It is basically the main purpose of the Eucharist to unite with the community and help one another. It is what God wants to tell us. He wants us to realize that it is through our community that we feel His love by giving ourselves to others. St. Gertrudes devotion to the salvation of the Holy souls is a great example of this community involvement in the Eucharist. By praying for the Holy souls, we are able to help one another, even those who have transcended to another world towards God. St. Gertrude believes that if we devote ourselves to Gods salvation, we are able to understand deeper His purpose for us in His community. Her life was centered on helping others, rich or poor, and offering what she could to those in need. As a Benedictine nun, it was probably not that difficult for her to do so because she had been accustomed to it from a young age. As a youth of today, St. Gertrude shows us the

example of giving oneself to the Lord no matter how difficult the path is. The characteristic of St. Gertrude's piety is her devotion to the Sacred Heart, the symbol of that immense charity which urged the Word to take flesh, to institute the Holy Eucharist, to take on Himself our sins, and, dying on the Cross, to offer Himself as a victim and a sacrifice to the Eternal Father. Devotion takes a lot more than just being present in the Eucharistic celebration, but being there spiritually. Accepting Christs holy sacrifice and offering oneself to Him. She also wrote many books, containing her life and even the favors granted to her by our God. This only proves that with great faith, one is surely bestowed with grace upon God.

Here is the short prayer of St. Gertrude, said to release 1000 souls in purgatory every time it is recited. Eternal Father, I offer thee thy most precious blood of thy divine son Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, in my home and within my family. Amen.