† Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. THY WILL BE DONE, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but DELIVER US FROM EVIL.
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen †
Meet St. Maurice, or Mauritius. You need to know ALL about him. St. Maurice was the leader of the elite Roman Theban Legion headquartered in Egypt. The Theban Legion was comprised of 6,666 men, who all converted, with their commander Maurice, to Christianity en masse late in the Third Century. Emperor Maximian (same Maximian as discussed yesterday) ordered the Theban Legion from Egypt to France in order to put down a peasant revolt. Ahem. Cough.
When the Theban Legion arrived in France, Maximian ordered them to start persecuting Christians. The Theban Legion, led by Maurice, REFUSED TO OBEY MAXIMIAN’S ORDERS. Ahem. Cough.
Maximian ordered a decimation of the Theban Legion as punishment. The actual meaning of the word “decimation” means to kill one out of every ten men. After Maximian’s men had killed every tenth Theban, Maximian again issued orders for the Thebans to persecute Christians. Under Maurice’s manful, authoritative and inspiring leadership, the Theban Legion stood firm and still refused Maximian’s orders, even though it meant certain death. Ahem. Cough.
Maximian ordered the entire remaining Theban Legion killed to the last man in what is now present-day St. Maurice-en-Valais, Switzerland.
Now, look at the picture above. St. Maurice is the soldier the middle in full battle armor, manfully grasping his ASSAULT WEAPON as he consults with St. Erasmus, on the left.
St. Maurice was a black African. He wasn’t a north African. He was a sub-Saharan black man.
St. Maurice was HUGE in the Church, and was THE patron saint of the Holy Roman Emperors. In fact, the Holy Roman Emperors knelt and were anointed before the altar of St. Maurice at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The Austro-Hungarian emperors used St. Maurice’s spurs and sword (assault weapon) as an integral part of their coronation rite until 1916.
St. Maurice, pray for us, and especially for all servicemen who find themselves today serving under a psychopathic tyrant bent on the persecution of Christians. Ahem. Cough. Amen.