Saints Who Lived to 100 Years or More (Last Part)

A simple analysis

We know that centenarians are rare in human history. What is even rarer are centenarians who were celebrated as Saints in the altar of the Church. They have focused their life in Christ and centered all what they did in God. Given the list of 22 blesseds and saints, if some analysis were done to this group, we can learn something from the study. There is a limitation to the study as this is just a sample listing. For certain, there are more centenarian-saints in the records of the Church (which are not included here due to the author's limited resources), and also many more in the early centuries whose lives were not recorded in the Church's books. But with this sample list and an analysis, one can produce questions to help anyone reflect on what may have been the reasons for their longevity.

14 out of 22 were religious

14 out of the 22 centenerians were religious - meaning those who lived a very structured community life (or solitary in community) with the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience to a religious superior. This is quite a remarkable statistic as it is more than half of the entire group: 63.6%. And they are distributed in an almost equal number - with no particular religious order markedly predominating the others: 3 Dominicans, 2 Benedictines, 2 Carthusians, 2 Franciscans, 1 Servite, 1 Gilbertine, 1 Camaldolese, 1 Trinitarian, and 1 Carmelite. Could it be that a very structured life, akin to living in a religious community, contribute to longevity?

10 out of 22 were hermits

10 out of the 22 centenarians were hermits most of their life - or lived an eremitical life at one stage of their life. The percentage of hermits over the others is 45.5% - just a little below half of the group. We know how living in a city can be a very stressful lifestyle, and can contribute to an early death. Could it be that living in an isolated place, far from the hectic pace of civilized activity, be a contributory factor to longevity?

9 out of 22 lived to 100 years, 13 out of 22 lived more!

9 out of 22 centenarians, or 40.9% lived to 100 years; the other 13, or 59.1% outlived them! It is interesting to note that in this sample, there are more who lived passed the age of 100 years. What could have been the common denominator shared by those who have lived passed 100 years?

13 lived in the second millenium

7 centenarians lived in the first millenium, 13 lived in the second millenium, while 2 lived on the cusp: between the 1st and 2nd millenium. Those two who lived on the cusp between the 1st and 2nd millenium, are the only two in the group who lived to 120 years. And they both lived as Benedictines. Is living on the cusp of the millenium contributory to longevity? Were the two who survived the stresses of the 'millenial change', strengthened both spiritually and physically by the experience?

Life is a gift

We can quote St. John Paul II as one who also lived on the cusp - between the second and third millenium - what his view on life is. He says:

"This life is a talent entrusted to all of us so that we can transform it and increase it, making it a gift to others."

What John Paul II says is true. Each one's life is a gifts from God. Each life on earth is an instrument by which we see God's mercy and goodness, even despite imperfections and defects. With this sample study on the life of centenarian-saints, one can use it as a platform to learn more about the Christian faith, and the riches of Catholic spirituality (Benedictine, Trinitarian, Camaldolese, etc.). By reflecting more on what the gift of life essentially means in the Christian context, one can discover a depth of meaning, and a richness of purpose to live for God and others.

Saints Who Lived to a 100 Years or More (Part Three)

Introduction
Below is the last list of seven centenarian saints. One had been a hermit for four-fifths of his life, living up to 113 years of age. Of the other saints, three were monks, two were Dominican friars, and one was active in the court of the Spanish royal family.

Third list of centenerian-saints

• St. Parisio: (1160-1267 A.D.), Camaldolese monk, ordained to the priesthood, chaplain of St. Christina convent at Treviso for 77 years. Lived to 107 years.
• St. Paul the Hermit: (229-342 A.D.), hermit, lived to 113 years of age in which 90 years were spent in silence and solitude.
• St. Raymond of Peñafort: (1175-1275 A.D.), Dominican, preached the crusade against the Moors, confessor to Pope Gregory IX, master general of the Dominicans, resigned at 65 years old but lived 25 more years in active life.
• Blessed Simon de Rojas: (1522-1624 A.D.), Trinitarian friar, superior of the Order, confessor of the Spanish royal couple, and tutor of the royal family's children.
• St. Simon Stock: (1165-1265 A.D.), hermit, Carmelite, became superior general of the Carmelites, promoted devotion to the brown scapular.
• Blessed Aime Taparelli: (1395-1495 A.D.), was married first and then entered a new state of life as a Dominican, taught at the University of Turin, adviser to the duke of Savoy, an officer of the Inquisition.
• St. Theodosius the Cenobiarch: (423-529 A.D.), pilgrim, monk, hermit, founder of a monastery near Bethlehem, appointed head of cenobites in Palestine.

A remarkable statistic
The 22 centenerian-saints surveyed in this Series of articles are merely a sample of probably more centenerians that are recorded in the Church's archives. One remarkable feature of this survey (with information gathered from just a few books) is that all these centenarian-saints were male. It is for certain that there were also female centenarians in the history of our Christian faith. They are just not recorded in presently printed books as much as the male.

Life is a mystery
Life is a gift and a mystery. The wisdom books always remind that all are to choose life and not death. We are to choose life through the paths of virtue, righteousness, and justice. But God's word nevertheless reminds all of the truth about man's earthly life. In Psalm 90:9ff, it says:

"...our lives are over in a breath - our life lasts for seventy years, eighty with good health, but they all add up to anxiety and trouble" (Jerusalem Bible)

The centenerian-saints surveyed in this series of articles lived very long lives, but even though it may appear that they have 'outlived' the Lord, they still shared in His suffering and death - more so with the very many difficult struggles that go with the weakness of physical age. However, what can inspire all in this present generation is the perseverance and faithfulness in prayer and work that these centenarian-saints gave a good example of. If many midlifers complain of long prayers and tedious work already, imagine these centenarian-saints who had to live an additional 50 or more years in that same tedious prayer, study and work! They were able to do so because of their love for God and the Church.

The Immaculate Conception

The Immaculate Conception

One of the four existing Marian dogmas

Introduction

A dogma refers to the Church's belief that in scripture and tradition, God's truth is revealed to mankind, and that the Church's leadership can interpret and promulgate this truth. In the Catholic faith, there are four dogmas related to Mary: her being the Mother of God [Theotokos], her perpetual virginity, her Immaculate Conception, and her Assumption. It is her Immaculate Conception that prepared her to be a vital part of God's saving plan.

The Immaculate Conception as dogma

On December 8, 1854 A.D., Pope Pius IX solemnly defined as a dogma of Catholic faith that Mary is the Immaculate Conception. In the document Ineffabilis Deus, it was defined with these very words:

"We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instant of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by almighty God in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful".

Mary, preserved from original sin

At the beginning of her existence in her mother's womb [St. Anne], Mary was preserved from the stain of original sin. The phrase "by a singular grace and privilege" refers to Mary as the only human person in God's saving history who has been immaculately conceived. But the phrase "in view of the merits of Jesus Christ" is also to be noted since this unique privilege of Mary does not exempt her from the need to be also redeemed by her Son.

Theological reason for the Immaculate Conception


One primary theological reason for Mary's being immaculately conceived was because she was predestined to be the Theotokos, the Mother of God. It was for the sake of her Son's dignity that she received this unique grace. Since Mary was to conceive in her womb the Word of God incarnated, it was but fitting that this womb would be pure and free from any stain of original sin - the sin all members of mankind inherited from Adam and Eve when they disobeyed the will of God.

The dogma reaffirmed many times

This article of faith of Mary being immaculately conceived has been reaffirmed many times by the Church since its initial definition in 1854 A.D. Pope St. Pius X recalled it in his encyclical Ad Diem Illum on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of Ineffabilis Deus. Then, Pius XII also issued an encyclical, Fulgens Corona, to commemorate the centenary of the dogmatic definition in 1954 A.D. Aside from these two reaffirmations in the two encyclicals of two popes, references to the Immaculate Conception are also given in the teachings of the documents of Vatican II: in Lumen Gentium #56 and #59. "Enriched from the first instant of her conception with the splendor of an entirely unique holiness..." (L.G. 56); "...the Immaculate Virgin preserved free from all stain of original sin..." (L.G. 59)

Scriptural references that support the dogma

Although there are many scriptural texts which the dogma can refer to, the three main ones are:

• "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel" (Genesis 3:15)
• "...and she [Elizabeth] exclaimed with a loud cry, 'Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!'" (Luke 1:42)
• "And he [Gabriel] came to her and said 'Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.'" (Luke 1:28)

References from Tradition that support the dogma

The three main scriptural texts given above had implications that contributed also toward one early image of Mary after the New Testament tradition: that of the 'New Eve'. This was principally developed by St. Irenaeus and the image portrays Mary as intimately associated with Christ, the 'New Adam'. The victory of the 'New Adam' over sin and death was fulfilled by Christ and Mary participated in that saving event.

Other sources of Mary as believed to be free from sin comes from several of the Eastern Fathers, particularly St. Andrew of Crete, St. Germanus of Constantinople, and St. John Damascene. At the conclusion of the seventh to eighth centuries, they speak of Mary in ways that she was free from all sin, even original sin. They however do not discuss the mystery of original sin in the precise terms of the Western Fathers as did St. Augustine.

The beliefs of the faithful contributed also to the development of the dogma

The beliefs of the faithful, termed in Latin as sensus fidelium, was the most significant factor in the development of the dogma, especially when the people's faith in Mary is expressed most often from their liturgical devotion. Towards the end of the seventh century, a feast of Mary's Conception arose, originating probably in the monasteries of Syria and then spread throughout the Byzantine world. It soon reached England in ca. 1050 A.D., spread to Normandy, France, Spain, Belgium and Germany. The meaning of the feast was contested, but Eadmer, an English monk and close associate of St. Anselm of Canterbury, wrote a treatise which defended the feast and its doctrinal foundation. He argued that the holiness of Jesus required that his mother have a holy beginning. The case for the feast continued until finally John Duns Scotus (1266-1308 A.D.) created a breakthrough that paved the way into the definition of the dogma in 1854 A.D. John Duns Scotus notion of "preservative" redemption was able to reconcile Mary's Immaculate Conception with the universal need for salvation by Christ.

Summary

The content of a dogma and its development along the course of years and centuries involves Scripture, the teaching of the early Church, the writings of the Church Fathers and theologians, and most significant of all, the belief of the people as it is expressed in their devotion and in the Church's liturgy. From the historical development of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, we can see that it takes a long time before truth can be finally defined in the Catholic Church, especially as regards an article of faith in the level of a dogma. It takes both theological soundness and the faith of many people that helps an article of faith, like the Immaculate Conception, to be finally defined and approved by the Church.