Fr. Hewko, History: "Spreading of Christendom" 6/12/26

[00:00:01]Okay, this is kind of a uh a little addendum to last class on history.

[00:00:10]So, I just want to it's not long, but I just want to add it in so you have it in your picture of your mind.

[00:00:20]So, I'm going to erase this.

[00:00:31]And just give you the list of the conversions of countries to Christ and the Catholic Church.

[00:00:43]Germany.

[00:00:50]In 700s, around 748, under St. Boniface.

[00:00:58]He's the apostle of Germany.

[00:01:02]Boniface.

[00:01:07]Who writes the Latin grammar book.

[00:01:11]The Netherlands.

[00:01:17]That's Holland.

[00:01:21]Holland, what other countries are in there?

[00:01:24]>> [clears throat] >> Belgium area.

[00:01:29]Under St. Kilian, 690.

[00:01:37]Kilian.

[00:01:39]And many other monks that are not mentioned. Just many, many monks. Kind of many other saints that are not mentioned that should be here.

[00:01:48]Switzerland.

[00:01:54]Switzerland becomes Catholic under St. Gall, who founds a monastery.

[00:02:02]And they have towns named after these saints as well, cuz the monasteries developed there.

[00:02:08]This would be also the 7th century.

[00:02:14]So, that's 600s.

[00:02:19]Bavaria, which is southern Germany, becomes Catholic.

[00:02:30]Also 7th century.

[00:02:33]600s. So, they call the 600s, you know, barbaric ages.

[00:02:38]Um but it was really the spreading of the faith, through the monastics, mainly through the monks.

[00:02:47]And a chief champion of Bavaria was St. Rupert.

[00:02:55]And you can add in there St. Wolfgang as well.

[00:03:01]Poland will become a great Catholic nation and is still holding on today in the year 698 under the king Mies Mieszko.

[00:03:25]Mieszko the first.

[00:03:30]Bohemia, which is modern-day Czechoslovakia area, Bohemia will become Catholic in 983-ish under St. Adalbert.

[00:04:00]Hungary will become the Hungarian Austro-Hungarian Empire under a great king around the time also of St. Vladimir 997 St. Stephen King St. Stephen the First whose feast day is in the liturgical calendar.

[00:04:32]And there's a statue right there. See?

[00:04:35]We have a statue right there.

[00:04:37]A gift from Aggie.

[00:04:39]St. That's right from Hungary. St. Stephen.

[00:04:44]Austria another great Catholic nation. Still very Catholic today, but gone very Novus Ordo by false obedience.

[00:04:57]Around the year 770 AD under St. Virgil.

[00:05:05]St. Virgil.

[00:05:12]Not Virgil, Fergal.

[00:05:17]St. Fergal.

[00:05:20]France, of course, is early.

[00:05:22]Really, France will become the first Catholics landing in France are going to be St. Lazarus St. Mary Magdalene and St. Martha who knew our Lord. They landed Marseille in Southern France.

[00:05:38]So, much could be said, but politically it becomes Catholic in the year 496 under the great Clovis, King Clovis.

[00:05:53]Spain, 589, but St. James will go to Spain. So, really you could trace it back to St. James the Greater.

[00:06:06]Under 589 under the King St. Leovigild.

[00:06:17]St. Leovigild and of course St. Hermenegild is in this period as well.

[00:06:23]He will die a martyr for refusing Holy Communion from a heretical bishop, an Arian bishop. He will not take communion from a heretical bishop.

[00:06:38]So, we shouldn't take communion either from these new mass in Vatican II priests and bishops.

[00:06:46]Ukraine, as I said before, in 988 under who?

[00:06:55]>> St. Vladimir.

[00:06:59]>> St. Vladimir. Yeah, they have great statues of him in Ukraine.

[00:07:03]Huge statues of of it in his honor.

[00:07:14]Denmark, which could be considered one of the Netherlands, but this is more north and towards the sea.

[00:07:24]Denmark in the year 960 AD.

[00:07:34]St. Ansgar, whose nickname Bluetooth.

[00:07:47]>> They have a son.

[00:07:51]>> Saint Ansgar.

[00:07:55]Yep, Bluetooth.

[00:07:57]So, his memory lives on.

[00:08:01]Is Bluetooth still used today?

[00:08:05]I don't know. Is Bluetooth still popular?

[00:08:08]>> Yeah.

[00:08:08]>> Okay. So, Saint Ansgar lives on.

[00:08:13]Uh Sweden, which is one of the one of the big northern countries next to Finland and Norway.

[00:08:34]The Scan- Scandinavian countries.

[00:08:37]Sweden in 1070 eight.

[00:08:48]Norway in 1000.

[00:08:59]Iceland Even Iceland becomes Catholic under the influence of Saint Olaf in 987.

[00:09:19]Abbot Saint Ursleaf Saint Ur- s- leaf.

[00:09:34]In 1060, helps to convert Ireland love and England.

[00:09:44]Of course, England gets an early shot of Catholicism with Joseph of St. Joseph of Arimathea will go to England.

[00:09:53]And already introduced the Catholic faith. And some even say there's a legend that that our Lord even went to England as a boy, as a young young traveler, but that's not reliable sources.

[00:10:18]In the year 597, England becomes Catholic under St. Augustine of Canterbury.

[00:10:34]Who converts Ethelbert of Kent, King Ethelbert of Kent.

[00:10:44]And in Kent, you can see the cross marking where the first monks landed.

[00:10:53]>> [clears throat] >> Greenland will receive the faith in the about the year 1000.

[00:11:07]And Ireland in about the year 432.

[00:11:17]And guess who brings the faith there?

[00:11:20]>> Patrick.

[00:11:21]>> St. Patrick.

[00:11:32]So, that is a rough summary of conversions of pagan countries that became Catholic.

[00:11:42]So, you see and then in the 1000s St. Cyril and Methodius into Russia.

[00:11:58]Russia, Rus.

[00:12:03]And that's in the 1000s.

[00:12:12]Quite amazing. So, that's Europe becomes Catholic.

[00:12:17]Europe becomes Catholic and North Africa, too, until the Muslim invasions.

[00:12:27]Europe becomes predominantly Catholic and that's the spreading of the faith to the high Middle Ages.

[00:12:38]And there's many more. I've just done a little summary here. That's all.

[00:12:58]So, this is all built on the commentary of St. Augustine who's commenting on Psalm 92.

[00:13:16]And here's what he says.

[00:13:19]"Wonderful are the surges of the sea," says the Psalm.

[00:13:24]"For when of had lifted up their voices unto him, many believed.

[00:13:29]And many received the Holy Ghost, and many rivers instead of few began to lift up their voice.

[00:13:37]Hence there follows from the voices of many waters, wonderful are the surges of the sea.

[00:13:44]Wonderful are the waves of the sea. That is the waves of the world.

[00:13:49]When Christ had begun to preach to be preached by so powerful voices, the sea, the world, became enraged.

[00:13:58]Persecutions began to thicken.

[00:14:01]When therefore the rivers had lift up their voice, from the voices of many waters are wonderful, says the Psalm, were the surges of the sea.

[00:14:15]That is to be hung aloft is to be lifted up.

[00:14:19]When the sea wages, the waves are hung as from above.

[00:14:23]Let the waves hang over as they choose.

[00:14:26]Let the sea roar as it chooses.

[00:14:29]The hangings of the sea indeed are mighty. Mighty are the threatenings.

[00:14:34]Mighty the persecutions against the church.

[00:14:37]But see what follows.

[00:14:40]Quote from the Psalm 92.

[00:14:43]But yet the Lord who dwells on high is mightier.

[00:14:47]The Lord who dwells on high is mightier.

[00:14:51]So says St. Augustine, let therefore the sea restrain itself and sometime become calmed.

[00:14:59]Let peace be granted by Christians. The sea was disturbed. The vessel was tossed. The vessel is the Catholic Church. The sea is the world.

[00:15:09]The Lord came. He walked over the sea and calmed the waves.

[00:15:14]How did the Lord walk over the sea?

[00:15:17]Above the heads of those mighty foaming waves.

[00:15:22]That is principalities and kings believed they were subdued unto Christ.

[00:15:29]Let us not therefore be frightened because the Lord who dwells on high is mightier.

[00:15:36]So all In other words, all the persecutions of against the Catholic Church spreading, God walked on the seas by converting all these heads of nations to Catholicism.

[00:15:49]So God is mightier.

[00:15:51]"I will reign in in spite of my enemies," Christ the Sacred Heart told St. Margaret Mary.

[00:15:58]And then he And then I I I might as well just finish here quoting verse 5 of Psalm 92, "Thy testimonies, O Lord, are very surely exceedingly credible.

[00:16:13]The Lord who dwelleth on high is mightier than the mighty overhangings of the sea.

[00:16:19]Thy testimonies are very surely exceedingly credible."

[00:16:24]He's quoting the Psalm again.

[00:16:26]Why? Because he had said beforehand, "These things I have spoken unto you that in me you might have peace. In the world you will have tribulation."

[00:16:36]He added, "But be of good cheer. I have overcome the world."

[00:16:40]If then he says, "I have overcome the world," cling to him who overcame the world, who overcame the sea.

[00:16:48]Rejoice in him because the Lord who dwells on high is mightier, and thy testimonies are exceedingly credible.

[00:16:57]And what is the end of all these? The purpose.

[00:17:03]house, O Lord.

[00:17:05]Decus sanctitudinis domus tuae.

[00:17:09]Thy house, the whole of thy house, not here and there, but the whole of thy house throughout the whole world.

[00:17:18]Why throughout the whole the world?

[00:17:20]Why throughout the whole of the round world? Says St. Augustine, round world interesting.

[00:17:26]Because he has set a right the round world which cannot be moved.

[00:17:31]Quoting again the Psalm.

[00:17:38]Because he has set a right the round world which cannot be moved. Orbis terrarum.

[00:17:44]Round world. The Lord's house will be strong. It will prevail throughout the whole world. Many shall fall, but that that house stands. Many shall be disturbed, but that house shall not be moved.

[00:17:57]Holiness becomes thy house, oh Lord.

[00:17:59]For a short time only? No, until length of days.

[00:18:05]And that house, of course, is the Catholic Church.

[00:18:08]Which Christ founded.

[00:18:10]Which will last forever.

[00:18:13]In the church triumphant.