St Josaphat was born into a noble family in the Kingdom of Poland in 1580. His parents were members of an Eastern Rite Church which at the time had separated from Rome. When he was a teenager, that Church came into full communion with the Pope in Rome. At the age of 16, he entered the order of St Basil as a monk. In 1609, he was ordained a priest and began his career of preaching and spiritual direction and providing for the poor. He became the Bishop of Polotsk in Belarus in 1617 and went to work in reforming his Diocese. There was still a lot of tension between the different Christian groups in the area. He was killed by a mob of Orthodox fanatics in 1623. He was beatified in 1643, but not canonized a saint until 1867. His remains were interred at the altar of St Basil in St Peter’s Basilica in Rome during the Second Vatican Council in 1963, a sign of hope that the Orthodox and Roman Catholic Churches would one day reunite.
In the Gospel today, Jesus talks about the importance of being a servant, how it is an important part of our life of discipleship. I recently saw a quote that stated: “Authority in the kingdom of God looks like service.” We look at St Josephat who led a humble life of service as a leader in our Church. All of us are to have those same qualities of humility and service.
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