Today, August 25, as our local Church celebrates the Solemnity of Louis, the patron saint of our Archdiocese, we are invited to read and reflect on a passage from the letter of the apostle Paul, to the Colossians (3:1–17), entitled "Your life is hidden with Christ in God". Our treasure, which follows, is from a spiritual testament to his son by St. Louis.
St. Louis got its name from Pierre Laclède, who, along with Auguste Chouteau, founded the settlement in 1764. The name honors King Louis IX of France, also known as Saint Louis, the only French monarch to be canonized as a saint. Laclède chose this name for the trading post in the French Illinois Country to show respect for the French king.
The Diocese of St. Louis was established on July 18, 1826. The original Diocese of St. Louis was established on July 1826 by Pope Leo XII. The diocese was a massive territory that included the entire Missouri area as well as vast portions of the American Midwest and Great Plains. It was often referred to as the "Rome of the West" because of its immense size. This new diocese was headed by Bishop Joseph Rosati, who became the first bishop of St. Louis. The diocese was later elevated to an archdiocese in 1847.
St. Louis was born in 1214 and became king of France when he was only twenty-two years old. He married and became the father of eleven children who received from him careful instructions for a Christian life. He excelled in penance and prayer and his love for the poor. While ruling his kingdom he had regard not only for peace among peoples and for the temporal good of his subjects, but also for their spiritual welfare. He undertook the Crusades to recover the tomb of Christ and died near Carthage in 1270.
Saint Paul's letter is addressed to a congregation at Colossae in the Lycus Valley in Asia Minor, east of Ephesus. At the time of writing, Paul had not visited there, the letter says. The community had apparently been established by Epaphras of Colossae. Problems, however, had arisen, brought on by teachers who emphasized Christ's relation to the universe (cosmos). Their teachings stressed angels; "principalities and powers", which were connected with astral powers and cultic practices and rules about food and drink and ascetical disciplines. These teachings, Paul insists, detract from the person and work of Christ for salvation as set forth magnificently in a hymnic passage and reiterated throughout the letter. Such teachings are but "shadows"; Christ is "reality".
