Wednesday, October 19, 2016

October 21, the Feast of Blessed Karl of Austria

October 21st is the feast day of Blessed Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria-Hungary; this year marks the centenary of his accession to the throne on November 21st. He was beatified by Pope St John Paul II in 2004; a second miracle has been attributed to his intercession, a miraculous healing which led to the conversion of the person healed. His feast day is kept not on the day of his death, April 1st, but rather, on the day of his marriage to Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma, which took place in 1911; her cause for canonization was introduced in December of 2009. It is well-known story about the Bl. Karl that he said to his wife on the day after their wedding, “Now, we must help each other to get to Heaven.”

A website has been created by the Emperor Karl League of Prayer (screen capture below), which has a great deal of useful information about the Blessed, his life and the cause for his canonization. It also has a section listing a number of Masses for his feast, including a Pontifical Mass which Bishop Athanasius Schneider will celebrate in Washington D.C., at church of St Mary Mother of God. The particular mission of the League is to pray for peace throughout the world, a mission of the greatest importance in these troubling times.
http://www.emperorcharles.org/

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