For Laura

Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord, and may the perpetual light shine upon her.  May her soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Novena for the Poor Souls in Purgatory

From a previous series of posts...
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7 
Day 8
Day 9

For All the Saints

Michelangelo - Last Judgement

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints.  This day has been celebrated in the Church since the 9th century.  I thought it might be good to reflect today on the Communion of Saints - one of the tenets of the Faith found in the Creed.  From the Compendium of the Catechism we find the following.

194. What is the meaning of the “communion of saints”?

This expression indicates first of all the common sharing of all the members of the Church in holy things (sancta): the faith, the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, the charisms, and the other spiritual gifts. At the root of this communion is love which “does not seek its own interests” (1 Corinthians 13:5) but leads the faithful to “hold everything in common” (Acts 4:32), even to put one’s own material goods at the service of the most poor.

195. What else does “the communion of saints” mean?

This expression also refers to the communion between holy persons (sancti); that is, between those who by grace are united to the dead and risen Christ. Some are pilgrims on the earth; others, having passed from this life, are undergoing purification and are helped also by our prayers. Others already enjoy the glory of God and intercede for us. All of these together form in Christ one family, the Church, to the praise and glory of the Trinity.

Source

So when our actions are rooted in love, we are united in Christ with all holy persons: those on earth, in purgatory and those saints in heaven that we celebrate today.

Propositiones - Part 1 - Answer

I presented the problem for Part 1 here.  The answer is as follows.

The merchant would need to buy 1 boar, 9 sows, and 90 piglets.  As there are three variables and only two equations, trial and error must be employed.  My solution is as follows.

X=Number of Boars
Y=Number of Sows
Z=Number of Piglets

[Eq 1]  X+Y+Z = 100
[Eq 2] 10X+5Y+0.5Z = 100

Solving Equation 1 for Z and substituting into Equation 2 and simplifying you get the following equation.

[Eq3] 1.9X + 0.9Y = 10

This is where trial and error comes in and you get X=1, Y=9.  Back substituting into Equation 1, you get that Z=90.

Hope you had fun!

Propositiones - Part 1

Alcuin of York developed a series of mathematical problems for his students.  Many of these remain and are collected in the document entitled: Propositiones ad acuendos juvenes or Problems to sharpen the young.  This collection contains 56 problems, many of which have similar structure, along with corresponding answers.  These problems are presented by Hadley and Singmaster [1].  I thought it would be fun and educational to post some problems from time to time.  I'll modify them slightly for the audience.

Problem 5: The merchant and 100 dollars
A merchant wanted to buy 100 pigs for 100 dollars.  A boar cost 10 dollars, a sow cost 5 dollars, and a pair of piglets cost a dollar.  How many of each did the merchant buy?

Answer will be posted tomorrow.

[1] Hadley, J. and Singmaster, D. "Problems to Sharpen the Young", The Mathematical Gazette, Vol. 76, No. 475, The Use of the History of Mathematics in the Teaching of Mathematics (Mar., 1992), pp. 102-126

St. Teresa of Avila

Bernini, Ecstacy of St. Teresa, 1647–1652

Let nothing disturb thee;
Let nothing dismay thee:
All thing pass;
God never changes.
Patience attains
All that it strives for.
He who has God
Finds he lacks nothing:
God alone suffices.

Alcuin of York

Alcuin was an eminent educator, scholar, and theologian born about 735; died 19 May, 804. He came of noble Northumbrian parentage, but the place of his birth is a matter of dispute. It was probably in or near York. While still a mere child, he entered the cathedral school founded at that place by Archbishop Egbert. His aptitude, and piety early attracted the attention of Aelbert, master of the school, as well as of the Archbishop, both of whom devoted special attention to his instruction. In company with his master, he made several visits to the continent while a youth, and when, in 767, Aelbert succeeded to the Archbishopric of York, the duty of directing the school naturally devolved upon Alcuin. During the fifteen years that followed, he devoted himself to the work of instruction at York, attracting numerous students and enriching the already valuable library. While returning from Rome in March, 781, he met Charlemagne at Parma, and was induced by that prince, whom he greatly admired, to remove to France and take up residence at the royal court as "Master of the Palace School". The school was kept at Aachen most of the time, but was removed from place to place, according as the royal residence was changed. In 786 he returned to England, in connection, apparently, with important ecclesiastical affairs, and again in 790, on a mission from Charlemagne. Alcuin attended the Synod of Frankfort in 794, and took an important part in the framing of the decrees condemning Adoptionism as well as in the efforts made subsequently to effect the submission of the recalcitrant Spanish prelates. In 796, when past his sixtieth year, being anxious to withdraw from the world, he was appointed by Charlemagne Abbot of St. Martin's at tours. Here, in his declining years, but with undiminished zeal, he set himself to build up a model monastic school, gathering books and drawing students, as before, at Aachen and York, from far and near. He died 19 May, 804. Source