Feast of
St. Sylvester I

Today is the Feast of Pope St. Sylvester I, son of a Roman soldier named Rufinus and a woman possibly named Justa. He was Pontiff during the time of Constantine the Great who granted greater freedom to Christians, and during his reign, many of Rome's great churches were founded. Though he is often depicted in art as baptizing Constantine, this is metaphorical as Constantine was actually baptized on his death bed. Pope St. Sylvester is buried in the church he built over the Priscilla Catacombs. An excerpt from the life of Pope St. Sylvester I from the Golden Legend: In this time it happed that there was at Rome a dragon in a pit, which every day slew with his breath more than three hundred men. Then came the bishops of the idols unto the emperor [Constantine the Great] and said unto him: O thou most holy emperor, sith the time that thou hast received Christian faith the dragon which is in yonder fosse or pit slayeth every day with his breath more than three hundred men. Then sent the emperor for S. Silvester and asked counsel of him of this matter. S. Silvester answered that by the might of God he promised to make him cease of his hurt and blessure of this people. Then S Silvester put himself to prayer, and S. Peter appeared to him and said: Go surely to the dragon and the two priests that be with thee take in thy company, and when thou shalt come to him thou shalt say to him in this manner: Our Lord Jesu Christ which was born of the Virgin Mary, crucified, buried and arose, and now sitteth on the right side of the Father, this is he that shall come to deem and judge the living and the dead, I commend thee Sathanas that thou abide him in this place till he come. Then thou shalt bind his mouth with a thread, and seal it with thy seal , wherein is the imprint of the cross. Then thou and the two priests shall come to me whole and safe, and such bread as I shall make ready for you ye shall eat. Thus as S. Peter had said, S. Silvester did. And when he came to the pit, he descended down one hundred and fifty steps, bearing with him two lanterns, and found the dragon, and said the words that S. Peter had said to him, and bound his mouth with the thread, and sealed it, and after returned, and as he came upward again he met with two enchanters which followed him for to see if he descended, which were almost dead of the stench of the dragon, whom he brought with him whole and sound, which anon were baptized, with a great multitude of people with them. Thus was the city of Rome delivered from double death, that was from the culture and worshipping of false idols, and from the venom of the dragon. At the last when S. Silvester approached towards his death, he called to him the clergy and admonished them to have charity, and that they should diligently govern their churches, and keep their flock from the wolves. And after the year of the incarnation of our Lord three hundred and twenty, he departed out of this world and slept in our Lord, etc. Customs Frankly, the popular focus is on the end of the secular year, but on this, the seventh day of Christmas, a plenary indulgence may be gained, under the usual conditions, by reciting the Te Deum in thanksgiving for the past year. Every place has its own customs on this day, most being rooted in the desire to bring blessings for the following year, to do things so as to "start things out on the right foot," and often with the belief that how you find yourself at midnight portends how things will be for you the rest of the new year. Merriment is the rule in all cases, and "lucky foods" are eaten, all of which vary from place to place. In Spain, one must eat 12 grapes at midnight to fend off evil in the following year. Pea Soup is a German "lucky food," and in France it is oysters. In the United States, black-eyed peas are consumed. Other customs of New Year's Eve in the United States include kissing at the stroke of midnight; banging on pots and pans, honking car horns, and generally making noise at that time; making "resolutions" (commitments to break a bad habit, add a good habit, or fulfill a goal of some sort in the coming year); drinking champagne or sparkling wine; watching the "ball fall" in Times Square on television, and singing Auld Lang Syne, the traditional (secular) New Year's Song in the English speaking world. This hauntingly sad but convivial song, written by the Scottish poet Robert Burns (A.D. 1759-1796), is a song that toasts the past and old friends who've gone. Few people know what the right lyrics or what the song means, however, so here it is in its original and in a modern translation (click here to hear melody):

Auld Lang Syne

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