It was a day like today.
On November 1, Catholics of the west celebrate this day as the feast of All Saints Day as a commemoration of all those Christians who have gone before in the faith. This is observed variously in Europe and the Americas. In Mexico and Central America, it has some aspects of a family reunion as living members of families go to cemeteries to adorn and repair the tombs of their ancestors and pray for the repose of the dead members of their families. In Guatemala, for instance, after returning home from the cemetery and a memorial Mass, family members gather at home for a special meal that consists of a sort of salad of various meats and vegetables marinated in vinaigrette. Called “fiambre” or cold-cuts, the meal is not solemn but a joyous tradition and reunion. Christians of the East observe several such days in the course of the year to pray for the souls of the dead.
It was today in 1765 that Americans reacted strongly to duties imposed by Britain in the form of the Stamp Act. Throughout the colonies, flags were flown at half-masts, church bells tolled, and most business was suspended. In New York, ten boxes of the offending stamps were seized and destroyed; In Connecticut the Stamp officer was threatened with death, while in Massachusetts homes were destroyed and stamps burned and thrown to the winds.
Blessed Theodore Romzha was born in the Subcarpathian region of what is now Ukraine on April 14, 1911. These were difficult years for the Church in Subcarpathia as it experienced the invasions by Nazi Germany and then the Soviet Red Army. In 1944 at the young age of 33 he was consecrated a Bishop and appointed Apostolic Administrator of the Eparchy of Mukachevo. His ministry to the faithful met with many roadblocks, but he managed to find a way around them. This angered the Communists, who found an opportunity to kill the popular bishop. In October 1947 , Bishop Romzha’s horse drawn carriage was rammed by a Soviet military truck and pushed off the side of the road. The soldiers dressed as civilians jumped from the truck and beat the Bishop and his companions. Bishop Romzha and his companions were taken to Uzhorod where they were hospitalized. While making good progress, on the night of October 31 a new relief nurse was assigned to him. A little after midnight Bishop Romzha was found dead. The relief nurse had mysteriously disappeared. It was believed that she had administered a poison to the Bishop that caused his death. Bishop Theodore Romzha was beatified as a Martyr for the Faith by Pope John Paul II on June 27, 2001 with November 1st assigned as his feastday.
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