Day 299 -- Blessed Raymond Lull

When I saw where our blessed today was born, it brought a smile to my heart. Blessed Raymond Lull was born in Majorca, Spain in 1234. The Cursillo Movement was born in Majorca. I would love to make a pilgrimage there too!

Blessed Raymond Lull was a courtier in the court of King James of Aragon. He married Blanca Picany in 1257. In 1263 he received a vision of Christ crucified and was converted on the spot. He became a Franciscan tertiary. He worked to convert Muslims in the Iberian peninsula and North Africa. He tried to get the Vatican to take interest in this work, and he traveled throughout Italy, France, England and Germany, but came up empty handed. He learned Arabic and founded a school for Arabic study in 1276. He wrote over 300 works in Latin, Arabic, and Catalan on theology, logic, and philosophy. He also wrote poetry. Some people said he was martyred by being stoned in 1315, but there is no evidence to support this. When he died he had some devoted followers known as the Lullists. He is buried in the Church of San Francisco in Majorca. He was beatifed on February 25, 1750.

The Holy Spirit can give more grace through understanding than through believing, because believing serves to promote understanding. Believing is an instrument for understanding, whereas understanding is not an instrument for believing. This is what the prophet Isaiah meant when he said: ‘Unless you believe, you will not understand’ (Is. 7: 9).