Standing Firm

Pope St. Leo, whose Memorial we observe today, is one of the three Popes known as "the Great":  Gregory and Nicholas, being the other two.  He was elected Pope in 440 and died on this day in 461. He is noted for standing firm to support the dogma that Jesus both God and Human, possessing two natures in one person. It was Pope Leo's letter to the bishops of the Council of Chalcedon in 451 that convinced them to accept this succinct formula.  The story goes that upon hearing his letter, they all cried out at once:  "Peter has spoken through Leo!"
Not long after, the dreaded Attila The Hun and his army were approaching Rome, and the people begged Pope Leo to negotiate with him. Attila spared Rome and accepted Leo's compromise of an annual payment for the next three years.  When the Vandals came a few years later, Leo negotiated with them but not quite so successfully; they looted the city but spared the people and the buildings.
Pope Leo's courage, firmness and diplomacy serve as an example in our own time when Attilas and Vandals of all sorts threaten us at our gates. Pope St. Leo the Great, help us stand firm in the face of the temptations and forces of evil that plague us as much now as in your day. Amen.
Bro. Rene