Saint John of Matha: Hero of Christian Charity and Ransomer of Captives (8 February)

About this sermon

Today the Church celebrates Saint John of Matha, priest and founder of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity, also known as the Trinitarians. Living during the time of the Crusades, Saint John of Matha dedicated his life to one heroic mission: the ransom and rescue of Christians who had fallen into captivity and persecution. Born in France and ordained a priest at the age of 33, Saint John of Matha received a powerful vision during his first Holy Mass. He saw Our Lord Jesus Christ holding the hands of two captives—one Christian and one Muslim—both bound in chains. This vision revealed God’s will: a new religious order devoted to charity, sacrifice, and the liberation of Christian captives. Together with Saint Felix of Valois, Saint John founded the Trinitarian Order with the blessing of Pope Innocent III. The Trinitarians raised funds to ransom Christians imprisoned by Muslim captors—and when money ran out, they were willing to offer themselves in exchange for the freedom of others. This is charity lived to the extreme. Saint John of Matha reminds us of an essential but often forgotten truth of the Faith: charity is ordered. As taught by Saint Paul, Christians have a special duty to care first for their brothers and sisters in the Faith, and then for all humanity. This is not selfishness—it is divine order. In a world where Christians are still persecuted, especially in the East, this saint calls us to prayer, sacrifice, and spiritual action. May we be inflamed with the same love for Christ and His Church, following the example of Saint John of Matha. Saint John of Matha, pray for us. 0:00 – Brothers and Sisters in Christ 0:28 – Feast of Saint John of Matha 0:42 – Founder of the Trinitarian Order 1:01 – The Crusades and Christian Captivity 1:48 – The Persecution of Christians 1:52 – Birth and Vocation of Saint John of Matha 2:13 – Vision During His First Mass 2:46 – Meeting Saint Felix of Valois 3:08 – Papal Approval by Pope Innocent III 3:24 – Mission of the Trinitarians 3:45 – Ransoming Captives and Self-Sacrifice 4:06 – Heroic Charity of Saint John of Matha 4:16 – Christian Charity as the Motive 4:39 – Praying for Persecuted Christians Today 5:18 – The Hierarchy of Charity Explained 6:07 – Duty Toward Our Brethren in Faith 6:37 – Persecuted Christians in the East 6:40 – Prayer to Our Blessed Mother 7:08 – Closing Prayer and Blessing For more please visit https://www.themarianfranciscans.org/ Please sign up at this link https://lifecrusade.org/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 Support Catholic Businesses here - https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ Sensus Fidelium Press - https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ Sensus Fidelium Apps - https://sensusfidelium.tv/ Support Sensus Fidelium - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 🙏🏻PLEASE HELP OUR CHANNEL GROW 🙏🏻 ▶️ 1. Become a Channel Patron: https://www.patreon.com/SensusFidelium ▶️ 2. Visit the website https://www.sensusfidelium.com for Gueranger, Saint of the Day, Apologetics, Meditation by the Saints, Scripture Study and more. ▶️ 3. Subscribe to Other Video Platforms 🔴 BitChute --- https://www.bitchute.com/channel/Sensus_Fidelium/ 🔴 Rumble --- https://rumble.com/c/c-298311 🔴 My Catholic Tube - https://mycatholictube.com/videos/sensus-fidelium-channel/ 🔴 LBRY.tv --- https://lbry.tv/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 ODYSEE - https://odysee.com/@SensusFidelium:c 🔴 UGETube - https://videos.utahgunexchange.com/@Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 BrandNewTube - https://brandnewtube.com/@SensusFidelium 🔴 GloriaTV - https://gloria.tv/Sensus%20Fidelium 🔴 Brighteon - https://www.brighteon.com/channels/sensusfidelium ▶️ 4. Paypal, Bitcoin, Anedot, Stripe, Square & PO Box donations - https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ ▶️ 5. YouTube: Click Subscribe, then Click "Notification Bell" = 🔔 Please "Like" our videos so that Youtube shares it to others by clicking the "Like" thumbs-up under the video = 👍🏻 ▶️ 6. Please share this video 📲, and help others find Christ inside the Catholic Church! Please share this video on Facebook and Twitter using the share button. ▶️ 7. Follow on Social Media: 🔴 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SensusFidelium/ 🔴 Twitter: https://https://twitter.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 Parler: https://parler.com/profile/Sensusfidelium/posts 🔴 SP3RN: https://www.sp3rn.com/community/pages/14-sensus-fidelium 🔴 GAB: https://gab.com/Sensus_Fidelium 🔴 Bastyon: https://bastyon.com/sensusfidelium 🔴 GETTR: https://gettr.com/user/sensus_fidelium 🔴 INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sensusfidelium/ 🔴 Telegram: https//t.me/RealSensusFidelium 🔴 Truth Social - @SensusFidelium ▶️ 8. Follow on iTunes: 🔴 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sensus-fidelium-catholic-podcast/id1477010758 #SaintJohnOfMatha #CatholicSaints #Trinitarians #ChristianPersecution #CatholicFaith #TraditionalCatholic #CatholicHistory #Crusades #ChristianCharity #PersecutedChristians #SensusF

Topics

• Giving
• Overcoming Obstacles