Saint John Gualbert

"S. Joannis Gualberti Abbatis ~ III. classis" refers to Saint John Gualbert, Abbot, and the term "III. classis" is a classification used in the Roman Catholic Church's liturgical calendar.

Saint John Gualbert (Italian: Giovanni Gualberto) was an Italian Roman Catholic saint, the founder of the Vallumbrosan Order. He was canonized in 1193 by Pope Celestine III. His feast day is celebrated on July 12.

John Gualbert, born of a noble Florentine family, took up a military career at his father's wish.

His only brother, Hugh, was slain by a relative, and it happened that on Good Friday, attended by armed soldiers, John met the slayer alone and unarmed on the road where they could not avoid each other.

Because of John's reverence for the sign of the holy Cross, which his enemy, seeing death at hand, made with his arms in supplication, John graciously spared him and received him as a brother.

Then he went to the Church of St. Minias, where, as he adored the Crucified, the image bent its head to him.

Moved by this, he gave up the military life and, at the persuasion of St. Romuald, then living in the hermitage of Camaldoli, he put on the monastic habit.

Later he founded a monastic Order under the Rule of St. Benedict in Vallombrosa, which had as its primary aims to do away with the stain of simony and to promulgate the apostolic faith.

Full of virtues and merits and blessed with the companionship of Angels, he went to the Lord in his seventy-eighth year, the 12th day of July, 1073, at Passignano.

In the context of the liturgical calendar, "III. classis" refers to the third class, which is a ranking system for feast days. The higher the class (I being the highest), the greater the importance of the feast. So, "III. classis" indicates that this is a third-class feast, which is of lesser importance compared to first or second-class feasts.

This information is often found in resources like the "Divinum Officium", which provides the daily liturgical texts for the Roman Catholic Church.

Saint John Gualbert (Italian: Giovanni Gualberto) was an Italian Roman Catholic saint and the founder of the Vallumbrosan Order. He was born in Florence, Italy, in the year 985 or 995. His family was a noble one.

John's life took a dramatic turn on Good Friday when he encountered the murderer of his brother. Filled with vengeance, John was about to strike the man down, but the man fell to his knees and begged for mercy in the name of Christ. John forgave him, seeing this as a sign from God.

After this event, John decided to dedicate his life to God. He became a monk and later founded the Vallumbrosan Order, which followed the Rule of Saint Benedict. The monks of this order led simple lives dedicated to prayer and labor.

John was known for his piety and his miracles. He was said to have miraculously cured a leper and to have brought a child back to life. His dedication to the monastic life and his ability to inspire others led to the growth of the Vallumbrosan Order.

John passed away on July 12, 1073. He was canonized in 1193 by Pope Celestine III. His feast day, as mentioned earlier, is celebrated on July 12 and is classified as a third-class feast in the liturgical calendar of the Roman Catholic Church.

(1) Catholic Faith - July 12 - S. Joannis Gualberti Abbatis - Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/catholicfaithPH/posts/july-12-s-joannis-gualberti-abbatis-iii-classisgospelcontinuation-of-the-holy-go/1908387052687189/.

(2) Ordo: Julius 2024 - Divinum Officium. https://www.divinumofficium.com/cgi-bin/horas/kalendar.pl.

(3) Divinum Officium. https://www.divinumofficium.com/cgi-bin/horas/officium.pl.