King Saint Stephen of Hungary (ca. 975-1038), whose feast day is celebrated every August 16, was the husband of Blessed Gisela of Bavaria. From the love of both, Saint Emeric was born, to whom the monarch gave the following advice so that he would be a good ruler and saint.
These recommendations are in the reading job that religious people usually meditate on this day.
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1. Keep the faith
“First of all, I order you, I advise you, I recommend you, dearest son, if you wish to honor the royal crown, that you preserve the Catholic and apostolic faith with such diligence and care that you serve as an example to all the subjects that God has given you, and that all ecclesiastical men can rightly call you a man of authentic Christian life, without which you can be certain that you do not deserve the name of Christian or son of the Church.”
2. Love and protect the Church
“In the royal palace, after faith, the Church occupies second place, planted first by Christ, our head, then transplanted and firmly built up by its members, the apostles and the holy fathers, and spread throughout the world. And, Although it continually generates new children, in certain places it is already considered ancient.
“In our kingdom, dearest son, you must consider yourself still young and recent, and, for this reason, you need special vigilance and protection; that this gift, which divine clemency has granted us without deserving it, may not be destroyed or annihilated by your apathy, because of your laziness or your negligence”.
3. Have the same treatment with everyone
“My most loving son, sweetness of my heart, hope of future descendants, I beg you, I command you that always and on all occasions, supported by your good feelings, you be kind not only to men of rank or to leaders, the rich and those of the country, but also with foreigners and with all those who turn to you. Because the fruit of this kindness will be the greatest happiness for you.
4. Be compassionate and merciful
“Be compassionate with all those who suffer unjustly, always remembering in the depths of your heart that maxim of the Lord: I want mercy and not sacrifices. Be patient with everyone, with the powerful and with those who are not.”
5. Be virtuous
“Finally, be strong; do not be exalted by prosperity or discouraged by adversity. Also be humble, so that God may exalt you, now and in the future. Be moderate, and do not exceed in punishment or condemnation. Be meek, never opposing justice. Be honest, so that you never voluntarily become a source of shame to anyone. Be modest, avoiding the pestilence of lightness like a sting of death.
“All these things that I have briefly indicated to you are what make up the royal crown; without them no one is capable of reigning in this world or reaching the eternal kingdom.”
Originally published in 2015. It has been updated for republication.
Abel Camasca
Journalist graduated from the Communication Sciences degree at the University of Lima. He has been part of the ACI Prensa journalistic team since 2014. Between 2016 and 2022 he was in charge of the production of the television program EWTN Noticias and Más que Noticias, a World Catholic Radio program. He often writes articles about the lives of saints.