John W. Beschter (1763–1842) was a Catholic priest from the Duchy of
Luxembourg who emigrated to the United States in 1807 to become a
missionary of the Society of Jesus. He took up ministry in rural
Pennsylvania, and was soon made the pastor of St. Mary's Church in
Lancaster. As pastor, Beschter was praised by Archbishop John Carroll
for ministering to Catholic congregations of three distinct ethnic and
linguistic groups, and quieting a parochial dispute over the nationality
and language of their pastor. In 1812, Beschter went to Maryland to
become the master of novices at the new Jesuit novitiate in White Marsh.
After two years, he returned to ministering in rural Pennsylvania and
Maryland. He became the pastor of the German congregation of St. John
the Evangelist in Baltimore, a position he held until 1828. The
following year, he became the president of Georgetown College. After
several months, he left the office, and returned to ministering in
Paradise, Pennsylvania, where he lived out his final years.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_W._Beschter>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1777:
American Revolutionary War: Benedict Arnold used a ruse to
convince the British that a much larger force was arriving, causing them
to abandon the siege of Fort Stanwix.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Fort_Stanwix>
1864:
Under the leadership of Henry Dunant and the International
Committee of the Red Cross, twelve European states and kingdoms signed
the First Geneva Convention, establishing rules for the protection of
victims of armed conflict.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Geneva_Convention>
2015:
A Hawker Hunter aircraft crashed at an airshow at Shoreham
Airport, England, killing eleven people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Shoreham_Airshow_crash>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
lorry:
1. (road transport, Britain) A motor vehicle for transporting goods, and
in some cases people; a truck.
2. (dated) A barrow or truck for shifting baggage, as at railway
stations.
3. (dated) A small cart or wagon used on the tramways in mines to carry
coal or rubbish.
4. (obsolete) A large, low, horse-drawn, four-wheeled wagon without
sides; also, a similar wagon modified for use on railways.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/lorry>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
It doesn't take a hero to order men into battle. It takes a hero
to be one of those men who goes into battle.
--Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr.
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Norman_Schwarzkopf,_Jr.>