SAINTS OF THE DAY FRIDAY, 25 JULY, 2025 SAINT JAMES THE GREATER (APOSTLE) SAINT CHRISTOPHER _ SAINT JAMES THE GREATER (APOSTLE) APOSTLE AND MARTYR (First Century) In Spain, he is called El Senor Santiago, the patron saint of horsemen and soldiers, and his great shrine at Santiago de Compostela in that country has been a place of pilgrimage for centuries. He is one of those that Jesus called Boanerges, "son of thunder," the brother of John the Evangelist and the son of Zebedee the fisherman from Galilee. St. James the Greater and his brother John were apparently partners with those other two brothers, Peter and Andrew, and lived in Bethsaida, on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. How and where James first met Jesus, we do not know; but there is an old legend that makes Salome, his mother, a sister of Mary, and if this were the case, he would have known Jesus from childhood. Along with Peter and his brother John, James was part of the inner circle of Jesus, who witnessed the Transfiguration, were witnesses to certain of His miracles, like the raising of the daughter of Jairus, and accompanied Him to the Garden of Gethsemani. Like his brother, he was active in the work of evangelization after the death of Jesus, and one legend, very unlikely, even has him going to Spain after Jesus' resurrection. His prominence and his presence in Jerusalem must have been well known, for scarcely a dozen years after the Resurrection, he became involved in the political maneuverings of the day and was arrested and executed by King Herod Agrippa. This was followed by the arrest of Peter also, so his death must have been part of a purge of Christian leaders by Agrippa, who saw the new Christian movement as a threat to Judaism. Jesus had foretold this kind of fate when He prophesied that James and his brother John would "drink of the same chalice" of suffering as Himself. The two brothers had asked to be seated at the right of Jesus and at His left in His kingdom, and Jesus told them that they would be with Him in a far different way than they expected. James's death is the only biblical record we have of the death of one of the Apostles, and he was the first of that chosen band to give his life for his Master. - From 'The One Year Book of Saints' by Rev. Clifford Stevens. PATRON: Against arthritis; against rheumatism; Antigua, Guatemala; apothecaries; blacksmiths; Chile; Compostela, Spain; druggists; equestrians; furriers; Galicia, Spain; Guatemala; horsemen; knights; laborers; Medjugorje, Bosnia-Herzegovina; Nicaragua; pharmacists; pilgrims; Pistoia, Italy; rheumatoid sufferers; riders; soldiers; Spain; Spanish conquistadors; tanners; veterinarians. PRAYER: Almighty ever-living God, who consecrated the first fruits of your Apostles by the blood of Saint James, grant, we pray, that your Church may be strengthened by his confession of faith and constantly sustained by his protection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. _ SAINT CHRISTOPHER (Death - 251) The story of St. Christopher and the St. Christopher Medal is a captivating part of Christian gospel. He was a Canaanite 7.5 feet tall with a fearsome face. He is believed to be a large man of immense strength who lived in the third century during the reign of Decius. According to legend, Christopher's given name was Reprobus and that he once served the king of Canaan, who he believed to be “the greatest king there was”. One day he saw that the king feared the devil. Upon learning this, he decided to depart from the king's service and seek out the devil. He came across one of whom declared himself as the devil and Reprobus decided to serve him. However, when he saw his new master avoid a wayside cross, he learned that the devil feared Christ. He left the devil's service and set out on a journey to find Christ. He encountered a hermit who instructed him on the Christian faith. The hermit told Reprobus that in order to serve Jesus, he recommends fasting and prayer. This option did not suit him very well. As an alternative, the hermit suggested that he might use his strength to help travelers cross a dangerous river. This was a service that suited him perfectly. One day a child arrived to be carried across the river. Reprobus took the child upon his shoulders, but as he crossed the river, the child grew heavier until Reprobus feared he would fall and that they would both drown. When he asked the child why he was so heavy, the child revealed that he was Jesus Christ and answered that he was heavy with the weight of the world's sins. Not one to give up, he forged ahead with considerable difficulty and crossed the river with the Christ child on his shoulders. When they reached the opposite bank, Christ asked Reprobus to press his staff into the ground. When he did, the staff turned into a beautiful flowering tree, and he was rewarded. Christ then baptized Reprobus in the river and gave him his Christian name which - Christopher - means "Christ-bearer." The St. Christopher medal depicts a bearded, middle-aged man. Upon his shoulders sit a child representing Christ, and in his hand is a staff. The inscription "Svts. Christophorvs Protector Noster," which means "Saint Christopher Our Protector" circles the medallion. Christopher spent the remainder of his life in the service of Christ and worked tirelessly to spread Christ's teachings. He died a martyr in Lycia, in 251 A.D. PATRON: of bachelors, transportation, traveling, storms, epilepsy, gardeners, holy death, and toothache. MOTORIST'S PRAYER TO ST. CHRISTOPHER Grant me, O Lord, a steady hand and watchful eye. That no one shall be hurt as I pass by. You gave life, I pray no act of mine may take away or mar that gift of thine. Shelter those, dear Lord, who bear my company, from the evils of fire and all calamity. Teach me, to use my car for others need; Nor miss through love of undue speed the beauty of the world; that thus I may with joy and courtesy go on my way. St. Christopher, holy patron of travelers, protect me and lead me safely to my destiny. Amen.
SAINTS OF THE DAY SATURDAY, 26 JULY, 2025 SAINTS ANNE AND JOACHIM PARENTS OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Who does not know about the great shrine of Ste. Anne de Beaupre in Canada, where miracles abound, where cured cripples leave their crutches, and where people come from thousands of miles to pray to the grandmother of Jesus? At one time, July 26 was the feast of St. Anne only, but with the new calendar the two feasts of the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary have been joined and are celebrated today. Our information about Mary's parents comes from an apocryphal Christian writing, the Protoevangelium Jacobi (or Gospel of James), written about the year 170. According to this story, Joachim was a prominent and respected man who had no children, and he and his wife, Anne, looked upon this as a punishment from God. In answer to their prayers, Mary was born and was dedicated to God at a very early age. From this early Christian writing have come several of the feast days of Mary, particularly the Immaculate Conception, the Nativity of Mary, and her Assumption into Heaven. Very early also came feast days in honor of Sts. Joachim and Anne, and in the Middle Ages numerous churches, chapels, and confraternities were dedicated to St. Anne. The couple early became models of Christian marriage, and their meeting at the Golden Gate in Jerusalem has been a favorite subject of Christian artists. Anne is often shown in paintings with Jesus and Mary and is considered a subject that attracts attention, since Anne is the grandmother of Jesus. Her two great shrines — that of Ste. Anne d'Auray in Britanny, France, and that of Ste. Anne de Beaupre near Quebec in Canada — are very popular. We know little else about the lives of Mary's parents, but considering the person of Mary, they must have been two very remarkable people to have been given such a daughter and to have played so important a part in the work of the Redemption. There is a church of St. Anne in Jerusalem and it is believed to be built on the site of the home of Sts. Joachim and Anne, when they lived in Jerusalem. - From 'The One Year Book of Saints' by Rev. Clifford Stevens. PATRON ST. ANNE: against poverty; barren; broommakers; cabinetmakers; carpenters; childless couples; equestrians; grandmothers; grandparents; homemakers; housewives; lace makers; lace workers; lost articles; miners; mothers; old-clothes dealers; pregnancy; pregnant women; horse riders; seamstresses; stablemen; sterility; turners; women in labour; Brittany; Canada; France; Quebec; archdiocese of Detroit, Michigan; diocese of Norwich, Connecticut; Santa Ana Indian Pueblo; Taos, New Mexico. ST. JOACHIM: fathers, grandfathers, grandparents. PRAYER: O Lord, God of our Fathers, who bestowed on Saints Joachim and Anne this grace, that of them should be born the Mother of your incarnate Son, grant, through the prayers of both, that we may attain the salvation you have promised to your people. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
SAINT OF THE DAY SUNDAY, 27 JULY, 2025 SAINT PANTALEON MARTYR (275 - 303) St Pantaleon came from Nicomedia, near the Black Sea, in Asia. He was such a famous doctor that the Emperor himself chose him for his own doctor. Pantaleon was a Christian, but the bad influence from the pagan court caused him to give up his Christian faith entirely. A holy priest named Hermolaos made him realize what a sin he had committed. Pantaleon listened to him, detested his sin and joined the Church once more. To make up for what he had done, he greatly desired to suffer and die for Jesus. In the meantime, he imitated Our Lord's charity by taking care of poor sick people without any charge for his medical services. When the Emperor Diocletian began his persecution, Pantaleon at once gave away everything he owned to the poor. Not long afterwards, he was accused of being a Christian. He was given the choice of denying his Faith or being put to death. No torture could force Pantaleon to deny his Faith. There has been strong devotion in past ages to this Saint. In the East he is called the "Great Martyr and Wonder-worker." PATRON: Physicians, midwives, livestock, invoked against headaches, consumption, locusts, witchcraft, accidents and loneliness, helper for crying children. PRAYER: Grant, we beseech Thee, O almighty God, that, by the intercession of blessed Pantaleon Thy martyr, we may be both delivered from all adversities of the body and cleansed from all evil thoughts of the mind. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Who livest and reignest, with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God for ever and ever. Amen.
SAINT OF THE DAY MONDAY, 28 JULY, 2025 SAINT ALPHONSA MUTTATHUPADATHU RELIGIOUS (1910 - 1946) She was born as Annakkutty (little Anna) in Kudamaloor, a village in the princely state of Travancore which was under the British Raj (now present day Kottayam district, Kerala, India) to Joseph and Mary Muttathupadathu. She was baptized on 27 August 1910 at Saint Mary's Church in Kudamaloor under the patronage of Saint Anna. Anna's mother died leaving 3 months old child. She was raised by her Grandma at Kudamaloor and by maternal aunt at Muttuchira. In 1916 Anna started her schooling in Arpookara. She received First Communion on 27 November 1917. In 1918 she was transferred to the school in Muttuchira. In 1923 Anna was badly burned on her feet when she fell into a pit of burning chaff. This accident left her permanently disabled. When it became possible, Anna joined the Franciscan Clarist Congregation. She arrived at the Poor Clares convent at Bharananganam on Pentecost 1927. She received the postulant's veil on 2 August 1928 and took the name Alphonsa. In May 1929 she entered the Malayalam High School at Vazhappally. Her foster mother died in 1930. On 19 May 1930 she received her religious habit at Bharananganam. Three days later she resumed her studies at Changanacherry, while working as a temporary teacher at the school at Vakakkad. On 11 August 1931 she joined the novitiate. Anna took her permanent vows on 12 August 1936. Two days later she returned to Bharananganam from Changanacherry. She taught elementary school, but was often sick and unable to teach. In December 1936, it is claimed that she was cured from her ailments through the intervention of Blessed Kuriakose Elias Chavara, but on 14 June 1939 she was struck by a severe attack of pneumonia, which left her weakened. On 18 October 1940, a thief entered her room in the middle of the night. This traumatic event caused her to suffer amnesia and weakened her again. Her health continued to deteriorate over a period of months. She received extreme unction on 29 September 1941. The next day it is believed that she regained her memory, though not complete health. Her health improved over the next few years, until in July 1945 she developed a stomach problem that caused vomiting. She died on 28 July 1946, aged 35. She is buried at Bharananganam, Travancore (present day Kerala) in the Diocese of Palai. Her tomb in Bharananganam has become a pilgrimage site as miracles have been reported by some faithful. The miracle attributed to her intercession and approved by the Vatican for the canonization was the healing of the club foot of an infant in 1999. PATRON: against illness. PRAYER OF SAINT ALPHONSA: Oh Lord Jesus, hide me in the Sacred wound of Your Heart. Free me from my evil desire to be loved and esteemed. Save me from the mean pursuit of honour and fame. Make me humble until I become very insignificant and a small spark in the furnace of the love of Your Divine Heart. Give me the grace to forget the world and everything in it, including myself. My Jesus, who is ineffable sweetness, transform all my worldly consolations into bitterness. Oh Jesus! Sun of Justice, with the divine rays of Thy Sacred fire of love, illumine my mind, enlighten my intellect, purify my heart, enkindle my love towards Thee, consume me in the fire of Your love, and thus unite me with You. Amen.
SAINT OF THE DAY TUESDAY, 29 JULY, 2025 SAINT MARTHA OF BETHANY VIRGIN (First Century ) Martha was born of noble and wealthy parents, but she is still more illustrious for the hospitality she gave to Christ our Lord. After His Ascension into heaven, she was seized by the Jews, together with her brother and sister, Marcella her handmaid, and Maximin, one of the seventy two disciples of our Lord, who had baptized the whole family, and many other Christians. They were put on board a ship without sails or oars, and left helpless on the open sea, exposed to certain shipwreck. But God guided the ship, and they all arrived safely at Marseilles. This miracle, together with their preaching, brought the people of Marseilles, of Aix, and of the neighborhood to believe in Christ. Lazarus was made Bishop of Marseilles and Maximin of Aix. Magdalen, who was accustomed to devote herself to prayer and to sit at our Lord's feet, in order to enjoy the better part which she had chosen, that is, contemplation of the joys of heaven, retired into a deserted cave on a very high mountain. There she lived for thirty years, separated from all human intercourse; and every day she was carried to heaven by the angels to hear their songs of praise. But Martha, after having won the love and admiration of the people of Marseilles by the sanctity of her life and her wonderful charity, withdrew in the company of several virtuous women to a spot remote from men, where she lived for a long time, greatly renowned for her piety and prudence. She foretold her death long before it occurred; and at length, famous for miracles, she passed to our Lord on the fourth of the Kalends of August. Her body which lies at Tarascon is held in great veneration. - Excerpted from The Liturgical Year, Abbot Gueranger O.S.B. PATRON: Butlers; cooks; dietitians; domestic servants; homemakers; hotel-keepers; housemaids; housewives; innkeepers; laundry workers; maids; manservants; servants; servers; single laywomen; travellers. PRAYER: Almighty ever-living God, whose Son was pleased to be welcomed in Saint Martha's house as a guest, grant, we pray, that through her intercession, serving Christ faithfully in our brothers and sisters, we may merit to be received by you in the halls of heaven. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
I love this thread.,, thank you Prayslie! I hope you don't mind me inserting one i just read about for July 28th: Dying, to Live: Blessed Stanley Rother and Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Blessed Stanley Rother and Mother Seton accepted death as a part of life, their peace and certainty sure signs that at the end of their lives they would find nothing but Christ. BY LISA LICKONA Awhile back, on assignment for a different publisher, I got in trouble with an editor for my writing about the saints. This editor objected to what might be called my “colorful” depictions of martyrdoms. I gave too many details, he said. There was too much gore. Of course, I dutifully toned down my descriptions—but the conversation got me thinking. Why do I have such a fascination with scenes of martyrdom? Why do I feel drawn to this violence? I had to admit that the reason I was fascinated by the death scenes of the saints was not the bloodshed, but how they appeared alongside unimaginable peace, hope, and joy. Who sings when they are about to be crucified at a stake as the Nagasaki Martyrs did? Who guides the unsteady hand of their executioner in a flurry of ecstasy, as Saint Perpetua did? Where else but in the saints can I see such signs of Christ’s triumph over death and therefore begin to have hope for his triumph in me? The unquenchable positivity in the face of death is everywhere in evidence in the lives of the saints—sometimes long before they actually die. The saintly bishop John Fisher, a martyr under Henry VIII, kept a skull on his table so that he could dine every night meditating on his end (a bloody but glorious martyrdom). And two years before her own painful death, Elizabeth Ann Seton, wrote to her spiritual director, “We talk now all day long of my death and how it will be just like the rest of the housework. What is it else? What came in the world for? Why in it so long?” Elizabeth was thinking on her death, planning for it, and frankly longing for it. Death for her was a part of life—just like the rest of housework. I cannot read these lines without wanting such peace and certainty for myself. So, today I am going to do it again. I am going to tell the story of the life and violent death of Blessed Stanley Rother, the first martyr born in the United States. And I do it so that you and I might have hope today in our own lives—for hope is the meaning and message of Stanley’s life and death. Stanley was born in 1935 on a farm in Okarche, Oklahoma, in the “buckle” of the Bible belt, where Catholics are a tiny minority, but a devout one. He went to the local Catholic school and served at the altar. Every night after dinner his parents led the family in the Rosary. Stanley answered a call to the priesthood in his youth. But it turned out that he was farm-smart, not seminary-smart. Like Saint John Vianney before him, he failed out of his required Latin course. But also like the saintly Curé, his call ran deep—and others could see it. His bishop sent him to Latin summer school, and then to a different seminary, Mount Saint Mary’s in Emmitsburg, Maryland. There, Stanley passed. In 1963 he was ordained for the Diocese of Oklahoma City and Tulsa (today two separate dioceses). Stanley’s struggles made him seem a little slow and some thought he was a bit too pious. It no doubt surprised many when, only five years after ordination, he was chosen to serve in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala, on a mission team which had been formed from the diocese a few years earlier in response to a call from Pope John XXIII. It was a demanding assignment. The Catholic Church had been suppressed for several decades in Guatemala, and the people had suffered the absence of priests. For certain, the missionaries needed to prioritize catechesis and the sacraments. But the people—the indigenous Tzutujil who made up the parish—were suffering from malnutrition, health problems, and lack of education. Subsistence farming was the norm. And so from the first, the Oklahoma mission focused on helping people get medical care and food–and then helping them grow their own. In this context, Stanley’s gifts were a boon. He constructed the rectory and a hospital and built a parish farm from the ground up. Clearing, digging, framing, wiring: he could do it all. Yet Stanley was also constantly called upon to minister. In 1969, he began serving a satellite mission of Santiago Atitlán as well as at the main parish. He performed 500 to 1000 baptisms a year and hundreds of weddings. From 1975 on, he was the sole pastor for the entire parish—22,000 parishioners. Amazingly, in this time, the “slow” priest who could not master Latin became so fluent in the Tz’utujil language spoken by the natives that he began to translate the Bible for them. It was no small feat to craft an alphabet for a language that had no written form. Stanley had a simple way with his people, as was clear in his ministry to newly-married couples. He took a picture of them at their wedding and afterwards brought it to their new home and blessed it. On these visits, he always ate whatever they served—even if it were grass, he joked! Not infrequently, he suffered bouts of stomach trouble from the local parasites he ingested, but he never stopped his visits. All the while Stanley was working to build up the lives of his people, political alliances were shifting in Guatemala. The open attitude toward the Church began to change as priests and missionaries made gains in raising the situations of the poorest of their flock, the indigenous people. This did not sit well with the wealthy landowners who held almost all the power, including the control of the military. When an earthquake in 1976 reduced the poorest Guatemalans to even greater destitution, foreign aid poured in, but it was siphoned off by those in power, never reaching those for whom it was intended. The poor began to form resistance movements to demand justice, and the military responded. Open warfare began. Catholic priests and catechists who sought to help the poor—most of whom, like Stanley, avoided political stances—were threatened. In May 1979, Stanley’s name showed up on a deathlist. And the next year, the army moved into the parish farm he had help establish and made it a center of their operations. Priests from nearby areas began disappearing. Not long after that, a Tz’utujil native who had been the first native transitional deacon disappeared right from the steps of the parish church. Stanley witnessed the abduction but could do nothing. Then Stanley’s name appeared on a second deathlist. At the urging of those around him, in the first weeks of 1981, he went back home. He was in the States for only 2 ½ months before the longing to return to his people overtook him. “A shepherd does not abandon his sheep,” he told his brother. He went back during Holy Week. When he arrived in the parish there had been a lull in the killings of priests, but soon they resumed. This time, Stanley stayed put. He went about his priestly activities cautiously, but in peace. On July 24 his name appeared on a death list for a third time. Four days later, in the early hours of July 28, three masked men entered his rectory and shot him dead. They fled. When those who were nearby reached his room, they discovered Stanley’s body in a pool of blood. They sopped up the blood with gauze and put it in jars, convinced that it was the blood of a martyr. It is worthwhile to consider what went into this scene. In the last months of his life, Stanley had made what we might call a “death plan.” He did not court death, mind you, but he knew that martyrdom was a real possibility. He decided that he would plan his out a bit—at least the part that was in his power. Stanley had seen how priests and catechists had been abducted without a trace, leaving their parishioners and family members wondering what happened. Their bodies were never found—and the waiting and wondering sapped the life and energy of the survivors. Stanley decided that if they came for him, he would put up a fight. If they had the intent to kill him, he wanted them to do it on the spot. This would prevent his parishioners that agony. But he knew that putting up a fight would run a risk. If he cried out, if he screamed in pain, then the nuns who lived next to the rectory would come running and would almost certainly be killed by his attackers. And so he would fight in silence. He wouldn’t cry out. It seems that it all played out exactly as he planned. The blood on the wall and the cuts on his body showed how he fought his attackers before they shot him dead. And no one heard a thing until the men were already fleeing. Stanley Rother loved his people and wanted them to have hope. He loved the nuns and wanted them to continue to serve. He loved his flock and willingly offered his life to remain with them. And this was certainly what they experienced. He had made one other specification. The nuns had asked him what they should do if he were killed. “Raise the Easter banner,” he said. That day, they raised the banner in the church. The jars of blood were on the altar, the blood shed for them. Today, the parish where Stanley died is a well-spring of vocations—they are sending priests to other places. His shrine in Oklahoma City is a center of prayer in the heartland of our country. Stanley’s body is buried there. But with the people of Santiago Atitlán remain the jars of blood, and his heart. In such death, there is nothing but Christ. “Raise the Easter banner!” From such a bloody death, hope comes. Blessed Stanley Rother, pray for us!
Sometimes at Mass I find it fun to see the saint of the day get a mention and know nothing whatsoever about them and to look them up. Like St Beatrice today. A whole story emerges which would make a great film; terrible suffering. https://www.vaticannews.va/en/saints/07/29/st--beatrice-of-rome.html St. Beatrice of Rome 29 July St. Beatrice of Rome, Catacombs of Generosa (© Pontificia commisione di archeologia sacra) The persecution of Christians was raging. From the bridge called the pons aemilius, which spanned the Tiber River over Tiber Island, the bodies of her two brothers, Simplicius and Faustinus, were tossed into the waters below. They had been put to death because they were Christians. Pain and fear must have been the feelings that invaded the woman’s heart, but she did not hesitate to try to recover their bodies to give them a proper burial. Thanks to the help of two priests, she managed to recover them from the river. She gave them burial in the place, where she would herself eventually be laid to rest.. Martyrdom for Christ It was not long before Beatrice met the same fate as her brothers. She was denounced as a Christian, imprisoned and, despite the threats she received, persevered in the faith. Another woman, Lucina, buried Beatrice in the place where her brothers rested, a cemetery on the via Portuense. The catacomb of Generosa The catacomb called “Generosa” was on the via Portuense, and the three saints came to be known as the martyres portuenses. Of particular note in the catacomb is the fresco with Byzantine characteristics, which was discovered there, called Coronatio Martyrum, dating back to the 6th century. In it are depicted five characters: in the center Christ who offers the crown of martyrdom to Simplicius, flanked by Beatrice, while on the left are the figures of Faustinus, with the palm of martyrdom in his hand, and of Rufus. Later, the relics of Saint Beatrice and her brothers were brought to the Oratory of the Church of Saint Bibiana around 682 by Pope Leo II. Pope Urban VIII then later decided that the ancient church was to be restored by the hand of Bernini. The latter brought down the Oratory and the marble arch was carried to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major. Some of her relics are found in other parts of Europe, the most significant in Germany. Beatrice, a beloved name The name Beatrice has always been popular and loved because of the veneration given the Roman martyr. Its diffusion was also increased thanks to the fame of several figures, such as Beatrice Portinari, the woman loved by Dante Alighieri, and that of other noblewomen and queens.
SAINT PETER CHRYSOLOGUS BISHOP, CONFESSOR AND DOCTOR (380 - 450) In the fifth century, Ravenna, not Rome, was the capital of the Roman Empire in the West, and Ravenna itself became a metropolitan see. St. Peter Chrysologus was one of the most distinguished archbishops of that see. Peter was born in Imola about the year 400 and studied under Cornelius, bishop of that city, who ordained him deacon. In 433, the archbishop of Ravenna died, and when a successor had been chosen by the clergy and people of Ravenna, they asked Bishop Cornelius to obtain confirmation of their choice from Pope Sixtus III. On his trip to Rome, Cornelius took his deacon, Peter, as his companion; upon seeing Peter, the pope chose him for the see of Ravenna instead of the one selected by the clergy and people of Ravenna. Peter was consecrated and was accepted somewhat grudgingly at first by both the clergy and the people. Peter, however, soon became the favorite of Emperor Valentinian III, who resided at Ravenna and was also highly regarded by Pope St. Leo the Great, the successor of Pope Sixtus. There were still traces of paganism in Peter's diocese, and his first effort was to establish the Catholic faith everywhere, rooting out abuses and carrying on a campaign of preaching and special care of the poor. Many of his sermons still survive, and it is on the basis of these that he came to be known as "the golden word." In his concern for the unity of the Church, Peter Chrysologus opposed the teaching of Eutyches, condemned in the East, who asked for his support. Peter also received St. Germanus of Auxerre to his diocese and officiated at his funeral. Knowing that his own death was near, Peter returned to his own city of Imola and after urging great care in the choice of his successor he died at Imola about the year 450 and was buried in the church of St. Cassian. In 1729, Pope Benedict XIII declared him a Doctor of the Church. — The One Year Book of Saints by Rev. Clifford Stevens Familiar is his dictum: "If you jest with the devil, you cannot rejoice with Christ." Some of his sermons are read in the Breviary. Ravenna, his episcopal city, still harbors treasures of ancient Christian liturgical art dating to his day. PATRON: Against Fever and Against Mad Dogs. PRAYER: O God, who made the Bishop Saint Peter Chrysologus an outstanding preacher of your incarnate Word, grant, through his intercession, that we may constantly ponder in our hearts the mysteries of your salvation and faithfully express them in what we do. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
"Fasting is the soul of prayer, almsgiving is the lifeblood of fasting. Let no one try to separate them; they cannot be separated. SAINT PETER CHRYSOLOGUS My heart kind of sunk when I read this. I am not much good at fasting and my almsgiving, such as it is , is not much to brag about either. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.
THURSDAY, 31 JULY, 2024 SAINT IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA PRIEST AND CONFESSOR (1491 - 1556) Ignatius, by nation a Spaniard, was born of a noble family at Loyola, in Cantabria. At first he attended the court of the Catholic king, and later on embraced a military career. Having been wounded at the siege of Pampeluna, he chanced in his illness to read some pious books, which kindled in his soul a wonderful eagerness to follow in the footsteps of Christ and the saints. He went to Montserrat, and hung up his arms before the altar of the Blessed Virgin; he then watched the whole night in prayer, and thus entered upon his knighthood in the army of Christ. Next he retired to Manresa, dressed as he was in sackcloth, for he had a short time before given his costly garments to a beggar. Here he stayed for a year, and during that time he lived on bread and water, given to him in alms; he fasted every day except Sunday, subdued his flesh with a sharp chain and a hair-shirt, slept on the ground, and scourged himself with iron disciplines. God favored and refreshed him with such wonderful spiritual lights, that afterwards he was wont to say that even if the Sacred Scriptures did not exist, he would be ready to die for the faith, on account of those revelations alone which the Lord had made to him at Manresa. It was at this time that he, a man without education, composed that admirable book of the Spiritual Exercises. However, in order to make himself more fit for gaining souls, he determined to procure the advantages of education, and began by studying grammar among children. Meanwhile he relaxed nothing of his zeal for the salvation of others, and it is marvelous what sufferings and insults he patiently endured in every place, undergoing the hardest trials, even imprisonment and beatings almost to death. But he ever desired to suffer far more for the glory of his Lord. At Paris he was joined by nine companions from that University, men of different nations, who had taken their degrees in Arts and Theology; and there at Montmartre he laid the first foundations of the order, which he was later on to institute at Rome. He added to the three usual vows a fourth concerning missions, thus binding it closely to the Apostolic See. Paul III first welcomed and approved the Society, as did later other Pontiffs and the Council of Trent. Ignatius sent St. Francis Xavier to preach the Gospel in the Indies, and dispersed others of his children to spread the Christian faith in other parts of the world, thus declaring war against paganism, superstition, and heresy. This war he carried on with such success that it has always been the universal opinion, confirmed by the word of pontiffs, that God raised up Ignatius and the Society founded by him to oppose Luther and the heretics of his time, as formerly he had raised up other holy men to oppose other heretics.He made the restoration of piety among Catholics his first care. He increased the beauty of the sacred buildings, the giving of catechetical instructions, the frequency of sermons and of the sacraments. He everywhere opened schools for the education of youth in piety and letters. He founded at Rome the German College, refuges for women of evil life, and for young girls who were in danger, houses for orphans and catechumens of both sexes, and many other pious works. He devoted himself unweariedly to gaining souls to God. Once he was heard saying that if he were given his choice he would rather live uncertain of attaining the Beatific Vision, and in the meanwhile devote himself to the service of God and the salvation of his neighbor, than die at once certain of eternal glory. His power over the demons was wonderful. St. Philip Neri and others saw his countenance shining with heavenly light. At length in the sixty-fifth year of his age he passed to the embrace of his Lord, whose greater glory he had ever preached and ever sought in all things. He was celebrated for miracles and for his great services to the Church, and Gregory XV enrolled him amongst the saints; while Pius XI, in response to the prayers of the episcopate, declared him heavenly patron of all Spiritual Exercises. - Excerpted from The Liturgical Year, Abbot Gueranger O.S.B. PATRON: Basque country; Jesuit Order; Jesuits; retreats; soldiers; Spiritual Exercises (by Pope Pius XI). PRAYER: O God, who raised up Saint Ignatius of Loyola in your Church to further the greater glory of your name, grant that by his help we may imitate him in fighting the good fight on earth and merit to receive with him a crown in heaven. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Blessed Solanus Casey July 30 Franciscan Media Saint of the Day Saint of the Day for July 30 (November 25, 1875 – July 31, 1957) Blessed Solanus Casey’s Story Barney Casey became one of Detroit’s best-known priests even though he was not allowed to preach formally or to hear confessions! Barney came from a large family in Oak Grove, Wisconsin. At the age of 21, and after he had worked as a logger, a hospital orderly, a streetcar operator, and a prison guard, he entered St. Francis Seminary in Milwaukee—where he found the studies difficult. He left there, and in 1896, joined the Capuchins in Detroit, taking the name Solanus. His studies for the priesthood were again arduous. On July 24, 1904, Solanus was ordained, but because his knowledge of theology was judged to be weak, he was not given permission to hear confessions or to preach. A Franciscan Capuchin who knew him well said this annoying restriction “brought forth in him a greatness and a holiness that might never have been realized in any other way.” During his 14 years as porter and sacristan in Yonkers, New York, the people there recognized Solanus as a fine speaker. James Derum, his biographer writes, “For, though he was forbidden to deliver doctrinal sermons, he could give inspirational talks, or feverinos, as the Capuchins termed them.” His spiritual fire deeply impressed his listeners. Father Solanus served at parishes in Manhattan and Harlem before returning to Detroit, where he was porter and sacristan for 20 years at St. Bonaventure Monastery. Every Wednesday afternoon he conducted well-attended services for the sick. A co-worker estimates that on the average day 150 to 200 people came to see Father Solanus in the front office. Most of them came to receive his blessing; 40 to 50 came for consultation. Many people considered him instrumental in cures and other blessings they received. Father Solanus’ sense of God’s providence inspired many of his visitors. “Blessed be God in all his designs” was one of his favorite expressions. The many friends of Father Solanus helped the Capuchins begin a soup kitchen during the Depression. Capuchins are still feeding the hungry there today. In failing health, Solanus was transferred to the Capuchin novitiate in Huntington, Indiana, in 1946, where he lived for ten years until needing to be hospitalized in Detroit. Father Solanus died on July 31, 1957. An estimated 20,000 people passed by his coffin before his burial in St. Bonaventure Church in Detroit. At the funeral Mass, the provincial Father Gerald said: “His was a life of service and love for people like me and you. When he was not himself sick, he nevertheless suffered with and for you that were sick. When he was not physically hungry, he hungered with people like you. He had a divine love for people. He loved people for what he could do for them—and for God, through them.” In 1960, a Father Solanus Guild was formed in Detroit to aid Capuchin seminarians. By 1967, the guild had 5,000 members—many of them grateful recipients of his practical advice and his comforting assurance that God would not abandon them in their trials. Solanus Casey was declared Venerable in 1995, and beatified on November 18, 2017. Reflection His biographer James Patrick Derum writes that eventually Father Solanus was weary from bearing the burdens of the people who visited him. “Long since, he had come to know the Christ-taught truth that pure love of God and one’s fellowmen as children of God are in the final event all that matter. Living this truth ardently and continuously had made him, spiritually, a free man—free from slavery to passions, from self-seeking, from self-indulgence, from self-pity—free to serve wholly both God and man” (The Porter of St. Bonaventure’s, page 199).
SAINT OF THE DAY FRIDAY, 1 AUGUST, 2025 SAINT ALPHONSUS MARIA DE LIGUORI BISHOP AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH (1696 - 1787) Alphonsus Liguori, born in 1696, was the son of an ancient Neapolitan family. His father was an officer in the Royal Navy. At the age of sixteen, Alphonsus received his doctorate in both canon and civil law and for nearly ten years practiced at the bar. When he found that one of the legal cases he was defending was not based on justice but on political intrigue, he gave up the practice of law and dedicated his life to God. Ordained to the priesthood in 1726, St. Alphonsus Liguori joined a group of secular priests dedicated to missionary activities. He involved himself in many kinds of pastoral activities, giving missions and organizing workers, and had a part in the founding of an order of contemplative nuns. In 1732, he founded the Redemptorists, a congregation of priests and brothers, to work especially among the country people of Italy who often lacked the opportunity for missions, religious instruction, and spiritual retreats. Strangely, his first companions deserted him; but Alphonsus stood firm, and soon vocations multiplied and the congregation grew. The Redemptorists were approved by Pope Benedict XIV in 1749, and Alphonsus was elected superior general. In 1762, he was appointed bishop of Sant' Agata dei God and as bishop he corrected abuses, restored churches, reformed seminaries, and promoted missions throughout his diocese. During the famine of 1763-64, his charity and generosity were boundless, and he also carried on a huge campaign of religious writing. In 1768, he was stricken with a painful illness and resigned his bishopric. During the last years of his life, problems in his congregation caused him much sorrow and when he died on August 1, 1787, at Pagani, near Salerno, the Redemptorists were a divided society. He was beatified in 1816, canonized in 1839, and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1871. - Excerpted from the The One Year Book of Saints by Rev. Clifford Stevens PATRON: Confessors; final perseverance; theologians; vocations. PRAYER: O God, who constantly raise up in your Church new examples of virtue, grant that we may follow so closely in the footsteps of the Bishop Saint Alphonsus in his zeal for souls as to attain the same rewards that are his in heaven. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Saint Alphonsus founded the Redemptorists who before Vatican 2 used to take a Vow to preach on hell. I remember ,very vividly these sermons they would have turned your hair white to listen to them, very,very scary indeed. Did this do any harm? Well no, I don't think so actually I believe they did a lot of good for as Scripture informs us the Fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom. Actually looking back on it if Our Lady had not shown hell to the children at Fatima pretty well no one would believe in it now. An inconvenient truth. St Alphonsus is a Doctor of the Church which means we Catholics should pay strict attention to him. Two things he said really stick in my mind. He said that those who pray will most certainly be saved and those who do not pray will most certainly be damned. This is also enshrined in the Catechism. I for one think this is true. If we could not be bothered to have a relationship with God on Earth how could we even begin to have one in heaven? Another thing he said which really makes people think is that we can reach an end time of mercy being extended to us. So say I am a bank robber, rob a bank and go to confession and am forgiven but go and rob and another bank. Alphonsus says there will come a time when God will foreclose and say enough is enough and call us home to Judgement. We should not presume that we are always and everywhere going to keep being let off the hook. That there will be a reckoning. Not to presume too much .
FEASTS OF THE DAY SATURDAY, 2 AUGUST, 2025 1) OUR LADY OF THE ANGELS OF THE PORTIUNCULA 2) SAINT PETER JULIAN EYMARD _ 1) OUR LADY OF THE ANGELS OF THE PORTIUNCULA August 2nd, is a special day for all Franciscans, as it is celebrated The Feast of Our Lady of the Angels of the Portiuncula. When St. Francis was discerning his vocation, he heard the Lord tell him, “Go and build my church”. Francis taking what he heard literally, went and repaired chapels that were deteriorating. The Portiuncula or the “Little Portion,” dedicated to St. Mary of the Angels was one of the three chapels he repaired. The chapel and the land belongs to the Benedictines for it was given to St. Benedict in the 6th century. However, the friars came to live at the Portiuncula in early 1211. It became the “motherhouse” of the Franciscans. St. Francis felt that the Portiuncula was a place filled with God's grace. In 1216, at the request of St. Francis of Assisi, Pope Honorius granted special privilege (plenary indulgence – a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins) to all those who would visit the little chapel. Although limited to include from noon on August 1st to midnight on August 2nd, the privilege continues to be granted to this day; not only to those who visit the Portiuncula, but to anyone who visits any church where Franciscan Friars live and minister. To receive this privilege (for yourself or for someone else – living or deceased), in addition to the visit, one must receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation within several weeks of the Feast Day, go to Mass and receive the Eucharist, recite the Our Father and Apostles Creed, and pray for the intentions of the Holy Father. DETAILS: In Assisi there is a small chapel (the Portiuncula) where St. Francis lived and where he began the Franciscan Order. It is now enclosed in a basilica in Assisi and the original structure of the Portiuncula is preserved. The beautiful Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli that now surrounds the Portiuncula chapel was begun in 1569 (completed in 1684) by decree of Pius V. It was meant to accommodate the huge crowds of pilgrims who came on August 2nd for Il Perdono (Portiuncula Indulgence). It also contains the cell where Saint Francis died, the Chapel of the Transito. There is the “thornless rose bush“. When St. Francis was tempted by the Devil he reportedly rolled in the bush and it turned from a briar bush into a thornless rose bush. To this day there are no thorns on the rose bushes–but only here on this spot. Here, also, is a statue of Saint Francis to mark the spot where he talked to the doves. To this day, white turtle doves continue to nest in this statue. The story is told that once while Saint Francis was praying here, Jesus appeared to him and offered to grant him a request. The humble saint asked for a plenary indulgence to be granted to all who, having confessed their sins and visited the chapel. The request was granted on the condition that such an indulgence meet with the Pope's approval. Pope Honorius III did grant the request on the condition that it only be honored one day each year: August 2nd. It is called the “Pardon of Assisi.“ _ 2) SAINT PETER JULIAN EYMARD PRIEST AND FOUNDER (February 4, 1811 - August 1, 1868) Born in La Mure d'Isere in southeastern France, Peter Julian's faith journey drew him from being a priest in the Diocese of Grenoble (1834) to joining the Marists (1839) to founding the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament (1856). In addition to those changes, Peter Julian coped with poverty, his father's initial opposition to Peter's vocation, serious illness, a Jansenistic striving for inner perfection and the difficulties of getting diocesan and later papal approval for his new religious community. His years as a Marist, including service as a provincial leader, saw the deepening of his Eucharistic devotion, especially through his preaching of Forty Hours in many parishes. The Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament began working with children in Paris to prepare them to receive their first Communion. It also reached out to non-practicing Catholics, inviting them to repent and begin receiving Holy Communion again. He was a tireless proponent of frequent Holy Communion, an idea given more authoritative backing by Pope Pius X in 1905. Inspired at first by the idea of reparation for indifference to the Eucharist, Peter Julian was eventually attracted to a more positive spirituality of Christ-centered love. Members of the men's community, which Peter founded, alternated between an active apostolic life and contemplating Jesus in the Eucharist. He and Marguerite Guillot founded the women's Congregation of the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament. Peter Julian Eymard was beatified in 1925 and canonized in 1962, one day after Vatican II's first session ended. - From the 'Saint of the Day', Leonard Foley, O.F.M. PATRON: Eucharistic Congress. PRAYER: O God, who adorned Saint Peter Julian Eymard with a wonderful love for the sacred mysteries of the Body and Blood of your Son, graciously grant that we, too, may be worthy to receive the delights he drew from this divine banquet. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
