St. Isidore the Farmer, patron of Madrid, was born of poor parents and named for St. Isidore, the Archbishop of Seville.
The
Greek name “Matthias” means “gift of Yahweh”. All we know for certain
of Matthias is that he was chosen by the eleven apostles to replace the
traitor, Judas, after the Ascension of Jesus and before the descent of
the Holy Ghost on Pentecost, which makes St. Matthias the only apostle
not directly chosen by Our Lord..jpg)
The conversation developed in the following manner:
"It
was upon saying these last words, 'the grace of God...' that for the
first time she opened her hands, which emitted a most intense light that
penetrated our breasts, reaching the innermost part of our souls and
making us see ourselves in God, Who was that light, more clearly than we
can see ourselves in the best of mirrors.
Most
of what we know of them comes from an epitaph written by Pope St.
Damascus: "Nereus and Achilleus, the martyrs, joined the army and
carried out the cruel orders of the tyrant, obeying his will continually
out of fear. Then came a miracle of faith: they were suddenly
converted, gave up their savagery, and fled the camp of their evil
leader, throwing away their shields, armor, and bloody spears.
Professing the faith of Christ, they were happy to be witnesses to its
triumph.” By these words of the Holy Father, we can understand what
great deeds can be brought about by Christ’s glory; for, being once
participants in the persecution of Christians themselves, Nereus and
Achilleus knew perhaps better than any other Christian what pain awaited
them. However, faith triumphed over the fear of death, and the victory
of faith was the sweetest victory they had ever known, this time as
soldiers in the army of Christ.
Showing
early signs of intense piety and intellectual ability, he was received
into a community of secular priests who initiated his education. He
received the tonsure at sixteen and was ordained with special permission
before the age of twenty-four.
St.
Damien is known as the Leper Priest and the Hero of Moloka'i. Born in
Tremelo in Belgium on January 3, 1840, he was son of a farmer and his
wife. He lived a devout life and in 1860 obtained permission to join the
Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Although born
Jozef De Veuster, the young brother took the name Damien in religious
life. In 1864, in answer to his prayers to St. Francis Xavier, he was
sent as a missionary to Honolulu, Hawaii. Here he applied himself to
diligent study to compensate for his lack of an early education, and he
was ordained to the sacred priesthood on May 21. For the next nine years
Fr. Damien worked in various missions throughout Hawaii. 
Wishing
to do more to help God’s suffering people, Fr. Damien volunteered as a
missionary priest to the leper community on the island of Moloka'i. His
offer was accepted by Bishop Louis Désiré Maigret, the Vicar Apostolic
of Honolulu and on May 10, 1873 Damien was formerly presented by the
bishop to the flock of his new mission. 
The
Hero of Maloka'i died of leprosy in the early morning of April 15,
1889, at the age of 49. After his funeral Mass at St. Philomena's the
next day, the whole leper colony of Moloka'i followed the funeral
cortège to the cemetery where Damien was laid to rest under the same
pandanus tree where he had slept upon his arrival at the mission.
Magdalena
was born on March 1, 1774, into an ancient and prominent family of
Verona, Italy. She was a descendant of the Countess Matilda of Tuscany
outside whose Castle of Canossa Emperor Henry IV of Germany did penance
in 1076, in submission to Pope St. Gregory VII who had excommunicated
him.
As
other women joined Magdalena’s work, they became known as the
“Canossians”. She was invited to open a house in Venice from which they
went on to make foundations in Milan, Trent and Bergamo, and other
places in northern Italy. But it was in Venice that the foundress drew
up the rule for the new congregation, which she called the Daughters of
Charity.
John
was born in Harpham, a village in Yorkshire. As a young man he joined
the famous school of St. Theodore in Kent, where he distinguished
himself. Later, he joined the Abbey of Whitby in his own country, where
his exceptional abilities marked him out for preferment, and when the
diocesan see of Hexham became vacant, he was appointed its bishop.
With
the help of prominent nobles, especially the Duke of Benevento, and
with strong backing from three popes, Petronax rebuilt Monte Cassino.
Under the new abbot’s lengthy and energetic rule the community thrived
once again, regaining its old eminence. Saints, and prominent men of all
kinds, sought the hospitality of the great Benedictine abbey.
Windstorms
of impiety and skepticism sweep through minds, and crazy whirlwinds of
all types of messianism devastate them. Nebulous, confused and rash
ideas filter into every milieu and mislead not only the wretched and the
lukewarm, but sometimes even those of whom greater constancy in the
Faith is expected.
Wealthy,
highly educated, and endowed with exceptional abilities, Hilary looked
forward to a brilliant career in the world. But his saintly relative
felt that he was called to serve his God in religious life and did his
utmost to convince him to leave the things of the world.
At
Honoratus’ death in 429, Hilary, though grieving, rejoiced to return to
his island abbey. He had started on his journey, when he was overtaken
by messengers from the citizens of Arles begging him to accept the
miter. Though only twenty-nine, he submitted, being well prepared for
the task by his years of religious life and assistance to Honoratus.
Though observing the austerities of the cloister, he took up his
diocesan work with immense energy.
ost
Holy Virgin, who has deigned to come to Fatima to reveal to the three
little shepherds the treasures of graces hidden in the recitation of the
Rosary, inspire our hearts with sincere love of this devotion.
By meditating on the mysteries of our redemption that are recalled
in your Rosary, may we gather the fruits contained therein and obtain
the conversion of sinners, the conversion of Russia, the Peace of Christ
for the world, and this favor that I so earnestly seek of you in this
novena....
(here mention your request)
I ask this of you, for the greater glory of God, for your own honor and for the good of all people. Amen
Say the
Our Father, Hail Mary Glory Be (three times each) |
Gothard
was born in the Bavarian village of Reichersdorf. Ratmund, his father,
worked for the Canons of the neighboring Benedictine Abbey of
Nieder-Altaich.
Phillip,
seemingly a disciple of John the Baptist, was the third apostle, after
Andrew and Peter, whom Christ Our Lord called to follow Him. A family
man, St. Chrysostom says of him that he still found time to meditate on
the law and the prophets, which study prepared him to recognize the
expected Messiah. Mentioned several times in the Gospel of John, we get a
glimpse of the Apostle Phillip as a man of an amiable, earnest and
circumspect disposition.
James
called “the lesser” because he seems to have been younger than James
the Greater, was a brother of John and was also known as “James the
Just”.
Athanasius,
known as “the Champion of Orthodoxy,” was born in Alexandria in
approximately 297. Nothing is known of his family except that his
parents were Christians and that he had a brother, Peter.
The
embattled bishop was accused of everything from exacting a tax on
church linen to killing a dissenting bishop (very much alive in hiding).
After these accusations, his life was plagued with harassment,
banishments, the need to defend himself before councils with periods of
reprieve depending on which emperor reigned. At one point his diocese
was even usurped by an Arian bishop. Five times he was driven from his
post, spending a total of seventeen years as a bishop in exile. When
banished, Athanasius followed the example of his friend St. Anthony and
retired to the desert.
St.
Joseph, the husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary and foster-father of
Jesus has two feasts: his official feastday on March 19, celebrated for
centuries; the second feast on May 1, celebrating the holy patriarch as a
model of workers.
Antonio
Ghislieri was born in 1504 in Bosco, in the Tortona diocese. He
received the Dominican habit at age fourteen, and after his ordination
in Genoa, taught theology and philosophy for some years. He was Prior
and Novice Master of several priories during a time of great moral
laxity.
Pope Pius V also had the best edition of Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica
published and, in 1567, he declared him Doctor of the Church. He
promulgated the Catechism of the Council of Trent and had it translated
into foreign languages. He also imposed on all parish priests the duty
of using the Catechism to instruct the young in the tenets of the Faith.
Under
family pressure, when she turned twelve, Catherine consented to pay
more attention to her appearance and had her beautiful hair dressed to
the fashion of the day. Repenting of this “great sin”, she cut it all
off and declared she would never marry – a scandal to her family. She
was set to menial labor, and harried and scolded continuously in an
attempt to break her resolve. One day her father found her praying, a
dove hovering over her. From that moment he ordered that she be left
alone to a life of prayer.
Around
this time she produced the great work – later entitled “Dialogue of
Saint Catherine of Siena” – which she dictated under the inspiration of
God the Father.
He
preached tirelessly in various cities and towns, incurring the
displeasure of many ecclesiastics infected with the heresy of Jansenism.
Traveling to Rome, he put his case before Pope Clement XI who named him
Missionary Apostolic to France.
Years
later, when Armengol’s band of brigands attempted to ambush the retinue
of a noble Spaniard, Peter was astonished when he discovered that the
man he was fighting, and wanting to run through with his sword, was none
other than his own father. Overcome with remorse, the repentant
prodigal cast himself on his knees before his astonished father,
imploring his forgiveness. Peter resolved to enter a Mercedarian
monastery in Barcelona, an Order devoted to the ransoming of captive
Christians. So fervent was he in his repeated requests for the habit and
consistent in giving conducive proofs of his vocation that he was
accepted.
During
his captivity, he converted many Moslems to the true Faith by the
fervor of his preaching. However, when the sum of money intended for his
ransom did not arrive at the appointed time, his captors threw him into
prison, and subjected him to numerous forms of unspeakable and
excruciating tortures, which he survived only by the grace of God.
In
the quaint medieval town of Genazzano, about 30 miles from Rome, on a
side altar of the Church of Our Lady of Good Counsel, there is a small
image of the Blessed Virgin holding her infant Son. The Child, in His
turn, lovingly encircles Mary's neck with His arm, inclining her head
towards Himself in a gentle and intimate embrace.
Shortly
after these remarkable events, two foreigners in strange attire arrived
in Genazzano claiming to be Albanians. Their names were Giorgio and
DeSclavis and on seeing the icon, they cried out with joy and then told a
wonderful tale.
We
learn from the Epistle to the Colossians that Mark was a kinsman of
Barnabas, who was a Levite, which presupposes that Mark was also of a
Levitical family.
Tradition
strongly affirms that Mark, the author of the second gospel, was more
closely associated with St. Peter. Clement of Alexandria, Irenaeus and
Papias speak of Mark as being Peter's interpreter. Writing from Rome,
Peter refers to “my son, Mark” (1 Peter 5, 13) who apparently was there
with him. This is undoubtedly Mark the Evangelist.