For God so loved the world, as to give His only begotten Son; that whosoever believeth in Him, may not perish, but may have life everlasting. – Saint John the Apostle

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Thursday, May 31, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Justin Martyr


Saint Justin Martyr



As by the Word of God, Jesus our Savior was made Flesh and had both Flesh and Blood for our salvation, so also the food which has been blessed by the word of prayer instituted by Him is both the Flesh and Blood of Jesus Incarnate.

Saint Justin Martyr


Saint Justin Martyr's patronage: Apologists; lecturers; orators; philosophers; speakers.



Wednesday, May 30, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Bede the Venerable On "The Visitation"


"The Venerable Bede Translates John" by James Doyle Penrose (1862-1932), PD-Art-1923



"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my savior". With these words Mary first acknowledges the special gifts she has been given. Then she recalls God’s universal favors, bestowed unceasingly on the human race.

When a man devotes all his thoughts to the praise and service of the Lord, he proclaims God’s greatness. His observance of God’s commands, moreover, shows that he has God’s power and greatness always at heart. His spirit rejoices in God his savior and delights in the mere recollection of his creator who gives him hope for eternal salvation.

These words are often for all God’s creations, but especially for the Mother of God. She alone was chosen, and she burned with spiritual love for the son she so joyously conceived. Above all other saints, she alone could truly rejoice in Jesus, her savior, for she knew that he who was the source of eternal salvation would be born in time in her body, in one person both her own son and her Lord.

Saint Bede the Venerable


Saint Bede the Venerable's patronage: Lectors; English writers and historians.



Tuesday, May 29, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Joan of Arc


"Saint Joan of Arc", engraving from Figaro Illustre magazine, 1903. PD-Art-1923



If I am not, may God place me there; if I am, may God so keep me. I should be the saddest in all the world if I knew that I were not in the grace of God. But if I were in a state of sin, do you think the Voice would come to me? I would that every one could hear the Voice as I hear it.

Saint Joan of Arc at her trial responding to a question about whether she believed herself in a state of grace.


Saint Joan of Arc's patronage: Captives; France; imprisoned people; martyrs; opposition of Church authorities; people ridiculed for their piety; prisoners; rape victims; soldiers; WACs; WAVES; Women Appointed for Voluntary Emergency Service; Women’s Army Corps.



Monday, May 28, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Ursula Ledóchowska


Saint Ursula Ledóchowska in St. Petersburg, 1907.



Holiness does not demand anything great, beyond the ability of the person. It depends on God's Love; every daily act can be transformed into an act of love.

Saint Ursula Ledóchowska


Saint Ursula Ledóchowska's patronage: Sieradz, Poland; Pniewy, Poland; Polish girls; Orphans; Educators.

Sunday, May 27, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Irenaeus of Lyons, Early Church Father


Saint Irenaeus of Lyons



Error, indeed is never set forth in its naked deformity, lest, being thus exposed, it should at once be detected. But it is craftily decked out in an attractive dress, so as, by its outward form, to make it appear to the inexperienced more true than truth itself.

Saint Irenaeus of Lyons


Saint Irenaeus of Lyons' patronage: Archdiocese of Mobile, Alabama.


Saturday, May 26, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Athanasius of Alexandria on the Holy Trinity


Saint Athanasius of Alexandria



We acknowledge the Trinity, holy and perfect, to consist of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. In this Trinity there is no intrusion of any alien element or of anything from outside, nor is the Trinity a blend of creative and created being. It is a wholly creative and energizing reality, self-consistent and undivided in its active power, for the Father makes all things through the Word and in the Holy Spirit, and in this way the unity of the holy Trinity is preserved. Accordingly, in the Church, one God is preached, one God who is above all things and through all things and in all things [Ephesians 4:6] . God is above all things as Father, for he is principle and source; he is through all things through the Word; and he is in all things in the Holy Spirit.

Saint Athanasius of Alexandria



Friday, May 25, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Philip Neri


Saint Philip Neri



He who desires anything but God deceives himself, and he who loves anything but God errs miserably.

Saint Philip Neri


Saint Philip Neri's patronage: Archdiocese of Manfredonia-Vieste-San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy; Gravina, Italy; Rome, Italy; United States Army Special Forces; laughter; humor; joy.



Thursday, May 24, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Mary Magdalene de Pazzi


"Vision of Saint Mary Magdalene de Pazzi" by Pedro de Moya (ca. 1640)



Prayer ought to be humble, fervent, resigned, persevering, and accompanied with great reverence. One should consider that he stands in the presence of a God, and speaks with a Lord before whom the angels tremble from awe and fear.

Saint Mary Magdalene de Pazzi


Saint Mary Magdalene de Pazzi's patronage: Against bodily ills; against sexual temptation; against sickness; sick people; Naples, Italy.



Wednesday, May 23, 2018

Saint Quote: Our Lady, Help of Christians (The Blessed Virgin Mary)


Painting of Mary Help of Christians by Tommaso Andrea Lorenzone, circa 1867



And Mary said: My soul doth magnify the Lord.
And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
Because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid; for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
Because he that is mighty, hath done great things to me; and holy is his name.
And his mercy is from generation unto generations, to them that fear him.
He hath shewed might in his arm: he hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart.
He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble.
He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.
He hath received Israel his servant, being mindful of his mercy:
As he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed for ever.

Our Lady, Help of Christians (The Blessed Virgin Mary), from Luke 1:46-55, “The Magnificat”


Our Lady, Help of Christians' patronage: Australia; New Zealand; Andorran security forces; Australian military chaplains; New York; Diocese of Shrewsbury, England; Diocese of Townsville, Australia.



Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Ambrose of Milan, Church Father, and Doctor of the Church


Early mosaic of Saint Ambrose that might be an actual portrait.



When we speak about wisdom, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about virtue, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about justice, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about peace, we are speaking of Christ. When we speak about truth and life and redemption, we are speaking of Christ.

Saint Ambrose of Milan


Saint Ambrose of Milan's patronage: Bee keepers; bees; bishops; candle makers; chandlers; domestic animals; French Commissariat; geese; honeycake bakers; learning; livestock; Milan, Italy; police officers; school children; security personnel; starlings; students; wax melters; wax refiners; Archdiocese of Milan; Alassio, Italy; Bologna, Italy; Lombardy, Italy; Archdiocese of Milan, Italy; Monte San Savino, Italy; Stresa, Italy; Vigevano, Italy.

Monday, May 21, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Rita of Cascia


Medieval illustration of Santa Rita of Cascia, the oldest to represent the saint.



Love God above all things.

Saint Rita of Cascia


Saint Rita of Cascia's patronage: Abuse victims; against loneliness; against sterility; bodily ills; desperate causes; difficult marriages; forgotten causes; impossible causes; infertility; lost causes; parenthood; sick people; sickness; sterility; victims of physical spouse abuse; widows; wounds.


Sunday, May 20, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Eugène de Mazenod


Saint Eugène de Mazenod



Every religious congregation in the Church has a spirit all its own; it is inspired by the Spirit of God to respond to the needs of the Church to work for the salvation of souls. By our particular vocation we are involved with the redemption of humanity… May we, by the sacrifice of our whole being, so cooperate as not to render His redemption fruitless for ourselves and for those we are called upon to evangelize.

Saint Eugène de Mazenod


Saint Eugène de Mazenod's patronage: Dysfunctional families.

Saturday, May 19, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Early Church Father on the Holy Spirit


Saint Gregory of Nyssa



When love has entirely cast out fear, and fear has been transformed into love, then the unity brought us by our savior will be fully realized, for all men will be united with one another through their union with the one supreme Good. They will possess the perfection ascribed to the dove, according to our interpretation of the text: One alone is my dove, my perfect one. She is the only child of her mother, her chosen one (Song of Songs 6:9).

Our Lord’s words in the gospel bring out the meaning of this text more clearly. After having conferred all power on his disciples by his blessing, he obtained many other gifts for them by his prayer to the Father. Among these was included the greatest gift of all, which was that they were no longer to be divided in their judgement of what was right and good, for they were all to be united to the one supreme Good.

As the Apostle says, they were to be bound together with the bonds of peace in the unity that comes from the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:3). They were to be made one body and one spirit by the one hope to which they were all called. We shall do better, however, to quote the sacred words of the gospel itself. I pray, the Lord says, that they all may be one; that as you, Father, are in me and I am in you, so they also may be one in us (John 17:21).

Now the bond that creates this unity is glory. That the Holy Spirit is called glory no one can deny if he thinks carefully about the Lord’s words: The glory you gave to me, I have given to them (John 17:22). In fact, he gave this glory to his disciples when he said to them: Receive the Holy Spirit (John 20:22).

Saint Gregory of Nyssa


Friday, May 18, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Crispin of Viterbo


Saint Crispin of Viterbo



God’s power creates us, His wisdom governs us, His mercy saves us.

Saint Crispin of Viterbo


Saint Crispin of Viterbo's patronage: Cobblers .


Thursday, May 17, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Catherine of Siena, Doctor of the Church


Saint Catherine of Siena



There is no sin nor wrong that gives a man such a foretaste of hell in this life as anger and impatience.

Saint Catherine of Siena


Saint Catherine of Siena's patronage: Against fire; bodily ills; diocese of Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA; Europe; illness; Italy; miscarriages; people ridiculed for their piety; sexual temptation; sick people; sickness; nurses.


Click here for Friday, May 18, 2018 Mass Readings.

Wednesday, May 16, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Giulia Salzano


Saint Giulia Salzano



While I have any life left in me, I will continue to teach the catechism. And then, I assure you, I would be very happy to die teaching the catechism.

Saint Giulia Salzano


Saint Giulia Salzano's patronage: Catechetical Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Click here for Thursday, May 17, 2018 Mass Readings.

Tuesday, May 15, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Thomas More


Saint (Sir)Thomas More, 1527



This deadly cancer of anger from which so much harm grows: It makes us unlike ourselves, makes us like timber wolves or furies from hell, drives us forth headlong upon the points of swords, makes us blindly run forth after other men’s destruction as we hasten toward our own ruin.

Saint Thomas More


Saint Thomas More's patronage: Adopted children; diocese of Arlington, Virginia; civil servants; court clerks; difficult marriages; large families; lawyers; diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee Florida; politicians; politicos; statesmen; step-parents; widowers.


Monday, May 14, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Gregory Nazianzen, Church Father, and Doctor of the Church


Saint Gregory Nazianzen



Give something, however small, to the one in need. For it is not small to one who has nothing. Neither is it small to God, if we have given what we could.

Saint Gregory Nazianzen


Saint Gregory Nazianzen's patronage: Harvests; poets.

Sunday, May 13, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Augustine of Hippo, Early Church Father


Saint Augustine of Hippo



Now it was not for the angels that Christ died. Yet what was done for the redemption of man through His death was in a sense done for the angels, because the enmity that sin had put between men and the holy angels is removed, and friendship is restored between them, and by the redemption of man the gaps that the great apostasy left in the angelic host are filled up.

Saint Augustine of Hippo


Saint Augustine of Hippo's patronage: Brewers; against sore eyes; against vermin; printers; theologians; Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut; Diocese of Ida, Philippines; Diocese of Kalamazoo, Michigan; Diocese of Laredo, Texas; Diocese of Saint Augustine, Florida; Diocese of Superior, Wisconsin; Diocese of Tucson, Arizona; Cagayan de Oro, Philippines; Carpineto Romano, Italy; Isleta Indian Pueblo; Ponte Nizza, Italy; Saint Augustine, Florida; San Austin, Ibiza, Spain; Valletta, Malta.



Saturday, May 12, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton


Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774-1821) aka Mother Seton, the first native born American to be canonized by the Roman Catholic Church



If I had to advise parents, I should tell them to take great care about the people with whom their children associate. Much harm may result from bad company, and we are inclined by nature to follow what is worse rather than what is better.

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton


Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton's patronage: Death of children; in-law problems; loss of parents; opposition of Church authorities; people ridiculed for their piety; Diocese of Shreveport, Louisiana; widows; State of Maryland.



Friday, May 11, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Epiphanius of Salamis, Early Church Father


Saint Epiphanius of Salamis (church father, ca. 310–20 – 403), fresco at Gracanica monastery




We see that the Savior took the bread in His hand, and when He had given thanks He said: “This is my body....” And we see that it is not equal or similar to either a corporeal image, or the invisible Deity, or the arrangement of the members of the body. For it is of rounded shape and without feeling as far as its power is concerned. But He wanted to say by grace: “This is my body...” and no one should refuse to believe this statement. For he who does not believe that He is truthful, as He Himself has said, cuts himself off from grace and salvation. But what we have heard, that we believe, namely, that it is His body and blood.

Saint Epiphanius of Salamis



Thursday, May 10, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint Prosper of Aquitaine, Early Church Father


Saint Prosper of Aquitaine, Early Church Father



All men enjoy some measure of heavenly teaching; and though the measure of grace might be small, it is sufficient to be a remedy for some men and a testimony for everyone.

Saint Prosper of Aquitaine


Saint Prosper of Aquitaine's patronage: Reggio Emilia, Italy; Romano Canavese, Italy.



Wednesday, May 9, 2018

Saint Quote: Saint John of Avila, Doctor of the Church


Saint John of Avila, portrait by Pierre Subleyras, 1746



Your life consists in drawing nearer to God. To do this you must endeavor to detach yourself from visible things and remember that in a short time they will be taken from you.

Saint John of Avila


Saint John of Avila's patronage: Andalusia, Spain; Spain; Spanish secular clergy; World Youth Day 2011.



Tuesday, May 8, 2018

Saint Quote of the Day: Saint Thomas Aquinas, Doctor of the Church


Saint Thomas Aquinas, An altarpiece in Ascoli Piceno, Italy, by Carlo Crivelli



We can't have full knowledge all at once. We must start by believing; then afterwards we may be led on to master the evidence for ourselves.

Saint Thomas Aquinas


Saint Thomas Aquinas' patronage: Academics; against storms; against lightning; apologists; book sellers; Catholic academies; Catholic schools; Catholic universities; chastity; colleges; learning; lightning; pencil makers; philosophers; publishers; scholars; schools; storms; students; theologians; universities; University of Vigo.



Monday, May 7, 2018

Saint Quote of the Day: Saint Dorotheus of Gaza


St. Dorotheus of Gaza, from Mount Saint Dionysius, Mount Athos, 1547



When God created man, He planted something divine into him — a certain conception — a spark that has both light and warmth. The conception that enlightens the mind and indicates what is right and what is wrong is called conscience. Conscience is a natural law. Living in times before any written law, patriarchs and saints pleased God by following the voice of their conscience.

Saint Dorotheus of Gaza



Sunday, May 6, 2018

Saint Quote of the Day: Saint Rose Venerini


Saint Rose Venerini, PD-Art-1923



I feel so nailed to the will of God that nothing else matters, neither death nor life. I want what He wants. I want to serve Him as much as pleases Him and no more.

Saint Rose Venerini



Saturday, May 5, 2018

Saint Quote of the Day: Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Doctor of the Church


Bernard of Clairvaux, true effigy by Georg Andreas Wasshuber (1650–1732)



If things always went wrong, no one could endure it; if things always went well, everyone would become arrogant.

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux


Saint Bernard of Clairvaux's patronage: Beekeepers; bees; Burgundy, France; candlemakers; chandlers; Cistercian Order; Cistercians; Knights Templar; wax-melters; wax refiners; Gibraltar; Queens College, Cambridge; Speyer Cathedral.



Friday, May 4, 2018

Saint Quote of the Day: Saint Augustine of Hippo


The earliest known portrait of Saint Augustine in a 6th-century fresco



Unhappy is the soul enslaved by the love of anything that is mortal.

Saint Augustine of Hippo



Saint Augustine of Hippo's patronage: Brewers; against sore eyes; against vermin; printers; theologians; Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut; Diocese of Ida, Philippines; Diocese of Kalamazoo, Michigan; Diocese of Laredo, Texas; Diocese of Saint Augustine, Florida; Diocese of Superior, Wisconsin; Diocese of Tucson, Arizona; Cagayan de Oro, Philippines; Carpineto Romano, Italy; Isleta Indian Pueblo; Ponte Nizza, Italy; Saint Augustine, Florida; San Austin, Ibiza, Spain; Valletta, Malta.



Thursday, May 3, 2018

Saint Quote of the Day: Saint Francis de Sales


Saint Francis de Sales




Many would be willing to have afflictions provided that they be not inconvenienced by them.

Saint Francis de Sales



Saint Francis de Sales' patronage: Authors; Diocese of Annecy, France; Diocese of Baker, Oregon; Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Ohio; Catholic press; Diocese of Columbus, Ohio; Diocese of Houma-Theibodaux, Louisiana; Diocese of Keimoes-Upington, South Africa; confessors; deaf people; against deafness; Diocese of Oakland, California; Diocese of Wilmington, Delaware; educators; journalists; teachers; writers; the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest; Salesians of Don Bosco.