Saints of the Week – October 17 to 23

St. Luke (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

Month of the Most Holy Rosary

Sunday, October 17 – 21^th Sunday after Pentecost (Traditional) / 29^th Sunday in Ordinary Time (New)

St. Ignatius of Antioch (107), Bishop, Martyr (New)

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1690), Virgin, Religious (Traditional)

Monday, October 18

St. Luke (84), Evangelist, Martyr, Patron of Doctors, Painter and Sculptors (New, Tradiational)

Tuesday, October 19

Sts. John de Brebeuf, Isaac, Jogues, Priests and Companions (1642, 1646, 1648, 1649), “The North American Martyrs,” Secondary Patrons of Canada (New)

St. Peter of Alcantara (1562), Priest, Religious (Tradiational)

Wednesday, October 20

St. Paul of the Cross (1775), Priest, Founder of the Passionists (New)

St. John of Kanty (John Cantius) (1473), Priest, Patron of Poland (Traditional)

St. Irene (653), Virgin, Martyr (Historical)

Bl. Adeline (1125), Abbot (Historical)

Thursday, October 21

St. Hilarion (371), Abbot (Traditional)

St. Ursula and Her 11,000 Companions (4^th c.), Virgins, Martyrs (Tradiational)

St. Cilinia (Celine) (458), Mother of St. Remi (Historical)

Bl. James of Strepar (1409), Bishop (Historical)

Friday, October 22

(Obligatory Day of Abstinence from Meat or Substitution of Some Other Sacrifice)

St. Mary Salome (1^st c.), Mother of the Apostles James and John, Daughter of St. Mary of Cleophas (Historical)

Saturday, October 23

St. John of Capistrano (1456), Priest, Patron of Jurists (New)

St. Anthony Mary Claret (1870), Bishop of Cuba, Founder of the Claretians (Traditional)

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Saints of the Week – October 10 to 16

 

Edward the Confessor (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

 

Month of the Most Holy Rosary

Sunday, October 10 – 20^th Sunday after Pentecost (Traditional) / 28^th Sunday in Ordinary Time (New)

St. Francis Borgia (1572), Priest, Religious, Patron of Portugal (Traditional)

St. Ghislain (Gislenus) (680), Abbot (Historical)

Monday, October 11

The Divine Maternity of Our Lord (Traditional)

St. Firminus (543), Bishop (Historical)

Tuesday, October 12

St. Wilfrid (709), Bishop of York (Historical)

Our Lady of the Pillar (36) (Historical)

Wednesday, October 13

St. Edward the Confessor (1066), King and Patron of England (Traditional)

St. Gerald of Aurillac (909), Patron of Bachelors and the Handicapped (Historical)

Thursday, October 14

St. Callistus I (222), Pope, Martyr (New, Traditional)

Friday, October 15

(Obligatory Day of Abstinence from Meat or Substitution of Some Other Sacrifice)

St. Teresa of Jesus (Teresa of Avila) (1582), Virgin, Religious, Doctor of the Church, Reformer of Carmel, Patroness of Headache Sufferers (New, Traditional)

Saturday, October 16

St. Hedwig (1243), Widow, Religious (New, Traditional)

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1690), Virgin (New)

St. Gerard Majella (1755), Religious, Patron of Expectant Mothers (Historical)

St. Gall (635), Priest, Religious (Historical)

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Saints of the Week – September 26 to October 2

St. Michael

Month of Our Lady of Sorrows (Sept) / Month of the Most Holy Rosary (Oct)

Sunday, September 26 – 18^th Sunday after Pentecost (Traditional) / 26^th Sunday in Ordinary Time (New)

Sts. Cosmas & Damian (283), twins, Martyrs, Patrons of Physicians and Pharmacists (New)

Sts. Cyprian & Justina (3^rd c.), Martyrs (Traditional)

Sts. Isaac Jogues, John de Brebeuf, Priests and Companions (1642, 1646, 1648, 1649), Martyrs, Secondary Patrons of Canada (Traditional/some places)

Monday, September 27

St. Vincent de Paul (1660), Priest, Founder, Patron of All Charitable Societies (New)

Sts. Cosmas & Damian (283), twins, Martyrs, Patrons of Physicians and Pharmacists (Traditional)

Tuesday, September 28

St.Wenceslaus (929), Duke, Martyr, Patron of Bohemia (New, Traditional)

St. Lawrence Ruiz, Husband, Father and Companion (1633-1637), Martyr (New)

Blessed John of Dukla (1484), Religious (Historical)

Wednesday, September 29

Sts. Michael, Gabriel & Raphael, Archangels (New)

Dedication of the Basilica of St. Michael the Archangel (530), (Michaelmas Day) (Traditional)

Thursday, September 30

St. Jerome (420), Priest, Doctor of the Church, Translator of the Latin Vulgate Bible (New, Traditional)

Friday, October 1 – First Friday

(Obligatory Day of Abstinence from Meat or Substitution of Some Other Sacrifice)

St. Therese of Lisieux (1897), Virgin, Religious, Doctor of the Church, Patroness of All Foreign Missions (New)

St. Remigius (Remi) (530), Bishop (Traditional)

Saturday, October 2 – First Saturday

The Holy Guardian Angels (New, Traditional)

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Saints of the Week – September 19 to 25

Padre Pio

Month of Our Lady of Sorrows

Sunday, September 19 – 17^th Sunday after Pentecost (Traditional) / 25^th Sunday in Ordinary Time (New)

St. Januarius (Gennaro) (304), Bishop, Martyr, Patron of Naples and Companions (Traditional, New)

Our Lady of La Salette, 1846

Monday, September 20

Sts. Andrew Kim Taegon, Priest, Paul Chong Hasang, Catechist & Companions (1839-1867), Korean Martyrs (New)

St. Eustace and Companions (118), Martyrs; St. Eustace, Patron Against Fire (Temporal or Eternal) and of Those in Difficult Circumstances (Tradiational)

Tuesday, September 21

St. Matthew (65), Apostle, Evangelist, Martyr, Patron of Bankers and Accountants (Traditional, New)

Wednesday, September 22 – Ember Wednesday in September (Traditional)

(Day on Which Fasting and Partial Abstinence Formerly Required)

St. Thomas of Villanova (1555), Bishop, Religious, Patron of Valencia (Traditional)

St. Maurice and Companions (c. 285), Martyrs (Tradiational)

Thursday, September 23

St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio) (1968), Priest, Religious, Stigmatist (New)

St. Linus (79), Priest, Martyr (Tradiational)

St. Thecla (1^st c.), Virgin, Martyr, Invoked for the Dying (Traditional)

St. Constantius the Sacrisan (1^st c.) (Historical)

Friday, September 24 – Ember Friday in September (Traditional)

(Obligatory Day of Abstinence from Meat or Substitution of Some Other Sacrifice)

Our Lady of Ransom (1218) (Traditional)

St. Pacific of San Severino (1707), Priest (Historical)

Saturday, September 25 – Ember Saturday in September (Traditional)

(Day on Which Fasting and Partial Abstinence Formerly Required)

Blessed Herman the Cripple (1054), Religious, Author of the Salve Regina (Historical)

St. Finbar (Barry) (633), Bishop (Historical)

St. Cleophas (1^st c.) (Historical)

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Saints of the Week – September 12 to 18

St. Joseph of Cupertino

Month of Our Lady of Sorrows

Sunday, September 12 – 16^th Sunday after Pentecost (Traditional) / 24^th Sunday in Ordinary Time (New)

The Most Holy Name of Mary (Traditional, New)

Monday, September 13

St. John Chrysostom (407), Bishop, Doctor of the Church, Patron of Orators (New)

Tuesday, September 14 – Exaltation of the Holy Cross (335, 629) (Traditional, New)

St. Maternus (1^st c.), Bishop (Historical)

St. Notburga (1313), Virgin, Patroness of Peasants, Servants and the Poor (Historical)

Wednesday, September 15 – The Seven Sorrows of Our Lady (Traditional) / Our Lady of Sorrows (New)

St. Nicomedes (90), Martyr (Traditional)

St. Catherine of Genoa (1510), Widow (Historical)

Thursday, September 16

Sts. Cornelius (253), Patron, Martyr, & Cyprian (258), Bishop, Martyr (Traditional, New)

Sts. Euphemia, Lucy and Geminianus (4^th c.), Martyrs (Tradiational)

Friday, September 17

(Obligatory Day of Abstinence from Meat or Substitution of Some Other Sacrifice)

St. Robert Bellarmine (1621), Jesuit, Bishop, Cardinal, Doctor of the Church (New)

The Imprinting of the Stigmata of St. Francis of Assisi (1224) (Traditional)

St. Hildegarde (1179), Abbot (Historical)

Saturday, September 18

St. Joseph of Cupertino (1663), Priest, Religious, Patron of Aviators and Those Who Fly (Traditional)

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The Fathers: Volume II

The Fathers: Vol II

The Fathers: Volume II.  By Pope Benedict XVI.  Our Sunday Visitor, 2010.  170 pages, hardcover.  $14.95

The Fathers: Volume II is a companion to Pope Benedict’s 2008 work, The Fathers, also published by Our Sunday Visitor.  These books cover a series of catechesis on the early Church fathers during his weekly general audiences.  The first volume comprises talks from March 2007 to January 2008 and covers the lives of twenty-six fathers during the third to fifth centuries.  Volume II picks up with talks from March 2008 to October 2009 and the lives of twenty-five fathers through the twelfth century.

Those who have not read Pope Benedict are in for a treat.  While possessing a highly developed intellect, the Pope never-the-less presents these teachings in an easy to understand manner.  Both books consist of a series of brief sketches on important fathers of the Church.

The Pope not only provides us interesting biographical sketches, but also works in an important theological concept with each brief.  For example, while learning about the life of St. Leo the Great, we also learn about his role in the Council of Chalcedon.  From this, we learn how the Council reacted against the heresy of Eutyches, who denied the true human nature of Jesus, to pronounce the orthodoxy of the person of Jesus as fully human and fully divine.

The short nature of these sketches encourages you to read them whenever you have time.  The book may be read cover-to-cover or you can read any chapter which catches your eye.  This makes it an excellent “nightstand book” or a book to carry with you whenever you might have few minutes to spare.

My criticisms of both books are very slight.  First, Our Sunday Visitor (OSV) provides no introduction to these audiences.  Instead, the books jumps right into the sketches.  I believe OSV could have produced an even better product by providing an introduction to help “set the stage” for these sketches and help set them in the fuller context of Pope Benedict’s teachings.  Also, OSV could have made the books even more useful by providing an index.  Finally, I wish OSV would have included some suggestions for further reading on the lives of the fathers covered.  Again, these are relatively minor concerns compared to the overall quality and content of these books.

Catholics who take the time to read even a small portion of the wonderful works our Church provides find great reward.  While offering us the opportunity to learn more about the fathers during the major formative centuries of the Church, these volumes also give us a wonderful introduction to the teachings and thought of Pope Benedict XVI.

This review was written as part of the Catholic books reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on The Fathers Volume II .

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Thomas Aquinas: Harmony Between Reason, Christian Faith

St. Thomas Aquinas

VATICAN CITY, 2 JUN 2010 (VIS) – In today’s general audience held in St. Peter’s Square, Benedict XVI continued with his catechesis dedicated to the great saints of the Middle Ages, speaking on St. Thomas Aquinas, called the “Angelic Doctor” for the elevated nature of his thought and the purity of his life”.

The Pope explained that Thomas was born around 1225 to a noble family in Roccasecca, Italy near the Abbey of Montecasino. He was sent to the University of Naples at a young age where he first became interested in Aristotelian thought and felt a call to the religious life.

In 1245 he went to Paris to study theology under the guidance of St. Albert the Great who held this student in such esteem that he was asked to accompany him to Cologne, Germany to open a centre for theological studies.

“Thomas Aquinas, at St. Albert the Great’s school, carried out a task of fundamental importance in the history of philosophy and theology as well as for history and culture”, the Pope said. “He studied Aristotle and his interpreters in depth” and “commented on a great part of Aristotle’s works, discerning what was valid in it from what was doubtful or refutable, demonstrating its consonance with the facts of Christian revelation, using Aristotelian thought with great breadth and intelligence in presenting the theological writings he composed. In short, Thomas Aquinas demonstrated that a natural harmony exists between reason and the Christian faith”.

“His great intellectual endowment brought him again to Paris to teach theology. That is where he began his monumental literary output: commentaries on the Sacred Scriptures and the works of Aristotle along with his masterpiece, the Summa Theologiae”.

“There were a few secretaries who assisted in drafting his works, among whom was Reginald of Piperno […] who was bound to him by a fraternal and sincere friendship characterized by great trust and reliance. This is a characteristic of the saints”, the pontiff observed. “They cultivate friendship because it is one of the most noble manifestations of the human heart and holds something of the divine within it”.

In 1259 Thomas Aquinas participated in the General Chapter of the Dominicans in Valenciennes, France to establish the order’s constitutions. On his return to Italy, Pope Urban IV charged him with composing the liturgical texts for the feast of Corpus Christi.

“St. Thomas has a profoundly Eucharistic soul”, the Pope affirmed. “The beautiful hymns that the liturgy of the Church sings to celebrate the mystery of the real presence of the Body and Blood of the Lord in the Eucharist are due to his faith and theological wisdom”.

In Paris, where he returned in 1269, a great number of students followed his courses, but the “Angelic Doctor” also dedicated himself to preaching to the people, who listened with attention. “It is a great gift that theologians know how to speak with simplicity and fervour to the faithful. The ministry of preaching, on the other hand, also helps those who are experts in theology to develop a healthy pastoral realism and enriches their research with stimulation”, the pontiff remarked.

In the final months of his life, St. Thomas — who died in 1274 at the Abbey of Fossanove, Italy when he was heading to Leon to participate in an ecumenical council — confessed to his friend Reginald of Piperno that, after a divine revelation, he considered his work as “so much straw”, writing nothing further afterwards.

“It is a mysterious episode that helps us understand not only Thomas’ personal humility but also the fact that all that we are able to think and say about the faith, as elevated and pure as it may be, is infinitely surpassed by the greatness and beauty of God who will reveal himself to us in the fullness of paradise,” Benedict XVI concluded.

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Saints of the Week, May 30 to June 5

St. Francis Caracciolo

Sunday, May 30 – Trinity Sunday (Traditional, New)

St. Felix I (274), Priest, Martyr (Traditional)

St. Joan of Arc (1413), Virgin, Patroness of France and Soldiers (Traditional/some places)

St. Ferdinand III (1252), King of Castile and Leon (Historical)

Monday, May 31 – Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Traditional)/Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Elizabeth (New)

St. Petronilla (1^st Century), Virgin (Traditional)

June is the Month of the Sacred Heart

Tuesday, June 1

St. Justin (165), Martyr, Patron of Lecturers (New)

St. Angela Merici (1540), Virgin, Foundress of the Ursulines (Traditional)

Wednesday, June 2

St. Marcellinus, Priest and St. Peter, Exorcist (304), Martyrs (Traditional, New)

St. Eresmus (Elmo) (303), Bishop, Martyr, Patron against Stomach Ailments (Traditional)

St. Blandina (177), Martyr (Historical)

Thursday, June 3 – Corpus Christi (Traditional, Thursday after Trinity Sunday)

St. Charles Lwanga and Companions (1887), Protomartyrs of Equatorial Africa (New, Traditional/some places)

St. Clotilde (545), Widow, Queen of France (Historical)

Friday, June 4 – First Friday

(Day of Obligatory Fast from Meat or Substitution of Other Suitable Sacrifice)

St. Francis Caracciolo (1608), Priest, Founder of Minor Clerks Regular (Traditional)

Saturday, June 5 – First Saturday

St. Boniface (754), Bishop, Martyr, Apostle of Germany (Traditional, New)

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Pentecost Monday

Pentecost

From the Roman Catholic Daily Missal, 1962:

The Liturgy recalls the Descent of the Holy Ghost on the Apostles; and the Church extends the commemoration over eight days.

Collect

Deus, qui apostolis tuis Sanctum dedisti Spiritum: concede plebe tuae piae petitionis effectum; ut, quibus dedisti fidem, largiaris, et pacem.  Per Dominum…in unitate ejusdem Spiritus Sancti.

O God, Who gavest the Holy Ghost to Thine Apostles, grant The people the fruit of their loving petition, that on those to whom Thou hast given faith, Thos mayest also bestow peace.  Through out Lord…in the unity of the same Holy Ghost.

Epistle (Acts 10:34, 42-48)

St. Peter, the Head of the Church, gives testimony to Jesus before the Jews and the Gentiles.

In those days Peter opening his mouth, said: Men brethren, the Lord commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that it is He Who was appointed by God to be judge of the living and of the dead.  To Him all the prophets give testimony, that by His name all receive remission of sins, who believe in Him.  While Peter was yet speaking these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them that heard the word.  And the faithful of the circumcision, who came with Peter, were astonished, for that the grace of the Holy Ghost was poured out upon the Gentiles also.  For they heard them speaking with tongues, and magnifying God.  Then Peter answered: Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, who have received the Holy Ghost, as well as we?  And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Gospel (John 3:16-21)

“God sent not His Son unto the world to judge the world, but that the world may be saved by Him.”

At that time Jesus said to Nicodemus: 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.  For God sent not His Son into the world, to judge the world, but that the world may be saved by Him.  He that believeth in Him is not judged. But he that doth not believe, is already judged: because he believeth not in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  And this is the judgment: because the light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than the light: for their works were evil.  For every one that doth evil hateth the light, and cometh not to the light, that his works may not be reproved.  But he that doth truth, cometh to the light, that his works may be made manifest, because they are done in God.

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Saints of the Week – May 23 to May 29

St. Philip Neri

Sunday, May 23 – Pentecost (Whitsunday) (Traditional, New)

St. John Baptist de Rossi (1764), Priest, Patron of the Abandoned (Historical)

St. Julia of Corsica (440), Virgin, Martyr, Patroness of Corsica (Historical)

Monday, May 24 – Monday after Pentecost (Traditional)

Our Lady, Help of Christians (Historical)

Saints Donatian and Rogatian (287), Martyrs (Historical)

Saint Joanna (1^st Century) (Historical)

Tuesday, May 25 – Tuesday after Pentecost (Traditional)

St. Bede the Venerable (735), Priest, Doctor of the Church (New)

St. Gregory VII (1085), Pope (New, Traditional)

St. Mary Magdalen de Pazzi (1607), Virgin (New)

St. Urban I (230), Pope, Martyr (Traditional)

St. Madeleine Sophie Barat (1865), Virgin, Foundress (Traditional/some places)

Wednesday, May 26 – Ember Wednesday after Pentecost (Traditional)

(Fasting and Partial Abstinence Formerly Required on this Day)

St. Philip Neri (1595), Priest, Founder, Patron and Apostle of Rome (Traditional, New)

St. Eleutherius (188), Priest, Martyr (Traditional)

Thursday, May 27 – Thursday after Pentecost (Traditional)

St. Augustine of Canterbury (604), Bishop, Apostle of England (New)

St. Bede the Venerable (735), Priest, Doctor of the Church (Traditional)

St. John I (526), Priest, Martyr (Traditional)

Friday, May 28 – Ember Friday after Pentecost (Traditional)

(Obligatory Day of Abstinence from Meat or Substitution of Some Other Sacrifice)

St. Augustine of Canterbury (604), Bishop, Apostle of England (Traditional)

St. Bernard of Montjoux (1081), Priest, Religious, Patron of Mountain Climbers (Historical)

St. Germanus (576), Abbot, Bishop (Historical)

Saturday, May 29 – Ember Saturday after Pentecost (Traditional)

(Fasting and Partial Abstinence Formerly Required on this Day)

St. Mary Magdalen de Pazzi (1607), Virgin (Traditional)

St. Maximius of Tiber (4^th Century), Bishop (Historical)

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