Month: January 2025

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, Meditations on the HIDDEN LIFE, QUOTES on PRAYER, SACRED HEART REFLECTIONS, The LORD'S PRAYER

Thought for the Day – 31 January – Meditation 7, PART ONE: The Heart of Jesus in Prayer in the Hidden Life

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Thought for the Day – 31 January – Meditations on the Hidden Life: From the 1906 Edition of The Heart of Jesus of Nazareth; it has the Imprimatur of Bishop John Baptist Butt, Diocese of Southwark, England, 5 February 1890. Author’s name known simply as Author of “The Voice of the Sacred Heart.” 
(We return to Fr Clarke for February with his Meditations on The Great Truths.)

Meditation 7: PART ONE:
The Heart of Jesus in Prayer in the Hidden Life

Let us imagine we see Jesus kneeling in the little House of Nazareth, His Sacred Hands reverently clasped, His Eyes closed or raised to Heaven. We have before us the Incarnate God praying to His Eternal Father. It will then refresh our souls, to withdraw for a while, within the silence and solitude of the Holy House and, whilst we contemplate the scene with reverence, let us endeavour to penetrate the Heart of Him, Who is praying there.

So beautiful is the picture presented to our minds by the thought of Jesus in prayer, that truly it might suffice to rivet our inward eye and claim our adoring love, without the addition of any comment.

Let us regard Him as the Wisdom of the Father, the Eternal Son, kneeling there in silent contemplation of the Divine Majesty unveiled before Him, while He pours out the eternal love, the burning prayer which consumes His Sacred Heart.
The labour of the day is over and Jesus is now free to give Himself, unrestrainedly, to that holy exercise which has not ceased to be the occupation of His Soul amidst His daily toil. How profound is the mystery of that Divine communication which passes between the Eternal Father and the Eternal Son, between the human Heart of the Man-God and the Father, in Whose Bosom He had dweltB from all eternity.
Unchecked now by the external trammels to which, in His Incarnation He had made Himself subject, He could deliver Himself to the transports of His Love and taste, in His earthly exile, His old, His eternal delight of solitude with God.

But we must not forget that we are contemplating our Divine Model in prayer; for we are not to suppose, we have chosen One too exalted for our imitation. No, indeed, Jesus prays as one of us. It is in Him, a human Heart which throbs with love and desire and He teaches us eloquently how to pray and discloses qualities, with which our prayer should be endowed. He has formally constituted Himself our Master in prayer, as in all other things.
In His Public Life and in His Passion He has taught us even the very words in which we should present our petitions, or upon which they should be formed.

Posted in CONFESSION/PENANCE, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, Quote on SELF-ABANDONMENT, QUOTES on COURAGE, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on KINDNESS, QUOTES on MORTIFICATION, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on THE WORLD, SELF-DISTRUST, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The HEART

Quote/s of the Day – 31 January – St John Bosco

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Quote/s of the Day – 31 January – St John Bosco “Don Bosco” SDB (1815-1888) Priest, Confessor, Founder.

“Be brave and try to detach your heart
from worldly things.
Do your utmost to banish darkness
from your mind and come to understand
what true, selfless piety is.
Through confession, endeavour
to purify your heart of anything
which may still taint it.
Enliven your faith which is essential
to understand and achieve piety.”

“If one is to do good,
he must have a little courage,
be ready for sacrifice,
deal affably with all
and never slight anybody.
By following this method,
I have always had significant success,
in fact, marvellous success!”

“Your mortification should be
your diligence in doing your duties
and in putting up with
the annoyances of others.”

MORE:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/31/quote-s-of-the-day-31-january-st-john-bosco-3/

St John Bosco (1815-1888)

Posted in ADVENT, ADVENT QUOTES, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CHILDREN, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 31 January – “And whoever receives one such little child for My Sake, receives Me.” – Matthew 18:5

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One Minute Reflection – 31 January – “The Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Family” – St John Bosco “Don Bosco” SDB (1815-1888) Priest, Confessor, Founder. – Philippians 4:4-9; Matthew 18:1-5 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“And whoever receives one such little child for My Sake, receives Me.” – Matthew 18:5

REFLECTION – “Could God not have made the human person perfect right from the beginning? For God, Who has always been identical with Himself and Who is not created, everything is possible. But because the existence of the created beings began after God’s, they are necessarily inferior to God, Who made them … Thus, since they are created, they are not perfect. When they have just been born, they are small children and as small children, they are neither accustomed to, nor have they had practice in, perfect conduct … Thus, God could give perfection to the human person right from the beginning but, the human person was incapable of receiving this perfection, for he was only a small child.

And that is why, in the last times, when our Lord gathered up all things in Himself (Eph 1:10), He came to us, not in His power but, in such a way, we were able to see Him. For He could have come to us in His inexpressible glory but, we were not yet able to bear the greatness of His glory. … Although the Word of God was perfect, with humankind He became a small Child, not for Himself but because of the state of childhood, in which was humankind.” – St Irenaeus (c130-202) Bishop of Lyons, Martyr, Father of the Church (Against the Heresies IV 38, 1-2).

PRAYER – O God, Who in Thy Confessor, blessed John, raised up a father and teacher of youth and willed that through him, with the help of the Virgin Mary, new religious families should bloom in the Church, grant, we beseech Thee, that , inflamed by the same fire of love, we may seek to win souls and to serve Thee alone. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 31 January – St John Bosco’s Prayer to Our Lady Help of Christians

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Our Morning Offering – 31 January – St John Bosco “Don Bosco” SDB (1815-1888) Priest, Confessor, Founder.

Most Holy Virgin Mary,
Help of Christian
By St John Bosco (1815-1888)

Most Holy Virgin Mary,
Help of Christians,
how sweet it is to come to thy feet
imploring thy perpetual aid.
If earthly mothers cease not
to remember their children,
how canst thou,
the most loving of all mothers, forget me?
Grant then to me, I implore thee
thy perpetual aid in all my necessities,
in every sorrow and especially in all my temptations.
I ask for thy unceasing assistance
for all who are now suffering.
Help the weak,
cure the sick,
convert sinners.
Grant through thy intercession,
many vocations to the religious life.
Obtain for us, O Mary, Help of Christians,
that having invoked thee on earth
we may love and eternally thank thee in Heaven.
Amen

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 31 January – St Julius (Late 4th Century) Priest and Confessor

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Saint of the Day – 31 January – St Julius (Late 4th Century) Priest and Confessor, Missionary, Miracle-worker. Both in Italy. Born probably in Greece and died of natural causes on the Island named after him, San Giuulio. Patronages – of Cavenago di Brianza and of Orta San Giulio,Also known as – Julius of Orta, … of Novara, Giulio….

31 January is traditionally the Feast day of St Julius, a Priest and Confessor of the later 4th Century. He is said to have been a Greek from the Island of Aegina, who, together with his brother Julian, migrated to northern Italy in the days of the Emperor Theodosius I (379-395).

The Island of St Julius (Isola di San Giulio) in the Lado d’Orta.

The 2 brothers set about evangelising the region. After they had built 99 Churches in various places, Julius chose, as the place for the 100th an Island in the middle of Lago d’Orta, a lake near Novara in the Piedmont region. But, unable to find anyone to take him to the Island which was infested with serpents, he spread his cloak on the waters and used it as a boat. Upon reaching the Island, he drove away the serpents and established his Church.

St Julius driving the serpents away

Modern archeological research has in fact confirmed that a Church was built in very ancient times on the iIland in the same place where a large Basilica now stands, dedicated to St Julius. He is also mentioned by the 8th Century historian of the Lombards, Paul the Deacon. Julius’ (presumed) Relics are preserved in the Crypt of this Basilica. Below is the exterior of the Basilica.

Posted in MARIAN TITLES, SAINT of the DAY

Apparition of Our Lady to Saint Angela de Foligno (1285), The Translation of the Relics of Saint Mark, the Evangelist, St John Bosco “Don Bosco” DAY 8 of the Candlemas Novena and Memorials of the Saints – 31 January

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NOVENA In Preparation for the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Candlemas Novena – LINK DAY EIGHT, 31 January: DAY EIGHT

Apparition of Our Lady to Saint Angela de Foligno (1285) – 31 January:
HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/31/septuagesima-sunday-apparition-of-our-lady-to-saint-angela-de-foligno-1285-the-translation-of-the-relics-of-saint-mark-the-evangelist-and-memorials-of-the-saints-31-january/

The Translation of the Relics of Saint Mark, the Evangelist:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/31/the-translation-of-the-relics-of-saint-mark-the-evangelist-31-december/

St John Bosco “Don Bosco” SDB (1815-1888) Founder of the Society of St Francis de Sales now known as the Salesians, the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Association of Salesian Cooperators. Priest, Confessor, Founder, Teacher, Writer, “Father and Teacher of Youth.” His body is incorrupt.
All about beautiful Don Bosco:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/01/31/saint-of-the-day-31-january-st-john-bosco-don-bosco-1815-1888-founder-of-the-salesians-and-the-daughters-of-mary-help-of-christians-and-the-association-of-salesian-cooperators/
AND:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/01/31/saint-of-the-day-st-john-bosco-don-bosco-sdb-1815-1888/

St Abraham of Abela
Bl Adamnan of Coldingham

St Aedan of Ferns (c550-632) the First Bishop of the Diocese of Ferns, Ireland, Founded 30 Churches and several Monasteries, miracle-worker.
St Aedan’s Life:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/01/31/saint-of-the-day-31-january-saint-aedan-of-ferns-c-550-632/

St Aiden
St Athanasius of Modon
St Bobinus of Troyes
St Eusebius of Saint Gall

St Francesco Saverio Maria Bianchi/Francis Xavier Bianchi CRSP (1743-1815) “Apostle of Naples” Priest of the Barnabite Order (The Clerics Regular of St Paul), Confessor. Canonised on 21 October 1951 by Pope Pius XII.
About St Francesco:
https://anastpaul.com/2020/01/31/saint-of-the-day-31-january-saint-francis-xavier-bianchi-crsp-1743-1815-apostle-of-naples/

St Geminian of Modena
St Julius (Late 4th Century) Priest and Confessor

Blessed Louise degli Albertoni TOSF (1474-1533) Widow, Mystic, Ecstatic, Apostle of the sick, the poor, the deprived, Beatified on 28 January 1671 by Pope Clement X.
Her Mystical Graces:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/31/saint-of-the-day-31-january-blessed-louise-degli-albertoni-tosf-1474-1533-widow/

Miracle-worker.

St Madoes
St Marcella
St Martin Manuel
St Nicetas of Novgorod
St Tryphaena of Cyzicus
St Tysul
St Ulphia of Amiens
St Waldo of Evreux
St Wilgils

Martyrs of Corinth – 14 Saints: A group of Christians tortured and Martyred together in Corinth, Greece in the persecutions of Decius. We know nothing about them except some names – Anectus, Claudius, Codratus, Crescens, Cyprian, Diodorus, Dionysius, Nicephorus, Papias, Paul, Serapion, Theodora, Victor and Victorinus.

Martyrs of Canope: A group of Christians tortured and Martyred together in Corinth, Greece in the persecutions of Decius. We know nothing about them except some names – Anectus, Claudius, Codratus, Crescens, Cyprian, Diodorus, Dionysius, Nicephorus, Papias, Paul, Serapion, Theodora, Victor and Victorinus.

Martyred in Alexandria, Egypt:
Cyriacus
Metranus
Saturninus
Tarskius
Thyrsus
Victor
Zoticus

Posted in Meditations on the HIDDEN LIFE, QUOTES on the CHURCH, SACRED HEART REFLECTIONS

Thought for the Day – 30 January – Meditation 6: The Occupation of the Heart of Jesus in the Hidden Life

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Thought for the Day – 30 January – Meditations on the Hidden Life: From the 1906 Edition of The Heart of Jesus of Nazareth; it has the Imprimatur of Bishop John Baptist Butt, Diocese of Southwark, England, 5 February 1890. Author’s name known simply as Author of “The Voice of the Sacred Heart.” 
(We return to Fr Clarke for February with his Meditations on The Great Truths.)

Meditation 6:
The Occupation of the Heart of Jesus in the Hidden Life

We are not at present going to study. in detail. the holy occupations of the Heart of our Lord, reserving such study for future consideration in separate meditations.
We shall find that it affords much assistance, in familiarising us, with the character of the Sacred Heart, its love, its sufferings and its desires. It will enable us also to recognise how full of merit, how conducive to God’s glory and, how helpful to the world at large, is a hidden life, provided it be modelled on the Hidden Life of Jesus.

The exterior life of Nazareth was, as we know, made up of the most ordinary works, the most commonplace actions. During those long years, we find nothing apparently, in due proportion, to the sublime Mission which brought Him down from Heaven.
Yet, He was all the while negotiating the great affair of our Redemption, as truly as when we come to regard Him hanging on the Cross.
Let us penetrate into His Heart and we shall see that it was secretly consumed with Love in the Presence of the Majesty of God, His Father and, since true love is ever active, with what energy must not the Divine Flame have burnt, within that living Furnace of Charity?

It was from this inexhaustible source of Love that His every act emanated and, these have merited the redemption of ten thousand worlds and are pleading, our cause in Heaven. at this moment!

Behold ~ the first great Master of the Divine Apostleship. Behold ~ in Jesus of Nazareth, the first Apostle of Prayer! This was the occupation of His Sacred Heart.
He loved, He adored, He repaired, He prayed, He immolated Himself for the Father’s glory, for the salvation of the universe.
He traced out the Divine plan of His Church, according to the eternal design He had seen in the bosom of the Father and, as each stratagem of His enemy for the defeat of that plan and the overthrow of His Church passed before Him, He devised the infallible means by which the evil influence should be counteracted and, the cause of good, should triumph.

Of what importance was it that the Hands of Jesus did but plane wood in a carpenter’s shop whilst His Heart was thus incessantly and divinely occupied? Could there really be monotony in such a Life as this? Whatever may have been its exterior, the interior of that Life was the most sublime which can be imagined.

Sublime also is the hidden life of those who have learnt to imitate Him, whose hearts, like His, are wholly occupied, as far as they can be in this life, with the interests of God and of souls; a life indeed which the wise ones of this world despise – which materialists scorn as useless. But in the great day of revelation, they will be forced to exclaim: “We fools esteemed their life madness and their end without honour; behold how they are numbered among the children of God and their lot is among the Saints.”

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the LIGHT, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES on CHASTITY, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on WATCHING

Quote/s of the Day – 30 January – ‘We ought to be dressed for work …’

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Quote/s of the Day – 30 January – Feast of St Martina (Died c228) Virgin and Martyr, Patron of Rome – Sirach 51:1-8.12 – Matthew 25:1-13 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Then all those virgins arose
and trimmed their lamps.”

Matthew 25:7

“We ought to be dressed for work,
lest, when the day of setting forth comes,
it should find us burdened and entangled.
Let our light shine, in good works
and glow, in such a way,
as to lead us from the night of this world,
to the daylight of eternal brightness. ”

St Cyprian of Carthage (c200-258)
Bishop, Martyr, Father

“So that our minds might be free of these illusions,
the Word invites us to shake this deep sleep
from the eyes of our soul,
so that we might not slip away
from the true realities,
by becoming attached
to that which has no consistency.
That is why He suggests
that we be watchful when He says:
“Let your loins be girt about
and your lamps burning …” (Lk 12:35)
For when the light shines before our eyes,
it chases sleep away
and, when our loins are held tight by a belt,
they prevent the body from succumbing to it …
The person who has fastened on
the belt of temperance
lives in the light of a pure conscience;
the trust of a child illuminates his life like a lamp …
If we live in this way,
we will enter a life like that of the Angels!”

St Gregory of Nyssa (c335–c395)
Father of the Church

Posted in AUGUSTINIANS OSA, CHRIST the PHYSICIAN, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD, QUOTES on WATCHING, The HEART, The SECOND COMING, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 30 January – ‘ … So you, then, mind you carry it with you, carry it inside, where God can see … ‘ St Augustine

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One Minute Reflection – 30 January – “The Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Family” – Feast of St Martina (Died c228) Virgin and Martyr, Patron of Rome – Sirach 51:1-8.12 – Matthew 25:1-13 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.” – Matthew 25:7

REFLECTION – “There has come a shout at midnight. What can this shout be, if not what the Apostle speaks of – ‘in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.’ For the trumpet will sound and the dead will rise up, imperishable and as for us, we shall be changed (1 Cor 15:52). Once the shout has been raised at midnight, what happens next? They all arose. What is the meaning of “They all arose?” The hour is coming, says the Lord Himself, when all who are in the tombs will hear His Voice and come forth (Jn 5:28-29).

… What is the meaning of “They did not take oil in their flasks?” In their hearts … I mean, look at these foolish virgins who did not carry oil with them; by their self-denial which earns them the name of virgins and by their good works, represented by the lamps they bring, they are intent on pleasing other people. And, if they are intent on pleasing others and that is why they do these admirable things, they are not carrying oil with them. So you, then, mind you carry it with you, carry it inside, where God can see; carry the testimony of your conscience there. … So if you refrain from unlawful things and perform good works, in order to be admired by other people, there is no oil inside you! …

Before those virgins went to sleep, it does not say that their lamps were going out. The wise ones’ lamps were burning, from the oil inside them, from the assurance of their consciences, from their inner boast, from their deepest charity. But those of the foolish ones, were also burning. Why were they burning then? Because there was no dearth of admiration from other people. But after they had risen, that is to say, in the resurrection from the dead, they began to trim their lamps that is, to prepare to give God an account of their works. And because there is no-one then expressing admiration … they were asking for what they had always been used to, that is to say, to shine with someone else’s oil, to live in dependence on others’ admiration. Give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out!” – St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of Grace (Sermon 93).

PRAYER – Almighty, eternal God, Thou Who choose the weak things of the world to confound the strong, mercifully grant that we, who are celebrating the feast of blessed Martina, Thy Virgin and Martyr, may reap the benefit ofher patronal intercession with Thee. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in BREVIARY Prayers, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, FATHERS of the Church, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, PAPAL PRAYERS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH

Our Morning Offering – 30 January – Hear Thou with Joy, O Rome, Martina’s Name

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Our Morning Offering – 30 January – Feast of St Martina (Died c228) Virgin and Martyr, Patron of Rome

Hear Thou with Joy, O Rome,
Martina’s Name
Breviary Hymn for Matins
By Pope Urban VIII (1568-1644) (Attrib)
Papal Reign from 1623-1644

Hear thou with joy, O Rome, Martina’s name,
Her praises celebrate with glad accord Martina,
high in merit, virgin blest
and martyr of the Lord.

Beauty and youth, the joys of happy home,
Ancestral palaces and noble birth;
All these were hers, all these for Jesu’s sake,
She counted nothing worth.

Her wealth she shared among the poor of Christ,
Content with seeking better wealth above:
Herself she gave to her immortal King,
too happy in His love.

The agonising hooks, the rending scourge,
Shook not the dauntless spirit in her breast;
With torments rack’d, Angels her fainting flesh
Recruit with heavenly feast.

In vain they cast her to the ravening beasts;
Calm at her feet the lion crouches down,
Till smitten by the sword at length she goes
To her immortal crown.

Now with the Saints Martina reigns in bliss
And. where Idolatry sate throned of yore,
From her victorious altar, praise and prayer
With odorous incense soar.

Expel false worldly joys and fill us, Lord,
With Thine enlightening beam Divine;
Who with Thy suffering Martyrs present art,
The Godhead, One and Trine.
Amen

Images omits Stanzas 4 and 6

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 30 January – St Martina (Died c228) Virgin Martyr, Patron of Rome

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Saint of the Day – 30 January – St Martina (Died c228) Virgin Martyr. Patronages –of Rome, Italy, of nursing mothers.

The Roman Martyrology reads today: “In Rome, commemoration of Saint Martina, holy virgin and Martyr.”

Martina was a Deaconess and the daughter of a noble ex-consul and orphaned at an early age, she was described as a noble and beautiful virgin. She so openly testified to her Christian Faith that she could not escape the persecutions under Severus Alexander (222-235). .

Being arrested and commanded to worship the idols, she refused, whereupon she was subjected to various tortures and was finally beheaded.

These tortures according to her Vita include being scourged. She was condemned to be devoured by wild beasts in the amphitheater but was miraculously untouched by them. These beasts, instead, lay docilely at her feet like pet cats.

She was then thrown onto a burning pyre, from which she also escaped unhurt and was finally beheaded. Her hagiography records that some of her executioners, seeing the glorious miracles and the great joy and courage with which she was filled during the tortures, converted to Christianity and were themselves beheaded.

The Blessed Virgin Mary with St Agnes and St Martina, by El Greco.

Ostia, at the mouth of the Tiber, was the scene of her Martyrdom but her body was transported to Rome,where a Church near the Mamertine Prison, Santi Luca e Martina, was later dedicated in her honour. See the Church below and the beautiful Statue which is situate under the High Altar.

Pietro da Cortona The Martyrdom of St Martina

On 25 October 1634, during the restoration of the Crypt, buried remains were found by the painter Pietro da Cortona (see the first image above and the one showing her Martyrdom, above this paragraph, painted by da Cortona), president of the Accademia di San Luca and were attributed to the Martyred Saint Martina. Pope Urban VIII (1568-1644), who occupied the Holy See at that time, had the Church repaired and, it is believed that he composed the Hymns which are sung at her Office.

St Martina’s Relics
Posted in MARIAN TITLES, SAINT of the DAY

Nostra Signora della Rosa / Our Lady of the Rose (Lucca, Italy), St Martina, Virgin Martyr, Day 7 of the Candlemas Novena and Memorials of the Saints – 30 January

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Nostra Signora della Rosa / Our Lady of the Rose (Lucca, Italy) – 30 January:
HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/30/our-lady-of-the-rose-lucca-italy-and-memorials-of-the-saints-30-january/

NOVENA In Preparation for the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Candlemas Novena – LINK TO DAY SEVEN: 30 January: DAY SEVEN, 30 JANUARY:

St Martha (1st Century) Virgin Martyr – Sister of Saint Lazarus and Saint Mary of Bethany. Friend of Jesus and hostess to Him in her house. May have been part of an early mission to France. (Feast day moved after Vatican II).
St Martha:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/07/29/saint-of-the-day-29-july-st-martha-virgin-1st-century/
More on St Martha here:
https://anastpaul.com/2017/07/29/saint-of-the-day-29-july-st-martha/

St Martina Virgin Martyr

St Adelelmus (Died c 1100) Abbot, Soldier, Miracle-worker. Born in the 11th Century at Laudun, Poitou, France and died in c 1100 at Burgos, Castilla la Vieja, Spain of natural causes. Patronages – Burgos, Spain, butlers, domestic servant, housemaids, manservants, servants.
His Devoted Life:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/30/saint-of-the-day-30-january-saint-adelelmus-died-c-1100-abbot/

St Aldegundis
St Alexander of Edessa
St Amnichad of Fulda
St Armentarius of Antibes
St Armentarius of Pavia
St Barsen
St Barsimaeus of Edessa

St Bathilde (c 626–680) Queen, Religious, Widow, Mother, Social Reformer, pioneer in the abolition of Slavery, founder of Monasteries. St Bathilde was Canonised by by Pope Nicholas I.
Her Life:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/30/saint-of-the-day-30-january-saint-bathilde-c-626-680/

St Felix IV, Pope
Bl Haberilla

Saint Hyacintha of Mariscotti TOR (1585-1646) Virgin, Sister of the Tertiary or Third Order Regular of St Francis (also TOSF). Penitent, Apostle of the poor, the sick, the elderly. She established Apostolates to aid the latter as well as another devoted to the Adoration of the Holy Eucharist.
About St Hyacintha:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/01/30/saint-of-the-day-30-january-saint-hyacintha-of-mariscotti-tor-1585-1646/

St Hippolytus of Antioch
Blessed Margaret Ball

St Matthias of Jerusalem
St Philippian of Africa
St Savina of Milan

Blessed Sebastian Valfrè CO (1629-1710) known as the “Apostle of Turin” and “St Philip of Turin,” Oratorian Priest, Apostle of the poor, the ill, widows and orphans, prisoners, Confessor with deep insight, Writer. Beatified on 31 August 1834 by Pope Gregory XVI.
His Life:
https://anastpaul.com/2020/01/30/saint-of-the-day-30-january-blessed-sebastian-valfre-co-1629-1710-apostle-of-turin/

St Theophilus the Younger
St Tudclyd

Posted in MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, Meditations on the HIDDEN LIFE, QUOTES on HAPPINESS, QUOTES on MOTHERHOOD, SACRED HEART REFLECTIONS

Thought for the Day – 29 January – Meditation 5, PART TWO: The Happiness of the Heart of Jesus in the Hidden Life

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 29 January – Meditations on the Hidden Life: From the 1906 Edition of The Heart of Jesus of Nazareth; it has the Imprimatur of Bishop John Baptist Butt, Diocese of Southwark, England, 5 February 1890. Author’s name known simply as Author of “The Voice of the Sacred Heart.” 
(We return to Fr Clarke for February with his Meditations on The Great Truths.)

Meditation 5, PART TWO:
The Happiness of the Heart of Jesus in the Hidden Life

The example of our Lord, as far as He is imitable for us, was needed in this respect, for two reasons.
Firsly, in order to teach us how it is that the beautiful Works of God, maybe for us, a means of raising our souls to God Himself and, of enlarging our hearts with love of Him and secondly, as a condemnation of that false spirituality which would make indifference to the beautiful in the Works of God, an evidence of advanced sanctity.

Better inspired have been those numerous Saints to whose pure hearts, a lovely flower or some fair scene of earth, has revealed the Eternal Beauty, for the full and unveiled possession of whom their pure and free souls were panting.

The love of the Father ,was that all-absorbing impulse, in the Heart of Jesus which, in the heart of a simple creature, would have taken the form of a passion. What other result could come from this, than that every mark of the Father’s Handiwork should flood His Soul with joy?
So it will be with us. In proportion to our purity of heart and our love of God, will be our capacity for a spiritual appreciation of the beautiful Works which are but emanations from Himself.

If the Heart of our Divine Lord found such well-springs of happiness in the contemplation of those Works in the natural order which were, to His Eye, revelations, or rather the abiding Presence of the Eternal Beauty, Wisdom, Love and other attributes, what shall be said of its complacency in those of the order of grace? We are about to meditate on the complacency of the Heart of Jesus, as reflected in that of His ever Immaculate Mother.

As He regarded that Mother’s face, He saw the beauty of the spotless soul reflected therein and His Heart rejoiced in that masterpiece of spiritual loveliness, in the consideration of that singular privilege which elevated her, so far above all other creatures. He rejoiced, moreover, in her other special prerogative – her Divine Maternity. The memory of that word, by which she had consented to become His Mother and thus, the sharer of His sorrows and His helper in the Work of man’s Redemption, made sweet melody to His Heart as He watched her moving reverently before Him, in her lowly occupations. But, above all, He rejoiced in her sublime humility, by which, ascribing to God alone every grace she had received and desiring to employ them but for His glory, she rendered that homage to His sovereignty, of which so many of His creatures defraud Him. Jesus, then, in the House of Nazareth, is our first great Exemplar of devotion to His ever Blessed Mother and of the consolation which those possess who truly love her.

But He opens for us, in His Hidden Life, another source of consolation and happiness. He would teach us how to sanctify the strongest of human ties and that, nothing more purifies the soul, than the tender, reverential love of a child for his mother.
This is a tie, surpassing every other in the order of nature, in intimacy, in strength, in beautiful associations. Those who have grown hardened in sin, have been reclaimed by vividly recalling, to their world-worn minds, some long-forgotten memory of the mother, whose heart perhaps they had broken.

Jesus has sanctified forever, this filial tie and whilst revealing to us, in His love for His Own Blessed Mother, one of the sources of happiness to His Sacred Heart, He becomes our Model, not only of devotion to her but too, of the reverential love with which we should regard our human mother.
In the evil days through which we pass, the beneficial effect of so hallowing an influence over the hearts, not only of the very young but also, of those on whom the world has put forth its noxious breath, would be incalculable.

There are, again, those who seem imbued with the false notion that piety, is incompatible with human enjoyment and hence, as we have shown before that, the enjoyment of human things is incompatible with sanctity. Our Lord has disabused us of this error and, by example, taken from His Sacred Heart, has taught, to those at least who know how to penetrate its depths that, its spirit is sweet, sanctifying what is human and elevating it into being, in part, Divine!

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2025/01/28/thought-for-the-day-28-january-meditation-5-part-onethe-happiness-of-the-heart-of-jesus-in-the-hidden-life/

Posted in DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, GOD ALONE!, In the PRESENCE of GOD, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, QUOTES on ANGER, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on PATIENCE, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, St JOSEPH, The DIVINE INFANT, The HOLY CROSS, The WILL of GOD

Quote/s of the Day – 29 January – St Francis de Sales

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Quote/s of the Day – 29 January – St Francis de Sales (1567-1622), Bishop, Confessor and Doctor of the Church

“What we need is
a cup of understanding,
a barrel of love
and an ocean of patience.”

“Our greatest fault is, that
we wish to serve God in our way,
not in His way — according to our will,
not according to His Will….
To be truly a Saint, it is necessary
to be one according to the Will of God.”

“Do everything calmly and peacefully.
Do as much as you can, as well as you can.
Strive to see God in all things
without exception and consent
to His Will joyously.
Do everything for God,
uniting yourself to Him in word and deed.
Walk very simply with the Cross of the Lord
and be at peace with yourself.”

“If, when stung by slander
or ill-nature,
we wax proud
and swell with anger,
it is a proof that our gentleness
and humility
are unreal
and mere artificial show!”

“How faithful in humility was the great Saint
we are celebrating!
That cannot be said in all its perfection,
for, in spite of what he was,
in what poverty and lowliness he lived,
all the days of his life – a poverty and lowliness
beneath which. he kept hidden and concealed,
his great virtues and dignity! …
Truly, I am free of doubt that the Angels came,
beside themselves with admiration, rank upon rank,
to behold and wonder at his humility,
while he sheltered that dearest Child
in the poor workshop where he worked at his employment,
so as to feed the little Boy and the Mother entrusted to him.”

“We must fear God out of love,
not love Him out of fear.”

O Glorious St Francis
Prayer to St Francis de Sales

O Glorious St Francis,
model of the interior life
and full of zeal for the salvation of souls!
Obtain for me the grace
to employ all my faculties,
not for my own sanctification alone
but for that of my neighbour too
that continually spreading abroad,
the sweet odour of Jesus Christ,
by my words and works,
I may attain, with thee, the blessedness
promised to the merciful:
“Blessed are the merciful,
for they shall obtain mercy”
and that I may one day have a share
in the glory which thou dost enjoy
in Paradise with the Angels and Saints,
where those who edify
and instruct to justice,
shall shine as stars
for all eternity (Dan 12:3).
Amen

MORE:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/29/quote-s-of-the-day-29-january-st-francis-de-sales-2/

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on TRUTH, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 29 January – ‘ … The Light of Truth itself …’

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One Minute Reflection – 29 January – “The Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Family” – St Francis de Sales (1567-1622), Bishop, Confessor and Doctor of the Church – 2 Timothy 4:1-8; Matthew 5:13-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“You are the light of the world.” – Matthew 5:14

REFLECTION – “In his epistle, Saint John rightly states: ‘God is Light‘ and “whoever remains in God” is “in the Light, just as God Himself is in the Light” (1 Jn 1:5,7; 3:24). Because we have had the good fortune to be freed from the darkness of error, we should always “walk in the Light” like “children of the Light” (Eph 5:8) … And so the Apostle Paul says: “Among them you shine as Lights in the world, holding fast the Word of Life” (Phil 2:15-16). But if we do not do this, it will be clear that we are, so to speak, covering up and shading this essential Light by our lack of faith…

Therefore, that shining Light which has been lit, for our salvation, must always shine in us. For we possess the lamp of the heavenly commandments and of the spirit of grace, of which David said: “Thy law is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps 118:105)… We must not, then, hide this lamp of the law and of faith but, should always set it up on the Church, as on a lampstand, for the salvation of many. In this way, we too may enjoy the Light of Truth itself and all who believe. may be enlightened.” – St Chromatius of Aquilaea (Died c407) Bishop, Father of the Church (Homilies on Saint Matthew’s Gospel No 5).

PRAYER – O God, Who for the salvation of souls, willed that blessed Francis, Thy Confessor and Bishop, should become all things to all men, mercifully grant that we, inspired by the sweetness of Thy love, guided by his teachings and aided by his merits, may attain the joys of everlasting life. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in ACT of ADORATION, ACT OF FAITH, HOPE & CHARITY, ACT of LOVE, DOCTORS of the Church, GOD is LOVE, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, St Francis de Sales

Our Morning Offering – 29 January – O Love Eternal! An Act of Love By St Francis de Sales

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Our Morning Offering – 29 January – St Francis Salesius, Bishop, Confessor and Doctor of the Church

O Love Eternal!
An Act of Love
By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church
(From his “A Treatise on the Love of God”)

O Love Eternal,
my soul needs and chooses Thee eternally!
Ah, come Holy Ghost
and inflame our hearts with Thine Love!
To love — or to die!
To die — and to love!
To die to all other love
in order to live in Jesus’ Love,
so that we may not die eternally
but that we may live in Thine Eternal Love,
O Saviour of our souls,
we eternally sing,
“Live, Jesus! Jesus, I love!
Live Jesus, Whom I love!
Jesus, I love, Jesus Who lives
and reigns forever and ever.”
Amen.

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 29 January – Saint Valerius (Died 2nd-3rd Century) Bishop

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Saint of the Day – 29 January – Saint Valerius (Died 2nd-3rd Century) the 2nd Bishop of Trier, in modern Germany of which See he was the Shepherd for 15 years. Also known as – Valery, Valerij, Valerian, Valerijo, Valerin, Valko, Valči.

The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Treves, the demise of the blessed Bishop St Valerius, disciple of the Apostle St Peter.”

The Tombs of Saints Eucharius and Valerius at St Matthias Abbey, Trier.

According to an ancient legend, St Valerius was a follower of Saint Eucharius, the 1st Bishop of Trier. Eucharius was sent to Gaul by Saint Peter as the Bishop, together with the Deacon Valerius and the Subdeacon Maternus, to preach the Gospel.

They came to the Rhine and to Ellelum in Alsace, where Maternus died. His two companions hastened back to St Peter and begged him to restore the dead man to life. St Peter gave his pastoral staff to Eucharius and, upon being touched with it, Maternus, who had been in his grave for forty days, returned to life. The pagans then converted in large numbers. After founding many Churches, the three companions went to Trier, where evangelising progressed so rapidly that Eucharius chose that City for his Episcopal residence. An Angel announced to him his approaching death and pointed to Valerius as his successor.

Valerius was the Bishop for fifteen years and was succeeded by St Maternus, who had, in the meantime, founded the Diocese of Cologne and Tongeren, remaining the Bishop of the 3 Sees for forty years. The staff of St Peter, with which he had been raised to life, was preserved at Cologne until the end of the 10th Century, when the upper half was presented to Trier and was afterwards taken to Prague by Emperor Charles IV.

Valerius was buried with St Eucharius in Eucharius’ Church, today’s Abbey of St Matthias in Trier.

Posted in SAINT of the DAY, St Francis de Sales

Notre-Dame-de-Chatillion / Our Lady of Chatillion-sur- Seine, France (1130), St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Bishop, Confessor & Doctor of the Church, Day Six of the Candlemas Novena and Memorials of the Saints – 29 January

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Notre-Dame-de-Chatillion / Our Lady of Chatillion-sur- Seine, France (1130) – 29 January:
HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/29/our-lady-of-chatillion-sur-seine-france-1130-and-memorials-of-the-saints-29-january/

St Francis de Sales CO, OM, OFM (Cap) (1567-1622) Bishop, Confessor – Doctor of the Church: Doctor caritatis (Doctor of Charity) “The Gentle Christ of Geneva” and the “Gentleman Saint” – Bishop of Geneva, Doctor of Law and Theology, Writer, Theologian, Mystic, Teacher, Preacher, Founder along with St Jane Frances de Chantal, founded the women’s Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary (Visitandines).
The Gentle Christ of Geneva:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/01/24/saint-of-the-day-24-january-st-francis-de-sales-1567-1622-doctor-of-the-church-doctor-caritatis-doctor-of-charity/
AND:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/29/saint-of-the-day-29-january-st-francis-de-sales-1567-1622-bishop-confessor-doctor/

NOVENA In Preparation for the
Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary – LINK to DAY SIX, 29 January: DAY SIX 29 JANUARY:

St Abundantia the Martyr
St Aphraates
St Aquilinus of Milan
St Barbea of Edessa
St Blath of Kildare
Bl Boleslawa Maria Lament
St Caesarius of Angoulême
Bl Charles of Sayn

St Constantius of Perugia (Died c 170) Martyr Bishop
His Life and Death:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/01/29/saint-of-the-day-29-january-saint-constantius-of-perugia-died-c-170-martyr/

St Dallan Forgaill (c 530- 598) Martyr, Monk, Reformer, Poet.
St Dallan’s Holy Life:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/01/29/saint-of-the-day-29-january-st-dallan-forgaill-c-530-598/

St Pope Gelasius II (c 1060–1119) Bishop of Rome from 24 January 1118 to his death in 1119.
About Pope Gelasius II:
https://anastpaul.com/2020/01/29/saint-of-the-day-29-january-st-pope-gelasius-ii-c-1060-1119/
St Gildas the Elder

St Gildas the Wise (c 500-c 570) Priest and Abbot.
Biography:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/01/29/saint-of-the-day-29-january-st-gildas-the-wise/

Blessed Juniper OFM (Died 1258) Franciscan Friar. Brother Juniper is called “the renowned jester of the Lord” and was one of the original followers of St Francis of Assisi.
Blessed Juniper’s life:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/01/29/saint-of-the-day-29-january-the-servant-of-god-brother-juniper-ofm-died-1258/

St Maurus of Rome
St Papias of Rome
St Sarbellius
St Serrano

St Sulpicius I (Died 591) Bishop of Bourges.
About St Sulpicius:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/29/saint-of-the-day-29-january-saint-sulpicius-i-died-591/

St Valerius (Died 2nd Century) Bishop of Trier
St Voloc

Posted in Meditations on the HIDDEN LIFE, QUOTES on CREATION, QUOTES on HAPPINESS, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, SACRED HEART REFLECTIONS

Thought for the Day – 28 January – Meditation 5, PART ONE:The Happiness of the Heart of Jesus in the Hidden Life

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Thought for the Day – 28 January – Meditations on the Hidden Life: From the 1906 Edition of The Heart of Jesus of Nazareth; it has the Imprimatur of Bishop John Baptist Butt, Diocese of Southwark, England, 5 February 1890. Author’s name known simply as Author of “The Voice of the Sacred Heart.” 
(We return to Fr Clarke for February with his Meditations on The Great Truths.)

Meditation 5, PART ONE:
The Happiness of the Heart of Jesus in the Hidden Life

Where there is union of heart with God, there must be happiness because, the essential element of happiness, is present there, no matter what may be the circumstances in which that life is cast.

We intend in this Meditation to reflect on some of the sources of happiness, wherein we ourselves, may share with the human Heart of God. In the Beginning, when He had finished the Work of Creation, Holy Scripture tells us – “God saw all the things He had made and they were very good.” (Genesis 1:31) These words are suggestive of the Divine complacency in the beautiful Work accomplished and we recognise, a reproduction of this sublime joy of the Creator, in the appreciation, with which, the Heart of Jesus contemplated the works of Nature.

The perception of the beautiful is a Divine lineament which sin has never been able to utterly erase from the human soul but which, is more strikingly developed, in proportion to that purity of heart which imparts judgement, as to the source from whence, all created beauty emanates: “Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God.” Now what heart was ever comparable in purity and singleness to the human Heart of the Man-God?

Hence it is, that Jesus, walking amidst the fair scenes of Nazareth, could appreciate, with an intensity unknown to us, all the loveliness His Eye beheld; just as years afterwards, when, fatigued with the labours of the day, He found refreshment on the shaded slopes of Olivet and holy joy, as His Eye wandered over the blue waters of Genesereth, sparkling in the sunlight.

He rejoiced, we say, in these things because, His Heart was full of all that was Divine because, He saw in them at once, the expression of the Divine Beauty and the Creation of the Divine Hand; because, His Heart was pure and single and, therefore, as it sought but God and desired but God, so it found Him everywhere.

Lastly, He rejoiced in all Creation, inasmuch, as He saw in it, the Work of His Own Hand by reason of His unity of operation with the Father, resulting from the unity of the Divine Nature.

Posted in QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on DIVINE PROVIDENCE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the POOR, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, St Francis de Sales, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 28 January – We are fools for Christ’s sake

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Quote/s of the Day – 28 January – St Peter Nolasco OdeM (c 1182–c 1256) Confessor, Founder – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14, Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“For where your treasure is,
there will your heart be too.”

Luke 12:34

“We are made a spectacle to the world
and to Angels and to men.
We are fools for Christ’s sake
but you are wise in Christ;
we are weak but you are strong;
you are honourable but we without honour.
Even unto this hour, we both hunger and thirst
and are naked and are buffeted
and have no fixed abode.
And we labour, working with our own hands.
We are reviled and we bless.
We are persecuted and we suffer it.
We are blasphemed and we entreat.
We are made as the refuse of this world,
the offscouring of all, even until now.”

St Paul – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14

“The great wealth of Christians
is found in the needs of the poor,
provided we grasp how to put our
possessions to good use.
The poor are always before us;
if we entrust our wealth to them,
we shall not lose it.”

St Augustine (354-430)
Father and Doctor of Grace

“Great indeed is the confidence
which God requires us to have
in His paternal care and in His Divine Providence
but why should we not have it,
seeing that no-one has ever been deceived in it?
No-one ever trusts in God
without reaping the fruits of his confidence.”

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church

(Spiritual Conferences 6)

Posted in "Follow Me", DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD, St PETER!, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 28 January – ‘Make for yourselves purses which do not grow old, a treasure unfailing in Heaven …’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 28 January – “The Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Family” – St Peter Nolasco OdeM (c 1182–c1256) Confessor, Founder – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Sell what you possess and give alms. Make for yourselves purses which do not grow old, a treasure unfailing in Heaven, where neither thief draws near, nor moth destroys.” – Luke 12:33

REFLECTION – “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 5:3) … Of this generous poverty, the Apostles first, after the Lord, have given us example. Unhesitatingly leaving all they had, at the Voice of the Heavenly Master, they were joyfully converted and abandoned the catching of fish, to become fishers of men (Mt 4:18). Among the latter, many became like themselves, by imitating their faith; for with those first children of the Church, “the community of believers was of one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32). Stripped of all their possessions, they were enriched with eternal goods, thanks to holy poverty. Welcoming the Apostles’ preaching, they rejoiced to have nothing in this world and yet, possess all things in Christ. (2 Cor 6:10).

Hence, the blessed Apostle Peter, when he was going up to the temple and was asked for alms by a lame man, said, “I have neither silver nor gold but what I do have I give you; in the Name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk” (Acts 3:6)… Peter healed him with a word and he, who did not have a coin with Cæsar’s image upon it, restored upon the man, the Image of Christ. And by the riches of this treasure, not only was that one person aided, whose power of walking was restored but too, the five thousand men who then believed the Apostle’s preaching because of this miracle (Acts 4:4). And Peter, that poor man, who did not have anything to give him, who asked for alms, bestowed so great a gift of Divine Grace that, not content with setting one man upright on his feet, he healed, those many thousands of believers in their hearts, by giving them faith.” – St Leo the Great (400-461) Pope, Father and Doctor of the Church (Sermon 95 2-3).

PRAYER – O God, Thou Who, as an example of Thy love, divinely taught St Peter to enrich Thy Church with new offspring, a family of Religious devoted to the ransom of the faithful, grant by his intercession that we may be released from the slavery of sin and rejoice in lasting freedom in Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in Holy Name PRAYERS, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on PERSECUTION

Our Morning Offering – 28 January – May We Confess Thy Name to the End By St Cyprian

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Our Morning Offering – 28 January – “The Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Family”

May We Confess Thy Name to the End
By St Cyprian of Carthage (200-258)
Bishop and Martyr
Apostolic Father of the Church

Good God,
may we confess Thy Name to the end.
May we emerge unmarked
and glorious from the traps
and darkness of this world.
As Thou hast bound us together
by charity and peace
and, as together,
we have persevered under persecution,
so may we also rejoice together
in Thy Heavenly Kingdom.
Amen

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 28 January – Saint John of Réomay (c425-c539) Founder Abbot

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Saint of the Day – 28 January – Saint John of Réomay (c425-c539) Founder Abbot of the Monastery of Réomay, Priest, Hermit, Reformer. Born in Dijon around 425 and died there at his Monastery, of natural causes in c539. Also known as – Jean, Giovanni.

The Roman Martyrology reads today: “In the Monastery of Rheims, the demise of a holy Priest name John, a man of God,”

Son of a senator of Dijon, Hilary and his wife, Quieta, John was born in Courtangy, a family property near Dijon. At the age of twenty, he left his home after having built a Chapel dedicated to Saint Stephen in the family property at Courtangy which later became a Parish. He went into the nearby forest and lived alone among the ruins of Roman buildings. All this happened around the years 460-465.

Soon becoming a popular source of spiritual guidance, John was joined by some disciples, He became the leader of a community and founded the renowned Monastery of Réomay. Then, becoming overwhelmed by the burdens of administration and governing, he fled to Lérins Monastery, at that time, one of the centres of expansion of western monasticism. Without revealing his identity, John enjoyed peace and a prayerful solitude, until a traveller recognised him and he was recalled by the Bishop of Langres, on whom he depended (the Vita calls him Gregory, 507-539).

But sadly he found that the Monks had become lax in their practices and he had to reform it by applying the Rule followed in Lerins (that of St Macarius). The Frankish Kings protected the Monastery of Réomay which became a place of reference and where great and holy figures passed through.

John is credited with several miracles, the best known being that of having returned the water to a necessary well and evicting the resident basilisk dragon which creature you see on the images of our Saint.

John died a centenarian shortly in 539. Jonah of Bobbio , his biographer, attributes to him one hundred and twenty years. His body, first buried in the territory of the Abbey, was later included within the walls of a Basilica which became a place of burial (the Church of Saint Maurice of Corsaint, corpus sanctum). Around 580, his fourth successor, the Abbot Leopardin, raised John’s body and transferred it to the Altar. Finally, after the reconstruction of the Monastery in the current village of Moutier-Saint-Jean, the Bishop of Langres, Betta (790-820) brought him to the new Abbey a few kilometers from the original burial site. St John’s is celebrated in Réomay today with the rest of the Church.

Réomay Monastery 17th Century depiction
Posted in SAINT of the DAY

The Second Feast of St Agnes, St Peter Nolasco OdeM (c 1182–c 1256) Confessor, Day 5 of the Candlemas Novena and Memorials of the Saints – 28 January

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NOVENA In Preparation for the
Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary – LINK to DAY FIVE, 28 January:  DAY FIVE, 28 JANUARY

The Second Feast of St Agnes:
28 January is traditionally the day of the “Second Feast of St Agnes,” although this very ancient observance was reduced to a commemoration in 1931 and abolished in the post-Vatican II reform (1969). It is still kept in the TGraditional Church and in some Churches dedicated to St Agnes, most prominent among them, the Basilica built over the site of her burial, less than a mile and a half from the gates of Rome.
In liturgical books, the formal name of the feast is “Sanctae Agnetis secundo” which means “the feast of St Agnes for the second time.” This title is found on the calendar of the Tridentine Missal and Breviary, as also seven centuries earlier in the Gregorian Sacramentary. The single Matins lesson in the Breviary of St Pius V tells us, that after her death, Agnes appeared first to her parents to console them and then to the Emperor Constantine’s daughter Constantia, who suffered from an incurable sore, while she was praying at her grave, exhorting Constantia to trust in Christ and receive Baptism. Having done this and been cured, Constantia later built a Basilica in the Saint’s honour.

St Peter Nolasco OdeM (c 1182–c 1256) Confessor, Founder of the Congregation of the Royal and Military Order of Our Lady of Mercy of the Redemption of the Captives (Mercadarians).
Biography:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/01/28/saint-of-the-day-28-january-saint-peter-nolasco-odem-c-1182-c-1256/

St Aemilian of Trebi
Bl Amadeus of Lausanne
St Antimus of Brantôme
St Archebran
Bl Bartolomé Aiutamicristo
St Brigid of Picardy
St Callinicus
St Cannera of Inis Cathaig
Blessed Charlemagne (a decree of Canonisation was issued by the anti-pope Paschal III but this was never ratified by valid authority.)
St Constantly
St Flavian of Civita Vecchia
St Glastian of Kinglassie
St James the Almsgiver
St James the Hermit
St John of Réomay (c425-c539) Abbot

Blessed Julian Maunoir SJ (1606-1683) Priest “The Apostle of Brittany,” “The Good Father of Brittany,” Missionary, Founder of the “Breton Missionaries” Apostolate. On 20 May 1951 the Good Father Julian, Apostle of Brittany, was Beatified by Pope Pius XII.
About Bl Julian:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/28/saint-of-the-day-28-january-blessed-julian-maunoir-sj-1606-1683-priest-the-apostle-of-brittany-the-good-father-of-brittany/

St Julian of Cuenca (c 1127-1208) Bishop of Cuenca (1127-1208) the second Bishop of Cuenca, Spain from c 1196 until his death. Professor, Hermit, Reformer, Miracle-worker, basket-weaver using the money he gained from this trade to support the poor and needy, He was also a regular visitor to prisoners, assisting them spiritually and with material succour. Born as Julián Ben Tauro in c 1127 at Burgos, Spain and died on 28 January 1208 in Cuenca, Spain of natural causes, aged around 80 years. Patronages – basket-weavers, for rain, of the City and Diocese of Cuenca.
This Devoted Shepherd:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/28/saint-of-the-day-28-january-saint-julian-of-cuenca-1127-1208-bishop/

St Leucius of Apollonia
St Maura of Picardy
Bl Odo of Beauvais
St Palladius of Antioch
St Paulinus of Aquileia
St Richard of Vaucelles
St Thyrsus of Apollonia

Martyrs of Alexandria: A group of 4th-century lay faithful in Alexandria, Egypt. During the celebration of Mass one day an Arian officer named Syrianus led a troop of soldiers into their church and proceded to murder all the orthodox Christians in the place. 356 in Alexandria, Egypt.

Posted in GOD ALONE!, In the PRESENCE of GOD, Meditations on the HIDDEN LIFE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SILENCE, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, SACRED HEART REFLECTIONS

Thought for the Day – 27 January – Meditation 4, Part Two – Of the Presence of God Considered in the Hidden Life

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 27 January – Meditations on the Hidden Life: From the 1906 Edition of The Heart of Jesus of Nazareth; it has the Imprimatur of Bishop John Baptist Butt, Diocese of Southwark, England, 5 February 1890. Author’s name known simply as Author of “The Voice of the Sacred Heart.” 
(We return to Fr Clarke for February with his Meditations on The Great Truths.)

Meditation 4, Part Two – Of the Presence of God
Considered in the Hidden Life

Let us now consider the fruits of constant attention to the Divine Presence which are first produced in the heart and from thence, reflected throughout the whole life.

The Soul of Jesus looked ever upon the Father’s Face and, as He looked, the flames of love rose ever higher within His Sacred Heart. This is the testimony which He gives of Himself: “He Who sent Me, is with Me and He hath not left Me alone; for I do always, the things which please Him.” (John 8:29)

If a servant, from the motive of fear, performs with care and attention those things which please his master, when he is conscious of that master’s presence, how much more will the faithful soul, do this from a motive of love in the Presence of our Father in Heaven. Such will be the first result of this holy exercise. The more habitually it is practiced, the more constant too, will be the practice of virtue, since the soul’s first desire will be ,to “do always the things which please” the Divine object of its love, of Whose Presence, it is so conscious.

It must be remarked, however, the actions which flow from this holy recollection in God, have, in them, nothing forced, nothing constrained.
“Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” (2 Corinthians 3:17)
The heart and mind are really where their treasure is, that is, in God and in those things which refer to His honour and glory and, this is true recollection, widely different from that studied and simply external modesty which is often exaggerated, maintained with effort and which is perhaps, sometimes assumed, through spiritual vanity.

When the interior eye has been really attracted by the Divine Beauty, exterior objects lose their charm and are held in regard, only as far as duty and charity demand. When the inward ear habitually listens to the Divine Whisper, silence is then a joy and no longer a constraint. Habitual reverence will manifest itself in the whole exterior – a gentle, spontaneous and unconscious reverence flowing from the union of the soul with God and from the tranquil happiness which it experiences in the Presence of its Treasure.

Let us, then, beg a lively faith in the Divine Presence and the grace to acquire the sanctifying habit of walking constantly within It, so that, with truth, we may say to God:
“I am always with Thee.”
Then will virtues flourish in our souls, beneath that genial influence, like flowers beneath the sun.
Thus shall we grow in likeness to Jesus and make advance in our union with His Sacred Heart.

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2025/01/26/thought-for-the-day-26-january-meditation-4-part-one-of-the-presence-of-god-considered-in-the-hidden-life/

Posted in 7 GIFTS of the HOLY GHOST: Wisdom, Understanding, Prudence, Strength, Knowledge, Piety, Fear, CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on HAPPINESS, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on KINDNESS, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PERSECUTION, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, Quotes on SALVATION, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the POOR, QUOTES on VIRTUE, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, QUOTES on ZEAL, The HOLY GHOST

Quote/s of the Day – 27 January – St John Chrysostom

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 27 January – St John Chrysostom (347-407) Bishop, Confessor, Father and Doctor of the Church “Golden Mouthed.”

“Do you possess a pearl?
Then you know your wealth, it is clenched
in the palm of your hand,
no-one is aware of your fortune.
So it is with the Gospel, if you embrace it with faith,
if it remains enclosed in your heart,
what a treasure you have
You alone know it is there.
Unbelievers, who know neither what it is,
nor what value it has, have no idea
of your incredible wealth!”

“As water is required
to keep plants from withering,
so also, prayer is necessary
to save us from destruction.”

“Without prayer it is impossible
to lead a good life;
for no-one
can practice virtue unless
he humbly implores God for it,
Who alone can give him the necessary strength.
Who ceases to love and practice prayer,
no longer processes the gifts of the Holy Ghost.
But he who perseveres in the service of God
and deems it an irreparable loss
to be not in constant prayer,
possesses every virtue and is a friend of God.”

“Indeed Andrew’s eagerness,
his zeal in wanting to immediately spread
such a good news, supposes a soul
who was longing to see the accomplishment
of the many prophecies concerning Christ.
It is a mark of brotherly kindness,
of loving kinship, of genuine goodwill,
to hasten to stretch out a helping hand
to one another in spiritual matters. …
“We have found the Messiah” he says –
not any messiah but “The Messiah,”
the One Christ they were awaiting.”

“We too, then, when we suffer anything
for Christ’s sake,
should do so, not simply with courage
but even with joy.
If we have to go hungry, let us be glad,
as if we were at a banquet.
If we are insulted, let us be elated,
as though we had been showered with praises.
If we lose all we possess,
let us consider ourselves the gainers of all.
If we provide for the poor,
let us regard ourselves as the recipients! …
Above all, remember, that your struggles,
are for the sake of the Lord Jesus.
Then, you will easily rise above them
and live out your lifetime in happiness;
for nothing brings more happiness
than a good conscience.”

“Are we going to neglect our own salvation?
Let us show great compassion
towards the poor
so as to be made worthy of possessing
good things to come for all eternity!”

O Lord and Lover of Men
By St John Chrysostom (347-407)
Father and Doctor of the Church

O Lord and Lover of men,
make shine in our hearts
the pure Light of Thy Divine Knowledge
and open the eyes of our mind
to the understanding of Thy Gospel teaching.
Instill in us the fear
of Thy Blessed Commandments
that trampling upon all carnal desires,
we may enter upon a spiritual life,
willing and doing all that is Thy Good Pleasure.
For Thou art the Light of our souls
and of our bodies, Christ O God
and we give glory to Thee
together with Thine Eternal Father
and Thine All-holy, Good and Life-giving Spirit,
now and forever, world without end.
Amen

MORE:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/27/quote-s-of-the-day-27-january-st-john-chrysostom-2/

St John Chrysostom (347-407)
Father and Doctor of the Church

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MODESTY, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on KINDNESS, QUOTES on MERCY, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The BEATITUDES, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 27 January – Salt and Light – St John Chrysostom

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 27 January – “The Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Family” – St John Chrysostom (347-407) Bishop, Confessor, Father and Doctor of the Church “Golden Mouthed” – 2 Timothy 4:1-8, Matthew 5:13-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Jesus said to His disciples: “You are the salt of the earth.
… You are the light of the world.” – Matthew 5:13, 14

REFLECTION – “You are the salt of the earth. It is not for your own sake, He says but for the world’s sake that the word is entrusted to you. I am not sending you into two cities only or ten or twenty, not to a single nation, as I sent the Prophets of old but across land and sea, to the whole world. And that world is in a miserable state. For when He says: You are the salt of the earth, He is indicating, that all mankind had lost its savour and had been corrupted by sin. Therefore, He requires of these men, those virtues which are especially useful and even necessary, if they are to bear the burdens of many. For the man who is kindly, modest, merciful and just ,will not keep his good works to himself but will see to it, that these admirable fountains send out their streams, for the good of others. Again, the man who is clean of heart, a peacemaker and ardent for truth, will order his life so as to contribute to the common good. …

Then He passes onto a more exalted comparison – You are the light of the world. Once again, “of the world,” not of one nation or twenty cities but of the whole world. The light He means, is an intelligible light, far superior to the rays of the sun we see, just as the salt is a spiritual salt. First salt, then light, so that you may learn how profitable sharp words may be and how useful, serious doctrine. Such teaching holds in check and prevents, dissipation, it leads to virtue and sharpens the mind’s eye. A City set on a hill cannot be hidden, nor do men light a lamp and put it under a basket. Here again, He is urging them to a careful manner of life and teaching them, to be watchful, for they live under the eyes of all and have the whole world for the arena of their struggles.” – St John Chrysostom (347-407) Archbishop of Constantinople, Father and Doctor of the Church (An excerpt from his Homily on Matthew).

PRAYER – May heavenly grace, we beseech Thee, O Lord, prosper Thy Church, which Thou mercifully enlightened by the blessed virtues and teachings of glorious and blessed John Chrysostom, Thy Confessor and Bishop. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Holy Name PRAYERS, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of PETITION, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on TRUTH, The HOLY NAME

Our Morning Offering – 27 January – In Thy Name By St John Chrysostom

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 27 January – “The Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Family” – St John Chrysostom (347-407) Bishop, Confessor, Father and Doctor of the Church “Golden Mouthed.”

In Thy Name
By St John Chrysostom (347-407)
Father and Doctor of the Church

Oh Almighty God,
Who hast given us grace
at this time, with one accord,
to make our common
supplications unto Thee
and hast promised that,
when two or three are gathered together
in Thy Name,
Thou wilt grant their requests,
fulfil now, O Lord,
the desires and petitions of Thy servants,
as may be most expedient for them;
granting us, in this world,
knowledge of Thy Truth
and in the world to come,
life everlasting.
Amen

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 27 January – Saint Julian (Died 3rd or 4th Century) Bishop

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 27 January – Saint Julian (Died 3rd or 4th Century) the 1st Bishop of Le Mans. Died in the 3rd or 4th Century at Sarthe, Gaul (modern Sant-Marceaux, France) of natural causes . Patronages – Beaumont, Belgium; Castrovillari, Italy; Le Mans, France; Pollina, Italy. Also known as – Julien du Mans, Iulianus, Juliani.

The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Le Mans, the demise of St Julian, the first Bishop of that City, who was sent thither by St Peter, to preach the Gospel.”

The oldest account of Julian’s life, the Gesta Domini Juliani, is found in the famous work entitled, Actus Pontificum Cenomannis in Urbe Degentium. Now, these Actus, undoubtedly composed between 840 and 857, are the work of an unscrupulous forger, only concerned with defending the rights and possessions of the Church of Le Mans at the time he wrote which is why, his biography is completely false and discounted.

According to this source, Julian, after having been one of the 72 disciples, was Consecrated as Bishop by the Pope St Clement of Rome and sent to Gaul. Arriving at the gates of the City of Le Mans, he miraculously made a fountain gush forth. The inhabitants converted in crowds and, especially the local authorities, who made Julian innumerable donations carefully enumerated in the above-mentioned writing. The Bishop, after 7 years, went on a pilgrimage to Rome, from where he returned laden with Relics. These Relics produced many miracles which, in turn, caused conversions. Julian also created 90 rural Parishes and this was easy for him because, in 27 Ordinations, he Consecrated 176 Priests, 22 Deacons and, as many Sub-deacons. Finally, after an Episcopate of 47 years, he died on 28 January.

None of the above Vita, can be considered reliable. It must be remembered that the claims of the Churches to apostolicity, that is, to have a Founder who can be directly linked to Apostolic times, are a fact of the 8th and 9th Centuries which finds its explanation, without doubt, in local vanity but, at the same time, in the very great prestige the Church of Rome enjoyed at that time.

To know something about Julian, then, we must consult indirect sources. We know from the will of St Bertrand, the Bishop of Le Mans (616), that there existed, at that time, a suburban Church dedicated to St Julian the Bishop. In 832, an imperial charter informs us that the building still existed and that it was served by a small Monastery. This Church has been identified; it is located on the site of the Church of Le Pré which, before the Revolution, had a small Crypt in the form of a confessional which can undoubtedly be dated to the end of the 4th Century, or the beginning of the 5th. This is the Clue which leads us to place Julian in the 4th Century.

The tradition which makes him the 1st Bishop of Le Mans and which attributes the foundation of the Cathedral to him, can also be accepted. The fact of his lengthy and zealous career as a true shepherd of his flock, too must be regarded as authentic. We note, however, that the cult of St Julian developed only later.

In 1254, things changed, when the above-mentioned legend of Julian’s Apostolic mission was born. Between 841 and 850 his body was transported from the Church of Le Pré to the Cathedral, the cult assumed ever more intense proportions, until in the 11th Century, St Julian had by then become famous.

The Feast is fixed on 27 January. The Cathedral of Le Mans, after having borne the name of Our Lady, then of Sts Gervase and Protasus, is currently dedicated to St Julian, whose cult developed greatly in England too, thanks to the Normans.

Window in the Cathedral of St Julian in Le Mans
Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, MARIAN TITLES, SAINT of the DAY

Notre-Dame-de-Vie / Our Lady of Life, Provence, France, St John Chrysostom (347-407), Day 4 of the Candlemas Novena and Memorials of the Saints – 27 January

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Notre-Dame-de-Vie / Our Lady of Life, Provence, France – 27 January:
HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/27/our-lady-of-life-notre-dame-de-vie-provence-france-and-memorials-of-the-saints-27-january/

NOVENA In Preparation for the
Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary – LINK to DAY FOUR, 27 January: DAY FOUR, 27 January

St John Chrysostom (347-407) Bishop, Confessor, Father and Doctor of the Church – “Golden Mouthed,” Preacher, Orator, Writer, Theologian, Confessor. Name Meaning – God is gracious; gift of God (John), golden-mouthed (Chrysostom).
The Great Golden Mouth:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/27/saint-of-the-day-27-january-st-john-chrysostom-347-407-bishop-confessor-father-and-doctor-of-the-church/
AND:
https://anastpaul.com/2017/09/13/saint-of-the-day-13-september-st-john-chrysostom-347-407-father-and-doctor-of-the-church-golden-mouthed/
(His Feast Day is today (changed in 1969 to 13 September).
The Roman Martyrology states of him today: “At Constantinople, St John, Bishop, who was surnamed Chrysostom on account of his golden flow of eloquence. He greatly promoted the interests of the Christian religion by his preaching and exemplary life and, after many toils, closed his life in banishment. His sacred body was brought to Constantinople on this day in the reign of Theodosius the younger and afterwards taken to Rome and placed in the Basilica of the Prince of the Apostles. This illustrious Preacher of the Word of God, Pope Pius X declared and appointed as the Heavenly Patron of Sacred Orators.”

St Avitus
St Candida of Bañoles

St Devota (Died c 303) Virgin Martyr,.
Her Life and Death:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/01/27/saint-of-the-day-27-january-st-devota-died-c-303-virgin-martyr/

St Domitian of Melitene
St Emerius of Bañoles
St Gilduin
Bl Gonzalo Diaz di Amarante
St Henry de Osso y Cervello
Bl John of Warneton
St Julian (Died 3rd or 4th Century) Bishop
St Julian of Sora
St Lupus of Châlons

Blessed Manfredo Settala (12 Century-1217) Priest and Hermit, “The Hermit of Monte San Giorgio,” Miracle-worker.
His Story:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/27/saint-of-the-day-27-january-blessed-manfredo-settala-12th-century-1217/

St Marius of Bodon
Bl Michael Pini
St Natalis of Ulster
St Theodoric of Orléans
St Pope Vitalian

Martyrs of North Africa – 30 Saints: A group of 30 Christians Martyred together by Arian Vandals. The only details to have survived are four of their names – Datius, Julian, Reatrus and Vincent. c 500 in North Africa.