Quote/s of the Day – 30 August – St Rose of Lima OP (1586-1617) Virgin
“Apart from the cross there is no other ‘ladder’ by which we might get to Heaven.”
“Without the struggle of afflictions, it is impossible to reach the height of grace. The gift of grace increases as the struggle increases.”
“If only we would learn how great it is to possess divine grace and how many riches it has within itself, how many joys and delights. We would devote all our concern, to winning for ourselves pains and afflictions, in order to attain the unfathomable treasure of grace.”
“We must not fail to help our neighbours, because in them we serve Jesus.”
Quote/s of the Day – 27 August – St Joseph Calasanz/Calasantius (1557-1648) Spanish Confessor
“Like the saplings of plants, the young are easily influenced, as long as someone works to teach their souls. But if they are allowed to grow hard, we know well that the possibility of one day bending them, diminishes a great deal and is sometimes utterly lost.”
“Keep, O Lord, my heart at peace, always close to Thee. Thou Who calms the wild waves of the sea.”
“If, from the very earliest years, a child is instructed in both religion and letters, it can be reasonably hoped that his life will be happy.”
Our Morning Offering – 24 August – St Bartholomew the Apostle and Martyr
Exsultet Orbis! Let the World Rejoice! Unknown Author
Now let the earth with joy resound, And Heaven the chant re-echo round; Nor Heaven nor earth too high can raise The great Apostles’ glorious praise.
O ye who, throned in glory dread, Shall judge the living and the dead, Lights of the world forever more! To you the suppliant prayer we pour.
Ye close the Sacred Gates on high. At your command apart they fly. O loose for us the guilty chain We strive to break and strive in vain.
Sickness and health your voice obey, At your command they go or stay. From sin’s disease our souls restore; In good confirm us more and more.
So when the world is at its end. And Christ to Judgment shall descend, May we be called, those joys to see Prepared from all eternity.
Praise to the Father, with the Son, And Holy Spirit, Three in One; As ever was in ages past And so shall be while ages last. Amen
(Roman Breviary for the Common of Apostles) An Office Hymn that was traditionally prescribed for Vespers and Lauds on the Feasts of Apostles and Evangelists outside Easter time. The Hymn is found as early as the tenth century in a hymnal of Moissac Abbey.
One Minute Reflection – 20August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” and the Memorial of St Bernard (1090-1153) Confessor – Readings: Sir 15:5, Ps 91:2, Ecclus 39:6-14, Matt 5:13-19
Do not think that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
Matt 5:13-19
REFLECTION – “I have come not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it”… Indeed, at that time, by his own power and in his own person, the Lord fulfilled all the mysteries the law foretold concerning himself. All prophecies were fulfilled by his passion. When, as holy David predicted, a sponge full of vinegar was offered him on the cross, he accepted it and said: “It is fulfilled”; and bowing his head, he gave up his spirit.
Now as well as carrying out himself all that had been prophesied, he also gave us commandments to carry out. Of old the easier commandments laid down by the law were not observed, but we, by grace and the power of the cross, are expected to observe more difficult ones.
Epiphanius of Benevento (5th-6th centuries)
PRAYER – O God, Who gave to Thy people, blessed Bernard, as a minister of salvation, grant, we beseech Thee, that we, who cherished him on earth as a teacher of life, may be found worthy to have him as an intercessor 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
Quote/s of the Day – 16 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart” – Readings: Ps 69:2-3, Ps 69:4, 2 Cor. 3:4-9, Luke 10:23-37
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I say to you, many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and they have not seen it; and to hear what you hear, and they have not heard it.
Luke 10:23-37
Deign, O God, to rescue me; O Lord, make haste to help me. Let them be put to shame and confounded who seek my life.
Ps 69:2-3
The Lord has heard those supplications which you, my best beloved Donatus, pour forth in His presence all the day long, and the supplications of the rest of our brethren, who by a glorious confession have obtained an everlasting crown, the reward of their faith. Behold, all the adversaries are destroyed, and tranquillity having been re-established throughout the Roman empire, the late oppressed Church arises again, and the temple of God, overthrown by the hands of the wicked, is built with more glory than before.
Lactantius
For there is no proper place for sadness, when we keep the birthday of the Life, which destroys the fear of mortality and brings to us the joy of promised eternity. No one is kept from sharing in this happiness. There is for all one common measure of joy, because as our Lord the destroyer of sin and death finds none free from charge, so is He come to free us all. Let the saint exult in that he draws near to victory. Let the sinner be glad in that he is invited to pardon. Let the gentile take courage in that he is called to life.
St Leo the Great
The Law laid hold on one that gathered sticks on a sabbath day, and stoned him. This is the meaning of, the letter kills. The Gospel takes hold on thousands of homicides and robbers, and baptizing delivers them from their former vices. This is the meaning of, the Spirit gives life.
St John Chrysostom
We must abandon the way of iniquity, and now, while there is yet time, make our peace with the Judge whom we have offended.
Quote/s of the Day – 13 August – The Memorial of St Maximus the Confessor (c 580-662) Father of the Church
“Food is not evil – but gluttony is. Childbearing is not evil – but fornication is. Money is not evil – but avarice is. Glory is not evil – but vainglory is. Indeed, there is no evil in existing things – but only in their misuse!”
“To harbour no envy, no anger, no resentment against an offender, is still not to have charity for him. It is possible, without any charity, to avoid rendering evil for evil. But, to render, spontaneously, good for evil – such belongs to a perfect spiritual love.”
“In conformity with the philosophy of Christ, let us make of our life, a training for death.”
“For indeed, what is more dire than the evils which today afflict the world? … What is more terrible for the discerning than the unfolding events? What is more pitiable and frightening for those who endure them? To see a barbarous people of the desert overrunning another’s lands as though they were their own, to see civilisation itself, being ravaged by wild and untamed beasts whose form alone is human.”
“All the ends of the inhabited world … look directly to the most holy Church of the Romans and her confession and faith as to a sun of eternal light, receiving from her, the radiant beam of the patristic and holy doctrines.”
“Since He causes the darkness of ignorance and the evil of men to vanish, my Saviour and my God is called a lamp in Scripture. And since He is the only one able to obliterate the darkness of ignorance and disperse the shadows of sin, He has become the way of salvation for all … The lampstand is holy Church because the Word of God shines out through her preaching. This is how the beams of its truth can enlighten the whole world…”
For what does it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, but suffer the loss of his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is to come with His angels in the glory of His Father, and then He will render to everyone according to His conduct.
Matt 16:24-27
REFLECTION – How desirable it would be, my brothers, that we could say of each of us what the Gospel says of this mute that Jesus healed, that he spoke very well. Alas! My brothers, could we not, on the contrary, reproach that we almost always speak badly, especially when we talk about our neighbor.
What is the conduct of most Christians these days? Here it is. Criticize, censor, blacken and condemn what the neighbor does and says: these are all the most common, the most universally widespread vices, and, perhaps, the worst of all. Vice that you can never hate enough, vice which has the most fatal consequences, which carries disturbance and desolation everywhere.
Ah! May God give me one of these coals of which the angel used to purify the lips of the prophet Isaiah, in order to purify the language of all men! Oh ! How many ailments would be banished from the earth, if we could chase away this backbiting! May I, my brothers, give you so much horror, that you have the happiness of correcting you forever!
I finish saying that, not only, it is bad to depreciate and slander others, but also to listen to backbiting and slander with pleasure; Because if no one listened, there would be no sown. Let us often say: "My God, give me the grace to know myself. "Happy ! A thousand times happy, the one who will only use his tongue to ask God for forgiveness for his sins and sing his praises!"
St John Vianney (Sermon for the 11th Sunday after Pentacost)
PRAYER – Almighty and merciful God, by Your grace, St John Vianney was remarkable for his zeal as priest and shepherd. Help us, by his example and prayers, to win our brethren for Christ by our love and to share with them in eternal glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.
One Minute Reflection – 5 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – The Memorial of the Dedication of Mary Major, Our Lady of the Snows
“Upon this rock I will build my church” – Matthew 16:18
REFLECTION – “Nothing escaped the wisdom and power of Christ: – the elements of nature lay at His service, spirits obeyed Him, angels served Him… And yet, out of all the world, Peter alone was chosen to stand at the head for the calling of all the peoples and the oversight of all the Apostles and Fathers of the Church. Thus, even though there are many priests and shepherds among the people of God, Peter governed them all in person while Christ also governs them in the capacity of Head.
The Lord asks all the Apostles what people think of Him and they all say the same thing so long as they are making known the doubts deriving from human ignorance. But when the Lord demands to know what the disciples themselves think, the first to confess the Lord is he who is the first in dignity of the Apostles. As he had said: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”, Jesus answers him: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my heavenly Father.” That is to say: blessed are you because my Father taught this to you. Earthly opinion has not led you astray but it is heavenly inspiration that has instructed you. It is not flesh and blood that enabled you to discover me but He whose only Son I am.
“And so I say to you”, that is to say: – just as My Father has manifested My divinity to you, so I am making known your superiority to you. “You are Peter,” namely – I am the unshakeable Rock, the Cornerstone Who makes two peoples one, the Foundation, other than which, no-one can lay any other. But you also, you are rock since you are impregnable by My Strength and what I have by virtue of My Power, you have, in common with Me by the fact, that you participate in it. “On this rock I will build my Church“. On the firmness of this foundation, He says, will I build an everlasting temple and My Church, whose summit is to reach to heaven, will be raised on the strength of that faith.”
– St Pope Leo the Great (4th Sermon for the Anniversary of his Ordination)
PRAYER – Forgive the sins of Your people Lord and since of ourselves, we are unable to do what pleases You, lead us on the way of salvation by the prayers of Mary, the Immaculate Mother of Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever, amen.
Quote/s of the Day – 4 August – The Memorial of St Dominic de Guzman OP(1170-1221)
Greatly do we rejoice and thank God because of your holy life and because He has freed you from the corruption of this world. Daughters, fight the ancient adversary insistently with fasting, for only he will be crowned who has striven according to the rules. Be not sparing of discipline and vigils. Be obedient to your prioress. Avoid talking idly to one another. Let not your time be wasted in conversation.
When asked what he would say if faced with martyrdom
I would tell them to kill me slowly and painfully, a little at a time so that I might have a more glorious crown in heaven.
A man who governs his passions is master of the world. We must either rule them or be ruled by them. It is better to be the hammer than the anvil.
If I do not become a saint, I am doing nothing.
The Holy Rosary is the best artillery against demons and their followers.
None who perseveres in devotion to the Holy Rosary will be condemned.
You are my companion and must walk with me. For if we hold together, no earthly power can withstand us.
Our Lady of the Slain, also known as Our Lady of the Murdered, is located at a Cistercian monastery in Ceica, near Lorban, in the country of Portugal.
It is believed that this image was brought directly from heaven to be given to the Abbot John, who was the uncle of King Afonso I of Portugal. The statue earned its unique title through many spectacular miracles. It is best known for the fact that life was restored to several persons who had been murdered. In memory of these miracles, those who had been raised from the dead would bear from that time forward, a red mark upon their throats, like that which was seen on the throat of the image.
King Afonso I, the Conqueror, (also known as Afonso Henriques), was the first king of Portugal and a lifelong sworn opponent of Islam. He spent 46 years as king of Portugal waging war against the Moors in order to drive the invaders from his land. He was also known for his piety and great love for God. A relative of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, he bestowed many privileges and benefits to the religious orders and built Alcobaca Monastery for the Cistercian Order. He was responsible for the foundation of several monasteries and convents, and was favorable especially toward the Cistercians.
St Calimerius of Milan Bl Cecilia Schelingov Bl Everard Hanse St Fabius of Caesarea St Firmus of Tagaste
St Germanus of Auxerre (c 378 – c 448) Bishop of Auxerre (c 378 – c 448), Lawyer, Missionary, Reformer, Exorcist, Miracle-Worker.
Blessed Giovanni Colombini (1300-1367) Layman, Husband and Father, Founder of the Apostolic Clerics of Saint Jerome (the Jesuati).
St Giustino de Jacobis CM (1800-1860) Bishop, Apostolic Vicar of Abyssinia, Missionary of the Congregation of the Mission.
St Helen of Skofde Bl Jean-François Jarrige de La Morelie de Breuil St Marcel Denis St Neot — Martyrs of Syria – 350 saints: 350 monks massacred by heretics for their adherence to orthodox Christianity and the decrees of the Council of Chalcedon. 517 in Syria.
Martyrs of Synnada: 3 Saints Democritus Dionysius the Martyr Secundus
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: Thousands of people were murdered in the anti-Catholic persecutions of the Spanish Civil War from 1934 to 1939. • Blessed Ciriaco Olarte Pérez de Mendiguren • Blessed Dionisio Vicente Ramos • Blessed Francisco Remón Játiva • Blessed Miguel Goñi Ariz • Blessed Miguel Francisco González-Díez González-Núñez • Blessed Agapito Alcalde Garrido • Blessed Ciriaco Olarte Pérez de Mendiguren • Blessed Dionisio Vicente Ramos • Blessed Francisco Remón Játiva • Blessed Jaume Buch Canals • Blessed Maria Roqueta Serra • Blessed Miguel Goñi Ariz • Blessed Miguel Francisco González-Díez González-Núñez • Blessed Prudencio Gueréquiz y Guezuraga • Blessed Segundo de Santa Teresa • Blessed Teresa Subirà Sanjaume • Blessed Vicenta Achurra Gogenola • Blessed Francisca Pons Sardá
Blessed Christodoulus was born in the village of Kassandra in Halkidiki, Macedonia. He was a young tailor in Thessaloniki during a period of occupation by Ottoman Turks. Seeing local Christians giving in to pressure and proclaiming themselves Muslim, Christodoulus took a cross and went into the streets to encourage Christians, as well as into the coffee shops were the ‘ceremony’ of conversion would take place, and offered them the cross to kiss as a sign of their faith, urging them to recover, repent, and stand strong in the love of Christ. Most courageously, he would make the Sign of the Cross over crowds of Turks as well as the dreaded Janissaries, the most fanatical muslim warriors of all, the elite bodyguard of the Sultan. Janissaries who were themselves once Christian, before being enslaved by the Ottoman emperors as youth.
Enraged by this, the Turks imprisoned and tortured Christodoulus. They urged him to deny the Faith, but in return he urged them to turn away from the false religion of Islam. Driven to an excess of hatred by this, the Turks tortured him gruesomely and then hung him in front of a church in 1777.
Our Morning Offering – 28 July – “Month of the Most Precious Blood”
O God of Our Life By St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church
O God of our life, there are days when the burdens we carry chafe our shoulders and weigh us down, when the road seems dreary and endless, the skies grey and threatening, when our lives have no music in them and our hearts are lonely and our souls have lost their courage. Flood the path with light, run our eyes to where the skies are full of promise, tune our hearts to brave music, give us the sense of comradeship, with heroes and saints of every age and so quicken our spirits, that we may be able to encourage, the souls of all, who journey with us on the road of life, to Your honour and glory. Amen
At that time, when Jesus drew near to Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it, saying, If you had known, in this your day, even you, the things that are for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.
Luke 19:41-47
REFLECTION – Do not despise sinners because we are all guilty. If you rise up against him for love of God, weep for him, rather. Why despise him? Despise his sins and pray for him if you would be like Christ, who was not angered at sinners but prayed for them. Don’t you see how he wept over Jerusalem? For we too have been played around with by the devil more than once. Why despise someone just like ourselves, who has been a plaything of the devil who taunts us all? You who are merely a man, why despise the sinner? Is it because he is not righteous like you? But where is your righteousness so long as you have no love? Why did you not weep over him? To the contrary, you persecute him. It is because of their ignorance that some people are annoyed with others – those who think they have discernment into the works of sinners.
St Isaac the Syrian (Ascetical discourses)
PRAYER – True light of the world, Lord Jesus Christ, as You enlighten all men for their salvation, give us grace, we pray, to herald Your coming by preparing the ways of justice and of peace. Help us Lord, that we may sprout and bear fruit, fitting to grow and be a home of comfort to our neighbour. By the prayers of Sts Anne and Joachim, may we too be beacons of Your Light and of the glory of Your Kingdom. Through Jesus our Lord, Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
25th Day – The Fifth Shedding of the Precious Blood
On the summit of Calvary, stretched upon the rough cross, with His arms extended along the cross-pieces which are to form the horizontal part of it, lies the Son of God, already wounded, covered with blood, exhausted by suffering and by His repeated falls upon the way. Surely the executioners will be satisfied with the ordinary method of tying his arms to the cross, and leaving Him thus to die. No, for the innocent, spotless Lamb of God new tortures are in store. Huge nails are placed in the centre of His hands, and with cruel strokes of a heavy mallet driven through His delicate, sensitive palms. The blows are struck, the Precious Blood gushes forth, and Jesus groans under the exquisite pain which thrills through every nerve.
O Jesus! how can we bear to see Thee thus wounded! Those hands which were ever stretched forth to do good to all, to heal sorrows, and cure diseases! They never did aught but good, how then can cruel men be so ungrateful, so barbarous, so impious as to requite Thee thus? Oh, may I learn to sorrow with Thy anguish, and, like They most holy Mother, to join my compassion to Thy passion!
Yet sad and strange to say, my actions correspond but ill to the expressions of my sorrow. It is for the sins committed by my stretched-out hands that Thou art suffering, for my selfishness, unkindnes, immodesty, anger, covetousness. How shall I compensate Thee for my share in this cruelty? Oh, help me to do so, and show me how I can do so!
Quote/s of the Day – 24 July – “Month of the Most Precious Blood” – Readings: Dan 3:84, 87, Dan 3:57, 1 Pet. 5:1-11, Luke 22:24-30
For whoever are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
Rom 8:12-17
For since every virtue is a habit that is the principle of a good act, a virtue must needs be defined by means of the good act bearing on the matter proper to that virtue. Now the proper matter of justice consists of those things that belong to our intercourse with other men, as shall be shown further on. Hence the act of justice in relation to its proper matter and object is indicated in the words, “Rendering to each one his right,” since, as Isidore says, “a man is said to be just because he respects the rights [jus] of others.”
St Thomas Aquinas (Summa Theologica Question 58. Justice)
What sort of deeds then does he mean us to mortify? Those which tend toward wickedness, those which go after vice, which there is no other way of mortifying save through the Spirit. For by killing yourself you may put an end to the others. And this you have no right to do. But to these (you can put an end) by the Spirit only. For if This be present, all the billows are laid low, and the passions cower under It, and nothing can exalt itself against us.
St John Chrysostom (Homily 14 on Romans)
Against such the Lord complains by the prophet, saying, They have reigned, and not by Me; they have been set up as princes, and I knew it not Hosea 8:4. For those reign of themselves, and not by the Will of the Supreme Ruler, who, supported by no virtues, and in no way divinely called, but inflamed by their own desire, seize rather than attain supreme rule.
St Gregory the Great (Pastoral Rule, Book I)
Do you want to be happy, my friends? Fix your eyes on Heaven; it is there that your hearts will find that which will satisfy them completely. All the evils which you experience are the real means of leading you there.
St John Vianney
“No-one can have God as his father, if he does not have the Church as his mother… The Lord warned us of this when He said: “Whoever is not with me, is against me and whoever does not gather together with me, scatters.” The person who breaks the peace and concord of Christ, acts against Christ; the person who gathers together, outside of the Church, scatters the Church of Christ.”
St Cyprian of Carthage (On the unity of the Church)
Our Morning Offering – 23 July – “Month of the Most Precious Blood”
Prayer Before a Crucifix
Look down upon me, good and gentle Jesus, while before Thy face I humbly kneel and, with burning soul, pray and beseech Thee to fix deep in my heart, lively sentiments of faith, hope and charity, true contrition for my sins, and a firm purpose of amendment. While I contemplate, with great love and tender pity, Thy five most precious wounds, pondering over them within me and calling to mind the words which David, Thy prophet, said of Thee, my Jesus: “They have pierced My hands and My feet, they have numbered all My bones.” Amen.
Say – Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be for the Catholic Church and the intentions of the Holy Father. A Plenary Indulgence, under the usual conditions, may be gained by those who shall say this prayer with devotion before an image of our Crucified Redeemer. A Partial Indulgence may also be gained for each devout recitation.
Our Morning Offering – 20 July – “Month of the Most Precious Blood”
Indulgenced – 500 days every time said
Lord Jesus, may I know myself and know Thee. May I desire nothing save only Thee. May I hate myself and love Thee. May I do everything for the sake of Thee. May I humble myself and exalt Thee. May I think of nothing except Thee. May I die to myself and live in Thee. May I receive whatever happens as from Thee. May I banish self and follow Thee, And ever desire to follow Thee. May I fly from myself and fly to Thee, That I may deserve to be defended by Thee. May I fear for myself and fear Thee, And be among those who are chosen by Thee. May I distrust myself and trust in Thee. May I be willing to obey on account of Thee. May I cling to nothing but to Thee, And may I be poor for the sake of Thee. Look upon me, that I may love Thee. Call me, that I may see Thee, And ever and ever enjoy Thee. Amen.
Nuestra Señora de Zocueca / Our Lady of Zocueca, Bailén, Jaén, Andalucía, Spain (1808 – 20 July:
Around 1150, Mozarabic Christians built a rudimentary Chapel near the Rumblar River, the Guadalquivir tribuitary that waters this region in southern Spain, at a place called Zocueca. When Alfonso VII reconquered the area in 1155, people gave thanks to the Virgin at the Shrine. In the 1400s it was was rebuilt, and from this period the graceful, standing Gothic Statue of the Mother and Child seems to date, although tradition holds it to be older than the first Chapel.
During the cholera epidemic of 1681, the people vowed to hold an annual feast in honour of the Virgin, preceded by a day of fasting, if she would save them. The promise has been kept on 5 August ever since. The Chapel was re-decorated in Baroque style in the 1700s.
In 1808, people again thanked the Virgin of Zocueca for her help during the Battle of Bailén, the first Spanish victory against Napoleon. Annually since 1810, the municipality commemorates the battle with a series of civil, patriotic, and religious events from 17-22 July, reaching their greatest splendour on the 20th, when the Patroness, the Virgin of Zocueca, goes through the City streets in procession. Another event in her honour, the romería or pilgrimage, takes place on the last Sunday in September in thanks for her help in ending a plague of locusts which threatened the region’s crops in the late 1800s. Men carry the Statue, bristling with decorations, on their shoulders from its usual home in the Church of the Incarnation in Bailén, to the Sanctuary four miles distant, where overnight vigil is kept before a sunrise Mass. In 1925, the Virgin of Zocueca was proclaimed “Captain General” and her Statue given a military sash. After the Statue burned in the Civil War, religious sculptor Jose Maria Alcacer made a replica, blessed on 5 August1954.
Bl Anne Cartier St Ansegisus St Aurelius of Carthage St Cassian of Saint Saba St Chi Zhuze St Elijah the Prophet
St Elswith
Blessed Gregory Lopez (1542-1596) “The Mystery Man” – Hermit, Spiritual Advisor, Writer. Around 1585, word of a “Mystery Man” began to leak into Mexico City, a strange hermit who lived out in the lonely valley of Guesteca, who walked miles to go to Mass, lived totally subject to “Lady Poverty” and had travelled from the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Spain (which dates from 712), to her Shrine in Mexico (which dates from 1531).
St Margaret of Antioch (3rd century) Virgin Martyr. Margaret is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and is one of the Saints who spoke to St Joan of Arc.
St Maria Fu Guilin St Mère St Paul of Saint Zoilus St Rorice of Limoges St Severa of Oehren St Severa of Saint Gemma St Wulmar
Martyrs of Corinth – 22 saints: 22 Christians who were martyred together. We know nothing else about them but the names – • Appia • Calorus • Cassius • Celsus • Cyriacus • Donatus • Emilis • Felix • Fructus • Magnus • Maximus • Nestita • Partinus • Pasterus • Paul • Romanus • Spretus • Tertius • Theodolus • Ueratia • Valerian • Victor. They were martyred in Corinth, Greece.
Martyrs of Damascus – 16 saints: 16 Christians who were martyred together. We know the names of six of then, but no details about any of them – Cassia, Julian, Macrobius, Maximus, Paul and Sabinus. They were martyred in Damascus, Syria, date unknown.
Martyrs of Seoul – 8 saints: Eight lay native Koreans in various states of life who were murdered together for their faith. • Anna Kim Chang-gum • Ioannes Baptista Yi Kwang-nyol • Lucia Kim Nusia • Magdalena Yi Yong-hui • Maria Won Kwi-im • Martha Kim Song-im • Rosa Kim No-sa • Theresia Yi Mae-im They were martyred on 20 July 1839 at the Small West Gate, Seoul, South Korea
Martyrs of Zhaojia – 3 saints: Married lay woman and her two daughters in the apostolic vicariate of Southeastern Zhili, China. During the persecutions of the Boxer Rebellion, the three of them hid in a well to avoid being raped. They were found, dragged out, and killed for being Christian. Martyrs. They were – Maria Zhao Guoshi (mother), Maria Zhao and Rosa Zhao (sisters). They were martyred in late July 1900 in Zhaojia, Wuqiao, Hebei, China.
Martyrs of Zhujiahe – 4 saints: Two Jesuit missionary priests and two local lay people who supported their work who were martyred together in the Boxer Rebellion during and immediately after Mass. • Léon-Ignace Mangin • Maria Zhu Wushi • Paul Denn • Petrus Zhu Rixin They were martyred on 20 July 1900 in church in Zhujiahe, Jingxian, Hebei, China
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: • Blessed Abraham Furones y Furones • Blessed Antoni Bosch Verdura • Blessed Francisca Aldea y Araujo • Blessed Jacinto García Riesco • Blessed Joan Páfila Monllaó • Blessed Josep Tristany Pujol • Blessed Matías Cardona-Meseguer • Blessed Rita Josefa Pujalte y Sánchez • Blessed Vicente López y López
There are some who not only waste the Precious Blood, but actually trample it under their feet. These are they who, being washed from all their sins in the most Precious Blood of Jesus, deliberately turn back again to the sins they have abandoned, and set at naught His proffered love and friendship, and become far worse at the end than they were at the beginning. My Jesus! may I never be guilty of such base ingratitude!
But there are other still worse, who, after having been enrolled in the army of Jesus Christ, desert His standard and profess themselves unable to accept the teaching of the Church. Through pride or vice or covetousness they lose all their love of their holy faith and appreciation of its truth. These do indeed trample on the Precious Blood, and put Christ Our Lord to shame. Yet at any time, without God’s grace, I might be guilty of a like abandonment of my faith. O my God, make me always faithful to Thee!
There is a still lower depth. Some not only lose their faith, but become it enemies and traducers. They esteem the blood with which they are sanctified an unclean thing, and offer an affront to the Spirit of grace. They assail the Church, its ministers, its sacraments, its doctrines, with lying lips and open insult. How can any ever fall so low as this? Yet among them all will be found some who were once more pleasing to God than I. May I take warning from them and humble myself, and cherish as an inestimable treasure the grace won for me by the Precious Blood!
One Minute Reflection – 14 July – “Month of the Most Precious Blood” – Readings: Sir 15:5, Ps 91:2, 2 Tim 4:1-8, Matt 5:13-19
In that time Jesus said to His disciples: You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt lose its savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is good for nothing any more but to be cast out, and to be trodden on by men.
REFLECTION – Now then, after giving them due exhortation, He refreshes them again with praises. As thus: the injunctions being high, and far surpassing those in the Old Testament; lest they should be disturbed and confounded, and say, How shall we be able to achieve these things? hear what He says: You are the salt of the earth. Implying, that of absolute necessity He enjoins all this. For not for your own life apart, says He, but for the whole world, shall your account be. For not to two cities, nor to ten or twenty, nor to a single nation am I sending you, as I sent the prophets; but to earth, and sea, and the whole world; and that in evil case. For by saying, You are the salt of the earth, He signified all human nature to have lost its savor, and to be decayed by our sins. For which cause, you see, He requires of them such virtues, as are most necessary and useful for the superintendence of the common sort. For first, the meek, and yielding, and merciful, and righteous, shuts not up his good deeds unto himself only, but also provides that these good fountains should run over for the benefit of others. And he again who is pure in heart, and a peacemaker, and is persecuted for the truth’s sake; he again orders his way of life for the common good. Think not then, He says, that you are drawn on to ordinary conflicts, or that for some small matters you are to give account.You are the salt of the earth.
Do you see how by degrees He indicates their superiority to the very prophets? In that He says they are teachers, not of Palestine, but of the whole world; and not simply teachers, but awful ones too. For this is the marvellous thing, that not by flattering, nor soothing, but by sharply bracing them, as salt, even so they became dear to all men.
St John Chrysostom (Homily 15 on Matthew)
PRAYER – May the annual festival of blessed Bonaventura, Your Confessor and Bishop, we beseech You, O Lord, render us pleasing to Your loving kindness, so that this service of sacred propitiation may be a blessed recompense for him and secure for us the gifts of Your grace. Through our Lord…
“If you learn everything, except Christ, you learn nothing. If you learn nothing, except Christ, you learn everything.”
Our Morning Offering – 30 June – “The Last day of the Month of the Sacred Heart” – Tuesday of the Thirteenth week in Ordinary Time
Consecration to the Sacred Heart By Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903) Pope from 1878-1903
Most sweet Jesus, Redeemer of the human race, look down upon us humbly prostrate before Thine altar. We are Thine and Thine we wish to be but, to be more surely united with Thee, behold each one of us, freely consecrates himself today to Thy most Sacred Heart.
Many indeed have never known Thee, many too, despising Thy precepts, have rejected Thee. Have mercy on them all, most merciful Jesus and draw them to Thy Sacred Heart. Be Thou King, O Lord, not only of the faithful, who have never forsaken Thee but also of the prodigal children, who have abandoned Thee, grant that they may quickly return to Thy Father’s house lest they die of wretchedness and hunger.
Be Thou King of those who are deceived by erroneous opinions, or whom discord keeps aloof and call them back to the harbour of truth and unity of faith, so that there may be but one flock and one Shepherd. Be Thou, King of all those who are still involved in the darkness of idolatry or of Islamism and refuse not to draw them into the light and kingdom of God. Turn Thine eyes of mercy towards the children of the race, once Thy chosen people – of old they called down upon themselves the Blood of the Saviour; may it now descend upon them, a laver of redemption and of life.
Grant, O Lord, to Thy Church, assurance of freedom and immunity from harm; give peace and order to all nations and make the earth resound from pole to pole with one cry: “Praise be to the divine Heart that wrought our salvation; to It be glory and honour forever.” Amen
The above prayer, composed by Pope Leo XIII was included in the 1899 encyclical Annum Sacrum issued by Leo XIII as he Consecrated the entire world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The consecration was influenced by two letters written to the Holy Father by Blessed Sister Mary of the Divine Heart, who stated that in visions of Jesus Christ, she had been told to request the Consecration.
One Minute Reflection – 30 June – “The Last day of the Month of the Sacred Heart”
He said to them, “Why are you afraid, O men of little faith?” Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea and there was great calm. … Matthew 8:26
REFLECTION – “God is not at all displeased when, on occasion, you quietly complain to him. Don’t be afraid of saying to him: “Lord, why do you stand afar off? (cf. Ps 9:22 LXX) You know well that I love You and only long for Your love. Graciously come to my aid and do not abandon me.”
If your desolation continues and your anguish is unbearable, unite your voice to that Jesus, Jesus dying in affliction on the cross – say, as you beg the divine pity: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (Mt 27:46) But profit from this trial, firstly, so as to humble yourself even more, while reminding yourself, that we are not worthy of any consolations when we have offended God and then, so as to revive your confidence even more by reminding yourself that, whatever He may do or permit, God only has your well-being in mind and that, in this way, “all things work together for the good” (cf. Rm 8:28) of your soul. The more that trouble and discouragement besiege you, the more you should arm yourself with courage and cry out: “The Lord is my light and my help, who should I fear?” (Ps 26:1). Yes, Lord, it is You who enlighten me, You who will save me, in You I entrust myself, “in you I place my hope, I shall never be confounded” (Ps 30:2 LXX).
In this way, stand firm in peace, certain that “no-one has hoped in the Lord and been confounded” (Sir 2:11 Vg.), none have been lost after having placed their trust in God.” … St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787) – Bishop and Doctor of the Church – What should we talk about with God? (from: ‘How to Converse Continually and Familiarly with God’).
PRAYER – Lord, You are the beginning and the end of all that we do, all that we are and all that we say. Lead us by the light of Your grace in complete trust and confidence and complete us with Your all-powerful help. Let Your light penetrate the hidden fears of our hearts and may our trust be complete. And may we always understand that our Mother, loves us and cares for us in all our needs. We worship You in Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever, amen.
Quote/s of the Day – 30 June – “The Last day of the Month of the Sacred Heart”
And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord, we are perishing.”
Matthew 8:25
“It is I, be not afraid”
John 6:20
“Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
John 14:27
“The waters have risen and severe storms are upon us but we do not fear drowning, for we stand firmly upon a rock. Let the sea rage, it cannot break the rock. Let the waves rise, they cannot sink the boat of Jesus.”
“Let the world be in upheaval. I hold to His promise and read His message, that is my protecting wall and garrison. What message? ‘Know that I am with you always, until the end of the world!’”
St John Chrysostom (347-407) Father and Doctor of the Church
“It is not a calm sky, beloved but the storm which tests a pilot’s skill. When the breeze is mild, even the poorest sailor, can manage the ship. But in the crosswinds of a tempest, we want the best pilot with all His skill.”
St Peter Chrysologus (c 406 – c 450) Father and Doctor of the Church
“Whoever has become a servant of the Lord, fears only his Master. But whoever is without the fear of God, is often afraid of his own shadow. Fearfulness is the daughter of unbelief. A proud soul is the slave of fear, hoping in itself, it comes to such a state, that it is startled by a small noise and is afraid of the dark.”
St John Climacus (579-649) Father of the Church
“O Heart of love, I put all my trust in Thee, for I fear all things, from my own weakness, but I hope for all things, from Thy Goodness.”
St Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690)
“…Therefore, never allow yourself to start brooding again but always be brave and trust. Serve your good Master with an open heart full of joy. The right way is to see all events and all obstacles in the spirit of faith as being in the hands of Our Lord and to hear Him say to you, on every occasion, as He did to the disciples ‘It is I. Do not fear. Have faith.’”
Thought for the Day – 29 June – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)
St Peter, Prince of the Apostles St Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles
“It is good to admire the fidelity of St Peter and the designs of Divine Providence in making him the visible Head of the Church but, it is far better, to follow his example. His love for Jesus, led him to leave his family and his fisherman’s trade, in order to follow Our Lord.
It led him to undertake long voyages, to endure imprisonment and to face martyrdom.
What can we do for the love of Jesus? Remember that, if love is to be sincere, it must be generous and effective.
Secondly let us meditate on and imitate, the ardent and fearless faith of St Peter. He was not afraid to preach the teaching of Christ before the Sanhedrin. He was not afraid of Herod, who cast him into prison.
He was not afraid of the Roman Emperor, who caused him to be crucified. Our faith should be steadfast and lively, like his!
Finally, let us imitate Peter in his repentance. Although he loved Jesus very much and had such great faith in Him, in a moment of weakness and of imprudence, he denied Him three times. All his life, however, be wept bitterly for this sin. Whenever he heard a cock crowing, it was as if an arrow had pierced his heart.
He was not satisfied, until he was hanging upon the cross like his Divine Master and could prove his love for Jesus by a Martyr’s death.”
St Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles
We can learn many other virtues from St Paul, besides his zealous love for God and for his fellowmen. We can also learn from him, the virtues of humility and of apostolic fervour. The Apostle of the Gentiles reached such heights of sanctity, as to feel himself transformed into Christ Himself and to deserve to be taken up into the third Heaven, where he enjoyed a foretaste of eternal happiness.
Nevertheless, he considered himself unworthy to be called an Apostle and he realised, that all his gifts came to him from God.
“Not that we are sufficient of ourselves, to think anything as from ourselves but our sufficiency, is from God” (2 Cor 3:5).
Whenever we succeed in any project, we should think on the same lines because, it is only when we are humble and depend on the grace of God, that the success of our actions will redound to the glory of our Creator.If the cancer of ambition or of self-love, should corrupt our purity of intention, our work would not be blessed by God and would not make us worthy of everlasting life.
Let us repeat often: “All for You, with You and in You, my God.”
One Minute Reflection – 29 June – “The Month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus” – Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles – Acts 12:1-11, Matthew 16:13-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“Whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in Heaven and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be loosed also in Heaven.” – Matthew 16:19
REFLECTION – “Bridegroom and Bride, that is Christ and the Church, are as one, be it in receiving confession or in bestowing absolution. All this makes clear why Christ had to tell each of us: “Go, show yourself to the priest” (Mt 8,4)… It follows that apart from Christ, the Church cannot grant forgiveness and that Christ has no will to forgive, apart from the Church. The Church’s authority to forgive extends only to the repentant, to those, that is, whom Christ has already touched; Christ, on His part, has no intention of regarding as forgiven, one who despises the Church.
Doubtless, Christ need accept no restraints to His power of Baptising, Consecrating the Eucharist, Ordaining Priests, forgiving sins and the like but, the humble and faithful Bridegroom, prefers to confer such blessings, with the co-operation of His Bride. “What God,” then, “has joined, let no man put asunder” (Mt 19,6). “I say this is a great mystery and refers to Christ and the Church” (Eph 5,32)… To remove the Head from the Body (Col 1,18) were to ruin the whole Christ, irreparably. Christ, apart from the Church, is no more the whole Christ, than the Church is complete, if separated from Christ. Head and Body go to make the whole and entire Christ.” – Bl Isaac of Stella (c 1100 – c 1170) Cistercian Monk, Abbot, Theologian, Philosopher (Sermon 11, §11-814).
PRAYER – O God, Who made this day holy by the Martyrdom of Thy Apostles Peter and Paul, grant Thy Church to follow in all things the teaching of those from whom she first received the faith. 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).
ALL PRAISE, honour and glory to the Divine Heart of JESUS.Indulgenced– 50 Days, once a day. 168 Pope Leo XIII, 14 June 1901.
“There are the gates of our true country, the two lights of the immense world. There Paul’s voice is heard like thunder; there Peter withholds or hurls the bolt . The former opens the hearts of men, the latter opens Heaven. Peter is the Foundation-stone, Paul the Architect of the temple where stands the Altar by which God is propitiated. Both together form a single Fountain, which pours out its healing and refreshing waters.”
St Venantius Fortunatus (c 530 – c 609) “The Troubadour of Christ”
“Yes, the Apostle chosen to be His co-worker, merited to share, the same Name as Christ. They built the same Building together – Peter does the planting, the Lord gives the increase and it is the Lord, too, Who sends those, who will do the watering (cf 1 Cor 3:6f).”
St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church
“These falls were both very great but there was this difference. One acknowledged his guilt; the other despaired. Yet, our Saviour had inspired in the heart of both, the same Peccavi [admission of guilt] (“I have sinned”) … From this time on, St Peter never ceased weeping, principally when he heard the cock crow at night and morning, for he remembered this crowing as the signal for his conversion. … Why then was Judas not converted? … Alas, did not this unhappy man know that Our Lord alone could give it to him, that He was the Saviour and held Redemption in His hands? … Certainly, he knew it but he did not wish, nor dare to ask pardon. ”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor Caritas
“He grieved for his three sins, not only on that sad night but throughout his life. St Clement (c35-c101 the third succeeding Pope after St Peter) writes that he wept so often that his tears wore two deep furrows in his cheeks and that, whenever he heard the cock crowing, the cry pierced his heart. He loved Jesus sincerely and passionately. If we really love Jesus as Peter did and are prepared to face death for His sake, as Peter was, then we may be sure that we shall never offend God again.”
Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)
“I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness, of what you have seen and what you will be shown. I shall deliver you from this people and from the Gentiles, to whom I send you, to open their eyes, that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may obtain forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those, who have been consecrated by faith in Me.”
Acts 26:16-18
“Yet I live, no longer I but Christ lives in me; insofar as I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, Who has loved me and given himself up for me.”
Quote/s of the Day – 18 January – Feast of the Chair of the Apostle, St Peter at Rome – 1 Peter 1:1-7, Matthew 16:13-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona because flesh and blood hath not revealed it to thee but My Father Who is in Heaven.”
Matthew 16:17
“We recognise a tree by its fruit and we ought to be able to recognise a Christian by his action. The fruit of faith should be evident in our lives, for being a Christian, is more than making sound professions of faith. It should reveal itself in practical and visible ways. Indeed, it is better to keep quiet about our beliefs and live them out, than to talk eloquently about what we believe but fail, to live by it.”
St Ignatius of Antioch (c 35-c 108) Father of the Church
“Do you desire security? Here you have it. The Lord says to you, “I will never abandon you, I will always be with you.” If a good man made you such a promise, you would trust him. God makes it and do you doubt? Do you seek a support, more sure than the Word of God, which is infallible? Surely, He has made the promise, He has written it, He has pledged His Word for it, it is most certain!”
St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of Grace
“What determines that the gifts of God dwells in us, is the measure of each one’s faith. Because, it is to the extent that we believe that the enthusiasm to act is given us. And so, those who act, reveal the measure of their faith proportionate to their action, they receive their measure of grace according to what they have believed. …”
St Maximus the Confessor (c580-662) Father of the Church
“For God, … does not work in those who refuse to place all their confidence and hope in Him alone. But He does impart the fullness of His love upon those who possess a deep faith and hope; for them He does great things!”
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