Paul, whose original name was Saul, was a Jew from Tarsus. He was an influential Pharisee, who had a strong hatred towards Christians. Paul believed that Christians were preaching against the Law of Moses and spent much of the first half of his life persecuting Christians. However, during Paul’s journey to Damascus, he had a vision that changed his life. After this powerful vision, he became a devout Christian and dedicated his life to spreading the gospel to the world. During the next 20 years, he preached ceaselessly and established several churches and communities in Asia Minor. St. Paul’s feast day is June 29 and he is the patron saint of missionaries, evangelists, writers, journalists, authors, public workers, rope and saddle makers, and tent makers. Saint Peter was a native of Bethsaida and was one of the 12 apostles who followed Jesus Christ. He is known for his “little faith” as he doubted Jesus several times. There were many notable times when Peter didn’t truly believe in Jesus until he saw proof, and we have learned those stories at a young age and they are also present in the Gospel. Saint Peter was the first pope and died in Rome. It is said that he was crucified on the Vatican Hill with his cross upside down because he declared himself unworthy to die the same way Jesus did.
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St.Irenaeus was born about the year 125, in one of those maritime provinces of Asia Minor where the memory of the apostles was still cherished and where Christians were numerous. He was most influenced by St. Polycarp who had known the apostles or their immediate disciples. Irenaeus came to serve as a priest under its first bishop, St. Pothinus, an oriental like himself to the church of Lyon.In the year 177, Irenaeus was sent to Rome.It was the spread of gnosticism (the doctrine of salvation by knowledge) in Gaul, and the ravages it was making among the Christians of his diocese, that inspired him to undertake the task of exposing its errors. He produced a treatise in five books in which he sets forth fully the inner doctrines of the various sects, and afterwards contrasts them with the teaching of the Apostles and the text of the Holy Scripture. His work, written in Greek but quickly translated to Latin, was widely circulated and succeeded in dealing a death-blow to gnosticism. The date of death of St. Irenaeus is not known, but it is believed to be in the year 202. The bodily remains of St. Irenaeus were buried in a crypt under the altar of what was then called the church of St. John, but was later known by the name of St. Irenaeus himself. This tomb or shrine was destroyed by the Calvinists in 1562, and all trace of his relics seems to have perished.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER It is not thou that shapest God. it is God that shapest thee. If thou art the work of God await the hand of the artist, who does all things in due season. Offer Him thy heart, soft and tractable, and keep the form in which the artist has fashioned thee. Let thy clay be moist, lest thou grow hard and lose the imprint of his fingers St Cyril was born in the late 300’s in Alexandria, Egypt. He was a nephew of the city’s patriarch, and at a young age received a classical and theological education in the great city. In 412, St Cyril succeeded his uncle as the new patriarch of the city. He attacked the pagan churches of the Novations in the area. Throughout his life, St Cyril worked to combat the false truths that were being spread by other religious leaders, such as Nestorianism, which claimed that Mary wasn’t the mother of Jesus because Jesus was divine. For the rest of his life, St Cyril wrote treatises and documents that explicitly described the doctrines of the Holy Trinity and the Incarnation of Christ to make sure that untruths didn’t sully the faith of the Catholic Church during that time. He is known for being a brilliant theologian and preserving the Alexandrian Catholic culture.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER O God, who made the Bishop Saint Cyril of Alexandria an invincible champion of the divine motherhood of the most Blessed Virgin Mary, grant, we pray, that we, who believe she is truly the Mother of God, may be saved through the Incarnation of Christ your Son. Who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Blessed Raymond belonged to the noble Lull family and was born at Palma on the island of Mallorca in 1236. At a very early age he became a page at the royal court; and before he was 30 years old he had been advanced to the position of marshal and high steward to King James of Mallorca. For several years Blessed Raymond Lull followed the lead of other courtiers, serving the world and vanity. For some time past Raymond had perceived in himself the desire for nobler things than human honors. He recognized in the bishop's sermon the call of God to forsake all things and to win for Christ the infidels on the northern coast of Africa. Without hesitation Blessed Raymond followed the call. He resigned his offices, left the royal court, and founded a college in which missionaries, particularly those who belonged to the Order of Friars Minor, should receive the necessary training in the languages of northern Africa. He himself joined the Third Order of St Francis, and for nine years retired to the solitude of Mt Randa in order to prepare himself by prayer and study. God favored him with much heavenly inspiration and granted him extraordinary knowledge so that, in spite of his numerous undertakings he was able to write admirable things about the most difficult questions in philosophy and theology.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER O God, who in your Saints have given an example and brought us protection in our weakness to help us tread the path of salvation, mercifully grant that we, who honor the heavenly birthday of blessed Raymond, may, through his (her) example, make our way to you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen Born in 1184 in Prussia she was amidst luxury and power but died the death of a simple servant of the poor. Jutta and her husband, both of noble rank. The two were set to make a pilgrimage together to the holy places in Jerusalem, but her husband died on the way. The newly widowed Jutta, after taking care to provide for her children, resolved to live in a manner she felt was utterly pleasing to God. She disposed of the costly clothes, jewels, and furniture befitting one of her rank, and became a Secular Franciscan, taking on the simple garment of a religious. From that point on Jutta did everything to tend to the poor and the sick. She became close to God because once when she was at prayer, Christ Himself appeared to her and said to her lovingly, “All My treasures are yours, and yours are Mine.”
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Blessed Jutta of Thuringia, give us the strength to leave behind our material goods and follow God for eternal life in Heaven with Him. Amen. John the Baptist was born in the late 1st century BC. His parents were St. Elizabeth and Zechariah, a priest. He preached in the wilderness and wore clothes of camel’s hair and ate locusts and wild honey. He also used to baptize people in the Jordan River and used to say that someone far greater than him would come and baptize all of you with Holy Spirit, not water. When Jesus comes to be baptized, John says that Jesus should baptize him, but Jesus refuses and wants John to baptize him. He proclaimed that the kingdom of God was at hand and that people should repent over their sins so that God can forgive them. He rebuked Herod for marrying his brother’s wife, Herodias when he died. Herodias was angry and wanted to put John to death, but Herod did not let her, so instead, he put him to jail. One day, Herodias’s daughter, Salome danced in front of Herod and his guests during a party. Herod was so delighted with her that he told her that she could have anything she wanted in the entire kingdom. Salome went to her mother for advice, and she told her to have John the Baptist’s head on a platter. Herod was shocked, but he had to stick to his promise. He beheaded John and gave it to Salome, who gave it to Herodias. Before John died, he had many disciples who followed him, but soon they became Jesus’s disciples. John said that he must become less, while Jesus should become more. John the Baptist teaches us to be humble when he tells Jesus that he should baptize him. We should all be humble, because it can lead us to good things.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER O St. John the Baptist, you were so humble and meek at heart, help us to be like you in these times of struggle. In Jesus’s name we pray, Amen Saint John Fisher was a very intelligent man. He came to be known as a reputable writer and preacher. However, he had spoken out against the king at that time, declaring the king’s divorce and the claim that the king is the supreme head as invalid. He rather believed that the English church was the supreme head. This angered the king and soon because of the actions of Saint John Fisher he was put on trial and executed.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Dear God, Just as Saint John Fisher was loyal to the English church, help us to be loyal to our catholic church and fulfill our duties as a Christian with joy and dedication. Amen. St. Thomas More was born in London on February 7th, 1478. In 1492, Thomas More entered Oxford, where he learned Latin, Greek, and much more. In 1494, he left Oxford to become a lawyer. Almost as soon as More became a lawyer, he found himself contemplating another path in life. For two years, between 1503 and 1504, Thomas More lived next to a Carthusian monastery and he found himself called to follow their lifestyle of simple piety. He often joined their spiritual exercises. Thomas had four children with his first wife. Once his wife died, he remarried almost less than a month after. Thomas was considered a doting father, and he often wrote letters to his children when he was away on work. He also insisted that his daughters receive the same education as his son. In 1504, Thomas More was elected to Parliament to represent the region of Great Yarmouth, and in 1510 rose to represent London. During his service to the people of London, he earned a reputation as being honest and effective. He became a Privy Counselor in 1514. From 1517 on, Henry VIII took a liking to Thomas More, and gave him posts of ever increasing responsibility. In 1521, he was knighted and made Under-Treasurer of the Exchequer. More became Lord Chancellor in 1529. But soon, Thomas More didn’t enjoy working under the King anymore. After refusing to attend the coronation of Anne Boylen, the New Queen of England, Thomas More was charged with many different crimes, including bribery. Once convicted, he was decapitated. Right before he died, he made a final statement, saying that he was “the king’s good servant, but God’s first.” He is the patron saint of adopted children lawyers, civil servants, politicians, and difficult marriages.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Holy martyr for the Church, you used your talents to bring God’s love and mercy to earth. Yet you realized that human fame and glory were momentary and fleeting. In your practice of law, you understood and were loyal first to God’s eternal law spoken through the successors of the Apostles. While a servant of the king, you were a servant to the Church first. Help us to see that loyalty to God’s laws must be the first part of our ties and responsibilities with others. Strengthen us to seek out what the church teaches. Give us the wisdom to make the right choice, and the fortitude to carry it out. This I ask through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen… St. Thomas More, Pray for us… At age 7 Aloysius experienced a profound spiritual quickening. His prayers included the Office of Mary, the psalms, and other devotions. At age 9 he came from his hometown of Castiglione to Florence to be educated; by age 11 he was teaching catechism to poor children, fasting three days a week, and practicing great austerities. When he was 13 years old, he traveled with his parents and the Empress of Austria to Spain, and acted as a page in the court of Philip II.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER O Lord, help us to be just like St. Aloysius as he was declared by Pope Benedict to be the patron saint of young students. For his compassion and courage in the face of an incurable disease, Aloysius Gonzaga has become the patron both of AIDS sufferers and their caregivers. Amen. Today’s commemorated saint is Saint Paulinus of Nola. He was born near Bordeaux and was the son of the Roman prefect of Gaul who had many properties in both Gaul and Italy. Paulinus became a lawyer and had many public offices in the Roman Empire and was able to retire with his wife, Therasia at an early age. They tried for many years to have a child but only had a son who died a week after birth. This began Paulinus and Therasia’s life of charity and gave away most of their property. This eventually resulted in Paulinus becoming a priest by the Bishop of Barcelona. He and his wife moved to Nola, gave away most of his remaining property and continued to work for the poor. By popular demand, Paulinus was made bishop of Nola and he guided the diocese for 21 years. Sadly, Paulinus last years were saddened by the invasion of the Huns. A few of his writings include the earliest version of the Christian wedding song.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Lord, you made Saint Paulinus renowned for his love of poverty. May we who celebrate his witness to the gospel imitate his example of love for others. Through our Lord Jesus, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen |