Today’s commemorated saint is Saint John the Silent. He was born in 454 AD in Nicoplis, Armenia. His parents died when he was 18 and he built a monastery where he stayed with 10 young monks where they taught him hard work and devotion. John has built a reputation for leadership which led the archbishop of Sebastian to consecrate him bishop of Colonia in Armenia when he was 28. He didn’t really want the role nevertheless he was the bishop for nine years before returning to a life of seclusion. One night when John was praying, he saw a bright cross form in the air and heard a voice say to him, “If thou desires to be saved, follow this light”. The light led him to the monastery of St. Sabas which held 150 monks and after many tests, St. Sabas let John have a separate hermitage for uninterrupted contemplation. He was only 38 at the time and after three years he was made the steward of the monastery. John had never told anyone he was a bishop for four years, St. Sabas thought John was worthy to become a priest and presented him to the patriarch Elias of Jerusalem. John told the patriarch that he was a bishop which the patriarch told St. Sabas. John wanted to leave the monastery after that but St. Sabas convinced him to stay and promising to keep his secret and let him stay in his cell for four years speaking to no one. In 503 AD some disciples forced St. Sabas to leave the monastery which led John to move to a nearby wilderness were he spent six years being mute and only conversing with God and eating roots and herbs. When St. Sabas returned, he tried to convince John to come back but after spending so much time in silence, he was very reluctant. He returned with St. Sabas and stayed in his cell for forty years and didn’t turn anyone away who wanted his teachings. Cyril of Scythopolis wrote about John’s life and John recommend he join Laura of St. Euthymius but Cyril didn’t listen which led him to fall ill. John appeared to him in a dream and scolded him for not listening to him and said that he would find his salvation and get well if he went there. Cyril went the next day as he was told and got better instantly. John died in 558 AD at the age of 104 and had spent 76 years in solitude and was only interrupted nine years when he was the bishop.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Father, you have called St. John to the solitary life in which he prayed for others. Grant us signs we seek for discerning Your will and purify our hearts, dear Lord, that we may serve You more perfectly. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.
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St. Leopold Mandíc was born in Herceg Novi, Montenegro on May 12, 1866. He was physically malformed and delicate, with clumsy walk and stuttering. He was ordained to priesthood at the age of 24 on September 20, 1890. For several years Leopold taught patrology, the study of the Church Father's, to the clerics of his province, but he is best known for his work in the confessional, where he sometimes spent 13 - 15 hours a day. Several bishops sought out his spiritual advice. Leopold's dream was to go to the Orthodox Christians and reunite Roman Catholicism and Orthodoxy, however his health would not allow for this. However, the cause of unity was constantly in his prayers. Leopold died in Padua on July 30, 1942, and was canonized in 1982.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER St. Leopold, you were a source of God's grace for all who had recourse to you. Through your intercession, may we live our lives in love, relying entirely on God's will, and strong in the hope of his promise, Amen. Today's saint of the day is Francis Ignatius Vincent Peis. Francis was born in 1701, the second of seven children, and was named after St. Francis of Assisi. From a young age, he worked hard and lived a pious life. He was known to wait in front of the church doors every morning, praying, until they were opened. When he was a teenager, Francis wanted to join the Capuchins (a Franciscan friar) but his father forbade him, because their family needed his labor on the farm to survive. But when he was 20, he entered the monastery and took his second name, Ignatius, as his religious name. Ignatius was well-loved by the poor and children and took care of them everyday. He told them stories of God and taught them how to pray. St. Ignatius died in 1781, and was canonized in 1951 by Pope Pius 6th.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER God help us follow the example of Saint Francis Ignatius Vincent Peis and always put others before ourselves and help those in need. Amen oday’s commemorated saint is Saint Damien of Molokai. He was born in rural Belgium, on January 3, 1840. His original name was Jozef De Veuster and was supposed to take care of the family when he got older but instead wanted to have religious path like his his older brother and two sisters. Jozef left school when he was 13 to help his family. He helped his family till he was old enough to enter the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary where he changed his same to Damien. In March of 1864, Fr. Damien arrived in Hawaii and was made a priest two months later and for nine years he worked on the island. When Hawaii established the leper colony, Fr. Damien went there and gave the leper’s there the leadership that they needed. He helped the people build houses and schools and eventually the parish church, St. Philomena which still stands today. Fr. Damien was only supposed to stay at the colony for some time and then someone would replace him. Feeling attached to the colony, he stayed and continued to serve the people there. Fr. Damien eventually got leprosy in 1885 but kept on working despite his illness. He gained strength from prayer and devotion and was reported to be very happy. After sixteen years in the colony, Fr. Damien succumbed to his illness on April 15, 1889. He was beatified by Pope John Paul ll in Brussels, Belgium on June 4, 1995 and became a saint for lepers on October 11, 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI. His feast day is May 10.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Damien, brother in the journey, happy and generous missionary, who loved the Gospel more than your own life, who for love of Jesus left your family, your homelands, your security and your dreams. Teach us to give our lives with joy like yours, to be in solidarity with the outcasts of our world, to celebrate and contemplate the Eucharist as the source of our own commitment. Help us to love to the very end and, in the strength of the Spirit, to persevere in compassion for the poor and forgotten so that we might be good disciples of Jesus and Mary. Amen ! St. John was born in the Castile region of Spain and was sent at the age of 14 to the University of Salamanca to study law. Later he studied philosophy and theology In Alcala before his ordination as a diocesan priest. After John’s parents died and left him as their sole heir to a considerable fortune, he distributed his money to the poor. John traveled to Seville hoping to become a missionary in Mexico. However, Seville’s archbishop persuaded John to remain administered to the inhabitants of Andalusia. Over the next nine years, John gained the reputation as an engaging preacher a perceptive spiritual leader, and a wise confessor. Because John was not afraid to denounce vice in high places, he was investigated by the Inquisition but was cleared in 1533. John worked closely with the society of Jesus helping it to grow both in Spain and in the Spanish colonies. John of Avila died in 1569 was canonized in 1970 and declared a doctor of the Church on October 7, 2012.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Almighty and eternal God, who gave your holy Church blessed John of Avila as Doctor, grant that what he taught when moved by the divine Spirit may always stay firm in our hearts; and, as by your gift we embrace him as our patron, may we also have him as our defender to entreat your mercy. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,one God, forever and ever. Amen. Today’s Saint of the day is Saint Peter of Tarentaise. He was born near Vienne, France in 1102. At the age of twenty, Saint Peter of Tarentaise joined a Cistercian monastery along with his father and brother. At the age of thirty, he was sent to serve as an abbot, the leader of the monastery of monks, in the Tarentaise Mountain. During his time there, he built crossroads and hospitals in the desert mountain for the sick and poor travelers. It soon became known as a resting place for travelers. Although he wanted to remain with the monastery, living a life of prayer and service, in 1142, he was appointed as the Archbishop of Tarentaise. As an archbishop, he helped reform the diocese and started a tradition called the "May Bread", which helped feed the poor living near the area. After serving as an archbishop for 13 years, Saint Peter of Tarentaise fled to a Cistercian Abbey in Switzerland and served as a lay brother. After he was forced to return back to Tarentaise, he continued to help the poor and sick. Saint Peter of Tarentaise was canonized by Pope Celestine III in 1191 and is the patron saint of Tarentaise.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER God, help us through the intercession of Saint Peter of Tarentaise to always help the poor and needy, by putting their needs before our own. Helps us lead a life of prayer that's dedicated to you. Saint Rose Venerini is today’s commemorated saint. Saint Rose was born on February 9, 1656 at Viterbo, Italy. She was a daughter of a Doctor. She entered a convent, but soon returned home to care for her newly widowed mother. Rose invited the women of the neighborhood to recite the rosary in her home, forming a sort of solidarity with them. Rose became convinced that she was called to become a teacher in the world rather than a contemplative nun in a convent. Then she started a free school for girls in 1658. Rose was called upon to organize schools in many parts of Italy, including Rome. Her disposition was right for the task as well, for Rose often met considerable opposition but was never deterred. She passed away on May 7th, 1728.
Rose life stands as a reminder that all we are meant to be put to service wherever we find ourselves. INTERCESSORY PRAYER Saint Rose Venerini, patroness of exiles and steadfast teacher of the poor and unlearned, who courageously taught in accordance with Holy Doctrine in the face of opposition and who humbly built schools and trained teachers all over your country, in confidence we ask you for special intercession as we pray to Our Lord for (name your intention). May you also obtain for us from Jesus and His Blessed Mother the Grace to whole-heartedly follow your words: I feel so nailed to the Will of God that nothing else matters, neither death nor life. I want what He wants; I want to serve Him as much as pleases Him and no more. Amen. Born in North Africa, Saint Marian was an ordained lector and Saint James was a Deacon. They dedicated their life for their faith. They were martyred during the persecution of Valerian around the year 259. Before their persecution, two bishops, Agapius and Secundinus, had encouraged them to stay strong in their faith. After that Marian and James were arrested and interrogated for continuing to practice their Christian faith. While they were in prison, they had a vision regarding their martyrdom. They ended up facing death courageously. There is not much information on saints of the early Church, but we know that they never gave up on their faith. In hard times, they only strengthened their faith.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Pray for us that we will hold fast to our faith through our words and actions. St Hilary was a archbishop in southern France. He came from a very rich family, but at a young age, St Hilary joined the monastery in Lérins, around 420. Hillary gave up all of his possessions.
Even once Hilary became archbishop in 429, he continued to live a humble and peaceful life, having few belongings. He also worked to organize the clergy to devote a larger amount of their time to social works. St Hilary worked hard to oust the corrupt religious leaders of that time, calling the immoral. St Hilary was also extremely eloquent for the time, and published many written works for the public to read. St Hilary worked hard to make the church partake in more social works during a time when it was almost never done. INTERCESSORY PRAYER Support us so that we may take on a humble life as Saint Hilary did. Help us to give up everything to God and support us in helping others around us. Amen Born near Vilna, Lithuania, Michael Giedroyc, a dwarf in stature, lost the use of one foot at an early age after an accident. In his youth he divided his time between prayer and the making of pyxes for the carrying of Viaticum to the dying. He hung about his neck a cross to serve as a constant reminder of God. After entering the monastery of Augustinian Canons in Krakow, Poland, Michael obtained permission to live an eremitical life in a cramped cell adjoining the Augustinians' church. His biographer observes, "The church was his home by day and by night, to pray there, to keep watch, to bend the knee." He was particularly drawn to pray before a crucifix in the middle of the church, from which on one occasion he heard Christ speaking to him. It was while kneeling in prayer that Michael died after receiving absolution and extreme unction.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Please watch over all of those with physical and mental handicaps Blessed Michael Giedroyc. May they take strength in your example to persevere through their difficulties. May we who are blessed with good health come to assist these individuals and act as Christ's light to them. Amen. |