Saint James was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. He is often recognized as James “the lesser” whereas St. James, the son of Zebedee is known as “the greater.” St. Paul has said that he was a witness of the resurrection of Jesus. Saint James of lesser was a martyr who died for his faith and was stoned by the Jews for it.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER O dear saint James, help us to have strong faith during these rough times and believe in your word spoken through the Holy Bible. Amen.
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St. Athanasius, also known as Athanasius the Great and Athanasius the Confessor, was a bishop and doctor of the church. He is called the "Father of Orthodoxy," the "Pillar of the Church" and "Champion of Christ's Divinity." He is the patron of Theologians and faithful Orthodox and Roman Catholic Christians and his feast day is on May 2. He was born in either 296 or 298, to a Christian household in Egypt. He studied the Hebrew Scriptures and several old Christian texts from a young age. As he grew up, Athanasius befriended many monks and hermits of the desert, including St. Antony. He later wrote the biography of St. Antony. Bishop Alexander of Alexandra was a great influence on young Athanasius and he even grew up to be Alexander’s secretary. As Alexander’s secretary, Athanasius had the chance to witness many of the great debates of the early church. Athanasius preceded Alexander as his successor in the year 328 after Alexander’s death. He was wrongfully charged of treason against the emperor because of a dispute that aged back to Alexander’s days. After receiving multiple false accusations, Emperor Constantine was pressured to command Athanasius to the Council of Tyre. But this council was under the influences of his opponents and he was placed under exile. Upon his return after 2 and a half years, Athanasius finds that the empire has been divided into three parts. Once again his enemies came after him and got him exiled again. He seemed refuge with some monks in the desert and kept in touch with his faithful followers through letter. Each time he returned, his opponents found some way to get him exiled again. Eventually after many years Emperor Valens restored Athansius as bishop permanently. Over the course of his life, Athanasius was banished five times and spent 17 years of his life in exile for the defense of the doctrine of Christ's divinity. Despite all these years of trouble, the last few years of his life was quite peaceful. He died peacefully on May 2, 373 in Alexandria. He is celebrated to this day as the great Defender of Faith and considered the father of the early Orthodox and Roman Catholic Christians.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Father, you raised up Saint Athanasius to be an outstanding defender of the truth of Christ’s divinity. By his teaching and protection may we grow in your knowledge and love. 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. St. Joseph, the foster father of Jesus and the husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is one of the most loved and powerful saints of the Church. The Catholic Church officially celebrates St. Joseph twice in the liturgical year. March 19th commemorates his vocation as the husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and May 1 st his vocation as a worker and provider. Today we celebrate the feast of St. Joseph the Worker. The feast of St.
Joseph the Worker was established by Pope Pius XII in 1955 in order to Christianize the concept of labor and give to all workmen a model and a protector. While establishing this feast Pope Pius XII said, “The spirit flows to you and to all men from the heart of the God-man, Savior of the world, but certainly, no worker was ever more completely and profoundly penetrated by it than the foster father of Jesus, who lived with him in closest intimacy and community of family life and work”. This feast reminds us that St. Joseph used his skills as a carpenter to provide for his family’s needs and he passed down the same skills to his son Jesus. We also find dignity in similar ways, in our work, in raising our family, and participating in the life of God’s creation. St. Joseph's most obvious mark in salvation history was his role as foster father to Jesus and husband to Mary. In this vocation he served those he loved with all his heart and strength. But it is also his humility and loving diligence as a hardworking yet poor provider that serves as an example to all who work to fulfill a vocation or provide for a family. Intercessory Prayer Good Saint Joseph, ever watchful guardian of the Holy Family, protect the chosen people of Jesus Christ, keep us free from the blight of error and corruption, and be our ally in the conflict with the powers of darkness. As of old you rescued the child Jesus from the plots of Herod, so now defend the universal Church from all harm. Keep us one and all under your continual protection, so that by your help and example, we may lead a holy life, die a happy death, and come to possess eternal life in heaven. Amen. St. Catherine of Siena was a wonderful saint. Her childhood, her spiritual life, and her achievements were all important to her life.
St. Catherine was born during a plague in Siena, Italy on March 25, 1347. She was a twin but her twin didn’t survive infancy. Her father was a clothes dryer. When she was 16 her sister Bonaventura died and left her husband as a widower. Her parents thought that he should marry her as a replacement, but St. Catherine didn’t want that, and she started fasting and cutting her hair short so that it would ruin her appearance. Her parents tried to convince her to marry someone but failed. Her fasting and devotion convinced them to let her live how she wants to. She did not join a convent, but instead joined the third order of St. Dominic so that be in a religious society while staying at home. The Sisters of Penitence of St. Dominic in Siena received Catherine as a member. St. Catherine decided to take public action encourage a crusade against Muslims, and for peace in the church and Italy. She went to Avignon as an unofficial meditator with her biographer Raymond of Capua and her confessor. In Avignon she promoted her plans for a crusade against the Muslims. In 1376 she went to Florence at Pope Gregory XI request, and she was there when the Ciompi Revolt happened in June. She went to Siena for a short final stay, in which she finished The Dialogue. She went to Rome, at the invitation of Pope Urban VI, which she helped in reorganizing the church. She gained a rapidly wide reputation for her manner of life, and humbleness. She helped start a crusade to the holy land. St. Catherine has written 380 letters, 26 prayers, and 4 arguments which is better known as the Dialogue. She was one of the four woman who got named doctor of the church. She was an important defender of the papacy, and is a patron saint of Italy and Europe. St. Catherine’s letters and prayers have special authority in Roman Catholicism. INTERCESSORY PRAYER Eternal God, eternal Trinity, You have made the Blood of Christ so precious through His sharing in Your Divine nature. You are a mystery as deep as the sea; the more I search, the more I find, and the more I find the more I search for You. But I can never be satisfied; what I receive will ever leave me desiring more. When You fill my soul I have an ever-greater hunger, and I grow more famished for Your light. I desire above all to see You, the true light, as you really are. Amen. Saint Peter Chanel was born in July 12, 1803. He lived in the Hamlet of La Portiere in France. In his childhood, he was cheerful and busy with the family work of grazing the sheep. Young Peter grew in the devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Eucharist, and was encouraged of becoming a missionary by the local priest. He was ordained on July 15, 1827. Then he spent a brief time as an assistant priest. When Fr. Peter Chanel was twenty-eight years old, he joined the Marists. The Marists or society of Mary sent him on a mission to the southwest Pacific. When he reached the island of Futuna, he had trouble learning the language, but he soon became fluent at it. It was a difficult mission requiring isolation and adjusting to different cultures and food. The King of Futuna got jealous after his son said he was going to be baptized and sent a warrior to do whatever he could to stop that from happening. The warrior was defeated by the King’s son. The wounded warrior fled to Saint Peter Chanel, asking for help and then killed Saint Peter Chanel. Five months after his death, the whole island was converted to Christianity. Saint Peter Chanel was beatified in 1889, and he was canonized in 1954.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Saint Peter Chanel, you went to Oceania to proclaim the Gospel, though you faced many hardships on the way you persevered. God help us to be like Saint Peter Chanel who lived his life, in happiness, in peace, and in fraternal love. May your prayers and example, call many workers for the Gospel, so that God’s Kingdom may reach to the ends of the earth. St. Louis-Mary Grignion de Montfort was a French Roman Catholic Priest. People knew him as a great preacher, confessor, and author. He wrote many great books focusing on Mother Mary such as Secret of the Rosary and True Devotion to Mary. Many people loved his preaching, while some thought it was strange. During his ministry, Montfort got poisoned. Though it wasn’t fatal, his heath began to deteriorate, but still, he continued his ministry. As he traveled around France, his health began to worsen and finally, when he came to Saint-Laurent-sur-Sèvre, a city in Western France, he died on April 28, 1716. Pope Leo XIII beatified him in 1888 and Pope Pius XII canonized him on July 20, 1947. He influenced many Popes because of his writings such as Pope John Paul II.
We can learn from St. Louis from how he still preached and never gave up while he was poisoned and sick. Even though this virus is spreading, we shouldn’t give up on God and keep praying to him. Here is a prayer that you can use made by St. Louis himself. INTERCESSORY PRAYER My powerful Queen, you are all mine through your mercy, and I am all yours. Take away from me all that may displease God and cultivate in me all that is pleasing to him. May the light of your faith dispel the darkness of my mind, your deep humility take the place of my pride, your continual sight of God fill my memory with his presence. May the fire of the love of your heart inflame the lukewarmness of my own heart. May your virtues take the place of my sins. May your merits be my enrichment and make up for all that is wanting in me before God. My beloved Mother, grant that I may have no other spirit but your spirit, to know Jesus Christ and His divine will and to praise and glorify the Lord, that I may love God with burning love like yours. Amen. Saint Pedro de San Jose Betancur was born on March 19, 1626 in Spain. Pedro was a shepherd until age 24. He was a Secular Franciscan who founded a hospital, shelter, and a school for the poor in Guatemala. He died at the age 41 on April 25,1667 in Guatemala city. He was the first saint to have worked and died in Guatemala. Pope John Paul II canonized him in 2002 making him the first saint in the Canary islands and of Guatemala. He is known as the “St. Francis of the Americas.” Now, he is the patron of the homeless and those who serve the sick.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Saint Pedro, Pray for us that we will generously remember the poor and the homeless in our prayers and be blessed with the mindset to assist them. Amen St. Mark dedicated his life in spreading the Good News, and he was the author of Mark’s gospel, which was part of the Holy Bible, which became fundamental for the Christian community.
St. Mark, who was referred as “John Mark” was the son of Mary of Jerusalem, who was close to the Twelve Apostles. St. Mark began his spiritual life traveling with St. Paul and his cousin St. Barnabas. St. Paul talks about him in his writings about how supportive he was in helping spread Jesus Christ. St. Mark never met Jesus, so it is believed that Mark’s gospel is based off of St. Peter’s teachings. They did have a close relationship, and St. Peter called St. Mark his “son” in his writings. St. Mark’s gospel also influenced Saints Matthew and Luke in writing their gospels. St. Mark traveled with St. Paul until his martyrdom, and continued preaching the Good News until he reached Egypt, where he established the Church and became bishop of Alexandria. St. Mark became a martyr between the years 68-74 AD after being dragged though the streets for his faith in Jesus. St. Mark’s gospel helps people know that Jesus suffered to save us all, and that He was the Son of God. St. Mark spent his whole life to spread the Good News and to convert people to Christianity, wrote the Gospel to continue his mission, even after he died, for future generations. INTERCESSORY PRAYER O Glorious St Mark, through the grace of God our Father, you became a great Evangelist, preaching the Good News of Christ. May you help us to know Him well, so that we may faithfully live our lives as followers of Christ. Amen. St Fidelis was born at Sigmaringen in Germany in 1578. He was a lawyer, and then entered the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin at Freiburg in Breisgau. He lived a life of prayer and penance, and gained a great reputation as a preacher. He was sent by the newly-formed Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith to preach the Protestants in Switzerland, where he was put to death by a group of fanatics in 1622.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Father, you filled Saint Fidelis with the fire of your love and gave him the privilege of dying that the faith might live. Let his prayers keep us firmly grounded in your love, and help us to come to know the power of Christ’s resurrection. Through Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. |