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Friday of the 28th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Hedwig, 1174-1243; duchess of Silesia, born at Castle Andechs, Bavaria; at age 12, she married Henry I the Bearded of Silesia; soon she became actively involved in the administration of her husband’s land, and used her influence for the construction of new monastic foundations, and assisted those existent in Silesia; Hedwig an...

Thursday of the 28th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Teresa of Avila, 1515-1582; born in Spain, and at age 20 entered the Carmelite convent of the Incarnation in Avila; she resolved to found new Carmelite convents committed to lives of poverty, seclusion and prayer; also, she experienced many visions and mystical impressions and began to write spiritual books about them; her important works...

Wednesday of the 28th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of Pope St. Callistus I; lived in the first part of the Third Century; he was originally a slave, who lost money which was entrusted to him; he fled, but was caught, and he promised to return the money; later, he was arrested for fighting at a syangogue; eventually, he was denounced as a Christian, and sentenced to the mines in Sardinia...

Tuesday of the 28th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Colman of Stockerau; 11th Century Irish or Scottish pilgrim who was martyred in Austria while on the way to the Holy Land; tortured and hanged as a spy in 1012, he edified everyone with his courage; his body remained preserved, and miracles were reported at his grave; the Austrians realized that Colman was a holy man, put to death by...

Monday of the 28th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Carlo Acutis, 1991-2006; he was a tech-savvy teen who lived with great faith and a love of the Sacraments, in particular the Eucharist and Confession; his interest in Eucharistic miracles inspired him to create an online catalog, putting to use his modern computer skills; Carlo is remembered for being "God's influencer" because of his...

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/11/26 Gospel: Matthew 22:1-14

Saturday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Aldericus; Ninth Century archbishop and scholar, born in France; he became a Benedictine monk, and then a priest in Sens; he served as chancellor of the diocese, succeeding the  archbishop in 828; he died in 841; Aldericus was a known ecclesiastical scholar and a promoter of such studies. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer fo...

Friday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Denis and Companions; Denis was the first bishop of Paris, in about 275 A.D.; St. Gregory of Tours reports that Pope Fabian sent St. Denis and his companions, the priest Rusticus and the deacon Eleutherius, to present day Paris to re-establish the Church of Gaul; they men built a church on an island in the Seine and converted many p...

Thursday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Keyne; daughter of King Brychan of Brecknock, Wales; she refused several suitors' offers of marriage and became a hermitess on the banks of the Severn River in Somersetshire, England; after living there for several years, during which she traveled widely, she was persuaded by her nephew to return to Wales, though exactly where she sp...

Wednesday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary, commemorating victory in the Battle of Lepanto, 1571, accredited to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/7/26 Gospel: Luke 11:1-4

Tuesday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of Blessed Marie Rose Durocher, 1811-1849; born in Quebec; as a housekeeper at a local rectory, she saw the need for greater instruction of the youth, especially young girls; she and her companions formed the Sisters of the Most Holy Names of Jesus and Mary; they provided Catholic education in Canada and on the west coast of the United St...

Monday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos, 1819-1867; born in Germany, but decided to go to North America; in 1847, he arrived in the United States, entered the Redemptorist novitiate, and completed his studies, being ordained in 1844; he began his pastoral ministry in Pittsburgh, working closely with St. John Neumann; he became a full-time itinera...

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/4/26 Gospel: Matthew 21:33-43

Saturday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Gerard of Brogne, 895-959; born in Belgium and trained at the French court, Gerard joined the Benedictines at Saint-Denis, France; ordained, Gerard founded a monastery on his own estate in Brogne, Belgium; he reformed monasteries in Lorraine and Champagne, France, and Flanders, Belgium, and died in Brogne Office of Readings and Morni...

Friday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels; The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life” Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/2/26 Gospel: Matthew 18:1-5, 10

Thursday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, aka Therese of Lisieux, 1873-1897; born in France, and at age 15, chose a contemplative life, and entered the Carmel of Lisieux; St. Therese was a writer; she penned an autobiography, poetry, letters, and prayers; her poems give praise to God for His unfailing love and speak to her desire to model her life after...

Wednesday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Jerome; biblical scholar of the Fourth Century; his greatest scholarly achievements are his translations of most of the Bible into Latin, a bibliography of the ecclesiastical writers, and translations of the works of Eusebius, Origen, and Didymus; also, he wrote many Biblical commentaries; he died in 420; St. Jerome is one of the four ori...

Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, Archangels; mentioned by name in Sacred Scripture in the books of Tobit, Daniel, Luke, 1 Thessalonians, Jude, and Revelation Tuesday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/29/26 Gospel: John 1:47-61

Monday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Wenceslaus, 907-935; Duke of Bohemia in the Tenth Century; Around the age of 18, Wenceslaus assumed power, and was a fair ruler; he was murdered by his brother Boleslaw for religious and  political reasons; Wenceslaus is the patron saint of the Czech Republic and is mentioned in the Christmas carol “Good King Wenceslaus&r...

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/27/26 Gospel: Matthew 21:28-32

Saturday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of Saints Cosmas and Damian, Christian physicians of the Third Century; they accepted no money for their services, and converted many to Christ; they were martyred in the persecution of Diocletian; they are the patrons of the medical professions Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/26/26 Gospel: Luke 9:43b-45

Friday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Cadoc, 497-580; Welsh bishop and martyr; founded Llancarfan Monastery near Cardiff, Wales, before becoming a missionary on the coast of Brittany, in France; returning to Britain, he was involved in the Saxon occupation of British lands; he was martyred by the Saxons near Weedon, England Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/25/26...

Thursday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Cleophas; one of two disciples who met Christ on the road to Emmaus; he was also identified as the father of Mary, one of whom stood with the Mother of  God at the foot of the Cross; he has been identified as the father of  St. James the Less and as brother of St. Joseph; he died in the First Century Office of Readings and...

Wednesday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, better known as Padre Pio, 1887-1968; Padre Pio lived to the full his vocation to work for the redemption of man; for him, faith was life; he would say, "In books we seek God, in prayer we find him; prayer is the key which opens God’s heart" Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/23/26 Gospel: Luke 9:1-6

Tuesday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Phocas the Gardener; earned his living cultivating a garden near Sinope (now in Turkey); shared what he earned with the poor, and provided travelers with a place to stay; when the Romans became aware of his Christian identity, they sent soldiers to arrest him; the soldiers stopped at Phocas door for lodging--unaware that their host wa...