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Monday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Henry of Uppsala, 1100-1156; an Englishman who accompanied  Cardinal  Nicholas Breakspear to  Sweden  and  Norway in 1151; there he was made the  bishop of Uppsala, Sweden; he accompanied King St.  Eric  of  Sweden on a military campaign to Finland, never leaving that land again; Henr...

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/18/26 Gospel: John 1:29-34

Saturday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Anthony, the Abbot, 251-356; born in Egypt, and felt called to give away all his possessions, follow Christ, and become a hermit; his spirituality attracted many followers; during the Arian controversy, St. Anthony supported the Nicene party and became friends with St. Athanasius, who would later write The Way of St. Antony Office of Read...

Friday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Sulpicius, 576-646; the son of wealthy parents; he renounced the idea of marriage and devoted himself to good works, especially caring for the poor; when he became Bishop  of  Bourges in 624, he fought for the rights of his people against King Dagobert's minister, Lullo; known for austerity and holliness; he is reported to h...

Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Arnold Jansen, 1837-1909; born in Germany, ordained in 1861, and served as a parish priest; in 1875 he founded the Society of the Divine Word, to provide priests and lay brothers for the missions; he also founded the Servant Sisters of the  Holy Ghost  for the missions in 1889 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/15...

Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: Grandmother of Sts. Basil and Gregory of Nyssa; she was trained in the  faith by St. Gregory Thaumaturgis; during the  persecution instituted by Emperor Diocletian, Macrina and her husband had to flee Neocaesarea, in Pontus; they lived on the shores of the Black Sea, and Macrina died in about 340 A.D. Office of Readings and M...

Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Hilary of Poitiers, 315-368; as bishop of Poitiers, France, he battled Arianism, which denied the divinity of Christ; the emperor ordered all bishops of the west to sign a condemnation of Athanasius--the great defender of the faith in the east--but Hilary refused, and was exiled to Phrygia; he attempted a debate with the heretical...

Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. John of Ravenna, 477-494; Bishop of Ravenna, Italy, who saved his people from the fury of  Attila the Hun; served as  bishop from 452 to 494; also faced the Ostrogoths, under King Theodoric the Great, who invaded the region and became the chief political power in the years following the final  deposition &nbsp...

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord - Final Day of the Christmas Season Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/11/26 Gospel: Matthew 3:13-17

Saturday after Epiphany Saint of the Day: St. Gregory of Nyssa, 335-394; part of a family which gave many years of service and five saints to the Church; he became bishop of Nyssa in 371; during a trip to Jerusalem, he was forced to defend his Christology, although he was then and is now well-known for his Trinitarian theology; in 394, he attended a  synod  in  Constantinople  ...

Friday after Epiphany Saint of the Day: St. Marciana of Mauretania; virgin martyr of Mauretania, was ac­cused of vandalizing a statue of the goddess Diana; after torments, Marciana was gored by a bull and mauled by a leopard in the amphitheater of Caesarea, also in Mauretania, in 303 A.D.; she is invoked to cure wounds Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/9/26 Gospel: Luke 5:12-16

Thursday after Epiphany Saint of the Day: St. Severinus of Noricum; Fifth Century monk, hermit, and founder; evangelized the region of Noricum (part of modern day Austria), establishing a number of monasteries along the Danube River; he gave aid and comfort to the many refugees and victims of the invasion of the region by Attila and the Huns; he was known for his preaching and prophecies; Severinu...

Wednesday after Epiphany Optional Memorial of St. Raymond of Penafort, 1175-1275; born in Spain, a relative of the king of Aragon; co-founded the Order of Our Lady of Ransom, dedicated to saving poor Christians captured by the Moors; went with King James to Majorca; he ordered King James to cease his scandalous behavior, but he did not; Raymond left Majorca by spreading his cloak upon the water, t...

Tuesday after Epiphany Optional Memorial of St. Andre Bessette, 1845-1937; entered the Congregation of the Holy Cross, and was given the humble job of doorkeeper at Notre Dame College in Montreal, along with duties as sacristan, laundry worker and messenger; when he heard someone was ill, he visited to bring cheer and to pray with the sick person; when an epidemic broke out at a nearby college, An...

Monday after Epiphany Memorial of St. John Neumann, 1811-1860; came to America and joined the Redemptorists, and faithfully served the poor in Buffalo, New York; became bishop of Philadelphia in 1852, and established over 50 churches, 100 schools and began the building of a cathedral; he is the first American bishop to be canonized Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/5/26 Gospel: Matthew 4...

Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord Eleventh Day of Christmas Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/4/26 Gospel: Matthew 2:1-12

Tenth Day of Christmas Optional Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/3/26 Gospel: John 1:29-34

Ninth Day of Christmas Memorial of Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen; Fourth Century Doctors of the Church; they studied in Athens, and began to follow a monastic way of life; as Bishop of Caesarea, St. Basil wrote rules for monks and integrated social programs into monasteries; St. Gregory, Bishop of Constantinople, defended the Church against the Arian conspiracies, clarified the divi...

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Eighth Day of Christmas Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/1/26 Gospel: Luke 2:16-21

Seventh Day of Christmas Optional Memorial of Pope St. Sylvester I; only a very strong and wise man could have preserved the essential independence of the Church in the face of the overpowering figure of the Emperor Constantine; in general, the bishops remained loyal to  the Holy See , and at times expressed apologies to Sylvester I for undertaking important ecclesiastical projects at the urg...

Sixth Day of Christmas Saint of the Day: St. Egwin of Evesham; a Seventh- and Eighth-Century English noble who became the bishop of Worcester, England, in 692; his clergy found him too strict, so he went to Rome; when he returned, he founded Evesham Monastery, at the prompting of a vision of Mary; . in 709, Egwin returned to Rome, accompanied by King Cenred of Mercia and King  Offa of the Eas...

Fifth Day of Christmas Optional Memorial of St. Thomas Becket, 1118-1170; chancellor of England, then archbishop of Canterbury, thanks to his friend, King Henry II; Thomas warned Henry that he might not agree with his intrusions into Church affairs; Henry insisted upon usurping Church rights; Thomas fled to France for safety, for seven years; upon his return to England, he refused to remit the cen...

Feast of the Holy Family Fourth Day of Christmas Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/28/25 Gospel: Matthew 2:13-15, 19-23

Feast of St. John, apostle and evangelist Third Day of Christmas Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/27/25 Gospel: John 20:1-8

Feast of St. Stephen, First Christian Martyr Second Day of Christmas Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/26/25 Gospel: Matthew 10:17-22