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Friday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Independence Day in the United States Saint of the Day: Blessed Girgio Frassatti, 1901-1925; born in Turin; dedicated to works of social action, charity, prayer, and community; he was also a Third Order Dominican; died of poliomyelitis; thousands of mourners filled the streets of Turin as his cortege passed by; he will be canonized on September 7, 2025, alo...

Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle; provided one of the most profound statements of faith, "My Lord and my God"; died  72 A.D. Thursday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/3/25 Gospel: John 20:24-29

Wednesday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Otto of Bamberg, 1060-1139; born in Swabia; served under Emperor Henry IV, but disagreed with Henry's policies toward the Holy See; thus, when Otto was appointed  bishop  of  Bamberg  in 1103, he refused to be consecrated until receiving approval from Pope  Paschal II who consecrated him in 1106; Otto headed...

Tuesday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Junipero Serra, 1713-1784; for 18 years he worked in Mexico and the Baja Peninsula; traveled with Jose de Galvez to present-day Monterey, California; the first mission founded was San Diego; other missions followed--Monterey/Carmel (1770), San Antonio and San Gabriel (1771), San Luís Obispo (1772), San Francisco and San Juan...

Monday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of the First Martyrs of the Church of Rome, 64 A.D.; Nero blamed Christians for the burning of Rome and executed many of them, likely including Peter and Paul Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/30/25 Gospel: Matthew 8:18-22

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul\ 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/29/25 Gospel: Matthew 16:13-19

Saturday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Irenaeus, 130-202; as bishop of Lyons, he was especially concerned with the "Gnostics," who claimed "secret knowlege" which Jesus had imparted to only a few disciples; Irenaeus compared their "secret" with Holy Scripture, and showed a system of theology of great importance to subsequent times; his work gradually ended the influence of the...

Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Friday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/27/25 Gospel: Luke 15:3-7

Thursday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer, 1902-1975; born in Barbastro, Spain, the second of six  children of Jose and Dolores Escriva; in 1915, he observed the fresh footprints in the snow of a barefoot monk, and wondered what God wanted of him; in 1928, as a priest, he solved the mystery, seeing holiness all around him, and founded Opus...

Wednesday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. William of Vercelli, 1085-1142; became a hermit on Monte Vergine,  Italy after a pilgrimage to Compostella and attracted so many followers that a monastery was buillt; by 1119 his followers were united in the Benedictine congregation; but William's rule was so austere that it caused dissension; to keep peace, he left, and was t...

Solemnity of the Birth of St. John the Baptist Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/24/25 Gospel: Luke 1:57-66, 80

Monday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Joseph Cafasso, 1811-1860; crippled throughout his life; ordained in 1833; became professor of moral theology at the ecclesiastical college in Turin in 1836, and was superior of the college from 1846 to 1860; renowned confessor; friend and advisor to St. John Bosco; ministered to condemned prisoners; since many were hanged immediately...

Solemnity of Corpus Christi - The Body and Blood of Christ Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/22/25 Gospel: Luke 9:11-17

Saturday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, 1568-1591; entered the Jesuit novitiate, and spent four years studying philosophy with his advisor, St. Robert Bellarmine; in 1591, a plague struck Rome, and Aloysius contracted it from nursing patients; he maintained his great discipline of prayer, knowing that he would die three months later within the octave of Corpus...

Friday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. John of Pulsano, 1070-1139; born in Naples, and entered the Benedictines, but was disliked for his austerity; joined the community of St. William of Vercelli for a time, leaving to breach at Ban; lived as a hermit in Sicily, and was imprisoned; he escaped, and went to Capua; he later founded a monastery at Pulsano; famous for his lprea...

Thursday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Romuald, 950-1027; witnessed his father kill a relative in a duel, and fled to a monastery; the monks found him "uncomfortably holy" and eased him out; tried to preach in Hungary, but was taken ill when he arrived, and the illness returned whenever he tried to proceed; at a monastery where he stayed, he was accused of a scandalous...

Wednesday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Gregory Barbarigo, 1625-1697; from a distinguished Venetian family; he embraced a diplomatic career, and later was ordained a priest, and then bishop of Bergamo; he became a cardinal and was also given authority over the diocese of Padua; he guided his flock with wisdom and understanding, and carried out the reforms of the Council o...

Tuesday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Teresa of Portugal, 1178-1250; daughter of royal parents; married her cousin, King Alfonso IX of Leon, and bore him several children, but the marriage was declared invalid due to consanguinity; she returned to Portugal and founded a monastery, accomodating 300 nuns, and she lived there; in about 1231, at the request of Alfonso's secon...

Monday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Luthgard, 1182-1246; born in Belgium, and was placed in the Benedictine convent at the age of 12; a vision of Christ compelled her to become a Benedictine; she had many mystical experiences, levitated, and had a form of the stigmata; to avoid being made abbess, she joined the Cistercians; she was known for her spiritual wisdom and mira...

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/15/25 Gospel: John 16:12-15

Saturday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Joseph the Hymnographer, 810-886; the most prolific of the Greek hymn writers; born in Sicily, he left in 830 to escape an invasion by the Arabs; he went to Thessalonica, and then to Constantinople, and left in 841 to escape the iconoclast persecution; returning to Constantinople, he founded a monastery; for his defense of the icons...

Friday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Anthony of Padua, 1195-1231; joined the Augustinians at a young age, and then the Franciscans; he became recognized as a great man of prayer and a great Scripture and theology scholar, Anthony became the first friar to teach theology to the other friars; soon, he was called to preach to the Albigensians in France; after leading the friars i...

Thursday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Peter of Mount Athos; the first hermit to reside on the famous Mount Athos in Greece; legend has it that he was a soldier, captured by Muslims, and held until released through the intervention of St. Simeon; he went to Rome, and is believed to have received the monastic habit directly from the pope; he was graced with a vision from...

Wednesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Barnabas; he was closely associated with St. Paul; he introduced Paul to Peter and the other apostles—and served as a kind of mediator between the former persecutor and the still suspicious Jewish Christians; Barnabas and Paul instructed in Antioch for a year, after which they took relief contributions to Jerusalem; later, they wer...

Tuesday of the Tenth Week of Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Landericus; as bishop of Paris from 650 to 661, he worked zealously to improve the lot of the poor; he sold his own possessions to feed the hungry during a famine, and even sold some of the Church vessels and furniture; he erected the city's first real hospital; he welcomed the Benedictines into his diocese, and encouraged them to se...