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Wednesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Vincent the Deacon; born at Huesca, Spain, he became a deacon and served St, Valerius at Saragossa until their martyrdom; St. Valerius was exiled, but Vincent was tortured because he would not surrender the holy books. he converted the warden of the prison and then died, in 304. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/22/25 Go...

Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Agnes, virgin and martyr; reputed to be a beautiful girl, desired by many men for marriage; one whom she refused reported her to authorities as a Christian, and she was arrested, and confined to a house of prostitution; according to legend, a man who looked at her lustfully lost his sight, but it was restored through Agnes' prayers; she w...

Monday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Fabian, 200-250; a Roman layman who came to the city as preparations were being made for the election of a new pope; a dove settled on Fabian's head, that was taken as a sign, and he was elected unanimously; he led the church for 14 years, and died in the persecution of Decius in 250; St. Cyprian wrote that Fabian was an "incompar...

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/19/25 Gospel: John 2:1-11

Saturday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Margaret of Hungary, 1242-1271; daughter of King Bela IV; became a Dominican novice at the age of 12 in a royal convent on an island in the Danube; she was a princess among nuns of nobility, but insisted upon no special treatment; she performed menial tasks, and served the poor and most advanced hospital cases; she died of fatigue o...

Friday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Anthony the Abbot, 251-356; at the age of 20, he gave up his large inheritance to the poor, and embraced the eremetical life; he gave the Church and the world the witness of solitary asceticism, great personal mortification and prayer; he also drew many people to himself for spiritual healing and guidance; at 54, he founded a monastery of s...

Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Joseph Vaz, 1651-1711; a Catholic Oratorian Priest from Goa, sent to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) during the Dutch occupation, when Calvinism was the official religion; he brought the eucharist and other sacraments to clandestine Catholics in the region; he later found shelter in the Kandyan kingdom, where he was able to work freely; by t...

Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Paul the Hermit, 229-342; went to the desert at the age of 22, and found the eremetical life was much to his personal taste; he lived in a desert cave for the rest of his long life; his contemplation was "disturbed" by St. Anthony, who visited the aged Paul; Anthony also buried Paul in a cloak which he had received from St. Athanas...

Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Felix of Nola; lived in the Third Century, born in Nola, near Naples, Italy; on the death of his father, Felix distributed his inheritance to the poor, was ordained by  Bishop   St. Maximus of Nola, and became his assistant; Maximus fled to the desert at the beginning of persecutions in 250, and Felix was seized and impriso...

Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Hilary of Poitiers, 315-368; raised a pagan, converted when he found his God of nature in the scriptures; became bishop of Poitiers, France, and took up the battle against Arianism, which denied the divinity of Christ; he was eventually exiled to Phrygia; some semi-Arians invited him to a council, hoping for a reconciliation; but H...

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, the final day of the Christmas season Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/12/25 Gospel: Luke 3:15-16, 21-22

Saturday after Epiphany Saint of the Day: St. Palaemon; a third and fourth century Egyptian hermit who is best known for serving as mentor to St. Pachomius; Palaemon and Pachomius organized the  hermits  of the Egyptian  desert into cenobitic communities, laying the groundwork for the development of monasticism; Palaemon died in 325 at Tabennisi, the vast monastic center that shelte...

Friday after Epiphany Saint of the Day: St. Gregory of Nyssa, 335-394; became bishop of Nyssa in about 371; Arians accused him of mismanagement and deposed him in 376; two years later, he was restored to his see; defended his Christology while on a trip to Jerusalem, even though he was well-known for his Trinitarian theology; attended a synod in Constantinople in 394, and died shortly thereafter O...

Thursday after Epiphany Saint of the Day: St. Adrian the Abbot, 637-710; born in Africa, and became  abbot of the monastery at Nerida, near Naples; turned down an appointment to become Archbishop of Canterbury, but accompanied St. Theodore when  he was appointed to the post; Theodore appointed Adrian abbot of Saints Peter and Paul Monastery (later known as St. Augustine's) in Canterbury;...

Wednesday after Epiphany Saint of the Day: St. Gudula, 646-712; daughter of Count Witger and St. Amalberga; educated by  St. Gertrude of Nivelles ; lived in the family castle until Gertrude died; dedicated her life to God in 664; known for her great charity; patroness of Brussels, Belgium, and of single laywomen Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/8/25 Gospel: Mark 6:45-52

Tuesday after Epiphany Optional Memorial of St. Raymond of Pennafort, 1175-1275; became a Dominican, and founded the Order of Our Lady of Ransom; went with King James to Majorca to preach; King James, however, was ruled by his passions, and set a bad example; Raymond commanded the king to send the woman away; the king said that he would, but he did not; Saint Raymond spread his cloak upon the wate...

Monday after Epiphany Saint of the Day: St. Peter of Canterbury; a  monk in the monastery of St. Andrew's, Rome, and was chosen by Pope St. Gregory the Great to embark with St. Augustine of Canterbury and other monks on the missionary enterprise to England in 596; became the first  abbot of the monastery of Saints. Peter and Paul at  Canterbury in 602; died by drowning at Ambleteu,...

Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord Twelfth Day of Christmas Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/5/25 Gospel: Matthew 2:1-12

Eleventh Day of Christmas Memorial of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 1774-1821; raised Episcopalian, but knew the value of prayer, scripture, and a nightly examination of conscience; married William Magee Seton when she was 19, and bore him five children before he died of tuberculosis; while in Italy with her dying husband, she saw Catholicity in action through friends; she became Catholic because of be...

Tenth Day of Christmas Optional Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/3/25 Gospel: John 1:29-34

Ninth Day of Christmas Memorial of Saints Basil the Great (330-379) and Gregory Nazianzen (329-390); good friends, who met at university; Basil became bishop of Caesarea in 374, and he was called upon to refute the Arian heresy, which held that Jesus was not God; when one town was falling away from the faith, Basil ordained Gregory bishop and sent him there; Basil died at age 49; Gregory resigned...

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Eighth Day of Christmas Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 1/1/25 Gospel: Luke 2:16-21

Seventh Day of Christmas Optional Memorial of Pope St. Sylvester I; became pope in 314 A.D.; preserved the essential independence of the Church in the face of the overpowering figure of the Emperor Constantine; the bishops generally remained loyal to the Holy See, and at times expressed apologies to Sylvester for undertaking important ecclesiastical projects at the urging of Constantine; Sylvester...

Sixth Day of Christmas Saint of the Day: St. Egwin of Evesham; English noble who became bishop of Worcester, England, in 692. thought by his clergy to be too strict; went to Rome, and on his return founded Evesham Monastery, prompted by a vision of Mary; in 709, Egwin returned to Rome, and died in 717 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/30/24 Gospel: Luke 2:36-40

Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph Fifth Day of Christmas Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/29/24 Gospel: Luke 2:41-52