Praying the Lauds - Your Daily Christian Morning Prayer

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 15, 2023 | Memorial of St. Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church Bonaventure was born at Bagnoregio in Etruria in about 1218. He became a Franciscan in 1243 and studied philosophy and theology at the University of Paris. He became a famous teacher and philosopher, part of the extraordinary intellectual flowering of the 13th century. He was a friend and colleag...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 14, 2023 | Friday in the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time "Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves." - Mt. 10:16 In sending out the Twelve, Jesus points out to them the harms and dangers that they could face in their mission. They may face oppositions and rejections by their closest relations, but this...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 13, 2023 | Thursday in the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time "Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give." - Mt. 10:8b Upon sending them out in His name, Jesus instructs the Twelve to bless the people who will welcome them with open hearts by their works of healing and other miracles, all without cost. In turn, upon seeing their poverty, the people w...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 12, 2023 | Memorial of Sts. Louis and Zelie Martin Sts. Louis (1823-1894) and Zélie (1831-1877) Martin are best remembered as the parents of St. Thérèse of Lisieux (the Little Flower), but they are models of holiness in their own right. They are only the second married couple to be canonized. The couple lived in Alençon, France and had nine children out of whom five...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 11, 2023 | Memorial of St. Benedict, Abbot "How wonderful is God among his saints: come, let us adore him." - Invitatory antiphon Today is the Memorial of St. Benedict (480-547), who was born at Nursia in Umbria in about 480 and was sent to Rome to be educated, but soon left the world to live a solitary life at Subiaco. After living in a cave in the mountains for two...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 10, 2023 | Monday in the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time "While Jesus was speaking, an official came forward, knelt down before him, and said, 'My daughter has just died. But come, lay your hand on her, and she will live.'" - Mt. 9:18 A father pleas for the life of his child. A woman reaches out to be healed from her sickness. Jesus responds to both and gained the h...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 9, 2023 | Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves." - Mt. 11:29 The yoke of Christ is not really a yoke but a bond of love, which joins us to Him, and through Him, to our loving Father in heaven. Once we grasp firm and lovingly the crosses we carry each day,...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 8, 2023 | Saturday Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary "Let us listen for the voice of the Lord and enter into his peace." - invitatory antiphon Saturdays stand out among those days dedicated to the Virgin Mary. These are designated as memorials of the Blessed Virgin Mary. "Whatever its historical origins may be, today the memorial rightly emphasizes certain values t...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 7, 2023 | Friday in the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time "Those who are well, do not need a physician, but the sick do... I did not come to call the righteous but sinners." - Mt. 9:12,13b Upon Jesus' invitation, Matthew rises from his tax collector's post and follows his now-Lord and Master. Together with his friends, they partook of a wonderful meal with Jesus as th...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 6, 2023 | Memorial of Saint Maria Goretti, Virgin, Martyr "Come, let us adore the Lord, for he is our God." - Invitatory antiphon St. Maria Goretti was born near Ancona (Italy) in 1890, the daughter of a poor peasant family. Maria was well known to her neighbors for her cheerfulness and piety. When she was twelve, she was a victim of assault. She preferred to die rat...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 5, 2023 | Memorial of Saint Antony Mary Zaccaria, Priest "Let us adore the Lord, for it is he who made us." - Invitatory antiphon St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria (1502-1539) was born in Cremona in Lombardy and started by studying medicine, but soon decided to become a priest instead and was ordained in 1528. He founded the Congregation of Clerks Regular of St. Paul, genera...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 4, 2023 | Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal "The Lord is a great king: come, let us adore him." - Invitatory antiphon St. Elizabeth was the daughter of King Peter III of Aragón and was named after her great-aunt, St Elizabeth of Hungary. She was married to King Denis of Portugal, by whom she had two children. She set up hospitals, orphanages, and other institutio...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 3, 2023 | Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle "The Lord is the King of apostles: come, let us adore him." - Invitatory antiphon The Feast of St. Thomas, the Apostle who at first did not believe, has become for the Church one of the first witnesses to her faith. She is fond of appealing to his testimony and frequently puts in our mouths those simple words whereby he expresse...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 2, 2023 | Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." - Mt. 10:39 We sometimes fall into the trap of seeking the pleasures and comforts of this world, which could not satisfy our deepest need for God. It is only when we truly let go of our desires for the sake of God's most holy will t...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - August 2, 2023 | Wednesday in the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time “The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” Matthew 13:44 What is your ultimate desire in life? We are on a constant journey in life towards wholeness. This search takes us each to di...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - July 1, 2023 | Saturday Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary "Let us listen for the voice of the Lord and enter into his peace." - invitatory antiphon Saturdays stand out among those days dedicated to the Virgin Mary. These are designated as memorials of the Blessed Virgin Mary. "Whatever its historical origins may be, today the memorial rightly emphasizes certain values t...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 30, 2023 | Memorial of the First Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church "Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs." - invitatory antiphon The Optional Memorial of the First Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church is in honor of the nameless followers of Christ brutally killed by the mad Emperor Nero as scapegoats for the fire in Rome. The pagan historian Tacitus and St. C...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 29, 2023 | Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles "Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs." - invitatory antiphon Today the Church universally celebrates the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles (d. 64-67). Veneration of the two great Apostles, Saints Peter and Paul, has its roots in the very foundations of the Church. They are the solid rock...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 28, 2023 | Memorial of St. Ireneaus, Bishop, Martyr and Doctor of the Church "Come, let us worship Christ, the King of martyrs." - invitatory antiphon The Church celebrates the Memorial of St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Bishop and Martyr (130-202). He was born in Asia Minor around the year 140. It is not known when he came to Gaul. He was a priest of the Church of Lyons duri...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 27, 2023 | Memorial of St. Cyril of Alexandria, Bishop and Doctor of the Church "I will sing to you, O Lord, and I will walk in the way of perfection." - invitatory antiphon Today is the Optional Memorial of St. Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria (376-444). Cyril was one of the metropolitan sees of the Christian Church in the east, was one of the great defenders of the f...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 26, 2023 | Monday in the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time "Stop judging, that you may not be judged. For as you judge, so will you be judged" - Mt. 7:1-2 It is sometimes easier to point out the tiny and insignificant faults of others and trivialize the very serious sins that we have. Jesus invites us for an honest self-reflection so that we can see ourselves as we truly...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 25, 2023 | Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time "Do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." - Mt. 10:31 The Lord is always at our side and He has our best interest in mind. Therefore let us constantly be on the lookout for anything that can cause us to turn away from Him and to strive to let go of anything that hinders us to become the people He wants us to...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 24, 2023 | Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist "What, then, will this child be?" - Luke 1:79 With the birth of John the Baptist, a new era has dawned on Israel. For God's chosen people, the period of waiting is over, and God's promises are now being fulfilled. The barren womb of Elizabeth bears and give birth to a child as announced by Archangel Gabriel...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 23, 2023 | Friday in the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time "Where your treasure is, there also will your heart be." - Mt. 6:21 We are easily deceived by the lures and enticements of earthly things. However, if we want to be truly happy, let us net set our hearts on material trappings that enslave. Through his teachings, healings, miracles, and acts of forgiveness, Jesus...

LISTEN | Morning Prayer - June 22, 2023 | Memorial of St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More, Martyrs John Fisher studied Theology in Cambridge (England) and became Bishop of Rochester. His friend, Thomas More, wrote of him, 'I reckon in this realm no one man, in wisdom, learning and long approved virtue together, meet to be matched and compared with him.' Thomas More was born in London, England and...