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Friday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Albert the Great, 1206-1280; the eldest son of a powerful and wealthy German lord of military rank; entered the Dominicans, and proceeded  to write a compendium of all knowledge--natural science, logic, rhetoric, mathematics, astronomy, ethics, economics, politics, and metaphysics; it took him 20 years to complete, while he served a...

Thursday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Lawrence O'Toole, 1128-1180; born at Leinster; taken in a raid, and surrendered to the bishop of Glendalough; he became a monk, and was named archbishop of Dublin in 1161; he aided in negotiations with England following their raid of Ireland; attended the General Lateran Council in Rome in 1179; he was named papal legate to Ireland;...

Wednesday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, 1850-1917; did charitable work at the House of Providence Orphanage in Cadogno, Italy, made her vows there, and took the religious habit; when the orphanage was closed, the bishop named Frances the prioress of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart; Pope Leo XIII urged Frances to go to New York City to work wit...

Tuesday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Josaphat, 1580-1623; born in what is now Ukraine, became a Basilian monk, then a priest, and was soon known as a preacher and ascetic; as bishop of Vitebsk and archbishop of Polotsk, he found that most monks did not desire reunion with Rome; however, Josaphat won the greater portion of Orthodox in that area to the union; but in the followin...

Monday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Martin of Tours, 316-397; born in what is now Hungary, raised in Italy; after being discharged from the army, he became a monk; he established what may have been the first French monastery; the people of Tours demanded that he become their bishop, so they lured him to the city on a ruse; he was taken to the church, where he reluctantly conse...

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/10/24 Gospel: Mark 12:38-44

Friday of the 31st week in Ordinary Time Saints of the Day: The Four Crowned Martyrs; there were two separate groups who bore this name; one was Castorius, Claudius, Nicostratus, and Symphorian; they were carvers who refused to carve a statue of a pagan god; they were tortured and slain in Pannonia; the other group was Carpophorus, Secundius, Severian, and Victorinus; they died at Albano, Italy, a...

Thursday of the 31st Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Engelbert; son of the Count of Berg; excommunicated, but he was restored to union with the Church and became archbishop of Cologne in 1217 at the age of 30; tutor to the son of Emperor Frederick II; crowned Henry king of the Romans in 1222; prevented his cousin Frederick from stealing from the nuns of Essen, and Frederick killed him...

Wednesday of the 31st Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Iltyd; one of the most revered saints of Wales; traditionally believed to be a cousin of the legendary King Arthur; Iltyd and his wife lived as members of a Glamorgan chief's army until they became  hermits near the river Nadafan; he studied with St. Dudricius and founded a great abbey near Glamorgan, Wales; he was a disciple of St....

Tuesday of the 31st Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Elizabeth; a daughter of the line of Aaron, and the wife of Zechariah, was "righteous before God" and was "blameless" but childless; she was a cousin to the Blessed Virgin Mary; after Zechariah's prayers in the temple, Elizabeth became pregnant; Mary visited Elizabeth, and the baby leapt in Elizabeth's womb; she proclaimed to Mary, "B...

Monday of the 31st Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Charles Borromeo, 1538-1584; belonged to a noble family, but desired to dedicate himself to the Church; as bishop of Milan, Charles deserves the credit for keeping the Council of Trent in session when at several points it was on the verge of breaking up; the archdiocese of Milan was in need of reform in every phase of Catholic life; Charles...

31st Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/3/24 Gospel: Mark 12:28b-34

Commemoration of All of the Faithful Departed - All Souls Day Saturday of the 30th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/2/24 Gospel: John 6:37-40

Solemnity of All Saints Friday of the 30th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/1/24 Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12a

Thursday of the 30th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Wolfgang; born in Swabia, Germany, in the Tenth Century; ordained in 971, and set out with a group of monks to preach to the Magyars of Hungary; the following year, he was named bishop of Regensburg; he was distinguished by his reforming zeal and his statesmanship; he promoted education, preached enthusiastically, and was renowned fo...

Wednesday of the 30th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, 1532-1617; born in Segovia, Spain; accepted as a lay brother by the Jesuits in 1571; he labored as a hall porter at Montesion College on the island of Majorca for 24 years; many came to him for advice and direction; he experienced many spiritual consolations, and wrote religious treatises; Alphonsus died after a...

Tuesday of the 30th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Abraham of Rostov; lived in the 10th and 11th Centuries in Russia; followed the pagan beliefs of the region, but in a serious illness, he called upon Christ, and was miraculously healed; he became a Christian, was baptized, and became a monk; he went to the city of Rostov, where he began his apostolate among the pagans; he built two p...

Feast of Saints Simon and Jude, apostles Monday of the 30th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/28/24 Gospel: Luke 6:12-16

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/27/24 Gospel: Mark 10:46-52

Saturday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Alfred the Great, 848-899; a great scholar, translating classics for his people, and early on seemed destined for a career in the Church; instead, he became king and was forced to spend most of his reign in conflict with the Danes; his work as a patron of the arts, literature, and especially the Church made him a beloved figure in En...

Friday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. John Houghton, 1486-1535; a native of Essex, he graduated from Cambridge and became a parish priest; he then joined the Carthusians; he opposed Henry VIII's Acts of Succession and Supremacy, and was arrested, but later released; he was then the first to refuse to sign the Oath of Supremacy; he was dragged through the streets and execut...

Thursday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Anthony Mary Claret, 1807-1870; as a weaver in Barcelona, he learned Latin and printing; ordained at 28, and became a popular preacher; at age 42, he founded a religious institute of missionaries beginning with five young priests, known today as the Claretians; appointed to head the archdiocese of Santiago, Cuba, where he preached...

Wednesday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. John of Capistrano, 1386-1456; became governor of Perugia at age 26; he soon decided to take his life in a different direction--he joined the Franciscan novitiate, and was ordained a priest at age 34; his preaching drew large crowds in an age of religious apathy and confusion; commissioned to preach a crusade for the defense of E...

Tuesday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of Pope St. John Paul II, 1920-2005; born in Poland, ordained in 1946, became auxiliary bishop of Krakow in 1958, archbishop of Krakow in 1964, and a cardinal three years later; elected pope in 1978, the first non-Italian pope in 455 years; promoted ecumenical and interfaith relations; encouraged the growth of the Solidarity movement in P...

Monday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Hilarion, 291-371; disciple of St. Anthony and companion of St. Hesychius; after spending time with St. Anthony, he became a hermit in 356; he returned to St. Anthony, and found that his fame had spread there; he tried to escape notice, but crowds flocked to see him whenever he was in there area; he performed many miracles; died on Cyp...