Daybreak

Thursday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Palladius, 408-450; first bishop of Ireland, immediate predecessor to St. Patrick; sent by Pope Celestine I to preach to the Irish, but made little impact; sailed for Scotland to preach among the Picts, and died shortly after his arrival Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/7/22 Gospel: Matthew 10:7-15

Wednesday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Maria Goretti, 1890-1902; at nearly 12 years of age, she was attacked by a young man, Alessandro, who tried to violate her; in the struggle, he stabbed her; her last hours were marked by concern for her mother, forgiveness of her murderer, and reception of Viaticum; while in prison, Alessandro had a vision of Maria offering him f...

Tuesday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Portugal, 1271-1336; married to Denis, king of Portugal; practiced piety, and helped pilgrims, strangers, the sick, and the poor; after the death of her husband, she retired as a Franciscan tertiary to a monastery of Poor Clares Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/5/22 Gospel: Matthew 9:32-38

Independence Day in the United States (Optional Memorial) Monday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/4/22 Gospel: Matthew 9:18-26

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/3/22 Gospel: Luke 10:1-12, 17-20

Saturday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Otto of Bamberg, 1060-1139; appointed bishop of Bamberg in 1103, consecrated by Pope Paschal II in 1108; Otto was instrumental in the reconciliation between the Pope and Emperor Henry V; headed a missionary effort to Pomerania, and is known as the Apostle of Pomerania Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/2/22 Gospel: Matthew 9...

Friday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Junipero Serra, 1713-1784; born in Majorca, became a Franciscan, and landed in Mexico in 1750; spent the rest of life working for the conversion of the peoples of the New World Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/1/22 Gospel: Matthew 9:9-13

Thursday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of the First Martyrs of the Church of Rome; when Rome burned in 64 A.D., Nero used the Christians as scapegoats, and executed many Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/30/22 Gospel: Matthew 9:1-8

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul Wednesday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/29/22 Gospel: Matthew 16:13-19

Tuesday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Irenaeus, 130-202; bishop of Lyons, opposed the heretic Gnostics, contrasting their teachings with those of the apostles and the texts of Holy Scripture; through his work, the influence of the Gnostics gradually ended Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/28/22 Gospel: Matthew 8:23-27

Monday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Cyril of Alexandria, 378-444; as archbishop of Alexandria, he fought Nestorianism, a heresy which taught that there were two persons in Christ, one human and one divine; at the Council of Ephesus in 431, Cyril proclaimed Mary truly the "God-bearer," from whence comes her traditional title, "Mother of God" Office of Readings and Morn...

13th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/26/22 Gospel: Luke 9:51-62

Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of the Virgin Mary Saturday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/25/22 Gospel: Luke 2:41-51

Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Friday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/24/22 Gospel: Luke 15:3-7

Solemnity of the Birth of St. John the Baptist Thursday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/23/22 Gospel: Luke 1:57-66, 80

Wednesday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Thomas More, 1478-1535, and St. John Fisher, 1469-1535; More, chancellor of England, and Fisher, a bishop, both refused to condone the divorce of King Henry VIII from Catherine of Aragon to marry Anne Boleyn, and also refused to acknowledge Henry as supreme head of the Church of England; they were executed about two weeks apart O...

Tuesday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, 1568-1591; decided at age 8 to enter religious life, joined the Jesuits at 18; served in a hospital during the plague of 1587 in Milan, caught it himself, and died at the age of 23; received last rites from St. Robert Bellarmine Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/21/22 Gospel: Matthew 7:6, 12-14

Monday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Adalbert of Magdeburg, 910-981; German Benedictine monk, consecrated a bishop and sent to Russia in 961, but was forced to flee; spent four years in Mainz, and was then named abbot of Weissenburg and bishop of Magdeburg--a diocese created to provide missionary programs for the Slavs Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/20/22 Gos...

Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ - Corpus Christi Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/19/22 Gospel: Luke 9:11-17

Saturday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Gregory Barbarigo, 1625-1697; originally embraced a diplomatic career, but became a priest, then the first bishop of Bergamo, and eventually a Cardinal; seminaries at Bergamo and Padua were enlarged under his rule, and he added a library and printing press to the Padua seminary Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/18/22 Gospel...

Friday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Hypatius of Bithynia, 366-450; hermit, known as the "Scholar of Christ"; sheltered people whose lives were threatened by Nestorian heretics; credited with halting a revival of the Olympic games because their pagan origins; known for miracles and prophecies Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/17/22 Gospel: Matthew 6:19-23

Thursday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Teresa of Portugal, 1178-1250; married a cousin, but the marriage was declared invalid due to consanguinity; founded a Benedictine monastery, replaced the monks with nuns, and expanded it to accommodate 300 nuns, and she lived there Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/16/22 Gospel: Matthew 6:7-15

Wednesday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. John Friancis Regis, 1597-1640; entered the Jesuits at age 18; after ordination, he did missionary work in various French towns; gave great attention to the poor; he greatly desired to serve the Native Americans in Canada, but spent his days working in the most desolate parts of France; spent his last four years preaching and organi...

Tuesday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Joseph the Hymnographer, 810-886; the most prolific of the Greek hymn writers; native of Sicily, but abandoned the island in 830 in the wake of an invasion by the Arabs; founded a monastery in Constantinople; exiled for his defense of icons during the Iconoclast persecution Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/14/22 Gospel: Mat...

Monday of the 11th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Anthony of Padua, 1195-1231; joined the Franciscans, and prepared to preach to the Moors, but illness prevented this; first friar to teach theology to the other friars. called to preach to the Abigensians in France; spent his last days in a sort of treehouse hermitage Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 6/13/22 Gospel: Matthew 5:38-42