Thursday, February 14, 2013
St. Valentine, Priest and Martyr
Legend states that Valentine, along with St. Marius, aided the Christian martyrs during the Claudian persecution. In addition to his other edicts against helping Christians, Claudius had also issued a decree forbidding marriage. In order to increase troops for his army, he forbade young men to marry, believing that single men made better soldiers than […]
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Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Ash Wednesday—Lent Begins
[Station at St. Sabina.] Ash Wednesday is from a liturgical point of view one of the most important days of the year. In the first place this day opens the liturgical season of Lent, which formerly began with the First Sunday and comprised only thirty-six days. The addition of Wednesday and the three following days […]
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Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Seven Holy Founders of the Servite Order
These seven men were the founders of the Servite Order, a community instituted for the special purpose of cultivating the spirit of penance and contemplating the passion of Christ and Mary’s Seven Sorrows. Due to the spirit of humility cherished by the members of the Order, their accomplishments are not too widely known. But in […]
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Monday, February 11, 2013
Holy Father to Retire
For the first time in 600 years (Celestine V was the last, on December 13, 1294), a Pope is retiring. Benedict XVI cited declining health as the reason for his decision. Let us all pray for him.
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The Apparition of Our Lady of Lourdes
The many miracles which have been performed through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin at Lourdes prompted the Church to institute a special commemorative feast, the “Apparition of the Immaculate Virgin Mary.” The Office gives the historical background. Four years after the promulgation of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception (1854), the Blessed Virgin appeared […]
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Sunday, February 10, 2013
Quinquagesima Sunday
[Station at St. Peter’s (Vatican).] Quinquagesima is the name used in the Western Church for the Sunday before Ash Wednesday. It was also called Quinquagesima Sunday, Quinquagesimae, Estomihi, or Shrove Sunday. The name Quinquagesima originates from Latin quinquagesimus (fiftieth), referring to the fifty days before Easter Day using inclusive counting which counts both Sundays (normal […]
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Saturday, February 9, 2013
St. Cyril, Confessor & Doctor of the Church; St. Apollonia, Virgin & Martyr
St. Cyril is one of the great Greek fathers of the Church. He was chosen by divine Providence to be the shield and champion of the Church against Nestorius, who denied the unity of person in Christ. If this heresy had succeeded, Mary would not be called the Mother of God. Excepting Sts. Athanasius and […]
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Friday, February 8, 2013
St. John of Matha, Confessor
John of Matha, the founder of the Trinitarian Order, was born at Faucon, on the borders of Provence, in France. He was trained as a young noble in horsemanship and the use of arms, decided to study for the priesthood, and was ordained in Paris. After some years in solitude, he conceived the idea of […]
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Thursday, February 7, 2013
St. Romuald, Abbot
St. Romuald, the founder of the Camaldolese Order, could not decide for a considerable time whether to serve God in a religious life or to remain in the world. After his father killed a relative in a duel at which Romuald was forced to be present, he went to the monastery of St. Apollinaris, near […]
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Wednesday, February 6, 2013
St. Titus, Bishop & Confessor; St. Dorothy, Virgin & Martyr
St. Titus, a convert from paganism, was a fellow laborer of St. Paul on many apostolic missions. St. Paul later made him bishop of Crete, a difficult charge because of the character of the inhabitants and the spread of erroneous doctrines on that island. St. Paul’s writings tell us that St. Titus rejoiced to discover […]
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