Daybreak

Thursday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Francis Borgia, 1510-1572; Spanish nobleman; when widowed, he became a Jesuit priest; he only complained when someone attempted to treat as if he were still a nobleman; ultimately, he preached everywhere, and advised many important people; he helped to spread the Society of Jesus across Spain and Portugal Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/10/24 Gospel: Luke 11:5-13

Wednesday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Denis and companions; regarded as the first bishop of Paris; Denis was sent to Gaul from Rome in the third century and beheaded in the persecution under Emperor Valerius in 258; one legend says that he was martyred on Montmartre in Paris, and then carried his head to a village northeast of the city; St. Genevieve built a basilica over his tomb in the Sixth Century Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/9/24 Gospel: Luke 11:1-4

Tuesday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Keyne; she lived in the Fifth Century, one of the 24 children of King Brychan of Brecknock, Wales; refused several offers of marriage, and became a hermitess; after living for several years on the banks of the Severn River in Somersetshire, England--during which she traveled widely--her nephew persuaded her to return to Wales; she founded numerous churches in in South Wales, Cornwall, and, perhaps, Somerset Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/8/24 Gospel: Luke 10:38-42

Monday of the 27th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary; originally named, "Our Lady of Victory," in honor of the Christian defeat of the Turks at the battle of LePanto Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/7/24 Gospel: Luke 10:25-37

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/6/24 Gospel: Mark 10:2-16

Saturday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos, 1819-1867; born in southern Bavaria; came to the United States in 1843 to serve German-speaking Catholics; during the Civil War, he appealed to President Lincoln not to draft his Redemptorist students; died of yellow fever, contracted while visiting the sick Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/5/24 Gospel: Luke 10:17-24

Friday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Francis of Assisi, 1181-1226; a poor little man who astounded and inspired the Church by taking the gospel literally—not in a narrow fundamentalist sense, but by actually following all that Jesus said and did, joyfully, without limit, and without a sense of self-importance; he had no intention of founding an order, but once it began he protected it and accepted all the legal structures needed to support it; his devotion and loyalty to the Church were absolute; two years before his death he received the stigmata, the real and painful wounds of Christ in his hands, feet and side Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/4/24 Gospel: Luke 10:13-16

Thursday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Theodora Guérin, 1798-1856; born in France; joined the Sisters of Providence in 1823; at the invitation of the bishop of Vincennes, Indiana, Sister Theodora and five sisters were sent to St. Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana, in 1840, to teach and care for the sick poor; they persevered despite fires, crop failures, prejudice against Catholic women religious, misunderstandings, and separation from their original religious congregation; she once told her sisters, "With Jesus, what shall we have to fear?” Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/3/24 Gospel: Luke 10:1-12

Wednesday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of the Guardian Angels Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/2/24 Gospel: Matthew 18:1-5, 10

Tuesday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, 1873-1897; lived a cloistered life of obscurity in the convent of Lisieux, France, and her preference for hidden sacrifice converted souls; in her own words, she came to the Carmel convent “to save souls and pray for priests”; shortly before her death of tuberculosis, she wrote, “I want to spend my heaven doing good on earth” Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 10/1/24 Gospel: Luke 9:51-56

Monday of the 26th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Jerome, 345-420; scripture scholar; translated most of the Old Testament from the Hebrew, and made a translation of the Bible which came to be called the Vulgate; traveled extensively in Palestine, and settled in Bethlehem, living in a cave believed to have been Christ's birthplace Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/30/24 Gospel: Luke 9:46-50

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/29/24 Gospel: Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48

Saturday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Wenceslaus, 907-929; son of the duke of Bohemia, and raised by his grandmother, Ludmilla, who was murdered; Wenceslaus assumed leadership of the government, and worked toward unification within Bohemia, support of the Church, and peace-making negotiations with Germany; he was assassinated by his brother Boleslav and companions Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/28/24 Gospel: Luke 9:43-45

Friday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Vincent de Paul, 1580-1660; born in Gascony, France, and came to lead what became known as the Congregation of the Mission, or the Vincentians; he later established confraternities of charity for the spiritual and physical relief of the poor and sick of each parish; with the help of Saint Louise de Marillac, he founded the Daughters of Charity; he was a pioneer in clerical training and was instrumental in establishing seminaries; patron of all charitable societies Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/27/24 Gospel: Luke 9:18-22

Thursday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of Saints Cosmas and Damian; Arab-born Christians who were brothers, known for their skill in medicine; they refused payment for their services; their prominence made them targets in the persecution of Diocletian; they were tortured and killed in about 283; patron saints of pharmacists Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/26/24 Gospel: Luk 9:7-9

Wednesday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Albert of Jerusalem, 1149-1215; born in Parma, Italy; became a canon of Holy Cross Abbey in Mortoba; later appointed bishop of Bobbio, Italy, then to the see of Vercelli, where he served as a mediator between the pope and the emperor; in 1205, he was appointed patriarch of Jerusalem; near Albert's residence was Mount Carmel, where a group of hermits lived in separate caves; they asked Albert to provide them with a rule of life, which constituted the beginning of the Carmelite order; Albert was assassinated prior to leaving Palestine for the general Lateran council; he is the patron of the Carmelite orders Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/25/24 Gospel: Luke 9:1-6

Tuesday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Rupert of Salzburg; bishop of Worms when Childeric III asked that he evangelize Bavaria; he converted Duke Theodo II, and the duke gave him land at Iuvavum where he established the Abbey of St. Peter and the Nonnberg Convent; Rupert also converted pagan temples into Christian churches and established the salt-mining industry from which the city takes its present name, Salzburg Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/24/24 Gospel: Luke 8:19-21

Monday of the 25th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, better known as Padre Pio, 1887-1968; joined the Capuchins at the age of 15; in 1918, as he was making his thanksgiving after Mass, Padre Pio had a vision of Jesus; when the vision ended, he had the stigmata in his hands, feet, and side; the authenticity of the stigmata was questioned, with restrictions placed upon Padre Pio, which were soon reversed; busloads of people came to see him, and his confessional ministry soon took ten hours per day; Padre Pio died in 1968 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/23/24 Gospel: Luke 8:16-18

25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/22/24 Gospel: Mark 9:30-37

Feast of St. Matthew, apostle Saturday of the 24th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 9/21/24 Gospel: Matthew 9:9-13