Today, December 10, is the memorial of Our Lady of Loreto. The title Our Lady of Loreto refers to the Holy House of Loreto, the house in which Mary was born, and where the Annunciation occurred, and to an ancient statue of Our Lady which is found there. Tradition says that a band of angels …
Jesus said to the crowds:“Amen, I say to you,among those born of womenthere has been none greater than John the Baptist;yet the least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he.From the days of John the Baptist until now,the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence,and the violent are taking it by force.All the prophets and …
Pope Francis declared that the church will be dedicating the year to St. Joseph, from the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception 2020 to the same feast in 2021. In his Apostolic Letter, Patris corde (With a Father’s Heart), Pope Francis described St. Joseph as a beloved father, a tender and loving father, an obedient father, …
Today, December 9, is the memorial of Saint Juan Diego. Visionary of Our Lady of Guadalupe. He was born Juan Diego Cuāuhtlahtoātzin in 1474 to an impoverished free man in a strongly class-conscious society. He was a farm worker, field laborer, and mat maker. He was married to Maria Lucia and they had no children. …
Jesus said to the crowds:“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,and I will give you rest.Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,for I am meek and humble of heart;and you will find rest for yourselves.For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” Matthew 11:28-30 Point for ReflectionJesus invites us …
Today, December 8, is the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. Today the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, the solemn dogma defined by Blessed Pope Pius IX in 1854. Through the centuries the Church has become ever more aware that Mary, “full of grace” through God, was redeemed from the moment of her …
The angel Gabriel was sent from Godto a town of Galilee called Nazareth,to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,of the house of David,and the virgin’s name was Mary.And coming to her, he said,“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”But she was greatly troubled at what was saidand pondered what sort of …
Today, December 7, is the memorial of Saint Ambrose. Doctor of the Church. Ambrose was born to the Roman nobility. He was the brother of Saint Marcellina and Saint Satyrus. He was educated in the classics, Greek, and philosophy at Rome, Italy. When the bishop of Milan died, a dispute over his replacement led …
One day as Jesus was teaching,Pharisees and teachers of the law,who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem,were sitting there,and the power of the Lord was with him for healing.And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed;they were trying to bring him in and set him in …
The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ the Son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;he will prepare your way.A voice of one crying out in the desert:“Prepare the way of the Lord,make straight his paths.”John the Baptist appeared in the desertproclaiming a …