இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் ஆகஸ்ட் 01

 Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

புனித அல்போன்ஸ் மரிய லிகோரி (St. Alphonsus Liguori)

ஆயர், மறைவல்லுநர் (Bishop and Doctor of the Church) 

பாதுகாவல்: ஒப்புரவு தரும் அருள்தந்தையர் (Confessor), நல்லொழுக்க நீதி சார் இறையியலர்(Moral theologians)

பிறப்பு 

27 செப்டம்பர் 1696

நேயாபல், இத்தாலி (Marinella bei Neapel, Italien)

 இறப்பு 

01 ஆகஸ்டு 1787

நேயாபல்(Nocera dei Pagani bei Neapel)

முத்திபேறுபட்டம்: 1816, திருத்தந்தை 7ஆம் பயஸ்

புனிதர்பட்டம்: 29 மே 1839, திருத்தந்தை 16 ஆம் கிரகோரி

ஆயர்பட்டம்: 1762, திருத்தந்தை 13 ஆம் கிளமெண்ட், வடக்கு நேயாபல் (Diocese S.Agatha dei Goti im Norden von Neapel)

இவர் உரோமன் சட்டத்திலும், திருச்சபை சட்டத்திலும் பட்டம் பெற்றார். மறைபரப்பு பணியில் ஆர்வம் கொண்டிருந்தார். இதனால் குருத்துவ வாழ்விற்கு தன்னை ஈடுபடுத்தினார். இவரின் வாழ்வு மக்களிடையே பல தாக்கத்தை ஏற்படுத்தியது. மிக சிறப்பான இவரின் மறைபரப்புப் பணியால், நேப்பிள்ஸ் நகர் ஆயராக தேர்ந்தெடுக்கப்பட்டார். பின்னர் "புனித இரட்சகர்" என்ற பெயரில் ஒரு துறவற சபையை நிறுவினார். மக்களிடையே கிறிஸ்துவ வாழ்வை வளப்படுத்த, சிறப்பான மறையுரையை ஆற்றினார். ஒழுக்க நெறி சார்ந்த இறையியல் நூல்கள் பல எழுதினார். இவர் தலைசிறந்த இறையியல் ஆசிரியராகவும் பணியாற்றினார். பின்னர் ஆயர் பொறுப்பிலிருந்து விலகினார். தான் தொடங்கிய துறவற சபையில் வாழ்ந்தார். மரியன்னையின்மீது பக்தி, திவ்ய நற்கருணை சந்திப்பு, சிலுவைப்பாதை செய்தல் இவைகளில் தன் சபையிலுள்ளவர்களை ஈடுபடுத்தினார். எவற்றின் மீதும் பற்றுக்கொள்ளக்கூடாது என்பதை வலியுறுத்தினார். 

இவர் பல பயணங்களை மேற்கொண்டு, நேப்பிள்ஸ் நாட்டில் சிறப்பான மறையுரையை ஆற்றி நன்மைகள் பல செய்தார், இவர் வயது முதிர்ந்தவராய் இருந்ததால் பார்வையிழந்து காணப்பட்டார். இதனால் சிலர் இவரை தவறான வழியில் நடத்தினர். எதிரிகளின் சூழ்ச்சியால், சில முக்கிய ஒப்பந்தங்களில் தெரியாமல், தவறாக கையொப்பமிட்டார். இதனால் இவரின் சபையில் பல பிளவுகள் உண்டானது. இதனால் அல்போன்ஸ் மனமுடைந்து, மிக வேதனை அடைந்தார். சில உறவுகளையும் இழந்தார். நோயினால் தாக்கப்பட்டு கொடுமையான வேதனையை அனுபவித்த அல்போன்ஸ் தனது 83 ஆம் வயதுவரை தன் சபையை சேர்ந்தவர்களாலேயே, ஒதுக்கி வைக்கப்பட்டார். இயேசுவின் பாடுகளை இடைவிடாமல் தனது இறுதி நாட்களில் அனுபவித்து இறைவனடி சேர்ந்தார். 

Also known as

Alfonso, Alfons, Alfontso, Alphonse, Alfonsu, Afonso

Profile

Born to the nobility, Alphonsus was a child prodigy; he became extremely well-educated, and received his doctorate in law from the University of Naples at age 16. He had his own legal practice by age 21, and was soon one of the leading lawyers in Naples, though he never attended court without having attended Mass first. He loved music, could play the harpsichord, and often attended the opera, though he frequently listened without bothering to watch the over-done staging. As he matured and learned more and more of the world, he liked it less and less, and finally felt a call to religious life. He declined an arranged marriage, studied theology, and was ordained at age 29.

Preacher and home missioner around Naples. Noted for his simple, clear, direct style of preaching, and his gentle, understanding way in the confessional. Writer on asceticism, theology, and history; master theologian. He was often opposed by Church officials for a perceived laxity toward sinners, and by government officials who opposed anything religious. Founded the Redemptoristines women's order in Scala in 1730. Founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Liguorians; Redemptorists) at Scala, Italy in 1732.

Appointed bishop of the diocese of Sant'Agata de' Goti, Italy by Pope Clement XIII in 1762. Worked to reform the clergy and revitalize the faithful in a diocese with a bad reputation. He was afflicted with severe rheumatism, and often could barely move or raise his chin from his chest. In 1775 he resigned his see due to ill health, and went into what he thought would be a prayerful retirement.

In 1777 the royal government threatened to disband his Redemptorists, claiming that they were covertly carrying on the work of the Jesuits, who had been suppressed in 1773. Calling on his knowledge of the Congregation, his background in thelogy, and his skills as a lawyer, Alphonsus defended the Redemptorists so well that they obtained the king's approval. However, by this point Alphonsus was nearly blind, and was tricked into giving his approval to a revised Rule for the Congregation, one that suited the king and the anti-clerical government. When Pope Pius VI saw the changes, he condemned it, and removed Alphonsus from his position as leader of the Order. This caused Alphonsus a crisis in confidence and faith that took years to overcome. However, by the time of his death he had returned to faith and peace.

Alphonsus vowed early to never to waste a moment of his life, and he lived that way for over 90 years. Declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX in 1871.

When he was bishop, one of Alphonsus's priests led a worldly life, and resisted all attempts to change. He was summoned to Alphonsus, and at the entrance to the bishop's study he found a large crucifix laid on the threshold. When the priest hesitated to step in, Alphonsus quietly said, "Come along, and be sure to trample it underfoot. It would not be the first time you have placed Our Lord beneath your feet."

Born

27 September 1696 at Marianelli near Naples, Italy

 

Died

1 August 1787 at Nocera, Italy of natural causes

Canonized

26 May 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI

Patronage

• against arthritis

• against scrupulosity

• confessors (given on 26 February 1950 by Pope Pius XII)

• final perseverance

• moral theologians

• moralists (1950 by Pope Pius XII)

• scrupulous people

• theologians

• vocations

• Sisters of the Holy Redeemer

• diocese of Acerra, Italy, diocese of

• Agrigento, Italy

• Pagani, Italy

• Sant'Agata de' Goti, Italy

Martyrs of Nowogrodek

Also known as

• Martyrs of Novogrudok

• Nasaret-sostrene fra Nowogródek

• Nowogrodek Martyrs

• Sister Mary Stella and her Ten Companions

• Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth

Profile

A group of eleven Holy Family of Nazareth nuns who were murdered by the Nazi Gestapo in exchange for 120 condemned citizens of Nowogrodek, Belarus who were scheduled for revenge killings. They are –

• Adela Mardosewicz

• Anna Kukolowicz

• Eleonora Aniela Józwik

• Eugenia Mackiewicz

• Helena Cierpka

• Jadwiga Karolina Zak

• Józefa Chrobot

• Julia Rapiej

• Leokadia Matuszewska

• Paulina Borowik

• Weronika Narmontowicz

Died

• machine-gunned by firing squad on 1 August 1943 by the Gestapo about three miles outside Novogrudok (Nowogródek), Hrodzyenskaya voblasts', in Nazi occupied Belarus

• buried on the site of the execution in a common grave

• one of their surviving sisters, Maria Malgorzata Banas, located the grave on 19 March 1945 and tended to it until her death in 1966

• relics re-interred in a common sarcophagus in the chapel of the Novograd Farny Church (the Church of the Transfiguration, also known as Biala Fara or the White Church)

Beatified

5 March 2000 by Pope John Paul II in Rome, Italy

Feast of Saint Peter in Chains

Also known as

• Saint Peter ad Vincula

• San Pietro in Vincoli

• Liberation of Saint Peter

• Release of Saint Peter

• Deliverance of Saint Peter

About the Feast

The feast was originally kept in Rome, Italy to commemorate the dedication of the Church of Saint Peter on the Esquiline Hill built by Eudoxia Licinia in 442, and rebuilt by Adrian I in the 8th century. When the chains which Saint Peter had worn in prison, and from which he was freed by angelic intervention (see readings below) were later venerated there, the feast received its present name.

The date when these chains were brought from Jerusalem is disputed; some claim they were brought in 116 by travellers sent in search of them by Saint Balbina and her father Saint Quirinus, while others think Saint Eudoxia brought them in 439. Pope Saint Leo the Great united them to the chains with which Saint Peter had been fettered in the Mamertine Prison, forming a chain about two yards long which is preserved in a bronze safe and guarded by a special confraternity.

Patronage

• diocese of Annecy, France

• Donnas, Italy

Blessed Pierre-Lucien Claverie

Also known as

the bishop of the Muslims (he was called this by Muslim mourners at his funeral)

Profile

Born to a working class French family living in Algeria. At age 10, Pierre joined the scouts in a troop led by Dominicans, and became familiar with their spirituality. He attended college in Grenoble, France, and joined the Dominicans himself at the convent in Lille, France on 7 December 1958. He studied at a Dominican institute near Paris, France, and in 1962, after the Algerian war of independence, he returned to Algiers. There he served his mandatory time in the armed forces, but refused to bear arms. After his service, Pierre resumed his studies in France in September 1963, and was ordained a priest on 4 July 1965.

Father Pierre spent time learning Arabic and studying Islam, then returned to Algeria to help the people re-build their lives after the war. From 1973 to 1981 he ran an institute in Algiers for the study of classical Arabic and Islamic history; it was started as a way to prepare Christian missionaries for work in Islamic regions, but became a popular school for local Muslims who wanted to learn Arabic and their Islamic cultural history. Father Pierre worked for dialogue between Christians and Muslims, believing that communication and open religious discussion could lead to peace.

He was chosen bishop of Oran, Algeria on 25 May 1981. He built libraries, therapy centers for the handicapped, and schools, including ones for women. When the Algerian Civil War broke out in 1992, many of the Catholic clergy fled the country, but Father Pierre considered himself an Algerian as well as French, and stayed to work for peace and serve his flock. He died with his driver and friend Mohamed Bouchikhi in a bomb blast set by anti–Christian forces. Martyr.

Born

8 May 1938 in Algiers, Algeria

Died

• from a bomb explosion that destroyed the entrance to the chancery as he was entering the building on 1 August 1996 in Oran, Algeria

• seven people were convicted of the murders and sentenced to death on 23 March 1998; the Catholic Church of Algeria managed to get their sentences commuted

Venerated

26 January 2018 by Pope Francis (decree of martyrdom)

Holy Maccabees

Also known as

The Machabees

Profile

Jewish dynasty which began with the rebellion of Mathathias and his five sons against the Syrian king, Antiochus IV (168 BC) and ruled the fortunes of Israel until the advent of Herod the Great. Syrian attempts to force Greek paganism on the Jews, the profanation of the Temple at Jerusalem, and the massacre which followed, brought the nation to arms under Mathathias, a priest of the sons of Joarib. At the death of Mathathias, Judas Machabeus, his third son, drove the Syrians and Hellenists out of Jerusalem, rededicated the Temple, and began an offensive and defensive alliance with the Romans. Before the treaty was concluded, however, Judas, with 800 men, risked battle at Laisa with an overwhelming army of Syrians under Bacchides, and was slain. He was succeeded in command by his youngest brother, Jonathan (161 BC). Jonathan defeated Bacchides, revenged the death of his brother, and made peace with Alexander who had usurped the throne of Demetrius, the successor to Antiochus. A period of peace followed in which Jonathan ruled as high priest in Jerusalem, but Tryphon, who was plotting for the throne of Asia, treacherously captured him at ptolemais and later put him to death. The captaincy of the armies of Israel then fell to Simon, the second son of Mathathias. Under him the land of Juda flourished exceedingly. He obtained the complete independence of the country and a grateful people bestowed upon him the hereditary kingship of the nation. His rule marked five years of uninterrupted peace. He was treacherously slain by his son-in-law, Ptolemy, about the year 135 BC After Simon the race of the Machabees quickly degenerated. In 63 BC the Romans thought it necessary to interfere in the fratricidal war between Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II. With this interference and the advent of Herod the Great the scepter passed forever from the land of Juda. The story of the Machabees is written in the two books of the Old Testament which bear that name.

Saint Peter Faber

Also known as

• Peter Favre

• Peter Lefrevre

• Petrus, Pierre

• Apostle of Germany

Profile

Born to a farm family, he was a shepherd in his youth. Taught catechism to other children. Entered Saint-Barbe College, Paris, France in 1525. Friend of Saint Francis Xavier and Saint Ignatius Loyola. Ordained in 1534. Joined Ignatius' early band of Jesuits on 15 August 1534. Assisted at the Diet of Worms in 1540. Assisted at the Diet of Ratisbon in 1541. Preached in Parma, Speyer, Mainz, Cologne, Savoy, Portugal, Lisbon and Valladolid, revitalizing the laity, reforming the clergy and opposing Lutheranism. Helped Saint Peter Canisius realize his vocation. Worked with Saint Francis Borgia. The pope planned to send him to the Council of Trent as theologian of the Holy See, and Pope John III wanted him to be the Patriarch of Ethiopia, but his health failed and he could not take either of these responsibilities. Had a great devotion to the angels. The diary of his travels and work has survived.

Born

13 April 1506 at Villaret, Savoy

Died

1 August 1546 at Rome, Italy of natural causes

Canonized

17 December 2013 by Pope Francis

Saint Ethelwold of Winchester

Also known as

• Adeluoldus, Aethelwald, Aethelwold, Etelvoldo, Etelwold, Ethelwald

• Father of Monks

Profile

He grew up in the court of King Athelstan. Studied under and was ordained by his relative, Saint Alphege of Winchester. Ordained with Saint Dunstan of Canterbury. Benedictine dean at Glastonbury Abbey after Dunstan restored the Rule. Abbot of Abingdon, England in 954. Bishop of Winchester, England on 29 November 963. Built abbeys in his diocese, restored the monasteries of Newminster, Milton Abbas, Chertsey, Peterborough, Thorney and Ely, enforced discipline, and was one of the leaders of the 10th century monastic revival. Scholar, teacher, prelate, and royal counsellor. Supported the liturgical arts including music and manuscript illumination. Wrote Regularis Concordia, a monastic decree based on the Benedictine Rule.

Born

c.912 at Winchester, England

Died

• 1 August 984 of natural causes

• buried at cathedral of Winchester, England

Blessed Emericus of Quart

Also known as

Émeric, Emerico

Profile

Born to the Italian nobility, the son of James II, lord of the region of Quart, Italy; two of his brothers also had lives in religion. Emericus studied theology in his youth, and earned a doctorate. He then lived as a hermit, dedicated to prayer and contemplation in an area now known as Valsainte, and which became the site of a oratory and pilgrimages. Cathedral canon at Sant’Orso in the late 13th century. Bishop of Aosta, Italy in 1301. He was noted for his austere life and his zeal for the salvation of souls.

Born

mid 13th century in the castle of Quart, Italy

Died

• 1 September 1313 of natural causes

• buried in the cathedral of Aosta, Italy

• relics exhumed and enshrined in 1515

Beatified

14 July 1881 by Pope Leo XIII (cultus confirmation)

Blessed Aleksy Sobaszek

Profile

After graduating high school in Ostrów, Poland, he studied in Freising, Germany, Poznan, Poland, and Gniezno, Poland, Aleksy was ordained a priest in 1919. He served as parish priest and sometimes teacher in the Polish cities of Wagrowiec, Slupy, Trzemeszno, Siedlemin, and Gniezno. Prefect of a teacher's college for nine years. For being Polish and a priest, he was arrested by Nazis on 6 October 1941 and imprisoned in the Dachau concentration camp where he ministered to other prisoners until his death several months later. One of the 108 Polish Martyrs of World War II.

Born

17 August 1895 in Przygodzice, Wielkopolskie, Poland

Died

1 August 1942 at the concentration camp at Dachau, Oberbayern, Germany

Beatified

13 June 1999 by Pope John Paul II at Warsaw, Poland

Saint Almedha

Also known as

Aled, Electa, Eled, Elevetha, Elined, Ellyw, Filuned, Luned, Lynette

Profile

A princess, the daughter of King Brychan. A pious girl, she made a private vow of chastity, and dedicated her life to Jesus. When her family tried to force her into an arranged marriage for political reasons, she fled her father's kingdom. Fearing Brychan's revenge if they helped her, villages turned her away. At Brecon she acquired a small hut, and lived there briefly as a prayerful hermitess. However, Brychan found her and demanded that she return home to be married. When she refused, standing by her vows, he killed her. Legend says that a healing spring of water appeared at the site of her death, and that the villages that had turned her away were beset with disasters. She is the Luned of the Mabinogion and the Lynette of Tennyson's Gareth and Lynette.

Born

Welsh

Died

beheaded in the 6th century by her father at Brecon, Wales

Blessed Gerhard Hirschfelder

Profile

Priest in the archdiocese of Münster, Germany, ordained in 1932. Member of the Schoenstatt Movement. For preaching against Nazism, he was arrested by the Gestapo and shipped to the Dachau concentration camp on 15 December 1941. Martyred by the Nazis.

Born

17 February 1907 in Klodzko, Dolnoslaskie, Germany (in modern Poland)

Died

1 August 1942 in the Dachau concentration camp, Oberbayern, Bavaria, Germany of pneumonia and starvation

Beatified

• 19 September 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI

• beatification recognition celebrated at the cathedral of Münster, Germany, Cardinal Joaquim Meisner, Archbishop of Cologne, Germany presiding

Blessed Vicente Montserrat Millán

Profile

The son of a merchant, Vincente was baptized at the age of 4 days. He entered a minor seminary at age 10, and studied at the San Indalecio seminary. Ordained as a priest in the diocese of Almería, Spain on 2 June 1928. Martyred in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

6 January 1904 in Lorca, Murcia Spain

Died

shot ten times and stabbed on 1 August 1936 next to the walls of the cemetery in La Almolda, Zaragoza Spain

Beatified

• 25 March 2017 by Pope Francis

• beatification celebrated in the Palacio de Exposiciones y Congresos de Aguadulce, Almería, Spain, presided by Cardinal Angelo Amato

Blessed Giovanni Bufalari

Also known as

• Giovanni Bufalari

• John...

Profile

Brother of Blessed Lucy Bufalari. Augustinian friar-hermit at Rieti, Italy. Loved to serve at Mass. Friary porter, caring for travellers and the poor.

Born

at Castel Porziano near Rome, Italy as Giovanni Bufalari

Died

• c.1350 of natural causes

• miraculous healings reports at his tomb

Beatified

1832 by Pope Gregory XVI (cultus confirmed)

Saint Bênadô Võ Van Duê

Also known as

Bernard Due Van Vo

Additional Memorial

24 November as one of the Martyrs of Vietnam

Profile

Adult convert to Catholicism. Priest in the apostolic vicariate of East Tonkin. Worked for decades at various missions around the country. Arrested in 1838 for the crime of priesthood. One of the Martyrs of Vietnam.

Born

1755 in Quan Anh, Nam Dinh, Vietnam

Died

beheaded on 1 August 1838 in Ba Tòa, Nam Dinh, Vietnam

Canonized

19 June 1988 by Pope John Paul II

Saints Faith, Hope and Charity

Profile

The daughters of Saint Sophia. While still children, they were tortured and martyred for their faith in the persecutions of Hadrian.

Died

scourged, thrown into a fire, and then beheaded

Saint Ðaminh Nguyen Van Hanh

Also known as

Dominic, Domenico

Additional Memorial

24 November as one of the Martyrs of Vietnam

Profile

Dominican priest. One of the Martyrs of Vietnam.

Born

1772 in Nang A, Nghe An, Vietnam

Died

beheaded on 1 August 1838 in Ba Tòa, Nam Dinh, Vietnam

Canonized

19 June 1988 by Pope John Paul II

Blessed Orlando of Vallombrosa

Additional Memorial

20 May (Benedictines)

Profile

Lay-brother in the Vallombrosan Order. Noted exorcist.

Died

• 1242 of natural causes

• buried in a church yard next to the bell tower of Vallombrosa

• relics exposed in May 1600 along with several other Vallombrosans

• relics enshrined in a chapel for them in 1604

Beatified

21 August 1600 by Bishop Alessandro de Medici (cultus approved)

Saint Arcadius of Bourges

Also known as

Arcadio, Arcade

Profile

Born to the Gallo-Roman aristocracy, the son of Count Apollinaire. Senator in the court of the Visigothic king Alaric II. Thrown from power due to political conflicts, he relocated to Bourges, France where he served as bishop in the mid 6th century. Attended the Council of Orléans in 538.

Born

latter 5th century Clermont (in modern France)

Died

• c.549 of natural causes

• relics at Saint Ursin, France

Saint Procopius of Taormina

Also known as

Procopio di Taormina

Profile

Bishop of Taormina, Sicily, Italy. Murdered along with hundreds of other Christians by invading Muslim Berbers. Martyr.

Born

9th century

Died

heart torn from his chest on 1 August 906 in Sicily, Italy by Hibraìm, leader of the invading Berbers

Saint Sophia

புனித சோபியா (- 137)

(ஆகஸ்ட் 01)

மிலன் நகரைச் சார்ந்த இவர் ஒரு கைம்பெண்.  இவருக்கு மூன்று பெண் குழந்தைகள் இருந்தார்கள். 

பிழைப்பு தேடி இவர் மிலன் நகரைவிட்டு, தனது மூன்று குழந்தைகளோடு உரோமை நகருக்குச் சென்றார். 

அக்காலக்கட்டத்தில் உரோமையில் ஹட்ரியன் என்ற மன்னனின் தலைமையில் கிறிஸ்தவர்களுக்கு எதிரான வன்முறை மிகுதியாக நடைபெற்றது.

இந்த வன்முறையில் இவருடைய மூன்று பெண் குழந்தைகளும் கிறிஸ்துவின்மீது கொண்ட உறுதியான நம்பிக்கைக்காகக் கொல்லப்பட்டார்கள்.

தன்னுடைய மூன்று பெண் குழந்தைகளும் கிறிஸ்துவுக்காகக் கொல்லப்பட்டதை  நினைத்து  இவர் ஒருபக்கம் பெருமைப்பட்டாலும், இன்னொரு பக்கம் அவர்களுடைய பிரிவு இவரை மிகுதியாக வாட்ட, இவர் அவர்களுடைய கல்லறையிலேயே அவர்கள் கொல்லப்பட்ட மூன்றாம் நாளில் இறந்து போனார்.

இவர் கைம்பெண்களின் பாதுகாவலராக இருக்கிறார்.

Also known as

Sofia

Profile

Legendary mother of the virgin martyrs Faith, Hope, and Charity. Three days after the death of the daughters, Sophia passed peacefully away while praying by their tomb. As her name means wisdom, and her offspring are named for virtues, some writers believer she is a personification of an allegory.

Died

early 2nd century

Saint Friard

Also known as

Friardo

Profile

Hermit on the island of Vindomitte, France. Friend of Saint Secundel. When tormented for his piety, a cloud of wasps attacked his tormenters; when Friard prayed for them, the wasps left.

Born

511 at Bresne, France

Died

577 of natural causes

Patronage

against fear of wasps

Saint Felix of Gerona

Also known as

Feliu, Felice

Profile

Missionary. Martyred in the persecutions of Maximian Herculeus and Prefect Dacianus. The Christian poet Prudentius wrote in his honour.

Born

Spanish

Died

cut to pieces with knives in 303 in Gerona, Spain

Blessed Thomas Welbourne

Profile

Lifelong layman in the apostolic vicariate of England. School teacher. Martyred in the persecutions of King James I for the crime of being vocally Catholic.

Born

Hutton Bushel, North Yorkshire, England

Died

hanged on 1 August 1605 in York, North Yorkshire, England

Beatified

15 December 1929 by Pope Pius XI

Saint Peregrinus of Modena

Also known as

Pellegrino

Profile

Celtic monk. Pilgrim to the Holy Lands. On his return, he spent the rest of his life as a hermit in the Apennines near Modena, Italy where he was known by the locals for his sanctity.

Died

643 of natural causes

Patronage

Casola in Lunigiana, Italy

Saint Buono

Also known as

Bonus

Profile

Priest. Martyred with eleven others. The town of San Buono, Italy is named for him.

Died

• c.259 on the Latin Way, Rome, Italy

• buried in the cemtery fo San Priscilla

Patronage

San Buono, Italy

Portiuncula Indulgence

Article

An indulgence which may be gained in any church so designated by the bishop, by all the faithful who after Confession and Holy Communion, visit such churches between noon of 1 August and midnight of 2 August, or on the Sunday following. The indulgence is toties quoties and is applicable to the souls in Purgatory.

Saint Secundus of Palestrina

Also known as

Secondino

Additional Memorial

3 August (diocese of Palestrina, Italy)

Profile

Bishop of Palestrina, Italy. Martyred in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

315 on the Via Prenestina, 13 miles from Rome, Italy

Saint Exuperius of Bayeux

Also known as

Exsuperije, Exupere, Soupierre, Soupir, Soupire, Spire, Spirius

Profile

Fourth century bishop of Bayeux, France.

Saint Attius of Perga

Also known as

Athius, Attus

Profile

Martyred with several companions by order of Flavian for destroying the altar of a pagan goddess during the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

beheaded c.300 at Perga, Pamphylia

Saint Alexander of Perga

Profile

Martyred during the persecutions of Diocletian with several companions by order of Flavian for destroying the altar of a pagan goddess.

Died

beheaded c.300 at Perga, Pamphylia

Saint Leontius of Perga

Profile

Martyred with several companions by order of Flavian for destroying the altar of a pagan goddess during the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

beheaded c.300 at Perga, Pamphylia

https://catholicsaints.info/saint-leontius-of-perga/

Blessed Rudolph

Profile

Vallombrosan monk. Spiritual student of Saint John Gualbert. Abbot general.

Died

1076 of natural causes

Beatified

1600 by Bishop Alessandro de Medici of Fiesole (cultus confirmed)

Saint Rioch

Profile

Nephew of Saint Patrick who consecrated him as a travelling, missionary bishop. Worn from his travels, he retired to live as a monk and then abbot of the monastery Inishboffin, Ireland.

Died

c.480

Saint Kenneth of Wales

Also known as

Kined of Wales

Profile

Son of a 6th century chieftain. Hermit on the peninsula of Gower, Wales, a place later known as Llangenydd in his honour.

Saint Jonatus

Profile

Benedictine monk at Elnone, Belgium. Spiritual student of Saint Amandus of Maastricht. Abbot at Saint Machiennes c.643-652. Abbot at Elnone c.652-659.

Died

c.690

Saint Verus of Vienne

Profile

Bishop of Vienne, Gaul (modern France). Attended the Synod of Arles in 314.

Died

314 of natural causes

Saint Secundel

Also known as

Secondello

Profile

Hermit on the island of Vindomitte, France. Friend of Saint Friard.

Died

6th century

Saint Faustus

Also known as

Festus

Profile

Layman. Martyred with eleven others.

Died

on the Latin Way, Rome, Italy

Saint Justin of Paris

Profile

Small child martyr.

Died

c.290 at Louvre, archdiocese of Paris, France

Saint Maur

Also known as

Maurus

Profile

Layman. Martyred with eleven others.

Died

on the Latin Way, Rome, Italy

Saint Nemesius of Lisieux

Profile

No information about him has survived.

Saint Brogan

Profile

Mentioned in the Gorman Martyrology.

Martyrs of Philadelphia

Profile

A group of six Christians martyred. No information about them has survived but the names - Aquila, Cyril, Domitian, Menander, Peter and Rufus.

Died

in Philadelphia (modern Alasehir, Turkey)

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War

Thousands of people were murdered in the anti-Catholic persecutions of the Spanish Civil War from 1934 to 1939. I have pages on each of them, but in most cases I have only found very minimal information. They are available on the CatholicSaints.Info site through these links:

• Benito Iñiguez de Heredia Alzola

• Francesc de Paula Soteras Culla

• Francisco Morales Valenzuela

• Joan Bonavida Dellá

• José de Miguel Arahal

• Justino Alarcón Vera

• Sebastià Tarragó Cabré

• Vicente Montserrat Millán

Also celebrated but no entry yet

• Chiara of Orleans

• Eleazar the Scribe

• Gionato

• Leo of Montefeltro

• Nicholas de la Torre Merino

• Severus of Aquitaine

இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் ஜீலை 31

 Saint Ignatius of Loyola

தூய லயோலா இஞ்ஞாசியார்

லயோலா இஞ்ஞாசியார் எப்போதும் கடவுளின் திருவுளத்தை நிறைவேற்றுவதில் ஆர்வம் கொண்டிருந்தார்.

இஞ்ஞாசியார் ஸ்பெயின் நாட்டில் உள்ள லயோலா என்னும் இடத்தில் 1491 ஆம் ஆண்டு பிறந்தார். இவர்தான் குடும்பத்தின் கடைசிப் பிள்ளை. இவருடைய குடும்பம் அரச குடும்பம். எனவே, செல்வச் செழிப்பில், எல்லா விதமான இன்பங்களையும் அனுபவித்து வாழ்ந்து வந்தார். இவருடைய கனவெல்லாம் மிகச் சிறந்த போர்வீரனாக மாறவேண்டும் என்பதே ஆகும். 1521 ஆம் ஆண்டில் ஒரு நாள் பிரான்சு நாட்டு இராணுவம் இவர் இருந்த பம்பிலோனா கோட்டையை சுற்றி வளைத்துக்கொண்டது. நீண்ட நேரம் நடைபெற்ற போராட்டத்தில் இவருடைய கால்களில் கடுமையான காயம் ஏற்பட இவர் நிலைகுலைந்து போனார். பின்னர் இவர் கைதுசெய்யப்பட்டு சிறையில் அடைத்துவைக்கப்பட்டார். அப்போது இவர் அங்கே இருந்தவர்களிடம் வாசிப்பதற்கு ஏதாவது கொடுங்கள் என்று கேட்டபோது, அவர்கள் இயேசுவின் வாழ்க்கை வரலாற்றுப் புத்தகத்தையும் புனிதர்களின் வாழ்க்கை வரலாற்றுப் புத்தகத்தையும் இவருக்குக் கொடுத்தார்கள். அதை வாசிக்க வாசிக்க இஞ்ஞாசியார் ஒருவிதமான பரவசநிலையை உணர்ந்தார். அதுமட்டுமல்லாமல் இதுவரை தான் வாழ்ந்த வாழ்க்கை முற்றிலும் வீண் என எண்ணத் தொடங்கி, சாதாரண மனிதர்கள் எல்லாம் புனிதராக மாறியிருக்கும்போது எதற்காக நாம் புனிதராக மாறக்கூடாது என சிந்தித்தார்.

இஞ்ஞாசியார்  ஆன்மீகப் பயிற்சிகளை மேற்கொண்டிருந்த தருணம் அவருக்கு மரியன்னை குழந்தை இயேசுவோடு காட்சிதந்தார். அந்த நிகழ்வு அவருடைய வாழ்வில் மிகப்பெரிய திருப்புமுனையாக இருந்தது.

பாரிஸ் நகருக்குச் சென்று, அங்கே குருத்துவப் பணிக்காக தன்னையே பக்குவப்படுத்திக்கொண்டார். இலத்தின்  போன்ற மொழிகளைக் கற்றுக்கொண்டு தன்னை மேலும் மெருகேற்றிகொண்டார். அங்கேதான் அவர் பிரான்சிஸ் சவேரியார், பீட்டர் பேபர் போன்ற ஆறு இளைஞர்களைச் சந்தித்தார். அவர்களைக் கொண்டு ‘இயேசு சபை’ என்னும் புதிய சபை ஒன்றைத் தோற்றுவித்தார். குருத்துவப் பயிற்சிகளை மேற்கொண்ட இஞ்ஞாசியார் 1538 ஆம் ஆண்டு குருவாக மாறினார்.

இஞ்ஞாசியார் ஏற்படுத்திய  இயேசு சபை, கற்பு, ஏழ்மை, கீழ்ப்படிதல் என்ற மூன்று வார்த்தைப்பாடுகளோடு சேர்த்து.

இஞ்ஞாசியார் நோயாளிகளைச் சந்திப்பதுமாக, சிறையில் இருந்தோரை பார்க்கச் செல்வதுமாக, மறைக்கல்வி கற்றுத்தருவதுமாக பற்பல பணிகளைச் செய்தார். தான் செய்த பணிகள் அனைத்தையும் இறைவனின் அதிமாக மகிமைக்காகச் செய்த்தார். இப்படி ஓய்வில்லாமல் இறைப்பணி செய்த இஞ்ஞாசியார் 1554 ஆம் ஆண்டு ஜூலை 31 ஆம் நாள் இந்த மண்ணுலக வாழ்க்கைத் துறந்தார். 1622 ஆம் ஆண்டு இவர் புனிதராக உயர்த்தப்பட்டார்.

Also known as

Inigo Lopez de Loyola

Profile

Born to the Spanish nobility. Youngest of twelve children. Page in the Spanish court of Ferdinand and Isabella. Military education. Soldier, entering the army in 1517, and serving in several campaigns. Wounded in the leg by a cannonball at the siege of Pampeluna on 20 May 1521, an injury that left him partially crippled for life. During his recuperation the only books he had access to were The Golden Legend, a collection of biographies of the saints, and the Life of Christ by Ludolph the Carthusian. These books, and the time spent in contemplation, changed him.

On his recovery he took a vow of chastity, hung his sword before the altar of the Virgin of Montserrat, and donned a pilgrim's robes. He lived in a cave from 1522 to 1523, contemplating the way to live a Christian life. Pilgrim to Rome and the Holy Land in 1523, where he worked to convert Muslims. In 1528 he began studying theology in Barcelona and Alcala in Spain, and Paris, France receiving his degree on 14 March 1534. His meditations, prayers, visions and insights led to forming the Constitutions of the Society of Jesus on 15 August 1534; it received papal approval in 1541. Friend of James Lainez, Alonso Salmerón, Nicholas Bobadilla, Simón Rodriguez, Blessed Peter Faber, and Saint Francis Xavier, the group that formed the core of the new Society. He never used the term Jesuit, which was coined as an insult by his opponents; the Society today uses the term with pride. He travelled Europe and the Holy Lands, then settled in Rome to direct the Jesuits. His health suffered in later years, and he was nearly blind at death.

The Jesuits today have over 500 universities and colleges, 30,000 members, and teach over 200,000 students each year.

Born

1491 at Loyola, Guipuzcoa, Spain as Inigo Lopez de Loyola

Died

31 July 1556 at Rome, Italy of fever

Canonized

12 March 1622 by Pope Gregory XV

Patronage

• soldiers

• Jesuit Order, Jesuits, Society of Jesus

• retreats (proclaimed on 25 July 1922 by Pope Pius XI)

• Spiritual Exercises (by Pope Pius XI)

• Basque country

• diocese of Bilbao, Spain

• military ordinariate of the Philippines

• álava, Spain

• Bizkaia, Spain

• Gipuzkoa, Spain

• Guipuscoa, Spain

• Guipúzcoa, Spain

• Vizcaya, Spain

Saint Germanus of Auxerre

Also known as

Germain of Auxerre

Profile

Born to a noble Gallic family, the son of Rusticus and Germanilla. Studied general topics in Arles and Lyon in France, and rhetoric and civil law in Rome, Italy. Successful lawyer for several years. Married to Eustachia, a member of the nobility with close ties to the emperor. Imperial governor of part of Gaul, based in Auxerre.

He led a worldly life, and frequently hung hunting trophies on an enormous, ancient tree that had been an object of worship by local pagans. This led to condemnation by Saint Amator of Auxerre, who said he set a terrible example, and was leading people back to their pagan origins. Germain ignored him, so Amator cut down the tree and burned the trophies. Germain tracked down Amator, intending to kill him; Amator forced the tonsure on Germain, made him a deacon, and told him to live as one destined to be a bishop. Germain took the whole incident to be an action of the Holy Spirit, and changed completely. He devoted himself to prayer, study and charity. When Saint Amator died soon after, Germain was unanimously chosen bishop of Auxerre on 7 July 418.

His administrative skills served Germain well in his new position. He gave away his property to the poor, and lived as a pauper. Converted and trained Saint Camilla. Dispatched with Lupus of Troyes to the British Isles by Pope Celestine I in 429, he fought the Pelagianist heresy in Britain. While en route he met the young child Saint Genevieve. One early document says that Saint Patrick was part of Germain's entourage. Once the Pelagians were in retreat, Germain travelled Britain, preaching and setting up seminaries; he trained Saint Brieuc of Brittany for his mission.

Germain returned to France, obtained tax relief for the people of his diocese, and built the church of Saint Alban in Auxerre. In 447 he returned to Britain with Severus of Trèves. They evangelized in Wales, and helped the Britons with a battle over invading Saxons and Picts. When he returned to Gaul, Germain found that the Armoricans in Brittany were going to be severely punished for a rebellion against the empire. He obtained a stay of execution for them until he could appeal to the emperor. In Ravenna, Italy he met with Saint Peter Chrysologus, pled his case to empress Galla Placidia, obtained pardon for the people, and died there a short time later.

Born

c.378 at Auxerre, France

Died

• 31 July 448 at Ravenna, Italy of natural causes

• interred in the Oratory of Saint Maurice, Auxerre, France

• re-interred in the church of Saint Germain that was built by Queen Clotilda on the site of the Oratory

• body found intact when re-located in the church several centuries later

• in 1567 the Huguenots desecrated the shrine and threw out the relics

• relics in Saint Marion abbey are reported to be Saint Germain's, but this cannot be proven

Blessed Cecilia Schelingová

Also known as

Zdenka Schelingová

Profile

One of ten children born to Pavol Schelingová and Zuzana Pániková. She received her basic education locally, and later studied nursing and radiology. Known as a pious child, she early felt a call to religious life. At age 15 she requested entry to the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Holy Cross, and made her first vows on 30 January 1937, taking the name Zdenka.

Nurse at a hospital in Humenné and then in Bratislava where she worked in radiology. While she was assigned to Bratislava, the Communists seized power and began a systematic persecution of the Church and its members. Many were arrested and tortured for their faith, and some of these were brought to Zdenka's hospital for treatment. In early 1952 Zdenka helped a condemned priest escape from certain death in Siberia. On 29 February 1952 she tried to help three priests and three seminarians escape, but she failed, and was arrested, tortured, and sentenced to twelve years in prison and ten years of loss of civil rights.

For the next three years she was shipped from prison to prison, regularly beaten and tortured; some of her wounds were never permitted to heal. She was released from prison on 16 April 1955, nine years early, so that she would not die on the government's hands. Due to police harassment, she was turned away from her congregation's motherhouse, and from the hospital where she used to work. She died a few months later, her health broken by the abuse, but ever loyal to her faith.

Born

25 December 1916 in Krivá na Orave, Zilinský kraj, Slovakia

Died

31 July 1955 in Trnava, Trnavský kraj, Slovakia

Beatified

14 September 2003 by Pope John Paul II at Bratislava, Slovak Republic

Saint Giustino de Jacobis

 புனிதர் ஜஸ்டின் டி ஜேகொபிஸ் 

(St. Justin de Jacobis)

ஆயர்:

(Bishop)

பிறப்பு: அக்டோபர் 9, 1800

சேன் ஃபிலே, போடேன்ஸா, நேப்பில்ஸ் அரசு

(San Fele, Potenza, Kingdom of Naples)

இறப்பு: ஜூலை 31, 1860 (வயது 59)

ஸுலா, செமெணவி கெஇஹ் பஹ்ரி, எரிட்ரீ

(Zula, Semenawi Keih Bahri, Eritrea)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்:

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

முக்திபேறு பட்டம்: ஜூன் 25, 1939

திருத்தந்தை பன்னிரெண்டாம் பயஸ்

(Pope Pius XII)

புனிதர் பட்டம்: அக்டோபர் 26, 1975

திருத்தந்தை ஆறாம் பவுல்

(Pope Paul VI)

நினைவுத் திருநாள்: ஜூலை 31

பாதுகாவல்:

மறைப்பணியாளர்கள் (Missionaries)

புனிதர் ஜஸ்டின் டி ஜேகொபிஸ், ஒரு இத்தாலிய ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க ஆயரும் (Italian Roman Catholic Bishop), "புனிதர் வின்சென்ட் டி பவுல்" (Vincent de Paul) நிறுவிய ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க சமுதாய குருக்கள் மற்றும் சகோதரர்களின் திருத்தூதுப் பணிவாழ்வின் சபையின் (Congregation of the Mission) உறுப்பினருமாவார். இவர் பின்னாளில், எத்தியோப்பியாவின் துணை ஆயராகவும் (Vicar Apostolic in Ethiopia), “நிலோபோலிஸ்” நகரின் “பட்டம் மட்டுமே கொண்டிருக்கிற” (Titular Bishop of Nilopolis) ஆயருமாவார். இவர், “கியஸ்டினோ டி ஜேகோபிஸ்” (Giustino de Jacobis) என்றும் அறியப்படுகின்றார்.

கியஸ்டினோ செபஸ்டியனோ பஸ்குவேல் டி ஜேகோபிஸ் (Giustino Sebastiano Pasquale de Jacobis)  எனும் இயற்பெயர் கொண்ட “கியஸ்டினோ டி ஜேகோபிஸ்”, கி.பி. 1800ம் ஆண்டு, அக்டோபர் மாதம், 9ம் தேதி, நேப்பில்ஸ் அரசின் (Kingdom of Naples), போடேன்ஸா (Province of Potenza) பிராந்தியத்திலுள்ள “சேன் ஃபிலே” (San Fele) நகரில் பிறந்தவர் ஆவார்.

கி.பி. 1818ம் ஆண்டு, அக்டோபர் மாதம், பதினேழாம் தேதி, நேப்பில்ஸ் (Naples) நகரிலுள்ள “திருத்தூதுப் பணிவாழ்வு சபையில்” (Congregation of the Mission) இணைந்தார். கி.பி. 1820ம் ஆண்டு, அக்டோபர் மாதம், 18ம் தேதி, தமது சத்திய பிரமாணங்களை ஏற்றார். கி.பி. 1824ம் ஆண்டு, ஜூன் மாதம், 12ம் தேதி, தென் இத்தாலியின் (Southern Italy) “அபுலியா” (Apulia) பிராந்திய தலைநகரான “பிரிண்டிசி” (Brindisi) நகரில், குருத்துவ அருட்பொழிவு பெற்றார். “ஓரியா” (Oria) மற்றும் “மோனோபோலி” (Monopoli) நகர்களில், ஆத்மாக்களின் கவனிப்பில் சில நேரம் கழித்த பிறகு, முதலில் “லெஸ்சே” (Lecce) நகரிலும், அதன்பின்னர் “நேப்பில்ஸ்” (Naples) நகரிலும் தலைமை குருவானார்.       

கி.பி. 1839ம் ஆண்டு, “எத்தியோப்பியா” (Ethiopia) நாட்டின் “திருத்தூது தலைமை” (Prefect Apostolic) நியமனம் பெற்றார். அங்கே கத்தோலிக்க பணிகளின் அடித்தளத்தை ஒப்படைத்தார். ஏறக்குறைய ஒரு தசாப்தம் எத்தியோப்பியாவில் தமது உழைப்பின் பெரும் வெற்றியைப் பெற்றபின், கி.பி. 1847ம் ஆண்டு, “நிலோபோலிஸ்” நகரின் “பட்டம் மட்டுமே கொண்டிருக்கிற” (Titular Bishop of Nilopolis) ஆயராக நியமிக்கப்பட்டார். அதன்பின்னர், குறுகிய காலத்திலேயே எத்தியோப்பியாவின் துணை ஆயராக (Vicar Apostolic in Ethiopia) நியமிக்கப்பட்டார்.

உள்ளூர் எதியோப்பியன் திருச்சபையில் (Local Ethiopian Church), கிறிஸ்தவர்களுக்கு எதிரான சிறைத்தண்டனைகள், நாடு கடத்துதல் மற்றும் இன்னபிற சித்திரவதைகள் நடந்துகொண்டிருக்க, இவர் மட்டும் எண்ணற்ற கத்தோலிக்க மறைப்பணிகளை நிறுவிக்கொண்டிருந்தார்.

எத்தியோப்பியன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை (Ethiopian Catholic Church) மற்றும் "எரிட்ரீன்"  கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை (Eritrean Catholic Church) ஆகியவற்றின் துவக்கங்களைத் தோற்றுவிக்கும் ஒரு பூர்வ குருத்துவத்திற்கான பயிற்சி மற்றும் செயல்பாட்டு கல்விக்காக, வடக்கு எத்தியோப்பியாவின் (Northern Ethiopia) முன்னாள் பிராந்தியமும், தற்போதைய “டிக்ரே” (Tigray Region) பிராந்தியத்தின் ஒரு பாகமுமான “அகமே” (Agame) எனுமிடத்திலும், “அகேலே குசே” (Akele Guzay) பிராந்தியத்திலும் குருத்துவ பள்ளிகளை கட்டினார்.

புனிதர் ஜஸ்டின் டி ஜேகொபிஸ், கி.பி. 1860ம் ஆண்டு மரணமடைந்தார்.

Also known as

Justin de Jacobis

Profile

Justin grew up a pious youth in the city of Naples, Italy and joined the Vincentians at age 18. Ordained on 12 June 1824 in the Congregation of the Mission. Noted for his preaching skills, especially among the rural poor. Helped found a Vincentian house at Monopoli, Italy. Superior at Lecce, Italy. Worked in with the sick in the 1836-1837 cholera epidemic in Naples.

Appointed Prefect, Vicar Apostolic, and missionary to Adua, Ethiopia on 10 March 1839, beginning the African missionary work that would consume the rest of his life. The people were primarly a combination of pagan, Islamic, and Coptic Christian, and foreigners were not welcomed by authorities, civil or religious. Justin learned the language, lived with the people, and worked to improve relations at the local level. He tried to have one of his monks appointed Patriach of the Ethiopian church, but failed.

Justin returned to Rome, Italy for consultations with the Pope Gregory XVI, trying (and failing) to get some of the Ethiopian religious leaders to come with him. In 1846 he returned to Ethiopia to found a college and seminary at Guala. This work, and other Catholic missionary efforts, caused a backlash in the Ethiopian Church; Catholicism was banned, and Bishop Massaia was forced to flee to Rome. Despite exhortations for his death, Justin remained, and became an underground missionary, caring for converts. Consecrated as titular bishop of Nilopolis and vicar apostolic of Abyssinia, Ethiopia on 6 July 1847. Given authority to administer the sacraments in the Ethiopian rite. By 1853 he had consecrated twenty priests, made 5,000 converts, and was able to re-open the college at Guala.

In 1860, Kedaref Kassa became the Ethiopian King Thedore II with the backing of Abuna Salama, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Church. In gratitude, he prohibited Catholicism, and De Jacobis was imprisoned for several months. He was then force-marched to the area of Halai in southern Eritrea, spending his remaining months in missionary work along the Red Sea.

He is considered an apostle to Africa, and the founder of the Abyssinian mission. Blessed Ghebre Michael is among the estimated 12,000 converts he made in his time.

Born

9 October 1800 at San Fele, Luciana, Italy

Died

• 31 July 1860 on the side of a road near Halai of a tropical fever in the valley of Alghedien Zula, Semenawi Keih Bahri, Eritrea while on a missionary trip

• buried in a church at Hebo

Canonized

26 October 1975 by Pope Paul VI

Blessed John Colombini

Also known as

John Columbini

Profile

Wealthy, greedy, ambitious, and ill-tempered son of a patrician family. Married layman, and father of two children, his son Peter and daughter Angela. First magistrate (Gonfalionere) of Siena, Italy. With his family and friends, he alternated between bouts of anger and consequent periods of mortification and self-loathing. Converted to the faith while reading the story of the conversion of Saint Mary of Egypt. Reformed his personal and business life; visited hospitals, tended the sick, gave to the poor, personally tending to the poorest and most forgotten in his society.

Several years into his new life, John's son died, and his daughter became a nun. He established an annuity that allowed his wife to live in comfort, and used the rest of his wealth to endow a hospital and two convents. From then on he lived in poverty, begging for his bread from day to day. He soon attracted followers, many of them young men from wealthy families who were disillusioned with their lives, and felt a call to God and a call to give away their wealth. The patrician class demanded John's exile as he was leading the city's most promising young men to "folly."

Founded a small group of laymen, called the Jesuati (Gesuati or Jesuats) after their habit of saying "Praise be to Jesus Christ" about everything. They were devoted to penance and charity, and had a special devotion to Saint Jerome. The group received approval by Pope Urban V in 1367, just 37 days before John's death. It survived until 1668 when, because of abuses that had crept in over the years, it was suppressed by Pope Clement IX. A sister organization, the Jesuatesses or Sisters of the Visitation of Mary was founded around 1367 by John's cousin, Blessed Catharine Colombini; it survived until 1872 when it disappeared due to attrition.

Born

c.1300 at Siena, Italy

Died

31 July 1367 of natural causes while on the road to Acquapendente, Italy

Beatified

by Pope Gregory XIII

Blessed Élisabeth Eppinger

Also known as

• Mother Alphonse-Marie

• Sister Alphonse-Marie

• Alfonsa Maria Elisabeth Eppinger

• The Niederbronn Ecstatic

Profile

Eldest of eleven children born to a poor farm family. Élisabeth was a sickly but very pious child. In 1846 she had the first of a series of visions, including of Jesus Christ. The combination led her to her belief that suffering could block a person from experiencing God's love, and relieving suffering could free a person to easier find God. When Bishop Andreas Raess examined her in July 1848 and came away convinced that she was called to serve the poor and sick.

On 28 August 1849, in Niederbronn-les-Baines, France, Élisabeth founded the Sisters of the Holy Redeemer to care for the impoverished sick in their own homes. She placed it under the patronage of Saint Alphonse Maria Liguori, and served as the first superior of the Congregation. She made her religious vows on 2 January 1850, taking the name Alphonse-Marie. The Congregation received approval of Emperor Napoleon III in 1854; later that year they worked with victims of a cholera pandemic. They were praised by Pope Pius IX in 1863 by which point there were 700 Sisters in 83 houses; they received full Vatican approval in 1866, and continue their good work today in France, Germany, Austria, Hungary and Argentina.

Born

9 September 1814 in Niederbronn-les-Baines, Bas-Rhin, France during the Bourbon Restoration

Died

• 31 July 1867 in Niederbronn-les-Baines, Bas-Rhin, France during the Second French Empire of natural causes

• remains re-interred on 8 November 1950 as part of the canonization investigation process

Beatified

• 8 September 2018 by Pope Francis

• beatification recognition celebrated in Strasbourg, France

Patronage

Sisters of the Holy Redeemer

Blessed Franciszek Stryjas

Additional Memorial

12 June as one of the 108 Martyrs of World War II

Profile

The son of farmers, Franciszek was a married layman and father in the diocese of Kalisz, Poland; he and Józefa Kobylka were married in 1901, lived in Kuczowola, Poland, and had seven children. When Józefa died of natural causes, Franciszek married Józefa Nosal and moved to Takomysl, Poland. When all the priests in the area were arrested in the Nazi occupation in World War II, Franciszek began teaching religion to children, preparing them for their First Communion. This led to his arrest by the Gestapo who imprisoned him in Kalisz, Poland and abused him to death over the course of ten days. Martyr.

Born

26 January 1882 in Popów, Szczytniki, Kalisz, Poland

Died

tortured to death on 31 July 1944 in Kalisz, Poland

Beatified

13 June 1999 by Pope John Paul II at Warsaw, Poland

Saint Helen of Skofde

Also known as

• Helen of Skovde

• Elin...

Profile

Born to the Swedish nobility. She married young, and was the mother of one daughter. Built the church of Skofde, Sweden. Widowed early in her marriage, after which she gave away most of her fortune to the poor. Helen's son-in-law was murdered by his own servants because of his cruelty. Soon after, Helen left on a pilgrimage, and when the son-in-law's family arrived to investigate the death, the servants blamed it on Helen, claiming her pilgimage was a cover for fleeing justice. The in-laws believed the story, tracked her down, and killed her.

Born

12th century Vastergotland, Sweden

Died

• murdered c.1160

• miracles reported at her tomb

Canonized

1164 by Pope Alexander III

Patronage

• falsely accused people

• in-law problems

• martyrs

• Vastergotland, Sweden

• widows

Blessed Everard Hanse

Additional Memorial

29 October as one of the Martyrs of Douai

Profile

Raised Protestant. Educated at Cambridge University. Anglican minister. A near-fatal illness caused him to re-examine his life and ministery, and with the support of his brother, William, he converted to Catholicism in 1568. Studied in Rheims, France, and was ordained on 25 March 1581. Father Everard sailed for England on 24 April 1581 with a plan to minister to covert Catholics. Captured soon after in the Marshalsea prison while visiting Catholic prisoners. Lodged in Newgate prison in 1581. Found guilty of the crime of persuading others to join the Catholic Church and refusing to accept the queen as head of the Church; martyr.

Born

Northamptonshire, England

Died

hanged, drawn and quartered on 31 July 1581 at Tyburn, London, England

Beatified

29 December 1886 by Pope Leo XIII (cultus confirmation)

Blessed Vicenta Achurra Gogenola

Also known as

• Daniela de San Bernabé

• Daniela of Saint Barnabas

Profile

Joined the Carmelite Missionaries in 1910, began her formal novitiate at Gracia-Barcelona, Spain in 1915, her profession in 1916, and her perpetual vows in 1921. Had a great devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Worked at the Las Corts mental hospital, the Badalona Asylum, the Amparo de Santa Lucia house for the blind in Barcelona, and then did home care for the sick from the Carmelite motherhouse in Barcelona. Martyred by the Communist “Red Committee” in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

4 April 1890 in Berriatúa, Vizcaya, Spain

Died

shot on 31 July 1936 at the L’Arrabassada highway, Barcelona, Spain

Beatified

28 October 2007 by Pope Benedict XVI

Blessed Michal Oziebijowski

Additional Memorial

12 June as one of the 108 Martyrs of World War II

Profile

Priest of the archdiocese of Warsaw, Poland, serving in the parish of Kutno where he was know for ministry and assistance to the poor. Arrested in October 1941 by the Gestapo and imprisoned in the Dachau concentration camp during the Nazi occupation of Poland in World War II. There he worked to minister to fellow prisoners until his death. Martyr.

Born

28 September 1900 in Izdebno Koscielne, Grodzisk Mazowiecki, Poland

Died

of starvation and abuse on 31 July 1942 at Dachau concentration camp in Oberbayern, Germany

Beatified

13 June 1999 by Pope John Paul II at Warsaw, Poland

Blessed Jean-François Jarrige de la Morelie de Breuil

Profile

Priest in the diocese of Limoges, France. Imprisoned on a ship in the harbor of Rochefort, France and left to die during the anti-Catholic persecutions of the French Revolution. One of the Martyrs of the Hulks of Rochefort.

Born

11 January 1752 in Saint-Yrieix, Haute-Vienne, France

Died

31 July 1794 aboard the prison ship Deux-Associés, in Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, France

Beatified

1 October 1995 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Neot

Also known as

the Pygmy Saint

Profile

Related to King Alfred the Great. Monk of Glastonbury Abbey. Priest. Sacristan. Hermit in Cornwall, England. Reports describe him from being 4 foot tall down to a mere 15 inches. Spent much of his day up to his neck in a well during his devotions. Neot had a strange way with animals and birds, and worked miracles with them.

Died

• 877 of natural causes

• some relics at Saint Neot's church, Cambridgeshire, England

• some relics at the abbey of Bee, Normandy, France

Patronage

fish

Saint Calimerius of Milan

Also known as

Apostle of the Po Valley

Profile

Educated in Rome, Italy by Pope Saint Telesphorus. Priest. Bishop of Milan, Italy for over 50 years. Evangelized throughout his diocese, making untold converts. Suffered in but survived the persecutions of Marcus Aurelius. Martyred in the persecutions of Commodus.

Born

Greek

Died

• drowned in a well c.190 in Milan, Italy

• buried under the altar of his church in Milan

Saint Fabius of Caesarea

Also known as

Fabio

Profile

Soldier. Martyred in the persecutions of Diocletian for refusing to carry a standard with emblems of idols.

Died

beheaded in 300 in Caesarea, Maurentania, North Africa

Saint Firmus of Tagaste

Profile

Bishop of Tagaste, Numidia in North Africa (modern Souk Ahrus, Algeria). Tortured extensively to betray the hiding place of one of his flock; he refused.

Martyrs of Syria

Profile

350 monks massacred by heretics for their adherence to orthodox Christianity and the decrees of the Council of Chalcedon.

Died

517 in Syria

Saint Dionysius the Martyr

Profile

Martyr.

Saint Democritus

Profile

Martyr.

Saint Secundus

Profile

Martyr.

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War

Thousands of people were murdered in the anti-Catholic persecutions of the Spanish Civil War from 1934 to 1939. I have pages on each of them, but in most cases I have only found very minimal information. They are available on the CatholicSaints.Info site through these links:

• Blessed Ciriaco Olarte Pérez de Mendiguren

• Blessed Dionisio Vicente Ramos

• Blessed Francisco Remón Játiva

• Blessed Jaume Buch Canals

• Blessed Maria Roqueta Serra

• Blessed Miguel Francisco González-Díez González-Núñez

• Blessed Miguel Goñi Ariz

• Blessed Prudencio Gueréquiz y Guezuraga

• Blessed Segundo de Santa Teresa

• Blessed Teresa Subirá Sanjaume

Also celebrated but no entry yet

• Our Lady of Consolation

• Martyred Spanish Carmelites

• Catherine of Leuven

• Emanuele Phung

• Francis of Milan

• Girolamo Michele Calmell

• Peter Doan Cong Quy

• Tertullinus of Rome

இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் ஜீலை 30

 St. Rheticus

Feastday: July 30

Death: 334

Bishop of Autun, France. A Gallo Roman by birth, he was named bishop of Autun around 310, and worked to bring about the condemnation of Donatism, including the official denunciation of Donatist teachings by a Roman commission in 313.  

Bl. Everard Hanse

Feastday: July 30

Death: 1581

Martyr of England who announced "O happy day!" as he died. He was raised a Protestant in Northhamptonshire, England, studied at Cambridge, and was ordained a minister. In 1568, he converted to the Church and went to Reims, France, where he was ordained in 1581. Returning as a missionary, Everard was arrested and condemned. He was hanged, drawn, and quartered at Tyburn on July 31. He was beatified in 1886.

Everald Hanse (died 31 July 1581) was an English priest and a martyr of the Roman Catholic Church.

Life

Everald Hanse was born in Northamptonshire and educated at Cambridge. He was soon presented to a good living. His brother William, who had become a priest in April 1579 tried to convert him, but in vain until a sharp attack of illness made him enter into himself. He then resigned his rich preferments, and went over to Reims in northern France (1580–1581). He was ordained 25 March 1581 and returned, but his ministry was very short. [1]

In July he was visiting in disguise some Catholic prisoners in the Marshalsea, when the keeper noticed that his shoes were of a foreign make. He was closely examined, and his priesthood was discovered. As yet there was no law against priests, and to satisfy the hypocritical professions of the persecutors, it was necessary to find some treason of which he was guilty. He was asked in court at the Newgate Sessions, what he thought of the pope's authority, and on his admitting that he believed him "to have the same authority now as he had a hundred years before", he was further asked whether the pope had not erred (i.e. sinned) in declaring Queen Elizabeth I excommunicated, to which he answered, "I hope not." His words were at once written down as his indictment, and when he was further asked whether he wished others to believe as he did, he said "I would have all to believe the Catholic faith as I do." A second count was then added that he desired to make others also traitors like himself. He was at once found guilty of "persuasion" which was high treason by Elizabeth. He was therefore in due course sentenced and executed at Tyburn on 31 July 1581.[2][3]

The trial is noteworthy as one of the most extreme cases of verbal treason on record, and it was so badly received that the Government had afterwards to change their methods of obtaining sentences. The martyr's last words were "O happy day!" and his constancy throughout "was a matter of great edification to the good". The Spanish ambassador wrote: "Two nights after his death, there was not a particle of earth on which his blood had been shed, which had not been carried off as a relic.

St. Olaf of Sweden

Feastday: July 30

Birth: 980

Death: 1022

Martyred Swedish king, also known as Olaf Skottkonung He ruled Sweden from 993-1024 as the son and heir of Eric the Conqueror. Converted to Christianity by St. Sigfrid, he attempted to introduce the faith to Sweden. The chief event of his reign was his defeat of King Olaf I Tryggvason of Norway at Svolder in 1000 with the aid of King Sweyn of Denmark and Eric, Jarl of Lade. His efforts at Christianization met with sharp opposition from pagans, and Olaf was martyred at Stockholm by rebels after he refused to sacrifice to pagan idols.

Olof Skötkonung, (Old Norse: Óláfr skautkonungr) sometimes stylized as Olaf the Swede (c. 980–1022), was King of Sweden, son of Eric the Victorious and, according to Icelandic sources, Sigrid the Haughty. He succeeded his father in c. 995. He stands at the threshold of recorded history, since he is the first Swedish ruler about whom there is substantial knowledge.[1] He is regarded as the first king known to have ruled both the Swedes and the Geats. In Sweden, the reign of king Olov Skötkonung (c. 995–1022) is considered to be the transition from the Viking age to the Middle Ages, because he was the first Christian king of the Swedes, who were the last to adopt Christianity in Scandinavia. He is associated with a growing influence of the church in what is today southwestern and central Sweden. Norse beliefs persisted in parts of Sweden until the 12th century.[2]

Olof was victorious alongside Sweyn Forkbeard when the kings created an alliance to defeat the Norwegian king Olaf Tryggvason in the Battle of Svolder. After the battle, the victorious leaders split Norway into areas of control. Heimskringla gives the most detailed account of the division. Olof received four districts in Trondheim as well as Møre, Romsdal and Rånrike

Saint Peter Chrysologus

புனித பீட்டர் கிறிசோலோகு (St.Peter Chrysologus)

இவர் 430 ஆம் ஆண்டு இராவென்னா என்ற நகரின் ஆயராக தேர்ந்தெடுக்கப்பட்டார். அந்நகரில் புகழ்மிக்க பணக்காரர்கள் வசி த்து வந்தனர். இதனால் உரோமை பேரரச ரால் அந்நகர் சுற்றி வளைக்கப்பட்ட கைப் பற்றப்பட்டது. அரசர் ஹோனோரியுஸ் (Honorius) என்பவரால் இராவென்னா மக்கள் துன்பப்படுத்த ப்பட்டார்கள். 2 ஆம் நூற்றாண்டிலிருந்து ஏறக்குறைய 50ஆண் டுகள் கொன்ஸ்டானிநோபிளில் வாழ்ந்த அரசன் ஒருவன், திருச்சபையைப்பற்றி தவறாக போதித்தான். இதனால் ஆயர் பீட்டர் இதனை சுட்டிக்காட்டி, தவற்றை திருத்திக்கொள்ள வேண்டுமென்று எச்சரித்தார். ஆயர் தன் மறைமாநிலம் முழுவ தும் மிக எளிமையான முறையில் திருப்பலி நிறைவேற்றி, பொருள் தரும் வகையில் சொற்பொழிவாற்றி மக்களின் மனங் களில் இடம்பிடித்தார். பின்னர் மிலான் மறைமாநிலத்திற்கு சென்று அங்கிருந்த சில பிரச்சனைகளையும் தீர்த்து வைத்தார். மீண்டும் இராவென்னா வந்த பிறகு, உரோமை அரசரின் கீழிரு ந்த தன்னுடைய மறைமாநிலத்தை, திருத்தந்தையின் அதிகார த்திற்கு கொண்டு வந்தார். பின்னர் அந்தியோக்கியா நகரிலிரு ந்த இறையியல் பள்ளிக்கு தேவையான சில புத்தகங்களை எழுதினார். இவரின் நூல்கள் அனைத்திலும் மரியன்னைக்கெ ன்று சிறப்பிடத்தை தந்துள்ளார். இதன் வழியாக இவர் அன்னை யின் மேல் எவ்வளவு பக்தி கொண்டவர் என்பதை அறியலாம்.

இவர் ஆயராக பணிசெய்த ஆண்டுகளில் கிறிஸ்துவத்தை பணக்கார மக்களிடையே பரப்பி, அவர்களை இறைவன்பால் ஈர்த்தார். பலரால் தீர்க்க முடியாத பிரச்சனைகளையும் மிக எளிதாக தீர்த்துவைத்தார். பல நாடுகளிடையே சமாதானத்தை கொண்டுவந்தார். ஒற்றுமையின்றி இருந்த அரசர்களை சேர்த்து வைத்து, கிறிஸ்து ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளச் செய்தார். தான் எழுதிய பல இறையியல் நூல்களின் வழியாக பல குருக்களின் வாழ்வை மாற்றி, இறையழைத்தலை பெருகச் செய்தார். இவர் தன் மறைமாநிலம் முழுவதும் பல ஆலயங்களை எழுப்பினார். பல கல்விக்கூடங்களையும், இறையியல் கல்லூரிகளையும் நிறுவினார். தான் சென்ற இடமெல்லாம் மக்களை ஒன்றுகூட்டி போதித்தார். ஒவ்வொரு போதனைகளிலும் " மனிதனுக்கு பட்டம், பதவி, பணம் இவற்றைவிட செபம் என்பது மிகவும் அவசியமானது. செபிக்காதவன் இறந்தவன்; நம் செபம் இவ்வுலகில் மணம் வீச வேண்டும்" என்று தவறாமல் கூறுவார். அவ்வாறு ஒருநாள் போதித்து முடித்தபிறகு, மிக அமைதியாக அமர்ந்தபோது, எவ்வித சலசலப்புமின்றி ஆழ்ந்த அமைதியில் இறைவனடி சேர்ந்தார்.

Profile

Adult convert to Christianity. Deacon. Priest. Bishop of Ravenna, Italy in 433. Fought paganism and the Monophysite heresy, enforced reforms, and built several churches and ornate altars in his see. Preacher with such language skills, he was given given the name Chrysologus, referring to his golden word. 176 of his sermons have survived; it is the strength of these beautiful explanations of the Incarnation, the Creed, the place of Mary and John the Baptist in the great plan of salvation, etc., that led to his being proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 1729 by Pope Benedict XIII.

Born

406 at Imola, Italy

Died

2 December 450 at Imola, Italy

Patronage

• against fever

• against mad dogs

• Imola, Italy

Representation

• bishop being presented to Pope Sixtus III by Saint Peter the Apostle and Saint Apollinaris of Ravenna

• bishop holding a dish

Saint María Natividad Venegas de La Torre

Also known as

• María de Jesús Sacramentado

• María of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament

• Mary of the Blessed Sacrament Venegas de la Torre

• Nati (childhood nickname)

Profile

Youngest of twelve children in a pious Bible-reading, Rosary-praying family; her father was an accountant and her mother a homemaker. Natividad was early drawn to prayer and contemplation, and made her first Communion at age 9. Her mother died when Nati was 16. The family moved to Compostela, Nayarit, Mexico for financial reasons, and Nati spent even more time in church and in prayer. Her father died when she was 19, and her paternal uncle and aunt took over care of the children who were still at home.

Nati began teaching local children to read, was very active in parish life, became a catechist, and attended daily Mass. She joined the Daughters of Mary on 8 December 1898, and began discerning a call to religious life. Following an Ignatian retreat, she joined the Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on 8 December 1905; the pious union was dedicated to care of the sick, elderly and abandoned. She worked the next 54 years with the poor and sick in the small Sacred Heart hospital in Guadalajara, Mexico. She served as a nurse, pharmacist, housekeeper, and the community's accountant and the hospital‘s bookeeper. Chosen Superior General of the Daughters in 1921. By 1924 she had written the formal constitutions of the Order, obtained diocean approval, and is considered the founder of the Congregation. She served as leader of the Daughters for 35 years during which they inceased vocations, opened hospitals and clinics, and founded several houses; she took the name María of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. Wrote a number of pieces about her region.

Beginning in 1926, President Plutarco Elías Calles began enforcing anti-clerical laws, seizing Church property, shutting down Church institutions including schools, hospitals, orphanages and homes for the elderly. Mass was prohibited, religious education outlawed, and all bishops were exiled from Mexico; this persecution started the Cristero War. Mother Nati managed to keep Sacred Heart hospital open during the repressions; when soldiers arrived to close it down, she overwhelmed them with kindness, and she and her sisters treated both soldiers and Cristeros, so the military held off enforcing the order to shut her down. Mother Nati insisted that the Eucharist not be removed from the hospital, and to prevent the soldiers from committing sacrilege, it was often hidden in bee hives on their property.

Mother Nati continued working with the patients until her last days, even when she had to get around in a wheelchair. Her final, bed-ridden days were spent in prayer for them, her hospital and her sisters.

Born

8 September 1868 in La Tapona, Zapotlanejo, Jalisco, Mexico

Died

30 July 1959 in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico of natural causes

Canonized

• 21 May 2000 by Pope John Paul II

• first canonized Mexican

• canonization celebrated in Saint Peter's Square in Rome, Italy

• her canonization miracle involved the healing of Anastasio Ledezma Mora whose heart stopped during surgery, who went into a coma following resuscitation, and was healed following the prayers by the family for the intercession of Mother Nati

Patronage

• Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of Guadalajara

• nurses

Saint Leopold Bogdan Mandic

Also known as

• Adeodato Bogdan Mandic

• Apostle of the Confession

• Apostle of Unity

• Bogdan Ivan Mandic

• Brother Leopold

• Leopoldo of Castelnuovo

Profile

Saint Leopold was a contrast between physical frailty and spiritual strength. Four foot five inches tall, and physically weak, his health became worse with age. He had a stammer, suffered abdominal pains, and was gradually deformed by chronic arthritis, making his frame stooped, his hands gnarled, and his life one of endless pain. Spiritually, Leopold Mandic was a giant, full of Christian strength. His humility and faith in God enabled him to accept his poor physical condition, and realize God's power - for without God he could do nothing.

Twelfth child born to Peter and Caroline Mandic. Physically malformed and delicate of health, Bogdan early showed signs of great spiritual strength and integrity. At age 16, Bogdan left Dalmatia for Italy where he became a student at the Capuchin Seraphic School at Udine, and an aspirant to the Capuchins. He applied himself to his studies, and entered the Capuchin Order as a novice on 20 April 1884 at Bassano del Grappa, taking the religious name Brother Leopold. After his Profession of Vows in May 1885, Leopold began clerical studies at Padua and Venice. Ordained in Venice on 20 September 1890.

He wanted to be a missionary in Eastern Europe, an area torn apart by religious strife, but he was denied by his superiors because of his frailty and general ill-health. Stationed at various Friaries in the Venetian Province from 1890 to 1906, including his homeland of Dalmatia, where the Italian friars had a mission. Posted to Padua, Italy in 1906 where, except for a year spent in a prison camp in World War I because he would not renounce his Croat nationality, he remained for the rest of his life. In Padua he became a Confessor and Spiritual Director for almost forty years. Father Leopold encouraged many, especially the hopeless in enslavement to sin. Though he did not go to the missions, his long service in the confessional proved it to be his own apostolate. For nearly forty years, twelve hours a day, he absolved and councelled thousands of penitents, always weak but always available.

Born

12 May 1866 at Herceg Novi, Dubrovacko-Neretvanska Croatia as Adeodato

Died

30 July 1942 at the Friary in Padua, Italy of oesophageal cancer

Canonized

16 October 1983 by Pope John Paul II

Blessed Vicenta Chávez Orozco

Also known as

María Vicenta of Saint Dorothy

Profile

Youngest of four children, Vicenta was a pious girl, known for her devotion to the Infant Jesus, for making little altars and asking other children to pray with her. She grew up in Mexicaltzingo, a neighborhood inhabited by poor and unskilled workers. Her parish priest, Father Agustin Beas, was devoted to the infirm poor; he set up six beds in a room of his rectory, called it Holy Trinity Hospital, and the sick were cared for by the women of the Saint Vincent de Paul Society. On 20 February 1892 Vicentita entered this hospital with pleurisy, and there received the inspiration to dedicate her life to God in the person of the poor and the sick. By 10 July 1892 she had recovered, and returned to the hospital to begin her life of charity. In 1895 she took private vows. On 12 May 1905 she founded the Congregation of the Servants of the Poor, later renamed the Servants of the Holy Trinity and the Poor. She made her canonical profession in 1911, and was named Superior General in 1913, a service she performed for 30 years, fervent in prayer, seeing obedience as the greatest form of sacrifice.

In 1914, during the Mexican Revolution, Carranza's troops commandeered the cathedral of Guadalajara, and imprisoned priests and religious, including Maria-Vicenta and the Servants. In 1926 Saint Vincent's Hospital in Zapotlan, Mexico was turned into a military headquarters; the Servants ignored the danger, caring for the wounded, and insuring they received reconciliation and Communion. The faith and hard work of the Servants paid off over the years with abundant vocations and 17 new hospitals, clinics and nurseries.

At age 75, Mother Vicentita began to have eye and other health trouble, but was the still first in chapel each morning at 4:00, but on 29 July 1949 did not appear. The chaplain anointed her, and Archbishop Jose Garibi Rivera, the first Cardinal from Mexico, heard her confession and celebrated Mass. At the elevation of the Host, Mother Vicentita dropped into death like a baby falling asleep.

Born

6 February 1867 at Cotija, Michoacan, Mexico as Vicenta Chavez Orozco

Died

30 July 1949 at Holy Trinity Hospital, Guadalajara, Mexico of natural causes

Beatified

9 November 1997 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Godelieve

புனித காடிலியீவ் (1052-1070)

ஜூலை 30

இவர் பிரான்ஸ் நாட்டிலுள்ள ஒரு வசதியான குடும்பத்தில் பிறந்தவர். சிறுவயதிலேயே இவர் கடவுள்மீது  மிகுந்த பற்றுகொண்டு வாழ்ந்து வந்தார். இதனால் இவர் 'தான் வளர்ந்து பெரியவளாகும்போது, ஒரு கன்னியாக  வாழவேண்டும்' என்று மனஉறுதி கொண்டார்.

இது ஒருபுறமிருக்க, இன்னொருபுறம் இவர் அழகிற் சிறந்தவராய் இருந்ததால், இவரை மணமுடிக்கப் பலரும் போட்டி போட்டுக் கொண்டு வந்தனர். இவ்வாறு வந்த எல்லாரும் தோல்வி முகத்தோடு திரும்பினர்.

இந்நிலையில் பெர்தோல்ட் என்பவன், இவருடைய தந்தையைத் தன்னுடைய வழிக்குக் கொண்டுவந்து, இவரை ஒருவழியாக மணமுடித்தான். 

திருமணத்திற்குப் பிறகும்கூட இவர் தன்னுடைய முடிவில் மிக உறுதியாக இருந்ததால், இவரை மணமுடித்த பெர்தோல்ட் என்பவன் இவருக்கு வெறும் ரொட்டியும் தண்ணீரையும் மட்டுமே கொடுத்து, இவரை ஓர் அறையில் அடைத்து வைத்துக் கொடுமைப் படுத்தினான்.

இவரோ தனக்குக் கொடுக்கப்பட்ட அந்த ரொட்டியைக்கூட தானிருந்த அறைக்கு பக்கத்தில் இருந்த ஏழைகளுக்குக் கொடுத்து உதவினார். 

இச்செய்தியை அறிந்த இவருடைய கணவன் இவரைத் தன்னுடைய இரண்டு பணியாளர்களை வைத்து தண்ணீருக்குள் மூழ்கடித்துக் கொன்றுபோட்டான். இவர் இறக்கும்போது இவருக்கு வயது வெறும் 18 தான்.

தொண்டையில் பிரச்சனை உள்ளோரும், நல்ல வரன் அமையவேண்டும் என்று விரும்புவோரும் இவரிடம் வேண்டிக் கொண்டால், தங்களுடைய வேண்டுதல் நிறைவேறும் என்றொரு நம்பிக்கை இருக்கிறது.

Also known as

• Godelieve of Ghistelles

• Godelieve of Gistel

• Godaleva, Godeleine, Godeleva, Godeliève, Godelina, Godeliva, Godelive, Godelva, Godliva

Profile

Born to the Flemish nobility, the daughter of Hemfried, Lord of Wierre-Effray. Married to Bertulf of Ghistelles, a Flemish nobleman, who abandoned her before the wedding feast was over. Abused by her in-laws, especially her mother-in-law, Godelieve was variously locked in a cell, starved, and subjected to assorted physical and mental abuse. Her father threatened to turn the husband and in-laws over to state and Church authorities; Bertulf appeared to repent, Godelieve returned to him, and was soon after murdered; she is generally considered a martyr. Always a friend of the poor and sick, post-mortem miracles ascribed to her include restoration of sight to her step-daughter.

Born

1049 at Londefort-lez-Boulogne, France

Died

murdered by drowning after being strangled into unconciousness by her mother-in-law's servants on 6 July 1070 at Gistel, Belgium

Patronage

• difficult marriages

• for healthy throats; against throat diseases

• in-law problems

• victims of abuse

• victims of verbal spouse abuse

Blessed Bernard Francis Casey

 அருளாளர் பெர்னார்ட் ஃபிரான்சிஸ் கேசே

(Blessed Solanus Casey)

Also known as

• Francis Solanus

• Father Solanus

• Solanus Casey

Bernard Francis Casey

குரு:

(Priest)

பிறப்பு: நவம்பர் 25, 1870

ஓக் க்ரோவ்,  விஸ்கோன்சின், ஐக்கிய அமெரிக்க நாடுகள்

(Oak Grove, Wisconsin, U.S)

இறப்பு: ஜூலை 31, 1957 (வயது 86)

டெட்ரோய்ட், மிச்சிகன், ஐக்கிய அமெரிக்க நாடுகள்

(Detroit, Michigan, U.S.)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்:

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

முக்திபேறு பட்டம்: நவம்பர் 18, 2017

கர்தினால் ஏஞ்ஜெலோ அமேட்டோ

(Cardinal Angelo Amato)

முக்கிய திருத்தலம்:

தூய பொனவென்ச்சுர் துறவு மடம், டெட்ரோய்ட், மிச்சிகன், ஐக்கிய அமெரிக்க நாடுகள்

(Saint Bonaventure Monastery, Detroit, Michigan, U.S.)

நினைவுத் திருநாள்: ஜூலை 30

அருளாளர் சோலனஸ் கேசே, ஒரு அமெரிக்க ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க குருவும் (American Roman Catholic priest), ஃபிரான்சிஸ்கன் இளநிலை கப்புச்சின் சபையின் (Order of Friars Minor Capuchin) உறுப்பினருமாவார்.

அவர் தனது வாழ்நாளில், தாம் கொண்ட பெரும் விசுவாசத்திற்காகவும், ஒரு ஆன்மீக ஆலோசகராகவும், தனது திறமைகளுக்காகவும் வியக்கத்தக்க செயல்களை செய்பவராக,அறியப்பட்டார். ஆனால், நோய்வாய்ப்பட்டோர் மீது அவர் செலுத்திய விசேட கவனம் காரணமாக, அவர்களுக்காக அவர் திருப்பலிகளும் நிறைவேற்றினார். இவர் வசித்த டெட்ரோயிட் நகரில், அதிக மக்கள் நாட்டுச் செல்பவராகவும், மதிப்பு மிக்கவராகவும் இருந்தார். வயலின் இசைக்கருவி மீது தீராத காதல் கொண்டிருந்த இவர், தமது முன்னோரான புனிதர் “ஃபிரான்சிஸ் சொலனஸ்” (Saint Francis Solanus) என்பவரின் பெயருடன் தம் பெயரையும் பகிர்ந்து கொண்டார்.

“பெர்னார்ட் ஃபிரான்சிஸ் கேசே” (Bernard Francis Casey) எனும் இயற்பெயர் கொண்ட இவர், கி.பி. 1870ம் ஆண்டு, நவம்பர் மாதம், 25ம் தேதியன்று, வடமத்திய ஐக்கிய அமெரிக்காவின் “விஸ்கோன்சின்” (Wisconsin) மாநிலத்தின் “பியர்ஸ்” (Pierce County) மாகாணத்தின் “ஓக் க்ரோவ்” (Oak Grove) நகரத்தில் பிறந்த இவரது தந்தையார் “பெர்னார்ட் ஜேம்ஸ் கேசே” (Bernard James Casey) ஆவார். இவரது தாயாரின் பெயர், “எலன் எலிசபெத் மர்ஃபி” (Ellen Elizabeth Murphy) ஆகும். இவர், ஐரிஷ் நாட்டிலிருந்து (Irish immigrants) குடிபெயர்ந்து வந்த இவரது பெற்றோரின் பதினாறு குழந்தைகளில் ஆறாவது குழந்தை ஆவார். அதே வருடம், டிசம்பர் மாதம், 18ம் நாளன்று, இவருக்கு திருமுழுக்கு அளிக்கப்பட்டது.

கி.பி. 1878ம் ஆண்டு, “டிப்தீரியா” (Diphtheria) எனப்படும் தொண்டை அழற்சி நோயால் பாதிக்கப்பட்ட இவரது குரல் நிரந்தரமாக பாதிக்கப்பட்டது. அந்நோய், அவரது குரலில் பிசிறுதட்டும் குறைபாட்டை விட்டுச் சென்றது. அதே வருடம், இந்நோயால் பாதிக்கப்பட்ட, குழந்தைப் பருவத்திலிருந்த இவரது இரண்டு சகோதரர்கள் மரணமடைந்தனர். பின்னர், இவர்களது குடும்பம், “ஹட்சன்” (Hudson) நகருக்கு குடிபெயர்ந்தது. கி.பி. 1882ம் ஆண்டு, அக்டோபர் மாதம், “செயின்ட் க்ரோய்க்ஸ்” (Saint Croix County) மாகாணத்திலுள்ள “புர்க்கார்ட்” (Burkhardt) நகருக்கு மீண்டும் குடிபெயர்ந்து சென்றது. கி.பி. 1887ம் ஆண்டில், தனது சொந்த மாநிலத்திலும், அருகிலுள்ள “மின்னெசோட்டா” (Minnesota) மாநிலத்திலும், “லும்பெர்க்ஜேக்” (Lumberjack) எனப்படும் (வட அமெரிக்க தொழிலாளர்கள் செய்யும் மரங்களை வெட்டுதல், சறுக்கல், ஸ்தல செயலாக்கம் மற்றும் மரங்களை லாரிகளில் ஏற்றுதல் அல்லது  பதிவு செய்தல் ஆகிய வேலைகள்), “மருத்துவமனை ஒழுங்குப் பணியாள்” (Hospital Orderly), “மின்னசோட்டா மாநில சிறையில் பாதுகாப்பு பணி” (Guard in the Minnesota State Prison) மற்றும் கார் ஓட்டுனர் பணி போன்ற தொடர்ச்சியான வேலைகளுக்காக பண்ணையை விட்டு வெளியேறினார். சிறையில் பாதுகாப்பு பணியிலிருந்தபோது, அமெரிக்க சட்டவிரோத (Outlaw), வங்கி (Bank) மற்றும் ரயில் கொள்ளைக்காரனும் (Train Robber), கெரில்லாவுமான (Guerrilla), “ஜெஸ் ஜேம்ஸ்” (Jesse James) எனும் சம வயதுடைய ஒருவரின் நட்பும் கிடைத்தது. ஆரம்பத்தில், அவர் திருமணம் செய்துகொள்ள விரும்பினார். ஆனால், தாம் பார்த்த பெண்ணின் தாய், அவளை ஒருநாள் திடீரென உண்டுறை பள்ளியில் (Boarding School) சேர்த்துவிட்டார்.

அவர் கடைசியாக செய்த வேலையில் பணியாற்றும் போது ஒருநாள், கொடூரமாக நடைபெற்ற கொலை ஒன்றினை காண நேர்ந்தது. அது, இவரது வாழ்க்கையையும் எதிர்காலத்தையும் மதிப்பீடு செய்ய இவருக்கு உதவியது. ஒருநாள், போக்கிரிகள் நிறைந்த நகரின் “சுபீரியர்” பகுதியில் கார் ஓட்டிச் செல்கையில், ஒரு குடிகார கடற்படை வீரன், ஒரு பெண்ணை கத்தியால் குத்திக் கொன்றதைக் கண்டார். அந்த நேரத்தில்தான் தாம் குருத்துவ வாழ்விற்கு அழைக்கப்பட்டதை உணர்ந்தார். ஆனால், கி.பி. 1891ம் ஆண்டு, ஜனவரி மாதம், தமது குறைவான கல்வித் தகுதியின் காரணமாக, “மில்வௌகி உயர்மறைமாவட்டத்தின்” (Archdiocese of Milwaukee) இளநிலை செமினரியான (Minor Seminary), செயின்ட் பிரான்சிஸ் உயர்நிலை பள்ளி செமினரியில் (Saint Francis High School Seminary) மறைமாவட்ட குரு (Diocesan Priest) ஆவதற்கான கல்வி கற்க சேர்ந்தார். அங்கே கற்பிக்கப்பட்ட வகுப்புகள் அனைத்தும் ஜெர்மனி அல்லது இலத்தீன் மொழிகளில் நடத்தப்பட்டன. இம்மொழிகளின் பேச்சுவழக்கினை இவர் அறிந்திருக்கவில்லை. காலப்போக்கில், அவருடைய கல்விக் குறைபாடுகளின் காரணமாக, - ஒரு மதகுருவாக ஆவதற்கு அவர் விரும்பினால் ஒரு மத சபையில் சேர வேண்டும் என்று அவர் அறிவுறுத்தப்பட்டார். அங்கே, அவர் ஒரு எளிய குருவாக (Simplex Priest) குருத்துவ அருட்பொழிவு செய்விக்கப்படுவார் என்றனர். திருப்பலி நிறைவேற்றும் உரிமை மட்டுமுள்ள அதில், பொதுக்கூட்டங்களில் பிரசங்கிக்கவோ, கற்பிக்கும் பணிகளோ, ஒப்புரவு வழங்கும் அதிகாரமோ கூட கிடைக்காது. சபையில் சேர்வதற்கான தமது விண்ணப்பத்தைத் தயாரிப்பதற்கு முன்னர் அவர் வீடு திரும்பினார்.

செய்வதறியாது திகைத்த பெர்னார்ட் ஃபிரான்சிஸ் கேசே, தமது மனநிலையை, அர்ச்சிஷ்ட அன்னை கன்னி மரியாளின் (Blessed Virgin Mary) திருச்சொரூபம் ஒன்றின் முன்பு அறிக்கையிட்டு மன்றாடியபோது, அன்னையின் தெளிவான – ஸ்பஷ்டமான குரல், அவரை “டெட்ரோய்ட்” (Detroit) செல்ல உத்தரவிட்டதை அவரால் கேட்க முடிந்தது. பின்னர் அவர், அந்நகரின் “ஃபிரான்சிஸ்கன் இளநிலை கப்புச்சின்” (Order of Friars Minor Capuchin) சபையில் சேர விண்ணப்பித்தார். கி.பி. 1897ம் ஆண்டு, ஜனவரி மாதம், 14ம் தேதி, அவர் அச்சபையில் சேர்த்துக்கொள்ளப்பட்டார். அவருக்கு புனிதர் “ஃபிரான்சிஸ் சோலனஸ்” (Saint Francis Solanus) நினைவாக, “சோலனஸ்” என்ற ஆன்மீகப் பெயர் தரப்பட்டது. இருவருமே வயலின் இசைக்கருவியை காதலித்தனர். 1898ம் ஆண்டு, ஜூலை மாதம், 21ம் நாளன்று, தமது சத்தியப் பிரமாணங்களை ஏற்ற அவர், கல்வியில் கஷ்டப்பட்டாலும், 1904ம் ஆண்டு, ஜூலை மாதம், 24ம் தேதி, “மில்வௌகி” (Milwaukee) நகரிலுள்ள “அசிசியின் புனிதர் ஃபிரான்சிஸ் தேவாலயத்தில்” (Saint Francis of Assisi Church), பேராயர் “செபாஸ்டியன் மெஸ்மர்” (Archbishop Sebastian Messmer) என்பவரால் குருத்துவ அருட்பொழிவு செய்விக்கப்பட்டார்.

அவர், நியூ யார்க் (New York) நகரில், அடுத்தடுத்து இரண்டு தசாப்தங்களாக, பலவகைப்பட்ட துறவியரிடையே பணியாற்றினார். அவருக்கு ஒதுக்கப்பட்ட்ட முதல் பணி ஸ்தலம், “யோங்கர்ஸ்” (Yonkers) நகரிலுள்ள “திருஇருதய துறவு மடம்” (Sacred Heart Friary) ஆகும். பின்னர், நியூ யார்க் (New York) நகருக்கு மாற்றப்பட்ட அவர், முதலில் “பென் ஸ்டேஷனுக்கு” (Penn Station) அருகிலுள்ள “தூய யோவான் ஆலயத்தில்” (Saint John's Church) பணிபுரிந்தார். அதன்பின்னர், “ஹார்லெம்” (Harlem) எனும் மாநகரிலுள்ள ‘அன்னை தேவலோகத்தினரின் அரசி” (Our Lady Queen of Angels) ஆலயத்தில் பணிபுரிந்தார்.

ஒரு எழுச்சியூட்டும் பேச்சாளராக அங்கீகரிக்கப்பட்ட தந்தை சோலனஸ், 1924ம் ஆண்டு, ஆகஸ்ட் மாதம், “டெட்ரோய்ட்” (Detroit) நகரிலுள்ள “புனிதர் பொனவென்ச்சர் பள்ளிக்கு” (Saint Bonaventure convent) மாற்றப்பட்டார். 1945ம் ஆண்டுவரை, சுமார் 21 வருடங்கள் அங்கே இருந்த அவர், அங்கிருந்த அதிக காலம் ஒரு சாதாரண சுமை தூக்குபவராகவும் (Porter), வரவேற்பாளராகவும் (Receptionist), வாயிற்காப்போனாகவும் (Doorkeeper) வேலை செய்தார். ஒவ்வொரு புதன்கிழமை பிற்பகலிலும், நோயாளிகளுக்கு நன்கு பயிற்சி அளிக்கப்பட்ட சேவைகளை அவர் நடத்தினார். இந்த சேவைகள் மூலம், அவர் தனது பெரும் கருணை மற்றும் அவரது ஆலோசனைகளின் மூலம், நோயாளிகளுக்கு அற்புதமான முடிவுகள் கிடைத்ததனால் இவர் பரவலாக அறியப்பட்டார். மக்கள் அவரை குணப்படுத்தக்கூடிய கருவியாகவும், பிற ஆசீர்வாதங்களுக்கான கருவியாகவும் கருதினர். இரவின் அமைதியில், நற்கருணை ஆண்டவருக்கு முன்பாக முழந்தாழிட்டு ஆழ்ந்த தியானத்தில் மூழ்க அவர் நேசித்தார். ஒருமுறை, இந்த பள்ளியில் தமது அனுபவத்தை நினைவுகூர்ந்த அருட்தந்தை “பெனடிக்ட் குரோஸ்செலி” (Father Benedict Groeschel), இரவு நேரங்களில், திருப்பலிபீடத்தின் மேல் படியிலே, முழந்தாழிட்டு, தந்தை சோலனஸ் அசைவற்று செபிப்பதை தாம் பல இரவுகள் கண்டிருப்பதாக கூறுகிறார்.

வயலின் இசைக் கருவியை இயக்கும் திறன் கொண்டிருந்த்த சோலனஸ், பொழுதுபோக்கு நேரங்களில், தமது சக துறவியருக்காக, ஐரிஷ் மொழி பாடல்களை பாடி இசைத்தார். அவரது குழந்தை பருவ பேச்சு தடை காரணமாக, அவரது குரல் பயங்கரமாக இருந்தது. அடிக்கடி விரதங்களிருந்த இத்துறவி, போதுமான அளவே உண்டார். தமது எழுபதுகளில் கூட, இளம் துறவியருடன் டென்னிஸ் (Tennis), வாலிபால் (Volleyball) மற்றும் ஓட்டம் (Jogging) போன்ற விளையாட்டுக்களையும் விளையாடுவதுண்டு.

1946ம் ஆண்டுமுதலே பலவீனமடைந்து, நோய்வாய்ப்பட ஆரம்பித்த இவருக்கு “எக்சீமா” (Eczema) எனப்படும் சிரங்கு நோய், உடல் முழுதும் பரவ ஆரம்பித்தது. “இண்டியானா” (Indiana) மாநிலத்தின் “ஹன்டிங்க்டன்” (Huntington) நகரிலுள்ள “புனிதர் ஃபெலிக்ஸ்” கபுச்சின் புகுமுக துறவியர்” (Capuchin novitiate of Saint Felix) பயிற்சியகத்திற்கு மாற்றப்பட்டார். 1956ம் ஆண்டுவரை, அங்கேயே டெட்ரோய்ட் நகரின் மருத்துவமனையில் அனுமதிக்கப்பட்டிருந்தார். 1957ம் ஆண்டு, உணவு விஷத் தன்மையாக (Food Poisoning) மாறியதற்காக மருத்துவமனை கொண்டுசெல்லப்பட்டார். அவருக்கு சிகிச்சைகளுக்கு அப்பாலான (Erysipelas) அல்லது (Psoriasis) ஆகிய நோய்கள் இருப்பதகாக மருத்துவர்கள் சொன்னார்கள். புண்கள் குணமடத் துவங்கும் வரை, உறுப்புகள் துண்டிக்கப்படுவது (Amputation) அவசியமாக மருத்துவர்கள் கருதினார்கள்.

சோலனஸ் கேசே, 1957ம் ஆண்டு, ஜூலை மாதம், 31ம் தேதி, டெட்ரோய்ட் (Detroit) நகரிலுள்ள புனிதர் யோவான் மருத்துவமனையில் (Saint John Hospital) மரித்தார்.

Also known as

• Francis Solanus

• Father Solanus

• Solanus Casey

Profile

Bernard joined the Franciscan Capuchins in 1897. He was ordained a priest in 1904, but because he was unable to complete the academic requirements of priesthood, Father Solanus was limited in his duties, not being permitted to preach, hear Confessions or perform other tasks usually associated with priests, but instead assigned as porter of his house, first in New York and then at the Saint Bonaventure Monastery in Detroit, Michigan. A miracle worker, and a man whose simple faith and deep prayer life led him to be a much sought after spiritual advisor.

Born

25 November 1870 in Oak Grove, Wisconsin

Died

31 July 1957 in Detroit, Michigan of natural causes

Beatified

• 18 November 2017 by Pope Francis

• beatification recognition celebrated at Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan

• his beatification miracle involved the 2012 overnight healing of Paula Medina Zarate of ichthyosis, a genetic condition causes skin to become thickened, scaly and cracked, and for which there is no known cure

Blessed Manés de Guzmán

Also known as

Mamerto, Mamés, Manez

Profile

Son of Felix de Guzman and Blessed Juana of Aza; older brother of Saint Dominic de Guzman. Educated by his uncle Gonzalo de Aza in Gumiel de Izan, and he joined the Cistercians in the San Pedro monastery in Gumiel de Izan in 1183. Priest. Helped his brother Dominic found and spread the Dominicans, joining as one of the first 15 members on 15 August 1217. Prior of the Saint-Jacques monastery in Paris, France; founded the sister convent there. Transferred to Madrid, Spain in 1219 to help establish Dominican nuns in that city. He attended the canonization of his brother on 13 July 1234 in Rome, Italy, and returned to Caleruega with plans for a church dedicated to Saint Dominic, but died before it could begin. Known as a quiet and contemplative person, but a fiery and determined preacher, and was invaluable in the early spread of the Dominicans.

Born

c.1170 in Caleruega, Castile (in modern Burgos, Spain)

Died

• 1234 in the monastery of San Pedro de Gumeil, Izan, Castile (in modern Burgos, Spain) of natural causes

• buried at the monastery of San Pedro

Beatified

2 June 1834 by Pope Gregory XVI (cultus confirmation)

Blessed Thomas Abel

Also known as

• Thomas Able

• Thomas Abell

Profile

Thomas received his Doctor of Divinity from Oxford University in England. Priest. Chaplain to Queen Catherine of Aragon, wife of King Henry VIII. He delivered the letter of Emperor Charles V that sought the permission and blessing of Pope Julius II for the marriage of Henry and Catherine. He confided to the emperor that Catherine had been coerced into writing the letter; Charles refused to pass on the request to the pope, and Thomas returned empty-handed to England.

When Henry sought to divorce Catherine, Thomas published Invicta Veritas, which argued against Oxford University's support of the divorce; for this he was imprisoned in the Tower of London in 1532. Released soon after, he was arrested again in 1533, accused of involvement in the Holy Maid of Kent incident in which a woman named Elizabeth Barton went into trances at the sight of the image of Mary and gave teachings in favour of the Mass and Catholicism. While in prison, Thomas established a correspondence with Blessed John Forest who was doing time in Newgate prison. The warden of the Tower released Thomas in 1539, but he was soon re-arrested, and the warden was imprisoned for releasing him. Thomas was convicted of high treason on the basis of denying the king's supremacy over the Church. Martyr.

Born

c.1497 in England

Died

hanged, drawn, and quartered on 30 July 1540 at Smithfield, England

Beatified

29 December 1886 by Pope Leo XIII

Blessed Sebastià Llorens Telarroja

Profile

Studious and pious layman farm worker in the diocese of Girona, Spain, known locally for his mechanical skills. Alumnus of the Colegio Santa María de Blanes in Spain, which was run by the Sons of the Holy Family. Member of Catholic Action. Member of the Federation of Young Christian de Catalunya. Franciscan tertiary known for his charity. Had a dedication to Eucharistic adoration, and devotion to Our Lady of Vilar. As anti–Catholic forces approached, he hid the ancient image of the Virgin of Vilar, patroness of Blanes. Martyred in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

2 December 1909 in Tordera, Barcelona, Spain

Died

• early morning of 30 July 1936 on the highway outside Blanes, Girona, Spain

• buried in the town cemetery of Blanes

Beatified

13 October 2013 by Pope Francis

Blessed Edward Powell

Also known as

Edward Powel

Additional Memorial

1 December as one of the Martyrs of Oxford University

Profile

Educated at Oxford; Fellow of Oriel in 1495. Doctor of Divinity in 1506. Rector of Bleadon, Somerset, England. Priest. Prebendary of Centum Solidorum in Lincoln, England, of Carlton-cum-Thurlby in 1505, of Sutton-in-Marisco in 1525, and of other parishes. Canon of Salisbury. Author of several treatises opposing Martin Luther. Counsellor to Queen Catherine of Aragon, wife of King Henry VIII, and a favourite preacher to the royal court. Convicted on high treason in 1534 on the basis of denying the king's supremacy over the Church. Spent six years imprisoned in the Tower of London before being executed. Martyr.

Born

1478 in Wales

Died

hanged, drawn, and quartered on 30 July 1540 at Smithfield, London, England

Beatified

29 December 1886 by Pope Leo XIII (cultus confirmation)

Saint Terenzio of Imola

Also known as

Terencio

Profile

Terenzio grew up beside the cathedral in Imola, Italy, and early saw life in the Church as just part of life in general. Deacon. He felt called to move to Faenza, Italy where he lived near the church of Santa Croce, working with the poor and serving at Mass. He one day healed a blind man in from Imola by praying for him. It drew him so much attention and admiration that he fled the city to live as a hermit in the forest outside San Pietro in Laguna, Italy. There he continued a ministry of healing, but insisted on his solitude. Warned of his coming death by an angel, Terenzio spent his final days with his fellow hermits, giving them recommendations for their spiritual lives.

Born

6th to 9th century (records vary) in Imola, Italy

Died

• the forest of San Pietro, Laguna, Italy of natural causes

• relics enshrined in the cathedral of Faenza, Italy

Saint Abdon and Saint Senen

Also known as

Abdo, Abdus

Sennen, Sennes, Senxis, Sennis, Zennen

Profile

A couple of coopers who befriended Christians persecuted under Diocletian. Tortured and executed when they were found collecting the remains of martyrs in order to give them a respectable burial. Martyrs.

Born

Persian

Died

• martyred c.250 at Rome, Italy

• interred in the Benedictine Abbey of Sainte Marie, Arles, France

Patronage

• against eye diseases

• against vermin

• barrel makers, coopers, bucket makers

• blind children

• children

• gardeners

Blessed Jaume Puig Mirosa

Profile

Priest. Member of the Sons of the Holy Family. Superior of his Order and Director of Colegio Santa María de Blanes in Spain. As anti-Catholic forces approached, he hid the ancient image of the Virgin of Vilar, patroness of Blanes. Martyred in the Spanish Civil War, the first martyr of the Sons.

Born

3 June 1908 in Terrasa, Barcelona, Spain

Died

• early morning of 30 July 1936 on the highway outside Blanes, Girona, Spain

• re-interred in the chapel cemetery of San José Manyanet parish of Barcelona in 2007

Beatified

13 October 2013 by Pope Francis

Saint Julitta of Caesarea

Profile

Rich lay woman in Caesarea, Cappadocia (in modern Turkey) whose property was stolen by an influential local pagan. She took him to court where he objected that she had no standing or rights in court as she was a Christian. The judge ordered her to prove her standing by making a sacrifice to an idol; she refused. She was immediately arrested, convicted of Christianity, and martyred. Saint Basil the Great wrote about her.

Died

• burned at the stake in 303 in Caesarea, Cappadocia (in modern Turkey)

• her body survived intact, and she was given a Christian burial by other faithful

Blessed Richard Featherstone

Also known as

Richard Fetherston

Profile

Educated at the University of Cambridge, England. Tutor to Princess Mary Tutor. Archdeacon of Brecknock. Chaplain to Queen Catherine of Aragon, wife of King Henry VIII. He defended Catherine in convocation; charged and found guilty of treason. Martyr.

Born

English

Died

hanged, drawn, and quartered on 30 July 1540 at Smithfield, England

Beatified

29 December 1886 by Pope Leo XIII

Saint Iosephus Yuan Gengyin

Also known as

Ruose

Profile

Layman merchant in the apostolic vicariate of Southeastern Zhili, China. Seized by followers of the Yihetuan movement and killed for being Christian. Martyr.

Born

c.1853 in Hui, Zaoqiang, Hebei, China

Died

end of July 1900 in Dayin, Zaoqiang, Hebei, China

Canonized

1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II

Blessed Luis Aguirre Bilbao

Profile

Orphaned as a small boy. Worked as a mechanic while studying to enter the Vincentians, making his profession on 30 June 1933. Martyred in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

13 September 1914 in Murguía, Vizcaya, Spain

Died

30 July 1936 in Alcorisa, Teruel, Spain

Beatified

13 October 2013 by Pope Francis

Saint Hatebrand

Profile

Benedictine monk at Saint Paul's abbey in Utrecht, Netherlands. Abbot of Olden-Klooster, Frisia (in modern Netherlands) in 1183. Revived the Benedictine Rule in Frisia.

Born

Frisia (in modern Netherlands)

Died

1198 of natural causes

Blessed Antonio di San Pietro

Profile

Mercedarian lay brother at the convent of Sant’Anna in Genoa, Italy. Famous within the Order for this chastity, patence, penance and deep prayer life.

Died

1618 of natural causes

Saint Tatwine of Canterbury

Profile

Monk at Breedon Abbey, Mercia (in modern England). Famed for his piety and learning. Archbishop of Canterbury, England.

Died

734 of natural causes

Saint Ursus of Auxerre

Profile

Hermit who lived at the church of Saint Amator in Auxerre, France. Bishop of Auxerre at age 75.

Died

508

Saint Ermengyth

Also known as

Ermengitha, Ermengytha

Profile

Sister of Saint Ermenburgh. Nun at Minster-in-Thanet, Kent, England.

Died

c.680

Martyrs of Castelseras

Profile

Three Dominicans, two of them priests, one a novice, who were martyred together in the Spanish Civil War for refusing to renounce Christianity.

• Joaquín Prats Baltueña

• José María Muro-Sanmiguel

• Zosimo Izquierdo Gil

Died

shot on 30 July 1936 at a farm house outside Castelserás, Teruel, Spain

Beatified

11 March 2001 by Pope John Paul II

Martyrs of Tebourba

Profile

Three girls martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian. We know little else about them but the names – Donatilla, Maxima and Secunda.

Died

304 at Tebourba in North Africa

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War

Thousands of people were murdered in the anti-Catholic persecutions of the Spanish Civil War from 1934 to 1939. I have pages on each of them, but in most cases I have only found very minimal information. They are available on the CatholicSaints.Info site through these links:

• Blessed Alejandro González Blanco

• Blessed Eugenio García Tribaldos

• Blessed Guillermo álvarez Quemada

• Blessed José Frías Ruiz • Blessed Juan Lanz Palanca

• Blessed Luis Herrero Arnillas

• Blessed Miguel Solas del Val

• Blessed Pablo Díaz de Zárate y Ortiz de Zárate

• Blessed Ricardo Pla Espí

• Blessed Sergio Cid Pazo

• Martyred Hospitallers of Spain