இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் ஜீலை 23

 St. Apollinaris

Feastday: July 23

Death: 1st century

Bishop, martyr, and possible disciple of St. Peter. Apollinaris was born in Antioch, Turkey, and became the first bishop of Ravenna, in Italy. He suffered exile because of his preaching and converts. When Emperor Vespasian banished Christians, Apollinaris was beaten by a mob and reputedly died soon after from his wounds. His shrine in the Benedictine Abbey of Classe in Ravenna was once a popular pilgrimage destination. Apollinaris was credited with many miracles. He also appeared to St. Romuald, the founder of the Camaldolese. He is patron of Ravenna, Burthscheid, Aachen, Remagen, and Düsseldorf, and he is invoked against gout, epilepsy, and diseases of the sexual organs. Apollinaris is depicted as a bishop in liturgical art. His cult was confined to local calendars in 1969.

St. Liborius of Le Mans

Feastday: July 23

Patron: against calculi; against colic; against fever; against gall stones; Paderborn Cathedral; Paderborn

Death: 390

Patron saint of Paderborn, Germany, and the bishop of Le Mans, France. His cult is now confined to local calendars.

Liborius of Le Mans (c. 348–397) was the second Bishop of Le Mans. He is the patron saint of the cathedral and archdiocese of Paderborn in Germany. The year of his birth is unknown; he died in 397, reputedly on 23 July.[2]

Le Mans and Paderborn

As for other fourth-century saints, little is known of his life. He was a Gaul, influenced by Latin culture. He is said to have been Bishop of Le Mans for 49 years. He built some churches in its neighbourhood, an indication that his missionary activity was limited to the Gaul of his time. He is said to have ordained, in the course of 96 ordinations, 217 priests and 186 deacons. Saint Martin of Tours assisted him when he was dying. He was buried in the Apostle Basilica of Le Mans, beside his predecessor, Julian, the founder of the bishopric.[2]

Miracles are said to have occurred at his tomb. In 835 Bishop Aldrich placed some relics of his body into an altar in the cathedral, and in the following year, on the instructions of Emperor Louis the Pious, sent the body to Bishop Badurad of Paderborn [de], a diocese founded in 799 by Pope Leo III and Emperor Charlemagne that had no saint of its own.[2]

From this arose a "love bond of lasting brotherhood" that has survived all the hostilities of the succeeding centuries and is considered to be the oldest contract still in force. Both churches bound themselves to help each other by prayer and material assistance, as they have in fact done on more than one occasion.[2]

In view of the power that veneration of Saint Liborius has had in binding peoples together, Archbishop Johannes Joachim Degenhardt of Paderborn established in 1977 the Saint Liborius Medal for Unity and Peace, which is conferred every five years on someone who has contributed to the unity of Europe on Christian principles.[2]

Patronage and symbology

Since Liborius died in the arms of his friend Martin of Tours, he is looked to as a patron of a good death. Since the thirteenth century he is prayed to for assistance against that gallstones that are caused by the water of the limestone area; the first account of a healing of this kind concerns the cure of Archbishop Werner von Eppstein, who came on pilgrimage to the saint's shrine in 1267. This is the origin of the saint's attribute of three stones placed on a copy of the Bible. In the same period he became the patron of the cathedral and the archdiocese, rather than the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Kilian, who were previously in first place. And as stated above, he is seen as a patron of peace and understanding among peoples.[2] He is invoked against colic, fever, and gallstones.

As well as being shown as a bishop carrying small stones on a book, Saint Liborius is also shown with the attribute of a peacock, because of a legend that, when his body was brought to Paderborn, a peacock guided the bearers.

The popularity of the saint in Paderborn is shown in the week-long yearly festival that begins on the Saturday after his 23 July feast day.[2]

Liturgy

St Liborius is a recognized saint of the Roman Catholic Church,[3] but his feast day was not included in the Tridentine Calendar. It was added in 1702 as a commemoration within the 23 July celebration of Saint Apollinaris of Ravenna. The 1969 Mysterii Paschalis revision judged that he was not of sufficient universal importance for insertion in the General Roman Calendar and that it should be left to local calendars to include him.[4]

Libori

Libori is a festival in Paderborn, Germany, in honour of Saint Liborius, which takes place annually in the last week of July

Saint Bridget of Sweden

புனித பிரிஜித்தா (St.Bridget)

இவர் தனது 14 ஆம் வயதி லேயே ஸ்வீடன் நாட்டு அரசர் மாக்னஸ்(Magnes) என்பவரை திருமணம் செய்தார். பின்னர் 8 பிள்ளைகளைப்பெற்று தாயானார். தன் பிள்ளை களை ஆன்மீக காரியங்களில் ஈடுபடுத்தி வளர்த்தார். சிறுவயதிலிருந்தே இறைவன் மீது தணியாத தாகம் கொண்டு வாழ்ந்தார். திருமணத்திற்கு பின்னும் ஆலயப் பணிகளில் தன்னை ஈடுபடுத்திகொண்டு, பல துறவற சபைகளுக்கு உதவி செய்தார். அப்போது தன் கணவர் இறந்துவிடவே, தன்னை புனித பிரான்ஸ்கன் 3 ஆம் சபையில் இணைத்துக்கொண்டு ஆன்ம வாழ்வில் வளர்ந்து, பிறருக்கு வழிகாட்டியாகவும் இருந்தார். இளம் வயதிலிருந்தே கடுமையான தவ வாழ்வில் வளர்ந்த இவர் சபையில் சேர்ந்தபின்னும் அதை மிக கடுமையாக கடைபிடித்து வாழ்ந்தார்.

இவர் அரசர் மனைவி என்பதால், கணவருக்கு சொந்தமான சொத்துக்கள் அனைத்தும் இவருக்கே கொடுக்கப்பட்டது. இவர் அவை அனைத்தையும் வைத்து இவர் பெயரில் ஒரு துறவற மடத்தை நிறுவினார். அதன்பிறகு உரோமைக்கு சென்று, அந்நாட்டில் உள்ள மக்களுக்கு ஆன்ம வாழ்வில் எடுத்துக்காட்டாய் வாழ்ந்தார். தான் மேற்கொண்ட கடுந்தவத்தின் காரணமாய், பல நாட்டிற்கு திருப்பயணம் சென்றார். அப்பயணங்களில் பல நூல்களையும் எழுதினார். இளம் வயதிலிருந்தே இறைவனிடமிருந்து தான் பெற்ற காட்சிகள் அனைத்தையும், புத்தகங்களில் வடிவமைத்தார். 

புனிதர் பிரிட்ஜெட், ஒரு ஆன்ம பலம் கொண்ட கைம்பெண்ணும், புனிதரும் ஆவார். இருபதே வயதான தமது கணவரின் மரணத்தின் பின்னர், “ப்ரிட்ஜெட்டைன்ஸ் அருட்சகோதரியர் மற்றும் துறவியர்” (Bridgettines nuns and monks) எனும் பெயர்கொண்ட துறவற சபையை தோற்றுவித்தார். ஸ்வீடனுக்கு வெளியே, “நெரீஷியாவின் இளவரசி” (Princess of Nericia) என்று அறியப்பட்ட இவர், “புனிதர் கேதரினின்” (St. Catherine of Sweden) தாயாருமாவார். இவற்றின் காரணமாகவே இவர் “ஸ்வீடனின் பிரிட்ஜெட்” (Bridget of Sweden) என்றும் அழைக்கப்படுகின்றார். ஐரோப்பாவின் பாதுகாவலர்களான ஆறு புனிதர்களான "நர்சியாவின் பெனடிக்ட்" (Benedict of Nursia), "சிரில் மற்றும் மெத்தோடியஸ்" (Saints Cyril and Methodius), "சியன்னாவின் கேதரின்" (Catherine of Siena), "எடித் ஸ்டீன்" (Edith Stein) ஆகியோருள் இவரும் ஒருவர் ஆவார்.

“பிர்ஜிட்டா பிர்கேர்ஸ்டாட்டர்” (Birgitta Birgersdotter) எனும் இயற்பெயர் கொண்ட பிரிட்ஜெட், கி.பி. 1303ம் ஆண்டு, ஜூன் மாதம், பிறந்தவர் ஆவார். தமது 14ம் வயதிலே “நார்கே” பிராந்திய பிரபுவான (Lord of Närke) “உல்ஃகுட்மார்ஸ்ஸோன்” (Ulf Gudmarsson) என்பவரை திருமணம் செய்தார். நான்கு ஆண் குழந்தைகளும், நான்கு பெண் குழந்தைகளுமாக 8 குழந்தைகளுக்கு தாயானார். ஸ்வீடனின் புனிதர் கேதரின் (St. Catherine of Sweden) இக்குழந்தைகளில் ஒருவராவார். தன் பிள்ளைகளை ஆன்மீக காரியங்களில் ஈடுபடுத்தி வளர்த்தார். சிறுவயதிலிருந்தே இறைவன் மீது தணியாத தாகம் கொண்டு வாழ்ந்தார். திருமணத்திற்கு பின்னும் ஆலயப் பணிகளில் தன்னை ஈடுபடுத்திக் கொண்டு, பல துறவற சபைகளுக்கு உதவி செய்தார். இவர் தமது தொண்டுப்பணிகளுக்காக நன்கு அறியப்படுபவர் ஆவார்.

கி.பி. 1341ம் ஆண்டு, பிரிட்ஜெட் தமது கணவருடன் ஸ்பெயின் நாட்டின் வடமேற்கு பிராந்தியமான “கலீசியாவின்” (Galicia) தலைநகரான “சாண்டியாகோ டி கம்போஸ்டெல்லாவிற்கு” (Santiago de Compostela) புனித பயணம் சென்றார். கி.பி. 1344ம் ஆண்டு, புனித பயணத்திலிருந்து திரும்பி வந்த சிறிது காலத்திலேயே இவரது கணவர் மரித்துப்போனார். கணவரின் மரணத்தின் பின்னர், தம்மை ஃபிரான்ஸிஸ்கன் 3ம் நிலை சபையில் (Third Order of St. Francis) இணைத்துக்கொண்டு ஆன்மீக வாழ்வில் தம்மை அர்ப்பணித்தார். இளம் வயதிலிருந்தே கடுமையான செபம் மற்றும் தவ வாழ்வில் வளர்ந்த இவர், சபையில் சேர்ந்தபின்னும் அதை மிக கடுமையாக கடைபிடித்து வாழ்ந்தார். ஏழை மற்றும் நோயுற்றோருக்கு சேவை புரிவதில் தம்மை முழுதும் அர்ப்பணித்தார்.

பிரிட்ஜெட்டுக்கு 7 வயது முதலே ஆண்டவர் இயேசு கிறிஸ்துவின் சிலுவைப்பாடுகளின் தரிசனம் கிட்டியது. அவருக்கு கிட்டிய இறைவனின் தரிசனங்களே அவரது நடவடிக்கைகளுக்கு அடிப்படையாக அமைந்தன. எப்பொழுதும் ஆன்மீக அன்பைக் காட்டிலும் தொண்டுப் பணிகள் மீது கவனம் செலுத்தினார்.

கி.பி. 1350 – ஒரு ஜூபிலி ஆண்டில் (Jubilee Year), ஐரோப்பா முழுதுமே பிளேக் நோயால் பாதிக்கப்பட்டிருந்த வேளையில், தைரியமாக ரோம் பயணித்தார். இருப்பினும் அவர் தமது நாடான ஸ்வீடனுக்கு திரும்பவேயில்லை. கடன்களாலும், திருச்சபை முறைகேடுகளுக்கு எதிரான அவரது பணிகளுக்கு எதிர்ப்பினாலும், மகிழ்ச்சி என்பது அவருக்கு இல்லாமலேயே போனது.

புனித நாட்டிற்கு பயணம் செய்யும்போது தன்னுடைய மகன்களில் ஒருவர் இறந்துவிட்ட செய்தியை கேட்டார். இதனால் மிகவும் மனத்துயர் அடைந்து, புனித நாட்டிற்கு செல்லாமல் மீண்டும் உரோம் நகர் திரும்பினார். தனது மற்ற பிள்ளைகளை சந்திக்க திட்டமிட்டார். ஆனால் அத்திட்டம் நிறைவேறாமல் போகவே, மனத்துயர் அடைந்து நோய்வாய்ப்பட்டு இறைவனடி சேர்ந்தார். இறக்கும்வரை இறைவனை மட்டுமே இறுகப் பற்றிக்கொண்டிருந்தார். இவர் தியானம் செய்யும்போது பலமுறை இயேசுவின் திருப்பாடுகளை காட்சியாக கண்டார்

Also known as

• Bridget of Vadstena

• Birgit, Birgitta, Bridgid, Brigida

Profile

Daughter of Birger Persson, the governor and provincial judge of Uppland, and of Ingeborg Bengtsdotter. Her father was one of the greatest landowners in the country, her mother was known widely for her piety, and the family were descendants of the Swedish royal house. Related to Saint Ingrid of Sweden.

Bridget began receiving visions, most of the Crucifixion, at age seven. Her mother died c.1315 when the girl was about twelve years old, and she was raised and educated by an equally pious aunt. In 1316, at age thirteen, Bridget wed prince Ulfo of Nercia in an arranged marriage. She was the mother of eight, including Saint Catherine of Sweden; some of the other children ignored the Church.

Friend and counselor to many priests and theologians of her day. Chief lady-in-waiting to Queen Blanche of Namur in 1335, from which position she counseled and guided the Queen and King Magnus II. After Ulfo's death in 1344 following a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, Spain she pursued a religious life, for which she was harassed by others at the court. She eventually renounced her title of princess. Franciscan tertiary. Cistercian. Mystic, visionary, and mystical writer. She recorded the revelations given her in her visions, and these became hugely popular in the Middle Ages.

Founded the Order of the Most Holy Savior (Bridgettines) at Vadstena, Sweden in 1346. It received confirmation by Pope Blessed Urban V in 1370, and survives today, though few houses remain. Pilgrim to Rome, to assorted Italian holy sites, and to the Holy Lands. Chastened and counseled kings and Popes Clement VI, Gregory XI, and Urban VI, urging each to return to Rome from Avignon. Encouraged all who would listen to meditate on the Passion, and of Jesus Crucified.

Born

1302 or 1303 at Finsta Castle, Uppsala, Sweden

Died

• 23 July 1373 at Rome, Italy of natural causes

• buried in 1374 at the Vadstena, Sweden convent she had founded

Canonized

7 October 1391 by Pope Boniface IX

Blessed Margarita de Maturana

Also known as

• Margarita María

• Margarita María López de Maturana y Ortiz de Zárate

• Margarita Maturana

• Mother Margarita de Maturana

• Mother Maturana

• Pilar López de Maturana Ortiz de Zárate

Profile

Pilar and her twin sister Leonor were the youngest of five children born to Juana Ortiz de Zarate and Vicente Lopez de Maturana. Both girls were known for their piety in their youth, and Leonor eventually joined the Carmelites of Charity. On 10 August 1903, Pilar entered the novitiate of the Vera Cruz Mercedarian Monastery at Berriz, Spain, taking the name Margarita. She taught school and later served as principal. By 1922 her health began to suffer, and she developed a duodenal ulcer that plagued her the rest of her life.

Even within a cloistered contemplative order, Margarita was drawn to missionaries, and every night spent time in prayer for their work; when interest in missionaries developed at her school, she formed a group dedicated to praying for them. She eventually felt the call to move from the contemplative life to missionary work, and to take like minded sisters with her. In September 1924 her house asked the superior general of their order to make the case for them, and on 23 January 1926 they were given approval for an experimental move to the missions. On 5 November 1926 a group reached Wuhu, China, and on 4 March 1928 another arrived in Saipan in the northern Marianas islands. Margarita was named Mother Superior of her house on 16 April 1927. On 11 November 1928 she arrived in Ponape in the Marianas on her first mission trip.

The work that she and her sisters did was so successful that on 17 May 1930 the Sacred Congregation for the Religious approved making the house in Berriz a Missionary Institute. On 30 July 1931 Mother Margarita was chosen first Superior General of Mercedarian Missionaries of Bérriz, a position in which she served her remaining years. She made two more lengthy mission trips to the south Pacific, but the ulcer eventually led to cancer, her health failed, and she returned home for treatment and to run the administration of her house. Today there are over 500 Missionary sisters working all over the planet.

Born

25 July 1884 on the 3rd floor of 52 Tenderia Street, Bilboa, Vizcaya, Spain as Pilar López de Maturana y Ortiz de Zárate

Died

12:15 am on 23 July 1934 at Donostia-San Sebastian, Berriz, Vizcaya, Spain of stomach cancer

Beatified

• 22 October 2006 by Pope Benedict XVI

• recognition celebrated at Santiago Cathedral, Bilbao, Vizcaya, Spain by Jose Cardinal Saraiva

Blessed Basil Hopko

Also known as

Vasil Hopko

Profile

Son of Anna Petrenko and Basil Hopko, poor, landless peasants. His father died when the boy was just a year old, and when he was four his mother emigrated to the United States to look for work. Educated in Hungary, graduating with honors in 1923. Trained at the Eparchial Seminary, Prjashev, Czechoslovakia. He had dreams of joining his mother in the United States, and of persuing his vocation there, but the cost of recurring health problems left him unable to afford to travel. When he finally decided to serve in his native land, he was suddenly cured, and realized he was been given a sign about his calling. Ordained on 3 February 1929. Parish priest in Prague where he was noted for a mission to the poor, the unemployed, and to students. Taught at the Eparchial Seminary in Prjashev. Awarded the title of Monsignor in 1936. Doctor of Theology in 1940. Auxiliary bishop of Prjashev, Slovakia on 11 May 1947.

Arrested on 28 April 1950 as part of the Communist government's suppression of the Greek Catholic Church. He was kept on starvation rations and tortured for weeks, he was eventually given a show trial and sentenced to 15 years for the "subversive activity" of staying loyal to Rome. He was repeatedly transferred from prison to prison, and continually abused. His health, physical and emotional, failed, and in 1964 he was transferred to a home for the aged and kept under guard there. Though he managed to overcome severe depression, and went on to minister to a group of 120 nuns imprisoned at the home, he never recovered his physical health.

On 13 June 1968 his original eparchy was restored, but a group of activists insisted that a Slovak bishop be appointed to the see; Basil was removed. Deep divisions occured throughout the eparchy, not all of which have yet been settled. Father Basil died without being able to resume leadership of his flock. His death was a direct result of imprisonment, and he is considered one of the many martyred by Communism.

Born

21 April 1904 at Hrabské, Presovský kraj, eastern Slovakia

Died

23 June 1976 at Presov, Presovský kraj, Slovakia

Beatified

14 September 2003 by Pope John Paul II at Bratislava, Slovakia

Ezekiel the Prophet

Also known as

Ezechiel

Article

Prophet, son of Buzi, exiled to Babylon about 598 BC. He began to prophesy five years later and continued for over twenty years. His prophecies form one of the books of the Old Testament and are given in forty-eight chapters. After a vision of the glory of the Lord, under various symbols, he foretells the fall of Jerusalem, its transgression, and the mark of those who are to be saved. He utters the destruction that will come on pagan nations and prophesies the restoration of Theocracy. God will demand penance, triumph over Gog and Magog, and establish a new kingdom of His own in which the city will be called, "The Lord is there" (Ezechiel 48). He is often quoted by Saint John in the Apocalypse; indeed there are many points of similarity between the writings of the Prophet and of the Apostle. He was buried in the sepulchre of Sem and Arphaxad, ancestors of Abraham. Many people were in the habit of going to his tomb to pray. Passages from the prophecy are read in the Divine Office during the first weeks of November.

Blessed Pedro Ruiz de los Paños Angel

Profile

Studied at the seminary in Toledo, Spain. Priest. Joined the Diocesan Laborer Priests of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Administrator of Spanish seminaries in Malaga, Badajoz, Seville and Plasencia, and the Spanish College of Rome, Italy. Director General of the Laborer Priests for three years. Founded the Society for the Promotion of Vocations in Seville to financially support seminarians. Published the periodcal Vocation Pages. Founded the women's congregation Disciples of Jesus in Toledo, Spain in 1934. Martyred by Communists in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

18 September 1881 in Mora, Toledo, Spain

Died

shot on 23 July 1936 in the Paseo del Tránsito in Toledo, Spain

Beatified

1 October 1995 by Pope John Paul II

Blessed Lucrecia García Solanas

Profile

Lay woman in the Archdiocese of Barcelona, Spain. Married to José Gaudí Negre on 9 October 1910; they are not known to have had children. Widowed in 1926, she moved to a house just outside the convent of Minim nuns in Barcelona, Spain where her blood sister served as Mother Superior, and where she followed their spirituality and prayer life without taking vows. Kidnapped, tortured and martyred with her sister and eight other nuns by Communist forces in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

15 August 1866 in Aniñón, Zaragoza, Spain

Died

shot on the evening of 23 July 1936 at the Sant Genís dels Agudells highway, Horta, Barcelona, Spain

Venerated

20 December 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI (decree of martyrdom)

Beatified

27 October 2013 by Pope Benedict XVI

Blessed Wojciech Gondek

Also known as

Cristino, Krystyn

Additional Memorial

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

Profile

Joined the Franciscan Friars Minor in 1928, making his solemn profession on 18 April 1933, taking the name Krystyn. Ordained on 21 June 1936, and served as parish priest in Wloclaweck, Poland. Arrested on 26 August 1940, deported, imprisoned, tortured and martyred for his faith by Nazis.

Born

6 April 1909 in Slona, Malopolskie, diocese of Tarnow, Poland

Died

• 23 July 1942 in the Dachau prison camp, Oberbayern, Germany

• body burned in the camp crematorium and his ashes scattered

Beatified

13 June 1999 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Phocas the Gardener

Also known as

• Phocas of Hovenier

• Phocas of Sinope

• Focas, Fokas

Profile

Innkeeper. Gardener. Martyr. Used surplus crops to feed the poor. Even cared for the soldiers sent to execute him for being a Christian; he fed and sheltered them, and dug his own grave.

Died

beheaded c.303 in Sinope, Pontus (in modern Turkey)

Patronage

• against insect bites

• against poisoning

• against snake bites

• agricultural workers, farm workers, farmers, field hands

• boatmen, mariners, sailors, watermen

• gardeners

• husbandmen

• market-gardeners

Blessed Jane of Orvieto

Also known as

• Vanna of Orvieto

• Giovanna of Orvieto

Profile

Born to a peasant family and orphaned at age five. Worked as a seamstress and embroiderer. Refused marriage as a young woman, and became a Dominican tertiary at Orvieto, Italy. Visionary, prophet, known for a life of deep prayer; reputed miracle worker and stigmatist.

Born

c.1264 at Carnaiola, Italy

Died

23 July 1306 of natural causes

Beatified

11 September 1754 by Pope Benedict XIV (cultus confirmed)

Patronage

• embroiderers

• seamstresses

• Italian working women (chosen in 1926)

Blessed Josep Sala Picó

Profile

Studied at the seminary of Seo de Urgel. Ordained on 15 April 1911. Member of the Diocesan Laborer Priests of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on 12 August 1914. Director of the seminary of Segovia, Spain. Dean of the College of Vocations in Toledo, Spain. Martyred by Communists in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

24 June 1888 in Pons, Lleida, Spain

Died

shot on 23 July 1936 in the Paseo del Tránsito in Toledo, Spain

Beatified

1 October 1995 by Pope John Paul II

Saint John Cassian

Also known as

• John the Roman

• John the Ascetic

Profile

Pilgrim with his friend Germanus to the Holy Lands. Monk in Egypt and Marseilles, France. Studied under Saint John Chrysostom, who ordained him a deacon. Defended Chrysostom in Rome, Italy. Founded the abbey of Saint Victor and a convent at Marseilles. His writings were recommended by Saint Benedict as treatises on the training of monks.

Born

c.360

Died

433 of natural causes

Works

• Conferences

• Institutes

Saint Anne of Constantinople

Also known as

Susanna of Constantinople

Profile

Born an aristocrat, she was orphaned young and inherited a large fortune. Though she spent her money to support the poor, she attracted a steady stream of greedy suitors. To avoid marriage to a man named Agarenus, a union supported by Emperor Basil the Macedonian, Anne fled from Constantinople to Epirus in Leucadia c.869. She lived there the rest of her life as a hermitess.

Born

in 840 in Constantinople

Died

• 918

• may have been martyred in Constantinople, but records are unclear

Blessed Beaudoin of Beaumont

Profile

Premonstratensian friar. Canon on the Norbertine monastery of Notre-Dame, Belval, Argonne, France. Abbot of the house in 1316. A physically small man, he was known as a man of great faith, strict with his own behavior, generous to the poor. Under his leadership, the house became a center for spiritual growth, and many of its brothers became abbots of other houses.

Born

late 13th century France

Died

1348 at the Norbertine monastery of Notre-Dame, Belval, Argonne, France of natural causes

Blessed Emilio Arce Díez

Profile

Baptized at the age of 2 days. Salesian Brother, making his vows in Carabanchel Alto, Madrid, Spain on 16 July 1926. Head tailor for colleges in the La Coruna, Astudillo and Madrid in Spain. Martyred in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

31 October 1908 in San Martín de Ubierna, Burgos, Spain

Died

shot on 23 July 1936 in Madrid, Spain

Beatified

28 October 2007 by Pope Benedict XVI

Saint Romula of Rome

Profile

Hermitess with Saint Redempta near the church Mary Major in Rome, Italy. Spiritual student of Saint Herundo in Palestine. Helped form a small community of nuns in Rome. Earned the praise of Pope Saint Gregory I the Great. Paralyzed for the last years of her life.

Died

c.580 of natural causes

Patronage

• against bodily ills and sickness

• sick people

Saint Valerian of Cimiez

Also known as

Valerian of Lérins

Profile

Monk at Lérins, France. Bishop of Cimiez, France. Attended the Council of Riez in 439, and the Council of Vaison in 442. Some of his written homilies have survived.

Died

c.460

Saint Severus of Bizye

Also known as

• Severus of Bizia

• Severus of Wiza

Profile

Brought Saint Mennone the Centurian to Christianity. Martyred in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

Bizye, Thrace (in modern Turkey)

Saint Herundo of Rome

Profile

Hermitess near the church of Saint Mary Major in Rome, Italy with Saint Romula and Saint Redempta. Saint Gregory the Great thought highly of them.

Born

at Rome, Italy

Died

c.580 of natural causes

Saint Rasyphus of Macé

Profile

Fifth-century hermit in northern France. Martyr.

Born

British Isles

Died

• at Macé, France

• relics enshrined in Bayeaux, France

Saint Ravennus of Macé

Profile

Fifth-century hermit in northern France. Martyr.

Born

British Isles

Died

• at Macé, France

• relics enshrined in Bayeaux, France

Blessed Juan de Luca

Profile

Mercedarian friar. In 1343 he freed 116 Christians who had been enslaved in Algiers by Muslims; as he travelled through the region he managed to convert many Muslims to the faith.

Saint Redempta of Rome

Profile

Holy ascetic woman who lived near the church of Saint Mary Major in Rome, Italy.

Died

c.580

Saint Primitiva of Rome

Also known as

Primitia, Privata

Profile

Martyr.

Died

Rome, Italy, date unknown

Saint Theophilus of Rome

Profile

Martyred in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

beheaded c.302 in Rome, Italy

Blessed Juan de Montesinos

Profile

Mercedarian friar. Missionary. Martyr.

Died

shot with arrows in 1619

Saint Trophimus of Rome

Profile

Martyred in the persecutions of Diocletian.

Died

beheaded c.302 in Rome, Italy

Saint Rasyphus of Rome

Profile

Martyr venerated in Rome, Italy from early times, but no details about him have survived.

Saint Apollonius of Rome

Profile

Martyr.

Died

tied to a stake and shot with arrows

Blessed Leonard da Recanati

Profile

Mercedarian friar. Bishop.

Born

Italy

Saint Conan of Cornwall

Profile

Companion of Saint Petroc in 6th century Cornwall, England.

Saint Eugene of Rome

Profile

Martyr.

Died

beheaded

Martyrs of Barcelona

Profile

Seven Christians, some lay people, some members of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary and some of the Franciscan Daughters of Mercy, who were martyred in two groups on the same day in the Spanish Civil War.

• Catalina Caldés Socías

• Francesc Mayol Oliver

• Miquel Pons Ramis

• Miquela Rul-Làn Ribot

• Pau Noguera Trías

• Prudència Canyelles Ginestà de Aguadé

• Simó Reynés Solivellas

Died

23 July 1936 in Barcelona, Spain

Beatified

28 October 2007 by Pope Benedict XVI

Martyrs of Bulgaria

Profile

An unknown number of Christians killed for their faith during the 9th century war between the Greek Emperor Nicephorus and the Bulgars.

Martyrs of Carabanchel Bajo

Profile

A group of nine Passionist priests, brothers and clerics who were martyred together in the Spanish Civil War.

• Anacario Benito Nozal

• Felipe Ruiz Fraile

• Felipe Valcobado Granado

• José Osés Sainz

• José Ruiz Martinez

• Julio Mediavilla Concejero

• Laurino Proaño Cuesta

• Manuel Pérez Jiménez

• Maurilio Macho Rodríguez

Died

22 July 1936 in Carabanchel Bajo, Madrid, Spain

Beatified

1 October 1989 by Pope John Paul II

Martyrs of Horta

Profile

A lay woman and nine Minim nuns who were martyred together in the Spanish Civil War.

• Ana Ballesta Gelmá

• Dolors Vilaseca Gallego

• Josefa Pilar García Solanas

• Josepa Panyella Doménech

• Lucrecia García Solanas

• Maria Montserrat Ors Molist

• Mercè Mestre Trinché

• Ramona Ors Torrents

• Teresa Ríus Casas

• Vicenta Jordá Martí

Died

23 July 1936 at the Sant Genís dels Agudells highway, Horta, Barcelona, Spain

Beatified

27 October 2013 by Pope Benedict XVI

Martyrs of Manzanares

Profile

Five Passionist clerics who were martyred together in the Spanish Civil War.

• Abilio Ramos y Ramos

• Epifanio Sierra Conde

• José Estalayo García

• Vicente Díez Tejerina

• Zacarías Fernández Crespo

Died

shot on 23 July 1936 in Manzanares, Ciudad Real, Spain

Beatified

1 October 1989 by Pope John Paul II

இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் ஜூலை 22

 St. Alberic Crescitelli

Feastday: July 22

Birth: 1863

Death: 1900

Canonized: Pope John Paul II

Missionary and martyr. Born near Naples, Italy, Alberic joined the Milan Foreign Missionary Society and was sent to China in 1888. He worked in schools and missions along the Han River until the Boxer Rebellion brought chaos to China. A group of boxers captured Alberic and hacked him to pieces on July 21, 1900. He was beatified in 1951.

Alberico (Alberic) Crescitelli (1863–1900), Chinese name Guo Xide (Chinese: 郭西德), was an Italian Catholic priest and missionary to China. Born in Italy on 30 June 1863, Alberico Crescitelli entered the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions in 1880 and was ordained a priest on 4 June 1887. The following year he went to China and began work in southern Shaanxi.

Crescitelli was believed to have been killed in the Boxer Rebellion. Crescitelli's confreres, who had known him well and for many years, started his beatification cause in 1908, only eight years after his death. The testimony provided by the confreres was unanimous about the holiness of Crescitelli's life.

At the Vatican, in St. Peter's Basilica on 18 February 1951, Pope Pius XII declared Alberico Crescitelli "blessed." The Pope's speech was memorable especially for the passage in which he described Father Crescitelli's martyrdom:

Humanly speaking, his death was horrible; perhaps one of the most atrocious recorded in history. Nothing was missing, neither the cruelty of the torments, nor the time they lasted, the most barbaric humiliations, nor the suffering of the heart, nor the hypocritical betrayal of false friends, nor the hostile and threatening screams of his murderers, nor the darkness of being abandoned.

Pope John Paul II included him in the list of 120 Martyr Saints of China canonized in St. Peter's Square on October 1, 2000.

This large group canonisation was bitterly opposed in China itself, with Bishop Fu Tieshan, the leader of the state-run Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association describing it as "intolerable". A statement released by the Chinese Foreign Ministry alleged that "some of those canonised by the Vatican this time perpetrated outrages such as raping or looting in China and committed unforgivable crimes against the Chinese people." A further statement from China's State Administration of Religious Affairs singled out Alberico Crescitelli for special comment, alleging that he had been "notorious for taking the 'right of the first night' of each bride under his diocese."[1] The Catholic Church's Holy Spirit Study Centre in Hong Kong has described the accusations as baseless.[2]

In his homily at the canonisation ceremony on 1 October 2000, Pope John Paul II made a statement asking for forgiveness for any past wrongs by the missionaries to China: "There are those who with a partial and not very objective reading of history see only limits and errors in their action. If they happened - is there any man exempt from defects? - we ask for forgiveness

Saint Mary Magdalen

✠ புனிதர் மகதலின் மரியாள் ✠

(St. Mary Magdalene)





அப்போஸ்தலர்களின் அப்போஸ்தலர்:

(Apostle to the Apostles)

பிறப்பு: தகவலில்லை

மகதலா, யூதேயா

(Magdala, Judea)



இறப்பு: தகவலில்லை

பிரான்ஸ் அல்லது எபேசஸ்

(France or Ephesus)



ஏற்கும் சமயம்:

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

கிழக்கு மரபுவழி திருச்சபை

(Eastern Orthodox Church)

ஆங்கிலிகன் சமூகம்

(Anglican Communion)

லூதரன் திருச்சபை

(Lutheranism)

மற்ற எதிர் திருச்சபைகள்

(Other Protestant Churches)



நினைவுத் திருவிழா: ஜூலை 22



பாதுகாவல்:

மருந்து செய்து விற்பவர்கள்; தியான வாழ்வு வாழ்பவர்கள்; மனம்மாறியவர்கள்; கையுறை செய்பவர்கள்; சிகை அலங்காரம் செய்பவர்கள்; பெண்கள், செய்த பிழைக்கு மனம் வருந்துபவர்கள், இத்தாலியர்.



புனிதர் மகதலின் மரியாள், புதிய ஏற்பாட்டின்படி, இயேசுவின் பிற சீடர்களில் ஒருவராக இயேசுவுடன் பயணித்த யூதப் பெண் ஆவார். இவர், இயேசுவின் சிலுவைப் பாடுகளையும் இறைவனின் உயிர்த்தெழுதலையும் நேரில் கண்டவர் என அறியப்படுகிறது. நான்கு நற்செய்தி நூல்களுல், பிற அப்போஸ்தலர்களைவிட, சுமார் 12 தடவைக்கும் அதிகமாக இவரது பெயர் குறிப்பிடப்பட்டுள்ளது.



இவரது பெயர் இவர் பிறந்த ஊரான தற்போதய இசுரேலில் அமைந்துள்ள மகதலாவின் மரியாள் எனப் பொருள்படும்.



இயேசு அவரை "ஏழு அரக்கர்களிடமிருந்து" காப்பாற்றியதாக, (லூக்கா 8:2 & மார்க்கு 16:9) கூறப்படுவது சிக்கலான நோய்களிலிருந்து அவரைக் குணப்படுத்தியதைக் குறிப்பதாக புரிந்துகொள்ளப்படுகிறது. மகதலின் மரியாள் இயேசுவின் கடைசி நாட்களில் - பாடுகள்பட்டு, மரித்து, உயிர்தெழும்வரை கூடவே இருந்தார்; அவரை சிலுவையில் அறைந்தபோது, (அன்பிற்குரிய ஜானைத் தவிர) பிற ஆண் சீடர்கள் ஓடியபோதும், பின்னர் கல்லறையிலும் உடனிருந்தார்.



இவர் ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை, கிழக்கு மரபுவழி திருச்சபை, ஆங்கிலிக்கன் சமூகம், லூதரன் திருச்சபை மற்றும் பிற எதிர் திருச்சபைகளால் புனிதராக மதிக்கப்படுகிறார். இவரது நினைவுத் திருநாள் ஜூலை 22 ஆகும். மரியாளின் வாழ்க்கை, ஆய்வாளர்களால் தொடர்ந்து சர்சைக்குட்படுத்தப்பட்டு வந்துள்ளது.



புனிதர் லுக்கா எழுதிய நற்செய்தியின் ஏழாம் அதிகாரத்தில் நாம் காணும் பாவியான பெண்ணும், லூக்கா பத்தாம் அதிகாரம், அருளப்பர் பதினோரம் அதிகாரம் ஆகியவற்றில் நாம் காணும் மார்த்தாள் - லாசர் இவர்களுடைய சகோதரியும் இவரேயாவார்.



இவர் வேறு பல புண்ணிய பெண்களோடு இயேசுவைப் பின்சென்று அவருக்கு சேவை செய்து வந்தார். இயேசு தனக்குச் செய்த உதவிகளுக்கு நன்றியாக, இவர் தனது உடமைகளைப் பயன்படுத்தி, அவருக்குச் சேவை செய்தார். சாகும்வரை அவருக்குப் பிரமாணிக்கமாய் இருந்தார்.



மரியாள் ஓர் பெரும்பாவி என்று மக்களால் ஒதுக்கி வைக்கப்பட்டபோது, தன் நிலையை உணர்ந்து அழுது, இயேசுவிடம் ஓடிச்சென்றார். தன் பாவங்களின் பரிகாரமாய் செய்த செயலினால், இயேசுவின் ஆழ்மனதில் இடம்பிடித்தார். அன்னை மரியாளுக்குப் பிறகு, இயேசுவின் அருகில் எப்போதும் அவருக்காக வாழ்ந்தவர்.



"என்னை இப்படி பற்றிக்கொள்ளாதே" என்று ஆண்டவரே கூறுமளவுக்கு, அவர் மேல் அன்புகொண்டவர். இயேசுவைப் பற்றிக்கொள்வதில் அனைவருக்கும் சிறந்த எடுத்துக்காட்டாய் அன்றிலிருந்து இன்றுவரை திகழ்கிறார்.



இயேசு தொங்கிய சிலுவையின் அடியில் இவர் நின்றார்.



கல்லறை வெறுமனே இருப்பதை முதன்முதலில் பார்த்து, இயேசுவை காணவில்லையே என்று ஆதங்கப்பட்டு, கண்ணீர் விட்டு அழுது, இயேசுவை பற்றிக்கொண்டவர் இவர்.



உயிர்த்த இயேசு தம் அன்னைக்கு முதலில் காட்சி கொடுத்தார். அடுத்தபடியாக காட்சி கொடுத்தது இவருக்கே.






யோவான் 20 மற்றும் மார்க்கு 16:9 ஆகிய இரு நற்செய்தியாளர்கள் கூற்றுப்படி, இயேசு உயிர்த்தெழுந்த பிறகு, முதலில் அவரைக் கண்டதும் மகதலின் மரியாளேயாவார்.



உயிர்த்த இயேசுவைக் காணும்வரை இவர் இளைப்பாறவில்லை. "அவரை எங்கே வைத்திருக்கிறீர்கள்? நான் அவரைத் தூக்கிக் கொண்டு செல்வேன்" என்றார். அவரைத் தூக்கிச் செல்ல இவரால் முடியாதென்றாலும், இச்சொற்கள் இவரது அன்பைக் காட்டுகின்றன. இவரை யூதர்கள் நாடு கடத்தினார்கள்.



மார்த்தாள், லாசர் மற்றும் இன்னும் சில சீடர்களுடன் இவர் ஃபிரான்ஸ் நாட்டை அடைந்தார் என பாரம்பரியம்  கூறுகிறது.

அப்போஸ்தலர்களுக்கு அப்போஸ்தலி(திருத்தூதர்களுக்கு திருத்தூதுரைத்தவள்) :

சமீபத்தில் திருத்தந்தை பிரான்சிஸ் மகதலா மரியாளின் நினைவு நாளை அப்போஸ்தலர்களை போலவே திருவிழாவாக மாற்றினார்.[6] அதில் மகதலா மரியாளின் சிறப்பான அப்போஸ்தல பணியானது சுட்டிக்காட்டப்படுகிறது. "ஆண்டவர் இயேசு உயிர்த்தெழுந்தார் " என்பதே கிறிஸ்தவ மறையின் தலையாய விசுவாசமும் நற்செய்தியும் ஆகும்(1 கொரிந்தியர் 15:14). அதை முதன் முதலில் உலகுக்கு அறிவித்தது ஒரு பெண். அவள் தான் மகதலா மரியாள். ஏதேன் தோட்டத்தில், வாழ்வு நிறைந்திருந்த நிலையில் ஏவாள் என்னும் முதல் அன்னை மனிதனுக்கு சாவினை கனி வழியாக அறிவித்தாள். கெத்சமணி தோட்டத்தில் , சாவும் துயரமும் நிறைந்திருந்த நிலையில் மகதலா மரியாள் என்னும் அன்னை மனிதனுக்கு வாழ்வினை நற்செய்தி என்னும் இயேசுவின் கனி வழியாக அறிவித்தாள். இதை புனித தோமா அக்குவினாரும் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார். புனிதர்களில் இத்தகு சிறப்பு பெயரை தாங்கியுள்ள ஒருவர் புனித மகதலா மரியாள் என்பது குறிப்பிடப்பட்டது.

இறைஇரக்கத்தின் சாட்சி:

கெத்சமணி தோட்டத்தில் தம் அன்பர் இயேசுவை காணாத மகதலா மரியாள் கண்ணீர் வடித்தாள் என்று திருவிவிலியம் கூறுகின்றது . அவளின் அன்புக்கண்ணீரை புனித அன்ஸ்லம் "தாழ்ச்சியின் கண்ணீர் " என்று குறிப்பிடுகின்றார். மகதலா மரியாளின் அன்பால் கசிந்த கண்ணீரை கண்டு இரங்கிய கிறிஸ்து தன் உயிர்ப்பின் மகிமையில் அவளுக்கு தோன்றினார். தான் படைத்த படைப்பு, தன்னை படைத்தவரை அன்பொழுக தேடும் போது அன்பே உருவான இறைவன் ,எவ்வாறு தன்னை மறைத்துக் கொள்வார் ? புனித பாப்பரசர் பெரிய கிரகோரியார் இதை முன்னிட்டே இறை இரக்கத்தின் சாட்சியென மகதலா மரியாளை கூறுகின்றார்

Also known as

• Maria Maddalena

• Maria Magdalena

• Mary Magdalene

• the Sinner

Profile

We have very little solid information about Saint Mary, and both scholars and traditions differ on the interpretation of what we do know.

She was a friend and follower of Jesus. Filled with sorrow over her sin, she anointed Christ, washed his feet with her hair. He exorcised seven demons from her. She was visited by the Risen Christ.

There are also arguments about her life after the Crucifixion.

The Greek Church maintains that she retired to Ephesus with the Blessed Virgin Mary and lived there the rest of her life.

A French tradition says that Mary, Lazarus, and some companions came to Marseilles, France, evangelized and converted the whole Provence region, and then retired to live 30 years as a penitent hermitess at La Sainte-Baume.

Oh, some things we do know for certain - Mary wasn't Jesus' wife or mistress, she wasn't the mother of His child, she didn't found a royal dynasty or separate branch of Christianity, et cetera, et cetera, ad nauseam.

Died

the Greek Church says

• she died in Ephesus of natural causes

• her relics were transferred to Constantinople in 886 where they remain today

a French tradition says

• as she lay on her death bed, nine angels carried Mary to the oratory of Saint Maximinus in Aix where she received Communion and then died of natural causes

• she was interred in an oratory constructed by Saint Maximinus at Villa Lata (Saint Maximin)

• in 745 her relics were moved to Vézelay to save them from Saracen invaders

• at some point they were moved to a shrine at her hemitage on La Sainte-Baume; they were there in 1279 when King Charles II of Naples funded a Dominican convent on the hill

• in 1600 the relics were placed in a sarcophagus sent by Pope Clement VIII

• in 1814 the church on La Sainte-Baume, wrecked during the anti-Christian excesses of the French Revolution, was restored

• in 1822 the grotto was re-consecrated, still has the head of the saint, and is a pilgrimage centre

Patronage

• against sexual temptation

• apothecaries, druggists, pharmacists

• contemplative life, contemplatives

• converts

• glove makers

• hairdressers, hairstylists

• penitent sinners

• penitent women

• people ridiculed for their piety

• perfumeries, perfumers

• reformed prostitutes

• tanners

• women

• diocese of Salt Lake City, Utah

• 8 cities

Saint Gualtero of Lodi

Also known as

Gautier, Gualtiero, Walter

Profile

The only child of Aliprando and Adelazia, pious parents who were childless so long that they promised God they would devote any child of theirs to the Church. They kept their pledge, giving the boy a good education, and by age fifteen Gualtero was working as a Hospitaller friar in the San Raimondo il Palmerio hospital in Piacenza, Italy, beginning his lifelong devotion to care of the sick and poor. His father died not long after; his mother entered a convent, Gualtero sold off and gave away all their property, and the two devoted themselves to God. Gualtero worked in then San Bartolomeo hospital in Lodi, Italy, living as a sort of anchorite on the grounds. He founded clinics for the poor and pilgrims in the Italian cities of Fanzago, Vercelli, Tortona, Crema and Melegnano. With the financial assistance of the city of Lodi and the archbishop of Milan, Italy, he and a fellow priest founded the Ospitale della Misericordia (Hospital of Mercy) in Lodi, which attracted the services of many brothers, sisters and hermits, and the adjoining church of Saints James and Philip on 30 April 1206. Known for his ascetic life, working and travelling barefoot and dressed in sack cloth, he could heal by prayer and always gave away anything he had that was more than his immediate need.

Born

c.1184 in Lodi, Lombardy, Italy

Died

• c.1224 in Lodi, Lombardy, Italy of natural causes

• buried in the Church of Saints James and Philip in Lodi, which became a pilgrimage site for those who sought aid at the Hospital of Mercy

• on 26 January 1384, some fanatical devotees, aided by some friars of San Biagio, stole his relics and hid them, first in San Biagio, then in the nearby church of Saint Paul; after a few weeks, the relics were returned

• relics re-enshrined in the Church of Saints James and Philip on 18 February 1384

• relics enshrined in the main altar of the cathedral of Lodi in the mid-15th century

• relics re-enshrined in the cathedral c.1600

• relics re-enshrined in the cathedral in 1896

• relics re-enshrined in the cathedral in 1946

• re-interred at the church of Saints James, Philip and Gualtero in Lodi in 1960

Blessed Augustine Fangi

Also known as

• Augustine of Biella

• Agostino Fangi

Profile

Born to wealthy nobility. Joined the Dominicans as a young man, and entered the house in Biella, Italy. Noted for his severe self-imposed penances, and his complete self-control; he once had surgery without anesthetic, and without making an outcry, claming his mind had been on his prayers. Prior of houses in Biella, Socino in 1464, Vercelli, and Vigevano. Miracle worker, whose incidents include

A deformed child, who died without baptism, was restored to life by Augustine's prayer long enough to be baptized.

Augustine met a little boy who was crying because he had broken a jug of wine. Augustine gathered up the shards and put them back together again, and prayed over it; it refilled with wine.

Through his intercession, a woman was delivered from possession of five devils.

Augustine spent his final ten years in the monastery in Venice, Italy.

Born

1430 at Biella, Piedmont, Italy

Died

• 22 July 1493 at Venice, Italy of natural causes

• in the 1530s, workmen found his coffin floating in the water that had seeped into the burial chamber - when opened, Augustine's body and clothing were found to be incorrupt

Beatified

• 1872 by Pope Blessed Pius IX (cultus confirmed)

• 1878 (beatified)

Saint Anna Wang

Additional Memorial

28 September as one of the Martyrs of China

Profile

Born to a poor Christian farm family, Anna's mother, a pious woman, died when the girl was five years old. In addition to her schooling, Anna had to help work the farm to support the family, but her teacher, Sister Lucy Wang, continued the religious education begun by Anna's mother. When she was 11, Anna's family tried to force her into an arranged marriage, but she fought against it. On 21 July 1900, an armed group associated with the anti–Christian, anti-Western Boxer Rebellion entered her village, burned the church, gathered all the Christians, and ordered them to renounce Christianity; many did, usually as a way to save their children, and Anna's step-mother encouraged her to do so. Anna refused, spending her remaining hours in prayer and encouraging others in their faith. Martyr.

Born

c.1886 in Machiazhuang, Weixian, Hebei, China

Died

• beheaded on 22 July 1900 in Machiazhuang, Weixian, Hebei, China

• body dumped in a mass grave

• exhumed on 6 November 1901 and given proper burial

Canonized

1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II

Blessed Manuela de Jesús Arias Espinosa

Also known as

• Sister María Inés Teresa of the Blessed Sacrament

• Manuelita (nickname)

Profile

Fifth of eight children in her family. Nun, entering the monastery of the Hail Mary in Los Angeles, California in 1929, making her perpetual vows on 14 December 1933 and living a cloistered life. Founder of the Congregations of the Poor Clare Missionary Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in August 1945 in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico; it received papal approval in 1949 and 1951. Founder of the Missionaries of Christ for the Universal Church. By the time of her death she was over-seeing 36 missionary houses in 14 countries. Over 6,000 of her writings survive.

Born

7 July 1904 in Ixtlán del Rio, Nayarit, Mexico

Died

22 July 1981 in Rome, Italy of natural causes

Beatified

21 April 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI

Saint Joseph of Palestine

Profile

Jewish layman who was attached to the biblical school of Tiberius, and served as assistant to the famous Rabbi Hillel. Secretly a Christian believer, Hillel was baptized on his death bed, and entrusted his holy books to Joseph. As head of the synagogue in Tarsus, his congregation caught Joseph reading the gospels; they beat him and threw him in the Cydnus River. He then publicly converted.

Friend and counselor to emperor Constantine the Great, who appointed him to the high position of comes. Built churches in Galilee, Tiberias, Nazareth, Capernaum, Bethsan, and Diocaesarea, and evangelized throughout the Holy Land. Fought Arianism, and moved to Scytholopolis where he hid priests from their persecution. Financial patron of Saint Eusebius of Vercielli and Saint Epiphanius; Epiphanius wrote Joseph's biography.

His guardianship of holy writings and holy men led to his association with guardians in general.

Died

c.356 of natural causes at Palestine

Patronage

• converts

• guardians

Saint John Lloyd

Additional Memorial

25 October as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales

Profile

Educated at the Royal College of Saint Alban at Valladolid, Spain, entering in 1649. Took the missionary oath on 16 October 1649 to return to England. Sent to Wales in 1654 to minister to covert Catholics, he lived his vocation while constantly on the run for 24 years. Arrested at Penllyne, Glamorganshire, 20 November 1678. Served time in the Cardiff jail with Saint Philip Evans. It took several months before the authorities could find anyone will to testify about the two, but they finally had a trial and condemned them on 5 May 1679 for the treason of Catholic priesthood. One of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.

Born

at Powys, Wales

Died

hanged, drawn, and quartered 22 July 1679 on Gallows Field in Cardiff, Wales

Canonized

25 October 1970 by Pope Paul VI

Saint Wandrille of Fontenelle

Also known as

• Vandregisilo

• Vandrille

• Wandregisel

• Wandregisilus

Profile

Member of the court of King Dagobert I. Married. Pilgrim to Rome, Italy, his wife became a nun and Wandrille became a monk at Montfaucon, Switzerland. Spiritual student of Saint Balderic. Hermit at Saint-Ursanne, Jura, France. Monk in Bobbio, Italy. Priest, ordained by Saint Ouen of Rouen. Founded the Abbey of Fontenelle in Normandy, France in 657.

Born

c.600 near Verdun, Austrasia (in modern France)

Died

• 668 of natural causes

• during the Viking invasions, Wandrille's relics were dispersed to assorted church and abbeys

• in the 19th century his skull was found in storage in Liège, Belgium

• skull returned to the Fontenelle Abbey's new church in 1967

Saint Philip Evans

Additional Memorial

25 October as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales

Profile

Educated at the college of Saint Omer. Could play the harp, and played tennis. Joined the Jesuits on 7 September 1665. Ordained at Liege, Belgium. Sent to southern Wales in 1675 to minister to covert Catholics. Arrested at Christopher Turberville's house, Sker, Glamorganshire on 4 December 1678 during the increased persecutions following the Titus Oates Plot. When he refused to take the Oath of Supremacy he was imprisoned in Cardiff Castle; he served time with Saint John Lloyd. Condemned on 5 May 1679 in Cardiff for the crime of being a priest. Martyr.

Born

1645 in Monmouth, Monmouthshire, Wales

Died

hanged, drawn, and quartered 22 July 1679 on Gallows Field in Cardiff, Wales

Canonized

25 October 1970 by Pope Paul VI

Saint Andreas Wang Tianqing

Additional Memorial

28 September as one of the Martyrs of China

Profile

Nine year old boy in Machiazhuang, China. On 21 July 1900, an armed group associated with the anti–Christian, anti-Western Boxer Rebellion entered his village, burned the church, gathered all the Christians, and ordered them to renounce Christianity; many did, usually as a way to save their children who would have been killed, as well. Andreas refused. Martyr.

Born

c.1891 in Weixian, Hebei, China

Died

• beheaded on 22 July 1900 in Machiazhuang, Weixian, Hebei, China

• body dumped in a mass grave

• exhumed on 6 November 1901 and given proper burial

Canonized

1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Lucia Wang Wangzhi

Additional Memorial

28 September as one of the Martyrs of China

Profile

Married and mother of two. On 21 July 1900, an armed group associated with the anti–Christian, anti-Western Boxer Rebellion entered her village, burned the church, gathered all the Christians, and ordered them to renounce Christianity; many did, usually as a way to save their children who would have been killed, as well. Lucia refused. Martyr.

Born

c.1869 in Weixian, Hebei, China

Died

• beheaded on 22 July 1900 in Machiazhuang, Weixian, Hebei, China

• body dumped in a mass grave

• exhumed on 6 November 1901 and given proper burial

Canonized

1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II

Blessed Rosalío Benito Ixchop

Profile

Pious married layman of the diocese of Quiché, Guatemala who served his parish as a catechist. Murdered by government troops. Martyr.

Born

16 August 1914 in La Puerta, Chinique, Guatemala

Died

22 July 1982 in La Puerta, Chinique, Quiché, Guatemala

Beatified

• 23 April 2021 by Pope Francis

• beatification recognition celebrated in Santa Cruz del Quiché, Guatemala

Saint Maria Wang Lishi

Also known as

• Maria Wang Lizhi

• Mali

Additional Memorial

28 September as one of the Martyrs of China

Profile

Married lay woman in the apostolic vicariate of Southeastern Zhili, China. Martyred in the Boxer Rebellion for openly declaring herself a Christian.

Born

c.1851 in Fancun, Weixian, Hebei, China

Died

22 July 1900 in Daning, Weixian, Hebei, China

Canonized

1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II

Blessed Jacques Lombardie

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

1 December 1737 in Limoges, Haute-Vienne, France

Died

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

Beatified

1 October 1995 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Syntyche of Philippi

Also known as

Synteches, Syntykhé

Profile

Mentioned by Saint Paul the Apostle in the Letter to the Philippians as having helped him spread the gospel, but no information about her has come down to us.

Readings

I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to come to a mutual understanding in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you also, my true yokemate, to help them, for they have struggled at my side in promoting the gospel, along with Clement and my other co-workers, whose names are in the book of life. – Philippians 4:2-3

Blessed Joaquin Rodríguez Bueno

Also known as

Ireneo Jacinto

Profile

Professed religious in the Brothers of the Christian Schools (De La Salle Brothers). Martyred in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

20 August 1910 in Mazuelo de Muñó, Burgos, Spain

Died

22 July 1936 in Almudena, Madrid, Spain

Beatified

13 October 2013 by Pope Francis

Blessed Rosalío Benito

Profile

Pious layman of the diocese of Quiché, Guatemala who served his parish as a catechist. Murdered by government troops. Martyr.

Born

c.1902 in Guatemala

Died

22 July 1982 in La Puerta, Chinique, Quiché, Guatemala

Venerated

23 January 2020 by Pope Francis (decree of martyrdom)

Blessed Benno of Osnabruck

Profile

Monk. Courtier to Emperor Henry III. Bishop of Osnabruck, Germany in 1068; he served for 20 years. Involved in the disputes between Emperor Henry IV and Pope Gregory VII. Founded Iburg Abbey in Bad Iburg, Germany.

Died

1088 at Iburg Abbey and Castle, Bad Iburg, Germany of natural causes

Saint Theophilus of Cyprus

Profile

Eighth-century soldier, sailor and admiral of the Christian fleet stationed on Cyprus. Captured in battle by invading Muslims, he was imprisoned for four years, then ordered to renounce Christianity and convert to Islam; he refused. Martyr.

Died

789 in Cyprus

Saint Meneleus of Ménat

Also known as

Mauvier, Menele, Meneve

Profile

Monk at Carméry in Auvergne, France. Restored the monastery of Ménat near Clermont, France.

Born

Anjou, France

Died

c.720

Saint Movean of Inis-Coosery

Also known as

Biteus of Inis-Coosery

Profile

Spiritual student of Saint Patrick. Monk. Abbot of Inis-Coosery in County Down, Ireland. Retired to live as a prayerful hermit in Perthshire, Scotland.

Saint Anastasius of Schemarius

Profile

Monk in the Caucasus mountains. Spiritual student of Saint Maximus the Confessor. Imprisoned, tortured and martyred.

Died

662 at the Schemaris fortress, Caucasus mountains

Saint Plato of Ancyra

Also known as

Platone

Profile

Brother of Saint Antiochus of Sebaste. Martyr.

Died

c.306 at Ancyra, Galatia

Saint Jerome of Pavia

Also known as

Gerolamo

Profile

Bishop of Pavia, Italy from 778 until his death.

Died

787 of natural causes

Canonized

20 December 1888 by Pope Leo XIII (cultus confirmation)

Saint Claudius Marius Victorinus of Saussaye

Profile

Commemorated in La Saussaye, Eure, France, but no details about him have survived.

Saint Dabius

Also known as

Bavins, Davius

Profile

May have been a spiritual student of Saint Patrick. Priest. Missionary to Scotland where several churches are named for him.

Born

Irish

Saint Pancharius of Besançon

Profile

Bishop of Besançon, France. Much persecuted by the Arian Emperor Constantius.

Died

c.356

Blessed Paolo de Lara

Profile

Born to the nobility. Ordained as a priest in 1344. Mercedarian friar. Ransomed 209 Christians who were enslaved by Moors in Granada, Spain.

Saint Baudry of Montfaucon

Profile

Seventh century monk. Founded the Abbey of Montfaucon in the diocese of Verdun, France.

Saint Lewine

Profile

Fourth century nun in England. Martyred by invading pagan Saxons.

Born

Flanders (in modern Belgium)

Died

England

Saint Cyril of Antioch

Profile

Patriarch of Antioch in 280.

Died

c.300 of natural causes

Saint Andrew of Antioch

Profile

Martyr.

Died

c.280 in Antioch

Martyrs of Marula

Also known as

Martyrs of Massylis

Profile

Three Christians martyred together. We know nothing else about them but the names – Ajabosus, Andrew and Elian.

Died

Massylis (Marula), Numidia (in modern Algeria)

Martyrs of Massilitani

Profile

A group of Christians martyred together in northern Africa. Saint Augustine of Hippo wrote about them.

இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் ஜூலை 21

 St. Julia of Troyes

Feastday: July 21

Death: 272

Martyr of Troyes, France. Taken captive by the Romans, she was given to Claudius, a soldier. Julia converted him to Christ, and they were beheaded as martyrs.

Saint Lawrence of Brindisi

பிரிந்திசி நகர் புனித லாரன்ஸ்(St.Lawrence of Brindisi)

மறைவல்லுநர் (Doctor of the Church)

பிறப்பு 

1559

பிரிந்திசி(Brindisi), இத்தாலி

    

இறப்பு 

1619

லிஸ்பன்(Lisbon)

இவர் பிரிந்திசி நகரிலிருந்த கப்புச்சின் சபைத் துறவிகளிடம் கல்வி பயின்றார். வெனிஸ் நகரிலிருந்த புனித மார்க் கல்லூரியில் தனது மேற்படிப்பை முடித்தபின், தனது 16 ஆம் வயதில் கப்புச்சின் சபையில் சேர்ந்து குருத்துவப் பயிற்சி பெற்றார். பதுவை நகரில் தத்துவக்கலையை முடித்தபின் குருவாக திருநிலைப்படுத்தப்பட்டார். பல மொழிகளை கற்றுத் தேர்ந்த இவர், பல நாடுகளுக்கு சென்று நற்செய்தியை போதித்தார். பின்னர் திருத்தந்தையின் வேண்டுதலின்படி ஜெர்மனி நாட்டிற்கு யூதர்களிடம் அனுப்பப்பட்டார். யூத மக்களிடையே லாரன்சின் பணி செழிப்படைந்தது. மார்ட்டின் லூத்தரின் தவறான போதனைகளை நம்பிய மக்கள், தற்போது லாரன்ஸ் கூறிய போதனைகளை ஏற்றுக்கொண்டு கிறிஸ்துவை பின்பற்றினர். 

லாரன்ஸ் மறைபரப்பு பணியோடு சேர்ந்து, தொற்று நோய் கொண்ட மக்களிடமும், பிளேக் நோயாளிகளிடையேயும் தொண்டாற்றினார். அம்மக்களுக்கும் கிறிஸ்துவை யார் என்று அறிவித்து, அன்பு பணியாற்றினார். பின்னர் இம்மக்களுக்காக 3 துறவற இல்லங்களை தொடங்கினார். 1602 ஆம் ஆண்டு அச்சபையின் தலைவராக தேர்ந்தெடுக்கப்பட்டார். ஆனால் அப்பதவியில் அவர் மனம் நாட்டங்கொள்ளாததால் 3 ஆண்டுகளில் அப்பதவியிலிருந்து விலகினார். இவர் கிறிஸ்துவுக்கு எதிராக செயல்பட்டவர்களுக்கு, நன்மை செய்ய, தன்னையும் போர் படைகளில் இணைத்துக்கொண்டு கையில் சிலுவையை ஏந்தி போர்புரிந்தார். அப்போது பல்வேறு பணிகளை ஆற்றி, சிறப்பாக பல விசுவாச நூல்களையும் எழுதினார். ஐரோப்பா முழுவதும் பயணம் செய்து திருமுறையைப்பரப்பினார். தன் இறப்புவரை மிக எளிமையான கப்புச்சின் குருவாக வாழ்ந்து இறந்தார். 

Also known as

• Brother Lorenzo

• Julius Caesar Rossi

• Laurence of Brindisi

• Lorenzo da Brindisi

Additional Memorial

22 July (Lisbon, Portugal)

Profile

Son of Guglielmo de Rossi and Elisabetta Masella. He felt an early call to religious life, and was educated by the Friars Minor Conventuals of Brindisi, Italy. His father died when the boy was twelve. Studied in Venice. Joined the Capuchin Friars in 1575 at age 16, taking the name Brother Lorenzo. Studied theology, the Bible, French, German, Greek, Spanish, Syriac, and Hebrew at the University of Padua; he was a brilliant student, known for his facility with languages. Priest. Taught theology. Served as linguist and military chaplain. Famous, effective and forceful preacher in any of his several languages. Founded convents of Vienna and Graz in Austria, and in Prague, Czech Republic. Wrote catechisms.

Chaplain of the army of the Holy Roman Empire in 1601. Rallied the German princes to fight a superior Turkish force, and was asked to lead the army into battle at Stuhlweissenburg (modern Székesfehérvár, Hungary) carrying no weapon but a crucifix; the Turks were completely defeated. Master general of his order from 1602 to 1605; he was the choice for another term, but turned it down. Carried out important and successful diplomatic peace missions to Munich, Germany and Madrid, Spain. Assigned in 1605 to evangelize in Germany, where he had great success. Convinced Philip III of Spain to join the German Catholic League. Commissary general of his order for the provinces of Tyrol and Bavaria in Germany. Spiritual director of the Bavarian army. Tended to fall into ecstasies when celebrating Mass.

In 1956, the Capuchin Order compiled fifteen volumes of his sermons, letters and writings. Proclaimed Apostolic Doctor of the Church by Pope John XXIII in 1959.

Born

22 July 1559 at Brindisi, Italy as Julius Caesar Rossi

Died

• 22 July 1619 at Lisbon, Portugal of natural causes

• buried in the cemetery of the Poor Clares on Villafranca, Spain

Canonized

8 December 1881 by Pope Leo XIII

Patronage

Brindisi, Italy

Saint Arbogast of Strasbourg

Also known as

Arascach

Profile

The little recorded of his childhood is probably legend. Hermit, living in a cave at Alsace, France with a widespread reputation for holiness. When King Dagobert's son was killed in a hunting accident, Arbogast's prayers brought the lad back to life. Bishop of Strasbourg, France c.630; very devoted to his people, and through Dagobert's generosity, he was able to build several churches.

Born

• 7th century Aquitaine, France

• some writers claim him for Scotland and/or Ireland

Died

• c.678 of natural causes

• at his insistence, he was buried in an area normally reserved for criminals

• the church of Saint Michael was soon built over his grave

• relics translated to the nearby Saint Arbogast abbey

• relics scattered and lost during the Thirty Years War

Patronage

Strasbourg, France

Saint Victor of Marseilles

புனிதர் விக்டர்

(St. Victor of Marseilles)

மறைசாட்சி:

(Martyr)

பிறப்பு: கி.பி. மூன்றாம் நூற்றாண்டு

இறப்பு: கி.பி. 290

மார்செய்ல்

(Marseille)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்:

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

கிழக்கு மரபுவழி திருச்சபை

(Eastern Orthodox Church)

நினைவுத் திருநாள்: ஜூலை 21

பாதுகாவல்:

கேபின் தயாரிப்பாளர்கள் (Cabinetmakers), அரவையாளர்கள் (Millers), சித்திரவதையால் பாதிக்கப்பட்டவர்கள், நோய்வாய்ப்பட்ட குழந்தைகள்; மின்னலுக்கு எதிராக

புனிதர் விக்டர், ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்கம் மற்றும் கிழக்கு மரபுவழி ஆகிய திருச்சபைகளால் புனிதராக ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளப்பட்டவர் ஆவார். இவர் சிலை வழிபாடுகளை மறுத்த காரணத்தால் மறைசாட்சியாக கொல்லப்பட்டவர் ஆவார்.

புனிதர் விக்டர், மார்செய்ல் (Marseille) நகரில், ஒரு ரோம இராணுவ அதிகாரியாக பணியாற்றியவர் என்று கூறப்படுகிறது. இவர், சிலை வழிபாடுகளை பகிரங்கமாக கண்டனம் செய்தார் என்றும் கூறப்படுகிறது. இதன் காரணமாக, இவர் “ஆஸ்டியரிஸ்” (Asterius) மற்றும் “யூட்டிசியஸ்” (Eutychius) எனப்படும் இரண்டு ரோம நிர்வாக அதிகாரிகளின் முன்பு கொண்டுவரப்பட்டார். பின்னர், அவர்கள் அவரை ரோமப் பேரரசன் “மேக்சிமியனிடம்" (Emperor Maximian) அனுப்பினார்கள். பின்னர், தெருக்களில் அலைந்து, அடித்து, இழுத்துச்செல்லப்பட்ட அவர், சிறையிலெறியப்பட்டார். அங்கே சிறையில், அவர் “லோங்கினஸ்” (Longinus), அலெக்ஸாண்டர் (Alexander), மற்றும் “ஃபெலீசியன்” (Felician) ஆகிய மூன்று ரோம வீரர்களை கிறிஸ்தவத்திற்கு மனம் மாற்றினார். பின்னர் அவர்களும் தலை வெட்டப்பட்டு கொல்லப்பட்டனர். ரோமன் கடவுளான “ஜூபிடர்” (Jupiter) சிலைக்கு தூபமிட மறுத்த பிறகு, விக்டர் தனது காலால் அதை உதைத்துத் தள்ளினார். கடும் சினமுற்ற பேரரசன் மேக்சிமியன், அவரை ஒரு மைல் கல்லினடியில் இட்டு கொள்ளுமாறு உத்தரவிட்டான். ஆனால், அந்த மைல் கள் சிதறுண்டு போனது; விக்டருக்கு ஒன்றுமாகவில்லை. அதன் காரணமாக, அவர் தலை வெட்டப்பட்டு கொல்லப்பட்டார்.

புனிதர் விக்டரும், அவரால் கிறிஸ்தவ மதத்திற்கு மனம் மாற்றப்பட்ட ரோம வீரர்களான “லோங்கினஸ்” (Longinus), அலெக்ஸாண்டர் (Alexander), மற்றும் “ஃபெலீசியன்” (Felician) ஆகிய மூவரும், கி.பி. மூன்றாம் நூற்றாண்டின் இறுதியில் கொல்லப்பட்டனர். நான்காம் நூற்றாண்டைச் சேர்ந்த புனிதர் “ஜான் கேசியன்” (Saint John Cassian) என்பவர், இவர்கள் மூவரும் கொல்லப்பட்ட குகையின் மேலே ஒரு துறவற (Monastery) மடாலயத்தை கட்டி எழுப்பினார். பிற்காலத்தில் இது, பெனடிக்டின் மடாலயமாகவும் (Benedictine abbey), “சிறு பேராலயமாகவும்” (Minor Basilica) ஆனது. இதுவே புனிதர் விக்டரின் மடாலயமாகும் (Abbey of St Victor).

புனிதர் விக்டர் மற்றும் அவருடன் மரித்த மூன்று ரோம படை வீரர்களான “லோங்கினஸ்” (Longinus), அலெக்ஸாண்டர் (Alexander), மற்றும் “ஃபெலீசியன்” (Felician) ஆகியோரின் நினைவுத் திருநாள், ஜூலை மாதம் 21ம் நாளாகும்.

புனிதர் விக்டர், “எஸ்டோனியா” (Estonia) நாட்டின் தலைநகரான “டல்லின்” (Tallinn) நகரின் பாதுகாவல் புனிதராவார்.

Profile

Christian soldier in the imperial Roman army, he was imprisoned in Marseilles, France when he refused to worship pagan gods. While in awaiting execution, he converted other prisoners. Martyr.

Died

290 with three prisoners in Marseilles, France he had converted

Biographical selection:

Victor, a Catholic officer of the Roman army known for his noble lineage, military valor, and intelligence, served in the garrison of Marseille around the year 290. He developed a strong apostolate with his fellow men of arms and the people of the city, stimulating them all to courageously face the persecution of those times.

His activity was discovered by enemies of the Faith and Victor was denounced to the Emperor. He was brought before two prefects in the city, who, because of his distinction, sent him to the Emperor himself. The tyrant imposed cruel torments on him in an attempt to make him deny the Catholic Faith. All those tortures were futile because Victor remained faithful. After being tortured, he was thrown in a prison, and there he converted the three soldiers who were guarding him. When the Emperor heard this, he ordered that Victor be taken to a pagan temple to burn incense to the false idol, Jupiter. Victor went up to the altar and kicked the statue to the ground. 

Indignant, the Emperor ordered that Victor’s foot be chopped off and then his body crushed by a millstone. When the mill broke down, he ordered Victor beheaded. In the cave where his remains were conserved, many miracles took place. His relics were kept for centuries in the Abbey of Saint-Victor in Marseille. The French Revolution tried to destroy them, but they were preserved and today are in the Church of St. Nicolas of Chardonnay in Paris.

Comments:

It would be very interesting if someone would have the time to study how far-reaching the Catholic influence in the Roman army was. The courage of the Roman army was legendary, and under many titles, the Roman legionary was the symbol of courage in the popular imagination. History provides ample support for this idea. 

Generally speaking, we know that the Catholic Faith deeply penetrated the Roman army, because many of its members died martyrs. Hence, we see that from the beginning of the Catholic Church, the military life and spirit were allied with the Catholic spirit and sanctity. 

Further, we see that the courage required of a legionary acted as a kind of preparation for him to accept the Catholic Religion, the source of all good and everything worthy of praise throughout the world. 

Just as the Church adopted Roman Law, elevated it, purified its many defects, and made it the base of Canon Law, in the same way, the Catholic Religion broadly penetrated the Roman Patriciate, whose noble families were prepared by the patriarchal spirit to receive the Catholic Church. Thus, we can justly ask whether this Catholic influence also penetrated the Roman Legions. The martyrdom of St. Victor allows us to raise this possibility.

The scene of his martyrdom could not be more beautiful. He was brought before an idol and ordered to burn incense before it. He forcefully kicked it to the ground. It is an act of magnificent courage, of extraordinary fearlessness. It is a symbol of Catholic courage and aggressiveness. 

Should we imitate these attitudes? Yes, in a certain sense. We are not in conditions to imitate the physical aggression, but we can imitate the moral attitude of St. Victor. Often we have to face the idols of the modern world that almost everyone adores. We are also invited to adore them in order to fit into the world. Often we have the opportunity to destroy these idols by giving them a strong kick, so to speak. We should do this rather than bow our heads and tremble before such idols. We should courageously kick these idols to the ground. We have often done exactly this by the grace of Our Lady. We should continue to do so, and now for an additional reason: to follow the example of St. Victor. 

The opposite defect of this courage is human respect, the shame to stand up for Catholic principles, the lack of courage to oppose the revolutionary opinions and fashions that are accepted by the general populace as the only true ones, the only ones with the right of citizenship. 

We should maintain this norm of action: Whenever we are in the presence of the arrogant impiety of neo-paganism in any of its forms, our Catholic pride must oppose its arrogance. We should do it in a way that our pride triumphs over revolutionary arrogance. We should not be afraid, for instance, to oppose the French Revolution, its myths, and its symbols. We should courageously speak against it, just as St. Victor stood against the false god and kicked the idol to the ground.

Saint Alberic Crescitelli

Also known as

Alberico

Additional Memorial

28 September as one of the Martyrs of China

Profile

Seminarian at age twelve. Studied at the Pontifical Seminary for Foreign Missions in Rome. Ordained in 1887. Joined the Milan Foreign Missionary Society, the predecessor of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME), in 1888. Missionary in the Shensi Province in China near the Han River in 1888. Transferred to Ningkiang in 1900. Arrested on 20 July 1900 during the anti-Western Boxer Rebellion, he was tortured and murdered. Martyr.

Born

30 June 1863 at Altavilla, Benevento, Italy

Died

• beheaded on 21 July 1900 in Ningkiang, China

• body hacked to pieces

Canonized

1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II

Daniel the Prophet

Profile

One of the four Great Prophets in the Old Testament, and the writer of the book of scripture that bears his name.

Died

• 5th-century BC in Babylon of natural causes

• tomb traditionally in Susa (modern Shush, Iran)

• relics translated to Alexandria, Egypt

• relics translated to Venice, Italy

Patronage

Ledeberg, Belgium

Saint Antimund of Thérouanne

Also known as

Animundus, Antimond, Antimonde, Antimundus, Autimond, Autimundus

Profile

Hermit in Gallia Belgica (in modern northern France) in the early 6th century. Priest. Feeling a call to missionary work, and he and a Father Adelbert were sent by Saint Remigius of Rheims to evangelize the Morini people in the area of modern Picardy, France; this was a people who had received Christianity centuries earlier, but had reverted to their pagan roots. The pagan priests opposed him and supported continued worship of idols, but the people of the region were interested and he converted many. First bishop of Thérouanne in the Artois region of modern France, consecrated by Saint Remigius. Later invasions wiped out his good work, and in 7th century missionaries to the region had to start all over.

Saint Claudius of Troyes

Also known as

Claudianus

Profile

Roman officer in the army of Aurelius. Received Saint Julia of Troyes as a slave and a spoil of war. She pleaded with him not to rape her, offered to serve him otherwise, and promised to pray for him daily; he was moved to spare her, eventually treating her more as a daughter, and was finally converted by her. When Julia was martyred in the persecutions of Aurelian, Claudius made a public profession of his own faith. Martyr.

Born

early 3rd century in Alemannia, an area occupied by Germanic tribes

Died

• beheaded in 273 at Troyes, Gaul (modern France)

• relics at the Benedictine convent at Jouarre, France

Blessed Gabriel Pergaud

Profile

Priest. Member of the Canons Regular of the Congregation of 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

29 October 1752 in Saint-Priest-la-Plaine, Creuse, France

Died

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

Beatified

1 October 1995 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Praxides of Rome

Also known as

Praxedes, Praxidis

Profile

Daughter of a Senator Pudens and Saint Claudia of Rome; sister of Saint Prudentiana. Lifelong single lay woman. She employed her wealth in the interest of the Church, and was renowned for her virtues.

Died

• 164 in Rome, Italy of natural causes

• relics in the Saint Praxides Church, Rome

Saint Iosephus Wang Yumei

Also known as

• Joseph

• Ruose

Additional Memorial

28 September as one of the Martyrs of China

Profile

Layman in the apostolic vicariate of Southeastern Zhili, China. Martyred in the Boxer Rebellion.

Born

c.1832 in Weixian, Hebei, China

Died

21 July 1900 in Daning, Weixian, Hebei, China

Canonized

1 October 2000 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Simeon Salus

Also known as

• Simeon Solos

• Simeon the Fool

• Simeon the Insane

• Symeon...

Profile

A man who lived as a simple fool for Christ and became known for his holy wisdom and miracles. Pilgrim to many holy places. Longtime friend and travelling companion of Saint John of Edessa. Desert hermit. Hermit in Emesa (modern Homs), Syria.

Born

Edessa, Syria

Blessed Antonio Caba Pozo

Profile

Seminarian in the archdiocese of Granada, Spain. Martyred in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

1 December 1914 in Lanjarón, Granada, Spain

Died

21 July 1936 in Lanjarón, Granada, Spain

Beatified

• 23 May 2020 by Pope Francis

• the beatification recognition was celebrated at the Cathedral of Santa María de la Encarnación in Granada, Spain, presided by Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu

Blessed Parthenius of Thessaly

Profile

Bishop, known for his ascetic lifestyle in which he continually gave away all that he had to the poor, and as often as possible withdrew to live as a cowherd in order to have the solitude to spend his days in constant prayer – including praying for the cattle in his care.

Born

Thessaly

Died

1777 of natural causes

Patronage

against diseases of cattle

Blessed Juan de Las Varillas

Profile

Mercedarian friar. Missionary. Counselor and chaplain to Hernán Cortés during the expedition to Honduras in 1524. Though he was unable to establish a serious foothold for the Mercedarians in the Americas, Juan did bring many Aztecs to Christianity.

Born

Spain

Died

an area that would become modern Mexico, of natural causes

Blessed Agrícola Rodríguez García de Los Huertos

Profile

Priest in the archdiocese of Toledo, Spain. Martyred in the Spanish Civil War.

Born

18 March 1896 in Consuegra, Toledo, Spain

Died

21 July 1936 in Mora, Toledo, Spain

Beatified

28 October 2007 by Pope Benedict XVI

Saint Julia of Troyes

Profile

Captured as a spoil of war by the forces of Roman emperor Aurelian following his victory over Tetricus. Given as a prize to Claudius of Troyes, an army officer. She converted him, and they were martyred together.

Born

3rd century at Troyes, France

Died

beheaded in 273 at Troyes, France

Saint Jucundinus of Troyes

Profile

Martyred in the persecutions of Aurelian.

Died

• 273 at Troyes, Gaul (modern France)

• relics at the Benedictine convent at Jouarre, France

Saint Barhadbescialas

Also known as

Barhadbesciabas

Profile

Deacon. Martyred in the persecutions of Sapor II. The Acts of the his martyrdom, written in Aramaic, have survived.

Died

354

Saint Eternus of Evreux

Also known as

Éterne, Aeternus, Ethernus, Detherus

Profile

Bishop of Evreux, France.

Died

c.660

Saint Eleutherius of Marseille

Also known as

Deutherius, Eleuterius

Profile

Young martyr.

Died

c.290 at the tomb of Saint Victor in Marseilles, France

Saint Justus of Troyes

Profile

Martyred in the persecutions of Aurelian.

Died

• 273 at Troyes, Gaul (modern France)

• relics at the Benedictine convent at Jouarre, France

Saint Benignus of Moyenmoutier

Profile

Twin brother of Saint John. Monk at Moyenmoutier. Spiritual student of Saint Hidulphus.

Died

707 of natural causes

Blessed Juan de Zambrana

Profile

Mercedarian friar. Missionary to Guatamala in 1535, one of the first in the region. Built the Mercedarian convent of San Giacomo in Santiago, Guatamala.

Saint John of Moyenmoutier

Profile

Twin brother of Saint Benignus. Monk at Moyenmoutier. Spiritual student of Saint Hidulphus.

Died

707 of natural causes

Saint Zoticus of Comana

Profile

Bishop of Comana, Italy. Fought against the Montanist heresy. Martyred in the persecutions of Septimius Severus.

Died

204

Saint Wastrada

Profile

Mother of Saint Gregory of Utrecht. In her later years she became a nun.

Died

• c.760 of natural causes

• buried at Susteren Abbey

Blessed Daniel Molini

Also known as

Daniele

Profile

Cistercian monk, abbot and confessor.

Born

Venice, Italy

Saint John of Edessa

Profile

Monk at Edessa, Syria. Longtime friend of Saint Simeon Salus.

Born

6th century Syrian

Blessed Claudius of Avignon

Profile

Franciscan friar in the Avignon region of France.

Saint Corona of Marseille

Profile

Martyr.

Died

c.290 in Marseille, France

Martyrs of Africa

Profile

Six Christians who were martyred together. We know no other details about them but the names – Emilian, Hugal, Motanus, Saphus, Stercorius and Victor.

Died

unknown location in Africa, date unknown