02 Feb – Feast of the Presentation of the Lord; World Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life This feast celebrates an early episode in the life of Jesus. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Presentation is the fourth Joyful Mystery of the Rosary. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, it is one of the twelve Great [...]
25 Jan – Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul St. Paul (3-65) was a Jewish Talmudic student and a Pharisee. He was a tent-maker by trade. Saul the Jew hated and persecuted Christians as heretical, even assisting at the stoning of St. Stephen the Martyr. On his way to Damascus to arrest another group [...]
08 Jan -Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord The Revelation Of Christ To The World We join all people of the world in worshipping the infant King of the Jews – The Sunday Missal _____________________ Isaiah 60:1-6 Arise, shine out, Jerusalem, for your light has come, the glory of the Lord is rising on [...]
01 Jan – Octave Day of Christmas; Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God is celebrated on Jan 1, the Octave Day of Christmas (i.e. 8th day after Christmas). It is a celebration of Mary’s motherhood of Jesus. The title “Mother of God” is a western [...]
30 Dec – Sixth Day of the Octave of Christmas; Feast of the Holy Fmaily We celebrate the Holy Family of Nazareth which is the model for all who fear the Lord and walk in his ways. – The Sunday Missal _____________________ Colossians 3:12-21 You are God’s chosen race, his saints; he loves you and [...]
28 Dec – Fourth Day of the Octave of Christmas; Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martrys The Holy Innocents are the children slaughtered by Herod the Great when he tried to kill the infant Christ. – Patron Saint Index The children died for Christ, though they do not know it. The parents mourned for the [...]
27 Dec – Third Day of the Octave of Christmas; Feast of St John, Apostle & Evangelist St. John, also known as the “beloved disciple” of Jesus’ was the son of Zebedee and Salome, brother of St. James the Great, and was called one of the Sons of Thunder. Before becoming Jesus’ disciple, he was [...]
26 Dec – Second Day of the Octave of Christmas; Feast of St Stephen, Protomartyr St. Stephen was the first Christian martyr. A deacon and a preacher, all we know of him is related in the Acts of the Apostles. While preaching the gospel in the streets, angry Jews who believed his message to be [...]
08 Dec – Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary On this and the following eight days, the Church celebrates, with particular solemnity, the immaculate conception of the ever-blessed Virgin Mary who, from all eternity, was chosen to be the daughter of the heavenly Father, the spouse of the Holy Ghost, the [...]
03 Dec – Feast of St. Francis Xavier, presbyter, religious, missionary (Principal Patron of Foreign Missions) Francis (1506-1552) was a nobleman from the Basque region. He studied and taught philosophy at the University of Paris, and planned a career as a professor. He was a friend of St. Ignatius of Loyola who convinced him to [...]
