Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Agnes Mary Clerke"

'Tis the Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saints of the Day
Commentary: Wayback Machine.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
The Book of Isaiah, chapter thirty-eight, verses one thru six, twenty-one, twenty-two, seven, & eight;
The Book of Isaiah, chapter thirty-eight, verses (R/. cf. seventeen[b]) ten, eleven, twelve(a/b/c/d), & sixteen;
The Gospel according to Matthew, chapter twelve, verses one thru eight.

Commentary: Daily Readings.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus corrects the Pharisees with this theme of his ministry: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.”

Every saint had a past, and every sinner has a future. That is key to Catholic spirituality. In the lives of every one of these heroes of the faith, there is some conversion. And every sinner—every one of us—has a future. That is why we soak in the mercy of God.

There is a beautiful reference in the Psalms to oil running down upon your beard, upon the collar of your robe. The divine mercy is like that: poured out upon us, poured out without reservation—and not because it’s earned, because it can’t be earned.

God doesn’t love us because we’re worthy. We’re worthy because he loves us. We don’t deserve his mercy, but we soak it in and thereby are transformed.

Video reflection by Jem Sullivan, Ph.D. (U.S.C.C.B.): Daily Reflection.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Fr. Johann Georg Hagen, S.J."

'Tis the Friday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Friday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
The Book of Hosea, chapter fourteen, verses two thru ten;
Psalm Fifty-one (R/. seventeen[b]), verses three & four, eight & nine, twelve & thirteen, & fourteen & seventeen;
The Gospel according to Matthew, chapter ten, verses sixteen thru twenty-three.

Commentary: Daily Readings.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus predicts the persecution of his followers. A vast army of martyrs have in the course of Christian history given their lives for the sake of Christ and his gospel. They are from every culture, country, language, and background.

This is the army that stands opposed to worldly armies that do their work through violence, threats, and oppression. They witness to the power and authority of the risen Lord and therefore they are fighters—but they do not fight with the weapons of the world.

One might think of St. Peter himself, crucified upside down; or Felicity and Perpetua, thrown to wild animals; or of Thomas Becket, who resisted King Henry II’s attempts to manipulate the Church and was butchered by his henchmen; or Thomas More, who resisted another King Henry and paid for it with his head.

One might think of Paul Miki, the Japanese Jesuit, who was crucified for announcing the Christian faith; or Miguel Pro, who was shot to death for defying a repressive Mexican government, shouting as he was martyred, “Viva Cristo Rey!”

Video reflection by Jem Sullivan, Ph.D. (U.S.C.C.B.): Daily Reflection.

Saints + Scripture: VI Sunday of Easter

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Mother's Day: Marian Title"

'Tis the Sixth Sunday of Easter (Latin: Pascha): Pascha-link & Wikipedia-link Paschaltide.

Scripture of the Week
Mass Readings—Sixth Sunday of Easter
The Acts of the Apostles, chapter eight, verses five thru eight & fourteen thru seventeen;
Psalm Sixty-six (R/. one; or, "Alleluia"), verses one, two, & three; four & five; six & seven; & sixteen & twenty;
The First Letter of Peter, chapter three, verses fifteen thru eighteen;
The Gospel according to John, chapter fourteen, verses fifteen thru twenty-one.

Commentary: Sunday Readings.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit to accompany his disciples: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth.”

Just a moment before, Jesus had identified himself as the Truth and as, essentially, one with the Father. Thus we find in this first reference to the “Advocate,” the parakletos, a fairly clear proto-Trinitarian formula. As Jesus reflects the Father’s being, so this third seems to reflect the mutuality of Jesus and the Father, since both are involved in his sending.

The role of the parakletos is that of animating the Church, which Jesus, at least in the ordinary sense, is about to leave. More precisely, he will lead the followers of Jesus into the fullness of truth, maintaining a vibrant continuity with the Lord and hence with the Father:

“The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.” Notice the densely-packed coinherence that obtains among the three, a one-in-the-otherness into which the Church itself is being invited.

Video reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire): Sunday Sermon.

Video reflection by Fr. Greg Friedman, O.F.M. (U.S.C.C.B.): Easter Reflection.

Saints + Scripture: Eastertide

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Ich bin der Kaiser und ich will Knödel!"

'Tis the Friday of the Fifth Week of Easter (Latin: Pascha): Pascha-link & Wikipedia-link Paschaltide.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Friday of the Fifth Week of Easter
The Acts of the Apostles, chapter fifteen, verses twenty-two thru thirty-one;
Psalm Fifty-seven (R/. ten[a]; or, "Alleluia"), verses eight & nine, ten & twelve;
The Gospel according to John, chapter fifteen, verses twelve thru seventeen.

Commentary: Daily Readings.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus calls us his friends.

Psychologists tell us that a true friend is someone who has seen us at our worst and still loves us. If you have encountered me only on my best days, I have no guarantee that you are my friend. But when you have dealt with me when I am most obnoxious and you still love me, then I am sure that you are my friend.

The old gospel song says, “What a friend we have in Jesus!” This is not pious sentimentalism; it is the heart of the matter. What the first Christians saw in the dying and rising of Jesus is that we killed God, and God returned in forgiving love. He saw us at our very worst and loved us anyway.

Thus they saw confirmed in flesh and blood what Jesus had said the night before he died: “I no longer call you slaves. . . . I have called you friends.” They realized, in the drama of the paschal mystery, that we have not only been shown a new way; we have been drawn into a new life, a life of friendship with God.

Video reflection by Deacon Bernard Nojadera (U.S.C.C.B.): Easter Reflection.

Saints + Scripture: Adventus

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Catholic T-shirt Club Unboxing: A Year of Hope"

'Tis the Friday of the Third Week of Advent: Advent-link & Wikipedia-link.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—December 19*
The Book of Judges, chapter thirteen, verses two thru seven, twenty-four, & twenty-five(a);
Psalm Seventy-one (R/. cf. verse eight), verses three & four(a), five & six(a,b), & sixteen & seventeen;
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter one, verses five thru twenty-five.

Commentary: U.S.C.C.B. & Word on Fire. *The readings for December 17-23, featuring the O Antiphons, are set by date, whether those dates fall in the third or the fourth week of Advent.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, our Gospel today is from the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke, which is thoroughly drenched in Davidic themes from the Old Testament.

The first thing we hear about Zechariah is that he serves as priest in the Jerusalem temple; and David’s dream was to build the temple in which Zechariah serves. While in the sanctuary, Zechariah is visited by the angel Gabriel; and the temple locale and the announcement of the birth of a child against all expectations brings us back to Hannah’s pregnancy, which resulted in the birth of the forerunner to David. Indeed, Elizabeth’s words upon conceiving—“So has the Lord done for me at a time when he has seen fit to take away my disgrace before others”—powerfully evoke Hannah’s frame of mind when she, after many tears and much prayer, finally became pregnant.

What does this have to do with the life of Jesus? From beginning to end of his preaching career, Jesus’s central theme was the arrival of the kingdom of God, which was understood to mean the ingathering of the scattered tribes of Israel. And what becomes eminently clear in all of the Gospels is that this coming together would happen in and through Jesus himself, much as the knitting together of ancient Israel happened in the person of David. Jesus definitively fulfills what David himself left incomplete and unfinished.

Video reflection by Monsignor Robert Cannon (U.S.C.C.B.): Advent Reflection.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"October Saints Who Wore Costumes: Part 3 (Blessed Chiara Luce Badano)"

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint Callistus I, Pope & Martyr (died circa 222; also spelt Callixtus), sixteenth (XVI) Bishop of Rome (217-222), martyred in the reign of the Roman emperor Severus Alexander, superintendent of the Catacombs of Callixtus.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

'Tis the Tuesday of the Twenty-eight Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"October Saints Who Wore Costumes: Part 2"

'Tis the Friday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Heretical Nonsense… FINALLY!, Part 2"

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Memorial of Saint Maximilian Kolbe, Priest & Martyr, O.F.M. Conv. (1894-1941, the "Patron Saint of Our Difficult Century" [the Twentieth] & "Apostle of Consecration to Mary;" A.K.A. Rajmund Kolbe), founder of the Militia Immaculatae (the "Knights of the Immaculata") & the Niepokalanów monastery (the "City of the Immaculate Mother of God"), martyred in the reign of the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

'Tis the Thursday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saint Quote o' the Day

"Never be afraid of loving the Blessed Virgin too much. You can never love her more than Jesus did."
—Saint Maximilian Kolbe, O.F.M. Conv. (1894-1941, feast: 14 August)

Saints + Scripture: Pascha

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"April Saints with Long Names, Part I"

'Tis the Saturday of the Third Week of Easter (Latin: Pascha, meaning "Passover"): Pascha-link & Wikipedia-link Paschaltide.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint John of Ávila, Priest & Doctor of the Church (1499-1569, the "Apostle of Andalusia").

'Tis the festival of Saint Damien de Vuester, Priest, SS.CC. (1840-1889, of Moloka'i, the "Apostle to the Lepers;" A.K.A. Jozef de Veuster).

Saints + Scripture: Pascha

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Conclave Extravaganza!"

'Tis the Monday of the Third Week of Easter (Latin: Pascha, meaning "Passover"): Pascha-link & Wikipedia-link Paschaltide.

Saints + Scripture: Pascha

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Remembering Pope Francis"

'Tis the Friday of the Second Week of Easter (Latin: Pascha, meaning "Passover"): Pascha-link & Wikipedia-link Paschaltide.

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Memorial of Saint Athanasius, Bishop & Doctor of the Church (circa 295-373; the Great, of Alexandria), the defender of Christian orthodoxy against the Arian heresy & a Church Father.

Commentary: Wayback Machine '18.

Saints + Scripture: Paschal Triduum | Holy Saturday

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Triduum: Holy Saturday"

'Tis Holy Saturday, act three of the Paschal Triduum, the Saturday of Holy Week: Holy Saturday-link & Wikipedia-link Holy Saturday, & Wikipedia-link Sacred Triduum; Holy Week-link & Wikipedia-link Holy Week.

Scripture of This Night
Mass Readings—The Resurrection of the Lord at the Easter Vigil in the Holy Night of Easter
I. The Book of Genesis, chapter one, verse one thru chapter two, verse two
(or, the Book of Genesis, chapter one, verses one & twenty-six thru thirty-one[a]);
Psalm One Hundred Four, verses one & two; five & six; ten; twelve, thirteen, & fourteen; twenty-four; & thirty-five;
or, Psalm Thirty-three, verses four thru seven, twelve & thirteen, & twenty & twenty-two;
II. The Book of Genesis, chapter twenty-two, verses one thru eighteen
(or, the Book of Genesis, chapter twenty-two, verses one, two, nine[a] thru thirteen, & fifteen thru eighteen);
Psalm Sixteen, verses five, eight, nine& ten, & eleven;
III. The Book of Exodus, chapter fourteen, verse fifteen thru chapter fifteen, verse one;
The Book of Exodus, chapter fifteen, verses one & two, three & four, five & six, & seventeen & eighteen;
IV. The Book of Isaiah, chapter fifty-four, verses five thru fourteen;
Psalm Thirty, verses two, four, five & six, eleven & twelve, & thirteen;
V. The Book of Isaiah, chapter fifty-five, verses one thru eleven;
The Book of Isaiah, chapter twelve, verses two & three, four, & five & six;
VI. The Book of Baruch, chapter three, verses nine thru fifteen & thirty-two thru chapter four, verse four;
Psalm Nineteen, verses eight, nine, ten, & eleven;
VII. The Book of Ezekiel, chapter thirty-six, verses sixteen, seventeen(a), & eighteen thru twenty-eight;
Psalm Forty-two, verses three & five & Psalm Forty-three, verses three & four;
or, the Book of Isaiah, chapter twelve, verses two & three, four(b/c/d), & five & six;
or, Psalm Fifty-one, verses twelve & thirteen, fourteen & fifteen, & eighteen & nineteen;
VIII. The Letter to the Romans, chapter six, verses three thru eleven;
Psalm One Hundred Eighteen, verses one & two, sixteen & seventeen, & twenty-two & twenty-three;
IX. The Gospel according to Mark, chapter sixteen, verses one thru seven.

Commentary: Triduum Readings.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, how wonderful are the readings for the Easter season! So full of theological depth, so spiritually rich, so marked by joy.

In light of the Resurrection, we know that God’s deepest intention for us is life, and life to the full. He wants death not to have the final word; he wants a renewal of the heavens and the earth.

Therefore, we have to stop living in the intellectual and spiritual space of death. We have to stop living intellectually in a world dominated by death and the fear of death. We have to adjust our attitudes in order to respond properly to what God really intends for us and the world.

Though we rarely admit it, we live in a death-haunted space. The fear of death broods over us like a cloud and conditions all of our thoughts and actions. What if we really believed, deep down, that death did not have the final word? Would we live in such fear, in such a cramped spiritual space? Or would we see that the protection of our egos is not the number one concern of our existence?

Video reflection by Monsignor Robert Cannon (U.S.C.C.B.): Triduum Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute/Formed.org): Triduum Reflection.

Papal Quote o' the Day

"The readings in the Paschal Vigil carry us into the mysterious arena where human sin meets God's justice & mercy. There life & death 'have contended,' & there the victory of the risen Christ over death stands out as the source of our salvation & the model of Christian living."
—Pope Saint Paul VI (1897-1978, r. 1963-1978; feast: 29 May)

Saint Quote o' the Day

"The One Who is our very life descended into our world, & bore our death, & slew it with the abundance of His own life. Thundering, He called us to return to Him in heaven."
—Saint Augustine of Hippo, Doctor of the Church (354-430, feast: 28 August)

Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day

"The most important part is that we keep the work as His work & that we do not spoil it with any claims."
—Saint Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)

Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day

"Solitude can be very rewarding & full of blessing because in the silence of the inner being, one finds God."
—Venerable Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Saints + Scripture: Paschal Triduum | Good Friday

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Triduum: Good Friday"

'Tis Good Friday, act two of the Paschal Triduum, the Friday of Holy Week: Good Friday-link & Wikipedia-link Good Friday, & Wikipedia-link Sacred Triduum; Holy Week-link & Wikipedia-link Holy Week.

Scripture of the Day
Liturgical Readings—Good Friday of the Passion of the Lord
The Book of Isaiah, chapter fifty-two, verse thirteen thru chapter fifty-three, verse twelve;
Psalm Thirty-one, verses two & six, twelve & thirteen, fifteen & sixteen, & seventeen & twenty-five
(R/. the Gospel according to Luke, chapter twenty-three, verse forty-six);
The Letter to the Hebrews, chapter four, verses fourteen, fifteen, & sixteen & chapter fifteen, verses seven, eight, & nine;
The Gospel according to John, chapter eighteen, verse one thru chapter nineteen, verse forty-two.

Commentary: Triduum Readings.

Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, today’s Gospel is John’s wonderful narrative of Christ’s Passion.

On the cross, Jesus entered into close quarters with sin (because that’s where we sinners are found) and allowed the heat and fury of sin to destroy him, even as he protected us.

We can see, with special clarity, why the first Christians associated the crucified Jesus with the suffering servant of Isaiah. By enduring the pain of the cross, Jesus did indeed bear our sins; by his stripes we were indeed healed.

And this is why the sacrificial death of Jesus is pleasing to the Father. The Father sent his Son into godforsakenness, into the morass of sin and death—not because he delighted in seeing his Son suffer, but rather because he wanted his Son to bring the divine light to the darkest place.

It is not the agony of the Son in itself that pleases his Father, but rather the Son’s willing obedience in offering his body in sacrifice in order to take away the sin of the world. St. Anselm said that the death of the Son reestablished the right relationship between divinity and humanity.

Video reflection by Paul Jarzembowski (U.S.C.C.B.): Triduum Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute/Formed.org): Triduum Reflection.

Papal Quote o' the Day

"The journey also brings sacrifices, but these must not stop us. Jesus is on the Cross: you want to kiss Him? You cannot help bending over the Cross & letting yourself be pricked by some thorns of the crown that is on the Lord's head."
—Pope Blessed John Paul I (1912-1978, r. 1978; feast: 26 August)

Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day

"You need a deep freedom to be like Jesus. See, He could have been born in a palace, yet He chose to be poor… Are we so free that we can be completely naked with Jesus there on the cross?"
—Saint Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)

Saint Quote o' the Day

"Jesus took upon Himself the scourging that would have been our due in order to save the creatures He formed & loved."
—Saint Odo of Cluny (880-942, feast: 18 November)

Bonus! Saint Quote o' the Day

"The fruit of this tree is not death but life, not darkness but light. This tree does not cast us out of paradise, but opens the way for our return."
—Saint Theodore the Studite (759-826, feast: 12 November)

Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day

"Keep your eyes on the crucifix; for Jesus without the cross is a man without a mission, & the cross without Jesus is a burden without a reliever."
—Venerable Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Saints + Scripture: Paschal Triduum | Holy Thursday

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Triduum: Holy Thursday"

'Tis Holy Thursday (A.K.A. Maundy Thursday), act one of the Paschal Triduum, the Thursday of Holy Week: Holy Thursday-link & Wikipedia-link Holy Thursday, & Wikipedia-link Sacred Triduum; Holy Week-link & Wikipedia-link Holy Week.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Chrism Mass
The Book of Isaiah, chapter sixty-one, verses one, two, three(a), six(a), eight(b), & nine;
Psalm Eighty-nine (R/. two), verses twenty-one & twenty-two, twenty-five & twenty-seven;
The Book of Revelation, chapter one, verses five thru eight;
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter four, verses sixteen thru twenty-one.

Commentary: Chrism Mass Readings.

Mass Readings—Evening Mass of the Lord's Supper
The Book of Exodus, chapter twelve, verses one thru eight & eleven thru fourteen;
Psalm One Hundred Sixteen, verses twelve & thirteen, fifteen & sixteen(b/c), & seventeen & eighteen
(R/. the First Letter to the Corinthians, chapter ten, verse sixteen);
The First Letter to the Corinthians, chapter eleven, verses twenty-three thru twenty-six;
The Gospel according to John, chapter thirteen, verses one thru fifteen.

Commentary: Triduum Readings.

Commentary: Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus gathers with his chosen Twelve at the climax of his life and does something so strange that we still wonder at it two thousand years later: he takes off his outer garment, puts a towel around his waist, and begins to wash his disciples’ feet.

The nineteenth-century philosopher Hegel said that all human society, to varying degrees, is characterized by the master-slave dynamic. Long before Hegel, the great St. Augustine noticed what he called the libido dominandi, the “lust to dominate,” as the mark of a dysfunctional society. Long before Augustine, the authors of the Old Testament were also interested in this problem, because the central story of the Scriptures is that of slavery and liberation from slavery—the Passover event.

But we see now in John’s Gospel how the distinctive mark of Jesus’ kingdom is precisely the overturning of the master-slave dynamic. Jesus bends down to do the work that was so lowly and frankly gross that only the lowest of the slaves were expected to do it, and he says, “As I have done for you, you should also do.” And what does he do later at the same supper? He gives himself away entirely in the Eucharist: “This is my body, which will be given for you.”

It is into this new dynamic that we are invited by Jesus: the washing of the feet, the giving away of body and blood.

Video reflection by Deacon Harold Burke-Sivers (U.S.C.C.B.): Triduum Reflection.

Video reflection by Doctor Tim Gray (Augustine Institute/Formed.org): Triduum Reflection.

Papal Quote o' the Day

"With the institution of the Eucharist, we enter into the very heart of humanity's drama. Will it be life directed toward death, or life open to eternity!"
—Pope Saint John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, r. 1978-2005; feast: 22 October)

Saint Quote o' the Day

"I tell you that you have less to suffer in following the cross than in serving the world & its pleasures."
—Saint Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney (1786-1859, feast: 4 August)

Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day

"On the Cross, Jesus said, 'I thirst.' He was not asking for something to drink. When they offered Him vinegar He didn't drink it… Very often we offer Jesus a bitter drink too. This bitterness comes from the depths of hearts & wells up in our words. When we give this bitterness to each other, we give it to Jesus."
—Saint Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)

Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day

"Let no one think he can be totally indifferent to God in this life & suddenly develop a capacity for Him at the moment of death."
—Venerable Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Spamming the Choir"

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary, & Lazarus (Martha: died circa 80, of Bethany, the "Wonder Worker of Southern Gaul;" Lazarus: died circa 96; A.K.A. the Resurrected, of the Four Days), inaugural Bishop of Marseille, martyred in the reign of the Roman emperor Domitian, a victim of his persecution (89-96).

Commentary: Wayback Machine '22 & Wayback Machine '19.

'Tis the Monday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Books Not in the Bible: 2nd Clement"

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint Bridget, Religious,O.Ss.S. (circa 1303-1373, of Sweden, of Vadstena; A.K.A. Birgitta Birgersdotter), foundress of the Bridgettines (O.Ss.S.), formally the Order of the Most Holy Savior.

Commentary: Wayback Machine '21 & Wayback Machine '19. Kinswoman of St. Ingrid of Skänninge (2 September) & mother of St. Catherine of Sweden (24 March).

'Tis the Tuesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Mike Didn't Read the Book, But He Does Hear the Drums"

'Tis the Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Commentary: Wayback Machine '21 & Wayback Machine '19.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Bonus: Father God"

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Optional Memorial of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, associated with & venerated through the Brown Scapular, formally the Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

Saint Quote o' the Day

"Men do not fear a powerful hostile army as the powers of Hell fear the name & protection of Mary."
—Saint Bonaventure,O.F.M. (1221-1274, feast: 15 July)

'Tis the Tuesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Bad Evangelization: Cherry-picking the Bible"

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest, & Companions, Martyrs (died 1648-1930, A.K.A. the one hundred twenty Martyr Saints of China), martyred under the Qing dynasty, various warlords, & the Republic of China.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

'Tis also the festival of Saint Nicolaas Pieck, Priest (O.F.M.), & Companions, Martyrs (died 1572, A.K.A. the nineteen Martyrs of Gorkum), martyred by Calvinist heretics.

'Tis the Tuesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.

Saints + Scripture

Simplex Edition | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

The Popish Plot
"Bonus: Welsh Pronunciation Guide"

Saints of the Day
'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint Anthony Zaccaria, Priest, C.R.S.P. (1502-1539), founder of the Barnabites, formally the Clerics Regular of Saint Paul (C.R.S.P.); the Angelic Sisters of Saint Paul (A.S.P.); & the Oblates of Saint Paul; & promoter of the Forty Hours' Devotion.

Commentary: Wayback Machine. Quoth the Saint Matthew bulletin:

Saint Anthony Mary Zaccaria (1502-1539) was an Italian priest & a prominent figure in the Counter-Reformation. Born in Cremonda, he studied medicine at the University of Padua but later felt a calling to the priesthood. He was ordained in 1528 & soon after founded the Clerics Regular of Saint Paul, commonly known as the Barnabites, in 1530. His religious order aimed to renew the spiritual fervor of the clergy & laity alike. Zaccaria emphasized the importance of the Eucharist, frequent Communion, & devotion to Saint Paul. He also founded the Angelic Sisters of Saint Paul, a congregation of religious women dedicated to similar spiritual renewal. Known for his fiery peaching & deep piety, Saint Anthony Mary Zaccaria played a crucial role in revitalizing the Catholic faith & practice during a period of significant religious upheaval. He was canonized by Pope Leo XIII in 1897, & his feast day is belebrated in July 5. His legacy continues through the ongoing work of the Barnabites & Angelic Sisters in various parts of the world.

'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Portugal, T.O.S.F. (1271-1336, "the Peacemaker;" A.K.A. Isabel, of Aragon), Queen of Portugal.

'Tis the First Friday o' the month: Wikipedia-link First Friday & Wikipedia-link Sacred Heart.

'Tis the Friday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Tempus per annum, "time through the year"): Wikipedia-link.