• O Almighty and Eternal God, You have taken up into heavenly glory the body and soul of the Immaculate Virgin Mary, the Mother of Your Son. May we always look upward toward heaven and come to be worthy of sharing her glory. Through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord Collect for the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the 1962 Roman Missal.
    O Almighty and Eternal God, You have taken up into heavenly glory the body and soul of the Immaculate Virgin Mary, the Mother of Your Son. May we always look upward toward heaven and come to be worthy of sharing her glory. Through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord Collect for the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the 1962 Roman Missal.
  • Be a Catholic: When you kneel before an altar, do it in such a way that others may be able to recognize that you know before whom you kneel. ~ St. Maximilian Kolbe August 14 is the memorial of St. Maximillian Kolbe - patron Saint of journalists, prisoners, drug addicts and the pro-life movement. As a Polish Franciscan priest Fr. Kolbe had a particular devotion to the Virgin Mary due to a vision where he accepted the two crowns (of purity and martyrdom) that were offered to him by Our Lady.  To share his devotion Fr. Kolbe founded the Militia Immaculatae to work for the conversion of sinners through the intervention of Our Lady with magazines and newspapers to share the message of the group. Following the invasion of Poland by Germany the printing presses of the periodicals founded and led by St. Kolbe in his monastery were used to publish anti-Nazi information.  This led to the arrest of Fr. Kolbe with his fellow monks and his eventual placement in Auschwitz. When a man chosen to be killed in Auschwitz called out saying My wife and children. Fr. Kolbe stepped forward saying I want to die in his place. I am a Catholic priest. Following 2 weeks of starvation and dehydration Fr. Kolbe was killed by lethal injection on August 14, 1941. As a modern example of a heroic priest who truly gave himself for others St. Maximillian Kolbe is an inspiration for all priests and Christians to persevere in sharing the Truth of Christ no matter the challenges. St. Maximillian Kolbe - pray for us!
    Be a Catholic: When you kneel before an altar, do it in such a way that others may be able to recognize that you know before whom you kneel. ~ St. Maximilian Kolbe August 14 is the memorial of St. Maximillian Kolbe - patron Saint of journalists, prisoners, drug addicts and the pro-life movement. As a Polish Franciscan priest Fr. Kolbe had a particular devotion to the Virgin Mary due to a vision where he accepted the two crowns (of purity and martyrdom) that were offered to him by Our Lady.  To share his devotion Fr. Kolbe founded the Militia Immaculatae to work for the conversion of sinners through the intervention of Our Lady with magazines and newspapers to share the message of the group. Following the invasion of Poland by Germany the printing presses of the periodicals founded and led by St. Kolbe in his monastery were used to publish anti-Nazi information.  This led to the arrest of Fr. Kolbe with his fellow monks and his eventual placement in Auschwitz. When a man chosen to be killed in Auschwitz called out saying My wife and children. Fr. Kolbe stepped forward saying I want to die in his place. I am a Catholic priest. Following 2 weeks of starvation and dehydration Fr. Kolbe was killed by lethal injection on August 14, 1941. As a modern example of a heroic priest who truly gave himself for others St. Maximillian Kolbe is an inspiration for all priests and Christians to persevere in sharing the Truth of Christ no matter the challenges. St. Maximillian Kolbe - pray for us!
  • At that time, when Jesus drew near to Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it, saying, If you had known, in this your day, even you, the things that are for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a rampart about you, and surround you and shut you in on every side, and will dash you to the ground and your children within you, and will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you have not known the time of your visitation. And He entered the temple, and began to cast out those who were selling and buying in it, saying to them, It is written, ‘My house is a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of thieves. And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people sought to destroy him Luke 19:41-47 Gospel Reading for the Saints Hippolytus (235 A.D.) and Cassian (320 A.D.), Martyrs in the 1962 missal.
    At that time, when Jesus drew near to Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it, saying, If you had known, in this your day, even you, the things that are for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will throw up a rampart about you, and surround you and shut you in on every side, and will dash you to the ground and your children within you, and will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you have not known the time of your visitation. And He entered the temple, and began to cast out those who were selling and buying in it, saying to them, It is written, ‘My house is a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of thieves. And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people sought to destroy him Luke 19:41-47 Gospel Reading for the Saints Hippolytus (235 A.D.) and Cassian (320 A.D.), Martyrs in the 1962 missal.
  • I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. John 6:48-51 From the Gospel reading for the Nineteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time.
    I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. John 6:48-51 From the Gospel reading for the Nineteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time.
  • Our labor here is brief, but the reward is eternal. Do not be disturbed by the clamor of the world, which passes like a shadow. - St. Clare of Assisi August 11 is the memorial of St. Clare of Assisi. As a follower of St. Franciss she was the foundress of the Poor Clare's and their Abbess until her death. This window shows St. Clare holding a monstrance with the Blessed Sacrament - unusually for anyone but a priest.  This is common iconography for St. Clare is because of a particular miracle attributed to her. In the year 1234 an army of Saracens attacked the city of Assisi.  In response St. Clare went out to meet them with the Eucharist held aloft - the attackers then fled the city leaving it unharmed. St. Clare of Assisi - pray for us
    Our labor here is brief, but the reward is eternal. Do not be disturbed by the clamor of the world, which passes like a shadow. - St. Clare of Assisi August 11 is the memorial of St. Clare of Assisi. As a follower of St. Franciss she was the foundress of the Poor Clare's and their Abbess until her death. This window shows St. Clare holding a monstrance with the Blessed Sacrament - unusually for anyone but a priest.  This is common iconography for St. Clare is because of a particular miracle attributed to her. In the year 1234 an army of Saracens attacked the city of Assisi.  In response St. Clare went out to meet them with the Eucharist held aloft - the attackers then fled the city leaving it unharmed. St. Clare of Assisi - pray for us
  • August 10 is the feast of St. Lawrence of Rome, Deacon and Martyr. The story of St. Lawrence's martyrdom teaches us all something about the importance of being cheerful even in the face of persecution. St. Lawrence was a deacon who was martyred in 258 during the persecution of Christians by Emperor Valerian. For defiance of an order from the emperor he was sentenced to be burned slowly on a gridiron. This statue shows him holding the tool of his martyrdom, wearing a Deacon's dalmatic and looking a bit singed. After suffering over the hot coals for a time St. Lawrence is reported to have said Turn me over, I am done on this side!. This clever quip is why St. Lawrence is the patron of comedians, chefs and barbecue. Never let it be said that the Catholic Church doesn't have a sense of humor. St. Lawrence - pray for us
    August 10 is the feast of St. Lawrence of Rome, Deacon and Martyr. The story of St. Lawrence's martyrdom teaches us all something about the importance of being cheerful even in the face of persecution. St. Lawrence was a deacon who was martyred in 258 during the persecution of Christians by Emperor Valerian. For defiance of an order from the emperor he was sentenced to be burned slowly on a gridiron. This statue shows him holding the tool of his martyrdom, wearing a Deacon's dalmatic and looking a bit singed. After suffering over the hot coals for a time St. Lawrence is reported to have said Turn me over, I am done on this side!. This clever quip is why St. Lawrence is the patron of comedians, chefs and barbecue. Never let it be said that the Catholic Church doesn't have a sense of humor. St. Lawrence - pray for us
  • “Those who remain silent are responsible.” - St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein) August 9 is the memorial of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, Virgin and Martyr. Born Edith Stein in 1891 to observant Jewish parents she was a talented student who received her doctorate of philosophy specializing in phenomology. Reading the autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila led Edith Stein to convert to Catholicism and begin teaching at Catholic schools while translating writings of Thomas Aquinas and studying Catholic philosophy. In 1933 Edith Stein became a Discalced Carmelite taking the religious name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross.  To protect her from the Nazi threat she was transferred to a monastery in the Netherlands. Following the Nazi invasion of the Netherlands Teresa Benedicta of the Cross was deported to Auschwitz where she is believed to have been killed in the gas chamber on August 9, 1942. St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross is a patron of converts, and Europe and World Youth Day. St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross - pray for us!
    “Those who remain silent are responsible.” - St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein) August 9 is the memorial of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, Virgin and Martyr. Born Edith Stein in 1891 to observant Jewish parents she was a talented student who received her doctorate of philosophy specializing in phenomology. Reading the autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila led Edith Stein to convert to Catholicism and begin teaching at Catholic schools while translating writings of Thomas Aquinas and studying Catholic philosophy. In 1933 Edith Stein became a Discalced Carmelite taking the religious name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross.  To protect her from the Nazi threat she was transferred to a monastery in the Netherlands. Following the Nazi invasion of the Netherlands Teresa Benedicta of the Cross was deported to Auschwitz where she is believed to have been killed in the gas chamber on August 9, 1942. St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross is a patron of converts, and Europe and World Youth Day. St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross - pray for us!
  • “We must teach more by example than by word.” - St. Mary MacKillop August 8 is the feast day of St. Mary MacKillop, foundress of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart (the Josephites) and the first Australian canonized Saint. Born in 1842 she founded the first Australian order of Religious Sisters in 1866 with the focus on educating the poor - particularly those in rural areas of Australia. As Mary MacKillop worked to create and build her order there were many obstacles.  She was briefly excommunicated by one local Bishop for 'insubordination', and removed from her leadership position over the order she founded by another Bishop. In the modern Catholic Church many people face challenges in living a life of faith.  When that happens, look to the example of St. Mary MacKillop to see that perseverance in faithfully serving the people of God can overcome even the most powerful challenges. St. Mary MacKillop - pray for us!
    “We must teach more by example than by word.” - St. Mary MacKillop August 8 is the feast day of St. Mary MacKillop, foundress of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart (the Josephites) and the first Australian canonized Saint. Born in 1842 she founded the first Australian order of Religious Sisters in 1866 with the focus on educating the poor - particularly those in rural areas of Australia. As Mary MacKillop worked to create and build her order there were many obstacles.  She was briefly excommunicated by one local Bishop for 'insubordination', and removed from her leadership position over the order she founded by another Bishop. In the modern Catholic Church many people face challenges in living a life of faith.  When that happens, look to the example of St. Mary MacKillop to see that perseverance in faithfully serving the people of God can overcome even the most powerful challenges. St. Mary MacKillop - pray for us!