June 12 – A certain nobleman had a concubine

June 11, 2018

St. John of Sahagun Hermit, born 1419, at Sahagun (or San Fagondez) in the Kingdom of Leon, in Spain; died 11 June, 1479, at Salamanca; feast 12 June. In art he is represented holding a chalice and host surrounded by rays of light. John, the oldest of seven children, was born of pious and respected […]

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June 12 – Saint Guido of Acqui

June 11, 2018

Saint Guido of Acqui (also Wido) (c. 1004 – 12 June 1070) was Bishop of Acqui (now Acqui Terme) in north-west Italy from 1034 until his death. He was born around 1004 to a noble family of the area of Acqui, the Counts of Acquesana, in Melazzo where the family’s wealth was concentrated. He completed […]

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June 13 – He Lived Only 36 Years, But the Whole World Knows Him

June 11, 2018

St. Anthony of Padua Franciscan Thaumaturgist, born at Lisbon, 1195; died at Vercelli, 13 June, 1231. He received in baptism the name of Ferdinand. Later writers of the fifteenth century asserted that his father was Martin Bouillon, descendant of the renowned Godfrey de Bouillon, commander of the First Crusade, and his mother, Theresa Taveira, descendant […]

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June 14 – The entire population was slaughtered, except those who embraced Islam

June 11, 2018

Croia A titular see of Albania. Croia (pronounced Kruya, Albanian, “Spring”) stands on the site of Eriboea, a town mentioned by Ptolemy (III, xiii, 13, 41). Georgius Acropolites (lxix) mentions it as a fortress in 1251. A decree of the Venetian senate gave it in 1343 to Marco Barbarigo and his wife. In 1395 it […]

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Queen Elizabeth’s workload is 25% higher than last year

June 7, 2018

According to the Royal Central: Research conducted by royal journalist Patricia Treble of Write Royalty shows that Her Majesty has conducted more than 125 engagements so far in 2018 – a huge increase on the previous year. The Queen turned 92-years-old in April…and is still one of the most active members of The Royal Family. […]

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Popular Piety Sometimes Arouses Envy

June 7, 2018

John started from Madrid to embark at Barcelona on Wednesday, the 6th of June, 1571, at three o’clock in the afternoon. He was accompanied only by his Master of the Horse D. Luis de Córdoba, his gentleman D. Juan de Gúzman, the secretary Juan de Soto, the valet Jorge de Lima, a caterer, a cook, […]

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Letter of St. Catherine of Siena to Pope Gregory XI

June 7, 2018

In the Name of Jesus Christ crucified and of sweet Mary: Most holy and sweet father, your poor unworthy daughter Catherine in Christ sweet Jesus, commends herself to you in His precious Blood with desire to see you a manly man, free from any fear or fleshly love toward yourself, or toward any creature related […]

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June 8 – She did what St. Ignatius could not

June 7, 2018

Ven. Anne de Xainctonge Foundress of the Society of the Sisters of St. Ursula of the Blessed Virgin, born at Dijon, 21 November, 1567; died at Dôle, 8 June, 1621. She was the daughter of Jean de Xainctonge, councillor in the Dijon Parliament, and of Lady Marguerite Collard, both of noble birth and virtuous life. […]

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June 8 – Accused of theft and other misconduct

June 7, 2018

St. William of York (WILLIAM FITZHERBERT, also called WILLIAM OF THWAYT). Archbishop of York. Tradition represents him as nephew of King Stephen, whose sister Emma was believed to have married Herbert of Winchester, treasurer to Henry I. William became a priest, and about 1130 he was canon and treasurer of York. In 1142 he was […]

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June 8 – The Noble Countess Who Dedicated Her Life to Bringing Dissolute Women to Repentance

June 7, 2018

Blessed Mary of the Divine Heart (died in Porto, Portugal, June 8, 1899), born Maria Droste zu Vischering, was a noble of Germany and Roman Catholic nun best known for influencing Pope Leo XIII’s consecration of the world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Pope Leo XIII called this consecration “the greatest act of my […]

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June 9 – St. Columba

June 7, 2018

St. Columba Abbot of Iona, born at Garten, County Donegal, Ireland, 7 December, 521; died 9 June, 597. He belonged to the Clan O’Donnell, and was of royal descent. His father’s name was Fedhlimdh and that of his mother Eithne. On his father’s side he was great-great-grandson of Niall of the Nine Hostages, an Irish […]

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June 9 – A simple palace servant, God confided to her the destiny of nations

June 7, 2018

Blessed Anna Maria Gesualda Antonia Taigi (Maiden name Giannetti.) Venerable Servant of God, born at Siena, Italy, 29 May, 1769; died at Rome, 9 June, 1837. Her parents, Luigi Giannetti and Maria Masi, kept an apothecary shop at Siena, but lost all their fortune and were obliged to go to Rome in search of a […]

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June 9 – Apostle of Brazil

June 7, 2018

St. Joseph Anchieta A famous Jesuit missionary, commonly known as the Apostle of Brazil, born on the Island of Tenerife, in 1553, of noble family; died in Brazil, 1596. After studying in Coimbra, he entered the Society of Jesus, at the age of seventeen, and when a novice nearly ruined his health by his excessive […]

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June 10 – Anti-pagan Renaissance Saint

June 7, 2018

Bl. Giovanni Dominici (BANCHINI or BACCHINI was his family name). Cardinal, statesman and writer, born at Florence, 1356; died at Buda, 10 July, 1420. He entered the Dominican Order at Santa Maria Novella in 1372 after having been cured, through the intercession of St. Catherine of Siena, of an impediment of speech for which he […]

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June 10 – Most Sublime Figure of Portuguese Literature

June 7, 2018

Luis Vaz de Camões (OR CAMOENS) Born in 1524 or 1525; died 10 June, 1580. The most sublime figure in the history of Portuguese literature, Camões owes his lasting fame to his epic poem “Os Lusiadas,” (The Lusiads); he is remarkable also for the degree of art attained in his lyrics, less noteworthy for his […]

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June 11 – Blessed Ignatius Maloyan

June 7, 2018

Ignatius Maloyan (Shoukrallah), son of Melkon and Faridé, was born in 1869, in Mardin, Turkey. His parish priest, noticed in him signs of a priestly vocation, so he sent him to the convent of Bzommar-Lebanon; he was fourteen years old. After finishing his superior studies in 1896, the day dedicated to the Sacred Heart of […]

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June 11 – St. Godeberta

June 7, 2018

St. Godeberta Born about the year 640, at Boves, a few leagues from Amiens, in France; died about the beginning of the eighth century, at Noyon (Oise), the ancient Noviomagus. She was very carefully educated, her parents being of noble rank and attached to the court of King Clovis II. When the question of her […]

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June 5 – Friendship is tested in adversity

June 4, 2018

Blessed Ferdinand of Portugal Prince of Portugal, born in Portugal, 29 September, 1402; died at Fez, in Morocco, 5 June, 1443. He was one of five sons, his mother being Philippa, daughter of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and his father King John I, known in history for his victories over the Moors and […]

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June 5 – My God Is Greater Than Your Tree

June 4, 2018

St. Boniface (WINFRID, WYNFRITH). Apostle of Germany, date of birth unknown; martyred 5 June, 755 (754); emblems: the oak, axe, book, fox, scourge, fountain, raven, sword. He was a native of England, though some authorities have claimed him for Ireland or Scotland. The place of his birth is not known, though it was probably the […]

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June 5 – Genesius, Count of Clermont

June 4, 2018

Genesius, Count of Clermont Died 725. Feast, 5 June. According to the lessons of the Breviary of the Chapter of Camaleria (Acta SS. June, I, 497), he was of noble birth; his father’s name is given as Audastrius, and his mother’s is Tranquilla. Even in his youth he is said to have wrought miracles—to have […]

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June 5 – Franciscan preacher of crusade

June 4, 2018

Bl. Pacificus of Ceredano (Also known as Pacificus of Novara, or Novariensis). Born 1420 at Cerano, in the Diocese of Novara in Lombardy, supposedly of the much respected family of Ramati; died 14 June, 1482. He entered the Franciscan Order of Observants at Novara in 1445. After his ordination, he was employed in preaching, in […]

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June 5 – Classmate of the Emperor

June 4, 2018

James of Edessa A celebrated Syrian writer, b. most likely in A.D. 633; d. 5 June, 708. He was a native of the village of `En-debha, in the district of Gumyah, in the province of Antioch. During several years he studied Greek and Holy Writ at the famous convent of Kennesrhe, on the left bank […]

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June 6 – St. Claudius

June 4, 2018

The Life of St. Claudius, Abbot of Condat, has been the subject of much controversy. Dom Benott says that he lived in the seventh century; that he had been Bishop of Besançon before being abbot, that he was fifty-five years an abbot, and died in 694. He left Condat in a very flourishing state to […]

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June 6 – Patron and Protector of Bohemia

June 4, 2018

St. Norbert Born at Xanten on the left bank of the Rhine, near Wesel, c. 1080; died at Magdeburg, 6 June, 1134. His father, Heribert, Count of Gennep, was related to the imperial house of Germany, and his house of Lorraine. A stately bearing, a penetrating intellect, a tender, earnest heart, marked the future apostle. […]

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June 7 – Martyr Prince of the Wends

June 4, 2018

St. Gottschalk (GODESCALCUS). Martyr, Prince of the Wends; died at Lenzen on the Elbe, 7 June 1066. His feast is noted for 7 June in the additions of the Carthusians at Brussels to the martyrology of Usuardus. He was the son of Udo, Prince of the Abrodites who remained a Christian, though a poor one […]

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June 7 – The Crusaders reach the walls of Jerusalem

June 4, 2018

In June of 1099 [the First Crusade] arrived before the walls of Jerusalem, which was then held by the Fatimid Arabs of Egypt. With their usual religious zeal and grim determination, the Christians prepared to attack the walls. Their fighting force had been reduced to 1,200 knights and 10,000 foot soldiers, with a similar number […]

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Will Christianity Be Ditched When Prince Charles Becomes King?

May 31, 2018

According to CBN News: A new report from a leading UK think tank argues that Christianity should be reduced or purged from Prince Charles’ future Coronation Ceremony. University College London’s Constitution Unit, says the coronation ceremony should cut back on its overtly Christian rituals for the sake of progress. …half of the UK’s population has […]

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The Memorable Martyrdom of John Travers, DD

May 31, 2018

In 1537, John Travers¹ was imprisoned and burned at the stake by order of Henry VIII of England. When the tribunal of judges asked if he had wrote against the English heresy in which he maintained the defense of the Primacy of the Pope. Being arraigned for this before the king’s court and questioned by […]

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Deus Vult! God Wills it! Have Enthusiasm for Our Lady! – Part 2

May 31, 2018

Continued By Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira Battles that sometimes took eight hundred years, as did the Spanish and Portuguese Reconquista. Think about the meaning of eight hundred years of warfare! We are in the year 1973; the time span from the 1173 to 1973 was the time it took for the Reconquista. There were many […]

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June 1 – The Aristocrat Who Gave His Life for the Poor

May 31, 2018

Saint Hannibal Mary Di Francia (1851-1927)  (sometimes written as Annibale Maria Di Francia) Hannibal Mary Di Francia was born in Messina, Italy, on July 5, 1851. His father Francis was a knight, the Marquis of St. Catherine of Jonio, Papal Vice-Consul and Honorary Captain of the Navy. His mother, Anna Toscano, also belonged to an […]

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June 1 – Kidnapped for Christ

May 31, 2018

Bl. John Story (Or Storey.) Martyr; born 1504; died at Tyburn, 1 June, 1571. He was educated at Oxford, and was president of Broadgates Hall, now Pembroke College, from 1537 to 1539. He entered Parliament as member for Hindon, Wilts, in 1547, and was imprisoned for opposing the Bill of Uniformity, 24 Jan.-2 March, 1548-9. […]

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June 2 – Saved from the Byzantine Emperor’s roaster, ironically, by the Moslems

May 31, 2018

Pope Saint Eugene I Elected August 10, 654, and died at Rome, June 2, 657. Because he would not submit to Byzantine dictation in the matter of Monothelism, St. Martin I was forcibly carried off from Rome (June 18, 653) and kept in exile till his death (September, 655). What happened in Rome after his […]

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June 3 – She had to witness her children kill each other

May 31, 2018

St. Clotilda, Queen of the Franks (French: CLOTILDE; German: CHLOTHILDE). Queen of the Franks, born probably at Lyons, c. 474; died at Tours, 3 June, 545. Her feast is celebrated 3 June. Clotilda was the wife of Clovis I, and the daughter of Chilperic, King of Burgundians of Lyons, and Caretena. After the death of […]

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June 3 – Genesius (Bishop of Clermont)

May 31, 2018

Twenty-first Bishop of Clermont, d. 662. Feast, 3 June. The legend, which is of a rather late date (Acta SS., June, I, 315), says that he was descended from a senatorial family of Auvergne. Having received a liberal education he renounced his worldly prospects for the service of the Church, became archdeacon of Clermont under […]

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June 4 – St. Francis Caracciolo

May 31, 2018

St. Francis Caracciolo Co-founder with John Augustine Adorno of the Conregation of the Minor Clerks Regular; born in Villa Santa Maria in the Abrusso (Italy), 13 October, 1563; died at Agnone, 4 June, 1608. He belonged to the Pisquizio branch of the Caracciolo and received in baptism the name of Ascanio. From his infancy he […]

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May 29 – Assassinated in the castle of St. Andrews

May 28, 2018

David Beaton (Or Bethune) Cardinal, Archbishop of St. Andrews, b. 1494; d. 29 May, 1546. He was of an honourable Scottish family on both sides, being a younger son of John Beaton of Balfour Fife, by Isabel, daughter of David Monypenny of Pitmilly, also in Fife. Educated first at St. Andrews, he went in his […]

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May 29 – Intimate friend of St. Athanasius

May 28, 2018

St. Maximinus Bishop of Trier, born at Silly near Poitiers, died there, 29 May, 352 or 12 Sept., 349. He was educated and ordained priest by St. Agritius, whom he succeeded as Bishop of Trier in 332 or 335. At that time Trier was the government seat of the Western Emperor and, by force of […]

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May 29 – Saint Laura of Constantinople

May 28, 2018

Saint Laura of Constantinople (died 1453) was a Christian who lived in Constantinople during the 15th century. She was born in Greece into a noble family: her father was a Latin knight named Michael and her mother was Albanian. Her name was Theodolinde Trasci. After she became a nun in Constantinople, she changed it into […]

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May 29 – Bartolomeu Dias

May 28, 2018

Bartolomeu Dias A famous Portuguese navigator of the fifteenth century, discoverer of the Cape of Good Hope; died at sea, 29 May, 1500. Several Portuguese historians state that he was a relative or descendant of João Dias who sailed around Cape Bojador in 1434, and of Diniz Dias who is said to have discovered the […]

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May 30 – The King who feared more the curse of one poor woman than a whole army of Saracens

May 28, 2018

Saint Ferdinand III of Castile King of Leon and Castile, member of the Third Order of St. Francis, born in 1198 near Salamanca; died at Seville, 30 May, 1252. He was the son of Alfonso IX, King of Leon, and of Berengeria, the daughter of Alfonso III, King of Castile, and sister of Blanche, the […]

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May 30 – When God chose sides in war between two Christian nations, He sent her to win it

May 28, 2018

St. Joan of Arc In French Jeanne d’Arc; by her contemporaries commonly known as la Pucelle (the Maid). Born at Domremy in Champagne, probably on 6 January, 1412; died at Rouen, 30 May, 1431. The village of Domremy lay upon the confines of territory which recognized the suzerainty of the Duke of Burgundy, but in […]

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May 31 – St. Mechtildis of Edelstetten

May 28, 2018

St. Mechtildis was a Benedictine abbess and renowned miracle worker. Mechtildis was the daughter of Count Berthold of Andechs, whose wife, Sophie, founded a monastery on their estate at Diessen, Bavaria, and placed their daughter there at the age of five. In 1153, the Bishop of Augsburg placed her as Abbess of Edelstetten Abbey. Mechtildis […]

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May 31 – St. Camilla Battista da Varano

May 28, 2018

St. Baptista Varano (also spelled Varani). An ascetical writer, born at Camerino, in the March of Ancona, 9 Apr., 1458; died there, 31 May, 1527. Her father, Julius Caesar Varano or de Varanis, Duke of Camerino, belonged to an illustrious family; her mother, Joanna Malatesta, was a daughter of Sigismund, Prince of Rimini… Read more […]

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Meghan and Harry’s Wedding Broke Royal Tradition

May 24, 2018

According to Harper’s Bazaar: From the array of Hollywood stars invited to the ceremony, to the wedding’s Windsor setting, Harry and Meghan made the day their own. …Harry and Meghan broke with royal tradition in several ways: While Prince Charles accompanied Meghan part of the way, for much of her procession, the bride was solo, […]

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Letter of Saint John Bosco to the Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria, May 24, 1873

May 24, 2018

This document was found on July 14, 1873, by Father Berto while searching for some papers on St. John Bosco’s desk. Later the Saint gave it to him to be transcribed and delivered to the Emperor of Austria, Franz Joseph. As can be seen, the document is a vital message from Our Lord Jesus Christ […]

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May 25 – First Pope to transform a pagan temple of Rome into a Christian church

May 24, 2018

Pope St. Boniface IV Son of John, a physician, a Marsian from the province and town of Valeria; he succeeded Boniface III after a vacancy of over nine months; consecrated 25 August, 608; d. 8 May, 615 (Duchesne); or, 15 September, 608-25 May, 615 (Jaffé). In the time of Pope St. Gregory the Great he […]

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May 25 – He Forced the Emperor To Wait Three Days in the Snow

May 24, 2018

Pope St. Gregory VII (HILDEBRAND). One of the greatest of the Roman pontiffs and one of the most remarkable men of all times; born between the years 1020 and 1025, at Soana, or Ravacum, in Tuscany; died 25 May, 1085, at Salerno… Read more here.

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Deus Vult! God Wills it! Have Enthusiasm for Our Lady! – Part 1

May 24, 2018

By Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira Reverend Father Olavo Trindade, [Prof. Fernando Furquim] Vice-President of the National Council, Members of the National Council, ladies and gentlemen, dear SEFAC participants. It is incumbent on me to say a few closing words after a few days of intense and fruitful work in the light of the great ideals […]

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May 25 – She withstood the devil

May 24, 2018

St. Mary Magdalen de’ Pazzi Carmelite Virgin, born 2 April, 1566; died 25 May, 1607. Of outward events there were very few in the saint’s life. She came of two noble families, her father being Camillo Geri de’ Pazzi and her mother a Buondelmonti. She was baptized, and named Caterina, in the great baptistery. Her […]

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May 26 – Saint Bruno of Würzburg

May 24, 2018

Saint Bruno of Würzburg (c. 1005 – 26 May 1045) Also known as Bruno of Carinthia, he was imperial chancellor of Italy from 1027 to 1034 for Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor, to whom he was related, and from 1034 until his death prince-bishop of Würzburg. Bruno was the son of Conrad I, Duke of […]

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May 26 – He converted a young nobleman by showing him a vision of hell, and called the City of Rome his “Desert”

May 24, 2018

THE APOSTLE OF ROME St. Philip Romolo Neri Born at Florence, Italy, 22 July, 1515; died 27 May, 1595. Philip’s family originally came from Castelfranco but had lived for many generations in Florence, where not a few of its members had practised the learned professions, and therefore took rank with the Tuscan nobility. Among these […]

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May 27 – St. Augustine of Canterbury

May 24, 2018

St. Augustine of Canterbury First Archbishop of Canterbury, Apostle of the English; date of birth unknown; died 26 May, 604. Symbols: cope, pallium, and mitre as Bishop of Canterbury, and pastoral staff and gospels as missionary… Read more here.

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May 28 – Whether She Was Upstairs Or Downstairs, She Was Ever Steady

May 24, 2018

Blessed Margaret Pole Countess of Salisbury, martyr; born at Castle Farley, near Bath, 14 August, 1473; martyred at East Smithfield Green, 28 May, 1541. She was the daughter of George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence, and Isabel, elder daughter of the Earl of Warwick (the king-maker), and the sister of Edmund of Warwick who, under Henry […]

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May 28 – After Defeating the Saracens, He Joined the Benedictines

May 24, 2018

St. William of Gellone Born 755; died 28 May, c. 812; was the second count of Toulouse, having attained that dignity in 790. He is by some writers also given the title of Duke of Aquitaine. This saint is the hero of the ninth-century “Roman de Guillame au court nez”, but the story of his […]

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May 28 – Lily of Quito

May 24, 2018

St. Mariana de Jesús de Paredes Born at Quito, Ecuador, 31 Oct. 1618; died at Quito, 26 May, 1645. On both sides of her family she was sprung from an illustrious line of ancestors, her father being Don Girolamo Flores Zenel de Paredes, a nobleman of Toledo and her mother Doña Mariana Cranobles de Xaramilo, […]

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May 28 – St. Germain of Paris

May 24, 2018

St. Germain Bishop of Paris; born near Autun, Saône-et-Loire, c. 496; died at Paris, 28 May, 576. He studied at Avalon and also at Luzy under the guidance of his cousin Scapilion, a priest. At the age of thirty-four he was ordained by St. Agrippinus of Autun and became Abbot of Saint-Symphorien near that town. […]

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May 22 – St. Rita of Cascia

May 21, 2018

St. Rita of Cascia Born at Rocca Porena in the Diocese of Spoleto, 1386; died at the Augustinian convent of Cascia, 1456. Feast, 22 May. Represented as holding roses, or roses and figs, and sometimes with a wound in her forehead. According to the “Life” (Acta SS., May, V, 224) written at the time of […]

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May 22 – Hanged for Printing a Book

May 21, 2018

Blessed James Duckett Martyr, born at Gilfortrigs in the parish of Skelsmergh in Westmoreland, England, date uncertain, of an ancient family of that county; died 9 April, 1601. He was a bookseller and publisher in London. His godfather was the well-known martyr James Leybourbe of Skelsmergh. He seems, however, to have been brought up a […]

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May 22 – Queen’s Confessor

May 21, 2018

Blessed John Forest Born in 1471, presumably at Oxford, where his surname was then not unknown; suffered 22 May, 1538. At the age of twenty he received the habit of St. Francis at Greenwich, in the church of the Friars Minor of the Regular Observance, called for brevity’s sake “Observants”. Nine years later we find […]

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May 23 – Chevalier of the Order of Leopold

May 21, 2018

Fr. Pierre-Jean De Smet Missionary among the North American Indians, born at Termonde (Dendermonde), Belgium, 30 Jan., 1801; died at St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.A., 23 May, 1873. He emigrated to the United States in 1821 through a desire for missionary labours, and entered the Jesuit novitiate at Whitemarsh, Maryland. In 1823, however, at the suggestion […]

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