The Christmas of a Chouan

December 25, 2014

From 1793 to 1800, the region of Fougères, in Northeast France, was the scene of the epic struggle of the Chouans (pronounced “Shwan”). The Chouans were peasants who rose up against the French Revolution in defense of the Monarchy and the Church. One winter’s night in 1795, a column of soldiers of the revolutionary Republic […]

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Christmas in Italy, Germany, and Brazil

December 25, 2014

Three different ways of commemorating Christmas; three varieties of contemplation Saint of the Day,  December 21, 1973   If we imagine an elaborate nativity scene in certain regions of Italy, we can see all the figures taking very emphatic attitudes: the Child Jesus lying in the manger, reaching out to Our Lady; She bent over […]

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December 26 – He had the face of an angel

December 25, 2014

St. Stephen One of the first deacons and the first Christian martyr; feast on 26 December. In the Acts of the Apostles the name of St. Stephen occurs for the first time on the occasion of the appointment of the first deacons (Acts, vi, 5). Dissatisfaction concerning the distribution of alms from the community’s fund […]

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December 27 – Divorced Saint

December 25, 2014

St. Fabiola of Rome A Roman matron of rank, died 27 December, 399 or 400. She was one of the company of noble Roman women who, under the influence of St. Jerome, gave up all earthly pleasures and devoted themselves to the practice of Christian asceticism and to charitable work. At the time of St. […]

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December 27 – Son of Thunder

December 25, 2014

St. John the Apostle and Evangelist Styled in the gospel, The beloved disciple of Christ, and called by the Greeks The Divine, he was a Galilean, the son of Zebedee and Salome, and younger brother to St. James the Great, with whom he was brought up to the trade of fishing. From his acquaintance with […]

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December 28 – Ordered to swear allegiance to Napoleon, he replied “I cannot. I ought not. I will not!”

December 25, 2014

Bl. Gaspare del Bufalo Founder of the Missionaries of the most Precious Blood (C.P.P.S.); born at Rome on the feast of the Epiphany, 1786; died 28 December, 1837. His parents were Antonio del Bufalo, chief cook of the princely family of Altieri, and his wife Annunziata Quartieroni. Because of his delicate health, his pious mother […]

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December 29 – Blessed William Howard

December 25, 2014

Blessed William Howard 1st Viscount Stafford, martyr; born 30 November, 1614; beheaded Tower-Hill, 29 December, 1680. He was grandson of the Saint Philip Howard, Earl of Arundel, mentioned above, fifth son of Earl Thomas (the first great art collector of England), and uncle of Thomas Philip, Cardinal Howard. Brought up as a Catholic, he was […]

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December 29 – His Staff Did More Damage Than His Sword

December 25, 2014

St. Thomas à Becket Martyr, Archbishop of Canterbury, also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London, born at London, 21 December, c. 1118; died at Canterbury, 29 December, 1170. St. Thomas was born of parents who, coming from Normandy, had settled in England some years previously… Read more here.

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December 29 – David, the ancestor of Jesus

December 25, 2014

King David In the Bible the name David is borne only by the second king of Israel, the great-grandson of Boaz and Ruth (Ruth, iv, 18 sqq.). He was the youngest of the eight sons of Isai, or Jesse (I Kings, xvi, 8; cf. I Par., ii, 13), a small proprietor, of the tribe of […]

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Video – Christmas in French salons

December 22, 2014

Since no door in the town of Bethlehem was opened to the Holy Family, the Infant Jesus was born in a poor stable manger heated only with an ox and ass. In reparation for such lack of hospitality, every year at Christmas, French noble houses open their doors to the Christ Child, his holy Mother, […]

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At Christmas, Queen imitates Good King Wenceslaus

December 22, 2014

According to The Scotsman: People can become isolated and struggle financially during the long winter months, according to local councillors who have teamed up with gamekeepers, estate owners, charities and volunteers to supply food and fuel to those hit the hardest. Tillypronie estate by Aboyne will supply pheasants, Balmoral is donating logs and vegetables and […]

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The British Monarchy costs as much as…

December 22, 2014

According to Royal Central: In this past year, the British Monarchy cost taxpayers £35.7 million. That represents a cost of 56 pence per person in the United Kingdom. The President of France…cost…£91 million. The total cost works out at £1.43 per person in France. A little further south and we find the Italian Republic. Its […]

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The General At His Daughter’s Death-Bed

December 22, 2014

In the United States of America there lived, sometime ago, a General in the army, who was known in all that country to be an Atheist. His wife was a good Catholic, and tried to bring up their daughter, who was their only child, in the fear of God; and although her father endeavored to […]

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Charlemagne, Cornerstone of the Middle Ages

December 22, 2014

Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira,  Saint of the Day, October 30, 1972   Here is an excerpt on Charlemagne taken from the renowned historian, J.B. Weiss’ História Universal: “In 772, at the age of 30, Charles took over the government of the Kingdom of the Franks. He was rightly called Charles the Great, a name he […]

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December 23 – The Knights of Aviz and Their Cistercian Founder

December 22, 2014

Saint John of Cirita Memorial: 23 December Benedictine monk, also known as John Ziritu. Hermit in Galacia. Monk at Toronca, Portugal, which he helped turn into a Cistercian house. Wrote the Rule of the Knights of Aviz (Portuguese: Ordem Militar de Avis).  Died, c. 1164. The Military Order of St. Benedict of Aviz A military […]

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December 23 – He Always Held His Soul in His Hands

December 22, 2014

Saint Antônio de Sant’Anna Galvão Born 1739, in the village of Santo Antonio da Vila de Guaratinguetá, Brazil; died 23 December, 1822, at the Convent of Light, São Paulo, Brazil. His father, also named Anthony, belonged to an illustrious Portuguese family and was well educated, as evidenced by his writings. He excelled in business, the […]

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December 23 – Duke of Guise

December 22, 2014

HENRI I DE LORRAINE Prince de Joinville, and in 1563 third Duke of Guise, born 31 Dec. 1550, the son of François de Guise and Anne d’Este; died at Blois, 23 Dec., 1588. The rumours which attributed to Coligny a share in the murder of François de Guise hailed in the young Henri de Guise, […]

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December 24 – Sts. Trasilla and Emiliana

December 22, 2014

Aunts of St. Gregory the Great, virgins in the sixth century, given in the Roman Martyrology, the former on 24 December, the latter on 5 January. St. Gregory (Hom. XXXVIII, 15, on the Gospel of St. Matthew, and Lib. Dial., IV, 16) relates that his father, the Senator Gordian, had three sisters who vowed themselves […]

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December 25 – On Christmas Day, He Died

December 22, 2014

St. Peter Nolasco Born at Mas-des-Saintes-Puelles, near Castelnaudary, France, in 1189 (or 1182); died at Barcelona, on Christmas Day, 1256 (or 1259). He was of a noble family and from his youth was noted for his piety, almsgiving, and charity. Having given all his possessions to the poor, he took a vow of virginity and, […]

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Visit Windsor Castle while it is decorated for Christmas

December 18, 2014

According to the Royal Collection Trust: Windsor Castle’s magnificent State Apartments have been transformed for the festive season with an array of decorations, from seasonal garlands lining the Grand Staircase to bedecked Christmas trees, including a Nordman Fir from the Windsor Great Park standing at six metres tall in St George’s Hall. In the State […]

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Isabella the Catholic brings change to Chess

December 18, 2014

The game of chess originated in India some 1,500 years ago, being called back then chaturanga. Like all other traditions, chess was passed on from one generation to another, being slowly improved over time, and one of these improvements was the Queen piece. Today, the Queen is the most powerful piece on the board, but […]

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Chess Pie Recipe

December 18, 2014

Chess Pie   INGREDIENTS 1/2 cup butter 2 cups white sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 4 eggs 1 tablespoon cornmeal 1/4 cup evaporated milk 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar 1 (9 inch) unbaked pie shell     DIRECTIONS Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a large bowl, mix the butter, sugar and vanilla […]

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Embracing the Fight to Restore Christendom

December 18, 2014

One might ask if the impending collapse can be avoided. We would answer that the course of history is not predetermined, although its lessons are often repeated. If we are to avoid the crisis, we must turn our efforts now to our grand return home. As Catholic countrymen concerned with the future of our nation, […]

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December 19 – How Tumultuous Times Reveal Noble Souls

December 18, 2014

Pope Blessed Urban V Guillaume de Grimoard, born at Grisac in Languedoc, 1310; died at Avignon, 19 December, 1370. Born of a knightly family, he was educated at Montpellier and Toulouse, and became a Benedictine monk at the little priory of Chirac near his home. A Bull of 1363 informs us that he was professed […]

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December 19 – Pope St. Anastasius I

December 18, 2014

Pope St. Anastasius I A pontiff who is remembered chiefly for his condemnation of Origenism. A Roman by birth, he became pope in 399, and died within a little less than four years. Among his friends were Augustine, and Jerome, and Paulinus, Jerome speaks of him as a man or great holiness who was rich […]

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December 21 – Doctor of the Church & Second Apostle of Germany

December 18, 2014

St. Peter Canisius Born at Nimwegen in the Netherlands, 8 May, 1521; died in Fribourg, 21 November, 1597. His father was the wealthy burgomaster, Jacob Canisius; his mother, Ægidia van Houweningen, died shortly after Peter’s birth. In 1536 Peter was sent to Cologne, where he studied arts, civil law, and theology at the university; he […]

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December 22 – “I swear by St. Eimhin’s bell…”

December 18, 2014

Abbot and Bishop of Ros-mic-Truin (Ireland), probably in the sixth century. He came of the royal race of Munster, and was brother of two other saints, Culain and Dairmid. Of the early part of his religious life little is known. When he became abbot of the monastery of Ros-mic-Truin, in succession to its founder, St. […]

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Royals commemorate heroic “Nuts!”

December 15, 2014

According to Hello Magazine: King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgians returned to their official royal engagements on Saturday…when they stepped out in Bastogne for the commemorations of the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge. Throwing nuts is a tradition on the anniversary and is a tribute to the general who simply […]

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Marie Antoinette helps the poor

December 15, 2014

Distressed at the plight of the poor resulting from the Winter’s severity, Queen Marie Antoinette saved three hundred thousand francs from her personal budget and turned this sum over to her ladies-in-waiting, the parish priests of Paris, and charitable organizations for distribution among the needy. She also encouraged her daughter to do the same, and […]

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United in Common Struggle, for a Common Cause

December 15, 2014

History records how crisis and adversity have the effect of uniting men in common cause. In fact, no greater bond is forged than when people suffer together, as can be seen in the wartime ties among soldiers, or in the struggle for education that unites alumni for life. Common struggles often initiate changes that would […]

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December 16 – St. Adelaide: Most Important Woman of Her Century

December 15, 2014

St. Adelaide (ADELHEID). Born 931; died 16 December, 999, one of the conspicuous characters in the struggle of Otho the Great to obtain the imperial crown from the Roman Pontiffs. She was the daughter of Rudolph II, King of Burgundy, who was at war with Hugh of Provence for the crown of Italy. The rivals […]

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December 16 – Saint Judicael ap Hoel

December 15, 2014

Saint Judicael ap Hoel (c. 590 – 16 or 17 December 658) was the King of Domnonée and a Breton high king in the mid-seventh century. According to Gregory of Tours, the Bretons were divided into various regna (subkingdoms) during the sixth century, of which Domnonée, Cornouaille, and Broweroch are the best known; they had […]

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December 16 – Can Whistleblowers Be Saints? This One Was…

December 15, 2014

St. Ado, Archbishop of Vienne, Confessor Born about 800, in the diocese of Sens; died 16 December, 875. He was brought up at the Benedictine Abbey of Ferrières, and had as one of his masters the Abbot Lupus Servatus, one of the most celebrated humanists of those times. By his brilliant talents and assiduous application […]

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December 17 – St. Olympias

December 15, 2014

Born 360-5; died 25 July, 408, probably at Nicomedia. This pious, charitable, and wealthy disciple of St. John Chrysostom came from an illustrious family in Constantinople. Her father (called by the sources Secundus or Selencus) was a “Count” of the empire; one of her ancestors, Ablabius, filled in 331 the consular office, and was also […]

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December 17 – St. Begga, Widow and Abbess

December 15, 2014

This saint was daughter of Pepin of Landen, eldest sister to St. Gertrude of Nivelle, and married Ansegise, son to St. Arnoul, who was some time mayor of the palace, and afterwards bishop of Metz. Her husband being killed in hunting, she dedicated herself to a penitential state of retirement, and, after performing a pilgrimage […]

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December 17 – St. Sturmius and the diocese of Fulda

December 15, 2014

To systematize the work of evangelizing Germany, St. Boniface organized a hierarchy on the usual ecclesiastical basis; in Bavaria the Dioceses of Salzburg, Freising, Ratisbon, and Passau; in Franconia and Thuringia, Würzburg, Eichstätt, Buraburg near Fritzlar, and Erfurt. To facilitate missionary work farther north, especially among the Saxons, he sought a suitable spot for the […]

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Do not mollycoddle Royals

December 11, 2014

According to the IJReview: The way the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge…paid their respects at a 9/11 commemorative site is an example of absolute class. The couple is known for their patriotism and their deep respect for those in military and service roles. Prince William wanted to serve in Afghanistan…. William said in an interview: […]

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Duke and Duchess of Cambridge admire “the courage to rebuild” after 9/11

December 11, 2014

According to The Telegraph: …the Duchess of Cambridge admitted she was unprepared for just how affecting it would be as she spoke of her “awe” at what she was seeing. …the Duchess placed a bouquet of white roses – the State flower of New York – on part of the National 9/11 Memorial. A handwritten […]

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Canadian councillor will only swear allegiance to a queen if her ancestors have not been horrible

December 11, 2014

According to the Times-Colonist: Victoria’s new mayor, Lisa Helps, declined to swear allegiance to the Queen at her inauguration Thursday, stirring controversy on her first day in office. In addition to Helps, three councillors chose not to say the oath. Helps said underlying her decision was respect for First Nations. “I have nothing against the […]

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Louis XIV defends the court preacher

December 11, 2014

Though Louis XIV lived for years in marital infidelity, having relations with mistresses, he always paid close attention to the preachers whose duty it was to reprimand him and the other members of the Court for their errors. When some nobles complained to Louis XIV about a sermon of Father Jules Mascaron that had displeased […]

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We Must Respond to the Father’s Love

December 11, 2014

There is a final aspect in the Prodigal Son’s grand return home that is often disregarded, but herein lies the key point. We are told that the son longed for his father, but it is clear that the father longed much more for his son. Indeed, the father watched from afar for news of his […]

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December 12 – Guadalupe: She Who Smashes the Serpent

December 11, 2014

by Cesar Franco Pope Pius XII gave Our Lady of Guadalupe the title of “Empress of the Americas” in 1945. Since December 12 is the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, this is a propitious moment to recall how She reigns over our nation from Heaven, protecting and guiding us with Motherly solicitude and tenderness. […]

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December 13 – Elected Pope to Fight the Emperor

December 11, 2014

Pope Callistus II Date of birth unknown; died 13 December, 1124. His reign, beginning 1 February, 1119, is signalized by the termination of the Investiture controversy which, begun in the time of Gregory VII, had raged with almost unabated bitterness during the last quarter of the eleventh century and the opening years of the twelfth. […]

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December 13 – “The eyes which I must please are a hundred miles from here”

December 11, 2014

St. Jane Frances de Chantal Born at Dijon, France, 28 January, 1572; died at the Visitation Convent Moulins, 13 December, 1641. Her father was president of the Parliament of Burgundy, and leader of the royalist party during the League that brought about the triumph of the cause of Henry IV. In 1592 she married Baron […]

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December 13 – St. Odilia

December 11, 2014

St. Odilia Patroness of Alsace, born at the end of the seventh century; died about 720. According to a trustworthy statement, apparently taken from an earlier life, she was the daughter of the Frankish lord Adalrich (Aticus, Etik) and his wife Bereswinda, who had large estates in Alsace. She founded the convent of Hohenburg (Odilienberg) […]

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December 13 – The girl named Lucy, opposite of Lucifer

December 11, 2014

St. Lucy A virgin and martyr of Syracuse in Sicily, whose feast is celebrated by Latins and Greeks alike on 13 Dec. According to the traditional story, she was born of rich and noble parents about the year 283. Her father was of Roman origin, but his early death left her dependent upon her mother, […]

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December 14 – Son of a disinherited noble

December 11, 2014

St. John of the Cross Founder (with St. Teresa) of the Discalced Carmelites, doctor of mystic theology, born at Hontoveros, Old Castile, 24 June, 1542; died at Ubeda, Andalusia, 14 Dec., 1591. John de Yepes, youngest child of Gonzalo de Yepes and Catherine Alvarez, poor silk weavers of Toledo, knew from his earliest years the […]

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Andrée de Jongh: Made A Countess For Her War-Time Heroism

December 8, 2014

Again and again she risked her life to save British and American servicemen escape from Nazi-occupied Belgium and France. The daughter of a Belgian schoolmaster, Andrée de Jongh greatly admired Edith Cavell—a Red Cross nurse who was killed by the Germans during World War I for helping British soldiers escape—and was determined to emulate her […]

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We Must Clash with a Misguided Culture

December 8, 2014

“And rising up, he came to his father.” With these simple words, Saint Luke (15:20) outlines the Prodigal Son’s plan of action, which must also be ours. In our desire to leave the crisis, it is not enough to simply isolate ourselves, move away, or search for another frenetic party. We must rise up against […]

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December 9 – Banker and Saint

December 8, 2014

St. Peter Fourier Known as LE BON PÈRE DE MATTAINCOURT (Good Father of Mattaincourt), born at Mirecourt, Lorraine, 30 Nov., 1565 died at Gray, Haute-Saône, 9 Dec., 1640. At fifteen he was sent to the University of Pont-à-Mousson. His piety and learning led many noble families to ask him to educate their sons. He became […]

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December 10 – To protest the emperor, he paid special honor images and relics

December 8, 2014

Pope St. Gregory III (Reigned 731-741.) Pope St. Gregory III was the son of a Syrian named John. The date of his birth is not known. His reputation for learning and virtue was so great that the Romans elected him pope by acclamation, when he was accompanying the funeral procession of his predecessor, 11 February, […]

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December 10 – Who Was the First Pope to Live in a Palace?

December 8, 2014

Pope St. Miltiades The year of his birth is not known; he was elected pope in either 310 or 311; died 10 or 11 January, 314. After the banishment of Pope Eusebius, the Roman See was vacant for some time, probably because of the complications which has arisen on account of the apostates (lapsi), and […]

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December 11 – Pope Falsely Accused of Adultery

December 8, 2014

Pope St. Damasus I Born about 304; died 11 December, 384. His father, Antonius, was probably a Spaniard; the name of his mother, Laurentia, was not known until quite recently. Damasus seems to have been born at Rome; it is certain that he grew up there in the service of the church of the martyr […]

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December 11 – Her Name Was “Mother Marvelous”

December 8, 2014

St. María de las Maravillas de Jesús Pidal y Chico de Guzmán was born in Madrid, Spain, on 4 November 1891. She was the daughter of Luis Pidal y Mon, Marquis of Pidal, and Cristina Chico de Guzmán y Munoz. At the time her father was the Spanish ambassador to the Holy See and she grew […]

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St. Vincent of Paul and The Forsaken Children

December 4, 2014

At the time when St. Vincent lived there existed in France a cruel custom, which seems to us almost incredible. Every year in the streets of Paris alone from three to four hundred newly-born infants were left to perish. Their unnatural mothers, who might already have had a number of little ones to support, would […]

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Longing for the Father’s House

December 4, 2014

We must remember our father’s house—that rich Christian order from whence we came. That is why we have made such a great effort to describe that organic, virtuous, spontaneous, and providential order in all its calm and simple grandeur. We invoke the memory of those cohorts of legendary saints and leaders inside society from top […]

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December 5 – Noble matron faithful unto death

December 4, 2014

St. Crispina A martyr of Africa who suffered during the Diocletian persecution; born at Thagara in the Province of Africa; died by beheading at Thebeste in Numidia, 5 December, 304. Crispina belonged to a distinguished family and was a wealthy matron with children. At the time of the persecution she was brought before the proconsul […]

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December 6 – Good St. Nicholas

December 4, 2014

Life of Saint Nicholas from Legenda Aurea by Jacobus de Voragine Here beginneth the Life of Saint Nicholas the Bishop. Nicholas is said of Nichos, which is to say victory, and of laos, people, so Nicholas is as much as to say as victory of people, that is, victory of sins, which befoul people. Or […]

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December 6 – Martyr of the Muslims

December 4, 2014

St. Peter Paschal, Bishop and Martyr This saint was born in Valencia, Spain, in 1227, and descended of the ancient family of the Paschals, which had edified the Church by the triumphs of five glorious martyrs, which it produced under the Moors. Peter’s parents were virtuous and exceedingly charitable; and St. Peter Nolasco often lodged […]

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December 7 – The People Acclaimed Him as Bishop Even Though He Was Unbaptized

December 4, 2014

St. Ambrose Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397; born probably 340, at Trier, Arles, or Lyons; died 4 April, 397. He was one of the most illustrious Fathers and Doctors of the Church, and fitly chosen, together with St. Augustine, St. John Chrysostom, and St. Athanasius, to uphold the venerable Chair of the Prince […]

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