Week at a glanceTuesday July 23 ~ Saint Bridget
Wednesday July 24 ~ Saint Sharbel Makhluf
Thursday July 25 ~ Saint James
Friday July 26 ~ Saint Joachim & Saint Anne
Saturday July 27 ~
Sunday July 28 ~ 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Monday July 29 ~ Saints Martha, Mary &
Lazarus
Tuesday July 30 ~ Saint Peter Chrysologus
Wednesday July 31 ~ Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Thursday August 1 ~ Saint Alphonsus Liguori
Friday August 2 ~ Saint Eusebius of Vercelli
Saint Peter Julian Eymard
Saturday August 3 ~
Sunday August 4 ~ 18th Sunday in Ordinary
Time
The monthly prayer intention of pope francisFor the Pastoral Care of the Sick
We pray that the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick confer to those who receive it and their loved ones the power of the Lord and become ever more a visible sign of compassion and hope for all. Daily Offering Prayer
God, our Father, I offer You my day. I offer You my prayers, thoughts, words, actions, joys, and sufferings in union with the Heart of Jesus, who continues to offer Himself in the Eucharist for the salvation of the world. May the Holy Spirit, Who guided Jesus, be my guide and my strength today so that I may witness to your love. With Mary, the mother of our Lord and the Church, I pray for all Apostles of Prayer and for the prayer intentions of the Holy Father this month. Amen. |
calendar of saintsJuly 23 ~ Saint Bridget
Bridget was born in Sweden in 1303. Her father was governor of the main province of Sweden and her mother was the daughter of the governor. Throughout her life, Bridget received visions and dreams and possessed gifts of prophecy and healing. After her mother's death in 1314, Bridget lived with an aunt. She married at 13, bore eight children and lived happily until her husband's death in 1344. After his death, Bridget moved near a Cistercian monastery, where she lived a penitential life. Seeking papal approval to create a new religious community, she moved a Rome and lived a life of prayer and penitence there for nearly 20 years. She founded the Bridgettine Order in 1370. Originally it included both men and women but today it is for women only. Bridget died in 1373, while returning to Rome from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. She is patron of Sweden and co-patron of Europe, with Saint Benedict, Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. July 24 ~ Saint Sharbel Makhluf
Joseph Makhluf was born in the mountains of Lebanon in 1828. At the age of 20 he joined a monastery in the Maronite rite, where he took the name of a 2nd-century martyr, Sharbel. He lived there as a monk, but longed to live as a hermit in the desert. His superiors granted his wish in 1875 and he spent the next 23 years in a life of fasting, prayer and manual labour. He was famed for his holiness, wisdom and devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. He died in 1898 and was canonized in 1977. July 25 ~ Saint James
The apostle James, son of Zebedee and brother of John the Evangelist, was a fisherman. The gospels tell us that James and John left their father and followed Jesus as soon as he called them. The brothers must have shared an impetuous temperament since Jesus refers to them as "Sons of Thunder." Along with Peter, the brothers were particularly close to the Lord, being present at the raising of Jairus' daughter, the Transfiguration, and in the garden of Gethsemane. Although there is no account of his activities for some years after the Resurrection, Acts states that James was beheaded by order of Herod Agrippa, making him the first of the Apostles to be martyred. He is known as James 'the Greater,' to distinguish him from the other apostle of the same name. He is a patron saint of Spain and of pilgrims. In northwestern Spain he is venerated at Santiago ('Saint James') de Compostela, a famous mediaeval pilgrimage destination. July 26 ~ Saint Anne & Saint Joachim
The gospels are bereft of details regarding Mary's parents - Jesus' grandparents - not even offering their names. What we do know comes from writings excluded from the canon of Scripture, in particular the Protogospel of James. Nevertheless, the cult of Saint Anne existed in the 6th century in Rome. In the 13th and 14th centuries, popular devotion to Anne increased, as seen by the number of churches bearing her name. At the request of some English bishops petitioned by parishioners, Pope Urban VI made her feast an annual celebration. Joachim has been honoured in the East from earliest days, but in the West only since the 16th century. Their names were entered into the Roman calendar in 1584. July 29 ~ Saints Martha, Mary & Lazarus
Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus were siblings, and all three were friends of Jesus. In expanding this feast day by adding Mary and Lazarus to the day honouring Martha, the papal decree establishing this memorial reads: "In the household of Bethany, the Lord Jesus experienced the family spirit and friendship of Martha, Mary and Lazarus, and for this reason the Gospel of John states that he loved them. Martha generously offered him hospitality, Mary listened attentively to his words, and Lazarus promptly emerged from the tomb at the command of the One who humiliated death." Their three-fold witness "in welcoming the Lord Jesus into their home, in listening to him attentively, [and] in believing that he is the resurrection and the life" is celebrated this day. (source: vatican.va) July 30 ~ Saint Peter Chrysologus
Peter, born in Italy around 406, became Archbishop of Ravenna about 439. When he arrived in his diocese, he found a strong pagan influence and many lapsed faithful. Through his labours, paganism was eradicated and the faith revived. He was a concerned pastor and preacher and earned the title Chrysologus ("of golden words") because of his inspirational homilies, many of which are still extant. He died around 450 and was made a Doctor of the Church in 1729. July 31 ~ Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556) was born into a noble Basque family in northern Spain and raised as a gentleman destined for military service. In 1521, during the defence of the citadel of Pamplona, he was struck by a cannonball. During his convalescence, he read a life of Christ and live of the saints and found himself inflamed with the desire to serve Jesus. Leaving home, Ignatius spent a vigil at Mary's altar in the Benedictine monastery of Montserrat and then live in the nearby town of Manresa, praying and serving the poor. During this time, he had mystical experiences and illuminations, which later formed the basis of his Spiritual EXercises. After a brief stay in the Holy Land, Ignatius returned to Europe to acquire a formal education. He gathered together a group of students, including Francis Xavier, with whom he shared his eagerness for wholehearted service of Jesus. After ordination and a variety of apostolic experiences, Ignatius brought the group to Rome, where they offered themselves in service to the pope. Wishing to make their companionship a lasting one, they formed the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). Ignatius spent the rest of his life directing the rapidly growing order, writing its constitutions and refining the Spiritual Exercises. He was canonized in 1622 and is a universal patron of retreats and soldiers. August 1 ~ Saint Alphonsus Liguori
The life of Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787) spanned the 18th century. Born in Naples, he was ordained in 1726. He soon won a reputation in Naples as a preacher and became widely sought as a confessor. He was committed to preaching sermons that were simple to understand and structured to hold the listener's attention. In 1732 he went to Scala and founded an order of mission priests that became the Redemptorists. His Moral Theology was published in 1748. Alphonsus Liguori was known for his great kindness and concern for others. Made a bishop in 1762, he retired in 1775. He was canonized in 1839 and in 1871 was named a Doctor of the Church. He is a patron of moral theologians and confessors. August 2 ~ Saint Eusebius of Vercelli
Born on the island of Sardinia, Saint Eusebius was brought up in Rome. He served as an ordained lector in Piedmont, where the people and clergy elected him bishop. In 355 a council was called at Milan in the hope of settling the dispute between Arians and Catholics. (Arians claimed that Jesus was not divine.) Summoned to the council by the emperor, Eusebius opposed the Arians, resulting in his banishment to Palestine. Following the death of the emperor in 361, he returned to his diocese and died there in 371. A manuscript copy of the Gospels said to be written in his hand can still be seen at the cathedral of Vercelli. August 2 ~ Saint Peter Julian Eymard
Saint Peter Julian Eymard was born in 1811 near Grenoble, France. Because his father expected his only son to take over the family business, he denied Julian's wish to study, so Julian studied secretly. When Julian was 18, his father finally agreed to allow him to enter the Oblate novitiate in Marseilles, but within a few months Julian became so ill he was sent home to die. Surprisingly, Julian recovered and joined the diocesan clergy in Grenoble. Ordained in 1834, he was assigned to a mission church and was a devoted pastor. A visiting Marist priest rekindled in Julian the desire to serve in the missions. He transferred to the Marists and in 1851 he confided to his superior a call he felt to establish a group of men dedicated to adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. By 1863 Rome had approved the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament, whose charism is to promote the significance of the Eucharist for Christian living. Eymard also founded a community of religious women. Eymard believed that both prayer and works of charity are essential to the priestly life. Accordingly, the congregation worked with the very poor, preparing them to receive communion, but also caring for their material needs. Eymard is considered a pioneer in the rediscovery of the importance of the "bread of life" and in his call to involve laypersons more actively in the life of the Church. He died on August 1, 1868 was canonized in 1962 by Pope John XXIII. August 4 ~ Saint John Mary Vianney
The name of this French priest may be unfamiliar to many, but his title is known around the world: the Cure of Ars. He was born in 1786 near Lyons, France. At age 20, he enrolled in school but found studying difficult. Having learned the rudiments of theology, John was ordained in 1815. In 1818, John became the parish priest of the little village of Ars-en-Dombes, where most of the people were not interested in religion or God. He spent the rest of his life serving the parishioners of this village. A renowned confessor, he was visited by hundreds of pilgrims every day, hearing confessions for 12 to 16 hours daily. When he walked from the confessional to the rectory, pilgrims would cut pieces from his clothing and his hair. For 30 years he served all who came to him: people were healed and converted, and many were given appropriate words of wisdom or advice even before they had explained their predicament. When he died in 1859 at the age of 73, John Vianney already had the reputation of being a saint. He was canonized in 1925 and is a patron of parish priests. |
St. Stephen Catholic Parish
4302 57 Avenue
Olds, AB
403-556-3084
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4302 57 Avenue
Olds, AB
403-556-3084
[email protected]
Facebook: St. Stephen's Catholic Parish - Olds, Alberta