St Padre Pio was born as Francesco Forgione to Grazio Mario Forgione and Maria Giuseppa Di Nunzio on May 25, 1887, in Pietrelcina a town in the province of Benevento, in Southern Italy. His parents were peasant farmers. Francesco had one older brother and 3 younger sisters. When Francesco was young, he was affected by many illnesses and saw many heavenly visions. In 1897, after completing 3 years of public school, Francesco became very interested in joining the seminary after listening to a Capuchin seeking donations. When Francesco told his parents, they decided to take him to Morcone, a town 13 miles from Pietrelcina to see if he could enter. Once they reached, The friars said that they were interested in him, but he needed more education. Francesco’s father went to the U.S trying to find private tutoring for him. On September 27, 1899, he received the sacrament of Confirmation and later finished his tutoring. On January 6, 1903, at age 15, he entered the Capuchin friar’s novitiate. When he was ordained, he took the name Pio after Pope Pius I. He was a very prayerful man and was devoted to rosary meditations. In 1911, Pio woke up to feel pain in his palms and feet. When he looked at it it looked like the wounds of the crucifixion of Jesus or the Stigmata. Many doctors tried examining it, but couldn’t find an answer. It was also reported that he was levitating during Holy Mass. Padre Pio died in 1986 at age 81 and was canonized on June 16 2002 by Pope John Paul II. Many Miracles have been seen in his name.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER O St. Pio, help us to pray well like you did while you were sick. Help us not to give up on faith in God even during these tough times. We ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen.
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Saint Maurice was an officer of the Theban Legion of Emperor Maximian Herculius' army, which was composed of Christians from Upper Egypt. When Maurice was ordered by the Emperor to sacrifice to the gods to ensure victory, he and his comrades refused. When they did so, Emperor Maximian had over 6 thousand men put to death. Saint Maurice and his friends no doubt died as martyrs. He is the patron saint of alpine troops.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Saint Maurice, most blessed and honorable patron saint, you who fought so valiantly on the battlefield of faith, steadfastly opposed the tyranny of earthly rulers, boldly confessed faith in the one true God, and preferred to die by the sword rather than to betray Jesus Christ. Obtain also for us the grace to endure patiently all the trials and hardships of this life, and to carry our cross in the spirit of prayer and self-denial. Saint Matthew was a tax collector before he followed Jesus and became one of the 12 disciples. From Matthew, we know of the many doings of Christ and the message Christ spread of salvation for all people who come to God through Him. The Gospel mentions the story about the dinner Matthew organized with Jesus. We are all familiar with how the tax collectors asked Jesus why He was dining with sinners. This is when Jesus said, “Those who well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”
His book is the first of the four Gospels in the New Testament. It is thought he departed for other lands to escape persecution sometime after 42 AD. According to various legends, he fled to Parthia and Persia, or Ethiopia. Nothing is recorded of Matthew's passing. It’s not known how he died, if his death was natural, or if he was martyred. Saint Mathew is the patron saint of bankers. INTERCESSORY PRAYER O Glorious St. Matthew, in your Gospel you portray Jesus as the longed-for Messiah who fulfilled the Prophets of the Old Covenant and as the Lawgiver who founded a Church of the New Covenant. Obtain for us the grace to see Jesus living in His Church and to follow His teaching in our lives on Earth so that we may live forever with Him in heaven, amen. Saint Eustace, or Eustathius, was a martyr with Theophistes, Agapitus, and Theophrastus. Eustace was a Roman military officer called Placida. He converted to Christianity after having a vision in Italy of a stag with a crucifix between its antlers. Tradition states that he was separated from his family and recalled to the army, becoming famous for a battle. When he and his family reunited, he refused to take part in the pagan ceremony and so they were roasted to death. Saint Eustace is the patron saint of hunters and firefighters, and also of anyone facing adversity.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER O God, Who lead Your holy martyr Eustace safely through many trials and dangers to the glorious crown of martyrdom, enlighten and strengthen us through his intercession, that we persevere in Your Love amid the trials of this life, and by resignation to Your Holy Will come forth from the darkness of this earth into the light of Your eternal glory. Amen. Little is known about the life of Januarius. He is believed to have been martyred in the Emperor Diocletian’s persecution of 305. Legend has it that Januarius and his companions were thrown to the bears in the amphitheater of Pozzuoli, but the animals failed to attack them. They were then beheaded, and Januarius’ blood ultimately brought to Naples. Saint Januarius is the patron saint of Blood banks and Naples.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Oh, we pray you to pray for us, sure that we will be answered; and saved from all the evils that oppress us from all directions. Save us from unbelief, and you will see that the faith, by which you have generously sacrificed your life, always, always produces fertile fruits of saints made among us. Amen. Joseph of Cupertino is most famous for levitating at prayer. As a child, Joseph showed a fondness for prayer. After a short career, he joined the Conventual Franciscans. Following a brief assignment caring for a mule, Joseph began his studies for priesthood. Though studies were difficult for him, he gained a great deal of knowledge from prayer. He was ordained in 1628. Joseph’s tendency to levitate during prayer drew an audience; some people came to see this much as they might have gone to a circus sideshow. Joseph’s gift led him to be humble and patient, even though at times he was greatly tempted and felt forsaken by God. He fasted and wore iron chains for much of his life. Saint Joseph passed and was canonized in 1767. He was the patron saint of astronauts and pilots.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER O Great St. Joseph of Cupertino who while on earth did obtain from God the grace to be asked at your examination only the questions you knew, obtain for me a like favour in the examinations for which I am now preparing. In return I promise to make you known and cause you to be invoked. Through Christ our Lord, amen. Saint Robert Bellarmine was the first Jesuit to become a professor at Louvain. His most famous work is his three-volume Disputations on the Controversies of the Christian Faith. The most noteworthy sections were those on the temporal power of the pope and the role of laity. Saint Robert was made a cardinal by Pope Clement VIII on the grounds that “he had not equal for learning”. Robert moved into his new apartment and he limited his household expenses to what was barely essential, eating only what was available to the poor. He took the hangings of his rooms and gave them to the poor saying, “the walls won’t get cold”. Robert Bellarmine died on September 17, 1621. In 1930, Pope Pius XI canonized him, and the next year declared him a doctor of the Church.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER God our Father, you gave Robert Bellarmine wisdom and goodness to defend the faith of your Church. By his prayers may we always rejoice in the profession of our faith, amen. St. Cornelius the bishop of Rome, from March 251 until his martyrdom in June 253 AD. He served as pope during and following a painful period of persecution against the church. The church was also facing a division over how repentant church members, who had practiced pagan sacrifices to protect themselves, of the time had become readmitted back into the Church. This created a division among the church: some argued that they should not be admitted back into the church because they failed to maintain their confession of faith under the persecution. These people were known as the Novationists. However, Cyprian of Carthage, supported by Cornelius argued that these repentants could be admitted back into the church under the condition that they perform varyings acts of penance. However, despite the division, Cornelius was able to call a synod that confirmed his election as the Pope and excommunicated Novatian. Finally, in 251 under Roman emperor Trebonianus Gallus, the persecutions against Christians started back, resulting in Cornelius being sent into exile. Historians believe he may have died in exile from the rigors of banishments, while some accounts say he was beheaded. St. Cornelius is the patron of epilepsy, fever, twitching, earache sufferers and also the German town of Kornelimünster, where his head is enshrined.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER God our Father, in Saints Cornelius and Cyprian you have given your people an inspiring example of dedication to the pastoral ministry and constant witness to Christ in their suffering. May their prayers and faith give us courage to work for the unity of your Church, amen. Not much is known about Saint Nicomedes’ earlier life. He was born in Ancient Rome and was a Roman priest and a martyr. He was beaten to death with whips after refusing to sacrifice to the gods. After his death in Italy, he was buried in the catacomb on the Via Nomentana.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Stay close to Your people, O Lord, so that the brilliant merits of Your blessed martyr Nicomedes may help us, and his prayers win for us Your unfailing mercy. Through our Lord, amen. Saint Gabriel Taurin Dufresse, of France, was ordained a priest of the Society for Foreign Missions of Paris at the age of 24. The renewed persecution of Chinese Christians in 1784 led to Dufresse’s arrest. He soon escaped from prison and was taken in by a Chinese Catholic family. But, after an auxiliary bishop instructed all the priests to surrender themselves to keep their families safe, Saint Gabriel did so. Dufresse was imprisoned and then exiled to Macau. A few years later, he managed to return to the Szechwan Province. In the years that followed, his missionary labors were very successful. But once the anti-Christian persecution continued again in 1805, Dufresse had to change his place of residence almost daily to keep himself safe. In May of 1815, he was recaptured and suffered beheading about 4 months afterwards.
INTERCESSORY PRAYER Saint Gabriel Taurin Dufresse, you suffered imprisonment and other difficulties countless times. Even through all of it, you remained true to your faith and died for what you believed. Pray for us that we may also be strong in the face of danger, amen. |