Overview for August 14, 2013 to August 28, 2013

Ordinary Time Aug. 14 Memorial of St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe, priest and martyr Maximilian Mary Kolbe was born in Poland. He consecrated himself to the Lord in the Franciscan Order. Filled with love for the Virgin, he founded the Militia of the Immaculate Mary and, with his preaching and writing, undertook ... Memorial Aug. 15 Solemnity of the Assumption On November 1, 1950, Pius XII defined the dogma of the Assumption. Thus he solemnly proclaimed that the belief whereby the Blessed Virgin Mary, at the close of her earthly life, was taken up, body and soul, into the glory of ... Solemnity Aug. 16 Optional Memorial of St. Stephen of Hungary Vaik, son of Geza, Duke of Hungary, was baptized about 985 by St. Adalbert of Prague who gave him the name of Stephen. He was chosen by God to bring his people to the Christian faith. With the assistance of monks from Burgundy ... Opt. Mem. Aug. 17 Saturday of the Nineteenth Week of Ordinary Time According to the 1962 Missal of Bl. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Hyacinth, a canon of Krakow, who joined the Dominican Order in Rome during the lifetime of the founder, in about ... Weekday Aug. 18 Twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Time Jesus said to his disciples: “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! Do you think ... Sunday Aug. 19 Optional Memorial of St. John Eudes, priest St. John Eudes (1601-1680) was born in Ri and died in Caen, France. Despite the prevailing rigors of Jansenism, he received First Communion when only a child. He studied in Paris and was ordained a priest in 1625. He soon became ... Opt. Mem. Aug. 20 Memorial of St. Bernard, abbot and doctor St. Bernard (1090-1153) was born near Dijon and died in Clairvaux, France. He was of a noble family and received a careful education in his youth. With his father, brother and thirty noblemen he entered the Benedictine monastery ... Memorial Aug. 21 Memorial of St. Pius X, pope Joseph Sarto was born in humble circumstances at Riese, a small village in Venetia, on June 2, 1835. He was successively curate, parish priest, bishop of Mantua, Patriarch of Venice — offices to which his keen intelligence, hard ... Sunday Aug. 22 Memorial of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary The faithful, under the guidance of an unerring Catholic instinct, have ever recognized the queenly dignity of the Mother of "The King of kings and Lord of lords": the Fathers, the Doctors of the Church, Popes, down through the ... Memorial Aug. 23 Optional Memorial of St. Rose of Lima, virgin The first canonized saint of the Western Hemisphere, Rose of Lima (1586-1617) might also be considered a type of the special vocation of contemplative-in-the-world. Inspired by the example of St. Catherine of Siena, Rose became ... Opt. Mem. Aug. 24 Feast of St. Bartholomew, Apostle St. Bartholomew, a doctor in the Jewish law, was a dear friend of St. Philip the Apostle. Because Bartholomew was a man "in whom there was no guile," his mind was open to the truth. He went willingly with Philip to see Christ, ... Feast Aug. 25 Twenty-First Sunday of Ordinary Time Someone asked him, "Lord, will only a few be saved?" He answered them, "Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough. After the master of the house has arisen ... Sunday Aug. 26 Monday of the Twenty-First Week of Ordinary Time Before the reform of the General Roman Calendar today was the feast of St. Zephyrinus whose long pontificate was a period marked by the persecution of Septimus Severus, the struggle against heresy and the organization of the ... Weekday Aug. 27 Memorial of St. Monica St. Monica (333-387) was born in Tagaste, northern Africa and died in Ostia, near Rome. Monica was a Christian, but her husband Patricius was a pagan and a man of loose morals. Monica's virtues and prayers, however, converted ... Memorial Aug. 28 Memorial of St. Augustine, bishop, confessor and doctor St. Augustine (354-430) was born at Tagaste, Africa, and died in Hippo. His father, Patricius, was a pagan; his mother, Monica, a devout Christian. He received a good Christian education. As a law student in Carthage, however, ... Memorial