Saint Thomas Apostle, Protector of the month of January, short biography followed by a prayer.
“Thomas, being once weaker in faith than the other Apostles,” says St. John Chrysostom, “toiled through the grace of God more bravely, more zealously and tirelessly than them all, so that he went preaching over nearly all the earth, not fearing to proclaim the Word of God to savage nations.”
Jesus was born, and behold, the heavens rang out in hymns of joy as the Angels sang the canticle of triumph, Glory to God in the highest! and the canticle of peace, Peace on earth to men of good will!
Dear to the hearts of American Catholics in many regions of the United States, Saint Frances Cabrini, foundress of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, patroness of immigrants, was the first citizen of the United States to be canonized. Mother Cabrini died on December 22, 1917, in one of her Chicago hospitals…
Sermon for the Nativity by Father Jérôme de la Résurrection, o.d.m.
During this Christmas season, Jesus invites us to descend with Him to the Manger at Bethlehem, like little children, very little children, very little – so little that no one will be able to recognize us, just as the Infant Jesus, the Son of God, was not recognizable. Truly, the Son of God hid Himself well. All the great ones of this world, and you might say practically all of humanity, were unaware of the sublime mystery that was happening in the Manger at Bethlehem. Yet it was the greatest event in all of History that was taking place: God becoming a Child out of love for His creatures.
“Modern times are dominated by Satan, and they will be even more so in the future. The combat against hell cannot be fought by men, even the wisest ones. Only the Immaculata has received from God the promise of victory over the devil. Now that She is in heaven, the Mother of God is asking for our collaboration. She is seeking souls that will be totally consecrated to Her, to become instruments in Her hands that will overcome Satan and extend the Kingdom of God throughout the world.”
For a Christian, Christmas ought to be the ideal occasion to tear himself away from the tumult of the world in order to plunge himself body and soul into the supernatural spirit, and to immerse himself in the great mystery of God being born in utter humility and poverty. On the contrary, it is unfortunately the spirit of the World that prevails everywhere during the Christmas season. Even the baptized make of Christmas not a holy Christian feast but a feast of amusement, dancing and worldly gatherings, overindulgence, pride and excessive expenses.
Each month features an illustration of one of the great Saints who have enriched the Church with their lives, which were heroic yet very imitable. Also includes illustrations of Jesus the Redeemer, the sacrifice of Abraham, and the Archangels, all painted in our Monastery.
Exclusive feature: a picture of the Saint of each day.
Receipts from this calendar benefit the works of the Order of the Magnificat of the Mother of God. Available in English, French, Spanish and Italian.
On May 13, 2017, the Apostles of Love solemnly celebrated the centenary of the First Apparition of Our Lady at Fatima, Portugal (May 13, 1917) to the little shepherds, Lucia dos Santos (10 years old), Francisco (9) Jacinta (7) Marto. The entire day was spent in prayer, from nine in the morning to 11 in the evening.
Never could any man in this world comprehend all the greatness of Joseph. To understand it, one would have to compass the entire extent of the mystery with which his earthly mission put him in relation as a necessary instrument. Thus we are not surprised that this Foster Father of the Son of God was prefigured in the Old Testament under the features of one of the noblest Patriarchs of the chosen people…
The holy season of Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes on Easter Sunday, was instituted by the Apostles in imitation of Our Lord’s forty-day fast in the desert…
