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Monday of the Second Week of Advent Optional Memorial of Pope St. Damasus I, 304-384; when elected pope, Damasus had to endure the existence of an antipope, Ursinus, elected and consecrated by a minority; this resulted in violent battles between two basilicas; supporters of the antipope even had Damasus accused of a grave crime, from which he had to clear himself in civil court and a Church synod; during his pontificate, Christianity was declared the official religion of the Roman state, and Latin became the liturgical language Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/11/23 Gospel: Luke 5:17-26

Second Sunday of Advent Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/10/23 Gospel: Mark 1:1-8

Saturday of the First Week of Advent Optional Memorial of St. Juan Diego, 1474-1548; Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared to Juan at Tepeyac hill on December 9, 1531; the roses gathered in his tilma were transformed into the miraculous image of Our Lady; in time he lived near the shrine constructed at Tepeyac, revered as a holy, unselfish, and compassionate catechist, who taught by word and especially by example Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/9/23 Gospel: Matthew 9:35-10:1, 5-8

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Friday of the First Week of Advent Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/8/23 Gospel: Luke 1:26-38

Thursday of the First Week of Advent Memorial of St. Ambrose, 337-397; he was an otherworldly man involved in the great issues of his day; in his disputes with the Emperor Auxentius, he coined the principle: “The emperor is in the Church, not above the Church”; Ambrose was largely responsible for the conversion of St. Augustine Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/7/23 Gospel: Matthew 7:21, 24-27

Wednesday of the First Week of Advent Optional Memorial of St. Nicholas, 270-343; Fourth-Century bishop of Myra, a city in Lycia, a province of Asia Minor; the best known legend of St. Nicholas has him secretly helping a poor man to provide dowries for his marriage-age daughters; by a twist of the tongue, St. Nicholas, in legend, became Santa Claus Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/6/23 Gospel: Matthew 15:29-37

Tuesday of the First Week of Advent Saint of the Day: St. Sabas, 439-532; became a monk at the age of 18, and was allowed to live in a remote cave for five days per week at the age of 30; moved farther into the desert, and was followed by some men who desired to join him in solitude; over the years, he traveled throughout Palestine, preaching the true faith and successfully bringing back many to the Church Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/5/23 Gospel: Luke 10:21-24

Monday of the First Week of Advent Optional Memorial of St. John Damascene, 676-749; famous for his writings against the iconoclasts, who opposed the veneration of images; for his treatise, Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, a summary of the Greek Fathers, of which he became the last; and he is known as a poet, one of the two greatest of the Eastern Church Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/4/23 Gospel: Matthew 8:5-11

First Sunday of Advent Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/3/23 Gospel: Mark 13:33-37

Saturday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Bibiana, virgin and martyr; Bibiana and her sister Demetria suffered under the persecution of the Roman governor, Apronianus in the latter half of the Fourth Century; they were stripped of possessions, but remained in their house, praying and fasting; Apronianus summoned them, and Demetria professed her faith and fell dead at his feet; Bibiana was sent to a wicked woman, Rufina, who tried, unsuccessfully, to seduce her, Apronianus ordered Bibiana to be tied to a pillar and beaten with scourges, laden with lead plummets, until she expired Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/2/23 Gospel: Luke 21:34-36

Friday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Edmund Campion, 1540-1581; Jesuit convert to the Catholic faith; in England, he preached one to three times a day, mentally preparing his homilies while traveling on horseback, winning many converts; captured by Elizabethan authorities in July 1581, tortured on a rack, and sentenced to death Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 12/1/23 Gospel: Luke 21:29-33

Feast of St. Andrew, apostle; brother of St. Peter; reputed to have preached the Good News in what is now modern Greece and Turkey and was crucified at Patras in about 60 A.D. on an X-shaped cross Thursday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/30/23 Gospel: Matthew 4:18-22

Wednesday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Radbod of Utrecht, 850-917; became bishop of Utrecht, Holland, in 900; known for his aid to the poor, and for his poetry; died in France, where he was forced to move, due to an invasion by the Danes Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/29/23 Gospel: Luke 21:12-19

Tuesday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Catherine Labouré, 1806-1867; became a member of the Daughters of Charity, and received two visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary; in the second one, she showed Catherine an image, and asked that it be struck on a medal; after her confessor took the story to the archbishop, he had 2,000 Miraculous Medals struck; Catherine spent the next 40 years of her life caring for the elderly, sick, and disabled; she died at the age of 70 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/28/23 Gospel: Luke 21:5-11

Monday of the 34th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. James Intercisus; a Christian, and a favorite of King Yezdigerd I of Persia; Yezdigerd launched a persecution of Christians, and James apostasized; he later repented, and was executed in 420 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/27/23 Gospel: Luke 21:1-4

Solemnity of Christ the King - The Final Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/26/23 Gospel: Matthew 25:31-46

Saturday of the 33rd Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Catherine of Alexandria; legend has it that she converted after receiving a vision, and then debated 50 pagan philosophers, who all converted; Catherine was sentenced to death on a spiked wheel; when she touched the wheel, it shattered; she was beheaded in about 310 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/25/23 Gospel: Luke 20:27-40

Friday of the 33rd Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Andrew Dung-Lac and companions, the Vietnamese martyrs; Andrew Dung-Lac, a Catholic convert ordained to the priesthood, was one of 117 people martyred in Vietnam between 1820 and 1862. Members of the companions group gave their lives for Christ in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/24/23 Gospel: Luke 19:45-48

Thursday of the 33rd Week in Ordinary Time - Thanksgiving Day in the United States Optional Memorial of Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro, 1891-1927; after becoming a Jesuit, he fled Mexico because of religious persecution; ordained in Belgium in 1925, and returned to Mexico, to serve a church operating "underground"; he celebrated the Eucharist clandestinely, and administered the sacraments to small groups of Catholics; falsely accused of plotting to assassinate Mexico's president, he faced a firing squad Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/23/23 Gospel: Luke 19:41-44

Wednesday of the 33rd Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Cecilia, virgin and martyr; legend has it that Cecilia was a young Third Century Christian of high rank betrothed to a Roman named Valerian; Valerian converted, and was martyred, along with his brother; the legend of Cecilia's death is that she was struck three times on the neck with a sword, and lived for three days, asking the pope to convert her home into a church; she is depicted in artwork with a viola or a small organ; patroness of musicians Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 11/22/23 Gospel: Luke 19:11-28