Daybreak

Tuesday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception, 1910-1946; Catholic Franciscan Religious sister; the first person of Indian origin to be canonized a saint; the first canonized saint of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, an Eastern Catholic Church of the Saint Thomas Christian community Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/28/26 Gospel: Matthew 13:36-43

Monday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Titus Brandsma, 1881-1942; born in the Netherlands, and became a Carmelite as a young man; in 1935 he became an ecclesiastical advisor to Catholic journalists; when the Nazis occupied the Netherlands, he was labeled as an enemy; Titus was sent to various concentration camps where he demonstrated charity and concern; in 1942, he was martyred in Dachau Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/27/26 Gospel: Matthew 13:31-35

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/26/26 Gospel: Matthew 13:44-52

Feast of St. James, brother of John Saturday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/25/26 Gospel: Matthew 20:20-28

Friday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St, Sharbel Makhlūf, 1828-1898; born in Lebanon; at 23, he joined a Maronite monastic community; after his ordination to the priesthood, he spent many years in his monastery living a very ascetical way of life; in 1875 he received permission to live as a hermit in a chapel overseen by the monastery; for 23 years, he lived there as a hermit. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/24/26 Gospel: Matthew 13:18-23

Thursday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Bridget of Sweden, 1303-1373; she and her husband had eight children, including the future St. Catherine of Sweden; after her husband’s death, she formed the Order of the Most Holy Savior; and experienced many visions, which she wrote down and asked clerics to translate into Latin; they were widely read; she supported the return of the papacy from Avignon to Rome Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/23/26 Gospel: Matthew 13:10-17

Feast of St. Mary Magdalene, the "apostle to the apostles"--the first to see the risen Christ Wednesday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/22/26 Gospel: John 20:1-2, 11-18

Tuesday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Lawrence of Brindisi, 1559-1619; a master of multiple languages; joined the Capuchins at 16; he was elected major superior of the Capuchin Franciscan province of Tuscany at the age of 31, and minister general of the Capuchins in 1602; he was appointed a papal emissary and peacemaker, a job which took him to a number of foreign countries; an effort to achieve peace in his native kingdom of Naples took him on a journey to Lisbon to visit the king of Spain; serious illness in Lisbon took his life in 1619 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/21/26 Gospel: Matthew 12:46-50

Monday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Apollinaris; born in Antioch, and became a disciple of St. Peter; his successor as bishop of Ravenna, St. Peter Chrysologus, preached a sermon in his honor in the 5th century, recalling how in the Church’s infancy, St. Apollinaris showed deep faith and dedication in the face of punishment; two beautiful churches in the onetime important Byzantine city of Ravenna are dedicated to him; he died in 79 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/20/26 Gospel: Matthew 12:38-42

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/19/26 Gospel: Matthew 13:24-43

Saturday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Camillus de Lellis, 1550-1614; born in Italy, and worked for a Capuchin friary, but suffered from a leg wound and compulsive gambling; in Rome, he worked at a hospital, became a nurse, and eventually director of the hospital; at age 32, he decided to become a priest; he founded a religious order focused on caring for the sick Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/18/26 Gospel: Matthew 12:14-21

Friday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time Saints of the Day: Carmelite Nuns of Compiegne; they were sixteen Carmelites caught up in the French Revolution and martyred; on July 12, 1794, the Carmelites were taken to Paris and five days later were sentenced to death; they went to the guillotine singing the Salve Regina; the martyrdom of the nuns was immortalized by the composer Francois Poulenc in his famous opera, "Dialogues des Carmelites" Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/17/26 Gospel: Matthew 12:1-8

Thursday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of Our Lady of Mount Carmel; patroness of the Carmelite order; it was on Mount Carmel that God publicly answered the prophet Elijah’s prayer, consumed the offering, and confirmed He was a living God; centuries later, in the 12th century after Christ, a group of hermits gathered on the mountain and committed their lives to prayer and penance, forming the Carmelite Order Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/16/26 Gospel; Matthew 11:28-30

Wednesday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Bonaventure, 1221-1274; entered the Franciscan Order in his early twenties, and studied in Paris, where, in 1248, he received a doctorate in theology; in 1257, he was elected Minister General of the Order' in 1273, he became Cardinal of Albano and played a prominent role at the Council of Lyons, which aimed to unite the Latin and Greek Churches; he died in 1274, was canonized in 1482 and proclaimed a doctor of the Church in 1588 by Sixtus V Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/15/26 Gospel: Matthew 11:25-27

Tuesday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Kateri Tekakwitha, 1656-1680; Indian virgin of the Mohawk tribe; orphaned, due to smallpox, and raised by her village; when Jesuit missionaries arrived, she asked to be baptized; many in her clan could not accept this, so she was forced to retreat to a town north on the St. Lawrence River; when she died, it is said that the smallpox scars on her face disappeared; she is the first Native American to be canonized a saint Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/14/26 Gospel: Matthew 11:20-24

Monday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time Optional Memorial of St. Henry, 972-1024; King of Germany and Italy and crowned Holy Roman Emperor, the last in the Ottonian (Saxon) dynasty; Henry and his wife were very generous to the poor and to monasteries; he founded a cathedral and monastery in Bamberg he is the only German king to be elevated to sainthood Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/13/26 Gospel: Matthew 10:34-11:1

15th Sunday in Ordinary Time Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/12/26 Gospel: Matthew 13:1-23

Saturday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Benedict, 480-547; born in Italy, educated in Rome, but he was disillusioned by the behavior of other students; so, he retreated to a cave deep in the mountains for spiritual seclusion; he relocated to Monte Cassino, and wrote a rule for his monks which became so popular that it helped shape the civilization and culture of Europe; Benedict is the patron saint of Europe Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/11/26 Gospel: Matthew 10:24-33

Friday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time Saint of the Day: St. Anthony Pechersky, 983-1073; born in Ukraine, and went to Mount Athos in Greece to become a hermit; after several years, he returned to Ukraine and built a hermitage in Kiev, which was to become known as the "Caves of Kiev," the first Ukrainian monastery founded by Ukrainians; Anthony founded another monastery, but died in the Caves of Kiev Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/10/26 Gospel: Matthew 10:16-23

Thursday of the 14th Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of St. Augustine Zhao Rong and 119 companions, the martyrs of China; they were holy men and women who gave their lives for Christ between 1648 and 1930; they included 87 native Chinese and 33 foreign missionaries; Augustine Zhao Rong, the first martyred Chinese priest, had earlier witnessed the persecution of Monsignor Dufresse and became ordained because of it Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 7/9/26 Gospel: Matthew 10:7-15