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Saint Gregory of Nyssa

The son of two saints, Basil and Emmilia, young Gregory was raised by his older brother, Saint Basil the Great, and his sister, Macrina, in modern-day Turkey. Gregory’s success in his studies suggested great things were ahead for him. After becoming a professor of rhetoric, he was persuaded to devote his learning and efforts to the Church. By then married, Gregory went on to study for the priesthood and become ordained (this at a time when celibacy was not a matter of law for priests).

He was elected Bishop of Nyssa in 372, a period of great tension over the Arian heresy, which denied the divinity of Christ. Briefly arrested after being falsely accused of embezzling Church funds, Gregory was restored to his see in 378, an act met with great joy by his people.

It was after the death of his beloved brother Basil, that Gregory really came into his own. He wrote with great effectiveness against Arianism and other questionable doctrines, gaining a reputation as a defender of orthodoxy. He was sent on missions to counter other heresies and held a position of prominence at the Council of Constantinople. His fine reputation stayed with him for the remainder of his life, but over the centuries it gradually declined as the authorship of his writings became less and less certain. But, thanks to the work of scholars in the 20th century, his stature is once again appreciated. Indeed, Saint Gregory of Nyssa is seen not simply as a pillar of orthodoxy but as one of the great contributors to the mystical tradition in Christian spirituality and to monasticism itself.

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Proverbs 14:12

Verse:

 “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.” - Proverbs 14:12

Prayer for Students

Under thy patronage, dear Mother, and calling on the mystery of thine Immaculate Conception, I desire to pursue my studies and my literary labors: I hereby solemnly declare that I am giving myself to these studies chiefly to the following end: that I may the better contribute to the glory of God and to the promotion of thy veneration among men. I pray thee, therefore, most loving Mother, who art the Seat of Wisdom, to bless my labors in thy loving-kindness. Moreover I promise with true affection and a willing spirit, as it is right that I should do, to ascribe all the good that shall come to me therefrom, wholly to thine intercession for me in God's holy presence. Amen.

Sources:

Original version of the prayer: https://www.catholic.org/prayers/prayer.php?p=1701

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Saint Adrian of Canterbury

Though Saint Adrian turned down a papal request to become Archbishop of Canterbury, England, Pope Saint Vitalian accepted the rejection on the condition that Adrian serve as the Holy Father’s assistant and adviser. Adrian accepted, but ended up spending most of his life and doing most of his work in Canterbury.

Born in Africa, Adrian was serving as an abbot in Italy when the new Archbishop of Canterbury appointed him abbot of the monastery of Saints Peter and Paul in Canterbury. Thanks to his leadership skills, the facility became one of the most important centers of learning. The school attracted many outstanding scholars from far and wide and produced numerous future bishops and archbishops. Students reportedly learned Greek and Latin and spoke Latin as well as their own native languages.
Adrian taught at the school for 40 years. He died there, probably in the year 710, and was buried in the monastery. Several hundred years later, when reconstruction was being done, Adrian’s body was discovered in an incorrupt state. As word spread, people flocked to his tomb, which became famous for miracles. Rumor had it that young schoolboys in trouble with their masters made regular visits there.

Sources:

https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-adrian-of-canterbury/

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The Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord

Liturgy of the Word

First Reading: Is 60:1-6

Rise up in splendor, Jerusalem! Your light has come,
the glory of the Lord shines upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth,
and thick clouds cover the peoples;
but upon you the LORD shines,
and over you appears his glory.
Nations shall walk by your light,
and kings by your shining radiance.
Raise your eyes and look about;
they all gather and come to you:
your sons come from afar,
and your daughters in the arms of their nurses.

Then you shall be radiant at what you see,
your heart shall throb and overflow,
for the riches of the sea shall be emptied out before you,
the wealth of nations shall be brought to you.
Caravans of camels shall fill you,
dromedaries from Midian and Ephah;
all from Sheba shall come
bearing gold and frankincense,
and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 72:1-2,7-8,10-11,12-13

Response– Lord, every nation on earth will adore you

O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R– Lord, every nation on earth will adore you

Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R– Lord, every nation on earth will adore you

The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts;
the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute.
All kings shall pay him homage,
all nations shall serve him.
R– Lord, every nation on earth will adore you

For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R– Lord, every nation on earth will adore you

Second Reading: Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6

Brothers and sisters:
You have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace
that was given to me for your benefit,
namely, that the mystery was made known to me by revelation.
It was not made known to people in other generations
as it has now been revealed
to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit:
that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body,
and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

Alleluia:

Alleluia, alleluia. We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage. Alleluia, alleluia!

Gospel: Mt 2: 1-12

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea,
in the days of King Herod,
behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying,
“Where is the newborn king of the Jews?
We saw his star at its rising
and have come to do him homage.”
When King Herod heard this,
he was greatly troubled,
and all Jerusalem with him.
Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people,
He inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea,
for thus it has been written through the prophet:
And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
since from you shall come a ruler,
who is to shepherd my people Israel.”
Then Herod called the magi secretly
and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance.
He sent them to Bethlehem and said,
“Go and search diligently for the child.
When you have found him, bring me word,
that I too may go and do him homage.”
After their audience with the king they set out.
And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them,
until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
They were overjoyed at seeing the star,
and on entering the house
they saw the child with Mary his mother.
They prostrated themselves and did him homage.
Then they opened their treasures
and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod,
they departed for their country by another way.

The Readings and Gospel were sourced from:

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1 John 3:21-22

Verse:

“Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask, because we keep his commands and do what pleases him.” - 1 John 3:21-22

A Prayer for Fruitfulness

Dear Heavenly Father, I pray that as the seeds of the gospel are scattered and planted today, that they would land on good soil. Make them bear fruit, Father. Scare away the crows. Enrich the rocky soil. Strangle the weeds. Instead, give us rich, healthy soil ready to receive the seeds of the gospel. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.

Sources:

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Saint Pega

Saint Pega is a Christian saint who was an anchoress in the ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia, and the sister of St Guthlac. She is referred to as ‘the holy virgin of Christ Pega’.

She lived as an anchoress at what is now Peakirk (“Pega’s church”) near Peterborough, not far from Guthlac’s hermitage at Crowland. When Guthlac realised that his end was near in 714, he summoned Pega, who travelled by boat to her brother’s oratory to bury him. One year later, she presided over the translation of his remains into a new sepulchre, when his body was found to be incorrupt. At this time, Pega also used a piece of glutinous salt, which had been previously consecrated by Guthlac, to cure the eyesight of a blind man who had travelled to Crowland from Wisbech.

Pega went on pilgrimage to Rome after Guthlac’s death and died there on 8 January 719, according to a 12th-century account by Orderic Vitalis. Orderic claims that her remains were kept at a church built in Rome in her honour, and that miracles took place there.

Sources:

Bertram Colgrave. Cambridge [Cambridgeshire]: Cambridge University Press. pp. 161–163. ISBN 0-521-30926-3. OCLC 12262183.
Saints' lives. David Townsend. Cambridge, Massachusetts. ISBN 978-0-674-05128-7. OCLC 856879271.
Ingulf; Peter, of Blois; Riley, Henry T. (1854). Ingulph's chronicle of the abbey of Croyland with the continuations by Peter of Blois and anonymous writers. University of California. London, H. G. Bohn.
Vitalis, Orderic (1990). The Ecclesiastical History of Orderic Vitalis. Marjorie Chibnall. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-822243-2. OCLC 21520544.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pega

 

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1 Peter 4:1

Verse:

 “Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin.” - 1 Peter 4:1

Prayer For a Sick Child

St. Gerard, who, like the Savior, loved children so tenderly and by your prayers freed many from disease and even death, listen to us who are pleading for our sick child. We thank God for the great gift of our son (daughter) and ask him to restore our child to health if such be his holy will. This favor, we beg of you through your love for all children and mothers. Amen.

Sources:

Original version of the prayer: https://www.catholic.org/prayers/prayer.php?p=1701

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Saint Canute Lavard

Saint Canute Lavard was a Danish prince. Later he was the first Duke of Schleswig and the first border prince who was both a Danish and a German vassal, a position leading towards the historical double position of Southern Jutland.

He grew up in close contact with the noble family of Hvide, who were later on to be among his most eager supporters. In 1115, his uncle, King Niels of Denmark, placed him in charge of the Duchy of Schleswig (jarl af Sønderjylland) in order to put an end to the attacks of the Slavic Obotrites. During the next fifteen years, he fulfilled his duty of establishing peace in the border area so well that he was titled Duke of Holstein (Hertug af Holsten) and became a vassal of the Holy Roman Empire.

On 7 January 1131, Canute was trapped in the Haraldsted Forest (Haraldsted Skov) near Ringsted in Zealand and murdered by Magnus.

Sources:

Danmarks Konger. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
Dansk biografisk Lexikon. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
"Valdemarstiden 1157-1241". Aarhus University. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canute_Lavard

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Psalm 37:3

Verse:

“Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.” - Psalm 37:3

Prayer For Holy Guardian Angels

Dear Angel at my side, my good and loyal friend, you have been with me since the moment I was born. You are my own personal guardian, given me by God as my guide and protector, and you will stay with me till I die. He who created you and me gave me to you as your particular charge. You assisted in great joy at my baptism, when I became part of the Mystical Body of Christ, and was made a member of the household of God and an heir of heaven. You saw the dangers that beset my path, and, if I sinned, it was in spite of you. You envied me when Christ came to me in Holy Communion. Even though you probably were there among the angels that adored Him the night that He was born, you have not been able to receive Him as I can. O, help me to appreciate these gifts! Help me to realize, as you do, with every fiber of my being, that to serve Christ is to be a King! Help me steadfastly to avoid evil and do good and always guard my soul from sin. Protect me as well from physical evils as I go about my daily work. You will be with me all my life, and at the hour of my death. Help me to face death bravely, patiently, with great love of God, knowing that it is only through death that I can come to Him in heaven! Then, come with me to my Judge, and when the hour of my salvation comes, take me home to my Father, God. Amen.

Sources:

Original version of the prayer: https://www.catholic.org/prayers/prayer.php?p=1701

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Saint Peter of Canterbury

Saint Peter of Canterbury was a native of Italy, like the other members of the Gregorian mission. Saint Peter became the abbot of the monastery that Æthelberht founded in Canterbury, originally dedicated to the saints Peter and Paul, but later rededicated as St Augustine’s, after the leader of the mission. Bede describes Peter as both abbot and presbyter, a word usually translated as priest.

Saint Peter drowned while crossing the English Channel on the way to Gaul, at a place called Ambleteuse, near Boulogne. Saint Peter’s death has traditionally been dated to around 607, but evidence suggests that he was present at a church council in Paris in 614, so he probably died after that date. He was the first abbot of the monastery of SS. Peter and Paul in Canterbury (later St Augustine’s Abbey) and a companion of Augustine in the Gregorian mission to Kent. Augustine sent Peter as an emissary to Rome around 600 to convey news of the mission to Pope Gregory I.

Sources:

Walsh New Dictionary of Saints p. 482
Hunt "Petrus (St Petrus)" Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
Blair World of Bede p. 87
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_of_Canterbury

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