Week at a glanceTuesday July 16 ~ Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Wednesday July 17 ~
Thursday July 18 ~ Saint Camillus de Lellis
Friday July 19 ~
Saturday July 20 ~ Saint Apollinaris
Sunday July 21 ~ 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Monday July 22 ~ Saint Mary Magdalene
Tuesday July 23 ~ Saint Bridget
Wednesday July 24 ~ Saint Sharbel Makhluf
Thursday July 25 ~ Saint James
Friday July 26 ~ Saint Joachim & Saint Anne
Saturday July 27 ~
Sunday July 28 ~ 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
The monthly prayer intention of pope francisFor the Pastoral Care of the Sick
We pray that the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick confer to those who receive it and their loved ones the power of the Lord and become ever more a visible sign of compassion and hope for all. Daily Offering Prayer
God, our Father, I offer You my day. I offer You my prayers, thoughts, words, actions, joys, and sufferings in union with the Heart of Jesus, who continues to offer Himself in the Eucharist for the salvation of the world. May the Holy Spirit, Who guided Jesus, be my guide and my strength today so that I may witness to your love. With Mary, the mother of our Lord and the Church, I pray for all Apostles of Prayer and for the prayer intentions of the Holy Father this month. Amen. |
calendar of saintsJuly 16 ~ Our Lady of Mount Carmel
The Carmelites have celebrated their patronal feast on this day since the 14th century. According to tradition, Saint Simon Stock was given the brown scapular by the Blessed Virgin on this day in 1251. The Order of Carmel dates back to ta group of Western hermits who in the 12th century settled on Mount Carmel, overlooking the plain of Galilee, in imitation of the prophet Elijah (see 1 Kings 18.19-46 and 2 Kings 2.25). They grouped themselves around a small chapel dedicated to Our Lady. In the 13th century, the Order of Carmel as we know it was formed, retaining the twin devotions of the early hermits: to Elijah and his solitary prayer, and to Our Lady under the title 'of Mount Carmel.' July 18 ~ Saint Camillus de Lellis
Born in Abruzzi in central Italy, Camillus (1550-1614) became a Venetian soldier like his father. When his father died, Camillus pursued his mania for gambling and lost everything; he ended up working at a Capuchin friary. Because of a diseased leg, he was unable to join that order, but found his vocation in caring for the sick. The conditions in hospitals in the 16th century were horrific and Camillus resolved to establish an order to care for the sick and dying. Ordained, he founded the nursing congregation of the Ministers of the Sick, the Camillians. Despite his own poor health, he served as general of his order, built hospitals and ministered to soldiers on the battlefield. Canonized in 1746, he is a patron of nurses and of the sick. July 20 ~ Saint Apollinaris
Apollinaris lived in the first century and according to legend was chosen the first bishop of Ravenna by Saint Peter. He was also on the first great martyrs. During the reigns of emperors Claudius and Vespasian, he was repeatedly exiled and tortured but continued to evangelize and work miracles until his martyrdom. July 21 ~ Saint Lawrence of Brindisi
Born in 1559 in the Kingdom of Naples, Caesare de Rossi was educated first by the Conventual Friars and then in Venice at the College of Saint Mark. At the age of 16, he entered the Capuchin Franciscan Order in Verona and took the name Lawrence. Fluent in several languages, including Hebrew, and thoroughly versed in the Bible, Lawrence worked as a diplomat for the secular powers of Europe and as a missionary. In 1596, he became the definitor general of his order and was commissioned by the pope to work for the conversion of the Jews for the and to combat the spread of Protestantism. In 1602, he became minister general of his order but refused re-election in 1605, preferring preaching to administration. He died in 1619. Those who examined his writings in the process of his beatification became convinced that Lawrence deserved to be named a Doctor of the Church. He was canonized in 1881 and named Doctor of the Church in 1959. July 22 ~ Saint Mary Magdalene
Since the 6th century, Western tradition has linked three gospel accounts as referring to one woman, although some notable writers are undecided. Luke relates that an unnamed sinner who anointed the Lord's feet received forgiveness of her many sins because of her great love. He also writes that among the women who travelled with Jesus and the apostles was Mary Magdalene, who had been exorcised of seven devils. Mary Magdalene was a faithful follower of the Lord. With the other women, she stood near the cross, brought spices to anoint the body and alone, weeping with grief, was the first witness to the resurrection of Christ. Mary Magdalene is a patron of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans). July 23 ~ Saint Bridget
Bridget was born in Sweden in 1303. Her father was governor of the main province of Sweden and her mother was the daughter of the governor. Throughout her life, Bridget received visions and dreams and possessed gifts of prophecy and healing. After her mother's death in 1314, Bridget lived with an aunt. She married at 13, bore eight children and lived happily until her husband's death in 1344. After his death, Bridget moved near a Cistercian monastery, where she lived a penitential life. Seeking papal approval to create a new religious community, she moved a Rome and lived a life of prayer and penitence there for nearly 20 years. She founded the Bridgettine Order in 1370. Originally it included both men and women but today it is for women only. Bridget died in 1373, while returning to Rome from a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. She is patron of Sweden and co-patron of Europe, with Saint Benedict, Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. July 24 ~ Saint Sharbel Makhluf
Joseph Makhluf was born in the mountains of Lebanon in 1828. At the age of 20 he joined a monastery in the Maronite rite, where he took the name of a 2nd-century martyr, Sharbel. He lived there as a monk, but longed to live as a hermit in the desert. His superiors granted his wish in 1875 and he spent the next 23 years in a life of fasting, prayer and manual labour. He was famed for his holiness, wisdom and devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. He died in 1898 and was canonized in 1977. July 25 ~ Saint James
The apostle James, son of Zebedee and brother of John the Evangelist, was a fisherman. The gospels tell us that James and John left their father and followed Jesus as soon as he called them. The brothers must have shared an impetuous temperament since Jesus refers to them as "Sons of Thunder." Along with Peter, the brothers were particularly close to the Lord, being present at the raising of Jairus' daughter, the Transfiguration, and in the garden of Gethsemane. Although there is no account of his activities for some years after the Resurrection, Acts states that James was beheaded by order of Herod Agrippa, making him the first of the Apostles to be martyred. He is known as James 'the Greater,' to distinguish him from the other apostle of the same name. He is a patron saint of Spain and of pilgrims. In northwestern Spain he is venerated at Santiago ('Saint James') de Compostela, a famous mediaeval pilgrimage destination. July 26 ~ Saint Anne & Saint Joachim
The gospels are bereft of details regarding Mary's parents - Jesus' grandparents - not even offering their names. What we do know comes from writings excluded from the canon of Scripture, in particular the Protogospel of James. Nevertheless, the cult of Saint Anne existed in the 6th century in Rome. In the 13th and 14th centuries, popular devotion to Anne increased, as seen by the number of churches bearing her name. At the request of some English bishops petitioned by parishioners, Pope Urban VI made her feast an annual celebration. Joachim has been honoured in the East from earliest days, but in the West only since the 16th century. Their names were entered into the Roman calendar in 1584. |
St. Stephen Catholic Parish
4302 57 Avenue
Olds, AB
403-556-3084
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Facebook: St. Stephen's Catholic Parish - Olds, Alberta
4302 57 Avenue
Olds, AB
403-556-3084
[email protected]
Facebook: St. Stephen's Catholic Parish - Olds, Alberta