Et álibi aliórum plurimórum sanctórum Mártyrum et Confessórum, atque sanctárum Vírginum.
And elsewhere in divers places, many other holy martyrs, confessors, and holy virgins.
Пресвятая Богородице спаси нас!  (Santíssima Mãe de Deus, salva-nos!)
R.  Deo grátias. R.  Thanks be to God.
January is the month of the Holy Name of Jesus since 1902;
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Joyful Mystery on Monday Saturday   Glorius Mystery on Sunday Wednesday
   Sorrowful Mystery on Friday Tuesday   Luminous Mystery on Thursday Veterens of War

In Russian practice, the back of a priest's cross is often inscribed with St Paul's words to St Timothy:
"Be an example to the believers in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity" (1 Tim. 4:12).

  93 St_Timothy_disciple_of_St_Paul

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Acts of the Apostles

He who trusts himself is lost. He who trusts in God can do all things.
-- St Alphonsus Liguori

Benedict XV 1914-1922 who Died on this day

He wrote an encyclical pleading for international reconciliation, Pacem, Dei Munus Pulcherrimum.
There is a statue in Saint Peter's Basilica of the Pontiff absorbed in prayer, kneeling on a tomb which commemorates
a fallen soldier of the war, which he described as a "useless massacre".

Marian Consecration Our Lady of Ceignac (France 1516)
I, (...name...), a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in your hands, O Immaculate Mother, the vows of my Baptism: to renounce forever Satan, his pomp and works; to give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after him all the days of my life, and to be more faithful to him than I have ever been before. In the presence of all the heavenly court, I choose you this day for my Mother and Queen. I deliver and consecrate to you, as your slave, my body and soul, my possessions, both material and spiritual, and even the merits of all my good deeds, past, present, and future; leaving to you the entire and full right of disposing of me, and all that belongs to me, without exception, according to your good pleasure, for the greater glory of God, in time and eternity. Amen.
St Louis Grignion de Montfort

January 22 – Our Lady of Ceignac (France, 1516)
  There is a profound link between devotion to the Blessed Virgin and worship of the Eucharist

The piety of the Christian people has always very rightly sensed a profound link between devotion to the Blessed Virgin and worship of the Eucharist: this is a fact that can be seen in the liturgy of both the West and the East, in the traditions of the Religious Families, in the modern movements of spirituality, including those for youth, and in the pastoral practice of the Marian Shrines. Mary guides the faithful to the Eucharist.
(…) This filial relationship, this self-entrusting of a child to its mother, not only has its beginning in Christ
but can also be said to be definitively directed towards him.
By Blessed John Paul II  Redemptoris Mater, § 44 and 46

Pope Benedict XVI to The Catholic Church In China {whole article here }

The saints “a cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible.
  He who trusts himself is lost. He who trusts in God can do all things. -- St Alphonsus Liguori
383 St. Blaesilla Widow of Rome; St. Blaesilla herself began to study Hebrew, and it was at her request that St. Jerome began his translation of the book of Ecclesiasts.
 680 Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad
1623 Saint Macarius of Zhabyn Wonderworker of Belev incorrupt relics appeared to the participants
1745 St. Francis Gil de Frederich Dominican martyr Tonkin, China, & Vietnam
1850 St. Vincent Pallotti Priest spent huge sums for the poor/underprivileged Founder of The Society of Catholic Apostolate the motto of founder St. Vincent Pallotti, “The Love of Christ urges us on!” St Vincent foresaw all Catholic Action, even its name, said Pius XI; and Cardinal Pellegrinetti added,
“He did all that he could; as for what he couldn’t do—well, he did that too.”

January 22 - Eve of Our Lady's Espousals - Claire de Castelbajac (d. 1975)
Claire Died, Reciting the "Hail Mary"
On the morning of the day of her tenth birthday, October 2, 1963, despite feeling tired (she suffered from poor health), Claire de Castelbajac was anxious asked to go to Mass. That evening, she confided to her mother, "Do you know what I asked this morning? I asked to always remain pure, just like I was after my baptism."
She made the habit of invoking the Blessed Virgin every morning when she first woke up. "O Immaculate Mary, I entrust to you my purity of heart. Guard it always."
In 1975, she suddenly came down with viral meningoencephalitis, but she told her mother: "I'm so happy, that if I should die right now, I think I would go straight to heaven, because heaven is God's praise and I'm there already!"
On January 17th, unconscious, she received the Sacrament of the Sick. On Sunday the 19th, while she seemed to be sleeping, all of a sudden she said, very clearly and very loudly: "Hail Mary, full of grace..." then stopped, exhausted. Her mother continued the prayer. At the end of every Hail Mary, Claire murmured, "and then... and then..." to make the Rosary continue. The evening of the 20th, she sank more and more into a deep coma. On Wednesday, January 22, 1975, at about five o'clock in the afternoon, she entered into the eternity to which God was calling her. She was 21 years and three months old.
Today her intercession has proved to be amazingly powerful...
304 St. Vincent the Deacon martyr would not surrender the holy books
305 St. Vincent, Orontius, & Victor 3 martyrs of the Pyrenees
312 St. Paschasius  Bishop of Vienne, France
380 St. Vincent of Digne Bishop of Digne France from Africa
383 St. Blaesilla Widow of Rome; St. Blaesilla herself began to study Hebrew, and it was at her request that St. Jerome began his translation of the book of Ecclesiasts.
      Monk Martyr Anastasius, Deacon of the Kiev Caves
      Holy martyrs of Christ one of 377 Christians captured in Thrace by Bulgars
410 Saint Gaudentius, Bishop of Brescia from 387 successor of the writer on heresies, St. Philastrius
 628 St. Anastasius XIV Martyr a Persian called Magundat monk in Jerusalem
 680 Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad
1031 St. Dominic of Sora Benedictine abbot founder
1045 St. Brithwald Benedictine bishop monk at Glastonbury visions a prophet
1592 Bl. William Patensona priest English martyr converted six other prisoners
1623 Saint Macarius of Zhabyn Wonderworker of Belev incorrupt relics appeared to the participants
1745 St. Francis Gil de Frederich Dominican martyr Tonkin, China, & Vietnam
1745 St. Matthew Alonso Leziniana Dominican martyr of Vietnam
1850 St. Vincent Pallotti Priest spent huge sums for the poor/underprivileged Founder of The Society of Catholic Apostolate the motto of founder St. Vincent Pallotti, “The Love of Christ urges us on!” St Vincent foresaw all Catholic Action, even its name, said Pius XI; and Cardinal Pellegrinetti added,
“He did all that he could; as for what he couldn’t do—well, he did that too.”

January 22: God's presence among us: a call to peace. "The Lord is with us" (Psalm 46).

The saints are a “cloud of witnesses over our head”,
showing us that a life of Christian perfection is not impossible.
Benedict XVI’s monthly prayer intention will focus on unity during January.

The Apostleship of Prayer announced the general intention chosen by the Pope:
"That the Church may strengthen her commitment to full visible unity in order to manifest in an ever growing degree her nature as community of love, in which is reflected the communion of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit."

The Holy Father also chooses an apostolic intention for each month. In January, he will pray that "the Church in Africa, which is preparing to celebrate her Second Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, may continue to be the sign and instrument of reconciliation and justice in a continent which is still marked by war exploitation and poverty."

93 The Holy Apostle Timothy St Paul's disciple appointed St Timothy as Bishop of Ephesus
was from the Lycaonian city of Lystra in Asia Minor.
St Timothy was converted to Christ in the year 52 by the holy Apostle Paul (June 29). When the Apostles Paul and Barnabas first visited the cities of Lycaonia, St Paul healed one crippled from birth. Many of the inhabitants of Lystra then believed in Christ, and among them was the future St Timothy, his mother Eunice and grandmother Loida (Lois) (Acts 14:6-12; 2 Tim. 1:5).

The seed of faith, planted in St Timothy's soul by the Apostle Paul, brought forth abundant fruit. He became St Paul's disciple, and later his constant companion and co-worker in the preaching of the Gospel. The Apostle Paul loved St Timothy and in his Epistles called him his beloved son, remembering his devotion and fidelity with gratitude.

He wrote to Timothy: "You have followed my teaching, way of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, and patience" (2 Tim. 3:10-11). The Apostle Paul appointed St Timothy as Bishop of Ephesus, where the saint remained for fifteen years. Finally, when St Paul was in prison and awaiting martyrdom, summoned his faithful friend, St Timothy, for a last farewell (2 Tim. 4:9).
St Timothy ended his life as a martyr.
The pagans of Ephesus celebrated a festival in honor of their idols, and used to carry them through the city, accompanied by impious ceremonies and songs. St Timothy, zealous for the glory of God, attempted to halt the procession and reason with the spiritually blind idol-worshipping people, by preaching the true faith in Christ.  The pagans angrily fell upon the holy apostle, they beat him, dragged him along the ground, and finally, they stoned him. St Timothy's martyrdom occurred in the year 93. In the fourth century the holy relics of St Timothy were transferred to Constantinople and placed in the church of the Holy Apostles near the tombs of St Andrew (November 30) and St Luke (October 18). The Church honors St Timothy as one of the Apostles of the Seventy.
In Russian practice, the back of a priest's cross is often inscribed with St Paul's words to St Timothy: "Be an example to the believers in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity" (1 Tim. 4:12).
305 St. Vincent, Orontius, & Victor 3 martyrs of the Pyrenees
 Ebredúni, in Gálliis, sanctórum Mártyrum Vincéntii, Oróntii et Victóris; qui martyrio in Diocletiáni persecutióne coronáti sunt.
       At Embrun in France, the holy martyrs Vincent, Orontius, and Victor who were crowned with martyrdom in the persecution of Diocletian.
   Vincent and Orontius were brothers, born in Cimiez, near Nice, France. They served as missionaries in the Pyrenees and were martyred at Puigcerda, with St. Victor. Their relics were enshrined at Embrun, France.
304 St. Vincent the Deacon martyr would not surrender the holy books
 Valéntiæ, in Hispánia Tarraconénsi, sancti Vincéntii, Levítæ et Mártyris; qui, sub impiíssimo Præside Daciáno, cárceres, famem, equúleum, distorsiónes membrórum, láminas candéntes, férream cratem ignítam áliaque tormentórum génera perpéssus, ad martyrii præmium evolávit in cælum; cujus passiónis nóbilem triúmphum Prudéntius luculénter vérsibus exséquitur, et beátus Augustínus ac sanctus Leo Papa summis láudibus comméndant.
      At Valencia in Spain, while the wicked Dacian was governor, St. Vincent, deacon and martyr, who, after suffering imprisonment, hunger, the rack, and the disjointing of his limbs, was burned with plates of heated metal and on the gridiron, and tormented in other ways, then took his flight to heaven, there to receive the reward of martyrdom.  His noble triumph over his sufferings has been skillfully set forth in verse by Prudentius, and also was eulogized by St. Augustine and Pope St. Leo.

304 ST VINCENT OF SARAGOSSA, MARTYR
THE glorious martyr St Vincent was instructed in the sacred sciences and Christian piety by St Valerius, Bishop of Saragossa, who ordained him his deacon, and appointed him, though very young, to preach and instruct the people. Dacian, a cruel persecutor, was then governor of Spain. The Emperors Diocletian and Maximian published their second and third edicts against the Christian clergy in the year 303, which in the following year were put in force against the laity. It seems to have been before these last that Dacian put to death eighteen martyrs at Saragossa, who are mentioned by Prudentius and in the Roman Martyrology for January 16, and that he apprehended Valerius and Vincent. They were soon after transferred to Valencia, where the governor let them lie long in prison, suffering extreme famine and other miseries. The proconsul hoped that this lingering torture would shake their constancy, but when they were at last brought before him he was surprised to see them still intrepid in mind and vigorous in body, so that he reprimanded his officers for not having treated the prisoners according to his orders. Then he employed alternately threats and promises to induce the prisoners to sacrifice. Valerius, who had an impediment in his speech, making no answer, Vincent said to him, “Father, if you order me, I will speak.”
“Son,” said Valerius, “as I committed to you the dispensation of the word of God, so I now charge you to answer in vindication of the faith which we defend.” The deacon then informed the judge that they were ready to suffer everything for the true God, and that in such a cause they could pay no heed either to threats or promises. Dacian contented himself with banishing Valerius. As for St Vincent, he was determined to assail his resolution by every torture that his cruel temper could suggest. St Augustine assures us that he suffered torments byroad what any man could have endured unless supported by a supernatural strength; and that in the midst of them he preserved such peace and tranquillity as astonished his very persecutors. The rage and chagrin felt by the proconsul were manifest in the twitching of his limbs, the angry glint in his eyes and the unsteadiness of his voice.
The martyr was first stretched on the rack by his hands and feet, and whilst he hung his flesh was torn with iron hooks. Vincent, smiling, called the executioners weak and faint-hearted. Dacian thought they spared him, and caused them to be beaten, which afforded Vincent an interval of rest; but they soon returned to him, resolved fully to satisfy the cruelty of their master. But the more his body was mangled, the more did the divine presence cherish and comfort his soul; and the judge, seeing the blood which flowed from his body and the frightful condition to which it was reduced, was obliged to confess that the courage of this young cleric had vanquished him. He ordered a cessation of the torments, telling Vincent that if he could not be prevailed upon to offer sacrifice to the gods, he could at least give up the sacred books to be burnt, according to the edicts. The martyr answered that he feared torments less than false compassion. Dacian, more incensed than ever, condemned him to the most cruel of tortures—that of fire upon a kind of gridiron, called by the acts quaestio legitima, “the legal torture”. Vincent mounted cheerfully the iron bed, in which the bars were full of spikes made red-hot by the fire underneath. On this dreadful gridiron the martyr was stretched at full length, and his wounds were rubbed with salt, which the activity of the fire forced the deeper into his flesh. The flames, instead of tormenting, seemed, as St Augustine says, to give the martyr new vigour and courage, for the more he suffered, the greater seemed to be the inward joy and consolation of his soul. The rage and confusion of the tyrant exceeded all bounds he completely lost his self-command, and was continually inquiring what Vincent did and said, but was always answered that he seemed every moment to acquire new strength and resolution.
At last he was thrown into a dungeon, and his wounded body laid on the floor strewed with potsherds, which opened afresh his ghastly wounds. His legs were set in wooden stocks, stretched very wide, and orders were given that he should be left without food and that no one should be admitted to see him. But God sent His angels to comfort him. The gaoler, observing through the chinks the prison filled with light, and Vincent walking and praising God, was converted upon the spot to the Christian faith. At this news Dacian even wept with rage, but he ordered that the prisoner should be allowed some repose. The faithful were then permitted to see him, and coming they dressed his wounds, and dipped cloths in his blood, which they kept for themselves and their posterity. A bed was prepared for him, on which he was no sooner laid than his soul was taken to God. Dacian commanded his body to be thrown out upon a marshy field, but a raven defended it from beasts and birds of prey. The “acts” and a sermon attributed to St Leo add that it was then cast into the sea in a sack, but was carried to the shore and revealed to two Christians.
The story of the translations and diffusion of the relics of St Vincent is confused and not very trustworthy. We hear of them not only in Valencia and Saragossa, but also in Castres (Aquitaine), Le Mans, Paris, Lisbon, Ban and other places. What is quite certain is that his cultus spread widely through the Christian world at a very early date, penetrating even to certain Eastern regions; and he is named in the canon of the Milanese Mass. In early art the most characteristic emblem of St Vincent is the raven which is sometimes represented as perched upon a millstone. When we only have an image with a deacon’s dalmatic and a palm-branch, it is almost impossible to decide whether it is intended for St Vincent, St Laurence or St Stephen. Vincent is honoured in Burgundy as the patron of vine-dressers, the explanation for which is probably to be found in the fact that his name suggests some connection with wine.
In the above account Alban Butler has mainly followed the narrative of the poet Prudentius (Peristephanon, 5). The so-called “acts”, though included by Ruinart among his Acta Sincera, have unquestionably been embroidered rather freely by the imagination of the compiler, who lived, it seems, centuries after the event. At the same time St Augustine in one of his sermons on St Vincent speaks of having the acts of his martyrdom before him, and it may possibly be that a much more concise summary, printed in the Analecta Bollandiana, vol. i (1882), pp. 259—262, represents in substance the document to which St Augustine refers. We can at least be assured of his name and order, the place and epoch of his martyr­dom, and his place of burial. See P. Allard, Histoire des persecutions, vol. iv, pp. 237—250; Delehaye, Les origines du culte des martyrs (1933), pp. 367—368; H. Leclercq, Les martyrs, vol. ii, pp. 437—439; Römische Quartalschrift, vol. xxi (1907), pp. 135—138. There is a good historical summary by L. de Lacger, St Vincent de Saragosse (1927); and a study of the passio by the Marquise de Maillé, Vincent d’Agen et Vincent de Saragosse (1949), on which cf. various papers by Fr B. de Gaiffier in Analecta Bollandiana. For the bishop St Valerius, see the Acta Sanctorum, January 28.  
Born at Huesca, Spain, he became a deacon and served St, Valerius at Saragossa until their martyrdom at Valencia during the persecutions under Emperor Diocletian (r. 284-305). St. Valerius was exiled, but Vincent was cruelly tortured because he would not surrender the holy books. He converted the warden of the prison and then died. He was honored by Sts. Augustine, Pope Leo I, and Prudentius, and is considered the patron saint of vinedressers in some regions of Spain.

St. Vincent   
When Jesus deliberately began his “journey” to death, Luke says that he “set his face” to go to Jerusalem. It is this quality of rocklike courage that distinguishes the martyrs.
Most of what we know about this saint comes from the poet Prudentius. His Acts have been rather freely colored by the imagination of their compiler. But St. Augustine, in one of his sermons on St. Vincent, speaks of having the Acts of his martyrdom before him. We are at least sure of his name, his being a deacon, the place of his death and burial.

According to the story we have (and as with some of the other early martyrs the unusual devotion he inspired must have had a basis in a very heroic life), Vincent was ordained deacon by his friend St. Valerius of Saragossa in Spain.
The Roman emperors had published their edicts against the clergy in 303, and the following year against the laity. Vincent and his bishop were imprisoned in Valencia. Hunger and torture failed to break them. Like the youths in the fiery furnace (Book of Daniel, chapter three), they seemed to thrive on suffering.

Valerius was sent into exile, and Dacian now turned the full force of his fury on Vincent. Tortures that sound like those of World War II were tried. But their main effect was the progressive disintegration of Dacian himself. He had the torturers beaten because they failed.

Finally he suggested a compromise: Would Vincent at least give up the sacred books to be burned according to the emperor’s edict? He would not. Torture on the gridiron continued, the prisoner remaining courageous, the torturer losing control of himself. Vincent was thrown into a filthy prison cell—and converted the jailer. Dacian wept with rage, but strangely enough, ordered the prisoner to be given some rest.

Friends among the faithful came to visit him, but he was to have no earthly rest. When they finally settled him on a comfortable bed, he went to his eternal rest.

Comment: The martyrs are heroic examples of what God’s power can do. It is humanly impossible, we realize, for someone to go through tortures such as Vincent had and remain faithful. But it is equally true that by human power alone no one can remain faithful even without torture or suffering. God does not come to our rescue at isolated, “special” moments. God is supporting the supercruisers as well as children’s toy boats.
Quote:  “Wherever it was that Christians were put to death, their executions did not bear the semblance of a triumph. Exteriorly they did not differ in the least from the executions of common criminals. But the moral grandeur of a martyr is essentially the same, whether he preserved his constancy in the arena before thousands of raving spectators or whether he perfected his martyrdom forsaken by all upon a pitiless flayer’s field” (The Roman Catacombs, Hertling-Kirschbaum).
312 St. Paschasius  Bishop of Vienne, France.
 No details of his life are extant, although his era was a remarkably turbulent one.
383 St. Blaesilla Widow of Rome; St. Blaesilla herself began to study Hebrew, and it was at her request that Jerome began his translation of the book of Ecclesiasts.
Daughter of St. Paula and a disciple of St. Jerome. Blaesilla died at the age of twenty-three from a fever. She and her husband were married only seven months when he predeceased her.
383 ST BLESILLA, WIDOW
BUT for the letters of St Jerome, very little would be known of the youthful widow St Blesilla, daughter of St Paula. On the death of her husband, after seven months of married life, Blesilla was attacked by fever. Yielding to the promptings of grace, she determined to devote herself to practices of devotion. After her sudden recovery she spent the rest of her short life in great austerity. St Jerome, writing to her mother, speaks in very high terms of her. St. Blaesilla herself began to study Hebrew, and it was at her request that Jerome began his translation of the book of Ecclesiasts. St Blesilla died at Rome in 383 at the early age of twenty.
See the Acta Sanctorum, January 22; and St Jerome’s letters nos. 37, 38 and 39. St Blesilla is of course referred to in the more detailed lives of St Jerome and St Paula.
380 St. Vincent of Digne Bishop of Digne France from Africa.
Originally from Africa, he became bishop of Digne later venerated as the patron saint of the city.
The Monk Martyr Anastasius, Deacon of the Kiev Caves
lived an ascetical life in the Near Caves.

The hieromonk Athanasius the Sooty calls him brother of St Titus the Presbyter (February 27). In the manuscripts of the saints he is called a deacon. In the Service to the Synaxis of the Fathers of the Near Caves, it says that the Monk Martyr Anastasius possessed such steadfastness in God, that he received everything he asked for.
His memory is celebrated also on September 28 and on the second Sunday of Great Lent.
This holy martyr of Christ one of 377 Christians who were captured in Thrace by the Bulgars.
and who were slain in various ways.
410 Saint Gaudentius, Bishop of Brescia from 387 successor of the writer on heresies, St. Philastrius
 Nováriæ sancti Gaudéntii, Epíscopi et Confessóris.
       At Novara, St. Gaudentius, bishop and confessor.

At the time of that saint's death Gaudentius was making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. The people of Brescia bound themselves by an oath that they would accept no other bishop than Gaudentius; and St. Ambrose and other neighbouring prelates, in consequence, obliged him to return, though against his will. The Eastern bishops also threatened to refuse him Communion if he did not obey. We possess the discourse which he made before St. Ambrose and other bishops on the occasion of his consecration, in which he excuses, on the plea of obedience, his youth and his presumption in speaking. He had brought back with him from the East many precious relics of St. John Baptist and of the Apostles, and especially of the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste, relics of whom he had received at Caesarea in Cappadocia from nieces of St. Basil. These and other relics from Milan and elsewhere he deposited in a basilica which he named Concilium Sanctorum. His sermon on its dedication is extant. From a letter of St. Chrysostom (Ep. clxxxiv) to Gaudentius it may be gathered that the two saints had met at Antioch. When St. Chrysostom had been condemned to exile and had appealed to Pope Innocent and the West in 405, Gaudentius warmly took his part. An embassy to the Eastern Emperor Arcadius from his brother Honorius and from the pope, bearing letters frorn both and from Italian bishops, consisted of Gaudentius and two other bishops. The envoys were seized at Athens and sent to Constantinople, being three days on a ship without food. They were not admitted into the city, but were shut up in a fortress called Athyra, on the coast of Thrace. Their credentials were seized by force, so that the thumb of one of the bishops was broken, and they were offered a large sum of money if they would communicate with Atticus, who had supplanted St. Chrysostom. They were consoled by God, and St. Paul appeared to a deacon amongst them. They were eventually put on board an unseaworthy vessel, and it was said that the captain had orders to wreck them. However, they arrived safe at Lampsacus, where they took ship for Italy, and arrived in twenty days at Otranto. Their own account of their four months' adventures has been preserved to us by Palladius (Dialogus, 4). St. Chrysostom wrote them several grateful letters.

We possess twenty-one genuine tractates by Gaudentius. The first ten are a series of Easter sermons, written down after delivery at the request of Benivolus, the chief of the Brescian nobility, who had been prevented by ill health from hearing them delivered. In the preface Gaudentius takes occasion to disown all unauthorized copies of his sermons published by shorthand writers. These pirated editions seem to have been known to Rufinus, who, in the dedication to St. Gaudentius of his translation of the pseudo-Clementine "Recognitions", praises the intellectual gifts of the Bishop of Brescia, saying that even his extempore speaking is worthy of publication and of preservation by posterity. The style of Gaudentius is simple, and his matter is good. His body lies at Brescia in the Church of St. John Baptist, on the site of the Concilium Sanctorum. His figure is frequently seen in the altar-pieces of the great Brescian painters, Moretto, Savoldo, and Romanino. The best edition of his works is by Galeardi (Padua, 1720, and in P.L., XX).
628 St. Anastasius XIV Martyr originally a Persian called Magundat monk in Jerusalem
 Apud Bethsáloen, in Assyria, sancti Anastásii Persæ Mónachi, qui, post plúrima torménta cárceris, vérberum et vinculórum, quæ in Cæsaréa Palæstínæ perpéssus fúerat, a Persárum Rege Chósroa multis pœnis afféctus, ad últimum decollátus est, cum prius septuagínta Sócios, qui fúerant in fluénta demérsi, ad martyrium præmisísset.  Ejus caput Romam, ad Aquas Sálvias, delátum est, una cum veneránda ejus imágine, cujus aspéctu fugári dæmones morbósque curári, Acta secúndi Concílii Nicǽni testántur.
       At Bethsaloen in Assyria, St. Anastasius, a Persian monk, who after suffering much at Caesarea in Palestine from imprisonment, stripes, and fetters, had to bear many afflictions from Chosroes, king of Persia, who caused him to be beheaded.  He had sent before him to martyrdom seventy of his companions, who were drowned in a river.  His head was brought to Rome, at Aquae Salviae, together with his revered image, by the sight of which demons are expelled, and diseases cured, as is attested by the Acts of the second Council of Nicea.
  
628 ST ANASTASIUS THE PERSIAN, MARTYR
THE wood of the cross of Christ when Chosroës carried it away into Persia in 614, after he had taken and plundered Jerusalem, nevertheless had its victories. Of one such victory Anastasius was the visible trophy. He was a young soldier in the Persian army. Upon hearing the news of the taking of the cross by his king, he grew inquisitive concerning the Christian religion, and its truths made such an impression on his mind that when he came back to Persia from an expedition he left the army and retired to Hieropolis. He lodged with a devout Persian Christian, a silversmith, with whom he often went to prayer. The sacred pictures that he saw made a great impression, and gave him occasion to inquire more, and to admire the courage of the martyrs whose sufferings were painted in the churches. At length he went to Jerusalem, where he received baptism from the bishop Modestus. In baptism he changed his Persian name Magundat into that of Anastasius, to remind him, according to the meaning of that Greek word, that he had risen from death to a new and spiritual life. The better to fulfil his baptismal vows and obligations, he asked to become a monk in a monastery near Jerusalem. The abbot made him first study Greek and learn the psalter by heart; then, cutting off his hair, he gave him the monastic habit in the year 621.
The future martyr’s first experiences of monastic life were not untroubled. He was assailed by all kinds of temptations, and by the recollection of the practices and superstitions, which his father had taught him. He met these by a frank disclosure to his confessor of all his difficulties, and by extreme earnestness in prayer and monastic duties. He was haunted, however, by an intense desire to give his life for Christ, and after a time he went to Caesarea, then under Persian rule. Having boldly denounced their religious rites and superstitions, he was arrested and brought before Marzabanes the governor, when he confessed his own Persian birth and conversion to Christianity. Marzabanes sentenced him to be chained by the foot to another criminal, and his neck and one foot to be also linked together by a heavy chain, and condemned him in this condition to carry stones. The governor sent for him a second time, but could not prevail with him to renounce his faith. The judge then threatened he would write to the king if he did not comply. “Write what you please”, said the saint, “I am a Christian I repeat it, I am a Christian.” Marzabanes ordered him to be beaten. The executioners were preparing to bind him on the ground, but the saint declared that he had courage enough to lie down under the punishment without moving; he only begged leave to put off his monk’s habit, lest it should be treated with contempt, which only his body deserved. Having removed his outer garment he stretched himself on the ground, and did not stir all the time the cruel torment continued. The governor again threatened to inform the king of his obstinacy. “Whom ought we rather to fear,” said Anastasius, “a mortal man, or God who made all things out of nothing?” The judge pressed him to sacrifice to fire, and to the sun and moon. The saint answered he could never acknowledge as Gods creatures that God had made only for our use: upon which he was remanded to prison.

His old abbot, hearing of his sufferings, sent two monks to assist him, and ordered prayers for him. The confessor, after carrying stones all the day, spent the greater part of the night in prayer, to the surprise of his companions, one of whom, a Jew, saw and showed him to others at prayer in the night, shining in brightness like a blessed spirit, and angels praying with him. As Anastasius was chained to a man condemned for a public crime, he prayed always with his neck bowed downwards, keeping his chained foot near his companion not to disturb him. Marzabanes let the martyr know that the king would be satisfied on condition he would only by word of mouth abjure the Christian faith, after which he might choose whether he would be an officer in the royal service or still remain a Christian and a monk, adding that he might in his heart always adhere to Christ, provided he would but for once renounce Him in words privately, in his presence, “in which”, he declared, “there could be no harm, nor any great injury to his Christ”. Anastasius answered firmly that he would never dissemble or seem to deny God. Then the governor told him that he had orders to send him bound into Persia to the king.
“There is no need of binding me,” said the saint. “I go willingly and cheerfully to suffer for Christ.” On the day appointed, the martyr left Caesarea with two other Christian prisoners, under guard, and was followed by one of the monks whom the abbot had sent. This monk afterwards wrote the acts of his martyrdom.
Being arrived at Bethsaloe in Assyria, near the Euphrates, where the king then was, the prisoners were thrown into a dungeon till his pleasure was known. An officer came from Chosroës to interrogate the saint, who made answer to his magnificent promises, “My poor religious habit shows that I despise from my heart the gaudy pomp of the world. The honours and riches of a king, who must shortly die himself, are no temptation to me.” Next day the officer returned and endeavoured to intimidate him by threats and upbraidings. But the saint said calmly, “Sir, do not give yourself so much trouble about me. By the grace of Christ I am not to be moved, so execute your pleasure without more ado.” The officer caused him to be unmercifully beaten with staves, after the Persian manner. This punishment was inflicted on three days; on the third the judge commanded him to be laid on his back, and a heavy beam pressed down by the weight of two men on his legs, crushing the flesh to the very bone. The martyr’s tranquillity and patience astonished the officer, who went again to make his report to Chosroës. In his absence the gaoler, being a Christian by profession, though too weak to resign his place rather than detain such a prisoner, gave everyone access to the martyr. The Christians immediately filled the prison; everyone sought to kiss his feet or chains, and kept as relics whatever had been sanctified by contact with him. The saint, confused and indignant, strove to hinder them, but could not. After further torments, Chosroës ordered that Anastasius and all the Christian captives should be put to death. Anastasius’s two companions, with three score and six other Christians, were strangled one after another, on the banks of the river, before his face. He himself with eyes lifted to Heaven, gave thanks to God for bringing his life to so happy an end, and said he looked for a more lingering death, but seeing that God granted him one so easy, he embraced with joy this ignominious punishment of slaves. He was accordingly strangled, and after his death his head was cut off.
This happened in the year 628, on January 22. Anastasius’s body, among the other dead, was exposed to be devoured by dogs, but it was the only one they left untouched. It was afterwards redeemed by the Christians, who laid it in the monastery of St Sergius, a mile from the place of his triumph, which from that mortastery was later on called Sergiopolis (now Rasapha, in Iraq). The monk who attended him brought back his colobium, a linen tunic without sleeves. The saint’s body was afterwards carried to Palestine; later it was removed to Constantinople, and lastly to Rome, where the relics were enshrined in the church of St Vincent. It is for this reason that these two quite unconnected martyrs are celebrated together in one feast.
The seventh general council convened against the Iconoclasts proved the use of sacred pictures from the miraculous image of this martyr, then kept at Rome and venerated together with his head. These are said to be still in the church that bears the name of SS. Vincent and Anastasius.

The Greek text of the Life of St Anastasius was published by H. Usener in 1894, and an early Latin version is in the Acta Sanctorum for January 22. A brief summary of the extracts read at the fourth session of the seventh oecumenical council in 787 will be found in Hefele-Leclercq, Conches, vol. iii, p. 766, and the whole in Mansi, Concilia, vol. xiii, pp. 21—24; BHG., n. 6; BHL., n. 68. It is very difficult to understand upon what grounds St Anastasius is stated in the Carmelite Martyrology to have been “a monk of the Carmelite Order”.  

Once a magician, Anastasius was a soldier in the army of King Khusrow II, ruler of Persia, when that ruler carried the Holy Cross from Jerusalem to Persia. He was so impressed with the relic and with the demeanor of the Christians that he left the army, became a Christian, and then a monk in Jerusalem. After seven years, Anastasius went to Persia to convert his own people. He was taken prisoner and promised honors by King Khusrow if he denied Christ. Remaining constant in the faith, Anastasius was strangled and beheaded with 68 or 70 other Christians on January 22, 628. His remains were taken to Palestine, and later Rome.

The Monk Martyr Anastasius the Persian was the son of a Persian sorcerer named Bavi. As a pagan, he had the name Magundates and served in the armies of the Persian emperor Chozroes II, who in 614 ravaged the city of Jerusalem and carried away the Life-Creating Cross of the Lord to Persia.

Great miracles occurred from the Cross of the Lord, and the Persians were astonished. The heart of young Magundates was inflamed with the desire to learn more about this sacred object. Asking everyone about the Holy Cross, the youth learned that upon it the Lord Himself was crucified for the salvation of mankind. He became acquainted with the truths of the Christian Faith in the city of Chalcedon, where the army of Chozroes was for a certain while. He was baptized with the name Anastasius, and then became a monk and spent seven years in one of the Jerusalem monasteries, living an ascetical life.

Reading the Lives of the holy martyrs, St Anastasius was inspired with the desire to imitate them. A mysterious dream, which he had on Great and Holy Saturday, the day before the Resurrection of Christ, urged him to do this.

Having fallen asleep after his daily tasks, he beheld a radiant man giving him a golden chalice filled with wine, who said to him, "Take this and drink." Draining the chalice, he felt an ineffable delight. St Anastasius then realized that this vision was his call to martyrdom.

He went secretly from the monastery to Palestinian Caesarea. There he was arrested for being a Christian, and was brought to trial. The governor tried in every way to force St Anastasius to renounce Christ, threatening him with tortures and death, and promising him earthly honors and blessings. The saint, however, remained unyielding. Then they subjected him to torture: they beat him with rods, they lacerated his knees, they hung him up by the hands and tied a heavy stone to his feet, they exhausted him with confinement, and then wore him down with heavy work in the stone quarry with other prisoners.

Finally, the governor summoned St Anastasius and promised him his freedom if he would only say, "I am not a Christian." The holy martyr replied, "I will never deny my Lord before you or anyone else, neither openly nor even while asleep. No one can compel me to do this while I am in my right mind." Then by order of the emperor Chozroes, St Anastasius was strangled, then beheaded. After the death of Chozroes, the relics of the Monk Martyr Anastasius were transferred to Palestine, to the Anastasius monastery.
680  Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad
Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad
 Shiite pilgrims participating in the Ashoura commemorations
The 10-day Ashoura marks the death of one of Shiite Islam's most sacred saints, Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and thousands of pilgrims are flocking to Karbala for the festivities.
The festival, largely banned by Saddam Hussein and his minority Sunni Muslim regime, recalls the death of Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, in a seventh century battle near Karbala.
The combat defined the split between Islam's Sunni and Shiite sects.


Shiite pilgrims crowd as performers re-enact the Battle of Karbala during Ashoura observances in Karbala, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, Jan. 19, 2008. Hundreds of thousands of Shiites beat their heads and chests and whipped themselves with chains across much of Iraq to honor martyrdom of Imam Hussein, one of their most revered saints.
Ashoura, the tenth day of the Islamic month of Muharram, is marked by Shiite believers as the day that Imam Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad and one of their most revered saints, was killed in the Battle of Karbala in the year 680 A.D.
Imam Hussein shrine during the Ashoura observance in Karbala, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Baghdad, Iraq,.
1031 St. Dominic of Sora Benedictine abbot founder.
 Soræ sancti Domínici Abbátis, miráculis clari.
       At Sora, the abbot St. Dominic, renowned for miracles.
Born in Foligno, Etruria, Italy, he established monasteries in the old kingdom of Naples. He died at Sora, in Campania.
 1031 ST DOMINIC OF SORA, ABBOT
IN the archives of Foligno in Etruria, the birthplace of this saint, it is stated that St Dominic’s intercession was frequently invoked as a protection against thunder­storms. There seems to be no indication of the origin of this practice. It may be due to some incident in his early life of which the record is lost, for authentic documents take up the story of his career from the time that he became a monk. The whole of St Dominic’s activities were devoted to the founding of Benedictine monasteries and churches in various parts of Italy, at Scandrilia, Sora, Sangro and in other towns. Each monastery that he founded was apparently given its own abbot, so that Dominic himself might be free to begin work in another place. The intervals between the various foundations were devoted to solitary prayer, until the saint received an intimation from God as to where he was to establish his next monastery. Yet in the midst of this busy life he found time to work for souls, and not infrequently the efforts he made to convert sinners were attended by striking miracles. Several of these are related by one who was probably an eye-witness, a monk named John, the disciple and constant companion of St Dominic. He died at the age of eighty in 1031 at Sora in Campania.

See the Acta Sanctorum, January, vols. ii and iii; Analecta Bollandiana, vol. (1882), pp. 279—322; and A. M. Zimmermann, Kalendarium benedictinum, vol. i (1933), pp. 114—117.

1045 St. Brithwald Benedictine bishop monk at Glastonbury visions and was a true prophet benefactor of Glastonbury Abbey in England.

Brithwald was a monk at Glastonbury when he was named bishop of Ramsbury in 1005. He eventually moved his see to Old Sarum. Both Glastonbury and Malmesbury abbeys were under his patronage. Brithwald had visions and was a true prophet. Saint Brihtwald (Berhtwald) was the last Bishop of Ramsbury, Wiltshire. After his death, the See was transferred to Old Sarum. 
Originally a monk of Glastonbury, he was renowned for his visions and prophecies. St Brihtwald died in 1045 and was buried in Glastonbury Abbey.
1045 ST BERHTWALD, BISHOP OF RAMSBURY
ST BERHTWALD had been a monk of Glastonbury, and in 1005 he was consecrated bishop of Ramsbury, or, as the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle phrases it, “he succeeded to the bishop’s stool of Wiltshire”. He was, in fact, the last bishop of Ramsbury, for in the time of his successor the see was removed to Old Sarum. Berhtwald, if we may trust the brief notices left us by William of Malmesbury and Simeon of Durham, seems to have been specially remembered by his contemporaries on account of his visions and prophecies, in which the Apostle St Peter was associated with the succession to the throne of St Edward the Confessor in 1042. St Berhtwald was a great benefactor to the abbey of Malmesbury as well as to his own abbey of Glastonbury, in which last he was buried after his death in 1045.
See Stanton, Menology, pp. 35—32; DNB., vol. vi, p. 344. There seems to have been no public cultus.
1592 Bl. William Patensona priest English martyr converted six other prisoners
Born at Durham, he departed his homeland and studied at Reims before receiving ordination there in 1587. The following year he sailed home and worked to promote the Catholic cause in the dangerous atmosphere of Elizabethan England. Arrested in 1591, he was tried and condemned for being a priest and was hanged, drawn, and quartered at Tyburn.
During his imprisonment, he converted six other prisoners to the Catholic faith. Beatified in 1929.
1592 BD WILLIAM PATENSON, MARTYR
WILLIAM PATENSON was a native of Durham. He studied for the priesthood at Rheims, where he was ordained in 1587 and was sent on the English mission fifteen months later. He ministered for a time in the western counties, but it was in London that he was arrested, just before the Christmas of 1591. He had celebrated Mass at a house in Clerkenwell, and was breaking his fast with another priest when the pursuivants broke in. The other priest, Mr Young, got away, but Mr Patenson was taken, and brought up and condemned at the Old Bailey for being a seminary priest. There are two accounts of his zeal for the criminals with whom he was during his short time in prison: according to one of them he spent his last night in the condemned cell with seven convicted felons, and of these he brought six to repentance and the Church, so that they died publicly professing the Catholic faith. In consequence of this Bd William Patenson’s execution at Tyburn was carried out deliberately without any mitigation of its atrocious cruelties, on January 22, 1592.
See MMP., pp. 185—186; Pollen’s Acts of English Martyrs; and Catholic Record Society’s publications, vol. v.
1623 Saint Macarius of Zhabyn, Wonderworker of Belev incorrupt relics appeared to the participants
born in the year 1539. In his early years he was tonsured with the name Onuphrius, and in the year 1585 he founded Zhabyn's Monastery of the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple near the River Oka, not far from the city of Belev. In 1615 the monastery was completely destroyed by Polish soldiers under the command of Lisovski. Returning to the charred remains, the monk began to restore the monastery. He again gathered the brethren, and in place of the wooden church a stone church was built in honor of the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple (November 21), with a bell-tower at the gates.
The saint spent his life in austere monastic struggles, suffering cold, heat, hunger and thirst, as the monastery accounts relate. He often went deep into the forest, where he prayed to God in solitude. Once, when he was following a path in the forest, he heard a faint moaning. He looked around and saw a weary Polish man reclining against a tree trunk, with his sabre beside him. He had strayed from his regiment and had become lost in the forest. In a barely audible voice this enemy, who might have been one of the destroyers of the monastery, asked for a drink of water. Love and sympathy surged up within the monk. With a prayer to the Lord, he plunged his staff into the ground. At once, a fresh spring of water gushed forth, and he gave the dying man a drink.
When both the external and internal life of the monastery had been restored, St Onuphrius withdrew from the general monastic life, and having entrusted the guidance of the brethren to one of his disciples, he took the schema with the name Macarius. For the place of his solitude, he choose a spot along the upper tributary of the River Zhabynka. About one verst separated the mouth of the tributary and the banks of the River Oka.

The ascetical struggles of St Macarius were concealed not only from the world, but also from his beloved brethren. He died in 1623 at the age of eighty-four, at the hour when the roosters start to crow. He was buried opposite the gates of the monastery on January 22, the commemoration of St Timothy, where a church was later built and named for him.

The Iconographic Originals has preserved a description of St Macarius in his last years: he had gray hair with a small beard, and over his monastic riassa he wore the schema. Veneration of St Macarius was established at the end of the seventeenth century, or the beginning of the eighteenth. According to Tradition, his relics remained uncovered, but by 1721 they were interred in a crypt.

In the eighteenth century the monastery became deserted. The memory of his deeds and miracles was so completely forgotten, that when the incorrupt relics of the monastery's founder were uncovered during the construction of the church of St Nicholas in 1816, a general panikhida was served over them. The restoration of the liturgical commemoration of St Macarius of Belev is credited to Igumen Jonah, who was born on January 22 (the Feast of St Macarius), and who began his own monastic journey at the Optina monastery not far from the Zhabyn monastery.

In 1875 Igumen Jonah became head of the Zhabyn monastery. His request to re-establish the Feast of St Macarius was strengthened by the petition of the people of Belev, who through the centuries had preserved their faith in the saint. On January 22, 1888, the annual commemoration of St Macarius of Zhabyn was resumed.

In 1889, a church dedicated to St Macarius was built at his tomb. Igumen Jonah, who lived at the monastery and actually participated in the construction, decided that in addition to the building project, the holy relics of St Macarius would also be uncovered. When everything was on the point of readiness, St Macarius appeared to the participants and sternly warned them that they should not proceed with their intention, or they would be punished. The memory of this appearance was reverently preserved among the monks of the monastery.
St Macarius of Zhabynsk is also commemorated on September 22.
1745 St. Francis Gil de Frederich Dominican martyr of Tonkin, China, and Vietnam
Born in Tortossa, Spain in 1702, Francis entered the Dominicans in Barcelona and was assigned to the Philippine missions. In 1732, he went to Tonkin and labored there. Arrested, he was a prisoner for several years and was beheaded. Francis was canonized in 1988.
1745 St. Matthew Alonso Leziniana Dominican martyr of Vietnam
 He was born in Navas del Rey in Spain and became a Dominican priest. Assigned originally to the Philippines, he was sent later to Vietnam where he was beheaded during the anti-Christian oppression. Pope John Paul II canonized him in 1988.
1850 St. Vincent Pallotti Priest spent huge sums for the poor/underprivileged; St Vincent foresaw all Catholic Action, even its name, said Pius XI; and Cardinal Pellegrinetti added, “He did all that he could; as for what he couldn’t do—well, he did that too.”
St. Vincent Pallotti, Priest Born in Rome in 1795, St. Vincent became a priest and dedicated himself completely to God and cared for souls. He dreamed of gaining for Christ all non-Catholics, especially the Mohammedans. To this end he inaugurated a revolutionary program which envisaged the collaboration of the laity in the apostolate of the clergy. But St. Vincent was also well aware of the many deprivations in the natural sphere that hindered the spread of the Faith. He thus obtained and spent huge sums for the poor and underprivileged. He founded guilds for workers, agriculture schools, loan associations, orphanages and homes for girls - all of which made him the pioneer and precursor of Catholic Action. His great legacy was the congregation which he founded for urban mission work, known as the "Society for Catholic Action". This indefatigable laborer for Christ in 1850 from a severe cold which he most likely caught on a cold rainy night after giving his cloak to a beggar who had none.

1850 St Vincent Pallotti, Founder of The Society of Catholic Apostolate
St Vincent Pallotti anticipated by a century the ideas of organized Catholic Action as set forth by Pope Pius XI, who called him its” pioneer and forerunner.”
At a time when anything approaching an active apostolate was deemed to be purely the concern of clergy and religious, Don Pallotti envisaged a programme under three heads: A world-wide apostolate of all Catholics for the spreading of the faith among those who have it not; a similar apostolate for the confirming and deepening of the faith of Catholics themselves; a world-wide exercise of the works of mercy, spiritual and temporal. His own contribution to this programme was first of all his own life; secondly, his inspiration of others with his ideas and aspirations; thirdly, the establishment of a society of priests and brothers living the common life without vows, helped by an institute of sisters and by affiliated clergy and lay people. This organization he called the Society of Catholic Apostolate.* {* Exception was taken to this name and it was changed to “ Pious Society of Missions in 1947 the original name was revived. The work of the Pallottini among immigrants is especially notable. They serve the English church at Rome, San Silvestro in Capite.}
Vincent Pallotti was born in Rome, son of a well-to-do grocer, in 1795, and his vocation to the priesthood was foreshadowed at an early age, His beginnings at school were disappointing: “He’s a little saint”, said his master, Don Fern, “but a bit thick-headed”. However, he soon picked up, and was ordained priest when he was only twenty-three. He took his doctorate in theology soon after, and became an assistant professor at the Sapienza. Pallotti’s close friendship with St Caspar del Bufalo increased his apostolic zeal, and he eventually resigned his post to devote himself to active pastoral work.
Don Pallotti was in very great repute as a confessor, and filled this office at several Roman colleges, including the Scots, the Irish and the English, where he became a friend of the rector, Nicholas Wiseman. But he was not appreciated everywhere. When he was appointed to the Neapolitan church in Rome he endured persecution from the other clergy there of which the particulars pass belief. Equally astonishing is it that this went on for ten years before the authorities took official notice and brought the scandal to an end. Bd Vincent’s most implacable tormentor, the vice-rector of the church, lived to give evidence for him at the informative process of his beatification. “Don Pallotti never gave the least ground for the ill-treatment to which he was subjected”, he declared, “He always treated me with the greatest respect; he bared his head when he spoke to me, he even several times tried to kiss my hand.”
St Vincent began his organized work for conversion and social justice with a group of clergy and lay people, from whom the Society of Catholic Apostolate developed in 1835. He wrote to a young professor: “You are not cut out for the silence and austerities of Trappists and hermits. Be holy in the world, in your social relationships, in your work and your leisure, in your teaching duties and your contacts with publicans and sinners. Holiness is simply to do God’s will, always and everywhere.”

Pallotti himself organized schools for shoemakers, tailors, coachmen, joiners and market-gardeners, to improve their general education and pride in their trade; he started evening classes for young workers, and an institute to teach better methods to young agriculturalists. But he never lost sight of the wider aspects of his mission. In 1836 he inaugurated the observance of the Epiphany octave by the celebration of the Mysteries each day with a different rite, in special supplication for the reunion of Eastern dissidents: this was settled at the church of Sant’ Andrea delle Valle in 1847, and has continued there annually ever since.

It was well said that in Don Pallotti Rome had a second Philip Neri. How many times he came home half naked because he had given his clothes away; how many sinners did he reconcile, on one occasion dressing up as an old woman to get to the bedside of a man who threatened—-and meant it—to shoot the first priest who came near him; he was in demand as an exorcist, he had knowledge beyond this world’s means, he healed the sick with an encouragement or a blessing.
St Vincent foresaw all Catholic Action, even its name, said Pius XI; and Cardinal Pellegrinetti added, “He did all that he could; as for what he couldn’t do—well, he did that too.”

St Vincent Pallotti died when he was only fifty-five, on January 22, 1850. The chill that developed into pleurisy was perhaps brought on by giving away his cloak before a long sitting in a cold confessional. When viaticum was brought he stretched out his arms and murmured, “Jesus, bless the congregation: a blessing of goodness, a blessing of wisdom…He had not the strength to finish, “a blessing of power”. He was beatified one hundred years later to the day, and canonized in 1963 during the Second Vatican Council.
There are biographies in Italian by Orlandi and others, and a useful sketch in French by Maria Winowska (1950). The life by Lady Herbert was revised and reissued in America in 1942.
From Rome, Vincenzo Pallotti worked selflessly looking after the poor in the urban areas of the city for most of his life. He had an intense devotion to the mystery of the Most Blessed Trinity, and to the Virgin Mary. His contemporaries, including the pope, considered him a saint during his life. He longed to send missionaries to other parts of the world and founded the Union of Catholic Apostolate, the Society of the Catholic Apostolate that became the Pious Society of Missions. He strongly believed, in the spirit of St. Paul, that God wanted to save all people, and it was his intention to start a Catholic Apostolic Society. Although his visionary desire to unite the factions in the Church and to encourage lay apostolic activity did not bear fruit within his lifetime, he did his utmost to encourage this vision in others. Pallotti was in fact deemed a patron of Vatican II for his efforts toward building unity in the Church through such practices as inviting the people of his community to worship in the Roman parishes of Eastern Catholic Churches.

It does appear that his 'Society of the Catholic Apostolate' was suppressed by Pope Gregory. It offended some of the sensibilities of Roman society. Dr. Gaynor seems to suggest that the Jansenists were at work in this. The Decree of dissolution fell into disuse (went into limbo), when the Pope was enlightened as to the good work done by the Society. However, as soon as Vincent died in 1850 there was more trouble and presumably the original Decree of dissolition was unearthed. When Vincent's last defender Cardinal Lambruscini died in 1854, the name of the Society was abruptly changed to "The Pious Society of Missions". This lasted until 1947 when "by a gracious act of the Holy See" the original name of the society was restored.

When Pallotti's body was exhumed in 1906 and 1950, examiners found his body to be completely incorrupt (see Dr. Gaynor's book), a sign of holiness in the tradition of the Roman Catholic Church. His body is enshrined in the church of San Salvatore in Onda, in Rome, where it can be seen, still intact. He was canonized in the year 1963 by Pope John XXIII.

His followers are the Pallottines, still operating internationally. They follow his motto, "The love of Christ impels us" (Caritas Christi Urget Nos). Members of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate work as everyday missionaries to "renew faith and rekindle love." They work to fulfill the mission of their founder in the modern world. The Pallottines have major houses in Britain, Germany, New York, Poland, India, Ireland and several other locations.

During the Christmas Season, a Nativity scene that Saint Vincent himself made is put on display at the Vatican, in the Basilica's Square, before the Christmas Tree. Vincent promoted the celebration of the Octave of the Epiphany as an act of unity with his Orthodox brethren who celebrate Christmas on Jan 6th.


THE PSALTER OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY PSALM 73

Judge me, O Lady, and discern my cause from the perverse nation:
 from the malignant serpent and the pestiferous dragon deliver me.

Let thy holy fecundity scatter him: let thy blessed virginity bruise his head.

Let thy holy prayers strengthen us against him: let thy merits put to nought his strength.

Send the persecutor of my soul into the abyss: let the infernal pit swallow him alive.

But I and my soul will bless thy name in the land of my captivity: and I will glorify thee forever and ever.

Let every spirit praise Our Lady

For thy spirit is kind: thy grace fills the whole world.

Thunder, ye heavens, from above, and give praise to her: glorify her, ye earth, with all the dwellers therein.

 Rejoice, ye Heavens, and be glad, O Earth: because Mary will console her servants and will have mercy on her poor.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost as it was in the beginning and will always be.
God loves variety. He doesn't mass-produce his saints. Every saint is unique, for each is the result of a new idea. 
As the liturgy says: Non est inventus similis illis--there are no two exactly alike. It is we with our lack of imagination, who paint the same haloes on all the saints. Dear Lord, grant us a spirit that is not bound by our own ideas and preferences. 
Grant that we may be able to appreciate in others what we lack in ourselves. O Lord, grant that we may understand that every saint must be a unique praise of Your glory. Catholic saints are holy people and human people who lived extraordinary lives.  Each saint the Church honors responded to God's invitation to use his or her unique gifts.   God calls each one of us to be a saint in order to get into heaven:  only saints are allowed into heaven.
The more "extravagant" graces are bestowed NOT for the benefit of the recipients so much as FOR the benefit of others.
There are over 10,000 named saints beati  from history
 and Roman Martyology Orthodox sources
Patron_Saints.html  Widowed_Saints html  Indulgences The Catholic Church in China
LINKS: Marian Shrines   India Marian Shrine Lourdes of the East   Lourdes 1858  China Marian shrines 1995
Kenya national Marian shrine  Loreto, Italy  Marian Apparitions (over 2000)  Quang Tri Vietnam La Vang 1798
  Links to Related MarianWebsites  Angels and Archangels  Saints Visions of Heaven and Hell
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The great psalm of the Passion, Chapter 22, whose first verse “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
Jesus pronounced on the cross, ended with the vision: “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord;
and all the families of the nations shall worship before him” For kingship belongs to the LORD, the ruler over the nations. All who sleep in the earth will bow low before God; All who have gone down into the dust will kneel in homage. And I will live for the LORD; my descendants will serve you. The generation to come will be told of the Lord, that they may proclaim to a people yet unborn the deliverance you have brought.
Pope Benedict XVI to The Catholic Church In China {whole article here} 2000 years of the Catholic Church in China
The saints “a cloud of witnesses over our head”, showing us life of Christian perfection is possible.

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Saint Frances Xavier Seelos  Practical Guide to Holiness
1. Go to Mass with deepest devotion. 2. Spend a half hour to reflect upon your main failing & make resolutions to avoid it.
3. Do daily spiritual reading for at least 15 minutes, if a half hour is not possible.  4. Say the rosary every day.
5. Also daily, if at all possible, visit the Blessed Sacrament; toward evening, meditate on the Passion of Christ for a half hour, 6.  Conclude the day with evening prayer & an examination of conscience over all the faults & sins of the day.
7.  Every month make a review of the month in confession.
8. Choose a special patron every month & imitate that patron in some special virtue.
9. Precede every great feast with a novena that is nine days of devotion. 10. Try to begin & end every activity with a Hail Mary
My God, I believe, I adore, I trust and I love Thee.  I beg pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not
O most Holy trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore Thee profoundly.  I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the Tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference by which He is offended, and by the infite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  I beg the conversion of poor sinners,  Fatima Prayer, Angel of Peace
The voice of the Father is heard, the Son enters the water, and the Holy Spirit appears in the form of a dove.
THE spirit and example of the world imperceptibly instil the error into the minds of many that there is a kind of middle way of going to Heaven; and so, because the world does not live up to the gospel, they bring the gospel down to the level of the world. It is not by this example that we are to measure the Christian rule, but words and life of Christ. All His followers are commanded to labour to become perfect even as our heavenly Father is perfect, and to bear His image in our hearts that we may be His children. We are obliged by the gospel to die to ourselves by fighting self-love in our hearts, by the mastery of our passions, by taking on the spirit of our Lord.
   These are the conditions under which Christ makes His promises and numbers us among His children, as is manifest from His words which the apostles have left us in their inspired writings. Here is no distinction made or foreseen between the apostles or clergy or religious and secular persons. The former, indeed, take upon themselves certain stricter obligations, as a means of accomplishing these ends more perfectly; but the law of holiness and of disengagement of the heart from the world is general and binds all the followers of Christ.
God loves variety. He doesn't mass-produce his saints. Every saint is unique each the result of a new idea.
As the liturgy says: Non est inventus similis illis--there are no two exactly alike.
It is we with our lack of imagination, who paint the same haloes on all the saints.
Dear Lord, grant us a spirit not bound by our own ideas and preferences.
 Grant that we may be able to appreciate in others what we lack in ourselves.
O Lord, grant that we may understand that every saint must be a unique praise of Your glory.
 Catholic saints are holy people and human people who lived extraordinary lives.
Each saint the Church honors responded to God's invitation to use his or her unique gifts.
The 15 Promises of the Virgin Mary to those who recite the Rosary ) Revealed to St. Dominic and Blessed Alan)
1.    Whoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall receive signal graces. 2.    I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all those who shall recite the Rosary. 3.    The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies. 4.    It will cause virtue and good works to flourish; it will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of people from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire of eternal things.  Oh, that soul would sanctify them by this means.  5.    The soul that recommends itself to me by the recitation of the Rosary shall not perish. 6.    Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying themselves to the consideration of its Sacred Mysteries shall never be conquered by misfortune.  God will not chastise them in His justice, they shall not perish by an unprovided death; if they be just, they shall remain in the grace of God, and become worthy of eternal life. 7.    Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church. 8.    Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plentitude of His graces; at the moment of death they shall participate in the merits of the Saints in Paradise. 9.    I shall deliver from purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary. 10.    The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in Heaven.  11.    You shall obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary. 12.    I shall aid all those who propagate the Holy Rosary in their necessities. 13.    I have obtained from my Divine Son that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors the entire celestial court during their life and at the hour of death. 14.    All who recite the Rosary are my children, and brothers and sisters of my only Son, Jesus Christ. 15.    Devotion to my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.
His Holiness Aram I, current (2013) Catholicos of Cilicia of Armenians, whose See is located in Lebanese town of Antelias. The Catholicosate was founded in Sis, capital of Cilicia, in the year 1441 following the move of the Catholicosate of All Armenians back to its original See of Etchmiadzin in Armenia. The Catholicosate of Cilicia enjoyed local jurisdiction, though spiritually subject to the authority of Etchmiadzin. In 1921 the See was transferred to Aleppo in Syria, and in 1930 to Antelias.
Its jurisdiction currently extends to Syria, Cyprus, Iran and Greece.
Aramaic dialect of Edessa, now known as Syriac
The exact date of the introduction of Christianity into Edessa {Armenian Ourhaï in Arabic Er Roha, commonly Orfa or Urfa, its present name} is not known. It is certain, however, that the Christian community was at first made up from the Jewish population of the city. According to an ancient legend, King Abgar V, Ushana, was converted by Addai, who was one of the seventy-two disciples. In fact, however, the first King of Edessa to embrace the Christian Faith was Abgar IX (c. 206) becoming official kingdom religion.
Christian council held at Edessa early as 197 (Eusebius, Hist. Ecc7V,xxiii).
In 201 the city was devastated by a great flood, and the Christian church was destroyed (“Chronicon Edessenum”, ad. an. 201).
In 232 the relics of the Apostle St. Thomas were brought from India, on which occasion his Syriac Acts were written.

Under Roman domination martyrs suffered at Edessa: Sts. Scharbîl and Barsamya, under Decius; Sts. Gûrja, Schâmôna, Habib, and others under Diocletian. 
In the meanwhile Christian priests from Edessa evangelized Eastern Mesopotamia and Persia, established the first Churches in the kingdom of the Sassanides.  Atillâtiâ, Bishop of Edessa, assisted at the Council of Nicæa (325). The “Peregrinatio Silviæ” (or Etheriæ) (ed. Gamurrini, Rome, 1887, 62 sqq.) gives an account of the many sanctuaries at Edessa about 388.
Although Hebrew had been the language of the ancient Israelite kingdom, after their return from Exile the Jews turned more and more to Aramaic, using it for parts of the books of Ezra and Daniel in the Bible. By the time of Jesus, Aramaic was the main language of Palestine, and quite a number of texts from the Dead Sea Scrolls are also written in Aramaic.
Aramaic continued to be an important language for Jews, alongside Hebrew, and parts of the Talmud are written in it.
After Arab conquests of the seventh century, Arabic quickly replaced Aramaic as the main language of those who converted to Islam, although in out of the way places, Aramaic continued as a vernacular language of Muslims.
Aramaic, however, enjoyed its greatest success in Christianity. Although the New Testament wins written in Greek, Christianity had come into existence in an Aramaic-speaking milieu, and it was the Aramaic dialect of Edessa, now known as Syriac, that became the literary language of a large number of Christians living in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire and in the Persian Empire, further east. Over the course of the centuries the influence of the Syriac Churches spread eastwards to China (in Xian, in western China, a Chinese-Syriac inscription dated 781 is still to be seen); to southern India where the state of Kerala can boast more Christians of Syriac liturgical tradition than anywhere else in the world.

680 Shiite saint Imam Hussein, grandson of Islam's Prophet Muhammad Known as Ashoura and observed by Shiites across the world, the 10th day of the lunar Muslim month of Muharram: the anniversary of the 7th century death in battle of one of Shiite Islam's most beloved saints.  Imam Hussein died in the 680 A.D. battle fought on the plains outside Karbala, a city in modern Iraq that's home to the saint's shrine.  The battle over a dispute about the leadership of the Muslim faith following Muhammad's death in 632 A.D. It is the defining event in Islam's split into Sunni and Shiite branches.  The occasion is the source of an enduring moral lesson. "He sacrificed his blood to teach us not to give in to corruption, coercion, or use of force and to seek honor and justice."  According to Shiite beliefs, Hussein and companions were denied water by enemies who controlled the nearby Euphrates.  Streets get partially covered with blood from slaughter of hundreds of cows and sheep. Volunteers cook the meat and feed it to the poor.  Hussein's martyrdom recounted through a rich body of prose, poetry and song remains an inspirational example of sacrifice to many Shiites, 10 percent of the world's estimated 1.3 billion Muslims.
Meeting of the Saints  walis (saints of Allah)
Great men covet to embrace martyrdom for a cause and principle.
So was the case with Hazrat Ali. He could have made a compromise with the evil forces of his time and, as a result, could have led a very comfortable, easy and luxurious life.  But he was not a person who would succumb to such temptations. His upbringing, his education and his training in the lap of the holy Prophet made him refuse such an offer.
Rabia Al-Basri (717–801 C.E.) She was first to set forth the doctrine of mystical love and who is widely considered to be the most important of the early Sufi poets. An elderly Shia pointed out that during his pre-Partition childhood it was quite common to find pictures and portraits of Shia icons in Imambaras across the country.
Shah Abdul Latif: The Exalted Sufi Master born 1690 in a Syed family; died 1754. In ancient times, Sindh housed the exemplary Indus Valley Civilisation with Moenjo Daro as its capital, and now, it is the land of a culture which evolved from the teachings of eminent Sufi saints. Pakistan is home to the mortal remains of many Sufi saints, the exalted among them being Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, a practitioner of the real Islam, philosopher, poet, musicologist and preacher. He presented his teaching through poetry and music - both instruments sublime - and commands a very large following, not only among Muslims but also among Hindus and Christians. Sindh culture: The Shah is synonymous with Sindh. He is the very fountainhead of Sindh's culture. His message remains as fresh as that of any present day poet, and the people of Sindh find solace from his writings. He did indeed think for Sindh. One of his prayers, in exquisite Sindhi, translates thus: “Oh God, may ever You on Sindh bestow abundance rare! Beloved! All the world let share Thy grace, and fruitful be.”
Shia Ali al-Hadi, died 868 and son Hassan al-Askari 874. These saints are the 10th and 11th of Shia's 12 most revered Imams. Baba Farid Sufi 1398 miracle, Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki renowned Muslim Sufi saint scholar miracles 569 A.H. [1173 C.E.] hermit gave to poor, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti greatest mystic of his time born 533 Hijri (1138-39 A.D.), Hazrat Ghuas-e Azam, Hazrat Bu Ali Sharif, and Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Sufi Saint Hazrath Khwaja Syed Mohammed Badshah Quadri Chisty Yamani Quadeer (RA) 1236-1325 welcomed people of all faiths & all walks of life.
801 Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya Sufi One of the most famous Islamic mystics
(b. 717). This 8th century saint was an early Sufi who had a profound influence on later Sufis, who in turn deeply influenced the European mystical love and troubadour traditions.  Rabi'a was a woman of Basra, a seaport in southern Iraq.  She was born around 717 and died in 801 (185-186).  Her biographer, the great medieval poet Attar, tells us that she was "on fire with love and longing" and that men accepted her "as a second spotless Mary" (186).  She was, he continues, “an unquestioned authority to her contemporaries" (218).
Rabi'a began her ascetic life in a small desert cell near Basra, where she lost herself in prayer and went straight to God for teaching.  As far as is known, she never studied under any master or spiritual director.  She was one of the first of the Sufis to teach that Love alone was the guide on the mystic path (222).  A later Sufi taught that there were two classes of "true believers": one class sought a master as an intermediary between them and God -- unless they could see the footsteps of the Prophet on the path before them, they would not accept the path as valid.  The second class “...did not look before them for the footprint of any of God's creatures, for they had removed all thought of what He had created from their hearts, and concerned themselves solely with God. (218)
Rabi'a was of this second kind.  She felt no reverence even for the House of God in Mecca:  "It is the Lord of the house Whom I need; what have I to do with the house?" (219) One lovely spring morning a friend asked her to come outside to see the works of God.  She replied, "Come you inside that you may behold their Maker.  Contemplation of the Maker has turned me aside from what He has made" (219).  During an illness, a friend asked this woman if she desired anything.
"...[H]ow can you ask me such a question as 'What do I desire?'  I swear by the glory of God that for twelve years I have desired fresh dates, and you know that in Basra dates are plentiful, and I have not yet tasted them.  I am a servant (of God), and what has a servant to do with desire?" (162)
When a male friend once suggested she should pray for relief from a debilitating illness, she said,
"O Sufyan, do you not know Who it is that wills this suffering for me?  Is it not God Who wills it?  When you know this, why do you bid me ask for what is contrary to His will?  It is not  well to oppose one's Beloved." (221)
She was an ascetic.  It was her custom to pray all night, sleep briefly just before dawn, and then rise again just as dawn "tinged the sky with gold" (187).  She lived in celibacy and poverty, having renounced the world.  A friend visited her in old age and found that all she owned were a reed mat, screen, a pottery jug, and a bed of felt which doubled as her prayer-rug (186), for where she prayed all night, she also slept briefly in the pre-dawn chill.  Once her friends offered to get her a servant; she replied,
"I should be ashamed to ask for the things of this world from Him to Whom the world belongs, and how should I ask for them from those to whom it does not belong?"  (186-7)
A wealthy merchant once wanted to give her a purse of gold.  She refused it, saying that God, who sustains even those who dishonor Him, would surely sustain her, "whose soul is overflowing with love" for Him.  And she added an ethical concern as well:
"...How should I take the wealth of someone of whom I do not know whether he acquired it lawfully or not?" (187)
She taught that repentance was a gift from God because no one could repent unless God had already accepted him and given him this gift of repentance.  She taught that sinners must fear the punishment they deserved for their sins, but she also offered such sinners far more hope of Paradise than most other ascetics did.  For herself, she held to a higher ideal, worshipping God neither from fear of Hell nor from hope of Paradise, for she saw such self-interest as unworthy of God's servants; emotions like fear and hope were like veils -- i.e., hindrances to the vision of God Himself.  The story is told that once a number of Sufis saw her hurrying on her way with water in one hand and a burning torch in the other.  When they asked her to explain, she said:
"I am going to light a fire in Paradise and to pour water on to Hell, so that both veils may vanish altogether from before the pilgrims and their purpose may be sure..." (187-188)
She was once asked where she came from.  "From that other world," she said.  "And where are you going?" she was asked.  "To that other world," she replied (219).  She taught that the spirit originated with God in "that other world" and had to return to Him in the end.  Yet if the soul were sufficiently purified, even on earth, it could look upon God unveiled in all His glory and unite with him in love.  In this quest, logic and reason were powerless.  Instead, she speaks of the "eye" of her heart which alone could apprehend Him and His mysteries (220).
Above all, she was a lover, a bhakti, like one of Krishna’s Goptis in the Hindu tradition.  Her hours of prayer were not so much devoted to intercession as to communion with her Beloved.  Through this communion, she could discover His will for her.  Many of her prayers have come down to us:
       "I have made Thee the Companion of my heart,
        But my body is available for those who seek its company,
        And my body is friendly towards its guests,
        But the Beloved of my heart is the Guest of my soul."  [224]
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Mother Angelica saving souls is this beautiful womans journey  Shrine_of_The_Most_Blessed_Sacrament
Colombia was among the countries Mother Angelica visited. 
In Bogotá, a Salesian priest - Father Juan Pablo Rodriguez - brought Mother and the nuns to the Sanctuary of the Divine Infant Jesus to attend Mass.  After Mass, Father Juan Pablo took them into a small Shrine which housed the miraculous statue of the Child Jesus. Mother Angelica stood praying at the side of the statue when suddenly the miraculous image came alive and turned towards her.  Then the Child Jesus spoke with the voice of a young boy:  “Build Me a Temple and I will help those who help you.” 

Thus began a great adventure that would eventually result in the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament, a Temple dedicated to the Divine Child Jesus, a place of refuge for all. Use this link to read a remarkable story about The Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament
Father Reardon, Editor of The Catholic Bulletin for 14 years Lover of the poor; “A very Holy Man of God.”
Monsignor Reardon Protonotarius Apostolicus
  Pastor 42 years BASILICA OF SAINT MARY Minneapolis MN
America's First Basilica Largest Nave in the World
August 7, 1907-ground broke for the foundation
by Archbishop Ireland-laying cornerstone May 31, 1908
James M. Reardon Publication History of Basilica of Saint Mary 1600-1932
James M. Reardon Publication  History of the Basilica of Saint Mary 1955 {update}

Brief History of our Beloved Holy Priest Here and his published books of Catholic History in North America
Reardon, J.M. Archbishop Ireland; Prelate, Patriot, Publicist, 1838-1918.
A Memoir (St. Paul; 1919); George Anthony Belcourt Pioneer Catholic Missionary of the Northwest 1803-1874 (1955);
The Catholic Church IN THE DIOCESE OF ST. PAUL from earliest origin to centennial achievement 1362-1950 (1952);
The Church of Saint Mary of Saint Paul 1875-1922;  (1932)
The Vikings in the American Heartland;
The Catholic Total Abstinence Society in Minnesota;
James Michael Reardon Born in Nova Scotia, 1872;  Priest, ordained by Bishop Ireland;
Member -- St. Paul Seminary faculty.
Affiliations and Indulgences  Litany of Loretto in Stained glass windows here.  Nave Sacristy and Residence Here
Sanctuary spaces between them filled with grilles of hand-forged wrought iron the life of our Blessed Lady After the crucifixon
Apostle statues Replicas of those in St John Lateran--Christendom's earliest Basilica.
Ordered by Rome's first Christian Emperor, Constantine the Great, Popes' cathedral and official residence first millennium of Christian history.
The only replicas ever made:  in order from west to east {1932}.
Every Christian must be a living book wherein one can read the teaching of the gospel
 It Makes No Sense Not To Believe In GOD
THE BLESSED MOTHER AND ISLAM By Father John Corapi. 
  June 19, Trinity Sunday, 1991: Ordained Catholic Priest under Pope John Paul II;
then 2,000,000 miles delivering the Gospel to millions, and continues to do so.
By Father John Corapi
THE BLESSED MOTHER AND ISLAM By Father John Corapi. 
  June 19, Trinity Sunday, 1991: Ordained Catholic Priest under Pope John Paul II;
then 2,000,000 miles delivering the Gospel to millions, and continues to do so.
By Father John Corapi
Among the most important titles we have in the Catholic Church for the Blessed Virgin Mary are Our Lady of Victory and Our Lady of the Rosary. These titles can be traced back to one of the most decisive times in the history of the world and Christendom. The Battle of Lepanto took place on October 7 (date of feast of Our Lady of Rosary), 1571. This proved to be the most crucial battle for the Christian forces against the radical Muslim navy of Turkey. Pope Pius V led a procession around St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City praying the Rosary. He showed true pastoral leadership in recognizing the danger posed to Christendom by the radical Muslim forces, and in using the means necessary to defeat it. Spiritual battles require spiritual weapons, and this more than anything was a battle that had its origins in the spiritual order—a true battle between good and evil.

Today we have a similar spiritual battle in progress—a battle between the forces of good and evil, light and darkness, truth and lies, life and death. If we do not soon stop the genocide of abortion in the United States, we shall run the course of all those that prove by their actions that they are enemies of God—total collapse, economic, social, and national. The moral demise of a nation results in the ultimate demise of a nation. God is not a disinterested spectator to the affairs of man. Life begins at conception. This is an unalterable formal teaching of the Catholic Church. If you do not accept this you are a heretic in plain English. A single abortion is homicide. The more than 48,000,000 abortions since Roe v. Wade in the United States constitute genocide by definition. The group singled out for death—unwanted, unborn children.

No other issue, not all other issues taken together, can constitute a proportionate reason for voting for candidates that intend to preserve and defend this holocaust of innocent human life that is abortion.
As we watch the spectacle of the world seeming to self-destruct before our eyes, we can’t help but be saddened and even frightened by so much evil run rampant. Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Somalia, North Korea—It is all a disaster of epic proportions displayed in living color on our television screens.  These are not ordinary times and this is not business as usual. We are at a crossroads in human history and the time for Catholics and all Christians to act is now. All evil can ultimately be traced to its origin, which is moral evil. All of the political action, peace talks, international peacekeeping forces, etc. will avail nothing if the underlying sickness is not addressed. This is sin. One person at a time hearts and minds must be moved from evil to good, from lies to truth, from violence to peace.
Islam, an Arabic word that has often been defined as “to make peace,” seems like a living contradiction today. Islam is a religion of peace.  As we celebrate the birthday of Our Lady, I am proposing that each one of us pray the Rosary for peace. Prayer is what must precede all other activity if that activity is to have any chance of success. Pray for peace, pray the Rosary every day without fail.  There is a great love for Mary among Muslim people. It is not a coincidence that a little village named Fatima is where God chose to have His Mother appear in the twentieth century. Our Lady’s name appears no less than thirty times in the Koran. No other woman’s name is mentioned, not even that of Mohammed’s daughter, Fatima. In the Koran Our Lady is described as “Virgin, ever Virgin.”

Archbishop Fulton Sheen prophetically spoke of the resurgence of Islam in our day. He said it would be through the Blessed Virgin Mary that Islam would be converted. We must pray for this to happen quickly if we are to avert a horrible time of suffering for this poor, sinful world. Turn to our Mother in this time of great peril. Pray the Rosary every day. Then, and only then will there be peace, when the hearts and minds of men are changed from the inside.
Talk is weak. Prayer is strong. Pray!  God bless you, Father John Corapi

Father Corapi's Biography

Father John Corapi is what has commonly been called a late vocation. In other words, he came to the priesthood other than a young man. He was 44 years old when he was ordained. From small town boy to the Vietnam era US Army, from successful businessman in Las Vegas and Hollywood to drug addicted and homeless, to religious life and ordination to the priesthood by Pope John Paul II, to a life as a preacher of the Gospel who has reached millions with the simple message that God's Name is Mercy!

Father Corapi's academic credentials are quite extensive. He received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Pace University in the seventies. Then as an older man returned to the university classrooms in preparation for his life as a priest and preacher. He received all of his academic credentials for the Church with honors: a Masters degree in Sacred Scripture from Holy Apostles Seminary and Bachelor, Licentiate, and Doctorate degrees in dogmatic theology from the University of Navarre in Spain.
Father John Corapi goes to the heart of the contemporary world's many woes and wars, whether the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Somalia, or the Congo, or the natural disasters that seem to be increasing every year, the moral and spiritual war is at the basis of everything. “Our battle is not against human forces,” St. Paul asserts, “but against principalities and powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness...” (Ephesians 6:12). 
The “War to end all wars” is the moral and spiritual combat that rages in the hearts and minds of human beings. The outcome of that  unseen fight largely determines how the battle in the realm of the seen unfolds.  The title talk, “With the Moon Under Her Feet,” is taken from the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation, and deals with the current threat to the world from radical Islam, and the Blessed Virgin Mary's role in the ultimate victory that will result in the conversion of Islam. Few Catholics are aware of the connection between Islam, Fatima, and Guadalupe. Presented in Father Corapi's straight-forward style, you will be both inspired and educated by him.

About Father John Corapi.
Father Corapi is a Catholic priest .
The pillars of father's preaching are basically:
Love for and a relationship with the Blessed Virgin Mary 
Leading a vibrant and loving relationship with Jesus Christ
Great love and reverence for the Most Holy Eucharist from Holy Mass to adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
An uncompromising love for and obedience to the Holy Father and the teaching of the Magisterium of the Church

God Bless you on your journey Father John Corapi


Records on life of Father Flanagan, founder of Boys Town, presented at Vatican
Jul 23, 2019 - 03:01 am .- The cause for canonization of Servant of God Edward Flanagan, the priest who founded Nebraska's Boys Town community for orphans and other boys, advanced Monday with the presentation of a summary of records on his life.

Archbishop Fulton Sheen to be beatified
Jul 6, 2019 - 04:00 am .- Pope Francis approved the miracle attributed to Archbishop Fulton Sheen Friday, making possible the American television catechist's beatification.

Brooklyn diocese advances sainthood cause of local priest
Jun 25, 2019 - 03:01 am .- The Bishop of Brooklyn accepted last week the findings of a nine-year diocesan investigation into the life of Monsignor Bernard John Quinn, known for fighting bigotry and serving the African American population, as part of his cause for canonization.

Fr. Augustus Tolton, former African American slave, advances toward sainthood
Jun 12, 2019 - 05:03 am .- Fr. Augustus Tolton advanced along the path to sainthood Wednesday, making the runaway slave-turned-priest one step closer to being the first black American saint.

Pope Francis will beatify these martyred Greek-Catholic bishops in Romania
May 30, 2019 - 03:01 pm .- On Sunday in Blaj, Pope Francis will beatify seven Greek-Catholic bishops of Romania who were killed by the communist regime between 1950 and 1970.
 
Woman who served Brazil’s poorest to be canonized
May 14, 2019 - 06:53 am .- Pope Francis Tuesday gave his approval for eight sainthood causes to proceed, including that of Bl. Dulce Lopes Pontes, a 20th-century religious sister who served Brazil’s poor.

Seven 20th-century Romanian bishops declared martyrs
Mar 19, 2019 - 12:01 pm .- Pope Francis declared Tuesday the martyrdom of seven Greek-Catholic bishops killed by the communist regime in Romania in the mid-20th century.

Pope advances sainthood causes of 17 women
Jan 15, 2019 - 11:12 am .- Pope Francis approved Tuesday the next step in the canonization causes of 17 women from four countries, including the martyrdom of 14 religious sisters killed in Spain at the start of the Spanish Civil War.
 
Nineteen Algerian martyrs beatified
Dec 10, 2018 - 03:08 pm .- Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, were beatified Saturday during a Mass in Oran.

The Algerian martyrs shed their blood for Christ, pope says
Dec 7, 2018 - 10:02 am .- Ahead of the beatification Saturday of Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, Pope Francis said martyrs have a special place in the Church.
Algerian martyrs are models for the Church, archbishop says
Nov 16, 2018 - 03:01 am .- Archbishop Paul Desfarges of Algiers has said that Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, are “models for our lives as disciples today and tomorrow.”
 
Francesco Spinelli to be canonized after healing of a newborn in DR Congo
Oct 9, 2018 - 05:01 pm .- Among those being canonized on Sunday are Fr. Franceso Spinelli, a diocesan priest through whose intercession a newborn was saved from death in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Algerian martyrs to be beatified in December
Sep 14, 2018 - 06:01 pm .- The Algerian bishops' conference has announced that the beatification of Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in the country between 1994 and 1996, will be held Dec. 8.

Now a cardinal, Giovanni Angelo Becciu heads to congregation for saints' causes
Jun 28, 2018 - 11:41 am .- Newly-minted Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu will resign from his post as substitute of the Secretariat of State tomorrow, in anticipation of his appointment as prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints later this summer.

Pope Francis creates new path to beatification under ‘offering of life’
Jul 11, 2017 - 06:22 am .- On Tuesday Pope Francis declared a new category of Christian life suitable for consideration of beatification called “offering of life” – in which a person has died prematurely through an offering of their life for love of God and neighbor.
 
Twentieth century Polish nurse among causes advancing toward sainthood
Jul 7, 2017 - 06:14 am .- Pope Francis on Friday approved a miracle attributed to the intercession of the Venerable Hanna Chrzanowska, a Polish nurse and nursing instructor who died from cancer in 1973, paving the way for her beatification.
 
Sainthood causes advance, including layman who resisted fascism
Jun 17, 2017 - 09:22 am .- Pope Francis on Friday recognized the heroic virtue of six persons on the path to canonization, as well as the martyrdom of an Italian man who died from injuries of a beating he received while imprisoned in a concentration camp for resisting fascism.
 
Solanus Casey, Cardinal Van Thuan among those advanced toward sainthood
May 4, 2017 - 10:47 am .- Pope Francis on Thursday approved decrees of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints advancing the causes for canonization of 12 individuals, including the American-born Capuchin Solanus Casey and the Vietnamese cardinal Francis Xavier Nguen Van Thuan.
 
Pope clears way for canonization of Fatima visionaries
Mar 23, 2017 - 06:44 am .- On Thursday Pope Francis approved the second and final miracle needed to canonize Blessed Francisco and Jacinta Marto, two of the shepherd children who witnessed the Fatima Marian apparitions.
Surgeon and father among sainthood causes moving forward
Feb 27, 2017 - 11:03 am .- Pope Francis recognized on Monday the heroic virtue of eight persons on the path to canonization, including an Italian surgeon and father of eight who suffered from several painful diseases throughout his life.

Records on life of Father Flanagan, founder of Boys Town, presented at Vatican
Jul 23, 2019 - 03:01 am .- The cause for canonization of Servant of God Edward Flanagan, the priest who founded Nebraska's Boys Town community for orphans and other boys, advanced Monday with the presentation of a summary of records on his life.

Archbishop Fulton Sheen to be beatified
Jul 6, 2019 - 04:00 am .- Pope Francis approved the miracle attributed to Archbishop Fulton Sheen Friday, making possible the American television catechist's beatification.

Brooklyn diocese advances sainthood cause of local priest
Jun 25, 2019 - 03:01 am .- The Bishop of Brooklyn accepted last week the findings of a nine-year diocesan investigation into the life of Monsignor Bernard John Quinn, known for fighting bigotry and serving the African American population, as part of his cause for canonization.

Fr. Augustus Tolton, former African American slave, advances toward sainthood
Jun 12, 2019 - 05:03 am .- Fr. Augustus Tolton advanced along the path to sainthood Wednesday, making the runaway slave-turned-priest one step closer to being the first black American saint.

Pope Francis will beatify these martyred Greek-Catholic bishops in Romania
May 30, 2019 - 03:01 pm .- On Sunday in Blaj, Pope Francis will beatify seven Greek-Catholic bishops of Romania who were killed by the communist regime between 1950 and 1970.
 
Woman who served Brazil’s poorest to be canonized
May 14, 2019 - 06:53 am .- Pope Francis Tuesday gave his approval for eight sainthood causes to proceed, including that of Bl. Dulce Lopes Pontes, a 20th-century religious sister who served Brazil’s poor.

Seven 20th-century Romanian bishops declared martyrs
Mar 19, 2019 - 12:01 pm .- Pope Francis declared Tuesday the martyrdom of seven Greek-Catholic bishops killed by the communist regime in Romania in the mid-20th century.

Pope advances sainthood causes of 17 women
Jan 15, 2019 - 11:12 am .- Pope Francis approved Tuesday the next step in the canonization causes of 17 women from four countries, including the martyrdom of 14 religious sisters killed in Spain at the start of the Spanish Civil War.
 
Nineteen Algerian martyrs beatified
Dec 10, 2018 - 03:08 pm .- Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, were beatified Saturday during a Mass in Oran.

The Algerian martyrs shed their blood for Christ, pope says
Dec 7, 2018 - 10:02 am .- Ahead of the beatification Saturday of Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, Pope Francis said martyrs have a special place in the Church.
Algerian martyrs are models for the Church, archbishop says
Nov 16, 2018 - 03:01 am .- Archbishop Paul Desfarges of Algiers has said that Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in Algeria between 1994 and 1996, are “models for our lives as disciples today and tomorrow.”
 
Francesco Spinelli to be canonized after healing of a newborn in DR Congo
Oct 9, 2018 - 05:01 pm .- Among those being canonized on Sunday are Fr. Franceso Spinelli, a diocesan priest through whose intercession a newborn was saved from death in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Algerian martyrs to be beatified in December
Sep 14, 2018 - 06:01 pm .- The Algerian bishops' conference has announced that the beatification of Bishop Pierre Claverie and his 18 companions, who were martyred in the country between 1994 and 1996, will be held Dec. 8.

Now a cardinal, Giovanni Angelo Becciu heads to congregation for saints' causes
Jun 28, 2018 - 11:41 am .- Newly-minted Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu will resign from his post as substitute of the Secretariat of State tomorrow, in anticipation of his appointment as prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints later this summer.

Pope Francis creates new path to beatification under ‘offering of life’
Jul 11, 2017 - 06:22 am .- On Tuesday Pope Francis declared a new category of Christian life suitable for consideration of beatification called “offering of life” – in which a person has died prematurely through an offering of their life for love of God and neighbor.
 
Twentieth century Polish nurse among causes advancing toward sainthood
Jul 7, 2017 - 06:14 am .- Pope Francis on Friday approved a miracle attributed to the intercession of the Venerable Hanna Chrzanowska, a Polish nurse and nursing instructor who died from cancer in 1973, paving the way for her beatification.
 
Sainthood causes advance, including layman who resisted fascism
Jun 17, 2017 - 09:22 am .- Pope Francis on Friday recognized the heroic virtue of six persons on the path to canonization, as well as the martyrdom of an Italian man who died from injuries of a beating he received while imprisoned in a concentration camp for resisting fascism.
 
Solanus Casey, Cardinal Van Thuan among those advanced toward sainthood
May 4, 2017 - 10:47 am .- Pope Francis on Thursday approved decrees of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints advancing the causes for canonization of 12 individuals, including the American-born Capuchin Solanus Casey and the Vietnamese cardinal Francis Xavier Nguen Van Thuan.
 
Pope clears way for canonization of Fatima visionaries
Mar 23, 2017 - 06:44 am .- On Thursday Pope Francis approved the second and final miracle needed to canonize Blessed Francisco and Jacinta Marto, two of the shepherd children who witnessed the Fatima Marian apparitions.
Surgeon and father among sainthood causes moving forward
Feb 27, 2017 - 11:03 am .- Pope Francis recognized on Monday the heroic virtue of eight persons on the path to canonization, including an Italian surgeon and father of eight who suffered from several painful diseases throughout his life.
8 Martyrs Move Closer to Sainthood 8 July, 2016
Posted by ZENIT Staff on 8 July, 2016

The angel appears to Saint Monica
This morning, Pope Francis received Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Cardinal Angelo Amato. During the audience, he authorized the promulgation of decrees concerning the following causes:

***
MIRACLES:
Miracle attributed to the intercession of the Venerable Servant of God Luis Antonio Rosa Ormières, priest and founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Guardian Angel; born July 4, 1809 and died on Jan. 16, 1890
MARTYRDOM:
Servants of God Antonio Arribas Hortigüela and 6 Companions, Missionaries of the Sacred Heart; killed in hatred of the Faith, Sept. 29, 1936
Servant of God Josef Mayr-Nusser, a layman; killed in hatred of the Faith, Feb. 24, 1945
HEROIC VIRTUE:

Servant of God Alfonse Gallegos of the Order of Augustinian Recollects, Titular Bishop of Sasabe, auxiliary of Sacramento; born Feb. 20, 1931 and died Oct. 6, 1991
Servant of God Rafael Sánchez García, diocesan priest; born June 14, 1911 and died on Aug. 8, 1973
Servant of God Andrés García Acosta, professed layman of the Order of Friars Minor; born Jan. 10, 1800 and died Jan. 14, 1853
Servant of God Joseph Marchetti, professed priest of the Congregation of the Missionaries of St. Charles; born Oct. 3, 1869 and died Dec. 14, 1896
Servant of God Giacomo Viale, professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor, pastor of Bordighera; born Feb. 28, 1830 and died April 16, 1912
Servant of God Maria Pia of the Cross (née Maddalena Notari), foundress of the Congregation of Crucified Sisters Adorers of the Eucharist; born Dec. 2, 1847 and died on July 1, 1919
Sunday, November 23 2014 Six to Be Canonized on Feast of Christ the King.

On the List Are Lay Founder of a Hospital and Eastern Catholic Religious
VATICAN CITY, June 12, 2014 (Zenit.org) - Today, the Vatican announced that during the celebration of the feast of Christ the King on Sunday, November 23, an ordinary public consistory will be held for the canonization of the following six blesseds, who include a lay founder of a hospital for the poor, founders of religious orders, and two members of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See:
-Giovanni Antonio Farina (1803-1888), an Italian bishop who founded the Institute of the Sisters Teachers of Saint Dorothy, Daughters of the Sacred Hearts
-Kuriakose Elias Chavara (1805-1871), a Syro-Malabar priest in India who founded the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate
-Ludovico of Casoria (1814-1885), an Italian Franciscan priest who founded the Gray Sisters of St. Elizabeth
-Nicola Saggio (Nicola da Longobardi, 1650-1709), an Italian oblate of the Order of Minims
-Euphrasia Eluvathingal (1877-1952), an Indian Carmelite of the Syro-Malabar Church
-Amato Ronconi (1238-1304), an Italian, Third Order Franciscan who founded a hospital for poor pilgrims
CAUSES OF SAINTS July 2015.
Pope Recognizes Heroic Virtues of Ukrainian Archbishop
Recognition Brings Metropolitan Archbishop Andrey Sheptytsky Closer to Beatification
By Junno Arocho Esteves Rome, July 17, 2015 (ZENIT.org)
Pope Francis recognized the heroic virtues of Ukrainian Greek Catholic Archbishop Andrey Sheptytsky. According to a communique released by the Holy See Press Office, the Holy Father met this morning with Cardinal Angelo Amato, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

The Pope also recognized the heroic virtues of several religious/lay men and women from Italy, Spain, France & Mexico.
Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky is considered to be one of the most influential 20th century figures in the history of the Ukrainian Church.
Enthroned as Metropolitan of Lviv in 1901, Archbishop Sheptytsky was arrested shortly after the outbreak of World War I in 1914 by the Russians. After his imprisonment in several prisons in Russia and the Ukraine, the Archbishop was released in 1918.

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic prelate was also an ardent supporter of the Jewish community in Ukraine, going so far as to learn Hebrew to better communicate with them. He also was a vocal protestor against atrocities committed by the Nazis, evidenced in his pastoral letter, "Thou Shalt Not Kill." He was also known to harbor thousands of Jews in his residence and in Greek Catholic monasteries.
Following his death in 1944, his cause for canonization was opened in 1958.
* * *
The Holy Father authorized the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees regarding the heroic virtues of:
- Servant of God Andrey Sheptytsky, O.S.B.M., major archbishop of Leopolis of the Ukrainians, metropolitan of Halyc (1865-1944);
- Servant of God Giuseppe Carraro, Bishop of Verona, Italy (1899-1980);
- Servant of God Agustin Ramirez Barba, Mexican diocesan priest and founder of the Servants of the Lord of Mercy (1881-1967);
- Servant of God Simpliciano della Nativita (ne Aniello Francesco Saverio Maresca), Italian professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor, founder of the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Hearts (1827-1898);
- Servant of God Maria del Refugio Aguilar y Torres del Cancino, Mexican founder of the Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament (1866-1937);
- Servant of God Marie-Charlotte Dupouy Bordes (Marie-Teresa), French professed religious of the Society of the Religious of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary (1873-1953);
- Servant of God Elisa Miceli, Italian founder of the Rural Catechist Sisters of the Sacred Heart (1904-1976);
- Servant of God Isabel Mendez Herrero (Isabel of Mary Immaculate), Spanish professed nun of the Servants of St. Joseph (1924-1953)
October 01, 2015 Vatican City, Pope Authorizes following Decrees
(ZENIT.org) By Staff Reporter
Polish Layperson Recognized as Servant of God
Pope Authorizes Decrees
Pope Francis on Wednesday authorised the Congregation for Saints' Causes to promulgate the following decrees:

MARTYRDOM
- Servant of God Valentin Palencia Marquina, Spanish diocesan priest, killed in hatred of the faith in Suances, Spain in 1937;

HEROIC VIRTUES
- Servant of God Giovanni Folci, Italian diocesan priest and founder of the Opera Divin Prigioniero (1890-1963);
- Servant of God Franciszek Blachnicki, Polish diocesan priest (1921-1987);
- Servant of God Jose Rivera Ramirez, Spanish diocesan priest (1925-1991);
- Servant of God Juan Manuel Martín del Campo, Mexican diocesan priest (1917-1996);
- Servant of God Antonio Filomeno Maria Losito, Italian professed priest of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (1838-1917);
- Servant of God Maria Benedetta Giuseppa Frey (nee Ersilia Penelope), Italian professed nun of the Cistercian Order (1836-1913);
- Servant of God Hanna Chrzanowska, Polish layperson, Oblate of the Ursulines of St. Benedict (1902-1973).
March 06 2016 MIRACLES authorised the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees:
Pope Francis received in a private audience Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, during which he authorised the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees:
MIRACLES

– Blessed Manuel González García, bishop of Palencia, Spain, founder of the Eucharistic Missionaries of Nazareth (1877-1940);
– Blessed Elisabeth of the Trinity (née Elisabeth Catez), French professed religious of the Order of Discalced Carmelites (1880-1906);
– Venerable Servant of God Marie-Eugène of the Child Jesus (né Henri Grialou), French professed priest of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, founder of the Secular Institute “Notre-Dame de Vie” (1894-1967);
– Venerable Servant of God María Antonia of St. Joseph (née María Antonio de Paz y Figueroa), Argentine founder of the Beaterio of the Spiritual Exercise of Buenos Aires (1730-1799);
HEROIC VIRTUE

– Servant of God Stefano Ferrando, Italian professed priest of the Salesians, bishop of Shillong, India, founder of the Congregation of Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians (1895-1978);
– Servant of God Enrico Battista Stanislao Verjus, Italian professed priest of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, coadjutor of the apostolic vicariate of New Guinea (1860-1892);
– Servant of God Giovanni Battista Quilici, Italian diocesan priest, founder of the Congregation of the Daughters of the Crucified (1791-1844);
– Servant of God Bernardo Mattio, Italian diocesan priest (1845-1914);
– Servant of God Quirico Pignalberi, Italian professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor Conventual (1891-1982);
– Servant of God Teodora Campostrini, Italian founder of the Minim Sisters of Charity of Our Lady of Sorrows (1788-1860);
– Servant of God Bianca Piccolomini Clementini, Italian founder of the Company of St. Angela Merici di Siena (1875-1959);
– Servant of God María Nieves of the Holy Family (née María Nieves Sánchez y Fernández), Spanish professed religious of the Daughters of Mary of the Pious Schools (1900-1978).

April 26 2016 MIRACLES authorised the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees:
Here is the full list of decrees approved by the Pope:

MIRACLES
– Blessed Alfonso Maria Fusco, diocesan priest and founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. John the Baptist (1839-1910);
– Venerable Servant of God John Sullivan, professed priest of the Society of Jesus (1861-1933);
MARTYRDOM
– Servants of God Nikolle Vinçenc Prennushi, O.F.M., archbishop of Durres, Albania, and 37 companions killed between 1945 and 1974;
– Servants of God José Antón Gómez and three companions of the Benedictines of Madrid, Spain, killed 1936;
HEROIC VIRTUES
– Servant of God Thomas Choe Yang-Eop, diocesan priest (1821-1861);
– Servant of God Sosio Del Prete (né Vincenzo), professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor, founder of the Congregation of the Little Servants of Christ the King (1885-1952);
– Servant of God Wenanty Katarzyniec (né Jósef), professed priest of the Order of Friars Minor Conventual (1889-1921);
– Servant of God Maria Consiglia of the Holy Spirity (née Emilia Paqualina Addatis), founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Addolorata, Servants of Mary (1845-1900);
– Servant of God Maria of the Incarnation (née Caterina Carrasco Tenorio), founder of the Congregation of the Franciscan Tertiary Sisters of the Flock of Mary (1840-1917);
– Servant of God , founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Family of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (1851-1923);
– Servant of God Ilia Corsaro, founder of the Congregation of the Little Missionaries of the Eucharist (1897-1977);
– Servant of God Maria Montserrat Grases García, layperson of the Personal Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei (1941-1959).
LINKS:
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China Marian shrines May 23, 1995 Zarvintisya Ukraine Lourdes Kenya national Marian shrine    Quang Tri Vietnam La Vang 1798  
Links to Related Marian Websites  Angels and Archangels
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