Saint Damasus I
The pontificate of St. Damasus I (304-384) was quite eventful. He rose to the Petrine throne in 366 and led the Church during a phase in which the heresies on the Divine Trinity were raging.
Blessed Virgin Mary of Loreto
Today the Church commemorates the relocation of the Holy House of Nazareth, which on December 10 1294 was flown by angels in the Marche region, then part of the Papal States.
Saint Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin
On the morning of Saturday December 9, 1531, the Blessed Virgin appeared to the peasant Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin (1474-1548) on the hill of Tepeyac, near Mexico City, presenting herself as “the perfect ever-Virgin Mary, Mother of the one true God.”
Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary
A sign of sure hope for all the faithful, with the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception the Church recalls that the Blessed Virgin Mary was kept unscathed by original sin from the first moment of her conception.
Saint Ambrose
"Ambrose for bishop!" Who knows how different the history of Milan and its diocese would have been, described for centuries with the adjective "Ambrosian,” without the voice of that child who in 374 shouted the name of the then high imperial official Ambrose (340-397), which was immediately followed by the acclamation of the faithful gathered in the church.
Saint Nicholas of Bari
The title “of Bari” is due to the transfer to the Apulian capital of many of his relics, which took place in 1087.
Saint Sabbas the Archimandrite
First a desert father and then founder of a particular type of monastery, called “lavra,” Saint Sabbas the Archimandrite (439-532) played a substantial role in the spread of Eastern monasticism.
Saint John Damascene
He has been called the “Saint Thomas of the East” and is considered the last of the Eastern Church Fathers. He wrote sublime pages about the Blessed Virgin and was able to refute the then widespread iconoclasm.
Saint Francis Xavier
Saint Francis Xavier (1506-1552) is considered the greatest missionary of modern times. Rediscovering his example can therefore be a powerful antidote in times of crisis for the faith and almost of shame in proclaiming Christ, especially as the spiritual journey of this Spanish Jesuit bears the mark of an extraordinary inner conversion.
Saint Bibiana
The martyrdom of the young Roman virgin Bibiana (c. 347-362), (more commonly known as Viviana), was perpetrated during the historical interlude of the empire of Flavius Claudius Julianus (361-363), known as the Apostate.
Saints Edmund Campion and Companions
Saint Edmund Campion (1540-1581), known as the Pope’s Champion, was born in London during the vicious years of the Anglican Schism. He lived most of his adolescence during the reign of Mary I Tudor (1553-1558), who tried to restore Catholicism in England.
Saint Andrew
We always remember that Andrew (ca. 5 B.C.-60 A.D.) was Simon Peter's brother, but we sometimes forget another very important detail: he was the first apostle to lead Peter to the Lord.
