Saint Raymond of Peñafort

St Raymond of Penafort.jpegThe whole law has found its fulfillment in this one
saying: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.


Almighty and compassionate Father, through the life
and teaching of our brother Raymond you show us that love is the fulfillment of
the law. Fill our hearts with love and so make us grow in freedom as your sons
and daughters.



Saint Raymond is the patron saint for attorneys, barristers,
canonists, lawyers, medical record librarians.

Saint Zedislava Berkiana

Sts Zedislava & John Sarkander.jpg

Faithful
God, by her married life and works of charity you taught Saint Zedislava to
pursue the way of perfection. By her prayers may family life be strengthened
and be a witness to Christian virtue.


Saint Zedislava is depicted as a third order Dominican
(in the Dominican habit on the left in the image) wearing a rosary wound with
roses, lying in the place of a sick person in bed. She is the patron saint of
difficult marriages and people who are ridiculed for their piety.

Blessed Sebastian Maggi


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Strengthened by holy intercession, O Sebastian, Confessor of
the Lord, those here present , that we who are burdened the weight of our
offenses. Maybe relieved by the glory of thy blessedness, and may thy guidance
attain eternal rewards
.

God of faithfulness, you made Blessed Sebastian and
outstanding example of evangelical perfection and truth. By following his
example may we enter the path to perfect charity and deepen the life of the
spirit through penance and so obtain your glory and eternal life.

More on Blessed Sebastian Maggi may be found here.

Blessed Simon Ballachi

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 O God, you called Blessed Simon from a concern for worldly things and gave him the gifts of prayer and humility. By following his example may we learn to seek you alone here on earth and obtain the rewards promised to the humble.
Blessed Simon, a Dominican lay brother, comes from a distinguished family who gave themselves to ecclesial and civil service. While relatively uneducated in Letters, he received good training in military discipline. In a real way he was a soldier for Christ. Simon entered the Order of Preachers at the age of 27 and is reported to have lived an exemplary life as a Dominican. His biographers bring to light Brother Simon’s work as a convent gardener, thus bringing natural beauty and good food to the table. The biographer wrote, “He labored with his own hands, and strove to bring each flower and plant to perfection according to its kind.”
Brother Simon is also known to have had enjoyed the beauty of mystical union with the Lord, His Mother, St Dominic, St Peter Martyr and the angels. He also endured the annoyance of Satan. Grace triumphed. In his last days Brother Simon bore the burden of blindness, as did the Prophet Tobias.
The Lord called Brother Simon to himself on November 3, 1319. In 1817 Pope Pius VII named Brother Simon a “Blessed” of the Church.
May we follow the example of Blessed Simon who closely followed the Lord in prayer and work.