St. Mary Magdalene

St. Mary Magdalene has been called the second-most important woman in the Gospels, after Jesus’ mother, Mary. The Gospels mention her 12 times, more than most of the apostles.


Her name comes from her origin in Magdala, a region in northern Galilee. The Gospels of Mark and Luke tell us that Jesus cast seven demons out of Mary Magdalene. After that, she traveled with Jesus and his followers, and took a prominent role in Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection.


She remained at the foot of the cross when most of Jesus’ followers left him, and she is remembered for her courage in faithfully standing with Jesus even as he faced death.


Mary Magdalene is the only person noted by all four Gospels as testifying to Jesus’ resurrection. John and Mark portray her as the first witness of the resurrection, and St. Augustine honored her with the title “the apostle to the apostles” because she was the first to share the news of the resurrection.


For generations, tradition confused Mary Magdalene with two other women of the Gospel. She is not the same person as Mary of Bethany, who is sister to Martha and Lazarus. She is also not the unnamed woman of Luke’s Gospel (7:36-50), who was uncritically assumed to be a prostitute. Both of these other women anoint Jesus’ feet with oil, which is why Mary Magadalene is mistakenly portrayed with a jar of ointment, as in this stained glass window from the Basilica.


We do know that Mary Magdalene was a pillar of the early Christian community, a faithful follower of Jesus who was healed by him, and one of the first people to witness and share the good news.


Various traditions compete to tell the story of what happened to Mary Magdalene in her later life. One legend has it that she retired to Ephesus with Jesus’ mother, Mary. Another has it that she was transported to France with others and evangelized that area. The relics of St. Mary Magdalene rest in the reliquary chapel in the Basilica, and she is depicted in stained glass in the Basilica as well as in a wall mural there.


St. Mary Magdalene, who stood with Jesus at the cross, and was the first witness of the resurrection, pray for us!

(from: http://faith.nd.edu/s/1210/faith/interior.aspx?sid=1210&gid=609&sitebuilder=1&pgid=10813)

St. Albert the Great

Albert the Great was one of the Church's greatest intellects. He studied at the University of Padua and later taught at Hildesheim, Freiburg-im-Breisgau, Regensburg, and Strasbourg. He then taught at the University of Paris, where he received his doctorate in 1245. He was among the first and greatest of the natural scientists, gaining a reputation for expertise in biology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, geography, metaphysics, and mathematics. He was also very learned in biblical studies and theology.  To learn more visit :

http://www.catholic.org/saints/sofd.php?month=November&day=15 
at Catholic Online - Saints & Angels

Saint Martin of Tours - Patron of Soldiers

Martin of Tours (316-397) - Martin was a Bishop and a pioneer of western monasticism.  Martin was born in 316, the son of a pagan army officer.  At the age of 15 he was inducted into the army in Italy.  In 337 Martin cut his cloak in 1/2 and gave one half to a freezing beggar in France.  That same night Maring had a vision of Christ wearing half of his cloak.  Martin converted to Christianity and left the army to return to Italy where his mother and others received the faith.  Around the year 360 Martin joined St. Hilary of Poitiers and became a hermit at Liguge, the 1st monastic community in France.  Martin was named bishop of Tours in 371.  He founded Marmoutier Abbey and lived there while performing his episcopal duties.  Martin eventually went to Rome and to Condes, where he established a religous center where he died on November 8, 397.

(from Our Sunday Visitor's Encyclopedia of Saints, 1998)

St. John Neumann - Feastday: January 5

   This American saint was born in Bohemia in 1811. He was looking forward to being ordained in 1835 when the bishop decided there would be no more ordinations. It is difficult for us to imagine now, but Bohemia was overstocked with priests. John wrote to bishops all over Europe but the story was the same everywhere no one wanted any more bishops. John was sure he was called to be a priest but all the doors to follow that vocation seemed to close in his face.

   But John didn't give up. He had learned English by working in a factory with English-speaking workers so he wrote to the bishops in America. Finally, the bishop in New York agreed to ordain him. In order to follow God's call to the priesthood John would have to leave his home forever and travel across the ocean to a new and rugged land.
   In New York, John was one of 36 priests for 200,000 Catholics. John's parish in western New York stretched from Lake Ontario to Pennsylvania. His church had no steeple or floor but that didn't matter because John spent most of his time traveling from village to village, climbing mountains to visit the sick, staying in garrets and taverns to teach, and celebrating the Mass at kitchen tables.
   Because of the work and the isolation of his parish, John longed for community and so joined the Redemptorists, a congregation of priests and brothers dedicated to helping the poor and most abandoned.
   John was appointed bishop of Philadelphia in 1852. As bishop, he was the first to organize a diocesan Catholic school system. A founder of Catholic education in this country, he increased the number of Catholic schools in his diocese from two to 100...
   ...The ability to learn languages that had brought him to America led him to learn Spanish, French, Italian, and Dutch so he could hear confessions in at least six languages. When Irish immigration started, he learned Gaelic so well that one Irish woman remarked, "Isn't it grand that we have an Irish bishop!"...
   ...John died on January 5, 1860 at the age of 48.

http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=70

Saint John of the Cross

St. John of the Cross is also known as Doctor of Mystical Theology
   Memorial: 14 December
   Profile: Born in poverty. Cared for the poor in the hospital in Medina. Lay Carmelite brother in 1563 at age 21, though he lived stricter than their Rule. Studied at Salamanca. Carmelite priest, ordained in 1567 at age 25. Persuaded by Saint Teresa of Avila to begin the Discalced or barefoot reform within the Carmelite Order, he took the name John of the Cross. Master of novices. Spiritual director and confessor at Saint Teresa's convent. His reforms did not set well with some of his brothers, and he was ordered to return to Medina. He refused, and was imprisoned at Toledo, Spain, escaping after nine months. Vicar-general of Andalusia. His reforms revitalized the Order. Great contemplative and spiritual writer. Proclaimed Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius XI on 24 August 1926.
   Born: 24 June 1542 at Fontiveros, Spain
   Died: 14 December 1591 at Ubeda, Andalusia, Spain; relics at Segovia
   Name Meaning: God is gracious; gift of God
   Beatified: 25 January 1675 by Pope Clement X
   Canonized: 27 December 1726 by Pope Benedict XIII
   Patron of: the contemplative life; contemplatives; mystical theology; mystics; and Spanish poets   
                                              http://saints.sqpn.com/saintj23.htm