Saint Andrew of Crete on the nativity of Mary as a turning point between old and new covenant, the frontier where types and symbols give way to reality. This reading shows that September 8th was celebrated as the birthday of Mary, daughter of Joachim and...
St. John Damascene extolls Sts. Joachim & Ann, parents of Mary, grandparents of Jesus. They have been honored at least since the 2nd century and their feast is July 26. ...
Gregory the Great here reflects on Jesus words in John 10 that he is the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep....
The Solemnity or Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord is celebrated on March 25. Here, in his typically lyrical language and powerful imagery, Leo the Great ponders the unfathomable mystery of God becoming man in the womb of a Virgin who had the...
Here Cyril, bishop of Jerusalem in the mid-4th century, urges catechumens to prepare themselves to receive the Holy Spirit at the Easter Vigil. He speaks of the sacrament of baptism in nuptial terms, describing it as a wedding feast at which the bridegroom will...
Leo the Great on the famous passage from Matthew 16 in which Jesus gives Cephas the new name of Peter, meaning rock, along with the keys to the kingdom of heaven. It is read each year on the Feast of the Chair of...
St. Methodius of Sicily reflects on the witness of St. Agatha, virgin, martyr and bride of Christ....
Gregory the Great here reccounts a famous story of a very special encounter between Scholastica and her brother, the great abbot Benedict. St. Scholastica was born at Norcia (Nursia) Italy about the year 480. She vowed herself to seek God in religious life and...
John Chrysostom here gives eloquent praise to the passionate love of Christ that drove St. Paul to face persecution and hardship with joy and leave behind the honors and benefits of the world. It is read each year on January 25, the Feast of the...
Quodvultdeus on the story recounted in Matthew's gospel of innumerable babies in Bethlehem by Herod's soldiers in an attempt to kill Jesus, the newborn king. These children are considered martyrs and are remembered on the Feast of the Holy Innocents, December 28, the 4th...