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Saint of the day

Saint of the day

14 February: Saints Cyril and Methodius

Evangelizers of the Slavs

Cyril and Methodius are known for being the evangelizers of the Slavs, for whom they created an alphabet that was understandable to a large part of the people, in order to pass on the teachings of the Scriptures. The two brothers, Cyril and Methodius, were from Thessalonica, today known as Salonika,  in Greece, but then part of the Byzantine Empire. Methodius was born around 825, while Cyril was born two years later. Cyril’s original name was Constantine, but he changed his name when he became a monk on his deathbed.

11 February: Our Lady of Lourdes

I am the Immaculate Conception

Our Lady appeared to the 14-year old Bernadette Soubirous 18 times, between 11 February and 16 July 1858, in the Grotto of Massabielle in Lourdes. She asked Bernadette to become her messenger and to cooperate with her in the conversion of sinners. She also made some requests: to make the Grotto a place of prayer and pilgrimage and spoke to her about the dogma proclaimed by Pius IX in 1854.

10 February: Saint Scholastica

Scholastica, the twin sister of Saint Benedict of Nursia, is inextricably linked to her brother’s name. She served God in contemplation and communal life. Saint Gregory the Great’s Second Book of Dialogues, which focuses on Benedict’s life, contains only a few hagiographical accounts of her life.

8 February: Saint Josephine Bakhita

From slave to “Black Mother”

She was a happy girl from a fairly well-off animist family that lived in Olgossa, in Sudan’s Darfur region. In 1878, when she was nine years old, she was abducted by slave traders and her life soon turned into a nightmare. The resulting trauma was so profound that she could no longer remember her name, and her captors mockingly called her “Bakhita”, which means “lucky”.

7 February: Blessed Pius IX

The Pope of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception

Elected at the age of 54, Pius IX holds the record for the longest pontificate in history: 32 years, even longer than the one tradition attributes to Saint Peter.

He served the Church with great zeal, imitating the Good Shepherd, promoted missions and fostered the formation of the clergy and religious life. He is responsible for furthering devotion to the worship of the Eucharist, the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Virgin Mary. With the help of numerous social institutions, he was charitable towards the poor. He accepted the misunderstandings, the loneliness and the adversities brought on by the enemies of Christ and the Church, with Christian patience.

3 February: Saint Blaise, Bishop and Martyr

There is not much reliable information on Saint Blaise of Sebaste. What is known comes from the Acts of Saint Blaise, which were written in Greek. Blaise studied philosophy as a young man and was a respected physician in Sebaste, Armenia, his hometown. Following the death of the city’s Bishop, he was elected as his successor by popular acclaim.

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