St John Rieti

Feast Day: August 9 Born: (about) 1300 :: Died: 1350 Blessed John lived in the Umbria region in Italy. He also had a sister who is "blessed," Blessed Lucy of Amelia. When John was a young man he felt God calling him to become a priest. He really wanted to join the order of St. Augustine and be a brother. They welcomed John into the order and he found himself comfortable and immediately at home. He loved to pray and to meditate about Jesus, Mary and the saints. He learned how to talk to God, his Father, and he especially took every opportunity he got to serve at Mass. People from the neighboring towns came to Mass at the church of the Augustinians. They noticed the brother who was always there. He was so peaceful and kind. Brother John went out of his way to welcome them. He made them feel at home. When people came to the monastery in need, Brother John was there to greet and welcome them. For those who were staying overnight, he would bring them to the guest rooms and make them comfortable. He made sure they had food, medicine and whatever else the monastery could give. The years passed and Brother John peacefully and without fail continued his religious life. Blessed John was always happy and joyful until his death in 1350. It was no surprise to anybody who had come to the monastery when miracles started happening at his tomb and people's prayers began being answered. Brother John was not going to let his death stop him from doing his work for Jesus

St Dominic

Feast Day: August 8 Born: 1170 :: Died: 1221 Dominic was born in Castile in Spain. He was a member of the Guzman family and his mother was a holy woman - Blessed Joan of Aza. When Dominic was seven, he began to go to school. His uncle who was a priest, guided him all through his school years. After years of study, Dominic became a priest too. He lived a quiet life of prayer and obedience with other good priests. But God had amazing plans for Dominic. He began a new religious order called the Order of Preachers or "Dominicans," after St. Dominic. The Dominicans preached the faith to the people. They helped correct false teachings called heresies. It all began when Dominic was on a trip through southern France. He realized that some people had formed a group and were going about teaching people things that were not true. This was doing them great harm. St. Dominic felt such pity for all the people who had joined the group and wanted to help them. The Dominicans conquered that dangerous heresy with prayer, especially by praying the Holy Rosary. Dominic also encouraged the people to be humble and to make sacrifices. Once someone asked St. Dominic what book he used to prepare his wonderful sermons. "The only book I use is the book of love," he said. He always prayed to be filled with true love of neighbor. He begged the Dominicans to be devoted to the study of the Bible and to prayer. No one did more than St. Dominic and his preachers to spread the beautiful practice of saying the Rosary. St. Dominic was a brilliant preacher, while St. Francis of Assisi was a humble beggar. Yet, they were very close friends. Their two orders of Dominicans and Franciscans helped Christians become holier. Dominic's friars opened centers in Paris (in France); Madrid (in Spain); Rome and Bologna (in Italy). He lived to see his order spread to Poland, Scandinavia and Palestine. The friars also went to Canterbury, London, and Oxford (in England). Dominic died in Bologna (Italy) on August 7, 1221. His great friend, Cardinal Ugolino of Venice became Pope Gregory IX and a few years later he proclaimed Dominic a saint.

Transfiguration

The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke tell us about the wonderful event of the Lord's Transfiguration. Before he suffered and died, he let three of his apostles see him shining with great glory. He did this to make their belief in him stronger. Jesus took Peter, James and John with him up Mount Tabor which stands in the middle of Galilee. When they were alone, suddenly the Lord's face began to shine bright like the sun. His robes became white as snow. The apostles were speechless. As they watched, two famous prophets who had died a long time ago, Elijah and Moses, appeared. They were talking with Jesus. Imagine the joy those apostles felt. "Lord," said St. Peter, "it is good for us to be here. If you wish, we could set up three tents here - one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." Peter really did not know what he was saying, because he was trembling with wonder and fear. As he was talking, a bright cloud overshadowed them. From the cloud they heard the voice of God the Father, saying, "This is my beloved Son; listen to him." When they heard that, the apostles were so frightened that they fell on their faces. Then Jesus came close and touched them. "Arise," he said. "Do not be afraid." When they looked up, they saw no one but Jesus. As they came down the mountain, Jesus told them not to tell anyone what they had seen until he had risen from the dead but they did not understand what Jesus meant. Only after his glorious resurrection on Easter Sunday, would they understand what Jesus had really meant.

Blessed Frederic Janssoone

Blessed Frederic Janssoone was born in Flanders in Belgium and lived a very interesting life. Frederic had rich parents who owned a farm and he was the youngest of thirteen children. But when he was only nine years old his father died, so he left school to work and help support his mother. He soon realized that he was very good at selling things to people. He enjoyed meeting new people and he knew how to explain about the things he sold. Then Frederic's mother died when he was twenty-three years old and he began to think about what he could do with his life. He wanted very much to become a Franciscan priest, so he joined the seminary where he studied to become a priest. After he became a priest he was first asked to serve in the military taking care of the spiritual needs of soldiers. A few years later, he was sent to the Holy Land where he preached the Gospel in the places made holy by Jesus himself. He used his skills to help different groups of Christians come together and look after two sacred churches. He also built another church in Bethlehem. Blessed Frederic is also remembered for starting again an old forgotten custom of having pilgrims make the Stations of the Cross throughout the streets of Jerusalem. Father Frederic's ministry (work) in Canada began when he was sent there to collect money for charity. Because he was so talented and had such a joyful spirit of self- giving the people there loved him immediately. In his sermons and talks he told them many interesting stories about the Holy Land. He looked into the faces and hearts of the people and prayed that they would come close to God and their love for Him would grow strong. In 1888, he returned to Canada to stay and spent the rest of his life there. Besides being an interesting person, Father Janssoone was also a very good writer. He wrote several articles and life stories of saints. They remind us of the delight that filled his soul and reflect the joy of Jesus that he so willingly shared with others. Father Frederic died on August 4, 1916 in Canada.

St John Vianney

John Mary Vianney was born in Lyons, in France. As a child he took care of his father's sheep. He loved to pray but he also loved to play horseshoes. When John was eighteen, he asked his father if he could become a priest. His father was worried because John had become a big help on the family farm but two years later his father agreed. When he was twenty years old, John studied under Father Balley. The priest was very patient but John became sad when he found it difficult to learn Latin. He then decided to walk sixty miles, which was a very long walk, to the shrine of St. John Francis Regis whose feast we celebrate on June 16. John prayed to St. John Francis for help. After the pilgrimage, he still found his lessons difficult but now he was not sad. He just decided to study harder. John was finally able to enter the seminary to become a priest. No matter how much he tried, he found his studies quite hard. In the final exams, which were spoken, not written, John had to face a group of teachers and answer their questions. He was very worried and could not complete the test. Yet, because John was a holy man, he was full of common sense and understood what the Church taught about the subjects. He knew the right answers when asked what should be done in this case or that. He just couldn't say those answers in the difficult way they were taught in the Latin text books. John was ordained and became a priest anyway. He understood what his job was as a priest and everyone knew he was a good man. After he became a priest, he was sent to a little parish called Ars. Father Vianney fasted, prayed and did hard penance so that God would save the people of his parish from sin. The people of his parish were not all good. They drank too much liquor, used bad language, worked even on Sundays and never went to Church. Then God heard Fr. Vianney's prayer and one by one the liquor shops closed down. People slowly started going to Church for Mass and began worshipping God. God gave John the power to see into people's minds and to know the future. Because of this gift, he converted many sinners and helped people make the right choices in life. Hundreds of pilgrims began to come to Ars and St. John Vianney spent twelve to sixteen hours everyday hearing confessions. He really wanted to spend the rest of his life in a monastery as a monk; instead, he stayed forty-two years at Ars and died there in 1859 at the age of seventy-three.

St Peter Eymard

St. Peter Eymard was born in Grenoble in France. He worked with his father making and repairing knives until he was eighteen and spent his free time studying. Peter longed to become a priest so he taught himself Latin and received instruction in the faith from a helpful priest. When he was twenty years old he joined the seminary of Grenoble and a few years later became a priest. He served in two parishes during the next five years and the people realized what a gift he was to them. Father Eymard had a glowing love for the Holy Eucharist and loved to spend time daily in adoration. On the feast of Corpus Christi (the feast of the Body and Blood of Jesus) when he was carrying the Host in procession, he felt the presence of Jesus like warmth from a fireplace and it seemed to surround him with love and light. He begged that the mercy and love of Jesus touch everyone as he had been touched and he asked Jesus to bless the people and take care of all their needs. Years later he started a new religious order and they became known as the Priests of the Blessed Sacrament. Two years after that he began an order of sisters called the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament who devoted their lives to the perpetual (continuous) adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. He wrote many books about the Holy Eucharist that were translated into different languages and are still available today. For four years before he died St. Peter Eymard suffered severe pain, difficulties and critisim but he continued adoring the Holy Eucharist. His witness and sacrifice and example helped many people also become priests. He died at the age of 57 on August 1, 1868.

St Eusebius

Holy Spirit Interactive Kids: A Saint a Day: St. Eusebius St. Eusebius Feast Day: August 2 Born: 283 :: Died: 371 St. Eusebius (of Vercelli) was born on the island of Sardinia in Italy. His parents were faithful Christians and his father died a martyr for the Christian faith. Eusebius grew up to be a strong Christian and actively served his community. After his father's death his family moved to Rome and there he was ordained a Lector. This was a time when the people elected bishops and when the people of Vercelli saw how well he served their Church; they willingly chose him as bishop. He and some of his priests lived a simple life and became eager and happy followers of Jesus. They learned from Eusebius how to guide the people who came to them for help and many of his priests later became bishops. Emperor Constantius who was an Arian did not believe that Jesus was God and created lots of trouble for the Catholics. The Pope sent Eusebius on a mission to try and make peace. But the powerful Arians did not want to make peace and only tried to force their will on the Catholics. Because Eusebius was a champion of the truth, he was not afraid and refused to listen to Emperor Constantius. So Constantius sent him away to Palestine where he lived with a kind man who was the only Catholic in town. But after the kind man died, the Arians kidnapped Eusebius; they insulted him by tearing his clothes and dragging him through the streets. They broke into his house and stole his belongings and food. Then they locked him in a tiny cell without food for four days. When Emperor Constantius died all the Bishops who were sent away were allowed to return home. But the problems were not over and Eusebius spent his last years working hard to spread the truth and strengthen the faith of the Christians. Bishop Eusebius died on August 1, 371.