O God, who made of the Abbot Saint Bernard a man consumed with zeal for your house and a light shining and burning in your Church, grant, through his intercession, that we may be on fire with the same spirit and walk always as children of light. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen

“Yes, these are very sobering times, but sobriety is not the same as anxiety or sadness or gloom and doom. Sobriety has to do with clarity of mind, and rationality of thought, as well as transformation of the heart by the grace of God.

“Yes, [God] is merciful, but he is also demanding that we take him seriously as to both who he is and what he says. Otherwise, we are not fit either for heaven or for this earth.

“And earth is meant to be an icon of heaven if I understand the Lord’s prayer properly. May his will be done in us, and may his kingdom come in us, and may his name be glorified in us… on earth as it is in heaven.” ~Fr. David May (Restoration, July-August 2020, p. 3)

“Do not think that love, in order to be genuine, has to be extraordinary. What we need is to love without getting tired. How does a lamp burn? Through the continuous input of small drops of oil. If the drops of oil run out, the light of the lamp will cease, and the bridegroom will say, “I do not know you” (Matt. 25:12). What are these drops of oil in our lamps? They are the small things of daily life: faithfulness, small words of kindness, a thought for others, our way of being silent, of looking, of speaking, and of acting. These are the true drops of love that keep your religious life burning like a living flame.” ~Saint Teresa of Calcutta, Daily Readings with Mother Teresa

Angelus was born near Florence, around the year 1386. He entered the Carmelite Order in 1413, being later ordained a priest in 1415. He was the first member of the reform movement delle selve (of the woods), which began in the convent of Santa Maria delle Selve at Lastra a Signa, west of Florence, a reform that later spread to the Carmelite Congregation of Mantua. Angelus served as prior of the reformed community from 1419 to 1430, as well as prior for two years in the community of Florence. He was a lector (teacher) in theology and was renowned for his preaching, no doubt arising from a deep love and practice of praying the Scriptures in his Carmelite life. Angelus is often depicted in iconography with flowers falling from his mouth as he preaches. He died in Florence on the 17th August 1438.

Blessed Angelus, pray for us.

O God, you have taken to yourself the blessed Virgin Mary, mother of your incarnate Son: Grant that we, who have been redeemed by his blood, may share with her the glory of your eternal kingdom; through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen

Gracious God, you filled your priest and martyr, Saint Maximilian Kolbe, with zeal for your house and love for his neighbor. Through the prayers of this devoted servant of Mary Immaculate, grant that in our efforts to serve others for your glory we too may become like Christ your Son, who loved his own in the world even to the end, and now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen

“I am urging you all to see the radicality of Jesus’ call to discipleship, which cuts through so many of the social conventions of his time and ours. I am urging you to see that everyone—rich and poor, men and women, those on the inside and those on the outs—are summoned to discipleship, and that this summons is the most important consideration of all. It is the one thing necessary.” ~Bishop Robert Barron

Lord God, you enriched Saint Jane Frances de Chantal with the graces both of marriage and of the religious life. Grant that through her prayer we may continue faithful to our vocation, and always bear witness to the light. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen 

“May Almighty God bless you. May God look upon you with eyes of mercy and give you peace. On earth may God pour forth graces on you abundantly. And in heaven… in heaven may God place you among the saints.” ~St. Clare of Assisi

God of mercy, you inspired Saint Clare with the love of poverty. By the help of her prayers may we follow Christ in poverty of spirit and come to the joyful vision of your glory in the kingdom of heaven. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen

Lord God, you inspired Saint Laurence with so ardent a love that his life was renowned for the service of your people and his death for the splendor of his martyrdom. Help us to love what he loved and to live as he showed us. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen