Daily Readings

Excerpt from Sunday's Gospel: When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Summon the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.' When those who had started about five o'clock came, each received the usual daily wage. So when the first came, they ... read more

The U.S. bishops this week underscored the “deep spiritual bonds” between Catholics and Jews and the need to build “genuine friendship and understanding” between the two religious groups, with the message coming ahead of Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. The holy day for Jews involves fasting and atonement and is held ... read more

In a declaration led by Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, Christian leaders are calling on lawmakers to ban the abortion drug mifepristone.Drafted by a group of more than 30 pastors from around the U.S., the Declaration for Life with Christian Leaders supports pro-life legislation, condemns chemical abortion, and affirms the dignity of unborn children from conception. ... read more

OSOGBO, Nigeria — Members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) have designated Dec. 8 as a National Day of Prayer and fasting for the success of the country’s 2027 general elections, calling on Nigerians to prepare spiritually for the polls.In a statement issued at the end of their 2026 second plenary assembly held ... read more

In 2025, John Sansone made his television debut when he appeared on Fox’s reality dating show “Farmer Wants a Wife” as one of the farmers in search of love. Today, he has traded in the television screen for cellphone screens as a Catholic content creator.Sansone, 27, was born and raised in a Catholic family. He ... read more

“I vividly remember driving home with tears streaming down my face, overwhelmed by the feeling that our young Catholic family had been excluded simply because our son experiences the world differently.”These are the words of Sarah Taylor, a Catholic mother of three whose 9-year-old son, Reid, was excluded from parish activities because of his autism.“As ... read more

Today is the Optional Memorial of St. Januarius (d. 304). Very little is known about this martyr saint. He was Bishop of Benevento in Campania. He died near Naples, about the year 304, martyred under the persecution of Emperor Diocletian. Around the year 400 the relics of St. Januarius were moved to Naples, which honors ... read more

The Roman Martyrology commemorates St. Joseph of Cupertino (1603-1663), who was born at Cupertino, Italy, and died in Osimo. He was of lowly origin and had little formal education. In his youth he was employed as an apprentice to a shoemaker. He joined the Conventual Franciscans as a lay brother but was later ordained a ... read more

Today the Church celebrates two Optional Memorials: ... read more

Today's Memorial of Saints Cornelius (d. 253) and Cyprian (190-258) commemorates two friends in the service of Christ and his Church. Cornelius, a Roman, was the twenty-first Pope during the reign of the Emperor Gallus and Volusian. He had to oppose Novatian, the first anti-pope, who believed that apostates who repented could not be forgiven. ... read more

Today is the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows. Devotion to the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady has its roots in Sacred Scripture and in Christian piety, which always associates the Blessed Mother with her suffering Son. Today's feast was introduced by the Servites in order to intensify devotion to Our Lady's Sorrows. In 1817 ... read more

The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross was observed in Rome before the end of the seventh century. It commemorates the recovery of the Holy Cross, which had been placed on Mount Calvary by St. Helena and preserved in Jerusalem, but then had fallen into the hands of Chosroas, King of the Persians. ... read more

Excerpt from Sunday's Gospel: "His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?' Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he ... read more

On this day dedicated to the Optional Memorial of the Most Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary let us repeat that wonderful prayer of Saint Bernard, responding to Pope Benedict XVI's invitation to "invite everyone to become a trusting child before Mary, even as the Son of God did. Saint Bernard says, and we ... read more