Text Box: JUNE June 1 – St. Justin – Martyr; died 165 under Marcus Aurelius; authored Apology and Dialogue with Trypho; layman and apologist who gives one of the earliest descriptions of the Mass; patron of philosophers and apologists. June 2 - St. Marcellinus & Peter - Marcellinus, presbyter, and Peter, exorcist; died 303; beheaded under Diocletian; both mentioned in the Roman Canon. June 3 – St Charles Lwanga – and 21 Ugandan companions, died 15 Nov. 1885 – 27 Jan. 1887; protomartyrs of Black Africa; over 100 killed in this period, including Anglicans; Charles is the patron saint of African Catholic Youth Action. Died Nov. 1885-27 Jan. 1887 June 6 – St. Norbert – founder of the Premostratensians (Norbertines), archbishop of Magdeburg (Germany); strong supporter of Church reform and evangelization; devoted to the Holy Eucharist. Died 1134. June 9 – St. Ephrem; Syrian theologian and poet who authored biblical commentaries, homilies and composed hymns; founded a theological school at Nisbis; lived in Edessa in Mesopotamia. Died in 373. June 11 – St. Barnabas, apostle; preached the Gospel in Antioch; companion of St. Paul; attended the Council of Jerusalem; martyred on, and patron of , the island of his birth, Cyprus. His name is mentioned in Roman Canon. June 13 – St. Anthony of Padua; priest O.F.M., Doctor of the Church. Born in Lisbon, Portugal; devoted student of scripture; first friar to teach theology to his fellow friars; gifted orator and preacher; known as “Evangelical Doctor, patron saint of Portugal, of the poor, and of lost articles. June 15 – St. Bonaventure +1274; O.F.M. minister general for 17 years; Cardinal bishop of Albano; authored biblical commentaries and many ascetical and spiritual treatises, esp. Journey of the Soul into God; known as the “Seraphic Doctor.” June 21 – St. Aloisius Gonzaga; Jesuit Scholastic. Died at age 23, caring for the sick; from the princely family of Castiglione, a page at the court of the Medicis and of Philip II of Spain. Strongly devoted to the Eucharist, interior prayer, and charitable service; patron of youth and of students in Jesuit colleges and universities. June 27 – St. Cyril of Alexandria, bishop & doctor of the Church – defended Mary as “Theotokos” – God-bearer at the Council of Ephesus (431) against the Nestorians; spokesmen for orthodoxy; noted especially for his Christological formulations; supported growth of Egyptian monasticism. Died 444 A.D. June 28 – St. Irenaeus, martyr – from Smyrna; disciple of St. Polycarp (Feb. 23); for 25 years bishop of Lyons; wrote against the Gnostics, esp. Adversus heresies; first to provide a coherent rationale for Christian Bible Text Box: including both Testaments, and the first to offer a comprehensive account of belief in God’s universal providential and redemptive economy. Died 202 A.D. June 29 – Sts. Peter and Paul Apostles & Martyrs – St. Peter – Galilean fisherman; spokesman for the Twelve who became “Prince of the Apostles”; two epistles are ascribed to him; patron of those in the fishing industry. Martyred in Rome under Nero 64 A.D. St. Paul – He was Pharisee who became the “Apostle of the Gentiles”; his letters may be dated from 50-65 A.D.; patron of the lay apostolate, the Cursillo Movement and Catholic Acti; also of Malta and Greece. Martyred in Rome 67 A.D. June 30 – The First Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church – Those many Christians who were tortured, crucified and burned alive in 64 A.D. in Nero’s gardens on the Vatican Hill are honored today. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The Immaculate Heart of Mary – In the 11th & 12th centuries, different places started devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. In 1799 Pius VI, then in captivity in Florence, granted the bishop of Palermo permission to celebrate the Feast of the Most Pure Heart of Mary in his diocese. On July 21, 1855, the Congregation of Rites finally approved the Office & Mass of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. In different places, this Feast is celebrated in different parts of the year. In our country this Feast is celebrated on Saturday following the Second Sunday after Pentecost. This year it is May 31, together with the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. MONTH OF JUNE Through the month of June, every day after the 8.00AM Holy Mass, we shall recite the Litany to the Sacred Heart followed by Benediction. PLEASE COME AND JOIN US. Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is very popular around the world. After private revelations to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (patroness of our Church) in 1690 in Paray-le-Monial in France, it became popular to devote the first Friday of each month to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Parishioners would go to the Sacrament of Confession, participate in Holy Mass, and receive Holy Communion on nine consecutive Fridays out of special devotion and to receive special indulgences. It also became common for Parishioners to have an image of the Sacred Heart enthroned in their homes and to burn a candle before it on Fridays. Some have images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary and have special devotions on each month’s First Saturday. Some parish calendars still reflect these customs. We would also like to encourage all parishioners to celebrate this devotion established by Jesus and His Blessed Mother Mary. Christians in ancient times considered Friday an especially serious day to remember the suffering and death of Jesus with fasting, prayer, and private devotions. Those who violated this tradition did so with the possibility of evil