DECEMBER

 

December 3  – St. Francis Xavier, priest - One of the founding Jesuits; preached in India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Japan; with St. Therese of the Child Jesus, co-patron of the Apostleship of Prayer and of the foreign missions. Died 1552 at age of 46 on the island of Sancion off the China coast; from Navarre;

December 4  – St. John of Damascus, priest & doctor – last of the Greek Fathers; first of the East to formulate a comprehensive synthesis of Christian dogma; defended the veneration of icons; composed hymns & preached many homilies in honor of the BVM, especially her Assumption. Died 749.

December 6 – St. Nicholas, bishop – 4^th c.; bishop of Myra in Asia Minor; model pastor noted for charity; popularized as Santa Claus (anglicized from the Dutch “Sinter Claus”); patron of children, bankers, pawnbrokers, sailors, perfumers, brides, unmarried women, travelers, fishermen, dock workers, brewers, poets, and prisoners; also of Russia, Greece, Sicily, Lorraine, and Apulia in Italy where his relics are enshrined in Bari.

December 7 - St. Ambrose, priest  – Holy Saturday, 397; born in Trier of noble parents and classically educated while a catechumen, chosen by popular acclaim as bishop of Milan; his allegorical exegesis and rhetorical skill made him a compelling preacher; defender of orthodoxy against Arianism; brought Theodosius to public penance; composed several liturgical hymns; baptized Augustine; along with Jerome, Augustine, and Gregory I, declared one of the four great doctors of the  Latin church (by Pope Boniface VIII, 1298).

December 8 – The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

December 9 – St. Juan Diego – In 1531, Our Lady appeared four times to a native convert, Juan Diego Cuatitlatoatzin (meaning “the talking eagle”), at Tepeyac, near Mexico City.  A member of the Chichimeca people, he was perhaps a leader of his own people and may have been involved in the area’s textile industry.  Known for his holiness, he devoted himself, tradition says, to the pilgrims who came to see the miraculous image of Mary imprinted on his cloak.  Pope John Paul II canonized him 31 July 2002.  This optional memorial has recently (28 September 2002) been included in the General Roman Calendar.

December 11 – St. Damasus I, pope – preserved papal archives and was devoted to the relics and resting places of the martyrs; combated the anti-pope Ursinus, Arian & Donatist heresies; first pope to speak of Rome as the “Apostolic See”, encouraged St. Jerome to produce the Latin Bible, later to form the main part of the Vulgate.

December 12  – Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe – This feast recalls the apparitions of Mary at the Hill of Tepeyac from 9 – 12 Dec., 1531, to the native convert, Juan Diego (Feastday Dec. 9); known to the Aztecs as Tecoatlaxope (or de Guadalupe in Spanish), meaning “she will crush the serpent of stone”; declared patroness of the Americas by Pope Pius XII and raised to the rank of feast for all the countries of the Americas by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the

Sacraments, March 25, 1999. Outside of the Americas, this celebration has recently (Sep. 28, 2002) been include in the General Roman Calendar as an optional memorial.

December 13 – St. Lucy, virgin & martyr – because of her name, she is patroness of those afflicted with diseases of the eye and associated with festivals of light,, especially in Scandinavia; mentioned in the Roman Canon. Martyred in Sicily 304 under emperor Dicletian. Patroness of Syracuse and all Sicily.

December 14  – St. John of the Cross, priest & doctor of the Church – born in Fontiveros, Spain 1542; mystic and poet; ally of St. Teresa of Jesus of Avila in founding the reformed (“Discalced”) Carmelite Friars; suffered cruel imprisonment and privations by the unreformed Carmelites; authored The Living Flame of Love; The dark Night of the Soul; The Spiritual Canticle, and The Living Flame of Love; known as the “Mystical Doctor”.

December 21  – St. Peter Canisius, priest & doctor –1597; Dutch Jesuit catechist and missionary; leading voice in counter-reformation of Germany; organized the German Jesuit province and founded several colleges; authored the popular and enduring catechism, Institutiones Christiana Pietatis; known as the “Second Apostle of Germany”.

December 23 – St. John of Kanty – 1473; dean of philosophy and professor of theology at the University of Cracow; noted for his austerity, humility, and charity toward the poor; a patron of Poland.

December 26 – St. Stephen  Martyr – One of the seven  deacons of  the Acts of the Apostles; first disciple to be martyred; mentioned in theRoman Canon.Died 35 A.D.

December 27 – St. John, the Apostle & Evangelist – c. 100 at Ephesus; son of Zebedee, brother of James; the “disciple whom Jesus loved”; authored three (?) letters, the book of Revelation, and the most spiritual of the gospels; symbolized by the eagle (cf.Ezekiel I): patron of Asiatic Turkey; mentioned in the Roman Canon.

December 28 – The Holy Innocents, Martyrs -  The massacre of the Innocents (2) bears witness to the blood of Jesus which cleanses us from sin (1 ) and frees us from death (Ps).

December 29 – Thomas Becket, bishop & martyr – 29 Dec. 1170, killed by order of Henry II; eight years chancellor of England; as archbishop of Canterbury defended the freedoms and rights of the Church; canonized only three years after his death; considered the most famous martyr of the Middle Ages.

December 30 –  The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph – Patronal Feast of all Catholic Families . Renewal of marital vows take place in our church on Saturday, Dec. 29, 5.00pm & Sunday, December 30, 8.30 & 10.30am

December 31 –  St. Sylvester I, pope –335; as bishop of Rome (314-335) organized public worship and dedicated the Lateran basilica; represented at the Council of Nicea which condemned Arianism; one of the first non-martyrs venerated as a saint.