Catholic Family Devotions

Understanding the Day

Season

Lent

Week

Week 2 of Lent

Rank

Feast

St. Thomas Aquinas, honored as Confessor and Doctor of the Church, is celebrated during Lent, a penitential season focused on prayer, fasting, and preparation for Easter. The rank “Double” means this feast is more important than ordinary commemorations: it receives its own prayers and readings in the liturgy rather than being reduced to a simple remembrance. There is no octave or vigil attached to this entry, so the celebration occurs on its assigned day without extended observance.

Introit (Daily Prayer)

Ps 18:8
The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul; the decree of the Lord is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple.
Ps 18:2
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims His handiwork.
Glory Be to the Father…

Commemoration St. Thomas Aquinas
May blessed Thomas thy Confessor and illustrious Doctor intercede for us, O Lord, that this thy sacrifice may obtain for us salvation.
Through our Lord…

Weekly Prayer

Act of Spiritual Communion

My Jesus,
I believe that Thou art present in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love Thee above all things,
and I desire to receive Thee into my soul.

Since I cannot now receive Thee sacramentally,
come at least spiritually into my heart.
I embrace Thee as if Thou wert already there,
and unite myself wholly to Thee.

Never permit me to be separated from Thee. Amen.

Weekly Formation

Beatitude 2

The Beatitudes

Blessed are the meek; for they shall possess the land.
Meekness is strength governed by reason and charity rather than by resentment or the desire to retaliate. The meek endure wrong without returning evil for evil and remain peaceful and teachable under God’s providence.

Saint & Feast

Principal celebration

Thomas Aquinas

St. Thomas Aquinas, Confessor and Doctor of the Church

Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, Catholic priest, and Doctor of the Church

Born: 1225-01-25 · Roccasecca
Died: 1274-03-07 · Fossanova Abbey

Thomas Aquinas was an Italian Dominican friar and priest, the foremost Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the Western tradition. A Doctor of the Church, he was from the county of Aquino in the Kingdom of Sicily.

Learn more about Thomas Aquinas

CommemorationCalendar title

Customs & Fasting

Traditional fast · Complete abstinence

Traditional Lenten Saturday fast and complete abstinence.

Today in Church History

Martyrdom of Saints Perpetua and Felicity
203Martyrdom
Saints Perpetua and Felicity were martyred on March 7, 203, in Carthage during the reign of Emperor Septimius Severus. Their courage and faith have inspired Christians for centuries.
The steadfast faith of Perpetua and Felicity reminds us of the power of conviction in the face of persecution.
Death of Saint Thomas Aquinas
1274Church Father
Saint Thomas Aquinas, a Doctor of the Church and one of the most influential theologians, died on March 7, 1274. His works, especially the Summa Theologica, have profoundly shaped Catholic doctrine.
Aquinas' pursuit of truth through reason and faith continues to guide Catholic thought.

Catechism

Catechism of the Catholic Church

In the ministry of Jesus, we see the close connection between his mighty works and the coming of God’s kingdom. His signs show that the kingdom is present in him, attest that he is the promised Messiah, and invite us to believe in the One sent by the Father. By healing and freeing people from hunger, injustice, illness, death, and demonic domination, Jesus gave messianic signs; yet he came above all to free humanity from sin, the deepest slavery that harms our vocation as God’s children. Jesus chose the Twelve to share in his mission of preaching the kingdom and healing. Among them, Peter received a unique mission: to strengthen his brothers in faith and to exercise authority in the Church, including the authority symbolized by the keys of the kingdom. As we reflect together, we can place our trust in Christ, whose works bear witness that he is the Son of God and whose kingdom brings victory over sin and the powers of death.

In the moments leading up to his Passion, Jesus reveals his divine glory in the Transfiguration, confirming Peter’s confession and showing that he must go by the way of the cross in Jerusalem to enter into his glory. The Transfiguration gives us a foretaste of Christ’s glorious coming and recalls that we enter the kingdom of God through many persecutions. As Jesus approaches Jerusalem, he is prepared to die there; he weeps for the city and expresses his desire that it would know the things that make for peace. His humble entry into Jerusalem reveals the coming kingdom that he will accomplish through the Passover of his Death and Resurrection. For Catholic families, this passage invites us to listen to Jesus, to meet trials with faith, to grow in humility, and to prepare our hearts for the joy of the Resurrection.

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Today's Mass Readings

Open the day's Sancta MissaDivinum Officium · Divino Afflatu - 1954View readings