Catholic Family Devotions

Understanding the Day

Season

Time After Pentecost

Week

Week 26 of Time After Pentecost

Rank

Feast

St. John of the Cross (S. Joannis a Cruce), honored today as Confessor and Doctor of the Church, falls in Ordinary Time after Pentecost — a season focused on the growth of the Church and Christian living. There is no octave or vigil indicated here, so the observance is confined to the day itself.

Introit (Daily Prayer)

Sir 15:5
In the midst of the assembly he opened his mouth; and the Lord filled him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding; He clothed him with a robe of glory. (Allelúja, allelúja.)
Ps 91:2
It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praise to Your name, Most High.
Glory Be to the Father…

Commemoration St. Chrysogonus
Through the reception of Your sacrament, O Lord, may we be cleansed from our hidden sins and delivered from the snares of our enemies.
Through our Lord…

Weekly Prayer

Weekly prayer content will appear here once it is scheduled.

Weekly Formation

Faith and Charity

Sins Against the Theological Virtues

Resisting or attacking the known truth
Resisting known truth means opposing a truth recognized as coming from God because accepting it would require conversion or surrender. The sin lies not in honest difficulty or inquiry, but in a willful refusal of light already understood.
Envy at another’s spiritual good
Envy of another’s spiritual good is sadness or resentment at the grace, virtue, holiness, or service of God found in someone else. It is especially contrary to charity because it grieves over the very good by which God is honored and souls are helped.

The Theological Virtues

Faith
Faith is the infused virtue by which the mind firmly assents to the truths God has revealed because He can neither deceive nor be deceived. It rests on God’s authority and gives the foundation by which the believer knows Him and orders life toward Him.
Charity
Charity is the infused virtue by which God is loved above all things for His own sake and one’s neighbor is loved for God. It gives supernatural life to the other virtues by directing the whole person toward friendship with God and eternal union with Him.

Saint & Feast

Principal celebration

John of the Cross

St. John of the Cross, Confessor and Doctor of the Church

Spanish mystic and Roman Catholic saint

Born: 1542-06-24 · Fontiveros
Died: 1591-12-14 · Úbeda

St. John of the Cross was a Spanish Roman Catholic priest, mystic, and Carmelite friar of Converso ancestry. He is a major figure of the Counter-Reformation in Spain, and he is one of the 37 Doctors of the Church.

Learn more about John of the Cross

Commemoration

Chrysogonus

Today in Church History

Death of Pope John IV
642Papal
Pope John IV, who served as the Bishop of Rome from 640 to 642, passed away on November 24, 642. His papacy was marked by efforts to combat monothelitism and aid Christians in the Balkans.
Pope John IV's dedication to doctrinal purity and charity reminds us of the Church's mission to uphold truth and serve those in need.
Promulgation of 'Inter Mirifica'
1963Doctrine
On November 24, 1963, Pope Paul VI promulgated 'Inter Mirifica,' the Second Vatican Council's decree on the media of social communications, emphasizing the responsibility of media to serve truth and human dignity.
The Church's call for responsible media use challenges us to promote truth and respect in all forms of communication.

Catechism

Catechism of the Catholic Church

Prayer is the raising of our minds and hearts to God and the asking of good things from Him. God tirelessly calls each person into this mysterious encounter, and prayer unfolds throughout salvation history as a reciprocal call between God and humanity. Abraham, Jacob, Moses, and the prophets show us prayer marked by faith, trust in God’s faithfulness, perseverance, conversion of heart, and intercession for others. The Psalms are the masterwork of Old Testament prayer, bringing together personal and communal prayer as they recall God’s fulfilled promises and await the Messiah. Prayed and fulfilled in Christ, the Psalms remain an essential and permanent part of the Church’s prayer, suitable for people of every condition and time.

In these Catechism passages, we contemplate Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, as the master of prayer. Jesus learned to pray in his human heart from Mary and through the prayer of his people, while his own prayer revealed his unique filial relationship with the Father. He prayed in solitude and at the decisive moments of his mission, humbly entrusting his human will to the Father’s loving will. His prayers of thanksgiving, his petitions, and his surrender in the Passion show us that prayer is a loving adherence to the Father’s will. As we contemplate and listen to the Son at prayer, we too learn to pray to the Father.

¶ 2592

The prayer of Abraham and Jacob is presented as a battle of faith marked by trust in God's faithfulness and by certitude in the victory promised to perseverance.

Today's Mass Readings

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