Catholic Family Devotions

Understanding the Day

Season

Septuagesima

Week

Week 3 of Septuagesima

Rank

Feast

This celebration falls in the season called Septuagesima, the preparatory period before Lent used in the older liturgical calendar. The rank given—"Double"—is an older liturgical classification indicating this feast has greater importance than simple commemorations: the community gives proper liturgical texts and prayers for the saint on the day, with special readings, antiphons, and a fuller celebration in the Divine Office and Mass. No octave or vigil is specified here, so the observance is confined to the single day.

Daily Prayer

The Introit for this day has not yet been generated.

Weekly Prayer

Weekly prayer content will appear here once it is scheduled.

Weekly Formation

Hatreds, Rivalry, Jealousy, and Fury

The Works of the Flesh

Hatreds
Hatred deliberately wills evil to another person or rejects the good that charity requires for him. Dislike or painful emotion is not identical with hatred; the sin lies in the settled choice against another’s true good.
Rivalry
Sinful rivalry turns another person’s success into a threat and seeks victory, attention, or superiority without regard for justice and charity. Good competition can pursue excellence, but rivalry becomes a work of the flesh when defeating the other matters more than the common good.
Jealousy
Jealousy anxiously guards a good, relationship, or honor as though another person’s good necessarily deprived one of it. It becomes sinful when suspicion, possessiveness, or resentment overrides truth, trust, and charity.
Outbursts of fury
Outbursts of fury are eruptions of anger in which reason and self-command are surrendered to harmful words or actions. Their disorder lies in allowing passion to punish, frighten, or wound without the measure required by justice and charity.

The Fruits of the Holy Spirit

Peace
Peace is the tranquility produced when desires are rightly ordered within the soul and charity unites persons in the good. It is more than quiet or lack of conflict, since true peace depends on union with God, justice, and ordered love.

Saint & Feast

Principal celebration

Cyril of Alexandria

St. Cyril of Alexandria, Bishop, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church

Patriarchate of Alexandria from 412 to 444

Born: 0376-01-01 · El Mahalla El Kubra
Died: 0444-06-27 · Alexandria

Cyril of Alexandria was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412 to 444. He was enthroned when the city was at the height of its influence and power within the Roman Empire. Cyril wrote extensively and was a major player in the Christological controversies of the late-4th and 5th centuries. He was a central figure in the Council of Ephesus in 431, which led to the deposition of Nestorius as Patriarch of Constantinople. Cyril is counted among the Church Fathers and also as a Doctor of the Church, and his reputation within the Christian world has resulted in his titles Pillar of Faith and Seal of all the Fathers. The Nestorian bishops at their synod at the Council of Ephesus declared him a heretic, labelling him as a "monster, born and educated for the destruction of the church".

Learn more about Cyril of Alexandria

Today in Church History

No Church history reflection has been prepared for this date yet.

Catechism

Catechism of the Catholic Church

The Catechism teaches that God, as the eternal Creator, brought all things into existence through His beloved Son, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, highlighting the intimate cooperation of the Holy Trinity in creation. This act was not born of necessity but from God's free will and love, aimed at manifesting His goodness and glory. As families reflect on the beauty of creation, they are reminded that their lives are meant to praise God and share in His divine goodness. Moreover, just as God created the world "out of nothing," He can transform hearts and grant new life through His Spirit, offering hope and renewal to all who seek Him.

God's creation is a testament to His wisdom and goodness, designed for humanity, who is made in His image. It emphasizes that everything in the universe has purpose and is a gift from God, inviting families to cultivate a sense of wonder and gratitude towards the world around them. As they recognize their dependence on God, families can find joy and confidence in His providence, trusting that He cares for them in every detail of their lives. By acknowledging their role as cooperators in God’s plan, families are called to engage actively in the stewardship of creation, fostering a spirit of collaboration and responsibility in nurturing both the earth and their relationships with one another.

¶ 293

Scripture and Tradition never cease to teach and celebrate this fundamental truth: "The world was made for the glory of God." St. Bonaventure explains that God created all things "not to increase his glory, but to show it forth and to communicate it", for God has no other reason for creating than his love and goodness: "Creatures came into existence when the key of love opened his hand." The First Vatican Council explains:

Today's Mass Readings

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