{"ok":true,"date":"2028-10-23","dateKey":"10-23","liturgicalDay":"St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor","rank":"Double","color":"white","quoteOfTheDay":{"text":"If you love me, keep my commandments.","author":"Holy Scripture","source":"John 14:15, Original Douay-Rheims","treasuryHref":"/wisdom#love-proven-by-obedience","category":"The Love of God"},"season":"Time after Pentecost","novenas":[],"octaveContexts":[],"subject":"City of God in Exile: St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor - 2028-10-23","previewText":"St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor. Hold the Traditions. Resist innovation that claims continuity while contradicting what was handed down.","plainText":"CITY OF GOD IN EXILE\nSt. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor\n2028-10-23 - Time after Pentecost - Double - white\nPLAIN-LANGUAGE GUIDE FOR TODAY\nEucharist: the sacrament in which, after the consecration at Mass, Jesus Christ is truly present—Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity—under the appearances of bread and wine.\nConfessor: in the traditional calendar, a male saint who openly professed the Faith by a holy life but was not killed as a martyr.\nApostolic: belonging to the faith, mission, teaching, or authority handed down from Christ through the apostles.\nThe full Breviary lessons preserve an older English translation. Read the modern explanation first; it identifies the people, event, and doctrine before the historical wording appears.\nTODAY IN THE ROMAN YEAR\nSt. Anthony Mary Claret joined preaching, prayer, penance, devotion to Our Lady, and defense of Catholic truth. Zeal for souls does not flatter them or hide what endangers salvation; it speaks as a father who desires their conversion and eternal life. Ask the Immaculate Heart of Mary to purify your motives before you try to influence another soul. With Mary, turn from outward display toward the hidden sanctuary where God judges the heart. Ask Our Lady to guard the intention beneath today's prayer and labor.\n\n\"All the glory of the King's daughter is within.\"\nSt. Louis-Marie de Montfort, True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, no. 11, citing Psalm 44:14\n\nThe world judges by what can be displayed, counted, and applauded. God sees the interior order from which a faithful act proceeds. Our Lady's glory is within because her faith, purity, charity, and consent belong wholly to Him before they become visible in any outward work.\n\nDo not use the interior life as an excuse for neglecting outward Catholic duty; Mary obeyed in deed. But begin where the deed receives its worth. Purify the intentions of your prayers and works today. Let them be done because God is God, not because the acts will preserve an image of yourself.\n\nPRACTICE\nBefore correcting anyone, ask whether your words seek victory for truth or satisfaction for self.\n\nQUOTE OF THE DAY\n\"If you love me, keep my commandments.\"\nHoly Scripture, John 14:15, Original Douay-Rheims\n\nROMAN MARTYROLOGY - October 23\nIN the territory of Ossuma, in Spain, near Cadiz, the holy martyrs Servandus and Germanus, in the persecution of Diocletian, under the lieutenant Viator. After being subjected to scourging, imprisonment in a foul dungeon, want of food and drink, and the fatigue of a very long journey, which they had to perform loaded with fetters, they at length reached the term of their martyrdom by having their heads stricken off. Germanus was buried at Merida, and Servandus at Seville. — At Antioch, in Syria, the birthday of the holy priest Theodore, who was arrested in the persecution of the impious Julian. After being racked, after suffering many severe torments, and the burning of his sides with torches, as he persevered in the confession of Christ, he was put to the sword, and thus consummated his martyrdom. — At Granada, in Spain, blessed Peter Paschasius, bishop of Jaen and martyr, of the Order of Mercedarians. He suffered on the 6th of December. — At Constantinople, St. Ignatius, bishop, who, for having reproved the emperor Bardas for putting away his wife, was subjected by him to many insults and driven into banishment. Being restored to his See by the Roman Pontiff Nicholas, he finally rested in peace. — At Bordeaux, St. Severin, bishop of Cologne and confessor. — At Rouen, St. Romanus, bishop. — At Salerno, St. Verus, bishop. — In Picardy, St. Domitius, priest. — In Poitou, St. Benedict, confessor. — Near Villack, in Hungary, St. John of Capistran, confessor, of the Order of Minorites, illustrious by the sanctity of his life, and his zeal for the propagation of the Catholic faith. By his prayers and miracles, he routed a most powerful army of Turks and forced them to raise the seige of Belgrade.\n\nGOSPEL OF THE DAY\nPreach the Gospel to every creature.\nSt. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor - Mark 16:15-18\n\"Go ye into the whole world, and preach the gospel to every creature.\"\nLet zeal remain clean. Defend the faith because souls are loved, and let prayer keep courage from becoming anger.\n\nTHE CHURCH'S READING OF THE GOSPEL\nWhat This Gospel Teaches\nMissionary preaching is charity because souls need Christ, doctrine, conversion, and the sacraments.\nSt. Anthony Mary Claret joins episcopal courage, Marian devotion, and public defense of Catholic truth.\nError corrected: The timid peace that lets public error harm souls because warning feels costly.\n- Where does this error tempt me in practice?\n- What act does this Gospel require of me today?\n\nHIGHLIGHTED SAINT\nSt. Anthony Mary Claret\nBishop, missionary, preacher, and defender of Catholic doctrine.\nSt. Anthony Mary Claret labored as a missionary preacher, bishop, founder, and servant of souls.\nHis witness joins apostolic zeal to doctrinal defense, Marian devotion, and pastoral courage in a time of public attacks against the Church.\nLet St. Anthony Mary Claret teach defensive courage. The Catholic answer to error is not hatred, but truth preached for the salvation of souls.\nFROM MATINS\nApostolic fire formed before the Eucharist and beneath Our Lady's gaze.\nPapal Witness - Canonization Homily - St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor - site-added devotional observance\nPope Pius XII\n\"Not with human resources, but armed with divine help.\"\n- Pope Pius XII joins St. Anthony Mary Claret's purity, active charity, prayer for the salvation of others, tireless journeys, and preaching to the reform of both private and public morals in the spirit of the Gospel.\n- Before his public apostolate, the young textile worker spent his free hours in church before the Blessed Sacrament or an image of the Mother of God; later he embraced seminary doctrine, discipline, supernatural formation, and conformity to Jesus Christ.\n- His missions answered ignorance of God's commandments and weariness of heavenly things with preaching ordered to tears, sincere resolutions, and a true renewal of morals rather than momentary emotion.\n- As archbishop and royal confessor he endured danger, sought the salvation of the soul entrusted to him, defended the rights of the Church, and promoted the Catholic religion; he also founded the missionary congregation dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.\n- Pope Pius XII proposes him to workers, priests, bishops, and the whole Christian people as a summons to the perfection proper to each state of life, from which genuine remedies for disordered times may arise.\nSeek apostolic zeal at its source: prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, devotion to Our Lady, sound doctrine, discipline, holiness of life, and complete surrender to God. Then preach the commandments, defend the Church, and labor for a conversion that reforms conduct rather than merely stirring feelings.\nFULL BREVIARY LESSONS\nPrayer and Apostolate\nWhen we attentively recall the life of the holy citizen of heaven Anthony Mary Claret, we know not whether to admire more the purity of his soul, which from tender childhood he preserved unstained with the greatest care and diligence like a lily among thorns; the ardor of his charity, by which he was driven to strive to relieve every kind of misery; or, finally, the zeal of his tireless apostolate. Moved by that zeal day and night, he contributed greatly to reforming private and public morals in the spirit of the Gospel by urgent prayers offered to God for the salvation of others, by undertaking innumerable journeys, and by sermons breathing divine love.\nAs a young man he practiced the weaver's trade in obedience to his father's will. He shone before the other workers in the workshop by such an example of Christian virtue that he aroused the admiration of all; and whenever he was able to rest from his manual labor, he hastened to the church. There, either at the altar of the august Sacrament or before an image of the Virgin Mother of God, he passed the sweetest hours in prayer and contemplation. Divine Providence willed that, before he was raised to higher things, he should give workers also splendid examples of uprightness and holiness to imitate.\nDoctrine, Discipline, and Missionary Preaching\nAfter some years, with divine grace helping him to overcome various difficulties, he was at last able to accomplish what he had always desired: to devote himself wholly to God. Admitted to the seminary of his diocese, he earnestly took care to learn doctrine with eager diligence, to obey most carefully the established rules of discipline, above all to adorn his soul with heavenly gifts, and to reproduce in himself by word and deed a living image of Jesus Christ. Thus, when his course of studies was completed and he had received sacred orders, he sprang as a valiant soldier into the open field of the apostolate, armed not with human resources but with divine help, and from the beginning of his priestly ministry brought forth the richest fruits of salvation.\nSeeing that Christian piety was languishing, churches were being deserted, and public morals were being ruined with the greatest harm, either through the widespread ignorance of the divine commandments or through a certain weariness of heavenly things that had crept into many souls, he adopted the timely plan of undertaking sacred campaigns called missions. In various cities, towns, and villages he preached to the people for a fixed number of days. In giving these sermons his face shone with the divine charity by which he burned, and such forceful eloquence burst from his mouth and from the depths of his heart that he often moved those present to tears and, more importantly, to form sincere resolutions for a better and holier life. Thus there came about not merely a salutary amendment but a renewal of morals.\nA Shepherd of Courage and a Son of the Immaculate Heart\nWhen the fame of his holiness spread more widely each day, he was judged worthy to receive the archiepiscopal office in Cuba. Although he continually experienced the gravest difficulties and succeeding obstacles on the island, neither the harshest labors nor dangers of every kind deterred him from striving, as a most excellent and fearless shepherd, to accomplish what he had done in Spain as a good soldier of Christ. Later recalled to his native land as the Queen's confessor and counselor, he had nothing more at heart than to provide in the most fitting way he could for the salvation of his royal penitent, to defend the rights of the Church, and by every means to promote the progress of the Catholic religion.\nThe most salutary plan he had long conceived of founding a missionary congregation dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of the Virgin Mother of God he was able not only to carry into effect but to strengthen and fortify with most wise laws. In the course of time this congregation spread with happy success through Spain, almost all the other nations of Europe, and even the distant regions of America, Africa, and Asia. If workers, priests, bishops, and finally the whole Christian people look to him, all have reason to be moved by his splendid examples and stirred to attain that Christian perfection proper to each one's state, from which alone timely remedies for these disturbed conditions can arise and better times be brought about.\nTHE PILGRIM'S SPIRITUAL CONFERENCE\nHold the Traditions\nThe Church places this truth before you today: Apostolic tradition is not nostalgia. It is the handing down of what the Church received from Christ and the Apostles. Do not hurry past it as though doctrine belonged only to books and controversies. A revealed truth is also a light by which the soul must judge its loyalties, its fears, its habits, and the duties immediately before it. Tradition protects the faithful from the tyranny of the present moment and from teachers who mistake novelty for life.\nThe grace to be practiced is Apostolic zeal governed by Catholic truth, drawn from today's saintly witness. Ask God for more than the natural appearance of this virtue. Temperament may make an action seem easy for a time, but supernatural virtue remains faithful because God is worthy of obedience, even when feeling offers no assistance and no one notices the cost. Practice purity of intention by choosing God's glory before praise, appearance, or self-satisfaction.\nThere is also an enemy to recognize: Resist innovation that claims continuity while contradicting what was handed down. Do not study this danger only in other people. Look quietly for the door by which it seeks entrance into your own soul - perhaps through delay, curiosity, resentment, human respect, attachment to comfort, or the desire to control the outcome. Dying to self today means choosing apostolic zeal governed by Catholic truth when pride, comfort, fear, resentment, or human respect asks for control.\nDo the faithful act and entrust its fruit to divine Providence, God's wise and loving governance of all things. Place effort and outcome into Our Lady's hands so that the whole offering may be presented to her Divine Son. Confidence in God is not passivity: obey, pray, work, and accept that visible success, consolation, or immediate relief may not be given. God remains faithful when the duty is hidden and the outcome uncertain. Therefore, perform the duty that belongs to you, use the lawful means God has provided, and then surrender the fruit. Accept that the holiest part of an act may remain unseen and unrewarded by men. Before each important duty, name the intention plainly: for God's glory and the salvation or good of souls.\nThe Church's witness: this truth manifests the Church's mark of apostolic; the witness placed beside it is St. Paul.\nYour resolution before God: Before correcting anyone, ask whether your words seek victory for truth or satisfaction for self.\nCarry this word: Correction must be medicinal, not vain.\nTHE PILGRIM'S MIRROR\n\"If we would every year overcome one vice, we should anon come to perfection.\"\nThomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, Book I, chapter 11, p. 20\nÀ Kempis does not flatter the soul with the promise of instant perfection. He asks for patient warfare against a definite vice. Much spiritual discouragement comes from trying vaguely to become holy while refusing to name the repeated fault through which self-will governs ordinary life.\n\nChoose the vice by its actual frequency, not by how dramatic its name appears. It may be complaint, delay, curiosity, harsh judgment, vanity, impurity of thought, or refusal of prayer. Place it before God without excuse, ask Our Lady for the contrary virtue, and begin with its next small occasion.\nToday's Practice: Name your recurring vice and write down the contrary acts you will make whenever it appears.\nDAILY EXAMEN\nExamine not only what you did, but why you desired to do it. Give every mixed intention to Our Lady for purification.\n- For what grace or mercy should I thank God today?\n- What sin, fault, neglected duty, or resistance to grace must I confess?\n- What definite amendment will I carry into tomorrow?\nPRAYER\nO Lord, govern my speech when error must be named. Let me correct with charity, courage, and sobriety, never with bitterness or theatrical anger.\nDAILY RULE FOR THE PILGRIM\nA brief rule to keep every day:\nBegin with morning prayer\nAdore the Blessed Trinity and offer the whole day to Jesus through Mary before other duties claim the mind.\nKeep the Angelus\nPause morning, noon, and evening to remember the Incarnation.\nSeek Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament\nAttend Holy Mass when duty permits; otherwise make a Spiritual Communion and renew desire for Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.\nReturn to Jesus and Mary\nUse frequent holy aspirations during work, waiting, suffering, and temptation.\nPray the Rosary\nKeep the mysteries of Christ before the mind with Our Lady and learn to imitate what they contain.\nEnd with night prayer and examen\nGive thanks, confess faults, forgive injuries, make a practical amendment, and entrust the night to Our Lady.\nCONTINUE STUDY\nHold the Traditions and Refuse the Innovators: https://cityofgodinexile.com/scripture-treasury/2-thessalonians-2-14-15-hold-the-traditions-and-refuse-the-innovators?entered=1\nOpen this day in the Sacred Calendar: https://cityofgodinexile.com/sacred-calendar?date=2028-10-23&entered=1\nOpen this day's Daily Pilgrimage: https://cityofgodinexile.com/daily-dispatch?date=2028-10-23&entered=1\nBrowse the Formation Index: https://cityofgodinexile.com/daily-dispatch/formation?entered=1","html":"\n\n \n \n \n City of God in Exile: St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor - 2028-10-23\n \n \n
\n St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor. Hold the Traditions. Resist innovation that claims continuity while contradicting what was handed down.\n
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City of God in Exile

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St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor

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2028-10-23 - Time after Pentecost - Double - white

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“Walk whilst you have the light, that the darkness overtake you not.”
John 12:35
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Plain-Language Guide for Today

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Eucharist
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the sacrament in which, after the consecration at Mass, Jesus Christ is truly present—Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity—under the appearances of bread and wine.
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Confessor
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in the traditional calendar, a male saint who openly professed the Faith by a holy life but was not killed as a martyr.
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Apostolic
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belonging to the faith, mission, teaching, or authority handed down from Christ through the apostles.

The full Breviary lessons preserve an older English translation. Read the modern explanation first; it identifies the people, event, and doctrine before the historical wording appears.

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Today in the Roman Year

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St. Anthony Mary Claret joined preaching, prayer, penance, devotion to Our Lady, and defense of Catholic truth. Zeal for souls does not flatter them or hide what endangers salvation; it speaks as a father who desires their conversion and eternal life. Ask the Immaculate Heart of Mary to purify your motives before you try to influence another soul.

With Mary, turn from outward display toward the hidden sanctuary where God judges the heart.

Ask Our Lady to guard the intention beneath today's prayer and labor.

“All the glory of the King's daughter is within.”

St. Louis-Marie de Montfort, True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, no. 11, citing Psalm 44:14

The world judges by what can be displayed, counted, and applauded. God sees the interior order from which a faithful act proceeds. Our Lady's glory is within because her faith, purity, charity, and consent belong wholly to Him before they become visible in any outward work.

Do not use the interior life as an excuse for neglecting outward Catholic duty; Mary obeyed in deed. But begin where the deed receives its worth. Purify the intentions of your prayers and works today. Let them be done because God is God, not because the acts will preserve an image of yourself.

Before correcting anyone, ask whether your words seek victory for truth or satisfaction for self.

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Quote of the Day

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“If you love me, keep my commandments.”
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Holy Scripture, John 14:15, Original Douay-Rheims

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Roman Martyrology - October 23

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IN the territory of Ossuma, in Spain, near Cadiz, the holy martyrs Servandus and Germanus, in the persecution of Diocletian, under the lieutenant Viator. After being subjected to scourging, imprisonment in a foul dungeon, want of food and drink, and the fatigue of a very long journey, which they had to perform loaded with fetters, they at length reached the term of their martyrdom by having their heads stricken off. Germanus was buried at Merida, and Servandus at Seville. — At Antioch, in Syria, the birthday of the holy priest Theodore, who was arrested in the persecution of the impious Julian. After being racked, after suffering many severe torments, and the burning of his sides with torches, as he persevered in the confession of Christ, he was put to the sword, and thus consummated his martyrdom. — At Granada, in Spain, blessed Peter Paschasius, bishop of Jaen and martyr, of the Order of Mercedarians. He suffered on the 6th of December. — At Constantinople, St. Ignatius, bishop, who, for having reproved the emperor Bardas for putting away his wife, was subjected by him to many insults and driven into banishment. Being restored to his See by the Roman Pontiff Nicholas, he finally rested in peace. — At Bordeaux, St. Severin, bishop of Cologne and confessor. — At Rouen, St. Romanus, bishop. — At Salerno, St. Verus, bishop. — In Picardy, St. Domitius, priest. — In Poitou, St. Benedict, confessor. — Near Villack, in Hungary, St. John of Capistran, confessor, of the Order of Minorites, illustrious by the sanctity of his life, and his zeal for the propagation of the Catholic faith. By his prayers and miracles, he routed a most powerful army of Turks and forced them to raise the seige of Belgrade.

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Gospel of the Day

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Preach the Gospel to every creature.

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St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor - Mark 16:15-18

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“Go ye into the whole world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”
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Let zeal remain clean. Defend the faith because souls are loved, and let prayer keep courage from becoming anger.

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The Church's Reading of the Gospel

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What This Gospel Teaches

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Missionary preaching is charity because souls need Christ, doctrine, conversion, and the sacraments.

St. Anthony Mary Claret joins episcopal courage, Marian devotion, and public defense of Catholic truth.

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Error corrected: The timid peace that lets public error harm souls because warning feels costly.

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  • Where does this error tempt me in practice?
  • What act does this Gospel require of me today?
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Highlighted Saint

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St. Anthony Mary Claret

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Bishop, missionary, preacher, and defender of Catholic doctrine.

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St. Anthony Mary Claret labored as a missionary preacher, bishop, founder, and servant of souls.

His witness joins apostolic zeal to doctrinal defense, Marian devotion, and pastoral courage in a time of public attacks against the Church.

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Let St. Anthony Mary Claret teach defensive courage. The Catholic answer to error is not hatred, but truth preached for the salvation of souls.

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From Matins

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Apostolic fire formed before the Eucharist and beneath Our Lady's gaze.

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Papal Witness - Canonization Homily - St. Anthony Mary Claret, Bishop and Confessor - site-added devotional observance

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Pope Pius XII, Homily at the canonization of St. Anthony Mary Claret

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“Not with human resources, but armed with divine help.”
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  • Pope Pius XII joins St. Anthony Mary Claret's purity, active charity, prayer for the salvation of others, tireless journeys, and preaching to the reform of both private and public morals in the spirit of the Gospel.
  • Before his public apostolate, the young textile worker spent his free hours in church before the Blessed Sacrament or an image of the Mother of God; later he embraced seminary doctrine, discipline, supernatural formation, and conformity to Jesus Christ.
  • His missions answered ignorance of God's commandments and weariness of heavenly things with preaching ordered to tears, sincere resolutions, and a true renewal of morals rather than momentary emotion.
  • As archbishop and royal confessor he endured danger, sought the salvation of the soul entrusted to him, defended the rights of the Church, and promoted the Catholic religion; he also founded the missionary congregation dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
  • Pope Pius XII proposes him to workers, priests, bishops, and the whole Christian people as a summons to the perfection proper to each state of life, from which genuine remedies for disordered times may arise.
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Seek apostolic zeal at its source: prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, devotion to Our Lady, sound doctrine, discipline, holiness of life, and complete surrender to God. Then preach the commandments, defend the Church, and labor for a conversion that reforms conduct rather than merely stirring feelings.

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Full Breviary Lessons

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Prayer and Apostolate

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When we attentively recall the life of the holy citizen of heaven Anthony Mary Claret, we know not whether to admire more the purity of his soul, which from tender childhood he preserved unstained with the greatest care and diligence like a lily among thorns; the ardor of his charity, by which he was driven to strive to relieve every kind of misery; or, finally, the zeal of his tireless apostolate. Moved by that zeal day and night, he contributed greatly to reforming private and public morals in the spirit of the Gospel by urgent prayers offered to God for the salvation of others, by undertaking innumerable journeys, and by sermons breathing divine love.

As a young man he practiced the weaver's trade in obedience to his father's will. He shone before the other workers in the workshop by such an example of Christian virtue that he aroused the admiration of all; and whenever he was able to rest from his manual labor, he hastened to the church. There, either at the altar of the august Sacrament or before an image of the Virgin Mother of God, he passed the sweetest hours in prayer and contemplation. Divine Providence willed that, before he was raised to higher things, he should give workers also splendid examples of uprightness and holiness to imitate.

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Doctrine, Discipline, and Missionary Preaching

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After some years, with divine grace helping him to overcome various difficulties, he was at last able to accomplish what he had always desired: to devote himself wholly to God. Admitted to the seminary of his diocese, he earnestly took care to learn doctrine with eager diligence, to obey most carefully the established rules of discipline, above all to adorn his soul with heavenly gifts, and to reproduce in himself by word and deed a living image of Jesus Christ. Thus, when his course of studies was completed and he had received sacred orders, he sprang as a valiant soldier into the open field of the apostolate, armed not with human resources but with divine help, and from the beginning of his priestly ministry brought forth the richest fruits of salvation.

Seeing that Christian piety was languishing, churches were being deserted, and public morals were being ruined with the greatest harm, either through the widespread ignorance of the divine commandments or through a certain weariness of heavenly things that had crept into many souls, he adopted the timely plan of undertaking sacred campaigns called missions. In various cities, towns, and villages he preached to the people for a fixed number of days. In giving these sermons his face shone with the divine charity by which he burned, and such forceful eloquence burst from his mouth and from the depths of his heart that he often moved those present to tears and, more importantly, to form sincere resolutions for a better and holier life. Thus there came about not merely a salutary amendment but a renewal of morals.

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A Shepherd of Courage and a Son of the Immaculate Heart

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When the fame of his holiness spread more widely each day, he was judged worthy to receive the archiepiscopal office in Cuba. Although he continually experienced the gravest difficulties and succeeding obstacles on the island, neither the harshest labors nor dangers of every kind deterred him from striving, as a most excellent and fearless shepherd, to accomplish what he had done in Spain as a good soldier of Christ. Later recalled to his native land as the Queen's confessor and counselor, he had nothing more at heart than to provide in the most fitting way he could for the salvation of his royal penitent, to defend the rights of the Church, and by every means to promote the progress of the Catholic religion.

The most salutary plan he had long conceived of founding a missionary congregation dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of the Virgin Mother of God he was able not only to carry into effect but to strengthen and fortify with most wise laws. In the course of time this congregation spread with happy success through Spain, almost all the other nations of Europe, and even the distant regions of America, Africa, and Asia. If workers, priests, bishops, and finally the whole Christian people look to him, all have reason to be moved by his splendid examples and stirred to attain that Christian perfection proper to each one's state, from which alone timely remedies for these disturbed conditions can arise and better times be brought about.

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The Pilgrim's Spiritual Conference

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Hold the Traditions

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The Church places this truth before you today: Apostolic tradition is not nostalgia. It is the handing down of what the Church received from Christ and the Apostles. Do not hurry past it as though doctrine belonged only to books and controversies. A revealed truth is also a light by which the soul must judge its loyalties, its fears, its habits, and the duties immediately before it. Tradition protects the faithful from the tyranny of the present moment and from teachers who mistake novelty for life.

The grace to be practiced is Apostolic zeal governed by Catholic truth, drawn from today's saintly witness. Ask God for more than the natural appearance of this virtue. Temperament may make an action seem easy for a time, but supernatural virtue remains faithful because God is worthy of obedience, even when feeling offers no assistance and no one notices the cost. Practice purity of intention by choosing God's glory before praise, appearance, or self-satisfaction.

There is also an enemy to recognize: Resist innovation that claims continuity while contradicting what was handed down. Do not study this danger only in other people. Look quietly for the door by which it seeks entrance into your own soul - perhaps through delay, curiosity, resentment, human respect, attachment to comfort, or the desire to control the outcome. Dying to self today means choosing apostolic zeal governed by Catholic truth when pride, comfort, fear, resentment, or human respect asks for control.

Do the faithful act and entrust its fruit to divine Providence, God's wise and loving governance of all things. Place effort and outcome into Our Lady's hands so that the whole offering may be presented to her Divine Son. Confidence in God is not passivity: obey, pray, work, and accept that visible success, consolation, or immediate relief may not be given. God remains faithful when the duty is hidden and the outcome uncertain. Therefore, perform the duty that belongs to you, use the lawful means God has provided, and then surrender the fruit. Accept that the holiest part of an act may remain unseen and unrewarded by men. Before each important duty, name the intention plainly: for God's glory and the salvation or good of souls.

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The Church's witness: this truth manifests the Church's mark of apostolic; the witness placed beside it is St. Paul.

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Your Resolution Before God

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Before correcting anyone, ask whether your words seek victory for truth or satisfaction for self.

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Correction must be medicinal, not vain.
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The Pilgrim's Mirror

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How shall I imitate Christ today?

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“If we would every year overcome one vice, we should anon come to perfection.”
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Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, Book I, chapter 11, p. 20

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À Kempis does not flatter the soul with the promise of instant perfection. He asks for patient warfare against a definite vice. Much spiritual discouragement comes from trying vaguely to become holy while refusing to name the repeated fault through which self-will governs ordinary life.

Choose the vice by its actual frequency, not by how dramatic its name appears. It may be complaint, delay, curiosity, harsh judgment, vanity, impurity of thought, or refusal of prayer. Place it before God without excuse, ask Our Lady for the contrary virtue, and begin with its next small occasion.

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Today's Practice

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Name your recurring vice and write down the contrary acts you will make whenever it appears.

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Daily Examen

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Three questions before night prayer

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Examine not only what you did, but why you desired to do it. Give every mixed intention to Our Lady for purification.

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  • For what grace or mercy should I thank God today?
  • What sin, fault, neglected duty, or resistance to grace must I confess?
  • What definite amendment will I carry into tomorrow?
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Prayer

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O Lord, govern my speech when error must be named. Let me correct with charity, courage, and sobriety, never with bitterness or theatrical anger.

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Daily Rule for the Pilgrim

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A brief rule to keep every day:

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Begin with morning prayer

Adore the Blessed Trinity and offer the whole day to Jesus through Mary before other duties claim the mind.

Keep the Angelus

Pause morning, noon, and evening to remember the Incarnation.

Seek Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament

Attend Holy Mass when duty permits; otherwise make a Spiritual Communion and renew desire for Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

Return to Jesus and Mary

Use frequent holy aspirations during work, waiting, suffering, and temptation.

Pray the Rosary

Keep the mysteries of Christ before the mind with Our Lady and learn to imitate what they contain.

End with night prayer and examen

Give thanks, confess faults, forgive injuries, make a practical amendment, and entrust the night to Our Lady.

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Continue Study

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Carry today's lesson into a focused chapter from the library.

\n Hold the Traditions and Refuse the Innovators\n
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Persevere, pilgrim.

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The gates remain open to the faithful.

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\n \"The\n
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