Memorial of Saints (December 4)

Feasts, Obligatory and Optional Memorials of Saints

• John Damascene, priest and doctor
• Maruthas, bishop
• Anno, bishop
• Osmund, bishop
• Bernard of Parma, bishop
• Barbara, virgin and martyr

St. John Damascene (675-749 A.D.). John was born in Damascus, Syria, of a Christian Arab family. For a while he was a financial officer for a Muslim Caliph in the city before he resigned, went to Jerusalem, and entered the monastery of Mar Saba. In 726 A.D., he was ordained and spent much of his time with study and writing. John was known for his encyclopedic knowledge and theological method, both of which inspired St. Thomas of Aquinas, the Dominican. John was not only gifted in writing, but also had talent in music. His more important contribution to the Church of his time was his defense of the veneration of sacred images against the iconoclasts (died ca. 749 A.D.).

More on Saints for December 4

Saints in the Byzantine Calendar - December 4

• St. Barbara, Great Virgin-Martyr
• St. John Damascene

Related blog posts:

• December 4 is the feast of St. Barbara in both the Calendars of the Roman Catholic Church and the Byzantine Calendar. She is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, Learn more
• The Doctors of the Church: Teachers of the Catholic Faith, Learn more
• St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church, Learn more

Details from the History of the Catholic Church

There were 32 Doctors of the Church before St. John Paul II raised St. Therese of Lisieux and declared her with this title on October 19, 1997 A.D.

Pope Benedict XVI added two more with St. Hildegard of Bingen, a 12th century A.D. Benedictine abbess and mystic, and St. John of Avila, a 16th century A.D. priest.

Pope Francis also added two more with the title Doctor of the Church for St. Irenaeus of Lyons and St. Gregory of Narek. As of this writing, the Catholic Church has named 37 Doctors of the Church.

Citations from Google Gemini:

18 of those named as Doctors of the Church lived and died before the Great Schism of 1054 A.D. These 18 are also held in high esteem by the Eastern Orthodox Church, although it does not use the formal title Doctor of the Church.

• Doctor of the Church, Wikipedia.org

Memorial of Saints (December 3)

Feasts, Obligatory and Optional Memorials of Saints

• Francis Xavier, priest
• Lucius
• Claudius, Hilaria & Companions, martyrs
• Cassian, martyr
• Sola

Francis Xavier: (died 1552 A.D. at age 46). Francis Xavier was from Navarre and was born of a noble Basque family. He then went to Paris in 1525 A.D. to study there. In the University of Paris, he met Ignatius of Loyola, and became one of the founding Jesuits of the Society of Jesus. After his ordination, Francis Xavier went as a missionary to Asia and preached in India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Japan. While waiting for a boat to bring him to China, he died of exhaustion and fever on the island of Shangchwan near Canton. He is the patron saint of all foreign missions.

Related blog posts:

• O Deus Ego Amo Te, is a poem used as an alternative to the hymn of Thursday, Night Prayer. The poem is composed by Gerard Manley Hopkins, who made St.Francis Xavier's original prayer into this contemporary version and translation. Learn more.

December 3 Saints in the Byzantine Calendar

• St. Sophonias, Prophet
• Theodulus

The Greek and Russian Orthodox Churches celebrate the feast of St. Sophonias or Zephaniah, a seventh-century B.C. minor prophet who may have been the cousin of the major prophet Jeremiah.

Memorial of Saints (December 2)

Feasts, Obligatory and Optional Memorials of Saints

• Bibiana, virgin and martyr
• Chromatius, bishop

St. Bibiana or Viviana (4th century A.D.) and the story of her life does not have historical records. But there is a church in Rome that is dedicated to her and it existed already in the 5th century A.D. It had been dedicated by the Pope himself. According to pious stories, Bibiana was the daughter of the ex-prefect Flavian, who had been tortured for his faith and banished to Acquapendente during the persecution of Julian the Apostate. After Flavian's death, Flavian's wife was beheaded and Bibiana and her sister were arrested. Bibiana's sister dropped dead on her arrest and Bibiana was scourged to death.

December 2 Saints in the Byzantine Calendar

• St. Habacuc, one of the Twelve Lesser Prophets

December 2 in the History of the Catholic Church

On December 2, 1980 A.D., four missionaries were raped and murdered in El Salvador: Maura Clarke, Ita Ford, Dorothy Kazel, and Jean Donovan. Maura Clarke and Ita Ford were Maryknoll sisters, Dorothy Kazel was an Ursuline sister, and Jean Donovan was a lay missionary. Nine months ago, Bishop Oscar Romero had been assassinated while celebrating Mass, because of his commitment to human rights and the Church's "preferential option for the poor".

Citations from Google Gemini

While there hasn't been an official cause for canonization initiated for Ita Ford, Maura Clarke, Dorothy Kazel, and Jean Donovan, their martyrdom and their unwavering commitment to justice and peace have led many to consider them saints. Their story continues to inspire and their legacy lives on.

• Salvadoran City Claims Maryknoll Martyrs As Its Own, Learn more
• Recognizing Saints: The Process of Canonization, Learn more