July Saints

July 1. Junipero Serra.

Junipero Serra was a brilliant man who lived comfortably in Spain in the 18th century. Junipero left everything to come to the New World and worked in evangelizing Baja California where he established 21 missions. He walked from mission to mission overseeing the missionary work. It is estimated that he walked about 24,000 miles.

Your turn
How far are you willing to go to spread the Word of God?

July 6. Saint Maria Goretti.

Maria Goretti, the daughter of a very poor family, was born near Rome. Upon her father’s death, she had to help her mother to care for her four younger siblings. She was really pretty and when she was about 12 years old, she attracted the lust of a young neighbor, Alessandro. When she refused her advances, he grew angry and mortally wounded her. She lived long enough to forgive Alessandro who, years later in jail, repented.

Your turn
How strongly do you defend your own convictions?

July 13. Saint Teresa of Jesus of Los Andes.

The first Chilean saint, Teresa was barely 20 years old when she died in a Carmelite convent that she had joined only one year earlier. She was joyful, cheerful, and athletic, and had a strong character which she learned to overcome (she was said to be stubborn, proud, and selfish). Her friendship with God transformed her into a new person.

Your turn
Do you believe that your love for God and your friendship with him can help you to overcome your defects? For which ones would you like to ask God’s help to change?

July 14. Saint Francis Solanus.

A young man in the 16th century with a joyful and kind temperament, he also had a great spirit of sacrifice. As a Franciscan missionary, he traveled to America, particularly Argentina and Peru, where he carried out great missionary works. His fame as man of prayer led shortly after his death to the process of canonization.

Your turn
How would you like people to remember you?

July 15. Saint Bonaventure.

Very early in life he was fascinated by Saint Francis of Assisi
(Bonaventure would later write a biography of Francis), and entered the
Franciscan order when he was 22. He studied in Paris and, after his
studies, was highly respected as professor of theology and philosophy.
He was contemporary of Thomas Aquinas, but Bonaventure distinguished
himself for his treatment of emotion, rather than the drier
intellectual ideas. He was appointed General Superior of the Franciscan
Order when he was 36 years of age and knew how to integrate
faithfulness to the spirit of Francis and the necessary structure for
an organization with thousands of followers.

Your turn
Are you fascinated by some role model? Whom would you like to imitate?

July 16. Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

In the 9th century Mount Carmel (overlooking the plain of Galilee in Palestine) was populated by hermits who created a contemplative order there. It was in that same place where nine centuries before Christ, Elijah the prophet had sought the living God. Mount Carmel is close to Nazareth, where Mary lived “keeping all things in her heart.” That is why the order of Mount Carmel decided to be under the protection of the Mother of all contemplatives. The extension of the Carmelite orders of men and women, renovated by Saint Teresa of Avila and Saint John of the Cross, gave more popularity to this feast. Our Lady of Mount Carmel is the patroness of Chile and of seamen and women.

Your turn
Do you leave room for prayer in your daily schedule?

July 22. Saint Mary Magdalene.

This is a woman who appears to have been very close to Jesus throughout his public life, and particularly after the Resurrection. According to the Gospel accounts, the Risen Lord first appeared to a woman, Mary of Magdala. Magdalene is commonly identified as Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, but this is probably wrong. She is also confused with the sinner forgiven by Jesus. In all likelihood, these were three different Marys. Mary Magdalene has a very specific role to play: to be witness to the Good News of the Resurrection and to tell the apostles. She had followed Jesus to Calvary with a group of other women and stood by the foot of the cross with Mary, the mother of Jesus, and received this trust. She thus became a symbol of what Christians need to do in our society today.

Your turn
How can you be a witness of the resurrection and life of Christ?

July 25. Saint James the Apostle.

James the fisherman, the son of Zebedee and the brother of John, was one of the most intimate friends of Jesus. tradition has it that he was the evangelizer of Spain. From the 9th century, his tomb has been venerated in Compostela, in the north of Spain, which became a place of pilgrimage for all Europe.

Your turn
Have you ever been on a pilgrimage? What could be the meaning of walking so much and for so long?

July 26. Saints Joachim and Anne.

Today we remember the parents of Mary of Nazareth, the mother of Jesus. According to apocryphal writings, their names were Anne and Joachim. We don´t know much about their lives, although we can assume that they were a simple, hardworking, and God-fearing couple. In the 7th century, Saint John Damascenus said about them: “Blessed couple, the whole of creation is grateful to you, since it was through you that it could offer the Creator the greatest of gifts: a holy mother.” Today´s feast is an encouragement for Christian parents who daily try to create a good human and faith family for their children, living in communion with God through their love for one another and their service to their children.

Your turn
If you thought your vocation was to marriage, what do you think would be the greatest challenges for you?

July 28. Saint Pedro Poveda.

He was born in Spain in 1874. As a young seminarian he started a great work of education among the gypsies of the caves of Guadix. These people were truly the outcasts of society. He founded a school there that continues his work to this day. In 1911, in response to the grave problems of education in Spain, he founded the Teresian Association, an association of lay people committed to education and culture. The association is present in 30 countries and has approximately 5,000 members. At the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, Poveda gave his life for his faith.

Your turn
What needs do you see around you to which you might be able to respond?

July 31. Saint Ignatius Loyola.

Born to a noble family, he suffered a serious wound in battle and was confined to bed for a few months. It was there that he discovered a new way: to love God with a greater love and to follow him more diligently. He started searching what this way meant for him and in Manresa wrote his greatest known work: the Spiritual Exercises. He made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, started studying again, and in Paris formed a group of young people who were searching like him. That was the beginning of the Society of Jesus, an organization at the service of the church, now spread throughout the world with thousands of members.

Your turn
Have you ever felt called to change your life? In which ways? How did you respond to that call or you feel you should respond to it?