Author Archives: Steve Benner

Thomas BecketThomas was born in London in 1118, of a family of merchants. After a good education he served as clerk to another burgess then entered the service of Archbishop Theobald of Canterbury. Thomas proved himself an excellent administrator and skilled diplomat. In 1155 he was appointed chancellor by King Henry II. For several yearsContinue reading “Oremus for Wednesday, December 29, 2021”

The Holy InnocentsHerod ‘the Great’ was appointed King of the Jews by the Roman authorities in Palestine and he proved to be ruthlessly efficient in his thirty-three years of dealing with his subjects. In Matthew’s gospel, he tried to persuade the Magi, to whom he played the host on their journey seeking the one ‘whoContinue reading “Oremus for Tuesday, December 28, 2021”

Saint John the EvangelistWhether or not John the Apostle and John the Evangelist are one and the same, the Church honours on this day the one who proclaims Jesus as the Word made flesh and who is ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved’. John was one of the sons of Zebedee, along with James and Peter,Continue reading “Oremus for Monday, December 27, 2021”

Saint StephenIn the book of the Acts of the Apostles, Stephen is described as one of the seven deacons whose job it is to care for the widows in the early Church in Jerusalem. His eloquent speech before the Sanhedrin, in which he shows the great sweep of Jewish history as leading to the birthContinue reading “Oremus for Sunday, December 26, 2021”

Antiphon1 Ant. Yours are the heavens, yours is the earth, * the world and the fullness thereof have been founded by you. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne.V. A God to be feared in the council of the holy ones, *great and awesome to all around him. Psalm 89 Almighty God, O Immanuel,OContinue reading “Oremus for Saturday, December 25, 2021”

Antiphon1 The glory of the Lord shall be revealed,and all flesh shall see the salvation which comes from our God.V. The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, *the world, and those who dwell in it.It is he who set it on the seas; *on the rivers he made it firm. Isaiah 40, Psalm 24 Purify ourContinue reading “Oremus for Friday, December 24, 2021”

AntiphonChant https://tinyurl.com/y9mr4gll O Emmanuel,Rex et legifer noster,exspectatio Gentium, et Salvator earum:veni ad salvandum nos, Domine, Deus noster. O Emmanuel, our king and our lawgiver, the hope of the nations and their Saviour: Come and save us, O Lord our God. O Immanuel,child of promise and sign of hope,you come from a distance far beyond our reach,yetContinue reading “Oremus for Thursday, December 23, 2021”

Frances Xavier CabriniFrancesca Saverio Cabrini was the first United States citizen to be canonized. Her deep trust in the loving care of her God gave her the strength to be a valiant woman doing the work of Christ. Refused admission to the religious order which had educated her to be a teacher, she began charitableContinue reading “Oremus for Wednesday, December 22, 2021”

AntiphonChant: https://tinyurl.com/yar6cdh3 O Oriens,splendor lucis aeternae, et sol justitiae:veni, et illumina sedentes in tenebris, et umbra mortis. O Morning Star,splendour of light eternal and sun of righteousness:Come and enlighten those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death. O Rising Dawn,you shine with warm brightness and clean freshness,chasing the fearsome shadows of the night away:enlightenContinue reading “Oremus for Tuesday, December 21, 2021”

OrigenOrigen of Alexandria, a third-century Christian scholar, loved Jesus, the Scriptures, and Neo-Platonic philosophy—a combination that Christians since have viewed as either the height of faithful theology or the depth of horrendous error. Whatever one’s views of his theology, his life was utterly dedicated to Christ. In his boyhood, when a persecution struck Alexandria hard,Continue reading “Oremus for Monday, December 20, 2021”