05 August - Abel is a Benedictine monk born in Scotland. Malicious people took advantage of Abel's docility and kindness of heart

04 August - Jean-Marie Vianney, known as the Curé d'Ars or the holy Curé d'Ars, born on 8 May 1786 in Dardilly (near Lyon). He was the parish priest of Ars (then Ars-en-Dombes, now Ars-sur-Formans) for 41 years.

03 August - Lydia of Thyatira was a purple trader based in Philippes, Macedonia. Initially a Greek Jewess, she "clung to the words of the apostle Paul" (Acts 16, 14). Together with her family, she received baptism and offered hospitality to Paul. She is not mentioned elsewhere in the New Testament texts.

02 August - Eldest son of Prince Władysław Czartoryski and grandson of Adam Jerzy Czartoryski, August was born on 12 August 1858 in Paris at the Hotel Lambert on the Île Saint-Louis, where his family had emigrated for political reasons thirty years earlier.

1 August - Alfonse was born on 27 September 1696 in Marianella, a suburb of Naples. On the following September 29th he is baptized in the church of Santa Maria dei Vergini and receives the baptismal names of Alfonse, Mary, Anthony, John, Francis, Cosme and Damien, Michel and Gaspard.

July 31 - Ignatius was born in Loyola Castle in 1491. Orphaned by his father at the age of fifteen, Ignatius left Loyola and became a page at the court of the King of Aragon Ferdinand, then joined the army of the Duke of Lara, Viceroy of Navarre in 1517.

30 July - Peter Chrysologus, or Peter of Ravenna, born around 380 in Imola, is a theologian, adviser to Pope Leo I. Above all a pastor, he preached a lot, which earned him the name Chrysologus (Golden Word). He was declared Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XIII in 1729.

29 July - Martha is the sister of Lazarus, and of Mary Magdalene. They lived in Bethany where Martha was the mistress of the house. Of great goodness she distinguished herself for her devotion to the needy and her great hospitality to the Saviour and his disciples.

28 July - Saint Samson de Dol is one of the seven founding saints of Brittany. He is said to have been born in the region of present-day Glamorgan (South-West Wales). Amon and Anna, his parents, had waited a long time to have a child.

27 July - Saint Nathalie of Cordoba martyred in 852. During the persecution unleashed by the Caliph Abd al-Rahman II, like many inhabitants of Cordoba, Aurelius and his wife Nathalie, as well as their cousins Felix and his wife Liliose (or Liliane), pretended to be Muslims.

July 26 - Joachim is Anne's husband and the father of the Virgin Mary. They are celebrated on July 26th in the Roman rite and on September 9th in the East. The canonical Gospels of the New Testament do not name Mary's parents, but the story of Joachim and Anne appears in the apocryphal Gospel of James.

July 25 - James of Zebedee, or James the Greater, one of the Twelve, brother of the apostle John, is mentioned in the Synoptic Gospels. The two brothers are like fishermen on Lake Tiberias who leave their boat to follow Jesus. He is called Major to differentiate him from James of Alpheus, another of the Twelve.

The Spirit of truth will guide you into all truth

At the end of its second General Assembly, held from 15 to 18 October 2024, the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace sent a message to government officials at all levels, as well as to all Malagasy and all people of goodwill.

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Love and Salvation

Christmas is a great joy, because it is the love of God that has come to us, proclaims Fr. Bizimana Innocent, Provincial Superior of the Salesians Don Bosco of Madagascar and Mauritius, presenting his Christmas greetings. Salvation is accomplished, so life is not in danger of disappearing. It is this love and this salvation that we wish to fill our life so that we have peace.

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Zatti, our brother

The short film "Zatti, our brother" (Argentina, 2020) focuses on one of the most difficult episodes of his life. We are in Viedma, in 1941: at the age of 60, Zatti is forced to leave the hospital he has attended for decades. His faith and strength are tested.

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