Daybreak

Saturday of the Third Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Boniface Curitan; Seventh Century evangelist to the Picts and Scots; probably a Roman by birth, Boniface was the bishop of Ross, England; he introduced Roman observances into the British territories and founded a vast number of parishes; he died in 660 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/14/26 Gospel: Luke 18:9-14

Friday of the Third Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Euphrasia of Constantinople, 380-410; a noble Roman; her mother entered a convent in Egypt, and Euphrasia, at the age of five, went with her; at the age of twelve, orphaned, she was commanded by Emperor Arcadius to marry a senator but received permission to give her wealth to the poor and remain a nun; she was known for her holiness Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/13/26 Gospel: Mark 12:28-34

Thursday of the Third Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Peter of Nicomedia; Fourth Century chamberlain at the court of Emperor Diocletian at Nicomedia; arrested for being a Christian when the last great persecution of the Church was launched; he was tortured, and eventually martyred in 303 A.D.; he is ranked as one of the first victims of the last persecution by the Roman Empire Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/12/26 Gospel: Luke 11:14-23

Wednesday of the Third Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Eulogius of Cordoba; Ninth Century Martyred priest of Cordoba, Spain, slain by the Moors, after his arrest in 850; Eulogius was a noted scholar of Scripture he wrote Exhortation to Martyrdom for two young virgin martyrs, Flora and Mary, who were beheaded; released, Eulogius was named archbishop of Cordoba or Toledo; before being consecrated, he aided Leocritia, a young Moorish woman who had converted to Christianity; they were caught and beheaded in 859 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/11/26 Gospel: Matthew 5:17-19

Tuesday of the Third Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Macarius of Jerusalem; Fourth Century bishop of Jerusalem who helped St. Helena to locate the True Cross; when Helena discovered three crosses in Jerusalem, Macarius suggested that a seriously ill woman be touched with each one; one cured the woman instantly, and was identified as the True Cross; Macanus built a church over Christ’s sepulcher which was consecrated as a basilica; Macarius died in 335 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/10/26 Gospel: Matthew 18:21-35

Monday of the Third Week of Lent Commemoration of St. Frances of Rome, 1384-1440; at the age of 12, she was arranged to marry Lorenzo Ponziani; the marriage lasted forty years and bore three children; Frances’ two daughters were killed, her husband seriously wounded, and her son nearly escaped ransom; these events led her into deep prayer and a life of service; caring for the sick and poor of the city, Frances turned part of her family estate into a hospital, and she eventually founded the Olivetan Oblates of Mary, a group of pious women not cloistered or vowed but serving the needs of their community through prayer and acts of charity; after her husband’s death, Frances moved into the monastery and became its president Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/9/26 Gospel: Luke 4:24-30

Third Sunday of Lent Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/8/26 Gospel: John 4:5-42

Saturday of the Second Week of Lent Commemoration of Saints Perpetua and Felicity; African martyrs who became Christian catechumens; they were arrested but stayed true to their faith despite deplorable prison conditions and earnest pleas from Perpetua’s father to renounce her faith; along with three other catechumens, they were executed in the amphitheater at Carthage in 203 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/7/26 Gospel: Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

Friday of the Second Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Fridolin; Sixth Century Irishman, venerated as the "Apostle of the Upper Rhine"; he traveled to France and settled in Poitiers, rebuilding the monastery of St. Hilary which had been destroyed by Vandals; he then became a hermit on the Rhine, and built the abbey of Sackingen; he was known as "The Wanderer" because of his many evangelizing trips in the region; Fridolin died in 540 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/6/26 Gospel: Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46

Thursday of the Second Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Philip of Jesus, 1572-1597; born in Mexico City, he entered the Franciscans at Puebla but then departed the order in 1589 to journey to the Philippines as a trader; in 1590, he repented and returned to the Franciscan fold; his superiors commanded him to sail back to Mexico to be ordained a priest and, while on the way, his ship was caught in a storm and driven into the waters of Japan; landing in 1596, he was soon arrested and, with St. Peter Baptist, was put to death by crucifixion at Nagasaki in 1597 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/5/26 Gospel: Luke 16:19-31

Wednesday of the Second Week of Lent Commemoration of St. Casimir, 1458-1484; son of the king of Poland; he practiced the Christian virtues with special regard to chastity and kindness to the poor and was zealous in the faith, particularly in his devotion to the holy eucharist and the Virgin Mary; he died of consumption Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/4/26 Gospel: Matthew 20:17-28

Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent Commemoration of St. Katharine Drexel, 1858-1955; born in Pennsylvania to a family of means; after returning from a trip out west, she decided to leverage her wealth and resources to uplift the lives of Native Americans and African Americans; she is remembered for her devout prayer life, courage towards social justice and unending generosity Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/3/26 Gospel: Matthew 23:1-12

Monday of the Second Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Agnes of Bohemia, 1200-1282; born in Prague, educated in the Cistercian convent; she was betrothed to Emperor Frederick II of Germany, but she refused this marriage, angering Frederick; but in time, he understood her decision, remarking, "If she had left me for a mortal man, I would have taken vengeance with the sword, but I cannot take offense because in preference to me she has chosen the King of Heaven"; Agnes became a Poor Claire at the monastery of St. Savior in Prague,which she had founded; during her religious life, she was gifted by miracles; she predicted the victory of her brother Wenceslaus over the duke of Austria Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/2/26 Gospel: Luke 6:36-38

Second Sunday of Lent Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 3/1/26 Gospel: Matthew 17:1-9

Saturday of the First Week of Lent Saint of the Day: Pope St. Hilary; on the death of Pope Leo the Great, Hilary was elected pope; he worked to strengthen the Church in France and Spain; he rebuilt many Roman churches and erected the chapel of St. John Lateran; Hilary consolidated the Church in Sandi, Africa, and Gaul; he died in Rome on February 28, 468 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 2/28/26 Gospel: Matthew 5:43-48

Friday of the First Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Anne Line, 1563-1601; disowned by her father after she married a Catholic, Robert Line; Robert was arrested, exiled, and died in Flanders, Belgium; Anne remained in England, where she hid Catholic priests in a London safe house until her arrest; she was hanged in Tyburn Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 2/27/26 Gospel: Matthew 5:20-26

Thursday of the First Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Isabel of France, 1225-1270; sister of St. Louis and daughter of King Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile; she refused offers of marriage to continue her life of virginity consecrated to God; she ministered to the sick and the poor, and after the death of her mother, founded the Franciscan Monastery of the Humility of the Blessed Virgin Mary; she lived there in austerity, but never became a nun and refused to become abbess; she died there in 1270 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 2/26/26 Gospel: Matthew 7:7-12

Wednesday of the First Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Victorinus; Third Century citizen of Corinth, Greece, he was exiled with a group of fellow Christians to Egypt during the persecutions under Emperor Numerian; Victor and the others had been exiled in 249 and lived in Egypt; under Governor Sabinus they were arrested again, brutally tortured, and finally executed at Diospolis in 284 Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 2/25/26 Gospel: Luke 11:29-32

Tuesday of the First Week of Lent Saint of the Day: St. Adela, 1067-1137; youngest daughter of William the Conqueror; in 1080 she married Stephen of Blois; throughout her life, Adela had an active role in English politics; she was famed for endowing churches and monastic institutions Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 2/24/26 Gospel: Matthew 6:7-15

Monday of the First Week of Lent Commemoration of St. Polycarp, 69-155; a letter addressed to him by St. Ignatius tells him to care for the Church and his own surviving epistle shows he encouraged the Philippians on the path of righteousness; St. Iraneus praises his defense of orthodoxy and his energy in combating heresy; during a visit to Rome, St. Polycarp spoke to the bishop, Anicetus, who agreed to let the Eastern churches calculate the date of Easter in their own way; Polycarp was arrested and martyred during a pagan festival in Smyrna, when he refused to deny Christ Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 2/23/26 Gospel: Matthew 25: 31-46