Memorial of St. Boniface, Bishop and Martyr
St. Boniface, bishop and martyr(†754). An Anglo-Saxon monk who was sent by Gregory II to evangelize the Germanic peoples. He founded numerous monasteries and dioceses, conquering vast regions for Christ. While Archbishop of Mainz, he undertook a mission to Frisia, in what is today Holland, and was killed by the sword by a band of pagan Frisians in the city of Dokkum.
Mass Readings
First Reading – Acts 22:30; 23:6-11
Wishing to determine the truth about why Paul was being accused by the Jews, the commander freed him and ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to convene. Then he brought Paul down and made him stand before them. Paul was aware that some were Sadducees and some Pharisees, so he called out before the Sanhedrin, “My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees; I am on trial for hope in the resurrection of the dead.” When he said this, a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and Sadducees, and the group became divided. For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection or angels or spirits, while the Pharisees acknowledge all three. A great uproar occurred, and some scribes belonging to the Pharisee party stood up and sharply argued, “We find nothing wrong with this man. Suppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?” The dispute was so serious that the commander, afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, ordered his troops to go down and rescue Paul from their midst and take him into the compound. The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage. For just as you have borne witness to my cause in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness in Rome.”
Responsorial Psalm – 16:1-2a and 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11 (R.1)
R. Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, “My Lord are you.”
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot. R.
I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed. R.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence;
Because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption. R.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever. R.
Gospel – Jn 17:20-26
Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying: “I pray not only for these, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and that you loved them even as you loved me. Father, they are your gift to me. I wish that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see my glory that you gave me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Righteous Father, the world also does not know you, but I know you, and they know that you sent me. I made known to them your name and I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.”
Featured Saints
St. Eoban, bishop, martyr (†754). Eoban was monk-missionary who accompanied St. Boniface to Germania and was appointed Bishop of Utrecht, present-day Holland. He received the palm of martyrdom at the hands of pagans in the city of Dokkum together with St. Boniface.
St. Ilidius of Auvergne, bishop (†384). Bishop of Clermont, France, he was called to Trier, Germany, by Emperor Maximus to liberate his daughter from an unclean spirit. He died on the return trip.
St. Dorotheus of Tyre, bishop (†fourth century). Bishop of Tyre, Lebanon. After suffering persecution during the reign of Diocletian, he was martyred by Julian, in Varna, present day Bulgaria, at the age of 107.
St. Luke Vu Ba Loan, priest and martyr (†1840). Beheaded in Hanoi, Vietnam, during the persecution of the Emperor Minh Mang.
St. Franco, hermit († twelfth century). Led a life of penance and contemplation in a grotto near Assergi, Italy.
Sts. Marcianus, Nicandrus and Apollonius, martyrs (†third century). For their faith they were tortured and confined in a prison in Egypt, and died of heat, hunger and thirst.
Blessed Sancho, martyr (†851). Adolescent martyred by the Saracens in Cordova, Spain, for declaring himself a Christian.
Photo gallery
Photo gallery
