August 1. St. Alphonse Mary Liguori.

He was a brilliant attorney who had a successful future ahead of him. He was happy and satisfied with his life until he realized his was an unhappy life. As he wrote to a friend, “It had become too risky and difficult.” Then he committed a serious error during a trial and lost. He decided to abandon his profession and enter the seminary, but not before he went through a long process of discernment and confronting his father who in the end had to accept his son’s decision. Once he was ordained into the priesthood. Alphonse went to live with the marginalized youth of Naples. There he began prayer and community centers. In 1732 he founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (the Redemptorists) with the goal of teaching and preaching in the poorest areas of cities. In 1762 Alphonse was appointed bishop although he had tried to refuse the appointment. During his episcopate he wrote sermons, books, and articles about the devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and the Virgin. He was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 1871.

Your turn
What do you think will make you happy? Are you in the career or profession you consider satisfying? What challenges do you face in following your true vocation?

August 4.St. John Vianney.

He was the son of French farmers and shepherds. From an early age he began working in the fields with the shepherds, where as a very young man he shared his faith with his companions and taught them the catechism he had learned from his mother. During his hours of reflection in the fields, he became convinced of his vocation to the priesthood but his father opposed it for two years until he finally consented. John went off to study, but he had a poor memory and everyone thought he was slow and clumsy. Everything was complicated for the poor young man, who to top it off was recruited by force into Napoleon’s army. However, he became ill in the barracks and was fortunately sent home. He returned to the seminary but endured many hardships in his studies. In the end he was ordained and sent to a small town that was hostile toward religion. But with his faith and great kindness he won over the people and many came from far away to hear him and seek the sacrament of Reconciliation. He is venerated as the saintly priest from Ars.
Your turn
What limitations or challenges would you have to face to achieve what you believe is your vocation? Do you have sufficient willpower to do it?

August 8. St. Dominic of Guzman.

He was the son of Spanish aristocracy and received a privileged education. But a great hunger came over the region where he lived and Dominic felt compassion for the poor and gave them everything he had. When he had nothing left over, he decided to sell himself as a slave to rescue the brother of a women who came pleading to him for help. Dominic’s behavior moved the entire city and the people began to share what they had, making it unnecessary for Dominic to self himself. During a trip where he accompanied the Bishop of Osma, Dominic became extremely concerned when he saw the great heresies that existed in Europe. In 1207 he decided to dedicate himself to an apostolic life, renounced all comforts, and with a group of companions he found the Order of Preachers.

Your turn
How do you respond to the needs that emerge in your surroundings? What things can you devote to the service of others?

August 10. St. Edith Stein.

She was born into an Orthodox Jewish family in Breslau, in the German province of Prussia, which today is part of Poland. She was very intelligent and studious and entered the university at a very young age. One night as she read the autobiography of St. Teresa of Jesus, she experienced a conversion. She entered the Carmelite convent in Cologne and took the name Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. From there she wrote her works of Catholic philosophy. Persecution of the Jews by the Nazis and the possibility of Stein’s arrest led her Order to move Sister Teresa Benedicta to another location. She fled to Holland but even there she was not safe. The Bishops of Holland wrote against Nazism and the Nazis did not waste time in unleashing their repression. The arrest of all Jews that had converted to Christianity was ordered and Edith, along with her sister Rosa, was captured and sent to the Auschwitz where she was put to death in the gas chamber.

Your turn
What spiritual things move you the most? Have you ever felt the call of God while you were reading or studying? How did you respond?

August 11. St. Clare of Assisi.

She was born in Assisi Italy in 1193. Her father was a rich and powerful aristocrat. At a very young age, Clare became inclined toward a life of prayer. When she heard speak of Francis, Clare secretly began helping the mendicant friars. She felt very attracted to their life and when she heard a sermon by Francis, she decided to leave her home and everything behind and follow Christ. She spoke with Francis and was determine to begin a female branch of the work that Francis had been carrying out. When her father realized she had run away from home, he became angry and went looking for Clare. But Clare’s determination was so strong that she convinced her father to return home without her. Many young girls began following her and she founded many convents of the Poor Clares.

Your turn
Does it seem like an exaggeration to leave everything behind and confront your family in order to follow your vocation? Do you have doubts when you encounter opposition and think that perhaps the call might not be from God? Who can help you discern?

August 12. Blessed Victoria Diez.

She was a rural school teacher in Spain. At the time teaching religion in school was banned, so Victoria organized literary groups, taught catechesis, formed other catechists and helped families find jobs. During the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, she was arrested together with 17 men. She was repeatedly told she could save her life in exchange for renouncing her faith. She refused and was shot, along with the men, on August 12, 1936.

Your turn
How important is education to you? Do you consider school is just for kids?

August 13. Claretian Martyrs of Barbastro Seminary.

In the Claretian Seminary of Barbastro, 50 seminarians and their teachers died for defending their faith. It was the beginning of the Spanish Civil War and although they were executed on different days, they are known as the group from Assumption since the last ones were executed on August 15, feast day of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin.

Your turn
How far are you willing to go in defense of your faith?

August 14. St. Maximilian Kolbe.

He was a Franciscan priest from Poland who had been a missionary in Japan and India. In 1936 he returned to Poland where he became the superior of a monastery near Warsaw. When Germany invaded Poland in 1939 he was briefly imprisoned, but later returned to the convent where he began organizing a shelter for 3,000 Polish refugees, among them 2,000 Jews. This attracted the attention of the Nazis who closed the convent, imprisoned Maximilian and his companions, and took them Auschwitz. A prisoner escaped from Auschwitz and in retaliation when someone would escape the Nazis would execute 10 prisoners. One of the prisoners scheduled to be executed was   a married man with children. Maximilian offered his own life in exchange for the father and was sent to a starvation chamber. The family man he gave his life for live until 1995 and died at the age of 95. He never forgot Maximilian.

Your turn
What sacrifices do people sometimes ask of you? Are you willing to make them or do you always find an excuse or reason not to do so? Are they usually major sacrifices?

August 18. Blessed Alberto Hurtado.

A Chilean Jesuit priest, he worked tirelessly for the poor of his country. He wanted to be a Jesuit from a very young age, but when his father died he had to spend several years caring for his mother and younger siblings. He worked nights to support his family while he was going to law school.  He also cared for the poor and visited marginalized areas every Sunday.  In 1923 he was finally able to enter the Jesuit novitiate. He studied in Spain and Belgium and later became professor at a Jesuit college in Chile. He would send student to teach catechism in the poor barrios, directed retreats, offered spiritual direction to the poor and help them to discern their vocation.

In October 1944 in a sermon, he challenged his audience to think about the poor in the city and the generous response allowed him to begin an activity center for the helpless and homeless, Home of Christ. He established homes for children, rehabilitation centers, art workshops and much more. In 1947 he began a Chilean union based on the social doctrine of the church. He died in 1952.  

Your turn
In what way does your own story take you to serve others? Do you sympathize with those who are suffering from the same situation that you or your family endured?

August 20. St. Bernard of Claraval.

A young French man from the 11th century, who not only gave up all the diversions and comforts in his life, he also inspired all his brothers, several cousins, uncles, and even his father, upon the death of his mother, to follow him into the monastery. He wrote many works and was distinguished for his immense love of the Virgin.

Your turn
Does your family support you in your religious decisions? How can you be a role model and example to others?

August 27. St. Augustine of Hippo.

He was born in Tagaste, nothern Africa during the 4th century. During his youth he dedicated himself to studying, but also led a less than commendable life. Monica, his mother, constantly prayed and cried for him. One day Augustine experienced a conversion and since then he never again abandoned the way of God. In his best-know works, Confessions, he speaks of his life and his search for God. One of his most famous phrases is “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you." He was the bishop of Hippo and is a Doctor of the Church.

Your turn
What makes you restless? What do you think are the things you are searching for in life?

August 28. St. Monica.

As a young girl she would hide to drink until one day someone called her a drunk and it had such a great impact on her that she stop drinking completely? She later converted to Christianity and since then followed Christ without any doubts. She married a terrible and abusive man, although he never dared to hit Monica. They had three children, the oldest was Augustine, who appeared to be following the same paths as his father. Monica managed to get her husband to convert and he was followed by their son. When Monica finally learned that her son had begun a life next to God, she was able to finally die in peace.

Your turn
What worries you? Is there someone you love but is walking in bad paths? What do you do to bring them to God? How do you pray for them?

August 30. St. Rose of Lima.

She is the first American to be canonized. She was born in Peru in 1586. She was living in her home and wanted to dedicate herself to a life of spirituality. But since she was very pretty, her parents wanted to find her a great husband. But Rose resisted and entered a convent into the Third Order of St. Dominic. From her house, unable to leave for the convent, she was dedicated to a life of prayer and taking care of the needy in Lima.

Your turn
How is God calling you? How do you respond? If you find difficulties and obstacles, how do you overcome them?