MONDAY JANUARY 18
Beginning of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

Today begins the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which will end on Monday, January 25, the day on which the Church commemorates the conversion of Saint Paul. The material for this Week of Prayer was prepared by the Grandchamp Monastic Community. The theme chosen by the International Commission of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches is taken from the Gospel of John 15:1-17: “Remain in my love: you will bear much fruit.”
From the presentation of the resource prepared for this week, we draw a point for reflection: “The Lord Jesus addressed these words (cf. Jn 15:5-9) to the disciples at a time of worry, uncertainty about the future, and suffering, immediately before his Passion... Today, all humanity is once again going through a period of great suffering, profoundly affected by the Covid-19 epidemic and its devastating social, economic, and moral consequences... How should we respond to all this? Is there still a future together? Will we be able to bear fruit? Some have chosen to ignore the pleas for help from the sick (just think of the many elderly people who died in institutions!), some have decided to close their borders and their hearts even further, some have given in to inertia, and some have expressed their frustration and anger by blaming others. Jesus’ response in the hour of trial is completely different. He delivers a speech filled with authority and, at the same time, mercy, pointing to a new path that nevertheless has its deepest roots in the Word of God... In these words of Jesus, there is a clear emphasis, an urgent appeal addressed to his followers: ‘Remain in me.’ Jesus asks each of us not to flee, barricaded behind our positions, absorbed in our ideas, or tempted to withdraw and close ourselves off. He asks not for sterile agitation or frantic activism, but first and foremost for a firm and life-giving relationship with his Word. ‘If you remain in me and my words remain in you...’ To remain disciples of the Risen One means meditating every day on the Word of God, the source of love, mercy, and unity.”

To learn more:
• On your word January-February 2021

FRIDAY, JANUARY 22
Beginning of the novena to Saint John Bosco

“Joy is the finest creature to come from God's hands after love,” said Saint John Bosco. Let us pray to him during these nine days preceding his liturgical memorial (January 31), asking him to teach us to live with true joy and profound love, to cultivate a sense of wonder so that we may recognize and encounter God in every thing, person, and event. The novena to Don Bosco, if lived with faith and surrender, will also become a truly precious and beautiful opportunity to ask the Lord for a special grace. Let us give ourselves a little time each day, perhaps in the morning or evening; we will see that the Lord will certainly speak to our hearts and answer our requests.

To learn more:
• Don Bosco

SATURDAY, JANUARY 23
Marriage of Mary and Joseph

The feast of the marriage of Mary most holy and Saint Joseph spread in France at the beginning of the 15th century, mainly through the efforts of Jean Gerson (1363-1429), a great devotee of Saint Joseph. The feast was adopted by many religious orders, and the first to include it in their liturgical calendar were the Franciscans in 1537. The Servites of Mary and the Dominicans followed, and then the others. This feast subsequently spread widely, and the liturgical memorial was set for January 23.
Another saint who played a decisive role in consolidating this feast and devotion was Gaspare Bertoni, who, in Verona, dedicated the main altar of the Church of the Sacred Stigmata to the holy spouses Mary and Joseph, solemnly celebrating the feast of their marriage from 1823 onward, a tradition always preserved by the Stigmatines.
By meditating on the Holy Spouses, Mary and Joseph, we can learn what it means to be spouses in a family: first and foremost, it means being willing to listen to God's will, to live the sacrament of marriage faithfully according to the divine plan, and to show care for one another that is capable of great sacrifice. We turn with confidence to the Holy Spouses and entrust our families to them.

Prayer to the Holy Spouses Mary and Joseph
Like God the Father,
in his infinite wisdom and immense love,
entrusted here on earth his only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ
to you, Mary most holy, and to you, Saint Joseph,
spouses of the Holy Family of Nazareth,
thus we, who through Baptism have become children of God,
with humble faith we entrust and consecrate ourselves to you.
Have for us, for our children, and for our families, the same care and tenderness you had for Jesus.
the same care and tenderness you showed toward Jesus.
Help us to know, love, and serve Jesus
as you came to know, love, and serve him.
Obtain for us the grace to love you with the same love
with which Jesus loved you here on earth.
Protect us,
defend us from every danger and every evil.
Increase our faith,
keep us faithful to our vocation
and to our mission: make us holy.
At the end of this life, welcome us with you in heaven,
where you already reign with Christ in eternal glory.

To learn more:
• The holy married couple Mary and Joseph
• The Holy Family of Jesus
• The newness of Christian married couples

SUNDAY, JANUARY 24
Saint Francis de Sales

January 24 marks the memorial of Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622), bishop and Doctor of the Church. Through his writings and his creative evangelization, always full of hope, he anticipated what the Second Vatican Council would call the “universal vocation to holiness.” In his major works, as well as in his letters, Francis urges, invites, and encourages us to recognize that all Christians, as baptized people, have equal dignity before the Lord and share the same vocation: holiness. Holiness is not the prerogative of only a few, nor is it tied to a particular state of life: holiness is a gift offered to everyone, no one excluded, and therefore constitutes the distinguishing characteristic of every Christian. All this helps us understand that, to be holy, we do not necessarily have to be bishops, priests, or religious: no, we are all called to become saints! Pope Francis presented him as a model to young people, married couples, and the sick: “May the figure of this saint be, for you young people, a model of gentleness; for you who are sick, an encouragement to offer your suffering for the cause of the unity of Christ’s Church; and for you newlyweds, an example of recognizing in your family life the primacy of God and his love.”

To learn more:
• Philothea
• Open your heart wide
• 24 steps in everyday life