Monday, August 24, 2026

Saint Bartholomew, Apostle

feast Ordinary Time

Selected Mass Reading

First Reading — Revelation 21:9b-14

And there came one of the seven angels, who had the vials full of the seven last plagues, and spoke with me, saying: Come and I will shew thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he took me up in spirit to a great and high mountain: and he shewed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, Having the glory of God, and the light thereof was like to a precious stone, as to the jasper stone even as crystal. And it had a wall great and high, having twelve gates, and in the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel. On the east, three gates: and on the north, three gates: and on the south, three gates: and on the west, three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations: And in them, the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb,

Saints Memorialized Today

Bartholomew the Apostle Apostle, Missionary, Martyr -100–100

Saint Bartholomew the Apostle, whose birthplace and early life are not known, was chosen by Jesus as one of the Twelve. Many Christians have long identified him with Nathanael in the Gospel of John, the sincere seeker who was brought to Christ and confessed Him as the Son of God. After the Lord’s Ascension, Bartholomew is remembered as a fearless missionary, carrying the Gospel far beyond the Holy Land. Ancient tradition says he preached in the East—often naming India, and also regions such as Mesopotamia and Parthia—and later journeyed to Greater Armenia, where he is honored alongside Saint Jude Thaddeus as a founder of the Armenian Church. His witness was sealed by martyrdom, with traditions describing severe torture and death for the sake of those he converted. Because of his enduring devotion, he is invoked as patron of Armenia and of those who work with leather and books, and he is also prayed to in nervous diseases. His feast day is August 24.

Feast Days

Maria Micaela Desmaisieres Nun, Religious founder 1809–1865

Saint Maria Micaela Desmaisières was born on January 1, 1809, in Madrid, Spain, during the turmoil of the War of Independence. Raised amid privilege and courtly circles through her brother’s diplomatic service, she moved easily among European monarchs and carried the title Viscountess of Jorbalán. Yet even in a life marked by social gatherings and honors, her heart was drawn to prayer, especially before the Blessed Sacrament, and to the suffering of the poor and the sick. During a cholera epidemic in 1834 she nursed the ill, and in 1844 a visit to a Madrid hospital brought her face to face with women trapped in exploitation and abandonment. Convinced that Christ was calling her to restore their dignity, she opened a refuge in 1845 and founded the Handmaids of the Blessed Sacrament, uniting Eucharistic adoration with merciful care for vulnerable women. She died in Valencia in 1865 after contracting cholera while serving the afflicted. She is honored as patron of the Catholic Parish of Santa Maria Micaela in Melilla. Her feast day is August 24.