Catholic Missal of the day: Tuesday, February 24 2026

Tuesday of the First week of Lent

Book of Isaiah

Thus says the LORD: Just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats,
So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; It shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it.

Psalms

Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
The LORD has eyes for the just,
And ears for their cry.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
and from all their distress he rescues them.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew

Jesus said to his disciples:
"In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
This is how you are to pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread;
and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors;
and do not subject us to the final test, but deliver us from the evil one.
If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions."

Bl. Tommaso (Thomas) Maria Fusco(Founder (1831-1891))

Blessed Tommaso (Thomas) Maria Fusco Priest and Founder of the Daughters of Charity of the Most Precious Blood (1831-1891) Bl. Thomas was the seventh of eight children. He was born on December 1, 1831, in Pagani, the Diocese of Nocera-Sarno, Italy. His parents were Dr. Antonio, a pharmacist, and Stella Giordano, of noble descent. They were known for being morally upright and pious. Thomas was baptized on the day he was born in the parish of S. Felice e Corpo di Cristo. In 1837, his mother died of cholera. His father died four years later in 1841. Fr. Guiseppe, an uncle on his father's side and a primary school teacher, took charge of Thomas' education. Since 1839, the year of the canonization of St. Alphonsus Mary de' Liguori, Thomas felt drawn to the priesthood. In 1847, he entered the same diocesan seminary of Nocera, where his brother Raffaele was ordained in 1849. On April 1, 1851, Thomas received the Sacrament of Confirmation. On December 22, 1855, he was ordained to the priesthood by Bp. Agnello Giuseppe D'Auria. The deaths of his uncle in 1847 and younger brother Raffaele in 1852 were deeply sorrowful. However, devotion to the Patient Christ and to His Blessed Sorrowful Mother took root in Thomas. His biographers wrote, "He had a deep devotion to the crucified Christ, which he cherished throughout his life." Fr. Thomas opened a morning school in his own home for boys' education and spiritual formation. For young people and adults, he organized evening prayers at the parish church of S. Felice e Corpo di Cristo. This was a true place of conversion and prayer, just as it had been for St. Alphonsus. In 1857, Fr. Thomas was admitted to the Congregation of the Missionaries of Nocera and worked in southern Italy.In 1860, he was appointed chaplain at the Shrine of our Lady of Carmel in Pagani. He set up the altar of the Crucified Christ and established the Pious Union for the Adoration of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus.In 1862, he opened a school of moral theology in his own home to train priests for confession. That same year, he founded the (Priestly) Society of the Catholic Apostolate for missions among the people. In 1874, he received the approval of Pope Pius IX, now blessed. Deeply moved by the sorrowful plight of an orphaned girl, Fr. Thomas founded the Congregation of the Daughters of Charity of the Most Precious Blood on January 6, 1873, the Solemnity of the Epiphany. The institute was inaugurated at the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in the presence of Bp. Raffaele Ammirante. With the religious habits of the first three sisters, Bp. Ammirante blessed the first orphanage for seven poor orphan girls. It was not long before the new religious family and the orphanage received the pope's blessing. Fr. Thomas continued his priestly ministry, spiritual retreats and popular missions. From his apostolic travels sprung foundation-houses and orphanages. He was also parish priest at the principal church of S. Felice e Corpo di Cristo in Pagani (1874-1887), extraordinary confessor to the cloistered nuns in Pagani and Nocera and spiritual father of the lay congregation at the Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. In 1880, a brother priest accused him out of envy. He lovingly carried the cross that Bp. Ammirante had foretold at the time of the institute's foundation: "Have you chosen the title of the Most Precious Blood? Well, may you be prepared to drink the bitter cup." Fr. Thomas bore the trials meekly. He repeated, "May work and suffering for God always be your glory; and in your work and suffering, may God be your consolation on this earth and your recompense in heaven. Patience is the safeguard and pillar of all the virtues." Fr. Thomas passed away on February 24, 1891, from liver disease. He was only 59 years old. In the notice issued by the town council of Pagani on February 25, 1891, the witness of his life was summarized in these words: "Tommaso Maria Fusco, Apostolic Missionary, Founder of the Daughters of Charity of the Most Precious Blood, an exemplary priest of indomitable faith and ardent charity, worked tirelessly in the name of the Redeeming Blood for the salvation of souls: in life he loved the poor and in death forgave his enemies." Fr. Thomas' life was directed to the highest devotion of Christian virtues by the priestly life, lived in constant meditation on the Father's love, and contemplated in the crucified Son, whose Blood is "the expression, measure and pledge" of divine Charity. He was an Apostle of the Most Precious Blood, a friend of young people, and attentive to every kind of poverty and human and spiritual misery. He enjoyed the fame of holiness among the diocesan priests, among the people and among his spiritual daughters. The Daughters of Charity of the Most Precious Blood witness the Founder's charism in various parts of the world. The cause for the beatification of Fr. Thomas was initiated in 1955; and the decree of his heroic virtues was published on April 24, 2001. The miraculous healing of Mrs. Maria Battaglia on August 20, 1964, in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicily, through the intercession of Fr. Thomas was recognized on July 7, 2001. With his beatification, Pope John Paul II presented Fr. Thomas as a guide to holiness for priests, the people of God and his Spiritual Daughters.

St. Ethelbert()

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