St. Ezekiel Monastery & Reliquarium

09/03/2026

19/02/2026

Lent’s name is a derivative of the Latin term quadragesima or “the forty days.”

In the Bible, forty days is a traditional number of discipline, devotion, and preparation. Moses stayed on the mountain of God forty days (Ex. 24:18, 34:28). The Israelites’ spies were in the land of Canaan forty days (Num. 13:25). Elijah traveled forty days before he reached the cave where he had his vision (1 Kings 19:8). Nineveh was given forty days to repent (Jon. 3:4). And, most significantly for our Lenten observance, Jesus spent forty days in wilderness praying and fasting prior to undertaking his ministry (Matt. 4:2). Thus, it is fitting for Christians to imitate him with a forty-day period of prayer and fasting to prepare to celebrate the climax of Christ’s ministry, Good Friday (the day of the crucifixion) and Easter Sunday (the day of the Resurrection).

17/02/2026

Ash Wednesday ushers in the beautiful and meaningful season of Lent.

As you come forward to receive the ashes today, don’t just go through the motions. Make this act a prayer and one of deep interior devotion. Call to mind your sins and the sins of your whole life, as best you can. Acknowledge the just punishment of eternal death that you deserve for your sins. But then call to mind the infinite and unmerited mercy of God. Remember that even though you are an undeserving sinner, God has reached down from Heaven to offer you the gift of eternal salvation. He has invited you to receive this gift through your repentance and humility. Humble yourself today in “sackcloth and ashes,” and as with those public sinners of old, God will use this Lent to more fully unite your soul with His through His glorious death and resurrection.

Prayer
Most glorious and Triune God, You have justly condemned me but mercifully offered me redemption. As I enter this season of Lent, I wholeheartedly acknowledge my sin and repent. Please be merciful to me, a sinner. Help me to make this Lent a truly penitential season so that my soul will be more disposed to receive You this Easter. Jesus, I trust in You.

14/02/2026

True honesty and integrity requires that we speak only from the truth that resides within our hearts. No, we do not have a moral duty to reveal every truth of our hearts publicly. Some things are to be reserved only for God or for confession. But when we do feel compelled to speak, it’s essential that our words carry the integrity of truth in every way. Otherwise, they are meaningless, deceptive and, ultimately, destructive.

13/02/2026

Today is the Memorial of Saints Cyril and Methodius. St. Cyril (827-869) was a priest and a philosopher and accompanied his brother St. Methodius (826-885) to Moravia to preach the Gospel. They both perfected a Slavonic alphabet which is now known as the Cyrillic alphabet and translated the liturgy into this language. They were summoned to Rome, where Cyril died on this date in 869, and Methodius was consecrated bishop and sent to Pannonia. Methodius died on April 6, 885, in Velehrad, Czech Republic, after working tirelessly on spreading the Gospel.

10/02/2026

Oh ever immaculate Virgin, Mother of Mercy, Health of the Sick, Refuge of Sinners, Comfortess of the Afflicted, you know my wants, my troubles, my sufferings. Look upon me with mercy. When you appeared in the grotto of Lourdes, you made it a privileged sanctuary where you dispense your favors, and where many sufferers have obtained the cure of their infirmities, both spiritual and corporal. I come, therefore, with unbounded confidence to implore your maternal intercession. My loving Mother, obtain my request. I will try to imitate your virtues so that I may one day share your company and bless you in eternity. Amen.

07/02/2026

Jesus said to his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world…” Matthew 5:13–14

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux said in her autobiography, “I see now that true charity consists in bearing with the faults of those about us, never being surprised at their weaknesses, but edified at the least sign of their virtue.” She believed that this was especially the way we act as salt and light to others. We help to preserve others from sin by being merciful to them when they are weak. We enrich their lives by seeing their goodness and rejoicing in it. And we do so in a hidden way. By our gentleness and compassion, our kindness and mercy, we preserve others and help them to grow in God’s abundant grace. And we do so, many times, without them even realizing how God used us.

The world in which we live is oftentimes quite dark and despairing. There is corruption all around us and temptations abound. Thus, the light of Christ must be made manifest far and wide. Those all around us need to see clearly the path to holiness and happiness. Again, this is possible if we first work to become light itself. Christ, the true Light of the World, must so permeate our lives that we find it almost automatic to shine brightly in a fallen world. When Christ is alive in us, we will radiate joy and peace, calm and conviction, moral goodness and determination. And when we live this way, we will not have to “impose” the Gospel on others; rather, God’s light will simply shine and be a beacon of hope to those who come into our presence.

05/02/2026

God, Father of all,
we honor today missionaries and their flock
in whom Christ lived
and in whom he was crucified.
Give that messengers and teachers
of the good news of Jesus
may be one with their people
in life and in death
and dedicated to one another
and to you, our loving God,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

05/02/2026

According to traditions, Agatha was born into a wealthy noble family in Sicily around the year 231. At the age of fifteen, she made a vow of virginity, choosing to devote herself and her wealth solely to Christ, her divine Spouse. Because she was very beautiful and wealthy, the local Roman Prefect Quintianus wanted to take her for his wife for impure reasons and to attain her wealth. She refused his every attempt.

PRAYER
Saint Agatha, you offered your life to Christ and your divine Spouse and were faithful to your last breath. Please pray for me, that I may learn from the witness of your life to be single-hearted in my fidelity to the will of God and devoted to Him above all earthly fears and evils, trusting in Him until the end. Saint Agatha, pray for me. Jesus, I trust in You.