Today we honor John, writer of one of the four Gospels, who answered the call to be an apostle of Jesus. Pray about your own vocation today.
John and his brother, James, Galilean fishermen called the “sons of thunder,” were chosen to be among the Twelve Apostles. John was with Jesus at the Trans-figuration, in the Garden of Gethsemane and on Calvary. It was to this “beloved disciple” that Jesus entrusted his mother’s care.

Today we celebrate the feast day of St. Sylvester. Through his incredible life we can learn how to transform the church through a vibrant and active community.

“But the one name that contains everything is the one that the Son of God received in his incarnation; JESUS. The divine name may not be spoken by human lips, but by assuming humanity the Word of God hands it over to us and we can invoke it: “Jesus,” “YHWAH saves.” The name “Jesus” contains all: God and man and the whole economy of creation and salvation. To pray “Jesus” is to invoke him and to call him within us. His name is the only one that contains the presence it signifies. Jesus is the Risen One, and whoever invokes the name of Jesus is welcoming the Son of God who loved him and who gave himself up for him. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2666)

The Epiphany marks the arrival of visitors, identified in Scripture as magi, to the place where Jesus was born. 

Today we remember John Neumann who helped expand Catholic education in the United States in the 1800s. In addition to promoting education, St. John Neumann was also known for his work with migrants and refugees.