Daily Martyrology for May 26

In 1085, St. Gregory VII, pope. He was educated in Rome and spent some time in Cluny, but he does not seem to have become a monk. Elected Pope, he devoted his considerable energies to the movement named after him, “The Gregorian Reform". This movement had two intertwined aims: freedom of the church from secular control, and a celibate clergy appointed for religious reasons only.

At Rome, in 1595, St. Philip Neri. He was born in Florence in 1515, and educated by the Dominicans at San Marco. In 1532 he spent a year at San Germano, during which he frequently visited Monte Cassino. He moved to Rome. He lived a solitary life, supported himself by tutoring, and studied theology from the works of St. Thomas Aquinas. In 1544 he had a mystical experience which changed his life. In 1551 he became a priest. People gathered around him, attracted by his charm, good humor and deep devotion to Christ. They met to discuss a book, prayed, and then either walked to a church or sang. From them developed the Congregation of the Oratory.

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Our daily martyrology was written by Fr. Hugh Feiss, OSB. Copyright © 2008 by the Monastery of the Ascension, Jerome, ID 83338.