Today, I celebrate the first anniversary of this podcast called Better Days BroDcast. My first podcast was entitled: When Prayerful Silence Sets the Day and it was published last July 16, 2020. I would like to thank you for your continued support and invite you to keep on listening to this podcast. I welcome you if you are new to this podcast. And yes, happy anniversary to us!  This podcast episode is in collaboration with my godchild (sacrament of confirmation) Mika Cruz. Mika is a musician/ artist; audio engineer and entrepreneur at Soundchick Productions (Podcasting Solutions) where she helps people and brands share their stories and connect with their audience through podcasting. Photo by Isabella and Zsa Fischer on Unsplash

Anthony of Padua was born of noble parents in Lisbon, Portugal, and entered the Canons Regular of Saint Augustine in that city at the age of 15. During the eight years that Anthony spent, in the more secluded monastery at Coimbra, which was a renowned center for biblical studies, he became a profound scholar. One biographer notes the irony in his popularity today, as a meek and sweet patron of petitions, to recover lost articles, which disguises his life as a remarkable scholar, a powerful preacher, and a worker of extraordinary miracles. (MTR) Photo by Louise Hill on Unsplash 

Philip Neri was born in Florence, and from boyhood was noted for his combination of goodness and joy. At first, he led a quiet life of prayer, study, and penance. Philip is best known for founding the Congregation of the Oratory, which grew out of his use of a room for prayer, and for jovial entertainment of the young people of Rome. Photo by Pawel Czerwinski on Unsplash

Bernardine was born of the noble Sienese family Albizeschi at Massa Marittima, where his father was governor. Orphaned at the age of six, he was raised by aunts. At school in Siena, he was outstanding for his intelligence, his goodness, and his popularity. At the age of 17, he began a life of service to the poor, and quiet spirituality. Four years later, he joined the Franciscans, and became active in the reform group of the Order. Ordained in 1404, he led a hidden life for 12 years, and then began a career of itinerant preaching. (MTR) Photo by Pavel Nekoranec on Unsplash

De La Salle considers that the Apostle James, son of Alpheus, is the same James who was the first bishop of Jerusalem, martyred in 62 A.D., and the author of the Epistle. Some scholars however, hold that the Apostle bishop, and the author of the Epistle are two different people, but there is no confusion about Philip, as one of the first Apostles called by Jesus. The feast of these two Apostles was transferred to May 3 by Pope Pius XII in 1956, to allow for the feast of Saint Joseph the Worker on May 1. The feast of the other Apostle James, son of Zebedee, is on July 25. (MTR) Photo by Vaishakh pillai on Unsplash

Athanasius was born in Alexandria and received an excellent education in the classics and in the Scriptures.  He was very influential in opposing the heresy of Arius at the Council of Nicea. Later, as Patriarch of Alexandria, he continued his staunch defense of the true faith and endured exile three times. He wrote the Life of Saint Anthony, which had a great influence on the development and spread of monasticism. He is a Doctor of the Church. (MTR) Photo by Robert Nyman on Unsplash

Catherine was born in Siena, the daughter of a wealthy wool dyer, Giacomo Benincasa. In adolescence, she was drawn to prayer and solitude, and became a problem for her mother, by resisting any suggestion either of marriage or of becoming a nun. A compromise was reached when she joined the Third Order of Saint Dominic at the age of 16. Catherine convinced Pope Gregory XI to leave Avignon in 1376, and to return the papacy to Rome. She lived only 33 years, but her influence was exceptional. Her writings, including over 400 letters, earned for her from Pope Paul VI in 1970, the title of Doctor of the Church. (MTR) Photo by Marcio Chagas on Unsplash

Saint Anselm was born at Aosta in Piedmont. After a period of neglect of religion, he entered the Benedictine Order at the monastery of Bec, in Normandy, the center of the monastic revival in that part of France. He is a Doctor of the Church because of his writings in philosophy and theology, and because of his spirituality, which focuses on the sufferings of Christ. No doubt this orientation, which affected subsequent Cistercian spirituality, was reflected in the gentle and compassionate nature of Anselm, which De La Salle mentions in this meditation. (MTR) Photo by Scott Rodgerson on Unsplash

The date of this feast was determined by the relation, between the feast of Christmas, and the visit of the Angel Gabriel to Mary, a period of nine months. From its inception, this feast was the celebration of the Incarnation of Christ, rather than the honor of the Most Blessed Virgin. This explains in part why Dela Salle focuses in his meditation more on the mystery of the Incarnation than on Mary. (MTR) Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash

De La Salle had a special love for Saint Joseph, developed undoubtedly as part of his training in the seminary of Saint Sulpice. Photo by Manuel Asturias on Unsplash