For the third time this week, the Church honors the memory of one of the prophets of the Hebrew Scriptures. Ezekiel was born in the Land of Israel to his father Buzi, a priest, and it was there that he began his career as a prophet. Then, in the year 3327 (434 BCE), Jerusalem was conquered by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylonia. Nebuchadnezzar exiled the Jewish king Jehoiachin (Jeconiah) along...

Today the Church remembers Daniel, prophet of Israel in exile. Daniel, meaning "God is my Judge," is the hero of the biblical Book of Daniel. A noble Jewish youth of Jerusalem, he is taken into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and serves the king and his successors with loyalty and ability until the time of the Persian conqueror Cyrus, all the while remaining true to the God of...

Today the Church remembers Elijah the Prophet, perhaps the most famous of all the Prophets of Israel from the Hebrew Scriptures.  He announced to Ahaz, King of Israel, who under the influence of his Tyrian wife Jezabel had erected a temple to Baal, that Jehovah had determined to avenge the apostasy of Israel by bringing a long drought on the land. During the drought which lasted three...

John was born in Dukla, Poland, in 1414. Died in 1484 in Lwów, Poland. He joined the Friars Minor Conventual, a religious order whose members strictly adhered to their rule of poverty and obedience. Though he went blind later in age he was able to prepare sermons with the help of an aide. His preaching was credited with bringing people back to the Church in his province. Soon after his death,...

Bruno was born circa 1045 in Solero either to nobles or parents of modest means named Andrea and Guglielmina. He spent his theological education in a Benedictine convent of Santa Perpetua near his town in Asti and in Bologna at the college there where he also studied humanities and the liberal arts. He became a canon in Siena in 1073 after his ordination to the priesthood around that stage and...