Calendar Class of July 1, 2025

Andrea Kirk Assaf
Jul 1
3 min read

A Carpe Diem Snapshot:

The other day I posted a snapshot of my Mom, with the caption that none of us would be here if it weren't for this "lady in red." The same can be said for the lady whose name is written on this soft pink tombstone, Mary Cullen Courtemanche. As my Mom explained to the post-conference guests at the Kirk Center the other day, it was my grandmother (whom I never met) who was the quiet but determined force that created the backdrop against which all our stories have been written. Orphaned as a child, she grew up to possess a strong faith that drove her to a life of principled service, from lobbying for safer busses, to finding ways to get her children an excellent Catholic education, to facilitating pilgrims' passage to Fatima, to convincing her daughter Annette to introduce the author of The American Cause, Russell Kirk, at his lecture in New York City. And the rest is history!

Liturgical: Tuesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

"They came and woke him, saying,

"Lord, save us! We are perishing!"

He said to them, "Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?"

Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great calm."

Matthew 8:23-27

Bishop Barron's Gospel reflections today: This beautiful narrative seems to suggest that if we but awaken to the presence of God within us, if we learn to live and to see at a deeper level, if we live in basic trust rather than fear, then we can withstand even the most frightening storms.

The Liturgical and Sanctoral Cycles of July overview from Catholicculture.org

Sanctoral: Today the United States celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. Junípero Serra (1713-1784). Miguel Jose Serra was born on the island of Mallorca, Spain. He took the name Junípero when he entered the Franciscan Order in 1730. Ordained in 1737, he taught philosophy and theology at the University of Padua for twelve years. At age 37, he went to Mexico City where he spent the rest of his life working for the conversion of the peoples of the New World. Largely responsible for the spread of the Church on the West Coast of the United States, Junípero founded 21 missions and converted thousands of Native Americans.

Human: Canada Day

Canada Day commemorates the creation of the Dominion of Canada. On July 1, 1867, the British North America Act established “one Dominion under the name of Canada” out of the colonies of Upper Canada, Lower Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, dividing it into four provinces named Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick. Canada Day was so named by Parliament in 1982; previous names were First of July, July the First, Confederation Day, and Dominion Day.

All about this new month of July! July is named after Roman dictator Julius Caesar (100 B.C.–44 B.C.). Caesar developed the precursor to the Gregorian calendar we use today.

Natural: July’s birth flowers are the larkspur and water lily. The July birthstone is the ruby, which is believed to protect its wearer from evil.