Calendar Class of June 23, 2025

A Carpe Diem Snapshot:

I took the scenic route home today, to soak up one last look at the landscape of Rome, my alma mater. The romantic graffiti, the umbrella pine, the overgrown vegetation, the golden hour glow upon the Travertine buildings... these are the associations with Rome that come to my mind whenever I am preparing to leave her. Arrivederci, Roma, you shall always be on my mind...

Liturgical: Monday of the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

Matthew 7:1-5

“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.

Sanctoral: St. Joseph Cafasso, priest of Turin, +1860

Pope Benedict XVI described St Joseph Cafasso as a “formation teacher of parish and diocesan priests, indeed of holy priests such as St John Bosco.” Other priests of his time founded religious institutes; St Joseph Cafasso’s “foundation” instead was a “school of priestly life and holiness.”

Human: 47 BC – Caesarion was born, son of Gaius Julius Caesar and Cleopatra VII. He was the last representative of the Ptolemy dynasty. When Octavian invaded Egypt in 30 BC, Cleopatra sent Caesarion to Berenice, a port on the Red Sea, in order that he would escape to India. His guardian, as a result of treason or cowardice, persuaded him to turn back. Octavian asked the philosopher Arejos if he had the right to kill Caesarion. The philosopher, paraphrasing Homer, said: “It’s not good when there are too many Caesars in the world.” Thus Octavian ordered that he be strangled at the end of August 30 BC.

79 AD – emperor Vespasian died. He distinguished himself as a reformer and reorganizer of Roman statehood, he strengthened the empire’s borders. He did not terrorize senators, and according to Cassius Dio he had a proper attitude towards the Senate. He was, in the eyes of the ancients, an example for the later ruler of the Severan dynasty, Septimius Severus. He ordered the Stoics to be removed from Rome. He initiated the building of the Collosseum. His wife was Domitilla the Elder – they had 3 children. Just before his death, he ordered those with him to help him to his feet and said: “The Roman Emperor is dying while standing.”

Natural: Landscapes of the Heart

The Quiet Power of Childhood Places to Shape Our Lives

Italian: Attaccabrighe (troublemaker)

Quote: Tell me the landscape in which you live, and I will tell you who you are.

--Ortega y Gasset