May 22: Saint Rita of Cascia—Optional Memorial

Read entire reflection online >>>May 22: Saint Rita of Cascia—Optional Memorial1386–1457Patron Saint of abuse victims, impossible causes, sickness, wounds, parenthood, and widowsInvoked against marital problems, fighting and discord, and infertilityCanonized by Pope Leo XIII on May 24, 1900Liturgical Color: WhiteQuote: Dear brothers and sisters, the worldwide devotion to Saint Rita is symbolized by the rose. It is to be hoped that the life of everyone devoted to her will be like the rose picked in the garden of Roccaporena the winter before the saint’s death. That is, let it be a life sustained by passionate love for the Lord Jesus; a life capable of responding to suffering and to thorns with forgiveness and the total gift of self, in order to spread everywhere the good odor of Christ (cf. 2 Cor 2:15) through a consistently lived proclamation of the Gospel. ~Address of Saint John Paul IIPrayer:Saint Rita, you endured much suffering throughout your life, but you embraced that suffering with love and united it to the sufferings of your Savior. Please pray for me, that I will be strengthened to imitate your profound love, will accept all sufferings with love, and seek to bring about peace in my heart and in the hearts of those around me. Saint Rita of Cascia, pray for me. Jesus, I trust in You.Source: Free RSS feed from mycatholic.life — Copyright © 2026 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. This content is provided solely for personal, non-commercial use. Redistribution, republication, or commercial use — including use within apps with advertising — is strictly prohibited without written permission.Image: NN, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons