John Henry Newman, one of the great Christian intellectuals of the nineteenth century, was born in London in 1801. His spiritual quest having begun in adolescence, he later went on to study theology at Oxford University. Subsequently he became an Anglican pastor, a fellow of Oriel College, and leader of the Oxford Movement which studied the Catholic roots of the faith in England. In 1842, while writing his "Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine", he began to mature his conversion to Catholicism. He was admitted into the Catholic Church in 1845 and ordained a Catholic priest in Rome on 1 June 1847. Following his ordination, and with the encouragement of Pope Pius IX, he founded the first Oratory of St. Philip Neri in England. In 1852 he was appointed rector of the Catholic University of Dublin, Ireland, a post he held until 1854. Pope Leo XIII made him a cardinal in 1879 and he died in 1890 at the Oratory of Edgbaston. The process for his beatification began in 1958. Newman's miraculous intercession in the cure of dean Jack Sullivan, who suffered a serious complaint of the spinal column, was officially recognised and approved by Benedict XVI in July 2009. 
St. John Leonardi was born in Tuscany, Italy in 1541, during the time of upheaval in the Church due to Martin Luther. He studied to be a pharmacist, then became a priest. As a young priest he devoted himself to teaching catechism to youths. In 1574, he founded the Order of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca, a congregation of diocesan priests. He suffered many tribulations for this work, including exile. His contemporary, St. Philip Neri, was a great friend and spiritual guide, and helped him particularly in his time of exile. 
St. Denis was born in Italy. In 250 he was sent to France with six other missionary bishops by Pope Fabian. Denis became the first bishop of Paris. He was beheaded in 258 with the priest Rusticus and the deacon Eleutherius at Catulliacum, now Saint-Denis. One of the many legends about his torture and death was that his body carried his severed head some distance from his execution site. St. Denis is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers who were invoked particularly in the Middle Ages against the Black Plague. See August 8 for more information. “You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb.” (Psalm 139:13)
Imagine that it’s your birthday, and God prepares a magnificent dinner party in your honor. All your family and friends are in attendance, and everyone is enjoying themselves immensely. Just before the food comes out, God steps up to the microphone and asks everyone to settle down. Then, clearing his throat, he looks right at you and says:
“Do you know that the very thought of you fills me with joy? From the moment of your conception, I put a lot of thought into who you were going to be: the shape of your eyes, the tone of your voice, your personality, your talents, and your dreams. I could never keep my eyes off of you, even when you couldn’t see me. I wept when you wept, and I took great pride in every one of your successes and triumphs. All these years, I have loved you and treasured you.
“That’s right. I’ve been with you all along. I know every intimate detail about you. Not a single moment of your life passed without my seeing it and feeling it in the depth of my heart. None of your thoughts, fears, or desires has escaped me—the good, the noble, and the selfless as well as the bad, the selfish, and the prideful. And I have loved you through all of them. I was near to you when you were confused and brokenhearted. It was I who offered you the counsel and comfort of your friends and family. It was I who looked out at you through the eyes of everyone who has ever loved you.
“I see goodness and beauty within you, even when you don’t see it within yourself. In fact, I look at you with the same wonder and awe that you have when you look up at the stars in the sky at night. I may have created you, but I marvel at the way you are using all the gifts I have given you. I marvel even more at the future I have in store for you. I can’t wait for the day when you are able to join me in my heavenly home.
“Happy birthday, my child. May this be a year when you and I grow even closer together!”
“Thank you, Father, for your love! I praise you for giving me life.”
Galatians 1:13-24 Luke 10:38-42