It's a
Feria / Mass of the Ascension,
4th Class, with the color of
White. In this episode: the meditation: "The Holy Ghost: Source of Joy", today's news from the Church: "Bishop Schneider Defends the SSPX on EWTN", a preview of this week's episode of The SSPX Podcast: "Has This Happened Before? Episcopal Consecrations Without Permission", and today's thought from the Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre.
Have feedback or questions about the DD or our other shows?
podcast@sspx.org
Sources Used Today:
- "The Holy Ghost: Source of Joy" — Eastertide Day by Day
- "Bishop Schneider Defends the SSPX on EWTN" (FSSPX.news)
- The SSPX Podcast: "Has This Happened Before? Episcopal Consecrations Without Permission" (SSPX Podcast)
- The Spiritual Life — Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (Angelus Press)
Please support our new project, the Archbishop Lefebvre Biography Audiobook!
Saint John Baptist Rossi was a priest of extraordinary compassion whose life was devoted to the forgotten, the poor, and the spiritually neglected in the streets of Rome. He was born in 1698 in northern Italy and came to Rome as a young man for his studies. Intelligent and deeply pious, he seemed destined for an academic career, but recurring illness and physical weakness changed the direction of his life. Rather than becoming a scholar known for books and lectures, he became known for charity and personal holiness.
Ordained a priest, Father John Baptist Rossi dedicated himself to the ordinary people of Rome, especially those often overlooked by society. He ministered to the sick in hospitals, visited prisons, cared for the homeless, and spent countless hours hearing confessions. He had a particular concern for travelers, laborers, and the poor who arrived in Rome with little support or guidance.
What made Father Rossi remarkable was not dramatic preaching or public influence, but the patience and tenderness with which he treated souls. People were drawn to him because they sensed genuine charity. He listened carefully, encouraged gently, and approached sinners not with harshness, but with mercy rooted in truth.
He also worked extensively among the mentally ill and those abandoned by their families, groups often neglected in his time. For Father Rossi, no one was beneath attention or care. He saw Christ in every suffering person placed before him.
Though physically frail for much of his life, he continued his ministry tirelessly, often exhausting himself in service to others. He became widely respected throughout Rome, not because of power or position, but because of the quiet holiness evident in his daily work.
The Church honors Saint John Baptist Rossi as a model parish priest and confessor. His life reminds the faithful that sanctity is often found in hidden acts of mercy repeated faithfully over many years.
Devotion to him remains especially strong in Rome, where churches and charitable works preserve his memory. His feast day on May 23 is marked with prayers for priests, confessors, and those who care for the poor and forgotten.
In many places, he is invoked by those struggling with illness or discouragement, and by priests seeking the grace to guide souls with patience and compassion.
Saint John Baptist Rossi, gentle shepherd and faithful servant of Christ, pray for us.
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Explore more:
What is the SSPX Podcast?
The SSPX Podcast is produced by Angelus Press, which has as its mission the fortification of traditional Catholics so that they can defend the Faith, and reaching out to those who have not yet found Tradition.
What is the SSPX?
The main goal of the Society of Saint Pius X is to preserve the Catholic Faith in its fullness and purity, to teach its truths, and to diffuse its virtues, especially through the Roman Catholic priesthood.
Authentic spiritual life, the sacraments, and the traditional liturgy are its primary means of bringing this life of grace to souls.
Although the traditional Latin Mass is the most visible and public expression of the work of the Society, we are committed to defending Catholic Tradition in its entirety: all of Catholic doctrine and morals as the Church has always defended them. What people need is the Catholic Faith, without compromise, with all the truth and beauty which accompanies it.
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