18th Week of Ordinary Time C – Friday – Memorial of Saint Dominic
Today, on the Memorial of Saint Dominic, we remember a man who was not only a gifted preacher but also a visionary founder of a religious order that would forever change the course of Church history. Born in Caleruega, Spain, around 1170, Dominic de Guzmán was a man of prayer, learning, and deep compassion for the salvation of souls. He lived during a time when the Church faced confusion, heresy, and spiritual indifference, yet he saw clearly that the answer was not condemnation but a renewed proclamation of the Gospel. Dominic recognized the need for a new kind of evangelization—one that united deep theological knowledge with apostolic zeal, a preaching rooted in both truth and love. In response, he founded the Order of Preachers, known today as the Dominicans, with the mission of proclaiming the Gospel through preaching, rigorous study, and a life marked by poverty, prayer, and fraternity.