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Fourth Sunday of Easter - Good Shepherd Sunday Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 5/11/25 Gospel: John 10:27-30

Saturday of the Third Week of Easter Optional Memorial of St. Damien de Veuster of Molokai, 1840-1889; joined the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary and was assigned to the Hawaiian Islands; in 1873, he went to the government's leper colony on Molokai, and volunteered to remain permanently, caring for the people’s physical, medical, and spiritual needs; Damien contracted Han...

Friday of the Third Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Beatus of Lungern; monk and hermit, the apostle of Switzerland; baptized in England by St. Barnabas, ordained by St. Peter, he went to Switzerland; he lived and died on Mount Beatenburg above Lake Thun Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 5/9/25 Gospel: John 6:52-59

Thursday of the Third Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Desideratus; brother of  Desiderius and Deodatus; as courtier in the court of King Clotaire, he fought heresy and simony; in 541, he became bishop of Bourges; he attended several councils that condemned Nestorianism and Eutychianism; Desideratus was reputed to have performed miracles and was known for his peace making abilities; he di...

Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. John of Beverly; became a monk at Whitby, and was then named bishop of Hexham in 687; he was transferred to York in 705 as metropolitan; John was known for his holiness, his preference for the contemplative life, and his miracles, many of which are recounted in Bede's Ecclesiastical History, the author of which he had ordained; he retired...

Tuesday of the Third Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Petronax, 670-747; became a Benedictine in Brescia in 717, and was asked by Pope St. Gregory to visit the ruins of Monte Cassino, which had been damaged by the Lombards in 580; Petronax visited St. Benedict's tomb, and then gathered the hermits who occupied the old abbey, and began to rebuild; he was elected abbot, and ruled Monte Cassino f...

Monday of the Third Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Hilary of Arles, 400-449; born in Lorraine, and joined Honoratus at Lerins Abbey; Honoroatus became bishop of Arles, and when he died in 429, Hilary succeeded him; Hilary was known for his austerities, his aid to the poor, and for ransoming captives; two disagreements with Pope Leo the Great ended in reconciliation; Hilary's  sanctity &...

Third Sunday of Easter Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 5/4/25 Gospel: John 21:1-19

Feast of Saints Philip and James, apostles Saturday of the Second Week of Easter Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 5/3/25 Gospel: John 14:6-14

Friday of the Second Week of Easter Memorial of St. Athanasius, 296-373; became a theological advisor to the Council of Nicaea while still in his late 20's; an ardent opponent of Arianism and defender of the divinity of the Son of Man; wrote many works on the Incarnation and the Trinity as well as  The Life of Anthony , which helped define and foster both monastic living and the writing of sa...

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter Optional Memorial of St. Joseph the Worker; instituted by Pope Pius XII in 1955 to foster devotion to St. Joseph, and in response to the celebrations for workers sponsored by Communists Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 5/1/25 Gospel: John 3:31-36

Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter Optional Memorial of Pope St. Pius V, 1504-1572; as pope, he had the task of implementing the reforms of the Council of Trent; he ordered the founding of seminaries, published a new missal. a new breviary, and a new catechism, and established the Confraternity of Christian doctrine classes for the young; he continued to wear his Dominican habit, which led to...

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter Memorial of St. Catherine of Siena, 1347-1380; entered the Dominican Third Order at age 18, and spent the next three years in seclusion, prayer, and austerity; a group of followers developed; Catherine's letters began to take more note of public affairs, as she worked tirelessly for the crusade against the Turks and for peace between Florence and the pope; the...

Monday in the Second Week of Easter Optional Memorial of St. Peter Chanel, 1803-1841; born in France; as a young priest, he revived a parish simply by showing great devotion to the sick; joined the Marists at the age of 28, and taught seminary for five years; he then traveled to West Oceana; on the island of Futuna, northeast of Fiji, the accompanying bishop said he would be back in six months, bu...

Second Sunday of Easter - Divine Mercy Sunday Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/27/25 Gospel: John 20:19-31

Saturday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Cletus; the third bishop of Rome, succeeding St. Linus; Cletus reigned as pope from 76 to 89 A.D.; he is styled as a martyr; he was buried near St. Linus, on the Vatican, and his relics remain in that church Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/26/25 Gospel: Mark 16:9-15

Feast of St. Mark Friday in the Octave of Easter Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/25/25 Gospel: John 21:1-14

Thursday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen, 1577-1622; born in Germany; he was a practicing lawyer, traveling across  Europe as a tutor to aristocrats but then started defending the poor; in 1612, he became a Franciscan Capuchin monk; his mission to Swtzerland was so successful that some Protestants believed him to be a spy for the Austrian emperor; he was s...

Wednesday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. George, 280-303; a martyr who suffered at Lydda in Palestine, probably before the time of Constantine; however, the story of George’s slaying the dragon, rescuing the king’s daughter, and converting Libya is a 12th-century Italian fable; George was a favorite patron saint of crusaders Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/23...

Tuesday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Tarbula; Fourth-Century virgin and martyr, the sister of St. Simeon, the Persian bishop and martyr; she was a consecrated virgin, and met her own martyrdom soon after the death of her brother; accused of practicing witchcraft  and of causing sickness to befall the wife of the ardently anti-Christian Persian king Shapur, she was condemned a...

Monday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Conrad of Parzham, 1818-1894; born in Bavaria, and became a Capuchin lay brother in 1849; for more than thirty years, Conrad served as porter  or  doorkeeper  of the shrine of Our Lady of Altotting, and he was known for his  Marian devotions; he had the gift of prophecy, and of reading people's hearts; he died in Altotting Of...

Easter Sunday of the Lord's Resurrection Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/20/25 Gospel: John 20:1-9

Saturday of Holy Week Saint of the Day: St. Timon; one of the seven deacons chosen by the apostles to minister to the Nazarene community of Jerusalem; mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/19/25 Gospel: Luke 24:1-12

Good Friday - The observance of the Lord's Passion and Death on Calvary Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/18/25 Gospel: John 18:1-19:42

Holy Thursday Saint of the Day: St. Robert of Chaise Dieu; 11th Century Benedictine abbot and founder, born in Auvergne, France; after becoming a priest  and  canon of St. Julian’s in Brioude, he founded a hospice; he then gave himself over to the  spiritual direction  of  St. Odilo at Cluny, France; after making a pilgrimage to Rome, he was moved to give up his life...