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Thursday of the Third Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Zita, 1212-1278; became a housekeeper for a rich weaver in Lucca, Italy, at the age of 12, and remained with the family for the rest of her life; found time every day to attend mass and recite prayers, as well as carry out her household duties; her employers eventually gave Zita free reign over her working schedule, and she busied herself...

Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Cletus; third Bishop of Rome, succeeding St. Linus; reigned from 76 to his death in 89 A.D.; styled by authoritative sources as a martyr; buried near St. Linus on the Vatican Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/26/23 Gospel: John 6:35-40

Feast of St. Mark, evangelist, died circa 68 A.D. Tuesday of the Third Week of Easter Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/25/23 Gospel: Mark 16:15-20

Monday of the Third Week of Easter Optional Memorial of St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen, 1577-1622; lawyer-turned-Franciscan Capuchin monk; as a missionary to Switzerland, he was so successful that local Protestants claimed that he was a spy for the Austrian emperor; also served as head of the Congregation for the Spreading of the Faith; stabbed to death in a church in 1622 Office of Readings and Morni...

Third Sunday of Easter Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/23/23 Gospel: Luke 24:13-35

Saturday of the Second Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Tarbula; sister of bishop and martyr St. Simeon the Persian; she was accused of practicing witchcraft and causing the wife of the anti-Christian Persian king, Shapur, to become ill; she was condemned and executed in 345 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/22/23 Gospel: John 6:16-21

Friday of the Second Week of Easter Optional Memorial of St. Anselm, 1033-1109; joined the monastery of Bec in Normandy, was elected prior, and eventually abbot; his theological works are compared to those of St. Augustine, best-known being "Why God Became Man"; appointed archbishop of Canterbury in 1093, but went into exile over disagreements with King William Rufus; returned to England at the re...

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Agnes of Montepulciano, 1268-1317; entered the monastery of Montepulciano at age 9; commissioned by Pope Nicholas IV to assis in the foundation of a new convent in Procena; returned to Montepulciano, where she governed until her death; noted for visions and miracles Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/20/23 Gospel: John 3:31-36

Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Alphege of Canterbury, 954-1012; abbot, then bishop of Winchester, and finally archbishop of Canterbury; martyred by Danish invaders Office of Readings and Mornng Prayer for 4/19/23 Gospel: John 3:16-21

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Apollonius the Apologist; Roman senator, denounced as a Christian by one of his slaves; he was arrested, and ended up in a debate in the senate; despite his eloquent defense, Apollonius was condemned and beheaded in 185 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/18/23 Gospel: John 3:7-15

Monday of the Second Week of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Stephen Harding, 1059-1134; born in Dorset, England, and became a traveling scholar, settling at the abbey of Molesme in Burgundy; later worked with St. Robert of Molesme and St. Alberic to found a new monastery at Citeaux; Stephen guided the community over a period of great growth, and wrote the Carta Caritatis, an important Cistercian doc...

Second Sunday of Easter - Divine Mercy Sunday Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/16/23 Gospel: John 20:19-31

Saturday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Hunna; a Seventh Century noblewoman who devoted herself to the poor of Strasbourg, France, even washing the poor; known as the "holy washerwoman"; died 679 A.D.; patron of laundresses; Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/15/23 Gospel: Mark 16:9-15

Friday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Lydwine, 1380-1433; broke a rib in in ice skating accident and never recovered; she experienced visions of heaven, hell, purgatory, apparitions of Christ, and the stigmate; patron of the chronically ill, and of ice skaters Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/14/23 Gospel: John 21:1-14

Thursday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Martin I; elected pope in 649, when a heresy which held that Christ had no human will was popular in the East; the emperor sent troops to Rome to seize Martin and bring him to Constantinople; Martin was tortured, but saved from execution by the pleas of the patriarch of Constantinople; Martin died shortly thereafter, in 655 Office of Readings...

Wednesday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Sabas the Goth, 334-372; a Goth who converted to Christianity; survived several persecutions, but was seized by Gothic soldiers who ordered him to eat meat sacrificed to idols; Sabas was drowned in the Mussovo River Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/12/23 Gospel: Luke 24-13-35

Tuesday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: St. Stanislaus of Krakow, 1030-1079; born of noble parents near Krakow, Poland; ordained at Gnesen, and became known for his preaching and spiritual advice; denounced the cruelties of King Boleslaus the Bold, and excommunicated him; the king killed him while he was celebrating mass Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/11/23 Gospel: John 20:1...

Monday in the Octave of Easter Saint of the Day: st. Michael de Sanctis, 1591-1625; joined the Trinitarian Friars at Barcelona in 1603; later joined the reformed group of Trinitarians; ordained, and served as superior of the house in Valladolid; known for his sanctity and ecstacies during mass; many miracles were attributed to him after his death, at the age of 35; patron of cancer patients Office...

Easter Sunday Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/9/23 Gospel: John 20:1-9

Holy Saturday Saint of the Day: St. Julie Billiard, 1751-1816; paralyzed over the trauma of seeing her father's life threatened, but taught catechism from her bed; smuggled away at the start of the French Revolution; in 1803, along with Francoise Blin de Bourdon, began the Institute of Notre Dame; the first Sisters of Notre Dame made their vows the following year; Julie recovered, and was able to...

Good Friday: The Commemoration of the Crucifixion and Death of Jesus at Calvary Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/7/23 Gospel: John 18:1-19:42

Holy Thursday Saint of the Day: St. Celestine I, 376-432; elected pope in 422; confiscated the property of the Novationite churches and restored a basilican in St. Mary Travestere; confirmed the appointment of Nestorius to the see of Constantinope, but opposed his teachings; also combatted Pelagianism in Gaul and England; believed to have sent Palladius to evangelize Ireland in 431; founder of the...

Wednesday of Holy Week Saint of the Day: St. Vincent Ferrer, 1357-1419; Dominican who evangelized nearly every province of Spain, and preached in France, Italy, Germany, Flanders, England, Scotland, and Ireland; patron of builders because of his fame for "building up" and strengthening the Church through preaching missionary work, teachings, and as confessor and advisor Office of Readings and Morn...

Tuesday of Holy Week Saint of the Day: St. Isidore of Seville, 560-636; succeeded his brother as bishop of Seville; he required seminaries to be built, wrote a rule for religious orders, and founded schools that taught every branch of learning; wrote a dictionary, an encyclopedia, a history of Goths, and a history of the world, beginning with creation; some have suggested him as the patron of the...

Monday of Holy Week Saint of the Day: St. Agape; Christian of Thessalonica; martyred, along with her two sisters, for the crime of possessing texts of the Scriptures during the persecution of Diocletian; died 304 A.D. Office of Readings and Morning Prayer for 4/3/23 Gospel: John 12:1-11