FEASTS OF THE WEEK
Easter Time
The celebration of Easter is prolonged throughout the Easter season.
The fifty days from Easter Sunday (5th April 2026) to Pentecost Sunday (24th May 2026) are celebrated as one feast day, the "great Sunday".
CHRIST IS RISEN, ALLELUIA!
Thursday 23rd April : St. George
Was venerated as a soldier saint at Lydda in the Holy Land, where he was probably martyred around the year 300. He is patron saint of England.
Friday 24th April : St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen
A Capuchin who preached to the Calvinists in Switzerland, where he was killed by a group of extremists.
Saturday 25th April : St. Mark, Evangelist
He was closely connected with the preaching of Ss Peter, Paul and Barnabas. His Gospel was probably written at Rome when he was with Paul, and is traditionally viewed as representing St. Peter's approach to the preaching of the good news. His symbol is a winged lion.
Sunday 26th April : 4th Sunday of Easter
Good Shepherd Sunday
Day of Prayer for Vocations
This is Good Shepherd Sunday, a day of special prayer for vocations to the work of service in the Church. There is the enduring command of Christ to his Church to go out and preach to all people. There is need for people of faith to respond to that command, people who are prepared to dedicate their lives to this work for the sake of the gospel.
Monday 27th April : St. Asicus
He was St. Patrick's expert craftsman in metalwork and accompanied him on his journeys. He was left in charge of the church in Elphin which Patrick is said to have founded.
27th April is the anniversary of the canonisations in 2014 of Ss John XXIII and John Paul II by Pope Francis.
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI was in attendance - for this reason 27th April has been remembered as "the day of the four Popes".
Tuesday 28th April : St. Peter Chanel (1803-1841)
He is honoured as the first martyr of the Church in Oceania. He was born in 1803 in the diocese of Belley, France. In 1831 he joined the newly formed Society of Mary (Marists). He with 2 other lay members went to the Island of Futuna in the New Hebrides in the Pacific where St. Peter, three years later was clubbed to death.
Wednesday 29th April : St. Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)
Humble and dauntless Dominican tertiary, she brought peace to her native Siena, to Italy and for fourteenth-century Europe, spent all her energies on the Church, being able to achieve the pope's return from Avignon to Rome. She is remembered also as a mystic and reformer of religious life. Proclaimed doctor of the Church in 1970 and patron of Europe in 2000.
Thursday 30th April : St. Pius V (1504-1572)
Born Michele Ghislieri. Became a Dominican and was elected pope in 1565 taking the name Pius V. He implemented the reforms of the Council of Trent, including the Breviary, Missal and Catechism. He is noted for his defence of Christendom against the Ottoman empire.
Friday 1st May : St. Joseph the Worker
Apparently in response to the "May Day" celebrations for workers sponsored by Communists, Pius XII instituted the feast of St. Joseph the Worker in 1955, but the relationship between Joseph and the cause of workers has a much longer history.
Saturday 2nd May : St. Athanasius
Born at Alexandria around the year 295, he fought ceaselessly against the Arian heresy, defending the true and equal divinity of Christ. As a result, he had to endure much tribulation and he was several times sent into exile.