Viewing all items in Resource Category: Holy Days

And his ladder to Paradise Is there something down at, say, B&Q, which reminds your friends of you?   John Climacus (d 649) had a thing about ladders.  He was a monk in Palestine who was only seen out at the weekends (at church, not B&Q); during the week he prayed and wrote in solitude. He...

There is an old Jewish saying:  God could not be everywhere, and therefore He made mothers. Mother Church, Mother Earth, Mother of the Gods – our human mothers – all of them have been part of the celebration of ‘Mothering Sunday’ – as the fourth Sunday in Lent is affectionately known.  It has been celebrated...

The Fourth Sunday in Lent was called ‘Mid-Lent’ or ‘Refreshment Sunday’, when the rigors of Lent were relaxed more than was normal for a feast day. It is called Mothering Sunday as a reference to the Epistle reading for the Day (Galatians 4:21-31).  The Lenten Epistles follow from each other with teaching about our life...

The metaphysical poet (this is his normal place in the church calendar) John Donne (1572 – 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier, secretary and finally Dean of St Pauls Cathedral in London. But he is most remembered for his poetry, for he is seen as the greatest of the 17th-century ‘metaphysical’ poets. Donne was...

 Sundays of the Month 2nd February              Candlemas – the Presentation of Christ in the Temple 9th February               The 4th Sunday before Lent 16th February             Septuagesima – 3rd Sunday before Lent 23rd February            Sexagesima – 2nd Sunday before Lent ** Editor:  As saints’ days do not change, this material has appeared before on this site. ...

You can find traces of old saints in most corners of the British Isles, but Seiriol is one of the only two saints connected to Anglesey, and certainly the ONLY saint connected to Puffin Island. It was back in the 6th century that this gentle abbot first settled in Penmon, and built a little church....

– compassion and love Brigid, you could say, was the female Patrick of Ireland. Historical facts about this first abbess of Kildare (d.c. 525) may be scarce, but her ‘Lives’, written from the 7th century, tell many anecdotes and miracles which over the centuries have become deeply rooted in Irish folklore. Brigid came from a...

– the Presentation of Christ in the Temple In bygone centuries, Christians said their last farewells to the Christmas season on Candlemas, 2nd February. This is exactly 40 days after Christmas Day itself. In New Testament times 40 days old was an important age for a baby boy: it was when they made their first...

– the busy evangelist Anskar (801-865) should be the patron saint of any Christian who loves doing mission… and who discovers that evangelists meet the most amazing people, and that their lives are full of surprises…. It was the 9th century, and Anskar had grown up in a noble family in Amiens. He decided to...

– brave bishop and martyr of Egypt When did you first encounter Christianity? If it was as an adult, then Phileas is a saint for you. His life shows that Truth matters, whenever you encounter it, but is also a warning that you need to count the cost of becoming a Christian. Phileas was a...

– courage in persecution Persecution of Christians in various countries is making the headlines these days. Believers facing such opposition might well find inspiration from the courage of the Japanese Christians of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. The Jesuit Francis Xavier had first brought Christianity to Japan in 1549, when he persuaded Shimazu...

 – and the wild boar St Kew has nothing to do with gardens or the ‘Q’ of James Bond fame. This Kew was a girl who lived in Cornwall in the 5th century, and who should be the patron saint of girls with difficult older brothers. Kew’s older brother was a hermit who felt his...