Saint Mark, EvangelistOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | MassSt Mark the Evangelist He was a cousin of Barnabas and accompanied the apostle Paul on his first missionary journey; later he followed him to Rome. He was a disciple of Peter, and his gospel is told from Peter’s point of view. He is credited with founding the Church in Alexandria. His body was stolen from Alexandria in 828 (though some say that the wrong bones were stolen) and taken to Venice, which adopted him as its patron saint. See the article in the Catholic Encyclopaedia.(ANZAC Day) Every year on the 25th of April, Turks, Australians, and New Zealanders gather for a special dawn service at Gallipoli to commemorate the battle there.A speech by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1934:“Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives: you are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore, rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side here in this country of ours. You, the mothers, who sent their sons from far away countries, wipe away your tears. Your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as well.”A speech by Richard Casey, Baron Casey, governor-general of Australia, in 1967:“We left the Gallipoli Peninsula fighting against the Turks and losing thousands of people but with a great admiration and appreciation for the Turkish nation and its unmatched love for its country. All Australians love Mehmetcik as if they are their own sons. Their bravery, love for its country and people, their irresistible majesty and courage in the trenches, and their love for their country is admired by all Anzacs and those are traits which should be taken as an example by all humanity. With gratitude and respect to Mehmetçik.”

Friday of the 3rd week of Eastertide, or Saint Fidelis of Sigmaringen, Priest, Martyr Office of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(St Fidelis of Sigmaringen (1578 - 1622)) He was born in Sigmaringen in Germany. He joined the Capuchin Friars at the age of 35 and led a harsh life of prayer and vigils. An assiduous preacher, he was ordered by the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith to preach orthodox doctrine in the Grisons (part of Switzerland). He was murdered by a Calvinist mob at Seewis on 24 April 1622. See the articles in the Catholic Encyclopaedia and Wikipedia.(St Erkenwald (- 693)) Saint Erconwald [or Erkenwald] was born at “Stallyngeton in Lindsey” (possibly Stallingborough, near Grimsby) in the early seventh century. His father is variously described as Anna or Offa, king of East Anglia, and a pagan. Erconwald was converted to Christianity at an early age by St Mellitus, the companion of Augustine and first Bishop of London [in the continuous line which ended in 1559: see the note at the bottom]. He then converted his younger sister Ethelburga and baptised her, much to the fury of their father. Ethelburga eventually fled her parents’ home with one servant to escape being forced into marriage with a pagan.In the year 666 Erconwald founded the monastery of Chertsey, on an island in the Thames, apparently at the junction of several kingdoms. It is described as being founded in the reign of King Egbert, King of Kent; the foundation was confirmed, and richly endowed, by Frithwald, viceroy of Surrey, under Wulfhere King of Mercia. The Viceroy put himself and his son under obedience to Erconwald in return for prayers. Wulfhere confirmed this endowment. There is a further charter of Frithwald and Erconwald, to increase the lands of the monastery: the “Limites Terrarum” describes lands in Chertsey, Thorpe, Egham and adjacent parishes now attached to the monastery.Shortly after this Erconwald founded a convent at Barking in Essex, intended to be a refuge for his sister Ethelburga. The foundation charter, countersigned by Hodilred, King of Essex, provides us with a specimen of the saint’s handwriting. In the course of building the house at Barking one beam was found to be too short, and was pulled out to the correct length by Erconwald and his sister.Erconwald remained as Abbot of Chertsey until 675 when he was consecrated third Bishop of London by St Theodore, Archbishop of Canterbury. St Erconwald appears to have been the first resident bishop, and probably began the building of St Paul’s, although traditionally this was adapted from a pagan temple of old Londinium. In 677 he visited Rome, and obtained a number of privileges for his diocese and monastery from Pope Agatho I.During his time as Bishop, Erconwald became noted for miracles and for evangelization. He instructed St Neot, afterwards of Crowland Abbey, and the two Kings of Essex, Sebbi and Sigheri, the former of whom afterwards became a hermit in St Paul’s under Erconwald’s successor Waldhere.In 690 Erconwald was summoned, together with St Wilfrid, to the deathbed of St Theodore. Both ministered to him, but Theodore was more concerned to speak to Wilfrid, whom he wished to succeed him. In 692 King Ine of Wessex mentions his “father Erconwald” who assisted him in codifying the Laws of Wessex.Thus Erconwald is associated with the Kings of East Anglia, Mercia, Essex, Wessex and Kent, all of whom seem to have had interests centering in the Chertsey area. The King of Sussex, Æthelwealh, was godson to Wulfhere of Mercia, so six of the Seven Kingdoms are involved in his story.Towards the end of his life Erconwald was confined to a wheelchair, about which many stories are told. On one occasion a raging river parted to allow the Saint to cross in his chair; on another one wheel fell off but the chair miraculously did not upset. After his death many miracles of healing were worked by the same wheelchair.In 693 Brithwald, Archbishop of Canterbury, consecrated Waldhere as fourth Bishop of London, so it seems likely that Erconwald died in that year, on 30th April. He died while on retreat at Barking Abbey, and there was the usual unseemly dispute over who should have the burying of him, between Barking, Chertsey and London. The Canons of St Paul’s prevailed, and despite a last-ditch attempt by the nuns of Barking, succeeded in capping their miracle with a greater. (The nuns prayed for rain to swell the river at Ilford to make it impossible for the cortege to cross, and to extinguish the candles, but the men of London persuaded the candles to relight, and the river to part again so that they crossed dry-shod.) Despite all this he was buried in a common earthen grave where he remained until 1087 when a fire destroyed the cathedral and everything in it except the coffin containing his remains. These were then translated to a splendid new shrine behind the high altar, where they remained right up to the Great Fire of 1666, despite the depredations of the Reformation. He was venerated throughout the Middle Ages.Note: A pedant informs us – and we gratefully acknowledge it – that the above notes are not quite correct. There were Bishops of London long before the first Bishop of London. There may have been up to 16 Bishops of London in Romano-British times; then again, there may not. Bishops from York and from London are documented as having attended the Council of Arles in the year 314. Actually, the record says there were two Bishops of London at the Council, which is impossible. One, Restitutus, was “de civitate Londenensi”, “from the city of London”, which seems reasonable enough. The other, Adelfius, was “de civitate Colonia Londenensium” and this may be a mistake for “de civitate Camulodunensium” – “the city of the people of Camulodunum”, or Colchester. Then again, another scholar has argued that he might have been from Caerleon. The history of our own times may one day be as thin as this!(Saint Egbert (639-729)) Ecgberht was an Anglo-Saxon nobleman, probably from Northumbria. In his youth he travelled to Ireland in 664, to study. One of his acquaintances at this time was Chad. He settled at the monastery of Rathelmigisi (Rathmelsigi). His Northumbrian traveling companions, including Æthelhun, died of the plague, and he contracted it as well. He vowed that if he recovered he would become a peregrinus, on perpetual pilgrimage from his homeland of Britain, and would lead a life of penitential prayer and fasting. He was then 25, and when he recovered he kept his vow until his death at the age of 90.He began to organize monks in Ireland to proselytize in Frisia, in what is now north-western Germany. Many other high-born notables were associated with his work: Saint Adalbert of Egmond (–710), Saint Swithbert, and Saint Chad.He had influential contacts with the kings of Northumbria and of the Picts, as well as with Iona, which he persuaded to adopt the Roman dating of Easter. He became bishop of Lindisfarne. He died on the first day that the Easter feast was observed on this date in his monastery, on 24 April 729.

Thursday of the 3rd week of Eastertide, or Saint George, Martyr , or Saint Adalbert of Prague, Bishop, Martyr Office of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(St George (- c.303)) He was martyred at Lydda (now in Israel) in about 303, during the persecution of Diocletian. Like so many saints of that period, the only fact that we can be certain of is his martyrdom. His cult spread quickly through both the East and the West, and the legend of St George and the Dragon only appeared some time afterwards.During the crusades, George was seen to personify the ideals of Christian chivalry, and he was adopted as the patron saint of several city states and countries, including England and Catalonia. King Richard I of England placed his crusading army under the protection of St George, and in 1222 his feast was proclaimed a holiday.See the articles in the Catholic Encyclopaedia and Wikipedia.(St Adalbert of Prague (956 - 997)) (His name is Vojtech in Czech and Wojciech in Polish). He became bishop of Prague in 983. He met with intense opposition from the nobility. He withdrew to Rome but was sent back to his diocese by Pope John XV. He encouraged the evangelization of the Magyars, and founded the great abbey of Brevnov, but the opposition continued and he was at length forced into exile. He went as a missionary to Pomerania to preach the Gospel to the heathen Prussians, and it was there that he was martyred at the age of 41. See the articles in Wikipedia and the Catholic Encyclopaedia.(Bl Teresa Maria of the Cross (1846-1910)) She was born at Campi Bisenzio, Florence, where in 1874 she founded the Congregation of Carmelite Sisters of Saint Teresa, whom she also sent to Lebanon and the Holy Land. She lived joyfully, body and soul, the mystery of the Cross in full conformity to the will of God, and she was outstanding for her love for the Eucharist, and her maternal care for children and for the poor. She died at Campi Bisenzio on 23rd April, 1910.Carmelite Breviary

Wednesday of the 3rd week of EastertideOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass

Tuesday of the 3rd week of Eastertide, or Saint Anselm of Canterbury, Bishop, Doctor Office of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(St Anselm (1033 - 1109)) Anselm was born in Aosta, in northern Italy, and became a monk of Bec in Normandy, where he taught theology and devoted himself to the spiritual life. After some years as abbot, he succeeded his master Lanfranc as archbishop of Canterbury. His bitter disputes with the kings of England over the independence of the Church resulted in his twice being exiled. He died at Canterbury on 21 April 1109. He is remembered for his theological learning and writings, and for organising and reforming church life in England.(Saint Maelrubha (642-722)) St Máelrubai or Maelrubha was descended from Niall, King of Ireland, on the side of his father Elganach. His mother, Subtan, was a niece of Saint Comgall of Bangor. Maelrubha was born in the area of Derry and was educated at Bangor. In 671 he sailed from Ireland to Scotland with a group of missionary monks. For two years he travelled around the area, chiefly in Argyll, perhaps founding some of the many churches still dedicated to him.In 673 he settled in Pictish territory in the west of Ross opposite the islands of Skye and Raasay, at a place which became known as Applecross, from the Gaelic “A’ Chomraich”, ‘The Sanctuary’. He founded a monastery there and from that base set out on missionary journeys: westward to the islands of Skye and Lewis, eastward to Forres and Keith, and northward to Loch Shin, Durness, and Farr.He died in 722. Some traditions say that he was martyred but their historical foundation is uncertain.

Monday of the 3rd week of EastertideOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(Saints Marcellinus, Vincent and Domninus (- 374)) Marcellinus with two fellow missionaries, Vincent and Domninus, left their native Africa in order to bring the faith to Gaul (now France). So many people welcomed their preaching that soon it became necessary to establish a diocese in order to coordinate the missionary ministry. Marcellinus was named the first bishop of the Diocese of Embrun on account of his missionary zeal and holiness. Later on he suffered verbal and physical persecution from the Arians. He died in 374.(St Beuno (- 640)) He was a holy man and Abbot of Clynnog Fawr in Gwynedd, on the Llyn peninsula. See also the articles in Wikipedia and Early British Kingdoms.(St. Agnes of Montepulciano OP (1268 - 1317)) Dominican Nun and Virgin.Saint Agnes was born at Gracciano, Italy, in 1268 and entered a monastery at Montepulciano at the age of nine. At the age of fifteen by indult of the Holy See she was appointed superior of a monastery of nuns at Viterbo. In response to the entreaties of the people of Montepulciano she returned there in 1306 to take charge of a newly-founded monastery which followed the Rule of Saint Augustine. A few years later she placed this monastery under the direction of the Order of Preachers, and sought evangelical perfection according to the way of Saint Dominic. Agnes was devoted to the Infant Jesus and the Virgin Mary, manifested the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and was a model of prayer and charity. She worked for civil peace and unity. Saint Catherine of Siena regarded her as her “glorious mother.” She died on April 20, 1317.

3rd Sunday of EasterOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(St Alphege (- 1012)) Alphege (Old English Ælfheah) became a monk at Deerhurst, Gloucestershire, about 970, and eventually Abbot of Bath. In 984 he became Bishop of Winchester where he was known for his personal austerity and almsgiving. The king sent him to parley with the Danish raider Anlaf, and this he did with such success that Anlaf never raided England again. In 1005 Alphege became Archbishop of Canterbury. The Danes were raiding once more and in 1011 they besieged Canterbury and captured it. Alphege was imprisoned and an enormous ransom was asked for his release, which he forbade to be paid. On 19 April 1012, at Greenwich, his captors, drunk with wine, and enraged at ransom being refused, pelted him with bones of oxen and stones, till one of them, called Thurm, dispatched him with an axe. He was buried in St. Paul’s and by his death he became a national hero. As an act of reconciliation Canute, king of Denmark, England and Norway, in 1023 translated the body to Canterbury where it was buried near the high altar. Later Lanfranc confirmed the cult, and had a Life and Office written in his honour, and Thomas Becket just before his death commended his cause to God and Alphege.(Bl. Isnard of Chiampo OP ( - 1244)) Dominican Friar and Priest.Blessed Isnard was born at Chiampo, near Vicenza, Italy, toward the end of the twelfth century and entered the Dominican Order at Bologna around 1218. He was known as “a fervent religious, a grace-filled preacher, and a virgin in body and mind,” as well as a worker of miracles. He founded the priory of Pavia which he wisely governed until his death on March 19, 1244.(Bl. Sibyllina Biscossi OP (c.1287 - 1367)) Lay Dominican and Virgin.Blessed Sibyllina, born at Pavia, Italy, about 1287, was left an orphan when quite young and at the age of twelve was afflicted with total blindness. The Sisters of Penance befriended her and clothed her in the habit of the Dominican Order. She had a special devotion to Christ crucified and to the Holy Spirit. She lived as a recluse at the church of the Preachers where many people sought her out, asking for her prayers. She died on March 19, 1367.

Saturday of the 2nd week of EastertideOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(Saint Laserian or Molaise (- 639)) He was born in Ireland, became a monk on Iona, and was ordained priest in Rome by St Gregory the Great. Returning to Ireland, he entered the monastery at Leighlin, of which he became abbot a few years before his death. He was active in promoting harmony between the Celtic and Roman churches, notably in the matter of the date on which Easter should be celebrated.(Blessed Marie-Anne Blondin (1809-1890)) Esther Blondin was born in Terrebonne (Quebec, Canada) on 18 April 1809, to a family of deeply Christian farmers. Esther and her family were victims of illiteracy so common in French Canadian milieux of the nineteenth century. Still illiterate at the age of 22, Esther worked as a domestic in the Convent of the Sisters of the Congregation of Notre Dame, which had been recently opened in her own village. A year later, she registered as a boarder in order to learn to read and write. She then became a novice in the Congregation but ill health forced her to leave. In 1833, Esther became a teacher in the parochial school of Vaudreuil. Little by little, she found out that one of the causes of widespread illiteracy was a Church ruling that girls should not be taught by men, nor boys by women. As a result of this ruling, many parish priests, not able to finance two separate schools, had no schools at all. In 1848, under an irresistible call of the Spirit, Esther presented to her Bishop, Ignace Bourget, a plan she long cherished: that of founding a religious congregation “for the education of poor country children, both girls and boys in the same schools”. Bishop Bourget authorised this revolutionary move, not least because the State was in favour of such schools and the Church should not be left behind. The Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Anne was founded in Vaudreuil on 8 September 1850 and Esther, now named “Mother Marie-Anne”, became its first superior. The community grew rapidly and in the summer of 1853 Bishop Bourget transferred the Motherhouse to Saint Jacques de l’Achigan and appointed a new chaplain, Father Louis Adolphe Maréchal.Father Maréchal set about getting absolute control of the Community he was meant to serve. He took it on himself to change the pupils’ boarding fees while the Foundress was absent, and forbade the Sisters from confessing to any priest but him. Mother Marie-Anne, as was her duty, fought to protect the rights of her Community, until on 18 August Bishop Bourget instructed Mother Marie-Anne to resign, called for new elections, and warned Mother Marie-Anne “not to accept the superiorship, even if her sisters wanted to reelect her”. Even though she could be reelected, according to the Rule of the Community, Mother Marie-Anne obeyed her Bishop, whom she considered God’s instrument. And she wrote: “As for me, my Lord, I bless Divine Providence a thousand times for the maternal care she shows me in making me walk the way of tribulations and crosses”. Mother Marie-Anne was moved to the convent at Sainte-Geneviève, where she was named director of the school. Father Maréchal and the new leaders of the Congregation continued to persecute her and in October 1858 she was accused of mismanagement and recalled to the Motherhouse, where the Bishop warned the authorities to ensure that “she will not be a nuisance to anyone.” Mother Marie-Anne never exercised authority again. For the rest of her life she was kept to domestic chores, mostly in the laundry and ironing room. The General Chapters of the congregation in 1872 and 1878 showed their respect for her by electing her as General Assistant; but the General Council barred her from attending any of its meetings.Mother Marie-Anne led a life of total self-denial and thus ensured the growth of the Congregation. In the Motherhouse basement laundry room in Lachine, where she spent her days, many generations of novices received from the Foundress a true example of obedience and humility, imbued with authentic relationships which ensure true fraternal charity. To a novice who asked her one day why she, the Foundress, was kept aside in such lowly work, she simply replied with kindness: “The deeper a tree sinks its roots into the soil, the greater are its chances of growing and producing fruit”.As she felt the end approaching, Mother Marie-Anne left to her daughters her spiritual testament in these words which are a résumé of her whole life: “May the Holy Eucharist and perfect abandonment to God’s Will be your heaven on earth”. She then peacefully passed away at the Motherhouse of Lachine, on 2 January 1890, “happy to go to the Good God” she had served all her life.Mother Marie-Anne remained ignored by the congregation she had founded for almost another generation, due to long-held prejudices about her character. It was only in 1917, after a chaplain at the Motherhouse had come to know the details of her life and gave a series of talks about her to the community, that enthusiasm arose among the Sisters for honouring her. The Sisters began to collect the information necessary for having Mother Marie-Anne canonized. In 1950 the Archbishop of Montréal gave permission to introduce the cause of Mother Marie-Anne in Rome. Her first complete biography was published in 1956, entitled Martyre du silence. The Sacred Congregation of Rites approved the writings of Mother Marie-Anne on 15 December 1964. Pope John Paul II granted her the title of Venerable in 1991 and beatified her on 29 April 2001.The attitude of Mother Marie-Anne, who was a victim of so many injustices, allows us to bring out the evangelical sense she gave to events in her life. Just as Jesus Christ, who passionately worked for the Glory of His Father, so too Mother Marie-Anne sought only God’s Glory in all she did. “The greater Glory of God” was the aim she herself gave her Community. “To make God known to the young who have not the happiness of knowing Him” was for her a privileged way of working for the Glory of God. Deprived of her most legitimate rights, and robbed of all her personal letters with her bishop, she offered no resistance and she expected, from the infinite goodness of God, the solution to the matter. She was convinced that “He will know well, in his Wisdom, how to discern the false from the true and to reward each one according to his deeds”. Prevented from being called “Mother” by those in authority, Mother Marie-Anne did not jealously hold on to her title of Foundress; rather she chose annihilation, just like Jesus, “her crucified Love”, so that her Community might live. However, she did not renounce her mission of spiritual mother of her Community. She offered herself to God in order “to expiate all the sins which were committed in the Community”; and she daily prayed Saint Anne “to bestow on her spiritual daughters the virtues so necessary for Christian educators”. Like any prophet invested with a mission of salvation, Mother Marie-Anne lived persecution by forgiving without restriction, convinced that “there is more happiness in forgiving than in revenge”. This evangelical forgiveness, guarantee of “the peace of soul which she held most precious”, was ultimately proven on her death bed when she asked her superior to call for Father Maréchal “for the edification of the Sisters”.(Bl Mary of the Incarnation) Barbe Avrillot was born in Paris in 1566. At the age of sixteen she married Pierre Acarie, by whom she had seven children. Through her household duties and many hardships, she attained the heights of the mystical life. Under the influence of Saint Teresa’s writings, and after mystical contact with the saint herself, she spared no effort in introducing the Discalced Carmelite Nuns into France. After her husband’s death, she asked to be admitted among them as a lay sister, taking the name of Mary of the Incarnation; she was professed at the Carmel of Amiens in 1615. She was esteemed by some of the greatest men of her time, including Saint Francis de Sales; and she was distinguished by her spirit of prayer and her zeal for the extension of the Catholic Faith. She died at Pontoise on April 18, 1618.Carmelite Breviary

Friday of the 2nd week of EastertideOffice of Readings | Morning Prayer | Evening Prayer | Night Prayer | Mass(Saint Donan) St Donan, or Donnan, came from Ireland and established a monastery on the Isle of Eigg in the Inner Hebrides. On Easter Sunday 617 he and his 52 companions were celebrating Mass when Danish pirates arrived. The pirates allowed them to finish the Mass and then beheaded them all. Donan is the patron saint of Eigg.(Bl Baptist Spagnoli of Mantua (1447-1516)) Baptist came from a family who served the Dukes of Mantua, in a northern region of Italy. He entered a Carmelite community in Ferrara and professed his religious vows in 1464. This community was part of what would later be known as the ‘Mantuan Reform’, living a stricter observance of the Carmelite Rule and seeking a spirituality of integrity amidst laxity and lethargy that characterised many religious groups of the time. It was during his studies and doctoral work at the University of Bologna (completed in 1475) that Baptist discovered his passion for poetry in the style of classic Latin antiquity. In the wake of the rise of Christian Humanism in literature, his passion drew him into friendships with many writers. The great humanist, Erasmus of Rotterdam, reading Baptist’s work, gave him the nickname “the Christian Vergil”. In addition to his poetic works, Baptist also used his writing skill to critique the violent political situation of Renaissance Italy. He used his pen to encourage his fellow Carmelites in their interior lives of solitude, prayer and recollection, and he also wrote prayers and poems that honoured Mary and the saints.Baptist also demonstrated a gift for leadership. Six times he was elected Vicar General for the Reformed Congregation (the Mantuan Reform). He was well known for his direct and eloquent condemnation of the corruption and immorality that was prevalent in the Church of the time. In 1513 Baptist was elected Prior General for the whole Order, a role that lasted until his death in 1516.MT (Bl. Clara Gambacorta OP (1362 - 1419)) Dominican Nun and Widow.Blessed Clara was born in Pisa in 1362, married at the age of twelve and widowed at the age of fifteen. She longed to join a religious order, but her family objected. When at last they relented, upon the advice of Saint Catherine of Siena she received the Dominican habit at the Monastery of the Holy Cross in Pisa. In 1385 along with Blessed Maria Mancini she founded the Monastery of Saint Dominic in Pisa where regular observance was strictly maintained. She was noted for her great prudence and charity, especially in pardoning the assassin of her father and brothers. She prized study and urged her sisters to do likewise. She died on April 17, 1419.(Bl. Maria Mancini OP ( - 1431)) Dominican Nun and Widow.Catharine Mancini was born at Pisa around the middle of the fourteenth century. By the time she was twenty-five she had been widowed twice and left bereft of all her children. At the urging of Saint Catherine of Siena she became a Sister of Penance and later entered the monastery founded by Blessed Clara Gambacorta where she took the name Maria. There she devoted herself to contemplation and penance, and upon the death of Blessed Clara, became prioress. She died there on January 22, 1431.

Pope Francis' top diplomats met with U.S. Vice President JD Vance on April 19, where the two sides discussed migrants and refugees following months of clashes between U.S. church leaders and the Trump administration over immigration policy and foreign aid.