Only by the Grace of and only to the Glory of the Holy Trinity: God the Father, Unbegotten; God the Son, Onlybegotten; and God the Holy Spirit from the Father Proceeding: Celtic Orthodox Christian Monthly "If I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ." [Galatians 1:10]

"Cry, cease not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their wicked doings, and the house of Jacob their sins.  For they seek me from day to day, and desire to know my ways, as a nation that hath done justice, and hath not forsaken the judgment of their God: they ask of me the judgments of justice: they are willing to approach to God. Why have we fasted, and thou hast not regarded: have we humbled our souls, and thou hast not taken notice?  Behold in the day of your fast your own will is found, and you exact of all your debtors.  Behold you fast for debates and strife, and strike with the fist wickedly. Do not fast as you have done until this day, to make your cry to be heard on high. Is this such a fast as I have chosen: for a man to afflict his soul for a day? is this it, to wind his head about like a circle, and to spread sackcloth and ashes? wilt thou call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the Lord?  Is not this rather the fast that I have chosen? loose the bands of wickedness, undo the bundles that oppress, let them that are broken go free, and break asunder every burden.    Deal thy bread to the hungry, and bring the needy and the harbourless into thy house: when thou shalt see one naked, cover him, and despise not thy own flesh. Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thy health shall speedily arise, and thy justice shall go before thy face, and the glory of the Lord shall gather thee up. Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall hear: thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am. If thou wilt take away the chain out of the midst of thee, and cease to stretch out the finger, and to speak that which profiteth not.  When thou shalt pour out thy soul to the hungry, and shalt satisfy the afflicted soul, then shall thy light rise up in darkness, and thy darkness shall be as the noonday. And the Lord will give thee rest continually, and will fill thy soul with brightness, and deliver thy bones, and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a fountain of water whose waters shall not fail. And the places that have been desolate for ages shall be built in thee: thou shalt raise up the foundation of generation and generation: and thou shalt be called the repairer of the fences, turning the paths into rest. If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy own will in my holy day, and call the sabbath delightful, and the holy of the Lord glorious, and glorify him, while thou dost not thy own ways, and thy own will is not found, to speak a word: Then shalt thou be delighted in the Lord, and I will lift thee up above the high places of the earth, and will feed thee with the inheritance of Jacob thy father. For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." Isaias 58

Every year we begin the Great Fast of Lent with the reading of the Synodicon of Orthodoxy with its acclamation of the champions of the Faith and anathemas for those who teach anything opposed to the Orthodox Christian Faith. All fasting as Isaias points out, is to be joined to Charity.  Is it  charity to read anything as harsh as the condemnations found in the Synodicon?

Some have misunderstood the idea that bread should be cast upon the waters of our sins to mean that bread should be wasted.  As stated throughout Scripture, atonement for sin can be made by giving to the needy.  However, man does not live by bread alone, but by the Word of God Who is Himself the Living Bread.   Therefore it is also charity to proclaim the soul-saving  Faith and also to warn against ideas which destroy that Faith.
Ap-Ep  +Maelruain, Cele De

A reminder as to the format of this calendar:

This calendar lists the "fixed days" on the calendar, not the movable dates of Lent. Look up the list of Matins readings in the "Breviary" for these. The "Propers" of the Celtic calendar are available to clergy of the Celtic Orthodox Christian Church; some very important prayers are included during Lent and especially Holy Week, such as the "Opening of the Ears" of St. Ambrose of Milan on Palm Sunday. The calendar is drawn from several sources. First, the couplet of the day by St. Oengus the Cele De is included. Oengus could not cover every event in his short couplet, so notes following this quick calendar were provided soon afterwards by an early Irish "glossator," and are included directly below the couplet. These notes often repeat a few times, as several sources have more comments. Also included is the "Martyrology of Tallaght," (MT) which is a list of Saints for a day. In this list, on most months, is first the early Saints, and then Irish Saints. This list was a group effort by the monks of the monastery of Tallaght, so some months have only Irish Saints. A few months have breaks where pages were lost in this ancient book. Other sources of research have also been included. The earlier Irish Saints of the book "The Saints of Ireland" (TSI) by Mary Ryan D'Arcy have been included, although these entries are paraphrased here. Also, "The Lives of the Holy Apostles," a wonderful book by the Holy Apostles Convent, is the source of the information on the longer histories of the Apostles and Evangelists. (The books by the Holy Apostles Convent, which include the Life of the Virgin Mary, the Apostles, the Holy Prophets of the Old Testament, and women Saints, are very worthwhile, and recommended to purchase. They also have a very good new translation with many Orthodox notes of the Gospels and the Epistles of the New Testament; with only one word that we might have a disagreement with. The Blessed Virgin Mary was not "pregnant" in the sense that the English language word means: impregnated, but was either "with child" as some English translations say, or was in "gestation." Otherwise, this translation is the most accurate to the Greek, and the most clearly notated and referenced, of any of the available Bibles. Look up sources for books on the website - these books are available through such groups as "St. Nectarious Press" and others. The official Old Testament translation of the Celtic Orthodox Christian Church is still the Douay Bible, but if one is reading original Greek, a Septuagint is the best. New translations of the Septuagint are not in clear English in places - unfortunately, this was not done by a group who was as careful as the Holy Apostles Convent.) For the Holy Apostles, the Bobbio designation of the Apostles' Creed is also given, with a Gradual Psalm which follows the order of the Apostles' Creed, and also happens to be a prophetic insight into the life of the Apostles.
 

Only a few of the dates of April will be included this month: of course the dates of the Holy Apostle Philip and the Evangelist Mark, and also the Visitation of the Virgin Mary with her cousin St. Elizabeth, on the same date as St. Ambrose of Milan. Also, St. Christopher "the doghead" (Reprobus in Greek), who was not a "cynic" philosopher, but was known to have ugly features. The three youths from the Old Testament Book of Daniel are on the same day as St. George, note that the three youths are considered more important because Christ visited them in the fire, saving them. Only the Douay and the Septuagint have the complete "Song of the Three Youths," also see the Breviary. A few Irish Saints are also included, such as St. Tigernach the singer; St. Ibar one of the Bishops in Ireland before St. Patrick; Beccan mac Cula, a monk in old age; Finan Camm, "the squinting"; Tassach, the artisan of St. Patrick; Ruadan, who was revered by St. Melruain. St. Melruain is named after Ruadan. Also, on the 28^th of the month is celebrated Noah leaving the ark. It is important to remember to pray without ceasing (I Thess. 5:17); the 150 Psalms remind us of the time the earth was covered with water, which lasted 150 days. The Psalms are prayed every day during Lent, with more readings than the rest of the year, and they lead to the most Holy day of the year: the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we are saved, not only in body as in the case of Noah, but in body and soul.
 

1 Apr /14 Apr April's calends ennoble Ambrose, with much of purity:
he takes what is greater happiness, one of Mary's Feasts.

[The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary with St. Elizabeth, and the first singing of the Magnificat. This is again commemorated December 18^th, as a reminder during the week before Christmas.]

(April 1^st was the older Roman New Years, and near this time Psalm 52, which is read according to the movable calendar, reminds us that this is also a Feast of Fools. See the Circumcision on January 1^st. We are reminded of the faith of St. John the Baptist, which was a faith in Christ from his mother's womb. St. John the Baptist points to a need for faith in God. The Magnificat references Isaiah 8:13-18 "Sanctify the Lord of hosts Himself: and let Him be your fear; and let Him be your dread. And He shall be a sanctification to you: but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to the two houses of Israel...," read at the Purification of the Virgin Mary and the bringing of Christ into the temple, February 2^nd. Also read that day, a commentary about Abraham by St. Paul to the Hebrews, 7:7-26, "And (as it may be said) even Levi who received tithes paid tithes in Abraham; For he was yet in the loins of his father [grandfather] when Melchisedech met him." The entire Jewish community expected the Messiah to come from Bethlehem, from the house of David, but that was from Judah, not from Levi, says St. Paul, although St. Paul shows that Melchisedech was a Priest before Levi. The Magnificat ends, "...He hath received Israel his servant, being mindful of His mercy. As He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed for ever." Modern science traces genetics in the tribe of Levi, but this is very strange, because Levi was only divided from father and his brothers, from the other tribes, by one generation, and all of the sons of Abraham and Isaac should be closely linked through the line of men... and this is implied by St. Paul in tracing the generations of Abraham.)

Ambrose, i.e. who composed hymns, Bishop of Milan in Italy. [St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, is quoted in the Celtic Mass.]

Mary goes to the home of Elixabeth after the conception of Christ and as testified by Luke remains there three months until the birth of John. Others think this is the birthday of Mary but it true as others know that this is the day the Blessed Virgin Mary first sings the Magnificat when she visits St. Elizabeth - St. Luke 1:39-57, and stays for about three months until the nativity of St. John the Baptist on June 24^th - see that date. Some say that this is the nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, but it is only the date on which she first sings the Magnificat.

Aedan of Cell Aedain Leith in Ulster, and Tuan son of Cairell, from Tamlachta in Bairche, and Cellach, a successor of Patrick, on this day.

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Sancta Maria Nativity. (There is no explanation for this date, especially as the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is recorded by Oengus, the Byzantines, and the Romans as September 8^th. May was always dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, however, and there are some sources that said she was prematurely born.) Agapa; Chiona; Erenna; Maius; Ingeniana; Brigita; Partinus; Panteneus; Victoris; Quintianus; Hereneus; Ingenianus; Saturninus; Alaxandrus; Secundus; Zefanus; Dionisus; Pantinus; Paternus and ten others; Saint Ambrose Bishop. In margin: The setting up of the Tabernacle. Also: Saint Gobbani; Aedan laicus; Tuan son of Cairill from Tamlachta (Tallaght) in Bairche; the sons of Geran.

TSI lists Caidoc and Fricor today, two Irish missionaries in Picardy France who landed there about 622. They preached along the Roman road, and at Centule, now St. Riquier, their "intermeddling" caused violence against them. A young nobleman, Riquier defended them and invited them into his home, and he became a fervent convert, cutting his hair and giving up silken robes and a jewel-studded girdle. Later he took Orders, and in 625 founded the monastery of Centule following the Irish Rule of St. Columban (see Columbanus, November 23^rd). Relics of Columban, Caidoc and Fricor were preserved there. Caidoc and Fricor lived the rest of their lives in Riquier's community, and were buried in his church. Four Feast days were named at St. Riquier's to honor them: January 24^th, April 1^st, March 31^st, and May 30^th.

[Dates related to St. Maelruain: March 6^th, July 7^th, October 1^st. Dates related to Tallacht, also called Tamlachta: January 3^rd, April 1^st, October 26^th.]

St. Ambrose of Milan, who died in 397 A.D., is commemorated on the Celtic calendar April 1^st, on the Byzantine calendar December 7^th, and on the Roman calendar December 7^th. He wrote some of the prayers that were most favored in the Celtic Church, and some of the music and Liturgical forms in Milan were Celtic. He was a leader against Arianism and paganism (see St. Martin of Tours: Arianism was a terrible problem). He wrote about many areas of the Faith, including commentaries on Scripture, dogmatics, Sacraments, duties of clergy, monastic and moral life. He also wrote hymns. Saints Gervasius and Protasius, see June 19^th, were venerated by St. Ambrose as examples of Saints who held the faith against Arianism. See also May 20^th: St. Ambrose also encouraged the veneration of other Saints.
 

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4 Apr /17 Apr Sing pious Tigernach, for Christ's sake he vanquished every lust -
out of whom burst a stream of knowledge, (Tigernach) of beautiful Cluain Euis. (Clones.)

Tigernach (singer)

Sing Tigernach, i.e. Tigernach son of Cairbre, son of Cathair, of Leinster, or of Leix was Tigernach's father, or of Hui Bairche. Darfraich daughter of Eochaid son of Crimthann, king of Airgeill, from Rigraith over Clochar was his mother. Now Cairbre brought him under cover to Kildare. He goes into the guest-house. Brigit sees a watch of angels above the house. She asked who was there. "One young warrior is there," says the attendant. "Look thou still," quoth Brigit. He hooks. "There is," he says, "a little infant in the young warrior's bosom." "Good is the infant," says Brigit. Brigit goes into the guest-house, and the child is Baptized, and Brigit holds him at the Baptism, etc.

Tigernach, i.e. of Offaly or Ui Barrchi, and, he is in Cluain Euis oof Hui Barrchi out of the west of Leinster is he.

Of Cluain Eois, i.e. (Eoas is) the name of Concobar's swineherd who used to be there. [Translator's note: In LL. 358r. Marg. Oois (sic) is said to be the name of a swineherd of the king of Airgeill, who was in that stead before Tigernach.] [Rig means "king," the king of Airgeill. Some say that this is the "swineherd" that told Concobar about the death of Christ at the moment it occurred, which caused Concobar's death, because Concobar said immediately after hearing that the God of the universe had come into the world but that Rome had killed Him, that he (Concobar) would destroy the country of Romans that had killed Christ, and although he intended this as something good, the kingdom of God is not of this world, and instead Concobar had a hemorrhage which prevented him. The technology and strategy described in the Tain Bo Cuailnge might have made it possible for the Celts, spread over Galatia, Italy, Gaul, and Briton, to defeat Rome. Another reference to swineherd: see the great epic, the Tain Bo Cuailnge: a swineherd was a pre-Christian, i.e. pagan: priest, or sorcerer, or shape-shifter. Two appear in that story as red and white bulls, 'How now, brown cow.' The monk who wrote the Tain claimed that it was an ancient pre-Christian tale that he was setting to writing. The warfare in the Tain is similar to the inventive and advanced warfare of the Mahabarata or of the ancient Greeks: the main hero employs something akin to a fully mechanical armored tank. A swineherd who had become a Christian Saint might be numbered among those Saints who converted to Christianity, such as St. Cyprian, etc., who had been pagan sorcerers. Even if this "swineherd" had only had a vision of Christ's crucifixion at the time of the actual Crucifixion of Christ, this occurrence would have seemed significant to the Irish later, because it meant that they had hoped for Christ before they were converted.]

Tigernach sang:

A bittock of a cake of bright barley, this is my portion on the board:
a spring of watercress and warm water, this is my share every night.
What has brought thee, O Cuachan, over Muadan's hair (i.e. from below)?

An angel said

"Thy piety and thy devotion and Guaire's generosity."

Tigernach's mother was Darfraich. 'Tis to her that Cechtamair of Druim Dubain said, after being unable to split the tree while building her oratory:

O Darfraich! O mother of holy Tigernach!
let come thy help which was not slow, split the tree anigh the wright.

Tigernach son of Cairbre, son of Fergus, son of Enda, son of Laban, son of Briun, son of Eochaid, son of Daire Barrach, son of Cathair Mor.

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Teodolus; Agathopus; Paulus; Matutinus; Urbanus; Saturninus; Successia; Juliana; Quintilianus; Victoris and twelve others. Also: Tigernach Bishop of Cluain Eois; Gall of Loch Teiget; Coine of Cell Coine; Colmain Find (the fair); Ultan son of Caitte; Cronsichi; Priest Corc of Cell Mor.

Marginal notes from The Martyrology of Tallaght: Tigernach of Cluain Eois, or Oois, i.e. from Oois, the name of the king of Oriel's swineherd, who was in that place before Tigernach. What he asked of the cleric alongside Fochart was that his name should be given to the place. Or, it was a great tree that was there formerly, i.e. eo aisse, i.e. a yew, as is said Eo Rosa. Or eo aisse, i.e. tree of acorns, i.e. oak, as it is calledthus, aiss mast on which swine are fed. [A swineherd was the name for a Celtic pagan sorcerer - often advisor to a king, similar to "shepherd" and "pastor" which mean Bishop in Christian nomenclature. To name a place after him might mean that this person had left his former ways and even encouraged the king to embrace Christianity. Or see the note about about Concobar's swineherd from a much earlier time.]
 

5 Apr /18 Apr On the great Feast of Beccan mac Cula, with the victory of piety,
Patrick's excellent Baptism has been kindled in Ireland.
Béccán mac Cula, victory of piety, Patrick's most excellent baptism kindled in Ireland.

Cula's son, i.e. Cula was his other, and in Imliuch Fia in Fir Cula Breg is Beccan. Fia is the name of a well, Cula the name of his mother, and of the race of Cremthann is he. Of the Dal Cais was Beccan, and 'tis he that raised Bresal Brecc from death. [ Translator's note: see Lives of Saints from the Book of Lismore, p. xxvii, and LL. 358.]

The three athlaechs [men who became monks in their old age] of Ireland, Beccan Cula's son (April 5^th), and Mochua, Lonan's son, and Enda of Arann (see February 9^th).

Patrick's Baptism, etc. [the first person St. Patrick Baptized] i.e. Sinell son of Findchad, of the Hui Garrchon, he is the first person whom Patrick Baptized in Ireland.

[There are several Sinells listed; first, the earliest person St. Patrick Baptized, commemorated March 17^th and April 5^th, also another Sinell March 26^th who wrote an old Rule who may also be Sinell of Cleenish, and some others who are related to other Saints. TSI lists Sinell of Cleenish Island in Lough Erne in Fermanagh on November 12^th.]

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Claudianus; Marcianus; Nicanoris; Apollonius; Didimus Priest; Quintus; Chionia; Herenna; Pancratus; Agape; Successius; Paulus; Honorius; Hirenus; Tracus; Probus; Anfianus; Andronicus; Probus; Karulus; Marcianus; Nicandrus; Apollonius; Babillus Bishop with his; Nicanoris; Fatuelis the Saxon whose severed head was located in Scetha and said "deliver us from evil." Also: Baptism of Saint Patrick who came to Ireland; Becgain the Bishop son of Culae whose mother was Antiosa.

Marginal notes from The Martyrology of Tallaght: Bresal son of Diarmait son of Cerball once made a great feast for his father, and there was naught lacking to it save a cow with livers of tallow. [See Stokes ZCP III, 572-3]. Bresal heard of such being with the nun of Cell Elgraige in the sanctuary of Cenannus. Luachair her name. So Bresal went to buy it, and he offered seven cows and a bull to the nun for it, and she did not give it to him. And Bresal took the cow by force, and gave the cow with the feast to his father in Cenannus, for it was then a royal fortress. The nun after being outraged came to Diarmait and complained bitterly of the outrage done to her by Bresal. Wherefore the poet sang:

When they were most merry at the carousal
he heard a voice without,
the [white-skinned] nun comes to them
whom Bresal had outraged over her cow.

'Unjust is what thou has done,' said Diarmait,
'O Bresal of the smooth words.
There has been wanton folly,
thou shalt go to death for it.'
 

'Well, O Becan of the virtues,' [stanza out of place]
said Colum Cille without hurt.
'I am the [white-faced?] safeguard
that he has brought on to thy land, on to thy foundation.'

And Diarmait said, 'Thou shalt suffer death for what thou hast done, that is, for outraging the nun.' Thereupon Bresal is taken by Diarmait to Linn Bresail (Bresal's Pool) on Abaind Lorgaid, and there drowned.

Diarmait afterwards repented of the drowning of his son, and 'tis then he said to Colum Cille, taking counsel of him, 'Is there any help for me at all for the deed that I have done?' quoth he. 'There is,' said Colum Cille, 'that is, go to the ex-layman who is in the island, namely Becan.' 'I dare not go to him,' said he. 'I will go with thee,' said Colum Cille.

When the two arrived they found Becan building [weaving] a wall, with a wet quilt about him, and praying at the same time, as is said:

Building [spinning] a wall, and Cross-vigil,

prostration, pure prayer,
tears from him without avail,
the virtue of Becan, without aught of sin.
 

Hand on a stone, hand upraised,
knee bent against a rock,
eye ever shedding tears,
and lips praying.

Wherefore he is called Becan of the virtues.

When Becan looked on Diarmait, this is what he said, 'Under the earth, thou parricide!' At the word Diarmait sinks to his knees in the earth. 'Diarmait is under my protection, O Becan,' said Colum Cille. Wherefore Colum Cille: 'Thence from Becan,' as we say.

And Becan said to Colum Cille, '[white-faced ?] is the protection.' 'Quarter to Diarmait,' said Colum Cille, 'because of my humiliation.' 'It shall be given [shall go] though reluctantly,' said Becan. 'Diarmait has come to thee for solace, that is, for the raising of his son.' Becan lifts his free hand up, and prays thrice, and fifty Bresals were brought out of Hell at every prayer of Becan's, and he restored his son to Diarmait.
 

--
 

7 Apr / 20 Apr Finan the squinting, of Cenn Etig, around whom is much of clamor:
a champion of Christ was Cainde, from wolf-haunted Sliab Bledmae.

Fínan the squinting of Cenn Etig; Cainde, champion of Christ from wolf-haunted Sliab Bledmae.

Of Cenn-etig, i.e. Etech, the nurse of the Fians, was slain there. Or Cell eti (is the right reading) from the flying of the (pet) scallcrow that Brenainn sent out of the north from Cluain ferta Brenainn.

Bladma, i.e. from Blad son of Conmac Cas Clothach, grandson of Tachall son of Cermait, son of the Dagda, after whom he was named.. Or Blad son of Breogan, a quo Sliab Bladma.

Finan Camm, i.e. crooked was his eye, of Cennetig in sliab bladma. Of the Corcu-duibne was he.

A salmon of red gold came: it went in the west after sunset,
against the womb of white Beccnat, (Finan's mother) so that it became her husband,

i.e. when she was bathing in Loch Lein: as is said:
Now thou hast no earthly father: the Holy Ghost has saved thee, has fostered thee.

Therefore others say:
Becnat, daughter of vast Idgna, the precious stone that was not scanty: like the Son of the Virgin, Finan Camm was born of her.
In Becnat's womb thou wast for a while, for thou wast conceived through God's word:
an earthly father thou hast not, the Holy Ghost has saved thee, has fostered thee.

Finan Camm brought wheat into Ireland, i.e. the full of his shoe he brought. Declan brought the rye, i.e. the full of his shoe. Mo-domnoc brought bees, i.e. the full of his bell: and in one ship they were brought.

[See February 13^th, Mo-domnoc's bees.] [Declan: see July 24^th, a pre-Patrician Bishop just before St. Patrick, so all of these were early Saints.]

Finan is entitled to true circuits, a measure of wheat for every household,
the full of his brazen shoe, a tribute that no great Saint had taken.
Finan Camm with power brought wheat out of the country of Letha:
the full of his brazen shoe of our seed went into Ireland.

[Note: Celtic people were in many areas, such as "Galatia" near Armenia, and "Gaul" in modern France, areas around modern Vienna, and Briton, Ireland, Scotland, etc. There are Celtic writings on rocks in the continent of North America, and it is not known how far back their travels were; some think both before and during the Christian era. Finan Camm may be very early, and may be included because of the great deed of providing both food and people. However, if the Celtic people included some people of the Old Testament, it is possible that the Irish would have commemorated him even if he came to Ireland before the Christian era. The poem about the fish is very old, and seems to be similar to a Greek or Roman myth, in fact, has been repeated in books about mythology.]

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Timotheus; Eleusius; Pelussus; Philosius; Ciriacis; Dioginis; Siria; Macaria; Maxima; Libia; Eleusius; Caprica; Firmanus; Superioris; Victoris. Also: Senani Abbot; Ruissine of Inis Pich; Mac Liac (son of Liac) from Daire; Finani Caimm (the squinting) because his eyes were slanted; Senani Bishop.

TSI lists Brenach or Brynach in Wales today, from the fifth century. He is called "Brenach the Irishman" in the Welsh Triads. He frequently had the vision and conversation of angels, and the mountain where they came to him was later called "Carn-Engyli" the Mountain of the Angels. His church was at the mountain's foot, the principal church of the district.
 

14 Apr / 27 Apr The royal Bishop, thy Assach, gave when he came to him, the Body of Christ,
the truly strong King, at the Communion, unto Patrick.

The royal Bishop Tassach (t-Assach), i.e. Patrick's artisan and Bishop, from Raith Colpthai in Leth Cathail in Ulster. [Translator's note: For the tradition that he administered the Communion to the dying Patrick, see Fiacc's hymn 53, Thes. Pal. Hib. II. 319. For the three artisans of Ireland, see ]

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Tiburtius; Apatus; Valerianus; Roma; Pretextatus; Marcia; Cornelia; Fortunata; The Lady with her virgins were crowned [with martyrdom] at the same time; Maximus; Ciriacus; Donatus; Patius; Saturninus; Prontius; Canditoris; Titulus; Tiburtius; Valerianus; Valentus; Producus; Liurnus; Archilaus; Dioclitianus; Foebus; Simfronius; Proculus; Valentus; Optatus; Saturninus. Also: Saint Tassagi; Colmani; Cilline son of Lubnain.

TSI says that Tassach was one of St. Patrick's makers of crosses, croziers, shrines, etc. and builder of churches. He was first Bishop of Raholp in County Down. "Some historians think that it is possible that Assic of Elphin and Tassach may be the same person." (See Asicus or Assic April 27^th.)

[Justin Martyr is venerated on the Roman calendar today; see August 4^th for a Celtic date.]
 

15 Apr /28 Apr An excellent flame that is unebbing, that vanquishes urgent desires,
fair was the precious stone, Rodan, the lamp of Lorrha.

Ruadan, i.e of the Eoganacht of Cashel is he, i.e. Abbot of Lothra. [Ruadani Lothra, LL. 358f.]

[Possibly the scribe of the Celtic Missal! Lothra is another name for Lorrha.]

[One of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland - see July 15^th, September 9^th.]

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Maronis; Messoris; Mossitis; Archilaius; Ciprianus; Proclina; Lota; Tertia; Acuta; Dionica; Potamica; Predentius; Dioginis; Diaconus; Felicis; Marcianus; Faustus; Marcialis; Silvanus; Fortunatus; Lucianus; Leonidis. Also: the sons of Draigen from Cell Roa; Ruadani of Lothra (Lorrha); Grellan son of Rotain; Dubta; Sarnat of Dairinis Cetnae.

TSI lists Ruadhan (Ruan) today. He was one of the "twelve Apostles of Ireland," and was trained by Finian of Clonard. His monastery at Lorrha in north Tipperary has given us that great treasure, the Gospel of St. Maelruain also known as the "Lorrha-Stowe Missal," and also "The Celtic Missal." (The name "Stowe" was added much later because it was discovered in the library of the Duke of Buckingham at Stowe.) The book shrine, the "Cumdach" for the Lorrha Missal is from much later, about 1023-1052, commissioned by Donagh the son of Brian Boru, and it says it is the work of "Dunchad of the family of Cluain." [See notes in the Missal about its age and sources.] Some say that it was found in the ruins of a wall of the O'Kennedy Castle at Lackeen a few miles away from Lorrha about 1735, another account says it had been in Austria in the Irish monastery at Ratisbon and into the possession of an Irish soldier in the Austrian army in 1784: John Grace, and from the Grace family into the possession of the Duke of Buckingham. Eventually it went back to Ireland in the Royal Irish Academy. (Irish served in the Austrian army and also the Russian army at that time - see the writings of the "Baron Munchausen," and the Irish were included among those who fought the Turks. Those who had protected all of Europe were given gifts such as great horses, but had their possessions taken when they returned home to Ireland, because it was illegal for an Irishman to have great possessions, so the "donation" by the Grace family seems entirely possible.)

St. Ruadhan was said to have cursed Tara, which then was deserted. Aed Guaire, a king of Connacht had decapitated an emissary of the high king Diarmuid and then fled to Ruadhan for sanctuary. Even though no person, however criminal, was supposed to be dragged out of sanctuary as long as he stayed within a church or monastery, Diarmuid dragged Aed Guaire out and all the Saints of Ireland went to Tara to curse it. One story says that Brendan negotiated with Diarmuid for the release of Aed Guaire for fifty horses with blue eyes and golden bridles, but a year and a half later these "horses" returned to their original state as seals in the middle of a horse race. (This is reminiscent of the golden snake of St. Spiridon which served as coins until the debt was repaid, at which time the coins returned to being a snake.) TSI notes are many anachronisms in the stories of the cursing of Tara, but it is true that, if it occurred later, it would have been possible for earlier Saints to join with the living in these stories, just as St. Peter cured Constantine of leprosy years after St. Peter died (see January 18^th). At least it is known that the influence of Tara decreased, and after Diarmuid there were no more assemblies of druids. St. Ruadhan died in A.D. 584. Macalister says that "the name 'king of Tara' appears in the Annals of Ulster in 670, 737, 764." Some Saints would have been children while others would have been buried, but, in spite of TSI's belittling of this event, the children of the king of Tara were converted to Christianity, which TSI notes everywhere else under numerous Saint days. As a good Christian, St. Ruadhan would not have cursed the individuals who later converted to Christianity, but the druid assemblies, which certainly stopped meeting, at least since the time of the fifth and sixth centuries. The secular education of the poets (the bards) was not cursed, but rather promoted by such as St. Patrick and St. Colm cille (see January 29^th and October 12^th). St. Ruadhan was uncompromising in his Orthodox faith, and was the teacher of St. Maelruain the Cele De, who founded Tallaght (see July 7^th).
 

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22 Apr /5 May May Philip the Apostle protect us, (he) who is vaster than any sea,
whose name, from the Father's mystery, is the wide mouth of a lamp.

[Note: in 2002 this is the same date as the Resurrection of the Lord. Move this date to just after. It is noteworthy that St. Philip reminds us of the Holy Spirit today.]

Philip the Apostle: (April 22/May 5)

Philip, i.e. in Phrygia he was buried.

May Philip protect us: in the mystery of the Father, i.e. in the mystical Canon: 'mouth of a lamp," Twenty years after the Passion of the Lord, Philip preached the Gospel to the Scites and other nations. In the end he was eight-eight years old when he was crucified and stoned at Hieropolis of the Phrygians. Thus his lot was like Philip and Andrew.

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Pilippus the Apostle nativity [which could also mean his birth into heaven, i.e. his death]. Gaius; Leonis; Tubianus; Papia; Basilla; Felicis; Gerapulus; Leonidis; Epipodus; Aratoris; Ciriacus; Rogatus; Primolus; Muca; Parmenus; Luca; Elima; Caulistus. Also: Rufin of Glenn da Locha (Glendalough); Tommae of Bennchor (Bangor); Abel son of Aeda; Nechtan moccu in Baird; Saignen and Lachain of Armag (or an maige, or anmhaighe); Bishop Cuilen in Lemchaill.

Philip the Apostle's nativity.
 

The Apostle Philip - From the Bobbio Apostle's Creed, he said, 'He descended into hell.' Roman date of celebration: May 1 (See James on the same date for an explanation). Celtic Rite dates: April 22, May 1^st. Passion of Philip chief martyr Oct 18 (not known if this is the Apostle Philip; it is St. Luke on the Roman calendar, but might actually have been St. Philip the Apostle). (The Cross of Philip Oct 22 is on both the Roman and Celtic calendars, and is St. Philip of Heraclea of A.D. 304, not St. Philip the Apostle).
 

A short history of the Apostle St. Philip

St. Philip, also from Bethsaida by the sea of Galilee, was called the day after Ss. Peter and Andrew who also came from Bethsaida, according to the Gospel of St. John 1:43-44. Unlike Ss. Peter and Andrew, Philip spent much time studying Scripture. Philip followed Jesus at once when he was called. (See also where Philip brought his friend Nathaniel to Christ.)

Philip had a tendency to think of Christ as a man and not as God, not realizing that the Almighty Lord could do anything He wanted. When Jesus was about to do the miracle of the five loaves and two fish, He asked St. Philip the price of bread, [St. John 6:5-7] and St. Philip said "Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them...," so St. Philip was familiar with the cost of items in the market. Philip thought only about the cost of bread, not the power of God. Outsiders, probably emissaries from Abgarius of Edessa seeking healing for their king, approached St. Philip first at the time of Palm Sunday, St. John 12:21, so St. Philip may have had knowledge of foreign languages before Pentecost, as Philip loved to study, but he had the intellectual knowledge of a man. St. John 14:8-21 St. Philip asks Jesus to show us the Father and it is enough for us, but Jesus said to St. Philip that "Have I been so long a time with you and have you not known me? Philip, he that seeth me seeth the Father also. How sayest thou: Shew us the Father? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I speak to you, I speak not of myself. But the Father Who abideth in me, He doth the works..." It is good for our sakes that St. Philip asked this question, and St. John recorded it in his Gospel, because this passage goes on to also describe the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father [St. John 14:16-17], and it gives clear instruction about the Holy Trinity. Jesus gives further instruction to St. Judas (not Iscariot) and the other Apostles [St. John 14:22-16:28] concerning the Holy Trinity and Himself. Through the misunderstanding of Philip, Jesus explains His Divinity, just as through the doubts of Thomas, Jesus shows his humanity and Resurrection from the dead. Jesus shows us that He is completely God and also completely man. In the First Commandment of God we hear that we must worship the one true God alone, Who is the Holy Trinity, according to the New Testament, but also the Old Testament (Genesis chapter 18), where Abraham greets the Three in the singular, as "Lord." To deny the divinity of Christ, as Arius did in the fourth century, and as some who deny the divinity of the Holy Communion today, is to deny this first Commandment of Moses, to love God. In many places in the Gospel of St. John, we hear Christ telling the people that He and the Father are one, and this final question of St. Philip and Christ's teaching about the Holy Spirit soon after this are the Gospel's teachings on the Holy Trinity.

After the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and after Pentecost, in chapter 8 of the Book of Acts, St. Philip acts in the power of the Holy Spirit to convert the Samaritans. At this time, Philip not only believes in the Divinity of Christ, but also the power of the Holy Spirit. His prayers caused great miracles, including the expelling of demons from the possessed, and the curing of those with palsies and the lame. In Samaria Philip also Baptized many, including a sorcerer who turned from his ways named Simon. But Simon wanted the power of the Holy Spirit, and he offered money to be ordained. Simon was rebuked by Peter, and he repented. An angel of the Lord sent Philip south to convert an eunuch of Ethiopia of great authority under their queen Candace (Acts 8:26-38). Philip explained the Scripture of Isaiah to him (Isaiah 53:7-8), and he Baptized the eunuch, whose name is not mentioned. After this, the Spirit of the Lord transported Philip directly; the Book of Acts records that the eunuch that Philip had been talking to "saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing," Acts 8:39, and that Philip "was found" at Azotus, Acts 8:40. Philip preached to all the cities in that area until he came to Caesarea. (The account in the Book of Acts differs from some other traditions, as seen below, from "The lives of the Holy Apostles" by Reader Isaac E. Lambertsen and the Holy Apostles Convent, which says that Philip taught around the city of Candacia and took a ship to Azotus, and it does not mention Philip's preaching in Samaria. Their sources include the Menology of St. Dimitri of Rostov in Russian and also the Great Snaxaristes of the Orthodox Church in Greek.)

From The Lives of the Holy Apostles (abbreviated): Philip preached in the area around Galilee, raising an infant from the dead, and Baptizing the mother and her restored son. Then Philip preached in Asia Minor and Syria. In Greece he did many miracles, and raised a dead man in the name of Christ. Word was sent to Jerusalem by the Jews there, and a priest came to Greece with scribes, and accused Philip of deceiving the illiterate people. The priest also accused the disciples of Jesus of taking His Body away and then falsely claiming that He is risen from the dead. The people standing near who heard this threatened to slay Philip. Philip, however reminded the priest that gold was given to the guards so that they would perjure themselves, and that the seals of the tomb of Christ that were unbroken would be the evidence against their falsehood at the Last Judgment. The priest then reached for Philip, seeking to slay him, but the priest was suddenly stricken blind and turned black. Others who also attacked Philip, saying that he was a warlock, also were struck blind and turned black. The earth also began shaking, and everybody became afraid of the power of Christ. Philip prayed for the people, begging forgiveness, and healing was given to all. But the priest continued to say blasphemies against Jesus Christ, and the ground opened up and swallowed him alive, as Dathan and Abiron (Numbers 16). After that, many sought Baptism, and Philip Baptized them and ordained a man named Narcissus, and then Philip went on to Parthia.

On the way to Parthia, Philip knelt in prayer asking God to help him in labors, and he saw from heaven an eagle with golden pinions stretched in the shape of a Cross of Christ. Strengthened, he preached in the towns around Arabia and Candacia (see note above) and then took a ship and sailed across the sea to the Syrian city of Azotus. While on ship, a storm descended on the sea, and all thought they would die. Then Philip began to pray, and in the sky a Cross of light appeared and the sea became calm.

At Azotus, Philip was received into the home of a man named Niocledes who had a daughter named Charitina who had a disease that affected the sight in one eye. After hearing Philip preach, they asked for Baptism, and after that, asked Philip to cure her eye. To reveal the power of Holy Baptism, Philip told her to place her own right hand over her eye in the morning, and ask for the healing in the name of Christ the Master, and she would be cured, and she was. [Note: in the Celtic Baptism, the right hand is especially blessed with Holy Chrism oil to make the Sign of the Cross and also to perform healings. The use of the Chrism in the Sacrament of Holy Unction over the eyes and other places would have healed her, but this is applied in the Sacrament of Holy Unction in the Celtic Rite, not in Chrismation. The Celtic Rite Chrismation pours the oil "upon the forehead, pouring it over the brow" as in a kingly anointing, and after the vesting, also over the right hand in the Sign of the Cross.]

Then Philip travelled to Hierapolis of Syria. The people there threatened to slay Philip by stoning, but the ruler named Irus saved Philip, telling them to see first whether or not his doctrine was true. Irus brought Philip to his home, but Irus' wife Marcella was offended, and asked that their marriage be dissolved and the dowry returned to her. Philip told Irus to stand fast in the faith, and Philip also prayed for Marcella. The maidservant heard the words of Philip, and told Marcella how sweet they were, and hearing this the entire household was Baptized.

The citizens heard that the entire household was Baptized, and they surrounded the house at night, intending to set fire to it. The Holy Spirit told Philip, who went outside, and the people took h im away to the chief counsel Aristarchus. Aristarchus asked Philip to repudiate Christ, and took hold of Philip's hair, pulling him about from place to place. Philip prayed loudly so that everybody could hear, "O Lord Who hast fashioned our heart and knowest its movements and thoughts, fulfill my word, which cometh not from anger of heart, but out of a desire for the reformation of others! Paralyze the arm of this unruly man, who dareth to lift his hand against the head which Thou hast blessed!" The arm of Aristarchus withered immediately, and also he became blind and deaf. Then the people were amazed, and asked Philip to heal their exarch. Philip replied that, "If he doth not believe in the God Whom I preach, he will not be healed."

A funeral was passing by, and the people demanded that Philip resurrect the dead man, so that Aristarchus and they could believe in him. Philip prayed, and then turned to the dead man, quietly saying "Theophilus," and the dead man sat up on the bier and opened his eyes. Philip then said, "Christ commandeth thee: arise and speak with us!" The dead man walked to Philip and fell at his feet, saying, "I think thee, O holy servant of God, that thou hast delivered me at this hour from great evil; for two Moors had laid hold of me and were dragging me along with themselves; and if thou hadst not staved them off and delivered me from them, I would have been cast down into gloomy Tartarus!" Then all the people were in great fear, because Philip knew the name of the dead man whom Philip had never seen before, and also raised him from the dead.

The Apostle told the people to be silent, and he told Irus to come and make the Sign of the Cross over the arm of Aristarchus. Immediately Aristarchus' arm was restored, and he could see and hear. The people all pledged themselves to Christ at that moment, including Aristarchus, who he commanded to make the Sign of the Cross and to call upon the Name of the All-Holy Trinity. Aristarchus was one of the first to be Baptized, with Praefectus the father of Theophilus who had been raised from the dead, and who was also an elder of the city. Praefectus gave Philip the gold from twelve idols he had owned, which Philip distributed to the poor. Praefectus spent the rest of his property well, and remained faithful to the end of his days. Irus was ordained a Bishop, and others were Ordained Presbyters and Deacons, and they began erecting a church.

Philip then travelled to the mountainous regions of Asia, in Lydia and Mysia, and converted many. Philip was joined there by the Apostle Bartholomew who had been preaching in neighboring cities, and was sent by God to help Philip. Mariamne, virgin, sister of the Apostle Philip also followed him there, and they worked together. They were persecuted and beaten by the unbelievers, but they continued in the grace of God. In a village of Lydia, they met the Apostle John the Theologian, and they departed with him into the land of Phrygia. Another city there was named Hierapolis, and they preached Christ there. A pagan temple there was dedicated to a viper that the people brought food and sacrifices to, and the people also worshiped other snakes. St. Philip and his sister prayed for protection, aided by St. John. Together, through their prayers, the viper was killed.

After that, St. John went his separate way, leaving them with the work of converting the people in Hierapolis. Ss. Philip, Bartholomew, and Mariamne worked there. Philip taught about God, in the form of our Creed, Who is the only Author of creation and the universe, Who made all things visible and invisible, and how God made man. Then Philip taught how Jesus Christ, in his divine mercy, became man Himself, His saving crucifixion, Resurrection, and Ascension. Philip also taught that the incarnate Son and Word of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, will come again and will resurrect the human race and give to each according to their works. All who are Baptized in His Name and have preserved His commandments to do them will inherit everlasting bliss. But those who have put aside His law will be condemned to endless torment. Philip taught many other things as well, and those who accepted the words in their hearts he Baptized, and he Ordained Bishops and Presbyters.

A man named Stachys in that city had been blind for forty years. The Apostles prayed and his sight was restored, and also his spirit was illumined as he heard the preaching about Christ. The Apostles stayed at the home of Stachys, and crowds gathered at his house, and all who came were taught to believe in Jesus Christ. Many sick also were healed, so that more and more people came and were Baptized.

The wife the Nicanor, the mayor of the city, was bitten by a serpent and was near death. Her husband was away from home, so she commanded her servants to bring her to the home of Stachys. Her body was healed of the bite, and her spirit was healed from the delusion of the demons, and she believed in Christ. When the mayor returned home, he was enraged, and arrested Philip, Bartholomew and Mariamne, and set the house of Stachys on fire. A crowd gathered as they were dragged through the streets, beaten and mocked, and cast into prison. Then the mayor sat at the place of the tribunal to judge them, and all the pagan priests of the slain vipers made complaints. Nicanor ordered the clothes stripped from Philip, because he thought that charms were hidden in them, but they found nothing. Nothing was also found in the garments of Bartholomew. When they approached Mariamne to strip her, she appeared to their eyes as a fiery flame, and the impious ones fled in fear. The Apostles were condemned to be crucified.

First St. Philip was crucified in this manner: They bored holes in his ankle bones and passed cords through them, suspending him on a cross head-downward as St. Peter, in front of the portals of the viper's temple. They also cast stones at him as well. Then St. Bartholomew was crucified on the wall of the temple. An earthquake struck, swallowing the mayor together will all the pagan priests and a multitude of impious people. All who remained were in great fear, and pleaded with the holy Apostles to take pity on them and pray to God lest the earth swallow them as well. They rushed to take the Apostles down from the crosses. They took Bartholomew down first, because he was near to the ground, but they could not remove Philip as quickly because he was high off the ground. St. Philip prayed for his enemies, to forgive them and also illumine them with the understanding of the truth, and the Lord opened the earth and sent back all alive but the mayor and the pagan priests. They also praised God loudly and asked to be Baptized, but when they tried to take Philip down from the Cross, they found that his soul was already commended to God, and he had died. Mariamne wept and received the body of her brother, having witnessed his suffering, embracing him, and rejoiced that Philip had been accounted worthy to suffer for Christ. The Holy Apostle Philip died a Martyr in A.D. 71.

St. Bartholomew Baptized all those who believed in Christ, and appointed and Ordained Stachys as their Bishop. St. Philip was buried with honor. Where Philip's blood had been shed, in three days a grapevine grew. St. Bartholomew and Mariamne stayed in Hierapolis a short time, and then departed to the city of Albanus in Greater Armenia, where St. Bartholomew was crucified. St. Mariamne journeyed to Lycaonia, and converted many there to the Faith, and she reposed in peace there. In 560 the Apostle Philip's relics were transferred to Rome, and now rest in Rome in the Church of the Twelve Apostles. An arm of the Apostle Philip was kept in Constantinople in the Church of the Theotokos Pammacaristos. In 1167 this relic was given by the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Comnenus to his niece Maria for her marriage to Amaury I, crusader king of Jerusalem. In 1204 this arm relic was transferred to Florence, Italy.

The Byzantines celebrate his Feast day on November 14^th, and that is the time they begin their Advent Fast. In the Celtic Rite, the Advent Fast begins on November 13^th, and refers to the Feast day of St. Martin on November 11^th, ending the three days of that festival. The dates of April 22^nd and May 1^st are both of great antiquity as celebrations of St. Philip.
 

Epistle: Romans 5:1-9 (General Lections for Apostles)

Psalm for St. Philip: Gradual Canticle, 126.

Unless the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it. Unless the Lord keep the city, he watcheth in vain that keepeth it. It is vain for you to rise before light: rise ye after you have sitten, you that eat the bread of sorrow. When He shall give sleep to His beloved: behold, the inheritance of the Lord are children: the reward, the fruit of the womb. As arrows in the hand of the mighty: so the children of them that have been shaken. Blessed is the man that hath filled the desire with them: he shall not be confounded when he shall speak to his enemies in the gate.
 

Gospel: St. Matthew 4:18-20; John 21:15-19 or Luke 6:6-19 (General Lections for Apostles)

23 Apr /6 May The light of Bishop Ibar who has smote heresy's head:
a splendid flame over a sparkling wave: in Becc-eriu he departed.

Of Bishop Ibar, i.e. Iubar son of Lugna, son of Maccu Cuirc, son of Corp, son of Cairbre, son of Niall, son of Eochaid, after which the Hui Echach of Ulster, son of Sen, son of Rosen, son of Tren, son of Rogen, son of Airnel, son of Maine the Great, son of Fidach Forga, son of Feradach, son of Ailill Erann, son of Fiacha, son of Oengus Turbech T.

This is Bishop Ibar that had the conflict with Patrick, and 'tis he that left the roads full and the store-rooms empty in Armagh. So Patrick is angered with him and said: "Thou shall not be in Eriu," says Patrick. "Eriu shall be the name of the place in which I am wont to be," says Bishop Ibar, unde Becc-Erin 'little Ireland' is named, i.e. an island which is in Hui Cennselaig out in the sea. (See June 12^th, about a conflict which caused Ibar's monks to be taken from him.) [Beg Eri, "Little Ireland," is a little island in Wexford harbor.]

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Catulus; Saturninus; Felicis; Theonus; Chorus; Teodorus; Victorus; Theona; Maria; Venustus; Victorus; Solutus; Plenus; Silvus; Naborus; Corus; Iuberius; Catulinus; Felicis; Saturninus; Salunus; Faustinus; Victorus; Vitalis; Ranastinus; Agripinus; Iohannis; Zefanus. Also: Saint Ibari Bishop; Macc Oge and Soairlech in the Eidnen; Miannach and Deitche and Rian in Fothirbe Liathain.

Note from TSI, Ibar was one of the four pre-Patrician Irish Bishops: Ailbe, Ibar, Declan, and Ciaran. Peace was made between St. Ibar and St. Patrick when the earlier Saint agreed to call his little island "Ireland." An image of Bishop Ibar remained on that island, and was venerated continuously. That image survived attempts to burn it in the 17^th century. Ibar was also called Iberian by some.
 

24 Apr /7 May The triumph of the three innocent children in the furnace, - a famous group:
the passion of George, a sun of victories, with thirty great thousands.

[The Feast of the Three Youths: Ananias, Azarias, Mishael in Latin.]

The triumph of the three innocent children, i.e. Sedrac, Misac, Abdinago (are) their names with the Chaldees; Ananias, Acareas, Misael their names with the Hebrews: And 30,729. The trio of them was put by Nebuchadnezzar (Nabdocnotsar) into a fiery furnace ablaze, but God preserved them, so that the fire did them no hurt. [Note: the "Song of the Three Youths" is sung at the "Close of Pascha," that is, one week after Pascha, and also at Matins each day. Their story is in the Book of Daniel. The Passion of St. George is an important Feast on Byzantine and Roman calendars.]

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: the Passion of George with thirty one thousand, two hundred seventy nine; Fortunatus; Donatus; Felicis; Secundus; Corona; Victoris; Rofina; Naboria; Cariona; Maria and the three youths in the furnace of fire Sedrac; Misac; Abdinago; Militus; Saturninus; Silvanus; Liberalis; Meturus; Tominus; Baradius; Donatus; Florianus; Fortunus; Fuscus; Germanus; Donatus; Florius; Valerius; Felicis; Ursus; Clionus; Silvus; Vitalis and twenty eight others; Zoticus; Secundus; Saturninus; Laurus; Barachus; Silutanus; Liberalis; Meturius; Tommodus; Firmanus; Zefanus; Johannis; Mammetis; Tonicisus; Barthocus and twenty two others. Also: Ecbrichti the Saxon; Uldbrithi. Also: Coemnat of Cul Cichmaige; Coip daughter of Caernan and Sechtan and Sechtmisid; Fuilen of Druim Fota; the sons of Coelbad; Diarmait Bishop; Lugaid Priest; the sons of Baetan; Finceille virgin; Eicnech son of Con Catrach.
 

25 Apr /8 May Noble Mark in Egypt who deserves no word of neglect;
a rod of gold, a vast ingot, the great Bishop Mac-caille.

Mark the Evangelist: he suffered in Alexandria.

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Marcus Evangelista; Hermoginis; Evodus; Memfus; Geurgius; Nobilis; Calista; Marcia; Fortunatus; Rusticus and two others. Also: the son of Caille Bishop; Digde virgo; Dechonen of Cluain Arathair; Lugna of Lettir; the daughters of Cuanan; Matoc ailithir (the pilgrim); Ailither of Cluain Geise. Byzantine date of celebration: April 25^th (one of the few that is the same as the Celtic Rite).

The History of St. Mark the Evangelist

St. Mark was born of the priestly cast of the Jews, of the tribe of Levi. He was called John (Johanan), but his Latin name Mark is better known. He took the name Mark when he before he departed to foreign lands with St. Peter, for the preaching of the Gospel in Rome. According to tradition and the patristic writers, St. Mark was one of the Seventy Apostles, and was himself an eye-witness of many of the events he records in his Gospel.

St. Mark was the youth in the Garden of Gethsemane who followed after the Lord, was wrapped in a linen sheet, and escaped naked when the soldiers tried to grab him (Mark 14:51-52). Tradition says that his simple wrap indicates that he probably went out of the house that was in the garden when he heard the multitude arrive in the middle of the night. Ancient tradition states that the Garden of Gethsemane belonged to the family of St. Mark.

In the Book of Acts 12:1-12, it states that the mother of St. Mark was named Mary, and she owned a house in Jerusalem where St. Peter hid after his miraculous escape from prison with the help of the angel. During the persecution of Christians after the Lord's Ascension into heaven, this house was a haven for some of the Apostles and other Christians, and also a place of worship. St. Mark heard many things about Jesus there, and also prayed with them. He became a close follower of the Apostle Peter, who acted as his spiritual father. In I Peter 5:13 St. Peter calls St. Mark his son. St. Mark was the nephew of the Apostle Barnabas, another one of the Seventy, also a Levite although born on the island of Cyprus. St. Barnabas also introduced St. Mark to St. Paul when he had just been converted and had newly arrived in Jerusalem. St. Mark was the closest co-worker of both Ss. Peter and Paul, and followed their directions.

In about 44-45 A.D., the Jerusalem Christians had a terrible persecution which led to famine among them. Because of the increase in their numbers in Jerusalem, the malice of those who wished to suppress them increased, and they broke into their homes and took their possessions including food stores. (This sort of disturbance plagues the city of Jerusalem when jealous factions think they can steal property, and for some reason, such activity has occurred in modern times, with people claiming houses that were clearly owned by others.) Hearing about the condition of the Christians in Zion, the faithful in the city of Antioch raised a great collection, and sent it by St. Paul and Barnabas who were then in Antioch. They brought this money to Jerusalem, and when they returned to Antioch, they took St. Mark with them. This was the first missionary journey of St. Paul, and St. Mark became the assistant of St. Paul and St. Barnabas in preaching the Word of God.

After Antioch, they left for Seleucia on the sea, and then traveled by ship to Cyprus, and traveled the island from east to west, from Salamis to Paphos. In Paphos, the Proconsul Sergius brought Ss. Barnabas and Paul to him to hear the Word of God. A sorcerer named Elymas with a surname Bar-jesus (Joshua), who was Jewish, used tricks and delusions to try to persuade the proconsul from belief in Christ. St. Mark watched as St. Paul, only using his word, struck the sorcerer blind, but in the city of Perga, Mark left the Apostles Paul and Barnabas and returned to Jerusalem to his family home. (Some wonder why he did not stay with the Apostle Paul, but he may have wanted to return home for a visit, as the Apostles did from time to time.)

When he arrived in Jerusalem, St. Mark became close to St. Peter, and left with him when he went on his journey to Rome (see the history of the Apostle Peter). There were already Christians in Rome at that time. At Pentecost in Jerusalem (Acts 2:10-41), some who heard St. Peter's sermon came from Rome. Also, anybody who had governmental or other business had to travel to Rome, and this included Christians who spread their faith wherever they went. St. Peter increased the number of Christians in Rome by preaching and miracles, both those who were Jewish and also gentiles.

The Christians in Rome demanded something in writing from St. Peter so they could read about the Lord Jesus Christ whenever they met. The went to St. Mark and asked him to write all the words that St. Peter had spoken to them about the Lord. St. Mark agreed, and wrote the Gospel of St. Mark. The Apostle Peter approved the Gospel of St. Mark to be read in churches, and all accepted it as divinely inspired. (See the note in the history of St. Matthew about the four Gospels. The Gospel of St. Mark was the second Gospel written, about ten years after the Ascension of the Lord. The Gospel of St. Matthew was written about eight years after the Ascension, the Gospel of St. Luke was written fifteen years after the Ascension and the Gospel of St. John was written thirty two years after the Ascension. Some modern academics say that the Gospel of St. Mark was the first Gospel written because they look at the age of the Greek copy of the Gospel of St. Matthew, not the Hebrew or Aramaic original. Why would St. Bartholomew bring a copy of the Gospel of St. Matthew in Hebrew with him to India, if a Gospel in Greek were available? This is simple: when St. Bartholomew left, the Gospel of St. Matthew was available. Some wonder why the Gospel of St. Matthew seems more complete than the Gospel of St. Mark, and why it is similar in some ways. St. Mark is careful to write down from his memory what St. Peter told him, so he did not write about the events concerning the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, as St. Matthew and St. Luke did. In many ways the Gospels of Ss. Matthew, Mark, and Luke agree, because all stayed together for a time in Jerusalem after the Ascension, but as Blessed Theophylact says in his introduction to the Gospel of St. Matthew, they do not agree on all details; what one leaves out the other includes.

In the Celtic Rite, all four Gospels are extensively used in the Lectionary. Some other Lectionaries do not include much of the Gospel of St. Mark, because those who prepared the Lectionaries felt St. Mark repeats what the others say, but in the Celtic Rite we see that this Gospel adds another dimension to the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ. At the Celtic Rite Opening of the Ears, the instructions to Catechumens before the Offering of the Lord in the Divine Liturgy of Palm Sunday, the four Gospels are explained in terms of the four Kerubs from Ezekiel: "Hear the Gospel according to Mark: '1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. 2 As it is written in Isaias the prophet: Behold I send my angel before thy face, who shall prepare the way before thee. 3 A voice of one crying in the desert: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.' Mark the Evangelist, bearing the figure of a Lion for the wilderness, begins saying 'a voice crying in the wilderness prepare ye the way of the Lord'. Further it is because the unconquerable One rules. We find examples of the many aspects of this Lion which are found in the saying: Judah my son is a lion's whelp: of my seed, lying thou dost sleep like a lion as just like a lion cub, who will awaken Him?" The publishers of the current edition of the Explanation of Blessed Theophylact of the Holy Gospel According to St. Mark (Chrysostom Press, P.O. Box 536 House Springs, Mo, 63051) have included an introduction translated from an anonymous Russian by Isaac Lambertson. A quote from this shows that it is appropriate to the Lion in the wilderness, "God has given us His word, not for us merely to acquaint ourselves with divine teaching out of curiosity, and not that, having acquired an understanding of the sublime truths of that teaching, we may take pride in them as our personal treasure. This would be a misuse of the divine gift and a sin which is offensive to God. God has given us the sacred Scriptures that we may employ them for the salvation of our souls, unto the glory of His Name. God reveals the knowledge of the truths of salvation only to the humble, while He hides them from the proud,...(Matthew 11:25, I Peter 5:5)"

After Rome, the Apostle Peter told St. Mark to go to a city at the northern end of the Adriatic Sea called Aquilea to preach. It was a wealthy city, called by some a second Rome. St. Mark established a church there, and also preached in neighboring towns. After that St. Peter told St. Mark to go to Egypt in the ninth year of the reign of the emperor Claudius (A.D. 49), according to the historian Eutychius, Patriarch of Alexandria. There was a large Jewish colony in mostly pagan Egypt at that time, which had been there since the time of Alexander the Great and his general Ptolemy Lages. (This Jewish community was part of the reason the translation into Greek of the Old Testament had taken place, because one of the Ptolemaic kings, Ptolemy Philadelphus, felt that the library of Alexandria should include a history of the Jewish people who lived there. The Septuigint, or book of the Seventy, was translated by seventy Hebrew scholars from Jerusalem in separate rooms, and agreed in every word when it was complete. See February 2^nd concerning St. Symeon.) The people in Egypt also remembered that when the holy family of St. Joseph, the Birthgiver of God who is the ever-virgin Mary, the young St. James the Righteous, and the holy Lord Jesus Christ as an infant traveled through the towns of Egypt the idols fell from a temple in one of the towns they stayed in. Some people from the land of Egypt witnessed the first sermon of the Apostles at Pentecost, as Scripture states (Acts 2:9-11), "Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, Egypt, and the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews also, and proselytes, Cretes, and Arabians: we have heard them speak in our own tongues the wonderful works of God." St. Mark was the first of the Apostles to preach in Egypt, announcing to the people that they were free of the devil, and immediately a multitude accepted the Christian faith.

First St. Mark went to the city of Pentapolis in Cyrene (a northern part of Libya), and preached there, establishing a Church. Then the Holy Spirit told him to go to Alexandria, the principal city in Egypt, and he sailed there. He reached Alexandria on the second day of sailing, and went to the city gates at the area of the city called Medion. At the city's gates his sandal split in two, which he felt was a favorable sign. He saw a cobbler nearby, and asked the cobbler to fix his shoe. The cobbler accidently ran his awl through his hand, and cried out the Name of God. St. Mark spit on the ground and made clay, and putting it on the cobbler's hand, said, "In the Name of Jesus Christ Who liveth forever, be thou whole!" And the wound, that had been gushing blood, completely sealed and the hand of the cobbler was healed. The cobbler told St. Mark, "I beseech thee, O man of God: come thou to my home and abide with me, thy servant, if even for a day, that thou mayest share my meal; for thou hast now shown me mercy." The Apostle told him, "May the Lord bestow upon thee the Bread of life, the Bread of heaven!" Then the tradesman took his hand and led the Apostle Mark to his home. When they entered in, St. Mark said, "May the blessing of the Lord be upon this place! O brethren, let us pray to God!" After they prayed and sat down to the table, the cobbler asked, "Father, who art thou? And from where does the power come that is in thy speech?" Saint Mark told him that he is the servant of the Lord Jesus Christ Who is the Son of God. When the cobbler said he would like to see this Son of God, St. Mark told him, "I will show Him to thee!" Then St. Mark told him the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and also the prophecy in the Old Testament concerning our Lord. The man said, "I have never heard of the Scripture thou explainest to me. I have only heard of the Iliad, the Odyssey and what they teach Egyptian youths." St. Mark told him that the wisdom of this world is foolish in the eyes of God (I Corinthians 1:18-22). The cobbler believed with all his heart, and accepted holy Baptism with his whole household and a multitude of people in that area. At Baptism the cobbler was named Ananias. Every day the numbers of Christians in Medion increased.

The rulers of the city of Medion heard that the foreigner was among them blaspheming their gods and hindering the sacrifices, and they sought to murder. St. Mark heard about this, and Consecrated Ananias a Bishop, Ordained three Priests: Malchus, Sabinus, and Cedronus, seven Deacons and eleven lesser clergy for the ministry of the Church. (St. Mark was the first Bishop before Ananias.) Then St. Mark fled back to Pentapolis in Cyrene, spending two years there, Consecrating Bishops and Ordaining Priests and other clergy for the surrounding regions and cities. When he returned to Alexandria, he found the Christians there had increased in number, and a church had been built near the sea at a place called Bukulus. St. Mark knelt down and gave glory to God when he saw the church. He then stayed in Alexandria for a long time. After the Christians had grown to a multitude, the Christians openly spoke out concerning the idols of the Greeks. The pagan rulers heard that St. Mark was again in the city, healing the sick, making the deaf to hear, restoring sight to the blind, and they sought again to kill St. Mark, but they could not find him.

After establishing the Church well in Alexandria, St. Mark left. It is not known whether he was present at the Council of the Apostles (A.D. 50 or 51). When the Apostles Paul and Barnabas were in Antioch just before beginning his second missionary journey, St. Mark met them again, and he and his uncle went to his uncle's native land, to Cypress (Acts 15:36-40). St. Mark stayed with St. Barnabas for awhile to preach, and then returned to Egypt. After spending more time in Egypt, St. Mark again returned to St. Peter, and brought St. Peter to Egypt with him to establish more churches there. They also went to Babylon to establish a Church, which might mean a city named Babylon near Alexandria, or it could be the city on the Euphrates, or sometimes is used as a reference for Rome. St. Peter wrote the first general Epistle to the Christians of Asia Minor from Babylon (I Peter 5:13). St. Mark then stayed in Egypt until the eighth year of the reign of the emperor Nero (A.D. 62).

St. Mark also went to Rome to help St. Paul, while St. Paul was in chains (A.D. 61 to 63), helping to preach the Gospel for St. Paul. The Epistle to the Colossians 4:9-14, and the Epistle to Philemon a citizen of Colossa 1:23-24 tells how St. Mark and others helped him then, including Mark, Aristarchus, Jesus that is called Justus, Epaphras, Demas, and Luke. (St. Paul was sending Tychicus and Onesimus to them in Colossa.) St. Mark also was instructed by the Apostle Paul to go to the Colossians to bring back the faithful from false teachers who were leading them astray. (Colossians 4:10, 2:8-18). However, it is not certain where St. Mark spent the next few years. St. Mark was in Ephesus before the Martyrdom of the Apostle Paul (A.D. 67). Ephesus was the homeland of the Bishop Timothy, and also was a place where several Apostles, including the Apostle John, preached. St. Paul wrote to Timothy in Ephesus to come to Rome and bring St. Mark, "for he is profitable to me for the ministry." (II Timothy 4:11). St. Mark then saw the Martyrdom of both Ss. Peter and Paul in Rome who were Martyred at the same time. St. Paul was beheaded because he was a citizen of Rome, but St. Peter was crucified.

After the Martyrdom of his teachers, St. Mark went to Egypt again. The library at Alexandria was the greatest in the world, and was mostly the source of pagan scholarship. St. Mark started a catechetical school to counteract this scholarship. This school later produced several Fathers of the Church, such as Pantenus, Clement, Dionysius of Alexandria, Gregory the Wonderworker (Thaumaturgis) see November 17^th, and others who were known for their great writings. It is the legacy of this school which brought the wisdom of the Christian Church through the writings of the Fathers to us. (Unfortunately, there is not enough space in this calendar to include all of the writings of all the Saints, which began with the teachings of the holy Apostles. Of those which exist today in Latin and Greek, collected by Migne, the books in small print fill the space of perhaps twenty full sets of encyclopaedias, literally a wall of books.) Later heresies such as Arianism and Monophysitism which plagued Alexandria must not be blamed on these blameless early Christians, and still, the worst of the heresies did not ensnare all of the Alexandrians as much as they did some Christians in other lands that the Irish missionaries had to bring back to the Orthodox faith. We must remember that scholarship does not prevent future heresy, and we must always be on guard. St. Mark also wrote down the Divine Liturgy as used by the Apostles for the Church in Alexandria, and that Liturgy is used in the Church of Alexandria.

St. Mark also went to the other cities of Egypt, and also interior lands in Africa, Libya, Cyrenaica and Pentapolis. Pagan temples collapsed, idols toppled and were shattered, and the people seeing miracles of healing of sick, cleansing of lepers, and many other miracles came to the truth and were enlightened, Baptized in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Even the pagans and Jews praised the virtue of the Egyptian Christians, and Egypt became a center of asceticism known throughout the Christian world. The Irish monks later modeled themselves after the monks at the hermitages of Scetis in Egypt, and it is said the "Scotus" or northern Celts sang according to the tones set by St. Mark, so they must have been taught directly by some monks of Egypt. (Those who seek historically accurate music for the early Celtic Rite may do research into the tones set by the early Church in Egypt or Ethiopia, because these are likely the tones sung by the Irish before other influences came into Ireland and Scotland. Other influences also came into the Middle East because of invasions of peoples from the far East, but some of the fragments of music of the ancient Irish Church match some portions of church music of the Egyptians and Ethiopians, who have mainly preserved their music from the ancient Church.)

Note that Scetis, thought to be the first monastic community of Christians, was in Egypt. (See St. John Cassian, November 25^th, who visited Scetis and wrote about the teachings of the Anchorites.)

Eusebius Bishop of Caesaria in Palestine, and Nicephorus Xanthopoulos, both church historians, kept the writings of Philo, a Jewish philosopher, who said, "They [the Christians] have set aside all care for transitory riches and do not concern themselves over their possessions, considering nothing on earth their own or dear to them. Some of them, forsaking all concern for the things of this life, depart from the cities and make their abode in solitary places and oases, avoiding the company of men who do not share their view of life, so as not to be caused by them to stumble in virtue. They hold abstinence and the mortification of the flesh to be the sole basis upon which a good life may be founded. None of them eats or drinks before the onset of the evening, and certain of them eat only every fourth day. Others, skilled in the interpretation and understanding of the divine Scriptures, being full of thirst for knowledge and nurturing themselves on the spiritual food of the knowledge of God, spend their time in the study of the Scriptures and often neglect to eat until the sixth day. None of them ever drinks wine, and they all eschew the eating of meat, adding only salt and hyssop [an herb that tastes like thyme] to their diet of bread and water. Among them there live women who have trained themselves in the life of virtue and have become used to it to such an extent that they remain virgins until their old age. And they preserve their virginity not because they are compelled to do so, but of their free volition, inspired by zeal and love for wisdom, which leads them to repudiate carnal pleasures and to strive to acquire not mortal, but immortal offspring, such as the soul which loves and yearns for God is alone able to beget. The sacred Scriptures are explained by them allegorically, by delving into their inner and hidden sense and mysteries; for the Scriptures, in their opinion, are like a living entity: the expression of their words constitute their visible body, and the sense and mysteries which underlie this expression constitute their invisible soul. They rise up early to glorify and pray to God, to chant and to listen to the word of God, the men and women separate from each other. Some of them to not break their fast for a period of weeks. They hold the seventh day in great veneration. Preparing themselves for it and for their other feast days, they lie down to rest on the bare ground. Their divine services are performed for them by Priests and Deacons, over whom a Bishop exercises oversight." Some of the writings of the Desert Fathers, such as St. John Climacus (of the Ladder), and the Sayings of the Desert Fathers compiled by Benedicta Ward, are worthy to read. Their harsh asceticism may be contrasted with their humor in a rather "Irish" style, including the worldly Bishop who asks a famous monk for a word, and the monk replies, "If you hear that I am at a place, do not go there."

The suffering and death of the holy Apostle and Evangelist Mark in Alexandria are recorded by Symeon Metaphrastes who was a church historian from the 9^th century. The year when St. Mark was Martyred, Pascha was April 24^th, which coincided with a false deity Serapis. St. Mark celebrated the Divine Liturgy of Pascha, and a pagan mob rushed St. Mark's church and attacked it, binding St. Mark in thongs. They shouted as they dragged him through the streets, "Let us lead this bullock to the trough!" St. Mark bore this, and prayed, "I thank Thee, O Lord Jesus Christ, that Thou hast counted me worthy to endure these sufferings in Thy Name." The ground had many sharp stones, so the body of St. Mark was torn, and blood from the wounds stained the path. Then they threw St. Mark into prison, and met together to decide how he should be killed. At midnight the angel of the Lord appeared to the Apostle and strengthened him for his Martyrdom, and also the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to St. Mark and comforted him. Again in the morning, the mob dragged St. Mark through the streets of the city of Alexandria, and due to the great wounds and loss of blood, he expired, first saying, "Into Thy hands, O Lord, do I surrender my spirit!" After they found that he was dead, the pagans decided to burn the body of St. Mark. When they lit the fire, darkness came with a great clap of thunder and the earth quaked, and rain and hail extinguished the fire. The storm scattered the crowd of the impious pagans. The Christians took the body of the holy St. Mark, and put it in a stone tomb at a place where they prayed, but not in a church building.

In 310 A.D., a church was built over the tomb of St. Mark. Five hundred years later, the heresy of Monophysitism, believing that Christ has only one nature and did not actually suffer for us, and also the religion of the Moslems had weakened the Orthodox Church at Alexandria; then in 828 A.D. it was decided that the relics of St. Mark should be moved. The relics were brought to Venice, which is near the city of Aquilea in the north Adriatic where St. Mark had preached the Gospel. There his relics remain in the great Church dedicated to St. Mark: San Marcos. The church of St. Mark in Venice also preserves an ancient manuscript of the Gospel of St. Mark on Egyptian papyrus, which tradition says was written by the Evangelist himself.

(There may be another date of celebration of St. Mark the Evangelist on July 10^th, or it may be a date on which a host of his followers were Martyred. That is a date on which twelve thousand Martyrs died for the faith.)
 

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28 Apr /11 May Christopher with Cronan of Ross Cree with starkness;
on their Feast without vain glory many soldiers went to Martyrdom.

Noah leaves the Arc.

Christopher, i.e. a doghead. Pious was he (and he) suffered under Decius.
He was a cleric with purity, he was the devout Christian;
before the call without reproach over sea his proper name was Christopher,

i.e. a doghead: (connchen) he suffered under the persecutor Decius. Reprobus was his name before his conversion. Of Christopher with his 10,404. Whoever fasts on his feast will find rest with the Lord.

[Note: the name "St. Christopher" was the name given to "Reprobus" which means "dog-faced" because he was ugly. St. Christopher also came from Cana, so the term "dog-faced" may be related to a Latin pun on the term for dog - canus. See May 10^th - Bennchor (Bangor), which has a verse about Abbots who were "sharp nosed dogs." They may also have had a liking for the Greek philosopher Diogenes, who called himself a "cynic" - literally, a dog. Diogenes preached honesty and humility as a Greek philosopher, before the Christian era. The modern term "cynic" has little to do with a man who could say to Alexander the Great, "get out of my light." St. Christopher was a soldier Saint. It is said that Christ appeared to St. Christopher as a little child that St. Christopher carried across a river. Christ was very heavy, as He carries the burden of the whole world. The icon depicting this is often carried by those on a journey. He was Martyred with thousands of other Christians. See note about St. Justin, August 4^th. An Irish litany lists groups of Irish Bishops. The Bishops were so numerous that most of the Christian names are listed but the name "Christopher," but there appears instead of "seven holy Bishops N." suddenly "seven holy dog-head Bishops," probably again a reference to St. Christopher, who was such a favorite among the Irish that there are many Irish with that name.]

Cronan, i.e. Cronan son of Aele [?] was he, i.e. great-grandson of Oela (?) who ws first called Mochua.

Of Roscrea, i.e. in the Eili of Munster.

[Noah leaves the ark today. This would have been an important event to Christians, because it reminds them of the first salvation from the waters of death, God's covenant, and that the prayers of the 150 Psalms remember the 150 days that the water covered the earth entirely, Genesis 7:24 and Genesis 8:3. Genesis 8:4, "And the ark rested in the seventh month, the seven and twentieth day of the month, upon the mountains of Armenia." This also reminds us that the Psalms represent a continuous vigil of prayer to the Lord, that all are supposed to keep, I Thessalonians chapter 5, especially verse 17: "Pray without ceasing."]

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Noah leaves the Ark. Cristifori with one thousand four hundred four. All who fast on his day shall rest in the Lord. Victorinus; Eufrodisius; Eusebius; Tabillus; Victoris; Pilippus; Carus; Pollionis and one hundred eighty two others; Agapus; Malina; Nicia; Victorina and fifty two others; Lictoris and seventy others; Lucianus and eighty others; Eunuchius; Augustinus Priest; Donatus; Toma; Erasmus; Mavilius; Julianus; Celsius; Evenus. Also: Cronain of Ros Cre who was originally called Mochua. Suibni of the Scelec; Conchind of Cell Achid; Luchthigern maccu Tratho; Caurnan of Cluain Ech.

Cronan was a popular name; there are both men and women Saints with the name Cronan. TSI says about this Cronan of Roscrea that he was educated at Clonmacnoise, and was of the sept and territory of Ely O'Carroll. Cronan left his monastery in a place difficult to reach and moved close to a main road so that the poor could have access to him. The Book of Dimma was written in the 7^th century because of him: Cronan asked Dimma to transcribe the Gospels, but Dimma said he would only do it for one day from sunrise to sunset. Cronan told him to work, and Dimma continued without stopping for forty days and nights until he finished the 74 pages. At the end of the Gospel of St. Matthew, Dimma asks for "A prayer for Dimma, who wrote it for God, and a blessing." This book was enshrined by Tatheus O'Carroll in 1150 in a silver casket with brass and lapis lazuli. It disappeared when the monasteries were suppressed by the English, but it was hidden in a crevice in a mountain in Tipperary, and found by two boys in 1789. It is now in Trinity College, Dublin.
 

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30 Apr /13 May They end the train of April, for it is industriously that thou recountest,
Rónán the Gray of Ross Uanni: in Rome, the cross of Quirinus.

Ronan, i.e. Ronan of green Liathros, i.e. at Senbuaile in Conailli Murthemne he is. Or Ronan of Lethros from us, i.e. out of Ireland is he. Huanni is the name of the river. Lethrois is the name of the city.

Cross of Quirinus, i.e. a Pope.

From The Martyrology of Tallaght: Affrodisius; Quirinus; Papa and thirty others; Dorotha; Viatoris; Terentius; Martinus; Victorius; Claudius; Maiorica; Claudius; Silvanus; Orimentus; Onoragus; Dagarius and forty seven others; Lucinus; Saturninus; Clementis; Meturus. Also: Ciaran of Cluain Sasta; Failchon Bishop; Luit (or Luta) virgin of Druim Dairbrech; Ronain of Liathros; The Ega Family as others call them.

[Oengus' Glossator's verses:]

January's Saints, February's Saints, the Saints of March, the Saints of April,

may they save me manifestly from every terrible temptation!
Deaconess Elizabeth, Cele De

On April 8, 2002 shots were fired and grenades thrown in the compound of the Church of the Nativity of Christ in Bethlehem.  Palestinian and Israeli gunmen accused one anothers' side of beginning the fight. Israeli grenades started a fire in one of the churches in the compound. Palestinian police who attempted to put out the fire were shot by Israeli military.

This is the result of a standoff that began when Palestinian gunmen fled to the church seeking a hiding place from the Israeli military which had begun a seige of Bethlehem.

This has presented the world with a very appropriate symbol of Christianity being destroyed by the conflict of Jews and Moslems. Palestinian Christians lost their homes when Israelis colonized their communities.   Palestinian Moslems have persecuted Palestinian Christians and have forcibly transferred Church property from Christian monks to their supporters. The Christian population of the region has dropped significantly from 10% to 7% between 1917 and 1947.  It dropped to 2% between 1947 and 2000.  Clearly, Palestinian Christians do not feel that either side supports them in their ancestral homeland.

The current predicament at the Church of the Nativity is of primary benefit to those who want Christians to leave the Holy Land.   To Moslem militants, the situation is an opportunity to have the Israelis destroy a church.  To Zionist Militants, it is an excuse to destroy a church.

The question should be asked: Why the Church of the Nativity?  This too is symbolic, because the first fundamental religious characteristic that  separates us from the Jews and Moslems is their denial that Jesus Christ is God the Son Incarnate.

Christians can have nothing to do with either side of this conflict.  There is no religious or moral ground.  Quite the contrary since those who direct both sides of this conflict only continue to indicate that they have no desire to resolve it.  In the meantime, Christians suffer, our Holiest places are desecrated.   It is clear that Christians are the only side that is definitely losing this war since although we are not involved in terrorist acts, every time the two other sides have the opportunity, they act perversly together to do the maximum damage to us.  The deliberate attacks made upon us show that neither side is worthy of trust or support for they both side with Antichrist.  They may be enemies of each other, but the results of their actions serve his interests.

As Christians we have nothing to do with Antichrist. We must pray to God and impress upon Zionist and radical Islamic groups and the politicians who provide support for  those sides in the Holy Land:  they too are responsible for killing our people.

May God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit look down upon His people living under persecution for their witness for Christ in the Holy Land.  May He comfort and sustain them.  May He turn the hearts of their enemies  to hearts of flesh and convert them to the only saving Faith, that of the Cross.

I tend to belong to historical societies and nature clubs.   Over the years I have been an amateur astronomer,  tropical fish breeder, a mediocre gardener, and servant to a dog and twelve cats (not at the same time).  My thoughts often turn to God's Creation and the lesser creatures with which we share it.

What would happen if on the day of Judgment, the Master required an accounting of the resources entrusted to humanity?  This could go very badly for us since it is obvious that many species have gone extinct in just the last century.

Truly inventive individuals might point out that there is no responsibility since we cannot be responsible for something for which we did not have an inventory.   Then we would be asked whether we ever read "And the Lord God having formed out of the ground all the beasts of the earth, and all the fowls of the air, brought them to Adam to see what he would call them: for whatsoever Adam called any living creature the same is its name. And Adam called all the beasts by their names, and all the fowls of the air, and all the cattle of the field: but for Adam there was not found a helper like himself." [Genesis 2:19,20].  Some may say that this does not count since the Flood destroyed everything except what Noah took in the Ark.     However God told Noah,  "And of every living creature of all flesh, thou shalt bring two of a sort into the ark, that they may live with thee: of the male sex, and the female. Of fowls according to their kind, and of beasts in their kind, and of every thing that creepeth on the earth according to its kind: two of every sort shall go in with thee, that they may live. Thou shalt take unto thee of all food that may be eaten, and thou shalt lay it up with thee: and it shall be food for thee and them."   "And Noe did all things which God commanded him."  [Genesis 6:19-22]   God had humanity count all of the animals twice.One might conclude that He has a special concern for these animals.

Through Adam all of us were commanded to be stewards for the world.  Stewards will be asked for an accounting by the One who set things into their care.  As individuals we are only responsible for our own mistakes and we do not share in the guilt of what was lost before our time.  We can also repent of actions that caused more to be lost.  However, if we do not, we risk God's anger over his lost creatures.

There is more to this issue than animals.    Through Man came death into the world.  Through Christ came the overthrowing of death.  Do we side with Christ and life, or do we affirm death? Ignoring what some may call my "tree hugger" language, this is the real issue.  Humanity's tendency to affirm death is the source of most of the evil of our time. We have ignored God's command to preserve nature.  It was an easy slide from disregard  for God's command in this matter to a further affirmation of death in a disregard for human life.

God does not make rules solely for His pleasure but out of love for us.  He knows that we have to be preserved from killing one another, so He tried to instill a respect for all life into us.  We failed to obey him in this and our unborn are paying for it now.   If we participate in maintaining a culture of callousness toward any life, we will pay for it on the day of Judgment.

(Indented days are days during Lent or fast days.)

Mar 3  V Sunday after the Magnification of Peter  [P] (Sunday I, Readings of the 25 Sunday after Pentecost)
Feb 23/Mar 8-- Apostle Matthias [W]

Mar  10  Sexagesima [P]

Mar 17  Quinquagesima [P]

Mar 24 Lent I [P] Liturgy followed by the Service of the Sunday of Orthodoxy (the Synodicon)
Mar 17/30Saint Patrick of Ireland [W]

Mar 31 Lent II [P]
April 4/17 Ambrose of Milan [W]
Mar 22/Apr 5  Departure of the Apostle Brendan  with Sixty disciples to the New World [W]

Mar 25/Apr 7 Annunciation (fixed calendar commemoration of the Crucifixion &offering of Isaac by Abraham) [W]  (Comm. Lent III)

April 14 Mid Lent (IV) [P]
April 4/17 Ambrose of Milan [W]

Apr 21 Lent V [P]

Apr 28 Lent VI (Palm Sunday and the "Opening of the Ears") [W]
May 2 THE INSTITUTION OF THE EUCHARIST, THE FOOT WASHING, BEGINNING OF THE
PASSION GOSPELS [W](At the Metropolitan's Liturgy: Chrism is blessed)
May  3 THE PASSION AND CRUCIFIXION OF THE LORD ("Holy and Great Friday") [P]
May  4 HOLY SATURDAY [P]

April 25/May 8 Mark the Evangelist [W]