St Anianus of Alexandria (Died c 86) 2nd Bishop of Alexandria, after St Mark and succeeding him. Consecrated by St Mark and disciple of St Mark. He was Ordained by Saint Mark and was also the first convert Mark won for Christ in the region, in c 48. As St Mark was entering Rakotis, a suburb of Alexandria, the strap of his sandal broke. He found a cobbler, St Anianus, to repair it. While he was working on the sandal, the awl slipped in Anianus’ hand, piercing it. Anianus cried ‘“Heis ho Theos” (“God is one”) in response to the pain. Mark took the opportunity to preach the Gospel of Christ to him, at the same time. https://anastpaul.com/2021/04/25/saint-of-the-day-25-april-st-anianus-of-alexandria-died-c-86-sucessor-and-disciple-of-st-mark-the-evangelist/
St Callista of Syracuse St Clarentius of Vienne St Erminus of Lobbes (Died 737) Bishop and Confessor St Evodius of Syracuse Saint Franca Visalta O.Cist. (1170-1218) Virgin Abbess St Heribaldus of Auxerre St Hermogenes of Syracuse St Kebius St Macaille St Macedonius St Mario Borzaga St Pasicrate of Mesia St Phaebadius of Agen St Philo of Antioch St Robert of Syracuse Bl Robert Anderton Stefano of Antioch St Valenzio of Mesia Bl William Marsden
St Madron of Cornwall St Maildulf of Malmesbury St Maw
St Paul of Noviodunum Bl Peter Lieou St Rasso of Grafrath St Restituta of Carthage St Silaus of Lucca St Solochanus of Chalcedon St Thethmar St Victor Roma
Martyrs of Alexandria – 3 Saints: Three Christians Martyred together; no details about them have survived except their names: Adrio, Basilla and Victor. 4th century Alexandria, Egypt.
Martyrs of Nyon: A group of Christians Martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian. We know little more than three of their names: Aquilinus, Heradius and Paul. 303 at Noyon, Switzerland.
St Anianus of Alexandria (Died c 86) 2nd Bishop of Alexandria, after St Mark and succeeding him. Consecrated by St Mark and disciple of St Mark. He was Ordained by Saint Mark and was also the first convert Mark won for Christ in the region, in c 48. As St Mark was entering Rakotis, a suburb of Alexandria, the strap of his sandal broke. He found a cobbler, St Anianus, to repair it. While he was working on the sandal, the awl slipped in Anianus’ hand, piercing it. Anianus cried ‘“Heis ho Theos” (“God is one”) in response to the pain. Mark took the opportunity to preach the Gospel of Christ to him, at the same time. https://anastpaul.com/2021/04/25/saint-of-the-day-25-april-st-anianus-of-alexandria-died-c-86-sucessor-and-disciple-of-st-mark-the-evangelist/
The Healing of Anianus by Cima da Conegliano
Blessed Boniface of Valperga (Died 1243) Bishop St Callista of Syracuse St Clarentius of Vienne St Ermin of Lobbes St Evodius of Syracuse St Heribaldus of Auxerre St Hermogenes of Syracuse St Kebius St Macaille St Macedonius St Mario Borzaga St Pasicrate of Mesia St Phaebadius of Agen St Philo of Antioch St Robert of Syracuse Bl Robert Anderton Stefano of Antioch St Valenzio of Mesia Bl William Marsden
Our Lady the Nea/New Church of the Virgin Mary or New Church of St Mary, Mother of God, built by the Emperor Justinian the Good, Jerusalem (530) – 25 May:
The Abbot Orsini wrote: “Our Lady the Nea or New, at Jerusalem, built by the Emperor Justinian, at Jerusalem, in the year 530.”
The Emperor Justinian the Good, is justifiably famous for many achievements and among them his construction of the magnificent Church of the Holy Wisdom, the Hagia Sophia, which is now a mosque in Istanbul. There was once another Church, though, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, that must have been just as splendid and an architecture wonder, as is, the Hagia Sophia but this magnificent structure was destroyed by an earthquake.
Recent archeological excavations have uncovered the foundations of the Church, but there were also one of Justinian’s court historians, a man named Procopius of Caesarea, who wrote in great detail about the construction of the Nea Church of Our Lady the New, Mother of God:
“These things the Emperor Justinian accomplished by human strength and skill but he was also assisted by his pious faith, which rewarded him with the honour he received and aided him in this cherished plan. The Church required throughout, columns whose appearance would not fall short of the beauty of the building and of such a size, that they could resist the weight of the load which would rest upon them. However, the site itself, being very far from the sea, inland and walled about on all sides by hills, that were quite steep, made it impossible for those who were preparing the foundations to bring columns from outside.
But when the impossibility of this task was causing the Emperor to become impatient, God revealed a natural supply of stone, perfectly suited to this purpose, in the nearby hills, one which had either lain therein concealment previously, or was created at that moment. Either explanation is credible to those who trace the cause of it to God, for while we, in estimating all things by the scale of man’s power, consider many things to be wholly impossible, for God nothing in the whole world can be difficult or impossible. So, the Church is supported on all sides by a number of huge columns from that place, which in colour resemble flames of fire, some standing below and some above and others in the stoas which surround the whole Church, except on the side facing the east.
Two of these columns stand before the door of the Church, exceptionally large and probably second to no column in the whole world. Here is added another colonnaded stoa, which is called the narthex, I suppose because it is not broad. Beyond this is a court with similar columns, standing on the four sides. From this there lead doors to the interior, which are so stately, that they proclaim to those walking outside what kind of sight they will meet within. Beyond there is a wonderful gateway and an arch, carried on two columns, which rises to a very great height. Then as one advances, there are two semi-circles which stand facing each other on one side of the road which leads to the Church, while facing each other on the other side, are two hospices, built by the Emperor Justinian. One of these is destined for the shelter of visiting strangers, while the other is an infirmary for poor persons suffering from diseases.”
Ruins of the Columns
Archaeologists working in the region near Jerusalem, believe they have found this miraculous quarry. They have found a stone pillar that was cracked and, therefore, not used, in a field of similar stones. Although the field cannot be linked to the Nea, it does seem to prove, that the stone for the Church was available for the project.
Recent archeology confirms that the Church was very large for the time, at over 100 meters long and 52 meters wide and probably had 5 aisles. St Antoninus of Piacenza, who visited the Basilica in about 570, wrote: “with its great congregations of Monks and its guest houses for men and women. In catering for travellers, they have a vast number of tables and more than three thousand beds for the sick!”
. In 1977, archeologists, led by Professor Nachman Avigad, found a large Greek inscription above a Cross that confirmed that construction of the Church was attributed to the generosity of Emperor Justinian. At that time, a corner of the Church, outside the Old City walls, was incorporated into the Beth Shalom Garden. In the following years, investigative and preservation work continued and in 1988 the restored vaults were incorporated into the Garden of Redemption.
Emperor Justinian the Good
St Pope Gregory VII (1015-1085) Confessor, Bishop of Rome 22 April 1073 to his death in 1085, Monk, Priest, Reformer, Administrator, Adviser. Pope Gregory “was probably the most energetic and determined man ever to occupy the See of Peter and was driven by an almost mystically exalted vision of the awesome responsibility and dignity of the papal office” (Eamonn Duffy, Saints and Sinners: A History of the Popes). Biography: https://anastpaul.com/2018/05/25/saint-of-the-day-25-may-st-pope-gregory-vii-c-1015-1085/
St Agustin Caloca St Aldhelm of Sherborne Bl Antonio Caixal Bl Bartolomeo Magi di Amghiari St Canio St Cristobal Magallanes Jara St Denis Ssebuggwawo St Dionysius of Milan St Dunchadh of Iona St Egilhard of Cornelimünster Bl Gerardo Mecatti St Gerbald St Injuriosus of Auvergne St Iosephus Chang Song-Jib Bl James Bertoni Bl Juan of Granada St Leo of Troyes St Madeleine Sophie Barat RSCJ (1779-1865) Virgin, Religious, Foundress of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. St Matthêô Nguyen Van Ðac Phuong St Maximus of Evreux Bl Nicholas Tsehelsky St Pasicrates of Dorostorum Bl Pedro Malasanch St Pherô Ðoàn Van Vân St Scholastica of Auvergne St Senzio of Bieda St Urban I, Pope St Valentio of Dorostorum St Victorinus of Acquiney St Winebald of Saint Bertin St Worad of Saint Bertin St Zenobius of Florence
Rogation Day: Rogation Days are days of prayer and fasting in the Church. They are observed with processions and the praying of the Litany of the Saints. The major Rogation is held on 25 April, the minor Rogations are held on Monday to Wednesday, preceding Ascension Thursday. The word Rogation comes from the Latin verb rogare, meaning “to ask,” which reflects the beseeching of God, for the appeasement of His anger and for protection from calamities. Rogation Days began in the Fifth Century in France by St Mamertus (Died c 477) Archbishop of Vienne. His Life here: https://anastpaul.com/2019/05/11/saint-of-the-day-11-may-st-mamertus-died-c-475/
St Basileus of Braga St Desiderius of Langres (c 307-c 356) Bishop Martyr St Epitacius of Tuy St Euphebius of Naples St Eutychius of Valcastoria St Florentius of Valcastoria St Goban Gobhnena
Martyrs of Béziers: 20 Mercedarian Friars murdered by Huguenots for being Catholic. Martyrs. 1562 at the Mercedarian convent at Béziers, France.
Martyrs of Cappadocia: A group of Christians tortured and Martyred in the persecutions of Diocletian and Galerius. Their names and the details of their lives have not come down to us. They were crushed to death in c.303 in Cappadocia (in modern Turkey).
Martyrs of Carthage: When a civil revolt erupted in Carthage in 259 during a period of persecution by Valerian, the procurator Solon blamed it on the Christians, and began a persecution of them. We know the names and a few details about 8 of these martyrs – Donatian, Flavian, Julian, Lucius, Montanus, Primolus, Rhenus and Victorius. They were beheaded in 259 at Carthage (modern Tunis, Tunisia).
Martyrs of Mesopotamia: A group of Christians Martyred in Mesopotamia in persecutions by imperial Roman authorities. Their names and the details of their lives have not come down to us. They were suffocated over a slow fire in Mesopotamia.
Martyrs of North Africa: A group of 19 Christians Martyred together in the persecutions of the Arian Vandal King Hunneric for refusing to deny the Trinity. We know little more than a few of their names – Dionysius, Julian, Lucius, Paul and Quintian. c 430.
St Anastasius of Lérida St Anthimus of Rome St Bassus of Sabina St Bertilla St Criotan of MacReddin Bl Diego of Saldaña St Evellius of Pisa St Fabius of Sabina St Francesco Maria da Camporosso OFM Cap (1804-1866) Friar of the Friars Minor Capuchin Branch St Francesco de Girolamo SJ St Fremund of Dunstable St Gengulphus of Burgundy
Bl Illuminatus St Illuminatus of San Severino Bl James Walworth Bl John Rochester St Maiulo of Hadrumetum
St Mamertus (Died c 477) Archbishop of Vienne in Gaul – present day France, Theologian, Writer, Founder of the introduction of the praying of Litanies prior to Ascension Day, called “Rogation Days.” Rogation days are days of prayer and fasting in the Church. They are observed with processions and the praying of the Litany of the Saints. The major Rogation is held on 25 April, the minor Rogations are held on Monday to Wednesday, preceding Ascension Thursday. The word Rogation comes from the Latin verb rogare, meaning “to ask,” which reflects the beseeching of God, for the appeasement of His anger and for protection from calamities. His Life: https://anastpaul.com/2019/05/11/saint-of-the-day-11-may-st-mamertus-died-c-475/
St Mozio of Constantinople St Possessor of Verdun St Principia of Rome St Tudy St Vincent L’Hénoret Bl Vivaldus St Walbert of Hainault
Martyrs of Camerino: An imperial Roman official, his wife, their children and servants, all of whom were converts and martyrs: Anastasius, Aradius, Callisto, Eufemia, Evodius, Felice, Primitiva, Theopista.
Saint of the Day – 11 May – St Mamertus (Died c 475) also known as Mamertius, Mammertus – Archbishop of Vienne in Gaul – present day France, Theologian, Writer, Founder of the introduction of the praying of Litanies prior to Ascension Day, called “Rogation Days.” Rogation days are days of prayer and fasting in the Church. They are observed with processions and the pra\ying of the Litany of the Saints. The major Rogation is held on 25 April, the minor Rogations are held on Monday to Wednesday, preceding Ascension Thursday. The word Rogation comes from the Latin verb rogare, meaning “to ask,” which reflects the beseeching of God, for the appeasement of His anger and for protection from calamities.
An engraving of Saint Mamertus from an 1878
His feast day is the first of the Ice Saint, who are St Mamertus (or, in some countries, St Boniface of Tarsus), St Pancras and St Servatius. They are so named because their feast days fall on the days of 11 May, 12 May and 13 May respectively, known as “the black-thorn winter” in Austrian, Belgian, Croatian, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Hungarian, North-Italian, Polish, Slovene and Swiss folklore.
Prior to his elevation to the see of Vienne, little has been recorded about Mamertus’ life. The fact that his brother, Claudianus Mamertus, the theological writer, received in his youth a sound training in rhetoric and enjoyed the personal acquaintance of Bishop Eucherius of Lyons (434-50), suggests that the brothers belonged to a wealthy Gallic family from the neighbourhood of Lyons. Like his brother, St Mamertus was distinguished for his secular learning as well as theology and, before his elevation to the episcopate, appears to have been married.
His election and consecration took place shortly before 462. As bishop he enlisted the services of his brother, who had withdrawn to a cloister and ordained him priest of Vienne. The activity of the brothers is described in one letter of Sidonius Apollinaris, while another is addressed to Bishop Mamertus.
Saint Mamertus (right), pictured with Saints Avitus and Apollinaris (details)
St Mamertus was the founder of the Rogation Processions, according to Sidonius Apollinaris and his second successor, Avitus. In connexion with these intercessory processions, Mamertus summoned a synod at Vienne between 471 and 475.
Amidst the scourges of the time, wars, famines and natural disasters, which were seen as divine anger against the sinful lives of the people, which threatened their entire destruction, St Mammertus received a token of the divine mercy. A terrible fire happened in the city of Vienne, which baffled the efforts of men but by the prayers of the good bishop the fire on a sudden went out. This miracle strongly affected the minds of the people. The holy prelate took this opportunity to make them sensible of the necessity and efficacy of devout prayer and formed a pious design of instituting an annual fast and supplication of three days, in which all the faithful should join, with sincere compunction of heart, to appease the divine indignation by fasting, prayer, tears and the confession of sins.
The Church of Auvergne, of which St Sidonius was bishop, adopted this pious institution before the year 475 and it became in a very short time a universal practice.
During his episcopate, the remains of St Ferreolus were discovered and were translated by Mamertus to a church in Vienne, he built in honour of that martyr.
About 475 he attended a synod at Arles, which dealt with the predestination teaching of Lucidus, a Gallic priest. As this is the latest information we possess concerning him, we may assume that he died shortly afterwards.
AnaStpaul 
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