Saint of the Day – 22 April – St Leo (Died c547) Bishop and Confessor of Sens, in France. A shepherd of great wisdom and graced with diplomatic skills, he protected and defender his flock in Sens, reformed the Clergy and refused to allow even the King and fellow Bishops to deny the rights of the Church and his faithful sheep. This zealous Prelate served within his See for around 22 years.
The Roman Martyrology reads today: “At Sens, St Leo, Bishop and Confessor.”
Sens Cathedral Stained Glass
Leo was the 16th Bishop of Sens after Paul and was a a prominent figure in 6th Century Gaul. Leo emerges from the mists of time as a wise and zealous Prelate.
His presence at the Councils of Orléans in 533 and 538 testifies to the authority he enjoyed while his impassioned letter to King Childebert I, aimed at preventing the creation of a Diocese in Melun at the expense of Sens, reveals his diplomatic skill and concern for the good of his Church.
An intriguing letter of remonstrance to Saint Remigius of Reims, co-signed by 2 further Bishops, offers a glimpse of his intransigence in the face of internal disciplinary issues within the Clergy.
His death which occurred around 547, is commemorated today, a date found in the Roman and and in the Hieronymian Martyrologies and too, in ancient litanies of the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
The Solemnity of the Patronage of St Joseph Wednesday preceding the Third Sunday after Easter: Few Catholics are likely familiar with the Eastertide Solemnity of St Joseph. According to Father Francis Xavier Lasance (1860-1946) it was instituted during the hostile occupation of Rome by the Troops of the Italian King, Victor Emmanuel II. The Pope proclaimed St Joseph the Patron of the oppressed Household of the Faith, entrusting to St Joseph, the defence of Holy Mother Church.In the beginning, this Feast Day was observed on the Third Sunday after Easter but when Pope St Pius X reformed the Liturgical Calendar to restore the Sunday Offices to prominence over those of the Saints, the second Feast of St Joseph was moved to the Wednesday preceding the Third Sunday after Easter. In 1911, the Feast was raised to a Double of the First Class and it was assigned an Octave after it was moved to the Wednesday before the Third Sunday after Easter. It is a Common Octave, so the Octave may or may not be commemorated on the intra Octave days depending on the rank of the Feasts which occur during the Octave. While this Feast day is not in the 1962 Missal, it is still kept by Priests who celebrate Holy Mass according to the pre-1955 reforms.
Notre-Dames de Betharam / Our Lady of Betharam, France (1503) – 22 April: Saint Bernadette Soubirous frequently visited the Shrine of Betharram. In fact, the rosary beads that Bernadette used when praying with the Blessed Virgin during the first apparition at Lourdes had come from the Betharram Shrine and the priest to whom she was sent after the apparitions, was Saint Michel Garicoïts (1797-1863) the Priest of Betharram. He it was who alone believed Bernadette’s accounts of the apparitions at Lourdes. He was Canonised in 1947. About St Michel Garicoits here: https://anastpaul.com/2019/05/14/saint-of-the-day-14-may-saint-michel-garicoits-1797-1863/ HERE: https://anastpaul.com/2021/04/22/notre-dames-de-betharam-our-lady-of-betharam-france-1503/
St Pope Caius I (Died 296) Martyr, Bishop of Rome from 17 December 283 to his death in 296. Christian tradition makes him a native of the Dalmatian city of Salona, today Solin near Split, the son of a man also named Caius and a member of a noble family related to the Emperor Diocletian. Biography: https://anastpaul.com/2019/04/22/saint-of-the-day-22-april-saint-pope-caius-i-died-613/
Saint Altfried(Died 849) the Third Bishop of Münster from (839–849) and Abbot of Essen-Werden and Helmstedt. Born in the 9th Century, n Friesland (in modern Netherlands) and died on 22 April 849 of natural causes. Altfried was a nephew of St Ludger (c 742-809) and his second successor in the See of Münster, as well as a successor as Abbot of the Abbey of Essen-Werden (founded by St Ludger). The second successor was also a close relative, St Gerfried of Münster. Altfried also wrote a comprehensive Vita of St Ludger. St Altfried’s Life: https://anastpaul.com/2023/04/22/saint-of-the-day-22april-saint-altfried-of-munster-died-849/
St Apelles of Smyrna St Arwald St Epipodius of Lyon St Euflamia
Martyrs of Persia: Bishops, Priests, Deacons and Laity who were Martyred in Persia and celebrated together. Several of them have their stories related in the Acta of Saints Abdon and Sennen.
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