Viewing all items in Resource Category: Holy Days
Featuring the Saints whose feast-day is this month
- If your Christmas and New Year break included just too many people and even a bout of indigestion, then St Anthony may be the saint for you. He was a hermit-monk with a reputation for making poorly people feel better. Anthony was born in Coma (Upper Egypt) in 251, and at 20 became an ascetic....17th January – St Anthony of Egypt, hermit who defied an emperor
- Not many teenagers, on becoming a Christian, will devote themselves to winning others for Christ in a foreign land. Amy was such a person. She left Britain to live in a tiny village in Southern India. Here, for the next 56 years, Amy rescued hundreds of orphaned and vulnerable children, and served her Lord in...18th January – Amy Carmichael, founder of the Dohnavur Fellowship
- Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester from 1062 to 1095, occupies a unique place in British church history. He was the last surviving pre-Conquest bishop, the first bishop to pay homage to William the Conqueror after the battle of Hastings, and one of the few Saxons to keep high office to the end of William’s reign. On top...19th January – Wulfstan, Bishop of Worcester 1095
- The more things change, the more they remain the same. You could read Meinrad’s story today in the newspapers of any large city. He was born near Wurtemberg of a free peasant family and he became a monk at Reichenau (Switzerland). In 829 he moved to Einsiedeln to be a hermit, where he lived quietly...21st January – St Meinrad, victim of grievous bodily harm
- Agnes should be the patron saint of all the young Christian girls alive today who live in areas of the world where they face kidnap, rape, forced marriage, persecution and even death – simply because they are Christian. Agnes, born c 291, probably came from a noble Roman family. She converted to Christianity at the...21st January – St Agnes, child martyr of Rome
- Never under-estimate a deacon. After all, the first-ever Christian martyr was a deacon in the church of Jerusalem – St Stephen. And the first-ever Christian martyr in Spain was a deacon of the Church of Saragossa – St Vincent. By now it was 304AD, and the Roman Emperor Diocletian was persecuting Christians. When his edict...22nd January – St Vincent of Saragossa, first martyr of Spain
- Have you noticed that people tend to be either givers or takers? John the Almsgiver was a giver – on a grand scale. Born into a wealthy family in Cyprus about 560 AD John was married with children when disaster struck: both his wife and children all died. In his grief, John decided to go...23rd January – John the Almsgiver
- This month, on 25th January, the Church celebrates probably the most famous conversion of all. At least, what happened to a young man called Saul on the road to Damascus has become a byword for all instant conversions – what is known as a ‘damascene’ moment. Saul was a devout Jew, a Pharisee, a student...25th January – St Paul, the first Christian intellectual
- January is a month of the beginning of great things! As well as the naming of the Son of God, we celebrate the conversion of the greatest ever apostle of the Christian faith. Many books have been written on Paul, and here is the briefest of introductions. He was a Jew, born as ‘Saul’ at...25th January – Conversion of St Paul
- Timothy and Titus are the saints for you if you’ve been a Christian for some time, and now suspect that God wants you to move into some form of leadership. A daunting prospect! The books of First and Second Timothy and Titus are what are known as the three pastoral letters, where Paul writes to...26th January – St Timothy and St Titus, how local church leaders should be!
- With international concern about the welfare of children, Angela is a good saint to remember. Not only did she herself survive a harsh childhood, but she went on to dedicate her own life to helping children in need. Angela was born near Lake Garda, in Desenzano, where she was orphaned as a young child. The...27th January – St Angela Merici, helping children in need
- Are you wondering about which charities to support this year? Does it matter to you if your money is used wisely or not? If so, then Maedoc of Ferns is the patron saint for you this month. He certainly knew how to deal with people who would waste his money. Maedoc (d 626) was born...31st January – St Maedoc of Ferns, smart about beggars