SAINT RENÉ GOUPIL (MAY 16, 1608-SEPTEMBER 29, 1642)
French Roman Catholic Missionary and Martyr in New France, 1642
First Roman Catholic Martyr in North America
Solo feast day = September 29
lay assistant to
SAINT ISAAC JOGUES (JANUARY 10, 1607-OCTOBER 18, 1646)
French Roman Catholic Priest, Missionary, and Martyr in New France, 1646
Solo feast day = October 18
colleague of
SAINT JEAN DE LA LA LANDE (DIED OCTOBER 19, 1646)
French Roman Catholic Missionary and Martyr in New France, 1646
Also known as Saint Jean Lalande
Solo feast day = October 19
colleague of
SAINT ANTOINE DANIEL (MAY 27, 1601-JULY 4, 1648)
French Roman Catholic Priest, Missionary, and Martyr in New France, 1648
Solo feast day = July 4
colleague of
SAINT JEAN DE BRÉBEUF (MARCH 25, 1593-MARCH 16, 1649)
French Roman Catholic Priest, Missionary, and Martyr in New France, 1649
Solo feast day = March 16
colleague of
SAINT GABRIEL LALEMANT (OCTOBER 10, 1610-MARCH 17, 1649)
French Roman Catholic Missionary and Martyr in New France, 1649
Solo feast day = March 17
colleague of
SAINT CHARLES GARNIER (BAPTIZED MAY 25, 1606-DIED DECEMBER 7, 1649)
French Roman Catholic Priest, Missionary, and Martyr in New France, 1649
Solo feast day = December 7
lay colleague of
SAINT NOËL CHABANEL (FEBRUARY 2, 1613-DECEMBER 8, 1649)
French Roman Catholic Missionary and Martyr in New France, 1649
Solo feast day = December 8
+++++++++++++++++++
Missionaries and Martyrs in New France, 1642-1649
Also known as the Canadian Martyrs
Alternative feast days = March 16 and September 26
+++++++++++++++++++
I. INTRODUCTION
+++++++++++++++++++
The Martyrs of North America, 1642-1649, come to this, A Great Cloud of Witnesses: An Ecumenical Calendar of Saints’ Days and Holy Days, via the Roman Catholic Church and The Anglican Church of Canada. St. Isaac Jogues (1607-1646), by himself, is a profiled saint in Robert Ellsberg, All Saints: Daily Reflections on Saints, Prophets, and Witnesses for Our Time (1997).
The label “Canadian Martyrs,” accurate in 1642-1649, is a contemporary misnomer, for not all eight martyrs died in what we now call Canada. Some died in what is now upstate New York.
With eight saints, we–you, O reader, and I, have some proverbial bouncing balls to follow. Telling their stories together is logical, however.
+++++++++++++++++++
II. ENTER THE “BLACK ROBES”
+++++++++++++++++++
GOUPIL
+++++++++++++++++++
St. René Goupil offered himself to the service of God. Goupil, born in Saint-Martin-du-Bois, Anjou, France, was a son of Hippliite Goupil and Luce (Provost) Goupil. Our saint, a surgeon, became a Jesuit novice in Paris on March 16, 1639. However, deafness forced him to leave the Society of Jesus. Nevertheless, Goupil volunteered as a lay missionary. He, having arrived in New France in 1640, served at the Saint-Joseph de Sillery Mission, Québec. There he worked in the hospital though 1642.
Goupil and about 40 other people visited Huron missions in 1642. One of the other missionaries was St. Isaac Jogues.
+++++++++++++++++++
JOGUES (I)
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Isaac Jogues was a Jesuit priest. He, born in Orléans, France, on January 10, 1607, was the fifth of nine children of Laurent Jogues and Françoise de Sainte-Mesmin. Jogues, educated first at his bourgeois home then at Jesuit schools, became Jesuit novice at Rouen in 1624. He was seventeen years old at the time. The Jesuit missions to New France started in 1625. Those early missionaries inspired Jogues, who decided to become a missionary to New France, too. Our saint professed his vows in 1626, studied philosophy at La Flèche for a few years, taught humanities at a boys’s school in Rouen (1629-1633), studied theology at Paris (1633-1636), and joined the ranks of priests (1636).
In 1636, Jogues, not yet a priest, met three of his heroes. They were St. Jean de Brébeuf, Charles Lalemant, and Ènemond Massé, missionaries who had recently returned from New France.
+++++++++++++++++++
BRÉBEUF
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Jean de Brébeuf was another Jesuit missionary priest. He, born in Condé-sur-Vire, France, on March 25, 1593, joined he Society of Jesus in 1617, at the age of twenty-four years. Brébeuf, a teacher at Rouen (1619-1621), joined the ranks of priests in February 1622. Then he served three years as the Steward of the College of Rouen. In 1625, our saint became a missionary to New France. The group of five missionaries arrived in Québec in June 1625.
Brébeuf, who had a talent for learning languages, ministered mostly among Hurons. Due to international politics (Anglo-French) tensions, the missionaries returned to France in 1629. They returned in 1633. Missionary work was challenging and not always successful. The deaths of many indigenous people from European diseases complicated the matter. But the missionaries were faithful.
+++++++++++++++++++
DANIEL (I)
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Antoine Daniel was one of the other Jesuit missionaries with Brébeuf in New France. Daniel, born in Dieppe, Normandy, France, on May 27, 1601, studied philosophy for two years and law for for one year before joining the Society of Jesus at Rouen on October 1, 1621, Our saint taught at Rouen (1623-1627), studied theology at Paris (1627-1630), joined the ranks of priests (1630) and taught at the College of Eu (1630-1632).
Daniel began to minister in New France in 1632. At first, he tended to a flock of colonists at St. Anne’s Bay, Cape Breton (-1633). Then he joined Brébeuf’s mission. In 1634, Brébeuf and Daniel were two of the tree missionaries who traveled to Wendake. Daniel learned the language of the Hurons. He translated the Lord’s Prayer and the Nicene Creed, and set them to music. For two yeas, Daniel also ran a school for indigenous boys. In 1638, when Brébeuf moved onto a different assignment, and Daniel relieved him.
+++++++++++++++++++
JOGUES (II)
+++++++++++++++++++
In 1636, Brébeuf and company, back in France, told the other Jesuits of the great dangers of the mission in New France. Jogues, not discouraged, became more determined to serve as a missionary in New France. Shortly after ordination to the priesthood (1636), he and St. Charles Garnier sailed for New France.
+++++++++++++++++++
GARNIER
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Charles Garnier was a priest. He, baptized in Paris, France, as an infant on May 25, 1606, was a son of of a secretary to King Henry III. Garnier became a Jesuit novice in September 1624. In time, our saint served as the Prefect of the College of Clermont, completed his studies in philosophy and rhetoric, and taught at the College of Eu for two years. Next, Garnier finished his studies in theology, culture, and language. Then, in 1635, he joined the ranks of priests.
+++++++++++++++++++
BRÉBEUF, GARNIER, AND JOGUES
+++++++++++++++++++
Garnier, Jogues, and company arrived in New France in June 1636. Immediately, he traveled to the Huron mission. Brébeuf was a strong influence on our saint.
Jogues arrived at his assigned mission station in Québec in September 1636. He joined Brébeuf, the Superior of that Jesuit mission, at Saint-Joseph, on Lake Huron. Immediately, an epidemic struck the Jesuits and the Hurons. (This happened repeatedly.) Fearful natives accused the “Black Robes” of trying to kill them. Jogues caught a fever, but recovered. He ministered to the Hurons at Saint-Joseph for six years.
In the winter of 1639-1640, Jogues and Garnier visited the Petun, a tribe in what is now southern Ontario. That mission proved fruitless. For two months, the Jesuit missionaries traveled from village to village, to a chilly reception.
In September 1641, however, Jogues and Charles Raymbaut found a receptive population of Ojibwe. Jogues ministered at the new Saint-Marie Mission for a while.
Garnier worked at the Saint-Joseph Mission from 1641 to 1646.
Brébeuf also wrote hymns. Perhaps the most popular one was the Huron Carol, which Jesse Edgar Middleton (1872-1960) translated into English as “Twas the Moon of Winter Time.”
+++++++++++++++++++
III. GOUPIL AND JOGUES, 1642
+++++++++++++++++++
Goupil and about 40 other people visited Huron missions in 1642, Jogues was part of this team, which included Christian Hurons. On August 3, some Mohawk warriors attacked these Christians near present-day Auriesville, New York. The Mohawk warriors tortured their victims. Goupil, by this time a Jesuit lay brother, taught a Mohawk boy the sign of the cross. For this, Goupil died via tomahawk to the head. Jogues gave him last rites on September 29, 1642.
The Mohawk warriors also slowly tortured then killed the Huron converts. (Hurons and Mohawks were traditional enemies.)
The Anglican Church of Canada, in its brief summary of this feast, states that Brébeuf, in 1649, suffered
atrocities which defy description.
Applying this statement to Jogues (in 1642) and Brebeuf and St. Gabriel Lalemant (in 1649), that statement is objectively inaccurate. Finding descriptions is as easy as using Google. I choose do describe the sufferings of these saints in general terms only.
Jogues emerged his captivity a mutilated man. He returned to France for medical treatment. Pope Urban VIII called Jogues a “living martyr.” That “living martyr” returned to New France voluntarily in 1644.
+++++++++++++++++++
IV. TO 1646
+++++++++++++++++++
CHABANEL AND GARNIER (I)
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Noël Chabanel was a Jesuit missionary. He, born in Saughes, France, on February 2, 1613, became a Jesuit novice when he was 17 years old. Chabanel taught at Jesuit colleges and earned a sterling reputation. Our saint arrived in New France in 1643. What he lacked in Algonquin linguistic acumen for a while he made up for with piety. Chabanel, assigned to Sainte-Marie Mission, worked with Garnier.
+++++++++++++++++++
LALEMANT
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Gabriel Lalemant was a priest. He came from an extended family (including Charles Lalemant) deeply involved in the Society of Jesus and the mission to New France. Our saint, born in Paris, France, on October 31, 1610, was the third of six children of an attorney. Lalemant joined the Society of Jesus in 1630. He tried to get sent to New France years before he succeeded; ill health stood in the way for years. Finally, in 1646, uncle Jerome Lalemant, the Vicar-General of Québec, interceded. In the meantime, our saint had taught at the college in Moulins (1632-1635), studied theology at Bourges (1635-1639), became a priest (1638), and taught at various schools (1639-1646).
Lalemant arrived in Québec in September 1646. He spent months studying the languages and customs of the Hurons.
+++++++++++++++++++
LA LANDE
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Jean de la Lande (a.k.a. St. Jean Lalande) was a Jesuit lay brother. He, a native of Dieppe, Normandy, France, was just 19 years old when he arrived in New France.
+++++++++++++++++++
V. 1646: JOGUES AND LA LANDE
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Isaac Jogues became the French envoy to the Mohawk Nation in the Spring of 1646. (The Huron and Mohawk Nations had forged a fragile peace the previous year.) Jogues arrived with de la Lande and other members of the diplomatic party in September 1646. Mohawk warriors captured the Jesuits and took them to the village of Ossermenon (the site of Auriesville, New York, today). Jogues died of a tomahawk to the head on October 18, 1646. The following day, la Lande attempted to recover the corpse. He also died of a tomahawk to the head.
+++++++++++++++++++
VI. TO 1649
+++++++++++++++++++
DANIEL (II)
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Antonie Daniel returned to the main Huron town, Teanaostaye, on July 4, 1648. While the majority of Huron men were away, trading in Quêbec, Iroquois warriors attacked the town. Daniel tended to his flock in the chapel as best he could. Then he absolved them of their sins, baptized catechumens, and confronted the attackers. The priest, vested, carried a cross toward the Iroquois warriors. They killed him, placed his body in the chapel, and burned the chapel. By then, many of the Hurons who had been in the chapel had escaped.
+++++++++++++++++++
BRÉBEUF, LALEMANT, AND CHABANEL
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Jean de Brébeuf, master of languages, had done much to help the Jesuit mission in New France. His translated works included a catechism and a collection of Biblical prayers, proved invaluable for a long time. Yet he met a gory end, too.
St. Gabriel Lalemant ministered in the area of the Three Rivers trading center through September 1648. He, having been Brébeuf’s assistant at Wendake (September 1648-Feburary 1649), had gone to Saint-Louis Mission. Lalemant replaced Chabanel. Meanwhile, Brébeuf had transferred to Saint-Ignace Mission, near Saint-Louis Mission.
+++++++++++++++++++
VII. 1649
+++++++++++++++++++
BRÉBEUF AND LALEMANT
+++++++++++++++++++
In March 1649, when most of the Huron warriors were away, Iroquois warriors attacked Saint-Ignace. Huron warriors from Saint-Louis delayed the attackers, thereby allowing women, children, and elderly people to escape Saint-Ignace. Iroquois warriors captured Brébeuf and Lalemant. Both saints suffered terrible tortures. They received the crown of martyrdom–Brébeuf on March 16 and Lalemant on the following day.
The Society of Jesus closed and burned Sainte-Marie Mission, rather than permit the Iroquois to desecrate the site.
+++++++++++++++++++
CHABANEL AND GARNIER (II)
+++++++++++++++++++
St. Noël Chabanel, transferred from Saint-Louis Mission, went to Saint-Joseph Mission.
St. Charles Garnier, living in a Petun village, died during an Iroquois raid on December 7, 1649.
The following day, a “renegade Huron” killed Chabanel, apparently for being French. According to “alternative facts”–lies–the French had betrayed the Hurons and entered into an alliance with the Iroquois.
+++++++++++++++++++
VIII. CONCLUSION
+++++++++++++++++++
Pope Pius XI declared these martyrs Beati in 1925 then full saints five years later.
Writing hagiographies can lead to a sense of spiritual inadequacy. One may think of oneself as a good person. Perhaps one is a good person. But is one as good as, for example, these eight martyrs? I am not.
Consider St. Isaac Jogues, for example, O reader. Imagine yourself in his position. Knowing the risks, would you have done what he did? And having suffered as he did, would you have remained so dedicated?
The North American Martyrs acted out of the love of Christ. Each one took up his cross and followed Jesus to his individual Golgotha.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 21, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT ROMAN ADAME ROSALES, MEXICAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1927
THE FEAST OF SAINT CONRAD OF PARZHAM, CAPUCHIN FRIAR
THE FEAST OF GEORGE B. CAIRD, ENGLISH CONGREGATIONALIST THEN UNITED REFORMED MINISTER, BIBLICAL SCHOLAR, AND HYMN WRITER AND TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF GEORGIA HARKNESS, U.S. METHODIST MINISTER, THEOLOGIAN, ETHICIST, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT SIMEON BARSABAE, BISHOP; AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS, 341
St. Paul of the Cross spent most of his life serving God.
Our saint, son of Anna Maria Massari and merchant Luca Danei, grew up in a pious family. St. Paul, born in Ovada, Piedmont (now Italy), on January 3, 1694, had a dedication to the Blessed Sacrament, St. Mary of Nazareth, and the Passion of Jesus. He, who spent half a century praying for the conversion of England, founded the Congregation of Discaled Clerks of the Most Holy Cross and Passion (the Passionists) in 1721, when he was still a layman. Pope Benedict XIII ordained St. Paul to the priesthood in 1727. Pope Benedict XIV approved the rule of the order, focused on preaching Christ crucified, in 1741. Our saint, who founded many missions, served (against his will) as the first Superior General of the order from 1741 until his death. He, aged 81 years, died in Rome on October 18, 1775.
Pope Pius IX beatified St. Paul in 1852 then canonized him in 1867.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 12, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE ELEVENTH DAY OF ADVENT, YEAR C
THE FEAST OF SAINT JANE FRANCES DE CHANTAL, FOUNDRESS OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE VISITATION
THE FEAST OF ALICIA DOMON AND HER COMPANIONS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS IN ARGENTINA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS BARTHOLOMEW BUONPEDONI AND VIVALDUS, MINISTERS AMONG LEPERS
THE FEAST OF SAINT LUDWIK BARTOSIK, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR
BLESSED JERZY POPIELUSZKO (SEPTEMBER 14, 1947-OCTOBER 19-20, 1984)
Polish Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1984
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To serve God is to seek a way to human hearts. To serve God is to speak about evil as a sickness which should be brought to light so that it can be cured. To serve God is to condemn all its manifestations.
–Father Jerzy Popieluszko, quoted in Robert Ellsberg, All Saints: Daily Refections on Saints, Prophets, and Witnesses for Our Time (New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company, 1997), 457
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Father Jerzy Popieluszko, born to peasant farmers in Okopy, Podlaskie, Poland, on September 14, 1947, became a martyr.
Our saint, ordained a priest in the Archdiocese of Warsaw on May 28, 1972, became affiliated with the Solidarity Movement, as a chaplain, in 1980. The champion of non-violent resistance and a friend of Lech Walesa preached against the Communist government even during martial law (December 13, 1981-July 22, 1983). His political activism made him an enemy of the state and the object of repeated assassination attempts, as well as arrests and interrogations. This harassment continued after the end of martial law and the declaration of the general amnesty (July 22, 1984). Finally, secret police abducted Popieluszko on October 19, 1984. They beat him to death. After the discovery of our saint’s body in the Vistula Water Reservoir, on October 30, 1984, more than 250,000 people attended the priest’s funeral as in excess of 1,000,000 people stood outside the church. Death did not silence our saint.
Pope Benedict XVI declared Popieluszko a Venerable in 2009 then a Blessed the following year.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 12, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE ELEVENTH DAY OF ADVENT, YEAR C
THE FEAST OF SAINT JANE FRANCES DE CHANTAL, FOUNDRESS OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE VISITATION
THE FEAST OF ALICIA DOMON AND HER COMPANIONS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS IN ARGENTINA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS BARTHOLOMEW BUONPEDONI AND VIVALDUS, MINISTERS AMONG LEPERS
THE FEAST OF SAINT LUDWIK BARTOSIK, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Almighty and everlasting God, who kindled the flame of your love
in the heart of your holy martyr Blessed Jerzy Popieluszko:
grant to us, your humble servants, a like faith and power of love,
that we who rejoice in his triumph may profit by his example;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Jeremiah 15:15-21
Psalm 124 or 31:1-5
1 Peter 4:12-19
Mark 8:34-38
–Adapted from Holy Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints (2010), 715
Claudia Frances Ibotson, born at Addlestone, England, on October 19, 1838, was daughter of the Reverend W. H. Ibotson, a priest of the Church of England. At a young age she wrote for church publications. Thus began her literary career, which included short stories, but consisted mainly of religious texts for children. Our saint, who married the Reverend J. W. D. Hernaman, also an Anglican priest, found her vocation: religious education of the young. Her publications included:
Hernaman’s hymn output came to about 150 texts between translations and compositions. She translated a Joseph Mohr hymn from German as “Holy Spirit, Hear Us.” Perhaps her most famous hymn was the great Lenten text, “Lord, Who Throughout These Forty Days,” which debuted in print in 1873. Less well known is the following Christmas hymn:
Chorus:
Haste we to greet Him lying today
In a poor stable all on the hay.
+++++
You who are wealthy, come worship him low,
Jesus the King in humility know;
He it is ruleth the city on high,
Prince of the angels and Lord of the sky!
Chorus
+++++
You who are poor, His deep poverty see,
Poorer than you would your Master be;
No cottage house now may shelter his head,
Only a manger for Him in a shed.
Chorus
+++++
Unto the wealthy is whispering the Child:
“Say would ye find Me so gentle and mild,
I am the poor, still in them I have need,
Naked and hungry, then clothe me and feed.”
Chorus
+++++
Unto the poor He so tenderly cries:
“Yours are the riches stored up in the skies;
In those bright mansions on high shall ye live,
Angels are waiting their welcome to give.”
Chorus
+++++
Both unto rich and poor, one is the call,
Worship and love Him who loveth us all;
So when He comes in His glory again,
We, made like Jesus, with Jesus shall reign.
Chorus
Our saint died at Brussels, Belgium, on October 10, 1898.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 18, 2014 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF ARTHUR PENRHYN STANLEY, ANGLICAN DEAN OF WESTMINSTER AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF BARTHOLOME DE LAS CASAS, WITNESS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Dear God of beauty,
you have granted literary ability and spiritual sensitivity to
Claudia Frances Ibotson Hernaman and others, who have composed hymn texts.
May we, as you guide us,
find worthy hymn texts to be icons,
through which we see you.
In the Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Sirach/Ecclesiasticus 44:1-3a, 5-15
Psalm 147
Revelation 5:11-14
Luke 2:8-20
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 20, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS AMATOR OF AUXERRE AND GERMANUS OF AUXERRE, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS; SAINT MAMERTINUS OF AUXERRE, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT; AND SAINT MARCIAN OF AUXERRE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK
THE FEAST OF JOHANNES BUGENHAGEN, GERMAN LUTHERAN PASTOR
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARCELLINUS OF EMBRUN, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF OLAVUS AND LAURENTIUS PETRI, RENEWERS OF THE CHURCH
1 (Anthony Ashley Cooper, Lord Shaftesbury, British Humanitarian and Social Reformer)
Chuck Matthei, Founder and Director of the Equity Trust, Inc.
Marie-Joseph Aubert, Founder of the Daughters of Our Lady of Compassion
Ralph W. Sockman, United Methodist Minister and Spiritual Writer
Romanus the Melodist, Deacon and Hymnodist
Thérèse of Lisieux, Roman Catholic Nun and Mystic
2 (Petrus Herbert, German Moravian Bishop and Hymnodist)
Carl Doving, Norwegian-American Lutheran Minister and Hymn Translator
James Allen, English Inghamite then Glasite/Sandemanian Hymn Writer; and his great-nephew, Oswald Allen, English Glasite/Sandemanian Hymn Writer
Maria Anna Kratochwil, Polish Roman Catholic Nun and Martyr, 1942
3 (George Kennedy Allen Bell, Anglican Bishop of Chichester)
Alberto Ramento, Prime Bishop of the Philippine Independent Church
Gerard of Brogne, Roman Catholic Abbot
John Raleigh Mott, U.S. Methodist Lay Evangelist, and Ecumenical Pioneer
William Scarlett, Episcopal Bishop of Missouri, and Advocate for Social Justice
4 (Francis of Assisi, Founder of the Order of Friars Minor)
Agneta Chang, Maryknoll Sister and Martyr in Korea, 1950
H. H. Rowley, English Baptist Minister and Biblical Scholar
5 (David Nitschmann, Sr., “Father Nitschmann,” Moravian Missionary; Melchior Nitschmann, Moravian Missionary and Martyr, 1729; Johann Nitschmann, Jr., Moravian Missionary and Bishop; Anna Nitschman, Moravian Eldress; and David Nitschmann, Missionary and First Bishop of the Renewed Moravian Church)
Cyriacus Schneegass, German Lutheran Minister, Musician, and Hymn Writer
Francis Xavier Seelos, German-American Roman Catholic Priest
Harry Emerson Fosdick, U.S. Northern Baptist Minister and Opponent of Fundamentalism
6 (George Edward Lynch Cotton, Anglican Bishop of Calcutta)
Ernest William Olson, Swedish-American Lutheran Poet, Editor, Hymn Translator, and Hymn Writer
Heinrich Albert, German Lutheran Composer and Poet
John Ernest Bode, Anglican Priest, Poet, and Hymn Writer
Joseph Lowery, African-American United Methodist Minister and Civil Rights Leader; “The Dean of the Civil Rights Movement”
William Tyndale, English Reformer, Bible Translator, and Martyr, 1536; and Miles Coverdale, English Reformer, Bible Translator, and Bishop of Exeter
7 (Wilhelm Wexels, Norwegian Lutheran Minister, Hymn Writer, and Hymn Translator; his niece, Marie Wexelsen, Norwegian Lutheran Novelist and Hymn Writer; Ludwig Lindeman, Norwegian Lutheran Organist and Musicologist; and Magnus Landstad, Norwegian Lutheran Minister, Folklorist, Hymn Writer, and Hymnal Editor)
Bradford Torrey, U.S. Ornithologist and Hymn Writer
Claus Westermann, German Lutheran Minister and Biblical Translator
Herbert G. May, U.S. Biblical Scholar and Translator
Johann Gottfried Weber, German Moravian Musician, Composer, and Minister
John Woolman, Quaker Abolitionist
8 (Erik Routley, English Congregationalist Hymnodist)
Abraham Ritter, U.S. Moravian Merchant, Historian, Musician, and Composer
Alexander Penrose Forbes, Scottish Episcopal Bishop of Brechin; Church Historian; and Renewer of the Scottish Episcopal Church
John Clarke, English Baptist Minister and Champion of Religious Liberty in New England
Richard Whately, Anglican Archbishop of Dublin, Ireland
William Dwight Porter Bliss, Episcopal Priest; and Richard Theodore Ely; Economists
9 (Denis, Bishop of Paris, and His Companions, Roman Catholic Martyrs)
John Leonardi, Founder of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca; and Joseph Calasanctius, Founder of the Clerks Regular of Religious Schools
Penny Lernoux, U.S. Roman Catholic Journalist and Moral Critic
Robert Grosseteste, English Roman Catholic Scholar, Philosopher, and Bishop of Lincoln
Wilfred Thomason Grenfell, Medical Missionary to Newfoundland and Labrador
10 (Johann Nitschmann, Sr., Moravian Missionary and Bishop; David Nitschmann, Jr.,the Syndic, Moravian Missionary and Bishop; and David Nitschmann, the Martyr, Moravian Missionary and Martyr, 1729)
Christian Ludwig Brau, Norwegian Moravian Teacher and Poet
Edward White Benson, Archbishop of Canterbury
Jean-Baptiste Lamy, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Santa Fe, New Mexico
Louis FitzGerald Benson, U.S. Presbyterian Minister and Hymnodist
Vida Dutton Scudder, Episcopal Professor, Author, Christian Socialist, and Social Reformer
11 (PHILIP THE EVANGELIST, DEACON)
12 (Martin Dober, Moravian Bishop and Hymn Writer; Johann Leonhard Dober, Moravian Missionary and Bishop; and Anna Schindler Dober, Moravian Missionary and Hymn Writer)
John Bowring, English Unitarian Hymn Writer, Social Reformer, and Philanthropist
Richard McSorley, U.S. Roman Catholic Priest, Professor, and Peace Activist
18 (LUKE THE EVANGELIST, PHYSICIAN)
19 (Martyrs of North America, 1642-1649)
Claudia Frances Ibotson Hernaman, Anglican Hymn Writer and Translator
Jerzy Popieluszko, Polish Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1984
Paul of the Cross, Founder of the Congregation of Discaled Clerks of the Most Holy Cross and Passion
20 (Philip Schaff and John Williamson Nevin, U.S. German Reformed Historians, Theologians, and Liturgists)
Friedrich Funcke, German Lutheran Minister, Composer, and Hymn Writer
James W. C. Pennington, African-American Congregationalist and Presbyterian Minister, Educator, and Abolitionist
John Harris Burt, Episcopal Bishop of Ohio, and Civil Rights Activist
Mary A. Lathbury, U.S. Methodist Hymn Writer
21 (George McGovern, U.S. Senator and Stateman; and his wife, Eleanor McGovern, Humanitarian)
David Moritz Michael, German-American Moravian Musician and Composer
Laura of Saint Catherine of Siena, Founder of the Works of the Indians and the Congregation of Missionary Sisters of Immaculate Mary and of Saint Catherine of Siena
Walter Sisulu and Albertina Sisulu, Anti-Apartheid Activists and Political Prisoners in South Africa
Emily Gardiner Neal, Episcopal Deacon, Religious Writer, and Leader of the Healing Movement in The Episcopal Church
Emily Huntington Miller, U.S. Methodist Author and Hymn Writer
Frederick Pratt Green, British Methodist Minister, Poet, and Hymn Writer
Katharina von Schlegal, German Lutheran Hymn Writer
Martyrs of Heraclea, 304
23 (JAMES OF JERUSALEM, BROTHER OF JESUS)
24 (Rosa Parks, African-American Civil Rights Activist)
Fritz Eichenberg, German-American Quaker Wood Engraver
Henry Clay Shuttleworth, Anglican Priest and Hymn Writer
Pavel Chesnokov, Russian Orthodox Composer
Proclus, Archbishop of Constantinople; and Rusticus, Bishop of Narbonne
25 (Johann Daniel Grimm, German Moravian Musician)
26 (Alfred the Great, King of the West Saxons)
Arthur Campbell Ainger, English Educator, Scholar, and Hymn Writer
Eric Norelius, Swedish-American Lutheran Minister
Francis Pott, Anglican Priest and Hymn Writer and Translator
Henry Stanley Oakeley, Composer
Philip Nicolai, German Lutheran Minister and Hymn Writer
27 (James A. Walsh and Thomas Price, Co-Founders of the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers; and Mary Josephine Rogers, Founder of the Maryknoll Sisters of Saint Dominic)
Aedesius, Priest and Missionary; and Frumentius, First Bishop of Axum and Abuna of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
Dmitry Bortniansky, Russian Orthodox Composer
Harry Webb Farrington, U.S. Methodist Minister and Hymn Writer
Levi Coffin and Catherine Coffin, U.S. Quaker Abolitionists and Conductors of the Underground Railroad
28 (SIMON AND JUDE, APOSTLES AND MARTYRS)
29 (Martyrs of Lien-Chou, China, October 28, 1905)
Bartholomaus Helder, German Lutheran Minister, Composer, and Hymn Writer
James Hannington, Anglican Bishop of Eastern Equatorial Guinea; and His Companions, Martyrs
Joseph Grigg, English Presbyterian Minister and Hymn Writer
Paul Manz, Dean of Lutheran Church Music
30 (Hugh O’Flaherty, “Scarlet Pimperel of the Vatican”)
Elizabeth Comstock, Anglo-American Quaker Educator, Abolitionist, and Social Reformer
Marcellus the Centurion and Cassian of Tangiers, Roman Catholic Martyrs, 298
Oleksa Zarytsky, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Priest and Martyr, 1963
Walter John Mathams, British Baptist then Presbyterian Minister, Author, and Hymn Writer
31 (Reformation Day)
Daniel C. Roberts, Episcopal Priest and Hymn Writer
Gerhard Von Rad and Martin Noth, German Lutheran Biblical Scholars
Ivan Kochurov, Russian Orthodox Priest and Martyr, 1917
Paul Shinji Sasaki, Anglican Bishop of Mid-Japan, Bishop of Tokyo, and Primate of Nippon Sei Ko Kei; and Philip Lendel Tsen, Anglican Bishop of Honan and Presiding Bishop of Chung Hua Sheng Kung Hui
Lowercase boldface on a date with two or more commemorations indicates a primary feast.
SUNDRY THOUGHTS 
You must be logged in to post a comment.