As the Archdiocese of Washington continues in its efforts to help slow the spread of COVID-19 by temporarily halting public Masses in following with federal and local government mandates to shelter at home and to avoid gathering in groups, Masses continue to be live streamed over the Internet. The following are the readings for Masses for April 15 though April 30. The daily Mass readings can be found on the website of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops at http://usccb.org/bible/readings/.
April 15
Wednesday within the Octave of Easter
Readings:
Acts 3:1-10
Luke 24:13-35
April 16
Thursday within the Octave of Easter
Readings:
Acts 3:11-26
Luke 24:35-48
April 17
Friday within the Octave of Easter
Readings:
Acts 4:1-12
John 21:1-14
April 18
Saturday within the Octave of Easter
Readings:
Acts 4:13-21
Mark 16:9-15
April 19
Second Sunday of Easter
Divine Mercy Sunday
Readings:
Acts 2:42-47
1 Peter 1:3-9
John 20:19-31
April 20
Monday of the Second Week of Easter
Readings:
Acts 4:23-31
John 3:1-8
April 21
Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter
St. Anselm, bishop, religious and Doctor of the Church
Readings:
Acts 4:32-37
John 3:7-15
April 22
Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter
Readings:
Acts 5: 17-26
John 3:16-21
April 23
Thursday of the Second Week of Easter
St. George, martyr
St. Adalbert, bishop, religious and martyr
Readings:
Acts 5:27-33
John 3:31-36
April 24
Friday of the Second Week of Easter
St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen, priest, religious and martyr
Readings:
Acts 5:34-42
John 6:1-15
April 25
St. Mark, evangelist
Readings:
1 Peter 5:5-14
Mark 16:15-20
April 26
Third Sunday of Easter
Readings:
Acts 2:14,22-33
1 Peter 1:17-21
Luke 24:13-35
April 27
Monday of the Third Week of Easter
Readings:
Acts 6:8-15
John 6:22-29
April 28
Tuesday of the Third Week of Easter
St. Peter Chanel, priest, religious and martyr
St. Louis Mary de Montfort, priest and religious
Readings:
Acts 7:51-8:1
John 6:30-35
April 29
Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter
St. Catherine of Siena, virgin and Doctor of the Church
Readings:
Acts 8:1-8
John 6:35-40
April 30
Thursday of the Third Week of Easter
St. Pius V
Acts 8:26-40
John 6:44-51
The papal intention for April is that those suffering from addiction may be helped and accompanied.
Easter is celebrated for eight days (this year until April 19, Divine Mercy Sunday). The Easter season continues for 50 days and includes the celebration of the Ascension of Our Lord into Heaven (which this year in the Archdiocese of Washington is Sunday, May 24) and the celebration of Pentecost (which this year is Sunday, May 31).
Divine Mercy Sunday (April 19) is celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter Sunday and is a feast reported requested by Jesus Himself in an apparition to St. Faustina Kowalska. Divine Mercy Sunday was instituted by St. John Paul II in the Great Jubilee Year 2000. That pope called it “the Sunday of thanksgiving for all goodness that God has shown us in the whole Easter mystery.” The Divine Mercy devotion was begun in the late 1930s by St. Faustina, a Polish nun.
St. Anselm (April 21) was a 12th century abbot in Normandy who was later named archbishop of Canterbury. He was exiled twice from England for defending the Church. A noted theologian and philosopher, he was a prolific author and is sometimes called “the Father of Scholasticism.”
St. George (April 23) was decapitated for his faith in the third century in Palestine. Legends from the time of the Crusades have portrayed him as a knight and a dragon slayer. He is the patron saint of England and Constantinople.
St. Adalbert (April 23) was born in Bohemia in the 10th century and at the age of 26 was named bishop of Prague. Forced to flee Prague because of political opposition, he preached to the Prussians in Pomerania. He was martyred there in 997. He is the patron saint of Bohemia, the Czech Republic and Prussia, and one of the patron saints of Poland.
St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen (April 24) was a 17th century Swiss Capuchin who prior to becoming a priest was known as “the lawyer to the poor.” He was a popular preacher and was martyred in Switzerland.
St. Mark (April 25) was a cousin of St. Barnabas and was associated with St. Paul and St. Peter. The Gospel ascribed to him is the oldest and shortest of the four Gospels. Tradition holds that St. Mark was the first bishop of Alexandria. He is the patron saint of Egypt, Venice and of notaries.
St. Peter Chanel (April 26) was a French missionary to various Pacific islands and fought pagan cults there that worshipped evil spirits. He was martyred in 1841.
St. Louis Mary de Montfort (April 28) was a French hospital chaplain who founded the Congregation of the Daughters of Wisdom women's religious order and the Missionaries of the Company of Mary men's religious order. He was a charismatic preacher and wrote “True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin.”
St. Catherine of Siena (April 29) was a 14th century Third Order Dominican who was also a mystic and author of “The Dialogue.” She worked towards healing rifts within the Catholic Church and renewing religious life. She also worked to return the papacy to Rome from Avignon. She was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1970, and is one of the patron saints of Italy. Along with St. Bridget of Sweden and St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, St. Catherine of Siena is co-patroness of Europe.
St. Pius V (April 30) served as pope in the 16th century. He was a Dominican and implemented the reforms of the Council of Trent. He also promulgated the use of the Roman Catechism, the Roman Missal and the Roman Breviary. He was well-known for his Counter-Reformation efforts, and he was the pope who excommunicated Elizabeth I of England.
(This listing of Mass readings and information on feast days was compiled by Richard Szczepanowski, the managing editor of the Catholic Standard newspaper of the Archdiocese of Washington.)
