Saints

This day commemorates all those who died in the persecutions of Nero, in the late first century. It always falls after the feast of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. Little is known about many of these early Christians. Because of the lack of information, after 1969, several individual names were left out of the list of saints. Remembering them as a group in this way makes up for those whose histories h... Read More

St Peter was in many ways the most impetuous of the apostles. A fisherman in Galilee when he met Jesus for the first time, he was told he would become a fisherman of men. His name originally was Simon. Jesus changed it to Kephas, an Aramaic word meaning rock. When Jesus asked who the disciples thought who he was Peter said immediately: "You are the Christ. The Son of the Living God." Jesus repli... Read More

Archbishop. Martyr. Born in Co Meath, Ireland, in 1625, at a time when penal laws against Catholics were very severe, Oliver studied with the Jesuits in Rome and became professor of theology at the Propaganda College. In 1669 he was made Bishop of Armagh at Ghent and returned to Ireland. The church had become very neglected because of years of persecution and the shortage of bishops. Within his ... Read More