Catholic Family Devotions

Understanding the Day

Season

Eastertide

Week

Week 6 of Eastertide

Rank

Sunday or semidouble observance

This feast falls in Eastertide, the fifty-day season celebrating Christ’s Resurrection and the new life it brings. During Eastertide the Church focuses on joy, baptismal identity, and the spread of the Gospel. The rank “Semidouble” is an older liturgical designation indicating a more solemn celebration than an ordinary feast: antiphons and certain psalmody are doubled and the Office and Mass receive particular attention, though it is not as solemn as a double major or principal feast. The title names several martyrs—Nereus, Achilleus, Domitilla (noted here as a virgin), and Pancras—whose witness to Christ is commemorated. Because this is a feast in the Easter season, its celebration emphasizes the martyrs’ participation in Christ’s paschal mystery: their faithful witness unto death is seen as a share in his victory over sin and death.

Introit (Daily Prayer)

Ps. 32:18-20.
But see, the eyes of the Lord are upon those who fear Him, upon those who hope in His kindness, alleluia: to deliver them from death; for He is our help and our shield, alleluia, alleluia.
Ps 32:1
Exult, you just, in the Lord; praise from the upright is fitting.
Glory Be to the Father…

May the holy feast of Your Martyrs, Nereus, Achilleus, Domitilla and Pancras, ever comfort us, we beseech You, O Lord, and make us worthy to serve You.
Through our Lord…

Weekly Prayer

Morning Offering

O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer You my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day for all the intentions of Your Sacred Heart,

in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world, in thanksgiving for Your favors, in reparation for my sins,

for the intentions of all my associates, and in particular for the intention recommended by the Holy Father this month.

Weekly Formation

Commandment 3

The Ten Commandments

Remember to keep holy the Lord’s Day.
The Third Commandment sets apart the Lord’s Day for divine worship and true rest from ordinary labor. For Catholics this is fulfilled especially by assisting at Mass on Sundays and holy days and by allowing the day to serve God, the soul, and the duties of charity.

Saint & Feast

Principal celebration

Nereus

Ss. Nereus, Achilleus and Domitilla the Virgin and Pancras, Martyrs

Roman Christian martyrs

Died: 0290-00-00

Nereus and Achilleus are two Roman martyr saints. In the present General Roman Calendar, revised in 1969, Nereus and Achilleus (together) are celebrated on 12 May.

Learn more about Nereus

Today in Church History

Assassination Attempt on Pope John Paul II in Fátima
1982Event
In 1982, an assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II was thwarted during a visit to the shrine of Our Lady of Fátima. The attempt was made by a Spanish priest named Juan María Fernández y Krohn, who was opposed to the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. This event highlighted the ongoing threats faced by the Pope and reinforced the significance of the Virgin Mary's intercession in the life of the Church.
The protection of the Pope serves as a reminder of divine providence and the power of prayer.

Catechism

Catechism of the Catholic Church

The Catechism teaches that sacramental celebrations are woven from signs and symbols rooted in creation, human culture, the Old Covenant, and fully revealed in Christ. Because we are body and spirit, we express and perceive spiritual realities through visible signs, including words, gestures, and actions. Creation itself—from light and water to trees and fruit—speaks of God’s greatness and nearness, while human actions such as washing, anointing, breaking bread, and sharing the cup can express God’s sanctifying action and our worship. The signs of the Old Covenant foreshadowed the sacraments, and Jesus gave these signs their fullest meaning. Since Pentecost, the Holy Spirit continues the work of sanctification through the sacramental signs of the Church, which make present Christ’s saving work and anticipate the glory of heaven.

¶ 1145

A sacramental celebration is woven from signs and symbols. In keeping with the divine pedagogy of salvation, their meaning is rooted in the work of creation and in human culture, specified by the events of the Old Covenant and fully revealed in the person and work of Christ.

¶ 1146

Signs of the human world. In human life, signs and symbols occupy an important place. As a being at once body and spirit, man expresses and perceives spiritual realities through physical signs and symbols. As a social being, man needs signs and symbols to communicate with others, through language, gestures, and actions. the same holds true for his relationship with God.

Today's Mass Readings

Open the day's Sancta MissaDivinum Officium · Divino Afflatu - 1954View readings