Tuesday

I got quite a few good presents this year. My eldest son, Alex, bought me the reputedly best gin in the world (more on that in a later BYCU) and my other kids got me a bunch of stuff to help with my hobbies (gardening and cocktailing).

But one of my best gifts was The St. James Calendar of the Christian Year. TDE readers can expect many posts this year that are triggered by calendar entries.

I have never found a calendar (online or otherwise) that covers all the saints, both western and eastern. This one does, plus it throws in commemorations from Anglican and Lutheran calendars. My only suggestion for this great product is to give purchasers the ability to access it online, with hyperlinks to the various entries. That would be nifty.

Random sample of a calendar entry (from today):

Syncletica of Alexandria V c. 400
Apollinaria V Egypt 5th c. R; E Jan. 4
John Neumann B Philadelphia 1860 R

Granted, I'd never heard of Syncletica or Apollinaria, but I keep the calendar next to my computer, so it's pretty easy to find information about them.

Even if the information is not edifying. A quick search for "Apollinaria of Egypt" reveals that gay Catholics celebrate her as a transgendered saint. I would provide the link, but I try to restrict my links to pages that don't induce vomiting.