Easter Sunday 1863

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5 EASTER SUNDAY. Double of the first class. with an Octave during which Creed. White. Vespers of the feast. Plenary Indulgence.

6 EASTER Monday. (Feast of Devotion) Double of the first class. White.

7 EASTER Tuesday. (Feast of Devotion) Double of the first class. White.

8 Wednesday. Of the Octave, semidouble. Feria. Second Prayers for the Church or the Pope. White.

9 Thursday. Of the Octave, semidouble. Feria. Second Prayers for the Church or the Pope. White.

10 Friday. Of the Octave, semidouble. Feria. Second Prayers for the Church or the Pope. White. Abstention.

11 Saturday. Of the Octave, semidouble. Feria. Second Prayers for the Church or the Pope. White.

Of all Octaves. Easter's is the simplest, but it is the simplicity of pure white light, not of starkness.  The readings all recall the days when the neophytes who had been baptised at Easter would be at Mass each day in their white garments. They are focused as follows:

Sunday: Jesus is risen: He is truly God.
Monday: Emmaus: the Resurrection of Our Lord is the pledge of all graces.
Tuesday: Our moral gratitude of soul, fruit of the Resurrection.
Wednesday: The Resurrection is the pledge of our eternal happiness.
Thursday: The victory of Jesus over sin and death.
Friday: The victory of Jesus over death and hell.
Saturday: The Resurrection has brought true happiness into the world.

All week the Easter Sequence (Victimae paschali) is sung before the Gospel, as though it were still Easter Sunday and throughout the week there are no commemorations: St Vincent Ferrer and Pope St Leo I will simply be transferred to later in the month. Easter glory fills the sky and continues to do so all week, even if the intensity is slightly relaxed from Wednesday onwards, when in ordinary parish churches, low Masses replace the High Masses said on Monday and Tuesday.

There are six Catholic Churches in Preston. All bar St Mary's are licensed for marriages. St Augustine Apostle of England is a Missionary Rectory, and has at least one Holy Guild attached to it. Four of the churches are served by Jesuits.

I mentioned the Society of St Anselm on mid-Lent Sunday, and said that its aim seemed to be the publication of reputable books.  In fact, it is a lot more thorough than that. (For those interested, the London Joint Stock Bank became part of the Midland Bank in 1917.)

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