Saint’s day explanation

Let an inveterate liturgical trainspotter explain. In both the Anglican and Roman Catholic calendars, no saint’s day is observed on any day between Palm Sunday and the Sunday after Easter, nor on any Sunday in Lent or Easter. This year, St George’s Day falls foul of both these rules.

In most of the world, his day is skipped this year. In England, Catalonia and other countries or regions where the feast has a higher than normal rank, it is transferred to the first free day, in this case Monday April 24. St Patrick’s Day is similarly affected, but is transferred more widely if it falls on a forbidden day, being observed on the first free day in most countries with a large Irish diaspora.

And a random thought: a sad sight just around the corner from the Express & Star’s offices is the once glorious parish church of St George, now part of the former Sainsbury’s. How about investigating whether it could be brought back into use for one day on St George’s Day 2018 – 50 years on since I last attended a liturgical function there.

Alan T Harrison, Walsall