le 28 octobre AD 2005/AM 7514

Today is the Feast Day of Ss Simon and Jude, App.

Their biographies from «The Catholic Encyclopædia»:

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13796b.htm (St Simon)
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08542b.htm (St Jude Thaddeus)

The Mediæval Saint of the Day is also Ss Simon & Jude, from Dan Hewitt's Group:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Medieval_Saints/message/1246

Today's Martyrology:

http://www.breviary.net/martyrology/mart10/mart1028.htm

Tomorrow's Martyrology, for those who recite Prime:

http://www.breviary.net/martyrology/mart10/mart1029.htm

On this day:

AD 312, Constantine the Great defeats Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maxentius at the Milvian Bridge. It was just before this battle that Constantine had his vision of the the Most Holy Cross and saw or heard «Εν Τουτω Νικα», often rendered in Latin as «In Hoc Signo Vinces» — «With this sign, you shall conquer.» This vision led to the Christianisation of the Empire and the glorious birth of our Greco-Roman Catholic civilisation and Culture!

AD 969, After a prolonged siege, the Byzantines end 300 years of Arab rule in Antioch. Unfortunately, this was only a temporary victory for our side, since the jihadists later reconquered Antioch, where St Peter had ruled as Bishop before going to Rome and where we were first called Christians and they still hold it!

AD 1628, After a fifteen-month siege, the Huguenot town of La Rochelle surrenders to royal forces. And whilst the power of the heretic protestants was weakened, it would never end. To this day, the majority of non-atheist ministers in any left-wing government in France are protestants!

AD 1958, The Roman Catholic patriarch of Venice, Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, was elected pope, taking the name John XXIII. And soon convoked the Second Ecumenical Council of the Vaican!