Special June feasts to put on your calendar

June is full of an array of joyful liturgical feasts that help us draw closer to Jesus Christ and the saints.

June is a unique month in the liturgical year, as it follows the Easter season and resumes the celebration of Ordinary Time.

It contains a number of joyful feasts that highlight various aspects of the faith, as well as helping us to celebrate the lives of saints who laid the foundation of the Church.

Be sure to put these important feasts on your calendar!

St. Charles Lwanga and Companions (June 3)

A memorial celebrating the lives of 22 Ugandan martyrs who were killed in the 19th century.

Corpus Christi (June 4 or June 6)

Celebrated on the Thursday or Sunday following the feast of Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi focuses on the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.

St. Ephrem (June 9)

St. Ephrem is a Doctor of the Church and composed many poems and hymns to the Blessed Virgin Mary in the 4th century.

Sacred Heart of Jesus (June 11)

This feast, following the celebration of Corpus Christi, honors Jesus and the immense love he has for us in his Heart.

Immaculate Heart of Mary (June 12)

Connected to the feast of the Sacred Heart, the memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary highlights the Virgin Mary’s pure and virtuous heart.

St. Aloysius Gonzaga (June 21)

A 16th-century Jesuit, St. Aloysius carried the sick and dying to the hospital when a plague hit the city of Rome.

St. Thomas More (June 22)

An English martyr of the 16th century, St. Thomas More refused to approve Henry VIII’s divorce and remarriage and the establishment of the Church of England.

Birth of St. John the Baptist (June 24)

This feast celebrates the birth of St. John the Baptist, the “forerunner” who prepared the way for the birth of Jesus.

St. Josemaria Escriva (June 26)

Founder of Opus Dei, St. Josemaria was an influential Spanish priest during the 20th century.

St. Irenaeus (June 28)

A Father of the Church, St. Ireaneus lived in the 2nd century and was a vital part of the early Church.

Sts. Peter and Paul (June 29)

The feast of Sts. Peter and Paul celebrates the lives of the apostle Peter and the missionary Paul, both essential leaders in the early Church.

First Martyrs of the Church of Rome (June 30)

This final feast of June honors the sacrifice of the Christians who died from the persecution of Emperor Nero in the year 64.