Two “Unknown” Summer Feasts of Our Lord

Source: District of the USA

Catholics the world over know by heart the major feasts of Our Lord Jesus Christ: Christmas, Easter, Epiphany, and so forth. The summer months, however, contain two lesser-known feasts, one Latin and one Slavo-Greek. For the Latin Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (“Redemptorists”), the third Sunday of July is set aside for the Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer while Greek Catholics who follow the eastern Slavic calendar (e.g., Russians and Ukrainians) celebrate the Feast of the All-Merciful Savior and His Most Holy Mother on August 1. Though these celebrations developed independently of one another, they converge on calling to mind Our Lord’s unending mercy for us.

The Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer’s origins date back to 16th century Venice. In 1749, through a concession granted by Pope Benedict XV, the Redemptorists were permitted to keep the feast as a First Class Double (equivalent to a First Class Feast on the 1962 Roman Calendar) with an octave. Moreover, the Congregation was permitted to celebrate a votive Office to the Most Holy Redeemer once-a-month. The feast is an expression of joy and gratitude for the great gift of the Redemption. Consider the Introit of the Mass, which is taken from Isaias 61:10 and Psalm 88:2:

I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, and my soul shall be joyful in my God. For He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, and with the robe of justice He hath covered me. The mercies of the Lord I will sing forever: I will shew forth Thy truth with my mouth to generation and generation.

Even though the Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer is rarely celebrated today, Catholics can keep this commemoration alive in their hearts by reciting the Mass Collect on the third Sunday in July or as part of their regular prayer rule:

O God, who didst establish Thy only begotten Son as Redeemer of the world and through Him, having overcome death, didst restore us mercifully unto life: grant that, recollecting these benefits, we may be made worthy to receive the fruit of that redemption. 

Among eastern Slavic Christians, August 1 (or thereabouts) is traditionally held to be the date when St. Volodymyr, Prince of Kyiv, received baptism and inaugurated the Christianization of Rus. It is also the date when Greek Catholics traditionally begin the Dormition (Assumption) Fast in anticipation of Our Lady’s repose. As such, a special feast of thanksgiving to Our Lord, and by natural extension His Mother, was instituted at the beginning of August. 

For these Christians, it is the first of three major feasts to Our Savior in August, with the other two being His Transfiguration (August 6) and His Image Not-Made-By Hands (August 16), which celebrates the transfer of the shroud containing Our Lord’s face from the Syrian city of Edessa to Constantinople in 944.

The hymnography for the Feast of the All-Merciful Savior runs parallel with the hymns and prayers of the Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer. Consider the following hymn sung at Vespers:

O most merciful Christ, we, the faithful, sing the praises of Thy festival, for Thou didst come from the Father to save us. Wherefore, we hymn Thee with songs of thanksgiving, for as God Thou hast revealed Thy divine power, most gloriously working a miracle for the salvation of us who do good. Therefore, we glorify Thy dispensation, O Merciful One, O almighty Jesus, Savior of our souls

St. Alphonsus Liguori, founder of the Redemptorists, once observed: “What does it cost us to say: ‘My God help me! Have mercy on me!’ Is there anything easier than this? And this little will suffice to save us if we be diligent in doing it.” Both feasts are an invitation to do just that while maintaining a spirit of thanksgiving for the mercy Our Lord shows us in return. Regardless of which traditional rite a Catholic follows, the Church—East and West—reminds us perpetually that what we need above all else is God. This is as true in the summer as in every other season He gives to us.