Third Sunday of Easter

Saint Ælfheah, often called Alphege, was born around 953 in Anglo-Saxon England. Entering monastic life while still young, he sought deeper union with God as an anchorite at Bath, where his austerity and prayerful zeal soon led to his election as abbot of Bath Abbey. In 984 he was chosen Bishop of Winchester, serving the Church with pastoral energy—building up worship, enlarging churches, and strengthening devotion to the saints, especially Swithun and the great reformer Dunstan. He also encouraged learning and helped guide souls toward faith, even assisting in the conversion of the Viking leader Olaf Tryggvason. In 1006 Ælfheah became Archbishop of Canterbury. His ministry was marked by liturgical renewal and steadfast leadership during troubled times. When Viking raiders captured him in 1011, he refused to let others pay a ransom for his life. After months of captivity, he was martyred at Greenwich on 19 April 1012, becoming the first Archbishop of Canterbury to die violently for Christ. He is venerated as patron of Greenwich, Solihull, and kidnapping victims. His feast day is April 19.

Pope Saint Leo IX was born Bruno von Egisheim-Dagsburg on June 21, 1002, at Egisheim in Upper Alsace (present-day France), the youngest son of a noble family. Entrusted as a child to the care of the Bishop of Toul, he grew into a learned and devout churchman, becoming a canon at Toul and, in 1027, bishop of that frontier diocese. For more than twenty years he shepherded his people through famine and war, worked for peace among rival powers, and became known for his zeal in renewing Church life, especially in the spirit of Cluny. Chosen to succeed Pope Damasus II, Bruno insisted on a free, canonical election in Rome. Entering the city in pilgrim garb, he was elected and consecrated pope on February 12, 1049, taking the name Leo IX. His pontificate was marked by tireless travel, synods, and reform—opposing simony and urging clerical celibacy—while his troubled relations with Constantinople helped set the stage for the Great Schism of 1054. He is venerated as a saint and is patron of Colliano, Guardia Lombardi, and Sessa Aurunca. His feast day is April 19.