OF THE FASTS AND FESTIVALS OF THE CHURCH, Arranged according to the Calendar; COMPRISING EXPLANATIONS OF THE NAMES OF THE MONTHS, WITH BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF THE PERSONS. AND HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS OF THE EVENTS ON WHICH THE FESTIVALS ARE Founded. TO WHICH ARE ADDED, A SKETCH OF THE ORIGIN AND NATURE OF ALMANACKS, AND EXPLANATIONS OF THEIR CHRONOLOGICAL AND ASTRONOMICAL TERMS. OTHE LONDON: THOMAS BROOKS, 8 BAKER STREET, PORTMAN SQUARE. MDCCCXLIII. PREFACE. THE want of a work like the present has long been so evident, that no apology can be necessary for its publication; as the information it contains is of that kind which all persons are expected to possess, and are anxious to acquire, but which few know where to obtain. It will be found not only to give Biographical Sketches of the Persons, and Historical Accounts of the Events, upon which the Fasts and Festivals are founded, forming a complete elucidation of the Prayer-Book Calendar; but it presents a Sketch of the Origin and Nature of Almanacks in general, an Explanation of their Chronological Terms, and a Concise Description of various particulars contained in the Astronomical Department of these useful publications; so that it may be called a Companion to every Almanack. The whole is compiled from the best sources of Biography, Ecclesiastical History, and Antiquity, the authorities for which are to be found at the foot of each page as they occur. THE ORIGIN OF THE FASTS AND FESTIVALS. The Feasts and Fasts of Obligations are distinguished from the Saints' Days and Holidays of the Church of Rome, by the former being printed in CAPITALS, and the latter in Italics. JANUARY. JANUARY, the name of the first month in the year, according to the computation now used in the West. The word is derived from the Latin Januarius, a name given it by the Romans, from Janus, one of their deities, to whom they attributed two faces, because on the one side the first of January looked towards the new year, and on the other towards the old. On the 20th of this month the sun enters Aquarius. 1st.-CIRCUMCISION. This day is kept as a festival to commemorate the Circumcision of our Lord Jesus Christ. This rite was first enjoined Abraham by God, and afterwards repeated to Moses. It was to be per |