Major Rogation Day

As we continue our Easter Novena, we recall that today, April 25th, is the traditional “Litania Maior”, “The Greater Litany” or Major Rogation Day, which was a traditional day for asking for God’s blessings on His people and their lands. “An Old English Martyrology” describes it thus:

“On the twenty-fifth day of the month there is at Rome and in all the churches of God a festival that is call Litania maior, that is, the day of great prayers. On this day all godly folks whilst humbly visiting relics shall pray to God that during the year He may give them peaceful times and fair weather and sufficient crops and health of their bodies. This day the Greeks call exomologesis, that means the day of repentance and penance.”