Tuesday, 5 February, 2008
ST. AGATHA, Virgin, Martyr (III)
“Born in Sicily of noble parents, St. Agatha suffered dreadful torture at the hands of her persecutors, but she was healed on the following night by a vision of St. Peter. Other sufferings were inflicted upon her, and from these she died A.D. 254.”

Collect: O God, who among the other marvels of Thy power, hast granted even to the weaker sex the victory of martyrdom: mercifully grant: that we who celebrate the heavenly birthday of blessed Agatha, Thy Virgin and Martyr, may by her example draw nearer to Thee. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who livest and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, world without end.
Epistle: From the First Letter of Bl. Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians, 1:26-31.
Gospel: Continuation of the holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, 19:3-12.

Remarks are abstracted from The Daily Missal and Liturgical Manual, from Editio Typica of the Roman Missal and Breviary, 1962
(Baronius Press Limited, London, 2004, in conjunction with the Fraternal Society of St. Peter, www.baroniuspress.com)