Thursday 5 February 2026
Saint Agatha, Virgin, Martyr
on Thursday of week 4 in Ordinary Time
About Today
Year: A(II). Psalm week: 4. Liturgical Colour: Red.
St Agatha
— St Peter Healing St Agatha (c.1614) by Giovanni Lanfranco (1582-1647).
She was martyred at Catania in Sicily, probably during the persecution of Decius (250-253). Devotion to her was widespread in the Church in the earliest times and she is mentioned in the Roman Canon of the Mass.
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Collect
May the Virgin Martyr Saint Agatha
implore your compassion for us, O Lord, we pray,
for she found favour with you
by the courage of her martyrdom
and the merit of her chastity.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
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Liturgical colour: red
Red is the colour of fire and of blood. Liturgically, it is used to celebrate the fire of the Holy Spirit (for instance, at Pentecost) and the blood of the martyrs.