(Encyclopedia) feast, commemorative banquet symbolizing communal unity. Generally associated with primitive rituals and later with religious practices, feasts may also commemorate such events as…
Note: The day of an eclipse is given in Universal Time (UT) and may start a day earlier or later depending on your time zone. (See Phenomena, 2007, to find time of eclipse.)March 3–4. Total…
(Encyclopedia) Joseph, Saint, husband of the Virgin Mary, a carpenter, a descendant of the house of David. He was apparently dead at the time of the Passion, for his last appearance in the Gospels is…
(Encyclopedia) Birrell, AugustineBirrell, Augustinebĭrˈəl [key], 1850–1933, English essayist and public official. As chief secretary for Ireland (1907–16) his failure to end the plotting that…
(Encyclopedia) bank holidays, days when the law requires that banks be closed. In the United States the list varies from state to state but generally includes, besides the major holidays, many days…
Irish novelist, playwright, and screenwriterBorn: 1958Birthplace: Dublin, Ireland Doyle's work is rooted in his experience as a schoolteacher in working-class Dublin. International recognition came…
(Encyclopedia) Ash Wednesday, in the Western Church, the first day of Lent, being the seventh Wednesday before Easter. On this day ashes are placed on the foreheads of the faithful to remind them of…
(Encyclopedia) Brooks, Phillips, 1835–93, American Episcopal bishop, b. Boston. In 1869 he began his ministry at Trinity Church, Boston, where he became one of the most influential ministers of his…
