At noon, the chaplet to St. Mary Magdalene will be recited, followed by Stations of the Cross at 1 p.m. and a talk on "St. Mary Magdalene and the Holy Eucharist" at 3 p.m. A litany to the saint will be recited at 4:30 p.m., followed by Mass at 5 p.m.

Veneration of the relic will be encouraged all day between scheduled events and until 7 p.m.

St. Mary Magdalene, often referred to as "apostle to the Apostles," was present at the crucifixion and was the first to see the risen Jesus after the resurrection. One tradition says that after the crucifixion, Mary and some other close followers of Jesus were cast out to sea in a boat without rudder or sails. They miraculously came to shore on the coast of Gaul near what is now Marseilles. After converting the local populace, Mary retired to a mountain cave and spent the last 30 years of her life in solitude.

The tradition says that her relics disappeared about 710 A.D. when the Saracens invaded the south of France, then were rediscovered in 1279 and have been the object of pilgrimage and veneration ever since.

For more information, call (618) 283-1327 or e-mail .