April 25 is the feast of St. Mark the Evangelist, the author of the second Gospel and the founder, by tradition, of the Church of Alexandria. Mark was a companion of both Paul and Peter — the first epistle of Peter calls him "my son Mark" (1 Peter 5:13) — and his Gospel, the earliest and shortest, gives the most vivid account of Christ's ministry and Passion.
According to the tradition preserved at Venice, Mark's relics were translated from Alexandria in 828 by two Venetian merchants, Buono da Malamocco and Rustico da Torcello, who smuggled them past the Muslim guards by hiding them under pork. The first St. Mark's Basilica was built to house them; the present basilica, consecrated in 1094, is the third on the site. The body of the evangelist lies under the high altar, and the great mosaic cycle over the main portal tells the story of the translation.
The Church of Alexandria, which Mark founded, is the oldest apostolic see after Rome. The Coptic Orthodox Church, descended from that first community, venerates Mark as its first patriarch, and his feast is kept on April 25 by Copts, Catholics, and Orthodox alike. The lion of St. Mark — the winged lion of the evangelist — stands on the column in the Piazza San Marco and on every flagpole of the Venetian empire.
Connected Destinations
Venice
Italy · Europe
Where three Patriarchs became Popes and Christendom's great relics—St. Mark, St. Lucy, St. Zacharias—rest in golden basilicas rising from the lagoon.
Alexandria
Egypt · Africa
Alexandria holds profound Catholic significance as the historical seat of St. Mark the Evangelist and center of early Christianity, with St. Catherine's Cathedral serving as the main Catholic pilgrimage destination.
Rome
Italy · Europe
Rome holds the tombs of Peter and Paul, the four papal basilicas, the Holy Stairs and the catacombs of the early Church.