The Queenship of Mary

From a meditation by Bishop Alban Goodier:

It was the end at last and the new beginning
Mary conceived Immaculate, therefore Queen of Angels
Mary the Second Eve, therefore Queen of Patriarchs
Mary Mother of the Messias, therefore Queen of Prophets
Mary Mother of Jesus the King, therefore Queen of Apostles
Mary whose soul was pierced, therefore Queen of Martyrs
Mary round whom the Church gathered, therefore Queen of Confessors
Mary who heard and kept the Word, therefore Queen of Doctors
Mary the Virgin Mother, therefore Queen of Virgins
Mary full of grace, therefore Queen of All Saints
Mary the Handmaid of the Lord, therefore Queen of Peace
Whom all generations shall call blessed,
coming to her on earth, coming to her in heaven,
Her soul magnifies the Lord, her spirit doth rejoice in God our Saviour

Pope Pius XII in his encyclical Ad Coeli Reginam wrote "We decree and establish the feast of Mary's Queenship, which is to be celebrated every year in the whole world on the 31st of May. We likewise ordain that on the same day the consecration of the human race to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary be renewed, cherishing the hope that through such consecration a new era may begin, joyous in Christian peace and in the triumph of religion."

Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, Refuge of the human race, Victress in all God's battles, we humbly prostrate ourselves before thy throne, confident that we shall receive mercy, grace, and bountiful assistance and protection in the present calamity, not through our own inadequate merits, but solely through the great goodness of thy maternal Heart.

To thee, to thy Immaculate Heart, in this, humanity's tragic hour, we consign and consecrate ourselves, in union not only with the Mystical Body of thy Son, Holy Mother Church, now in such suffering and agony in so many places and sorely tried in so many ways, but also with the entire world, torn by fierce strife, consumed in a fire of hate, victim of its own wickedness.

May the sight of the widespread material and moral destruction, of the sorrows and anguish of countless fathers and mothers, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, and innocent children, of the great number of lives cut off in the flower of youth, of the bodies mangled in horrible slaughter, and of the tortured and agonized souls in danger of being lost eternally, move thee to compassion!

O Mother of Mercy, obtain for us from God, and above all procure for us those graces which prepare, establish and assure peace! Queen of Peace, pray for us and give to the world now at war the peace for which all people are longing, peace in the truth, justice, and charity of Christ. Give peace to the warring nations and to the souls of men, that in the tranquillity of order the Kingdom of God may prevail.

Extend thy protection to the infidels and to all those still in the shadow of death; give them peace and grant that on them, too, may shine the sun of truth, that they may unite with us, proclaiming before the one and only Saviour of the world, 'Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to men of good will' (Luke 2:14).

Give peace to the peoples separated by error or by discord, and especially to those who profess such singular devotion to thee and in whose homes an honoured place was ever accorded thy venerated image, now perhaps often kept hidden to await better days: bring them back to the one fold of Christ under the one true Shepherd.

Obtain peace and complete freedom for the Holy Church of God; stay the spreading flood of modem paganism; enkindle in the faithful the love of purity, the practice of Christian life, and an apostolic zeal, so that the servants of God may increase in merit and in number.

Lastly, as the Church and the entire human race were consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, so that in reposing all hope in Him, He might become for them the sign and pledge of victory and salvation: so we in like manner consecrate ourselves for ever also to thee and to thy Immaculate Heart, our Mother and Queen, that thy love and patronage may hasten the triumph of the Kingdom of God and that all nations, at peace with one another and with God, may proclaim thee blessed and with thee may raise their voices to resound from pole to pole in the chant of the everlasting Magnificat of glory, love, and gratitude to the Heart of Jesus, where alone they can find truth and peace.

Quotable Quote 6

Fr. Edward McNamara in his weekly response to liturgical questions on Zenit had this to say regarding reception of communion at an Episcopalian service:

"For a Catholic, participating at Mass and receiving Communion should be the zenith of life in the Church toward which all other activities are ordained and from which they receive their strength. Receiving Communion expresses the Catholic's union of heart, mind and soul to Christ and his Church. Receiving Christ's Body affirms our belief in all that the Church teaches with respect to this sublime mystery. It also affirms our belief in Christ's incarnation, passion, death and resurrection which is the Eucharist's foundation. Christ's Church makes the Eucharist. [emphasis added] Because it is such a strong statement of faith, we could say that a Catholic is never more Catholic than when receiving the Lord. And this is why we can never partake of the Eucharist in another ecclesial community which does not have the fullness of the Eucharist and the priesthood."

And to those who ask which is Christ's Church, I shall let my namesake the Christian apologist Lucius Lactantius answer, "Therefore it is the Catholic Church alone which retains true worship. This is the fountain of truth, this is the abode of the faith, this is the temple of God; into which if any one shall not enter, or from which if any shall go out, he is estranged from the hope of life and eternal salvation... But, however, because all the separate assemblies of heretics call themselves Christians in preference to others, and think that theirs is the Catholic Church, it must be known that the true Catholic Church is that in which there is confession and repentance, which treats in a wholesome manner the sins and wounds to which the weakness of the flesh is liable." (Chapter XXX, Book IV, The Divine Institutes)

The latest news from Reuters is that Dutch paedophiles intend forming a political party, which they call of all things Charity, Freedom and Diversity. Their policies include reducing the age of consent to twelve, legalizing child pornography and bestiality, unrestricted television access to pornography, sex education for toddlers and legalization of all drugs.

While the report does make it clear the party is unlikely to win much support it is the very fact that such a party could be allowed to exist and contest elections which causes me the greatest offence. I am not sure of the process for registering a party but I hope that it includes ensuring its leaders are not former criminals.

And to those who remark that I should "love the sinner but hate the sin", God himself has declared, "I desire not the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way, and live." (Ezekiel 33:11)

PS Now that there will be a regular indult Mass in Holland, prayers can be offered in reparation.

Apostle of Joy

Yesterday was the feast of a saint dear to my heart, St Philip Neri, second apostle of Rome and founder of the Oratorians.

A Florentine, he went to Rome to seek his own sanctification and that of his neighbours. There he spent his time in prayer and study, practicing charity and mortification, before being ordained under obedience to his confessor. His ministry was devoted to penance, prayer, preaching, and promoting reception of the sacraments. He received the gift of prophecy, read consciences, performed miracles, received apparitions of our Lady and went into ecstasy during Mass. He died at midnight after the Feast of Corpus Christi. One of the most popular anecdotes in his life involved a business man who would leave church immediately after communion, without showing any hospitality to the guest he had received into his soul by offering even a moment's thanksgiving. One day St. Philip sent two servers with candles to accompany him and his sacramental Lord on the street, prompting him in the future to spend a time in prayer.

One of my favourite prayers is St. Philip's Act of Faith in the Real Presence:
O MY JESUS, dwelling in the Blessed Sacrament, as the meanest of Thy creatures, lost in my own nothingness, prostrate before the throne of Thy great Majesty, profoundly do I adore Thee with all my spirit, with all the powers of my soul; and here I acknowledge Thee, veiled beneath the Sacramental Species, as my God, my Creator, my last end. With true and living faith I believe that in this adorable Sacrament Thou Thyself, true God and true Man, art present, Who being the sole-begotten Son of God didst yet, from Thy great love for man, take to Thyself human flesh in the most pure womb of Mary ever Virgin, by the operation of the Holy Ghost; therefore wast Thou born poor, in a vile manger; therefore didst Thou live subject to men. And now that, having conquered death and Hell, Thou dost sit glorious at the right hand of Thy Father, I believe that, without abandoning the Heavenly throne of Thy glory, Thou dost yet dwell substantially and really in this ineffable Sacrament, wherein I glorify Thee as God in the firmament of Thy Church, as the Lamb enthroned upon His seat of love, as the Priest of the Sanctuary of all grace, as the sweet Manna of all consolation and as the Arbiter of my eternal fate in this court of mercy. Yes, my dear Jesus, all this I declare and believe, as Thou hast commanded me, and as Thy spouse, the Catholic Church, my mother, teaches. Amen.

Perhaps the best summary of St. Philip's life could be these words from St. Paul, the first on the fruits of the Spirit, which he bore in such abundance, and the second on the duties of the Christian.
"Fructus autem Spiritus est caritas, gaudium, pax, longanimitas, bonitas, benignitas, fides, modestia, continentia adversus huiusmodi non est lex." (Gal 5:22-23)
"Semper gaudete, sine intermissione orate, in omnibus gratias agite haec enim voluntas Dei est in Christo Iesu in omnibus vobis." (1 Thess 5:16-18)

The world's latest theme park is dedicated to ...

what is meant to be the most intimate expression of conjugal love.

According to a BBC report, London's latest tourist attraction is the Amora - Academy of Sex and Relationships, which hopes to becomes the European equivalent of the infamous Kinsey Institute for generations X and Y. Its purpose is to "separate fact from myth and educate everyone into being better lovers", and all for just £15. Visitors will be able to touch erogenous zones on life-sized silicone models, build their ideal partner, discover the truth about love and learn about the dangers of unsafe sex. Now what must be emphasized is that this is not just a theme park but a research institute as well, so visitors should probably except to be approached by someone with a clipboard and asked to take a quick ten minute survey.

I might have expected this in Holland or Brazil, maybe even the USA, since it has just about every other form of theme park, but England. Oh well, at least the founders have refused financial support from the sex industry, on the grounds they do not want to appear sleazy, and entry will be restricted to people over 18.

O Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God and our most gentle Queen and Mother, look down in mercy upon England thy "Dowry" and upon us all who greatly hope and trust in thee. By thee it was that Jesus our Saviour and our hope was given unto the world; and He has given thee to us that we might hope still more. Plead for us thy children, whom thou didst receive and accept at the foot of the Cross, O sorrowful Mother. Intercede for our separated brethren, that with us in the one true fold they may be united to the supreme Shepherd, the Vicar of thy Son. Pray for us all, dear Mother, that by faith fruitful in good works we may all deserve to see and praise God, together with thee, in our heavenly home. Amen.

[Unfortunately there is no online version of the Litany of Intercession for England. However since this is an offence against chastity, modesty and purity, who better to invoke than the model of these virtues.]

What Australian's will (possibly) be watching this week

First there is a documentary on the "distinguished" Dr Alfred Kinsey, who in the words of Benjamin Walker "perfected the art of using science to mask his distorted [sexual] desires, so that he could all the more effectively remold society in his own dismal image."

Saturday night features The Second Coming, about a young man appearing at a soccer stadium to announce he is the son of God and humanity will be doomed unless a third testament is added to the Bible ... in five days. It's like Joseph Smith writes on golden tablets underneath a goal post. The following evening there is a documentary on Opus Dei and the Da Vinci Code, presumably a follow up to last week's on conspiracies, controversies and cover-ups within OD.

Monday night features a comedy which manages to combine soccer and the Da Vinci Code under the pretext the World Cup has been rigged and it all goes back to the time of Christ, with a secret society ensuring the prophesied results come true and promoting the cult of the football.

Tuesday sees the premiere of the series Absolute Power. According to the reviewer the title is borrowed from Lord Acton's quote that "power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely", which he uttered "while speaking about the crisis of papal infallibility that rocked the Roman Catholic world in 1870. Absolute Power examines its implications in a more modern context." It does so by replacing the pope with a PR man. Incidentally one of his first clients is the Archbishop of York who has in sight the Church of England's top post. (For those who don't know that would be the bishopric of Canterbury although strictly speaking the head is the English monarch.)

Finally Thursday next week there is a French film, The Devils, although that is a misnomer because the story concerns an angry boy and his autistic sister in search of their mother, while escaping various juvenile institutions. However upon researching the film the title may be apt because the children are prone to violence and childish histrionics.

So that's what Australians will (possibly) be watching this week.

PS Regarding my previous posting, the nun in Neighbours does end up making the courageous choice, committing herself to serve Christ and his Church.

Thoughts on the Ascension

Here is a bouquet of thoughts for today drawn from various authors on my bookshelf. It will also give readers an idea of what I am reading in the precious moments I can steal between domestic duties and studies.

"The Ascension of our Lord and Saviour is an event ever to be commemorated with joy and thanksgiving, for St. Paul tells us that He ascended to the right hand of God and there makes intercession for us. Hence it is our comfort to know that, 'if any man sin, we have and Advocate with the father, Jesus Christ the righteous, and He is the propiation for our sins.' As the Jewish High Priest, after the solemn sacrifice for the people on the great day of Atonement, end into the Holy of Holies with the blood of this victim, and sprinkled it upon the Mercy Seat, so Christ has entered into Heaven itself to present before the Throne that sacred Tabernacle which was the instrument of His passion, -His pierced hands and wounded side, - in token of the atonement which He has effected for the sins of the world." - Plain and Parochial Sermons, Ven. John Henry Newman

"What a change between that fateful Friday and this glorious Thursday; between Mount Calvary and Mount Olivet. There Christ wert alone; here Christ art well accompanied; there Christ ascended to the wood of the cross; here Christ ascendest to heavenly glory; there Christ wert crucified between thieves, here Christ art accompanied by the choirs of angels; there Christ wert condemned and fixed by nails; here Christ art free and the liberator of the condemned; there Christ suffered and died; here Christ dost triumph over death itself ... Christ, our Saviour, passed over the waters of this mortal life with a staff of wood in his hand - the wood of the cross - and now returns with two companies, one of angels and the other of the redeemed souls of the patriarchs and prophets who from the beginning of the world had awaited his coming." - Summa of the Christian Life, Ven. Louis de Granada OP

"And now all was expiated, the price paid, redemption accomplished, the powers of darkness were defeated, the perfections of the Father were acknowledged, His rights avenged, and the gates of the kingdom of heaven were opened to all the human race. What joy for the heavenly Father, to crown His Son after the victory gained over the prince of this world." - Christ in His Mysteries, Bd Columba Marmion OSB

"Our Lord Jesus Christ has left this earth; he has gone to a far country, sundered from us not by so many miles, or by so many light years, but by those subtle barriers which cut off the invisible from the visible; barriers so opaque, that the human mind itself, most penetrating of all instruments we know, cannot reach to the further side of them. Where he is, there his servant shall be; it is their future destination, and even now the centre of their loyalties. He has gone to claim a kingdom; and therefore St. Paul reminds us that we, his servants, have our home in heaven - or rather, if we will do full justice to St Paul's metaphor - have out citizenship; here on earth, all Christians are displaced persons. To this visible world which affords us, in the meanwhile, shelter and companionship, let us ever be grateful, as exiles should. But it is not the country of our dreams." Pastoral and Occasional Sermons, Msgr. Ronald Knox

A Neighbourly Nun

I have never followed Australia's most famous soap-opera, Neigbours. In fact I could count the number of episodes I have watched from start to finish on one hand. However what has caught my attention is that one of its characters is a nun. Not just any nun, mind you. It seems that (Sr) Carmella was caught in the sauna with her boyfriend, prompting her protective father to send her to Italy and somewhere along the way she decided to enter the religious life. Anyway she has returned to Australia, where the aforementioned boyfriend has reignited her love interest and in tonight's episode the pair of them put themselves in temptation's way when they head out for a night on the town. (That's what it says on the online episode guide.)

My first thought was to recall an article on Zenit which referred to the decrease in the number of religious between 1976 and 2004. According to the Vatican, the number of male religious fell by 27% and of female religious by 22%. While there have been substantial increases in religious vocations throughout Africa and Asia, it has not been enough to offset losses in Europe, the Americas and Oceania. It is interesting to note that 1976-2004 covers nearly the entire pontificate of Pope John Paul II and coincides with the expansion of so-called New Movements and Communities.

Could it be that in the future there may be next to no religious in the Western world and their work will be done by laypeople instead? I would hate to imagine such a scenario because I firmly believe the religious life still has much to offer at both a personal and ecclesial level. As Pope Benedict would say, "Courageous choices are needed."

The Bible: A Health Hazard?

Latest news from Australia is that hospitals across two states have decided to ban the Bible because of the risk of spreading germs and to prevent giving offence to non-Christian patients.

The federal health minister, Mr Abbott, responded by saying "This is not an infection control measure - it is a thought control measure. It is political correctness gone crazy. I say to public hospital administrations in these states 'Stop worrying about offending people. Start running public hospitals properly and give people bibles at a time when they probably most need them.'"

Perhaps we should let the Bible speak for itself: "They cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress; he sent forth his word, and healed them. For it was neither herb, nor mollifying plaster that healed them, but thy word, O Lord, which healeth all things." (Ps 107:19-20, Wis 16:12)

Quotable Quote 5

Zenit today featured an interview with Fr. Richard Neuhaus and he offered the following on the state of the modern liturgy:

"The banality of liturgical texts, the unsingability of music that is deservedly unsung, the hackneyed New American Bible prescribed for use in the lectionary, the stripped-down architecture devoted to absence rather than Presence, the homiletical shoddiness ... The heart of what went wrong, however, and the real need for a "reform of the reform" lies in the fatal misstep of constructing the liturgical action around our putatively amazing selves rather than around the surpassing wonder of what Christ is doing in the Eucharist."

I think I might keep on file the expressions, "unsingable music deservedly unsung" "an absence of presence" and "the Christ in Christian".

Tomorrow is the feasts of the Translation of St Dominic and Our Lady Help of Christians, patroness of Australia.

Today we commemorate Sts Jane Thouret, John Baptist Rossi and William of Rochester, who each in their own way embodied the commandment to love one's neighbour and experienced the perils of a life on the road.

St. Jane Thouret joined the Sisters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul and worked in several Parisian hospitals before being ordered to return to secular life during the revolution. She refused and attempted to flee, only to be captured and severely beaten. Escaping by foot to her own village she cared for the sick but was forced to flee to Switzerland, where she continued her ministry among its Catholic exiles. Anti-Catholic feeling forced her into Germany but she eventually returned to Switzerland where she founded the Institute of the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul, which quickly expanded throughout Europe.

St. John Baptist Rossi studied successively under the Franciscans, Jesuits and Dominicans. As a result of his severe mortifications he developed epilepsy but notwithstanding which he completed his studies and was ordained a priest for Rome. Among his first acts were to start a hospice and purchase an organ. He exercised his ministry amongst farmers, laborers, the poor, prostitutes and prisoners but avoided hearing their confessions in case he had a seizure. His bishop eventually convinced him of this obligation and he became a sought after confessor. St John Baptist was also a renowned preacher, who sought the most abandoned souls of Rome in order to instruct them in the faith.

St. William of Rochester was a baker, who adopted an abandoned child he found outside the church after Mass. After teaching the boy his trade, they embarked on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land but along the way his adopted son turned on him, clubbing him to death and stealing his possessions. His body was found by a madwoman who adorned it with a floral wreath and was immediately cured, prompting local monks to inter his remains in Rochester Cathedral and build a shrine in his honour.

The shortest road to heaven is to guide others there by the confessional - St. John Baptist Rossi

Quotable Quotes 3 & 4

From Pope Benedict XVI's address to Canadian bishops visiting Rome:
"Teaching the faith cannot be reduced to a mere transmission of 'things' or words or even a body of abstract truths."

And from his homily during the Ordination Mass in Rome earlier this month:
"The Church must never be satisfied with the ranks of those whom she has reached at a certain point or say that others are fine as they are: Muslims, Hindus and so forth."

Jerusalem

I remember watching an interview with the musician Steve Earle last year and he told the story of a death row inmate who had killed two young girls, who was hated by both his fellow inmates and wardens. During his time in prison he discovered God and underwent a transformation, which ended in his becoming a Catholic and Dominican tertiary. At the end of the show he sang a particularly moving song which only yesterday I happened to recall. The lyrics speak for themselves.

I woke up this mornin' and none of the news was good
And death machines were rumblin' 'cross the ground where Jesus stood
And the man on my TV told me that it had always been that way
And there was nothin' anyone could do or say

And I almost listened to him Yeah,
I almost lost my mind
Then I regained my senses again
And looked into my heart to find

That I believe that one fine day all the children of Abraham
Will lay down their swords forever in Jerusalem

Well maybe I'm only dreamin' and maybe I'm just a fool
But I don't remember learnin' how to hate in Sunday school
But somewhere along the way I strayed and I never looked back again
But I still find some comfort now and then

Then the storm comes rumblin' in
And I can't lay me down
And the drums are drummin' again
And I can't stand the sound

But I believe there'll come a day when the lion and the lamb
Will lie down in peace together in Jerusalem

And there'll be no barricades then
There'll be no wire or walls
And we can wash all this blood from our hands
And all this hatred from our souls

And I believe that on that day all the children of Abraham
Will lay down their swords forever in Jerusalem

The Australiam PM Speaks Out

In an address at University College, Prime Minister John Howard said that he was unapologetic about defending the definition of marriage as the union of a man and a woman. While homosexuals should not be discriminated against in relation to employment and property rights, equating their relationships with marriage was something else and he would continue to oppose it.

Earlier he had spoken of his desire to continue developing strong economic relationships with China despite their poor human rights record and slow progress in establishing democracy. However he believed that China would eventually undergo a 'tectonic shift' since it could not accommodate both economic liberty and political captivity.

Suffering for Christ

Reading the martyrology can be one of the most hallowing yet harrowing experiences. In fact some of the sufferings endured by the martyrs could only have been conceived by the most malignant of demons because of their inhumanity.

For example, during the month of May we are told of St John in a cauldron of boiling oil, St Victor standing as molten lead was poured over him, St Dioscorus between red hot metal plates, St Aquila torn to death by iron combs, St Basilicus forced to wear iron shoes pierced with nails, the martyrs under Maximian Galerius crushed to death or suspended over a fire to be slowly asphyxiated, and St Conon and his twelve year old son placed over a rack.

Of course these are nothing compared to what our Lord endured during his passion and death, for in addition to the sufferings in his body there were the sufferings in his soul and to his honour.

So during these Rogations days let us petition the Lord and his martyrs on behalf of the Church, that it may continue to resist the culture of death and be a sign of contradiction.

Omnes sancti martyres, Orate pro nobis

PS Pray the new centre-left government in Italy does the right thing and does not grant legal recognition to civil unions, in particular those between homosexuals. While the autonomy of the state must be respected, its legislation must be in accordance with the natural law and promote the good of the traditional family and marriage.

Litany for Church In Our Time

During the Rogation Days as a private devotion aside from the public recitation of the Litany of the Saints, I suggest reciting the following litany for the intentions of the Holy Catholic Church:

Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.

Christ, Divine Founder of the Church, hear us.
Christ, Who warned of false prophets, graciously hear us.

God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the World, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God, have mercy on us.

Holy Mary, Mother of the Church, pray for us.
St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church, pray for us.
St. Michael, Defender in the Day of Battle, pray for us.
St. Peter, the Rock upon which Christ built His Church, pray for us.
St. Paul, Protector of the Faithful Remnant, pray for us.
St. Francis of Assisi, Re-Builder of the Church, pray for us.
St. Anthony, Hammer of heretics, pray for us.
St. Pius V, Champion of the Tridentine Mass, pray for us.
St. Pius X, Foe of Modernism, pray for us.
All you Holy Angels and Archangels, pray that we may resist the the snares of the devil.

St. Catherine of Siena, pray that Christ's Vicar may oppose the spirit of the world.
St. John Fisher, pray that bishops may have the courage to combat heresy and irreverence.
St. Francis Xavier, pray that zeal for souls may be re-enkindled in the clergy.
St. Charles Borromeo, pray that seminaries may be protected from false teachings.
St. Vincent de Paul, pray that seminarians may return to a life of prayer and meditation.
St. Therese of the Child Jesus, pray that religious may re-discover their vocation of love and sacrifice.
St. Thomas More, pray that the laity may not succumb to the Great Apostasy.
St. Francis de Sales, pray that the Catholic Press may again become a vehicle of Truth.
St. John Bosco, pray that our children may be protected from immoral and heretical instruction.
St. Pascal, pray that profound reverence for the Most Blessed Sacrament may be restored.
St. Dominic, pray that we may ever treasure the Holy Rosary.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.

Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God,
That we may be made worthy of the Promises of Christ.

Let Us Pay
Jesus our God, in these dark hours when Your Mystical Body is undergoing its own Crucifixion, and when it would almost seem to be abandoned by God the Father, have mercy, we beg of You, on Your suffering Church. Send down upon us the Divine Consoler, to enlighten our minds and strengthen our wills.

You, O Second Person of the Most Blessed Trinity, Who can neither deceive, nor be deceived, have promised to be with Your Church until the end of time. Give us a mighty faith that we may not falter, help us to do Your Holy Will always, especially during these hours of grief and uncertainty. May Your Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate and Sorrowful heart of Your Holy Mother, be our sure refuge in time and in eternity, Amen.

Amidst the waves of controversy which seem to follow Opus Dei particularly with the cinema release of the Da Vinci Code, I thought it worthwhile posting some words from its founder Josemaria Escriva on the Liturgy. I have never had time for the organization itself but as for the man, his maxims can be described as in the tradition of a St Philip Neri or St Francis De Sales.

"Your prayer should be liturgical. How I would like to see you using the psalms and prayers from the missal, rather than private prayers of your own choice." (The Way, 86)

"Have veneration and respect for the holy Liturgy of the Church and for its ceremonies. Observe them faithfully. Don't you see that, for us poor men, even what is greatest and most noble, must enter through the sense?" (The Way, 522)

"The Church sings, it has been said, because merely to speak would not satisfy its desire for prayer. You as a Christian - and a chosen Christian - should learn to sing liturgically." (The Way, 523)

"Isn't it strange how many Christians, who take their time and have leisure enough in their social life , in following the sleepy rhythm of their professional affairs, in eating and recreation , find themselves rushed and want to rush the priest, in their anxiety to shorten the time devoted to the most holy Sacrifice of the Altar?" (The Way, 530)

"Piety has its own good manners. Learn them. It's a shame to see those pious people who don't know how to attend Mass - even though they go daily - nor how to bless themselves [they throw their hands about in the weirdest fashion], nor how to bend the knee before the tabernacle [their ridiculous genuflections seem a mockery], nor how to bow their heads reverently before a picture of Our Lady." (The Way, 541)

"You saw me celebrate the holy Mass on a plain altar and stone, without a reredos. Both Crucifix and candlesticks were large and solid, with wax candles of graded height, sloping up towards the Cross. The frontal, of the liturgical colour of the day. A sweeping chasuble. The chalice, rich, simple in line, with a broad cup. No electric light, nor did we miss it.

And you found it difficult to leave the oratory: you felt at home there. Do you see how we are led to God, brought closer to him, by the rigour of the liturgy?" (The Way, 543)

"Keep struggling, so that the Holy Sacrifice of the Altar really becomes the centre and the root of your interior life, and so your whole day will turn into an act of worship - an extension of the Mass you have attended and a preparation for the next. Your whole day will then be an act of worship that overflows in aspirations, visits to the Blessed Sacrament and the offering up of your professional work and your family life." (The Forge, 69)

"In the Holy Sacrifice of the altar, the priest takes up the Body of our God, and the chalice containing his Blood, and raises them above all things of the earth, saying: Per Ipsum, et cum Ipso, et in Ipso.

Unite yourself to the action of the priest. Or rather, make that act of the priest a part of your life." (The Forge, 541)

"Since you call yourself a Christian, you have to live the Sacred Liturgy of the Church, putting genuine care into your prayer and mortification for priests - especially for new priests - on the days marked for this intention and when you know that they are to receive the sacrament of Order." (The Forge, 646)

"We should dwell on those words of Jesus, and make them our own: Desiderio desideravi hoc Pascha munducare vobiscum. There is no better way to show how great is our concern and love for the Holy Sacrifice than by taking great care with the least detail of the ceremonies the wisdom of the Church has laid down." (The Forge, 833)

The Christian Life

I am sure many readers will be familiar with the Subjects for Daily Meditation but for anyone else:

Remember Christian soul that thou has this day and every day of thy life - God to glorify, Jesus to imitate, the angels and saints to invoke, a soul to save, a body to mortify, sins to expiate, virtues to acquire, hell to avoid, heaven to gain, eternity to prepare for, time to profit by, neighbors to edify, the world to despise, devils to combat, passions to subdue, death perhaps to suffer and judgment to undergo.

If you cannot afford to spend time meditating on any of these subjects, you can at least pray the Universal Prayer of Pope Clement XI

CREDO Domine, sed credam firmius; spero, sed sperem securius; amo, sed amem ardentius; doleo, sed doleam vehementius.
Adoro te ut primum principium; desidero ut finem ultimum; laudo ut benefactorem perpetuum; invoco ut defensorem propitium.
Tua me sapientia dirige, iustitia contine, clementia solare, potentia protege.
Offero tibi, Domine cogitanda, ut sint ad te; dicenda, ut sint de te; facienda, ut sint secundum te; ferenda, ut sint propter te.
Volo quidquid vis, volo quia vis, volo quomodo vis, volo quamdiu vis.
Oro, Domine, intellectum illumines, voluntatem inflammes, cor emundes, animam sanctifices.
Defleam praeteritas iniquitates, repellam futuras tentationes, corrigam vitiosas propensiones, excolam idoneas virtutes.
Tribue mihi, bone Deus, amorem tui, odium mei, zelum proximi, contemptum mundi.
Studeam superioribus oboedire, inferioribus subvenire, amicis consulere, inimicis parcere.
Vincam voluptatem austeritate, avaritiam largitate, iracundiam lenitate, tepiditatem fervore.
Redde me prudentem in consiliis, constantem in periculis, patientem in adversis, humilem in prosperis.
Fac, Domine, ut sim in oratione attentus, in epulis sobrius, in munere sedulus, in proposito firmus.
Curem habere innocentiam interiorem, modestiam exteriorem, conversationem exemplarem, vitam regularem.
Assidue invigilem naturae domandae, gratiae fovendae, legi servandae, saluti promerendae.
Discam a te quam tenue quod terrenum, quam grande quod divinum, quam breve quod temporaneum, quam durabile quod aeternum.
Da mortem praeveniam, iudicium pertineam, infernum effugiam, paradisum obtineam.
Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

LORD, I believe in Thee: but let me believe more strongly. I hope in Thee: but let me hope
more securely. I love Thee: but let me love Thee more ardently. I sorrow, but deepen my sorrow for my sins.
I adore Thee as my first beginning, I long for Thee as my last end, I praise Thee as my constant benefactor, I call on Thee as my loving protector.
Guide me by Thy wisdom, hold me with Thy justice, comfort me with Thy mercy, protect me with Thy power.
I offer Thee, Lord, my thoughts, my words, my actions, and my sufferings to be fixed on Thee, to be according to Thee, and to be endured for Thee.
I want to do what Thou willeth, in the way Thou willeth for as long as Thou willeth, because Thou willeth.
I pray, O Lord, enlighten my understanding, inflame my will, purify my heart, and sanctify my soul .
May I weep for my former iniquities, repel future temptations, correct my faults, and cultivate suitable virtues.
Grant me, O God, love of Thee, hatred of me, zeal for my neighbor, contempt the world.
May I be eager to obey my superiors, be courteous to my inferiors, faithful to my friends, and to forgive my enemies.
Help me to conquer sensuality with austerity, greed with generosity, anger with gentleness, apathy with fervor.
Make me prudent in planning, steadfast in danger, patient in adversity, and humble in prosperity.
O Lord, make me attentive in prayer, temperate in drink, diligent in my duties, and firm in purpose.
May I take care to have an innocent interior, a modest exterior , exemplary speech, and a well-ordered life .
May I be ever-watchfull in guarding against my weaknesses, cherishing Thy grace, keeping Thy laws, and coming to salvation.
May I learn from Thee the passing nature of this world, the grandness of heaven, the shortness of this life, and the life to come eternal.
Grant that I may prepare for death, fear judgment, flee from Hell, and obtain paradise.
Grant this though Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Sunday Visitor had an article on the rights of Catholic colleges and their responsibility to maintain the faith, citing the cases of Notre Dame staging the Vagina Monologues and Loyola inviting Ralph Guiliani to speat at the opening of the academic year.

It raised some important issues about academic freedom and the primacy of Church teachings, the powers of the ordinary where the college is not under his immediate jurisdiction because administered by a religious order, academics abusing their positions to teach what is contrary to Catholic faith and morals, and the need for greater accountability.

Perhaps the most important issue was the need for more bishops to exercise their authority as pastors and teachers, which is a divine ordinance since it is a continuation of the apostles ministry. All too often bishops are afraid to stand up to abuses and scandals lest their names be broadcast on the media or their mailboxes become full of letters (often written by lapsed or non-Catholics) or their office be picketed by rabble. Yet given the increased importance of colleges in forming young Catholics they should bear in mind the words of our Lord, "Qui autem scandalizaverit unum de pusillis istis qui in me credunt expedit ei ut suspendatur mola asinaria in collo eius et demergatur in profundum maris." (Mt 18:6) This saying might be hard but so was most of what our Lord said and he ended up on a cross.

A respite from solemn ceremonial today with a Missa Cantata in the morning, Simple Vespers and Benediction in the afternoon, all of which meant there was a little more to do in church as an acolyte/thurifer, which is always a joy. I sometimes am found wanting when my duties are confined to carrying candles and handing over cruets, but that is the function of the acolyte and until I ascend to major orders, I will just have to accept it.

After today's Vespers and Benediction, our chaplain praised the dozen or so faithful who were in attendance for their splendid singing, which in the last few months has been coming along in leaps and bounds. Credit of course must go to our musical director who is a fine pedagogue, not to mention a fine chorister in his own right.

Looking forward to the feasts of Our Lady Help of Christians and the Ascension. Unfortunately we do not have the full celebration of the Rogation days but perhaps in the future. The Church in Australia could certainly do with some additional prayers.

Papal Subliminal Message

In case anyone might have missed it, the Holy Father in his address to the new Australian Ambassador to the Holy See said, "More than an event, World Youth Day is a time of deep ecclesial renewal, especially among the young, the fruits of which will benefit the whole of your society. In countries such as yours, where the disquieting process of secularization is much advanced, many young people are themselves coming to realize that it is the transcendent order that steers all life along the path of authentic freedom and happiness. Against the tide of moral relativism which, by recognizing nothing as definitive, traps people within a futile and insatiable bid for novelty, the young generation is rediscovering the satisfying quest for goodness and truth. In so doing they look to both Church and civil leaders to dispel any eclipse of the sense of God and to allow the light of truth to shine forth, giving purpose to all life and making joy and contentment possible for everyone."

On reading the last line with its references to the light of truth and joy, one can't help wondering if perhaps the Holy Father is sending a covert message that Juventutem '08 will have a strong effect on the pilgrims gathered in Sydney. After all our theme is "Emitte lucem tuam et veritatem tuam." Again his reference in the previous sentence to a futile and insatiable bid for novelty and quest for goodness and truth could also be interpreted as a subtle reference to the Latin Mass, which avoids resorting to novelty (cf. Dorothy day's quote in my previous posting) whilst satisfying that quest for goodness and truth through the traditional liturgy.

PS I know my comments seem a little far fetched but nonetheless it does demonstrate that our presence at World Youth Day will not be a waste of time.

St Bernadine of Siena

"[Deus] donavit illi nomen super omne nomen, ut in nomine Iesu omne genu flectat caelestium et terrestrium et infernorum." (Phi 2:9-10)

The feast of St Bernardine of Siena, the Franciscan who spent his whole life honouring the Holy Name, is an ideal time to make reparation for its blasphemous and careless use by countless souls. As a thought for today on the power of the Holy Name, here is St. Bernard of Clairvaux in Sermon 15 of his Commentary on the Song of Songs:

"The likeness between oil and the name of the Bridegroom is beyond doubt, the Holy Spirit's comparison of the two is no arbitrary gesture. Unless you can persuade me otherwise, I hold that the likeness is to be found in the threefold property of oil: it gives light, it nourishes, it anoints. It feeds the flame, it nourishes the body, it relieves pain: it is light, food, medicine. And is not this true too of the Bridegroom's name? When preached it gives light, when meditated it nourishes, when invoked it relieves and soothes."

Despite it being Saturday, one might like as an exercise to pray the Psalter of Jesus which is available at the following link:
http://www.preces-latinae.org/thesaurus/Filius/PsalterIesu.html

It was compiled by an English monk in the 16th century, was a favourite devotion of English Catholics during persecution and often recited during Lent in convents.

A Pathetic Pope

Today the Church commemorates the only pope to have abdicated, Pope Celestine V.

Born into a peasant family, at the age of twenty he became a hermit but left his cell to become a priest and entered the Benedictines. Five years later he returned to being a hermit and formed what would become the order of Celestines. After two years of indecision in electing a successor to Pope Nicholas IV, the eighty four year old Peter of Murrone was elected and despite grave misgivings, he submitted to being consecrated Bishop of Rome.

Unfortunately Celestine V become the innocent victim of schemings by the king of Naples and his own curial officials. Overcome by both a sense of failure in his duties and the burden of office, he chose to abdicate after only five months. But just when he thought he could return to being a hermit, his successor Pope Boniface VIII had him imprisoned out of fear that his popularity might lead plotters to have him reinstated and cause unrest in the Church. He died at the castle of Fumone where he famously said, "I wanted nothing in the world but a cell, and a cell they have given me."

PS When Pope Celestine first contemplated abdication, he consulted with the leading jurist of the time, Benedetto Cardinal Gaetano, who at first attempted to dissuade him but realising the pope was determined, made him issue a constitution declaring the legality of papal resignation. In an irony of sorts, when the conclave met to elect Celestine's successor the lot fell to none other than Cardinal Gaetano and with his election the Church would enter one of its stormiest periods.

PPS The life of St Celestine seems to parallel that of St Gregory Nazianzen.

Next week one of Melbourne's television stations is screening the horror film Black Sunday and a reviewer in the television guide had the following to write:

"The execution of witches throughout history was often part of the Church's desire to exterminate all Cathars, who claimed to be true Christians. The church helped turn people against the Cathars by falsely linking them with vampirism ... What is puzzling, though, is why the film so loudly proclaims the incredible powers and menace of Satan. If all he can do is wait 200 years for a girl to come along who looks like the executed Asa [the main character], then hope that someone will stumble by and cut their hand on a shard of broken glass so the dripping blood will revive Asa's corpse, and then wait even longer while a complex and lengthy transference of life-force takes place, then you have to conclude that Satan's powers have been seriously overstated."

Concerning the Cathari, it is sufficient to recall what their principal tenets were in order to see why the Church regarded them as a threat not only to her own welfare but also the whole of European society. First, the existence of a benevolent god of the spirit in perpetual conflict with a malignant god of matter. Second, the visible world as a work of evil, preservation of the human race and possession of private property as sinful, and food from animals as defiling the soul. Third, a spiritual baptism at the point of death for the remission of sin but if the patient recovered he was to be smothered or starved to death to assure his salvation. Fourth, Christ was only human, therefore a subject of the malignant god and incapable of redeeming humanity. Fifth, the church was an instrument of the malignant god, therefore her ministers were to be abused and her property desecrated.

Concerning the powers of Satan I would simply recommend reading the life of St. John Vianney, Fr Delaporte's The Devil: Does He Exist and What Does He Do or Leon Christiani's Evidence of Satan in the Modern World, which includes references to the Cure d'Ars.

Mental Musings

Do all those people dressed in black and calling themselves Goths realize that the original bearers of that title were one of several groups of barbarians who among other things sacked the Eternal City but spared its Christian population. Perhaps they should consider calling themselves bats, since they too just hang about and enjoy the dark. Alternately if they want to be Gothic, then they should consider becoming Catholics, if they are not already, and visit St. Patrick's Cathedral here in Melbourne which is built in that style. As to the literary understanding of gothic as works characterized by the macabre, murderous or mysterious, let us recall that it is fiction and an attempt to "explore the darkest depths of the soul or the most unsettling aspects of evil, and give voice in a way to the universal desire for redemption."[1] In which case they should still visit St. Patricks. A win-win situation if ever I heard/read/saw one.

[1] Letter of His Holiness Pope John Paul II to Artists, 1999

It is a amusing when you consider Marxist aspirations for a classless society that in order to continue its existence you need at least three classes: the state, its police and the rest of society.

A Saint of the Eucharist

St Paschal Baylon spent his youth as a shepherd, using the silence and solitude it afforded him to keep a close watch on his soul. It was during this time he was favoured with the graces of infused knowledge and divine consolation. At the age of twenty he realised his vocation was to "live and die in poverty and penance", so he sought admission with the Franciscans and was received as a lay brother, advancing quickly in austerity and simplicity. On one occasion Paschal was sent on behalf of the province to the general of the order in Paris, which he undertook out of obedience. While on the way he defended the Real Presence against a Calvinist preacher and then escaped death at the hands of a Huguenot mob. When he returned to his convent, he simply resumed his duties without so much as a word about his ordeal. By far the greatest virtue of St Paschal was his devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, spending long vigils kneeling or prostrate in adoration right up to his death on this day in 1592. Even afterwards when his body lay on the bier, his eyes opened and closed twice at the elevation of the host. Pope Leo XIII declared him patron of all Eucharistic congresses and organisations, whether founded at the time or in the future.

Deus, qui beátum Paschalem Confessórem tuum mirífica erga corporis et sánguinis tui sacra mysteria dilectióne decorásti : concéde propítius ; ut, quam ille ex hoc divino convívio spíritus percepit pinguédinem, eamdem et nos percípere mereámur.

PS I think that St Paschal would make an ideal co-patron for Juventutem in light of his faith, fervour and fortitude. Further we can all relate to those late night vigils before the Blessed Sacrament.

I just discovered a few entries from the Juventutem Blog which might rival my own but bear in mind the operative word, "might".

Hmm. I wonder if that last post might be a contender for the largest single log entry or whether anyone has managed to take up more space than I have.

Even More from Cardinal Newman

Having previously referred readers to some of Cardinal Newman's sermon on liturgical matters, I thought it time to refer them to those passages in his novels which describe the liturgy. Few people are aware that amidst his other literary endeavours, Newman managed to pen two novels: Loss & Gain, the story of a young man's path from Oxford University to the Catholic Church, and Callista, the story of the relations between Christians and heathens in the third century. Though the stories themselves are well worth the read, Newman's description of the ceremonies of the Church are in their own right some of the most evocative and poetic.

From Callista, a description of an ancient church and mass

"At the lower end of the chapel was a rail extending across it, and open in the middle, where its two portions turned up at right angles on each side towards the altar. The enclosure thus made was the place proper for the faithful ... Where the two side-rails which ran up the chapel ceased, there was a broad step; and upon it two pulpits, one on each side. Then came a second elevation, carrying the eye on to the extremity of the upper end.

In the middle of the wall at that upper end is a recess, occupied by a tomb. On the front of it is written the name of some glorious champion of the faith who lies there ... Over the sacred relics is a slab, and on the slab the Divine Mysteries are now to be celebrated. At the back is a painting on the wall ... The ever-blessed immaculate Mother of God is exercising her office as the Advocate of sinners, standing by the sacrifice as she stood at the cross itself, and offering up and applying its infinite merits and incommunicable virtue in union with priest and people. So instinctive in the Christian mind is the principle of decoration, as it may be called, that even in times of suffering, and places of banishment, we see it brought into exercise. Not only is the arch which overspans the altar ornamented with an arabesque pattern, but the roof or vault is coloured with paintings. Our Lord is in the centre, with two figures of Moses on each side, on the right unloosing his sandals, on the left striking the rock. Between the centre figure and the altar may be seen the raising of Lazarus; in the opposite partition the healing of the paralytic; at the four angles are men and women alternately in the attitude of prayer.

At this time the altar-stone was covered with a rich crimson silk, with figures of St. Peter and St. Paul worked in gold upon it, the gift of a pious lady of Carthage. Beyond the altar, but not touching it, was a cross; and on one side of the altar a sort of basin or piscina cut in the rock, with a linen cloth hanging up against it. There were no candles upon the altar itself, but wax lights fixed into silver stands were placed at intervals along the edge of the presbytery or elevation.

The mass was in behalf of the confessors for the faith then in prison in Carthage; and the sacred ministers made their appearance. Their vestments already varied somewhat from the ordinary garments of the day, and bespoke antiquity; and, though not so simply sui generis as they are now, they were so far special, that they were never used on any other occasion, but were reserved for the sacred service. The neck was bare, the amice being as yet unknown; instead of the stole was what was called the orarium, a sort of handkerchief resting on the shoulders, and falling down on each side. The alb had been the inner garment, or camisium, which in civil use was retained at night when the other garments were thrown off; and, as at the present day, it was confined round the waist by a zone or girdle. The maniple was a napkin, supplying the place of a handkerchief; and the chasuble was an ample pænula, such as was worn by the judges, a cloak enveloping the whole person round, when spread out, with an opening in the centre, through which the head might pass. The deacon's dalmatic was much longer than it is now, and the subdeacon's tunicle resembled the alb. All the vestments were of the purest white.

The mass began by the bishop giving his blessing; and then the Lector, a man of venerable age, taking the roll called Lectionarium, and proceeding to a pulpit, read the Prophets to the people, much in the way observed among ourselves still on holy Saturday and the vigil of Pentecost. These being finished, the people chanted the first verse of the Gloria Patri, after which the clergy alternated with the people the Kyrie, pretty much as the custom is now.

Here a fresh roll was brought to the Lector, then or afterwards called Apostolus, from which he read one of the canonical epistles. A psalm followed, which was sung by the people; and, after this, the Lector received the Evangeliarium, and read a portion of the Gospel, at which lights were lighted, and the people stood. When he had finished, the Lector opened the roll wide, and, turning round, presented it to bishop, clergy, and people to kiss.

The deacon then cried out, "Ite in pace, catechumeni," "Depart in peace, catechumens;" and then the kiss of peace was passed round, and the people began to sing some psalms or hymns. While they were so engaged, the deacon received from the acolyte the sindon, or corporal, which was of the length of the altar, and perhaps of greater breadth, and spread it upon the sacred table. Next was placed on the sindon the oblata, that is, the small loaves, according to the number of communicants, with the paten, which was large, and a gold chalice, duly prepared. And then the sindon, or corporal, was turned back over them, to cover them as a pall.

The celebrant then advanced: he stood at the further side of the altar, where the candles are now, with his face to the people, and then began the holy sacrifice. First he incensed the oblata, that is, the loaves and chalice, as an acknowledgment of God's sovereign dominion, and as a token of uplifted prayer to Him. Then the roll of prayers was brought him, while the deacon began what is sometimes called the bidding prayer, being a catalogue of the various subjects for which intercession is to be made, after the manner of the Oremus dilectissimi, now used on Good Friday. This catalogue included all conditions of men, the conversion of the world, the exaltation of Holy Church, the maintenance of the Roman empire, the due ripening and gathering of the fruits of the earth, and other spiritual and temporal blessings,—subjects very much the same as those which are now called the Pope's intentions. The prayers ended with a special reference to those present, that they might persevere in the Lord even to the end. And then the priest began the Sursum corda, and said the Sanctus.

The Canon or Actio seems to have run, in all but a few words, as it does now, and the solemn words of consecration were said secretly. Great stress was laid on the Lord's prayer, which in one sense terminated the function. It was said aloud by the people, and when they said, "Forgive us our trespasses," they beat their breasts."

From Loss and Gain, a description of the Mass

"To me nothing is so consoling, so piercing, so thrilling, so overcoming, as the Mass, said as it is among us. I could attend Masses for ever and not be tired. It is not a mere form of words, —it is a great action, the greatest action that can be on earth. It is, not the invocation merely, but, if I dare use the word, the evocation of the Eternal. He becomes present on the altar in flesh and blood, before whom angels bow and devils tremble. This is that awful event which is the scope, and is the interpretation, of every part of the solemnity. Words are necessary, but as means, not as ends; they are not mere addresses to the throne of grace, they are instruments of what is far higher, of consecration, of sacrifice. They hurry on as if impatient to fulfil their mission. Quickly they go, the whole is quick; for they are all parts of one integral action. Quickly they go; for they are awful words of sacrifice, they are a work too great to delay upon; as when it was said in the beginning: 'What thou doest, do quickly'. Quickly they pass; for the Lord Jesus goes with them, as He passed along the lake in the days of His flesh, quickly calling first one and then another. Quickly they pass; because as the lightning which shineth from one part of heaven unto the other, so is the coming of the Son of Man. Quickly they pass; for they are as the words of Moses, when the Lord came down in the cloud, calling on the Name of the Lord as He passed by, 'the Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth'. And as Moses on the mountain, so we too 'make haste and bow our heads to the earth, and adore'. So we, all around, each in his place, look out for the great Advent, 'waiting for the moving of the water'. Each in his place, with his own heart, with his own wants, with his own thoughts, with his own intention, with his own prayers, separate but concordant, watching what is going on, watching its progress, uniting in its consummation;—not painfully and hopelessly following a hard form of prayer from beginning to end, but, like a concert of musical instruments, each different, but concurring in a sweet harmony, we take our part with God's priest, supporting him, yet guided by him. There are little children there, and old men, and simple labourers, and students in seminaries, priests preparing for Mass, priests making their thanksgiving; there are innocent maidens, and there are penitent sinners; but out of these many minds rises one eucharistic hymn, and the great Action is the measure and scope of it. And oh, my dear Bateman," he added, turning to him, "you ask me whether this is not a formal, unreasonable service—it is wonderful!" he cried, rising up, "quite wonderful. When will these dear good people be enlightened?"

From Loss and Gain, a description of a Catholic Church and the Rite of Benediction

"The church door came first, and, as it was open, he entered it. It apparently was filling for service. When he got inside, the person who immediately preceded him dipped his finger into a vessel of water which stood at the entrance, and offered it to Charles. Charles ignorant what it meant, and awkward from his consciousness of it, did nothing but slink aside, and look for some place of refuge; but the whole space was open, and there seemed no corner to retreat into. Every one, however, seemed about his own business; no one minded him and so far he felt at his ease. He stood near the door, and began to look about him. A profusion of candles was lighting at the High Altar, which stood in the centre of a semicircular apse. There were side-altars—perhaps half-a-dozen; most of them without lights, but, even here, solitary worshippers might be seen. Over one was a large old Crucifix with a lamp, and this had a succession of visitors. They came each for five minutes, said some prayers which were attached in a glazed frame to the rail, and passed away. At another, which was in a chapel at the farther end of one of the aisles, six long candles were burning, and over it was an image. On looking attentively, Charles made out at last that it was an image of Our Lady, and the Child held out a rosary. Here a congregation had already assembled, or rather was in the middle of some service, to him unknown. It was rapid, alternate, and monotonous; and, as it seemed interminable, Reding turned his eyes elsewhere. They fell first on one, then on another confessional, round each of which was a little crowd, kneeling, waiting every one his own turn for presenting himself for the sacrament—the men on the one side, the women on the other. At the lower end of the church were about three ranges of moveable benches with backs and kneelers; the rest of the large space was open, and filled with chairs. The growing object of attention at present was the High Altar; and each person, as he entered, took a chair, and, kneeling down behind it, began his prayers. At length the church got very full; rich and poor were mixed together—artisans, well-dressed youths, Irish labourers, mothers with two or three children—the only division being that of men from women. A set of boys and children, mixed with some old crones, had got possession of the altar-rail, and were hugging it with restless motions, as if in expectation.

Though Reding had continued standing, no one would have noticed him; but he saw the time was come for him to kneel, and accordingly he moved into a corner seat on the bench nearest him. He had hardly done so, when a procession with lights passed from the sacristy to the altar; something went on which he did not understand, and then suddenly began what, by the Miserere and Ora pro nobis, he perceived to be a litany; a hymn followed. Reding thought he never had been present at worship before, so absorbed was the attention, so intense was the devotion of the congregation. What particularly struck him was, that whereas in the Church of England the clergyman or the organ was everything and the people nothing, except so far as the clerk is their representative, here it was just reversed. The priest hardly spoke, or at least audibly; but the whole congregation was as though one vast instrument or Panharmonicon, moving all together, and what was most remarkable, as if self-moved. They did not seem to require any one to prompt or direct them, though in the Litany the choir took the alternate parts. The words were Latin, but every one seemed to understand them thoroughly, and to be offering up his prayers to the Blessed Trinity, and the Incarnate Saviour, and the great Mother of God, and the glorified Saints, with hearts full in proportion to the energy of the sounds they uttered. There was a little boy near him, and a poor woman, singing at the pitch of their voices. There was no mistaking it; Reding said to himself, "This is a popular religion". He looked round at the building; it was, as we have said, very plain, and bore the marks of being unfinished; but the Living Temple which was manifested in it needed no curious carving or rich marble to complete it, "for the glory of God had enlightened it, and the Lamb was the lamp thereof". "How wonderful," said Charles to himself, "that people call this worship formal and external; it seems to possess all classes, young and old, polished and vulgar, men and women indiscriminately; it is the working of one Spirit in all, making many one."

While he was thus thinking, a change came over the worship. A priest, or at least an assistant, had mounted for a moment above the altar, and removed a chalice or vessel which stood there; he could not see distinctly. A cloud of incense was rising on high; the people suddenly all bowed low; what could it mean? the truth flashed on him, fearfully yet sweetly; it was the Blessed Sacrament—it was the Lord Incarnate who was on the altar, who had come to visit and to bless His people. It was the Great Presence, which makes a Catholic Church different from every other place in the world; which makes it, as no other place can be, holy. The Breviary offices were by this time not unknown to Reding; and as he threw himself on the pavement, in sudden self-abasement and joy, some words of those great Antiphons came into his mouth, from which Willis had formerly quoted: O Adonai, et Dux domûs Israel, qui Moysi in rubo apparuisti; O Emmanuel, Exspectatio Gentium et Salvator earum, veni ad salvandum nos, Domine Deus noster."

Sacraments and Orders (Minor and Major)

Ode on the Seven Sacraments

In baptism an infant into the holy Catholic Church is admitted
And from that day to the commandments and creed is committed
In confirmation a child by the bishop is anointed with oil of chrism
And receiving the Holy Ghost must fight for truth against schism
In confession a girl examines herself, excites herself to compunction
And admitting her sins, receives pardon, penance and an injunction
In the Eucharist a boy offers sacrifice to the Trinity through our Lord
And receives under bread his body, like under flesh came the Word
In matrimony a woman and man become one by mutual consent
And their indivisible bond of love, bears children holy and innocent
In holy orders a man is given powers to bless, preach and forgive
And the greatest of all to daily offer the Mass as long as he may live
In extreme unction the sick are exorcised and cleansed of their sin
And confided to God, health or heaven sought that a new life begin

Ode on Minor and Major Orders

The porter is given responsibility of the church's care,
ringing the bells and holding the book before the preacher
The lector is given responsibility to intone the lesson,
bless bread and fruit, be the catechumen's and children's teacher
The exorcist is given responsibility for casting out demons,
ushering aside non-communicants and pouring out water
The acolyte is given responsibility of the lights and candles,
assisting the sacred ministers prepare at the altar
The subdeacon is given responsibility to sing the epistle,
bring the sacred vessels to the altar and give peace to the choir
The deacon is given responsibility for reading the Gospel,
preparing the chalice and preaching if there's no one higher
To the priest is given responsibility of offering the mass,
baptizing infants, absolving penitents and anointing the infirm
To the bishop is given responsibility to govern the church,
instruct the faithful, consecrate churches and children confirm

O Little Flower

Prayer to Therese (by the blogger)

O little flower in God's own wood
Obtain for us to love Christ's rood
O little flower in God's own field
Obtains for us our hearts to yield
O little flower in God's own garden
Obtain for us his peace and pardon
O little flower in God's own hands
Obtain for us to obey his commands
O little flower in God's own breast
Obtain for us joy and eternal rest

Two Odes

Ode on Sola Fides

I do acknowledge there is parity,
when Christians confess the same creeds
But it requires greater charity,
to accept their faith without any deeds
For our Lord himself did not speak,
like the Pharisees, priests and scribes
But with a heart humble and meek,
did accomplish what the law prescribes
And that last night he was to live,
to the apostles he imparted the knowledge
That humble service they must give
and by selfless sacrifice him acknowledge

Ode on Sola Scriptura

That holy writ should be subject to the whim of private judgment
Is to usurp they who God has called to form his holy government
For what man in the street could discern God's own intentions
Without subjecting scripture to his own bias and pretensions
So to protect his church from the prospect of being so misled
He imparted the Spirit to the apostles, with St Peter as their head
That guided in their interpretation unlike these amateur sleuths
They may feed the flock with the Word not on half baked truths.

Odes on Immodesty and Decency

(I)
I seem them walking the streets and roads
Young women dressed like poisonous toads
With their short skirts and spaghetti straps
They roam about looking to drain young chaps
Of every sense of what is beautiful and true
Rendering them feeble against the perfumed dew
Which they exude beneath their Clearasil skins
Adorned with pagan charms and golden rings
O what an insult they do offer God most holy
Who has made their bodies, often fading slowly
When will they learn to do just the contrary
And imitate their queen, the chaste Virgin Mary

(II)
While many young girls frolic like an act from a burlesque show
Their skin pierced, dressed scandalously, covered in golden rings
There are some young women of the Catholic creed that I know
Who abhor such immodesty and would never wear such things
For them their beauty is a gift which comes from God's treasure
Something that has been made holy, a reflection of the divine
Something to be prized above all things from money to pleasure
And must not be scattered like seed, like pearls before swine

ART?

For the last two weeks the Archdiocese of Melbourne has been hosting an exhibition of contemporary art, Crisis, Catharsis and Contemplation, inside St. Patrick's Cathedral. Now what must be stressed is the exhibition is of contemporary art and is inside the cathedral, not in a gallery or museum.

The exhibits themselves include:

1. A film of a monstrance morphing into the Divine Mercy image, the television being located inside the baptistery.
2. A fibreglass boat representing the arrival of the first Catholics, located adjacent to where deceased archbishops are commemorated.
3. A floodlit confessional representing the light of Christ from His tomb.
4. Pages from the book of Genesis used as a canvas to write the word HOPE.
5. A suit with large crucifix inspired by an eccentric Melbourne figure who "wears a crucifix around his neck but carries a heavier cross in his mind."
6. Stills on a television depicting the four elements.
7. A series of distorted images projected onto a sheet directly behind the high altar.
8. Several white feathers illuminated by a neon light.
9. Inside a cage shattered wine glasses containing a stone, fir tree planted in red ochre and feather representing the persons of the Holy Trinity.
10. A film on places of worship in Japan.
11. A three panel icon depicting abstract figures reminiscent of animist masks.
12. A television set on St Brigid's altar.
13. Veils with silhouettes, one of Christ Crucified, hanging near the sanctuary.
14. A redgum altar which has been partially hollowed out.

While I am sure the works were exhibited with the best of intentions, unfortunately their presence in a sacred place is clear evidence that the road to hell is paved with such intentions, so let me describe them and the impression they give to the observer. (Here I draw on verbal and written comments on the exhibit.)

1. The morphing monstrance in the baptistery and lit confessional have a Catholic focus, so there were no complaints except they prevented the use of those rooms.
2. The pages from Genesis is perhaps a comment on the hope springing from God's decision not abandon humanity but out of his love, to seek to redeem and restore it. Yet by using pages from the bible as a canvas it gives credibility to claims that Catholics are ignorant of and do not honour the Word of God.
3. The 'eccentric' figure referred to is actually a schizophrenic Jewish gentleman with an active interest in the Christian faith, where he finds people who share his interests and treat him with the dignity he deserves. Though he may have a terrible cross to bear, it does not need to be born aloft for passersby to stare at and no doubt mock.
4. The stills of the four elements has a label referring to the presence and worship of God in nature, which could easily be interpreted as saying the Catholic Church advocates some form of pantheism.
5. The stills projected behind the high altar can only be described as ghastly and ghostly, while the illuminated feathers entitled 'The Visitation' has no bearing on the mystery and only conjure images of poultry having been plucked for voodoo rituals.
6. The shattered wine glasses, which the artist refers to as chalices, are a tribute to the painter Rublev and his icon of the Holy Trinity, yet they are also meant to be a return to primitive worship in the forest, which again has pantheistic overtones.
7. The film on Japanese worship might be what the curator referred to as a "thoughtful interruption in the [sacred] space". It may also be intended to appeal to Japanese tourists who visit the Cathedral.
8. The icon panel is completely abstract and to the observer looks more like pagan gods in headress with their mouths wide open and bellies empty, waiting to consume the viewer. There is no Christian element whatsoever and this 'icon' fails to provide a window into that world populated by angelic spirits and saintly men.
9. The television set on the altar is a comment on how worship of Christ in the Mass has been superseded by worship of celebrities on the television. Now there is some truth to this statement but surely it can be depicted without desecrating a consecrated altar which though not in use remains sacred because it contains the relics of the saints.
10. Perhaps the only pieces which might be considered of having any bearing on the Catholic Church are the fibreglass boat and the redgum altar because they possess prophetic qualities. The boat represents the first Catholic priests and bishops who endured hardship first in coming to the country, then in establishing the Church. However in its indoor setting it is more like St. Peter's barque having been grounded on the shores of modernity, driven off course by the 'Spirit of Vatican II'.
11. The redgum altar, partially hollowed out with the broken fragments scattered on the ground, has been placed in a side chapel. In its broken condition, it represents the sacrilege perpetrated in many churches since Vatican II, and in its position relative to the old side altar which is still intact, it represents a contrast between the modern and traditional liturgies.

From these comments it appears that most of the exhibits were a waste of [sacred] space and this leads to an important question: How can the Archbishop allow St Patrick's to be so used? (Or should that be abused?) I will not presume to pass judgment upon he whom God has appointed to be my shepherd and who stands in greater favour with Him than I ever could. Instead I will refer readers to St Paul's words to the Thessalonians, "Omnia autem probate quod bonum est tenete, ab omni specie mala abstinete vos" and to paragraph 195 of Pope Pius XII's encyclical Mediator Dei, in which the subject of modern art in a liturgical context is addressed. I think that if His Grace was aware of these lines he would not have consented to the exhibition being staged in the Cathedral.

I shall end with a brief reflection on the exhibition's title, Crisis, Catharisis & Contemplation. Looking back it has proven there really is a crisis both in contemporary art and the Church. It is a crisis brought about by a catharsis of the supernatural, traditional, transcendent and virtuous. It can only be solved by contemplating and returning to the eternal truths made known to us through scripture and tradition.

As Jeremias said, "Confusus est omnis artifex, quoniam falsum est quod conflavit et non est spiritus in eis. Vana sunt et opus risu dignum in tempore visitationis suae peribunt."

Akathist for Holy Communion

Here is a link to an anonymous prayer for Holy Communion, in the tradition of the Akathists to Our Lord, Our Lady and St Michael. The texts of each Ikos alone could be used for meditation during Mass as they contain petitions appropriate for either before or after receiving communion.

http://www.stvladimirs.ca/library/akathist-holy-communion.html

P.S. An Akathist is an Eastern Christian devotion, whose title means literally "not sitting" for it is normally said standing up. It can be considered their version of a litany, except that it is broken into short stanzas (kontakions) and long stanzas (ikos').

Dorothy Day on Motherhood and the Mass

Tomorrow the Church in Australia celebrates both Mother's Day and Respect for Life Sunday. This year Dorothy Day has been chosen as patron because she experienced both the pain of abortion and the joy of birth. The following is from her writings:

"No human creature could receive or contain so vast a flood of love and joy as I often felt after the birth of my child. With this came the need to worship, to adore."

"A woman does not want to be alone at such a time [when giving birth]. Even the most hardened, the most irreverent, is awed by the stupendous fact of creation. No matter how cynically or casually the worldly may treat the birth of a child, it remains spiritually and physically a tremendous event. God pity the woman who does not feel the fear, the awe, and the joy of bringing a child into the world."

One of Dorothy Day's great loves was the Liturgy. She had this to say concerning the Mass.

"There is also the attempt by some priests to reach the young, to make the Mass meaning to the young (educated, middle-class young) where novelty is supposed to attract attention but which, as far as I can see, has led to drawing these same young ones completely away from the 'people of God', the 'masses', and worship in the parish church."

"Penance seems to be ruled out today. One hears the Mass described as Sacrament, not as Sacrifice. But how are we to keep courage unless the Cross, that mighty failure, is kept in view? Is the follower greater than the master? What attracts one in a Che Guevara and Ho Chi Minh is the hardships and the suffering they endured in living their lives of faith and hope."

"We have to leap into faith through the senses - from the natural to the supernatural - and I was drawn to the Church in my youth because it appealed to the senses. The music speaking to the ear, the incense to the sense of smell, the appeal of colour to the eye, stained glass, icons and statues, the bread to the taste, the touch of rich vestments and altar linens, the touch of holy waters, oils, the sign of the cross, the beating of the breast."

These last words remind me of a few lines from Newman.

"He has shown us, that to come to Him for life is a literal bodily action; not a mere figure, not a mere movement of the heart towards Him, but an action of the visible limbs; not a mere secret faith, but a coming to church, a passing on along the aisle to His holy altar, a kneeling down there before Him, and a receiving of the gift of eternal life in the form of bread. There can be no mistaking His own appointment. He said indeed, "He that cometh to Me shall never hunger;" but then He explained what this coming was, by adding, "He that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me." If then a man does not seek Him where He is, there is no profit in seeking Him where He is not. What is the good of sitting at home seeking Him, when His Presence is in the holy Eucharist?"

Today the Church commemorates one of two Jesuits to whom I have a special devotion, St. Robert Bellarmine. (The other is St Peter Canisius, the original German Shepherd.)

It seems providential that St. Robert's middle names were Francis Romulus. Firstly he was born on the feast of St Francis of Assisi and died on the feast of the Stigmata of St Francis, which he was instrumental in having celebrated universally. Secondly he labored tirelessly in defense of the Bishop and Church of Rome against protestant heresy and regal oppression, which the collect of his feast expresses so eloquently:

Deus, qui ad errorum insidias repellandas et Apostolicae Sedis jura propugnanda, beatum Robertum Pontificem tuum atque Doctorem mira eruditione et virtute decorasti ; ejus meritis et intercessione concede, ut nos in veritatis amore crescamus et errantium corda ad Ecclesiae tuae redeant unitatem.

[O God, who didst adorn blessed Robert, thy Bishop and Doctor, with marvelous learning and virtue to expose the deceptions of error and to defend the rights of the Apostolic See, grant by his merits and intercession, that love for the truth may increase in us, and the souls that do wander may return to the unity of thy Church.]

Confessions of a Communist

I have just picked up a copy of AA-1025 The Memoirs of an Anti-Apostle (TAN Books and Publishers, Rockford, 1991) and had a quick perusal of its contents. There are two sections which pertain to the liturgy which make interesting reading.

The first is an interpolation by the nurse who found the notes on which the book is based. She writes how liturgical innovators thought Catholics were offended seeing the priest at the foot of a high altar with their backs towards them and responded by placing them on the same level, although this meant that only those in the front pews could actually see the priest. Again, by destroying high altars the Blessed Sacrament could no longer be reserved at the altar but moved elsewhere, often to a position where priests had their back to it.

The second section is from the notes itself and begins by stating the importance of reforming the words of the Mass, beginning with the itself which could be replaced by Lord's Supper or Eucharist. The consecration should be minimized and communion trivialized. The sense of isolation experienced by the parishioners should be corrected by having the priest facing them and the sacrifice of the Mass further minimized by inclusion of additional readings. The Ordo itself should be adapted along Protestant lines, giving the impression we are of one mind, and the Protestants themselves admitted to communion, introducing ambiguity as to the nature of the Mass. Further elaborate vestments, sacred music, genuflections and kneeling should be discouraged.

Does this all sound familiar? Well if the memoirs are, as they claim, the work of a Communist intent on entering the Catholic priesthood to subvert and destroy from within, there is all the more reason to preserve and promote the Latin Mass.

Recasting an Enfant Terrible

His licentiousness and nepotism aside, Pope Alexander VI did do some good for the Catholic Church. Notably he left behind the Room of Mysteries in his apartment, adorned with paintings by Pinturicchio, donated the first gold from the New World for the ceiling of St Mary Major's, added the Holy Doors at St Peter's, commissioned Michelangelo to sculpt the Pieta, instituted Church reforms, encouraged science and the arts, resisted attempts to banish Jews from Spain and gave to the world St Francis Borgia, second founder of the Jesuits.

(The above was prompted by an article on the unveiling of the restored Sala dei Mysterii a fortnight ago and some of the facts have been taken from it.)

England's First Saint

Today is the feast of St. Pancras, a fourteen year old martyr whose relics were sent to England to be placed in the first church dedicated by St Augustine of Canterbury.

According to the Golden Legend he was of noble birth and when his parents died, placed under the protection of his uncle, Denis. Together they went to Rome, where they received the faith from Pope Cornelius. When Denis died, Pancras was brought before Diocletian and the emperor tried to persuade him to give up his faith. Pancras however resisted him to his face saying that his threats would no sooner move him than the paintings on the wall while the pagan gods he worshipped were nothing but deceivers and fornicators against God. When Diocletian heard this he realized the boy could not be overcome and ordered his execution by beheading. At night a certain Octavilla took his body, embalmed and buried it on the Aurelian Way. During the Middle Ages it was common for oaths to be taken before the shrine of St. Pancras and he was invoked against perjury.

Today is a ferial day, an opportunity to rest and return to the spring of last Sunday to draw fresh water to revive the soul.

Newman the Visionary

I read in Zenit a meeting under the auspices of the Pontifical Council for Culture was held on "Catholicism and Literature in the 20th Century". One of the topics was the literary vision of Cardinal Newman, one which he shared with writers of later generations including Chesterton, Tolkein and Greene.

Thinking about the vision of Newman reminded me of John Hulsman's introduction to The Rule of Our Warfare where he writes, "Newman's thought was remarkably all of a piece, despite a conversion, decades of controversy, and long development through a varied course of writing. He had the most comprehensive and unified view of life - what he called the Providential system of the world - of any of the Victorian writers ... Threaded throughout his Anglican and Catholic writings composed over many decades - his sermons, treatises, lectures, autobiography, devotions, and letters - is a profound attempt to relate learning and inquiry, even into the great mysteries of Redemption, to the most humble duties of daily Christian life ... bringing the great catholic doctrines to bear on the ordinary problems of Christians in the world ... [presenting] the great complexity of life and the paradoxes of Christian warfare in the world while keeping us ever aware of the one Truth behind it all."

A Famous Florentine

O holy Priest and Bishop, thou worker of so many mighty works, and good shepherd to Christ's flock.

St Antoninus was born into Florentine nobility and at the age of fifteen applied for admission into the Order of Preachers but was not received till the following year. His novitiate was spent in the company of the artists Fra Angelico and Fra Bartolommeo, before entering in succession the convents of Fiesole, Foligno and Cortona. He established the famous convent of Saint Mark in Florence and attended the Council held in that city before being made against his wishes Archbishop of Florence by Pope Eugene IV. The choice was providential because his episcopacy was marked by improvement to the material, moral and spiritual welfare of both clergy and laity. He was also called upon to act as ambassador for the Florentine Republic and advisor to the popes. St. Antoninus' literary endeavours encompassed domestic life, economics, history, moral theology, politics, preaching and spirtuality, the knowledge of which he had acquired himself without the aid of a master.

As a model of Christian virtue, St. Antoninus was especially known for his charity, chastity, humility, meekness, mortification, piety, prudence, wisdom and zeal. Concerning his self-learning, it is said that he was not admitted straight away because of his poor health and the prior, Bd. John Dominic, requested he recite the whole of canon law from memory as proof of his aptitude, which after a year of study St. Antoninus duly did.

Sancti Antoníni, Dómine, Confessóris tui atque Pontificis meritis adjuvemur : ut, sicut te in illo mirábilem prædicamus, ita in nos misericordem fuisse gloriémur. Per Dóminum Nostrum Jesum Christum Filium tuum, qui tecum vivat et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum .

Nature's Tribute to the Passion

On my recent search for the latest Catholic news I came across a reference to the passion flower, which the Spanish conquistadors saw as symbolic of the Passion. The petals are the apostles, five stamens the sacred wounds, ovary the hammer, three pistils the nails, fringed crown the crown of thorns, spots under the leaves the thirty coins of silver and tendrils the cords. One property of the passion flower is especially applicable to the Risen Christ, its immunity from disease and pests.

Lost and Found

Who can adequately express the pain and sense of loss when separated from someone whose life and love are a part of your own?

Today I wondered if anyone realized the three day's loss experienced by Our Lady when Our Lord remained in the Temple was but a precursor to those other three day's when Our Lord remained in the sepulcher. Also what about the irony that the doctors and scribes whom he astounded by his wisdom and knowledge would later be confounded by his love and compassion. I can't recall any author I have read having written about it, though Fr Faber may have alluded to it when writing of how even from the crib Our Lord's life was overshadowed by the cross.

Deo Gratias! The two miners trapped for the last fortnight in Beaconsfield, Tasmania have finally been rescued and reunited with their families. It was all beers, cheers and tears the newspapers reported. Now we have to wait for their stories, which some say may be worth as much as $500,000 each, and the inquiry into the incident, which may prompt a royal commission. Of course this is in Australia. Spare a thought for the Chinese miners involved in probably more accidents in the last year than there are days in a month yet nothing ever gets done to improve their situation because the great leap towards capitalism means flying over the heads of the poor.

St Gregory Nazianzen 2

I referred in the previous posting for today's feast that St. Gregory Nazianzen is an appropriate intercessor for those experiencing a vocational crisis because after his studies he was unsure if he should put them to good use as a lawyer or professor, or lay them aside altogether to seek God in silence and solitude. Later when appointed bishop, he fled several times because he did not have the natural inclination to rule and feared the responsibilities would prevent his mind from ascending to God.

However in the course of reading the Introduction to The Ladder of Monks by Guigo II, the translators quote a passage from Hugh of St Victor which says that those who take upon them the care of the Church out of obedience and emerge from the silence of inward peace to public life cannot be held accountable for not choosing the better part but those who do so out of ambition and desire for power or pleasure are blameworthy. Therefore if you are considering giving yourself to the contemplative, monastic or religious life, you should unless obedience or obligation requires you to remain in the world.

On another note, St Gregory's corpus of writings includes two orations on Easter which readers might like to read while Eastertide still prevails.

http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/310201.htm
http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/310245.htm

Finally a quotation which relates both to Eastertide and the liturgy from letter CLXXXIV to Amphilochius, Bishop of Iconium.

"Scarcely yet delivered from the pains of my illness, I hasten to you, the guardian of my cure. For the tongue of a priest meditating of the Lord raises the sick. Do then the greater thing in your priestly ministration, and loose the great mass of my sins when you lay hold of the Sacrifice of Resurrection ... cease not both to pray and to plead for me when you draw down the Word by your word, when with a bloodless cutting you sever the Body and Blood of the Lord, using your voice for the glaive (sword)."