In earlier days in the Roman Church one of the calendrical milestones of the liturgical year was the “birthday” of the Apostles Peter and Paul, that is to say, the feast of their martyrdom and birth into new life in Heaven, 29 June. The imagery of being born is commonly used in reference to the…
This week’s offering presented a dilemma. In many places the Vetus Ordo Feast of Corpus Christi will be observed on Sunday as an “external solemnity”. Corpus Christi falls on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday and, in the Vetus Ordo, it had to be celebrated on that day. However, it is permitted to repeat the Mass…
The Catechism of the Catholic Church 234 says that the doctrine of the Most Holy Trinity is the “central mystery of Christ faith and life. It is the mystery of God in Himself.” We might want to get this one right. The other mysteries of our faith revolve around what God does and has done. …
Catholics of a certain age know things about their religion that many — if not most — Catholics today have never been taught.
For this mighty Feast of Pentecost we first scrabble after some context to enrich our participation. The sacred liturgical celebration of the mysteries of our salvation make us present to them and them to us. Sacramental reality is not inferior to sensible reality. Indeed, it embraces and elevates it and us, it transforms us. In…
It is virtuous women, who treasure the Truth and uphold its sacredness, that can redirect the world’s destructive path.
The Feast of the Ascension of the Lord, forty days after His Resurrection, was once graced with its own Octave. In 1955 Pius XII suppressed all but the Octaves of Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. These three remain now in the Roman Church’s Vetus Ordo. However, the Octave of Ascension dated back only to the 15th…
Pope Innocent X was a devout man, eager for justice, but also distrustful, indecisive, and too attached to his family.
We move liturgically ever closer to the Ascension of the Lord, when the High Priest, the Risen Savior, entered the heavenly temple where He continuously renews His once for all time Sacrifice to the Father. On this 5th Sunday after Easter we again have a Gospel reading from the Last Supper discourse during which Our…
We now move into the next phase of the seven-week Easter Season. The first stage looked back to the Resurrection and reflect upon the sacraments of Baptism and Eucharist. In this stage, which began last Sunday, we look forward to the Lord’s Ascension, the Spirit’s Descent and we consider the Sacrament of Confirmation. Like last…
