A thousand years ago, on March 12, 1022, a great monk, a teacher of theology and spirituality that the Christian East can boast, died: St. Symeon the New Theologian. His biographer, Niceta Stethatos, who was also his fervent disciple, reports …
Category: Culture
Forgotten Customs of Lent
The observance of Lent is the very badge of Christian warfare. By it we prove ourselves not to be enemies of Christ. By it we avert the scourges of divine justice. By it we gain strength against the princes of …
The Great Emperor and the Art He Inspired
Probably, but not certainly, 1750 years ago, on February 27, 272, a great Roman emperor and a brilliant politician was born in Naissus, Moesia (now Niš, Serbia): Flavius Valerius Constantinus, also known as Constantine the Great. His father is Constantius …
Goldsmith, Poet, Musician
On February 13, 1571, 451 years ago, a restless and eccentric goldsmith and sculptor, one of the greatest artists of the Renaissance died in Florence, where he was born November 3, 1500: Benvenuto Cellini. Here we are with another of …
Forgotten Customs of Septuagesima
Brethren: Know you not that they that run in the race, all run indeed, but one receiveth the prize. So run that you may obtain. And every one that striveth for the mastery refraineth himself from all things. And they …
The Pope of Christ the King and the Sacred Music Revival
A century ago, on February 6, 1922, the Pope of the Kingship of Christ was elevated to the Chair of Peter: Pius XI, whose original name was Achille Ratti. He was born in Desio, a small town, north of Milan, …
Benedict XV: Ratzinger’s Namesake and Promoter of Music
A century ago, on January 22, 1922, the Pope of Peace died at the age of 67: Benedict XV, whose original name was Giacomo Della Chiesa. Born in Genoa, northwestern Italy, to a noble family on November 21, 1854, at …
Vatican II Iconoclasm: Destroying What Our Fathers Built
The bishops who came home from Vatican II (or the “liturgist” wolves they failed to stop) initiated acts of violent destruction and iconoclasm in the name of the Council. The zeal for change disparaged the Church’s heritage and liturgical tradition …
Forgotten Customs of Epiphanytide
O God, of Whose mercies there is no number, and of Whose goodness the treasure is infinite: we render thanks to Thy most gracious Majesty for the gifts Thou hast bestowed upon us, always beseeching Thy clemency; that as Thou …
Kepler and the Music of God in the Cosmos
450 years ago, on December 27, 1571, a mathematician and astronomer, who sought the music of God in the skies, was born in Weil der Stadt, near Stuttgart in Germany: Johannes Kepler. At the age of 19 he enrolled in …