Above: The Visitation by Flemish painter Willem Vrelant (d. 1481). This Saturday, July 2, is the usus antiquior feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast was instituted in 1389 by, in a way, two popes—Pope Urban …
Category: Holy Days & Feasts
Forgotten Customs of the Precious Blood
Above: Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, with gushing blood, detail of the Ghent Altarpiece, Jan van Eyck, c. 1432. The History of the Feast According to the Traditional Catholic Calendar of 1962 and prior, July 1st is the Feast of the …
Forgotten Customs of Corpus Christi
Above: Corpus Christi 2021 at St. Mary’s Conshohocken, FSSP. Photo by Allison Girone. Editor’s note: this octave, consider joining the crusade of Eucharistic reparation. A great solemnity has this day risen upon our earth: a feast both to God and …
The Holy Spirit and the Garden of Our Souls
The season of summer is often seen as the best of the four seasons for people of the Northern hemisphere. This time of the year also coincides with one of the greatest feasts of the Church, notably Pentecost. The Church …
Forgotten Customs of the Octave of Pentecost
The Forgotten, Yet Ancient Vigil of Pentecost The Feast of Pentecost (i.e., White Sunday) is one of the principal feasts in the life of the Church. After Pentecost Sunday and its Octave, we will conclude Pascaltide and begin the Season …
No Salvation Outside Ascension Thursday
“Forty Days” After His Resurrection Falling as it does between the great feasts of Easter and Pentecost, Ascension Thursday gets short shrift from modern Christians. Although it remains an unmoved (usually) Holy Day of Obligation for Roman Catholics (and, to …
New Life in Christ: a Paschal Meditation
Photo: the blessing of the water for Baptism at Easter Vigil. By Allison Girone. “This is my body, which is given for you . . . This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my …
The Annunciation and the Subtle Use of Gospels in the Old Roman Rite
Painting: Maurice Denis, “Le mystère catholique,” (1889) After a number of years experiencing the annual cycle of readings in the traditional Latin Mass, I grew aware of the manner in which it approaches Gospels in general, which is freer and …
Symeon
Now Lord, let Thy servant go in peace, Unto whom Thy promise is made good, Now mine eyes indeed have seen His face, Child promised, Savior of the world. Dim these eyes have grown as years have passed, In toils …
Candlemas: Feast of Obedience
Candlemas, as it’s called, is a twofold feast of the Presentation of Our Lord and the Purification of Our Lady, and it marks the end of the forty days of the Christmas season. It is primarily a Marian feast commemorating …