USCCB's Call to Pray and Fast

http://wdtprs.com/blog/2012/12/u-s-bishops-call-for-project-of-prayer-fasting-to-begin-30-december-to-defend-life-marriage-religious-liberty-fr-z-poll/

Missa Aurea at St. Thomas the Apostle, Corcoran MN

The Missa Aurea or "Golden Mass" was celebrated today at St. Thomas the Apostle in Corcoran. From the St. John Cantius website,

The Mass of Ember Wednesday is known as the “Missa Aurea,” or Golden Mass, because on this day the Church celebrates the “golden mystery” of the Faith: Mary’s “fiat” at the Annunciation brought about the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Trinity in her womb. Throughout the ages, this Mass has been celebrated with great solemnity. In the Middle Ages, the great St. Bernard of Clairvaux preached his homilies on the Gospel of the day which begins with the words “Missus est.” If it is at all possible, we should teach our children to observe this solemnity, first of all by participating as a family and parochial group at the solemn Mass of the day. Monsignor Hellriegel offers some very interesting material concerning the “golden Mass,” and suggests an offering for the poor as an appropriate act of thanksgiving:

For another explanation check out "The Golden Mass of Ember Wednesday" at the New Liturgical Movement website.

Mass of the Carmelite Rite

In the early days of the Order of Malta the knights would have followed the liturgical rite in place in Jerusalem at the time which was that of the Holy Sepulchre. The traditional Carmelite Rite known up until Vatican II is basically that same liturgy of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem that our confrere's would have known. This short video clip of a Carmelite Mass in 1960 is a beautiful historical look at the closest form of the Mass that the brethren would have experienced prior to following the Roman Rite reforms of Pope St. Pius V.

Una Voce St.Paul/Minneapolis

I am pleased to announce the formation of Una Voce St.Paul/Minneapolis to help promote the traditional latin liturgy, sacred polyphony, and the latin language in the Twin Cities. If you are interested in becoming a member send me an email. We hope to have a website up and running in a couple months but in the meantime you can visit the Una Voce America website for more information. Remember also that you can become a Friend of Una Voce to stay informed about Una Voce activities.

San Anton Palace, Malta

The San Anton Palace in Malta is currently the home of the President of Malta but it was formerly the residence of the Grand Masters of the SMOM. From the website for the President of Malta is the following history,

San Anton and its Gardens owe their origin and early development to the Knight Fra Antoine de Paule, a Frenchman from Provence, who was elected Grand Master of the Order of St. John in 1623. His detractors accused him of debauched habits and contested his election as contrived and simoniac. These charges, however, had little effect in Rome. In fact, Pope Urban VIII, in a brief dated 14 March, 1626, praised his piety and prudence. His Holiness also conferred on him the title of "Eminenza" thus placing him on an equal footing with the Cardinals and the other Ecclesiastical Electors of the Empire. On the base of de Paule's mausoleum in St. John's Co-Cathedral, a Latin inscription describes him as a "Prince very dear and liberal who, when alive, was dearly loved for his qualities and, after death, was no less revered".

Nevertheless, there is no doubt that de Paule's lifestyle was lavish. While still a Knight of the Order, he had acquired a large plot of land near the village of Attard on which he built a country villa. This locality was nearer Valletta than Verdala Palace and therefore made it easier for his many friends to join him when he could get away from official duties.

The villa was planned on generous proportions so as to provide accommodation for a number of guests, apart from the domestic staff which included cooks, pantry-boys, food tasters, torch bearers, wig makers, a winder of clocks, doctors, as well as a baker engaged especially to bake black bread for the hunting dogs! Yet de Paule, after his election as Grand Master, decided to forgo the construction of a trireme galley in favour of enlarging the villa into a Palace which he named ‘San Anton’ after his patron saint, St Anthony of Padua.

A conspicuous feature of the additional works was the tower which commanded a magnificent view of the surrounding countryside. Its square shape was attenuated by a cornice, a parapet of balustrades and a carved gargoyle at each corner. The two top floors were dismantled after they had been severely damaged by lightning.

Successive Grand Masters continued to use this Palace as their country-residence. Grand Master de Rohan, on the 12th September 1776, on the first anniversary of his election, dispensed with the usual ceremony of kissing-hands and gave instead a large dinner party, at which the guests were also entertained to jousts and a performance by a French Comedy Company.

During the turbulent days of the Maltese uprising against the French, San Anton Palace became the seat of the National Assembly from February 1799 to the capitulation of Valletta by the French in September 1800. Captain (later Sir) Alexander Ball resided at the Palace, first as Chief of the Maltese Congress and subsequently as Chief Commissioner. During the latter period, he built the loggias round the Drawing Room and an impressive balustrade-walk round the outer courtyard. The Palace charmed Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Sir Alexander’s Private Secretary at the time, so much so that he wrote: "I live when in the country, which I am nine days out of ten, at the Palace of San Antonio. If living in lofty and splendid rooms be a pleasure, I have it".

Thereafter the Palace was used as the residence of the Governor and of the Governor-General of Malta during the British period. Since 1974 it became the Official residence of the President of Malta.

Worthy of note is the private chapel, dating back to de Paule. It is dedicated to the Madonna del Pilar and its vault is decorated with the coats-of-arms of Grandmasters Antoine Manoel de Vilhena, Manoel Pinto de Fonseca and Emanuel de Rohan-Polduc. Stylistically, the chapel is similar to the contemporary churches of the first half of the 17th century to be found in towns and villages. It consists of a rectangular barrel-vaulted nave with arched ribs which divide the ceiling into six bays. The altar is set in a deep chancel separated from the nave by two pilasters which carry the last arched rib of the vault.

A large part of the original gardens, designed on a symmetrical plan, was opened to the public in the 19th century. Large parts of the gardens consist of orange groves. At the time of Grandmaster Antoine de Paule, these oranges were sent with his compliments to those he desired to honour or propitiate, in addition to the more conventional presentation of diamond crosses.

Process for beatification of Grand Master Andrew Bertie initiated - timesofmalta.com

Process for beatification of Grand Master Andrew Bertie initiated - timesofmalta.com

Hampton Court Palace

The site of the Palace was occupied from 1236 by the Knights Hospitaller of Saint John of Jerusalem under the direction of Clerkenwell Priory, the headquarters of the Order in England. The premises at Hampton included some residential buildings, farm buildings, and a chapel. Hampton Court had been a manor in the possession of Sir Walter de St Valery, according to the entry in the Domesday Book of 1086. He went on the First Crusade, and his grandson Reginald de St Valery donated the estate to the Military Order of the Knights Hospitaller. In 1338 a survey was sent by the Prior of Manor of Hampton, to the Master of the Order of the Knights Hospitaller of St. John of Jerusalem concerning their possessions in Hampton and other parts of the country. 

The survey provides a good idea of land use in Hampton at that time. The manor house was known as a 'camera' that is to say a small establishment with land. 

There were several timber-framed buildings (some with tiled roofs), houses, barns, a chapel and a kitchen with accommodation for visitors and a hall. All were probably arranged around a courtyard. These buildings are thought to have stood on the site of Hampton Court Palace. In the museum at Clerkenwell Priory it is mentioned that one of the sisters of the Order was recorded as a nun of the Hampton religious community who was sent to join others at a new Hospitaller house at Buckland in Somerset. There were probably a few men and women religious at Hampton, and a staff of lay people to work the farm for the benefit of Clerkenwell and the mission of the Order in the Holy Land. 

The bell above the astronomical clock (which has only just been repaired) is the oldest existing artefact in Hampton Court Palace, and was cast in the 15th century and once hung over the Hospitallers' chapel. Some human remains found in Chapel Court, north of the present Chapel Royal, are probably those of the Hospitallers or those who worked for them. By the 15th century, some new residential buildings were added to the area of the present Clock Court and used as a country retreat by the Priors of the Order of St John. In 1503, Henry VII and a pregnant Elizabeth of York paid a visit here.

Henry’s Lord Chamberlain, Sir Giles Daubeney, took a 99-year lease on the property and on occasions, entertained Henry VII. It is thought that at this stage the house would have been large and comfortable. If you look at the pavement in front of the colonnade in Clock Court, you can see the layout of Daubeney’s entrance range marked out in brick.

Sir Giles Daubeney died in 1508 and in 1514, Thomas Wolsey obtained a 99-year lease of Hampton Court from the Knights Hospitallers and proceeded to turn the ‘large and comfortable’ country house into a home befitting his status as Cardinal and Lord Chancellor of England.

Church of St. John of Jerusalem in Maiano, Italy

Another place worth visiting in Maiano is the Church of St John of Jerusalem, which appears to date from the late thirteenth century.

The hospital annex was founded in 1199 through a donation by Artuico di Varmo, the feudal lord of San Daniele.

The exterior architecture of the church includes a gabled façade of stone surmounted by a small bell gable; it preserves traces of 13th century frescoes.

Inside there is a fresco of the mid-fourteenth century, signed by Nicholas Gemona, depicting Our Lady of Mercy, and a Roman altar with bass reliefs of the first century AD, used as a holy water font.

Before the 1976 earthquake, Late Gothic wooden altarpieces were kept there, one depicting the Madonna and Child, of the Tolmezzo School (late 15th -early 16th century), and the other a Baroque altar named "Altar of Pity" (a triptych panel of late 16th -early 17th century), both quite effective in their style but obviously produced with modest means, attributed to workers from Friuli. There are also paintings (St John the Baptist and St Paul) by Giovanni Maria Furnio da San Vito (1567) and by Julius Urbanis di San Daniele (The Annunciation and the Beheading of St John the Baptist, circa 1580).

Global Fund for Forgotten People

If you are not familiar with this work of the Order I encourage you to visit their website. The following is taken from their site.

The Global Fund for Forgotten People is part of the Order of Malta. Through it, we raise money for a range of our projects which reach out directly to people who would otherwise be forgotten. The Fund raises awareness of and support for particular issues which have fallen under the radar, and which struggle to get public attention. We send out regular newsletters. To sign up and stay informed about The Global Fund’s news and activities please sign up on our website.

Global Fund for Forgotten People

If you are not familiar with this work of the Order I encourage you to visit their website. The following is taken from their site.

The Global Fund for Forgotten People is part of the Order of Malta. Through it, we raise money for a range of our projects which reach out directly to people who would otherwise be forgotten. The Fund raises awareness of and support for particular issues which have fallen under the radar, and which struggle to get public attention. We send out regular newsletters. To sign up and stay informed about The Global Fund’s news and activities please sign up on our website.

Fra Festing Received Matteo Ricci Award

The Grand Master of the Order of Malta, Fra' Matthew Festing was honoured by the Catholic University of Milan.

“The testimony of Fra’ Matthew Festing offers the Faculty of Political Science of the Sacred Heart Catholic University an example and an incentive for resolutely continuing to steer its educational commitment towards the integral promotion of the human being, the progress of society, and peace and goodwill among people, in the wake of Matteo Ricci’s work in the 16th and 17th century”. This was the motivation for conferring the 2012 Matteo Ricci award on the Grand Master of the Sovereign Order of Malta during a ceremony held on 23 October in Milan’s Catholic University. The award was presented by the Pro Vice-Chancellor of the Catholic University, Franco Anelli, and the Dean of the Faculty of Political Science, Carlo Beretta.

For the occasion, the Grand Master gave a Lectio Cathedrae Magistralis entitled “Charity: the basis of civilized human life. How the Order of Malta should play its part” attended by students and professors.

“Matteo Ricci’s work,” stated Fra’ Matthew Festing, “was based on a conscientious study and a profound respect for the culture, history and traditions of the Chinese society to which he had brought the word of God. This was the great strength of his apostolate, his being “Chinese with the Chinese”. We also work with this spirit and this conviction. The Order of Malta communicates “in the field” with the most varied cultures and religions. And it can do it because – every time and in every place – it starts a new assistance project without discrimination or prejudice, open to the different social and political systems, cultures and religions. Wherever we operate,” concluded the Grand Master, “we always try to respect the traditions, cultures and religions of the people who live and work there. This is how we are able to bring our assistance to every part of the world.

Reflections for the Twenty First Sunday after Pentecost

The lessons in the Divine Office for the Twenty First Sunday after Pentecost (old calendar) are often taken from the Book of Machabees.

As St. John Chrysostom says: "Antiochus surnamed Epiphanes, having invaded Judea and ravaged wholesale, forcing many Jews to give up the holy practices of their fathers, the Machabees remained steadfast and uncorrupted, amidst all these trials.  Traversing the whole country they gathered togehter all the faithful and loyal citizens whom they met, and even a great number of those who had allowed themselves to be discouaged or led astray, urging them to return to the law of their fathers.

These exhortations resulted in the raising of an army composed of men of the utmost bravery who were fighting not so much for their wives and children and servants; not to ward off slavery and ruin from their country, but for the faith of their fathers and the rights of their nation. God Himself was their leader. Moreover, when they went into battle to sacrifice their lives, this alone was enough to put the enemy to rout; in fact they trusted less in their arms than in the cause for which they had armed, which they considered sufficient to secure victory, even if armor were altogether lacking.

Christian life is a struggle for the glory of God and the salvation of His people. We must bring to this struggle, which is the duty of every Christian, the same fervour as was displayed by the Machabees, and remember, that for us, as for them, the faith of our fathers is at stake, the inheritance of our spiritual life which we ought to prize above all else. All these treasures, which we receive from God, and weak vessels that we are, bear in "vessels of clay," are continually threatened by the forces of evil which war against God. The struggle, says St. Paul, is not against men but against the wicked spirits ad their powerful, pernicious activity. And the Apostle calls on us to for this struggle with the arms of God.

This passage was taken from the St. Andrew's Missal for the Twenty First Sunday after Pentecost. It would be hard not to argue that the world in the time of the Machabees was very muchy like our own and that we too need brave men to rise up, ready to sacrifice all not for some phony religion of niceness but in defense of the faith of our fathers which has been handed down to us.

68TH MIRACLE OF LOURDES IS OFFICIALLY RECOGNISED

Thank you to Dr. Roger Jean-Charles, KM, member of the Order of Malta who serves on the International Medical Committee of Lourdes, for sharing with us the news that Mons. Alceste Catella, Bishop of Casale Monferrato, has proclaimed his recognition of the cure of Sister Luigina Traverso as a miracle. The Committee had judged the cure to be "unexplained" in a 2011 meeting in Paris. For more information on the miracle, please click here.

Flooding of Lourdes Grotto

http://www.flickr.com//photos/lourdes_sanctuaires/sets/72157631805421999/show/

Become a Friend of Una Voce

Dear Friends of Una Voce, Become a 'Friend of the International Federation Una Voce'. It's an easy way to support the work of the Federation for the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite and to keep yourself informed about its activities. You can become a Friend by e-mailing your details, like your name, e-mail address and Country of residence to friends@fiuv.org and making an annual donation using the Paypal donate-button at the left below the site menu. You will be included on the mailing list for publications and regular bulletins but your details will not be shared with others. Two Masses will be offered in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite each month, one for living and one for deceased 'Friends of the International Federation Una Voce' To learn more about Una Voce visit their website, http://www.fiuv.org/index.html

Care of Widows, A Lesson for Uncle Joe Biden

Remember when Joe Biden attacked the Republican plans to get rid of Obamacare and leave people like his aged mother to try and pick a health insurance plan on her own. Here is what St. Paul would have to say about the issue. From today's Office of Readings is the letter of St. Paul to Timothy, 5:3-25,

Make the following rules about widows, so that no one may incur blame. If anyone does not provide for his own relatives and especially for members of his immediate family, he has denied the faith; he is worse than an unbeliever.

So as I said when he made the comment, even though Biden twisted around the Republican plan, let's assume it was true that his mother would have to pick her own plan, why wouldn't Joe help her make such a critical decision? Are we really to believe that he would leave her to make this important decision without his guidance? So either he is a liar or he has denied his faith.

Blessed Peter of Imola

Very little is known of the life of Blessed Peter of Imola whose memorial we celebrate today. He was born in 1250 at Imola, in Italy, into the noble Pattarini family who had been the lords of Linasio for over 100 years and part of the Ghibelline faction. Peter was an excellent scholar and become a well-known lawyer and jurist. The respect held for his legal opinion is evident by the fact that his name is found on many important documents which are still preserved in Imola, giving his interpretation of the laws of his time. In 1289 he became a court magistrate and eight years later was to use all his skills and experience to negotiate a peace between the rival Guelph and Ghibelline factions in Romagna. The Guelphs were predominately from wealthy mercantile families who supported the Pope while the Ghibellines tended to come from families with wealthy agricultural estates who supported the Emperor.  It was no easy task and took several years but at last Peter was able to persuade the Ghibellines to leave Romagna.

After successfully mediating this conflict and crowning what had been a successful secular career, Peter sought a new vocation dedicated to charitable works in helping the poor and the sick. He began working in one of the Order of St. John’s hospitals in Florence and was invested as a knight in 1310. His administrative skills were welcome and appreciated and put to good use as he assumed greater responsibilities working in the hospital. His talents were not unnoticed and after some years he was chosen Grand Prior of the Order in Rome. He again returned to Florence to the Commandery of St. James in Campo Corbellini. 

We do not know for certain if he became the Commander of St. James or assumed other duties. Nevertheless he continued performing great charitable works serving the sick who were either home-bound or in the hospital. Blessed Peter died in Florence on October, 5, 1320 and his loss was felt by everyone who knew him. He was buried in the Church of St. James in Campo Corbellini which still belongs to the Order.

One of the most remarkable stories about Blessed Peter occurred after his death. One day in preparation for the feast of St. James, the Church was being decorated by the brothers and a priest had placed a ladder against the tomb of Blessed Peter and was working high against the wall hanging some decoration. The priest lost his balance and the ladder began to fall. Suddenly the tomb of Bl. Peter opened slightly and his hand reached out and steadied the ladder, no doubt saving the life of the priest who was on it. This miracle was authenticated by several witnesses. Blessed Peter’s relics were later translated under the main altar of the Church in a reliquary that Commander Fra Augustine Mego had made for it, and the miracle-working arm was kept in a separate little box. After the flooding of the Arno river in 1557 the documents and reliquary were submerged and greatly damaged. However the box containing his arm survived and was still venerated with skin and nails intact centuries later.

Prayer:

O God, who gave to blessed Peter, Prior of our Order, the gift of healing discord and division, grant to us through his prayers the grace of striving for peace and so being called the children of God. Through the same Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(From: The Missal with readings of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, 
London 1997)

Top photo of the exterior of the Church of St. James is used with gracious permission of the photographer at http://www.flickr.com/photos/33115454@N04/5519987412/

Former Priory of the Order of Malta For Sale in Burgundy

Own a piece of SMOM history, a 15th century former Priory in Burgundy is for sale.  http://www.patrice-besse.co.uk/monastery-for-sale-france/burgundy/priory-for-sale/

Cardinal Pacelli w/Decoration of Order of Malta

Here is a fine portrait of Pope Pius XII while still Cardinal Pacelli wearing the decoration of Bailiff Grand Cross of the Order of Malta.

What St Stephen of Hungary can teach us about manners | CatholicHerald.co.uk

What St Stephen of Hungary can teach us about manners | CatholicHerald.co.uk

The Life of Sr. Marie de Mandat-Grancey

I received a wonderful book for Father's Day, The Life of Sr. Marie de Mandat-Grancey, which finally gives us a detailed look at the person responsible for the discovery of the House of Mary at Ephesus and how she used her family inheritance to purchase and restore the house where Mary lived with St. John the Apostle. It is an interesting book not only for the obvious reason regarding the discovery of this shrine of Our Lady but also Sister Marie's life as a Daughter of Charity and how their work serving the sick and poor is closely connected to our own with the Order of Malta.

Visit the Sister Marie Foundation website for more information. On July 1st on EWTN, Fr. Groeschel will be talking about this book and the status of Sr. Marie's cause for canonization. The book is available for ordering from the website, your local religious bookseller, or my Amazon link on the right side of the blog.

Memorial of Blessed Gerland

Blessed Gerland served in a little church at Caltagirone in Sicily, caring for widows and orphans devotedly and without thought of himself. He died about 1271 and is still honoured at Caltagirone, where his relics are venerated in the Basilica of San Giacomo.

A courtier Knight follows a hermit Knight [Bl. Gerard Mecatti]. Can there be a greater contrast? And yet, both lived by the same Rule and according to the same spirit: that flexible and strong spirituality of Saint John of Jerusalem which adapts itself to circumstances and makes sanctity possible everywhere and always to anyone who has the courage to enter on its path and pursue it. Therefore, no one among us has the right to hide behind the difficulties of his social position in order to live in worldly lukewarmness and looseness. There have always been saints everywhere, at all times and in all the classes of society. But, alas! everywhere and always the great number of indifferent, inconstant, flabby and weak people has been able to create the impression that sanctity is impossible. As if anything is not feasible, with persistence and the grace of God ! If there are few saints, it is because there are few "men". The Knight of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem is indeed a man. Therefore, he must be a saint!

(From: Ducaud-Bourget, Msgr. François: The Spiritual Heritage of The Sovereign Military Order of Malta, Vatican 1958)

Prayer:

Lord God, who brought blessed Gerland from the north to Sicily and inspired him to wear a hair shirt in place of the armour of the knights of our Order, arouse in us a zeal like his so that our lives may always aim at perfection. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(From: The Missal with readings of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes, & of Malta, London 1997)
For some historical information on the Order of Malta in Sicily visit, http://www.regalis.com/malta/maltasicily.html

Fall of Constantinople in 1453

May 29, in 1453 marked the end of the siege which began on April 6th and the final fall of Constantinople to the young Ottoman sultan Mahomet II. This event is seen by many historians as the end of the "Middle Ages" and the the resulting flight of many of the empire's intellectuals to Italy as the beginning of the Renaissance period. It was a great blow to Christendom and opened the way for further Muslim agression and invasions into Europe. Despite this great success of Mahomet II he was later prevented by the valiant knights of St. John on Rhodes from conquering their island.

Extraordinary Form of the Mass at St. John Vianney Seminary

This past Saturday the Extraordinary Form of the Mass was celebrated for the first time in the chapel of the St. John Vianney College Seminary at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul.

St. John Vianney is a wonderful place for young men discerning a vocation to the priesthood. Currently there are 135 young men from several Dioceses studying there. Even those that do not continue on to the priesthood will have received a very Catholic formation which will serve them and society very well in whatever other vocation they follow.

Like many seminaries SJV went through a difficult period in the 1980's but beginning with the arrival of the Archbishop Harry Flynn in the 90's and the appointment of solid Rectors it has really turned around.

Georgetown Scandal

What Bishop Jenky Truly Said About Obama

The enemies of the Church are in full court press regarding the sermon given by Bishop Jenky where he states that President Obama's current radical, secularist agenda seems to be taking him on a path previously taken by four previous rulers. They have twisted Bishop Jenky's statement around and report it as though he equates President Obama with Hitler or Stalin. This lack of clarity and obfuscation of facts is one of the chief reasons there is no honest discourse in the country today.

Here is what Bishop Jenky actually stated. Note that he shows the example of four different enemies of the Church in the past 150 years, not only Hitler or Stalin.

"Remember that in past history other governments have tried to force Christians to huddle and hide only within the confines of their churches like the first disciples locked up in the Upper Room.

In the late 19th century, Bismarck waged his “Kulturkampf,” a Culture War, against the Roman Catholic Church, closing down every Catholic school and hospital, convent and monastery in Imperial Germany.

Clemenceau, nicknamed “the priest eater,” tried the same thing in France in the first decade of the 20th Century.

Hitler and Stalin, at their better moments, would just barely tolerate some churches remaining open, but would not tolerate any competition with the state in education, social services, and health care.

In clear violation of our First Amendment rights, Barack Obama – with his radical, pro abortion and extreme secularist agenda, now seems intent on following a similar path."

True Sentiment We Ought to Have in the Church Militant

In the spiritual classic, The Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius gave these eighteen rules. Now ask your liberal Jesuit friends if he still believes any of them, in particular 1,2,5,6,7,8,9,10,13

TO HAVE THE TRUE SENTIMENT WHICH WE OUGHT TO HAVE IN THE CHURCH MILITANT

Let the following Rules be observed.

First Rule. The first: All judgment laid aside, we ought to have our mind ready and prompt to obey, in all, the true Spouse of Christ our Lord, which is our holy Mother the Church Hierarchical.

Second Rule. The second: To praise confession to a Priest, and the reception of the most Holy Sacrament of the Altar once in the year, and much more each month, and much better from week to week, with the conditions required and due.

Third Rule. The third: To praise the hearing of Mass often, likewise 40 hymns, psalms, and long prayers, in the church and out of it; likewise the hours set at the time fixed for each Divine Office and for all prayer and all Canonical Hours.

Fourth Rule. The fourth: To praise much Religious Orders, virginity and continence, and not so much marriage as any of these.

Fifth Rule. The fifth: To praise vows of Religion, of obedience, of poverty, of chastity and of other perfections of supererogation. And it is to be noted that as the vow is about the things which approach to Evangelical perfection, a vow ought not to be made in the things which withdraw from it, such as to be a merchant, or to be married, etc.

Sixth Rule. To praise relics of the Saints, giving veneration to them and praying to the Saints; and to praise Stations, pilgrimages, Indulgences, pardons, Cruzadas, and candles lighted in the churches.

Seventh Rule. To praise Constitutions about fasts and abstinence, as of Lent, Ember Days, Vigils, Friday and Saturday; likewise penances, not only interior, but also exterior.

Eighth Rule. To praise the ornaments and the buildings of churches; likewise images, and to venerate them according to what they represent.

Ninth Rule. Finally, to praise all precepts of the Church, keeping the mind prompt to find reasons in their defence and in no manner against them.

Tenth Rule. We ought to be more prompt to find good and praise as well the Constitutions and recommendations as the ways of our Superiors. Because, although some are not or have not been such, to speak against them, whether preaching in public or discoursing before the common people, would rather give rise to fault-finding and scandal than profit; and so the people would be incensed against their Superiors, whether temporal or spiritual. So that, as it does harm to speak evil to the common people of Superiors in their absence, so it can make profit to speak of the evil ways to the persons themselves who can remedy them.

Eleventh Rule. To praise positive and scholastic learning. Because, as it is more proper to the Positive Doctors, as St. Jerome, St. Augustine and St. Gregory, etc., to move the heart to love and serve God our Lord in everything; so it is more proper to the Scholastics, as St. Thomas, St. Bonaventure, and to the Master of the Sentences, etc., to define or explain for our times 41 the things necessary for eternal salvation; and to combat and explain better all errors and all fallacies. For the Scholastic Doctors, as they are more modern, not only help themselves with the true understanding of the Sacred Scripture and of the Positive and holy Doctors, but also, they being enlightened and clarified by the Divine virtue, help themselves by the Councils, Canons and Constitutions of our holy Mother the Church.

Twelfth Rule. We ought to be on our guard in making comparison of those of us who are alive to the blessed passed away, because error is committed not a little in this; that is to say, in saying, this one knows more than St. Augustine; he is another, or greater than, St. Francis; he is another St. Paul in goodness, holiness, etc.

Thirteenth Rule. To be right in everything, we ought always to hold that the white which I see, is black, if the Hierarchical Church so decides it, believing that between Christ our Lord, the Bridegroom, and the Church, His Bride, there is the same Spirit which governs and directs us for the salvation of our souls. Because by the same Spirit and our Lord Who gave the ten Commandments, our holy Mother the Church is directed and governed.

Fourteenth Rule. Although there is much truth in the assertion that no one can save himself without being predestined and without having faith and grace; we must be very cautious in the manner of speaking and communicating with others about all these things.

Fifteenth Rule. We ought not, by way of custom, to speak much of predestination; but if in some way and at some times one speaks, let him so speak that the common people may not come into any error, as sometimes happens, saying: Whether I have to be saved or condemned is already determined, and no other thing can now be, through my doing well or ill; and with this, growing lazy, they become negligent in the works which lead to the salvation and the spiritual 42 profit of their souls.

Sixteenth Rule. In the same way, we must be on our guard that by talking much and with much insistence of faith, without any distinction and explanation, occasion be not given to the people to be lazy and slothful in works, whether before faith is formed in charity or after.

Seventeenth Rule. Likewise, we ought not to speak so much with insistence on grace that the poison of discarding liberty be engendered.

So that of faith and grace one can speak as much as is possible with the Divine help for the greater praise of His Divine Majesty, but not in such way, nor in such manners, especially in our so dangerous times, that works and free will receive any harm, or be held for nothing.

Eighteenth Rule. Although serving God our Lord much out of pure love is to be esteemed above all; we ought to praise much the fear of His Divine Majesty, because not only filial fear is a thing pious and most holy, but even servile fear -- when the man reaches nothing else better or more useful -- helps much to get out of mortal sin. And when he is out, he easily comes to filial fear, which is all acceptable and grateful to God our Lord: as being at one with the Divine Love.

Happy Easter!

An Order that is still relevant - timesofmalta.com

An Order that is still relevant - timesofmalta.com

Four Necessary Weapsons for Spiritual Combat

In the spiritual classic, The Spiritual Combat, Dom Lorenzo Scupoli lists four weapons absolutely necessary to earn victory in our spiritual combat. They are,

Distrust of one's self
Confidence in God
Proper use of the faculties of mind and body
The duty of prayer

Fast and Show Mercy to Make Your Prayer Heard

From a sermon by Saint Peter Chrysologus, bishop
(Sermo 43: PL 52, 320, 322)

Prayer knocks, fasting obtains, mercy receives

There are three things, my brethren, by which faith stands firm, devotion remains constant, and virtue endures. They are prayer, fasting and mercy. Prayer knocks at the door, fasting obtains, mercy receives. Prayer, mercy and fasting: these three are one, and they give life to each other.

Fasting is the soul of prayer, mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. Let no one try to separate them; they cannot be separated. If you have only one of them or not all together, you have nothing. So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heard, hear the petition of others. If you do not close your ear to others you open God’s ear to yourself.

When you fast, see the fasting of others. If you want God to know that you are hungry, know that another is hungry. If you hope for mercy, show mercy. If you look for kindness, show kindness. If you want to receive, give. If you ask for yourself what you deny to others, your asking is a mockery.

Let this be the pattern for all men when they practice mercy: show mercy to others in the same way, with the same generosity, with the same promptness, as you want others to show mercy to you.

Therefore, let prayer, mercy and fasting be one single plea to God on our behalf, one speech in our defense, a threefold united prayer in our favor.

Let us use fasting to make up for what we have lost by despising others. Let us offer our souls in sacrifice by means of fasting. There is nothing more pleasing that we can offer to God, as the psalmist said in prophecy: A sacrifice to God is a broken spirit; God does not despise a bruised and humbled heart.

Offer your soul to God, make him an oblation of your fasting, so that your soul may be a pure offering, a holy sacrifice, a living victim, remaining your own and at the same time made over to God. Whoever fails to give this to God will not be excused, for if you are to give him yourself you are never without the means of giving.

To make these acceptable, mercy must be added. Fasting bears no fruit unless it is watered by mercy. Fasting dries up when mercy dries up. Mercy is to fasting as rain is to the earth. However much you may cultivate your heart, clear the soil of your nature, root out vices, sow virtues, if you do not release the springs of mercy, your fasting will bear no fruit.

When you fast, if your mercy is thin your harvest will be thin; when you fast, what you pour out in mercy overflows into your barn. Therefore, do not lose by saving, but gather in by scattering. Give to the poor, and you give to yourself. You will not be allowed to keep what you have refused to give to others.

Belloc on Church and State

In 1931 Hilaire Belloc wrote an essay on the Church and State in which he demonstrates that a clash between the these two entities is inevitable and has occurred on numerous occasions throughout its 2000 year history and the likelihood of another great persecution of the Church by the State is growing closer. Here's an excerpt,

I notice, for instance, that certain of our critics are particularly shocked by the admirable statement issued on the part of the English Catholic Bishops just before the late General Election in Britain, where they say that it is no part of the State's duty to teach, and add that authority over the child belongs not to the State, but to the parent. Nothing could be more odious in the ears of modern Nationalism--because nothing is more true. [notice the outrage over the recent comments by Rick Santorum when he stated, "the left uses universities to indoctrinate young people for the purpose of holding and maintaining power." Of course it is not only at the college level but starts with early childhood education] In the face of this tremendous claim of the Modern State, a claim which not even the Roman Empire made, the right to teach wht it wills to every child in the community, that is, to form the whole mind of the nation on its own despotic fiat--our critics cannot maintain that the Modern State does not pretend to be "absolute."  It is in fact more absolute than any Pagan state of the past ever was. What is more, its absoluteness increases daily; that is why its conflict with Catholicism seems to be inevitable.

The issue is very well stated when abhorrence is expressed (by implication) of a recent authoritative Catholic pronouncement, that "if certain laws are declared invalid by the Catholic Church, they are not binding." Here, as we have just seen, is the whole point. Where there is a conflict between civil law and the moral law of the Catholic Church, members of the Catholic Church will resist the civil law and obey the law of the Church. And when this happens you get that active dissension between the Church and the State which history records in all the great persecutions. That was the very crux between the Roman Empire and the Catholic Church before Constantine. In the eyes of the civil power the Christians were rebels; in the eyes of the Christians the civil power was commanding practices which no Catholic could adopt. It was demanding duties which no Catholic could admit.

That the quarrel has not yet broken out into open form (save here and there in the shape of a few riots) is due to the fact that hitherto the bulk of Catholic doctrines have been retained in States of non-Catholic culture. But as the moral distance grows greater between the Catholic and the non-Catholic, as the Modern State reverts more and more to that Paganism which is the natural end of those who abandon Catholicism, the direct contrast cannot fail to pass from the realm of theory to that of practice.

It is inevitable there should appear in any Absolute State, not alone in States which still trust to the machinery of voting, but in all States, Monarchic or Democratic, Plutocratic or Communist, laws which no Catholic will obey. One or two tentative efforts have already been made at such laws. When those laws are presented to Catholics there will at once arise the situation which has arisen successively time and again for nearly two thousand years; the refusal on the part of Catholics, which refusal in the eyes of the State is rebellion. There will follow upon that what the State calls the punishment of disobedience, and what Catholics have always called, and will once again call, persecution. It will be accompanied by considerable apostasy, [no doubt this has already happened] but also considerable heroism; and in the upshot the Faith's power to survive will lie in this: that devotion to the Faith is stronger, more rational, better founded, more tenacious, more lasting in substance, than that hatred which the Faith also, and naturally arouses.

Prayer for Beginning Lent

Grant, O Lord, that we may begin with holy fasting
this campaign of Christian service,
so that, as we take up battle against spiritual evils,
we may be armed with weapons of self-restraint.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
One God forever and ever,
-Amen

Prayer for Beginning Lent

Grant, O Lord, that we may begin with holy fasting
this campaign of Christian service,
so that, as we take up battle against spiritual evils,
we may be armed with weapons of self-restraint.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
One God forever and ever,
-Amen

The Castelfranco Madonna

An image of the Child Jesus and the Blessed Virgin between St. Nicasius and St. Francis which is also known as the Castelfranco Madonna.

The Castelfranco Madonna

An image of the Child Jesus and the Blessed Virgin between St. Nicasius and St. Francis which is also known as the Castelfranco Madonna.

Works of the Order of Malta in France

A video by the Order of Malta in France, click here for more.

Works of the Order of Malta in France

A video by the Order of Malta in France, click here for more.

The Cross of Christ is Our Standard

To show us the way of salvation, God chose that the standard of the cross should go before us, fulfilling the ancient prophecies in Christ’s passover from death to life. Do not let us rouse His burning indignation by sin, but rather, through the contemplation of His wounds, make us burn with zeal for the honor of His Church and with grateful love for Him.

The Cross of Christ is Our Standard

To show us the way of salvation, God chose that the standard of the cross should go before us, fulfilling the ancient prophecies in Christ’s passover from death to life. Do not let us rouse His burning indignation by sin, but rather, through the contemplation of His wounds, make us burn with zeal for the honor of His Church and with grateful love for Him.

Listen My Son, Benedictine Wisdom

Practical steps for applying the Rule of St. Benedict in our families by Fr. Longenecker.

Listen My Son Benedictine Wisdom for Fathers

Listen My Son, Benedictine Wisdom

Practical steps for applying the Rule of St. Benedict in our families by Fr. Longenecker.

Listen My Son Benedictine Wisdom for Fathers

President Theodore Roosevelt and Primacy of the Home Life of a Citizen

Many pundits and members of the media try to make the key issue of the upcoming presidential election about the economy and jobs. They have relentlessly attacked Rick Santorum for his opposition to contraception and tried to paint him as an extremist. Here then is an excerpt from the 6th Annual Message to the Senate and the House from President Theodore Roosevelt,

"I am well aware of how difficult it is to pass a constitutional amendment. Nevertheless in my judgment the whole question of marriage and divorce should be relegated to the authority of the National Congress. At present the wide differences in the laws of the different States on this subject result in scandals and abuses; and surely there is nothing so vitally essential to the welfare of the nation, nothing around which the nation should so bend itself to throw every safeguard, as the home life of the average citizen. The change would be good from every standpoint. In particular it would be good because it would confer on the Congress the power at once to deal radically and efficiently with polygamy; and this should be done whether or not marriage and divorce are dealt with. It is neither safe nor proper to leave the question of polygamy to be dealt with by the several States. Power to deal with it should be conferred on the National Government.

When home ties are loosened; when men and women cease to regard a worthy family life, with all its duties fully performed, and all its responsibilities lived up to, as the life best worth living; then evil days for the commonwealth are at hand. There are regions in our land, and classes of our population, where the birth rate has sunk below the death rate. Surely it should need no demonstration to show that wilful sterility is, from the standpoint of the nation, from the standpoint of the human race, the one sin for which the penalty is national death, race death; a sin for which there is no atonement; a sin which is the more dreadful exactly in proportion as the men and women guilty thereof are in other respects, in character, and bodily and mental powers, those whom for the sake of the state it would be well to see the fathers and mothers of many healthy children, well brought up in homes made happy by their presence. No man, no woman can shirk the primary duties of life, whether for love of ease and pleasure, or for any other cause, and retain his or her self-respect.

The whole message is excellent and covers several other topics which are relevant and important for today.

President Theodore Roosevelt and Primacy of the Home Life of a Citizen

Many pundits and members of the media try to make the key issue of the upcoming presidential election about the economy and jobs. They have relentlessly attacked Rick Santorum for his opposition to contraception and tried to paint him as an extremist. Here then is an excerpt from the 6th Annual Message to the Senate and the House from President Theodore Roosevelt,

"I am well aware of how difficult it is to pass a constitutional amendment. Nevertheless in my judgment the whole question of marriage and divorce should be relegated to the authority of the National Congress. At present the wide differences in the laws of the different States on this subject result in scandals and abuses; and surely there is nothing so vitally essential to the welfare of the nation, nothing around which the nation should so bend itself to throw every safeguard, as the home life of the average citizen. The change would be good from every standpoint. In particular it would be good because it would confer on the Congress the power at once to deal radically and efficiently with polygamy; and this should be done whether or not marriage and divorce are dealt with. It is neither safe nor proper to leave the question of polygamy to be dealt with by the several States. Power to deal with it should be conferred on the National Government.

When home ties are loosened; when men and women cease to regard a worthy family life, with all its duties fully performed, and all its responsibilities lived up to, as the life best worth living; then evil days for the commonwealth are at hand. There are regions in our land, and classes of our population, where the birth rate has sunk below the death rate. Surely it should need no demonstration to show that wilful sterility is, from the standpoint of the nation, from the standpoint of the human race, the one sin for which the penalty is national death, race death; a sin for which there is no atonement; a sin which is the more dreadful exactly in proportion as the men and women guilty thereof are in other respects, in character, and bodily and mental powers, those whom for the sake of the state it would be well to see the fathers and mothers of many healthy children, well brought up in homes made happy by their presence. No man, no woman can shirk the primary duties of life, whether for love of ease and pleasure, or for any other cause, and retain his or her self-respect.

The whole message is excellent and covers several other topics which are relevant and important for today.

Prayer of St. Pius X to St. Joseph

I wonder how our economic situation might improve if whatever our job or profession, we all worked in the spirit of this prayer from St. Pius X to St. Joseph, rather than by greed, envy or indifference.

Glorious St. Joseph, model of all who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work in the spirit of penance in expiation of my many sins; to work conscientiously by placing love of duty above my inclinations; to gratefully and joyously deem it an honor to employ and to develop by labor the gifts I have received from God, to work methodically, peacefully, and in moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from it through weariness or difficulty to work; above all, with purity of intention and unselfishness, having unceasingly before my eyes death and the account I have to render of time lost, talents unused, good not done, and vain complacency in success, so baneful to the work of God. All for Jesus, all for Mary, all to imitate thee, O patriarch St. Joseph! This shall be my motto for life and eternity.

Prayer of St. Pius X to St. Joseph

I wonder how our economic situation might improve if whatever our job or profession, we all worked in the spirit of this prayer from St. Pius X to St. Joseph, rather than by greed, envy or indifference.

Glorious St. Joseph, model of all who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work in the spirit of penance in expiation of my many sins; to work conscientiously by placing love of duty above my inclinations; to gratefully and joyously deem it an honor to employ and to develop by labor the gifts I have received from God, to work methodically, peacefully, and in moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from it through weariness or difficulty to work; above all, with purity of intention and unselfishness, having unceasingly before my eyes death and the account I have to render of time lost, talents unused, good not done, and vain complacency in success, so baneful to the work of God. All for Jesus, all for Mary, all to imitate thee, O patriarch St. Joseph! This shall be my motto for life and eternity.

Treatise on St. John by St. Augustine

From today's Office of Readings is this treatise on St. John from St. Augustine

The double commandment of love

The Lord, the teacher of love, full of love, came in person with summary judgment on the world, as had been foretold of him, and showed that the law and the prophets are summed up in two commandments of love.

Call to mind, brethren, what these two commandments are. They ought to be very familiar to you; they should not only spring to mind when I mention them, but ought never to be absent from your hearts. Keep always in mind that we must love God and our neighbor: Love God with your whole heart, your whole soul, and your whole mind, and your neighbor as yourself.

These two commandments must be always in your thoughts and in your hearts, treasured, acted on, fulfilled. Love of God is the first to be commanded, but love of neighbor is the first to be put into practice. In giving two commandments of love Christ would not commend to you first your neighbor and then God but first God and then your neighbor.

Since you do not yet see God, you merit the vision of God by loving your neighbor. By loving your neighbor you prepare your eye to see God. Saint John says clearly: If you do not love your brother whom you see, how will you love God whom you do not see!

Consider what is said to you: Love God. If you say to me: Show me whom I am to love, what shall I say if not what Saint John says: No one has ever seen God! But in case you should think that you are completely cut off from the sight of God, he says: God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God. Love your neighbor, then, and see within yourself the power by which you love your neighbor; there you will see God, as far as you are able.

Begin, then, to love your neighbor. Break your bread to feed the hungry, and bring into your home the homeless poor; if you see someone naked, clothe him, and do not look down on your own flesh and blood.

What will you gain by doing this? Your light will then burst forth like the dawn. Your light is your God; he is your dawn, for he will come to you when the night of time is over. He does not rise or set but remains for ever.

In loving your neighbor and caring for him you are on a journey. Where are you traveling if not to the Lord God, to him whom we should love with our whole heart, our whole soul, our whole mind? We have not yet reached his presence, but we have our neighbor at our side. Support, then, this companion of your pilgrimage if you want to come into the presence of the one with whom you desire to remain for ever.

Treatise on St. John by St. Augustine

From today's Office of Readings is this treatise on St. John from St. Augustine

The double commandment of love

The Lord, the teacher of love, full of love, came in person with summary judgment on the world, as had been foretold of him, and showed that the law and the prophets are summed up in two commandments of love.

Call to mind, brethren, what these two commandments are. They ought to be very familiar to you; they should not only spring to mind when I mention them, but ought never to be absent from your hearts. Keep always in mind that we must love God and our neighbor: Love God with your whole heart, your whole soul, and your whole mind, and your neighbor as yourself.

These two commandments must be always in your thoughts and in your hearts, treasured, acted on, fulfilled. Love of God is the first to be commanded, but love of neighbor is the first to be put into practice. In giving two commandments of love Christ would not commend to you first your neighbor and then God but first God and then your neighbor.

Since you do not yet see God, you merit the vision of God by loving your neighbor. By loving your neighbor you prepare your eye to see God. Saint John says clearly: If you do not love your brother whom you see, how will you love God whom you do not see!

Consider what is said to you: Love God. If you say to me: Show me whom I am to love, what shall I say if not what Saint John says: No one has ever seen God! But in case you should think that you are completely cut off from the sight of God, he says: God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God. Love your neighbor, then, and see within yourself the power by which you love your neighbor; there you will see God, as far as you are able.

Begin, then, to love your neighbor. Break your bread to feed the hungry, and bring into your home the homeless poor; if you see someone naked, clothe him, and do not look down on your own flesh and blood.

What will you gain by doing this? Your light will then burst forth like the dawn. Your light is your God; he is your dawn, for he will come to you when the night of time is over. He does not rise or set but remains for ever.

In loving your neighbor and caring for him you are on a journey. Where are you traveling if not to the Lord God, to him whom we should love with our whole heart, our whole soul, our whole mind? We have not yet reached his presence, but we have our neighbor at our side. Support, then, this companion of your pilgrimage if you want to come into the presence of the one with whom you desire to remain for ever.