Saint Tolkien

Did you know that there's a cause for sainthood for J. R. R. Tolkien?  It began in 2017 at the church he was a parishioner in, the Oxford Oratory.  Here is a prayer for this intention:

O Blessed Trinity, we thank You for having graced the Church with John Ronald Reuel Tolkien and for allowing the poetry of Your Creation, the mystery of the Passion of Your Son, and the symphony of the Holy Spirit, to shine through him and his sub-creative imagination. Trusting fully in Your infinite mercy and in the maternal intercession of Mary, he has given us a living image of Jesus the Wisdom of God Incarnate, and has shown us that holiness is the necessary measure of ordinary Christian life and is the way of achieving eternal communion with You. Grant us, by his intercession, and according to Your will, the graces we implore [....], hoping that he will soon be numbered among Your saints. Amen

Reflect on Your Experience

The morning found me reading Haggai.  Although the scripture is concerned with conditions after the Babylonian exile and how the people are to rebuild, I am linking the words to the COVID-19 quarantine and how will the world ever return to normal.

Now thus says the Lord of hosts:
   Reflect on your experience!
You have sown much, but have
   brought in little;
   you have eaten, but have not      Think of the Eucharist.
   been satisfied;
You have drunk, but have not        Think of the Eucharist.
   become intoxicated;

Thus says the Lord of hosts:

Reflect on your experience!          I miss Jesus.

The Quarantine's Three Lessons About the Church

The quarantine's three lessons about the Church: One silver lining for me during this weird coronavirus shutdown has been the opportunity to return to some writing projects that I had left on the back burner. One of these is a book on the Nicene Creed.

Bishop Barron continues explaining how the "...One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic Church..." brought him to reflect on what makes us "One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic...".  It is the Eucharist that glues us together.  Maybe, just maybe those people who didn't believe in the True Presence in the Eucharist will feel Jesus' absence.  Maybe they will miss the Eucharist.  Maybe this forced absence from Communion will make them reflect on the reasons why they are missing Communion.

Catholics need the sacred Body and Blood to live.  Jesus is life.  And I am starving without Him.

Think.  If Jesus can become flesh in a woman, He can become flesh in bread and wine.

For an enumeration of Bishop Barron's three lessons, click on the link.

Amen, Amen! Twice

Lectio:

JN 10:1-10

Jesus said:
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the gate
but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber.
But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.  The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice,
as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
When he has driven out all his own,
he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him,
because they recognize his voice.
But they will not follow a stranger;
they will run away from him,
because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.”
Although Jesus used this figure of speech,
the Pharisees did not realize what he was trying to tell them.

So Jesus said again, “Amen, amen, I say to you,
I am the gate for the sheep.
All who came before me are thieves and robbers,
but the sheep did not listen to them.
I am the gate.
Whoever enters through me will be saved,
and will come in and go out and find pasture.
A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy;
I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”

Studium:

This is a pastoral picture of Palestine. A sheepfold is an enclosure to protect the sheep at night. Only the shepherd would be let in by the gatekeeper. And he would walk through the gate.  Who would sneak over the wall?  Only a thief.  Pay attention because Jesus uses "Amen, Amen" to punctuate this teaching.  He is the way; He is the gatekeeper.  Only the Pharisees and their ilk don't understand.  But you do.

Meditatio:

Jesus, You are the One and Only.  Only through You may we attain divine life.  After all, You said You came so that we may have abundant eternal life.

Oratio:

Lord, lead me safely home.  Don't let the evil ones steal me away from Your sheepfold.  Help me to hear and listen to Your voice, alone.

Contemplatio:

Jesus is the good Shepherd.

Resolutio:

I must remember that I am only a poor sheep and my hope of salvation is by following Jesus.

On the Road to Sainthood

My spiritual hero is Pere Marie Jean-Joseph Lataste, O.P.  He has been beatified for a few years, close to canonization. Please pray with me that it happens soon.

Pere Marie Jean-Joseph Lataste, O.P.

                          The Road

Servant of God: The first step, start the process with the Vatican.
Venerable: If your candidate is acceptable, the process may begin.
Blessed: One authenticated miracle caused by Father Lataste.
Saint: One more miracle is accepted.  We are awaiting acceptance.

Why do we have saints anyway and why so many?  I think the answer would be that we people need the assurance that heaven is attainable by ordinary people and that's the answer to why so many, too.  Surely, there's some model for everybody. The lives of the saints are reminders to us that we can do it too. 

Not only are they models for us but they become our friends.  The friends of God are our friends, too.  We can ask them to pray for us.  Don't we ask our family and friends to pray for us?  Well, the saints in heaven are more alive than we are!  Hence, all saints in heaven, pray for me!

Did you know that not until the end of the first millennium, that the pope was the final decision-maker in determining whether to call the Blessed, Saint?  Before then, it was easier.  Of course, if you died a martyr, you were called Saint, immediately.  That was the time when cults arose to honor the martyr.  In fact, when a martyr was beheaded, the followers rushed forward to dip pieces of cloth in his blood.  Then these souvenirs were kept to remind the faithful of his sacrifice and his goodness.  These souvenirs are called relics.

Once Christianity became legal, few died as martyrs, but it was obvious that some people lived very holy lives.  How to honor them?  These obviously holy people were canonized and called "confessors."  They are/were people who professed Jesus to the world. They were recognized not only by their holy lives but also by miracles attributed to them after they died.

The person who handled these claims was still the pope.  But it grew to be too much.  Pope John XV approved the first papal canonization in 993 in a method that resembled court methods. The person who examined became known as the "devil's advocate."  I picture him as the prosecuting attorney. 

Pope Benedict XIV wrote five volumes on beatification and canonization, and this was followed for 200 years. It became part of the Code of Canon Law in 1917. During Vatican II, a commission examined the process.  Pope John Paul II finished the reorganization in 1983. 

The person who gathers the material and does all the research is called the postulator.  By the way, the postulator doesn't work for love.  He has to eat.  IOW, he needs a salary, so it does take money to get a person canonized.  The postulator for Blessed Marie Jean-Joseph Lataste is Father Jean-Marie Gueullette, O.P. and he has already spent 20 years of his life working on Lataste's cause for sainthood. 

Would anyone do that if he didn't believe that Pere Marie Jean-Joseph Lataste wasn't a saint?  So whether or not Pere Lataste is ever canonized we know that he really is a saint.

* "Making Saints" by Bill Dodds in Columbia, November 2000, pp.16-19 was the basis for this post.

Add Two More Prayers to the Rosary

You know how I have this love/hate relationship with the rosary.  I don't like rote prayers and the rosary is an example.  I have been praying it, however, because as a Lay Dominican it is part of our rule.  It is part of my life. I miss it when I don't pray it.  Well, today in Aleteia,in an article by Kathleen Kattrup, I read that the pope asks Catholics to add two more prayers to the rosary during the month of May, which is a month dedicated to Mary.  Of course, I will do it.  After all, Thomas Merton says it's worth more when you push yourself.

First Prayer

O Mary,
You shine continuously on our journey
as a sign of salvation and hope.
We entrust ourselves to you, Health of the Sick,    who, at the foot of the cross,
were united with Jesus’ suffering,
and persevered in your faith.

“Protectress of the Roman people”,
you know our needs,
and we know that you will provide,
so that, as at Cana in Galilee,
joy and celebration may return
after this time of trial.

Help us, Mother of Divine Love,
to conform ourselves to the will of the Father
and to do what Jesus tells us.
For he took upon himself our suffering,
and burdened himself with our sorrows
to bring us, through the cross,
to the joy of the Resurrection.
Amen.

We fly to your protection,
O Holy Mother of God;
Do not despise our petitions
in our necessities,
but deliver us always
from every danger,
O Glorious and Blessed Virgin.

---

Second Prayer

“We fly to your protection, O Holy Mother of God”.

In the present tragic situation, when the whole world is prey to suffering and anxiety, we fly to you, Mother of God and our Mother, and seek refuge under your protection.

Virgin Mary, turn your merciful eyes towards us amid this coronavirus pandemic. Comfort those who are distraught and mourn their loved ones who have died, and at times are buried in a way that grieves them deeply. Be close to those who are concerned for their loved ones who are sick and who, in order to prevent the spread of the disease, cannot be close to them. Fill with hope those who are troubled by the uncertainty of the future and the consequences for the economy and employment.

Mother of God and our Mother, pray for us to God, the Father of mercies, that this great suffering may end and that hope and peace may dawn anew. Plead with your divine Son, as you did at Cana, so that the families of the sick and the victims be comforted, and their hearts be opened to confidence and trust.

Protect those doctors, nurses, health workers and volunteers who are on the frontline of this emergency, and are risking their lives to save others. Support their heroic effort and grant them strength, generosity and continued health.

Be close to those who assist the sick night and day, and to priests who, in their pastoral concern and fidelity to the Gospel, are trying to help and support everyone.

Blessed Virgin, illumine the minds of men and women engaged in scientific research, that they may find effective solutions to overcome this virus.

Support national leaders, that with wisdom, solicitude and generosity they may come to the aid of those lacking the basic necessities of life and may devise social and economic solutions inspired by farsightedness and solidarity.

Mary Most Holy, stir our consciences, so that the enormous funds invested in developing and stockpiling arms will instead be spent on promoting effective research on how to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future.

Beloved Mother, help us realize that we are all members of one great family and to recognize the bond that unites us, so that, in a spirit of fraternity and solidarity, we can help to alleviate countless situations of poverty and need. Make us strong in faith, persevering in service, constant in prayer.

Mary, Consolation of the afflicted, embrace all your children in distress and pray that God will stretch out his all-powerful hand and free us from this terrible pandemic, so that life can serenely resume its normal course.

To you, who shine on our journey as a sign of salvation and hope, do we entrust ourselves, O Clement, O Loving, O Sweet Virgin Mary. Amen.

Pandemic Reflection

Thanks for the Memories, COVID-19

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the world-wide population was under quarantine.  Since I couldn’t leave the house, I took the opportunity to clean, organize, and read, many of the things I had put off due to lack of time.  Now time was what I had.

As I was cleaning out one of my bookcases, the shelf with cookbooks caught my eye.  I sat down to peruse them.  What can be tossed and what can be kept? Just because a recipe is a yellowed, aged newspaper clipping from 50 years ago doesn’t mean that its dish isn’t still tasty.  Does it?

What’s this?  A 20-year-old letter.

Should I write to Connie and tell her I found her letter?  I saved it because she included a recipe in the middle.  I remember I really didn’t want the recipe; I was just being polite when I requested it.  I don’t think I ever made the meal.  She probably doesn’t remember who I am.  She might have moved and the address isn’t valid anymore.  What if she’s dead?

I tossed the letter away.

Look at this!  It’s a mimeographed booklet of recipes from the 1970’s. It cost $ 1.50!  I wasn’t even married then!  Yes, I remember buying this from my sister.  I see the names of 3 of her children.  They contributed some recipes.  Well, I can’t throw this away.

Ugh! What’s this?  Gross! ------ a dead hornet.

Now here are a lot of newspaper clippings from the Boston Globe. I used to read a column called “Confidential Chat,” regularly. It was full of helpful hints, advice, and recipes.  They were too yellow, folded too tight, the print was too small, and I have too many recipes.  Out, along with the hornet.

Remember the bread machine? Look, 5 books of bread machine recipes.  I think I gave the bread machine away. Well, I don’t need these cookbooks, anymore.

And here’s a binder of Microwave Times. Yes, I remember taking an “adult ed” course at the high school, when microwaves first came out.  I used to do a lot of cooking in the microwave.  I even made a turkey in it, also a pineapple upside-down cake. Now, I only use the microwave to heat up leftovers.  I’m keeping these and resolving to make some of these recipes.

It looks like I found what to make for dinner tonight, “Splendor in the Grass.” This recipe is from Dave Maynard. Remember him? A disc jockey on WBZ radio. Everyone in my family loved “Splendor in the Grass.”  It’s a relatively easy microwave recipe: sliced carrots on the bottom., chicken breast on top, covered with spinach, that’s it. The meal was decorated with sliced carrots.  That’s why it’s called “Splendor in the Grass.” The spinach is the grass, the carrots are the flowers, and the chicken is the splendor.

Well, I’ve wasted an entire morning gleaning through this one shelf.  And I’m still not finished.

Enough.

It’s noon and I’m still in my pajamas. 

Enough is enough.

Spoiled Brats

We in America are spoiled brats!  During this quarantine, many people I personally know,  are still going to Mass (here and there where they are being held), or Confession (where given) or Eucharistic Adoration. I didn't think anything of it, until I read this article in America Magazine (April 23, 2020).
The writer, Michael Bayer points to many other people in other parts of the world, who live without the sacraments.  And we Americans can't stop whining and demanding that our bishops ignore the health recommendations are have Mass.

Think of the refugees of famine and war. 
Think of the migrants along our Mexican border.
Think of prisoners locked in their cells.
Think of people who only have access to priests every few months, e.i., Peru, Papua, etc.
Think of people who are scattered far away from the sacraments.

What did the Jews in the Babylonian captivity do all those years away from their sacred liturgies?  They carried on their traditions and prayed.

And we are whining?

We are blessed to have computers with internet.  We can access Mass, rosary, homilies, teachings, and many devotions.  I feel blessed to watch Boston Catholic TV where I watch Bishop Reed pray the Divine Office, pray the rosary, and celebrate Mass.

O Lord, are you teaching us to count our blessings?  Please send the Holy Spirit upon us to appreciate our blessings and discern how we are becoming all You want us to be.  Amen.

Ipsum Esse Subsistens

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo Is Seen During A Midnight Mass At St Patrick's Cathedral Dec. 25, 2014, In The Manhattan Borough Of New York City. CNS Photo/Carlo Allegri, Reuters

Governor Cuomo and God's noncompetitive transcendence: Last week, Andrew Cuomo, the governor of New York, made a rather interesting theological observation. Commenting on the progress that his state has made in fighting the coronavirus and praising the concrete efforts of medical personnel and ordinary citizens, he said, "The number is down because we brought the number down.  God did not do that.  Faith did not do that."



 Whoa!  How do you define hubris?  Please click on the link to read the rest of Bishop Barron's article in the Pilot.

Prediction of the End of the World

Author of Lord of the World Robert Hugh Benson

I read Lord of the World by Robert Hugh Benson seven years ago!!!! No wonder I was anticipating the events, as I read it. What a time to reread it now--during the COVID-19 pandemic! If I weren't depressed before reading, I certainly am now. This book predicts a world without our Trinitarian God. The people have their political leader as their god. The world had become so secularized that God was unthought of.

And it gets worse. And it ends even more worse.

I read it because three popes referred to it.  Pope Benedict XV wrote an encyclical Bonum sane where he criticized the new world order.  Pope Benedict XVI said an anti-Christ would carry a new world order, referencing Lord of the World and Bonum sane.  Pope Francis called Lord of the World a prophecy.

If the world becomes what Robert Hugh Benson describes, then stop it; I want to get off.

Cloistered COVID-19

What is it like to be a "cloistered brother" inside prison walls?  Here's a taste, written by a "cloistered brother" who happens to be the president of the prison Lay Dominican Fraternity.

Imagine yourself standing on a very crowded beach.  You look out to the horizon and see a massive tsunami wave lifting high into the sky as it rushes toward you with the speed of a bullet train.  Pressed in between the throngs of bodies on the beach, you turn to run.  As you lift your knee to begin your panicked sprint, you feel the painful yank of a heavy chain.  As you do so, you realize that all the other densely packed people on the beach are trapped the same as you.  You scream and yell, but your voice is lost in the cacophony of cries rising from the beach.  You turn your head to check the wave's progress.  It has now climbed far above the horizon and looks like a watery bulldozer blade plowing toward you.  You return to frantically pulling the chain latched to your ankle.  A shadow climbs over you as the wave eclipses the sun.  You turn back toward the violent wave, as does everyone else on the beach.  Shrieks fade into pure silence.  You close your eyes and wait for the inevitable.

This is what it feels like to be in prison during the Coronavirus.

More than 2.2 million women and men are trapped on the beach that is the American criminal punishment system.  Prisoners like me are in a position where all we can do is wait for the wave to hit us.

When I look out my window, I see staff walking back and forth bringing food, medication, and supplies.  Some are wearing protective gear, others are not.  They are one part of the viral tsunami.  When the virus comes in, it will come in through them.

The other part of the wave is the structure of the prison itself.  We are strategically packed into units, housing blocks, and facilities like products in an Amazon warehouse.  For example, where I am, there
are men stuck in two-man cells the size of a parking space.  There are other men in four-man cells that are not much larger.  Other prisons have six-man cells and dormitories filled with bunks that hold hundreds.  When the virus hits these places, it will hit hard.

The biggest challenge I have seen in fighting the Coronavirus in the United States has not been a lack of science of a lack of willingness to fight; it has been a lack of imagination.  Many Americans simply cannot imagine a pandemic because so few of us have ever experienced one. We have no mental framework to process a mass casualty disease like COVID-19.  Therefore, we reach for easy, but inaccurate, parallels like the flu.  We cannot visualize an invisible threat causing hundreds of thousands of deaths, so we ignore the images of orange body bags stacking up and wonder when the baseball season might start.

The ramparts built up inside American minds that prevent people from really understanding the threat of the Coronavirus are similar to the blockades that are preventing officials from properly addressing how to treat people in prisons during this crisis.  Over the past several weeks, there has been far too much status quo thinking, and it is leading to far too many deaths in prisons.

Politicians and judges, like many citizens, cannot think of another way to handle incarcerated people.  This is due mainly to our nation spending more than a century failing to use our imagination to make improvements to the criminal punishment system.  Once America settled on the idea of warehousing people, the nation rarely tried to move past the concept toward a better model.

The reality of American prisons in a post-Coronavirus world is that they are no longer a realistic solution.  Once we all accept that fact, the quicker we can begin to imagine something else.  We need to start that work right now.  The virus won't wait, so we cannot wait.

Many of us in this place are not a threat to society.  That is not my opinion, that is the studied opinion of the Department of Correction.  If I may use myself as an example.  I have been in prison for almost fifteen years.  During that time, I have actively participated in rehabilitative and educational programs.  I have held a steady job.  And, I have volunteered my time to help others.  As such, the DOC each year gives me an evaluation that reads, "Low Risk."  In other words, the state of Massachusetts says that I am not a danger to the community.  Yet, they are okay forcing me to remain in a place where I am now in constant danger.

If nothing changes, I and many others will continue to wake up each day to find that we are still trapped on the beach; still locked in place by a heavy chain.  We will spend our days scanning the tumultuous and unpredictable horizon wondering if today will be the day the tsunami crashes into us.  

Easter Sepulcher

Fr Walter Wagner, O.P., the pastor of the Parish of St. Vincent Ferrer and St. Catherine of Siena in New York, takes a closer look at the objects and rituals of Holy Week. Today, we open up the Easter Sepulcher.

Force Yourself to Pray the Rosary

Many times I have heard and read that a deed that you force yourself to do is worth a lot more than one that you love to do.  Why?  Because the reason you are doing it is "love."  It proves your love.  Does anyone want to change dirty diapers?  No, we push ourselves to do it.

I was reminded of this as I read, "What Evelyn Waugh saw in America," by Joshua Hren, in America magazine.

from Jean's blog 
https://www.writewithjean.com/2015/07/28/evelyn-waugh-and-thomas-merton/

"During the same travels, while delivering a series of lectures on “Three Vital Writers: Chesterton, Knox, and Greene,” Waugh stopped at Gethsemani Abbey in Kentucky to see Thomas Merton. Merton was indebted to Waugh, who provided extensive edits to the “long winded” Seven Storey Mountain. The book came out in England one-third shorter and with Waugh’s recommended title, Elected Silences. The younger Merton repaid his debt, in part, through spiritual friendship, advising Waugh to “say the Rosary every day. If you don’t like it, so much the better.” The monk hoped the beads would assist with Waugh’s anxiety over imperfect contrition. To Merton’s mind, Waugh was a man “with intellectual gifts” arguing himself “into a quandary that doesn’t exist.”

Instructing Waugh to pray the Rosary every day and if he didn't like it, "so much the better."

I wonder if Waugh took Merton's advice.

COVID-19 and Psalm 118

Psalm 118: 2-4, 13-15, 22-24     Responsorial Psalm for the Second Sunday of Easter Year A

Lectio:

R:  Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his love is everlasting.

Let the house of Israel say,
   'His mercy endures forever.'
Let the house of Aaron say,
   'His mercy endures forever.'
Let those who fear the Lord say,   
   'His mercy endures forever.'

I was hard-pressed and was falling,
    but the Lord helped me.
My strength and my courage is the Lord,
    and he has been my savior.
The joyful shout of victory
    in the tents of the just.

The stone which the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone.
By the Lord has this been done;
    it is wonderful in our eyes.
This is the day the Lord has made;
    let us be glad and rejoice in it.

Studium:

This psalm is part of the Hallel, which is sung on Jewish feast days.  Psalms 113-118 are prayed for praise and worship.  On Passover, it accompanies the fourth cup of wine.  Although it is adaptable for many situations: thanksgiving, occupation of foreign troops, and even sickness.

Meditatio:

Today the world is going through the pandemic, COVID-19.  We are hard-pressed and falling.  Lord help us.  We need Your strength and courage.

Oratio:

All good things come from You, O Lord.  Heal us.
You alone are all good.  Heal us.
Your mercy is everlasting.  Heal us.
Your love is everlasting.  Heal us.
You alone abide for ever.

Contemplatio:

 This is the day the Lord has made.

Resolutio:

When this pandemic is gone, I will know You as Savior.

Everyone Identifies with Thomas at One Time or Another

Third Sunday of Easter Year A

Lectio: 

John 20: 19-31

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you."  When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.  The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.  Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you.  As the Father has sent me, so I send you."  And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.  Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained."

Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.  So the other disciples said to him, "We have seen the Lord."  But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."

Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them.  Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you."  Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger  here and see my hands, and do not be unbelieving, but believe."  Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!"  Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."

Now, Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples that are not written in this book.  But these are written that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name.

Studium: 

I noticed that the apostles are locked behind closed doors because they fear the Jews.  They are not out and about spreading the news of the Resurrection.  Pentecost is coming and then they will be given the tools to go out and evangelize.  When Jesus suddenly appears in this room, I can imagine the shock.  Jesus greets them with a traditional greeting, "Peace be with you."  Any fear the apostles have is relaxed.  They are joyous.
   And again Jesus talks about His Father sending Him and the Holy Spirit forgiving sins.  Do they understand?  Well, they are used to Jesus' cryptic speeches.  Just wait for Pentecost, when all will be understood.
   However, the apostle, Thomas wasn't there.  He missed out.  When his confreres babble on about seeing Jesus, he thinks they're kidding.  Where's the punch line?
   Hold on Thomas, it's coming and the joke's on you.
   Again Jesus appears in the room.  C'mon Thomas.  Put your money where your mouth is--put your finger right in His wounds.  There's no need; it's obvious.  Thomas proclaims "My Lord and my God!"
   Who hasn't been a doubting Thomas?  This scene has been a beacon of hope to all of us at one time or another.  When we doubt, when we don't understand and can't believe, we think of Thomas and pray, "My Lord and my God."

   And what a nice conclusion to this story is Jesus' blessing all we Christians with "Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."

Meditatio:

I remember not believing in the True Presence in the Eucharist.  I still received communion and prayed "My Lord and my God."  Thanks be to God, the gift of faith was given to me.  I believe.

Oratio:

Lord, I believe.  Help any unbelief.

Contemplatio:

My Lord and my God.

Resolutio:

I resolve to thank the Father and the Holy Spirit for their Son, in every Eucharist I receive.

Full Cardinal George Pell interview with Andrew Bolt

The Viaduct Murder

** spoiler alert ** Since I'm quarantined, I thought I would start reading a mystery series. I chose a series by Ronald Knox because I heard praises of his work, both religious wise and secular.

I was disappointed in his first mystery, The Viaduct Murder. His style is not my cup of tea. In fact, I had to look back at when this book was first written because the style reminded me of Sherlock Holmes--nineteenth century.

I've always found Holmesian deduction not natural and improbable if not impossible.

The character of Rendall-Smith is a near waste. She's introduced but not necessary. The other characters bounce sleuthing theories around like a golf ball (pun intended). I just felt the characters too nineteenth-century English (I dare say).

Then to have the murderer caught in the beginning after suffering chapters of Holmesian deduction was just a bit much.

That being said, since I believe in second chances (and third and ...) I just might read another Ronald Knox mystery.

More Precious than Gold

Lectio:

Reading II   April 19, 2020, Divine Mercy Sunday 

1 Peter 1: 3-9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
   who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope
    through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
    to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and
    unfading, kept in heaven for you
   who by the power of God are safeguarded through the faith,
   to a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time.

In this you rejoice, although now for a little while
    you may have to suffer through various trials,
    so that the genuineness of your faith,
    more precious than gold that is perishable even though
    tested by fire,
    may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor
   at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Although you have not seen him you love him,
   even though you do not see him now yet believe in him,
   you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy,
   as you attain the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Studium:

It seems the situation is new because Peter is explaining Jesus' teachings through metaphors.  Peter's audience, the Christians in five of the Roman provinces that are in northern Turkey, are being born again in Christ.   Their new faith is more precious than gold.

Meditatio:

Although my faith is not new, it is still more precious than gold.  The world and my life would not make sense if not seen through the eyes of faith.  I see God's guidance throughout my life.  He is so gentle with me.

Oratio:

Lord, let me feel Your presence always.  Keep me by Your side.

Contemplatio:

Touch me, Lord.

Resolutio:

I resolve to never forget You, Lord.

Witch Hunt

George Weigel's article in the Boston Globe hits the nail on the head, centered! After Cardinal Pell's Rightful Acquittal, Weigels explains how ridiculous the charge was in the first place.  It should have never gone to trial.  The fact that Australia's justice system took such a bias, prejudicial charge so far is a serious indictment on their courts.  To read what I am referring to, click on the link.

Picture of the Beginning

Second Sunday of Easter (or Sunday of Divine Mercy)

Reading 1ACTS 2:42-47

They devoted themselves
to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life,
to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.
Awe came upon everyone,
and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.
All who believed were together and had all things in common;
they would sell their property and possessions
and divide them among all according to each one’s need.
Every day they devoted themselves
to meeting together in the temple area
and to breaking bread in their homes.
They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart,
praising God and enjoying favor with all the people.
And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

Studium:

The infant church is growing by leaps and bounds.  The apostles carry on their Jewish traditions of relating to God, prayer, community, plus the most important--the Eucharist.  The community is ideal.  Note how they all chip in to help each other.

Meditatio:

Lord, the early Christians really felt the Holy Spirit.  I need that fire.  I want that love.  Send it down upon me, Lord.

Oratio:

May I imitate the zeal for evangelization that the early Evangelist had.

Contemplatio:

Come, Holy Spirit, come.

Resolutio:

I need to write more about You, My Love.

Why Christians believe in Resurrection, Not Reincarnation

Why Christians believe in resurrection, not reincarnation: Denver, Colo., Apr 12, 2020 CNA.- Every time Christians recite the Apostles’ Creed, they affirm their belief in what will happen to them after death: “'I believe in the resurrection of the body and life everlasting."

National Geographic

Whew! I was afraid I'd come back as a dung beetle.

The Spear

At the start of Lent, some friends and I undertook a series of dinner and videos at a nearby parish.  One of the participants gave me a book to read, The Spear by Louis de

Wohl.

I started it a week ago having no idea what it was n about.  It turned out to be a blessing.  It is about Jesus last week.  It's about Holy Week. 

The first part sets the characters.  You meet Cassius Longinus, a Roman centurion.  He goes through hell.  He falls in love.  That love of his life later is married to Pontius Pilate. 

Cassius sells himself to pay off his father's debts.  He is a slave and ends up fighting a gladiator.  Well, he wins and goes back to his Roman legion.  Which just happens to be going to Palestine.

The next section of the book is in Palestine.  We meet Sadducees and Palestinians and Jesus and Judas and Mary and Martha and Lazarus.  This is where I realized that I was reading what I was observing in the church--Holy Week. 

That blew my mind.

I couldn't have picked a better book.  It was an easy read with a good story.  The character of Naomi was added as a love interest for Cassius.  (I told you it was a good story.)

I read about the Last Supper as Jesus had Seder.

I read about Judas' treachery. 

I read about Jesus capture, trial, carrying the cross and death as Good Friday happened.

I finished the book on Holy Saturday.  Jesus rose and appeared to the apostles.

Today is Easter and I thank God for giving me that book at the right time.  God's timing is perfect. 

Plague Crosses

Plague cross in Torazza

A few minutes ago, I posted about St. Charles Borromeo.  I googled about to find an appropriate picture to go with the post.  In my googling, I read about plague crosses.  Remember

During the spread of the plague, the faithful gathered in prayer around outdoor altars to avoid contagion to which they were exposed indoors.^[3] At the end of the plague the altars were dismantled but, in gratitude, these plague crosses were erected by survivors in their place. The remaining crosses are in the Piazza Roma, next to the Church of Saint Bartholomew; in Viale Lombardia, not far from the old cemetery and in Torazza. The cross in San Damiano is now lost. At the top of all these monuments there is the symbol of the cross, supported by architectural details including spheres, cones, and capitals. In some cases the pillars contain, often illegible, inscriptions.

  Remember this is the sixteenth century.  They knew then about social distancing and not gathering in groups. 

Did St. Charles Borromeo Invent Social Distancing?

St. Charles Borromeo and the plague.

  

In Sunday's Boston Globe's Art section, there was an article by Matthew Guerrieri about the composer, Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643-1704), April 12, 2020, N3.

The composer Charpentier, among his numerous works, wrote oratorios--sacred stories, sung.  Pestis Mediolanensis, "The Plague of Milan", is about the bubonic plague and St. Charles Borromeo.

As some today adhere to more church gatherings rather than social distancing, more so was true in the sixteenth century.  In fact, during a Eucharistic procession by Pope Gregory, 80 Romans collapsed along the route.  Borromeo quickly ceased that tradition.  In fact, he carried a stick to keep people at a distance and ordered that the priests in his diocese carry sticks, also.  This order was so detailed and effective that the city of Milan recorded them for future reference. 

Borromeo started a new tradition.  He had the church bells ring seven times a day and asked the people to come to their windows to sing the prayers and litanies.  Can you imagine?  Can't you just hear hundreds of people praying harmoniously to heaven for mercy?  I bet Pestis Mediolanensis has operatic choruses reverberating the antiphons and responses to psalms and litanies.

Can we do this?  Let us all in unison send out our prayers for deliverance from all evil, plagues and disasters.  Come to your window and sing out for mercy.

We are the Children of Apostolic Witnesses

Scott Hann has an article in the Boston Pilot about the Resurrection.  It is quite compelling.  Please click on the link and read it.

Noël Coypel / Public Domain

Psalm 22 and Cardinal Pell

Cardinal George Pell

The Office of Readings this morning had Psalm 22 for a Good Friday reading.  An image of Cardinal Pell could very well apply.  Of course, this psalm is referring to Jesus but isn't Pell surrounded by bulls and dogs (enemies).

Many bulls have surrounded me...

Many dogs have surrounded me...

All who see me deride me.

The Cardinal as he now walks free can hear, "Pell rot in hell."  He must pray:

O Lord, do not leave me alone,
my strength, make haste to help me!

Thanks be to God that he is free now to:

I will tell of your name to my brethren
and praise you where they are assembled.

Good Friday Get Out of Purgatory Prayer

Found this on Mary's Blog  I never heard of it but I like it.  Pray the prayer of St. Brigid to ask the Lord to free 33 souls from Purgatory.  One catch, pray it 33 times.  So what, you're quarantined at home doing nothing--pray.

April 09, 2020

YOU MAY FREE 33 HOLY SOULS WHEN YOU OFFER THE GOOD FRIDAY PRAYER OF ST BRIGID

Please find the prayer below - which if you offer 33 times on Good Friday - will allow the release of 33 souls from Purgatory.  One soul is released for every year of Our Lord's life. The prayer and promise of the souls deliverance from Purgatory was given to St Brigid. 

"I adore Thee, O Holy Cross, which has been adorned with the tender, delicate, and venerable hands and feet of my Savior, Jesus Christ, and imbued with the Precious Blood. I adore Thee, my God, nailed to the Cross for me. I adore Thee again, O Holy Cross, for the love of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen"  

Exorcism Over the World on Holy Saturday

ON OCTOBER 13, 1884, Leo XIII had a terrible vision of the assault of the powers of Hell against Holy Mother Church, and ordered the prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel to be said at the end of Mass. He also composed an Act of Exorcism and ordered it to be inserted into the Roman Ritual, and explicitly mentioned what he had seen: “The Church, the Spouse of the Immaculate Lamb, has been filled with bitterness and inebriated with poison by her crafty enemies, who have laid impious hands on her most sacred possessions. In the place where the See of Holy Peter and the Chair of Truth has been set up as the light of the world, they have raised the throne of their abominable impiety, with the iniquitous design that when the Pastor has been struck, the sheep may be scattered.”

In these modern times of terrible tribulation, when the pandemic has deprived Catholics of Holy Mass and the Sacraments, the Evil One has gone into a frenzy and multiplied his attacks to tempt souls into sin. These blessed days of Holy Week, which used to be the ideal time to go to Confession to prepare ourselves for our Easter Communion, now see us locked inside our houses, but they cannot stop us praying to Our Lord.

Since it is a day of silence, while we await His glorious Resurrection, this Holy Saturday ought to be an ideal opportunity for Sacred Ministers. There is no need to go out, or to breach any of the laws currently in force.

I should like to ask you all to pray together, using the form given by Leo XIII, the Exorcism against Satan and the Apostate Angels (Exorcismus in Satanam et angelos apostaticos, Rituale Romanum, Tit. XII, Caput III), at three o’clock in the afternoon, Roman time (15:00 hours, Central European Summer Time) on Saturday April 11, 2020, so we can all fight together the common enemy of the whole human race [See exorcism prayer below, in Latin and English].

Holy Saturday is the day when we remember Our Lord Jesus Christ as He descended into Hell to free the souls of the Fathers from Satan’s chains. In the great silence after Our Lord’s Passion and Death, Our Lady kept watch and believed, waiting in hope for the Resurrection of Her dearly beloved Son. It was a time when the world seemed to have won, but when everything was being prepared for the glory of Easter.

I should like to ask all my brother Bishops and Priests to join me as I recite this Exorcism, knowing the power of this Sacramental - especially when it is recited together with all other Priests - to help the Church in Her fight against Satan. I should also like to recommend that all of you wear a stole, the sign of your Priestly power, and Holy Water.

The great Mother of God, Mary Most Holy, terrible as an army set in array, and Saint Michael the Archangel, Patron of the Holy Church and Prince of the Heavenly Host, will help all of us.

+ Carlo Maria Viganò,
Titular Archbishop of Ulpiana
Maundy Thursday 2020

Exorcism Prayer of Pope Leo XIII

 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen

INTRODUCTION
Psalm 67 Arise God, may His enemies be scattered and those who hate Him flee from His presence.

As smoke disperses, so may they disperse; as wax melts before the fire, so will the impious perish before God.

Psalm 34 Lord, fight against those who attack me; combat against those who wage war against me.

May those who persecute me to death suffer defeat and be shamed. Return the sword full of confusion to those who plot my harm. May they be like dust before the wind when the Angel of the Lord destroys them. May their path be dark and slippery, when the Angel of the Lord persecutes them. Because without motive they tended webs of death, without reason they set mortal traps for me.

May an unforseen disaster surprise them, may the net they hid entangle them; may they fall in the same trap they set for me.

My soul rejoices with the Lord and will enjoy its salvation. Glory be to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now and always, world without end. Amen.

Prayer to Saint Michael Archangel
Most glorious Prince of the Celestial Militia, Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in the fight we maintain combating "against the principalities and powers, against the rulers of this world of darkness, against the malignant spirits dispersed through the airs" (Ephesians, 6, 12).

Come to the assistance of "men whom God has created incorruptible in His image and likeness" (Wisdom 2, 23) and rescued at such "a high price" (1Corinthians, 6, 20) from the tyranny of the devil.

With the Hosts of the Good Angels fight today the battles of the Lord, as from time in memorial You fought against Lucifer, leader of haughtiness and fighter against his own apostate angels. They all cannot prevail and have lost their places in Heaven. "The great dragon was cast down, the ancient serpent named devil and Satan, the seducer of the entire world; he was precipitated to the earth and with him all his angels also fell" (Apocalypse 12, 8-9).

From here it is that the ancient enemy and homicidist has arisen with vehemence. Disguised as the "angel of light" (2 Corinthians, 11, 14) with the escort of all his malignant spirits he surrounds and invades the entire earth, and is installed in all places, with the purpose to erase therein the Name of God and of His Christ, to attack and snatch the souls destined for the crown of eternal glory, to destroy and lose them for ever. As the most filthy torrent of evil, the malignant dragon poured over those men with depraved minds and corrupted hearts, the venom of his malice: the spirit of lying, of impiety and of blasphemy; the lethal breath of lust, of all vices and iniquities.

Those enemies most crafty and sly have filled with bitterness and sadness the Church, spouse of the Immaculate Lamb. They have given Her wormwood to drink; they have placed their impious hands over everything that for Her is most dear. Where the Seat of Saint Peter and the Cathedral of the Truth has been erected to be a light for the nations, they have erected the throne of domination of impiety betting that with luck, having struck down the pastor, they can disperse their congregation. Oh invincible champion, help the people of God against the perversity of the spirits that attack them and give them the victory!

The Holy Church venerates you as Her guardian, patron and protector; be the glory that you are as Her defender against the toxic terrestrial and infernal powers; God has entrusted to you the souls of the redeemed to place them in the state of their deserved supreme happiness. Plead to the God of Peace that He crush Satan beneath our feet, so that he may no longer retain men captive nor harm Your Church. Offer our prayers to the Most High so that without any delay the mercies of the Lord may descend on us (Psalsm 78, 8), and hold captive the dragon, the old serpent, which is the devil and Satan and, once enchained, cast him into the abyss so that he may never again be able to seduce the nations (Apocalypse 20).

After this, confident in your protection and patronage, with the sacred authority of the Holy Mother Church, we dispose ourselves to reject the pestilence of the diabolical frauds, confident and secure in the Name of Jesus Christ, Our God and Lord.

V. Here is the Holy Cross of the Lord! Be gone, flee, enemy powers.
R. The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered.
V. May Your mercy, Lord, come over us.
R. As we hope in You.
V. Lord, listen to our prayer.
R. And may our clamor reach You.
V. May the Lord be with you.
R. And with Your Spirit.

Let us Pray
God and Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ, we invoke Your Holy Name and we implore suplicatingly Your clemency so that, by the intercession of the always Immaculate and Virgin Mary Mother of God, of the Archangel Saint Michael, of Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Most Holy Virgin, of the Apostles Peter and Paul and of all the Saints, that You deign to lend us Your efficacious aid against Satan and all the putrid spirits that roam throughout the world so as to harm the human race and for the perdition of souls. Amen.


EXORCISM
(At the "†" make the sign of the Cross)
We exorcize you, all malignant spirit, satanic power, attacks of the infernal adversary, legion, concentration and diabolical sect, in the Name and Virtue of Our Lord Jesus † Christ, to leave and flee from the Church of God, from souls created in the image of God and redeemed by the Most Precious Blood of the Divine Lamb. †
From now on, do not venture, most perfidious serpent, to deceive the elect and sift them like wheat. † The Most High God commands this to you, to whom, in your insolent arrogance you still pretend to resemble, "He who wants all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (2 Timothy, 2).
God the Father commands you. †
God the Son commands you. †
God the Holy Ghost commands you. †
The Majesty of Jesus † Christ, God’s Eternal Word made man, commands you. †
He, Who to save our race, which became lost due to your envy, "humbled Himself, becoming obedient unto death" (Philippians, 2, 8);
He, Who has built His Church on firm rock and revealed that the powers of hell would never prevail against Her, because He will dwell with Her all the days until the end of the world" (Saint Matthew, 28, 20).
The sacred Sign of the Holy † Cross commands you,
and also the virtue of All the Mysteries of the Christian Faith. †
The august Mother of God, the Virgin Mary, commands you † who, by her humility from the first moment of her Immaculate Conception, crushed your proud head. †
The faith of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul and of all the other Apostles command you. †
The blood of the Martyrs and the pious intercession of all the Saints command you. †

Thus, cursed dragon and all diabolical legions, we adjure you by the Living † God, by the True † God, † by the Holy † God, "Who so loved the world that He handed over His only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but live the everlasting life" (Saint John, 3); stop deceiving human creatures and feeding them the poison of eternal perdition; stop harming the Church and setting traps against Her liberty.

Begone, Satan, inventor and master of all fallacy, enemy of the salvation of men. Place yourself before Jesus † Christ in Whom you have found none of your works. Place yourself before the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, the same One acquired by Jesus † Christ with His Blood.

Humble yourself below the All-Powerful Hand of God. Tremble and flee as we invoke the Holy and terrible Name of Jesus, before which all hells tremble, to which the Virtues, Powers and Dominations of the Heavens submit, which the Cherubim and Seraphim praise unceasingly with voices saying: Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord, the God of the Armies.

V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto You.
V. May the Lord be with You.
R. And with Your Spirit.

Let us pray
God of Heaven and of the earth, God of Angels, God of Archangels, God of Patriarchs, God of Prophets, God of Apostles, God of Martyrs, God of Confessors, God of Virgins, God Who has power to give life after death and rest after work, because there is no other God outside of You, nor can there be any other than Yourself, Creator of all things, visible and invisible, of whose reign there shall be no end: we humbly supplicate to You that Your glorious Majesty may deem to free us efficiently and guard and heal us, keep us healthy, safe and sound from all power, chains, lies and malice of the infernal spirits. Through Jesus Christ Our Lord, Who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen

V. From the snares of the devil,
R. Deliver us, O Lord.
V. Make it be that Your Church serve You with secure liberty,
R. We beg You to hear us.
V. Deign to humble all the enemies of Your Church,
R. We implore You: hear us.
Amen

(Holy water is then sprinkled in the place and on those present where we have prayed this prayer.)

Lord, do not remember our wrongdoings nor those of our parents; do not take revenge for our sins (Tobias 3, 3).

Pray the OUR FATHER

Our Father, Who are in Heaven,
Hallowed be Your Name.
Your Kingdom come.
Your Will be done
on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day, our daily bread
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil. Amen

† In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen