Correction: I WON'T be on the radio today

I just posted a mistake. I said I'd be on the radio today (August 21, 2010). That's not right. I'll be on NEXT Tuesday from 4-6pm. Mea culpa.

I'll be on the radio today

Today (Aug 31, 2010) I'll be on 910 AM Guadalupe Radio in Dallas/Fort Worth Texas from about 4pm till 6pm. Please tune in!

7 Reasons Why I Love the old Douay Rheims Bible

Lately, I've been trying to learn the Psalms from the old Latin Vulgate, and therefore I've been making recourse to the Douay-Rheims translation of the Scriptures, which follows the old Vulgate pretty strictly. I usually use the RSV-CE translation of the Bible, but I really like the Douay-Rheims.

By the way, if you use the great Bible feature at NewAdvent.org, they have the Douay-Rheims English version there for the English.

Here are seven reasons why I have come to appreciate Douay-Rheims Bible (hereafter = DRB):

7. The Douay-Rheims Bible is a scrupulously faithful translation into English of the Latin Vulgate Bible which St. Jerome (342-420) translated into Latin from the original languages.

6. Saint Jerome had access to Greek and Hebrew manuscripts that are now lost. Hence the Vulgate preserves readings deemed as important by Saint Jerome, but not necessarily known by today's scholars. The DRB preserves these readings. Plus, Jerome was fluent in both Greek and Latin, and was trained by Hebrew speaking rabbis. None of these facts are true of today's scholars - even the best of them. I can read Hebrew, Greek and Latin, but I don't trust myself to give the right nuances.

5. The Latin Vulgate of Jerome is the Bible used by almost all the great Latin Doctors of the Church. The DRB brings us into touch with this great tradition.

4. The Council of Trent declared the Latin Vulgate as authoritative and the DRB preserves its readings. The Council of Trent decreed: "Moreover, the same Holy Council . . . ordains and declares that the old Latin Vulgate Edition, which, in use for so many hundred years, has been approved by the Church, be in public lectures, disputatious, sermons and expositions held as authentic, and so no one dare or presume under any pretext whatsoever to reject it." (Fourth Session, April 8, 1546).

3. The old Latin Vulgate is truly an inerrant translation - a rare thing!. Pope Pius XII stated in his 1943 encyclical letter Divino Afflante Spiritu that the Vulgate is "free from any error whatsoever in matters of faith and morals." The DRB follows these readings.

2. Modern translations often reproduce faulty translations. Take, for example, the RSVCE version of Matthew 16:26:

26 For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life (Greek: ψυχὴν)? Or what shall a man give in return for his life (ψυχῆς)?

Here the RSVCE doesn't rightly translate pysche as "soul" but as "life." This different wording downplays the reality of losing one's soul and going to Hell. However, the DRB gets it correct because it follows Saint Jerome's literalism:

26 For what doth it profit a man, if he gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his own soul? Or what exchange shall a man give for his soul? Matthew 16:26 (D-R)

1. There are many passages in the Vulgate that are NOT contained in Catholic Bible versions like the RSVCE and NAB. This came as a big surprise to me. For example, take this famous passage used in the old Mass for the Blessed Virgin Mary (Salve Sancta Parens):

Sirach 24:23–31 (DRB)

23 As the vine I have brought forth a pleasant odour: and my flowers are the fruit of honour and riches.

24 I am the Mother of Fair Love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope.

25 In me is all grace of the way and of the truth, in me is all hope of life and of virtue.

26 Come over to me, all ye that desire me, and be filled with my fruits.

27 For my spirit is sweet above honey, and my inheritance above honey and the honeycomb.

28 My memory is unto everlasting generations.

29 They that eat me, shall yet hunger: and they that drink me, shall yet thirst.

30 He that hearkeneth to me, shall not be confounded: and they that work by me, shall not sin.

31 They that explain me shall have life everlasting.   

Compare this to the corresponding translation in RSVCE:

Sirach 24:17–22 (RSVCE)

17 Like a vine I caused loveliness to bud,

and my blossoms became glorious and abundant fruit. 

19 “Come to me, you who desire me,

and eat your fill of my produce. 

20 For the remembrance of me is sweeter than honey,

and my inheritance sweeter than the honeycomb. 

21 Those who eat me will hunger for more,

and those who drink me will thirst for more. 

22 Whoever obeys me will not be put to shame,

and those who work with my help will not sin.”   

I'm sorry, but the RSVCE is not even close - and it omits much! The reference to "Mother of Fair Love" is totally lacking as are many other elements. The readings in the DRB are in the canonical Vulgate...but not in the RSVCE. That's a problem, especially when you consider these words from the Council of Trent:

But if any one receive not, as sacred and canonical, the said books entire with all their parts, as they have been used to be read in the Catholic Church, and as they are contained in the old Latin Vulgate edition; and knowingly and deliberately contemn the traditions aforesaid; let him be anathema (Session 4).

To clarify, I'm not promoting DRB exclusivism, but I am saying that the DRB holds a privileged place in English translations and we shouldn't cast it aside. Every Catholic should have a copy of the DRB - especially if you employ the old Vulgate - a worthy practice.

Why Today's Saint Could NOT Drink Beer - John the Baptist

Today (August 29) commemorates the beheading of Saint John the Baptist, but I'd like to take a look at why this great martyr and forerunner of Christ could not drink beer. When I was studying the Synoptic Gospels, I became particularly intersted in the "aramaisms" (Aramaic phrases transliterated in Greek) found in the Gospels.

I came across this interesting Aramaic word in Luke:

"For he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He must never drink wine or strong drink [σικερα]; even before his birth he will be filled with the Holy Spirit." (Luke 1:15)

In Aramaic sikera or שכרא means "beer" and it derives from the Akkadian shikaru meaning fermented barley water, i.e. beer. I do a lot of homebrewing and so I know what happens when water with mashed barley malt ferments. You get beer!

This means that Saint John the Baptist never enjoyed a glass of wine or even a beer. A small price to pay for being the greatest man "born of women" (cf. Luke 7:28).

So if you start up a micro-brewery, don't name it after this holy prophet - he has little experience in the craft or pleasure of beer.

St. John the Baptist, pray for us.

Learn about the 7 Decade Franciscan Rosary

My friend Father Pio Hoffman of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal introduced me to the "Seven Decade" Franciscan Crown Rosary. It's a beautiful tradition and today (Aug 26) is the devotion's "feast day" - originally authorized by Pope Saint Pius X (himself a Third Order Franciscan).

What is the "Seven Decade" Franciscan Crown Rosary?

The Blessed Virgin herself pointed out that the Franciscan Crown, like the Dominican Rosary (the version we all know), is a devotion pleasing to her. In 1442 a young man - known now as "James of the Rosary" - entered the order had been a fervent client of our Blessed Lady and had decorated her statue daily with a "crown" of flowers. Since he was not permitted to continue this practice in the novitiate, he thought of leaving the order. But first he knelt before the statue of Our Lady to say a prayer.

There the Blessed Virgin appeared to him and said:

"Remain here, and do not grieve because you can no longer weave a crown of flowers for me. I will teach you how you can daily weave a "crown of roses" that will not wither and will be more pleasing to me and more meritorious for yourself." 

The Blessed Mother instructed Friar John to pray seven decades in honor of her seven Joys and that this would serve as a daily crown for her head.

Description of the Seven Decade Franciscan Crown Rosary

The Seven Decade "Franciscan Crown" Rosary consists of seventy-two Hail Mary's in honor of the seventy-two years which Our Lady spent on earth (according to tradition). The tradition seems to have already existed in first half of the fifteenth century, for St. Bernardin and St. John Capistran both promoted the devotion through their preaching.

The Franciscan Crown commemorates seven joys of Mary on seven decades (i.e. ten Hail Mary's spaced by one Our Father). They are:

1. Annunciation of Gabriel to Mary
2. Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth
3. Nativity of Christ
4. Adoration of the Magi
5. Finding of Jesus in the Temple
6. Resurrection of Our Lord
7. Assumption & Coronation of Our Lady

At the end, two Hail Mary's  are added (to bring the number to 72), and the usual prayers for the Holy Father are made (Our Father and Hail Mary).

The devotion of the Seven Decade Franciscan Rosary is recommended for Saturdays - it might serve as a nice varietal in your commitment to praying the "normal" (i.e. Dominican) five decade Rosary. You can pray the Franciscan Crown Rosary on a five decade Rosary - just loop around and pick up two extra decades. Close with the final two Hail Mary's. And if you like, you can make or buy a special Seven Decade Rosary for this purpose.

127 Scriptural Commands for Catholics!

A few weeks ago we did the 50 Maxims for Becoming Saint by Saint Alphonsus Ligouri. Everyone seems to like the "lists" so here's another one - this time from the Sacred Scriptures, 127 Scriptural Commands for Catholics. Many of these certainly apply to right behavior in the blogosphere.

1. Abstain from all appearances of evil.
1 Thess. 5:22
2. Abstain from all fleshly lusts.
1 Pet. 2:11
3. Avoid troublemakers.
Rom. 16:17
4. Avoid profane and vain babblings.
1 Tim. 6:20
5. Avoid false knowledge.
1 Tim. 6:20
6. Avoid foolish questions.
Titus 3:9
7. Avoid arguments about the law.
Titus 3:9
8. Be reconciled to a brother.
Matt. 5:24
9. Be wise as serpents.
Matt. 10:16
10. Be harmless as doves.
Matt. 10:16
11. Be thankful.
Col. 3:15
12. Be patient toward all men.
1 Thess. 5:14; 2 Tim. 2:24
13. Be ready to give an answer of the hope that is in you.
1 Pet. 3:15
14. Be transformed.
Rom. 12:2
15. Be patient in tribulation.
Rom. 12:12
16. Be children in [avoiding] malice.
1 Cor. 14:20
17. Be men in understanding.
1 Cor. 14:20
18. Be steadfast.
1 Cor. 15:58
19. Be unmovable.
1 Cor. 15:58
20. Be always abounding in God’s work.
1 Cor. 15:58
21. Be of one mind.
Rom. 12:16
22. Be separate from the unclean.
2 Cor. 6:17
23. Be angry and sin not.
Eph. 4:26
24. Be filled with the Spirit.
Eph. 5:18
25. Be anxious for nothing.
Phil. 4:6
26. Be an example to other believers.
1 Tim. 4:12
27. Be gentle to all men.
2 Tim. 2:24
28. Be ready to teach.
2 Tim. 2:24
29. Be content with what you have.
Heb. 13:5
30. Be vigilant.
1 Pet. 5:8
31. Do not be like the hypocrites in prayer.
Matt. 6:5
32. Do not be afraid of men.
Luke 12:4
33. Do not be conformed to this world.
Rom. 12:2
34. Do not be children in understanding.
1 Cor. 14:20
35. Do not be deceived by evil companions.
1 Cor. 15:33
36. Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers.
2 Cor. 6:14-18
37. Do not be drunk with wine.
Eph. 5:18
38. Do not be weary in well-doing.
2 Thess. 3:13
39. Do not be slothful.
Heb. 6:12
40. Do not be influenced by strange doctrines.
Heb. 13:9
41. Beware of false prophets.
Matt. 7:15; Phil. 3:2
42. Beware of [evil] men.
Matt. 10:17
43. Beware of covetousness.
Luke 12:15
44. Beware of backsliding.
2 Pet. 3:17
45. Do not bid false teachers Godspeed.
2 John 10-11
46. Bring up children in the Lord.
Eph. 6:4
47. Cast your cares upon God.
1 Pet. 5:7
48. Have confidence in God.
Heb. 10:35
49. Come out from among the world.
2 Cor. 6:17
50. Count it joy when you are tempted.
James 1:2
51. Treat others as you expect to be treated.
Matt. 7:12
52. Desire the milk of the Word.
1 Pet. 2:2
53. Do all to God’s glory.
1 Cor. 10:31; Col. 3:17, 23
54. Do all things without murmuring or disputing.
Phil. 2:14
55. Earnestly contend for the faith.
Jude 3
56. Give no place to Satan.
Eph. 4:27
57. Give thanks.
Eph. 5:20; Phil. 4:6
58. Give time to reading.
1 Tim. 4:13
59. Give no offense.
1 Cor. 10:32
60. Give freely.
2 Cor. 9:6-7
61. Give as God has prospered.
1 Cor. 16:2
62. Give willingly.
2 Cor. 8:12
63. Give purposely.
2 Cor. 9:7
64. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit.
Eph. 4:30
65. Grow in grace.
2 Pet. 3:18
66. Have no fellowship with darkness.
Eph. 5:11
67. Have compassion.
Jude 22
68. Have a good conscience.
1 Pet. 3:16
69. Hold forth the Word of life.
Phil. 2:16
70. Hold fast sound words.
2 Tim. 1:13
71. Honor fathers.
Eph. 6:2
72. Honor mothers.
Matt. 19:19
73. Honor widows.
1 Tim. 5:3
74. Honor rulers.
1 Pet. 2:17
75. Lay aside all envy.
1 Pet. 2:1
76. Lay aside all evil speaking.
1 Pet. 2:1
77. Do not lay up treasures on earth.
Matt. 6:19
78. Let your light shine.
Matt. 5:16
79. Let everyone deny himself.
Matt. 16:24
80. Let him share with the needy.
Luke 3:11
81. Let everyone obey civil laws.
Rom. 13:1
82. Let no man deceive himself.
1 Cor. 3:18
83. Let everyone examine himself at communion.
1 Cor. 11:28
84. Let your requests be made known to God.
Phil. 4:6
85. Let your speech be with grace.
Col. 4:6
86. Do all things in decent order.
1 Cor. 14:40
87. Let those who are taught support the teacher.
Gal. 6:6
88. Let wives be subject to their Husbands.
Eph. 5:22; Col. 3:18
89. Let husbands love their wives.
Eph. 5:25
90. Let wives reverence their husbands.
Eph. 5:33
91. Let everyone be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.
James 1:19
92. Let the afflicted pray.
James 5:13
93. Let the adorning of women be more inward than outward.
1 Pet. 3:3-4
94. Don’t let the left hand know what the right hand is doing.
Matt. 6:3
95. Do not let sin reign in the body.
Rom. 6:12
96. Do not let the sun go down on your wrath.
Eph. 4:26
97. Follow things that edify.
Rom. 14:19
98. Walk in the Spirit.
Gal. 5:25
99. Do not provoke one another.
Gal. 5:26
100. Do not be weary in well-doing.
Gal. 6:9
101. Come boldly to the throne of grace.
Heb. 4:16; 10:19-23
102. Do not forsake assembling together in worship.
Heb. 10:25
103. Exhort one another.
Heb. 10:25
104. Lay aside every weight.
Heb. 12:1
105. Run with patience the race before us.
Heb. 12:1
106. Look to Jesus.
Heb. 12:2
107. Offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually.
Heb. 13:15
108. Do not judge one another in doubtful things.
Rom. 14:1
109. Do not cause others to stumble.
Rom. 14:13
110. Mark troublemakers.
Rom. 16:17; Phil. 3:17
111. Pray for your persecutors.
Matt. 5:44; Luke 6:28
112. Pray for laborers.
Matt. 9:38; Luke 10:2
113. Present your body to God.
Rom. 12:1
114. Put on the new man.
Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:10
115. Put on the whole armor of God.
Eph. 6:11, 13
116. Do not quench the Spirit.
1 Thess. 5:19
117. Consider yourself dead to sin.
Rom. 6:11
118. Redeem the time.
Eph. 5:16
119. Resist the devil.
James 4:7; 1 Pet. 5:9
120. Restore backsliders in meekness.
Gal. 6:1
121. Strengthen feeble knees.
Heb. 12:12
122. Study to show yourself approved to God.
2 Tim. 2:15
123. Take no anxious thought of tomorrow.
Matt. 6:34
124. Take the Lord’s Supper.
1 Cor. 11:24-26
125. Be careful not to despise little ones.
Matt. 18:10
126. Be aware of yourself and your doctrine.
1 Tim. 4:16
127. Withdraw from disorderly people.
2 Thess. 3:6, 14

Was Saint Joseph Assumed Bodily into Heaven? (St Vincent Ferrer and St Francis de Sales)

More pious opinions regarding Saint Joseph...

Francis Suarez maintained St. Joseph was taken up into heaven bodily. St. Bernardino of Siena, Gerson, and St. Vincent Ferrer held the same. St. Francis de Sales points out the fact that nobody claims the tomb of St. Joseph and that there are no relics of this saint. Then he continues in Les Vrais Entretiens Spirituels:

Surely, when Our Lord went down into Limbo, St. Joseph addressed Him in this wise: "Be pleased to remember, Lord, that when you came down from Heaven to earth I received you into my house and family, that I took you into my arms from the moment you were born. Now you are going back to Heaven, take me with you (body and soul). I received you into my family, receive me into yours; I took you in my arms; take me into yours; I looked after you and fed you and guided you during your life on earth; stretch forth your hand and lead me into life everlasting."

Some have speculated that Saint Joseph was among the "saints" who were resurrected shortly after the death of Christ on Good Friday:

"And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom; and the earth shook, and the rocks were split; the tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many" (Mt 27:51-53).

New Monks Ordained at Heiligenkreuz (Photo)

A Cistercian priest that I know here in Dallas remarked that the Austrian Cistercian Abbey of Heiligenkreuz has everything right going for it - which is why it's bursting at the seems with vocations (I think they're close to one hundred monks). Here's a picture of four new deacons (the young guys).

Much love for the Cistercians. My homebrewing buddy brew beer under the banner of Saint Benedict in honor of the Cistercian Abbey nearby.

HT: New Liturgical Movement

Too Many Eucharistic "Ministers"?

Andrew M Brown asks the right questions, "Do we really need so many 'Eucharistic ministers'?"

The thing I really noticed, though, was the sheer number of people who stand around giving out Holy Communion in some Catholic parishes. In the Church of England, they’re called “Eucharistic ministers”. Now Catholics seem to have adopted this term, and the practice as well.

What’s the point of all these assistants? The Catholic Church does allow for what it calls an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, in cases when the priest is not available. But there is absolutely no need to have five extra ministers, giving Holy Communion under both kinds, as I saw this morning in an ordinary parish church, two thirds full, with a perfectly capable parish priest.

Keep reading Brown's article here.

Pictures from Colorado (Plus Our Deer-Killing Mini-Van!)

We just got back from a vacation to Durango, Colorado. We had a great time. However, we hit a deer on the way up and it destroyed our Swagger Wagon Mini Van. (See photo below.) $7,500 dollars and two weeks later it was repaired (thank goodness for car insurance!). Below are some photos from our excursion with a picture of the "deer-killer."

Have lunch in the mountains for my wife's birthday (which is on August 15, the Assumption!)

My wife and some of our children with my father at Mesa Verde.

At Mesa Verde (Native American cliff dwellings) with our youngest son on my back. 

The Deer-Slaying Swagger Wagon. It doesn't look all that bad, but it was. We couldn't drive it. We hit the poor deer at about 65 miles per hour.

21 Facts About the Antichrist in Sacred Scripture

Below are 21 facts about the one whom Saint Paul calls "the man of sin" (2 Thess 2:3)...the Antichrist.

1. He will be an intellectual genius.
Dan. 8:23
2. He will be an oratorical genius.
Dan. 11:36
3. He will be a political genius.
Rev. 17:11-12
4. He will be a commercial genius.
Dan. 11:43; Rev. 13:16-17
5. He will be a military genius.
Rev. 6:2; 13:2
6. He will be a religious genius.
2 Thess. 2:4; Rev. 13:8
7. He will begin by controlling the West.
Rev. 17:12
8. He will make a seven-year covenant with Israel/Church but will break it after three and a half years.
Dan. 9:27
9. He will attempt to destroy the Church.
Rev. 12
10. He will destroy the false religious system so that he may rule unhindered.
Rev. 17:16-17
11. He will set himself up as God.
Dan. 11:36-37; 2 Thess. 2:4, 11; Rev. 13:5
12. He will briefly rule over all nations.
Ps. 2; Dan. 11:36; Rev. 13:16
13. He will be utterly defeated by our Lord Jesus Christ.
Rev. 19
14. He will be cast into the lake of fire.
Rev. 19:20
15. He will be a master of deceit.
2 Thess. 2:10
16. He will profane the Temple. Catholic interpreters debate over whether "temple" means the Catholic Church or whether it means a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem. Augustine wrote “it is uncertain in what temple [the Antichrist] shall sit, whether in that ruin of the temple which was built by Solomon, or in the Church.” City of God 20, 19.
Matt. 24:15
17. He will be energized by Satan himself.
Rev. 13:2
18. He will do everything according to his own selfish will.
Dan. 11:36
19. He will not regard the God of his fathers.
Dan. 11:37
20. He will not have the desire of women (or similarly: He will lust like women do, i.e. He will lust after men.)
Dan. 11:37
21. His god will be Satan.
Dan. 11:38

Patron Saint of Fly Fishing - Saint Zeno

I just got back from Colorado. We did some fishing while we were up there and caught some trout. My eldest son informed me that Saint Zeno is the patron saint of fly fisherman.

Zeno (d. 371 or 380) is the patron saint of fly fishermen, the city of Verona, newborn babies as well as children learning to speak and walk.

He is most often represented with fishing-related items such as a fish, fishing rod, or a bishop holding a fishing rod, or with a fish hanging from his crozier. Zeno likely fished with a fly since this practice was popular in his time.

The other patrons of fishing: Saint John, Saint James, Saint Andrew, and Saint Peter.

The New Logos Bible Software 4

I'm pretty pumped about the new Logos software for Mac. I have their "Catholic package" and love it. All the Fathers, Hebrew Bible, Greek Bible, Vulgate...searchable.

Logos Bible Software is giving away thousands of dollars of prizes to celebrate the launch of Logos Bible Software 4 Mac on October 1. Prizes include an iMac, a MacBook Pro, an iPad, an iPod Touch, and more than 100 other prizes!

They’re also having a special limited-time sale on their Mac and PC base packages and upgrades. Check it out!

Saint Joseph Sanctified in His Mother's Womb

Francisco Suarez, Jean Gerson, and Saint Alphonsus Ligouri each teach that Saint Joseph was sanctified and regenerated in his mother's womb prior to birth. As you know, our Blessed Mother was sanctified at the very moment of her conception in the womb of Saint Anne - this is the dogma of the Immaculate Conception. In the case of Joseph, this sanctification occurred after his conception and before his birth.

Sacred Scripture teaches us that the Prophet Jeremiah and Saint John the Baptist received this honor of sanctification in the womb. The eminent theologians above, notably Saint Alphonsus - a doctor of the Hoy Church, extend this privilege to Saint Joseph. They even teach that Saint Joseph was confirmed in the grace, which means that he was so filled with grace that he never committed a mortal sin or a deliberate venial sin.

The great doctor of the Holy Church Saint Bernard taught: "Power is given to some of the saints to help in particular necessities; but to St. Joseph power is given to help in all necessities."

Saint Joseph, pray for us.

The Righteous are like Wounded Medical Doctors (Saint Gregory the Great)

This quote from Saint Gregory the Great is a wonderful guard against self-righteousness. Even the saints bear wounds and need divine aid and assistance:

"This is something characteristic of the righteous. Just because they suffer pain themselves it does not stop them caring for the needs of others. They grieve for themselves and the adversity they face but they still give the needed teaching to others. They are like some great doctor who is struck down by sickness: they endure their own wounds while giving healing medicines to their patients."

Ex Morálium libris sancti Gregórii Magni papæ in Iob (Lib. 3, 39-40: PL 75, 619-620)

Saint Gregory the Great, pray for us and four Holy Father.

Saint John on How to Love God and Others

My patron saint, the beloved Saint John the Apostle, teaches us how to love rightly:

My children, our love is not to be just words or mere talk, but something real and active. 1 John 3:18

It's not enough to say, "I love you." We must make love active toward God, our clergy, our spouses, our children, and our friends.

Mary was chosen not by chance (Saint Bernard)

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, that great doctor of the Church, beautifully describes for us how the Virgin Mother of His divine Son was eternally chosen, and thereby appointed to be unstained and stainless:

“There was only one mode of birth that was worthy of God, and that was to be born of a Virgin. Equally, who could come from a Virgin birth except God himself? The maker of mankind, if he was to be made man and destined to be born of man, would have to choose, to create a mother whom he knew to be worthy of him, who he knew would be pleasing to him.

It was his will that she should be a virgin, so that he could proceed from an unstained body, stainless, to purify mankind of its stains.

It was his will that she should be meek and humble of heart, since he was to become the outstanding example of these virtues, so necessary for the health of humanity. He granted childbirth to her, having first inspired her vow of virginity and filled her with the virtue of humility.  To put it another way, how could the Angel have addressed her as full of grace if any, even a little, of these virtues had been present in her already and not given to her by grace? It was given to her to be made holy. She, who was to conceive and give birth to the Holy of holies, was made holy in body by the gift of virginity and holy in mind by the gift of humility.  

Adorned with the jewels of such virtues and radiant in both mind and body, the royal Virgin’s beauty draws the attention of the citizens of heaven itself, and its King is filled with desire for her and sends his messenger to her from on high. 

The Angel was sent to the Virgin, it says. A virgin in body and a virgin in mind, a virgin by her own choice, a virgin, as the Apostle describes her, holy in mind and body. Not someone just now found by chance, but chosen from the beginning of time, foreseen and prepared by the Most High, waited upon by the angels, prefigured by the patriarchs, preached by the prophets.

Ex Homilíis sancti Bernárdi abbátis in Láudibus Vírginis Matris (Hom. 2, 1-2. 4: opera omnia, Edit. Cisterc. 4 [1966], 21-23)

If you deny the Assumption of Mary, you have "fallen away completely from the divine and Catholic Faith"

From the infallible Apostolic Constitution Munificentissimus Deus by Pope Pius XII defining "ex cathedra" ("from the chair" of Peter) the dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin. Note how the decree declares, "Hence if anyone, which God forbid, should dare willfully to deny or to call into doubt that which we have defined, let him know that he has fallen away completely from the divine and Catholic Faith."

44. For which reason, after we have poured forth prayers of supplication again and again to God, and have invoked the light of the Spirit of Truth, for the glory of Almighty God who has lavished his special affection upon the Virgin Mary, for the honor of her Son, the immortal King of the Ages and the Victor over sin and death, for the increase of the glory of that same august Mother, and for the joy and exultation of the entire Church; by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma:

that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.

45. Hence if anyone, which God forbid, should dare willfully to deny or to call into doubt that which we have defined, let him know that he has fallen away completely from the divine and Catholic Faith.

The Historical Date of the Assumption of Mary

Today is the feast of the Assumption.

For Orthodox and Catholics, the bodily assumption of the Blessed Mother of Christ is a historical event. The falling asleep of Blessed Mary and her assumption are just as historical as, say, the fact that Abraham Lincoln was assassinated or the fact that the St. Louis Cardinals won the 2006 World Series. One day Mary's body lay in a tomb. The next day it did not. When did this happen?

In the fifth century, St Juvenal, Patriarch of Jerusalem, told the holy Byzantine Empress Pulcheria: "Although there is no account of the circumstances of Her death in Holy Scripture, we know about them from the most ancient and credible tradition." He sent to the empress the grave wrappings of the Theotokos from her tomb. St Pulcheria then placed these grave-wrappings within the Blachernae church.

What is the Assumption of Mary?
The "ancient and credible tradition" of the dormition and assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is that when she came to the end of her life, she was translated body and soul to Heaven. In this way she received the eschatological promise of the resurrection of the body. This is fitting because she is an icon of the Church and Christ's redemption of his mother prefigures the hope of all Christians. That Mary was honored in this was is proper to love of Christ who fulfilled the commandment "Honor thy father and thy mother."

The Eastern Orthodox refer to this day as the Dormition or the "Falling Asleep" of the Blessed Mother. Some have wrongly concluded that this means that the Orthodox Church does not teach the bodily assumption of Mary. However, the Kontakion for the feast of the Blessed Mother's Dormtion reads:

Neither the tomb, nor death could hold the Theotokos,
Who is constant in prayer and our firm hope in her intercessions.
For being the Mother of Life,
She was translated to life by the One who dwelt in her virginal womb.

Note that the Eastern Church confesses that "neither the tomb, nor death" could hold the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ.

If Eastern and Western Church agree on the historical event of her assumption, has there been an attempt to discover the date at which it happened?

The Date of the Assumption
There is no record of the exact day or year in which our Lady was assumed. This should not bother us too much. After all, we are not sure of the day and year of Christ's birth, baptism, or death and resurrection. However, we can get close. Let's look a few clues pertaining to the life and death of Mary.

We know that she was alive at the death of Christ, because she stood at the foot of the cross. At this point she was placed under the care of St. John, when Christ said, "Behold your mother." She was also present at Pentecost. After that, there is no mention of her (unless you count St. John's description of the "woman" in Rev 12 - more on this later).

Why is there little mention of Mary in Acts or the Epistles? I believe that the New Testament speaks of the mysteries of the faith in clouded language on account of the fierce persecution that Christians received from both the Jews and the Romans. Cases have been made that Galatians and 1 Peter are basically tracts on baptism, despite the fact that baptism is only alluded to in the most minimal way. The Gospel of John in particular is reluctant to spell out baptismal theology (John 3) or Eucharistic theology (John 6), although it does so in a way that only an insider would "get it". Think also of John's language about the "blood and the water". He's making points for "insiders". Mary would have been revered, but to speak of her openly would have placed her danger.

The martyrdom of St. James the Greater is recorded in Acts 12:1-2 and the date of this event is safely placed at A.D. 43 or 44. This was a Jewish persecution of the Christians. It seems that this martyrdom further widened the growing separation between the incipient Jewish community of Christians within the synagogues of Palestine and the establishment of a separate "Way" that began to gain Gentile adherents. The unique nature of the Church as distinct from Judaism would finally be ecclesiastically recognized at the Council Jerusalem in A.D. 49 or 50 (Acts 15). Acts 12 shows the Jews in a fierce attempt to destroy those closest to Christ. They kill James and imprison Peter (apparently with the intent to kill Peter).

Here is where we turn to Tradition. St. John had seen his brother St. James martyred, and St. Peter imprisoned. Everyone knew that Christ's inner circle consisted of Peter, James, and John. They had killed James and captured Peter. Obviously John was next on the hit list. Tradition also indicates that the Jews sought to kill or disgrace the Mother of Christ. So John took Mary and relocated to Ephesus sometime shortly after the martyrdom of his brother James (A.D. 43 or 44).

Thus, the falling asleep and assumption of Mary occurred sometime after this date. The tradition is almost universal that her death and resurrection occurred in Jerusalem. An alternate version has arisen from the visions of Ven. Anne Catherine Emmerich that her death, funeral, and assumption occurred in Ephesus. Interestingly enough, Emmerich places the date of the assumption at A.D. 43 or 44. However, I tend to mistrust the visions of Emmerich.

One tradition places the falling asleep of Mary after the conversion of St. Dionysius the Areopagite which occurred in Acts 17:34. This kicks the date back into the 50s. All the traditions place her Dormition sometime after the other Apostles have gone out into the world, but before the death of the other Apostles (ca. A.D. 63).

I think Mary fell asleep at this time. It fits the historical setting of most of the apocryphal legends retelling the Dormition of Mary (even though they contain a lot of miraculous events - such as bilocation or the translation of human bodies). Here is a list of reasons for placing the Dormition at AD 63:

• The Apostles (but not James Zebedee) are all still alive.
• The great miracle of the Dormition and Assumption are not mentioned in Acts, something we might expect if it happened before the composition of Acts (A.D. 63).
• The Book of Revelation seems to describe some sort of miraculous intervention of God meant to preserve the "the woman". I believe Revelation explains the seven year tribulation leading up to the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Thus, A.D. 63 fits perfectly.

So I'm going to say that Mary was assumed about A.D. 63 when Herod's temple was finally finished. So Mary's Assumption is a sort of "pre-tribulation rapture" occurring before the seven years of Roman-Jerusalem gridlock culminating in the end of the Mosaic age - the destruction of the Temple in A.D. 70. I'd love any comments from anyone aware of any published studies on this topic.

The Apostles Witnessed the Dormition of Mary (St Gregory of Tours)

August is the month of the assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Here is one of the earliest quotes about the assumption of the Blessed Mother by Saint Gregory of Tours from the end of the 6th century:

The Apostles took up her body on a bier and placed it in a tomb; and they guarded it, expecting the Lord to come. And behold, again the Lord stood by them; and the holy body having been received, He commanded that it be taken in a cloud into paradise: where now, rejoined to the soul, she rejoices with the Lord's chosen ones."

Gregory of Tours, Book of Miracles, 1:4

All the early accounts assume the presence of the Holy Apostles at the assumption of Mary. This is typically how it is depicted in religious art.

Read also:

Is the assumption of Mary in the Bible?

and

Finding the historical date of the assumption of Mary

Is the Assumption of Mary in the Bible?

I was recently asked whether Catholics "believe in the rapture." And the answer is yes, except we only believe that Mary has been raptured--which is to say that she has been assumed. (Incidentally, the Protestant dispensationalist doctrine of a secret rapture before or during the final tribulation is pure rubish.)

First it must be admitted that at least two other humans have been assumed, body and soul into Heaven: Enoch and Elijah. Incidentally, Enoch and Elijah are the two miraculous witnesses of the Apocalypse according to the Church Fathers and Saint Robert Bellarmine.

Elijah
2 Kings 2:1-12
"And it came to pass, when the Lord would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind...And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan....And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven....And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more..."

Enoch
Hebrews 11:5
"By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God."

It seems that Moses' body may been translated to Heaven after his death.

Jude 1:9
"But when the archangel Michael, contending with the devil, disputed about the body of Moses, he did not presume to pronounce a reviling judgment upon him, but said, 'The Lord rebuke you.'"

Thus any biblical Christian must admit that it is a matter of divine revelation that God assumed Enoch and Elijah.

Now Catholics believe that it is a matter of divine revelation that God also assumed Mary's body and soul into Heaven. Obviously, if Mary was without sin (see the Immaculate Conception) then it was fitting that she would not be held by the grave. Also, Christ was bound to "Honor your father and mother," and thus honored her by not allowing her to decay. Christ would not see Enoch and Elijah assumed into Heaven and then allow His very own mother to rot. The woman that bore Him, nursed Him, and stood by Him during His passion and death on the cross.

Catholics find the assumption of Mary prophesied in Psalm 132:7-8:

"We will go into his tabernacles: we will worship at his footstool. Arise, O LORD, into thy rest; thou, and the ark of thy strength."

Mary is the Ark of the New Covenant (see Revelation 11:19-12:1). The Lord ascended into Heaven and also brought His ark, just as King David took up residence in Jerusalem and escorted the ark to the same place.

Notice that Catholics don't speak of the "Ascension of Mary." Christ ascended by His own power. But Mary was passively assumed into Heaven by Christ. His power accomplished the honor. And thus in Revelation, Mary as seen as being "in Heaven."

You might also be interested in these Canterbury Tales posts:

The details on Holy Days of Obligations

Psalm 132 and the Assumption of Mary

St Maximilian Kolbe on Political Powers and the Soul

Today (August 14) is the feast of Saint Maximilian Kolbe. He reminds us that the true battle between good and evil is in the depths of the soul, not in the propaganda machines or battlefields of the world. His words and life are a good reminder that we must pray, sacrifice, and persevere even in the face of discouragement. Here's the quote:

"No one in the world can change Truth. What we can do and should do is to seek truth and to serve it when we have found it. The real conflict is the inner conflict. Beyond armies of occupation and the hecatombs of extermination camps, there are two irreconcilable enemies in the depth of every soul: good and evil, sin and love. And what use are the victories on the battlefield if we ourselves are defeated in our innermost personal selves?"

As we see in the life of Christ, the Blessed Virgin, and in the lives of the saints, true victory over the secular evils of the world usually occur through the quiet witness of sanctity and self-sacrifice. The crucifixion under Pontius Pilate, and the martyrdoms of Peter and Paul under Nero were the seeds of overcoming the evils of the Roman Empire. Like the blood of Abel, the precious blood of Christ and the blood the saints cries out to the Lord for justice.

For those who don't know, Maximilian Kolbe is one of my favorite saints and he was martyred during the Holocaust. I wrote up a chapter on St Maximilian Kolbe and what his witness means for Jewish-Catholic relations in my new book: The Crucified Rabbi: Judaism and the Origins of Catholic Christianity. Once again, we see here that charity and prayer, not political maneuvering, bring about the healing of the nations, first for the Jew then for the Gentiles.

The Antichrist will be an Israelite (from Saint Hippolytus of Rome)

Saint Hippolytus of Rome (A.D. c. 170 – c. 236) makes an interesting observation picked up by other great saints (e.g. Saint Robert Bellarmine) regarding the identity of the Antichrist at the end of time. Saint Hippolytus says that the Antichrist at the end of time will derive from one of the twelve tribes of Israel, namely from the tribe of Dan. We should be careful not to say that the Antichrist will be "Jewish" because technically the term "Jewish" to a "Judean," that is to one deriving from the tribe of Judah.

Here are the words of Saint Hippolytus:

"Now as our Lord Jesus Christ, who is also God, was prophesied of under the figure of a lion, on account of his royalty and glory, in the same way have the scriptures also beforehand spoken of Antichrist as a lion, on account of his tyranny and violence. For the deceiver seeks to liken himself in all things to the Son of God. Christ is a lion, so Antichrist is also a lion. Christ is a king, so Antichrist is also a king. The Savior was manifested as a lamb, so he too in like manner will appear as a lamb without; within he is a wolf. The Savior came into the world in the circumcision [i.e., the Israelites], and he will come in the same manner. . . . The Savior raised up and showed his holy flesh like a temple, and he will raise a temple of stone in Jerusalem" (The Antichrist 6).

"We find it written regarding Antichrist . . . ‘Dan is a lion’s whelp, and he shall leap from Bashan’ [Deut. 33:22]. But that no one may err by supposing that this is said of the Savior, let him attend carefully to the matter. Dan, he says, is a lion’s whelp. And in naming the tribe of Dan, he declared clearly the tribe from which Antichrist is destined to spring. For as Christ springs from the tribe of Judah, so Antichrist is to spring from the tribe of Dan. And that the case stands thus, we see also from the words of Jacob: ‘Let Dan be a serpent, lying upon the ground, biting the horse’s heel’ [Gen. 49:17]. What then is meant by the serpent but Antichrist, that deceiver who is mentioned in Genesis, who deceived Eve and supplanted Adam? . . . [I]t is in reality out of the tribe of Dan, then, that tyrant and king, that dread judge, that son of the devil, is destined to spring and arise" (The Antichrist, 14).

I believe I read Saint Irenaeus (or was it Saint Justin?) says something similar about the tribe of Dan. If anyone knows, please share. If I come across it again, I'll post it.

Anglicans are Crazy...but Tasteful

Warning! Achtung! Attention! The photo above depicts an Anglican woman pretending to be a priest and her homemade mural of toast.

Well, the Crescat already secured the best pun for this picture: "burnt offerings." I just want to point out that Anglicans are always doing crazy stuff with great taste. Here we have a lady in a collar who made a crucifixion mural with toast! How crazy is that? But, seriously, take a look at it. For what it is it's pretty well done...and that's just the point. Anglicanism is literally insane, but ever tasteful. "Thou shalt be tasteful," is their eleventh commandment.

To all those Anglicans who love Christ, please prayerfully consider the following:

"He said to the multitude: Depart from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be involved in their sins." (Num 6:26)

"Then I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, lest you take part in her sins, lest you share in her plagues." (Rev 18:4)

"He who observes neither unity of spirit nor the concord of peace, and severs himself from the bonds of the Church, and from the fellowship of her priests, cannot have episcopal power or honor." (Saint Cyprian, Ep. lii, quoted vii, qu. 1, can. Novatianus)

Thomas Aquinas on the Word *Mass*

I was reading the Summa theologiae of Saint Thomas Aquinas today on the liturgy of the Holy Eucharist and I came across this interesting etymology of the term missa from which we derive the English word "Mass." Many people say that "Ite missa est," refers to a dismissal of the people, i.e. "The assembly is dismissed." However, Thomas refers it to the priest "sending" the prayer or the victim Christ to God, as in: "The prayer is sent."

And from this the mass derives its name [missa; because the priest sends [mittit] his prayers up to God through the angel, as the people do through the priest. or else because Christ is the victim sent [missa] to us: accordingly the deacon on festival days "dismisses" the people at the end of the mass, by saying: "Ite, missa est," that is, the victim has been sent [missa est] to God through the angel, so that it may be accepted by God. {STh III, q. 83, a. 4}

Two Rhyming Exorcisms on your St Benedict Medal

I love the Saint Benedict Medal. I wear one around my neck and keep one on my Rosary. The medal is a sacramental recalling the the power of Christ and his Saint Benedict against the wiles of Satan. As you may know, the medal contains a number of exorcisms. Here they are.

The arms of the Saint Benedict Cross contain the initials of an exorcism rhyme: C S S M L - N D S M D

Latin:

Crux sacra sit mihi lux!

Nunquam draco sit mihi dux!

English:

The Holy Cross be my light;

Never the dragon be my guide.

In the corners of the Cross are the letters C S P B: Crux Sancti Patris Benedicti ("Cross of Holy Father Benedict").

Above the Cross is the word Pax ("Peace"), the Benedictine motto.

Surrounding the circumference of the medal are the initials to the words of another rhyming Latin exorcism: V R S N S M V - S M Q L I V B

Latin:

Vade retro Satana!

Nunquam suade mihi vana!

Sunt mala quae libas.

Ipse venena bibas!

English:

Get behind me, Satan!

Never suggest vanities to me!

Evil are the things you pour,

Drink your own poison!

Eastern Catholic Humor

I got a good chuckle from this one. Much love for the Melkites. I've worshiped with them several times and love their reverence (and ethnic festivals).

HT: The Crescat

Best of the Catholic Web (from Our Sunday Visitor)

My fellow parishioner Colleen Hammond emailed me today and told me that both of our sites were listed by Our Sunday Vistors as "best of the Catholic web" choices. Think of that, two sites from exactly the same parish!

Canterbury Tales
cantuar.blogspot.com/
“Former Episcopal priest Taylor Marshall’s enthusiasm for sharing everything he learns about the Catholic faith is very informative and engaging, especially for other converts to the Catholic faith from Protestant traditions.”— Marilyn Lingenfelter

I definitely don't deserve to be listed with all those great sites and blogs.

While you're browsing all the great Catholic sites, please visit Colleen Hammond's site: "reliable Catholic thoughts coming from an educated and experienced Catholic wife and mother, this is the place."

www.colleenhammond.com/blog

How are Canterbury Tales Comments Working for You?

How is the "Echo" comment system working for everyone?

I don't like it, but they don't offer a way to import them into blogger, so I'm stuck.

Are any of yall have problems with commenting?

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall

20 Tips for Making a Good Confession (from Father Z)

To make a good confession, we should…

1) ...examine our consciences regularly and thoroughly;
2) ...wait our turn in line patiently;
3) ...come at the time confessions are scheduled, not a few minutes before they are to end;
4) ...speak distinctly but never so loudly that we might be overheard;
5) ...state our sins clearly and briefly without rambling;
6) ...confess all mortal sins in number and kind;
7) ...listen carefully to the advice the priest gives;
8) ...confess our own sins and not someone else’s;
9) ...carefully listen to and remember the penance and be sure to understand it;
10) ...use a regular formula for confession so that it is familiar and comfortable;
11) ...never be afraid to say something "embarrassing"... just say it;
12) ...never worry that the priest thinks we are jerks…. he is usually impressed by our courage;
13) ...never fear that the priest will not keep our confession secret… he is bound by the Seal;
14) ...never confess "tendencies" or "struggles"... just sins;
15) ...never leave the confessional before the priest has finished giving absolution;
16) ...memorize an Act of Contrition;
17) ...answer the priest’s questions briefly if he asks for a clarification;
18) ...ask questions if we can’t understand what he means when he tells us something;
19) ...keep in mind that sometimes priests can have bad days just like we do;
20) ...remember that priests must go to confession too … they know what we are going through.

From: Fr. Z’s 20 Tips For Making A Good Confession

While we're at it, here are the words you should say at the beginning of your confession, and then at the end of your confession:

"Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It is (X days, weeks, months, years) since my last Confession. I accuse myself of the following sins."

Then list your sins by kind and number. If you can't remember how many times, say, "I stole candy bars so many times that I can't remember."

After confessing all your sins, next say:

"For these and all the sins of my past life, I ask pardon of God, penance, and absolution from you, Father." 

 

Saint John Marie Vianney Quotes on Mary

Father Joseph Mary of the Franciscans of the Immaculate provides us with these beautiful quotes regarding our Blessed Mother:


Saint John Marie Vianney Quotes on The Blessed Virgin Mary

* “To serve the Queen of Heaven is already to reign there, and to live under her commands is more than to govern.”
* “Only after the Last Judgment will Mary get any rest; from now until then, she is much too busy with her children.”
* “Christian wife! Follow in the footsteps of the ideal of all womanhood, the Blessed Mother of God; in joy and in sorrow, she will be your advocate at the throne of her Son.”
* “Jesus Christ, after having given us all he could give, that is to say, the merit of his toils, his sufferings, and bitter death; after having given us his adorable body and blood to be the food of our souls, willed also to give us the most precious thing he had let, which was his holy Mother,”
* “When our hands have touched spices, they give fragrance to all they handle. Let us make our prayers pass through the hands of the Blessed Virgin. She will make them fragrant.”

Preview of Mother Teresa Movie!

Check out the video above. I look forward to seeing this new movie about Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

Watcha think? Does this film look promising?

Adam's Rib Turned into an Action Figure..Huh?

I overheard my eight year old son explain the following to my twin daughters:

"So here's what happened. God looked down and saw that Adam was very lonely. So He decided to get him a wife. So He made Adam become very sleepy. And when he fell asleep, God took out one of his ribs. Not one of the ribs up here [son points chest], but the bottom rib down hear [points to side].

"Then God took that rib and turned it into an action figure. And from that God made the first woman."

I thought this was pretty humorous and wanted to pass it on to y'all.

The Discovery of St Stephen's Relics and the Apparition of Gamaliel

Burial of Stephen by Gamaliel and Nicodemus

In my new book The Catholic Perspective on Paul, I discuss the Catholic tradition that Gamaliel of the Jewish Sanhedrin in the book of Acts is accounted by the Catholic Church as a Catholic saint. He is listed in the Roman Martyrology as a saint to be exact. For many more details, check out the book when it comes out later this year. Let me just say that this Catholic tradition is important when study Saint Paul since Paul studied under Gamaliel.

Related to this topic is today's forgotten memorial of the discovery of Saint Stephen's relics. Our wonderful parish priest Father Phil Wolfe, FSSP discussed this tradition in his homily at Holy Mass.

According to tradition, Gamaliel and Nicodemus buried Saint Stephen outside of Jerusalem. The soul of Saint Gamaliel appeared to the presbyter Lucian in AD 415 and told him where to find the relics of Stephen and those of his own body. The relics were found on 3 August AD 415. The relics of Saint Stephen were translated several months later to Jerusalem proper on 26 December AD 415 - which is why we celebrate the feast of Stephen on the day after Christmas.

Just in case you think I'm crazy, it's even attested to by Saint Augustine, who lived at this time.

Here's the traditional account:

THIS SECOND festival (August 3), in honour of the holy protomartyr St. Stephen, was instituted by the church on the occasion of the discovery of his precious remains.

In the year 415, in the tenth consulship of Honorius, and the sixth of Theodosius the Younger, on Friday the 3d of December, about nine o’ clock at night, Lucian was sleeping in his bed, in the baptistery, where he commonly lay, in order to guard the sacred vessels of the church. Being half awake, he saw a tall comely old man of a venerable aspect, with a long white beard, clothed in a white garment, edged with small plates of gold, marked with crosses, and holding a golden wand in his hand. This person approached Lucian, and calling him thrice by his name, bid him go to Jerusalem, and tell bishop John to come and open the tombs in which his remains, and those of certain other servants of Christ lay, that through their means God might open to many the gates of his clemency. Lucian asked his name? “I am,” said he, “Gamaliel, who instructed Paul the apostle in the law; and on the east side of the monument lieth Stephen who was stoned by the Jews without the north gate. His body was left there exposed one day and one night; but was not touched by birds or beasts. I exhorted the faithful to carry it off in the night-time, which when they had done, I caused it to be carried secretly to my house in the country, where I celebrated his funeral rites forty days, and then caused his body to be laid in my own tomb to the eastward. Nicodemus, who came to Jesus by night, lieth there in another coffin. He was excommunicated by the Jews for following Christ, and banished out of Jerusalem. Whereupon I received him into my house in the country, and there maintained him to the end of his life; after his death I buried him honourably near Stephen. I likewise buried there my son Abibas, who died before me at the age of twenty years. His body is in the third coffin which stands higher up, where I myself was also interred after my death. My wife Ethna, and my eldest son Semelias, who were not willing to embrace the faith of Christ, were buried in another ground, called Capharsemalia.” Lucian, fearing to pass for an impostor if he was too credulous, prayed, that if the vision was from God, he might be favoured with it a second and a third time; and he continued to fast on bread and water. On the Friday following Gamaliel appeared again to him in the same form as before, and commanded him to obey. As emblems of the relics he brought and showed Lucian four baskets, three of gold and one of silver. The golden baskets were full of roses; two of white and one of red roses; the silver basket was full of saffron of a most delicious smell. Lucian asked what these were? Gamaliel said: “They are our relics. The red roses represent Stephen, who lieth at the entrance of the sepulchre; the second basket Nicodemus, who is near the door; the silver basket represents my son Abibas, who departed this life without stain; his basket is contiguous to mine.” Having said this he disappeared. Lucian then awaked, gave thanks to God, and continued his fasts. In the third week, on the same day, and at the same hour, Gamaliel appeared again to him, and with threats upbraided him with his neglect, adding, that the drought which then afflicted the world, would be removed only by his obedience, and the discovery of their relics. Lucian being now terrified, promised he would no longer defer it.

50 Maxims for becoming a Saint! (from St Alphonsus Liguori)

I've recently come to love Saint Alphonsus Liguori. Here are his "50 Maxims." Print them out and paste them next to your mirror so that you read a few every day:

Maxims for the Direction of a Soul that Desires to Obtain Perfection in the Love of Jesus Christ

by Saint Alphonsus Liguori

1. To desire ardently to increase in the love of Jesus Christ.

2. Often to make acts of love towards Jesus Christ. Immediately on waking, and before going to sleep, to make an act of love, seeking always to unite your own will to the will of Jesus Christ.

3. Often to meditate on his Passion.

4. Always to ask Jesus Christ for his love.

5. To communicate often, and many times in the day to make spiritual Communions.

6. Often to visit the Most Holy Sacrament.

7. Every morning to receive from the hands of Jesus Christ himself your own cross.

8. To desire Paradise and death, in order to be able to love Jesus Christ perfectly and for all eternity.

9. Often to speak of the love of Jesus Christ.

10. To accept contradictions for the sake of Jesus Christ.

11. To rejoice in the happiness of God.

12. To do that which is most pleasing to Jesus Christ, and not to refuse him anything that is agreeable to him.

13. To desire and to endeavor that all should love Jesus Christ.

14. To pray always for sinners and for the souls in purgatory.

15. To drive from your heart every affection that does not belong to Jesus Christ.

16. Always to have recourse to the most holy Mary, that she may obtain for us the love of Jesus Christ.

17. To honor Mary in order to please Jesus Christ.

18. To seek to please Jesus Christ in all your actions.

19. To offer yourself to Jesus Christ to suffer any pain for his love.

20 To be always determined to die rather than commit a willful venial sin.

21. To suffer crosses patiently, saying, "Thus it pleases Jesus Christ."

22. To renounce your own pleasures for the love of Jesus Christ.

23. To pray as much as possible.

24. To practice all the mortifications that obedience permits.

25. To do all your spiritual exercises as if it were for the last time.

26. To persevere in good works in the time of aridity.

27. Not to do nor yet to leave undone anything through human respect.

28. Not to complain in sickness.

29. To love solitude, to be able to converse alone with Jesus Christ.

30. To drive away melancholy.

37. Often to recommend yourself to those persons who love Jesus Christ.

32. In temptation, to have recourse to Jesus crucified, and to Mary in her sorrows.

33. To trust entirely in the Passion of Jesus Christ.

34. After committing a fault, not to be discouraged, but to repent and resolve to amend.

35. To do good to those who do evil.

36. To speak well of all, and to excuse the intention when you cannot defend the action.

37. To help your neighbor as much as you can.

38. Neither to say nor to do anything that might vex him. And if you have been wanting in charity, to ask his pardon and speak kindly to him.

39. Always to speak with mildness and in a low tone.

40. To offer to Jesus Christ all the contempt and persecution that you meet with.

41. To look upon [religious] Superiors as the representatives of Jesus Christ.

42. To obey without answering and without repugnance, and not to seek your own satisfaction in anything.

43. To like the lowest employments.

44. To like the poorest things.

45. Not to speak either good or evil of yourself.

46. To humble yourself even towards inferiors.

47. Not to excuse yourself when you are reproved.

48. Not to defend yourself when found fault with.

49. To be silent when you are disquieted.

50. Always to renew your determination of becoming a saint, saying, "My Jesus, I desire to be all Yours, and You must be all mine."

Source: The Incarnation, Birth, and Infancy of Jesus Christ 1927

St Alphonsus Liguori, Pray for us! Sancta Alphonsus Liguori, Ora Pro Nobis! Amen

Portiuncula Indulgence Revisited

Replica of the original unadorned Portiunculaat Franciscan University in Steubenville 
Today (August 2) is the famous Portiuncula Indulgence of Saint Francis.

One of the most fascinating things about the life of Saint Francis is the Portiuncula indulgence that he obtained from the Pope Honorius III. The Portiuncula (or "little portion") is essentially the mother church of the Franciscans.

Tradition states that Portiuncola was built under Pope Liberius (352-66) by hermits from the Valley of Josaphat who hid relics (burial clothes) from the grave of the Blessed Virgin at this spot.

This dilapidated little chapel was given to St. Francis by the Abbot Monte Subasio in 1208. Francis restored it as was his custom.

Saint Francis asked that this chapel be indulgenced, and the Pope granted his request. This was a amazing privilege since only Rome, Jerusalem, and Santiago in Spain were the sites of plenary indulgences. This act of the Holy Father raised this small "little portion" to one of the most important pilgrimage shrines in the world.

Saint Francis died lying naked on the floor of the Portiuncula in 1226.

While in San Francisco, Joy and I found the copy that has been constructed there. It was so beautiful. Here's a photo we took:


The Portiuncula indulgence can still be gained on August 2 of every year.

Father Joseph Mary McShane sent along these two helpful links:

http://www.franciscanfriarstor.com/archive/stfrancis/stf_portuncula_indulgence.htm

http://acatholiclife.blogspot.com/2006/08/portiuncula-indulgence-is-today.html

England's Miraculous Coronation Chrism

In England, the Blessed Virgin appeared to Saint Thomas Becket andgave  him an eagle-shaped ampulla filled with holy oil, and a golden spoon to be used to crown England's Kings. The ampulla was lost for two centuries, but was discovered before Henry IV's coronation in 1399.

When the oil it contained was used to anoint the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I in 1559, it is said to have gone rancid; she is said to have remarked that "the grease smelt ill." Whether these legends are true or not, the eagle-shaped ampulla is now reserved at the Tower of London with the rest of the Crown Jewels.

HT: Fish Eaters

Canadian Anglicans vote to unite with Rome

A recent meeting of leaders in the Anglican Catholic Church of Canada (ACCC) voted to unite with the Roman Catholic Church through the Apostolic Constitution created by Pope Benedict XVI.

The ACCC, part of the Continuing Anglican Movement, is made up of more than two dozen congregations. Its Eighth Provincial Synod and Thirteenth Diocesan Synod were held simultaneously at the Rosemary Heights Retreat Center in Surrey, British Columbia.

The website VirtueOnline.org published a letter from Dean Shane B. Janzen detailing the event.

The meeting was attended by four ACCC bishops, including Bishop Peter Wilkinson, the communion’s Metropolitan and Ordinary. Archbishop John Hepworth, the Australia-based Primate of the Traditional Anglican Communion (TAC), was also present.

The discussion included the House of Clergy and the House of Laity and focused on the implementation of a proposed Canadian Anglican Catholic Ordinariate under the Apostolic Constitution “Anglicanorum Coetibus.”

Support for the Ordinariate was unanimous in the House of Clergy and received 25 of 30 votes from lay delegates, with two members opposing the proposal and three abstaining.

The synod then passed a resolution enabling Bishop Wilkinson, with the advice and consent of the Provincial Council, to enact the necessary canonical ordinances and rules to establish the Ordinariate.

The House of Clergy elected members of the Interim Governing Council, which nominated and elected Bishop Wilkinson as the first Bishop Ordinary of the proposed Ordinariate.

According to Dean Janzen’s letter, the Diocesan Council also made financial changes to ensure that the diocese’s restricted funds are protected from “any potential litigation.”

Dean Janzen wrote that the focus of the synod was “the worship and praise of Almighty God; the proclamation of Christ's saving Truth; and faithful witness to the faith, order and discipline to Christ's one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.”

He reported that attendees left with “a renewed sense of optimism for the future and a clear vision for the present.”

“With the overwhelming support of clergy and laity for unity with the See of Peter and the establishment of a Canadian Anglican Catholic Ordinariate, our Diocese is now able to move forward united, renewed, and hopeful,” his letter read, according to VirtueOnline.

From:

Canadian Anglican Catholic group votes to unite with Rome :: Catholic News Agency (CNA)