How to Pray the Divine Office in Latin

How to Pray the Divine Office in Latin

What is the Divine Office?
Praying throughout marked intervals throughout the day is the ancient and revered custom of the Catholic Church. This is the Divine Office and the book that contains it is called the Roman Breviary (usually printed in 2 or 3 volumes). The new revised version after the Second Vatican Council is commonly called the Liturgy of the Hours (LOTH printed in 4 volumes).

Traditionally the hours were as follows:

1. Matins (midnight)
2. Lauds (before sunrise)
3. Prime (6am)
4. Terce (9am)
5. Sext (12pm)
6. None (3pm)
7. Vespers (evening)
8. Compline (bedtime)

After the Second Vatican Council, the hours were reduced to the following arrangement in the Liturgy of the Hours (LOTH):

1. Office of Readings (formerly Matins - now at any time)
2. Lauds (morning)
    Prime is now suppressed and gone
3. Midday Prayer - only one of the following is required:
     Terce (9am)
     Sext (12pm)
     None (3pm)
4. Vespers (evening)
5. Compline (bedtime)

What are the other differences? The older Divine Office is on a weekly Psalm cycle (all 150 Psalms are prayed in one week). The new LOTH is on a monthly Psalm cycle; however, the LOTH drops some of the Psalms because they are deemed scandalous. This is the #1 reason why I don't care for the LOTH. 

There is one advantage to the LOTH that I really like, and this is that its Office of Readings has a much simpler set of readings (one from the Bible and one from the Fathers or magisterial documents). I find that the second readings are always rich and edifying.

So you have to decide whether you want to follow the traditional arrangement (8 intervals) or the newer arrangement (5 intervals).

What I have done in the past is pray the older 8 intervals of the Roman Breviary, but I use the LOTH Office of Readings for my midnight Matins. This allows me to use a "diurnal" throughout the day. I'll say something about what a diurnal is below.

I have prayed LOTH for a long while and I gradually transferred over to the older arrangement in Latin. So how do you do this?

Two Proposed Game Plans to Get Started

If you have no experience in praying the Hours, I suggest the following "training plan":

There are two ways to start off: 

Plan A: Be traditional and pray the 1961 Edition of the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary (English and Latin text) for 6 months. The arrangement and rubrics are super easy and it shorter than the full 1961 Divine Office - hence it is the "Little Office."  Just click the link to the left and you'll get the best and most beautiful version of the Little Office. I've researched it and this is THE best version out there. As I've said before, I love Barionius Press products.

You can figure out how to use the Little Office in about 20 minutes. It has the English and Latin next to each other. I'd recommend that you pray the English for 2 months and by then you'll have a good bulk of it memorized in English. Then start doing the Latin if you have a background in it.

Plan B: If you want only use English and want to conform to the Vatican 2 reforms, pray the current LOTH. If you want to eventually go to Latin or a more traditional form, the LOTH can be helpful to give you a "feel" for what the Office is all about.

How to Fit in All These Prayers into Your Workday?

Okay, so now that you've got a plan, how do you do it?

The key is "frontloading" Matins and Lauds. Traditionally, Matins and Lauds were prayed together without interruption. So wake up in the middle of the night (e.g. 2am) or early in the morning (5:30am) and pray Matins/Lauds (1961 Little Office) or Readings/Morning Prayer (LOTH).

Prime Before Work

After you wake up, shower, get dressed: pray Prime. If you're doing LOTH, Prime is suppressed so don't worry about it. Personally, I think Prime is a fantastic little prayer.

Midday Prayers During the Work Day

When you get to work, find a time to pray Terce, Sext, and None or just Midday (LOTH). You can pray them together or break them up. I like to break them up, but I don't often get the chance to do this. Sometimes they get lumped together. These will take about 4 minutes each. So you can sneak them in almost anywhere - either together or apart as is the intention. Just make sure that you do them at the same time and same place every day to make a firm habit.

Squeezing in Vespers/Evening Prayer

I'm a father of six and a husband of one and I have found the most difficult time of prayer to be Vespers. Before dinner there is homework, sports, dinner preparations. After dinner are baths, pajamas, tooth brushing, family Rosary, etc. There just isn't a place to pray Vespers. 

So what I do is either pray Vespers in my car in the parking lot before leaving work (it's quiet and nobody bothers me) or I just group it with Compline. If you do this, then before bed I pray Vespers and then go right into Compline.

Timing Compline (pray it with your spouse)

My wife and I pray Compline every night together. It's great. We're too tired to come up with any prayers on our own. Compline becomes our familiar nightly prayer. It also includes an examination of conscience so it's a perfect completion of the day. If you want to be really old school and Benedictine, Compline is the same every night so after you have it memorized, you don't even need a book. You can even turn out the lights and pray it by heart.

Taking it to the Next Level: Latin

So after you've been praying the Divine Office for awhile, you may want to upgrade from the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary (1961) or from the LOTH.

There are two routes you can go.

You can go full out 1961 Roman Breviary in 2 volumes. This has no English - just Latin. Be ready to shell out about $300. Yikes.

But if you want to do the 1961 Office for free. I recommend this website: Officium Divinium. Set the rubrics to "Rubrics 1960" and you'll be good to go. It even has the Douay-Rheims in English next to the Latin. I use this site as my crutch during Matins at night. Best of all it's free. If you own an iPad - congratulations, with this site you now have a Latin Breviary with parallel Latin and English!

The other option is the Monastic Diurnal of St Michael's Abbey. It has English and Latin next to each other. A "diurnal" is the Divine Office for the "day." So it has everything except for the night office of Matins. A Catholic diurnal contains the 7 offices of: Prime, Terce, Sext, None, Vespers, and Compline. I own this and I like it. It's a beautiful book.

You can also get the 1961 Brevarium Romanum Diurnal, but it is Latin only...no English. 

Now, Baronius Press is working on a long-awaited 1961 Brevarium with English/Latin parallel (including Matins). This will be the obvious "winner" and go-to book when it eventually comes out. It will also be very expensive.

For the time being, I use a combination of the Divinium Officium website on my iPhone/iPad and the Monastic Diurnal for daily offices. In a pinch or when praying publicly with others, I happily pray the LOTH in English. If I'm out and about, I still use the Little of Office of the BVM, for which I still have great love and devotion

A Note About Latin Psalms

The Divine Office is essentially praying the Book of Psalms. If you're into Latin and chant, you need to be aware of the 3 common Latin Psalters out there:

1. Clementine or Gallican Vulgate Psalter (the classic medieval Psalms - this is the only one you want to use!)
2. Pian or Bea Psalter (revised Hebraicized Psalter of Cardinal Bea - found in many printed Breviaries from 1945 till 1970 - don't use this)
3. Neo-Vulgate Psalter (version found in Latin LOTH)

If you're praying the LOTH, you're stuck with the Neo-Vulgate. Sorry. 

If you're praying the traditional office in Latin, you'll need to be discerning about which Latin Psalms you're praying and memorizing. Many so-called "traditional" Latin breviaries (especially the used ones on eBay) have the 1945 Pian/Bea Psalter. Don't buy a breviary that says "Pian Psalter." 

You can't chant communally with the Pian/Bea Psalter and most serious religious communities that use the Latin have gone back to the good ol' Clementine or Gallican Vulgate Psalter. The Gallican Vulgate Psalter is the version that echoed throughout the cathedrals and monasteries of medieval Europe.

I'd love to here some tips and advice from others who are trying to prayer regularly. It's a struggle, but also a blessing (isn't that how all good things are?).

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall

Today Is This Blog's Feast Day! (St Thomas Becket)

Today is the fifth day of Christmas and the feast of Saint Thomas Becket. Many people don't know this, but this blog is actually named after Saint Thomas Becket, who was murdered in Canterbury Cathedral--hence the name "Canterbury Tales."

Our fifth child is also named "Becket" in honor of this great witness of Christ. He stood up against King Henry II of England over the rights and privileges of the Catholic Church in England. Tradition relates that the king said the following about Becket: "Will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?"

As a favor to the king, some cronies of Henry murdered Becket in his Cathedral in Canterbury. T. S. Eliot's famous play "Murder in the Cathedral" is based on this story. Why not order a copy of the play:

Video: Top 10 Vatican Stories of 2010

Here it is folks - the top 10 Vatican stories of 2010 (click on video above).

Beautiful Liturgy in Ugly Churches: Franciscans of the Immaculate Talk about Returning to the Latin Mass

Ave Maria!

This is a great little video produced by the Franciscans of the Immaculate about the importance on the Latin Mass or Extraordinary Form of the Holy Sacrifice and obeying the Holy Father's liturgical directives. Please watch.

I love the FIs!
Taylor

PS: Plus, they talk about their new hoods!

Why Does Rachel Weep for the Holy Innocents of Bethlehem? (St Jerome)

When the Holy Innocents were killed under King Herod, we read in Sacred Scripture:

"Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah the Prophet, saying; In Rama was there a voice heard, weeping and great mourning; Rachel weeping for her children."

A difficulty with this passage lies with the fact the tribe of Benjamin (that of Rachel) did not include Bethlehem. Why then did she cry for them if children of Bethelehem seem not to be her biological children? Saint Jerome explains:

The child of Rachel was Benjamin, and Bethlehem is not a town belonging to his tribe. We must therefore seek another reason why Rachel should weep for the children of Judah, to whom Bethlehem belongeth, as for her own. The plain answer is that she is buried at Ephrath close to Bethlehem, and she is called Mother on account of the resting-place of her earthly tabernacle being there. It is possible also that she is called Mother because the tribes of Judah and Benjamin were joined together, and Herod slew not only all the children that were in Bethlehem, but also in all the coasts thereof.

Today is Wine Blessing Day! (Feast of Saint John)

Attention all oenophiles! You're going to love this...

Today after Holy Mass, our priest performed the traditional blessing of wine for the feast of Saint John. Think about it, Holy Mother Church not allows us to drink wine, she blesses it! Our family had three bottles (2 magnums of Merlot and Cab and a Chardonnay) blessed in honor of Saint John.

The faithful brought bottles of wine into church, which were solemnly blessed. The priest prayed over all the wine and then sprinkled it all with holy water.

The custom derives from Dec 27 being the feast day of the Apostle John. Tradition says that someone (one tradition says Domitian) once tried to poison St John by offering him poisoned wine. When Holy John said a blessing over the wine, the poison left the wine in the form of a snake. See pic above at the top of the post for details.

Here's an English translation of the ritual for blessing the wine for your edification:

BLESSING OF WINE on the Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist

At the end of the principal Mass on the feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist, after the last Gospel, the priest, retaining all vestments except the maniple, blesses wine brought by the people. This is done in memory and in honor of St. John, who drank without any ill effects the poisoned wine offered to him by his enemies.

P: Our help is in the name of the Lord.

All: Who made heaven and earth.

P: The Lord be with you.

All: May He also be with you.

Let us pray.
If it please you, Lord God, bless and consecrate this vessel of wine (or any other beverage) by the power of your right hand; and grant that, through the merits of St. John, apostle and evangelist, all your faithful who drink of it may find it a help and a protection. As the blessed John drank the poisoned potion without any ill effects, so may all who today drink the blessed wine in his honor be delivered from poisoning and similar harmful things. And as they offer themselves body and soul to you, may they obtain pardon of all their sins; through Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.
Lord, bless this creature drink, so that it may be a health- giving medicine to all who use it; and grant by your grace that all who taste of it may enjoy bodily and spiritual health in calling on your holy name; through Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.
May the blessing of almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, come on this wine (or any other beverage) and remain always.

All: Amen.
It is sprinkled with holy water. If the blessing is given privately outside of Mass, the priest is vested in surplice and stole and performs the ceremony as given above.

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall

PS: Saint John is my patron saint, so please so a prayer for me today! I'd be grateful.

On the Feast of Stephen: Good King Wenceslas

Today is December 26 and the Feast of Stephen, which is the occasion for one of my favorite Christmas carols: "Good King Wenceslas."

In the famous carol, King Wenceslas spots a poor man on the "Feast of Stephen" (Dec 26) and instructs his page to bring meat and wine in order to bless the poor man. I love the tune because of it's manly cadence and melody - it inspires one to start toasting and sloshing a growler of ale.

The video below has the Bing Crosby version - which is not as spirited as I like to sing it, but it's still pretty good. This Bing version is the one I remember hearing at home on the record player as child.

Saint Wenceslas (d. 935) is a Catholic martyr known for his love for the poor and his secret night vigils before the altar of the Blessed Sacrament. The last line of the carol captures the intent of the song and the true example of Saint Wenceslas:

Therefore, Christian men, be sure
Wealth or rank possessing
Ye who now will bless the poor
Shall yourselves find blessing

Below are all the words to the carol. Since today (Dec 26) is "the feast of Stephen," why not singing with your family tonight before Rosary or bedtime?

Good King Wenceslas looked out
On the feast of Stephen
When the snow lay round about
Deep and crisp and even
Brightly shone the moon that night
Though the frost was cruel
When a poor man came in sight
Gath'ring winter fuel


"Hither, page, and stand by me
If thou know'st it, telling
Yonder peasant, who is he?
Where and what his dwelling?"
"Sire, he lives a good league hence
Underneath the mountain
Right against the forest fence
By Saint Agnes' fountain."


"Bring me flesh and bring me wine
Bring me pine logs hither
Thou and I will see him dine
When we bear him thither."
Page and monarch forth they went
Forth they went together
Through the rude wind's wild lament
And the bitter weather


"Sire, the night is darker now
And the wind blows stronger
Fails my heart, I know not how,
I can go no longer."
"Mark my footsteps, my good page
Tread thou in them boldly
Thou shalt find the winter's rage
Freeze thy blood less coldly."


In his master's steps he trod
Where the snow lay dinted
Heat was in the very sod
Which the Saint had printed
Therefore, Christian men, be sure
Wealth or rank possessing
Ye who now will bless the poor
Shall yourselves find blessing

Merry Christmas

The Marshall's pray that you all have a Happy and Holy Christmas.

Godspeed,

Taylor Marshall

Today is the Feast Day of Adam and Eve (Plus, the Origin of Christmas Trees)

"Virgin Mary Consoles Eve"

Crayon and pencil by Sr. Grace Remington, OCSO

Copyright 2005, Sisters of the Mississippi Abbey

Christmas Eve is also the the feast day of Saint Eve...and Saint Adam, too.

Yes, Adan and Eve are saints in the Catholic Church, and they are traditionally honored on December 24th, Christmas Eve. They are the exemplars of humble penance for their original crime against God.

Previously, medieval Christians enjoyed performances on Christmas Eve called "Paradise Plays" that recounted how Adam and Eve lost their innocence by eating the fruit of the tree. Some have speculated that the placement of a tree decorated with red apples for this dramatic paradise play is the true origin of the Christmas Tree decorated with red apples or red ornaments. Soon, the people copied the practice and placed "paradise trees" in their homes.

The paradise play recounts how when Adam and Eve sinned, God promised them a Redeemer born of a Woman who would crush the serpent's head:

"I will put enmities between you and the woman, and your seed and her seed: she shall crush your head, and you shall lie in wait for her heel" (Gen 3:15).

This drama anticipated the reversal of the Fall with the miraculous birth of the Christ Child from the stainless womb of the Immaculate Virgin Mary.

The symbolism of this drama is that Adam is the chief peccator and that Eve is the co-peccatrix who brought all of mankind into the bondage of original sin. Christmas introduces Jesus Christ as the New Adam Redemptor and Mary as the New Eve Coredemptrix as those who liberate mankind from sin into grace and glory.

Mary is the foretold "Woman" of Genesis 3:15 who bears the Redeeming "Seed" who is Jesus Christ. The long expectation of Adam and Eve for the birth of the promised Child has finally arrived.

So happy feast day of Adam and Eve!

Merry Christmas!

ad Jesum per Mariam,

Taylor Marshall

PS: I've been told that the Eastern Church commemorate Adam and Eve on the Sunday before Christmas. Can anyone verify this for us?

Scrupulous Kid Confessions for Santa Claus

We've have six children and all of them believe in Santa Claus - ages 8 to 2 years old (plus one in the womb, well, he probably doesn't believe in Santa). My suspicion is this might be the last year that the oldest believes that Saint Nicholas descends our chimney with gifts.

Here's the latest:

Today after Holy Christmas Eve Mass (Dec 24) we're getting into the van and I notice that our oldest (8 year old boy) is missing.

Turns out he was in line for confession. That's cool with me, but the only thing is this: he went to confession yesterday - less that 24 hours ago.

"Didn't you go to confession yesterday?" I asked. "Did you rob a bank or do something that I don't know about?"

He replies: "I went to confession yesterday, but I want to go again today so that I can be pure for Saint Nicholas when he comes tonight."

Pretty cute, and he caught me completely off guard. My wife and I had a good laugh about it later.

This just goes to show that a 8 year-old boy will do anything to get a "Red Ryder carbine-action, two hundred shot Range Model air rifle with a compass in the stock and a thing which tells time."

Either he knows Santa isn't real and he's trying to score points with me, or he's "scrupulous for the sake of gifts from Saint Nick."

Have a Merry Christmas!

Amazing Photo: Fully Vested Priest Being Executed by Firing Squad

I recently came across this amazing photo of a fully vested Mexican priest (far right) being executed by a firing squad (far left):

Does anyone know who this priest was or the story behind this photo?

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall

PS: How honorable is it that the Padre is wearing a biretta to his death? By the way, the black hat is a sign of jurisdiction and is worn in ancient courts by judges when they pronounce a death sentence. Spiritually, this priest is pronouncing the spiritual death of his persecutors (and probably praying for them, as well).

Adam, Abraham, and David beg the Virgin's Answer (Saint Bernard of Clarivaux)

My favorite painting of Saint Bernard

This is perhaps one of the most beautiful passages that I have ever read regarding the Blessed Virgin Mary. It's from Saint Bernard of Clarivaux. Bernard dramatizes the anticipation of St Gabriel as he waited for Mary's answer to the prospect of becoming the Mother of God Incarnate. Meanwhile Adam, Abraham, and David eagerly await her reply. As Bernard says to Mary: "Breathe a passing word, embrace the eternal Word."


Ex Homilíis sancti Bernárdi abbátis in Láudibus Vírginis Matris (Hom. 4, 8-9: Opera omnia, Edit. Cisterc. 4 [1966], 53-54)

You have heard, O Virgin, that you will conceive and bear a son; you have heard that it will not be by man but by the Holy Spirit. The angel awaits an answer; it is time for him to return to God who sent him. We too are waiting, O Lady, for your word of compassion; the sentence of condemnation weighs heavily upon us.

The price of our salvation is offered to you. We shall be set free at once if you consent. In the eternal Word of God we all came to be, and behold, we die. In your brief response we are to be remade in order to be recalled to life.

Tearful Adam with his sorrowing family begs this of you, O loving Virgin, in their exile from Paradise. Abraham begs it, David begs it. All the other holy patriarchs, your ancestors, ask it of you, as they dwell in the country of the shadow of death. This is what the whole earth waits for, prostrate at your feet. It is right in doing so, for on your word depends comfort for the wretched, ransom for the captive, freedom for the condemned, indeed, salvation for all the sons of Adam, the whole of your race.

Answer quickly, O Virgin. Reply in haste to the angel, or rather through the angel to the Lord. Answer with a word, receive the Word of God. Speak your own word, conceive the divine Word. Breathe a passing word, embrace the eternal Word.

This meditation is stunning in that it wraps up redemptive history into that single moment when the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.

O sweet and immaculate Mary, pray for us that we might be ready to celebrate the birth of thy Divine Son.

Indian Food Tonight for Saint Thomas' Feast's Day

Back in my Anglican seminary days, we started a tradition of always eating Indian food (which we love!) on the feast of Saint Thomas - the Patron Saint and Apostle of India. For us Anglicans, the feast day of Saint Thomas fell on December 21. It was always a fun "pre-Christmas" tradition for us to have spicy Indian food on the evening of the first day of winter.

It became somewhat complicated when we became Catholic, because in the current Catholic Novus Ordo calendar (post-V2) has Saint Thomas' feast day on July 3. Our little "pre-Christmas" tradition didn't quite work so well liturgically. Nevertheless, we were reverse-recusants and we continued to eat Indian food on December 21 in memory of our old tradition.

However, I'm thrilled that in the old calendar (pre-V2), the feast of Saint Thomas is still December 21. Now that we're at a Latin Mass parish, it was great to see the red vestments today and hear a solid homily on Saint Thomas as the patron of India.

So tonight we're again eating Indian food for dinner: Tiki Masala, Lamb Kadai, Naan, Rice, etc. My mouth is still tingling and I'm loving it!

I even shared the story of Saint Thomas in India to the Indian waitress as I waited for my take-out to bring home.

Saint Thomas, Apostle of India, pray for us!

Mary's Painless Delivery of Christ (Scripture, Church Fathers, Popes, and Doctors of the Church)

In the post yesterday entitled "The Nativity Story Movie - Blasphemous and Sacrilegious," with 54 comments and counting, there have questions about whether Mary's delivery of Christ was: A) painless, and B) left her physical virginity intact.

Some have felt that it somehow undermines the humanity of Christ to assert these Catholic beliefs. We must recall that Christ walked on water, was transfigured on Mount Tabor, exited the sepulcher before it was opened, and walked through locked doors. None of these facts undermine the humanity of Christ. Consequently, to believe that Christ exited the womb of the Blessed Mother in a mysterious way is neither credulous or impious. Rather, it is the conviction of the holiest and brightest saints of the Catholic Church. For anyone who would deny the painless and intact nativity of Christ, let us challenge you to produce a citation from any saint or pope who teaches otherwise - that is a text that affirms that the nativity of the Christ Child caused pain to Mary and broke her physical virginity.

After a little research I discovered that of the 33 Doctors of the Church, none deny the painless and intact nativity of Christ. Moreover, at least 20 of the Doctors of the Church explicitly affirm that the birth of Christ was painless and miraculously left Mary's physical virginity intact. Again, it all goes back to Isaiah 66:7: "before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child." This prophecy refers to Christ plain and simple.

I have assembled the most important texts from the Sacred Scriptures, Fathers, Doctors, Councils, and Popes below.


Scriptural Passages on Mary's Painless Delivery of Christ


To see how certain Saints use this passages below in their theology, continue to scroll down.


"Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel" (Isa 7:14).

This prophecy states that a virgin will not only conceive as an intact virgin but also bear her Son as an intact virgin.

"Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child" (Isa 66:7)

Isa 66 is a slam dunk. It explicitly and literally says "before her pain came she was delivered."

"Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was shut. Then said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the LORD, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut" (Ezk 44:1-3).

This passage shows that the womb of Mary is shut and closed even though God comes in and out.

"A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed" (Canticles 4:12)

The Doctors of the Church interpreted this to mean that the womb of the Virgin Mary is "shut" and "sealed" by God, not to be "opened" in natural childbirth.

The Fathers, Doctors and Popes on Mary's Painless Delivery of Christ

St Gregory of Nyssa
"Though coming in the form of man, yet not in every thing is He subject to the laws of man's nature; for while His being born of a woman tells of human nature; virginity becoming capable of childbirth betokens something above man. Of Him then His mother's burden was light, the birth immaculate, the delivery without pain, the nativity without defilement, neither beginning from wanton desire, nor brought to pass with sorrow. For as she who by her guilt engrafted death into our nature, was condemned to bring forth in trouble, it was meet that she who brought life into the world should accomplish her delivery with joy." (St Gregory of Nyssa, Homily on the Nativity, AD ca. 388)

St. Ambrose of Milan
"Who is this gate (Ezekiel 44:1-4, see above), if not Mary? Is it not closed because she is a virgin? Mary is the gate through which Christ entered this world, when He was brought forth in the virginal birth and the manner of His birth did not break the seals of virginity...There is a gate of the womb, although it is not always closed; indeed only one was able to remain closed, that through which the One born of the Virgin came forth without the loss of genital intactness" (St. Ambrose of Milan, The Consecration of a Virgin and the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, 8:52; ca. AD 391).

St Augustine of Hippo
"It is not right that He who came to heal corruption should by His advent violate integrity" (St. Augustine, Sermon 189:2).

"In conceiving thou wast all pure, in giving birth thou wast without pain" (St. Augustine, Sermon on Nativity).

"Christ transcends, indeed, the miracles of all besides, in being born of a virgin, and in possessing alone the power, both in His conception and birth, to preserve inviolate the integrity of His mother: but that was done neither before their eyes nor in them. For the knowledge of the truth of such a miracle was reached by the apostles, not through any onlooking that they had in common with others, but in the course of their separate discipleship." (St. Augustine, Tractate 91:3).

Pope St Leo the Great
"She brought Him forth without the loss of virginity even as she conceived Him without its loss." (Pope St. Leo the Great, Tome to Flavian, ca. AD 430)

Pope Pelagius I
"Jesus Christ, true God and the same true man proceeded, that is, was born, while his mother's virginity remained intact: for the Virgin remained such in bearing him just as she had in conceiving him" (Pope Pelagius I, Letter to King Childebert I)

St. Proclus of Constantinople
"O mystery! I see miracles, and I proclaim the Godhead: I perceive sufferings, and I do not deny the humanity. For Emmanuel opened the doors of nature as man, but as God did not break through the bars of virginity" (St. Proclus of Constantinople, Oratio 1, no. 10; PG 65:692A).

Lateran Council (649 AD) with Pope St. Martin I
"If anyone does not in accord with the Holy Fathers acknowledge the holy and ever virgin and immaculate Mary was really and truly the Mother of God, inasmuch as she, in the fullness of time, and without seed, conceived by the Holy Spirit, God in the Word Himself, who before all time was born of God the Father, and without loss of integrity brought Him forth, and after His birth preserved her virginity inviolate, let him be condemned."

Council of Toledo XVI (693 AD)
"And as the Virgin acquired the modesty of virginity before conception, so also she experienced no loss of her integrity; for she conceived a virgin, gave birth a virgin, and after birth retained the uninterrupted modesty of an intact virgin."

St. John Damascene
How can death claim as its prey this truly blessed one, who listened to God's word in humility, and was filled with the Spirit, conceiving the Father's gift through the archangel, bearing without concupiscence or the co-operation of man the Person of the Divine Word, who fills all things, bringing Him forth without the pains of childbirth, being wholly united to God?... It was fitting that the body of her, who preserved her virginity intact in childbirth, should be kept from corruption even after death. She who nursed her Creator as an infant at her breast, had a right to be in the divine tabernacles.... It was fitting that she who saw her Son die on the cross, and received in her heart the sword of pain which she had not felt in childbirth, should gaze upon Him seated next to the Father. (St. John Damascene, Second Homily on the Dormition of the Mother of God)

So far as He was born of woman, His birth was in accordance with the laws of parturition, while so far as He had no father, His birth was above the nature of generation: and in that it was at the usual time (for He was born on the completion of the ninth month when the tenth was just beginning), His birth was in accordance with the laws of parturition, while in that it was painless it was above the laws of generation. For, as pleasure did not precede it, pain did not follow it, according to the prophet who says, Before she travailed, she brought forth, and again, before her pain came she was delivered of a man-child (Isaiah 66:7). The Son of God incarnate, therefore, was born of her, not a divinely-inspired man but God incarnate...But just as He who was conceived kept her who conceived still virgin, in like manner also He who was born preserved her virginity intact, only passing through her and keeping her closed (Ezekiel 44:2). (St. John Damascene, On the Orthodox Faith, IV, 14)

St. Thomas Aquinas, Common Doctor of the Church
The pains of childbirth are caused by the infant opening the passage from the womb. Now it has been said above (28, 2, Replies to objections), that Christ came forth from the closed womb of His Mother, and, consequently, without opening the passage. Consequently there was no pain in that birth, as neither was there any corruption; on the contrary, there was much joy therein for that God-Man "was born into the world," according to Isaiah 35:1-2: "Like the lily, it shall bud forth and blossom, and shall rejoice with joy and praise" (St Thomas Aquinas, ST III, q. 35, a. 6).

St. Bonaventure, Seraphic Doctor of the Church
"O God, my God: I will glorify thee by Thy Mother. For she hath conceived thee in virginity: and without travail she hath brought Thee forth" (St Bonaventure, Psalter of the BVM, 62).

Roman Catechism of the Council of Trent of 1566
"To Eve it was said: ‘In pain you shall bring forth children’ (Gen. 3:16). Mary was exempt from this law, for preserving her virginal integrity inviolate, she brought forth Jesus the Son of God, without experiencing, as we have already said, any sense of pain." (Roman Catechism, "The Creed" Article III)

If anyone knows any other helpful passages from the saints, popes, and councils, please leave them in the comments below. I'll add them to the list.

The Nativity Story Movie - Blasphemous and Sacrilegious

Every Christmas I try to show that the Fathers and Doctors of the Church unanimously teach that Mary was without pain on that first Christmas (see post: "Mary's Painless Delivery of Christ"). The reason for this is plain - Mary was without original sin and thus she did not experience the curse of Eve in painful childbirth. Mary is the New Eve and stands higher than Eve. It also inconceivable that the Christ would cause physical harm to his mother. Moreover, the Church Fathers cite Isaiah 66:7 as referring to Mary's painless delivery of Christ:

"Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child" (Isa 66:7)

This year, I want to focus on something different. I recently listened to this sermon in which the priest demonstrated that the Nativity Story movie is both blasphemous and sacrilegious. The priest notes the following:

The Nativity Story film depicts Mary as experiencing pain in child birth and therefore depicts her as subject to original sin. In other words, the Mary of the Nativity Story is not the immaculately conceived Mary of Scripture, Tradition, and the Catholic Church. This is serious business when we recall what Pope Pius IX solemnly proclaimed:

We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.

Hence, if anyone shall dare -- which God forbid! -- to think otherwise than as has been defined by us, let him know and understand that he is condemned by his own judgment; that he has suffered shipwreck in the faith; that he has separated from the unity of the Church; and that, furthermore, by his own action he incurs the penalties established by law if he should are to express in words or writing or by any other outward means the errors he think in his heart (Ineffabilis Deus).

But that's not the worst part. The Nativity Story depicts the Blessed Virgin consenting to have her palm read by a medium or witch. This is a capital crime in the Old Testament law of Moses and anyone who engaged in divination (e.g. palm reading) received the death penalty by God's command. A good rule of thumb is that if a sin received the death penalty in the Old Testament then the same sin constitutes a mortal sin in the New Testament (when full consent and knowledge is present). The death penalty of the Old Law reveals the spiritual death that the soul receives through mortal sin - mortal sin meaning "deadly sin."

So would Mary have committed a mortal sin and allowed a medium to divine her palm? Absolutely not! If she had, she would have consented to Satan and she would no longer have held enmity with the infernal serpent as Scripture inerrantly teaches:

I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel (Gen 3:15).

So The Nativity Story explicitly depicts the Blessed Virgin Mary as 1) subject to original sin; and 2) committing a mortal sin of divination. This is the height of blasphemy and Satan grins as thousands of well-meaning Christians watch this film in preparation for the holidays.

I wouldn't watch a movie in which my mother was slandered and depicted committing mortal sins. Why should we watch a film that depicts the Immaculate Mother of Christ in submission to Satan

Just say no to The Nativity Story.

In order to add a positive twist, please suggest some solid and helpful "Christmas movie" suggestions in the comments below.

ad Jesum per Mariam,
Taylor Marshall

PS: I just added a new post in defense of the painless and intact nativity of Christ:

"Mary's Painless Delivery of Christ" from Scripture, Church Fathers, Popes, and Doctors of the Church

The Mind of the Blessed Virgin Mary

I've always said that Mary is the greatest philosopher of all time. She loved Wisdom Incarnate as only a mother can. For this reason, I've consecrated my mind and my all to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Below is a beautiful passage from Father Réginald Marie Garrigou-Lagrange regarding the mind of the Blessed Virgin. Since she was without sin and concupiscence, her mind was never inordinately stirred by the passions. She was all wise:

Her intellect was never exposed to either error or illusion, so that she was always correct in her judgments, and if she was not at any time enlightened about anything, then she suspended her judgment, avoiding all precipitation. Thus she is called Seat of Wisdom, Queen of Doctors, Virgin most Prudent, Mother of Good Counsel (from G-L's Christ the Saviour).

Incidentally, this is a good reminder for us to "suspend judgment" if we are not enlightened about something. I'd do well to observe that...

Sedes Sapientiae, ora pro nobis.

Mary as Mediatrix in Church Fathers (Saint Cyril)

Below is an except from a sermon by Saint Cyril of Alexandria at the Council of Ephesus (Third Ecumenical Council) in A.D. 431. This authenticity of the sermon was once contested by Protestant scholars, since it contains profound devotion to Mary and depictions of Marian mediation. However, Robert Caro has recently demonstrated that the sermon is undoubtedly authentic (R. Caro, La Homiletica, II, 269-283).

Here is the portion of the homily that is particularly interesting and it gives a sense of the Marian devotion that the Council Fathers held at the Council of Ephesus. From the homily of Saint Cyril:

"Hail Mary Theotokos{Mother of God}, venerable treasure of the whole world, light unextinguished, crown of virginity, scepter of orthodoxy, indestructible temple, which contains the uncontainable...it is through you that the Holy Trinity is glorified and adored, through you, the precious cross is venerated and adored throughout the whole world, through you that heaven is in gladness, that angels and archangels rejoice, that demons are put to flight, through you that the tempter, the devil is cast down from heaven, through you that the fallen creature is raised up to heaven, through you that all creation, once imprisoned in idolatry, has reached knowledge of the truth, that the faithful obtain baptism and the oil of joy, churches have been founded in the whole world, that peoples are led to conversion."

St Cyril of Alexandria, Hom. IV Ephesi in Nestorium, Patrologia Graeca 77, 992, BC; Acta Conciliorum Oecumenicorum

These words of Cyril summarize the doctrine that Mary is the Mediatrix of All Graces. Note how he states that "through you the Holy Trinity is glorified," and "through you the faithful obtain baptism."

Saint Cyril is wading deep into Marian hyper-dulia. And this the early years of A.D. 431.

A question for the Protestant readers: If you heard Saint Cyril, the great defender of Christ, preach this sermon, would you rejoice and say "Amen" or would you walk out?

The way you answer this question will reveal whether you conform to the early Church or not.

Comments problem on CTales

As you may have noticed, there's been a problem with comments on Canterbury Tales.

I'll try to get this fixed soon.

I apologize for the inconvenience.

ad Jesum per Mariam,
Taylor

Top 10 Manly Christmas Gifts for Your Dad, Husband, Grandfather, or Son...

Ladies, Christmas ties are lame. And we've gotten the generic polo or dress shirt for several years in a row. The problem is that we men don't often tell you what we want - either because we're too proud or we're just too busy to make a list.

So here's a guide for "manly Christmas presents." Seriously, you can't wrong with the following ten gifts. They're all winners. So here we go:

10) Old School Shaving Razor
If you want your man to feel like a total stud, get him this gift. It's old school shaving just like your grandfather used to do. Real Badger hair brush. Soap bowl. Cool stainless thing to hang your razor up to dry. I have one of these and I love it.

By the way, the badger hair brush will smell like a wet animal the first several times he uses it. It's okay, the smell goes away after a few uses. It's all part of the manly appeal. He feels cool, you get to pet his clean, smooth face. Everybody wins.

9) Pipe and Tobacco
Pipe smoking is sophisticated. Just ask Sherlock Holmes. Albert Einstein, Mark Twain, C.S. Lewis, Vincent Van Gogh, and Santa Claus also concur. Plus, everyone loves the wafting smoke of a little pipe tobacco on a cool winter day. The pipe model featured on the left can hold a filter, which will keep your man healthy if he so chooses.

I once made a rash vow to God not to smoke tobacco and I'm bound to it - so I can't smoke a pipe anymore. But I hope the best for all your men. Perhaps I will enjoy their second hand smoke.

8) Boots
Nothing says, "Heh, I'm an effeminate pansy," than all these metro-looking "trim" loafers that young men wear today. It gives all new meaning to "light in the loafers." I pity these young pups as they prance around in "outdoor slippers." They only things these shoes are good for is walking around the mall - which is yet another reason why I hate them.

Moreover, wearing tennis shoes and basketball shoes with your jeans isn't nearly as cool as wearing leather boots. Boots communicate strength and longevity. Everyone knows that women swoon for a man in boots, be they soldiers or cowboys. Just trust me on this. Brown boots and Levis - that's a winning combination.

I recommend cowboy boots that look like cowboy boots but have hard rubber souls (like the Justin's in the box to the right).

I wear some like these just about every day. If he insists on wearing laces, these boots are also pretty B.A. - also made by Red Wing.

7) Kindle from amazon.com
I love the Kindle and it's basic model is now only $79 bucks. The great thing is that you can get almost any classic book for free or $0.99. Any of the great English classics. You can also get the great spiritual classics. I got tons of St Alphonsus Liguori texts for free. Imitation of Christ? Free. Huckleberry Fin? Free. If he likes to read (and especially if he likes techy stuff), get the Kindle.

It's easy to use - even Grandpa can use it since you can make the text bigger and it will robotically read all your books through its built-in speakers.

And don't forget, both of my books are also available through Kindle.

6) A Nice Leatherbound Pocket Bible
About 30 years ago, people starting making lame paperback Bibles. If it's the inspired, inerrant Word of God, at least wrap it in real leather and gild the page edges...

Here is the Bible that you need to get him. It Douay Rheims (Catholic, yet old school language), but it's only Psalms and New Testament published by Baronius. It fits perfectly into the side pocket of a suit or blazer. I carry it every day in my sports coat, and holds up to use. It's absolutely beautiful and has a ribbon to mark your place.

Oh, and please buy him the black leather version. If you buy him a white Bible, you might as well throw in some ballet lessons.

Baronius also make an impressive real leather family Bible for only $38 bucks. For a leather-bound Bible, that's a deal. I've done a lot of research and this is the one that every Catholic home should have. Baronius makes wonderful Bibles. Stock up. Get the Baronius small coat pocket leather Bible (black, remember) and get the Baronius black leather family Bible.

5) A Nice Durable Rosary
Rosaries aren't merely for old ladies. Real men pray the Rosary because real men love the greatest women who ever lived: the Blessed, Glorious, and Immaculate Mother of God, Mary Most Holy. A man needs a real Rosary. Wood. Heavy. Unbreakable. I'm sorry to report that these are unavailable in stores. You have to make it for him with your own two hands. Get wood beads and tough paracord that won't break. Get a nice heavy crucifix and put it together. My daughters made me one like this for me. I could lift a child with it - it's that strong. Also, if you use real paracord, it won't ever knot or tangle.

4) A Gun
Every man should own at least one gun. A Colt 45 for a revolver. A semi-automatic handgun (I prefer any 1911 model for .45 ACP and Glock in .40 cal). A trusty deer rifle (I like 270 Wby and 30-06). A shot gun for ducks and doves (12 gauge side by side or pump-action). Owning a firearm is a rite of passage. Ever male needs a sidearm.

You'll eventually need a gun safe - especially if you have kids. If you just have handgun that you want keep away from children, I recommend the mini vault featured to the right.

3) Beer Homebrewing Kit
My wife got me a homebrew kit for Christmas four years ago. My life has never been the same since. I now make almost all the beer that we consume. I make Irish Stout, Pale Ales, IPAs, Oktoberfest, Porters, Amber Ales, Christmas Ale, etc.

My brother and I just finished an "Iron Mash" competition in public (like Iron Chef America) using surprise ingredients. It's great fun and very rewarding. For parties, I have kegs out, which contain my own beer. I real conversation starter. I have friends come over and we brew together. It's all about making alcoholic beverages...and it's legal.

2) Meat Smoker
Fire. Smoke. Meat. Cheese. Enough said.

I got into meat smoking in March of 2011. I'm smoking brisket, pulled pork, ribs, smoked chickens. Shoot, we even smoked a turkey. It's great fun and it tastes great. Best of all, when daddy smokes, mommy doesn't have to cook dinner. So it's fun for me and it gives mom a night off.

Smoking meats is one of those things that sounds complicated but it isn't that difficult. It just requires time and care. It's also a skill that can be passed down from father to son.

1) Pocket Knife (Four Types of Knives to Consider)
A man without pocket knife...woe is he. You can use a pocket knife to cut string, pull out splinters, slice apples on a picnic, etc. Growing up, my dad always carried a knife in his pocket. And if a thug jumps you, you've got something rather than nothing.

To help you out, I've classed pocket knives into four types, so you'll need to think about the man in your life, and then choose which knife would be best suited for him: Gentleman knife, Every Day Carry knife, Hunting knife, or Multi-Tool knife.

The Gentleman's Knife
I call it the "gentleman's knife." It's the very nice wooden or bone handled knife. Often it has the wavy Damascus blade. This is gift knife.

Maybe he carries it every day. Perhaps he only carries it when it for special occasions. Think of it like this, this isn't a knife that you wear in your jeans, you wear it in the pocket of your slacks or suit. It's the kind of knife that is passed from Grandfather to Father to Grandson. An artifact. I have one like this from my great-grandfather. A guy at a gun-show offered to buy it from me for something like $200. I told him to take a hike. I almost lost it at an airport metal detector, but that's another story...

Usually, a manly-man won't buy himself this knife (he buys useful knives for himself as tools - see knives below), but he loves to receive a fine knife like this as a gift.

It's the perfect Christmas gift and I really recommend this for your father or husband. Ladies, think of it as the closest thing to male jewelry. In the box to the left (above), I've featured a really nice Hen and Rooster with Burl wood handle and Damascus blade.

The Everyday Carry Knife
This is the knife that a man carries in his pocket every single day. With this knife he opens mail, cuts string, cuts tags off clothing, removes splinters, and all the other odd jobs suited for a knife.

My one criteria for this is that it have a pocket clip that keeps it from falling out of your trousers at the movies. The other important thing about an every day carry knife is that it be light. You don't want to carry a heavy lump in your pocket. The pocket clip also keeps the knife high in your pocket so it's comfortable whenever you sit down or drive. My every day carry is the Sog Trident - it is a bit big (3.5 inch blade), but I love it. It's light and has the pocket clip. If you want to go smaller, I recommend the Sog Flash (click here to see it).

The Hunting Knife
The hunting knife is 100% practical. I think that a good hunting knife needs strength, rubber grip (because animal blood and fat make a knife slippery), and a gut hook. There is no better knife than the Buck 278 Folding Alpha Hunter with rubber grips and a gut hook (used for skinning animals). I've done my research and this is the best basic hunting knife. It is made so well. I own it and it opens and closes so smoothly. It also comes with a carrying case for your belt. I've featured this knife in the box to the left.

The Multi-Tool or Swiss Army
If your man is a gadget guy then he's probably a fan of the multi-tool or Swiss Army. These are knives that also have many, many other tools attached: bottle opener, saw, tweezers, toothpick, pliers, etc. The Swiss Army knife is perfect for a boy's first knife (age seven). For a more mechanical guy, the Leatherman is the classic. I'll never forget the day when I saw my priest whip out a Leatherman from underneath his cassock in order to repair the confessional light indicator. Truly a manly priest. The Leatherman comes with a leather case the he can wear on his belt. I wore one of these during college.

So there you go. I hope these are helpful. If you have any other ideas, or if you think I'm a complete Neandrethal, leave a comment below.

I'll be on EWTN Radio this morning talking about Saint Paul

I'll be on the Son Rise Morning Show syndicated through EWTN Radio at 7:40am Central time talking about the new book: The Catholic Perspective on Paul.

I hope you'll tune in.

Godspeed,

Taylor

St Juan Diego's Words to Our Lady of Guadalupe

Saint Juan Diego, that recollected servant of Christ and Mary, spoke these words of humility to the Blessed Virgin:

"I am a nobody, I am a small rope, a tiny ladder, the tail end, a leaf."

Here we see why God chose Juan Diego to receive the vision and message of Guadalupe, as the Holy Spirit spoke through Saint Paul:

[27] But the foolish things of the world hath God chosen, that he may confound the wise; and the weak things of the world hath God chosen, that he may confound the strong. [28] And the base things of the world, and the things that are contemptible, hath God chosen, and things that are not, that he might bring to nought things that are: [29] That no flesh should glory in his sight. [30] But of him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and justice, and sanctification, and redemption:

[31] That, as it is written: He that glorieth, may glory in the Lord (1 Cor 1:27-31).

Happy Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe!

PS: Juan Diego, a layman baptized and catechized by Franciscans, who became celibate living in a hermitage and received the Holy Eucharist thrice a week, was very likely a Third Order Franciscan.

Salvation Army is Not Pro-Life, Don't Give Them Money!

You know how the Salvation Army "Santa" jingles his bell outside the mall and asks for alms of people of good will?

Well don't give him any money this year!

Human Life International gives us the full story on Salvation Army and abortion/life issues.

PS: Salvation Army is technically a religious denomination. So you wouldn't want to support them anyway...

Did Thomas Aquinas Deny the Immaculate Conception? (Garrigou-Lagrange)

We got fired up the other day in our discussion of Blessed John Duns Scotus and the Immaculate Conception.

It seems that I may have been to quick to speak by passing on the presumed truth that Thomas Aquinas denied the Immaculate Conception. Of course, Thomas Aquinas did so, but he may have changed his mind before death.

Here's what I've found...

I was reading Father Reginald Marie Garrigou-Lagrange and he suggests that Thomas Aquinas went through three stages of development with regard to the Immaculate Conception:

1. Early Stage (before 1254 - Commentary on Sentences): Thomas affirmed the Immaculate Conception of Mary
2. Middle Stage (1254-1272 - Summa theologiae): Thomas denied the Immaculate Conception of Mary 
3. Final Stage (after 1272): Thomas returned to his faith in the Immaculate Conception of Mary

Here are the texts that Garrigou-Lagrange gives to support his thesis:

1. In the first period, which was from 1253 to 1254, he affirmed the privilege, for he wrote: "Such was the purity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who was exempt from both original and actual sin." [Com. in I Sent, d. 44, q. 1, a. 3, ad 3]
2. In the second period, St. Thomas explicitely denies the Immaculate Conception: "The Blessed Virgin did indeed contract original sin." [Summa theologiae IIIa, q. 27, a. 2, ad 2]
3. In the third period, "For she [the Blessed Virgin] was most pure because she incurred the stain neither of original sin nor of mortal sin nor of venial sin."[Expositio super salutatione angelica]

Oh what a happy thought - that Thomas died with full faith in the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary!

ad Jesum per Mariam,
Taylor Marshall

PS: For more on Thomas' reaffirmation of the Immaculate Conception see Mandonnet [Bulletin thomiste, January to March, 1933, pp. 164-67] and Voste [Com. in Summam theol. S. Thomae. De mysteriis vitae Christi; 18f.].

Please Pray 3 Hail Mary's for this Anti-Catholic Man

HAIL MARY ALERT: Please pray three Hail Mary for this man's conversion to the Catholic faith - James White. If everyone who reads CTales prays three Hail Mary's for him, that will easily be over 10,000 Hail Mary's for his soul! Let's hope that our Immaculate Mother softens his heart and brings him into the Church.

Here's why I want you to pray...

Many Catholics are not fully aware of how much some Protestants hate Catholicism. James White is one of those Anti-Catholics and he has made a living out of "refuting" Catholicism.

Here's a recent example of an attack he has made against me. He calls me a "apostate, seeking to the best of his abilities, to encourage apostasy amongst others in Reformed churches and seminaries." He also accuses me of promoting "unbiblical, anti-biblical, exaggerated, mythological, a-historical Marian dogmas."

Here's a full quote from his blog Alpha and Omega Ministries:

I have only a few moments as I travel to comment on an article posted yesterday by Taylor Marshall, an apostate who is seeking, to the best of his abilities, to encourage apostasy amongst others in Reformed churches and seminaries. [Post-modernism infection alert: if identifying someone as an apostate immediately offends you, consider well whether you have become so conformed to the spirit of this age that a factual, documented assertion can be a source of offense to you. Marshall, like Robert Sungenis, graduated from Westminster Theological Seminary (MAR, Systematic Theology), so to one who continues to hold firmly to sola fide and sola scriptura, such a one has fallen from his profession, hence, committed an act of apostasy.] He has recently written a book, The Catholic Perspective on Paul (as if there is only one such perspective!), which has been sent free to a handful of seminarians across the country. He is one of the primary contributors to Called to Communion, a blog outpost of primarily former Reformed men who have defected to Romanism.

You can read the rest here...Obligated to Mythology: Modern Romanism's Continued Exaltation of Mary in the Face of Biblical Truth and Historical Reality by James White

...but don't forget to pray three Hail Mary's for his conversion. Even more, why don't we all leave a comment over at his site saying that we love him and that are praying for his conversion to the Catholic Faith. Storm the gates!

John Duns Scotus - Our Next Saint and Doctor of the Church!

Scotus turning away from Aquinas' Summa 
and toward the Immaculate (gasp!)

People may throw rotten tomatoes at me for this, but I'm going to say it any way: "Blessed John Duns Scotus should be declared a Saint and Doctor of the Church!" I'm a trained Thomist, so I don't say this lightly: Scotus is a genius when it comes to Christology and Mariology.

All the great defenders of Catholic dogmas are both saints and doctors of the Church:

• St Athanasius manfully defended the deity of Christ
• St Basil, St Gregory Nazianzus, St John Chrysostom, and St Hilary defended the dogma of the Holy Trinity
• St Basil, in particular, defended the deity of the Holy Spirit
• St Jerome manfully defended the perpetual virginity of our Lady
• St Cyril manfully defended Mary as "Mother of God"
• St Leo manfully defended the humanity of Christ and the hypostatic union of the two natures of Christ
• St John Damascene manfully defended the images of Christ, Mary, and the Saints

But where's the love for Scotus? John Duns Scotus manfully defended the doctrine of Mary's Immaculate Conception...but he is not honored as either a saint or a doctor...

The reason for this is that he causes theological embarrassment for some Catholics. In the theological scheme of things, Scotus contradicted St Anselm, St Bernard, St Thomas Aquinas, St Bonaventure - just to name a few - on the subject of Mary's salvation. Each of these holy and venerable doctors of the Catholic Church explicitly taught that Mary had original sin, but that God immediately made her immaculate after she was conceived. They agree that Mary never sinned and that she was rendered immaculate in the womb of her mother St Anne. However, they are dreadfully incorrect in positing original sin to Mary in the first moment of her conception. In other words, they generally teach that Mary was conceived in original sin, and then that a moment later she was made immaculate and free from original sin.

The difficulty centers on the Church's universal teaching that Mary was "saved" as she herself states in Luke 1:46-47:

"And Mary said: My soul doth magnify the Lord. And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour."

Previous theologians (e.g. Bernard, Thomas, Bonaventure) concluded that "salvation" required a "saving from a state of sin." Thus, brilliant minds like Bernard and Thomas Aquinas believed that Mary had original sin for just a moment so that she could be "saved" from it.

John Duns Scotus, inspired by the Holy Spirit and cognizant that Our Lady was being dishonored, taught that salvation could entail "preservation from sin." In other words, since humanity was collectively in original sin, God could intervene by saving Mary in a preservative way. God put out His hand and prevented inherited stain (more correctly, the lack of sanctifying grace) from extending to Mary.

Whereas most humans are born in the grime pit of sin, in the case of Mary, God reached out and prevented her from falling into this grime pit at the very moment of conception. He saved her by not allowing original sin to touch her. He created her fully righteous and full of grace. She was fully justified and sanctified at the first moment of conception.

For example, you can save a child from a car wreck in two ways: 1) Call 911 and have the medics to perform CPR and other measures to save the child's life OR 2) jump out into the street and push the child away from the oncoming car.

In both cases, the child is "saved." In the first way, the child is saved from wounds. In the second way, the child is saved from receiving wounds. If the "car wreck" is original sin, then we can see that Mary was saved in the second way. God prevented her from the harm of original sin.

In this way, Mary was "saved" and "without sin." Scotus solves the difficulty. He formulates what the Church of Rome has always taught and believed.

In fact, we might even say that Christ is Mary's Savior more than the rest of us, because He saved her so absolutely and perfectly. More grace went into saving her than anyone else because she is the Immaculate Conception.

So John Duns Scotus is absolutely brilliant. What Bernard, Thomas, and Bonaventure couldn't see, Scotus did see. This reveals that Scotus had an intimate love for Christ and that his soul was quiet enough to perceive the mysteries of God.

Tradition also states that Mary once appeared to Scotus on Christmas and allowed him to hold the Christ Child for a moment. This further confirms that Scotus was a great mystic and saint. Recall that Scotus was persecuted in his era even called a heretic. Yet he persevered in his conviction that Mary was without blot. He was also a great lover of poverty and the poor.

The feat of the Immaculate Conception is the great vindication of Scotus. Let us pray to him. Our Lady loves him so much. He stood up for her when other great saints could not.

Blessed John Duns Scotus, pray for us to she who is without stain.

ad Jesum per Mariam,
Taylor Marshall

PS: I like to think of Thomas Aquinas waiting for Scotus at the pearly gates. When Scotus enters, Thomas gives him the fraternal kiss of peace and says, "Thank you kind friar. You corrected my mistake. I have been praying from Heaven for someone to do so."
PPS: I'm now bracing myself for all my brother Thomists who will attempt to show that Scotus wasn't so special after all.

Who Crushes Satan's Head in Genesis 3:15? (Mary or Jesus?)

Genesis 3:15 is the called the Proto-Evangelium (or "First-Gospel"). In this passage, God promises to defeat Satan through the operation of "the woman" and "her seed." Tradition identifies the "the woman" as the Blessed Virgin Mary and "the seed" as our Lord Jesus Christ.

Historically, there has been a debate over how to translate this verse and render it from the Hebrew. The debate centers on whether God says "he" shall crush Satan's head or whether "she" shall crush Satan's head.

Now, it doesn't much matter since either reading is orthodox and true. Christ crushes the head of Satan absolutely, and Mary crushes the head of Satan by virtue of her role as the Mother of God and New Eve.

For Catholics, the "she" reading is the traditional reading of the Latin Vulgate and it is important because it highlights the importance of "the woman" (i.e. Mary) in human salvation. In other words, the "she shall crush" reading supports the Catholic argument that Mary's role as Mother of God makes her Mediatrix and her role as New Eve makes her Coredemptrix.

The obvious solution to this problem is simply to look at the original Hebrew. But that is where the problem begins. The medieval Hebrew Masoretic manuscripts read "he shall crush." (However, there are two Hebrew manuscripts that read "she shall crush.") However, there is good reason to doubt the majority Hebrew reading of "he shall crush."

Our three best Jewish witnesses to Gen 3:15 interpret the passage as "she shall crush." These are Philo Judaeus, Josephus the roman historian, and Moses Maimonides, the great medieval Jewish philosopher. Philo argues that the Hebrew parallel poetry of Gen 3:15 demands the reading of "she shall crush." Josephus, also writing in Greek, describes the passage for us as reading "she shall crush." Then last of all, Maimonides also states that Gen 3:15 teaches that the woman shall crush the head of the serpent.

So then, these three great Jewish scholars testify to the traditional Catholic reading of the Latin Vulgate. Why are the Hebrew manuscripts that we have today different from these ancient Jewish witnesses. The answer is that the Masoretic manuscript tradition has been corrupted - something claimed by the both the Eastern and Western Fathers throughout the centuries.

Even though I have previously used "he shall crush" in my first book and on this blog, I'm going to revert to the traditional reading of Gen 3:15 from herein out: "she shall crush your head."

"I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel" (Gen 3:15).

O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.

Is Mary the Spouse of the Holy Spirit? (St Maximilian Kolbe)

Saint Maximilian Kolbe has a very helpful perspective on Mary in relation to her title "Spouse of the Holy Spirit." These two persons, one uncreated (Holy Spirit), one created (Mary), conceive the Christ in human history at Nazareth, and they are perfectly united in purpose.

Recall how the heretic Nestorius wrongly believed that in Christ there was a divine eternal person and a human created person united in common cause. Nestorius incorrectly set forth "two persons" or "two Christs."

The Catholic Church condemned Nestorius' doctrine, since Christ is one Person with two natures. He is fully divine and fully man without confusion or mingling.

Now Saint Maximilian shows us that what Nestorius got wrong about Christ, may in fact be close to correct when we consider the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Holy Spirit. They are two persons (one created, one uncreated), united in purpose.

Kolbe cites the usage of St Francis: Mary is "Spouse of the Holy Spirit" in order to describe their intimate union. Moreover, the Holy Spirit is "uncreated Advocate" and Mary is "created Advocate." Advocacy for the Church is their common cause. Since Mary is full of grace and full of the Holy Spirit, her will, prayers, and advocacy mirror that of the Holy Spirit. E.g. "the Spirit and the Bride say..."

Kolbe uses the phrase "quasi-incarnation of the Holy Spirit" for Mary. I feel just a little uncomfortable with that description, but I see what he is saying.

If we see Mary as a created manifestation of the Holy Spirit, then the link between Pentecost and the Assumption (as in the Rosary) becomes even stronger. This description of Mary as Spouse of the Holy Spirit may be helpful in how present Mary to Protestants who do not understand our devotion to her. It's not that Mary is a divine person of the Holy Trinity. Rather, Mary is created manifestation of the Third Person of the Holy Trinity.

ad Jesum per Mariam,
Taylor

PS: I seek to follow Saint Maximilian Kolbe with regard to Blessed Mary and the Holy Spirit. If I have overstated anything or not followed the mind of the Church, I humbly repent and ask that it be disregarded. Filius Ecclesiae et Mariae sum.

Catholic Bookstores! Promo offer on my books

Do you own or work at a Catholic bookstore in the United States or in Canada?


If your store would like to stock my new book The Catholic Perspective on Paul or The Crucified Rabbi and receive a marked down discount for Catholic bookstores...I'll arrange for you to get a free book.

Please send an email to bookorders@saintjohnpress.com, and mention that you read about this at the Canterbury Tales blog.

ad Jesum per Mariam,
Taylor

Saint Nicholas Punches Heretics in the Face!!!

The iconography above depicts St Nicholas
punching the heretic Arius at the Council of Nicea

When President Teddy Roosevelt was a college student, he taught a Sunday School class for elementary school children. During this time, Roosevelt awarded a dollar to a boy in his Sunday School class for beating the snot out of a bully who tormented little girls. "You did exactly right," said Roosevelt with pride. However, the congregation disagreed. They immediately dismissed Roosevelt for teaching the "un-Christian" principle of laying the smack down on those who have it coming to them.

Well, if tradition is true, that little boy was also richly rewarded by Jolly Old Saint Nicholas since the good Saint Nick allegedly "h-slapped" ("heretic slapped") the heresiarch Arius. You see, Arius wrongly taught that Christ was not fully divine but rather a mere creature. Arius taught that Christ had been created by God the Father.

During the First Ecumenical Council of Nicea (AD 325), Arius was called upon to defend his position on the inferiority of Christ. Saint Nicholas just couldn't listen to all of Arius' nonsense and so he stood up and laid in to Arius with his fist.

The Emperor Constantine and the bishops present at the Council were alarmed by Nicholas' act of violence against Arius. They immediately stripped Nicholas of his office as a bishop by confiscating the two items that marked out a man as a Christian bishop: Nicholas' personal copy of the Gospels and his pallium (the vestment worn by all bishops in the East).

Now if that were the end of the story, we probably wouldn't know about Saint Nicholas, and our children wouldn't be asking him for presents. However, after Nicholas was deposed, the Lord Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary visited Nicholas who was being held in a prison cell for his fist-fight with the heretic.

Our Lord Jesus Christ asked Saint Nicholas, "Why are you here?" Nicholas responded, "Because I love you, my Lord and my God."

Christ then presented Nicholas with his copy of the Gospels. Next, the Blessed Virgin vested Nicholas with his episcopal pallium, thus restoring him to his rank as a bishop.

Traditional icons of Saint Nicholas depict this miracle as in the image below:

Notice Christ (left) holding out the book of the Gospels,
and Mary (right) holding out the episcopal pallium,
Nicholas (center) holding the Gospels and wearing the pallium

When the Emperor Constantine heard of this miracle, he immediately ordered that Nicholas be reinstated as a bishop in good standing for the Council of Nicea. Today we recite the Nicene Creed every Sunday so we know how the controversy played out. The bishops at Nicea sided with Saint Nicholas and Saint Athanasius and they condemned Arius as a heretic. To this very day, we still recite in the Creed that Christ is "God from God, Light from Light, True God from True God, begotten not made, one in being with the Father."

I leave you with one last painting of the legendary event:

Nicholas is on the left holding up his fist, Arius is on the ground with his hands up. The guy on the throne is Constantine.

Saint Nicholas, pray for us.