Happy Feast of St. Josaphat

“Let us all rejoice in the Lord, celebrating a festival day in honor of the blessed Martyr, Josaphat: at whose martyrdom the angels rejoice, and give praise to the Son of God. “  ( Introit for the Feast)

Readings on the Life of St. Josaphat 

Josaphat Kuncewitz was born of noble Catholic parents at Vladimir in Volhynia.  Once as a child, as he listed to his mother tell the story of the Passion, a dart came forth from the side of Christ on the crucifix and wounded the boy in the heart.  Set on fire with love of God, he devoted himself to prayer and works of charity with such zeal that he became the admiration and the model for youths far older than he.  When Josaphat was twenty years old he was professed among the cloistered followers of the monastic rule of Saint Basil.  Almost at once he made remarkable progress in evangelical perfection.  He went barefoot, even in the severe winters of that country.  He never ate meat, and drank wine only when obliged to do so under obedience.  He disciplined his body by wearing rough hair-shirts until the day of his death.  He kept unspotted the flower of chastity which in his youth he had dedicated to the Virgin Mother of God.  He became so celebrated for virtue and learning that despite his youth he was made superior of the monastery at Byten, and the Archimandrite of Vilnius.  Finally much against his will, but to the very great joy of the Catholic people, he was made Archbishop of Polotsk.

In the years following the promotion to this dignity, Josaphat did not relax in any way his austere mode of living.  Nothing was so close to his heart as service to God and the salvation of the flock entrusted to his care.  He was a vigorous champion of Catholic unity and truth.  He laboured to the utmost of his ability to win back schismatics and heretics to unity with the See of blessed Peter.  Both by preaching and writing he defended the Supreme Pontiff and the doctrine of the Pope’s plenitude of power.  He directed these works, full of piety and learning against most shameful calumnies and the errors of wicked men.  Josaphat vindicated episcopal rights and restored ecclesiastical propterty seized by laymen.  He won back an incredible number of heretics to the bosom of holy Mother Church.  How successfully he laboured to re-establish communion between the Greek and Latin Churches is told in Papal commendations.  He gladly spent the revenues set aside for his maintenance to rebuild God’s house, to erect convents for consecrated virgins, and to carry on other charitable works.  So generous was Josaphat towards the poor that in one instance when he did not have money enough to supply the needs of a certain widow, he pawned his omophorion, that is, his episcopal pallium.

The great progress made by the Catholic faith so stirred up the anger of certain of its wicked enemies that they conspired to murder this athlete of Christ.  In a sermon he foretold to his people what was about to happen.  As he was setting out for Vitebsk on a pastoral visit, these enemies broke into the episcopal palace, attacking and wounding every one they found.  Undaunted, this most kindly man hurried out to the assassins of his own free will and addressed them mildly.  My little children, he said, why do ye strike my servants?  If ye have any complaint against me, I am here.  Thereupon they rushed at him, overwhelmed him with blows and pierced him through with spears.  Finally they slew him a stroke of a great axe and threw his body into the river.  This happened on November 12th, 1632, when he was forty-three years old.  Later his body, surrounded by a marvellous light, was raised from the deepest part of the river.  The blood of this Martyr benefited first of all those murderers of their spiritual father.  Sentenced to die for their crime, almost all abjured their schism and repented of their crime.  Because this wonderful high priest became famous after his death for many miracles, the Supreme Pontiff, Urban VIII, honoured him with the title Blessed.  On the 29th of June, 1867, during the solemn observance of the centenaries of the Princes of the Apostles, in the presence of the college of cardinals, of about five hundred others, patriarchs, metropolitans, and bishops of every rite from all parts of the world, assembled in the Vatican basilica, with all solemn ceremonies, Pius IX canonized the first eastern Christian to uphold the unity of the Church.  The Supreme Pontiff, Leo XIII, extended his Mass and Office to the universal Church.  (Taken from: http://www.breviary.net)

Prayer: Stir up within Thy Church, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the Spirit with which blessed Josaphat, Thy Martyr and Bishop, was filled, when he laid down his life for his sheep: so that, through his intercession, we too may be moved and strengthened by the same Spirit, and may not shrink from giving our lives for our brethren.

All Souls Photo Post II: 6 PM Low Masses

Biretta and Cappello

Fr. Mark's Cappello Romano, a hat used by clerics for non-liturgical purposes.

A bunch of standard birettas and a four-winged biretta which is used by Fr. Louis Madey. Clerics who are professors are permitted to use the four-winged biretta.

All Souls Day Photo Post I: Mass Preparation

Recent News on the Holy Father and the Anglicans

Our Lady of Walsingham Photo by: Thorvaldsson (Wikipedia)

All of us by now have perhaps at least heard about what the Holy Father recently did with regard to the Anglican Church. If you are not familiar with the whole news story you can look at the following article here: http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0904673.htm

Please continue to pray for our Holy Father who continues to work for the unity of the Church so that “there may be but one flock and one Shepherd”.

Prayer for England

O Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, and our own most gentle Queen and Mother, look down in mercy upon England, thy Dowry, and upon us all who greatly hope and trust in thee. Through thee it was that Jesus our Savior and our Hope was given unto the world; and He has given thee to us that we might hope still more. Plead for us thy children, whom thou didst receive and accept at the foot of the Cross, O sorrowful Mother. Intercede for our separated English brethren, that they may be united with us in the One True Fold. Pray for us all, dear Mother, that by faith fruitful in good works we may all deserve to see and praise God together with Thee in our heavenly home. Amen.

Hail Mary…

Feast of Christ the King

In the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, the Feast of Christ the King is celebrated on the last Sunday of October.

“It is not necessary, Venerable Brethren, that We should explain to you at any length why We have decreed that this feast of the Kingship of Christ should be observed in addition to those other feasts in which his kingly dignity is already signified and celebrated. It will suffice to remark that although in all the feasts of our Lord the material object of worship is Christ, nevertheless their formal object is something quite distinct from his royal title and dignity.” (Pope Pius XI in encyclical Quas Primas)

PRAYER TO CHRIST THE KING

O Christ Jesus, I acknowledge Thee as King of the universe. All that has been created has been made for Thee. Exercise over me all Thy rights. I renew my baptismal promises, Renouncing Satan and all his work and pomps. I promise to live a good Christian life And to do all in my power to procure The triumph of the rights of God and Thy Church. Divine Heart of Jesus, I offer Thee my poor actions In order to obtain that all hearts May acknowledge Thy Sacred Royalty, And that thus the reign of Thy peace May be established throughout the universe. Amen.

ACT OF CONSECRATION OF THE HUMAN RACE TO THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS

Most sweet Jesus, Redeemer of the human race, look down upon us humbly prostrate before Thine altar. We are Thine, and Thine we wish to be; but, to be more surely united with Thee, behold each one of us freely consecrates himself today to Thy most Sacred Heart. Many indeed have never known Thee; many too, despising Thy precepts, have rejected Thee. Have mercy on them all, most merciful Jesus, and draw them to Thy sacred Heart. Be Thou King, O Lord, not only of the faithful who have never forsaken Thee, but also of the prodigal children who have abandoned Thee; grant that they may quickly return to Thy Father’s house lest they die of wretchedness and hunger. Be Thou King of those who are deceived by erroneous opinions, or whom discord keeps aloof, and call them back to the harbor of truth and unity of faith, so that there may be but one flock and one Shepherd. Grant, O Lord, to Thy Church assurance of freedom and immunity from harm; give peace and order to all nations, and make the earth resound from pole to pole with one cry: “Praise be to the divine Heart that wrought our salvation; to it be glory and honor for ever.” Amen.

Article on the Call to Holiness Conference 2009

This post is devoted to the Call to Holiness Conference, which was held earlier this month at the National Shrine of the Little Flower.

 

It should be noted that  Gregorian chant was used at the 4:30 PM Parish Mass. English chants for the entrance, offertory and communion antiphons. Latin chants (Mass IX) for the Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus and Agnus Dei. Credo III was also sung.

The following is a report on the conference taken from the Tridentine Community News column.

Call To Holiness Conference Report (10/18/2009)

The Call To Holiness conference held last Saturday, October 10 at the National Shrine of the Little Flower in Royal Oak turned out somewhat different than expected. Several of the speakers gave significant emphasis to the appeal of the Extraordinary Form of Holy Mass. This focus was not evident in the marketing materials used to promote the conference.

Dr. Michael Foley delivered a thought-provoking opening talk entitled “How the Mass Shaped the Western World.” After pointing out that many aspects of modern society were inspired by the Mass (e.g.: The layout of a courtroom resembles that of a church. Once someone has “passed the bar” [Communion Rail analogy] and may practice law, he is permitted to enter the front “sanctuary” of the courtroom, where only “ordained” attorneys may go.). Dr. Foley further proposed that it was the Extraordinary

Form’s structure that caused the Mass to have such influence, and questioned whether the Ordinary Form would have been compelling enough to affect society so pervasively.

 Fr. Eduard Perrone presented PowerPoint slides comparing the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms of the Mass side by side (just as this column did in January, 2008). He pointed out the value of veiling the sacred (just as this column did in February, 2006) via the Communion Rail, chalice veils, and the like. Various “hmmms” and “aaahs” of realization were heard from some of those present who may not have pondered these matters before.

 Bishop Athanasius Schneider, a member of the same Canons Regular of the Holy Cross to which our own Fr. Wolfgang Seitz belongs, spoke about the importance of realizing what, and Who, the Holy Eucharist is. Following the theme of his recently published book, “Dóminus Est – It is the Lord!: Reflections of a Bishop of Central Asia on Holy Communion”, he logically developed that argument that if we believe that the Eucharist is the Real Presence of our Lord, then we should not be so casual in permitting the Eucharist to be handled by laypeople or received in the hand, which can lead to all sorts of desecrations, both inadvertent and intentional.

Priest blogger extraordinaire Fr. John Zuhlsdorf of What Does the Prayer Really Say (www.wdtprs.com) spoke about the necessity and benefits of reverent worship in today’s society.

Sacred Heart Seminary Director of Music Dr. Ronald Prowse led a time-constrained seminar on Gregorian Chant. He provided an introduction to reading chant notation, and showed how English propers can be set to chant tones. A schola comprised of seminarians was present to sing the 4:30 PM Mass.

The corridor leading up to the Shrine church was filled with vendors offering a variety of religious materials for sale, as was the school gymnasium across the street where lunch was served. Call To Holiness has always featured orthodox speakers, however this was the first time that the Traditional Latin Mass was a primary theme. It would not be unreasonable to speculate that at least half of the people in attendance are not presently regular Tridentine Mass attendees. However, most were likely conservative Catholics, and among them surely were some who simply had never had the Traditional Mass explained to them.

The morning and afternoon Masses at Shrine were of the typical suburban parish variety. These were parish Masses and not conference Masses per se, so this was understandable, yet it also brought home the fact that we have a long way to go to re-educate most Catholics about proper structure and form in the liturgy.

The rise of EWTN and Catholic radio; a spate of new, orthodox Catholic publications and web sites; and the Internet’s role in spreading news quickly has made people aware of the appeal of traditional worship. Yet liturgy by-the-books is a topic that is virtually never brought up at most Catholic parishes. Likewise, the metro Detroit and Windsor Catholic media seems so heavily focused on pro-life and Marian topics that the sacred liturgy is rarely addressed. This is not to disparage those topics, as they are vital indeed, but to discuss them to the virtual exclusion of the liturgy results in Catholics’ general unawareness of a significant part of their faith. Indeed, how can one even credibly argue against the Latin Mass if one is unfamiliar with it?

Nevertheless, this Call To Holiness conference demonstrated yet further proof that the pendulum is swinging back towards recovering our liturgical heritage. Who could have ever imagined in the late 1990s, or even five years ago, that Call To Holiness would focus on the Tridentine Mass?

Windsor Solemn High Mass photos on the New Liturgical Movement.

Visit the following link to see some photos from the Windsor Tridentine Mass.

http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2009/10/in-utroque-usu-deeper-understanding-of.html

Some updates…

We apologize for not having updated this blog during the past few weeks.  We know some major events have come to pass which, unfortunately we were unable to cover.

Anyway, please note the following.

1. The International  Pilgrim Virgin statue of Our Lady of Fatima visited our cluster from October 7-October 9. Unfortunately, we were unable to cover these events. If any of you have taken photos during those days, please e-mail copies to cdin54@yahoo.com. In the meantime, we plan to post a few photos from last year’s visit of the Pilgrim Virgin. These photos cover the Mass and Procession at Sweetest Heart of Mary from last year.

2. Tridentine Confirmations will take place in November. We post the following post from the Tridentine Community News from 9/13/2009.

Extraordinary Form Confirmations Scheduled

Fr. Mark Borkowski is pleased to announce that His Excellency Archbishop Allen Vigneron has agreed to celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation according to the Extraordinary Form on Sunday, November 29 at St. Josaphat Church, following the 9:30 AM Tridentine Mass. The archbishop has requested that the preceding Mass be celebrated by another priest.

All families and individuals requesting Confirmation must contact Fr. Borkowski at (313) 831-6659 or frmarkb@aol.com as soon as possible, even if you have already spoken with him about your interest. Adults and children are both invited. A definitive list of candidates needs to be assembled. Fr. Borkowski will also have to assess the preparedness of each candidate, as Confirmation is bestowed upon those who demonstrate a certain level of understanding of the Holy Catholic Faith.

A note to our readers at Assumption-Windsor: Such an opportunity to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation according to the traditional form may not come again soon. We do not know if it will ever be an option in the Diocese of London. Therefore, if there is any possibility that a family member or friend may want to
receive this Sacrament, we suggest that you contact Fr. Borkowski and explain that you are from Assumption.

This will be the first time that an Archbishop of Detroit will be visiting St. Josaphat’s Tridentine Mass Community. It is imperative that we demonstrate the maximum possible support to Archbishop Vigneron. If you do not attend St. Josaphat Church every week, we ask that you make a special effort to attend on that Sunday.

St Albertus Photos