Stational Church: Friday in the Second Week of Lent

Today's Stational Church is the Church of St. Vitalis. For information on this devotion, see the Stational Churches of Lent Homepage. I will post on each Stational Church for Lent. Information is from the Canon Regulars of St. John Cantius:

Mother Church points today to the "Great Friday" on which our High Priest and Redeemer obtained for us eternal redemption. She takes us today to the church of St. Vitalis—father of the holy martyrs, Gervase and Protase. For his loyalty to Christ, St. Vitalis was first buried up to the waist in an old cistern and then stoned to death.

Here at the altar of this martyr — his name means "full of life" — Holy Mother Church directs our attention to the life-giving death of the Savior. In four weeks we will celebrate the life-begetting Passion of Christ. Pointing to this great mystery, the Church prays that we continue to prepare for it; that the holy fast may chasten us and make our hearts pure, so that when the vintage time of the Paschal solemnity arrives, the divine householder may not be obliged to say: "I looked that my vineyard should bring forth grapes, and it has brought forth thorns."

May St. Vitalis, who drank so abundantly of the sacred winepress of the Lord's Passions, accompany us today to the Eucharistic Banquet in which this most Holy Passion is rendered present and the fruits thereof applied to our souls. Here all of us will become "Vitales"—living members of Christ—the Fountain of all life and holiness. 

Let us pray: Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that cleansed by this holy fast, we may be brought by Thee with pure hearts to the holy season, which is to come. Through Christ, Our Lord. Amen.

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Tridentine Mass in Saint Louis, Missouri

Several weeks ago, I posted that the Institute of Christ the King, Sovereign Priest will offer Solemn High Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis on March 7, 2007. I am happy to report that Rome of the West has pictures posted of the Mass!

View the photos.

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Sister Sara Butler Now Against Womens' Ordination

This is an excerpt from The Journal News. Above all, Catholics cannot believe that women should be ordained because it is not possible (Ordinatio Sacerdotalis).

Polls generally show that 50 percent to 60 percent of Roman Catholics in the United States believe that women should be eligible for the priesthood.

Sister Sara Butler understands this impulse - because she once felt the same way. In 1978, she headed a task force of the Catholic Theological Society of America that came out in support of female priests.

But as she continued her work as an increasingly prominent theologian, her thinking began to change. Now, in a new book - "The Catholic Priesthood and Women: A Guide to the Teaching of the Church" - she attempts to explain the underpinnings of the all-male priesthood to doubters and skeptics who think the way she used to.

"The tradition is traced to the will of Christ, not to decisions made by the church," Butler said last night at St. Joseph's Seminary, where she has taught for four years.

The church's teachings must be better explained, she said, because many Catholics see the all-male priesthood as a symbol of patriarchal power and sexism, and many more who stay silent are probably befuddled.

"Their confidence in the church's teaching authority has been badly eroded," she said.

Several hundred priests, nuns, seminarians and lay visitors greeted Butler with sustained applause, a measure of their respect for her and their approval of the church's position.

Critics of the all-male priesthood were in short supply.

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Vocation Retreat: Brothers of Saint John

Situtated in Princeville, Illinois, the Brothers of Saint John are opening their doors to young men interested in experiencing the monastery from March 30 - April 1, 2007. Visit their website and click on "Events" to see the option to download the flyer about this Vocation Retreat.

Here is what I received in email:

The Brothers would like to open our doors to young men who are interested in having a weekend experience in a monastery. We will welcome them to join our rhythm of prayer, fraternal charity, silence and study (search for truth)... The weekend monastic experience begins with vespers at 5:30 pm Friday the 30th of March and concludes on Sunday, April 1st. Space in the cloister is limited. If you are interested you may call Br. John Luke at (309) 385-1193 ext 216. Come and see!

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Updates on Me and My Vocation

I wanted to post an update on my vocation and information on some things that I have done lately.

Last Monday night I attended another discernment meeting for the priesthood sponsored by my diocese. With Eucharistic Adoration, Dinner, Vespers, and a spiritual talk, it was enjoyable. I am still certain that I want and am being called to serve as a priest, and I enjoy attending the meetings each month. At the end of this month I will complete another important step to becoming an official seminarian - the final step. Hopefully I can be an official seminarian for my diocese in April. All prayers are very much appreciated!

In addition, I have proudly completed one of my 2007 Catholic Resolutions by purchasing a 1962 Catholic Missal. I have been searching for one for months, and I recently found one available through the Internet for only $35. I was very excited when I received it on my doorstep today. I must say - it is a wonderful missal. For information on this missal, check out Our Lady of the Rosary Library. Now I hope to find a parish sometime in the future and attend my first Tridentine Mass!

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Video: Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist

Please take note how traditional the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist (in Ann Arbor, MI) are. It seems that the only convents experiencing growth are traditional ones that wear the traditional habits. I especially was amazed at the beautiful high altar visible in the last parts of the film.

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Stational Church: Thursday in the Second Week of Lent

Santa Maria in Tratevere, Rome Italy (c) A Catholic Life Blog 2016

Today's Stational Church is the Church of St. Mary in Trastevere. For information on this devotion, see the Stational Churches of Lent Homepage. I will post on each Stational Church for Lent. Information is from the Canon Regulars of St. John Cantius:

In the heart of Transtiber, in a beautiful Romanesque square stands the church of St. Mary. On the spot of this church, shortly before the birth of Christ, oil gushed out of the ground. Mary carried Christ "the Anointed One" (reference to the oil) in her arms.

The Mother of God is today's stational leader to Christ, the Light of the world. We fly to your patronage, Holy Mother of God. Do present our humble prayers to Him, whom you did bring forth, the King that rules heaven and earth. Help us, good Mother, that He may keep us away from the broad road, which leads to darkness and perdition and take us on the narrow but sure way to eternal light and life.

It is Thursday, four weeks from the great Eucharistic Thursday. May today's Eucharistic action give us light to see the right way and strength to follow it. And Christ is the "Way," and Mary, our leader to this "Way"—Per Mariam ad Jesum!

Let us pray: Grant us, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the help of Thy grace, that being duly intent on fasts and prayers, we may be delivered from enemies of soul and body. Through Christ, Our Lord. Amen.

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Stational Church: Wednesday in the Second Week of Lent

Today's Stational Church is the Church of St. Cecilia in Trastevere. For information on this devotion, see the Stational Churches of Lent Homepage. I will post on each Stational Church for Lent. Information is from the Canon Regulars of St. John Cantius:

In the heart of Transtiber Rome, entered by way of a Baroque gateway portal and a cheerful courtyard, towers the splendid church of St. Cecilia, in which is buried St. Cecilia, the virgin-martyr. In the fifth century, this church was one of the most celebrated churches in Rome.

On Ash Wednesday, the church was St. Sabina, the martyr-matron. On Wednesday of the first week of Lent, we visited St. Mary Major. On this third Wednesday, it is again a woman—the virgin-martyr and "glory of the early Church," St. Cecilia, who leads us to "the Son of Man, who came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many."

One reason why Christians often are lacking in joy and holy enthusiasm is their lack of purity. We know how the flesh lusts against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. The two cannot live in the same house. One of the two must go. St. Cecilia knew no compromise. Her baptismal garment was never stained by impurity.

Let us pray: O God, the restorer and lover of innocence, turn towards Thee the hearts of Thy servants; that being inflamed with the fervor of Thy Spirit, they may be found both steadfast in faith and fruitful in good works. Through Christ, Our Lord. Amen.

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The Passion of the Whole Christ

~by St. Augustine

Lord, I have cried to you, hear me. This is a prayer we can all say. This is not my prayer, but that of the whole Christ. Rather, it is said in the name of his body. When Christ was on earth he prayed in his human nature, and prayed to the Father in the name of his body, and when he prayed drops of blood flowed from his whole body. So it is written in the Gospel: Jesus prayed with earnest prayer, and sweated blood. What is this blood streaming from his whole body but the martyrdom of the whole Church?

Lord, I have cried to you, hear me; listen to the sound of my prayer, when I call upon you. Did you imagine that crying was over when you said: I have cried to you? You have cried out, but do not as yet feel free from care. If anguish is at an end, crying is at an end; but if the Church, the body of Christ, must suffer anguish until the end of time, it must not say only: I have cried to you, hear me; it must also say: Listen to the sound of my prayer, when I call upon you. Let my prayer rise like incense in your sight; let the raising of my hands be an evening sacrifice.

This is generally understood of Christ, the head, as every Christian acknowledges. When day was fading into evening, the Lord laid down his life on the cross, to take it up again; he did not lose his life against his will. Here, too, we are symbolised. What part of him hung on the cross if not the part he had received from us? How could God the Father ever cast off and abandon his only Son, who is indeed one God with him? Yet Christ, nailing our weakness to the cross (where, as the Apostle says: Our old nature was nailed to the cross with him), cried out with the very voice of humanity: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

The evening sacrifice is then the passion of the Lord, the cross of the Lord, the oblation of the victim that brings salvation, the holocaust acceptable to God. In his resurrection he made this evening sacrifice a morning sacrifice. Prayer offered in holiness from a faithful heart rises like incense from a holy altar. Nothing is more fragrant than the fragrance of the Lord. May all who believe share in this fragrance.

Therefore, our old nature in the words of the Apostle, was nailed to the cross with him, in order, as he says, to destroy our sinful body, so that we may be slaves to sin no longer.

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Changes in Bishops: Provost & Farrell

Today Pope Benedict XVI formally appointed Monsignor Glen Provost to be the third bishop of the Diocese Lake Charles, Louisiana. Since June 2005, the Diocese of Lake Charles has been without a bishop when Bishop Edward K. Braxton became bishop of Belleville, Illinois. Provost has lead Our Lady of Fatima parish in Lafayette since 1998. Photos of Provost are available at the source for this story. (Source)

In addition, Pope Benedict XVI has accepted the resignation of Bishop Charles Grahmann of the Diocese of Dallas. In July, he offered his resignation upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75. Pope Benedict XVI has named Bishop Kevin Farrell to succeed Grahmann as Bishop of Dallas. Bishop Farrell has served as auxiliary bishop in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. since 2002. (Source)

I am not familiar with either of these bishops. If you are from either of these dioceses, I especially welcome your opinions and comments.

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