Veiling of Images in Churches during Passiontide

As stated by the National Secretariat for the Liturgy of the Portuguese Episcopal Conference:

In the Roman Missal of St. Pius V, after the Mass on Saturday preceding the Sunday of the Passion was the heading: "Before the Vespers, cover up their crosses and images which are in the church. The crosses remain covered until the end of the worship of the Cross on Good Friday, and Images to the Hymn of the Angels (Glory to God in Heaven) on Holy Saturday. " See that it was the custom on the last two weeks of Lent, through which it wished to focus the attention of the faithful in the mystery of Christ's Passion. All that could cut into it, as were the images of Saints, was covered.

Dom Gueranger writes in "The Liturgical Year":

The presentiment of that awful hour [of the approach of our Lord's Passion] leads the afflicted mother to veil the image of her Jesus: the cross is hidden from the eyes of the faithful. The statues of the saints, too, are covered; for it is but just that, if the glory of the Master be eclipsed, the servant should not appear. The interpreters of the liturgy tell us that this ceremony of veiling the crucifix during Passiontide, expresses the humiliation to which our Saviour subjected Himself, of hiding Himself when the Jews threatened to stone Him, as is related in the Gospel of Passion Sunday. The Church begins this solemn rite with the Vespers of the Saturday before Passion Sunday. Thus it is that, in those years when the feast of our Lady’s Annunciation falls in Passion-week, the statue of Mary, the Mother of God, remains veiled, even on that very day when the Archangel greets her as being full of grace, and blessed among women.

Such a practice is highly encouraged even in modern Catholic Churches.  Traditionalist Catholics and Anglo-Catholics still observe the ancient practice of Passiontide. In fact, even religious icons, artwork, statues, and paintings in a person's own home are covered.

Quoting from "The Catholic Source Book":

Traditionally, the Fifth Sunday of Lent, one week before Palm Sunday, was called Passion Sunday or Judica Sunday after the first word of the Introit: "Judge me, O Lord..." (see Psalm 43). The veiling referred to the closing words of the Sunday's Gospel, "They picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple" (John 8:59). The Lenten veil expressed the sorrow of the Church at this time.

There is also a particular unique exception that might apply some years when Passiontide falls during March, the month of St. Joseph. By way of exception, the Sacred Congregation of Rites decreed on May 14, 1879, that the images and statues of Saint Joseph may remain UNCOVERED when any part of Passiontide falls in the month of March, which is, of course, dedicated to his honor - even on Good Friday - but ONLY IF the said image(s) STAND OUTSIDE THE SANCTUARY (e.g., the nave). 

CatechismClass.com offers an integrative catechism lesson for this Sunday for only a few dollars. It is available here.

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Bishop Guimarães to Host June 17-19 "Summorum Pontificum" Study

Some great news from the blog Dominus Vobiscum which I translate below. Please pray for His Excellency Bishop Guimarães (pictured above) for his courage!

Finally good news for all who love the Sacred Liturgy! The Honorable and Most Reverend Lord Bishop of Olinda, Dom Fernando Guimarães, in a gesture of great courage, will be holding a meeting in his diocese, between 17 and 19 June, for the priests to study the Motu Proprio "Summorum Pontificum" . The most interesting is scheduled to celebrate Mass prayed in the extraordinary rite, by the diocesan bishop, in place of the meeting, the St. Joseph Seminary The next day, Sun Rifan, the Apostolic Administration of St. John Vianney celebrates pontifical the Cathedral, with the assistance of Don Fernando Guimarães (pity that the modernists demolished the beautiful altar of the Cathedral of Olinda, where often celebrated martyr bishop Dom Expedito Lopes).

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Homily For Passion Sunday by Bishop Antoine Godeau

A Homily of the Bishop of Vence, Antoine Godeau (1605-1672) on Passion Sunday.

Which of you shall convince Me of sin? (John 8)

At that time Jesus said to the multitudes of the Jews: Which of you shall convince Me of sin? If I say the truth to you, why do you not believe me? He that is of God, heareth the words of God. Therefore you hear them not because you are not of God. The Jews therefore answered, and said to Him: Do not we say well, that Thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil? Jesus answered: I have not a devil: but I honor My Father, and you have dishonored Me. But I seek not My own glory: there is One that seeketh and judgeth. Amen, amen, I say to you: If any man keep My word, he shall not see death for ever. The Jews therefore said: Now we know that Thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets: and Thou sayest: if any man keep My word, he shall not taste death for ever. Art Thou greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the Prophets are dead. Whom dost Thou make Thyself? Jesus answered: If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing: it is My Father that glorifieth Me, of Whom you say that He is your God, and you have not known Him: but I know Him: and if I shall say that I know Him not, I shall be like to you, a liar. But I do know Him, and do keep His word. Abraham your father rejoiced that he might see My day: he saw it and was glad. The Jews therefore said to Him: Thou are not yet fifty years old: and hast Thou seen Abraham? Jesus said to them: Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham was made, I am. They took up stones therefore to cast at Him: but Jesus hid Himself, and went out of the temple.

Thus are the words of today's Holy Gospel

Not a single person on the Earth can be found who can not be accused of sin. Jesus is the only one who is without sin, and who for several reasons is not capable of sin. First because of His supernatural union, in which His humanity was united with the deity in the person of the Word. He was the son of God, and therefore the Holy One of God, as even the devil named Him in the first chapter of Mark. I know that thou art the Holy One of God. Second because of the beatific vision of God, which His soul enjoyed from the first moment of His conception: for it is impossible to enjoy God, to see Him from face to face, and thereafter sin. Saint Augustine asserts that the first freedom was granted man, so that he may sin, the second freedom will consist thereof, that man can sin no more. Third because of the fullness of the actual grace that was in him. We, says John in the first chapter, saw Him full of grace and truth. Fourth, as the Head of the Church, He must be incapable of sin. Jesus Christ was the head of His mystical body, namely the Church, thus was He also provided with all graces necessary worthily to fulfill this office: since, as head, He must sanctify His Church, so could He not be subject to the least sin. So also are we instructed by the apostle in the seventh chapter to the Hebrews. For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners. The life of our Savior on Earth was irreproachable, that he could not be accused of a single rash word or dubious deed. Boldly, He can say: Which of you shall convince Me of sin? But we, my brothers, we do not wish to wait until we are charged with sin and given over to judgment; let us in advance accuse ourselves of our sins before God and man. If this our confession is without guile, then are we assured by Saint John, that we have an advocate before God, namely Our Lord Jesus Christ, who can plead before God for the forgiveness of our sins and for the cleansing therefrom. Nothing can be more useful to us, than this consideration and this insight; we deceive ourselves, and generally rely too much on our imagined virtue, our supposedly good qualities, and never think of the uncountable sins with which we are stained, we are not even willing to examine ourselves when they are brought to our attention: we fly instead into a fury, as if we had been slandered. And how is it possible, my brothers, that you regard yourselves as anything other than great sinners? Examine your life, which is nothing more than a chain of sins and vices. Observe how men live in this city: one finds nothing other than blasphemers, fornicators, extortioners, slanderers, freethinkers, drunkards, and godless men. (Ps. 54:12)

 Dead Christ Mourned by the Angels, Boston Museum

And nevertheless for some time already, the preachers in their pulpits have cried: stop sinning, do penance, the day of the Lord is near. This day will be a dreadful day, where the good works, and thus all the more the sinful works, will be most carefully examined and judged. But what is that? The preachers are wasting their time and their words? They are telling the truth, but you do not believe them. Or is it perhaps not true that you are sinners? That God hates vice? That will not leave it unpunished? That through sin you separate yourselves from God, who is the highest good? That you bring down eternal death onto yourselves? is perhaps this sort of talk a fable or a hoax? a bunch of hot air or empty threats meant to scare you? Are these perhaps unimportant or irrelevant truths? or do they concern only a minimal advantage or a insignificant punishment? What? This is about the loss of God, the loss of Heaven, the loss of your souls; it is about deserving Hell, deserving eternal fire, while your only desire is to enjoy yourselves. If you should hear news from India, you believe it, regardless of its improbability. And why do you not believe me? If you hear gossip from the palaces of royalty, you accept it without question: and you hear these things from men, men who can deceive, and who even intentionally abuse your gullibility. And Jesus Christ, who is the eternal truth, and his servants, who preach the Gospel in His name, you refuse to believe. If only these things had not already so long been presented to you, if only you had not been sufficiently instructed. John, in chapter 15: If I had not come, and spoken to them, they would not have sin. But these things have been presented to you, you have been warned, judged, punished; no effort has been spared in your instruction, and still you refuse to believe. You have opened your ears but closed your hearts; With greatest justice you will be damned. I will accuse you before the judgement seat of God, that my hands are innocent of your blood, that I neglected no opportunity to instruct you, or to teach you what was necessary for your salvation. I myself will demand vengeance for your neglect and disobediance of the commandments of God.

Do you then know my brothers, why you do not listen to the Word of God? Because you are not children of God. Children listen to the voice of their father, and in the same way nature has established a link between the voice of the father and the ear of the son. God is not your father, therefore you do not hear his voice; the devil is your father, and he is the one you follow by your hatred, by your envy, by your lust for revenge, by your unchaste lives; and therefore you obey him the instant he calls: but with respect to the voice of the Lord, you are stubbornly deaf, because you are not of God. Could you possibly encounter a greater misfortune than this, that you are not children of God? You call yourselves by His Name, He adopted you as children in baptism; but you have lost this glorious characteristic through sin, and you have nothing left but the name, the reputation, and still a bit of the appearance of piety, in all of which, however, Christianity does not consist. You may not pride yourself, therefore, in your going to church, hearing holy Mass, receiving the sacraments; instead ask your heart, consider whether it obeys God's Word, which obligates us to deny ourselves. (Mt. 16:24). Observe whether you aren't full of self love. God's Word commands you to mortify your members to the Colossians in the third chapter. How do you mortify yourselves? tame your fleshly desires? God's Word obligates you to strive for eternal life: do you ever think about that? It requires you to love your neighbor as yourself. Do you love him truly, and with your whole heart? Each one of you examine yourselves, whether you have taken to heart the voice of God, and then you will know whether you are of God, are the words of one Saint Gregory. But it is not enough to listen to this voice for a few days, and afterwords to close your heart. You must listen continuously, since this voice speaks the truth for all eternity. One may not listen only occasionally, as that would be just the same as not listening at all. Furthermore, continues the previously named father of the Church, to listen, and yet refuse to practice what is commanded, is just the same as not listening.

But what should I say about those who mock the preachers who are declaring the truth to them; who falsely accuse them of imperfections that they do not possess, or blow out of proportion those they actually do possess? They follow the example of the Jews, who said that Jesus was possessed by the devil. You yourselves have the devil on your tongues and in your hearts: through him your hearts have been hardened, that you cannot hear the Word of God. He entices you to such defamatory words. The preacher brings you God's Word: he is a Samaritan, I would say, the true shepherd of your soul. Though he wants to protect them against the attacks of the devil, wants to raise their defenses against the assaults of the devil, yet in defiance of his care and support, you deliver your heart and soul to the dominion of the devil.

Therefore my brothers, grant your ear to the one who speaks through my mouth, and know, that he who listens to Him will never die. If any man keep my word, he shall not taste death for ever. However one must not merely hear, but also live by His words, and digest them. Then at the beginning it seems to us that God's word is bitter, unplesant, and very hard to follow. You you hear it said: Render not evil for evil, but good; Bless them that curse you, and pray for them that persecute you, and it seems impossible to you: yet when you understand this with the light of faith, when you practice it, then you find it to be pleasant, sweet, and easy. You will then be astonished by the your original perception and you will curse the error in which you had been immersed, and afterwards you will find only allure where you previously expected only bitterness and difficulty. From that time you will lead a true life, and not a half-dead life as you now do. A true life consists not of seeing, hearing, moving, eating, and drinking, or in any other animalistic activities. No, it consists of love and service of God, longing for Heaven, and doing good works: and those who lead such a life, shall not taste death, and shall not taste its bitterness, for them shall death be sweet. They shall have a happy and holy death, which is the passage to that eternal happiness and eternal life, which God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost desires to give. Amen.

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100 Traditionalist Anglican Parishes to Convert to Catholicism

They have voted to take up the offer made by Pope Benedict XVI in November that permits vicars and their entire congregations to defect to Rome while keeping many of their Anglican traditions, including married priests.

By issuing the apostolic constitution Anglicanorum coetibus (on groups of Anglicans) the Pope was accused of attempting to poach Anglicans unhappy about decisions taken in their Church to ordain women and sexually-active homosexuals as priests and bishops.

But the Vatican insisted that the move to create self-governing "personal ordinariates", which resemble dioceses in structure, came as a result of requests from at least 30 disaffected Anglican bishops around the world for "corporate reunion" with the Catholic Church.

The Anglican Church in America (ACA) will now enter the Catholic Church as a block, bringing in thousands of converts along with their own bishops, buildings and even a cathedral.

They will worship according to Anglican rubrics, and use the Book of Common Prayer, but they will be in communion with the Pope, recognising him as their leader.

Continue Reading from The Telegraph

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France: Warning Call from the Society of St. Pius X’s District Superior

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Fr. Régis de Cacqueray, Superior of the Society of St. Pius X’s district of France, published an letter entitled: “The Bishops: Guardians of the Faith or Proselytes Protecting Other Cults?”

Fr. de Cacqueray reflects on the role of the bishop, guardian of the flock and preacher of the faith, “successor of the Apostles and martyrs”. Doubtless there have always been good and bad bishops, “there have been heroic bishops and there have been weak bishops. There have been Hilaries of Poitier and Bossuets. There have been Cauchons and Talleyrands. But never before has a nation, formerly so Christian, seen such a confusion touching so closely the Faith. Today, our bishops stand by silent while Christ is attacked. They keep the churches closed to us. And at the very same time they open mosques. They concelebrate with Protestant pastors. They grant diplomas to imams and invite rabbis to preach in their cathedrals. In a word, they comfort souls in their remoteness from Christ and from the Church He founded.”

Continue Reading...

Image: In this photo from October 2009 in which His Excellency Bishop Tissier de Mallerais offered a Pontifical High Mass in the Basilica of St. Pius X at Lourdes in front of 10,000 priests, religious, and faithful, the Superior of France is visible.  Exiting the Sacristy, Bishop Tissier de Mallerais passes before several members of the Italian episcopate. He is preceded by Father Regis de Cacqueray, assistant priest, and Father Jacques Laguérie, deacon.

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Retirement of "The People's Altar"

Good news to report from St. Mary's Catholic Church in Salen, South Dakota, whose glorious altar is pictured above. According the "The Salem Sanctuary":

After over two years of catechesis and gradual implementation, our parish now celebrates the Liturgy of the Eucharist ad orientem - in solidarity with the liturgical reforms promoted by our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI. The 1970’s ”People’s Altar” (made from parts of the original Communion Rail) is in safe storage, and a much smaller altar for Masses “versus populum” has been made (to accommodate elderly priests who cannot make the three steps to the altar, etc.).

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Pope Benedict XVI to Beatify John Henry Cardinal Newman in September 2010

It's official! In an extraordinary move, Pope Benedict XVI himself will beatify John Henry Cardinal Newman this September in England.

This puts Newman one step away from sainthood!

This is immensely important for anyone who is concerned about the state of the culture and the Catholic Church in America. Cardinal Newman would be the perfect saint for our time.

He can be a powerful patron for the renewal of Catholic identity in Catholic education . . . the embrace of authentic Catholic theology . . . and the exciting reunification with Anglican Christians.

In prayer, God allows us to cooperate with His plans for the Church and the world. For this reason it is so important that you join our Prayer Campaign for Newman's Canonization!

Source: Cardinal Newman Society

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Institute of Christ the King: Video of 2007 Ordinations

Priestly Ordinations For Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest By His Grace, Archbishop Raymond L. Burke Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis June 15 2007.

I am pleased to report that the Institute of Christ the King finally put together a short video of their ordinations at Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest from 2007 and posted them to YouTube.

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First Sunday in Lent: Toronto

Editor Note: The original photo is no longer available.
Originally uploaded by SSPX-Toronto. Several photographs from the First Sunday in Lent (2010) are available now from the SSPX chapel in Toronto. Check out these images.

INTROIT
Psalm 90: 15, 16

He shall cry to me, and I will hear him: I will deliver him, and I will glorify him: I will fill him with length of days. -- (Ps. 90. 1). He that dwelleth in the aid of the Most High: shall abide under the protection of the God of Heaven. V.: Glory to the Father . . . -- He shall cry to me . . .

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Storkie Express

I just wanted to take a minute and point out the advertisement in the sidebar for Storkie Express, which is especially relevant at this time of year.  As the Solemnity of Easter draws closer, we draw closer to First Communions and the celebrations of the Sacrament of Baptism.

Please consider Storkie Express for both Baptism and Communion invitations.  I have found their products to be truly special - a perfect invitation for a once-in-a lifetime occassion.

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