Feast of Candlemas

Double of the II Class (1954 Calendar): February 2

II Class (1962 Calendar): February 2

Today is the Feast of the Purification of our Lady, also known as Candlemas for the traditional blessing and distribution of candles on that day.  It is customary to bring candles from home to be blessed -- at least 51% beeswax candles that one uses for devotional purposes (candles for the family altar, Advent candles, etc.), so they can be lit after dusk on All Saints' Day (1 November), for use during the Sacrament of Unction, and for use during storms and times of trouble.

Today is 40 days after Christmas and the official end of the Christmas Season.  Dom Prosper Guéranger, O.S.B., wrote in 1871 that "We apply the name of Christmas to the forty days which begin with the Nativity of our Lord, December 25, and end with the Purification of the Blessed Virgin, February 2. It is a period which forms a distinct portion of the Liturgical Year..."

This Feast's Procession is one of the most vivid and beautiful expressions in all of the Roman Rite.  For the Blessing of the Candles, please see here.

Worthy of mention on this day is the venerable liturgist Dom Gueranger's words of wisdom:

The Forty Days of Mary’s Purification are now completed, and she must go up to the Temple, there to offer to God her Child Jesus. Before following the Son and His Mother in this Their mysterious journey, let us spend our last few moments at Bethlehem, in lovingly pondering over the mysteries at which we are going to assist.

The Law commanded that a woman who had given birth to a son should not approach the Tabernacle for the term of forty days; after which time she was to offer a sacrifice for her purification. She was to offer up a lamb as a holocaust, and a turtle or dove as a sin-offering. But if she was poor, and could not provide a lamb, she was to offer in its stead a second turtle or dove.

By another ordinance, every first-born son was to be considered as belonging to God, and was to be redeemed by five sicles, each sicle weighing, according to the standard of the Temple, twenty obols (Lev. xiii; Num. iii: 47 - The Obol was about three halfpence of English money). Mary was a Daughter of Israel - she had given birth to Jesus - He was her First-born Son. Could such a Mother and such a Son be included in the laws we have just quoted? Was it becoming that Mary should observe them?

If she considered the spirit of these legal enactments, and why God required the ceremony of Purification, it was evident that she was not bound to them. She was the chaste Spouse of the Holy Ghost, a Virgin in conceiving and a Virgin in giving birth to her Son; her purity had ever been spotless as that of the Angels; but it received an incalculable increase by her carrying the God of all sanctity in her womb, and bringing Him into this world. Moreover, when she reflected upon her Child being the Creator and Sovereign Lord of all things—how could she suppose that He was to be submitted to the humiliation of being ransomed as a slave, whose life and person are not his own? 

And yet the Holy Ghost revealed to Mary that she must comply with both these laws. She, the holy Mother of God, must go to the Temple like other Hebrew mothers, as though she had lost something which needed restoring by a legal sacrifice. He that is the Son of God and Son of Man must be treated in all things as though He were a servant, and be ransomed in common with the poorest Jewish boy. Mary adores the will of God, and embraces it with her whole heart.

The Son of God was only to be made known to the world by gradual revelations. For 30 years He led a hidden life in the insignificant village of Nazareth; and during all that time men took Him to be the Son of Joseph (St. Luke iii: 23). The earth possessed its God and its Savior, and men, with a few exceptions, knew it not. The Shepherds of Bethlehem knew it; but they were not told, as were afterwards the Fishermen of Genesareth, to go and preach the Word to the furthermost parts of the world. The Magi, too, knew it; they came to Jerusalem and spoke of it, and the City was in a commotion; but all was soon forgotten, and the Three Kings went back quietly to the East. These two events, which would, at a future day, be celebrated by the Church as events of most important interest to mankind, were lost upon the world, and the only ones that appreciated them were a few true Israelites, who had been living in expectation of a Messias Who was to be poor and humble, and was to save the world.

The same Divine plan which had required that Mary should be espoused to St. Joseph, in order that Her fruitful Virginity might not seem strange in the eyes of the people, now obliged her to come, like other Israelite mothers, to offer the sacrifice of Purification for the birth of the Son, Whom she had conceived by the operation of the Holy Ghost, but Who was to be presented in the Temple as the Son of Mary, the Spouse of Joseph. Thus it is that Infinite Wisdom delights in showing that His thoughts are not our thoughts, and in disconcerting our notions; He claims the submissiveness of our confidence, until the time that He has fixed for withdrawing the veil, and showing Himself to our astonished view.

The Divine Will was dear to Mary in this as in every circumstance of her life. The Holy Virgin knew that by seeking this external rite of Purification, she was in no wise risking the honor of her Child, or failing in the respect due to her own Virginity. She was in the Temple of Jerusalem what she was in the house of Nazareth, when she received the Archangel's visit; she was the Handmaid of the Lord. She obeyed the Law because she seemed to come under the Law. Her God and her Son submitted to the ransom as humbly as the poorest Hebrew would have to do; He had already obeyed the edict of the emperor Augustus in the general census; He was to be obedient even unto death, even to the death of the Cross. The Mother and the Child both humbled Themselves in the Purification, and man’s pride received, on that day, one of the greatest lessons ever given it.

What a journey was this of Mary and Joseph, from Bethlehem to Jerusalem! The Divine Babe is in His Mother’s arms; she had Him on her heart the whole way. Heaven and earth are and all nature are sanctified by the gracious presence of their merciful Creator. Men look at this Mother as she passes along the road with her sweet Jesus; some are struck with her appearance, others pass her by as not worth a look; but of the whole crowd, there was not one that knew he had been so close to the God Who had come to save him.

St. Joseph is carrying the humble offering, which the Mother is to give to the Priest. They are too poor to buy a lamb; besides, their Jesus is the Lamb of God, Who taketh away the sins of the world...

At length the Holy Family enters Jerusalem. The name of this holy City signifies Vision of Peace; and Jesus comes to bring her Peace. Let us consider the names of the three places in which our Redeemer began, continued and ended His life on earth. He is conceived in Nazareth, which signifies a Flower; and Jesus is as He tells us in Canticle ii: 1, the Flower of the field and the Lily of the valley, by Whose fragrance we are refreshed. He is born at Bethlehem, the House of Bread; for He is the nourishment of souls. He dies on the Cross in Jerusalem, and, by His Blood, He restores peace between Heaven and earth, peace between men, peace within our own souls; and, on this day of His Mother's Purification, we shall find Him giving us the pledge of this peace.

Whilst Mary, the Living Ark of the Covenant, is ascending the steps which lead up to the Temple, carrying Jesus in Her arms, let us be attentive to the mystery; one of the most celebrated of the prophecies is about to be accomplished in this Infant. We have already seen the other predictions fulfilled: of His being conceived of a Virgin, and born in Bethlehem; today He shows us a further title to our adoration — He enters the Temple.

This edifice is not the magnificent Temple of Solomon, which was destroyed by fire during the Jewish captivity. It is the second Temple, which was built after the return from Babylon, and is not comparable to the first in beauty. Before the century is out, it also is to be destroyed; and Our Savior will soon tell the Jews that not a stone shall remain upon a stone that shall not be thrown down (Luke 21: 6). Now the Prophet Aggeus, in order to console the Jews, who had returned from exile and were grieving that they were unable to raise a House to the Lord equal to that built by Solomon, addressed these words to them, which mark the time of the coming of the Messias: Take courage… for thus saith the Lord of Hosts: Yet one little while, and I will move the heaven, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land. And I will move all nations; and the Desired of all nations shall come; and I will fill this House with glory. Great shall be the glory of this House, more than the first; and in this place I will give Peace, saith the Lord of Hosts (Agg. ii: 4, 7, 8, 10).

The hour is come for the fulfillment of this prophecy. The Emmanuel has left Bethlehem; He has come among the people; He is about to take possession of His Temple, and the mere fact of His entering it will at once give it a glory, which is far above that of its predecessor. He will often visit it during His mortal life; but His coming to it today, carried as He is in Mary's arms, is enough for the accomplishment of the promise, and all the shadows and figures of this Temple at once pale before the rays of the Sun of Truth and Justice. The blood of oxen and goats will, for a few years more, flow on its altar; but the Infant, Who holds in His veins the Blood that is to redeem the world, is at this moment standing near that very altar. Amidst the Priests who are there, and amidst the crowd of Israelites, who are moving to and fro in the sacred building, there are a few faithful ones, who are in expectation of the Deliverer, and they know that the time of His manifestation is at hand; but there is not one among them who knows that at this very moment the Messias has entered the House of God.

But this great event could not be accomplished without a prodigy being wrought by the Eternal God as a welcome to His Son. The Shepherds had been summoned by the Angel, and the Magi had been called by the Star, when Jesus was born in Bethlehem; this time it is the Holy Ghost Himself Who sends a witness to the Infant, now in the great Temple.

There was then living in Jerusalem an old man whose life was well-nigh spent. He was a man of desires (Dan. x: 11), and his name was Simeon; his heart had longed unceasingly for the Messias, and at last his hope was recompensed. The Holy Ghost revealed to him that he should not see death without first seeing the rising of the Divine Light. As Mary and Joseph were ascending the steps of the Temple, Simeon felt within himself the strong impulse of the Spirit of God: he leaves his house and walks towards the Temple; the ardor of his desire makes him forget the feebleness of his age. He reaches the porch, and there, amidst the many mothers who had come to present their children, his inspired gaze recognizes the Virgin of whom he had so often read in Isaias, and he presses through the crowd to the Child She is holding in Her arms.

Mary, guided by the same Divine Spirit, welcomes the saintly old man, and puts into his trembling arms the dear object of Her love, the Salvation of the world. Happy Simeon! figure of the ancient world, grown old in its expectation, and near its end. No sooner has he received the sweet Fruit of Life, than his youth is renewed as that of the eagle, and in his person is wrought the transformation which was to be granted to the whole human race. He cannot keep silence; he must sing a Canticle; he must do as the Shepherds and the Magi had done, he must give testimony: Now, O Lord, Thou dost dismiss Thy servant in Peace, because my eyes have seen Thy Salvation, which Thou hast prepared—a Light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel (St. Luke ii: 29 and following verses)

Immediately there comes, attracted to the spot by the same Holy Ghost, the holy Anna, Phanuel’s daughter, noted for her piety and venerated by the people. Simeon and Anna, the representatives of the Old Testament, unite their voices, and celebrate the happy coming of the Child Who is to renew the face of the earth; they give praise to the mercy of God, Who in this place, in this second Temple, gives Peace to the world, as the Prophet Aggeus had foretold...

...Simeon gives back to Mary the Child she is going to offer to the Lord. The two doves are presented to the Priest, who sacrifices them on the Altar; the price for the ransom is paid; the whole law is satisfied; and after having paid homage to Her Creator in this sacred place, where She spent Her early years, Mary, with Jesus pressed to Her bosom, and Her faithful Joseph by Her side, leaves the Temple. Such is the mystery of this fortieth day, which closes, by this admirable Feast of the Purification, the holy Season of Christmas. Several learned writers...are of the opinion that this Solemnity was instituted by the Apostles themselves. This much is certain, that it was a long-established Feast even in the 5th century.

Collect:

Almighty and ever living God, we humbly beseech thy Majesty, that as Thy only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple in substance of our flesh, so Thou wouldst cause us too with purified hearts to be presented unto Thee. Through the same our Lord.

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February's First Friday Devotion

Today is the First Friday of February. Because today is the first Friday of the Month, many Catholic parishes will have special Masses today for the First Friday Devotion.

Beginning on December 27, 1673, through 1675, Our Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque asking her to receive Him in Holy Communion on the first Friday of every month and to meditate on His passion from 11:00 PM to 12:00 midnight each Thursday. He also revealed to her twelve promises for all who are devoted to His Sacred Heart; he asked for a Feast of the Sacred Heart to be instituted in the liturgical calendar of the Church. Our Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque with twelve promises for those devoted to His Most Sacred Heart.

Promises for those devoted to the Sacred Heart:

1. "I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life."
2. "I will establish peace in their homes."
3. "I will comfort them in their afflictions."
4. "I will be their secure refuge during life, and above all in death."
5. "I will bestow a large blessing upon all their undertakings."
6. "Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy."
7. "Tepid souls shall grow fervent."
8. "Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection."
9. "I will bless every place where a picture of My Heart shall be set up and honored."
10. "I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts."
11. "Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be blotted out."
12. "I promise thee in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to all those who communicate on the First Friday in nine consecutive months, the grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving the Sacraments; My Divine heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment."

Prayer of Reparation:


O Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore thee profoundly. I offer thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifferences by which He is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of thee the conversion of poor sinners. Amen.

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Blessing of Candles for Candlemas (February 2)

The Feast of Candlemas, exactly 40 days after Christmas, commemorates Mary's obedience to the Mosaic law by submitting herself to the Temple for the ritual purification, as commanded in Leviticus.

The Feast of the Purification is called Candlemas for the traditional blessing and distribution of candles on that day.  It is customary to bring candles from home to be blessed -- at least 51% beeswax candles that one uses for devotional purposes (candles for the family altar, Advent candles, etc.) -- so they can be lit after dusk on All Saints' Day (1 November), during the Sacrament of Unction, and during storms and times of trouble.  Nowadays, though, for those few parishes continuing this ancient observance, the parish will provide the candles.

Dom Gueranger writes, "After Terce, follows the Blessing of the Candles, which is one of the three principal Blessings observed by the Church during the year; the other two are those of the Ashes and of the Palms. The signification of this ceremony bears so essential a connection with the mystery of our Lady’s Purification, that if Septuagesima, Sexagesima, or Quinquagesima Sunday fall on the 2nd of February, the Feast is deferred to tomorrow; but the Blessing of the Candles, and the Procession which follows it, always take place on this precise day."

Image Source: AllSaints.net

The principal Mass on Candlemas is typically preceded by a procession with the lighted candles and the singing of anthems. The lighted candles are held during the reading of the Gospel and from the beginning of the Canon of the Mass to Communion.

THE BLESSING OF THE CANDLES AND THE PROCESSION 

1. the blessing 

The Priest, vested in a violet cope, blesses the candles, which are placed near the altar

V. Dominus Vobiscum. R. Et cum spiritu tuo.

V. The Lord be with you. R. And with thy Spirit.

First Prayer

Oremus. -- Domine sancte, Pater omnipotens, aeterne Deus, qui omnia ex nihilo creasti, ut jussu tuo per opera apum, hunc liquorem ad perfectionem cereri venire fecisti: et qui hodierna die petitionem justi Simeonis implesti: te humiliter deprecamur; ut has candelas as usushominum, et sanitatem coporum et animarum, sive, in acquis, per invocationem tui sanctisimi nominis, et per intercessionem beatae Mariae semper Virgnis, cujus hodie festa devote celebrantur, et per preces omnium Sanctorum tuorum, bene†dicere, et sanci†ficare digneris: et hujus plebis tuae, quae illas honorifice in manibus desiderat portare, teque cantando laudare, exaudias voces de coelo sancto tuo, et de sede majestatis tuae: et propitius sis omnibus clamantibus ad te, quos redemisti pretioso sanguine Filii tui: Qui tecum vivit et regnat.

Let us Pray -- O holy Lord, Father almighty, everlasting God, who hast created all things out of nothing, and by Thy command hast caused this liquid to become perfect wax by the labor of bees: and who, on this day didst fulfill the petition of the righteous man Simeon: we humbly entreat Thee, that by the invocation of Thy most holy Name and through the intercession of Blessed Mary ever Virgin whose feast is today devoutly observed, and by the prayers of all Thy Saints, Thou wouldst vouchsafe to bless † and sanctify † these candles for the service of men and for the health of their bodies and souls, whether on land or on sea: and that Thou wouldst hear from Thy holy heaven, and from the throne of Thy Majesty the voices of this Thy people, who desire to carry them in their hands with honor, and to praise Thee with hymns; and wouldst be propitious to all that call upon Thee, Whom Thou hast redeemed with the precious Blood of Thy Son.

Second prayer 

Oremus. -- Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, qui hodierna die Unigenitum tuum ulnis sancti Simeonis in templo sancto tuo suscipiendum praesentasti: tuam supplices deprecamur clementiam; ut has candelas, quas nos famuli tui, in tui nominis magnificentiam sucipientes, gestare cupimus luce accensas, bene†dicere et sancti†ficare, atque lumine supernae benedictionis accendere digneris: quatenus eas tibi Domino Deo nostro offerendo digni, et sancto igne dulcissimae caritatis tuae succensi, in templo sancto gloriae tuae repraesentari mereamur Per eumdem Dominum nostrum.

O almighty and everlasting God, who on this day didst present Thine only-begotten Son in Thy holy temple to be received in the arms of holy Simeon: we humbly entreat Thy clemency, that Thou wouldst vouchsafe to bless † and sanctify † and to kindle with the light of Thy heavenly benediction these candles, which we, Thy servants, desire to receive and to bear lighted in the honor of Thy Name: that, by offering them to Thee our Lord God, being worthily inflamed with the holy fire of Thy most sweet charity, we may deserve to be presented in the holy temple of Thy glory. Through the same our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

Third prayer

Oremus. -- Domine Jesu Christe, lux vera, quae illuminas omnem hominem venientem in hunc mundum: effunde bene†dictionem tuam super hos cereos, et sancti†fica eos lumine gratiae tuae, et concede propitiusl ut, sicut haec luminaria igne visibili accensa nocturnas depellunt tenebras; ita corda nostra invisibili igne, id est Sancti Spiritus splendore illustrata, omnium vitorum caecitate careant: ut, purgato mentis oculo, ea cernere possimus quae tibi sunt placita, et nostrae saluti utilia; quatenus post hujus saeculi caliginosa discrimina, ad lucem indeficientem pervenire mereamur. Per te, Christe Jesu Salvator mundi, qui in Trinitate perfecta vivis et regnas Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum.

O Lord Jesus Christ, the true Light who enlightenest every man that cometh into this world: pour forth Thy blessing † upon these candles, and sanctify † them with the light of Thy grace, and mercifully grant, that as these lights enkindled with visible fire dispel the darkness of night, so our hearts illumined by invisible fire, that is, by the splendor of the Holy Spirit, may be free from the blindness of all vice, that the eye of our mind being cleansed, we may be able to discern what is pleasing to Thee and profitable to our salvation; so that after the perilous darkness of this life we may deserve to attain to neverfailing light: through Thee, O Christ Jesus, Savior of the world, who in the perfect Trinity, livest and reignest, God, world without end.

Fourth prayer

Oremus. -- Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, qui per Moysen famulum tuum purissimum oleo liquorem ad luminaria ante conspectum tuum jugiter concinnanda praeparari jussisti bene†dictionis tuae gratiam super hos cereos benignus infunde; quatenus sic administrent lumen exterius, ut te donante, lumen Spiritus tui nostris non desit mentibus interius. Per Dominum...in unitate ejusdem Spiritus Sancti.

O almighty and everlasting God, who by Thy servant Moses didst command the purest oil to be prepared for lamps to burn continuously before Thee: vouchsafe to pour forth the grace of Thy blessing † upon these candles: that they may so afford us light outwardly that by Thy gift, the gift of Thy Spirit may never be wanting inwardly to our minds. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the same Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

Fifth prayer

Oremus. -- Domine Jesu Christe, qui hodierna die in nostrae carnis substantia inter homines apparents, a parentibus in templo es praesentatus: quem Simeon venerabilis senex, lumine Spirtus tui irradiatus, agnovit, suscepit, et benedixit: praesta propitius; ut ejusdem Spiritus Sancti gratia illiminati, atque edocti, te veraciter agnoscamus et fideliter diligamus: Qui cum Deo Patre in unitate ejusdem Spiritus Sancti vivis et regnas Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum.

O Lord Jesus Christ, who appearing on this day among men in the substance of our flesh, wast presented by Thy parents in the temple: whom the venerable and aged Simeon, illuminated by the light of Thy Spirit, recognized, received into his arms, and blessed: mercifully grant that, enlightened and taught by the grace of the same Holy Ghost, we may truly acknowledge Thee and faithfully love Thee; Who with God the Father in the unity of the same Holy Ghost livest and reignest, God, world without end.

Image Source: AllSaints.net

 
The Priest sprinkles the candles three times with holy water, saying the Antiphon Asperges me, and also incenses them thrice. 

Source: 1962 Missal

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Ordination of Fr. Bertrand Lundi

Some photos of the recent ordination of Fr. Bertrand Lundi.  Fr. Lundi's ordination given by Bishop Bernard Fellay was held at the Parisian church of St. Nicholas du Chardonnet in his home country of France on January 27th.  Images are via La Porte Latine.

 

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Requiem for His Royal Highness, King Louis XVI

A few years ago I posted a video with scenes from the Requiem Mass at St.Eugene-St.Cecile (Paris, France) on the occasion of the anniversary of the death of the former King. This year again on January 21st, the anniversary of the death of His Royal Highness, a Solemn Requiem Mass was said at Saint-Eugene-Sainte-Cecile (Paris IX).

 This year the choir sang the Requiem written by Cherubini in memory of Louis XVI which was commissioned by Louis XVIII in 1816. Also worthy of mention, the black set of vestments were offered to the parish by princes of Bourbon-Parme.

Let us pray for the repose of his soul and all of those Catholics murdered in by the vile intentions of the rebels in the French Revolultion.

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Blessed Piux IX on Aristocracy

From the allocution of Pius IX to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility on December 29, 1872:

Jesus Christ Himself loved aristocracy; and if I am not mistaken, I expounded upon this idea on another occasion. He too chose to be of noble birth, of the House of David; and His Gospel shows us His family tree down to Joseph and Mary, “de qua natus est Jesus.”

Aristocracy, nobility, therefore, is a gift from God. Preserve it diligently, and use it worthily. You do so already with Christian and charitable works, to which you devote yourselves to the great edification of your fellows and to the great advantage of your souls.

Let us never hate monarchy or nobility for such things are things from God.  Those who are too attached to democracy forget that we profess Christ as our King.  Indeed, the rule of one is always superior to the rule of many - such a position has always been held by the Church and goes back to the time of Aristotle. 

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Remember to follow the tweets of A Catholic Life on Twitter, as I send updates when new posts are published and older posts are edited.  Some content is available only to my Twitter followers and does not make its way to my news feed.

That being said, please also consider subscribing to the blog via Feedburner. Simply insert your email address below and you will receive an email in the mornings on which a new post has been published. You are free to unsubscribe at any time.

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I also have a special newsletter that I send out to my readers to update you on events in my life, on events in the Church, and other related events.  If you would like to be on my special contact list, please let me know and I will add you to my email list. This is a list people that I consider not only my readers but also my friends.  It is more personal than any of the other forms of contact mentioned above.

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St. Peter Nolasco

Double (1954 Calendar): January 28

Note: The Feast of St. Peter Nolasco was kept on January 31st until it was moved for St. John Bosco who was canonized in 1934 by Pope Pius XI.

Today the Church celebrates the sainthood of St. Peter Nolasco, the saintly founder of the Royal and Military Order of Our Lady of Mercy of the Redemption of the Captives. St. Peter (1182-1258) was born in southern France. After the death of his wealthy parents, he spent his inheritance in Barcelona to rescue Christians enslaved by the Moors. He formed a lay confraternity, which later developed into the religious order of the Mercedarians, and led his fellow workers into Moorish territory to purchase the freedom of Christian captives, and to make numerous conversions among the non-Christians. Later Peter's Mercedarians labored among the Indians of the far-flung Spanish American Empire.

The Royal, Celestial and Military Order of Our Lady of Mercy and the Redemption of the Captives also known as Our Lady of Ransom (Latin: Ordo Beatae Mariae de Mercede redemptionis captivorum) was established in 1218 by St. Peter Nolasco in the city of Barcelona, at that time in the Kingdom of Aragon, for the redemption of Christian captives.

All members of the order are required to take a fourth vow to promise to lay down their lives for another, should it be necessary, in order to save those Christians who find themselves in extreme danger of losing their faith.  In the First Constitutions of the Order, the Amerian Constitutions (1272): "... all the brothers of the Order must always be gladly disposed to give up their lives, if it is necessary, as Jesus Christ gave up his for us..."

The purpose of the order is those summed up as an order of consecrated men and women committed "to visit and to free Christians who are in captivity and in power of the Saracens or of other enemies of our Law… By this work of mercy… all the brothers of this Order, as sons of true obedience, must always be gladly disposed to give up their lives, if it is necessary, as Jesus Christ gave up his for us."
St. Peter Nolasco was canonized by Pope Urban VIII. His festival was appointed by Pope Clement VIII to be kept on January 31, which was later moved to 28 January, when the former date was assigned to the liturgical celebration of Saint John Bosco (see General Roman Calendar as in 1954). He is inscribed in the Roman Martyrology, the official list of saints, on 25 December, the day of his death according to tradition. On the connection of St. Peter Nolasco and our Lord's Nativity, Dom Gueranger wonderfully writes:

Our Lord rewarded him by calling him to heaven at that very hour wherein twelve hundred years before he himself had been born at Bethlehem. It was during the joyful celebrations of Christmas night that the liberator of so many from bodily captivity was united for ever to the Divine Liberator of souls. Peter’s last hymn on earth was the 110th Psalm: and as his faltering voice uttered the words: He hath sent redemption to his people; he hath commanded his covenant for ever, his soul took its flight to heaven. The Church, in fixing a day for the feast of our Saint, could not of course take the anniversary of his death, which belongs so exclusively to Jesus: but it was just that he, who had been honoured with being born to heaven at the very hour which God had chosen for the Birth of his Son upon the earth, should receive the tribute of our festive commemoration on one of the forty days of Christmas; this last day of January was selected.

Those devoted to the apostolic zeal of the order should seek out the Scapular of Our Lady of Ransom (i.e. Mercedarian Scapular).  The scapular is white and the front has an image of Our Lady of Ransom. The back usually has an image of the order's coat of arms.  The indulgences for the confraternity were approved by the Congregation of Indulgences in 1868 (Rescr. auth. S. C. Indulg., pp. 483 sqq., n. 36). 

January 28th is also the Commemoration of the Apparition of St. Agnes to her parents, 8 days after her death.

Prayer:

O God, St. Peter was divinely guided by the example of Your won love to enrich Your Church with a new community dedicated to the ransoming of imprisoned Christians. Release us from the slavery of sin through his intercession so that we may enjoy the eternal freedom of our home in heaven; who lives and rules with God the Father . . .

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

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Mass Propers: Septuagesima Sunday

Traditional Propers:

INTROIT
Ps. 17:5, 6, 7
The moaning of death surrounded me, the sorrows of hell enveloped me. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and from His holy temple He heard my voice. Ps. 17:2, 3. I love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my support, my refuge, and my deliverer. V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT -  O Lord, we beg You to kindly hear the prayers of Your people. We are being justly punished for our sins, but be merciful and free us for the glory of Your name. Through Our Lord . . .

EPISTLE
1 Cor. 9:24-27; 10:1-5
Brethren: Know you not that they that run in the race, all run indeed, but one receiveth the prize. So run that you may obtain. And every one that striveth for the mastery refraineth himself from all things. And they indeed that they may receive a corruptible crown: but we an incorruptible one. I therefore so run, not as at an uncertainty: I so fight, not as one beating the air. But I chastise my body and bring it into subjection: lest perhaps, when I have preached to others, I myself should become a castaway. For I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud: and all passed through the sea. And all in Moses were baptized, in the cloud and in the sea: And did all eat the same spiritual food: And all drank the same spiritual drink: (And they drank of the spiritual rock that followed them: and the rock was Christ.) But with most of them God was not well pleased.

GRADUAL
Ps. 9:10-11, 19-20
You are a helper to those in need, in time of distress. Let those who know You trust in You, O Lord, for You do not forsake those who seek You. For the needy shall not always be forgotten, nor shall the patience of the poor forever perish. Arise, O Lord, let not man prevail.

TRACT
Ps. 129:1-4
Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive to the prayer of Your servant.  V. If You, O Lord, shall mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand? V. But with You there is merciful forgiveness, and because of Your law I have waited for You, O Lord.

GOSPEL
Matt. 20:1-16

At that time, Jesus spoke to His disciples this parable:"The kingdom of heaven is like to an householder, who went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And having agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And going out about the third hour, he saw others standing in the marketplace idle. And he said to them: 'Go you also into my vineyard, and I will give you what shall be just.' And they went their way. And again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did in like manner. But about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing, and he saith to them: 'Why stand you here all the day idle?' They say to him: 'Because no man hath hired us.' He saith to them: 'Go ye also into my vineyard.' And when evening was come, the lord of the vineyard saith to his steward: 'Call the labourers and pay them their hire, beginning from the last even to the first.' When therefore they were come that came about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first also came, they thought that they should receive more: And they also received every man a penny. And receiving it they murmured against the master of the house, Saying: 'These last have worked but one hour. and thou hast made them equal to us, that have borne the burden of the day and the heats.' But he answering said to one of them: 'friend, I do thee no wrong: didst thou not agree with me for a penny? Take what is thine, and go thy way: I will also give to this last even as to thee. Or, is it not lawful for me to do what I will? Is thy eye evil, because I am good?' So shall the last be first and the first last. For many are called but few chosen."

OFFERTORY
Ps. 91:2
It is good to praise the Lord, and to sing to Your name, O Most High.

SECRET - Accept our offerings and prayers, O Lord. Cleanse us by this heavenly rite, and in Your mercy hear our petitions. Through Our Lord . . .

PREFACE (Preface of the Most Holy Trinity) - It is truly meet and just, right and for our salvation, that we should at all times, and in all places, give thanks unto Thee, O holy Lord, Father almighty, everlasting God; Who, together with Thine only-begotten Son, and the Holy Ghost, art one God, one Lord: not in the oneness of a single Person, but in the Trinity of one substance. For what we believe by Thy revelation of Thy glory, the same do we believe of Thy Son, the same of the Holy Ghost, without difference or separation. So that in confessing the true and everlasting Godhead, distinction in persons, unity in essence, and equality in majesty may be adored. Which the Angels and Archangels, the Cherubim also and Seraphim do praise: who cease not daily to cry out, with one voice saying:

COMMUNION
Ps. 30:17-18
Let Your face shine upon Your servant, and save me in Your kindness. Let me not be put to shame, O Lord, for I call upon You.

POST COMMUNION - O Lord, may the faithful be strengthened by the reception of Your Sacramental Gifts. And having received them, may they hunger after them still; and through hungering may they come constantly to be nourished by them. Through Our Lord . . .

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March for Life 2013: Traditional Latin Mass

Image Source: Fr. Peter Carota

As reported by LifeSiteNews, this year a record number of over half a million individuals marched on Washington DC against the horror of abortion and taking a stand for life and justice.

This year's March marked the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, since which an estimated 55 million babies have been killed by abortion in America.

While accurate estimates of the number of attendees at the march are hard to come by, organizers had said in the days leading up to the event that all signs pointed to a record-breaking crowd. Hotels in the D.C area sold out far in advance of when they normally do, and organizers installed two jumbotrons just to ensure that all marchers could get a glimpse of what was happening on the stage.

Last year's march was estimated at around 400,000 participants, likely putting this year's at the half million mark, or even beyond. The popularity of the event could be seen on social media, with the March for Life trending on Twitter for a time in the early afternoon, and Facebook exploding with photos and status updates from attendees.

What few organizations report is that after the March for life, Juventutem organized a Pontifical Requiem Latin Mass at St. Mary Mother of God Catholic Church for all the mothers and babies who have died from abortions.  The Pontifical Requiem Mass was said by His Excellency Auxiliary Bishop Perry of the Archdiocese of Chicago.

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