Wednesday, June 14, 2017
St. Basil the Great


Double (1954 Calendar): June 14

St. Basil the Great (329-79) was the founder of a monastic colony at Pontus in Asia Minor, for which he wrote his famous Rule, which ranks in importance with that of St. Benedict in the West. In 370 he was made Metropolitan of Caesarea, and by his brave fight against a heresy then at its height and supported by the Emperor, he saved the whole of Cappadocia for the Catholic Faith. Basil's wonderful care for the poor inspired others to imitate his charity. His doctrinal writings were as outstanding as was the administration of his diocese, and his sublime work on the Holy Ghost has never been surpassed in Catholic theology.  He was a friend of St. Gregory Nazianzen.

The following is taken from The Liturgical Year by Abbot Gueranger:

The Doctors who form the fourfold glory of the Greek Church complete their sacred number, on the cycle, this day. John Chrysostom was the first to greet us with his radiant light, during Christmastide; the glorious Pasch saw the rise of two resplendent luminaries, Athanasius and Gregory Nazianzen; Basil the Great, having checked his effulgent blaze till now, illumines the reign of the Holy Ghost. He well deserves so distinguished a place, by reason of his eminent doctrine and brave combats, which prepared the way for the triumph of the divine Paraclete over the blasphemies of the impious sect of Macedonius, who used against the Third Person of the Consubstantial Trinity, the very same arguments invented by Arius against the Divinity of the Word. The Council of Constantinople, putting the finishing stroke to that of Nicæa, formulated the faith of the Churches, in Him who proceedeth from the Father, no less than doth the Word Himself, Who is adored and glorified conjointly with the Father and the Son. Basil was not there on the day of victory; prematurely exhausted by austerities and labors, he had been sleeping the sleep of peace for quite two years when this great definition was promulgated. But it was his teaching that inspired the assembled council; his word remains as the luminous expression of tradition, concerning the Holy Spirit, who is himself the divine loadstone attracting all in the vast universe that aspire after holiness, the potent breeze uplifting souls, the perfection of all things.

His Biography from the Lives of the Saints:

Saint Basil was born in Asia Minor. Two of his brothers became bishops, and with his mother and his sister, are honored as Saints. 

He studied with great success in Athens, where he formed a tender and perpetual friendship with Saint Gregory Nazianzen. He then taught oratory. The study of philosophy had already raised him above all worldly ambition, and dreading the honors of the world, he gave up all things to become the father of monastic life in the East. His older sister, Saint Macrina, encouraged him when he abandoned the greater part of his inheritance.

He retired into Pontus, where his sister was Superior of a convent, into which his mother also had entered; there he founded a monastery on the opposite side of the river from the convent, and governed it for four years, from 358 to 362 AD.  He founded several other religious houses in the same region, both for men and for women. It was for them that he composed his ascetic works, including his famous Rule, still followed by the monks of the Orient.

He then resigned, leaving his office to his brother, Saint Peter of Sebastus, to retire in prayer. Saint Gregory came to join his friend for a time, in response to his invitation. Ever afterwards, Saint Basil would recall with regret the peace and happiness they had enjoyed, singing Psalms, studying Scripture, keeping vigil in prayer, and disciplining their flesh by manual work. It was only in 363 AD that this holy hermit was ordained a priest by Eusebius of Caesarea in Cappadocia.

The Arian heretics, supported by the court, were then persecuting the Church, and Saint Basil was summoned from his retirement by his bishop to give aid against them. His energy and zeal soon mitigated the disorders of the Church, and his solid and eloquent words silenced the heretics. 
On the death of Eusebius, he was chosen Bishop of Caesarea. His commanding character, his firmness and energy, his learning and eloquence, seconded by his humility and the great austerity of his life, made him a model for bishops. 

He founded in Caesarea a vast hospital, which Saint Gregory called a new city and which remained in existence for long decades. He went there often to console the suffering, and help them to make good use of their pains.

When Saint Basil was summoned by the emperor Valentius to admit the Arians to Communion, the prefect in charge, finding that soft words had no effect, said to him, “Are you mad, that you resist the will before which the whole world bows? Do you not dread the wrath of the emperor, nor exile, nor death?”  

“No,”said Saint Basil calmly; “he who has nothing to lose need not dread loss of goods; you cannot exile me, for the whole earth is my home; as for death, it would be the greatest kindness you could bestow upon me; torments cannot harm me; one blow would end both my frail life and my sufferings.”  The prefect answered, “Never has anyone dared to address me thus.”  “Perhaps,” suggested Saint Basil, “you never before measured your strength with a Christian bishop.” The emperor desisted from his commands.

Saint Basil's entire life was one of suffering, both physical and moral; he lived amidst jealousies, misunderstandings and seeming disappointments. But he sowed the seed which bore good fruit in the future generations. He was God's instrument to resist the Arian and other heretics in the East, and to restore the spirit of discipline and fervor in the Church. He died peacefully in 379 AD at the age of fifty-one, and is venerated as a Doctor of the Church.

Les Petits Bollandistes: Vies des Saints, by Msgr. Paul Guérin (Bloud et Barral: Paris, 1882), Vol. 7; Little Pictorial Lives of the Saints, a compilation based on Butler's Lives of the Saints, and other sources by John Gilmary Shea (Benziger Brothers: New York, 1894).  

Prayer:

O Lord, graciously hear the prayers we offer on the feast of Your blessed confessor bishop Basil. Forgive us all our sins through the merits and intercession of this saint who served You so well on earth. Through our Lord . . .
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Friday, June 9, 2017
Sts. Primus and Felician


Simple (1954 Calendar): June 9

The aged Primus and Felician were Roman citizens and blood brothers who suffered martyrdom under Emperor Diocletian. By their death they entered into a more perfect union than that of human kinship, becoming for all eternity glorified members of the Mystical Body of Christ.

The following is taken from the writings of Fr. Francis Xavier Weninger, 1877:

Primus and Felicianus, two holy martyrs, were brothers and natives of Rome. They were renowned on account of their birth and wealth, but still more on account of the blameless life they led and their determination to remain constant in the true faith, though they knew the suffering which was in store for them as well from their pagan parents, as from other persecutors of the Christian faith. At that period the emperors Dioclesian and Maximian reigned, and the Christians were most cruelly persecuted. Many of them were cast into prison, while others were put: to death by the most barbarous torments. The two zealous brothers visited the imprisoned Christians frequently, and sacrificed all their possessions to comfort them, while they cheered and encouraged those that were led to execution, exhorting them to remain faithful to Christ. The idolatrous priests could not endure this, and incited the people against the two holy brothers, as against two sworn enemies of the gods, and accused them before the Emperor, demanding their execution.

Both were brought before the Emperor and called upon to renounce their faith: they, however, said fearlessly, that they would rather die, than obey the Emperor in this point. They were cast into a dungeon and heavily chained. But in the first night an angel appeared to them, who loosed their fetters and set them free. They immediately returned to their former kind deeds not willing to save their lives by flight, as many advised them to do. The Emperor, being informed of this, summoned them into his presence, and endeavored more than before, by promises and menaces to persuade them to abjure their faith, and at last sent them to the temple of Hercules to offer incense to this idol. Both brothers refused to obey, and the Emperor gave orders that after having been scourged, they should be taken to the Governor of Momentum, a village about 12 miles from Rome, and very hostile to the Christians. Before they were led thither, an angel again appeared and healed their wounds. No sooner had the two Christian heroes appeared before Promotus, the cruel Governor of the town, than he ordered them to be beaten with clubs until they should change their minds. This was a punishment ordained by law only for slaves and other low people, and the tyrant had it executed upon the two noble brothers in derision of their faith.

It was a most painful punishment as the clubs were scourges twisted together of many cords, with leaden balls fastened at the end. With these the condemned were whipped on the bare back and neck. The two holy brothers had to endure this martyrdom, and were more cruelly whipped than the greatest criminals. They, however, manifested no sign of pain, but encouraging each other, they united in praising God, humbly begging His assistance: "Strengthen us, O God!" cried they; "be with us O God! Our only hope, strengthen us, that all may recognize Thee as the only true God." The torture was prolonged until the executioners, tired out with whipping, were no longer able to torment the Saints. The Governor wondered at the constancy, or, as he said, the obstinacy of the two brothers, and to cause them sooner to obey him, he separated them and had them confined in different prisons.

A few days later, he had Felicianus alone brought before him, to whom he said: "Is it not a contemptible blindness that you should persist in ending your days in agony," (Felicianus was 80 years old) "when, by obeying the Emperor, you have the opportunity of closing your life honored and favored by him?" The Saint replied: "Is it not a much more contemptible blindness that you, a man of so much mind and importance, should worship a piece of wood as God, and thus cast yourself, after the few short days of life, into never-ending pains and torments, while you have the opportunity, by receiving the true faith, to make yourself eternally happy with the true God? "These fearless words enraged the Governor beyond endurance, and he ordered the Saint to be fastened to a pole by an iron nail, and there to be left hanging. The Saint, casting his eyes towards heaven, said: "I have placed my trust in God; I shall not fear the hand of man."

Three days the hero had to remain on the pole, after which he was taken back to prison. Meanwhile Promotus had Primus brought before him and said to him that at last the eyes of his brother Felicianus had been opened, and that he had sacrificed to Jupiter, for which reason the Emperor had raised him to the highest dignities, and that Primus might expect the same favors if he followed his brother's example. But Primus knew the constancy of his brother, as an angel had revealed it to him. Hence he reproved Promotus with earnest words. Enraged at this, the governor said: "Either you will immediately sacrifice to Jupiter, or I shall deal with you more cruelly than with all the others." "I sacrifice to the true God only," replied Primus, "and fear not your cruelties." Hardly had these words passed his lips, when the tyrant gave orders to scourge him with hard thongs, until his whole body was one great wound. After this they burned him for a long time with torches. Primus's countenance was bright and cheerful during this inhuman torture. To prevent this, by command of the tyrant, they poured melted lead into his mouth. How terrible must have been this suffering is easily to be conceived. Constantine the Great had ordered this kind of punishment for those who by impure language had seduced others to unchastity. "Whoever with impure speeches seduces any one to unchastity," says the law, " shall have his mouth closed with melted lead." The tyrants had already in earlier times used this punishment to torture the Christians.

St. Primus was sentenced to this suffering in order that he might no longer praise the true God. He, however, swallowed the lead without the least sign of pain, and then turning to Promotus, said: " Acknowledge at length, unhappy man, the omnipotence of my God, and be converted to Him that you may not go to eternal damnation." Promotus, furious and unwilling to hear more, ordered the brothers to to be cast to the wild beasts. The order was obeyed, but neither the fiercely roaring lion, nor the cruel bear, which they let loose upon them, harmed either of them, but crouching at their feet, thus evinced their reverence for the holy men. Many of the heathens, who witnessed this spectacle, were so deeply touched by the miracle, that they cried: " Great is the God of the Christians, and He alone is the true God!" Promotus, fearing an insurrection, had both the valiant confessors decapitated without loss of time; and thus they, both, after many heroic battles, obtained the crown of immortality in heaven, in the year of our Lord 287.

Prayer:

May we always be worthy to celebrate the feast of Your holy martyrs, Primus and Felician, O Lord, so that through their intercession we may be sheltered under Your gracious protection. Through our Lord . . .
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Tuesday, June 6, 2017
Fourteen Holy Helpers

What is the devotion known as the 14 Holy Helpers Devotion?

To modern Catholics who have seen much of their heritage forgotten and neglected - especially over the last few generations - few likely have heard of the 14 Holy Helpers.  But the 14 Holy Helpers were honored for centuries and they should not be forgotten. They are a group of fourteen saints who are patrons against various diseases. 

Devotion to the 14 Holy Helpers originated in the 14th century largely as a result of the Black Death (the bubonic plague).  The miracles attributed to these saints won for them the distinction as the 14 Holy Helpers.

And even in our modern era, when we thankfully and by the grace of God have a wide number of treatments and cures for illnesses, we can invoke their patronage for the many souls who die each year in less developed parts of the world due to a number of treatable or incurable diseases.

Who are the 14 Holy Helpers?

They are the following 14 saints.  You may follow the links for more information on specific saints.

  1. St. Agathius
  2. St. Barbara
  3. St. Blaise
  4. St. Catherine of Alexandria
  5. St. Christopher
  6. St. Cyriacus
  7. St. Denis
  8. St. Erasmus
  9. St. Eustace
  10. St. George
  11. St. Giles
  12. St. Margaret of Antioch
  13. St. Pantaleon
  14. St. Vitus


What are the 14 Holy Helpers Patron Saints Against?
Saint Christopher and Saint Giles were invoked against the plague itself. Saint Denis was prayed to for relief from headache, Saint Blaise for ills of the throat, Saint Elmo for abdominal maladies, Saint Barbara for fever, and Saint Vitus against epilepsy. Saint Pantaleon was the patron of physicians, Saint Cyriacus invoked against temptation on the deathbed, and Saints Christopher, Barbara, and Catherine for protection against a sudden and unprovided for death. Saint Giles was prayed to for a good confession and Saint Eustace as healer of family troubles. Domestic animals were also attacked by the plague, so Saints George, Elmo, Pantaleon, and Vitus were invoked for their protection. Saint Margaret of Antioch is the patron of safe childbirth.
Source: Hammer, Bonaventure (1995). "The Fourteen Holy Helpers". Retrieved 6 November 2007.
Is there a Feast of the 14 Holy Helpers?

Indulgences were attached to devotions to the 14 Holy Helpers by Pope Nicholas.  All of these saints have individual feastdays as part of the Traditional Catholic Calendar.  Unfortunately, four of them lost individual feastdays in the Novus Ordo Calendar changes of 1969. They are all however still honored in the Tridentine Latin Mass which is widely celebrated around the world.

And furthermore, the Fourteen Holy Helpers are celebrated as a group on August 8th though this feastday was never a part of the General Roman Catholic Calendar but instead is celebrated only in certain places.


Novena to the 14 Holy Helpers:

For a Novena to the 14 Holy Helpers, please click here.

More Information:

For more information, please check out the book by Bonaventure Hammer entitled "The Fourteen Holy Helpers"
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Litany of English Saints



For Private Devotion Only.

Remember not. O Lord, our offenses, nor those of our parents: neither take thou vengeance of our sins.

Lord have mercy.
Lord have mercy.

Christ have mercy.
Christ have mercy.

Lord have mercy.
Lord have mercy.

Jesus, receive our prayers. Lord Jesus, receive our petitions.

God the Father, Creator of the world, Have Mercy on us.

God the Son, Redeemer of mankind, Have Mercy on us.

God the Holy Ghost, Perfecter of the elect, Have Mercy on us.

Sacred Trinity, three Persons and one God, Have Mercy on us.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for England. *

Holy Mary, Queen of Angels, who alone destroyest all heresies, *

Holy Mary, Virgin of virgins, whose eminent sanctity our Lord hath honoured with so many miracles, *

St. Michael, prince of the Church, *

St. Gabriel, glorious messenger of our Saviour's Incarnation, *

St. Raphael, faithful guide of those who have lost their way, *

Holy Angel, to whose pious custody this province is committed, *

All ye holy Angels and blessed Spirits of heaven, who celebrate with joy the conversion of sinners, *

St. John Baptist, precursor of the Messias, and great example of penance, *

All ye holy Patriarchs and Prophets, friends of God, and advancers of His truth, *

St. Peter, prince of the Apostles, and supreme pastor of Christ's sheep, *

St. Paul, doctor of the Gentiles, who, of a persecutor, becamest a preacher, *

St. Andrew, first disciple of Christ, and constant lover of the cross, *

All ye holy Apostles and Evangelists, chief planners of the Christian faith, and zealous maintainers of Catholic unity, *

St. George, our principal patron, *

St. Alban, our first martyr, *

St. Thomas of Canterbury, who, as a faithful shepherd, laidst down thy life in defense of the Church, *

All ye holy Martyrs of this nation, who voluntarily lost your lives here to find them in a joyful eternity, *

St. Gregory, most vigilant Bishop of the Universal Church, whose pious zeal sent missioners from Rome for the conversion of our ancestors, *

St. Augustin, Apostle of this nation, by whom our forefathers were reclaimed from paganism and infidelity, *

St. Bede, most venerable Confessor, by whose religious life and learned writings the Catholic faith was eminently propagated amongst us, *

All ye holy Bishops and Confessors, by whose wisdom and sanctity this island was once a flourishing seminary of religion, *

St. Helen, most holy queen, and mother of the first Christian emperor, *

St. Ursula, most blessed martyr, who died in the a glorious defense of faith and chastity, *

St. Winefride, most admirable virgin, even in this unbelieving generation still miraculous, *

All ye holy Saints of this nation, who, amidst the innumerable joys of heaven, still retain a particular charity for the salvation of your country, *

All ye holy Saints of all places who, though divided here in several regions, were united in the same faith, and now enjoy one common felicity, *

Be merciful, Spare us, O Lord.

Be merciful, to us

Graciously hear us, O Lord.

From the dangers most justly threatening our sins, Deliver England, O Lord. **

From the spirit of pride, rebellion, and apostacy, **

From the spirit of hypocrisy, profaneness, and sacrilege, **

From the presumption of private opinion, and contempt of the authority of thy Church, **

From schism, heresy, and all blindness of heart, **

From gluttony, drunkenness, and the false liberty of an undisciplined life, **

We sinners, Beseech thee, hear us.

That it may please thee to hasten the conversion of this our miserable country, and reunite it to the ancient faith and communion of thy Church, We beseech thee, hear us. ***

That it may please thee particularly to have mercy on our relations, friends, and benefactors, and open their eyes to see the beauty of thy truth, and embrace it, ***

That it may please thee to comfort and strengthen thy servants, who suffer for the Catholic faith, ***

That it may please thee not to permit the weakest of us by any temptation whatsoever, to fall away from thee and thy truth, ***

That it may please thee to assist with thy special grace those good pastors who venture their lives for their flock, ***

That it may please thee daily to augment in them the fire of thy love and the zeal of gaining souls, ***

That it may please thee to preserve the Catholics of this land from all sin and scandal, ***

That it may please thee so to adorn their lives with solid piety, that others, seeing their good works, may glorify thee our heavenly Father, ***

That it may please thee to enlighten the hearts of all schismatics with thy powerful grace, ***

That it may please thee to shew them the danger of their state, and the great importance of eternal salvation, ***

That it may please thee mercifully to look down from heaven on the tears of the afflicted, and the blood of so many martyrs, who have spent their lives, and suffered death, to convert us to thee, ***
Son of God, ***

Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord.

Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us.

Christ hear us.
Christ graciously hear us.

Let us pray.

Almighty and everlasting God, whose judgments are righteous and counsels unsearchable; who visitest the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation, and yet at length rememberest mercy; forgive, we beseech thee, the sins of our forefathers, and turn away thy wrath from their posterity: deliver the ignorant from being seduced by false teachers, and the learned from being abused by their passions, and the whole nation from the spirit of contradiction, licentiousness, and discord; that instead of so many divisions and changes in religion, under which they labour, they may be again restored to that unity of mind, steadiness of faith, and tranquillity of conscience, which is no where to be sought but in the communion of thy Church, nor possible to be found but by the conduct of thy grace. Through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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Friday, June 2, 2017
Sts. Marcellinus, Peter, and Erasmus


Simple (1954 Calendar): June 2

The following is taken from The Liturgical Year by Abbot Gueranger:

The glory of martyrdom illumines this day with a profusion rarely met with in the cycle; and already we seem to descry the rosy dawn of that brightest day of this month, on which Peter and Paul will consummate in their blood their own splendid confession. Italy and Gaul, Rome and Lyons concur in forming a legion of heroes in the service of heaven. For today Lyons, the illustrious daughter of Rome, is keeping the special festival of a whole phalanx of warriors, headed by the veteran chief, St Pothinus, disciple of St Polycarp, who, in the second century, levied the brave recruits of his battalion on the banks of the Rhone. But to the mother Church are due the first honours. Let us, then, hail Marcellinus, together with the numerous progeny begotten by his fruitful priesthood, and rendered worthy by the Holy Ghost to share in his triumph. Let us hail, likewise, the exorcist, Peter, leading to the sacred font a long line of pagans whom he won over to Christ by proving to them the weakness of the demons.

When Christianity appeared on earth, Satan was indeed, and visibly so, the Prince of this world. Unto him was every altar reared; to his empire were all laws and customs subservient. From the depths of their famous temples, the demon chiefs directed the political affairs of the cities that came to consult their oracles; under divers names, the frailest of the fallen angels found honour and influence, at the domestic hearth; others had posts assigned to them, in forests, on mountains, at fountains, or on sea, occupying, in opposition to God, this world that had been created by him for his Glory, but which Satan, through man’s complicity, had conquered. Four thousand years of abandonment on the part of Heaven, permitted the usurper to consolidate his conquest; and a well planned resistance was skillfully prepared, against the day wherein the lawful King should offer to re-enter on his rights.

The coming of the Word made Flesh, was the grand signal for the asserting of the divine claim. The prince of this world, personally vanquished by the Son of God, understood well enough that he must needs return to the depths of hell. But the countless powers of darkness constituted by him, would maintain the struggle, through the length of ages, and dispute their position inch by inch. Driven from towns by the abjurations of holy Church and the triumph of martyrs, the infernal legions would fain marshall their ranks in the wilderness; there under the leadership of an Anthony or a Pachomius, the soldiers of Christ must wage against them ceaseless and terrific battle. In the West, Benedict, the Patriarch of Monks, in his turn, meets with altars to the demons, yea, with demons themselves on the heights of Cassino, as late as the sixth century. Even in the seventh, they are found contending against St. Gall, for hold on the woods, lakes, and rocks of what we now call Switzerland; and at last they are heard uttering mournful complaint, because, driven as they have been from the haunts of men, even such desolate spots as these are denied them. Verily, in the divine mind, the vocation of a monk to the desert, has for its end, not alone flight of the world and its concerns, but likewise, the pursuit of demons into their last entrenchments.

We have dwelt thus upon the foregoing considerations, because their importance is extreme, and is equalled only by depth of systematic ignorance persisted in, on this subject. True Christians of course firmly believe, now as formerly, in the secret and wholly spiritual combat which the soul has to sustain against hell, in the privacy of one’s own conscience; but too many have no scruple in rejecting, as if belonging to the domain of imagination, whatever is related of those other combats maintained, by our fathers, against the demons, in an exterior and more public manner. The excuse for such Christians is no doubt, in the fact that they live in a land, where, centuries ago, this war in its external phases, was ended by the social victory of Christendom. But the Holy Ghost has declared that the old serpent, bound up for a thousand years, is at last to be again unchained for a while.1 If, perchance, we be nearing this fatal epoch, it is high time to look about us; ill prepared shall we be for the waging again of the olden battles, by such ignorance as ours, in which we are maintained by that habit of abandoning, to the conceited impertinence of the shallow science that rules the day, facts, (under the name of legend,) the best attested in the history of our ancestors. After all, what is History, even, since the revolt of Lucifer, but the picture of the war that is being waged between God and Satan? Now if, as we have said, Satan has, by divine permission, invaded the exterior world, as well as that of souls, must it not be needful, in order, (as our Lord expresses it) to cast him out, (John, xii. M. 2) that the struggle with him be breast to breast and foot to foot, inasmuch as it has assumed an exterior and visible character?

“The Word,” says Saint Justin, ” was made Flesh “for two ends: to save believers, and to drive away “demons.” (Apol. vi.)  So also, the expulsion of demons from the places they occupy in this material world, and specially the bodies of men, the noblest part thereof, would appear in the Gospel, to have been one of the chief characteristics of our Saviour’s power. Again, when on quitting the earth, He sent his Apostles to continue His work amidst the Nations, this is the very thing He singles out as a primary sign of the mission they are to fulfil. (Mk, 16:17) The world of that day made no mistake about it. Soon enough had the pagans to state the cessation of the ancient oracles, in every place; (Plutarch, De oraculor. Defectu) the cause of a phenomenon of such import to the ancient religion was evident to all: the very demons themselves were not backward in ascribing to the Christian, this their enforced silence. As regards this power of Christianity against hell, the Apologists of the second and third centuries, appeal, on the subject, to public testimony, without fear of a contradicting voice. “Before the eyes of everyone,” says Saint Justin to the Emperors, “the Christians drive “out demons in the Name of Jesus Christ, not “only in Rome, but in the whole universe.” (2 Apol. vi.) The gods of Olympus beheld themselves shamefully unmasked, in the presence of their confused adorers, and Tertullian might well challenge thus the magistrates of the Empire: “Let one of those men, who declare themselves to be under the power of the gods be brought before your tribunals: at the commanding word of the first comer amongst us, the spirit whereby they are possessed, will be constrained to confess what he is ; if he avow not himself a demon and no god, fearing to lie unto a Christian, at once shed the blood of this Christian blasphemer. But no; the terror they have of Christ is the reason why the mere touch, or even breathing of one of his servants, forces them to take to flight.” (Apol. 23)

So then, we see, Baptism sufficed to give unto man such power as this; and verily this was the real meaning of our Lord’s promise, when speaking of those who would believe in Him, and not alone of the heads of the Church, He said: In my name they shall cast out devils. (Mk 16:17)  At an early date, however, the Church organising the holy war, constituted among her sons one special Order having for its direct mission the pursuit of Satan, on every point of this visible world. The Exorcists were by this delegation, invested with a power that must needs accelerate the downfall of the prince of this world; and, what would be all the more odious and humiliating in this defeat, the Church raised no higher than to the rank of inferior clergy, an order so terrible to hell. Lucifer had aimed at being equal to the Most-High; (Is 14:12-15) hurled down from heaven, he at least flattered himself in his folly to be able to supplant God upon the earth: and lo! the charge of defeating him here, is confided not to angels, his equals by nature, but to men, yea, to the least and lowest of this race so easily tricked, that for long ages he had seen men prostrate before him! Lo ! the hand of flesh constrains him, spirit though he be, to come off his throne; at their word he must needs cast away his vain adornments, he must unmask himself; the water they bless, rekindles within him his eternal tortures; of the prince of this world and his pomps, naught remains but mere Satan, the ugly faced apostate, the condemned criminal wincing in the dust, at the feet of the sons of men, or fleeing like a dry leaf, at the breath of their mouth.

The archangel Michael recognizes in these sons of Adam, the worthy allies of the faithful angels he led forward to victory. But amid these continuators of the mighty battle begun on the heights of heaven,1 the Exorcist, Peter, comes before us to-day radiant with matchless splendour. The triumph of martyrdom has been added to his victories, won over Satan’s cohorts. None better than he, drove hell backwards; for, chasing the demons out of men’s bodies, he moreover made conquest of their souls. The Priest Marcellinus, his companion in martyrdom, as he had been in victory, is likewise his associate in glory. The Church wishes that these two names of theirs so redoubtable to the spirits of darkness, should shine in one same aureola here below as in heaven. Daily doth she render them the most solemn homage in her power by naming them both, on the dyptich of the Holy Sacrifice together with the Apostles and her first song. Such was the importance of the mission they fulfilled and the renown of their final combat, that their bodies, translated to the Via Latina, became the nucleus of an illustrious cemetery. The Christians of the age of peace, that came soon after their glorious confession, vied with one another in obtaining sepulture near these soldiers of Christ whose protection they craved; Constantine the Great, the vanquisher of Idolatry, deposited at their sacred feet, the remains of his mother, Saint Helena, who had herself become a terror to the demons by her discovering the True Cross. A celebrated inscription was composed in their honour, by Saint Damasus, who in childhood, had learned the details of their martyrdom, from the very executioner himself, afterwards converted; this inscription hard by their tomb, completed the monuments of that catacomb, wherein Christian art had multiplied its richest teachings.

To the memory of Saints Marcellinus and Peter, is joined in the Liturgy of to-day, the name of a holy Bishop and Martyr, formerly well known to the Faithful. If the Acts of his life that have reached us, are not free from all reproach in a critical point of view, the favours obtained by the intercession of this Saint Erasmus or Elmo, wafted his name over the whole of Christendom, as is attested by the numberless forms this name assumed, in various countries of the West during the Middle Ages. He holds a place in the group of Saints styled auxiliatores or Helpers, whose cultus is wide spread in Germany and Italy more particularly. Mariners look upon him as their patron, because of a certain miraculous voyage related in his life; one of the tortures to which he was subjected during his Martyrdom, has made him be invoked for the cholic. Nor should we forget to mention here, how great a veneration Saint Benedict, the Patriarch of Western Monks, had for Saint Erasmus; when he quitted the Campagna for his solitude on the banks of the Anio, he marked his principal station between Subiaco and Monte Cassino, by building a church and monastery, at Veroli, under the invocation of this holy Martyr; another was dedicated by him in Rome likewise, to St. Erasmus.

Let us now read the few lines devoted by the Church to the memory of our three Saints:
Peter, an Exorcist, was cast into prison at Rome, under the Emperor Diocletian, by the Judge Serenus, because he confessed the Christian faith. He there set free Paulina, the daughter of Artemius, the keeper of the prison, from an evil spirit which tormented her. Upon this, Artemis and his wife and all their house, with their neighbours who had run together to see the strange thing, would fain be attached unto the service of Jesus Christ. Peter therefore brought them to Marcellinus, the Priest, who baptised them all. When Serenus heard of it, he called Peter and Marcellinus before him, aud sharply rebuked them, adding to his bitter words, threats and terrors, unless they would deny Christ. Marcellinus answered him with Christian boldness, whereupon he caused him to be buffeted, separated him from Peter, and shut him up naked, in a prison strewn with broken glass, without either food or light. Peter also’he straitly confined. But when both of them were found but to increase in faith and courage, in their bonds, they were beheaded, unshaken in their testimony, and confessing Jesus Christ gloriously, by their blood.

Erasmus Bishop was, in Campania, under the empire of Diocletian and Maximian, beaten with clubs and whips loaded with lead, and afterwards plunged into resin, sulphur, melted lead, boiling pitch, wax also and oil. From all this, he came forth whole and sound; which wonder converted many to believe in Christ. He was remanded again to prison, and straitly bound in iron fetters. But from these he was wondrously delivered by an Angel. At last, being taken to Formi, Maximian caused him to be subjected to divers torments, and, in the end, being clad in a coat of red-hot brass, the power of God made him be more than conqueror in all these things also. Afterwards, having converted to the faith and confirmed many therein, he obtained the palm of a glorious martyrdom.
You three holy Martyrs did all confess Jesus Christ, in the midst of the most terrific storm ever raised by the demon against the Churoh. Though all three in different grades of the hierarchy, you were alike guides of the Christian people, drawing them by thousands, in your train, into the arena of martyrdom, and by still more numerous conversions, filling up the void made in earth’s chosen band, by the departure of your victorious companions to heaven. Wherefore, the Church, this day, joins her grateful homage, here below, with the silvery shouts of glad congratulation that ring through the Church triumphant. Be ye propitious, as of yore, in alleviating the ills that overwhelm mankind in this vale of tears. The excess of man’s misery, is that he seems to have forgotten how to call on such powerful protectors, in his hour of need. Revive your memory, in our midst, by new benefits to our race.

As thou, O Erasmus, must formerly protected by heaven, do thou now, in thy turn, succour those who are a prey to the tempest-tossed sea. In thy last hour of bitter anguish, thou didst suffer thine executioners to tear thy very bowels; lend then a kindly aid to such as call upon thy name when racked by pains which bear some resemblance, though but faint, to what thou didst endure for Christ.

Peter and Marcellinus, linked one to another both in toil and in glory, cast gentle eyes upon us: one glance of yours would make all hell to tremble,— would drive far from us its darksome cohorts. But how much is your aid needed in society at large,—in the whole visible world! The foe you did so mightily thrust backwards into the fiery pit, is once more master. Alas! have we come to the time, in which again taking up war against the Saints, it shall be granted him to overcome them? Scarce does he even hide himself, now-a-days. Not only does he lead the world by a thousand springs ostensibly put in his hands by Societies formerly Secret; but he may be seen trying to push his way into gatherings of all sorts, into the very bosom of homes, as a family guest, as a comrade in diversion or in business, with table turning and all those processes for divination such as Tertullian denounced in your early day. The expulsion of demons by Christianity had been so absolute that up to more recent times, such fatal practices had fallen into utter oblivion amongst us. If at first, in Christian families, the warning voice of the Pastors of God’s Church has prevailed over the incitements of an unhealthy curiosity, still a sect has since been formed, in which Satan is sole guide and oracle. The Spiritists, as they are called, in concert with free-masonry, are preparing the way for the final invasion of the exterior world, by infernal bands. Antichrist, with his usurped power and vain prestige, will be but the common product of political lodges and of this sect, wherein the task is proposed of bringing back, under a new form, the ancient mysteries of paganism. Valiant Soldiers of the Church, make us, we beseech you, worthy of our forefathers. If the Christian army must needs decrease in numbers, let faith all the more wax strong therein; let courage neither lack nor go astray; may its ranks be seen facing the foe, at that last hour in which the Lord Jesus will slay, with the breath of His Mouth, the man of sin, and plunge once again and forever, the whole of Satan’s crew, down into the lowest depths of the bottomless pit.

Prayer:

O God, who dost gladden us by the yearly festival of Thy holy Martyrs Marcellinus, Peter and Erasmus, grant, we beseech Thee, that, as we rejoice in their merits, so our fervor may be kindled by their example. Through our Lord . . .
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Wednesday, May 31, 2017
Feast of Our Lady, Queen of All Saints and Mother of Fair Love

Today, May 31st, is a deeply Marian today.  Today is not only the Feast of the Queenship of Mary but also the Feast of Our Lady Mediatrix of All Graces and the Feast of Our Lady, Queen of All Saints and Mother of Fair Love.

The Feast of Our Lady Mediatrix of All Graces is a "Mass in Some Places" as is the Feast of  Our Lady, Queen of All Saints and Mother of Fair Love.   Propers for the Mass of Our Lady, Queen of All Saints and Mother of Fair Love follow.

Mass Propers for the Our Lady, Queen of All Saints and Mother of Fair Love

Introit:

Go forth, ye daughters of Sion, and see thy Queen, whom the morning stars praise: at whose beauty the sun and moon wonder, and all the sons of God make a joyful melody. (P.T. Alleluia, alleluia). Ps. How lovely are Thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! my soul longeth and fainteth for the courts of the Lord. V. Glory be to the Father

Collect:

O God, Who hast given us to honour the most blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of all Saints, and Mother of fair love: graciously grant that, by her safeguarding, we may love Thee in all things and above all things on earth, and enjoy the happy fellowship of Thy Saints in heaven. Through our Lord.

Epistle:

I have stretched out my branches as the turpentine tree: and my branches are of honour and grace. As the vine I have brought forth a pleasant odour: and my flowers are the fruit of honour and riches. I am the mother of fair love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope. In me is all grace of the way and of the truth: in me is all hope of life and of virtue. Come over to me, all ye that desire me: and be filled with my fruits. For my spirit is sweet above honey: and mine inheritance above honey and the honeycomb. My memory is unto everlasting generations. They that eat me shall yet hunger: and they that drink me shall yet thirst. He that hearkeneth to me shall not be confounded: and they that work by me shall not sin. They that explain me shall have life everlasting

Gradual:

The Lord made her regent over all his kingdom, and he gave her the crown, that she should bring up her son for the kingdom. V. A crown of gold upon her head wherein is engraved holiness, an ornament of honour, a work of strength

Alleluia:

Come thou, our Queen, come, O Lady, into thy garden. The smell of thy garments is above all aromatical spices. Alleluia

Gospel:

At that time: There stood by the cross of Jesus, His mother and His mother's sister, Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalen. When Jesus therefore had seen His mother and the disciple standing whom He loved, He saith to His mother: Woman, behold thy son. After that, He saith to the disciple: Behold thy mother. And from that hour, the disciple took her to his own

Offertory:

Whosoever is a little one, let him come to me. And to the unwise she said: Come, eat my bread, and drink the wine which I have mingled for you, alleluia.

Secret:

We offer thee, O Lord, the sacrifice of praise, rejoicing in the glory of the Mother of Thy Son: trusting that, supported by her patronage, we may be relieved both of ills at hand, and of those to come. Through the same our Lord.

Communion:

Most worthy Queen of the world, Mary ever a Virgin, intercede for our peace and salvation, thou who barest Christ the Lord, the Saviour of all (P.T. Alleluia).

Post Communion:

Having fed on heavenly delicacies, we humbly beseech Thee, Lord our God: that as Thou hast established a protection and patronage for us in the most blessed Mother of Thy Son, Thou mayest also bestow a crown of everlasting glory on those who celebrate her solemnities. Through the same our Lord
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Tuesday, May 30, 2017
St. Francis of Assisi before the Sultan

In 1219, the sultan Malik al-Kamil received St. Francis of Assisi in Damietta and posed to him a question: “Your Lord teaches in the Gospels that you should not return evil for evil nor refuse your mantle to someone who wants to take your tunic. Therefore, you Christians should not invade our lands.”

To which the Blessed Francis replied: “I think you have not read the whole Gospel. Elsewhere, indeed, it is said: ‘If you eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you.’ With that Jesus wanted to teach us that when a man has a relative, however beloved he must be, even if he was as dear as the apple of our eyes, if he tempted us to turn away from the faith and love of our God we should be resolved to separate, alienate and eradicate him from us. For all this, Christians act according to justice when they invade your lands and fight you, for you blaspheme the name of Christ and fight to take away from His religion as many as you can. However, if you want to know, confess and worship the Creator and Redeemer of the world, I will love you as myself.’ All those present were taken with admiration by his response

(Fonti Francescane, 3rd Section, Altre Testimonianze Francescane, N° 2691, as quoted in Crusade Magazine, May/June 2015, p. 9).
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St. Felix I


Double (1954 Calendar): May 30

Pope Felix I, a Roman by birth, was pope from 269 to 274 A.D. In his love of the true doctrine of the Church, he courageously condemned the heretical bishop of Antioch and is said to have died a martyr under Aurelian. "The sacred Liturgy puts all these gems [the virtues of the saints] before us . . . that guided by them we may follow the saints into glory" (Pope Pius XII).

Quoting from the Church, Dom Gueranger includes this life of Pope Felix in his Liturgical Year:
Felix, a Roman by birth, and son of Constantius, governed the Church during the reign of the emperor Aurelian. He decreed that the Mass should be celebrated upon the shrines and tombs of the Martyrs. He held two ordinations in the month of December, and made nine Priests, five Deacons, and five Bishops for divers places. He was crowned with Martyrdom, and was buried on the Aurelian Way, in a Basilica which he himself had built and dedicated. He reigned two years, four months, and twenty-nine days.
And Dom Guernager continues in his own words:
Thou, O holy Pontiff, didst imitate thy Divine Master in his Death, for thou gavest thy life for thy sheep. Like him, too, thou art to rise from thy tomb, and thy happy soul shall be reunited to its body, which suffered death in testimony of the truth thou proclaimedst at Rome. Jesus is the first-born of the dead; thou followedst him in his Passion, thou shalt follow him in his Resurrection. Thy body was laid in those venerable vaults, which the piety of early Christians honored with the appellation of Cemeteries—a word which signifies a place wherein to sleep. Thou, O Felix, wilt awaken on that great day, whereon the Pasch is to receive its last and perfect fulfillment:—pray that we also may then share with thee in that happy Resurrection. Obtain for us that we may be faithful to the graces received in this year’s Easter; and prepare us for the visit of the Holy Ghost, who is soon to descend upon us, that he may give stability to the work that has been achieved in our souls by our merciful Savior.
Prayer:

O Eternal Shepherd, who appointed blessed Felix shepherd of the whole Church, let the prayers of this martyr and supreme pontiff move You to look with favor upon Your flock and to keep it under Your continual protection. Through our Lord . . .

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Friday, May 26, 2017
St. Philip Neri

Double (1954 Calendar): May 26

Philip Neri (1515-95), a native of Florence, settled in Rome. He thought of offering himself for the foreign missions, but a Benedictine friend told him that his apostolate was in Rome. Philip gathered some companions into a group that later became the renowned Congregation of the Oratory. In 1551 he was ordained to the priesthood. Philip's Oratory soon constituted the center of religious life in the Eternal City, and its founder fully deserved the title by which he was called: "Second Apostle of Rome." This lovable saint attracted the trust and affection of people in every walk of life by his abounding joy in the Lord.

The following is Adapted from The Liturgical Year by Abbot Gueranger:

Joy is the leading feature of the Paschal Season—a supernatural joy which springs from our delight at seeing the glorious triumph of our Emmanuel, and from the happiness we feel at our own deliverance from the bonds of death. This interior joy was the characteristic of the Saint whom we honor today. His heart was ever full of a jubilant enthusiasm for what regards God; so that we could truly apply to him those words of Scripture: A secure mind is like a continual feast (Prov. 15: 15). One of his later disciples, the illustrious Father Faber, tells us in his beautiful treatise, Growth in Holiness, that cheerfulness is one of the chief means for advancing in Christian perfection. We will therefore welcome with gladness and veneration the benevolent and light-hearted St. Philip Neri, the Apostle of Rome, and one of the greatest Saints produced by the Church in the 16th century.

Love of God—but a love of the most ardent kind, and one that communicated itself to all that came near him—was our Saint's characteristic virtue. All the Saints loved God; for the love of God is the first and greatest of the commandments: but St. Philip's whole life was, in an especial manner, the fulfillment of this divine precept. His entire existence seemed to be but one long transport of love for his Creator; and had it not been for a miracle of God's power and goodness, this burning love would have soon put an end to his mortal career. He was in his 29th year, when one day—it was within the Octave of Pentecost—he was seized with such a vehemence of divine charity that two of his ribs broke, thus making room for the action of the heart to respond freely to the intensity of the love of the soul. The fracture was never healed; it caused a protrusion which was distinctly observable; and owing to this miraculous enlargement of the region of the heart, St. Philip was enabled to live fifty years more, during which time he loved his God with a fervor and strength which would do honor to one already in Heaven.

This seraph in human flesh was a living answer to the insults heaped upon the Catholic Church by the so-called Reformation. Luther and Calvin had called Holy Church the harlot of Babylon; and yet She had, at that very time, such children as St. Teresa of Avila and St. Philip Neri of Rome, to offer to the admiration of mankind. But Protestantism cared little or nothing for piety or charity; its great object was throwing off the yoke of restraint. Under pretense of religious liberty, it persecuted them that adhered to the true Faith; it forced itself by violence where it could not enter by seduction; but it never aimed at or thought of leading men to love their God. The result was that wheresoever it imposed its errors, devotedness was at an end—we mean that devotedness which leads man to make sacrifices for God or for his neighbor. A very long period of time elapsed after the Reformation before Protestantism ever gave a thought to the infidels who abounded in various parts of the globe... but anything like the devotedness of Catholic institutions is an impossibility for Protestantism, were it only for this reason, that its principles are opposed to the Evangelical Counsels, which are the great sources of the spirit of sacrifice, and are prompted by a motive of the love of God.

Glory, then, to St. Philip Neri, one of the worthiest representatives of charity in the 16th century! It was owing to his zeal that Rome and Christendom at large were replenished with a new life by the frequentation of the Sacraments and by the exercises of Catholic piety. His word, his very look, used to excite people to devotion. His memory is still held in deep veneration, especially in Rome, where his Feast was kept with the greatest solemnity. He shares with Ss. Peter and Paul the honor of being Patron of the Holy City. Formerly, on his Feast, the Pope went, with great solemnity, to the Church of St. Mary in Vallicella, and paid the debt of gratitude which the Holy See owes to the Saint who accomplished such great things for the glory of our Holy Mother the Church.

St. Philip had the gift of miracles; and though seeking to be forgotten and despised, he was continually surrounded by people who besought him to pray for them, either in their temporal or spiritual concerns. Death itself was obedient to his command, as in the case of the young prince Paul Massimo. The young prince, when breathing his last, desired that St. Philip should be sent for, in order that he might assist him to die well. The Saint was offering Mass at the time. As soon as the Holy Sacrifice was over, he repaired to the palace; but he was too late—he found the father, sister and the whole family in tears. The young prince had died after an illness of 65 days, which he had borne with most edifying patience. St. Philip fell upon his knees; and, after a fervent prayer, he put his hand on the head of the corpse, and called the prince by his name.

Thus awakened from the sleep of death, Paul opened his eyes, and looking at St. Philip, said to him, "My Father!" He then added these words: "I only wished to go to confession." The assistants left the room, and St. Philip remained alone with the prince. After a few moments the family were called back; and in their presence, Paul began to speak to St. Philip regarding his mother and sister who had been taken from him by death, and whom he loved with the most tender affection. During the conversation, the prince's face regained all it had lost by sickness. His animation was that of one in perfect health. The Saint then asked him if he would wish to die again. "Oh yes," answered the prince, "most willingly; for I should then see my mother and sister in Heaven." "Take then,” said St. Philip, "take thy departure for Heaven, and pray to the Lord for me." At these words, the young prince expired once more, and entered into the joys of eternal life, leaving his family to mourn his departure, and venerate a Saint such as Philip.

He was almost continually visited by Our Lord with raptures and ecstasies; he was gifted with the spirit of prophecy, and could read the secrets of the conscience. His virtues were such as to draw souls to him by an irresistible charm. The youth of Rome, rich and poor, used to flock to him. Some he warned against danger; others he saved, after they had fallen. The poor and sick were the object of his unceasing care. He seemed to be everywhere in the city by his works of zeal, which gave an impulse to piety that has never been forgotten.


St. Philip was convinced that one of the principal means for maintaining the Christian spirit is preaching the word of God: hence he was most anxious to provide the faithful with apostolic men, who would draw them to God by good and solid preaching. He established, under the name of The Oratory, an institute, the object of which is to encourage Christian piety among the people. By founding it, St. Philip aimed at securing the services, zeal, and talent of priests who are not called to the Religious life, but who, by uniting their labors together, would produce great good to the souls of men.

Thus did he afford to priests, whose vocation did not lead them to the Religious state, the great advantages of a common rule and mutual good example, which are such powerful aids both in the service of God and in the exercise of pastoral duties. But the holy Apostle was a man of too much faith not to have an esteem of the Religious life as a state of perfection. He never lost an opportunity of encouraging a vocation to that holy state. The Religious Orders were indebted to him for so many members, that his intimate friend and admirer, St. Ignatius of Loyola, used playfully to compare him to a bell, which calls others to the chapel (of the Religious life), yet never goes in itself!

The awful crisis of the 16th century, through which the Christian world had to pass, and which robbed the Catholic Church of so many provinces, was a source of keenest grief to St. Philip during the whole of his life. His heart bled at seeing so many thousands of souls fall into the abyss of error and heresy. He took the deepest interest in the efforts that were made to reclaim those that had been led astray by the pretended Reformation. He kept a watchful eye on the tactics wherewith Protestantism sought to maintain its ground. The Centuries of Magdeburg, for example, suggested to his zeal a counterbalance of truth. The Centuries was a series of historical essays, whereby the Reformers sought to prove that the Catholic Church had changed the ancient faith, and introduced superstitious practices in the place of those that were used in the early ages of Christianity. A work like this, with its falsified quotations, its misrepresentation and its frequent invention of facts, was destined to do great injury; and St. Philip resolved to meet it by a work of profound erudition—a true history, compiled from authentic sources.

One of the fathers of his Oratory, Caesar Baronius, was just the man for such an undertaking; and St. Philip ordered him to take the field against the enemy. The Ecclesiastical Annals were the fruit of this happy thought; and Baronius himself, at the beginning of Book VIII, acknowledges that St. Philip was the originator of the work. Centuries have passed away since then. It is easy for us, with the means which we now have, to detect certain imperfections in the Annals; at the same time, it is acknowledged on all sides that they form by far the truest and finest History of the Church of the first 1200 years—which is as far as the learned Cardinal went. Heresy felt the injury it must needs sustain by such a History. The sickly and untrustworthy erudition of the Centuriators could not stand before an honest statement of facts; and we may safely assert that the progress of Protestantism was checked by the Annals of Baronius, which showed that the Church was then as She had ever been—the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Tim. 3: 15).

St. Philip's sanctity and Baronius' learning secured the victory. Numerous conversions soon followed, consoling the Church for the losses She had sustained. And if in more recent times many have returned to the ancient Faith, it is but fair to attribute the movement (especially the Oxford movement), in part at least, to the success of the historical method begun by the Annals.

Prayer:

O God, who didst exalt blessed Philip, Thy Confessor, with Thy Saints in glory, mercifully grant, that we who rejoice in his festival may profit by the example of his virtues. Through our Lord . . .
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Monday, May 22, 2017
Minor Rogation 2017

This year the Minor Rogation, the days leading up to Ascension Thursday, are May 22-24 inclusive. Today is the first day of the Minor Rogation, a day which should be a day of fasting.

These were traditionally days of penance, fasting, and praying litanies. If you are in good health, please remember to observe these days. I am greatly encouraging them. For more information on Rogation days, see the links in my post entitled Rogation Day: Fasting and Penance.

I greatly encourage people to observe these days and spend time praying the Litany of Saints not only for a bountiful harvest but also for mercy and repentance.

Commemoration of the MASS OF ROGATION (1962 Missal)

Mercifully grant us our requests, O Lord, that the consolation we receive in our grievous troubles may increase our love for You.
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