| Welcome, Guest |
You have to register before you can post on our site.
|
| Online Users |
There are currently 287 online users.
» 0 Member(s) | 285 Guest(s)
Bing, Google
|
| Latest Threads |
Oratory Conference: Fr. H...
Forum: Conferences
Last Post: Deus Vult
4 hours ago
» Replies: 0
» Views: 24
|
Livestream: First Sunday ...
Forum: November 2024
Last Post: Stone
Yesterday, 07:43 AM
» Replies: 0
» Views: 61
|
Fr. Hewko's Mass: Thanksg...
Forum: November 2024
Last Post: Stone
Yesterday, 07:41 AM
» Replies: 0
» Views: 65
|
Heaven Opened by the Prac...
Forum: Our Lady
Last Post: Stone
Yesterday, 06:33 AM
» Replies: 0
» Views: 88
|
Thursday Night Holy Hour ...
Forum: Appeals for Prayer
Last Post: Stone
Yesterday, 05:57 AM
» Replies: 8
» Views: 2,305
|
Fr. Ruiz: Renewal of the ...
Forum: Rev. Father Hugo Ruiz Vallejo
Last Post: Stone
Yesterday, 05:05 AM
» Replies: 19
» Views: 1,822
|
Fr. Hewko's Sermons: St....
Forum: November 2024
Last Post: Stone
11-28-2024, 08:24 AM
» Replies: 1
» Views: 199
|
The Catholic Trumpet: Bis...
Forum: True vs. False Resistance
Last Post: Stone
11-28-2024, 08:24 AM
» Replies: 0
» Views: 123
|
The Editor of The Recusan...
Forum: Introduction to the Resistance
Last Post: Sacrificium
11-27-2024, 01:34 PM
» Replies: 1
» Views: 187
|
Feast of the Miraculous M...
Forum: Our Lady
Last Post: Stone
11-27-2024, 07:24 AM
» Replies: 1
» Views: 1,496
|
|
|
| Fauci Admits Mandates Are "Just A Mechanism" To Get More People Vaccinated |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-28-2021, 09:55 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular]
- No Replies
|
 |
Fauci Admits Mandates Are "Just A Mechanism" To Get More People Vaccinated
![[Image: IMG_8624-1.jpg?itok=Afrmn20D]](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/IMG_8624-1.jpg?itok=Afrmn20D)
ZH | DEC 28, 2021
Authored by Steve Watson via Summit News,
In an appearance Sunday Anthony Fauci admitted that vaccine mandates are merely a “mechanism” to coerce more Americans to take shots.
Appearing on ABC Sunday, Fauci noted “A vaccine requirement for a person getting on the plane is just another level of getting people to have a mechanism that would spur them to get vaccinated.”
The comments came as part of a discussion on applying vaccine mandates to air travel.
Far from following any ‘science’, Fauci admitted that “anything that could get people more vaccinated would be welcome.”
Watch:
In a follow up appearance Monday on CNN, Fauci admitted that vaccine mandates to fly is likely not going to happen, (because there is no science to it).
“Everything that comes up as a possibility we put it on the table and we consider it,” Fauci declared, adding “That does not mean that it is likely to happen. Right now I don’t think people should expect that we are going to have a requirement in domestic flights for people to be vaccinated.”
“It’s on the table, and we consider it, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to happen. I doubt if we are going to see something like that in the reasonably foreseeable future” Fauci added.
Watch:
Meanwhile, not content with cancelling Christmas… again, in another CNN interview, Fauci told Americans not to go to or host any new years parties where the vaccination status of any attendees is unknown.
“When you’re talking about a New Year’s Eve party with 30, 40, 50 people celebrating…stay away from that this year. There will be other years to do that, but not this year,” Fauci said.
|
|
|
| COVID Antiviral Pills Cause Life-Threatening Reactions With Many Common Meds |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-28-2021, 08:37 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular]
- No Replies
|
|
COVID Antiviral Pills Cause Life-Threatening Reactions With Many Common Meds
ZH | DEC 28, 2021
Last week, the FDA authorized two much-hyped antiviral treatments for COVID (just in time for Christmas): Merck's Molnupiravir and Pfizer's Paxlovid.
Almost immediately after the first data were released, critics were questioning the drugs' safety profile. But now that the first courses of these "miracle" drugs are finding their way into patients' bloodstreams, the mainstream media apparently now feels it's safe to share some of these criticisms with the public.
To wit, NBC News reports that these medications will require "careful monitoring" by prescribing doctors. This could create problems and make doctors more reluctant to prescribe the meds as the omicron-driven winter wave "pummels" America's supposedly creaking health-care system.
Quote:As the omicron surge pummels a pandemic-weary nation, the first antiviral pills for Covid-19 promise desperately needed protection for people at risk of severe disease. However, many people prescribed Pfizer’s or Merck’s new medications will require careful monitoring by doctors and pharmacists, and the antivirals may not be safe for everyone, experts caution.
As a reminder, the FDA only authorized Paxlovid - the Pfizer drug - to treat "mild to moderate" COVID in people as young as 12 who have underlying conditions that raise the risk of hospitalization and death.
Unfortunately, both Pfizer's and Merck's drugs come with some serious drawbacks, the biggest being that they can cause life-threatening reactions with widely used medications like statins - taken by people with high blood pressure - blood thinners, and even some antidepressants.
What's more, the FDA doesn't recommend Paxlovid for people who have severe liver and kidney disease.
The Merck drug hasn't even been approved because the experts are worried about potential side effects. Because of this, the FDA has restricted its use to adults, and only in scenarios in which other authorized treatments, including monoclonal antibodies produced by Regeneron and others, are inaccessible or are not "clinically appropriate."
Here's a more detailed explanation of how the Pfizer drug works, and why it might be hazardous for some (courtesy of NBC News):
Quote:The Paxlovid cocktail consists of two tablets of the antiviral nirmatrelvir and one tablet of ritonavir, a drug that has long been used as what is known as a boosting agent in HIV regimens. Ritonavir suppresses a key liver enzyme called CYP3A, which metabolizes many medications, including nirmatrelvir. In the case of Paxlovid treatment, ritonavir slows the body’s breakdown of the active antiviral and helps it remain at a therapeutic level for longer.
The boosting effect was likely to have been crucial in driving Paxlovid’s high effectiveness in clinical trials.
When Paxlovid is paired with other medications that are also metabolized by the CYP3A enzyme, the chief worry is that the ritonavir component may boost the co-administered drugs to toxic levels.
One expert chimed in to warn that these interactions involving Paxlovid are "not trivial".
Quote:"Some of these potential interactions are not trivial, and some pairings have to be avoided altogether," said Peter Anderson, a professor of pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. "Some are probably easily managed. But some we’re going to have to be very careful about."
Supplies of Paxlovid and Molnupiravir are scarce - for now, at least. But the production line is roaring and the two competitors say they hope to produce millions of courses of each medication during the coming year.
We have a question: if a patient dies from an interaction involving a COVID antiviral and their blood pressure medication, would that still be counted as a COVID death?
|
|
|
|
| CDC Makes Major Changes To Covid Isolation Recos, Treats Unboosted As Unvaxxed For Quarantines |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-28-2021, 08:18 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Secular]
- Replies (1)
|
|
CDC Makes Major Changes To Covid Isolation Recos, Treats Unboosted As Unvaxxed For Quarantines
ZH | DEC 27, 2021
And so, the "scientific" goal posts move again.
With even Biden this close to admitting defeat over covid, admitting today that "there is no Federal solution" before quietly getting out of Dodge, the CDC announced late on Monday that is slashing its previous self-isolation recommended period in half, and telling people who have Covid-19 to isolate themselves from others for 5 days if they aren’t experiencing symptoms, down from 10 days previously.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also said in a statement Monday that following the 5-day isolation period, people with Covid-19 should wear a mask for 5 days when they are around other people. The new guidance supplants previous recommendations that said people who have tested positive for the virus should isolate for 10 days.
While Omicron has been documented to be far more mild than prior versions of covid, cases are still expected to surge in the U.S. following the holidays, threatening confusion and chaos among who are infected or exposed to the virus. The shorter isolation and quarantine periods will allow people to return to work or school sooner than previously permitted.
The CDC said in its statement that the shift in guidance was motivated by scienceTM showing the majority of coronavirus transmission occurs early in the course of the illness, in the first day or two before the onset of symptoms and the two to three days that follow.
The CDC also updated its recommended quarantine period for people who have been exposed to Covid-19. For those who are unvaccinated or who are eligible for a booster shot but haven’t yet received one, the agency recommends a five-day quarantine, followed by strict use of a mask for five more days despite copious research demonstrating that masks have little impact on virus spread, and despite the fact that the cities with the most aggressive mask requirements have emerged as the biggest covid epicenters.
If a five-day quarantine isn’t feasible, an exposed person should wear a well-fitting mask, such as an N95, at all times when around others for 10 days after exposure, the CDC recommended.
Meanwhile, individuals who have received a booster shot don’t need to quarantine following an exposure, but should wear a mask for 10 days, the CDC said. If symptoms occur, individuals should quarantine until a negative test confirms that they don’t have Covid-19. Then again, if symptoms occur after taking a booster shot, perhaps it is time to realize that something is very wrong with the "expert" recommendations...
In other words, in a remarkable departure meant to stigmatize not just the unvaxxed but those without a booster shot, vaccinated but unboosted people are will now treated as "unvaccinated" when it comes to close contact quarantines. This, as a social worker noted on Twitter....
Quote:"would wreak havoc on school attendance for unboosted kids and teachers! I can't emphasize enough how this would totally derail the school year. All unboosted teachers would miss 5 days of school EVERY TIME one of their students test positive. And 12-15 year olds who are >6mo out from their 2nd dose aren't even booster eligible!"
According to Bloomberg, the new guidance "could entice more Americans to seek another dose of a vaccine", although with millions of "breakthrough" cases amid residual concerns about vaccine side-effects, it's unclear just how the billionaire's media empire came to this profound conclusion. Just under one-third of fully vaccinated people in the U.S. have received a booster, according to the CDC. We don't expect this number to rise substantially.
|
|
|
|
| Requiescat in pace: Mr. Rodney Leinen |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-27-2021, 04:02 PM - Forum: Appeals for Prayer
- No Replies
|
|
![[Image: ?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2Foriginal...f=1&nofb=1]](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2Foriginals%2F46%2F9f%2F0b%2F469f0b2ab708a4ad977fe5fae0ef4092.jpg&f=1&nofb=1)
Requiem aeternam dona ei Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace. Amen.
In your charity, please pray for the soul of Mr. Rodney Leinen who passed away on December 20th. His Requiem Mass is December 30th.
May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.
✠ ✠ ✠
The De Profundis - Psalm 129
Out of the depths I have cried unto Thee, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.
If Thou, O Lord, shalt mark our iniquities: O Lord, who can abide it?
For with Thee there is mercy: and by reason of Thy law I have waited on Thee, O Lord.
My soul hath waited on His word: my soul hath hoped in the Lord.
From the morning watch even unto night: let Israel hope in the Lord.
For with the Lord there is mercy: and with Him is plenteous redemption.
And He shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord And let perpetual light shine upon him. |
|
|
|
| On This Date 64 Years Ago... |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-26-2021, 08:35 AM - Forum: Resources Online
- No Replies
|
|
On This Date 64 Years Ago...
Taken from here.
![[Image: y58b4o68ankkqmrizesye3j4sxuwspbrb7fhigi....ormat=webp]](https://assistant.gloria.tv/FxK6pqhk7ZiS1AZwTDoBU6KMY/y58b4o68ankkqmrizesye3j4sxuwspbrb7fhigi.webp?format=webp)
This is the first part of the Message referring to Our Lady of Fatima; and the second part, which, although shorter, is no less important, refers to the Holy Father. ” - 26 December 1957, Sister Lucia interview with Father Agustín Fuentes Anguiano, Postulator of the Cause for Beatification of Francisco and Jacinta Marto, interviewed Sister Lucia. The interview was published in 1958 with an Imprimatur and the Approbation of the Bishop of Fatima, Bishop João Pereira Venâncio, as well as with an Imprimatur of his Archbishop, Manuel Pío López Estrada of Jalapa (Xalapa), Veracruz, México. See Frère Michel’s The Whole Truth About Fatima - Vol. III, pp. 503-508. Frère Michel explains that the text comes from Fatima scholar Father Joaquin Alonso’s La Verdad sobre el Secreto de Fatima, pp. 103-106, and from the text published by Father Ryan in the June 1959 issue of Fatima Findings and the No. 8-9 August-September 1961 issue of the Italian magazine Messaggero del Cuore di Maria:
“Father, the Most Holy Virgin is very sad because no one has paid any attention to Her message, neither the good nor the bad. The good continue on their way but without giving any importance to Her message. The bad, not seeing the punishment of God falling upon them, continue their life of sin without even caring about the message. But believe me, Father, God will chastise the world and this will be in a terrible manner. The punishment from Heaven is imminent.”
“Father, how much time is there before 1960 arrives? It will be very sad for everyone, not one person will rejoice at all if beforehand the world does not pray and do penance. I am not able to give any other details because it is still a secret. …This is the Third part of the Message of Our Lady which will remain secret until 1960.”
“Tell them, Father, that many times, the most Holy Virgin told my cousins Francisco and Jacinta, as well as myself, that many nations will disappear from the face of the earth. She said that Russia will be the instrument of chastisement chosen by Heaven to punish the whole world if we do not beforehand obtain the conversion of that poor nation.”
“Father, the devil is in the mood for engaging in a decisive battle against the Blessed Virgin. And the devil knows what it is that most offends God and which in a short space of time will gain for him the greatest number of souls. Thus, the devil does everything to overcome souls consecrated to God, because in this way, the devil will succeed in leaving souls of the faithful abandoned by their leaders, thereby the more easily will he seize them. That which afflicts the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Heart of Jesus is the fall of religious and priestly souls. The devil knows that religious and priests who fall away from their beautiful vocation drag numerous souls to hell. … The devil wishes to take possession of consecrated souls. He tries to corrupt them in order to lull to sleep the souls of laypeople and thereby lead them to final impenitence. He employs all tricks, even going so far as to suggest the delay of entrance into religious life. Resulting from this is the sterility of the interior life, and among the laypeople, coldness (lack of enthusiasm) regarding the subject of renouncing pleasures and the total dedication of themselves to God.”
“Tell them also Father, that my cousins Francisco and Jacinta sacrificed themselves because in all the apparitions of the Most Holy Virgin, they always saw Her very sad. She never smiled at us. This sadness, this anguish which we noted in Her penetrated our souls. This sadness is caused by the offences against God and the punishments which menace sinners. And so, we children did not know what to think except to invent various means of praying and making sacrifices. (...)“The other thing which sanctified these children was to see the vision of hell.”
“Father, that is why my mission is not to indicate to the world the material punishments which are certain to come if the world does not pray and do penance beforehand. No! My mission is to indicate to everyone the imminent danger we are in of losing our souls for all eternity if we remain obstinate in sin.”
“Sister Lucy also said to me: Father, we should not wait for an appeal to the world to come from Rome on the part of the Holy Father, to do penance. Nor should we wait for the call to penance to come from our bishops in our diocese, nor from the religious congregations. No! Our Lord has already very often used these means and the world has not paid attention. That is why now, it is necessary for each one of us to begin to reform himself spiritually. Each person must not only save his own soul but also all the souls that God has placed on our path...”
“The devil does all in his power to distract us and to take away from us the love for prayer; we shall be saved together or we shall be damned together.”
“Father, the Most Holy Virgin did not tell me that we are in the last times of the world but She made me understand this for three reasons.”
“The first reason is because She told me that the devil is in the mood for engaging in a decisive battle against the Virgin. And a decisive battle is the final battle where one side will be victorious and the other side will suffer defeat. Hence from now on we must choose sides. Either we are for God or we are for the devil. There is no other possibility.”
“The second reason is because She said to my cousins as well as to myself that God is giving two last remedies to the world. These are the Holy Rosary and Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. These are the last two remedies which signify that there will be no others.”
“The third reason is because, in the plans of Divine Providence, God always, before He is about to chastise the world, exhausts all other remedies. Now, when He sees that the world pays no attention whatsoever, then, as we say in our imperfect manner of speaking, He offers us with a certain trepidation the last means of salvation, His Most Holy Mother. It is with a certain trepidation because if you despise and repulse this ultimate means we will not have any more forgiveness from Heaven because we will have committed a sin which the Gospel calls the sin against the Holy Spirit. This sin consists of openly rejecting, with full knowledge and consent, the salvation which He offers. Let us remember that Jesus Christ is a very good Son and that He does not permit that we offend and despise His Most Holy Mother. We have recorded through many centuries of Church history the obvious testimony which demonstrates, by the terrible chastisements which have befallen those who have attacked the honour of His Most Holy Mother, how Our Lord Jesus Christ has always defended the honour of His Mother.”
“Sister Lucy told me: the two means to save the world are prayer and sacrifice.”
“Regarding the Holy Rosary, Sister Lucy said: Look, Father, the Most Holy Virgin in these last times in which we live has given a new efficacy to the recitation of the Rosary to such an extent that there is no problem, no matter how difficult it is, whether temporal or, above all, spiritual, in the personal life of each one of us, of our families, of the families of the world, or of the religious communities, or even of the life of peoples and nations that cannot be solved by the Rosary. There is no problem I tell you, no matter how difficult it is, that we cannot resolve by the prayer of the Holy Rosary. With the Holy Rosary, we will save ourselves. We will sanctify ourselves. We will console Our Lord and obtain the salvation of many souls.”
“Finally, devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Our Most Holy Mother, consists in considering Her as the seat of mercy, of goodness and of pardon, and as the certain door by which we are to enter Heaven.
|
|
|
|
| St. Alphonsus Liguori: Christmas Day Meditations |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-25-2021, 12:54 PM - Forum: Christmas
- No Replies
|
|
Christmas Day
![[Image: ?u=http%3A%2F%2Fstatic.guim.co.uk%2Fsys-...f=1&nofb=1]](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=http%3A%2F%2Fstatic.guim.co.uk%2Fsys-images%2FArts%2FArts_%2FPictures%2F2008%2F11%2F26%2Fat460.jpg&f=1&nofb=1)
Morning Meditation
"THIS DAY IS BORN TO YOU A SAVIOUR."
Behold I bring you good tidings of great joy that shall be to all the people, for this day is born to you a Saviour. (Luke ii. 10, 11).
Arise, all ye nobles and peasants! Mary invites all -- rich and poor, just and sinners, to enter the Cave of Bethlehem to adore, and to kiss the feet of her new-born Son. Come then, all ye devout souls -- come in and see the Creator of Heaven and earth on a little hay under the form of a little Infant; the power of God, as it were, annihilated, and the wisdom of God become mad, through excess of love! I come, then, dear Jesus, to kiss Thy feet and offer Thee my heart.
I.
Behold I bring you good tidings of great joy ... This day is born to you a Saviour! And what tidings could be a greater joy to a race of poor exiles condemned to death, than to be told that their Saviour was come, not only to deliver them from death, but to obtain for them liberty to return to their own country? And this is what the Angels announce to you: A Saviour is born to you! Jesus Christ is born to you to deliver you from everlasting death, and to open Heaven to you, our true country from which we were banished because of our sins.
No sooner had Mary entered the cavern than she began to pray; and the hour of her delivery being come, behold she sees a great light, and feels in her heart a heavenly joy. She casts down her eyes -- and, O God, what does she see? An Infant so tender and beautiful that He fills her with love! But He trembles and cries and stretches out His arms to show that He desires that she should take Him up into her bosom. "I stretched forth My hands to seek the caresses of My Mother," as Jesus said to St.Brigid. Mary calls Joseph. "Come Joseph, come and see, for the Son of God is now born." The old man entered, and prostrating himself, wept for joy.
Mary, holding Him to her bosom, adores Him as her God, kissing His face as her Child. She then hastily seeks to cover Him and wraps Him up in swaddling clothes. But, O God, how hard and rough these clothes are! They are the clothes of the poor, and they are cold and damp, and in that cave there is no fire to warm them.
Let us arise and enter, the door is open. There are no satellites to say that this is not the hour. The Cave is open and without guards or doors, so that all may go in when they please to seek Him and to speak to Him, and even to embrace their Infant King if they love and desire Him.
Lord, I should not have dared to approach Thee seeing myself so deformed by sin; but since Thou, my Jesus, dost invite me so courteously, and dost call me so lovingly, I will not refuse. After having so many times turned my back upon Thee I will not add a fresh insult by refusing, out of distrust, this affectionate, this loving invitation. It is true my heart offended Thee at one time, but now it is penitent. I confess that I have been a traitor, cruel and ungrateful, that it is I who have caused Thee to suffer so much and made Thee shed so many tears in the stable of Bethlehem, but Thy tears are my hope. I am a sinner, it is true, and I do not deserve to be pardoned, but I come before Thee, Who being God hast become a little Child to obtain pardon for me. Eternal Father, if I deserve hell, look upon the tears of Thy innocent Son. He asks Thee to pardon me this night, a night of joy, of pardon and salvation.
II.
Let every soul, then, enter the Cave of Bethlehem. Behold and see that tender Infant, Who is weeping as He lies in the manger on that miserable straw. See how beautiful He is: look at the light which He sends forth, and the love which He breathes; those eyes send out arrows which wound the hearts that desire Him; the very stable, the very straw cry out, says St. Bernard, and tell you to love Him Who loves you; to love God Who is infinite Love, and Who came down from Heaven, and Made Himself a little Child, and became poor, to make you understand the love He bears you, and to gain your love by His sufferings.
Come and say to Him: "Ah, beautiful Infant! tell me whose Child art Thou?" He replies: "My Mother is this pure and lovely Virgin who is standing by Me." "And Who is Thy Father?" "My Father," He says, "is God." "How is this? Thou art the Son of God, and art so poor; and why? Who will acknowledge Thee in such a condition? Who will respect Thee?" "Ah," replies Jesus, "holy Faith will make known Who I am, and will make Me loved by those whose souls I come to redeem and to inflame with My love." I am not come, says He, to make Myself feared, but to make Myself loved; and therefore I wished to show Myself to you for the first time as a poor and humble Infant, that, seeing to what My love for you has reduced Me, you might love Me the more. But tell me, my sweet Infant, why dost Thou turn Thine eyes on every side? What art Thou looking for? I hear Thee sigh; tell me wherefore are these sighs? O God! I see Thee weep; tell me wherefore dost Thou weep? Yes, replies Jesus, I turn My eyes around; for I am seeking for some soul that desires Me. I sigh out of desire to see Myself near to a heart that burns for Me, as I burn with love for it. But I weep; and it is because I see but few souls, who seek Me and, wish to love Me.
Come, then, O all ye devout souls. Jesus invites you to come and kiss His feet this night. The shepherds who came to visit Him in the stable of Bethlehem brought their gifts; you must also bring your gifts. What will you bring Him? The most acceptable present you can bring Him is that of a contrite and loving heart.
O Jesus, Thou must know that I am poor and that I have nothing to give Thee. I have nothing but my penitent heart. This I now offer Thee. Yes, O Infant, I repent of ever having offended Thee, and I hope for pardon from Thee. But the forgiveness of my sins alone is not sufficient for me. On this night Thou dost grant great spiritual graces; I also desire that Thou shouldst bestow a great grace on me -- it is, the grace to love Thee. Now that I am about to approach Thy feet, inflame me wholly with Thy holy love, and bind me to Thee; but bind me so effectually that I may never more be separated from Thee. I love Thee, O my God, Who didst become a little Child for my sake; but I love Thee very little; I desire to love Thee very much, and Thou hast to enable me to do it. I come, then, to kiss Thy feet, and I offer Thee my heart; I leave it in Thy hands; I will have it no longer; do Thou change it and keep it forever; do not give it back to me again; for if Thou dost, I fear lest it should betray Thee afresh.
Most holy Mary, thou who art the Mother of this great Son, but who art also my Mother, it is to thee that I consecrate my poor heart; present it to Jesus and He will not refuse to receive it when presented by thee. Do thou, then, present it, and beg Him to accept it.
Spiritual Reading
THE ETERNAL WORD, BEING GREAT, BECOMES LITTLE.
Plato says that love is the "loadstone of love."
Hence the Proverb: "If you wish to be loved, love." But, my Jesus, this rule, this Proverb holds good for others, holds good for all, but not for Thee! Thou art at a loss what further to do to show men the love Thou bearest them! And yet how many are there that love Thee? Alas, the greatest number, we may say nearly all, not only do not love Thee -- they offend Thee and despise Thee!
And shall we stand in the ranks of these heartless wretches? God has not deserved this at our hands -- that God, so good, so tender to us, Who, being great, has thought it fit to make Himself little in order to be loved by us.
To understand the immense love of God towards men in becoming Man and a feeble Child for our love, it would be necessary to comprehend His greatness. But what mind of man or Angel can conceive the Infinite greatness of God?
St. Ambrose says that to say God is greater than the heavens, than all kings, all Saints, all Angels, is to do an injury to God; just as it would be an injury to a prince to say that he was greater than a blade of grass, or a little fly. God is Greatness itself, and all greatness together is but the smallest atom of the greatness of God.
David, contemplating the divine greatness, and seeing that he could not and never would be able to comprehend it, could only say: O Lord, who is like to thee? (Ps. xxxiv. 10). O Lord, what greatness shall ever be found like Thine? And how in truth could David ever be able to comprehend it, since his understanding was but finite, and God's greatness infinite? Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and of his greatness there is no end (Ps. cxliv. 3). Do I not fill heaven and earth, saith the Lord (Jer. xxiii. 24). Thus all of us, according to our mode of understanding, are nothing but so many miserable little fishes, living in this immense ocean of the essence of God: In him we live and move and have our being (Acts xvii. 28).
What are we then in respect to God? And what are all men, all monarchs of earth, and even all Saints and all Angels of Heaven, compared with the infinite greatness of God? We are all like, or even smaller than, a grain of sand in comparison with the rest of the earth: Behold, says the Prophet Isaias, the Gentiles are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the smallest grain of a balance; behold, the islands are as a little dust ... All nations are before him as if they had no being at all (Is. xl. 15, 17).
Now this God so great has become a little Infant; and for whom? A child is born to us (Is. ix. 6): for us He is born. And wherefore? St. Ambrose gives us the answer: "He is a little One, that you may be a perfect man; He is bound in swaddling-clothes, that you may be unbound from the fetters of death; He is on earth, that you may be in Heaven."
Behold, then, Immensity Whom the heavens cannot contain, become an Infant: see Him imprisoned in poor rags, and laid in a narrow, vile manger on a bundle of Straw, which was at once His only bed and pillow. "See," says St. Bernard -- "see Power ruled, Wisdom instructed, Virtue sustained. God taking milk and weeping, yet comforting the afflicted!" A God Almighty so tightly wrapped in swathing-bands that He cannot stir! A God Who knows all things made mute and speechless! A God Who rules Heaven and earth needing to be carried in the arms! A God Who feeds all men and animals, Himself having need of a little milk to support Him! A God Who consoles the afflicted and is the joy of Paradise, Himself weeps and moans and has to be comforted by a creature!
For this, then, did the Eternal Word become Man. For this, moreover, He became an Infant. Little children are loved. To see them is to love them.
St. Peter Chrysologus writes: "How should our Lord come, Who wished to drive away fear and to seek love? What breast so savage as not to soften before such a Childhood as this? What hardness will it not subdue; what love does it not claim? Thus, therefore, He wished to be born Who willed to be loved and not feared." The Saint would say that if our Redeemer had come in order to be feared and respected by men, He should have come as a full grown Man and with royal dignity, but because He came to gain our love He chose to come and to show Himself as an Infant, and the poorest of infants, born in a cold stable between two animals, laid in a manger on straw, without clothing or fire to warm His shivering little limbs: "thus would He be born Who willed to be loved and not feared." Ah, my Lord! what was it that drew Thee from Heaven to be born in a stable? It was love, the love Thou bearest towards men. What took Thee from the right hand of Thy Father, where Thou sittest, and placed Thee in a manger? What snatched Thee from Thy throne above the stars, and made Thee to lie on a little straw? What changed Thy position from amidst the Angels, to be placed betwixt two beasts? It was all the work of love; Thou inflamest the Seraphim, and dost Thou not shiver with cold? Thou supportest the heavens, and must Thou be now carried in the arms? Thou providest food for men and beasts, and now dost Thou crave a little milk to sustain Thy life? Thou makest the Seraphim happy, and now dost Thou weep and moan? What has reduced Thee to such misery? Love has done it: "Thus would He be born Who willed to be loved and not feared."
Love, then, love, O souls, exclaims St. Bernard, love now this little Child, for He is exceedingly to be loved. "Great is the Lord, and exceedingly to be praised. The Lord is little, and exceedingly to be loved." Yes, says the Saint, this God, existing from eternity, is worthy of all praise and reverence for His greatness, as David has sung: Great is the Lord and exceedingly to be praised (Ps. cxliv. 3). But now that we behold Him become a little Infant, needing milk, and unable to move Himself, trembling with cold, moaning and weeping, looking for some one to take and warm and comfort Him; ah, now indeed does He become the most cherished One of our hearts! "The Lord is little, and exceedingly to be loved!"
We ought to adore Him as our God, but our love ought to keep pace with our reverence towards a God so amiable, so loving.
St. Bonaventure reminds us that "a child finds its delights with other children, with flowers, and to be in the arms." The Saint's meaning is, that if we would please this divine Infant, we too must become children, simple and humble; we must bring to Him flowers of virtue, of meekness, of mortification, of charity; we must clasp Him in the arms of our love.
And, O man, adds St. Bernard, what more do you wait to see before you will give yourself wholly to God? See with what labour, with what ardent love, your Jesus has come down from Heaven to seek you. Hearken, how, though scarcely yet born, His wailings call to you as if He would say: O soul, it is thee I am seeking! For thee and to obtain thy love, I am come from Heaven to earth. "Having scarcely quitted the Virgin's womb," says the Saint, "He calls thy beloved soul after the manner of infants: A! A! anima mea, anima mea, te quaero! Ah! Ah! my soul, my soul, I am seeking Thee! For thee I am making this pilgrimage!"
O God, even the very brutes, if we do them a kindness, if we give them some trifle, are so grateful for it; they come near us, they do our bidding after their own fashion, and they show gladness at our approach. And how comes it, then, that we are so ungrateful towards God, the same God Who has bestowed His whole Self upon us, Who has descended from Heaven to earth, and has become an Infant to save us and to be loved by us.
Come, let us love the Babe of Bethlehem! is the enraptured cry of St. Francis. Let us love Jesus Christ Who has sought in the midst of such sufferings to attach our hearts to Him.
Evening Meditation
THE BIRTH OF JESUS IN BETHLEHEM.
I.
The birth of Jesus Christ brought universal joy to the whole world. He was the Redeemer Who had been desired and sighed after for so many years; and therefore He was called the Desired of the nations, and the Desire of the eternal hills. Behold Him already come, and born in a little cave. Let us consider that this day the Angel announces to us also the same great joy that he announced to the shepherds: Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, that shall be to all the people; for this day is born to you a Saviour (Luke ii. 10).
What rejoicing there is in a country when the heir is born to a king! But surely we ought to keep still greater festival when we see the Son of God born and come down from Heaven to visit us, urged to this by the tenderness of His mercy: Through the bowels of the mercy of our God, in which the Orient from on high hath visited us (Luke i. 78). We were lost; and behold Him Who came to save us: He came down from Heaven for our salvation (Symb. Nic.). Behold the Shepherd Who came to save His sheep from death by giving His life for their sake: I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd giveth his life for his sheep (John x. 11). Behold the Lamb of God, Who came to sacrifice Himself, to obtain for us the divine favour, and to become our Deliverer, our Life, our Light, and even our Food in the most Holy Sacrament!
I have gone astray like a sheep that is lost; seek thy servant (Is. ix. 6). O Lord I am that sheep which, by following after my own pleasures and caprices, have miserably lost myself; but Thou, Who art at once the Shepherd and divine Lamb, art He Who came down from Heaven to save me by sacrificing Thyself as a victim on the Cross in satisfaction for my sins. Behold, the Lamb of God; behold him who taketh away the sins of the world (Ps. cxviii. 176). If, therefore, I desire to amend my life, what need I fear? Why should I not confide entirely in Thee, O my Saviour, Who wert born on purpose to save me? Behold, God is my saviour; I will put my trust in him, and will not fear (Is. xii. 2). What greater proof couldst Thou give me of Thy mercy, O my dearest Redeemer, to inspire me with confidence, than to give me Thyself? O my dear Infant, how grieved I am that I have offended Thee! I have made Thee weep in the stable of Bethlehem. But since Thou are come to seek me, I throw myself at Thy feet; and although I behold Thee afflicted and humbled, lying upon straw in the manger, I acknowledge Thee for my supreme King, and Sovereign. I feel that Thy tender infant-cries invite me to love Thee, and demand my heart. Behold, my Jesus, I present it today at Thy feet; change it and inflame it, O Thou Who didst come into the world to inflame the hearts of men with Thy holy love.
II.
St. Maximus says that for this reason amongst others, Christ chose to be laid in the manger where the animals were fed, to make us understand that He had become Man also to make Himself our Food: "In the manger, where the food of animals is placed, He allowed His limbs to be laid, thereby showing that His own body would be the eternal Food of men." Besides this, He is born every day in the Blessed Sacrament in the hands of the Priest at holy Mass; the Altar is the Crib, and there we go to feed ourselves on His flesh. Some one might desire to have the holy Infant in his arms, as the aged Simeon had; but Faith teaches us that, when we receive Communion, the same Jesus Who was in the manger of Bethlehem is not only in our arms, but in our breasts. He was born for this purpose, to give Himself entirely to us: A child is born to us, a son is given to us (Is. ix. 6).
I hear Thee, O my Jesus, say to me in Thy manger: Love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart (Is. xii. 2). And I will answer: Ah, my Jesus, if I do not love Thee, Who art my Lord and my God, whom shall I love? Thou callest Thyself mine, because Thou wert born in order to give Thyself entirely to me; and shall I refuse to be Thine? No, my beloved Lord, I give myself entirely to Thee; and I love Thee with my whole heart. I love Thee, I love Thee, I love Thee, O sovereign Good, the one only Love of my soul. I beseech Thee accept me this day, and do not permit me evermore to cease to love Thee. O Mary, my Queen, I pray thee, through that consolation which thou didst enjoy the first time thou didst behold thy new-born Son and didst give Him thy first kiss, beseech Him to accept me for His servant, and to enchain me forever to Himself by the gift of His holy love.
|
|
|
|
| It is those of little faith and the Godless who fear. |
|
Posted by: SAguide - 12-24-2021, 10:57 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Spiritual]
- No Replies
|
 |
CS Lewis wrote this in 1942...
• Young man to the devil: "How did you manage to send so many people to hell?"
• The devil: "Through fear."
• The young man: "Good for you! And what were they afraid of? Wars? Hunger?"
• The devil:" No... illness."
• The young man: "Did they get sick? Did they die? Was there no cure?"
• The devil: "They didn't get sick. They just died. And there was a cure..."
• The young man: "I do not understand..."
• The devil: "They believed that the only thing they had to keep at all costs was Life!"
They stopped hugging, stopped greeting each other. They left all human contacts... They left everything that was human!
They ran out of money.
They lost their jobs.
They chose to fear for their lives, even if they had nothing to eat.
They believed what they heard, read newspapers and blindly believed they were reading the truth.
They gave up their freedom.
They never left their homes again.
They didn't go anywhere.
They never visited friends and family again.
The whole world has become a huge prison with *convicted volunteers*.
They voluntarily accepted everything! All this to experience another miserable day...
They did not live, they died every day! It was too easy to take away their miserable souls..."
~ CS Lewis, The Screwtape Letters, "Letters to the Soulmaster" (1942)
|
|
|
|
| A French-Canadian Christmas: Holiday Traditions from the Era of New France and Beyond |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-24-2021, 10:00 AM - Forum: Resources Online
- No Replies
|
|
A French-Canadian Christmas: Holiday Traditions from the Era of New France and Beyond
French-Canadian Geneologist [secular source]
It’s that time of year… Christmas cards, decorations, Christmas trees, over-indulgence and, to the delight of some and the chagrin of others, non-stop holiday music everywhere. These “traditions” are all fairly recent. As a genealogist and history-geek, I’ve often thought about my French-Canadian ancestors and how they might have celebrated the Christmas holidays centuries ago. Did they come together with friends and family as we do? Or was Christmas mostly a religious holiday?
![[Image: image-asset.jpeg?format=500w]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5bb6661d8dfc8c1836526d3a/1576622142747-D4CPXAB88LNXFM1NM7IX/image-asset.jpeg?format=500w)
“Habitants going to Christmas Market”, 1842 watercolour by Millicent Mary Chaplin (Library and Archives Canada).
For Catholic New France, Christmas was a rather solemn religious ceremony celebrating the birth of Christ, with traditions brought over from France. In 1640, the Ursuline nuns in Québec made their own nativity manger, with small figurines and animals made of beeswax. In 1645, French colonists got together in a Québec church to celebrate midnight mass, sing “Venez, mon Dieu” and “Chantons Noé”, an ancient Christmas song, and unveil a nativity manger. Musical instruments were brought over from France as early as 1645 but were mostly played by (or for) the upper classes during the holidays.
While Christmas wasn’t exactly a joyous affair, New Year’s Day certainly was. Over the centuries, however, the whole of the holiday season became a time for French Canadians to let loose with friends and family—to dance a jig, sing old songs, tell stories and entertain children with marionettes. This was, after all, the end of a long period of abstinence and penitence imposed by the church during Advent. Christmas was the start of a series of evening festivities that lasted until the Feast of Kings, celebrated on January 6th (also called Three Kings’ Day or Epiphany). These were the “twelve days of Christmas”. Most of these traditions were common across French-Canadian groups: Québécois, Franco-Ontarians and Acadians.
![[Image: Messe%2Bde%2Bminuit.jpg?format=750w]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5bb6661d8dfc8c1836526d3a/1576622974798-MWFUZKKGOHU3XK1EC2KM/Messe%2Bde%2Bminuit.jpg?format=750w)
“Midnight Mass”, 1880 drawing appearing in L’Opinion Publique (BAnQ numérique).
Preparations for the holiday period started weeks in advance, especially for those living in the country. Around the second week of December, once the cold had set in, it was time for “the butchery”. Chickens, geese, turkeys, pigs and sheep were slaughtered in order to make the meat dishes. This could take as long as 3 or 4 days. Then, women prepared traditional dishes such as ragoût de pattes de cochon (pig’s feet stew), boudin (blood sausage), creton (a pork spread), tourtières (meat pies), ham, head cheese, beignets and other pastries. As refrigerators didn’t exist, the food was kept in the “summer kitchen”, an unheated room adjoining the house. Preserved vegetables such as cabbage, carrots, parsnips and radishes could also be served during the holidays, having been grated and salted in the fall. To prepare the vegetables, they would be rinsed, then seasoned with vinegar, pepper and sometimes maple syrup.
After the meal preparation was over, the women would make candles from the leftover animal fat. The candles were used to light houses and a portion was donated to light the parish church.
More privileged families had access to imported goods for the holidays. Prior to 1850, ships from Europe and the Caribbean would arrive at the end of November. Those living along the shores of the St. Lawrence would sell their slaughtered animals or prepared meat dishes at the various markets of Québec, Trois-Rivières and Montréal. With the sale proceeds, they could buy exotic imported goods from the ships. Aside from the pantry basics such as sugar, brown sugar, molasses, vinegar, olive oil and spices, they could buy cheese, nuts, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and sweets. Starting in 1850, goods also arrived by train from the United States. Canned goods started to appear, especially canned seafood. The English especially loved oysters and included them in many of their holiday dishes.
![[Image: En%2Broute%2Bpour%2Bla%2Bmesse%2Bde%2Bmi...ormat=500w]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5bb6661d8dfc8c1836526d3a/1576630876437-MBC7IWHO3E8LN7WYXP61/En%2Broute%2Bpour%2Bla%2Bmesse%2Bde%2Bminuit.jpg?format=500w)
“En route to Midnight Mass”, 1900 drawing by Paul Caron (BAnQ numérique)
Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve was an important tradition that many still observe today. Bundled up for the cold, the whole family would go to the village church in a horse-drawn sleigh, with the exception of the mother, the grandmother or the eldest daughter. Someone had to stay home to watch over the children (only those over 14 or 15 could go to mass) and ensure that last-minute preparations were made for the réveillon (the “awakening”), the meal eaten at midnight. In this era, each family had their own dedicated pew in the church, which was well-light by all the candles and decorated for the occasion. High mass would be performed, then low mass. The priest would recite prayers and the congregation would sing old Christmas songs, some dating from the Middle Ages. In more recent times, “Minuit chrétien” (O Holy Night) was performed. Three masses were then conducted, each followed by a well-known Christmas carol: Les anges dans nos campagnes (Angels We Have Heard on High), Ça bergers and Dans cette étable. Once services were over, villagers would exchange Christmas greetings and head home to the réveillon, in which children also participated.
![[Image: 1919+Le+retour+de+la+messe+de+minuit.jpg?format=750w]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5bb6661d8dfc8c1836526d3a/1576631311228-Q2RIQWW3JBPN6QGU86VM/1919+Le+retour+de+la+messe+de+minuit.jpg?format=750w)
“The Return from Midnight Mass”, 1919 painting by J. Edmond Massicotte (BAnQ numérique)
The midnight meal was welcomed after the fasting of Advent. For some French-Canadian families, a light meal would be served consisting of meat pâtés and a few accompaniments before going to bed. For others, a more generous dinner included tourtières (meat pies), roast pork, potatoes and pastries. Common holiday desserts included a nutmeg-flavoured egg tart, a tarte à la farlouche (molasses pie), tallow pie, sugar pie, white or apple cider vinegar pie, cookies and Savoy cakes. For Acadians, pâté à la viande (cousin to the meat pie) was the main dish and a special dessert called croquecignoles was prepared (a kind of doughnut dough was rolled lengthwise, then cut into six-inch pieces that were twisted and cooked in melted fat; over time it became known simply as a doughnut). For English Canadians, the meat of choice was normally roasted and stuffed goose, served alongside mince pie, which was filled with poultry, pheasant, partridge and rabbit. Eventually, turkey replaced the goose. For dessert, plum pudding and fruitcake were favourites.
![[Image: 1881%2BLe%2Bre%25CC%2581veillon%2Bde%2BN...rmat=1000w]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5bb6661d8dfc8c1836526d3a/1576631760810-EDYZ0HN137T0JGGYAFYZ/1881%2BLe%2Bre%25CC%2581veillon%2Bde%2BNoe%25CC%2588l%2Ba%2Bla%2Bcampagne%2B-%2BLOpinion%2BPublique%2BBAnQ.jpg?format=1000w)
“Christmas réveillon in the country”, 1881 drawing appearing in L’Opinion Publique (BAnQ numérique)
Christmas Day for French Canadians was a relatively quiet affair, when families rested, played card games and received visits from a few friends or family members. Many families also had a unique lunch, served only on this day—a pig’s head, boiled and roasted for the occasion, which was served whole on the table.
Another réveillon took place on New Year’s Eve (or Day, depending on the mealtime). The following day, the tradition was to visit friends and family to offer well wishes, and children would receive gifts. As was the case in France, gift-giving took place on January 1st, not on Christmas (same goes for English families). Baby Jesus was the one who brought children their gifts. Until the late 19th century, New Year’s Day was more popular with French Canadians than Christmas. Another tradition no longer seen today was the customary New Year’s Day morning blessing by the father of the household.
“The Morning of New Year’s Day”, 1887 drawing appearing in Le Monde Illustré (BAnQ numérique)
On La fête des Rois (Feast of the Kings), celebrated on the 6th of January, a final holiday meal would be shared by the family. A galette des Rois (puff pastry filled with frangipan, a type of almond cream) would be served for dessert. A small item would normally be hidden inside the galette, like a bean or a penny in more recent times. Whoever found the “treasure” would receive a small gift. After the meal, friends, family and neighbours would gather to sing, dance and play music with violins, accordions and harmonicas.
![[Image: 1897+Arbre+de+noel+-+Le+Monde+illustre%C...ormat=500w]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5bb6661d8dfc8c1836526d3a/1576633264544-ZYKNSQJ4A3E2PXTLZVQQ/1897+Arbre+de+noel+-+Le+Monde+illustre%CC%81.jpg?format=500w)
“The Christmas Tree”, 1897 drawing appearing in Le Monde illustré (BAnQ numérique)
After the British conquest of New France, not much changed by way of Christmas tradition. The one exception was the arrival of the Christmas tree. Originally a German custom, it made its way to the United States. In 1781, a British General of German descent, Von Riedesel planted the first Christmas tree on Canadian soil in Sorel, Québec. The practice of decorating Christmas trees, however, was generally limited to bourgeois families. It only became popular in French-Canadian families around 1930.
The biggest transition came from 1885 to 1915, when a more commercialized Christmas tradition made its way from the United States to Canada. Stores in Montreal began advertising heavily and the character of “Santa Claus” was introduced to children. Slowly, Santa replaced Baby Jesus as the distributor of toys for children, and Christmas dethroned New Year’s Day as the favourite holiday, as more and more children received gifts on Christmas instead. New English, French and American traditions found their way to Canada, such as Christmas stockings, Christmas cards, decorated Christmas trees, eating turkey, etc. This period also signalled the change of Christmas as a religious holiday to an increasingly commercial one. Québec nationalists and conservatives fiercely objected to the commercialization of Christmas at the time, stating the holidays were being distanced from catholic morals. For most anglophone families in Canada, this transition to a more commercialized Christmas took place in the late 19th century. For francophones, however, traditions did not change until the end of World War I. This also coincided with the name change of “Santa Claus” to “Père Noël” in Québec (which translates to Father Christmas). Many French Canadians associated “Santa Claus” with Germany, so efforts were made to "indigenize" Santa after the war.
![[Image: 1893+L%27arbre+de+Noe%CC%88l+la+distribu...ormat=500w]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5bb6661d8dfc8c1836526d3a/1576633904079-0TP0GAI4L1OLQAG5YBZC/1893+L%27arbre+de+Noe%CC%88l+la+distribution+faite+par+Papa+Santa+Claus+-+Le+Monde+Illustre+BAnQ.jpg?format=500w)
“Distribution by Father Santa Claus”, 1893 drawing appearing in Le Monde Illustré (BAnQ numérique)
Children in Québec and Acadia had a custom of leaving their shoes near the chimney for Baby Jesus (and later Santa) to fill with toys. In some Québec families, children would attach stockings to the foot of their bed. This tradition ended in the 1930s when Christmas trees became prevalent and gifts were left under the tree.
|
|
|
|
| Meditations, Thoughts, and Prayers for Christmas Eve |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-24-2021, 09:51 AM - Forum: Christmas
- Replies (1)
|
|
![[Image: ?u=https%3A%2F%2Fpaintingvalley.com%2Fim...f=1&nofb=1]](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fpaintingvalley.com%2Fimages%2Fjourney-to-bethlehem-painting-4.jpg&f=1&nofb=1)
Tu scendi dalle stelle ~ You Come Down from the Stars
by St. Alphonsus de Liguori
You come down from the stars
Oh King of Heavens,
And you come in a cave
In the cold, in the frost.
And you come in a cave
In the cold, in the frost.
Oh my Divine Baby
I see you trembling here,
Oh Blessed God,
Ah, how much it cost you,
Your loving me.
Ah, how much it cost you,
Your loving me.
For you, who are of all the world
The creator,
No robes and fire,
Oh my Lord.
No robes and fire,
Oh my Lord.
Dear chosen one, little infant
This dire poverty,
Makes me love you more
Since Love made you
Poor now.
Since Love made you
Poor now.
Christmas Eve
Saint Joseph goes to Bethlehem with His Holy Spouse
by St. Alphonsus de Liguori
Ascendit autem et Joseph . . . ut profittretur cutit Maria desponsata sibi uxore preegnantt.
"And Joseph also went up . . . to be enrolled with Mary his espoused wife, who was with child."--St. Luke, ii. 4.
God had decreed that His Son should be born not in the house of Joseph, but in a cavern and stable of beasts, in the poorest and most painful way that a child can be born; and therefore He caused Caesar to publish an edict, by which people were commanded to go and enroll themselves, every one in his own city whence he drew his origin.
When Joseph heard this order, he was much agitated as to whether he should take with him or leave behind the Virgin Mother, as she was now so near childbirth. My spouse and my lady, said he to her, on the one hand, I do not wish to leave you alone; on the other, if I take you with me, I am much afflicted at the thought of all that you will have to suffer during this long journey, and in such severe weather. My poverty will not permit me to conduct you with that comfort which you require. But Mary answers him, and tries to give him courage with these words: My Joseph, do not fear. I will go with you; the Lord will assist us. She knew, both by divine inspiration, and also because she was well versed in the prophecy of Micheas, that the divine Infant was to be born in Bethlehem. She therefore takes the swaddling-clothes, and the other miserable garments already prepared, and departs with Joseph. And Joseph also went up . . . to be enrolled with Mary.
Let us now consider all the devout and holy discourses which these two holy spouses must have held during this journey concerning the mercy, goodness and love of the divine Word, who was shortly to be born, and to appear on the earth for the salvation of men. Let us also consider the praises, the benedictions, the thankgs-givings, the acts of humility and love, which these two illustrious pilgrims uttered on the way. This holy Virgin, so soon to become a mother, certainly suffered much in so long a journey, made in the middle of winter, and over rough roads; but she suffered with peace and with love. She offered to God all these her trials uniting them to those of Jesus, whom she carried womb.
Oh, let us unite ourselves also, and let us accompany Mary and Joseph in the journey of our life; and, with them, let us accompany the King of Heaven, Who is born in a cave, and makes His first appearance in the world as an infant, but as the poorest and most forsaken infant that ever was born amongst men. And let us beseech Jesus, Mary, and Joseph that, through the merits of the pains which they suffered in this journey, they would accompany us in the journey that we are making to eternity. Oh, blessed shall we be if, in life and in death, we keep company with these three great personages, and are always accompanied by them!
Affections and Prayers
My beloved Redeemer, I know that in this journey Thou wast accompanied by hosts of angels from heaven; but on this earth who was there that bore Thee company? Thou hadst but Joseph and Mary who carried Thee with her. Refuse not, O my Jesus! that I also accompany Thee. Miserable ungrateful sinner that I have been, I now see the injuries I have done Thee; Thou didst come down from heaven to make Thyself my companion on earth, and I by my frequent offences have ungratefully abandoned Thee!
When I remember, O my Savior! that for the sake of my own cursed inclinations I have often separated myself from Thee and renounced Thy friendship, I could wish to die of sorrow. But Thou didst come into the world to forgive me: therefore forgive me now, I beseech Thee, for I repent with all my soul of having so often turned my back upon Thee and forsaken Thee. I purpose and hope, through Thy grace, nevermore to leave or separate myself from Thee, O my only love! My soul has become enamoured of Thee, O my amiable Infant God! I love Thee, my sweet Saviour; and snce Thou hast come upon earth to save me and to dispense to me Thy graces, I ask this one only grace of Thee, permit me not to be ever again separated from Thee. Unite me, bind me to Thyself, enchain me with the sweet cords of Thy holy love.
O my Redeemer and my God, who will then have the heart to leave Thee, and to live without Thee, deprived of Thy grace?" Most holy Mary, I come to accompany thee in this journey; and thou, O my Mother, cease not to accompany me in the journey that I am making to eternity. Do thou assist me always, but especially when I shall find myself at the end of my life, and near that moment on which will depend either my remaining always with thee to love Jesus in paradise, or my being forever separated from thee and hating Jesus in hell. My Queen, save me by thy intercession; and may my salvation be to love thee and Jesus forever, in time and in eternity. Thou art my hope; I hope everything from thee.
Christmas Eve Prayer
from The Liturgical Year, 1910
O Divine Infant! we, too, must needs join our voices with those of the Angels, and sing with them: Glory be to God! and Peace to men! We cannot restrain our tears at hearing this history of Thy Birth. We have followed Thee in Thy journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem; we have kept close to Mary and Joseph on the whole journey; we have kept sleepless watch during this holy Night, waiting Thy coming. Praise be to Thee, sweetest Jesus, for Thy mercy! and love from all hearts, for Thy tender love of us! Our eyes are riveted on that dear Crib, for our Salvation is there; and there we recognise Thee as the Messias foretold in those sublime Prophecies, which Thy Spouse the Church has been repeating to us, in her solemn prayers of this Night. Thou art the Mighty God--the Prince of Peace--the Spouse of our souls--our Peace--our Saviour--our Bread of Life. And now, what shall we offer thee? A good Will?
Ah! dear Lord! Thou must form it within us; Thou must increase it, if Thou hast already given it; that thus, we may become Thy Brethren by grace, as we already are by the human nature Thou hast assumed. But, O Incarnate Word! this Mystery of Thy becoming Man, works within us a still higher grace:--it makes us, as Thy Apostle tells us, partakers of that divine nature, which is inseparable with Thee in the midst of all Thy humiliations. Thou hast made us less than the Angels, in the scale of creation; but, in Thy Incarnation, Thou hast made us Heirs of God, and Joint-Heirs with Thine own divine Self! Never permit us, through our own weaknesses and sins, to degenerate from this wonderful gift, whereby Thy Incarnation exalted us, and oh! dear Jesus, to what a height! Amen
Spiritual Advice for the Coming Holidays
by Father Francis Xavier Weninger, 1876
More than once during the year I have advised you, sometimes to take an hour, in which, setting aside all other cares, you should earnestly consider the state of your soul, and ponder well whether you can hope for salvation from the life you lead. In the same hour you should also carefully think how you ought to live in future, in order to gain salvation. As I am decidedly of opinion that this is an excellent means to live piously and save one's soul, I must once more return to this subject. No time is better adapted for making use of this means than the approaching Christmas. The holidays will give you a good opportunity to do so. It is your duty to keep them holy; and how can you do this better than by employing them to this purpose? I will more fully explain to you in what manner this should be done.
Place yourself in spirit before the lowly manger of the Divine Infant, and devoutly pass one hour in the following manner:
First, beg of the Almighty God to bestow on you the grace to recognize all the sins and faults of which you have become guilty. After this, think how you have acted towards God during the past year, and thus occupy the first half hour. During the second half hour, think how you will act in future towards your God. After this, examine your conscience, as follows:
I. Whether you have every day thought of the end and aim of your life, and if you have endeavored to live accordingly?
II. Whether you have served God zealously, or, on the contrary, have been indolent and negligent in His service?
III. Whether you have given due thanks to the Almighty for all the favors bestowed upon you, and whether you have sighed and fervently wished to be united to Him?
IV. Whether in your good works you have had a good intention?
V. Whether you have, in everything, submitted to the divine will, or have sometimes murmured and complained against the decrees of God?
VI. Whether you have regularly said your morning and evening prayers, assisted at Holy Mass, and at the sermons, or out of laziness have neglected to do so?
VII. Whether you have behaved in church with due reverence?
VIII. How often and with what preparation you have gone to Confession and Holy Communion?
IX. Whether you have daily made the acts of Faith, Hope and Charity?
X. Whether you have not sinned against Faith, by reading or keeping heretical books; by voluntary doubts about the articles of faith; by deriding the laws of the Church and its ceremonies; by giving ear to words against the articles of faith, or the usages of the Church?
XI. Whether you have not sinned against Hope, by presumption, or, on the contrary, by faint-heartedness or despair?
XII. Whether you have not sinned against Charity, by contempt of God, or blasphemies against Him, dishonoring His holy Name, or the holy Sacraments, or by vows and resolutions made, but not kept?
XIII. Have you kept the Sundays and Holy Days; and have you have enjoined those in your charge to keep them?
XIV. Whether you have sometimes read a devout book; whether you have been ashamed of your religion, or of public devotions, or have manifested this exteriorly?
XV. Whether you have made little account of sin, and especially disregarded venial sins, and have committed them without any hesitation?
These and other similar points consider well, and earnestly endeavor to repent of the faults you have committed, and most humbly beg God to pardon you. After this examination and repentance, think of what you have to correct in your conduct, and make your resolutions accordingly. Then again, revolve one point after another in your mind, and make earnest resolutions to correct your faults. After having done this, pray humbly to God to give you grace faithfully to keep your resolutions. Invoking the Blessed Virgin and other holy Patrons for this purpose, will be of great assistance to you. This is the way to spend the hour on the first holiday. On the second, again choose a suitable hour, and after having prayed fervently to the Almighty to enlighten you, think how your conduct has been towards your neighbor during the year. For example:
I. Whether you have loved your neighbor for the sake of God, and as you have loved yourself? Whether your love was a truly Christian love, or only a natural or sensual love, such as is also found among the heathens?
II. Whether you have nourished a dangerous, scandalous, or sinful love and affection for any one?
III. Whether you have assisted your neighbor according to your means, especially the poor?
IV. Whether you have borne enmity or hatred towards any one, and remained long in it? Whether you have pardoned your neighbor the wrong he had done you, and have outwardly manifested this to him by the usual marks of kindness?
V. Whether you have wronged your neighbor by lying, stealing, defrauding, or in any other manner; whether you made debts and neglected to pay them?
VI. Whether you have not lessened or delayed the payment of artisans, day-laborers, servants or others?
VII. Whether you have not committed sin by defaming the character of others, or by giving ear to slanders?
VIII. Whether you have not sinned against charity by blaming your neighbors' actions, or by putting evil constructions upon them?
IX. Whether you have scorned, derided, or rashly judged your neighbor, suspected him of doing wrong, and revealed your suspicion to others whom it did not concern?
X. Whether you have not affronted and scolded your neighbor, or spoken unkind words? Whether you have wished him evil?
XI. Whether you have not envied your neighbor's good fortune, or rejoiced in his misfortune?
XII. Whether you have not given scandal to your neighbor by deeds, words, immodest dresses, impure speeches and songs, or in any other manner?
XIII. Whether you have not kept him from doing good, incited him to sin? Whether you have not become guilty in any other manner of the sins of others, assisted them in doing wrong, not prevented it, not punished it, kept silence, or perhaps even helped them to hide it, given them the opportunity, or defended them?
XIV. Parents should examine themselves, how they have conducted the education of their children; and children, whether they have shown due honor, love and obedience to their parents?
Lastly, masters and magistrates should think how they have treated their servants, and those in their charge. Servants and all those in inferior stations, should examine themselves as to their conduct towards those above them. On these and other points examine yourself carefully, repent with your whole heart, and humbly ask God to pardon your sins. After this, consider earnestly in which of the above points you should, in future, correct yourself. Make new resolutions; offer them to the Almighty, and pray for grace to keep them. In this manner the hour of the second holiday may be occupied.
On the third holiday, take another hour at the most convenient time. Pray fervently to the Lord to assist you with His grace, that you may recognize how you have acted towards yourself during the year. After this, begin to examine your conscience. Ask yourself, for example, as follows:
I. Whether you have earnestly labored for the salvation of your soul; or, on the contrary, have thought but little of it, and therefore have been very little, or not at all, solicitous about it?
II. Whether you have not postponed your conversion from day to day?
III. Whether you have not sinned against purity in thought, word, or deed?
IV. Whether you have not voluntarily placed yourself in danger of sin, and remained in it, or are still at this moment in it?
V. Whether you have been intemperate in your eating and drinking?
VI. Whether you are not addicted to violence of temper, to vanity, to avarice, or idleness?
VII. Whether you have not a passion for gaming, or a similar vice, to the detriment of your family?
VIII. Whether you have employed the temporal goods God gave you to the end and aim for which you received them?
IX. Whether you have passed your time in idleness, or evildoing?
X. Whether you have been careless in correcting your evil inclinations or habits, or in observing your resolutions?
XI. Whether you have not neglected many opportunities to do good?
XII. Whether you have been careless and negligent in the fulfillment of the duties of your station in life?
XIII. Whether your conscience is troubled with anything that would give you great fear if you were to die today?
XIV. Lastly, examine yourself how you have kept the commandments of God and of the Church. Whether you have not, under one pretext or another, endeavored to evade them, or even, after the example of some wicked persons, transgressed them without shame?
After this should follow, as on the preceding days, an act of earnest repentance, and humble prayer to be forgiven. During the second half of the hour, consider which of the above points you have specially to correct; make good resolutions, and pray to God for grace to keep them. Regarding the resolutions which you should make, I would counsel you to write them, if not all, at least the most important, to read them every month, and examine how you have kept them. The benefit you will derive from this is greater than you imagine.
You have here, my dear reader, a short instruction for employing usefully one hour on each of the three holidays, for the salvation of your soul before the manger of the Divine Infant.
The last days of the year we should employ, first, in giving due thanks to God for every blessing He has bestowed upon us during the year. Secondly, in most earnestly repenting of our sins, and praying for pardon; in doing good, and making the resolution to serve God, in the coming year, with all our strength, and to work with zeal for our salvation. To this end, put three questions to yourself: " How has the Lord acted towards me during the past year? How have I behaved towards my God? What shall my conduct be towards God in future? The answer which your conscience will give to the first question will incite you to gratitude; the answer to the second will cause you to repent of your sins and beg pardon; while the answer to the third will awaken in you the earnest resolution to better your life.
I do not doubt that you will yourself recognize the usefulness of such devotional exercises, and if you value your salvation, you will determine to practice them yearly. You have, during the year, given too many hours to the enjoyment of your body, to the care of numberless temporal affairs, to say nothing of the time you misused in offending God and injuring your soul. Hence, employ now three short hours in the above manner for the salvation of your soul. Could I ask for anything more reasonable? "Having given whole months and years to our body, let us employ a few days for the benefit of our souls;" thus admonishes St. Peter Chrysologus, whose words I have already cited to you elsewhere.
|
|
|
|
| Christmas Greetings from The Catacombs |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-24-2021, 09:12 AM - Forum: The Catacombs: News
- No Replies
|
|
The Catacombs would like to wish you all a blessed Christmas and a Holy New Year in 2022.
In this Dark Night of our Church and our world, may the innocence and purity that shines forth from our Infant King, our Prince of Peace, strengthen in our hearts the true Catholic Faith and may we be blessed with an ever greater devotion to His Holy Mother so that we will be found faithful servants when the Reign of Her Immaculate Heart begins!
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, do I give unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid. St. John 14:27
These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you shall have distress: but have confidence, I have overcome the world. St. John 16:33
Be nothing solicitous; but in every thing, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your petitions be made known to God. [7] And the peace of God, which surpasseth all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Phillipians 4:6-7
|
|
|
|
| Christmas Hymn: Verbum Caro Factum Est |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-24-2021, 08:17 AM - Forum: Christmas
- No Replies
|
|
Verbum Caro Factum Est
Verbum Caro Factum Est is an old Latin Christmas carol that glorifies the Blessed Virgin. In the coldest season of the year, Life is born from the Virgin who, ever untarnished, brings forth the glory of God made man. Through our Blessed Mother the Word is made flesh. Through her Son the world is redeemed from sin.
Verbum Caro Factum Est is a medieval hymn of unknown authorship.
It is here performed by the Taverner choir
Listen to Verbum Caro Factum Est: https://www.traditioninaction.org/religi...Verbum.mp3
Latin Lyrics:
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine,
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine Maria.
In hoc anni circulo,
Vita datur seculo,
Nato nobis Parvulo de Virgine,
Nato nobis Parvulo de Virgine Maria.
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine,
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine Maria.
Quos vetustas suffocat,
Et ad vitam revocat,
Natus se deus collocat in Virgine,
Natus se deus collocat in Virgine Maria.
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine,
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine Maria.
Stella solem pertulit,
Sol salutem contulit,
Nihil tamen abstulit de Virgine,
Nihil tamen abstulit de Virgine Maria.
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine,
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine Maria.
Sine viri copula,
Florem dedit ungula,
Qui manet in secula cum virgine,
Qui manet in secula cum Virgine Maria.
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine,
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine Maria.
Die hac sanctissima,
Omnibus dignissima,
Nobis datur gloria de Virgine,
Nobis datur gloria de Virgine Maria.
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine,
Verbum caro factum est de Virgine Maria.
English Translation:
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin,
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin Mary.
In this season of the year,
Life was given to the world,
An Infant was born for us from the Virgin,
An Infant was born for us from the Virgin Mary.
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin,
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin Mary.
What was dead in the old times,
He recalled to life,
When God was born from the Virgin,
When God was born from the Virgin Mary.
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin,
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin Mary.
Through this Star born of the Sun,
The Sun brought salvation,
Nothing was removed from the Virgin,
Nothing was removed from the Virgin Mary.
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin,
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin Mary.
Without knowing man,
This flower bloomed,
And she remained forever as a virgin,
And she remained forever as the Virgin Mary.
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin,
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin Mary.
On this most holy day,
The most dignified among all days,
We should glorify the Virgin,
We should glorify the Virgin Mary.
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin,
The Word was made flesh of the Virgin Mary.
![[Image: P062_Verb-1.jpg]](https://www.traditioninaction.org/religious/images_P/P062_Verb-1.jpg)
![[Image: P062_Verb-2.jpg]](https://www.traditioninaction.org/religious/images_P/P062_Verb-2.jpg) |
|
|
|
| Christmas Hymn: In Dulce Jubilo |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-24-2021, 08:14 AM - Forum: Christmas
- No Replies
|
|
In Dulce Jubilo
Latin and German Christmas Carol
In Dulce Jubilo (In Sweet Joy) is a 14th century Christmas song. According to legend, a German mystic, Dominican Brother Heinrich Suso, was visited by angels and invited to sing with them in praise of the Child Jesus. He remembered the angelic song and recorded the following verses incorporating two languages (Latin and German).
Several English translations have been made over the centuries, with many retaining the Latin verses. Below iyou will find the original German and Latin form of the carol, along with an English translation. It is sung by the Leipzig Thomaner Choir.
Listen to In Dulce Jubilo: https://www.traditioninaction.org/religi..._Dulce.mp3
Lyrics:
In dulci jubilo,
Nun singet und seid froh.
Unsers Herzens Wonne,
Leit in praesepio,
Und leuchtet als die Sonne,
Matris in gremio.
Alpha est et O,
Alpha est et O.
O Jesu parvule,
Nach dir ist mir so weh.
Tröst mir mein Gemüte,
O puer optime,
Durch alle deine Güte,
O princeps gloriae,
Trahe me post te,
Trahe me post te.
Ubi sunt gaudia,
Nirgend mehr denn da?
Da die Engel singen,
Nova cantica,
Und die Schellen klingen,
In Regis curia.
Eia, wären wir da,
Eia, wären wir da.
Translation:
In sweet joy,
Now sing and be glad.
Our hearts delight,
In the manger.
It shines like the sun,
He is in His Mother's lap.
He is the Alpha and Omega,
He is the Alpha and Omega.
O tiny Jesus,
I have longed so much for Thee.
But now my mind is comforted,
O best of boys,
Through all Thy goodness,
O prince of glory,
Draw me after Thee,
Draw me after Thee.
Where are joys
In any place but there?
The angels sing,
New songs,
And the bells ring
In the King's court.
O, it is as if we were there.
O, it is as if we were there.
![[Image: P019_InDulce.jpg]](https://www.traditioninaction.org/religious/images_P/P019_InDulce.jpg) |
|
|
|
| Vatican Issues Vaccine Mandate for All Employees, Visitors |
|
Posted by: Stone - 12-24-2021, 08:08 AM - Forum: Pandemic 2020 [Spiritual]
- No Replies
|
|
Vatican Issues Vaccine Mandate for All Employees, Visitors
THOMAS D. WILLIAMS, PH.D. | 23 Dec 2021
ROME, Italy — The Vatican has eliminated the possibility of employees presenting a negative coronavirus test to gain access to their place of work, insisting that only proof of vaccination or recovery from the coronavirus disease will be admitted.
A Vatican decree Thursday signed by Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin states that the obligation of presenting a vaccine passport (Super Green Pass) to go to work applies to all personnel of the Roman Curia and institutions linked to the Holy See as well as external collaborators, visitors to the Vatican City State, and outside workers.
In a particularly severe paragraph, Cardinal Parolin declares that personnel without a valid green pass “will not be able to access the workplace and will be considered unjustifiably absent, with the consequent suspension of pay for the duration of the absence” and will be subject to the further consequences that such an absence would incur.
As of January 31, 2022, those who provide Vatican service in contact with the public must present “documentation proving the administration of the booster dose following the primary cycle of vaccination.”
The decree mentions no exemptions for conscientious objection based on moral considerations.
In its 2021 evaluation of the morality of taking the coronavirus vaccines, the Vatican’s doctrinal office (CDF) concluded that the vaccines are morally permissible but that the choice to receive or not receive the vaccine must be considered “voluntary.”
|
|
|
|
|
![[Image: covid%20recos.jpg?itok=ae8E7Z3N]](https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/styles/inline_image_mobile/public/inline-images/covid%20recos.jpg?itok=ae8E7Z3N)
![[Image: ?u=https%3A%2F%2Fvidalcuglietta.com%2Fwp...f=1&nofb=1]](https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fvidalcuglietta.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F08%2Fnativity-scene-painting-beautiful-interfaith-ramadan-the-nativity-scene-through-art-history-of-nativity-scene-painting.jpg&f=1&nofb=1)
![[Image: 1887%2BLe%2Bjour%2Bde%2Bl%2527an%2Bau%2B...rmat=1000w]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5bb6661d8dfc8c1836526d3a/1576632019312-NR52IWIICH38P9SYIHF9/1887%2BLe%2Bjour%2Bde%2Bl%2527an%2Bau%2Bmatin%2B-%2BLe%2BMonde%2BIllustre%2BBAnQ.jpg?format=1000w)
![[Image: C_041_Xmas-2017.jpg]](https://www.traditioninaction.org/Questions/Images/C_041_Xmas-2017.jpg)
