December 10th - Transalation of the Holy House of Loreto and St. Eulalia of Merida

[Elizabeth]

Translation of the Holy House of Loreto
(1291, 1294)

Towards the end of the thirteenth century, the terrible news reached Europe that the Holy Land was lost to the Christians, who during two centuries had been able to maintain the Latin kingdom there by virtue of their repeated Crusades. But at the time the Church was deploring this painful loss, a new joy was given them: the holy house of Nazareth — site of the birth of the Mother of God, of Her early education and of the Annunciation by the Angel Gabriel of the wondrous news of the Incarnation of the Son of God — had been found, transported miraculously, near Tersatz in Dalmatia (Yugoslavia) on May 10th of the year 1291. Between Tersatz and nearby Fiume, the residents of the region beheld one morning an edifice, in a location where never had any been seen before. After the residents of the region talked among themselves of the remarkable little house surmounted by a bell tower, and which stood without foundations on the bare ground, describing its altar, an ancient statue of Our Lady, and other religious objects which their wondering eyes had seen within it, another surprise came to astound them once more.

Their bishop suddenly appeared in their midst, cured from a lingering illness which had kept him bedridden for several months. He had prayed to be able to go see the prodigy for himself, and the Mother of God had appeared to him, saying, in substance: My son, you called Me; I am here to give you powerful assistance and reveal to you the secret you desire to know. The holy dwelling is the very house where I was born... It is there that when the announcement was brought by the Archangel Gabriel, I conceived the divine Child by the operation of the Holy Spirit. It is there that the Word was made flesh! After My decease, the Apostles consecrated this dwelling, illustrated by such elevated mysteries, and sought the honor of celebrating the August Sacrifice there. The altar is the very one which the Apostle Saint Peter placed there. The crucifix was introduced by the Apostles, and the cedar statue is My faithful image, made by the hand of the Evangelist Saint Luke... Your sudden return to health from so long an illness will bear witness to this prodigy. Nicolas Frangipane, governor of the territory of Ancona, was absent, but when the news was carried to him, he returned from a war in order to verify its authenticity. He sent to Nazareth, at the eastern limits of the Mediterranean Sea, the bishop and three other persons, to examine the original site of the house. Indeed the house was no longer there, but its foundations remained and were found conformable in every detail of dimension and substance, to the stones at the base of the house now in Dalmatia. The testimony of the delegates was drafted according to legal formalities, and confirmed by a solemn oath.
Then, after three years spent in Dalmatia, the house disappeared. Paul Della Selva, a holy hermit of that period and of the region of Ancona, wrote: During the night of December 10th, a light from heaven became visible to several inhabitants of the shores of the Adriatic Sea, and a divine harmony woke them that they might contemplate a marvel exceeding all the forces of nature. They saw and contemplated a house, surrounded by heavenly splendor, transported through the air. The angelic burden was brought to rest in a forest, where again the local residents were able to contemplate the signal relics which it contained. The antique Greek crucifix mentioned by Our Lady was made of wood, and attached to it was a canvas on which the words Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews, were painted. The cedar statue of the Virgin had been painted also; she wore a red robe and a blue cloak and held the Infant Jesus in Her arms. His right hand was raised in blessing; His left hand held a globe, symbol of His sovereign power.

The story was far from ended. The house moved again, after robbers began to intercept pilgrims coming through the forest to visit the marvel. Twice more it rose from its place, the first time coming to rest on a private terrain, which became then a source of dispute between two brothers; and finally on a hilltop where a dusty and uneven public road became its permanent site. For centuries the people of Dalmatia came across the sea on pilgrimage, often crying out to Our Lady and Her House to come back to them! Finally in 1559, after one such visit by 300 pilgrims, the Sovereign Pontiff had a hospice built at Loreto for families who preferred to remain near the house, rather than return to a land deprived of its sacred presence.
The reddish-black stones of the house are a sort entirely foreign to Italy; the mortar cementing them is again entirely different from the volcanic-ash-based substance used in that country. The residents of the region put up a heavy brick wall to support the house, which was exposed to the torrential rains and winds of the hilltop and was completely without foundation. But no sooner was that wall completed, than they came back one morning to find it had moved away from the house, as if to express its reverence, to a distance which permitted a small child to walk around it with a torch in hand. The Author of the miracle wanted it to be well understood that He who had brought it without human assistance, was capable also of maintaining it there where He had placed it, without human concourse.

The episodes concerning the Translation of the Holy House, all duly verified, were consigned in documents borne to Rome to the Sovereign Pontiffs at various epochs. Pope Sixtus IV declared that the house was the property of the Holy See, and assigned duties to a specified personnel named to be its custodians. By Pope Leo X the indulgence applicable to the visit of several churches of Rome was accorded also to a pilgrimage to Loreto. Eventually a magnificent basilica was built around the house, which within the basilica was itself enhanced by a white marble edicule. Pope Clement IX in 1667, placed the story of the House in the Roman Martyrology for the 10th of December under the title: At Loreto, in the territory of Ancona, translation of the Holy House of Mary, Mother of God, in which the Word was made flesh. Pope Benedict XIV, a prodigious scholar before he became Pope, established the identity of the house with that of Nazareth, against its detractors, and later worked for the embellishment of the August sanctuary. The feast of Our Lady of Loreto is observed in many provinces of the Church, inscribed in the Proper of their dioceses by their bishops.

Saint Eulalia of Merida
Child Martyr
(† 303)

Saint Eulalia was a native of Merida, in Spain. The daughter of Christian parents, she was taught in her childhood by a very holy priest of that city. She was but twelve years old when the bloody edicts of Diocletian were issued. Her parents, knowing of her vow of virginity and fearing that her zeal would cause her to be a victim of the persecutions, sent her to their house in the country. Eulalia indeed escaped, as they feared, and returned to the city to present herself, with her young companion and Christian friend, Julie, before the cruel Calpurnianus, representing the viceroy of Diocletian. She reproached him for attempting to destroy souls, by compelling them to renounce the only true God.

The officer commanded that she be seized, and at first tried to win her over by flattery. Failing in this, he had her flogged and resorted to threats, causing the most dreadful instruments of torture to be placed before her eyes, and saying to her: All this you shall escape, if you will but touch a little salt and frankincense with the tip of your finger. Provoked by these seducing flatteries, our Saint threw down the idol before her, and trampled upon the cake placed there for the sacrifice. At the judge's order, two executioners tore her tender sides with iron hooks, so as to leave the very bones bare, then tortured her with burning torches, and dragged her by her hair to the site of execution. She said to the cruel persecutor, Calpurnianus, look well at me so that you may recognize me on the day of the Final Judgment, when both of us will appear before Jesus Christ, our common Lord, I to receive the reward of my torments, and you, the chastisement of your inhumanity toward the Christians. She was covered with hot coals; the fire caught in her hair and surrounded her head and face, and she suffocated amid the smoke and flames. The persecutor commanded that her body be left untended for three days, but Providence covered it with a blanket of snow, which seemed to whiten it and give it a marvelous beauty.

The Christians buried Saint Eulalia in Merida. Later her body was transported to Oviedo, Spain, where it was placed in a chapel dedicated to her memory, within the large church. She is the patroness of that city, and many graces have been received when her relics are transported in processions in times of public necessity.

[Stone]

December 10 – St. Melchiades, Pope and Martyr
Taken from The Liturgical Year, authored by Dom Prosper Gueranger (1841-1875)

The Church makes a Commemoration, on this day, of the holy Pope Melchiades. This illustrious Pontiff, whom St. Augustine calls the true child of the peace of Jesus Christ, the worthy Father of the Christian people, ascended the papal throne in the year 311, that is, during the very fiercest storm of persecution. It is on this account that he is honored with the title of Martyr. Though he did not shed his blood for the name of Jesus, yet he shared in the glory of the Martyrs, by reason of the great trials he had to suffer during the persecution, which afflicted the entire Church. It was the same with many of his precedessors. But the Pontificate of Melchiades marks a very important period of the Church—the transition from persecution to peace. As early as the year 312, liberty had been granted to the Christian religion by Constantine. So that Melchiades had the glory of governing the Church at the commencement of her period of temporal prosperity. His name now graces the calendar of the liturgical year, and reminds us of that Peace which will soon descend upon us from heaven.

Deign then, O Father of the Christian people, to pray for us to the Prince of Peace, that, in his approaching visit, he may quell our troubles, remove the obstacles to his grace, and reign as absolute Master over our heart, our mind, and our senses. Pray also that Peace may reign in the Holy City and Church of Rome, of which thou wast the Bishop, and which will honor thy venerable memory to the end of time: help her by thy intercession now that thou art face to face with God, and hear the prayers which she addresses to thee.

Prayer

Infirmatatem nostram respice, omnipotens Deus, et quia pondus propriæ actionis gravat, beati Melchiadis Martyris tui atque Pontificis intercessio gloriosa nos protegat. Per Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

Have regard, O almighty God, to our weakness; and as we sink under the weight of our own doings, let the glorious intercession of blessed Melchiades, thy Martyr and Bishop, be a protection to us. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

[Stone]

December 10 – Translation of the Holy House of Loretto

Taken from The Liturgical Year by Dom Prosper Gueranger (1841-1875)

This feast is not one of those which is inserted in the universal calendar of the Church; but it is kept at Rome and in the Papal States, in Tuscany, in the Kingdom of Naples, in Spain, in Belgium, in a great many dioceses in all parts of the Christian world, and by almost all the Religious Orders. It was instituted in thanksgiving for the great favor bestowed on the Western Church whereby God, to console Christians for the loss of the Holy Sepulcher, miraculously translated into a Catholic land the humble yet ever venerable House in which Mary received the message of the Angel, and where, by the consent of this Holy Virgin, the Word was made flesh and began to dwell among us. It is no unusual thing to meet with Catholics who are sincerely devoted to their holy faith, yet who have never heard of the House of Loretto. It is for their sakes that we have resolved to take the opportunity of this Feast to give an exact and concise account of this wonderful event. We take it from the learned and judicious author of the Life of M. Olier.

“It was during the Pontificate of Celestine V, in 1291, when the Christians had irrevocably lost the Holy places of Palestine, that the House, wherein was achieved the mystery of the Incarnation in the womb of Mary, was translated by the Angels from Nazareth into Dalmatia or Sclavonia, and placed by them on a hill near a little town called Tersatto. The miracles which were continually being wrought in this holy house, the official inquiry made by chosen deputies who visited Nazareth in order to attest the Translation, and, lastly, the universal belief of all countries and the pilgrims who went from all parts to venerate a Sanctuary which had ever been dear to Christians—all this seemed proof enough of the miracle. But God gave another testimony, of which the whole people of Italy and Dalmatia were the vouchers.

 
“Three years and seven months had elapsed since this first translation when, in the year 1294, the Holy House was carried across the Adriatic Sea to the territory of Recanati, and placed in a forest the property of a lady called Loretta. The inhabitants of Dalmatia were in the deepest affliction: nothing could have been a greater trial to them. As a slight consolation to themselves, they erected a church on the spot where the house had stood; it was dedicated to our Lady, and was served, later on, by the Franciscan Fathers. Over the porch was placed this inscription: This is the place where stood the Holy House of Nazareth, which now is honored in the territory of Recanati (“Hic est locus in quo fuit sacra Domus Nazarena, quæ nunc in Recineti partibus colitur.”). Many of the people of Dalmatia went to live in Italy near the Holy House, where they instituted the Society of Corpus Domini (known under the name of Sclavonians), which lasted even to the Pontificate of Paul III.

“This second Translation was soon rumored throughout Christendom. There came from almost every part of Europe innumerable pilgrims to Recanati, that they might visit the House, which has ever since gone under the name of The House of Loretto. The people of Recanati, anxious that every doubt upon this favor granted them should be removed, sent over, first to Dalmatia and afterwards to Nazareth, sixteen of the most respectable persons of the neighborhood, who were instructed to make fresh inquiries in both places. But here again, God would certify the prodigy by a third and a fourth Translation, which were made, close upon each other, in the same territory of Recanati. The Holy House had been in the forest of Loretto eight months, when it was found that the pilgrims were continually attacked by brigands, who were attracted to the neighborhood by the hope of booty. The house was miraculously removed the distance of a mile, and placed on a piece of rising ground, which belonged to two brothers of the family of the Antici. These also laid hands on the offerings of the pilgrims; and having quarrelled about the division of their plunder, they took up arms against each other. Then it was that the Holy House, in the year 1295, was once more translated: this time also to a very short distance, but near the high road. There has been built the town of Loretto, and there, to this day, remains the House of Loretto.”

This prodigy has been attested not only by the annalists of the Church, and by the local historians of Loretto (e.g., Tursellini and Martorelli), but by writers whose profound learning has gained them a world-wide reputation, and among them we may cite Papebroke, Natalis Alexander, Benedict XIV, Trombelli, &c. Who, that is not blind with prejudice, could seriously think of preferring an idle repugnance to the authority of such writers as these, who are the received masters of historical criticism, and whose united opinion would not be rejected on any other question?
But in a Catholic point of view, it is certain that those persons would be guilty of excessive temerity, who would disregard the countless miracles which have been wrought in the Holy House of Loretto. They dare not deny all these miracles; and yet, by denying the fact in question, they are admitting that God is giving his sanction by miracles to what would be, if false, the most absurd and grossest deception. They would incur the imputation of temerity on another ground, inasmuch as they would be slighting the authority of the Holy See, which has been, for upwards of six hundred years, so zealous in defending the truth of this Translation, and in offering it to the veneration of the faithful as a means of honoring the Incarnate Word and his ever Blessed Mother. Among the explicit approbations of the Holy See regarding the miracle of Loretto, we will mention the Bulls of Paul II, of Leo X, of Paul III, of Paul IV, and of Xystus V; the Decree of Urban VIII, in 1632, establishing this Feast in the Marche of Ancona; the Decree of approving the Proper Office the Indults of Benedict XIII, and his successors, extending this feast to the several provinces of the Catholic world.

That we may enter into the spirit of the Holy See, which has spared nothing in order to encourage the confidence of the faithful in the Holy House of Nazareth, or rather (as by the divine mercy it has now become) the House of Loretto, we will give the following from the Office of its miraculous Translation:
 

Antiphon

Ecce tabernaculum Dei cum hominibus, et habitavit cum eis; et ipsi populus ejus erunt, et ipse Deus cum eis erit eorum Deus.
Behold the tabernacle of God with men, wherein he dwelt with them; and they shall be his people, and God himself with them shall be their God.

℣. Introibimus in tabernaculum ejus.
℣. We will go into his tabernacle.

℟. Adorabimus in loco ubi steterunt pedes ejus.
℟. We will adore in the place where his feet stood.

Prayer

Deus, qui beatæ Mariæ Virginis Domum per incarnati Verbi mysterium misericorditer consecrasti, eamque in sinu Ecclesiæ tuæ mirabiliter collacasti: concede, ut segragati a tabernaculis peccatorum, digni efficiamur habitatores domus sanctæ tuæ. Per eumdem Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

O God, who didst mercifully consecrate the House of the Blessed Virgin Mary by the mystery of the Word made Flesh, and hast now mercifully placed that House in the middle of thy Church; grant, that being separated from the abodes of sinners, we may be made worthy to dwell in thy holy house. Through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

[Stone]

December 10 – St. Eulalia, Virgin and Martyr

Taken from The Liturgical Year by Dom Prosper Gueranger (1841-1875)

The Church of Spain, the fair pearl of Christendom, brings before us on this same tenth of December her illustrious Martyr Eulalia, the glory of Merida, the ornament of Iberia, the joy of the universal Church. She is the third of those Wise Virgins, whose names are most prominent in the Church’s liturgy during the season of Advent. She is the worthy companion of Bibiana, and Barbara, and that heroic Lucy whose feast we shall keep on the thirteenth. We give the whole of the beautiful poem on the life and martyrdom of Eulalia, written by Prudentius. Never, perhaps, did this prince of Christian poets write finer verses than these; nor can we be surprised that the Mozarabic Liturgy, in its admiration of this exquisite canticle, should have made but one Hymn of its forty-five stanzas. As it gives the Life of our Saint, we shall not add the Legend of the Proper Office as used in the Churches of Spain.

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Hymn

Eulalia, noble by birth, but still nobler by her death, was born at Merida; and this city the holy virgin adorns with her relics, and cherishes with her loving protection.

Where the sun sets, there lies the birth-place of this splendid heroine: it is a powerful and populous city, but its proudest title to fame is that there the Saint shed her blood, and there rests her shrine.

But thrice four winters had passed over Eulalia, when she braved the fierce tortures of fire, and made her executioners tremble by her courage, suffering as though it were sweet to suffer.

Already had she proved to men that she would have no Spouse but God, and that earthly nuptials were too poor for her. Though but a girl, she despised the toys and sports of children.

Perfumes and wreaths of roses, and golden trinkets, all were beneath her. Her look demure, her gait modest, her whole conduct, even at that tender age, as though the gravity of old age were upon it.

But when a rabid persecution began to threaten the servants of God, and the Christians were commanded to burn incense and the flesh of victims before the dead gods of the pagans.

Oh! then did Eulalia’s soul chafe within her, and her high spirit thirst for the battle! She, a girl, defies the threats of men that talk of war, for her heart pants after God.

But her fond mother trembles for her courageous child, and insists on her keeping at home. She takes her into the country, as far as may be from the city, lest the dauntless child, that longed to die for Christ, should seek to purchase that glory at the price of her blood.

she ill brooks this quiet, this shelter which seems to her so unchristian: the night comes on; she is alone; she forces open the doors, and escaping from her inclosure, she tends she knows not whither.

The paths are rugged, and thorns prick her feet at every step; yet on she goes, with Angels in her company. All is silent in the dark grim night; but she has light which leads her.

As our fathers, that brave Hebrew band, had of old a pillar of light, which piercing the murky gloom of night, led them on by its bright blaze, and turned darkness into day;

So this holy maid; in her midnight journey, God gave her light; and as she fled from the land of Egypt, to enter into that of heaven, she was not hindered by the darkness.

Many a mile had she walked with her hasty step, before the day-dawn broke upon the world: and scarce had morn begun, when there stood before the tribunal, amidst the ensigns of the empire, the fearless Virgin.

“What madness is this,” she cried, “which makes you lose your unthinking souls? wasting away your love in adoring these chiseled lumps of stone, while you deny God the Father of all?”

“O wretched men! you are in search of the Christians: lo! I am one; I hate your worship of devils: I trample on your idols; and with heart and mouth I acknowledge but one God.

“Isis, Apollo, Venus, all are nothing; Maximian, too, is nothing; they, because they are idols; he, because he worships idols; both are vain, both are nothing.

“Maximian calls himself lord, and yet he makes himself a slave of stones, ready to give his very head to such gods. And why does he persecute them that have nobler hearts?

“This good Emperor, this most upright Judge, feeds on the blood of the innocent. He gluts himself on the bodies of the saints, embowelling those temples of purity, and cruelly insulting their holy faith.

“Do thy worst, thou cruel butcher; burn, cut, tear asunder these clay-made bodies. It is no hard thing to break a fragile vase like this. But all thy tortures cannot reach the soul.”

At these words the Prætor, maddening with rage, cried out: “Away, Lictor, with this senseless prattler, and punish her in every way thou canst. Teach her that our country’s gods are gods, and that our sovereign’s words are not to be slighted.

“Yet stay, rash girl! Would I could persuade thee to recall thy impious words before it is too late! Think on all the joys thou thus wilt obtain; think on that noble marriage which we will procure thee.

“Thy family is in search of thee, and thy noble house weeps and grieves after thee, their tender floweret so near its prime, yet so resolved to wither.

“What! are nuptials like these I offer not enough to move thee? Wilt thou sent the grey hairs of thy parents into the tomb by thy rash disobedience? Tremble at least at all these fearful instruments of torture and death.

“There is a sword which will sever thy head; there are wild beasts to tear thee to pieces; there are fires on which to burn thee, leaving to thy family but thy ashes to weep over.

“And what do we ask of thee in order that thou mayest escape these tortures? Do, I beseech thee, Eulalia, touch but with the tip of thy finger these grains of salt and incense, and not a hair of thy head shall be hurt.”

The Martyr answered him not: but full of indignation, spat in the tyrant’s face; then, with her foot, upsets idols, cakes, and incense.

Scarce had she done it, two executioners seize her: they tear her youthful breast, and, one an each side, cut off her innocent flesh even to the very ribs. Eulalia counts each gash, and says:

“See, dear Jesus, they write thee on my flesh! Beautiful letters, that tell of thy victory! O, how I love to read them! So, this red stream of my blood speaks thy holy name!”

Thus sang the joyous and intrepid virgin; not a tear, not a moan. The sharp tortures reach not her soul. Her body is all stained with the fresh bloos, and the warm stream trickles down the snow-white skin.

But this was not the end. It was not enough to plough and harrow up her flesh: it was time to burn: torches, then, are applied to her sides and breast.

Her beauteous locks dishevelled fell veiling her from worse than all their butchery, the stare of these wretches.

The crackling flame mounts to her face, and, running through her hair, surrounds and blazes over her head. The virgin, thirsting for death, opens her mouth and drinks it in.

Suddenly is seen a snow-white dove coming from the martyr’s mouth, and flying up to heaven. It was Eulalia’s spirit, spotless, eager, innocent.
Colla fluunt, abeunte anima,

Her soul is fled: her head droops, the fire dies out: her lifeless body sleeps in peace, while her glad spirit keeps feast in its ethereal home, and this sweet dove rests in the house of her most High God.

The executioners, too, see the dove issuing from the martyr’s mouth: astonished and trembling they flee from the spot. The lictor, too, is seized with fear and takes to flight.

’Tis winter, and the snow in thick flakes falls on the forum, covering the tender corpse of Eulalia, which lay stiffening in the cold, with its fair pall of crystal.

Ye men that mourn at funerals, weeping and sobbing out your love for the dead, ye are not needed here: give place. God bids his elements, O Eulalia, do the honors of thy exequies.

Her tomb is now at Merida, illustrious city of Vettonia, whose beautiful walls are washed by the swift green waters of Ana, that celebrated stream.

’Tis there, in a temple rich with its polished marbles, both of Spain and foreign lands, that repose in a venerable tomb the holy relics of the martyr.

The roof, above, glitters with its golden pendents; and the pavements, with its mosaics, looks like a meadow strewed with the gayest flowers.

Cull the purple violet, and the golden crocus, which even winter spares us, and with its hours of sunshine lets our fields yield plentifully enough to deck our Eulalia’s altar.

Twine them into your green garlands, and these be your offering, dear children! Mine shall be these verses for our choir; poor I know they are and savoring of the dulness of my own old age; still, they suit a feast.

Thus will we venerate Eulalia’s relics and Eulalia’s altar: she, standing before the throne of God, will be pleased with our offerings, and hearing our hymns and prayers will protect her devoted people.

Nothing can surpass the magnificence of the prayers of the Missal and Breviary of the Mozarabic Liturgy for this feast. Out of a score of examples which we could here insert, we select, almost at hazard, two from the Missal; but they will give only a faint idea of the eloquence with which the love for her Martyr Eulalia inspired this ancient Church of Spain.

Prayer

Let virginity be glad in thee, O Lord, we beseech thee; and with it let rejoice its sister-virtue of continency. Battles like these are won not by sex but by courage; not by them that can well wield the sword, but by them that can be chaste; not by the combatant’s title, but by his motive. An innocent conscience fears not an armed legion. He that has vanquished sin, will not flinch at a sword. He that has conquered himself, easily conquers others: and if it be praiseworthy when a man does a virtuous act, it is more so when a virgin does a manly deed. The holy virgin Eulalia stands before a tribunal of ungodly men; and with God alone in her heart, she bids defiance to all their tortures. There comes a Lictor as lustful as he is cruel: he punishes this spouse of Christ as we may indeed call her, by the torture of his impure looks; and she that could have no adultery to atone for, suffered its punishment from him that had. He reserves to the last what he knew was the worst; he exposes her body to the gaze of the spectators, and the stream of blood from the open gashes on her sides stains her flesh before the knife can open deeper wounds. Then was confounded the design of the wicked tormentor, and his torments are insulted by the victim. Impiety strips our Martyr, but modesty veils her. Let all, then, learn from this virgin to cultivate not beauty but virtue, nor form but faith. He that would please the Lord must be tried not for how much comeliness he possesses, but for how much modesty he has. And yet, O Jesus! since it was from thee that Eulalia had all her merits, and from thee all that she achieved (for it is in vain that we would repel the darts of our enemies, unless we be shielded by thy divine mercy); grant, we beseech thee, that, as this thy most holy martyr won, by her combat, the reward of chastity, we also may be forgiven the uncleanness of our sins, and obtain the rewards thou hast promised.

Illation

It is meet and just that we give thee thanks, O Lord, our God! who hast raised to the highest glory this most wise virgin that was loyal to the faith. Thus didst thou, that madest Mary be the Mother of Jesus, make Eulalia be a Martyr of Jesus. The Mother was happy in giving him birth; the Martyr in giving him her lire. The Mother ministered to his Incarnation; the Martyr imitated his Passion. Mary believed the Angel that appeared to her; Eulalia withstood the enemy that tormented her. Mary was chosen by whom Christ should be born; Eulalia was elected by whom the devil should be conquered. Eulalia, the Martyr and Virgin, was indeed worthy to please her Lord, for, by the protection of the Holy Ghost, she, a young maiden, waged a fierce war; she, that with more than human strength, made herself, for thy love, a victim of suffering; she, that for the sake of thy beloved Son, shed her blood in the noble confession of her faith, and offered to him, as a fragrance of sweetest incense, the flesh which fire could not consume. She goes unbidden to the tribunal of the cruel persecutor. As fit as was the place for a triumph, so bold was her spirit to speak the secret of her faith. She wants a kingdom, she cares not for tortures, she would find Him she longs for, she would see Him that she confesses. Fearless of pain, certain of a crown, happy on her rack, hopeful of her prize. She is questioned, she confesses; men put her to death, God gives her the crown. By an admirable miracle, the Virgin’s spirit, which thy divine Majesty didst draw from its prison by a flame, thou didst take to thyself as a Dove; thus, under the same symbol whereby thou didst show thy Son to the earth, did thy Martyr ascend into heaven. Neither did the elements withhold their homage; but over her body, which remained on the earth, they form a snowy canopy, that that beautifies, and covers, and hides that body where there had ever been the inflexibility of virtue and the unsullied lily of virginity. While thus her body lay palled in the coverlet of heaven’s making, her soul was placed, by the mercy of our Redeemer, on its throne. Rich compensation for the burial which men denied her!

And we too, O glorious Martyr, would join our humble praises with these sublime expressions of the Church’s love for thee. The love of Jesus so filled thy heroic soul, that torments could not torture thee; nay, they satisfied thy love by giving thee to suffer for him, until thy whole heart should be filled by possessing him. And yet, with all this ardor which heeds no obstacle, with all this noble daring which makes thee confront a tyrant and a furious rabble, nothing is more gentle and meek than thy loving spirit. Pray for us to Him who made thee thus worthy to be his Spouse, that we also may be courageous in the fight against the enemies of our salvation, and full of that tender love for Jesus which can alone preserve us from hardness and pride of heart.

O thou, the glory of Iberia! O Dove of Peace, have pity on that Catholic land which prepared thee for heaven. Suffer not that the ancient faith grow dim in a country which, for ages, stood so prominent in the Catholic Church, as the faithful and fervent Spain. Pray for her, that the days of her trial may be shortened; that God may bring to nought the sacrilegious attempts of men, who have sworn to destroy his kingdom on earth; that he give to the clergy of Spain the courage and energy of former days; that he render fruitful the blood of her martyrs, who have already suffered; that he take away those scandals, which so readily mislead the simple and the weak; and lastly, that he efface not thy beloved Spain from the number of Catholic nations, but spare, for the sake of the fathers, those among her children that are degenerate.

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Responsory of Advent

(Ambrosian Breviary, Fourth Sunday of Advent)

℟. Per Gabrielis Angeli os, nunciatum est Virgini Mariæ, et Verbum concepit e cœlo: * Et illum suscepit modicus uterus, cui parvus fuerat mundus.
℣. Spiritus Sanctus in te ingredietur, et virtus Antissimi obumbrabit tibi: * Et illum suscepit modicus uterus, cui parvus fuerat mundus.

℟. A message was announced to the Virgin Mary by the mouth of the Angel Gabriel; and she conceived the Word from heaven: * And the womb of a tender Virgin contained Him, whom the world was too little to contain. ℣. The Holy Ghost shall enter within thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee: * And the womb of a tender Virgin contained Him, whom the world was too little to contain.

[Stone]

December 10 – Third Day within the Octave of the Immaculate Conception
Taken from The Liturgical Year by Dom Prosper Gueranger (1841-1875)

Let us contemplate our Blessed Lady’s being visited by the Angel Gabriel, and conceiving in her chaste womb the Creator of the universe and the Redeemer of mankind. But that we may the better relish the sweetness of this great Mystery, let us listen to the Seraphic St. Bonaventure, who, in his Meditations on the Life of Christ, has brought these sublime scenes of the gospel so vividly before us, that one would almost suppose it was an eyewitness was speaking to us. No human language has ever surpassed the unction and pathos of these Meditations.

“Now, when the fullness of that time had come, wherein the Most High Trinity, in exceeding love, had decreed to save mankind by the Incarnation of the Word; the Divine Mercy, and the instant prayers of the blessed Spirits, pressed for the accomplishment of this redemption. The Blessed Virgin Mary having returned to Nazareth, the Almighty called unto him the Archangel Gabriel, and thus spake unto him: ‘Go thou unto our well-beloved Daughter Mary, that is espoused unto Joseph, she that is dear unto us above all our creatures; and say unto her, that the Son of God hath been taken with her beauty, and chosen her that she be his Mother. Pray her that she accept him joyously, for that through her have I decreed to save all mankind, and no longer remember the injuries done unto me.’

“Whereupon, Gabriel arose joyous and glad, and flew from on high, and suddenly stood in a human form before the Virgin Mary, who was in the inner chamber of her cot. But not so quick had been his flight, but that he found already there the Holy Trinity, that had gone before their ambassador. As soon, therefore, as the faithful Spirit Gabriel perceived the Virgin Mary, he said: Hail! full of grace; the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women. But she was troubled, and answered him not a word. Her trouble came not from a guilty fear, nor from the sight of Gabriel, for oft-times did she receive the visits of the Angels; but, according to what the Gospel saith, she was troubled at his saying, thinking within herself upon it, for that it was strange unto her to hear Gabriel speak such manner of salutation.

“The humble Virgin was perforce troubled at it, finding therein three praises of herself. She was praised for that she was full of grace; and that the Lord was with her; and that she was blessed above all women. He that is humble, cannot hear his own praise without blushes and trouble. Therefore, Mary was troubled with fitting and virtuous shame. She began wondering how this that she heard could be true; not for as much as she suspected the Angel’s having said aught that was false, but by reason that the humble ever ponder their defects and not their virtues, whereby they may always advance; counting their great virtue to be little, and their little defects great. As one that was prudent and wary, timid and bashful, she answered not. In truth, what could she say? Do thou learn, from her example, to be silent, and to love to speak little, for exceeding great and useful is this virtue. Twice is she spoke unto, before she speaks once, for it is a thing intolerable that a virgin should be a great talker.

“As soon, therefore, as the Angel saw that she was thus in doubt, he said: ‘Fear not, Mary, neither blush thou at the praises I have spoken unto thee, for they are most true. Thou thyself art full of grace; nay, verily, I tell thee, that thou hast found for man the grace he had lost. For behold! thou shalt conceive and bring forth a Son, that hath chosen thee for his Mother, and he shall save all that put their trust in him.’ Whereupon she made answer, heeding nothing the praises of the Angel, but seeking how it could be that that should not be taken from her, which was precious unto her above measure; and she asked of the Angel, saying: ‘How shall this be? for I have vowed my Virginity for ever unto God, that I should never know man.’ The Angel answered, and said: ‘It shall be done by the operation of the Holy Ghost, who shall fill thee as no tongue can speak. Thou shalt conceive by his power, yet shalt remain a pure Virgin, and therefore shall thy son be called the Son of God. For unto God nothing is impossible. For thy cousin Elizabeth, that is old and called barren, has conceived a son by the power of God, now these six months past.’

“Consider here, I beseech thee, for God’s sake, how the Trinity is there, waiting the answer and consent of this their most beloved daughter, and taking delight in her modesty, and ways, and words; and also, how diligent and wise is the Angel in his endeavor to obtain her consent, and how admirable are his words, and how he stands with his head bowed down before his and our Lady, with a placid and recollected look, doting his embassy with exactitude, and attentively noting Mary’s words, so as to be able to satisfy her in his answers, and execute the divine will in this wondrous work. See, too, how our Lady stands in holy fear and humility, showing in her face the blush of modesty, and surprise at this so sudden visit of the Angel. Neither have his words extolled her in her own esteem: and albeit they were such as never had been spoken to mortal, yet does she attribute nought to herself, but all to grace. Learn, therefore, of her to have modesty and humility, for without them even virginity availeth little. The most prudent Virgin is full of joy, and gives consent unto the words of the Angel. Then, as is related in the revelations made to a devout servant of God, throwing herself on her knees with intense devotion, and joining her hands together, she said unto the Angels: ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word.’ Then straightways did the Son of God enter the Virgin’s womb, and took unto himself flesh of her substance, and though this whole Person was there, yet did he cease to abide still wholly in the bosom of his Father.
“Then did Gabriel also kneel down, and shortly after rise up together with our Lady. He once more bowed down even unto the ground, and wishing her farewell, he disappeared: and going back to heaven, he related all these things, and a new joy was there, and a new feast, and exceeding great jubilee. But our Lady, all devout, and burning with a love of God such as she had felt not before, for she perceived what was done within her, knelt to give thanks for this so great gift, humbly and devoutly supplicating the divine Majesty that he would vouchsafe to teach her how she should comport herself with all perfection in her treatment of this his Only Begotten Son.”

Such is the description of the mystery of the Annunciation given us by the Seraphic Doctor. Let us profoundly adore our Creator, who has thus humbled himself out of love for us, and from the desire he has to succor us in our misery. Let us also salute Mary, the Mother of God and of men.

Prose

(Taken from the Cluny Missal of 1523)

In honorem Mariæ Virginis,
Quæ nos lavit a labe criminis,
Celebretur hodie:
Dies est lætitiæ.

This is a day of joy! let us celebrate it in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who gave us him that cleansed us from sin.


De radice Jesse propaginis
Hanc eduxit Sol veri luminis,
Manu sapientiæ,
Templum suæ gratiæ.

He that is the source of true light, brought up this Branch from the root of Jesse; and his wisdom has made her the temple of his grace.


Stella nova noviter oritur,
Cujus ortu mors nostra moritur:
Evæ lapsus jam restituitur in Maria.

It is a new rising of a new Star, at which our death dies: it is now that what was lost by the fall of Eve, is found again in Mary.


Et aurora surgens progreditur
Sicut luna pulchra describitur;
Super cuncta ut sol erigitur
Virgo pia.

This is the Holy Virgin that is described as the Aurora rising, as the lovely moon, as the sun, the brightest of orbs.


Virgo Mater et Virgo unica
Virga fumi, sol aromatica,
In te cœli, mundique fabrica
Gloriatur.

O Virgin Mother, Virgin of Virgins, fragrant cloud of smoke, sun shedding the perfume of its light! in thee both heaven and earth delight.


Verbum Patris processu temporis
Intra tui secretum corporis;
In te totum, et totum deforis
In te fuit.

In the fulness of time, the Word of the Father entered into thy chaste womb; wholly in thee, and wholly in the bosom of his Father.


Fructus virens arentis arboris
Christus, gigas immensi roboris,
Nos a nexu funesti pignoris
Eripuit.

Jesus, the beautiful fruit of a virgin tree, snatched us, in his giant strength, from the claims which sin and hell had upon us.


Condoluit humano generi
Virginalis filius uteri:
Accingantur senes et pueri
Ad laudem Virginis.

This God, that saved the human race, is the Son of the Virgin; in that Virgin’s praise all may justly speak and sing.


Qui potuit de nobis conqueri
Pro peccato parentis veteris,
Mediator voluit fieri
Dei et hominis.

He that might have punished us for the sin of our first parents, became himself the Mediator between God and man.


O Maria, dulce commercium
Intrat tuum cœleste gremium,
Quo salutis reis remedium
Indulgetur.

In thy chaste womb, O Mary! was made that merciful barter, whereby salvation was given to the sinner.


O spes vera et verum gaudium,
Fac post vitæ præsentis stadium
Up optatum in cœlis bravium,
Nobis detur. Amen.

Truly, then, thou art the cause of our joy and hope! Oh! pray, that after running the race of this present life, we may received the looked-for prize in heaven. Amen.