“…why the Holy One took flesh and walked as a Man among them. And so we celebrate Christmas as everything else at the foot of the Cross. Christmas had to be, so that Good Friday could be.”
Category Archives: Liturgy
Waiting patiently (Sunday III of Advent)
On this third Sunday of Advent, we water down the purple of the Advent vigil to a more joyous rose pink, as we rejoice in the Lord. Because of that first word of the Mass this weekend – rejoice – this liturgical Sunday is called Rejoice Sunday, or in the Latin Gaudete Sunday. So, asContinue reading “Waiting patiently (Sunday III of Advent)”
Fear of the Lord (Sunday II of Advent)
“If God can raise children of Abraham – our father in the faith – out of the stones in the desert, it doesn’t matter at all that we may be Jews, or indeed that we are of any race, that our families have been Christian and Catholic for x number of centuries, or decades or years…”
Keeping vigil (Sunday I of Advent)
We could say to ourselves: last weekend was the last Sunday of the liturgical year, and so this Sunday must be the first Sunday of the new liturgical year. And we would be right. And we could suggest that, since the readings of the last two Sundays had apocalyptic, end-of-the-world-type themes, this Sunday should haveContinue reading “Keeping vigil (Sunday I of Advent)”
Who is the lord of my heart? (solemnity of OLJC sovereign king)
“…prophets told them that David would return, a son of David, another man ‘after God’s own heart,’ who would resolve the question not only for them but for every tribe of mankind: who is your Lord?”
Last things (Sunday XXXIII of Ordered time)
“The things of this world can vanish in an instant, but God will remain. False teachers, false prophets, false christs will appear, but the Christians must fasten their hearts to Him.”
Remembrance Sunday
Image by annaklein from Pixabay The thirty-second Sunday of Ordered (or Ordinary) time was suppressed again, as last weekend (with the Solemnity of All Saints), this time because of the feast day of the dedication of the Holy Father’s own cathedral in Rome, the arch-basilica of the Most Holy Saviour, called after its location inContinue reading “Remembrance Sunday”
Blessed are they (Solemnity of All Saints)
“And I saw a second angel coming up from the east, with the seal of the living God. And he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels who were empowered to lay waste land and sea; ‘Do not lay waste land or sea or wood, until we have put a seal onContinue reading “Blessed are they (Solemnity of All Saints)”
Hypocrisy is easy (Sunday XXX of Ordered time)
“We can never be religiously smug, like the bad pharisee of the gospel story, ticking away the sins we have not committed, in order to tell the Holy One that we are best of men and women…”
The Rosary and persistence in prayer (Sunday XXIX of Ordered time)
“…out with our beads, our arms are heavy… with laziness or reticence, or with the cares of life, which exhaust us and distract us, and there is no time for any prayer, certainly not the toil of the Rosary…”
Jews and Gentiles again (Sunday XXVIII of Ordered time)
“Then He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and He went into the synagogue there, as His custom was, on the sabbath day, and stood up to read; the book given to Him was the book of the prophet Isaias; so He opened it, and found the place where the words ran,Continue reading “Jews and Gentiles again (Sunday XXVIII of Ordered time)”
‘How long, o Lord?’ (Sunday XXVII of Ordered time)
“Lord, must I ever cry out to Thee, and gain hearing never? Plead against tyranny, and no deliverance be granted me? Must I nothing see but wrong and affliction; turn where I will, nothing but robbery and oppression; pleading at law everywhere, everywhere contention raising its head? What marvel if the old teachings are tornContinue reading “‘How long, o Lord?’ (Sunday XXVII of Ordered time)”
Blinded by comfort (Sunday XXVI of Ordered time)
“‘There was a rich man once, that was clothed in purple and lawn, and feasted sumptuously every day. And there was a beggar, called Lazarus, who lay at his gate, covered with sores, wishing that he could be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table, but none was ready to giveContinue reading “Blinded by comfort (Sunday XXVI of Ordered time)”
Using money (Sunday XXV of Ordered time)
“Christ tells us anyway that money and wealth cannot be an end in itself, that it must be a means to something greater. So, how shall we use our money?”
Fiery serpents (Feast day of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross)
“…what we preach is Christ crucified; to the Jews, a discouragement, to the Gentiles, mere folly; but to us who have been called, Jew and Gentile alike, Christ the power of God, Christ the wisdom of God…”
Martyrdom! (Sunday XXIII of Ordered time)
“Following after Christ then obviously involves a mortification that results in our denying not only sinfulness, but other human goods that people take for granted, even family. And this is what Christ calls a cross.”
He has raised up the lowly (Sunday XXII of Ordered time)
“As per the parable, in trying to take up seats nearer the host of the wedding feast, they were over-reaching. For glory is not taken for oneself; it is given from above.”
The narrow gate (Sunday XXI of Ordered time)
“Christianity, contrary to what we may sometimes be told, is not a religion ‘of the book,’ but rather a religion of the heart… Christianity and Catholicism will always be a love story.”
The heart of the prophet (Sunday XX of Ordered time)
“…when our Lord says in the gospel story that He brings fire, so that allegiance to Him will divide families, we see the immense price that is paid by those who attach themselves to Him…”
Wait for the Lord (Sunday XIX of Ordered time)
“Of what should befall that night, our fathers had good warning; confidence in Thy sworn protection should keep them unafraid. A welcome gift it was to Thy people, rescue for the just, and doom for their persecutors; at one stroke Thou didst punish our enemies, and make us proud men by singling us out forContinue reading “Wait for the Lord (Sunday XIX of Ordered time)”
Vanity of vanities (Sunday XVIII of Ordered time)
“What, should one man go on toiling, his the craft, his the skill, his the anxious care, leaving all to another, and an idler? That were frustration surely, and great mischief done. Tell me, how is a man the richer for all that toil of his, all that lost labour of his, here under theContinue reading “Vanity of vanities (Sunday XVIII of Ordered time)”
Intercessory prayer (Sunday XVII of Ordered time)
I have been talking for some Sundays now about human dignity, which comes from human beings being made in the image and likeness of God. This image is not a physical image, obviously, because God is spirit, and has no form. In Christ, God takes to Himself a human form and becomes visible, but manContinue reading “Intercessory prayer (Sunday XVII of Ordered time)”
Choosing the better part (Sunday XVI of Ordered time)
“…we must find our priorities and choose the better part for ourselves. For while we focus on charity to our family, friends and others (as Martha), let us not forget prayer and devotion (as Mary).”
‘Who is my neighbour?’ (Sunday XV of Ordered time)
“The image of God in man is manifested in community life. And the first building block of our communities is the family.”
Christus imperat, Christ commands (Sunday XIV of Ordered time)
“…the Church defends the sanctity of human life from the moment of conception in the womb of the mother, and until the moment of natural death…”
‘I have fought the good fight, I have kept the faith…’ (feast day of S. Peter and S. Paul)
“Christ immediately after that appointment of Peter as steward/vicar starts to talk about His own passion and death, His resurrection and His departure. Peter would have a very real job in His absence.”
Lost all lost in wonder (Corpus Christi Sunday)
“This gift of bread and wine, His Body and Blood, which He gave for the first time at the Last Supper is linked directly to the Sacrifice on the cross the following day. This is perfect love: the pouring out of the life of a father – a parent – so that his (her) children may live.”
The Love of the Heart of God (Pentecost Sunday)
Let’s talk about the Sacred Heart devotion really quickly. I realise that it is the great feast of Pentecost, but it is impossible to separate the love of the heart of Christ for His Church from the gift of the Holy Spirit that proceeds from that love. So, here, at some length, is what OurContinue reading “The Love of the Heart of God (Pentecost Sunday)”
Come, Lord Jesus (Sunday VII of Easter)
“this doesn’t mean that we are to be great singers; some of us certainly may be, the rest of us are assuredly not. But early on, music in worship became for us a sign of solemnity, a sort-of joining in with the angels in the heavenly Temple.”
The Apostolic Church (Sunday VI of Easter)
“…as we get closer to Pentecost, we shall consider more and more the work of the Holy Spirit within the Church, exercising His divine power through the appointed men, our bishops and priests.”
Prayer and fasting (Sunday V of Easter)
I thought I’d end my quick survey of the Rosary this weekend. I had intended to talk generally about Marian devotion, and I think that I have so far, because the Rosary is the devotion that comes to our minds when we think of Marian devotion. I thought I would end with practical suggestions aboutContinue reading “Prayer and fasting (Sunday V of Easter)”
The Lord rules me (Sunday IV of Easter)
I began talking about the Rosary last weekend, and I described the literal string of prayers that we say as flowers in a crown that we present to our Blessed Lady. There is a type of satisfaction we gain from simply getting through these prayers as a gift to our Lady (because of our affectionContinue reading “The Lord rules me (Sunday IV of Easter)”
Bearing witness (Sunday III of Easter)
It’s the month of May and I thought I would talk a little about the Rosary. I shall use the contents of a book called the Secret of the Rosary by the French priest S. Louis-Marie de Montfort. We don’t always remember why this great prayer of the Church is called ‘the rosary.’ It hasContinue reading “Bearing witness (Sunday III of Easter)”
Confession, reconciliation and Divine Mercy (Sunday II of Easter)
“…let us meditate today on the power of Divine Mercy, Christ’s call to repentance, the agency of the Christian priesthood in this, and the endless love of the heart of God our Lord.”
And the drama begins again… (Palm Sunday)
I shall say today what I wanted to last week, when we had a letter from the cardinal archbishop. After several weeks of talking about the Catholic Mass, I have wanted to introduce another significant element of the devout lives of Catholics: the devotion to Our Lady. If we peer into the chronicles of theContinue reading “And the drama begins again… (Palm Sunday)”
Taste and see (Sunday IV of Lent)
I shall end today with my descriptions of the Mass, and next weekend, I shall begin with the Rosary. The Mass, as the second Vatican Council said, is the source and summit of our lives. It is our nearest encounter with the Holy One, the moment when heaven touches earth, and we stand among angels andContinue reading “Taste and see (Sunday IV of Lent)”
Burning bushes (Sunday III of Lent)
“More important than the way we die is how we live our lives, in repentance and building virtue.”
When God tabernacles with men (Sunday II of Lent)
“As the glory of the Holy One flashes forth on the mountain, the law-giver and judge Moses appears and the prophet and moralist Elijah appear alongside. They were talking about the point where Law and prophecy come together, where justice and righteousness are fulfilled, where heaven touches earth and angels walk among men.”
Priestly offerings (Sunday I of Lent)
“…the Mass is a Temple liturgy which echoes the worship of the heavenly Temple, and this presence of Christ upon our altars forms the greatest part of the offertory of the Church…”
Quiet, and blessed silence (Sunday VIII of Ordered time)
“…wisdom is gained in silence and listening, rather than in speech, and as the Lord says in our gospel reading today, a foolish man will lead everybody who follows him into the pit he has dug for himself.”
Love even your enemies (Sunday VII of Ordered time)
“What makes the Sacrifice of our Lord upon the Cross so perfect? In a single word, His humility, which… creates the locus for self-sacrificing love…”
Trust in God alone (Sunday VI of Ordered time)
“…as the prophet suggests, and as our Lord Himself once said when He was talking about building upon solid rock rather than on sand, if we were to rely on the Holy One, God our Lord, being sure of His protection, we would have fewer worries…”
Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts (Sunday V of Ordered time)
“We might as well use S. Paul’s words in the second reading this weekend: I am the least of the people to be sent out by You, Lord, for I have been a great sinner, and I hardly deserve the name Apostle, but by your grace I shall be fruitful, I shall be an apostle.”
The Lord will enter His Temple (Sunday IV of Ordered time)
“…S. Simeon returns the Child to Our Lady, saying to her that she would have to suffer much on the Child’s behalf, but through it all would Judgement come upon mankind, and Salvation to all who believe.”
Reading and understanding (Sunday III of Ordered time)
“Historically, in the time of Ezra and from the time before the destruction of King Solomon’s Temple, the Jewish people had been scattered throughout the known world. Wherever they went, they already began to establish what we would recognise as synagogues…”
The wedding at Cana and the other Wedding (Sunday II of Ordered time)
“When the master steward declared that the water drawn out was the best wine he had ever tasted, the Immaculate Heart looked forward to the Cross of her Son. And it is apparent to me that this is where the Catholic tradition of intercession to the Holy Mother begins.”
‘Behold, My Servant, in Whom I am pleased…’ (Sunday I of Ordered time)
“Baptism is like the penitential rite at the beginning of Mass, which recognises sin and wipes the slate clean, allowing the offering of the rest of our lives to God to be more beautiful, more pure, more single-minded. Baptism is the preliminary to a daily consecration of our lives to God.”
Hail to the Lord’s anointed (Epiphany day)
“…when they had appeared in Jerusalem to find the Child, Jewish heads would have looked up at the mention of a new light shining out in the heavens, because of such prophecies as we have from Isaiah…”
And you, Bethlehem-Ephratha (Sunday IV of Advent)
“Bethlehem-Ephrata! Least do they reckon thee among all the clans of Juda? Nay, it is from thee I look to find a Prince that shall rule over Israel. Whence comes He? From the first beginning, from ages untold! Marvel not, then, if the Lord abandons His people for a time, until she who is in travailContinue reading “And you, Bethlehem-Ephratha (Sunday IV of Advent)”
Christmas Day! At last…
“The shepherds had more to rejoice about than simply proving the words of the angels on the hills. As religious Jews, they may have remembered the lines of Isaiah, given us by the first reading at the dawn Mass, which were coming to fruition before their eyes.”
Catholic Louth and Mablethorpe 