Catholicism, Catholicism, Return unto the Lord, thy God

The Office of Matins and Lauds this morning, according to the Divine Office prior to the debased modernist Liturgy of the Hours, is what is known as "Tenebrae." While it is now (since 1955), read or sung at the normal times of early morning, it was prior anticipated. Therefore, Matins and Lauds of Holy Thursday occurred on Wednesday night, after Vespers, and so on. The word "tenebrae" is from the Latin for shadows. A hearse, a candelabra, was placed in the centre of the sanctuary, The candles were extinguished one by one after each psalm and reading until only one remained, the Christ Candle which was then removed to a place behind the altar where only shadows were cast, from it. The choir would then bang their feet or pound their stalls in a great noise signifying the chaos of the universe at the betrayal and death of the Lord.

At the top right is a tab link to the "Divine Office," where I encourage you to go and and explore. 

The Readings today are profound. They are indeed also prophetic. Not only for the days of evil which came upon Our Blessed Lord, but as one reads and prays them, one realizes that they are speaking to us, today. The very conditions of the Church today echo the Prophet Jeremias' Lamentations, St. Augustine's Treatise defines the traitors of then and now and St. Paul's Letter makes clear the condemnations that are now dismissed as meaningless. 

Reading 1

Lesson from the book of Lamentations

Lam 1:1-5

1 Aleph. How doth the city sit solitary that was full of people! how is the mistress of the Gentiles become as a widow: the princes of provinces made tributary!

2 Beth. Weeping she hath wept in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks: there is none to comfort her among all them that were dear to her: all her friends have despised her, and are become her enemies.

3 Ghimel. Juda hath removed her dwelling place because of her affliction, and the greatness of her bondage: she hath dwelt among the nations, and she hath found no rest: all her persecutors have taken her in the midst of straits.

4 Daleth. The ways of Sion mourn, because there are none that come to the solemn feast: all her gates are broken down: her priests sigh: her virgins are in affliction, and she is oppressed with bitterness.

5 He. Her adversaries are become her lords, her enemies are enriched: because the Lord hath spoken against her for the multitude of her iniquities: her children are led into captivity: before the face of the oppressor.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord thy God.

R. At the Mount of Olives He prayed unto the Father: O My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me!

* The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

V. Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation.

R. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

Reading 2

Lam 1:6-9

6 Vau. And from the daughter of Sion all her beauty is departed: her princes are become like rams that find no pastures: and they are gone away without strength before the face of the pursuer.

7 Zain. Jerusalem hath remembered the days of her affliction, and prevarication of all her desirable things which she had from the days of old, when her people fell in the enemy's hand, and there was no helper: the enemies have seen her, and have mocked at her sabbaths.

8 Heth. Jerusalem hath grievously sinned, therefore is she become unstable: all that honoured her have despised her, because they have seen her shame: but she sighed and turned backward.

9 Teth. Her filthiness is on her feet, and she hath not remembered her end: she is wonderfully cast down, not having a comforter: behold, O Lord, my affliction, because the enemy is lifted up.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord thy God.

R. My Soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here and watch with me

* Yet a little while, and ye shall see the multitude close Me in. Ye shall flee; and I will go to be offered a sacrifice for you.

V. Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

R. Ye shall flee; and I will go to be offered a sacrifice for you.

Reading 3

Lam 1:10-14

10 Jod. The enemy hath put out his hand to all her desirable things: for she hath seen the Gentiles enter into her sanctuary, of whom thou gavest commandment that they should not enter into thy church.

11 Caph. All her people sigh, they seek bread: they have given all their precious things for food to relieve the soul: see, O Lord, and consider, for I am become vile.

12 Lamed. O all ye that pass by the way, attend, and see if there be any sorrow like to my sorrow: for he hath made a vintage of me, as the Lord spoke in the day of his fierce anger.

13 Mem. From above he hath sent fire into my bones, and hath chastised me: he hath spread a net for my feet, he hath turned me back: he hath made me desolate, wasted with sorrow all the day long.

14 Nun. The yoke of my iniquities hath watched: they are folded together in his hand, and put upon my neck: my strength is weakened: the Lord hath delivered me into a hand out of which I am not able to rise.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, return to the Lord thy God.

R. Behold, when we shall see Him, He hath no form nor comeliness: there is no beauty in Him: this is He Which hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; but He was wounded for our transgressions

* And with His stripes we are healed.

V. Surely He hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.

R. And with His stripes we are healed.

R. Behold, when we shall see Him, He hath no form nor comeliness: there is no beauty in Him; this is He Which hath borne our sins and carried our sorrows: but He was wounded for our transgressions, and with His stripes we are healed.

Reading 4

From the Treatise of St. Augustine, Bishop (of Hippo) Upon the Psalms

On Psalm liv. 1.

Give ear to my prayer, O God, and despise not my supplication: attend unto me and hear me. These are the words of a man travailing, anxious, and troubled. He prayeth in the midst of much suffering, longing to be rid of his affliction. Our part is to see what that his affliction was, and when he hath told us, to acknowledge that we also suffer therefrom; that so, partaking in his trouble, we may take part also in his exercise, and am troubled. Wherein mourned he? Wherein was he troubled? He saith: In my exercise. In the next words he giveth us to know that his affliction was the oppression of the wicked, because of the voice of the enemy, and because of the oppression of the wicked, and this suffering which came upon him at the hands of wicked men, he hath called his exercise. Think not that wicked men are in this world for nothing, or that God doth no good with them. Every wicked man liveth, either to repent, or to exercise the righteous.

R. Mine own friend hath betrayed Me by the sign of a kiss: Whomsoever I shall kiss, That Same is He; hold Him fast. This was the traitorous sign which he gave, even he who murdered with a kiss.

* Woe unto that man! He cast down the price of blood, and went, and hanged himself.

V. It had been good for that man if he had not been born.

R. Woe unto that man! He cast down the price of blood, and went, and hanged himself.

Reading 5

Would to God that they which now exercise us were converted and exercised with us! Yet, while they are as they are, and exercise us, we will not hate them: for we know not of any one of them whether he will endure to the end in his sin. Yea, oftentimes, when thou deemest that thou hatest thine enemy, he whom thou hatest is thy brother, and thou knowest it not. The Holy Scriptures show us that the devil and his angels are already damned unto everlasting fire, and therefore of their repentance it behoveth us to despair; but of theirs only. These are they against whom we wrestle within; to the which wrestling the Apostle stirreth us up where he saith: We wrestle not against flesh and blood, (that is, not against men whom we see,) but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world. Eph. vi. 12. He saith not the rulers of this world, lest perchance thou shouldest deem that devils are the lords of heaven and earth; what he doth say is, rulers of the darkness of this world, of that world which they love who love the world, of that world wherein the ungodly and unrighteous do prosper, of that world, in fine, of which the Gospel saith: And the world knew Him not.

R. The vile trader Judas came to the Lord to kiss Him, and He, as a guileless Lamb, refused not a kiss to Judas,

* Who, for a certain number of pence, betrayed Christ to the Jews.

V. It had been good for that man if he had not been born.

R. Who, for a certain number of pence, betrayed Christ to the Jews.

  

Reading 6

We have seen iniquity and strife in the city. v. 10. Behold, the glory of the Cross. That Cross which was the object of the insults of God's enemies, is established now above the brows of kings. The end hath shown the measure of its power: it hath conquered the world, not by the sword, but by its wood. The enemies of God thought the Cross a meet object of insult and ridicule, yea, they stood before it, wagging their heads and saying: If He be the Son of God, let Him come down from the Cross! Matth. xxvii. 39, 40. And He stretched forth His Hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people. Rom. x. 21. If he is just which liveth by faith, Rom. i. 17; Hab. ii. 4, he is unjust that hath not faith. Therefore where is written iniquity we may understand unbelief. The Lord therefore saith that He saw iniquity and strife in the city, and that He stretched forth His Hands unto that disobedient and gainsaying people, and, disobedient and gainsaying as they were, He was hungry for their salvation, and said: Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. Luke xxiii. 34.

R. One of My disciples shall betray Me this night. Woe unto that man by whom I am betrayed!

* It had been good for that man if he had not been born.

V. He that dippeth his hand with Me in the dish, the same shall betray Me into the hands of sinners.

R. It had been good for that man if he had not been born.

R. One of My disciples shall betray Me this night. Woe unto that man by whom I am betrayed. * It had been good for that man if he had not been born.

Reading 7

From the first letter of blessed Apostle Paul to Corinthians

1 Cor 11:17-22

17 Now this I ordain: not praising you, that you come together not for the better, but for the worse.

18 For first of all I hear that when you come together in the church, there are schisms among you; and in part I believe it.

19 For there must be also heresies: that they also, who are approved, may be made manifest among you.

20 When you come therefore together into one place, it is not now to eat the Lord's supper.

21 For every one taketh before his own supper to eat. And one indeed is hungry and another is drunk.

22 What, have you not houses to eat and to drink in? Or despise ye the church of God; and put them to shame that have not? What shall I say to you? Do I praise you? In this I praise you not.

R. I was like a gentle lamb that is brought to the slaughter, and I knew not that mine enemies had devised devices against me, saying:

* Come, let us put (poison of a deadly) tree into his bread, and let us cut him off from the land of the living.

V. All they that hate me devised my hurt against me: they plotted together to do me evil, saying:

R. Come, let us put (poison of a deadly) tree into his bread, and let us cut him off from the land of the living.

Reading 8

1 Cor 11:23-26

23 For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus, the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread.

24 And giving thanks, broke, and said: Take ye, and eat: this is my body, which shall be delivered for you: this do for the commemoration of me.

25 In like manner also the chalice, after he had supped, saying: This chalice is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as often as you shall drink, for the commemoration of me.

26 For as often as you shall eat this bread, and drink the chalice, you shall show the death of the Lord, until he come.

R. Could ye not watch with Me one hour, ye that called one on the other to die for Me?

* Or see ye not Judas, how that he sleepeth not, but maketh haste to betray Me to the Jews?

V. Why sleep ye? Rise, and pray, lest ye enter into temptation.

R. Or see ye not Judas, how that he sleepeth not, but maketh haste to betray Me to the Jews?

Reading 9

1 Cor 11:27-34

27 Therefore whosoever shall eat this bread, or drink the chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and of the blood of the Lord.

28 But let a man prove himself: and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of the chalice.

29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh judgement to himself, not discerning the body of the Lord.

30 Therefore are there many infirm and weak among you, and many sleep.

31 But if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.

32 But whilst we are judged, we are chastised by the Lord, that we be not condemned with this world.

33 Wherefore, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another.

34 If any man be hungry, let him eat at home; that you come not together unto judgement. And the rest I will set in order, when I come.

R. The elders of the people consulted

* That they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill Him they came out, as against a thief, with swords and staves.

V. The chief Priests and the Pharisees gathered a council.

R. That they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill Him: they came out, as against a thief, with swords and staves.

R. The elders of the people consulted * That they might take Jesus by subtilty, and kill Him: they came out, as against a thief, with swords and staves.

Shadows

When Our Lord was at table in the Upper Room with His disciples, there, in the midst was the one who would betray him. That betrayal continues to this very night. The suffering endured by Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane is continued on these very days. Shadows have descended upon the disciples. Tenebrae. Shadows and darkness have descended upon us, too. We know from scripture, "strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered." We know from scripture that "false prophets" will preach to the people and lead many astray.

We have been told that Judas was misunderstood and that the priests and bishops of his day, the High Priests, the Sanhedrin, treated him harshly, they caused him to kill himself because they lacked mercy. Judas committed his crime out of pride and the lust for power. He was a thief and a criminal long before the betrayal in Gethsemane. Like Judas, there are those today that "kiss" the Lord, only to betray him.

Every one of us must resist. Not one of us must submit the the Judases, the Scribes and the Pharisees of today who twist truth into a lie and turn upside down, two-thousand years of doctrine and faith. Those who have done this and continue to do it will suffer the fate of Judas. Those, in the Church, who have used intimidation, threats, coercion and deceit against faithful Catholics for speaking the truth to power will suffer the fate of Judas, lest they repent and amend their lives. 

They will be confounded by the Lord for their actions against Him and against His flock. They will not go forward justified, they will be held to account for what they have done. Will they be like Judas who denied God the joy of giving unto Judas his mercy? Had Judas gone to the tree on which Christ died, rather than the tree on which he hung himself with a halter, he would be a Saint today. He would be St. Judas the Penitent, instead of the one whom "should never have been born." Those who have conspired to undermine the faith should never have been born. Without their repentance they will suffer the same fate as that betrayer in the Garden.

I give great thanks to all of you who read this blog, for your prayers and your commentary. As we now embark on the Holy Triduum, there will be no writing. Only commemorations of the days and words of scripture. 

May the Lord bless you abundantly. May you be filled with silence, prayer, contemplation and grace these Holy Days.

Our work will resume soon enough.

Cardinal Burke interview is revealing

Interview with Raymond Cardinal Burke.

V. Let us pray for Raymond Cardinal BurkeR. May he stand firm and care for us in the strength of the Lord, in the might of thy name, O Lord.

Dubia: What was the main reason you the four cardinals made the dubia public?

Because there is so much confusion in the Church about fundamental questions which are defined with regard to intrinsic moral evil, with regard to Holy Communion and the right disposition to receive Holy Communion and regarding the indissolubility of marriage.

There is so much confusion that we, first of all, asked the Holy Father to clarify please these questions, these fundamental questions. We limited our request to those four questions in the dubia. When there was no response, because so many people were saying to us: “But why do you cardinals not do you duty and teach clearly about this matters?”, we knew that we had to let the people know about the dubia. Yes, we are trying our best, we are trying to receive from the Holy Father the direction which the Church needs right now. Because there is a very dangerous confusion and also, with the confusion, come divisions.

Priests against priests, and disagreements among fellow catholics about whether you are able to receive the Sacraments, if you live in an unvalid marriage union. We even find disagreements among the Bishops, and this should not be…This is not for the good of the Church.

Why only four cardinals signed the dubia?

I can tell you there are more than four cardinals who support the dubia, but for various reasons they do not want to say so publicly. The four cardinals who signed the dubia, simply knew that it was our duty, not thinking that we needed to have a certain number of cardinals with us. We four knew we had to do this, and so we did it.

So you have private support from other cardinals?

Yes.

What would you say to those who said that you were challenging the Pope?

There is no challenge whatsoever to the Pope. In fact, the practice of bringing dubia or questions to the Pope is a very ancient practice in the Church, and the document showed respect for the Pope who is leading the Church in a critical moment or in a time of confusion or in a time even of error. So if you read the dubia, we are very respectful. We don’t accuse the Holy Father of anything. We simply ask him for the benefit of the Church to make these matters clear.

You spoke about some precedents of formal correction to the Pope in the history of the Church…

I think, for example, of Pope John XXII who was teaching wrongly about the Beatific Vision.  Certain bishops and theologians pointed this out to him. At first he resisted their correction, but then, before he died, he did retract what he had said that was in error.

There are other cases that are similar in the history of the Church. Some are about major practical matters, even the administration of temporal goods. For example, the Cardinals have gone to the Holy Father and said to him, “in our judgement you are not administering well the goods of the Church”, and then the Pope corrected himself.

Do you think there will be a formal public correction to Pope Francis?

That it is not clear yet. Normally speaking, before taking that step, the Cardinals would approach once again the Holy Father personally to say: Holy Father, the matter is so grave that we must correct it, and I trust that the Holy Father will respond at that moment.

But you don’t think that the Cardinal Müller’s interview in Il Timone was an answer to Dubia?

I believe so. It certainly pertains very much to the whole discussion, and it makes very clear what the Church is teaching regarding such matters. I believe, but I do not know, since I have not talked to Cardinal Müller, that the interview, is a pastoral effort, on his part, to present the Church’s teaching clearly.

But the Pope hasn’t answered yet…

To my knowledge, not to me and I don’t think to the others three cardinals. I don’t think he has given any answer.

What about the date of the formal correction?

I really cannot speak about that because it is a matter which has to be approached with great respect and delicacy. And I do not want to suggest a date that would in any way affect negatively the handling of the matter or would show disrespect to anyone involved.

In the previous moments and after you published the dubia, have you kept in contact wih the Emeritus Pope?

No, I have never spoken with him about the dubia.

…

– Valileaks: The leaks spoke of 1.000 flats of the Holy See throughout Rome. Do you believe that being the Church the biggest landowner of the caput mundi takes away the credibility of its evangelical message?

First of all, I don’t know the truth about that. What I would say is this: I don’t think that, if Church owns the land, it takes away credibility, but the way the land is administered will affect very much the credibility of Church. In fact, having all these properties, the Church could use them for many good purposes, but the administration has to be strictly according to Church law. I am not saying it is not, but for my part, the only scandal would be if that in some way these properties are not being correctly managed.

Vatican diplomacy has changed so much in the last years. How do you value that the Holy See treated as a “consort” the homosexual lover of the President of Luxemburg?

I think something has to be done to address the public image that is given by such acts. In the past, the Holy See simply, in a very discreet and respectful way, refused to permit such a thing. We have to return to that because by openly permitting this, the very strong impression is given that now the Holy See approves such situations. So that has to be made clear. I think too the terms for choosing those who are invited officially to come and to speak to the conferences at the Holy See have to be clear. I don’t understand how people who have openly opposed the Church and her teachings can be invited to this kind of conference.

Like Paul Ehrlich…

Exactly, Paul Ehrlich…A prime example.

Yes but the one that was responsible for that invitation was Cardinal Ravasi who wrote “Cari fratelli masoni”  in Il Sole 24…

Yes, I haven’t read that book yet (Alberto Bárcena: Masonería, religión y política) but whoever is responsible, is also responsible to give an answer for that.

The letter of Cardinal Ravasi?

I haven’t read that letter. I didn’t read it, but I heard about it.

Islam: Cardinal Sarah warned of two threats, Islam and gender: Do you believe that Islam is suitable with the coexistence in the Western World?

I share Cardinal Sarah’s concern. These are the two great threats of the present time. I am also very strong in my conviction that one of the prime ways to address them is through education. We have to make sure that in our schools and our universities the truth is been taught.

Both about human nature itself and the whole question of gender which is a completely artificial creation of a certain ideology. And also that the truth be taught about Islam. The nature of Islam is a form of goverment. By its own beliefs or principles it intends to govern the world. And also about Allah. The figure of Allah in the Coran and in other Islamic writings is completely different from the God of the Judaeo-Christian faith.

What reasons for hope does a Catholic family have in today’s world, marked by a culture of death and where gender ideology is considered as the only truth about the human being?

Of course, there is reason for hope because Christ is always giving his grace to individuals and to families. And this whole situation can be transformed through individuals and families. I travel a great deal now to various parts of the world. In America and everywhere I go I find good young people and good young families and other families who maybe are not young but are very committed Catholic families. This gives me hope, because the more that we can encourage one another to be faithful in Jesus Christ, then the world can be transformed.

What advice would you give to these Catholic families who want their children to grow in freedom?

My advice would be to make prayer, especially the Holy Eucarist and regular confession, the center of family life, to pay very careful attention to educate their children clearly in the teachings of the Church and in the moral law, and thirdly to work together with other families to encourage one another and to become a great force for good in the world.

The Pope made a statement that from now on, the weddings celebrated by the priests from the FSSPX are going to be recognised

I did not read that yet. That is a very significant action of the Holy Father, and it also indicates that in someway there must be a reconciliation of the FSSPX because basically what the Pope is saying is that the priests in this society, when they witness marriages, are exercising jurisdiction in the Roman Catholic Church. So that is very interesting.

Do you think the personal prelature is a good way for the reconciliation?

I believe it could be a very effective way for the reconciliation.

Would it be great news?

Yes. I pray for it, and I hope that it will come about. But the reconciliation of course has to be based on a common understanding. We cannot just simply will it. In other words, if there is not a common understanding, what we reconcile will result in all sort of conflicts and difficulties. We have to make sure that there it is a common understanding in regard to all the questions which, in the past, the FSPPX has had about the Church, the Holy See and the direction of the Catholic Church.

https://infovaticana.com/2017/04/10/interview-burke/

The appointed time is come

Sing, my tongue, the glorious battle

Sing the last, the dread affray;

O'er the cross, the victor's trophy,

Sound the high triumphal lay:

Tell how Christ, the world's Redeemer,

As a victim won the day.

God, his Maker, sorely grieving

That the first-made Adam fell,

When he ate the fruit of sorrow,

Whose reward was death and hell,

Noted then this wood, the ruin

Of the ancient wood to quell.

For the work of our salvation

Needs would have his order so,

And the multiform deceiver's

Art by art would overthrow,

And from thence would bring the med'cine

Whence the insult of the foe.

Wherefore, when the sacred fullness

Of the appointed time was come,

This world's Maker left his Father,

Sent the heav'nly mansion from,

And proceeded, God Incarnate,

Of the Virgin's holy womb.

Weeps the infant in the manger

That in Bethlehem's stable stands;

And his limbs the Virgin Mother

Doth compose in swaddling bands,

Meetly thus in linen folding

Of her God the feet and hands.

Thirty years among us dwelling,

His appointed time fulfilled,

Born for this, he meets his passion,

For that this he freely willed:

On the cross the Lamb is lifted,

Where his life-blood shall be spilled.

He endured the nails, the spitting,

Vinegar, and spear, and reed;

From that holy body broken

Blood and water forth proceed:

Earth, and stars, and sky, and ocean,

By that flood from stain are free.

Faithful cross! above all other,

One and only noble tree!

None in foliage, none in blossom,

None in fruit thy peers may be;

Sweetest wood and sweetest iron!

Sweetest weight is hung on thee.

Bend thy boughs, O tree of glory!

Thy relaxing sinews bend;

For awhile the ancient rigour,

That thy birth bestowed, suspend;

And the King of heavenly beauty

On thy bosom gently tend!

Thou alone wast counted worthy

This world's ransom to uphold;

For a shipwrecked race preparing

Harbour, like the ark of old;

With the sacred blood anointed

From the smitten Lamb that rolled.

To the Trinity be glory

Everlasting, as is meet;

Equal to the Father, equal

To the Son, and Paraclete:

Trinal Unity, whose praises

All created things repeat.

Amen.

Should you wish to sing this, the music is as below, though the text is from the processional for Holy Thursday. This text is used in Matins and Lauds this week.

 

Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard

Did the Prophet Jeremias see the Novus Ordo Missae?

Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot: they have changed my delightful portion into a desolate wilderness.

From Matins of Tuesday of Holy Week

V. Grant, Lord, a blessing.

Benediction. May God the Father Omnipotent, be to us merciful and clement. Amen.

Reading 1

Lesson from the book of Jeremias

Jer 11:15-20

15 What is the meaning that my beloved hath wrought much wickedness in my house? shall the holy flesh take away from thee thy crimes, in which thou hast boasted?

16 The Lord called thy name, a plentiful olive tree, fair, fruitful, and beautiful: at the noise of a word, a great fire was kindled in it and the branches thereof are burnt.

17 And the Lord of hosts that planted thee, hath pronounced evil against thee: for the evils of the house of Israel, and the house of Juda, which they have done to themselves, to provoke me, offering sacrifice to Baalim.

18 But thou, O Lord, hast shewn me, and I have known: then thou shewedst me their doings.

19 And I was as a meek lamb, that is carried to be a victim: and I knew not that they had devised counsels against me, saying: Let us put wood on his bread, and cut him off from the land of the living, and let his name be remembered no more.

20 But thou, O Lord of Sabaoth, who judgest justly, and triest the reins and hearts, let me see thy revenge on them: for to thee I have revealed my cause.

V. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us.

R. Thanks be to God.

R. I have suffered defaming and fear from them that were my familiars they watched for my halting, saying Let us entice him, and prevail against him. But Thou, O Lord, art with me, as a Mighty Terrible One.

* Let them stumble into everlasting confusion, that I may see thy vengeance upon them, for unto thee have I opened my cause.

V. O Lord, plead Thou the cause of my soul, Thou That art the Redeemer of my life.

R. Let them stumble into everlasting confusion, that I may see thy vengeance upon them, for unto thee have I opened my cause.

V. Grant, Lord, a blessing.

Benediction. May Christ to all His people give, for ever in His sight to live. Amen.

Reading 2

Jer 12:1-4

1 Thou indeed, O Lord, art just, if I plead with thee, but yet I will speak what is just to thee: Why doth the way of the wicked prosper: why is it well with all them that transgress, and do wickedly?

2 Thou hast planted them, and they have taken root: they prosper and bring forth fruit: thou art near in their mouth, and far from their reins.

3 And thou, O Lord, hast known me, thou hast seen me, and proved my heart with thee: gather them together as sheep for a sacrifice, and prepare them for the day of slaughter.

4 How long shall the land mourn, and the herb of every field wither for the wickedness of them that dwell therein? The beasts and the birds are consumed: because they have said: He shall not see our last end.

V. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us.

R. Thanks be to God.

R. For thy sake, O God of Israel, I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face; I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children.

* For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

V. Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it; deliver me, because of mine enemies.

R. For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

V. Grant, Lord, a blessing.

Benediction. May the Spirit's fire Divine in our hearts enkindled shine. Amen.

Reading 3

Jer 12:7-11

7 I have forsaken my house, I have left my inheritance: I have given my dear soul into the land of her enemies.

8 My inheritance is become to me as a lion in the wood: it hath cried out against me, therefore have I hated it.

9 Is my inheritance to me as a speckled bird? Is it as a bird died throughout? come ye, assemble yourselves, all the beasts of the earth, make haste to devour.

10 Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot: they have changed my delightful portion into a desolate wilderness.

11 They have laid it waste, and it hath mourned for me. With desolation is all the land made desolate; because there is none that considereth in the heart.

V. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us.

R. Thanks be to God.

R. The congregation of the people hath compassed me about, but I rewarded no evil unto him that rewarded evil unto me.

* O Lord, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just.

V. Judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me.

R. O Lord, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just.

R. The congregation of the people hath compassed me about, but I rewarded no evil unto him that rewarded evil unto me. O Lord, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just.

Deus, Deus meus

Let us remember our Coptic brothers and sisters who today cried out the same as Our Blessed Lord and who shared in His Blood.

Their vines are of the vineyard of Sodom, and of the suburbs of Gomorrah

When we are bombarded by news of books and murals and errant priests, bishops and cardinals teaching heresy, calling sin good and turning the Catholic faith upside down, it would be good to refer to this Canticle of Moses from the Book of Deuteronomy.

No matter what they do, remember this:

God will not be mocked.

Ant. The Lord will judge

Canticle of Moses * Deut 32:1-65 

32:1 Hear, O ye heavens, the things I speak, * let the earth give ear to the words of my mouth.

32:2 Let my doctrine gather as the rain, * let my speech distill as the dew,

32:3 As a shower upon the herb, and as drops upon the grass. * Because I will invoke the name of the Lord:

32:4 Give ye magnificence to our God. * The works of God are perfect, and all his ways are judgments:

32:5 God is faithful and without any iniquity, he is just and right. * They have sinned against him, and are none of his children in their filth:

32:6 They are a wicked and perverse generation. * Is this the return thou makest to the Lord, O foolish and senseless people?

32:7 Is not he thy father, * that hath possessed thee, and made thee, and created thee?

32:8 Remember the days of old, * think upon every generation:

32:9 Ask thy father, and he will declare to thee: * thy elders and they will tell thee.

32:10 When the Most High divided the nations: * when he separated the sons of Adam,

32:11 He appointed the bounds of people * according to the number of the children of Israel.

32:12 But the Lord’s portion is his people: * Jacob the lot of his inheritance.

32:13 He found him in a desert land, * in a place of horror, and of vast wilderness:

32:14 He led him about, and taught him: * and he kept him as the apple of his eye.

32:15 As the eagle enticing her young to fly, * and hovering over them,

32:16 He spread his wings, and hath taken him * and carried him on his shoulders.

32:17 The Lord alone was his leader: * and there was no strange god with him.

32:18 He set him upon high land: * that he might eat the fruits of the fields,

32:19 That he might suck honey out of the rock, * and oil out of the hardest stone,

32:20 Butter of the herd, and milk of the sheep * with the fat of lambs, and of the rams of the breed of Basan:

32:21 And goats with the marrow of wheat, * and might drink the purest blood of the grape.

32:22 The beloved grew fat, and kicked: * he grew fat, and thick and gross,

32:23 He forsook God who made him, * and departed from God his saviour.

32:24 They provoked him by strange gods, * and stirred him up to anger, with their abominations.

32:25 They sacrificed to devils and not to God: * to gods whom they knew not:

32:26 That were newly come up, * whom their fathers worshipped not.

32:27 Thou hast forsaken the God that beget * and hast forgotten the Lord that created thee.

32:28 The Lord saw, and was moved to wrath: * because his own sons and daughters provoked him.

32:29 And he said: I will hide my face from them, * and will consider what their last end shall be:

32:30 For it is a perverse generation, * and unfaithful children.

32:31 They have provoked me with that which was no god, * and have angered me with their vanities:

32:32 And I will provoke them with that which is no people, * and will vex them with a foolish nation.

32:33 A fire is kindled in my wrath, * and shall burn even to the lowest hell:

32:34 And shall devour the earth with her increase, * and shall burn the foundations of the mountains.

32:35 I will heap evils upon them, * and will spend my arrows among them.

32:36 They shall be consumed with famine, * and birds shall devour them with a most bitter bite:

32:37 I will send the teeth of beasts upon them, * with the fury of creatures that trail upon the ground, and of serpents.

32:38 Without, the sword shall lay them waste, and terror within, * both the young man and the virgin, the sucking child with the man in years.

32:39 I said: Where are they? * I will make the memory of them to cease from among men.

32:40 But for the wrath of the enemies * I have deferred it: lest perhaps their enemies might be proud,

32:41 And should say: Our mighty hand, and not the Lord, * hath done all these things.

32:42 They are a nation without counsel, and without wisdom * O that they would be wise and would understand, and would provide for their last end.

32:43 How should one pursue after a thousand, * and two chase ten thousand?

32:44 Was it not, because their God had sold them, * and the Lord had shut them up?

32:45 For our God is not as their gods: * our enemies themselves are judges.

32:46 Their vines are of the vineyard of Sodom, * and of the suburbs of Gomorrha:

32:47 Their grapes are grapes of gall, * and their clusters most bitter.

32:48 Their wine is the gall of dragons, * and the venom of asps, which is incurable.

32:49 Are not these things stored up with me, * and sealed up in my treasures?

32:50 Revenge is mine, and I will repay them in due time, * that their foot may slide:

32:51 The day of destruction is at hand, * and the time makes haste to come.

32:52 The Lord will judge his people, * and will have mercy on his servants:

32:53 He shall see that their hand is weakened, * and that they who were shut up have also failed, and they that remained are consumed.

32:54 And he shall say: Where are their gods, * in whom they trusted?

32:55 Of whose victims they ate the fat, * and drank the wine of their drink offerings:

32:56 Let them arise and help you, * and protect you in your distress.

32:57 See ye that I alone am, * and there is no other God besides me:

32:58 I will kill and I will make to live: I will strike, and I will heal, * and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.

32:59 I will lift up my hand to heaven, * and I will say: I live for ever.

32:60 If I shall whet my sword as the lightning, * and my hand take hold on judgment:

32:61 I will render vengeance to my enemies, * and repay them that hate me.

32:62 I will make my arrows drunk with blood, * and my sword shall devour flesh,

32:63 Of the blood of the slain * and of the captivity, of the bare head of the enemies.

32:64 Praise his people, ye nations, * for he will revenge the blood of his servants:

32:65 And will render vengeance to their enemies, * and he will be merciful to the land of his people.

V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Ghost.

R. As it was in the beginning, is now, * and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Ant. The Lord will judge * his servants, and will have mercy on the people of his land.

Do you believe it was Assad?

My Lebanese blood is boiling with what has happened and is about to happen in Syria.

Is Basher Assad crazy, or stupid? Why would he bomb his own people with poison gas when the whole world is watching? 

Does it make sense to you?

Something is going on but it is not what you think.

I have to agree with my friend Aged Catholic and Barona and even Walid Shoebat.

And the Syrian Girl.

I just don't believe that Assad did this.

Remember who created this crisis? 

George Soros.

Hillary Clinton.

Barack Hussein Obama.

John McCain.

America; Donald J. Trump, do not do this. 

Then, of course, there is Mundabor's view.

Cardinal Sarah's comments

Many of you have read the recent remarks in Germany by Robert Cardinal Sarah on the liturgy. I would like to get excited by this that it signals a change. We know that it will not be the case, at least not yet. In the meantime, we must seek out the traditional Latin Mass and if it cannot be found, then you must leave the parish where liturgical abuse and errant teaching prevails and find the most faithful priest and parish that you can.

Let us pray to the great God of the universe, who condescended to take up our humanity and walk amongst us only to be mocked, slandered, spat upon, persecuted and crucified, only to rise again from the dead to save us from our sins, that He will soon deliver his unworthy and unfaithful creation from the hands of evil men who have invaded his Temple and go about doing abominable things and leaving behind them, desolation. 

John Vennari, Requiescat in Pace

Go with God, good hero!

JOSEPH JOHN VENNARI (1958-2017) R.I.P.

Dear Friends, Joseph John Vennari died on Tuesday, April 4, 2017 at 10:46 a.m. E.S.T. It is not only Passion Tuesday, but the 98th anniversary of the death of Blessed Francisco of Fatima - the first Tuesday (the day dedicated weekly to the Holy Face) in April (the month dedicated to the Holy Face).

John received the traditional Sacraments and blessings of the Church several times during the past weeks and months. On Sunday, April 2, Holy Mass was offered in his hospital room. John was able to receive Holy Viaticum one last time, as well as Extreme Unction and the Apostolic Blessing. John died wearing the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and the cord of St. Philomena, with the St. Benedict Crucifix (with the special 'Happy Death' indulgence attached) next to him. He died shortly after the recitation of 15 decades of the Holy Rosary and during the recitation of the 'Commendatory' prayers for the dying, and being blessed with Holy Water. He died with his wife Susan and a close family friend at his side. Immediately after his death, another Rosary was prayed for the repose of his soul. Please keep the repose of John's soul in your Masses, Holy Communions, prayers and sacrifices. Funeral arrangements will be posted shortly. May John's soul, and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.

Thank you and God bless you.

The Vennari Family

In an act of profound justice, Pope Francis grants faculties for SSPX to solemnise marriages!

Surely no "Ordinary" would refuse Pope Francis' correction of a gross injustice and most loving and generous pastoral concern for the Catholic faithful who marry one another within the chapels and under the guidance and solemnisation of priests of the Society of St. Pius X!

What bishop would not show the same generosity that the Pope has?

What bishop would challenge Pope Francis' sense of justice to the faithful at have found refuge in the Society's chapels?

Good for Pope Francis!

From Rorate Caeli blog!

In a letter approved by Pope Francis, Cardinal Gerhard Müller says, “The Holy Father . . . has decided to authorize Local Ordinaries the possibility to grant faculties for the celebration of marriages of faithful who follow the pastoral activity of the Society.” The Pope's decision adopts a proposal by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, both of which are headed by Cardinal Müller. 

The new provisions are part of a number of ongoing meetings and initiatives aimed at bringing the Society into full communion; Cardinal Müller’s letter mentions specifically the recent decision of Pope Francis to grant all priests of the Society the faculty to validly administer the Sacrament of Penance to the faithful in order “to ensure the validity and liceity of the Sacrament and allay any concerns on the part of the faithful.” 

The grant of faculties for the celebration of marriage is subject to several provisions: “Insofar as possible, the Local Ordinary [that is, normally the local Diocesan Bishop] is to grant the delegation to assist at the marriage to a priest of the Diocese (or in any event, to a fully regular priest), such that the priest may receive the consent of the parties during the marriage rite, followed, in keeping with the liturgy of the Vetus ordo, by the celebration of Mass, which may be celebrated by a priest of the Society.” That is, a priest in good standing is to preside at the celebration of the marriage itself, which in the extraordinary form takes place before the nuptial Mass. The Mass itself may then be celebrated by a priest of the SSPX. 

The letter also foresees that circumstances may exist where those provisions are not possible, or where no Diocesan priest is able to receive the consent of the parties. In such cases, the Pope allows the Ordinary to grant faculties to the priest who will celebrate the nuptial Mass. 

Cardinal Müller closes his letter expressing his conviction that “in this way any uneasiness of conscience on the part of the faithful who adhere to the Society of St. Pius X as well as any uncertainty regarding the validity of the sacrament of marriage may be alleviated, and at the same time that the process towards full institutional regularization may be facilitated”; and that, to that end, the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei “relies” on the cooperation of the prelates of the Episcopal Conferences concerned in this matter.

Below, please find the full text of Cardinal Gerhard Müller’s letter:

Your Eminence,

Your Excellency,

As you are aware, for some time various meetings and other initiatives have been ongoing in order to bring the Society of St. Pius X into full communion. Recently, the Holy Father decided, for example, to grant all priests of said Society the faculty to validly administer the Sacrament of Penance to the faithful (Letter Misericordia et misera, n.12), such as to ensure the validity and liceity of the Sacrament and allay any concerns on the part of the faithful.

Following the same pastoral outlook which seeks to reassure the conscience of the faithful, despite the objective persistence of the canonical irregularity in which for the time being the Society of St. Pius X finds itself, the Holy Father, following a proposal by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, has decided to authorize Local Ordinaries the possibility to grant faculties for the celebration of marriages of faithful who follow the pastoral activity of the Society, according to the following provisions.

Insofar as possible, the Local Ordinary is to grant the delegation to assist at the marriage to a priest of the Diocese (or in any event, to a fully regular priest), such that the priest may receive the consent of the parties during the marriage rite, followed, in keeping with the liturgy of the Vetus ordo, by the celebration of Mass, which may be celebrated by a priest of the Society.

Where the above is not possible, or if there are no priests in the Diocese able to receive the consent of the parties, the Ordinary may grant the necessary faculties to the priest of the Society who is also to celebrate the Holy Mass, reminding him of the duty to forward the relevant documents to the Diocesan Curia as soon as possible.

Certain that in this way any uneasiness of conscience on the part of the faithful who adhere to the Society of St. Pius X as well as any uncertainty regarding the validity of the sacrament of marriage may be alleviated, and at the same time that the process towards full institutional regularization may be facilitated, this Dicastery relies on Your cooperation.

The Sovereign Pontiff Francis, at the Audience granted to the undersigned Cardinal President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei on 24 March 2017, confirmed his approval of the present letter and ordered its publication.

Rome, from the Offices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 27 March 2017.

Gerhard Card. L. Müller,

President

+ Guido Pozzo

Secretary

Titular Archbishop of Bagnoregio
 - See more at: http://rorate-caeli.blogspot.com/2017/04/step-by-step-vatican-issues-marriage.html#more

Passiontide Hymn - Vexilla Regis

Would it be possible that you heard this yesterday at Mass or will over the next week to Good Friday?

1. Abroad the Regal Banners fly,

Now shines the Cross's mystery;

Upon it Life did death endure,

And yet by death did life procure.

2. Who, wounded with a direful spear,

Did, purposely to wash us clear

From stain of sin, pour out a flood

Of precious Water mixed with Blood.

3. That which the Prophet-King of old

Hath in mysterious verse foretold,

Is now accomplished, whilst we see

God ruling nations from a Tree.

4. O lovely and reflugent Tree,

Adorned with purpled majesty;

Culled from a worthy stock, to bear

Those Limbs which sanctified were.

5. Blest Tree, whose happy branches bore

The wealth that did the world restore;

The beam that did that Body weigh

Which raised up hell's expected prey.

6. Hail, Cross, of hopes the most sublime!

Now in this mournful Passion time,

Improve religious souls in grace,

The sins of criminals efface.

7. Blest Trinity, salvation's spring,

May every soul Thy praises sing;

To those Thou grantest conquest by

The holy Cross, rewards apply. Amen.