08 May 2024
St Victor, an Illustrious Martyr at Milan
From Fr Alban Butler's Lives of the Saints:
ST. AMBROSE speaks of him,1 and St. Gregory of Tours2 mentions his tomb famed for miracles. He served in the armies of Maximian, and by his order was tortured on the rack, and at length beheaded at Milan, in 303. His celebrated church at Milan is now in the hands of the Olivetan monks by whom it was rebuilt in a most sumptuous manner and in a finished taste, when St. Charles performed the dedication of it, and the solemn translation of the martyr’s relics. See the Bollandists.
Vigil of the Ascension: Leading Captivity Captive
A sermon for today. Please, remember to say 3 Hail Marys for the priest.
Restoring Britain's Crowns
In this video on the first anniversary of the coronation of Charles III, I look at the changing shape of the crowns at the centre of the ceremony and how they have been restored in the past, and were prepared and refurbished in 2023 for the beginning of a new reign.
Machines and Animals: Can AI Be "Alive?"
With Fr Anselm Ramelow, OP, MDiv, PhD, Professor of Philosophy, Dominican School of Philosophy & Theology, Berkley.
Is the Ascension a Holy Day of Obligation?
Yes, and in the Provinces of Boston, Hartford, New York, Omaha, and Philadelphia it is kept on the Biblical day, not the 'convenient' Sunday following.
By Philip Kosloski
Yes, the solemnity of the Ascension is a holy day of obligation, but the exact day of its celebration depends on your local bishop.One of the principal feasts of the liturgical year is the solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, commemorating when Jesus ascended into Heaven.
The event is narrated in the Acts of the Apostles:
So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth.” And when he had said this, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. Acts 1:6-9
When is the Ascension celebrated?
The Catholic Church celebrates the Ascension 40 days after Easter Sunday, and that day normally falls on a Thursday.
This correlates with St. Luke’s account in the Acts of the Apostles, where he states, “To [the apostles, Jesus] presented himself alive after his passion by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days, and speaking of the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3).
However, to make it easier for the faithful to attend Mass on this important day, individual bishops’ conferences are responsible for assigning the date for the celebration of the Ascension and can transfer it to the nearest Sunday.
The Code of Canon Law stipulates, “the conference of bishops can abolish certain holy days of obligation or transfer them to a Sunday with prior approval of the Apostolic See” (1246, §2).
The US bishops’ conference explains in its liturgical calendar, “In several ecclesiastical provinces of the United States of America, the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord is transferred from Thursday, to the following Sunday.”
Ascension on Thursday
There are a handful of Ecclesiastical Provinces in the United States (as well as other parts of the world) that have chosen to continue to observe the Solemnity of the Ascension on Thursday, such as Boston, Hartford, New York, Omaha, and Philadelphia. The decision impacts 9 different U.S. states overall.
Also, the Dioceses of England and Wales moved the Ascension to Sunday in 2007, but then in 2018 moved it back to Thursday.
Whenever it is celebrated, the Ascension is a holy day of obligation.
The Faith of the RFKs
'At one point, the entire Kennedy clan was pro-life. That all began to change after Roe and into the late 1970s and 1980s.' RFK, Sr would be horrified at what his family has become.
By Paul Kengor
Like his father, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. relies on his Catholic Faith during his political campaign. But there's a significant—and tragic—difference between father and son.
On April 25, EWTN’s Raymond Arroyo did an exclusive, hour-long interview with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Kudos to both Arroyo and Kennedy for sitting down to dialogue in a civil, thoughtful manner that’s too rare nowadays for people on separate sides of the political aisle. For Kennedy, that side of the aisle has been the Democratic side, given his family’s roots as an iconic Democrat family, though Kennedy currently, in 2024, is running for president as an independent.
And independent Kennedy certainly is. His refusal to support vax mandates during Covid led critics to smear him as an anti-vaccine “conspiracy theorist” who peddled “misinformation.” To this day, the lead line in his Wikipedia entry describes him this way: “Robert Francis Kennedy Jr. (born January 17, 1954), also known by his initials RFK Jr., is an American politician, environmental lawyer, anti-vaccine activist, and conspiracy theorist.”
Kennedy has been trashed by erstwhile liberal allies within his family’s party. Most egregious, the Democratic Party’s standard bearer, President Joe Biden, outrageously refused to provide Kennedy with Secret Service protection, a customary practice done for decades, ever since—and because of—the June 1968 assassination of Kennedy’s father, Bobby Kennedy.
Orthodox. Faithful. Free.
Sign up to get Crisis articles delivered to your inbox daily
I have written about this at length, and I’m well aware of the excuses made by some Democrats justifying the lack of security protection. They are wrong. There’s no excuse for it, especially as Kennedy has faced multiple threats to his life. (Biden feels threatened by Kennedy politically, and rightly so.)
Speaking of the senior RFK, I’ve long known and written about his faith, as well as the faith of his late brother, President John F. Kennedy, and many other political figures, such as Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, and even Hillary Clinton. The junior RFK has been somewhat of a faith-based mystery to me. And though there’s still much about his faith life that I don’t know, Raymond Arroyo’s interview sheds new light.
Kennedy told Arroyo that, growing up, “the centerpiece of our lives was Catholicism.” He noted that his family recited the Rosary at least once a day, and often three times a day. They prayed before and after every meal, read the Bible every night, and read the lives of the saints. Kennedy told Arroyo:
We went to church, sometimes twice a day. We would go to the 7 o’clock Mass and 8 o’clock Mass in the summers. It was our whole family, and it was really our whole community. It was part of me growing up.
That was no small achievement for a family that size. Bobby and Ethel Kennedy had 11 children in all, with the last of them in the womb when Bobby was assassinated in Los Angeles at the age of 42.
Among the children, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was the third. He was 14 years old when his father was killed, which threw his life into turmoil. He thereafter struggled with his faith and with drug addiction, including hard drugs, like heroin, into his late 20s.
“During that period of time,” said Kennedy,
I wouldn’t say I lost my faith, but when you’re living against conscience, which you have to do if you’re addicted to drugs, you push God out over the periphery of your horizon. So the concept of God was, although it never was erased from me, it was just a distant concept that was not part of my day-to-day life.
He credits a “profound spiritual realignment,” a “spiritual awakening,” that turned him around and has been “the centerpiece” of his life ever since. “But,” he told Arroyo, “you can’t live off the laurels of a spiritual awakening. You have to renew it every day, and you renew it through service to other people.”
Fittingly, he says his favorite saints are Francis (his middle name) and Augustine.
This is intriguing information about RFK Jr.’s faith, though it provides more specifics about his family’s faith than his. Still, I see some interesting parallels with the faith of his father.
Robert Francis Kennedy Sr. (1925-68) was the most devout of Joe and Rose Kennedy’s boys, much more pious than his famous older brother. As a boy, Bobby’s parents sent him to school at St. Paul’s, a private Episcopal school in New Hampshire. He wasn’t happy there. He wrote to his mother complaining about the frequent use of the Protestant Bible at the school. She arranged his transfer to Portsmouth Abbey, an orthodox Benedictine school. There, he thrived under the monks.
Kennedy biographer Ronald Steel speculates that if RFK Sr. had been born into a poor family without a patriarch driving the boys into politics and power, he might well have been a priest. He was very philosophical, spiritual, intellectual, prayerful, and pensive, often speaking more like a poet than a politician. He had the makings of a monk had he not chosen the life of a politician.
Jackie Kennedy, who closely observed Bobby’s piety, once remarked that it seemed odd that her husband John F. Kennedy’s faith was an issue in the 1960 presidential campaign, particularly in light of the stark contrast to Bobby’s devoutness: “Now if it were Bobby: he never misses Mass and prays all the time.”
Bobby’s faith was called upon most acutely with the assassination of his beloved brother on November 22, 1963. He agonized over the death. The two were extremely close. No two brothers ever dominated the Oval Office together. The younger Kennedy questioned God the day his big brother was taken. That night, alone in his White House bedroom, a friend heard Bobby cry out, “Why, God? Why?” He was in visible pain, said the friend, “like a man on the rack.”
Notably, it seems that Bobby’s own son, RFK Jr., experienced similar “Why, God?” moments in reacting to his father’s death on June 6, 1968.
A significant difference between father and son, however, is their views on protecting unborn human life. In those pre-Roe v. Wade days, RFK Sr. was staunchly pro-life; he and Ethel obviously lived the pro-life life, giving the gift of life to 11 children. Bobby was socially and morally conservative, a further extension of his ardent Catholicism.
Ronald Steel, in describing Bobby’s “fierce brand of Irish Catholicism,” said he “was at heart, and had always been, a Catholic conservative deeply suspicious of the moral license of the radical left,” particularly its embrace of drugs and sexual permissiveness. “He was no champion of women’s rights,” said Steel, “and would likely have been appalled by the very notion of gay liberation, had he ever been confronted with it.”
At one point, the entire Kennedy clan was pro-life. That all began to change after Roe and into the late 1970s and 1980s. In fact, even the terribly damaging “pro-choice” Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) was once pro-life. The entire Kennedy family flipped on the abortion issue, swimming with the tide of their Democratic Party, which by the late 1990s was and firmly remains the party of abortion, as its standard bearer, Democrat President Joe Biden—a lifelong Catholic—has made painfully clear.
And unfortunately, RFK Jr. swam with that tide.
On the plus side, RFK Jr. does at least speak reluctantly for “abortion rights” and is even willing to say that “every abortion is a tragedy.” He told Raymond Arroyo that he is not “doctrinaire on either side,” though he makes clear that he believes such decisions “should be up to the mother” rather than “government officials and bureaucrats.” (Kennedy personally is the father of six children, though to different women. He is twice divorced and has a terribly disturbing past of infidelity and promiscuity, which has gone largely unreported.)
His overall position on abortion, as well as his crucial statement that every abortion is tragic, is at least better than Joe Biden’s seemingly no-limits extremism; and perhaps it is another good reason why RFK Jr. is making a better choice to run for president as an independent rather than as a Democrat. One hopes that his faith will provide a positive rudder in keeping him away from the ugliest extremes of his former Party on the abortion issue, just as it once guided his late father to cherish an abundance of unborn children.
But perhaps most poignant, this much is certain about the faith of the two RFKs: both RFK Jr. and his late father had their most trying moments, including questioning God, when the men closest to them were tragically gunned down. Their faith ultimately got them through, but not without agonizing questions and trials.
The big question for RFK Jr. is where he goes from here. His father’s presidential bid was brutally cut short. It seems highly unlikely that RFK Jr. could win the presidency in 2024, but he could really shake up the race as the most significant third-party candidate since Ross Perot in 1992.
As he does, he relies on his faith maybe more than we realized.
Vigil of the Ascension
Today's Holy Mass from Corpus Christi Church, Tynong, VIC, Australia. You may follow the Mass at Divinum Officium.
The Apparition of St Michael the Archangel
From Dom Prosper Guéranger's The Liturgical Year
David foretold that the Emmanuel’s coming into this world would be greeted by the Angels, and that they would humbly adore him on his first appearing among us. (Psalm 96:8, Hebrews 1:6) We saw this prophecy fulfilled on the Night ever blessed, when Mary brought forth the Fruit of her womb. The Angelic choirs sang one of their heavenly hymns, which led the Shepherds to the Stable; we blended our songs with theirs, in homage to our Infant-God. The Resurrection of our Emmanuel was sure to be honored by the presence of these blessed Spirits, who had witnessed, with amazement and trembling, the humiliations and cruelties of his Passion. The moment he passed through the barrier that imprisoned him in his sepulcher, an Angel, with a face beaming as the sun, and garments white as snow, came and rolled back the Stone, and proclaimed to the holy Women that He whom they were seeking had risen. When they entered the cave of the Sepulcher, two other Angels, clad in white robes, appeared to them, and repeated the tidings of Jesus’ triumph.
Let us reverently honor these princely heralds of our deliverance, and consider how respectfully they cluster round Jesus their King and God, during the forty days after his Resurrection. They adore this glorified Humanity, which they are soon to see raised up to the highest heavens, and throned at the Father’s right hand. They rejoice with us in the happiness brought to us by this Paschal Feast, which restores immortality to us in the person of our Risen Savior; and thus, as St. Gregory told us a few days back, “it is the Feast of the Angels, because, by its recalling us to heaven, it fills up their number.” It was but right, therefore, that Paschal Time should devote one of its days to honoring the Angelic Spirits. Eight days previous to the Annunciation, we kept the feast of St. Gabriel, our Lady’s honored messenger; today, it is St. Michael, and Archangel and Prince of the heavenly host, that is to receive our love and praise. He himself selected this day by appearing on it and leaving us a pledge of his presence and protection.
The very name of Michael urges us to honor this glorious Spirit; it is a cry of enthusiasm and fidelity, for it signifies: “Who is like unto God?” Satan trembles at hearing this name, for it reminds him of the noble protest wherewith the bright Archangel answered the call of the rebel angels. Michael proved his strength and prowess when he fought the great battle in heaven. On that account, he was made the Guardian and Protector of God’s people—of the Jews first, and afterwards, of the Christian Church, for the Synagogues forfeited all her honors. Michael now watches over Jesus’ Spouse, our mother; he supports her in her trials, and she wins no triumph in which he has not had some hand.
But we are not to supposed that the holy Archangel is so engaged in looking after the general interests of Christ’s kingdom on earth that he cannot attend to the prayers of each individual member of the Church. God has given him a compassionate love for men; and there is a not a single soul that escapes his notice. He wields the sword in defense of the Spouse of Christ; he wars with the dragon, who is ever lying in wait for the Woman and her Child; (Apocalypse 12:3)—but at the same time, he is attentive to each one of us; for, after having confessed our sins to Almighty God, and to the Blessed Mary ever a Virgin, we acknowledge them likewise to Blessed Michael the Archangel and beseech him to pray for us to the Lord our God.
He assists at every death-bed, for his special office is to receive the souls of the elect, on their quitting the flesh. He, with loving solicitude and princely bearing, presents them to the Light Eternal, and introduces them into the House of God’s glory. It is holy Church herself that tells us, in the words of her Liturgy, of these prerogatives of the great Archangel. She teaches us that he has been set over Paradise, and that God has given him the charge of leading to heaven the souls of them that are to be received there. On the Last Day, when our Risen Jesus is to appear on the clouds of heaven to judge mankind, Michael will have to fulfill a ministry of awful import—he, with the rest of the Angels, will have to separate the good from the bad, all of whom will then have resumed their bodies in the general resurrection. Our Catholic Forefathers, in the Middle-Ages, were fond of representing the holy Archangel engaged in this dread function. They put him standing at the foot of Jesus’ judgment-seat, and holding a scale, in which he is weighing the souls of men and their works.
Devotion to St. Michael was sure to spread through the Church, especially after the worship of idols had been banished from the various countries, and men were no longer tempted to give divine honor to creatures. Constantine built in honor of the great Archangel a celebrated Church called Michaëlion; and at the time of Constantinople’s falling under the power of the Turks, there were no less than fifteen Churches that bore the name of Saint Michael, either in the City or the suburbs. In other parts of Christendom, this devotion took root only by degrees; and it was by the holy Archangel’s appearing to men that the Faithful were prompted to have recourse to him. These apparitions were local, and for reasons which to us might seem of secondary importance: but God, who, from little causes, produces great effects, made use of them whereby to excite Christians to have confidence in their heavenly protector. The Greeks celebrate the apparition that took place at Chone, the ancient Colossa, in Phrygia. There was, in that city, a Church dedicated to St. Michael, and it was frequently visited by a holy man named Archippus, who was violently persecuted by the pagans. One day, when Archippus was at his devotions in his favorite St. Michael’s, his enemies resolved to destroy both him and the Church. Hard by, ran a brook which flowed into the river Lycus: this they turned off, and flooded the ground on which stood the Church. Suddenly, there appeared the Archangel St. Michael, holding a rod in his hand: the water immediately receded, and flowed into a deep gulf, near Colossa, where the Lycus empties itself and disappears. The date of this apparition is not certain, beyond its having occurred at the period when the pagans were numerous enough in Colossa to harass the Christians.
Another apparition, which encouraged devotion to St. Michael in Italy, took place on Mount Gargano, in Apulia; it is the one honored by today’s feast. A third happened on Mount Tomba, on the coast of Normandy: we will commemorate it on the 16th October.
The feast we are keeping today is not so solemn as the one of September 29th; it is, however, more exclusively in honor of St. Michael, inasmuch as the Autumn Feast includes all the choirs of the Angelic hierarchy. The Roman Breviary gives us the following account of the apparition on Mount Gargano.
That the blessed Archangel Michael has often appeared to men is attested both by the authority of sacred Scripture, and by the ancient tradition of the Saints. Hence, the memory of these apparitions is commemorated in divers places. As, heretofore, Michael was honored by the Synagogue of the Jews as Guardian and Patron, so is he now by the Church of God. A celebrated apparition of the Archangel took place, under the pontificate of Gelasius I, in Apulia, on the top of Mount Gargano, at whose foot lies the town of Siponto.
A bull, belonging to a man who lived on the mountain, having strayed from the herd, was, after much searching, found hemmed fast in the mouth of a cave. One of its pursuers shot an arrow, with a view to rouse the animal by a wound; but the arrow rebounding, struck him that had sent it. The circumstance excited so much fear in the by-standers and in them that heard of it, that no one dared to go near the cave. The inhabitants of Siponto, therefore, consulted the Bishop; who answered, that in order to know God’s will, they must spend three days in fasting and prayer.
At the end of the three days, the Archangel Michael intimated to the Bishop, that the place was under his protection, and that what had occurred was an indication of his will that God should be worshipped there, in honor of himself and the Angels. Whereupon, the Bishop repaired to the cave, together with his people. They found it like a Church in shape, and began to use it for the celebration of the divine service. Many miracles were afterwards wrought there. Not long after, Pope Boniface dedicated a Church in honor of St. Michael, in the great Circus of Rome, on the third of the Kalends of October (September 29th), the day on which the Church celebrates the memory of all the Angels. But today’s feast is kept in commemoration of the apparition of Michael the Archangel.
Holy Church tells us of the glories of St. Michael in several portions of the Liturgy; but particularly in the following Responsory and Antiphons, taken from today’s office.
℟. This is Michael the Archangel, the chief of the Angelic host: * He repays, by blessings, by honor shown him by the Faithful; and his prayer leads us to the kingdom of heaven, alleluia.
℣. The Archangel Michael is set over Paradise, and is honored by the citizens of heaven. * He repays, by blessings, the honor shown him by the Faithful, and his prayer leads us to the kingdom of heaven, alleluia.
ANT. The Archangel Michael came with a multitude of Angels; God confided unto him the souls of the Saints, that he might lead them to the Paradise of bliss, alleluia.
ANT. Michael the Archangel came unto the aid of God’s people; he stood as a help to the souls of the just, alleluia.
ANT. O most glorious Prince! Michael the Archangel! be mindful of us: here and in all places, ever pray for us to the Son of God. Alleluia, alleluia.
The first of the following Hymns is used by the Church in the Vespers of the Feasts of St. Michael. The second is taken from the Lauds. They speak the praises not only of our great Archangel, but likewise of St. Gabriel, St. Raphael, and of all the blessed Spirits in general. On the feasts of St. Michael, the Church includes all the members of the Angelic Host in her tribute of honor, inasmuch as she has not instituted a Feast for the collective celebration of the nine Choirs of Blessed Spirits.
In the presence of the Angels, who obey thee, we praise thee, O Jesus, thou brightness and power of the Father, thou life of our hearts!
’Tis for thee that fights this army of a thousand thousand Princes, at whose head is Michael, the Conqueror, the Standard-bearer of salvation, who unfurls the Cross.
It was Michael that cast the cruel dragon into the depths of hell, and drove the rebels, with their chief, from the heavenly city.
Let us follow this Prince against the king of pride; that we may deserve to receive, from the throne of the Lamb, a crown of glory.
Glory be to God the Father, and to the Son who rose from the dead, and to the Paraclete, for everlasting ages. Amen.
O Christ! thou the Holy Angels’ glory, the Creator and Redeemer of mankind! grant that we ascend to the happy thrones of the heavenly citizens.
May Michael, the Angel of peace, come from heaven into this our temple, and, bringing us sweet peace, drive dismal war back again to hell.
May Gabriel, the Angel of strength, come and rout our old enemies; may he often visit the heaven-loved temples, which the triumphant Jesus has placed throughout the world.
May Raphael, our heavenly Physician, descend and visit us, that he may heal all that are infirm, and direct our steps that falter in the path of life.
May the Virgin Queen of Peace, the Mother of Light; may the holy choir of Angels; may all the inhabitants of bright heaven, ever assist and protect us.
May the Godhead ever blessed of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, whose glory is proclaimed through the whole world, grant us this our prayer. Amen.
The following Sequence is from the collection of the Monastery of Saint Gall, and was composed by the Monk Notker, in the eleventh century.
O King of heaven! in thy praise, may our whole assembly and choir now sound forth its instruments of sweet music, and sing its hymns to thee.
For this is the day of Michael’s most glorious feast, which gladdens the whole earth with beautiful joy.
Thou dividest the Angels created by thee, into nine choirs; yet do they all thy bidding, when thou willest to demand angelic service.
They were the first creatures of thy hands; whereas we are thy last; yet were we made to thine image.
This triple division of the heavenly Spirits, according to their special offices, reveals to us the mysterious design of God.
First comes the Angelic army; then the phalanx of Archangels; then the host of the Principalities.
After these, follow the heavenly Virtues, the sweet-sounding Powers,
The spiritual Dominations, the Thrones divine, the ethereal Cherubim, the burning Seraphim.
O Michael, Prince of the heavenly court! Gabriel, messenger of the Incarnate Word! Raphael, our guide through life! lead us to the company of the citizens of Paradise.
By you are fulfilled all the biddings of the Father, the Son (who is his Wisdom), and the co-equal Spirit—the Three, One in essence—the God to whom ye are the holy administering Spirits, thousands of thousands in number.
Ye stand in his Court, ten thousand times a hundred thousand; and into this same, the King, the Father of the Word, brought the hundredth sheep, and the tenth groat, that they might share in your bliss.
Ye in the high heavens, and we the elect flock on earth, give forth our tuneful praise on sweet-sounding harps.
Thus after Michael’s glorious battles, may our incense, when set on the golden altar, be acceptable to God;
Thus, when united in the same eternal glory, may we sing together our Alleluia!
How beautiful art thou, O Michael, in thy heaven-made armor, giving glory to the God whose enemy thou overcamest! Thine humble and fervent eye is fixed on the throne of the Jehovah whose rights thou defendedst, and who gave thee the victory. Thy sublime cry: “Who is like unto God?” roused the faithful legions, and became thy name and thy crown. It will remind us, for all eternity, of thy fidelity to our Creator, and thy triumph over the dragon. Meanwhile, we enjoy thy loving protection; we are thy happy clients.
Guardian Angel of Holy Church! now is the time for thee to exert all the might of thine arm. Satan is furious in his efforts against the noble Spouse of thy Master; brandish thy bright sword, and give battle to this implacable enemy. The Kingdom of Christ is shaken to its very foundations. Rome is in danger of seeing the Vicar of Christ dethroned within her walls. Is it that the reign of the Man of Sin is about to be proclaimed on the earth? Are we near that Last Day, when this guilty world having been destroyed by fire, thou art to exercise, in the name of the Sovereign Judge, the terrible office of separating the goats from the sheep?—If this earth is still to exist; if the mission of the Church is not yet completed; is it not time for thee, O Michael! to show the Dragon of hell that he may not, with impunity, insult on this earth the God who created it, who redeemed it, and whose name is King of kings, and Lord of lord? The torrent of error and crime is unceasingly dragging the world to the brink of the precipice; save it, O glorious Archangel, by confounding the dark plots which are laid for its destruction!
Thou, O Michael, art the Protector of our souls in their passage from time to eternity. During this present life, thine eye is upon our wants, and thine ear open to our prayers. Though awed by the brightness of thy glory, we love thee, dear Prince of heaven! and we live happy and contented beneath the shadow of thy wings. In a few days, or, at most, years, our holy Mother the Church will be performing her last sacred rites over our lifeless remains; she will pray for us to our Heavenly Father, that we may be delivered from the lion’s mouth, and that the standard-bearer St. Michael, may bring us into the holy light. Watch over us now, O holy Archangel, lest we should then not deserve thy protection. The Dragon is ever threatening us; he makes no secret of his wishing to devour us. Teach us, O Michael, to repeat thy beautiful words: “Who is like unto God?” God’s honor, the rights he has over us, our obligation to be faithful to him, and serve him, and confess him as our Lord in all times and places—oh, yes! the deep-rooted sentiment of all this must be our shield in our danger, and the armor wherewith, like thyself, we must fight and win the battle. But we want some of thy sturdy courage, which resulted from the love thou hadst within thee. Oh! pray for us, that we too may love this our common Lord and Master; then shall we be invincible. Satan cannot make head against a creature that is filled with the love of the great God.
This God created thee, O Michael! and thou lovedst him as thy Creator; but as to us, he not only created, he redeemed us, yea and at the price of his own Blood! What, then, should be the intensity of our love for him! Strengthen this love in our hearts; and since we are fighting under thy leadership, guide us, inspirit us; let thy look give us courage; ward off from us the blows of the enemy’s sword. We venture to hope that thou wilt be present at our last moments, O standard-bearer of our salvation! In return for our tender devotion towards thee, deign to keep guard round our death-bed, cover it with thy shield. If the Dragon see the flash of thy sword, he will not dare to come near us. May our soul, on leaving the body, throw herself with affection into thine arms! Cast her not from thee, O holy Archangel, when she seeks to cling to thee; carry her to the judgment-seat, cover beneath thy wings, calm her fears; and oh! may the Lord, thy Master, bid thee bear her speedily to the kingdom of eternal bliss!
Rogation Days: Wednesday (Ascension Eve)
From Dom Prosper Guéranger's The Liturgical Year
For the third time, holy Church marshals her children in procession, and makes a solemn appeal to the divine mercy. Let us follow her sacred standard, and join her in invoking the intercession of the Saints. The Litany, in which we pray to all the choirs of the heavenly Jerusalem, is both a magnificent and a powerful prayer: it is the Church Triumphant uniting with the Church Militant in praying for the salvation of the world.
O Mary! Mother of God, Virgin of virgins, miracle of divine power, exercise, in our favor, thy maternal mediation with Him, who, through God, is thy Son!
Michael, the invincible, Gabriel, welcome messenger of our salvation, Raphael, affectionate physician of them that are suffering; Angels and Archangels, who watch over us, and cooperate in the work of our salvation; all ye choirs of blessed Spirits, who are waiting for your ranks to be filled up by the elect of earth; — intercede for your brethren, your clients!
John the Baptist, Precursor of the Lamb of God; Joseph, Spouse of Mary Immaculate, and foster-father of the Son of God; Patriarchs, the glorious forefathers of the human race, and ancestors of the Messias; Prophets, who foretold his coming, and described the events of his life, that so the earth might recognize him as the promised Redeemer; remember us who are living in this exile, through which you also passed!
Peter, universal Pastor, that holdest the keys of the kingdom of heaven; Paul, Apostle of the Gentiles, armed with the sword of the word, and immolated by the sword of Martyrdom; Andrew, crucified like thy Master; James the Greater, son of thunder, founder of the “Catholic Kingdom;” John, the Beloved Disciple, the adopted son and guardian of Mary, Evangelist and Prophet; Thomas, Apostle of the Indies, pierced to death by a spear; James the Less, surnamed “the Brother of the Lord;” Philip, who didst preach the Gospel to the Scythians, and wast crucified at Hierapolis; Bartholomew, the teacher and martyr of Armenia; Matthew, the Evangelist, who didst carry the faith into the scorching regions of Ethiopia; Simon, by whose zeal Mesopotamia was led to the knowledge of Christ; Thaddeus, the courageous destroyer of the idols of Egypt; Matthias, chosen to fill up the place of the Traitor Judas, and well worthy of the honor; Barnabas, Paul’s companion, and the light of the isle of Cyprus; Luke, disciple of the Apostle of the Gentiles, and historian of the Incarnate Word; Mark, disciple of Peter, under whose direction thou wrotest the Gospel of salvation; — we devoutly honor you as our Fathers in the Faith; pray for and with us!
Disciples of our Lord, who, though not raised to the rank of Apostles, were chosen by him to be their fellow-laborers, and who, on the Day of Pentecost, were filled with the Holy Ghost; dear Innocents of Bethlehem, first-fruits of the Martyrs; — deign to join us in our supplications!
Stephen the Crowned, Laurence the brave and cheerful winner of immortal laurels, Vincent the Victorious, — the glorious triumvirate of Deacons; Fabian, Pontiff designated by a dove sent from heaven; Sebastian, dauntless soldier of holy Church; John and Paul, Cosmas and Damian, Gervasius and Protasius, Brothers by nature and martyrdom; oh! all ye holy Martyrs, protect us under the shadow of your palms!
Sylvester, Pontiff of Peace; Gregory, Vicar both of the meekness and authority of Christ; Ambrose, whose eloquence was sweet as honey, and whose courage was as that of a lion; Augustine, Doctor of Doctors and apostle of divine charity; Jerome, inspired interpreter of the Scriptures; Martin, Thaumaturgus of the West, and Nicholas, wonder-worker in the East; holy Pontiffs, holy Doctors of the Church, lead back to Christ all his sheep that are gone astray!
Antony, the glory of the desert, and the conqueror of Satan; Benedict, the Abraham of the New Testament, whose children are countless as the stars of heaven; Bernard, pillar of the Church, and favorite of the Mother of God; Dominic, Preacher of divine truth, and scourge of heresy; Francis, friend and spouse of poverty, crucified together with Christ;—we honor you all; enkindle within our souls the desire of Christian perfection!
Priests of the Lord; holy Monks, and Hermits, and Confessors; — pray for us who implore your aid!
Mary Magdalene, once a sinner, but afterwards a Saint; whose devotedness to Jesus was so generous and fervent; obtain for us that compunction of heart, which makes amends for sin by love!
Agatha and Lucy, beautiful flowers of fair Sicily; Agnes, who followest the Lamb whithersoever he goeth; Cecily, wreathed with thy roses and lilies, and queen of sweet melody; Catharine, the wise virgin that confoundest the false wisdom of philosophers; Anastasia, the valiant woman that didst triumph over the trials of life and the severity of tortures; oh! all ye holy Virgins, Spouses of Jesus, look with compassion on us who are dwelling in this land of exile!
All ye holy men and women, Saints of God, who now reign of heaven above, think of us your brethren, who mourn in this vale of tears. We, too, are created for eternal happiness; and yet the vanities of time engross our thoughts and affections. Make intercession for us, that, henceforth, we may walk worthy of God, who hath called us unto his kingdom and glory! (1 Thessalonians 2:12)
The Litany is finished; and, for the third time, the Holy Sacrifice is about to work reconciliation between our God, and us his guilty children. Let us hope that he will make this a year of peace and plenty; and next year, when the Church invites us to join her in this public supplication for pardon, may the number of those who respond to her call, be such as to merit an increase of every blessing!
Let us assist at the Mass with a deep conviction of our own insufficiency to make atonement for our sins, and yet with a firm confidence in the infinite merits of the Paschal Lamb, our Risen Jesus.
The Mass is given at Rogation Monday. Let us assist at is with a deep conviction of our own insufficiency to make atonement for our sins, and yet with a firm confidence in the infinite merits of the Paschal Lamb, our Risen Jesus.
The ancient Church of Gaul used to recite the following Prayer on this third of the Rogation Days. It will aid us to a spirit of penance.
PRAYER
(Immolatio)
It is truly meet and just, yea most meet, that they who fast should seek thee alone, thee that art the teacher of abstinence, and the giver of eternal rewards to them that practice it. To them that fast, thou grantest what they, with faith, ask of thee — thou cleansest them from the stains contracted by intemperate indulgence. It was thou that didst proclaim holy fasting by thy servant Moses, in the book of Leviticus; wherein thou commandedst that we should humble our souls, lest we should be destroyed, as was the people that gave themselves up to excess in eating. Thine Only Begotten Son sanctified this institution by himself fulfilling it, and, by his Fast, opening to us the kingdom we had lost, and pardoning our sins. Do thou, therefore, graciously accept the fasts thou hast instituted, and, by them, absolve us from all our guilt.
The third morning of the Rogation Days is over; the hour of noon has come, and from it we begin to count the hours of the last day which the Son of God is to spend upon earth in his visible presence. During these three days, we seem to have forgotten that the time of separation is close upon us; but no—the thought of our coming trial has often presented itself, and the humble supplications we have been presenting to heaven, in union with holy Church, have prepared us to celebrate the last mystery achieved by our Emmanuel on earth.
The Disciples are all assembled in Jerusalem. They are grouped around the Blessed Mother, in the Cenacle, awaiting the hour when their divine Master is to appear to them for the last time. Recollected and silent, they are reflecting upon all the kindness and condescension he has been lavishing upon them during the last forty days; they are ruminating upon the instructions they have received from his sacred lips. They know him so well now! — they know in very deed that he came out from the Father. (John 17:8) As to what regards themselves, they have learned from him what their mission is—they have to go, ignorant men as they are, and teach all nations; (Matthew 28:19) but, O sad thought! he is about to leave them; yet a little while, and they shall not see him! (John 16:16)
What a contrast between their sorrow and the smiling face of nature, which is decked out in her best, for she is going to celebrate the triumphant departure of her Creator! The earth is blooming with freshness of her first-fruits, the meadows have put on their richest emerald, the air is perfumed with blossom and flower; and all this loveliness of Spring is due to the bright Sun that shines upon the earth to give her gladness and life, and is privileged to be, both by its kingly splendor and the successive phases of its influence upon our globe, the grand symbol of our Emmanuel’s passage through this world.
Let us go back in thought to the dismal days of the winter solstice. The sun looked then so pallid; his triumph over night was slow and short; he rose, and sank again, often without our seeing him; his light had a certain timid reserve about it, and his heat was, for weeks, too feeble to rescue nature from the grasp of frost. Such was our divine Sun of Justice, when first he came on earth; his rays made but little way in the world’s thick gloom; he kept his splendor in, lest men should be dazzled by too sudden a change from darkness to light. Like the material sun, he gained upon the world by slow advances; and even so, his progress was shrouded by many a cloud. His sojourn in the land of Egypt, his hidden life at Nazareth, were long periods of his being wholly lost sight of. But when the time came for him to show himself, his glory shone forth, with all its magnificence, upon Galilee and Judea — he spoke as one having power, (Matthew 7:29) his works bore testimony to his being God, (John 10:25) and the people hailed him with the cry of Hosannah to the Son of David!
He was almost at the zenith of his glory, when suddenly came the eclipse of his Passion and Death. For some hours, his enemies flattered themselves that they had forever put out his light. Vain hope! — on the third day, our divine Sun triumphed over this final obstruction; and now stands in the firmament, pouring out his light upon all creation, but warning us that his course is run. For he can never descend; there is no setting for Him: — and here finishes the comparison between himself and the orb of day. It is from heaven itself that he, our beautiful Orient, is henceforth to enlighten and direct us, as Zachary foretold at the birth of the Baptist. (Luke 1:79) The Royal Prophet, too, thus exultingly sang of him: He hath rejoiced, as a giant, to run the way: his going out is from the highest heaven, and his circuit even to the summit thereof: and there is no one that can hide himself from his heat. (Psalm 18:6-7)
This Ascension, which enthroned our Emmanuel as the eternal center of light was, by his own decree, to take place on one of the days of the month which men call May, and which clothes, in its richest beauty, the creation of this same God who, when he had made it, was pleased with it, and found it very good. (Genesis 1:31) Sweet month of May! — not gloomy and cold like December, which brought us the humble joys of Bethlehem; not lowering and clouded like March, when the Lamb was sacrificed on Calvary; — but buoyant with sunshine, and flowers, and life, and truly worthy to be offered, each year, to Mary, the Mother of God—for it is the month of her Jesus’ triumph.
O Jesus! our Creator and Brother! our eyes and heart have followed thee from thy first rising upon our world. We have celebrated, in the holy Liturgy, each of thy giant steps. But our very seeing thee thus ever growing in beauty and brightness, told us that thou must one day leave us, to go and take possession of the place that was alone worthy of thee—the throne at the right hand of thine Eternal Father. The splendor that has been on thee since thy Resurrection, is not of this world; thou canst no longer abide among us; thou hast remained here below, for these forty days, only for the sake of consolidating thy work: and tomorrow, the earth that has been blessed with thy presence for three and thirty years will be deprived of its privilege and joy. We rejoice at thy approaching triumph, as did thy Blessed Mother, thy Disciples, Mary Magdalene and her companions; but we are sad at the thought of losing thee — and thou wilt forgive us. Thou was our Emmanuel, our God with us; henceforth, thou art to be our Sun, our King, reigning from the throne of heaven, and we shall no longer be able to hear thee, nor see thee, nor touch thee, O Word of Life! (1 John 1:1) Still, dearest Jesus, we say to thee with all our hearts: Glory and love be to thee, for thou hast treated us with infinite mercy! Thou owedst nothing to us; we were unworthy of a single look from thee; and yet, thou camedst down to this sinful earth, thou hast dwelt among us, thou hast paid our ransom by thy Blood, thou hast re-established Peace between God and man. Oh, yes! it is most just that thou shouldst now return to Him that sent thee. (John 16:5) The Church, thy Spouse, consents to her exile; she only thinks of what is most glorious to her Jesus; and she thus addresses thee, in the words of the Canticle: Flee away, O my Beloved! and be swift as the roe and as the young hart, and ascend to the mountains, where the flowers of heaven exhale their sweet fragrance! (Canticles 8:14) Can we, poor sinners as we are, refuse to imitate this loving resignation of her who is thy Spouse, and our Mother!