Notre Dame de Rouen. The façade of the Gothic Church in France. Photographer: Hippo1947. Licence: SHUTTERSTOCK.

Thursday 29 November 2012

EU being silly, again. God preserve us. Literally.


Taken from the Blog, Catholicism Pure & Simple, which can be found at
http://catholicismpure.wordpress.com/


Silly EU-Censorship – European Commission advised National Bank of Slovakia to remove Christian cross and aureoles from Slovakian 2-Euro coin.





Slovakian 2-Euro coin is showing Saint Cyril and Methodius – two Christian Saints and cross which is also the coat of arms of Slovakia.



Slovakia, responding to requests from some fellow eurozone countries, has removed the halos from a €2 coin commemorating the 1,150th anniversary of the arrival of Saints Cyril and Methodius in Moravia.

Slovakia, a eurozone member since 2009, will start circulating the coin next year to mark the arrival of Saints Cyril and Methodius to Great Moravia and Panonia, which was part of modern Slovakia.

Eurozone countries are allowed to mint commemorative coins once every year under EU rules. The image on the back of the commemorative coin, however, must be accepted by the remaining eurozone members and the European Commission.

Cyril and Methodius were brothers, born in Thessaloniki at the beginning of the 9th century, who created the Glagolitic and then the Cyrillic alphabets with the aim to have the Bible and other texts translated into Slavic languages.

Cyril died in 869 A.D., and Methodius in 885 A.D. They were soon canonised as Saints, with Saints Cyril and Methodius Day being celebrated on 24 May to mark the anniversary of Cyril’s death (see background).




Coat of Arms of Slovakian Republic


Cyril and Methodius were also declared patrons of Europe in 1980 by Pope John Paul II. In Bulgaria, the only EU country at present to use the Cyrillic alphabet, 24 May is a public holiday, called “Bulgarian Education and Culture, and Slavonic Literature Day”.

And no religion?

Slovakia agreed to remove the halo despite Cyril and Methodius’ undisputed status as saints.

“Under EU rules, when designing the national side of a euro coin, Member States are required to take into account that the coins will circulate throughout the whole eurozone, and in that context, proposed designs are shared in advance with other Member States so that they can provide any comments they deem appropriate,” the Commission said in a statement.

The Commission acknowledged that some members states objected to the coin, adding that Slovakia submitted a slightly amended design, “which has now been approved by the [EU] Council of Ministers.”

If the motivation of the unnamed member states was to remove religious symbols from the design, they did not entirely succeed. Cyril and Methodius hold a Christian double cross, standing on the middle peak of a mountain with three peaks.

The double cross and the three peaks are the main elements of the coat of arms of Slovakia and feature on the regular Slovak euro coins.

The revamped design has been met with unease by the Bulgarian press. During Communism, painters and sculptors were requested by the authorities to portray Cyril and Methodius without sanctity halos.



Wednesday 28 November 2012

Advent (Part Two)


Text taken from The Liturgical Year by Abbot Gueranger, O.S.B.
(Translated from the French by Dom Laurence Shepherd, O.S.B.)
Advent. Volume 1. St. Bonaventure Publications, www.libers.com
Originally published 1949.
Republished by St. Bonaventure Publications, July 2000.

Unless otherwise stated, Illustrations are taken from 
Una Voce of Orange County web-site at http://uvoc.org/
which reproduced them, with the kind permission of St. Bonaventure Press, from 
The Saint Andrew Daily Missal, 1952 Edition.



I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, make straight the way of the Lord.


Saint Ivo of Chartres, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, and several other Doctors of the 11th- and 12-Centuries, have left us Set Sermons de Adventu Domini, quite distinct from their Sunday Homilies on the Gospels of that Season.

In the capitularia of Charles the Bald, in 846 A.D., the Bishops admonish that Prince not to call them away from their Churches during Lent or Advent, under pretext of affairs of State or the necessities of war, seeing that they have special duties to fulfil, and particularly that of preaching during those sacred times.

The oldest document in which we find the length and exercises of Advent mentioned with anything like clearness, is a passage in the second book of the History of the Franks, by Saint Gregory of Tours, where he says that Saint Perpetuus, one of his predecessors, who held that See about the year 480 A.D., had decreed a Fast three times a week, from the Feast of Saint Martin until Christmas. It would be impossible to decide whether Saint Perpetuus, by his regulations, established a new custom, or merely enforced an already existing law. Let us, however, note this interval of forty, or rather forty-three, days, so expressly mentioned, and consecrated to penance, as though it were a second Lent, though less strict and severe than that which precedes Easter.


John preaching the Baptism of Penance.


Later on, we find the Ninth Canon of the First Council of Macon, held in 582 A.D., ordaining that during the same interval between Saint Martin's Day and Christmas, the Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, should be Fasting Days, and that the Sacrifice should be celebrated according to the Lenten Rite.

Not many years before that, namely in 567 A.D., the Second Council of Tours had enjoined the monks to Fast from the beginning of December till Christmas. This practice of penance soon extended to the whole forty days, even for the laity; and it was commonly called Saint Martin's Lent.

The capitularia of Charlemagne, in the sixth book, leave us no doubt on the matter; and Rabanus Maurus, in the second book of his Institution of clerics, bears testimony to this observance. There were even special rejoicings made on Saint Martin's Feast, just as we see them practised now at the approach of Lent and Easter.


The Saint Andrew Daily Missal is obtainable from Carmel Books, Blackford House, Andover Road, Highclere, Newbury, Berkshire, England RG20 9PF. Tel: (01635 255340).
E-Mail: enquiries.carmelbooks@gmail.com


PART THREE FOLLOWS


Monday 26 November 2012

Advent (Part One)


Text taken from The Liturgical Year by Abbot Gueranger, O.S.B.
(Translated from the French by Dom Laurence Shepherd, O.S.B.)
Advent. Volume 1. St. Bonaventure Publications, www.libers.com
Originally published 1949.
Republished by St. Bonaventure Publications, July 2000.

Illustrations taken from Una Voce of Orange County web-site at http://uvoc.org/
which reproduced them, with the kind permission of St. Bonaventure Press, from 
The Saint Andrew Daily Missal, 1952 Edition.




"See the fig tree and all the trees; when they now shoot forth their fruit, 
you know that Summer is nigh; 
so you, also, when you shall see these things come to pass, 
know that the Kingdom of God is at hand."


CHAPTER THE FIRST

The History of Advent

The name, Advent, (from the Latin word, Adventus, which signifies a coming) is applied, in the Latin Church, to that period of the year during which the Church requires the faithful to prepare for the celebration of the Feast of Christmas, the anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ.

The mystery of that great day had every right to the honour of being prepared for by prayer and works of penance; and, in fact, it is impossible to state, with any certainty, when this season of preparation (which had long been observed before receiving its present name of Advent) was first instituted.

It would seem, however, that its observance first began in the West, since it is evident that Advent could not have been looked on as a preparation for the Feast of Christmas, until that Feast was definitively fixed to the 25th of December; which was done in the East only towards the close of the 4th-Century; whereas it is certain that the Church of Rome kept the Feast on that day at a much earlier period.



John sent two of his disciples to Christ.


We must look upon Advent in two different lights: First, as a time of preparation, properly so called, for the birth of our Saviour, by works of penance; and, secondly, as a series of ecclesiastical Offices drawn up for the same purpose.

We find, as far back as the 5th-Century, the custom of giving exhortations to the people in order to prepare them for the Feast of Christmas. We have two sermons of Saint Maximus of Turin on this subject, not to speak of several others which were formerly attributed to Saint Ambrose and Saint Augustine, but which were probably written by Saint Cesarius of Arles.

If these documents do not tell us what was the duration and what the exercises of this holy season, they at least show us how ancient was the practice of distinguishing the time of Advent by special sermons.


The Saint Andrew Daily Missal is obtainable from Carmel Books, Blackford House, Andover Road, Highclere, Newbury, Berkshire, England RG20 9PF. Tel: (01635 255340).
E-Mail: enquiries.carmelbooks@gmail.com


PART TWO FOLLOWS


Saturday 24 November 2012

Cologne Cathedral (Part Five)


Text and Illustrations from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.




Deutsch: Kölner Dom, Innenraum, um 1900.
English: The Cathedral interior, Cologne, the Rhine, Germany, 1890-1900.
Photo: Between 1890 and 1905.
Source: Original image: Photochrom print (colour photo lithograph). 
Reproduction number: LC-DIG-ppmsca-00809 from Library of Congress
This image is available from the United States Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID ppmsca.00809.
This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information.
(Wikimedia Commons)




The main entrance of Cologne Cathedral.
Photo: September 2005 (original upload date).
Source: Originally from en.wikipedia; description page is/was here.
Author: Yavor Doychinov. Original uploader was Yoceto at en.wikipedia
Licensed under the GFDL by the author; 
Released under the GNU Free Documentation License.
(Wikimedia Commons)





Cologne Cathedral. Panoramic View of Interior
Collection: A. D. White Architectural Photographs, Cornell University Library 
Accession Number: 15/5/3090.01537
Photograph date: circa 1865 - circa 1885 Persistent 
Photo: January 1865.
Source: Originally posted to Flickr as Cologne Cathedral. Panoramic View of Interior
Permission: This image, which was originally posted to Flickr.com, was uploaded to Commons using Flickr upload bot on 18:40, 23 June 2009 (UTC) by AndreasPraefcke
On that date it was licensed under the license below.
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.


Bells

The Cathedral has eleven Church bells, four of which are mediaeval. The first was the 3.8-ton Dreikönigsglocke ("Bell of the Three Kings"), cast in 1418, installed in 1437, and re-cast in 1880. Two of the other bells, the Pretiosa (10.5 tons; at that time the largest bell in the Western world) and the Speciosa (5.6 tons) were installed in 1448 and remain in place today.

During the 19th-Century, as the building neared completion, there was a desire to extend the number of bells. This was facilitated by Kaiser Wilhelm I, who gave French bronze cannon, captured in 1870–71, for this purpose. 




Copy of the finials in the Town Square 
(same size as the two atop the Cathedral).
Photo: August 2012.
Source: Own work.


The 22 pieces of artillery were displayed outside the Cathedral on 11 May 1872. Andreas Hamm, in Frankenthal, used them to cast a bell of over 27,000 kilos on 19 August 1873. The tone was not harmonious and another attempt was made on 13 November 1873. The Central Cathedral Association, which had agreed to take over the costs, did not want this bell either. Another attempt took place on 3 October 1874. The colossal bell was shipped to Cologne and on 13 May 1875, installed in the Cathedral. This Kaiserglocke was eventually dismantled in 1918 to support the German war effort.

The 24-ton St. Petersglocke ("Bell of St. Peter", "Dicke Pitter" in the Kölsch dialect), was cast in 1922 and is the largest free-swinging bell in the world.




"Peterglocke", Cologne Cathedral Bell.
Photo: December 2003.
Author: Randal J.
Permission: CC-BY-SA.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Bells of the ridge turret:

Consecration Bell – 0.425 tons (Wandlungsglocke)
Vespers Bell – 0.28 tons (Mettglocke)
Angelus Bell – 0.763 tons (Angelusglocke)


Bells of the Main Bell Cage in the South Spire:

Hail Bell – 0.83 tons (Aveglocke)
Chapter Bell – 1.4 tons (Kapitelsglocke)
St Joseph's Bell – 2.2 tons (Josephglocke)
St Ursula's Bell – 2.55 tons (Ursulaglocke)
Bell of the Three Kings – 3.8 tons (Dreikönigsglocke)
Pretiosa – 10.5 tons
Speciosa – 5.6 tons
St Peter's Bell – 24 tons (St. Petersglocke)





View from inside the right tower, Cologne Cathedral.
Photo: June 2007.
Source: Own work.
Author: Ziko.
(Wikimedia Commons)

Church music

Cologne Cathedral has two pipe organs by Klais Orgelbau: The Transept Organ, built in 1948, and The Nave Organ, built in 1998. 

Cathedral organists have included Josef Zimmermann, Clemens Ganz (1985–2001) and Winfried Bönig (2001).




Statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the central jamb of the main door.
Photo: May 2007.
Source: Own work.
Author: Mathias Bigge.
(Wikimedia Commons)


THIS CONCLUDES THE ARTICLE ON COLOGNE CATHEDRAL


Wednesday 21 November 2012

Cologne Cathedral (Part Four)


Text and Illustrations from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.


Deutsch: Kölner Dom
English: The Rayonnant Gothic Choir and Apse of Cologne Cathedral
Source: Own work.
Author: Pascal Reusch
(Wikimedia Commons)


The design of Cologne Cathedral was based quite closely on that of Amiens Cathedral, in terms of ground plan, style and the width-to-height proportion of the Central Nave. The plan is in the shape of a Latin Cross, as is usual with Gothic Cathedrals. It has two Aisles on either side, which help to support one of the highest Gothic Vaults in the world, being nearly as tall as that of Beauvais Cathedral.





English: King Louis I of Bavaria, 
who donated a set of stained-glass windows to Cologne Cathedral (see, below).
Latina: Ludovicus I., Rex von Bavariae.
Boarisch: Da Kine Ludwig I. af an Buidl vo 1826.
Deutsch: 1825: Ludwig I. von Bayern. Ludwig I., König von Bayern, 
Gemälde von Joseph Karl Stieler.
Ελληνικά: Ο Λούις Α' Βασιλιάς της Βαβαρίας
Italiano: Luigi I di Baviera.
Français : Louis I de Bavière par Joseph Karl Stieler, 1826.
Polski: LouisI.jpg.
Current location: Neue Pinakothek.
Artist: Joseph Karl Stieler (1781–1858).
(Wikimedia Commons)


Externally, the outward thrust of the Vault is taken up by Flying Buttresses in the French manner. The East End has a single Ambulatory, the second Aisle resolving into a Chevet of seven radiating Chapels.

Internally, the Mediaeval Choir is more varied and less mechanical in its details than the 19th-Century building. It presents a French-style arrangement of very tall Arcade and a delicate, narrow, Triforium gallery,  lit by windows and with detailed tracery merging with that of the windows above.




A set of five stained glass windows, given to the Cathedral by King Ludwig I of Bavaria.
Deutsch: Kölner Dom - Bayernfenster, mittleres Vollfenster: Beweinungsfenster, 
rechts: Anbetungsfenster.
Author: a.stafiniak.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Clerestory windows are tall and retain some old figurative glass in the lower sections. The whole is united by the tall shafts which sweep unbroken from the floor to their capitals at the spring of the Vault. The Vault is of plain quadripartite arrangement.

The Choir retains a great many of its original fittings, including the carved Stalls, which is made the more surprising by the fact that French Revolutionary troops had desecrated the building. A large stone statue of St Christopher looks down towards the place where the earlier entrance to the Cathedral was, before its completion in the late-19th-Century.

The Nave has many 19th-Century stained glass windows including a set of five on the South side, called the "Bayernfenster", which were a gift from Ludwig I of Bavaria, a set highly representative of the German style of that date.




Deutsch: Kölner Dom - Blick vom südlichen Obergaden 
in den Obergaden des nördlichen Chorraumes.
The arcade, gallery and clerestory of the East End 
showing details of tracery and painted angels on the spandrels.
Photo: January 2007.
Source: Own work.
Author: Raymond - Spekking.
Attribution: © Raimond Spekking / CC-BY-SA-3.0
(Wikimedia Commons)


Externally, particularly from a distance, the building is dominated by its huge Spires, which are entirely Germanic in character, being openwork, like those of Ulm, Vienna and Regensburg Cathedrals.

One of the treasures of the Cathedral is the High Altar, which was installed in 1322. It is constructed of black marble, with a solid slab 15 feet (4.6 m) long forming the top. The front and sides are overlaid with white marble niches into which are set figures, with the Coronation of the Virgin at the centre.

The most celebrated work of art in the Cathedral is the Shrine of the Three Kings, commissioned by Philip von Heinsberg, Archbishop of Cologne from 1167 to 1191 and created by Nicholas of Verdun and begun in 1190. It is traditionally believed to hold the remains of the Three Wise Men, whose relics were acquired by Frederick Barbarossa at the conquest of Milan in 1164.





English: The Gothic Cologne Cathedral in Cologne, Germany.
Deutsch: Kölner Dom bei Nacht in der Stadt Köln
Italiano: Il Duomo di Colonia di notte.
עברית: he:קתדרלת קלן הגותית
Photo: January 2006.
Source: Own work, upload to de.wikipedia 17. Mai 2006 by Robert Breuer.
Author: Robert Breuer.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Shrine takes the form a large reliquary, in the shape of a Basilican Church, made of bronze and silver, gilded and ornamented with architectonic details, figurative sculpture, enamels and gemstones. The Shrine was opened in 1864 and was found to contain bones and garments.

Near the Sacristy, is the Gero-Kreuz, a large Crucifix, carved in oak and with traces of paint and gilding. Believed to have been commissioned around 960 A.D. for Archbishop Gero, it is the oldest large Crucifix North of the Alps and the earliest-known large free-standing Northern sculpture of the Mediaeval period.

In the Sacrament Chapel, is the Mailänder Madonna ("Milan Madonna"), dating from around 1290, a wooden sculpture depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary and the infant Jesus. The Altar of the Patron Saints of Cologne, with an Altar-piece by the International Gothic painter, Stephan Lochner, is in the Marienkapelle ("St. Mary's Chapel"). Other works of art are to be found in the Cathedral Treasury. The Altar also houses the relics of Saint Irmgardis.


PART FIVE FOLLOWS


Monday 19 November 2012

Christmas Day Usus Antiquior Mass at English Martyrs' Church, York, 0830 hrs.


The following Notice is taken from the Latin Mass Society RC Diocese of Middlesbrough Blog at



Christmas Day Mass in the Extraordinary Form
at English Martyrs' Church, Dalton Terrace, York YO24 4DA, 08.30 hrs.


FR DAVID SMITH WILL CELEBRATE LOW MASS (DAWN MASS OF CHRISTMAS DAY).
This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the Feast of the Nativity with an Extraordinary Form Mass. Please publicise this widely. A good turnout would be fantastic.


The following Illustration is taken from the Middlesbrough Diocese Blog at 

The following Text is taken from the Parish of The English Martyrs, York, web-site at




The Church of English Martyrs, York.
Dalton Terrace, York YO24 4DA.
Tel: 01904 623783.

We welcome visitors. Welcome to our Church. We hope you enjoy your visit to York.

 

Serdecznie witamy gości. Witamy w naszym kościele. Mamy nadzieję ,że miło spędzacie czas w Yorku. 


Herzlich willkommen in unserer Kirche. Wir hoffen, daß Sie Ihren Besuch in York genießen.


Bienvenue à notre eglise! Nous vous souhaitons un séjour agréable à York.

Benvenuti alla nostra chiesa. Speriamo che vi divertite a York.

Welkom in onze kerk. We hopen dat uw bezoek aan York u bevalt.


Bienvenidos a nuestra iglesia! Esperamos que dizfruten su visita a York.

Clergy
Rev. John Bane.

Service Times.

Masses

Sunday: 
Saturday evening 6.30 pm, 
Sunday 10.30 am.

Holy Days:
9.30 am,
6 pm.

Weekdays:
Monday: 7 pm,
Tuesday: 10 am,
Wednesday: 2 pm,
Thursday: 7 pm,
Friday: 10 am.

Confessions:
Saturday 5.45 pm - 6.15 pm, 
Monday & Thursday 6.20 pm - 6.40 pm.

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament:
Monday & Thursday 6 pm-7 pm.

Saturday 17 November 2012

18 November - The Dedication of the Basilicas of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul


Text and Illustrations taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal, 

unless otherwise stated.

The Saint Andrew Daily Missal is obtainable from Carmel Books, Blackford House, Andover Road, Highclere, Newbury, Berkshire, England RG20 9PF. Tel: (01635 255340).
E-Mail: enquiries.carmelbooks@gmail.com


Illustrations and captions, within The Saint Andrew Daily Missal, 1952 Edition, are taken from Una Voce of Orange County web-site at http://uvoc.org/, which reproduces them with the kind permission of St. Bonaventure Press.

Greater-Double.

White Vestments.





Interior of St. Peter's Basilica, Rome,
by Giovanni Paolo Pannini (1731).
Current location: Saint Louis Art Museum.
(Wikimedia Commons)



Italiano: Statua di San Paolo di fronte alla facciata della 
Basilica di San Paolo fuori le Mura a Roma.
Basilica of Saint Paul's-without-the-Walls, Rome.
Photo: May 2007.
Source: Own work.
Author: Berthold Werner.
 (Wikimedia Commons)


After having celebrated, on 5 August, the Dedication of Saint Mary of the Snow (better known under the name of Saint Mary Major) at Rome, and that of Saint Michael on 29 September, and that of Saint John Lateran on 9 November, and, in some Dioceses, a common Dedication Feast of all the consecrated Churches, the Church today celebrates that of the Basilicas of Saint Peter and Saint Paul at Rome.

Thus, are all these anniversaries solemnised in the season after Pentecost, a time when we give all our thoughts to the Church and to the Saints, of whom our Temples are the living image.

The Basilica of Saint Peter, on the Vatican, and that of Saint Paul-without-the-Walls, both erected by Emperor Constantine on the sites of their martyrdom, are hardly inferior, owing to their origin and importance, to the Basilica of Saint John Lateran. They were also consecrated by Saint Sylvester on 18 November.




English: St. Peter's Basilica seen from the River Tiber. 
Magyar: Vatikánváros látképe.
Italiano: Veduta del Vaticano dal Tevere.
Photo: January 2005.
Source: Flickr
Reviewer: Andre Engels.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Church of Saint Peter is on the site of the Circus of Nero, and, under its High Altar, lie the sacred remains of the Head of the Apostles, making it, with Saint John Lateran, the centre of the whole Christian world.

Here is always held the Station of the Saturday in Ember Week, when Holy Orders are conferred; here, also, are held the Stations of the Third Sunday in Advent, and of The Epiphany, and of Passion Sunday, and of Easter Monday, and of Ascension Day, and of Pentecost, and of the Litanies of Saint Mark, and of Rogation Wednesday.

Lastly, it is here that Mass is solemnly sung on the Feast of The Holy Apostles, Peter and Paul, on 29 June, and on the Feasts of the Chair of Saint Peter at Rome, 18 January, and of the Chair of Saint Peter at Antioch, 22 February.



English: Basilica of Saint Paul-without-the-Walls, Vatican, Italy. 
With its length of 432 feet, this Basilica ranks 11th among the largest Churches in the world.
Français : Basilique Saint-Paul-hors-les-Murs, Vatican, située à Rome, Latium, Italie. 
Avec sa longueur de 131,66 mètres, cette Basilique se classe au 11è rang 
parmi les plus grandes églises au monde.
Photo: September 2010.
Source: Own work.
Author: Tango7174.
(Wikimedia Commons)


This Church, already remarkable in the 4th-Century, was enlarged at a later date and completely rebuilt in the 16th-Century, when it was falling into decay. Pope Julian II and Pope Leo X had recourse to the greatest artists of the age and the combined plans of Bramante and Michael Angelo (sic) raised over the tomb of Saint Peter the greatest and richest Church in the world, which Pope Urban VIII consecrated on 18 November 1626.

The Basilica of Saint Paul, situated on the other side of Rome, was also built in the 4th-Century over the tomb of the Apostle of the Gentiles. On account of the distance, it was only used for the Station four times a year: On the Feast of Holy Innocents; on Sexagesima Sunday; on the Wednesday of the fourth week in Lent or day of the greatest scrutiny; and on Easter Tuesday. Mass is solemnly celebrated there on the day of the Commemoration of Saint Paul, 30 June, and on the day of his Conversion, 25 January.

Having been destroyed by fire in 1823, the Church was rebuilt by Pope Gregory XVI and Pope Pius IX, and consecrated by the latter on 10 December 1854. He maintained, however, today's Feast, joining the anniversary of the two Dedications under the original date of 18 November.


MASS: Terribilis. Page 1704. The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.



Proper Clerical Dress Code





Pope Pius XII.
Image: Google Images.


The following Article can be found on the Blog of The Latin Mass Society RC Diocese of Middlesbrough at http://latinmassmiddlesbrough.blogspot.co.uk


Clerical Dress

According to Andrea Tornielli, an observer of all that goes on in the Vatican, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican Secretary of State, has issued a circular concerning Clerical Dress. It stresses the need for all Priests working in the Vatican to wear Clerical Dress. This is taken to mean Cassock and Clerical Collar at all times. On more formal occasions, such as in the presence of the Holy Father, the Fascia should be worn, as well as trimmings to the Cassock, appropriate to their rank.

It seems that some Priests working in the Vatican have adopted the practice of dressing informally, just as some have in England; and Cardinal Bertone has moved to put a stop to it.

A similar move by the English hierarchy would be welcome.

La Porte du Ciel; Porta Caeli


Taken from Holy Card Heaven Blog at http://holycardheaven.blogspot.co.uk/



La Porte du Ciel.
Porta Caeli.
Gate of Heaven.



Sebastián de Vivanco's "O Rex Gloriae". The Romanesque Old Cathedral of Salamanca, Spain.


This Article, on Sebastian de Vivanco, can be found on the Atrium Musicologicum Blog
 
Illustrations and Captions from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.


File:Cathedral of Salamanca Romanesque.jpg


"Torre del Gallo" of the Romanesque Old Cathedral of Salamanca, Spain.
Photo: 15 October 2006.
Source: Flickr.
Author: chicadelatele.
Reviewer: FlickreviewR.
(Wikimedia Commons)


File:Interiores de la Catedral Vieja de Salamanca 05.jpg


The Nave, Salamanca Old Cathedral, Spain.
 Photo: 18 May 2012.
Source: Own work.
(Wikimedia Commons)



Sebastian de Vivanco's "O Rex Gloriae".
Available on YouTube at http://youtu.be/w1uF1hWEiOY.


File:Retablo Catedral Vieja Salamanca.JPG


English: The Apse, Old Cathedral of Salamanca, Spain.
Espanol: Retablo Catedral Vieja Salamanca.
Photo: 19 August 2012.
Source: Own work.
Author: Conde negro.
(Wikimedia Commons)


File:Cat vieja y nueva salamanca.jpg


English: The Old Cathedral of Salamanca, Spain.
Espanol: Torres de las dos catedrales de Salamanca. 
En primer plano, la Catedral Vieja.
Photo: 21 March 2007.
Author: rahego.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Wednesday 14 November 2012

Cologne Cathedral (Part Three)


Text and Illustrations from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.




English: Cologne Cathedral at sunset. Seen from the Deutz bank of the Rhine.
Deutsch: Kölner Dom bei Sonnenuntergang vom Deutzer Rheinufer aus betrachtet.
Photo: May 2012.
Author: Realjectivity.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Cathedral suffered seventy hits by bombs during World War II. It did not collapse, but stood tall in an otherwise flattened city. The great Twin Spires are said to have been used as an easily recognizable navigational landmark by Allied aircraft raiding deeper into Germany in the later years of the war, which may be a reason that the Cathedral was not destroyed. It has been claimed that in June 1945 American troops used the Cathedral as a rifle range.

The repairs to the building were completed in 1956. In the North-West Tower's base, an emergency repair, carried out in 1944 with bad-quality brick taken from a nearby war ruin, remained visible until 2005 as a reminder of the war, but then it was decided to reconstruct this section according to its original appearance.

Some repair and maintenance work is constantly being carried out in some section of the building, which is almost never completely free of scaffolding, since wind, rain, and pollution slowly eat away at the stones. The Dombauhütte, which was established to build the Cathedral and repair the Cathedral, is said to employ the best stonemasons of the Rhineland.




The 24-ton St. Petersglocke ("Bell of St. Peter", "Dicke Pitter" in the Kölsch dialect), 
was cast in 1922 and is the largest free-swinging bell in the world. 
A person stands to the right of the bell clapper.
Cologne Cathedral Bell (Peterglocke).
Photo: December 2003.
Author: Randal J.
Permission: CC-BY-SA.
(Wikimedia Commons)


There is a common joke in Cologne that the leader of the Dombauhütte, the Dombaumeister (master builder of the Cathedral), has to be Catholic and free from giddiness. The current Dombaumeisterin is Barbara Schock-Werner. Half of the costs of repair and maintenance are still borne by the Dombauverein.

On 25 August 2007, the Cathedral received a new stained glass in the South Transept window. With 113 square metres of glass, the window was created by the German artist, Gerhard Richter. It is composed of 11,500 identically-sized pieces of coloured glass, resembling pixels, randomly arranged by computer, which create a colourful "carpet". 

Since the loss of the original window in World War II, the space had been temporarily filled with plain glass. The Archbishop of the Cathedral, Joachim Cardinal Meisner, who had preferred a figurative depiction of 20th-Century Catholic martyrs for the window, did not attend the unveiling.





English: Cologne Cathedral. Looking East from the roof of the Nave.
Deutsch: Kölner Dom (Cologne Cathedral). Blick nach Osten vom Dach des Mittelschiffs.
Photo: April 2006.
Author: User:Mkill.
(Wikimedia Commons)


In 1996, the Cathedral was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List of culturally important sites. In 2004, it was placed on the "World Heritage in Danger" List, as the only Western Site in danger, due to plans to construct a high-rise building nearby, which would have visually impacted the Site. The Cathedral was removed from the List of In Danger Sites in 2006, following the authorities' decision to limit the heights of buildings constructed near and around the Cathedral.

As a World Heritage Site, and with its convenient position on tourist routes, Cologne Cathedral is a major tourist attraction, the visitors including many who travel there on a Christian pilgrimage.

Visitors can climb 509 stone steps of the spiral staircase to a viewing platform about 98 m (322 ft) above the ground. The platform gives a scenic view over the Rhine.

On 18 August 2005, Pope Benedict XVI visited the Cathedral during his apostolic visit to Germany, as part of World Youth Day 2005 festivities. An estimated one million pilgrims visited the Cathedral during this time. Also, as part of the events of World Youth Day, Cologne Cathedral hosted a televised gala performance of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Philharmonic Choir, conducted by Sir Gilbert Levine.




Cologne Cathedral Twin Spires.
Photo: August 2009.
Author: A.Unnewehr.
(Wikimedia Commons)

PART FOUR FOLLOWS


Sunday 11 November 2012

11 November - Remembrance Day




Dies Irae (Mass For The Dead, Sequence, Male Voices).
Gregorian Chant notation from the Liber Usualis (1961), page 1810.
Latin lyrics sung by the Alfred Dellor Consort.

Thank you

11 November - Remembrance Day





11 November - Remembrance Day



Matthaeus has a wonderful Post on Remembrance Day on his Blog, Sub Umbra Alarum Suarum, at http://sub-umbra-alarum-suarum.blogspot.co.uk/

CLICK HERE to go on over and read it.

WHEN YOU GO HOME,
TELL THEM OF US,
AND SAY:
"FOR YOUR TOMORROW,
WE GAVE OUR TODAY."

11 November - Remembrance Day




At the 11th Hour,
Of the 11th Day,
Of the 11th Month,
The guns finally fell silent.

In August 1914, when World War I started,
They said: "It will all be over by Christmas".

It wasn't.

Millions and millions and millions of soldiers, sailors and airmen died.

They called it: "The war to end all wars".

It didn't.


Friday 9 November 2012

Cologne Cathedral (Part Two)


Text and Illustrations from Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia,
unless otherwise stated.


  


The Nave, looking East. 
Deutsch: Innenraum des Kölner Doms - Mittelschiff.
Photo: September 2004.
Source: From de.wp.
Author: Thomas Robbin
(Wikimedia Commons)


In 1164, the Archbishop of Cologne, Rainald of Dassel, had acquired the relics of The Three Kings which had been taken from the Basilica of Sant'Eustorgio, Milan, Italy, by the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick Barbarossa (parts of the relics have since been returned to Milan).

The relics had great religious significance and could be counted upon to draw pilgrims from all over Christendom. It was important to Church officials that they be properly housed, and thus began a building programme in the new style of Gothic architecture, based, in particular, on the French Cathedral of Amiens.

The foundation stone was laid on 15 August 1248, by Archbishop Konrad von Hochstaden. The eastern arm was completed under the direction of Master Gerhard, and was consecrated in 1322 and sealed off by a temporary wall, so it could be in use as the work proceeded.




Unfinished Cologne Cathedral, 1856, with ancient crane on the South Tower.
Deutsch: Vor dem unfertigen Dom: Zollverwaltung "Am Bollwerk" mit achteckigem Zinnenturm.
Source: Uta Grefe: Köln in frühen Photographien 1847-1914, 
Schirmer/Mosel Verlag, München, 1988, ISBN 3-88814-294-6.
Scan by Raymond Disc. - Raimond Spekking.
Author: Johann Franz Michiels (1823 - 1887).
(Wikimedia Commons)


Eighty-four misericords, in the Choir, date from this building phase. In the Mid-14th-Century, work on the West Front commenced under Master Michael. This work halted in 1473, leaving the South Tower complete up to the Belfry level, and crowned with a huge crane, which was destined to remain in place, and a landmark of the Cologne skyline, for 400 years.

Some work proceeded intermittently on the structure of the Nave between the West Front and the eastern arm, but, during the 16th-Century, this ceased.

With the 19th-Century romantic enthusiasm for the Middle Ages, and spurred on by the lucky discovery of the original plan for the façade, it was decided, with the commitment of the Protestant Prussian Court, to complete the Cathedral.

It was achieved by civic effort; the Central-Dombauverein, founded in 1842, raised two-thirds of the enormous costs (over US$ 1 billion in today's money), while the Prussian State supplied the remaining third. The State saw this as a way to improve its relations with the large number of Catholic subjects it had gained in 1815.

Work resumed in 1842 to the original design of the surviving Mediaeval plans and drawings, but utilising more modern construction techniques, including iron roof girders. The Nave was completed and the Towers were added. The Bells were installed in the 1870s.

The completion of Germany's largest Cathedral was celebrated as a national event on 14 August 1880, six hundred and thirty-two years after construction had begun. The celebration was attended by Emperor Wilhelm I.




The completed Cologne Cathedral in 1911.
Author: Max Hasak (1856-1934).
Year of publication: 1911.
Source: Deutsch: Der Scan wurde anhand einer originalen Buchvorlage vorgenommen.
Source: English: scan from original book.
Source: Nederlands: Scan van het originele boek.
(Wikimedia Commons)





Author: Max Hasak (1856-1934).
Year of publication: 1911.
Source: Deutsch: Der Scan wurde anhand einer originalen Buchvorlage vorgenommen.
Source: English: scan from original book.
Source: Nederlands: Scan van het originele boek.
(Wikimedia Commons)





The Altarpiece of the Three Kings, Cologne Cathedral, 
by Stephan Lochner (circa 1500).
Permission: PDArt.
(Wikimedia Commons)


PART THREE FOLLOWS


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