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

20 September, 2026

The Vigil Of Saint Matthew. Apostle And Evangelist. 20 September. Violet Vestments.


Text from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal,
unless stated otherwise.

The Vigil Of Saint Matthew.
   Apostle And Evangelist.
   20 September.

Simple.

Violet Vestments.


English: The Inspiration of Saint Matthew.
Français: L’Inspiration de saint Matthieu.
Date: 1602.
Current location: Contarelli Chapel,
Church of San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome.
Source/Photographer: 
(Wikimedia Commons)


In order to honour the high dignity of The Apostles (Secret), The Church prepares us for their Feasts by a Vigil. She therefore Commemorates on this day Saint Matthew by special Collects and by The Last Gospel of The Mass in which Saint Luke relates the call of this Apostle.

A Galilean by birth, his name before his conversion was Levi; he was a publican. This profession was that of a collector of The Roman Taxes and was very odious to the Jews, who were thus reminded of their dependence.

Generally harsh and greedy, the publican was considered by the Pharisees to be the type of the sinner. Wherefore, The Church shows us Jesus as the healer of Souls, whom He calls to Penance (Gospel).

Mass: Ego autem.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Saint Eustace And His Companions. Martyrs. Feast Day 20 September. Red Vestments.



English: The Conversion of Saint Eustace.
German: Die Bekehrung des heiligen Eustachius .
Artist: Joseph Binder.
Date: 1849.
Source:
(Wikimedia Commons)


Text from “The Liturgical Year”.
   By: Abbot Guéranger, O.S.B.
   Volume 14.
   Time After Pentecost.
   Book V.

The twentieth of September marks one of the saddest events in history.

At the height of her power, in the glorious days of Pepin and Charlemagne, the eldest daughter of The Church had crowned her mother; and The Church, in the person of her Head, reigned in reality, as well as by Right, until, a thousand years later, Satan took advantage of the fallen state of France to despoil Peter of the patrimony which ensured his independence. The Holy Cross is still shedding its rays on us !!!

Today, a group of Martyrs, and this time a whole family; father, mother, and sons, take up their position around the standard of salvation. While the antiquity of their cultus in both East and West rests on the best authority, the details of their life are extremely vague. 


English: The Altar, in Saint Eustace Chapel, in Hunting 
Čeština: Oltář kaple sv. Eustacha na Loveckém 
Photo: 6 August 2009.
Source: Own work.
Author: Jitka Erbenová (cheva)
(Wikimedia Commons)


Could Placid the Tribune, whose exploits are recorded by Josephus in his “Wars of The Jews”, be the same as the Eustace we are celebrating, today ?

Does the genealogy of our Saint connect him with the “Octavia” family, from which Augustus Cæsar sprang ? Again, are we to recognise as his direct descendant the noble Tertullus, who confided to Saint Benedict his son, Placid, the favourite child of the holy Patriarch, and the Proto-Martyr of The Benedictine Order ?

Subiaco long possessed the mountain designated by ancient tradition as the site of the apparition of the mysterious Stag; Tertullus may have bequeathed it to the Monastery, as his son’s patrimony.


English: Church of Saint Eustace, La Mouille, France.
Français: Église Saint-Eustache de La Mouille, France.
Photo: 17 July 2014.
Source: Own work.
Author:
(Wikimedia Commons)


But we have not space enough to do more than record the fact that these questions have been raised.

There could hardly be a more touching legend that that of our Martyrs:

Eustace, otherwise called Placid, was a Roman, illustrious for his birth, wealth, and military renown, so that, under the Emperor, Trajan, he became General of the Army.



Once, while hunting, he was chasing a Stag of remarkable size, which suddenly halted, and showed him between its horns a large and bright image of Christ Our Lord hanging upon The Cross, and inviting him to make everlasting life the object of his pursuit.

Thereupon, together with his wife, Theopista, and his two little sons, Agapitus and Theopistus, he entered the ranks of the Christian warfare.

Soon afterwards, he returned to the place of the vision, in obedience to the command of Our Lord, from Whom he there heard how much he was to suffer for God’s glory.


Church of Saint Andrew and Saint Eustachius 
(Eustace), Woodbridge, Suffolk, England.
Photo: 26 August 2014.
Author: Bikeboy
(Wikimedia Commons)


He underwent, with wonderful patience, such incredible losses that in a short time he was reduced to the utmost need, and was obliged to retire privately.

On the way, he had the unhappiness to see, first, his wife, and then his two sons, taken from him. Overwhelmed by all these misfortunes, he lived for a long time unknown in a distant Country, as a farm bailiff; until, at length, a voice from Heaven comforted him; and soon afterwards, a fresh occasion of War arising, Emperor Trajan had him sought out and again placed at the head of the Army.

During the expedition, he unexpectedly found his wife and children again. He returned to Rome in triumph amidst universal congratulations; but was soon commanded to offer sacrifice to the false gods in thanksgiving for his victory.


Church of Saint Eustace, Ibberton, Dorset, England.
Photo: 19 June 2019.
Source: Own work.
(Wikimedia Commons)


On his firm refusal, every art was tried to make him renounce the Faith of Christ, but in vain. He was then, with his wife and sons, thrown to the Lions. But the beasts showed nothing but gentleness; whereupon, the Emperor, in a rage, commanded the Martyrs to be shut up in a brazen Bull, heated by a fire underneath it.

There, singing the praises of God, they consummated their sacrifice, and took their flight to eternal happiness on the twelfth of the kalends of October.

Their bodies were found intact, and reverently buried by The Faithful, but were afterwards translated with honour to a Church erected to their names.


Saint Eustachius (Eustace) Church, 
Tavistock, Devon, England.
Photo: 24 September 2019.
Source: Own work.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Our trials are light compared with yours, O Blessed Martyrs !!! Obtain for us the Grace not to betray the confidence of Our Lord, when He calls us to suffer for Him in this World.

It is thus we must win the glory of Heaven. How can we triumph with The God of Armies, unless we have marched under His Standard ? Now, that Standard is The Cross.

The Church knows it, and, therefore, she is not troubled even by the greatest calamities. She knows, too, that her Spouse is watching over her, even when He seems to sleep; and she looks to the protection of such of her sons as are already glorified.


English: Church of Saint Eustace, Quebec, Canada.
Français: Église de Saint-Eustache, Québec, Canada.
Photo: 4 September 2011.
Source: Own work.
(Wikimedia Commons)


And yet, O Martyrs, for how many years has the sorrowful shadow of a sacrilegious invasion hung over the day of your triumph !!!

Rome honoured you with so much love !!!

Take vengeance on the audacity of Hell, and deliver the Holy City !!!
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

19 September, 2026

Earl Of Shrewsbury. Earl Of Waterford. Earl Talbot. (Part Six).



Arms of Talbot-Chetwynd.

Quarterly: 
1st and 4th: Gules, a Lion Rampant 
within a Bordure Engrailed Or (for Talbot).
2nd and 3rd: Azure, a Chevron 
between three Mullets Or (for Chetwynd).
Date: 25 June 2017.
Source: Own work.
This File is licensed under the 
Author: Wikimandia.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Text from Wikipedia - the free encyclopædia,
unless stated otherwise.

His eldest son, the nineteenth Earl, also served as Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms, an Office he held from 1874 to 1877 under Benjamin Disraeli. 

He was succeeded by his son, the twentieth Earl. He caused a scandal in Victorian England by eloping with a married woman, Ellen Miller-Mundy. They were later married. 


On his death, the titles passed to his grandson, the twenty-first Earl. He was the son of Charles John Alton Chetwynd-Talbot, Viscount Ingestre. 

As of 2017, the peerages are held by the twenty-first Earl’s eldest son, the twenty-second Earl, who succeeded in 1980. 

He is one of the ninety elected hereditary peers that remain in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999, and sits on the Conservative benches. 

He is also hereditary Lord High Steward of Ireland and as the holder of this Office is allowed to bear a White Staff at the Coronation of the British Monarch.


Lord Shrewsbury is the Senior Earl on the Roll in the Peerage of England (the more Senior Earldom of Arundel being held by the Duke of Norfolk). 

The Earldom of Waterford is sometimes called the “Premier Earldom of Ireland on the Roll”, as the oldest Irish Earldom, that of Kildare, has been a subsidiary title of the Duke of Leinster for Centuries and the Earl held the oldest Irish Earldom held by anyone ranked as an Earl. 


His Grace The Most Noble Angus Drogo 
Montagu Manchester, 12th Duke Of Manchester, 
wearing the Parliamentary Robes of a Duke.
Date: 2002.
Source: Own work.
This File is licensed under the 
(Wikimedia Commons)

If the Viscount Mountgarret proves his presumed claim to the 1328 Earldom of Ormonde, the Earls of Shrewsbury would lose this distinction, but they derive higher precedence from their English Earldom in any event. 

Despite holding three differently-named Earldoms, Lord Shrewsbury is always styled simply “The Earl of Shrewsbury”.

PART SEVEN FOLLOWS.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Lincoln Cathedral. The Cathedral Church Of The Blessed Virgin Mary Of Lincoln. (Part Seven).



Lincoln Cathedral.
Photo: 25 December 2009.
Source: Own work.
Author: Anuradha Dullewe Wijeyeratne.
(Wikimedia Commons)



A Visit Inside Lincoln Cathedral and Lincoln Castle.
Available on YouTube
HERE


Lincoln Cathedral’s Nave.
Photo: 30 July 2014.
Source: Own work.
Attribution: Photo by DAVID ILIFF.
Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.
Author: Diliff
(Wikimedia Commons)


Text from Wikipedia - the free encyclopædia,
unless stated otherwise.

Lincoln Cathedral is one of the few English Cathedrals built from the rock it is standing on.[51] It is mostly built from Lincolnshire Limestone.[52]

The Cathedral has owned the existing quarry, on Riseholme Road, Lincoln, since 1876.[53] As of 2016, the quarry was expected to run out of stone in 2021.[54]

The Cathedral’s stonemasons use more than 100 tonnes of stone per year for maintenance and repairs.[54]



17th-Century Print of Lincoln Cathedral
with Spires on the West Towers.
Artist: Wenceslaus Hollar (1607 – 1677).
Date: Not known.
Source: Artwork from 
(Wikimedia Commons)

The Choir is currently formed of adult singers (who are either Lay Vicars or Choral Scholars), and teams of about twenty girls and twenty boys. 

The Cathedral accepted female Choristers in 1995. Lincoln was the second Cathedral in the Country to adopt a separate girls’ Choir (after Salisbury Cathedral). The Choristers can now attend any school and are currently drawn from over ten local schools.


Jeffrey Makinson gives an Organ demonstration 
of the incredible “Father” Henry Willis instrument 
in Lincoln Cathedral.
Available on YouTube

The Master of the Choristers (Director of Music) is Aric Prentice, who conducts the Choir of boys and men; the Cathedral Organist and Assistant Director of Music is Jeffrey Makinson, who conducts the Choir of girls and men. 



The Great West Front, Lincoln Cathedral.
Photo: 15 November 2005.
Author: Anthony Shreeve.
(Wikimedia Commons)

The Organist Emeritus is Colin Walsh, previously Organist and Master of The Choristers and then Organist Laureate.

The records of Cathedral Organists at Lincoln are continuous from 1439, when John Ingleton was the incumbent. 


The Choir, Lincoln Cathedral.
Photo: 30 July 2014.
Source: Own work.
Attribution: Photo by DAVID ILIFF.
Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.
Author: Diliff
(Wikimedia Commons)

Notable organists have included the Renaissance composers William Byrd and John Reading and the biographer of Mendelssohn, William Thomas Freemantle.



Choir Stalls, Lincoln Cathedral.
Photo: 29 August 2013 .
(Wikimedia Commons)

One of the best examples of the work of “Father’ Henry Willis, and the last he designed before his death, the Cathedral Organ dates from 1898. Willis had completed the design by 1885, but a shortfall in funding delayed construction and installation.

This was made possible in 1898, after a donation of £1,000 (equivalent to £660,000 in 2023)[56] from Alfred Shuttleworth, an Engineer and later Chairman of Clayton & Shuttleworth.[57]

This, together with other private gifts and a public subscription, allowed work to progress. On Saint Hugh’s Day, 17 November 1898, the Organ was inaugurated at a Service attended by 4,700 people.



Gallery, Triforium, Clerestory,
Lincoln Cathedral.
Photo: 15 September 2018.
Source: Own work.
Author: Cc364
(Wikimedia Commons)

Willis had intended that the Organ be electrically-powered, the first Organ in an English Cathedral to be powered in this way. As the Brayford Wharf Power Station had not yet been completed,[58] manual power was instead provided by Infantrymen from The Lincolnshire Regiment.[59]

The Organ has been restored twice, in 1960 and in 1998. On both occasions the work was undertaken by Harrison & Harrison. It is one of only two Willis Organs in English Cathedrals with its original tonal scheme.[59] The Organ specification is held on the National Pipe Organ Register.[60]

The Cathedral was used for the filming of The Da Vinci Code (based on the book of the same name).[63] Filming took place mainly within the Cloisters, and Chapter House,[63] of the Cathedral, and remained a closed set. 



The Angel Choir, Lincoln Cathedral.
Photo: 1865.
(Wikimedia Commons)

The Cathedral took on the role of Westminster Abbey, as the Abbey had refused to permit filming.[63] Although there was protest at the filming,[64] the filming was completed by the end of August 2005. 

To make the Lincoln Chapter House appear similar to the Westminster Chapter House, murals were painted on a special layer over the existing wall, and elsewhere polystyrene replicas of Isaac Newton’s tomb and other Abbey monuments were set up.[63] 

For a time, these murals and replicas remained in the Chapter House, as part of a Da Vinci Code exhibit for visitors, but, in January 2008, they were sold off at auction to raise money for the Cathedral.[63]


Hostel Members Memorial: Lincoln Cathedral.
It reads: “To the Memory of Members of the Hostel, 
who gave their Souls to God, and their Lives for us, 
in The Great War, 1914 - 1919”.
The Lincoln Theological College, known as the Bishop’s Hostel, originally Founded in 1874, was a residential centre for Ordination training within The Church of England.
It was closed in 1974, and, following a period at the 
University of Sheffield, the Institute moved to the 
University of Manchester in January 2003, and is now 
a fully integrated academic unit within the department 
of Religions and Theology.
The above Plaque was originally within the College, 
but was removed to the Cathedral and placed there 
when the College closed.
Photo: 7 March 2007.
Author: John Readman
(Wikimedia Commons)



The Nave, Lincoln Cathedral.
Photo: 24 September 2018.
Source: Own work.
Author: Cc364
(Wikimedia Commons)

The Cathedral also doubled as Westminster Abbey for the film Young Victoria, filmed in September 2007,[65][66] and did again in June 2018 for the Netflix Shakespeare film The King.[67]

During 2022, the Cathedral was also one of the locations for the 2023 Ridley Scott film Napoleon.[68]

This concludes the Article on Lincoln Cathedral.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Tenth Sung Mass (“Missa Cantata”) In The Last 488 Years In This Mediæval Church (Since 1538).



Saint Augustine’s Church, Snave, Ashford, Kent.


A Sung Mass (“Missa Cantata”) will be Celebrated here
on Saturday, 26 September 2026, 1200 hrs.

Travel Directions are given, below.
It is possible that a small private Chapel stood on this site before the present building was commenced in the
Late-13th-Century.

The East End is unusual in that the Lady Chapel
(more recently used as a School Room)
vies for importance with the Chancel.

Declared redundant in 1983,
Saint Augustine’s Church is now entirely maintained
by The Romney Marsh Historic Churches Trust.
Text: © 2014 Joan Campbell.
Photograph: © 2014 John Hendy.
Illustration:



Missa Cantata at Saint Augustine’s,
Snave (near Ashford, Kent), September 2015.
That was the first time in 477 years that a Sung Mass (Missa Cantata) had been Celebrated in this beautiful Mediæval Church on Romney Marsh, Kent, England.

On Saturday, 26 September 2026, 1200 hrs, there will be Celebrated another Missa Cantata in this lovely Church.
Illustration: LATIN MASS SOCIETY

The Latin Mass Society returns to Snave
for a Missa Cantata, at 12 Noon,
Saturday, 26 September 2026.


Saint Augustine’s Church is one of the Mediæval Churches in the care of the Romney Marsh Historic Churches Trust, who have given permission for us to Celebrate this Divine Mass.

Light refreshments will be served after Mass.



Missa Cantata.
Saint Augustine’s Church,
Snave, Ashford, Kent TN26 2QJ.
Saturday, 26 September 2026,
1200 hrs.


The Missa Cantata Mass on Saturday, 26 September 2026, 1200 hrs, will be offered for the repose of the Soul of Mrs. Marygold Turner (R.I.P.), who instigated this wonderful devotion and worked tirelessly to ensure it continued.
Marygold died on 29 June 2026.
May she rest in peace.
Requiescat in pace.



Travel Directions to Saint Augustine’s Church,
Snave (near Ashford), Kent TN26 2QJ.

By Road.

Leave the M20 at Junction 10.
Follow the A2070 towards Hastings.

After, approx, 9.3 miles, take the Slip Road
to the LEFT (signposted “SNAVE”).

After about 800 metres (half a mile),
at the small Post-Box (on a column) (on your LEFT),

TURN LEFT,

and you have arrived at the Church.

(N.B. Google Maps mark the destination
as “Manor Farm”).



By Rail.

Frequent Trains to ASHFORD INTERNATIONAL.

Then take a Taxi to SNAVE.


Permission for this Mass at Saint Augustine’s Church,
Snave, Ashford, Kent, has been kindly given by


Snave Church is one of a group of Mediæval Churches built
to serve very small communities on Romney Marsh, in Kent.

Now redundant, they are in the care of the
who have given permission for us to Celebrate Mass
on Saturday, 26 September 2026, at 1200 hrs.



Missa Cantata.
Saint Augustine’s Church,
Snave, Ashford, Kent TN26 2QJ.
Saturday, 26 September 2026, 1200 hrs.


Permission for this Mass at Saint Augustine’s Church,
Snave, Ashford, Kent, has been kindly given by
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...