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

25 May, 2013

Saint Bede. Feast Day 27 May.


Roman Text can be found in an Article on the Blog ENLARGING THE HEART

Italic Text is taken from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.


File:The Venerable Bede translates John 1902.jpg


"The Venerable Bede Translates John" by James Doyle Penrose (1862-1932).
Inset from "The last chapter (Bede)", exhibited at the Royal Academy (1902).
Date: 2005-03-06 (original upload date).
Source: Originally from en.wikipedia; description page is/was here.
Author: Original uploader was Timsj at en.wikipedia.
(Wikimedia Commons)


He was troubled with weakness and chiefly with difficulty in breathing, yet almost without pain, for about a fortnight before the day of our Lord’s Resurrection.

And thus he afterwards passed his time, cheerful and rejoicing, giving thanks to Almighty God every day and night, nay, every hour, till the day of our Lord’s Ascension…, and daily gave lessons to us, his disciples.

And whatsoever remained of the day he spent in singing psalms, as far as he was able; he also strove to pass all the night joyfully in prayer and thanksgiving to God, save only when a short sleep prevented it.

And then he no sooner awoke than he straightway began again to repeat the well-known sacred songs, and ceased not to give thanks to God with uplifted hands.

I declare with truth that I have never seen with my eyes, or heard with my ears, any man so earnest in giving thanks to the living God. O truly blessed man!




Durham Cathedral, England, 
where Saint Bede is buried.
Photo Credit: Zephyrinus.


[...] He also sang antiphons for our comfort and his own. One of these is, ‘O King of Glory, Lord of all power, Who, triumphing this day, didst ascend above all the heavens, leave us not comfortless, but send to us the promise of the Father, even the Spirit of Truth—Hallelujah.’

And when he came to the words, ‘leave us not comfortless,’ he burst into tears and wept much. And an hour after, he fell to repeating what he had begun. And this he did the whole day, and we, hearing it, mourned with him and wept.

[...] He said, ‘…the time of my release is at hand; for my soul longs to see Christ my King in His beauty.’ Having said this and much more for our profit and edification, he passed his last day in gladness till the evening.

[...] And thus on the pavement of his little cell, chanting ‘Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,’ and the rest, he breathed his last.




Durham Cathedral, England, 
where Saint Bede is buried.
Photo Credit: Zephyrinus.


And without doubt we must believe that inasmuch as he had always been devout and earnest on earth in the praise of God, his soul was carried by angels to the joys of Heaven which he desired.

And all who heard him or beheld the death of our father Bede, said that they had never seen any other end his life in so great devotion and peace.

For, as thou hast heard, so long as the soul abode in the body, he chanted the Gloria Patri and other words to the glory of God, and with outstretched hands ceased not to give thanks to God.

Cuthbert (an 8th century monk of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow): Letter to Cuthwin on the death of The Venerable Bede (672/4 A.D. - 735 A.D.).


Bede (pron.: /ˈbd/ beed; Old English: Bǣda or Bēda; 672/673 A.D. – 26 May 735 A.D.), also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede (Latin: Bēda Venerābilis), was an English monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow (see Monkwearmouth-Jarrow), both in the Kingdom of Northumbria

He is well known as an author and scholar, and his most famous work, Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (The Ecclesiastical History of the English People) gained him the title "The Father of English History".

In 1899, Bede was made a Doctor of the Church by Leo XIII, a position of theological significance; he is the only native of Great Britain to achieve this designation (Anselm of Canterbury, also a Doctor of the Church, was originally from Italy). Bede was moreover a skilled linguist and translator, and his work with the Latin and Greek writings of the early Church Fathers contributed significantly to English Christianity, making the writings much more accessible to his fellow Anglo-Saxons. Bede's monastery had access to a superb library which included works by Eusebius and Orosius among many others.


The Blessed Virgin Mary (Part Ten).


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




On 13 October, 1917, a crowd believed to be approximately 70,000 in number, gathered at the Cova da Iria fields near Fátima, Portugal. According to many witness' statements, after a downfall of rain, the dark clouds broke and the sun appeared as an opaque, spinning disk in the sky. Many sceptics believe that the event was natural and meteorological in nature. But, how does one explain that the event occurred at the exact time predicted by three young children ?
Available on YouTube at http://youtu.be/hyIpE1_qIFM.


The official position of the Holy See is that, while the Holy Office has approved a few apparitions of the Virgin Mary, Roman Catholics, at large, are not required to believe them. However, many Catholics express belief in Marian apparitions. This has included Popes, e.g. four Popes, i.e.. Pope Pius XIIPope John XXIIIPope Paul VI and Pope John Paul II have supported the Our Lady of Fátima messages as supernatural.

Pope John Paul II was particularly attached to Fátima and credited Our Lady of Fátima with saving his life,  after he was shot in Rome on the Feast Day of Our Lady of Fátima, in May 1981. He donated the bullet that wounded him on that day to the Roman Catholic Sanctuary at FátimaPortugal.

Veneration Through Marian Art.

As a historical pattern, Vatican approval seems to have followed general acceptance of a vision by well over a century in most cases. According to Father Salvatore M. Perrella, of the Marianum Pontifical Institute in Rome, of the two hundred and ninety-five reported apparitions, studied by the Holy See through the centuries, only twelve have been approved, the latest being in May 2008.

The tradition of honouring Mary, by venerating images of her, goes back to 3rd-Century Christianity. Following the period of iconoclasm, the position of the Church, with respect to the veneration of images, was formalised at the Second Council of Nicaea in 787 A.D. A summary of the Doctrine is included in the current Catechism of the Catholic Church:




Schubert's "Ave Maria".
Available on YouTube at 


The Christian veneration of images is not contrary to the First Commandment, which proscribes idols. Indeed, "the honour, rendered to an image, passes to its prototype," and "whoever venerates an image, venerates the person portrayed in it." 

The honour paid to sacred images is a "respectful veneration," not the adoration due to God alone: Religious worship is not directed to images in themselves, considered as mere things, but under their distinctive aspect as images leading us on to God Incarnate. The movement toward the image does not terminate in it as image, but tends towards that whose image it is.


File:Michelangelo's Pieta 5450 cropncleaned edit.jpg


Alemannisch: Michelangelos Pietà im Petersdom in Rom.
Asturianu: "La Piedá" de Miguel Ánxel na Basílica de San Pedru, na Ciudá del Vaticanu.
Беларуская: П'ета ў Ватыканскім саборы св. Пятра (Мікеланджэла, 1499).
Español: La Piedad de Miguel Ángel en la Basílica de San Pedro, en la Ciudad del Vaticano.
FrançaisLa Pietà de Michel-Ange située dans la Basilique Saint-Pierre, au Vatican.
HrvatskiMichelangelova Pietà u Bazilici Sv. Petra u Rimu.
Photo: 2008.
Source: Edited version of (cloned object out of background) 
(Wikimedia Commons)


No image (in either the Western or the Eastern Church) permeates Christian Art as does the image of Madonna and Child. The images of the Virgin Mary have become central icons of Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox Christianity, where Mary remains a central Artistic Topic.

The Virgin Mary has been one of the major subjects of Christian ArtCatholic Art and Western Art, since Early Christian Art, and she has been very widely portrayed in iconic "portraits", often known as Madonnas, with the infant Jesus in the Madonna and Child, and in a number of narrative scenes from her life, known as the Life of the Virgin, as well as scenes illustrating particular Doctrines or Beliefs: From Masters such as MichelangeloRaphaelMurillo and Botticelli, to Folk Art.

Some Marian Art subjects include:

24 May, 2013

Something Funny For Friday. With Grateful Thanks To Fr. Z.





Pope Saint Zephyrinus.
(Papacy 199 A.D. - 217 A.D.).
Description: English: from [1].
Date: 24 March 2006 (original upload date).
Source: Transferred from en.wikipedia; Original uploader was Amberrock at en.wikipedia; transferred to Commons by User:Sreejithk2000 using CommonsHelper.
Author: Not Known.
Permission: This image is in the public domain due to its age.
(Wikimedia Commons)


With grateful thanks to Fr Z, on his Blog 
"FR. Z's BLOG", 
for making today a very funny Friday.





The Blessed Virgin Mary (Part Nine).


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




The "Salve Regina", one of the four Marian Anthems 
that are described as "among the most beautiful creations 
of the Late Middle Ages".
Available on YouTube at


It is difficult to trace the beginning of non-Gregorian Marian Liturgical Music. In 1277, Pope Nicholas III prescribed rules for Liturgy in Roman Churches. In the Graduale Romanum, Kyriale IX and Kyriale X are both used for Marian Feasts. Over the centuries, Marian masterpieces have continued to appear, e.g., Mozart's Coronation Mass.

The list of compositions by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina includes numerous Marian Masses: Salve Regina; Alma Redemptoris; Assumpta est Maria; Regina coeli; de beata Virgine; Ave Regina coelorum; Descendit Angelus Domini; and O Virgo simul et Mater. Joseph Haydn wrote several Marian compositions, including two famous Marian Masses.




The "Alma Redemptoris Mater", 
one of the four Marian Anthems 
that are described as 
"among the most beautiful creations 
of the Late Middle Ages".
Available on YouTube at


Marian Prayers, Poems and Hymns.

Throughout the centuries, the veneration of the Virgin Mary has given rise to a number of poems and Hymns, as well as Prayers. Author, Emily Shapcote, lists 150 Marian poems and Hymns in her book, "Mary the Perfect Woman". Such Prayers and poems go as far back as the 3rd-Century, but enjoyed a rapid growth during the 11th- and 12th-Centuries. Some of the best poetry, written in honour of the Blessed Virgin, comes from this period of the Middle Ages.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (item 2679) emphasises the importance of Marian Prayers, and states:

Mary is the perfect Prayer, a figure of the Church . . . We can Pray with her, and to her. The Prayer of the Church is sustained by the Prayer of Mary and united with it in hope.

The earliest known Marian Prayer is the Sub tuum praesidium, or, "Beneath Thy Protection", a text for which was rediscovered in 1917 on a papyrus in Egypt, dated to circa 250 A.D. The papyrus contains the Prayer, in Greek, and is the earliest known reference to the title Theotokos (confirmed by the Council of Ephesus in 431 A.D.):

Beneath your compassion, We take refuge, O Mother of God: Do not despise our petitions in time of trouble: But rescue us from dangers, only pure, only Blessed one.

While the Regina Coelorum goes back to the 4th-Century, the Regina Coeli was composed towards the end of the 11th-Century. The first part of the Hail Mary, based on the salutation of the Angel, Gabriel, in the Visitation, was introduced in the 11th-Century, although its current form can be traced to the 16th-Century.

During the 11th-Century, as the number of Monasteries grew, so did Marian Prayers. In this period, the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary was introduced and was modelled after the Divine Office, but was much shorter. It was adopted not only by Monks, but by pious people who could read.

And the growth of the Tertiary Orders helped spread its use. During the First Crusade, Pope Urban II ordered it to be said for the success of the Christians. In this period, Hermannus Contractus (Herman the Cripple), at the Abbey of Reichenau, composed the Alma Redemptoris Mater, and Hymns to Mary became part of daily life at Monasteries, such as the Benedictine Abbey of Cluny, in France.


File:Reichenau PeterPaul.jpg


Saint Peter and Saint Paul Church,
Reichenau Island, Lake Constance, Germany. 
Hermann Contractus was a Monk in this Abbey 
and is credited with creating the Marian Anthems 
of Alma Redemptoris and Ave Regina. 
Photo taken by en:User:Ahoerstemeier (November 2001). 
Date: 2004-03-05 (original upload date).
Source: Transferred from en.wikipedia
Transfer was stated to be made by User:Jalo.
Author: Original uploader was Ahoerstemeier at en.wikipedia.
Permission: GFDL-WITH-DISCLAIMERS; 
Released under the GNU Free Documentation License.
(Wikimedia Commons)

Listen to how the Benedictine Monks 
in Cluny Abbey, France, 
would have sounded in the 11th-Century.
This Virtual Rebuilding of Cluny Abbey 
is available on YouTube at


In the 12th-Century, Bernard of Clairvaux gave Sermons (De duodecim stellis), from which an extract has been taken by the Roman Catholic Church and used in the Offices of the "Compassion" and of the "Seven Dolours". Saint Bernard wrote:

Take away, Mary, this Star of the Sea, the sea truly great and wide: What is left, but enveloping darkness and the shadow of death and the densest blackness ?

Stronger evidences are discernible in the pious meditations on the Ave Maria and the Salve Regina, usually attributed either to Saint Anselm of Lucca (died 1080) or Saint Bernard of Clairvaux; and also in the large book "De laudibus B. Mariae Virginis" (Douai, 1625), by Richard de Saint-Laurent.

Other famous Marian Prayers include the Magnificat, the Angelus and the Litany of the Blessed Virgin MaryMarian Hymns include: O Mary, We Crown Thee With Blossoms Today; Hail, Queen of Heaven, the Regina Coeli, and the Ave Maria.

Marian Devotions.

Catholic devotion is a willingness and desire for pious dedication and service, but is an "external practice", which is not part of the official Liturgy of the Catholic Church. A wide range of Marian devotions are followed by Catholics, ranging from simple Rosary recitations to formalised, multi-day Novenas, to activities which do not involve any Prayers, such the wearing of Scapulars or maintaining a Mary garden.


Click to Play



Listen to a Franciscan Sermon 
on Marian Devotion to Christ.
Available on YouTube at 


Also available on YouTube 
is this Marian Devotional Video and Music,
which has been described as "Awesome".
It is sung in the Malayalam language,
spoken in the State of Kerala, India.
It is available on YouTube at 

Two well-known Marian devotions are the Rosary recitation and the wearing of the Brown Scapular. Following their joint growth in the 18th- and 19th-Centuries, by the early 20th-Century the Rosary and the devotional Scapular had gained such a strong following, among Catholics worldwide, that the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1914 stated: "Like the Rosary, the Brown Scapular has become the Badge of the devout Catholic."

In his Encyclical, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, Pope John Paul II emphasised the importance of the Rosary. The Mariological basis of the Scapular devotion is effectively the same as Marian consecration, as discussed in the Dogmatic constitution, Lumen Gentium, of Pope Paul VI, namely, the role of the Virgin Mary as "the Mother to us in the Order of Grace", which allows her to intercede for "the gift of Eternal Salvation".

Catholic View of Marian Apparitions.

Roman Catholic tradition includes specific Prayers and devotions as Acts of Reparation to the Virgin Mary,  for insults that she suffers. The Raccolta Roman Catholic Prayer Book (approved by a Decree of 1854 and published by the Holy See in 1898) includes a number of such Prayers. These Prayers do not involve a Petition for a living or deceased beneficiary, but aim to repair the sins of others against the Virgin Mary.

The term, Marian apparition, is usually used in cases where visions of the Virgin Mary are reported, either with or without a conversation. There are, however, cases (e.g., Saint Padre Pio or Sister Maria Pierina De Micheli) where visions of Jesus and Mary, and conversations with both, are reported. Well-known apparitions include Our Lady of Lourdes,Our Lady of Guadalupe and Our Lady of Fatima.


PART TEN FOLLOWS.


23 May, 2013

24 May. Feast Day Of Our Lady, Help Of Christians.


Text taken from "The Liturgical Year",
by Abbot Gueranger, O.S.B.
Translated from the French by
Dom Laurence Shepherd, O.S.B.
Volume 8, Paschal Time, Book II.
Re-published by St. Bonaventure Publications,
July 2000.
www.libers.com


File:Our Lady Help of Christians .jpg


OUR LADY, HELP OF CHRISTIANS.
(Feast Day, 24 May).
Our Lady Help of Christians Church, Santander, Cantabria, Spain.
Photo: 16 October 2008.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Ever since our entrance upon the joys of the Paschal Season, scarcely a day has passed without offering us some grand Mystery or Saint to honour; and all these have been radiant with the Easter sun.

But here has not been a single Feast of Our Blessed Lady to gladden our hearts by telling us of some Mystery or glory of this august Queen. The Feast of her Seven Dolours is sometimes kept in April - that is when Easter Sunday falls on or after the 10th of that month; but May and June pass without any special Solemnity in honour of the Mother of God.

It would seem as though Holy Church wished to honour, by a respectful silence, the Forty Days during which Mary enjoyed the company of her Jesus, after His Resurrection. We, therefore, should never separate the Mother and the Son, if we would have our Easter mediations be in strict accordance with Truth - and that we surely must wish.


MARIAN DEVOTION.



Available on YouTube at





English: Basilica of Our Lady, Help of Christians, Turin, Italy. 
Founded by Saint John Bosco.
Italiano: Santuario di Maria Ausiliatrice - Torino - Italia.
Photo: March 2007.
Source: fotografia personale.
Author: Franco56.
Permission: GFDL.
(Wikimedia Commons)



During these Forty Days, Jesus frequently visits His disciples, weak men and sinners as they are: Can He, then, keep away from His Mother, now that He is so soon to ascend into Heaven, and leave her for several long years here on Earth ? Our hearts forbid us to entertain the thought. 

We feel sure that He frequently visits her, and that, when not visibly present with her, she has Him in her Soul, in a way more intimate and real and delicious than any other creature could have.

No Feast could have given expression to such a Mystery; and, yet, the Holy Ghost, who guides the spirit of the Church, has gradually led the Faithful to devote, in an especial manner to the honour of Mary, the entire month of May, the whole of which comes, almost every year, under the glad Season of Easter.




13th-Century Italian Acclamation 
to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Available on YouTube at


No doubt, the loveliness of the month would, some time or other, suggest the idea of consecrating it to the Holy Mother of God; but, if we reflect on the Divine and Mysterious influence which guides the Church in all that she does, we shall recognise, in this present instance, a Heavenly inspiration, which prompted the Faithful to unite their own happiness to that of Mary, and spend this beautiful month, which is radiant with their Easter joy, in commemorating the maternal delight experienced during that same period, by the Immaculate Mother when on Earth.


File:Prosper.jpg



A painting of Dom Prosper Guéranger 
Printmaker was Claude-Ferdinand Gaillard (1834–1887). 
Created 1874, published 1878 or earlier.
Photo: 2007-05-07 (original upload date).
Source: Transferred from en.wikipedia.
Author: Original uploader was Ikanreed at en.wikipedia.
Permission: This image is in the public domain due to its age, 
see these sources: [1] and [2].
(Wikimedia Commons)

Dom Prosper Louis Pascal Guéranger (4 April 1805, Sablé-sur-Sarthe, France – 30 January 1875, Solesmes, France) was a Benedictine Priest, Abbot of Solesmes Abbey (which he founded in the disused Priory of Solesmes) and founder of the 
French Benedictine Congregation (now the Solesmes Congregation).

Dom Guéranger was the author of "The Liturgical Year", which covers every day of the Catholic Church's Liturgical Cycle in 15 volumes. He was well regarded by Blessed Pope Pius IX, and was a proponent of the Dogmas of Papal Infallibility and the Immaculate Conception. Dom Guéranger is credited with reviving the Benedictine Order in France, and revitalising the Tridentine Mass.


Today, however, we have a Feast in honour of Mary. True, it is not one of those Feasts which are entered on the General Calendar of the Church; yet,it is so widely spread, with the consent of the Holy See, that our "Liturgical Year" would have been incomplete without it.

Its object is to honour the Mother of God as the Help of Christians - a Title she has justly conferred upon Christendom. Dating from that day whose anniversary we have just celebrated (Pentecost), when the Holy Ghost descended upon Mary in the Cenacle, in order that she might begin to exercise over the Church Militant her power as Queen - who could tell the number of times that she has aided, by her protection, the kingdom of her Son on Earth ?


MARIAN DEVOTION.



Available on YouTube at


Heresies have risen up, one after the other; they were violent; they were frequently supported by the great ones of this world [current Politicians take note - Editor]; each of them was resolved on the destruction of the True Faith; and yet, one after the other, they have dwindled away, or fallen into impotency; those of the present day are gradually sinking by internal discord [written at the end of the 19th-Century, but still relevant today - Editor]; and Holy Church tells us that it is Mary who "alone destroys all heresies throughout the whole world." [Gaude, Maria Virgo ! cunctas haereses sola interemisti in universo mundo (Office of the Blessed Virgin. Matins vii Antiphon).

If public scandals or persecutions, or the tyranny of secular interference (current Politicians take note - Editor], have at times threatened to stay the progress of the Church, Mary has stretched forth her arm, the obstacles were removed, and the Spouse of Jesus continued her onward march, leaving her foes and her fetters behind her.

All this was vividly brought before the mind of the Saintly Pontiff, Pope Pius V, by the Victory of Lepanto, gained by Mary's intercession over the Turkish fleet, and he resolved to add one more Title to the Glorious List given to Our Lady in the Litany of Loreto: It was "Auxilium Christianorum, HELP OF CHRISTIANS".


The Blessed Virgin Mary (Part Eight).


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




English: Mass IX (Missa Cum Jubilo), used on Feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Italiano: Missa CUM JUBILO, Canto Gregoriano "In solemnitatibus et Festis Beatae Mariae V.", a pagina 741 del libro Graduale romano, Gian Nicola Vessia : Organo, direttore Giovanni Vianini, Schola Gregoriana Mediolanensis, Milano, Italia, www.cantogregoriano.it
Available on YouTube at


In the Middle Ages, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, a Doctor of the Church, was a fervent supporter of Mary. He highlighted her Virginity and Humility as the basis for her veneration. A particularly significant contribution to Mariology came from John Duns Scotus, who, in the 13th-Century, defended the Doctrine of the Immaculate Conception. Scotus identified the key theological foundations, which led to the declaration of the Dogma of Immaculate Conception, centuries later.

In the 16th-Century, Saint Ignatius of Loyola promulgated an ardent love to the Virgin Mary. Ignatius admired images of the Virgin Mary and, before his death, instructed the Jesuits to preserve Madonna della Strada, which was later enshrined in the Church of the Gesu, in Rome. Filippo Neri, a contemporary of Ignatius, called Mary "Mother and Advocate" and is credited with the innovation of daily Marian devotions during the month of May. Saint Peter Canisius is credited with adding the Hail Mary to his Catechism of 1555.

In the 18th-Century, Saint Alphonsus Liguori wrote the classic book,"The Glories of Mary", in which he called Mary the "Gate of Heaven". Saint Louis de Montfort's book, "True Devotion to Mary", synthesised many of the earlier Saints' writings and teachings on Mary. His approach of "total consecration to Jesus Christ, through Mary" had a strong impact on Marian devotion, both in popular piety and in the spirituality of religious institutes. One of his well-known followers was Pope John Paul II, who said that reading Montfort's book was a "decisive turning point" in his life.

Mary in Roman Catholic Liturgy.

The Roman Catholic Liturgy is one of the most important elements of Marian Devotions. Marian Feasts are superior to the Feast Days of the Saints. The Liturgical texts, of the Marian Feast Days, all link Mary to Jesus Christ and keep Marian awareness awake within the Church.


File:Azzano processione santo rosario.jpg


English: Azzano San Paolo, Bergamo, Lombardy, Italy. 
Procession on the Feast of the Holy Rosary.
Italiano: Azzano San Paolo, Bergamo - 
processione per la festa del santo rosario.
Photo: 23 September 2007.
Source: Own work.
Author: Luigi Chiesa.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Catholic Marian Feast Days.

The earliest Christian Feasts, that relate to Mary, grew out of the Cycle of Feasts that celebrated the Nativity of Jesus. By the 7th-Century, a Feast dedicated to Mary was celebrated, just before Christmas, in the Churches of Milan and Ravenna, in Italy. Over time, the number of Feasts (and the associated Titles of Mary) and the venerative practices that accompany them, increased and, today, Roman Catholics have more Marian Feasts, Titles and venerative practices than any other Christians. Marian Feasts have continued to be developed in the Catholic Church, e.g., the Feast of the Queenship of Mary was declared in 1954, in the Papal Encyclical, "Ad Caeli Reginam", by Pope Pius XII.

Some Marian Feasts relate to specific events, e.g., the Feast of Our Lady of Victory (later renamed Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary) was based on the 1571 victory of the Papal States against the Muslims in the Battle of Lepanto. It is now celebrated on 7 October. The month of October was then established as the "month of the Rosary" by Pope Leo XIII, who recommended daily Rosary devotions in October.

During the month of May, May Devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary take place in many Catholic regions. These include the singing of Marian Anthems, Readings from Scripture, a Sermon, and or presentations by local Choirs. The month is also associated with Reflection on the Virgin Mary's role as the ideal Disciple,  who sheds light on the Christian way of Life, and theologian Karl Rahner stated: "When we are involved in our May Devotions, we are engaged in a Christian understanding of the human situation."


File:Virgen Andacollo.jpg


English: A Feast of Our Lady of Andacollo Procession, in Chile, 1838.
Español: Fiesta en Honor a la Virgen del Rosario de Andacollo (Chile) 1838.
Author: GAY. Claude. Album D'Un Voyage dans 
la Republique du Chili par Claude Gay.
(Wikimedia Commons)


The Roman Catholic Church celebrates three Marian Solemnities, which are also Holy Days of Obligation, in many countries during the Liturgical Year (in Liturgical order):

8 December Feast of the Immaculate Conception;
1 January Mary, Mother of God (in the new Ordinary Rite. The Extraordinary Rite (Usus Antiquior) has the Feast of the Circumcision of Our Lord, in addition to being within the Octave of the Nativity.)
15 August The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Among the other prominent Marian Feast Days and "Memorials" in the General Roman Calendar (Ordinary Rite) of the Catholic Church are:

12 December Our Lady of Guadalupe;
11 February Our Lady of Lourdes;
13 May Our Lady of Fátima;
31 May Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary;
Immaculate Heart of Mary (Saturday after the Sacred Heart of Jesus);
22 August Queenship of Mary;
8 September Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.




The Chant of The Templars (Salve Regina).
Available on YouTube at


Titles of The Blessed Virgin Mary.

A large number of Titles, to honour Mary or ask for her intercession, are used by Roman Catholics. While Mater Dei (i.e., "Mother of God", as confirmed by the First Council of Ephesus, 431 A.D.) is common in Latin, a large number of other Titles have been used by Roman Catholics  –  far more than any other Christians.

Titles used to refer to the Virgin Mary, throughout history, at times reflect the changing attitudes towards her. Domina (Lady), Regina (Queen) and Stella Maris (Star of the Sea) are some of the early Titles of Mary, of which Regina is the earliest. Domina and Stella Maris are found in Jerome, who perhaps originated the etymology of Mary as Stella Maris in the 5th-Century.

While the early emphasis in Stella Maris was on Mary as the Star that bore Christ, by the 9th-Century the attention had focused on Mary, herself, as indicated in the Hymn, Ave Maris Stella. By the 11th-Century, Mary, herself, had emerged as the Star that acted as a Guiding Light. 

By the 13th-Century, as Mariology was growing, Saint Anthony of Padua had composed "Mary Our Queen".  Titles continue to be interpreted, e.g., Queen of Heaven was further elaborated in 1954, in the Papal Encyclical, Ad Caeli Reginam, by Pope Pius XII.




Pope Francis and Marian Devotion.
Available on YouTube at


Among the most prominent Roman Catholic Marian Titles, are:


Marian Music.

One of the earliest Marian compositions is the popular Salve Regina, in Latin, from a Benedictine Monk, which exists in several Gregorian versions. The Liturgy of the Hours include several Offices to be sung. At the close of the Office, one of four Marian Antiphons is sung. These songs, Alma Redemptoris Mater, Ave Regina CaelorumRegina Caeli, and Salve Regina, have been described as "among the most beautiful creations of the Late Middle Ages."


PART NINE FOLLOWS.


22 May, 2013

Gregorian Chant Week-End Course.





Pope Saint Zephyrinus.
(Papacy 199 A.D. - 217 A.D.).
Description: English: from [1].
Date: 24 March 2006 (original upload date).
Source: Transferred from en.wikipedia; Original uploader was Amberrock at en.wikipedia; transferred to Commons by User:Sreejithk2000 using CommonsHelper.
Author: Not Known.
Permission: This image is in the public domain due to its age.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Around Easter each year, the Gregorian Chant Network organises a residential week-end course for singers of all all levels of experience. Gregorian Chant requires specialised training and this is provided by tutors with a wealth of teaching experience in this most beautiful of musical forms.

Students on the course mainly sing with, or are planning to sing with, parish choirs and scholas who use Gregorian Chant on a regular basis, most commonly with the Traditional Latin Mass.




The Chant course runs side-by-side with the St Catherine's Trust Family Retreat (see part one of this film) and singers provide the music for the liturgy on the retreat.

The film features interviews with Dr Joseph Shaw, of the Latin Mass Society, who is the main organiser, and with one of the course tutors.

The Latin Mass Society: lms.org.uk
The Gregorian Chant Network: gregorianchantnetwork.blogspot.co.uk

Zephyrinus commends this Gregorian Chant Week-End Course to all Readers.

Watch the Video (see, above) and see if you agree.


The Ancient Roman Mass. The Abbey of Cluny.





Pope Saint Zephyrinus.
(Papacy 199 A.D. - 217 A.D.).
Description: English: from [1].
Date: 24 March 2006 (original upload date).
Source: Transferred from en.wikipedia; Original uploader was Amberrock at en.wikipedia; transferred to Commons by User:Sreejithk2000 using CommonsHelper.
Author: Not Known.
Permission: This image is in the public domain due to its age.
(Wikimedia Commons)


Zephyrinus has discovered a most worthy Blog, entitled THE RAD TRAD, and heartily recommends it to all Readers.

It can be found at THIS LOCATION and has recently Posted on two excellent Articles. One is on THE ABBEY AT CLUNY and the other is on THE ANCIENT ROMAN MASS.

Both Articles make riveting reading. Why not pop over and have a read ?


Psalm 50 (The Miserere). One Of The Seven Penitential Psalms. Gregorio Allegri's "Miserere".



English: Saint Augustine of Hippo.

Deutsch: Hl. Augustinus in betrachtendem Gebet.
Four of the Penitential Psalms were well known to Saint Augustine of Hippo.
Artist: Sandro Botticelli (1445–1510).
Date: Circa 1480.
Current location: Florence, Italy.
Notes: Deutsch: Auftraggeber: wahrscheinlich aus der Familie der Vespucci (Wappen).
Source/Photographer: The Yorck Project: 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei. DVD-ROM, 2002. ISBN 3936122202. Distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH.
Permission: [1].
(Wikimedia Commons)



The Penitential Psalms, or Psalms of Confession, so named in Cassiodorus's commentary of the 6th-Century A.D., are Psalms 6323850102130, and 143 (6, 31, 37, 50, 101, 129, and 142 in the Septuagint numbering).

Psalm 6.      Domine ne in furore tuo (Pro octava).
Psalm 32.    Beati quorum remissae sunt iniquitates.
Psalm 38.    Domine ne in furore tuo (In rememorationem de sabbato).
Psalm 50.    Miserere mei Deus.
Psalm 102.  Domine exaudi orationem meam et clamor meus ad te veniat.
Psalm 130.  De profundis clamavi.
Psalm 143.  Domine exaudi orationem meam auribus percipe obsecrationem meam.



MISERERE MEI DEUS
(One of the Seven Penitential Psalms)



Available on YouTube at


Ember Wednesday After Pentecost. Hymns During The Octave Of Pentecost.


Text taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal (1945 Edition),
by Dom Gaspar Lefebvre, O.S.B., of the Abbey Of Saint Andre.
Originally published by The E. H. Lohmann Co.
Re-published by St. Bonaventure Publications, July, 1999.
www.libers.com


Ember Wednesday after Pentecost.
Station at Saint Mary Major, Rome.
Indulgence of 30 years and 30 Quarantines.
Semi-Double.
Red Vestments.




Pope Saint Zephyrinus.
(Papacy 199 A.D. - 217 A.D.).
Description: English: from [1].
Date: 24 March 2006 (original upload date).
Source: Transferred from en.wikipedia; Original uploader was Amberrock at en.wikipedia; transferred to Commons by User:Sreejithk2000 using CommonsHelper.
Author: Not Known.
Permission: This image is in the public domain due to its age.
(Wikimedia Commons)


"The Gift of Fortitude [one of the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost] is a permanent power, which the Holy Ghost communicates to our will, to assist us in overcoming the difficulties which might deter us in the practice of what is right" [Rev. M. Meschler, S.J., "The Gift of Pentecost: Meditations on the Holy Ghost," translated by Lady Amabel Kerr, p. 260].


VENI CREATOR SPIRITUS
(Hymn during the Octave of Pentecost)



Available on YouTube at


The Ember Days always fall during the Octave of Pentecost. The Church then offers up to God the first-fruits of the new Season, and Prays for the Priests who, on the coming Saturday, are about to receive the Holy Ghost in the Sacrament of Holy Orders.

The Station on Ember Wednesday was always held at Saint Mary Major. It was at the feet of the Blessed Virgin, whom the Holy Ghost filled with His Grace in the Cenacle, that the newly-Baptised gathered together.


VENI SANCTE SPIRITUS
(Hymn during the Octave of Pentecost)



Available on YouTube at


The Liturgy reminded them of the miracle of Pentecost (Lesson) and the marvels wrought by the Apostles, as a result of which the number of those who believed in the Lord was greatly increased (Epistle).

Moved by the Holy Ghost, the Catechumens also believed in Jesus; they turned to Him, and Jesus gave them to eat of the Bread that would make them live for ever (Gospel).

Let us implore the Divine Consoler to enlighten us always more and more and to place us in full possession of the truth (Collect).


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