Sing Up, Mother ! They Don't Make 'Em Like This Any More.

"The Sunshine Of Your Smile".

Sung by: John McCormack (1916).

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

"The Sunshine Of Your Smile".

Dear face that holds so sweet a smile for me

Were you not mine, how dark the world would be !

I know no light above that could replace

Love's radiant sunshine in your dear, dear face

Give me your smile, the love-light in your eyes

Life could not hold a fairer Paradise !

Give me the right to love you all the while

My world for ever, the sunshine of your smile !

Shadows may fall upon the land and sea

Sunshine from all the world may hidden be

But I shall see no cloud across the sun

Your smile shall light my life, till life is done !

Give me your smile, the love-light in your eyes,

Life could not hold a fairer Paradise !

Give me the right to love you all the while

My world for ever, the sunshine of your smile !

The front page of the Sheet Music for

"The Sunshine Of Your Smile", published in 1913.

Date: 4 May 2013.

Source: Own work.

Author: Richard J Myers.

(Wikimedia Commons)

"Then You'll Remember Me".

Sung by: 

John McCormack (1916).

From Balfe's "The Bohemian Girl".

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

This is a pure example of Victorian music and sensibility. McCormack's rendering of

the lovely old Aria is perfect, and captures the earnest, albeit finger-wagging,

sense of morality and propriety so characteristic of the age.

Michael W. Balfe's opera was first performed in London in 1842, and , musically speaking,

is absolutely a product of its time, even though its narrative inspiration would seem to be

an old Cervantes story, La Gitanilla, an "exemplary novel" of the kind made popular

by the great Spanish author, and which charmed the "Urbanites" of earlier Centuries

who took their pleasure in pastoral romances.

"Then You'll Remember Me ".

When other lips and other hearts

their tales of love shall tell

In language whose excess imparts

the pow'r they feel so well

There may perhaps in such a scene

some recollection be

Of days that have as happy been

and you'll remember me

And you'll remember, you'll remember me

When coldness or deceit shall slight

The beauty now they prize

And deem it but a faded light

which beams within your eyes

When hollow hearts shall wear a mask

't'will break your own to see

In such a moment I 

but ask

that you'll remember me

That you'll remember

you'll remember me

Illustration: IMSLP

"When You And I Were Young, Maggie".

Sung by: John McCormack.

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

It was originally a poem written by the Canadian school teacher George Washington Johnson. Margaret "Maggie" Clark was his pupil. They fell in love and were married in 1864, but Maggie's health deteriorated and she died on 12 May 1865 of tuberculosis.

During the struggle with her illness, George walked to a nearby hill overlooking an old mill, and composed the poem. It was published in 1864 in a collection of his poems entitled "Maple Leaves". James Butterfield set the poem to music (published in 1866) and it became popular all over the world. George Washington Johnson married twice more, and died in 1917 in Pasadena, California.

"When You And I Were Young, Maggie".

I wandered today to the hill, Maggie

To watch the scene below

The creek and the creaking old mill, Maggie,

As we used to long ago

The green grove's gone from the hill, Maggie,

Where first the daisies sprung

The creaking old mill is still, Maggie,

Since you and I were young.

They say that I'm feeble with age, Maggie, 

My steps are less sprightly than then

My face is a well-written page, Maggie,

But time alone was the pen.

They say we are aged and grey, Maggie, 

As spray by the white breakers flung

But to me you're as fair as you were, Maggie,

When you and I were young.

And now we are aged and grey, Maggie,

And the trials of life nearly done, 

Let us sing of the days that are gone, Maggie, When you and I were young.

Illustration: EBAY

The Great O Antiphons. 18 December.

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

English: Christ is born.

Deutsch: Christi Geburt.

Artist: Lorenzo Lotto (1480–1556).

Date: 1523.

Current location: National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., U.S.A.

Source/Photographer: The Yorck Project: 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei.

DVD-ROM, 2002. 

ISBN 3936122202. Distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH.

Permission: [1]

(Wikimedia Commons)

"O Adonai".

The Great O Antiphon

for 18 December.

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

18 December: Exodus iii. 2, xx. 1.

O Adonai,
et dux domus Israel,
qui Moysi in igne flammae rubi apparuisti,
et ei in Sina legem dedisti:
veni ad redimentum nos in brachio extento.

O Adonai,
and Leader of the House of Israel,
who didst appear to Moses in the flame of
the burning bush,
and didst give unto him the Law on Sinai:
come and with an outstretched arm redeem us.

V. Rorate.

"Rorate caeli desuper, et nubes pluant justium . . ."

"Ye heavens, drop down from above, and let the clouds rain down the Just One."

The Commencement Of The Great Antiphons. 17 December.

Text is from The Liturgical Year
by Abbot Guéranger, O.S.B.
Volume 1.
Advent.

The Church enters today on the seven days which precede The Vigil of Christmas, and which are known in The Liturgy under the name of The Greater Ferias. The Ordinary of The Advent Office becomes more Solemn; The Antiphons of The Psalms, both for Lauds and The Hours of The Day, are Proper, and allude expressly to The Great Coming.

Every day, at Vespers, is sung a Solemn Antiphon, consisting of a fervent Prayer to The Messias, Whom it addresses by one of The Titles given Him in The Sacred Scriptures.

In The Roman Church, there are seven of these Antiphons, one for each of The Greater Ferias. They are commonly called The "O"s of Advent, because they all begin with that interjection. In other Churches, during The Middle Ages, two more Antiphons were added to these seven; one to Our Blessed Lady, "O Virgo Virginum"; and the other to The Angel Gabriel, "O Gabriel"; or to Saint Thomas the Apostle, whose Feast comes during The Greater Ferias; it began "O Thoma Didyme". [It is more modern than "O Gabriel"; but, dating from the 13th-Century, it was almost universally substituted for it.]

There were even Churches where twelve Great Antiphons were sung; that is, besides the nine we have just mentioned, "O Rex Pacifice" to Our Lord, "O Mundi Domina" to Our Lady, and "O Hierusalem" to The City of The People of God.

The Canonical Hour Of Vespers has been selected as the most appropriate time for this Solemn Supplication to Our Saviour, because, as The Church sings on one of her Hymns, it was in the evening of the World ("vergente mundi vespere") that The Messias came amongst us.

The Antiphons are sung at "The Magnificat", to show us that The Saviour, Whom we expect, is to come to us by Mary. They are sung twice, once before and once after the Canticle, as on Double Feasts, and this to show their great Solemnity.

In some Churches, it was formerly the practice to sing them thrice; that is, before the Canticle, before the Gloria Patri, and after the "Sicut erat". Lastly, these admirable Antiphons, which contain the whole pith of The Advent Liturgy, are accompanied by a Chant replete with melodious gravity, and by Ceremonies of great expressiveness, though, in these latter, there is no uniform practice followed.

Let us enter into the spirit of The Church; let us reflect on the great day which is coming; that, thus, we may take our share in these, the last and most earnest, solicitations of The Church, imploring her Spouse to come, to which He at length yields.

Saturday In Ember Week Of Advent.

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

Saturday in Ember Week Of Advent.

Station at Saint Peter's.

Indulgence of 10 Years and 10 Quarantines.

Violet Vestments.

Illustration: MATER DEI LATIN MASS PARISH

Saturday is the most solemn of The Ember Days, because that was the day on which The Church Ordained her Priests in the great Basilica of Saint Peter. This Ordination in the tenth month of the Roman year (called, for that reason, December) was the only one formerly known in Rome. Hence, it was an important date.

Everything in The Mass, moreover, bears the character of a very ancient Liturgy. It calls to mind, with its numerous Lessons, intermingled with Responses and Prayers, the earliest form of the introductory part of The Mass.

The Soul that is penetrated with it finds itself filled with a Holy Impatience, and, with The Church, it aspires to the New Birth of The Only Begotten Son of God, Who comes to deliver us from the yoke of sin (Second Collect).

"While, with confidence, she awaits The Lord Jesus, Who shall deliver us from our enemies, destroying Anti-Christ with the brightness of His Coming" (Epistle).

The Gospel brings before us the image of Saint John the Baptist, The Precursor, who prepares our Souls each year for The Coming of The Saviour. The same Gospel is again found in The Mass of the following day, because, formerly, the Ordination, taking place in the evening, lasted well into the night, thus encroaching on the Sunday, provided it with its Liturgy.

Mass: Veni, et osténde.
After The Kyrie eleison, the Bishop confers The Tonsure.
After The First Lesson, the Bishop Ordains The Door-Keepers.
After The Second Lesson, the Bishop Ordains The Readers.
After The Third Lesson, the Bishop Ordains The Exorcists.
After The Fourth Lesson, the Bishop Ordains The Acolytes.
After The Fifth Lesson, the Bishop Ordains The Sub-Deacons.
After The Epistle, the Bishop Ordains The Deacons.
After The Tract, the Bishop Ordains The Priests.

The Four Seasons of the Year begin with the Liturgical periods known as Ember Weeks. They are known since the 5th-Century A.D., but they were fixed to their present dates by Pope Saint Gregory VII in the 12th-Century.

The Ember Days are Three Fast Days, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, intended to Consecrate to God the various Seasons in Nature, and to prepare those who are about to be Ordained.

The Gospel recalls Gabriel's mission to Mary to inform her that she was about to become The Mother of God.

No human voice, but an Angel's, must make known the Mystery of such message. Today, for the first time, are heard the words: "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee." They are heard and believed. "Behold," says Mary, "the handmaid of The Lord, be it done to me according to thy word" (Third Lesson). During seven Centuries, now, Isaias had foretold this Virgin Motherhood (Epistle, Communion).

Circa 1950: The Vicar and Sunday School Children go out into the fields

to Bless the crops. 

The little boy is carrying a symbolic Tree of Plenty.

Picture Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images.

Illustration: ABOUT RELIGION

Rogation Days.

Rogation Days, like their distant cousins, The Ember Days, are days set aside to observe a change in the Seasons. Rogation Days are tied to the Spring planting. There are Four Rogation Days: The Major Rogation, which falls on 25 April, and Three Minor Rogations, which are Celebrated on the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday immediately before Ascension Thursday.

For an Abundant Harvest.

As The Catholic Encyclopedia notes, Rogation Days are "Days of Prayer, and formerly,

also of Fasting, instituted by The Church to appease God's anger at man's transgressions,

to ask protection in calamities, and to obtain a good and bountiful harvest."

Illustration: ABOUT RELIGION

Origin of the Word.

Rogation is simply an English form of the Latin "Rogatio", which comes from the verb "Rogare", which means "to ask." The primary purpose of The Rogation Days is to ask God to Bless the fields and the Parish (the geographic area) that they fall in.

The Major Rogation likely replaced the Roman feast of "Robigalia", on which

(The Catholic Encyclopedia notes) "the heathens held processions and supplications to

their gods." While the Romans directed their prayers for good weather and an abundant harvest

to a variety of gods, the Christians made the Tradition their own, by replacing Roman

polytheism with monotheism, and directing their Prayers to God.

By the time of Pope Saint Gregory the Great (540 A.D. - 604 A.D.),

the Christianised Rogation Days were already considered an ancient custom.

The Litany, Procession, and Mass.

The Rogation Days were marked by the recitation of The Litany of The Saints, which would

normally begin in, or at, a Church. After Saint Mary was invoked, the Congregation would

proceed to walk the boundaries of the Parish, while reciting the rest of The Litany (and repeating

it as necessary or supplementing it with some of The Penitential or Gradual Psalms). Thus,

the entire Parish would be Blessed, and the boundaries of the Parish would be marked. The procession would end with a Rogation Mass, in which all in the Parish were expected to take part.

Sunday School Children Celebrate Rogation Day in 1953.

A photo at Market Lavington Museum, Wiltshire, England.

Illustration: MARKET LAVINGTON MUSEUM

Optional Today.

Like The Ember Days, Rogation Days were removed from The Liturgical Calendar when it was revised in 1969, coinciding with the introduction of The Mass of Paul VI (The Novus Ordo).

Parishes can still Celebrate them, though very few in The United States do; but, in portions of Europe, The Major Rogation is still Celebrated with a Procession. As The Western World has become more industrialised, Rogation Days and Ember Days, focused as they are on agriculture and the changes of the Seasons, have seemed less "relevant." Still, they are good ways to keep us in touch with nature and to remind us that The Church's Liturgical Calendar is tied to the changing Seasons.

Celebrating The Rogation Days.

If your Parish does not celebrate The Rogation Days, there's nothing to stop you from Celebrating them yourself. You can mark the Days by reciting The Litany of The Saints. And, while many

modern Parishes, especially in The United States, have boundaries that are too extensive to walk,

you could learn where those boundaries are and walk a portion of them, getting to know your surroundings, and maybe your neighbours, in the process. Finish it all off by attending

daily Mass and Praying for good weather and a fruitful harvest.

Saint Michael's Church, Bunwell, Norfolk, England, has always been the centre of Village Life. 

In this picture, taken on Rogation Sunday, April 1967, the Rector, Rev. Samuel Collins,

followed by the Choir, Parishioners, and The New Buckenham Silver Band, walk

The Parish Boundaries and pause to Bless the stream.

Illustration: BUNWELL HERITAGE GROUP

References in The Liturgy, connecting The Annunciation with Advent, date back to very early times. Many Churches observed this Feast on 18 December, in preference to 25 March, the latter date often falling in Lent.

Furthermore, this First Joyful Mystery of The Blessed Virgin is in keeping with the spirit of joy, which is so characteristic of the second half of The Season of Advent, when The Lord, Who is nigh, is so eagerly awaited (Second Gradual). Who, having appeared in the humility of His First Coming to save us (Collect), will come again like a King, full of glory (First Gradual), to take vengeance on His enemies and to deliver us forever (Offertory).

The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

In The Liturgical Calendar of The Western Christian Churches, Ember Days are four separate Sets of Three Days within the same Week  —  specifically, the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday  —  roughly equidistant in the circuit of the Year, that are set aside for Fasting and Prayer.

These Days set apart for Special Prayer and Fasting were considered especially suitable for The Ordination of Clergy. The Ember Days are known in Latin as the "quattuor anni tempora" (the "Four Seasons of The Year"), or, formerly, as the "jejunia quattuor temporum" ("Fasts of The Four Seasons").

The Four Quarterly Periods, during which The Ember Days fall, are called The Embertides.

"Christmas Is Coming, The Goose Is Getting Fat". Have You Finished Baking ? Are The Cards Posted ? Which Mass Are You Going To ?

Found on squidoo.com

Illustration: PINTEREST

"Christmas Shopping".

Author: Frank Dadd.

Source: http://www.wikigallery.org/

Permission: Free for non-commercial use. See below. Click here to report copyright issues.

This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired.

However - you may not use this image for commercial purposes and you may not alter the image

or remove the WikiGallery watermark.

This applies to the United States, Canada, the European Union and those countries

with a copyright term of life of the author plus 70 years.

(Wikigallery.org)

"Christmas is coming,

the Goose is getting fat . . ."

Sung by: John Denver and The Muppets.

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

Artist: Muriel Dawson

(1897-1974).

Illustration: PINTEREST

Found on clickamericana.com

Illustration: PINTEREST

"My Favourite Time of Year".

The Florin Street Band.

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

Postmen of The British Empire.

English Postman. 1904.

Postcard from the private collection of Jennifer Drury.

Found on mybrightonandhove.org

Illustration: PINTEREST

Found at corbertgauthier.net

Illustration: PINTEREST

Illustration: PINTEREST

Found on flickr.com

Illustration: PINTEREST

King's College Choir,

Cambridge, England.

Christmas Carols.

24 December 2011.

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

The Great O Antiphons. 17 December.

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

English: Madonna and Child.

Deutsch: Sixtinische Madonna, Szene: Maria mit Christuskind,

Hl. Papst Sixtus II. und Hl. Barbara.

Artist: Raphael (1483 - 1520).

Current location: Gemäldegalerie, Dresden, Germany.

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 Boundless desire for The Coming of Christ, which is a feature of the whole of Advent, is expressed in The Liturgy with an impatience which grows greater, the closer we come to Christmas and, so to speak, to the World's end.

"The Lord comes from far" (First Vespers, First Sunday of Advent).

"The Lord will come" (Introit, Second Sunday of Advent).

"The Lord is nigh" (Introit. Third Sunday in Advent).

This gradation will be emphasised throughout the whole Season, ever more and more.

Thus, on 17 December, begin The Greater Antiphons, which, from their initial letters, are called the "O Antiphons", and which form an impassioned appeal to The Messias, whose prerogatives and glorious Titles they make known to us.

Dom Guéranger [Editor: He who was the author of "The Liturgical Year"] affirms that those Antiphons contain the "whole marrow" of The Advent Liturgy.

On account of their number, Honorius of Autun connects them with The Seven Gifts of The Holy Ghost, with which Our Lord was filled.

"O Sapientia.".

The Great O Antiphon

for 17 December.

Gregorian Chant notation from The Liber Usualis (1961), p. 340.

Latin lyrics sung by The Cantarte Regensburg.

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

17 December: Ecclesiasticus xxiv. 5; Wisdom viii. 1

O Sapientia,

Quae ex ore Altissimi prodiisti,
attingens a fine usque ad finem,
fortiter suaviterque disponens omnia:
veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.

O Wisdom,

Who camest out of the mouth of The Most High,
reaching from end to end and ordering all things
mightily and sweetly:
come and teach us the way of prudence.

Versicle: Rorate.

"Rorate caeli desuper, et nubes pluant justium . . ."

"Ye Heavens, drop down from above, and let the clouds rain down The Just One."

Saint Eusebius. Bishop. Martyr. Feast Day, Today, 16 December.

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

Saint Eusebius.
Bishop and Martyr.
Feast Day 16 December.

Semi-Double.

Red Vestments.

English: The Virgin Mary in Glory,

with Archangel Gabriel, and Saint Eusebius of Vercelli (seated), Saint Sebastian, and Saint Roch.

Deutsch: Maria in Gloria mit Erzengel Gabriel und Hl. Eusebius, Hl. Sebastian und Hl. Rochus.

Artist: Sebastiano Ricci (1659–1734).

Date: 1724.

Current location: Università degli Studi, Milan, Italy.

Source: The Yorck Project: 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei.

DVD-ROM, 2002. ISBN 3936122202. Distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH.

Author: Sebastiano Ricci (1659–1734).

(Wikimedia Commons)

Saint Eusebius was born in Sardinia in the 4th-Century A.D., at a time when Arianism was bent on undermining The Dogma of The Divinity of Christ. Having become Bishop of Vercelli, in Italy, he seconded the efforts of Pope Liberius and of his successor, Saint Damasus, whose Feast was Celebrated a few days ago. The Arians, in their irritation, obtained his exile after making him suffer much ill-treatment. He died in 371 A.D.

The Mass describes the numerous Persecutions he underwent at the hands of these heretics. Constant in the midst of trials, as the Epistle relates, he encouraged The Clergy and people of Vercelli by the Letters he wrote to them.

The Church confers on him the Title of Martyr, although he did not have to shed his blood, on account of his sufferings generously undergone and his intrepidity before death (Gospel).

Let us confess, with Saint Eusebius, The Divinity of The Messias, Whose advent we are awaiting.

Mass: Sacerdótes Dei.
Commemoration: Of The Feria.

THE SAINT ANDREW DAILY MISSAL

THE SAINT ANDREW DAILY MISSAL

Available (in U.K.) from

CENACLE CATHOLIC BOOKS

Available (in U.S.A.) from

ST. BONAVENTURE PUBLICATIONS

Friday In Ember Week Of Advent.

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

Friday in Ember Week Of Advent.

Station at The Church of The Twelve Apostles.

Indulgence of 10 Years and 10 Quarantines.

Violet Vestments.

Illustration: MATER DEI LATIN MASS PARISH

The Mass of today sums up perfectly the whole spirit of Advent, which is, so to speak, the first act of the great drama of The Incarnation. It might be called "The Expectation of Christ" and pictured in a Triptych (see vignette, below):

On The Left, The Prophets, and, in particular, Isaias, who search the horizon and announce to us
The Coming of Christ (Epistle), The Sun of Justice; on The Right, Saint John the Baptist
(The Forerunner), who, from the womb of his mother, salutes Jesus (Gospel), and, as The Friend
of The Bridegroom, presents Him as The Messias to His Bride, The Church; in The Centre Panel,
The Virgin, in her First and Second Joyful Mysteries, The Annunciation and The Visitation,
of which we read in the Gospels for The Wednesday in Ember Week, and for today.

Mass: Prope es tu.

The Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Gabriel, Prophet Isaias, Saint John the Baptist.

Illustration: UNA VOCE OF ORANGE COUNTY

Artist: Rene de Cramer.

"Copyright Brunelmar/Ghent/Belgium".

Used with Permission.

The Four Seasons of the Year begin with the Liturgical periods known as Ember Weeks. They are known since the 5th-Century A.D., but they were fixed to their present dates by Pope Saint Gregory VII in the 12th-Century.

The Ember Days are Three Fast Days, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, intended to Consecrate to God the various Seasons in Nature, and to prepare those who are about to be Ordained.

The Gospel recalls Gabriel's mission to Mary to inform her that she was about to become The Mother of God.

No human voice, but an Angel's, must make known the Mystery of such message. Today, for the first time, are heard the words: "The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee." They are heard and believed. "Behold," says Mary, "the handmaid of The Lord, be it done to me according to thy word" (Third Lesson). During seven Centuries, now, Isaias had foretold this Virgin Motherhood (Epistle, Communion).

Circa 1950: The Vicar and Sunday School Children go out into the fields

to Bless the crops. 

The little boy is carrying a symbolic Tree of Plenty.

Picture Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images.

Illustration: ABOUT RELIGION

Rogation Days.

Rogation Days, like their distant cousins, The Ember Days, are days set aside to observe a change in the Seasons. Rogation Days are tied to the Spring planting. There are Four Rogation Days: The Major Rogation, which falls on 25 April, and Three Minor Rogations, which are Celebrated on the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday immediately before Ascension Thursday.

For an Abundant Harvest.

As The Catholic Encyclopedia notes, Rogation Days are "Days of Prayer, and formerly,

also of Fasting, instituted by The Church to appease God's anger at man's transgressions,

to ask protection in calamities, and to obtain a good and bountiful harvest."

Illustration: ABOUT RELIGION

Origin of the Word.

Rogation is simply an English form of the Latin "Rogatio", which comes from the verb "Rogare", which means "to ask." The primary purpose of The Rogation Days is to ask God to Bless the fields and the Parish (the geographic area) that they fall in.

The Major Rogation likely replaced the Roman feast of "Robigalia", on which

(The Catholic Encyclopedia notes) "the heathens held processions and supplications to

their gods." While the Romans directed their prayers for good weather and an abundant harvest

to a variety of gods, the Christians made the Tradition their own, by replacing Roman

polytheism with monotheism, and directing their Prayers to God.

By the time of Pope Saint Gregory the Great (540 A.D. - 604 A.D.),

the Christianised Rogation Days were already considered an ancient custom.

The Litany, Procession, and Mass.

The Rogation Days were marked by the recitation of The Litany of The Saints, which would

normally begin in, or at, a Church. After Saint Mary was invoked, the Congregation would

proceed to walk the boundaries of the Parish, while reciting the rest of The Litany (and repeating

it as necessary or supplementing it with some of The Penitential or Gradual Psalms). Thus,

the entire Parish would be Blessed, and the boundaries of the Parish would be marked. The procession would end with a Rogation Mass, in which all in the Parish were expected to take part.

Sunday School Children Celebrate Rogation Day in 1953.

A photo at Market Lavington Museum, Wiltshire, England.

Illustration: MARKET LAVINGTON MUSEUM

Optional Today.

Like The Ember Days, Rogation Days were removed from The Liturgical Calendar when it was revised in 1969, coinciding with the introduction of The Mass of Paul VI (The Novus Ordo).

Parishes can still Celebrate them, though very few in The United States do; but, in portions of Europe, The Major Rogation is still Celebrated with a Procession. As The Western World has become more industrialised, Rogation Days and Ember Days, focused as they are on agriculture and the changes of the Seasons, have seemed less "relevant." Still, they are good ways to keep us in touch with nature and to remind us that The Church's Liturgical Calendar is tied to the changing Seasons.

Celebrating The Rogation Days.

If your Parish does not celebrate The Rogation Days, there's nothing to stop you from Celebrating them yourself. You can mark the Days by reciting The Litany of The Saints. And, while many

modern Parishes, especially in The United States, have boundaries that are too extensive to walk,

you could learn where those boundaries are and walk a portion of them, getting to know your surroundings, and maybe your neighbours, in the process. Finish it all off by attending

daily Mass and Praying for good weather and a fruitful harvest.

Saint Michael's Church, Bunwell, Norfolk, England, has always been the centre of Village Life.

In this picture, taken on Rogation Sunday, April 1967, the Rector, Rev. Samuel Collins,

followed by the Choir, Parishioners, and The New Buckenham Silver Band, walk

The Parish Boundaries and pause to Bless the stream.

Illustration: BUNWELL HERITAGE GROUP

References in The Liturgy, connecting The Annunciation with Advent, date back to very early times. Many Churches observed this Feast on 18 December, in preference to 25 March, the latter date often falling in Lent.

Furthermore, this First Joyful Mystery of The Blessed Virgin is in keeping with the spirit of joy, which is so characteristic of the second half of The Season of Advent, when The Lord, Who is nigh, is so eagerly awaited (Second Gradual). Who, having appeared in the humility of His First Coming to save us (Collect), will come again like a King, full of glory (First Gradual), to take vengeance on His enemies and to deliver us forever (Offertory).

The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

In The Liturgical Calendar of The Western Christian Churches, Ember Days are four separate Sets of Three Days within the same Week  —  specifically, the Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday  —  roughly equidistant in the circuit of the Year, that are set aside for Fasting and Prayer.

These Days set apart for Special Prayer and Fasting were considered especially suitable for The Ordination of Clergy. The Ember Days are known in Latin as the "quattuor anni tempora" (the "Four Seasons of The Year"), or, formerly, as the "jejunia quattuor temporum" ("Fasts of The Four Seasons").

The Four Quarterly Periods, during which The Ember Days fall, are called The Embertides.

Yet Another Choir Practice For Midnight Mass On Christmas Eve.

Illustration: DENIEUWEBOEKERIJ

Help "The Unknown Warrior" Project. Remember The Fallen.

The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious Award for Gallantry

in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth Forces.

Illustration: THE LMS-PATRIOT PROJECT

An original "Patriot-Class" Locomotive.

Illustration: THE LMS-PATRIOT PROJECT

In Memoriam

"The Unknown Warrior" Locomotive

is Dedicated to all those who fought and died

in The Great War and in all subsequent Wars.

As the new National Memorial Engine, "The Unknown Warrior" is a new Memorial Railway Engine for The 21st-Century.

In recognition of this, The LMS-Patriot Project is also

inviting components to be Sponsored in Memory of Loved Ones.

Please contact us if you would like to make a Donation

in Memory of a relative, friend, or somebody who served

in The Armed Forces.

After The Great War of 1914-1918, three VCs were awarded to Railway Employees who had served in the conflict: John Christie, Ernest Sykes, and Wilfred Wood.

All three survived The Great War and The London and North Western Railway (L and NWR) named three "Claughton-Class" Locomotives after these Employees in recognition of their bravery and the VCs which they had received.

When the "Claughton" Locomotives were withdrawn, The London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) (which succeeded L and NWR), introduced what became the new "Patriot-Class" Locomotives and transferred The Nameplates of the two VCs who were still in the employ of The LMS. These were Private W. Wood V.C. and Private E. Sykes V.C.

Private W. Wood V.C.

Photo: Bob Essery Collection.

Illustration: THE LMS-PATRIOT PROJECT

Our project aims:

To build a new "Patriot" Steam Locomotive to the original Sir Henry Fowler Parallel Boiler design,

capable of running on The Mainline Railway.

To create the new Royal British Legion-Endorsed National Memorial Railway Engine, named

"The Unknown Warrior".

To be complete in time for

The 100th Anniversary of The Armistice in 2018.

Help us achieve our aim

with a Donation, Sponsorship, or a Loan.

The fact that none of the original fifty-two 

"Patriot-Class" Locomotives were ever preserved,

leaves a massive gap in the story of LMS Express power. A new "Patriot" will provide the link between

"The Royal Scot" and "Jubilee"-Classes

and will clearly enhance the UK Steam Collection.

The new National Memorial Engine will be a unique contribution to The 2018 Armistice Day Centenary Commemorations, and a permanent Memorial

to all Fallen Servicemen and Women.

More information at

THE LMS-PATRIOT PROJECT

"Our Vera". God Bless Her. If Anyone Would Like To Disagree, Go Up The East End Of London And Say So.

Very Lynn.

"Our Vera".

Date:1973.

Source: Own work.

Author: Allan warren.

(Wikipedia Commons)

"The White Cliffs Of Dover".

Sung By: Very Lynn.

"Our Vera".

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

"We'll Meet Again".

Sung By: Very Lynn.

"Our Vera".

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

Very Lynn sings at a Munitions Factory in 1941.

Source: http://media.iwm.org.uk/iwm/mediaLib//38/media-38969/large.jpg

Author: Ministry of Information Photo Division Photographer.

(Wikimedia Commons)

"Land of Hope and Glory".

Sung By: Vera Lynn.

"Our Vera".

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

Dame Vera Margaret Lynn CH DBE OStJ (née Welch; born 20 March 1917), widely known as "The Forces' Sweetheart", is a British singer, songwriter, and actress whose musical recordings and performances were enormously popular during The Second World War.

During The War, she toured Egypt, India, and Burma as part of ENSA, giving outdoor concerts for the troops. The songs most associated with her are "We'll Meet Again", "The White Cliffs of Dover", "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" and "There'll Always Be an England". 

"I'll Be Seeing You".

Sung By: Vera Lynn.

"Our Vera".

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

She remained popular after The War, appearing on radio and television in The UK and The US and recording such hits as "Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart" and her UK Number one single "My Son, My Son". Her last single, "I Love This Land", was released to mark the end of The Falklands War. In 2009, at age 92, she became the oldest living artist to make it to No. 1 on The UK Albums Chart.

"Now Is The Hour".

Sung By: Vera Lynn.

"Our Vera".

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

She has devoted much time and energy to Charity Work connected with Ex-Servicemen, Disabled Children, and Breast Cancer. She is still held in great affection by Soldiers of The Second World War and in 2000 was named the Briton who best exemplified The Spirit of The 20th-Century.

"Yours".

Sung By: Vera Lynn.

"Our Vera".

Available on YouTube at

YOUR TUBE

Jean Richafort. "Requiem In Memoriam Josquin des Prez."

"Requiem In Memoriam 

Josquin des Prez".

Composer: 

Jean Richafort.

Available on YouTube at

YOU TUBE

The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

Jean Richafort (1480 – 1547) was a Netherlandish Composer of The Renaissance.

He was probably born in Hainaut, and his native language appears to have been French. According to the poet Ronsard, Richafort studied with Josquin des Prez, an association further born out by the fact that he composed a Requiem "In Memoriam Josquin des Prez".

Richafort served as Choir Master at Saint Rombold Cathedral, Mechelen, Belgium, between 1507 and 1509, and at Saint Gilles Church, Bruges, Belgium, between 1542 and 1547 — leaving a huge gap in the record of his activity. At some time between these dates, he was associated with The French Royal Chapel, since some of his music is for official occasions connected with King Louis XII, and there is some evidence he may have been in Brussels in 1531 in the service of Queen Mary of Hungary, who was Regent there.

Musically, Richafort was a representative of the first generation after Josquin, and he followed his style in many ways. In some of his music, he used fragments of Josquin's compositions as a tribute. Richafort's compositional techniques are typical of the period (smooth polyphony, pervasive imitation, etc.) but he was unusually attentive to the clear setting of Text so the words could be understood.

He wrote a Requiem For Six Voices (Requiem In Memoriam Josquin des Prez, 1532), Masses, Motets, Settings of The Magnificat, two Secular Motets, and Chansons.