Christmastide Masses At Saint Mary's, Chislehurst, Kent.

ST MARY’S CATHOLIC CHURCH,
28, CROWN LANE,
CHISLEHURST, KENT BR7 5PL.

CHRISTMAS 2014

SUNDAY, 21 DECEMBER 2014
(FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT)

 MASS at 9.30 A.M.
 and
MASS at 1100 A.M.
(Extraordinary Form Sung Mass).

4.00 P.M. CANDLELIT CAROL SERVICE
and
CHILDREN’S NATIVITY TABLEAU.

WEDNESDAY, 24 DECEMBER
(CHRISTMAS EVE)

6.00 P.M:   VIGIL MASS OF CHRISTMAS
(WITH CAROLS).

11.30 P.M.   CAROLS; BLESSING OF THE CRIB
and
SOLEMN MIDNIGHT MASS.

THURSDAY, 25 DECEMBER
(CHRISTMAS DAY)

9.30 A.M: SUNG MASS
(WITH CAROLS).

11.00 A.M: SOLEMN HIGH MASS
(Extraordinary Form)
(WITH CAROLS).

SUNDAY, 28 DECEMBER
(HOLY FAMILY OF JESUS, MARY AND JOSEPH)

MASS at 9.30 A.M.
and
MASS at 11.00 A.M. (SUNG),

THURSDAY, 1 JANUARY 2015
(OUR BLESSED LADY, MOTHER OF GOD)

10.00 A.M: LOW MASS.

SUNDAY, 4 JANUARY 2015
(THE EPIPHANY)
(Transferred)

MASS at 9.30 A.M.
and
MASS at 11.00 A.M.
(Extraordinary Form Sung Mass).

              

Saint Mary's Catholic Church,

28 Crown Lane,

Chislehurst,

Kent BR7 5PL.

Tel: 020 8467 3215.

Fax: 020 8325 9627.

Email: office@stmarysrc.org

Website: www.stmarysrc.org

The Great O Antiphons. 22 December.

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

English: Adoration of the Shepherds (Detail).

Deutsch: Anbetung der Hirten, Detail.

Artist: Guido Reni (1575–1642).

Date: 1630 - 1642.

Current location: Certosa di San Martino, Naples, Italy.

Source/Photographer: http://www.oceansbridge.com/oil-paintings/product/74265/theadorationoftheshepherds
detailofthegroupsurroundingjesus.

(Wikimedia Commons)

O Rex Gentium.

The Great O Antiphon

for 22 December.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/5GvDvgfLoUo.

 22 December:  Aggeus ii. 8;  Ephesians ii. 14, 20.

O Rex Gentium,

et desideratus earum,

lapisque angularis,

qui facis utraque unum:

veni, et salva hominem,

quem de limo formasti.

O King of the Gentiles,

and the desired of them,

Thou cornerstone that makest both one,

come and deliver man,

whom Thou didst form out of 

      the dust of the earth.

V. Rorate.

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

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

A Little Levity To Get You Through The Day.

The Irish Blessing.

Go n-éirí an bóthar leat

Go raibh an ghaoth go 

brách ag do chúl

Go lonraí an ghrian go te ar 

d'aghaidh

Go dtite an bháisteach go mín ar do 

pháirceanna

Agus go mbuailimid le chéile 

arís,

Go gcoinní Dia i mbos A láimhe 

thú.

The Great O Antiphons. 21 December.

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

English: Madonna and Child with two Angels.
Deutsch: Madonna und zwei Engel
Italiano: Madonna con due angeli.
Artist: Sandro Botticelli (1445–1510).
Date: 1468 - 1469.
Current location: Galleria Nazionale di Capodimonte.
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 Oriens.
The Great O Antiphon
for 21 December.
Available on YouTube at
http://youtu.be/1BsZH7e27Dg.

 21 December:  Psalm cvi.  10.

O Oriens,

splendor lucis aeternae,

et sol justitiae;

veni et illumina sedentes in tenebris,

et umbra mortis.

O Dawn of the East,

brightness of the light eternal,

and Sun of Justice;

come and enlighten them that sit in darkness,

and in the shadow of death.

V. Rorate.

"Rorate caeli desuper, et nubes pluant justium . . ."
"Ye heavens, drop down from above, and let the clouds rain down the Just One."

Fourth Sunday Of Advent.

Text from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal,

unless otherwise stated.

Illustrations, unless otherwise stated, from UNA VOCE OF ORANGE COUNTY
(from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal, 1952 Edition), who reproduce them 
with the kind permission of ST. BONAVENTURE PRESS

Fourth Sunday of Advent.

Station at The Church of The Twelve Apostles.

Indulgence of 15 years and 15 Quarantines.

Privileged Sunday of the Second-Class.

Semi-Double.

Violet Vestments.

John, preaching the Baptism of Penance.

Like the whole Liturgy of this Season, the purpose of The Mass for The Fourth Sunday of Advent is to prepare us for the twofold Coming of Christ: His Coming in Mercy at Christmas; and in Justice at the end of the world.

Allusion is made to the First Coming in the Introit; while the Collect, Gradual, and Alleluia, can be applied to either of the two.

In this Mass, we meet once again with the three great figures that are before the mind of The Church throughout Advent: Isaias; Saint John the Baptist; and Our Lady. The Prophet Isaias foretells, of Saint John the Baptist, that he will be: "A voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of The Lord, make straight His paths . . . and all flesh shall see the Salvation of God."

English: Basilica of The Twelve Holy Apostles.

View from the Vittoriano, Rome, Italy.

Italiano: Santi XII Apostoli.

Latin: SS. XII Apostolorum.

Photo: 3 December 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: Pippo-b.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Church of The Twelve Holy Apostles (Italian: Santi Dodici Apostoli, Latin: SS. XII Apostolorum) is a 6th-Century Roman Catholic Parish and Titular Church and Minor Basilica in Rome, Italy, dedicated originally to Saint James and Saint Philip and, later, to all Apostles.
Today, the Basilica is under the care of the Conventual Franciscans, whose headquarters,
in Rome , are in the adjacent building.

The Cardinal Priest of the Titulus XII Apostolorum is Angelo Scola.
Among the previous Cardinal Priests are Pope Clement XIV, whose tomb, by Canova, is in the Basilica, and Henry Benedict Stuart.

And "the word of the Lord was made unto John, the son of Zachary, in the desert. And he came into all the country about the Jordan, preaching the Baptism of Penance for the remission of sins" (Gospel).

"John," Saint Gregory explains, "told those who hurried in crowds to be Baptised: "Ye brood of vipers, who hath told you to flee from the wrath to come ?" Now the wrath to come is the final chastisement, which the sinner will not be able to escape, unless he have recourse now to the lamentations of Penance.

The friend of the Bridegroom warns us to bring forth, not fruits merely of Penance, but worthy fruits. These words are a call to each man's conscience, bidding him to lay up, by means of Penance, a treasure of good works, the greater in proportions to the ravage of sin which caused it (Third Nocturn).

The Baroque Ceiling of The Basilica of Santi Apostoli, Rome, Italy.

Photo: 15 August 2005.

Source: http://flickr.com/photos/antmoose/34649457/.

Author: Anthony Majanlahti.

(Wikimedia Commons)

And Saint Leo says: "God Himself teaches us by the Prophet Isaias: I will lead the blind in a way that they know not, and I will turn the darkness before them into light and I will not forsake them."

The Apostle, Saint John, makes clear to us, the way in which this Mystery is fulfilled, when he says: "And we know that The Son of God is Come. And He hath given us understanding, that we may know The True God and may be in His True Son" (Second Nocturn).

The Liturgy continues: Because of the great love that God has manifested towards us, He has sent on Earth His only-begotten Son to be born of The Virgin Mary. Also, in the Communion sentence, the Church recalls to us the Prophecy of Isaias: "Behold, a Virgin shall conceive and bear a Son: And His Name shall be called Emmanuel."

And, again, in the Offertory, she combines, in a single salutation, the words addressed to Our Lady by the Archangel and by Saint Elizabeth. Saint Gregory writes: "Gabriel, whose name means "Strength of God", is sent to Mary, since he comes to announce The Messias, Whose Will it is, to appear in humiliation and abasement, in order to subdue all the Powers of the Air.

"It was fitting that He should be heralded by Gabriel, the "Strength of God"; He, Who was to come as The Lord of Might, The All-Powerful and Unconquerable in battle, to crush the Powers of the Air in universal defeat" (Sermon 35).

In the Collect, just as we are reminded of the display of Our Lord's "Great Might", which will take place at the time of His Second Coming, when, as Supreme Judge, He will come in the splendour of His Divine Majesty to render to each according to his works, so we find an allusion to this same Great Power manifested in His First Coming. It was as one clothed in His weak and mortal human nature that Our Lord put the Devil to flight.

As we think of Our Lord as nigh at hand, in one or other of His "Comings", let us say, with The Church: "Come, Lord Jesus, and tarry not."

Every Parish Priest celebrates Mass for the people of his Parish.

The Great O Antiphons. 20 December.

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

English: Workshop of the Della Robbia (early 16th-Century)

Madonna with Child, the Holy Spirit and two cherubims, enamelled terracotta.

Français: Atelier des Della Robbia (début du XVIe siècle.

Vierge à l'Enfant avec le Saint Esprit et deux chérubins, terre cuite émaillée.

Current location: Louvre Museum, Paris, France.

Accession Number: Campana 32.

Source/Photographer: Jastrow (2006).

(Wikimedia Commons)

O Clavis David,
The Great O Antiphon
for 20 December.
Available on YouTube at
http://youtu.be/fDg29sswhgQ.

20 December: Isaias xxii. 22; Apocalypse iii. 7; Luke i. 79.

O Clavis David,

et sceptrum domus Israel;

qui aperis, et nemo claudit, 

      claudis, et nemo aperit:

veni, et educ vinctum de domo carceris,

sedentem in tenebris, et umbra mortis.

O Key of David,

and Sceptre of the House of Israel,

who openest and no man shutteth,

who shuttest and no man openeth;

come and bring forth from his prison-house,

the captive that sitteth in darkness and

      in the shadow of death.

V. Rorate.

"Rorate caeli desuper, et nubes pluant justium . . ."
"Ye heavens, drop down from above, and let the clouds rain down the Just One."

"Hold Firmly To The Traditions, Just As I Delivered Them To You."

Fr. Ray Blake has put up a most wonderful Post on FR RAY BLAKE'S BLOG

which beautifully depicts the Liturgy as many of the Faithful remember (and long for, still).

The Post is entitled "1 Corinthians 11:2". [Editor: Saint Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians.]

Zephyrinus urges all Readers to pop over and see how Liturgy should be celebrated, with Profundity and Solemnity, when Adoring and Worshipping God.

No Liturgical Dances. No Dancing Nuns. No Clowns.

Pictures From Before The Revolution.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/JNbF1J6XSXc.

Parce Mihi Domine. Spare Me, O Lord, For My Days Are Nothing.

Herewith, two versions of Parce Mihi Domine (Spare Me, O Lord) [from The Book of Job 7:16-21].

The first version includes the accompaniment by the Norwegian saxophonist, Jan Garbarek. The second version does not.

See which one you prefer.

Parce Mihi Domine

(Cristóbal de Morales, 1500-1553),

by Jan Garbarek and The Hilliard Ensemble

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/qfodIWqR0II.

Scroll of The Book of Job, in Hebrew.

Photo: 28 October 2009.

Source: Photographed at a Museum.

Author: Pete unseth.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Parce Mihi Domine

(Cristóbal de Morales, 

1500-1553),

by The Hilliard Ensemble.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/Uk1YMS2M0L4.

Parce Mihi Domine (Latin) (Job 7:16-21).

Parce mihi Domine, nihil enim sunt dies mei.
Quid est homo, quia magnificas eum?
Aut quid apponis erga eum cor tuum?
Visitas cum diluculo, et subito probas illum.
Usquequo non parcis michi, nec dimittas me, ut glutiam salivam meam?
Peccavi. Quid faciam tibi, o custos hominum?
Quare posuisti me contrarium tibi, et factus sum michimet ipsi gravis?
Cur non tollis peccatum meum, et quare non aufers iniquitatem meam?
Ecce nunc in pulvere dormio; et si mane me quesieris, non subsistam.

Parce Mihi Domine (English) (Job 7:16-21).
Spare me, O Lord, for my days are nothing.
What is man, that thou dost make so much of him, and that
thou dost set thy mind upon him,
dost visit him every morning, and test him every moment?
How long wilt thou not look away from me, nor let me alone till I swallow my spittle?
If I sin, what do I do to thee, thou watcher of men? Why hast thou made me thy mark? Why have I become a burden to thee?
Why dost thou not pardon my transgression and take away my iniquity?
For now I shall lie in the earth; thou wilt seek me, but I shall not be.

Parce Mihi Domine (Español) (Job 7:16-21).

Perdóname Señor, porque mis días son un soplo.
¿Qué es el hombre para que le des tanta importancia,
para que pongas en él tu atención,
para que cada mañana lo inspecciones y sin cesar lo pongas a prueba?
¿Hasta cuándo seguirás vigilándome sin darme tregua ni para tragar saliva?
¿Qué daño te hizo mi pecado, guardián de los hombres?
¿Por qué me has convertido en blanco de tus flechas? ¿Por qué he de ser una carga para ti?
¿Por qué no olvidas mi pecado ni pasas por alto mi culpa?
Mira que bien pronto yaceré en la tierra y no me hallarás, aunque me busques.

The Great O Antiphons. 19 December.

Text and Illustrations taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal, 

unless otherwise stated.

Madonna and Child,

by Michelangelo

(1501-1504).

Brügge Cathedral,

"Onze-Lieve-Vrouwkerk", Belgium.

Photo: 7 February 2005.

Author: Elke Wetzig (elya).

(Wikimedia Commons)

O Radix Jesse.

The Great O Antiphon

for 19 December.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/VFE7B-DZ8_w.

19 December: Isaias xi. 10.

O Radix Jesse,

qui stas in signum populorum,

super quem continebunt reges os suum,

quem Gentes deprecabuntur:

veni ad liberandum nos,

jam noli tardare.

O Root of Jesse,

who standest for an ensign of the people,

before whom kings shall keep silence,

and unto whom the Gentiles shall make their supplication:

come to deliver us, 

and tarry not.

V. Rorate.

"Rorate caeli desuper, et nubes pluant justium . . ."
"Ye heavens, drop down from above, and let the clouds rain down the Just One."

Christmastide Masses At Saint Mary's, Chislehurst, Kent.

ST MARY’S CATHOLIC CHURCH,
28, CROWN LANE,
CHISLEHURST, KENT BR7 5PL.

CHRISTMAS 2014

SUNDAY, 21 DECEMBER 2014
(FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT)

 MASS at 9.30 A.M.
 and
MASS at 1100 A.M.
(Extraordinary Form Sung Mass).

4.00 P.M. CANDLELIT CAROL SERVICE
and
CHILDREN’S NATIVITY TABLEAU.

WEDNESDAY, 24 DECEMBER
(CHRISTMAS EVE)

6.00 P.M:   VIGIL MASS OF CHRISTMAS
(WITH CAROLS).

11.30 P.M.   CAROLS; BLESSING OF THE CRIB
and
SOLEMN MIDNIGHT MASS.

THURSDAY, 25 DECEMBER
(CHRISTMAS DAY)

9.30 A.M: SUNG MASS
(WITH CAROLS).

11.00 A.M: SOLEMN HIGH MASS
(Extraordinary Form)
(WITH CAROLS).

SUNDAY, 28 DECEMBER
(HOLY FAMILY OF JESUS, MARY AND JOSEPH)

MASS at 9.30 A.M.
and
MASS at 11.00 A.M. (SUNG),

THURSDAY, 1 JANUARY 2015
(OUR BLESSED LADY, MOTHER OF GOD)

10.00 A.M: LOW MASS.

SUNDAY, 4 JANUARY 2015
(THE EPIPHANY)
(Transferred)

MASS at 9.30 A.M.
and
MASS at 11.00 A.M.
(Extraordinary Form Sung Mass).

              

Saint Mary's Catholic Church,

28 Crown Lane,

Chislehurst,

Kent BR7 5PL.

Tel: 020 8467 3215.

Fax: 020 8325 9627.

Email: office@stmarysrc.org

Website: www.stmarysrc.org

Benedictus.

Illustration: BENEDICTUS

Benedictus Trust, a UK educational charity, is running a two-week residential Summer School in central London in August 2015, entitled “Foundational Aspects of European Culture” which covers philosophy, theology, history, history of art, Latin, literature and geometry. The course is open to 18-25 year olds. Students are taught through classroom-based discussion seminars and visit seminars to some of London’s top cultural sites conducted by expert professors. Students will also experience theatrical and musical performances that link to the subjects that they have been studying. The course introduces students to the thought and culture of Europe from the ancient world to the modern day with a strong focus on the importance of the Catholic intellectual tradition.

Illustration: BENEDICTUS

The Summer School runs from 2nd - 14th August and costs £1,400 for accommodation, tuition and entrance fees.

Spoken and written English to a high standard is required to join this course.

In September 2014,

the Board of Trustees announced that 

HMEH Fra' Matthew Festing,

the Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta,

had agreed to be the first Patron of Benedictus Trust.

Illustration: BENEDICTUS

英國「本篤基金」Benedictus Trust是一所慈善教育機構，將於2015年8月在倫敦市，假耶穌會海斯羅珀學院 Heythrop College舉辦「歐洲文化基礎」暑期住院課程，為期兩周，涵蓋哲學、神學、歷史、藝術史、拉丁文、文學及幾何，招收18-25歲學生，由專家教授指導課堂研討及導覽倫敦文化勝地，並讓學員經驗與學科相關之劇藝音樂項目。本課程旨在引導學生認識歐洲古今思想文化，集中了解天主教學術傳統之重要地位。

報讀者英語聽寫需達熟練程度。

暑期課程：8月2日至8月14日
費用，包括住宿，學費及報名費共：£1400 （臺仟肆伯圓英鎊）詳情及報名細節：www.benedictus.org.uk　
及請參閱附件單張

Email: info@benedictus.org.uk

Telephone: +44 0207 976 6072.

Write to us at 84 Cambridge Street, London, SW1V 4QQ,
United Kingdom. 

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

http://youtu.be/dn1cloz0ssQ.

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."

Ember Wednesday In Advent.

This excellent summation, of Ember Wednesday in Advent,

can be found at THE SAINT LAWRENCE PRESS LTD

Illustration: LUZAR VESTMENTS

Ember Wednesday in Advent

Today is Ember Wednesday in Advent and the first of three Ember Days observed this week. The day is of simple rite and its liturgical colour is violet.

The Office of the Ember Day begins with Mattins. The invitatory is Prope est and the Office hymn Verbum supernum. In the nocturn the antiphons Speciosus forma etc, from the Psalter for Wednesday, are sung with psalms 44i, 44ii, 45, 44, 481, 48ii, 49i, 49ii & 49iii. Psalm 49 is divided into three rather than two divisi as the second scheme of Lauds will be sung later. The lessons are a homily from St. Ambrose on St. Luke's Gospel. Following the third lesson a third responsory, Modo veniet Dominator Dominus, is sung. At Lauds the second schema is sung and so the antiphons appointed for the Wednesday before the Vigil of the Nativity, Prophetae praedicaverunt etc, are sung with psalms 50, 64, 100, Exsultavit cor meum & 145. The Office hymn is En clara vox. After the antiphon on the Benedictus, Missus est Gabriel, has been sung in full after the Canticle the choir kneels for the singing of the ferial preces. The same set of antiphons are sung with the Little Hours in the usual order. At Prime Pss. 25, 51, 52 & 96 the chapter is the ferial Pacem et veritatem etc. At the Hours, the ferial preces are sung, the choir kneeling.

Mass is sung after None. The texts are proper, the introit being Rorate, caeli etc. After the Kyrie, there immediately follows the dialogue Oremus sung by the celebrant, Flectamus genua sung by the deacon and Levate sung by the sub-deacon followed by the, Praesta, quaesumus, is sung followed by an additional OT lesson and gradual. After this the celebrant sings Dominus vobiscum and the collect Festina, quaesumus. The second collect is Deus, qui de beatae and the third collect Ecclesiae. The dismissal is Benedicamus Domino sung by the deacon facing the altar. The ministers, of course, wear violet folded chasubles. With the celebration of the Eucharist, the Office of the Ember Day ends.

Vespers is of the Advent ferial day. The Office hymn is Creator alme siderum. The antiphon on the Magnificat is proper to the seventeenth day, O Sapientia, and is sung in full both before and after the Canticle with the choir standing. The choir kneels for the ferialpreces and the collect of the previous Sunday is sung. At Compline the Domincal preces are sung, kneeling.

Cardinal Burke Receives Petition From 30,000 Supporters. Says: "We Must Go Forward, Defending The Truth Of Our Faith, Especially With Regard To Marriage And The Family".

This item is taken from LIFESITENEWS

where the Article can be read in its entirety.

On Thursday, 11 December 2014, LifeSiteNews Editor-in-Chief, John-Henry Westen, had the privilege of meeting with Cardinal Raymond Burke in Wisconsin, where he presented the Cardinal with a beautifully-bound book, with the signatures of nearly 30,000 people who wished to thank him for his Vatican Service, and who pledged to Pray for him.

Illustration: LIFESITENEWS

LifeSiteNews presented Cardinal Raymond Burke with a handsomely-bound book, signed by over 29,000 people who had expressed their thanks for the Cardinal’s Vatican Service, and pledged to Pray for him and to follow his example.

The Cardinal expressed his “deepest gratitude” for the show of “support and, most of all, for your Prayers.”

An Online Petition of Support for Cardinal Burke, one of the most unequivocal Pro-Life and Pro-Family voices in The Catholic Church, was launched in November by LifeSiteNews after the Vatican announced that Pope Francis had removed him from his position as the Prefect of the Vatican’s Apostolic Signatura. Burke was demoted to the position of Patron of The Sovereign Military Order of Malta, a largely ceremonial role.

“We must all now, going forward, remain united in Our Lord Jesus, defending The Truth of our Faith, especially with regard to Marriage and The Family,” said Cardinal Burke, after being presented the Pledges by LifeSiteNews Editor-in-Chief, John-Henry Westen. The exchange took place at The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, in La Crosse, Wisconsin, United States of America.

“We can be confident, even though things can seem rather dark to us, that if we co-operate with God’s Grace, and are true defenders of The Faith, and promoters of The Truth about Marriage and The Family, that Our Lord will not be lacking in His Grace for us.”

“Of course, the victory is always His, in the end. Let’s remain steadfast, and not give way to discouragement,” the Cardinal said.

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.
Available on YouTube at
http://youtu.be/8ngcQDQfhlA.

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.

V. Rorate.

"Rorate caeli desuper, et nubes pluant justium . . ."
"Ye heavens, drop down from above, and let the clouds rain down the Just One."

Temptation.

English: Temptation.

Polski: Pokusa.

Artist: William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825–1905).

Date: 1880.

This File: 9 December 2013.

User: Electron.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Hymns For Advent.

This Article is taken from CATHOLICISM PURE AND SIMPLE

Mary, Did You Know ?

Mary, Did You Know ?

By Pentatonix.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/ifCWN5pJGIE.

Veni Veni Emmanuel.

Veni Veni Emmanuel.

By L'Accorche-Choeur,

Ensemble Vocal Fribourg.

Veni Veni Emmanuel is a synthesis of the "Great O Antiphons" that are used at Vespers

during the Octave before Christmas (17 December - 23 December). These Antiphons

are of ancient origin and date back to at least the 9th-Century.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/xRi1GDoaQu4.

The Angel Gabriel.

The Angel Gabriel.

(Old Basque Carol)

- Traditional.

Sung by

The Sixteen.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/L-Rv-J46gvM.