Saint Liborius. Bishop. Confessor. Feast Day, Today, 23 July.

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

Saint Liborius.
Bishop and Confessor.
Feast Day 23 July.

Simple.

White Vestments.

English: Saint Liborius, relief in the Trinity Chapel of the Paderborn Cathedral, Germany.

Deutsch: Paderborner Dom: Darstellung des heiligen Liborius in der Dreifaltigkeitskapelle.

Photo: 25 July 2006.

Source: Own work.

Author: ludger1961.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Saint Liborius was born in the 4th-Century of a Gaulish family. He left everything to Consecrate himself to The Service of The Altar.

He became Bishop of Le Mans, France, and, after a life devoted to Preaching, Prayer, and austerities, he died in 397 A.D.

Mass: Státuit.

English: Stained-Glass Window, depicting Saint Liborius,

in the Church of Saint Jodokus, Saalhausen, Germany.

Deutsch: Bleiglasfenster in der Kirche St. Jodokus in Saalhausen,

einem Ortsteil von Lennestadt in Nordrhein-Westfalen,

Darstellung: hl. Liborius.

Photo: 26 October 2013.

Source: Own work.

Author: Reinhardhauke.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

Liborius of Le Mans (circa 348 A.D. – 397 A.D.) was the second Bishop of Le Mans. He is the Patron Saint of the Cathedral and Archdiocese of Paderborn, Germany.

He died in 397 A.D., in the arms of his friend, Saint Martin of Tours.

English: Interior of Paderborn Cathedral, Germany.

Saint Liborius is the Patron Saint of this Cathedral and the Archdiocese of Paderborn.

His Relics were Transferred to the Cathedral in 836 A.D.

Deutsch: Innenansicht des Doms.

Français: Intérieur de la cathédrale.

Photo: July 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: Benchaum.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Saint Liborius Roman Catholic Church,

Eaglehawk, Victoria,

Australia.

Photo: 2 August 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: Mattinbgn.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Saint Liborius Church,

Saint Louis, Missouri,

United States of America.

Photo: 15 September 2012.

Source: Own work.

Author: BirgitteSB.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Saint Apollinaris. Bishop. Martyr. Feast Day, Today, 23 July.

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

Saint Apollinaris.
Bishop and Martyr.
Feast Day 23 July.

Double.

Red Vestments.

Deutsch: Apollinaris von Ravenna, erster Bischof von Ravenna. Detail eines aus dem sechsten Jahrhundert stammenden Mosaiks in der Apsis der Basilika von Sant'Apollinare in Classe.

English: Saint Apollinaris, first Bishop of Ravenna.

Detail from the 6th-Century 

Byzantine 

mosaic in the Apse of the

Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe, near Ravenna, Italy.

Italiano: Sant'Apollinare, primo vescovo di Ravenna. Mosaico

bizantino nel catino absidale di Sant'Apollinare in Classe.

This File: 4 September 2005.

User: MChew.

(Wikimedia Commons)

English: The Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna, Italy.

Français: La Basilique Saint-Apollinaire in Classe à Ravenne (Italie).

Italiano: Ravenna, Basilica di Sant'Apollinare in Classe.

Photo: 6 March 2009.

Source: Own work.

Author: Berthold Werner.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Saint Apollinaris is said to have come from Antioch to Rome with Saint Peter, who anointed him Bishop (Introit, Gradual, Alleluia) and sent him to Ravenna, Italy, to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Therefore, the Epistle chosen is that in which Saint Peter describes the duties of those who are to guide the Church, not domineering, but as models of the flock.

The Gospel also says "that the one who is greatest, shall be like the least, and the one who governs, like the one who serves".

English: The 6th-Century Byzantine mosaic 

in the Apse of the Basilica of

Sant'Apollinare in Classe (Ravenna, Italy).

Italiano: Mosaico bizantino nel catino 

absidale di

Sant'Apollinare in Classe

Ravenna (secolo VI).

Photo: 6 March 2009.

Source: Own work.

Author: Berthold Werner.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Arrested by the pagan priests, he was cruelly beaten and cast into prison, then exiled to the banks of the Danube and to Thrace. Having returned to Ravenna, he was again persecuted, and died in 79 A.D., from the effects of torture and fatigue. Thus, did he put to profit the talents entrusted to him by God (Communion).

In the midst of our trials, let us remain united to Jesus and He will prepare for us, as for this Saint, a place in His Kingdom (Gospel).

Mass: Sacerdótes Dei, benedícite Dóminum.
Commemoration of Saint Liborius. Praesta, quaésumus.

English: Interior of the Basilica of

Sant'Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna, Italy.

Italiano: Basilica di Sant'Apollinare in Classe.

Photo: 8 January 2012.

Source: Own work.

Author: Sansa55.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The following Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia.

The Basilica of Sant' Apollinare in Classe, is an important monument of Byzantine art, near Ravenna, Italy. When UNESCO inscribed eight Ravenna sites on the World Heritage List, it cited this Basilica as "an outstanding example of the Early-Christian Basilicas, in its purity and simplicity of design, and use of space and the sumptuous nature of its decoration".

The imposing brick structure was erected at the beginning of the 6th-Century A.D., by order of Bishop Ursicinus, using money from the Greek banker, Iulianus Argentarius. It was certainly located next to a Christian Cemetery, and quite possibly on top of a pre-existing pagan one, as some of the ancient tombstones were re-used in its construction.

Sant'Apollinare in Classe was consecrated on 9 May 549 A.D., by Bishop Maximian, and dedicated to Saint Apollinaris, first Bishop of Ravenna and Classe. The Basilica is thus contemporary with the Basilica of San Vitale of Ravenna. In 856 A.D., the Relics of Saint Apollinaris were transferred from the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare in Classe to the Basilica of Sant' Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna.

The Exterior has a large façade, with two simple uprights and one mullioned window with three openings. The Narthex and building, to the right of the entry, are later additions, as is the fine 9th-Century round Bell Tower, with mullioned windows.

Vézelay Abbey. Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine De Vézelay.

Text is from Wikipedia - the free encyclopaedia,

unless otherwise stated.

Yesterday (22 July) was the Feast Day of Saint Mary Magdalen and it is apt that this Post concerns Vézelay Abbey (Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine De Vézelay).

English: The Nave,

Basilica of Saint Mary Magdalene, Vézelay, France.

Français: Le 23 juin 1976 à 14h27 dans la nef de la basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay, le Père Hugues Delautre o.f.m. a donné rendez-vous au soleil, à cet instant précis en culmination par rapport à la terre, pour qu'il lui manifeste le secret de l'édifice. Photographie de François Walch.

Photo: 23 June 1976.

Source: Own work.

Author: Francis Vérillon.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Vézelay Abbey,

France.

Available on YouTube at

https://youtu.be/yWNdgteVv-c?list=PL-NFZZt1

VeUS26mfc582vrZeBgt0MkVMQ

Vespers at Vézelay Abbey

(Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine De Vézelay).

Available on YouTube at

https://youtu.be/EAyQpNHddkI

Basilica of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine

(Saint Mary Magdalene),

Vézelay, France.

Photo: 13 April 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: PMRMaeyaert.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Vézelay Abbey (French: Abbaye Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay) was a Benedictine and Cluniac Monastery in Vézelay, in the Yonne Department in Northern Burgundy, France. The Benedictine Abbey Church, now the Basilica of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine (Saint Mary Magdalene), with its complicated programme of imagery in sculpted Capitals and Portals, is one of the outstanding masterpieces of Burgundian Romanesque art and architecture. Sacked by the Huguenots, in 1569, the building suffered neglect in the 17th- and 18th-Centuries and some further damage during the period of The French Revolution.

The Church at Vézelay was added to the UNESCO List of World Heritage Sites in 1979.

The Benedictine Abbey of Vézelay was Founded, as many Abbeys were, on land that had been a Late-Roman villa, of Vercellus (Vercelle becoming Vézelay). The villa had passed into the hands of the Carolingians and devolved to a Carolingian Count, Girart, of Roussillon. The two Convents, that he Founded there, were looted and dispersed by Moorish raiding parties in the 8th-Century, and a hilltop Convent was burnt by Norman raiders.

In the 9th-Century, the Abbey was re-Founded under the guidance of Badilo, who became an affiliate of the reformed Benedictine Order of Cluny. Vézelay also stood at the beginning of one of the four major routes, through France, for Pilgrims going to Santiago de Compostela, in Galicia, in the North-Western corner of Spain.

Polski: Bazylika św.

Marii Magdaleny w Vézelay.

English: Vézelay Abbey.

Photo: 25 May 2013.

Source: Own work.

Author: Delta 51.

(Wikimedia Commons)

About 1050, the Monks of Vézelay began to claim to hold the Relics of Mary Magdalene, brought, they related, from The Holy Land, either by their 9th-Century Founder-Saint, Badilo, or by Envoys despatched by him. A little later, a Monk of Vézelay declared that he had detected in a Crypt at St-Maximin, in Provence, France, carved on an empty sarcophagus, a representation of the Unction at Bethany, when Jesus' Head was anointed by Mary of Bethany, assumed in The Middle Ages to be Mary Magdalene.

Vézelay Church.

Available on YouTube at

http://youtu.be/aFoakBvsKlA.

The Monks of Vézelay pronounced it to be Mary Magdalene's tomb, from which her Relics had been Translated to their Abbey. Freed captives then brought their chains, as Votive Objects, to the Abbey, and it was the newly-elected Abbot Geoffroy, in 1037, who had the ironwork melted down and re-forged as wrought iron railings surrounding the Magdalen's Altar.

Thus, the erection of one of the finest examples of Romanesque architecture, which followed, was made possible by Pilgrims to the declared Relics and these tactile examples demonstrating the efficacy of Prayers. Mary Magdalene is the prototype of the Penitent, and Vézelay has remained an important place of Pilgrimage for the Catholic Faithful, though the actual Relics were torched by Huguenots in the 16th-Century.

English: The Central Tympanum of the Narthex of Vézelay Abbey (carved 1125-1130).

Français: Le tympan central du narthex (sculpté vers 1125-1130),détail: au centre, le Christ en gloire transmet l'Esprit Saint aux apôtres; compartiment du haut, les Byzantins; compartiment du bas, les Arméniens; les médaillons de haut en bas:le Scorpion, un paysan tue un porc, le Sagittaire; sur le linteau, les peuples inconnus: de droite à gauche, les Panotti (aux grandes oreilles), les Pygmées, les Macrobii des Indes (peuple de géants). Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay.

Photo: 9 July 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: Vassil.

(Wikimedia Commons)

To accommodate the influx of Pilgrims, a new Abbey Church was begun, Dedicated on 21 April 1104, the expense incurred in building it resulted in an increased tax burden in the Abbey's land holdings. As a result, the Peasants revolted and killed the Abbot.The crush of Pilgrims was so great that an extended Narthex (an enclosed Porch) was built, inaugurated by Pope Innocent II, in 1132, to help accommodate the Pilgrim throng.

Saint Bernard of Clairvaux Preached there, in favour of a Second Crusade, at Easter, 1146, in front of King Louis VII of France and King Richard I of England. King Philip II of France visited and spent three months at the Abbey, in 1190, before leaving for The Third Crusade. Thomas Becket, in exile, chose Vézelay Abbey for his Whitsunday Sermon, in 1166, announcing the Excommunication of the main supporters of his English King, Henry II, and threatening the King with Excommunication, too.

The Nave, which had once burned down with great loss of life, burned down again, in 1165. It was then rebuilt in its present form.

Vézelay was self-confident. Its litigious Monastic Community was prepared to defend its liberties and privileges against all-comers: The Bishops of Autun, who challenged its claims to exemption; the Counts of Nevers, who claimed jurisdiction in their Court and rights of hospitality at Vézelay; the Abbey of Cluny, which had reformed its Rule and sought to maintain control of the Abbot within its hierarchy; the Townsmen of Vézelay, who demanded a modicum of communal Self-Government.

English: The Tympanum,

Basilica of Saint Mary Magdalene, Vézelay.

Français: Le tympan central du narthex (1140-1150),

ouvert pour la sortie de la messe.

Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay.

Photo: 15 July 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: Vassil

(Wikimedia Commons)

The start of the decline of Vézelay coincided with the well-publicised discovery, in 1279, of the alleged body of Mary Magdalene, at Saint-Maximin-La-Sainte-Baume, in Provence, given Regal Patronage by Charles II, the Angevin King of Sicily. When Charles erected a Dominican Convent at La Sainte-Baume, the Shrine was marvellously found intact, even with an explanatory inscription stating why the Relics had been hidden. The local Dominican Monks soon compiled an account of Miracles that these Relics had wrought. This discovery seriously undermined Vézelay's position as the main Shrine of Magdalen in Europe.

After the French Revolution, Vézelay stood in danger of collapse. In 1834, the newly-appointed French Inspector of Historical Monuments, Prosper Mérimée (more familiar as the author of Carmen), warned that it was about to collapse, and, on his recommendation, the young architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc was appointed to supervise a massive and successful restoration, undertaken in several stages between 1840 and 1861, during which his team replaced a great deal of the weathered and vandalised sculpture. The Flying Buttresses, that support the Nave, are his.

English: The North Aisle of the 12th-Century Nave 

of Vézelay Abbey, France,

and its Vaults, supported by impressive Arches.

Français: Le bas-côté Nord de la nef, 2ème moitié du 12ème siècle et ses voûtes d'arête soutenues par d'impressionnants arcs doubleaux, Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay, France.

Photo: 15 July 2008.

Source: Own work.

Author: Vassil

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Tympanum of the Central Portal of the Basilica Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay is different from its counterparts across Europe. From the beginning, its Tympanum was specifically designed to function as a Spiritual Defense of The Crusades and to portray a Christian allegory to The Crusaders' mission. When compared to contemporary Churches, such as St. Lazare d'Autun and St. Pierre de Moissac, the distinctiveness of Vézelay becomes apparent.

The art historian George Zarnecki wrote: "To most people, the term Romanesque Sculpture brings to mind a large Church Portal, dominated by a Tympanum carved with an Apocalyptic vision, usually The Last Judgment." This is true in most cases, but Vézelay is definitely an exception. Unlike its contemporaries, which tend to depict The Second Coming of Christ, the subject of Vézelay's Tympanum is The Pentecostal Mission of the Apostles. Its Tympanum reflects its unique importance in the development of The Crusades.

Thirty years before the Vézelay Tympanum was carved, Pope Urban II planned on announcing his call for a Crusade at La Madeleine, Vézelay. In 1095, Pope Urban II altered his plans and preached for The First Crusade at The Council of Clermont, but Vézelay remained a central figure in the history of The Crusades. The Tympanum was completed in 1130. Fifteen years after its completion, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux chose Vézelay as the place from which he would call for a Second Crusade. Vézelay was even the Staging Point for The Third Crusade. It is there that King Richard the Lionheart, of England, and King Philip Augustus, of France, met and joined their armies for a combined Western Invasion of The Holy Land. It is appropriate, therefore, that Vézelay's Portal reflect its place in the history of The Crusades.

Vézelay Abbey (now known as Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine) was a Benedictine and Cluniac Monastery, in Vézelay, in the Yonne Département, Burgundy, France. The Benedictine Abbey Church of Sainte-Marie-Madeleine (or Basilica of Saint Mary Magdalene), with its complicated programme of imagery in sculpted Capitals and Portals, is one of the outstanding masterpieces of Burgundian Romanesque art and architecture, though much of its exterior sculpture was defaced during The French Revolution. The Church was added to the UNESCO List of World Heritage Sites in 1979.

Photo: 1 August 2008.

Source: Basilica of Saint Magdalene in Vézelay

Uploaded by russavia

Author: Michal Osmenda from Brussels, Belgium.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Sanctuary,

Vézelay Abbey, France.

Photo: 1 August 2008.

Source: Basilica of Saint Magdalene,

Vézelay, France.

Uploaded by russavia

Author: Michal Osmenda from Brussels, Belgium.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Lintel of the Vézelay Portal portrays the "ungodly" people of the world. It is a depiction of the first Pentecostal Mission to spread the Word of God to all the people of the world. The figures in the Tympanum, who have not received the Word of God, are depicted as not fully human. Some are shown with pig snouts, others are mis-shapen, and several are depicted as dwarves. One pygmy, in particular, is depicted as mounting a horse with the assistance of a ladder. On the far right, there is a man with elephantine ears, while, in the centre, we see a man covered in feathers. The architects and artisans depicted the unbelievers as physically grotesque in order to provide a visual image of what they saw as the non-believers' moral turpitude.

Vézelay's political motivation becomes all the more apparent, when compared with contemporary Portal designs from other Churches around France. The Vézelay Lintel is distinct, but some comparisons can be made between it and other Romanesque Portal sculptures of the time. Vézelay's Lintel is comparable to the Saint Lazare Lintel, in Autun, in that both show humans who have sinned.

While the Vézelay Lintel is devoted to the depiction of "heathens," the Autun Lintel shows the Damned Souls on Judgement Day. The similarity between both Lintels is due in large part to the fact that the same Master Artisan, Master Gislebertus, was the primary architect on both sites.

Interior of the Basilica of

Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay.

Photo: 13 April 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: PMRMaeyaert.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Gislebertus . . . began his career at Cluny Abbey, then worked on the original West Facade at Vézelay, and, circa 1120, moved to Autun. In addition, the two Tympana are similar, in that they follow the tradition of placing the exaggerated Christ in the centre of the image. Here is where the similarity stops, however. Autun is more traditional and typical of the Romanesque Portal carvings. It depicts The Second Coming, which is a popular and typical depiction in Romanesque art. Frightful images of demons abound. The goals of the two different Tympana are reflected in their design; Autun is designed to frighten people back to Church, while Vézelay is designed as a political statement to support The Crusades.

The Ambulatory,

Vézelay Abbey, France.

(Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine De Vézelay).

Photo: 13 April 2010.

Source: Own work.

Author: PMRMaeyaert.

(Wikimedia Commons)

The Lower Four Compartments of the Vézelay Tympanum show the nations that had already received the Gospels. They include the Byzantines, Armenians, and Ethiopians. The inclusion of the Byzantines is particularly important because it was the Byzantines who initially requested a Crusade to The Holy Land. The Byzantines had lost Jerusalem to the Seljuk Turks through warfare, and they were eager to seek Western military support to reclaim that territory.

While the Lower Four Compartments of the Tympanum represent the Christian nations, the Upper Four Compartments are a representation of the Second Mission of The Apostles. According to the Bible, "many wonders and signs were done by The Apostles." These wonders included the healing of the sick and the casting out of demons and devils. These acts are represented in the Upper Four Compartments of the Vézelay Tympanum.

Saint Mary Magdalen. Penitent. Feast Day, Today, 22 July.

There is an excellent Article, on Saint Mary Magdalen,
on SUB UMBRA ALARUM SUARUM


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

Saint Mary Magdalen.
Penitent.
Feast Day 22 July.

Double.

White Vestments.

English: The Penitent Magdalene.

Español: Magdalena penitente.

Artist: Domenico Tintoretto (1560–1635).

Date: 1598-1602.

Current location: Capitoline Museums, Rome, Italy.

Source/Photographer: Google Art Project: Home - Pic. Maximum resolution.

(Wikimedia Commons)

When He gave The Holy Ghost to The Apostles, Jesus had told them to remit sins, as He had done, and, today, The Liturgy recalls the ever-memorable example of The Saviour's Mercy towards repentant sinners.

Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, was of Magdala, in Galilee, whence her name of "Magdalen". She was a sinner.

Touched by Grace, she threw herself at the feet of The Saviour. Simon the Pharisee, scandalised, would have repelled her like the haughty men mentioned by the Prophet Isaias, who say: "Away from me, approach me not, for I am pure." [Eighth Lesson at Matins.]

Jesus, on the contrary, "defends her against the calumnies of the proud" (Communion). Admiring the work of Divine Grace in this Soul "henceforth attentive to His commandments, whilst sinful men would still have her fall into sin" (Introit), He mercifully "accepts the offer of her service" (Secret), and secures to her for ever a place of honour in His Royal Court (Offertory). Repentance has transformed her love. "Because she had loved much, many sins are forgiven her" (Gospel). Indeed, it was at her Prayer that Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead (Collect).

And when, after The Crucifixion of Jesus, at which she was present in greatest sorrow and weariness, she seeks, like the spouse in the Canticle (Epistle), where they have laid her Divine Lord; Christ calls her by name and commands her to announce His Resurrection to The Disciples. Wherefore, The Creed is recited on this day as in The Masses of The Apostles.

Following the example of Magdalen, which, according to The Fathers, represents the service of The Church towards Jesus, let us, in a spirit of love and repentance, pour out the treasure of our praises to Jesus, present in The Holy Eucharist (Secret); let us surround Him on the Altar, in a spirit of Faith which does not fear the Pharisaic scandal, with all the splendour which becomes The House of God.

"Oh, Hello, Sir. Urrmmnn, Err, Err . . ."

YOU tell him you don't fancy

going on Church Parade !!!

Illustration: DEFENCE IN THE MEDIA

Saint Praxedes. Virgin. Feast Day 21 July.

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

Saint Praxedes.
Virgin.
Feast Day 21 July.

Simple.

White Vestments.

.

The Basilica of Santa Prassede

(Saint Praxedes), 

Rome, Italy.

Photo: 18 April 2015.

Source: Own work.

Author: Livioandronico2013.

(Wikimedia Comnmons)

The Feast of Saint Pius I, on 11 July, recalled to our mind Saint Pudentiana and her sister, Saint Praxedes, who placed their house at the disposal of this Holy Pontiff. Saint Pudentiana's Feast Day appears in the Cycle on 19 May, under the Reign of The Risen Lord, and Saint Praxedes's Feast Day is today, under the Reign of The Holy Ghost.

On the Tuesday of The Third Week in Lent, The Station is held at Rome in the Titular Church of Saint Pudentiana and on the Monday in Holy Week at the Titular Church of Saint Praxedes.

Pope Paschal I depicted in a mosaic in the Basilica of Santa Prassede, Rome, Italy.

He is presenting a model of the Basilica to Christ, and wears a square Halo,

which means he was alive at the time of the mosaic.

This File: 16 August 2005.

User: Marcus Cyron.

(Wikimedia Commons)

Saint Praxedes, a daughter of the Roman Senator, Pudens, Consecrated her Virginity to God (Epistle), and renounced her great wealth in favour of the Poor and of The Church. She thereby acquired the Treasure and precious Pearl of The Heavenly Kingdom (Gospel, Communion).

The Religious Ceremonies, which took place in her mansion, attracted the attention of the pagans. Many Christians were arrested there and led away to death.

English: The Apse,

Basilica of Santa Prassede, Rome, Italy.

Deutsch: Santa Prassede, Rom; Triumphbogen und Apsis.

Photo: 13 May 2009.

Source: Own work.

Author: Welleschik.

(Wikimedia Commons)

She died under Emperor Antonius in the 2nd-Century A.D., after having besought God to deliver her from the sight of such woeful scenes. Her body was laid by that of her father and sister in the Cemetery of her grand-mother, Priscilla.

Let us Celebrate joyfully The Feast of the blessed Virgin Praxedes, in order to obtain thereby feelings of loving devotion (Collect).

Available (in U.K.) from

CENACLE CATHOLIC BOOKS

Available (in U.S.A.) from

ST. BONAVENTURE PUBLICATIONS

Ave Maria ! The Consecration Of A Parish To The Immaculate Heart Of Mary. Plus, A Quiverful Of Saintly Patrons.

This Article is taken from DEFÉNDE NOS IN PROÉLIO
In addition, there is excellent coverage of
The Day With Mary in Margate at MULIER FORTIS

Ave Maria !

The statue of The Blessed Virgin Mary is Crowned

at the Church of Saint Austin and Saint Gregory, Margate, Kent.

All Illustrations, unless otherwise stated: DEFÉNDE NOS IN PROÉLIO

" What else can I tell you ? You should come and experience it for yourself: Words can't begin to describe the Graces that flow from a day like this. For me, the high point was The Consecration of our Parish to The Immaculate Heart of Mary. 

We are so Blessed at St Austin & St Gregory: Not only do we have a beautiful Church, a kind and holy Parish Priest, a diverse and welcoming congregation and a quiverful of Saintly Patrons (Gregory the Great, St Augustine, St Anne - Patron of the other Church in our Parish), but now we also enjoy the protection of The Immaculate. 

It feels like having the best ever Spiritual security system installed. Not only was the Parish Consecrated to The Immaculate Heart of Mary, but also every individual and family present Consecrated themselves to her care."

Missa Cantata at the Church of Saint Austin and Saint Gregory,

Margate, Kent, during The Day With Mary.

Illustration: FLICKR MULIER FORTIS

It's a great pleasure to have something unmitigatedly positive to Blog about in a world where negativity and cynicism often seem to have the upper hand. Most readers, I'm sure, will have already enjoyed Mulier Fortis' able description of the wonderful and, as our friend Bruvver Eccles would say, spiritually nourishing Day With Mary at the Church of St Austin and St Gregory in Margate. I'm not even going to try to top my dear friend, the Mantilla'd Cat Lady's description (go and read it if you haven't already!) but simply share a few thoughts of my own.

I love A Day With Mary (ADWM) - it's something that our family has looked forward to each year since we first encountered this wonderful apostolate in 2011. It's a day jam-packed with Prayer and Devotion but even so, somehow the whole ends up being much greater than the parts.

My children are particularly enthusiastic — they love the Processions and the singing, as well as the beautiful medals and devotional items on which they can spend their pocket money. This year's haul included a lovely silver Miraculous Medal to (finally) replace the one my eldest daughter lost when we were burgled a couple of year ago (it's the first time she's found one that she liked enough), picture medals of Blessed Francisco & Jacinta for my younger daughter, who has a special devotion to the little Seers at Fatima, some large medals and a Crucifix for my eldest son and a glow-in-the-dark standing Crucifix for the youngest (6), who said "now I can see Jesus on The Cross when I wake up at night."

I love the bookstall — I always come away from ADWM with a decent reading list for the next couple of months.

The weather was appropriately glorious for Margate's first-ever Day With Mary and the Town made a picturesque backdrop for the Devotional Procession, while the very bricks echoed back the strains of "Ave Maria", after each decade of The Joyful Mysteries.

One of the many lovely things about ADWM is the variety of people that you meet and the way that Parishioners and Pilgrims blend together and make friends. There is something wonderfully unifying about a Church packed to the rafters with smiling, Praying, people singing their hearts out to Our Blessed Lord and His Mother. There is something joyfully transcendent about such an experience: I think that it might be a tiny flicker, through a glass darkly, of what Heaven might feel like.

Another great pleasure of the day was seeing the wonderful Franciscan Sisters of The Immaculate, whom we have been privileged to get to know over the past few years — and even go camping with at Walsingham ! (OK, they were sensible enough to stay in the Pilgrim bureau, while we roughed it in a muddy field . . . but they did manage to survive the journey home in our van and Prayed their Office with us before letting the girls visit their Convent). We're very fond of them and it was a delight to be treated to their wonderfully pure voices singing The Propers to The Solemn Mass and other devotional music throughout the day.

What else can I tell you ? You should come and experience it for yourself: words can't begin to describe the Graces that flow from a day like this. For me, the high point was The Consecration of our Parish to The Immaculate Heart of Mary. We are so Blessed at St Austin & St Gregory: not only do we have a beautiful Church, a kind and holy Parish Priest, a diverse and welcoming congregation and a quiverful of Saintly Patrons (Gregory the Great, St Augustine, St Anne - Patron of the other Church in our Parish) but now we also enjoy the protection of The Immaculate. It feels like having the best ever Spiritual security system installed. Not only was the Parish Consecrated to The Immaculate Heart of Mary, but also every individual and family present Consecrated themselves to her care.

After the stirring and thought-provoking Sermons, the hours of Prayer, Reflection and Adoration of The Blessed Sacrament, the joyful singing, Processions, Confessions, and outpouring of Caritas, I think that a Spiritual Geiger-Counter would have measured the Parish of St Austin and St Gregory glowing for miles around with the positive outpouring of Prayer.

The demons must have fled in terror.

Ave Maria !

The Day With Mary Web-Site is at A DAY WITH MARY