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San Salvador de Valdediós, Villaviciosa, Asturias, Spain


Solemn Pontifical Mass in Trenton, New Jersey

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We recently made note of a Solemn Pontifical Mass that was being broadcast on EWTN. The Mass was from Trenton, New Jersey, celebrated by Bishop David O'Connell.

The Trenton diocesan newspaper recently ran an article on this:

Bishop O'Connell celebrates historical Solemn Pontifical Mass

Mary Stadnyk, News Editor

The beauty, reverence, splendor and awe of a traditional Latin Mass was reflected in its highest form in the Diocese of Trenton Nov. 27 as Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., celebrated a Solemn Pontifical High Mass in St. Hedwig Church, Trenton.

The Mass, which was celebrated on the feast of the Miraculous Medal and drew some 800 people from throughout the diocese and beyond, was part of the diocese’s observance of the Year of Faith. Father Brian Woodrow, diocesan liaison to the Extraordinary Form in the Roman Rite, noted that the Mass also marked two historical moments in the life of the Church of Trenton -- it had been more than a half a century, since the implementation of the Second Vatican Council, that that the Pontifical Solemn High Mass in the extraordinary form had been celebrated in the diocese. It also marked the first anniversary of the celebration of the Traditional Mass in the diocese.

One year ago, Bishop O’Connell responded to Pope Benedict XVI’s 2007 call to make the extraordinary form of the Mass more available to the faithful. The bishop appointed Father Woodrow as the diocesan liaison to the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, and it has been Father Woodrow’s responsibility to introduce that form of the Mass to parts of the diocese that do not already have it available. Masses in the extraordinary form in the diocese have been celebrated in St. Anthony Church (of Our Lady of Sorrows-St. Anthony Parish, Hamilton) since Nov. 27, 2011, which was the first Sunday of Advent last year.

Meaning and details of the Mass

Explaining a Solemn Pontifical High Mass, Father Woodrow said that it is celebrated by a bishop or the pope and that it is the model and highest form of the Mass that can be celebrated.

The Solemn Pontifical Mass “is the Mass in its most complete, majestic and ritualistic form,” said Father Woodrow. “It is Christ’s beautiful bride, the Church, offering her historic and timeless devotion to our Lord and Savior with our shepherd at the helm.”

Amidst the grand setting of St. Hedwig Church with its high altar, the majestic sounds of the invited choral groups, including the Mass for Four Voices (William Byrd), the Westminster Kantorei, under the direction of Amanda Quist, and the Mater Ecclesiae Schola Cantorum from Mater Ecclesiae Parish, Berlin, resonated as they provided the sacred music for the Mass.

About 20 minutes prior to the start of the Mass, Bishop O’Connell, for the first time, entered the church wearing the “cappa magna,” which is a 35-foot long cape that represents the earthly glory that he has as a ruler in the Church. The bishop, who is accompanied by a server, spent several minutes in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament before proceeding back into the sacristy to vest for Mass. His vestments included the amice, alb, cincture, stole, maniple and chasuble. The red zucchetto (skull cap), pectoral cross and the miter represent his authority as the bishop, and the ring symbolizes that he is wedded to the diocese. Underneath his chasuble, the bishop also has on the vestments of the subdeacon (the tunicle) and deacon (dalmatic) to show that he has the full authority of Holy Orders. He also wears liturgical gloves that show his purity from sin and the performance of good works.

Once vested for the Mass, the bishop entered the church again where he joined in the grand procession and began the celebration of Mass. Assisting Bishop O’Connell in the sanctuary were priests from the Diocese of Trenton, as well as visiting priests from other New Jersey dioceses. The priests served in various liturgical roles such as deacon, subdeacon, assistant deacon of the throne , assistant priest, master of ceremonies of the throne, master of ceremonies of the altar, subdeacon of the cross and sacristans.

The many altar boys present hailed predominantly from parishes throughout Mercer County, while the girls who participated in the entrance procession were members of the Maidens of the Miraculous Medal.

The Traditional Latin Mass is celebrated in Latin with the priest facing toward “liturgical east.” This is typically where the high altar, tabernacle and crucifix are situated. Being that it’s a solemn, serious and reverent service, the Traditional Latin Mass is punctuated by moments of silence in which the congregation quietly follows along in private prayer. Sometimes the celebrant at the altar doesn’t address the assembly, but whispers prayers, inaudible to the people in the pews, to add to the sense of reverence.

You can read the rest of the article over there. Here, as well, is a photo gallery from the Mass.

Floor Tiles from Cleve Abbey in Somerset, England

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Here are some pictures of 13th century tiles from Cleeve Abbey in England. They are a combination of geometric and pictorial designs. The latter employing heraldic and literary themes rather than scriptural. The form will be familiar to some through the Victorian neo-gothic tiles that are more common today, and which were based on designs from this period. I am admirer of the later forms as well, incidentally. I view them as an authentic re-establishment of a past tradition and worth looking at not only for the architecture and tiles of the period, but also as case study on how to look to the past in a constructive way.

Thanks to Deacon Iacono of the Fra Angelico Institute of Sacred Art who brought them to my attention by referring me to an historical account given in the L'Historien Errant blog.



Above: the abbey church floor; and below: the refectory floor. The others are details of the refectory.












English Propers, First Sunday of Advent

Advent Customs - It's Not Too Late to Start

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Advent began this past weekend and is arguably one of those times when it is easiest for families to draw the liturgical year into their domestic life since there are so many popular customs associated with this time of the liturgical year.

While we are now already into the season (though just), for those of you who haven't already considered adopting some sort of Advent custom or practice, it is never too late to start. Here are some considerations.

I. Advent Wreath

One of the most widely adopted and loved customs of Advent is surely the Advent wreath. While not strictly Catholic in its origins, it nonetheless is easily adapted to Catholic purposes and is a beautiful way to mark the progression of Advent to the Nativity.


Fr. Francis X. Weiser, SJ, in his work, The Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs, comments that "in the sixteenth century the custom started of using such lights as a religious symbol of Advent in the houses of the faithful. This practice quickly spread among the Protestants of eastern Germany and was soon accepted by Protestants and Catholics in other parts of the country. Recently it has not only found its way to America, but has been spreading so rapidly that it is already a cherished custom in many homes." He continues: "The traditional symbolism of the Advent wreath reminds the faithful of the Old Testament, when humanity was "sitting in the darkness and in the shadow of death" (Luke 2:79); when the prophets, illumined by God, announced the Redeemer; and when the hearts of men glowed with the desire for the Messiah. The wreath -- an ancient symbol of victory and glory -- symbolizes the "fulfillment of time" in the coming of Christ and the glory of His birth."

There are various variations on the Advent wreath. In North America it is popular to use three violet and one rose candle, symbolizing the respective liturgical colours of the four Sundays of Advent. In Germany, red candles are used. Others might choose to use natural beeswax and mark colours in other ways -- such as ribbons or what not.

As an aside, we talk about the importance, within our churches and liturgies, of using items of beauty and quality. These things not only inspire us and uplift us, they also speak to us of the dignity and value of the sacred mysteries; they speak to the value of what lay underneath. My own recommendation then is that, wherever possible and practical, this should likewise be brought over into the our "domestic churches" as well. Whatever you use, try to use items of beauty and quality. Children (let alone adults) notice these things and it will teach them something about the importance that we attribute to our Faith. This will almost certainly be a memory they take with them into their adulthood -- and it may well serve them in darker times so to speak. In the case of an Advent wreath, I'd recommend the use of real (rather than fake) greenery for your wreathes. And if at all possible, beeswax candles would also be a plus.


II. The Jesse Tree

Another domestic Advent custom is that of the "Jesse Tree."

From Catholic Culture:
Jesse was the father of the great King David of the Old Testament. He is often looked upon as the first person in the genealogy of Jesus.

In Church art a design developed showing the relationship of Jesus with Jesse and other biblical personages. This design showed a branched tree growing from a reclining figure of Jesse. The various branches had pictures of other Old and New Testament figures who were ancestors of Jesus. At the top of the tree were figures of Mary and Jesus. This design was used mostly in stained glass windows in some of the great medieval cathedrals of Europe. The Cathedral of Chartres (which was dedicated in 1260) has a particularly beautiful Jesse Tree window.

Another development in religious art during the Middle Ages was that of Mystery Plays--drama that depicted various Bible stories or lives of Saints and Martyrs. These plays were performed in churches as part of the liturgical celebrations. One such play was based on the Bible account of the fall of Adam and Eve. The "Tree of Life" used during the play was decorated with apples. (Quite possibly this is also the forerunner of our own Christmas tree.)

Combining the two ideas of the stained glass Jesse Tree window and the Tree of Life from the Mystery Play we come up with our Jesse Tree Advent project. This custom has been used for years to help Christians to prepare for Christmas.

What I particularly like about the Jesse Tree, at least as it is proposed by Catholic Culture, is how it incorporates into each day a reading from Sacred Scripture, inclusive of which are many from the Old Testament. We have noted many times here on NLM the typological and mystagogical importance of familiarity with the Old Testament, and this is a great way to familiarize yourself and your family with these. (And needless to say, putting the other aspects aside which are more oriented toward children, even those without children could profit from simply using these readings during Advent, particularly with lectio divina in mind.)

Here are the readings noted by Catholic Culture along with some suggested symbols for a Jesse Tree project (and do note how the "O" Antiphons of Advent are tied into):

December 1 Creation: Gen. 1:1-31; 2:1-4 Symbols: sun, moon, stars, animals, earth
December 2 Adam and Eve: Gen. 2:7-9, 18-24 Symbols: tree, man, woman
December 3 Fall of Man: Gen. 3:1-7 and 23-24 Symbols: tree, serpent, apple with bite
December 4 Noah: Gen. 6:5-8, 13-22; 7:17, 23, 24; 8:1, 6-22 Symbols: ark, animals, dove, rainbow
December 5 Abraham: Gen. 12:1-3 Symbols: torch, sword, mountain
December 6 Isaac: Gen. 22:1-14 Symbols: bundle of wood, altar, ram in bush
December 7 Jacob: Gen. 25:1-34; 28:10-15 Symbols: kettle, ladder
December 8 Joseph: Gen. 37:23-28; 45:3-15 Symbols: bucket, well, silver coins, tunic
December 9 Moses: Ex. 2:1-10 Symbols: baby in basket, river and rushes
December 10 Samuel: 1 Sam. 3:1-18 Symbols: lamp, temple
December 11 Jesse: 1 Sam. 16:1-13 Symbols: crimson robe, shepherd's staff
December 12 David: 1 Sam. 17:12-51 Symbols: slingshot, 6-pointed star
December 13 Solomon: 1 Kings 3:5-14, 16-28 Symbols: scales of justice, temple, two babies and sword
December 14 Joseph: Matt. 1:18-25 Symbols: hammer, saw, chisel, angle
December 15 Mary: Matt. 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38 Symbols: lily, crown of stars, pierced heart
December 16 John the Baptist: Mark 1:1-8 Symbols: shell with water, river

On December 17, the Church begins to intensify the preparation for Christmas with the use of the "O" Antiphons during the Liturgy of the Hours. The symbols for the Jesse Tree from December 17 to 23 are based on the "O" Antiphons.

December 17 Jesus is Wisdom: Sirach (or Ecclesiasticus in old Bibles) 24:2; Wisdom 8:1 Symbols: oil lamp, open book
December 18 Jesus is Lord: Ex. 3:2; 20:1 Symbols: burning bush, stone tablets
December 19 Jesus is Flower of Jesse: Isaiah 11:1-3 Symbols: flower, plant with flower
December 20 Jesus is Key of David: Isaiah 22:22 Symbols: key, broken chains
December 21 Jesus is the Radiant Dawn: Psalm 19:6-7 (in older Bibles this will be Psalm 18) Symbols: sun rising or high in sky
December 22 Jesus is King of the Gentiles: Psalm 2:7-8; Ephesians 2:14-20 Symbols: crown, scepter
December 23 Jesus is Emmanuel: Isaiah 7:14; 33:22 Symbols: tablets of stone, chalice and host
December 24 Jesus is Light of the World: John 1:1-14 Symbols: candle, flame, sun

Read more about it on Catholic Culture.


III. Divine Office

In the past year or two, the Pope has made a call that all of the faithful should become familiarized with the Divine Office, Advent may be the perfect opportunity for you to begin reciting the Office -- perhaps Vespers would be a good start. Or for those who are not beginners, but have simply fallen out of the habit of praying the Divine Office, might I encourage you to use Advent as an opportunity to rekindle that habit.

Advent Customs: St. Barbara's Branches (Barbarazweige), December 4th

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Continuing with our consideration of some Advent customs, we now turn to one which is particularly rooted within the German speaking countries of Europe -- from whence so many of Advent and Christmas traditions seem to come -- that of Barbarazweige or St. Barbara's branches.

The feast of St. Barbara is traditionally celebrated on December 4th and still is universally within the calendar of the usus antiquior; it is also still kept on this day within the modern liturgical calendar of the German speaking countries of Europe, where there is yet a great devotion to her.

Various legends surrounding St. Barbara were attached to flowering branches. One is that flowers blossomed upon her grave on Christmas day; another that, imprisoned in a tower awaiting martyrdom, St. Barbara found a dried up cherry tree branch which she watered and which bloomed, thus bringing her consolation before her martyrdom.

The custom thereby arose that, each year on her feast, people would go out and cut some branches from some flowering wood such as a cherry, hazel, forthysia or apple, prepare them, place them in a vase indoors, watering them. This done, people would wait in expectation for them to blossom on or around Christmas Day -- which accordingly ties in very nicely to Advent and the expectation of the birth of Christ.


Barbara's Branches

Catholics Overwhelmingly Approve the New Missal

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Take a look at this CARA survey posted here. It is beyond dispute: the new Missal is a smash hit. The controversy and the appearance of widespread opposition seems to have been either mythical or at least misplaced.


[The 2012 survey was completed by 1,047 self-identified Catholics who were 18 years of
age or older resulting in a sampling margin of error of ±3.0 percentage points. Sixty-seven percent of the GfK Custom Research (formerly Knowledge Networks) panel members invited to take the survey completed it. The survey was in the field from September 10 to September 18, 2012. The 2011 survey included 1,239 self-identified Catholics who were 18 years of age or older resulting in a sampling margin of error of ±2.8 percentage points. Fifty-seven percent of the Knowledge Networks panel members invited to take the survey completed it.]

And please take the Tablet's survey right here. It only takes a few minutes.


An Antique Black Chasuble

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It has been awhile since we've looked at any antique vestments but, fortunately, one of our readers recently sent in some interesting images of a black chasuble which caught my attention, having some interesting symbols and designs incorporated into it.

(They are also inquiring into the possible provenance of the vestment, so if anyone would like to proffer their own particular theories, by all means do so. I would suggest that the stole shown here is not the original, being of a more modern vintage -- probably 20th century.)


Here are a few details:



A butterfly emerging from a chrysalis; a symbol of the resurrection.


"Sing We Noël!" by Christopher Blum

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Dr. Christopher Blum of Thomas More College of the Liberal Arts in New Hampshire recently published the following article in Crisis Magazine.

December 3, 2012

Sing we Noël!


by Christopher O. Blum

Speaking of his medieval ancestors and ours, d’Alembert once said that “Poetry for them was reduced to a puerile mechanism.” James Madison, echoing him, judged the result of fifteen centuries of Christian civilization to be little more than “pride and indolence in the Clergy, ignorance and servility in the laity, in both, superstition, bigotry and persecution.” But while luminaries such as these and their latter-day followers find the singing of noëls and Christmas carols to be a mark of childlike sensibility and credulity, men and women and children of stout hearts and true faith take particular glee in the annual return of the chance to raise their voices in praise of the newborn King.

It is from the medieval Church and from her very life, the liturgy, that the custom of singing songs to the Christ child descends. The earliest noëls sprang directly from such chants as the Carolingian anthem Puer natus est and the O antiphons sung before the Magnificat at vespers during the octave leading up to Christmas. The word noël itself derives from the Latin natalis and appears in the form of the salute Noé! in Christmas Masses in the 12th century, meaning approximately “Hail, newborn one.” In the 13th century, the O antiphons emerged from the monastic choirs and took to the streets in the form we still know and love as Veni, veni Emmanuel. Many of the earliest Christmas songs that survive today are similarly bound to the liturgy and its language, often taking the form of what is called macaronic verse, in which Latin lines alternate with vernacular, with Bl. Heinrich Suso’s In Dulci Jubilo and the anonymous Célébrons la Naissance Nostri Salvatoris being particularly fine examples of the type.

[...]

Towards the end of the medieval period, the invention of the printing press led to the preservation of many early carols and noëls. Back when England was still Merry, the publisher Winken de Woorde produced an edition of English carols (1520), and French, Spanish, and German publishers were not slow to follow suit. Thanks to Martin Luther’s own love of singing, the custom of celebrating Christmas with song survived in Lutheran Germany and Scandinavia, and even enjoyed a new flourishing with such hymns as Es ist ein Ros’ entsprungen by Michael Praetorius (flourished ca. 1600) and the immortal Cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach.

Calvinist Europe and North America were not so fortunate. Calvin himself insisted that his followers’ singing be closely tied to the Psalms and, what is more, that it be plain. What resulted were tunes like the Old Hundredth, which may now bring some comfort even to Catholics thanks to its familiarity, but can hardly be accused of being spirited, light-hearted, or festive. In England, the Roundhead dictator Cromwell even tried to abolish the outward celebration of Christmas. Some have seen in The Twelve Days of Christmas a covert Catholic or even Jacobite attempt to keep Christ in the holiday. Be that as it may, there is a wondrous contrast to be contemplated between whatever muted remembrance of Christ’s birth was able to be summoned up by the staid and stolid Pilgrims in Boston, and, hundreds of miles to the west, St. Jean de Brébeuf’s candlelit Mass with the native children of Ontario singing their Huron Carol, a French tune with Indian words of praise to Jesous Ahontonia.

It was in France that, arguably, the popular custom of singing noël found its artistic culmination in the music of Marc-Antoine Charpentier...

You can read the entire article here.

For your listening pleasure, here is a recording of Charpentier's Messe de Minuit pour Noël.

Ad Orientem in Troy, New York

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From one of our readers:

I just wanted to write in and share my excitement with you about a recent meeting the the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Newman Catholic Fellowship (the Catholic club on campus) had on the Holy Mass. The meeting was based around a simple yet beautiful Novus Ordo offered ad orientem in Latin and English at the side altar of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of a local church in Troy, NY by a newly ordained priest. Please see the attached photo!

Fr. Michael-Marie of Marseille

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This was a rather interesting story that I read on Chiesa yesterday, about a young priest in France.

Fr. Michel-Marie, a Cassock in Deep Marseille

The life, works, and miracles of a priest in a city of France. Who has made the faith blossom again where it had withered

by Sandro Magister


ROME, December 4, 2012 – The title of this article is the same one that "Avvenire” gave to a feature report from Marseille by its correspondent Marina Corradi, in the footsteps of the pastor of a quarter behind the old port.

A pastor whose Masses are crowded with people. Who hears confessions every evening until late at night. Who has baptized many converts. Who always wears the cassock so that everyone may recognize him as a priest even from far away.

Michel-Marie Zanotti-Sorkine was born in 1959 in Nice, to a family a bit Russian and a bit Corsican. As a young man he sang in the nightclubs in Paris, but then over the years there emerged the vocation to the priesthood he had had since his childhood. His guides were Fr. Joseph-Marie Perrin, who was Simone Weil's spiritual director, and Fr. Marie-Dominique Philippe, founder of the congregation of Saint John. He studied in Rome at the Angelicum, the theological faculty of the Dominicans. He was ordained a priest in 2004 by Cardinal Bernard Panafieu, the archbishop of Marseille at the time. He writes books, the latest of which is entitled "Au diable la tiédeur," to the devil with lukewarmness, and is dedicated to priests. He is pastor at Saint-Vincent-de-Paul.

And in this parish on Rue Canabière, which leads from the old port through ramshackle houses and shops, with many homeless, immigrants, Rom, where tourists do not venture to go, in a Marseille and in a France where religious practice is almost everywhere at the lowest levels, Fr. Michel-Marie has made the Catholic faith blossom again.

How? Marina Corradi went and saw. And she tells what she found.

The feature was published in "Avvenire,” the newspaper of the Italian episcopal conference, on November 29. It is the first in a series that will present witnesses of the faith, known and less well-known, capable of generating evangelical astonishment in those who meet them.

_________


"THE POPE IS RIGHT: EVERYTHING MUST START AFRESH FROM CHRIST"

by Marina Corradi


That black tunic fluttering along Rue Canabière, among a crowd more Maghrebi than French, makes you turn around. Check it out, a priest, and dressed like once upon a time, on the streets of Marseille. A dark-haired man, smiling, and yet with something reserved and monastic about him. And what a story behind him: he sang in the nightclubs in Paris, was ordained only eight years ago and since then has been pastor here, at Saint-Vincent-de-Paul.

But in reality the story is even more complicated: Michel-Marie Zanotti-Sorkine, 53, is descended from a Russian Jewish grandfather who immigrated into France and had his daughters baptized before the war. One of these daughters, who escaped from the Holocaust, brought into the world Fr. Michel-Marie, who on his father's side is half Corsican and half Italian. (What a bizarre mix, you think: and you look with amazement at his face, trying to understand what a man is like who has such a tangle of roots behind him). But if one Sunday you enter his packed church and listen to how he speaks of Christ with simple everyday words, and if you observe the religious slowness of the elevation of the host, in an absolute silence, you ask yourself who this priest is, and what it is in him that draws people, bringing back those who are far away.

You can read the rest on Chiesa.

Duncan Stroik on the Rinascimento Project

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After publishing some information recently on the collaboration which is taking place between Duncan Stroik and Granda Liturgical Arts, the Rinascimento project, Duncan Stroik has also spoken a bit on this initiative himself; specifically, on the tabernacle design that we recently showed to our readers:

Over the years, I have sought to recover the idea of the tabernacle as the ark of the new covenant and relearn the rich tradition of its design. What is a worthy temple for the God who offers Himself for our salvation? When the Body of Christ is reserved within it, the tabernacle becomes the dwelling place of the Creator of the Universe. Even though the tabernacle is the smallest element inside a church, it holds the full grandeur of God.

The Rinascimento tabernacle is in the form of a tempietto, or little temple, with a dome, composite columns, constructed out of the finest marbles and metals. It is intended as the focal point of a church, whether new or existing, and its classic style can fit into both traditional and modernist churches. In order to make clear its connection with the altar of sacrifice it is constructed in marble. White marble symbolizes purity, and allows the tabernacle to appear as a jewel in the sanctuary.

The Rinascimento tabernacle draws upon the classic design of the centralized church, first seen in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and revived many times thereafter most importantly during the Italian Renaissance. Like the great centralized churches, the tabernacle is covered by a dome, and is seen as the house of God. The eight-sided shape references the baptistery and the parallels between new birth and Eucharist. The dome shelters the manna from heaven, while the composite columns on each side reinforce the tabernacle’s central importance. As the richest of the classical orders, the composite is associated with resurrection and triumph.

The pediment emphasizes the temple-like qualities of the Rinascimento tabernacle. Medieval and early Renaissance wall-tabernacles inspired the use of the pediment in its framing of the door, which is the threshold to the Holy of Holies. Like the Holy of Holies in the Temple of Jerusalem, the tabernacle can be veiled at the door, offering an additional sense of mystery. Traditionally, the door is the area for iconography, and the image of host and chalice is there to reinforce the centrality of the Eucharist reserved within. This tabernacle is also a type of treasure chamber and brackets below help to make it visible and prominent.


Here, too, are a few further photos of some of the other items which he has designed as part of this collection. (All photos are copyright Duncan Stroik)




Gloria.tv Begins Advent Retreat on the O Antiphons

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For those of you who are interested in further ideas for your Advent preparations, you might be interested to know of the online Advent retreat that is being provided by Gloria.tv, whereby they will be presenting a series of video considerations of the famed O Antiphons.

These began this past Sunday.

Here is the first video.

Sinterklaas: The Feast of St. Nicholas

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It has become something of an annual tradition on NLM to publish a short piece recounting the person of St. Nicholas, whose feast is celebrated today in both the Roman and the Byzantine calendar, as well as to note some of the customs associated with his feast day. I am pleased to do so again this year. Indeed, we have spoken of the importance of custom as a way of manifesting the liturgical seasons and year and somehow marking those surrounding St. Nicholas would certainly be a pertinent way for families to reconnect the ever present and popular figure of Santa Claus with his Christian roots.


An icon corner in a Russian home, showing an icon of St. Nicholas


First, let us briefly recount who St. Nicholas is. The Catholic Encyclopedia notes the following about him:

Bishop of Myra in Lycia; died 6 December, 345 or 352. Though he is one of the most popular saints in the Greek as well as the Latin Church, there is scarcely anything historically certain about him except that he was Bishop of Myra in the fourth century.

Some of the main points in his legend are as follows: He was born at Parara, a city of Lycia in Asia Minor; in his youth he made a pilgrimage to Egypt and Palestine; shortly after his return he became Bishop of Myra; cast into prison during the persecution of Diocletian, he was released after the accession of Constantine...


Iconographic Fresco of St. Nicholas


The relics of St. Nicholas are now kept in Bari, Italy at Basilica San Nicola.


The Altar and Ciborium of the Basilica San Nicola, Bari, Italy


As for customs, within Central and Northern Europe, particularly Holland where today is known as "Sinterklaas" (i.e. St. Nicholas), this feast is marked by various customs both on the eve of St. Nicholas' feast day and also the day itself. To this day, the figure of "Sinterklaas" in many of those countries is still vested as a bishop:



Fr. Francis X. Weiser in the Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs details a bit of the tradition surrounding Sinterklaas in that part of the world:

In many parts of Europe children still receive his "visit" on the eve of his feast. Impersonated by a man wearing a long white beard, dressed in the vestments of a bishop, with mitre and crozier, he appears in the homes as a heavenly messenger. Coming at the start of Advent, he admonishes the children to prepare their hearts for a blessed and holy Christmas. He examines them on their prayers. After exhorting them to be good, he distributes fruit and candy and departs with a kindly farewell... (p. 340)

St Nicholas - Russian Statuette

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For the feast of St Nicholas, here is an unusual representation of the saint. It comes from the Museum of Russian Icons in Clinton, Massachusetts. It is not generally part of the iconographic tradition to have sculpture, although relief carving is common. I am told that statues are not banned in Eastern churches, but it is not part of the tradition. This makes sense to me. The iconographic tradition seeks to portray man partaking of the divine nature in union with God. In accordance with this, icon painters seek to destroy the illusion of depth in icons to represent the heavenly realm which is outside time and space. Sculpture by its nature is three-dimensional so would undermine this convention. Relief carving, is common, however, this is really creating a two-dimensional image in shadow rather than creating three dimensional images; and so is consistent with the iconographic prototype.

At the Museum of Russian Icons they have a large collection of Russian St Nicholas statuettes. I am always intrigued by these. They are not fully three-dimensional, but neither are they as flat as a relief carving. They remind me of early gothic sculpture in their degree of three dimensionality and because they are polychrome.  I have explanation as to why these statues were made. Or why it only seems to be in connection with certain saints. St Nicholas is one and at the museum they have a lot of similar statues of another Saint Nil, but only these two.



Land Donated to U.S. Ordinariate to Build First Chancery

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The Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter has been given land in Houston, Texas, on which to build its first chancery, or headquarters, Msgr. Jeffrey N. Steenson, the Ordinary, announced today.

During a Mass at Our Lady of Walsingham, the principal church of the Ordinariate, he said, "Today, I want to acknowledge with deepest gratitude a very generous gift from an anonymous donor to Our Lady of Walsingham and the Ordinariate: the gift of five acres. ... This will be the future home of the chancery of the Ordinariate as well as serve future expansion needs of this wonderful, growing parish. It is an incredible blessing, and I know you all will want to say with me: To God be the glory."

The property, purchased by donors for $5 million, is located on Westview Drive, immediately behind and contiguous with Our Lady of Walsingham, which is at 7809 Shadyvilla Lane, Houston. The parish site also includes a shrine to Our Lady of Walsingham.

Joining parishioners at today's Mass were a number of Anglican priests from throughout the United States and Canada who are applying to become Catholic priests for the Ordinariate. The men were in Houston as part of the Ordinariate's priest formation program.

Planning for the chancery design will begin later this month. Additional donors will be sought for the construction of the building. The Ordinariate currently has a small office at St. Mary's Seminary in Houston, with most of the small staff located in other cities across the United States.

Pope Benedict XVI established the Ordinariate on January 1, 2012 for former Anglican groups and clergy seeking to become Catholic while retaining aspects of their Anglican heritage and liturgy. In one year, the Ordinariate, which is equivalent to a diocese, has grown to include 1,500 people across the United States and Canada, 35 communities and 24 priests. Msgr. Steenson, the Ordinary, is a former Episcopal bishop who became Catholic in 2007 and a Catholic priest in 2009.

Source: http://www.usordinariate.org/ord_news_chancery

A Rorate Mass in Ferrandina, Italy

On the Feast of St. Ambrose of Milan

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Today being the feast of St. Ambrose, that great father of the church in Milan, I thought it might be fitting to briefly quote from the biographical section related to him from Blessed Cardinal Schuster's The Sacramentary -- Schuster being himself a former Cardinal Archbishop of that venerable See and successor of St. Ambrose.

Ambrose Uranius Aurelius was born probably at Treves, of an ancient and illustrious Roman family, which had already given to the Church the martyr St. Soter, and which was to enrich the martyrology with two more names besides that of the holy Doctor of whom we are speaking, those of Satyrus and Marcellina, his own brother and sister. St. Ambrose died at Milan on Easter Eve, April 4, 397. As, however, that day always recurs in Lent, or in Paschal week, when in accordance with the ancient liturgy all feasts in honour of the saints are excluded, his festival is kept today, which is the anniversary of his ordination as bishop.

This substitution dates at Rome from the eleventh century at least, and is founded on the very ancient liturgical custom of solemnly celebrating the natale ordinationis of bishops and priests.
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In addition, it would seem an apt occasion to once again revisit the splendid Basilica Sant'Ambrogio in Milan.


The forecourt and facade of the basilica itself


The altar and ciborium


The ambo


Mosaics of St. Ambrose (centre), Sts. Protasius and Gervasius. These mosaics apparently show the oldest known depiction of St. Ambrose, dating from the 5th century.


A better view of the mosaic of St. Ambrose

Found within the crypt, beneath the high altar, are the relics of St. Ambrose (as well as Sts. Protasius and Gervasius).





Pre-1256 Dominican Rite Missal Manuscript Now Available Online

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Readers might be interested to hear that the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris, France, has recently put up a black and white scan of Paris: Bibliothèque Nationale de France, MS Lat. 8884, which contains portions of a Pre-1256 Dominican Missal. The image to the left is not of the Paris MS, but of a similar Dominican Missal MS in the Dominican monastery of Lausanne.
This Missal predates the reforms by Humbert of Romans that created the standard Dominican Rite in use till the present.

Those interested in the Pre-Humbert Dominican Rite may consult William Bonniwell, History of the Dominican Liturgy (New York: Wagner, 1944), pp. 29ff. This book can be downloaded in PDF format on the left sidebar of Dominican Liturgy.

The Paris MS itself is available for viewing here.

Dominican Requiem Solemn Vestment Set: Blessed Sacrament Priory, Seattle WA

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Blessed Sacrament Priory and Parish, the Western Dominican Province community in Seattle WA has provided with with these images of their newly commissioned vestments for Dominican Rite Solemn High Requiem Mass.

The set includes, along with the usual chasuble, dalmatics (the term tunicle is not used in the Dominican Rite), soles, maniples, bruse, veil, and cope (For the Absolution at the Catafalque), the humeral veil (used during preparation of the chalice) and the mappa (placed over the knees of the priest, deacon, and subdeacon when seated at the sedilla). Here follow images of some of the principal parts of the set.

There is a extensive photo collection of the vestments on Facebook here. On that page be sure also to check out the photo collections below the vestment photos: they include images a several earlier Dominican Solemn Masses at Blessed Sacrament.

The Chasuble
One of the two Dalmatics
The Cope
Detail of the Chasuble
Burse, Veil, Maniple
Here is the Humeral Veil over the subdeacon's Dalmatic on the right,
and the deacon's Dalmatic and Stole on the left
And finally, the Mappa
A nice collection of photos showing the vestments in use at the Solemn High Dominican Requiem for All Souls at Blessed Sacrament this November can be viewed here, courtesy of Pat Bucy.

The priory and parish is to be congratulated on the care that was used in designing these vestments.  It is my understanding that much of the work was done by Fr. Boniface Willard, O.P., who was ordained two years ago.
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