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On the Ecclesial Nature of Liturgical Prayer The Liturgy is the Act Whereby We Enter Into Contact with God VATICAN, OCTOBER 3, 2012 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI gave today in St. Peter’s Square. The Holy Father continued his new series of catecheses on prayer in the Sacred Liturgy by reflecting upon the ecclesial nature of liturgical prayer. * * * Dear brothers and sisters, In the last catechesis I began to speak about one of the privileged sources of Christian prayer: the sacred liturgy, which – as the Catechism of the Catholic Church states...

The Pope’s ambition, a powerful blend of the Novus Ordo and the Old Rite, could sweep the Church There are too many difficulties attending both the Novus Ordo and the Old Rite By William Oddie on Friday, 20 May 2011 Cardinal Walter Brandmüller celebrated the Extraordinary Form Mass at St Peter's Basilica on Sunday (CNS photo) An extremely interesting story by John Thavis – which appears currently on the Herald’s homepage under the headline “Pope’s ‘reform of the reform’ in liturgy to continue” – reports what seems to me a potentially wondrous proposed advance. But will it happen? There is...

On the Sacred Liturgy as a School of Prayer "Lord, teach us to pray" VATICAN CITY, SEPT. 26, 2012 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the address Benedict XVI gave today at the general audience in St. Peter's Square. The Holy Father began a new series of catecheses on prayer today, moving from prayer in sacred Scripture to prayer in the sacred liturgy. * * * Dear brothers and sisters, In recent months, we have made a journey in the light of God’s Word in order to learn to pray more authentically, by looking at several great figures of the...

Featured Term (selected at random):ACTS OF THE MARTYRS Actual accounts of early Christian martyrdoms. The most reliable are those that follow the official shorthand reports of the trials and executions. Among the best known are the Acts of St. Ignatius, St. Polycarp, the Martyrs of Lyons, and the Passions of Sts. Perpetua and Felicitas, and St. Irenaeus. In the Western Church the Acts of the Martyrs were carefully collected and used in the liturgy from the earliest times, as witnessed by St. Augustine. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used...

Lately, the music director at our church has been “tickling the ivories” during the Consecration. While at the piano, in the front of church (naturally), he has been playing tunes, based on hymms for sure, on the piano during the entire Consecration (with a well timed pause during the elevation). It’s not irreverent, but it does sound like “lounge music“. [As the non-liturgical instrument, the piano, nearly always does.] I find it annoying, and keep wondering when Tony Bennett comes on stage (I’m kidding, of course). [Put a brandy snifter with a dollar bill on the piano next time...

Divine Mercy Sunday Faith April 13th, 2012 Gayle Somers Gospel (Read Jn 20:19-31)The celebration of our Lord’s Resurrection on Easter Sunday usually focuses on the sheer ecstasy of His victory over death.  All during Holy Week, we are absorbed with the details of His horrific Passion.  When we reach Easter, our hearts nearly burst with joy that Jesus is alive and vindicated as God’s Son.  In other words, it’s easy to dwell on the fact of the Resurrection and be so dazzled by it that we do not think much beyond that.  The mercy of Divine Mercy Sunday (yes, intended pun)...

Featured Term (selected at random):MALABAR RITES The customs and practices of the natives of South India, which the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth century permitted their converts but which the Holy See afterward prohibited. Robert de Nobili (1577-1656) initiated these rites in order to pave the way for the hoped-for conversion of the Brahmins. Among those who observed the Malabar Rites was St. John de Britto (1647-93). All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

Are You Ready for Palm Sunday? Faith March 28th, 2012 Gayle Somers In our Lenten journey, have we discovered that we are studies in contrasts?  Did we begin with great aspirations and are now feeling more than ever our fickleness?  If so, we are truly ready for Palm Sunday.Gospel (Read Mark 14:1-15:47)Today, in the universal Catholic Church, we rise during Mass to hear a full reading of the Passion of Christ.  What is our disposition today, having spent nearly 40 days praying, fasting, and doing acts of generosity?  Most of us start Lent with some sense of seriousness about...

 The Eucharistby Sebastian R. FamaThe Church has always taught that the Eucharist is the actual body and blood of Jesus Christ. This is difficult for some to accept. However, belief in the Real Presence rests upon the words of Christ Himself. In John 6:48-57 we read: I am the the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread, will live forever, and...

 The Massby Sebastian R. FamaThe Sacrifice of the Mass is not a re-sacrificing of Jesus as some allege. It is the "once for all" sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. There are two parts to a sacrifice: the death of the victim, and the offering up of the fruits by the High Priest. Jesus' death took place once and is in the past. Yet, the fruits of His sacrifice must be applied to every believer past, present and future. In the book of Revelation, Jesus, who is in heaven, is referred to 29 times as the "Lamb." The Word of...

Featured Term (selected at random):SEQUENCE A hymn of joy in varying meter sung or recited before the Gospel at Mass on certain feast days. Thos that have survived are the Easter Victimae Paschali, the Veni Sancte Spiritus at Pentecost, and the Lauda Sion for Corpus Christi. The Dies Irae at some Masses for the Dead is not, strictly speaking, a liturgical sequence. (Etym. Latin sequentia, a following, sequence.) All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

The information in this section comes largely from The Urban Character of Christian Worship, by Rev. John Baldovin, S.J. Footnotes refer to the pages in his text where further information can be found.Station Churches 2012 Each year, the North American College follows the ancient tradition of the Roman stational liturgy. All are invited to join us for the celebration of Mass each day. Using the side bar on the left, you will find the schedule and listing of the churches. Each page contains a short description and history of each church. At the bottom of each page, you will find...

Q: My parish has a beautiful crucifix mounted on the wall behind the altar that has been a great aid in my prayer life. Unfortunately, I must pray without this aid during the seasons of Christmas and of Easter, as during these seasons the crucifix is completely covered. During Christmas, a star is placed above the crucifix with a tail that hangs down to completely cover it. Likewise, during Easter, a banner of the Risen Christ is hung over the crucifix so that it is hidden from view. I realize that "a cross, with the figure of Christ crucified upon...

 Revealing overlooked Roman Missal changes The new Roman Missal has dropped three eucharistic prayers and added one. Why? And an introduction By Barry Hudock - OSV Newsweekly, 12/11/2011 W.P. Wittman photo In all the hoopla leading up to the implementation of the new edition of the Roman Missal in the United States, most of the attention has focused on the new principles used to translate its contents from the original Latin to English. Though questions about “dynamic equivalence” or “formal equivalence” are important and interesting, other changes — arguably more important ones — have barely been mentioned. Here’s one: There’s a...

Why do words matter? (Hint: Because we use them in prayer and worship.) An excellent answer to that important question is given by Fr. Douglas Martis and Christopher Carstens in Mystical Body, Mystical Voice: Encountering Christ in the Words of the Mass (published by the Liturgical Institute at the University of Saint Mary of the Lake and Liturgy Training Publications), which is excerpted in the November 2011 edition of Adoremus Bulletin:Words are sacramental, which means they contain and convey the reality they speak. Homo sapiens is a talking animal, communicating with the senses, by word of mouth, pen and...

Featured Term (selected at random):MASS The Sacrifice of the Eucharist as the central act of worship of the Catholic Church. The "Mass" is a late form of missio (sending), from which the faithful are sent to put into practice what they have learned and use the graces they have received in the Eucharistic liturgy. As defined by the Church at the Council of Trent, in the Mass, "The same Christ who offered himself once in a bloody manner on the altar of the cross, is present and offered in an unbloody manner." Consequently, the Mass is a truly propitiatory sacrifice,...

Missing the Missal’s Mass of Potential December 16th, 2011 by Louie VerrecchioAfter years of discussion, preparation and anticipation, the new English translation of the Roman Missal – Third Edition was officially implemented in the United States on November 27. The “reviews” are now starting to show up in newspapers, blogs, and other media. As I read them, it seems as though most of the “people in the pews” are either positive about the new text, or they are at the very least willing to approach the changes as an opportunity for spiritual growth.Some media outlets, however, are doing their level...

ROME, DEC. 13, 2011 (Zenit.org).- Answered by Legionary of Christ Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum university.Q: In the new translation of Mass according to the English-language Roman Missal, I find myself wondering about a certain lack of specificity in the Confiteor. The missal indicates that those reciting the prayer are to strike their breast at the point where they say, "through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault." I am old enough to remember the threefold striking of the breast in pre-Conciliar days, but wonder if this practice has been maintained elsewhere in the...

Fr. Raymond J. de Souza on the "real hero" behind the new missal translation Fr. Raymond J. de Souza writes in the Catholic Register (Canada) of how the new missal translation is a sign of hope for and confidence in the future:A Polish (John Paul II) and German (Benedict XVI) Pope, working together in Italian, were instrumental in bringing together the beauty that is seen in the new Roman Missal — though the true hero was Chilean Cardinal Jorge Medina Estevez, according to Fr. de Souza. CNS photo/Eliseo Fernandez, Reuters If you were to follow the secular press and, to...

Surpassing All Expectations . . . The New Missal Translation Is A Spectacular Success By JEFFREY TUCKERAs much time as I had spent reading the new translation of the missal, looking over the differences with the old translation, even saying the new prayers aloud and writing extensively about them, nothing could have prepared me for what I experienced on the First Sunday of Advent.The experience was beyond anything I believed would come in my lifetime. I found myself nearly overcome with a kind of controlled glee from the beginning of the Mass until the end.The changes are few compared with...