Free Republic

Here are 8 great Christian songs. (The links lead to the corresponding audio via YouTube.) Read "8 Great Christian Songs"

Transfiguration icon by Theophanes the Greek (15th c.). August 6th commemorates Christ’s transfiguration in glory on Mount Tabor. The Transfiguration is one of twelve major feasts on the Eastern Christian liturgical calendar. A major feast is the equivalent of a solemnity on the Roman calendar. A glimpse of this feast through the hymns and traditions of the East gives a fresh perspective on God’s plan of salvation for us. “My favorite part of this feast is singing the troparion,” says Robin Roxas of Morning Star Family Farm in Hartland, Wisconsin. Robin and his family of ten traveled an hour from...

(Rome) The unrest has not remained hidden among Traditional Catholics from the Vatican, that has developed from the treatment of the Traditional Order of the Franciscans of the Immaculate. The need to intervene and reassure. However, the justification offered here is hard to believe. . The exemplary Franciscans of the Immaculata, which was canonically erected in 1990, will, by a decree dated the 11th of July be placed under provisional administration by the Congregation of Religious. It was also arranged that all the priests, would celebrate the liturgy according to the New Rite. It is a serious attack against the...

We tend to think of the papacy of Benedict XVI as the papacy that put the Catholic liturgy back together again, turning the “hermeneutic of rupture” into the “hermeneutic of continuity.” Rarely receiving the credit for preparing the way is John Paul II, who labored mightily and brilliantly during his pontificate—in a long and consistent series of liturgical teachings—to restore what had been lost and to prepare for a brilliant future. The July 5 announcement by Pope Francis of John Paul II’s pending canonization offers an opportunity for us to recall his extraordinary contribution to the restoration of sacred art,...

The faithful must be taught the true meaning of the sacred liturgy: that it is “an instrument of communion with the Lord, allowing the Lord to take hold of you, and the Lord absorbing you into his divine mission, and making you experience what a great and privileged moment of communion this is.”These are the words of Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, archbishop of Colombo, in an exclusive interview with ZENIT on the sidelines of Sacra Liturgia 2013, a major international conference in Rome this week. The cardinal, who was previously Secretary at the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of...

In the first decree of a liturgical nature of this pontificate, Pope Francis has decided that name of St. Joseph should be added to the Eucharistic Prayers II, II and IV, as they appear in the third typical edition of the Roman Missal, after the name of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Below please find the text of the decree issued Wednesday by the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments: DECREE Exercising his paternal care over Jesus, Saint Joseph of Nazareth, set over the Lord’s family, marvelously fulfilled the office he received by grace. Adhering firmly to the...

Father Jordi Piqué, dean of the Pontifical University of Saint Anselmo's liturgical institute. Rome, Italy, May 20, 2013 / 09:34 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A pontifical university in Rome has launched a master's program in Gregorian chant and the use of the organ at Mass so as to build unity among Catholics world-wide. “The most important thing is that music, when it is truly liturgical, creates community,” Father Jordi Piqué, dean of the Pontifical University of Saint Anselmo's liturgical institute, said May 20. “When one hears a Mass that is sung or the organ interpreting a beautiful melody, it’s never...

One for the Brick by Brick file.I had a note from a friend in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, where the great Bishop Robert Finn presides.At St. Andrew the Apostle on the north side of KC, Fr. Vince Rogers has installed a new brand new Communion rail!My friend wrote: He has installed altar rails in most of not all of the parishes in which he has served over the past 15-20 years.He noted in his homily this morning, “So, why do I do this everywhere I go? It started when I was a seminarian at the NAC. Mother Teresa...

Bogotá, Colombia, May 9, 2013 / 12:00 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A three-year-old Colombian boy has garnered attention across the internet for a video in which he dons priestly garments and “celebrates” Mass, reciting the liturgy from memory. Samuel Jaramillo, who is an orphan, lives with his grandmother and an aunt in the city of Medellin. When family members posted a video of the boy pretending to celebrate Mass on YouTube, it gained rapid popularity, attracting nearly 300,000 views in just over a week. His relatives told reporters that last Christmas, Jaramillo did not ask for toys like most kids...

I generally like one question at a time, but this was so… bizzare that it needs more attention.From a reader: This weekend, Father was having a series of talks during his Masses which spanned about fifteen minutes, and so he was late for one at another Church.The parish sister started the Mass with the full (including greeting) introductory rites and Liturgy of the Word.Father arrived at the offertory and then Mass continued as normal.This is a common, though not weekly, practice. [?!?]1) Is it still Mass?2) Does it satisfy the obligation of the faithful (and myself) to attend Sunday Mass?3) Is...

Vatican may prohibit female alter (sic) service By Michaels, Amanda Published: Tuesday, October 14, 2003Updated: Wednesday, September 12, 2012 11:09   Only nine years after the Vatican gave women permission to serve beside their male counterparts at the altar, a new proposal threatens to force them back into the crowd. On Sept. 23, the Italian Catholic monthly, "Jesus," released advanced text of an article featuring excerpts from a draft document, or directive, written by the Vatican congregations for Divine Worship and the Sacraments and for the Doctrine of the Faith. Distributed on June 5, the document was an expansion on the papal...

Featured Term (selected at random):MASS INTENTION The object for which a priest offers the Eucharistic Sacrifice. This intention is distinct from the priest's decision to offer Mass, which is necessary for valid celebration. It is also distinct from the effects of the Mass which benefit those who take part in the sacrifice and attend the Mass. These are called the special fruits of the Mass and extensively are without limit, as are also the effects on the entire Church, called the general fruits of the Mass. Mass intentions refer to the particular purpose for which a specific Mass is offered....

>There have been some rumblings amongst traditionalist Catholics that Pope Francis is going to turn out to be a liturgical liberal. Apparently a few extremists are worried that Pope Benedict’s encouragement of the Latin Mass and his bringing back some of the older styles of clerical dress and papal customs are going to be thrown out in favor of happy clappy masses, clowns, balloons and big puppets.Everyone should stop and take a deep breath and get a sense of priorities. I am myself, on the more traditionalist side of the liturgy wars. I dislike anodyne, sentimental church music, a game...

One of the many lasting legacies of the papacy of Benedict XVI concerns liturgical music. Enormous progress has been made in his papacy. Incredibly this progress has happened without new legislation, new restrictions, new mandates, or firm-handed attempts to impose discipline on musicians and artists. The change has happened through the means that Benedict XVI has always preferred: he has led through example and through the inspiration provided by his homilies and writings.You can observe the difference by watching any Papal liturgy, whether live or on television or through webcast. Gregorian chant is back but not just as a style...

Some decades ago the argument from authority was often invoked as we answered some question about the faith. It was often considered sufficient merely invoke the existence of a rule. And thus, to my nagging question, “Why should I have to go to mass?” my parents would often answer, “Because it’s a rule!” Other variations of the answer would be, “Because the Church says so,” or, “Because it’s in the Ten Commandments.”Never mind that there might actually be reasons that there was a rule, or a commandment. It was considered enough in those old days simply to say, “It is...

If we do not get anything out of the Mass or very little because we are blocking the benefits or Divine Grace by our head and our heart. BLOCKING WITH OUR HEAD: We block ourselves from receiving Grace derived from the Holy Mass due to our head. Some main reasons: we get distracted or preoccupied; we find fault in priestly celebrant, crying babies, Mass order, readings, and other people talking or disrespectful in Mass, and so on; we do not know the details of the Mass and their implications; we do not know why we celebrate Mass; we cannot hear...

How to Give Adequate Thanks to God. A Meditation on Thanksgiving DayBy: Msgr. Charles Pope On this feast of Thanksgiving (here in America) we do well to ponder how we ought to give thanks to God. Indeed, how can one adequately thank God who is the giver of every good and perfect gift? Is it really enough to simply kneel and say a prayer of thanks? Perhaps we should run to Church and light a candle, or visit some distant shrine? Perhaps even doing the “Snoopy dance” as we say over and over, Thank you thank you thank you”...

Featured Term (selected at random):TRINITY SUNDAY The first Sunday after Pentecost. Its origins go back to the Arian heresy, when an office with canticle, responses, preface, and hymns was composed by the Fathers and recited on Sundays. Bishop Stephen of Liège (903-20) wrote an office of the Holy Trinity that in some places was recited on the sunday after Pentecost, and elsewhere on the last sunday before Adven. St. Thomas à Becket (1118-70), consecrated Archbishop of Canterbury on the Sunday following Pentecost, obtained for England the privilege of a special feast to honor the Trinity on that day. Pope John...

Yonkers, NY––Blake Jennings, lead guitarist at St. Therese Parish in Yonkers, New York is outraged over what he calls “years of concerts being interrupted by the Mass.” The 56-year-old accountant and father of three has played with his band at the 9:30 Folk Mass since 2009. “Our fans love us,” Jennings said, after Sunday Mass. “You can see it in their eyes…the way they droop down, lazily closing as we play…as if their entering into some kind of ecstasy. Or the way some in the parish are so moved they just can’t stand another moment of joy, and simply walk...

A couple months back, I wrote an article asking, what What was the Golden Age of the Liturgy? For it would seem, that every period has had its challenges, and also, it’s good points. The question of what is the golden year, the paradigm, is most pertinent among traditional Catholics, who largely regard the Golden age of the liturgy to be at some point in the past.Though the Traditional Latin Mass is celebrated according to the form it had in 1962, most traditional Catholics would set the ideal year, the Golden age, long before that. Yet, there is great debate...