Ruminations of an Amateur Monastic
Short, sweet, and on the solstice. “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone.” (Isaiah 9:1[2]) Today is also the feast of Saint Thomas the Apostle in the old calendar. O Oriens,splendor lucis ætérnae, et sol justítiæ:veni, et illúmina sedéntes in ténebris, et umbra […]
» Read moreContinuing on, we come closer and closer to the birth of the Messiah, “the holy one, the true, who holds the key of David, who opens and no one shall close, who closes and no one shall open” (Rev. 3:7). If you are interested in learning more about the O Antiphons, I recommend Fr. Zuhlsdorf’s site here. The format is […]
» Read moreBy now some of you might be thinking that the O Antiphon words might be sounding kind of familiar, even though you’re not really up on your Gregorian Chant. In fact, these antiphons are some of the earliest attested antiphons in the Divine Office, being mentioned in passing in the works of Saint Boethius in the early sixth century. The […]
» Read moreLast night was the first time Francine and I had prayed Vespers in community since shortly after leaving our former parish. Sam joined us. The lack of practice really showed – we were disjointed and could not even chant the opening or the Magnificat correctly. Tonight, we’ll trot out some of our old books and see if we can’t put […]
» Read moreAs Advent draws to its end, we begin the “O” antiphons at Vespers. Last year, we attempted to chant vespers every night during this period at my old parish. A series of snowstorms disrupted that plan, though I do have warm and gracious memories of Francine and I alone in the parish chapel chanting one cold, dark night. Sadly after […]
» Read moreToday is the Commemoration of All Souls. On this day, I ask you to pray for the soul of India Escobar.
» Read moreHappy Easter, everyone! Rejoice, heavenly powers! Sing, choirs of angels! Exult, all creation around God’s throne! Jesus Christ, our King, is risen! Sound the trumpet of salvation! Rejoice, O earth, in shining splendor, radiant in the brightness of your King! Christ has conquered! Glory fills you! Darkness vanishes for ever! Rejoice, O Mother Church! Exult in glory! The risen Savior […]
» Read moreIt has been some time since I’ve posted here, and longer still since I’ve posted regularly. For this, I deeply apologise to you, my one loyal reader. My only excuse is this: it has been a trying time, and I’ve been working long hours. In the past few months, I’ve spent weeks at a time out of state. I’ve been […]
» Read moreToday is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. Our musical selections for today’s Mass were maddening. The only Trinitarian song was our closing hymn. In two cases, Broadway Bob chose sappy contemporary songs that directly followed Trinitarian hymns in the Missalette. It’s like he was one off the whole day. And one song he chose was clearly a funeral […]
» Read moreAlso known as Palm Sunday. I lectored today. As we used the dialogue option for the Passion narrative from Saint Luke, I actually both proclaimed the Gospel title (“The Passion according to Saint Luke”) and the final versicle (“The Gospel of the Lord”). Normally, these (and indeed, all Gospel readings) are reserved to the Priest or Deacon. [liturgical geek moment] […]
» Read moreI‘d like to take this opportunity to wish everyone who may read my words a blessed Christmas and a happy New Year! Salvator noster natus est in mundo!
» Read moreThis morning’s Mass at the school where I work was sponsored by the second grade class. I am always of a mixed mind on these things. On the one hand, the children are involved in the planning and celebration of the Mass. They are gaining experience as servers, as lectors, as choir members. On the other hand, sometimes the pagentry […]
» Read moreToday is Yom Kippūr, the day of atonement, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. This is the day where observant Jews fast and forgive all those who have wronged them in the previous year. In the time of the Temple, this is the day when the High Priest entered the Holy of Holies, sacrificed, and made atonement for all […]
» Read more(This is something I wrote back in April in another forum. -ed.) This evening we will attend the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, which marks the beginning of the Triduum – the holiest (and at three days, the shortest) season of the liturgical calendar. This celebration commemerates the institution of the Eucharist, the “source and summit of Church life“. Unlike […]
» Read moreI am reminded of something I wrote in another forum this time last year. Not a thing has changed, except that the renovations are done, and I’ve finished the book. When Pope Urban IV established the Feast of Corpus Christi, he asked St. Thomas Aquinas to compose hymns for it. This is one of the five hymns Aquinas composed in […]
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