{"id":86270,"date":"2015-12-14T11:12:46","date_gmt":"2015-12-14T19:12:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/?p=86270"},"modified":"2024-12-31T14:19:55","modified_gmt":"2024-12-31T22:19:55","slug":"rejoice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/","title":{"rendered":"Rejoice in the Lord Always!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"wpsdc-drop-cap\">T<\/span>his past weekend has been what we at Pistachio House sometimes refer to as a &#8220;churchy weekend&#8221;: three Masses and chanted Vespers.<\/p>\n<p>The first of these was a new experience for us. At 6:30 on Saturday morning, we attended an Extraordinary Form <em>Rorate <\/em>Mass at Saint Joseph. This is a votive Mass of the Blessed Virgin celebrated in Advent. Since Saturday was the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe &#8211; a feast sadly not on the calendar for the Extraordinary Form &#8211; it seemed appropriate that they scheduled this Mass for this day.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s called a <em>Rorate <\/em>Mass for the first word of the Introit (entrance antiphon):<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"450\" height=\"253\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/f06qdhO_sEY?rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"drop\">Rorate c\u0153li desuper et nubes pluant justum<br \/>\nAperiatur terra et germinet salvatorem.<\/p>\n<p class=\"drop\">Drop down dew, ye heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain the just<br \/>\nLet the earth be opened and send forth a Saviour.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>A Rorate Mass is traditionally celebrated by candlelight. It&#8217;s absolutely breathtakingly beautiful. Unfortunately, that means it&#8217;s also extremely difficult to get a decent photo with my humble little phone camera.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_86273\" style=\"width: 3274px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/2015-12-12-06-30-08\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-86273\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-86273\" data-attachment-id=\"86273\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/2015-12-12-06-30-08\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?fit=3264%2C2448&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"3264,2448\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2.4&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;iPhone 5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1449901808&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;4.12&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;2500&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.066666666666667&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Rorate High Mass at Saint Joseph Tacoma, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, 2015\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Rorate High Mass at Saint Joseph Tacoma, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, 2015&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?fit=860%2C645&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?resize=860%2C645\" alt=\"Rorate High Mass at Saint Joseph Tacoma, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, 2015\" width=\"860\" height=\"645\" class=\"size-full wp-image-86273\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?w=3264&amp;ssl=1 3264w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?resize=150%2C113&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?resize=240%2C180&amp;ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?w=1720 1720w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-06.30.08.jpg?w=2580 2580w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-86273\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rorate High Mass at Saint Joseph Tacoma, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, 2015<\/p><\/div>\n<p>It was a high Mass, so there were three priests acting the roles of priest-celebrant, deacon, and subdeacon.<\/p>\n<p>They also employed no less than eighteen altar servers and a young (and extremely competent) MC.<\/p>\n<p>The choir was heavenly.<\/p>\n<p>The entire Mass was, as I said, breathtakingly beautiful and absolutely uplifting and joyous.<\/p>\n<p>Afterwards, we spent some time in the hall, where breakfast was served, and I got to speak for awhile with the priests involved, as well as some friends from both Saint Joseph and Holy Rosary.<\/p>\n<p>Father Stinson was particularly gracious. He allowed me to remove the old server albs, for which the F.S.S.P. and Saint Joseph parish have no particular use, and we brought them back to Holy Rosary for use by our servers.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/2015-12-12-11-38-29\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-86275\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"86275\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/2015-12-12-11-38-29\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-11.38.29-e1450118815756.jpg?fit=1460%2C2088&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1460,2088\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2.4&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;iPhone 5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1449920309&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;4.12&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;50&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.025&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Strawberry Trolls\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-11.38.29-e1450118815756.jpg?fit=716%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-11.38.29-e1450118815756-240x343.jpg?resize=240%2C343\" alt=\"Strawberry Trolls\" width=\"240\" height=\"343\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-86275\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-11.38.29-e1450118815756.jpg?resize=240%2C343&amp;ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-11.38.29-e1450118815756.jpg?resize=105%2C150&amp;ssl=1 105w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-11.38.29-e1450118815756.jpg?resize=768%2C1098&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-11.38.29-e1450118815756.jpg?resize=716%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 716w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/2015-12-12-11.38.29-e1450118815756.jpg?w=1460&amp;ssl=1 1460w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 240px) 100vw, 240px\" \/><\/a>There are a number of other items there, which Father Stinson encouraged me to take to Holy Rosary, including a Book of the Gospels, a <em>Roman Missal<\/em>, and assorted priestly vestments. I will get to those in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n<p>After breakfast, Francine and I went for a short hike. It was raining, so we broke out our Altus ponchos, which fit over our packs.<\/p>\n<p>We looked rather like a pair of strawberry trolls stomping through the woods.<\/p>\n<p>Saturday evening was the vigil Mass for <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gaudete_Sunday\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Gaudete Sunday<\/a> &#8211; the joyous third Sunday of Advent. A few years ago, Jimmy Akin wrote a brief article explaining <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ncregister.com\/blog\/jimmy-akin\/gaudete-sunday-11-things-to-know-and-share-.-\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Gaudete Sunday<\/a>. Well worth a read.<\/p>\n<p>Francine read and I served at the Mass, which included the baptism of the beautiful Caeli, daughter of Regina.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_86292\" style=\"width: 970px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-86292\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-86292\" data-attachment-id=\"86292\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n.jpg?fit=960%2C960&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"960,960\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;(Montage by Toni Vercillo)&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n.jpg?fit=860%2C860&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n.jpg?resize=860%2C860\" alt=\"(Montage by Toni Vercillo)\" width=\"860\" height=\"860\" class=\"size-full wp-image-86292\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n.jpg?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n.jpg?resize=240%2C240&amp;ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/12341018_1069667416398735_6397532341879332553_n.jpg?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-86292\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">(Montage by Toni Vercillo)<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Afterwards, I conducted a brief training for my newest adult altar server.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sunday: Opening the Holy Door<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>At the Sunday noon Mass, Father Wichert opened the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/enter-his-gates-with-thanksgiving\/\">Holy Door<\/a> at Holy Rosary (photos by the lovely Francine).<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/opening-holy-door-02\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-86280\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"86280\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/opening-holy-door-02\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?fit=3264%2C2448&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"3264,2448\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2.4&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;iPhone 5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1450008186&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;4.12&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;640&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.066666666666667&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Opening Holy Door 02\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?fit=860%2C645&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?resize=456%2C342\" alt=\"Opening Holy Door 02\" width=\"456\" height=\"342\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-86280\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?resize=150%2C113&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?resize=240%2C180&amp;ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?w=1720 1720w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-02.jpg?w=2580 2580w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 456px) 100vw, 456px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/opening-holy-door-05\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-86281\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"86281\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/opening-holy-door-05\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-05.jpg?fit=2448%2C3264&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"2448,3264\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2.4&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;iPhone 5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1450008153&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;4.12&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;400&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.066666666666667&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Opening Holy Door 05\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-05.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-05.jpg?resize=456%2C608\" alt=\"Opening Holy Door 05\" width=\"456\" height=\"608\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-86281\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-05.jpg?resize=768%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-05.jpg?resize=113%2C150&amp;ssl=1 113w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-05.jpg?resize=240%2C320&amp;ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-05.jpg?w=1720 1720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 456px) 100vw, 456px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/opening-holy-door-06\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-86282\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"86282\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/opening-holy-door-06\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-06.jpg?fit=2448%2C3264&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"2448,3264\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2.4&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;iPhone 5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1450008272&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;4.12&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;800&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.066666666666667&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Opening Holy Door 06\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-06.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-06.jpg?resize=456%2C608\" alt=\"Opening Holy Door 06\" width=\"456\" height=\"608\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-86282\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-06.jpg?resize=768%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-06.jpg?resize=113%2C150&amp;ssl=1 113w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-06.jpg?resize=240%2C320&amp;ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-06.jpg?w=1720 1720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 456px) 100vw, 456px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/opening-holy-door-07\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-86284\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"86284\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rejoice\/opening-holy-door-07\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-07.jpg?fit=2448%2C3264&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"2448,3264\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;2.4&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;iPhone 5&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1450008284&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;4.12&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;500&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.066666666666667&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;1&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Opening Holy Door 07\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-07.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-07.jpg?resize=456%2C608\" alt=\"Opening Holy Door 07\" width=\"456\" height=\"608\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-86284\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-07.jpg?resize=768%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-07.jpg?resize=113%2C150&amp;ssl=1 113w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-07.jpg?resize=240%2C320&amp;ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-07.jpg?w=1720 1720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 456px) 100vw, 456px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The Holy Doors will remain such through the entirety of the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/jubilee\/\">Jubilee Year<\/a>. What a blessing to our parish!<\/p>\n<p>Sunday evening, we chanted <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/advent-vespers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Vespers <\/a>at our parish. Attendance was small, but growing, with twenty people joining in to sing &#8220;the prayer of the Church for the Church&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>As both of my long-time readers know, I love the Divine Office, particularly chanted Vespers.<\/p>\n<p>Although the group was small, we worshiped joyfully in song. This is due in no small part to our former pastor, Rev. Jacob Maurer, who was instrumental in encouraging Solemn Lenten Vespers and Triduum Lauds during his time here.<\/p>\n<p>For Advent Vespers, we have alternated between Solemn Vespers (2nd and 4th week) led by our pastor Very Rev. Nicholas Wichert, and Simple Vespers (1st and 3rd week) led by our delightful and very talented choir director, Mrs. Victoria Solenberger.<\/p>\n<p>I wish you the joy of the season, and I will leave you with the Introit (entrance antiphon) for Gaudete Sunday:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"450\" height=\"338\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fh-s8GgB8q8\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"drop\">Gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico, gaudete. Modestia vestra nota sit omnibus hominibus: Dominus enim prope est. Nihil solliciti sitis: sed in omni oratione petitiones vestr\u00e6 innotescant apud Deum. <\/p>\n<p>Benedixisti Domine terram tuam: avertisti captivitatem Jacob.<\/p>\n<p class=\"drop\">Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Let your forbearance be known to all, for the Lord is near at hand; have no anxiety about anything, but in all things, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God. <\/p>\n<p>Lord, you have blessed your land; you have turned away the captivity of Jacob.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This past weekend has been what we at Pistachio House sometimes refer to as a &#8220;churchy weekend&#8221;: three Masses and chanted Vespers. The first of these was a new experience for us. At 6:30 on Saturday morning, we attended an Extraordinary Form Rorate Mass at Saint Joseph. This is a votive Mass of the Blessed Virgin celebrated in Advent. Since [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":86281,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[11,55,8,5,90,130,26,39,62,56,25,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-86270","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chant","category-divine-office","category-francine-my-love","category-holy-days","category-holy-rosary-parish-tacoma","category-jubilee","category-latin","category-rev-jacob-maurer","category-rev-michael-stinson-fssp","category-rev-nicholas-wichert","category-seasons","category-sacred-liturgy"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Opening-Holy-Door-05.jpg?fit=2448%2C3264&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/s1aGBK-rejoice","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":89179,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rorate-caeli\/","url_meta":{"origin":86270,"position":0},"title":"Rorate C\u00e6li","author":"Thom","date":"18 December 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"This past Saturday, our parish of Holy Rosary celebrated a Votive Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This particular tradition is known as the Rorate Mass, for the first word of its entrance antiphon (Introit): Ror\u00e1te c\u00e6li d\u00e9super, et n\u00fabes pl\u00faant j\u00fastum. Aperiatur terra et germinet salvatorem. Drop down dew,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Chant&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Chant","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/chant\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0962-e1513623999952.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0962-e1513623999952.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0962-e1513623999952.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0962-e1513623999952.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0962-e1513623999952.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":89093,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rorate-mass-in-the-ordinary-form\/","url_meta":{"origin":86270,"position":1},"title":"Rorate Mass in the Ordinary Form","author":"Thom","date":"25 November 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"You are invited to an Advent tradition: a Rorate Mass on Saturday, December 16 at 6:00 AM. I can already hear the questions forming. What is a Rorate Mass? And why on earth would you have one at six in the morning? Well, here's the FAQ, as the kids say.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Chant&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Chant","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/chant\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/2016-12-05-Rorate-Caeli-Mass-01.jpg?fit=1200%2C819&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/2016-12-05-Rorate-Caeli-Mass-01.jpg?fit=1200%2C819&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/2016-12-05-Rorate-Caeli-Mass-01.jpg?fit=1200%2C819&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/2016-12-05-Rorate-Caeli-Mass-01.jpg?fit=1200%2C819&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/2016-12-05-Rorate-Caeli-Mass-01.jpg?fit=1200%2C819&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":110052,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rorate-mass-on-saturday-in-tacoma\/","url_meta":{"origin":86270,"position":2},"title":"Rorate Mass on Saturday in Tacoma!","author":"Thom","date":"03 December 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"invited to an Advent tradition: a Rorate Mass on Saturday, December 6 at 6:30 AM. I can already hear the questions forming. What is a Rorate Mass? And why on earth would you have one so early in the morning? Well, here's the FAQ, as the kids say. What is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Chant&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Chant","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/chant\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rorate.jpg?fit=1200%2C676&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rorate.jpg?fit=1200%2C676&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rorate.jpg?fit=1200%2C676&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rorate.jpg?fit=1200%2C676&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/rorate.jpg?fit=1200%2C676&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":86335,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rorate-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":86270,"position":3},"title":"Rorate Photos","author":"Thom","date":"23 December 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"You may recall that on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Francine and I attended a Rorate Mass at the nearby F.S.S.P. parish of Saint Joseph. You will also no doubt recall my inability to take a decent photo of the Mass, which was simply beautiful. Apparently, a much\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Francine my love&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Francine my love","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/francine-my-love\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Rorate Mass (50)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/Rorate-Mass-50-240x360.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":90266,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/rorate-mass-resources-in-the-ordinary-form\/","url_meta":{"origin":86270,"position":4},"title":"Rorate Mass Resources &#8211; in the Ordinary Form","author":"Thom","date":"12 December 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Last year about this time, our parish of Holy Rosary celebrated a Rorate Mass in the Ordinary Form. And what, pray tell, is a Rorate Mass? The name comes from the opening words of the Entrance Antiphon, Rorate c\u00e6li desuper, Latin for \u201cDrop down dew, ye heavens\u201d. The Rorate Mass\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Chant&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Chant","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/chant\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0926.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0926.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0926.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0926.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/DSC_0926.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":100510,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/the-10-most-popular-posts-of-2019\/","url_meta":{"origin":86270,"position":5},"title":"The 10 Most Popular Posts of 2019","author":"Thom","date":"30 December 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"These are the top ten post hits on the blog for this past year. Not all of the posts receiving the hits were necessarily written this year. Apparently, their appeal is enduring. In addition, for posts that are part of a numbered series (Novena to the Holy Deacons, I'm looking\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;2018 transitions in Tacoma&quot;","block_context":{"text":"2018 transitions in Tacoma","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/2018-transitions-tacoma\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Holy-Rosary.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86270","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=86270"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86270\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":109316,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86270\/revisions\/109316"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86281"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=86270"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=86270"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=86270"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}