Paul Zalonski – Page 456

Saint Agnes

Almighty and everlasting God, you choose those whom the world deems powerless to put the powerful to shame: Grant us so to cherish the memory of your youthful martyr Agnes, that we may share her pure and steadfast faith in you.

Let us now our voices raise,
Wake this day with gladness;
God has now to joy and praise
Changed our human sadness–
Joy that Agnes won her crown,
Entered heaven’s portal
When she laid the mortal down

For the life immortal!
Praise we God, whose wondrous grace
Showered on this martyr,
Giving strength in death’s fierce face
Not with sin to barter;
Rather claiming Christ as Lord,
Vowed to him forever.
Fullest praise let us afford,
Hymns that shall cease never!

To the Father, giving life,
Endless praise be given,
To the Son, who through death’s strife
Brings us all to heaven,
To the Spirit, Paraclete,
Filling all with graces
Be our song of joy complete,
Through the endless ages.

J. Michael Thompson
Copyright © 2009, World Library Publications
76 76 D
TEMPUS ADEST FLORIDUM, AVE VIRGO VIRGINUM

For more on Saint Agnes, read the post from last year which includes a brief paragraph on the blessing of lambs.

What the video on the blessing of lambs whose wool is used for the weaving of pallia.

At the second earthquake in Haiti…

Out of the depths I cry, Lord,
O Lord, please hear my call!
Let your ears be attentive;
I beg for mercy, Lord.
If you marked our offenses,
O Lord, who then could stand?
But you grant us forgiveness—
Therefore we stand in awe.

My hope is in the Lord’s word
And for the Lord I waid,
More eagerly than watchmen
Yearn for the morning light.
Hope in the Lord, O people,
In his unfailing love.
With him is full redemption;
He will redeem his own.

We entrust all to the Lord and to Blessed Virign Mary with the Venerable Servant of God Pierre Toussaint.

I renew the plea for donations to assist the Haitian people. Good organizations are found here.

Blessed Basil Anthony Moreau

Spirituality. He practiced poverty to a heroic degree. He
never looked to do anything for himself. It was his view that everybody should
have better than he had and that everybody should have the best. He learned a
deep sensitivity in dealing with others. He was a man who understood people.
When he was a young priest, he was supposed to go study theology and he said,
“I don’t know theology, I can’t do this, I am not equipped to do this.” And,
his spiritual director wrote, “Rejoice above all that you see nothing in
yourself to depend on in this new post. That’s a very good beginning, to put
nothing of yourself into it and to await the Lord who will not fail you.”

(Cardinal McCarrick’s address on Blessed Basil Moreau, Stonehill College)

A prayer and other info on Blessed Basil Moreau may be found here.

Saint Eustochia of Messina

Lord, through Your loving favor, You revealed to the
virgin Saint Eustochia of Messina, the hidden secrets of Your providential
care. Through the way of life of our mother Saint Clare she grew deeper in her
love for Christ and His Church. may we who know You now by faith, come to
rejoice with her in heaven, and see You face to face.

Saint Eustachia was a
daughter of a count & countess; before she could marry, her fiance died.
After the death of her father she became a Poor Clare kneeling at the foot of
Christ crucified. She spent her life devoted to the Blessed Sacrament, penance
and charity. Her mother and sister were nuns at the Abbey of Monte Vergine. She
was elected abbess of her community. Her body is incorrupt and is venerated by
the faithful annually on August 22nd.

Blessing of Icons, too

Last week Father Michael Morris (of the Seminary faculty) blessed an icon for me. This week, another similar service was done by Economos Romanus Russo, an adjunct professor at Saint Joseph’s Seminary and pastor of Saint Michael’s Russian Byzantine Chapel (266 Mulberry St, NYC).

Some are of the opinion that icons need not be blessed because they hold a holy image of Our Lord, the Virgin or an angel or saint. But because an order of blessing exists in the liturgical books from time immemorial, the mind of the Church indicates that holy images are in fact blessed by the proper minister and according to a rite.

The blessing of icons takes on a similar theological/liturgical sensibility as Christian Initiation where the person to be baptized is washed, anointed and receives Holy Communion. Hence, the icons today were blessed by holy water, anointed with sacred Myron (Chrism) and the Eucharistic ciborium was touched to each icon. We now have a fully initiated icon that leads us to Christ and the Mystery of the Holy Trinity. Economos Romanus then. in giving the icon back to the owner, blessed the man who in turn kissed the icon.

The ritual prayers were the same as used previously (see the link above).

Icons are visible gospels. The icon is an experience of the beauty of God revealing the divine order of things. In history the first icon not made of human hands was the body of Jesus Christ. Following Divine action, the iconographer cooperates with God in creation and reveals to us the reality of Jesus’ humanity. The iconographer is also a theologian because he or she writes for us the dogmas of Christian belief–the reasons and pathways for our salvation.

The stipend for Economos’s spiritual solicitude is that each time we pray before the icon we pray for him and his family, forever. Deal.

Blessed Andrew of Peschiera

God of
all holiness, you filled Blessed Andrew with an apostolic spirit. Help us to
imitate his words and example that we may advance in holiness and live fruitful
lives.

Blessed Andrew, a Dominican priest, worked 45 years as a traveling preacher in the Italian Alps. He founded churches, schools and orphanages and was known as a miracle worker.

European Martyrs of the Society of Jesus

God, You patterned the death of [these Jesuits] after the death of Christ, Your Son. Through their intercession, gather into perfect unity all who believe in Him.

By martyrdom a disciple is transformed into an image of his master, who freely accepted death on behalf of the world’s salvation; he perfects that image even to the shedding of blood. The Church, therefore, considers martyrdom as an exceptional gift and as the highest proof of love. (Lumen Gentium, 42)

This common feast commemorates 67 Jesuit martyrs who died in religious conflicts after the Reformation and have been canonized. Most were French and some were Portuguese. Some of the names are noted here: Jacques Sales, Guillaume Saultemouche, Joseph Imbert, John-Nicholas Cordier, Ignatius de Azevedo, James Julius Bonnaud, William Anthony Delfaud, Francis Balmain, Charles Berauld du Perou, Claude Cayx-Dumas, John Charton de Millou, James Friteyre-Durve, Claude Laporte, Mathurin Le Bous de Villeneuve, Claude Le Gue, Vincent Le Rousseau de Rosancoat, Loup Thomas-Bonnotte and Francis Vareilhe-Duteil.

New Cardinals in 2010???

At the moment there are 112 cardinal electors should we have to elect a new pope. The papally imposed number of 120 is usually enshrined in our minds but we can conceivably have more (or fewer) should a reigning pontiff decide the matter. Pope John Paul II confirmed certain norms in a document Universi Dominici Gregis in 1996. Nevertheless, in 2010, 11 cardinals of the Holy Roman Church will lose their ability to vote in a papal conclave because they will turn 80. Their Eminences, Cardinals Ambrozic, Maida, Williams, Herranz, McCarrick, Poupard, DiGiorgio, Daoud, Giordano, Tumi, Pujats. You’ll notice that 2 are from the USA and 1 from Canada.

Pope Benedict has already had two consistories (2006 & 2007) making 38 cardinals. Mind you, some were ineligible to vote in a conclave from the first day of the cardinalate.

So, it is very likely that the Holy Father could create new cardinals in 2010.

Regarding bishops, at the moment there are, in 2010, 11 bishops submitting a letter of resignation to the Holy Father because they’re 75, there are 4 who turned 75 in 2009 (and no replace nominated yet) and there remain 6 empty dioceses. If no one dies or gets into trouble, the USA could see 21 new bishops.

Saint Charles of Sezze

Lord our God, You are the shield and glorious reward of those who walk blamelessly in Your sight. keep us steadfast in Your holy service so that aided by the wise teaching and intercession of Brother Charles of Sezze, we may with hearts open to You run the way of perfect charity.

Saint Charles was known for holiness, simplicity and charity. He was heroic in serving the 17th century plague victims. Blessed John XXIII canonized him in 1959. The Franciscan Ordo places Saint Charles’ feast today.

Pope urges the Church to take seriously prayer for COMPLETE unity among Christians

Speaking of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which begins today and lasts until the 25th, the Pope talked about the value of the prayer initiatives for the Week at the Sunday Angelus Address:

Every year it constitutes, for believers in Christ, a
propitious time to revive the ecumenical spirit, to meet each other, to get to
know each other, to pray and reflect together. The biblical theme, taken from
the Gospel of St. Luke, echoes the words of the risen Jesus to the apostles:
“You are witnesses of these things” (Luke 24:48). Our proclamation of the
Gospel of Jesus will be much more credible and effective the more that we are
united in his love, as true brothers. Thus, I invite parishes, religious
communities, ecclesial movements and associations to pray unceasingly, in a
special way during Eucharistic Celebrations, for the complete unity of
Christians.