Paul Zalonski – Page 465

Bethlehem make ready…friends be alert

Bethlehem, make ready,

for Eden has been opened for all.

Ephrathah, be alert,

for the Tree of Life has blossomed forth

from the Virgin in the cave.

Her womb has become a spiritual paradise

wherein the Divine Fruit was planted,

and if we eat of it,

we shall live and not die like Adam.

Christ is coming forth to bring back to life

the likeness that had been lost in the beginning.

Bethlehem, make ready, for Eden has been opened for all!

(a Byzantine poetic text for the time before the Nativity of the Lord)

Christmas Novena, Sixth Oration

O Word of God, Who comes from the Mouth of God to be
the Life of all men; You Who became Living Bread and was born in Bethlehem,
“The House of Bread,” to satisfy our hunger; We beseech You, through Your Pure
Nativity and the intercession of Your Mother and Saint Joseph, Your Chosen One,
to grant us a piercing hunger for that Bread which is Your Pure Body and
Blood. May we ever approach Your
altar and receive Your Sacred Mysteries with fitting preparation so that our
Communion may be for us salvation and life everlasting. Amen.

The Eucharist is the actualization of God’s Kingdom today

The way of peace leads to the altar and into the
mystery of the Eucharist, the actualization of the Kingdom here and now. From
the altar, the light of the Resurrection penetrates into all that, in our
lives, remains shadowy and locked. With the Virgin of the Annunciation, we have
only to believe in Love and, believing, say faith’s simple “Yes.” Our “little
strength” is of no consequence. Let us go in to the Eucharist to be
overshadowed by the power of Love. Love will do the rest for “God is love” (1
Jn 4:16 ) and ” no word shall be impossible with God” (Lk 1:37). (MDMK)

2 beating hearts, hidden but present in Mystery

We have all had the occasion by a moment to sense more
intensely the presence of Christ in the Eucharist during the celebration of the
Mass, during Eucharistic adoration, or even in the Tabernacle, when we walk
into a church. There is Christ. He is there whether we sense or experience His
presence. But precisely because this is the case, we are sometimes given
to experience that He is present. Such experience is not the source of faith,
but in some way it is its consequence.

But what about the experience of the
Blessed Virgin Mary during Advent? It is reasonable, like the Fathers of the
Church, to see Mary as the original tabernacle. The Word became flesh and
dwells among us. This being hidden but present among us is first of all
realized during the time of Advent in the home of Nazareth, in the womb of
Mary, under the protection of Saint Joseph. Mary meditated upon all these
things and kept them in her heart. We can reasonably speculate that she read
scripture during this time, in silence, most likely the words of Isaiah, his
prophesies, and found in them a sense of the meaning of what was happening to
her.

St. Augustine says that she conceived the Word in her heart before she
conceived the Word in her flesh. So that her maternity was accompanied by an
intensification and growth in faith, in contemplation, in the intelligent
perception of mystery. The Second Vatican Council says that during the time of
her pregnancy the heart of the Incarnate Word beat gently below the heart of
Mary, her immaculate heart. Two immaculate hearts, beating silently and
prayerfully in the night of this world.

(Fr. Thomas J. White, OP, Dominican House of Studies, Washington, DC)

Christmas Novena, Fifth Oration

O Most High, by nature supreme and outranking all men and all things, Who has left the magnificence of Your Divinity and loved the lowliness of our humanity to become for us a model in humility and lowliness; We beseech You, through Your Pure Nativity and through the intercession of Your Mother and Saint Joseph, Your Chosen One, to grant us humility of heart and an accurate estimation of ourselves. Help us to conquer every show of false pride, which would have us choose our own whims rather than Your Will.

May we realize that, compared to You, we are little indeed. Glory be to You, for You alone are holy and great is Your Name. To You be Glory, Magnificence and Power! Amen

Dominican & Franciscan vocation videos

I stumbled upon these vocation videos of the Polish Dominicans and Franciscans. If you don’t understand Polish, don’t fret, neither do I. And since there’s no talking, just music, just sit back and enjoy the brief videos. THE fun thing is just watching the Dominican Franciscan friars. You get a great sense of the spirit of the friars of both groups just by watching the life.

It’s like watching a foreign film–you don’t understand the language but get the point–immediately. Video 1, video 2 and video 3.

Christmas Novena, Fourth Oration

O Wine of Virgins and Lily of Purity, Who by a touch
of Your hand heals the body and cleanses the soul; Who by dwelling in the womb
of Your Mother has made her the purest of the pure and most admirable among
virgins; We beseech You, through Your Pure Nativity and through the intercession
of Your Mother and Saint Joseph, Your Chosen One, to grant us to be pure in
soul and body and clean in act clean and thought, that we may serve You with a
clean heart and pure body all the days of our lives. Amen.

Pope says John Paul lived a life of heroic virtue & makes others saints

Pope Benedict recognized John Paul II as living a life of heroic virtue upon the recommendation of the Congregation for Saints. There are various steps the Church takes when she investigates someone for possible canonization. This is the second of four of the steps, next being “beatification.” The Church will now refer to John Paul as the “Venerable Servant of God …” but there is no public ceremonial for bestowing this title as there is when a person is beatified or canonized.

Also, in an extraordinary move, the Pope recognized the the heroic virtue of Pope Pius XII!

The Holy Father also acknowledged that God has made a new saint for the Church: Blessed Mary Mackillop. Blessed Mary was an Australian sister, foundress and educator born in 1842 and died in 1909. In the face of great hardship encountered as the result of a nasty bishop, she was excommunicated for about year but Mother Mary of the Cross was virtuous throughout the ordeal. The bishop, an alcoholic received Mother Mary back into full communion on his deathbed. John Paul beatified Mother Mary in 1995 and she has wide acclaim. She is Australia’s first saint.

A canonized saint in the Catholic Church is a declaration of moral certitude and therefore an infallible statement of the Church, that that person does enjoy, as far as it’s humanly possible to say, beatitude with the Blessed Trinity. Hence, a saint is “made.”

A Wiki article on Mary Mackillop is found here.

Also, made a saint is Blessed Andre Bessett!!!

Archbishop of Canterbury to deliver annual Schmemann Lecture at St. Vladimir’s Seminary

The Most Reverend Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury will be lecturing in Yonkers, NY, on Saturday, 30 January 2010, 12:30 p.m.

Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary is hosting the event at which the archbishop will speak and receive an honorary doctorate.

The Archbishop will speak on the topic “Theology and the Contemplative
Calling: The Image of Humanity in the Philokalia.”

Dr. Williams is the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, elected, confirmed and enthroned in 2002.

For more information visit the seminary website

Christmas Novena, Third Oration

O Admirable Leader Who gains the obedience of Your
people not by the severity of Your judgment but by the sweetness of Your love
and Your welcome sojourn among us. We beseech You, through Your Pure Nativity
and through the intercession of Your Mother and Saint Joseph, Your Chosen One,
to teach us complete obedience to Your holy commandments and to submit to our
superiors, not for fear of punishment but by a willing surrender of mind and
heart, with gladness of heart and spirit. Amen.