Saint Theodosius the Great

Saint Theodosius the Great.jpgPlanted in the courts of your Lord, you blossomed
beautifully with virtue, and increased your children in the desert, showering them
with streams of your tears, O chief shepherd of the divine flock of God. Therefore,
we cry to you: “Rejoice, Father Theodosius.”
Kondakion – Tone 8



From the hagiography:

Saint
Theodosius the Great lived during the fifth-sixth centuries, and was the
founder of cenobitic monasticism. At the monastery St Theodosius built a home
for taking in strangers, separate infirmaries for monks and laymen, and also a
shelter for the dying
. Seeing that people from various lands gathered at the
Lavra, the saint arranged for services in the various languages: Greek,
Georgian and Armenian. All gathered to receive the Holy Mysteries in the large
church, where divine services were chanted in Greek.


St Theodosius accomplished
many healings and other miracles during his life, coming to the aid of the
needy
. Through his prayers he once destroyed the locusts devastating the fields
in Palestine. Also by his intercession, soldiers were saved from death, and he
also saved those perishing in shipwrecks and those lost in the desert. Once,
the saint gave orders to strike the semandron (a piece of wood hit with a
mallet), so that the brethren would gather at prayer. He told them, “The
wrath of God draws near the East.” After several days it became known that
a strong earthquake had destroyed the city of Antioch at the very hour when the
saint had summoned the brethren to prayer.


Before his death, St Theodosius
summoned to him three beloved bishops and revealed to them that he would soon
depart to the Lord. After three days, he died at the age of 105. The saint’s
body was buried with reverence in the cave in which he lived at the beginning
of his ascetic deeds.

Pope’s State of the World address, 2011

We have the
state of the school address, the state of the state address, the state of the
nation address, and even have the state of the world. Today, Pope Benedict XVI
delivered his ‘state of the world’ speech to the diplomatic corps accredited to
the Holy See. Depending on how you count, there are between 178 to 181 diplomats
at the Holy See. Please note the Pontiff’s concentration on religious freedom; he is, head and shoulders above all world leaders, the voice for religious freedom as the path to true, lasting peace. The
Pope’s address, the original was delivered in French:

Your Excellencies, Ladies
and Gentlemen,

Pope sits with Vatican Gentluomini in the Sala Clementina Jan 10 2011.jpg

I am pleased to welcome you, the distinguished representatives
of so many countries, to this meeting which each year assembles you around the
Successor of Peter. It is a deeply significant meeting, since it is a sign and
illustration of the place of the Church and of the Holy See in the
international community. I offer my greetings and cordial good wishes to each
of you, and particularly to those who have come for the first time. I am
grateful to you for the commitment and interest with which, in the exercise of
your demanding responsibilities, you follow my activities, those of the Roman
Curia and thus, in some sense, the life of the Catholic Church throughout the
world. Your Dean, Ambassador Alejandro Valladares Lanza, has interpreted your
sentiments and I thank him for the good wishes which he has expressed to me in
the name of all. Knowing how close-knit your community is, I am certain that
today you are also thinking of the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands, Baroness van Lynden-Leijten, who several weeks ago returned to the
house of the Father. I prayerfully share your sentiments.

Continue reading Pope’s State of the World address, 2011

Authentically Christian Politicians

Heightened
awareness in the days following the violence inflicted on a US Congresswoman
and several others and the deaths of a Federal Judge and several others leads
to ask what is transpiring in civil discourse. These issues are not merely a US
thing but the Australians are also dealing with the same. The Australian
Premier Kristina Keneally -a woman similar in style and content as our own
Nancy Pelosi, spoke against George Cardinal Pell, the ranking churchman of the
Catholic Church in Australia, saying she was saddened by the Cardinal’s
statements on Catholic faith and belief. So what’s been ignited by Premier
Keneally is also applicable around the world. Keneally becomes the lens to view
the issues.

Continue reading Authentically Christian Politicians

Saint Gregory of Nyssa

St Gregory of Nyssa4.jpg




Watchful with the eyes of thy soul

and a vigilant
shepherd for the world,
with wisdom and thy fervent intercession thou didst drive
off heretics like wolves,/keeping thy flock unharmed.

Kondakion – Tone 1

Knights of Columbus mourn death of Judge John M. Roll, other victims in Tucson

Judge John Roll.jpgNEW HAVEN, CT–Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson today
expressed “profound sadness” at the shooting deaths of U.S. District Court
Judge John M. Rolland five others in Tucson on Saturday.  He asked the 1.8
million members of the Knights of Columbus and their families to pray for the
recovery of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and 12 other people who were seriously
injured in the attack, and for the repose of the souls of those who died.


Judge
Roll, who was the chief judge for the District of Arizona, was a Fourth Degree
member of the Knights of Columbus, and was a charter member of Deacon Raphael
Longpre Council 10441, and a member of Msgr. Hughes Assembly 2392, both in
Tucson.  He had been a member of the Knights of Columbus for 24
years. Members of the Fourth Degree will provide an honor guard at his
funeral next week.


“The senseless carnage in Tucson is a terrible tragedy for
the victims, their families, the people of Arizona and people of good will
everywhere,” Anderson said. “We feel a tremendous sense of loss at Judge
Roll’s death, and for all, young and old, who lost their lives in this
attack. We pray for God’s mercy on all who have been touched by this
tragedy.”


“At a time like this, it is tempting to respond with anger, and for
some, to attempt to use the tragedy to stoke the fires of division. That
would only compound the tragedy,” Anderson continued.  “As the late
Senator Robert Kennedy said following the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,
‘What we need in the United States is not division . . . not violence or lawlessness,
but love and wisdom and compassion toward one another.’ Judge Roll, a
faithful Catholic who had just attended daily Mass before stopping to greet
Rep. Giffords at her community meeting, was a dedicated public servant who
understood this very well. Let us honor his life and service by embracing
those qualities of ‘love and wisdom and compassion
‘.

Benedict XVI baptizes 21: our destiny is full communion with God in eternal happiness


Pope in the Sistine Jan 9 2011.jpg

The papal
tradition of baptizing infants has been in place for some time. In addition to
baptizing converts at the Easter Vigil, Pope John Paul II annually popularized
the Rite of Baptism on the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, and since his
election 5 years ago, Benedict has continued it. The newly baptized typically
are newborn babies. Today, the Sistine Chapel was the magnificent setting for
21 infants ranging between four weeks to four months; all are children of
Vatican employees. May God grant the newly baptized the grace of forgiveness of
Original Sin, enlightenment, regeneration as a new person in Christ, and
adoption as a son or daughter of God. Pope speaks very clearly about today’s Scripture for Mass and the theology of the Liturgy we celebrated today. The Pope’s homily follows:

It is my
pleasure to warmly welcome you this morning, especially you parents and
godparents of the 21 infants upon whom, in a few moments time, I will have the
joy of administering the Sacrament of Baptism. As has become tradition, this
ritual takes place again this year as part of the Holy Eucharist during which
we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord. With this the Feast, on the first Sunday
after the Epiphany, the Christmas season concludes with the manifestation of
the Lord in the Jordan.

Continue reading Benedict XVI baptizes 21: our destiny is full communion with God in eternal happiness

Msgr. James Moroney talks about new Missal translation

James P. Moroney.jpgIn some corners of the church world the sacred Liturgy is a very neuralgic topic. But it does not need to be painful. There are those who will complain about anything and they doing just that over the forthcoming new translations of the 2002 Roman Missal due to be published on the First Sunday of Advent 2011. The 2002 Missal was published in Latin by Pope John Paul II and it needed to be translated. Today, the Worcester Telegram published a benign and positive with a few good details about the translations.

Monsignor James P. Moroney, is a wonderful man and a great priest. He’s a priest of the Diocese of Worcester, MA, and is currently the Rector of the Cathedral of Saint Paul; Moroney was the head of the US Bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship for several years and he continues to serve as the executive secretary of Vox Clara, the Vatican committee appointed to oversee the liturgical translations.
Today’s article on Monsignor Moroney is here.

Copts demand religious freedom and protection in Rome, Milan & Vienna

Copts in Rome Jan 9 2011.jpg

In my opinion the public and peaceful demonstration of 500 in downtown Rome today of Coptic Christians expressing their need for religious freedom and protection following recent murders in Egypt is the best thing that they could’ve done to draw world attention to their plight. Lacking is clear, consistent media coverage of the plight of Christians in Islamic lands. Another group of 200 demonstrated in Milan. A similar time of prayer happened in Vienna.

Baptism of the Lord

Baptism of Christ Cima da Conegliano.jpg“A voice came from the heavens, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”


The Baptism in the Jordan returns to the great
Christmas theme of ‘Christification’, Jesus of Nazareth’s spiritual anointing,
His presentation as the Anointed One per excellence, the Messiah or the One
sent by the Father for the salvation of mankind. The Spirit that descended on Jesus shows and seals in an
incontrovertible way the ‘Christification’ of Jesus’ humanity that the Word had
already fulfilled from the first moment of His miraculous conception by
Mary. Jesus, from the very
beginning, was always the Lord’s Christ, He was always God. …the Baptism in the
Jordan presents yet another truth: that Jesus has started a new creation. He is the second man (1 Cor 15:47) or
the last Adam (1 Cor 15:45), that comes to repair the first Adam’s guilt.  He does this as the Lamb of God that
takes away our sins. ‘Looking at
the events in light of the Cross and Resurrection, the Christian people
realised what happened: Jesus loaded the burden of all mankind’s guilt upon His
shoulders; he bore it down into the depths of the Jordan.  He inaugurated his public activity by
stepping into the place of sinners.’ 
(Joseph Ratzinger, Jesus of Nazareth, Bloomsbury 2007, p. 18)


Excerpt from the Letter from Cong. pro Clericus, 2011