It's almost Thanksgiving ... and Fr. Perrone goes to Confession!

Fr. Eduard Perrone, "A Pastor's Descant" (Assumption Grotto News, November 19, 2017)

This week we observe the second of the three great holidays, Thanksgiving Day. Second? Yes, when one figures in Halloween which, according to news reports, is the second most celebrated American holiday, second only to the December one which everyone used to call Christmas. (Word is out that President Trump has declared that it's once again OK to say, "Merry Christmas." That may be reassuring to some, but to those who never championed political correctness it is, in an ironic bit of pointing the finger, "fake news.")

Thanksgiving Day is worthy of Christian endorsement so long as we recall that there's an object to our thanks -- namely God -- to whom we owe our very existence as well as everything we have. As I remarked in a pastor's column of some past year, secular society gladly embraces Thanksgiving Day for its commercial potential (kicking off, as they say, the holiday spending spree) and for the momentary reprieve of work. One may openly express thankfulness for anything whatever if it is left unsaid that the gratitude must be direct to the Almighty.


Just this past week I made thanksgiving to God for one of the most precious of His gifts to me as a Catholic: the absolution of my sins. (In case you didn't know, priests not only hear confessions but make themselves penitents of other priests.) It so happened that this confession was in close proximity to my birthday (the admission of which is not meant to cue a raucous rendition of the familiar dirge). Confession, I would say, is a great Catholic way of celebrating one's birthday, compelling one to recollect one's utter dependence upon God for forgiveness, for His grace, for life itself. Going to confession ought not to make one grumpy and cross. I'm reminded of what I once read about a composer Igor Stravinsky who would faithfully go to confession on his birthday, the prospect of which would put the composer, in his own words, "in a mood," that is, crabby.

The confession of my sins reminds me of my lowly place under God's infinitely vast empire and that I must ever be grateful to Him for His merciful indulgence to my sinful self. Going to confession also reminds me of what it is to be a penitent in my confessional who must not only accuse himself of his sins before God, but who must also own up to his wrongdoings before a priest, one who is as fallible as another -- so that I will not easily to be compassionate and understanding of penitents. I have posted a few choice scriptural quotes on the door of my confessional. These help me to be kindly disposed to those beggars of divine mercy who come to me to be freed of the burden of their consciences. Should ever I fail in this and get uppity or impatient with you in confession, do me the charity of asking me to read the bible verses on my confessional door. That should awaken a needed humility and spare me a severe judgment from the Judge of judges.

Last week's somewhat panicky pastor's Descant forecasting a gloomy future for our parish Forty Hours devotion appears to have been overwrought. Attendance for the closing Mass at noon last Sunday was good and there always seemed to be someone adoring our Lord during the hours of Exposition. The real credit for the devotion, of course, goes to the benevolent Christ who makes Himself and His graces available during this sacred time. I want to make the Forty Hours a great spiritual success for our people and I would be sad to let go of it when we have held on to it so tenaciously these many years. Accordingly, I have asked a small committee to be formed for securing the future of the Forty Hourse Devotion in our parish. They would meet in September next year to plan for a greater participation and greater solemnity for this traditional parish service.

You will note the near completion of the handicapped entrance ramp on the church's south side, a project that has taken an unduly long time to come to completion. If its serviceability matches its fine looks, I would say that we will have a worthy addition -- or rather replacement entryway -- to our majestic church structure.

Fr. Perrone

Fr. Perrone on Advent: Killjoy or comfort?

Fr. Eduard Perrone, "A Pastor's Descant" (Assumption Grotto News, December 4, 2016):

Advent proposes to us multiple senses of Christ's coming: in the historical past, the present, and the yet to come. One aspect of this most of us would rather not ponder is His coming as the Judge of every man's conscience. I have been meditating on this in my early morning orisons of the past week only to rediscover its poignancy to affect the deep interior of my soul.

Meditating on the Last Judgment is about self confrontation as much as about being judged. I wonder whether my life's evaluation then will set me among the sheep sequestered from the goats (the hymn Dies Irae). A standard of self-measure is whether I will have been found a friend or an enemy of christ's cross. The feast of Saint Andrew last Wednesday brought this to my mind. When he beheld the cross that had been prepared for his own death, he exclaimed, "O desired cross, receive a disciple of Christ: by means of you may He receive me." Applied to myself, I wonder whether I will have been so converted from my selfness as to have become worthy of the cross of Christ -- or in St. Paul's words, whether I had been crucified with Christ so as to have taken on His life. Like a simple home self-administered medical-test, I can guage somewhat where I will stand before God.

This sober reflection takes some of the saccharine coating off of our pre-holiday frivolities -- sorry to be the killjoy. But what use is the pretense of yet another Christmas season if we have not assumed a Christian identity, that of a son of God with an inheritance of Christ's eternal riches?

You owe it to yourself to picture the arrival of the Judge, and yourself beneathHis judgment seat when all your life's story will be an open book. Every thought, desire and deed ... made public. I can't bear now to anticipate the terrible sound of anger in the voice of the Just Judge in pronouncing His verdict for the damned, "Depart from Me." I need rather to imagine His encouraging word that gives me the hope that my repentance now will have been sincere enough, that my amendment of life sufficient so as to hear His voice of comfort (the word literally means strength) mediated through the Church: "speak tenderly to Jerusalem for her guilt is expiated" (Isaiah). Living now, in the time before the final judgment, I must ever be somewhat uneasy, unsure. Whether I will be set on the right or the left I cannot know with certainty. With neither presumption nor despair, I have hope to see my God face to face -- His of a radiant, rapturous look of divine love. This is the advent I long for. That I'm unworthy of it goes without saying; but I have no other goal in life but this. For the present time, this advent, I pray for deliverance from the evils I can yet commit, the only obstacles to the attainment of my desire. I could never have this hope without the invasion of divine grace into my miserable soul and the steadying patronage of the holy Virgin Mary. This for me is advent. Speaking of Her reminds me that Thursday coming is a holy day of obligation, in Her honor: the Immaculate Conception. Under this title She is patroness of our country for which we have been praying daily. Masses on Thursday will be as on a Sunday (6:30, 9:30, noon) plus an evening Mass at 7:00 p.m. (To anticipate your question: 'No. The evening Mass on Wednesday will not be of the holy day.')

Fr. Perrone

Tridentine Community News - Fr. Marczewski to take new post in CA; End-of-life directives; EF vs. OF terminology for feast days; TLM schedule for this coming week

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (June 19, 2016):

June 19, 2016 – Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

Fr. Marczewski to Take New Post in California

For many years, Orchard Lake Seminary Professor Fr. Robert Marczewski has been the principal celebrant of the Tridentine Masses held at St. Josaphat Church. Now he is about to undertake a new step in his vocation by becoming one of the chaplains at Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, California. Next Sunday, June 26, there will be a farewell Tridentine Mass for Fr. Marczewski at 12:00 Noon at St. Joseph Church. A reception will follow the Mass. Please note that there will be no 8:30 AM Mass at St. Josaphat on June 26.

End of Life Directives

Every Catholic should take every step possible to provide for a good and holy death. Ideally this means that prior to death, a person should receive the Sacrament of Extreme Unction, Confession, Viáticum (Holy Communion), and the Apostolic Pardon. With Roman Ritual books having been reprinted in recent years, the resources exist to receive these Sacraments according to the Extraordinary Form, as long as you have a willing priest. If you have questions or would like help in being prepared for this eventuality, please e-mail the address at the bottom of this page.

A second consideration is keeping family and medical personnel informed of your wishes in the case of declining faculties. The National Catholic Bioethics Center has prepared a document that can help in this process: “A Catholic Guide to End of Life Decisions” is available for $2.50, in printed or downloadable form. In addition to guidelines, it includes two important sample legal documents that conform to Catholic teaching on end-of-life care: an Advance Medical Directive (also known as a Living Will) [your directives to others about your care] and a Health Care Proxy (also known as a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care) [your designation of another individual to make decisions about your care]. For further information or to order a copy, visit: www.ncbcenter.org/publications/end-life-guide/

Extraordinary Form vs. Ordinary Form Terminology for Feast Days

The Catholic Calendar contains four primary classifications of Feast Days. Though the terminology has changed over the years, the concepts remain fairly consistent. The Vatican has established that those of us who follow the Extraordinary Form are to use the rubrics of 1962, plus whatever adaptations have been issued since the establishment of the Pontifical Commission Ecclésia Dei in 1988. Because so many hand missals exist, both originals and reprints, from the era prior to 1962, it is worth mentioning the former terminology.

First Class Feasts (Extraordinary Form 1962) / Doubles of the First Class (Extraordinary Form 1960 and prior) / Solemnities (Ordinary Form): These are the most important Feasts of the Church Year. Examples include Christmas, the days of Holy Week, Easter, Pentecost, and the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. A Funeral Mass, also known as the Exequial Mass, is classified as First Class. The Feast of the Patron Saint of a Parish or Diocese, and the Anniversary of the Dedication of the Cathedral of a Diocese are also First Class, though in practice the latter is rarely given note at the parish level.

Second Class Feasts (EF 1962) / Doubles of the Second Class (EF 1960 and prior) / Feasts (OF): These are significant but not primary Feasts. Sundays After Pentecost, the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and the Feasts of the Apostles are examples. The Greater Ferias of Advent, which are the Ferias in the week before Christmas, are a rare example of Ferias elevated to Second Class, as the Church wants the faithful to focus on preparing for the commemoration of our Lord’s Nativity. A Nuptial [Wedding] Mass is classified as Second Class, however it may not take place on a Sunday. If a Wedding Mass is scheduled on a First Class Feast Day, then the Mass of the Feast is observed instead of the Nuptial Mass Propers.

Third Class Feasts (EF 1962) / Greater Doubles, Doubles, and Semidoubles (EF 1960 and prior) / Memorials (OF): Most weekday Masses are Third Class Feasts, such as St. Hedwig, St. Lucy, and St. Ignatius Loyola. The Ferias of Lent and the Ferias of Advent excepting those in the week before Christmas are also Third Class Feasts, as the Church does not want them to be as easily replaceable as Fourth Class Feasts (see below). A Requiem Mass celebrated on the third, seventh, or thirtieth day after death is classified as Third Class.

Fourth Class Feasts (EF 1962) / Simples and Commemorations (EF 1960 and prior) / Optional Memorials (OF): These are either Ferias (repetition of the previous Sunday’s Mass Propers) or Saints of lesser significance. On Fourth Class Feasts, the Church allows for substitution of other Mass Propers at the celebrant’s discretion. In Windsor, there has always been strong demand for Requiem Masses – the Daily Mass for the Dead, usually followed by the ceremony of Absolution at the Catafalque – on many Fourth Class Feasts. Other options on Fourth Class Feasts include using one of the Votive Masses, such as the Votive Mass of the Angels or the Votive Mass for Pilgrims and Travelers. The Mass of any Saint may also be offered on any Fourth Class Feria.

Nowadays, we should strive to use the appropriate 1962 terminology, even though it might be tempting to fall back upon familiar language used in the Ordinary Form. For instance, one should refer to the “Feast of Pentecost” rather than the “Solemnity of Pentecost” in our calendar.

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

• Mon. 06/20 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Josaphat (St. Silverius, Pope & Martyr)
• Tue. 06/21 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Rosary Chapel at Assumption Church (St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Confessor) - Special location this week only
• Sat. 06/25 8:30 AM: Low Mass at Miles Christi (St. William, Abbot)
• Sun. 06/26: No Mass at St. Josaphat
• Sun. 06/26 12:00 Noon: High Mass at St. Joseph (Sixth Sunday After Pentecost) - Farewell Mass for Fr. Robert Marczewski

[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@detroitlatinmass.org. Previous columns are available at http://www.detroitlatinmass.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Albertus (Detroit), Academy of the Sacred Heart (Bloomfield Hills), and St. Alphonsus and Holy Name of Mary Churches (Windsor) bulletin inserts for June 19, 2016. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Fr. Perrone on Corpus Christi, Memorial Day, the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the canonization of Stanislaus Papcaynski, and the summer weekday Mass schedule at Assumption Grotto

Fr. Eduard Perrone, "A Pastor's Descant" (Assumption Grotto News, May 29, 2016):

Many things to relate to you today.

Today's feast day of Corpus Christi directs our minds to become more mindful of the great Reality of the Lord's sacred Body and Blood made present to us through the gift of the priesthood. Recently I spoke to the congregation about being more vigilant in their manner of reception of Holy Communion. Today's Eucharistic theme is an offshoot of this, centered more on the adoration of our Eucharistic Lord. While many communicate, too few adore the Lord in the Holy Sacrament. This makes me wonder whether the paucity of adorers is due to inadvertence, neglect, indifference, or rather to want of true faith in the Real Presence. No matter the reason, we, recipients of this heavenly Treasure, ought to reverently adore the Lord Almighty concealed in the Sacred Host.

Today's Mass and chants, its procession with multiple benedictions (following the noon Mass) will attempt to bring greater awareness of what we have in this Sacrament and what other christian believers have not. Our Ushers will offer food and beverage, for those who wish them, after the conclusion of today's noon Mass and procession.

Monday is Memorial Day. Remembering is becoming a rarity in this face-paced age when important things, on that account, are held in ever diminished regard. We are simply too busy about doing whatever is before us to pause and be mindful of the sacrifices of others which have made our relative well-being in this land possible. Specifically, we should take this time to ponder the worth of our great nation which motivated valorous deeds even unto the loss of life in defense of her. Catholics, nearly alone among Christians, will do much more than honor the dead on Memorial Day. They will pray for the eternal reward of the faithful departed. They do this by offering Holy Mass, gaining indulgences for them, making other prayers and doing deeds in supplication to God for the mitigation of the suffering of purgatory. Our two Masses this Monday (no evening Mass!) will be 7:30 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., the latter will include prayers in our cemetery and complimentary doughnuts and coffee offered in the lounge afterward.

Friday this week will be the solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a feast we have not paid sufficient attention to in recent years. This year we hope you will make a special effort to join us for the evening Mass which will be done with due solemnity. An ice cream social will follow. These are indeed poor efforts on our part to express gratitude to our Lord for having opened the love and mercy of His Sacred Heart to us, and the grant of special graces of a more intimate kind for those particularly devoted to Him through the revelation of His Sacred Heart.

Next Sunday, June 5, there will be yet one more special observance in the 9:30 Mass wherein we will celebrate, along with the whole Order of Marians, the canonization of its founder Sanislaus Papcaynski. The canonization ceremony itself will take place in Rome. Here we will give thanks to God for the inspiration He gave for the founding of a religious order which may in God's good time enjoy a new planting in our parish. On this day we will rejoice with Brother Esteban and his companions. Those attending the 9:30 Mass will also be invited to the gym afterward for a dinner hosted by him and his supporters for which a free-will offering may be made.

I conclude with a notice from May 31 until August ` there will not be weekday evening Masses. I regret this in view of the spiritual good of the people who cannot attend Mass in the morning. The reality, however, is that with only two parish priests and their summertime schedules away from the parish, and with the restriction of Canon Law which does not permit a priest to say more than one weekday Mass unless there is a real necessity (a funeral, for example), there cannot be both an evening and a morning weekday Masses here during this period of June and July. I can offer a note of consolation in that Brother Esteban has agreed to distribute Holy Communion each evening in these months at 7:00 p.m., preceded by the readings from the scripture of the Mass of the day. This is, needless to say, a great benefit. Although it is not the offering of the sacrifice of the Mass it is a sharing in its inestimable fruit.

Fr. Perrone

Happy New Year!

• عيد رأس السنة (Arabic)
• Честита Нова Година! (Bulgarian)
• Feliç Any Nou! (Catalan)
• San nin faailok! (Cantonese)
• 新年好 (Chinese)
• Sretna Nova Godina! (Croatian)
• Stastny Novy Rok (Czech)
• Godt nytår! (Danish)
• Gelukkig Nieuwjaar! (Dutch)
• Sal-e no mubarak! (Farsi)
• Onnellista uutta vuotta! (Finnish)
• Zalig Nieuw Jaar! (Flemish)
• Bonne année! (French)
• Ein Glückliches neues Jahr! (German)
• Blian nua faoi mhaise duit! (Gaelic)
• Ευτυχισμένο το Νέο Έτος (Greek)
• Shana tova! (Hebrew)
• नया साल मुबारक हो (Hindi)
• Selamat Tahun Baru (Indonesian)
• Felice Anno Nuovo! (Italian)
• 明けましておめでとう! (Japanese)
• 새해 복 많이 받으세요. (Korean)
• Bonum annum ingrediaris! (Latin)
• Linksmu Nauju Metu! (Lithuanian)
• Selamat Tahun baru! (Malayan)
• Kong He Xin Xi! (Mandarin)
• Godt Nytt År! (Norwegian)
• Szczęśliwego Nowego Roku! (Polish)
• Feliz Ano Novo! (Portuguese)
• La Multi Ani! (Romanian)
• С новым годом! (S Novym Godom! - Russian)
• Сретна Нова Година! (Serbian)
• Srechno Novo Leto! (Slovenian)
• Feliz Ano Nuevo! (Spanish)
• Masaganang Bagong taon! (Tagalog)
• Yeni Yiliniz Kutlu Olsun! (Turkish)
• Вітаю з Новим роком! (Ukrainian)
• Chúc mừng năm mới! (Vietnamese)
• Blwyddyn Newydd Dda! (Welsh)

Fr. Perrone: Seeking Advent deliverance after Thanksgiving

Fr. Eduard Perrone, "A Pastor's Descant" [temporary link] (Assumption Grotto News, November 29, 2015):

A new liturgical year commences on the heels of the day of Thanksgiving when we acknowledge God’s goodness for His many blessings. At least, that was the original idea behind the American holiday. While I am writing still in anticipation of Thanksgiving I can say that I am in the mood for the change of season. Perhaps it was the sudden and generous downpour of snow last weekend that made me look forward to a liturgical shift.

I have always had a love for Advent but have always been disappointed that it’s so short a time. One hardly begins to feel that longing of the people of the Old Testament for deliverance by the Messiah–which is recaptured in spirit at this time–when, suddenly, the great Day comes upon us.

To help nurse that special Advent feeling along I have reproduced a hymn for the season that I sang in my youth. It is now to be found in our hymnals, glued onto a page of otherwise negligible music. The hymn is a paraphrase of the prophetic text from Isaiah, so poetic and so expressive of the spirit of longing for the Messiah: “Drop down dew, O gracious heaven.” It took some scouting to find this now forgotten hymn. None of the hymnals I consulted (and I have several of them) had it but the one, a somewhat offbeat publication from the olden days. (I can’t understand why no other hymn book carries this text and melody when the Advent time is so well captured by it.) The words of the hymn speak to the sky, asking that the dew of the Holy Spirit come down and make fertile–not the earth–but the Holy Virgin Mary who will bear the Messiah within Her. We need this supplement to the season’s hymns since “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” and “On Jordan’s Bank”–nice as they are–can use a little help to convey to us the Advent spirit. I hope this hymn will strike a sympathetic chord in your hearts and assist you in making this year’s Advent a little more meaningful.

The trappings of Christmas have well begun making their way into the secular world, as I was to discover the week before Thanksgiving (already!) while doing a little food shopping. The music included the refrain, “...soon it will be Christmas day.” Well, not really all that “soon.” Perhaps the commercial world would find it more profitable to play Christmas ditties all year round so that we’d soon become sick of it and make a determined effort to ‘change our tune.’ I know I say something about this kind of spoliation of Christmas every year and I do it because it ruins, if not Christmas Day, at least Advent for many people, a time which ought to be a season of vigilant waiting for Christ, a time of penitence–milder than in Lent–and a season of a sobriety that’s meant to deepen the space in our souls for a greater possession of Christ.

The cookie sale to benefit our St. Vincent de Paul Helpers seemed to do well last Sunday. The decorative used Christmas items will be made available again next weekend for you to make some bargain purchases. Our Helpers have done a lot of good in the short time that they have been in existence. I’m glad that they are dedicated to this corporal work of mercy.

We have acquired a small practice pipe organ that you will see in the lounge. It came from a parish church that was installing a larger pipe organ and which needed to find a good home for the former instrument. You may note that many parishes nowadays have only keyboards for use as a synthesized piano (a secular instrument that should not be in churches anyway) or synthesized organ. This real instrument will help us in our music program as well as give organ student a place to practice. I caution all parishioners, however, that this is not a toy for children and that it’s not to played by anyone without permission. Piano students are not entitled to play it. It is a true instrument given to us–a great gift indeed.

Fr. Perrone

Squanto was a baptized Catholic - and other pre-Protestant sources of Thanksgiving in America

Michael Voris, "Beyond Thankful" (CM, November 26, 2015):

Thanksgiving specifically and in general is the quintessential Catholic holiday. First the specific case: Despite having had shoveled into the minds of many students at government-run schools, the first historical Thanksgiving did not occur between the Protestant Puritans and Native Americans in 1621.

The first historical Thanksgiving meal actually happened 56 years earlier on September 8, 1565 in St. Augustine, Florida. (By the way, the correct pronunciation is St. Augustine, not the more Protestant variation of St. Augustine, which takes the emphasis off the "Saint.") The new Spanish settlers sat down for a banquet with the local indian tribes and Holy Mass was offered.

Remember, the Catholic Spanish and the Catholic French beat the Protestant English to North America by almost an entire century. That was the first historical Thanksgiving. But there was a first official Thanksgiving dinner as well in America, and that was held in Texas in connection with Don Juan declaring it officially and having a meal with the natives, as well as, once again, the offering of the Sacrifice of the Mass.

And if that's not enough to demonstrate that Thanksgiving actually has its roots in Catholicism, consider that the Native American who worked out arrangements between the Puritans and the Indians, Squanto, was actually a baptized Catholic. Spanish forces freed him from English captivity, and he was subsequently baptized into the One True Faith. He of course went on to organize what has become known as the first Thanksgiving, but in reality is at least the third such occurrence.

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Mother's Day hilarity and profundity from Fr. Perrone

Fr. Eduard Perrone, "A Pastor's Descant" [temporary link] (Assumption Grotto News, May 10, 2015)

In a home school reading class we are reading a book which has certain passages in Elizabethan English. Such texts are charming to read and–at times–intriguing to decipher. I offer to you here a text in celebration of today’s secular observance taken from a pastor’s column from some legendary past time–first in contemporary English for your easy comprehension, and then in its original form. In my modern translation it reads:

To whom it may concern: Happy Parent B Day! you birthing persons and child-care givers. Though you were selfish in your inability to control your desires to have offspring, and though you have, as a result, burdened the environment and consumed precious resources of Earth–Blessed be It!–in order to provide for them, have nice day, all the same.

I now quote the original text:

To those irreplaceable ladies deserving of praise: Happy Mothers Day! you who gave birth to and loving cared for your children. How generous of you in sacrificing yourselves to become mothers and in providing for your children at great personal expense in feeding, clothing and educating them with all that almighty God–Blessed be He!–gave you. May you be specially honored and blessed for this today!

Ah, yes! It is with nostalgia that we look back to former times when motherhood was honored, not as a means of personal fulfillment for certain women who made that their choice, but for the noble and indispensable role mothers have in God’s plan for the human race.....

In a more sober vein, I will have a word about Holy Mary, our spiritual mother and Mother of Christ, about Her own indispensable part in God’s plan for the human race, precisely as a mother–not only in the obvious sense of Her divine maternity through consenting to what was revealed to Her by the Archangel, but also in the sense of Her place in establishing, with and under Christ, the new order, the new Testament, the new religion of Christ. I’m thinking here of the fascinating event that took place at the wedding in Cana. Notice that it was Mary’s astute observation which precipitated the miracle our Lord was to perform. “They have no wine,” She said. As in the case of Saint John’s writings, there is a deeper significance to this than may appear at first. Our Lady was not only noticing an approaching predicament for the wedding guests, but one for all of Israel whose people had become spiritually depleted. The miracle of Christ made the new and superior ‘wine’ of the New Testament: a new faith, a new sacrifice, ceremonies and sacraments. But what concern was this of Hers? Indeed, that’s the very question Christ put to Her, not in order to belittle Her (as some have thought) but to indicate that She indeed has that concern because She has claim to the graces Christ imparts. The interceding, mediating role of Mary is one part of Her spiritual maternity. (The greater part is being the literal Mother of Christ.) We will meet with Her again on Pentecost Sunday where Her maternal position in the Church is highlighted further. Although She was not one of the apostles, She was there with them, mothering them and through them the entire Church. This event was somewhat of a parallel to the incarnation: Mary, by the fertility of the hovering of the Holy Spirit, brought about a conception and a birth: the first time to Christ; at Pentecost to the Church, His mystical body.

If even in today’s radically secularized world we have a remnant of recognition for the indispensable place of mothers, we Christians ought not to forget as well the necessary place of Holy Mary (by God’s choosing) in bringing about the salvation of mankind.

Today, at the noon Mass, we will celebrate First Holy Communion for some of our children. How much we wish this to be a memorable day for them with their beloved Jesus, and the first of many devout receptions of the Holy Sacrament! In an image from the Book of Revelation, one can see a dragon ready to devour the offspring of the woman–the evil one scheming to snatch these innocent ones from the hand of God. May Holy Mother Mary keep them ever near Christ through His sacraments!

Fr. Perrone

Tridentine Community News - "Sanctifying Time"

"I will go in unto the Altar of God
To God, Who giveth joy to my youth"
Tridentine Community News by Alex Begin (April 12, 2015):

The Catholic Gentleman blog (www.catholicgentleman.net) ran a post on February 24 entitled “Sanctifying Time: The Catholic Meaning of Days and Months”. With the permission of author Sam Guzman, we excerpt from the post:

“...The liturgical cycle gives shape and meaning to the year, and each season brings new significance. But the liturgical year is just the beginning. Did you know Mother Church has also assigned meaning to each day and month of the year? It’s true. Let’s briefly examine the significance of each day and month.

Sunday: The Holy Trinity - ...Sunday is the first day of the week and the day when we offer God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit our praise, adoration, and thanksgiving.

Monday: The Angels – ...Angels are powerful guardians, and each of us is protected by one. Many of the saints had a great devotion to the angels in general and to their guardian angel in particular.

Tuesday: The Apostles – The Catholic Church is apostolic. That is, it is founded on the authority and teaching of the apostles, most especially that of St. Peter to whom Jesus gave the keys of his kingdom. Each bishop is a direct successor of the apostles.

Wednesday: Saint Joseph – Saint Joseph is known as the prince and chief patron of the Church. As the earthly father of Jesus, he had a special role in protecting, providing for, and instructing Jesus during his earthly life. Now that Christ is ascended into heaven, St. Joseph continues his fatherly guardianship of Christ’s body, the Church.

Thursday: The Holy Eucharist – Our Lord instituted the most Holy Eucharist on a Thursday, so it is fitting that we remember this greatest of sacraments on this day. The Eucharist is the greatest gift of God to mankind, as it is nothing less than Jesus himself...

Friday: The Passion – Jesus was scourged, mocked, and crucified on a Friday. Because of this, the Church has always set aside Fridays of days of penance and sacrifice. ... This day should always be a day of repentance and a day in which we recall Christ’s complete self-sacrifice to save us from our sins.

Saturday: Our Lady – There are a number of theological reasons Saturdays are dedicated to Our Lady, perhaps the most significant is that on Holy Saturday, when everyone else had abandoned Christ in the tomb, she was faithful to him, confidently waiting for his resurrection on the first day of the week.

January: The Holy Name of Jesus – ... The Catechism sums up the power of this name beautifully: “The name ‘Jesus’ contains all: God and man and the whole economy of creation and salvation. To pray ‘Jesus’ is to invoke him and to call him within us”...

February: The Holy Family – The Holy Family is an earthly reflection of the Holy Trinity. By meditating on the Holy Family, we can learn the meaning of love, obedience, and true fatherhood and motherhood. We are also reminded that the family is the foundational unit of both society and the Church.

March: St. Joseph – St. Joseph is the icon of God the Father: silent but active and perfectly providing for the needs of all. The Church constantly invokes the protection of St. Joseph, admonishing us to ite ad Joseph, go to Joseph.

April: The Blessed Sacrament – Holy Church is the guardian of the Holy Eucharist. For two thousand years, she has guarded this treasure, administering it to the faithful and proclaiming that it is nothing less than Jesus himself. We can never be too devoted to the Blessed Sacrament or show it too much honor.

May: The Blessed Virgin Mary – Our Lady has long been associated with the beauty of flowers and the coming of spring. This is fitting because she is both beautiful and the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the life of the world. In May, the Church remembers our glorious lady with crownings and processions in her honor.

June: The Sacred Heart of Jesus – The Sacred Heart of Jesus is the revelation of God’s immense love for us. It is often depicted as a fiery furnace, pierced and broken, but beating with love. The Sacred Heart is also a profound reminder of the humanity of our Lord...

July: The Precious Blood – The blood of Christ saves us from sin. It is the blood of Christ that gives us the hope of heaven. ... Without the blood of Christ shed for us, all would be lost.

August: The Immaculate Heart of Mary – The heart of Mary is a motherly heart, a heart full of love and mercy for her children. The heart of Mary is also the channel through which all the graces of God flow down to us. She is “our life, our sweetness, and our hope.”

September: The Seven Sorrows of Mary – Aside from Jesus, no human being has suffered more than our Blessed Mother. In perfect obedience to the will of God, she consented to her son’s torture, humiliation, and brutal executed for our salvation. As any parent knows, watching one’s child suffer is the greatest suffering of all. She still bears the sufferings of her divine Son in her heart.

October: The Holy Rosary – The rosary is one of the most powerful weapons the Church possesses. We are constantly exhorted by saints, popes, and Our Lord and Our Lady themselves to pray this simple yet profound prayer. Accordingly, Mother Church has set aside a whole month to the promotion of this prayer.

November: The Souls in Purgatory – The souls in purgatory are suffering a great deal, and they cannot pray for themselves. They are our brothers and sisters, and as members of the body of Christ, we must pray and offer sacrifices for those who have gone before us, asking that they may rest in the light of God’s presence.

December: The Immaculate Conception – ... In the Immaculate Conception, Mary was without sin from the first moment of her conception. She is perfectly united forever to her spouse, the Holy Spirit. Their fruitful union produced a wedding of heaven and earth in the God-Man, Jesus Christ...

The Church takes seriously the call to sanctify all things, even time. The Catholic significance of days and months is a profound reminder that our lives are finite, and that time should not be squandered. As the Psalmist said, “teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Ps. 90:12). But more than anything, it reminds us that time is a gift from God, and with him and through him, all things are holy....”

Tridentine Masses This Coming Week

Mon. 04/13 7:00 PM: Low Mass at St. Josaphat (St. Hermenegild, Martyr)

Tue. 04/14 7:00 PM: Low Mass at Holy Name of Mary (St. Justin, Martyr)

[Comments? Please e-mail tridnews@detroitlatinmass.org. Previous columns are available at http://www.detroitlatinmass.org. This edition of Tridentine Community News, with minor editions, is from the St. Albertus (Detroit), Academy of the Sacred Heart (Bloomfield Hills), and St. Alphonsus and Holy Name of Mary Churches (Windsor) bulletin inserts for April 12, 2015. Hat tip to Alex Begin, author of the column.]

Some politically incorrect things to appreciate about Martin Luther King, Jr.

I'm sure there are some who would find readily-available reasons for criticizing Martin Luther King, Jr. Despite his iconic stature in contemporary American political culture, his feet were made of clay, like all mortals. But around this time of year when the legacy of King is regularly enlisted in the support of everything from pro-abortion and pro-gay Democrat agendas, it's always nice to note some facts that such an agenda would regard as "inconvenient truths."

• He was unequivocally pro-life, despite "abortion-rights" advocates' attempt to draft him in service of their cause, even to the point of Planned Parenthood awarding him the Margaret Sanger Award in 1966. He stridently denounced abortion as a form of genocide in many speeches. Backstory.
  
  
• He unequivocally appealed to the Bible and traditional Christian values in his sermons, speeches, and writings. In fact, the strength of his appeal in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s was to the Christian conscience of the nation, which was still then not quite entirely eroded.
  
  
• He called on the support of the Catholic theological tradition of natural and eternal law. For example, in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail, he quoted from St. Thomas Aquinas' "Treatise on Law" (Summa Theologiae, I-II, QQ. 90-114), where he writes: "To put it in the terms of St. Thomas Aquinas: An unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural law" (showing that he still believed in a higher law than human law, unlike Senator Biden, who opposed the nomination of Supreme Court Judge Clarence Thomas because the latter believed, like all informed faithful Catholics, in "natural law"); and, again quoting from Aquinas, said that he would agree with St. Augustine that "an unjust law is no law at all" (quoted from Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, I-II, Q. 96, a. 4).
  
  
• He opposed perpetuating an attitude of perpetual victimization and entitlement. He did believe equity allowed for a place for just restitution, compensatory treatment for years of oppression, but not for any privileges beyond that based on accidents of race or color. Rather, he believed in fairness and equity: "I have a dream," he famously declared, "that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." Amen to that.

Happy New Year!!!

• عيد رأس السنة (Arabic)
• Честита Нова Година! (Bulgarian)
• Feliç Any Nou! (Catalan)
• San nin faailok! (Cantonese)
• 新年好 (Chinese)
• Sretna Nova Godina! (Croatian)
• Stastny Novy Rok (Czech)
• Godt nytår! (Danish)
• Gelukkig Nieuwjaar! (Dutch)
• Sal-e no mubarak! (Farsi)
• Onnellista uutta vuotta! (Finnish)
• Zalig Nieuw Jaar! (Flemish)
• Bonne année! (French)
• Ein Gleuckliches neues Jahr! (German)
• Blian nua faoi mhaise duit! (Gaelic)
• Ευτυχισμένο το Νέο Έτος (Greek)
• Shana tova! (Hebrew)
• नया साल मुबारक हो (Hindi)
• Selamat Tahun Baru (Indonesian)
• Felice Anno Nuovo! (Italian)
• 明けましておめでとう! (Japanese)
• 새해 복 많이 받으세요. (Korean)
• Bonum annum ingrediaris! (Latin)
• Linksmu Nauju Metu! (Lithuanian)
• Selamat Tahun baru! (Malayan)
• Kong He Xin Xi! (Mandarin)
• Godt Nytt År! (Norwegian)
• Szczęśliwego Nowego Roku! (Polish)
• Feliz Ano Novo! (Portuguese)
• La Multi Ani! (Romanian)
• С новым годом! (S Novym Godom! - Russian)
• Сретна Нова Година! (Serbian)
• Srechno Novo Leto! (Slovenian)
• Feliz Ano Nuevo! (Spanish)
• Masaganang Bagong taon! (Tagalog)
• Yeni Yiliniz Kutlu Olsun! (Turkish)
• Вітаю з Новим роком! (Ukrainian)
• Chúc mừng năm mới! (Vietnamese)
• Blwyddyn Newydd Dda! (Welsh)

Christmas Greetings from the Twilight Zone

My esteemed friend and irrepressible pro-lifer, Dr. Monica Miller, emailed the following linked video to her colleagues and friends in the educational profession for Christmas, with the following remarks:

Dear Fellow Teachers-- You might find it odd that a Twilight Zone Episode would serve for a Christmas greeting-- but I urge that you watch this one-- In an attempt to chill out late at night I have discovered Twilight Zone and Alfred Hitchcock Presents episodes on You Tube-- as there simply isn't much worth watching on late night TV and Charlie Rose only goes so far! This episode is actually Christmas themed and I believe as educators you will find it very edifying and be reminded that what we do is so important and not lost! Please enjoy-- and a blessed Christmas to you all-- Monica in RST

Thanksgiving: Catholics did it first (facing East, no less)

Christine Niles, "Catholics Did It First" (Laudem Gloriae, November 16, 2011):

If you're anything like me and don't take kindly to celebrating a holiday commemorating a group of Calvinists who set up a Puritan theocracy in New England known for persecuting Catholics, then you can rest easy; the protestants were not the first to celebrate Thanksgiving in this country--Catholics were.

Saint Augustine, Florida is the oldest settlement in the United States, founded in 1565 by Spanish Catholic explorers. On first sighting land on August 28, the feast of St. Augustine, they named the city after him. On September 8, the Nativity of Mary, they came ashore with great fanfare--to the astonishment of the natives. A Mass of Thanksgiving was held, after which a communal feast was celebrated with the local Seloy tribe. It was the first communal thanksgiving celebration in the first permanently settled European colony on American soil.

Others say the date of April 30, 1598, is also significant: Spanish settlers from Mexico set up camp in the American Southwest, held a Mass of thanksgiving, and named the land New Mexico in honor of God and of their king, Philip II. A feast was held, with Franciscan priests blessing the food before everyone ate their fill. At the end of the meal, plays were enacted depicting scenes of Native Americans upon first hearing the Catholic faith.

But what about Plymouth Rock and Pilgrims, etc?

Queen Elizabeth had little patience for Catholics, but even less for Calvinists, who complained the Church of England remained too papist. In their desire to complete the Reformation and "purify" religion of popish trumperies, the Puritans broke from the Anglican Church, rejected the Book of Common Prayer, and preferred the anti-royalist Geneva Bible to the King James version. They instituted an independent congregationalist ideal that upheld the notion of the common priesthood of all believers, and thus granted an equal say among congregants in the election of the minister (some claim the roots of American democracy lie here). All of this naturally brought down on them the wrath of the Crown, and persecution commenced. A number of Puritans fled England and sought refuge in Holland, where they lived for a dozen years, before deciding to leave for the New World. After meeting another group of Puritans in Southampton, all boarded the Mayflower on September 16, 1620. Sixty-five days later, they sighted Cape Cod. The communal meal we know of as "Thanksgiving" took place in 1621 with about ninety Native Americans, and lasted three days.

After the Catholic Spanish were defeated by the British and driven out of the (largely Protestant) colonies, it became more expedient and attractive to focus on the 1621 date marking the arrival of the Pilgrims to celebrate this national holiday of thanksgiving--and Americans have done so ever since, entirely obliterating from national memory any influence from earlier Spanish Catholic settlers.

But don't let such revisionist history fool you; Catholics have as much claim to this celebration as anyone, if not more. And as all good Catholics know, eucharistia is Greek for "thanksgiving"--so be sure to leg it to Mass that day and pay your respects to the Giver of all good gifts.

Related:

A Tip of the Hat to our Vetrans

... and to Fr. Z.

Related: John Rao, "Why God “Stays His Hand”: A Brief Meditation on November 11th"

Something to think about on this 4th of July

The "America" we baby-boomers grew up in is gone, or at least nearly so. The "America" we live in is one rapidly changing into what some would call a "Post-American" Empire. American exceptionalism is not a Catholic doctrine, but there are some profound goods that graced this land in its history (and still do), alongside some profound evils.

I haven't yet seen this film, but the trailer below clearly shows that it musters some serious alternative points of view in the "Culture Wars" to think about, even if there is no clear Catholic perspective, either in the alternatives presented or in the vantage point from which the narrative is presented.

Father's Day: Swiss study shows father's role crucial in children's faith

A barely-noticed but large and important study conducted by the Swiss government in 1994 and published in 2000 revealed some astonishing facts about the generational transmission of religious faith and values:

• When the father and mother attend church regularly, 33% of their children end up as regular churchgoers.
• When the mother attends regularly but the father is non-practicing, only 2% of their children become regular churchgoers.
• When the father attends regularly but the mother is non-practicing, 44% of the children become regular churchgoers.

Why? Hard to say. Particularly, why is the result for regular churchgoing children higher when the mother alone is non-practicing than when both father and mother are practicing? Again, hard to say. What is clear is that the roles of fathers in their children's faith-formation is critical.

(The full title of the Swiss study is: “The Demographic Characteristics of the Linguistic and Religious Groups in Switzerland” [beginning on p. 113] by Werner Haug and Phillipe Warner of the Federal Statistical Office, Neuchatel. The study appears in Volume 2 of Population Studies No. 31, a book titled The Demographic Characteristics of National Minorities in Certain European States, edited by Werner Haug and others, published by the Council of Europe Directorate General III, Social Cohesion, Strasbourg, January 2000.)

Memorial Day: the souls of the departed

Fr. Eduard Perrone, "A Pastor's Descant" (Assumption Grotto News, May 25, 2014):

Have you ever noticed that civil holidays have a remarkable resemblance to Church holy days? I think it not accidental. There may even be something subversive about it. This was surely true at the time the French Revolution when the tyrannical government invented new days of celebration to replace, and perhaps also to mock, Church feast days that had been so dear to Catholic people. Even without the conspiratorial connotation it is certain that Memorial Day bears a resemblance, however secular, to our All Souls Day. The emphasis in each is quite different and the method of ‘remembrance’ of the dead in them is entirely different. Here we take Memorial Day for its advantage of being a potential help to the souls of servicemen who may be detained in purgatory, whereas the civil holiday is only a time to be respectful to the memory of the dead and to offer, perhaps, a moment of silence to honor them. Such secular acts, not objectionable in themselves, do put into relief the great difference of our Catholic faith in our way of being American citizens, a difference which does not detract from the secular but gives it deeper meaning.

Memorial Day celebrated with all due civic observance may be the best of what most have to offer today. At worst, we are not even much concerned to render any honor to our dead. To render that honor to them is a virtue, but we are running rather thin on virtue nowadays. Instinctive impulses are what get our attention: how we feel at the moment, responding to whim and wish of the moment. Being dutiful however often means doing what we might rather not do at a given moment. Virtue is that strength of soul which overcomes the inclination to be self-serving. We are being brought up now in the School of Selfish Interest where virtue is a forgotten and unwanted thing. The dead are gone and out of sight; they matter nothing. It’s the here and now that matters. This holds poor prospects for the future of Memorial Day USA.

Our Catholic faith and our disciplined upbringing (presuming we had such) lead us to recognize the duty we have towards the dead since we have an ability to help them through our connectedness with them in the wider Church. Death is a separation certainly, but not a severing of spiritual communication. This realization ought to make our way of keeping this holiday uniquely prayerful. Eating hotdogs and grilled hamburgers on a day off from work and school may be great fun but it profits the dead nothing. Maybe many of you will come to Mass this Monday at 7:30 or 9:00 a.m. and pray for those who either in fact died in the service of our country or potentially put their lives on the line by their service. The 9:00 Mass will be preceded by the flag raising ceremony at 9:00 outdoors on Gratiot Avenue.

As the weather heats up the liturgical season beings to cool down. This Thursday, at the morning Mass we will have the Ascension of Christ into heaven. This feast will be celebrated at all Masses, English and Latin, next Sunday as well: for the Latin Mass it will be the Ascension’s ‘external’ observance, meaning ‘outside’ its accustomed liturgical time.

What things await us for rounding out the year before summer is Pentecost Sunday (June 8), Trinity Sunday (June 15), and Corpus Christi (Thursday the 19th for the 7:30 a.m. Mass and again for all Masses Sunday, June 22). The grand finale of the season is the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Friday June 27.

The entire month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and we will have more to say on the subject next week, perhaps. This is a particular way of being devoted to Christ that you will find only in the Catholic Church. We look forward to this special time of the year.

Fr. Perrone

Isn't it nearly heresy today to question the Divine Mercy Devotion?

Anyone who looks into the history of the Divine Mercy Devotion, as well as Divine Mercy Sunday, a solemnity instituted by the late Pope John Paul II and celebrated the Sunday following Easter, may unexpectedly discover some rather shocking things. According to the text of a sermon by Msgr. Patrick Perez (April 21, 2013):

Pius XII ... placed this devotion, including the apparitions and the writings of Sr. Faustina on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (Index of Prohibited Books).

Next, came other prohibitions made by Pope John XXIII. Twice in his pontificate, the Holy Office issued condemnations of the Divine Mercy writings.

Not once, but twice under Pope John XXIII, this particular devotion was condemned through the Holy Office. The first condemnation was in a plenary meeting held on November 19, 1958. The declaration from the Holy Office issued these three statements about this devotion:

1. There is no evidence of the supernatural origin of these revelations....
2. No feast of Divine Mercy should be instituted....
3. It is forbidden to disseminate the images and writings propagating this devotion under the form received by Sr. Faustina.

So how did we get from that, to this: Divine Mercy Sunday with promises of unconditional mercy and no mention of penance? Did I miss something? Nothing but an honest question.

[Hat tip to K.J.]
[Advisory - See ##7-9 in Da Rulz]

Remember a vet today

http://www.va.gov/opa/vetsday/vetdayhistory.asp

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

St. Patrick's Day 2013: Five Things You Didn't Know [but probably did if you are a Die-Hard] (ABC News, March 17, 2013):

1. St. Patrick was not Irish: His birth name was actually Maewyn Succat -- it wasn't until he was in the Church that it was changed to Patricius, or Patrick. St. Patrick, the Apostle of Ireland, was born in Kilpatrick, near Dumbarton, which is in Scotland. As a teenager, he was kidnapped by Irish raiders and enslaved as a shepherd for several years. He attributed his ability to persevere to his faith in God.
2. Did St. Patrick Drive All the Snakes Out of Ireland? - Despite the popular lore, St. Patrick did not drive the snakes out of Ireland because the island did not have any to begin with. Icy water surrounds the Emerald Isle, which prevented snakes from migrating over. [... and if you're REALLY a Die-Hard, you probably won't believe this demythologization anyway!]
3. St. Patrick's color is blue -- Green may be the national color of Ireland, but the color most associated with St. Patrick is blue. The Order of St. Patrick was established in 1783 as the senior order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Ireland. The color associated with the honor needed to differentiate it from the Order of the Garter (dark blue) and the Order of the Thistle (green). So they went with blue.
4. Largest St. Patrick's Day Parades Are Held Outside of Ireland: The first St. Patrick's Day parade was held in the U.S. The Irish have been celebrating the feast of St. Patrick since the ninth century, but the first recorded parade anywhere was in Boston in 1737. The parade was not Catholic in nature, though, because the majority of Irish immigrants to the colonies were Protestant. Ireland did not have a parade of its own until 1931, in Dublin. Even today, 18 out of the 20 largest St. Patrick's Day parades are in the states -- New York's is the largest.
5. The Shamrock is used to explain the Holy Trinity -- St. Patrick used a three-leafed shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity to pagan Irish, forever linking the shamrock with him and the Irish in the popular imagination. He would tie shamrocks to his robes, which is why the color green is worn. [But of course ANY Papist worth his salt, pertinacious or not, knows THIS!!!]

But also remember that the Irish immigration to America came because of a deliberate campaign of genocide by starvation ... [Hat tip to Tim Ferguson]