HOLY INNOCENTS, Martyrs; SUNDAY IN THE OCTAVE OF CHRISTMAS

Kindermord von Bethlehem. In: Albani-Psalter (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

HOLY INNOCENTS
Martyrs

SUNDAY IN THE OCTAVE OF CHRISTMAS

DOUBLE, SECOND CLASS / PURPLE
There is mixed joy and sorrow in the feast of the innocent victims of the first persecution. The Church rejoices at the spiritual victory of the young witnesses to Christ. The purple vestments of the Mass denote the Church's common grief with the mothers of Bethlehem, who saw their babies massacred by the jealousy of Herod.
INTROIT Ps. 8:3Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings, O God, You have fashioned praise because of Your enemies.
Ps. 8:2. O Lord, our Lord, how glorious is Your name over all the earth!
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
O God, the martyred innocents bore witness to You this day not by words but by laying down their lives. Destroy in us the evil of sin, so that our lives may bear witness to our faith in You, which we profess in words. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of the SUNDAY AFTER CHRISTMASO Almighty and Eternal God, direct our actions according to Your holy will, so that, in the name of Your beloved Son, we may lead lives that are marked by good deeds; who lives and rules with You . . .

EPISTLE Apoc. 14:1-5
In those days, I beheld: and lo a Lamb stood upon mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty-four thousand, having his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, as the noise of many waters and as the voice of great thunder. And the voice which I heard was as the voice of harpers, harping on their harps. And they sung as it were a new canticle, before the throne and before the four living creatures and the ancients: and no man could say the canticle, but those hundred forty-four thousand who were purchased from the earth. These are they who were not defiled with women: for they are virgins. These follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were purchased from among men, the firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth there was found no lie: for they are without spot before the throne of God.
GRADUAL Ps. 123:7-8Our soul has been rescued as a bird from the snare of the hunters.
V. The snare has been broken and we are free. Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

TRACT Ps. 78:3, 10
They have poured out the blood of the saints like water around Jerusalem. V. And there was no one to bury them.
V. Avenge, O Lord, the blood of Your saints which has been shed upon the earth.

GOSPEL Matt. 2:13-18
At that time, an angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, saying: "Arise, and take the child and his mother, and fly into Egypt: and be there until I shall tell thee. For it will come to pass that Herod will seek the child to destroy him." Who arose, and took the child and his mother by night, and retired into Egypt: and he was there until the death of Herod: That it might be fulfilled which the Lord spoke by the prophet, saying: "Out of Egypt have I called my son."
Then Herod perceiving that he was deluded by the wise men, was exceeding angry: and sending killed all the menchildren that were in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremias the prophet, saying: "A voice in Rama was heard, lamentation and great mourning; Rachel bewailing her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 123:7
Our soul has been rescued as a bird from the snare of the hunters. The snare has been broken and we are free.

SECRET
O Lord, may Your saints' unfailing prayer of honor render our offerings acceptable to You and obtain Your pardon for us. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of the SUNDAY AFTER CHRISTMASGrant that the gifts we offer to Your majesty, O Almighty God, may obtain for us the grace of sincere devotion and the reward of a blessed eternity. Through Our Lord . . .

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Matt. 2:18
A voice was heard weeping in Rama, and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be comforted, because they are no more.

POSTCOMMUNION
O Lord, may these Gifts, which we have both offered to You and received from You, win for us Your assistance in this life and in the life to come through the prayers of the saints. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of the SUNDAY AFTER CHRISTMASO Lord, may this sacred rite wash away our sins and fulfill our reasonable desires. Through Our Lord . . .

SAINT THOMAS, APOSTLE (Transferred); TUESDAY 4th WEEK OF ADVENT

SAINT THOMAS
Apostle

TUESDAY 4th WEEK OF ADVENT

DOUBLE, SECOND CLASS / RED
When Jesus was about to go to Judea where He was in mortal danger from His enemies, intense love for his Master made St. Thomas say, "Let us also go, that we may die with Him" (John 11:8-16). As Christ said farewell to His disciples on the eve of His Passion, Thomas wanted to know the way to reunion with his Lord. Jesus said to him and to us, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life" (John 14:2-6). After the Resurrection, he sought the reassurance of feeling the wounds of the risen Savior (John 20:24-29). His short-lived but agonized incredulity has served through the centuries to strengthen Christian faith in the Resurrection, and his impulsive exclamation, "My Lord and my God!" is repeated by every Christian at the elevation of the Sacred Host.
According to the martyrology, after Pentecost Thomas preached the Gospel to the Parthians, Medes, Persians, and Hyrcanians, and finally evangelized India, where he was martyred. There is in India today, in the region called Malabar Coast, a Christian community of Syriac Rite which claims that its ancestors were baptized by Thomas himself.

INTROIT (Ps. 138:17) 
Your friends are greatly honored by me, O God; their pre-eminence is definitely established. 
Ps. 138:1-2. O Lord, You have proved me and You know me; You know when I sit and when I stand.
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
O Lord, may we so celebrate the solemn feast of Your apostle Thomas that we may be aided by his prayers to imitate his faith in our lives at all times. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of preceding Sunday
Put forth Your power, O Lord, we beseech You, and delay not: and with Your great might come to our aid, so that what is hindered by our sins may be hastened by Your merciful goodness.
Who livest and reignest with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.
R. Amen

EPISTLE (Eph. 2:19-22)
Brethren: Now therefore you are no more strangers and foreigners: but you are fellow citizens with the saints and the domestics of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone: In whom all the building, being framed together, groweth up into an holy temple in the Lord. in whom you also are built together into an habitation of God in the Spirit. 

GRADUAL (Ps. 138:17-18)
Your friends are greatly honored, O God; their pre-eminence is definitely established. V. Were I to try to count them, they would be more numerous than the sands.

Alleluia, alleluia! V. Ps. 32:1.
Rejoice in the Lord, you just; praise befits the upright.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL (John 20:24-29)
At that time, Thomas, one of the twelve, who is called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him: "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them: "Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails and put my finger into the place of the nails and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."
And after eight days, again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst and said: "Peace be to you." Then he said to Thomas: "Put in thy finger hither and see my hands. And bring hither the hand and put it into my side. And be not faithless, but believing." Thomas answered and said to him: "My Lord and my God." Jesus saith to him: "Because thou hast seen me, Thomas, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen and have believed."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON (Ps. 18:5)
Their voice has gone forth through all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.

SECRET 
We worship You, O Lord, as it is our duty. Guard over the gifts You have bestowed upon us through the prayers of Your blessed apostle Thomas, whose faith we honor by offering You this sacrifice of praise. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of the preceding Sunday
Look with favor, O Lord, we beseech You, upon the offerings here present, that they may be profitable for our devotion and for our salvation.
Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end.
R. Amen.

COMMUNION ANTIPHON (John 20:27)
Bring here thy hand and feel the place of the nails. and be not unbelieving, but believing.

POSTCOMMUNION 
Be close to us, O merciful God, and through the prayers of Your blessed apostle Thomas,watch over the Gifts You have given us. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of the preceding Sunday
Having received Your gifts, we beseech You, O Lord, that each partaking of this sacrament may increase within us its saving effect.
Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end.
R. Amen.
 
 

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT; GAUDETE SUNDAY

English: Incipit of the Gregorian chant introit for Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT

GAUDETE SUNDAY

DOUBLE, FIRST CLASS / ROSE or PURPLE
Guadete means "Rejoice." Anticipated joy over our Savior's coming breaks through all our serious Advent preparation. Although it cannot be entirely repressed, our joy is yet restrained for two reasons: 1. Like John the Baptist, even the most fervent person feels a great unworthiness either to be a friend of Christ or to be His apostle. 2. Very often our joy is dulled by unnecessary anxiety. We let our peace of soul depend too much upon persons and events and circumstances, and too little upon God's infallible and tender care.

INTROIT Philipp. 4:4-6
 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice! Let your moderation be known to all men. The Lord is near. Have no anxiety; but in every prayer let your petitions be made known to God.
Ps. 84:2. O Lord, You have blessed Your land; You have restored Jacob from captivity.V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
Hear our prayers, O Lord, and enlighten the darkness of our minds by Your coming on earth; who lives and rules with God the Father . . .

EPISTLE Philipp. 4:4-7
Brethren: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Let your moderation be known to all men. The Lord is near. Have no anxiety, but in every prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your petitions be made known to God. And may the peace of God which surpasses all understanding guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord.

GRADUAL Ps. 79:2, 3, 2
O Lord, enthroned above the Cherubim, stir up Your might and come.
V. Take heed, you who rule Israel, you who are shepherd over Joseph.

Alleluia, alleluia! V.
Stir up Your might, O Lord, and come to save us.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 1:19-28
At that time, when the Jews sent from Jerusalem priests and Levites to him, to ask him: "Who art thou?" And he confessed and did not deny: and he confessed: "I am not the Christ." And they asked him: "What then? Art thou Elias?" And he said: "I am not." "Art thou the prophet? And he answered: "No." They said therefore unto him: "Who art thou, that we may give an answer to them that sent us? What sayest thou of thyself?" He said: "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Isaias." And they that were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him and said to him: "Why then dost thou baptize, if thou be not Christ, nor Elias, nor the prophet?" John answered them, saying: "I baptize with water: but there hath stood one in the midst of you, whom you know not. The same is he that shall come after me, who is preferred before me: the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to loose." These things were done in Bethania, beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 84:2, 3
O Lord, You have blessed Your land; You have restored Jacob from captivity; You have forgiven the sinfulness of Your people.

SECRET
May we always offer the sacrifice of adoration in such a manner, O Lord, that it will attain the purpose for which You instituted this sacred rite, and bring about our salvation. Through Our Lord . . .COMMUNION ANTIPHON Isa. 35:4
Say to the fainthearted, "Take courage and fear not. Behold, our God will come and will save us."

POSTCOMMUNION
In Your mercy cleanse us from our sins by these divine Rites, O Lord, and make us ready for the coming feast. Through Our Lord . . .

Saint Lucy (304 A.D.); Saturday Second Week in Advent; Saint Odilia (720 A.D.)

St Lucy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

St. Lucy, c. 1472-74
Lippi, Filippino

SAINT LUCY

Virgin and Martyr

SATURDAY SECOND WEEK IN ADVENT

SAINT ODILIA

Virgin

[Historical]

DOUBLE / RED
Lucy, patron of Sicily, and one of the saints of the Canon of the Mass, was martyred at Syracuse in the persecution of Diocletian about the year 304. The legend of her martyrdom says that she was denounced as a Christian by a rejected suitor. Refusing to apostatize, she was condemned to a brothel, but a mysterious force prevented the persecutors from moving her from the tribunal. After an unsuccessful attempt had been made to burn her to death, her neck was pierced with a dagger.

INTROIT Ps. 44:8
You loved justice and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above all your fellow creatures.
Ps. 44:2 My heart overflows with good tidings; I sing my song to the king.
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
Hear our prayer, O God our Savior, and let us learn the spirit of true devotion from Your blessed virgin and martyr Lucy, as we joyfully celebrate her feast. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of the SATURDAY SECOND WEEK IN ADVENT
Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to prepare the ways of Your only-begotten Son, so that through His coming we may be able to serve You with purified minds.
Who livest and reignest with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.
R. Amen

EPISTLE II Cor. 10:17-18; 11:1-2
Brethren: He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. For not he who commendeth himself is approved: but he, whom God commendeth. Would to God you could bear with some little of my folly! But do bear with me. For I am jealous of you with the jealousy of God. For I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

GRADUAL Ps. 44:8
You loved justice and hated wickedness.
V. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness.

Alleluia, alleluia! V. Ps. 44:3
Grace is poured out upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL Matt. 13:44-52
At that time, Jesus spoke this parable to His disciples, "The kingdom of heaven is like unto a treasure hidden in a field. Which a man having found, hid it, and for joy thereof goeth, and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Again the kingdom of heaven is like to a merchant seeking good pearls. Who when he had found one pearl of great price, went his way, and sold all that he had, and bought it. Again the kingdom of heaven is like to a net cast into the sea, and gathering together of all kinds of fishes. Which, when it was filled, they drew out, and sitting by the shore, they chose out the good into vessels, but the bad they cast forth. So shall it be at the end of the world. The angels shall go out, and shall separate the wicked from among the just. And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
"Have ye understood all these things?" They say to him: "Yes." He said unto them: "Therefore every scribe instructed in the kingdom of heaven, is like to a man that is a householder, who bringeth forth out of his treasure new things and old."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 44:15, 16
Behind her the virgins shall be led to the king; her friends shall be brought to you with gladness and joy; they shall be brought into the temple of the king, the Lord.

SECRET
Accept this gift, O Lord, from a people dedicated to You. We offer it in honor of Your saints for the help we have received from them when we were in trouble. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of the SATURDAY SECOND WEEK IN ADVENT
Be appeased, we beseech You, O Lord, by the prayers and offerings of our human frailty, and where the support of our own merits is lacking, come to our assistance with Your protection.
Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end.
R. Amen.


COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 118:161-162
Princes have persecuted me without cause, but my heart has stood in awe of Your words. I rejoice at Your words as one who has found great booty.

POSTCOMMUNION
O Lord, You have feasted Your family with the Food of heaven. May we always be refreshed through the intercession of Your saint whose feast we celebrate this day. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of the SATURDAY SECOND WEEK IN ADVENT
We who have been refreshed by the food of spiritual nourishment, humbly beseech You, O Lord, that through partaking of this sacrament You will teach us to disdain the things of earth and love those of heaven.
Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end.
R. Amen.

Saint Odile in Avolsheim - Alsac

Born blind to the family of the Duke of Alsace Lord Aldaric (aka Etichon, aka Athich) and Bereswinda; because she was a girl and disabled, the family decided to put her out. Rather that having her killed, she was given to a peasant family. Taken in by a convent at age twelve, she gained her sight upon being touched by chrism during her baptism by Saint Erhard of Regensburg. Her brother wanted her back for use in an arranged marriage; when he heard of his son’s machinations and Odilia’s miraculous healing, her father was so angry that he struck and killed the brother. Odilia raised her brother back to life, then fled to the convent to escape the marriage. Her father followed her, but when a mountain opened a cave to hide her, and then dropped rocks on him, he gave up the idea. She joined the abbey, and eventually became abbess. Founded the Hohenburg Abbey on the Odilienberg mountain in Alsace.

Caravaggio, Burial of St. Lucy 1608 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Latin in West Hollywood - Mass of the Young

Latin in West Hollywood

Father Fryar at Mass in Florida

The following comes from a Dec. 4 story in Angelus, the Los Angeles archdiocesan online newspaper.

St. Victor Church in North Hollywood is hosting a traditional Tridentine Mass at 7 p.m. on Sundays during Advent.,,, Father James Fryar, FSSP, is celebrating the Masses at St. Victor’s. He is a member of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, which forms priests according to the traditional liturgy of the Roman rite.

The fraternity has established missions in dioceses throughout the United States, offering the Latin Mass in full Communion with the Roman Catholic Church.

Father James Fryar, FSSP, celebrates the Tridentine Mass Nov. 30 at St. Victor’s Church in North Hollywood. Father Fryar, a member of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, is trying to establish a permanent presence of his fraternity in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. He will be celebrating the Tridentine Mass at St. Victor’s at 7 p.m. on Sundays during Advent. Info: www.fssp.la

“We’d like as many people as want to come, but we know not everyone will,” said Joe Tropeano, who is the master of ceremonies at Queen of Peace Church in Ocala, Fla. Tropeano worked with Father Fryar and the fraternity to establish the Tridentine Mass at his parish.

To his surprise, young people have started coming. A larger part of the 150 regular attendants are young adults with children, Tropeano said.

“They’re stuck by the beauty, the polyphonic music, the ceremony,” he said. “They’re looking for something, some reverence.”

…. Father Fryar has assembled a choir of 20 to sing the Mass and is planning on establishing a permanent presence of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter in the Los Angeles Archdiocese.

Comments to the Angelus story:
Charles CoulombeThe four deacons were from the FSSP Seminary in Germany. Also, we are in need of acolytes to serve masses like these in the entire Los Angeles Archdiocese. If you would like to serve, please contact me at decoulombe@gmail.com

Victor T.One correction: St. Victor’s is in West Hollywood, not North Hollywood for those planning to attend on Sunday evenings.

From http://cal-catholic.com/

7

SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT; SAINT AMBROSE (397 A.D.)

SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT

[Commemoration]

SAINT AMBROSE

Bishop and Doctor of the Church

DOUBLE, FIRST CLASS / PURPLE
Jesus proved Himself to be the promised Savior by His miracles of mercy and His preaching to the poor. In keeping with such a ministry to the least of men, John the Baptist, the immediate messenger of Jesus, lived a life of simplicity and penance.
Jesus came to teach and to sanctify all men, of every class and nation. All men are His brothers. There are no frontiers to charity. Our hearts must embrace the world.

INTROIT Isa. 30:30
People of Sion, behold, the Lord shall come to save the nations; and the Lord shall make heard the glory of His voice in the joy of your heart.Ps. 79:2 Take heed, you who rule Israel, you who shepherd over Joseph. 
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
O Lord, stir up our hearts to accept the message of Your only-begotten Son, so that, through His coming on earth, we may serve Him always with a pure intention; who lives and rules with You . . . 



Commemoration of SAINT AMBROSE
Ambrose was Roman governor of northern Italy and still a catechumen when a popular assembly chose him to be bishop of Milan in 374. After his baptism and episcopal consecration he fearlessly resisted the encroachment of civil authorities and defended the Faith against contemporary heretics backed by successive Emperors. Ambrose was a great preacher; many of his sermons and hymns have enriched our Liturgy. He is also responsible for the "Ambrosian Rite," still used in Milan. The most illustrious of his converts was St. Augustine. According to an ancient tradition, when St. Augustine was baptized, he and St. Ambrose composed together the Te Deum, now the solemn hymn of thanksgiving of the Universal Church.

O God, may blessed Ambrose intercede for us in heaven as he once instructed Your faithful on earth and directed them in the way of eternal salvation. Through Our Lord . . . 
 

EPISTLE Rom. 15:4-13
Brethren: For what things soever were written were written for our learning: that, through patience and the comfort of the scriptures, we might have hope. Now the God of patience and of comfort grant you to be of one mind, one towards another, according to Jesus Christ: That with one mind and with one mouth you may glorify God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Wherefore, receive one another, as Christ also hath received you, unto the honour of God. For I say that Christ Jesus was minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers: But that the Gentiles are to glorify God for his mercy, as it is written: "Therefore will I confess to thee, O Lord, among the Gentiles and will sing to thy name." And again he saith: "Rejoice ye Gentiles, with his people." And again: "Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles: and magnify him, all ye people." And again, Isaias saith: "There shall be a root of Jesse; and he that shall rise up to rule the Gentiles, in him the Gentiles shall hope." Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing: that you may abound in hope and in the power of the Holy Ghost. 

GRADUAL Ps. 49:2-3, 5
Out of Sion, perfect in beauty, God shall come revealed. 
V. Gather before Him His saints, who have ratified His covenant with sacrifice.

Alleluia, alleluia! V. Ps. 121:1
I rejoiced at the tidings which were told me, "We shall go into the house of the Lord."
Alleluia!

GOSPEL Matt. 11:2-10
At that time, when John had heard in prison the works of Christ: sending two of his disciples he said to him: "Art thou he that art to come, or look we for another?" And Jesus making answer said to them: "Go and relate to John what you have heard and seen. The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead rise again, the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he that shall not be scandalized in me." 
And when they went their way, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: "What went you out into the desert to see? a reed shaken with the wind? But what went you out to see? a man clothed in soft garments? Behold they that are clothed in soft garments, are in the houses of kings. But what went you out to see? A prophet? Yea I tell you, and more than a prophet. For this is he of whom it is written: 'Behold I send my angel before my face, who shall prepare thy way before thee.' "

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 84:7-8
You will turn again, O God, and bring us life, and Your people shall rejoice in You. Show us Your mercy, O Lord, and grant us Your salvation.

SECRET 
O Lord, let our humble offering of these prayers and sacrifices appease You for our sins. We have no merits of our own to depend on; so assist us with Your aid. Through Our Lord . . . 


Commemoration of SAINT AMBROSE
Almighty and eternal God, grant that the gifts we have offered to Your divine majesty may aid our salvation through the intercession of the blessed confessor bishop Ambrose. Through Our Lord . . .
 
COMMUNION ANTIPHON Bar. 5:5; 4:36
Arise, O Jerusalem, and stand on high, and behold the joy that comes to you from your God.

POSTCOMMUNION 
We have just been nourished with Your Body and Blood, O Lord. Teach us through this Sacramental rite to despise the things of earth and to yearn for the things of heaven. Through Our Lord . . . 

Commemoration of SAINT AMBROSE
Almighty God, grant that we who have received the Sacraments of our salvation may be helped by the prayers of Your blessed confessor bishop Ambrose, in whose honor we have today offered this Sacrifice. Through Our Lord . . . 

St. John the Baptist in prison.