Feria after Ash Wednesday; Saint Bernadette Soubirous (1879 A.D.); Commemoration of Saint Simeon (A.D. 106)

 

[Commemoration]

SAINT BERNADETTE SOUBIROUS

SAINT SIMEON

Bishop and Martyr

Image via Wikipedia

Introit
Ps 54:17-23
When I called upon the Lord, He heard my voice from those who war against me; and He humbled them, Who is before all ages and remains forever. Cast your care upon the Lord, and He will support you.
Ps 54:2
Hearken, O God, to my prayer; turn not away from my pleading; give heed to me, and answer me.
V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
When I called upon the Lord, He heard my voice from those who war against me; and He humbled them, Who is before all ages and remains forever. Cast your care upon the Lord, and He will support you.

Collect

O God, offended by sin, and appeased by penitence, graciously hear the prayers of Your people as they entreat You to turn away from us the scourges of anger that we have deserved because of our sins.
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.

Commemoration of SAINT BERNADETTE
Bernadette Soubirous, in religion Sister Mary Bernard, was born at Lourdes, 7th January 1844. Died at Nevers, in the odour of sanctity, 16th April 1879. She was declared venerable 13th August 1913 and canonised 8th December 1933. The eighteen apparitions of the Immaculate Virgin took place between the 11th of February and 16th July 1858, when Bernadette was in her fifteenth year.

O God, protector and friend of the humble, who filled Thy servant, Mary Bernard, with joy by the apparition and the conversation of the Immaculate Virgin Mary, grant, we pray, that by the simple way of faith we may be counted worthy to see Thee face to face in heaven.  

Commemoration of SAINT SIMEON
St. Simeon was a close relative of the Blessed Virgin. The Apostles chose him to succeed the martyred St. James the Lesser as bishop of Jerusalem. In all probability Simeon directed the Christians in their retreat to Pella, when the Holy City was destroyed. During Trajan's persecution, Simeon was denounced to the governor Atticus as being not only a Christian, but also a descendant of David. The venerable bishop endured two days of torture before his crucifixion in the year 106.

Almighty God, look upon our weakness and the heavy burden we carry because of our own deeds. Let the prayers of Your blessed martyr bishop Simeon in Heaven be our protection. Through Our Lord . . .

Lesson
Lesson from the book of Isaias
Isa 38:1-6
In those days, when Ezechia was mortally ill, the prophet Isaiah, son of Amos, came and said to him; Thus says the Lord: ‘Put your house in order, for you are about to die; you shall not recover.’ Then Ezechia turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord: O Lord, remember how faithfully and wholeheartedly I conducted myself in Your presence, doing what was pleasing to You! And Ezechia wept bitterly. Then the word of the Lord came to Isaiah: Go, tell Ezechia: Thus says the Lord, the God of your father David: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I will add fifteen years to your life. I will rescue you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; I will be a shield to this city, says the Lord almighty.

Graduale & Tractus
Ps 54:23, 17-19.
Cast your care upon the Lord, and He will support you.
V. When I called upon the Lord, He heard my voice from those who war against me. 

GOSPEL 

Matt 8:5-13
At that time, when Jesus had entered Capharnaum, there came to Him a centurion, who entreated Him, saying, Lord, my servant is lying sick in the house, paralyzed, and is grievously afflicted. Jesus said to him, I will come and cure him. But in answer the centurion said, Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man subject to authority, and have soldiers subject to me; and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it. And when Jesus heard this, He marveled, and said to those who were following Him, Amen I say to you, I have not found such great faith in Israel. And I tell you that many will come from the east and from the west, and will feast with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, but the children of the kingdom will be put forth into the darkness outside; there will be the weeping, and the gnashing of teeth. Then Jesus said to the centurion, Go your way; as you have believed, so be it done to you. And the servant was healed in that hour.

Offertory

Ps 24:1-3
To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul: in You, O my God, I trust; let me not be put to shame, let not my enemies exult over me. No one who waits on You shall be put to shame.

 

SECRET

O Lord, we beseech You to look with favor upon these offerings before You, and may they be profitable to our devotion as well as to 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.

Commemoration of SAINT BERNADETTE 
O Lord, by Thy Sacrifice inflame our souls with that heavenly ardour by which blessed Mary Bernard, Thy Virgin, presented herself as a praise-offering agreeable to Thee.  

Commemoration of SAINT SIMEON
O Lord, graciously accept the gifts we offer You in honor of Your blessed martyr bishop Simeon and grant us Your unending assistance through these offerings. Through our Lord . . . 

COMMUNION ANTIPHON 

Ps 50:21
You shall be pleased with due sacrifices, burnt offerings and holocausts on Your altar, O Lord.

POSTCOMMUNION
We humbly beseech You, almighty God, that, having received the blessing of Your heavenly gift, it may be for us the source of sacramental grace and of 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.

Commemoration of SAINT BERNADETTE 
We, who are renewed by those holy Mysteries, beseech Thee, O Lord, that imitating the marvelous constancy of the blessed Mary Bernard, we may obtain the eternal reward of our patience. 

Commemoration of SAINT SIMEON
We are refreshed by the reception of Your sacred Gift, O Lord. May the prayers of Your blessed martyr bishop Simeon make us feel the benefit of the sacred rite we have performed. Through our Lord . . .

St. Bernadette Soubirous

Image via Wikipedia

St. Bernadette Soubirous

Feastday: April 18 [Traditional Calendar]
Died: 1879

Famed visionary of Lourdes, baptized Mary Bernard. She was born in Lourdes, France, on January 7, 1844, the daughter of Francis and Louise Soubirous. Bernadette, a severe asthma sufferer, lived in abject poverty. On February 11, 1858, she was granted a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary in a cave on the banks of the Gave River near Lourdes. She was placed in consider able jeopardy when she reported the vision, and crowds gathered when she had futher visits from the Virgin, from February 18 of that year through March 4.The civil authorities tried to frighten Bernadette into recanting her accounts, but she remained faithful to the vision. On February 25, a spring emerged from the cave and the waters were discovered to be of a miraculous nature, capable of healing the sick and lame. On March 25, Bernadette announced that the vision stated that she was the Immaculate Conception, and that a church should be erected on the site. Many authorities tried to shut down the spring and delay the construction of the chapel, but the influence and fame of the visions reached Empress Eugenie of France, wife of Napoleon Ill, and construction went forward. Crowds gathered, free of harassment from the anticlerical and antireligious officials. In 1866, Bernadette was sent to the Sisters of Notre Dame in Nevers. There she became a member of the community, and faced some rather harsh treatment from the mistress of novices. This oppression ended when it was discovered that she suffered from a painful, incurable illness. She died in Nevers on April 16,1879, still giving the same account of her visions. Lourdes became one of the major pilgrimage destinations in the world, and the spring has produced 27,000 gallons of water each week since emerging during Bernadette's visions. She was not involved in the building of the shrine, as she remained hidden at Nevers. Bernadette was beatified in 1925 and canonized in 1933 by Pope Pius XI.