St. Damasus - Pope and Confessor - Dec 11

"White - Semi-double -- S

St. Damasus, bybirth a Spaniard, governed the Church from 366 to 384. "The ancients," according to Alban Butler, "particularly commend his constancy in maintaining the purity of our holy faith, the innocence of his manners, his Christian humility, his compassion for the poor, his piety in adorning holy places, especially the tombs of the martyrs, and his singular learning." At his command St. Jermoe translated the New Testament into Latin. This Pope also confirmed the second ecumenical council, held at Constantinope. -- SM"

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This feast is now a "3rd class" feast. [I must do a post soon as regards the "old classifications" and the new ones -- sorry I've been lacking in that point. I shall go back too, and mention the new classifications in each saint post later on.]

An interesting point is that St. Damasus, used to have his own Mass the 1948 missal st. Mary's missal, and the '62 Baronius press missal both have the mass propers of the day as "Si diligis me...." whereas in the 20s this "pope, confessor" had his own mass Propers.

More about those 20s propers for this Mass later, I've got to get to work!!

St. Melchiades, Pope, Martyr - Dec 10

"Red, Semidouble, St. Damasus, Pope, Martyr --

"Pope St. Melchiades ruled the Church at the close of the era of persecution. St. Augustine styled him "a true son of peace and a true father of Christians." He died January 10, 314, having sat as Pope two years, six months, and eight days - SM"

This also would have been the 3rd day within the Octave of the Immaculate Conception.

The Baronius Press edition of the '62 missal also says that he "died peacefully, after undergoing great sufferings in the persecution of Maximian."

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I thought the information was a bit scant about the details of his death -- so I further looked to an article about him in the Catholic Encyclopedia. It's odd that he's called a martyr, I think. Seems that his reign was towards the end of the persections, indeed, the civil authorities in his time had started to give back church properties which had been confiscated. This pope also had to deal with a lot of heretics and lapsi.

Dude, Where's my Octave?

Sorry, Blessed Mother, prior to '62 you had one.

I know, I know.

Immaculate Conception - Dec. 8th

"White - Double - 1st Class - Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary"

The feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary was instituted to solemnize the exalted dignity bestowed upon her through a special grace of God, and in behalf of the merits of Chirst - a dignity and choice that preserved her from the least stain of original sin.

We must look kto the Orient for the first indications of this feast . In the Eastern Church it was observed as early as the seventh century, and in the Western Church it became known in the ninth century. Pope Sixtus IV introduced it (1476) into the Roman Church; Pope Gregory XV gave to it (1622) the title, "conception B.V.M. Immaculatae"; Innocent XII raised it (1693) to a feast of the 2nd class with an octave; Clement XI declared it (1708) a universal holyday; Pius IX gave it (1863) new Beviary hours and a new Mass; Leo XIII raised it (1879) to a feast of the first class with a vigil. The choice of December 8th was determined and approved solely in accordance with its tradition. - SM"

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In the US, thDec. 8th is a holy day of obligation. She is the patron Saint of the United States.

I'm sure Roger Cardinal Mahoney is disappointed he can't give this feast a pass, as he will do with Jan 1st in 2010 (once again for at least the 3rd year running.)

Note that in the older calendars this feast used to be an Octave. no Octave for the '62 Missal.

2nd Sunday in Advent

I took such a visceral pleasure in spotting a "prothonotary warbler" at Mass yesterday, that I forgot to post the following:

"Purple II class -- Second Sunday of Advent --
Station at the Church of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem

The Apostles enjoyed the wonderful privilege of praying with Christ. We enjoy the same privilege in the official worship of the Church. we pray with Christ, the Head of the Mystical Body.

After Bethlehem and the manger comes Golgoths with the cross already shining far off over the peaceful country of Ephrata, where already shining far off over the peaceful country of Ephrata, where the Incarnate Word first appeared upon earth. The station is therefore at the Sessorian Basilica - the Roman counterpart of the Martyrdom at Jerusalem. Here was kept the Holy Cross which the Empress Helena had presented to the Church in Rome. Many allusions are made today to Jerusalem in the Liturgy.

The Prayer is inspired by the famous cry of the Baptist, "prepare ye the way of the Lord," so we pray to God to pour His grace into our hearts. This preparation consists in the spirit of contrition purifying the soul and in the sincere purpose of obedience to the divine precepts.

In the Epistle [Romans 15, 4-13] St. Paul in a few touches sketches the mission of the Redeemer to esptablish all mankind in one single family, the church. The Gospel testifies to the divinity of Christ by deeds rather than by words.

The Eucharistic grace for which we beg in the Postcommunion is that the holy bread, the memorial of the death of Our Lord, may destroy in us the germs of evil and may nourish us unto everlasting life. - SM"

St. Ambrose, Bishop, Confessor - Dec. 7th

"White - double -

St. Ambrose, a doctor or teacher of the Church, was Archbishop of Milan from A.D. 374 to his death in 397. By his steadfastness he deserved well of God's people. Gentleness, meekness, humility, and obedience made him yield to every one in indifferent matters, but in those of duty he was inflexible. His writing have contributed many hymns and lecctions to the Roman Breviary. St. Ambrose died April 4, 397. -- SM "

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According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, there's no direct evidence that St. Ambrose composed the liturgy of the Ambrosian Rite, but his name has been associated with it since the eight century. You can read more about the Ambrosian Rite here. And more about Ambrose himself here.

BTW, the Ambrosian Rite is a western Catholic Rite that had always maintained a procession of gifts. So no, the tradition of processing with the offertory gifts wasn't something the NO people pulled out of thin air. It's also worth mentioning that the Eastern Rites have a highly stylized form of "little entrance" where the priest and servers process with the gifts from the sanctuary, through the congregation and into the sanctuary again.

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Dude, where's my Vigil?!

I mean, what up wid dat?

In 1879 Leo XIII had raised the feast of the Immaculate Conception (Dec 78th) to a feast of the first class with a vigil. The Blessed Mother shoulda had a Vigil today too.

In the US Dec. th is a Holy Day of Obligation, Mahoney can't even dance around that one. But in reading the Ordo for the NO yesterday, I noted that once again, for the 3rd year running Mahoney, may his 75th birthday hasten soon, has once again decided all by fiat that Jan 1st as a holy Day of obligation need not be observed, never mind the fact that most Americans have that day off anyway, and will be sitting on their butts at home watching football most of the day, which is what I expect Mahoney will be doing. Because JP II was evidently having a bad hairball day when he was appointed, Los Angeles, San Diego, Monterrey, Fresno, San Bernadino, Merced and Orange Catholics wil get a freebie.

Then idiots like him will say "I don't know why I should go to holy days of obligation, even Mahoney doesn't think it's important enough, even through we all have the day off anyway."