Liturgy: above all, adoration...

Praise be to the LORD... the LORD is my strength and my shield;

my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.  My heart leaps for joy,

and I will give thanks to him in song. - Psalm 28:7

 

"The liturgy is, above all, adoration. 
The Church is the work of God, God's action; 
it is recognition of what God does for men.

And the adoration that the liturgy expresses, especially the Eucharist,

is the acknowledgment of God,
that everything comes from Him,

that everything that belongs to us must find Him." 

Cardinal Antonio Cañizares

Pope Pius V tirelessly worked to promote the true faith

and Divine Worship.  He standardized the Holy Mass

by promulgating the 1570 edition of the Roman Missal.

 

Pope St. Pius V

Italy  ~ 1504-1572

Dominican*, Church Reformer

"Pope of the Rosary"

*His decision to keep wearing his Dominican habit

led to the custom of the pope wearing a white cassock.

Feast Day - April 30

 

"All the evils in the world are due to

lukewarm Catholics." ~ St Pius V

St Pius V, pray for us!

More on St Pius V: 
Click here: St. Pius V - YouTube (2 mins)

Probably the act for which Pius V will be longest remembered is his exemplary and unparalleled leadership at the time of the Battle of Lepanto.

In 1565, the Knights of Saint John defended Malta against a tremendous attack by the Turkish fleet and lost nearly every fighting man in the fortress. It was Pope Pius V who sent encouragement and money with which to rebuild their battered city. The pope called for a crusade among the Christian nations and appointed a leader who would be acceptable to all. He ordered the Forty Hours Devotion to be held in Rome, and he encouraged all to say the Rosary.

When the Christian fleet sailed out to meet the enemy, every man on board had received the sacraments, and all were praying the Rosary. The fleet was small, and numerically it was no match for the Turkish fleet, which so far had never met defeat. They met in the Bay of Lepanto on Sunday morning, October 7, 1565. After a day of bitter fighting, and, on the part of the Christians, miraculous help, the Turkish fleet - what was left of it - fled in disgrace, broken and defeated, its power crushed forever.

Before the victorious fleet returned to Rome, Pope Pius V had knowledge of the victory through miraculous means. He proclaimed a period of thanksgiving, placed the invocation, "Mary, Help of Christians" in the Litany of Loreto and established the feast of Our Lady of Victory (later changed to Our Lady of the Rosary) in commemoration of the victory.

Also worth noting ...
St Pius V inserted the Adoro Te Devote among the prayers of preparation and thanksgiving for the Mass into the Missal reformed by him in 1570.  (Prior to that, the text had remained unknown for two centuries since St Thomas Aquinas penned it.) From that date, the hymn was used in the universal Church as one of  the most loved Eucharistic prayers of the clergy and the Christian people.  Spend some time today meditating on its beauty and truth and express your gratitude for its preservation.  ***(This hymn is the inspiration of the TITLE of this archival blog - see verse two).

GODHEAD HERE IN HIDING /ADORO TE DEVOTE

Words: St Thomas Aquinas, Translation: Gerard Manley Hopkins S.J.

Adoro te devote, latens Deitas, Quæ sub his figuris vere latitas; Tibi se cor meum totum subjicit, Quia te contemplans totum deficit. Visus, tactus, gustus in te fallitur, Sed auditu solo tuto creditur. Credo quidquid dixit Dei Filius; Nil hoc verbo veritátis verius. In cruce latebat sola Deitas, At hic latet simul et Humanitas, Ambo tamen credens atque confitens, Peto quod petivit latro pœnitens. Plagas, sicut Thomas, non intueor: Deum tamen meum te confiteor. Fac me tibi semper magis credere, In te spem habere, te diligere.  O memoriale mortis Domini! Panis vivus, vitam præstans homini! Præsta meæ menti de te vívere, Et te illi semper dulce sapere. Pie Pelicane, Jesu Domine, Me immundum munda tuo sanguine: Cujus una stilla salvum facere Totum mundum quit ab omni scelere. Jesu, quem velatum nunc aspicio, Oro, fiat illud quod tam sitio: Ut te revelata cernens facie, Visu sim beátus tuæ gloriæ. Amen

Godhead here in hiding, whom I do adore, Masked by these bare shadows, shape and nothing more, See, Lord, at Thy service low lies here a heart Lost, all lost in wonder at the God thou art. Seeing, touching, tasting are in thee deceived: How says trusty hearing? that shall be believed; What God's Son has told me, take for truth I do; Truth Himself speaks truly or there's nothing true. On the cross Thy godhead made no sign to men, Here Thy very manhood steals from human ken:  Both are my confession, both are my belief, And I pray the prayer of the dying thief. I am not like Thomas, wounds I cannot see, But can plainly call thee Lord and God as he; Let me to a deeper faith daily nearer move, Daily make me harder hope and dearer love. O thou our reminder of Christ crucified, Living Bread, the life of us for whom he died, Lend this life to me then: feed and feast my mind, There be thou the sweetness man was meant to find. Bring the tender tale true of the Pelican; Bathe me, Jesu Lord, in what Thy bosom ran Blood whereof a single drop has power to win All the world forgiveness of its world of sin. Jesu, whom I look at shrouded here below, I beseech thee send me what I thirst for so, Some day to gaze on thee face to face in light And be blest for ever with Thy glory's sight. Amen.

Day and night: in our midst...

5th Sunday of Easter

"Do you not know that God has placed churches in the cities as ports 
in the sea, that those who come tither for shelter from the

storms of this world may find perfect peace?" - St John Chrysostom

"When the adorer crosses

the threshold of the sacred temple,

when he sees the mysterious lamp which,

like the star of the Magi,

indicates the presence of Jesus,

oh, then, with what faith and joy,

with what transports of love he prostrates himself

at the foot of this tabernacle of love!"

St. Peter Julian Eymard

PHOTO ABOVE:  St Michael's Cathedral ~ Toronto, Ontario ~ Canada

 

Catechism of the Catholic Church [1994]

§1379. The tabernacle was first intended for the reservation of the Eucharist in a worthy place so that it could be brought to the sick and those absent, outside of Mass. As faith in the real presence of Christ in his Eucharist deepened, the Church became conscious of the meaning of silent adoration of the Lord present under the Eucharistic species. It is for this reason that the tabernacle should be located in an especially worthy place in the church and should be constructed in such a way that it emphasizes and manifests the truth of the real presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament.

Code of Canon Law (1983)

Can 940: "A special lamp to indicate and honor the presence of Christ is to burn at all times before the tabernacle in which the Most Holy Eucharist is reserved".

"Not only while the sacrifice is offered and the sacrament is received, but as long as the Eucharist is kept in our churches and oratories, Christ is truly the Emmanuel, that is, 'God with us'.  Day and night He is in our midst, He dwells with us, full of grace and truth.  He restores morality, nourishes virtues, consoles the afflicted, strengthens the weak." - Pope Bl Paul VI

Today is Sunday:
"the Lord's Day is the lord of days" (4th  c homily)
but also remembering today... 

St Catherine of Siena

Italy  ~ 1347 -1380
Doctor of the Church

Reformer, mystic, writer

Third Order Dominican

Incorrupt

Feast Day - April 29

“Be who God meant you to be and

you will set the world on fire.”  ~ St. Catherine of Siena

Click here: St. Catherine of Siena - YouTube (2 mins)

Click here: St. Catherine of Siena - YouTube (3:23 mins)

St Catherine of Siena, pray for us!

This is the Way... walk in it...

"When we work hard, we must eat well.

What a joy, that you can receive Holy Communion often!

It’s our life and support in this life.  Receive Communion often, and 

Jesus will change you into Himself." - St Peter Julian Eymard

 

Eucharistic thoughts from three

'family members' on their FEAST DAY today...

St Louis de Montfort used to remain after Holy Mass for thanksgiving

at least a half hour, and he would not permit any need or assignment

to serve as a reason for omitting it.  He said, 

 "I would not give up this hour of thanksgiving

even for an hour of Paradise." 

St Louis de Montfort

France ~ 1673-1716
Priest, Marian devotee

Author: Secret of Mary, True Devotion to Mary

Founder ~ Sisters of Divine Wisdom

FEAST DAY - April 28

Click here: St. Louis de Montfort - YouTube (2 mins)

 

"She (Mother Mary) is an echo of God, speaking and repeating only God.

If you say 'Mary' she says 'God'." ~ St Louis de Montfort

St Louis de Montfort, pray for us!   

"Our body is a cenacle,

a monstrance:

through its crystal the world should see God."

St Gianna Beretta Molla

Wife, Mother, Doctor, Martyr

Italy (1922-1962)

FEAST DAY - April 28

Click here: St. Gianna Beretta Molla - YouTube (5 mins)

 

“The life of Mamma was an act and a perennial action of faith and charity; it was a non-stop search for the will of God for every decision and for every work, with prayer and meditation, Holy Mass and the Eucharist,” explained St. Gianna’s husband to their children after her death.

St Gianna Molla, pray for us!

 When called upon to justify his conversion, 
one of Chanel's catechumens had said of him,
"He loves us. He does what he teaches.

He forgives his enemies. His teaching is good."

St Peter Chanel

Nee France ~ 1803-1841

Priest, Missionary, Protomartyr of Oceania

  Within two years after his death,

the whole island became Catholic and has remained so.

FEAST DAY - April 28

Click here: Saint Peter Chanel 04-28 - YouTube (1:20 mins)

   

   

"No one is a martyr for a conclusion, no one is a martyr for an opinion;

it is faith that makes martyrs."  ~ Bl John Cardinal Newman

St Peter Chanel, pray for us!

As the soul gazes upon Jesus...

"If only we had the humility to realize that He alone is

Goodness and makes us good. As soon as we come into His Presence

in the Eucharist, our souls respond to the power before them

like a sunflower turning towards the sun.

His silent Presence, hidden in the tabernacle,

says to each one of us,

'I love you.  Come to Me all you who labor and are burdened and

I will refresh you.  Come to the fountain of life and drink. 

Tell Me your problems.  Listen to My voice.  I tug at your heart,

guiding your way and smoothing your path.'

There is between the

Eucharistic Heart of Jesus and the soul,

a silent exchange of love, a sharing of pain,

an inaudible dialogue between two who

know each other perfectly and love each other deeply.

It is as if the soul sees itself in a perfect Mirror

and knows clearly its faults and imperfections. 

A strange phenomenon occurs as the soul gazes at Jesus. 

Its own reflection becomes brighter. 

Its faults fade away and one day that 'soul is turned -

transformed into the image it reflected' (II Cor 3:18).

This being true,

why do we permit our souls to die of thirst

when the Fountain of Living Water

is just around the corner?"

Mother Angelica

To Leave and Yet to Stay