† In Nativitate Domini Ad Tertium Missam ad Die ~ Christmas Day: Third Mass During the Day †

The Story of Christmas

by Abbe Dom Prosper Gueranger

By God's design the number 40 is most significant in holy Mother Church's liturgical year, especially in this particular liturgical year. After four weeks of Advent, we follow with 40 days of Christmas called Christmastide, with the main emphasis on the time between the Nativity of our Lord and the Epiphany. This year within four days of the Feast of the Purification, we follow Christmastide with the 40 Days of Lent, then 40 glorious days before Christ's Ascension into Heaven. Alleluia, indeed!

"There is scarcely a prayer, or a rite, in the Liturgy of this glad Season, which does not imply these two grand Mysteries: an Infant-God, and a Virgin-Mother. The Liturgy never loses sight of the Divine Babe and his incomparable Mother, and never tires in their praises, during the whole period from the Nativity to the day when Mary comes to the Temple to present [ our heavenly Savior ]."

The Feast of Christmas

We apply the name Christmas to the forty days which begin with the Nativity of Our Lord, December 25, and end with the Purification of the Blessed Virgin, February 2. It is a period which forms a distinct portion of the Liturgical Year, as distinct, by its own special spirit, from every other, as are Advent, Lent, Easter, or Pentecost. One same Mystery is celebrated and kept in view during the whole forty days. Neither the Feasts of the Saints, which so abound during this Season; nor the time of Septuagesima, with its mournful Purple, which often begins before Christmastide is over, seem able to distract our Holy Mother the Church from the immense joy of which she received the good tidings from the Angels on that glorious Night for which the world had been longing four thousand years. The Faithful will remember that the Liturgy commemorates this long expectation by the four penitential weeks of Advent.

The custom of celebrating the Solemnity of our Savior's Nativity by a feast or commemoration of forty days' duration is founded on the Holy Gospel itself; for it tells us that the Blessed Virgin Mary, after spending forty days in the contemplation of the Divine Fruit of her glorious Maternity, went to the Temple, there to fulfill, in most perfect humility, the ceremonies which the Law demanded of the daughters of Israel, when they became mothers.

A Roman Feast

The Feast of Mary's Purification is, therefore, part of that of Jesus' Birth; and the custom of keeping this holy and glorious period of forty days as one continued Festival has every appearance of being a very ancient one, at least in the Roman Catholic Church.

And firstly, with regard to our Savior's Birth on December 25, we have Saint John Chrysostom [ whose feast is during Christmastide on January 27 ] telling us, in his homily for this Feast, that the Western Churches had, from the very commencement of Christianity, kept it on this day. He is not satisfied with merely mentioning the tradition; he undertakes to show that it is well founded, inasmuch as the Church of Rome had every means of knowing the true day of our Savior's Birth, since the acts of the Enrolment, taken in Judaea by command of Augustus, were kept in the public archives of Rome.

The holy Doctor adduces a second argument, which he founds upon the Gospel of Blessed Apostle Saint Luke, and he reasons thus: we know from the sacred Scriptures that it must have been in the fast of the seventh month that the Priest Zachary had the vision in the Temple; after which Elizabeth, his wife, conceived Saint John the Baptist: hence it follows that the Blessed Virgin Mary having, as the Evangelist Blessed Apostle Saint Luke relates, received the Angel Gabriel's visit, and conceived the Savior of the world in the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, that is to say, in March, the Birth of Jesus must have taken place in the month of December.

Christmas and Epiphany

But it was not till the fourth century that the Churches of the East began to keep the Feast of our Savior's Birth in the month of December. Up to that period they had kept it at one time on the sixth of January, thus uniting it, under the generic term of Epiphany, with the Manifestation of our Savior made to the Magi, and in them to the Gentiles; at another time, as Saint Clement of Alexandria tells us, they kept it on the 25th of the month Pachon ( May 15 ) , or on the 25th of the month Pharmuth ( April 20 ).

Saint John Chrysostom, in the Homily we have just cited, which he gave in 386, tells us that the Roman custom of celebrating the Birth of our Savior on December 25 had then only been observed ten years in the Church of Antioch.

It is probable that this change had been introduced in obedience to the wishes of the Apostolic See, wishes which received additional weight by the edict of the Emperors Theodosius and Valentinian, which appeared towards the close of the fourth century, and decreed that the Nativity and Epiphany of our Lord should be made two distinct Festivals.

The only Church that has maintained the custom of celebrating the two mysteries on January 6 is that of Armenia; owing, no doubt, to the circumstance of that country not being under the authority of the Emperors; as also because it was withdrawn at an early period from the influence of Rome by schism and heresy.

An Infant-God and a Virgin-Mother

But what is the characteristic of Christmas in the Latin Liturgy? It is twofold: it is joy, which the whole Church feels at the coming of the Divine Word in the Flesh; and it is admiration of that glorious Virgin, who was made the Mother of God. There is scarcely a prayer, or a rite, in the Liturgy of this glad Season, which does not imply these two grand Mysteries: an Infant-God, and a Virgin-Mother. The Liturgy never loses sight of the Divine Babe and his incomparable Mother, and never tires in their praises, during the whole period from the Nativity to the day when Mary comes to the Temple to present Jesus to God Almighty as His Son made Man.

The Greeks, too, make frequent commemorations of the Maternity of Mary in their Offices of this Season: but they have a special veneration for the twelve days between Christmas Day and the Epiphany, which, in their Liturgy, are called the Dodecameron.

During this time they observe no days of Abstinence from flesh-meat; and the Emperors of the East had, out of respect for the great Mystery, and that no servile work should be done, and that the Courts of Law should be closed, until after 6 January.

Christmastide Greetings

May His boundless and merciful love fill your homes and workplaces throughout this new liturgical year, and may each of us prove ourselves worthy of His forgiveness by our thought, word and deed in the days, weeks, and months ahead.

Praise be the grace and glory of the Most Holy Trinity;
Through our Holy Lord and Savior Jesus Christ;
Praise be His Holy Name.

Robert Drobot
robertdrobot@att.net

The Month of December Is Dedicated To
The Immaculate Conception

by Zurbaran Francisco

The Immaculate Conception is, according to Roman Catholic dogma, the conception of the Virgin Mary without any stain ( "macula" in Latin ) of original sin. The dogma thus says that, from the first moment of her existence, she was preserved by God from the lack of sanctifying grace that afflicts mankind, and that she was instead filled with divine grace. It is further believed that she lived a life completely free from sin. In the words of Pope Pius XII in Mystici Corporis, "she was free from any personal or hereditary sin". Her immaculate conception in the womb of her mother, by normal sexual intercourse, should not be confused with the doctrine of the virginal conception of her son Jesus.

The feast of the Immaculate Conception, celebrated on December 8, was established as a universal feast in 1476 by Pope Sixtus IV. He did not define the doctrine as a dogma, thus leaving Roman Rite Catholics freedom to believe in it or not without being accused of heresy; this freedom was reiterated by the Council of Trent. The existence of the feast was a strong indication of the Church's belief in the Immaculate Conception, even before its 19th century definition as a dogma.

In the Roman Catholic Church, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception ( December 8th ) is a Holy Day of Obligation, except where conferences of bishops have decided, with the approval of the Holy See, not to maintain it as such. It is a public holiday in some countries where Roman Catholicism is predominant e.g. Italy. In the Philippines, although this is not a public holiday, the predominance of Catholic Schools make it almost a holiday.

The Immaculate Conception was solemnly defined as a dogma by Pope Pius IX in his constitution Ineffabilis Deus, on December 8, 1854. The Roman Catholic Church believes the dogma is supported by Scripture ( e.g. Mary's being greeted by Angel Gabriel as "full of grace" or "highly favoured" ), as well as either directly or indirectly by the writings of Church Fathers such as Irenaeus of Lyons and Ambrose of Milan, as well as sensus fidei and often calls Mary the Blessed Virgin (Luke 1:48). Catholic theology maintains that, since Jesus became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, it was fitting that she be completely free of sin for expressing her fiat.

For the Roman Catholic Church the dogma of the Immaculate Conception gained additional significance from the apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes in 1858. In Lourdes a 14-year-old girl, Bernadette Soubirous, claimed a beautiful lady appeared to her. The lady said "I am the Immaculate Conception" and the faithful believe her to be the Blessed Virgin Mary.

In this sense, the dogma of the Immaculate Conception defined by Pope Pius IX is also viewed as a key example of the use of sensus fidelium shared by the faithful and the Magisterium rather than pure reliance on Scripture and tradition. The Vatican quotes in this context Fulgens Corona, where Pius XII supported such a faith:

If the popular praises of the Blessed Virgin Mary be given the careful consideration they deserve, who will dare to doubt that she, who was purer than the angels and at all times pure, was at any moment, even for the briefest instant, not free from every stain of sin?”

Now, the Roman Catholic tradition has a well established philosophy for the study of Immaculate Conception and the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary via the field of Mariology with Pontifical schools such as the Marianum specifically devoted to this task.

Because The Blessed Virgin was conceived without original sin, she had a perfect purity, with no bad inclinations. Therefore, she had a great facility to correspond entirely with the grace of God at every moment. Natural and the supernatural grandeur merged together in her soul in a profound and extraordinary harmony. Above all others creatures, she had the highest notion of the sanctity of God and His correspondent glory. She also had the clear notion of what Creation owes to that glory. She knew, and knows, how all created beings should glorify God.

As a consequence, she also had a profound horror of the opposite of good, which is evil. She had a great intransigence to such evil, a complete rejection of it in its least forms and a strong combativeness against it. This is the reason Holy Scripture refers to Our Lady as “terribilis ut castrorum acies ordinata,” as terrible as an army set in battle array. The Church also says that it is she alone who smashes all heresies. To celebrate this fact, in statues of the Immaculate Conception, Our Lady is crushing the head of the serpent.

The feast of her Immaculate Conception is, then, in many senses, the commemoration of her purity, her intransigence, and her combativeness.

Let us look more closely at what intransigence is. When a person has a very clear notion of what is good and an understanding of the highest expressions of this good, this person knows that the opposite is bad. It is not a theoretical knowledge, like that of a scientist who analyzes a specimen in a laboratory, but rather a knowledge that comes hand in hand with a great love for good. The person naturally recognizes the opposite of such good, which is evil, and hates evil with an intensity proportionate to the magnitude of his love for the good.

Since he loves the highest ideals that good represents, he cannot tolerate the opposite of that good, because he clearly sees the evil that exists in it. He rejects evil not only in its ensemble, but in each of its parts. He rejects evil not only when it is very intense, but when it barely appears. This is intolerance or intransigence.

The human spirit is constituted in such a way that when a man hates evil, he increases and perfects his love for the good. In a certain way the presence of something that he rejects reinforces his conviction of, and his love for the good. The human psychology is so established that such contrast makes a person more acutely aware of how the good is good. For instance, we love our counter-revolutionary vocation more when we can see concretely how the revolutionaries hate it. Seeing this, we receive a confirmation that we are taking the right position.

What is combativeness? Combativeness is a consequence of intransigence. It is to make a deliberate decision to destroy the evil that opposes the glory of God. It is a calm deliberation followed by the utilization of every means one has at his disposal to achieve that goal. It is not a fleeting resolution to fight during one single episode when evil is attacking good, but it is a permanent determination applied to all aspects of evil and throughout the life of a person. The person does not rest until evil is destroyed.

A true combativeness does not rest until evil is reduced to ashes. In Portugal there was an expression regarding evil that was applied in different ways in old Portuguese Law: Evil shall be reduced to ashes by fire. If a man committed a horrific crime, he received the sentence of capital punishment: his body was burned, and his ashes dispersed either in the air or water. This was the application of that axiom.

Here I am not advocating this punishment be applied to this or that person in this or that present day State. I am taking it as a general principle to apply to the fight of ideas and institutions. A bad man can be killed, and he is gone. But who can kill a bad idea or destroy a revolutionary conspiracy that strives to prevent God from receiving the glory He deserves and Holy Mother Church from exerting her mission on earth? For this fight we need a true combativeness that reduces the Revolution and its cohorts to ashes by fire. This kind of intransigence and combativeness were two attributes of Our Lady that were consequences of the privilege of her Immaculate Conception. ~~ Professor Plinio Corrêa de Oliveiraessor

The Consecration of Russia

Holy Mother, in this age of shameless and defiant impiety, when humanity dares to mock God, even within the walls of Holy Mother Church, we implore the fulfillment of the Will of God that thou didst manifest to the children of Fatima, and especially the decree given by thee to Sister Lucia; for we thy seed well know that His Will hath not been fulfilled; we also know these commands of God Almighty hath not been heeded by the sovereign Pontiffs of our age. For our sake, holy Mother, render an oblation of prayer to thy Son; words of consolation and intercession on our behalf, and plead the wrath of God not deepen upon His Church and the world. Send forth thy legions to usher in the triumph of the Will of God thou didst make manifest at Fatima.

In the apparition of July 13, Our Lady warned the three seers that if people did not stop offending God, He would punish the world "by means of war, hunger and persecution of the Church and of the Holy Father," using Russia as His chosen instrument of chastisement. She told the children that "to prevent this, I shall come to ask for the Consecration of Russia to My Immaculate Heart" and promised that, by this single public act, Russia would be converted and peace would be given to the world.

The Mother of God cautioned that if Her requests were not granted, "Russia will spread its errors throughout the world, raising up wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred, the Holy Father will have much to suffer and various nations will be annihilated."

True to Her word, Our Lady reappeared to Sister Lucy on June 13, 1929 at Tuy, Spain, when in a great and sublime vision representing the Blessed Trinity, She announced that "the moment has come for God to ask the Holy Father to make, in union with all the bishops of the world, the Consecration of Russia to My Immaculate Heart. By this means, He promises to save Russia."

When God sent Our Lady to convey His command that Russia be consecrated, it seems clear that He expected swift obedience from the Pope and bishops. The pastors of the Church, however, chose to delay and, on August 19, 1931, Our Lord Himself appeared to Sister Lucy in Rianjo, Spain and expressed His displeasure, saying "make it known to My ministers that, given they follow the example of the King of France in delaying the execution My command, they will follow him also into misfortune."

Our Lord's warning is a grave one indeed, referring as it does to His command, through Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, to the King of France that he consecrate his nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The King chose to ignore the command and thus condemned his dynasty and throne to the horrors of revolution, chaos and the guillotine.

The Blessed Virgin's request for the Consecration of Russia remains one of the most controversial aspects of the entire Fatima Message. While several popes have undertaken consecrations of the world since the request was made public ( including Pope John Paul II in 1982 and 1984 ), sadly, none of these have fulfilled the specific requirements of Our Lord and Our Lady's requests. In repeated visits to Sister Lucy, Heaven's King and Queen have insisted that it is Russia (and Russia only) that is to be the object of this public act of obedience and prayer. In addition, Our Lord and Our Lady have indicated that the Holy Father is to be joined in the act of consecration by all the Catholic bishops of the world on the same day and at the same time in their respective dioceses. Interestingly, only Pope Pius XII's consecration of the world in 1942 included substantial involvement of the bishops. Sister Lucy has written that this imperfect act of obedience, while not fulfilling Our Lady's Fatima request, nevertheless hastened the end of the Second World War, thus sparing the lives of tens of millions of souls.

In response to Sister Lucy's question why He would not convert Russia without the Holy Father consecrating that nation to His Mother's Immaculate Heart, Our Lord replied "Because I want My whole Church to acknowledge that consecration as a triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary so that it may extend its cult later and put the devotion of the Immaculate Heart beside the devotion to My Sacred Heart."

Click this link for more information on the Consecration of Russia

Also see : Petition to Benedict XVI to consecrate Russia as instructed by The Queen of Heaven and Earth.

CALENDAR of the SAINTS

Anno Dómini 25 December 2010

"....and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. ~ ~ Apocalypse

Α ☧ Ω

Saint Adalsindis of Hamay

Daughter of Saints Adalbald of Ostrevant and Saint Rictrudis. Sister of Saint Eusebia of Hamay, Saint Clotsind and Saint Mauront. Benedictine nun and spiritual student of her sister.

Α ☧ Ω

Saint Alburga of Wilton

Princess, the half-sister of King Egbert of Wessex. Wife of Earl Wulstan of Wiltshire who founded Wilton Abbey near Salisbury, England in 773. Widowed in 800. She converted Wilton Abbey into a convent for women, retired there with a dozen fellow Benedictine nuns, and is also considered a founder of the house.

Α ☧ Ω

Saint Anastasia of Sirmium

Matron of a noble Roman family. Married to a pagan. Spiritual student of Saint Chrysogonus. Martyred during the persecutions of Diocletian. Her name is commemorated in the second Mass of Christmas and the first Eucharistic prayer.

Α ☧ Ω

Christmas

Name derived from Old English: Cristes Maesse, Christ’s Mass. Celebration of the anniversary of the birth of Our Lord. In the earliest days of the Church there was no such feast; the Savior's birth was commemorated with the Epiphany by the Greek and other Eastern Churches. First mention of the feast, then kept on 20 May, was made by Clement of Alexandria c.200. The Latin Church began c.300 to observe it on 25 December, though there is no certainty that Our Lord was born on that day. Priests have the privilege of saying three Masses, at midnight, daybreak, and morning. This was originally reserved to the pope alone; beginning about the 4th century he celebrated a midnight Mass in the Lateran Basilica (in which according to tradition, the manger of Bethlehem is preserved), a second in the church of Saint Anastasia, whose feast comes on 25 December, and a third at the Vatican Basilica. Many peculiar customs of the day are the outcome of the pagan celebrations of the January calends. The Christmas tree, of which the first known mention was made in 1605 at Strasbourg, was introduced into France and England in 1840. The feast is a holy day of obligation, preceded by the preparatory season of Advent and by a special vigil; should it fall on a Friday it abrogates the law of abstinence.

Α ☧ Ω

Saint Eugenia of Rome

Young noble woman. Converted by and martyred 258 A.D., by beheading with her servants, Saint Hyacinth and Saint Protus during Christian persecutions under Emperor Valerian.

Α ☧ Ω

Blessed Fulk of Toulouse

Professional minstrel. Benedictine Cistercian monk at Thoronet, France. Abbot in 1200. Bishop of Toulouse in 1206. Helped Saint Dominic found the Dominican Order of Preachers by providing him a base of operations, books and equipment, and one-sixth of the church tithes. Venerated by the Cistercians.

Α ☧ Ω

Blessed Jacopone da Todi

Italian noble from the Benedetti family of Todi. Successful lawyer at Bologna. Married to Vanna di Guidone in 1267, who considered Jacomo too worldly, and did penance for him. In 1268, Jacomo insisted she attend a public tournament against her wishes; the stands in which she sat collapsed, and Vanna was killed. The shock of this event, and his discovery of her penance for him, caused a radical change in Jacomo. He gave his possessions to the poor, dressed in rags, and joined the Third Order of Saint Francis.

After ten years of this penance and abuse, Jacomo tried to join the Franciscans; his reputation as Crazy Jim preceded him, and he was refused. To prove his sanity and intentions, he wrote a beautiful poem about the vanities of the world; it swayed the Franciscans, and he joined the Order in 1278. He refused to be ordained, and spent time writing popular hymns in the vernacular.

Jacopone suddenly found himself a leader in a disturbing religious movement among the Franciscans. The Spirituals, as they were called, wanted a return to the strict poverty of Francis. They had the support of two cardinals and Pope Celestine V. The two cardinals, however, opposed Celestine's successor, Boniface VIII, and due to the wrangling in the Vatican, Jacopone was excommunicated and imprisoned at age 68. Jacopone acknowledged his error, but was not released until Blessed Benedict XI became pope five years later. He accepted his imprisonment as penance. He spent his last three years giving himself to completely to spiritual writing, including the famous Latin hymn, Stabat Mater<.

Α ☧ Ω

Martyrs of Nicomedia

20,000 Christians martyred - burned alive in 303 in the basilica of Nicomedia - by order of Emperor Diocletian. They were reported to have been in the single basilica to celebrate Holy Christmas.

Α ☧ Ω

Blessed Matthew of Albano

Canon of Rheims, France. Benedictine Cluniac monk at Saint-Martin-des-Champs in 1108. Prior of his house in 1117. Created cardinal bishop of Albano in 1125. Papal legate in France and Germany in 1128. Staunch supporter of the Cluniac ideal. Close friend of Blessed Peter the Venerable.

Α ☧ Ω

Blessed Michael Nakashima

Jesuit. Martyred for hiding and assisting priests and missionaries. Scalded to death in the hot springs at Mount Ungen, Shimabara, Japan in 1628.

Α ☧ Ω

Blessed Nera

Dominican tertiary. Cared for the sick in Siena, Italy.

Α ☧ Ω

Saint Peter Nolasco

Born to the French nobility. Grew up a pious youth. His father died when Peter was fifteen, and he inherited a substantial fortune. When he came of age, he gave away his possessions and moved to Barcelona, Spain to avoid the Albigensian heretics. He later took part in the Crusades against the Albigensians in southern France. Tutor to King James I of Aragon. Settled in Barcelona. Friend of Saint Raymond Penyafort. He used his large inheritance to ransom Christians held prisoner by the Moors. Founded the Order of Our Lady of Mercy (Mercedarians) beginning in 1218, an order devoted to ransoming Christians; the Order received papal approval in 1230. Peter twice served as a captive in Africa, winning the release of over 400 captives. In 1249, Peter retired from the Order to spend his remaining days in quiet prayer.

Α ☧ Ω

Saint Romulus

Priest. Founded a monastery in Berry, France.

Α ☧ Ω

"Catholics who remain faithful to Tradition,
even if they are reduced to but a handful,
they are THE TRUE CHURCH. They've got the churches, but we've got the faith"
-- Saint Athanasius, "Apostle of Tradition", 373 Anno Domini

The Holy Tridentine Roman Rite Mass

The Tridentine Mass takes its name from the Council of Trent ( 1545-63 ), under the watchful eye of Pope Saint Pius V. The "Tridentine Rite" is, therefore, more properly called the Ancient or Traditional Roman Rite. The last edition of its missal was published in 1962.

The traditional Roman Rite differs from the new rite -- the 1969 Novus Ordo. This “new Mass” omits about 70 percent of the traditional Mass prayers. Most consider the traditional Latin Mass to be much more formal, more dignified.

It’s emphasis is on the sacrifice of Jesus and the recognition of the “true presence” of Jesus—Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity—in the Holy Eucharist. The entire Mass focuses on the Consecration of the Body and Blood and on reception of Christ in Holy Communion. This is represented in the photograph below.

The priest and the faithful face forward to the altar...and to God. The Holy Traditional Tridentine Roman Rite Latin Mass is the manner in which Catholics worshiped The One True God for well over 1,000 years. For those over the age of 40, it is the Mass of their youth. For those too young to remember incense filled churches, Gregorian chant, and the reverent silence at Mass, the Tridentine rite offers a return to a profound manner of worship.

Papal Primacy

The doctrine of papal primacy upholds the divine authority of the Successor of Blessed Apostle Saint Peter to rule over the entire Church with ordinary and immediate jurisdiction. Two Magisterial texts are key to understanding its supreme nature and the obligation of all who are not invincibly ignorant of this truth to submit to Papal authority for the sake of their salvation.

Pope Boniface VIII, in his Bull Unam Sanctum ( provided below ) , spelled out the doctrine of the necessity of the Church for salvation and with it the necessity of submission to the Roman Pontiff. Regarding the primacy of authority of Peter and his successors he stated:

But this authority, although it is given to man and is exercised by man, is not human, but rather divine, and has been given by the divine Word to Peter himself and to his successors in him, whom the Lord acknowledged an established rock, when he said to Peter himself: Whatsoever you shall bind etc. [Matt. 16:19]. Therefore, whosoever resists this power so ordained by God, resists the order of God [cf. Rom. 13:2] ... Furthermore, we declare, say, define, and proclaim to every human creature that they by necessity for salvation are entirely subject to the Roman Pontiff.

As with all principles of morality, God does not hold the invincibly ignorant of the truth culpable for failing to live by them. Thus, Pope Pius IX could say regarding the salvation of those outside the Church, and thus also those who do not submit to the Roman Pontiff,

We must hold as of the faith, that out of the Apostolic Roman Church there is no salvation; that she is the only ark of safety, and whosoever is not in her perishes in the deluge; we must also, on the other hand, recognize with certainty that those who are invincible in ignorance of the true religion are not guilty for this in the eyes of the Lord. And who would presume to mark out the limits of this ignorance according to the character and diversity of peoples, countries, minds and the rest?

This same Pope convened the First Vatican Council, which in addition to defining papal infallibility also defined papal primacy. Both doctrines point the faithful to the necessity of union with the Successor of Peter. Infallibility directs our attention to the unifying role of the Pope in matters of faith, and primacy to that role with respect to sacramental and other ecclesiastical disciplines.

...all the faithful of Christ must believe "that the Apostolic See and the Roman Pontiff hold primacy over the whole world, and that the Pontiff of Rome himself is the successor of the blessed Peter, the chief of the apostles, and is the true vicar of Christ and head of the whole Church and faith, and teacher of all Christians; and that to him was handed down in blessed Peter, by our Lord Jesus Christ, full power to feed, rule, and guide the universal Church, just as is also contained in the records of the ecumenical Councils and in the sacred canons.

... the faithful of whatever rite and dignity, both as separate individuals and all together, are bound by a duty of hierarchical submission and true obedience, not only in things pertaining to faith and morals, but also in those which pertain to the discipline and government of the Church spread over the whole world, so that the Church of Christ, protected not only by the Roman Pontiff, but by the unity of communion as well as of the profession of the same faith is one flock under the one highest shepherd. This is the doctrine of Catholic truth from which no one can deviate and keep his faith and salvation... [Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Vatican Council I, 1870]

To be a Roman Rite Catholic you must believe the body of Jesus Christ is present in each consecrated wafer ( Holy Eucharist ); that the sacrifice of Calvary is repeated at every Mass; and that he gives Himself to us in the form of Holy Communion to sustain His creation ( you ) as His tabernacle.

Eucharistic Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the Tabernacle or through exposition :

Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration is a wonderful devotion that adores Jesus present in the Blessed Sacrament. Through a deeper love and closer relationship with Jesus, you acquire the strength, healing and peace to make it through your pilgrimage of life and to achieve your ultimate goal - Heaven and the Beatific Vision.

In many ways, Our Lord, is calling us to worship and receive Him in the Eucharist. He speaks this desire in many ways: through the Pope and the Magisterium of the Church, in the Bible ( Blessed Apostle Saint John 6 ), through his Blessed Mother in approved Marian apparitions, through the testimonies of Saints and Martyrs, through Eucharistic miracles, through Church approved messages given by Jesus by Divine Revelation, through our souls who long for Jesus in Communion, and through our suffering world which is in much need of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. Unfortunately many of us disbelieve or have grown indifferent towards Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.

Holy Mother most merciful, we implore the infinite mercy of thy Son even more, for now doth the world and the Church so reek of doubt and error. Everywhere thy Son is blasphemed and smited in the Holy Eucharist;

But what is still worse is the apostasy of both clerics and laity who no longer hold dear the whole and summit of our Faith; His Sacrifice and Sacrament of Body and Blood. In our un-dying love of the Bread of Life, the Everlasting Manna, the Holiest of Holies; we render unto thy Son adoration, thanksgiving, and atonement in reparation for these heinous acts of blasphemy. Would that we could shed our own blood to make them cease.

Again, Holy Mother, thou who art the enemy of the serpent, send forth thy legions to protect thy Son in the Blessed Sacrament, and command thy legions to act upon the mind and will of those who would blaspheme our Lord's Body and Blood.

COMMUNION IN THE HAND BY ONE NOT CONSECRATED

REMAINS A PROHIBITED AND CONDEMNED ABOMINATION

WITHIN THE HOLY AND APOSTOLIC CHURCH

"Communion in the hand" is a Protestant innovation foisted upon the Roman Rite Catholic world in the name of false ecumenism. The Novus Ordo practice of communion in the hand is rooted in the rejection of the Catholic doctrine on the Holy Eucharist and the denial of the Catholic priesthood.

The Church has condemned communion in the hand from the early centuries :

Pope Saint Sixtus ( 115-125 ). Prohibited the faithful from even touching the Sacred Vessels: "Statutum est ut sacra vasa non ab aliis quam a sacratis Dominoque dicatis contrectentur hominibus..." [It has been decreed that the Sacred Vessels are not to be handled by others than by those consecrated and dedicated to the Lord.]

Pope Saint Eutychian ( 275-283 ). Forbade the faithful from taking the Sacred Host in their hand.

Saint Basil The Great, Doctor of The Church ( 330-379 ). "The right to receive Holy Communion in the hand is permitted only in time of persecution." Saint Basil considered Communion in the hand so irregular that he did not hesitate to consider it a grave fault.

COUNCIL OF SARAGOSSA ( 380 ). It was decided to punish with EXCOMMUNICATION anyone who dared to continue the practice of Holy Communion in the hand. The Synod of Toledo confirmed this decree.

Pope Saint Leo The Great ( 440-461 ). Energetically defended and required faithful obedience to the practice of administering Holy Communion on the tongue of the faithful.

SYNOD OF ROUEN (650). Condemned Communion in the hand to halt widespread abuses that occurred from this practice, and as a safeguard against sacrilege.

SIXTH ECUMENICAL COUNCIL, AT CONSTANTINOPLE (680-681). Forbade the faithful to take the Sacred Host in their hand, threatening the transgressors with excommunication.

Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). "Out of reverence towards this sacrament [ the Holy Eucharist ], nothing touches it, but what is consecrated; hence the corporal and the chalice are consecrated, and likewise the priest's hands, for touching this sacrament." ( Summa Theologica, Pars III, Q. 82, Art. 3, Rep. Obj. 8 ).

COUNCIL OF TRENT (1545-1565). "The fact that only the priest gives Holy Communion with his consecrated hands is an Apostolic Tradition."

Pope Paul VI ( 1963-1978 ). "This method [on the tongue] must be retained." (Apostolic Epistle "Memoriale Domini" ).

Pope John Paul II. "To touch the sacred species and to distribute them with their own hands is a privilege of the ordained. ( Dominicae Cenae, sec. 11)

"It is not permitted that the faithful should themselves pick up the consecrated bread and the sacred chalice, still less that they should hand them from one to another." ( Inaestimabile Donum, April 17, 1980, sec. 9).

The Sacrifice of the Eucharist as the central act of worship of the Roman Rite Catholic Church. The "Mass" is a late form of mission (sending), from which the faithful are sent to put into practice what they have learned and use the graces they have received in the Eucharistic liturgy. The Mass cannot be understood apart from Calvary, of which it is a re-presentation, memorial, and effective application of the merits gained by Christ.

"Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is my body.' And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." ( Blessed Apostle Saint Matthew 26:26-28 ).

Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus

Traditional Holy Mass Propers

† In Nativitate Domini Ad Tertium Missam ad Die ~ Christmas Day: Third Mass During the Day †

Anno Dómini 25 December 2010

Statio ad S. Mariam Majorem ~ Station at Saint Mary Major

Color: Albus/Aurum ~ White/Gold Vestments ~ I Classis ~ First Class Observance

Puer natus est nobis, et Fílius datus est nobis ~ A Child is born to us and a Son is given to us

"....Et verbum caro factum est, et habitávit in nobis: et vídimus glóriam ejus, et glóriam quasi Unigéniti a Patre, plenum grátiæ et veritátis ~ the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us : and we saw His glory, the glory as of the Only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."

by William McNichols

Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. ~~ Philippians 2:5-11

"All whatsoever you do in word or work, do all in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
giving thanks to God the Father through Jesus Christ our Lord"--- Blessed Apostle Saint Paul

"Let it not be as a murderer or a thief, a malefactor or a coveter of other men's goods that any of you suffer; but if it is for the name of Christian, let him be not ashamed, but glorify God in that name." --- Blessed Apostle Saint Peter

REDEMPTION

This third Mass during the day on Christmas Day returns to the major Station at St. Mary Major and we hear in the Epistle from St. Paul that it was by the Word that God made the world. Let the nations and kings come and adore Him. If the Angels fall down and worship Him, can we do any less. We kneel and do just that during the very Gospel - the Last Gospel - we hear at every Mass for it is the main Gospel on this day: that of John 1: 1-14, for indeed "The Word was made flesh." The ET VERBUM CARO FACTUM EST completes the prophecies of the Old Testament for the promised Infant God-man has indeed come and the Redemption accomplished by Christ at His first coming will be completed by Him at the end of time when He comes again. The Last Gospel for this Mass only is that of Matthew 2: 1-2, that of his account of the Magi.

Thread Sources

A very special 'Thank you' to AmericanCatholic.org; ASU.edu; fisheaters.com; Friends of Fatima; catholic.org; and saints.sqpn.com, for edited commentaries and resources related to the presentation of today's Proper. Additional sources: Saint Andrew Daily Missal and the 1945 Marian Missal

Introitus ~ Introit
Isaias IX:VI ~ 9:6

Puer natus est nobis; et fílius datus est nobis: cujus impérium super humerum ejus: et vocábitur nomen ejus magni consílii Angelus. Psalm 97:1 Cantáte Dómino cánticum novum; quia mirabília fecit. V. Glória Patri, et Fílio, et Spirítui Sancto. Sicut erat in princípio, et nunc, et semper, et in sæcula sæculórum. Amen. Repeat : Puer natus est nobis; et fílius datus est nobis....

A Child is born to us, and a Son is given to us: Whose government is upon His shoulder and His Name shall be called, the Angel of Great Counsel. Psalm 97:1 Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: for He hath done wonderful things. V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Repeat : A Child is born to us, and a Son is given to us....

ORATIO ~ COLLECT

Concéde quæsumus omnípotens Deus: ut nos Unigéniti tui nova per carnem natívitas líberet, quos sub peccáti jugo vetústa sérvitus tenet, per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum.

Collect For The Intercession Of
The Blessed Virgin Mary

Deus, qui diligéntibus te bona invisibília præparásti: infúnde córdibus nostris tui amóris efféctum; ut te in ómnibus, et super ómnia diligéntes, promissiónes tuas, quæ omne desidérium súperent, consequámur, per eúmdem Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus.

Collect For The Intercession Of The Saints

A cunctis nos quæsumus Dómine mentis et cópores defénde perículis: et intercedénet beáat et gloriósa semper Vírgine Dei Genitrice María, cum beáto Joseph, beátis Apóstolis tuis Petro et Paulo, et ómnibus Sanctis, salútem nobis tríbue benígnus et pacem; ut destrúctis adversitátibus et erróribus univérsis, Ecclésia tua secúra tibi sérviat libertáte. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum.

Collect For The Living and the Dead

Omnipotens sempiterna Deus, qui vivorum dominaris simuesse praenoscis: te supplices exoramus; ut, pro quibus effundere preces decrevimus, quosque vel praesens saeculum adhuc in carne retinet, vel futurum jam exutos corpore suscepit, intercedentibus omnibus Sanctis tuis, pietatis tuae clementia omnium delictorum suorum veniam consequantur, per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Collect for God's Holy Church

Ecclésiæ tuæ, quæ-sumus, Dómine, preces placátus admítte: ut, destrúctis adversitátibus et erróribus univérsis, secura tibi sérviat libertáte. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum.

Collect Against the persecutors of Holy Mother Church

Ecclesiae tuae, quaesumus, Domine, preces placátus admítte : ut, destrúctis adversitátibus et erróribus univérsis, secura tibi sérviat libertate, per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum

G rant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that the new birth in the flesh of Thine only begotten Son may set us free, who, because of the sometime slavery of our race, are still borne down under the yoke of sin, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Who livest and reignest, with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, One God. Amen.

Collect For The Intercession Of
The Blessed Virgin Mary

O Almighty and Everlasting God, who hast granted to Thy servants, in confessing the true Faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of Majesty to adore the Unity, we beseech Thee, that by steadfastness in the same Faith, we may ever be defended against all adversity, through the same Jesus Christ.

Collect For The Intercession Of The Saints

D efend us, we beseech Thee, O Lord, from all dangers of mind and body: and through the intercession of the blessed and glorious Mary, ever Virgin, mother of God, of Saint Joseph, of Thy holy apostles, Saints Peter and Paul, and of all the saints, in Thy loving-kindness grant us safety and peace; that, all adversities and errors being overcome, Thy Church may serve Thee in security and freedom.

Collect For The Living and the Dead

O Almighty and Eternal God, Who hast dominion over both the living and the dead, and hast mercy on all Whom Thou knowest shall be Thine by faith and good works: we humbly beseech Thee that all for whom we have resolved to make supplication whether the present world still holds them in the flesh, or the world to come has already received them out of the body, may, through the intercession of all Thy saints, obtain of Thy goodness and clemency pardon for all their sins, through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Collect For God's Holy Church

Graciously hear, O Lord, the prayers of Thy Church that, having overcome all adversity and every error, she may serve Thee in security and freedom.

Collect Against the persecutors of Holy Mother Church

We beseech Thee, O Lord, mercifully to receive the prayers of Thy Church : that, all adversity and error being destroyed, she may serve Thee in security and freedom, through Jesus Christ our Lord

EPISTOLA ~ EPISTLE ¤ Hebræos I:I-XII ~ Hebrews 1: 1-12

Léctio Pauli Apóstolii ad Hebræos.

Multifáriam multísque modis olim Deus loquens pátribus in Prophétis novíssime diébus istis locútus est nobis in Fílio, quem constítuit hærédem universórum, per quem fecit et sæcula. Qui cum sit splendor glóriæ, et figúra substántiæ ejus, portáns-que ómnia verbo virtútis suæ, purgatiónem peccatórum fáciens, sedet ad déxteram Majestátis in excélsis: tanto mélior Angelus efféctus, quanto differéntius præ illis nomen hæreditávit. Cui enim dixit aliquándo Angelórum: Fílius meus es tu, ego hódie génui te? Et rursum: Ego ero illi in Patrem, et ipse erit mihi in fílium. Et cum íterum introdúcit primogénitum in orbem terræ, dicit: Et adórent eum omnes Angeli Dei. Et ad Angelos quidem dicit: Qui facit Angelos suos spíritus, et minístros suos flammam ignis. Ad Fílium autem: Thronus tuus, Deus, in sæculum sæculi: virga æquitátis, virga regni tui. Dilexísti justítiam, et odísti iniquitátem: proptérea unxit te Deus, Deus tuus, óleo exsultatiónis præ particípibus tuis. Et: Tu in princípio, Domine, terram fundásti; et ópera mánuum tuarum sunt cæli. Ipsi períbunt, tu autem permanébis; et omnes ut vestiméntum veteráscent, et velut amíctum mutábis eos, et mutabúntur: tu autem idem ipse es, et anni tui non defícient.

Lesson from the Epistle of Blessed Apostle Saint Paul to the Hebrews .

God, Who at sundry times and in divers manners spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets, last of all in these days hath spoken to us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the world: Who being the brightness of His glory and the figure of His substance, and upholding all things by the word of His power, making purgation of sins, sitteth on the right hand of the Majesty on high: being made so much better than the angels, as He hath inherited a more excellent name than they. For to which of he angels hath He said at any time: I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son? And again, when He bringeth in the first begotten into the world, He saith: And let all the angels of God adore Him. And to the angels indeed He saith: He that maketh His angels spirits, and His ministers a flame of fire. But to the Son: Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a scepter of justice is the scepter of Thy kingdom. Thou hast loved justice and hated iniquity: therefore God, Thy God, hath anointed Thee with the oil of gladness above Thy fellows. And: Thou in the beginning, O Lord, didst found the earth: and the works of Thy hands are the heavens. They shall perish, but Thou shalt continue: and they shall all grow old as a garment: and as a vesture shalt Thou change them and they shall be changed: but Thou art the self-same, and Thy years shall not fail.

GRADUALE ~ GRADUAL : ¤ Psalm XCVII:III-IV, II ~ GRADUAL ¤ Psalm 97: 3-4, 2

V idérunt omnes fines terræ salutáre Dei nostri: jubiláte Deo omnis terra. Notum fecit Dóminus salutáre suum: ante conspéctum géntium revelávit justítiam suam.

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God; sing joyfully to God, all the earth. The Lord hath made known His salvation; He hath revealed His justice in the sight of the Gentiles..

ALLELUIA

A llelúia, allelúia. Dies sanctificátus illúxit nobis: veníte gentes, et adoráte Dóminum: quia hódie descéndit lux magna super terram. Allelúia

Alleluia, alleluia. A hallowed day hath dawned for us: come ye Gentiles, and adore the Lord; for this day a great light hath descended upon the earth. Alleluia.

From A Series of 153 Woodcuts by Jerome Nadal, SJ,
published in Evangelicae Historiae Imagines c.1593

EVANGELIUM ~ GOSPEL - Blessed Apostle Saint Joánnem I:I-XIV ~ John 1:1-14

† Sequentia sancti Evangelii secundum Joánnem †
I n princípio erat Verbum, et Verbum erat apud Deum, et Deus erat Verbum. Hoc erat in princípio apud Deum. Omnia per ipsum facta sunt: et sine ipso factum est nihil quod factum est: in ipso vita erat, et vita erat lux hóminum: et lux in ténebris lucet, et ténebræ eam non comprehendérunt. Fuit homo missus a Deo, cui nomen erat Joánnes. Hic venit in testimónium, ut testimónium perhibéret de lúmine, ut omnes créderent per illum. Non erat ille lux, sed ut testimónium perhibéret de lúmine. Erat lux vera, quæ illúminat omnem hóminem veniéntem in hunc mundum. In mundo erat, et mundus per ipsum factus est, et mundus eum non cognóvit. In própria venit, et sui eum non recepérunt. Quotquot autem recepérunt eum, dedit eis potestátem fílios Dei fíeri, his, qui credunt in nómine ejus: qui non ex sanguínibus, neque ex voluntáte carnis, neque ex voluntáte viri, sed ex Deo nati sunt. (Hic genuflectitur.) Et verbum caro factum est, et habitávit in nobis: et vídimus glóriam ejus, et glóriam quasi Unigéniti a Patre, plenum grátiæ et veritátis.

† The Gospel recorded by Blessed Apostle Saint John †
I n the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was made nothing that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men: and the light shineth in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the light, that all men through him might believe. He was not the light, but was to bear witness of the light. That was the true light, which enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He came unto His own, but His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them He gave power to become the sons of God: to them that believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (Here all genuflect.) And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us: and we saw His glory, the glory as of the Only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Homily For Christmas Day
25 December 2005 Anno Domini

by Father Louis J. Campbell
"Qui legit, intelligat"
"He who readeth, let him understand"

"The Mystery of His Presence"

Two Millennia ago the Word was made flesh and ever since Christ has remained the fulcrum and pinnacle of our very existence, meaning and end. Civilizations have come and gone, but Christ remains ever present on the holy altars where the True Latin Mass is celebrated and His purpose for becoming man like us in everything but sin, is magnified as a reminder of knowing God's will for us through the necessity of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

† Today we hear the most wonderful story, the most beloved and inspiring story, of the birth of the Christ Child in Bethlehem. "Thou shalt call his name Jesus," the Archangel Gabriel had told the humble Virgin Mary. "He shall be great," said the heavenly messenger, "and shall be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of David His father, and He shall be king over the house of Jacob forever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end" ( Blessed Apostle Saint Luke 1:31,32 ).

Humility and obedience would mark His life. "God so loved the world that He sent His only-begotten Son," says Blessed Apostle Saint John. His sent Him to be born among the humble, born in a stable among the lowly animals. He would be known as "the carpenter's son." He would come from Nazareth in Galilee, of which it was said, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" ( Blessed Apostle Saint John 1:46 ). His obedience would be shown by His perfect adherence to His Father's will: "And appearing in the form of man, He humbled Himself, becoming obedient to death, even to death on a cross" ( Philippians 2:7,8 ).

The world, wanting us to forget this wonderful story, uses everything in its power to blot out the memory of Jesus Christ, "the most beautiful among the sons of men" ( Psalm 44:3;7,8 ). They find so much for us to do around the "Holiday Season" - gifts to buy, trees to trim, parties to attend, noisy music to fill our heads, TV holiday drivel for those with "itching ears," who "turn away their hearing from the truth and turn aside rather to fables" (2 Blessed Apostle Saint Timothy 4:3,4 ).

Jesus was born among us because of the love of the Father, Who "so loved the world." His deeds would be motivated by love, because this Child IS Love - - Love incarnate. There is no weapon of mass destruction, no nuclear horror, no natural catastrophe, no power whatsoever in this world that can match the power of this Child, "for stern as death is love, relentless as the nether world is devotion; its flames are a blazing fire. Deep waters cannot quench love, nor floods sweep it away" ( Canticles 8:6,7 ).

Here we speak of Divine Love, the love that comes from God and is of God, the love that is poured forth in our hearts by the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us. The human emotion of love, if it is not grounded in divine love, will soon fade away or turn into something else less noble. This is the only kind of love the world knows, so it considers it normal to "love and leave," after destroying that which it seemed to love. This is not the kind of love the Lord had for us, for Jesus, "knowing that the hour had come for Him to pass out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, loved them to the end" ( Blessed Apostle Saint John 13:1 ).

But don't mistake Our Lord's love for indulgence or permissiveness. God is too good to punish, they say. Everybody is going to Heaven because God wants everyone to be saved. But God, although He "wishes all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Blessed Apostle Saint Timothy 2:4 ), does not force us to be saved against our will. "God created you without you," says Blessed Saint Augustine, "but He cannot save you without you."

A recent survey done by ABC brings to light the good news that the great majority of Americans believe in Heaven. The bad news is that most of them have the presumptuous notion that they are all going there, more or less automatically, it would seem. For them cooperation in the process of their salvation is not necessary.

But, says Blessed Apostle Saint Paul: "For with the heart a man believes unto justice, and with the mouth profession of faith is made unto salvation" ( Romans 10:10 ). Furthermore, "Faith… depends on hearing, and hearing on the word of Christ" ( Romans 10:17 ). This is why the Church, on this Holy Night, makes a supreme effort to pierce the hardness of our hearts and engage our attention, so that we may hear the story of His Birth once more and begin to change our lives at last.

To awaken our faith we sing the traditional Christmas carols - Silent Night, O Come All Ye Faithful, Lo How a Rose. As midnight approaches the priest and servers approach the nativity scene with sweet smelling incense to offer worship to the Divine Child. The altar and the sanctuary are beautifully decorated with trees, lights and flowers. As the priest and ministers approach the altar the Mass opens with the choir singing the sublime words of the Introit:

"Dominus dixit ad me: Filius meus es tu, ego hódie génui te" ( Psalm 2:7 ) - "The Lord said to Me, 'You are My Son; this day I have begotten You."

Once again our senses are enlivened by the sweet smell of incense as the priest incenses the altar, the choir singing: "Kyrie elision; Christi elision; Kyrie elision," - "Lord, have mercy; Christ have mercy; Lord, have mercy."

By the time we stand for the Gospel our hearts should be open once more to hear the greatest story ever told:

"And Joseph also went from Galilee out of the town of Nazareth into Judea to the town of David, which is called Bethlehem - because he was of the house and family of David - to register, together with Mary his espoused wife, who was with child. And it came to pass while they were there, that the days for her to be delivered were fulfilled. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn" ( Blessed Apostle Saint Luke 2:4-7 ).

But we are not mere spectators at a time and place far removed from the mystery of His presence. What follows now is a mystery not of this world and beyond the understanding of men - the miracle of Christ's presence in the Eucharist. At the words, "For this is My Body; For this is the Chalice of My Blood of the new and eternal covenant, the mystery of faith: which shall be shed for you and for many unto the forgiveness of sins," we find fulfilled in a marvelous new way the words of Scripture: "While all things were in quiet silence, and the night was in the midst of her course, your almighty Word, O Lord, leapt down from Your royal throne" ( Wisdom 18:14,15 ).

We make our way to the altar to receive Jesus Christ, the Word Made Flesh, in Holy Communion. Are we not one in faith with the Holy Mother of God, Blessed Saint Joseph, and the shepherds? We sing with the angels, "Gloria in excélsis Deo, et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntáti" - "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will."

That is my fondest wish and prayer for you this day in which, truly "Et Verbum caro factum est." †

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

OFFERTORIUM ~ OFFERTORY ¤ Psalm LXXXVIII:XII, XV ~ 88:12, 15

Tui sunt cœli, et tua est terra: orbem terrárum, et plenitúdinem ejus tu fundásti: justítia et judícium præparátio sedis tuæ.

Thine are the heavens, and Thine is the earth: the world and the fullness thereof Thou hast founded: justice and judgment are the preparation of Thy throne.

SECRETA ~ SECRET

Obláta, Dómine, múnera, nova Unigéniti tui nativitáte sanctífica: nosque a peccatórum nostrórum máculis emúnda, per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum, Filium Tuum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus. Per Dóminum.

Secret For The Blessed Virgin Mary

In méntibus nóstris, quæsumus, Dómine, veræ fídei sacraménta confírma: ut, qui concéptum de Vírgine Deum verum et hóminem confitémur; per ejus salutíferæ resurrectiónis poténtiam, ad ætérnam mereámur perveníre lætítiam. Per eúmdem Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Secret For The Intercession Of The Saints

Exaudi nos, Deus salutaris noster : ut per hujus sacramenti virtutem, a cunctis nos mentis et corporis hostibus tuearis; gratiam tribunes in praesenti, et gloriam in futuro. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Secret For The Living and the Dead

Deus, Cui soli cogniuts est numerus electorum in superna felicitate locandus: tribue quaesumus; ut, intercedentibus omnibus Sanctis Tuis, universorum, quos in oratione commendatos suscepimus , et omnium fidelium nomina, beatae praedestinationis liber adscripta retineat. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Secret for God's Holy Church

Prótege nos, Dómine, tuis mystériis serviéntes: ut divínis rebus inhæréntes, et córpore tibi famulémur et mente. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

I n virtue of the birth upon earth of Thine only-begotten Son, vouchsafe, O Lord, to hallow these our offerings, and to cleanse us from all stain of sin, through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Secret For The Blessed Virgin Mary

May this victim, we beseech Thee, O Lord, cleanse away our sins, sanctifying Thy servants in both soul and body for the celebration of this sacrifice, through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, One God, forever and ever. Amen.

Secret For The Intercession Of The Saints

Graciously hear us, O God our Savior, and by the virtue of this sacrament protect us from all enemies of soul and body, bestowing on us both grace in this life and glory hereafter. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Who livest and reignest, with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Secret For The Living and the Dead

O Almighty and Eternal God, O God, Who alone knowest the number of the elect to be admitted to the happiness of Heaven, grant, we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of all Thy saints, the names of all who have been recommended to our prayers and of all the faithful, may be inscribed in the book of blessed predestination. Protect us, O Lord, who assist at Thy mysteries; that, fixed upon things divine we may serve Thee in both body and mind, through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost; One God; forever and ever, Amen.

Secret For God's Holy Church

Protect us, O Lord, who assist at Thy mysteries, that, cleaving to things divine, we may serve Thee both in body and in mind.

Praefatio de Nativitate ~ Preface for Christmas

Vere dignum et justum est, æquum et salutáre, nos tibi semper, et ubíque grátias ágere: Dómine sancte, Pater omnípotens, ætérne Deus. Quia per incarnáti Verbi mystérium, nova mentis nostræ óculis lux tuæ claritátis infúlsit: ut dum visibíliter Deum cognóscimus, per hunc in invisibílium amórem rapiámur. Et ídeo cum Angelis et Archángelis, cum Thronis et Dominatiónibus, cumque omni milítia cœléstis exércitus, hymnum glóriæ tuæ cánimus, sine fine dicéntes: SANCTUS, SANCTUS, SANCTUS....

It is truly meet and just, right and profitable for us at all times, and in all places, to give thanks to Thee, O Lord, the Holy One, the Father Almighty, the Everlasting God; because by the Mystery of the Word made flesh, from Thy brightness a new light hath risen to shine on the eyes of our souls, in order that, God becoming visible to us, we may be borne upward to the love of things invisible. And therefore with the Angels and Archangels, with the Thrones and Dominations, and with all the array of the Heavenly Host we sing a hymn to Thy glory, and unceasingly repeat: HOLY, HOLY, HOLY...

COMMUNIO ~ COMMUNION ¤ Psalm XCVII:III ~ 97:3

Vidérunt omnes fines terræ salutáre Dei nostri.

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

POSTCOMMUNIO ~ POSTCOMMUNION

Præsta quæsumus omnípotens Deus: ut natus hódie Salvátor mundi, sicut divínæ nobis generatiónis est auctor; ita et immortalitátis sit ipse largítor, per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum.

Postcommunion For The Blessed Virgin Mary

Trátiam tuam quæsumus, Dómine, méntibus nostris infúnde: ut qui, Angelo nuntiánte, Christi Fílii tui incarnatiónem cognóvimus: per passiónem ejus et crucem, ad resurrectiónis glóriam perducámur. Per eúmdem Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spíritus Sancti, Deus. Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Postcommunion For The Intercession Of The Saints

Mundet et múniat nos quáesumus Dómine dívini sacraménti munus oblátum: et intercedénte beáta Vírgine Dei Genitríce María, cum beáto Joseph, beátis Apóstolis tuis Petro et Paulo, et ómnibus Sanctis; a cunctis nos reddat et pervérsitátibus expiátos, et advérsitátibus expedítos. Per eúmdem Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fiiium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spíritus Sancti, Deus. Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Postcommunion For The Living and the Dead

Purificent nos, quaesumus, Omnipotens et misericors Deus, sacramenta quae sumpsimus : et, intercedentibus omnibus Sanctis tuis, praesta; ut hoc tuum sacramentum non sit nois reatus ad poenam, sed intercession salutaris ad veniam : sit ablution scelerum, sit fortitude fragilium sit contra omnia mundi pericula firmamentum ; sit vivorum atque mortuorum fidelium remissio omnium delictorum. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Postcommunion for God's Holy Church

Quæsumus, Dómine Deus noster, ut quos divína tribuis participatióne gaudére, humánis non sinas subjacére perículis. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fiiium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that even as the Savior of the world, born to us this day, bestowed upon us by adoption the 'sonship' of God; so to Him we may look for the grace of a happy eternity, through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Postcommunion For The Blessed Virgin Mary

Merciful God, who ceasest not to lavish upon us the riches of Thy sacraments; grant that we may ever draw near to Thine Altar with deepest reverence and with faith unwavering, through the Lord.

Postcommunion For The Intercession Of The Saints

Graciously hear us, O God our Savior, and, by virtue of this Sacrament, defend us from all enemies of soul and body, bestowing upon us Thy grace here and Thy glory hereafter.

Postcommunion For The Living and the Dead

May the sacraments which we have received purify us, we beseech Thee, O almighty and merciful Lord; and through the intercession of all Thy saints, grant that this Thy sacrament may not be unto us a condemnation, but a salutary intercession for pardon; may it be the washing away of sin, the strength of the weak, a protection against all dangers of the world, and a remission of all the sins of the faithful, whether living or dead, through the Lord.

Postcommunion for God's Holy Church

Protect us, O Lord, who assist at Thy mysteries, that, cleaving to things divine, we may serve Thee both in body and in mind.

PRAYER OVER THE MANY

Inclinantes se, Domine, majestati Tuaee, propitiatus intende; ut, Qui divino munere sunt refecti, caelestibus semper nutriantur auxiliis, per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum.

Look down, O Lord, in Thy mercy, upon those who bow before Thy majesty; that they who are refreshed by Thy divine gift may ever be sustained by heavenly aid, through our Lord Jesus Christ.

THE BLESSING

V. Sit Nomen Domini benedictum.
R. Ex hoc nunc, et usque in saeculum.
V. U Adjutorium nostrum in Nomine Domini.
R. Qui fecit colum et terram.
V. Benedicat vos, Omnipotens Deus:
V. Pater, et Filius, et Spiritus Sanctus, descendat super vos, et maneat semper.
R. Amen.

V. Blessed be the Name of the Lord.
R. Now and for ever more.
V. U Our help is in the Name of the Lord.
R. Who made Heaven and earth.
V. May Almighty God bless thee:
V. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, descend upon thee, and always remain with thee.
R. Amen.

† - Holy Queen of Heaven and Earth, pray for us. - †

The Holy Family

"The Holy Family with the infant St. John the Baptist ( the Doni tondo )" by Michelangelo c.1506, Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence Parent's Prayer

Jesus, Son of God, Son of Man, and Son of Mary, I thank you for the gift of life you have entrusted to my care. Help me be a parent both tender and wise, both loving and forgiving.

Mary, Holy Mother of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and our Motherly Queen of Heaven, nourish our family with your heavenly grace. Help us to remain faithful to The Most Holy Trinity, in all our sorrows and joys.

Joseph, Earthly father to our Lord God, guardian and spouse of Mary, keep our family safe from harm. Help us in all times of discouragement or anxiety.

Holy Family of Nazareth, help our family to walk in your footsteps. May we be peace-loving and peace-giving.
Amen.

The Solution

"....a countless legion of the most saintly men of every age and of every condition have not only held the Rosary most dear, and have most piously recited it; but have also used it at all times as a most powerful weapon to overcome the devil; to preserve the purity of their lives; and acquire virtue more zealously...." ~ ~ Pope Pius XI, Encyclical Letter, Ingravescentibus Malis, On the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The Most Holy Rosary Of The Blessed Virgin Mary

"I am the Lady of the Rosary" ~~ Speaking to the three children of Fatima.

'Wonder not that you have obtained so little fruit by your labors, you have spent them on barren soil, not yet watered with the dew of Divine Grace. When GOD willed to renew the face of the earth, He began by sending down on it the fertilizing rain of the Angelic Salutation. Therefore preach my Psalter composed of 150 Angelic Salutations and 15 Our Fathers, and you will obtain an abundant harvest'.
'The rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies. It will cause virtue and good works to flourish; it will withdraw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities, and lift them to the desire of eternal things.'
~~ Words of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Saint Dominic

Prayer To The Lady Of The Rosary

Beloved Lady of the Rosary, I thank you for your great gift of your psalter. As the beads slip through my fingers, may my heart and my lips sing your praise, and my brain contemplate those sacred mysteries of my Holy Faith. May my meditations on your beloved Rosary draw me ever closer, trustingly, to you, and through you to your divine son, my Lord and my God.

The Mysteries of Rosary of The Blessed Virgin Mary

Mysteries of Light

Often said on Thursday, the Mysteries of Light as inspired by and proposed in 1957 by Saint George Preca:

1. When Our Lord Jesus Christ, after his baptism in the Jordan, was led into the desert.

2. When Our Lord Jesus Christ showed, by word and miracles, that He is true God.

3. When Our Lord Jesus Christ taught the Beatitudes on the mountain.

4. When Our Lord Jesus Christ was transfigured on the mountain.

5. When Our Lord Jesus Christ had his last Meal with the Apostles.

Joyful Mysteries

Often said on Monday and Saturday, the Joyful Mysteries include: The Annunciation, The Visitation, The Birth of Our Lord, The Presentation of Our Lord, and The Finding of Our Lord in the Temple.

Sorrowful Mysteries

Often said on Tuesday and Friday the Sorrowful Mysteries include: The Agony in the Garden, The Scourging at the Pillar, The Crowning with Thorns, The Carrying of the Cross, and The Crucifixion and Death of Our Lord.

Glorious Mysteries

Often said on Wednesday and Sunday the Glorious Mysteries include: The Resurrection, The Ascension, The Coming of the Holy Spirit, The Assumption of our Blessed Mother into Heaven, and The Coronation of our Blessed Mother.

History Of The Rosary

Tradition holds that Our Lady gave the Rosary to Saint Dominic Guzman in 1206 as a form of gospel-preaching and popular prayer. For more than seven centuries, the Rosary devotion has been one of the most popular devotional practices in the church. Its combination of vocal and mental prayer have made it a prime tool for contemplation. Jesus is the author and source of grade; Our Lady's Rosary is the key to open the treasury of grace to us.

Although prayer beads had been popular before Dominic's time, he and his friars quickly adopted the Rosary as an excellent way to teach the mysteries of Christianity to a largely illiterate European population. In 1470, Blessed Alan of Rupe founded the first Rosary Confraternity, and thereby launched the Dominican Order as the foremost missionaries of the Rosary. Through the efforts of Blessed Alan and the early Dominicans, this prayer form spread rapidly throughout Western Christendom.

The meditations on the fifteen mysteries serve as reminders of incidents in the lives of Christ and Mary. These are divided into the joyful, sorrowful, and glorious mysteries. Thirteen of the mysteries come from incidents in the New Testament. One, the assumption of Mary into heave, comes from Sacred Tradition. The fifteens, the Crowning of Mary as Queen of Heaven is thought to be derived from images in the Book of Revelation. These meditations make the Rosary a reflection on the fundamental beliefs of our Faith.

Through the years, Our Lady has re-affirmed her approval of this devotion, and her pleasure in the title "Queen of the Rosary." To Blessed Alan, she made fifteen promises to those who devoutly recite her beads. She told him, ".. immense volumes would have to be written if all the miracles of my Holy Rosary were to be recorded." Our Lady's promises are:

† Those who shall have served me constantly by reciting the Rosary shall receive some special grace.

† I promise my special protection and great graces to all who devoutly recite my Psalter.

† The Rosary shall be a most powerful armor against hell; it shall destroy vices, weaken sin, overthrow unbelief.

† It shall make virtues and good works to flourish again; it shall obtain for souls abundant mercies of God; it shall win the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities, and life them to a desire of things eternal. Oh, how many souls will be sanctified by this means !

† The soul which has recourse to me through the Rosary shall not perish.

† Whoever shall have recited the Rosary devoutly and with meditation on its mysteries, shall never be overcome by misfortunes, shall not experience the anger of God, shall not be lost by a sudden death; but if he be in sin he shall be converted; and if he be in grace, he shall persevere and be made worth of eternal life.

† Truly devoted servants of my Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments.

† It is my will that those who recite my Rosary have, in life and in death, light and the plenitude of graces; and in life and death, may participate in the merits of the saints.

† Every day I deliver from Purgatory souls devoted to my Rosary.

† True servants of my Rosary shall enjoy great glory in heaven.

† Whatever you shall ask through the Rosary, you shall obtain.

† I will assist in every necessity those who propagate my Rosary.

† I have obtained from my Son that all members of the Confraternity of my Rosary may have in life and in death all the blessed as their associated.

† All who recite my Rosary are my children and the brethren of my Only Begotten Son Jesus Christ.

† Devotion to my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.

Our Lady told Blessed Bartolo Longo to propagate the Rosary, and promised that those who would propagate this devotion would be saved. In 1884, Our Lady of Pompeii appeared at Naples to Fortuna Agrelli, who was desperately ill. She told Fortuna that the title "Lady of the Holy Rosary" was one which was particularly pleasing to her, and cured Fortuna of her illness.

At Lourdes, Our Lady told Saint Bernadette to pray many rosaries. When Bernadette saw the beautiful lady, she instinctively took her Rosary in her hands and knelt down. The lady made a sign of approval with her head, and took into her hands a Rosary which hung on her right arm. As Bernadette prayed, Our Lady passed the beads of her Rosary through her fingers, but said nothing except the Gloria at the end of each decade. At Fatima, Mary told the children to pray the Rosary often.

Popes throughout history have loved the Rosary. Not a single Pope in the last four hundred years has failed to urge devotion to the Rosary. From Pope Sixtus IV, in 1479, to the present day, all popes have urged the use of this devotion, and enriched its recitation with indulgences.

Pius XI dedicated the entire month of October to the Rosary.

Pope Saint Pius X said : "Of all the prayers, the Rosary is the most beautiful and the richest in graces; of all, it is the one most pleasing to Mary, the Virgin Most Holy."

Pope Leo XIII repeatedly recommended the Rosary as a most powerful means whereby to move God to aid us in meeting the needs of the present age. In 1883, he inserted the invocation, "Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, pray for us ! " into the Liturgy for the Universal Church.

Many of the Saints, and a number of the religious and priestly orders have praised the Rosary.

Saint Charles said he depended on the Rosary almost entirely for the conversion and sanctification of his diocese.

Founders of most religious orders have either commanded or recommended the daily recitation of the Rosary.

The Benedictines speedily adapted this devotion in their ancient cloisters.

The Carmelites were happy to receive the Rosary as well as their rule from the Dominicans.

The Franciscans made their rosaries out of wood, and preached this devotion as well as poverty.

The Servites wore their rosaries as a badge of that servitude which is the only true liberty.

Inspired by the example of their founder, the Jesuits invariably propagated the devotion. Saint Francis Xavier used the touch of his chaplet as a means of healing the sick.

Saint Vincent de Paul instructed the members of his order to depend more on the Rosary than upon their preaching.

Our ancestors had recourse to the Rosary as an every- ready refuge in misfortune, and as a pledge and a proof of their Christian faith and devotion. Saint Dominic used the Rosary as a weapon in his battle against the Albigensian heresy in France.

In the last century, the Christian successes over the Turks at Temesvar and at Corfu coincided with the conclusion of public devotions of the Rosary. During the penal days in Ireland, the Rosary bound the Irish Catholics together as the church militant. When it was a felony to teach the Catholic Catechism, and death for a priest to say Mass, the Irish mothers used their rosaries to tell their little ones the story of Jesus and Mary, and thus kept the Faith green in the hearts of their children.

Saint John Vianney, the Cure d'Ars, declared emphatically that in the nineteenth century it was the Rosary which restored religion in France. Likewise, in the dark days of persecution in Mexico, in our own century, the sturdy Mexican Catholics clung faithfully to their rosaries. The martyr Miguel Pro was allowed his last request before being shot by a firing squad --- he knelt and prayed his Rosary

A special society, the Society of the Living Rosary, was founded by the Venerable Marie Pauline Jaricot in the city of Lyons, France, in 1826. She formed bands of fifteen members who each said one decade of the Rosary daily. Thus, the entire Rosary is said collectively by the members of each circle daily.

Father Timothy Ricci, O.P., instituted the Perpetual Rosary, or Mary's Guard of Honor, in 1635. The aim of this devotion is to unite the members in such a way that some devoted watchers will ever be found in prayer and praise at Our Lady's shrine, telling their beads for the conversion of sinners, the relief of the dying, and the succor of the dead.

In Belgium, the Dominican nuns of the Third Order established a monastery for the express purpose of maintaining the Perpetual Rosary, so that there it became not merely the devotion of a society, but the distinctive work of a community. A number of shrines of the order are to be found in the United States. Here, the Rosary is said day and night by members of the community. Rosary processions are held, and pilgrims sing again and again the praises of the Heavenly Queen of all Roman Rite Catholics.

Our Lady has 117 blessed titles.
Above all, She selected this title at Fatima:
"I am the Lady of the Rosary."

Saint Francis de Sales said the greatest method of praying is: Pray the Rosary.

Saint Thomas Aquinas preached 40 straight days in Rome Italy on just the Hail Mary.

Saint John Vianney, patron of priests, was seldom seen without a rosary in his hand.

"The rosary is the scourge of the devil" -- Pope Adrian VI

"The rosary is a treasure of graces" -- Pope Paul V

Saint Padre Pio said: "The Rosary is the weapon".

Several popes have written extensive encyclicals on the Rosary.

Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort wrote: "The rosary is the most powerful weapon to touch the Heart of Jesus, Our Redeemer, who so loves His Mother."

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary never has anyone who fled to Your protection,
Implored Your help, or sought Your intercession was left unaided.
Inspired by your grace, we fly to you, O Most Precious Virgin of virgins, our Heavenly Mother.
To You we come; before You we are humbled, sinful, and sorrowful.
O Mother of the Holy Word Incarnate, receive our petitions, and through your blessed intercession with our Redemer, Jesus Christ, to forgive our sinful human weaknesses. Amen.

Thank you Robert! Thanks for posts too!

Thank you Robert!

Merry Christmas!