BIG C CATHOLICS

For when peaceful stillness encompassed everything  and the night in its swift course was half spent,  Your all-powerful Word O Lord,  leapt down from Your royal throne. Alleluia. — Wisdom 18:14-15 O God, who marvelously created and yet more marvelously restored the dignity of human nature, grant that we may share the divinity of Him who humbled himself to share our humanity, your Son, Jesus Christ; who...reigns with you.  — From the Divine Liturgy of the Nativity of the Lord Almighty God, who sent Your only Son to redeem creation, on this feast of Our Lord's Nativity, enable us, we pray, to attain the joys of so great a salvation and to celebrate them always with worship and glad rejoicing. Loving Father, we duly praise You for Your Son, Jesus Christ, for He is Emmanuel, the Hope of all people. He is the Wisdom that teaches and guides us. He is the Savior of the world. May we imitate Him in every way. We ask this in Our Lord's most holy name. Amen.

This year (2017) Advent is unusually short, Sunday being the only day in the fourth week. In the General Roman Calendar, December 24th, Christmas Eve, is the last day of Advent as well as (beginning with the vigil Mass) the first day of Christmas time. This raises the question as to whether the fulfillment of one's Sabbath obligation may also fulfill the Christmas obligation to attend holy Mass. The answer is no . A February newsletter issued by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship observed that a "two-for-one" Mass cannot occur in the very rare circumstances when two of the six holy days of obligation, such as when the feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary or the Christmas solemnity of Our Lord's Nativity fall the day before or after Sunday. The committee stated, "When consecutive obligations occur on Saturday-Sunday or Sunday-Monday, the faithful must attend Mass twice to fulfill two separate obligations.&quo

For Catholics, the new Liturgical Year commences with the first Sunday of Advent. In this new liturgical year, the Church not only wishes to indicate the beginning of a period, but the beginning of a renewed commitment to the Faith by all those who follow Christ, the Lord. This time of prayer and penance gives us a renewed impetus to truly welcome the message of the One who was Incarnated for us. In fact, the entire Liturgy of the Advent season, will spur us to an awakening in our Christian life as we pray and joyously wait for Our Lord Jesus who is coming: "Awaken! Remember that God comes! Not yesterday, not tomorrow, but today, now! The one true God, 'the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob', is not a God who is there in Heaven, unconcerned with us and our history, but he is the-God-who-comes" (Benedict XVI, First Vespers of Advent, Vatican Basilica, December 2006). The season of Advent is one of vigilant anticipation, preparing us to welcome the mystery of the W

November begins with the Feast of All Saints followed by the Feast of All Souls on which we remember those who have died and are in Purgatory. Although we may pray for the poor souls throughout the year, the month of November is especially dedicated to praying on their behalf. The solemn Feast of Christ the King is also celebrated, marking the end of one liturgical year and the beginning of another. During November, as in all of Ordinary Time (Time After Pentecost), the Liturgy signifies and expresses the regenerated life from the coming of the Holy Spirit, which is to be spent on the model of Christ's Life and under the direction of His Spirit. As we come to the end of the Church year we are asked to consider the end times, our own as well as the world's. The culmination of the liturgical year is the Feast of Christ the King. "This feast asserts the supreme authority of Christ over human beings and their institutions.... Beyond it we see Advent dawning with its persp

The following eloquent commentary on the proclamation of the Gospel of Christ is from Orthodox priest Fr. Lawrence Farley’s, Let Us Attend: A Journey Through the Orthodox Divine Liturgy . May we reverence Christ's wisdom. (H/T Fr. Ted's Blog ) "When we hear the words of the Gospel, we are being entrusted with a treasure, and we must let these words bear fruit in our lives. Otherwise we will hear truth to our condemnation on the Last Day. That is why, before the Gospel is even chanted, the priest prays the Gospel prayer for all who are about to hear it: ‘Illumine our hearts, O Master and Lover of mankind, with the pure light of Your divine knowledge. Open the eyes of our mind to the understanding of Your Gospel teachings. Implant also in us the fear of Your blessed commandments, that trampling down all carnal desires, we may enter upon a spiritual manner of living, both thinking and doing such things as are well-pleasing to You.’"

Lamentation over the Dead Christ , Sandro Botticelli, c. 1481. Tenebrae , the Latin word for “shadow,” is the name of the ancient liturgy that engages our senses to help us understand the anguish of our Lord Jesus Christ as He was preparing to die for the sins of the whole world. It entails the public recitation (in a church) of Matins and Lauds, the first two hours of the Divine Office, on the evening before or early morning of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. One of the most conspicuous features of the service is the gradual extinguishing of candles until only a single candle remains, considered a symbol of our Lord. As the church gets darker and darker, we sense the great emotional and physical pain that was very real for Jesus as His hour approached. Toward the end of the service, the Christ candle is hidden, typifying the apparent victory of the forces of evil over good. At the conclusion of the liturgy a loud noise is made, symbolizing the earthquake at the

Each year, the Secretariat of Divine Worship receives inquiries concerning the celebration of the Paschal Triduum. The following questions address the most commonly received questions, and may be freely reproduced to inform those seeking to promote the effective celebration of these most sacred days. 1.) When does the Triduum begin and end?   The Easter Triduum begins with the evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, reaches its high point in the Easter Vigil, and closes with Evening Prayer on Easter Sunday. 2.) What are the Holy Oils consecrated and blessed at the Chrism Mass?   The oils, in suitable vessels, are carried in the procession of the gifts and the Bishop blesses each of the three oils separately. The Oil of Catechumens is blessed and will be used at Baptisms; the Oil of the Sick is blessed and will be used for the Anointing of the Sick; and the Oil of Chrism (mixed with balsam) is consecrated and will be used at Baptisms, Confirmations and Ordinations

Among the Church’s seven sacraments the Holy Eucharist is preeminent because it is the body and blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ. The Real Presence is the source and summit of the faith from which innumerable graces flow. Catholics who receive Communion receive Christ into their bodies to be more fully assimilated into His. In so doing, we assert our fidelity to the teachings of the Church. According to Saint John Paul II, "The Eucharist builds the Church," [ Redemptor Hominis 20 ]. Receiving Jesus in the Eucharist signals our unity with the Church, and with Christ Himself. Moreover, Communion strengthens us. In the Eucharist, Jesus forgives our venial sins and helps us resist mortal sin. To encounter Christ in this way is a supreme miracle and divine gift; the power of which cannot be exaggerated. The Sacrifice of the Mass should evoke in us awe, reverence and profound love. Numerous times, Jesus proclaims unequivocally the nature and importance of the Euchari

I Introductory Rites The section of the Mass preceding the Liturgy of the Word that confers a quality of preparation and introduction on the Eucharistic Sacrifice. The intent is that the assembled group unite as a community properly prepared to hear God's Word and celebrate the Eucharist. Includes the following: Entrance Antiphon, Greeting Penitential Rite (Rite of Blessing & Sprinkling), Kyrie (Lord, Have Mercy), Gloria (Glory to God), Opening Prayer "'Liturgy' is the participation of the people of God in the work of God. Through the liturgy Christ, our Redeemer and High Priest, continues the work of our redemption in, with, and through the Church." (CCC no. 1069) Since the Mass, the Church's highest form of prayer, is a gathering of the community, it stands to reason that ceremonies/rituals have developed over the years to set our Sunday gatherings apart from other kinds of assemblies.