19 MARCH – SAINT JOSEPH (Patron of the Universal Church)

 

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

With a view to her children’s interests the Church would, on this day, excite their confidence in this powerful and ever ready helper. Devotion to Saint Joseph was reserved for these latter times. Though based on the Gospel, it was not to be developed in the early ages of the Church. It is not that the faithful were, in any way, checked from showing honour to him who had been called to take so important a part in the mystery of the Incarnation. But Divine Providence had its hidden reasons for retarding the Liturgical homage to be paid each year to the spouse of Mary. As on other occasions, so here also. The East preceded the West in the special cultus of Saint Joseph, but in the fifteenth century the whole Latin Church adopted it, and since that time it has gradually gained the affections of the faithful.

The goodness of God and our Redeemer’s fidelity to His promises have ever kept pace with the necessities of the world so that in every age appropriate and special aid has been given to the world for its maintaining the supernatural life. An uninterrupted succession of seasonable grace has been the result of this merciful dispensation, and each generation has had given to it a special motive for confidence in its Redeemer. Dating from the thirteenth century when, as the Church herself assures us, the world began to grow cold, each epoch has had thrown open to it a new source of graces. First of all came the feast of the Most Blessed Sacrament with its successive developments of Processions, Expositions, Benedictions and the Forty Hours. After this, followed the devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus (of which Saint Bernardine of Sienna was the chief propagator) and that of Via Crucis or Stations of the Cross, with its wonderful fruit of compunction. The practice of frequent Communion was revived in the sixteenth century owing principally to the influence of Saint Ignatius and the Society founded by him. In the seventeenth, was promulgated the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus which was firmly established in the following century. In the nineteenth, devotion to the Holy Mother of God has made such progress as to form one of the leading supernatural characteristics of the period. The Rosary and Scapular, which had been handed down to us in previous ages, have regained their place in the affections of the people. Pilgrimages to the sanctuaries of the Mother of God, which had been interrupted by the influence of Jansenism and rationalism, have been removed. The Arch-confraternity of the Sacred Heart of Mary has spread throughout the whole world. Numerous miracles have been wrought in reward for the fervent faith of individuals. In a word, [the nineteenth] century witnessed the triumph of the Immaculate Conception — a triumph which had been looked forward to for many previous ages.

Now, devotion to Mary could never go on increasing as it has done without bringing with it a fervent devotion to Saint Joseph. We cannot separate Mary and Joseph, were it only for their having such a close connection with the mystery of the Incarnation: Mary, as being the Mother of the Son of God and Joseph, as being guardian of the Virgin’s spotless honour, and foster-father of the Divine Babe. A special veneration for Saint Joseph was the result of increased devotion to Mary. Nor is this reverence for Mary’s spouse to be considered only as a just homage paid to his admirable prerogatives. It is, moreover, a fresh and exhaustless source of help to the world, for Joseph has been made our Protector by the Son of God Himself. Hearken to the inspired words of the Church’s Liturgy: “You, O Joseph, are the delight of the Blessed, the sure hope of our life, and the pillar of the world!” Extraordinary as is this power, need we be surprised at its being given to a man like Joseph whose connections with the Son of God on Earth were so far above those of all other men? Jesus deigned to be subject to Joseph here below. Now that He is in heaven, He would glorify the creature to whom he consigned the guardianship of His own childhood and His Mother’s honour. He has given him a power which is above our calculations.

Hence it is that the Church invites us, on this day, to have recourse, with unreserved confidence to this all-powerful Protector. The world we live in is filled with miseries which would make stronger hearts than ours quake with fear. But let us invoke Saint Joseph with faith and we will be protected. In all our necessities, whether of soul or body — in all the trials and anxieties we may have to go through — let us have recourse to Saint Joseph and we will not be disappointed. The king of Egypt said to his people when they were suffering from famine: “go to Joseph!” (Genesis xli. 55). the King of Heaven says the same to us: the faithful guardian of Mary has greater influence with God than Jacob’s son had with Pharaoh.

As usual, God revealed this new spiritual aid to a privileged soul that she might be the instrument of its propagation. It was thus that were instituted several feasts, such as those of Corpus Christi and of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In the sixteenth century Saint Teresa (whose writings were to have a world-wide circulation) was instructed by Heaven as to the efficacy of devotion to Saint Joseph. She has spoken of it in the Life (written by herself) of Teresa of Jesus. When we remember that it was by the Carmelite Order (brought into the Western Church in the thirteenth century) that this devotion was established among us, we cannot be surprised that God should have chosen Saint Teresa, who was the Reformer of that Order, to propagate the same devotion in this part of the world. The holy solitaries of Mount Carmel — devoted as they had been, for so many centuries, to the love of Mary —were not slow in feeling the connection that exists between the honour paid to the Mother of God and that which is due to her virginal spouse. The more we understand Saint Joseph’s office, the clearer will be our knowledge of the divine mystery of the Incarnation. As when the Son of God assumed our human nature, He would have a Mother. So also, would He give to this Mother a protector. Jesus, Mary and Joseph — these are the three whom the ineffable mystery is continually bringing before our minds. The words of Saint Teresa are as follows:

“I took for my patron and lord the glorious Saint Joseph, and recommended myself earnestly to him. I saw clearly that he rendered me greater services than I knew how to ask for. I cannot call to mind that I have ever asked him at any time for anything which he has not granted, and I am filled with amazement when I consider the great favours which God has given me through this blessed Saint, the dangers from which he has delivered me, both of body and soul. To other Saints, our Lord seems to have given grace to succour men in some special necessity, but to this glorious Saint, I know by experience, to help us in all. And our Lord would have us understand that, as He was Himself subject to him upon Earth — for Saint Joseph having the title of father and being his guardian, could command Him — so now in Heaven he performs all his petitions. I have asked others to recommend themselves to Saint Joseph and hey too know this by experience. And there are many who are now of late devout to him, having had experience of this truth.”

We might quote several other equally clear and fervent words from the writings of this seraphic virgin. The faithful could not remain indifferent with such teaching as this. The seed thus soon produced its fruit. Slowly, it is true, but surely. Even in the first half of the seventeenth century there prevailed amid the devout clients of Saint Joseph a presentiment that the day would come when the Church, through her Liturgy, would urge the faithful to have recourse to him as their powerful Protector. In a book published in 1645 we find these almost prophetic words: “O bright sun, father of our days, speed your onward course and give us that happy day on which are to be fulfilled the prophecies of the Saints. They have said that in the latter ages of the world the glories of Saint Joseph will be brought to light; that God will draw aside the veil which has hitherto prevented us from seeing the wondrous sanctuary of Joseph’s soul; that the Holy Ghost will inspire the faithful to proclaim the praises of this admirable Saint and to build monasteries, churches and altars in his honour; that throughout the entire kingdom of the Church Militant he will be considered as the special Protector, for he was the Protector of the very founder of that kingdom, namely, our Lord Jesus Christ; that the Sovereign Pontiffs will, by a secret impulse from Heaven, ordain that the feast of this great Patriarch be solemnly celebrated through the length and breadth of the spiritual domain of Saint Peter; that the most learned men of the world will use their talents in studying the divine gifts hidden in Saint Joseph, and that they will find in him treasures of grace incomparably more precious and plentiful than were possessed by every the choicest of the elect of the Old Testament during the whole four thousand years of its duration.”

Let us then, henceforth, have confidence in the Patronage of Saint Joseph. He is the Father of the Faithful, and it is God’s will that he, more than any other Saint, should have power to apply to us the blessings of the mystery of the Incarnation, the great mystery of which he, after Mary, was the chief earthly minister.

*****

O glorious Saint Joseph! Father and Protector of the Faithful! We bless our Mother the Church for that she, now that the world is drawing to the close of its existence, has taught us to confide in you. Many ages passed away and your glories had not been made known to the world. But even then you were one of mankind’s most powerful intercessors. Most affectionately did you fulfil your office as head of the great human family of which the Incarnate Word was a member. Nations and individuals experienced the benefit of your prayers, but there was not the public acknowledgement of your favours — there was not the homage of gratitude which is now offered to you. The more perfect knowledge of your glories and honouring you as the Protector of mankind — these were reserved for our own unhappy times when the state of the world is such as to require help beyond that which was granted to former ages.

We come before you, O Joseph, to honour the unlimited power of your intercession and the love you bear for all the children of the Church, the brethren of Jesus. You, O Mary, are pleased at seeing us honour him whom you so tenderly loved. Never are our prayers so welcome to you as when they are presented to you by his hands. The union, formed by Heaven between yourself and Joseph will last for all eternity, and the unbounded love you have for Jesus is an additional motive for you to love him who was the foster-father of your child and the guardian of your virginity. Joseph, we also are the children of Mary, your Spouse. Treat us as such, bless us, watch over us and receive the prayers which now more than ever the Church encourages us to present to you. You are “the pillar of the world” (columen mundi). You are one of the foundations on which it rests. Because of your merits and prayers our Lord has patience with it in spite of the iniquities which defile it. How truly may we say of these our times: “There is now no saint; truths are decayed from among the children of men!” (Psalm xi. 2). How powerful then must not your intercession be to avert the indignation of God and induce Him to show us His mercy!

Grow not weary of your labour, universal Protector! The Church of your Jesus comes before you on this day, beseeching you to persevere in thy task of love. See this world of ours, now it is become one great volcano of danger by the boasted liberty granted to sin and heresy! Delay not your aid, but quickly procure for us what will give us security and peace. Whatever may be our necessities, you are willing and able to assist us. We may be the poorest and last among the children of the Church. It matters not. You love us with all the affectionate compassion of a father. What a joy is not this to our hearts, O Joseph! We will therefore turn to you in our spiritual wants. We will beg you to assist us in the gaining the virtues we stand in need of, in the battles we have to fight against the enemies of our souls, and in the sacrifices which duty asks at our hands. Make us worthy to be called your children, O Father of the Faithful! Nor is your power limited to what regards our eternal welfare. Daily experience shows us how readily you can procure for us the blessing of God upon our temporal interests, provided they are in accordance with His Divine Will. Hence it is that we hope for your protection and aid in what concerns our worldly prospects. The house of Nazareth was confided to your care. Deign to give counsel and help to all them that make you the Patron of all that regards their earthly well-being.

Glorious Guardian of the Holy Family! The family of Christendom is placed under your special Patronage. Watch over it in these troubled times. Hear the prayers of them that seek your aid when about to choose the partner who is to share with them the joys and the sorrows of this world, and help them to prepare for their passage to eternity. Maintain between husbands and wives that mutual respect which is the safeguard of their fidelity to each other. Obtain for them the pledge of Heaven’s blessings. Fill them with such reverence for the holy state to which they have been called, that they may never deserve the reproach given by Saint Paul to certain married people of that day whom he compares to heathens who know not God (Thessalonians iv. 5).

Grant us, also, O Joseph, another favour. There is one moment of our lives which is the most important of all, since eternity depends on it: it is the moment of our death. And yet we feel our fear abated by the thought that God’s mercy has made you the special Patron of the Dying. You have been entrusted with the office of making death happy and holy to those who invoke you. To whom could such a prerogative have been given more appropriately than to you, O Joseph, whose admirable death was one of the sublimest spectacles ever witnessed by Angels or by men, for Jesus and Mary were by your side as you breathed forth your soul. Be, then, our helper at that awful hour of our death. We hope to have Mary’s protection, for we daily pray to her that she would aid us at the hour of our death. But we know that Mary is pleased at our having confidence in you, and that where you are, she also is sure to be. Encouraged by your fatherly love, O Joseph, we will calmly await the coming of our last hour. For if we are careful in recommending it to you, you will not fail to take it under your protection.

Also on this day according to the ROMAN MARTYROLOGY:

At Sorrento, the holy martyrs Quinctus, Quinctilla, Quartilla and Mark, with nine others.

At Nicomedia, St. Pancharius, a Roman, who was beheaded under Diocletian and thus received the crown of martyrdom.

The same day, the holy bishops Apollouius and Leontius.

At Ghent, the Saints Landoaldus, a Roman priest, and the deacon Amantius, who were sent to preach the Gospel by Pope St. Martin, and after their death became illustrious by many miracles.

At Cività-di-Penna, the birthday of blessed John, a man of great holiness, who came from Syria into Italy, where he constructed a monastery, and, after having been the spiritual guide of many servants of God for forty-four years, rested in peace, renowned for great virtue.

And in other places, many other holy martyrs, confessors and virgins.

Thanks be to God.

19 MARCH – THURSDAY IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT

  Lesson – 4 Kings iv. 25‒38

In those days a Sunamitess came to Eliseus on Mount Carmel, and when the man of God saw her coming towards him he said to Giezi his servant: “Behold that Sunamitess. Go therefore to meet her, and say to her: ‘Is all well with you, and with your husband, and with your son?’” And she answered: “Well.” And when she came to the man of God to the mountain, she caught hold on his feet, and Giezi came to remove her. And the man of God said: “Let her alone, for her soul is in anguish, and the Lord has hid it from me, and has not told me.” And she said to him: “Did I ask a son of my Lord? Did I not say to you: Do not deceive me?” Then he said to Giezi: “Gird up your loins, and take up my staff in your hand, and go. If any man meets you, salute him not. And if any man salutes you, answer him not. And lay my staff on the face of the child.” But the mother of the child said: “As the Lord lives, and as my soul lives, I will not leave you.” He arose, therefore, and followed her. But Giezi was gone before them, and laid the staff on the face of the child, and there was no voice nor sense. And he returned to meet him, and told him, saying: “The child is not risen.” Eliseus therefore went into the house, and behold the child lay dead on his bed. And going in, he shut the door upon him, and upon the child, and prayed to the Lord. And he went up, and lay upon the child. And he put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands, and he bowed himself upon him, and the child’s flesh grew warm. Then he returned and walked in the house, once to and fr. And he went up and lay upon him, and the child gaped seven times, and opened his eyes. And he called Giezi, and said to him: “Call this Sunamitess.” And she being called, went in to him. And he said: “Take up your son.” She came and fell at his feet, and worshipped on the ground, and took up her son, and went out. And Eliseus returned to Galgal.

Thanks be to God.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

In this mysterious event are clustered together all the wonders of the plan laid down by God for the salvation of man. If the catechumens were instructed in these sublime truths, it would be a disgrace in us to be ignorant of them; therefore, let us be attentive to the teachings of this Epistle.

This dead child is the human race. Sin has caused its death. But God has resolved to restore it to life. First of all, a servant is sent to the corpse. This servant is Moses. His mission is from God. But of itself the Law he brings gives not life. This Law is figured by the staff winch Giezi holds in his hand, and which he lays upon the child’s face. But to no purpose. The Law is severe. Its rule is one of fear, on account of the hardness of Israel’s heart. Yet is it with difficulty that it triumphs over his stubbornness, and they of Israel who would be just must aspire to something more perfect and more filial than the Law of Sinai. The Mediator who is to bring down from heaven the sweet element of charity, is not yet come. He is promised, he is prefigured, but he is not made flesh, he has not yet dwelt among us. The dead child in not risen.

The Son of God must Himself come down. Eliseus is the type of this divine Redeemer. See how he takes on himself the littleness of the child’s body, and bows himself down into closest contact with its members, and this in the silence of a closed chamber. It was thus that the Word of the Father, shrouding His brightness in the womb of a Virgin, united Himself to our nature, and as the Apostle expresses it, emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men (Pilippians ii. 7) that they may have life, and may have it more abundantly (John x. 10) than when it was given to them at the beginning. Take notice too of what happens to the child, and what are the signs of the resurrection wrought in him.

He breathes seven times: the Holy Ghost, with His seven gifts, is to take possession of man’s soul and make it His temple. The child opens his eyes: the blindness of death is at an end. Neither must we forget the Sunamites, the mother of the child: she is the type of the Church, who is praying her divine Eliseus to give her the resurrection of her dear catechumens, and of all unbelievers who are dwelling in the region of the shadow of death (Isaias ix. 2) Let us join our prayers with hers, and beg that the light of the Gospel may be spread more and more, and that the obstacles made by Satan and the malice of men to its propagation, may be forever removed.

Gospel – Luke vii. 11‒16

At that time Jesus went into a city called Naim, and there went with Him His disciples and a great multitude. And when he came near the city, behold a dead man was carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and much people of the city were with her. And when the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her, and said to her: “Weep not.” And He came near, and touched the bier. And they that carried it, stood still. And He said: “Young man, I say to you, arise.” And he that was dead, sat up, and began to speak. And He delivered him to his mother. And there came a fear on them all, and they glorified God, saying: “A great prophet is risen up among us, and God has visited His people.”

Praise be to you, O Christ.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

The Church, both today and tomorrow, gives us types of the Resurrection. It is an announcement of the coming Pasch, and an encouraging sinners to hope that their spiritual death will soon be changed into life. Before entering on the two weeks which are to be devoted to the commemoration of our Saviour’s Passion, the Church shows her children the tender mercies of Him whose Blood is to purchase our reconciliation with Divine Justice. She would have us argue for our own consolation that from such a Saviour we may well hope for pardon. Being thus rid of our fears, we will be the more at liberty to contemplate the sacrifice of our august Victim, and compassionate His sufferings. Let us attentively consider the Gospel just read to us. A heart-broken mother is following to the grave the corpse of an only son. Jesus has compassion on her. He stays the bearers. He puts His divine hand on the bier. He commands the young man to arise and then, as the Evangelist adds, Jesus delivered him to his mother. This mother is the Church who mourns over the death of so many of her children. Jesus is about to comfort her. He, by the ministry of his priests, will stretch forth his hand over these dead children. He will pronounce over them the great word that gives resurrection, and the Church will receive back into her arms these children she had lost, and they will be full of life and gladness.

Let us consider the mystery of the three resurrections wrought by our Saviour: that of the ruler’s daughter, that of the young man of today’s Gospel, and that of Lazarus, at which we are to assist tomorrow. The daughter of Jairus (for such was the ruler’s name) had been dead only a few hours: she represents the sinner who has but recently fallen and has not yet contracted the habit of sin, nor grown insensible to the qualms of conscience. The young man of Naim is a figure of a sinner who makes no effort to return to God, and whose will has lost its energy: he is being carried to the grave and but for Jesus’ passing that way, he would soon have been of the number of them that are forever dead. Lazarus is an image of a worse class of sinners. He is already a prey to corruption. The stone that closes his grave, seals his doom. Can such a corpse as this ever come back to life? Yes, if Jesus mercifully deign to exercise His power. Now, it is during this holy Season of Lent that the Church is praying and fasting, and we with her, to the end that these three classes of sinners may hear the voice of the Son of God, and hearing, rise and live (John v. 25) The mystery of Jesus’ Resurrection is to produce this wonderful effect in them all. Let us take our humble share in these merciful designs of God. Let us day and night offer our supplications to our Redeemer, that, in a few days hence, seeing how He has raised the dead to life, we may cry out, with the people of Naim: “A great Prophet is risen up among us, and God has visited His people!

18 MARCH – FERIA OF LENT

On this day according to the ROMAN MARTYROLOGY:

At Jerusalem, St. Cyril, bishop and doctor, who suffered many injuries from the Arians for the faith. Often exiled from his church, he at length rested in peace with a great reputation for sanctity. A magnificent testimony of the purity of his faith is given by a general Council in a letter to Pope St. Damasus.

At Caesarea in Palestine, the birthday of the blessed bishop Alexander, who from his own city, in Cappadocia, where he was bishop, coming to Jerusalem to visit the holy places, took upon himself, by divine revelation, the government of that Church in the place of the aged Narcissus, its bishop. Some time afterwards, when he had become venerable by his age and grey hairs, he was led to Caesarea and shut up in prison, where he ended his martyrdom for the confession of Christ during the persecution of Decius.

At Augsburg, St. Narcissus, bishop, who was the first to preach the Gospel in the Tyrol. Afterwards, setting out for Spain, he converted many to the faith of Christ at Gerona, where, with the deacon Felix, he received the palm of martyrdom during the persecution of Diocletian.

At Nicomedia, ten thousand holy martyrs, who were put to the sword for the confession of Christ.

Also the holy martyrs Trophimus and Eucarpius.

In England, the holy king Edward, who was assassinated by order of his treacherous stepmother, and became celebrated for many miracles.

At Lucca in Tuscany, the birthday of the holy bishop Frigdian who was illustrious by the power of working miracles. His feast is more especially celebrated on the eighteenth of November when his body was translated.

At Mantua, St. Anselm, bishop and confessor.

And in other places, many other holy martyrs, confessors and virgins.

Thanks be to God.

18 MARCH – WEDNESDAY IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

This day is called the Feria of the Great Scrutiny, because in the Church of Rome, after the necessary inquiries and examinations, the list of the catechumens who were to receive Baptism was closed. The Station was held in the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, both because of the size of the building, and also in order to honour the Apostle of the Gentiles by offering him these new recruits, which the Church was about to make from paganism.

First Lesson – Ezechiel xxxvi. 23‒28

Thus says the Lord God: “I will sanctify my great name which was profaned among the Gentiles, which you have profaned in the midst of them, that the Gentiles may know that I am the Lord,” says the Lord of Hosts, “when I will be sanctified in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the Gentiles and will gather you together out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. And I will pour on you clean water, and you will be cleansed from all your filthiness, and I will cleanse you from all your idols. And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in the midst of you, and I will cause you to walk in my commandments, and to keep my judgements, and do them. And you will dwell in the land which I gave to your fathers, and you will be my people, and I will be your God,” says the Lord Almighty.

Thanks be to God.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

These magnificent promises which are to be fulfilled in favour of the Jewish people as soon as God’s justice will have been satisfied, are to be realised firstly in our catechumens. These are they that have been gathered together from all the countries of the Gentile world in order that they may be brought into their own land, the Church. A few days hence, and there will be poured on them that clean water which will cleanse them from all the defilement of their past idolatry. They will receive a new heart and a new spirit; they will be God’s people forever.

Second Lesson – Isaias i. 16‒19

Thus says the Lord God: “Wash yourselves, be clean, take away the evil of your devices from my eyes: cease to do perversely, learn to do well: seek judgement, relieve the oppressed, judge for the fatherless, defend the widow. And then come and accuse me,” says the Lord: “if your sins be as the scarlet, they will be made as white as snow: and if they be red as crimson, they will be white as wool. If you be willing, and will hearken to me, you will eat the good things of the land,” says the Lord Almighty.

Thanks be to God.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

It is to her penitents that the Church addresses these grand words of Isaias. There is a baptism also prepared for them: a laborious baptism indeed, but still, one that has power to cleanse their souls from all their defilements, if only they receive it with sincere contrition and be resolved to make atonement for the evil they have committed. What could be stronger than the language used by God, in making His promise of forgiveness? He compares the change He will make in the soul of a repentant sinner to that of scarlet and crimson become white as snow. The unjust is to be made just. Darkness is to be turned into light. The slave of Satan is to become the child of God. Let us rejoice with our glad mother, the holy Church, and redoubling the fervour of our prayer and penance, let us induce our Lord to grant that on the great Easter Feast the number of conversions may surpass our hopes.

Gospel – John ix. 1‒38

At that time, Jesus passing by, saw a man that was blind from his birth, and His disciples asked Him: “Rabbi, who has sinned, this man or his parents, that he should be born blind?” Jesus answered: “Neither has this man sinned, nor his parents, but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is day: the night comes when no man can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle, and spread the clay on his eyes, and said to him: “Go, wash in the pool of Siloe,” which is interpreted, Sent. He went therefore, and washed, and he came seeing. The neighbours therefore, and they who had seen him before that he was a beggar, said: “Is not this he that sat and begged?” Some said: “This is he.” But others said: “No, but he is like him.” But he said: “I am he.” They said therefore to him: “How were your eyes opened?” He answered: “That man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed my eyes, and said to me: Go to the pool of Siloe, and wash. And I went, I washed, and I see.” And they said to him: “Where is he?” He said: “I know not.” They bring him that had been blind to the Pharisees. Now it was the Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. Again therefore the Pharisees asked him how he had received his sight. But he said to them: “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” Some therefore of the Pharisees said: “This man is not of God, who keeps not the Sabbath.” But others said: “How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles?” And there was a division among them. They say therefore to the blind man again: “What say you of him that has opened your eyes?” And he said: “He is a prophet.” The Jews then did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and had received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight, and asked them, saying: “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” His parents answered them, and said: “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind: But how he now sees, we know not; or who has opened his eyes, we know not: ask himself: he is of age, let him speak for himself.” These things his parents said because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had already agreed among themselves that if any man should confess him to be Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.” Therefore did his parents say: “He is of age, ask himself.” They therefore called the man again that had been blind, and said to him: “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.” He said therefore to them: “If he be a sinner, I know not: one thing I know, that whereas I was blind, now I see.” They said then to him: “What did he to you? How did he open your eyes?” He answered them: “I have told you already, and you have heard: why would you hear it again? Will you also become his disciples?” They reviled him therefore, and said: Be his disciple; but we are the disciples of Moses. We know that God spoke to Moses: but as to this man, we know not from where he is.” The man answered, and said to them: “Why, herein is a wonderful thing, that you know not from where he is, and he has opened my eyes. Now we know that God does not hear sinners: but if a man be a server of God, and does His will, him He hears. From the beginning of the world it has not been heard that any man has opened the eyes of one born blind. Unless this man were of God, he could not do anything.” They answered, and said to him: “You were wholly born in sins, and you teach us?” And they cast him out. Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and when He had found him, He said to him: “Do you believe in the Son of God?” He answered, and said: “Who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him?” And Jesus said to him: “You have both seen him, and it is he that talks with you.” And he said: “I believe, Lord.” And falling down, he adored Him.

Praise be to you, O Christ.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

In the early ages of the Church, Baptism was frequently called Illumination because this Sacrament confers supernatural faith by which man is enlightened with the divine Light. It was on this account that there was read on this day the history of the cure of the man born blind, for it is the figure of man’s being enlightened by Christ. This subject is frequently met with in the paintings in the Catacombs, and on the bas-reliefs of the ancient Christian monuments.

We are all born blind. Jesus by the mystery of His Incarnation, figured by this clay which represents our flesh, has merited for us the gift of sight. But in order that we may receive it, we must go to the pool of Him that is divinely Sent, and we must be washed in the water of Baptism. Then will we be enlightened with the very light of God, and the darkness of reason will disappear. The humble obedience of the blind man who executes with the utmost simplicity all that our Saviour commands him is an image of our catechumens, who listen with all docility to the teachings of the Church, for they too wish to receive their sight. The blind man of the Gospel is by the cure of his eyes a type of what the grace of Christ works in us by Baptism.

Let us listen to the conclusion of our Gospel, and we will find that he is also, a model for those who are spiritually blind, yet would wish to be healed. Our Saviour asks him, as the Church asked us on the day of our Baptism: “Do you believe in the Son of God?” The blind man, ardently desiring to believe, answers eagerly: “Who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him?” Faith brings the weak reason of man into union with the sovereign wisdom of God, and puts us in possession of His eternal truth. No sooner has Jesus declared himself to be God, than this simple hearted man falls down and adores Him: he that from being blind is blessed with bodily sight is now a Christian! What a lesson was here for our catechumens!

At the same time this history showed them and reminds us of the frightful perversity of Jesus’ enemies. He is shortly to be put to death, He the Just by excellence, and it is by the shedding of His Blood that He is to merit for us, and for all mankind, the cure of that blindness in which we were all born, and which our own personal sins have tended to increase. Glory, then, love and gratitude be to our Divine Physician who, by uniting himself to our human nature, has prepared the ointment by which our eyes are cured of their infirmity and strengthened to gaze, for all eternity, on the brightness of the Godhead!

17 MARCH – SAINT PATRICK (Bishop and Confessor)

Patrick, called the Apostle of Ireland, was born in Great Britain. His father was was Calphurnius. Conchessa, his mother, is said to have been a relation of Saint Martin, Bishop of Tours. He was several times taken captive by the barbarians when he was a boy, and was put to tend their flocks. Even in that tender age, he gave signs of the great sanctity he was afterwards to attain. Full of the spirit of faith, and of the fear and love of God, he used to rise at dawn of day, and spite of snow, frost, or rain, go to offer up his prayers to God. It was his custom to pray a hundred times during the day, and a hundred during the night. After his third deliverance from slavery, he entered the ecclesiastical state and applied himself, for a considerable time, to the study of the Sacred Scriptures. Having made several most fatiguing journeys through Gaul, Italy and the islands of the Mediterranean, he was called by God to labour for the salvation of the people of Ireland. Pope Saint Celestine gave him power to preach the Gospel and consecrated him Bishop.

Patrick had to suffer much in the mission entrusted to him. He had to bear with extraordinary trials, fatigues and adversaries. But by the mercy of God, that land which until then had worshipped idols, so well repaid the labour with which Patrick had preached the Gospel, that it was afterwards called the Island of Saints. He administered holy Baptism to many thousands. He ordained several bishops and frequently conferred Holy Orders in their several degrees. He drew up rules for virgins and widows who wished to lead a life of continence. By the authority of the Roman Pontiff, he appointed Armagh the Metropolitan See of the whole island and enriched that church with the relics of the saints which he had brought from Rome. God honoured him with heavenly visions, the gift of prophecy and miracles, all which caused the name of the saint to be held in veneration in almost every part of the world.

Besides his daily solicitude for the churches, his vigorous spirit kept up an uninterrupted prayer. For it is said that he was wont to recite every day the whole Psaltery, together with the Canticles and the Hymns and two hundred prayers: that he every day knelt down three hundred times to adore God, and that at each Canonical hour of the day, he signed himself a hundred times with the sign of the Cross. He divided the night into three parts: the first was spent in the recitation of a hundred Psalms, during which he genuflected two hundred times: the second was spent in reciting the remaining fifty Psalms, which he did standing in cold water, and his heart and hands lifted up to Heaven. The third he gave to a little sleep, which he took laid upon a bare stone. Being a man of extraordinary humility, he imitated the Apostles and practised manual labour.

At length, being worn out by his incessant fatigues in the cause of the Church, powerful in word and work, having reached an extreme old age, Patrick slept in the Lord after being refreshed with the holy Mysteries. He was buried at Down, in Ulster, in the fifth century of the Christian era.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

The Saint we have to honour today is the Apostle of that faithful people whose martyrdom has lasted [four] hundred years. It is the great Saint Patrick, he that gave Erin the Faith. There shone most brightly in this Saint that gift of the Apostolate which Christ has left to His Church, and which is to remain with her to the end of time. The Ambassadors or Missionaries sent by our Lord to preach His Gospel are of two classes. There are some who have been entrusted with a small tract of the Gentile world. They had to sow the divine seed there, and it yielded fruit, more or less according to the dispositions of the people that received it. There are others, again, whose mission is like a rapid conquest that subdues a whole nation and brings it into subjection to the Gospel. Saint Patrick belongs to this second class, and in him we recognise one of the most successful instruments of God’s mercy to mankind.

And then, what solidity there is in this great Saint’s work! When is it that Ireland receives the Faith? In the fifth century, when Britain was almost wholly buried in paganism, when the race of the Franks had not as yet heard the name of the true God, when Germany had no knowledge of Christ’s having come upon the Earth, when the countries of northern Europe deeply slumbered in infidelity. Yes, it was before these several nations had awakened to the Gospel, that Ireland was converted. The Faith, brought to her by her glorious Apostle, took deep root and flourished and fructified in this isle, more lovely even by grace than she is by nature. Her Saints are scarcely to be numbered, and went about doing good in almost every country of Europe. Her children gave, and are still giving, to other countries, the Faith that she herself received from her beloved Patron. And when the sixteenth century came with its Protestantism, when the apostasy of Germany was imitated by England, Scotland and the whole north of Europe, Ireland stood firm and staunch: no persecution, however cleverly or however cruelly carried on against her, has been able to detach her from the Faith taught her by Saint Patrick.

*****

Your life, great Saint, was spent in the arduous toils of an Apostle, but how rich was the harvest you reaped! Every fatigue seemed to you light if only you could give to men the precious gift of Faith, and the people to whom you left it have kept it with a constancy which is one of your greatest glories. Pray for us that this Faith, without which it is impossible to please God (Hebrew xi. 6) may take possession of our hearts and minds. “It is by Faith that the just man lives” (Habucuc ii. 4) says the Prophet, and it is Faith that during this holy Season of Lent is showing us the justice and mercy of God in order that we may be converted and offer to our offended Lord the tribute of our penance. We are afraid of what the Church imposes on us simply because our Faith is weak. If our principles were those of Faith, we should soon be mortified men. Your life, though so innocent and so rich in good works, was one of extraordinary penance: get us your spirit, and help us to follow you, at least at an humble distance. Pray for Erin, that dear country of yours which loves and honours you so fervently. She is threatened with danger even now, and many of her children have left the Faith you taught. An odious system of proselytism has disturbed your flock. Protect it, and suffer not the children of Martyrs to be Apostates. Let your fatherly care follow them that have been driven by suffering to emigrate from their native land. May they keep true to the Faith, be witnesses of the True Religion in the countries to which they have fled, and ever show themselves to be the obedient children of the Church. May their misfortunes thus serve to advance the Kingdom of God. Holy Pontiff, intercede for England. Pardon her the injustice she has shown to your children, and by your powerful prayers, hasten the happy day of her return to Catholic unity. Pray, too, for the whole Church. Your prayer, being that of an Apostle, easily finds access to Him that sent you.

On this day (18 March) according to the ROMAN MARTYROLOGY:

At Jerusalem, St. Cyril, bishop and doctor, who suffered many injuries from the Arians for the faith. Often exiled from his church, he at length rested in peace with a great reputation for sanctity. A magnificent testimony of the purity of his faith is given by a general Council in a letter to Pope St. Damasus.

At Caesarea in Palestine, the birthday of the blessed bishop Alexander, who from his own city, in Cappadocia, where he was bishop, coming to Jerusalem to visit the holy places, took upon himself, by divine revelation, the government of that Church in the place of the aged Narcissus, its bishop. Some time afterwards, when he had become venerable by his age and grey hairs, he was led to Caesarea and shut up in prison, where he ended his martyrdom for the confession of Christ during the persecution of Decius.

At Augsburg, St. Narcissus, bishop, who was the first to preach the Gospel in the Tyrol. Afterwards, setting out for Spain, he converted many to the faith of Christ at Gerona, where, with the deacon Felix, he received the palm of martyrdom during the persecution of Diocletian.

At Nicomedia, ten thousand holy martyrs, who were put to the sword for the confession of Christ.

Also the holy martyrs Trophimus and Eucarpius.

In England, the holy king Edward, who was assassinated by order of his treacherous stepmother, and became celebrated for many miracles.

At Lucca in Tuscany, the birthday of the holy bishop Frigdian who was illustrious by the power of working miracles. His feast is more especially celebrated on the eighteenth of November when his body was translated.

At Mantua, St. Anselm, bishop and confessor.

And in other places, many other holy martyrs, confessors and virgins.

Thanks be to God.

17 MARCH – TUESDAY IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT

 

Lesson – Exodus xxxii. 7‒14

In those days the Lord spoke to Moses saying: “Go, get down from the mountain, your people which you have hast brought out of the land of Egypt, have sinned. They have quickly strayed from the way which you showed, and they have made to themselves a molten calf and have adored it, and sacrificing victims to it, have said: ‘These are your gods, Israel, that have brought you out of the land of Egypt.’” And again the Lord said to Moses: “I see that this people is stiff-necked. Let me alone, that my wrath may be kindled against them, and that I may destroy them, and I will make of you a great nation.” But Moses besought the Lord his God, saying: “Why, Lord, is your indignation enkindled against your people whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Let not the Egyptians say, I beseech you: ‘He craftily brought them out, that he might kill them in the mountains, and destroy them from the earth.’ Let your anger cease and be appeased upon the wickedness of your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac and Israel your servants to whom you swore by your own self, saying: ‘I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and this whole land that I have spoken of, I will give to your seed, and you will possess it for ever.’” And the Lord was appeased from doing the evil which He had spoken against His people.

Thanks be to God.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

When the world first received the preaching of the Gospel, idolatry was the prevailing crime. For many centuries after, all the Catechumens who were instructed in the true faith were tainted with it. It was in order to inspire them with a horror of their past lives that the Church read to them on this day the terrible words of God who, had not Moses interceded, was about to exterminate His people, because they had relapsed into idolatry. And this, after He had worked in their favour the most unheard-of miracles, and had come in person to give them His Law. The worship of false gods is no longer to be found among us, but it exists in all those countries where the Gospel has been preached and rejected. Strange as it may sound, yet it is most true: Europe, with all its civilisation, would return to idolatry, were it to lose the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is not a century ago, and an idol was erected to Reason. It had its altar, its decorations and its incense, and they who paid homage to it were Europeans! An individual, or a people, once slaves to Satan, are not their own masters to say “we will go thus far in sin, and no farther.” The descendants of Noah, notwithstanding the terrible lesson given to them by the Deluge, fell into idolatry. Abraham was called by God from the rest of men, lest he should be led away by the almost universal corruption. Let us be grateful to the Church who by her teachings of faith and morals preserves us from this degrading abomination, and let us resist our passions, which, if the light of faith were taken from us, would lead us to Idolatry.

Gospel – John vii. 14‒31

At that time, about the midst of the feast, Jesus went up into the temple and taught. And the Jews wondered, saying: “How does this man know letters, having never learned?” Jesus answered them and said: “My doctrine is not mine, but His that sent me. If any man will do the will of Him, he will know of the doctrine whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. He that speaks of himself seeks his own glory, but he that seeks the glory of Him that sent him, he is true, and there is no injustice in him. Did not Moses give you the law? And yet none of you keep the law. Why seek you to kill me?” The multitude answered and said: “You have a devil? Who seeks to kill you?” Jesus answered and said to them: “One work I have done, and you all wonder. Therefore Moses gave you circumcision (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers), and on the Sabbath day you circumcise a man. If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath day that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry at me, because I have healed the whole man on the Sabbath day? Judge not according to the appearance, but judge just judgement.” Some therefore of Jerusalem said: “Is not this he whom they seek to kill? And behold he speaks openly, and they say nothing to him. Have the rulers known for a truth that this is the Christ? But we know this man from where he is. But when the Christ comes, no man knows from where he is.” Jesus therefore cried out in the temple, teaching and saying: “You both know and you know from where I am: and I am not come of myself, but He that sent me is true, whom you know not. I know Him, because I am from him, and He has sent me.” They sought therefore to apprehend Him: and no man laid hands on Him, because His hour was not yet come. But of the people many believed in Him.

Praise be to you, O Christ.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

This Gospel carries our thoughts to the sacrifice of the Divine Lamb which is to be offered up in Jerusalem. The hour is not yet come, but it is fast approaching. His enemies are already seeking how they may put Him to death. So blinded are they by their passions that they accuse Him of being a violator of the Sabbath because he healed the sick by the simple act of His will on the Lord’s Day! In vain does Jesus refute their prejudices, by reminding them that they themselves have no scruple in fulfilling the law of circumcision on this day, or, (as be said to them on another occasion), in drawing out of the pit an ass or an ox that may have fallen in (Luke xiv. 5). They are deaf to all He says. They are men of one idea, and it is that their victim will not escape death. His miracles are incontestable, and all are wrought out of a motive of mercy and love. The only time He refuses to work one is when His enemies ask Him to satisfy their curiosity and pride by letting them see a sign. This exercise of His power of working miracles, far from exciting them to admiration and gratitude, only incites them to envy, and in their envy they declare not only that He acts by Beelzebub (Luke xi. 15), but that He has a devil within Him. We shudder at such a blasphemy. Yet, such is the pride of these Jewish doctors that they care neither for common sense nor for religion, and their hearts thirst more and more for the Blood of Jesus. While some of the people allow themselves to be seduced by their leaders into the same feelings against Jesus, others, who affect to be indifferent, reason about Him and then declare it to be their opinion that this Jesus does not realise in Himself the character of the promised Messiah! They argue that when the Christ comes no-one will know from where He is. But have not the Prophets declared that he is to be of the family of David? Now every Jew knows well enough that Jesus is of that royal race. Besides, they own that there is to be something mysterious about the Messiah, and that he is to come from God. Had they listened with docile attention to the teachings of Jesus — teachings which He had confirmed by numerous miracles — they would have been enlightened both as to His temporal birth, and to His being the Son of God.

16 MARCH – MONDAY IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT

Lesson – 3 Kings iii. 16‒28

In those days two women that were harlots came to King Solomon and stood before him, and one of them said: “I beseech you, my lord, I and this woman dwelt in one house, and I was delivered of a child with her in the chamber. And the third day after that I was delivered she also was delivered, and we were together, and no other person with us in the house, only we two. And this woman’s child died in the night, for in her sleep she overlaid him. And rising in the dead time of the night she took my child from my side while your handmaid was asleep and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold it was dead. But considering him more diligently when it was clear day, I found that it was not mine which I bore.” And the other woman answered: “It is not so as you say, but your child is dead, and mine is alive.” On the contrary she said: “You lie, for my child lives and your child is dead.” And in this manner they strove before the king. Then said the king: “The one says my child is alive, and your child is dead, and the other answers: No, but your child is dead, and mine lives.” The king therefore said: “Bring me a sword.” And when they had brought a sword before the king, “Divide,” said he, “the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.” But the woman whose child was alive said to the king (for her bowels were moved upon her child), “I beseech you, my lord, give her the child alive, and do not kill it.” But the other said: “Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it.” The king answered and said: “Give the living child to this woman and let it not be killed, for she is the mother thereof.” And all Israel heard the judgement which the king had judged, and they feared the king, seeing that the wisdom of God was in him to do judgment.

Thanks be to God.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

Saint Paul explained to us in yesterday’s Epistle the antagonism that there is between the Synagogue and the Church. He showed us how Sarah’s son, who was the father’s favourite, was persecuted by the son of Agar. The two women who appear before Solomon are another figure of the same truth. The child they both lay claim to is the Gentile people which has been brought to the knowledge of the true God. The Synagogue, typified by the woman who has caused death to her child, has misled the people confided to her care and now unjustly claims one that does not belong to her. And whereas it is not from any motherly affection, but only from pride that she puts forward such a claim, it matters little to her what becomes of the child, provided only he be not given to the true mother, the Church. Solomon, the King of Peace, who is one of the Scriptural types of Christ, adjudges the child to her that has given him birth and nourished him, and the pretensions of the false mother are rejected. Let us, then, love our mother, the Holy Church, the Spouse of Jesus. It is she that has made us children of God by Baptism. She has fed us with the Bread of Life. She has given us the Holy Spirit and, when we had the misfortune to relapse into death by sin, she, by the divine power given to her has restored us to life. A filial love for the Church is the sign of the Elect. Obedience to her commandments is the mark of a soul in which God has set His kingdom.

Gospel – John ii. 13‒25

At that time the Pasch of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And He found in the temple them that sold oxen, and sheep, and doves, and the changers of money sitting. And when He had made as it were a scourge of little cords He drove them all out of the temple, the sheep also and the oxen. And the money of the changers He poured out, and the tables He overthrew. And He said to them that sold doves: “Take these things hence, and make not the house of my Father a house of traffic.” And His disciples remembered that it was written: The zeal of your house has eaten me up. Then the Jews answered, and said to Him: “What sign do you show us, seeing you do these things?” Jesus answered and said to them: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews then said: “Six and forty years was this temple in building, and will you raise it in three days?” But He spoke of the temple of His body. When therefore He was risen again from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this, and they believed the Scripture, and the word that Jesus had said. Now when He was at Jerusalem at the Pasch on the festival day, many believed in His name, seeing His signs which He did. But Jesus did not trust Himself to them, because He knew all men, and because He needed not that any should give testimony of man, for He knew what was in man.

Praise be to you, O Christ.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

We read in the Gospel of the first Tuesday of Lent that Jesus drove from the Temple them that were making it a place of traffic. He twice showed this zeal for his Father’s House. The passage we have just read from Saint John refers to the first time. Both occasions are brought before us during this Season of Lent because this conduct of our Saviour shows us with what severity he will treat a soul that harbours sin within her. Our souls are the Temple of God, created and sanctified by God to the end that He might dwell there. He would have nothing to be in them which is unworthy of their destination. This is the Season for self-examination, and if we have found that any passions are profaning the sanctuary of our souls, let us dismiss them. Let us beseech our Lord to drive them out by the scourge of His justice, for we, perhaps, might be too lenient with these sacrilegious intruders. The day of pardon is close at hand. Let us make ourselves worthy to receive it. There is an expression in our Gospel which deserves a special notice. The Evangelist is speaking of those Jews who were more sincere than the rest and believed in Jesus because of the miracles He wrought, he says: Jesus did not trust Himself to them because He knew all men. So that there may be persons who believe in and acknowledge Jesus yet whose hearts are not changed! Oh the hardness of man’s heart! Oh cruel anxiety for God’s priests! Sinners and worldlings are now crowding round the Confessional: they have faith and they confess their sins! And the Church has no confidence in their repentance! She knows that a very short time after the Feast of Easter they will have relapsed into the same state in which they were on the day when she marked their foreheads with ashes. These souls are divided between God and the world, and she trembles as she thinks on the danger they are about to incur by receiving Holy Communion without the preparation of a true conversion. Yet, on the other side, she remembers how it is written that the bruised reed is not to be broken, nor the smoking flax to be extinguished. Let us pray for these souls whose state is so full of doubt and danger. Let us also pray for the priests of the Church that they may receive from God abundant rays of that light by which Jesus knew what was in man.

15 MARCH – FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT (LAETARE SUNDAY)

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

This Sunday, called, from the first word of the Introit, Laetare Sunday, is one of the most solemn of the year. The Church interrupts her Lenten mournfulness. The chants of the Mass speak of nothing but joy and consolation. The organ which has been silent during the preceding three Sundays now gives forth its melodious voice. The deacon resumes his dalmatic, and the subdeacon his dunic, and instead of purple, rose-coloured vestments are allowed to be used. These same rites were practised in Advent, on the third Sunday, called Gaudete. The Church’s motive for introducing this expression of joy in today’s Liturgy is to encourage her children to persevere fervently to the end of this holy Season. The real Mid-Lent was last Thursday, as we have already observed, but the Church, fearing lest the joy might lead to some infringement on the spirit of penance, has deferred her own notice of it to this Sunday, when she not only permits, but even bids, her children to rejoice!

The Station at Rome is in the Basilica of Holy Cross in Jerusalem, one of the seven principal Churches of the Holy City. It was built in the fourth century by the Emperor Constantine in one of his villas, called Sessorius, on which account it goes also under the name of the Sessorian Basilica. The Emperor’s mother, Saint Helena, enriched it with most precious relics, and wished to make it the Jerusalem of Rome. It was with this intention that she ordered a great quantity of earth taken from Mount Calvary to be put on the site. Among the other relics of the Instruments of the Passion which she gave to this Church was the Inscription which was fastened to the Cross. It is still kept there and is called the Title of the Cross. The name of Jerusalem — which has been given to this Basilica, and which recalls to our minds the heavenly Jerusalem, towards which we are tending —suggested the choosing it as today’s Station. Up to the fourteenth century (when Avignon became, for a time, the City of the Popes), the ceremony of the Golden Rose took place in this Church. At present it is blessed in the Palace where the Sovereign Pontiff happens to be residing at this Season.

The blessing of the Golden Rose is one of the ceremonies peculiar to the Fourth Sunday of Lent, which is called on this account Rose Sunday. The thoughts suggested by this flower harmonise with the sentiments with which the Church would now inspire her children. The joyous time of Easter is soon to give them a spiritual Spring, of which that of nature is but a feeble image. Hence, we cannot be surprised that the institution of this ceremony is of a very ancient date. We find it observed under the Pontificate of Saint Leo the Ninth (eleventh century), and we have a Sermon on the Golden Rose preached by the glorious Pope Innocent the Third on this Sunday and in the Basilica of Holy Cross in Jerusalem.

In the Middle Ages, when the Pope resided in the Lateran Palace, having first blessed the Rose, he went on horseback to the Church of the Station. He wore the mitre, was accompanied by all the Cardinals, and held the blessed flower in his hand. Having reached the Basilica, he made a discourse on the mysteries symbolised by the beauty, the colour and the fragrance of the rose. Mass was then celebrated. After the Mass the Pope returned to the Lateran Palace. Surrounded by the sacred College, he rode across the immense plain which separates the two Basilicas, with the mystic flower still in his hand. We may imagine the joy of the people as they gazed on the holy symbol. When the procession had got to the Palace gates, if there were a Prince present, it was his privilege to hold the stirrup and assist the Pontiff to dismount, for which filial courtesy he received the rose which had received so much honour and caused such joy.

At present, the ceremony is not quite so solemn. Still the principal rites are observed. The Pope blesses the Golden Rose in the vestiary. He anoints it with Holy Chrism, over which he sprinkles a scented powder, as formerly, and when the hour for Mass is come, he goes to the Palace Chapel, holding the flower in his hand. During the Holy Sacrifice it is fastened to a golden rose-branch prepared for it on the Altar. After the Mass, it is brought to the Pontiff, who holds it in his hand as he returns from the Chapel to the vestiary. It is usual for the Pope to send the rose to some prince or princess, as a mark of honour. Sometimes, it is a city or a church that receives the flower. We subjoin a free translation of the beautiful prayer used by the Sovereign Pontiff when blessing the Golden Rose. It will give our readers a clearer appreciation of this ceremony, which adds so much solemnity to the Fourth Sunday of Lent.

“O GOD, by whose word and power all things were created, and by whose will they are all governed! You that are the joy and gladness of all your faithful people, we beseech your Divine Majesty, that you vouchsafe to bless and sanctify this rose, so lovely in its beauty and fragrance. We are to bear it, this day, in our hands, as a symbol of spiritual joy, that thus, the people that is devoted to your service, being set free from the captivity of Babylon, by the grace of your only-Begotten Son, who is the glory and the joy of Israel, may show forth, with a sincere heart, the joys of that Jerusalem, which is above, and is our Mother. And whereas your Church seeing this symbol, exults with joy, for the glory of your Name — do, Lord, give her true and perfect happiness. Accept her devotion, forgive us our sins, increase our faith. Heal us by your word, protect us by your mercy. Remove all obstacles. Grant us all blessings that thus, this same your Church may offer to you the fruit of good works, and walking in the odour of the fragrance of that flower which sprang from the Root of Jesse and is called the Flower of the Field, and the Lily of the Valley, may she deserve to enjoy an endless joy in the bosom of heavenly glory, in the society of all the Saints, together with that Divine Flower, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Ghost, world without end. Amen.”

We now come to the explanation of another name given to the Fourth Sunday of Lent, which was suggested by the Gospel of the day. We find this Sunday called in several ancient documents, the Sunday of the Five Loaves. The miracle alluded to in this title not only forms an essential portion of the Church’s instructions during Lent, but it is also an additional element of today’s joy. We forget for an instant the coming Passion of the Son of God to give our attention to the greatest of the benefits He has bestowed on us, for under the figure of these loaves multiplied by the power of Jesus, our faith sees that Bread which came down from heaven, and gives life to the world (John vi. 33). The Pasch, says our Evangelist, was near at hand, and in a few days our Lord will say to us: With desire I have desired to eat this Pasch with you (Luke xxii. 15). Before leaving this world to go to His Father, Jesus desires to feed the multitude that follows Him, and in order to this He displays His omnipotence. 

Well may we admire that creative power which feeds five thousand men with five loaves and two fishes, and in such wise, that even after all have partaken of the feast as much as they would, there remain fragments enough to fill twelve baskets. Such a miracle is, indeed, an evident proof of Jesus’ mission, but He intends it as a preparation for something far more wonderful: He intends it as a figure and a pledge of what He is soon to do, not merely once or twice, but every day, even to the end of time. Not only for five thousand men, but for the countless multitudes of believers. Think of the millions, who, this very year, are to partake of the banquet of the Pasch, and yet, He whom we have seen born in Bethlehem (the House of Bread), He is to be the nourishment of all these guests. Neither will the Divine Bread fail. We are to feast as did our fathers before us and the generations that are to follow us will be invited as we now are, to come and taste how sweet is the Lord (Psalm xxxiii. 9). But observe, it is in a desert place, (as we learn from Saint Matthew (xiv. 13)) that Jesus feeds these men, who represent us Christians. They have quitted the bustle and noise of cities in order to follow Him. So anxious are they to hear his words, that they fear neither hunger nor fatigue, and their courage is rewarded.

A like recompense will crown our labours — our fasting and abstinence — which are now more than half over. Let us, then, rejoice, and spend this day with the light-heartedness of pilgrims who are near the end of their journey. The happy moment is advancing, when our soul, united and filled with her God, will look back with pleasure on the fatigues of the body, which, together with our heart’s compunction, have merited for her a place at the Divine Banquet. The primitive Church proposed this miracle of the multiplication of the loaves as a symbol of the Eucharist, the Bread that never fails. We find it frequently represented in the paintings of the Catacombs and on the bas-reliefs of the ancient Christian tombs. The fishes, too, that were given together with the loaves, are represented on these venerable monuments of our faith for the early Christians considered the fish to be the symbol of Christ, because the word fish in Greek, is made up of five letters, each of which is the initial of these words: Jesus Christ, Son (of) God, Saviour.

The Greek Church, too, keeps this Sunday with much solemnity. According to her manner of counting the days of Lent, this is the great day of the week called, as we have already noticed, Mesonestios. The solemn adoration of the Cross takes place today and breaking through her rule of never admitting a saint’s feast during Lent, this mid-Lent Sunday is kept in honour of the celebrated Abbot of the Monastery of Mount Sinai, Saint John Climacus, who lived in the sixth century.

Epistle – Galatians iv. 22‒31

Brethren, it is written that Abraham had two sons. One by a bondwoman and the other by a free-woman. But he who was of the bond-woman was born according to the flesh. He of the free-woman was by promise. Which things are said by an allegory. For these are the two testaments. The one from Mount Sinai, engendering to bondage, which is Agar, for Sinai is a mountain in Arabia which has affinity to that Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. But that Jerusalem which is above is free, which is our mother. For it is written, “Rejoice, you barren that bear not. Break forth and cry, you that travail not, for many are the children of the desolate, more than of her that has a husband.” Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born according to the flesh persecuted him that was after the spirit, so also it is now. But what said the Scripture? “Cast out the bond-woman and her son, for the son of the bond-woman will not be heir with the son of the free-woman.” So, then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free, by the freedom with which Christ has made us free.

Thanks be to God.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

Let us, then, rejoice! — we are children, not of Sina, but of Jerusalem. Our mother, the holy Church is not a bond-woman, but free and it is to freedom that she has brought us up. Israel served God in fear. His heart was ever tending to idolatry, and could only be kept to duty by the heavy yoke of chastisement. More happy than he, we serve God through love. Our yoke is sweet and our burden is light (Matthew xi. 30). We are not citizens of the earth: we are but pilgrims passing through it to our true country, the Jerusalem which is above. We also have too long been grovelling in the goods of this world: we have been slaves to sin, and the more the chains of our bondage weighed on us, the more we talked of our being free. Now is the favourable time. Now are the days of salvation: we have obeyed the Church’s call and have entered into the practice and spirit of Lent. Sin seems to us now to be the heaviest of yokes: the flesh, a dangerous burden, the world, a merciless tyrant. We begin to breathe the fresh air of holy liberty, and the hope of our speedy deliverance fills us with transports of joy. Let us, with all possible affection, thank our Divine Liberator who delivers us from the bondage of Agar, emancipates us from the law of fear, and making us his new people, opens to us the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem, at the price of His Blood.

Gospel – John vi. 1‒15

At that time Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, which is that of Tiberias. And a great multitude followed Him because they saw the miracles which He did on them that were diseased. Jesus therefore went up into a mountain and there He sat with his disciples. Now the Pasch, the festival day of the Jews, was near at hand. When Jesus therefore had lifted up His eyes and seen that a very great multitude came to Him, He said to Philip: “Where shall we buy bread that these may eat?” And this He said to try him, for He Himself knew what he would do. Philip answered, “Two hundred penny worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that everyone may take a little.” One of His disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to Him, “There is a boy here that has five barley loaves and two fishes, but what are these among so many?” Then Jesus said, “Make the men sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. The men therefore sat down, in number about five thousand. And Jesus took the loaves and when He had given thanks, He distributed to them that were set down. In like manner, also of the fishes, as much as they would. And when they were filled He said to His disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, lest they be lost.” They gathered up, therefore, and filled up twelve baskets with fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above to them that had eaten. Now those men, when they had seen what a miracle Jesus had done said, “This is of a truth the prophet that is to come into the world.” Jesus therefore, when He knew that they would come to take Him by force and make Him king, fled again into the mountains Himself alone.

Praise be to you, O Christ.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

These men whom Jesus has been feeding by a miracle of love and power are resolved to make Him their King. They have no hesitation in proclaiming Him worthy to reign over them, for where can they find one worthier? What, then, shall we Christians do, who know the goodness and the power of Jesus incomparably better than these poor Jews? We must beseech Him to reign over us, from this day forward. We have just been reading in the Epistle that it is He who has made us free by delivering us from our enemies. O glorious liberty! But the only way to maintain it is to live under His Law. Jesus is not a tyrant, as are the world and the flesh. His rule is sweet and peaceful, and we are His children rather than His servants. In the court of such a King “to serve is to reign.” What, then, have we to do with our old slavery? If some of its chains be still on us, let us lose no time — let us break them, for the Pasch is near at hand: the great feast day begins to dawn. Onwards, then, courageously to the end of our journey! Jesus will refresh us. He will make us sit down as He did the men of the Gospel, and the bread He has in store for us will make us forget all our past fatigues.

14 MARCH – FERIA OF LENT

On this day according to the ROMAN MARTYROLOGY:

At Rome, the birthday of forty-seven holy martyrs who were baptised by the blessed Apostle St. Peter while he was kept in the Mamertine Prison with his fellow blessed Apostle St. Paul. After a detention of nine months they all fell by the sword of Nero, after most generously confessing the faith.

Also at Rome, St. Leo, bishop and martyr.

In Africa, the holy martyrs Peter and Aphrodisius, who obtained the crown of martyrdom in the persecution of the Vandals.

At Carrhae in Mesopotamia, the patrician St. Eutychius and his companions, who were killed by Evelid, king of Arabia, for the confession of the faith.

In the province of Valeria, two saintly monks, who were hanged on a tree by the Lombards, and though dead, were heard singing psalms even by their enemies. In the same persecution, a deacon of the church of Marsico was beheaded for the confession of the faith.

At Halberstadt in Germany, the demise of the blessed queen Matilda, mother of the emperor Otho I, celebrated for her humility and patience.

And in other places, many other holy martyrs, confessors and virgins.

Thanks be to God.

14 MARCH – SATURDAY IN THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT

Lesson – Daniel xiii. 1‒62

In those days there was a man that dwelt in Babylon, and his name was Joachim, and he took a wife whose name was Susanna, the daughter of Helcias, a very beautiful woman, and one that feared God. For her parents being just, had instructed their daughter according to the law of Moses. Now Joakim was very rich, and had an orchard near his house. And the Jews resorted to him because he was the most honourable of them all. And there were two of the ancients of the people appointed judges that year, of whom the Lord said: “Iniquity came out from Babylon from the ancient judges, that seemed to govern the people.” These men frequented the house of Joachim, and all that had any matters of judgement came to them, and when the people departed away at noon, Susanna went in, and walked in her husband’s orchard. And the old men saw her going in every day, and walking, and they were inflamed with lust towards her, and they perverted their own mind, and turned away their eyes, that they might not look to heaven, nor remember just judgements.

And it fell out, as they watched a fit day, she went in on a time, as yesterday and the day before, with two maids only, and was desirous to wash herself in the orchard for it was hot weather. And there was nobody there but the two old men that had hid themselves and were considering her. So she said to the maids: “Bring me oil and washing balls, and shut the doors of the orchard, that I may wash me.” And they did as she bade them, and they shut the doors of the orchard and went out by a back door to fetch what she had commanded them, and they knew not that the elders were hid within. Now when the maids were gone forth, the two elders arose, and ran to her, and said: “Behold the doors of the orchard are shut, and nobody sees us, and we are in love with you. Wherefore consent to us, and lie with us. But if you will not, we will bear witness against you, that a young man was with you, and therefore you sent away thy maids from you.” Susanna sighed, and said: “I am straitened on every side, for if I do this thing it is death to me, and if I do it not, I will not escape your hands. But it is better for me to fall into your hands without doing it, than to sin in the sight of the Lord.” With that Susanna cried out with a loud voice, and the elders also cried out against her. And one of them ran to the door of the orchard and opened it. So when the servants of the house heard the cry in the orchard, they rushed in by the back door to see what was the matter. But after the old men had spoken, the servants were greatly ashamed, for never had there been any such word said of Susanna.

And on the next day, when the people were come to Joakim her husband, the two elders also came, full of their wicked device against Susanna, to put her to death. And they said before the people: “Send to Susanna, daughter of Helcias, the wife of Joakim.” And they presently sent, and she came with her parents and children and all her kindred. Therefore her friends and all her aquaintances wept. But the two elders, rising up in the midst of the people, laid their hands on her head. And she weeping looked up to heaven, for her heart had confidence in the Lord. And the elders said: “As we walked in the orchard alone, this woman came in with two maids, and shut the doors of the orchard, and sent away the maids from her. Then a young man that was there hid, came to her and lay with her. But we that were in the corner of the orchard, seeing this wickedness, ran up to them, and we saw them lie together. And as for him we could not take him, because he was stronger than we, and opening the doors he leaped out. But having taken this woman, we asked who the young man was, but she would not tell us. Of this thing we are witnesses.” The multitude believed them, as being the elders and judges of the people, and they condemned her to death. Then Susanna cried out with a loud voice, and said: “Eternal God, who knows hidden things, who knows all things before they come to pass, you know that they have borne false witness against me, and behold I must die, whereas I have done none of these things, which these men have maliciously forged against me.” And the Lord heard her voice. And when she was led to be put to death, the Lord raised up the holy spirit of a young boy, whose name was Daniel, and he cried out with a loud voice: “I am clear from the blood of this woman.” Then all the people turning towards him, said: “What means this word that you have spoken?” But he standing in the midst of them, said: “Are you so foolish, you children of Israel, that without examination or knowledge of the truth, you have condemned a daughter of Israel? Return to judgement, for they have borne false witness against her.” So all the people turned again in haste.

And Daniel said to the people: “Separate these two far from one another, and I will examine them.” So when they were put asunder one from the other, he called one of them and said to him: “O you that are grown old in evil days, now are your sins come out which you have committed before, in judging unjust judgements, oppressing the innocent and letting the guilty go free, whereas the Lord says: ‘The innocent and the just you must not kill.’ Now then, if you saw her, tell me under what tree you saw them conversing together.” He said: “Under a mastick tree.” And Daniel said: “Well have you lied against your own head, for behold the Angel of God, having received the sentence of him, will cut you in two.” And having put him aside, he commanded that the other should come, and he said to him: “You seed of Canaan, and not of Judah, beauty has deceived you, and lust has perverted your heart. Thus did you do as to the daughters of Israel, and they for fear conversed with you, but a daughter of Judah would not abide your wickedness. Now, therefore, tell me under what tree did you take them conversing together?” And he answered:” Under a holm tree.” And Daniel said to him: “Well have you also lied against your own head, for the Angel of the Lord waits with a sword to cut thee in two, and to destroy you.” With that all the assembly cried out with a loud voice, and they blessed God, who saves them that trust in Him. And they rose up against the two elders, (for Daniel had convicted them of false witness by their own mouth), and they did to them as they had maliciously dealt against their neighbour, and they put them to death, and innocent blood was saved in that day.

Thanks be to God.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

If you would understand the mystery, read and meditate on the Sacred Scriptures, for there you will learn that there is a salvation which comes from justice, and a salvation that proceeds from mercy. Today we have an example of both. Susanna, who is unjustly accused of adultery, receives from God the recompense of her virtue. He avenges and saves her. Another woman, who is really guilty of the crime, is saved from death by Jesus Christ himself. Let the just, therefore, confidently and humbly await the reward they have merited, but let sinners also hope in the mercy of the Redeemer, who is come for them rather than for the just.

In this history of Susanna, the early Christians saw a figure of the Church, which, in their time, was solicited by the pagans to evil, but remained faithful to her Divine Spouse, even though death was the punishment of her resistance. A holy Martyr of the third century, Saint Hippolytus, mentions this interpretation. The carvings on the ancient Christian tombs, and the frescoes of the Roman Catacombs, represent this history of Susanna's fidelity to God’s law, in spite of the death that threatened her, as a type of martyrs preferring death to apostacy, for apostacy, in the language of the Sacred Scriptures, is called adultery, which the soul is guilty of by denying her God, to whom she espoused herself when she received Baptism.

Gospel – John viii. 1‒11

At that time Jesus went to Mount Olivet. And early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him, and sitting down He taught them. And the Scribes and Pharisees brought to him a woman taken in adultery, and they set her in the midst, and said to Him: “Master, this woman was now taken in adultery. Now. Moses in the law commanded us to stone such a one: but what say you?” And this they said tempting Him, that they might accuse Him. But Jesus, bowing Himself down, wrote with his finger on the ground. When therefore they continued asking Him, He lifted up Himself and said to them:” He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” And again stooping down, He wrote on the ground. But they hearing this, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, and Jesus alone remained, and the woman standing in the midst. Then Jesus lifting up Himself, said to her: “Woman, where are they that accused you? Has no man condemned you?” Who said: “No man, Lord.” And Jesus said: “Neither will I condemn you. Go, and now sin no more.”

Praise be to you, O Christ.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

This is the Salvation that proceeds from mercy. The woman is guilty. The Law condemns her to he put to death. Her accusers are justified in insisting on her being punished, and yet, she will not die. Jesus saves her, and all He asks of her is, that she sin no more. What must have been her gratitude! How must she not have desired to obey, henceforward, that God, who would not condemn her, and to whom she owed her life! Let us enter into the like dispositions towards our Redeemer, for we, too, are sinners. Is it not He that has stayed the arm of Divine Justice, when it was raised to strike us? Has He not turned the blow on Himself? Our salvation, then, has been one of mercy. Let us imitate the penitents of the primitive Church, and, during these remaining days of Lent, consolidate the foundations of the new life we have begun. The answer made by Jesus to the Pharisees who accused this woman deserves our respectful attention. It not only shows His compassion for the humble sinner, who stood trembling before Him: it contains a practical instruction for us. He that is without sin among you, let him be the first to cast a stone at her.

During these days of conversion and repentance, let us recall to mind the detractions we have been guilty of against our neighbour. Alas, these sins of the tongue are looked on as mere trifles. We forget them almost as soon as we commit them, so deeply rooted in us is the habit of finding fault with everyone, that we scarcely know ourselves to be detractors. If this saying of our Redeemer had made the impression it ought to have done on us. If we had thought of our own numberless defects and sins, how could we have dared to criticise our neighbour, publish his faults, and pass judgement on his very thoughts and intentions? Jesus knew what sort of life these men had led, who accuse the woman. He knows what ours has been! Woe to us, if, henceforth, we are not indulgent with others! And lastly, let us consider the malice of Jesus’ enemies: what they said, they said, tempting Him, that they might accuse Him. If He pronounces in the woman’s favour, they will accuse him of despising the Law of Moses, which condemns her to be stoned. If He answer in conformity with the Law, they will hold Him up to the people as a man without mercy or compassion. Jesus, by His divine prudence, eludes their stratagem, but we can foresee what He will have to suffer at their hands, when, having put Himself in their power, that they may do with Him what they please, He will make no other answer to their calumnies and insults than the silence and patience of an innocent victim condemned to death.