Mass for Trinity Sunday will be celebrated at Holywell Parish Church (St Winefride's) at 1130am on Sunday 26th May. Canon Parant from the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest will be our guest celebrant. St Winefride's, Well Street, Holywell, Flintshire, CH8 7PL. From ‘Divine Intimacy’ Father Gabriel of St Mary Magdalen, O.C.D.
PRESENCE OF GOD: “I return thanks to You, O God, one and true Trinity, one sovereign divinity, holy and indivisible unity” (Roman Breviary). From Advent until today, the Church has had us consider the magnificent manifestations of God’s mercy toward men: the Incarnation, the Redemption, Pentecost. Now she directs our attention to the source of these gifts, the most Holy Trinity, from whom everything proceeds. Spontaneously, there rises to our lips the hymn of gratitude expressed in the Introit of the Mass: “Blessed be the Holy Trinity and undivided Unity; we will give glory to Him, because He has shown His mercy to us”: the mercy of God the Father, “who so loved the world that He gave it His only-begotten Son” (cf. Jn 3:16); the mercy of God the Son, who to redeem us became incarnate and died on the Cross; the mercy of the Holy Spirit, who deigned to come down into our hearts to communicate to us the charity of God and to make us participate in the divine life. The Church has very fittingly included in the Office for today the beautiful antiphon inspired by St. Paul: “Caritas Pater est, gratia Filius, communicatio Spiritus Sanctus, O beata Trinitas!”; the Father is charity, the Son is grace and the Holy Spirit is communication: applying this, the charity of the Father and the grace of the Son are communicated to us by the Holy Spirit, who diffuses them in our heart. The marvellous work of the Trinity in our souls could not be better synthesized. Today’s Office and Mass form a veritable paean of praise and gratitude to the Blessed Trinity; they are a prolonged Gloria Patri and Te Deum. These two hymns—one a succinct epitome, and the other a majestic alternation of praises—are truly the hymns for today, intended to awaken in our hearts a deep echo of praise, thanksgiving, and adoration. COLLOQUY “O eternal Trinity, You are a deep sea in which the more I seek the more I find, and the more I find, the more I seek to know You. You fill us insatiably, because the soul, before the abyss which You are, is always famished; and hungering for You, O eternal Trinity, it desires to behold truth in Your light. As the thirsty hart pants after the fount of living water, so does my soul long to leave this gloomy body and see You as You are, in truth. “O unfathomable depth! O Deity eternal! O deep ocean! What more could You give me than to give me Yourself? You are an ever-burning Fire; You consume and are not consumed. By Your fire, You consume every trace of self-love in the soul. You are a Fire which drives away all coldness and illumines minds with its light, and with this light You have made me know Your truth. Truly this light is a sea which feeds the soul until it is all immersed in You, O peaceful Sea, eternal Trinity! The water of this sea is never turbid; it never causes fear, but gives knowledge of the truth. This water is transparent and discloses hidden things; and a living faith gives such abundance of light that the soul almost attains to certitude in what it believes. “You are the supreme and infinite Good, good above all good; good which is joyful, incomprehensible, inestimable; beauty exceeding all other beauty; wisdom surpassing all wisdom, because You are Wisdom itself. Food of angels, giving Yourself with fire of love to men! You are the garment which covers our nakedness; You feed us, hungry as we are, with Your sweetness, because You are all sweetness with no bitterness. Clothe me, O eternal Trinity, clothe me with Yourself, so that I may pass this mortal life in true obedience and in the light of the most holy faith with which You have inebriated my soul” (St. Catherine of Siena). The Holy Ghost brings to fulfillment in us (the Church) the promises of Christ. It is only with the grace of the Holy Ghost that we are able to correctly understand what Jesus has taught; and even more importantly to implement His teachings in our daily lives.
The scriptures are the work of the Holy Ghost because they are inspired by Him. The words recorded of Jesus are His words, but the recording of these words is truly the work of the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. The only time that we know of when Jesus wrote, was when He wrote in the sand. The recording of some of what Jesus said and did was written down by others, specifically the Evangelists: Saint Matthew, Saint Mark, Saint Luke, and Saint John. We know that there was much more that Jesus said and did, but they could not record everything. The Evangelists each wrote for very specific purposes. Usually, they wrote for the instruction or edification of specific people. Or that we may know that Jesus is truly God made Man. Under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, these writers recorded what was deemed necessary, useful or beneficial for the goal they had in writing. There were many other written accounts or "gospels" that were written by other authors. The Church (guided by the Holy Ghost) has looked into all of these and has labeled them as apocrypha. They could not be proven to have been inspired by the Holy Ghost, and therefore, were not acceptable as Sacred Texts and were not included in the Bible. Today with the flood of "information" on the internet, these apocrypha are often easily accessed and shared (especially by non-Catholics or those who wish to accuse the Church of hiding and deceiving others). But, even if you were to include these, we still would not have a written account of all that the Son of God has said and done. These uninspired texts are often found to be in contradiction to the inspired Sacred Texts, or to contain errors or heresies. Even if they were without these difficulties, they are generally not worth the time or effort to read because we should rather devote greater time and effort with those Texts that are without any doubt inspired by the Holy Ghost and are therefore Sacred. The Sacred Texts themselves are often twisted by misguided or even perverted minds that seek to find justification for their sinful lives. When confronted by such individuals, we are reminded that even the devils can quote scriptures. The many false "Christian" religions have often taken the Sacred Texts (that the Church has preserved), and "edited" them to suit their own ends. Frequently deleting large sections, or re-translating passages that they wish to make prove or confirm their own personal heresies. A favorite idea among these people is that of "private interpretation." This practice opens up the Sacred Texts to every conceivable error, heresy, and sin. God has foreseen and given us a defense against this abuse of the Holy Bible. The Holy Ghost has been given to the Church and lives within Her, guiding and protecting Her. She is the official and therefore the only true interpreter of these works. If we desire to know what God is telling us in the Sacred Scriptures, we must turn to the Church to find out, how to understand what is written. Those who have broken away from the Church and began their own religions have rejected the Church's teaching in favor of their own private interpretation. In rejecting the Church's teaching, they have rejected, not men, but rather God. They have denied the Holy Ghost. Of course they will deny this and claim to be individually guided by the Holy Ghost. In this, they would have the Holy Ghost to contradict Himself in the necessarily confused and contradictory interpretations that "private interpretation" creates. Hence they create a multiplicity of gods in opposition to the One True God. It is only in the True Church that we find an infallible teacher of the Word of God. Every other "interpreter" is subject to error, confusion, and even heresy and sin. The Catholic Church has the protection and guidance of the Holy Ghost. Hence, it is only in the Catholic Church that we can find the true teachings of Christ, and therefore, salvation. There is no salvation outside the Catholic Church because it is only within Her that the Holy Ghost shows us the True Christ; and teaches us how we must live; as well as give us the means (Grace) to live according to the Will of God. Darío del Niño Jesús Castrillón Hoyos was born on the same day as my father, the 4 July 1929 and he passed to his Eternal reward yesterday, aged 88.
He was a Colombian born Prince of the Church and most notably was the President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei from 2000 until his retirement in 2009 having served as Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy from 1996 to 2006. He was ordained in 1952 and was consecrated Bishop in July 1971. Cardinal Castrillón was considered papabile in the conclave that followed St John Paul II's death and which saw Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger become Pope Benedict XVI. The new Pope confirmed him as Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy and President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei and he was a true friend of Traditional liturgy and oversaw the effective delivery of motu proprio Summorum Pontificum. I was fortunate to meet him in 2015 at the Una Voce General Council where he sat in choir for Vespers and joined us for a dinner that followed. Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace. Amen. Low Mass in the Extraordinary Form will be celebrated at: St Francis of Assisi Llay Chain, Llay, Near Wrexham, LL12 0NT at 12.30pm on Sunday 13th May 2018 Our Lord warns us today so that we will not be scandalised. "They will put you out of the synagogues; yea, the hour cometh that whosoever killeth you will think that he doth a service to God. And these things will they do to you, because they have not known the Father, nor me."
History does indeed repeat itself. But let us not be scandalized because we are chased out of our churches, or that we are hated and despised by so many who think that they love God and are honouring God by calumniating and persecuting us, or even as Our Lord foretold to the Apostles, they will kill us thinking this is pleasing to God. Just because all these things take place does not mean that God is impotent, or indifferent, nor does it mean that we are necessarily wrong. On the contrary the majority is almost always (if not always) wrong. Those who are correct and have the truth generally are the minority. We must not fear or lose heart. It should be an encouraging thing to us to be found, as the Apostles were, worthy to suffer these things for Christ's sake. Not only must we be hated by the devils and all those in league with them; and by the worldly people; and by the Protestant sects; but even by those who use the name Catholic and claim to believe in Jesus Christ. Yes, it is often even our own friends and family that will turn against us. A man's enemies will be those of his own household. We must be willing to hate father, and mother, brother and sister, etc. for Christ's sake if we are to be found worthy to enter the kingdom of Heaven. God demands our complete and preferential love. If we love anyone or anything more than God we are no longer worthy of Him. And it seems that we must pass through this test, just as the Apostles did. Love like gold is useless until it is tried and tested. Once it passes through the fire and is purified, only then does it have real value. It is easy to say that we love God as long as nothing is demanded or even asked of us, but it becomes true love when it is tempered by crosses and suffering. We must always be ready and willing to lose everything even our own lives for the love of God. Christ has told us that the man who saves his life here on earth will lose his life in eternity, but the man who will lose his life here on earth for His sake will gain an eternal life. Let us not be disheartened when we are calumniated and persecuted, but rather let us rejoice as the Apostles did. To be shunned by our friends and family in this world only to find a Heavenly family in the true Mystical Body of Christ is the greatest of blessings! As mentioned above God is not impotent. He could at any moment turn everything around, but would that be in our best interest? Could we have any empathy for the sufferings of Christ if we never have to suffer? Let us not fear the cross, or the conflict. But rather let us with the Apostles fight the good fight. Let us not hesitate to sacrifice the perishable things of this earth for the imperishable things of Heaven. As St. Francis teaches us in his Peace Prayer: … It is in giving that we receive, and it is in dying that we are born into eternal life. The LMS with the assistance of the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest held a pilgrimage in honour of The Martyrs of England and Wales today.
Begining at the Shrine Church of St Walburge, a good number of faithful, led by the Canons of the Institute and other attending clergy together with the Sisters Adorers of the Royal Heart of Jesus processed to the ICKSP's other church, St Thomas of Canterbury and the English Martyrs where Solemn High Mass took place. God provided us with glorious sunshine and the many graces that were in abundance for those attending. The Latin Mass Society is indebted to the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest for their assistance. Below are a selection of photographs of the event, the initial photographs are taken at St Walburge, followed by the procession, then Holy Mass at St Thomas of Canterbury and the English Martyrs and finally veneration of the relic. #
Today we are told very clearly that Christ has come from God the Father. Jesus speaks in a simple unmistakable language. We are to gather from this that our love for Him merits for us the love of the Father. It therefore follows that whatever we will ask the Father in Jesus’ name will be given us. Jesus insists that it is not He that asks the Father for us, but rather that the Father hears us directly. We have become His children through the merits of Jesus. Reflecting upon this magnificent gift and honor that God has placed upon us we must seriously consider the words of St. James in today’s epistle: “Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” We end his epistle today with the admonition to keep ourselves unspotted from this world. This is what is fitting and becoming for the children of God. Nothing less will do. We must love Jesus with the love of preference. Putting Him above all else – even ourselves. This love for Him will merit for us the gift of adoption as children of God. The love of God is measured by the degree in which we keep His word. He has clearly explained to us that if we love Him we will keep His word. Likewise, that His word, is the word of the Father. For Jesus and the Father are One. So it behooves us to live perfectly because our Heavenly Father is perfect. We must direct our thoughts, words, and actions toward this ultimate goal. Our lives have been given to us for no other reason than to draw closer and closer to God. We must constantly have our thoughts and desires lifted up to Him. St. Paul has admonished us that whatever we do, we should do it for the love of God. It does not matter if we eat or fast, sleep or keep vigil, work or play, etc. as long as whatever it is we do we do for the love of God. We must focus ourselves upon Him. This is the love of Jesus that will merit the Heavenly Father hearing us. In this manner it becomes clearer that whatever we ask in Jesus’ name will be given to us. The reason seems clear enough, the more that we love Jesus and conform ourselves to Him, the more our petitions will be for nothing except what is already God’s will. We in this manner put into effect the command to seek first the kingdom of Heaven and its Justice; we then have no fear that everything else that we need will be given to us besides. We see in the lives of the saints a clear example of how we are to love God. St. Francis perfected this love in himself, and left us with his example of following Christ, and detaching himself from the world. Espousing holy poverty, St. Francis was able to focus all his attention upon doing God’s will. Because of holy poverty he was free from the cares of the world that so burden the rest of society. His reward was that he never lacked for the necessities of his body, but much more importantly his soul soared to unimaginable heights. He bears the title of “Seraphic Saint.” His prayers were so perfect as they only asked for that which God was already prepared to do. His praise for God was continual in every hour of his day. St. Francis saw all of God’s creation as a great book revealing to him the many splendid and wonderful aspects of God. The seal of God’s love for St. Francis is manifested in his body by the privilege of bearing the very wounds of Christ. St. Francis never shied away from pain or suffering, but rather embraced it for the love of God. In every way he tried to be like Jesus; he always took to heart the words of God and applied them directly to himself. In this manner St. Francis became the very mirror of Christ. He resembled Jesus so closely in this life that he merited to be heard in his prayers and to share an eternal glory in heaven with Jesus. |
Oremus pro Pontifice nostro Francisco: Dominus conservet eum, et vivificet eum, et beatum faciat eum in terra, et non tradat eum in animam inimicorum eius.
Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, qui facis mirabilia magna solus: praetende super famulos tuos, et super congregationes illis commissas, spiritum gratiae salutaris; et, ut in veritate tibi complaceant, perpetuum eis rorem tuae benedictionis infunde.
Any views expressed neither represent those of the Latin Mass Society or the Diocese of Wrexham.
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