There is a popular and old devotion called Stations of the Cross, where the faithful recall and meditate on the events of the Way of the Cross, beginning with the moment Jesus was condemned to death to when He was placed in the sepulcher.  And in the Second Station we consider the moment when Jesus accepts His Cross.  In The Passion of the Christ, Mel Gibson puts a fitting reflection on this scene.  If you recall, it depicts Our Lord embracing His Cross with great anticipation and love — not anger and bitterness, but love — to the great incredulity of the two thieves.

In this sense, we realize that ever since the beginning of time Jesus greatly longed for this singular moment when He would redeem humanity.  And it had finally arrived.  Therefore, the wood of the Cross is not taken as simply an instrument of death, but rather as the weapon of God’s final victory over evil.

A Reflection by St. Alphonsus Liguori

V: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You. (Genuflect)

R: Because, by Your holy cross, You have redeemed the world. (Rise)

V: Consider Jesus as He walked this road with the cross on His shoulders, thinking of us, and offering to His Father in our behalf, the death He was about to suffer. (Kneel)

R: My most beloved Jesus,
I embrace all the sufferings You have destined for me until death.
I beg You, by all You suffered in carrying Your cross,
to help me carry mine with Your perfect peace and resignation.
I love You, Jesus, my love;
I repent of ever having offended You.
Never let me separate myself from You again.
Grant that I may love You always; and then do with me as You will.

Adoramus te, Christe

Tune: Theodore Dubois (1837 – 1924)
Text:  Good Friday Liturgy (6th century)

Adoramus te, Christe,
et benedicimus tibi,
quia per sanctam crucem tuam
redemisti mundum.

We adore Thee, O Christ,
and we bless Thee,
who by Thy Holy Cross
hast redeemed the world.

We are creatures of habit — both good and bad habits.  And with a decent effort we can establish new habits.  Science tells us that it takes about two months of repetition to cement a good habit or uproot a bad habit.  As it turns out, Lent is a period that lasts just long enough to form good habits.  But what’s better is that in Lent we receive special graces to make our efforts more fruitful, and we should avail ourselves of these graces.

To that end, one of the best habits we can fortify is spending some time in prayer.  And prayer is like any other pursuit — you have to put out the effort to make it happen; it’s not something that’s going to happen by accident.  Just like you have to carve out and schedule time to exercise or do the laundry or anything else, you just have to make the time.

Setting aside a half-hour every Friday to meditate on the events of Our Lord’s Passion and Death is a great starting point for forming a habit of prayer.  For never has it been known that a person has regretted a single moment spent contemplating Our Lord’s suffering.

Perhaps some setup for meditation is required.

Recall that in all of the ancient religions the idea of sacrifice is pertinent.  There is an innate understanding that man has failings, and some form of sacrifice is required to make justice to the gods.  In the Old Testament, the Jews would often offer sacrifices of oxen and lambs, and animal sacrifices were common in other religions as well.

But since God is infinite, even the smallest sin is an infinite offense against Him, and no sacrifice that man can offer can bridge the gap of this infiniteness.  And so, in God’s plan to meet what we lack, He decided to offer Himself up as the sacrifice to make justice.  He did this by assuming a human nature, joining the Divine nature with a human nature in a single person — the Second Person of the Trinity.  The Son of God, in the form of the God-man, would offer Himself to the Father as both priest and victim, for the salvation of the human race.

Consider, then, with great pity the suffering and humiliation Our Lord willingly endured for us:

• How he was betrayed by one of his very own friends to be handed over to the chief priests.  And how all of his disciples scattered and left him alone, save St. John, who stayed by his side to the end.
• How Pilate, acting as the competent authority to judge on behalf of the State, proclaimed to the crowd:  “I find no cause in this man,” only to have the mob shout “Crucify him!”  And Pilate, in fear, pleaded with them, “Why?  What evil has this man done?”  But the mob only became more violent. “And Pilate seeing that he prevailed nothing, but that rather a tumult was made; taking water washed his hands before the people, saying: I am innocent of the blood of this just man; look you to it.”  And so even though the State decreed Our Lord innocent, he was put to death simply to satisfy the mob.
• How he was scourged relentlessly until he was covered in blood.
• How the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and placed it on his head to mock him — laughing at his humiliation.  Imagine, the Great Majesty that created the entire universe being mocked in such a way.
• How he was pressed to carry his heavy cross, and fell along the way under the weight of it.
• How, on the same way, he met his dear mother and saw the heartbroken look on her face.
• How his garments were torn off with such violence that the flesh stuck upon from the dried blood came off with it.
• And how finally he was nailed and lifted up on the cross, to hang there for three hours in agony.  (Now, the Romans at the time were highly intelligent people and actually went about devising the most tortuous way to die, and came up with crucifixion.)  The weight of his body pulled down on the nail holes in the hands.  As his body would tire and slump down, air would be blocked through the throat, and he would have to press down on his feet to push his body up to get air, and in turn the nails in the feet would re-open the wounds.  It was three hours of pure agony, bleeding out until his life was finally extinguished.

And his mother was there to watch every moment of it.

Why did he do it?

Because it was necessary for our salvation.  And all of the humiliation, suffering, and dying agony that he endured, when put in the balance, did not weigh more than his love for us.  That is why it is said that he would do it again as many times necessary, even if you or I were the only persons in the world.

And it is true that God could have redeemed us and made justice in any manner, but this is the method he chose.  And even shedding a single drop of blood from a scrape would have been sufficient, but he willed to go all the way so that no person can doubt how much he loves us.  He offered himself over totally.

Surely contemplating these pitiable events of Our Lord’s Passion are most salutary for the soul.  For who could not be stirred with great sentiments of gratitude and love at the thought of God’s great love for us?

This is the true purpose of Lent.

O Sacred Head Surrounded

Tune: Passion Chorale, Hans L. Hassler (d. 1612) / Johann S. Bach (d. 1750)
Text: Salve caput cruentatum, St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1153)

O Sacred Head surrounded
By crown of piercing thorn!
O bleeding Head so wounded,
Reviled and put to scorn!
Death’s pallid hue comes o’er Thee,
The glow of life decays,
Yet angel hosts adore Thee,
And tremble as they gaze.

I see Thy strength and vigor
all fading in the strife,
and death with cruel rigor,
bereaving Thee of life;
O agony and dying!
O love to sinners free!
Jesus, all grace supplying,
O turn Thy face on me.

In this, Thy bitter passion,
Good Shepherd, think of me,
With Thy most sweet compassion,
Unworthy though I be:
Beneath Thy cross abiding,
Forever would I rest;
In Thy dear love confiding,
And with Thy presence blest.

What language shall I borrow
to thank thee, dearest Friend,
for this, Thy dying sorrow,
Thy mercy without end?
Lord, make me Thine forever:
Thy servant let me be;
And let me never, never
outlive my love to Thee.

In the modern era of secularization it is easy to forget that St. Patrick’s Day is not just a party day but rather a Feast Day in the Universal Church to celebrate — you guessed it — St. Patrick and all that he has done for the Irish people and the Church at large.  So let’s take a moment and reflect on his remarkable life and how he allowed himself to be used as an instrument for God.  As we will see, God desired to bring even this tiny island nation located somewhere off the corner of a map into His fold.

Patrick was born in Kilpatrick, Scotland in the late 4th century and was of Romano-Briton ancestry (so perhaps of Welsh or Roman blood).  When he was just sixteen years old, he was captured by pirates and taken to Ireland and sold into slavery, as was not uncommon at the time.  These six young years of captivity and hardship were pivotal for forming Patrick and preparing him for his life’s mission.  He spent much of his time in prayer, devoting himself to God, and learning about the Celtic customs, language and druid religion which was predominant at the time.

After six years in slavery, he escaped his master and traveled to the shore — about a 200-mile journey — and returned by ship to his hometown.  No sooner was he home than did he desire to return to Ireland and convert the Irish race to the Catholic religion.  He studied under St. Martin of Tours and was ordained a priest by St. Germain.  He traveled to Rome and went before Pope St. Celestine I to receive his blessing to be an apostle to Ireland.  Shortly thereafter he was ordained bishop by St. Maximus.  And at the ripe-old age of 45, he was off to Ireland to conquer the nation.

He was met with both resistance and success, but the big breakthrough came early in 433 AD.  Patrick went to Tara — then the center of the kingdom — where the High King Laoghaire ruled, hoping to secure his approval of his mission.  Shortly before Easter, the druids celebrated an annual festival of fire and before the festival the king decreed that no fires should be lit until the festival, under penalty of death.  But at the Easter Vigil, Patrick went up to the Hill of Slane, near Dublin, and lit the Easter Vigil Pascal fire in plain view of the king.  (Hey, it’s the Easter Vigil — what do you expect?)  Of course the king was outraged and a confrontation ensued between the druid priests and Patrick, but the druids were not able to extinguish the fire.  As the days went on, Patrick was able to win over the king, mostly through the works of miracles, and received permission to convert the Irish people.

From there, Patrick went out to the whole nation, preaching to the people, winning over the chieftains (local rulers), building churches, and ordaining priests.  It is remarkable to consider how, in just a single generation, almost all of Ireland was converted to the Holy Faith and the old pagan beliefs were extinguished.  God wanted so much for this nation to be His own that He ordained these extraordinary events.

In summary, one has to reflect on the great courage and faith that St. Patrick had in order to confront the king and local rulers with such boldness.  He believed in God’s plan and put his full trust in Him and was able to accomplish something that is almost unmatched in history.  Second, we should recall that those six arduous years of slavery, in his youth, were necessary to form him.  Often we can grow bitter in our trials and tribulations, but St. Patrick shows us how to bear them with trust that God is going to use that for a greater good.

Finally, we must acknowledge that the situation in Ireland today, in regards to the Faith, is regrettable.  It has collapsed as quickly as it once spread in St. Patrick’s day — a matter of only a couple of decades.  This generation has failed to pass on to its children what it received from its ancestors.  It has dropped the ball.  It is said that by 2050, because of the migration of people from the third world, Ireland will be minority Irish.  The current prime minister is a gay Indian atheist who, last year, made the following outrageous statements:  “We live in a country that is a republic and we make our laws here. And while we respect people of faith, we respect religion, religious principles don’t decide why there is law in Ireland; don’t decide what the values of our republic are.”  To say that Irish values aren’t informed by the Catholic religion is to deny the very nation’s character and ancestry.  This is what happens when you take someone from outside and make him leader of your nation.  And now the Irish support gay “marriage” and have just legalized abortion.

But perhaps the current situation of Ireland is found in this final vision that St. Patrick had just before his death, as relayed by the Catholic Encyclopedia:

St. Patrick, having now completed his triumph over Paganism, and gathered Ireland into the fold of Christ, prepared for the summons to his reward. St. Brigid came to him with her chosen virgins, bringing the shroud in which he would be enshrined. It is recorded that when St. Patrick and St. Brigid were united in their last prayer, a special vision was shown to him. He saw the whole of Ireland lit up with the brightest rays of Divine Faith. This continued for centuries, and then clouds gathered around the devoted island, and, little by little, the religious glory faded away, until, in the course of centuries, it was only in the remotest valleys that some glimmer of its light remained. St. Patrick prayed that the light would never be extinguished, and, as he prayed, the angel came to him and said: “Fear not: your apostolate shall never cease.” As he thus prayed, the glimmering light grew in brightness, and ceased not until once more all the hills and valleys of Ireland were lit up in their pristine splendour, and then the angel announced to St. Patrick: “Such shall be the abiding splendour of Divine truth in Ireland.”

On St. Patrick’s Day, let’s take a moment to remember the real man.  Even if it’s just five minutes.  To know his mindset, we can find it in the prayer for protection that he composed, which we now call St. Patrick’s Breastplate:  “Christ be in all hearts thinking about me / Christ be on all tongues telling of me / Christ be the vision in eyes that see me / In ears that hear me Christ ever be.”

When we think of St. Patrick, do we then think of Our Lord?  We should!  Because that’s what he would want!

Aren’t you glad that St. Patrick worked so hard so that we could have the Holy Faith?

Christ Be Beside Me

Tune: Bunessan
Text:  St. Patrick’s Breastplate (5th century)

Christ be beside me
Christ be before me
Christ be behind me
King of my heart.
Christ be within me
Christ be below me
Christ be above me
Never to part.

Christ on my right hand
Christ on my left hand
Christ all around me
Shield in the strife.
Christ in my sleeping
Christ in my sitting
Christ in my rising
Light of my life.

Christ be in all hearts thinking about me
Christ be on all tongues telling of me
Christ be the vision in eyes that see me
In ears that hear me Christ ever be.

Last week we took a listen to an example of the “music” that today’s culture-controllers are forcing on Americans.  It was base, filthy, of poor morals, and one couldn’t even distinguish a single English word in the lyrics.

To draw a comparison to a historical, European piece of music — which also doesn’t have a single English word — from a Christian era I’d like to present Gregorio Allegri’s Miserere mei, Deus.  Written for two, dis-located (i.e., physically separated) small choirs — one group of men, the other boys — it is an exemplary composition featuring Renaissance-era polyphonic chant.  Initially, it was only performed once a year and only in the Sistine Chapel — on Wednesday and Good Friday of Holy Week.  The text is from Psalm 50 (51), a penitential psalm written by David, providing a fitting setting for Good Friday.

Whenever I hear the modern narrative that life was terrible hundreds of years ago, and that our forefathers were primitive and stupid, and that the world was terrible when the Catholic Church had influence, I always come back to this musical piece.  Where is music and art like this in today’s world?

The following performance from the 1980s is by The Tallis Scholars.  There are alternate performances by King’s College Choir and the Choir of New College, Oxford.  Photos from St. Peter’s Basilica.

Miserere mei, Deus

Composer: Gregorio Allegri (1582 – 1652)
Text:  Psalm 50 (51)

Miserere mei, Deus: secundum magnam misericordiam tuam.
Et secundum multitudinem miserationum tuarum, dele iniquitatem meam.
Amplius lava me ab iniquitate mea: et a peccato meo munda me.
Quoniam iniquitatem meam ego cognosco: et peccatum meum contra me est semper.
Tibi soli peccavi, et malum coram te feci: ut justificeris in sermonibus tuis, et vincas cum judicaris.
Ecce enim in iniquitatibus conceptus sum: et in peccatis concepit me mater mea.
Ecce enim veritatem dilexisti: incerta et occulta sapientiae tuae manifestasti mihi.
Asperges me hysopo, et mundabor: lavabis me, et super nivem dealbabor.
Auditui meo dabis gaudium et laetitiam: et exsultabunt ossa humiliata.
Averte faciem tuam a peccatis meis: et omnes iniquitates meas dele.
Cor mundum crea in me, Deus: et spiritum rectum innova in visceribus meis.
Ne proiicias me a facie tua: et spiritum sanctum tuum ne auferas a me.
Redde mihi laetitiam salutaris tui: et spiritu principali confirma me.
Docebo iniquos vias tuas: et impii ad te convertentur.
Libera me de sanguinibus, Deus, Deus salutis meae: et exsultabit lingua mea justitiam tuam.
Domine, labia mea aperies: et os meum annuntiabit laudem tuam.
Quoniam si voluisses sacrificium, dedissem utique: holocaustis non delectaberis.
Sacrificium Deo spiritus contribulatus: cor contritum, et humiliatum, Deus, non despicies.
Benigne fac, Domine, in bona voluntate tua Sion: ut aedificentur muri Ierusalem.
Tunc acceptabis sacrificium justitiae, oblationes, et holocausta: tunc imponent super altare tuum vitulos.

Have mercy on me, O God

Composer: Gregorio Allegri (1582 – 1652)
Text:  Psalm 50 (51)

Have mercy upon me, O God, after Thy great goodness
According to the multitude of Thy mercies do away mine offences.
Wash me thoroughly from my wickedness: and cleanse me from my sin.
For I acknowledge my faults: and my sin is ever before me.
Against Thee only have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that Thou mightest be justified in Thy saying, and clear when Thou art judged.
Behold, I was shapen in wickedness: and in sin hath my mother conceived me.
But lo, Thou requirest truth in the inward parts: and shalt make me to understand wisdom secretly.
Thou shalt purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: Thou shalt wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Thou shalt make me hear of joy and gladness: that the bones which Thou hast broken may rejoice.
Turn Thy face from my sins: and put out all my misdeeds.
Make me a clean heart, O God: and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from Thy presence: and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me.
O give me the comfort of Thy help again: and stablish me with Thy free Spirit.
Then shall I teach Thy ways unto the wicked: and sinners shall be converted unto Thee.
Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, Thou that art the God of my health: and my tongue shall sing of Thy righteousness.
Thou shalt open my lips, O Lord: and my mouth shall shew [show] Thy praise.
For Thou desirest no sacrifice, else would I give it Thee: but Thou delightest not in burnt-offerings.
The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, shalt Thou not despise.
O be favourable and gracious unto Sion: build Thou the walls of Jerusalem.
Then shalt Thou be pleased with the sacrifice of righteousness, with the burnt-offerings and oblations: then shall they offer young bullocks upon Thine altar.

Today our education is so poor that we aren’t as familiar with our ancestors’ history as we should be.  One thing that isn’t taught is the degree to which the various European nations suffered.  In many cases, persecutions came from the outside:  the Muslims had frequently conquered large portions of Europe.  Slavery was common.  For seven consecutive centuries the Spaniards and Portuguese suffered under Muslim control and slavery.  The word “slave” is derived from the Slavic peoples of Eastern Europe.  They were so frequently enslaved by the Muslims that the term came to be associated with them.  It’s not often that you hear that white people suffered slavery as much as any other nation.

But worse than being invaded and conquered from the outside is being persecuted by your own blood.  This, too, was common; and every European nation suffered slavery at some period in history.  In Britain and Ireland it was finally abolished — by demand of the Church — in the 12th century.

Still, the European peoples lived in the crucible of wars and internal persecutions for much of history.  For the latter, Fr. Frederick Faber wrote this hymn and dedicated it to all the English and Irish martyrs, and in particular for those who suffered so much after King Henry VIII completely lost his mind.  It seems that all throughout history there is always some goon that’s eager to persecute the Church.  BUT WE’RE STILL HERE!

The hymn, used with the tune Sawston, is very popular in England and Ireland as it rouses a great patriotic spirit; it used to be played before Irish sporting events back when they were still a Catholic country.  In the Americas the tune used is typically St. Catherine.  We don’t have much of a history of religious persecution in the US, but we better get prepared because it’s surely coming.  I think the future holds that we’re going to suffer a sort of “dual persecution”.  The first with the treasonous persecution from our own blood (the leaders and revolutionaries), and secondly by the invasion of the third world.  We will have to draw on our ancestors’ strength to make it through, remembering that they, too, suffered much at times.

With the way things are going in our countries, we should probably memorize these lyrics pretty quickly.

Faith of Our Fathers

Tune: St. Catherine (Henri Hemy, 1864)
Text:  Fr. Frederick William Faber (1849)

Faith of our Fathers! living still
In spite of dungeon, fire, and sword:
Oh, how our hearts beat high with joy
Whene’er we hear that glorious word.

Faith of our Fathers! Holy Faith!
We will be true to thee till death.

Our Fathers, chained in prisons dark,
Were still in heart and conscience free:
How sweet would be their children’s fate,
If they, like them, could die for thee!

Faith of our Fathers! Holy Faith!
We will be true to thee till death.

Faith of our Fathers! Mary’s prayers
Shall win our country back to thee:
And through the truth that comes from God
Our land shall then indeed be free.

Faith of our Fathers! Holy Faith!
We will be true to thee till death.

Faith of our Fathers! we will love
Both friend and foe in all our strife:
And preach thee too, as love knows how
By kindly words and virtuous life:

Faith of our Fathers! Holy Faith!
We will be true to thee till death.

Two-hundred years ago today — December 24, 1818 — was written this now ubiquitous Christmas carol by an Austrian priest named Josef Mohr, with Franz Xaver Gruber composing the music.  Today it is often sung at Midnight Mass as a lullaby of sorts to Our Lord.

Continuing the idea of listening to carols in their native tongue, below is the 1977 performance by the Vienna Boys’ Choir.  The Vienna Boys’ Choir is one of the oldest still remaining, dating back to about the 15th century or perhaps before.  Boys’ choirs developed in the Middle Ages when treble voices were needed due to the acoustic designs of churches, and mixed choirs (i.e., with women) were still forbidden.  These days, with the prohibition of mixed choirs having been relaxed, they are less common.

A few loops of that and it is easy to find a meditation.  At this Christmas time, as people go about their business of celebrating without even giving Our Lord His due, I am reminded of something revealed to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, a French nun and mystic of the 17th century, when Our Lord established the Sacred Heart Devotion, beginning just two days after Christmas 1673.

He told this humble nun:

Behold the Heart that has so loved men that it has spared nothing, even to exhausting and consuming Itself, in order to testify to Its love; and in return, I receive from the greater part only ingratitude, by their irreverence and sacrilege, and by the coldness and contempt they have for Me in this Sacrament of Love. But what I feel most keenly is that it is hearts which are consecrated to Me that treat Me thus.

And:

I feel this more than all that I suffered during My Passion. If only they would make Me some return for My Love, I should think but little of all I have done for them and would wish, were it possible, to suffer still more. But the sole return they make for all My eagerness to do them good is to reject Me and treat Me with coldness.

Truly… it is hard to read.  But upon taking some moments to reflect on these words, I think we must resign ourselves to acknowledge… it’s true.  And we’re moved to ask, “What else more could He have done for us, so that we would love Him?”

At no other time of the year must this indifference be so painful to Our Lord than during the frenzy and fuss of the Christmas season.  We, as a people, have lost sight of the fact that He came — not to be a great king here on earth, and even less so that we can have an annual month of celebration — but rather, that He was born with the sole purpose of dying, so that He can be king of our hearts, and that we may live in His kingdom forever.

Meditating on these thoughts while listening to the carol above — even for just fifteen minutes — can truly nourish the soul.

So let’s take this great feast of Christmas for what it truly is, and re-double our efforts in the coming year to grow closer to our entire reason for being.

Merry Christmas!