This is the Night: The Exultet

It's finally here. The Easter Vigil, the high point of our liturgical year is upon us. Jesus Christ is Risen!

Tonight we will hear one of the most beautiful prayers that our Church offers. The Exulet. This prayer should be chanted by a deacon (if you are lucky enough to have one) or a priest. Here are a couple of recordings of the Exultet that I enjoy. The files are large, however, well worth the wait:


Fr. Tim Hepburn chants the Exultet in English.

Father John Zuhlsdorf's podcast has a wonderful version of the Exultet sung in Latin along with some very interesting information about this glorious prayer.


The Exultet

Rejoice, heavenly powers! Sing choirs of angels!
Exult, all creation around God's throne!
Jesus Christ, our King is risen!
Sound the trumpet of salvation!

Rejoice, O earth, in shining splendor,
radiant in the brightness of your King!
Christ has conquered! Glory fills you!
Darkness vanishes for ever!

Rejoice, O Mother Church! Exult in glory!
The risen Savior shines upon you!
Let this place resound with joy,
echoing the mighty song of all God's people!

My dearest friends,
standing with me in this holy light,
join me in asking God for mercy,
that he may give his unworthy minister
grace to sing his Easter praises.


The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give him thanks and praise.
It is truly right that with full hearts and minds and voices
we should praise the unseen God, the all-powerful Father,
and his only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
For Christ has ransomed us with his blood,
and paid for us the price of Adam's sin to our eternal Father!

This is our passover feast,
When Christ, the true Lamb, is slain,
whose blood consecrates the homes of all believers.

This is the night,
when first you saved our fathers:
you freed the people of Israel from their slav'ry,
and led them dry-shod through the sea.

This is the night,
when the pillar of fire destroyed the darkness of sin.

This is night,
when Christians ev'rywhere,
washed clean of sin and freed from all defilement,
are restored to grace and grow together in holiness.

This is the night,
when Jesus broke the chains of death
and rose triumphant from the grave.

What good would life have been to us,
had Christ not come as our Redeemer?

Father, how wonderful your care for us!
How boundless your merciful love!
To ransom a slave you gave away your Son.

O happy fault, O necessary sin of Adam,
which gained for us so great a Redeemer!

Most blessed of all nights,
chosen by God to see Christ rising from the dead!

Of this night scripture says:
"The night will be as clear as day:
it will become my light, my joy."

The power of this holy night dispels all evil,
washes guilt away, restores lost innocence,
brings mourners joy;
it casts out hatred, brings us peace,
and humbles earthly pride.

Night truly blessed,
when heaven is wedded to earth
and we are reconciled to God!

Therefore, heavenly Father, in the joy of this night,
receive our evening sacrifice of praise,
your Church's solemn offering.

Accept this Easter candle,
a flame divided but undimmed,
a pillar of fire that glows to the honor of God.

Let it mingle with the lights of heaven
and continue bravely burning
to dispel the darkness of this night!

May the Morning Star which never sets
find this flame still burning:
Christ, that Morning Star,
who came back from the dead,
and shed his peaceful light on all mankind,
your Son, who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

Expectation of the Blessd Virgin Mary

This interesting post came from the The LION & the CARDINAL blog.

Dom Prosper Gueranger:

This feast, which is now kept not only throughout the whole of Spain but in many other parts of the Catholic world, owes its origin to the bishops of the tenth Council of Toledo, in 656. These prelates thought that there was an incongruity in the ancient practice of celebrating the feast of the Annunciation on the twenty-fifth of March, inasmuch as this joyful solemnity frequently occurs at the time when the Church is intent upon the Passion of our Lord, so that it is sometimes obliged to be transferred into Easter time, with which it is out of harmony for another reason; they therefore decreed that, henceforth, in the Church of Spain there should be kept, eight days before Christmas, a solemn feast with an octave, in honour of the Annunciation, and as a preparation for the great solemnity of our Lord's Nativity. In course of time, however, the Church of Spain saw the necessity of returning to the practice of the Church of Rome, and of those of the whole world, which solemnize the twenty-fifth of March as the day of our Lady's Annunciation and the Incarnation of the Son of God. But such had been, for ages, the devotion of the people for the feast of the eighteenth of December, that it was considered requisite to maintain some vestige of it. They discontinued, therefore, to celebrate the Annunciation on this day; but the faithful were requested to consider, with devotion, what must have been the sentiments of the holy Mother of God during the days immediately preceding her giving Him birth. A new feast was instituted, under the name of the Expectation of the blessed Virgin's delivery.

This feast, which sometimes goes under the name of Our Lady of O, or the feast of O, on account of the [antiphon] which begins O Virgo virginum [and because on that day the clerics in the choir after Vespers used to utter a loud and protracted O, to express the longing of the universe for the coming of the Redeemer], is kept with great devotion in Spain. A High Mass is sung at a very early hour each morning during the octave, at which all who are with child, whether rich or poor, consider it a duty to assist, that they may thus honour our Lady's Maternity, and beg her blessing upon themselves...

Most just indeed it is, O holy Mother of God, that we should unite in that ardent desire thou hadst to see Him, who had been concealed for nine months in thy chaste womb; to know the features of this Son of the heavenly Father, who is also thine; to come to that blissful hour of His birth, which will give glory to God in the highest, and, on earth, peace to men of good-will. Yes, dear Mother, the time is fast approaching, though not fast enough to satisfy thy desires and ours. Make us redouble our attention to the great mystery; complete our preparation by thy powerful prayers for us, that when the solemn hour has come, our Jesus may find no obstacle to His entrance into our hearts.

O Virgo virginum, quomodo fiet istud? quia noc primam similem visa es, nec habere sequentem. Filae Jerusalem, quid me admiramini? Divinum est mysterium hoc quod cernitis.

O Virgin of virgins! how shall this be? for never was there one like thee, nor will there ever be. Ye daughters of Jerusalem, why look ye wondering at me? What ye behold, is a divine mystery.

DEC 3: Memorial of St. Francis Xavier

Saint Francis Xavier was born on April 7, 1506 in Spanish Navarre. He attended the University of Paris. While in Paris Xavier met St. Ignatius Loyola. They, along with 5 other men took the famous vow of Montmartre on Aug. 15, 1534 and became the founding members of the Society of Jesus.

After his studies Xavier and his companions left Paris and went to Venice where he spent time attending to the sick in hospitals. Xavier was ordained a priest in 1537.

When the Society was recognized by the Pope in 1538 Xavier was sent to Goa, Indoa where he Evangelized and aided the sick. Over the next ten years Xavier traveled the area converting tens of thousands to Christianity. He visited the Paravas at the tip of India, Comorin, Tuticorin , Malacca, the Moluccas near New Guinea Morotai near the Philippines, and Japan.

In 1551 Inda was set up as a province by St. Ignatius and Xavier became its provincial.

In 1552 Xavier took ill and died on the Island of Sancian near the coast of China December 2, 1552. He was canonized in 1622 and proclaimed patron of all foreign missions by Pope Pius X.

Great Saint Francis, well beloved and full of charity, in union with you I reverently adore the Divine Majesty. I give thanks to God for the singular gifts of grace bestowed on you in life and of glory after death, and I beg of you, with all the affection of my heart, by your powerful intercession, obtain for me the grace to live a holy life and die a holy death. I beg you to obtain for me {mention your petition}. But if what I ask is not for the glory of God and for my well-being, obtain for me, I beseech you, what will more certainly attain these ends. Amen.

_______
Sources:
Saints & Angels Catholic.org
Catholic Encyclopedia
SQPN Saints

NOV 30: Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle

Saint Andrew is the first apostle. He was the brother of Saint Peter. Born in Bethsaida, he and Simon Peter were fisherman on the Sea of Galilee. Initially, Andrew was a follower of John the Baptist, but then became a follower of Jesus. Andrew is credited with introducing his brother Simon Peter to Jesus where they both became one of the twelve.

According to his entry in Wikipedia Andrew preached in Asia Minor and in Scythia, along the Black Sea as far as the Volga and Kiev. Hence he became a patron saint of Ukraine, Romania and Russia. According to tradition, he founded the See of Byzantium (Constantinople)in AD 38, installing Stachys as bishop.


Saint Andrrew was martyred in Patras in Achaea on Nov 30 60 AD at the order of Roman Governor, Aegeates. It is said that he was crucified on an X shaped cross called a saltire. He was bound to the cross, not nailed to it to prolong his suffering. His feast day is Nov 30 in both the Latin and Greek churches.

St. Andrew's relics were initially kept in Patras, but were eventually moved to Constantinople. When the French took Constantinople in the 13th century his relics were moved to the cathedral of Amalfi in Italy, where most of them remain today.

O Glorious Saint Andrew, you were the first to recognize and follow the Lamb of God. With your friend Saint John you remained with Jesus for that first day, for your entire life, and now throughout eternity.

As you led your brother Saint Peter to Christ and many others after him, draw us also to him. Teach us to lead others to Christ solely out of love for him and dedication in his service. Help us to learn the lesson of the Cross and to carry our daily crosses without complaint so that they may carry us to Jesus.

________
Sources:
The Catholic Encyclopedia
Wikipedia - Saint Andrew
SQPN Saints

The Solemnity of Christ the King

Emmaus Retreat

This weekend my wife and several other women from our area faith community have started their annual Emmaus Retreat in Currie. MN. I would like to offer my prayers for them as they start their travel together down the road to Emmaus.

I would like to ask for prayers tonight for my wife who is giving a witness talk on the sacraments as they have affected her life.

Also, she just called me to help her find a priest to give a discussion on reconciliation as they one she has scheduled is sick with the flu. Please pray for Father Patrick Arens.

Thank you to Father Robert J. Mraz who is filling in for Fr. Arens on short notice.

Holy Redeemer's 125th Celebration

An article from the Marshall Independent. I have added some pictures that I took at the end.

History on the table
by Cindy Votruba

MARSHALL - Parishioners got the chance to remember some of the good old days of mass at Holy Redeemer as they approached one of the tables set up for the church's 125th anniversary celebration Sunday.

A table filled with various vestments, chalices, books and other items used during the masses of the past at Holy Redeemer Church were on display.

There was an ablution cup that was filled with water and used after communion as well as a few maniples, which are liturgical vestments.

"Everything has been in the sacristy," said Holy Redeemer parishioner David Johnson, who helped organize the display. "That little sacristy holds a lot of stuff." Johnson said a couple of items were borrowed from the Lyon County Historical Museum, which included a green vestment.

Johnson said it took a little time to find things to go into the display.

"We spent the last two Fridays (sorting)," Johnson said. And, he said, there's still plenty more in the sacristy.

Jon and Jennifer Hansen of Marshall and their sons, Seth, Joshua, and Caleb looked at the items on the table. Jennifer Hansen said she remembered when altar boys used patens, a circular-shaped platter with a handle. It was used to catch crumbs from the Eucharist host.

"Mom, what are these called?" Caleb Hansen asked his mother as they looked at different-colored chalice covers.

"That's the top of that, to cover the chalice," Jennifer Hansen said.

Val Blair of Marshall closely inspected the bottom of one of the chalices, noting a familiar name.

"This is H.O. Gregoire's," Blair said.

After setting down the chalice, Blair looked through the different chalice covers.

"I had to look it over," Blair said.

Blair found a small silver-colored piece and asked Johnson what it was. He said it was used during a baptism.

"I don't know what it's called, I'm looking for someone who knows," Johnson said.

Parishioners Mariann Vandeputte, Marie Gluth and Betty DeVos marveled at all the historical church items on the table.

"The vestments are just beautiful," Vandeputte said.

"They've changed a little," Gluth said.

Gluth said she remembered other altar pieces that weren't part of the display Sunday.

"We used to have decorative candelabras," Gluth said.

After learning about the history behind the items stored in the sacristy, Johnson said he would like to see something happen.

"If I could have my wish, I'd like to see all this used again," Johnson said, referring to the old chalices, chalice covers and other altar decorum.

Congratulations Deacon Zachary Peterson

On Saturday November 7, 2009 Zachary Peterson was ordained to the Order of Deacon in an incredibly moving Christ-filled ceremony.

Congratulations Deacon Zachary. You can be assured of my family's daily prayers as you continue your journey toward priesthood.

Zucchettos

Today I had the privilege of attending the ordination Mass of one of our parish's seminarians to the Order of Deacon. I hope to write a more detailed post about the event when I am not so tired. After the Mass though my friend Jon's son asked a question about the bishop's zucchetto. He wanted to know if the color meant anything special.

For those who do not know what a zucchetto is: It is the small cap that many bishops wear on the top of their head. In the case of our bishop it was purple in color. Any member of the Roman Catholic clergy can wear a zucchetto and the color does denote rank. The Holy Father wears a white one, a cardinal will wear a red or scarlet one, a bishop wears purple, and priests and deacons wear black. While a priest or deacon can wear one, it is a pretty rare event. Only bishops and cardinals may wear a zucchetto at Mass.

Treasure in the Sacristy

We are getting ready to celebrate our 125th anniversary at Holy Redeemer. My wife and I happen to be part of the committee planning the celebration. Today we went looking through the church sacristy for history. We were looking for items that we could put on display at the celebration. Boy, did we find history.

First we went through a great many chasuables most of them beautiful (some from the 70s not so much). We found beautiful copes for every liturgical season. Then tucked away in a box labeled "Altar Boy Stuff" we found black cassocks and white surplices. I am going to talk my boys into wearing them as part of the celebration display.

We found ciboria and altar crosses in various states of repair. In a box marked silver cruets I found a silver cup that I believe to be an ablution cup and another silver ciboria. Then I came across a box marked history. I thought, "that was sure nice of them to mark that for me like that." Inside the box was a large supply of chalice vales, palls, burses, and maniples for each liturgical season.

As I looked through the boxes my feelings were quite mixed. I was glad that these items were sill there and did not get thrown away, but at the same time I was sad, because they will probably never be used again. It would be a dream come true to see these great treasures used in Mass again. Once of the people who was working on this project with us commented that she could remember going to church and seeing these items being used. I could only reply, "I wish I could have seen that."

Things that I was hoping to find but did not:

roman style vestments
altar cards
altar bells
humeral veils

The good news is that we ran out of time and there were several other boxes in there marked "History". We will have to go back again and search for more treasures.

Michaelmas Ember Tide

On Wednesday of next week begins the Fall Ember tide. Three days (Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday) of partial abstinence from meat, fasting, and prayer. Traditionally, there are 4 times each year where the church would set aside successive Wednesday, Friday ,and Saturdays as Ember Days.

The first set of Ember Days occurs in winter during Advent, the second comes in spring the week after Ash Wednesday, the third in the summer after Pentecost Sunday, and the fourth during the fall after the Feast of the Exultation of the Cross.

On these days Catholics would spend time fasting (They would have one principal meal during the day and if necessary for strength two smaller meals. No snacking between meals), partially abstaining from meat (They would only eat meat at one principal meal of the day), and praying to God, thanking Him for the many gifts he has given them.

The Church no longer requires Catholics to observe Ember tide, however, many Catholics still do. This year, I am going to join them in abstinence, fasting and prayer. In addition to thanking God for the gifts he has brought into my life I will also pray for the success of the upcoming harvest and for our area farmers, for Bishop LeVoir and the Diocese of New Ulm, for unity in the Catholic church, and for all priests and seminarians of the Diocese of New Ulm.

Jesus said there would be days like these...

Today in my mailbox was an anonymous letter, well, it wasn't really a letter. It was more like a printed copy of someone's website. So not only did the person who sent it to me not sign his or her name, but they did not even use their own words to express themselves. It was chock full of the typical ignorant, anti-Catholic silliness. I have actually been to this web site before when I was in the process of converting to Catholicism and was pretty much not impressed with their scholarship. They quote only the parts of scripture that seem to make their point. Anyone can quote parts of scripture and use it to prove their point. Many times you can open up your Bible and read the words around what was quoted and a whole different meaning comes to light. That is exactly why Jesus gave us the Church, to help us understand the true meaning of the scripture so that we can keep it in context.

I have to admit that I am a little curious as to who sent it to me. It came from Marshall. Did they think that I would switch sides and become born again? Did they think I would become offended and spout vile words at them? Nah! I have more important things to do with my time.

I will say this though. To whomever sent me this: I love you. If you want to talk with me about why I am Catholic I will be more than happy to discuss it with you. Bring your own word though, because what I will not do, is debate this tired old nonsense that you have sent me. Go to Catholic Answers for that information. They have it all covered.

And With Your Spirit

Something that is not being talked about much (at least not around here) is the upcoming changes to the translation of Mass. Our bishops have been discussing the new translation and as a matter of fact the translation for the Ordinary of Mass (the parts that stay the same) has already been approved by the Vatican. Work is still being done on the Proper of Seasons. In a couple years we can look forward to some changes at Mass.

The Church is trying to make the new translations a more faithful reflection of the original Latin texts. The official Mass of the Latin rite (the Mass we attend every week) is written in Latin and all translations come from it. Unfortunately for us English speaking folks they did not translate the Latin very closely. They instead used a translation model called Dynamic Equivalence the result was the loss of a great deal of the beauty in our Mass prayers (that would be my opinion).

I thought I would start looking at the new translations and share my thoughts with you here. You can find a study copy of the Ordo Missae at the USCCB website.

If you follow that link one of the first changes that you will run into is the greeting:

2. Then the Priest, extending his hands, greets the people, saying:

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with you all.

Or:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Or:

The Lord be with you.

The people reply:

And with your spirit.

What's up with that?

The Latin text from where this comes is: "et cum spiritu tuo". And with your spirit is clearly a more accurate translation, but why?

Some think that it is a bit awkward to say "and with your spirit", but it is a reference to Paul's second letter to Timothy (2 Timothy 4:22). Paul also uses this form of address in his letter to the Galatians (Galatians 6:18). If you read Paul's letters he talks quite about about the actions of the Spirit in his life. It was important to him and it should be to us as well. By saying "And with your spirit" we are recognizing the Holy Spirit who was poured out upon the priest at his ordination, the same Holy Spirit who provides the Eucharist for us though the consecrated hands of the priest.


The words and actions that the Church has selected for the Mass have meaning and are important. I hope to continue to explore and share my thoughts on these changes as I get further in to the new translations.

2009 Diocese of New Ulm Chrism Mass

Our diocese had its Chrism Mass tonight. It was held at Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic Church in Spicer Minnesota. This is a very new church and a very modern one. It as a very different setting that the last two years which were held at the cathedral in New Ulm. This year is also the first Chrism Mass celebrated by our new Bishop John LeVoir.

We always try to make this Mass each year. There is something about it that I find very uplifting. I am not sure what it is, but when I leave this Mass I feel rejuvenated. Maybe it's because all the priests gathered together with the Bishop, or the fact that incense is used. I don't know why, but this Mass holds a special place in my heart.

Tonight's Mass was a beautiful Mass. A lot of incense was used with is always a plus in my book. Another plus is that the bishop chanted the prayers. I love it when priests chant in Mass. I wish they would do it more often.

In addition to about 35 priests there were also two deacons and several seminarians. One thing that struck me tonight during the Mass was the reverence that our seminarians displayed as they did the jobs assigned to them. They are the future of our diocese and I think we will be in good hands.

During his homily the Bishop spoke of the need for the priests to strengthen their relationship with Christ so that they can use that relationship to help them do the things that priests do. I think this is important. Unless you are a priest you really have no idea just what the life of a priest is like. I suspect that there might be an aspect of loneliness in the life of a priest where they need to have that strong personal relationship with Christ to make it though. I'm just guessing though.

After Mass it was interesting to watch my boys. They went looking for the former priests of our parish to talk to them. My youngest son was on a mission to find them all and then when he had done that he said, "Now, I have to find the bishop," and he led us to where the bishop was and we all shook his hand. My son was so tickled that he shook Bishop LeVoir's hand. Only when that was done could we head for home.

This is kind of silly but in past years we have always sat by the center aisle and we have been able to smell the wonderful smell of the Chrism oil. This year we could not sit there and on the way home I was lamenting the fact that we did not get the smell the Chrism oil. I then rubbed my nose with the back of my hand and low and behold my hand smelled like Chrism. I thought about it for a moment and asked everyone in the car to smell the back of the hand they shook the bishop's hand with. We all smelled like Chrism oil. I guess the bishop gave us a small gift when we shook his hand. :)

Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory

This week I had the opportunity to attend a 3 hour Lenten retreat. The topic was on the 7 deadly sins. The video that we watched used the poet Dante's concept of Purgatory as being a 7 layer mountain. It was quite a fascinating discussion. We were only able to cover Pride, Anger, and Sloth in the 3 hours.

During the discussion portion of the retreat it quickly became clear to me that many people were hungry for information on what the Church teaches on Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory. Several questions were asked. One person wondered if a person could fail Purgatory and go to Hell. The facilitator did not really answer that question and instead offered his opinion that he did not think that God was going to let people go to hell. He felt that God loves us too much to allow that. This prompted another question, "Then what is Hell for?" His response was that it was a Theological construct. While I would love to know right now today that God will not send anyone to Hell I have to disagree. Here is what I have learned about Hell and Purgatory.

First of all, this is what paragraph 1030 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church says about Purgatory:

1030 All who die in God's grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.

So, while Purgatory may not be the most pleasant experience for us we can take heart in the fact that if we are in Purgatory we have died in God's friendship and we will eventually enter into Heaven and be with God. There is no flunking out of Purgatory and going to Hell.

I think you can look at Purgatory like this: If you were about to go meet the Pope face to face would you go filthy dirty, wearing ratty blue jeans and a stained and torn shirt? No, you would probably put on your best clothes and try to look your best. This is what Purgatory is, it is a opportunity for you to be purified so that you can meet God at your best.

The Catechism also speaks about Hell. Here is what it says:

1033 We cannot be united with God unless we freely choose to love him. But we cannot love God if we sin gravely against him, against our neighbor or against ourselves: "He who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him."612 Our Lord warns us that we shall be separated from him if we fail to meet the serious needs of the poor and the little ones who are his brethren.613 To die in mortal sin without repenting and accepting God's merciful love means remaining separated from him for ever by our own free choice. This state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed is called "hell."

1034 Jesus often speaks of "Gehenna" of "the unquenchable fire" reserved for those who to the end of their lives refuse to believe and be converted, where both soul and body can be lost.614 Jesus solemnly proclaims that he "will send his angels, and they will gather . . . all evil doers, and throw them into the furnace of fire,"615 and that he will pronounce the condemnation: "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire!"616
1035 The teaching of the Church affirms the existence of hell and its eternity. Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, "eternal fire."617 The chief punishment of hell is eternal separation from God, in whom alone man can possess the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs.

In a nutshell, Hell is the total permanent separation from God. I don't know about you, but my opinion is that this is a most dreadful thought. If you read what is written in the Catechism you cannot deny Hell. Jesus himself spoke of it. Not only that but he said that he is going to condemn all evildoers to Hell himself. Hell is not just a theological construct. It is for real and it is forever.

I suppose in an sense our retreat facilitator is correct, it isn't really God who puts a soul into Hell. A person will go to Hell because of their own decisions and choices. We will condemn ourselves to Hell by living a sinful and unrepentant life. It's our choice. To help us in our fight to stay out of this dreadful place, Jesus though his Church provides us with an important tool. The Sacrament of Reconciliation. Sadly, this Sacrament has fallen into disuse in the last 40 years or so. If anyone reads my words please go to confession. It's good for your soul.

Finally, there is Heaven. The Catechism says this:

Those who die in God's grace and friendship and are perfectly purified live for ever with Christ. They are like God for ever, for they "see him as he is," face to face

and this:

This perfect life with the Most Holy Trinity - this communion of life and love with the Trinity, with the Virgin Mary, the angels and all the blessed - is called "heaven." Heaven is the ultimate end and fulfillment of the deepest human longings, the state of supreme, definitive happiness.

I don't know about you, but I want to experience "supreme, definitive happiness." Can you imagine seeing God face to face? I think I could spend my eternity just looking at Him. So there you have it. My mission is to spend eternity looking face to face with God. Anyone want to join me? We can start toward this goal right now. We can use this season of Lent and its three important disciplines of prayer, fasting, and alms giving to focus us on living our lives according to our faith. Let's get to it.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year everyone. I am sorry that I have not been better about blogging. My family and I recently went though a tough time when I lost my job back in October. The good news is that I did find a wonderful new job that is even better that the one that I had, however, now I am faced with he task of learning anew job and my family is having to get used to a new routine as my new job is in a nearby town and I have a short commute to get to work now.

I would like to thank everyone who prayed for me and my family. I truly believe that the prayers of my family and friends are what sustained us and helped us through the hard times.

Happy new year!

Dave

Black Wednesday

Due to the economic downturn and other such heartless corporate mumbo jumbo my job was eliminated today after twelve years of service.

If anyone has a spare prayer. I honestly could use it.

More on the Bishop's Ordination

My post on Bishop LeVoir's ordination has been picked up over at Father Z's blog and there has been some comments posted there most of which have been rather critical. One comment however is from Ann P, who I am going to go out on a limb and guess is the person who planned much of the liturgy for Bishop LeVoir's ordination. Here are her comments:

There were five crosses in front of the altar in addition to the 2 on either side of the altar. Some of the other Bishops in attendance were Bishop Kinney, Bishop Cupich, Bishop Harrington, Bishop Aquila.
The Abbot from St. John’s University, Collegeville was also in attendance.
I suspect the reason why the Blood of Christ was recieved by many of the people was because Jesus told us to eat and drink. Having the ecumenical leaders present was a reminder that we as Catholics share in a common baptism and that we all are called to mission in the world regardless of our ecclesial community and our differences in theology.

Comment by Ann P. — 19 September 2008 @ 11:03 am\

She corrects me on the number of crosses. I was in the back and did not see them.

She also responds about my comment on receiving under both kinds, which by the way, I mentioned because I was surprised not because I have a problem with it. It made for a lot more work I am sure.

She also explains why the non-catholic ministers were there. I was more interested in which communities they were from though.

Finally, she shares the names of more bishops who were in attendance. That I was very interested to hear.

Thank you Ann P.

The Music from the Mass of Ordination for Bishop LeVoir

I thought that I would mention the music that was used during the Ordination Mass for Bishop LeVoir on Sept 15, 2008.

Prelude Music:

Solemn Entry byRichard Strauss -- arr. by Gary Olson
Spirit of Mercy, Truth, and Love - Anonymous - edited by Richard Proulx
In Nomine Jesu - by Jacob Handl
Ave Verum Corpus by Mozart
Hymn of Consecration - by Marvin Curtis

Processional -- Entrata Festiva by Flor Peeters

Gathering Hymn -- O God Beyond All Praising Text: Michael Perry

Thanks Be to God by Cecilia Fox (This was sung after the people gave their assent to the apostolic letter.)

Kyrie by Richard Proulx

Gloria from the Mass of Creation by Marty Haugen

Liturgy of the Word

Psalm -- Psalm 31 Father Into Your Hands by Bob Hurd

Gospel Acclamation -- Festival Alleluia by James Chepponis


After the gospel we sang Veni Scanti Spiritus

O Santissima. Sung by Archbishop Nienstedt and his brother priests and bishops during the homily.

Rite of Odrination

Litany of the Saints


Liturgy of the Eucharist

Preparations of the Gifts - Let All On Earth

Holy Holy Holy from the Mass of Creation by Marty Haugen
Memorial Acclamation from the Mass of Creation by Marty Haugen
Great Amen from the Mass of Creation by Marty Haugen
Lamb of God - Litany for the Breaking of the Bread by John Sciavone

Communion Song - Amen El Cuerpo de Cristo by John Sciavone

Blessing of the People -- You are God: We Praise You (Te Deum laudamus)

Closing Hymn -- Holy God We Praise Thy Name

Mass of Ordination for Bishop John LeVoir

UPDATE: Pictures of the event can be found here.

Today was a big day for the Diocese of New Ulm. Today our fourth bishop John Marvin LeVoir was ordained and installed. I mentioned in an earlier post that the timing was so bad for me that I could not attend. Well, I took some time off work and went.

The Mass was held at the civic center in New Ulm. This is to say we had Mass in a hockey arena. In the 50 year history of our diocese this is the first time a bishop as been ordained here. There were about 2,100 people in attendance and there is no way we could have gotten that many people into the cathedral.

The arena was sparsely decorated. Red and white streamers covered the ceiling to try to make it look less like an athletic facility. The bishop's chair was brought from the cathedral and sat to the left of a long altar. The altar was covered in white and had a dark red covering in the middle. Four candles were lit in front of the altar and the two large processional candles sat one on each side of the altar. The only crucifix was the processional cross. To the right of the stage on which the altar sat was a brass ensemble, and organ, and a large choir made up of members from all around the diocese.

Prior to the start of Mass the choir sang several music pieces including my favorite Ave Verum Corpus. A Bell choir also performed. The only problem was that I could not hear the music because the 2,100 people were talking so loud they drowned out the music. Bummer.

Mass began with a long processional. At the beginning of the processional three women ministers for other ecclesial communities vested in their particular vestments entered. There was nothing I could find that told me what community they belonged to so I can't tell you that. The procession continued with priest and deacons from both our diocese as well at that of St. Paul and Minneapolis. There were about twelve to fourteen other bishops who entered including: H.E. Pietro Sambi, the Papal Nuncio for the United States, H. E. John Nienstedt, the Archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis, who was today's principal consecrator, Co-consecrators H.E. Peter Christensen, Bishop of Superior and H.E. Fredrick Campbell, Bishop of Columbus, Ohio. The only other bishop that I recognized was H.E Richard Pates, Des Moines, Iowa. I would love to know who the other bishop attending were so if anyone knows please leave me a comment.

After the processional, Archbishop Nienstedt incensed the altar and then made the sign of the cross to begin Mass. At the beginning he asked if there was a papal mandate to consecrate Fr. LeVoir as a bishop. Archbishop Sambi then read a letter from Pope Benedict elevating Fr. LeVoir to bishop. After the letter was read it was shown to the college of consultors for the diocese of New Ulm, the assembled bishops, and the people who gave their assent to the document with applause.

Mass began. The deacon of the word chanted the Kyrie, the Gloria was sung, and the Archbishop Nienstedt chanted the opening prayer. The first reading was read in English, the psalm was sung in both English and Spanish. The second reading was read in Spanish and the Gospel was proclaimed by the Deacon of the Word.

The first reading was from the Book of Jeremiah Chapter 1 where the Lord speaks to Jeremiah about being a prophet. This reading was selected by the new Bishop. The second reading and the Gospel follow the readings selected for the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows.

Archbishop Nienstedt began his homily by singing O Sanctissima.

O Sanctissima

O Sanctissima O Piissima
Dulcis Virgo Maria
Mater amta intemerata
Ora ora pro nobis

English Translation:

O most holy, O most lowly
Sweet Virgin Mary
Beloved Mother, undefiled
Pray, pray for us!

Other verses:

Tota pulchraes O Maria
Et macula non est in te
Mater anmata intemerata
Ora ora pro nobis

Sicut lilium inter spinas
Sic Maria inter filias
Mater amata intemerata
Ora ora pro nobis

In miseria in angustia
Ora Virgo pro nobis
Pro nobis ora in mortis hora
Ora ora pro nobis


As he sang many of the priests and bishops joined in with him. Singing to open and close his homily is a sort of signature for the Archbishop. I truly hope that the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis enjoys him. In his homily,the Archbishop essentially passed the keys to the diocese over to Bishop LeVoir. He closed his homily with another verse of O Sanctissima.

After the homily, the archbishop questioned Fr. LaVoir about his willingness and readiness to be Bishop, then the Litany of Saints was sung by the choir and Fr. LaVoir lay on the floor prostrate. After the Litany, it was time to get down to the business of consecrating a bishop. Archbishop Nienstedt, seated at the cathedra of New Ulm (for the last time) prayed the prayers and then began with the Laying on of Hands. Fr. LeVoir knelt as the Archbishop placed both hands on his head and prayed. When he was done each of the co-consecrators did the same. Finally, each of the bishops attending also laid their hands on him.

After the laying on of hands, the Book of Gospels was opened and held pages down over his head, while the Archbishop prayed payers of ordination. What a wonderful image this was. It was as if they were pouring the words of God right into his head. When this was finished, the Archbishop anointed him with a generous amount of sacred Chrism oil.

After the anointing, it was time for the Bishop to receive the symbols of his new positions. First his ring, then his miter, and finally, his crosier. With the new bishop fully vested, Archbishop Nienstedt got up from the cathedra of New Ulm. The new bishop took his place on the cathedra of New Ulm.

Bishop LeVoir then celebrated the Eucharist for the first time as Bishop of New Ulm. He used Eucharistic Prayer #1 which is my favorite. I may have mentioned that before. He has a wonderful chanting voice. Some things that really struck me were that there were so many priests taking part in this Mass that when the words of consecration were spoken you could hear them all praying. It was very powerful moment. I find it almost electrifying when a large group of priests celebrate Mass together. The Lord's Prayer was chanted by everyone and it was beautiful. Another powerful moment

Communion took a long time with some 2,100 people and it was offered under both kinds which surprised me with a crowd so large.

When communion was done the Bishop was escorted around the room to offer his first blessing to the people. When this was done the closing prayer was chanted, the Bishop took some time to thank everyone and then offered the final blessing and dismissal.