Thursday, September 30, 2010

True Grit?

I'm torn on this. On the one hand, this is exactly the sort of movie I would ordinarily look forward to seeing:



But, on the other hand, some things are just so iconic that they shouldn't be messed with:

Labels: , ,

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Michaelmas - Feast of St. Michael and All Angels, 29 September

Saint Michael the Archangel,
Defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the
Wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him,
We humbly pray.
And do thou,
O Prince of the Heavenly Host,
By the Power of God,
Cast into Hell
Satan and all the evil spirits
which prowl about the world,
Seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.




From the Medieval Saints Yahoo Group:
The Dedication of Saint Michael the Archangel, Michaelmas Day
Hebrew "Mikha El," (Who is like unto God?), Venerated by Jews, Christians and Muslims

Commemorated September 29: the dedication of the sanctuary which was built on Monte Gargano in honor of the apparition of Saint Michael the Archangel. This feast is very ancient.

Also commemorated on May 8th a lesser feast is observed to commemorate the appearance of St. Michael on the summit of Mount Gargano in Apulia during the time of Pope Gelasius (492-6).

Devotion to Michael was common in the East during the fourth century and the Western Church began to observe the feast sometime in the fifth century. In the offertory anthem of the mass for the dead, St. Michael is charged with the care of all departed souls, "holy standard bearer, introduce them to the holy light, which thou didst promise of old to Abraham and to his seed."

St. Michael's Day, or Michaelmas is one of the Medieval Quarter days. The celebration was marked by harvest festivals, hospitality, costumes, music and dancing. Many popular traditions grew up around the day, which coincided with the end of harvest and the end of the fiscal year.

Patronage: champion of the Jewish people, against temptations, ambulance drivers, artists, bakers, bankers, banking, battle, boatmen, coopers, danger at sea, dying people, emergency medical technicians, EMTs, England, fencing, Germany, greengrocers, grocers, haberdashers, hatmakers, hatters, holy death, knights, mariners, milleners, paramedics, paratroopers, police officers, radiologists, radiotherapists, sailors, security forces, security guards, sick people, soldiers, Spanish police officers, storms at sea, swordsmiths, watermen, protector of the Nile

In art, he is shown as an angel with a sword raised, standing over the devil or a dragon; holding a balance, a pair of scales, which he uses to weigh the souls; "Quis ut Deus" is often inscribed on Saint Michael's shield.





St. Michael the Archangel
http://www.stthomasirondequoit.com/SaintsAlive/id183.htm

The Church has never canonized angels. If we pay liturgical honors to the archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, we give them the title saint because they have always been in heaven.

All three archangels are now venerated in a common feast on September 29, which used to be St. Michael's feast alone. Because the new common feast seems to diminish his importance, let us consider him a little more at length in connection with his other feastday, the Apparition of St. Michael, formerly observed on May 8.

The name Michael means, of course, "Who is like God?" He is represented as perhaps the chief angel in both the Old Testament and the New Testament. Several early apocryphal writings do the same. While these writings are not accepted as scriptures by the Church, they nevertheless testify to popular devotion to the "generalissimo" of the heavenly hosts.

Michael was regarded as the protector of the Israelites, especially in the days of their captivity in Babylon. "Michael, the great prince," the Old Testament prophet Daniel calls him, "guardian of your people." (Dn,12:1). In the New Testament Book of Revelation, St. John speaks prophetically of the ultimate victory of Michael and his regiments against the army of the great dragon, Satan. After a mighty struggle, Michael casts the enemy down to earth. (Rev.,12:7-9). Thus St. Michael, protector of Israel, was also hailed as the protector of the New Testament's People of God.

Churches dedicated to St. Michael in the Mideast date from as early as the fourth century. In the West, the cult of Michael became widespread, particularly after his alleged apparition around AD 500 in a cave in Mount Gargano, southeast Italy. The archangel revealed to the local bishop, St. Lawrence of Siponto, that he should erect a shrine there in honor of the archangel himself and all other angels. This St. Lawrence did, and the "Mount Santangelo" soon became a noted place of pilgrimage.

St. Michael also figures in the annals of Pope St. Gregory the Great. During the pestilence that struck Rome in the year 590, Gregory organized a great penitential procession about the streets of the Eternal City to beg God to withdraw the plague. Tradition says that when the march passed by the massive tomb of Emperor Hadrian, St. Michael appeared on its summit sheathing his sword, and the epidemic ceased. Today Hadrian's fortified tomb is called the Castel SantAngelo - Castle of the Holy Angel - and for centuries it has been topped by a statue of St. Michael, dressed in the armor of a Roman soldier, returning sword to scabbard. In Rome, therefore, St. Michael is considered both healer and defender.

The other major Western shrine of the Archangel is the famous Mont St. Michel, a rocky outcropping off the coast of Normandy, France, where the bishop of Avranches established a Benedictine monastery in AD 708; again, we are told, on the advice of the Archangel Michael. In Cornwall, too, near the city of Penzance, there is a little offshore island resembling Mont St. Michel, which in medieval times was likewise the site of a Benedictine monastery that became an English place of pilgrimage.

Pope Leo XIII had the soldier-angel in mind when he ordered that a prayer to St. Michael and several other prayers be recited by priest and faithful at the end of every low Mass. The date of this order was 1884 - an era in which Germany was engaged in a stern persecution of the Catholic Church. Vatican II cancelled the rule, but the invocation to the Archangel is still appropriate - indeed, necessary in our troubled times:

"St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the malice and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do you, O prince of the heavenly host, by the divine power, thrust into hell Satan and the other evil spirits who roam through the world seeking the ruin of souls."


--Father Robert F. McNamara

-----------------------

Michaelmas(se)
http://www.camlann.org/michelmas.htm

In the middle ages, Michaelmas(se) celebrated the end of the harvest. It marked the official end of the farming and accounting year. This was an important time, when manor books were closed out, rents paid, a new reeve (the chief officer of the village) was chosen, and storehouses stocked for the winter ahead. Celebration of this holiday traditionally was symbolized with "glofe, gees, and gyngeuer." The glove represented the open-handedness and generosity of the lord of the village, goose eaten for good luck in the coming year ("If you eat goose on Michelmasse day, you will never want money all year"), and ginger, believed to provide protection against infection. The harvest feast paid the laborers for their boon work with meat, fish, ale and good bread.

------------------------

More on St. Michael at:
http://www.traditioninaction.org/SOD/j093sdMichael_9-29.htm




Links:
Patron Saints Index - St. Michael

Women for Faith & Family - St. Michael and All Angels

Variations of St. Michael Prayer

Pictures of St. Michael

Recipe - Michaelmas Goose with Traditional Potato & Apple Stuffing

St. Michael's Mount, Cornwall

Mont-Saint-Michel, Normandy

Skellig Michael, Ireland

Labels: , , ,

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Alan Grayson: The Most Despicable Person in Politics [UPDATED]

Back during the Bush years, I can recall debates in the Catholic blogosphere in which Catholics of a certain left-leaning ilk accused those on the right of having questioned the patriotism of anyone who had opposed the Iraq War.

The thing is that I don't recall these instances of anyone's patriotism being impugned (outstide of David Frum's infamous piece at National Review in which he accused conservative Catholic commentators Pat Buchanan and Robert Novak of being "unpatriotic"; but then, any conservative worth a damn doesn't give a rat's patoot what David Frum thinks or says).

And, in fact, the left's protestations about having their patriotism questioned appears to have been nothing more than collective projection, imagining that their political adversaries were doing exactly what they would do if they were the ones trying to overcome opposition to a particular objective of national policy priority. This has been borne out since the election of President Obama: how many times have we seen the words "sedition" (also here, for example), "un-American" (also here, for example), "unpatriotic", and even "siding with the terrorists" (not to mention "racist") applied to critics of the Obama agenda?

But NEVER in my years have I EVER heard someone in politics say about someone in the opposition "He just doesn't love America like I do."

Until now:


The left-leaning FactCheck.org is having none of Grayson's BS attacks on his opponent:
Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson of Florida is falsely accusing his opponent of evading the Vietnam War draft, claiming "he doesn’t love this country."

Republican candidate Daniel Webster didn’t "refuse the call to service," as claimed in a vicious TV ad featuring pictures of military graves and the sound of "Taps" being played on a bugle. In fact, the former Florida Senate majority leader was given routine student deferments until he completed his undergraduate degree. He then reported for a military physical and was disqualified for medical reasons...
I thought that disgusing ad couldn't be topped. Boy, was I wrong. I should have remembered we were talking about Alan "Republicans want you to die quickly" Grayson.

The following proves that absolutely nothing is beneath that contemptible POS:



The ad, attacking the Biblical beliefs of Christians and comparing them to the Taliban is disgusting enough. But once you learn the context of the remarks of Grayson's opponent, which Grayson twisted ... no mutilated ... completely out of context to make this despicable ad, there can be no doubt of the malicious bad faith on exhibit:



Once again, the left-leaning FactCheck.org lays into Grayson:
We thought Democratic Rep. Alan Grayson of Florida reached a low point when he falsely accused his opponent of being a draft dodger during the Vietnam War, and of not loving his country. But now Grayson has lowered the bar even further. He’s using edited video to make his rival appear to be saying the opposite of what he really said. …

The ad compares Webster to “religious fanatics” in Afghanistan and Iran. It says Webster opposes abortion even in cases of rape or incest, which is true. But it also claims that “Webster wants to impose his radical fundamentalism on us,” and to support that claim it blatantly misuses a video clip of Webster speaking at a Christian conference in Nashville in 2009. …
Words fail.

A while back, our friends over at Vox Nova posited a question: "Will demagoguery triumph in 2010?" I don't know. Will it? Or will those allied to Grayson condemn him for this? Of course, Grayson may very well be a hero to them because of his claims during the health care debate that Republicans want people to die quickly ... a sentiment not too far off from one expressed many times over at that blog. That shouldn't stop them from recognizing that his demagoguery is worse than anything we've seen all election season. (Tu quoques arriving in 5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ... 1 ...)

To read most of the comments over there, it is clear that they believe Republicans and/or conservatives have a monopoly on demagoguery. But I have never seen ANYTHING like the disreputable, malicious, and calumnious demagoguery of Alan Grayson.


UPDATE
And now I'm left wondering if the guy is just completely nuts:



Everything is just so over the top when it comes to Grayson that it raises the question of whether he is emotionally and/or mentally stable. I'm no psychologist or psychiatrist, but he seems to me to border on insane.


UPDATE #2
Perhaps insane, but definitely a bad guy.

When even MSNBC calls Grayson out on his lies and distortions (one can only imagine the hate mail Contessa Brewer is receiving right now from the lefties who watch MSNCB and aren't used to seeing their icons called to account), that ought to be a clue that he has gone way too far, even by his own low standards.

Instead, this dirtbag defends his dubious deeds by doubling down on his despicable defamation:



In addition to repeating the lie about his opponent's remarks regarding wives submitting to their husbands, Grayson regurgitates some others that, once again, the left-leaning FactCheck.org has tagged as false:
... the ad’s claim that Webster would “deny battered women … the right to divorce their abusers” is a distortion. The claim is based on legislation he sponsored in the Florida House of Representatives 20 years ago. The bill, HB 1585, would have allowed Florida residents the option of a “covenant marriage,” which would limit their divorce rights. Under the proposal, couples could dissolve a covenant marriage only in cases of adultery. But that would not have applied to anyone who did not choose to enter a covenant marriage. The legislation died in committee in June 1990. Webster has not advocated for covenant marriages as a congressional candidate...
This is a very bad man. The left lionizes him. That's all you need to know.


UPDATE #3 (29 September)
I could kick myself for not titling this post "The Devil and Daniel Webster".


UPDATE #4 (30 September)
The GOP has released a new ad responding to the Devil's ... errr ... Grayson's tactics:

Labels: , , ,

Monday, September 27, 2010

2010 Thomas More Studies Conference: "Thomas More's Influence on Shakespeare's 1-3 Henry VI and Richard III"

THE CENTER FOR THOMAS MORE STUDIES
at the University of Dallas, www.udallas.edu

HOSTS

SHAKESPEARE & THOMAS MORE
ON LAW & CITIZENSHIP




OFFERED WITH THE GENEROUS ASSISTANCE OF THE APGAR FOUNDATION


Friday-Saturday, 5-6 November 2010


Major Focus
Thomas More and Shakespeare both began their literary careers wrestling with the “sickness” of civil war in England. Shakespeare knew well More’s History of Richard III, a history that is rich in allusions to Greeks and Romans who investigated the nature and causes of civil war. They, like the American Founders, all agreed that “faction” is a major cause. What solutions do More and Shakespeare suggest for those who are “first” or leading citizens in such trying conditions? What skills and virtues do these leading citizens need? What role does law play?

Texts
Thomas More’s English version of History of King Richard III (as it appeared in Holinshed’s Chronicle)
Shakespeare’s History of King Henry VI.3 (depicting the height of England’s civil war)
Shakespeare’s Tragedy of Richard III (still one of Shakespeare’s most popular and most frequently performed plays)
Shakespeare, Munday, et al’s Sir Thomas More (a collaborative work of 5 London playwrights)


Major Lecturer and Seminar Participant
Dr. Robert S. Miola, Professor of English and Professor of Classics at Loyola College in Maryland
Among his publications are Shakespeare’s Rome (Cambridge UP, 2004), Shakespeare’s Reading (Oxford UP, 2000), Shakespeare and Classical Comedy: The Influence of Plautus and Terence (1997), Shakespeare and Classical Tragedy: The Influence of Seneca (1992); and editor of Much Ado about Nothing (Barnes & Noble, 2007), Measure for Measure (Apprentice House, 2007), Macbeth (Norton Critical Edition, 2003), A Comedy of Errors: Critical Essays (1997).

Friday, November 5, 2010
4:00—5:30 Dr. Gerard Wegemer: Citizenship, Law, & Self-Government in Thomas More’s Richard III
7:30—9:00 p.m. Plenary Address. Dr. Robert Miola: Shakespeare and The Book of Sir Thomas More


Saturday, November 6, 2010
9:00 a.m.—10:30 Seminar for paper presenters: More’s History of Richard III and Shakespeare’s Use of It in His Richard III
11—12:30 p.m. Seminar for paper presenters: Shakespeare’s Henry VI and His Scenes in Sir Thomas More
2:30—4:00 p.m. Dr. John Alvis: Citizenship & Law in Shakespeare’s First Tetralogy & in Sir Thomas More
4:30—6:00 p.m. Final Panel and Discussion: How did Thomas More influence Shakespeare? What are the most fruitful ways to explore the question of "influence"? What work remains if we are to understand better the relation between More's writing and Shakespeare's?


For more information, go to www.thomasmorestudies.org/conference.html or call 972-265-5741.

CLE also available: www.thomasmorestudies.org/docs/2010TMProgramCLE.pdf.

Labels: , , , , ,

Friday, September 24, 2010

Digest of Today's Posts (24 September 2010)

  • John Dowland: "As I Went to Walsingham"

  • The Walsingham Ballads, Part 3: The Arundel Ballad ("The Wrecks of Walsingham")

  • The Walsingham Ballads, Part 2: The Ralegh Ballad

  • The Walsingham Ballads, Part 1: The Pynson Ballad

  • Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham - 24 September



  • Labels:

    John Dowland: "As I Went to Walsingham"



    Labels: , , , , , , ,

    The Walsingham Ballads, Part 3: The Arundel Ballad ("The Wrecks of Walsingham")


    In the wrackes of Walsingam
    Whom should I chuse
    But the Queene of Walsingam
    To be guide to my muse?

    Then, thou Prince of Walsingam
    Graunt me to frame
    Bitter plaintes to rewe thy wronge
    Bitter wo for thy name.

    Bitter was it, oh to see
    The sely sheepe
    Murdred by the raveninge wolves
    While the sheepharde did sleep.

    Bitter was it, oh, to viewe
    The sacred vyne
    Whiles the gardiners plaied all close
    Rooted up by the swine.

    Bitter, bitter oh to behoulde
    The grasse to growe
    Where the walles of Walsingam
    So stately did shewe.

    Such were the worth of Walsingam
    While she did stand
    Such are the wrackes as now do shewe
    Of that (so) holy lande.

    Levell, levell with the ground
    The Towres doe lye
    Which with their golden, glitt'ring tops
    Pearsed oute to the skye.

    Where weare gates noe gates are nowe,
    The waies unknowen,
    Where the presse of freares did passe
    While her fame far was blowen.

    Oules do scrike where the sweetest himnes
    Lately wear songe,
    Toades and serpents hold their dennes
    Where the palmers did throng.

    Weep, weep O Walsingam,
    Whose dayes are nightes,
    Blessings turned to blasphemies,
    Holy deedes to dispites.

    Sinne is where our Ladye sate,
    Heaven turned is to helle;
    Sathan sitte where our Lord did swaye,
    Walsingam, oh, farewell!

    Labels: , , , , , , ,

    The Walsingham Ballads, Part 2: The Ralegh Ballad


    As you came from the holy land
    Of Walsinghame,
    Met you not with my true love
    By the way as you came ?

    How shall I know your true love,
    That have met many one,
    As I went to the holy land,
    That have come, that have gone ?

    She is neither white nor brown,
    But as the heavens fair ;
    There is none hath a form so divine
    In the earth or the air.

    Such a one did I meet, good sir,
    Such an angelic face,
    Who like a queen, like a nymph, did appear,
    By her gait, by her grace.

    She hath left me here all alone,
    All alone, as unknown,
    Who sometimes did me lead with herself,
    And me loved as her own.

    What's the cause that she leaves you alone,
    And a new way doth take,
    Who loved you once as her own,
    And her joy did you make ?

    I have loved her all my youth,
    But now old, as you see,
    Love likes not the falling fruit
    From the withered tree.

    Know that Love is a careless child,
    And forgets promise past ;
    He is blind, he is deaf when he list,
    And in faith never fast.

    His desire is a dureless content,
    And a trustless joy ;
    He is won with a world of despair,
    And is lost with a toy.

    Of womankind such indeed is the love,
    Or the word love abusèd,
    Under which many childish desires
    And conceits are excusèd.

    But true love is a durable fire,
    In the mind ever burning,
    Never sick, never old, never dead,
    From itself never turning.

    Labels: , , , , , , ,

    The Walsingham Ballads, Part 1: The Pynson Ballad


    Of this chapell se here the fundacyon,
    Bylded the yere of crystes incarnacyon,
    A thousande complete syxty and one,
    The tyme of sent Edward kyng of this region.

    Beholde and se, ye goostly folkes all,
    Which to this place have devocyon
    When ye to Our Lady askynge socoure call
    Desyrynge here hir helpe in your trybulacyon:
    Of this hir chapell ye may se the fundacyon.
    If ye wyll this table overse and rede
    Howe by myracle it was founded indede.

    A noble wydowe, somtyme lady of this towne,
    Called Rychold, in lyvynge full vertuous,
    Desyred of Oure Lady a petycyowne
    Hir to honoure with some werke bountyous,
    This blyssed Virgyn and Lady most gracyous
    Graunted hir petycyon, as I shall after tell,
    Unto hir worschyp to edefye this chapell.

    In spyryte Our Lady to Nazareth hir led
    And shewed hir the place where Gabryel hir grette:
    "Lo doughter, consyder" to hir Oure Lady sayde,
    " Of thys place take thou suerly the mette,
    Another lyke thys at Walsyngham thou sette
    Unto my laude and synguler honoure;
    All that me seke there shall fynde socoure,

    Where shall be hadde in a memoryall
    The great joy of my salutacyon.
    Fyrste of my joys grounde and orygynall
    Rote of mankyndes gracious redempcyon,
    When Gabryell gave to me relacyon
    To be a moder through humylyte.
    And goddys sonne conceyve in virgynyte"

    This visyon shewed thryse to this devout woman.
    In mynde well she marked both length and brede;
    She was full gladde and thanked Oure Lady than
    Of hir great grace never destytute in nede.
    This forsayd hous in haste she thought to spede,
    Called to hir artyfycers full wyse,
    This chapell to forge as Our Lady dyd devyse.

    All this, a medewe wete with dropes celestyall
    And with sylver dewe sent from hye adowne
    Excepte tho tweyne places chosen above all
    Where neyther moyster ne dewe myght be fowne.
    This was the fyrste pronostycacyowne
    Howe this our newe Nazareth here shold stande,
    Bylded lyke the fyrste in the Holy Lande.

    Whan it was al fourmed, than had she great doute
    Where it shold be sette and in what maner place,
    Inasmoche as tweyne places were founde oute
    Tokened with myracle of Our Ladyes grace;
    That is to say, tweyne quadrates of egall space
    As the flees of Gedeon in the wete beynge drye,
    Assygned by myracle of holy mayde Marye.

    The wydowe thought it most lykly of congruence
    This house on the fyrste soyle to bylde and arere.
    Of this who lyste to have experyence,
    A chapell of saynt Laurence standeth nowe there
    Faste by tweyne wells, experyence doth thus lere,
    There she thought to have set this chapell
    Which was begonne by Our Ladyes counsell.

    The carpenters began to set the fundamente
    This hevenly house to arere up on hye,
    But sone their werkes shewed inconvenyente.
    For no pece with oder wolde agre with geometrye;
    Than were they all sory and full of agonye
    That they could nat ken neither mesure ne marke
    To ioyne togyder their owne proper werke.

    They went to reste and layde all thynge on syde,
    As they on their maystresse had a commaundement;
    She thought Our Lady, that fyrste was hir gyde,
    Wold convey this worke aftyr hir owne entent;
    Hir meyny to reste as for that nyght she sente
    And prayed Our Lady with devoute exclamacyon,
    And as she had begonne, to perfowrme that habytacion.

    All nyghte the wydowe remayninge in this prayer,
    Oure blyssed Lady, with hevenly mynystrys,
    Hirsylfe beynge here chyef artyfycer,
    Arerid this sayd house with aungellys handys,
    And nat only reyrd it but set it there it is,
    That is, two hundred fote and more in dystaunce
    From the fyrste place bokes make remembraunce.

    Erly whan the artyfycers cam to their travayle
    Of this sayd chapell to have made an ende,
    They founde eche parte conjoyned sauns fayle
    Better than they coude conceyve it in mynde;
    Thus eche man home agayne dyd wynde,
    And this holy matrone thanked Oure Lady
    Of hir great grace shewyd here specyally.

    And syth here Our Lady hath shewyd many myracle
    Innumerable, nowe here for to expresse
    To suche as visyte thys hir habytacle.
    Ever lyke newe to them that call hir in dystrsse.
    Foure hundreth yere and more the cronacle to witnes
    Hath endured this notable pylgrymage,
    Where grace is dayly shewyd to men of every age.

    Many seke ben here cured by Our Ladyes myghte
    Dede agayne revyved, of this is no dought,
    Lame made hole and blynde restored to syghte,
    Maryners vexed with tempest safe to porte brought
    Defe, wounded and lunatyke that hyder have sought
    And also lepers here recovered have be
    By Oure Ladyes grace of their infyrmyte.

    Folke that of fendys have had acombraunce
    And of wycked spyrytes also moche vexacyon
    Have here be delyvered from every such chaunce,
    And soules greatly vexed with gostely temptacion,
    Lo. here the chyef solace agaynst all tribulacyon
    To all that be seke, bodely or goostly,
    Callynge to Oure Lady devoutly.

    Therfore every pylgryme gyve your attendaunce
    Our Lady here to serve with humble affeccyon.
    Your sylfe ye applye to do hir plesaunce.
    Remembrynge the great joye of hir Annunciacion.
    Therwyth concevynge this brief complacyon.
    Though it halte in meter and eloquence.
    It is here wryten to do hyr reverence.

    All lettred that wyll have more intellygence
    Of the fundacyon of this chapell here,
    If you wyll aske bokes shall you encence
    More clerely to undersclnde this forsayd matere;
    To you shall declare the cronyclere
    All cyrcumstaunce by a noble processe
    Howe olde cronyclers of thys bere wytnesse.

    O Englonde, great cause thou haste glad for to be,
    Compared to the londe of promys syon,
    Thou atteynest my grace to stande in that degre
    Through this gloryous Ladyes supportacyon,
    To be called in every realme and regyon
    The holy lande, Oure Ladyes dowre;
    Thus arte thou named of olde antyquyte.

    And this is the cause, as it apereth by lyklynesse,
    In the is belded newe Nazareth, a mancyon
    To the honoure of the hevenly empresse
    And of hir moste gloryous salutacyon,
    Chyef pryncypyll and grounde of oure salvacyon,
    Whan Gabryell sayd at olde Nazereth 'Ave',
    This joy here dayly remembred for to be.

    O gracyous Lady, glory of Jerusalem,
    Cypresse of Syon and Joye of Israel,
    Rose of Jeryco and Sterre of Bethleem,
    O gloryous Lady, our askynge nat repell,
    In mercy all wymen ever thou doste excell,
    Therfore, blissed Lady, graunt thou thy great grace
    To all that the devoutly visyte in this place.


    Labels: , , , , , , ,

    Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham - 24 September

    [Originally posted on 24 September 2006, and updated on 24 September 2007, 24 September 2008, and 24 September 2010]




    Pilgrimage to the Land Known as "Our Lady's Dowry"


    O England great cause thou hast glad for to be
    Compared to the land of promise Sion
    To be called in every realm and region
    The Holy Land, Our Lady's Dowry ...



    Five years ago today - on the Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham, I was on pilgrimmage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in the picturesque village of Little Walsingham in Norfolk, East Anglia, England.

    The Blessed Virgin Mary, under her title of Our Lady of Walsingham is the patroness of England (as well as the Anderson household).


    Historical Background

    Walsingham has been a place of pilgrimage since medieval times. At one time, it was ranked among the 3 most important pilgrimage sites in Europe, along with Santiago de Compostela and Rome.

    The original Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham was founded in 1061 by Richeldis de Faverches, who was taken in spirit to Nazareth and asked by Our Lady to build a replica, in Norfolk, of the Holy House of the Annunciation. The Shrine of the Holy House stood for almost 500 years as a place of devotion to the Holy Virgin Mother of God and the Incarnation of Her Son, before it was destroyed by Henry VIII at the Reformation.

    "Many barren years passed until the Slipper Chapel, a 14th century wayside pilgrim chapel just outside the village of Little Walsingham, was restored and pilgrimage to Walsingham in honor of Our Blessed Lady began once more." Originally dedicated to St. Catherine of Alexandria, this wayside chapel had served medieval pilgrims on their way to England's Nazareth. Just as on Mount Sinai Moses took off his shoes because he was on holy ground, so pilgrims used to remove their shoes at the Slipper Chapel (hence, its name) and walk the Holy Mile into Walsingham barefoot.

    In 1934, the English Bishops named the Slipper Chapel the Roman Catholic National Shrine of Our Lady. The Slipper Chapel's first Mass since the Reformation was celebrated there on August 15, 1934, and on September 8, 1938, the Shrine was re-consecrated by the local Bishop.

    The most important image in the Chapel is the Statue of Our Lady of Walsingham.



    From the Women for Faith & Family website:
    Our Lady of Walsingham

    by Raven Wenner
    Our Lady of Walsingham Church
    Houston Texas


    In AD 2000, The Holy Father John Paul II decreed that the feast of Our Lady of Walsingham, mediaeval patroness of England, and in modern times patroness of all English-speaking peoples, is now celebrated on September 24th in England. It is a solemnity for all parishes in any part of the world named for Our Lady under this title.

    Our Lady of Walsingham was formerly celebrated on March 25th, "Lady Day" (Feast of the Annunciation), but for ecumenical considerations was moved to September 24th. (September 24 in England had been the feast of Our Lady of Ransom, who was entreated for the re-conversion of England, "Our Lady's Dowery".

    The feast of Our Lady of Walsingham was celebrated for the first time on the new date in 2001. The feast of the Annunciation is increasingly celebrated as a pro-life feast, considering children in the womb; Our Lady of Walsingham's feast asks us to contemplate the joy of the Incarnation in the simple family life of the Holy Family at Nazareth. The new date and emphasis on this feast is timely considering how family life is under attack in Western culture.


    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Our Lady of Walsingham

    by Joanna Bogle
    Voices' Contributing Editor


    Walsingham is England’s national shrine to Our Lady, and a major place of pilgrimage and prayer. It is in Norfolk, a few miles from the North Sea, and is a small village set in the green countryside characteristic of this corner of Britain. The shrine dates back to the 12th century, when the local lady of the manor, Richeldis, had a vision of the Holy House – the home of the Holy family at Nazareth – on this spot. For centuries, pilgrims visited here and Our Lady of Walsingham was honoured with countless processions and prayers. Springs of water – they still exist today – were said to have healing powers. A great priory drew men who devoted themselves to the religious life. At the shrine itself, the image was always surrounded by candles, flowers, and gifts left by grateful pilgrims who had knelt there in prayer.

    In the early 16th century, among those who came were the young king Henry, and his wife Catherine. They were praying that God would grant them a son. England had seen terrifying wars in an earlier generation as the houses of Lancaster and York battled out their struggle for supremacy, and now stability was needed for the new ruling house of Tudor. It was not to be. Catherine bore several children, but all died in infancy except one daughter, Mary. Henry, angry and disappointed, decided to marry his mistress Anne Boleyn. He sought an annulment of his marriage through the Church, but failed to obtain it. Divorcing Catherine unilaterally, he married Anne – who by then was carrying his child – and announced himself head of the Church. The Lord Chancellor, Thomas More, and the Bishop of Rochester, John Fisher, were beheaded at the Tower of London in 1534 for refusing to affirm him in his claims, maintaining instead that only the Pope, the successor of Saint Peter, could hold that office. . Needing funds, Henry turned on the Church and crushed monasteries and priories. On the excuse of its being idolatrous, the shrine at Walsingham was destroyed and the statue burned. For some 400 years, there were no more pilgrimages, processions, or signs of devotion to Mary in this quiet village.

    The shrine was revived in the early 20th century – an Anglican vicar researched the history and re-created the Holy House in a new shrine, and a Catholic lady obtained the old “Slipper Chapel” just outside the village and this became the revived Catholic centre of devotion. Today, there are pilgrimages throughout the summer and the Catholic shrine has its own large church built of attractive local stone. Pilgrims pray and sing as they walk the “Holy Mile” – traditionally barefoot – from the village. Schools, parish groups, Catholic organisations – all come with their banners and their choirs, their sandwiches and their children, to greet Our Lady at a place which combines the pleasures of unusually beautiful countryside with an atmosphere of real devotion and joy. Some groups stay for days – a local farmer rents out fields in which large groups of young pilgrims and families can camp – and in recent years Walsingham has seen a revival of Eucharistic adoration and confession, promoted by “Youth 2000”, a major initiative of the “John Paul 11 generation”.

    When Pope John Paul visited Britain in 1982 the image of Our Lady of Walsingham was brought to London where it was the centrepiece of a major rally attended by the Holy Father. Many Catholic families, churches and schools, have copies of the image: it is an unusual one in which Mary is seen seated, as a dignified queen wearing a simple Saxon-style crown and carrying the Christ-child seated upright on her lap. Honour to Our Lady of Walsingham is linked to prayer that the people of England may once again return to the practice of the Catholic Faith: Our Lady of Walsinghan, pray for us!

    From the September 2007 issue of the Walsingham Newletter:
    ... The message of Walsingham, from the very beginning, has been the message of the Incarnation. "The Word was made Flesh and dwelt amongst us." Pilgrimage is a great way of expressing the idea that God came to share our human life, it is a sign that we are journeying ever closer to God and in this way it is sacramental. It reminds us that we can meet God in our everyday lives and not only in church. Mary, who attended to the human needs of her Son and walked with him on his journey from Galilee to Jerusalem and the cross, will join us on our journey. In relating Mary to the Eucharist Pope Benedict finishes by saying "She is the Immaculata, who receives God's gift unconditionally and is thus associated with his work of salvation. Mary of Nazareth, icon of the nascent Church, is the model for each of us, called to receive the gift that Jesus makes of himself in the Eucharist."

    ~ Noel Wynn S.M.

    From the Medieval Saints Yahoo Group:
    Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham

    Also known as Virgin by the Sea, site also known as England's Nazareth

    Shrine established in 1061, priory in 1150

    Commemorated September 24

    "Let all who are in any way distressed or in need seek me there in that small house that you maintain for me at Walsingham. To all that seek me there shall be given succour."

    Until the martyrdom of St. Thomas a Becket at Canterbury in 1170, Walsingham was England's most celebrated and visited shrine. Many miracles were attributed to Our Lady of Walsingham, including one in which Kind Edward I was saved from a piece of falling masonry. There constructed shrine was recently voted England's favourite spiritual place in a poll of BBC Radio 4 listeners.



    Our Lady of Walsingham
    http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/mary0018.htm

    In 1061 Lady Richeldis de Faverches, lady of the manor near the village of Walsingham, Norfolk, England, was taken in spirit to Nazareth. There Our Lady asked her to build a replica, in Norfolk, of the Holy House where she had been born, grew up, and received the Annunciation of Christ's impending birth. She immediately did, constructing a house 23'6" by 12'10" according to the plan given her. Its fame slowly spread, and in 1150 a group of Augustinian Canons built a priory beside it. Its fame continued to grow, and for centuries it was a point of pilgrimage for all classes, the recipient of many expensive gifts.

    In 1534 Walsingham became one of the first houses to sign the Oath of Supremacy, recognizing Henry VIII as head of the Church in England. Dissenters were executed, and in 1538 the House was stripped of its valuables, its statue of the Virgin taken to London to be burned, its buildings used as farm sheds for the next three centuries.

    In 1896 Charlotte Boyd purchased the Slipper Chapel and donated it to Downside Abbey. In 1897 Pope Leo XIII re-founded the ancient shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham, and pilgrimages are permitted to resume. The statue of Our Lady is enshrined in 1922 beginning an era of cooperation at the shrine between Catholics and Anglicans. In 1981 construction began on the Chapel of Reconciliation, a cooperative effort between the two confessions, and located near the shrine. The feast of Our Lady of Walsingham was reinstated in 2000.


    -----------------

    Walsingham Priory
    http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15543a.htm

    Walsingham Priory stood a few miles from the sea in the northern part of Norfolk, England. Founded in the time of Edward the Confessor, the chapel of Our Lady of Walsingham was confirmed to the Augustinian Canons a century later and enclosed within the priory. From the first this shrine of Our Lady was a famous place of pilgrimage. Hither came the faithful from all parts of England and from the continent until the destruction of the priory by Henry VIII in 1538. To this day the main road of the pilgrims through Newmarket, Brandon, and Fakenham is still called the Palmers' Way.

    Many were the gifts of lands, rents, and churches to the canons of Walsingham, and many the miracles wrought at Our Lady's shrine. Henry III came on a pilgrimage to Walsingham in 1241, Edward I in 1280 and 1296, Edward II in 1315, Henry VI in 1455, Henry VII in 1487, and Henry VIII in 1513. Erasmus in fulfilment of a vow made a pilgrimage from Cambridge in 1511, and left as his offering a set of Greek verses expressive of his piety. Thirteen years later he wrote his colloquy on pilgrimages, wherein the wealth and magnificence of Walsingham are set forth, and some of the reputed miracles rationalized.

    In 1537 while the last prior, Richard Vowell, was paying obsequious respect to Cromwell, the sub-prior Nicholas Milcham was charged with conspiring to rebel against the suppression of the lesser monasteries, and on flimsy evidence was convicted of high treason and hanged outside the priory walls. In July, 1538, Prior Vowell assented to the destruction of Walsingham Priory and assisted the king's commissioners in the removal of the figure of Our Lady, of many of the gold and silver ornaments and in the general spoliation of the shrine. For his ready compliance the prior received a pension of 100 pounds a year, a large sum in those days, while fifteen of the canons received pensions varying from 4 pounds to 6 pounds. The shrine dismantled, and the priory destroyed, its site was sold by order of Henry VIII to one Thomas Sidney for 90 pounds, and a private mansion was subsequently erected on the spot.

    The Elizabethan ballad, "A Lament for Walsingham," expresses something of what the Norfolk people felt at the loss of their glorious shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham.

    ------------------

    More on Our Lady of Walsingham at:http://www.udayton.edu/mary/resources/walsh.html
    http://www.walsingham-church.org/
    http://www.walsingham.org.uk/

    The Prayer of the Feast: Lord God, in the mystery of the Incarnation, Mary conceived your Son in her heart before she conceived Him in her womb. As we, your pilgrim people, rejoice in her patronage, grant that we also may welcome Him into our hearts, and so, like her, be made a holy house fit for His eternal dwelling. We ask this through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen.






    Our Lady of Walsingham,
    pray for us.








    Links:Official Shrine Site
    The Virgin by the Sea; Our Lady of Walsingham (University of Dayton)
    Patron Saints Index: Our Lady of Walsingham
    Our Lady of Walsingham (MaryPages.com)
    Our Lady of Walsingham Catholic Church (Anglican Use) - Houston, TX
    Orthodox Christian Society of Our Lady of Walsingham
    Fr. Finigan's Walsingham posts at The Hermeneutic of Continuity
    (NB: I happened to meet Fr. Finigan while on my pilgrimage 5 years ago, although at the time I didn't know who he was. It was only later, after he started his blog and I saw his photo, that I recognized him as the priest with whom I had shared a laugh over Cardinal Ratzinger having put "the smackdown on heresy" and his recent election as Pope meaning that "the cafeteria is now closed".)



    Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
    The Wrecks of Walsingham
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 1
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 2
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 3
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 4
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 5
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 6
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 7
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 8

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 9
    National Catholic Register on "Our Lady's England"

    London: Plans Unveiled for Memorial to Pre-Reformation Shrines [UPDATED]

    EWTN Documentary 2008 - "Walsingham: England's Nazareth"

    A Memorial in Chelsea to the Marian Shrines Destroyed in the English Reformation

    Fr. Finigan's Day Trip to Walsingham

    Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham - 24 September

    Our Sacred Spaces
    Catholic Cultural Heritage Images - Recta Ratio Features Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham
    A Couple More Walsingham-Related Posts By Fr. Finigan at The Hermeneutic of Continuity
    "Sinne is Where Our Ladye Sate"
    Morris Dancing at Walsingham
    Our Lady of Walsingham - 24 September
    Photos, Postcards, and Mementos of My 2005 Pilgrimage to Walsingham
    Some Walsingham Pilgrims Causing Consternation for Residents of Medieval Village
    Impressions of England

    Pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham in Norfolk, England

    Labels: , , , , , , ,

    Thursday, September 23, 2010

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 9

    Today is the ninth day of the Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walshingham.

    Over the past 9 days, I have been praying the Novena, just as I did 5 years ago as I began my pilgrimmage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham. I invite you to pray with me during this time leading up to tomorrow's Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham.






    Day 9: The Coronation of Our Lady

    Intention: For the conversion of England, the Dowry of Mary, and the celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham

    Thoughts: "I confer a kingdom on you, just as my Father conferred one on me: you will eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and you will sit on thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel" (Lk. 22:30). Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Let us pray for the conversion of England, that through the reconciling prayers of Our Lady of Walsingham it may once again be worthy of the title "The Dowry of Mary".

    The Prayer of the Feast: Lord God, in the mystery of the Incarnation, Mary conceived your Son in her heart before she conceived Him in her womb. As we, your pilgrim people, rejoice in her patronage, grant that we also may welcome Him into our hearts, and so, like her, be made a holy house fit for His eternal dwelling. We ask this through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen.

    A selection of daily prayers for the Novena:

    The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
    And she conceived by the Holy Spirit.
    Hail Mary ...
    Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
    Be it done unto me according to Thy Word.
    Hail Mary ...
    And the Word was made flesh,
    And dwelt among us.
    Hail Mary ...
    Pray for us O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
    Pour forth, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy grace into our hearts, that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ thy Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, by the same Christ our Lord. Amen. (The Angelus)


    All holy and ever-living God, in giving us Jesus Christ to be our Savior and Brother, you gave us Mary, His Mother, to be our Mother also; grant us, we pray you, that we may be worthy of so great a Brother and so dear a Mother. May we come at last to You the Father of us all through Jesus Christ Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen. (Roman Catholic Pilgrim Handbook)

    O God, our Father, through the Holy Spirit You prepared the body and soul of the glorious Virgin Mother, Mary, to be a fit dwelling place for Your Son. As we recall with joy her appearing at Walsingham, grant that through her motherly intercession we may be preserved from evil and given health of soul and body. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen.

    O Mary, recall the solemn moment when Jesus, your Divine Son, dying on the cross, confided us to your maternal care. You are our Mother, we desire ever to remain your devout children. Let us therefore feel the effects of your powerful intercession with Jesus Christ. make your name again glorious in the place once renowned throughout England by your visits, favours and many miracles. Pray O holy Mother of God for the conversion of England, restoration of the sick, consolation for the afflicted, repentance of sinners, peace to the departed. O Blessed Mary, Mother of God, Our Lady of Walsingham, intercede for us. Amen. (Anglican Pilgrim Manual)

    O Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, and our most gentle Queen and Mother, look down in mercy upon England, thy Dowry, and upon us all who greatly hope and trust in thee. By thee, it was that Jesus, our Savior and our hope, was given unto the world; and he has given thee to us that we might hope still more. Plead for us thy children, whom thou didst receive and accept at the foot of the Cross, O sorrowful Mother, intercede for our separated brethren, that with us in the one true fold they may be united to the Chief Shepherd, the Vicar of thy Son. Pray for us all, dear Mother, that by faith, fruitful in good works, we may all deserve to see and praise God, together with thee in our heavenly home. Amen. (Prayer for England)

    O gracious Lady, glory of Jerusalem, Cypress of Sion and Joy of Israel, Rose of Jericho and Star of Bethlehem, O gracious Lady, our asking do not repel, in mercy all women ever thou dost excel. Therefore, Blessed Lady, grant then thy great grace, to all that thee devoutly visit in this place. Amen. (15th century Prayer to Our Lady of Walsingham)

    Our Lady of Walsingham, pray for us.

    Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 1

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 2

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 3

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 4

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 5

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 6

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 7

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 8

    Labels: , , , , ,

    "Party Unity" is Only for Wing Nuts (Suckers)

    The Washington Examiner notices the same trend of RINO Establishment backstabbing that I've written about on occasion:
    In light of Tea Party candidate Ovide Lamontagne stumping for establishment candidate Kelly Ayotte in New Hampshire after Ayotte beat Lamontagne in the primary, here’s a brief history of recent moments in party loyalty and disloyalty in the GOP, off the top of my head:

    •1994, GOP nominates conservative Ollie North for Senate. Moderate Sen. John Warner, in response, recruited independent Marshall Coleman to run, and Coleman took enough votes from North so that Chuck Robb (D) held on and won with less than 50%.

    •2001, conservative Bret Schundler pulls off an upset in the gubernatorial primary, beating Bob Franks, and the establishment leaves him out to dry and lose badly to Jim McGreevey.

    •2004, Rick Santorum and George W. Bush go to the mat to save liberal Sen. Arlen Specter from a primary challenge by conservative Sen. Pat Toomey. Bush appears at a rally for Specter, and Santorum cuts multiple TV ads for him. Specter wins narrowly, and Toomey endorses him. Specter then doesn’t show at a Bush-Cheney rally in the fall, and Bush loses Pennsylvania. After the election, Specter warns Bush not to send any anti-Roe justices his way.

    •2006, conservative Tim Walberg defeats liberal Rep. Joe Schwarz in the GOP primary in Michigan. In 2008, Schwarz endorses the Democratic nominee, who wins.

    •2008, conservative Andy Harris knocks off liberal Rep. Wayne Gilchrest in the GOP primary. Gilchrest then endorses the Democratic nominee, who beats Harris.

    •2009, GOP operatives choose liberal Dede Scozzfava to run in a special election. Conservative forces get behind independent Doug Hoffman. When Scozzafava's support collapses in the polls, she drops out and endorses the Democrat, who wins.

    •2009, Pat Toomey again challenges Sen. Arlen Specter in the GOP primary. When polls show Specter badly losing, he switches to run as a Democrat. When Specter loses his primary to liberal Democrat Joe Sestak, he warmly endorses Sestak.

    •2010, Sen. Lisa Murkowski loses her Senate primary to Joe Miller. Murkowski runs as a write-in.

    •2010, liberal Gov. Charlie Crist, with the backing of the GOP establishment, still falls behind conservative Marco Rubio in the polls. Crist runs as an independent.

    •2010, liberal Rep. Mike Castle loses his primary to conservative Christine O’Donnell. Castle refuses to endorse.

    Noticing a pattern? The pattern is this: party loyalty is a lie used to make conservatives more obedient.
    Read more at The Washington Examiner


    Previous Pro Ecclesia post on this subject:
    The Archbold Boys Go Off on the GOP [UPDATED]

    John Cornyn and the Rest of the Idiots at the NRSC Will Never Learn, Will They?

    The "Stupid Party" is All the More Stupid for Having John Cornyn Among Its Ranks

    Labels: , , , , , ,

    Wednesday, September 22, 2010

    My Favorite Season: Autumn is Here

    For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.
    ~ Ecclesiastes 3:1



    Fall Foliage in Ohio


    "Autumn Leaves" by John Everett Millais


    Jack-in-the-Green-and-Brown-and-Orange-and-Gold


    Harvest Children


    Un-Raking


    The Face in the Leaves

    Dog and Pumpkin Still Life

    Pumpkin Pickin'

    Pumpkin Head

    Happy Fall, Y'all!

    [NB: All of these photos are a few years old. I will try to post some recent Fall photos with all 4 kids at some point during the next 3 months.]


    For some reason, George Winston's version of this Vince Guaraldi classic always reminds me of the Fall:


    And then there's this one, which has "Fall" written all over it:



    And it just wouldn't be Autumn without these classics:



    Labels: ,

    Thursday, September 16, 2010

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 2

    Today is the second day of the Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walshingham.

    Over the next 9 days, I will be praying the Novena, just as I did 5 years ago as I began my pilgrimmage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham. I invite you to pray with me during this time leading up to the Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham.






    Day 2: Our Lady's Visitation to Elizabeth

    Intention: To carry and proclaim the Word of God

    Thoughts: Bearing in her womb the Savior of mankind, the Word of God Incarnate, Mary went as quickly as she could to greet Elizabeth, her cousin. John leaped in Elizabeth's womb and she was filled with the Holy Spirit. Mary's soul proclaimed the greatness of the Lord. With Elizabeth, and taught by her, we say, "Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb" (Lk. 1:42).

    Prayer: Holy Mary, God-bearer, you went in haste to share the good news of salvation with your cousin, Elizabeth. May we who bear your Son in our hearts possess the same eagerness to share with others the joy that he has given us, so that being filled with the Holy Spirit, we may all rejoice in God, our Savior. Amen.

    A selection of daily prayers for the Novena:

    The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
    And she conceived by the Holy Spirit.
    Hail Mary ...
    Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
    Be it done unto me according to Thy Word.
    Hail Mary ...
    And the Word was made flesh,
    And dwelt among us.
    Hail Mary ...
    Pray for us O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
    Pour forth, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy grace into our hearts, that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ thy Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, by the same Christ our Lord. Amen. (The Angelus)


    All holy and ever-living God, in giving us Jesus Christ to be our Savior and Brother, you gave us Mary, His Mother, to be our Mother also; grant us, we pray you, that we may be worthy of so great a Brother and so dear a Mother. May we come at last to You the Father of us all through Jesus Christ Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen. (Roman Catholic Pilgrim Handbook)

    O God, our Father, through the Holy Spirit You prepared the body and soul of the glorious Virgin Mother, Mary, to be a fit dwelling place for Your Son. As we recall with joy her appearing at Walsingham, grant that through her motherly intercession we may be preserved from evil and given health of soul and body. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen.

    O Mary, recall the solemn moment when Jesus, your Divine Son, dying on the cross, confided us to your maternal care. You are our Mother, we desire ever to remain your devout children. Let us therefore feel the effects of your powerful intercession with Jesus Christ. make your name again glorious in the place once renowned throughout England by your visits, favours and many miracles. Pray O holy Mother of God for the conversion of England, restoration of the sick, consolation for the afflicted, repentance of sinners, peace to the departed. O Blessed Mary, Mother of God, Our Lady of Walsingham, intercede for us. Amen. (Anglican Pilgrim Manual)

    O Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, and our most gentle Queen and Mother, look down in mercy upon England, thy Dowry, and upon us all who greatly hope and trust in thee. By thee, it was that Jesus, our Savior and our hope, was given unto the world; and he has given thee to us that we might hope still more. Plead for us thy children, whom thou didst receive and accept at the foot of the Cross, O sorrowful Mother, intercede for our separated brethren, that with us in the one true fold they may be united to the Chief Shepherd, the Vicar of thy Son. Pray for us all, dear Mother, that by faith, fruitful in good works, we may all deserve to see and praise God, together with thee in our heavenly home. Amen. (Prayer for England)

    O gracious Lady, glory of Jerusalem, Cypress of Sion and Joy of Israel, Rose of Jericho and Star of Bethlehem, O gracious Lady, our asking do not repel, in mercy all women ever thou dost excel. Therefore, Blessed Lady, grant then thy great grace, to all that thee devoutly visit in this place. Amen. (15th century Prayer to Our Lady of Walsingham)

    Our Lady of Walsingham, pray for us.

    Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 1

    Labels: , , ,

    "True Believers" Unwelcome in GOP

    Pat Archbold writes at National Catholic Register:
    ... As it turns out, the Republicans wanted the base to get involved—just not so much. What they really wanted is for real conservatives to turn out to vote but certainly not run. Newly involved fiscal conservatives are finding out that the Republican party wants their votes, just not them.

    Welcome to the club.

    This is the position that culture-of-life conservatives, like me, have found ourselves in for a generation. I know that many culture-of-life conservatives feel that the Republican party has expected us to get out and vote for candidates of their choosing in return for the privilege of lip service to the life issues we care most about. But many of us COL conservatives have come to the conclusion that much of the Republican leadership does not really care about these issues, at least not enough to really do anything about it.

    Now fiscal conservatives find themselves in the same situation...


    [...]

    That is the problem, the Republican party has never been very comfortable with true believers. Culture-of-life conservatives know this from experience...

    [More]
    (Hat tip: Creative Minority Report)


    Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
    The Archbold Boys Go Off on the GOP [UPDATED]

    Labels: , , , , , , ,

    Wednesday, September 15, 2010

    Digest of Today's Posts (15 September 2010)

  • Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 1

  • Democrat Party Changes Its Logo ... to a Bullseye

  • The Archbold Boys Go Off on the GOP [UPDATED]


  • (Digest of Yesterday's Posts (14 September 2010))

    Labels:

    Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walsingham - Day 1

    In addition to honoring Our Blessed Lady today on the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, it is also the first day of the Novena in Honor of Our Lady of Walshingham.

    Today, I will begin praying the Novena, just as I did 5 years ago as I began my pilgrimmage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham. I invite you to pray with me over the next 9 days leading up to the Feast of Our Lady of Walsingham on 24 September.



    Day 1: The Annunciation of The Lord

    Intention: For the grace to do the Will of God

    Thoughts: Our Lady heard the Word of God and put it into practice. She listened with a disciple's ear and did the Will of God. With Mary, and taught by her, we too pray "Let it be done to me according to Thy Word" (Lk. 1:38).

    Prayer: Virgin Most Holy, Mother of the Word, intercede for us with your Son, that we may have the grace to seek nothing other than to do His will, and the courage to live out lives in the faith of Him who became incarnate in your womb, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

    A selection of daily prayers for the Novena:

    The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
    And she conceived by the Holy Spirit.
    Hail Mary ...
    Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
    Be it done unto me according to Thy Word.
    Hail Mary ...
    And the Word was made flesh,
    And dwelt among us.
    Hail Mary ...
    Pray for us O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
    Pour forth, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy grace into our hearts, that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ thy Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, by the same Christ our Lord. Amen. (The Angelus)


    All holy and ever-living God, in giving us Jesus Christ to be our Savior and Brother, you gave us Mary, His Mother, to be our Mother also; grant us, we pray you, that we may be worthy of so great a Brother and so dear a Mother. May we come at last to You the Father of us all through Jesus Christ Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen. (Roman Catholic Pilgrim Handbook)

    O God, our Father, through the Holy Spirit You prepared the body and soul of the glorious Virgin Mother, Mary, to be a fit dwelling place for Your Son. As we recall with joy her appearing at Walsingham, grant that through her motherly intercession we may be preserved from evil and given health of soul and body. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen.

    O Mary, recall the solemn moment when Jesus, your Divine Son, dying on the cross, confided us to your maternal care. You are our Mother, we desire ever to remain your devout children. Let us therefore feel the effects of your powerful intercession with Jesus Christ. make your name again glorious in the place once renowned throughout England by your visits, favours and many miracles. Pray O holy Mother of God for the conversion of England, restoration of the sick, consolation for the afflicted, repentance of sinners, peace to the departed. O Blessed Mary, Mother of God, Our Lady of Walsingham, intercede for us. Amen. (Anglican Pilgrim Manual)

    O Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, and our most gentle Queen and Mother, look down in mercy upon England, thy Dowry, and upon us all who greatly hope and trust in thee. By thee, it was that Jesus, our Savior and our hope, was given unto the world; and he has given thee to us that we might hope still more. Plead for us thy children, whom thou didst receive and accept at the foot of the Cross, O sorrowful Mother, intercede for our separated brethren, that with us in the one true fold they may be united to the Chief Shepherd, the Vicar of thy Son. Pray for us all, dear Mother, that by faith, fruitful in good works, we may all deserve to see and praise God, together with thee in our heavenly home. Amen. (Prayer for England)

    O gracious Lady, glory of Jerusalem, Cypress of Sion and Joy of Israel, Rose of Jericho and Star of Bethlehem, O gracious Lady, our asking do not repel, in mercy all women ever thou dost excel. Therefore, Blessed Lady, grant then thy great grace, to all that thee devoutly visit in this place. Amen. (15th century Prayer to Our Lady of Walsingham)

    Our Lady of Walsingham, pray for us.

    Labels: , , ,

    hit counter for blogger