Conversion Of Saint Paul - 25 January

Quoted from franciscan media [1]:

Saint Paul’s entire life can be explained in terms of one experience—his meeting with Jesus on the road to Damascus. In an instant, he saw that all the zeal of his dynamic personality was being wasted, like the strength of a boxer swinging wildly. Perhaps he had never seen Jesus, who was only a few years older. But he had acquired a zealot’s hatred of all Jesus stood for, as he began to harass the Church: “…entering house after house and dragging out men and women, he handed them over for imprisonment” (Acts 8:3b). Now he himself was “entered,” possessed, all his energy harnessed to one goal—being a slave of Christ in the ministry of reconciliation, an instrument to help others experience the one Savior.

One sentence determined his theology: “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting” (Acts 9:5b). Jesus was mysteriously identified with people—the loving group of people Saul had been running down like criminals. Jesus, he saw, was the mysterious fulfillment of all he had been blindly pursuing.

From then on, his only work was to “present everyone perfect in Christ. For this I labor and struggle, in accord with the exercise of his power working within me” (Colossians 1:28b-29). “For our gospel did not come to you in word alone, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and [with] much conviction” (1 Thessalonians 1:5a).

Paul’s life became a tireless proclaiming and living out of the message of the cross: Christians die baptismally to sin and are buried with Christ; they are dead to all that is sinful and unredeemed in the world. They are made into a new creation, already sharing Christ’s victory and someday to rise from the dead like him. Through this risen Christ the Father pours out the Spirit on them, making them completely new.

So Paul’s great message to the world was: You are saved entirely by God, not by anything you can do. Saving faith is the gift of total, free, personal and loving commitment to Christ, a commitment that then bears fruit in more “works” than the Law could ever contemplate.

[1] https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/conversion-of-saint-paul

Feast Of The Blessed Virgin’s Espousal To Saint Joseph - 23 January

Quoted from The Brighton Oratory [1]:

January 23rd is the traditional day of the feast called “The Espousal of the Virgin Mary with St Joseph.” Although never on the general Calendar, it was kept by many religious orders, especially those with a particular devotion to the Virgin Mary, and on many local calendars.

We don’t often think of the marriage of Mary and Joseph, or the events that transpired prior to the Annunciation of the Angel Gabriel. What we do know is that Mary was presented at the temple at a young age, at which time she likely took a vow of perpetual virginity. What, then, was her reaction to the Lord calling her to marriage? As before when she entered the temple, and later, when she accepted the message of Gabriel, Our Lady demonstrates perfect fidelity to the Lord—the quality which sets her apart from all others, and the reason for her chosen status as the Mother of God.

But consider Saint Joseph, her spouse. He, too, entered into a marriage with a vow of chastity, resigning himself to the will of God, and to the protection of the Lord’s sacred vessel of the Incarnation. Even following the Annunciation, Joseph placed his trust in God, choosing not to quietly divorce his wife (as we read in the Gospel he considered), but rather entrusting himself and his family to the Lord’s wisdom and plan.

On the feast of the Espousal, we are called to our own leap of faith—our own abandonment of our personal desires for those of the Lord. We look to emulate Mary and Joseph, who in their infinite trust, placed themselves in the hands of God, faithfully, continently, and chastely living as husband and wife, raising the Son of Man.

Quoted from anastpaul.com [2]:

Feast in honour of the Blessed Virgin’s Espousal to Saint Joseph. It is certain that a real Matrimony was contracted by Joseph and Mary. Still Mary is called “espoused” to Joseph (“his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph”, Matthew 1:18) because the matrimony was never consummated. The term, ‘spouse’ is applied to married people until their marriage is consummated.

The first definite knowledge of a Feast in honour or the Espousals of Mary dates from 29 August1517, when it was granted by Pope Leo X to the Nuns of the Annunciation. It was celebrated on 22 October. It appears in the Missal of the Franciscans, to whom it was granted on 21 August 1537, for 7 March, while the Servites obtained the Feast for 8 March. Although the Feast of the Espousal has never been extended to the Universal Church ,it is observed in nearly the entire Latin Church on 23 January and in the Spanish-speaking countries on 26 November.

[1] https://brightonoratory.org/2019/01/23/carissimi-todays-mass-the-espousal-of-the-blessed-virgin-mary-with-st-joseph-2/#:~:text=January%2023rd%20is%20the%20traditional%20day%20of%20the,the%20Virgin%20Mary%2C%20and%20on%20many%20local%20calendars

[2] https://anastpaul.com/2021/01/23/feast-of-the-espousal-of-the-blessed-virgin-mary-and-memorials-of-the-saints/

Feast Of The Holy Family - 9 January

Quoted from Wikipedia, under the section Veneration [1]:

The 1962 Roman Missal, whose use is still authorized [2] per the 2007 motu proprio Summorum Pontificum, follows the General Roman Calendar of 1960, which ranks the Sunday within the Octave of Christmas as higher than these saints and keeps the Feast of the Holy Family on the Sunday after Epiphany.

The 1969 revision of the General Roman Calendar moved the celebration of the Holy Family to the Sunday within the Octave of Christmas [26 December 2021], that is, the Sunday between Christmas Day and New Year's Day (both exclusive) ...

Quoted from Wikipedia, first section, third paragraph [3]:

For those communities keeping the General Roman Calendar of 1960 or the General Roman Calendar of 1954, the Feast is kept on the Sunday after Epiphany Day, which occurs on January 6th.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Family, quoted without hyperlinks.

[2] It seems like the motu proprio Traditionis Custodes  may have called that into question.

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Family, quoted without hyperlinks.

A March To Rome From Paris To Save The Latin Mass

The National Catholic Register  published an article on the procession, scheduled to begin on March 6, from Paris, expecting to arrive in Rome on May 1, to save the Latin Mass.  Quoted below is a paragraph from the article [1]:

The organizers told the Register that the deadline for sending letters, originally set for Dec. 31, will be extended to the day before the march starts to allow the current momentum to build. They also stressed that anyone wishing to defend the Tridentine Mass (including those who don’t attend it) can send a letter to the Pope through La Voie Romaine’s website — which will be available in English and Italian shortly — by mail or through local parish priests, and that the march is open to all. To date, letters and registrations to the upcoming march have already arrived from several countries, including the U.S., Portugal and Mexico.

[1] https://www.ncregister.com/news/march-to-be-held-between-paris-and-rome-to-beg-pope-francis-save-the-traditional-latin-mass, quoted with hyperlink.

The Epiphany Of Our Lord Jesus Christ - 6 January

Quoted from Catholic Action [1]

Epiphany is a Feast Day within the Church’s liturgical celebration of Christmas. In the current Western tradition, we associate it with the “Visit of the Magi,” or visitors from the East recounted in Matthew’s Gospel. (Mt 2:1-12). Epiphany is traditionally celebrated the 12th day after Christmas, (Twelfth Night), January 6th.... 

Epiphany takes its name from the Greek epiphania, a manifestation. Jesus, born quietly in Bethlehem’s stable, is revealed, or made manifest, as the Son of God.  In the recognition of Him by the Magi, the Christ, He is revealed to the “nations.” (see, for example, Is 42:6; Is 60: 1-6; and Psalm 72:11)

Quoted from Catholic Culture [2]:

The Solemnity of the Epiphany is celebrated either on January 6 or, according to the decision of the episcopal conference, on the Sunday between January 2 and January 8.  [The Sunday between January 2 and January 8 this year, 2022, was January 2.]

[1] https://www.catholicaction.org/epiphany_traditions

[2] https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2022-01-02

Feast Of The Holy Name Of Jesus - 2 January

Quoted from Wikipedia [1]:

In the Latin Rite Catholic Church it is observed as an optional memorial on 3 January by Catholics following the present General Roman Calendar. According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII used in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite the feast is celebrated on January 2. In Roman Catholicism the month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feast_of_the_Holy_Name_of_Jesus#:~:text=According%20to%20the%201962%20Missal%20of%20St.%20John,on%203%20January%20as%20the%20order%27s%20titular%20feast., quoted without hyperlinks.

Tridentine Calander - 2022

Links to the Tridentine calendar:

1. https://www.tridentinecatholic.com/cal2022.pdf

2.  https://www.virgosacrata.com/catholic-calendar.html (scroll down to see year 2022)

Happy New Year Quote - 2022

Quoted from the section entitled Happy New Year Quotes [1]:

“Wishing you a great new year with full of great achievements and holy experiences.

A meaningful chapter waiting to be written. HAPPY NEW YEAR!”

[1] http://www.traditionalcatholic.info/new-year-quotes/