Christmastide

Vigil of the Nativity
J.M.J.

THE FEAST OF CHRISTMAS

By Dom Prosper Gueranger, O.S.B.


We apply the name Christmas to the forty days which begin with the Nativity
of Our Lord, December 25, and end with the Purification of the Blessed
Virgin, February 2. It is a period which forms a distinct portion of the
Liturgical Year, as distinct, by its own special spirit, from every other,
as are Advent, Lent, Easter, or Pentecost. One same Mystery is celebrated
and kept in view during the whole forty days. Neither the Feasts of the
Saints, which so abound during this Season; nor the time of Septuagesima,
with its mournful Purple, which often begins before Christmastide is over,
seem able to distract our Holy Mother the Church from the immense joy of
which she received the good tidings from the Angels on that glorious Night
for which the world had been longing four thousand years. The Faithful will
remember that the Liturgy commemorates this long expectation by the four
penitential weeks of Advent.

The custom of celebrating the Solemnity of our Saviour's Nativity by a feast
or commemoration of forty days' duration is founded on the Holy Gospel
itself; for it tells us that the Blessed Virgin Mary, after spending forty
days in the contemplation of the Divine Fruit of her glorious Maternity,
went to the Temple, there to fulfil, in most perfect humility, the
ceremonies which the Law demanded of the daughters of Israel, when they
became mothers.


A ROMAN FEAST

The Feast of Mary's Purification is, therefore, part of that of Jesus'
Birth; and the custom of keeping this holy and glorious period of forty days
as one continued Festival has every appearance of being a very ancient one,
at least in the Roman Church. And firstly, with regard to our Saviour's
Birth on December 25, we have St John Chrysostom telling us, in his homily
for this Feast, that the Western Churches had, from the very commencement of
Christianity, kept it on this day. He is not satisfied with merely
mentioning the tradition; he undertakes to show that it is well founded,
inasmuch as the Church of Rome had every means of knowing the true day of
our Saviour's Birth, since the acts of the Enrolment, taken in Judaea by
command of Augustus, were kept in the public archives of Rome.

The holy Doctor adduces a second argument, which he founds upon the Gospel
of St Luke, and he reasons thus: we know from the sacred Scriptures that it
must have been in the fast of the seventh month that the Priest Zachary had
the vision in the Temple; after which Elizabeth, his wife, conceived St John
the Baptist: hence it follows that the Blessed Virgin Mary having, as the
Evangelist St Luke relates, received the Angel Gabriel's visit, and
conceived the Saviour of the world in the sixth month of Elizabeth's
pregnancy, that is to say, in March, the Birth of Jesus must have taken
place in the month of December.


CHRISTMAS and EPIPHANY

But it was not till the fourth century that the Churches of the East began
to keep the Feast of our Saviour's Birth in the month of December. Up to
that period they had kept it at one time on the sixth of January, thus
uniting it, under the generic term of Epiphany, with the Manifestation of
our Saviour made to the Magi, and in them to the Gentiles; at another time,
as St Clement of Alexandria tells us, they kept it on the 25th of the month
Pachon (May 15) , or on the 25th of the month Pharmuth (April 20). St John
Chrysostom, in the Homily we have just cited, which he gave in 386, tells us
that the Roman custom of celebrating the Birth of our Saviour on December 25
had then only been observed ten years in the Church of Antioch. It is
probable that this change had been introduced in obedience to the wishes of
the Apostolic See, wishes which received additional weight by the edict of
the Emperors Theodosius and Valentinian, which appeared towards the close of
the fourth century, and decreed that the Nativity and Epiphany of our Lord
should be made two distinct Festivals.

The only Church that has maintained the custom of celebrating the two
mysteries on January 6 is that of Armenia; owing, no doubt, to the
circumstance of that country not being under the authority of the Emperors;
as also because it was withdrawn at an early period from the influence of
Rome by schism and heresy.


AN INFANT-GOD and a VIRGIN-MOTHER

But what is the characteristic of Christmas in the Latin Liturgy? It is
twofold: it is joy, which the whole Church feels at the coming of the Divine
Word in the Flesh; and it is admiration of that glorious Virgin, who was
made the Mother of God. There is scarcely a prayer, or a rite, in the
Liturgy of this glad Season, which does not imply these two grand Mysteries:
an Infant-God, and a Virgin-Mother.  The Liturgy never loses sight of the
Divine Babe and his incomparable Mother, and never tires in their praises,
during the whole period from the Nativity to the day when Mary comes to the
Temple to present her Jesus.

The Greeks, too, make frequent commemorations of the Maternity of Mary in
their Offices of this Season: but they have a special veneration for the
twelve days between Christmas Day and the Epiphany, which, in their Liturgy,
are called the Dodecameron. During this time they observe no days of
Abstinence from flesh-meat; and the Emperors of the East had, out of respect
for the great Mystery, decreed that no servile work should be done, and that
the Courts of Law should be closed, until after January 6.

From this outline of the history of the holy season, we can understand what
is the characteristic of this second portion of the Liturgical Year, which
we call Christmas, and which has ever been a season most dear to the
Christian world.

From the December 2002 issue of "Catholic"
http://www.thecatholic.org/2002_December/Feast_Christmas.htm


--
Sincerely in Christ,
Our Lady of the Rosary Library
"Pray and work for souls"
http://olrl.org


Behold the dear Infant Jesus, and adore Him fervently.  Contemplate
His poverty, and humility, in imitation of His most holy Mother and of Saint
Joseph.  Repose near Him as sweetly as you can, He will not fail to love
your heart, void as you find it of tenderness and feeling.  Nothing will be
wanting to you, since you will be in the presence of that holy Infant.
Abide there, and learn of Him how meek and humble He is,
how simple and amiable.  See how lovingly He has written your name in the
depth of His Divine Heart, which beats on that couch of straw from the
impassioned zeal it has for our advancement, and heaves not one single sigh
unto His Father in which you have not a part, nor a single movement of His
spirit except for your happiness.
                                                                       --Saint Francis de Sales

--
Instaurare omnia in Christo (To restore all things in Christ)

ROMEO K. ESCUYOS JR.
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Fatima Network Update

The Fatima Network

Our Lady’s Electronic Newsletter: December 2007

This newsletter is intended for subscribers and others interested in the Message of Our Lady of Fatima and the work of Our Lady’s Apostolate. If you feel you have received it in error, or wish to be removed from our e-mailing list, please let us know. Just send your reply to our e-mail address with "unsubscribe" in the subject line, and we will respect your wishes.

Planned Parenthood: The Nice Baby-Killers

     Everyone wants to get on the Planned Parenthood bandwagon, it seems. This summer no fewer than three leading Democratic presidential hopefuls -- Barack Obama, John Edwards and the very pious Hillary "I pray, you know" Clinton -- went to Washington to seek the endorsement of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

     To read their literature, one would think that Planned Parenthood’s mission is the aggressive but "altruistic" promotion of what it calls "women’s reproductive health". In fact, this "non-profit" organization reported 2005-6 revenues of 903 million dollars! Much of this money comes from the likes of David Rockefeller, David Packard, Bill Gates, and George Soros.

     What is it that Planned Parenthood really does? Its name brings to mind long-ago "crusades" against all the just laws that once outlawed contraceptive devices for all, even for married couples. It also conjures up images of married "responsible" adult women taking "rational" steps to postpone conception and limit family size so as to fit their economic and emotional wants -- not unwed high school girls seeking clandestine abortions.

     But that’s exactly what Planned Parenthood does! A major part of its evil activities is the funding and operation of abortion clinics -- places where women go, often in the company of their husbands or illicit lovers, to have their babies killed.

     Planned Parenthood thrives on today’s lax attitudes toward sex and birth control. Although Holy Mother Church inveighs against artificial contraception, Her commands are honored more in the breach than the observance, even by "good Catholics". Similarly, priests know from hearing confessions that even "good Catholic" young people, some only in their teens, regularly indulge in sex before marriage. Then where do they go to get rid of the resultant unwanted baby? To a Planned Parenthood "clinic"!

     Planned Parenthood is a nice baby-killer. The organization's reassuringly neat and clean website uses words like safe, health, trust, medical standards, high quality, and training, along with soothing photographs of crisply groomed, white-clad, mostly female professionals. It is a good place to go to have your baby murdered!

     Planned Parenthood promotes this image of being a "force for good in the community" so effectively that ignorant or apostate Catholic laypeople, Catholic politicians, even Catholic clergy, are taken in. GOP presidential contender Rudy Giuliani defended his donation to Planned Parenthood on the grounds that the organization "makes information available" about other options, including adoption, to women facing crisis pregnancies.

     After all, forestalling teen pregnancy, battling disease, reminding pregnant women that they don't have to abort, are all good things, right? 

     Good Catholics must realize and remember that God forbids the use of the marriage act outside of the sacrament of marriage between one man and one woman. That is because God is our creator and since He made us out of nothing, He owns us body and soul. Our bodies, with all their faculties, are not ours, we are only stewards of them and we must give an accounting to God.

     The physical capacity to bring new human life into the world, that is, the capacity to cooperate with God in procreation - is indeed very sacred  and is subject to God's explicit commands in the Bible. Neither fornicators, nor adulterers, nor sodomites can go to Heaven but will go to hell - unless they effectively repent and are sacramentally absolved (or by a perfect act of contrition) of their sins before they die. (Deathbed conversions are about 1 in 200,000 - that is one in two hundred thousand - according to Saint Jerome.)

     Every act of marriage must be open to God the Creator sending new human life. Thus the use of all contraceptives is always a mortal sin as are all abortions. No exceptions, even if some bishop or group of bishops teaches otherwise.

     And all must realize that Planned Parenthood, contrary to the impression it works hard to create, focuses obsessively on abortion, providing more abortions to an increasingly younger clientele every year. A good Catholic who has the reverence for life that Our Lord and the Church teaches us, should not, can not, must not support them!

     Adapted from "Planned Parenthood's Unseemly Empire: The Billion-Dollar 'Non-Profit'", by Charlotte Allen,

     "Lying with Impunity: Planned Parenthood's Secret Abortion Clinic", by Mark Earley,

     "Where Have All The Catholics Gone? On Population Control", talk given by Michal Semin at Last Chance for World Peace, October 2006, 

     "Illinois Bishop To Conduct Interfaith Service With Pro-Abort Rabbi", by Christopher A. Ferrara,

     "The Assault On Our Children Continues: One Mother's Report" , by Virginia Dolajak,

     "The UN Charter Attacks the Family", article found in The Fatima Crusader, page 11,

     "The UN: False Way to World Peace", video of a talk by Cornelia Ferreira at Only Way to World Peace, August 2007

Bishops Who Defy Summorum Pontificum
"in Rebellion Against the Pope"

     Strong words from Archbishop Albert Ranjith Patabendige, the Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship, were reported recently on the Italian Petrus website. The Archbishop confirmed reports published in this newsletter and elsewhere of "criticism and resistance" to Summorum Pontificum, Pope Benedict XVI’s Motu Proprio which effectively restores the Tridentine Latin Mass.

     The Sri Lankan prelate said the hostility in some cases amounted to "rebellion against the Pope." How ironic that this charge, previously hurled against such traditionalists as Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (d. 1991) should now be made against bishops of the "mainstream church".

     Archbishop Ranjith charged that in some dioceses, bishops and their representatives have set out policies "inexplicably" limiting the scope of the Motu Proprio. He opined that their disobedience might be driven by "on the one hand, ideological prejudices, and on the other hand, pride -- one of the deadliest sins."

     Archbishop Ranjith said that "everyone, and particularly every pastor, is called to obey the Pope, who is the successor to Peter." He warned bishops to follow the Holy Father’s directive faithfully, "setting aside all pride and prejudice."

     Original report from Petrus, in Italian 

     Buy, The Suicide of Altering the Faith in the Liturgy, by Father Paul Kramer

Australia's Cardinal Pell Celebrates Mass in Latin

     Meanwhile, at least one bishop has welcomed the Motu Proprio. Australian Cardinal George Pell recently became the first Sydney Archbishop in 40 years to celebrate Mass in Latin according to the 1962 Roman Missal. He did so, he said, to celebrate Pope Benedict's apostolic letter.

     The Canberra-based Oriens Foundation, which promotes understanding of the Tridentine Rite, said the Cardinal’s Mass "represented a significant event in the life of the local Church." Its chairman Gary Scarrabelotti, said he hoped the event would provide the Church "with a splendid opportunity to draw to the attention of the Catholic people, and to the wider community, the great cultural and spiritual merits of the traditional form of Catholic worship."

     Oriens Foundation media release,

     The latest printing of the 1962 Missale Romanum will soon be available from the Fatima Shoppe. Meanwhile, we recommend the New Marian Missal, by Sylvester P. Juergens, S.M., from The Fatima Shoppe

Who Was Right About the Modern World:
St. Pius X or the Popes of Vatican II?

     Pope Saint Pius X may well be regarded as the greatest Pope of the 20th Century. So far, at least, he is the only one to have been canonized. Even though his work and writings have been denigrated by some high-level Churchmen in the years since Vatican II, all Catholics owe him an immeasurable debt of gratitude.

     In October, coinciding with the Feast of Christ the King, Catholic Family News held a conference in Cleveland, Ohio, to commemorate and celebrate 100 years of Pascendi, Pope St. Pius X’s best-known encyclical against Modernism.

     Yet there are other writings of the Holy Pontiff which deserve to be revisited. They contain dire warnings of the evils that would befall the Church and the world at large if the modernist trends which Pius observed were allowed to continue. For nearly 60 years, the Church heeded these admonitions, which are echoed in the Message of Fatima. Then, with Vatican II, Modernism was allowed to triumph, and the Pope’s predictions have been proven correct.

     In 1903, Pius X published his first encyclical, E Supremi. This set the tone for his entire papacy. In it, Pius clearly recognizes his first duty to guard the integrity of the Catholic Faith, and to protect the flock entrusted to him from poisonous doctrine.

     Pius X was unencumbered by rose-colored glasses. He saw the world as it really was. And because he was a saint, he also looked at the world from God's point of view. He saw clearly "that the number of the enemies of the cross of Christ has in these last days increased exceedingly, who are striving, by arts entirely new and full of subtlety, to destroy the vital energy of the Church, and if they can, to overthrow utterly Christ's Kingdom itself."

     The Pope referred not only to anti-clerical forces outside the Church, but to the enemies of Christ inside the Church: priests, bishops, theologians, and laity who espoused a perverse system called "Modernism," rightly denounced by Pius X as the "synthesis of all heresies". "The danger" he said, is "in the very veins and heart of the Church."

     Pascendi followed E Supremi in 1907. Then, in 1910, Pope Saint Pius X issued the last and perhaps most important of his three anti-Modernist pronouncements. It was the Motu Proprio Sacrorum Antistitum, that contained the famous "Oath Against Modernism", which all bishops and priests were obliged to swear to until it was done away with in the "reforms" of Vatican II.

     A study of E Supremi, Pascendi and Sacrorum Antistitum will give concerned Catholics a better idea of the errors of Russia and the evils of Modernism against which the Blessed Virgin warned us when She appeared at Fatima.

     Click here for the complete English text of Pope St. Pius X’s E Supremi,

     Be sure to read "Modernism in a Nutshell: Religion Must Change With the Times!" by John Vennari,

     Also highly recommended: "Antichrist Rising" by Michal Semin.

     Read about The Fatima Movement of Priests.

Help Keep Our Lady of Fatima Online

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Latin Masses Anyone?

Before Summorum Pontificum, there were only three Churches offering the Tridentine Latin Mass through the Indult and the other one was administered by the SSPX.

Now, I am not sure if there are other parishes who started offering the Extraordinary rite. Is is possible that the dioceses here are forming their own interpretation of the Pope's motu proprio?

Any Latin Masses in Your Parish?
Posted at: 2007-12-17 15:52:00.0
Author: James Martin, S.J.

A few weeks ago, Archbishop Malcolm Ranjith, Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship, said that he saw a certain obstinance (my word, not his) in response to Pope Benedict's "motu proprio," relaxing restrictions on the Latin Mass, called "Summorum Pontificum."

Here's what Archbishop Ranjith said in an interview:
"You know that there have been, by some dioceses, even interpretative documents which inexplainably intend to limit the Pope's motu proprio. These actions mask behind them, on one hand, prejudices of an ideological kind and, on the other, pride, one of the gravest sins. I repeat: I invite all to obey the Pope." (Catholic News Agency)

Which makes me wonder: Five months after "Summorum Pontificum" was promulgated, how many American parishes have chosen to introduce a Latin Mass? What is your experience?
_________________
IN CORDIBUS JESU ET MARIÆ

SECRETMAN

Latin Masses anyone?

Before Summorum Pontificum, there were only three Churches offering the Tridentine Latin Mass through the Indult and the other one was administered by the SSPX.

Now, I am not sure if there are other parishes who started offering the Extraordinary rite. Is is possible that the dioceses here are forming their own interpretation of the Pope's motu proprio?

Any Latin Masses in Your Parish?
Posted at: 2007-12-17 15:52:00.0
Author: James Martin, S.J.

A few weeks ago, Archbishop Malcolm Ranjith, Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship, said that he saw a certain obstinance (my word, not his) in response to Pope Benedict's "motu proprio," relaxing restrictions on the Latin Mass, called "Summorum Pontificum."

Here's what Archbishop Ranjith said in an interview:
"You know that there have been, by some dioceses, even interpretative documents which inexplainably intend to limit the Pope's motu proprio. These actions mask behind them, on one hand, prejudices of an ideological kind and, on the other, pride, one of the gravest sins. I repeat: I invite all to obey the Pope." (Catholic News Agency)

Which makes me wonder: Five months after "Summorum Pontificum" was promulgated, how many American parishes have chosen to introduce a Latin Mass? What is your experience?
_________________
IN CORDIBUS JESU ET MARIÆ

SECRETMAN

Read This!

Doctrinal Note on some Aspects of Evangelization

Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
December 14, 2007

I. Introduction

1. Jesus Christ was sent by the Father to proclaim the Gospel, calling all people to conversion and faith (cf Mk 1:14-15). After his resurrection, he entrusted the continuation of his mission of evangelization to the Apostles (cf. Mt 28:19-20; Mk 16:15; Lk24:4-7; Acts 1:3): "As the Father has sent me, so I send you" (Jn 20:21, cf. 17:18). By means of the Church, Christ wants to be present in every historical epoch, every place on earth and every sector of society, in order to reach every person, so that there may be one flock and one shepherd (cf. Jn 10:16): "Go out into the whole world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved, but he who does not believe will be condemned" (Mk 16: 15-16).

The Apostles, therefore, "prompted by the Spirit, invited all to change their lives, to be converted and to be baptized",¹ because the "pilgrim Church is necessary for salvation".² It is the same Lord Jesus Christ who, present in his Church, goes before the work of evangelizers, accompanies it, follows it, and makes their labours bear fruit: what took place at the origins of Christian history continues throughout its entire course.

At the beginning of the third millennium, the call which Peter and his brother Andrew, as well as the other first disciples, heard from Jesus continues to resound in the world: "put out into the deep and lower your nets for a catch" (Lk 5:4).³  And after the miracle of a huge catch of fish, the Lord revealed to Peter that he would become "a fisher of men" (Lk 5:10).

2. The term evangelization has a very rich meaning⁴ in the broad sense, it sums up the Church's entire mission: her whole life consists in accomplishing the traditio Evangelii, the proclamation and handing on of the Gospel, which is "the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes" (John 1:16) and which, in the final essence, is identified with Jesus Christ himself (cf. 1 Cor 1:24). Understood in this way, evangelization is aimed at all of humanity. In any case, to evangelize does not mean simply to teach a doctrine, but to proclaim Jesus Christ by one's words and actions, that is, to make oneself an instrument of his presence and action in the world.

"Every person has the right to hear the `Good News' of the God who reveals and gives himself in Christ, so that each one can live out in its fullness his or her proper calling".⁵ It a right which the Lord himself confers on every person, so that every man and woman is able truly to say with Saint Paul: Jesus Christ "loved me and gave himself up for me" (Gal 2:20). This right implies the corresponding duty to evangelize: "If I preach the Gospel, this is no reason for me to boast; it is a duty for me, Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel!" (1 Cor 9:16; cf. Rom 10:14). Thus, it is evident how every activity of the Church has an essential evangelizing dimension and must never be separated from the commitment to help all persons to meet Christ in faith, which is the primary objective of evangelization: "Social issues and the Gospel are inseparable. When we bring people only knowledge, ability, technical competence and tools, we bring them too little".⁶

3. There is today, however, a growing confusion which leads many to leave the missionary command of the Lord unheard and ineffective (cf. Mt 28:19). Often it is maintained that any attempt to convince others on religious matters is a limitation of their freedom. From this perspective, it would only be legitimate to present one's own ideas and to invite people to act according to their consciences, without aiming at their conversion to Christ and to the Catholic faith. It is enough, so they say, to help people to become more human or more faithful to their own religion; it is enough to build communities which strive for justice, freedom, peace and solidarity. Furthermore, some maintain that Christ should not be proclaimed to those who do not know him, nor should joining the Church be promoted, since it would also be possible to be saved without explicit knowledge of Christ and without formal incorporation in the Church.

In the face of these problems, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has judged it necessary to publish the present Note. This document, which presupposes the entirety of Catholic doctrine on evangelization, as extensively treated in the teaching of Paul VI and John Paul II, is intended to clarify certain aspects of the relationship between the missionary command of the Lord and respect for the conscience and religious freedom of all people. It is an issue with important
anthropological, ecclesiological and ecumenical implications.

 II Some anthropological implications

4. "This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent" (Jn 17:3). God has given human beings intellect and will so that they might freely seek, know and love him. Therefore, human freedom is both a resource and a challenge offered to man by God who has created him: an offer directed to the human person's capacity to know and to love what is good and true. Nothing puts in play human freedom like the search for the good and the true, by inviting it to a kind of commitment which involves fundamental aspects of life, This is particularly the case with salvific truth, which is not only an object of thought, but also an event which encompasses the entire person - intelligence, will, feelings, actions and future plans - when a person adheres to Christ. In the search for the good and the true, the Holy Spirit is already at work, opening the human heart and making it ready to welcome the truth of the Gospel, as Thomas Aquinas stated in his celebrated phrase: omne verum a quocumque dicatur a Spiritu Sancto est.⁷ It is important therefore to appreciate this action of the Spirit, who creates an affinity for the truth and draws the human heart towards it, by helping human knowledge to mature both in wisdom and in trusting abandonment to what is true.⁸

Today, however, with ever-increasing frequency, questions are being raised about the legitimacy of presenting to others - so that they might in turn accept it - that which is held to be true for oneself. Often this is seen as an infringement of other people's freedom. Such a vision of human freedom, separated from its integral reference to truth, is one of the expressions "of that relativism which, recognizing nothing as definitive, leaves as the ultimate criterion only the self with its desires and under the semblance of freedom, becomes a prison for each one'.⁹ In the various forms of agnosticism and relativism present in contemporary thought, "a legitimate plurality of positions has yielded to an undifferentiated pluralism, based upon the assumption that all positions are equally valid, which is one of today's most widespread symptoms of the lack of confidence in truth. Even certain conceptions of life coming from the East betray this lack of confidence, denying truth its exclusive character and assuming that truth reveals itself equally in different doctrines, even if they contradict one another".¹⁰ If man denies his fundamental capacity for the truth, if he becomes skeptical regarding his ability really to know what is true, he ends up losing what in a unique way draws his intelligence and enthralls his heart.

 5. In this connection, when it comes to the search for truth, whoever trusts only in his own individual efforts and does not recognize the need for help from others, is deceiving himself Human beings "from birth, therefore, are immersed in traditions which give them not only a language and a cultural formation but also a range of truths in which they believe almost instinctively... Nonetheless, there are in the life of a human being many more truths which are simply believed than truths which are acquired by way of personal verification".¹¹ The need to trust in the knowledge handed on by one's culture or acquired by others, enriches a person with truths that could not have been attained on one's own, as well as by the interpersonal and social relationships which this process develops. Spiritual individualism, on the other hand, isolates a person, hindering him from opening in trust to others - so as both to receive and to bestow the abundant goods which nourish his freedom and jeopardizes the right to manifest one's own convictions and opinions in society.¹²

In particular, the truth which is capable of shedding light on the meaning of one's life and giving it direction, is similarly attained through trusting acceptance with regard to those persons who are able to guarantee the certainty and authenticity of the truth itself: "There is no doubt that the capacity to entrust oneself and one's life to another person and the decision to do so are among the most significant and expressive human acts".¹³ Although it happens on a deeper level, the acceptance of revelation which takes place through faith also falls within the dynamics of the search for truth: "The obedience of faith' (Rom 16:26 cf Rom 1:5; 2 Cor 10:5-6) must be given to God who reveals; by this obedience of faith man freely commits his entire self to God, offering `the full submission of intellect and will to God who reveals' and freely assenting to the revelation given by him".¹⁴ The Second Vatican Council, after having affirmed the right and the duty of every person to seek the truth in matters of religion adds: "The search for truth, however, must he carried out in a manner that is appropriate to the dignity of the human person and his social nature, namely, by free enquiry with the help of teaching or instruction, communication and dialogue. It is by these means that people share with each other the truth they have discovered, or think they have discovered, in such a way that they help one another in the search for truth".¹⁵ In any case, the truth does not impose itself except by the strength of the truth itself.¹⁶ Therefore, to lead a person's intelligence and freedom in honesty to the encounter with Christ and his Gospel is not an inappropriate encroachment, but rather a legitimate endeavour and a service capable of making human relationships more fruitful.

6. Evangelization does not only entail the possibility of enrichment for those who are evangelized; it is also an enrichment for the one who does the evangelizing, as well as for the entire Church. For example, in the process of inculturation, "the universal Church herself is enriched with forms of expression and values in the various sectors of Christian life. She comes to know and to express better the mystery of Christ, all the while being motivated to continual renewal".¹⁷ Indeed, since the day of Pentecost, the Church has manifested the universality of her mission, welcoming in Christ the countless riches of peoples from all times and places in human history.¹⁸ Beyond its intrinsic anthropological value, every encounter with another person or culture is capable of revealing potentialities of the Gospel which hitherto may not have been fully explicit and which will enrich the life of Christians and the Church. Thanks to this dynamism, "tradition, which comes from the Apostles, makes progress in the Church by the help of the Holy Spirit".¹⁹

It is indeed the Holy Spirit who, after having been operative in the incarnation of Jesus Christ in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, animates the maternal action of the Church in the evangelization of cultures. Although the Gospel is independent from any culture, it is capable of infusing all cultures, while never allowing itself to be subservient to them. ²⁰ In this sense, the Holy Spirit is also the principal agent of the inculturation of the Gospel, presiding in a fruitful way at the dialogue between the Word of God, revealed in Christ, and the deepest questions which arise among the multitude of human beings and cultures, In this way, the Pentecost-event continues in history, in the unity of one and the same faith, enriched by the diversity of languages and cultures.

7. The communication of religiously significant events and truths in order that they will be accepted by others is not only in profound harmony with the human phenomena of dialogue, proclamation and education, it also corresponds to another important anthropological fact: the desire, which is proper to the human person, to have others share in one's own goods. The acceptance of the Good News in faith is thus dynamically ordered to such a communication. The truth which saves one's life inflames the heart of the one who has received it with a love of neighbour that motivates him to pass on to others in freedom what he has freely been given.

Although non-Christians can be saved through the grace which God bestows in "ways known to him",²¹ the Church cannot fail to recognize that such persons are lacking a tremendous benefit in this world: to know the true face of God and the friendship of Jesus Christ, God-with-us. Indeed "there is nothing more beautiful than to be surprised by the Gospel, by the encounter with Christ. There is nothing more beautiful than to know him and to speak to others of our friendship with him"²²²³ about God, about the human person and the world, is a great good for every human person, while living in darkness without the truths about ultimate questions is an evil and is often at the root of suffering and slavery which can at times be grievous. This is why Saint Paul does not hesitate to describe conversion to the Christian faith as liberation "from the power of darkness" and entrance into "the kingdom of his beloved Son in whom we have redemption and the forgiveness of our sins" (Col 1:13-I 4), Therefore, fully belonging to Christ, who is the Truth, and entering the Church do not lessen human freedom, but rather exalt it and direct it towards its fulfillment, in a love that is freely given and which overflows with care for the good of all people. It is an inestimable benefit to live within the universal embrace of the friends of God which flows from communion in the life-giving flesh of his Son, to receive from him the certainty of forgiveness of sins and to live in the love that is born of faith. The Church wants everyone to share in these goods so that they may possess the fullness of truth and the fullness of the means of salvation, in order "to enter into the freedom of the glory of the children of God" (Rom 8:21).

8. Evangelization also involves a sincere dialogue that seeks to understand the reasons and feelings of others. Indeed, the heart of another person can only be approached in freedom, in love and in dialogue, in such a manner that the word which is spoken is not simply offered, but also truly witnessed in the hearts of those to whom it is addressed. This requires taking into account the hopes, sufferings and concrete situations of those with whom one is in dialogue. Precisely in this way, people of good will open their hearts more freely and share their spiritual and religious experiences in all sincerity. This experience of sharing, a characteristic of true friendship, is a valuable occasion for witnessing and for Christian proclamation.

As in any other field of human activity, so too in dialogue on religious matters, sin can enter in. It may sometimes happen that such a dialogue is not guided by its natural purpose, but gives way instead to deception, selfish motives or arrogance, thus failing in respect for the dignity and religious freedom of the partners in dialogue. For this reason, "the Church severely prohibits forcing people to embrace the faith or leading or enticing them by improper techniques; by the same token, she also strongly defends the right that no one be deterred from the faith by deplorable ill treatment".²⁴ The revelation of the fundamental truths

The primary motive of evangelization is the love of Christ for the eternal salvation of all, The sole desire of authentic evangelizers is to bestow freely what they themselves have freely received: "From the very origins of the Church, the disciples of Christ strove to convert men to faith in Christ the Lord; not, however, through coercion or tactics unworthy of the Gospel, but above all by the power of the word of God".²⁵ The mission of the Apostles and its continuation in the mission of the early Church remain the foundational model of evangelization for all time: it is a mission that has often been marked by martyrdom, as demonstrated by the history of the twentieth century. It is precisely martyrdom that gives credibility to witnesses, who seek neither power nor advantage, but instead lay down their lives for Christ. Before all the world, they display an unarmed strength brimming with love for all people, which is bestowed on those who follow Christ unto the total gift of their existence, So it is that Christians, from the very dawn of Christianity up until our own time have suffered persecution on account of the Gospel, as Jesus himself foretold: "If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you" (Jn 15:20).

III. Some ecclesiological implications

9. Since the day of Pentecost, one who fully accepts the faith is incorporated into the community of believers: "those who received his word [Peter's] were baptized and that day about three thousand people were added to them" (Acts 2:41). Since the beginning, the Gospel, in the power of the Spirit, is proclaimed to all people so that they might believe and become disciples of Christ and members of his Church, In the writings of the Fathers of the Church, there are constant exhortations to fulfill the mission entrusted by Christ to his disciples.²⁶ Generally, the term conversion is used in reference to bringing pagans into the Church. However, conversion (metanoia), in its precisely Christian meaning, signifies a change in thinking and in acting, as the expression of the new life in Christ proclaimed by faith: a continuous reform of thought and deeds directed at an ever more intense identification with Christ (cf Gal 2:20), to which the baptized are called before all else, This is, in the first place, the meaning of the call made by Jesus himself: "repent and believe in the Gospel" (Mk 1:15; cf Mt 4:17).

The Christian spirit has always been animated by a passion to lead all humanity to Christ in the Church, The incorporation of new members into the Church is not the expansion of a power-group, but rather entrance into the network of friendship with Christ which connects heaven and earth, different continents and ages. It is entrance into the gift of communion with Christ, which is "new life" enlivened by charity and the commitment to justice. The Church is the instrument, "the seed and the beginning"²⁷ of the Kingdom of God; she is not a political utopia. She is already the presence of God in history and she carries in herself the true future, the definitive future in which God will be "all in all" (1 Cor 15:28); she is a necessary presence, because only God can bring authentic peace and justice to the world, The Kingdom of God is not as some maintain today - a generic reality above all religious experiences and traditions, to which they tend as a universal and indistinct communion of all those who seek God, but it is, before all else, a person with a name and a face: Jesus of Nazareth, the image of the unseen God.²⁸ Therefore, every free movement of the human heart towards God and towards his kingdom cannot but by its very nature lead to Christ and be oriented towards entrance into his Church, the efficacious sign of that Kingdom. The Church, therefore, is the bearer of the presence of God and thus the instrument of the true humanization of man and the world. The growth of the Church in history, which results from missionary activity, is at the service of the presence of God through his Kingdom: one cannot in fact "detach the Kingdom from the Church".²⁹

10. However, the Church's "missionary proclamation is endangered today by relativistic theories which seek to justify religious pluralism, not only de facto but also de iure (or in principle)".³⁰ For a long time, the reason for evangelization has not been clear to many among the Catholic faithful.³¹ It is even stated that the claim to have received the gift of the fullness of God's revelation masks an attitude of intolerance and a danger to peace.

Those who make such claims are overlooking the fact that the fullness of the gift of truth, which God makes by revealing himself to man, respects the freedom which he himself created as an indelible mark of human nature: a freedom which is not indifference, but which is rather directed towards truth. This kind of respect is a requirement of the Catholic faith itself and of the love of Christ; it is a constitutive element of evangelization and, therefore, a good which is to be promoted inseparably with the commitment to making the fullness of salvation, which God offers to the human race in the Church, known and freely embraced.

Respect for religious freedom³² and its promotion "must not in ally way make us indifferent towards truth and goodness. Indeed, love impels the followers of Christ to proclaim to all the truth which saves" ³³ Such love is the sign of the authentic presence of the Holy Spirit who, as the principal agent of evangelization,³⁴ never ceases to move people's hearts when they hear the Gospel, by opening them to receive it. It is a love which lives in the heart of the Church and from there, as burning charity, radiates out to the ends of the earth, as far as the heart of every human being. The entire heart of man awaits the encounter with Jesus Christ.

Thus one understands the urgency of Christ's invitation to evangelization and why it is that the mission entrusted by the Lord to the Apostles involves all the baptized. The words of Jesus "go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you" (Mt 28:19-20), are directed to everyone in the Church, each according to his own vocation. At the present time, with so many people in the world living in different types of desert, above all, in the "desert of God's darkness, the emptiness of souls no longer aware of their dignity or the goal of human life",³⁵ Pope Benedict XVI has recalled to the world that "the Church as a whole and all her Pastors, like Christ, must set out to lead people out of the desert, towards the place of life, towards friendship with the Son of God, towards the One who gives us life, and life in abundance".³⁶ This apostolic commitment is an inalienable right and duty, an expression of religious liberty, with its corresponding ethical-social and ethical-political dimensions.³⁷ It is a right which in some parts of the world, unfortunately, has not yet been recognized and which in others is not respected in practice. ³⁸

11. He who announces the Gospel participates in the charity of Christ, who loved us and gave himself up for us (cf Eph 5:2); lie is his ambassador and he pleads in the name of Christ: let yourselves to be reconciled with God (cf. 2 Cor 5:20). It is a charity which is an expression of the gratitude that flows from the heart when it opens to the love given in Jesus Christ, that Love which, as Dante wrote, is displayed throughout the universe^.39 This explains the ardour, the confidence, and the freedom of speech (parrhesia) evident in the preaching of the Apostles (cf. Acts 4:31; 9:27-28; 26:26, etc.) and which Agrippa experienced when he heard Paul speaking: "You will soon persuade me to become a Christian!" (Acts 26:28).

Evangelization is not only accomplished through public preaching of the Gospel nor solely through works of public relevance, but also by means of personal witness which is always very effective in spreading the Gospel. Indeed, "side by side with the collective proclamation of the Gospel, the other form of handing it on, from person to person, remains valid and important... It must not happen that the pressing need to proclaim the Good News to the multitudes should cause us to forget this form of proclamation whereby an individual's personal conscience is reached and touched by an entirely unique word that he receives from someone else".⁴⁰

In any case, it needs to be remembered that, in transmitting the Gospel, word and witness of life go together.⁴¹ Above all, the witness of holiness is necessary, if the light of truth is to reach all human beings. if the word is contradicted by behaviour, its acceptance will be difficult. However, even witness by itself is not enough "because even the finest witness will prove ineffective in the long run, if it is not explained, justified - what Peter called `giving a reason for the hope that is in you' (1 Pet 3:15) - and made explicit by a clear and unequivocal proclamation of the Lord Jesus".⁴²

IV. Some ecumenical implications

12. From its beginnings, the ecumenical movement has been closely connected with evangelization. Unity, in fact, is the seal of the credibility of missionary activity and so the Second Vatican Council noted with regret that the scandal of division "damages the most sacred cause of preaching".⁴³ Jesus himself, on the night before his death, prayed "that they all may be one, so that the world may believe" (Jn 17:21).

The mission of the Church is universal and is not restricted to specific regions of the earth. Evangelization, however, is undertaken differently according to the different situations in which it occurs. In its precise sense, evangelization is the missio ad gentes directed to those who do not know Christ. In a wider sense, it is used to describe ordinary pastoral work, while die phrase "new evangelization" designates pastoral outreach to those who no longer practice the Christian faith,⁴⁴ In addition, there is evangelization in countries where non-Catholic Christians live, including those with an ancient Christian Tradition and culture. In this context, what is required is both true respect for the tradition and spiritual riches of such countries as well as a sincere spirit of cooperation. Catholics, "avoiding every form of indifferentism or confusion, as well as senseless rivalry, through a common profession of faith in God and in Jesus Christ before all peoples - insofar as this is possible - may collaborate with their separated brethren in social, cultural, technical and religious matters in accordance with the Decree on Ecumenism".⁴⁵

Different dimensions of the work of ecumenism can be distinguished: above all, there is listening, as a fundamental condition for any dialogue, then, theological discussion, in which, by seeking to understand the beliefs, traditions and convictions of others, agreement can be found, at times hidden under disagreement. Inseparably united with this is another essential dimension of the ecumenical commitment: witness and proclamation of elements which are not particular traditions or theological subtleties, but which belong rather to the Tradition of the faith itself.

Ecumenism does not have only an institutional dimension aimed at "making the partial communion existing between Christians grow towards full communion in truth and charity".⁴⁶ It is also the task of every member of the faithful, above all by means of prayer, penance, study and cooperation. Everywhere and always, each Catholic has the right and the duty to give the witness and the full proclamation of his faith. With non-Catholic Christians, Catholics must enter into a respectful dialogue of charity and truth, a dialogue which is not only an exchange of ideas, but also of gifts,⁴⁷ in order that the fullness of the means of salvation can be offered to one's partners in dialogue.⁴⁸ In this way. they are led to an ever deeper conversion to Christ.

In this connection, it needs also to be recalled that if a non-Catholic Christian, for reasons of conscience and having been convinced of Catholic truth, asks to enter into the full communion of the Catholic Church, this is to be respected as the work of the Holy Spirit and as an expression of freedom of conscience and of religion. In such a case, ii would not be a question of proselytism in the negative sense that has been attributed to this term.⁴⁸ As explicitly recognized in the Decree on Ecumenism of the Second Vatican Council, "it is evident that the wok of preparing and reconciling those individuals who desire full Catholic communion is of its nature distinct from ecumenical action, but there is no opposition between the two, since both proceed from the marvelous ways of God" ⁵⁰ Therefore, the work of ecumenism does not remove the right or take away the responsibility of proclaiming in fullness the Catholic faith to other Christians, who freely wish to receive it.

This perspective naturally requires the avoidance of any undue Pressure: "in spreading religious faith and introducing religious practices, everyone should refrain at all times from any kind of action which might seem to suggest coercion or dishonest or improper persuasion, especially when dealing with poor or uneducated people".^{51. 52} Love and witnessing to the truth are aimed above all at convincing others through the power of the word of God (Cf 1 Cor 2:3-5; 1 Thess⁵³ The Christian mission resides in the power of the Holy Spirit and in the truth itself which is proclaimed.

The witness to the truth does not seek to impose anything by force, neither by coercive action nor by tactics incompatible with the Gospel. By definition, the exercise of charity is free 2:3-5) V. Conclusion

13. The Church's commitment to evangelization can never be lacking, since according to his own promise, the presence of the Lord Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit will never be absent from her: "I am with you always, even until the end of the world" (Mt 28:20). The relativism and irenicism prevalent today in the area of religion are not valid reasons for failing to respond to the difficult, but awe-inspiring commitment which belongs to the nature of the Church herself and is indeed the Church's "primary task"⁵⁴ "Caritas Christi urget nos - the love of Christ impels us" (2 Cor 5:14): the lives of innumerable Catholics bear witness to this truth. Throughout the entire history of the Church, people motivated by the love of Jesus have undertaken initiatives and works of every kind in order to proclaim the Gospel to the entire world and in all sectors of society, as a perennial reminder and invitation to every Christian generation to fulfill with generosity the mandate of Christ. Therefore, as Pope Benedict XVI recalls, "the proclamation of and witness to the Gospel are the first service that Christians can render to every person and to the entire human race, called as they are to communicate to all God's love, which was flatly manifested in Jesus Christ, the one Redeemer of the world".⁵⁵ The love which comes from God unites us to him and "makes us a `we' which transcends our divisions and makes us one, until in the end God is `all in all' (1 Cor 15:28)"⁵⁶

The Sovereign Pontiff Benedict XVI in the Audience granted to the undersigned Cardinal Prefect on 6 October 2007, approved the present Doctrinal Note, adopted in the Ordinary Session of this Congregation, and ordered its publication.

Rome, from the Offices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 3 December 2007, Memorial of Saint Francis Xavier, Patron of the Missions


+ William Cardinal Levada
Prefect

+ Angelo Amato, SDB
Titular Archbishop of Sila
Secretary



1. JOHN PAUL. II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris rnissio (7 December 1990), 47: JIAS 83(2991), 293.
2. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen Gentium, 14; cf. Decree Ad gentes, 7; Decree Un/tans
redintegratio, 3. This teaching does not contradict the universal salvific will of Cod, who `desires that all men be saved and
come to a knowledge of the truth' (I Ton 2:4); therefore, "it is necessary to keep these two truths together, namely, the real
possibility of salvation in Christ for all mankind and the necessity of the Church for salvation" (JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical
Letter Redemptoris missio, 9: AAS 83 [1991], 258).
3. Cf JOHN PAUL II Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio ineunte (6 January 2001), 1: AAS 93(2001), 266.
4. Cf PAUL. VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangel/i cant/with (8 December 1975), 24. AAS 69 (1976), 22
5. JOHN PAUL. II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 46: iL45 83 (1991), 293; cf PAUL VI, Apostolic Exhortation
Evangelli nuntiandi, 53 and 80: ~4.45' 69 (1976), 41-42, 73-74,
6. BENEDICT XVI, Homily at the Moss celebrated at the outdoor site of the Neue Messe in Munich (10 September
2006): 448 98(2006), 710
7. SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS, Summa Theologiae, 1-fl, q 109, al, ad I: "any truth no matter by whom it is spoken,
is from the Holy Spirit".
8 Cf JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Fides et ratio (14 September 1998), 44: il4S 91(1999), 40.
9. BENEDICT XVI, Address to the Participants in the Ecclesial Diocesan Convention of Rome "Family and
Christian community formation of the person and transmission of the faith" (6 June 2005): AAS 97(2005), 816
10. JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Fides et ratio: AAS 91(1999), 9~10.
11. ibidem, 31: AAS 91 (1999), 29, of SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes 12.
12. This right was recognized and affirmed also by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 (art 18-19).
13. JOHNPAUL II, Encyclical Letter Fides et raio,, 33. AAS9I (1999), 31.
14. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Dogmatic Constitution Dei Verbum, 5
15 SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Declaration Dignitatis humanae, 3.
16. Ibidem, 1
17. JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 52: ,L4S 83 (1991), 300.
18. Cf. JOHN PAUL II Encyclical Letter Slavorum Apostoli (2 June 1985), 18: AAS 77(1985), 800,
19. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Dogmatic Constitution Dei Verbum, 8.
20. Cf PAUL Vi, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelli nuntiandi, 19-20. AilS 69 (1976), 18.19.
21. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Decree Ad gentes, 7; ci Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 16; Pastoral
Constitution Gaudium et Spes, 22
22 BENEDICT XVI, Homily at the Mass for the Inauguration of the Pontificate (24 April 2005). AAS 97(2005), 71 S
23. ct: FIRST VATICAN COUNCIL~ Dogmatic Constitution Dei Filius, 2: "It is indeed thanks to this divine revelation,
that those matters concerning God, which are not of themselves beyond the scope of human reason, can, even in the present
condition of the human i-ace, be known by everyone without difficulty, with firm certitude and with no admixture of error
(cf SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS, Summa Theologiae, I, q..l, a I)" (DII 3005)
24. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Decree Ad gentes, 13.
25. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Declaration Dignitatis humanae, 11
26 Cf.. tot example, CI.EMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, Protrepticus (Exhortation to the Greeks), IX, 87, 3-4 (Sources
Chrétiennes 2 154-155); SAIN1 AUGUSTINE, Sermo 141) [-152 Al,) (Nuova Bibliotca Agostiniana, XXXV!), 269-271)
27. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium. 5.
28. Cf JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, IS: 14A8 83 (1991), 265-266: "If the kingdom is
separated from Jesus, it is no longer the kingdom of God which he revealed The result is a distortion of the meaning of the
kingdom, which fins the risk of being transformed into a purely human or ideological tool, and a distortion of the identity
of Christ, who no longer appeals as the Lord to whom everything must one day be subjected (ci I Go;- 15:27)"
29. JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 18: AAS 83 (1991), 266- On the relationship between
Christ and the Kingdom, cf. also CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE. FAITH, Declaration Dominus Iesus (6 August
2000), 18-19. ,t4S 92(2000), 759-761
30. CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH, Declaration Dominus Iesus, 4. AAS 92(2000), 744
31. Cf. PAUL VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii nuntiandi, 80: AAS 69 (1976), 73. "Besides, it is added, why
proclaim the Gospel when the whole world is saved by uprightness of heart? We know likewise that the world and history
are filled with "seeds of the Word"; is it not therefore an illusion to claim to bring tile Gospel where it already exists in the
seeds that the Lord Himself has sown?"
32 Cf BENEDICT XVI, Address to the Roman Curia offering Christmas Greetings (22 December 2005). AAS 98
(2006), 50. ". if religious freedom were to be considered an expression of the human inability to discover the truth and thus
become a canonization of relativism, then this social and historical necessity is raised inappropriately to the metaphysical
level and thus stripped of its true meaning Consequently, it cannot be accepted by those who believe that the human person
is capable of knowing the truth about God and, on the basis of the inner dignity of the truth, is bound to this knowledge. It
is quite different, on the other hand, to perceive religious freedom as a need that derives from human coexistence, or indeed,
as an intrinsic consequence of the truth that cannot be externally imposed but that the person must adopt only through the
process of conviction"
33 SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, 28; cf PAUL VI. Apostolic Exhortation
Evangeii nuntiandi, 24: AAS 69(1976), 21-22
34. Cf JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 21-30: A,45' 83(1991)268-276.
35. BENEDICT XVI, Homily at the Mass for the Inauguration of the Pontificate (24 April 2005): AAS 97(2005), 710
36 Ibidem,
37.Cf SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Declaration Dignitatis humanae, 6
38. Indeed, where the right to religious freedom is recognized, the right to share one's owi3 convictions with others
in full respect for their consciences is usually recognized as well; this sharing is aimed at having others enter one's own
religious community and is an established right in numerous legal systems, with a well-developed jurisprudence.
39. Cf DANTE ALIGHIIERI, La Divine Commedia Pared/so, 33.87: che per l'universio si. squaderna
40. PAUL. VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii. nuntiandi, 46: AAS 69(1976), 36.
41." Cf SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gent/urn, 35.
42. PAUL VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii nuntiandi, 22. AIlS 69(1976), 20.
43..SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Decree Unitatis redintegratio. 1. cf JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris
mission. .1AS 83 (1Q91), 249, 297
44. Cf JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 34. AAS 83 (1991), 279-280.
45. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Decree Ad gentes, I5.
46 JOHN PAUL II, Encyclical Letter Ut unum sint (25 May 1995), 14. AAS 87(1995), 929.
47. Cf ibidem, 28. AAS 87(1995), 939-
48. Cf SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 3 and 5
49. The term proselytism originated in the context of Judaism, in which the term proselyte referred to someone who,
Coining from the gentiles, had passed into the Chosen People So too, in the Christian context, the term proselytism was
often used as a synonym for missionary activity. More recently, however, the term has taken on a negative connotation, to
mean the promotion of a religion by using means, and for motives, contrary to the spirit of the Gospel, that is, which do not
safeguard the freedom and dignity of the human person. It is in this sense that the term proselytism is understood in the
context of the ecumenical movement cf. The Joint Working Group between the Catholic Church and the World Council of
Churches, "The Challenge of Proselytism and the Calling to Common Witness" (1995).
50. SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL, Decree Unitatiss redintegratio, 4.
51 SECOND VATICAN CODNCIL, Declaration Dignitalis hurnanae, 4
52.Cf BENEDICT XVI, Encyclical Letter Deus caritas es (25 December 2005), 31 C: AAS 98 (2006), 245.
53. Cf, SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL., Declaration Dignitatis humanae, 11.
54. BENEDICT XVI, Homily during the visit to the Basilica of Saint Paul outside the Walls (25 April 2005): 4~1597
(2005), 745.
55. BENEDICT XVI, Address io the participants in the International Conference on the 40th anniversary of
the conciliar Decree Ad Gentes "(II] March 2006): AAS 98(2006), 334
56. BENEDICT XVI. Encyclical Letter Dees caritas es, 18- AAS 98 2006), 232

Gloria In Excelsis Deo!

Why is Gregorian chant making a comeback?
Arlene Oost-Zinner and Jeffrey Tucker

The pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI has been marked by new efforts to promote excellence in sacred music. His apostolic exhortation of last March, Sacramentum Caritatis, encourages teaching Latin chant in seminaries and singing it in liturgies, with particular emphasis on international gatherings.

The Pope has been quite direct in other settings as well. "An authentic updating of sacred music," he said in June 2006, "can take place only in the lineage of the great tradition of the past, of Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony." (Polyphony is music performed by multiple voices singing different, harmonized parts.)

Last but not least, Pope Benedict's recent apostolic letter Summorum Pontificum (July 7), which allows for a wider celebration of the traditional Latin Mass, now sets the stage for a wider use of Gregorian chant as well, given its important role in that form of the rite.

This is a Vatican-wide initiative, with an emphasis on the English-speaking world, where the neglect of the treasury of sacred music is widespread and well-known. Cardinal Frances Arinze, head of the Vatican congregation that oversees the sacred liturgy, spoke in St. Louis last year and urged a remedy. He said that in the average parish, Gregorian chant should be constantly present.

These statements echo authoritative documents of the Church: Gregorian chant, says the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), holds "pride of place because it is proper to the Roman liturgy."

This in turn restates the message of the Second Vatican Council, whose Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium (1963), teaches that chant represents the ideal liturgical music, the standard against which all else should be measured (see Nos. 116-117).

Clearly, then, the council fathers never intended for chant to vanish after Vatican II. Quite the opposite. Pope Paul VI, in 1974, issued a book of chants along with the pastoral letter Voluntatis Obsequens. "Those who are trying to improve the quality of congregational singing," said the letter, "cannot refuse to Gregorian chant the place which is due to it."

Again, we find the same emphasis from Pope John Paul II, whose "Chirograph on the Centenary of Pius X's Moto Proprio on Sacred Music" (2003) insists, "Among the musical expressions that correspond best with the qualities demanded by the notion of sacred music, espe-cially liturgical music, Gregorian chant has a special place." He adds that the chant is an element of unity in the Roman liturgy.

What Is Gregorian Chant?

The Gregorian tradition took shape in the eighth century as the primary song of the Latin rite. It fused Gallican, Frankish, Jewish and Roman styles, growing up alongside the Mass.

Popes have consistently emphasized that it should be studied, perfected and used, not just in religious communities and cathedrals but in all parishes. That is in part because chant embodies the pace, rhythm and transcendent longings we find in Scripture, particularly the Psalms.

The tradition of Gregorian chant in the Latin rite provides music that meets the needs of all ages, classes and ethnic groups, not just in our times but in all times. The chant is intimately linked with Catholic faith and its prayer life. It takes us out of our everyday environment to remind us that we are in a sacred space. It helps us pray.

For all these reasons, chant has begun to move beyond the world of CDs and movie soundtracks, entering once again into our parish lives. The National Registry of Gregorian Scholas (choirs), for example, lists more than 100 groups singing in parishes around the country.

But more needs to be done. Because the music is so different from popular styles, it can be a challenge to sing. The sheer quantity of Gregorian chant is overwhelming; even in several lifetimes, it would be impossible to learn it all. But there is a core that can be broken down into three parts.

• 1. The Kyriale is the name given to the body of chants that belong to the people during Mass. These include all the responses to the celebrant and what is called the Ordinary of the Mass: the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus and Agnus Dei.

Many people today are familiar with the most basic of these, but the Church has actually given us 18 different settings of the Ordinary. There are congregations in this country that know all 18!

• 2. The Graduale contains the body of chants that belongs to the Schola, or the singers set apart to study and perfect the Propers. The Propers are the sung parts of the Mass that include the Introit, Alleluia, Offertory and Communion, as well as the seasonal Sequences and Tracts. These are the most difficult part of Gregorian music, but also the part most closely tied to the changing prayer of the Mass.

• 3. Finally, there are the vast numbers of popular chant hymns that can be sung at liturgy. These include the Marian antiphons such as Ave Maria and Salve Regina, as well as poetry set to music such as Attende Domine, Veni Creator Spiritus and O Salutaris. This last type provides an excellent place to start.

Chant Means Change

Many pastors who lack experience with the chant worry about pushing something new on their congregations or music directors. And yet this is not just any change: It's a movement toward fulfilling the wishes of the Church. Just as we expect certain types of music at the baseball game or a restaurant, there's a type of music particularly suited for Mass.

Everyone knows about the feuds over liturgical music. Chant offers a peaceful "third way." It can have an appeal to all parishioners, provided it is presented properly.

Chant links all generations now living and binds us to Catholics in all times and places. It exists not as a time-bound statement about musical fashion, but rather as a timeless melodic means of community prayer.

Chant encourages reverence, prayer and an awareness of the transcendent purpose of liturgical action. Chant catechizes and serves an evangelistic purpose.

Yes, introducing chant means change. Progress in learning it must be counted in years, not weeks or months. But once the ground is prepared, the quiet solemnity of chant can take root and grow, persuading people of its merit by the hearing and doing. Singing it is more convincing than arguing about it.

A Call for Humility

The renewed emphasis on chant in liturgy is a call for humility above all else. Musicians are being asked to serve rather than perform. The motivation must be love of liturgy and its source, love of sung prayer and its purpose, and a genuine desire to hear the people of God united in one voice in praise and thanksgiving.

Rome has been thoroughly consistent on the matter of liturgical music and the importance of using Gregorian chant in worship. But genuine change in response to these directives must begin in the parish community. It must come from the people and their pastors so that it can truly take root once again in the life of everyday Catholics. TCA

Arlene Oost-Zinner and Jeffrey Tucker are directors of the St.Cecilia Schola Cantorum in Auburn, Ala. You may e-mail them at contact@ceciliaschola.org.

From: Our Sunday Visitor

URL source: http://www.osv.com/TCANav/TheCatholicAnswerNovDec2007/GloriainExcelsisDeo/tabid/4642/Default.aspx

Letter from Bishop Fellay

Society of Saint Pius X
Priorat Mariae Verkundigung
Schloss Schwandegg
Menzingen, ZG, CH-6313
SWITZERLAND

SUPERIOR GENERAL'S
LETTER TO FRIENDS AND BENEFACTORS #71

Dear Friends and Benefactors,

    The traditional Mass was never abrogated. What joy, dear faithful, filled our hearts at the announcement of Pope Benedict XVI's motu proprio July 7th.  We see in it an answer from Heaven to our Rosary Crusade, not only by the simple fact of its promulgation, but especially because of the scope of the overture towards the traditional liturgy we find there.  Indeed, it is not only the missal that is declared to be Church law, but also other liturgical books.  In fact, if the Mass was never abrogated, it kept all its rights.

    In reality, the motu proprio grants nothing new to the Mass of All Time; it simple affirms that the Mass of St. Pius V, called "of John XXIII" for the occasion, is still in force despite its absence and an interdiction against its celebration lasting nearly forty years.  The Tridentine Mass is still the Catholic Mass.  The subtle and maladroit distinction made between ordinary form and extraordinary form of the same rite in speaking of the new and the old Mass will not deceive anyone.  In this domain, the facts speak for themselves.  What must be retained is the assertion of the Mass's perpetual status as a universal law of the Catholic Church. The very word "law of the Church" excludes indults, permissions, or conditions.  The bishops are trying to neutralize the salutary effect of the motu proprio by imposing onerous and odious restrictions on its implementation.  They are certainly not following the Sovereign Pontiff's will.  It will be very interesting to watch the progress of this more or less open rebellion, which is largely hidden from public view.  The history of the Church for the next several decades will be determined by this confrontation.  Let us pray that the pope may have the strength to uphold and to impose what he has just restored to the Church.

    It goes much further than the simple celebration of the Mass.  The motu proprio opens the door to the former liturgical spirit in the sense that he is allowing it to develop.  The liturgy comprises several elements, of which, obviously, the most important is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, but this treasure is set amongst an ensemble of liturgical books.  Most of them, or at least the most well-known, are going to acquire a new life: the ritual, which contains the rites used by the priest to confer the sacraments and blessings; the pontifical in part, which contains the sacrament of confirmation; and the breviary.  These liturgical books form a whole that will undoubtedly allow the traditional liturgical spirit to assume a place in the life of the Church.

    The initial effects of the motu proprio are interesting, even if they are almost insignificant when one considers the Church as a whole.  Still, some bishops are actively supporting the movement; and despite the difficulties imposed by other Ordinaries, priests especially are learning and beginning to celebrate the Holy Mass.  More than 5,000 priests worldwide have requested the training videos on the ceremonies of the Mass produced by the Society.  That shows that priests still take a certain interest in the Mass of All Time!

    What is admirable is the unanimous opinion we hear from priests who are discovering the Tridentine Mass.  The following testimonies are not exceptional: "It's two different worlds!" "Celebrating facing the altar or the people is completely different!" "By celebrating this Mass, I've discovered what a priest is!"

    These testimonials go a long way, and are worth more than all the argumentations.

    There is no point in asking them what they think about the holiness of the new rite...  It is obvious that if the genuine freedom to celebrate were guaranteed not only in writing but in practice, the number of Tridentine Masses would immediately increase tenfold.

    Whoever is aware of the titanic struggle that has been raging in our Catholic Church for at least two centuries, understands that a large part of the crisis in the Church is playing out around the Mass.  Two Masses, two theologies, two spirits: A new spirit was inoculated into the veins of the Mystical Body by means of the New Mass, "the spirit of Vatican II."  The traditional Mass, on the contrary, radiates the Catholic Spirit.  The rite of St. Pius V entails an incomparable coherence of faith and morals.  Whoever seriously attends the traditional Mass quickly realizes that the life of faith requires this Mass, which fully nourishes faith.  Soon the logic of the faith becomes clear to the faithful soul: the just man lives by faith. One's beliefs. The whole of Christian morality, with all its demands of self-denial, sacrifice, and detachment from the world, flows from it.  God is holy, and whoever desires to approach Him must live a life of purity, for His holiness requires that the faithful soul put on the spotless garment of grace.  The Mass not only opens the eyes of the faithful to this reality, the sublimity of the Christian vocation, but above all it gives them the means to live it.  What an abundance of grace is poured out upon the faithful of "good will" at Mass, and even more upon the priest who celebrates it.

    The radiant grace of the Mass calls forth another sanctification: that of the Christian family, and ultimately all of society.  If society was Christian for centuries, for more than a millennium in fact, this must be attributed above all to the Mass, this holy rite that was essentially complete by the end of antiquity.  We are able to celebrate the so-called "Tridentine Mass", or the "Mass of St. Pius V", without difficulty using manuscripts of the tenth or eleventh centuries.

    One cannot be struck by the fact that the decadence, indeed the disappearance, of Christian society noticeably accelerated once the new rite was introduced.  Who would only like to see in that mere chance or coincidence?

    We are still engaged in the titanic struggle for the salvation of souls which runs throughout the history of the human race.  Let us hope that the advances made by the motu proprio do not cause us to lose sight of this much deeper view of things.  The new situation is cause for hope, but also for redoubled courage to carry on the combat along the route traced by Archbishop Lefebvre.

    The success gained by our Rosary Crusade, the zeal that we saw deployed, inspires us to renew our confidence in our heavenly Mother, not by a crusade a month or two long, but by a perpetual Rosary Crusade.  Yes, may this prayer of the rosary never cease to ascend heavenward for the good of the Church and the salvation of souls.  We are convinced that Our Lady will not remain unmoved by such an onslaught of the Ave Marias, and will hasten the Church's recovery.

    Once, a Swiss General, General Guisan, on seeing a soldier praying his rosary, said: "How I should like to see Switzerland encircled by this chain."  In keeping with this fine sentiment, we should like to encircle the entire Church with a chain of rosaries, to encircle her with an immense and continual string of Ave Marias for her defense and protection.  Thus, we are now launching a perpetual Rosary Crusade to obtain from Heaven not only that the decree of excommunication be withdrawn, but especially that Catholic Tradition be fully re-established in its due place -- a crusade that will continue until the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

    May all the saints come unto our aid, and may Our Lady bless you.

The Feast of All Saints
November 1, 2007
+ Bernard Fellay

News: Aussies to get Catholic Ads at Movies this Christmas

Aussies to get Catholic ads at movies this Christmas

Mon Dec 10, 2007 8:42pm IST

By Michael Perry

SYDNEY (Reuters Life!) - As well as being encouraged to enjoy the show, Australians going to the movies this festive season will be asked if they know about Jesus in the latest advertising campaign by the Catholic Church.

At a time when people's thoughts may turn to the birthday behind the celebrations, the Church is planning to run ads during the screening of "The Bee Movie", an animated film starring comedian Jerry Seinfeld, and the period drama "Atonement".

The advertisements ask cinema-goers: "Have you ever wanted to know what Catholics believe? Some aspects of the Catholic faith are a mystery."

The ad then tells the audience to call a telephone number to receive a series of free booklets.

"While newspaper advertising is still important to reach our market, newspaper readership is in decline, and this is another way to reach the mass market," said the Catholic Enquiry Centre on its Web site www.catholicenquiry.com.

"This is the peak time that people visit the cinema, with Boxing Day attracting the biggest viewing audiences of the year," said the centre, which has a link to an advertisement.

The Catholic Church remains Australia's biggest faith with 5.1 million followers, followed by 3.7 million Anglicans. But Australians are increasingly turning away from religion, according to the nation's census released in 2007.

About 3.7 million people, or 19 percent of the population, said they had no religion, up from 2.9 million or 17 percent a decade ago. While Christian denominations still prevail, the census found Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam to be the fastest growing religions in this nation of immigrants.

The Catholic Church cinema ads, which will be complemented by a newspaper campaign, are aimed at reaching people whose thoughts might turn to the faith at Christmas time, said the church.

"We know that our Churches fill up over the Christmas period, with people who haven't been to Mass for some time and even with some people who've never been to a Catholic Mass before," said Archbishop John Bathersby, Chairman of the Bishops Commission for Mission and Faith Formation.

"The Christmas season is an important time for people to take time out and remember that the birth of Jesus Christ is the cause of all the celebrations.

"Perhaps, in the quiet darkness of a movie theatre, they will be prompted to find out more about how the Catholic faith can help them find the peace they are searching for," he added.

(Editing by Miral Fahmy)

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Reuters journalists are subject to the Reuters Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.

It's Hip to be Latin

Sat Dec 08, 2007 7:48 am (GMT -5)


Catholics show fresh interest in Latin mass

By JACQUELINE SALMON
The Washington Post via The Colorado Gazette
December 7, 2007
Link to original


WASHINGTON - Parts of it are 1,500 years old, it’s difficult to understand, and it’s even more challenging to watch. And it’s catching on among young Catholics.

It’s the traditional Latin Mass, a formal worship service making a comeback after more than 40 years of moldering in the Vatican basement.

In September, Pope Benedict XVI relaxed restrictions on celebrating Latin Mass, frequently called the Tridentine Mass, citing “a new and renewed” interest in the ancient Latin liturgy, especially among younger Catholics.

Spoken or sung entirely in Latin by priests who face the altar instead of the congregation, it is a radical departure for most Catholics, who grew up attending a more informal Mass celebrated in their native tongue.

And it is a hit with younger priests and their parishioners.

Attendance at the Sunday noon Mass at St. John the Beloved in McLean, Va., has doubled to 400 people since it began celebrating in Latin. Most of the worshippers are younger than 40, said the Rev. Franklyn McAfee.

Younger parishioners “are more reflective,” McAfee said. “They want something uplifting when they go to church. They don’t want something they can get outside.”

For some, the popularity of the service represents the gap between older Catholics, who grew up in the more liberal, post-Vatican II era, and their younger counterparts, who say they feel as if they missed out on a tradition jettisoned in the move to modernize.

Priests, musicians and laypeople are snapping up how-to videos and books, signing up for workshops and viewing online tutorials with step-by-step instructions on the elaborately choreographed liturgy.

“I knew there would be some interest, but I didn’t know how quickly it would spread and how really deep the interest was,” said the Rev. Scott Haynes, a priest in the Archdiocese of Chicago who started a Web site in August offering instructions in celebrating the Mass. The Web site, www.sanctamissa.org, has received at least 1 million hits, Haynes said.

“Before Vatican II, there were a lot of things that marked Catholics as Catholic: the Tridentine Mass in Latin, fish on Fridays, those kinds of things,” said Monsignor Kevin Irwin, dean of the School of Theology and Religious Studies at Catholic University. “And I think that 40 years after the (Second Vatican) Council, there is a revival of questions asking what is Catholic identity, and for some, this is an external manifestation of saying, ‘We’re Catholic.’”

Second Sunday of Advent

Second Sunday of Advent

he Epistle of St. Paul to the Romans, xv. 4-13.

Brethren: What things soever were written, were written for our learning: that through patience and the comfort of the scriptures, we might have hope. Now the God of patience and of comfort grant you to be of one mind one towards another, according to Jesus Christ: that with one mind, and with one mouth, you may glorify God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Wherefore receive one another, as Christ also hath received you unto the honour of God. For I say that Christ Jesus was minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers. But that the Gentiles are to glorify God for his mercy, as it is written: Therefore will I confess to thee, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and will sing to thy name. And again He saith: Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people. And again: Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles; and magnify Him, all ye people. 2 And again Isaias saith: There shall be a root of Jesse; and He that shall rise up to rule the Gentiles, in him the Gentiles shall hope. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing; that you may abound in hope, and in the power of the Holy Ghost.

    What are we to learn by this epistle?
    To be grateful to God for having received us into the bosom of His holy Church. Again, we are taught that by envy, discord, pride, and hatred we lose our salvation. Finally, St. Paul refers us to the Scriptures for instruction.

    Why do the Holy Scriptures profit us?
    1. They teach, correct, and instruct us in justice, that we may serve God faithfully, and be ever ready for good works. 2. They sustain our patience in suffering, and our hope of eternal life, by many promises, and by the example of Jesus Christ and His saints.

    Why is God called the God of patience, comfort, and hope?
    1. Because He looks with patience and long-suffering upon our sinful lives. 2. Because He gives us grace to carry our cross with patience and joy, and removes our dispair by spiritual consolation. 3. Because He gives us hope that after this life we shall possess Him, the object of our desire.

Aspiration.

    O God of patience, comfort, and hope, fill our hearts with joy and peace, and grant that we may become perfect in all good works by faith, hope, and charity, and that we may attain the promised salvation.

he Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ, According to St. Matthew, xi. 2-10.

At that time: When John had heard in prison the works of Christ: sending two of his disciples he said to Him: Art thou He that art to come, or look we for another? And Jesus making answer said to them: Go and relate to John what you have heard and seen. The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead rise again, the poor have the gospel preached to them: And blessed is he that shall not be scandalized in Me. And when they went their way, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: What went you out into the desert to see? a reed shaken with the wind? But what went you out to see? a man clothed in soft garments? Behold they that are clothed in soft garments, are in the houses of kings. But what went you out to see? a prophet? yea I tell you, and more than a prophet. For this is he of whom it is written: Behold I send my angel before thy face, who shall prepare Thy way before Thee.

    Why was St. John cast into prison?
    Because he rebuked King Herod, who was living in adultery with the wife of his stepbrother. This teaches us that we should not be deterred from our duty, though great suffering and misfortune should thereby befall us. Is it not nobler and more profitable to our salvation to be a martyr for truth, as St. John was, rather than to gain favor with the world by timidly looking on, or by deceitful flattery?

    Why did St. John send his disciples to Jesus?
    St. John sent his disciples to Christ so that they, too, might be convinced that He was the Messias.
    Superiors and parents should learn from this to see that their dependents and children are well instructed in the faith.

    Why did Christ merely say to the disciples of St. John "Go and relate to John what you have heard and seen: the blind see, the lame walk, " etc.?
    Because they ought to have been convinced from the miracles He wrought, which were the fulfilment of the prophecies, that He was the promised Messias.

    What was the object of the question, "What went you out to see?" which Our Saviour asked?
    1. To praise the constancy of St. John, who was not to be deterred from exercising his sacred functions either by the commands of Herod or through fear of imprisonment and death. 2. To approve the austere life of St. John, that we should thereby be encouraged to crucify the flesh and to do penance.

    Why did Our Saviour say that St. John was more than a prophet?
    Because he was destined to see the Messias, to preach Him to men, and declare Him to be the Saviour of the world. And as he was a messenger of God, to announce the coming of Christ and prepare His way, he was called an angel (Malach. iii. 7).

    Why did Jesus add, "Blessed is he that shall not be scandalized in Me"?
    On account of those who would be scandalized at His humility, His poverty, His ignominious suffering and death upon the cross, and who would, accordingly, despise and reject Him; although the more He humbled Himself for them the more they ought rather to love and honor Him.

    Why does the Church set before us this gospel?
    In order that we, like the disciples of St. John, may, by His works, recognize Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, and that we may make ourselves worthy of the grace of redemption by doing penance earnestly and firmly, thus preparing the way of the Lord in our hearts.

Consolation in Adversities and Afflictions.

    What can and should console us in adversity?
    1. A firm belief that everything is ordered by God's wise providence, and that no evil can befall us except by His permission, Who never allows us to suffer more than is for our good.
    2. That if we call upon Him in adversity God will help us, whenever it is expedient for our salvation. Thus to encourage us He says, "Call upon Me in the day of trouble, I will deliver thee" (Ps. xlix. 15); and, "If God be for us, who is against us?" (Rom. viii. 31); and "Can a woman forget her infant so as not to have pity on the son of her womb? and if she should forget, yet will not I forget thee: behold, I have graven thee in My hands" (Isaias xlix 15,16).
    3. That it is useless to resist Divine Providence, for all who have done so have been filled with shame and ignominy: "Who hath resisted Him and hath had peace?" (Job ix. 4.)
    4. That our sufferings when borne with patience and submission lose their sharpness, and bring us merit and reward. "For that which is at present momentary and light of our tribulation, worketh for us, above measure exceedingly, an eternal weight of glory" (II. Cor. iv. 17).

 Goffine's Devout Instructions on the Epistles and Gospels for the Sundays and Holy Days, 1896