Liturgical Year
Next Entries »O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
Thursday, January 10th, 2008If you’ve ever wondered, debated, or even argued about how long to leave your Christmas decorations up, this item from CUF’s director of Catholic Responses, Eric Stoutz, is for you. What he sketches out can not only help us answer that question, but it can also teach us about living the liturgical seasons.
Should Holy Days Be “Obligatory”?
Wednesday, January 2nd, 2008In my parish, which is one of the largest I’ve ever seen, we have six Masses that satisfy the Sunday obligation–one Saturday evening Mass and five on Sunday. Remarkably, the large church is mostly full for all of the Masses. In fact, if one doesn’t get to the 10:30 a.m. Mass a little early, one [...]
The Roots of the Messiah
Monday, December 17th, 2007December 17th marks a turning point in the Advent season. We are now unmistakably in the home stretch. As we heard at Mass last Sunday, “the Lord is near”–Christmas is just around the corner. December 17th marks the beginning of the “O Antiphons” in Evening Prayer, which draw on some biblical titles of our Lord [...]
“Pink Candle” Sunday
Thursday, December 13th, 2007This Sunday, the third Sunday of Lent, is traditionally called Gaudete Sunday. It is “rejoicing Sunday,” as “Gaudete” is the first word of the Entrance Antiphon, taken from Philippians 4:4-5: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice! The Lord is near.” Gaudete Sunday, along with Laetare Sunday in Lent (as an aside, to avoid confusion, remember Laetare and [...]
Dressed in Blue
Saturday, December 8th, 2007I admit it. Most days I pay precious little attention to what I wear. As long as it’s clean and presentable–and still fits–I’m satisfied. This morning, however, I sought out my best blue dress shirt. It’s a holy day, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, and I thought it would be fitting to wear blue [...]
The Real St. Nick
Wednesday, December 5th, 2007As we prepare for the sublime feast of the Nativity of Our Lord during these weeks of Advent, we can’t help but notice the trappings of our secular culture that continually impose themselves on the “holiday season.” Meanwhile, more overtly religious expressions, such as créches or Nativity scenes, are systematically excluded from the public square. [...]
The Advent of Christmas
Monday, December 3rd, 2007The reason we celebrate Christmas at all should be obvious: The birth of Christ in the “fullness of time” of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the most significant event in human history. Despite secularist efforts to change how we reckon time, even our calendar is divided by what occurred “Before Christ” and after Christ, “in the [...]
Rebuilding This Temple
Friday, November 9th, 2007Today the Church celebrates the fairly unusual feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica, which as the Pope’s cathedral is known as the “mother church” of not only the Diocese of Rome but of the whole world. One line from the Gospel for today’s feast really struck me: “This temple has been under construction [...]
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