SAINT AGNES CATHEDRAL 533 South Jefferson Springfield, MO 65806
EXTRAORDINARY FORM OF THE MASS (LATIN)
CELEBRANT Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
August 12th, 11th Sunday after Pentecost
Epistle: 1 Cor. 15:1-10; Gospel: Mk. 7:31-37
Mass Schedule August 13th through August 17th
Monday –Feria--NO LATIN MASS
Tuesday-Vigil of the Assumption
Wednesday-Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary—Mass at 10:00am
Thursday-Saint Joachim, Father of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Friday-Saint Hyacinth, Confessor
Pot Luck dinner August 12th immediately following the 2:30pm Mass.
NOTE: THERE WILL BE NO LATIN MASS THIS FRIDAY, AUGUST 1OTH AT 12:15PM.
MASS ON THE FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION WILL BE AT 10:00AM.
The Blessed Virgin Mary is by far our most powerful intercessor! We should have recourse to her constantly in order to draw closer to Jesus Christ her Son. Mary’s sinless soul was filled with the Divine Spirit of Jesus Christ far and above all other human souls. Her intimate union with Christ makes it impossible for her son to refuse any request on her part!
There is absolutely no quicker way to conform ourselves to the person of Jesus Christ than by meditating upon the mysteries of His life. We do this when we pray the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Saint Louis Marie de Montfort writes that: “All our perfection consists in being conformed, united and consecrated to Jesus Christ; and therefore the most perfect of all devotions is, without any doubt, that which the most perfectly conforms, unites and consecrates us to Jesus Christ. Now Mary, being the most conformed of all creatures to Jesus Christ, it follows that of all devotions, that which most consecrates and conforms the soul to our Lord is devotion to His Holy Mother; that the more a soul is consecrated to Mary, the more it is consecrated to Jesus Christ.”
The best reasons for praying the Holy Rosary are the following:
1) For world peace… “Say the Rosary every day to obtain peace for the world.” (Our Lady of Fatima, 1917). The Popes have highly recommended the Rosary to promote peace throughout the world.
2) A means for preserving the home…”There is no surer means of calling down God’s blessings upon the family…than the daily recitation of the Rosary”… Pope Pius XII
3) For courage in the hardships of life …”a powerful means of renewing our courage will undoubtedly be found in the Holy Rosary”…Pope Leo XIII
4) As a ready and easy means of preserving the faith…”We have elsewhere brought it to the attention of the devout Christian that not least among the advantages of the Rosary is the ready means it puts in his hands to nurture his faith, and to keep him from ignorance of his religion and the danger of error”…Pope Leo XIII
Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Jeffery Fasching
Prayers at the Foot of the Altar
Showing posts with label Encyclical. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Encyclical. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Monday, October 17, 2011
Eucharistic Presence
One of the critical questions that have sharply divided Christians since the Reformation is how to understand the presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, High Anglicans, and Lutherans believe that the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ are truly present in the Eucharist, in their proper reality, under the appearance of bread and wine.
The term “real presence” has been used to describe the special mode of Christ’s presence in the Eucharist since the middle ages. The Council of Trent entitled the first chapter of its Decree on the Most Holy Eucharist “The Real Presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist.” However, there are in fact other modes of Christ’s presence, each of them “real” in its own way. Several of these are mentioned in the Constitution on the Liturgy:
He is present in the Sacrifice of the Mass, not only in the person of His minister, “the same now offering, through the ministry of priest, who formerly offered Himself on the cross”, but especially in the Eucharistic species.
By His power He is present in the sacraments, so that when anybody baptizes it is really Christ Himself who baptizes.
He is present in His word, since it is He Himself who speaks when the holy scriptures are read in the Church.
Lastly, He is present when the Church prays and sings, for He has promised “where two or three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them.”
These are not the only ways in which Christ is present to His Church. Pope Paul VI, in his encyclical Mysterium Fidei mentions all of these and adds others: “Christ is present in the Church:
As it performs works of mercy…
As it struggles to reach the harbor of eternal life…
As it preaches…
As it shepherds and guides the people of God…
In Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
The term “real presence” has been used to describe the special mode of Christ’s presence in the Eucharist since the middle ages. The Council of Trent entitled the first chapter of its Decree on the Most Holy Eucharist “The Real Presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist.” However, there are in fact other modes of Christ’s presence, each of them “real” in its own way. Several of these are mentioned in the Constitution on the Liturgy:
He is present in the Sacrifice of the Mass, not only in the person of His minister, “the same now offering, through the ministry of priest, who formerly offered Himself on the cross”, but especially in the Eucharistic species.
By His power He is present in the sacraments, so that when anybody baptizes it is really Christ Himself who baptizes.
He is present in His word, since it is He Himself who speaks when the holy scriptures are read in the Church.
Lastly, He is present when the Church prays and sings, for He has promised “where two or three are gathered together in my name there am I in the midst of them.”
These are not the only ways in which Christ is present to His Church. Pope Paul VI, in his encyclical Mysterium Fidei mentions all of these and adds others: “Christ is present in the Church:
As it performs works of mercy…
As it struggles to reach the harbor of eternal life…
As it preaches…
As it shepherds and guides the people of God…
In Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Women Priests...?
Second, the faith and practice of the early Church is normative for the Church of all ages. But the early Church, following the pattern set by Jesus, admitted only men to the offices of presbyter and bishop. Therefore the Church today must continue to do the same. If the early Church ordained only men to the presbyterate, it was not simply because the culture of the times excluded women from roles of religious leadership. Many pagan religions at that time employed priestesses.
Response: The fact that the early Church chose only men as bishops and presbyters is not based on any immutable law binding the Church in later times but reflects the influence of the male dominant cultures in which the Church had its origin and early development. In Israel, only men were allowed to serve as priests and elders of the people, just as only males were allowed to attend Jewish synagogue services. Despite the presence of priestesses in some pagan religions of that time, from which many early converts were drawn, all of the cultures which helped to shape the early Church were male dominant. Since we live in a different culture, we are not bound by these practices of a by-gone-day.
In Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Response: The fact that the early Church chose only men as bishops and presbyters is not based on any immutable law binding the Church in later times but reflects the influence of the male dominant cultures in which the Church had its origin and early development. In Israel, only men were allowed to serve as priests and elders of the people, just as only males were allowed to attend Jewish synagogue services. Despite the presence of priestesses in some pagan religions of that time, from which many early converts were drawn, all of the cultures which helped to shape the early Church were male dominant. Since we live in a different culture, we are not bound by these practices of a by-gone-day.
In Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Friday, October 7, 2011
Women Priests?
It has been a constant tradition of the Roman Catholic Church that only males may be admitted to priestly ordination. In recent years, the question has been asked whether the time has not come for the Church to change the practice of restricting priestly ordination to persons of the male gender. However, there has never been any doubt about this matter in the official teaching of the Catholic Church. To give a definitive response to those who in recent years have been strongly advocating the ordination of women, Blessed Pope John Paul II issued the Apostolic Letter: Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, May 22, 1994, in which he declared that male priesthood was established by Christ Himself and that the Church has no authority to change this discipline. He explained that the male priest represents the very person of Christ in His spousal relationship to the Church. The Pontiff concluded with a firm statement that is intended to put an end to any doubt or debate over this question in the Church:
“In order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church’s divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren (Lk 22.32), I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful.”
In Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
“In order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church’s divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren (Lk 22.32), I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful.”
In Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Monday, October 3, 2011
Christ’s Redemptive Sacrifice Shown Forth in the Two-fold Consecration
The two-fold consecration show forth the body and blood of Christ under the separate signs of bread and wine, and thus can be seen as visible signs pointing to the separation of His body and blood in death.
Pius XII developed this idea in his encyclical Mediator Dei:
“According to the plan of divine wisdom, the sacrifice of Our Redeemer is shown forth in an admirable manner by external signs which are symbols of His death…The Eucharistic species under which He is present symbolize the violent separation of His body and blood and so a commemorative showing forth of His death which took place in reality on Calvary is repeated in each sacrifice of the altar, because by distinct representations Christ Jesus is signified and shown forth in the state of victim.”
The Eucharistic Liturgy makes Christ’s Sacrifice present in its essential reality. The Liturgy of the Eucharist makes really present the same priest and the same victim, offering Himself to the Father for us with the same dispositions with which He once offered Himself on the Cross. We thus share at the same time in Christ’s unique sacrifice on Calvary and in His eternal offering of that sacrifice in the heavenly sanctuary.
The faithful can thereby join in offering Christ and themselves in union with Him to the Father. The very reason for renewing the sacrifice of Christ under sacred signs is so that we the faithful may join with Christ in offering His sacrifice and ourselves in union with Him to the Father.
Some people object that the sacrifice described here is not real because the immolation is not real but is only shown forth in sign. However, this objection loses sight of the fact that all sacrifice is in the order of sign. This objection obscures the fact that the essential element of sacrifice is not, per se, the slaying of the victim but the ritual act of offering that signifies the human person’s worship of God as Creator and Lord.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Pius XII developed this idea in his encyclical Mediator Dei:
“According to the plan of divine wisdom, the sacrifice of Our Redeemer is shown forth in an admirable manner by external signs which are symbols of His death…The Eucharistic species under which He is present symbolize the violent separation of His body and blood and so a commemorative showing forth of His death which took place in reality on Calvary is repeated in each sacrifice of the altar, because by distinct representations Christ Jesus is signified and shown forth in the state of victim.”
The Eucharistic Liturgy makes Christ’s Sacrifice present in its essential reality. The Liturgy of the Eucharist makes really present the same priest and the same victim, offering Himself to the Father for us with the same dispositions with which He once offered Himself on the Cross. We thus share at the same time in Christ’s unique sacrifice on Calvary and in His eternal offering of that sacrifice in the heavenly sanctuary.
The faithful can thereby join in offering Christ and themselves in union with Him to the Father. The very reason for renewing the sacrifice of Christ under sacred signs is so that we the faithful may join with Christ in offering His sacrifice and ourselves in union with Him to the Father.
Some people object that the sacrifice described here is not real because the immolation is not real but is only shown forth in sign. However, this objection loses sight of the fact that all sacrifice is in the order of sign. This objection obscures the fact that the essential element of sacrifice is not, per se, the slaying of the victim but the ritual act of offering that signifies the human person’s worship of God as Creator and Lord.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
The People Offer
The people offer in their own names, “not only through the hands of the priest but also together with him. But because only the priest acts in the very person of Christ in confecting the sacrament and in offering the sacred Gift to the Father, the offering of the people depends upon that of the priest or, rather, on that of Christ acting through the priest.
Pius XII, in his encyclical: Mediator Dei writes: “It is important for all the faithful to understand that it is their duty and highest privilege to take part in the Eucharistic sacrifice…in the closest union with the High Priest…and to offer it together with Him, and with Him to surrender themselves. But the fact that the faithful take part in the Eucharistic sacrifice does not mean that they also possess the power of the ministerial priesthood…The people…because they in no way represent the person of the divine Redeemer and are not mediator between themselves and God, can in no way possess the ministerial priestly right. All this is certain with the certainty of faith…The oblation is shared by the faithful in their own way, on a twofold ground: for they do not only offer the sacrifice through the hands of the priest, but also, in a certain sense, together with him…This does not mean that all the members, like the priest himself, perform the visible liturgical rite; this is done only by the minister divinely appointed for that purpose. Rather they are said to offer with him inasmuch as they unite their offerings of praise, entreaty, expiation, and thanksgiving with the offering or mental intentions of the priest, indeed with those of the High Priest Himself.”
Some argue that since the Eucharist is so important to the Church, if no ordained priest will be available, the laity can select one of their members to preside at the Eucharist. Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict gives the best theological response. He points out that the church is not a mere sociological community whose members may choose a functionary to do whatever they will. It is rather a sacramental, hierarchical community whose pastoral leaders have been chosen and empowered by Christ to shepherd His flock and dispense the heavenly gifts He has entrusted to His Church. Only those called by Christ and rightly ordained by the Church can validly celebrate the Eucharist and other sacraments.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Pius XII, in his encyclical: Mediator Dei writes: “It is important for all the faithful to understand that it is their duty and highest privilege to take part in the Eucharistic sacrifice…in the closest union with the High Priest…and to offer it together with Him, and with Him to surrender themselves. But the fact that the faithful take part in the Eucharistic sacrifice does not mean that they also possess the power of the ministerial priesthood…The people…because they in no way represent the person of the divine Redeemer and are not mediator between themselves and God, can in no way possess the ministerial priestly right. All this is certain with the certainty of faith…The oblation is shared by the faithful in their own way, on a twofold ground: for they do not only offer the sacrifice through the hands of the priest, but also, in a certain sense, together with him…This does not mean that all the members, like the priest himself, perform the visible liturgical rite; this is done only by the minister divinely appointed for that purpose. Rather they are said to offer with him inasmuch as they unite their offerings of praise, entreaty, expiation, and thanksgiving with the offering or mental intentions of the priest, indeed with those of the High Priest Himself.”
Some argue that since the Eucharist is so important to the Church, if no ordained priest will be available, the laity can select one of their members to preside at the Eucharist. Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict gives the best theological response. He points out that the church is not a mere sociological community whose members may choose a functionary to do whatever they will. It is rather a sacramental, hierarchical community whose pastoral leaders have been chosen and empowered by Christ to shepherd His flock and dispense the heavenly gifts He has entrusted to His Church. Only those called by Christ and rightly ordained by the Church can validly celebrate the Eucharist and other sacraments.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
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