SAINT AGNES CATHEDRAL 533 South Jefferson Springfield, MO 65806
EXTRAORDINARY FORM OF THE MASS (LATIN)
CELEBRANT Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
April 22nd, 2012 Second Sunday After Easter
Epistle: 1 Pet. 2:21-25—Gospel: Jn. 10:11-16
Mass Schedule April 23rd through April 27th
Monday-Feria of Paschaltide-NO LATIN MASS
Tuesday-Saint Fidelis of Sigmaringen, Martyr
Wednesday-Saint Mark, Evangelist
Thursday-SS. Cletus & Marcellinus, Popes & Martyrs
Friday-Saint Peter Canisius, Confessor & Doctor
Christ came to re-establish peace and unity. He founded one Church with one visible head, namely Saint Peter. It should be our constant prayer and desire that everyone should be united with the true Church. Just as Jesus Christ was sent by the Father, so He in turn sent His apostles who were filled with the Holy Ghost. Their mission was to proclaim that mankind had been freed from Satan’s power through the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Since the day of Pentecost Christ’s Church has always gathered together to celebrate the paschal mystery. In so doing, we proclaim Christ’s death until He comes again. We proclaim Christ’s victory over death and thank God for His gift of Jesus Christ.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Prayers at the Foot of the Altar
Showing posts with label flock. Show all posts
Showing posts with label flock. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Women Priests? II
The following are the principal reasons that are usually offered for admitting only men to the priesthood. I will also give you critiques that are frequently given in response. First, Christ chose only men as apostles. This was not simply because Jewish culture at that time excluded women from positions of authority and leadership in religious society, for Jesus showed that He was able to rise above conventional norms, yet He did not do so in this case. His exclusive choice of men as apostles must have been a deliberate decision which remains binding on the later Church. Moreover, Jesus invited only the Twelve to attend the Last Supper at which He instituted the Eucharist, although it was customary for all members of a family, male and female, to take part in the Passover supper.
Response: Jesus chose twelve men as His inner circle of disciples in order to symbolize the renewal of Israel descended from the twelve patriarchs. This has nothing to do with deciding whether women can be ordained presbyters. Presbyters are not the same as Apostles.
In Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Response: Jesus chose twelve men as His inner circle of disciples in order to symbolize the renewal of Israel descended from the twelve patriarchs. This has nothing to do with deciding whether women can be ordained presbyters. Presbyters are not the same as Apostles.
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
Monday, September 19, 2011
The Eucharistic Sacrifice
Who offers the Eucharistic sacrifice? Christ or the Church, the priest or the people? If all of these how do their roles differ and how are they related?
The Church Offers:
The whole family of God, the Church, offers the Eucharistic sacrifice, especially the faithful who are present. This is clearly indicated in the very words of the liturgy. Christ instituted the Eucharist precisely in order that the Church, His beloved spouse, might have a visible sacrifice to offer to God, as the nature of the human creature requires.
But who in the Church offers? Obviously the priest does. But in what capacity? Simply as leader of the congregation? Or does the priest have a special role as representative of Christ or as representative of the Church? If both, how are these roles related? How about the people? How is their offering related to that of the priest? Is their mode of offering the same or different from that of the priest?
The Priest Offers:
The priest offers in the person of Christ, in the name of the Church, and in his own name. The Protestants see the presiding minister of the Lord’s Supper acting simply as the leader of the congregation, certainly with a special responsibility and authority, but without any unique sacramental empowerment through the sacrament of Holy Orders.
But according to Catholic teaching, the priest, through the sacrament of Holy Orders, is so configured to Christ the High Priest that in the celebration of the Eucharist he acts in the very person of Christ. Only the priest, in virtue of the special character of priestly ordination, can speak the words of consecration in the very person of Christ. In doing so, he acts not merely as Christ’s representative, but in His person, as His sacramental representation. It is for this reason that the priest alone is able to confect the Eucharist. If there is no priest, there can be no Mass.
Pius XII, in his encyclical: Mystici Corporis writes: “The sacred ministers represent not only our Savior, but also the whole mystical Body and each one of its members. In that sacrifice the faithful are associated in the common prayer and supplication and, through the hands of the priest, whose voice alone renders the Immaculate Lamb present on the altar, they themselves offer to the eternal Father this most pleasing victim of praise and propitiation for the needs of the whole Church.”
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
The Church Offers:
The whole family of God, the Church, offers the Eucharistic sacrifice, especially the faithful who are present. This is clearly indicated in the very words of the liturgy. Christ instituted the Eucharist precisely in order that the Church, His beloved spouse, might have a visible sacrifice to offer to God, as the nature of the human creature requires.
But who in the Church offers? Obviously the priest does. But in what capacity? Simply as leader of the congregation? Or does the priest have a special role as representative of Christ or as representative of the Church? If both, how are these roles related? How about the people? How is their offering related to that of the priest? Is their mode of offering the same or different from that of the priest?
The Priest Offers:
The priest offers in the person of Christ, in the name of the Church, and in his own name. The Protestants see the presiding minister of the Lord’s Supper acting simply as the leader of the congregation, certainly with a special responsibility and authority, but without any unique sacramental empowerment through the sacrament of Holy Orders.
But according to Catholic teaching, the priest, through the sacrament of Holy Orders, is so configured to Christ the High Priest that in the celebration of the Eucharist he acts in the very person of Christ. Only the priest, in virtue of the special character of priestly ordination, can speak the words of consecration in the very person of Christ. In doing so, he acts not merely as Christ’s representative, but in His person, as His sacramental representation. It is for this reason that the priest alone is able to confect the Eucharist. If there is no priest, there can be no Mass.
Pius XII, in his encyclical: Mystici Corporis writes: “The sacred ministers represent not only our Savior, but also the whole mystical Body and each one of its members. In that sacrifice the faithful are associated in the common prayer and supplication and, through the hands of the priest, whose voice alone renders the Immaculate Lamb present on the altar, they themselves offer to the eternal Father this most pleasing victim of praise and propitiation for the needs of the whole Church.”
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Monday, September 12, 2011
The Eucharist in Relation to Jesus Christ
Let us look at the Eucharist in relation to Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is both God and man; begotten of the Father from all eternity in His divine nature, born in time of the Virgin in our human nature. He has saved us from sin and its consequences by the sacrifice that He offered for us on the Cross. That same sacrifice is made present for us in the Eucharistic liturgy, making it possible for us to unite ourselves to it and offer ourselves to the Father in union with Christ. In the Eucharist, we eat the body of Christ and drink His blood that we may become more perfectly one with Him and live with His life.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Monday, August 29, 2011
Definition of the Priest
A priest is a man called by God and empowered by the Holy Ghost to act in the person of Christ as co-worker of the Episcopal order in serving the needs of God’s people through the ministry of word, sacrament and pastoral leadership. In carrying out this task the priest is to be a living sacrament of Christ the Shepherd, to whom he is configured through the sacrament of Holy Orders.
Priests, as co-workers with their bishops, have as their primary duty the proclamation of the gospel to all. In this way they carry out the Lord’s command, “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature”…Priests owe it to everybody to share with them the truth of the Gospel. Therefore whether they proclaim the mystery of Christ to unbelievers, or teach the Christian faith, or explain the Church’s teaching, or treat contemporary problems in light of Christ’s teaching—in every case their role is to teach not their own wisdom, but the Word of God, and to summon all people urgently to conversion and to holiness.
Priests partake in the function of Christ the sole Mediator and thus announce the divine word to all. They exercise this sacred function most of all at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass where they act in the person of Christ and proclaim His mystery. Priests join the offering of the faithful to the sacrifice of the Head and in a movement of ascending mediation they lead the people in prayer to God. The priest does not exercise a role of mediation different from that of Christ, who is mankind’s one and all sufficient mediator. Rather, he is the instrument through whom Christ continues to exercise His mediation in the world.
Because it is joined with the Episcopal order, the office of priests shares in the authority by which Christ Himself builds up and sanctifies and rules His Body. To the degree of their authority and in the name of their bishop, priests exercise the office of Christ the Head and the Shepherd. Thus they gather God’s family together as a brotherhood of living unity, and lead it through Christ and in the Holy Ghost to God the Father. For the exercise of this ministry, as for other priestly duties, spiritual power is conferred upon them for the up building of the Church.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Priests, as co-workers with their bishops, have as their primary duty the proclamation of the gospel to all. In this way they carry out the Lord’s command, “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature”…Priests owe it to everybody to share with them the truth of the Gospel. Therefore whether they proclaim the mystery of Christ to unbelievers, or teach the Christian faith, or explain the Church’s teaching, or treat contemporary problems in light of Christ’s teaching—in every case their role is to teach not their own wisdom, but the Word of God, and to summon all people urgently to conversion and to holiness.
Priests partake in the function of Christ the sole Mediator and thus announce the divine word to all. They exercise this sacred function most of all at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass where they act in the person of Christ and proclaim His mystery. Priests join the offering of the faithful to the sacrifice of the Head and in a movement of ascending mediation they lead the people in prayer to God. The priest does not exercise a role of mediation different from that of Christ, who is mankind’s one and all sufficient mediator. Rather, he is the instrument through whom Christ continues to exercise His mediation in the world.
Because it is joined with the Episcopal order, the office of priests shares in the authority by which Christ Himself builds up and sanctifies and rules His Body. To the degree of their authority and in the name of their bishop, priests exercise the office of Christ the Head and the Shepherd. Thus they gather God’s family together as a brotherhood of living unity, and lead it through Christ and in the Holy Ghost to God the Father. For the exercise of this ministry, as for other priestly duties, spiritual power is conferred upon them for the up building of the Church.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Following Christ
If we say we are followers of Christ we must also follow His example. God sent all the prophets to preach repentance and conversion. After that He sent John the Baptist to preach the same message. Christ Himself preached constantly about the importance of amending one's life. Christ says: "Come to me, all you who labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest." Christ constantly forgave and called men to Himself.
We must imitate Christ. We must be zealous with kindness and the ability to forgive. This is what draws people to Christ. We must constantly seek out those who are lost and guide them back to the flock as Christ did.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
We must imitate Christ. We must be zealous with kindness and the ability to forgive. This is what draws people to Christ. We must constantly seek out those who are lost and guide them back to the flock as Christ did.
Sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching
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