The Twelve Days of Christmas Carols: It Came Upon a Midnight Clear

Today I greet you with a wonderful hymn, which I hope will be as fruitful at midnight this New Year's Eve as it might have been a few days ago as we huddled into our parishes for the Midnight Mass of Christmas.

It came upon the midnight clear,
That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth,
To touch their harps of gold;
“Peace on the earth, good will to men,
From Heaven’s all gracious King.”
The world in solemn stillness lay,
To hear the angels sing.

The silence of the earth in response to the song of the angels later gives way to the praises of every nation, people, and tongue, but for now the earth lay still and those aware of the goings on in that frozen moment in time kneel in adoration before the Lord.

Still through the cloven skies they come
With peaceful wings unfurled,
And still their heavenly music floats
O’er all the weary world;
Above its sad and lowly plains,
They bend on hovering wing,
And ever over its Babel sounds
The blessèd angels sing.

Over a tired world, marked with the division of human speech, which forms through a hundred factions a challenge to human understanding of human words, the angels sing in one voice divine words, expressing the nature of the Word of God, who has come to bless the earth as Emmanuel.

Yet with the woes of sin and strife
The world has suffered long;
Beneath the angel strain have rolled
Two thousand years of wrong;
And man, at war with man, hears not
The love-song which they bring;
O hush the noise, ye men of strife
And hear the angels sing.

And ye, beneath life’s crushing load,
Whose forms are bending low,
Who toil along the climbing way
With painful steps and slow,
Look now! for glad and golden hours
Come swiftly on the wing.
O rest beside the weary road,
And hear the angels sing!

The division of language is not the only thing distracting man from the Word of God who has at last come to speak into the ear words which could not be heard at a normal distance. Yet the wars between men are not the only types of strife among us. The war within man equally distracts him from God. The delays we place upon the worship of God stand in the way of authentic devotion. The mixed up priorities we all have serve to distract us as we put off the work of God. Pope Benedict pointed this out in his Midnight Mass homily. The carol calls us to rest and listen to the song of the angels, to put our priorities in proper order and to devote ourselves to God.

For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophet-bards foretold,
When with the ever circling years
Comes round the age of gold;
When peace shall over all the earth
Its ancient splendors fling,
And the whole world send back the song
Which now the angels sing.

Man begins to resound the hymn of the angels in the response of the Blessed Virgin, of Joseph, of the shepherds and of the Magi, but this verse will not be complete until every tongue proclaims that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father, in that heavenly Kingdom where the lowly King born on Christmas Night will reign forevermore.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

The Twelve Days of Christmas Carols: Of the Father's Love Begotten

One of my favorite Christmas carols is one little-known in our society because it doesn't have even the slightest resemblance to the secular sort of thing that sells these days.  It describes in simple words set to beautiful harmony the actions of the Son of God for man and does not end with the Incarnation, but includes several other doctrines before its closing doxology.

Of the Father’s love begotten,
Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega,
He the source, the ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see,
Evermore and evermore!

As confessed in the Nicene Creed, the Son of God is begotten, not made, of the Father's love.  He is the Alpha and the Omega, the source and end of all that is, was, or will be.  This is a reflection not on Jesus Christ, for that is His human name, but on the Person of the Son of God as He was from eternity.  The song begins here because the world He would enter and redeem, the Mother who would give Him life, were themselves given life and form by Him, the Eternal Logos.

At His Word the worlds were framèd;
He commanded; it was done:
Heaven and earth and depths of ocean
In their threefold order one;
All that grows beneath the shining
Of the moon and burning sun,
Evermore and evermore!

The Eternal Logos, the Word of God, is the wisdom and reason behind creation.  Through Him, all the world was given structure.  It is therefore fitting that He be the one to come and refashion the world in God's image when it has fallen into sin.

He is found in human fashion,
Death and sorrow here to know,
That the race of Adam’s children
Doomed by law to endless woe,
May not henceforth die and perish
In the dreadful gulf below,
Evermore and evermore!

The Word took on human nature and accepted human suffering in order to come in solidarity with mankind and to overthrow the oppression of the devil.  This verse implies Original Sin and its effects and teaches explicitly the Incarnation as its medicine.

O that birth forever blessèd,
When the virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving,
Bare the Saviour of our race;
And the Babe, the world’s Redeemer,
First revealed His sacred face,
evermore and evermore!

Here we have a verse chock full of doctrines: the Virgin Birth, the Immaculate Conception, the Overshadowing by the Holy Spirit, Christological Soteriology, and the very core of Divine Revelation.  Christ is not one doctrine among many, He in His Incarnation is the linchpin of the whole Creed.

O ye heights of heaven adore Him;
Angel hosts, His praises sing;
Powers, dominions, bow before Him,
and extol our God and King!
Let no tongue on earth be silent,
Every voice in concert sing,
Evermore and evermore!

The instruction for praise from creation for the Incarnation starts with the angels.  A long-standing tradition in the Church is that the impetus for Satan's rebellion was his disgust at God's plan to become man.  Those angels who remained after the fall of Lucifer praise the Incarnation and so, being more lofty than man by nature, must be first to praise this man who is higher than they by supernature.  Man must also join in praise of the Incarnation.

This is He Whom seers in old time
Chanted of with one accord;
Whom the voices of the prophets
Promised in their faithful word;
Now He shines, the long expected,
Let creation praise its Lord,
Evermore and evermore!

Here it is recalled that the prophets long ago foretold the Christ (indeed, the first Messianic prophecy is immediately after the Fall from Grace in Genesis 3:15).  It is because of their words that the hopes of Israel stayed alive those many centuries.

Righteous judge of souls departed,
Righteous King of them that live,
On the Father’s throne exalted
None in might with Thee may strive;
Who at last in vengeance coming
Sinners from Thy face shalt drive,
Evermore and evermore!

This verse recognizes that a song about the Coming of Christ would be incomplete without a reference to the Second Coming.  He is the King of the living and the dead and is beyond the power of man to conquer.  At His Second Coming, sinners shall flee His justice.

Thee let old men, thee let young men,
Thee let boys in chorus sing;
Matrons, virgins, little maidens,
With glad voices answering:
Let their guileless songs re-echo,
And the heart its music bring,
Evermore and evermore!

Once more, mankind, now broken into many categories, is instructed to sing the praises of God.

Christ, to Thee with God the Father,
And, O Holy Ghost, to Thee,
Hymn and chant with high thanksgiving,
And unwearied praises be:
Honour, glory, and dominion,
And eternal victory,
Evermore and evermore!

This last verse, the doxology, gives praise to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in a most beautiful way, giving them their due according to justice and love.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Why Obama Will Succeed in Ruining America and Why We Shouldn't Worry

"What has been, that will be; what has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun. Even the thing of which we say, 'See, this is new!' has already existed in the ages that preceded us." -Ecclesiastes 1:9-10

I'm a big fan of Ecclesiastes, filled with a different sort of Wisdom, not proverbs or sayings that make a man nod along in agreement, but arguments that make him ponder the state of the world and the response of his own soul. His sense that all things are vanity I find perfectly expressed in this verse, which tells us that there is nothing new under the sun; all things have been done before. In this light, let us analyze perhaps the most (seemingly) novel thing in our times.

There is a war going on in the United States today. It is not being fought with weapons of iron and fire, but with subtle ideologies and the words of twisted tongues. Nevertheless, the casualties are real and we should prepare to dig the proverbial mass grave for the millions of innocents who will join the original martyrs of Herod (yesterday being the Feast of the Holy Innocents). Let us not forget and leave aside those three important headstones, one for life, one for liberty, and one for the pursuit of happiness.

This war has been going on for some time and should not surprise us. There is nothing new under the sun. In the Garden of Eden, our first parents attempted to grasp the place of God for themselves; not long after, we read of the Tower of Babel, destroyed for the sheer pride of its builders who sought to reach heaven by their own way, to rebuild on earth that paradise which could only be found in the presence of God. Every day, in many and varied ways, man seeks to depose God from His throne upon the cherubim, to build for himself a perfect dwelling made by imperfect human hands and crown himself the king of glory. Obama's quest to reshape America in his image will succeed because it has all been done before and has most of the time succeeded.

"Nothing is new under the sun." These words ought not to fill us with despair over our lack of originality, but to fill us with hope: all the devil's tricks and snares have already been tried and failed. Our God and His Righteousness shall outlast all the evil kingdoms of the earth. "Do not be provoked by evildoers; do not envy those who do wrong. Like grass they wither quickly; like green plants they wilt away. I have seen ruthless scoundrels, strong as flourishing cedars. When I passed by again, they were gone; though I searched, they could not be found" (Psalm 37:1-2, 35-36).

What is the worst they can do? Tax us with heavy burdens? Our Lord provides rest (Matthew 11:28). Shall they imprison us for our faith? The better for us to evangelize prisoners (Acts 16:20-40). Shall they murder us, send us off to death camps, persecute us to the point of spilling our blood? We ought to go on preaching the Gospel regardless: "What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna" (Matthew 10:27-28).

Christian hope is geared toward heaven, our true homeland apart from this place of pilgrimage. When we hope in this life, in this world, we rest our hearts on something transitory, something failing, which in the end will "pass away," but when we hope in God, and base our lives on His instruction, which "shall not pass away," we rest in safety (cf. Matthew 24:35). No matter how grave the circumstances of this life, the Christian must rest on this hope above all others. Only prayer can keep us so focused and devoted (Lord, may I myself grow in prayer!).

Hoping in heaven, we will accomplish the great things we seek to achieve (cf. Matthew 6:33), because Christian hope overflows in charity in this life and only Christian charity can build a perfect society. Only love, with its power of intersubjectivity, with its ability to stand in solidarity with others, with its strength of forgiveness and mercy, can build a truly lasting society. Only a society placed in the hands of God, who is love (cf. 1 John 4:8), can last, just as only the man who hopes in the Lord will survive.

This perfect society, the Kingdom of God, is the work of Christ in and through man. It must be accomplished in the hearts of each man before it is able to spread throughout society. The conversion of every citizen is necessary. It may never be achieved in this life, but we place our hearts in the hope of the Kingdom of Heaven, for although there is nothing new under the sun, God is above the sun, its Creator. In Him alone will our souls find rest.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

The Twelve Days of Christmas Carols: Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming

Today I wish to share with you a Christmas carol which, when I was involved with the choir at St. Thomas Aquinas Church at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln, caused me great consternation on account of its Germanic counter-intuitiveness.  I would be singing along a lovely line only to find my timing off, overextending notes and then short-changing later ones in a feeble attempt to catch up.

Lo, how a Rose e'er blooming
from tender stem hath sprung!
Of Jesse's lineage coming,
as men of old have sung.
It came, a flow'ret bright, in the midst of winter,
when half spent was the night.


Isaiah 'twas foretold it, the Rose I have in mind;
With Mary we behold it, the Virgin Mother kind.
To show God's love aright,
she bore to them a Savior,
when half spent was the night.

The first verse elaborates on the stem of Jesse and the rose which would spring from it, the heir of King David's line, predicted by prophets of old.  While the throne of David has fallen into the hands of wicked men, such as Herod, it rightfully belongs to this Rose, the Christ.  He blooms in the midst of winter, when the love of God has grown cold and Messianic hopes look dim as the pitch black of midnight.

The second verse tells us of the contemplation of the Rose, how the Blessed Virgin considered Him and how we must join her in doing so.  Let us this Christmas Season consider the Messiah as the fulfillment of King David and contemplate His place in God's most provident plan.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

The Twelve Days of Christmas Carols: Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence

On December 28, 2007, my wife and I were married in a lovely Church with a cantor singing as gloriously as possible the words of Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence. The original text, so says the hymnal, is from the 4th Century Liturgy of St. James. The song, done well, sends chills down my spine. As you read it, try to keep your eyes focused in the depth of significance in the Incarnation: Emmanuel, God-with-us, the ineffable, immutable, unfathomable God comes to us, simple, fleeting, predictable men.

Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.

King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heavenly food.

Rank on rank the host of heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth
From the realms of endless day,
That the powers of hell may vanish
As the darkness clears away.

At His feet the six wingèd seraph,
Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the presence,
As with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia
Alleluia, Lord Most High!

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence is a Christmas hymn because it describes the Savior's coming, but it was for us also a fitting wedding hymn. The central aspect of marriage is two-fold: the unity of the spouses and the production of children. Our nation's motto, e pluribus unum, is true and good, but the opposite is also true: out of union, diversity. The unity of Christian spouses is the source of the diversity they bring into the world in the form of children. Christ Jesus, God yet born of Mary, Light of Light Himself descended to take on human vesture, body and blood. He became one with Creation, one with His people, one with Israel, one with the Church, and from this unity comes the whole diversity of Christian souls, one in the Lord yet many in number, "a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation, race, people, and tongue" (Rev 7:9). Through the marriage between Christ and His Bride, the Church, the Gospel is spread as seed (cf. Matt 13) and takes shape in the womb of the Church, formative Christian culture and catechesis, where the infant may hear and grow accustomed to the heartbeat of Mater Ecclesia, the Divine Liturgy, the Holy Mass, and take his flesh from Christ, who took our flesh.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Rest from the Journey: The Domestic Church

Readings for Sunday, December 27, 2009, the Feast of the Holy Family

There are several possible combinations of the readings this Sunday, but they all focus on the family, which theologians have termed the Domestic Church.  The first option for the First Reading speaks of the blessings love and obedience can have in a family.  Obedience maintains the structure of the family and therefore leads to an abundantly blessed family.  When our lives are put in order, they demonstrate holiness and blessedness, so it is no surprise that an orderly family is a conduit of God's grace.  The second option for the First Reading, my personal preference, is the story of Hannah, the Old Testament spiritual matriarch.  I call her spiritual matriarch because she had only one child (so did Abraham, at least legitimately), but through that one child, she had many.  Hannah offered up her son Samuel as a nazirite, a man consecrated to the Lord, and following the tutelage of Eli, he became the spiritual father of the Israelites.  Abraham waited his whole life for his son and was willing to offer him on Mt. Moriah's peak; Hannah waited her whole life for her son and gave him up to the Lord.  Abraham became the father of many nations, Hannah became the mother of the Nation of Israel, a precursor to the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose Magnificat is based on her own canticle (cf. 1 Sam 2:1-10, Luke 1:46-55).  Imagine the battle that must have gone on inside her, consider the temptation: should I go back on my vow to the Lord?  Should I keep my only son or offer him according to my promise?  My vow to the Lord I will fulfill.

The first option for the Responsorial Psalm mentions the home and the family, while the second mentions the court of the Lord, the household of God.  These are both wonderful psalms and I enjoy reading them.

The first option for the Second Reading speaks of virtues, the virtues which must be practiced by those who seek peace, especially peace within the Domestic Church.  The latter part of this reading has the option of being cut, which is unfortunate because it excludes an important teaching on the Church and the family.  Many pastors follow this option, cutting out the "wives be subordinate" line, much to the detriment of their flocks.  The self-sacrifices of obedience and service between spouses is the model of love that is to be lived out by the whole family.  In losing this aspect of marriage, particularly in favor of a spirit of individualism, we lose the meaning of the family and the unity that holds society together.  The second option for the Second Reading details the love of God that joins us and makes us His children; to live in this love, we must follow His commandments, which Jesus expounded as living out God's will in love.

The first options for both readings demonstrate the structure of the family while the second options for both readings demonstrate how the family is consecrated to the Lord.  A family that is consecrated to the Lord is no less a family, rather, it is more a family.

The Gospel wraps up both these lines of thought.  Jesus Christ, although God and Creator of all, is also a Son, the Son of a family, of flesh and blood parents, and as such "He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them" (Luke 2:51).  Even God is obedient to His parents (all the more reason for His Mother to Immaculate).  Further, Jesus Christ had been consecrated to God (cf. Luke 2:21-40) and now goes about the work of the family in society - to teach, to evangelize, to build up the Church, to worship God.  He introduces His human family to His Divine Family.  Jesus Christ, the centerpiece of the Holy Family, is the Second Person of the Holy Trinity.  At this age, He was apprenticing with his earthly father, Joseph, but He has from all eternity seen all that His Heavenly Father has done.  He fulfills his Divine Mission in and through His humanity, including His human family.  The task of the human family, consecrated to God, is to consecrate the world to God.  There is a half-jocular battle cry proclaimed at my alma mater, "Procreate and Dominate!"  It is the task of the Catholic family to overcome the secular, to overcome the sinful, to overcome the dictatorship of relativism.  We do that by doing what only a family can do: multiply into a diversity beyond description, but remain unified in a love beyond imagining.

Now, for an aside: one of my favorite professors at Franciscan University of Steubenville, the head of the Catechetics Department, Ronald Bolster, used to tell us, "it St. Joseph were to write an autobiography, he would have to title it Everything Was Always My Fault, think about it...something goes wrong at home while he's sitting down at the breakfast table with the family.  The Messiah and the Immaculate Conception glance at each other with raised eyebrows.  It had to be Joseph's fault!  It always had to be Joseph's fault!"

May the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph offer your family before the throne of our Almighty Father, who gives us every good thing.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

The Twelve Days of Christmas Carols: Adeste Fideles

Today, I find it fitting to post my thoughts on the timeless classic Adeste Fideles, which I usually belt out in my best Bing Crosby impression throughout Advent (I can't help myself!).  Its power lies in the fact that it is a simple hymn that conveys a deep and lasting message.  It begins with a call to all the faithful, those who have been waiting through trial and temptation, the people of God who are faithful and hopeful in the midst of despair.  They are called to come and adore the King of Angels, and in giving over all that they have and are to Him, they will gain the treasure beyond imagining.

Adeste Fideles laeti triumphantes,
Veníte, veníte in Bethlehem.
Natum vidéte, Regem Angelorum:
Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum.

O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,

O come ye, O come ye, to Bethlehem.

Come and behold Him, born the King of angels;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

The second verse reflects the Nicene Creed.  Christ is "God from God, Light from Light...Begotten, not made."

Deum de Deo, lumen de lúmine,
gestant puellae viscera
Deum verum, genitum non factum:
Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum.

True God of true God, Light from Light Eternal,

Lo, He shuns not the Virgin’s womb;

Son of the Father, begotten, not created;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

Is it fitting that the angels should not sing the praises of their King?

Cantet nunc io chorus Angelórum
cantet nunc aula caelestium:
Gloria in excelsis Deo:
Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum.

Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation;

O sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!

Glory to God, all glory in the highest;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

Here the nature of Christ as the Word of God is emphasized.  The Incarnation is once again expounded in song.

Ergo qui natus, die hodierna
Jesu, tibi sit glória
Patris aeterni Verbum caro factum:
Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum.

Yea, Lord, we greet Thee, Born this happy morning;

Jesus, to Thee be glory given;

Word of the Father, Now in flesh appearing.

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

Will we have the humility to leave all that we have behind to seek the King of Kings?

En grege relicto, Humiles ad cunas
Vocati pastores approperant;
Et nos ovanti gradu festinemus.
Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum.

See how the shepherds, summoned to His cradle,

Leaving their flocks, draw nigh to gaze;

We too will thither bend our joyful footsteps;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

Christ's divine nature is again emphasized, together with the unexpectedness of the Incarnation.

Aeterni Parentis splendorem aeternum
Velatum sub carne videbimus,
Deum infantem, pannis involutum.
Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum.

There shall we see Him, His Eternal Father's

Everlasting Brightness now veiled under flesh;

God shall we find there, a Babe in infant clothing;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

Jesus Christ, by descending infinitely to be man born in a manger, allows us the opportunity to arise.

Pro nobis egenum Et foeno cubantem,
Piis foveamus amplexibus;
Sic nos anamtem quis non redamaret?
Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum.

Child, for us sinners Poor and in the manger,

We would embrace Thee, with love and awe;

Who would not love Thee, Loving us so dearly?

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

What gifts will we bring the Christ child this Christmas?  Will we go to Christmas Mass and offer a few more dollars than usual in the collection plate?  The Magi give all they have to Christ.  Let us do the same.

Stella duce, Magi, Christum adorantes,
Aurum, thus, et myrrham dant munera;
Jesu infanti corda praebeamus.
Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum.

Lo! star led chieftains, Magi, Christ adoring,

Offer Him incense, gold, and myrrh;

We to the Christ Child bring our hearts’ oblations.

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

The Twelve Days of Christmas Carols: Good King Wenceslaus

Although it may not seem like a Christmas carol (it mentions neither Christ nor Christmas), the song Good King Wenceslaus has traditionally been played during the Christmas season because it mentions a good deed done in the heart of winter on the Feast of St. Stephen the Protomartyr, which we celebrate today, the day following Christmas.

St. Wenceslaus was the Duke of Bohemia raised in the Christian faith by his grandmother, St. Ludmila, and murdered at the command of his pagan brother and usurper, Boleslav. The carol sung in his honor strikes me as particularly relevant for a reason beyond the timing of its setting. We have in this legend of St. Wenceslaus a wealthy ruler going out of his way, stepping into the freezing cold of a poor world, bringing with him his wealth to share with those in need.

The Son of God has done the same thing for us, stepping this Christmas into the cold darkness of our lives, the bitter cold (or cold bitterness) of sin, as we go grubbing around seeking out some purpose to keep us going (our own gathering of winter fuel). He brings to us His wealth, His grace, and all we need to go about the work for which we were created.

In another regard, we stand in the place of the servant, given the task of carrying out the gifts He brings to us through all the world and to others in all places. Though we often grow faint at the cold and the wind that blows hard against our moving forward, our Good King goes before us, warming the ground and guiding our steps.

Good King Wenceslaus looked out on the Feast of Stephen,
When the snow lay round about, deep and crisp and even.
Brightly shone the moon that night, though the frost was cruel,
When a poor man came in sight, gathering winter fuel.

“Hither, page, and stand by me, if you know it, telling,
Yonder peasant, who is he? Where and what his dwelling?”
“Sire, he lives a good league hence, underneath the mountain,
Right against the forest fence, by Saint Agnes’ fountain.”

“Bring me food and bring me wine, bring me pine logs hither,
You and I will see him dine, when we bear them thither.”
Page and monarch, forth they went, forth they went together,
Through the cold wind’s wild lament and the bitter weather.

“Sire, the night is darker now, and the wind blows stronger,
Fails my heart, I know not how; I can go no longer.”
“Mark my footsteps, my good page, tread now in them boldly,
You shall find the winter’s rage freeze your blood less coldly.”

In his master’s steps he trod, where the snow lay dinted;
Heat was in the very sod which the saint had printed.
Therefore, Christian men, be sure, wealth or rank possessing,
You who now will bless the poor shall yourselves find blessing.

His Servant and Yours,
Micah, St. Wenceslaus School Class of '99

The Twelve Days of Christmas Carols: Silent Night

The first Christmas, the King of Glory, the Creator of the music of the spheres and the harmony of all things, rests in the arms of a Virgin Mother. Angels sing excelsis, and shepherds, tired from day's work, are called to fall down in worship of the great Shepherd of Souls. For a moment, the whole world grows still in the cold night as a few of David's descendants adore in his royal city Bethlehem, unable to express their thoughts at the coming of their savior. The silence itself speaks with an eloquence beyond words and forms a deep trembling in the heart of man as these words pour forth from his soul:

Silent night, holy night,
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin mother and child.
Holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace.
Sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, holy night,
Shepherds quake at the sight,
Glories stream from heaven afar,
Heavenly hosts sing alleluia;
Christ the Savior, is born!
Christ the Savior, is born!

Silent night, holy night,
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from thy holy face,
With the dawn of redeeming grace,
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

The Burning Babe

The Burning Babe
by Robert Southwell

Found in Dr. Regis Martin's Garlands of Grace.

As I in hoary winter's night stood shivering in the snow,
Surprised I was with sudden heat which made my heart to glow ;
And lifting up a fearful eye to view what fire was near,
A pretty babe all burning bright did in the air appear ;
Who, scorchëd with excessive heat, such floods of tears did shed
As though his floods should quench his flames which with his tears were fed.
Alas, quoth he, but newly born in fiery heats I fry,
Yet none approach to warm their hearts or feel my fire but I !
My faultless breast the furnace is, the fuel wounding thorns,
Love is the fire, and sighs the smoke, the ashes shame and scorns ;
The fuel justice layeth on, and mercy blows the coals,
The metal in this furnace wrought are men's defiled souls,
For which, as now on fire I am to work them to their good,
So will I melt into a bath to wash them in my blood.
With this he vanished out of sight and swiftly shrunk away,
And straight I called unto mind that it was Christmas day.

 His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Midnight Mass

Despite being toppled over by a mentally unstable woman during his entrance procession, Pope Benedict XVI delivered his homily with his usual mark of intellectual edification in union with movements of the heart.  It's full text is sure to be a classic for me:

Dear Brothers and Sisters! "A child is born for us, a son is given to us" (Is 9:5). What Isaiah prophesied as he gazed into the future from afar, consoling Israel amid its trials and its darkness, is now proclaimed to the shepherds as a present reality by the Angel, from whom a cloud of light streams forth: "To you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord" (Lk 2:11). The Lord is here. From this moment, God is truly "God with us". No longer is he the distant God who can in some way be perceived from afar, in creation and in our own consciousness. He has entered the world. He is close to us. The words of the risen Christ to his followers are addressed also to us: "Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age" (Mt 28:20). For you the Saviour is born: through the Gospel and those who proclaim it, God now reminds us of the message that the Angel announced to the shepherds. It is a message that cannot leave us indifferent. If it is true, it changes everything. If it is true, it also affects me. Like the shepherds, then, I too must say: Come on, I want to go to Bethlehem to see the Word that has occurred there. The story of the shepherds is included in the Gospel for a reason. They show us the right way to respond to the message that we too have received. What is it that these first witnesses of God's incarnation have to tell us?

The first thing we are told about the shepherds is that they were on the watch they could hear the message precisely because they were awake. We must be awake, so that we can hear the message. We must become truly vigilant people. What does this mean? The principal difference between someone dreaming and someone awake is that the dreamer is in a world of his own. His "self" is locked into this dreamworld that is his alone and does not connect him with others. To wake up means to leave that private world of one's own and to enter the common reality, the truth that alone can unite all people. Conflict and lack of reconciliation in the world stem from the fact that we are locked into our own interests and opinions, into our own little private world. Selfishness, both individual and collective, makes us prisoners of our interests and our desires that stand against the truth and separate us from one another. Awake, the Gospel tells us. Step outside, so as to enter the great communal truth, the communion of the one God. To awake, then, means to develop a receptivity for God: for the silent promptings with which he chooses to guide us; for the many indications of his presence. There are people who describe themselves as "religiously tone deaf". The gift of a capacity to perceive God seems as if it is withheld from some. And indeed our way of thinking and acting, the mentality of today's world, the whole range of our experience is inclined to deaden our receptivity for God, to make us "tone deaf" towards him. And yet in every soul, the desire for God, the capacity to encounter him, is present, whether in a hidden way or overtly. In order to arrive at this vigilance, this awakening to what is essential, we should pray for ourselves and for others, for those who appear "tone deaf" and yet in whom there is a keen desire for God to manifest himself. The great theologian Origen said this: if I had the grace to see as Paul saw, I could even now (during the Liturgy) contemplate a great host of angels (cf. in Lk 23 :9). And indeed, in the sacred liturgy, we are surrounded by the angels of God and the saints. The Lord himself is present in our midst. Lord, open the eyes of our hearts, so that we may become vigilant and clear-sighted, in this way bringing you close to others as well!

Let us return to the Christmas Gospel. It tells us that after listening to the Angel's message, the shepherds said one to another: "'Let us go over to Bethlehem' they went at once" (Lk 2:15f.). "They made haste" is literally what the Greek text says. What had been announced to them was so important that they had to go immediately. In fact, what had been said to them was utterly out of the ordinary. It changed the world. The Saviour is born. The long-awaited Son of David has come into the world in his own city. What could be more important? No doubt they were partly driven by curiosity, but first and foremost it was their excitement at the wonderful news that had been conveyed to them, of all people, to the little ones, to the seemingly unimportant. They made haste they went at once. In our daily life, it is not like that. For most people, the things of God are not given priority, they do not impose themselves on us directly And so the great majority of us tend to postpone them. First we do what seems urgent here and now. In the list of priorities God is often more or less at the end. We can always deal with that later, we tend to think. The Gospel tells us: God is the highest priority. If anything in our life deserves haste without delay, then, it is God's work alone. The Rule of Saint Benedict contains this teaching: "Place nothing at all before the work of God (i.e. the divine office)". For monks, the Liturgy is the first priority. Everything else comes later. In its essence, though, this saying applies to everyone. God is important, by far the most important thing in our lives. The shepherds teach us this priority. From them we should learn not to be crushed by all the pressing matters in our daily lives. From them we should learn the inner freedom to put other tasks in second place however important they may be so as to make our way towards God, to allow him into our lives and into our time. Time given to God and, in his name, to our neighbour is never time lost. It is the time when we are most truly alive, when we live our humanity to the full.

Some commentators point out that the shepherds, the simple souls, were the first to come to Jesus in the manger and to encounter the Redeemer of the world. The wise men from the East, representing those with social standing and fame, arrived much later. The commentators go on to say: this is quite natural. The shepherds lived nearby. They only needed to "come over" (cf. Lk 2:15), as we do when we go to visit our neighbours. The wise men, however, lived far away. They had to undertake a long and arduous journey in order to arrive in Bethlehem. And they needed guidance and direction. Today too there are simple and lowly souls who live very close to the Lord. They are, so to speak, his neighbours and they can easily go to see him. But most of us in the world today live far from Jesus Christ, the incarnate God who came to dwell amongst us. We live our lives by philosophies, amid worldly affairs and occupations that totally absorb us and are a great distance from the manger. In all kinds of ways, God has to prod us and reach out to us again and again, so that we can manage to escape from the muddle of our thoughts and activities and discover the way that leads to him. But a path exists for all of us. The Lord provides everyone with tailor-made signals. He calls each one of us, so that we too can say: "Come on, 'let us go over' to Bethlehem to the God who has come to meet us. Yes indeed, God has set out towards us. Left to ourselves we could not reach him. The path is too much for our strength. But God has come down. He comes towards us. He has travelled the longer part of the journey. Now he invites us: come and see how much I love you. Come and see that I am here. Transeamus usque Bethlehem, the Latin Bible says. Let us go there! Let us surpass ourselves! Let us journey towards God in all sorts of ways: along our interior path towards him, but also along very concrete paths the Liturgy of the Church, the service of our neighbour, in whom Christ awaits us.

Let us once again listen directly to the Gospel. The shepherds tell one another the reason why they are setting off: "Let us see this thing that has happened." Literally the Greek text says: "Let us see this Word that has occurred there." Yes indeed, such is the radical newness of this night: the Word can be seen. For it has become flesh. The God of whom no image may be made because any image would only diminish, or rather distort him this God has himself become visible in the One who is his true image, as Saint Paul puts it (cf. 2 Cor 4:4; Col 1:15). In the figure of Jesus Christ, in the whole of his life and ministry, in his dying and rising, we can see the Word of God and hence the mystery of the living God himself. This is what God is like. The Angel had said to the shepherds: "This will be a sign for you: you will find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger" (Lk 2:12; cf. 2:16). God's sign, the sign given to the shepherds and to us, is not an astonishing miracle. God's sign is his humility. God's sign is that he makes himself small; he becomes a child; he lets us touch him and he asks for our love. How we would prefer a different sign, an imposing, irresistible sign of God's power and greatness! But his sign summons us to faith and love, and thus it gives us hope: this is what God is like. He has power, he is Goodness itself. He invites us to become like him. Yes indeed, we become like God if we allow ourselves to be shaped by this sign; if we ourselves learn humility and hence true greatness; if we renounce violence and use only the weapons of truth and love. Origen, taking up one of John the Baptist's sayings, saw the essence of paganism expressed in the symbol of stones: paganism is a lack of feeling, it means a heart of stone that is incapable of loving and perceiving God's love. Origen says of the pagans: "Lacking feeling and reason, they are transformed into stones and wood" (in Lk 22:9). Christ, though, wishes to give us a heart of flesh. When we see him, the God who b ecame a child, our hearts are opened. In the Liturgy of the holy night, God comes to us as man, so that we might become truly human. Let us listen once again to Origen: "Indeed, what use would it be to you that Christ once came in the flesh if he did not enter your soul? Let us pray that he may come to us each day, that we may be able to say: I live, yet it is no longer I that live, but Christ lives in me (Gal 2:20)" (in Lk 22:3).

Yes indeed, that is what we should pray for on this Holy Night. Lord Jesus Christ, born in Bethlehem, come to us! Enter within me, within my soul. Transform me. Renew me. Change me, change us all from stone and wood into living people, in whom your love is made present and the world is transformed. Amen.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Catholic Q&A

Q: What saint can help you get pregnant?

A: St. Anne, the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and St. Elizabeth, the Blessed Virgin's cousin, are both saints for assistance in getting pregnant, since they were both quite elderly when they were granted miraculous pregnancies. St. Gerard Majella is the patron saint of pregnant women.

Q: When was the canonization of St. Paul the Hermit?

A: St. Paul the Hermit was never formally canonized, since he was reputed to be a saint before the Congregation for Saints began. There are many saints in a similar situation; the Church generally assumes that these people are worthy of the title, but does occasionally review a pre-congregation saint and remove them from the canon, the list of saints. In such cases, private devotion and veneration of the saint is still permitted, but the Church does not publicly venerate the saint. St. Paul the Hermit is still assumed by the Church to be a saint, but there has not been a formal investigation.

Q: Does an Episcopal service fulfill the obligation of Mass in the Catholic Church?

A: Because the Catholic Church does not recognize the validity of Episcopal ordinations, their Mass is not celebrated validly and does not fulfill the requirements on the Catholic faithful according to Canon Law.

Q: Which Catholic Bible would be good for a new Catholic?

A: There are many different possible answers. The Bible used for the readings in the Mass (in the United States) is the New American Bible. It is also one of the most affordable and usually includes a commentary. If you come from a background that used the King James Version and prefer the older style of language, you may prefer the Douay-Rheims translation. There are also numerous study Bibles put out by Ignatius Press and others. A Bible that is growing in popularity is the Revised Standard Version - Catholic Second Edition.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Catholic Q&A

Q: What is the liturgical instrument used to asperge holy water?

A: The name is an aspergillum.

Q: Foreplay before marriage a sin?

A: Foreplay that intentionally does not reach its natural conclusion in vaginal intercourse involves the deliberate stimulation of the genitals for sexual pleasure outside of the proper context of unitive and procreative sex. This classifies it as masturbation (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, #2352) and therefore as sinful. Because this sexual act is practiced outside the context of marriage, it is also classified as fornication (cf. CCC, #2353). Pope John Paul II, who wrote extensively on sexual morality during his pontificate, notes that sexual activity of any kind outside of marriage objectifies the persons involved in the act (it treats them as objects instead of as persons). In this particular instance, while sex was meant to unify spouses and to be open to life, we see that two persons are not becoming one, nor is their sexual act capable of producing life. Since the only remaining part of sex is the secondary aspect of pleasure, the two individuals involved can only be said to be having sex for pleasure alone, which falls short of the great purpose of human sexuality, as it is mean for much more than mere pleasure. Because the act is not conducive to the purpose of sex, it damages the persons involved by disabling them from living out the fullness of their purpose.

Q: What is the difference between the Holy Catholic Church and the Communion of Saints?

A: The Communion of Saints is a name for the Church with regard to all her members. It is composed of the Church Triumphant (the saints, or holy ones, in heaven), the Church Suffering (the holy ones in purgatory), and the Church Militant (also called the Pilgrim Church, the holy ones on earth). The Church does not consist merely of those members on earth, but is a reality and communion which reaches from here into heaven.

Q: What day is the Feast of Stephen?

A: The Feast of St. Stephen the First Martyr is December 26.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Guides Along the Way: The Epistle of St. Ignatius to the Ephesians

I continue the Guides on the Way series with the next chronological step: St. Ignatius of Antioch.  Considered by some historians to be the child Jesus spoke of when answering who was greatest in the Kingdom of God (cf. Matthew 18:1ff), St. Ignatius was the 2nd or 3rd bishop of Antioch (in modern-day Turkey), is thought to have been an apostle of St. John, and wrote a number of letters to various Churches as he was taken to Rome to face martyrdom.

The Letter of St. Ignatius to the Ephesians is marked by

Important notes and commentary:

1. St. Ignatius is also known as Theophorus, a name meaning "God-bearer." Ignatius, having a Latin name, seems also to have been known by a Greek name. This could seem to indicate that he was from a higher class, as Latin-speaking, high-class, educated, traveling Romans generally used Greek as the lingua franca of the empire. It could also indicate that he felt the need to have a more diverse persona to reach and evangelize various cultures. In his greeting, St. Ignatius seems to define true happiness and blessedness as resulting from taking a share in the glory and grace of God.
2. St. Ignatius then goes on to praise the Ephesians in the salutary tradition of St. Paul. He specifically praises them for the prayers they have offered for his effort to seek martyrdom for his witness to Christ. It is important in a time so filled with news of self-martyring terrorists to keep in mind that authentic martyrdom is always first witnessing to God, not a statement against one's enemies. The martyrdom of Christianity says, "I will speak the truth no matter what you do to me and I will gladly die if it will show you how strongly I believe." The martyrdom of Islam says, "I will carry out the wrath of my religion on my enemies, even at the expense of my life." Christian martyrdom is an act of faith, hope, and love; Islamic martyrdom is an act of hatred.
3. Ignatius goes on to say, "for though I am bound for the name [of Christ], I am not yet perfect in Jesus Christ. For now I begin to be a disciple, and I speak to you as fellow-disciples with me." Upon reading these words, I must ask myself: if St. Ignatius of Antioch, who is on his way to being a martyr, says that he is imperfect and only just starting to be a disciple, where to I stand? What is the criterion for true discipleship? A disciple is a student, a follower of the Lord, and to be a perfect disciple is to follow the Lord perfectly. We ought to make that our goal in this life.
4. Next St. Ignatius exhorts the Ephesians to unity with the bishop, Onesimus, using the time-honored analogy of strings on a harp: "For your justly renowned presbytery, worthy of God, is fitted as exactly to the bishop as the strings are to the harp. Therefore in your concord and harmonious love, Jesus Christ is sung. And man by man, become a choir, that being harmonious in love, and taking up the song of God in unison, you may with one voice sing to the Father through Jesus Christ." The strings on the harp of the bishop are his priests, and the harp urges on and directs the singing of the choir, the Church.
   
5. The unity of the faithful to the bishop is analogous to the unity of the Church to Christ and Christ to the Father.  The power of the prayer of the bishop and his Church in greater than the power of a mere two or more gathered.  Those who oppose the bishop and the Church are prideful and condemned. 
   
6. The respect owed to the bishop is the same that should be owed to Christ.  This, of course, does not mean that the bishop is to be worshipped, but that his words should be considered according to the saying of Christ: "Whoever listens to you listens to me. Whoever rejects you rejects me" (Luke 10:16). 
   
7. St. Ignatius' warning against heretics, apostates, and other false teachers leads him to an interesting description of Christ, stating explicitly some things the Council of Nicaea finally settled and defined some 200 years later: "There is one Physician who is possessed both of flesh and spirit; both made and not made; God existing in flesh; true life in death; both of Mary and of God; first passible and then impassible— even Jesus Christ our Lord."
   
8. The holiness of the Church of Ephesus is exalted.
9. The Church of Ephesus has not fallen prey to the teachings of heretics. St. Ignatius indicates that through faith and love, human beings cooperate with God in holiness.
10. The Church should pray for those who are not with Christ and also evangelize them, especially by their works. All the vices of those who oppose Christ should be met with the opposite virtues.
11. St. Ignatius interestingly says, "For let us either stand in awe of the wrath to come, or show regard for the grace which is at present displayed— one of two things. Only [in one way or another] let us be found in Christ Jesus unto the true life." Regarding faith, there seems always to be a split between two attitudes, one which seems more focused on the eschaton (the end times - death, judgment, heaven, hell) while others seem more focused on glorying in God's works in this life. Some might say this is the split between the "gloomy" saints and the "joyful" saints. I disagree. I suspect that it is simply a matter of focus and motivation; perhaps this is a way of saying that there are some saints who focus their devotion on the Suffering Servant and others who focus their spirituality on the Risen Christ. I do not have much time for this thought now, but perhaps it will bear further elaboration in the future. The saintly bishop says that both attitudes may find their purpose in Christ. What can be said is that a proper spirituality is not one or the other, but both one and the other.
12. St. Ignatius points out the different circumstances between the Corinthians and himself.
13. Coming together in worship (most especially the Divine Liturgy of the Holy Mass) produces peace and destroys the works of Satan.
14. Faith finds its end in love and it is by our love that we will be judged.
15. Those who teach should act out what the teach. Even the good Christ did in silence was an offering to the Father, not just His teachings.
16. False prophets and false teachers will suffer a terrible fate.
17. It is foolishness to follow any teachings besides Christ's.
18. St. Ignatius repeats the sentiment of St. Paul that all is as nothing for the sake of the Cross of Christ.
19. Here St. Ignatius teaches three of the mysteries which were hidden from Satan himself: the virginity of Mary, the Christ Himself (or the fact that Jesus was the Christ), and the death of the Christ. We see that if these three mysteries were hidden from Satan, the Son of God was able to storm creation and mankind, as well as the gates of sheol.
20. The saintly bishop promises another letter to the Corinthians, if it is God's will.
21. St. Ignatius concludes referencing St. Polycarp and saying goodbye in Jesus Christ.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Catholic Q&A

I have decided to take up the request of my friend Nick at PhatCatholic Apologetics and begin answering questions on the Catholic faith at WikiAnswers.

Q: What year in the Catholic Church was the Council of Nicea formed?

A: The bishops convened the First Council of Nicea (the better known of the two) in 325 AD at the request of Emperor Constantine, who had legalized Christianity not long before with the Edict of Milan. This council condemned the Arian heresy, which taught that Jesus was not God, but a superhuman entity created by God.  The Second Council of Nicea, which particularly fought Iconoclasm (the destruction of icons) was convened in 787 AD.

Q: Where does the first reading in a Catholic Mass come from?

A: In the Catholic Church, there are two different cycles of readings, one for Sunday Masses (allowing the Church to read nearly the entire Bible in three years on Sundays) and one for weekday Masses (which covers the same amount of the Bible in two years). It is important to remember that Sunday Masses have three readings while weekday Masses have two.

During Sunday Masses, the first reading comes from the Old Testament, with rare exceptions including the Sundays of the Easter Season, when the first readings come from the Book of Acts. During weekday Masses, the first reading comes from either the Old or New Testament.

Q: Should you pray the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary during the exact day of Christmas?

A: As a private devotion, the Rosary does not have any absolute requirements on how it is said. Normally, the Joyful Mysteries are prayed on Mondays and Saturdays, the Sorrowful on Tuesdays and Fridays, the Glorious on Wednesdays and Sundays, and the Luminous on Thursdays. However, it would permissible to pray any of the mysteries any day and it seems fitting to pray the Joyful Mysteries on Christmas Day. There are also other forms of the Rosary, such as the Franciscan Crown Rosary, which might be appropriate.

Q: What is the largest Catholic rite?

A: Within the Catholic Church, there are numerous rites which practice their own traditions and forms of the liturgy. The largest of these is the Roman Rite (also known as the Western Rite and the Latin Rite), to which the majority of Catholics in Europe, North America, South America, and Australia belong.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Bethlehem

Readings for the Fourth Sunday of Lent, December 20, 2009

The readings today focus on the humility of God and the fulfillment of David in the Gospel. According to the Prophet Micah, the Christ-child was to be born in the little town of Bethlehem, one of the least regarded among the people of Israel, yet the humble town of the child shepherd who would become King David. This seemingly ignoble destiny was slated for the Son of God, "whose origin is from of old, from ancient times." The psalms call our minds to David's humble origins by referring to God as the "Shepherd of Israel." The second reading tells us of Jesus Christ, who took a body by humbly accepting the will of God. Through His Incarnation, He placed Himself under the law, so that He might fulfill the Law in His perfect sacrifice, and replace it with God's will for man, that we might be saved in Him. The Gospel carries this theme of humility, telling us that Christ traveled in the womb of Mary to a town in the hill country of Judah, but even more so points out to us the fulfillment of King David and the Ark of the Covenant. The Lord is carried in the womb of the Immaculate Virgin, as the Law of Moses (which He replaces through His humble obedience to the will of God) was carried in the Ark of the Covenant (cf. 2 Sam 6). As the Blessed Virgin approaches, her cousin Elizabeth inquires, sharing many of the words of David, "And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me" (cf. 2 Sam 6:9)? The infant in her womb, John the Baptist, leaps in her womb just as David leaped before the Ark (cf 2 Sam 6:14-15).

Through the humility of Christ, He overthrows domination of the Law. Through becoming as an obedient slave, He does away with the slavery of the Old Testament. Through offering Himself as a sacrifice, He does away with all the sacrifices of the Mosaic Covenant. Christ makes salvation possible for us, and with His example to guide us through His work, we are able to follow humbly the will of God. This Advent, let us look to Him who comes to save us, the Shepherd of Israel and the Servant who teaches all to be servants.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Venerable Pope John Paul II

After more than 4 1/2 years of investigation, the Holy See has approved the heroic virtue of Karol Wojtyła, elevating him to the rank of Venerable Pope John Paul II.

The Press Release (in Italian)

The section pertaining to him declares (translated into English) "the heroic virtue of Servant of God John Paul II (Karol Wojtyła), Supreme Pontiff; born the 18th of May 1920 at Wadowice (Poland) and died at Rome the 2nd of April 2005."

Also as a pleasant and somewhat unexpected surprise, given the many lies about him, is the declaration of Venerable Pope Pius XII: "the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Pius XII (Eugenio Pacelli), Supreme Pontiff; born at Rome the 2nd of March 1876 and died at Castel Gandolfo the 9th of October 1958."

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Guides Along the Way: The Letter of St. Clement to the Corinthians

Our first study of one of the Apostolic Fathers brings us to the Letter of St. Clement of Rome. Only his first letter is generally accepted as genuine, and so for the purposes of our studies, we will focus on this alone: the Letter of St. Clement to the Corinthians.

St. Clement is the third successor of St. Peter (making him the fourth pope) and his letter to the Corinthians is especially well known in apologetic circles. St. John, an apostle who knew Christ first-hand and was apparently close enough to Him that Jesus appointed John to care for the Blessed Virgin, was still alive. Despite the fact that one of the original twelve apostles was alive, the Church at Corinth wrote to St. Clement asking for counsel. This is generally held as evidence of papal primacy; even a man several stages removed from Christ outranks an apostle in authority if he is the successor of Peter.

The ancients were considerably better letter-writers than we are today. They knew how to court their readers, how to appeal to them with praise before getting to the heart of the matter and otherwise how to write a strongly worded letter. This is very clear upon reading the Letter of St. Clement, who spends two considerable paragraphs honoring the Corinthians.

1. The letter opens "The church of God which sojourns at Rome, to the church of God sojourning at Corinth, to them that are called and sanctified by the will of God, through our Lord Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, from Almighty God through Jesus Christ, be multiplied." St. Clement opens on a common theme in the early Church, stating that the Churches are sojourning at their respective places, a word emphasizing the pilgrim nature of the Church and the expectation of moving on soon at the coming of Christ. He goes on to praise the Corinthians in many ways, extolling their virtues. It is clear from the wording that Clement's letter is a response to a request of the Corinthians, which is a support of papal primacy.
2. St. Clement continues to praise the Corinthians.
3. St. Clement speaks of a schism within the Church at Corinth in terms that seem better suited for the description of an uprising. Pride played an important role.
4. In chapter 4, Clement makes it clear that he is speaking of envy, which is a form of pride, calling to mind various Biblical examples of the harm done by pride.
5. Clement speaks of the damage of envy in more recent times, particularly indicating envy's place in the deaths of Sts. Peter and Paul.
6. Envy has been responsible for serious persecutions and destroyed families and even whole societies.
7. Chapter seven has an eloquence well worth reading. It is interesting to read the humility of St. Clement, who recognizes and admits that the problem facing the Corinthians is also facing the Church of Rome. In light of this, he makes a call for the conversion not only of the Corinthians, but of his own people as well.
8. Clement speaks in chapter 8 about the need for repentance God has already proclaimed as a sign of His provident mercy.
9. In chapter 9, St. Clement writes, "Wherefore, let us yield obedience to His excellent and glorious will; imploring His mercy and loving-kindness, while we forsake all fruitless labours and strife, and envy, which leads to death, let us turn and have recourse to His compassions." How many fruitless labors do we find ourselves engaged in during our times? How much strife do we see? How much envy? What shall we do? In this section, Clement speaks of Enoch. There are several people by the name Enoch mentioned in the genealogies of Genesis. His story is apocryphal to the Scriptures, but St. Clement tells us that he was a righteous man who never knew death. Other sources say that he was assumed, although Christians would have to say that his destination was the Bosom of Abraham (limbo patrium), not heaven.
10. St. Clement goes on to expound on the obedience to God by pointing out in narrative style what the obedience of Abraham accomplished.
11. His discourse continues with a note on the salvation God showed to Lot because of his hospitality, as well as the punishment given to Lot's wife because of her duplicity in following God.
12. He continued by pointing out how the hospitality and faith of Rahab saved her from the destruction of Jericho. He also calls the red cord hung from her window a foreshadowing of the Blood of Christ that would once for all save those who hope in God.
13. He continues with an exhortation to humility and to glory not in oneself, but in God.
14. Those who obey God remain on the earth, while those who sin are destroyed from it.
15. Christians must be peaceful and follow those who maintain peace, not those who are pretenders.
16. Citing the entirety of Isaiah 53, Clement goes on to profess the great humility of Christ, which we must imitate.
17. Clement provides examples of humility from the lives of the saints of the Old Testament.
18. Clement then provides King David and Psalm 51 as examples of humility.
19. The saint exhorts his readers to seek peace after the examples he has given.
20. God upholds the universe in harmony, the implication being that we should submit ourselves peacefully in obedience to God's will, so that we may also dwell in harmony.
21. The pope provides a list of examples of the virtues of those who follow the Lord and practice peace within their own souls and within the community.
22. St. Clement quotes Psalm 34.
23. St. Clement chastises those impatient ones who grow weary and abandon their Christian vocation by reminding the reader that the work of God is gradual and takes time, but that Christ will return. Those who have fallen away are in danger of being caught unprepared. Faithful believe in the Second Coming provides both the continued discipline of hope and the righteous fear of judgment that encourages virtue.
24. The Resurrection is foreshadowed in nature by various types of Resurrection: night and day, sowing and readping.
25. The legend of the Phoenix is used as a sign of Resurrection, even though modern scientific observation tells us it is fictional. Despite this, it remains that the Phoenix is used as a symbol of Christ, who died and rose again. Note that Clement mentions frankincense and myrrh.
26. Scripture also states that we will rise again.
27. God, who is all-powerful, is ever-faithful, and so we ought to be as well.
28. We must not sin, since God sees all.
29. As God has allowed us to share in the blessings on His people, we must remain faithful to Him.
30. Because we belong to God, who is holy, let us practice holiness in humility.
31. God has been faithful in His blessings to those who were faithful to Him.
32. The great things God has done have been accomplished through His will; our salvation also is His will and has not from our own merit.
33. Although our salvation is God's work, this does not mean we should grow lax. God made us to be fruitful as He is. It befits us to work out our righteousness.
34. The Lord has declared that he will reward man according to his works and the Scriptures declare that He will be worshiped by myriads of servants. Therefore, let us be His servants.
35. The gift of God is wonderful, and we must work hard to receive it.
36. Christ is the mediator of salvation and of the gifts of God. The passage speaks not only of Christ as mediating a covenant, but as the Revelation of the Father.
37. As Christ leads us in His will, we carry out His work as His soldiers, under His generals and commanders. The place of each Christian is necessary and important, as those higher up rely on those below them and those lower men require the leadership of those above them.
38. All the members of the Church should work together in harmony, not glorifying themselves, but glorifying God.
39. God destroys those who exalt themselves.
40. Worship and service ought to be performed according to God's designs.
41. God's designs for divine worship are strict.
42. Just as God appointed Christ to reveal Him, Christ appointed the Apostles.
43. Precedent has been set under Moses with regard to certain people being called to the priesthood.
44. St. Clement states that the office of bishop should not be withheld from those deserving it according to their priestly devotion and holiness.
45. The righteous are persecuted not by other righteous men, but my sinners. Therefore, those righteous men who have been dishonored are persecuted by sinners, who should not be followed.
46. The act of refusing the righteous and opposing them spreads division and schism, violating the unity God bestowed on His Church and causing scandal.
47. St. Clement declares that the divisions the Corinthians have caused now are worse than the divisions St. Paul mentioned in his own letter to the Corinthians, since it is worse to be divided between a righteous man and an unrighteous man than it is to be divided between two righteous men.
48. Repentance and brotherly love are the gate of righteousness through which the Corinthians must go.
49. St. Clement repeats to the Corinthians what they have already heard from St. Paul about love (cf. 1 Cor 13), adding his own style but delivering the same message.
50. God's love is beyond description, merciful, and forgiving.
51. Clement exhorts those involved in the scandal at Corinth to repent of their sins and not practice harness of heart.
52. A humble confession is more pleasing to God than sacrifice.
53. The self-sacrificing love of Moses for his people is given as an example.
54. If Moses can stand in the way of God to save his people and offer himself in their place, so a man who has done evil also ought to offer up himself in place of those he has led astray, so that they may be with Christ. The humility of public repentance is required.
55. Pagan and Scriptural examples of self-sacrificing love for one's followers.
56. Admonition, from other Christians or from God, should be received with gratitude, since it works toward our perfection and for our benefit.
57. It is better to submit to God humbly and be a simple member of His Church than to be an exalted heretic. The exhortation to repentance continues, with the note that God leaves the arrogant to their own devices, which destroy them.
58. He who stays true to the Gospel and does not "repent" (turn back) toward evil will be saved.
59. St. Clement says that those who refuse to repent face Almighty God and begins a prayer to the Lord.
60. The prayer continues with appeals to God's mercy.
61. The prayer ends with an invocation of God's help for temporal and spiritual leaders.
62. St. Clement recaps all that he has said.
63. Clement notes that he has sent his letter with messengers who are witnesses to the Gospel.
64. The closing blessing of the letter: "May God, who sees all things, and who is the Ruler of all spirits and the Lord of all flesh— who chose our Lord Jesus Christ and us through Him to be a peculiar people— grant to every soul that calls upon His glorious and holy name, faith, fear, peace, patience, long-suffering, self-control, purity, and sobriety, to the well-pleasing of His name, through our High Priest and Protector, Jesus Christ, by whom be to Him glory, and majesty, and power, and honour, both now and for evermore. Amen."
65. St. Clement appeals for a quick reply, so that he may rejoice all the more in the Corinthians.

I think after reading the Letter of St. Clement to the Corinthians that he demonstrates for us especially a proper understanding of the relationship between humility and the Christian life, as well as the goodness that exists in Christian discipline and admonition.

May we all strive to be as holy as St. Clement describes the Christian vocation.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

The Catholicism Project

I'm spreading the word from my friend Nick over at PhatCatholic Apologetics about this movie that needs a little more funding for production wrap-up:

It's a Wonderful Life

The other night, I was watching with my wife the timeless classic It's a Wonderful Life.  Aside from the obvious theological difficulties (among other things, Clarence the angel claims to have been a man on earth before becoming an angel), the movie is a fantastic demonstration of the enormity of the power of man to effect change in history.  For those who have not seen the movie (which is hard to imagine), a brief rundown is available at IMDB.

What interests me, as I have already said, is that the movie shows the power of the choices of mankind.  The "alternate reality" where George Bailey does not exist is practically the same as a world in which George Bailey has not made any choices.  We see that if George Bailey had never made choices, he would not have chosen to save his brother from drowning under the ice, and a whole platoon of men would be dead in the future.  If George Bailey hadn't corrected an errant, confused pharmacist, an innocent life would have been taken and another brought to irrevocable ruin at the hands of a mistake.  If George Bailey hadn't made the sacrifice of remaining in Bedford Falls to take over his father's noble work, the whole town would have spiraled into the destruction of despair and the resulting sins of self-indulgence sought to numb the heart and mind of the pain of this life.  If George Bailey hadn't courted his lovely wife, she would have died an old maid.  So we see that the good of individuals and societies, the fulfillment of vocations, even the gifts of God spread through the goodness of men cooperating with His will...all these things hinge on the choices of man.  For good or evil, God gave man the faculty of the will, to choose.


Imagine for a moment how the world might have been changed had better decisions been made: if our first parents had not pridefully disobeyed God, if the people of Noah's time or the inhabitants of Sodom or all the citizens of Ur had followed God's will, if Paris of Troy had controlled his passions, if Pontius Pilate had defended Christ, if the descendants of Charlemagne had not fought over his lands, if Europeans had not enslaved whole nations, if the United States had not abandoned natural law, if each man and woman would do as God instructs.  Imagine for a moment what life would be like.

There are many natural disasters of which we are rightly afraid.  Tornadoes, fires, earthquakes.  Hurricane Katrina made millions believe that an entire city had been drowned.  Yet as devastating as these things are, a simple sin is infinitely worse.  A sin is an act of the will; no natural disaster chooses to kill, but when I sin, I chose to disobey God, and thereby dishonor Him and mar the character and grace He has given me.

One more example of choice lays before us: the Word of God chose, in His great mercy toward man and obedience to God the Father, to become man.  The immutable God chose to step into this very fluid, ever-changing history.  God, who is beyond us, chose to be God-with-us, Emmanuel, so that we might choose to be with Him, and in so choosing, effect change for the better throughout the world.  We have the power not to choose, we have the power to choose evil, and we also have the power to choose good.  Let us welcome Emmanuel this Christmas; let us choose to do good.  Let us choose to build up the Kingdom of God.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

Veni, Veni Emmanuel

The following is the text of the Veni, Veni Emmanuel, the traditional carol sung by the Church on Gaudete Sunday, the Third Sunday of Advent.  Gaudete Sunday is marked by joy (gaudium) at the news of the coming King, the Son of God who will become flesh for us.  This classical translation, though not perfect, is generally accepted and appears in many hymnals.  I have taken it from Preces Latinae, which is run by the father of a friend and classmate from my alma mater. I'm hoping they won't mind.  My comments are above each stanza, including a more accurate (albeit non-metrical) translation.

The nation of Israel has always experienced exile and persecution, but this exile spoken of is not one of any particular point in history, but rather the exile from paradise and from friendship with God which Israel suffered and which, to some degree, the Church still suffers, as she is at once the spotless bride of Christ and one in need of further purity.  A better translation: "O come, o come Emmanuel, and free captive Israel, which groans in exile, deprived of the Son of God.  Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!"

Veni veni, Emmanuel
captivum solve Israel,
qui gemit in exsilio,
privatus Dei Filio.
Gaude! Gaude! Emmanuel,
nascetur pro te Israel!

O come, O come, Emmanuel,

and ransom captive Israel,

that morns in lonely exile here

until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice! Rejoice! O Israel,

to thee shall come Emmanuel! 

The Word of God, who is made flesh for us, is the Eternal Logos, the reason, logic, and wisdom through whom God created the world.  He orders all things, and showing us the path of knowledge, has the power to order our lives.  A better translation: "O come, thou Wisdom, who orders all here, o come, that you may teach the way of prudence and glory.  Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!"

Veni, O Sapientia,
quae hic disponis omnia,
veni, viam prudentiae
ut doceas et gloriae.
Gaude! Gaude! Emmanuel,
nascetur pro te Israel!

O come, Thou Wisdom, from on high,

and order all things far and nigh;

to us the path of knowledge show,

and teach us in her ways to go.

Rejoice! Rejoice! O Israel,

to thee shall come Emmanuel!

The Lord, whom we have called Wisdom, gave the law to His people, and we ask Him to come now once more and enforce His law.  A better translation: "O come, o come, thou Lord, who gave the law on Sinai on the peak in the majesty of glory.  Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!"

Veni, veni, Adonai,
qui populo in Sinai
legem dedisti vertice
in maiestate gloriae.
Gaude! Gaude! Emmanuel,
nascetur pro te Israel!

O come, o come, Thou Lord of might,

who to thy tribes on Sinai's height

in ancient times did give the law,

in cloud, and majesty, and awe.

Rejoice! Rejoice! O Israel,

to thee shall come Emmanuel!

Jesus Christ, who arose from the stem of Jesse, the father of Joseph and the twelve tribes of Israel, is his greatest descendant, who conquered the vile enemy of Israel and our first parents, sin and death.  May He grant us life everlasting.  A better translation: "O come, O shoot of Jesse, lead your own [people] from the talon of the enemy, your own [people] from the looked-down-upon [place] of the underworld, and the tomb of the abyss.  Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!"

Veni, O Iesse virgula,
ex hostis tuos ungula,
despectu tuos tartari
educ et antro barathri.
Gaude! Gaude! Emmanuel,
nascetur pro te Israel!

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse's stem,

from ev'ry foe deliver them

that trust Thy mighty power to save,

and give them vict'ry o'er the grave.

Rejoice! Rejoice! O Israel,

to thee shall come Emmanuel!

The Latin line "et claude vias inferum" actually says "and close the roads to hell," but the English has been softened.  Here we read that Jesus Christ, the descendant of King David, is to open heaven to us and guide us on the way, but also to close the roads to hell.  Although this is not literally done, Jesus does provide Himself as the Way, the Truth, and the Life so that for those who follow Him, it will be as though the roads to hell are closed.  A better translation: "O come, though Davidic Key, unlock the heavenly realms, make the heavenly journey safe, and lock the roads to hell.  Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!"

Veni, Clavis Davidica,
regna reclude caelica,
fac iter tutum superum,
et claude vias inferum.
Gaude! Gaude! Emmanuel,
nascetur pro te Israel!

O come, Thou Key of David, come,

and open wide our heav'nly home,

make safe the way that leads on high,

that we no more have cause to sigh.

Rejoice! Rejoice! O Israel,

to thee shall come Emmanuel!

Jesus Christ, who is in Scripture called the "Sun of Justice," dawns for us in the midst of this dark world in which we live.  It is He who dispels the shadows through the light of holiness and justice.  A better translation: "O come, o come, O Eastern one [the Sun], arriving to comfort us, dispel the clouds of night and curses and shadows of death.  Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!"

Veni, veni O Oriens,
solare nos adveniens,
noctis depelle nebulas,
dirasque mortis tenebras.
Gaude! Gaude! Emmanuel,
nascetur pro te Israel!

O come, Thou Dayspring from on high,

and cheer us by thy drawing nigh;

disperse the gloomy clouds of night

and death's dark shadow put to flight.

Rejoice! Rejoice! O Israel,

to thee shall come Emmanuel!

The King of Nations, as the Latin calls Him, comes to bring peace on earth and unity to mankind.  Let us make this our constant prayer.  A better translation: "O come, o come, King of the Nations, o come, Redeemer of all, that you may save your servants aware of sin.  Rejoice!  Rejoice!  Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!"


Veni, veni, Rex Gentium,
veni, Redemptor omnium,
ut salvas tuos famulos
peccati sibi conscios.
Gaude! Gaude! Emmanuel,
nascetur pro te Israel!

O come, Desire of the nations, bind

in one the hearts of all mankind;

bid every strife and quarrel cease

and fill the world with heaven's peace.

Rejoice! Rejoice! O Israel,

to thee shall come Emmanuel!

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

The Semi-Darkness of Secularism

As I read through the news from Zenit today, an article caught my attention with the following passage:

Benedict XVI expressed hope that the conference "might at least contribute to disperse that semi-darkness that makes openness to God precarious and fearful for the men of our time, though he never ceases to knock on our door."

This openness is important, the Pope said, since "experiences of the past, although not remote to us, teach us that when God disappears from man's horizon, humanity loses its direction and runs the risk of taking steps to its own destruction."

On the other hand, faith in God "opens man to the horizon of certain hope, which does not disappoint," the Pope affirmed.

This gives the "solid foundation on which to base life without fear," he said, adding that it "calls for abandoning oneself with confidence in the hands of the Love which sustains the world."

Why does our modern and secular society find openness to God precarious and fearful?  I was discussing philosophy with one of my students the other day.  He is quite bright and was reading through a book of selections from Nietzsche (only a few days later he was working through a similar book on Heidegger).  Being a mere amateur philosopher myself, I asked him what struck him about Nietzsche (of whom I know only vague generalizations) and he said that what he enjoyed was the man's desire to do everything in life that he could.  Upon further discussion, I found that Nietzsche's reason for this seeming zest for life was his atheism and believe that there was no afterlife.

Afterlife is ultimately heaven or hell.  If there is no heaven, then there is no point to Christian hope and no purpose can be given for human suffering.  If there is neither heaven nor hell, then there is no motivation to respond to the abyss of meaningless human suffering with anything but hedonism.

To be open to God, in the midst of a society wholly influenced by Neitzsche, requires a courage that trusts in the Word of God and the testimony and witness of the Church.  This act of faith is not an easy task for those who are naturally given over to skepticism.  It is indeed precarious and fearful.  In his Introduction to Christianity, Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) retells a story of Martin Buber I once heard in my philosophy of the human person class:

An adherent of the Enlightenment [writes Buber], a very learned man, who had heard of the Rabbi of Berditchev, paid a visit to him in order to argue, as was his custom, with him, too, and to shatter his old-fashioned proofs of the truth of his faith.  When he entered the Rabbi's room, he found him walking up and down with a book in his hand, rapt in thought.  The Rabbi paid no attention to the new arrival.  Suddenly he stopped, looked at him fleetingly, and said, "But perhaps it is true after all."  The scholar tried in vain to collect himself - his knees trembled, so terrible was the Rabbi to behold and so terrible his simple utterance to hear.  But Rabbi Levi Yitschak now turned to face him and spoke quite calmly: "My son, the great scholars of the Torah with whom you have argued wasted their words on you; as you departed you laughed at them.  They were unable to lay God and his Kingdom on the table before you, and neither can I.  But think, my son, perhaps it is true."  The exponent of the Enlightenment opposed him with all his strength; but this terrible "perhaps" that echoed back at him time after time broke his resistance.

The truth is that atheism, with its contingent ethic and "spirituality" (for a severe lack of a better term) of doubt-inspired and emptiness-driven hedonism, requires as much "faith" as Christianity.  Christianity from a skeptical viewpoint is precarious and fearful, it does indeed require faith, but a life of atheistic hedonism requires as much commitment, and the atheist will find at the judgment that he has wasted his life in a downward spiral of self-destruction, while the reluctant believer in Christ, though once a skeptic, will find that the faith he once thought to be a gloomy gamble has become the center of his every act and the cause of his worth.  Aside from the eternal aspect, the Christian path is more challenging on the moral level, but also more rewarding in this life.  Atheistic hedonism leads to a life-long search for meaning that already excludes everything capable of fulfilling the need for happiness in man.

Those of us who are Christian (not in name only) have seen for ourselves the value of our faith.  While it is for those on the outside a precarious and fearful thing, we who have already begun to reap the benefits of our faith attest not to its precariousness but its adventure, not to its fearfulness but to its awesomeness.  We are followers of St. Anselm's theological axiom fides quaerens intellectum.  We have accepted the mystery of faith and slowly begin to understand the significance of what God has revealed.  The faith is for us no risk at all, but a challenge worthy of our lifelong dedication.  For the Christian who truly seeks Christ, a light always remains in this place of darkness.

Still, we approach the faith from the midst of a secular, semi-dark world, a place of doubt and despair where in some parts the closing sunset of Christianity is perpetually held-off only by the compline prayer of the Church, the Nunc Dimittis, expressing at one and the same time a willingness for the afterlife, which may only be reached through death, and "the light of Revelation to the Gentiles."  So must we prayerfully participate in that canticle of St. Simeon, willing to live in the shadows and dark night of society's doubt while proclaiming the light we have seen.

May we, to whom Christ comes this Christmas, have the gift of faith to rekindle for Christ a world struggling through the cold dark winter of emptiness around us.  In this self-abandonment alone will we live a life without the fear so familiar to the followers of Nietzsche.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah

A Bit of Humor

For those of you who like to ponder extremely unlikely scenarios and pounce on parish religious educators with insane questions (don't be shy; every theologian knows you're out there, heck, we're usually just like you), this entry at What Does The Prayer Really Say? should open the floodgates for you: What Rubrics to Follow at Mass in case of Gunfire.

Nothing wrong with a little holy humor. I will not be posting quite as much this next week, I think, because we are about to start administering finals. Check in for more!

His Servant and Yours,

Micah