The Meditation. The Second Sunday After Trinity Sunday June 25 th A.D. Sanguinus Christi

Transcription

1 The Meditation The Second Sunday After Trinity Sunday June 25 th A.D. Sanguinus Christi By Gian Lorenzo Bernini ( ) Italian Baroque sculptor and painter

2 2. The Collect for the Second Sunday After Trinity Sunday - A.D O Lord, who never failest to help and govern those whom thou doest bring up in thy steadfast fear and love; Keep us, we beseech thee, under the protection of thy good providence, and make us to have a perpetual fear and love of thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. The Collect for the Feast of Corpus Christi O God, who in a wonderful Sacrament hast ordained unto us a Memory of thy Passion: grant us, we beseech thee, so to worship the sacred mysteries of thy Body and Blood, that we may ever know within ourselves the fruits of thy redemption. Who livest and reignest with the Father in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God. Throughout all ages of ages. World without end. Amen. Eating and drinking unworthily St. Paul, in his epistle for the feast of Corpus Christi, warns the Corinthians: But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. ( I Cor. Chap. 11, Vs. 28). This, the holiest of Sacraments, that which gives us immediate contact with Christ, requires perfect purity of conscience from us. The person who goes to meet the Bridegroom at His feast at the Altar, must wear a wedding garment, a white robe without spot or stain that is to say, a soul not soiled by sin. The person who eats unworthily is eating their own damnation, not recognizing the Body of the Lord (ref. to I Cor. Chap. 11, Vs. 29) * Holy Church takes these words so seriously that she obliges all who know themselves to be in a state of mortal sin to first receive the Sacrament of Penance before approaching the Lord s Holy Altar: an act of contrition does not suffice.

3 3. Holy Communion is the food of the soul; food is not given to the dead, but to the living; and a soul in mortal sin is dead to Almighty God. In the Sequence verse for the Mass of the Feast of Corpus Christi it is sung: The good, the guilty share therein, With sure increase of grace or sin, The ghostly life or ghostly death. Death to the guilty; to the good immortal life. See how one food Man s joy or woe accomplisheth. It is good and proper when preparing for Holy Communion, to purify the soul, even from the sins of habit or thoughtlessness, and also from our individual deliberate imperfections, such as pettiness, excessive, unproductive, or critical chatter, faults stemming from our egos, omission of daily prayer and dedicated time to God all things which make us less agreeable to our Heavenly Father. A short prayer is very helpful at such time in examination of conscience. The Jesus Prayer ; Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, have mercy upon me, a miserable sinner. ** or an even shorter one as: O my God, I love you, please forgive me! It s important to remember that neither our involuntary shortcomings nor human weaknesses are a reason for not receiving Holy Communion. Mindfulness with purposeful amendment (and of course intercessory prayer!) will help us overcome our faults, but we must also be on guard not to become scrupulous, for that too can prevent our growth in Christ. Whether we receive Christ in the sacred species daily or weekly, let us always take care to do so with a clean heart. The better the soul is disposed, the greater grace it will receive. It s true that all the Sacraments that we receive work in the soul, but as we know from the Gospel, they require our full-cooperation if they are to exercise themselves fully within us. There is the gospel account of Zacchaeus (see; St. Luke: Chap. 19, Vss. 1-10), who paid no attention to the mocking of the crowd, as he climbs the sycamore tree in order to get a better view of Jesus. He receives, in return, something that he dared not to even hope for, the Lord enters his house, and sits at table with him, and grants him the grace of a sincere conversion. Mary Magdalene dared to enter the house of the Pharisee; unaffected by the stares and scornful looks and words of the host and his guests. She approached Jesus and kneeling at His feet, washed them with her tears, drying them with her hair, and anointing them with her precious ointment. Jesus puts aside the protests of the Pharisees with the words: Her sins, which were many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. (St. Luke; Chap. 7, Vs. 47). The preparation which our Lord demands of His guests, consists above all, in acts of contrition and love, so that we may go to meet the Divine Bridegroom in robes of white, wedding garments without spot or stain. He will then sanctify us and draw us closer to Himself.

4 4. St. Augustine of Hippo offers us words of encouragement and urgency regarding the Holy Banquet: Let us leave aside, therefore, evil and vain excuses and let us go eagerly to that supper which feeds us interiorly. Let not the vice of pride keep us away, nor any illicit curiosity keep our hearts down to things of the earth, and far from God; not let the vice of sensuality impede the happiness of the heart. Let us approach and feed. Who came to the supper except beggars, sick people, the lame and the blind? The healthy rich did not come, that is those who were well-off; nor the clever, the presumptuous, those who are far from any remedy because of their pride. Let the poor come, because He invites them who being rich, became poor for our sake, so that His poverty might enrich the poor. Let the sick approach, because the healthy do not need a physician, but those that are sick. Let the blind come and let then say, enlighten my eyes that I may never sit in the shadow of death. ( excerpt from Sermon 35) Let us in our prayers ask of our Divine Host that He come and take possession of us, and to never let us be separated from Him. Let us also beseech Blessed Mary, purest of Virgins, to obtain for us the grace of purity so that we may be worthy to receive her Son when we come forth to partake in His Divine Banquet. NOTES: *I Corinthians, Chap. 11, Vs. 29: For he that eateth and drinks unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord s Body. **The Jesus Prayer is a very ancient prayer recited by monks and nuns the world over. Often this prayer is recited constantly (quietly or silently) as the religious works or goes about their daily rounds. This is not done as some type of mantra as the pagan eastern religions do, but it is done in faith, offering, and unity between the soul and Almighty God, therefore sanctifying every moment of the day and the acts performed. Let the priests of the Lord do offer offerings of the Lord made by fire and the Bread of their God: therefore, they shall be holy unto their God, and not profane in the Name of their God (Leviticus: Chap 21)

5 5. Priory Kalendar For the week of: June 25 th to July - A.D In the Trinity Season Sunday, June 25 th..... The Second Sunday After Trinity comm. St. William: Abt. & founder of Benedictine hermit-monk community- 12 th cent. Italy Monday, June 26 th in the Octave of the Sacred Heart Tuesday, June 27 th In the Octave Wednesday, June 28 th... St. Irenaeus of Lyons; Bp. & Myr. - 3 rd century Gaul Thursday, June 29 th.... St. Peter: Ap. Myr. & First Pope - 1 st century Judea & Rome Friday, June 30 th Commemoration of St. Paul comm. Octave Day of Sacred Heart Saturday, July 1 st..... Feast of the Precious Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ Sunday, July 2 nd......the Third Sunday After Trinity comm. The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Feasts, Fasts, and Other Things By Br. A. Chip Munk, O.S.B. Br. Chip took the week off to do some repairs to his hermitage. The recent spell of heavy rains disclosed a leaky roof that needed his attention. He ll be back next week!

6 6. Br Chip s Hermitage Br. Chip Feasts, Fasts, and Other Things from: The Chipmunk s Nutshell Library is presented by Br. A. Chip Monk, O.S.B. a munk of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows Priory in Raymond, Maine, USA KALENDAR KEY Abt. = Abbot, Abs. = Abbess, Abp = Archbishop, Anc. = Anchorite, Ancs. = Anchoress, Ap. = Apostle, Bl. = Blessed, Br. = Brother, Bp. = Bishop, Card. = Cardinal, C. or Conf. = Confessor, Comm. = Commemoration/Commemorate, Dcn. = Deacon, Doct. = Doctor of the Church, Ev. = Evangelist, H. = Hermit, LBr. = Lay Brother, LSr. = Lay Sister, K. = King, Mat. = Matron, M. = Monk, M.M. = Month s Mind ( Requiem for the recently departed on the 30 th day after death or burial). Myr. = Martyr, N. = Nun, Obl. = Oblate, P. = Priest, Po. = Pope, Pr. = Prior, Prs. = Prioress, R. = Recluse, RM = Requien Mortuorum, ( Mass and Offices for the departed once a month as designated on Kalendar). SDcn. = Sub Deacon, Q. = Queen, Ven. = Venerable, Vir. = Virgin, W. = Widow. FASTING KEY: A = Abstinence, F = Fast, F & A = Fast and Abstinence RELIGIOUS ORDER ABBREVIATIONS: C.O = Congregation of the Oratory (Oratorians), C.P. = Congregation of the Passion (Passionists), C.S.J. = Congregation of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), Er. Cam. = Camaldolese Hermits, F.P. O. = Franciscans of the Primitive Observance, O. Car. = Carmelite Order, O. Cart. Carthusian Order, O.C.D. = Order of Discalced Friars (Carmelites), O.F.A. = Augustinian Order, O.F.M = Order of Friars Minor (Franciscans), O.F.M. Cap = Capuchin Order, O.P. = Order of Preachers (Dominicans also called Blackfriars ), O. Praem. = Order of Cannons Regular (Norbertines), O.S.B. = Order of St. Benedict (Benedictines), O.Ss. S. = Bridgettines, O.S.U = Ursulines, O.C.O. = Order of the Cistercian

7 Observance (Trappists/Trappistines), O.C.S.O. = Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance (Trappists/ Trappistines). Tert. = Tertiary (Third Order religious). 7. About the Meditation and About Us The Meditation is an online apostolate of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows Priory in Raymond, Maine, USA. We are an Anglican-Catholic Benedictine contemplative community that follows the Holy Rule of St. Benedict, the 5 th century Father of Western Monasticism. We are resident within the Diocese of the Northeast (DNE), of the Anglican Church in America (ACA), a member of the worldwide Traditional Anglican Communion (TAC). The Meditation is a weekly online offering that is sent out free of charge to anyone who desires to receive it. Subscribers may copy and pass along The Meditation to their families and friends, or send us their e-address (with their permission) to add to our subscription list so they may receive it directly from us. Each issue is sent out as a BCC (Blank Copy) in respect to subscriber privacy and online security. To subscribe, contact us at: klamarre@maine.rr.com To read past issues of the Meditation, please go to our website at: and you can find them in the section marked Meditations on the homepage. PLEASE NOTE: In respect to our contemplative vocation and the animals in our rescue and rehab center, we do not have guest or bathroom facilities and do not regularly receive visitors. Fr. Kevin is available to hear confessions and give spiritual direction by appointment only. Please contact via to make an appointment. Animal News Sr. Mary Francis, O.S.B. Ever-Present and On-Duty Jack

8 8. He prowls the property day and night intent on keeping all evil things at bay He often is seen visiting in the animal cemetery. At left he gets a scratch from little Bindi Sue, and at right, passes the guardian angel of the cemetery, re-assuring the little cherub; I ve got your back! PAX

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