Proper Calendar Order of the Discalced Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary
(unofficial, working translation for our readers)
We present an English translation of the newly revised liturgical calendar for the Discalced Carmelite Order that was published online by the General Curia 16 October 2019 pursuant to the Decree of the Congregation of Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments (Prot. N. 345/18) dated 16 July 2019, its effective date. A commentary on the calendar and translation follows below.
January
4 St. Kuriakos Elias of the Holy Family Chavara,
Priest —Optional Memorial In provinces in India: Memorial
8 St. Peter Thomas,
Bishop — Optional Memorial
9 St. Andrew Corsini,
Bishop — Optional Memorial In provinces in Italy: Memorial
27 St. Henry de Ossó y Cervelló,
Priest — Optional Memorial
February
4 Bl. Marie Eugene of the Child Jesus Grialou, Priest — Optional Memorial
24 Bl. Joseph Naval Girbes, Virgin — Optional Memorial
April
17 Bl. Baptist Spagnoli,
Priest — Optional Memorial
18 Bl. Mary of the Incarnation Barbe Acarie,
Religious — Optional Memorial In provinces of France: Memorial
23 Bl. Teresa Maria of the Cross Manetti, Virgin — Optional Memorial
May
4 Bl. Angel Maria Prat Hostench, Lucas of St. Joseph Tristany Pujol, Priests, and Companions,
Martyrs — Optional Memorial In Spain: Memorial
16 St. Simon Stock,
Priest — Optional Memorial In the Anglo-Irish province: Memorial
22 St. Joachina de Vedruna,
Religious — Optional Memorial
24 St. Bede the Venerable,
Priest and Doctor of the Church — Optional Memorial St. Gregory VII,
Pope — Optional Memorial
25 St. Mary Magdalene of the Incarnate Word de’ Pazzi,
Virgin — Memorial
June
7 Bl. Anne of St. Bartholomew,
Virgin — Optional Memorial In the Spanish province: Memorial
12 Bl. Alphonsus Mary of the Holy Spirit Mazurek,
Priest, and Companions, Martyrs — Optional Memorial In the Polish provinces: Memorial
July
10 St. Henry,
Optional Memorial
12 Sts. Louis Martin and Marie Azélie Guérin,
Spouses — Optional Memorial
13 St. Teresa of Jesus Fernández Solar,
Virgin — Memorial In the province of Chile: Feast
16 BLESSED VIRGIN MARY OF MOUNT CARMEL, PATRONESS AND HEAD OF OUR ORDER — Solemnity
17 Bl. Teresa of St. Augustine Lidoine and Companions,
Virgins and Martyrs — Optional Memorial In the provinces of France: Memorial
18 St. Apollinaris,
Bishop and Martyr — Optional Memorial
19 St. Bridget,
Religious — Optional Memorial
20 OUR FATHER SAINT ELIJAH,
PROPHET — Feast
23 Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother of Divine Grace — Memorial
24 Bl. Maria Pilar of St. Francis Borgia Martínez García, Bl. Maria Sagrario of St. Aloysius Gonzaga Moragas Cantarero and Companions,
Virgins and Martyrs — Optional Memorial
27 Bl. Titus Brandsma,
Priest and Martyr — Optional Memorial
28 Bl. John Soreth,
Priest — Optional Memorial In the provinces of France: Memorial
August
3 St. Sixtus II, Pope, and Companions, Martyrs — Optional Memorial St. Cajetan, Priest — Optional Memorial
7 St. Albert of Trapani, Priest — Memorial
9 St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, Virgin and Martyr — Memorial In provinces of Europe: Patroness of Europe, Feast
18 Bls. Leonard Duverneuil, Michael Aloysius Brulard, and Hubert of St. Claude, Priests, and Companions, Martyrs —Optional Memorial
25 St. Mary of Jesus Crucified Baouardy, Virgin — Optional Memorial
26 Transverberation of the Heart of St. Teresa of Jesus Our Mother,
Optional Memorial
September
1 St. Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Virgin — Memorial In the provinces of Italy: Feast
11 Bl. Mary of Jesus López Rivas, Virgin —Optional Memorial In the Spanish province: Memorial
17 St. Albert of Jerusalem, Bishop and Lawgiver of our Order — Feast
18 St. Robert Bellarmine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church — Optional Memorial
October
1 SAINT THERESE OF THE CHILD JESUS, VIRGIN AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH — Feast
15 SAINT TERESA OF JESUS OUR MOTHER, VIRGIN AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH — Solemnity
30 Bl. Maria Teresa of St. Joseph Tauscher,
Virgin —Optional Memorial
November
6 St. Nuno of St. Mary, Religious — Optional Memorial In the province of Portugal: Memorial
7 Bl. Francis of Jesus Mary Joseph Palau y Quer, Priest — Optional Memorial
8 St. Elizabeth of the Trinity Catez, Virgin — Optional Memorial
14 ALL SAINTS OF OUR ORDER, Feast
15 Commemoration of all the Departed of Our Order, Optional Memorial
19 St. Raphael of St. Joseph Kalinowski, Priest — Memorial
29 Bls. Denis of the Nativity, Priest, and Redemptus of the Cross, Religious, Martyrs — Optional Memorial In provinces of India: Memorial
December
11 St. Maria Maravillas of Jesus Pidal y Chico de Guzmán, Virgin — Optional Memorial
14 SAINT JOHN OF THE CROSS OUR FATHER, PRIEST AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH — Solemnity
Nota Bene: In its Appendix, the Decree provides for several celebrations to be assigned to specific jurisdictions. For example, Latin American provinces may observe the optional memorial of Blessed Chiquitunga on 28 April; the Italian provinces may observe the optional memorial of Blessed Elia of St. Clement on 29 May. In other jurisdictions, dates of Carmelite feasts have been changed to accommodate local calendars where a conflict exists. These changes primarily affect the Spanish, French, German, and Italian-speaking provinces.
In that which concerns English-speaking Discalced Carmelites, perhaps the most significant of these particular date changes concerns the provinces of Europe, where the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Divine Grace now will be celebrated on 7 July.
The Discalced Carmelite Procurator General, Father Jean Joseph Bergara, explains that the calendar became valid immediately upon the signature of the Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Cardinal Robert Sarah: “The calendar is already in force. It is in force counting from the date of the signing of the decree, 16 July 2019, but especially from the date of reception of the decree, 24 September 2019. From that date forward, it is the only valid calendar in all communities.”
You may view the Latin text of the Decree, the original Latin text of the newly revised calendar and its appendix, and the introduction from Father Bergara here.
You showed the way of perfection
to the point of rapture, you cherished the God of love
who lavished upon you His ineffable visions;
with the zeal of Elijah you conquered souls for Christ;
through your foundations you made the desert blossom again,
and your monasteries sanctify the people of the cities.
O venerable Teresa, having reached the castle of the great King,
intercede for the faithful who celebrate your glory, as they sing:
Rejoice, mystic spouse of Jesus!
Icon of St. Teresa venerated at the Pontifical Faculty of Theology Teresianum, Rome
Ikos
Rejoice, for so many graces sown in you!
Rejoice, for you were loved by the Lord!
Rejoice, you whose homeland was above!
Rejoice, splendid glory of Avila!
Rejoice, you who were nourished by manna!
Rejoice, you whose desert became a meadow!
Rejoice, shepherdess-friend of the Good Shepherd!
Rejoice, as you bring your lambs to the Creator!
Rejoice, you who were perfect in the Way!
Rejoice, you who radiate holy joy!
Rejoice, you whose passion was for the Eternal One!
Rejoice, for your way leads to heaven!
Rejoice, mystic spouse of Jesus!
Texts from the Byzantine Matins of our venerable mother Teresa of Jesus, mother of the Carmelite Order, graciously provided by Father J. Michael Thompson.
October 1 SAINT THERESE OF THE CHILD JESUS Virgin and Doctor of the Church
Feast
Thérèse Martin was born at Alencon in 1873. At the age of fifteen she entered the Carmel at Lisieux. She practiced heroic humility, evangelical simplicity and trust in God, and taught the novices these virtues by word and example. She offered her life for the salvation of souls and the growth of the Church. She died September 30, 1897.
Invitatory
Ant. The Lord reveals himself to little ones; come, let us worship him.
Invitatory psalm, as in the Ordinary.
Office of Readings
Hymn
Let all who lovingly avow
Those gifts the Christ Child came to share
Acclaim Thérèse’s virtues now
And praise her name in song and prayer.
Her patroness and mother chose
The lofty peaks of Carmel’s height
And there Thérèse in fervor goes
To follow Christ, her one delight.
Inspired by Jesus to convey
Amazing secrets of his grace,
She taught the world the simple way
Of childhood that the Gospels trace.
More like an angel than a child
She gathered virtue’s flowers at will
By whose sweet scent was God beguiled,
Whose tender fragrance charms us still.
Yet joy itself could not portray
The surge of her immense desire
Nor cloister walls have strength to stay
A love that swept the world like fire.
All glory, Jesus, be to you
This day revealed to little ones,
To Father and blest Spirit, too,
While age on age forever runs.
L.M. Nomen decusque concinant
Ant. 1 Your mercy will follow me all the days of my life.
Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd, *
there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures *
where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me, *
To revive my drooping spirit.
He guides me along the right path; *
he is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness *
no evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your staff; *
with these you give me comfort.
You have prepared a banquet for me *
in the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil; *
my cup is overflowing.
Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me *
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell *
forever and ever.
Ant. Your mercy will follow me all the days of my life.
Ant. 2 See what love the Father has shown us, to let us be called children of God; yet that is what we are.
Psalm 103
My soul, give thanks to the Lord, *
all my being, bless his holy name.
My soul, give thanks to the Lord *
and never forget all his blessings.
It is he who forgives all your guilt *
who heals every one of your ills,
who redeems your life from the grave, *
who crowns you with love and compassion,
who fills your life with good things, *
renewing your youth like an eagle’s.
The Lord does deeds of justice, *
gives judgment for all who are oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses *
and his deeds to Israel’s sons.
The Lord is compassion and love, *
slow to anger and rich in mercy.
His wrath will come to an end; *
he will not be angry forever.
He does not treat us according to our sins *
nor repay us according to our faults.
For as the heavens are high above the earth *
so strong is his love for those who fear him.
Ant. See what love the Father has shown us, to let us be called children of God; yet that is what we are.
Ant. 3 The Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and believed in me.
As far as the east is from the west *
so far does he remove our sins.
As a father has compassion on his sons, *
the Lord has pity on those who fear him;
for he knows of what we are made, *
he remembers that we are dust.
As for man, his days are like grass; *
he flowers like the flower of the field;
the wind blows and he is gone *
and his place never sees him again.
But the love of the Lord is everlasting *
upon those who hold him in fear;
his justice reaches out to children’s children +
when they keep his covenant in truth, *
when they keep his will in their mind.
The Lord has set his sway in heaven *
and his kingdom is ruling over all.
Give thanks to the Lord, all his angels, +
mighty in power, fulfilling his word, *
who heed the voice of his word.
Give thanks to the Lord, all his hosts, *
his servants who do his will.
Give thanks to the Lord, all his works, *
in every place where he rules.
My soul, *
give thanks to the Lord!
Ant. The Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and believed in me.
Your word is a lamp for my feet — And a light on my path.
First Reading
From the first letter of the apostle Paul to the Corinthians
I Cor. 12:12, 27-31; 13:1-13
You together are Christ’s body, but each of you is a different part of it
The body is one and has many members, but all the members, many though they are, are one body; and so it is with Christ. You, then, are the body of Christ. Every one of you is a member of it. Furthermore, God has set up in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracle workers, healers, assistants, administrators, and those who speak in tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles or have the gift of healing? Do all speak in tongues, all have the gift of interpretation of tongues? Set your hearts on the greater gifts.
Now I will show you the way which surpasses all the others. If I speak with human tongues and angelic as well, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong, a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and, with full knowledge, comprehend all mysteries, if I have faith great enough to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give everything I have to feed the poor and hand over my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient; love is kind. Love is not jealous; it does not put on airs; it is not snobbish. Love is never rude; it is not self-seeking; it is not prone to anger; neither does it brood over injuries. Love does not rejoice in what is wrong, but rejoices with the truth. There is no limit to love’s forbearance, to its trust, its hope, its power to endure.
Love never fails. Prophecies will cease, tongues will be silent, knowledge will pass away. Our knowledge is imperfect and our prophesying is imperfect. When the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away. When I was a child I used to talk like a child, think like a child, reason like a child. When I became a man I put childish ways aside. Now we see indistinctly, as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. My knowledge is imperfect now; then I shall know even as I am known. There are in the end three things that last: faith, hope, and love, and the greatest of these is love.
Responsory
When I am lifted up from the earth, — I will draw all people to myself.
Fragrant is the scent of your perfume; let us follow in your footsteps. — I will draw all people to myself.
Second Reading
From the autobiography of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus
(MS B, f. 3r-3v: ed. J. Clarke 1975, pp. 193-94)
In the heart of the Church I shall be love
My desires caused me a veritable martyrdom, and I opened the Epistles of Saint Paul to find some kind of answer. Chapters Twelve and Thirteen of the First Epistle to the Corinthians fell under my eyes. I read there, in the first of these chapters, that all cannot be apostles, prophets, doctors, etc., that the Church is composed of different members, and that the eye cannot be the hand at one and the same time. The answer was clear, but it did not fulfill my desires and gave me no peace. Without becoming discouraged, I continued my reading, and this sentence consoled me: Yet strive after the better gifts, and I point out to you a yet more excellent way. And the Apostle explains how all the most perfect gifts are nothing without Love. That Charity is the excellent way that leads most surely to God.
I finally had rest. Considering the mystical body of the Church, I had not recognized myself in any of the members described by Saint Paul, or rather I desired to see myself in them all. Charity gave me the key to my vocation. I understood that if the Church had a body composed of different members, the most necessary and most noble of all could not be lacking to it, and so I understood that the Church had a heart and that this heart was burning with love. I understood it was love alone that made the Church’s members act; that if love ever became extinct, apostles would not preach the Gospel and martyrs would not shed their blood. I understood that love comprised all vocations, that love was everything, that it embraced all times and places… in a word, that it was eternal!
Then, in the excess of my delirious joy, I cried out, “O Jesus, my Love… my vocation, at last I have found it… My vocation is Love!”
Yes, I have found my place in the Church and it is you, O my God, who have given me this place; in the heart of the Church, my Mother, I shall be love. Thus I shall be everything, and thus my dream will be realized.
Responsory
Joy and gladness fill my heart; — the Lord has been merciful to me.
He has looked with favor on his lowly servant and taken account of my soul’s needs. — the Lord has been merciful to me.
Where the Vigil Office is celebrated:
Canticles (Alternative 1)
Ant. The Lord spread his wings like an eagle; he lifted her up and bore her on his shoulders. The Lord alone was her leader.
Canticle I
Dt 32:3-7, 10-12
The deeds of kindness which God wrought for his people
How often have I longed to gather your children as a hen gathers her young under her wings (Mt 23:37)
I shall praise the name of the Lord. *
O give glory to this God of ours!
The Rock – his deeds are perfect, *
and all his ways are just,
a faithful God, without deceit, *
a God who is right and just.
Those whom he begot unblemished *
have become crooked, false, perverse.
Is it thus you repay the Lord, *
O senseless and foolish people?
Is he not your father who created you, *
he who made you, on whom you depend?
Remember the days of old, *
consider the years that are past;
ask your father and he will show you, *
ask your elders and they will tell you.
Israel God found him in a wilderness, *
in fearful, desolate wastes;
he surrounded him, he lifted him up, *
he kept him as the apple of his eye.
Like an eagle that watches its nest, *
that hovers over its young,
so he spread his wings; he took him, *
placed him on his outstretched wings.
The Lord alone was his guide *
and no other god was with him.
Canticle II
Song 1:3-4a; 2:8-10; 3:1b-2, 4bc
The faithful soul finds the beloved
Where have you hidden yourself, my Beloved? (St. John of the Cross)
Your name is oil poured out; *
therefore the maidens love you.
Draw me after you, let us make haste; *
your anointing oils are fragrant.
The king has brought me into his chambers; *
we will exult and rejoice in you.
The voice of my beloved: †
Behold, he comes, *
leaping upon the mountains, bounding over the hills.
My beloved is like a gazelle, *
or a young stag.
Behold, there he stands behind our wall, *
gazing in at the windows, looking through the lattice.
My beloved speaks and says to me: †
“Arise, my love, my fair one, *
and come away.”
I sought him whom my soul loves; *
I sought him, but found him not.
“I will rise now and go about the city; *
in the streets and in the squares
I will seek him whom my soul loves;” *
I sought him, but found him not.
I found him whom my soul loves. *
I held him, and would not let him go.
Canticle III
Song 4:8ab, 9bc, 12, 15; 5:2; 6:3; 8:6-7a
The strength of love
Love turns labor into rest (St. Teresa of Jesus)
Come with me from Lebanon, my bride; *
come with me from Lebanon.
You have ravished my heart with a glance of your eyes, *
with one jewel of your necklace.
A garden locked is my sister, my bride, *
a garden locked, a fountain sealed.
A garden fountain, a well of living water, *
and flowing streams from Lebanon.
I slept, but my heart was awake. *
Hark! my beloved is knocking.
“Open to me, my sister, my love, *
my dove, my perfect one,
for my head is wet with dew, *
my locks with the drops of the night.”
I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine; *
he pastures his flock among the lilies.
Set me as a seal upon your heart, *
as a seal upon your arm;
for love is strong as death, *
jealousy is cruel as the grave.
Its flashes are flashes of fire, †
a most vehement flame. *
Many waters cannot quench love.
Ant. The Lord spread his wings like an eagle; he lifted her up and bore her on his shoulders. The Lord alone was her leader.
Gospel (Alternative 1)
Jn 17:17-26
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
I have sent them into the world
Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said:
Holy Father,
consecrate them in the truth;
your word is truth.
As you sent me into the world,
I have sent them into the world,
and for their sake I consecrate myself
so that they too may be consecrated in truth.
I pray not only for these,
but for those also
who through their words will believe in me.
May they all be one.
Father, may they be one in us,
as you are in me and I am in you,
so that the world may believe it was you who sent me.
I have given them the glory you gave to me,
that they may be one as we are one.
With me in them and you in me,
may they be so completely one
that the world will realize that it was you who sent me
and that I have loved them as much as you loved me.
Father,
I want those you have given me
to be with me where I am,
so that they may always see the glory
you have given me
because you loved me
before the foundation of the world.
Father, Righteous One,
the world has not known you,
but I have known you,
and these have known
that you have sent me.
I have made your name known to them
and will continue to make it known
so that the love with which you loved me may be in them,
and so that I may be in them.
Gospel (Alternative 2)
Jn 15:1-13
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
Whoever remains in me, with me in him, bears fruit in plenty
Jesus said to his disciples:
“I am the true vine,
and my Father is the vinedresser.
Every branch in me that bears no fruit
he cuts away,
and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes
to make it bear even more.
You are pruned already,
by means of the word that I have spoken to you.
Make your home in me, as I make mine in you.
As a branch cannot bear fruit all by itself,
but must remain part of the vine,
neither can you unless you remain in me.
I am the vine,
you are the branches.
Whoever remains in me, with me in him,
bears fruit in plenty;
for cut off from me you can do nothing.
Anyone who does not remain in me
is like a branch that has been thrown away
-he withers;
these branches are collected and thrown on the fire,
and they are burned.
If you remain in me
and my words remain in you,
you may ask what you will
and you shall get it.
It is to the glory of my Father that you should bear much fruit,
and then you will be my disciples.
As the Father has loved me,
so I have loved you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments
you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father’s commandments
and remain in his love.
I have told you this
so that my own joy may be in you
and your joy be complete.
This is my commandment:
love one another,
as I have loved you.
A man can have no greater love
than to lay down his life for his friends.
Te Deum
You are God: we praise you; *
You are the Lord: we acclaim you;
You are the eternal Father: *
All creation worships you.
To you all angels, all the powers of heaven, *
Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord, God of power and might, *
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you. †
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you. *
The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you: *
Father, of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all worship, *
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
You, Christ, are the King of glory, *
the eternal Son of the Father.
When you became man to set us free *
you did not spurn the Virgin’s womb.
You overcame the sting of death, *
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at God’s right hand in glory. *
We believe that you will come, and be our judge.
Come then, Lord, and help your people, *
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints*
to glory everlasting.
Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance. — Govern and uphold them now and always.
Day by day we bless you. — We praise your name for ever.
Keep us today, Lord, from all sin. — Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.
Lord, show us your love and mercy, — for we have put our trust in you.
In you, Lord, is our hope: — And we shall never hope in vain.
Prayer
God our Father,
you have promised your kingdom
to those who are willing to become like little children.
Help us to follow the way of Saint Thérèse with confidence
so that by her prayers
we may come to know your eternal glory.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Morning Prayer
Hymn
Her boundless love for Christ her Lord
Impels Thérèse to greater things.
The martyr’s and apostle’s crown
To crown of virgins now she brings.
To be a victim of God’s love
Her heart aglow with mystic fire,
She begs her Spouse by love consume
Her life, a holocaust entire.
When death, the herald of true life,
Brings to its close, her life’s brief race,
She calls, “I love you” as she dies
And hastens to meet Christ’s embrace.
Now savoring all heaven’s joys,
The glories by her virtues won,
May she that shower of roses send
Which once she promised to her own.
O King of meek and gentle heart
Who for the little ones prepare
Your feast, grant us who follow her
In childlike trust, to enter there.
All praise be to the Father now,
Praise also to his only Son,
The Spirit in all virgin souls,
As ages endless through time run.
88.88. Immensa Christi caritas
Psalmody
Ant. 1 My soul clings to you; with your right hand you have raised me up.
Psalms and canticle from Sunday, Week I
Ant. 2 You holy and humble of heart, bless the Lord.
Ant. 3 The Lord takes delight in his people, and crowns the humble with salvation.
Reading
Romans 8:14-17
All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. You did not receive a spirit of slavery leading you back into fear, but a spirit of adoption through which we cry out, “Abba!” (that is, “Father”). The Spirit himself gives witness with our spirit that we are children of God. But if we are children, we are heirs as well; heirs of God, heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so as to be glorified with him.
Responsory
See, I will pour out upon her a river of peace. — See, I will pour out upon her a river of peace.
The glory of the nations like an overflowing stream, — a river of peace.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. — See, I will pour out upon her a river of peace.
Canticle of Zechariah
Ant. Pray to the Lord of the harvest that he send laborers into his harvest.
Intercessions
Our Lord Jesus Christ has given Saint Thérèse to us as a model of the evangelical life. Let us pray to him and say:
R/.Hear us, O Lord.
Lord, you said, “Whoever is thirsty, let him come to me and drink;” — give us an intense thirst for your love.
Lord, you said, “If you do not become as little children, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven,” — help us to love you in simplicity of heart.
Lord, you told us, “There is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents;” — help us to have a childlike trust in your mercy.
Lord, you said, “Whoever does the will of my Father will enter the kingdom of heaven,” — give us a spirit of faithful obedience to all your commands.
Lord, you said, “Whatsoever you do to one of the least of my brethren you do to me;” — may we see you today in our brothers and sisters, and love you in them.
Lord, you said, “The harvest is great, but the laborers are few; pray therefore to the Lord of the harvest, that he send laborers into the harvest;” — give to all of us the missionary spirit of Saint Thérèse, who longed for the salvation of souls.
Our Father…
Prayer
God our Father,
you have promised your kingdom
to those who are willing to become like little children.
Help us to follow the way of Saint Thérèse with confidence
so that by her prayers
we may come to know your eternal glory.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Daytime Prayer
Psalms from the current weekday.
Midmorning
Ant. The Lord chose you for his own, to praise him and give glory to his name.
Reading
2 Corinthians 12:9b-10
I willingly boast of my weakness instead, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I am content with weakness, with mistreatment, with distress, with persecutions and difficulties for the sake of Christ; for when I am powerless, it is then that I am strong.
The Lord is my strength and my song. — In you I trust; I shall not be put to shame.
Midday
Ant. The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to little ones.
Reading
1 John 4:17-19
Our love is brought to perfection in this,
that we should have confidence on the day of judgment:
for our relation to this world is just like his.
Love has no room for fear;
rather, perfect love casts out all fear.
And since fear has to do with punishment,
love is not yet perfect in one who is afraid.
We, for our part, love
because he first loved us.
You, Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer. — From eternity this is your name.
Midafternoon
Ant. The Lord looks kindly on the prayer of the needy, and his word is addressed to the lowly.
Reading
1 John 3:1-2
See what love the Father has bestowed on us
in letting us be called children of God!
Yet that is what we are.
The reason the world does not recognize us
is that it never recognized the Son.
Dearly beloved,
we are God’s children now;
what we shall later be has not yet come to light.
We know that when it comes to light
we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is.
I will run in the way of your commandments. — For you have given greatness to my heart.
Prayer
God our Father,
you have promised your kingdom
to those who are willing to become like little children.
Help us to follow the way of Saint Thérèse with confidence
so that by her prayers
we may come to know your eternal glory.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Evening Prayer
Hymn
From clear high mansions of that shining palace
Where you enjoy the light of God’s dear presence,
And plead our causes, mindful of your promise
Show’r down your roses.
Roses of faith to shed its light supernal,
Roses of hope when obstacles surround us,
And for our strengthening in daily living
Roses of pure love.
Through your own childlike confidence and candor
Send us the rose of quietly discerning
Love of a Father, shining in each happening
Both sweet and bitter.
This be our portion, God forever blessed,
Father eternal, Son and Holy Spirit,
Whose is the glory which through all creation
Resounds forever.
11.11.11.5. Luce divina rutilantis aulae
Psalmody
Ant. 1 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
Psalm 113
Praise, O servants of the Lord, *
praise the name of the Lord!
May the name of the Lord be blessed *
both now and forevermore!
From the rising of the sun to its setting *
praised be the name of the Lord!
High above all nations is the Lord, *
above the heavens his glory.
Who is like the Lord, our God, *
who has risen on high to his throne
yet stoops from the heights to look down, *
to look down upon heaven and earth?
From the dust he lifts up the lowly, *
from his misery he raises the poor
to set him in the company of princes, *
yes, with the princes of his people.
To the childless wife he gives a home *
and gladdens her heart with children.
Ant. There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
Ant. 2 For their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth.
Psalm 131
O Lord, my heart is not proud *
nor haughty my eyes.
I have not gone after things too great *
nor marvels beyond me.
Truly I have set my soul *
in silence and peace.
As a child has rest in its mother’s arms, *
even so my soul.
O Israel, hope in the Lord *
both now and forever.
Ant. For their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth.
Ant. 3 God chooses those the world considers weak to confound the strong.
Phil. 2:6-11
Though he was in the form of God, +
Jesus did not deem equality with God *
something to be grasped at.
Rather, he emptied himself, +
and took the form of a slave, *
being born in the likeness of men.
He was known to be of human estate *
and it was thus that he humbled himself,
obediently accepting even death, *
death on a cross!
Because of this, *
God highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name *
above every name,
So that at Jesus’ name +
every knee must bend, *
in the heavens, on the earth,
and under the earth, *
and every tongue proclaim
to the glory of God the Father: *
JESUS CHRIST IS LORD!
Ant. God chooses those the world considers weak to confound the strong.
Reading
1 Timothy 2:1, 3-6a
First of all, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be offered for all men. Prayer of this kind is good, and God our Savior is pleased with it, for he wants all men to be saved and come to know the truth. And the truth is this:
“God is one
One also is the mediator between God and men,
the man Christ Jesus,
who gave himself as a ransom for all.”
Responsory
I will tell of your name to my friends: in the midst of the assembly I will praise you. — I will tell of your name to my friends: in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.
For you have not despised the poor in their distress; — in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. — I will tell of your name to my friends: in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.
Canticle of Mary
Ant. Father, I have made your name known to those you have given me: make them holy in the truth.
Intercessions
Let us pray to God, our almighty Father, for his Church throughout the world:
Lord, remember your covenant with us.
May we be inspired by the example of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus; — may your Church give itself to you in love.
May all contemplatives be faithful witnesses of your goodness; — so that the world may believe in you.
May we bear one another’s burdens in a spirit of love; — so that your faithful people may see your face in us and imitate your Son.
Fill us with a faithful missionary spirit; — for you desire all the world to know the truth of Christ.
Grant to all the faithful departed the joy of seeing your face; — for Christ wants those you gave him to be with him where he reigns in glory.
Our Father…
Prayer
God our Father,
you have promised your kingdom
to those who are willing to become like little children.
Help us to follow the way of Saint Thérèse with confidence
so that by her prayers
we may come to know your eternal glory.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Born in 1560 at Tartanedo (Spain) Maria Lopez de Rivas took the Discalced Carmelite habit at Toledo in 1577 and made her profession the following year. She spent the rest of her life serving God in that Carmel, except for a brief period in 1585 when she helped with a foundation at Cuerva. She died at Toledo on September 13, 1640. Saint Teresa of Jesus thought extremely highly of her. She was a great contemplative, intensely devoted to our Lord, and often drawing inspiration from the liturgy.
From the common of virgins
Office of Readings
Second Reading
From the Interior Castle of Saint Teresa of Avila
(Dwell. VI, 7, 10-15; II, 1, 11)
No one comes to the Father except through me
What I mean by meditation is to busy one’s understanding in the following way. We begin to think about God’s goodness to us in giving us his only Son, but we don’t stop there: we go on to all the other mysteries of his glorious life. Or we begin with his prayer in the garden, and our understanding doesn’t stop until we picture him nailed to the cross. Or we take a single scene from the passion, and go on thinking about that one mystery, working out in detail everything that can be thought or felt about it. It is a very admirable and meritorious kind of prayer.
No soul that has received so much from God, such precious proofs of his love, can forget them. They are live sparks that can only intensify what we feel for our Lord. Anyone who says he can’t dwell on these mysteries is quite mistaken. He will often have them in mind, especially when they are being celebrated by the Catholic Church.
The company of our beloved Jesus, and his blessed Mother, is far too good to be given up. For my own part I could not wish for any blessing that had not been won for us by him, through whom every good thing comes to us.
Our Lord said himself, No one can come to the Father except through me, and Whoever sees me, sees my Father. So if we never look at him, or think about what we owe him and the death he underwent for our sake, I don’t see how we can hope to know him or do anything to serve him. (Without such good works, what good is faith? And what good are works unless they are joined to the merits of Jesus Christ, our only good, which alone have any worth?) And how can anyone persuade us to love our Lord?
Responsory
Let your hearts be comforted in the knowledge of Christ, God’s mystery: —in him lies hidden every treasure of wisdom and knowledge.
You must live in him, be rooted in him, built upon him; —in him lies hidden every treasure of wisdom and knowledge.
Morning Prayer
Canticle of Zechariah
Ant. Blessed be God, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing.
Prayer
Lord,
you enabled Blessed Mary of Jesus
to contemplate the mysteries of your Son
and become a living image of his love.
Give us through her prayers
the burning faith to seek Jesus in all things
and the love to prove by our actions
the presence within us of him
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Evening Prayer
Canticle of Mary
Ant. If you gladly share Christ’s sufferings, you will have far greater joy when his glory is revealed.
Image of Blessed Mary commissioned by the church of Tartanedo after her beatification | Source: santosocd.blogspot.com
September 1 SAINT TERESA MARGARET REDI OF THE SACRED HEART Virgin
Memorial
Teresa Margaret belonged to the noble family of Redi, and was born in the Tuscan city of Arezzo in 1747. She entered the Discalced Carmelite monastery at Florence on September 1, 1764. She was granted a special grace of contemplative insight based on Saint John’s phrase God is love, through which she felt called to a hidden life of love and self-sacrifice. She progressed rapidly, fulfilling her vocation through heroic charity toward others. She died in Florence in 1770, aged twenty-three.
From the common of virgins
Office of Readings
Hymn
Come, happy Saint, and teach us all
The boundless love of Christ,
His gifts to you, that for the height
Of sanctity sufficed.
You made Teresa’s teaching yours,
Together with her name,
Determined to become with her
A spirit of pure flame.
Drawn by your Spouse, you lived with Him
A hidden life apart.
Teach us to drink the healing springs
That well up from his heart.
Praise to You, Eternal Father
And to Your Only Son
Who with the Holy Spirit pure
Forever reign as One.
C.M. Unknown
Second Reading
From the Acts of Canonization of Saint Teresa Margaret
(Decr. “Super tuto” AAS 26 [1934], pp 105-06)
The love of Christ impels us
Brief as it was, Teresa Margaret’s whole life may be regarded as one continual raising up of her guiltless soul to God.
In its innocence, her soul turned spontaneously to God, and seemed able to find rest in him alone. In her, utter purity was joined to profound humility and she genuinely loved to be disregarded and despised. She did not simply bear humiliations, she rejoiced in them. Her purity of heart and her lowliness of spirit earned for her a high degree of charity, and this rapidly increased until her ardor became truly seraphic and she could hardly speak of God without her face becoming suffused with joy. Her love of God went hand in hand with a deep love for her neighbor and especially for sinners, on whose behalf she offered herself unreservedly to God as a victim. Her unassuming kindness and complete self-denial for the sake of her sisters in religion, especially the sick, were such that she was regarded as an angel of charity.
The fires of her love were fed principally by the Eucharist, and she looked forward with longing to her communions. She was also especially devoted to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a devotion which did much to curb the advances of Jansenism at that time in Tuscany. She was utterly devoted to Our Lady, whom she regarded as the model and protectress of her own virginal purity. She was endowed to a high degree with the gift of contemplative prayer, and daily grew closer to God, as though reflecting the glories of the eternity she was fast approaching.
As her life neared its end this true daughter of the holy Mother Teresa and faithful disciple of Saint John of the Cross was called upon through a mystical martyrdom of the spirit, to resemble her crucified Spouse yet more closely. It was the very intensity of her love which caused this martyrdom; for the more fervent love becomes the more unrelentingly it spurs the soul on to further love, and since no love of ours can match God’s infinite lovableness, such a soul suffers exquisite torments from its insatiable thirst for greater love, and seems to itself to be wrapped in impenetrable darkness and to be totally lacking in love for God. In fact the greater love is, the less it seems to itself to be. It is the soul that is truly nailed to the cross with Christ by this supreme martyrdom of the heart that wins for itself and for others the choicest fruits of redemption.
Such souls by their silent apostolate of suffering, love and prayer, are foremost in the benefits they obtain for mankind and are the purest and most exalted in the whole Church.
Responsory
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord. —You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
and with all your soul, and with all your strength.
The Lord your God is a consuming fire; a jealous God. —You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
and with all your soul and with all your strength.
Morning Prayer
Hymn
The life that flowered in Carmel’s shade,
Yielding a fragrant-scented grace,
Is crowned in heaven, a bud of light
Washed in the radiance from God’s face.
Margaret, you blaze with charity
Among those weaving virgin choirs
Who, for reward, follow the Lamb
Singing the love his name inspires.
Help us to catch that same love’s fire
That, lit with the interior flame,
We find our life, our peace, our joy,
All things in Christ and in his name.
Help us deserve the Father’s gifts,
Tasting eternity and heaven
On the unclouded source of joy
From whom alone all gifts are given.
Open our hearts to take the life
Which his renewing Spirit pours,
Life that returns the Father’s love
With the same freedom it restores.
So even on earth we come to know
God’s Trinity by God’s own grace,
Happy, like you, for evermore
To sing his glory and his praise.
L.M.
Text: Bro. John Leonard Davies, O.C.D.
Canticle of Zechariah
Ant. I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through me.
Prayer
Father,
you enabled Saint Teresa Margaret Redi
to draw untold resources of humility and charity
from the fountainhead, our Savior.
Through her prayers
may we never be separated from the love of Christ.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Evening Prayer
Hymn
Jesu, the Virgins’ Crown, do thou
Accept us, as in prayer we bow;
Born of that woman, whom alone
Virgin and Mother we do own.
Amongst the lilies thou dost feed,
With virgin choirs accompanied;
With glory deck’d, the spotless brides
Whose bridal gifts thy love provides.
They, wheresoe’er thy footsteps bend,
With hymns and praises still attend;
In blessed troops they follow thee,
With dance, and song, and melody.
We pray thee therefore to bestow
Upon our senses here below
Thy grace, that so we may endure
From taint of all corruption pure.
To God the Father, God the Son,
And God the Spirit, Three in One,
Laud, honor, might, and glory be,
From age to age eternally. Amen.
88.88. Jesu, coróna Vírginum
Canticle of Mary
Ant. As the Father has loved me, I have loved you; remain in my love.
Memorial for the Discalced Carmelite Nuns Optional Memorial for all others
“The chief among Teresa’s virtues was the love of God, which our Lord Jesus Christ increased by means of many visions and revelations. He made her his Spouse on one occasion. At other times she saw an angel with a flaming dart piercing her heart. Through these heavenly gifts the flame of divine love in her heart became so strong that, inspired by God, she made the extremely difficult vow of always doing what seemed to her most perfect and most conducive to God’s glory” (Gregory XV in the Bull of Canonization).
Invitatory
Ant. Come let us worship the Lord, Source of all wisdom.
Invitatory psalm, as in the Ordinary
Office of Readings
HYMN
Noonday blaze of virtues rare;
Highest gifts of grace and prayer;
You have lived, in deep repose,
All that faith on us bestows.
Wedded to the Father’s Word,
Word of light, in silence heard
Leaning on the Savior’s breast,
Guided by the Spirit blest.
Blest the mind refined by fire
To receive divine desire,
Wisdom’s secrets in your heart,
Opened by the heavenly dart.
Christ drew you to his embrace
By the fragrance of his grace;
In your teaching we confide,
Trusting you, our heav’n-sent guide.
Truth eternal, One and Three,
May Teresa constantly
Lead us up the mountain’s ways
To the realms of joy and praise.
77.77. Sr. Margarita of Jesus, O.C.D.
THE SECOND READING
(Red. B, st. 2, no. 2-4, 9,, 12, 8: ed. Kavanaugh-Rodriguez 1979, pp. 596-99)
From the Living Flame of Love by Saint John of the Cross
You have wounded my heart
Moses declares in Deuteronomy, Our Lord God is a consuming fire, that is, a fire of love, which being of infinite power, can inestimably consume and transform into itself the soul it touches. Yet he burns each soul according to its preparation: he will burn one more, another less, and this he does insofar as he desires, and how and when he desires. When he wills to touch somewhat vehemently, the soul’s burning reaches such a high degree of love that it seems to surpass that of all the fires of the world, for he is an infinite fire of love. Because the soul in this case is entirely transformed by the divine flame, it not only feels a cautery, but has become a cautery of blazing fire.
It is a wonderful thing and worth relating that, since this fire of God is so mighty it would consume a thousand worlds more easily than the fire of this earth would burn up a straw, it does not consume and destroy the soul in which it so burns. And it does not afflict it, rather, commensurate with the strength of the love, it divinizes and delights it, burning gently. Since God’s purpose in granting these communications is to exalt the soul, he does not weary and restrict it, but enlarges and delights it, brightens and enriches it. The happy soul that by great fortune reaches this cautery knows all things, tastes all things, does all it wishes, and prospers; no one prevails before it and nothing touches it. This is the soul of which the Apostle speaks: The spiritual one judges all things and he is judged by no one. And again: The spirit searches out all things, unto the deep things of God.
It will happen that while the soul is inflamed with the love of God, it will feel that a seraphim is assailing it by means of an arrow or dart which is all afire with love. And the seraphim pierces and cauterizes this soul which, like a red-hot coal, or better, a flame, is already enkindled. For the soul is converted into the immense fire of love.
Few persons have reached these heights. Some have, however, especially those whose virtue and spirit was to be diffused among their children. For God accords to founders, with respect to the first fruits of the spirit, wealth and value commensurate with the greater or lesser following they will have in their doctrine and spirituality.
O happy wound, wrought by one who knows only how to heal! O fortunate and choicest wound; you were made only for delight, and the quality of your affliction is delight and gratification for the wounded soul! You are great, O delightful wound, because he who caused you is great! And your delight is great, because the fire of love is infinite and makes you delightful according to your capacity and greatness. O, then, delightful wound, so much more sublimely delightful the more the cautery touched the intimate center of the substance of the soul, burning all that was burnable in order to give delight to all that could be delighted!
RESPONSORY
The Lord our God is one Lord. —You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
and with all your soul, and with all your strength.
The Lord your God is a consuming fire. —You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
and with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Morning Prayer
HYMN
The day is dawning with delight,
When, spotless as the dove,
Theresa winged her spirit flight
Afar, to realms of love and light,
In heavenly courts above.
Her ear hath caught the mystic sound,
Oh, come, my sister, spouse!
From Carmel’s summit come, be crowned,
Bride of the Lamb, in bliss profound,
Come plight thy nuptial vows!
O Jesus! Spouse of Virgin choice,
Thy holy name we praise!
While heavenly choirs, too, rejoice,
Their bridal canticle to voice,
And hymn their endless lays.
86.88.6. Felix dies, qua candidae
Antiphons and psalms of the current weekday.
READING
2 Corinthians 4:5-7
It is not ourselves we preach but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts, that we in turn might make known the glory of God shining on the face of Christ. This treasure we possess in earthen vessels, to make it clear that its surpassing power comes from God and not from us.
RESPONSORY
My heart is ever pleading, show me your face. —My heart is ever pleading, show me your face.
I long to gaze upon you, Lord. —Show me your face.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. —My heart is ever pleading, show me your face. CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH
Ant. In my heart, imprisoned in my bones, was the likeness of a burning fire, and I was scarcely able to bear it.
Intercessions
The Lord of glory, Crown of all the Saints, gives us the joy of honoring our Mother, Saint Teresa. Let us praise him, saying: Glory to you, Lord!
Source of life and holiness, in your saints you show us the infinite marvels of your grace; —in company with Saint Teresa may we sing of your mercies forever.
You want your love to blaze like fire throughout the world; —with Saint Teresa, make us zealous in spreading your charity.
You make friends of your saints, and reveal to them the mysteries of your heart; —bind us to yourself in friendship so close that we may taste the secrets of your love, proclaim your wonders, and draw others to you.
You pronounced blessed the pure of heart, and promised that they should see you; —purify our sight, so that we may see you in everyone and be faithful to you in all things.
You resist the proud and give wisdom to little ones; —make us humble of heart, so that we may receive your wisdom for the sake of the whole Church.
Our Father …
PRAYER
Almighty God,
you filled the heart of Saint Teresa of Avila, our Mother,
with the fire of your love
and gave her strength to undertake difficult tasks
for the honor of your name.
Through her prayers
may the power of your love fill our hearts also
and stir us to ever more generous efforts in your service.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Evening Prayer
HYMN
As messenger of the Most high,
Theresa from her home would fly,
Good tidings of the Heavenly King
To heathen lands afar to bring,
Or yield for Christ her gentle life,
In ruddy streams of martyr strife.
But death with sweeter aspect came,
Awaiting her with rapturous claim.
Ecstatic pangs delight her soul,
And, conquered by their strong control,
She falleth, wounded from above
By piercing lance of heavenly love.
Oh, flaming victim! may thy dart
Enkindle every frozen heart,
That upward mounting, one with thine,
They rise, consumed with fire divine.
And may thy pleading safely keep
Thy nations from the burning deep.
All praise unto the Father be,
And to the Son eternally,
With joyful harmony repeat
All praise unto the Paraclete,
The Blessed Trinity adore
With reverent homage evermore.
88.88.88. Regis superni nuntia
Antiphons and psalms of the current weekday.
READING
Jude 20-21
Beloved, grow strong in your holy faith through prayer in the Holy Spirit. Persevere in God’s love, and welcome the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ which leads to life eternal.
RESPONSORY
You are the temple of the living God. —You are the temple of the living God.
And the Spirit of God dwells in you, —the temple of the living God.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. —You are the temple of the living God.
CANTICLE OF MARY
Ant. My heart will rejoice in your salvation; I will sing to the Lord for his goodness to me.
INTERCESSIONS
Christ loved his Church and gave his life for her that she might be holy: let us pray to Christ that his Church may be holy and spotless in all her members: Lord Jesus, be with your Church.
You are the Head of the Church and the source of all her grace; —keep us all close to you in faith and love, as living members of your Body.
You founded the Church on Peter and the apostles, and through them you teach us the truth and lead us in green pastures; —enlighten and guide those you have placed over your Church, and confirm our faith so that in them we may hear your voice leading us to life.
You choose some to announce the Good News by teaching, baptizing, calling to repentance, and offering in your memory the Eucharistic Sacrifice; —as the harvest is great, and the laborers few, send laborers into your harvest.
You choose some of your friends to follow you more closely in your poverty, your chastity and your obedience, for the building up of the Church; —with Mary as their Mother and teacher, may all religious cling to you and show forth your life within them as they serve the Church.
You made your people one body and one spirit in the unity of faith and baptism; —may all whom you have redeemed preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bonds of peace.
You died for our redemption and rose so that we could have life; —may all who have died in your love and await the revelation of your glory rejoice at the eternal banquet in the company of your saints.
Our Father … PRAYER
Almighty God,
you filled the heart of Saint Teresa of Avila, our Mother,
with the fire of your love
and gave her strength to undertake difficult tasks
for the honor of your name.
Through her prayers
may the power of your love fill our hearts also
and stir us to ever more generous efforts in your service.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, 1647-52 Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome (Discalced Carmelite Fathers) Photo: Curia Generalizia Carmelitani Scalzi
Saint Mary (Mariam) of Jesus Crucified was born of the Baouardy family, Catholics of the Greek Melkite Rite, at Abellin in Galilee in 1846. In 1867 Mariam entered the Discalced Carmelites at Pau in France and was sent with the founding group to the Carmel of Mangalore in India where, in 1870, she made her profession. Mariam returned to France in 1872. In 1875 she went to the Holy Land where she built a monastery in Bethlehem and began planning for another at Nazareth. Noted for her supernatural gifts, especially for humility, for her devotion to the Holy Spirit, and her great love for the Church and the Pope, Mariam died at Bethlehem in 1878.
From the common of virgins, or of holy women (religious)
Second Reading
(Cat. 16, 1, 12:16 (PG 33, 936, 939-942)
From the Catechesis of Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop
To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good
The Holy Spirit, although he is one and of one nature and indivisible, apportions his grace as he wills to each one. When the dry tree is watered it brings forth shoots. So too the soul in sin: when through penance it is made worthy of the grace of the Holy Spirit, it bears the fruit of justice. Though the Spirit is one in nature, yet by the will of God and in the name of Christ he brings about multiple effects of virtue.
He uses the tongue of one man for wisdom, he illumines the soul of another by prophecy, to another he imparts the power of driving out devils, to another the gift of interpreting the sacred scriptures; he strengthens the self-control of one man, teaches another the nature of almsgiving, another to fast and mortify himself, another to despise the things of the body; he prepares another man for martyrdom.
He acts differently in different men while himself remaining unchanged, as it is written: To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
His approach is gentle, his presence fragrant, his yoke very light; rays of light and knowledge shine forth before him as he comes. He comes with the heart of a true protector; he comes to save, to heal, to teach, to admonish, to strengthen, to console, to enlighten the mind, first of the man who receives him, then through him the minds of others also.
As a man previously in darkness, suddenly seeing the sun, receives his sight and sees clearly what he did not see before, so the man deemed worthy of the Holy Spirit is enlightened in soul and sees beyond the power of human sight what he did not know before. Although his body remains on the earth, his soul already contemplates heaven as in a mirror.
Responsory
We contemplate your beauty, O Virgin of Christ: —You have received from the Lord a gleaming crown.
Nothing could bring you to surrender virginity;
nothing could separate you from the love of the Son of God. —You have received from the Lord a gleaming crown.
Prayer
God of mercy and all consolation,
you raised Saint Mary,
the humble daughter of the Holy Land,
to contemplation of the mysteries of your Son
and made her a witness to the love and joy of the Holy Spirit.
Grant us, through her intercession,
so to share in the sufferings of Christ
that we may rejoice in the revelation of your glory.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
One of the earliest and best-known icons of Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified | Photo credit: Discalced Carmelites
Georg Häfner was born in Würzburg in 1900. From the time he was an altar boy, he was very close to the Carmelite nuns in Würzburg, where he joined the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites (OCDS), taking the name of Aloysius of the Most Blessed Sacrament. He sang his first Mass on 21st April 1924, having been ordained on 13th April of the same year. After having carried out pastoral work in various parishes, on 12th November 1934 he was appointed Pastor of the Oberschwarzach parish; during this period Hitler was coming to power. Häfner soon came into conflict with Hitler’s agents, since he would never use the typical Hitler salute, and always defended the doctrine and rights of the Church. He was arrested on 31st October 1941 and taken to the Dachau concentration camp on 12th December the same year. There, as a faithful priest, he was exposed to all types of torture and injustice, yet always bearing up with a heroic attitude before each humiliation and maltreatment. His letters from Dachau show his deep faith and his capacity to pardon his executioners. One of his last phrases from the concentration camp was: “I do not want to curse anybody, nor take vengeance, I want to be good towards everyone.” Finally, exhausted by illness and, above all, by hunger, he died on 20th August 1942.
Prayer
Almighty God,
you chose the priest and martyr Blessed George Häfner
as a witness of your mercy
and you accepted his life’s sacrifice in captivity;
through his example may we recognize the love of the Redeemer,
love you and all people,
and forgive our enemies above all.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ,
your Son, who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit
one God for ever and ever.
Approbatum Imprimatur
Wurzburg, 1. March 2011 + Friedhelm Hofmann Bishop of Wurzburg
Nota bene: Working translation only. Original texts here
Blessed George Häfner’s booking photo taken by the Wurzburg Gestapo | Würzburg Diocese
August 18 BLESSED JOHN-BAPTIST DUVERNEUIL, MICHAEL-ALOYSIUS BRULARD AND JAMES GAGNOT Priests and Martyrs
Optional Memorial
Fr. Jean-Baptiste Duverneuil (b. 1737 at Limoges), in religion Fr. Leonard, Fr. Michel-Louis Brulard (b. 1758 at Chartres), and Fr. Jacques Gagnot (b. 1753 at Frolois), in religion Fr. Hubert of Saint Claude, were among a group of 64 Martyrs beatified 1st October 1995, victims of the French Revolution who came from 14 French dioceses and from various religious Orders. In their loyalty to God, the Church and the Pope, they refused to take the oath of the Civil Constitution for the Clergy imposed by the Constituent Assembly of the Revolution. As a result, they were imprisoned, massed like animals, on a slave-trader in Rochefort Bay, waiting in vain to be deported into slavery. During 1794, the first two Carmelites died on board ship: Fr. John-Baptist on 1st July, and Fr. Michael-Aloysius on 25th July, both being buried on the island of Aix. After the plague broke out on the ship, those remaining disembarked on the island of Madame, where Fr. James died and was buried on 10th September. Noted for their loving ministry to their fellow prisoners and their patience in accepting every type of outrage, privation, and cruelty, not to mention the vicissitudes of weather, hunger and sickness, our three Discalced Carmelite priest martyrs and their companions in martyrdom gave unsurpassed Christian witness to their faith and love.
From the common of martyrs
The Second Reading
Resolutions drawn up by the Priests imprisoned on the ship Les Deux Associés
They bore in silence the cross that was placed on them
They will never give themselves up to useless worries about being set free. Instead they will make the effort to profit from the time of their detention by meditating on their past years, by making holy resolutions for the future, so that they can find in the captivity of their bodies, freedom for their soul.
If God permits them to recover totally or in part this liberty nature longs for, they will avoid giving themselves up to an immoderate joy when they receive the news. By keeping their souls tranquil, they will show they support without murmur the cross placed on them, and that they are disposed to bear it even longer with courage and as true Christians who never let themselves be beaten by adversity.
If there is question of receiving back their personal effects they will show no eagerness in asking for them; rather they will make the declaration that may be required of them with modesty and strict truth; they will receive without lament what is given to them, accustoming themselves, as is their duty, to despise the things of the earth and to be content with little, after the example of the apostles.
They are not to satisfy curious people they might come across; they will not reply to superficial questions about what happened to them; they will let people glimpse that they have patiently supported their sufferings, without descending into detail, and without showing any resentment against those who have authored and been instrumental in their suffering.
They will sentence themselves to the severest and most absolute silence about the faults of their brothers and the weaknesses into which they happened to fall due to their unfortunate situation, their bad health and the length of their punishment. They will preserve the same charity towards those whose religious opinion is different from their own. They will avoid all bitter feeling or animosity, being content to feel sorry about them interiorly and making the effort to stay on the way of truth by their gentleness and moderation.
They will not show grief over the loss of their goods, no haste to recover them, no resentment against those who possess them…
From now on they will form but one heart and one soul, without showing distinction of persons, and without leaving any of their brothers out, under any pretext. They will never get mixed up in the new politics, being content to pray for the welfare of their country and prepare themselves for a new life, if God permits them to return to their homes, and there become subjects of edification and models of virtue for the people, by their detachment from the world, their assiduousness in prayer and their love for recollection and piety.
Responsory
God and his angels look down upon us;
Christ, too, looks on as we do battle in the contest of faith. —What great dignity and glory are ours,
what happiness to struggle in the presence of God,
and to be crowned by Christ our judge.
Let us be armed with a great determination and,
pure in heart, sound in faith, and full of courage,
be prepared to face the combat. —What great dignity and glory are ours,
what happiness to struggle in the presence of God,
and to be crowned by Christ our judge.
Prayer
Lord God,
to the martyrs Blessed John-Baptist, Michael Aloysius,
James, and their companions,
you gave the grace to remain faithful and to pardon
while suffering dismaying hardship.
Through their intercession grant also to us,
to be always willing to remain faithful to your Church
and to be reconciled
with one another.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Blessed John-Baptist Duverneuil, Michael-Aloysius Brulard, and James Gagnot | Image credit: Discalced Carmelites
August 9 SAINT TERESA BENEDICTA OF THE CROSS Virgin and Martyr
Memorial
Edith Stein was born to a Jewish family at Breslau on October 12, 1891. Through her passionate study of philosophy, she searched after truth and found it in reading the autobiography of Saint Teresa of Jesus. In 1922 she was baptized a Catholic and in 1933 she entered the Carmel of Cologne, where she took the name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. She was gassed and cremated at Auschwitz on August 9, 1942, during the Nazi persecution, and died a martyr for the Christian faith after having offered her holocaust for the people of Israel. A woman of singular intelligence and learning, she left behind a body of writing notable for its doctrinal richness and profound spirituality. She was beatified by Pope John Paul II at Cologne on May 1, 1987.
From the common of martyrs or of virgins
THE SECOND READING
(Edith Stein Werke (Freiburg, 1987), 11:124-126)
From the spiritual writings of Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross
Ave Crux, spes unica!
We greet you, Holy Cross, our only hope! The church puts these words on our lips during the time of the passion, which is dedicated to the contemplation of the bitter sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ. The world is in flames. The struggle between Christ and antichrist rages openly, and so if you decide for Christ you can even be asked to sacrifice your life.
Contemplate the Lord who hangs before you on the wood, because he was obedient even to the death of the cross. He came into the world not to do his own will but that of the Father. And if you wish to be the spouse of the Crucified, you must renounce completely your own will and have no other aspiration than to do the will of God.
Before you, the Redeemer hangs on the cross stripped and naked, because he chose poverty. Those who would follow him must renounce every earthly possession.
Stand before the Lord who hangs from the cross with his heart torn open. He poured out the blood of his heart in order to win your heart. In order to follow him in holy chastity, your heart must be free from every earthly aspiration. Jesus Crucified must be the object of your every longing, of your every desire, of your every thought.
The world is in flames: the fire can spread even to our house, but above all the flames the cross stands on high, and it cannot be burnt. The cross is the way which leads from earth to heaven. Those who embrace it with faith, love, and hope are taken up, right into the heart of the Trinity.
The world is in flames: do you wish to put them out? Contemplate the cross: from his open heart, the blood of the Redeemer pours, blood which can put out even the flames of hell. Through the faithful observance of the vows, you make your heart open; and then the floods of that divine love will be able to flow into it, making it overflow and bear fruit to the furthest reaches of the earth.
Through the power of the cross, you can be present wherever there is pain, carried there by your compassionate charity, by that very charity which you draw from the divine heart. That charity enables you to spread everywhere the most precious blood in order to ease pain, save and redeem.
The eyes of the Crucified gaze upon you. They question you and appeal to you. Do you wish seriously to renew your alliance with him? What will your response be? Lord, where shall I go? You alone have the words of life. Ave Crux, spes unica!
RESPONSORY
We preach Christ Crucified, a scandal to the Jews
and foolishness to the pagans, —but for those who are called, whether they be Jews or Greeks,
we preach Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God.
The desire of my heart and my prayer
rises to God for their salvation; —but for those who are called, whether they be Jews or Greeks,
we preach Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God.
PRAYER
Lord, God of our fathers,
you brought Saint Teresa Benedicta
to the fullness of the science of the cross
at the hour of her martyrdom.
Fill us with that same knowledge;
and, through her intercession,
allow us always to seek after you, the supreme truth,
and to remain faithful until death
to the covenant of love ratified in the blood of your Son
for the salvation of all men and women.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
On the main gate for visitors to Auschwitz, the Nazis affixed this motto: WORK SETS YOU FREE. But for the millions who passed through the railway entrance, there was no freedom to be found and no truth in the motto. As St. Teresa Benedicta wrote of the Nazis in a letter dated July 10, 1940: “one must, after all, tell those poor people the real truth for once.”
Albert degli Abbati was born at Trápani, Sicily, in the thirteenth century, and entered the Carmelite Order as a youth. He became renowned as a fervent preacher of the Gospel and a worker of miracles. He was Provincial of Sicily in 1296, and died at Messina, probably in 1307, with a reputation for purity and prayer.
From the common of holy men
Office of Readings
HYMN
The Feasts of August sound their glad refrain,
To Albert riseth soft, melodious strain;
Carmel echo with the songs of love
Raised to our Blessed Father throned above.
At seven years the parent roof he flies,
And, like the Baptist, all the world denies,
To seek the holy Virgin’s sacred shrine,
And live a life of holiness divine.
Clad in the flowing mantle white as snow,
He welcomes choicest gifts the Heavens bestow,
With power granted him to govern here
The lesser kingdoms of this earthly sphere.
The altar flame is by a crystal glassed,
A spectre breaketh it with pebble cast;
But Albert poureth tears before the Lord,
And lo! the sacred lamp is quick restored.
His youth, so prompt to vengeance, he subdues,
No fantasies of Hell his mind confuse
Supporting calmly fortune good or ill,
He scorneth honors with a steadfast will.
Unto one God most high be endless praise,
And to the blessed Son for equal days.
The Holy Spirit let us now adore,
And praise the Three in One forevermore.
10.10.10.10. Mensis augusti redeuent honores
THE SECOND READING (L. 1, c. 2: ed. AnOC 3 [1914-1916], pp. 348-49)
From the Book of the Institution of the First Monks
Hide yourself by the brook Cherith
The word of the Lord came to Elijah saying: Depart from here and go eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith near the Jordan, and there you will drink from the brook. Now these salutary commands which the Holy Spirit prompted Elijah to obey, and this promise of good things which he was moved to desire, ought to be weighed word by word with the greatest care by us, monks and solitaries, and this in a mystical sense, for they contain the full meaning of our vocation. Indeed they point the way to prophetic perfection, which is the goal of our religious, eremitical life.
It will be seen that this type of life has two aims. One of them we can, with the help of God’s grace, achieve by our own efforts and the practice of virtue. This aim is to offer God a heart holy and pure from all actual stain of sin, and we achieve it when we become perfect and hidden in Cherith—that is, in charity, of which the Wise Man says: Charity covers all offenses. It was to bring Elijah to this state that God said to him: Hide yourself by the brook Cherith.
The other aim of this kind of life is something that can be bestowed on us only by God’s generosity: namely, to taste in our hearts and experience in our minds, not only after death but even during this mortal life, something of the power of the divine presence and the bliss of heavenly glory. And this is to drink from the brook of the enjoyment of God—the reward God promised Elijah when he said: There you will drink from the brook.
The prophetic, eremitical life must be undertaken by the monk with both these aims in view, as the Psalmist makes clear when he says to God: In a desert land where there is no road and no water I have come before you in the sanctuary to see your power and your glory. By choosing to live in a desert land where there is no road and no water as the means of coming before God in the sanctuary—with a heart, that is, free from sin—he demonstrates the first aim of the solitary life he has chosen, which is to offer God a heart that is holy, or pure from all actual sin. By adding the words to see your power and your glory he declares the second aim, which is in some measure to experience or see the power of the divine presence mystically in one’s heart and to taste the bliss of heavenly glory here already in this life.
The first aim, purity of heart, can be achieved with the help of God’s grace by effort and the practice of virtue. The second aim, experimental knowledge of divine power and heavenly glory, can be realized through purity of heart and perfect love; for our Lord said: Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.
RESPONSORY
I have called you friends, for I have made known to you
all I have heard from my Father. —Remain in my love.
I have chosen you to go out and bear fruit,
fruit that shall last. —Remain in my love.
Morning Prayer
HYMN
The feast-day of Saint Albert dawns
A day of pure resplendent light;
Our brethren high in heav’n rejoice
As we our praise with theirs unite.
He realized that earthly joys
Were all too small to fill his heart;
All, all he had he gave to God,
In Carmel chose the better part.
Determined conqueror of self
He mortified each wrong desire
Until God saw reflected there
His image purified by fire.
For one so set on heavenly things
The lying foe laid many a snare,
But he resisted manfully,
And persevered in constant prayer.
Remember Carmel’s Order now,
Made glorious by your sojourn here;
O strengthen us in love of Christ
That we may likewise persevere.
All praise be to the Trinity,
The Father with his only Son
And ever-blessed Paraclete,
While never-ending ages run.
L.M. Adest natalis gloriae
CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH
Ant. The just will speak wisdom, and truth will come from their lips, because God’s law is in their hearts.
PRAYER
Lord God,
you made Saint Albert of Trapani
a model of purity and prayer,
and a devoted servant of Our Lady.
May we practice these same virtues
and so be worthy always
to share the banquet of your grace.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Evening Prayer
HYMN
The river floweth swiftly on its course,
Dry shod the Blessed Albert speeds across.
His chastened piety sustains no loss
When combated.
He kisseth tenderly the leprous face,
Nor shrinks in horror from the hideous trace;
Behold, it shineth now with former grace,
Disease hath fled.
When his glad spirit sought its heavenward flight,
The bells were pealing from the belfry height,
Nor did they sound by any human might
In mournful toll.
Two Messengers from Heaven high in air
Chant funeral praises of this man of prayer,
Before a mighty concourse gathered there
To bless his soul.
The odor sweet arising from his bier
Cured pain and suffering when the sick drew near,
And all diseases fled his tomb in fear
Of heavenly power.
O God most high, forever praise to Thee,
To Son and Spirit equal honor be;
Let us adore the Blessed One in Three
At every hour.
10.10.10.4. Passibus siccis rapidum
CANTICLE OF MARY
Ant. Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.
John Soreth was born at Caen in Normandy and entered Carmel as a young man. He took a doctorate of theology in Paris and served as regent of studies and provincial of his province. He was prior general from 1451 until his death at Angers in 1471. He restored observance within the Order and promoted its reform, wrote a famous commentary on the Rule, issued new Constitutions in 1462, and promoted the growth of the nuns and the Third Order.
From the Common of Men Saints (Religious), except the following:
Office of Readings
The Second Reading Ch 4
From the Exhortation on the Carmelite Rule by Blessed John Soreth
Learn from Christ how you should love him
It is from Christ Himself, brother, that you will learn how to love Him. Learn to love Him tenderly, with all your heart; prudently, with all your soul; fervently, with all your strength. Love Him tenderly, so that you will not be seduced away from Him; prudently, so that you will not be open to deception; and fervently, so that downheartedness will not draw you away from God’s love. May the wisdom of Christ seem sweet to you, so that you are not led away by the glory of the world and the pleasures of the flesh. May Christ, Who is the Truth, enlighten you, so that you do not fall prey to the spirit of error and falsehood. May Christ, Who is the Strength of God, fortify you when hardships wear you out.
St. Basil says that we are bound to our benefactors by bonds of affection and duty. But what greater gift or favor could we receive than God Himself? For, He continues, I experience the ineffable love of God–a love more easily felt than described. Since God has planted the seeds of goodness in us, we can be certain that He is awaiting their fruits.
So let the love of Christ kindle your enthusiasm; let His knowledge be your teacher, and His constancy your strength. May your enthusiasm be fervent, balanced in judgment and invincible, and neither lukewarm nor lacking in discretion. Love the Lord your God with all the affection of which your heart is capable; love Him with all the attentiveness and balance of judgement of your soul and reason; love Him with such strength that you will not be afraid to die for love of Him. May the Lord Jesus seem so sweet and tender to your affections that the sweet enticements of the world hold no attraction for you; may His sweetness conquer their sweetness.
May He also be the guiding light of your intellect and the ruler of your reason: then you will not only avoid the deceptions of heresy and save your faith from their ambushes, but you will also avoid too great and indiscreet an enthusiasm in your behavior. God is Wisdom, and He wants to be loved not only fervently, but also wisely; otherwise the spirit of error will easily take advantage of your enthusiasm. If you neglect this advice, that cunning enemy thereby has a most effective means of taking the love of God from your heart by making you progress carelessly and without discretion. Therefore, may your love be strong and persevering, neither giving in to fears nor being worn out by labors.
Not to be led astray by allurements, that’s what it means to love with all one’s heart; not to be deceived by false arguments, that’s the meaning of loving with all one’s soul; not to let your spirit be broken by difficulties, that is to love with all one’s strength.
The Rule goes on to say that you should love your neighbor as yourself. For he who loves God, loves his neighbor too; “for he who does not love his brother whom he sees, how can he love God whom he does not see?”
Responsory
R/. This is the love of God: that we keep His commandments; * and His commandments are not burdensome. V/. Those who keep His commandments abide in God, and God abides in them; * and His commandments are not burdensome.
Morning Prayer
Canticle of Zechariah
Ant. Be faithful ’til death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Prayer
Lord God,
you willed that Blessed John Soreth
should renew religious life
and establish communities for women
in the Order of Carmel.
May his prayers and merits
help us to be ever more faithful
in following Christ and His Mother.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Evening Prayer
Canticle of Mary
Ant. This faithful man made his city strong and renewed the faith of sinners.
Saint Maurice (detail) André Robin (French, 15th c.) Stained glass Cathedral of Saint-Maurice, Angers André Robin was the painter in charge of the stained glass windows at the Angers Cathedral, beginning in 1434. The artist’s great attention to detail in his work is clearly seen in the window dedicated to Saint Maurice. The photographer notes that the patron saint “wears a beautiful Italianate French armour of the early 1450s. Note how all the details in its construction have been carefully depicted.” View the complete photo by Roel Renmans here
Born in Bolsward (The Netherlands) in 1881, Blessed Titus Brandsma joined the Carmelite Order as a young man. Ordained a priest in 1905, he earned a doctorate in philosophy in Rome. He then taught in various schools in Holland and was named professor of philosophy as Rector Magnificus. He was noted for his constant availability to everyone. He was a professional journalist, and in 1935 he was appointed the ecclesiastical advisor to Catholic journalists. Both before and during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands he fought, faithful to the Gospel, against the spread of Nazi ideology and for the freedom of Catholic education and of the Catholic press. For this, he was arrested and sent to a succession of prisons and concentration camps where he brought comfort and peace to his fellow prisoners and did good even to his tormentors. In 1942, after much suffering and humiliation, he was killed at Dachau. He was beatified by Saint John Paul II on Nov. 3, 1985.
From the Common of One Martyr, except the following:
Office of Readings
The Second Reading (Alternative 1)
Introduction to Het lijden vergoddelijkt
From the writings of Blessed Titus Brandsma
The mysticism of the Passion
Jesus called Himself the head of the Mystical Body, of which we are the members. He is the vine, we are the branches. He laid Himself in the winepress and Himself trod it. He handed us the wine so that, drinking it, we might lead His life, might share His suffering. Whoever wishes to do My Will, let him daily take up his cross. Whoever follows me has the light of life. I am the way, He said. I have given you an example, so that as I have done so you may do also. And when His disciples did not understand that His way would be a way of suffering, He explained this to them and said, “Should not the Christ so suffer, in order to enter into His glory?”
Then the hearts of the disciples burned within them. God’s word had set them on fire. And when the Holy Spirit had descended on them to fan that divine fire into flame, then they were glad to suffer scorn and persecution, whereby they resembled Him Who had preceded them on the way of suffering.
The prophets had already marked His way of suffering; the disciples now understood that He had not avoided that way. From the crib to the cross, suffering, poverty and lack of appreciation were His lot. He had directed His whole life to teaching people how different is God’s view of suffering, poverty and lack of human appreciation from the foolish wisdom of the world. After sin, suffering had to follow so that, through the cross, man’s lost glory and life with God might be regained. Suffering is the way to heaven. In the cross is salvation, in the cross is victory. God willed it so. He Himself assumed the obligation of suffering in view of the glory of redemption. St. Paul makes it clear to us how all the disasters of this earthly life are insignificant, how they must be considered as nothing and passing, in comparison with the glory that will be revealed to us when the time of suffering is past, and we come to share in God’s glory.
Mary, who kept all God’s words in her heart, in the fullness of grace granted her, understood the great value of suffering. While the apostles fled, she went out to meet the Savior on the way to Calvary and stood beneath the cross, in order to share His grief and shame to the end. And she carried Him to the grave, firmly trusting that He would rise.
We object when He hands us the chalice of His suffering. It is so difficult for us to resign ourselves to suffering. To rejoice in it strikes us as heroic. What is the value of our offering of self if we unite ourselves each morning only in word and gesture, rather than in thought and will, to that offering which we, together with the Church, make of Him with whom we are in the one body?
Jesus once wept over Jerusalem.
Oh, that this day you had known the gift of God!
Oh, that this day we might realize the value God has placed on the suffering He sends: He, the All-Good.
Responsory
R/. God forbid that I glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, * by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. V/. We preach Christ crucified, to others a stumbling block and a folly, but to us the power and the wisdom of God, * by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
Prayer
Lord our God, source and giver of life,
you gave to Blessed Titus the Spirit of courage
to proclaim human dignity and the freedom of the Church,
even in the throes of degrading persecution and death.
Grant us that same Spirit
so that in the coming of your kingdom of justice and peace
we might never be ashamed of the Gospel
but be enabled to recognize your loving-kindness
in all the events of our lives.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God for ever and ever.
Blessed Titus Brandsma, Rector Magnificus of the Catholic University of Nijmegen
July 24 BLESSEDS MARIA PILAR, TERESA, AND MARIA ANGELES Virgins and Martyrs
Optional Memorial
Maria Pilar of St. Francis Borgia (born at Tarazona on Dec. 30, 1877), Teresa of the Child Jesus and of St. John of the Cross (born at Mochales on March 5,1990), and Maria Angeles of St. Joseph (born at Getafe on March 6, 1905), Discalced Carmelite nuns of the Monastery of Guadalajara, Spain, were martyred on July 24, 1936, after having given witness to their faith in Christ the King and having offered their lives for the Church. The first fruits of the countless martyrs of the Spanish Civil War of 1936-39, they were beatified by Saint John Paul II on March 29, 1987.
From the Common of Martyrs or the Common of Virgins, except for the following:
Office of Readings
The Second Reading
Strophe 30,7-8
From the Spiritual Canticle of St. John of the Cross
The flowers of virginity and martyrdom
“We shall weave these garlands flowering in your love and bound with one hair of mine.”
This verse most appropriately refers to Christ and the Church, for in it, the Church, the Bride of Christ, addresses Him saying: let us weave garlands (understanding by garlands, all the holy souls engendered by Christ in the Church). Each holy soul is like a garland adorned with the flowers of virtues and gifts, and all of them together form a garland for the head of Christ, the Bridegroom.
The loving garlands can refer to what we call aureoles; these are also woven by Christ and the Church and are of three kinds:
The first kind is made from the beautiful flowers of all the virgins. Each virgin possesses her own aureole of virginity, and all these aureoles together will be joined into one and placed on the head of Christ, the Bridegroom.
The second aureole contains the resplendent flowers of the holy doctors. All these aureoles will be entwined into one and set upon the head of Christ over that of the virgins.
The third is fashioned from the crimson carnations of the martyrs. Every martyr has an aureole of martyrdom, and these red aureoles woven together will add the final touch to the aureole of Christ the Bridegroom.
So beautiful and fair will Christ the Bridegroom be with these three garlands when He is seen in heaven.
Therefore, we shall weave these garlands, the soul says, flowering in your love.
The flower of these works and virtues is the grace and power they possess from the love of God. Without love these works will not only fail to flower, but they will all wither and become valueless in God’s sight, even though they may be perfect from a human standpoint. Yet, because God bestows His grace and love, they are works that have blossomed in His love.
“And bound with one hair of mine.” This hair is her will and the love she has for the Beloved. This love assumes the task of the thread in a garland. As the thread binds the flowers together, so love fastens and sustains the virtues in the soul. As St. Paul remarks: “Charity is the bond of perfection” (Col 3:14).
Responsory
R/. Even if you should have to suffer for justice’s sake, happy will you be.
Do not be afraid and do not stand in awe of them, but adore the Lord Christ in your hearts * always ready to give a reason for the hope that is in you. V/. It is better, if God so wills it, to suffer and do good deeds than to do evil, * always ready to give a reason for the hope that is in you.
Prayer
Father, strength of the humble,
you sustained in martyrdom the virgins
Blessed Maria Pilar, Teresa and Maria Angeles.
As they willingly shed their blood for Christ the King,
may we, through their intercession,
be faithful to You and to your Church until death.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God for ever and ever.
A sad reminder of the horrors of the Spanish Civil War Francoist troops taking away Republican militiamen from a mountain, probably to take them to a firing block, in Somosierra, during the Battle of Guadarrama, July-August 1936. These men most likely were farmers or workers. Source: Cassowary Colorizations
The prophet Elijah appears in Scripture as a man of God who lived always in His presence and fought zealously for the worship of the one God. He defended God’s law in a solemn contact on Mt. Carmel, and afterwards was given on Mt. Horeb an intimate experience of the living God. The hermits who instituted a form of monastic life in honor of Our Lady on Mt. Carmel in the twelfth century, followed monastic tradition in turning to Elijah as their Father and model.
Evening Prayer I
Hymn
Let the sun, rising, hear your prise, Elijah,
Earth, sky, and water, hear our jubilation
To the sun’s setting, glory of your people,
Strength of our Order.
O light of heaven’s radiant beauty glowing,
Mighty in wonder, blessed in your merits,
Many times witness of his greatest marvels
By the Lord chosen.
Fiery the chariot, drawn by fiery horses,
Upwards in triumph, swiftly angels bear you
Blazing in glory beyond earthly beauty
Shining from heaven.
You were the witness, Moses your companion,
To the bright glory of the sole-Begotten,
As the Apostles gazed and fell in wonder
High on Mount Tabor.
Stay with us now and shield us with your favor.
We are your children; trustingly we ask you
Stretch out your hand and grant us your protection
Guarding us always.
Praise to the Father, to the sole-Begotten,
Praise to their Holy Coeternal Spirit,
Kingdom and power, glory and dominion,
Now and forever.
11.11.11.5. Audiat miras oriens cadensque Tr. by Mary Paula, O.C.D.
Psalmody
Ant. 1 Elijah arose like a fire, and his word burned like a torch.
Psalm 111
I will thank the Lord with all my heart *
In the meeting of the just and their assembly.
Great are the works of the Lord, *
to be pondered by all who love them.
Majestic and glorious his work, *
his justice stands firm for ever.
He makes us remember his wonders. *
The Lord is compassion and love.
He gives food to those who fear him; *
keeps his covenant ever in mind.
He has shown his might to his people *
by giving them the lands of the nations.
His works are justice and truth: *
his precepts are all of them sure,
standing firm for ever and ever: *
they are made in uprightness and truth.
He has sent deliverance to his people †
and established his covenant for ever. *
Holy his name, to be feared.
To fear the Lord is the first stage of wisdom; †
all who do so prove themselves wise. *
His praise shall last for ever!
Ant. Elijah arose like a fire, and his word burned like a torch.
Ant. 2 How long will you limp between two sides? If the Lord is God, follow him.
Psalm 115
Not to us, Lord, not to us, *
but to your name give the glory
for the sake of your love and your truth, *
lest the heathen say: ‘Where is their God?’
But our God is in the heavens; *
he does whatever he wills.
Their idols are silver and gold, *
the work of human hands.
They have mouths but they cannot speak; *
they have eyes but they cannot see;
they have ears but they cannot hear; *
they have nostrils but they cannot smell.
With their hands they cannot feel; †
with their feet they cannot walk. *
No sound comes from their throats.
Their makers will come to be like them *
and so will all who trust in them.
Sons of Israel, trust in the Lord; *
he is their help and their shield.
Sons of Aaron, trust in the Lord; *
he is their help and their shield.
You who fear him, trust in the Lord; *
he is their help and their shield.
He remembers us, and he will bless us; †
he will bless the sons of Israel. *
He will bless the sons of Aaron.
The Lord will bless those who fear him, *
the little no less than the great:
to you may the Lord grant increase, *
to you and all your children.
May you be blessed by the Lord, *
the maker of heaven and earth.
The heavens belong to the Lord, *
but the earth he has given to men.
The dead shall not praise the Lord, *
nor those who go down into the silence.
But we who live bless the Lord *
now and for ever. Amen.
Ant. How long will you limp between two sides? If the Lord is God, follow him.
Ant. 3 The Lord will reward his servants the prophets.
Canticle: Rev 11:17-18; 12:10-12
We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, *
who are and who were,
that you have taken your great power *
and begun to reign.
The nations raged, *
but your wrath came,
and the time for the dead to be judged, *
for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints,
and those who fear your name, *
both small and great.
Now the salvation and the power †
and the kingdom of our God *
and the authority of his Christ have come,
for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, *
who accuses them day and night before our God.
And they have conquered him *
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony, *
for they loved not their lives even unto death.
Rejoice, then, O heaven, *
and you that dwell therein.
Ant. The Lord will reward his servants the prophets.
Scripture Reading
James 5:16-18
The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects. Elijah was a man of like nature with ourselves and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth its fruit.
Responsory
R/. Blessed are they * who see you. Repeat R/. V/. And are honored with your friendship * who see you. Glory … R/.
Canticle of Mary
Ant. In former days God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets, but in these last days, he has spoken to us through his Son, whom he has appointed the heir of all things.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, *
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior;
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant, *
and from this day all generations will call me blessed.
The Almighty has done great things for me: *
holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,*
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and has sent the rich away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel*
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. In former days God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets, but in these last days, he has spoken to us through his Son, whom he has appointed the heir of all things.
Intercessions
Let us give joyful praise to the living and true God, who chose the prophet Elijah to proclaim his power and mercy; let us say to him:
R/. Lord, make us witnesses of your love.
Lord, you accepted the sacrifice of Elijah and consumed it with fire from heaven; — accept our evening sacrifice which we offer for the good of the Church. R/.
When Elijah prayed on the mountain you sent saving rain from heaven; — fill us who have been called to Carmel with a spirit of prayer, so that we may draw a shower of grace to the world. R/.
You gave to the prophet Elijah the ministry of reconciling parents and children; — make us workers for peace, so that the peace of Christ may reign in the world. R/.
You made Elijah the defender of your honor and of true worship; — increase our concern for justice, so that by giving you all that is your due, we may serve our brothers and sisters in the spirit of the Gospel. R/.
You took the prophet Elijah to yourself in a whirlwind of fire; — graciously admit our departed brothers and sisters into the embrace of your glory. R/.
Our Father …
Prayer
Almighty, ever living God,
your prophet Elijah, our Father,
lived always in your presence
and was zealous for the honor due to your name.
May we, your servants,
always seek your face
and bear witness to your love.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Invitatory
Ant. Come let us adore the living God, who speaks to us through the prophets.
Office of Readings
HYMN
Great Author of all things that are
To you we sing in joyful praise
Of him, the Thesbite, whom you love,
Elijah, seer of ancient days.
With burning zeal for your blest name
He challenged wicked priests of Baal
And conquering, killed them in his might
To make your sacred law prevail.
The victims offered by his prayer
Drew heaven’s blest consuming flame
In vain Baal’s servants scream and rave,
Their frenzy brings them only shame.
Then Jezebel, unholy queen,
In fury raves, the prophet flees,
Beneath the sheltering juniper
He sleeps and then an angel sees.
The angel offers strengthening bread
With water pure his thirst to end
And marks a journey he must make
Mount Horeb’s summit to ascend.
No food but this for forty days
He journeys through the desert land
Prefiguring the royal feast
Prepared us by the Father’s hand.
To Father, Word and Paraclete
All glory, honor ever be
O undivided Trinity
Through whom creation came to be. Amen.
88.88. Te magne rerum Conditor
Psalmody
Ant. 1 Lord, I have had enough: take my life, I am no better than my ancestors.
Psalm 11
In the Lord I have taken my refuge. †
How can you say to my soul: *
‘Fly like a bird to its mountain.
‘See the wicked bracing their bow; †
they are fixing their arrows on the string *
to shoot upright men in the dark.
Foundations once destroyed, *
what can the just do?’
The Lord is in his holy temple, *
the Lord, whose throne is in heaven.
His eyes look down on the world; *
his gaze tests mortal men.
The Lord tests the just and the wicked: *
the lover of violence he hates.
He sends fire and brimstone on the wicked; *
he sends a scorching wind as their lot.
The Lord is just and loves justice: *
the upright shall see his face.
Ant. Lord, I have had enough: take my life, I am no better than my ancestors.
Ant. 2 An angel of the Lord said to him: Get up and eat, for there is a great journey before you.
Psalm 28
To you, O Lord, I call, *
my rock, hear me.
If you do not heed I shall become *
like those in the grave.
Hear the voice of my pleading *
as I call for help,
as I lift up my hands in prayer *
to your holy place.
Do not drag me away with the wicked, *
with the evil-doers,
who speak words of peace to their neighbors *
but with evil in their hearts.
Blessed be the Lord for he has heard *
my cry, my appeal.
The Lord is my strength and my shield; *
in him my heart trusts.
I was helped, my heart rejoices *
and I praise him with my song.
The Lord is the strength of his people, *
a fortress where his anointed find help.
Save your people; bless Israel your heritage. *
Be their shepherd and carry them for ever.
Ant. An angel of the Lord said to him: Get up and eat, for there is a great journey before you.
Ant. 3 Elijah ate and drank, and in the strength of that food he walked to the mountain of God.
Psalm 30
I will praise you, Lord, you have rescued me *
and have not let my enemies rejoice over me.
O Lord, I cried to you for help *
and you, my God, have healed me.
O Lord, you have raised my soul from the dead, *
restored me to life from those who sink into the grave.
Sing psalms to the Lord, you who love him, *
give thanks to his holy name.
His anger lasts a moment; his favor all through life. *
At night there are tears, but joy comes with dawn.
I said to myself in my good fortune: *
‘Nothing will ever disturb me.’
Your favor had set me on a mountain fastness, *
then you hid your face and I was put to confusion.
To you, Lord, I cried, *
to my God I made appeal:
‘What profit would my death be, my going to the grave? *
Can dust give you praise or proclaim your truth?’
The Lord listened and had pity. *
The Lord came to my help.
For me you have changed my mourning into dancing, *
you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.
So my soul sings psalms to you unceasingly. *
O Lord my God, I will thank you forever.
Ant. Elijah ate and drank, and in the strength of that food he walked to the mountain of God.
V/. You are a man of God. R/. And the word of God in your mouth is true.
The First Reading (Alternative)
1 Kings 19: 4-9a, 11-14a
A reading from the first book of Kings
Elijah walked all the way to the mountain of God
Elijah went a day’s journey into the desert, until he came to a broom tree and sat beneath it. He prayed for death, “This is enough, O Lord! Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers.” He lay down and fell asleep under the broom tree, but then an angel touched him and ordered him to get up and eat. He looked and there at his head was a hearth cake and a jug of water. After he ate and drank, he lay down again, but the angel of the Lord came back a second time, touched him, and ordered, “Get up and eat, else the journey will be too long for you!” He got up, ate and drank; then strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God, Horeb. There he came to a cave, where he took shelter.
Then the Lord said, “Go outside and stand on the mountain before the Lord, the Lord will be passing by.” A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the Lord—but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake—but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire—but the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave. A voice said to him, “Elijah, why are you here?” He replied, “I have been most zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts.”
Responsory
R/. Leave this place and go eastward, said the Lord to Elijah. * And he went and did as the Lord had said. V/. Hide yourself by the brook Cherith, and there drink from the stream; and I have commanded ravens to feed you there. * And he went and did as the Lord had said.
The Second Reading
Bk 2, Hom. 1, 17
From a Homily of Pope St. Gregory on the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel
The mystical contemplation of God
In divine contemplation the spirit is often abstracted to such a degree that it is already granted the joy of partaking a little, in image as it were, of that eternal freedom which ‘eye has not seen nor ear heard;’ but then, hampered by the weight of its own mortality, it falls back into the depths and is held captive in penalty for its sins. It has glimpsed the delights of true freedom and longs to escape from its captivity but, since it cannot, it keeps its gaze fixed upon the imprisoning doors. This is why, when the Jews had been freed from slavery to Egypt, each of them stood adoring in the doorway of his tent when God spoke and the pillar of cloud was visible.
Wherever we direct our mental gaze, there we may be said to stand. That is why Elijah said: ‘The Lord lives, in whose sight I stand.’ He did indeed stand before God, for his heart was intent on God. That the Jews gazed at the pillar of cloud and stood at the doors of their tents in adoration, has this meaning: when the human mind perceives these high and heavenly things—albeit in image—the elevation of its thought has already lifted it free from the limits of its bodily habitation; and although it is denied sight of the divine substance, it humbly adores Him whose power it can already see by spiritual illumination.
This is why Elijah is described as standing at the mouth of his cave and veiling his face when he heard the voice of the Lord speaking to him; for as soon as the voice of heavenly understanding enters the mind through the grace of contemplation, the whole man is no longer within the cave, for his soul is no longer taken up with matters of the flesh: intent on leaving the bounds of mortality, he stands at the cave’s mouth.
But if a man stands at the mouth of the cave and hears the word of God with the heart’s ear, he must veil his face. For when heavenly grace leads us to the understanding of higher things, the rarer the heights to which we are raised, the more we should abase ourselves in our own estimation by humility: we must not try to know ‘more than is fitting; we must know as it befits us to know.’ Otherwise, through over-familiarity with the invisible, we risk going astray; and we might perhaps look for material light in what is immaterial. For to cover the face while listening with the ear means hearing with our mind the voice of Him who is within us, yet averting the eyes of the heart from every bodily appearance. If we do this, there will be no risk of our spirit interpreting as something corporeal that which is everywhere in its entirety and everywhere uncircumscribed.
Beloved brothers, we have already learned through our Redeemer’s death, resurrection and ascension into heaven, what the joys of eternity mean, and we know that our fellow-citizens we have known. While our feet stand within the walls of His holy Church, let us keep our hearts facing towards the freedom of our heavenly fatherland. We are still encumbered, it is true, by the many cares of this corruptible life. If then we cannot leave the cave completely, let us at least stand at its mouth, and go out whenever we are granted the favor of doing so by the grace of our Redeemer Who lives and reigns with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.
Responsory
R/. The word of the Lord came to Elijah. * Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord. V/. He went out and stood at the entrance to the cave, and the Lord passed by in the whisper of a gentle breeze. * Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord.
Where the Vigil Office is celebrated:
Canticles
Ant. Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is passing by.
Canticle I
Jer 17:7-8
Happy are those who put their trust in the Lord
Happy are those who hear the word of God and keep it (Lk 11:28)
Blessed is the man who trust in the Lord, *
whose trust is the Lord.
He is like a tree planted by water, *
that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes, *
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought, *
for it does not cease to bear fruit.
Canticle II
Sir 14:20, 15:3-5a, 6b
The happiness of the wise
Wisdom has been proved right by all her children (Lk 7:35)
Happy the man who meditates on wisdom, *
and reasons with good sense.
She will give him the bread of understanding to eat, *
and the water of wisdom to drink.
He will lean on her and will not fall, *
he will rely on her and not be put to shame.
She will raise him high above his neighbors, *
and he will inherit an everlasting name.
Canticle III
Sir 51:1-3b, 4a, 7c, 11, 14ab, 15
Thanksgiving for delivery from affliction
God has saved us from the hands of our foes, that we might serve him (Lk 1:74)
I will give thanks to you, Lord and King, *
and praise you, God my Savior,
I give thanks to your name; *
for you have been protector and support to me,
and redeemed my body from destruction. †
from the snare of the lying tongue, *
from lips that fabricate falsehood.
You have redeemed me, †
true to the greatness of your mercy, *
from the perjured tongue slandering me to the king.
Then I remembered your mercy, Lord, *
and your deeds from earliest times.
I called on the Lord, the father of my Lord: *
“Do not desert me in the days of ordeal,
I will praise your name unceasingly, †
and gratefully sing its praises;” *
and my plea was heard.
Ant. Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is passing by.
Gospel
Mt 17:1-8
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew
Moses and Elijah appeared to them
Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain where they could be alone. There in their presence he was transfigured: his face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as the light. Suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared to them; they were talking with him. Then Peter spoke to Jesus. “Lord,” he said, “it is wonderful for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” He was still speaking when suddenly a bright cloud covered them with shadow, and from the cloud there came a voice which said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favor. Listen to him.” When they heard this, the disciples fell on their faces, overcome with fear. But Jesus came up and touched them. “Stand up,” he said, “do not be afraid.” And when they raised their eyes they saw no one but only Jesus.
Te Deum
You are God: we praise you; *
You are the Lord: we acclaim you;
You are the eternal Father: *
All creation worships you.
To you all angels, all the powers of heaven, *
Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord, God of power and might, *
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you. †
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you. *
The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you: *
Father, of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all worship, *
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
You, Christ, are the King of glory, *
the eternal Son of the Father.
When you became man to set us free *
you did not spurn the Virgin’s womb.
You overcame the sting of death, *
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at God’s right hand in glory. *
We believe that you will come, and be our judge.
Come then, Lord, and help your people, *
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints*
to glory everlasting.
Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance. — Govern and uphold them now and always.
Day by day we bless you. — We praise your name for ever.
Keep us today, Lord, from all sin. — Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.
Lord, show us your love and mercy, — for we have put our trust in you.
In you, Lord, is our hope: — And we shall never hope in vain.
Prayer
Almighty, ever living God,
your prophet Elijah, our Father,
lived always in your presence
and was zealous for the honor due to your name.
May we, your servants,
always seek your face
and bear witness to your love.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Morning Prayer
Hymn
Come, blest companions, let our joy resounding
Extol to Heaven the Leader of our line.
‘Tis meet the memory of his deeds abounding
Should waken ceaseless canticles divine.
He knows the gentle breathing of the Spirit
Clothed in the whistling murmur of the air,
By God’s command the chastisements they merit
Proud Jezebel and Ahab justly share.
The caverns green of Carmel form his dwelling,
With leathern tunic is he rudely clad,
To impious Ahaziah his foretelling
Gives portent of a dissolution sad.
Twice at his prayer the fire from Heaven descending
Consumeth trembling soldiers in its flame,
The flowing waters mit with his mantle rending,
Dry shod he passeth safely through the same.
O Father, let thy help and thy protection
Be o’er thy children as they humbly plead,
Entreat the Spirit, by His sweet election,
To multiply His graces in their need.
O unbegotten Father, we adore Thee,
O Son begotten, reverence be to Thee,
O glorious Spirit, bow we low before Thee,
Thou simple undivided Trinity.
11.11.11.10. Pergamus, socii, tollere canticus
Psalmody
Ant. 1 God lives; I am standing in his presence.
Psalm 63
O God, you are my God, for you I long; *
for you my soul is thirsting.
My body pines for you*
like a dry, weary land without water.
So I gaze on you in the sanctuary *
to see your strength and your glory.
For your love is better than life, *
my lips will speak your praise.
So I will bless you all my life, *
in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul shall be filled as with a banquet, *
my mouth shall praise you with joy.
On my bed I remember you. *
On you I muse through the night
for you have been my help; *
in the shadow of your wings I rejoice.
My soul clings to you; *
your right hand holds me fast.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. God lives; I am standing in his presence.
Ant. 2 Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord; for the Lord is passing by.
Canticle – Daniel 3:57-88, 56
Bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord. *
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Angels of the Lord, bless the Lord. *
You heavens, bless the Lord,
All you waters above the heavens, bless the Lord. *
All you hosts of the Lord, bless the Lord.
Sun and moon, bless the Lord. *
Stars of heaven, bless the Lord.
Every shower and dew, bless the Lord. *
All you winds, bless the Lord.
Fire and heat, bless the Lord. *
Cold and chill, bless the Lord.
Dew and rain, bless the Lord. *
Frost and chill, bless the Lord.
Ice and snow, bless the Lord. *
Nights and days, bless the Lord.
Light and darkness, bless the Lord. *
Lightnings and clouds, bless the Lord.
Let the earth bless the Lord. *
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Mountains and hills, bless the Lord. *
Everything growing from the earth, bless the Lord.
You springs, bless the Lord. *
Seas and rivers, bless the Lord.
You dolphins and all water creatures, bless the Lord. *
All you birds of the air, bless the Lord.
All you beasts, wild and tame, bless the Lord. *
You sons of men, bless the Lord.
O Israel, bless the Lord. *
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Priests of the Lord, bless the Lord. *
Servants of the Lord, bless the Lord.
Spirits and souls of the just, bless the Lord. *
Holy men of humble heart, bless the Lord.
Hananiah, Azariah, Mishael, bless the Lord. *
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Let us bless the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. *
Let us praise and exalt him above all for ever.
Blessed are you, Lord, in the firmament of heaven. *
Praiseworthy and glorious and exalted above all for ever.
Ant. Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord; for the Lord is passing by.
Ant. 3 With zeal have I been zealous for the Lord God of hosts.
Psalm 149
Sing a new song to the Lord, *
his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel rejoice in its maker, *
let Zion’s sons exult in their king.
Let them praise his name with dancing *
and make music with timbrel and harp.
For the Lord takes delight in his people. *
He crowns the poor with salvation.
Let the faithful rejoice in their glory, *
shout for joy and take their rest.
Let the praise of God be on their lips *
and a two-edged sword in their hand,
to deal out vengeance to the nations *
and punishment on all the peoples;
to bind their kings in chains *
and their nobles in fetters of iron;
to carry out the sentence pre-ordained; *
this honor is for all his faithful.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. With zeal have I been zealous for the Lord God of hosts.
Scripture Reading
2 Pt 1:19-21
We have confirmation of what was said in prophecies; and you will be right to depend on prophecy and take it as a lamp for lighting a way through the dark until the dawn comes and the morning star rises in your minds. At the same time, we must be careful to remember that the interpretation of scriptural prophecy is never a matter for the individual. Why? Because no prophecy ever came from man’s initiative. When men spoke for God it was the Holy Spirit that moved them.
Short Responsory
R/. I will be satisfied, Lord, * when your glory appears. Repeat R/. V/. And in righteousness I will see your face, * when your glory appears.
Glory . . . R/.
Canticle of Zechariah
Ant. Lord God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, give proof this day that you are the God of Israel, and that I am your servant, and that all I have said is at your command.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; *
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior, *
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old †
that he would save us from our enemies, *
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers*
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham: *
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear, *
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High; *
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation *
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God *
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, *
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Lord God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, give proof this day that you are the God of Israel, and that I am your servant, and that all I have said is at your command.
Intercessions
God our Father spoke in former days through the prophets, but today he speaks to us in his Son, through whom he wishes the whole world to be joined to him. Let us humbly pray:
R/. Lord, draw us to yourself.
Lord, you revealed yourself to the prophet Elijah in silence and solitude; — help us to put aside all that prevents us from hearing your voice, so that we may seek and find you. R/.
When he was thirsty, you gave Elijah refreshing water at the torrent of Karith; — may we drink at the living springs of love and contemplation. R/.
As he walked to Mount Horeb, you filled Elijah with strength; — may we who are strengthened by the Body and Blood of Christ press on unwearied in our journey to you. R/.
Lord, you revealed yourself to Elijah in the whisper of a gentle breeze; — in attentive silence and with an obedient spirit may we receive every inspiration of the Holy Spirit. R/.
Lord, you raised up Elijah like a fire and made him zealous for your glory; — may we too burn with the fire of your love, to serve the Church and our brethren in all our work. R/.
Our Father …
Prayer
Almighty, ever living God,
your prophet Elijah, our Father,
lived always in your presence
and was zealous for the honor due to your name.
May we, your servants,
always seek your face
and bear witness to your love.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Prayer during the Day
Antiphons and psalms of the weekday.
Before Noon
Ant. Elijah called out to the Lord, and the Lord heard his voice.
Scripture Reading
Heb 12:1-2
Since we for our part are surrounded by this cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every encumbrance of sin which clings to us and persevere in running the race which lies ahead; let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who inspires and perfects our faith. For the sake of the joy which lay before him he endured the cross, heedless of its shame. He has taken his seat at the right of the throne of God.
V/. Lord, I have sought your face. R/. Your face I will seek always.
Midday
Ant. The words of the Lord were fulfilled; he did what he had promised his prophet Elijah.
Scripture Reading
Heb 4:12
God’s word is living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword. It penetrates and divides soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the reflections and thoughts of the heart.
V/. I have hidden your sayings in my heart, Lord. R/. So as never to sin against you.
Afternoon
Ant. The fire of the Lord fell and consumed Elijah’s offering.
Scripture Reading
Heb 12:28-29
We who are receiving the unshakable kingdom should hold fast to God’s grace, through which we may offer worship acceptable to him in reverence and awe. For our God is a consuming fire.
V/. Lord, your word is a consuming flame. R/. Your servant loves it.
Prayer
Almighty, ever living God,
your prophet Elijah, our Father,
lived always in your presence
and was zealous for the honor due to your name.
May we, your servants,
always seek your face
and bear witness to your love.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Evening Prayer
Hymn
Praises to the great Elijah!
Let our songs to heaven rise.
His the grace to hear God’s whisper
Where all earthly music dies.
Clad in skins he made his dwelling
On Mount Carmel, finding there
That austere and lonely wisdom
Hidden in a life of prayer.
Yet he went forth at God’s bidding,
Flashed God’s word and law abroad
Till the idols fell around him
And his people turned to God.
May we, too, make war on falsehood,
Burn with zeal for God’s command
Till we follow our true Master
In whose sight we always stand.
Now we pray our Prophet-father
That our lives obtain this grace:
An outpouring God’s Spirit
Over every time and place.
Praise and honor to the Father,
To the Son and Spirit praise.
Theirs be all our love and worship
Now and through eternal days.
87.87. Text: Unknown
Psalmody
Ant. 1 Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of God in your mouth is true.
Psalm 15
Lord, who shall be admitted to your tent *
and dwell on your holy mountain?
He who walks without fault; *
he who acts with justice
and speaks the truth from his heart; *
he who does not slander with his tongue;
he who does no wrong to his brother, *
who casts no slur on his neighbor,
who holds the godless in disdain, *
but honors those who fear the Lord;
he who keeps his pledge, come what may; *
who takes no interest on a loan
and accepts no bribes against the innocent. *
Such a man will stand firm for ever.
Ant. Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of God in your mouth is true.
Ant. 2 The Lord said to Elijah: Go and present yourself to Ahab; I will send rain upon the earth.
Psalm 112
Happy the man who fears the Lord, *
who takes delight in all his commands.
His sons will be powerful on earth; *
the children of the upright are blessed.
Riches and wealth are in his house; *
his justice stands firm for ever.
He is a light in the darkness for the upright: *
he is generous, merciful and just.
The good man takes pity and lends, *
he conducts his affairs with honor.
The just man will never waver: *
he will be remembered for ever.
He has no fear of evil news; *
with a firm heart he trusts in the Lord.
With a steadfast heart he will not fear; *
he will see the downfall of his foes.
Open-handed, he gives to the poor; †
his justice stands firm for ever. *
His head will be raised in glory.
The wicked man sees and is angry, †
grinds his teeth and fades away;
the desire of the wicked leads to doom.
Ant. The Lord said to Elijah: Go and present yourself to Ahab; I will send rain upon the earth.
Ant. 3 Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind, and Elisha saw him no more.
Canticle: Rev 15:3-4
Great and wonderful are your deeds, *
O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways, *
O King of the ages!
Who shall not fear and glorify your name, O Lord? *
For you alone are holy.
All nations shall come and worship you, *
for your judgments have been revealed.
Ant. Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind, and Elisha saw him no more.
Scripture Reading
2 Kgs 2:11-12
As they still went on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried, ‘My father, my father! the chariot of Israel and its horseman!’ And he saw him no more.
Short Responsory
R/. Elisha lifted the cloak of Elijah: * he struck the waters and they divided. Repeat R/. V/. Because the spirit of Elijah rested on Elisha: * he struck the waters and they divided.
Glory . . . R/.
Canticle of Mary
Ant. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the day of the Lord comes, that great and terrible day. He will turn the hearts of fathers to their sons and the hearts of sons to their fathers.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, *
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior;
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant, *
and from this day all generations will call me blessed.
The Almighty has done great things for me: *
holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,*
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and has sent the rich away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel*
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the day of the Lord comes, that great and terrible day. He will turn the hearts of fathers to their sons and the hearts of sons to their fathers.
Intercessions
Let us give joyful praise to the living and true God, who chose the prophet Elijah to proclaim his power and mercy; let us say to him:
R/. Lord, make us witnesses of your love.
Lord, you accepted the sacrifice of Elijah and consumed it with fire from heaven; — accept our evening sacrifice which we offer for the good of the Church. R/.
When Elijah prayed on the mountain you sent saving rain from heaven; — fill us who have been called to Carmel with a spirit of prayer, so that we may draw a shower of grace to the world. R/.
You gave to the prophet Elijah the ministry of reconciling parents and children; — make us workers for peace, so that the peace of Christ may reign in the world. R/.
You made Elijah the defender of your honor and of true worship; — increase our concern for justice, so that by giving you all that is your due, we may serve our brothers and sisters in the spirit of the Gospel. R/.
You took the prophet Elijah to yourself in a whirlwind of fire; — graciously admit our departed brothers and sisters into the embrace of your glory. R/.
Our Father …
Prayer
Almighty, ever living God,
your prophet Elijah, our Father,
lived always in your presence
and was zealous for the honor due to your name.
May we, your servants,
always seek your face
and bear witness to your love.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Image taken from page 8 of ‘[Elijah the Prophet. An epic poem.]’; courtesy British Library
To discover more illustrations from the public domain digital image collection of the British Library, visit their Flickr account, which contains more than one million photos available for download.
Featured image: Elijah Taken Up in a Chariot of Fire, Giuseppe Angeli (c. 1740/1755)
July 23 (In Europe: July 19) OUR LADY, MOTHER OF DIVINE GRACE
Memorial
‘The Blessed Virgin Mary was eternally predestined, in the context of the Incarnation of the divine Word, to be the Mother of God. As decreed by divine Providence, she served on earth as the loving Mother of the divine Redeemer, His associate, uniquely generous, and the Lord’s humble servant. She conceived, bore, and nourished Christ; presented Him to the Father in the Temple; and was united with Him in His suffering as He died on the cross. In a completely unparalleled way she cooperated, by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity, with our Savior’s work of restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason, she is Mother to us all in the order of grace’ (Lumen Gentium, the Constitution on the Church, 61).
From the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary, except the following:
Office of Readings
The Second Reading
Hom. 4
From the homily of St. Cyril of Alexandria preached at the Council of Ephesus
Our access to the fountainhead of grace is through Mary
Hail Mary, Mother of God, august treasury of the whole world, unquenchable torch, crown of virginity, scepter of orthodoxy, temple indestructible, and place of the uncontainable, mother and virgin. Through you is named blessed in the holy gospel He who comes in the name of the Lord. Hail Mary! You contained the uncontainable in your holy virginal womb. Through you the Trinity is glorified; through you is the cross named precious, and adored throughout the whole world; through you heaven exults; through you angels and archangels rejoice; through you demons are put to flight; through you the devil, the tempter, fell from heaven; through you the fallen creature is taken up to heaven; through you the whole created world, gripped in the madness of idolatry, come to a recognition of the truth; through you comes about holy baptism for believers; through you the oil of gladness; through you churches have been founded through the whole world; through you nations are led to repentance.
What need is there to speak at length? Through you the only Son of God shone His light for those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death; through you prophets foretold what was to come; through you apostles preach salvation to the nations; through you the dead are raised to life; through you kings reign, through the Holy Trinity.
What man can sing adequately the praise of Mary? She is both virgin and mother! The wonder astounds me. Shall the Builder be forbidden to inhabit the temple He has built? Shall He be despised who chose His handmaid for His mother?
See then, all things rejoice. May it be ours to fear and bow before the unity of the Trinity, to worship and tremble in awe before the indivisible Trinity, as we sing praises of the ever-virgin Mary, that is the holy Church, and of her Son and immaculate spouse; for to Him is glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Responsory
R/. With confidence let us draw near to the throne of grace, * so that we may receive mercy, and find grace when we are in need of help. V/. To you do we cry, blessed Virgin, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears, * so that we may receive mercy, and find grace when we are in need of help.
Morning Prayer
Canticle of Zechariah
Ant. It is I who give birth to all noble loving and the holy gift of hope. From me comes every grace of faithful observance; from me all promise of life and vigor.
Prayer
God of eternal wisdom,
in your providence, you willed that the Blessed Virgin Mary
should bring forth the Author of Grace,
and take part with him
in the mystery of man’s redemption.
May she obtain for us grace in abundance
and bring us to the haven of everlasting salvation.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Evening Prayer
Canticle of Mary
Ant. Our salvation is in your hands, O Mother; smile upon us, and we shall be happy in our service of the Lord our King.
“She is Mother to us all in the order of grace” (LG 61)
July 17
BLESSED TERESA OF SAINT AUGUSTINE AND COMPANIONS Virgins and Martyrs
Memorial
As the French Revolution entered its worst days, sixteen Discalced Carmelites from the Monastery of the Incarnation in Compiègne offered their lives as a sacrifice to God, making reparation to him and imploring peace for the Church. On June 24th, 1794, they were arrested and thrown into prison. Their happiness and resignation were so evident that those around them were also encouraged to draw strength from God’s love. They were condemned to death for their fidelity to the Church and their religious life and for their devotion to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Singing hymns, and having renewed their vows before the superior, Teresa of St. Augustine, they were put to death in Paris on July 17th, 1794. They were beatified by Pope St. Pius X on May 13, 1906.
From the Common of Martyrs or the Common of Virgins, except the following:
Office of Readings
HYMN
Let Carmel echo joyfully
The dying hymns that soared above
When Compiègne so gladly gave
Its greatest witness to God’s love.
These virgin-martyrs gave their lives.
For sin’s atonement, like their Lord;
They died to bring a troubled Church
The peace of Christ as love’s reward.
May we like them serve Holy Church
And build it up in unity,
Until at last in heav’n’s pure light
We gaze on God the Trinity.
Our Queen and Mother, Carmel’s joy,
Look down with love on us who sing
The praise of those who died for love
Of Jesus Christ, your Son, our King.
Bless God the Father, source of love,
Bless God the Word, his only Son,
Bless God the Spirit, Dove of peace,
One God, while endless ages run.
L.M. Fr. James Quinn, S.J.
The Second Reading
Ch. 12, 1-3
From the Way of Perfection of St. Teresa of Jesus
The life of a good religious and a close friend of God is a long martyrdom
It all seems very hard work, this business of perfection — and so it is: we are waging war on ourselves! But as soon as we get down to it God becomes so active in our souls and showers so many mercies on them that whatever has got to be done in this life seems insignificant. And as we nuns do so much already, giving up our freedom for love of God and subjecting it to someone else, what excuse have we got for holding back when it comes to interior mortification?
That is where the secret lies of making all the rest so much more meritorious and perfect, not to mention doing it more easily and peacefully. The way to acquire it, as I have said, is to persevere bit by bit in not doing our own will or fancy, even in tiny things, till the body has been mastered by the spirit.
Let me repeat that it is all — or nearly all — a matter of getting rid of self-interest and our preoccupation with our own comfort. If you have started serving God seriously, the least you can offer Him is your life! If you have given Him your will, what are you afraid of? If you are a real religious, a real ‘pray-er,’ and want to enjoy God’s favors, you obviously can’t afford to shy away from wanting to die for Him, and undergo martyrdom. Don’t you realize, sisters that the life of a good religious — a person who wants to be one of God’s really close friends — is one long martyrdom? I say ‘long’ because in comparison with those whose heads have been chopped off in a trice we can call it long, but all our lives are short, very short in some cases. And we don’t even know whether our own won’t be so short that it will come to an end an hour, or even a second, after we have made up our mind to serve God fully. That could happen.
We have just got to take no account of anything that will come to an end, least of all life, for we can’t count on a single day. If we remember that every hour might be our last, is there a single one of us who will feel inclined to shirk?
Well, there is nothing you can be more certain of, believe me! So we must train ourselves to thwart our own wills in every way; then, if you try hard, as I have said, though you won’t get there all of a sudden, you will gradually arrive, without realizing it, at the peak of perfection.
Responsory
R/. Rejoice that you share the sufferings of Christ, * for when His glory is revealed you will be filled with joy. V/. Blessed are you when you are persecuted for Christ’s sake, * for when His glory is revealed you will be filled with joy.
Morning Prayer
Hymn
Voice of the Bridegroom: now is winter passing,
Rain falls no longer, gardens yield their fragrance,
Spring blooms appearing, trees resound with birdsong —
Rise, my beloved.
Go out to meet him, virgins all exulting,
See he approaches, crowns you for your nuptials —
Rapture and gladness, when he leads you homeward
Sharing his kingdom.
Love for the Bridegroom filled your whole horizon,
Making you fearless in the face of danger;
Like him, your Master, life itself you offered,
Sacrificed for him.
Joyfully faithful to your holy calling,
Nothing could daunt you, or your lamps extinguish;
Shining and glowing you would bear them to him
Through cloud and tempest.
11.11.11.5 Sr. Margarita of Jesus, O.C.D.
Canticle of Zechariah
Ant. Prepare your lamps, you wise virgins, for behold, the Bridegroom is coming: go out and meet Him.
Prayer
Lord God,
you called Blessed Teresa of St. Augustine and her companions
to go on in the strength of the Holy Spirit
from the heights of Carmel to receive a martyr’s crown.
May our love too be so steadfast
that it will bring us
to the everlasting vision of your glory.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Evening Prayer
Canticle of Mary
Ant. You virgins of the Lord, who have endured the great ordeal, come and rejoice with God forever.
Plaque in Picpus Cemetery marking the two common graves where the martyrs are buried | Wikimedia Commons
July 16 SOLEMN COMMEMORATION OF OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL
Solemnity
The sacred scriptures speak of the beauty of Mount Carmel where the prophet Elijah defended the faith of Israel in the living God. There, at the beginning of the thirteenth century, under the title of “Saint Mary of Mount Carmel,” the Order of Carmelites had its formal beginning. From the fourteenth century this title, recalling the countless blessings of its patroness, began to be celebrated solemnly, first in England and then gradually throughout the whole Order. It attained its supreme place from the beginning of the seventeenth century, when the General Chapter declared it to be the principal feast of the Order, and Paul V recognized it as the feast of the Scapular Confraternity.
Evening Prayer I
Hymn
Flower of Carmel,
Tall vine blossom laden;
Splendor of heaven,
Child-bearing yet maiden.
None equals thee.
Mother so tender,
Who no man didst know,
On Carmel’s children
Thy favors bestow.
Star of the Sea.
Strong stem of Jesse,
Who bore one bright flower,
Be ever near us
And guard us each hour,
who serve thee here.
Purest of lilies,
That flowers among thorns,
Bring help to the true heart
That in weakness turns
and trusts in thee.
Strongest of armor,
We trust in thy might:
Under thy mantle,
Hard press’d in the fight,
we call to thee.
Our way uncertain,
Surrounded by foes,
Unfailing counsel
You give to those
who turn to thee.
O gentle Mother
Who in Carmel reigns,
Share with your servants
That gladness you gained
and now enjoy.
Hail, Gate of Heaven,
With glory now crowned,
Bring us to safety
Where thy Son is found,
true joy to see.
Flos Carmeli Tr. unknown
Psalmody
Ant. 1 The glory of Lebanon is given to her, the beauty of Carmel and Sharon.
Psalm 113
Praise, O servants of the Lord, *
praise the name of the Lord!
May the name of the Lord be blessed *
both now and for evermore!
From the rising of the sun to its setting *
praised be the name of the Lord!
High above all nations is the Lord, *
above the heavens his glory.
Who is like the Lord, our God, *
who has risen on high to his throne *
yet stoops from the heights to look down, *
to look down upon heaven and earth?
From the dust he lifts up the lowly, *
from his misery he raises the poor
to set him in the company of princes, *
yes, with the princes of his people.
To the childless wife he gives a home *
and gladdens her heart with children.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. The glory of Lebanon is given to her, the beauty of Carmel and Sharon.
Ant. 2 You are the glory of Jerusalem, the joy of Israel, the highest honor of our race.
Psalm 147
O praise the Lord, Jerusalem! *
Sion, praise your God!
He has strengthened the bars of your gates, *
he has blessed the children within you.
He has established peace on your borders, *
he feeds you with finest wheat.
He sends out his word to the earth *
and swiftly runs his command.
He showers down snow white as wool, *
he scatters hoarfrost like ashes.
He hurls down hailstones like crumbs. *
The waters are frozen at his touch;
he sends forth his word and it melts them: *
at the breath of his mouth the waters flow.
He makes his word known to Jacob, *
to Israel his laws and decrees.
He has not dealt thus with other nations; *
he has not taught them his decrees.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. You are the glory of Jerusalem, the joy of Israel, the highest honor of our race.
Ant. 3 You will rejoice in your children, for they will be blessed through you and gathered together by the Lord.
Canticle: Eph 1:3-10
Blessed be the God and Father *
of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ *
with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.
He chose us in him *
before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy *
and blameless before him.
He destined us in love *
to be his sons through Jesus Christ,
according to the purpose of his will, †
to the praise of his glorious grace *
which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his Blood, *
the forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of his grace *
which he lavished upon us.
He has made known to us †
in all wisdom and insight *
the mystery of his will,
according to his purpose *
which he set forth in Christ.
His purpose he set forth in Christ, *
as a plan for the fullness of time,
to unite all things in him, *
things in heaven and things on earth.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. You will rejoice in your children, for they will be blessed through you and gathered together by the Lord.
Scripture Reading
Rev 11:19; 12:1
God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. And a great portent appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
Short Responsory
R/. How fair you are, * O Virgin Mary. Repeat R/. V/. Your face is resplendent with grace, * O Virgin Mary.
Glory . . . R/.
Canticle of Mary
Ant. Bounteous Mother of God, glory of Mount Carmel, we are your children and your people, endow us with your own virtues; have pity, and protect us from every danger.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, *
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior;
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant, *
and from this day all generations will call me blessed.
The Almighty has done great things for me: *
holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,*
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and has sent the rich away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel*
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Bounteous Mother of God, glory of Mount Carmel, we are your children and your people, endow us with your own virtues; have pity, and protect us from every danger.
Intercessions
Let us praise our heavenly Father, who gives us the joy of celebrating this solemn feast of the Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, as we pray:
R/. May Mary, Mother and Beauty of Carmel, intercede for us.
Lord, in your plan the Daughter of Sion was foreshadowed by the prophets and made the heir of all your promises; — by imitating Mary, who is the image of the Church, may your Church on earth be more and more the sacrament of the world’s salvation. R/.
You have honored the family of Carmel with the title and patronage of the Virgin Mary; — may all Carmelites live with her in unswerving allegiance to Jesus Christ. R/.
You have entrusted the whole of mankind, the brothers and sisters of your Son, to the care of Mary’s maternal heart; — may the world see her image in us as we strive to live in your presence and to give ourselves for the salvation of all. R/.
You call the humble family of Carmel, living in the cloister and in the world, to be especially dedicated to the Virgin Mary; — may all who are called to Carmel be of one mind and one heart as they join together in prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. R/.
You promise a crown of glory to those who persevere in your love till the end; — may our departed brothers and sisters, who shared Mary’s love for you, rejoice with you forever in heaven. R/.
Our Father …
Prayer
Lord God,
you willed that the Order of Carmel
should be named in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother of your Son.
Through her prayers, as we honor her today,
bring us to your holy Mountain,
Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Or:
Father,
may the prayers of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother and Queen of Carmel,
protect us, and bring us to your holy Mountain,
Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God for ever and ever.
INVITATORY
Lord, open my lips. — And my mouth will proclaim your praise.
Ant. Come, ring out our joy to the Lord, as we thank him for the favors we have received through Mary, the Virgin Mother of Carmel.
Psalm 95
Come, let us sing to the Lord *
and shout with joy to the Rock who saves us.
Let us approach him with praise and thanksgiving *
and sing joyful songs to the Lord.
Ant. Come, ring out our joy to the Lord, as we thank him for the favors we have received through Mary, the Virgin Mother of Carmel.
The Lord is God, the mighty God, *
the great king over all the gods.
He holds in his hands the depths of the earth *
and the highest mountains as well
He made the sea; it belongs to him, *
the dry land, too, for it was formed by his hands.
Ant. Come, ring out our joy to the Lord, as we thank him for the favors we have received through Mary, the Virgin Mother of Carmel.
Come, then, let us bow down and worship, *
bending the knee before the Lord, our maker,
For he is our God and we are his people, *
the flock he shepherds.
Ant. Come, ring out our joy to the Lord, as we thank him for the favors we have received through Mary, the Virgin Mother of Carmel.
Today, listen to the voice of the Lord:*
Do not grow stubborn, as your fathers did in the wilderness,
when at Meriba and Massah they challenged me and provoked me, *
Although they had seen all of my works.
Ant. Come, ring out our joy to the Lord, as we thank him for the favors we have received through Mary, the Virgin Mother of Carmel.
Forty years I endured that generation. † I said, “They are a people whose hearts go astray *
and they do not know my ways.”
So I swore in my anger, *
“They shall not enter into my rest.”
Ant. Come, ring out our joy to the Lord, as we thank him for the favors we have received through Mary, the Virgin Mother of Carmel.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Come, ring out our joy to the Lord, as we thank him for the favors we have received through Mary, the Virgin Mother of Carmel.
Office of Readings
Hymn
1. Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel whom in ancient prophecy
God revealed to Saint Elijah by an Oriental sea.
Rise again on God’s creation bring to bloom this arid place
with the white cloud of your beauty and the rainfall of your grace.
2. Blessed cloud of God’s protection and His luminous abode,
light the pathways of your pilgrims to the promised land of God.
On the mount of contemplation be our surety and stay.
In the night a pillar glowing and a cloud of love by day.
3. Mother fair above all mothers, by the scapular we wear
be your own sign of salvation, which our willing shoulders bear.
Shield us from the foes of darkness, we are prey they seek to win.
us as your loving children from the tragedy of sin.
4. Virgin of the Incarnation, in the mysteries of grace,
God has made His habitation in our soul’s most secret place.
Toward that bright and inner kingdom, all our words and ways compel.
For the Father, Son and Spirit in its sacred silence dwell.
5. Lady of the mystic mountain, where the Lord has set His throne,
up its steep way to the Spirit, none can walk save love alone.
Grant us grace to climb Mount Carmel and to learn that love is loss.
Guide us still our ways outdistance all earth’s treasures save the cross.
6. Queen and Beauty of Mount Carmel, Virgin of the solitude,
in the wilderness of Carmel lies the world’s eternal good.
Draw us to its deep seclusion and make God alone our goal.
In the mystical Mount Carmel that lies hidden in the soul.
87.87.D. Sr. Miriam of the Holy Spirit, OCD
Psalmody
Ant. 1 Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord, and who shall stand in his holy place? The one with clean hands and pure heart.
When the following psalm has been used at the Invitatory, Ps 94 is said here in place of it.
Psalm 24
The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, *
the world and all its peoples.
It is he who set in on the seas; *
on the waters he made it firm.
Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord? *
Who shall stand in his holy place?
The man with clean hands and pure heart, †
who desires not worthless things, *
who has not sworn so as to deceive his neighbor.
He shall receive blessings from the Lord *
and reward from the God who saves him.
Such are the men who seek him, *
seek the face of the God of Jacob.
O gates, lift high your heads; †
grow higher, ancient doors. *
Let him enter, the king of glory!
Who is the king of glory? †
The Lord, the mighty, the valiant, *
the Lord, the valiant in war.
O gates, lift high your heads; †
grow higher, ancient doors. *
Let him enter, the king of glory!
Who is he, the king of glory? †
He, the Lord of armies, *
he is the king of glory.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord, and who shall stand in his holy place? The one with clean hands and pure heart.
Ant. 2 I will lead them to my holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer.
Psalm 46
God is for us a refuge and strength *
a helper close at hand, in time of distress:
so we shall not fear though the earth should rock, *
though the mountains fall into the depths of the sea,
even though its waters rage and foam, *
even though the mountains be shaken by its waves.
The Lord of hosts is with us: *
the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
The waters of a river give joy to God’s city, *
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within, it cannot be shaken; *
God will help it at the dawning of the day.
Nations are in tumult, kingdoms are shaken: *
he lifts his voice, the earth shrinks away.
The Lord of hosts is with us: *
the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
Come, consider the works of the Lord *
the redoubtable deeds he has done on the earth.
He puts an end to wars over all the earth; †
the bow he breaks, the spear he snaps. *
He burns the shields with fire.
“Be still and know that I am God, *
supreme among the nations, supreme on the earth!”
The Lord of hosts is with us: *
the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. I will lead them to my holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer.
Ant. 3 Glorious things are told of you, O city of God; the Lord founded you on his holy mountain!
Psalm 87
On the holy mountain is his city *
cherished by the Lord.
The Lord prefers the gates of Sion *
to all Jacob’s dwellings.
Of you are told glorious things, *
O city of God.
Babylon and Egypt I will count *
among those who know me;
Philistia, Tyre, Ethiopia, *
these will be her children
and Sion shall be called “Mother” *
for all shall be her children.
It is he, the Lord Most High, *
who gives each his place.
In his register of peoples he writes: *
‘These are her children’
and while they dance they will sing: *
‘In you all find their home.’
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Glorious things are told of you, O city of God; the Lord founded you on his holy mountain!
V/. I have brought you into the land of Carmel. R/. To enjoy the fruits and blessings of it.
The First Reading
1 Kings 18:36-39, 41-45a
A reading from the First Book of Kings
Elijah prayed on the summit of Carmel, and heaven granted rain
And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.” Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.”
And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.” So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he bowed himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees. And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” And he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go again seven times.” And at the seventh time he said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising out of the sea.” And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, lest the rain stop you.’” And in a little while the heavens grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain.
Responsory
R/. You care for the earth, give it water; you fill it with riches; * you bless its growth. V/. The pastures of the wilderness flow with abundance, and the hills are girded with joy; * you bless its growth. R/. You care for the earth, give it water; You fill it with riches; * you bless its growth. V/. The pastures of the wilderness flow with abundance, and the hills are girded with joy; * you bless its growth.
The Second Reading (Alternative 2)
May 10 and June 22, 1967
From the Allocutions of Pope Paul VI
Blessed are all who have believed
We can readily see that the Blessed Virgin Mary was endowed in high measure with a remarkable interior enlightenment, such as might have been anticipated in view of her sinlessness and the nature of her task in the world. The Gospels make abundantly clear that her soul was gifted with an extraordinary insight into the ways of God and a prophetic intuition. Yet above all else it was faith that most characterized the Mother of God — the kind of faith that does not need proof, but accepts a thing as true because God has spoken. The Second Vatican Council declares that “the Blessed Virgin went forward in her pilgrimage of faith,” and the Gospel records how generous and meritorious that pilgrimage was when it cites Elizabeth’s high tribute, which tells us so much about Mary’s psychology and holiness: “Blessed are you, for you have believed.”
We find confirmation of this faith, Our Lady’s foremost virtue, wherever the gospel tells of what she was, or what she said or what she did. Faced with the attitudes that characterize the incomparable figure of Mary in relation to the mystery of Christ realized in herself, we feel compelled to follow her example, and discover patterns for those who have, in conformity with God’s plan for our salvation chosen the religious life. She teaches us how to listen, how to explore, to accept, to make sacrifices; she teaches us how to meditate, to wait, to examine; she teaches us self-possession, and calm, absolute assurance in judgment and action; she teaches us, in short, the fullness of prayer and communion with God. And all these things, though we see them in Mary uniquely realized by that one soul which was full of grace and completely under the sway of the Holy Spirit, are yet all forms of faith, and therefore close to us and available not only for our admiration but for our imitation.
You have chosen the narrow, austere, arduous way of the ascetic life. You are in such a way committed to the pursuit of the supreme art of prayer and an intense spiritual life that you are branded as true searchers after the only fullness, the only peace, the only love: the union of the soul with God.
May the most holy Virgin Mary confirm you in your Carmelite vocation. May she safeguard your love for the things of the spirit. May she obtain for you the graces you need in your holy, laborious ascent towards the knowledge of the divine realm and the ineffable experiences of its dark nights and light-filled days. May she give you the desire for sanctity, the desire to bear eschatological witness to the kingdom of heaven. May she make you models for all the members of God’s Church, and bind you to them in brotherhood. And may she one day lead you into that possession of Christ and His glory which, even now, is the goal towards which your whole life is directed.
Responsory
R/. In faith receive the word of God which is able to save your souls. * Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it. V/. Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. * Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.
Where the Vigil Office is celebrated:
Canticles
Ant. Bring us, O Mary, to the summit of Carmel, to Christ our heavenly life.
Canticle I
Is 2:2-3
All the peoples will come to the house of the Lord
The mountain where God has chosen to dwell (Ps 67:17)
It shall come to pass in the latter days *
that the mountain of the house of the Lord
shall be established as the highest of the mountains, †
and shall be raised above the hills, *
and all the nations shall flow to it.
And many people shall come, and say †
‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, *
to the house of the God of Jacob,
that he may teach us his ways *
and that we may walk in his paths.’
For out of Sion shall go forth the law, *
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
Canticle II
Is 61:10-62:3
The prophet rejoices in the new Jerusalem
I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, as beautiful as a bride prepared to meet her husband (Rev 21:2)
I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, *
my soul shall exult in my God;
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, *
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, *
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
For as the earth brings forth its shoots, *
and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up,
so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise *
to spring forth before all the nations.
For Sion’s sake I will not keep silent, *
and for Jerusalem’s sake, I will not rest
until her vindication goes forth as brightness, *
and her salvation as a burning torch.
The nations shall see your vindication, *
and all the kings your glory;
and you shall be called by a new name *
which the mouth of the Lord will give.
You shall be a crown of beauty *
in the hand of the Lord,
and a royal diadem *
in the hand of your God.
Canticle III
Is 62:4-7
The glory of the new Jerusalem
Here God lives among men. He will make his home among them (Rev 21:3)
No longer are you to be named ‘Forsaken,’ *
nor your land ‘Abandoned,’
but you shall be called ‘My Delight,’ *
and your land, ‘The Wedded;’
for the Lord takes delight in you *
and your land will have its wedding.
Like a young man marrying a virgin, *
so will the one who built you wed you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices in his bride, *
so will your God rejoice in you.
On your walls, Jerusalem, *
I set watchmen.
Day or night *
they must never be silent.
You who keep the Lord mindful *
must take no rest.
Nor let him take rest †
till he has restored Jerusalem, *
and made her the boast of the earth.
Ant. Bring us, O Mary, to the summit of Carmel, to Christ our heavenly life.
Gospel
Lk 1:39-56
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
Why should I be honored with a visit from the mother of my Lord?
Mary set out at that time and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, “Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honored with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.”
And Mary said:
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit exults in God my savior;
because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid.
Yes, from this day forward all generations will call me blessed,
for the Almighty has done great things for me.
Holy is his name,
and his mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear him.
He has shown the power of his arm,
he has routed the proud of heart.
He has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.
The hungry he has filled with good things, the rich sent empty away.
He has come to the help of Israel his servant, mindful of his mercy
—according to the promise he made to our ancestors of
his mercy to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.”
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back home.
Te Deum
You are God: we praise you; *
You are the Lord: we acclaim you;
You are the eternal Father: *
All creation worships you.
To you all angels, all the powers of heaven, *
Cherubim and Seraphim, sing in endless praise:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord, God of power and might, *
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
The glorious company of apostles praise you. †
The noble fellowship of prophets praise you. *
The white-robed army of martyrs praise you.
Throughout the world the holy Church acclaims you: *
Father, of majesty unbounded,
your true and only Son, worthy of all worship, *
and the Holy Spirit, advocate and guide.
You, Christ, are the King of glory, *
the eternal Son of the Father.
When you became man to set us free *
you did not spurn the Virgin’s womb.
You overcame the sting of death, *
and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
You are seated at God’s right hand in glory. *
We believe that you will come, and be our judge.
Come then, Lord, and help your people, *
bought with the price of your own blood,
and bring us with your saints*
to glory everlasting.
Save your people, Lord, and bless your inheritance. — Govern and uphold them now and always.
Day by day we bless you. — We praise your name for ever.
Keep us today, Lord, from all sin. — Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy.
Lord, show us your love and mercy, — for we have put our trust in you.
In you, Lord, is our hope: — And we shall never hope in vain.
Prayer
Lord God,
you willed that the Order of Carmel
should be named in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother of your Son.
Through her prayers, as we honor her today,
bring us to your holy Mountain,
Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Morning Prayer
Hymn
Let us in spirit make our way
to Carmel’s mountain height;
our Virgin Mother calls us there
to gather flowers of light.
This is indeed a holy place
where God has ever reigned;
here hearts are healed in silent prayer,
and strength of mind attained.
This is where living water flowed
to save the thirsting land,
to clothe the desert with fresh grass,
with trees the burning sand.
Cradle of our religious life
is Carmel’s height austere;
wherever Mary turns her gaze
flow waters springing clear.
Let us adore the Trinity
the Father honors her,
the Son embraces her with love,
the Spirit reigns in her!
C.M. Carmeli ad altos vertices Tr. unknown
Psalmody
Ant. 1 Fragrant is the scent of your perfume, Immaculate Virgin. Let us follow in your footsteps.
Psalm 63
O God, you are my God, for you I long; *
for you my soul is thirsting.
My body pines for you *
like a dry, weary land without water.
So I gaze on you in the sanctuary *
to see your strength and your glory.
For your love is better than life, *
my lips will speak your praise.
So I will bless you all my life, *
in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul shall be filled as with a banquet, *
my mouth shall praise you with joy.
On my bed I remember you. *
On you I muse through the night
for you have been my help; *
in the shadow of your wings I rejoice.
My soul clings to you; *
your right hand holds me fast.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Fragrant is the scent of your perfume, Immaculate Virgin. Let us follow in your footsteps.
Ant. 2 Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you; you are the most blessed of all women.
Canticle – Daniel 3:57-88, 56
Bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord. *
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Angels of the Lord, bless the Lord. *
You heavens, bless the Lord,
All you waters above the heavens, bless the Lord. *
All you hosts of the Lord, bless the Lord.
Sun and moon, bless the Lord. *
Stars of heaven, bless the Lord.
Every shower and dew, bless the Lord. *
All you winds, bless the Lord.
Fire and heat, bless the Lord. *
Cold and chill, bless the Lord.
Dew and rain, bless the Lord. *
Frost and chill, bless the Lord.
Ice and snow, bless the Lord. *
Nights and days, bless the Lord.
Light and darkness, bless the Lord. *
Lightnings and clouds, bless the Lord.
Let the earth bless the Lord. *
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Mountains and hills, bless the Lord. *
Everything growing from the earth, bless the Lord.
You springs, bless the Lord. *
Seas and rivers, bless the Lord.
You dolphins and all water creatures, bless the Lord. *
All you birds of the air, bless the Lord.
All you beasts, wild and tame, bless the Lord. *
You sons of men, bless the Lord.
O Israel, bless the Lord. *
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Priests of the Lord, bless the Lord. *
Servants of the Lord, bless the Lord.
Spirits and souls of the just, bless the Lord. *
Holy men of humble heart, bless the Lord.
Hananiah, Azariah, Mishael, bless the Lord. *
Praise and exalt him above all forever.
Let us bless the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. *
Let us praise and exalt him above all for ever.
Blessed are you, Lord, in the firmament of heaven. *
Praiseworthy and glorious and exalted above all for ever.
Ant. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you; you are the most blessed of all women.
Ant. 3Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary: you gave birth to him who made you, yet remain a virgin forever.
Psalm 149
Sing a new song to the Lord, *
his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel rejoice in its maker, *
let Zion’s sons exult in their king.
Let them praise his name with dancing *
and make music with timbrel and harp.
For the Lord takes delight in his people. *
He crowns the poor with salvation.
Let the faithful rejoice in their glory, *
shout for joy and take their rest.
Let the praise of God be on their lips *
and a two-edged sword in their hand,
to deal out vengeance to the nations *
and punishment on all the peoples;
to bind their kings in chains *
and their nobles in fetters of iron;
to carry out the sentence pre-ordained; *
this honor is for all his faithful.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary: you gave birth to him who made you, yet remain a virgin forever.
Reading
Is 35:1-2
Let the wilderness and the dry-lands exult,
let the wasteland rejoice and bloom,
let it bring forth flowers like the jonquil,
let it rejoice and sing for joy.
The glory of Lebanon is bestowed on it
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they shall see the glory of the Lord,
the splendor of our God.
Short Responsory
R/. Under your protection we take refuge, * Mother of God most holy. Repeat R/. V/. Do not turn away from the prayers that spring from our need, * Mother of God most holy.
Glory . . . R/.
Canticle of Zechariah
Ant. Jesus said to His Mother, “Woman, this is your son,” and to the disciple He said, “This is your Mother;” and from that hour the disciple took her as his own.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; *
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior, *
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old †
that he would save us from our enemies, *
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers*
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham: *
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear, *
holy and righteous in his sight all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High; *
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation *
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God *
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, *
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Jesus said to His Mother, “Woman, this is your son,” and to the disciple He said, “This is your Mother;” and from that hour the disciple took her as his own.
Intercessions
Christ our Savior, the first-born of many brothers, gave us his Mother as our own. On this sacred day let us come to him with thankful hearts and say:
R/. For the gift of your Mother, we give glory to you, Lord.
Christ our Redeemer, you prepared a worthy dwelling place for yourself in the sinless Virgin Mary; — may we work today in your service and hers, poor in spirit and pure in heart. R/.
Only Word of the Father, uttered in eternal silence and lovingly received in the womb of the Virgin, — may our Carmelite vocation lead us, like Mary, to hear the Word of God and put it into practice. R/.
Christ our Teacher, you offer the Virgin Mary as the model of every virtue to those who seek you; — may we, her children, mirror her life, especially in our charity towards all. R/.
Jesus, Son of Mary, you gave your Mother to the apostle John to take into his own keeping; — in our familiarity with Mary may we experience your ineffable love. R/.
Christ, Spouse of the Church, you sent the fire of the Holy Spirit upon Mary when she was joined with the apostles in prayer; — may the whole family of Carmel remain faithful in prayer with Mary, and so be continually renewed by the Holy Spirit. R/.
Our Father …
Prayer
Lord God,
you willed that the Order of Carmel
should be named in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother of your Son.
Through her prayers, as we honor her today,
bring us to your holy Mountain,
Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Daytime Prayer
The complementary psalms are used.
Midmorning
Ant. O Mary, you are a mother beyond compare, worthy to be remembered by your children forever.
Psalm 120
To the Lord in the hour of my distress *
I call and he answers me.
“O Lord, save my soul from lying lips, *
from the tongue of the deceitful.”
What shall he repay you in return, *
O treacherous tongue?
The warriors arrows sharpened *
and coals, red-hot, blazing.
(Alas, that I abide a stranger in Meshech, *
dwell among the tents of Kedar!)
Long enough have I been dwelling *
with those who hate peace.
I am for peace, but when I speak, *
they are for fighting.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Psalm 121
I lift up my eyes to the mountains; *
from where shall come my help?
My help shall come from the Lord *
who made heaven and earth.
May he never allow you to stumble! *
Let him sleep not, your guard.
No, he sleeps not nor slumbers, *
Israel’s guard.
The Lord is your guard and your shade; *
at your right side he stands.
By day the sun shall not smite you *
nor the moon in the night.
The Lord will guard you from evil, *
he will guard you soul.
The Lord will guard your going and coming *
both now and for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Psalm 129
“They have pressed me hard from my youth,” *
this is Israel’s song.
“They have pressed me hard from my youth *
but could never destroy me.
They plowed my back like plowmen, *
drawing long furrows.
But the Lord who is just, has destroyed *
the yoke of the wicked.”
Let them be shamed and routed, *
those who hate Zion!
Let them be like grass on the roof *
that withers before it flowers.
With that no reaper fill his arms, *
no binder makes his sheaves
and those passing by will not say: †
“On you the Lord’s blessing!” *
“We bless you in the name of the Lord.”
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Scripture Reading
Prov 8:32-34
And now, my sons, listen to me:
happy are those who keep my ways.
Hear instruction and be wise,
and do not neglect it.
Happy is the man who listens to me,
watching daily at my gates,
waiting beside my doors.
V/. Whoever finds me finds life. R/. And will receive salvation from the Lord.
Midday
Ant. Your souls will rejoice in her mercy, and her praise will not bring you to shame.
Psalm 123
To you have I lifted up my eyes, *
you who dwell in the heavens;
my eyes, like the eyes of slaves *
on the hand of their lords.
Like the eyes of a servant *
on the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes are on the Lord our God *
till he show us his mercy.
Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy. *
We are filled with contempt.
Indeed all too full is our soul †
with the scorn of the rich, *
with the proud man’s disdain.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Psalm 124
“If the Lord had not been on our side,” *
this is Israel’s song.
“If the Lord had not been on our side *
when men rose up against us,
then would they have swallowed us alive *
when their anger was kindled.
Then would the waters have engulfed us, *
the torrent gone over us;
over our head would have swept *
the raging waters.”
Blessed be the Lord who did not give us *
a prey to their teeth!
Our life, like a bird, has escaped *
from the snare of the fowler.
Indeed the snare has been broken *
and we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord, *
who made heaven and earth.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Psalm 125
Those who put their trust in the Lord †
are like Mount Zion, that cannot be shaken, *
that stands for ever.
Jerusalem! The mountains surround her, †
so the Lord surrounds his people *
both now and for ever.
For the scepter of the wicked shall not rest *
over the land of the just
for fear that the hands of the just *
should turn to evil.
Do good, Lord, to those who are good, *
to the upright of heart;
but the crooked and those who do evil, *
drive them away!
On Israel, peace!
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Scripture Reading
Sir 24:15-16
I made Sion my stronghold, the holy city my resting-place, Jerusalem my throne. My roots spread out among the people that enjoys his favor, my God has granted me a share in his own domain; where his faithful servants are gathered I love to linger.
V/. My spirit is sweeter than honey. R/. My inheritance sweeter than the honeycomb.
Midafternoon
Ant. With the fruit of her hands she planted a vineyard; her children stood up and proclaimed her blessed.
Psalm 126
When the Lord delivered Zion from bondage, *
it seemed like a dream.
Then was our mouth filled with laughter, *
on our lips there were songs.
The heathens themselves said: “What marvels *
the Lord worked for them!”
What marvels the Lord worked for us! *
Indeed we were glad.
Deliver us, O Lord, from our bondage *
as streams in dry land.
Those who are sowing in tears *
will sing when they reap.
They go out, they go out, full of tears, *
carrying seed for the sowing:
they come back, they come back, full of song, *
carrying their sheaves.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Psalm 127
If the Lord does not build the house, *
in vain do its builders labor;
if the Lord does not watch over the city, *
in vain does the watchman keep vigil.
In vain is your earlier rising, *
your going later to rest,
you who toil for the bread you eat, *
when he pours gifts on his beloved while they slumber.
Truly sons are a gift from the Lord, *
a blessing, the fruit of the womb.
Indeed the sons of youth *
are like arrows in the hand of a warrior.
O the happiness of the man *
who has filled his quiver with these arrows!
He will have no cause for shame *
when he disputes with his foes in the gateways.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
Psalm 128
O blessed are those who fear the Lord *
and walk in his ways!
By the labor of your hands you shall eat. *
You will be happy and prosper;
the wife like a fruitful vine *
in the heart of your house;
Your children like shoots of the olive, *
around your table.
Indeed thus shall be blessed *
the man who fears the Lord.
May the Lord bless you from Zion *
all the days of your life!
May you see your children’s children *
in a happy Jerusalem!
On Israel, peace!
Scripture Reading
Sir 24:23-25
No vine ever yielded fruit so fragrant; the enjoyment of honor and riches is the fruit I bear. It is I that give birth to all noble loving, all reverence, all true knowledge, and the holy gift of hope. From me comes every grace of faithful observance, from me all promise of life and vigor.
V/. Look down from heaven and see, and visit this vine. R/. The vine your right hand has planted.
Prayer
Lord God,
you willed that the Order of Carmel
should be named in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother of your Son.
Through her prayers, as we honor her today,
bring us to your holy Mountain,
Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Evening Prayer II
Hymn
When thirst broke up the ground stricken at God’s command,
and crops lay on the long baked ridges of the soil,
swiftly Elias went where Carmel towered above,
scaling rough rocks with zeal and toil.
Great soul in fervent prayer, lifting his hands on high,
prophet, he pleaded there, turning God’s wrath again.
Hour after hour he strove for those marked down to die
unless the fields were saved with rain.
Then, far off, where the sea stretched in a distant plain,
a cloud fine as a hand lit in the deep blue cope;
and soon thunderclouds came, and after them the rain
drumming the dust with rhythms of hope.
Mary, we are those crops which drought of grace lays low,
you are that mystic cloud, that fruitful womb are you.
Your son, the God you nurse, is new life’s rain to us
who grow once more as hope comes true.
Spare us, great triune God, as we too bend in prayer,
help us scale the high stars, our mother’s worthy sons;
There, raised by her, we praise you everlastingly
and pour forth love’s unending songs.
12.12.12.8. Bro. John Leonard Davies, O.C.D.
Psalmody
Ant. 1 Behold the handmaid of the Lord: let it be done to me according to your word.
Psalm 122
I rejoiced when I heard them say: *
“Let us go to God’s house.”
And now our feet are standing *
within your gates, O Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is built as a city *
strongly compact.
It is there that the tribes go up, *
the tribes of the Lord.
For Israel’s law it is, *
there to praise the Lord’s name.
There were set the thrones of judgment *
of the house of David.
For the peace of Jerusalem pray: *
“Peace be to your homes!
May peace reign in your walls, *
in your palaces, peace!”
For love of my brethren and friends *
I say: “Peace upon you!”
For love of the house of the Lord *
I will ask for your good.
Ant. Behold the handmaid of the Lord: let it be done to me according to your word.
Ant. 2 Mary heard the Word of God and kept it, treasuring it in her heart.
Psalm 127
If the Lord does not build the house, *
in vain do its builders labor;
if the Lord does not watch over the city, *
in vain does the watchman keep vigil.
In vain is your earlier rising, *
your going later to rest,
you who toil for the bread you eat: *
when he pours gifts on his beloved while they slumber.
Truly sons are a gift from the Lord, *
a blessing, the fruit of the womb.
Indeed the sons of youth *
are like arrows in the hand of a warrior.
O the happiness of the man *
who has filled his quiver with these arrows!
He will have no cause for shame *
when he disputes with his foes in the gateways.
Ant. Mary heard the Word of God and kept it, treasuring it in her heart.
Ant. 3 The apostles persevered in prayer together with Mary, the Mother of Jesus.
Canticle: Eph 1:3-10
Blessed be the God and Father *
of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ *
with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.
He chose us in him *
before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy *
and blameless before him.
He destined us in love *
to be his sons through Jesus Christ,
according to the purpose of his will, †
to the praise of his glorious grace *
which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his blood, *
the forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of his grace *
which he lavished upon us.
He has made known to us †
in all wisdom and insight *
the mystery of his will,
according to his purpose *
which he set forth in Christ.
His purpose he set forth in Christ, *
as a plan for the fullness of time,
to unite all things in him, *
things in heaven and things on earth.
Ant. The apostles persevered in prayer together with Mary, the Mother of Jesus.
Scripture Reading
Gal 4:4-6
When the designated time had come, God sent forth his Son born of a woman, born under the law, to deliver from the law those who were subjected to it, so that we might receive our status as adopted sons. The proof that you are sons is the fact that God has sent forth into our hearts the spirit of his Son, which cries out “Abba, Father!”
Short Responsory
R/. I exult for joy in the Lord, * my soul rejoices in God. Repeat R/. V/. For he has clothed me in the garments of salvation; he has wrapped me in the cloak of justice. * My soul rejoices in God.
Glory . . . R/.
Canticle of Mary
Ant. Mary, ever Virgin, has been given us as our Mother; she has taken pity on us; today we remember. Today all Carmel sings for joy as we keep a solemn festival in her honor whose name we bear.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, *
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior;
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant, *
and from this day all generations will call me blessed.
The Almighty has done great things for me: *
holy is his Name.
He has mercy on those who fear him *
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm, *
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,*
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things, *
and has sent the rich away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel*
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers, *
to Abraham and his children for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.
Ant. Mary, ever Virgin, has been given us as our Mother; she has taken pity on us; today we remember. Today all Carmel sings for joy as we keep a solemn festival in her honor whose name we bear.
Intercessions
As we honor the holy Mother of God, under whose name and patronage we live, let us pray with confidence to Christ our Lord and say:
R/. Through the intercession of the Mother of Carmel, hear us, O Lord.
You said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven;” — may we stand with Mary among the poor and humble of the Lord, so that you may be our only wealth. R/.
You said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God;” — in following the Immaculate Virgin may we come to love that purity of heart which makes us eager to see the Father’s face. R/.
You said, “Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet believe;” — with Mary at our side, may we never cease to trust in the love you have for us as we journey in this night of faith. R/.
You said, “You ought to pray always and never lose heart;” — teach us to pray like Mary, treasuring your word in our hearts and proclaiming it in our lives. R/.
You said, “A new commandment I give you: love one another as I have loved you;” — united in heart and mind, may we be ready to spend our lives for our brothers and sisters and share with Mary in your work of redemption. R/.
Dying on the cross, you said to John, and through him to all disciples, “Behold your Mother;” — may we always please you by living in the intimate company of the Mother of Grace. R/.
You said, “I want those you have given me to be with me where I am:” — may all those who trusted in your everlasting mercy rejoice one day with you and Mary in our Father’s house. R/.
Our Father …
Prayer
Lord God,
you willed that the Order of Carmel
should be named in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother of your Son.
Through her prayers, as we honor her today,
bring us to your holy Mountain,
Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Louis Martin was born in Bordeaux, on August 22, 1823. While he was master-watchmaker in Alençon, he met Marie Azelie (Zelie) Guerin, a lace maker, born in Gandelain (St-Denis-sur-Sarthon), on December 23, 1831. They were married on July 13, 1858,and had nine children, including the future Saint Therese of the Infant Jesus. Model spouses, devoted parents, workers, attentive to the poor, always nourishing a missionary spirit, they found their strength and hope in regular attendance at Holy Mass and in a deep devotion to the Blessed Virgin. After a long illness Zelie died in Alençon on August 28, 1877. Louis, in retirement, went to Lisieux near his in-laws to ensure a better future for his five children (the other four having died in infancy). This patriarch of the family, after offering all his children to God, knew suffering and illness. He died near Evreux on July 29, 1894.
From the Common of Holy Men, with the psalms of the day.
Office of Readings
The Second Reading (Zelie et Louis Martin, Correspondance Familiale [1863 – 1885]. Paris, 2004, L1, 72, 130, 81, 110, 147, 179, 204)
From the Letters of St. Zelie Martin
We must be willing to accept generously the will of the good God
My dear friend, I am really worried about you. Every day my husband makes sad prophecies. He knows Paris and told me that you will be exposed to temptations that, because you are not pious enough, you will not be able to overcome. He told me that he experienced them himself, and that he needed a lot of courage to come out victoriously from all the battles. If you only knew what trials he had to go through … I beg you, my dear Isidore (Zelie’s brother), to do as I did; pray, and you will not be carried away by the current. If you succumb once you will be lost. On the road to perdition as on the road to salvation the first step is all important; afterwards you will be carried away by the current.
When I closed the eyes of my dear little children and buried them, I really felt the pain. It is a pain to which I have always been resigned. I do not regret the pains and the anxieties I have had to endure on their account. Many people have said to me: “It would have been better if you had never had them.”I cannot tolerate these words. The pains and anxieties of this life cannot be compared to the eternal happiness of my children. After all, they have not been lost forever, life is short and full of suffering, we shall find them in heaven.
Little Therese is always well and looks very healthy. She is very intelligent and we have very amusing conversations. She already knows how to pray to God. Every Sunday, she goes for some part of Vespers and if, by mistake, the family forgets to bring her there she cries uncontrollably.
My sister has spoken to me a great deal about your business… I told her not to break her neck because of this, that there is only one thing to do, pray to God, because neither she, nor I, can help you in any other way. However, He, who is never embarrassed, will rescue us from all this when He sees that we have suffered enough, and then, you will recognize that your success is not due either to your ability or to your intelligence, but to God alone, as it happens with my lace making; this conviction is very beneficial, I have experienced it myself. You know that we are all inclined to be proud and I notice often that those who have made their fortune are, for the most part, unbearably self-important. I am not saying that I would have been like this, nor you either, but we would have been somewhat tainted by pride; it is a fact that constant prosperity leads one away from God. He never led his chosen ones along this path, they had to pass first through the crucible of suffering in order to be purified. You are going to say that I am preaching, but no matter I don’t wish to. I think of these things very often and I share them with you; now, call that a sermon if you like!
My dear children, I must go to Vespers to pray for the intention of our dear deceased relatives. The day will come when you will do this for me, but I must make sure that I do not have so great a need of your prayers. I would like to become a saint but this will not be easy; there is a lot of wood to burn but it is as hard as stone. It would have been better if I had begun earlier, when it was less difficult, but anyhow “it is better late than never.”
Today is then Wednesday, the feast of the Immaculate Conception which is a great feast for me! On this day, the Blessed Virgin truly gave me many very special graces… This year, I will go again to find the Blessed Virgin early in the morning… my only prayer will be that those that she has given me will all be saints and that I shall not be too far behind, but they must be much better than me.
Doctor Notta is very sorry that they did not operate at the beginning, as by now it is too late. However, he seems to be saying that I can go on for a very long time like this. But more than that we put ourselves in God’s hands, who knows better than us what we need, “it is He who wounds but also heals.” I will go to Lourdes on the first pilgrimage, and I hope that the Blessed Virgin will heal me, if that is what is needed. Let’s remain calm while we wait.
Before leaving, I will assist at the first Mass here, arriving in Le Mans at nine o’clock, still in time to attend the High Mass, after that I will come for you… At the beginning, your father was not happy that I took all three of you, but he wishes it now, and says that we cannot make enough sacrifices to obtain so great a miracle. Even if I do not obtain it, I will never regret taking you there. We must be willing to accept generously the will of God, whatever it is, because it will always be what is best for us.
Responsory
R/. Be transformed by the renewal of your mind, * So that you may be able to discover what is God’s will,
what is good, pleasing and perfect. V/. You must be renewed in mind and spirit, and put on the new man. * So that you may be able to discover what is God’s will,
what is good, pleasing and perfect.
Prayer
O God, who gave to Saint Louis and Marie Zelie the grace to lead a life of holiness as Christian spouses and parents, grant that, through their intercession and example, we may be able to love and serve you faithfully, living worthily our own vocation.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
June 14 BLESSED MARIA CANDIDA OF THE EUCHARIST Virgin
Optional Memorial
Blessed Maria Candida of the Eucharist was born on 16 January 1884 in Catanzano. Her parents, Pietro Barba and Giovanna Florona, returned to Palermo, Sicily, where she received First Holy Communion 3rd April 1894. In 1919 she entered the Discalced Carmelite Monastery, Ragusa, making solemn profession 23rd April 1924. She was Prioress and Mistress of Novices many times, radiating a sense of Carmelite holiness both within and outside of the community, influencing others with her love for the Eucharist, as well as by her numerous writings. She died on 12th June 1949, the solemnity of the Holy Trinity, and was beatified 21st March 2004.
From the common of virgins; psalms from the current weekday
Office of Readings
Second Reading
From the writings of M. Maria Candida of the Eucharist (L’Eucharistia, Edizioni OCD-Feeria, 1999, pp. 105-108)
From contemplation of the presence to Eucharistic communion
To contemplate with deep faith our Beloved in the Sacrament, to live with Him Who comes to us every day, to remain with Him in the depths of our hearts, this is our life!
The more intense this intimate life is, the more we will be Carmelites and make progress in perfection. This contact, this union with Jesus is everything: what fruits of virtue will come from it! You must have this experience. To live with Jesus and to live by His virtues, is to listen to His beautiful voice, to His most loving wish and immediately obey it, to please quickly Him. Our eyes close, longing to find Him again, to contemplate Him in the depths of our hearts: is this not the reason why He gives us Holy Communion in the morning? Is it not the attraction for Him that remains in the Blessed Sacrament, where He lives? I do not know how to separate the ciborium in the sacred Tabernacle from the ciborium in our hearts! Oh, how many times, even though we are in the choir, before His sacred Presence, at times exposed, we experience the great need to go deeply into ourselves, and there rediscover and remain with our Jesus!
What mystery of love is this intimacy with our Beloved! I reflect on this, sometimes with emotion, and give praise to Him Who is Love! And with tears, I contemplate this intimacy. Everything here on this earth is nothing for us, withdrawn as we are, far from Him Who loved us so much; our eyes no longer see anything: and even though we close them again to lose ourselves from the same sacred environment, we close them anxious to find Him again, to see Jesus! The most delightful Mystery of Love! He allows Himself to be found by the heart that searches for Him, by the soul that knows how to do without many things for love of Him.
To be close to our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, like the Saints in Heaven, who contemplate the supreme Good, is what we must do, according to our Holy Mother Teresa. Seven times a day, we come together around the throne (of our Good God), the sacred Tabernacle, reciting the divine praises: oh how much faith merits such lofty activity, what dying to self! May adoration and love accompany and beautify everything!
Responsory
R/. I am the living bread which has come down from heaven and the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world. * Anyone who eats this bread will live forever. R/. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I live in them. * Anyone who eats this bread will live forever.
Prayer
All powerful and ever-living God,
who, by the breath of the Spirit,
inspired Blessed Maria Candida, virgin,
to contemplate the riches of the Eucharist,
by her intercession, grant we beseech you,
that gratefully offering the sacrifice
of the Body and Blood of Christ,
in union with the Blessed Virgin Mary,
we may always glorify You in this Sacrament,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever.
Blessed Maria Candida of the Eucharist (1884-1949)
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