Gaudete Sunday - Rejoice!

Fr. Perrone is seen elevating the Chalice at the 9:30am Gaudete Sunday Mass (Latin Novus Ordo) in 2006. It was prior to Summorum Pontificum when I was last able to capture this particular chasuble on Gaudete Sunday.

The third Sunday in Advent is known as Gaudete Sunday. The name is taken from the first word of the Introit - Gaudete (Rejoice):

Rejoice in the Lord always: again I say, rejoice. Let your moderation be known to all men: for the Lord is near. Have no anxiety, but in everything, by prayer let your petitions be made known to God. (Philippians 4: 4, 5)Psalm ~ You have favored, O Lord, Your land; You have restored the wellbeing of Jacob. (Psalm 84:2)

The online Catholic Encyclopedia offers some history on Gaudete Sunday.

Fr. Z examines the Collect for Gaudete Sunday (2002 MR). Here is an excerpt (click the link to read the entire post):

Now for the 3rd Sunday of Advent, also nicknamed Gaudete.... the plural imperative of gaudeo, “Rejoice!”. Today, there is a relaxation of the penitential aspect of Advent. In the first week of Advent we begged God for the grace of the proper approach and will for our preparation. In the second week, we ask God for help and protection in facing the obstacles the world raises against us. This Sunday we have a glimpse of the joy that is coming in our rose colored (rosacea) vestments, some use of the organ, flowers. Christmas is near at hand.

Visit EWTN's page for Advent Reflections

Fr. Edward McNamara answers a readers question about Rose Vestments. Was the practice abandoned? Should priests wear Rose? Read his response to see what the General Instruction of the Roman Missal says, and to read his interpretation.



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The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church; it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!

Will Grotto-goers notice a difference between Latin Novus Ordo, and Extraordinary Form of the Latin Mass?

Consider that after the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite is celebrated this coming Friday at 7:00pm (Solemn High Mass with Fr. Perrone as celebrant), the Sunday 9:30am time slot, which had been for the Latin Novus Ordo, will shift to the Extraordinary Form starting next Sunday.

I heard a few people recently saying that most people wouldn't notice a difference. I suppose this is because of how solemn our Latin Novus Ordo is celebrated. However, I respectfully disagree that little difference will be seen, but this is my personal opinion.

SMELLS & BELLS (and I don't mean this in a disrespectful manner)

Well I must concede that we won't notice much of a difference in bells, because they get used at each and every Mass, whether a weekday or a Sunday Mass. I really miss the sounds of those bells when I assist at a weekday Mass at another parish since the 7:30 is already too late for me with regards to getting to work.

EDIT 9/9/07: I have been informed today by one of the servers in training at Grotto, that we will notice a difference in bells because there is much more ringing than we have used in the Novus Ordo. Not only will we hear them several times through the Consecration of the Sacred Host and Precious Blood, they will ring during the Sanctus.

If there is one thing that gets good use at our parish every Sunday at 9:30 it is the thurible. Even though it is only used then, and on occasion at other times, the sweet smell of incense greets you at Assumption Grotto as soon as you enter any day of the week, especially if you use the north side door. Here is testimony in smoke in a photo I took after a Mass celebrated by visiting Archbishop Raymond L. Burke:



SIGHTS

I think we will notice a difference in sights. While I expect to see many of the brilliant and beautiful vestments already in use at Grotto, there will be other things which we are not necessarily accustomed to seeing at Mass.

You may recognize the biretta, but perhaps not the maniple over the arm of the priest.

The Catholic Encyclopedia gives us a history of the maniple. But more important to me is the spiritual symbolism of the maniple as it is viewed more currently, also explained in that same text:

In the Middle Ages the maniple received various symbolical interpretations. At a later period it was common to connect this vestment with the bonds which held the hands of the Saviour. In the prayer offered by the priest when putting on the maniple are symbolized the cares and sorrows of this earthly life which should be borne with patience in view of the heavenly reward.

As this illustrates, vestments are not without meaning, and with them, each has a prayer the priest prays as they go on. This is true of the vestments worn in the Novus Ordo, as well, and we can only hope that all priests do pray as they vest. Here is the prayer for the maniple according to the 1962 Missal, compliments of the Catholic Liturgical Library online:

As he places the maniple over his left arm:

Lord, may I worthily bear the maniple of tears and sorrow so as to receive the reward of my labor with rejoicing

TEXT

First there are the prayers of the priest which differ in a most beautiful way in the 1962 Missal from the Novus Ordo. An interesting side-by-side comparison of the Mass text can be found at the website of the Latin Mass Society. Here is one example: Offering of the Host.

In the Novus Ordo:

P: Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation. Through your goodness we have this bread to offer, which earth has given and human hands have made. It will become for us the bread of life.

R. Blessed be God for ever.

[The celebrant pours wine and a little water into the chalice saying quietly:]

P: By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.

Now, the 1962 Missal:

P: Receive, O Holy Father, almighty and eternal God, this spotless host, which I, Thine unworthy servant, offer unto Thee, my living and true God, for my countless sins, trespasses, and omissions; likewise for all here present, and for all faithful Christians, whether living or dead, that it may avail both me and them to salvation, unto life everlasting. Amen.

[The priest goes to the Epistle side and pours wine and water into the chalice.]

P: O God, Who in creating man didst exalt his nature very wonderfully and yet more wonderfully didst establish it anew: by the mystery signified in the mingling of this water and wine, grant us to have part in the Godhead of Him Who hath vouchsafed to share our manhood, Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God; world without end. Amen.

WOW! Not only is the 1962 version and translation artistic, but the prayers have such depth. This is only one example. You have to follow along in a Missal or pamphlet, which I know Fr. Perrone either has developed, or will, for this Mass.

The People's Part

It's true that there is less for people to say in the older form of the Mass. But, there is a mistaken notion that active participation means "doing" something physically - in this case speaking. Not so. Pope John Paul II pointed this out in 1998 in an ad limina address to bishops out in the western US.

Active participation certainly means that, in gesture, word, song and service, all the members of the community take part in an act of worship, which is anything but inert or passive. Yet active participation does not preclude the active passivity of silence, stillness and listening: indeed, it demands it. Worshippers are not passive, for instance, when listening to the readings or the homily, or following the prayers of the celebrant, and the chants and music of the liturgy. These are experiences of silence and stillness, but they are in their own way profoundly active. In a culture which neither favors nor fosters meditative quiet, the art of interior listening is learned only with difficulty. Here we see how the liturgy, though it must always be properly inculturated, must also be counter-cultural.

One example that will be noticeable, is that we the laity do not vocalize the Our Father. Rather, the priest prays it and we follow mentally. I found that I could pray the Our Father interiorly at this time. For me, the stillness and silence left me in more of a meditative mode than when I vocalize the prayer.

Similarly, we do not say, "Amen" when the priest presents Holy Communion to us. This brings up something else we will notice: Communion will not be intincted in the Precious Blood.

DISCOVERING THE RICHNESS OF THE OLD LATIN MASS

There is so much more to explore with the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. The spirituality of everything from what is worn to what is used, and what is prayed, has a richness that, in my humble opinion, elevates worship of God to a new level in the Mass. As we uncover the depth of spirituality, I believe more people will develop a fondness for it.

I am grateful for the opportunity to assist at this Mass, and I am supportive of my pastor who has longed to provide it to the many in our parish who have also longed to have it.

We'll continue to look at more over time, but these were a few examples I wanted to point out.

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Memorial Day 2007

The flag is raised to the top, then is brought down to half-staff as the bugeler plays

We get all excited with the prospect of a long weekend, but I for one had never thought to go to Mass on Memorial Day. In fact, the only thing on my mind was the extra day to sleep in, the BBQ and picnic, and other things.

Assumption Grotto's culture has a way of helping us to get our priorities straight on these things. I was at Mass which followed the 9:00 flag-raising. During Mass my thoughts went to an uncle who was killed during WWII, long before my mother and father even met. He was killed in action on May 24, 1944. He was a TSgt with the 741st Bomber Squadron, 455th Bomber Group (Heavy). He was awarded an Air Medal with 4 Oak Leaf Clusters, and a Purple Heart. His plane went down just off the shore of Italy and he was not recovered. His name appears on the "Tablet of the Missing" in Florence, Italy.

I then began to reflect on Memorial Day. As a Catholic, I believe in purgatory - a place where souls reside as they undergo purification before joining our Lord in Heaven. The poor souls in purgatory depend on our prayers and yet, you have to wonder, how many poor souls are actually being prayed for? Such talk is rarely heard from pulpits these days. As a matter of fact, you could get the impression that there is no need to pray for anybody in some Catholic circles because "everyone is going to heaven".

If you had the day off and didn't go to Mass, please consider it every Memorial Day from now on. If you don't know anyone who died during a war or in the service of their country, then go for the sake of the many poor souls who have no one to pray for them. If you are out of town on vacation, find a local Catholic Church and go. If that doesn't work, at least say a Rosary or some other meaningful prayer.

Here are more photos from today. Note the black vestments in use. I never seen these until I came to Assumption Grotto. The first time was on All Souls Day in November. Grotto uses black vestments for funerals, as well. Some would argue that white reminds us more of the joy and hope of Resurrection, and the after-life. However, I will go back to my discussion of purgatory. These vestments remind me of the need to pray for those who have gone on to the next life, rather than to assume they are all in heaven. Hence, it is not just a color of mourning in my mind.

Some of these came out rather dark, but you get the idea of how the morning went. The Mass was not held outdoors as we had thought. This would have required an army of volunteers setting up chairs and it rained all weekend long.

Some of those gentlemen you see firing are around the age of 90. It was a pleasure to sit and talk to some of these old-timers today, and to hear their stories. I hope next year to see a bigger crowd of young and old alike.

As a side note, an interesting site to visit is the American Battle Monuments Commission, where you can search databases with names of your loved ones. It does not cover the Vietnam war or anything after the Korean War from what I can tell. It is government run so perhaps there is a separate set of databases for Wars following the Korean War.

I had no idea, nor did my uncle's only living brother, that we could find out where he was buried, or listed. I used the FAQ page about two years ago and sent an email inquiry. A few weeks later, I received a letter and a packet from the Commission with my uncle's information - his service number, his medals, the date he was killed, and where he was buried. It is not known if he was simply not recovered, or if he was recovered, then buried at sea. I then had the option - free of charge to get several photographs of the plot/tablet listing of my uncle and I followed through. A few months later I got these large poster-sized pictures which I gave to my brother, sister and uncle. He regretted not knowing his brother was listed on the Tablet of the Missing in Florence, Italy because he had traveled to that area many times over the years. For this reason, I pass the info along to you. You must be a relative to request information, but not necessarily the listed next of kin.

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Laetare Sunday

It's the middle of Lent. Laetare Sunday falls around the middle of Lent and it is known as a day of rejoicing. From New Advent - the online Catholic Encyclopedia:

Strictly speaking, the Thursday before Laetare Sunday is the middle day of Lent, and it was at one time observed as such, but afterwards the special signs of joy permitted on this day, intended to encourage the faithful in their course through the season of penance, were transferred to the Sunday following. They consist of (like those of Gaudete Sunday in Advent) in the use of flowers on the altar, and of the organ at Mass and Vespers; rose-coloured vestments also allowed instead of purple, and the deacon and subdeacon wear dalmatics, instead of folded chasubles as on the other Sundays of Lent. The contrast between Laetare and the other Sundays is thus emphasized, and is emblematical of the joys of this life, restrained rejoicing mingled with a certain amount of sadness.

Note it says the vestments are Rose - not pink!!!

I'm cheating in the photos above, but they are hard to beat when it comes to showing Rose vestments. I did not have my camera with me this morning, so I am using photos from Gaudete Sunday, this past Advent. In these photos, Fr. Eduard Perrone is shown during elevation wearing what is known as a Roman chasuble. It is sometimes referred to as a "fiddleback" chasuble, but the fiddle shape is actually on the front.

Today, Fr. Perrone wore the Rose-colored Gothic chasuble, seen here on a priest we all respected during his time at the Grotto, who is now serving in the Philippines. While you are at it, say a prayer for him and all those in his new mission.