Save Our Gesimas

The title above became the motto of members from various denominations who were intent upon resisting the changes to the calendar prompted, for the most part,  by the actions of the Second Vatican Council. With Vatican II the doors were thrown open and change began to happen. Before Vatican II Catholics, Anglicans and Lutherans used the same titles for the Sundays and Seasons of the year.

Modern Lutheran calendars now extend Epiphany up until the Sunday before Ash Wednesday. After the feast of the Baptism of The Lord, Rome designates the Sundays as in Ordinary Time.The Sundays in Lent are so designated by number; but without the traditional name. Following Easter, the Sundays are designated as the _TH Sunday of Easter. After Trinity and Pentecost the Sundays are again part of Ordinary Time.

The Thrivent Calendar and, I suppose, other Synodical calendars, are similar. The exception being that we do not use thee designation of "Ordinary Time." However, the Sundays following Pentecost are so named. My preference is to designate the Sundays following Holy Trinity according their historic designations.

Since I have been an almost charted of the SOG Society, I will continue to employ the calendar and nomenclature of the historic use. The parish that I belong to (Bethany LC in Fort Wayne, IN) retains the use of the historic calendar. We DO save our Gesima's.

I invite your comments and reactions to this post.

Too Long Silent

I have no excuse for being silent for many months. I intend to be more diligent in posting to this blog as well as updating the Lexorandi web site.

Most of the silence was caused by computer failure. Due to a destructive virus I lost all my data, and my backup files were not easy to reinstall. My E-mail was also left in limbo for a while. I was not ignoring anyone. Mail to Lexorndi was restored today.- several hundred messages were downloaded. It was no surprise that most of these messages were junk.

I thank you for your patience, and I invite you to rejoin this reactivated blog.

Dcn. Muehlenbruch

The Feast of the Holy Trinity

The Athanasian Creed  --  Quicunque Vult

Whoever will be saved shall, above else, hold the catholic faith. Which faith, except everyone keeps whole and undefiled, without doubt he will perish eternally.

And the catholic faith is this, that we worship one God in three persons and three persons in one God, neither confusing the persons nor dividing the substance.

For there is one person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and the holy Spirit is all one: the glory equal, the majesty coeternal.

Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit. The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Spirit incomprehensible.

The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal.  And yet they are not but one eternal. As there are not three uncreated nor three incomprehensibles but one uncreated and one incomprehensible.

So likewise the Father is almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Spirit almighty. And yet they are not three almighties but one almighty.

So the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. And yet they are not three Gods but one God.

So likewise the Father is Lord, the Son is Lord, and the Holy Spirit is Lord. And yet they are not three Lords but one Lord. For we are compelled by the Christian truth to acknowledge every person by himself to be both  God and Lord. 

So we cannot by the catholic faith say that there are three Gods or three Lords. The Father is made of none, neither created not begotten. The Son is of the Father alone, not made nor created but begotten. The Holy Spirit is of the Father and of the Son, neither made nor created nor begotten but proceeding.

So there is one Father, not three Fathers; one Son not three Sons; one Holy Spirit not three Holy Spirits.  And in this Trinity none is before or after another; none is greater of less than another; but the whole three persons are coeternal together and coequal, so that in all things, as is aforesaid, the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshiped. He, therefore, that will be saved is compelled thus to think of the Trinity.

Furthermore, it is necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe faithfully the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and man; God of the substance of the Father, begotten before the world; and man of the substance of his mother, born in the world;  

Perfect God and perfect man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting;  Equal to the Father as touching his Godhead and inferior to the Father as touching hie manhood;  Who, although he is God and man, yet he is not two but one Christ: One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh but by taking the manhood into  God; One altogether, not by confusion of substance but by unity of person.

For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man so God and man  is one Christ; Who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead. He ascended into heaven, he sits at the right hand of the Father, God Almighty, from whence he will come to judge the living and the dead.

At whose coming all men will rise again with their bodies and will give an account of theiur own works. And they that have done good will go into life everlasting; and they that have done evil, into everlasting fire.

This is the catholic faith which, except a man believe faithfully and firmly, he cannot be saved.

Whitsunday -- the Feast of Pentecost

Our Lord Jesus Christ, being seated on the right hand of God, sent, as He had promised, the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles, who, after His Ascension, continued  in prayer at Jerusalem, in company with the Blessed Virgin, awaiting the performance of His promise.

Let us pray in like manner with the Church: "Come O Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful and kindle in them the fire of Thy love."

Spiritus Domini replevit orbem terrarum, alleluia: et hoc quod continet omnia, scientim habet vocis, alleluis, alleluia, alleluira, -- essurgat Deus, et dissipentur inimic ejus: et fugiant, qui oderunt eum, a facie.

Gloria Patri....

***

Der Geist des Herrrn erfüllt den Erdkreis, alleluia. Er, der das All zusammenhält, kennt jede Sprache, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. Gott stehe auf, zerstieben sollen Seine Feinde; vor Seinen Anblick sollen  fliehen, die Ihn hassen.

Ehre sei....

***

The Spirit of the Lord filleth the world: halleljah!
Let the righteous be glad: let them rejoice before God: yea, let them eceddingly rejoice. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Let God arise: let His enemies be scattered: let them also that hate Him flee before Him.

Glory be to the Father....

Unbelief is a Wonderful Thing.

Gottesdienst Online has a reference to http://puritycommunion.org/landing/. The topic is "Purity Communion." Bread & Wine wafers and sanitary dispensers prevent the spread of germs among the communicants.

The theologian J. S. Bach had this to say about Holy Communion (Was Gott tut daß ist wohl getan) "No poison can be in the cup that my Physician sends me."

Need I say more?

May 6 - St. John Before the Latin Gate

The Martyrology presents stories, both fact and fictional, about the Saints and the days upon which they are commemorated. One that I find to be quite interesting is this particular commemoration of St. John, the Apostle and Evangelist. He may have endured many torments; but he died in exile on the Isle of Patmos.The commemoration of St. John on this day presents a strange legend.

It is said that St. John was bound and brought to Rome from Ephesus by order of Domitian, and the Senate condemned him to be taken to that (Latin) gate and placed in a cauldron of boiling oil, from which he came out more healthy and vigorous than before.

This is but a sample of the legends contained in the Martyrology.

Sts. Philip and James, Apostles - May 1

From the Roman Martyrology:

The birthday of the blessed apostles Philip and James. James, after having converted nearly all of Scythia to the faith of Christ, went to Hieropolis, a city in Asia, where he was fastened to a cross and stoned, and thus ended his life gloriously. James, who is also called the brother of our Lord, was the first bishop of Jerusalem. Being hurled down from a pinnacle of the temple, his legs were broken, and being struck on the head with a dyer's staff, he expired and was buried near the temple.

The Anglican Breviary provides this narrative:

Philip was born in the town of Bethsaida, and was among the first of the twelve Apostles called by the Lord Christ, For the Evangelist saith that first, is was Andrew who brought Peter, and next came Philip. Again we read: Philip findeth Nathaniel, and saith unto him, We have found him to whom Moses in the Law, and the Prophets, did write. And so it was that Philip brought Nathaniel to the Lord.

 According to the early  Fathers of the Church, Philip, after he had received the Holy Ghost, took Scythia, by lot, as the land wherein he was to preach the Gospel, and brought many of that people to believe in Christ. At the last he came to Hierapolis in Phrygia, and there on a certain first day in May, in the first Christian century, for Christ's Name's sake, he was fastened to a cross and stoned to death. His body was buried at that place, and afterwards it was brought  to Rome and laid in the Basilica of the Twelve Apostles, beside the body of the blessed Apostle James, the brother of the Lord. Wherefore they are commemorated together on this day.

We learn from Hegesippus that when James was ninety-six years old, and had most holily governed the Church of Jerusalem for thirty years, ever most constantly preaching Christ the Son of God, he laid down his life for the faith. According to this account, he was first stoned, and afterward taken to a pinnacle of the Temple, and from thence was cast down, whereby his legs were broken, and he was well nigh killed; but he lifted up his hands toward heaven, and prayed to God for the salvation of his murderers, saying: Lord, forgive them, for they know not what they do! And as he said this, one that stood by smote him grievously upon the head with a fuller's club, so that he resigned his spirit to God.

An Interesting Note:

My copy of the Martyrology is pre-Vatican Council II.  Sts. Philip and James are in their proper place on May 1. The Anglican Breviary agrees with this, as does the Lutheran calendars.

However, after Vatican II Rome has made a few adjustments to their calendar. Sts. Philip and James are now commemorated on May 11, and St. Joseph the Worker is commemorated on May 1.   (Curious how this is also "international" Labor Day.)