Advent

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In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. The Holy Christian Church has long held a daily divine office called vespers, a name derived from the Latin meaning evening, for that is when it is held. In the week leading up to Christmas, beginning on December 17, specific verses for each of those seven days would be chanted during vespers right before the singing of the Magnificat, the blessed song of Mary. Those verses, to which we now refer as the O Antiphons, all sourced from the prophet Isaiah, draw attention to specific aspects and propheciesRead More →

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✠ Psalmody: Isaiah 45:8a;Psalm 19:1;24:7, 3-4a;145:18, 21;Isaiah 35:4b;7:14b ✠ Lection: Isaiah 2:2-5;Isaiah 7:10-15;Luke 1:26-38a In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. It is by the prophet Isaiah that we have the prophetic sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel, a name that is especially popular around this time of year as we ponder upon the Advent of our King. It’s a name so popular that countless children have received it as their own over the past millennia, as well as a multitude of schools and churches, causing itRead More →

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In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. The first words of the Divine Service proper for this Gaudete Sunday aren’t sourced from the Old Testament as usual. No, on this day the Holy Church takes words that were written after our dear Lord’s first Advent, from an epistle of St. Paul, through whom Christ’s Holy Spirit tells us to Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be known unto all men. We are to rejoice, for we, unlike the unbelieving world, have unfailing eternal riches in Christ that indeedRead More →

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✠ Psalmody: Isaiah 30:30a, 29a, c;Psalm 80:1a;50:2-3a, 5;85:6-7; Baruch 5:5a;4:36b ✠ Lection: Malachi 3:1-5;4:1-6a;St. Matthew 11:11-15 In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. If you hear what Scripture, what Jesus Himself, says about John the Baptist and believe it, then you have ears to hear Christ and the salvation that He brings, for it is in John’s voice in the wilderness that every valley is exalted and every mountain and hill made low; the crooked straight and the rough places plain. We hear Jesus’ assured words telling us that among those born of women there has notRead More →

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In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. People of Zion, behold the Lord is nigh. He, the kingdom of heaven, is at hand. He came into Jerusalem lowly, mounted on a donkey, bringing salvation unto us who sat in darkness. But we have seen a great Light. We see each and every time that we come into this glorious abode of Light, that this same glorious, saving King comes lowly again and again unto us. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the Blood of Christ? The bread whichRead More →

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✠ Psalmody: Psalm 25:1-3a;25:4;25:3a, 4;85:7;25:1-3a;85:12 ✠ Lection: James 5:7–10; Romans 13:11-14;St. Matthew 3:1–6 In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew begins on familiar ground. There’s the genealogy of the Christ, His birth in Bethlehem, the visit of the Magi from the East, the Holy Family’s flight into Egypt, Herod’s slaughter of the Holy Innocents, and Jesus’ return to Nazareth to grow in wisdom, stature, and favor of God. All that is in the first two chapters, out of which St. Matthew takes us right into chapter three with the wordsRead More →

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In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Except for the young among us, we all have memories to some degree and in some ways of “good ol’ days”. Considering what we face day in and day out in our present world, even the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ tends to look back longingly at such times as what we read about in the book of Acts, in historical records about how our great fathers battled heresies and the Gospel made great headway, and even back to when Church pews were regularly full in ourRead More →

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✠ Psalmody: Ps. 106:4–5;1b;145:18, 21a;Luke 1:28bc, 42c;Isaiah 7:14b ✠ Lection: Deuteronomy 18:15–19;Philippians 4:4–7;John 1:19b–28 In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. We pray for God to always bless us with His voice, for we need to constantly hear from Him. If we don’t hear from Him, our conscience becomes misinformed by what it soaks up from other sources, be it the media, atheistic moralism, or our emotions. A conscience that binds itself to feelings isn’t being rightly informed by the objective truth of God that comes to us through the Holy Scriptures. We are not saved byRead More →

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✠ Psalmody: Isaiah 45:8a;Psalm 19:1;24:7, 3-4a;145:18, 21;Isaiah 35:4b;7:14b ✠ Lection: Isaiah 2:2-5;Isaiah 7:10-15;Luke 1:26-38a In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. There is much that is impossible with God, that is, from our perspective, meaning He is not limited as we are, therefore it is impossible with God that we know Him fully. He is infinite. He is pure. He is holy; all things that we are not. It is impossible for us to see into the utter depths of Who He is and what He has done, is doing, and will do. Thanks be to GodRead More →

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✠ Psalmody: Philippians 4:4-6;Psalm 85:1;80:1b, 2b, 1a;80:2b;85:1-2a;Isaiah 35:4a, b, d ✠ Lection: Isaiah 40:1–8;1 Corinthians 4:1–5;St. Matthew 11:2–10 In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, Rejoice. Rejoice as we move into the latter half of this Advent season of preparing for the coming Christ. Rejoice as the darker color of repentant violet (purple) is lightened a few shades to the rose (pink) that you see today, as your dear Father in heaven reminds you of the great love with which He loves you; to remind you that evenRead More →

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✠ Psalmody: Isaiah 30:30a, 29a, c;Psalm 80:1a;50:2-3a, 5;85:6-7; Baruch 5:5a;4:36b ✠ Lection: Song of Songs 2:8b-14;Romans 15:4-13;St. Luke 21:25-33 In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. The season of Advent can easily and accidentally be absorbed into all the Christmas atmosphere and its preparations that begin earlier and earlier than most of us are used to, stretching now back into September as stores make sure that you have plenty of time to buy, buy, buy. Black Friday and Cyber Monday have also succumbed to consumer-driven elongation by now being week-long, or more, events. But, the season ofRead More →

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✠ Psalmody: Psalm 25:1-3a;25:4;25:3a, 4;85:7;25:1-3a;85:12 ✠ Lection: James 5:7–10; St. Matthew 3:1–6 In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. The Sundays in the Church Year function not as stand alones, but as the very thing that they are, that is, the first day of a week of days. So, for example, if you’ve ever wondered how it is decided which color the paraments and vestments will be in a Saturday or weekday service, the days following Sunday typically inherit the preceding Sunday’s color, with some notable exceptions like the upcoming Ember Days following Gaudete. Church seasons tendRead More →

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Ad Te Levavi – Sunday 1 December A✠D 2024 ✠ Psalmody: Psalm 25:1-3a;25:4;25:3a, 4;85:7;25:1-3a;85:12 ✠ Lection: Jeremiah 23:5–8;Romans 13:11-14;St. Matthew 21:1–9 In the Name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. We enter into another Church Year today. The old has passed. The new has come, which makes it proper to orient our minds and hearts upon He Who enters into our midst as King. We welcome Him. We adore Him. We worship Him as He deems fit to come to us. He arrives not in grand motorcades nor in private jets. He does not flex power as the worldRead More →