40 Hours Devotion Begins at Saint Charles

Tomorrow, the seminary begins the traditional "40 Hours Devotion."  Although abandoned in many dioceses, it is still done in many religious orders and in a few dioceses to this day.

The Forty Hours Devotion is a special forty-hour period of continuous prayer made before the Blessed Sacrament in solemn exposition.  As Pope Pius XII taught in Mediator Dei, "This practice of adoration has a valid and firm foundation." 

The number forty has always signified a sacred period of time: the rains during the time of Noah lasted 40 days and nights; the Jews wandered through the desert for 40 years, and our Lord fasted and prayed for 40 days before beginning His public ministry. The 40 Hours Devotion remembers that traditional "forty-hour period" from our Lord's burial until the resurrection.  During the Middle Ages, the Blessed Sacrament was transferred to the repository, "the Easter Sepulcher," for this period of time to signify our Lord's time in the tomb.

The Forty Hours Devotion begins with a Solemn Mass of Exposition, which concludes with the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.  The Blessed Sacrament remains on the altar in a monstrance, and during the next 40 hours the faithful gather for personal or public prayer in adoration of our Lord.  At the seminary, all classes and obligations are cancelled, and we have a schedule so that three seminarians are in the chapel at all times.  The Blessed Sacrament is reposed in the tabernacle for the daily Mass, and then returned for exposition after Mass.  

At the end of the devotions, the Mass of Deposition is offered, again concluding with a procession, benediction and final reposition of the Blessed Sacrament. 

While the Forty Hours Devotion nurtures the love of the faithful for our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, three special dimensions have also surrounded this devotion: the protection from evil and temptation, reparation for our own sins and for the Poor Souls in Purgatory, and deliverance from political, material, or spiritual calamities.  The faithful implore our Lord to pour forth His abundant graces for themselves, their neighbors, their own personal needs, and for those of the world. 

Vocation Director Visit

We were blessed to have our vocation director, Fr. Ned Shlesinger, visit us on October 24.  This photo of Father with the Pre-Theology seminarians was taken in front of Saint Martin's chapel after Holy Mass:

Msgr. Jean Laffitte Named a Bishop

I received very good news today that my friend Msgr. Jean Laffitte has been named a bishop by Pope Benedict XVI.  Please remember him in your prayers as he prepares for his episcopal consecration.

Formerly the Vice President of the Pontifical Academy For Life in Rome, he is now the Secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Family and will be titular bishop of Entrevaux.

Msgr. Laffitte and I in Rome, 2008:

In the Pyrenean Mountains (France) in 2009:

Great News for "Traditional Anglicans"

From Damian Thompson:

Pope Benedict XVI has created an entirely new Church structure for disaffected Anglicans that will [bring them into union with Rome].

The Pope is now offering Anglicans worldwide “corporate reunion” on terms that will delight Anglo-Catholics.  In theory, they can have their own parishes and bishops – and they will be free of liturgical interference by liberal Catholic bishops who are unsympathetic to their conservative stance.

Both Archbishop Vincent Nichols and Dr. Rowan Williams are surprised by this dramatic move. Cardinal Levada, head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, was in Lambeth Palace only yesterday to spell out to Dr Williams what it means. This decision has, in effect, been taken over their heads – though there is no suggestion that Archbishop Nichols does not fully support this historic move.

....

With one announcement, the Pope has given conservative Anglicans a protected route to union with Rome.

Thousands of Anglicans who reject women bishops and priests and liberal teaching on homosexuality are certain to avail themselves of this provision. Within a few years, there will probably be “Anglican ethos” Catholic parishes in England and Wales (and one wonders how many conservative cradle Catholics will gratefully start attending Mass there).

This is a decision of supreme boldness and generosity by Pope Benedict XVI, comparable to his liberation of the Traditional Latin Mass. The implications of this announcement will take a long time to sink in, but I suspect that this will be a day of rejoicing for conservative Anglo-Catholics and their Roman Catholic friends all over the world.

Update on my nephew, Paul

Paul doesn't like his car seat:

His first words: "Dominus Vobiscum":

New Vocations Website for the Diocese of Raleigh, NC

The Raleigh Vocations office has launched its new website: http://www.raleighvocations.org/  

It contains a blog, calendar of events, and great resources for helping one to discern his vocation.  Check it often for updates!

Great News For the Diocese of Raleigh, NC

Great news in the Wilmington, NC area - another Mass in the Extraordinary Form!  Fr. Aidan Logan (a Trappist monk/Navy chaplain) is a very holy priest, and was the Catholic chaplain at the Naval Academy during my last two years there (2005-2006).  He and I became good friends, and I ran into him in the Charlotte, NC airport before my pilgrimage to Lourdes last Summer.  He is one of the very patient priests (along with Fr. Parkerson) who "set me straight" towards the seminary while I was in college.

Here is Fr. Aidan in action.  I hope many Catholics in that area of NC can take advantage of this weekly Mass:

Here is the notice from the Diocese of Raleigh's website:

The Forma Extraordinaria of the Mass will be celebrated every Sunday at the Catholic Chapel at Camp Lejeune beginning October 4.  Father Aidan Logan, one of the Catholic Chaplains on the Marine Base will be the celebrant.  At this time the Mass will be at 12:30 PM.

The Catholic Chapel is located in the St. Francis Xavier Building 17.  To get on the base, a temporary pass is needed and can be obtained by stopping at the Visitor’s Center.  A valid driver’s license, vehicle registration and proof of insurance are needed to receive a pass.
At present, five churches in the Diocese of Raleigh have scheduled regular celebrations of the Forma Extraordinaria:

Sacred Heart Cathedral in Raleigh at 4:30 PM, fourth Sunday of every month.

Sacred Heart Church in Dunn at 12:00 PM every Sunday.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Rocky Mount at 6:00 PM every Sunday.

Saint Mary Church in Wilmington at 7:00 PM, the last Sunday of every month.  

Saint Bernadette Church in Fuquay-Varina at 9:00 AM every Tuesday.

Feast of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Today is the Feast of Saint Thérèse  of Lisieux.  Her feast day in the 1962 calendar is two days later, October 3rd.  Here at the seminary, we celebrate a "Triduum" of Saint Thérèse  from October 1-3, concluding with a barbeque in the St. Thérèse courtyard.

Marie Thérèse Martin was born at Alençon, France on January 2, 1873, the youngest of five daughters. Her father, Louis, was a watchmaker, and her mother, Zelie, who died of breast cancer when Thérèse was four, was a lace maker. She was brought up in a model Catholic home. While still a child she felt the attraction of the cloister, and at fifteen obtained permission to enter the Carmel of Lisieux. 

For the next nine years she lived a very ordinary religious life. She attained a very high degree of holiness by carrying out her ordinary daily duties with perfect fidelity, having a childlike confidence in God's providence and merciful love. She also had a great love of the Church and a zeal for the conversion of souls. She prayed especially for priests. She died at the age of 24, and was canonized in 1925. She has never ceased to fulfill her promise: "I will pass my heaven in doing good on earth." Pope John Paul II declared her a Doctor of the Church in 1997.

While at the convent, she composed a very beautiful poem to the Blessed Virgin Mary.  The poem "flows" better in French, but the English translation is still very beautiful:

Oh! I would like to sing, Mary, why I love you,
Why your sweet name thrills my heart,
And why the thought of your supreme greatness
Could not bring fear to my soul.
If I gazed upon you in your sublime glory,
Surpassing the splendor of all blessed,
I could not believe that I am your child
O Mary, before you I would lower my eyes!

If a child is to cherish his mother,
She has to cry with him and share his sorrows,
O my dearest Mother, on this foreign shore
How many tears you shed to draw me to you!...
In pondering your life in the holy Gospels,
I dare look at you and come near you.
It's not difficult for me to believe I'm your child,
For I see you human and suffering like me...

When an angel from Heaven bids you be the Mother
Of God who is to reign for all eternity,
I see you prefer, O Mary, what a mystery!
The ineffable treasure of virginity.
O Immaculate Virgin, I understand how your soul
Is dearer to the Lord than his heavenly dwelling.
I understand how your soul, Humble and Sweet Valley,
Can contain Jesus, the Ocean of Love!...