According to the Roman Catholic Liturgical Calendar, the Ascension Day is celebrated on a Thursday, the fortieth day of Easter. Every parish priest celebrates Mass for the people of his parish. Pentecost Sunday is not far behind. Coming 50 days after Easter, and ten days after the Ascension of Our Lord, Pentecost marks the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles. Pray NOVENA to the HOLY GHOST – (nine days before the feast of Pentecost). On The Ascension of Our Lord by the very Rev. Dom Prosper Guéranger, Abbot of Solesmes Consider first, that our Lord, after having employed forty[…]

“AND THERE WAS a great battle in heaven, Michael and his angels fought with the dragon, and the dragon fought and his angels; and they prevailed not, neither was their place found any more in heaven, and that great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, who seduceth the whole world; and he was cast unto the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.” — Apocalypse 12:7-9 Lucifer has placed his stamp upon the present age. Open and secret revolt against God and His Church, the spirit of criticism, unbelief and[…]

The Ascension of Our Lord – NOVENA to the HOLY GHOST Start Novena on Friday, nine days before the feast of Pentecost  FOREWORD The novena in honor of the Holy Ghost is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord Himself when He sent His apostles back to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Ghost on the first Pentecost. It is still the only novena officially prescribed by the Church. Addressed to the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, it is a powerful plea for the light and strength and[…]

If our Holy Mother the Church seems to multiply her blessings over the farm home, and have few left for the city apartment, it is not because she is partial to her children in the country and forgetful of city children, but because she is a realist – like every woman. She knows that from the farm homes comes the world’s food supply. That is why she has composed so many sacramental blessings for the farmer. That is why she has instituted the rogation days, the three days before the Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord. But these rogation[…]

Blessed spirits of the heavenly court, invincible champions of the cause of God, after having adored, praised, blessed, and given thanks to the God of all goodness, for the incomparable graces with which He has enriched you; after having made a sincere protestation with our whole heart, that we take all possible interest therein, rejoicing because of the joy and ineffable glory which you possess; After having besought you benignantly to accept the inviolable resolution we now take to have a special devotion to you for the remainder of our days, and to promote its establishment and increase by every[…]

In every Solemn Mass besides the Mass of requiem, and only in the Solemn Mass, the altar is incensed before the Introït. God himself commanded incense (thus or thymiama, from the Greek) to be used in his cult: “Thou shalt make an altar for burning incense… and Aaron shall burn sweet-smelling incense upon it in the morning.” (Exodus 30: 1, 7) The Magi offered incense to Christ the Lord. By Apostolic institution, the Church of Christ has always used the burning of incense to solemnify her worship of God. (Cardinal Bona and others) The burning of incense signifies, by the[…]

It is time for all Christians to respond to the war that has been declared first on Christendom and now on Christianity itself, as the demonic old world order rises up once again in defiance to Christ the King.  Knowing that the Christian forces were at a distinct material disadvantage, the holy pontiff, St. Pope Pius V called for all of Europe to pray the Rosary for victory. Pius V instituted “Our Lady of Victory” as an annual feast to commemorate the victory at Lepanto, which he attributed to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Saint Pius V is considered as an[…]

Today’s feast commemorates an apparition of St. Michael the Archangel on Monte Gargano in southern Italy in the year 492. Traditionally in the Liturgy of the Church there are two feasts of St. Michael in the Universal Calendar: May 8 and September 29. According to the Roman Breviary, the feast was instituted to thank God for a military victory achieved at Monte Gargano, Italy, on May 8 , 663, through the intercession of St. Michael. First Apparition The first apparition, known as the bull episode, is dated 490; it is the most astonishing and tells the story of a rich[…]

Let us pray the most powerful celestial protector, SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL, for special protection against the diabolical forces of pure evil attacking our Holy Mother the Church in the weeks and months ahead.  Traditionally in the Liturgy of the Church there are two feasts of St. Michael in the Universal Calendar: May 8 – the Feast of the Apparition of St Michael the Archangel, and September 29 – The Feast of the Dedication (Honoring) of St. Michael the Archangel. This feast commemorates the dedication to Saint Michael of an ancient church at Rome at a date earlier than the[…]

At the Introit the Church sings the words which were spoken by the angels to the apostles and disciples, after the Ascension of our Lord: INTROIT Ye men of Galilee, why wonder you, looking up to heaven? Alleluia: He shall so come as you have seen him going up into heaven. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. (Acts I. 11.). Oh, clap your hands, all ye nations; shout unto God with the voice of joy. (Ps. XLVI. 2.) Glory be to the Father, etc. COLLECT Grant, we beseech Thee, O Almighty God, that we who believe Thy only‑begotten Son, our Redeemer, to have[…]

The breviary is the official prayerbook of the Catholic Church, the prayer said in the name of the Church. It could be said that the Holy Ghost and the Church have been working on it for more than 3,000 years, and it has become the basic book of prayer. It contains the Divine Office, or the formal prayers which the Church puts into the mouths of her priests and religious. The two chief objectives which the breviary fulfills are: 1. It is the prayer of the Church as a body 1. The breviary is above all the prayer of the[…]