Thou, O Lord, callest me, and I come to Thee, not
through my merits, but through Thy mercy alone, which I ask of Thee in virtue
of Thy Blood.
I confess to my Creator that my life has indeed been passed in darkness, but I will hide myself in the wounds of Christ crucified and bathe myself in His blood, and so shall all my iniquities be consumed, and with desire will I rejoice in my Creator.
It was not misleading of the angel to say to
Joseph: Do not be afraid to take thy wife Mary to thyself. Although she had not
known his bed and never would, Joseph could still call her his wife, because at
her betrothal she had pledged herself to be his wife. The term had not become
obsolete or deceptive, merely there had been no carnal union in the past and
there would be none in the future. She was more of a joy to her husband as a
virgin, and the relationship was a more sacred and wonderful thing. As her
Fruit came to her without her husband's help, their partnership did not extend
to the realm of childbearing, but they were partners all the same because they
had pledged their word to each other.
Because this marriage resting on plighted troth
was a true marriage, they were deservedly called Christ's parents. It was not
simply that Mary was called his mother but that Joseph was called his father,
just as he was called the husband of Christ's mother. He was both these things
spiritually, not physically. But whether we envisage Joseph as Christ's father
spiritually or Mary as his mother both spiritually and physically, we have to
admit that both of them were the parents of the lowly element in him, not of
the exalted: they were the parents of his weak human nature, not of his
divinity and his strength. The gospel is not misrepresenting the situation when
it says: His mother said to him, My Son, why hast thou treated us so? Think,
what anguish of mind thy father and I have endured, searching for thee. As he
wanted to make it clear that they were not his only parents, and that he also
had a Father who had begotten him without his mother's aid, he answered: What
reason had you to search for me? Could you not tell that I must needs be in the
place which belongs to my Father? Fearing that this question might give a false
impression, and that people might think Christ meant that Mary and Joseph were
not his parents at all, the evangelist goes on to say: These words which he
spoke to them were beyond their understanding; but he went down with them on
their journey to Nazareth, and lived there in subjection to them. l Thus, if we
ask who he was subject to, the answer is: his parents. And if we ask who was
subject to his parents, the answer is: that same Jesus Christ, who though his
nature is, from the first, divine, yet did not see, in the rank of Godhead, a
prize to be coveted. If, then, he lived in subjection to Mary and Joseph, who
were far below the rank of Godhead, it must have been because he dispossessed
himself, and took the nature of a slave, which was his parents' nature. But
since when Mary bore him she was not reaping a harvest sown by Joseph, it is
clear that they could not both have been the parents of his servile nature
unless they actually were husband and wife, even though they had had no carnal
knowledge of each other.
It was right, too, that when the lists of Christ's
ancestors came to be drawn up, the series of generations should be made to center
on Joseph, as in fact it was. Otherwise, an injustice would have been done to
the male partner in the marriage, the more prominent of the two. This did not
involve tampering with the truth. Joseph too, as well as Mary, belonged to the
line which the prophets had said would produce the Christ—they were both of the
line of David.
Oratio
Præsta, quæsumus, omnípotens Deus, ut humánæ
salútis mystéria, cuius primórdia beáti Ioseph fidéli custódiæ commisísti,
Ecclésia tua, ipso intercedénte, iúgiter servet implénda. Per Dóminum.
Grant, we beseech you, almighty God, that the mysteries of human salvation, whose first beginning you committed to the faithful care of blessed Joseph, your Church, by his intercession, may always preserve fully.
All hymns for the Solemnity of St. Joseph are now
attributed to Cardinal Jerome Casanate, OP.
Ad I & II Vesperas
Te,
Ioseph, célebrent ágmina cælitum,
te
cuncti résonent christíanum chori,
qui,
clarus méritis, iunctus es ínclitæ (1)
casto fœdere Vírgini.
Almo
cum túmidam gérmine cóniugem
admírans,
dúbio tángeris ánxius,
afflátu
súperi Fláminis ángelus
concéptum púerum docet.
Tu
natum Dóminum stringis, ad éxteras
Ægýpti
prófugum tu séqueris plagas; (2)
amíssum
Sólymis quæris et ínvenis,
miscens gáudia flétibus.
Eléctos
réliquos mors pia cónsecrat (3)
palmámque
eméritos glória súscipit;
tu
vivens, súperis par, frúeris Deo,
mira sorte beátior.
Nobis,
summa Trias, parce precántibus;
da
Ioseph méritis sídera scándere,
ut
tandem líceat nos tibi pérpetim
gratum prómere cánticum. Amen.
1. clarus méritis: Matt 1:19: Joseph autem vir ejus cum esset Justus; 2. The phrase is taken from the
chapter for Sext: Cf. Sap 10, 10: Prófugum
iustum dedúxit Sapiéntia and refers to the divinity of the child with exeteras: that Joseph did not so much
take the child to Egypt but followed him.
3. Cónsecrat means here ‘to
put in God’s presence’;
O Joseph, the heavenly hosts celebrate you, and
all the choirs of Christendom resound the praise, you who with merits bright
are joined in a chaste bound with the glorious Virgin. When you were amazed at
your wife pregnant with her loving child, anxiously you were seized by doubt,
an angel told you that the child was conceived by the breath of the heavenly
Spirit. You took the newborn Lord that
you might follow him on the journey to the far-off land of Egypt; you searched
for and found him, when he was lost in Jerusalem, your joy mingled with
weeping. A holy death consecrates other
chosen men and glory and palms of victory greet the deserving; but you living
had a more blessed and wondrous lot, you were here with God like those in
heaven. Highest Trinity, grant to us by the merits of Joseph to reach the stars
that at last we may sing forever to you a canticle of thanks. Amen.
Ad Officium lectionis
Iste,
quem læti cólimus, fidéles,
cuius
excélsos cánimus triúmphos,
hac
die Ioseph méruit perénnis
gáudia vitæ.
O
nimis felix, nimis o beátus,
cuius
extrémam vígiles ad horam
Christus
et Virgo simul astitérunt
ore seréno.
Iustus
insígnis, láqueo solútus (1)
carnis,
ad sedes plácido sopóre
migrat
ætérnas, rutilísque cingit
témpora sertis.
Ergo
regnántem flagitémus omnes,
adsit
ut nobis, veniámque nostris
óbtinens
culpis, tríbuat supérnæ
múnera pacis.
Sint
tibi plausus, tibi sint honóres,
trine
qui regnas Deus, et corónas
áureas
servo tríbuis fidéli
omne per ævum. Amen.
1. This line formerly read hinc stygis victor, laqueo solutus: ‘triumphant
over hell’ – changed perhaps because the original was ‘mythological’ or said
too much.
Joseph, whom we, the faithful, joyfully praise for
his great triumphs, today was worthy of the joys of eternal life. O how happy,
O how blessed, was he who at his last hour had Christ and the Virgin with
peaceful countenance standing by and keeping watch. Great in justice, freed
from the snare of the body, calmly and in repose he departs this world for his
heavenly home, crowned with brilliant garlands. Therefore let us all implore
him now ruling above that he be with us, obtain pardon for our sins, and grant
us the gifts of heavenly peace. To you be praise, to you honors, O Triune God,
who rules and grants a golden crown to your faithful servant, throughout the
ages. Amen.
Ad Laudes matutinas
Cælitum,
Ioseph, decus atque nostræ
certa
spes vitæ columénque mundi, (1)
quas
tibi læti cánimus, benígnus
súscipe laudes.
Te,
satum David, státuit Creátor (2)
Vírginis
sponsum, voluítque Verbi
te
patrem dici, dedit et minístrum
esse salútis.
Tu
Redemptórem stábulo iacéntem,
quem
chorus vatum cécinit futúrum,
áspicis
gaudens, sociúsque matris (3)
primus adóras.
Rex
Deus regum, dominátor orbis,
cuius
ad nutum tremit inferórum
turba,
cui pronus famulátur æther,
se tibi subdit.
Laus
sit excélsæ Tríadi perénnis,
quæ,
tibi insígnes tríbuens honóres, (4)
det
tuis nobis méritis beátæ
gáudia vitæ. Amen.
1.
columénque mundi: ‘column or pillar’ in
the4 sense that St. Joseph is the patron of the universal church; 2. Originally: te sator rerum statuit pudicae: ‘the Creator of the world appointed
you the pure Virgin’s husband’; 3.
Original: aspicis gaudens humilisque
natum/
numen adoras: ‘rejoicing you saw him and humbly the infant God’. 4. Formerly praebens rather than insignes;
O Joseph, the honor of those in heaven and our
sure hope of life and the support of the world, kindly receive the praises we sing joyfully sing to you. The
Creator appointed you, offspring of David, as husband of the Virgin, and willed
that you be called the father of the Word, and made you a minister of
salvation. You rejoicing looked upon the Redeemer, whom the choir of prophets
sang as the one to come, laid in the stable, and with his Mother first adored.
God, the King of kings, Ruler of the world, at whose word the crowd of hell
trembles, whom heaven humbly serves, submits himself to you. Eternal praise be
to the most high Trinity, that gives to you great honors and give to us through
your merits the joys of a blessed life. Amen.
My custom has been in the last few years to suspend this blog during Lent. I hope that those who use this blog will be able to find any information they might need from older postings. A blessed and contrite Lent to all.
The traditional reading in both the
Monastic Office and the Roman Breviary was taken from St. Augustine.
It is manifest from these precepts that all our effort is to be directed towards inward joys, lest, seeking a reward from without, we should be conformed to this world, and should lose the promise of a blessedness so much the more solid and firm, as it is inward, in which God has chosen that we should become conformed to the image of His Son. But in this section, it is chiefly to be noticed, that there may be ostentatious display not merely in the splendor and pomp of things pertaining to the body, but also in doleful squalor itself; and the more dangerous on this account, that it deceives under the name of serving God.
And therefore he who is very conspicuous by immoderate attention to the body, and by the splendor of his clothing or other things, is easily convicted by the things themselves of being a follower of the pomps of the world, and misleads no one by a cunning semblance of sanctity; but in regard to him who under a profession of Christianity, fixes the eyes of men upon himself by unusual squalor and filth, when he does it voluntarily, and not under the pressure of necessity, it may be conjectured from the rest of his actions whether he does this from contempt of superfluous attention to the body, or from a certain ambition: for the Lord has enjoined us to beware of wolves under a sheep's skin; but by their fruits, says He, shall you know them.
For when by temptations of any kind those very things begin to be withdrawn from them or refused to them, which under that veil they either have obtained or desire to obtain, then of necessity it appears whether it is a wolf in a sheep's skin or a sheep in its own. For a Christian ought not to delight the eyes of men by superfluous ornament on this account, because pretenders also too often assume that frugal and merely necessary dress, that they may deceive those who are not on their guard: for those sheep also ought not to lay aside their own skins, if at any time wolves cover themselves there with.
O man, if you are going to remain here on earth, store up your treasures here. But, if you are going up to heaven, why do you leave them here below? The man caring for treasures destined to be left behind is caring for others' treasures, not his own. Living here below, where we are pilgrims, we find it rather hard to be poor, sad, and without honor, even for a while. Then, when we shall be among the eternal citizens of our everlasting country, what will it be like for us to endure pain because of our showing contempt, punishment because of ignobility, shame over our nakedness? What will it be like to be sentenced to torments when others are being promoted into possession of the kingdom? When the poor man is led to sit with God, and the rich man is dragged to the assembly of the damned? Oh, how lamentable will be the reversal of the situation when those whom men despaired of will acquire hope divine, and those who possessed human treasures will defraud themselves of the heavenly ones!
All this is what that treasure brings about. Either through alms-giving it raises the heart of a man into heaven, or through avarice it buries it in the earth. That is why He said: For where your treasure is, there your heart also will be. [Mt. 6, 21] O man, send your treasure on, send it ahead into heaven, lest you bury your God-given soul in the earth. Gold comes from the depth of the earth; the soul, from the highest heaven. Clearly, it is better to carry the gold to the abode of the soul than to bury the soul in the mine of the gold. That is why God orders those who will serve in His army here below to fight as men stripped of concern for riches and unencumbered by anything. To these He has granted the privilege of reigning in heaven.
Fra Angelico (Blessed John of Fiesole): From an apostolic letter motu proprio of Pope John Paul II
“Whoever does the work of Christ,
ought always to stay close to Christ." This was a motto constantly
repeated by Brother John of Fiesole; who was called Beato Angelico
because of the highest integrity of his life and the almost divine beauty of
his paintings, particularly those of
Blessed Virgin Mary.
While he was still a youth, he
was attracted to the religious life, and asked to be received into a stricter
discipline in the Order of Friar Preachers (called the Observance), which had
been established in the priority at Fiesole. He diligently took up all of the
duties imposed by the brethren or superiors. It was the fame of his outstanding
art work, particularly his painting, that spread far and wide. Therefore,
commissions for his work became more frequent and urgent.
Pope Eugenius IV called him to
Rome. While brother John painting the Basilica of Saint Peter's and the Vatican
palace, Eugenius IV took the most opportunity not only to admire the virtue of
this outstanding artist, but even more than that, the piety of this religious,
his observance the Rule, his humility, and his memorable spirit that made many
people own.
Nicholas V had an exceptional
opinion about brother John. For he honored and reverenced this man alone,
because of the integrity of his life and the excellence of his morals."
Therefore, he commissioned him to decorate his private chapel. When brother
John had finished it, it almost seemed a prayer expressed with painted color.
At Rome, in the priory of Santa
Maria sopra Minerva, he closed eyes in death after a life that produced famous
art, but even more exemplified religious and benevolent virtues. For the
opinion of all was he was a "man of complete modesty and religious
life." Furthermore. also blossomed with many virtues. He was meek, and
honorable religious genius." Beyond these things, "he was a man
distinguished for his sanctity." Even more, Vasari, who collected many
stories about unblemished life in the city of Florence, was persuaded of that
graceful heavenly character which one can see even in his sacred paintings. I
not paint on any other subject, and his paintings were the product of that
greatest harmony between his holy life and his creative virtue.
Brother John, therefore, by
placing his rare natural gifts at the service of art, stands both to acquire
and to confer on the people of God immense spiritual and pastoral benefit, by
which they might travel easily to God. According to the Second Vatican Council,
this is particularly fitting for sacred art, as we read in the Constitution on
the Sacred Liturgy: "Very rightly the fine arts are considered to rank
among the noblest expressions of human genius. This judgment applies especially
to religious art and to its highest achievement, which is sacred art. By their
very nature both of the latter are related to God's boundless beauty, for this the
reality that these human efforts are trying to express in some way. 'To the extent
that these works aim exclusively at turning our thoughts to God persuasively
and devoutly, they are dedicated to God and to his greater honor and
glory."
Truly, Brother John, a man
altogether exceptional for his spiritual life and art, has always attracted our
attention. We, therefore, believe that the time has come when he should be
given the particular attention of the Church of God, although his heavenly art
has not ceased to speak to us now.
