One of the tasks that Mother Church has set out for the Ordinariates of which St. John Paul II is a part, is the recovery and the sharing with world and the wider Church the Anglican patrimony and its close connection between the Liturgy of the CHurch and everyday life.

A good example of this is the recovery of the practice of “Churching,” which is the Rite of Thanksgiving for Women After Childbirth. Simply stated, it is a collection of readings and prayers that are said between a woman and the priest when she returns to worship at Mass after childbirth. It is a way of giving thanks to God for the safe delivery of the child, and of the mother.

In a world filled with confusion, a simple act like this can say so much and teach so much. Our patron saint, St. John Paul II, has called us as Church to help build a culture of Life and a civilization of Love. We are in a world where children are disposable, and gender is what we make of it, instead of a sacramental expression of God’s plan and purpose for humanity. By holding up, in a simple non obtrusive, non confrontational way, the vocation of motherhood, in giving thanks for the gift of new life safely delivered, we continue in sharing the wisdom of the ages, and in speaking in word and action, of the beautiful interweaving of God’s love, the liturgy, and our lives.

We prepare our hearts for the total joy that is the Paschal Mystery culminating with the celebration of the Resurrection which is Easter. We prepare our hearts by our journey through the disciplines of Lent.

But part of any journey is getting ready for that travel. In 2022, Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, is March 2^nd, and Mass will be at 5:30 PM.

But that means the day before, February 1^st, is Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Day, or Fastnacht, or Mardi Gras, or Carnival (Carnevale). All different ways of describing a general idea- a living of Catholic life and culture beyond the Sanctuary.

For the Catholics in Saxon England the day before Ash Wednesday was the day to confess your sins and to be absolved- to be shrove. And hence the name. And because it was the day before the Great Lenten fast when you would give up fats and meat, and because many of those things would not last the 40 days, you would prepare and eat dishes that used up your fat and/or meat. Hence, Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) or Carnevale (Farewell to Meat) or even Fastnacht (The Night or Vigil before the Fast)

Take some time this Tuesday then to prepare for the trip. The English Catholic tradition is for pancakes since they use up those supplies. And who doesn’t love a Breakfast for Dinner upon occasion? Lent is serious, and it is a time to prepare our hearts, souls, and minds, to receive with joy the gift of God’s grace. But our preparation for it can still be a time for fellowship and for fun.

Too many people inside and outside the Church think that God is a spoilsport and that the Church is about clamping down on fun. Far from it. God wants happiness for al his children. But more than that, we are called into the deepest joy that is the mystery of Love within the Holy Trinity. So be there to hear those solemn words that speak the truth of our condition- “Remember that thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return.” But take some time as a household to prepare for that trip. Pancakes, waffles, fastnachts, bacon, all these things can be more than a meal. They can be a means of appreciating our Catholic faith.
 

As Pope Benedict XVI has said, the Eucharist, the Mass, is the source and summit of our existence as Catholics. And oftentimes we focus on that summit part. But as we talk about reclaiming or creating Catholic culture, we need to look at how our worship moves out from its source in the Eucharist and meets us in our everyday life, which is another way of saying culture.

On Sunday, January 2^nd, the Ordinariate, as a Diocese participating in the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), will celebrate Solemnity of  the Epiphany of Our Lord. Historically, the Feast was on January 6th, which is where we get the Twelve Days of Christmas. 

The Epiphany is best known for the visitation of the Magi, or the wise men from the East. When we read Matthew 2:1-12, we see that they are not named nor even numbered. But over time, both their names (Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar) and their number (three) became fixed. 

A great tradition to start as a household, or to continue if you are already doing, is the chalking of your door as an Epiphany blessing. We will have chalk that has been blessed for this purpose available after Mass on Sunday.

This can be an elaborate rite, but to get us started this year. With the blessed chalk, make the following inscription on your door lintel:

20 + C + M + B + 22

The numbers are, of course, the year. And the initials are for Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar. But interestingly enough CMB is the acronym for the Latin prayer “Christus mansionem benedicat,” or “Christ bless our home.”

The blessing comes from the USCCB:

Lord God of heaven and earth, you revealed your only-begotten Son to every nation by the guidance of a star.

Bless this house and all who inhabit it.

Fill them (us) with the light of Christ, that their (our) concern for others may reflect your love. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

R/. Amen.

The leader concludes the rite by signing himself or herself with the sign of the cross and saying:

May Christ Jesus dwell with us, keep us from all harm,and make us one in mind and heart, now and forever.

R/. Amen. 

And that is how to bless your house the year. Each time you see the inscription, you will be reminded. And it can become a simple witness to all who visit you throughout the year.

One of the most interesting facts about this time of year- Advent, and the preparation for Christmas, is that there is a hymn that everybody loves, even if they do not fully understand it. I am talking about “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” There are few other hymns that have that plaintive mix of longing and joy that are the root of the Advent message. We experience the growing dark and cold of the World in a literal sense at this time of year, and we long for the light and the warmth. 

So too in our spiritual life, we long for the light and the warmth that comes only from Christ. And so in our prayer as the Church, we call upon Christ to come. One of our most ancient prayers is the simple Aramaic word, maranatha, which means, “Our Lord, come!” But when we look at the Old Testament, and listen to the words of the prophets, we see that God’s people have called to the Messiah by many names and titles. 

And starting in the 8^th Century or thereabouts, the Church took seven of those titles and used them to craft the O Antiphons of Advent. These are the verses said or sung before the Magnificat during Evening Prayer in the week before Christmas. The wonderful hymn mentioned above is simply the compilation of those O Antiphons in one place.

They are as follows:

December 17: O Sapientia- O Wisdom from on high

December 18: O Adonai- O Lord 

December 19: O Radix Jesse O Root of Jesse

December 20: O Clavis David O Key of David

December 21: O Oriens O Radiant Dawn

December 22: O Rex Gentium O King of the Nations

December 23: O Emmanuel O Emmanuel (O God with us)

Each of these titles has a meaning, and is a way for helping us to understand more fully the gift we are given in Jesus. One way to celebrate as family is to make the O Antiphon for the day your prayer as a family, maybe as a grace before meals, or before the start of the day, or at its end. This is a link to the full antiphons.

One last bit of fun- for people who love word games and puzzles:

1. Take the first Letter of each Antiphon in Latin in order and you get

S A R C O R E. 

2. Reverse the order of those letters and you get 

E R O C R A S

3. Split that in two and you get the Latin sentence

Ero cras

4. And when you put that into a translator, you will find out it means

Tomorrow I will come.

This message, hidden in the midst of these antiphons is the fulfillment of the longing that we have in our hearts, that finds its answer in the birth of Our Savior. 

One of the main ideas behind the formation of the Ordinariates is the idea of the Patrimony. Oftentimes, people think that the patrimony is “the cool stuff we used to do when we were (fill in the blank) that we get to still do now that we are Catholic.

That actually is a false understanding. The patrimony is those things which we retained during the time of separation from the Catholic Church which were (and still are) authentically Catholic. As we continue our move through the great season of preparation and penance that is Advent, it can be hard in forming our children in the understanding of the real meaning of the Season.  Just as on December 6^th we were able to look at the great Saint Nicholas of Myra, and the custom of leaving out a shoe, so too this week, on December 13^th, we can look at another great “Advent Saint-” Saint Lucy.

We recall Saint Lucy every week in our celebration of the Mass in the Ordinariate Form when we pray in the Roman Canon: “To us sinners also, thy servants, who hope in the multitude of thy mercies, vouchsafe to grant some part and fellowship with thy holy apostles and martyrs; with John, Stephen, Matthias, Barnabas, Ignatius, Alexander, Marcellinus, Peter, Felicitas, Perpetua, Agatha, Lucy, Agnes, Cecilia, Anastasia and with all thy saints: within whose fellowship, we beseech thee, admit us, not weighing our merit, but granting us forgiveness…” 

Saint Lucy or Lucia is one of the seven women saints mentioned specifically by name in the Eucharistic Prayer. Saint Lucy was martyred for her faith in the year 303 during one of the last and greatest of the persecutions of the Church, led by the Emperor Diocletian. Lucy’s parents were wealthy Christians and she consecrated her life to God living as a Holy Virgin. While we do not have all the details, she was apparently betrothed to a rich pagan who was upset that she was giving her parent’s fortune away to those in need. He was so angry he reported her to the imperial authorities, specifically the Roman Governor of Sicily.

Saint Lucy became popular in the Middle Ages, and her memorial, December 13, was the longest night in the year in the old Julian Calendar. Perhaps because her name Lucy (Lucia) was rooted in the Latin word lux- or light.  In Sweden a particular devotion developed in each household. The oldest daughter would wear a crown of greens and candles on her head and process through the household with a tray of lucia buns before sunrise.

There are recipes for these buns all over the internet. And making a candle wreath can become a craft project and time to talk as well. As with all these types as moments, we recall the perfect is the enemy of the good. The point is not to have that perfect Advent or Pre-Christmas moment. The point is to be family and to share the Faith- by talking about a saint about whom we hear every week, and about God’s gift of light in the midst of a seemingly darkening world. Enjoy some Luciamorgon music

St. Nicholas of Myra was a holy bishop in Asia Minor at a cardinal point in the history of the Church. He was known for his care and concern for his flock. Not just their material needs, as witnessed by his helping a family whose daughters needed dowries, but also their spiritual well-being. Nicholas was Bishop at the time when the Church was involved in one of the first great controversies- whether Jesus was consubstantial with the Father. He is said to have been part of the Council of Nicaea (from which we get the Nicene Creed). And pious legend has it that he was so moved that he actually slapped one of the Arians (the supporters of Arius, who wanted people to believe that Jesus was only of similar substance to the Father). He did not want his flock mislead.

So what do we do to celebrate St. Nicholas’ Day?  We reenact St. Nicholas’ gift to the poor girls who had no dowry!  Just as we put out stockings for Santa to fill on Christmas Eve, children around the world put out a shoe on the night of December 5th for St. Nicholas to fill in the night.

What type of gifts are given in the shoes?  Small gifts.  Not much fits in a shoe.  Traditionally, gifts are things like chocolate coins to stand for the coins he gave the girls or candy canes, which are shaped like St. Nicholas’ crozier.  Sometimes the gift is an orange to stand for a gold ball.  

On the Sunday before St. Nicholas Day, have your children (we won’t say anything if the shoe is grown up sized) bring their shoes to church and have them blessed after mass.  Then join us for a St. Nicholas craft during social time.  

If you want to learn more about St. Nicholas and how his day is celebrated around the world, go to the St. Nicholas Center website.  https://www.stnicholascenter.org/

Advent is a perfect time to begin to be more intentional about introducing faith practices into our family lives.  Our ancestors lived the Church year.  They did it seamlessly.  It was integrated into their culture. We can start to rebuild that integration, that natural rhythm, starting with Advent.

Advent is that time of waiting and reflection.  It is a time the world really doesn’t understand.  There is no commercial gain from it. There is Halloween, the speed bump that Thanksgiving has become, then bam, Christmas.  There is not much room for a slow pathway to Christmas with light gradually and quietly growing as the weeks pass.  Candle by candle, Sunday by Sunday.  Meditating on Scripture and what the Incarnation means. That is why the use of the Advent Wreath in the home can be so meaningful.  In the quiet of our homes while the days of late November and December become increasingly dark we can mark the passage of time to the Nativity with increasing light and still the demands of the world to launch head first into Christmas.

The answer is quite simple.  We adjust the practice of the wreath to the reality of our homes.  

What we need is to take the practice in hand and make it sustainable. One way to do this is to give ourselves permission to drop the perfected images and put into place things we can do. Here are some ideas.

Do you need to have special prayers or sing?  No.  If all you do is sit down to dinner on Sunday and light the correct number of candles, you have put into practice more than you had before.  What you are trying to do is to get into the habit of doing something.  As you do something, you will do more somethings over time.  That is how we reclaim the faith culture. We reclaim it by taking baby steps.  It is a process.

Let us know what you have done.  Share your ideas.  And have a peaceful and joy filled Advent!