07 December 2011
Dies Irae
13 November 2011
On Psalm 1
A psalm implies serenity of soul; it is the author of peace. A psalm forms friendships, unites those separated, conciliates those at enmity. A psalm is a city of refuge from the demons; a means of inducing help from the angels, a weapon against fears by night, a rest from toils by day, a safeguard for infants, an adornment for those at the height of their vigor, a consolation of the elders, a most fitting ornament for women. It peoples the solitudes; it rids the market place of excesses; it is the elementary exposition of beginners, the improvement of those advancing, the solid support of the perfect, the voice of the Church. It brightens the feast days; it creates a sorrow which is in accordance with God. For a psalm calls forth a tear even from a heart of stone. A psalm is the work of angels, a heavenly institution, the spiritual incense.
-- Basil the Great Homily X, on Psalm 1
27 October 2011
On the Mass
Our churches are falsely accused of abolishing the Mass. Actually, the Mass is retained among us and is celebrated with the greatest reverence. Almost all the customary ceremonies are also retained, except that German hymns are interspersed here and there among the parts sung in Latin. These [ceremonies] are added for the instruction of the people, for ceremonies are needed especially in order that the unlearned may be taught. […] Accordingly it does not appear that the Mass is observed with more devotion among our adversaries than among us. […]By contrast, due to God’s blessing, our priests attend to the ministry of the Word. They teach the gospel about the blessings of Christ, and they show that the forgiveness of sins takes place on account of Christ. This teaching offers solid consolation to consciences. In addition they teach about the good works that God commands, and they speak about the value and use of the Sacraments. -- Apology of the Augsburg Confession XXIV: 1-3, 9, 48
27 October 2011
On the Beauty of Holiness
In a world full of so much ugliness, liturgy should be a rest for the soul, a repose where the soul can breathe. Beauty is not aestheticism. It is not an aim in itself. It is a glimpse of God’s glory. We shouldn’t stay with a glimpse [...] because people are thirsting for beauty and for what they rightly feel is behind beauty: the glory of God revealed to us. Heaven opens in liturgy. Beauty in liturgy costs time, love, care, commitment. We must take time for preparing the liturgy, looking for the beauty of the flowers, the songs, the space, the incense, the candles. All this has nothing to do with pure aestheticism, but it is an expression of love. The faithful can tell whether or not there is the love of God in a church. My experience is that wherever you have a beautiful liturgy, people come. People are attracted, and rightly. We should not say that this is only a superficial attraction. Beauty is one way to God. It should never be separated from goodness and truth. Beauty without goodness is not beauty; so love for the poor has to be cultivated together with love for beauty—and, of course, with love for the truth. -- Archbishop Christoph Schonborn of Vienna
08 September 2011
On Holy Baptism
Thus a Christian life is nothing else than a daily Baptism, once begun and ever continued. For we must keep at it incessantly, always purging out whatever pertains to the old Adam, so that whatever belongs to the new man may come forth. What is the old man? He is what is born in us from Adam; irascible, spiteful, envious, unchaste, greedy, lazy, proud, yes, and unbelieving; he is beset with all vices and by nature has nothing good in him. Now, when we enter Christ’s kingdom, this corruption must daily decrease so that the longer we live the more gentle, patient, and meek we become, and the more free from greed, hatred, envy, and pride [...]. The old man therefore follows unchecked the inclinations of his nature if he is not restrained and suppressed by the power of Baptism. On the other hand, when we become Christians, the old man daily decreases until he is finally destroyed. This is what it means to plunge into Baptism and daily come forth again [...]. Here you see that Baptism, both by its power and by its signification, comprehends also the third sacrament, formerly called Penance [Confession and Absolution], which is really nothing else than Baptism. What is repentance but an earnest attack of the old man and an entering upon a new life? If you live in repentance, therefore, you are walking in Baptism, which not only announces this new life but also produces, begins, and promotes it. -- Large Catechism IV:65-67, 71, 74-75
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