Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost - 2020

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Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost - 2020 Nov 15, 2020 12:26:35 GMT

Post by Admin on Nov 15, 2020 12:26:35 GMT

Twenty fourth Sunday after Pentecost [Mass of the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany]

Taken from The Liturgical Year by Dom Prosper Gueranger (1841-1875)

NB: If there are more than twenty-four Sundays after Pentecost; in that case the Sundays remaining after Epiphany, which are noticed in the calendar, are inserted between the Mass of the Twenty-third and the Mass of the Twenty-fourth Sunday.

INTROIT
Adorate Deum omnes Angeli ejus: audivit et laetata est Sion: et exsultaverunt filiae Judae.
Ps. Domninus regnavit; exsultet terra, laetentur insulae multae. V. Gloria Patri. Adorate.

Adore God, all ye his Angels: Sion heard and was glad, and the daughters of Juda rejoiced.
Ps. The Lord hath reigned let the earth rejoice, let many islands be glad. V. Glory, &c. Adore.

COLLECT
Praesta quaesumus omnipotens Deus: ut semper rationabilia meditantes, quae tibi sunt placita, et dictis exsequamur et factis. Per Dominum.

Grant, we beseech thee, O Almighty God, that being always intent upon what is reasonable and just, we may, both in word and deed, perform what is acceptable to thee. Through, the.

For the other Collects, see above: Fifth Sunday after Epiphany.

EPISTLE
Lesson of the Epistle of Saint Paul the Apostle to the Thessalonians. I. Ch. i.

Brethren, we give thanks to God always for you all making a remembrance of you in our prayers without ceasing being mindful of you in the work of your faith, and labour, and charity, and of the enduring of the hope of our Lord Jesus Christ, before God and our Father; knowing, brethren beloved of God, your election. For our Gospel hath not been to you in word only, but in power also, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much fulness, as you know what manner of men we have been among you for your sakes. And you became followers of us, and of the Lord, receiving the word in much tribulation, with joy of the Holy Ghost; so that you were made a pattern to all that believe, in Macedonia and in Achaia. For from you was spread abroad the word of the Lord, not only in Macedonia and in Achaia, but also in every place your faith, which is towards God, is gone forth, so that we need not speak any thing. For they themselves relate of us, what manner of entering in we had unto you; and how you turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven (whom he raised up from the dead) Jesus, who hath delivered us from the wrath to come.

The praise which the Apostle here gives to the Thessalonians for their fervour in the faith, they had embraced, conveys a reproach to the Christians of our own times. These neophytes of Thessalonica, who, a short time before, were worshippers of idols, had become so earnest in the practice of the Christian religion, that even the Apostle is filled with admiration. We are the descendants of countless Christian ancestors; we received our regeneration by Baptism at our first coming into the world; we were taught the doctrine of Jesus Christ from our earliest childhood; and yet, our faith is not as strong, or our lives as holy, as were those of the early Christians. Their main occupation was the serving the living and true God, and the waiting for the coming of their Saviour; our Hope is precisely the same as that which made their hearts so fervent; how comes it that our Faith is not like theirs in its generosity? We love this present life, as though we had not the firm conviction that it is to pass away.

As far as depends upon us, we are handing down to future generations a Christianity very different from that which our Saviour established, which the Apostles preached, and which the pagans of the first ages thought they were bound to purchase at any price or sacrifice.

GRADUAL
Timebunt gentes Nomen tuum, Domine, et omnes reges terrae gloriam tuam.
V. Quoniam aedificavit Dominus Sion, et videbitur in majestate sua.Alleluia, alleluia.
V. Dominus regnavit: exsultet terra, laetentur insulae multae.
Alleluia.

The Gentiles shall fear thy Name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth thy glory.
V. For the Lord hath built up Sion, and he shall be seen in his glory.Alleluia. alleluia.
V. The Lord hath reigned: let the earth rejoice: let many islands be glad.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL
Sequel of the holy Gospel according to Matthew. Ch. xiii.

At that time: Jesus spoke to the multitude this parable: The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard-seed, which, a man took and sowed in his field. Which indeed is the least of all seeds; but when it is grown up, it is greater than all herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and dwell in the branches thereof. Another parable he spoke to them: The kingdom of heaven is like to leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, until the whole was leavened. All these things Jesus spoke in parables to the multitudes, and without parables he did not speak to them; that the word might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Prophet, saying: I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world.

Our Lord here teaches us, under the symbolism of two parables, what we are to believe concerning his Church, which is his Kingdom, - a Kingdom that rises indeed here on the earth, but is to be perfected in Heaven. What is this grain of mustard-seed, which is hid under ground, is unseen by man's eye, then appears as the least of herbs, but, finally, becomes a tree? It is the Word of God, at first hidden in Judea, trampled on by man's malice even so as to be buried in a tomb, but, at length, rising triumphantly and reaching rapidly to every part of the world. Scarcely had a hundred years elapsed since Jesus was put to death, and his Church was vigorous even far beyond the limits of the Roman Empire.

During the past nineteen centuries, every possible effort has been made to up-root the Tree of God; persecution, diplomacy, human wisdom, - all have tried, and all have but wasted their time. True, - they succeeded, from time to time, in severing a branch; but another grew in its place, for the sap of the Tree is vigorous beyond measure. The birds that come and dwell upon it, are, as the Holy Fathers interpret it, the souls of men aspiring to the eternal goods of the better world. If we are worthy of our name of "Christians," we shall love this Tree, and find our rest and safety no where but beneath its shade. - The Woman, of whom the second parable speaks, is the Church, our Mother. It was she that, from the commencement of Christianity, took the teaching of her Divine Master, and hid it in the very heart of men, making it the leaven of their salvation. The three measures of meal which she leavened into bread, are the three great families of mankind, the three that came from the children of Noah, who are the three fathers of the whole human race. Let us love this Mother of ours; and let us bless that heavenly leaven, which made us become children of God, by making us children of the Church.

OFFERTORY
Dextera Domini fecit virtutem, dextera Domini exaltavit me: non moriar, sed vivam, et narrabo opera Domini.

The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength, the right hand of the Lord hath exalted me: I shall not die, but live, and shall declare the works of the Lord.

SECRET
Haec nos oblatio, Deus, mundet, quaesumus, et renovet, gubernet, et protegat. Per Dominum.

May this oblation, O God, we beseech thee, cleanse, renew, govern, and protect us. Through. &c.

The other secrets are given above.

COMMUNION
Mirabantur omnes de his, quae procedebant de ore Dei.

All wondered at the words that came from the mouth of God.

POSTCOMMUNION
Coelestibus, Domine, pasti deliciis, quaesumus, ut semper eadem, per quae veraciter vivimus, appetamus. Per Dominum.

Being fed, Lord, with heavenly dainties, we beseech thee, that we may always hunger after them, for by them we have true life. Through, &c.

The other Postcommunions are given above.

Last Edit: Nov 15, 2020 12:29:26 GMT by Admin

"So let us be confident, let us not be unprepared, let us not be outflanked, let us be wise, vigilant, fighting against those who are trying to tear the faith out of our souls and morality out of our hearts, so that we may remain Catholics, remain united to the Blessed Virgin Mary, remain united to the Roman Catholic Church, remain faithful children of the Church."- Archbp. Lefebvre 1980

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Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost - 2020 Nov 15, 2020 12:35:15 GMT

Post by Admin on Nov 15, 2020 12:35:15 GMT

Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost [Mass of the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany]

Taken from Rev. Fr. Leonard Goffine's The Church's Year

[For the Introit of this day's Mass see the Introit of the third Sunday after Epiphany.]

COLLECT Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that ever fixing our thoughts on such things as are reasonable, we may both in our words and works do what is pleasing in Thy sight. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, etc.

EPISTLE (I. Thess. I. 2-10.) Brethren, we give thanks to God for you all, making a remembrance of you in our prayers without ceasing; being mindful of the work of your faith, and labor, and charity, and of the enduring of the hope of our Lord Jesus Christ before God and our Father: knowing, brethren, beloved of God, your election: for our gospel hath not been unto you in word only, but in power also, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much fullness, as you know what manner of men we have been among you for your sakes. And you became followers of us and of the Lord, receiving the word in much tribulation, with joy of the Holy Ghost: so that you were made a pattern to all that believe, in Macedonia and in Achaia. For from you was spread abroad the word of the Lord, not only in Macedonia and in Achaia, but also in every place, your faith, which is towards God, is gone forth; so that we need not to speak anything. For they themselves relate of us what manner of entering in we had unto you; and how ye turned, to God from idols, to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven (whom he raised from the dead), Jesus, who both delivered us from the wrath to come.

EXPLANATION The apostle gives thanks to God in prayer for those inhabitants of Thessalonia, who have been converted to Christianity by his words, and declares to them his joy at their Christian life which they prove by their good works and their perseverance, even through all trials, in expectation of eternal reward through Christ. He assures them also of their salvation, (election) because God had caused the preaching of His gospel, which they so willingly received, to produce in them such extraordinary fruit. He praises them not only for having listened to the gospel and abandoned idolatry, but for having regulated their lives in accordance with the faith, and having become a model to distant nations, for the report of their faith had spread far, and everywhere their zealous reception of the gospel was spoken of. Would that the same could be said of all Christians!

GOSPEL (Matt. XIII. 31-35.) At that time, Jesus spoke this parable to the multitudes: The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard-seed, which a man took and sowed in his field: which is the least indeed of all seeds; but when it is grown up, it is greater than all herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come, and dwell in the branches thereof. Another parable he spoke to them: The kingdom of heaven is like to leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, until the whole was leavened. All these things Jesus spoke in parables to the multitude, and without parables he did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world.

What is here understood by the kingdom of heaven?

The Church and the doctrine of Christ.

Why is the Church compared to a grain of mustard-seed?

Because there is a great similarity between them. The mustard-seed, though so small, grows in Palestine so high and so rapidly, that it becomes a broad tree, in which birds can build their nests. In like manner the Church of Christ was in the beginning very small like the mustard-seed, but it soon spread so wide that numberless people, even great philosophers and princes, came to find peace and protection under its branches.

Why is Christ's doctrine compared to leaven?

Because like the leaven, which quickly penetrates the flour, and makes it palatable bread, the doctrine of Christ, spreading with surprising swiftness over the then known parts of the globe, gave the Gentiles a taste for divine things and for heavenly wisdom. Thus Christ’s doctrine penetrates him who receives it, sanctifies all his thoughts, words, and deeds, and makes him pleasing to God.

By what means, in particular, was the Church of Christ propagated?

By the omnipotence of God and the miracles which He so frequently wrought to prove the truth and divinity of the Christian religion; the courageous faith, and the pure moral life of the early Christians, which led many pagan minds to accept the doctrine of Christ; and the persecution of Christianity, for, as Tertullian says: "The blood of the martyrs was the seed of the Church." The false doctrine of Mahomet, the erroneous teachings of Luther, Calvin, and earlier and later heretics have, it is true, also spread quickly far and wide; but this is not to be wondered at, for it is easy to lead people to a doctrine that encourages sensuality, and to which they are carried by their evil inclinations, as was the case with the doctrine of the impostor Mahomet, and three hundred years ago with the heresy of Luther; but to spread a doctrine which demands the subduing of the carnal, earthly inclinations, and to bend the will to the yoke of obedience to faith, something more than human eloquence is required. Thus, the Chancellor of England, Thomas More, who gave his blood for the true doctrine of Christ, wrote to Luther, who was boasting of the rapid increase of his sect: "It is easy to descend; seducing the people to a bad life is nothing more marvellous than that a heavy stone should fall of its own accord to the ground;" and Melanchton, a friend of Luther, in answer to his mother's question, whether she should remain a Catholic or receive Luther's doctrine, wrote : "In this religion it is easy to live, in the Catholic it is easy to die."

Why did Christ always speak in parables?

That His teaching by being simple might be more easily understood, and better remembered. He who is called upon to teach others, should, as did Christ, always speak to them according to their ability to understand, and by no means seek his own honor, but the honor of God, and the benefit of those who hear him.

PRAYER O most benign Jesus. How much do we give Thee thanks that Thou hast permitted us to be born in Thy holy Church, and instructed in Thy holy doctrine, which, like the mustard-seed, has grown to be a large tree, spreading over the whole earth. Grant that under the shadow of this tree, in Thy holy Church, we may ever rest securely, cling to her faithfully, and penetrated, as by leaven, with her doctrine may bring Thee pleasing fruits of faith and virtue. Amen.