Revealing the Sins of the Apostles

Mark 16:9-15Douay-Rheims 

9 But he rising early the first day of the week, appeared first to Mary Magdalen, out of whom he had cast seven devils.

10 She went and told them that had been with him, who were mourning and weeping.

11 And they hearing that he was alive, and had been seen by her, did not believe.

12 And after that he appeared in another shape to two of them walking, as they were going into the country.

13 And they going, told it to the rest: neither did they believe them.

14 At length he appeared to the eleven as they were at table: and he upbraided them with their incredulity and hardness of heart, because they did not believe them who had seen him after he was risen again.

15 And he said to them: Go ye into the whole world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Today, Christ upbraids the apostles for two sins-yes, sins. 

The context is that the Eleven refused to believe both Mary Magdalen and the two disciples who met Jesus on the way to Emmaus.  

The two sins for which Christ suffered on the Cross and to which He reprimands them in this Gospel are obstinacy and the unwillingness to believe.

These two sins involve acts of the will. Obstinacy may be called in our culture "pig-headedness" or "rigidity".  This sin comes from two big sins--inordinate self-love, or selfishness, and rebellion.

The sin of rebellion was THE sin of the Jews in the Old Testament. Innumerable times do we see the prophets reprimanding the people for rebellion, for hardness of heart.

Pig-headedness just means that a person wants what they want when they want it and too bad, so sad for the consequences. Basically, this sin is one of pride, as well as the primal sin of rebellion.

The unwillingness to believe, incredulity, indicates a turning away from grace. In other words, the apostles turned away from the truth of the appearances of Christ to their own comfort zones of unbelief.

They were still acting like Old Testament Jews, instead of New Testament Christians. They had to repent, and Christ, the Son of God, severely rebuked them-the meaning of the word upbraided, or reprimanded.

No small thing to be severely rebuked by the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity-Christ, God and Man...Maybe if they listened to Him, believed in His Resurrection, the apostles would have to change their lifestyles. Big time decisions can be put off by rebellion.

We all can fall back into old patterns of sin. This is the reason for seeking out, begging God for purgation. Purification is the only way to stop the habits of sin.

In today's Epistle, we see brave and true apostles, but this is after Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit gave them the very virtues we have to go out and preach the Gospel.

Fortitude, temperance, prudence, justice--the cardinal virtues, faith, hope, love-the theological virtues, and all the gifts of the Holy Spirit....wisdom connected to prudence, perfecting love, understanding connected to justice and perfects hope, knowledge connected to prudence and perfects love, counsel connected to prudence and perfects it, fortitude adding to the virtue of fortitude--as we need more courage and the insights of this most important virtue, piety connected to temperance and justice, and fear of the Lord., also informing, connected to temperance. This information is all found in the teachings of Aquinas and commentators on the virtues throughout the history of the Church, including the catechisms. 

The gifts perfect the cardinal and theological virtues. See my other posts on these.

We have these and it is only sin which prevents us from proclaiming the Gospel to the world, as commanded (not suggested) by God.

Let God cleanse you, bringing you to purity of heart so that these virtues and gifts may be manifested in the world. More now than ever does the world need holiness...

Thoughts from Today's Readings and More Fish

Part of the first reading reminds us of the truth of the Gospel.

Acts 4:11-12Douay-Rheims 

11 This is the stone which was rejected by you the builders, which is become the head of the corner.

12 Neither is there salvation in any other. For there is no other name under heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved.

Today, we see clearly that only in the Name of Jesus are we saved. Most Catholics have forgotten this fact. Salvation is through Christ, and His Church.

May we continue to evangelize until we can no longer do so.

I wrote about the Gospel yesterday on Jesus and the Fish. But, I want to highlight one verse today.

John, with his eye for detail, knows exactly how many fish were caught that day. 153. I looked into what kind of fish these would have been in that miraculous catch. 153 sardines would not be a big deal, although sardines are found in the Sea of Tiberias. The only two likely fish would have been the barbel, which could grow up to 21 pounds per fish, and the musht, or St. Peter's fish, or what we all know as Tilapia. Tilapia grow up to 9 and 1/2 pounds. If the 153 fish were mostly barbel, the net would have been stretched indeed. Next time you have Tilapia, think of Jesus and the apostles at the Sea of Galilee.

John 21:11-14Douay-Rheims 

11 Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land, full of great fishes, one hundred and fifty-three. And although there were so many, the net was not broken.

If one goes to the catecombs in Rome, as I did a long time ago, one sees fish art--a use of the Christian symbol for Christ, based on the angram for Jesus.

From wiki:

ΙΧΘΥΣ (Ichthus) is an acronym/acrostic^[5] for "Ίησοῦς Χριστός, Θεοῦ Υἱός, Σωτήρ", (Iēsous Christos, Theou Yios, Sōtēr), which translates into English as "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour".

• Iota (i) is the first letter of Iēsous (Ἰησοῦς), Greek for "Jesus".
• Chi (ch) is the first letter of Christos (Χριστός), Greek for "anointed".
• Theta (th) is the first letter of Theou (Θεου), Greek for "God's", the genitive case of Θεóς, Theos, Greek for "God".
• Upsilon (y) is the first letter of (h)uios^[6] (Υἱός), Greek for "Son".
• Sigma (s) is the first letter of sōtēr (Σωτήρ), Greek for "Savior".

And, of course, this should remind us of the Jesus Prayer, the ancient Eastern prayer, many of us say daily which I learned from friends in the 1970s and The Philokalia in the early 1980s, Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

See this for the other posting on fish and Jesus...

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2015/04/jesus-and-fish.html

Jesus and the Fish

Fish stories come to my mind today, because in the Gospel for the Thursday After Easter, one sees Christ helping the apostles come to terms with His Risen Body by eating "grilled fish". 

By this small act, Christ reveals His Risen Body, as not merely that of a spirit, but of flesh renewed. The multiplication of the loaves and fishes will not be discussed in this post.





from Luke 24:

33 And rising up, the same hour, they went back to Jerusalem: and they found the eleven gathered together, and those that were staying with them,

34 Saying: The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon.

35 And they told what things were done in the way; and how they knew him in the breaking of the bread.

36 Now whilst they were speaking these things, Jesus stood in the midst of them, and saith to them: Peace be to you; it is I, fear not.

37 But they being troubled and frightened, supposed that they saw a spirit.

38 And he said to them: Why are you troubled, and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?

39 See my hands and feet, that it is I myself; handle, and see: for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as you see me to have.

40 And when he had said this, he shewed them his hands and feet.

41 But while they yet believed not, and wondered for joy, he said: Have you any thing to eat?

42 And they offered him a piece of a broiled fish, and a honeycomb.

43 And when he had eaten before them, taking the remains, he gave to them.

Christ shows the apostles, and us, that the risen body of those in glory at the end of time will be a real body and not merely an image of the person in a "ghostly form".

Something new is being revealed which only Christ could reveal. In the Old Testament, and in the New, we see people being raised from the dead, such as Lazarus of Bethany, the Daughter of Jairus, and the Son of the Widow of Nain. In the Old Testament, Elijah raised the son of the widow of Zarephath, which was an old town very near Nain. In fact, Jesus's raising of the son of the widow would have brought to mind Elijah's miracle to the faithful Jews, who knew their Scripture.

But, the bodies of these people were not "glorified". Christ is the First Person on earth to be resurrected in the form in which all at the Second Coming who go to heaven will experience. Those who will go to hell have their bodies, but not in "glory", of course.

Another fish story comes to my mind, but in this Old Testament story, highlighted many times on this blog, that of Tobit and Raphael,  wherein a fish is caught and used to repel a demon.

Raphael eats in front of Tobit and others, but when he reveals himself, not as a second-cousin once removed, but as the great Archangel of Healing, he states this:

from Tobit 12:

5 So the father and the son, calling him, took him aside: and began to desire him that he would vouchsafe to accept of half of all things that they had brought.

6 Then he said to them secretly: Bless ye the God of heaven, give glory to him in the sight of all that live, because he hath shewn his mercy to you.

7 For it is good to hide the secret of a king: but honourable to reveal and confess the works of God.

8 Prayer is good with fasting and alms more than to lay up treasures of gold:

9 For alms delivereth from death, and the same is that which purgeth away sins, and maketh to find mercy and life everlasting.

10 But they that commit sin and iniquity, are enemies to their own soul.

11 I discover then the truth unto you, and I will not hide the secret from you.

12 When thou didst pray with tears, and didst bury the dead, and didst leave thy dinner, and hide the dead by day in thy house, and bury them by night, I offered thy prayer to the Lord.

13 And because thou wast acceptable to God, it was necessary that temptation should prove thee.

14 And now the Lord hath sent me to heal thee, and to deliver Sara thy son's wife from the devil.

15 For I am the angel Raphael, one of the seven, who stand before the Lord.

16 And when they had heard these things, they were troubled, and being seized with fear they fell upon the ground on their face.

17 And the angel said to them: Peace be to you, fear not.

18 For when I was with you, I was there by the will of God: bless ye him, and sing praises to him.

19 I seemed indeed to eat and to drink with you: but I use an invisible meat and drink, which cannot be seen by men.

20 It is time therefore that I return to him that sent me: but bless ye God, and publish all his wonderful works.

21 And when he had said these things, he was taken from their sight, and they could see him no more.

22 Then they lying prostrate for three hours upon their face, blessed God: and rising up, they told all his wonderful works.

Raphael, as a spirit, an angel, cannot really eat. But, God allowed him to work with humans in a form which they would accept and understand. Christ's Risen and Glorified Body is not that of an angel, but a man.

Another fish story comes to mind from the Gospel of John 21: 

1 After this, Jesus shewed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias. And he shewed himself after this manner.

2 There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas, who is called Didymus, and Nathanael, who was of Cana of Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples.

3 Simon Peter saith to them: I go a fishing. They say to him: We also come with thee. And they went forth, and entered into the ship: and that night they caught nothing.

4 But when the morning was come, Jesus stood on the shore: yet the disciples knew not that it was Jesus.

5 Jesus therefore said to them: Children, have you any meat? They answered him: No.

6 He saith to them: Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and you shall find. They cast therefore; and now they were not able to draw it, for the multitude of fishes.

7 That disciple therefore whom Jesus loved, said to Peter: It is the Lord. Simon Peter, when he heard that it was the Lord, girt his coat about him, (for he was naked,) and cast himself into the sea.

8 But the other disciples came in the ship, (for they were not far from the land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes.

9 As soon then as they came to land, they saw hot coals lying, and a fish laid thereon, and bread.

10 Jesus saith to them: Bring hither of the fishes which you have now caught.

11 Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land, full of great fishes, one hundred and fifty-three. And although there were so many, the net was not broken.

12 Jesus saith to them: Come, and dine. And none of them who were at meat, durst ask him: Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.

13 And Jesus cometh and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish in like manner.
14 This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to his disciples, after he was risen from the dead.

Yesterday, we heard the Gospel on the disciples meeting Christ on the way to Emmaus and eating with Him.

All these passages may be seen in reference to Christ's Body being Present in the Eucharist, which the Doctors of the Church point out to us. But, Christ is also revealing to us that humans have a body and a soul, and being totally Human, Christ in His Resurrected Body eats. 

We cannot understand the new bodies which those who are faithful will receive on the Day of the Lord, the day of the Final Judgment, but Christ is trying to show us the reality of the resurrection from the dead for all who believe and are saved.

Perhaps today would be a good day to re-read the Baptismal Rite of the Church, in order to understand more the fact that we are, body and soul, destined for heaven, if we conform our wills to Christ's Will.

One may find the Sancta Missa, old version, here. http://www.sanctamissa.org/en/resources/books-1962/rituale-romanum/09-baptism-of-children.html

apologies for the spacing today--there is a gremlin in the google works..

For Easter-Tide

more on this video

and whenever I play Gregorian Chant, birds sing outside

Te Deum

O God, we praise Thee, and acknowledge Thee to be the supreme Lord. Everlasting Father, all the earth worships Thee. All the Angels, the heavens and all angelic powers, All the Cherubim and Seraphim, continuously cry to Thee: Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hosts! Heaven and earth are full of the Majesty of Thy glory. The glorious choir of the Apostles, The wonderful company of Prophets, The white-robed army of Martyrs, praise Thee. Holy Church throughout the world acknowledges Thee: The Father of infinite Majesty; Thy adorable, true and only Son; Also the Holy Spirit, the Comforter. O Christ, Thou art the King of glory! Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father. When Thou tookest it upon Thyself to deliver man, Thou didst not disdain the Virgin's womb. Having overcome the sting of death, Thou opened the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers. Thou sitest at the right hand of God in the glory of the Father. We believe that Thou willst come to be our Judge. We, therefore, beg Thee to help Thy servants whom Thou hast redeemed with Thy Precious Blood. Let them be numbered with Thy Saints in everlasting glory. V.  Save Thy people, O Lord, and bless Thy inheritance! R.  Govern them, and raise them up forever. V.  Every day we thank Thee. R.  And we praise Thy Name forever, yes, forever and ever. V.  O Lord, deign to keep us from sin this day. R.  Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. V.  Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, for we have hoped in Thee. R.  O Lord, in Thee I have put my trust; let me never be put to shame. Te Deum laudamus: te Dominum confitemur. Te aeternum Patrem omnis terra veneratur. Tibi omnes Angeli; tibi caeli et universae Potestates; Tibi Cherubim et Seraphim incessabili voce proclamant: Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth. Pleni sunt caeli et terra maiestatis gloriae tuae. Te gloriosus Apostolorum chorus, Te Prophetarum laudabilis numerus, Te Martyrum candidatus laudat exercitus. Te per orbem terrarum sancta confitetur Ecclesia, Patrem immensae maiestatis: Venerandum tuum verum et unicum Filium; Sanctum quoque Paraclitum Spiritum. Tu Rex gloriae, Christe. Tu Patris sempiternus es Filius. Tu ad liberandum suscepturus hominem, non horruisti Virginis uterum. Tu, devicto mortis aculeo, aperuisti credentibus regna caelorum. Tu ad dexteram Dei sedes, in gloria Patris. Iudex crederis esse venturus. Te ergo quaesumus, tuis famulis subveni: quos pretioso sanguine redemisti. Aeterna fac cum sanctis tuis in gloria numerari. V. Salvum fac populum tuum, Domine, et benedic hereditati tuae. R. Et rege eos, et extolle illos usque in aeternum. V. Per singulos dies benedicimus te. R. Et laudamus nomen tuum in saeculum, et in saeculum saeculi. V. Dignare, Domine, die isto sine peccato nos custodire. R. Miserere nostri, Domine, miserere nostri. V. Fiat misericordia tua, Domine, super nos, quemadmodum speravimus in te. R. In te, Domine, speravi: non confundar in aeternum.

No, I have not forgotten Prudence

...I just wanted more time before I write on this last Cardinal Virtue. By the way, did you know that Prudence is frequently painted with a mirror, indicating reflection, thought, reasoning?  I think there are some medieval cathedral sculptures with Prudence and mirror as well. The mirror also symbolizes the wisdom of self-knowledge.

Prudence may be the lynchpin virtue. Again, looking at the graph as well as the wisdom of experience, one can see the necessity for Prudence in the Catholic Church.  http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/part-five-predominant-fault-and-false.html

The great sins listed there include at least one found among certain Synod fathers--carnal prudence.

Carnal prudence is what pushes those cardinals who support sin to want to change Church doctrine. Carnal prudence makes leading Churchmen compromise.

Carnal prudence makes a person not think like a Catholic--but to live in fear and only within one's comfort zone. Self-protection and selfishness provide the fuel for carnal prudence. God asks us to use His virtue of prudence in the world to change it. Carnal prudence is worldly prudence.

St. Thomas Aquinas, and I follow his example, puts prudence as the first virtue. It is recta ratio agibilium or right reason in action. The CCC lists prudence as auriga virtutum (the charioteer of the virtues), meaning it leads the other virtues. 

The key word in this definition is "reason".  To think like a Catholic means that one has conformed one's mind to the teachings of Christ and can reason, reflect, decide according to the Mind of Christ, which is the mind of the Church.

One must know things in order to act and prudence informs action with knowledge, the general knowledge of, for example, the Church's teaching on marriage, to the specific, how one "pastors" those in irregular marriages.

Aquinas notes that the use of prudence also indicates that one has affections in order. If the passions and lower faculties are not in order, one cannot employ the virtue of prudence. Like all of the virtues, prudence can be blocked by both mortal and venial sin.

Prudence moves our entire lives, which is why it is not only a moral virtue, but an intellectual virtue.

If you are a regular reader, you may remember my comments on synderesis a while ago. Synderesis sees the end of one's actions and prudence determines how one morally gets to the end, as well as seeing that end..

I have over 203 posts on St. Thomas Aquinas, but here is one which is connected to these thoughts today. http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2014/09/aquinas-on-natural-law-again.html

Besides carnal prudence, cunning is a sin against the virtue of prudence. Cunning  involves using deceit to get to one's end, such as lying or hiding the truth. Sadly, cunning runs the lives of too many politicians and businessmen.

Prudence is a virtue given to us freely by God, but we can also learn prudence, or hone it through experience. However, one may fall into carnal prudence and cunning from experience as well, if one does not guard one's mind and soul from anger, deceit, or pride.

A life of sin can destroy all the virtues over time so that a person becomes full of vice instead of virtue. Prudence can be ignored over and over through desire or through the avoidance of suffering until one no longer can exhibit this virtue.

For example, if one never wants to suffer, and acts accordingly to avoid discomfort, one sins against prudence, which demands that one acts in accordance to truth and fortitude (courage).

Selfishness and pride can make an person imprudent, not just negligence. We usually think of negligence, such as a person who is a spendthrift, as the emblem of imprudence. but the so-called clever man or woman, who "covers all the bases" in a worldly manner is also imprudent, preferring his or hers own version of prudence rather than God's.

One thinks of the parable of the Widow's Mite as an example of both the greatness of heart of the woman who is acting out of prudence, as opposed to those who give only out of their excess and not out of need., which is carnal prudence.

A person of prudence takes advice from his or her superiors in the Faith, such a a spiritual director or confessor. A woman of prudence would be obedient to a good, Catholic husband. Children of prudence listen and obey their good Catholic parents, and so on.

Tomorrow, I shall write on the gift of counsel which comes from the virtue of prudence, but is different.

Happy Easter!

Feast Day of St. Adam and St. Eve

One discovers interesting facts and truths in certain ways. Some of us grow up surrounded by a world of Catholicism, including excellent, if we are fortunate, Catholic education and liturgy.

I learned of this feast day a very long time ago. My parents put up the tree always on Christmas Eve when I was growing up, In fact they did this when we were sleeping and we did not see the tree until Christmas morning.

The custom of waiting until Christmas or Christmas Eve to put up the tree was connected to the Feast of SS. Adam and Eve, as the Christmas Tree was a reminder of the Tree in Paradise, part of the reason for Christ's Coming.

The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, of course, had red apples on it and the Medievals used these are part of the Miracle Plays on the Life of Christ done on the great feast says.

That today was in the older liturgical calendars the Feast of Our First Parents, brought out of limbo in the Harrowing of Hell by Christ, as we say in the Creed, has been forgotten.

Christ descended into hell and took those chosen by God, the righteous of the Old Testament, including Joseph, into heaven. "He descended into hell".

In the old collect for this day, the phrase "O fault, O necessary sin of Adam" linked Christmas Eve with Holy Week.

Today we think of the words in the Exsultet, which once were said on this day, this feast.

O truly necessary sin of Adam,
destroyed completely by the Death of Christ!

O happy fault
that earned for us so great, so glorious a Redeemer!

Ambrose, Augustine, and Aquinas all write on this phrase.

O felix culpa quae talem et tantum meruit habere redemptorem

Here is part of Aquinas on this subject, from this source:

On the contrary, What frees the human race from perdition is necessary for the salvation of man. But themystery of Incarnation is such; according to John 3:16: "God so loved the world as to give His only-begottenSon, that whosoever believeth in Him may not perish, but may have life everlasting." Therefore it was necessaryfor man's salvation that God should become incarnate.
I answer that, A thing is said to be necessary for a certain end in two ways. First, when the end cannot be without it; as food is necessary for the preservation of human life. Secondly, when the end is attained better and more conveniently, as a horse is necessary for a journey. In the first way it was not necessary that God should become incarnate for the restoration of human nature. For God with His omnipotent power could have restoredhuman nature in many other ways. But in the second way it was necessary that God should become incarnate for the restoration of human nature. Hence Augustine says (De Trin. xii, 10): "We shall also show that other ways were not wanting to God, to Whose power all things are equally subject; but that there was not a more fitting way of healing our misery."
Now this may be viewed with respect to our "furtherance in good." First, with regard to faith, which is made morecertain by believing God Himself Who speaks; hence Augustine says (De Civ. Dei xi, 2): "In order that man might journey more trustfully toward the truth, the Truth itself, the Son of God, having assumed human nature, established and founded faith." Secondly, with regard to hope, which is thereby greatly strengthened; henceAugustine says (De Trin. xiii): "Nothing was so necessary for raising our hope as to show us how deeply Godloved us. And what could afford us a stronger proof of this than that the Son of God should become a partner with us of human nature?" Thirdly, with regard to charity, which is greatly enkindled by this; hence Augustinesays (De Catech. Rudib. iv): "What greater cause is there of the Lord's coming than to show God's love for us?" And he afterwards adds: "If we have been slow to love, at least let us hasten to love in return." Fourthly, with regard to well-doing, in which He set us an example; hence Augustine says in a sermon (xxii de Temp.): "Manwho might be seen was not to be followed; but God was to be followed, Who could not be seen. And thereforeGod was made man, that He Who might be seen by man, and Whom man might follow, might be shown to man." Fifthly, with regard to the full participation of the Divinity, which is the true bliss of man and end of human life; and this is bestowed upon us by Christ's humanity; for Augustine says in a sermon (xiii de Temp.): "God was made man, that man might be made God."
So also was this useful for our "withdrawal from evil." First, because man is taught by it not to prefer the devil to himself, nor to honor him who is the author of sin; hence Augustine says (De Trin. xiii, 17): "Since human natureis so united to God as to become one person, let not these proud spirits dare to prefer themselves to man, because they have no bodies." Secondly, because we are thereby taught how great is man's dignity, lest we should sully it with sin; hence Augustine says (De Vera Relig. xvi): "God has proved to us how high a placehuman nature holds amongst creatures, inasmuch as He appeared to men as a true man." And Pope Leo says in asermon on the Nativity (xxi): "Learn, O Christian, thy worth; and being made a partner of the Divine nature, refuse to return by evil deeds to your former worthlessness." Thirdly, because, "in order to do away with man'spresumption, the grace of God is commended in Jesus Christ, though no merits of ours went before," as Augustine says (De Trin. xiii, 17). Fourthly, because "man's pride, which is the greatest stumbling-block to our clinging to God, can be convinced and cured by humility so great," as Augustine says in the same place. Fifthly, in order to free man from the thraldom of sin, which, as Augustine says (De Trin. xiii, 13), "ought to be done in such a way that the devil should be overcome by the justice of the man Jesus Christ," and this was done by Christ satisfying for us. Now a mere man could not have satisfied for the whole human race, and God was not bound to satisfy; hence it behooved Jesus Christ to be both God and man. Hence Pope Leo says in the same sermon: "Weakness is assumed by strength, lowliness by majesty, mortality by eternity, in order that one and the sameMediator of God and men might die in one and rise in the other--for this was our fitting remedy. Unless He was God, He would not have brought a remedy; and unless He was man, He would not have set an example."

I wish the Church would reinstate this day as the Feast of SS. Adam and Eve and bring back the phrase which connects our thoughts with the Easter Vigil. Such a bridge of faith would help us make this a holy day, and not a day of forgetfulness and fun.

Many of us older ones also remember when Christmas Eve was a day of fast and abstinence, as it should be again.

To play and party on this day seems common now, as many families have Christmas today, instead of tomorrow, or on both days.

Pause and prepare yourselves by thinking of Adam and Eve, on the felix culpa, on your own sins, as the reason for Christ's Incarnation and coming into this world.

I always thought that one of the reasons why the angels came to the shepherds was that they represent the Old Man of sin, Adam, who is the Garden of Eden was a gardener, and who, after his very bad choice, had to work hard for his food, shelter, and clothing.

Those lowly Bedouins in the fields around Bethlehem remind us that we are unwashed, unclean, simple, even outcasts, waiting for redemption.

I sincerely hope you are waiting for Christmas, Dear Readers, not rushing about and forgetting the great mystery of our redemption in baptism, the new life given to Adam and Even this night and to us in baptism.

I was reminded by a certain seminarian that one of the reasons for the long fast in Advent in earlier days was that people were baptized on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. The waiting in penance was part of the preparation for baptism.

What Adam and Eve gained in the Harrowing of Hell, we gain in the pouring of water over our heads-freedom from Original Sin, and the gift of eternal life with God.

Their wait was a very long time. We have become so impatient, that we cannot even wait for Midnight in order to start celebrating Christmas.

Perhaps meditating on the Feast of Adam and Eve will help us see this day in a different light.

This is for J, who is making my Christmas Eve a memorable feast day....

On Mosquitoes and The The Cycle of Grace

American mosquitoes hate me. I never get bites in the States. However, Maltese mosquitoes love me and think I am a rare treat.

During the night, I am actually awakened by these creatures as the "bites" pierce my sleep. Despite closing windows and doors at dusk, I cannot keep these insects out of my little flat.

Then, I get up, turn on the light and try to find the culprits. Of course, I usually cannot. What is also interesting is that some do not make that loud mosquito noise. Silent bombers.

Finally, I am forced to consider why God made mosquitoes or flies, or fleas or any other irritating critters. One can imagine that before the Fall of Adam and Eve, such insects did not prey upon us mammals. Were there any carnivores before Original Sin?

The coming season of Advent, followed by Christmas, reminds us all of the famous prophecy, which prefigures the Messianic Kingdom of Peace.

Isaiah 11:6Douay-Rheims 

6 The wolf shall dwell with the lamb: and the leopard shall lie down with the kid: the calf and the lion, and the sheep shall abide together, and a little child shall lead them.

We know that the Little Child is Christ, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity Incarnate. The Incarnation brings peace, harmony, the reestablishment of the pre-sin world. Christ restores innocence to us, bringing us new life, forgiving the Sin of Adam, opening the doors of heaven, freeing the captives from Sheol.

That the animals would share in this revolution from death to life, from chaos to order symbolizes the entire restructuring of creation through the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Our Lord.

That we cooperate in this harmony involves our own individual calls to holiness.

Mosquitoes would lie down with the humans and let, at least this one, sleep. But, we share in some of the effects of Original Sin, including sickness and death, the clouding of the intellect, the weakening of the will, and concupiscence. 

Mosquitoes fall into one of those categories, and remind me in the wee hours of this morning, that we all need grace to combat those flaws we inherited from our first parents.

I wish the Church would reinstate the Feast of Adam and Eve on Christmas Eve, as in the old days. The collect of that old Mass resounded with the words we hear at the Praeconium Paschale, the Proclamation of Easter, in the Exsultet.

In this peal of rejoicing, we hear a reference to the "felix culpa", the necessary sin of Adam, which caused the Incarnation, the Sacrifice of Christ on the Cross and the Resurrection.

That this fault was mentioned on Christmas Eve tied the entire Liturgical Year into one great cycle of grace.

That Exsultet praises the Lamb of God reminds us not only of the two Passovers, the one in the Old Testament which prefigured that Passover of Christ, wherein He gave us His Own Body and Blood on Maundy Thursday Night, the true beginning of His Passion, but of the lamb lying down with the lion, the Messianic Age instituted by Christ while on earth.

O truly necessary sin of Adam,
destroyed completely by the Death of Christ!

O happy fault
that earned for us so great, so glorious a Redeemer!

O certe necessárium Adæ peccátum,
quod Christi morte delétum est!

O felix culpa,
quæ talem ac tantum méruit habére Redemptórem!

The reminder of the Harrowing of Hell, which we say in the Creed, points to Adam and Eve's freedom, as well as our own.

O truly blessed night,
worthy alone to know the time and hour
when Christ rose from the underworld!

O vere beáta nox,
quæ sola méruit scire tempus et horam,
in qua Christus ab ínferis resurréxit!

So the crib on Christmas Eve, the Christmas tree, which comes from the Medieval Paradise Tree, bring us to the mysteries of Holy Week. From Eden to Gethsemane, from death to life, from sin to redemption, we move in grace.

So, the mosquitoes of Malta bring me to the contemplation of this life of sin, disorder, and pain to the goal of our lives, heaven with God. Such is the cycle of grace. Such is the end of my meditation on this time of pilgrimage on earth.

On Pysanky

I am 50% Czech and these eggs, or similar, were made by my ancestors. Here is Wiki on pysanka

pysanka (Ukrainian: писанка, plural: pysanky

Many other eastern European ethnic groups decorate eggs using wax resist for Easter. These include the Belarusians (пісанка, pisanka), Bulgarians (писано яйце, pisano yaytse),Croats (pisanica), Czechs (kraslice), Hungarians (hímestojás), Lithuanians (margutis), Poles (pisanka), Romanians (ouă vopsite, incondeiate or impistrite), Serbs (pisanica),Slovaks (kraslica), Slovenes (pisanica, pirhi or remenke) and Sorbs (jejka pisać).

.

If you have never had an Ukrainian Easter, I cannot describe what you have missed.

I miss my Ukrainian parish in Canada.

The "Church ladies" made drop-dead gorgeous pysanky. I have never made those, but I have made many, many perogies.