Sequence for Easter Sunday

This sequence is traditionally sung as part of the Mass on Sunday during the day (not at midnight Mass) as well as Easter Monday).

Fra Angelico's "Resurrection and the Women at the Tomb" (1440-1441) in Florence, Italy

Victimae paschali laudes
immolent Christiani.
Agnus redemit oves:
Christus innocens Patri
reconciliavit peccatores.
Mors et vita duello
conflixere mirando:
dux vitae mortuus,
regnat vivus.
Dic nobis Maria,
quid vidisti in via?
Sepulcrum Christi viventis,
et gloriam vidi resurgentis:
Angelicos testes,
sudarium, et vestes.
Surrexit Christus spes mea:
praecedet suos in Galilaeam.
Scimus Christum surrexisse
a mortuis vere:
tu nobis, victor Rex,
miserere.
Amen. Alleluia.

Translation from liturgical Latin to English:

May you praise the Paschal Victim,
immolated for Christians.
The Lamb redeemed the sheep:
Christ, the innocent one,
has reconciled sinners to the Father.
A wonderful duel to behold,
as death and life struggle:
The Prince of life dead,
now reigns alive.
Tell us, Mary Magdalen,
what did you see in the way?
I saw the sepulchre of the living Christ,
and I saw the glory of the Resurrected one:
The Angelic witnesses,
the winding cloth, and His garments.
The risen Christ is my hope:
He will go before His own into Galilee.
We know Christ to have risen
truly from the dead:
And thou, victorious King,
have mercy on us.
Amen. Alleluia. 

Allegri's Miserere Mei

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Miserere Mei, Psalm 50:3-21

 [3] Have mercy on me, O God, according to thy great mercy. And according to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my iniquity. [4] Wash me yet more from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. [5] For I know my iniquity, and my sin is always before me.

[6] To thee only have I sinned, and have done evil before thee: that thou mayst be justified in thy words and mayst overcome when thou art judged. [7] For behold I was conceived in iniquities; and in sins did my mother conceive me. [8] For behold thou hast loved truth: the uncertain and hidden things of thy wisdom thou hast made manifest to me. [9] Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed: thou shalt wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow. [10] To my hearing thou shalt give joy and gladness: and the bones that have been humbled shall rejoice.

[11] Turn away thy face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. [12] Create a clean heart in me, O God: and renew a right spirit within my bowels. [13] Cast me not away from thy face; and take not thy holy spirit from me. [14] Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and strengthen me with a perfect spirit.[15] I will teach the unjust thy ways: and the wicked shall be converted to thee.

[16] Deliver me from blood, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall extol thy justice. [17]O Lord, thou wilt open my lips: and my mouth shall declare thy praise. [18] For if thou hadst desired sacrifice, I would indeed have given it: with burnt offerings thou wilt not be delighted. [19] A sacrifice to God is an afflicted spirit: a contrite and humbled heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. [20] Deal favourably, O Lord, in thy good will with Sion; that the walls of Jerusalem may be built up.

[21] Then shalt thou accept the sacrifice of justice, oblations and whole burnt offerings: then shall they lay calves upon thy altar.

Lenten Mission 2012 - Climbing the Mountain of God

Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo, Christ leading Peter, James and John to the High Mountain for the Transfiguration, The Armand Hammer Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1770-80s

• (Lenten Mission Part 1) Introduction: Climbing the Mountain of God
• (Lenten Mission Part 2) Knowing Up from Down: Heaven from Hell
• (Lenten Mission Part 3) The Obstacles to Climbing: The Causes of Sin
• (Lenten Mission Part 4) The Roman Catholic Church is the Mountain of God
• (Lenten Mission Part 5) Building on the Rock of God
• (Lenten Mission Part 6) Mary is Our Guide to God

The Entombment of Christ, Badalocchio. John 19:38-42

Mercy Over Justice

+JMJ+


In this short life, it is better to pursue mercy than justice, as much as possible.  


St. Francis loved this virtue of mercy so much, in gratitude for the mercy Christ had shown by his own passion and death on the Cross, Francis even showed mercy to a wild beast.

This story, taken from a book on St. Francis, relates one such situation:


"It is marvelous to relate that as soon as St. Francis made the Sign of the Cross, the wolf of Gubbio closed its terrible jaws and stopped running, and as soon as he gave that order, it lowered its head and lay down at the Saint's feet, as though it had become a lamb.

And St. Francis said to it as it lay in front of him: "Brother Wolf, you have done great harm in this region, and you have committed horrible crimes by destroying God's creatures without any mercy. You have been destroying not only irrational animals, but you even have the more detestable brazenness to kill and devour human beings made in the image of God. You therefore deserve to be put to death just like the worst robber and murderer. Consequently, everyone is right in crying out against you and complaining, and this whole town is your enemy. But, Brother Wolf, I want to make peace between you and them, so that they will not be harmed by you anymore, and after they have forgiven you all your past crimes, neither men nor dogs will pursue you any more."

The wolf showed by moving its body and tail and ears and nodding its head that it willingly accepted what the Saint had said and would observe it.

So St. Francis spoke again: "Brother, Wolf, since you are willing to make and keep this peace pact, I promise you that I will have the people of this town give you food every day as long as you live, so that you will never again suffer hunger, for I know that whatever evil you have been doing was done because of the urge of hunger. But, my Brother Wolf, since I am obtaining such a favor for you, I want you to promise me that you will never hurt any animal or man. Will you promise me that?"

The wolf gave a clear sign, by nodding his head, that it promised to do as the Saint asked. "

Saint Francis of Assisi
Little Flowers of St. Francis - 21

Attributed to Fra. Ugolino da Santa Maria, 150 years after the death of St. Francis

The Look of a Sinner

 +JMJ+

There are some Catholics who will tell you that in some, or many cases even, one can tell that one is a (grave) sinner because of certain visible characteristics.  These characteristics are not even manifest sins themselves, but rather, certain traits that usually prove to be either due to or a sign of the person's gravel sinful life.

Judging what is a manifestly grave sin is always a grave sin, and one cannot have the light of  Truth if they do not obey the Commandments, as God the Son explained, "He who says he loves me yet fails to keep the commandments is a liar and the TRUTH is not in him."  But to judge the state of a soul who is not in manifest (either by their own words or actions) grave sin is, a grave sin in itself.

Please understand, that what you are about to read, should you go any further, is not intended as evangelism, for as this blogger is a woman, and has not that calling.  Nor do I claim to be a teacher, but I do consider myself a spiritual mother and by that state I feel compelled to write to those spiritual children that always benefit, as I know myself, from spiritual exhortation.

God hears everyone's heart, and when one starts to judge the interior life of another, not knowing, as only God Himself knows, what graces have been given to the person and what have been held back, and the purpose God has for having chosen to give and hold back.  If we are to call ourselves Christians, however, we can only be assured of having known God's mercy by bringing us to the Church and the Sacraments given to her by Christ.

If you want to know who appeared to be the biggest sinner, having taken on the appearance of even directly offending God and taking the punishment for his crimes, look to Christ on the Cross.

If you want to know what sinner would put an innocent man to die on a cross, look in the mirror.  Remember God's mercy.   Now, ask yourself, "Was all this for then you to judge the grace of your neighbor?"   Christ took on the appearance of a tremendous criminal to be given the ultimate punishment, yet he was Innocence itself.

WHENEVER one judges the interior life of another, they judge also Christ.  Since one does not know the crosses, much less the graces God has given to a soul or the grace God has chosen to withhold, or the reasons of either mystery, it is impossible for us to know such a thing, and God warns us not to judge in such a way, for the penalty of this is that same way that we judge will be judged of us.  What does that mean?   It certainly does not mean that which is evil becomes good --- as that which is sinful is objectively sinful, but this isn't about judging what is objectively sinful, but judging that which is unknowable and unseen.   The rash judgment of a person's soul, interior life or destiny is judgement of Christ because Christ is who died for the sinner.  Not only did Christ die for the sinner that he who is repentant might be saved, Christ did so by taking upon himself every sin and even the appearance and pain --- both direct and indirect --- of every sin committed by man.  This is why we judge Christ when we judge our neighbor, because he took on sin to himself.

Still, it is good to concern ourselves with the spiritual welfare of our neighbor* (*remember who our Lord said was our neighbor) as we should concern ourselves with our own soul.  In holy prudence and charity, do what you can to save souls --- especially with prayer and penance --- that you might save, in this way, your own soul.

He Took Upon Himself the Appearance of a Sinner

(...and please pray for me.)

"For let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men, and in habit found as a man. He humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, even to the death of the cross. For which cause God also hath exalted him, and hath given him a name which is above all names: That in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those that are in heaven, on earth, and under the earth:

And that every tongue should confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father. Wherefore, my dearly beloved, (as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but much more now in my absence,) with fear and trembling work out your salvation. For it is God who worketh in you, both to will and to accomplish, according to his good will. And do ye all things without murmurings and hesitations; That you may be blameless, and sincere children of God, without reproof, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation; among whom you shine as lights in the world."    Philippians 2:5-15



Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God the Father, have mercy on us.+

St. Joseph: The Spirit of Poverty

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God should be EVERYTHING to you, and you should be NOTHING to yourself.

If any task of yours, whether it be the conquering of a vice, a penance or due mortification, or any duty according to your state, whatever it might be, seems abhorrent to you or cause you to recoil even in the slightest by its undertaking and even for a moment, promptly remember that as it is your duty, it is given to you by God.  The task that is most abhorrent to you, is the greatest medicine for your sickened soul and weak will, because every duty of yours suits you according to God's Providence (God's Will).  And to say that it 'suits you', is only in the context that it is, in fact, a tremendous mercy, and in that remembrance, one should seek to promptly and more assiduously apply himself to those tasks that are, by that portion of his will that is yet ordered to God, that are, to him, least desirable.  This is the proof of one's professed love for God, and will do more to bring him to unite his will to God's than any other activity, regardless of how it is perceived by man, since such reluctance to do one's duty is a sign of that distance one holds himself away from God.  

Remember St. Joseph's spirit of poverty; his humility is what allowed him to carry out his tasks as the foster-father of Jesus.  One who carefully observes even that little that we know of this great saint, will notice that his wisdom was NOT at all of the way of the world, but rather, he had within him the very humility and meekness of God, given to him by his meekness and promptness to do whatever God willed and as He willed.  St. Joseph trusted not himself, but God, even when God was silent to him.    St. Joseph sought only God, as he saw him to be not only the source of all God, but God, to St. Joseph, was his every good, his all.


As God was St. Joseph's all, St. Joseph was able to have a spirit of detachment for all created goods.  As the great saint and Doctor of the Church described of herself, St. Teresa of Avila said it was important only "to use (created things) as if I use them not."    Detachment of created goods offers one the ability to see themselves clearly and consistently in the eyes of God, as their end is in view (the "Four Last Things"), and therefore, created goods are used to the end of God's Will.  It is only by uniting one's will to God that one's  efforts to a given task gathers merit and the fruit of God's blessing.

"Coexist": The Misleading Slogan

True unity cannot exist without obedience to Christ. Without Christ, unity cannot exist in a single soul, let alone in a society. Rather, even the soul, itself, is disunited from its own purpose when it is not ordered to God.

The "coexist" slogan is being popularized by secularists. They use the idea of the good of peaceful coexistence as a way to promote the false notion that all religions are equal. That, in itself, is a negation of the concept of religion, in the true sense of the word. The idea of one respecting false religions is really a fruit of the heresy of indifferentism, since it is against God who reveals truth in His Church to say that we should respect something entirely false or even containing some falsity that is purely created by man on the level of something that is created by Himself, whose dogmas are His own creation.

The movement behind the secularists to promote this is also intended to promote the idea that there is only this life. How can one draw such a conclusion? We know that in this life we know of our souls in the body we will be in a world that is not merely of the flesh, but also "ruled by princes and principalties" --- the preternatural order, not all of it obedient to God either. That so long as there is the supernatural --- and that is eternal, and there is bodily life, there will be the war of disobedient angels against the human living form that has the ability to have supernatural life, giving it, thereby, the ability to be obedient to Christ. Therefore, "coexistence", in this sense, to false religions, which are subordinate not to Truth (Incarnate) but to the Jealous One and his minions (to one degree or another), will also war against the Bride of Christ, and all those who comprise the Church Militant. Secularists seem to know by some level, even more than most Catholics (as most Catholics have a weak faith) that if they succeed in promoting the idea of coexistence should be the ultimate societal value, therefore, making of peace was purely social thing, they indoctrinate society into thinking that peace is independent of recognizing the Kingship of Christ. It is, rather, recognizing that peace only comes from obedience to Truth Incarnate, Christ the King (we recognize Christ by our obedience to him) from whom all authority comes, that society will be ordered to true peace. Otherwise, society will continue to moreover reject Christ, finding it easier to be lead by one's disorders than to subject oneself to the Cross.

"Servants, be obedient to them that are your lords according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the simplicity of your heart, as to Christ:

Not serving to the eye, as it were pleasing men, but, as the servants of Christ doing the will of God from the heart, With a good will serving, as to the Lord, and not to men. Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man shall do, the same shall he receive from the Lord, whether he be bond, or free. And you, masters, do the same things to them, forbearing threatenings, knowing that the Lord both of them and you is in heaven; and there is no respect of persons with him. Finally, brethren, be strengthened in the Lord, and in the might of his power.

Put you on the armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the deceits of the devil. For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood; but against principalities and power, against the rulers of the world of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in the high places. Therefore take unto you the armour of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and to stand in all things perfect. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of justice, And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace:

In all things taking the shield of faith, wherewith you may be able to extinguish all the fiery darts of the most wicked one. And take unto you the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit (which is the word of God). By all prayer and supplication praying at all times in the spirit; and in the same watching with all instance and supplication for all the saints..." Ephesians 6:5-19
Christ told Peter that he was thinking like the devil and not like God when Peter suggested to our Lord he should not speak of his impending death (the Cross!) to the people following him 'till that time, as Peter recognized that it would disrupt the peace and unity of the people. Christ then clarified that this was a false since of worldly peace, "Who turning about and seeing his disciples, threatened Peter, saying: Go behind me, Satan, because thou savorest not the things that are of God, but that are of men. And calling the multitude together with his disciples, he said to them: If any man will follow me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life, shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel, shall save it.

For what shall it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? For he that shall be ashamed of me, and of my words, in this adulterous and sinful generation: the Son of man also will be ashamed of him, when he shall come in the glory of his Father with the holy angels." Mark 8:33-38

And later...
"And fear ye not them that kill the body, and are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him that can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and not one of them shall fall on the ground without your Father. [30] But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

Fear not therefore: better are you than many sparrows. Every one therefore that shall confess me before men, I will also confess him before my Father who is in heaven. But he that shall deny me before men, I will also deny him before my Father who is in heaven. Do not think that I came to send peace upon earth: I came not to send peace, but the sword. For I came to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.

I came to set a man at variance: Not that this was the end or design of the coming of our Saviour; but that his coming and his doctrine would have this effect, by reason of the obstinate resistance that many would make, and of their persecuting all such as should adhere to him.

And a man's enemies shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not up his cross, and followeth me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life, shall lose it: and he that shall lose his life for me, shall find it. He that receiveth you, receiveth me: and he that receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me." Matthew 10:28-40

The spirit of falsity, which is the essence of all heresy, despises with demonic envy, the Spirit of Truth, ad therefore, by its very horrid, disunited nature, the former cannot exist in peace with the later because it DESPISES IT TO DEATH. It not merely despises it with a humanistic type of hatred, but a hatred that is imbued with preternatural disorder, even beyond the human creature's own reason, since a lie is always separate from truth, and reason has its integrity in truth. And not merely does it despise it to bodily death (which surprises, ironically, many of us Catholics), but it despises it to supernatural death, meaning, it wills the death of the supernatural life of the soul --- and wishes it to fall into mortal sin. How much one can only have a fear of it's own faults that it might fall the slightest step towards mortal sin, let alone the thought of separation from the life of Christ in one's soul (through the violence done to it by the committing of mortal sin).

Yet, the modernists would have you believe this thinking is "legalistic". How anti-Catholic is such false spirituality. Just read the Church Doctors, the Church Fathers, and any of the doctrines supporting her dogmas.


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The spirit of peace IS the Spirit of God, when it is born of the one, true God.  True peace is born of charity.  Charity seeks not its own but the good of others.  Supernaturalized charity seeks the good of others out of the love of God.  Therefore, we should seek to love our neighbors that they may receive the HIGHEST GOOD, Who is the one, true God, Himself.  This is how we as Catholics are able to love even our enemies and do good to those who hate us.   This is the measure of our love to God, as taught to us succinctly by Christ when he summarized the 10 Commandments by two:  Love God, and love thy neighbor as thyself.

Indifferentism is not characterized by love of God, and does not demonstrate love of neighbor as it is not based on truth (that God is the highest good, and therefore, so is the true faith given to us by God) nor on exhorting one to the highest, eternal good.  This is why indifferentism is connected to secularism and immanentism.  We should strive for a peaceful, coexistence, but never at the expense of our faith (e.g., having denied our faith by conceding to laws which require us to act against it).