Posted on January 19, 2020 View all news
Laudetur Jesus Christus! Gelobt sei Jesus Christus!
Sia lodato Gesù Cristo! Praised be Jesus Christ!
*Since the column was written and the bulletin was printed, Fr. Valentine has passed away. He passed away peacefully on January 17 around 8:00 am. His funeral is being handled by the Franciscans. On Wednesday, January 22, they will receive his body at St. Clement’s Church in St. Bernard at 5:00 pm. The visitation will be from 5:30 until 7:00 pm. The Mass of Christian Burial in English will be at 7:00 pm. Father’s burial will be on Thursday, January 23 at 10:00 am at St. Mary’s Cemetery in St. Bernard.
The 7:15 am Low Mass on Monday, January 20 and Friday, January 24 will be Requiem Masses on the third and seventh Day after death respectively. There will be a Solemn Latin Requiem at Old St. Mary’s January 30 at 6:30 pm, the seventh day after burial.
It is with regret that I have to let everyone know that Fr. Valentine currently has a medical condition that will prevent him from returning for the time being. Father has been a stable and generous help to both of our parishes for years, and in particular to the Traditional Mass. Please be sure to keep him in your prayers!
Due to this, I will have to adjust the weekday Mass schedule effective today. Daily Mass at Sacred Heart, until Father is will enough to return, will be suspended. We will maintain Mass on First Friday and First Saturday at 9:00 a.m. Daily Mass at Old St. Mary’s will continue, and any intentions will be transferred to the 7:15 a.m. Mass. Father Adrian and myself will split having two daily Masses to maintain what we can for the time being. I am sure this disappoints some, but we also still remain highly blessed with what is able to be provided. Please be sure to keep Fr. Valentine in your prayers that he returns to health soon. Please also keep Bro. Brent & Bro. Henry in your prayers as they progress to the altar!
Today we return to green vestments for the first time since November. Having completed our commemoration of the birth of the Son of God, we particularly meditated upon His humility this year. The humility that God showed in becoming man for our sakes is quite the meditation and one we will never be able to exhaust. I pray that each of us seeks to grow in greater humility, after Our Lord’s example, throughout our lives. St. Thomas Aquinas defines it as, “the virtue of humility consists in keeping oneself within one’s bounds, not reaching out to things above one, but submitting to one’s superior.”
The example that Our Lord left us is precisely the opposite of pride. Christ said, ‘not my will but yours be done.’ He was obedient to Mary, even though He was God. He submitted to the judgment of the Sanhedrin. He was condemned to death by Pilate. He allowed soldiers to stretch out His hands and crucify Him to the cross. If we want to know how to live and what is the fastest path to Heaven, we need to look no further than Our Lord’s humility. May this be our goal in this new year and the new decade. That we may know ourselves exactly as we are, that we may mortify ourselves, and in doing so become more like Christ and worthy of glory in Heaven.
Finally, please find information near the bulletins today regarding a pilgrimage to the Holy Land that I will be leading in January 2021. We will visit many of the significant places in Our Lord’s life. We will begin in Galilee, staying at the guesthouse at the Mount of the Beatitudes. From there, we will visit all the places around Galilee, including Nazareth, Cana, Capernaum. After Galilee, we will move to Jerusalem, with visits also to Bethlehem & Ein Karem (the birthplace of St. John the Baptist). We will also visit Mount Carmel. There will be Daily Latin Mass, opportunities for prayer, and growth in one’s understanding of Our Lord’s life as the Bible comes alive. If you can make the pilgrimage, you should not hesitate. Space is limited and I will take reservations until July. Have a blessed week ahead!
