Pondered In My Heart

Lent Calendars 2020

Lydia has once again illustrated beautiful calendars for the upcoming season of Great Lent, one for the Eastern Rites and one for the Latin Rite. Young and old alike have enjoyed using these for many years. You can print them out and color a space a day as a visual reminder of our progress through the season.

*Please note: The numbers on the calendars are the numbered days of Lent, not calendar dates.

Download Lent 2020 Latin      Download Lent 2020 Byzantine

Please feel free to share with your parishes, homeschool groups, catechism and ECF classes, etc.

A blessed, holy Lent to all of you!

Lent Calendars 2019

Lydia has once again illustrated a beautiful calendar for the upcoming season of Lent, and this year she has made two: one for the Eastern Rites as well as one for the Latin!

Young and old alike have enjoyed using these for years. You can print them out and color a space a day as a visual reminder of our progress through the season.

Please feel free to share with your parishes, homeschool groups, catechism and ECF classes, or whomever you wish.

Download Lent 2019 Byzantine

Download Lent 2019 Latin

A few notes about the Great Fast for those of you in the Latin Rite who are curious about the East: As you can see, Lent starts on the Monday before Ash Wednesday. The First Sunday, called the Sunday of Orthodoxy, refers to the triumph over Iconoclasm and the restoration of the use of icons and holy images. There are five All Souls Saturdays (three occur in Lent) in which to commemorate and pray for the dead, as opposed to All Souls Day celebrated in November.

Two Things

It is that time of year when we mourn the 44 year old legalized culture of death in this country. Leila has posted some thoughts on this matter, namely that

 "the remedy for the great pain and evil we are suffering as a nation is this sacred covenant given by God, on which all society is based, for the very sake of the child. It’s God’s plan. There is no other plan."

Please do go and read her post if you haven't already. The rampant breakdown of the family and abandonment of God's plan is the cause of so much sorrow and evil in our culture today.

And secondly, please note that a 54 Day Rosary Novena begins tomorrow that will end on the vigil of the feast of St. Joseph, patron of fathers and of the domestic church- the family. Chari and Willa have posted some information on this novena, and you can sign up to receive daily reminders to pray. The novena consists of praying a five decade rosary in petition for 27 days (three novenas), followed by 27 days of praying in thanksgiving. We will be praying and asking St. Joseph's intercession especially for husbands and fathers, marriages and the family.

I'm sure you know of marriages in dire need of prayer and healing. Please consider joining in this rosary novena to pray for them.

Note the picture up top is of Eliza praying the rosary by herself. When you ask her to pray for someone, she gets right on it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

O Lord Jesus Christ, our God, the God of all mercies and bounties, whose mercy is immeasurable and whose love for people is beyond expression, we your unworthy servants bow to your majesty and now humbly render thanks to your loving kindness for all the benefits you have bestowed upon us. We glorify you. We praise you. We extol you as our Lord, Savior, Master and Benefactor. Accept our petitions and grant that henceforth your Holy Church, this family, this city and our beloved country may be delivered from every hostile assault. Having enabled us to live in the grace of your love, grant us peace and tranquility. Instill in our hearts and increasing love for one another. Grant that we may grow in all virtues, receive your benefits of grace, mercy, and love and always give thanks to you, together with your Eternal Father, and your all Holy, Gracious, and Life-Creating Spirit, now and ever and forever. Amen.

Art for Our Lady: Marian ATC Swap 2016

We will once again be hosting an Artist Trading Card swap of Marian artwork to honor Our Lady during the month of May!

Artist trading cards are miniature pieces of artwork created for the purpose of trading with others. At 2.5 x 3.5 inches in size, ATCs are quite small, making them fun to create and collect and trade. If you are a regular reader here you know that we hold ATC swaps in May for our Blessed Mother and in November to honor All Saints.

Artist Trading Cards can be made using any art medium you like such as colored pencils, graphite, watercolor, acrylic, marker, pen and ink - whatever you like! Artists of all ages are welcome to join. We also like to encourage busy mothers to participate as well, whether you create art alongside your children or take some quiet personal time for a little Mother Culture.

Some possibilities for Marian artwork inspiration: titles of Our Lady (see Litany of Loreto), mysteries of the rosary, devotions and (approved) apparitions, hymns, prayers, antiphons, symbols, traditional images or classic paintings.You can see posts on previous ATC Swaps here.

The swap will work the same as the previous ones. Here are the details:

• Each participant will create five ATC's to mail out and will receive five different cards in return, usually from five different artists.
• Everyone will send their cards to me. We sort them out roughly by age group/ability of the creator and then mail the cards back out to their new recipients. When you mail your cards to me, please include a self-addressed stamped envelope that I can use to send your new cards to you.
• International swappers are most welcome! It's always extra fun to receive cards from a faraway place. 
• The swap is open to all ages.
• Each card should be labeled on the back with the creator's name and however much info you'd like to share.
• If you are interested in participating please leave a comment or send me an email at kimberlee (at) beadsofmercy (dot) com with ATC swap in the subject, and I will send you further information. Anyone can join in and definitely the more the merrier.
• Please mail your cards to me postmarked by Tuesday, May 31st.
• If you have a blog (or use other social media) please post about the swap to spread the word.

Enjoy creating lovely artwork to honor Our Lady! We look forward to hearing from you.

And a belated Happy Mother's Day to all of the mothers out there! (I had hoped to post this on Sunday, but alas I didn't get to it.)

Easter 2016

Catching up here with photos from our Easter weekend - The Easter Bunny showed up on cue on Holy Saturday! We spotted this critter across the yard stationed right under one of my bush cherries, charmingly sitting up on its hind legs to break off the flowered branches to munch. It was so cute we didn't chase it away, and besides, eating the bush seemed better than eating all of my tulips like the rabbits usually do.

We always spend Holy Saturday doing our baking together and preparing our various traditional Easter treats with which to break the fast.

We've been making these candy nests for years - they mostly seem like a good excuse to eat Cadbury mini eggs. ;-)

Eliza just had to get up and dance when she heard her brother practicing the organ. It's his tradition to play the exuberant, triumphant Widor Toccata for his postlude after the Easter Vigil - nothing says Easter's almost here in our house like hearing the Widor on Holy Saturday afternoon.

Lydia made the kifli (Hungarian filled cookies) at one end of the counter while I made the kalacs (our Hungarian Easter bread), nut and poppy rolls at the other.

Like mother, like daughter we were with our dueling rolling pins at both ends of the island,

while Mary Rose and Anna were the chocolate egg team. We've been making these for years, in lieu of buying Easter candy (recipes here). Coconut, peanut butter, and maple pecan.

While we ladies toil away in the kitchen Jonathan just gets to wander around looking handsome, practicing the organ and chant. 

Filled cookies, rugalug, and sugar cookies awaiting their fancy frosting.

Nut and poppy rolls rising in the sun.

The finished kalacs (recipe here).

And then finally our kitchen work is done and the real excitement begins as we prepare for the Easter Vigil. We shed our dark colors and put on our Easter finery, and we know that the church will do the same.

The Eater Vigil begins with the Easter fire outside the church,

then the light of the risen Christ is carried in and spread throughout to all. As the missal explains, The Solemn Easter Vigil service is intended to show liturgically how life and grace flow to us from the death of our Lord. It is the beginning of the most beautiful liturgy and the most joyful day of the whole year.

Of course we return in the morning for Easter Sunday Mass as well. The altar is beautifully decorated with flowers and the scent of incense, beeswax and lilies combine to enhance our joy even more.

This year the children's chorus sang for the first time at Mass on Easter morning as well. My three choristers were excited and happy to be assisting at Mass in this way on such a joyful day!

When we get home after the Vigil in the wee hours of the morning we break the fast with our first tastes of our Easter treats, and Eliza delights in removing all the purple coverings from our statues throughout our house.

After Easter Sunday Mass and our traditional photo shoot on the couch we headed outside for a little Easter parade. Despite the chilly weather, our joy could not be contained and we strolled through the neighborhood with musical accompaniment. The little ones fairly danced along, skipping and prancing to the music.

We may have started yet another new tradition. :-)

I love what Divine Intimacy says about the unique all-consuming, overarching, rock-solid joy that is Easter:

"This is the day which the Lord hath made; let us be glad and rejoice therein." This is the most excellent day, the happiest day in the whole year, because it is the day when "Christ, our Pasch, has been sacrificed." Christmas, too, is a joyous feast, but whereas Christmas vibrates with a characteristic note of sweetness, the Paschal solemnity resounds with an unmistakable note of triumph; it is joy for the triumph of Christ, for His victory.  ~

In this world there are many ephemeral joys, based on fragile, insecure foundations; but the Paschal joy is solidly grounded on the knowledge that we are in the truth, the truth which Christ brought to the world and which He confirmed by His Resurrection. The Resurrection tells us that our faith is not in vain, that our hope is not founded on a dead man, but on a living one, the Living One par excellence, whose life is so strong that it vivifies, in time as in eternity, all those who believe in Him.

Once again, Happy Easter! Resurréxit Sicut Díxit!

Easter Monday! (from Eliza)

 Regina Cæli

Regina Caeli from Cynecam on Vimeo.

Regina cæli, laetáre, allelúia.
Quia quem meruísti portare, allelúia.
Resurréxit, sicut dixit, allelúia.
Ora pro nóbis Déum, allelúia.

O Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia.
For He whom thou didst merit to bear, alleluia.
Has risen, as He said, alleluia.
Pray for us to God, alleluia.

 

O Filii et Filiae

O Filii from Cynecam on Vimeo.

 Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

O filii et filiae,
Rex caelestis, Rex gloriae
morte surrexit hodie, Alleluia

Ex mane prima Sabbati
ad ostium monumenti
accesserunt discipuli, Alleluia

Et Maria Magdalene,
et Iacobi, et Salome
Venerunt corpus ungere, Alleluia

In albis sedens angelus
praedixit mulieribus:
In Galilaea est Dominus, Alleluia

Et Ioannes apostolus
cucurrit Petro citius,
monumento venit prius, Alleluia

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

Ye sons and daughters of the Lord,
the King of glory, King adored,
this day Himself from death restored, Alleluia

All in the early morning gray
went holy women on their way,
to see the tomb where Jesus lay, Alleluia

Of spices pure a precious store
in their pure hands these women bore,
to anoint the sacred Body o'er, Alleluia

The straightaway one in white they see,
who saith, "seek the Lord: but He
is risen and gone to Galilee," Alleluia

This told they Peter, told John;
who forthwith to the tomb are gone,
but Peter is by John outrun, Alleluia

from the Liber Usualis, hymn by by Jean Tisserand, O.F.M. (d. 1494)

A Treat for the Feast: Chair of St. Peter

 

Cathedra Petri (St. Peter's Chair) in the Vatican, Photo by Dnalor-01 from Wikimedia Commons, used under license CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Tomorrow, February 22nd, is the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter: we celebrate the primacy of St. Peter as the first Pope. The feast is of even greater significance to us personally as our church is an apostolate of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, rendering it one of our patronal feasts.

You can read more about this feast day here at Catholic Culture, here at the Catholic Encyclopedia, and here at EWTN. Fr. Longenecker also has some humorous thoughts about it in this old post here.

We like to celebrate the day with a special treat, namely this Lemon Cheese Braid, as it features the papal colors of yellow and white.

We use this recipe from King Arthur, and it has become one of Lydia's specialties. As written, one recipe makes two large braids, but she makes a recipe and a half so that there are some smaller braids to share as well. She follows the recipe, noting that sour cream can be used if you don't have any yogurt on hand. One eight once package of cream cheese makes a nice generous amount of cheese filling for one recipe. Lydia uses Ina Garten's lemon curd recipe found here.This recipe makes a lot of lemon curd, plenty for the breads with a lot leftover. This is not a problem, as we don't think it's possible to ever have too much lemon curd. ;-) We plan to save the extra and make Lemon Curd Thumb Prints next Sunday (just use the curd instead of jam).

Enjoy a blessed feast day tomorrow!

O God, who by delivering to Thy blessed Apostle Peter the keys of the kingdom of heaven, didst confer upon him the pontifical power of binding and of loosing, grant that, by the help of his intercession, we may be freed from the bonds of sin. -Collect, Feast of St. Peter's Chair

Thoughts for Lent - Prayer or Penance? (both)

"God certainly gives us the grace to overcome our evil tendencies; but we must also use our own efforts, which consist in voluntary mortification: 'They that are Christ's have crucified their flesh, with the vices and concupiscences.' (Galatians 5:24) The purpose of corporal mortification is not to inflict pain and privation on the body for the pleasure of making it suffer, but to discipline and control all its tendencies which are contrary to the life of grace.

~

"We must curb ourselves in order to avoid falls; we must prune the useless or harmful branches n order to avoid deviation; we must direct toward good the forces which, left to themselves, might lead us into sin. For these reasons mortification, although it is not an end in itself nor the principal element in the Christian life, occupies a fundamental place in it and is an absolutely indispensable means toward attaining a spiritual life. No one can escape this law without closing off all access to eternal salvation, to sanctity.

~

"St. Teresa warns us that 'if prayer is to be genuine it must be reinforced with this practice of mortification, for prayer and self-indulgence do not go together.' It would be an illusion to think that we can reach intimacy with God without the serious exercise of physical mortification. In this regard, we must take care that love of our body and of our physical welfare does not cause us to reject all penitential practices under the pretext that they will ruin our health. In reality, there are many corporal mortifications which, without the slightest danger to our health, have the great advantage of keeping our spirit of generosity on the alert by the voluntary acceptance of a little physical suffering. If we are to be generous in this respect, we must 'rid ourselves of all inordinate love for our body,' that is, of all excessive preoccupation about our health; and we must put aside all anxiety about food, clothing, rest and comfort. 'This body of ours,' says St. Teresa, 'has one fault: the more you indulge it, the more things it discovers to be essential to it...and if there is any reasonable pretext for indulgence, however little necessity for it there may be, the poor soul is deceived and prevented from making progress.'

"Anyone who wants to advance on the road to sanctity and union with God must be ready to sacrifice everything, even in the physical order, to the point of 'giving up his skin and everything else for Christ,' as St. John of the Cross says.

~

"This is the predominant thought of the day. We read in the Epistle (Joel 2:12-19), 'Thus saith the Lord: be converted to Me with all your heart, in fasting and in weeping and in mourning. And rend your hearts, and not your garments.' Compunction and conversion of heart hold the first place, because the corporal penance that does not proceed from a contrite heart has no value. On the other hand, corporal penance prepares the soul for conversion, insofar as it is the means of reaching it. We read in the Preface, 'O God, by fasting You repress sin, elevate the soul, and give it strength and recompense.' One who wishes to reach the goal, which is the renewing of the spirit, must embrace willingly the means which leads to it, namely, corporal penance. At the same time, he must remember that compunction of heart gives value to corporal penance, which in its turn engenders and gives expression to compunction of heart. The two elements are never separated.

~

"The Gospel (Matthew 6:16-21) says further that all penance must be accomplished sincerely and joyfully, without vain ostentation. 'When you fast, be not as the hypocrites, sad. For they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast.' Vanity and pride make even the most austere penitential practices useless and sometimes even sinful; they destroy their substance and value, and reduce them to mere externals, empty of all content. Hence when you mortify your body, take care to mortify your self-love still more."

-reflections from Divine Intimacy by Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, O.C.D.

In Nómine Jesu Omne Genu Flectátur

Today we celebrated the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus.

In the Name of Jesus let every knee bow, of those that are in Heaven, on Earth, and under the Earth: and let every tongue confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father. O Lord our Lord: how admirable is Thy Name in the whole earth! Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.  - Introit, Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus (Philippians 2:10-11, Psalm 8:2)

O God, who didst constitute Thine only-begotten Son the Saviour of mankind, and didst bid Him to be called Jesus: mercifully grant, that we who venerate His holy Name on earth, may fully enjoy also the vision of Him in heaven. - Collect,  Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus

 The Holy Name is unlike any other name on earth. It is itself a prayer, ofttimes repeated continuously by those who seek to pray without ceasing. It is the first utterance that comes to the heart and mind and lips when we are in grave distress - our soul instinctively cries out to the Name that is above all others. It is the Name by which we are saved. It is the Name by which we live and breathe and have our being. This feast day, and this month of January dedicated to the Holy Name, is a perfect time to increase our love and practice devotion to the Holy Name. We can make a prayer card with Philippians 2:9-11 on it, and give it a prominent position in our homes. We can take the time to memorize these verses this month if they are not already known. We can teach our children the custom of bowing our heads whenever we hear His Holy Name. We can encourage older children to pray the litany of the Holy Name as part of their daily prayers. And we can instruct our children to make reparation for sins against the Holy Name. Whenever we hear the Lord's Name taken in vain we silently pray the first few lines of the Divine Praises (or as much of the Praises as can be recited given the circumstances).

Blessed be God.

Blessed be His Holy Name.

Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God and true man.

Blessed be the name of Jesus.

Blessed be His Most Sacred Heart.

Blessed be His Most Precious Blood.

Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.

Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.

Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most holy.

Blessed be her holy and Immaculate Conception.

Blessed be her glorious Assumption.

Blessed be the name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.

Blessed be Saint Joseph, her most chaste spouse.

Blessed be God in His angels and in His Saints.

(Optional) May the heart of Jesus, in the Most Blessed Sacrament, be praised, adored, and loved with grateful affection, at every moment, in all the tabernacles of the world, even to the end of time. Amen.

 At Mass today Father began his sermon with the words of St. Bernard of Clairvaux:

"The Name of Jesus is Light, and Food, and Medicine. It is Light, when it is preached to us; it is Food, when we think upon it; it is the Medicine that soothes our pains when we invoke it. Let us say a word on each of these. Tell me, whence came there, into the whole world, so bright and sudden a light, if not from the preaching of the Name of Jesus? Was it not by the light of this Name that God called us unto [H]is admirable Light? Wherewith being enlightened, and in this light, seeing the Light, we take these words of Paul as truly addressed to ourselves; Heretofore, you were darkness; but now, light in the Lord." (do read the rest of St. Bernard's words here)

 

Litany of the Most Holy Name of Jesus

Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us. 
Jesus, hear us.
Jesus, graciously hear us.

God, the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us .
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Son of the living God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Splendor of the Father, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Brightness of eternal Light, have mercy on us.
Jesus, King of Glory, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Sun of Justice, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Son of the Virgin Mary, have mercy on us.
Jesus, most lovable, have mercy on us.
Jesus, most admirable, have mercy on us.
Jesus, mighty God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Father of the world to come, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Angel of great counsel, have mercy on us.
Jesus, most powerful, have mercy on us.
Jesus, most patient, have mercy on us.
Jesus, most obedient, have mercy on us.
Jesus, meek and humble of heart, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Lover of chastity, have mercy on us.
Jesus, Lover of us, have mercy on us .
Jesus, God of peace, have mercy on us .
Jesus, Author of life, have mercy on us .
Jesus, example of virtues, have mercy on us .
Jesus, zealous lover of souls, have mercy on us .
Jesus, our God, have mercy on us .
Jesus, our Refuge, have mercy on us .
Jesus, Father of the poor, have mercy on us .
Jesus, Treasure of the faithful, have mercy on us .
Jesus, Good Shepherd, have mercy on us .
Jesus, true light, have mercy on us .
Jesus, eternal wisdom, have mercy on us .
Jesus, infinite goodness, have mercy on us .
Jesus, our Way and our Life, have mercy on us .
Jesus, joy of Angels, have mercy on us .
Jesus, king of Patriarchs, have mercy on us .
Jesus, master of Apostles, have mercy on us .
Jesus, teacher of Evangelists, have mercy on us .
Jesus, strength of Martyrs, have mercy on us .
Jesus, light of Confessors, have mercy on us .
Jesus, purity of Virgins, have mercy on us .
Jesus, crown of all Saints, have mercy on us .

Be merciful unto us, spare us, O Jesus!
Be merciful unto us, graciously hear us, O Jesus!

From all evil, Jesus deliver us.
From all sin, Jesus deliver us.
From Thy wrath, Jesus deliver us. 
From the snares of the devil, Jesus deliver us.
From the spirit of uncleanness Jesus deliver us.
From everlasting death, Jesus deliver us.
From the neglect of Thy inspirations, Jesus deliver us.
Through the mystery of Thy holy Incarnation, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy Nativity, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thine Infancy, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy most divine Life, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy labors, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thine agony and passion, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy Cross and dereliction, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy faintness and weariness, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy death and burial, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy Resurrection, Jesus deliver us. 
Through Thine Ascension, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thine Institution of the Most Holy Eucharist, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy Joys, Jesus deliver us.
Through Thy Glory, Jesus deliver us.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord Jesus!
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord Jesus!
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us, O Lord Jesus!

Jesus, hear us.
Jesus, graciously hear us.

Let us pray. -

O Lord Jesus Christ, Who hast said, "Ask and ye shall receive; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you"; grant, we beseech Thee, to us who ask, the gift of Thy most divine love, that with all our heart, words, and works, we may love Thee, and never cease to praise Thee.

Make us, O Lord, to have a perpetual fear and love of Thy Holy Name; for Thou never failest to govern those whom Thou dost solidly establish in Thy love. Who livest and reignest for ever. Amen.

(originally posted January 3, 2010)

Edited to add: In today's excellent sermon Father F. also encouraged us to not be fearful in defending the Holy Name when we hear others using it inappropriately in public. In addition to making silent reparation, we can also ask that others not insult Our Lord by using His name in vain. We can explain that just as we would not insult someone's mother or father or family members by profaning their names, we can ask others to have the same respect for those who are dear to us - God our Father and His Son and Mother, and to refrain from using their names inappropriately. Prudence is required of course to discern the situation, but boldness in defending the holy is ofttimes called for and appropriate.

He also called for restraint in using our Lord's given name in casual conversation as some well-meaning folks are wont to do. It is better to reserve the Holy Name for prayerful use and to employ other means of referring to Our Lord in casual discourse.

Father concluded by reading us the words of St. Bernadine of Siena, as quoted in today's reading in Divine Intimacy:
"O Name of Jesus, exalted above every other Name! O triumphant Name! O joy of Angels! O terror of hell! All hope of pardon, of grace and of glory is found in You! O sweetest Name, You pardon the guilty, You reform evil habits, You fill the timid with divine sweetness and drive away terrifying visions! O glorious Name! By You, the mysteries of eternal life are revealed, souls are inflamed with divine love, strengthened in time of struggle, and freed from all dangers. O desirable Name! Delightful Name! Admirable Name! Venerable Name! Little by little You raise the souls of the faithful by Your gifts and graces to the heights of heaven. All to whom You communicate Your ineffable grandeur, by Your power attain to salvation and glory!”

Let the Holy Name be frequently in our prayers, that it may come naturally to our lips at that time when we will need it most - at the hour of our death.