Thine Own Service

Thine Own Service

Monthly Archives: November 2014

Advent Notes: Advent I

29 Saturday Nov 2014

Posted by Fr James Bradley in Liturgy

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

advent, liturgy, music, plainchant

IMG_6638

This is the first of a series of reflections for Advent, which I aim to post here in the coming weeks:

As she begins again the round of feasts and fasts that decorate her character, the Church today enters once more into the half-light of Advent, groping toward the New Dawn with the voice of the prophets as guide. This season is marked by the twofold coming of Christ: at his nativity and at the end of time; and so these weeks are themselves layered with meaning, pointing toward both the event of the birth of Christ and his coming-again in glory at the culmination of all things. During these days he is very much the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, and this is drawn out for us in the very first thing we hear as we come to the altar today.

Continue reading →

Homily for Christ the King

23 Sunday Nov 2014

Posted by Fr James Bradley in Homily

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

chrism, christ the king, homily

Apse of the duomo of Pisa

Apse of the duomo of Pisa

On or about Holy Thursday each year the diocesan bishop celebrates what is known as the ‘Chrism Mass’, during which the oils to be used in the celebration of the sacraments in the coming year are blessed or consecrated. The oil of the sick used when a person is seriously ill or dying, and the oil of catechumens used in the rites associated with the sacrament of Holy Baptism, are both blessed, whilst the oil of Chrism is consecrated; the bishop breathing into the oil and mixing with it a sweet-smelling perfume called balsam. This consecration, or setting-aside, is significant because the oil of Chrism signifies the royal dignity in which Christians share by their incorporation into Christ; the one whose very name means ‘anointed’.

Continue reading →

Humanum Conference 2014

21 Friday Nov 2014

Posted by Fr James Bradley in Evangelisation

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

family, humanum, life, love

From humanum.it:

The Complementarity of Man and Woman: An International Colloquium is a gathering of leaders and scholars from many religions across the globe, to examine and propose anew the beauty of the relationship between the man and the woman, in order to support and reinvigorate marriage and family life for the flourishing of human society.

Witnesses will draw from
 the wisdom of their religious tradition and cultural experience as they attest to the power and vitality of the complementary union of man and woman. It is hoped that the colloquium be a catalyst for creative language and projects, as well as for global solidarity, in the work
 of strengthening the nuptial relationship, both for the good of the spouses themselves and for the good of all who depend upon them.

The Colloquium is sponsored by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and co-sponsored by the Pontifical Council for the Family, the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, and
 the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity.

Homily for Trinity XXII

15 Saturday Nov 2014

Posted by Fr James Bradley in Homily

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

advent, heaven, hope, stewardship

Blessed Sacrament chapel of the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, MO

Blessed Sacrament chapel of the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, MO

As we come to the end of this long period of ‘green Sundays’ our hearts begin to anticipate the coming feast of Christ the King and the season of Advent. Already the shops speak to us of the ‘holidays’, of Thanksgiving and of Christmas, and Christians are bound to object (at least a little) to the slow encroachment of Christmas earlier and earlier into the year. We have hardly finished our Easter eggs, it seems, when that dreaded herald of ‘the holiday season’ appears in the form of the most egregious and wily of vegetables, the pumpkin. Now, already, the turkeys have met their grizzly end and await us in the refrigerators of our local stores, whilst vendors dress the most unlikely of items in tinsel and baubles to convince us of their worth as gifts for distant relatives. Today, however, it is the Church that bids us look forward to the coming season—at least of Advent—as she presents to us the parable of the talents from the Gospel according to Saint Matthew. As the liturgical year begins to turn we are presented with this passage today, as a way of preparing us for what is just around the corner.

Continue reading →

Homily for the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica

09 Sunday Nov 2014

Posted by Fr James Bradley in Homily

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

architecture, church, homily, pope

Detail from the Basilica of Saint John Lateran, Rome

Detail from the Basilica of Saint John Lateran, Rome

It is a rare privilege to celebrate the dedication of the basilica of Saint John Lateran on a Sunday, and so it is perhaps a good opportunity for us to reflect on two characteristics presented to us in the liturgical texts appointed for this feast. First, if we look at the title given to today, we see that we are here to commemorate the dedication of a building. We know that the word ‘church’ properly designates not simply an architectural edifice, but the company of believers who are incorporated into the life of Christ through the sacrament of baptism. In the Old Testament the word ekklesia is frequently used to describe a gathering of God’s chosen people above all, as the Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us, ‘for their assembly on Mount Sinai where Israel received the Law and was established by God as his holy people’ (CCC 751). We take that word and apply it in a similar sense when we speak about ‘ecclesiastical institutions’ or ‘ecclesial communities’, and so we have the idea of the Church as a convocation of people in the service of God.

Continue reading →

Homily for All Souls

02 Sunday Nov 2014

Posted by Fr James Bradley in Homily

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

death, eucharist, homily, mass, prayer

Detail from Saint Michael's, Chicago, IL

Detail from Saint Michael’s, Chicago, IL

The Requiem Mass is one of the most startling and pristine acts of Christian worship, with every action and word of the sacred liturgy ordered toward two distinct ends. First, we are summoned to pray for those who have died and who are now enduring the purification necessary to enter the eternal presence of their Divine Master. Secondly, we are called to a stark reminder of our own mortality; of the need to convert our hearts in order not to forfeit that opportunity ourselves; in order not to distance ourselves, through selfish desire, from the mercy of God not simply in this life but for all eternity.

Continue reading →

Homily for All Saints

01 Saturday Nov 2014

Posted by Fr James Bradley in Homily

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

all saints, architecture, Beauty, homily, liturgy, saints

IMG_5954

We are privileged to be here this evening, not simply to offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, but to do so accompanied by the fine music of the English recusant composer William Byrd and in this striking and beautiful church. Byrd himself knew, through his own experience, the precious value of the Most Holy Eucharist. His three settings of the Ordinary of the Mass, for three, four, and five voices, are stark works for individual voices designed to be sung in clandestine gatherings of the Catholic faithful during a dark period of English history. Members of his family were fined for their refusal to attend Protestant worship and many of his compositions draw parallels between the struggles of the Catholic remnant in Protestant England and the People of Israel in captivity and bondage, desperate for the safety of the Promised Land; a land where they might worship the Lord God unhindered. He lived, too, surrounded by the courageous witness of many for the faith. The sacrifice of thousands of men and women for the Catholic faith is as much a harrowing reminder of the potential cost of our baptismal promises, as it is an inspiration for us that, if we are faithful, the reward of abiding in the Lord’s eternal presence is real. As we honour those martyrs of the faith, together with countless other men and women whose lives have been lived in faithful obedience to Christ, we are reminded of the great gift of the Eucharistic sacrifice that sustained them, and we come to offer that supreme act of worship once more here and now as we plead the intercession of those who rejoice to enjoy the beatific vision.

Continue reading →

Enter your email address to follow:

Categories

  • Canon Law
  • Evangelisation
  • Homily
  • Liturgy
    • Beauty
  • Media
  • Music
  • Ordinariate
  • Pope Francis
  • Talk
  • Uncategorized

Tags

advent Anglicanism anglicanorum coetibus Anglican Use apologetics architecture baptism Beauty Benedict XVI bishops BOL2015 BSDW bxvi canon law catechesis catholicism charity christmas church communications communion confession cross discernment discipleship Divine Worship DW: Collects easter ember days eucharist evangelisation extraordinary form faith fid formation fr robert barron heaven holy week homily intentional catholicism law lent liturgy mary mass media mercy morality music new evangelisation new media ordinariate ordination our lady papacy passiontide patrimony plainchant pope pope benedict pope francis pre-lent priesthood reform of the reform sacred heart sacrifice septuagesima sherry weddell social communications social media tracey rowland unity virtue vocation worship

Archives

  • February 2021
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • April 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012

Blog Stats

  • 128,253 hits

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Blog at WordPress.com.

Cancel

 
Loading Comments...
Comment
    ×