Jolly Old Elf?

Recently, Fr. Bob Mills told the story of Saint Nicholas, but he left out my favorite story.  I will take a moment right now and add it here.  As it was already mentioned, St. Nicholas was, in his own day, Nicholas, the bishop of the city of Myra in Asia Minor.  Nicholas was the bishop of the city when the Emperor Constantine summoned together all of the bishops in Christendom to gather in the city of Nicaea to “settle” the issue of the Arian heresy.  The Arians argued that Jesus Christ was not of the same substance of the Father, but rather He was not God at all.  This heresy persists in organizations like the Jehovah’s Witnesses.

The story goes that during the council the arch-heretic Arius himself took the floor to argue his position.  According to the story, Bishop Nicholas was so outraged by the heretical filth spewing forth from the heretic’s mouth that he took the floor.  Overcome by a godly rage, St. Nicholas punched the heretic Arius in the face and laid him out on the floor of the council of Nicaea.

How’s that for your “jolly old elf”?

The Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Today is the day that the Church has set aside to commemorate the conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Typically the Church acknowledges the day that a saint is born into eternal life and, therefore, celebrated the day of their death, however there are a pair of days on the Church calendar that take note of a Holy One’s date of conception. We observer Our Lord’s conception on the Feast of the Annunciation (March 25th, twelve months before Christmas!) and we observe Our Lady’s conception today, December 8th.

In the “High Church” segments of the Anglican Communion, the day is officially “The Feast of the Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.” The Roman-Catholics celebrate “The Feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary.” Therein lies a great deal of controversy for more than one reason.

The doctrine itself may have begun originally in England and the earliest written reference we have to the Feast comes from the 10th century English writer Eadmer. After the Conquest in 1066, the Normans suppressed observance and the legitimacy of the Feast was hotly contested throughout the Middle Ages. The doctrine was defended primarily by Franciscans, especially St. John Duns Scotus. It is surprising for many to learn that the Dominicans, especially St. Thomas Aquinas, did not believe in the Immaculate Conception. He did, however, agree to accept what Holy Mother Church decided on the issue. Pope Sixtus IV made the observance a Universal Feast, but refused to define the doctrine as dogma and therefore granted Roman-Catholics the freedom to accept or refuse the teaching without fears of being labeled a heretic.

In 1845, Pope Pius IX promulgated the Papal Bull Ineffabilis Deus. The document stated, “We declare, pronounce and define that the doctrine which holds that the Blessed Virgin Mary, at the first instant of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace of the Omnipotent God, in virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of mankind, was preserved immaculate from all stain of original sin, has been revealed by God, and therefore should firmly and constantly be believed by all the faithful.” From that point on for Roman-Catholics, at least officially speaking, the matter was settled. Declaring a tenet of the faith a dogma means that for all intents and purpose if one does not believe the dogma, they are outside of the faith. In order to be considered a Roman-Catholic, you must believe in the Immaculate Conception.

For Roman-Catholics there is no discussion on the matter. We, however, are obviously not Roman-Catholics. Yet we cannot simply dismiss every teaching of the Magisterium with a gallant charge of “Popery” either. At one point, many of us would have called vestments and the Real Presence “mere popery” as well. I have said before that we are all about rescuing the babies of the catholic faith from the bathwater thrown out by the Reformation. We, as Christians who profess to be part of the One Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, must endeavor to find whether a legitimate tenet of the Faith or an inappropriate addition to the faith (along the lines of Limbo or the sale of indulgences).

There are principally three Scriptures used as proof of the doctrine. These are Genesis 3:15; Song of Solomon 4:7; and St. Luke 1:28. According to Roman-Catholic interpretation, the “enmity” between the woman and the Devil spoken of in that passage refers to the fact that the woman who would ultimately fulfill the prophecy, the Mother of God, would never be subject to sin and corruption and, thus, always at odds with the Devil. That certainly is one way of interpreting the passage, but it is far from a necessary interpretation. Likewise, Song of Songs 4:7 reads, “You are fair my love, and there is no spot in you.” “Spot” in that passage is macula in the underlying Latin. Being without stain or spot or blemish (of sin) would make one “Immaculate,” hence the name of the feast. However, once again, although the reading is possible, it is by no means the only way of interpreting the verse. The same may be said of the passage from the Gospel according to Saint Luke where Roman-Catholic interpreters take “Full of Grace” to mean “conceived without original sin.” All three of these passages might be read to support the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception or they might be read otherwise. Scriptural evidence is, in short, non-conclusive.

Arguments from the Church Fathers are abundant but not entirely persuasive. Similarly, the arguments from reason are not entirely conclusive. The primary argument from reason suggest that if God had the power to preserve His mother from sin, and it was fitting that He do so, then clearly He would do it. After all, they assert, if you could preserve your mother from all corruption, wouldn’t you?

The history of the doctrine becomes far more interesting in 1858 when a young French girl reported seeing a young woman while gathering firewood. She would have around seventeen encounters with the woman whom, two years later, the Roman-Catholic bishops would officially declare was, in fact, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Of significance to this issue is the fact that on one of their encounters, the Blessed Virgin Mary declared “I am the Immaculate Conception.” It is truly is the case that the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to St. Bernadette at Lourdes, that would seem to settle it. After all, if the Blessed Virgin Mary herself says, “I was conceived immaculately,” who are we to argue?
It seems as though the issue of how we should address the Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary depends largely on how much credence one may place on private revelation. Did Bernadette really see the Blessed Virgin Mary? Did the Blessed Virgin Mary really say, “I am the Immaculate Conception”? If we cannot base doctrine on the Apocrypha, can we base it on private interpretation? I would love for the scholars of the International Communion of the Charismatic Episcopal Church to address this issue. I’m not convinced, however, it’s made the top ten list just yet.

Almighty God, who by the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin did make her a worthy habitation for Your Son and did by His foreseen death preserve her from all stain of sin: grant, we beseech You, that aided by her intercession, we may live in your presence without sin: We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.   Amen.

The Feast of Saint Nicholas of Myra

Yesterday was the Feast of Saint Nicholas of Myra, a bishop in the days of the Council of Nicaea.  Since his feast was on Sunday this years, we will observe it today.  Fr. Robert Mills, the pastor of St. John the Divine, Palatka, and St. Francis, Flagler Estates, has contributed this article which ran in his local paper.

Saint Nicholas is one of the most popular figures of the Christmas Season. He was the fourth century saint who is the inspiration of our modern day Santa Claus. Nicolas was born near Myra in Lycia, a port on the Mediterranean Sea serving the busy seas lanes that linked the seaports of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. 

Nicholas was fortunate, coming from one of the cities wealthiest families. Even with all their wealth, his parents taught him to be generous to others. He came to understand that helping others would indeed make one richer in life than all the wealth of the world.  Legend tells us, that one day, Nicholas heard about a rich man in Myra who had lost all his money when his business failed. The man had three daughters, all wishing to be married. Unfortunately their father had no money for their marriages. Besides who would marry them, he thought, since their father was such a failure? In time they ran out of food and the man in desperation decided to sell one of his daughters into slavery. If he did this, the rest of them might survive. That night before the first daughter was to be sold, Nicholas, with a small bag of gold in his hand, approached their house, and tossing the gold through an open window, quickly ran into the darkness.

The next morning, the father found the bag of gold lying on the floor next to his bed. He had no idea where it came from. He went over the list of his friends and business associates and realized that none of them would or even could do such a thing as this.

He thanked God for this unexpected gift and his spirits rose higher than they had been for a long time. He arranged for his first daughter’s wedding. Fortunately there was enough money left over for the rest of them to live on for almost a year. As each day went by he wondered: “Who gave him the gold? Where did it come from?”

By the end of the year, the family again had run out of money. The father, once again, desperate and seeing no other way, decided the second daughter had be sold. But Nicholas, hearing about it, came by night to their window, and again tossed in another bag of gold. The next morning the father rejoiced and thanked God for his blessings. But once again he wondered who was the stranger who had given them all this gold?

Night after night, the father waited and watched by the window. As the year passed by their money, once again ran out. One night he heard quiet steps approaching his house and suddenly a bag of gold dropped onto the floor. The father ran out of his house as quickly as he could, and finally caught up with the man who threw the money into his window. He recognized Nicholas, since the young man came from a well known family.
 
“Why did you give us the gold?” the father asked.
“Because you needed it,” Nicholas answered.
“But why didn’t you let us know who you were?” the man asked.
“Because it is good to give and have only God know about it.”
     
Nicholas later became the Bishop of Myra, but it is as a love of children that he is best remembered today. While he lived he gave the children he met small gifts. His kindness, which always managed to surprise them, touched their hearts, and they learned from this special man what a beautiful thing giving is. As a bearer of gifts to children, his name was brought to America by the Dutch colonists in New York, from whom he is popularly known as Santa Claus.
 
Almighty God, who in thy love didst give to thy servant Nicholas of Myra a perpetual name for deeds of kindness both on land and sea: Grant, we pray thee, that thy Church may never cease to work for the happiness of children, the safety of sailors, the relief of the poor, and the help of those tossed by tempests of doubt or grief; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.   Amen

The Feast of Saint Catherine of Alexandria

I was a bad Dominican (wannabe) this past week.  I was off in Orlando at a teachers’ conference and then I was on vacation.  I let a day which truly deserved notice slip by without taking notice.  I intend to make amends on one of the few ferial days this month.

Saint Catherine of Alexandria, along with Saint Mary Magdalene, is one of the principal patronesses of the Order of Preacher.  When a young girl, this daughter of the Governor of Alexandria (a tremendously important city in the Roman Empire), declared to her parents that she would someone whose intellect, beauty, status, and wealth surpassed her own.  In her later teenage years she became a convert to Christianity and dedicated her virginity to the LORD, thus becoming a bride of Christ and “marrying” one who did exceeded her standards on all fronts.  

She earned her spot as the co-patroness of the Order of Preachers when she was but twenty-three years old.  As the daughter of the Governor of Alexandria she was able to meet the Emperor Maximinus.  At the time, the Emperor was engaged in outrageous persecutions of Christians and St. Catherine took it upon herself to confront the Emperor and convince him to convert to Christianity.  She succeeded in converting the wife of the Emperor, but the Emperor himself refused and ordered fifty of his scholars and philosophers to dispute with the young girls.  She deftly refuted the arguments of each scholar and philosopher in turn, resulting in the Maximinus executing each in turn.  After refuting every sage the Emperor could throw at her, the tyrant ordered her to be executed. 

Saint Catherine was to be executed on a torturous device known as the breaking wheel.  Essentially, a person was bound to a large wagon wheel, beaten to death, and then hoisted up into a public place so that their death might be a warning for others.  As St. Catherine was brought to her own Golgotha, she touched the breaking wheel and the device shattered.  At that point the executioners beheaded the young lady.  Nevertheless, the breaking wheel became known as Catherine’s Wheel. 

St. Catherine is counted among the Fourteen Holy Helpers, saints whose intercessions are thought to be especially fruitful, and Saint Joan of Arc declared that she heard the voice of St. Catherine giving her advice. 

Saint Catherine is who every Christian father should desire his daughter to be.  She was refined, chaste, intelligent, and wealthy.  On top of that, she was a fearless defender of the Christian faith, laying her life down to defend both Christ and His Church.  Even more so, she was able to effectively refute the greatest pagan philosophers of the day and make converts of many adversaries, including none less than the empress herself!  May all our daughters be just like this blessed saint.  May they live three times as a long and die peacefully surrounded their loving family!

Almighty God, who gave grace to Your holy martyr Catherine of Alexandria to cleverly silence the wisdom of godless and wear the brilliant crown of martyrdom: strengthen your servants by that same grace, that we may endure reproach and persecution and faithfully bear witness to the name of Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

The Symbolism of the Advent Wreath

So about this time of year, every year, Christians throughout Europe and North America bring out their Advent Wreaths.  Four candles adorn a wreath laid horizontally and are lit for each respective Sunday of the Advent season.  Usually, these candles are arranged so that they correspond to the liturgical colors of each Sunday. 

In Latin-rite (Roman-Catholic) services, there are three purple or violet candles and one candle that is pink or rose-colored.  The liturgical color for Advent, being a “semi-penitential” season—really more preparatory than penitential—is violet and it makes sense for the candles to match that color.  The Third Sunday of Advent is also called Gaudete Sunday because the first word of the Introit, a sung verse that begins the service, was Gaudete, meaning “rejoice.”  Keeping in mind that, though Advent is a season of preparation, if not penitence, we are still celebrating Christ’s Incarnation, His birth into the world and the beginning of the end of the wait for the Messiah. It is necessary, in light of that joyful truth, to maintain some joviality even in Advent.  Thus there is one Sunday, Gaudete Sunday, when the somber mood is lightened just a bit and the violet vestments are replaced with a lighter rose-colored vestments.  This is why in many Advent Wreaths you have three violet candles and a rose candle.

Interestingly enough, many Anglicans have adopted a usage from what is called the Sarum Rite.  This was the liturgical usage from Salisbury Cathedral in southwest England.  During the Middle Ages is was an alternative to the Gregorian Rite.  According to that tradition, the liturgical color for the season of Advent is blue, not violet, and there is no Sunday in which the liturgical ministers where rose-colored vestments.  This explains why some Anglican churches use four blue candles instead of the violet and rose-colored candles.

What is the significance of these candles?  What is their meaning and symbolism in the ancient church?  Truth be told, they have no significance in the ancient church.  Advent Wreaths were, most likely, only used as a Christian decoration and devotion since the seventeenth century!  The pre-Christian Germans used evergreen wreaths in a variety or religious contexts, many of which Christian appropriated and “converted.”  But the most likely “inventor” of the Advent Wreath was a German named Johann Hinrich Wichern.  In 1839, while working at an inner city orphanage, Wichern grew weary of being asked how long until Christmas would come.  Finally he designed the first Advent Wreath as a visual method of letting the boys know how many days there were until Christmas.  There was one red candle for each weekday, including Saturday, and one large white candle for the four Sundays.  Eventually, although the devotion became popular, the daily candles dropped out and only the candles for the various Sundays remained.  As it merged into liturgical usage—Wichern was a Protestant—the candles came to correspond with the liturgical colors of the days.

So, I’m sure you’ve been asked (if you’ve not asked the question yourself), what do the candles represent?  They represent how many Sundays there are left before Christmas.  Many pastors have tried to assign a virtue or ideal to the candles.  Some have done a good job of that.  What was the original meaning of the lit candles?  They meant there was one less Sunday before Christmas.

Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon, a pastor in the Antiochan Orthodox Church and senior editor of Touchstone Magazine, wrote a wonderful essay on the topic of Advent from the Orthodox perspective in Orthodoxy Today.

An example of a Wichern Advent Wreath

The Feast of Saint Andrew

Saint Andrew the First Called

Today is the Feast of Saint Andrew the Apostle.  Andrew is referred to by the Greeks as the Protokletos, or “the first called.”  The first chapter of St. John’s account of the Gospel records that two of St. John the Baptist’s disciples had been with the Forerunner when he declared of Jesus, “Behold the Lamb of God!”  Two of the Baptist’s followers left and followed Jesus before one of them, Saint Andrew, went and found his brother, Simon.  Scripture records that Andrew “first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which is translated, the Christ).  And he brought him to Jesus.  Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah.  You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone).” (St. John 1:41-42)  Thus, it was Andrew who brought the Prince of the Apostles to Jesus in the first place.  Some who like to assert the authority of Constantinople (whose patron is St. Andrew) over Rome, like to refer to St. Andrew as “Peter before there was Peter.”

When Jesus began preparing to feed the 5,000, He asked Phillip where they might get the food to feed all those people.  St. Andrew chimed in with “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?”  How could St. Andrew have known that?  He must have been, as they say these days, “working the crowd.”  Rather than hanging around with Jesus as “the armor bearer” of so many modern pastors, St. Andrew was out with the people, engaging not only the men of the multitude, but also the children.  He had such fellowship with the people that he knew what some small child had brought for lunch.  The child was clearly a boy scout, by the way, since he alone among the whole multitude was prepared enough to bring something to eat!

In Chapter 12 of St. John’s version of the Gospel, some Greek men wish to speak to Jesus.  They approach Philip and say, “Sir, we would see Jesus.”  Philip, the Scriptures say, went and told St. Andrew, and St. Andrew, in turn, went and brought the men to Jesus.  One can almost see an awkward Philip approaching his friend and saying, “These guys want to see Jesus.  What should we do?” and one might likewise imagine St. Andrew looking at his fellow apostle with confusion.  St. Andrew would have walked up to the Greeks, shook their hands and said, “Hi, guys.  I’m Andrew.  Come with me and I’ll take you to Jesus.”  He would have gotten all their names too (and probably remembered them later)!

Saint Andrew was one of those people of whom it is said, “He never met a stranger.”  Everywhere he went he fellowshipped with those around him.  He made friends and he shared with them the greatest treasure he had, that was Jesus the Christ.  Not many of us go off into the mission field.  Fewer still go into an area that could really be called an “unreached area,” a place where the Gospel has never been preached.  Most of us, however, go into the mission field of our own workplace every day.  Every day we encounter someone who needs to see Jesus.  They might not know that they need to see Jesus, but they do need him nonetheless.  May we all, like Saint Andrew, have the grace to bring our loved ones, our friends, and even strangers to our Lord and Savior.  They, too, would see Jesus.

On a minimally related note, please pray for St. Andrew’s Parish in Manchester, TN.  They are in need of a pastor and are praying for God’s man to be raised up for them.

Almighty God, who gave such grace to your apostle Andrew that he readily obeyed the call of your Son Jesus Christ, and brought his brother with him: Give unto us, who are called by your Word, grace to follow him without delay, and to bring those near to us into his gracious presence; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Season of Advent

Today is the First Sunday of Advent.  The name of the season comes from the Latin Adventus, literally “to come.”  It has become painfully apparent that the world thinks Christmas begins a little before Thanksgiving and continues right up until Christmas Day.  After that, the world will tolerate no conversation about the holiday unless it has to do with shopping, returns, or special discounts on knick—knacks not to be need for another year.   In contrast to this, the Church celebrates and major event for days, if not weeks.  We observe Easter not for one day but for fifty days.  Christmas, as the Feast of the Incarnation, is celebrated for twelve days.  In fact, The Twelve Days of Christmas describes not the twelve days before the holiday but rather the twelve days that follow culminating with the Feast of the Epiphany.  Technically speaking, and I encourage everyone to do this, you should greet everyone with “Merry Christmas” up until January sixth.

Not only does the Church observe holidays for longer than just one day, we also take time to really get ourselves psyched up for the feast.  In preparation for the Feast of the Resurrection, Easter, we fast for forty days.  That season is called Lent.  Likewise, prior to the Feast of the Incarnation, Christmas, we fast for four weeks.  Those weeks are times of prayer and fasting, examinations of conscience, and generally stripping away of elements of your life that prevent you from fully giving yourself over to Christ.

The world does the exact opposite.  For the world, these are days of Christmas parties, candies and confections, cookies and cakes, Christmas cards, and pretty packages tied up with ribbons and bows.  It is the time of Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Grinch.  Ok, I love the Grinch, probably because it’s the least non-religious of all the so-called Christmas Carols.  Just ask yourself if your favorite “Christmas Carol” has anything to do with the birth of the Messiah.  If it does not, it cannot be called as “Christmas Carol” since those are about Jesus.  Christmas literally finds its origin in “Christ is Sent.”  If your favorite Christmas Carol doesn’t mention Jesus, then it’s not a real Christmas Carol; it’s a Yule Song instead.  Sorry, it’s one of my normal rants this time of year.

It seems impossibly to remove society’s effect on the season.  I don’t imagine that I’ll ever convince my boss that our annual Christmas party ought to be postponed until the time between Christmas and Epiphany.  My wife won’t let me postpone putting up the Christmas Tree until Christmas Eve.  I’ll console myself by calling it the Advent Bush for a few weeks.  Nevertheless, it is vitally important that Christians take the few weeks that we have before Christmas to prepare our hearts and minds to celebrate the Incarnation of Our Lord Jesus Christ.  In between the trappings of the Holiday Season, be sure to find some time to carve out for prayer and fasting and really getting yourself ready for His Coming.  May you have a blessed Advent.

Saint Lewis

Yesterday was the anniversary of the death of someone whom I feel truly embodies the spirit of the Dominicans.  On November 22^nd, the very same day on which Aldous Huxley and John F. Kennedy died, Clive Staples Lewis shuffled off this mortal coil and was born into eternal life.  Lewis, who was known as Jack to his friends, suffered the grievous loss of his mother while a child, partially as a result of that trauma, and partially as a result of his intellectual prep school education, he rejected God altogether and became a devout, if such a word may be used in context, atheist.

Having become a professor at Oxford University, Lewis came into contact with some of the greatest minds of his day and age.  He became close friends with the likes of J. R. R. Tolkien, Charles Williams, Dorothy Sayers, and many others.  He began to note their religion and faith.  He noted their morality and piety.  Frankly, this confused him.  He underwent a process of thinking which he later gave to the older Pevensie children in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. C. S. Lewis looked at Tolkien, Sayers, and Williams and said of their Christian faith, either they are crazy, they are liars, or they are correct.  He knew from their moral character that they were not liars.  Anyone could tell from being around the group for any length of time that they were not crazy.  In Lewis’ mind, that left only one option.  They were right!

This brought Lewis into a process of conversion that ultimately allowed him to become, as some have called him, “The Apostle to the Skeptics.”  His writings can be found in every book store in the English speaking world and have been translated into countless other languages.  He has inspired authors, television shows, songs, movies, and even video games.  His influence can be felt in virtually every Christian denomination in North America and Europe.  His writings are spiritual classics on par with the great writers of the Middle Ages.

When C. S. Lewis converted to Christianity, his gifts converted with him.  His wit, his intellect and his ability to write clearly and persuasively all were used by the God for the service of Jesus Christ.  His influence is so profound that one could easily say that his writing and influence have set the world on fire.  May we all be so effective in our writings and teachings that we, too, light the world on fire!

This week is going to be a busy week for everyone.  It is my intention to write some reflections on C. S. Lewis this week.  I’ll probably write something about Thanksgiving this week too, although I’m feeling rather grinchy right now, so I’ll have to readjust my mindset before then…

Clive Staple Lewis in a great big chair with a great big book!

The Blessing of Holy Water

An icon depicting St. Arsenios bringing forth Holy Water

Our parish, like many, if not most, churches in the CEC, rents space.  We rent a university chapel, but during the week, we have no idea what has gone on in that building.  Again, like many in the CEC, we come in every Sunday morning and establish the Altar of God, line up rows of chairs, run cable for sound systems and speakers and… douse the place with holy water.  Who knows what wickedness those students or teachers may have brought in with them throughout the course of the week and why should we allow those unclean spirits to hinder our people from worshiping the Lord?  This Sunday is Christ the King and, God willing, we will have a brief teaching on holy water and show our people, if only once, what we do each and every Sunday before they arrive.  What follows is the liturgy for the blessing of holy water.  It was taken from A Manual for Priests, published by Preservation Press with permission from the Society of St. John the Evangelist.  I have modified the language only slightly to bring into contemporary usage.

The Blessing of Holy Water

Salt and pure and clean water, being made ready in the Church or Sacristy, the Priest, vested in surplice and violet stole, shall say,

V.        Our Help is in the Name of the Lord.
R.        The Maker of heaven and earth.

And immediately he shall begin the Exorcism of the salt.

I adjure you, O creature of salt, by the living + God, by the true + God, by the holy + God, by God who commanded you to be cast, by the prophet Elisha, into the water to heal the bareness thereof, that you become salt exorcised for the health of believers: and that you   bring to all who take of you soundness of soul and body, and let all vain imaginations, wickedness, and subtlety of the wiles of the devil, and every unclean spirit fly and depart from every place where you will be sprinkled, adjured by the Name of Him, who shall come to judge both the quick and the dead, and the world by fire.  Amen.

Let us pray.

Almighty and everlasting God, we humbly beseech Your great and boundless mercy, that it may please You of Your loving-kindness to + bless and to + hallow this creature of salt, which You have given for the use of men.  Let it be to all them that take of it health of mind and body, and let whatever shall be touched or sprinkled with it be free from all uncleanness, and from all the assaults of spiritual wickedness. through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

The priest then begins the exorcism of the water.

I adjure thee, O creature of water, by the Name of God the Father +Almighty, by the Name of Jesus + Christ His Son our Lord, and by the power of the Holy + Spirit, that you become water exorcised for the putting to flight all the power of the enemy; and do avail to cast out and send forth that same enemy with all his apostate angels: by the power of the same our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall come to judge the quick and the dead, and the world by fire.  Amen.

Let us pray.

O God, who for the salvation of mankind has ordained that the substance of water should be used in one of Your foremost Sacraments: favorably regard us who call upon You, and pour the power of Your benediction + upon this element, made ready by careful cleansing; that this thy creature, fit for Your mysteries, may receive the effect of divine grace, and so cast out devils, and put sickness to flight, that whatever in the dwellings of Your faithful people shall be sprinkled with this water, may be free from all uncleanness, and delivered from all manner of hurt; there let no spirit of pestilence abide, not any corrupting air; from there make all the wiles of the hidden enemy depart, and if there be anything that lay snares against the safety or peace of them that dwell in the house, let it fly before the sprinkling of this water: so that the health of which they seek though calling upon Your Holy Name may be protected against all things that threaten it, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Then the priest shall cast the salt into the water in the form of a Cross, saying,

Be this salt and water mingled together in the Name of the Father, and of the Son +, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

V.        The Lord by with you.
R.        And also with you.

Let us pray.

O God, the Author of unconquered might, the King of the Empire that cannot be overthrown, the ever glorious Conqueror: who keeps under the strength of Your dominion those that are against You; who rules the raging of the fierce enemy; who fights mightily against the wickedness of Your foes:  with fear and trembling we entreat You, O Lord, and we beseech You graciously to behold this creature of salt and water, mercifully shine upon it, hallow it with the dew of Your loving-kindness; that wherever it may be sprinkled, with the invocation of Your Holy Name, all haunting of the unclean spirits may be driven away; far from there let the fear of the venomous serpent be cast; and wherever it shall be sprinkled, there let the presence of the Holy Spirit be guaranteed to all of us who shall ask for Your mercy, through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

If water is to be blessed by the celebrant immediately before the principal mass on Sunday, he will be wearing Mass vestments without the chasuble.

Why Did God Harden Pharaoh’s Heart?

A friend of mine recently posed the following question to me: “How do you interpret the differences between the love for all men that comes from Jesus versus the Jealous and Angry God of the Old Testament?”  His question arises from a discussion with his son about the Exodus, specifically the fourteen (or so) times wherein Holy Scriptures says that the LORD “hardened the heart of Pharaoh.”  So it is a fair question to ask why, in the New Testament, God loves the world so much that He gave His only Son, but, in the Old Testament, He refuses to allow Pharaoh to release the Hebrews and, therefore, brings calamitous destruction upon all Egypt.

The first and most important fact to recall when addressing this situation is that the Incarnation and, more specifically, the Resurrection of Our Lord are the very climax of all Creation.  Everything that God ever did pointed to the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead.  The battle is over; the victory is won.  Satan and his firstborn, Death, have been defeated.  From a cosmic point of view, the epoch of history in which we live is simply cleaning up the last remnants and stragglers of a battle that was an overwhelming victory.

Creation, the Fall, Cain and Abel, the Tower of Babel, Noah’s Ark, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob all happened for the sake of pointing to, foreshadowing, and, ultimately, enlightening our understanding what happened between Good Friday and Easter Morning.  The Passover itself is an incredible foreshadowing of the death and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ.  The faithful, being sprinkled with the blood of the Lamb, did not die when the Angel of Death came to their doors.  Does this previous sentence refer to the Israelites… or to the Church?  It refers to both!  On the night of the Passover, the Jews sprinkled the blood of the lamb on their doorposts and lintels so that when the Angel of Death came through Egypt, he would, literally, pass over the children of Israel.  St. John declares that we have been “washed… and made [them] white in the blood of the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:19)  The Blood of Jesus is the perfect atonement for our sins.  We who have been washed in His most precious Blood, do not die with Death comes knocking at our door.  One brief sleep and we awaken to eternal life with Our Lord forever.  The Passover was done to foreshadow the crucifixion of Jesus Christ!

This happened that the Apostles might look back on the events and recognize the majesty of God Almighty and understand some small inkling of the love He had for them… and for us as well!  Remember that God ordained and everlasting ordinance that Israel “relive” the Passover each and every year.  He wanted them to be sure they were familiar with the event so that when Jesus came they would understand the significance. 

So why did God make all of the firstborn of Egypt die?  Why couldn’t he have stopped with plague number 9?  If one investigates each of the Ten Plagues of Egypt, one finds that each and every plague was a deliberate slap in the face to one of the pagan gods of Egypt.  Their principal god was Ra, the god of the sun.  Our God made the sun dark and blotted the sun from out of the sky!  The Nile River was sacred to the Egyptians and associated with gods Knum and Hapi.  The Egyptians also considered blood to be unclean, so what did the LORD do?  He turned their sacred river into blood!  The list goes on. 

But why did the firstborn sons of Egypt have to die?  They died to show Our God’s majesty.  Remember that they viewed Pharaoh as a god.  Pharaoh’s firstborn son died… and stayed dead, as did the firstborn sons in all Egypt.  Our God’s firstborn son chose to lay down his life and died for us… and rose again from the dead!

God used the people of Egypt and the Pharaoh to show us how much He loves us.  He used the kings and armies of Assyria, Babylon and Persia for the same reasons.  Even if the pagans reject Him, they are still His creation and, essentially, His to do with as He pleases.  This may seem harsh to us, but, as the Isaiah prophesied:

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
      Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD.
      “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
      So are My ways higher than your ways,
      And My thoughts than your thoughts.
      or as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,
      And do not return there,
      But water the earth,
      And make it bring forth and bud,
      That it may give seed to the sower
      And bread to the eater,
      So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
      It shall not return to Me void,
      But it shall accomplish what I please,
      And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” (55:8-1)

The LORD used the people of Egypt to show us just exactly how much He cares for His chosen and beloved people.  The LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh in order to make sure that His plan happened the way it did so that the incredible love which God has for His people might be revealed.