The Luminous Mysteries - Conclusion

CONCLUSION

Required Reading: Revelation, chapter 21 &22

Recommended Reading: St. Ephrem the Syrian, Hymns on Paradise.

SHADOW, IMAGE, AND REALITY

Meditating upon the Mysterium Lucis through the vision of the Garden of Eden requires one final exegetical principle in order to confirm that the path taken through the Garden to see Christ, the new Adam, is indeed the primary interpretive paradigm for these Mysteries.  In his book, The Spirit of the Liturgy, Cardinal Ratzinger explains that “the Church Fathers described . . . various stages of fulfillment, not just as a contrast between Old and New Testament, but as the three steps of shadow, image, and reality.”  This vision of a three fold fulfillment is confirmed in the Patristic era by Methodius who explains, “The Law is the figure and the shadow of the image, that is to say, of the Gospel; the Gospel is this of the reality.”[i]  As Cardinal Danielou teaches, “The Pasch, eaten by Christ with His disciples before the Passion, is a figure of the Messianic banquet to which Christ will invite His own in the Kingdom of the Father. . . .  Between the Jewish Paschal meal and the messianic banquet, the eucharistic meal is an intermediate link.”[ii]  Thus, it is clear that the re-establishment of the Garden of Paradise, accomplished by the works of Jesus Christ, the new Adam, is yet to be revealed in full; the faithful still await the final reality of the Messianic age, when God will dwell with man in Paradise restored.  This is the vision that Saint John, in ecstasy on the island of Patmos, relates at the end of his Apocalypse.  Standing at the Holy Table, celebrating the Divine Liturgy on the Lord’s Day of covenant, the Eagle of Patmos suddenly beholds the Sacred Mysteries transfigured before him; what had been only the image he beholds as the reality.

The Luminous Mysteries - Part Six

THE INSTITUTION OF THE EUCHARIST

Required Reading: John, chapter 6; Joshua, chapter 5; Exodus, chapter 16

THE JOURNEY TO THE WEDDING FEAST

            After the Transfiguration, the Christ of God journeys from Mount Tabor to the Holy City,

toward the exodus which Moses and Elijah spoke of on the Mountain.  “As with the first exodus of Israel,” states Tim Gray, “there cannot be a new exodus without a Passover meal.”[i]  It is time for the marriage supper of the Lamb.  In the account of the Last Supper, as well as in the bread of life discourse of the Holy Evangelist John, we must maintain our original interpretive paradigm, the images of Eden.  It is here in the institution of the Holy Eucharist that the Luminous Mysteries culminate.  It is here in the breaking of the bread that we will recognize the full effects of the restoration of Adam’s robe, of the re-consecration of the Sabbath, of the recapitulation of the marriage of Adam and Eve at the wedding of Cana.  It is in the Holy Eucharist that the intended festival day of the universe will be realized.  It is here that the tree of life will come into view.  The wedding feast is prepared, and the guests are invited.  Let us put on our finest garments, light our torches, and “put out into the deep” one last time, as we find our way through the dusk of the setting sun to the great feast of God.  There, at the Eucharistic banquet, we will find the heart of Christ shining forth as a lamb to enlighten the world (Rev. 21:23); there the Luminous Christ will enlighten the darkness of sin forever.

The Luminous Mysteries - Part Five

THE TRANSFIGURATION

Required Reading: The Gospel of Luke, chapter 9

THE CONTEXT OF THE TRANSFIGURATION

            Christ the King has restored to Adam his royal robe and given him dominion once again.  Let us now make our way to Mount Tabor and begin to search the depth[i]s of the Transfiguration of the Christ, the “mystery of light par excellence.”[ii]  As in the mysteries of the previous weeks, we must place ourselves within the historical event before us.  Also, it will be helpful to recall the “images of Eden” presented in week one.  For, in the new Adam unveiled on the pinnacle of Tabor, we shall see the old Adam restored in Christ, transfigured as a son of God.

The Luminous Mysteries - Part Four

THE PROCLAMATION OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD

Required Reading: Gospel of Luke, chapters 1-4

ADAM’S DOMINION

Pope John Paul II explains in his Apostolic Letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae that each of the “mysteries of light” is “a revelation of the Kingdom now present in the very person of Jesus.”[i]  Therefore, with the divine robe restored to Adam in the Baptism of Christ, and the proper covenantal relationship between man and woman restored at the Wedding at Cana, Christ may now openly proclaim the Kingdom of God, the restoration of the dominion of Adam over all of creation.[ii] 

Adam received dominion over creation because of his robe of glory, the gift of grace which likened him to God his Father, the King of all the universe.  Thus, Adam was a king, not as a replacement of God’s kingship, but rather as an extension of God’s dominion over creation.  “Adam was a subordinate ruler, a king (prince) under God.  He was a king only because God had created him as such and ordered him to rule.  God’s plan was for His image to rule the world under His law and oversight.”[iii]  Adam thus found his royal dignity in his sonship, which in turn was confirmed in the familial covenant.  However, when Adam disobeyed, he rejected the gift of God, his royal robe.  As a natural consequence, he lost the dominion which he had exercised over creation.

The Luminous Mysteries - Part Three

THE WEDDING AT CANA

Required Reading: Gospel of Saint John, chapters 1-2

**I apologize, but we were unable to translate foreign language characters to web format.  If you're interested in the Greek texts, please contact me at director@instituteofcatholicculture.org. 

INTRODUCTION

Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak tenderly to her.  And there I will give her her vineyards, and make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.  And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth, as at the time when she came out of the land of Egypt.  And in that day, says the Lord, you will call me, ‘My husband,’ . . . And I will make for you a covenant on that day with the beasts of the field, the creeping things of the ground, . . . And I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love, and in mercy.  I will betroth you to me in faithfulness; and you shall know the Lord. (Hos. 2:14-20)

The Prophet Hosea speaks these words of hope to the Jewish people that some day their God would wash away their sin and lead them into Paradise, restoring the covenant bond that Adam had broken.  Now Adam, through his burial and resurrection in the Jordan, has been reborn in Christ and has been reclothed in the “robe of Glory.” Having come forth from the Jordan wrapped in the “wedding garment” of grace, Adam stands in the bridal chamber.  Cardinal Danielou, in reference to Baptism, states, “The catechumens are on the threshold of the royal garden of Paradise, where the marriage is to take place.”[i]  Therefore, having witnessed the restoration of Adam in the Jordan River, we can now turn our gaze toward Cana and through the eyes of the Beloved Disciple see the marital day of Paradise recapitulated. 

The Luminous Mysteries - Part Two

THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST

A. THE NEW ELIJAH

And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"  He confessed, he did not deny, but confessed, "I am not the Christ."  And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the prophet?" And he answered, "No." They said to him then, "Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"  He said, "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as the prophet Isaiah said."

            Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.  They asked him, "Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?"  John answered them, "I baptize with water; but among you stands one whom you do not know, even he who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie."  This took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing. (Jn. 1:19-28)

The Catholic Church has always insisted that the Holy Scriptures must be interpreted “Christocentrically, that is to say, all Scripture must be interpreted in light of Jesus as the Christ.”[1]  This foundation, the focus upon the person of Christ, does not in any way diminish the importance of a fully developed contextual interpretation.  In fact, it is the context which often leads to the proper interpretation of the words and actions of Christ.  Saint Ambrose teaches his disciples, “Why? Do you suppose that any of these details were set down without a good reason? Of course not!  If no leaf can fall from a tree without cause and not a single sparrow fall to the ground without the heavenly Father’s knowledge, am I to think that a superfluous word could fall from the lips of the holy Evangelist—especially in recording the sacred history of the Word?  I think not.  All his words, if only they have a diligent reader (one who know[s] how to suck honey out of the rock and oil out of the hardest stone), contain supernal mysteries and are full of heavenly sweetness.”[2]  The importance of contextual interpretation and attention to detail is key to the proper understanding of the Baptism of Christ, and there is no man “born of woman” (Mt. 11:11) who is more important to a proper immediate contextual understanding of Christ than John the Baptist.  Scott Hahn teaches, “John the Baptist is indispensable to the New Covenant. . . . He is the one who testifies to Christ in the fullest possible way.”[3] 

The Luminous Mysteries - Part 1

IMAGES OF EDEN AND THE EDENIC PARADIGM

Required  reading: Genesis 1-3

**I apologize, but we were unable to translate foreign language characters to web format.  If you're interested in the Hebrew texts, please contact me at director@instituteofcatholicculture.org.

THE PROPER PERSPECTIVE

            Here, we will lay the foundational themes upon which we will build our understanding of the Luminous Mysteries.  Rather than considering the whole narrative of Genesis 1-3, we will only study those aspects relevant to our study of the active life of Christ.  This approach will take us quickly through the most important aspects of the account of the Garden of Eden, and with these images at hand we will be well equipped to begin our journey at the Jordan River.  This chapter is by far the most foundational, so please read carefully.

The Luminous Mysteries - Introduction

Recommended Reading: John Paul II. Rosarium Virginis Mariae. 16 October 2002.

This text can be accessed on the web by searching for Rosarium Virginis Mariae at www.newadvent.org

For close to a full millennium, the rosary has been for the Roman Catholic faithful a source of meditation on the mysteries of Christ through the eyes of Mary.  “Through the Rosary the faithful receive abundant grace, as though from the very hands of the Mother of the Redeemer.”[1]  This abundant grace has drawn the faithful follower ever more deeply into the life of Christ, calling him to “put out into the deep” (duc in altum, Lk. 5:4), penetrating every aspect of the mystery of the Savior.  It is in the life Christ, “in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2:2-3), that “man’s path is ‘recapitulated,’[2] revealed and redeemed.”[3]  Thus, through the Rosary the Christian is able to enter into the deepest aspects of his own redemption, calling to mind the whole of salvation history as it is lived out in the mysteries of the life of Christ.[4]

            Pope John Paul II explains that “contemplating the scenes of the Rosary in unison with Mary is a means of learning from her to ‘read’ Christ, to discover His secrets and to understand His message.”[5]  Through ‘reading’ ever more deeply the events in the life of Christ through the eyes of the Immaculate Lady, the Rosary becomes a “true doorway to the depths of the Heart of Christ, ocean of joy and of light, of suffering and of glory.”[6] 

In light of the Church’s call in the third millennium to “duc in altum,” His Holiness Pope John Paul II has given to the faithful his vision into the depths of the Savior’s life.  This “new gaze” upon Christ is contained in the Mysteria Lucis, which the Pope has unveiled to his children’s eyes in his apostolic letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae.  These mysteries: the Baptism of Christ, the Wedding at Cana, the Proclamation of the Kingdom of God, the Transfiguration, and the Institution of the Holy Eucharist, are the response to the call of Christ to enter each day more fully into the mystery of His life.  Thus the Holy Father, like Peter, who was called with the words “Tend my sheep” (Jn. 21:16), instructs the children of God how they may themselves “duc in altum.”  By providing his insights on how the faithful may meditate more fully on the life of the Savior, the Holy Father leads his sheep to the “living water” that they may “drink and never thirst” (Jn. 4:10, 14). 

Pope John Paul II explains, “against the background of the words Ave Maria the principal events of the life of Jesus Christ pass before the eyes of the soul.”[7]  By “making our own the words of the Angel Gabriel and Saint Elizabeth contained in the Ave Maria, we find ourselves constantly drawn to seek afresh in Mary, in her arms and in her heart, the ‘blessed fruit of her womb.[8]’”  By bringing the life of Christ before the eyes of the faithful in the hands of the Blessed Lady we are instructed as to the proper way to approach the Son of God who walked among us.  By repeating the words of the Ave Maria the Christian who meditates upon the life of Christ stands within the story of the life of the Incarnate Word, a story revealed to man in the words of the Sacred Scriptures.  As Pope Paul VI taught in his Apostolic Exhortation Marialis Cultus, the Rosary is primarily a “Gospel Prayer,” wherein the faithful explore the mysteries of the life of the “Son of the Virgin.”[9]  Confirming his predecessor, Pope John Paul II exhorts his children to “rediscover the Rosary in the light of Scripture.”[10]  This is the “valid method”[11] by which the successor of Peter guides the faithful “into the deep” of Christ’s life.  Thus the Holy Father calls for those who seek Christ in the Rosary to “supply a Biblical foundation” in order to reach a greater depth of meditation.[12]  This “Biblical foundation” is supplied primarily by “the proclamation of a related Biblical passage.”[13] 

“The proclamation,” however, is only the beginning; it must lead the faithful into an ever-deeper meditation on the passage proclaimed.[14]  This meditation must ultimately lead to the Old Testament, for it was in the Old Testament that God prepared His people for the revelation of His Son.  The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that “the New Testament has to be read in light of the Old.  Early Christian catechesis made constant use of the Old Testament (cf. 1 Cor. 5:6-8; 10:1-11).  As an old saying put it, the New Testament lies hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New.”[15]  Therefore, by turning to the Old Testament man is provided with a “road map” by which he can see the ultimate plan of God revealed in Christ.  This exegetical principle, namely, that of turning to the Old Testament in order to properly interpret the New, is itself founded upon an even more fundamental principle of Biblical exegesis, the interpretive principle known as the Edenic Paradigm.[16] 

Cardinal Jean Danielou teaches: “There can be no serious theology of the Incarnation or the Redemption without referring to chapter three of Genesis.  To leave it in darkness, to be content with only a small part of the subject, is to risk jarring one’s faith in the redemption.  Where original sin is minimized, the redemption takes the same path.  And where redemption in minimized, faith is gone.”[17]    Saint Athanasius states, “The first fact that you must grasp is this: the renewal of creation has been accomplished by the Self-same Word Who made it in the beginning.  Thus, there is no inconsistency between creation and salvation: for the One Father has employed the same Agent for both works, fashioning the salvation of the world through the same Word Who made it at the first.”[18]  By making use of the “Edenic Paradigm,” the exegetical principle which designates the events of the Garden of Eden as the framework for interpreting salvation history, we will have the proper tools to interpret the life of Christ and especially the Luminous Mysteries.  This principle of Biblical exegesis, which is commonly called typology, “the science of the similitudes between the two Testaments,” is a principle founded in Scripture itself. [19]  In the case of the Old Testament, “At the time of the Captivity, the prophets announced to the people of Israel that in the future God would perform for their benefit deeds analogous to, and even greater than those He performed in the past. . . . there would be a new Paradise into which God would introduce the people He had redeemed.”[20]  “The New Testament, therefore, did not invent typology, but simply showed that it was fulfilled in the person of Jesus of Nazareth . . . He is the New Adam with whom the time of the Paradise of the future has begun.”[21]

Therefore, this study of the Mysteria Lucis will be based upon the vision of Christ as the New Adam, and the Mysteries of the life of Christ as the recapitulation of “man’s path” corrupted by the Fall of our first parents.[22]  We will see the Luminous Mysteries of the life of Christ primarily as the recapturing of the ancient Paradise where man and God dwelt in a harmony of friendship.  Following the guidance of the Holy Father Pope John Paul II and the Holy Patriarch Athanasius, in hopes of “rediscover[ing] the Rosary in the light of Scripture”[23] “we will begin with the creation of the world,” and, having properly begun our journey, we will come to understand that “the renewal of creation has been accomplished by the Self-same Word Who made it in the beginning.”[24]    

SUMMARY

1. Mediation on the mysteries of the Rosary draw the faithful into an ever-deeper union with the life of Christ.   This union with the life of the Savior is a union with and a living out of the person’s own redemption.
2. Through mediation upon the life of Christ by way of the Rosary, the Christian peers through the eyes of Mary and gains access to the secrets which she holds in her heart.  These mysteries, which lie hidden within the heart of the Mother of God, allow access to the deepest aspects of the life of her Son.
3. In light of the Church’s encouragement for the faithful to dive ever more deeply into the life of Christ, Pope John Paul II has unveiled the Luminous Mysteries to the faithful by way of the repetition of the Ave Maria.
4. In repeating the Ave Maria while meditating upon the mysteries of the Rosary, Christians are called into the story of the Gospel, making their own the words of the Angel Gabriel and Saint Elizabeth and entering into to the mystery revealed in the Sacred Text.
5. Entering into the mystery of Christ through the Rosary meditation requires more than mere recalling of the Gospel text.  In order to access the depths of the message revealed in the Gospel one must be familiar with the narrative landscape within which the Gospel was originally preached.  Thus, in order to grasp the mysteries of Christ we must turn to the Old Testament background as a foundation.
6. The Old Testament background itself is founded upon the story of the creation and fall of man revealed in Genesis 1-3.  Therefore, in order to grasp Gospel narratives such as the Baptism of Christ we must understand certain themes set out in Genesis as a foundation.
7. With a foundation in the story of the Garden of Eden we will be well equipped to understand the over-all story of the Old Testament, and thus be prepared to gain insight into the Mysteries of Light.

---

[1]John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae (16 October 2002), Vatican Translation: On the Most Holy Rosary (Boston: St. Paul Books & Media, 2002), section 1.  All further references will be sited by section number.

[2]The theme of recapitulation (Gk. anakefalaiwsij) in Christ, though almost lost in modern scholarship, was common place in the early Church Fathers.  Luigi Gambero explains that, “According to Saint Paul, the Redeemer brought together or ‘recapitulated’ in himself all the things and events that had happened since the first creation, reconciling everything to God.  In this view, the salvation of man appears as a second creation, which is essentially a kind of repetition of the first creation” [Luigi Gambero, Mary and the Fathers of the Church; trans. Thomas Buffer (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1999), 52].  This theme is found clearly in Saint Irenaeus of Lyons who writes, “When [the Son of God] took flesh and became man, he recapitulated in himself the long history of men, . . . so that in Christ Jesus we might recover what we had lost in Adam, namely, the image and likeness of God” [Irenaeus of Lyons, Adv. Haer. 3, 18; PG 7, 932; quoted in Gambero, Mary and the Fathers of the Church, 53].

[3]John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 25.

[4]“Listening to the Master in the mysteries of his public ministry, they find the light which leads them to enter the Kingdom of God.”  Ibid.

[5]Ibid., 14. 

[6]Ibid., 19. 

[7]Ibid., 2. 

[8]Ibid., 24. 

[9] Paul VI, Marialis Cultus (2 February 1974), L’Osservatore Romano translation: no vernacular title given (Hales Corners, Wisconsin: Priests of the Sacred Heart, 1974), section 44.

[10]John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 43.

[11] Ibid., 27.

[12]Ibid., 30.

[13] Ibid.

[14]Although this “deeper” meditation is required regarding every mystery of the life of Christ, it is most necessary regarding the Luminous Mysteries since many of the faithful are not habituated to regular meditation on these events.

[15]Catechism of the Catholic Church (Boston:  Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1994), 129.

[16]David Chilton, Paradise Restored (Tyler, Texas: Reconstruction Press, 1985).  The theme of the “Edenic Paradigm” is used by Chilton throughout his work Paradise Restored.

[17]Jean Daniélou, In the Beginning . . . : Genesis I-III (Baltimore, Md.: Helicon Press, 1965), 69.

[18]St. Athanasius, On the Incarnation, I.I (Crestwood, N.Y.: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2002), 26

[19]Jean Danielou, The Bible and the Liturgy (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1956), 4.

[20]Danielou, The Bible and the Liturgy, 4-5.  C.f. Hosea 2:14, Ez. 36:35, Is. 51:3.

[21]Danielou, The Bible and the Liturgy, 5.  C.f. 1 Cor. 15:45, Rom. 5:14.

[22]John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 25.

[23]Ibid., 43.

[24]St. Athanasius, On the Incarnation, 1:4.

The Luminous Mysteries - Preface

In the year of our Lord 2002, His Holiness Pope John Paul II unveiled before the eyes of the faithful his instruction on a deeper mediation upon the life of Christ.  Seeing a need to enter more fully into the life of the Savior, the Pope instructed his children to meditate upon the active life of Christ.  Under the title of the Luminous Mysteries, His Holiness highlighted five mysteries of the life of the Son of God by which the faithful would gain an ever-greater vision of their own path of redemption.  Unfortunately for most Catholics, the promulgation of the Luminous Mysteries in the Apostolic Letter, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, has been little more than a passing memory.  But, for some Catholics, the Mysteries of Light have been a great source of mediation over the past few years and have resulted in an increase of grace at the hands of the Blessed Mother.  For these Catholics, dedicated disciples of Christ, led by the successor of Peter, a great desire has been engendered to enter into the active life of Christ through repetition of the Ave Maria.  This desire is increased with every passing moment as the Luminous Mysteries are again and again brought before the thirsty eyes of the soul.  It is toward these Faithful, desirous of a greater unity with the mysteries of the life of the Christ, that these next posts are aimed.  Over the next few weeks we will journey through the Gospels, from the Jordan River to the Holy City of Jerusalem, walking in the footsteps of the Savior and learning from him the revelation of the Mysteries of Light.

Great Quotation from Pope Benedict XVI

"The essential task of authentic education at every level is not simply that of passing on knowledge, essential as this is, but also of shaping hearts."

From his recent address to the American bishops during their ad limina visit.

Understanding Understanding: The Angelic Doctor's Theory of Knowledge

Dr. Douglas Flippen, PhD

Tuesdays, April 24 & May 1, 2012

St. Leo the Great Catholic Church, Fairfax, VA

Part One:


Part Two:

Fr. Benedict Groeschel: Live - How the Trials of This World Lead to Life Everlasting

Rev. Benedict Groeschel, CFR

Sunday, April 22, 2012

St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church, Falls Church, VA

Thou Art Peter...Part 3

Having focused our attention on Blessed Peter’s proclamation that Jesus is the King, the New Solomon, and having dismissed the Protestant attack that Peter is simply an insignificant stone, and not the foundation of the Church, we now have the tools to consider the rest of the passage in its proper context.  “Thou art Christ, . . . thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.  And I will give to thee the keys to the kingdom of heaven.  And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon the earth, it shall be bound also in heaven” (Matt 16:16-19).

Peter’s proclamation that Jesus is the Christ evokes Our Lord’s response that Peter is the Rock upon which Jesus, the New Solomon, will build the house of God, the Church. “The rock” in ancient Israel was the “rock of Moriah” upon which Solomon built the house of God (the Temple) and upon which the Dome of the Rock, an Islamic shrine, stands today.  Among the Jews, there was a tradition that named this rock as the capstone of the gates of hell, and as long as this rock was in place, hell could not prevail on earth.  Having declared that Peter is the new rock, our Lord concludes his proclamation with the words, “and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it,” confirming our understanding that Peter is indeed the foundation-stone of the Church.

Thou Art Peter...Part 2

Having considered yesterday Saint Peter’s great proclamation of faith that Jesus is the Christ, the long awaited New King Solomon (Matt 16:16), and having witnessed Our Lord’s expected response to this proclamation, that of building the house of the Lord upon the Rock (as King Solomon did in the Old Testament), let us turn this today to the common Protestant attack upon the Catholic interpretation of this text.  Pay close attention to the linguistic gymnastics which a Protestant must go through, as well as the linguistic response that a Catholic must make to unravel the mess (a pen and paper may help to keep it all straight).

Thou Art Peter...Part 1

Today is the seventh anniversary of the election of the Holy Roman Pontiff, Pope Benedict XVI.

Therefore, in honor of this great and historic event, over the next three days we will meditate upon the great mystery on the person of Simon Peter, Prince of the Apostles and Vicar of Christ.

In an attempt to deny the authority of the Pope, and thus free himself from the Catholic Church, Martin Luther was faced with the difficult challenge of dismissing Our Lord’s words to Saint Peter as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew: “Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the powers of death shall never prevail against it.  I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven.” (Matt. 16:18-19).  The Catholic Church has always interpreted this passage as identifying Peter as the foundation stone upon which Christ will build His Church.  In order to reject the Catholic interpretation of this passage, many Protestants are forced to do linguistic gymnastics, denying that our Lord’s words are a bestowal of certain privileges on Saint Peter, and teaching instead that Jesus is actually demeaning Peter in this passage.  As with past topics, context is essential for an authentic interpretation of the text.

Shine! Shine! O New Jerusalem! Understanding the Resurrection with the Church Fathers

Dr. David Bertaina

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Holy Transfiguration Greek-Catholic Church, McLean, VA

Christ is Risen!

O Death, Where is Your Sting?

O Hades, Where is Your Victory?

CHRIST IS RISEN!

Let all pious men and all lovers of God rejoice in the splendor of this feast; let the wise servants blissfully enter into the joy of their Lord; let those who have borne the burden of Lent now receive their pay, and those who have toiled since the first hour, let them now receive their due reward.  Let any who came after the third hour be grateful to join in the feast, and those who may have come after the sixth, let them not be afraid of being too late, for the Lord is gracious and He receives the last even as the first.  He gives rest to him who comes on the eleventh hour, as well as to him who has toiled since the first: yes, He has pity on the last and He serves the first; He rewards the one and is generous to the other; he repays the deed and praises the effort. 

Come you all, enter into the joy of your Lord.  You the first and you the last, receive alike your reward; you rich and you poor, dance together; you sober and you weaklings, celebrate the day; you who have kept the fast and you who have not, rejoice today.  The table is richly laden: enjoy its royal banquet.  The calf is a fatted one: let no one go away hungry.  All of you enjoy the banquet of faith; all of you receive the riches of his goodness. 

Let no one grieve over his poverty, for the universal kingdom has been revealed; let no one weep over his sins, for pardon has shone forth from the grave; let no one fear death, for the death of our Savior has set us free.  He has destroyed it by enduring it, He has despoiled Hades by going down into its kingdom, He has angered it by allowing it to taste of his flesh. 

When Isaiah foresaw all this, he cried out: "O Hades, you have been angered by encountering Him in the nether world."  Hades is angered because it has been frustrated, it is angered because it has been mocked, it is angered because it has been destroyed, it is angered because it has been reduced to naught, it is angered because it is now held captive.  It seized a body, and lo! it discovered God; it seized earth, and, behold! it encountered heaven; it seized the visible, and was overcome by the invisible. 

O death, where is your sting?  O Hades, where is your victory?  Christ is risen and life is freed;
Christ is risen and the tomb is emptied of the dead: for Christ, being risen from the dead, has become the Leader and Reviver of those who had fallen asleep.  To Him be glory and power for ever and ever.  Amen
(Saint John Chrysostom, Sermon on Pascha)

Rejoice O Queen of Heaven, for He whom though didst merit to bear, has risen from the dead as He said, Alleluia.

Ora Pro Nobis Deum, Alleluia

CHRIST IS RISEN!

He Descended into Hell

Today He who hung the earth upon the waters is hung upon the Tree.  He who is King of the angels is arrayed in a crown of thorns.  He who wraps the heaven in clouds is wrapped in the purple of mockery.  He who in the Jordan set Adam free receives blows upon His face.  The Bridegroom of the Church is transfixed with nails.  The Son of the Virgin is pierced with a spear.¹   

(For audio of this text, click here.)

Today a tomb holds Him who holds the creation in the hollow of His hand; a stone covers Him who covers the heavens with glory.²   [Today] Our Lord [rode] to the underworld, invaded death’s fortress, broke open its strong room and scattered all its treasures.³  Today is salvation for men upon the earth, and for those who from ages past are beneath the earth.  Ye that sit in darkness and the shadow of death, receive the great Light!

St. Mary of Egypt - Buried by a Lion!

Today is the Feast Day of St. Mary of Egypt.  What a phenomenal witness of repentance and an ideal model for Lent!  St. Mary of Egypt was highlighted in one of our lecture series in 2010 - why don't you re-read her story and listen again to Deacon Sabatino's presentation?

To listen online, click here.
For other media options, click here.
To read her story, click here.

The Passover of the Lamb

As with any great event in our lives, there are some preparations which may be done at a more remote time, and some which can only be done more proximately.  Our preparations for the Passover of the Lamb of God are no different.  Before Lent, we began to pack our bags for our forty day journey, discarding those things that would only weigh us down on our pilgrimage and packing the essentials to ensure the success of our trip.  But now, the goal of our journey is fast approaching, and a more proximate preparation must be made. 

It must have been about this time that the faithful Jews began to leave their worldly homes to make their way to the spiritual home, Jerusalem, where all would gather each year for the great festal days of Passover.  In like manner, let us lift up our eyes and see the Holy City of Jerusalem set in wondrous array on the horizon of our Lenten Journey.  Let us see the Cross of Christ being set up, and the empty tomb being made ready for the entombment of the Savior.  For today the Lamb of God makes his way to the Passover, wherein he will pass mankind over from death to life, from slavery to freedom, from the tomb to Paradise.  As has been our custom during this Lenten season, let us once again turn to the wisdom of the Church, and sitting at the feet of Saint Gregory Nazianzen, let us continue our preparations for the Passover of God.

The Lamb of God: Understanding the Sacrifice of Christ
Rev. Paul Schenck
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Saint James Catholic Church, Falls Church, VA

Salvation - a reflection by Dcn. Sabatino - Part 4

Over the past couple weeks, we have considered the topic of our salvation, as it is understood from both the Catholic and Protestant perspectives.  Once again, from the Catholic perspective, salvation consists in being made a sharer in God’s own life, and by this gift or grace, man is justified, or made right, in the eyes of God.  From the Protestant perspective, God’s grace is not something that justifies man interiorly, rather it is God’s declaration of justification, apart from any real interior justification of the soul. 

The Cross of Christ: The Bridge to Paradise

Soon all faithful followers of Christ will lay prostrate before His holy passion.  Soon the Body of Christ, the Catholic Church, will be nailed to the Holy Cross with her Savior.  Soon all of us who have made the great journey of Lent will stand in the cool mist of Easter morning to see for ourselves the Risen Lord.  Let us contemplate the mysteries that lie before us through the beautiful teaching of Saint Ephrem the Syrian, Father and Doctor of the Church.

          Death trampled Our Lord underfoot, but he in his turn treated death as a highroad for his own feet.  He submitted to it, enduring it willingly, because by this means he would be able to destroy death in spite of itself.  Death had its own way when Our Lord went out from Jerusalem carrying his cross; but when, by a loud cry from that cross, he summoned the dead from the underworld, death was powerless to prevent it.

Outside the Church There Is No Salvation with Deacon Sabatino, Part Two

Part Two - March 20, 2012

 

Salvation - a reflection by Dcn. Sabatino - Part 3

In my last two posts, we considered the issue of salvation, as it is understood from both the Catholic and Protestant positions.  From the Catholic perspective, salvation consists in being made a sharer in God’s own life, and by this gift or grace, man is justified, or made right, in the eyes of God.  From the Protestant perspective, God’s grace is not something that justifies man interiorly, rather it is God’s declaration of justification.  In other words, God declares man to be justified, apart from any real interior justification of the soul.  Today, we will consider the reason for the Protestant position.  At the end of this week, we will consider the foundation for the Catholic answer.

Leader of the Copts in Egypt, Pope Shenouda, passes away

Pope Shenouda, the head of the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt, passed away on Saturday. He was the leader of a church that had seen much violence and oppression, and one of the strong voices calling for unity in the Church. For more, please see http://byztex.blogspot.com/2012/03/coptic-pope-shenouda-iii-has-reposed-in.html.

Salvation - a reflection by Dcn. Sabatino - Part 2

As I wrote previously, the fundamental point that divides Catholics and Protestants is the question of salvation.  Although issues about Mary, the Papacy, or the Eucharist may, in fact, be the most popular topics of debate, the issue of salvation and the related issues of justification and sanctification are the foundation for all that divides western Christendom.  If this is resolved, all other issues will fall away.  Again, for Catholics, salvation consists in God actually making us sharers in his own blessed life (cf. CCC, 1).  On the other hand, for Protestants, God saves mankind by divine fiat, declaring man to be justified in his sight, while ignoring the actual state of his soul. 

The fundamental reality that is at stake here is the nature grace; what is it, and how does it affect man’s life? 

The Mid-Point of our Journey

We are now at the middle of the great journey of Lent.  With the help of the wisdom of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, let us reflect upon our journey thus far, always keeping before our eyes the glorious day of the Resurrection of God.

Give thanks, Brethren, to the Divine Mercy Which has brought you safely halfway through the season of Lent.  For this favor they give praise to God, thankfully and with devotion, who in these days have striven to live in the manner which they were instructed at the beginning of Lent; that is, those who, coming with eagerness to the Church, have sought with sighs and tears, in daily fasting and almsdeeds, to obtain the forgiveness of their sins.

Biblical References from "Outside the Church" Presentation

For those who were scrambling to go from verse to verse or are wanting to revisit the Scripture reviewed, here are all the Bible references Deacon Sabatino referenced at the March 13, 2012 lecture on "Outside the Church: There Is No Salvation: Understanding Catholic Ecclesiology":

2 Peter 1:4
Jn 17:3
Jn. 14:6
1 Tim 2:5
Col. 2:9
Jn. 1:1
Acts 2:37-38
Rom. 6
Gal. 3:26
Jn. 3:1 – 5
1 Cor 12:12 - 27
Col. 1:24
Eph. 4:4 – 16

Also, as promised, here is the quotation from The Shepherd of Hermas:
"While I slept, brethren, a revelation was made to me by a very handsome young man, who said to me, 'Who do you think the old woman is, from whom you received the little book?'  I said, the Sibyl.'  'You are wrong,' He said: 'She is not.'  'Who is she, then?' I said.  'The Church,' he replied.  So I said to him, 'Why, then is she old?' 'Because,' he said, 'she was created the first of all things.  That is why she is old.  It was for her sake that the world was established.'”

"Outside the Church There Is No Salvation" with Dcn. Sabatino Carnazzo

Outside the Church There Is No Salvation: Understanding Catholic Ecclesiology
Rev. Deacon Sabatino Carnazzo
Tuesdays, March 13 & 20, 2012
Saint Ambrose Church Hall, Annandale, VA

Part One - March 13, 2012


Part Two - March 20, 2012

Salvation - a reflection by Dcn. Sabatino - Part 1

For Catholics, being challenged by our Protestant brethren with questions about our salvation can be unsettling, and even embarrassing.  Why is it that Protestants seem so sure of their salvation, while Catholics are left uncertain as to their eternal destiny?  The answer to this question, and ultimately the answer to our Protestant brethren, is that Catholic theology and Protestant theology diverge on this most important issue, forming the foundation for all further protests against Catholic teaching.  Ultimately, if this issue of man’s salvation is resolved, all other problems that exist between Catholic and Protestant theology will fall away.  Over the next couple weeks, we will consider this topic in some detail, working toward a Biblically-based, authentic Christian concept of salvation. 

Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving

Having entered upon the great and glorious journey of Lent, we again turn to the wisdom of Holy Mother Church.  Seated this week at the feet of our spiritual father in Christ, Saint Peter Chrysologus, Bishop and Father of the Church, let us gather jewels of knowledge, so that throughout these forty days, we may not be found lacking in the strength necessary to complete our pilgrimage.

There are three things, my brethren, by which faith stands firm, devotion remains, and virtue endure: they are prayer, fasting and mercy.  Prayer knocks at the door, fasting obtains, mercy receives.  Prayer, mercy and fasting: these three are one, and they give life to each other.

For upcoming event on March 13 - Suggested Reading

Deacon Sabatino has mentioned a few of the documents that will be used in his upcoming series on "Outside the Church There Is No Salvation: Understanding Catholic Ecclesiology."  Feel free to click on the titles below if you'd like to get a head start.


Dominus Iesus

Documents of the Council of Florence

Lumen Gentium

Happy reading, and we look forward to seeing you on the 13th. 

St. Antony with Abbot Joseph Lee

Saint Athanasius’ Life of Saint Antony of the Desert
Abbot Joseph Lee
Sunday, March 4, 2012
St. Michael Church Hall, Annandale, VA

Recent Speaker Joins Advisory Board; Praises ICC

“God is opening before the Church the horizons of a humanity more fully prepared for the sowing of the Gospel. I sense that the moment has come to commit all of the Church's energies to a new evangelization.”
(Blessed John Paul II, The Mission of the Redeemer #3)

"As a Deacon of the Church who has dedicated my life’s work to the New Evangelization, I am honored to commend the extraordinary work of the Institute for Catholic Culture. I have never encountered a more faithful
and fruitful New Evangelization Apostolate. If I could, I would replicate it in every Diocese in the United States. I am honored to serve as an advisor."
Deacon Keith Fournier, Editor-in-Chief, Catholic Online

Life of St. Antony, by St. Athanasius

You can read The Life of St. Antony by clicking on this link: http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/2811.htm.

I hope you can all come/join in online for Abbot Joseph's presentation on this excellent early Christian text.

"If you would be perfect, go and sell that you have and give to the poor; and come follow Me and you shall have treasure in heaven."  Matt 19:21

Keeping Vigil with Fr. Joseph Francavilla and Chef Sandy Greeley

Keeping Vigil: Understanding our Lenten Journey
Rt. Rev. Joseph Francavilla and Chef Sandy Greeley
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Our Lady of Hope, Potomac Falls, VA

How Do You Spell That?

As requested, Dr. Brendan McGuire has given us a glossary of the terms he used in his lectures on "The Making of Catholic Spain."  

For all of you confused as how to spell "Abd al-Rahman " and Tariq ibn al-Ziyad"", please feel free to peruse his glossary here.

St. Leo the Great on Fasting

An excellent exhortation for Lent from Saint Leo the Great, Pope and Doctor of the Church.

Now is the time in which the souls of all men should be stirred with greater fervor towards spiritual perfection, and inspired with greater confidence: now when the return of that day on which we were redeemed invites us once more to the fulfillment of all our sacred duties, so that purified in body and soul we may celebrate the supreme Mystery of the Passion of Our Lord . . . Accordingly, with great solicitude has this divine means been given us, so that these forty days of reflection may assist us to restore the purity of our souls, and so that during them we may, by good works, make satisfaction for our past sins, and by devout mortification, purge ourselves of them.

As we are therefore beginning this sacred season, dedicated to the purification of the soul, let us be careful to fulfill the Apostolic command that “we cleanse ourselves from all defilements of the flesh and of the spirit,” (2 Cor 7:2) so that restraining the conflict that exists between the one and the other substance, the soul, which in the Providence of God is meant to be the ruler of the body, may regain the dignity of its rightful authority.

We must then so moderate our rightful use of food that our other desires may be subject to the same rule.  For this is also a time for gentleness and patience, a time of peace and serenity, in which having put away all stains of evil doing, we strive after steadfastness in what is good.

Be you certain, Dearly Beloved, that the devil, the enemy of all virtue, will look with envy upon these pious practices, to which we trust you freely give yourself; and he will bring against them all the force of his malice, so that from piety itself he may weave snares against piety: so that those he could not destroy through despair he will seek to undo through vain glory.  Whose purpose will that most wicked enemy not dare to attack?  Whose self denial does he not seek to undo, when . . . he attempted his deceits even against the Savior of the World?  Let us therefore, Dearly Beloved, be watchful against the deceits of the devil, not alone against the enticement of gluttony, but even in our very purpose of fasting.

Enter then with pious devotion upon these holy days of Lent; and prepare for yourselves the works of mercy, that you may merit the Divine Mercy.  Extinguish the fires of anger, wipe away all hate . . . give way to each other in the simplicity of true humility.”  Let offenses be forgiven.  Let harshness be changed to mildness, disdain to gentleness, discord into peace . . . so that our fasting may be pleasing to God.  To Him we shall offer a true sacrifice of self denial and devotion if we keep ourselves from all iniquity; being helped in all things by Almighty God, Who with the Son and Holy Spirit is One in Divinity, One in Majesty, unto ages of ages.  Amen.  (excerpts from a sermon of P. St. Leo the Great)

Pope Benedict XVI's Lenten Message 2012

The Pope has a lovely reflection on Hebrews 10:24 for Lent this year - "Let us be concerned for each other, to stir a response in love and good works."

A snippet:

"Christ himself commands us to admonish a brother who is committing a sin (cf. Mt 18:15). The verb used to express fraternal correction - elenchein – is the same used to indicate the prophetic mission of Christians to speak out against a generation indulging in evil (cf. Eph 5:11). The Church’s tradition has included "admonishing sinners" among the spiritual works of mercy. It is important to recover this dimension of Christian charity. We must not remain silent before evil. I am thinking of all those Christians who, out of human regard or purely personal convenience, adapt to the prevailing mentality, rather than warning their brothers and sisters against ways of thinking and acting that are contrary to the truth and that do not follow the path of goodness. Christian admonishment, for its part, is never motivated by a spirit of accusation or recrimination. It is always moved by love and mercy, and springs from genuine concern for the good of the other."

Read the whole message here: http://www.zenit.org/article-34255?l=english.

Handout of Recipes for First Portion of Keeping Vigil

 If you are interested in the menu and recipes that will be highlighted at "Keeping Vigil" with Fr. Joseph Francavilla and Chef Sandy Greeley, please click here. 

Dying to your desires - the importance of the fast

Having been anointed with holy ashes, we now fix our gaze upon the cross of the Son of God, and guided by the light of the paschal fire, we begin our preparation for the Resurrection of the Savior of the World.  As we considered on Monday, no one will reach the hoped-for day of the Resurrection, who has not first willingly entered into the tomb.  If you seek to rise with Christ, you must first die with Him. 

But how are we to accomplish this spiritual death?  The answer is simple, and yet so hard for our fallen nature: we must die to our own human desires; we must renounce the enticement of the body, that having willingly accepted the death which our first parents dealt to all of mankind, we may begin to live the life of God. 

The Pope's Recent Words on Evangelization

Just yesterday on February 23, the Pope made some off-the-cuff remarks that will really resonate with Institute followers, as reported by the Vatican Information Service.

One great problem facing the Church today is the lack of knowledge of the faith, 'religious illiteracy' . . .  With such illiteracy we cannot grow. ... Therefore we must reappropriate the contents of the faith, not as a packet of dogmas and commandments, but as a unique reality revealed in its all its profoundness and beauty. We must do everything possible for catechetical renewal in order for the faith to be known, God to be known, Christ to be known, the truth to be known, and for unity in the truth to grow.  We cannot, Benedict XVI warned, live in ‘a childhood of faith.’  Many adults have never gone beyond the first catechesis, meaning that ‘they cannot - as adults, with competence and conviction - explain and elucidate the philosophy of the faith, its great wisdom and rationality’  in order to illuminate the minds of others. To do this they need an ‘adult faith.’  This does not mean, as has been understood in recent decades, a faith detached from the Magisterium of the Church. When we abandon the Magisterium, the result is dependency “on the opinions of the world, on the dictatorship of the communications media.” By contrast, true emancipation consists in freeing ourselves of these opinions, the freedom of the children of God. We must pray to the Lord intensely, that He may help us emancipate ourselves in this sense, to be free in this sense, with a truly adult faith ... capable of helping others achieve true perfection ... in communion with Christ.

Click here to read the entire news story.

St. Polycarp - Martyr for the Faith

Today is the Feast of St. Polycarp - the Institute hosted a lecture on St. Polycarp in 2010.  Feel free to listen again and re-read The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp.

Link to ICC Media Options - Click Here 

Listen Online - Click Here
Read The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp - Click Here

The Prayer of St. Polycarp:
O Lord God Almighty, the Father of your beloved and blessed Son Jesus Christ, by whom we have received the knowledge of You, the God of angels and powers, and of every creature, and of the whole race of the righteous who live before you, I give You thanks that You have counted me, worthy of this day and this hour, that I should have a part in the number of Your martyrs, in the cup of your Christ, to the resurrection of eternal life, both of soul and body, through the incorruption [imparted] by the Holy Ghost. Among whom may I be accepted this day before You as a fat and acceptable sacrifice, according as You, the ever-truthful God, have foreordained, have revealed beforehand to me, and now have fulfilled. Wherefore also I praise You for all things, I bless You, I glorify You, along with the everlasting and heavenly Jesus Christ, Your beloved Son, with whom, to You, and the Holy Ghost, be glory both now and to all coming ages. Amen.

Dying with God: Where Did All the Time Go?

In today’s production oriented society, it is not uncommon to hear our fellow laborers exclaim at the end of a long and exhausting work day, “Where did the day go?”  At the end of the calendar year, it has become commonplace to hear our fellow citizens say, “Where did the year go?”  And when Christmas and Easter arrive each year, it is unfortunately all too common to hear our brethren in Christ say, “Where did Advent and Lent go?”  Will it happen that at the end of our lives, we will echo these sad sentiments to our children, and say with tears in our eyes, “Where did my life go?”  Let it not be so with us!  With only a few days remaining before Lent, let us begin our reflection upon this most solemn season, in order that this Lent may be for us the journey of our lives.  Why does the Church impose this season of repentance?  Why do the followers of Jesus make acts of reparation for forty days?  To answer these questions properly, we must again return to the story of salvation history, and consider our own lives in light of God’s grand plan for mankind.