Confraternity of St. Peter

Coat of Arms of the Confraternity of St. Peter

Today, 27 February, marks the anniversary of this bloggers enrollment in the Confraternity of St. Peter.

A confraternity is, of course, a sort of organization of those united in their prayer for a particular intention and cause.  In this case, "The Confraternity of St. Peter is a sodality of members who wish to unite themselves to the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter and aid in the work of our fraternity, primarily by their prayers...Members of the Confraternity of St. Peter (CSP) pray a decade of the Rosary and the Confraternity Prayer each day for the intentions of the CSP."

The Confraternity Prayer is as follows:

"V. Remember, O Lord, Thy congregation.

R. Which Thou hast possessed from the beginning.

Let us pray.

O Lord Jesus, born to give testimony to the Truth, Thou who lovest unto the end those whom Thou hast chosen, kindly hear our prayers for our pastors.

Thou who knowest all things, knowest that they love Thee and can do all things in Thee who strengthenest them.

Sanctify them in Truth. Pour into them, we beseech Thee, the Spirit whom Thou didst give to Thy apostles, who would make them, in all things, like unto Thee.

Receive the homage of love which they offer up to Thee, who hast graciously received the threefold confession of Peter.

And so that a pure oblation may everywhere be offered without ceasing unto the Most Holy Trinity, graciously enrich their number and keep them in Thy love, who art one with the Father and the Holy Ghost, to whom be glory and honour forever.

Amen."

The website of the Confraternity can be found here: Confraternity of St. Peter

Picture credit: [By Required attribution text: by the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter, available from http://fssp.org., Attribution, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5289044]

The Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP) is an Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right established in 1988 at the direction of Pope St. John Paul II for the specific purpose of preserving the traditional liturgy of the Latin Rite.  This Priestly Fraternity was specifically founded to allow these venerable liturgies to remain alive in a community in full communion with, and with a deep attachment to, the Chair of St. Peter.  Hence they celebrate the Mass and sacraments according to the Roman Missal of 1962; the form of the Mass authorized for use by any priests by the Apostolic Letter Motu Proprio of Pope Benedict XVI, Summorum Pontificum.  Here is the website of the community: Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP)

The FSSP celebrates Mass in 124 dioceses worldwide, and in their North American District, 96 priests administer parishes in 39 dioceses in the USA and 7 in Canada.  This includes my own Archdiocese of Atlanta.  Here is the website of that North American District: FSSP North American District

I am particularly blessed to belong to the parish of St. Francis de Sales, which they administer in Mableton, Georgia!

Live well!

Bissextile Day & Leap Years

Pope Gregory XIII (1572-1585) who introduced the Gregorian Calendar

Today is Bissextile Day!  What is that?

Have you ever wondered why we have leap years, and why, on the traditional Catholic calendar, the feasts of late February shift a day in leap years?

Read on.

Of course, today we use the Gregorian calendar, promulgated by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582.  It replaced the earlier Julian calendar that dated to the Roman era, but proved less than accurate, and the error between date and solar events such as the equinoxes, necessitated a new calendar.  The root of the Julian Calendar error is this: it presumed that the year was 365.25 days long, meaning that a leap year every four years would account for the decimal places and keep the calendar year in sync with the actual solar year. As it happens, the year is more precisely 365.2422 days long, meaning that the seasons would slowly drift away from their calendar dates with the Julian Calendar -- for instance, by 1582, the Vernal Equinox was occurring on 11 March, rather than 21 March as is traditionally assumed. So, the new Gregorian Calendar restored the Equinox to its traditional date by dropping 10 days that October of 1582. It would try to remain accurate by modifying the reckoning of leap years: it would have a leap year every year divisible by 4, except those divisible by 100 (most years such as 1700AD are not leap years), but if divisible by 400, remaining a leap year (so 1600AD was a leap year). This is still a hair off, and some have suggested that we waive the leap year in 4000AD to fix the problem.

At this point, the leap day, when added, is 29 February.  Formerly, however, the extra day was not inserted in that last place of the month of February, but on the "sixth day before the Kalends of March."  The Roman manner of inserting a leap day was this -- simply double that sixth day before the Kalends of March.  You would have the sixth day twice in a row -- hence the term Bissextile, giving you ante diem bis sextum Kalendas Martias; the second sixth day before the Kalends of March.  Of course, the Romans reckoned their dates by counting down to the Kalends (First of the Month), Nones (5th or 7th of the Month), and Ides (13th or 15th of the Month).  The countdown was inclusive, so the third day before the Kalends of January, would be 30 December, by our sequential method.  This site has a wonderful chart showing the equivalent dates between our sequential reckoning and the Roman method: Roman Calendar: Conversion to our Calendar

The bissextile day, or leap day, then, was, considered from this perspective, that sixth day before the first of March, inclusive, or as we call it in normal years, 24 February.  When that day was "doubled" you had two legal "sixth days." Sequentially, however, that meant that the 25 day of the month was now the actual sixth day before the Kalends of March, and the 29th of February the day before the Kalends.

All of this has significance for the traditional Catholic feasts that fall on 24 February or later in this month.  Since, in leap years, the 24th was "doubled," in order for a feast day like that of St. Matthias the Apostle to remain on "the sixth day before the Kalends of March" it would migrate to 25 February that year.  The same would go for the other feasts at the end of the month -- traditionally their place was reckoned based on their number of days from the Kalends.  So, St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows typically has his traditional feast on 27 February, which is the third day before the Kalends of March, but in order to be on the third day before the Kalends of March in a leap year, it must shift to 28 February.

With the reform of the calendar in 1970, all feasts were reckoned by the sequential numbering, and the issue disappeared, much like the Roman technique of counting down to a date rather than sequentially counting up.

The great Fr. Z. has posted on this very subject, noting pertinent details that I did not go into: Fr. Z: Felix Bissextilis!

Tempus fugit!

Live well!

Ave Regina Caelorum

Small Cowper Madonna, by Raphael.

It is with that great feast of Candlemas (2 February) that the Marian Anthem chanted at the end of Compline, shifts from the Alma Redemptoris Mater, which we have said since the start of Advent and through the Christmas season, to the Ave Regina Caelorum.  It is customary to say or sing the Ave Regina Caelorum through Lent and until the Holy Triduum and the start of the Easter Season.

The Ave Regina Caelorum, like the  Alma Redemptoris Mater, was written by Hermann Contractus, who died in 1054AD.  For a bit more: Old Catholic Encyclopedia: Ave Regina

The text reads:

Ave, Regina Caelorum. 
Ave Domina Angelorum!
Salve Radix, salve porta,
Ex qua mundo lux est orta.

Gaude Virgo gloriosa,
Super omnes speciosa.

Vale, o valde decora.
Et pro nobis Christum exora.

In English:
Welcome, O Queen of Heaven. 
Welcome, O Lady of Angels
Hail! thou root, hail! thou gate
From whom unto the world, a light has arisen:

Rejoice, O glorious Virgin, 
Lovely beyond all others, 
Farewell, most beautiful maiden, 
And pray for us to Christ.


A more poetic English translation:
Hail, O Queen of heaven enthroned!
Hail, by Angels mistress own'd!
Root of Jesse, gate of morn,
Whence the world's true Light was born.

Loveliest whom in Heaven they see,
Fairest thou where all are fair!
Plead with Christ our sins to spare.

[From my Baronius Press hand missal, pg. 120]

This is the original Gregorian Chant setting of the Ave Regina Caelorum:

Here is a setting of the Anthem by the master composer Palestrina (+1594AD):

This is another setting, this by the great Lassus (+1594AD):

Finally, a setting by the lesser known-German Composer, Johann Kaspar Kerll (+1693):

Live well!

Feast of St. Valentine, Priest and Martyr

St. Valentine Baptizing St. Lucilla, by Jacopo Bassano.

Today is the feast of St. Valentine, priest and martyr, who died for the faith during the persecution of Aurelius, around 270AD.

This feast had a place on the general calendar of the Latin Church until the 1970 revisions; Mass is still celebrated in honor of St. Valentine on this day when said according to the 1962 missal, as at this blogger's parish.  It seems that much of the world today is busy celebrating a traditional Catholic feast day; in most Catholic Latin parishes, where the 1970 missal is used, it is the feast of Sts. Cyril and Methodius.

In fairness, St. Valentine remains an entry in the Roman martyrology for this day, even with his removal from the general calendar -- so even in the reformed calendar it is still the feast of St. Valentine.  We do see a rather striking feature of the danger of reforming a calendar when so many cultural associations have grown up around those days!

From the 13th century Golden Legend we have this account:
"Here beginneth the Life of S. Valentine, and first the interpretation of his name.

Valentine is as much to say as containing valour that is perseverant in great holiness. Valentine is said also as a valiant knight, for he was a right noble knight of God, and the knight is said valiant that fleeth not, and smiteth and defendeth valiantly and overcometh much puissantly. And so S. Valentine withdrew him not from his martyrdom in fleeing, he smote in destroying the idols, he defended the faith, he overcame in suffering.

Of S. Valentine the Martyr.

S. Valentine, friend of our Lord and priest of great authority, was at Rome. It happed that Claudius the emperor made him to come tofore him and said to him in demanding: What thing is that which I have heard of thee, Valentine? Why wilt thou not abide in our amity, and worship the idols and renounce the vain opinion of thy creance? S. Valentine answered him: If thou hadst very knowledge of the grace of Jesu Christ thou shouldest not say this that thou sayest, but shouldest reny the idols and worship very God. Then said to S. Valentine a prince which was of the council of the emperor: What wilt thou say of our gods and of their holy life? And S. Valentine answered: I say none other thing of them but that they were men mortal and mechant and full of all ordure and evil. Then said Claudius the emperor: If Jesu Christ be God verily, wherefore sayst thou not the truth? And S. Valentine said: Certainly Jesu Christ is only very God, and if thou believe in him, verily thy soul shall be saved, thy realm shall multiply, and he shall give to thee alway victory of thine enemies. Then Claudius turned him unto all them that were there, and said to them: Lords, Romans, hear ye how wisely and reasonably this man speaketh? Anon the provost of the city said: The emperor is deceived and betrayed, how may we leave that which we have holden and been accustomed to hold sith our infancy? With these words the emperor turned and changed his courage, and S. Valentine was delivered in the keeping of the provost.

When S. Valentine was brought in an house in prison, then he prayed to God, saying: Lord Jesu Christ very God, which art very light, enlumine this house in such wise that they that dwell therein may know thee to be very God. And the provost said: I marvel me that thou sayest that thy God is very light, and nevertheless, if he may make my daughter to hear and see, which long time hath been blind, I shall do all that thou commandest me, and shall believe in thy God. S. Valentine anon put him in prayers, and by his prayers the daughter of the provost received again her sight, and anon all they of the the house were converted. After, the emperor did do smite off the head of S. Valentine, the year of our Lord two hundred and eighty. Then let us pray to S. Valentine that he get us pardon of our sins. Amen."

[cf., Fordham Medieval Sourcebook: Golden Legend]

For more on St. Valentine, you might note:
Old Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Valentine

Catholic Saints Info: St. Valentine

This site offers a splendid summary of the customs associated with this day:
Fisheaters: St. Valentine's Day

The Skull of St. Valentine at Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Roma, Italia.

The relics of St. Valentine are kept in the Church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin in Rome, Italy.  This basilica is much more famous for the La Bocca della Verita (The Mouth of Truth; prominently featured in the film Roman Holiday) that sits at its entrance.  Not finding an official page for the Church, here is its entry at the ubiquitous Wikipedia: Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Roma.

To make it a meme...

Why the association with romance?  The Old Catholic Encyclopedia notes:
"The popular customs associated with Saint Valentine's Day undoubtedly had their origin in a conventional belief generally received in England and France during the Middle Ages, that on 14 February, i.e. half way through the second month of the year, the birds began to pair. Thus in Chaucer's Parliament of Foules we read:

For this was sent on Seynt Valentyne's day
Whan every foul cometh ther to choose his mate. "

So, may this priest and martyr of the early Church intercede for you, and for your purity!

Live well!