Saturday, May 27, 2006
Second Day Of the Novena For the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost
Second Day: The Gift of Fear
Come, Thou Father of the poor!
Come, with treasures which endure!
Come, Thou Light of all that live!
Act of Consecration to the Holy Ghost
On my knees before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses, I offer myself soul and body to Thee, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Thy purity, the unerring keenness of Thy justice, and the might of Thy love. Thou art the Strength and Light of my soul. In Thee I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve Thee by unfaithfulness to grace, and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against Thee. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Thy light and listen to Thy voice and follow Thy gracious inspirations. I cling to Thee and give myself to Thee and ask Thee by Thy compassion to watch over me in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and looking at His Five Wounds and trusting in His Precious Blood and adoring His opened Side and stricken Heart, I implore Thee Adorable Spirit, helper of my infirmity, so to keep me in Thy grace that I may never sin against Thee. Give me grace O Holy Ghost, Spirit of the Father and the Son, to say to Thee always and everywhere, "Speak Lord, for Thy servant heareth." Amen.
Prayer for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost
O Lord Jesus Christ, Who, before ascending into heaven, didst promise to send the Holy Ghost to finish Thy work in the souls of Thy Apostles and Disciples, deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me, that He may perfect in my soul the work of Thy grace and Thy love. Grant me the Spirit of Wisdom that I may despise the perishable things of this world and aspire only after the things that are eternal, the Spirit of Understanding to enlighten my mind with the light of Thy divine truth, the Spirit of Counsel that I may ever choose the surest way of pleasing God and gaining Heaven, the Spirit of Fortitude that I may bear my cross with Thee, and that I may overcome with courage all the obstacles that oppose my salvation, the Spirit of Knowledge that I may know God and know myself and grow perfect in the science of the Saints, the Spirit of Piety that I may find the service of God sweet and amiable, the Spirit of Fear that I may be filled with a loving reverence towards God, and may dread in any way to displease Him. Mark me, dear Lord, with the sign of Thy true disciples and animate me in all things with Thy Spirit. Amen.
The gift of Fear fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread nothing so much as to offend Him by Sin. It is a fear that arises, not from the thought of hell, but from sentiments of reverence and filial submission to our heavenly Father. It is the fear that is the beginning of wisdom, detaching us from worldly pleasures that could in any way separate us from God. "They that fear the Lord will prepare their hearts, and in His sight will sanctify their souls."
Come, O blessed Spirit of Holy Fear, penetrate my inmost heart, that I may set Thee, my Lord and God, before my face forever; help me to shun all things that can offend Thee, and make me worthy to appear before the pure eyes of Thy Divine Majesty in heaven, where Thou livest and reignest in the unity of the ever Blessed Trinity, God world without end. Amen.
1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, 7 Glory Be
Prayer to the Holy Ghost
V. Come, O Holy Ghost, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.
R. Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created.
V. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth
V. Let us pray --- Oh God Who didst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Ghost, grant us in the same Spirit to be truly wise and to ever rejoice in His consolations, through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.
Friday, May 26, 2006
First Day Of the Novena For the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost
The novena to the Holy Ghost is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord when He sent His apostles back to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Ghost on the First Pentecost. Until the indulgenced Divine Mercy Novena was approved, it was still the only novena officially prescribed by the Church. Addressed to the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, it is a powerful plea for the light, strength and love so sorely needed by every Christian. To encourage devotion to the Holy Ghost, the Church has enriched this novena with the following indulgences:
The faithful who devoutly assist at the public novena in honor of the Holy Ghost immediately preceding the feast of Pentecost may gain:
An indulgence of 10 years on any day of the novena
A Plenary indulgence, if they take part in at least five of the exercises; and moreover go to confession, and receive Holy Communion and pray for the Holy Father's intentions.
Those who make a private novena in honor of the Holy Ghost, either before Pentecost or at any other time in the year may gain:
An indulgence of 7 years on any day of this novena
A Plenary indulgence under the usual conditions; but if a public novena is held, this indulgence is available only to those who are lawfully hindered from being part in the same.
Under the new norms on indulgences, the devout saying of this novena gains a plenary indulgence under the usual conditions (state of grace, sacramental confession and Communion on the last day of the Novena, and 1 Our Father, and 1 Hail Mary for the intentions of the Holy Father.
First Day: The Holy Ghost
Holy Spirit! Lord of light !
From Thy clear celestial height,
Thy pure beaming radiance give!
Act of Consecration to the Holy Ghost
On my knees before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses, I offer myself soul and body to Thee, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Thy purity, the unerring keenness of Thy justice, and the might of Thy love. Thou art the Strength and Light of my soul. In Thee I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve Thee by unfaithfulness to grace, and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against Thee. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Thy light and listen to Thy voice and follow Thy gracious inspirations. I cling to Thee and give myself to Thee and ask Thee by Thy compassion to watch over me in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and looking at His Five Wounds and trusting in His Precious Blood and adoring His opened Side and stricken Heart, I implore Thee Adorable Spirit, helper of my infirmity, so to keep me in Thy grace that I may never sin against Thee. Give me grace O Holy Ghost, Spirit of the Father and the Son, to say to Thee always and everywhere, "Speak Lord, for Thy servant heareth." Amen.
Prayer for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost
O Lord Jesus Christ, Who, before ascending into heaven, didst promise to send the Holy Ghost to finish Thy work in the souls of Thy Apostles and Disciples, deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me, that He may perfect in my soul the work of Thy grace and Thy love. Grant me the Spirit of Wisdom that I may despise the perishable things of this world and aspire only after the things that are eternal, the Spirit of Understanding to enlighten my mind with the light of Thy divine truth, the Spirit of Counsel that I may ever choose the surest way of pleasing God and gaining Heaven, the Spirit of Fortitude that I may bear my cross with Thee, and that I may overcome with courage all the obstacles that oppose my salvation, the Spirit of Knowledge that I may know God and know myself and grow perfect in the science of the Saints, the Spirit of Piety that I may find the service of God sweet and amiable, the Spirit of Fear that I may be filled with a loving reverence towards God, and may dread in any way to displease Him. Mark me, dear Lord, with the sign of Thy true disciples and animate me in all things with Thy Spirit. Amen.
Only one thing is important -- eternal salvation. Only one thing, therefore, is to be feared -- sin. Sin is the result of ignorance, weakness, and indifference. The Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Light, of Strength, and of Love. With His sevenfold gifts, He enlightens the mind, strengthens the will, and inflames the heart with love of God. To ensure our salvation, we ought to invoke the Divine Spirit daily, for "The Spirit helpeth our infirmity. We know not what we should pray for as we ought. But the Spirit Himself asketh for us."
Almighty and eternal God, Who hast vouchsafed to regenerate us by water and the Holy Ghost, and hast given us forgiveness of all our sins, vouchsafe to send forth from heaven upon us Thy sevenfold Spirit, the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding, the Spirit of Counsel and Fortitude, the Spirit of Knowledge and Piety, and fill us with the Spirit of Holy Fear.
Amen.
Pater Noster and Ave, Maria ONCE
Doxologia Minor SEVEN TIMES
Prayer for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost
Prayer to the Holy Ghost
V. Come, O Holy Ghost, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.
R. Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created.
V. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth
V. Let us pray --- Oh God Who didst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Ghost, grant us in the same Spirit to be truly wise and to ever rejoice in His consolations, through Jesus Christ Our Lord.
Amen.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Prayer Requests From Around St. Blog's
Seems like these come in waves.
Please pray for the repose of the soul of Charles Wansbutter, uncle of Nicholas
W. of Traditio In Radice.
Please pray for Ginny, The Inspired Traditionalist, who hurt her knee and ankle in a fall at work.
Please pray for the grandmother of Matthew of The Shrine of the Holy Whapping, who suffered a head injury in a fall. She seems to be doing better, but you never know.
Please pray for the repose of the soul of Charles Wansbutter, uncle of Nicholas
W. of Traditio In Radice.
Please pray for Ginny, The Inspired Traditionalist, who hurt her knee and ankle in a fall at work.
Please pray for the grandmother of Matthew of The Shrine of the Holy Whapping, who suffered a head injury in a fall. She seems to be doing better, but you never know.
Ascension Thursday
Jesu, tibi sit glória,
Qui victor in cælum redis,
Cum Patre et almo Spíritu,
In sempitérna sæcula.
Amen.
All praise from every heart and tongue
To thee, ascended Lord, be sung;
Whom with the Father we adore,
And Holy Ghost, for evermore.
Amen.
From The Liturgical Year, by Abbot Prosper Gueranger, OSB
O Jesus, our Emmanuel! Thy work is done, and this is the day of Thy entering into Thy rest. In the beginning of the world, Thou didst spend six days in harmonizing the varied portions of the creation; after which, Thou enteredst again in to Thy rest. When, later on, Thou wouldst repair Thy work, which satan's malice had deranged, Thy love induced Thee to live among us for three-and-thirty years, during which Thou didst work our redemption, and restoredst us to the holiness and honour whence we had fallen. Whatsoever had been assigned Thee in the eternal decrees of the blessed Trinity, whatsoever had been foretold of Thee by the prophets, all was done, dear Jesus! not an iota of it all was forgotten. Thy triumphant Ascension was the close of the mission Thou hadst so mercifully undertaken. It was Thy second entrance into Thy rest; but, this time, it was with out human nature which Thou hadst assumed, and which was now to receive divine honour. Thou wouldst have companions in Thine Ascension; the souls Thou hadst liberated from limbo; yea, and when about to leave us, Thou saidst this word of consolation to us: 'I go to prepare a place for you!'
Confiding O Jesus! in this promise; resolved to follow Thee in all the mysteries achieved by Thee for our sake—in the humility of Thy birth at Bethlehem, in Thy sufferings on Calvary, in the joy of Thy Resurrection—we hope, also, to imitate Thee, when our mortal course is run, in Thy glorious Ascension. Meanwhile, we unite with the holy apostles who rejoiced at Thy triumph, and with the ransomed captives of limbo who entered heaven in Thy company. Watch over us, O divine Shepherd, while we are in our exile! Tend Thy faithful sheep; let none be lost; lead them all to Thy fold. The mystery of Thine Ascension shows us the object of our existence; it reanimates us to study more attentively, and love more warmly, all Thy other mysteries. Our one ambition, then, our one desire, shall henceforth be our own ascension to heaven and to Thee. It was for this Thou camest into the world: by humbling Thyself to our lowliness, to exalt us to Thine own majesty; and by making Thyself Man, to make man a partaker of Thy Divinity. But until the happy day of our union with Thee, what would become of us without that Power of the Most High whom Thou hast promised to send us, that He may bring us patience during our pilgrimage, fidelity to our absent King, and that solace of a heart exiled from its God, love? Come then, O holy Spirit! Support our weakness; fix the eye of our souls on the heaven where our King awaits us; and never permit us to set our hearts on a world which, had it every other charm, has not the infinite one of Jesus' visible presence!
The following prayer was taken from the Mozarabic breviary.
Only-begotten Son of God! who, having conquered death, didst pass form earth to heaven: who, as Son of Man, art seated in great glory on thy throne, receiving praise from the whole angelic host! grant that we, who in the jubilant devotion of our faith, celebrate thine Ascension to the Father, may not be fettered by the chains of sin to the love of this world; and that the aid of our hearts may unceasingly be directed to the heaven, whither thou didst ascend in glory, after thy Passion. Amen.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
My Blogger Timer Is Stuck
Every post I have put up for the last few days defaults to May 20th at 8:40 am for some reason.
Now I really loved May 20th, don't get me wrong. But for reasons that have nothing to do with Blogger.
And I don't think I should have to reset the time and date of every post from now on so that it doesn't default to May 20th.
Now I really loved May 20th, don't get me wrong. But for reasons that have nothing to do with Blogger.
And I don't think I should have to reset the time and date of every post from now on so that it doesn't default to May 20th.
Cardinal Arinze Says No To USCCB Request To Just Stick With the Current Translation "For Pastoral Reasons"
Cardinal Arinze may not be a great friend of the Latin Mass, but he is firm on not allowing the weak US bishops to weasel out of making the terrible English translations of the Mass conform with the original Latin.
This Might Explain Elements of the Lives of St. Benedict and St. John the Evangelist
Making the Sign of the Cross over water literally purifies it.
The research was done with Orthodox methods and priests.
I would like to see more about this research. Does it stand up to serious scientific analysis?
The research was done with Orthodox methods and priests.
I would like to see more about this research. Does it stand up to serious scientific analysis?
What It Is Like Being the Pope's Older Brother
St. Peter's Helpers carries an interview with Monsignor Georg Ratzinger.
His health has improved significantly. Please keep this dear priest in your prayers, though.
His health has improved significantly. Please keep this dear priest in your prayers, though.
Bishop Finn, Opus Dei, and the Latin Mass, Part 2
The embajador en el infierno offers some addiitonal insight and information on the post I put up last week regarding the opportunity Latin Mass aficianados have for cooperation with Opus Dei.
Thanks for allowing me to post it.
I am not an Opus Dei member but my (for many years) spiritual director is an OD priest. He is also the chaplain of my daughters' school. The other day he organized a conference at the school, on the Holy Eucharist. It was delivered by a fellow OD priest who has written a few books on the subject. The main argument of his conference was how badly rationalism had affected the sense of "mistery" in our lives in general and in the liturgy and understanding of the Eucharist in particular. He, however, said nothing about the Latin Mass.
You don't have to be St. Thomas Aquinas to see where that line of argument leads you. So, I went to my spiritual director and told him what, in my opinion, the logical liturgical consequence of the conference was. I was actually surprised at how decidedly he agreed with me. He did not say directly but implied that many people within OD (and that included himself) would be more than happy to readopt the Latin Mass, but that obedience to the Pope stood well before their personal feelings.
In fact, he reminded me that in OD centres the morning mass is usually said in Latin (Novus Ordo) and frequently with the priest facing the tabernacle (I have actually witnessed both things). But in general they reserve the Latin NO for the privacy of their centres.
There are many stories about the founder of OD and the liturgy changes. The most common is that he actually and physically shed tears when saying the NO, and that he was given a personal indult (which he did not ask for, it was his second-in-command who did) to say the Traditional Mass. I understand this indult was relatively common for older priests. The interpretation of the tears varies. Some "establishment-oriented" writers say it was just because he was suffering from some sight problems and could not read the missal properly, others say that he felt confused at the new missal and could not concentrate as much as he did with the old one which he knew inside out, others think that he actually did not like the NO that much......
Regards
Embajador
Thanks for allowing me to post it.
I am not an Opus Dei member but my (for many years) spiritual director is an OD priest. He is also the chaplain of my daughters' school. The other day he organized a conference at the school, on the Holy Eucharist. It was delivered by a fellow OD priest who has written a few books on the subject. The main argument of his conference was how badly rationalism had affected the sense of "mistery" in our lives in general and in the liturgy and understanding of the Eucharist in particular. He, however, said nothing about the Latin Mass.
You don't have to be St. Thomas Aquinas to see where that line of argument leads you. So, I went to my spiritual director and told him what, in my opinion, the logical liturgical consequence of the conference was. I was actually surprised at how decidedly he agreed with me. He did not say directly but implied that many people within OD (and that included himself) would be more than happy to readopt the Latin Mass, but that obedience to the Pope stood well before their personal feelings.
In fact, he reminded me that in OD centres the morning mass is usually said in Latin (Novus Ordo) and frequently with the priest facing the tabernacle (I have actually witnessed both things). But in general they reserve the Latin NO for the privacy of their centres.
There are many stories about the founder of OD and the liturgy changes. The most common is that he actually and physically shed tears when saying the NO, and that he was given a personal indult (which he did not ask for, it was his second-in-command who did) to say the Traditional Mass. I understand this indult was relatively common for older priests. The interpretation of the tears varies. Some "establishment-oriented" writers say it was just because he was suffering from some sight problems and could not read the missal properly, others say that he felt confused at the new missal and could not concentrate as much as he did with the old one which he knew inside out, others think that he actually did not like the NO that much......
Regards
Embajador
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
OK, It Wasn't the Roman Archbishop Of Cannes Who Gave Brown's Blasphemy A THumb's Up
From Fox News, pointed out by a reader:
"The Da Vinci Code" continues to make waves everywhere. Indeed, the Archbishop of Cannes may have liked the movie, but we implied that he was Roman Catholic. He is Russian Orthodox, however, which is probably why he didn't mind the film. Our apologies to anyone who may have been offended...
"The Da Vinci Code" continues to make waves everywhere. Indeed, the Archbishop of Cannes may have liked the movie, but we implied that he was Roman Catholic. He is Russian Orthodox, however, which is probably why he didn't mind the film. Our apologies to anyone who may have been offended...
Rogation Days
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week are Rogationtide.
Check out what Holy Trinity's website has to say about the Rogation Days.
There used to be a partial indulgence for reciting the Litany of the Saints (link to Recta Ratio: The Yahoo Group) even privately during Rogationtide, since Rogation Processions are few and far between these days.
Carmelite Rogation procession
Unfotunately, almost all the good Roation procession images these days are merely Anglo-Catholic. Not much for the home team.
But here is the commentary of Father Francis X. Weiser, SJ on Rogationtide from his classic work, Handbook Of Christian Feasts and Customs. Father Weiser was at one time pastor of Holy Trinity church, now Boston's indult parish.
CHAPTER 4: ROGATION DAYS
ORIGIN AND HISTORY
LITANIES--The Jews in the Old Testament had a form of public prayer in which one or more persons would pronounce invocations of God which all those present answered by repeating (after every invocation) a certain prayer call, lik e "His mercy endures forever" (Psalm 135) or "Praise and exalt Him above all forever" (Daniel 3, 57-87).
In the New Testament the Church retained this practice. The early Christians called such common, public, and alternating prayers "litany," from the Greek "litaneia" (lite), meaning "a humble and fervent appeal."[1] What they prayed for is indicated in a short summary by Saint Paul in his first letter to Timothy (2, 1-2).
The common and typical structure of the litany in the Latin Church developed gradually, from the third century on, from short invocations as they were used in early Church services. It consisted of four main types, which were recited ei ther separately or joined together. First, invocations of the Divine Persons and of Christ, with the response "Miserere nobis" (Have mercy on us). Second, invocations of Mary, the Apostles, and groups of saints, response: "Ora pro nobis" (Pray for us). Th ird, prayers to God for protection from evils of body and soul, response: "Libera nos, Domine" (Deliver us, O Lord). Finally, prayers for needed favors, response: "Te rogamus, audi nos" (We beseech Thee, hear us).[2]
Many invocations of individual saints and special petitions were added everywhere in later centuries, and popular devotion increased their numbers to such an extent that Pope Clement VIII, in 1601, determined the official text of the li tany (called "Litany of All Saints") and prohibited the public use of any other litanies unless expressly approved by Rome.[3]
The invocation Kyrie eleison came from the Orient to Rome in the fifth century. It soon acquired such popularity that it joined (and even supplanted) the older form of litany in the Mass of the Catechumens.[4] Up to this day the Kyrie e leison and Christe eleison in the Mass remain as relics of the responses that the people gave to petitions recited by the deacon (before the readings) and by the celebrant (after the Gospel). Outside of the Holy Sacrifice, the Kyrie eleison was also added to the other types of litany prayers; it may still be found at the beginning and end of every litany. The Greek Rite still uses a number of actual litanies (Ektenai) in its liturgy (the Holy Sacrifice).[5]
Many and varied are the occasions on which litanies were in use among early Christians. Besides being a part of the Mass liturgy, a litany was recited before solemn baptism (as it is today in the liturgy of the Easter vigil) and in the prayers for the dying (where it is also still prescribed). Even more frequent, however, was the use of litanies during processions, because the short invocations and exclamatory answers provided a convenient form of common prayer for a multitude in motion .[6] This connection between litany and procession soon brought about the custom of calling both by the same term. From the sixth century on, "litania" was used with the meaning of "procession." The first Council of Orleans (511) incorporated this usage i nto the official terminology of the Church.[7]
Since the ancient Roman Church had many and divers kinds of processions, the litanies must have been a most familiar feature of ecclesiastical life. Litanies (processions) were held on Station days, every day in Lent, on many feasts, on Ember Days and vigils, and on special occasions (calamities and dangers of a usual or unusual kind) when God's mercy and protection was implored with particular fervor.[8] These latter occasions had already been observed in pagan Rome with processions to the shrines of gods at certain times of the year. Their natural features (dates, routes, motives) were part of the traditional community life. These features the Church retained in certain cases, filling them with the significance and spiritual power of Christian worship.
THE MAJOR LITANIES--The pagan Romans had two kinds of religious parades: the "amburbalia" (around the city) and "ambarvalia" (around the fields).[9] The most important one of the rural processions every year (on April 25) walked along the Via Claudia to a place four miles outside the city. Its purpose was to obtain protection against frost and blight for the field fruits, especially grains. The Roman god responsible for this harvest was a bisexual divinity invoked either as male or female (Robigus, Robigo). He (or she) had the power to send blight upon the grains; and the procession was made to avert his "evil eye" from the fruits of human toil.[10] At the fifth milestone, beyond the Milvian Bridge, was a grove which served as a shrine of Robigus. There the parade stopped, and the "Flamen" (pagan priest) sacrificed a sheep and a rust-colored dog, offering the entrails of these animals to the god. After the "service," young and old celebrated a kind of picnic with games, races, an d amusements (some of which were not overly decent). In honor of the god the whole celebration was called "Robigalia."[11]
Christianity had no quarrel with the motive of such a procession (prayer for protection of the harvest) or with its traditional date and route. Thus, when the empire turned Christian in the fourth century and the pagan celebrations died a natural death, the Church took over this traditional observance, as a Christian rite, to pray for God's protection and blessing upon the fields. The pope with his clergy and a great crowd of people marched in solemn procession along the same route. The y chanted the litany and repeated every invocation. After crossing the Milvian Bridge they did not, however, proceed to the place where the shrine of Robigus had been, but turned back and wended their way along the Tiber to the church of St. Peter at the Vatican. There the pope offered the Holy Sacrifice, and the multitude attended.[12]
When and how, after the pagan observance had stopped, the Church started this annual procession is not known. The first definite information is given in a sermon of Pope Gregory the Great (604), who called it a "Litania Major" (Greater Litany); and he speaks of the "return of this annual solemnity," which proves that it already was a traditional feature in his day.[13]
The name "litania major" was originally given to a number of solemn processions in Rome (such as those on April 25 and Ember Fridays).[14] Only later was it applied exclusively to the procession of April 25, and this term has remained i n the liturgy ever since. There is no connection between the Major Litany and the Feast of Saint Mark the Evangelist, which is celebrated on the same day. The litany is of much earlier date, for the Feast of Saint Mark was not introduced until the ninth c entury.[15]
Shortly after the beginning of the Middle Ages, the Major Litany was adopted by other parts of the ancient empire, but not everywhere on the same date. It was only during the ninth and tenth centuries that the Roman date and ritual beca me those usually accepted. For the Frankish empire the observance in the Roman manner was prescribed by the Council of Aachen, in 836.[16] Today the liturgical books use the plural form in all cases, both for the prayers and the processions.[17]
THE MINOR LITANIES--In 470, during a time of unusual calamities (storms, floods, earthquakes), Bishop Mamertus of Vienne in Gaul originated an annual observance of penitential exercises for the three days before the Feast of the Ascension. With the cooperation of the civil authorities he decreed that the faithful abstain from servile work and that this triduum be held as a time of penance, with prayer and fasting. He also prescribed penitential processions (litanies) for each one of the three days. Thus the name "litanies" was given to the whole celebration.[18]
Very soon the other bishops of Gaul adopted the new observance. At the beginning of the sixth century it started spreading into neighboring countries. In 511 the Council of Orleans prescribed it for the Frankish (Merovingian) part of Fr ance.[19] The Diocese of Milan accepted the litanies, but held them in the week before Pentecost.[20] In Spain they were observed in the sixth century during the week after Pentecost.[21] The Council of Mainz (813) introduced them to the German part of th e Frankish empire.[22]
Meanwhile, Rome had declined for centuries to adopt this custom because its liturgical character did not agree with the ancient practice of the Roman Church which excluded penitential rites on all days between Easter and Pentecost. Char lemagne and the Frankish bishops, however, urged Pope Leo III (816) to incorporate these litanies into the Roman liturgy.[23] The pope finally consented to a compromise: the observance of the fast was rescinded, but the penitential procession was approved . As Mass text, the formula of the Major Litany from the Roman liturgical books was taken. This approval was originally made only as an exception, for the litanies were not intended by Leo III as an established annual rite.[24] In return for the concessio n, the Frankish Church decreed, at the Council of Aachen (836), that these "minor litanies" should be held according to the Roman decision (without fast).[25]
During the subsequent centuries, however, the custom of holding these litanies became definitely established, even at Rome, as an annual feature of the liturgical year; it has remained so ever since in the whole Latin Church, and is now celebrated everywhere on the three days before the Feast of the Ascension. A memorable exception has been made recently: Pope Pius XII granted to some Catholic missions in the Pacific Islands the permission to celebrate both the major and minor litanies in October or November.[26]
NAMES--The litanies held on each one of the three days before the Feast of the Ascension are called "minor" because, in the Roman liturgy, they are of younger date than the Major Litany on April 25. In the early centuries they we re also called "Gallican Litanies," because of their origin in Gaul.[27] The Major Litany was named "Roman" or "Gregorian" (after Gregory the Great, who first mentioned it). The popular term "Rogation Days" originated in the High Middle Ages. Another popu lar name, mostly used in central Europe, is "Cross Days" (from the crucifix that is carried in front of the procession).[28]
LITURGY
LATIN RITE--The Rogation Days are unique through their penitential nature (purple vestments, no Gloria) within the jubilant Easter season. Even the Major Litany, which in ancient times was a festive observance of joyful petition and confidence, became assimilated after the beginning of the tenth century, acquiring this note of mourning and penance.[29]
In the chanting of the litanies each invocation is repeated twice, first by the cantors, then by the people (choir). Some scholars explain this custom as a relic of the "Litania Septiformis" (Procession in Seven Columns) from the time o f Pope Gregory the Great, who initiated this particular type of litany.[30] Another feature of the ancient Major Litany was the antiphons, which the cantors sang at the start of the procession. They unfortunately were discontinued centuries ago, so they a re no longer found in our liturgical books.[31]
The litany used to lead directly into the Mass (as it still does on the vigil of Easter). The Rogation Mass, therefore, had neither Introit nor Kyrie of its own, but the priest concluded the litany by singing a Collect which also served as oration (prayer) of the Mass. The ten Collects used now in the litany are of later date, when the procession was severed from the Mass and held as a separate and isolated rite.[32]
There is no obligation now to conduct a procession. However, the rubrics of the Divine Office prescribe that on Rogation Days all those who are obliged to say the breviary must recite the Litanies of All Saints (with the psalm and praye rs following it) whenever they have missed them before Mass.[33]
The Rogations must be commemorated in other Masses on Rogation Days (for instance, in the Mass of Saint Mark the Evangelist). If April 25 should happen to be Easter Sunday, the litanies are transferred to Tuesday in Easter week; apart f rom this exception, they are always to be held on their liturgical dates even if some other great feast should fall on one of their days.[34]
ORIENTAL RITES--Most of the Oriental Churches keep a triduum of fast and penitential prayer, comparable to the Rogations, shortly before the beginning of Lent. In the Greek Rite it is called the "Fast of Adam" in honor of the fir st law of abstinence which God gave to Adam and Eve in Paradise (Genesis 2, 17), and in preparation for the coming strict fast of Lent. About the same time of the year, the Syrians, Chaldeans, and Copts celebrate a three days' penitential season of prayer and fasting which they call the "Fast of Indiction" (because God indicts man, and punishes him through natural calamities) or "Fast of the Ninevites" (because the people of Nineveh averted God's punishment through prayer and fasting; see Jonas 3, 5-10). The Armenians term it "Aratshavor-atz," which means "precursor" (a fast coming before Lent).[35]
FOLKLORE
RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE--In the rural sections of Catholic countries the Rogations are still held in their full and original significance with many features of external solemnity. The church bells ring while the procession slowly we nds its way through the town and out into the open. Religious banners are carried, the litanies are chanted by choir and people, and the priest sprinkles the fields, gardens, and orchards with holy water. After returning to the church, a sermon is preache d and the High Mass of the Rogations is celebrated. Later in the day some time is spent by many farmers with private little prayer processions around their own homestead. Reciting traditional prayers, the whole family asks for God's blessing upon house, b arns, stables, and fields.[36]
In some places the Rogations are held in a way that is strongly reminiscent of the "Litania Septiformis" of ancient times. The inhabitants of villages surrounding some city or town will proceed from their own churches in separate proces sions and converge toward the big church of the city for the sermon and High Mass. Afterward a market or fair is ready to serve their temporal needs and interests.
The purpose and liturgy of the Rogations has for many centuries, up to our time, inspired a great number of semi-liturgical imitations and repetitions of its rite in the manifold smaller processions which are held all through the summer months in countless places of Europe. These prayer processions are customary whenever the harvest is in danger from frost, floods, hail, drought, or the like.[37] Other such processions are steady features of religious observance, and their main purpose is to pray for the right kind of weather--a most important item on the prayer list of agricultural populations.[38] In many sections of Europe a "weather procession" is held around the church on every Sunday. Usually the priest sings the prologue of Saint John's Gospel (1, 1-14), which from the High Middle Ages has been considered as conferring a powerful blessing against all harmful trends of nature.[39]
PRE-CHRISTIAN ELEMENTS--The pre-Christian lore of averting harm from fields and homes by the magic power of "walking around" them ("circumambulatio," "ambitus" in Latin and "umbigang" in old Germanic) still survives in many super stitious customs among the rural populations of Europe.[40] At the seasons of the year when the demons roam (before the winter solstice, on Walpurgis Night, around the middle of June, at Halloween), girls or young men must circle the fields and orchards, sometimes during the night and in a rhythmic dance step. Before Christmas the farmer goes around his buildings with incense and holy water. He must be careful to complete the round walk; otherwise "the blessing would not take hold." Here also belongs the superstition held in many places that visitors should leave the home by the same door through which they came (to "close the circle") in order to avoid misfortune and harm.[41]
ENDNOTES
1. F. Cabrol, "Litanies," DACL, 9.2 (1930), 1540 ff.
2. Schuster, II, 359.
3. CIC, 1259, 2.
4. Jgn MS, I, 412ff.
5. Nilles, I, LXHI (Ektenes).
6. J. A. Jungmann, "Beitrage zur Geschichte der Gebetsliturgie," VII, ZKTh, 73 (1951), 347ff.
7. Can. 27; Mansi, 8, 355.
8. Kellner, 189 ff.
9. PW, I, 1796 (Ambarvalia), 1816 (Amburbium).
10. M. T. Varro, "Antiquitates, De Rust.," I, 1, 6.
11. PW, IA.1, 949 ff.
12. TE, I, 660.
13. Letter without address; PL, 27, 1327.
14. H. Grisar, "Das Romische Sacramentar," ZKTh, 9 (1885), 585 ff.
15. Kellner, 300.
16. Cap. II, Can. 10; Mansi, 14, 678.
17. H. Leclercq, "Procession de Saint Marc," DACL, 10.2 (1932), 1740 ff.
18. Gregory of Tours, "Historia Francorum" 2, 34; PL, 71, 231 ff.; Sidon. Apoll., Epist. 1; PL, 58, 563.
19. Can. 27; Mansi, 8, 355.
20. Kellner, 193.
21. "Concil. Gerund.," Can. 2; Mansi, 8, 549.
22. Can. 33; Mansi, 14, 72.
23. LE, 164.
24. Schuster, II, 371.
25. See note 16.
26. W. van Bekkum, "The Liturgical Revival in the Service of the Missions," AP, 108.
27. F. Cabrol, "Rogations," DACL, 14.2 (1948), 2459 ff.
28. OiT, 110.
29. Schuster, II, 356.
30. DACL, 10.2 (1932), 1740 (Litania Septiformis).
31. Schuster, II, 358 (text of these ancient antiphons).
32. Schuster, II, 366.
33. BR, April 25 (S. Marci Evangelistae), rubric at the end.
34. MR, April 25 (S. Marci Evangelistae), rubric before Mass text.
35. Nilles, II, 6-11, 51, 646, 697.
36. OiT, 104ff. ("Die drei Bittage vor Christi Himmelfahrt").
37. B. Scholz, "The Sacramentals in Agriculture," OF, 5 (1931), 323 ff.
38. Franz, II, 71.
39. Jgn MS, II, 543.
40. Franz, II, 7, 68.
41. Koren, 129 ff.
Check out what Holy Trinity's website has to say about the Rogation Days.
There used to be a partial indulgence for reciting the Litany of the Saints (link to Recta Ratio: The Yahoo Group) even privately during Rogationtide, since Rogation Processions are few and far between these days.
Carmelite Rogation procession
Unfotunately, almost all the good Roation procession images these days are merely Anglo-Catholic. Not much for the home team.
But here is the commentary of Father Francis X. Weiser, SJ on Rogationtide from his classic work, Handbook Of Christian Feasts and Customs. Father Weiser was at one time pastor of Holy Trinity church, now Boston's indult parish.
CHAPTER 4: ROGATION DAYS
ORIGIN AND HISTORY
LITANIES--The Jews in the Old Testament had a form of public prayer in which one or more persons would pronounce invocations of God which all those present answered by repeating (after every invocation) a certain prayer call, lik e "His mercy endures forever" (Psalm 135) or "Praise and exalt Him above all forever" (Daniel 3, 57-87).
In the New Testament the Church retained this practice. The early Christians called such common, public, and alternating prayers "litany," from the Greek "litaneia" (lite), meaning "a humble and fervent appeal."[1] What they prayed for is indicated in a short summary by Saint Paul in his first letter to Timothy (2, 1-2).
The common and typical structure of the litany in the Latin Church developed gradually, from the third century on, from short invocations as they were used in early Church services. It consisted of four main types, which were recited ei ther separately or joined together. First, invocations of the Divine Persons and of Christ, with the response "Miserere nobis" (Have mercy on us). Second, invocations of Mary, the Apostles, and groups of saints, response: "Ora pro nobis" (Pray for us). Th ird, prayers to God for protection from evils of body and soul, response: "Libera nos, Domine" (Deliver us, O Lord). Finally, prayers for needed favors, response: "Te rogamus, audi nos" (We beseech Thee, hear us).[2]
Many invocations of individual saints and special petitions were added everywhere in later centuries, and popular devotion increased their numbers to such an extent that Pope Clement VIII, in 1601, determined the official text of the li tany (called "Litany of All Saints") and prohibited the public use of any other litanies unless expressly approved by Rome.[3]
The invocation Kyrie eleison came from the Orient to Rome in the fifth century. It soon acquired such popularity that it joined (and even supplanted) the older form of litany in the Mass of the Catechumens.[4] Up to this day the Kyrie e leison and Christe eleison in the Mass remain as relics of the responses that the people gave to petitions recited by the deacon (before the readings) and by the celebrant (after the Gospel). Outside of the Holy Sacrifice, the Kyrie eleison was also added to the other types of litany prayers; it may still be found at the beginning and end of every litany. The Greek Rite still uses a number of actual litanies (Ektenai) in its liturgy (the Holy Sacrifice).[5]
Many and varied are the occasions on which litanies were in use among early Christians. Besides being a part of the Mass liturgy, a litany was recited before solemn baptism (as it is today in the liturgy of the Easter vigil) and in the prayers for the dying (where it is also still prescribed). Even more frequent, however, was the use of litanies during processions, because the short invocations and exclamatory answers provided a convenient form of common prayer for a multitude in motion .[6] This connection between litany and procession soon brought about the custom of calling both by the same term. From the sixth century on, "litania" was used with the meaning of "procession." The first Council of Orleans (511) incorporated this usage i nto the official terminology of the Church.[7]
Since the ancient Roman Church had many and divers kinds of processions, the litanies must have been a most familiar feature of ecclesiastical life. Litanies (processions) were held on Station days, every day in Lent, on many feasts, on Ember Days and vigils, and on special occasions (calamities and dangers of a usual or unusual kind) when God's mercy and protection was implored with particular fervor.[8] These latter occasions had already been observed in pagan Rome with processions to the shrines of gods at certain times of the year. Their natural features (dates, routes, motives) were part of the traditional community life. These features the Church retained in certain cases, filling them with the significance and spiritual power of Christian worship.
THE MAJOR LITANIES--The pagan Romans had two kinds of religious parades: the "amburbalia" (around the city) and "ambarvalia" (around the fields).[9] The most important one of the rural processions every year (on April 25) walked along the Via Claudia to a place four miles outside the city. Its purpose was to obtain protection against frost and blight for the field fruits, especially grains. The Roman god responsible for this harvest was a bisexual divinity invoked either as male or female (Robigus, Robigo). He (or she) had the power to send blight upon the grains; and the procession was made to avert his "evil eye" from the fruits of human toil.[10] At the fifth milestone, beyond the Milvian Bridge, was a grove which served as a shrine of Robigus. There the parade stopped, and the "Flamen" (pagan priest) sacrificed a sheep and a rust-colored dog, offering the entrails of these animals to the god. After the "service," young and old celebrated a kind of picnic with games, races, an d amusements (some of which were not overly decent). In honor of the god the whole celebration was called "Robigalia."[11]
Christianity had no quarrel with the motive of such a procession (prayer for protection of the harvest) or with its traditional date and route. Thus, when the empire turned Christian in the fourth century and the pagan celebrations died a natural death, the Church took over this traditional observance, as a Christian rite, to pray for God's protection and blessing upon the fields. The pope with his clergy and a great crowd of people marched in solemn procession along the same route. The y chanted the litany and repeated every invocation. After crossing the Milvian Bridge they did not, however, proceed to the place where the shrine of Robigus had been, but turned back and wended their way along the Tiber to the church of St. Peter at the Vatican. There the pope offered the Holy Sacrifice, and the multitude attended.[12]
When and how, after the pagan observance had stopped, the Church started this annual procession is not known. The first definite information is given in a sermon of Pope Gregory the Great (604), who called it a "Litania Major" (Greater Litany); and he speaks of the "return of this annual solemnity," which proves that it already was a traditional feature in his day.[13]
The name "litania major" was originally given to a number of solemn processions in Rome (such as those on April 25 and Ember Fridays).[14] Only later was it applied exclusively to the procession of April 25, and this term has remained i n the liturgy ever since. There is no connection between the Major Litany and the Feast of Saint Mark the Evangelist, which is celebrated on the same day. The litany is of much earlier date, for the Feast of Saint Mark was not introduced until the ninth c entury.[15]
Shortly after the beginning of the Middle Ages, the Major Litany was adopted by other parts of the ancient empire, but not everywhere on the same date. It was only during the ninth and tenth centuries that the Roman date and ritual beca me those usually accepted. For the Frankish empire the observance in the Roman manner was prescribed by the Council of Aachen, in 836.[16] Today the liturgical books use the plural form in all cases, both for the prayers and the processions.[17]
THE MINOR LITANIES--In 470, during a time of unusual calamities (storms, floods, earthquakes), Bishop Mamertus of Vienne in Gaul originated an annual observance of penitential exercises for the three days before the Feast of the Ascension. With the cooperation of the civil authorities he decreed that the faithful abstain from servile work and that this triduum be held as a time of penance, with prayer and fasting. He also prescribed penitential processions (litanies) for each one of the three days. Thus the name "litanies" was given to the whole celebration.[18]
Very soon the other bishops of Gaul adopted the new observance. At the beginning of the sixth century it started spreading into neighboring countries. In 511 the Council of Orleans prescribed it for the Frankish (Merovingian) part of Fr ance.[19] The Diocese of Milan accepted the litanies, but held them in the week before Pentecost.[20] In Spain they were observed in the sixth century during the week after Pentecost.[21] The Council of Mainz (813) introduced them to the German part of th e Frankish empire.[22]
Meanwhile, Rome had declined for centuries to adopt this custom because its liturgical character did not agree with the ancient practice of the Roman Church which excluded penitential rites on all days between Easter and Pentecost. Char lemagne and the Frankish bishops, however, urged Pope Leo III (816) to incorporate these litanies into the Roman liturgy.[23] The pope finally consented to a compromise: the observance of the fast was rescinded, but the penitential procession was approved . As Mass text, the formula of the Major Litany from the Roman liturgical books was taken. This approval was originally made only as an exception, for the litanies were not intended by Leo III as an established annual rite.[24] In return for the concessio n, the Frankish Church decreed, at the Council of Aachen (836), that these "minor litanies" should be held according to the Roman decision (without fast).[25]
During the subsequent centuries, however, the custom of holding these litanies became definitely established, even at Rome, as an annual feature of the liturgical year; it has remained so ever since in the whole Latin Church, and is now celebrated everywhere on the three days before the Feast of the Ascension. A memorable exception has been made recently: Pope Pius XII granted to some Catholic missions in the Pacific Islands the permission to celebrate both the major and minor litanies in October or November.[26]
NAMES--The litanies held on each one of the three days before the Feast of the Ascension are called "minor" because, in the Roman liturgy, they are of younger date than the Major Litany on April 25. In the early centuries they we re also called "Gallican Litanies," because of their origin in Gaul.[27] The Major Litany was named "Roman" or "Gregorian" (after Gregory the Great, who first mentioned it). The popular term "Rogation Days" originated in the High Middle Ages. Another popu lar name, mostly used in central Europe, is "Cross Days" (from the crucifix that is carried in front of the procession).[28]
LITURGY
LATIN RITE--The Rogation Days are unique through their penitential nature (purple vestments, no Gloria) within the jubilant Easter season. Even the Major Litany, which in ancient times was a festive observance of joyful petition and confidence, became assimilated after the beginning of the tenth century, acquiring this note of mourning and penance.[29]
In the chanting of the litanies each invocation is repeated twice, first by the cantors, then by the people (choir). Some scholars explain this custom as a relic of the "Litania Septiformis" (Procession in Seven Columns) from the time o f Pope Gregory the Great, who initiated this particular type of litany.[30] Another feature of the ancient Major Litany was the antiphons, which the cantors sang at the start of the procession. They unfortunately were discontinued centuries ago, so they a re no longer found in our liturgical books.[31]
The litany used to lead directly into the Mass (as it still does on the vigil of Easter). The Rogation Mass, therefore, had neither Introit nor Kyrie of its own, but the priest concluded the litany by singing a Collect which also served as oration (prayer) of the Mass. The ten Collects used now in the litany are of later date, when the procession was severed from the Mass and held as a separate and isolated rite.[32]
There is no obligation now to conduct a procession. However, the rubrics of the Divine Office prescribe that on Rogation Days all those who are obliged to say the breviary must recite the Litanies of All Saints (with the psalm and praye rs following it) whenever they have missed them before Mass.[33]
The Rogations must be commemorated in other Masses on Rogation Days (for instance, in the Mass of Saint Mark the Evangelist). If April 25 should happen to be Easter Sunday, the litanies are transferred to Tuesday in Easter week; apart f rom this exception, they are always to be held on their liturgical dates even if some other great feast should fall on one of their days.[34]
ORIENTAL RITES--Most of the Oriental Churches keep a triduum of fast and penitential prayer, comparable to the Rogations, shortly before the beginning of Lent. In the Greek Rite it is called the "Fast of Adam" in honor of the fir st law of abstinence which God gave to Adam and Eve in Paradise (Genesis 2, 17), and in preparation for the coming strict fast of Lent. About the same time of the year, the Syrians, Chaldeans, and Copts celebrate a three days' penitential season of prayer and fasting which they call the "Fast of Indiction" (because God indicts man, and punishes him through natural calamities) or "Fast of the Ninevites" (because the people of Nineveh averted God's punishment through prayer and fasting; see Jonas 3, 5-10). The Armenians term it "Aratshavor-atz," which means "precursor" (a fast coming before Lent).[35]
FOLKLORE
RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE--In the rural sections of Catholic countries the Rogations are still held in their full and original significance with many features of external solemnity. The church bells ring while the procession slowly we nds its way through the town and out into the open. Religious banners are carried, the litanies are chanted by choir and people, and the priest sprinkles the fields, gardens, and orchards with holy water. After returning to the church, a sermon is preache d and the High Mass of the Rogations is celebrated. Later in the day some time is spent by many farmers with private little prayer processions around their own homestead. Reciting traditional prayers, the whole family asks for God's blessing upon house, b arns, stables, and fields.[36]
In some places the Rogations are held in a way that is strongly reminiscent of the "Litania Septiformis" of ancient times. The inhabitants of villages surrounding some city or town will proceed from their own churches in separate proces sions and converge toward the big church of the city for the sermon and High Mass. Afterward a market or fair is ready to serve their temporal needs and interests.
The purpose and liturgy of the Rogations has for many centuries, up to our time, inspired a great number of semi-liturgical imitations and repetitions of its rite in the manifold smaller processions which are held all through the summer months in countless places of Europe. These prayer processions are customary whenever the harvest is in danger from frost, floods, hail, drought, or the like.[37] Other such processions are steady features of religious observance, and their main purpose is to pray for the right kind of weather--a most important item on the prayer list of agricultural populations.[38] In many sections of Europe a "weather procession" is held around the church on every Sunday. Usually the priest sings the prologue of Saint John's Gospel (1, 1-14), which from the High Middle Ages has been considered as conferring a powerful blessing against all harmful trends of nature.[39]
PRE-CHRISTIAN ELEMENTS--The pre-Christian lore of averting harm from fields and homes by the magic power of "walking around" them ("circumambulatio," "ambitus" in Latin and "umbigang" in old Germanic) still survives in many super stitious customs among the rural populations of Europe.[40] At the seasons of the year when the demons roam (before the winter solstice, on Walpurgis Night, around the middle of June, at Halloween), girls or young men must circle the fields and orchards, sometimes during the night and in a rhythmic dance step. Before Christmas the farmer goes around his buildings with incense and holy water. He must be careful to complete the round walk; otherwise "the blessing would not take hold." Here also belongs the superstition held in many places that visitors should leave the home by the same door through which they came (to "close the circle") in order to avoid misfortune and harm.[41]
ENDNOTES
1. F. Cabrol, "Litanies," DACL, 9.2 (1930), 1540 ff.
2. Schuster, II, 359.
3. CIC, 1259, 2.
4. Jgn MS, I, 412ff.
5. Nilles, I, LXHI (Ektenes).
6. J. A. Jungmann, "Beitrage zur Geschichte der Gebetsliturgie," VII, ZKTh, 73 (1951), 347ff.
7. Can. 27; Mansi, 8, 355.
8. Kellner, 189 ff.
9. PW, I, 1796 (Ambarvalia), 1816 (Amburbium).
10. M. T. Varro, "Antiquitates, De Rust.," I, 1, 6.
11. PW, IA.1, 949 ff.
12. TE, I, 660.
13. Letter without address; PL, 27, 1327.
14. H. Grisar, "Das Romische Sacramentar," ZKTh, 9 (1885), 585 ff.
15. Kellner, 300.
16. Cap. II, Can. 10; Mansi, 14, 678.
17. H. Leclercq, "Procession de Saint Marc," DACL, 10.2 (1932), 1740 ff.
18. Gregory of Tours, "Historia Francorum" 2, 34; PL, 71, 231 ff.; Sidon. Apoll., Epist. 1; PL, 58, 563.
19. Can. 27; Mansi, 8, 355.
20. Kellner, 193.
21. "Concil. Gerund.," Can. 2; Mansi, 8, 549.
22. Can. 33; Mansi, 14, 72.
23. LE, 164.
24. Schuster, II, 371.
25. See note 16.
26. W. van Bekkum, "The Liturgical Revival in the Service of the Missions," AP, 108.
27. F. Cabrol, "Rogations," DACL, 14.2 (1948), 2459 ff.
28. OiT, 110.
29. Schuster, II, 356.
30. DACL, 10.2 (1932), 1740 (Litania Septiformis).
31. Schuster, II, 358 (text of these ancient antiphons).
32. Schuster, II, 366.
33. BR, April 25 (S. Marci Evangelistae), rubric at the end.
34. MR, April 25 (S. Marci Evangelistae), rubric before Mass text.
35. Nilles, II, 6-11, 51, 646, 697.
36. OiT, 104ff. ("Die drei Bittage vor Christi Himmelfahrt").
37. B. Scholz, "The Sacramentals in Agriculture," OF, 5 (1931), 323 ff.
38. Franz, II, 71.
39. Jgn MS, II, 543.
40. Franz, II, 7, 68.
41. Koren, 129 ff.
