SUBJECT: CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

Traditional Proclamation of the Birth of Christ

The twenty-fifth day of December.

In the five thousand one hundred and ninety-ninth year of the creation of the world from the time when God in the beginning created the heavens and the earth;

the two thousand nine hundred and fifty-seventh year after the flood;
the two thousand and fifteenth year from the birth of Abraham;

the one thousand five hundred and tenth year from Moses
and the going forth of the people of Israel from Egypt;

the one thousand and thirty-second year from David's being anointed king;

in the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel;

in the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;

the seven hundred and fifty-second year from the foundation of the city of Rome;

the forty second year of the reign of Octavian Augustus;

the whole world being at peace, 

in the sixth age of the world,

Jesus Christ the eternal God and Son of the eternal Father,

desiring to sanctify the world by his most merciful coming,

being conceived by the Holy Spirit,

and nine months having passed since his conception,

was born in Bethlehem of Judea of the Virgin Mary, being made flesh. 

The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

SUBJECT: CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

Traditional Proclamation of the Birth of Christ

The twenty-fifth day of December.

In the five thousand one hundred and ninety-ninth year of the creation of the world
from the time when God in the beginning created the heavens and the earth;

the two thousand nine hundred and fifty-seventh year after the flood;

the two thousand and fifteenth year from the birth of Abraham;

the one thousand five hundred and tenth year from Moses
and the going forth of the people of Israel from Egypt;

the one thousand and thirty-second year from David's being anointed king;
in the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel;

in the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;

the seven hundred and fifty-second year from the foundation of the city of Rome;

the forty second year of the reign of Octavian Augustus;

the whole world being at peace,
in the sixth age of the world,
Jesus Christ the eternal God and Son of the eternal Father,
desiring to sanctify the world by his most merciful coming,
being conceived by the Holy Spirit,
and nine months having passed since his conception,
was born in Bethlehem of Judea of the Virgin Mary,
being made flesh.

The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

On the First Day of Christmas -- The Solemnity of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

On the Second Day of Christmas -- The Feast of St. Stephen, Deacon and Martyr

On the Third Day of Christmas -- The Feast of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist 

On the Fourth Day of Christmas -- The Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs

On the Fifth Day of Christmas -- The Memorial of St. Thomas Becket, Bishop and Martyr

On the Sixth Day of Christmas -- The Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph

On the Seventh Day of Christmas -- The Memorial of St. Sylvester I, Pope

On the Eighth Day of Christmas -- The Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God

On the Ninth Day of Christmas -- The Memorial of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church

On the Tenth Day of Christmas -- The Memorial of the Most Holy Name of Jesus

On the Eleventh Day of Christmas -- The Memorial of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas -- The Memorial of St. John Neumann, Bishop

Isn't the Christmas Season Great?

Blessings,

Papa Z.

SUBJECT: PROFOUND, DEEP THEOLOGY!!!!!!!

The "Epilogue" to JRR Tolkien's essay "On Fairy Stories"  (emphasis mine)

Epilogue

This ”joy” which I have selected as the mark of the true fairy-story (or romance), or as the seal upon it, merits more consideration.

Probably every writer making a secondary world, a fantasy, every sub-creator, wishes in some measure to be a real maker, or hopes that he is drawing on reality: hopes that the peculiar quality of this secondary world (if not all the details) are derived from Reality, or are flowing into it. If he indeed achieves a quality that can fairly be described by the dictionary definition: “inner consistency of reality,” it is difficult to conceive how this can be, if the work does not in some way partake of reality. The peculiar quality of the ”joy” in successful Fantasy can thus be explained as a sudden glimpse of the underlying reality or truth. It is not only a “consolation” for the sorrow of this world, but a satisfaction, and an answer to that question, “Is it true?” The answer to this question that I gave at first was (quite rightly): “If you have built your little world well, yes: it is true in that world.” That is enough for the artist (or the artist part of the artist). But in the “eucatastrophe” we see in a brief vision that the answer may be greater—it may be a far-off gleam or echo of evangelium in the real world. The use of this word gives a hint of my epilogue. It is a serious and dangerous matter.  It is presumptuous of me to touch upon such a theme; but if by grace what I say has in any respect any validity, it is, of course, only one facet of a truth incalculably rich: finite only because the capacity of Man for whom this was done is finite.

I would venture to say that approaching the Christian Story from this direction, it has long been my feeling (a joyous feeling) that God redeemed the corrupt making-creatures, men, in a way fitting to this aspect, as to others, of their strange nature. The Gospels contain a fairystory, or a story of a larger kind which embraces all the essence of fairy-stories. They contain many marvels—peculiarly artistic, beautiful, and moving: “mythical” in their perfect, selfcontained significance; and among the marvels is the greatest and most complete conceivable eucatastrophe. But this story has entered History and the primary world; the desire and aspiration of sub-creation has been raised to the fulfillment of Creation. The Birth of Christ is the eucatastrophe of Man's history. The Resurrection is the eucatastrophe of the story of the Incarnation. This story begins and ends in joy. It has pre-eminently the “inner consistency of reality.” There is no tale ever told that men would rather find was true, and none which so many sceptical men have accepted as true on its own merits. For the Art of it has the supremely convincing tone of Primary Art, that is, of Creation. To reject it leads either to sadness or to wrath.

It is not difficult to imagine the peculiar excitement and joy that one would feel, if any specially beautiful fairy-story were found to be “primarily” true, its narrative to be history, without thereby necessarily losing the mythical or allegorical significance that it had possessed. It is not difficult, for one is not called upon to try and conceive anything of a quality unknown. The joy would have exactly the same quality, if not the same degree, as the joy which the “turn” in a fairy-story gives: such joy has the very taste of primary truth. (Otherwise its name would not be joy.) It looks forward (or backward: the direction in this regard is unimportant) to the Great Eucatastrophe. The Christian joy, the Gloria, is of the same kind; but it is preeminently (infinitely, if our capacity were not finite) high and joyous. But this story is supreme; and it is true. Art has been verified. God is the Lord, of angels, and of men—and of elves. Legend and History have met and fused.

But in God's kingdom the presence of the greatest does not depress the small. Redeemed Man is still man. Story, fantasy, still go on, and should go on. The Evangelium has not abrogated legends; it has hallowed them, especially the “happy ending.” The Christian has still to work, with mind as well as body, to suffer, hope, and die; but he may now perceive that all his bents and faculties have a purpose, which can be redeemed. So great is the bounty with which he has been treated that he may now, perhaps, fairly dare to guess that in Fantasy he may actually assist in the effoliation and multiple enrichment of creation. All tales may come true; and yet, at the last, redeemed, they may be as like and as unlike the forms that we give them as Man, finally redeemed, will be like and unlike the fallen that we know.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

• The twenty-fifth day of December.
• In the five thousand one hundred and ninety-ninth year of the creation of the world from the time when God in the beginning created the heavens and the earth;
• the two thousand nine hundred and fifty-seventh year after the flood;
• the two thousand and fifteenth year from the birth of Abraham;
• the one thousand five hundred and tenth year from Moses and the going forth of the people of Israel from Egypt;
• the one thousand and thirty-second year from David's being anointed king;
• in the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel;
• in the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;
• the seven hundred and fifty-second year from the foundation of the city of Rome;
• the forty second year of the reign of Octavian Augustus;
• the whole world being at peace,
• in the sixth age of the world,
• Jesus Christ the eternal God and Son of the eternal Father, desiring to sanctify the world by his most merciful coming,being conceived by the Holy Spirit, and nine months having passed since his conception,
• was born in Bethlehem of Judea of the Virgin Mary, being made flesh.
• The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

Merry Christmas! (I know -- the more modern text is probably more accurate -- but I LOVE the traditional text!)

Papa Z

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

TOMORROW . . . 

HE COMES!!!

According to Professor Robert Greenberg of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, the Benedictine monks arranged these antiphons with a definite purpose. If one starts with the last title and takes the first letter of each one - Emmanuel, Rex, Oriens, Clavis, Radix, Adonai, Sapientia - the Latin words ero cras are formed, meaning, “Tomorrow, I will come.” Therefore, the Lord Jesus, whose coming we have prepared for in Advent and whom we have addressed in these seven Messianic titles, now speaks to us, “Tomorrow, I will come.” So the “O Antiphons” not only bring intensity to our Advent preparation, but bring it to a joyful conclusion.

Again, thanks to Fr. William Saunders, Dean of the Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College!

BLESSINGS!!!

Papa Z.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

We're almost there . . .  (Sorry I didn't post yesterday!)

O Emmanuel

Latin:

O Emmanuel, Rex et legifer noster,

exspectatio Gentium, et Salvator earum:

veni ad salvandum nos, Domine, Deus noster.

English:

O Emmanuel, our king and our lawgiver,

the hope of the nations and their Saviour:

Come and save us, O Lord our God.

and . . .

O Emmanuel: “O Emmanuel, king and lawgiver, desire of the nations, Savior of all people, come and set us free, Lord our God.” Isaiah had prophesied, “The Lord himself will give you this sign: the Virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.”

Again, acknowledgments are due to "Common Worship" and Fr. William Saunders.

BLESSINGS!!!

Papa Z.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

And still . . . 

THE COUNTDOWN CONTINUES . . . 

O Rex Gentium

Latin:

O Rex Gentium, et desideratus earum,

lapisque angularis, qui facis utraque unum:

veni, et salva hominem,

quem de limo formasti.

English:

O King of the nations, and their desire,

the cornerstone making both one:

Come and save the human race,

which you fashioned from clay.

and . . .

O Rex Gentium: “O King of all the nations, the only joy of every human heart; O Keystone of the mighty arch of man, come and save the creature you fashioned from the dust.” Isaiah had prophesied, “For a child is born to us, a son is given us; upon his shoulder dominion rests. They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.” (9:5), and “He shall judge between the nations, and impose terms on many peoples. They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; one nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again.” (2:4) .

And again, acknowledgments to "Common Worship" and Fr. William Saunders.

BLESSINGS!!!

Papa Z.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

And the Countdown Continues . . . 

O Oriens

Latin:

O Oriens,

splendor lucis aeternae, et sol justitiae:

veni, et illumina sedentes in tenebris, et umbra mortis.

English:

O Rising Sun,

splendour of light eternal and sun of righteousness:

Come and enlighten those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.

and . . . 

O Oriens: “O Radiant Dawn, splendor of eternal light, sun of justice: come, shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.” Isaiah had prophesied, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shown.” (9:1).

BLESSINGS!!!

Papa Z.

PS -- A Happy Advent Birthday to My Mother!

And the Countdown Continues!

O Clavis David

Latin:

O Clavis David, et sceptrum domus Israel;

qui aperis, et nemo claudit;

claudis, et nemo aperit:

veni, et educ vinctum de domo carceris,

sedentem in tenebris, et umbra mortis.

English:

O Key of David and sceptre of the House of Israel;

you open and no one can shut;

you shut and no one can open:

Come and lead the prisoners from the prison house,

those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.

and . . .

O Clavis David: “O Key of David, O royal Power of Israel controlling at your will the gate of Heaven: Come, break down the prison walls of death for those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death; and lead your captive people into freedom.” Isaiah had prophesied, A will place the Key of the House of David on His shoulder; when he opens, no one will shut, when he shuts, no one will open.” (22:22), and “His dominion is vast and forever peaceful, from David’s throne, and over His kingdom, which he confirms and sustains by judgment and justice, both now and forever.” (9:6). 

Again, acknowledgments to "Common Worship" and Fr. William Saunders.
Papa Z.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

The Countdown Continues . . . 

O Radix Jesse

Latin:

O Radix Jesse, qui stas in signum populorum,

super quem continebunt reges os suum,

quem Gentes deprecabuntur:

veni ad liberandum nos, jam noli tardare.

English:

O Root of Jesse, standing as a sign among the peoples;

before you kings will shut their mouths,

to you the nations will make their prayer:

Come and deliver us, and delay no longer.

and . . .

O Radix Jesse: “O Flower of Jesse’s stem, you have been raised up as a sign for all peoples; kings stand silent in your presence; the nations bow down in worship before you. Come, let nothing keep you from coming to our aid.” Isaiah had prophesied, “But a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom.” (11:1), and A On that day, the root of Jesse, set up as a signal for the nations, the Gentiles shall seek out, for his dwelling shall be glorious.” (11:10). Remember also that Jesse was the father of King David, and Micah had prophesied that the Messiah would be of the house and lineage of David and be born in David’s city, Bethlehem (Micah 5:1).

Once again, acknowledgments to "Common Worship" and Fr. William Saunders.

BLESSINGS!!!

Papa Z.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

The Countdown Continues . . .

O Adonai

Latin:

O Adonai, et Dux domus Israel,

qui Moysi in igne flammae rubi apparuisti,

et ei in Sina legem dedisti:

veni ad redimendum nos in brachio extento.

English:

O Adonai, and leader of the House of Israel,

who appeared to Moses in the fire of the burning bush

and gave him the law on Sinai:

Come and redeem us with an outstretched arm.

And . . .

O Adonai: “O sacred Lord of ancient Israel, who showed yourself to Moses in the burning bush, who gave him the holy law on Sinai mountain: come, stretch out your mighty hand to set us free.” Isaiah had prophesied, “But He shall judge the poor with justice, and decide aright for the land’s afflicted. He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked. Justice shall be the band around his waist, and faithfulness a belt upon his hips.” (11:4-5); and “Indeed the Lord will be there with us, majestic; yes the Lord our judge, the Lord our lawgiver, the Lord our king, he it is who will save us.” (33:22).

Again, acknowledgments are due to "Common Worship" and Fr. William Saunders.

BLESSINGS!

Papa Z.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

The Countdown Has Begun!!! It is time for the Great "O" Antiphons!!!

O Sapientia

Latin:

O Sapientia, quae ex ore Altissimi prodidisti,

attingens a fine usque ad finem,

fortiter suaviterque disponens omnia:

veni ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.

English:

O Wisdom, coming forth from the mouth of the Most High,

reaching from one end to the other mightily,

and sweetly ordering all things:

Come and teach us the way of prudence.

and

O Sapientia: “O Wisdom, O holy Word of God, you govern all creation with your strong yet tender care. Come and show your people the way to salvation.” Isaiah had prophesied, “The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and of understanding, a spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord, and his delight shall be the fear of the Lord.” (11:2-3), and “Wonderful is His counsel and great is His wisdom.” (28:29). 

Acknowledgements are due to the Church of England's "Common Worship" and Fr. William Saunders of Notre Dame Graduate School of Christendom College.

BLESSINGS!!!

Papa Z.

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!!!!!

• The twenty-fifth day of December.
  
• In the five thousand one hundred and ninety-ninth year of the creation of the world from the time when God in the beginning created the heavens and the earth;
  
• the two thousand nine hundred and fifty-seventh year after the flood;
  
• the two thousand and fifteenth year from the birth of Abraham;
  
• the one thousand five hundred and tenth year from Moses and the going forth of the people of Israel from Egypt;
  
• the one thousand and thirty-second year from David's being anointed king;
  
• in the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel;
  
• in the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;
  
• the seven hundred and fifty-second year from the foundation of the city of Rome;
  
• the forty second year of the reign of Octavian Augustus;
  
• the whole world being at peace,
  
• in the sixth age of the world,
  
• Jesus Christ the eternal God and Son of the eternal Father, desiring to sanctify the world by his most merciful coming,being conceived by the Holy Spirit, and nine months having passed since his conception,
  
• was born in Bethlehem of Judea of the Virgin Mary, being made flesh.
  
• The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

Merry Christmas! (I know -- the more modern text is probably more accurate -- but I LOVE the traditional text!)

Papa Z

SUBJECT: RELIGION -- AND POLITICS!!!

One of my favorite commemorations in the liturgical calendar is the memorial of St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury and Martyr in 1170, celebrated on December 29th. St. Thomas was martyred, essentially, for refusing to let the will of the State suppress the rightful prerogative of the Church. As we approach Inauguration Day, and a new President who has vowed to immediately sign the Freedom of Choice Act, which would completely remove all restrictions on all abortions overriding the laws of all 50 states; would remove all rights of conscience for health care providers; and would require Catholic hospitals to perform abortions, it would be wise to review the bold statement the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has made: (see my earlier blog post of November 12th) -- and to consider St. Thomas Becket, St. Thomas More, St. John Fisher and all the other martyrs of the faith who realized that as patriotic as one is, one's duty to God comes first -- before one's duties to the State. And that there may well be times when one's duties to God can get one in trouble!

For your reading pleasure, I present Archbishop Becket's Christmas Sermon from T. S. Eliot's play "Murder in the Cathedral":

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will." The fourteenth verse of the second chapter of the Gospel according to Saint Luke. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Dear children of God, my sermon this Christmas morning will be a very short one. I wish only that you should meditate in your hearts the deep meaning and mystery of the Christmas Day mass. For whenever Mass is said, we re-enact the Passion and Death of Our Lord; and on this Christmas Day we do this in celebration of His Birth. So that at the same moment we rejoice in His coming for the salvation of men, we offer again to God His Body and Blood in sacrifice, oblation and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world.

It was in this same night that has just passed, that a multitude of the heavenly host appeared before the shepherds at Bethlehem, saying "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will"; at this same time of the year we celebrate at once the Birth of Our Lord and His Passion and Death upon the Cross. Beloved, as the World sees, this is to behave in a strange fashion. For who in the World will both mourn and rejoice at once and for the same reason? For either joy will be overborne by mourning, or mourning will be cast out by joy; it is only in these our Christian mysteries that we can rejoice and mourn at once for the same reason.

Now think for a moment about the meaning of this word 'peace'. Does it seem strange to you that the angels should have announced Peace, when ceaselessly the world has been stricken with War and the fear of War? Does it seem to you that the angelic voices were mistaken, and that the promise was a disappointment and a cheat?

Reflect now, how Our Lord Himself spoke of Peace. He said to His disciples, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you." Did He mean peace as we think of it: The kingdom of England at peace with its neighbours, the barons at peace with the king, the householder counting over his peaceful gains, the swept hearth, his best wine for a friend at the table, his wife singing to the children? Christ's disciples knew so such things: they went forth to journey afar, to suffer by land and sea, to know torture, imprisonment, disappointment, to suffer death by martyrdom. What then did He mean? If you ask that, remember then that He said also, "Not as the world gives, give I unto you." So then, He gave to His disciples peace, but not peace as the world gives.

Consider also one thing of which you have probably never thought. Not only do we at the feast of Christmas celebrate at once Our Lord's Birth and His Death: but on the next day we celebrate the martyrdom of His first martyr, the blessed Stephen. Is it an accident, do you think, that the day of the first martyr follows immediately the day of the Birth of Christ? By no means. Just as we rejoice and mourn at once, in the Birth and Passion of Our Lord; so also, in a smaller figure, we both rejoice and mourn in the death of martyrs. We mourn, for the sins of the world that has martyred them; we rejoice, that another soul is numbered among the Saints in Heaven, for the glory of God and for the salvation of us all.

Beloved, we do not think of a martyr simply as a good Christian who has been killed because he is a Christian: for that would be solely to mourn. We do not think of him simply as a good Christian who has been elevated to the company of the Saints: for that would be simply to rejoice: and neither our mourning nor our rejoicing is as the world's is. A Christian martyrdom is never an accident, for Saints are not made by accident. Still less is a Christian martyrdom the effect of one's will to become a Saint, as one by willing and contriving may become a ruler of men. A martyrdom is always the design of God, because of His love for us, because of His desire to warn us and to lead us, and to bring us back to His ways. It is never the design of man; for the true martyr is he who has become the instrument of God, who has lost his will in the will of God, and who no longer desires anything for himself, not even the glory of being a martyr. So thus as on earth the church mourns and rejoices at once, in a fashion that the world cannot understand; so in Heaven the Saints are most high, having made themselves most low, and are seen, not as we see them, but in the light of the Godhead from which they draw their being.

I have spoken to you to-day, dear children of God, of the martyrs of the past, asking you to remember especially our martyr of Canterbury, the blessed Archbishop Elphege; because it is fitting, on Christ's birth day, to remember what is that Peace which He brought; and because, dear children, I do not think I shall ever preach to you again; and because it is possible that in a short time you may have yet another martyr, and that one perhaps not the last. I would have you keep in your hearts these words that I say, and think of them at another time.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Blessings,

Papa Z

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!

Dear friends,

As we wind down this Christmas season, I offer a portion of W.H. Auden's "Christmas Oratorio". I find it appropriate at this time.

Well, so that is that.
Now we must dismantle the tree,
Putting the decorations back into their cardboard boxes -
Some have got broken - and carrying them up to the attic.
The holly and the mistletoe must be taken down and burnt,
And the children got ready for school. There are enough
Left-overs to do, warmed-up, for the rest of the week -
Not that we have much appetite, having drunk such a lot,
Stayed up so late, attempted - quite unsuccessfully -
To love all of our relatives, and in general
Grossly overestimated our powers. Once again
As in previous years we have seen the actual Vision and failed
To do more than entertain it as an agreeable
Possibility, once again we have sent Him away,
Begging though to remain His disobedient servant,
The promising child who cannot keep His word for long.
The Christmas Feast is already a fading memory,
And already the mind begins to be vaguely aware
Of an unpleasant whiff of apprehension at the thought
Of Lent and Good Friday which cannot, after all, now
Be very far off. But, for the time being, here we all are,
Back in the moderate Aristotelian city
Of darning and the Eight-Fifteen, where Euclid’s geometry
And Newton’s mechanics would account for our experience,
And the kitchen table exists because I scrub it.
It seems to have shrunk during the holidays. The streets
Are much narrower than we remembered; we had forgotten
The office was as depressing as this. To those who have seen
The Child, however dimly, however incredulously,
The Time Being is, in a sense, the most trying time of all.
For the innocent children who whispered so excitedly
Outside the locked door where they knew the presents to be
Grew up when it opened. Now, recollecting that moment
We can repress the joy, but the guilt remains conscious;
Remembering the stable where for once in our lives
Everything became a You and nothing was an It.
And craving the sensation but ignoring the cause,
We look round for something, no matter what, to inhibit
Our self-reflection, and the obvious thing for that purpose
Would be some great suffering. So, once we have met the Son,
We are tempted ever after to pray to the Father;
“Lead us into temptation and evil for our sake.”
They will come, all right, don’t worry; probably in a form
That we do not expect, and certainly with a force
More dreadful than we can imagine. In the meantime
There are bills to be paid, machines to keep in repair,
Irregular verbs to learn, the Time Being to redeem
From insignificance. The happy morning is over,
The night of agony still to come; the time is noon:
When the Spirit must practice his scales of rejoicing
Without even a hostile audience, and the Soul endure
A silence that is neither for nor against her faith
That God’s Will will be done,
That, in spite of her prayers,
God will cheat no one, not even the world of its triumph.

Blessings,

Papa Z

SUBJECT: RELIGION AND LITERATURE!!!

The Birth of Christ is the eucatastrosphe of Man's history.

"On Fairy Stories"

JRR Tolkien

Papa Z

SUBJECT: RELIGION!!!

• The twenty-fifth day of December.
  
• In the five thousand one hundred and ninety-ninth year of the creation of the world from the time when God in the beginning created the heavens and the earth;
  
• the two thousand nine hundred and fifty-seventh year after the flood;
  
• the two thousand and fifteenth year from the birth of Abraham;
  
• the one thousand five hundred and tenth year from Moses and the going forth of the people of Israel from Egypt;
  
• the one thousand and thirty-second year from David's being anointed king;
  
• in the sixty-fifth week according to the prophecy of Daniel;
  
• in the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad;
  
• the seven hundred and fifty-second year from the foundation of the city of Rome;
  
• the forty second year of the reign of Octavian Augustus;
  
• the whole world being at peace,
  
• in the sixth age of the world,
  
• Jesus Christ the eternal God and Son of the eternal Father, desiring to sanctify the world by his most merciful coming,being conceived by the Holy Spirit, and nine months having passed since his conception,
  
• was born in Bethlehem of Judea of the Virgin Mary, being made flesh.
  
• The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

Merry Christmas!

Papa Z