Trinity Sunday

The Solemnity of Trinity Sunday:

Almighty and everlasting God,
who hast given unto us thy servants grace,
by the confession of a true faith,
to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity,
and in the power of the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity;
We beseech thee that thou wouldest keep us stedfast in this faith,
and evermore defend us from all adversities,
who livest and reignest, one God, world without end.
                                                                                                                                – Amen.

Pentecost

2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ² Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

⁵ Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. ⁶ When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. ⁷ Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? ⁹ Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome ¹¹ (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” ¹² Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?”

¹³ Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

- Acts 2:1-13

 

Ascension Day

Ascension day is the 40th day of Easter and commemorates the ascension of Jesus into heaven 39 days after resurrection on Easter Sunday.

You will find the Biblical accounts of the Ascension in Matthew 28:16-20, Mark 16:19-20, Luke 24:50-53 and Acts 1:6-11.

During the forty-day period before he ascended into heaven, it is believed that Jesus preached and intermingled with his apostles and disciples.

According to tradition, Ascension Day was first celebrated in 68 AD, however the first written evidence of the Ascension Day
feast occurred in 385 AD.

Today, Ascension Day is celebrated primarily by Catholics and Anglicans. According to Western Christianity methods of calculating the dates of Easter, the earliest possible date for Ascension Day is April 30, the latest possible date is June 3.

Ascension Day celebrations include the following:

The Easter (Paschal) candle is put out.

There may be processions with torches and banners and fruits and vegetables may be blessed in church.

Ten days after Ascension Day is Pentecost (Whitsuntide) which commemorates the coming of the Holy Spirit to the disciples. Pentecost ends the cycle of Easter related events in the Christian Calendar.

Source

HT

 

What Determines the Date of Ash Wednesday?

Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, is only five weeks away. If that seems early compared with last year, you’re right. Ash Wednesday 2013 falls nine days earlier than Ash Wednesday 2012 did. Last year, Easter fell right in the middle between the earliest date it can occur and the latest date, but this year, Easter is on the early side–and that means Ash Wednesday will be, too.

Two factors determine the date of Ash Wednesday. The first is the date of Easter. (See How Is the Date of Ash Wednesday Calculated? to learn the exact relationship between the date of Ash Wednesday and the date of Easter.) The second is the length of Lent. While Lent is 40 days, Sundays are not included in the count. (See How Are the 40 Days of Lent Calculated? for more information.) Since six Sundays fall within the 40 days of Lent, Ash Wednesday falls 46 days before Easter every year.

You can find the date of Ash Wednesday for this and future years in When Is Ash Wednesday?

Source

 

Gaudete Sunday

 … is the third Sunday of Advent in the liturgical calendar of the Western Church, including the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Lutheran Churches, and other mainline Protestant churches. It can fall on any date from 11 December to 17 December.

On Gaudete Sunday rose-coloured vestments may be worn instead of violet, (or in the Anglican tradition and some Lutheran traditions, Sarum blue) which is otherwise prescribed for every day in the season of Advent. This tradition, previously informally observed in the Anglican Church… In churches which have an Advent wreath, the rose coloured candle is lit in addition to two of the violet (or blue) coloured candles, which represent the first two Sundays of Advent. Despite the otherwise somber readings of the season of Advent, which has as a secondary theme the need for penitence, the readings on the third Sunday emphasize the joyous anticipation of the Lord’s coming.

Wikipedia

And a Collect:

Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and, because we are sorely hindered by our sins, let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

The Meaning of the Advent Candles

Over at Euangelion:

Why are there so many different themes attached to the four Advent Candles (purple and pink). A survey of websites and books on Advent surface a number of options. Does anyone know why there are so many different traditions? Is there a source that has researched this phenomenon?

Here’s just are some examples:

Promise, Light, Love, Hope

Hope, Peace, Joy, Love

Prophecy, Bethlehem, Shepherd, Angel

Hope, Preparation, Joy, Love

Prophecy, Way, Joy, Peace

Expectation,  John the Baptist, Mary, Magi

Waiting for the Shepherd, Waiting for Forgiveness, Waiting for Joy, Waiting for the Son.

 

Happy New Year

As Advent begins:

On this First Sunday of Advent:

Almighty God, give us grace to cast away the works of darkness, and put on the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which your Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the living and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

- Amen.

And so our work, in the Lord, begins anew…

 

Catholics in the Holy Land Change Calendar to Celebrate Easter with the Orthodox

All Saints

O Almighty God, who hast knit together thine elect in one communion and
fellowship, in the mystical body of thy Son Christ our Lord; Grant us grace so
to follow thy blessed Saints in all virtuous and godly living, that we may come
to those unspeakable joys which thou hast prepared for those who unfeignedly
love thee; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

- Amen

Blessed John Henry Newman

Today is the Feast Day of the Blessed John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890), a man who spent the first half of his life as an Anglican and the second half as a Roman Catholic. Wikipedia has more on him here.

And a quote (or two… or more…) from him may be appropriate:

• It is often said that second thoughts are best. So they are  in matters of judgment but not in matters of conscience.
• Calculation never made a hero.
• Let us act on what we have, since we have not what we wish.
• If we are intended for great ends, we are called to great  hazards.
• If we insist on being as sure as is conceivable… we must be  content to creep along the ground, and never soar.