A look at the USCCB response to Cardinal Sarah on ad orientem

“[Ad orientem worship] is permitted by current liturgical legislation. It is perfectly legitimate in the modern rite. […] And so, dear Fathers, I humbly and fraternally ask you to implement this practice wherever possible.”  (Cardinal Sarah - July 5, 2016)

There has been no little confusion caused by responses of various representatives of the Church to the London talk of Cardinal Sarah in which he encourages all priests to implement ad orientem worship as soon as possible, at least by this Advent. We will take a moment to consider two of the responses, one from Fr. Lombardi (Vatican press office) and another from the USCCB Committee on the Liturgy.

Many bishops of the Church are causing great harm and furthering misunderstandings by very uneducated reactions to Cardinal Sarah.

Sunday Sermon, July 24 -- Mental Prayer and the prayer of petition (Father Ryan Erlenbush, Corpus Christi Parish)

St Alphonsus teaches that the prayer of petition is simply and absolutely necessary for salvation for those who have the use of reason -- if we want to go to heaven, we must ask; and if we don't ask, we certainly will not be saved.
This follows from our Lord's words: Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you.

But, in order that we may persevere in asking, it is also necessary that we daily engage in mental prayer or meditation in which we spend time considering the love of God that has been made manifest in Christ.

This is one of the keys to prayer, and especially to dealing with the struggle of distractions: We don't begin our prayer with all our petitions or all our cares, but rather we begin by meditating upon the mysteries of our faith (for example, the mysteries of the Rosary or the stations of the Cross) and upon the love God has shown us in these mysteries. Then we have the courage to ask God for every good gift, and our own love grows and inspires us to truly seek heaven above all things.

Daily Sermons, July 19-23 (Father Ryan Erlenbush, Corpus Christi Parish)

Daily Sermons, week of July 19-23.

Ad Orientem, St Jerome Emiliani, St Lawrence of Brindisi, St Mary Magdalene, and the Readings.

A Call for the Silent Canon: Praying the Eucharistic Prayer in a quiet voice

While the recent trumpet sound from Cardinal Sarah has inspired many priests to move towards ad orientem worship, perhaps now would also be a fitting time to discuss another of the liturgical points which had been made so well by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI – namely, the silent Canon in which the priest prays the Eucharistic Prayer in a quiet voice which is not heard by the people.

"In 1978, to the annoyance of many liturgists, I said that in no sense does the whole Canon always have to be said out loud. [...] The Eucharistic Prayer, the high point of the Mass, is in crisis. Since the reform of the liturgy, an attempt has been made to meet the crisis by incessantly inventing new Eucharistic Prayers, and in the process we have sunk farther and farther into banality. Multiplying words is no help – that is all too evident. [...] silence, too, silence especially, might constitute communion before God."  (Spirit of the Liturgy, part 4, chapter 2)

Sunday Sermon, July 17 -- St Mary Magdalene's Life of Penance in Southern France (Corpus Christi Parish, Father Ryan Erlenbush)

Sunday Sermon, July 17 -- 16th Week of Ordinary Time
"She has chosen the better part, and it will not be taken from her."

The relics of St Ann were miraculously discovered in Southern France in the late 700s, but how did they get there? St Mary Magdalene, with Sts Martha and Lazarus (and a number of other early Christians) were sent to their death upon an oar-less, sail-less, rudder-less boat, but were miraculously brought safely to Marseilles.

St Mary Magdalene's preaching converted the pagans of the region, then she spent her remain 30 years in a life of penance up in the mountains. She is the witness to Divine Mercy: Receiving mercy, we share mercy; true mercy leads to a life of penance; and divine mercy makes us recognize the value of receiving communion worthily and well.

Daily Sermons, July 12-16 (Corpus Christi Parish, Father Ryan Erlenbush)

Daily Sermons from Corpus Christi Parish, July 12-16.
Sts Louis and Zelie, St Henry, St Kateri, St Bonaventure, the Brown Scapular.

St. Mary Magdalene is the sister of Sts. Martha and Lazarus

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

A certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary.  (Luke 10:38-39)

Although doubted by most modern biblical “scholars” and somewhat obscured by the Novus Ordo Liturgy, there is no reason to doubt that St. Mary Magdalene is St. Mary of Bethany, the sister of Sts. Martha and Lazarus. Furthermore, she is the penitent woman described in Luke 7 who wept at the Lord’s feet and drying then with her hair anointed them with the rich perfume.

The key to recognizing the identity of St. Mary Magdalene as St. Mary of Bethany is to see that the Magdalene is the penitent woman. Knowing her to be the repentant sinner who anointed the Lord, we quickly recognize her as the sister of Sts. Martha and Lazarus.