Saturday, July 01, 2006
*Forget* Canada Day... Think CHRIST DAY!
July 1st may be Canada Day for the snow & winter sports lovers - but, for me, it is more - MUCH MORE THAN THAT! I guess it is all a question of scope, discernment and having the proper perspective and outlook on things... eh? ;)
According to the wonderfully illustrated ÉVANGELISATION 2000 calendar, July 1st is the day of "La Fête du Précieux Sang de Jésus" - which means the Celebration of the Holy Blood of The Christ.
Now even the most blasé shoveler of the white stuff (we're still talking about snow here - not any other type or variety of "white stuff", do not worry! *LOL*) will agree with me when I say that THE HOLY BLOOD OF CHRIST is worthier of celebration than the constitution of the odd country that Canada is... EH?
Québec is an historical anomaly - but so is Canada overall! Neither should have existed, logically - back in the day when the greats (Vasco Da Gama, Marco Polo) and not-so greats (Jacques Cartier, Christopher COLOMBUS) roamed the seas, the object of the entire exercise (and expensive entreprise) was to find the precious passage to INDIA. No Canada here! INDIA - and all of its riches - beckoned! Canada had little or nothing to offer in terms of readily-exploitable riches; what was there around here, other than beaver fur and maybe... ah... moose to hunt down?
The French and English were so proud though that they elected to stay here and in the eventual USA - just not to lose face! They couldn't admit that their discoverers fumbled the ball so badly while Portugal's Vasco Da Gama delivered the goods as promised - HE and only HE discovered the coveted sea route that gained access to the Indies. Nonetheless, faced with such a monumental debacle, the French and English acted as though they were proud of what they found here - and happy to exploit and colonize it! What a farce... He who fools himself is the greatest fool of all...
They even further made it more pathetic by dubbing the various native American tribes that they found here - whether friendly ones or hostile ones - all under one mantle: that of "indians". Envy is a terrible thing; it drives men to such heights (or lows, really) of absurdism. And of hypocrisy too... but that is another story!
The final nail in the coffin of these two "sort-of-twin nations that shouldn't have been really" is the fact that OTHER Europeans came here first - and frowned upon both territories once they saw how harsh and severe the winters were here! The Vikings were unquestionably first here; the Portuguese followed and, once they saw the beginnings of permafrost, left as soon as they could (for Brazil!) whilst leaving behind a sign that read something like this: "nesta terra, nem cana dà".
Natives saw this, liked the last two words best and apparently started using them as one - "cana-da" - to describe their village! And so it went on until...
Such is the legend, and that's the story that I'm sticking to! ;)
Canada is, thus, a comedy of errors that started out the vanity of France and that of England too, who picked up the slack soon enough (another lesson history has taught us all: the French can never beat the English. Never. Take that, French frogs! *LOL* Vanity gets you nowhere - now THERE's a lesson worth learning!)
The USA, especially with the current administration at the helm of things, is not much better mind you... In fact, I'd say that it is real fitting that the two festive national days (Canada Day and "USA Day" aka the 4th of July) are practically back-to-back - these are two bastard nations that could have easily never been!
And both know who's the true economical leader of the western world now too, eh - tis the EURO - as it should be too! ;)
But enough about that! Onwards to the really good stuff about this date hence:
(all courtesy of a certain Catholic source, linked here today too!)
Saturday, July 1, 2006 of the Liturgical Year B, Cycle II
First Saturday of the Month - obviously!
Today's Mass is Saturday of the Twelfth week in Ordinary Time
Readings for Mass:
First Reading: Lamentations 2:2, 10-14, 18-19 (how great is that; I feel like lamenting too!)
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 74:1-2, 3-5, 5-7, 20-21 (what a great adjective "responsorial" is!)
Gospel: Matthew 8:5-17 (My man Matt!)
Blessed Virgin Mary - Optional Memorial (yes - optional indeed - not everyone "blesses" her equally within Christiandom... evidently...)
Today's Rosary: The Joyful Mysteries (more on those a little further down...!)
A few definitions with that? I am happy to oblige...
Holy Days of Obligation
Holy days of obligation are special feasts on which Catholics who have reached the age of reason are seriously obliged to assist at Mass and avoid unnecessary work. See Sunday Obligation below.
Sunday Obligation
One of the precepts of the Church is to keep holy the day of the Lord's Resurrection; to worship God by participating in Mass every Sunday and holy day of obligation; to avoid those activities that would hinder renewal of soul and body, for example, needless work and business activities, unnecessary shopping, and so forth.
Feasts, Memorials, Commemorations and Solemnities
These are days which the Church has set aside as having special meaning. There are several types of celebrations. Some are events in the life of Christ. Some are days dedicated to a particular saint. There are three types of feast days. Optional Feasts are not universally celebrated. Holy Days of Obligation are days on which Catholics are required to attend Mass. All other celebrations are celebrated, but Catholics are not obligated to attend.
Fast and Abstinence (not the kind you may think!)
Fasting is restricting eating to one full meal and two lighter meals in the course of a single day, and prohibits eating between meals. Adults who have not yet reached their sixtieth year are bound by the Canon Law to fast. Pregnant women and people who are sick are not obligated to fast.
Abstinence is refraining from eating meat. People who have completed their fourteenth year are bound by the Canon Law to abstain.
Anyone who feels that they cannot fulfill the law of abstinence or the law of fasting should consult a parish priest or confessor.
Commons
For many celebrations throughout the year, readings are assigned from various Commons. Commons are groups of readings appropriate for a type of celebration. These readings include First Readings, Responsorial Psalms, and Gospel Readings. One reading may be selected from each group for use during the Mass.
Often, more than one type of Common is appropriate for a celebration. In these cases, readings may come from any of the appropriate commons. Alternately, the readings from the regular liturgical year or cycle for the current day (the proper of the Season) can normally be used.
Easter is a special season for Commons. During Easter, a separate set of readings is assigned for the First Readings.
There are also subcategories within the Commons. These are readings which are more appropriate for some celebrations than others. An example of this is the subcategory of Popes within the Common of Pastors.
There are seven Commons for the liturgy, as follows:
Common for the Dedication of a Church
(each Common has an Outside Easter version - and a During Easter version)
Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Common of Martyrs
Common of Pastors
Common of Doctors of the Church
Common of Virgins
Common of Holy Men and Women (Common of Saints)
Proper
Many celebrations throughout the year have specific readings assigned. These readings are called the Proper of the celebration. These readings are usually chosen over the Commons, as they are more appropriate for the specific Celebration.
Additionally, each day of the year has a set of readings appropriate for the day and season. These readings are called the Proper of the Season.
The Rosary (for those who forgot what it is...)
The Rosary is a series of prayers specifically prepared to be used in personal devotion. That is, the Rosary can be prayed alone or in without the guidance of a spiritual leader. This differs from a mass, which is meant to be led by a celebrant.
The Rosary has several prayers which are constant, and the Mysteries, which can vary. Prior to October 16, 2002, there were three sets of Mysteries. On October 16, 2002, Pope John Paul II added a fourth set. Although there is no requirement to do so, most people follow the recommended schedule of the Mysteries, which lists a different set of Mysteries for each day.
The Mysteries of the Rosary are as follows:
The Joyful Mysteries
The Annunciation; The Visitation; The Birth of Jesus; The Presentation; The Finding in the Temple
These are the Mysteries of Jesus' birth and early life.
The Luminous Mysteries (added October 16, 2002)
The Baptism; The Wedding at Cana; The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God; The Transfiguration; The Institution of the Eucharist
These are the Mysteries of Christ's priesthood.
The Sorrowful Mysteries
The Agony in the Garden; The Scourging at the Pillar; The Crowning with Thorns; The Bearing of the Cross; The Crucifixion
These are the Mysteries of Christ's suffering and death.
The Glorious Mysteries
The Resurrection; The Ascension; The Descent of the Holy Spirit; The Assumption; The Coronation
These are the Mysteries of Christ's victory over death and Mary's special place as the Holy Mother.
To learn more about the Rosary, including the Luminous Mysteries, visit the Catholic Calendar Rosary Page. To learn more about the traditional Rosary from before the introduction of the Luminous Mysteries, visit the previous Catholic Calendar Rosary Page.
Luminous Mysteries! And they seem to have been qualified as such just as I trademarked this luminous persona of mine (?) - and the blog here (?!) - and the network (!) - and the brand! No?It would be such a wonderful Luminous Coincidence if it was! To boot, the luminous mysteries are followed by sorrowful and then by GLORIOUS ones - nothing less! I sure like that crescendo! My favorite color having been orange, that sure is in sync with sorrowful! But it is with GLORIOUS that LUMINOUS rhymes! A-ha! Such veritably... ah... luminous synchronicity reaffirms the belief in us, true believers, that NOTHING IS RANDOM and everything has significance, a meaning and a purpose. And also... a mission!
My mission, for instance, seems to be to make enemies online! *ROTFL*
Kidding there... sort-of. ;)
At any rate, for every enemy I make, I open the eyes of another kind soul and kindred spirit - who, in turn, will open my eyes about other things as well. It is the way it should be - for we are all on the same boat and the waters are not friendly! However, the Prince of Peace Shall calm the seas soon - even if He Has to do so with a luminous (again) sword in His Hand at first!
Now, to avoid making truly unnecessary online enemies, some credits and that'll be that for today... ;)
Disclaimer
The Catholic Calendar Web Pages are the work of a lay Catholic, and are not the work of any official Catholic office or representative. These pages are built on the standard guidelines of the Church calendar, and do not represent all of the possible variants, as each individual Church, Diocese, Archdiocese, and district has significant choice in the exact schedule of services. Please always check with your local Church for information concerning your area.
Leap Years
For a great deal of information about the evolution of leap years and how leap years are currently calculated, as well as a tool for determining if a certain year is a leap year and why, visit our Leap Year Page.
References:
The following works were used for the above information:
English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for the United States of America, copyright © 1994, United States Catholic Conference (http://www.nccbuscc.org/)
Handbook for Today's Catholic, copyright © 1994, Liguori Publications (http://www.liguori.org)
What It Means to be Catholic, copyright © 1986 St. Anthony Messenger Press and Franciscan Communications (http://www.americancatholic.org/)
Vatican II Sunday Missal, copyright © 1974, Daughters of St. Paul (http://www.pauline.org)
Vatican II Weekday Missal, copyright © 1975, Daughters of St. Paul (http://www.pauline.org)
Updated 2003 MAR 15
Designed and Created by Bob & Linda Easterbrooks (personal@easterbrooks.com)
Copyright © 1995-2003, Robert & Linda Easterbrooks. All rights reserved.
Amen!
Labels: religion
Link
Comments:
<< Home
A comment from one of the places that this blog is RSS fed to...
"Queen of Purrs For Ladybug" commented
Saturday July 1, 2006, 2:22 pm
I'm proud being a Quebecer and speaking FRENCH, I hate Canada and I love Quebec, we are not the same at all with the rest of the Canada. QUÉBEC LIBRE !
"Queen of Purrs For Ladybug" commented
Saturday July 1, 2006, 2:22 pm
I'm proud being a Quebecer and speaking FRENCH, I hate Canada and I love Quebec, we are not the same at all with the rest of the Canada. QUÉBEC LIBRE !
No comments about what sort of places my "luminous" blog is RSS fed to now - PLEASE!
*LOL*
My reply to that was:
Saturday July 1, 2006, 5:25 pm
Je sais... je sais! Je me souviens! ;)
You do mean "VIVE LE QUÉBEC - LIBRE!" do you not? Paraphrasing De Gaulle and quoting De Gaulle are two different things!
French as a language is fine - as Yves Duteil (I believe) sang so well; "c'est une langue belle - avec des mots superbes"
But so are so many other languages!
What I'm saying is - we have to think more GLOBALLY. We're all denizens of the same globe! No matter what languages we speak... Vanity leads to hazardous (and downright... loufoques?) colonial ventures and worse (and there's nothing worse than patriotism gone astray - it leads to inhuman measures such as genocide)
We should not be so prone to seek dichotomy
Anyway - Quebec isn't in the World Cup of Futebol - final four teams are Portugal, Italy, Germany and France! Only they can act up all "nationalist" - only so far as it concerns the game! No more colonialism (Portugal), empirism or fascism (Italy), nazism or napoleonism! *lol*
Pleeeease!
*LOL*
My reply to that was:
Saturday July 1, 2006, 5:25 pm
Je sais... je sais! Je me souviens! ;)
You do mean "VIVE LE QUÉBEC - LIBRE!" do you not? Paraphrasing De Gaulle and quoting De Gaulle are two different things!
French as a language is fine - as Yves Duteil (I believe) sang so well; "c'est une langue belle - avec des mots superbes"
But so are so many other languages!
What I'm saying is - we have to think more GLOBALLY. We're all denizens of the same globe! No matter what languages we speak... Vanity leads to hazardous (and downright... loufoques?) colonial ventures and worse (and there's nothing worse than patriotism gone astray - it leads to inhuman measures such as genocide)
We should not be so prone to seek dichotomy
Anyway - Quebec isn't in the World Cup of Futebol - final four teams are Portugal, Italy, Germany and France! Only they can act up all "nationalist" - only so far as it concerns the game! No more colonialism (Portugal), empirism or fascism (Italy), nazism or napoleonism! *lol*
Pleeeease!
I would beg your forgiveness, as it has been quiet some time sense last I paid a visit to your blog, I have been some what indisposed! I as always enjoy reading your material, and would like to invite you to read my new blog called Texas my Texas.
http://www.blogcharm.com/texasmytexas/
Be well, and God bless you!
Post a Comment
http://www.blogcharm.com/texasmytexas/
Be well, and God bless you!
<< Home
