Jeremiah,
Chapter 5, Verse 22-24
22 Should you not fear me—oracle of the
LORD—should you not tremble before me? I made the sandy shore the sea’s limit, which
by eternal decree it may not overstep. Toss though it may, it is to no avail; though
its billows roar, they cannot overstep. 23 But this people’s heart is stubborn and rebellious; they
turn and go away, 24 and do not say
in their hearts, “Let us fear the LORD, our God, Who gives us rain early
and late, in its time; who watches for us over the appointed weeks of harvest.”
This stubborn and
rebellious nature of people is what led to Christ’s death on the cross. His
death was the fulfillment of the proclaiming of God’s name to all the peoples
of the world; for over His head was placed a notice: King of the Jews.
It is thought-provoking to
contemplate that Pilates notice was printed in three languages Hebrew, Latin
and Greek. These three cultures in a sense represented the characteristics of
God. The Hebrew’s were Gods people and represented the good of man and brought the idea that the person was created by God
and is more valuable than the universe. Latin the language of the Romans
brought the idea that truth is the
highest value and the Greeks culture brought the idea of beauty being the greatest value. In Christ’s death is represented
all three values. That a good God died for man; true to the end; and His shame
was turned by love to beauty.
The Archangels Michael,
Gabriel and Raphael, also represent these three values Michael the truth that
angels and men are willing to fight for; Raphael the good and Gabriel the
beauty. On further reflection I can see these same three attributes reflected
the preamble of the US constitution: Life (good); Liberty (truth); and pursuit
of happiness (beauty).
We can also recognize that
the Name of God which is goodness; truth and beauty is feared by evil men and women when they are inspired by Satan and
the demons to take away our life, liberty or our pursuit of happiness.
Surely, it is time for Christians to
"rise from sleep," and to offer vigorous resistance to the enemies of
salvation. The weapons in this conflict are not the arms of civil warfare, but
the spiritual weapons of prayer and penance, increased fidelity to the
Commandments of God, and frequent reception of the Sacraments. And surely we
can choose no better leader in this conflict than the powerful captain who led
the faithful Angels to victory.
Let us, then, with confident trust,
invoke the aid and the protection of this mighty Archangel whose shield bears
the inscription:
Passiontide the
Jews' growing hatred of Christ is recorded in Gospel and makes plain His
imminent death.
FROM[2]
this day, called Passion Sunday, until Easter the Church--gives herself up entirely
to meditation on the passion of Jesus. To-day the crucifixes
are covered, in remembrance that from this time until His entrance into Jerusalem
Jesus walked no more openly among the Jews. From to-day the Glory Be to the Father
is omitted in the Mass, because in the person of Jesus Christ the Most Holy Trinity
was dishonored. As on this day the high priests held council about Our Lord,
the Church says, at the Introit of the Mass, in the name of the suffering
Jesus, the words of the psalmist: Judge me, O God, and distinguish my cause from
the nation that is not holy; deliver me from the unjust and deceitful man, for Thou
art God, my strength. Send forth Thy light and Thy truth, they have conducted me
and brought me unto Thy holy hill, and into Thy tabernacles (Ps. xlii. 1-3).
Consolation under Insults[3]
O friend, what insult can
be given to you which your Savior has not suffered? He was called a glutton and
a drunkard, a heretic and a rebel, a friend and associate of sinners, and one who
had a devil; He was even told that He cast out devils by the prince of devils (Matt.
ix. 34). He, therefore, comforts His disciples with the words, “If they have called
the good man of the house Beelzebub, how much more them of his household? (Matt.
x. 25) There is no sorrow so bitter that He has not borne it, for what was more
painful and grievous than the death of the cross? Christians, “think diligently
upon Him that endured such opposition from sinners against Himself, that you be
not wearied, fainting in your minds, at contempt and insult.” (Heb. xii. 3)
Scapulars and Medals[4]
Medals have been part of
Catholic life since the early centuries of the Church. The most popular is the cross;
even Protestants wear crosses minus the corpus while Catholics wear a crucifix.
It is also noted that in the miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe she is
wearing a cross about her neck. We wear scapulars, too, which are mini habits of
the religious orders. Pope John Paul II said that the scapular is a powerful
precisely because it is a “habit” in every sense of the word, both a uniform
and a pattern of good belief and good behavior. Since 1910, Catholics have been
permitted to wear a scapular medal in place of a cloth scapular.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, of the (Brown)
Scapular[5]
The scapular, which derives its name from
the Latin word scapulas, meaning shoulders, is a dress which covers the shoulders.
It is mentioned in the rule of St. Benedict as worn by monks over their other dress
when they were at work, and it now forms a regular part of the religious dress in
the old Orders. But it is best known among Catholics as the name of two little pieces
of cloth worn out of devotion to the Blessed Virgin over the shoulders, under the
ordinary garb, and connected by strings. The devotion of the scapular, now almost
universal in the Catholic Church, began with the Carmelites. The history of its
origin is as follows: During the thirteenth century the Carmelite Order suffered
great persecution, and on July 16, 1251, while St. Simon Stock, then general of
the Order, was at prayer, the Blessed Virgin appeared to him, holding in her hand
a scapular. Giving it to the saint, she said, “Receive, my dear son, this scapular
of thy Order, as the distinctive sign of my confraternity, and the mark of the privilege
which I have obtained for thee and the children of Carmel. It is a sign of salvation,
a safeguard in danger, and a special pledge of peace and protection till the end
of time. “Whosoever dies wearing this shall be preserved from eternal flames. “It
is much to be wished that people should everywhere join this confraternity, for
the honor of Mary and for the salvation of souls, by a life fitted to that end.
In order to have a share in the merits of the sodality every member must: 1. Shun
sin, and, according to his state of life, live chastely. 2. Say every day, if possible,
seven times, Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be to the Father. 3. Strive to serve
God by venerating Mary, and imitating her virtues. These rules, it is true, are
not binding under penalty of sin, but the breach of them deprives us of all merit
; and is not this something to be taken into account? “He who soweth sparingly shall
also reap sparingly.” (Cor. ix. 6)
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