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Should the Seal of the Confessional be protected by law?

Some stories in the news recently have led to a controversy over the confidentiality of information divulged during the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Such confidentiality is known as “the seal of the confessional,” or “clergy-penitent privilege.” The controversy concerns whether it is advisable, or even constitutional, to legally require priests to report to the police any information they have heard in the confessional, if that information relates to the sexual abuse of children.

The states of Washington and Vermont are deliberating on whether to repeal their civil laws that protect the seal of the confessional. In response, Bishop Thomas Daly of the Diocese of Spokane, Washington, told the Washington Examiner, in an interview this week, that Catholic clergy would refuse to comply if the bill (HB 1098) proposed in the state legislature is enacted –LifeSite News, March 3.

The Confidentiality of the Confessions is non-negotiable

Bishop Thomas Daly’s declared that, if such legislation were enacted, he would go to jail rather than break the seal of the confessional. He added that he was confident that his fellow Catholic clergymen would all do the same. Furthermore, Bishop Daly affirmed that “the integrity of the sacraments is non-negotiable.”

According to the March 8 edition of America Magazine, the States of Washington and Delaware will decide within a few weeks whether the bill will become law.

Also, in Wilmington, Delaware, Bishop Koenig of Wilmington stated that the seal of the confessional will not be broken “under any circumstances,” despite the proposed legislation against the sacraments. – LifeSite News, Mar 9.

The Delaware News (March 8) says a decision will be made within a few weeks on whether this bill will become law.

In both cases, it appears that the information has not yet been updated since March 8.

In 2019, the California legislature attempted to enact a law that would have required priests to become mandatory reporters of certain kinds of information heard in the confessional. That attempt failed. Based on precedent, I expect this year’s attempts to fail as well, but I am not convinced that somebody will not try the same thing again someday. There is a strong possibility that similar attempts to hinder the work of priests will find their way into legislatures in the future.

A Church Interior with Women at the Confessional 1863
Ludwig Passini

Is the Seal of the Confessional Unnecessary?

On the other hand, a certain priest supported the idea of revoking the clergy-penitent privilege. The following is a summary of the story:

Fr. James E. Connell, a retired Catholic priest from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, wrote an editorial in which he supported the idea of revoking clergy-client privilege. Wisconsin Archbishop Jerome Listecki lamented the disturbing words of Fr. Connell, and stripped him of all faculties to administer the sacrament of reconciliation.- LifeSite, Mar 23.

The right to administer the Sacrament of Reconciliation comes from a priest’s archbishop or bishop; therefore, Fr. Connell will no longer be able to hear confessions in any Catholic diocese in the world. If Fr. Connell (or any other priest) were to break the seal of the confessional, he would incur automatic excommunication.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation (or Confession), in which one confesses one’s sins to God through a priest, is different from what the world considers “confession” to a person. Forgiveness of sins involves the salvation of a soul. Some priests have been martyred for not revealing the sins of penitents. And any priest who, under any circumstances whatsoever, reveals information heard during a confession, incurs automatic excommunication.

I believe that Archbishop Listecki’s revocation of the faculties of Fr. Connell was also intended to eliminate the risk of his excommunication. And I hope that the confidence of the faithful that the content of their confessions will remain secret will encourage them to receive more frequently the sacrament that is the salvation of their souls.

Lawyers Consider Legislation to Mandate Reporting of Confessions

In an article published by the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Eric Kniffin, an outstanding First Amendment lawyer who has defended the rights of over 300 religious and other groups, points out three major problems with the proposed laws in Washington State, Vermont, and Delaware, namely:

1) The proposed laws incorrectly presume that the government could coerce priests to break the seal of the confessional. In reality, if these laws were passed, the result would not be priests “turning State’s evidence;” the result would be priests in jail.

2) The proposed laws incorrectly presume that breaking the seal of the confessional would make children safer. In reality, if these laws were passed, abusers (and other sinners as well) would tend to stay away from confession. Children would be less safe as a result.

3) The proposed laws discriminate against religion. The proposed laws attack clergy-penitent privilege (i.e. the seal of the confessional), but they make no mention of attorney-client privilege (lawyers do not reveal what their clients tell them). In other words, according to the proposed laws, secrecy is OK if it is for secular reasons, but it is not OK if it is for religious reasons. That is discrimination against religion, which is unconstitutional.

Kniffin concludes by quoting Boston Globe columnist Jeff Jacoby, who recently wrote, “Protecting children is a matter of crucial importance. Protecting religious faith is too. It isn’t the job of lawmakers to privilege one of those worthy aims over the other. It is to strive, with care and respect, to do both.”

Freedom of religion is important for everyone. In a society that forces priests to choose between excommunication and arrest, no one is truly free.

Revealing the Content of Confessions

As mentioned earlier, what is said in the confessional is strictly confidential.

Two years ago, a book was published that comes close to exposing such confessional confidentiality, namely: Je Vous Pardonne Tous vos Péchés (I Forgive All Your Sins) by Vincent Mongaillard, France. The book is a collection of true stories, provided by 40 priests, about confessions that they have heard. Both priests and penitents remain anonymous; one priest who was interviewed for the book explained that, in order to avoid violating Church law, all personal details of the confessions were changed.

Some excerpts were translated and published by Harper’s Magazine; they range from the comical confessions of a couple in their fifties to the regret one priest felt after giving absolution to a criminal. My impression (based solely on the excerpts I read) is that most of the confessions seem to be about common errors people make (many of them, for example, involve marital infidelity).

Even if the book does not violate Church law, I still feel that the dignity of the Sacrament of Reconciliation would be better served by concealing such stories than by revealing them.

A point made by a priest about the Sacrament of Reconciliation

In an interview on LifeSite News, Michel Rodrigue, a priest also known as a mystic, was talking about the Spiritual War are facing. He emphasized the importance of receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation along with prayer. Regarding the Sacrament of Reconciliation, Fr. Rodriguez gave the following advice:

1) Confess both mortal and venial sins.
2) Confess sins of omission, that is, the things that you should have done but did not do.

Until now, I have not paid much attention to 2), the things I should have done but did not do. However, it occurred to me that the simple fact that I didn’t do some things — things that might be considered duties, or things merely advisable — could be a sign of sloth, which is one of the seven deadly sins.

I realized that just because I am working and keeping myself busy, that does not mean that I am free from sloth. Sloth is the sin of spiritual laziness, which is difficult to become aware of, and troublesome to deal with, without the grace of God.

It is said that, since Vatican II, the number of people going to confession has decreased. I have experienced many times that my mind and body have become lighter after receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I am not the only one. A formerly Protestant acquaintance of mine told me that after he converted and made his first confession, when he received sacramental absolution the first time, he felt a sense of exhilaration and lightness, as if a huge load had literally been lifted from his back.

Mother T. always told me how important it was to pray and receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We should not miss out on the benefit of being offered such a powerful sacrament.

The Seal of the Confessional and Religious Freedom

In the United States, the rift between State and Church is growing ever larger. As mentioned earlier, the biggest problem is the pressure that threatens the religious freedom of the Church. Pressures include laws that would force Catholic hospitals to perform abortions, laws that would make Church-affiliated organizations pay for contraceptives used by their employees, laws that would force Catholic adoption agencies to place children with same-sex couples, and (now) proposed laws that would revoke clergy-penitent privilege.

When people talk about requiring priests to break the seal of the confessional, it reminds of me of people who support the “ordination” of women; in both cases, they are talking about something that is quite simply impossible. Just as, in 1994, Pope John Paul II declared that “the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women,” so it is in this case, with respect to the revoking of clergy-penitent privilege: the Church has no authority to do it. The seal of the confessional is not only Church law, it is “God’s teaching;” even if the Pope himself wanted to change it, he could not.

The secular state, however, is not going to readily accept the fact that the Church has rights independent of it.

The real purpose of bringing up the language of “child sexual abuse” in regard to this issue is to sway people’s emotions, and blind their eyes to the fact that the proposed laws seek to change a thing that cannot, in fact, be changed. The proposed laws are not really about preventing child abuse. They are nothing less than an attack on freedom of religion, an attack on the sacraments, and an attack on the Church.

Image: Wooden judge`s gavel. Law. Judge`s office

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The Pardon Crucifix: Indulgenced by Pope St. Pius X

Do you know about the Pardon Crucifix?

Catholics have many treasures that have been “buried” in the long history of the Church and are now little known. Fr. Richard Heilman, the creator of the Combat Rosary (the official rosary of the Swiss Guard), said that when the devil hates something, “he simply tries to hide it from people.” The Pardon Crucifix, which is not well known to the faithful, is one such treasure.

The origin of this type of crucifix is unknown, but it first became well-known in 1904, when some French priests introduced it to a cardinal at the Marian Congress. In the following year, devotion to this crucifix was encouraged with an indulgence promulgated by Pope St. Pius X.

Sometimes the Pardon Crucifix is flanked by the Miraculous Medal of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the St. Benedict Medal. Any one of these sacramentals would be hateful to the devil, but the three combined form a powerful weapon against evil.

The Prayers and Indulgences of the Pardon Crucifix

The indulgence attached to the Pardon Crucifix, like all indulgences, offers reduction of penance, not absolution of sin. For a moment I thought it was absolution (as if I didn’t have to go to confession) and other such imprudent thoughts.

In the early sixteenth century, there was some confusion about the exact nature of indulgences, but this matter (along with many others) was clarified at the Council of Trent in 1563. Since then, an indulgence has been clearly defined as “a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, §1471).

With regard to the Pardon Crucifix, Pope St. Pius X granted the following indulgences:

§  Whoever carries on his person the Pardon Crucifix, may thereby gain an indulgence.

§  For devoutly kissing the Crucifix, an indulgence is gained.

§  Whoever says one of the following invocations before this crucifix may gain each time an indulgence: “Our Father who art in heaven, forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” “I beg the Blessed Virgin Mary to pray to the Lord our God for me.”

§  Whoever, habitually devout to this Crucifix, will fulfill the necessary conditions of Confession and Holy Communion, may gain a Plenary Indulgence on the following feasts: On the feasts of the Five Wounds of our Lord, the Invention of the Holy Cross, the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, the Immaculate Conception, and the Seven Dolors of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

§  Whoever, at the moment of death, fortified with the Sacraments of the Church, or contrite of heart in the supposition of being unable to receive them, will kiss this Crucifix and ask pardon of God for his sins, and pardon his neighbor, will gain a Plenary Indulgence.

The feast days mentioned by the Pope are as follows:

– February 6 (in Lisbon, the Friday following Ash Wednesday): The Feast of the Five Sacred Wounds of the Lord

– May 3: Feast of the Discovery of the Holy Cross

– September 14: Feast of the Holy Cross

– December 8: Feast of the Immaculate Conception

– Friday before Palm Sunday, and September 15: Feast of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Also, he wrote this:

 “Pontifical Rescript of June 1905,
to M.M. the Abbes Lemann:

Prefect of the Sacred Congregation of Indulgences

To the faithful, who devoutly kiss this Crucifix and gain these precious indulgences, we recommend to have in view the following intentions: To testify love for Our Lord and the Blessed Virgin; gratitude towards our Holy Father, the Pope, to beg for the remission of one’s sins; the deliverance of the souls in Purgatory; the return of the nations to the Faith; forgiveness among Christians; reconciliation among members of the Catholic Church.”

By another Pontifical rescript of November 14, 1905, Pope Pius X declared that the indulgences attached to the Pardon Crucifix are applicable to the souls in Purgatory.

The Pardon Crucifix, a lost indulgence

In the wake of the Second Vatican Council, Paul VI published a new Handbook of Indulgences, dated June 29 (the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul), 1968.

Near the beginning of that book, it states: “suppressed are all general grants of indulgences not incorporated into the new Enchiridion [Handbook] as well as all the legislation on indulgences of the Codex Iuris Canonici…” and so on. In other words, all indulgences were cancelled, except for the ones contained in the new book.

pre-Vatican II Handbook of Indulgences, and the thinner one is the post-Vatican II Handbook.

The thicker of the two books is the pre-Vatican II Handbook of Indulgences, and the thinner one is the post-Vatican II Handbook. You can see for yourself that there has been a drastic reduction in the number of indulgences. The Pardon Crucifix indulgence is not contained in the new book.

On the other hand, however, the Pardon Crucifix (like every crucifix), the Miraculous Medal of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the St. Benedict Medal, are all powerful sacramentals; and prayers to the saints and prayer before a crucifix still carry the benefit of indulgences. In short, the Pardon Crucifix, and the medals in some cases attached to it, together form a great spiritual treasure. I believe that it is a blessing from God, an inevitability in the name of coincidence.

The Pardon Crucifix in the Scapular

I came to know about this crucifix thanks to a priest who sent one to me from Japan. I had never heard of the Pardon Crucifix until then. As I mentioned earlier, it combines (in this case) three powerful sacramentals in one. It gave me great strength as a person with chronic family problems.

The crucifix that was sent to me was also placed in the scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. I think it is a very good idea to put the Pardon Crucifix in the Scapular, because if you are allergic to metal, as I am, you can wear it without worrying about your allergy, and you will receive the added benefit of the Scapular. I am very grateful.

Although the Pardon Crucifix no longer carries an official indulgence, it still symbolically carries the body of our Lord. I sincerely hope that this powerful sacramental will become more widely known.

Source for Papal documents: The Pardon Crucifix | Catholicism Pure & Simple (wordpress.com)

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St. Patrick: The Life of St. Patrick by Muirch (2)

The Life of St. Patrick by Muirchu goes on to tell about the first person that St. Patrick baptized in Ireland. That person was a man named Dichu, a pig keeper. After baptizing Dichu, St. Patrick set out for his former master’s house, where he had been enslaved. He wanted to baptize the master who had enslaved him. But before Patrick got there, someone told the slave master something to the effect that Patrick had now returned to become his master. The slave master was so infatuated with the devil that he gathered all his possessions around him in his house, and set fire to it all, rather than let Patrick become his master. He committed suicide.

St. Patrick’s Prophecy

Patrick arrived in time to see the slave master’s house burning, but too late to save him. He looked at the burning house and just cried for a while. He left a prophecy from God about the slave master’s family, namely, that this man’s sons would not rule over others, but rather, would be subject to others, from generation to generation forever.

“I do not know, God knows.” Patrick repeated several times, meaning, “It was never a curse. It is a prophecy from God.” For Christians, suicide is one of the most serious sins and a terrible temptation from the devil. The slave master rejected God’s salvation, was tempted by the devil, and chose death rather than humility, or than the giving of his worldly wealth to anyone.

I believe that this legend, though adapted, could possibly have been true. It is not a common miracle story. It is more realistic than most legends, in that Patrick, who was trying to bring salvation, was just crying, and the slave master’s family received a prophecy of a dark future from God. What happened to that family afterwards is unknown. However, the fact that there are no further stories of miracles or other subsequent events makes me think that it is highly likely that they met an unfortunate end, as St. Patrick foretold.

St. Patrick’s grave

St. Patrick`s Tomb, Downpatrick, Northern Ireland

St. Patrick’s grave is in Downpatrick, Northern Ireland. Legend has it that before Patrick died, he left a wish about where his body should be buried.

He instructed the people (so the legend says) that, when he died and his body was in its coffin, they should put the coffin on an oxcart, and then let the ox pull the cart wherever it wanted to go. Wherever the ox stopped, that is where Patrick was to be buried. The people followed Patrick’s wish, and the ox pulled the cart to the top of a hill, where, accordingly, Patrick was buried. A stone was set up to mark the spot, and it soon became a popular site for pilgrimages.

Later, in the twelfth century, St. Patrick’s relics were moved to the Church of the Holy Trinity (Down Cathedral Church), where they remain today, together with those of St. Bridget and St. Columba. The hill, however, remains a major pilgrimage site.

However, the traditional story that St. Patrick’s relics are now in Down Cathedral seems to be only legend: according to E. Sellner, no one knows where he was buried.

Seeing (online) the tomb of St. Patrick, I was reminded of the gravestones at the small but historic St. Patrick’s Church (which is now closed) in a certain town I once visited. There were several graves in the back of that church. Being a history buff, one day I went to see the graves out of curiosity. I found out that the graves belonged to the past priests of the church, and among them was the grave of a young priest who died when he was in his 30s. Since he was in his 30s, I wondered what life had been like for him; it must have been hard to accept death at such a young age. I am sure that, like St. Patrick, he left his hometown, followed God’s will, and became one of the unknown saints.

St. Patrick’s Feast Day during Lent

Every year, when the Feast of St. Patrick comes around, which means that Lent will be over in a few weeks, I am encouraged—mainly for the not very spiritual reason that I refrain from sweets as much as possible during Lent, and I want to eat as much sweet food as I can on Easter.

During Lent, the feast days are purposely kept few (in the Novus Ordo calendar). Reflecting on the life of St. Patrick, a life of continuous hardship, I feel that he is a saint suitable for the Lenten season. Someday, I would like to visit the places in Ireland related to St. Patrick, and attend Mass there.

Image: Saint Patrick statue in Downpatrick

Source for the life of Patrick: Davies, Oliver: Celtic Spirituality. PaulistPress, 1999.

Source for St. Patrick’s burial place: Sellner, Edward: Wisdom of the Celtic Saints. Ave Maria Press, 1993.

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St. Patrick: Irish Apostle whose Symbol is a Clover (1)

The feast day of St. Patrick, March 17, is here again this year. St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland. Many Americans have Irish ancestry. For this reason, he is a popular saint in the United States.

Traditionally, three-leaf clovers (shamrocks) are used in decorations on St. Patrick’s Day. This is because, according to legend, Patrick used a three-leaf clover to explain to people about the Trinity, a mystery of God that is incomprehensible to the human mind. In fact, this story seems to have been invented in the 18th century. However, we can learn a little about the actual life of St. Patrick from his “Confessions” (meaning, his autobiography) and his “Letter to the Soldiers of the Coroticus”.

The Life of St. Patrick: his journey to becoming a missionary in Ireland

The dates of the birth and death of St. Patrick, who spread Christianity to Ireland, are unknown. It is believed that he was probably born in England in the late 4th or early 5th century. According to Patrick’s own recollections, he was the son of a Christian deacon, but was not a deeply religious man. The following is a brief account of Patrick’s journey to Ireland, where he was led to become a missionary.

Patrick was about 16 years old when an event occurred that would change his life forever. He was captured by Irish raiders, enslaved, and sold as a shepherd. Regarding his being placed in such a difficult situation, he wrote in his Confessions: “I deserved it because I had turned away from God and had not kept His commandments. I did not listen to the priests who advised me on how to be saved.” Being a shepherd in those days was a demanding job that constantly put one’s life in danger. Patrick continues that such an ordeal was not a punishment from God, but a blessing from God, who instilled in him more faith than he had had.

God’s Mysterious Guidance

His life in Ireland consisted of tending sheep and praying. One day, while he was sleeping, he heard a mysterious voice telling him that he would return to his homeland. Finally, the mysterious voice said, “Behold, your ship is ready.” And so, at the age of 23, Patrick traveled more than 200 miles, as a fugitive slave, to the landing place. When Patrick finally made it to the ship, the captain refused to let him aboard. Undeterred, Patrick prayed to God. Through God’s action, he was allowed to board the ship.

Three days later, Patrick and the other passengers got off the ship in England and began traveling through the wilderness. After 28 days in the wilderness, they finally ran out of food. The captain of the ship asked Patrick to pray to the all-powerful and great Christian God. Patrick prayed, and a herd of pigs appeared; Patrick and his companions killed the pigs, ate the pork, and regained their strength. Patrick also describes how he was attacked by demons that night and was saved by prayer.

In the past, travel in Ireland was safer by boat than by land. Patrick’s account of his wilderness journey is proof of the dangers and difficulties involved, which would be unthinkable today. It is unclear whether Patrick made it safely to his hometown or whether he gave up the journey and remained in a different place for a while.

France to Ireland

A few years later, Patrick was captured a second time. Finally, he escaped again and returned to his parents in England. However, due to his lack of education and his harsh experiences, he found it difficult to return to a normal life. Patrick felt a strong sense of mission from God and decided to go to Rome, even though his parents and relatives tried to stop him. On his way to Rome, he met St. Germanus. Patrick was to study for the priesthood under St. Germanus in Auxerre, Gaul (France).

It was during this time that he also received some mysterious guidance. He had a dream in which a man named Victoricus brought him countless letters from Ireland. With God’s guidance, Patrick decided to return to Ireland.

The rest of Patrick’s life is not from his own autobiography, but is a legend that has been passed down from generation to generation. What can be stated as historical fact is that Patrick introduced Christianity to Ireland, as well as the written word, the Roman calendar, and church traditions. The Christianity spread by Patrick took root throughout Ireland. After his death, Ireland became one of the most monasticized countries in the world, a storehouse of knowledge, and a training center for priests, monks, and nuns. Even monks and nuns from Rome came to study there.

A Strange Druidic Prophecy.

These stories are from the Life of St. Patrick by Muirchu, which was written about 150 years after Patrick’s death:

After arriving in Ireland, Patrick, who was now a bishop, went to Tara, which was ruled by a pagan king (the son of Nial) who had many Druids with him.
About two or three years before the arrival of Patrick, the Druids began prophesying to the king that someone was coming to their island who would try to destroy their way of life. The Druids’ prophecy, in poetic form (as was customary at the time), describes Patrick and Christianity with remarkable accuracy. It went like this:

The Druids’ Prophecy

A new way of life is about to come to Ireland from the outside.
It will be like a kingdom; it will come from far away across the seas;
It will bring an annoying teaching with it.
This teaching will be given out by a handful, yet received by many,
And it will be held in honor by all.
It will overthrow kingdoms, kill the kings who resist it,
And seduce the crowds.
It will destroy all our gods, and cast out our Druidic skills and works;
And this kingdom will have no end.
One with shaven head will come here with his curled-headed stick.
He will sing foul things from his home with perforated head.
From his table in the front part of his house,
His whole family will reply to him, “Let it be, let it be!”

Is the Druidic prophecy real?

I love myths, legends, and folk tales. One reason for this is that some of the tales passed down to us are based on fact, albeit adapted or exaggerated.

The ancient Druids were famous for sacrificing human beings in a cruel manner and for being able to foretell the future. Clearly, the Druids practiced a satanic religion. If the Druids’ prophecies were made with the help of demonic forces, it would explain why the content of those prophecies sometimes reminds me of the stories of demons who do not want to (or cannot) describe holy things, and who use the names of everyday objects to describe them.

In William Caxton’s translation of The Golden Legend, there is a story about an exorcist’s chalice, which the devil calls a “pot.” Of course, the stories in The Golden Legend are not always historically true, but it seems to me that all the descriptions of holy things in the Druidic prophecies are quite similar, using the names of everyday objects.

Exorcist Fr. Vincent Lampert stated in one interview that demons avoid talking about holy things. The Druidic prophecy describes a Catholic bishop with a shaved head and a staff, but it does so indirectly. And the final “may it be so” is a translation of the Hebrew word “Amen.”

Although this story may have been invented later, I think it is a very interesting prophecy because of the cultural background of Ireland at that time.

Continued in part two.

Image: Scenes from the Life of Saint Patrick. National Gallery of Ireland

Source for the life of Patrick: Celtic Spirituality. Oliver Davies : PaulistPress, 1999.

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Overcoming the Devil’s Temptations – Fr. Edward Meeks

This week marks the third week of lent. The Lenten season is a time when we often hear about temptations and evil spirits. In the first week of Lent, Fr. Edward Meeks of Christ the King Church in Towson, Maryland, uploaded a video about demonic spiritual attacks. He was once in the news for his opposition to the coronavirus vaccine mandates. According to LifeSite News, Fr. Meeks described abortion, transgender mutilation, pornography, and library drag queens as “demonic insanity.”

A Blanket of Demonic Insanity– Fr. Edward Meeks

Reading the headline, I wondered if Fr. Meeks was speaking strongly in condemnation of recent world events. But upon viewing the video, I found that such was not the case.  When I listened to him from the beginning, I noticed that the main part of the sermon was about resisting the devil’s temptation. The impression I got from that sermon was very different from the impression I got from just reading the LifeSite News headline. In the final part of the sermon, Fr. Meeks gives us an explanation that is easy to understand, to help us discern the spiritual attacks of the devil.

What is the Devil’s Temptation? Lessons from Adam and Eve and Jesus

First, in the first half of his sermon, Fr. Meeks mentions that the devil tempted Adam, Eve, and Jesus Christ in a similar manner. He then discusses how we can learn “negative lessons” and “positive lessons” from Adam, Eve, and Jesus when they were tempted. Here are some of the points made by Fr. Meeks.

The Creation of Eve (Hours of Catherine of Cleves, ca. 1440).

1. Eating. – The Temptation to Forbidden Fruit and Bread

In Eden, the devil, disguised as a serpent, encouraged Eve to eat a certain fruit.

God had clearly told Adam and Eve that if they ate the forbidden fruit, they would die. But Eve was convinced by the serpent’s words that eating the fruit would not kill her, and she fell into the devil’s trap.

After 40 days of fasting, the hungry Jesus was urged to try turning stones into bread. Jesus said to the devil, “Man shall not live by bread alone,” and did not fall into the devil’s trap.

2. You will be like God.

The serpent told Eve, “If you eat this fruit, you will be like God.” In fact, Adam and Eve had been made in the image and likeness of God, who has eternal life, and they did not need to be made “like God.”

The devil told Jesus, “Jump down from the pinnacle of the temple. Then you can prove that you are God.” The devil then tempted him, saying, “I will give you all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, if you worship me.”

Jesus said to the devil, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.” Again, though tempted, he did not fall into the devil’s trap.

Father Meeks’s sermon teaches us that Scripture, the Word of God, is essential for us to overcome the temptations of the devil.

Exorcists issue commands to demons, and cast them out, but they do not (or should not) converse with them. This is because talking with the devil (who knows all the secrets of human weakness and unspeakable evil) gives the devil an opportunity to take advantage of the one talking to him. When the devil, in the form of a serpent, tempted Eve, she answered him in her own words; Jesus replied to the devil’s temptations with the words of Scripture.

Satanic Temptations and Attacks in the World

In the latter part of the sermon, Fr. Meeks did, indeed, say something that was in the LifeSite News headline.

First, Fr. Meeks states that the devil almost always “overplays his hand.” Then, Fr. Meeks noted, “There are signs that the devil is doing so in our world today.” And here is where the statement found in the headline comes from.

The following is an excerpt from his sermon:

“Anytime I see millions of otherwise rational people doing irrational things, I look for the demonic element in what’s going on. A blanket of demonic insanity has fallen upon the earth, and you and I are witnessing it before our very eyes.”

 (From the English expression “a blanket of fog,” it would seem to mean that the madness of evil descends like a mist upon the earth and covers it.)

Fr. Meeks says that such demonic insanity is manifested in:

  1. The assault against the unborn,
  2. The assault against those who defend the unborn,
  3. Surgical mutilation of children in the name of gender ideology,
  4. Drag queens reading to children in public libraries,
  5. Pornographic books in public school libraries,
  6. Prime-time TV shows celebrating Satanism,

And so on.

In contrast to the United States, in Japan, almost nothing happens in society that reflects either a Christian worldview or an anti-Christian worldview. Unfortunately, however, it is clear that some of the same works of demonic insanity mentioned by Fr. Meeks are already taking place in Japan. One cannot help but be concerned about the negative effects that such demonic insanity will have on a country like Japan, where most people willingly embrace many aspects of Western culture, while remaining entirely ignorant of the difference between Christian Western culture and anti-Christian Western culture.

To Avoid the Devil’s Trap

To avoid such temptations of the devil, the Bible says, in Proverbs 4:14-15, “Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it; do not go on it; turn away from it and pass on.” It is a very simple answer. Often, however, I find it difficult to follow even this simple Biblical teaching. I feel social pressure to conform, and I fall into the temptation to pretend that I agree with those around me. At such times, it is very important to have a priest who tells us clearly that sin is sin, and gives us the courage to choose the right path.

A priest’s job is to warn us of spiritual dangers, for the salvation of our souls. However, some of the truths that priests try to convey, such as the existence of invisible demons, sound (to many) like old superstitions, and are often ignored. In his Introduction to Christianity,（P.39-40） Benedict XVI, referring to a story by Kierkegaard, compared the priests and theologians who are continually ignored in this way to a clown trying to warn people of a dangerous fire.

In his book An Exorcist Explains the Demonic, Vatican exorcist Fr. Gabriel Amorth describes the process of discerning whether an unexplained physical or mental illness is an attack of the devil. Speaking of medical doctors, he says (p. 85), “in fact, many of them cannot even imagine the existence of evil spirits.

I think it is difficult for most people to realize in their hearts that there is something invisible, even if they understand it in their heads. In my case, for example: every Sunday, I attend Mass at a church. In his sermon, the priest sometimes talks about the horror of mortal sin. And yet, even though I believe what the Church teaches, I often find myself not concentrating on the priest’s sermon. Sometimes we don’t feel the real horror of the sins that will send us to hell. I need to listen more carefully to what the priest is saying.

In my daily life, no matter what I am doing, I need to remember to pray. Prayer is the turning of our hearts toward God, so that we can make better choices when we are tempted by the devil. I would like to ask for God’s grace to overcome the devil’s attacks. I sincerely pray that God’s will be done in me and in the world.

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The Devil Hates Latin: The Mass as a Treasury of Prayer

Experienced exorcist Fr. Gary Thomas confirms that “The devil hates Latin,” and adds that this opinion is based on his own experience and that of others. (See here.)

Following the implementation of Pope Francis’s Motu Proprio “Traditionis Custodes,” it will be even more difficult to attend a Latin Mass. It seems that reducing the number of Latin Masses has been made a top priority in the Vatican, but the number of traditionalists, as given in the National Catholic Register, is very small: 2.5 percent of Mass-goers in those dioceses where they are most numerous, and about one percent on average elsewhere.

All things holy are a threat to the devil, but the various elements of the traditional Latin Mass must be very powerful indeed. Apparently, for it to be attended by even one or two percent of all faithful parishioners is intolerable to the devil, and he wants it gone at all costs.

Latin Mass, where you can focus on prayer

I started attending the Latin Mass after I came to the U.S. Before that, I had attended the Novus Ordo (the new form of the Mass that was promulgated in 1969). So, before I came to the U.S., I knew almost nothing about the Latin Mass.

As I kept attending the Latin Mass, and gradually grew more familiar with it, I found that I was better able to concentrate on prayer at that Mass than I had been at the Novus Ordo Mass.

The Novus Ordo is almost always in the vernacular, and often uses music that sounds like secular music. One of the reasons why I could not concentrate at the Novus Ordo was because of that kind of music. The church where I attended Novus Ordo Mass used a type of music that they called “folk music,” but it did not consist of actual centuries-old folk melodies. It sounded a lot like secular pop music, or poorly-written show tunes. That type of music often interfered with my prayers.

Difficulty in praying at Novice Ordo

So, for example, I would hear the lyrics or the melody and think, “Why are they using the word ‘alleluia,’ when it is Lent, a season when ‘alleluia’ is not supposed to be said? Did they stop caring after Vatican II? Why did they choose such a cheerful song?” My thoughts would constantly turn to things like this, not to things in keeping with the meaning of the liturgy. And then, to top it all off, I would start thinking things like, “Oh, the guitarist just played the wrong chord.” I could not concentrate on my prayers at all.

At every Mass, we should be focused on praying to and communing with God. That is not always easy, even at the best of times. It is extremely hard to do when one is being assailed by jangling and clattering sounds that have no sense of mystery. There is a serenity to the Traditional Mass. In it, we can concentrate on our prayers.

Latin Mass and Gregorian Chant for the Worship of God

Why is such secular-sounding music encouraged? Most of it is easy and (for some people) fun to sing. I suppose the liturgical reformers thought that the easy singing and easy-going atmosphere of the Mass had the advantage that anyone could join in immediately without feeling self-conscious.

But is such an easygoing atmosphere actually suitable for the Mass? Shouldn’t the highest and holiest of earthly activities, when God himself is present on the altar, be celebrated by something a little more solemn? Wouldn’t more silence be appropriate? If people want to hear pop music or show tunes, they can do so outside of church, seven days a week.

There is a fundamental difference between music for entertainment in the secular world and music for prayer to God. 

The Bible tells us to “put on the armor of God” (Ephesians 6:11) in order to resist the devil. Part of the armor of God is prayer (Ephesians 6:18). The texts of the Traditional Mass are part of the Church’s centuries-old treasure trove of prayers. The ancient and original music for the Latin Mass, Gregorian chant, is a kind of prayer in melodic form. The melodies move slowly and bring out the meaning of the words.

Missa cum jubilo – Kyrie – YouTube

My mysterious experience with Gregorian chant

I used to participate in the Gregorian chants of the Latin Mass. And once I had a strange experience that made me realize the difference between secular music and Gregorian chants.

One Saturday, I was rehearsing the Gregorian chants that I was going to sing the next day (Sunday). I had put off rehearsing until the last moment. The movement of notes in Gregorian chant is unique and completely different from that of modern music. Therefore, I always had a hard time learning it. That Saturday, I had to spend the whole day practicing the chants over and over again, in order to get them learned in time for Sunday Mass. Finally, by nighttime, I had managed to bring my chant-singing up to an acceptable level of competence. I remember joking to my husband, “I’ve been practicing Gregorian chants all day long, and my whole body is filled with prayer.”

“Finally, I can relax,” I thought, as I was drinking my tea. Then I glanced at my husband and saw that he was on the Internet researching something about his hobby. As soon as I saw that, I suddenly felt a sudden surge of anger toward my husband for being so easygoing, and not thinking about the financial burden he was placing on me.

I remember that deep down, I was almost 100 percent sure that my husband was wrong, so the anger took over and quickly turned into hatred. Demonic images of hatred floated around in my head, and I felt as if the blood in my body was being poisoned.

Somewhere in the back of my mind I felt, “This abnormal anger is strange. It is dangerous.” But still, I thought to myself, “Of course it is. This anger is justified. That is why it has become so terrible,” and I ignored the warnings of my heart. On the other hand, I prayed for a moment (saying, in my mind “May God take this anger”). It was only for a moment, and for a somewhat selfish reason (“tomorrow is Sunday,” I thought to myself, “and with this anger I probably will not be worthy to receive communion”).

Then something unexpected happened. Suddenly, a soft feeling the opposite of hatred, welled up in my heart. Perhaps it was the love of God. As the anger faded, I began to see my own stubbornness, my unwillingness to trust people, my unwillingness to do anything but be angry. Also, the difficult situation was not a curse, I realized, but a gift from God. It was strengthening my patience, which I needed. I also realized that my greatest anger was not at my husband, or at the fact that I had to go through a difficult situation, but at God for seeing me in that difficult situation and not fixing it.

After that, without knowing why, I could not stop crying for a while. Then I fell into a strong drowsiness and went to sleep shortly thereafter. The next morning, I woke up feeling very refreshed, both physically and emotionally.

When we sing Gregorian chant, we are vividly reenacting the prayers of old. I cannot prove it, but I believe that the mystical power of Gregorian chant and Latin prayer purged the evil that had been lurking deep within me.

Increasing use of Gregorian chant

The Traditional Mass consists of prayers that have been handed down through the ages, together with Gregorian chant, which complements them. But now the Vatican is trying to eliminate the Traditional Mass as much as possible. The essential problem is that, by restricting the ancient Mass, the Vatican is restricting the ancient prayers within it that foster communion with God. On the other hand, it is interesting to note that, at least in my own parish church, now that the Latin Mass has been eliminated, the Novus Ordo Masses include more Gregorian chant than ever before. What will happen in the future? Only God knows; but now that it has become more difficult to receive the benefits of the Latin Mass, I strongly feel the need for all of us to trust God and deepen our faith even more.

Image of Close-up of a Book of Gregorian Chants in an Italian Cathedral　Dreamstime

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FBI monitors Traditionalist Catholics

A recent Fox News revealed that the FBI is attempting to monitor traditionalist Catholics who prefer the Latin Mass, calling them radical traditionalist Catholics (RTC, for short). The news is a reminder that the oppression of traditional Catholics who try to follow the teachings of the Church is about to get much worse.

This fact was documented in a memo circulated within the FBI and revealed by former FBI agent turned whistleblower Kyle Serafin. The memo stated that the FBI was concerned about the dangers of radical “extremist” traditionalist Catholics and “white nationalists” interacting online, according to the memo.

The USCCB condemns “extremism,” while saying the FBI memo targeting Catholics is “troubling and offensive.”　Cardinal Timothy Dolan of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops responded to the FBI memo by saying, “Let me be clear: the USCCB roundly condemns anyone who espouses racism, and fully supports the work of law enforcement officials to keep our communities safe.” – CNA (Catholic News Agency)

According to LifeSite News, the FBI memo claims that “white nationalism” is something which traditionalist Catholics are likely to interact with. They do not provide any evidence for this claim, other than citing the Southern Poverty Law Center, a group well-known for its leftist propaganda. The problem is that placing those terms (“white nationalist” and “traditionalist Catholic”) in the same sentence has the potential to give the impression that traditionalist = racist. A third party, unfamiliar with the Church’s affairs, might believe the label applied by an authority figure, such as the FBI. In that case, who would be held accountable for the reporting? And if the FBI can justify its surveillance of traditional Latin Mass goers, who will it decide to monitor next?

Restrictions on Latin Mass Causing Divisions in the Church

The restrictions on the Mass that began on September 8, 2022, the celebration of the Virgin Mary’s birthday, were intended (so the Pope said) to unify Catholics more strongly.
Stronger unity is certainly important. The Bible tells us that we need to unite against the devil, using the analogy of the threefold cord (Ecclesiastes 4:12). However, why go to all the trouble of restricting the Latin Mass, when the majority of the faithful already celebrated the “Novus Ordo,” the Mass celebrated in the vernacular? Church members who preferred the Latin Mass were in the minority.

When Benedict XVI removed restrictions from the Latin Mass, it brought harmony, not conflict, between traditionalists and liberals. Benedict XVI made it clear that, regardless of Vatican II or the new Missal of 1969, the traditional Latin Mass had never, in fact, been repealed. Moreover, Benedict XVI explained that it was an important part of the Church’s heritage and provided spiritual nourishment to many.

Also, to restrict the Latin Mass in the name of “Unity” is to ignore the fact that the Latin Mass is not a Mass for people of a particular language, such as the Spanish Mass or the English Mass. People from all over the world, whatever their languages, can unite in attending the same Mass, as they did before Vatican II.

Because of the restrictions issued by the Vatican, our Bishop decided to cut down on the number of Latin Masses in his Diocese. The Latin Mass at my parish church was one of the ones that got cut. Many people in my church who had been attending that Mass decided to start attending Latin Mass at other churches. One woman said, “I’m tired of always wondering, What’s next? I don’t want to worry about Church politics all the time, so I will join the SSPX.” There was also a young couple who had to give up their Latin Mass wedding due to the restrictions. They were truly disappointed, saying that they were told that they were too late to book a traditional Latin wedding Mass. After their wedding, they, too, started attending Latin Mass at a church farther away. I knew a middle-aged woman who always spent time praying alone in front of the statue of Therese de Lisieux. On the last day of Latin Mass at our church, she was crying. “I feel betrayed by the Church,” she said. I have not seen her since then.

What is the Real Purpose of the Latin Mass Ban?

Coming soon to a planet near you？
The Last Judgement – Jan Brueghel the Elder

What is it about the Latin Mass that makes the FBI and the Vatican so suspicious of it?
The first possibility is that there are political reasons. The real agenda of the FBI, as one senses it in the background, is to eliminate any groups that might give people a different perspective on current politics. Many traditionalist Catholics do not blindly kowtow to the authorities of this world. They fear that, in some cases, by compromising and submitting to authority figures, they would be disobeying God. It is the traditional Catholics who stand with the conservative Christians of other denominations and question the “political correctness” determined by the authorities of this world. And Catholics, because they listen to the Pope, who is not under the thumb of the State, are people whose ideas it is difficult for the State to control completely; in short, conscientious Catholics are not the State’s lapdogs.

Recent survey results confirm that traditionalist Catholics are more likely to take positions contrary to modern political correctness. For example, the overwhelming majority of traditionalists oppose abortion and same-sex marriage. No doubt, then, that the real reason for restricting the Latin Mass is to oppress and persecute those who stand in the way of social “reformers.” If Latin-Mass-goers are labeled as, and treated as, extremists, it will make the society at large more likely to ignore them. (See the LifeSite News article for more information on the survey.)

Corruption and Depravity in the Church

Why (one might ask) are traditionalist Catholics, who are supposed to follow the Pope, complaining because the Pope restricts their Masses? One of the main reasons is that they recognize that these restrictions are more than just restrictions; they are part of the beginning of a battle between light and darkness. It is generally said that Latin is a language that the devil hates unbearably.
And the battle against the devil is endless, as many have warned us, including the Book of Revelation, the prophecies of the saints handed down by the Church, and the numerous apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary prophesying and warning us. All of these prophecies have one thing in common: they warn of the massive corruption in the Church when the end of the world approaches.

The corruption of the Church includes the secularization of the Church. As a recent example of secularization in the church: during the Corona pandemic, parish churches were closed to the faithful, even for Easter. It was the first time in the 2,000-year history of the Church that such a thing had ever happened. The Church was defeated by political and worldly pressures.

Another kind of corruption is the persecution of people who are doing good. A certain priest, who was doing a lot of good work for the pro-life cause, was laicized because he was considered too radical. On the other hand, the Vatican remains silent about priests who continually make statements contrary to Church doctrine, such as approving of homosexual relationships.

The most horrifying corruption is the worship of any deity other than God alone. The Vatican’s highly scandalous Pachamama affair, the recent participation of the Pope and Canadian Cardinals in American Indian pagan rituals, and numerous other such news stories, do not inspire confidence in outsiders that the Catholic Church is an organization whose leaders believe in Christ.

Corruption and depravity in the Church are far more dangerous that the corruption that sometimes takes place in ordinary business organizations. The reason is that the Church’s “business” is the salvation of souls. A corrupt businessman damages his own soul. A corrupt Church leader endangers the souls of everyone in his flock.
It is the Latin Mass that is the most effective weapon against these movements of darkness and the devil. In other words, the Church is now restricting a powerful weapon to fight the devil. Again, this restriction is slowly destroying the Church from within. Unless destruction is the goal, restrictions on the Mass, the treasure house of faith from the past, are pointless.

Are New Restrictions on the Way?

Now, there are rumors that Pope Francis is planning to impose new restrictions on the Latin Mass. The restrictions, as mentioned earlier, have caused traditionalists to move out of the parishes they had been in, and into parishes with Latin Masses. In the end, the division between those who prefer the Novus Ordo and those who prefer the traditional Latin Mass has not changed.

As a traditionalist, I would prefer that my fellow traditionalists stay in the parish church where they were. Every valid Mass brings us the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Christ. If the hidden purpose of limiting the Latin Mass is to “divide,” then it is clearly better to give up the Latin Mass and stay in the same place.

And my concern is not so much the restriction of the Mass itself, but rather the situation of the shepherds in the Church, those who are probably the first target of the devil: the priests. Given the aforementioned trends in the Church, one can imagine that priests who follow God’s teachings are struggling in ways that are not visible. I feel that we need to stay in the same place to encourage those who are involved in God’s work. There is a biblical story that says that if the thieves tie up a strong man, they can rob his house at will (Matthew 12:29). In order to avoid such a situation, I think it should be a priority for faithful traditionalists to stay at their posts, “wearing the armor of God” (Ephesians 6:11) and praying in their God-given places.

Image of ｍail and computers: E-mail Picture. Image: 5677401 (dreamstime.com)

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The Legend of St. Valentine, Patron of Lovers

February 14 is the feast day of Saint Valentine, a day observed all over the world as a celebration of love and lovers. But who was St. Valentine, and how did he become the patron saint of lovers? 

The Origin of St. Valentine’s Day

The story of how February 14 became St. Valentine’s Day is pretty clear. However, the story of how St. Valentine’s Day became the day of love is not so clear.

In the Catholic Church, certain people who have lived exemplary or heroic lives as devout Christians are posthumously canonized as saints. Just as a living person is honored each year on his or her birthday, a saint is honored each year on a particular day, known as that saint’s feast day. A saint’s feast day is usually the day of his or her death. In the case of St. Valentine, he was martyred for his Christian faith, in Rome, during the reign of Emperor Claudius II (A.D. 268–270). His martyrdom is believed to have taken place on the 14th of February; therefore, that is his feast day. [2]

Who was St. Valentine?

There are several stories about a saint named Valentine. Maybe all of the stories are referring to the same person; or, maybe there were two or more different saints of the same name, and each story is about one of them. In the early days of Christianity, when there were many martyrs, it was customary for a new martyr to be honored on the same day as an older martyr of the same name. Therefore, we cannot rule out the possibility that several people named Valentine were martyred at different times, and all celebrated on the same day. In that case, the story of one St. Valentine could easily get confused with the story of another.

One of the most commonly told stories of St. Valentine states that he was a priest in 3rd-century Rome. The Roman Emperor, Claudius II, had (according to the story) strictly forbidden soldiers to marry. (Celibacy was considered superior for soldiers, and military service was mandatory for single men.) St. Valentine was reportedly put to death for performing Christian weddings for young soldiers in Rome. (Not only were the weddings illegal, but Christianity itself was, of course, banned in the Roman Empire at that time.) [1]

Historians’ Opinion

Historians doubt that the above story is true. For one thing, the ban on military weddings, instituted under the Emperor Augustus, had already been repealed by the time Claudius II was Emperor.

Also, Valentine is said to have been from Terni, Italy. Yet he was martyred in Rome. Are St. Valentine of Terni and St. Valentine of Rome two different people? Or are they the same person, who traveled from one city to the other? Nobody knows. Decide for yourself! [2]

All that is certain is that this is the day on which a person named Valentine was martyred for the love of God. The story of Valentine the priest, with his secret marriages for soldiers in love, and his martyrdom for it, is a very appropriate story for the day of love.

Collect for the Mass of St. Valentine

Grant, we beseech thee, Almighty God: that we who observe the heavenly birthday of blessed Valentine thy Martyr, may by his intercession be delivered from all evils that beset us. Through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord. Amen.

(Image: Statue of St. Valentine in the Basilica of St. Valentine, Terni, Italy. Dreamstime)

A Miracle of St. Valentine

Another story tells what happened to St. Valentine after he was arrested.

While in prison (so the story goes), Valentine befriended the jailer, named Asterius. Asterius asked him to read a book for his daughter Julia, who was blind. On the day of his execution, Valentine, who had become close to Julia, left her a letter. Julia, being blind, would normally not be able to read the letter. However, her eyes were miraculously healed, and she read the letter. It was signed “From your Valentine.”

Historians are doubtful of the above story, as well. It sounds suspiciously like something invented after the fact to “explain” the origin of Valentine’s Day cards.

On the other hand, there is a very old story that says simply that, in the days of Claudius II, a jailer named Asterius had a daughter who was blind. She was healed by a priest. Then Asterius and his daughter were baptized by the priest, and all three were martyred. They were martyred on February 14, on the Via Flaminia in Rome. Could the miracle-working priest’s name have been Valentine? It is impossible to know with certainty. [2]

Relics of St. Valentine

Relics (one or more of the bones of a saint) are an object of people’s faith, and there are a number of relics that are attributed to St. Valentine.

For example, in the Basilica of Santa Maria Cosmedin in Rome, famous for the “Mouth of Truth,” there is a skull believed to be that of St. Valentine, decorated with flowers. Other relics believed to be his bones can be found in Glasgow Church in Scotland, at the Carmelite Church on Whitefriar Street in Dublin, Ireland, and in St. Anthony’s Church in Madrid, Spain. Some relics of St. Valentine of Terni (whether or not he is the same person as St. Valentine of Rome), are enshrined in the Basilica of St. Valentine in Terni, Italy.

The Basilica of Santa Maria Cosmedin in Italy is a very rare Melkite Byzantine Catholic church. The Melkites are an Eastern Rite branch of the Catholic Church, and their headquarters are in Damascus, Syria. In an interview with EWTN, in their video “The Life of St. Valentine,” a Catholic Melkite priest at the Basilica said that he prays before the relics of St. Valentine, asking for “intercession to live our lives and our faith with true and deep love.”

The Life of St. Valentine – A Saint Who Dedicated His Life to Evangelization and Love – YouTube

A very popular place for lovers is the Carmel Church in Dublin, Ireland. According to the official Whitefrair Street Church website, the relic in this Carmelite church is a small vessel stained with blood. This small vessel was sent by Pope Gregory XVI in 1836.

With all this, it is natural to assume that some of the relics are authentic and some are fakes. On the other hand, it is possible that all of the relics are genuine. As mentioned earlier, it was customary to celebrate martyrs of the same name on the same day. Whether the relics attributed to St. Valentine are from one person or from many people, they are all ancient, and are accepted by the Church as authentic. So, no matter whose bones they are, they are the bones of saints.

Symbols of St. Valentine’s Day

The items that symbolize Valentine the Martyr are the red rose and a small bird (and of course the palm branch of martyrdom). In symbols used in paintings, red is the color of blood and roses symbolize love. The little bird is associated with happy lovers. The symbol of the little bird on St. Valentine’s Day may also be related to the fact that in the Middle Ages, it was said that February 14 was the day when little birds mated. [2]

St. Valentine’s Day began as a day of love for God by a man who gave his life to Christ. The story of the priest who performed weddings may be legendary, but I am sure that such priests existed. I pray that we may have some of the deep and true love for Christ that the holy martyrs had.

Image of Saint Valentine’s skull: Saint Valentine – Wikipedia

Sources:

1. The Story of Saint Valentine (learnreligions.com)

2. Valentino, il Santo senza Volto. Ecco perché (e come) lo si celebra (avvenire.it)

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Candlemas: The Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary

What is Candlemas?

My favorite candle-lit celebration is Candlemas, celebrated on February 2.

It is the Feast of our Lord’s Presentation in the Temple, and of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary.　The following is a summary of the description of this Mass from the Missal used by Mother T.

“The liturgy of this Feast consists of two parts: a procession and a Mass. The procession is accompanied by chanting, which is meant to remind us of the joyous Nativity as well as of penitence (repentance for sins committed). Each person in the procession holds a consecrated candle, which, like the Easter candle, is an image of Christ, the Light of Truth who appeared in the world at the time of His Nativity.”

–           Missal (published in 1949)

“Candlemas” at the Vatican Catholic News Service

It is called “Candlemas” because of the custom of holding lit candles. It falls 40 days after Christmas and celebrates two things. The first is the presentation of Jesus in the Temple, 40 days after his birth (Christmas Day), according to the Law of Moses. Jesus was the first child of Mary and Joseph, and according to the Law of Moses, all first-born males (whether animal or human) must be sacrificed to God, unless another sacrifice is made as a substitution.

The second is the celebration of Mary’s purification. Once again, according to the Law of Moses, a Jewish woman was considered unclean for a certain period of time after giving birth, and was forbidden to enter the Temple during that time. After this period of impurity, the woman and her husband would usually offer a lamb in the Temple. If they could not afford a lamb, they were allowed to offer a pair of doves instead. Then the woman would be officially declared no longer unclean. Mary and Joseph, who were poor, offered two doves.

What does this mean? Literally, it means that Jesus is an offering, destined to be sacrificed on the altar, just like a sheep. But, of course, a human baby could not be offered as such; human sacrifice is strictly forbidden by God. Therefore, Jesus was presented to the Jewish priests in the temple, and two doves were offered instead of him, as a substitute sacrifice. According to Church doctrine, such a ceremony was not actually necessary because Jesus and Mary are free from all sin. In Mother T’s Missal, it is stated (in summary), “The fact that the Blessed Virgin took part in the purification ceremony according to custom, and that Christ her Son was also offered in the Holy Temple, was a sign of her humility, and of her Son’s involvement in the project of salvation.”

The Celebration of Candlemas

In the Catholic Church, there are sacraments and sacramentals, which, in brief, are visible signs of God’s grace. Catholics can partake of God’s grace through the sacraments and sacramentals. Before the Mass of Candlemas begins, the priest blesses some candles, which are then distributed to the people. These blessed candles are sacramentals. That is, the blessed candle is a visible sign of God’s favor toward us.

At this time, I will not discuss the difference between a sacrament and a sacramental, but sacramentals include, for example, holy water, blessed salt, medallions, and rosaries. They are prescribed according to the traditional teachings of the Church. Thus, a favorite coffee cup or book cannot be made into a sacramental.

Simeon’s Song “Now Lettest thou thy servant depart in peace.”

Nunc Dimittis (with ‘Salva nos’), the Canticle of Simeon – Gregorian Chant
Petrus Josephus

Before the procession begins, we sing the canticle of Simeon, who was present on the day Jesus was consecrated in the temple.

This Simeon was a man who received a message from God that he would not die before he had seen the Messiah. He believed God, and waited for the Messiah until he was an old man. Simeon is often mistaken for the priest who performed the consecration of Jesus, but he was not a priest but an old man who continued to wait for the Messiah and visited the temple. When he met the Messiah, Simeon sang a song, or canticle, which can be found in Chapter 2 of the Gospel of Luke.

The Canticle of Simeon is sung every day in the evening prayer of the Divine Office, called Compline. Simeon’s prayer is sometimes thought to be “Now let me depart,” as opposed to “Now lettest thou me depart,” but the Bible does not say in which sense his words should be taken. I feel that the translation “Thou lettest thy servant go,” which sounds joyful and without the slightest doubt that the Messiah has come and that God has fulfilled His promise, is more fitting for Simeon.

Prayer of “repentance for sins” taken away

Next is the second part of the preparation for the procession. In Mother T.’s Missal, published in 1949, it is called the remembrance and repentance of sins, but in fact, this beautiful part of the liturgy is no longer included in the current form of the Candlemas procession. This is because, in the 1950s, the length of the liturgy was gradually shortened. Here is the penitential part that was cut:

Arise, O Lord, help us, and deliver us for Thy name’s sake.

We have heard, O God, with our ears: our fathers have declared to us.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost.

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

Arise, O Lord, help us, and deliver us for Thy name’s sake.　

Candles to Light the Flame of Faith　

My local church held a candlelight procession this year, and even though it was a weekday, many people attended. In his sermon, the priest of my parish said, “Imagine how bright candlelight used to appear when there was no electricity.”

When I did not know the light of Jesus, I did not even realize that I was in darkness. Candlelight also symbolizes the light of Christ that illuminates the spirit. Today, we have electric lights 24 hours a day. However, the darkness of the spirit is getting darker and darker.

At the end of the Mass, the priest said, “Light the flame of faith.” Even a seemingly insignificant light can be a great help in pitch darkness. I hope that I can keep the flame of faith burning in my heart.

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Proverbs：Gematria and King Solomon

Solomon: Wise King and Writer of Proverbs

The Book of Proverbs is one of the wisdom books of the Old Testament. According to legend, the Biblical books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs were written by King Solomon (ca. 1011-931 BC). King Solomon was also the builder of the first Jewish Temple in Jerusalem.

The Book of Proverbs was written in Hebrew and consists of 31 chapters and approximately 800 aphorisms. Since no dates are given, it is not known which proverbs were written first, but it is usually assumed that the earlier chapters were written first.

The letters of “Solomon” make a total of 375

There is a biblical method of replacing Hebrew words with numbers; it is called “gematria.” Mother T. makes notes on some of the Hebrew numerals in King Solomon’s Book of Proverbs.

Mother T. left a note which says the following: “The letters of the Hebrew alphabet (all of which are consonants) have numerical values assigned to them based on their order. The numerical values of the letters of “Solomon” make a total of 375. There are exactly 375 proverbs in the Book of Proverbs, after the first ten chapters.”

In other words, since every letter of the Hebrew alphabet has a numerical value, the letters that spell a Hebrew word can be added together to make the numerical value of that word.

The name “Solomon” in Hebrew is “ שְׁלֹמֹה ” (pronounced “Shalomo”). The numerical value of that name is 375.


So, we can see that Mother T.’s note was pointing out a coincidence between the number of proverbs and the numerical value of the name “Solomon.”

Torah and King Solomon　

Mr. J. has a hypothesis about the gematria of King Solomon’s name the Book of Proverbs.

The word for “Proverbs” in Hebrew is “ מִשְלֵי ” (pronounced “mishle”). The numerical value of that word is 380.

The Torah, that is, the Law of Moses, consists of five books. So, the number five symbolizes the Torah. Now, when the number that symbolizes the Torah (five) is added to the number that represents Solomon (375), the result is 380, the number that represents the Book of Proverbs. In other words: Solomon (375), through studying the Torah (5), was inspired to write the Proverbs (380).

Moreover, after chapter ten, there are said to be exactly 375 proverbs in the Book of Proverbs. So, the Book of Proverbs is equal to ten (symbolizing the ten commandments, which are the essence of the Torah) plus Solomon (375). And Solomon without the ten commandments would be 375 minus ten, which equals 365, the number of days in the year. In other words, without an understanding of the divinely revealed, eternal, and unchanging commandments of the Torah, even the wisest of men (Solomon) would be reduced to merely natural wisdom, a knowledge only of the transitory and changeable things of this world (symbolized by the number of days in the year). Thus far Mr. J.

It is Jewish rabbis who usually interpret words and numbers in this way, but there are some examples of this kind of analysis in the Christian Fathers as well—for example, in the biblical commentaries of St. John Chrysostom. Out of curiosity, I wrote my own name in Hebrew letters, and used Biblical gematria to find out what it meant (with the help of a website listing Hebrew words by their number values). I was surprised at how many of the significations described me accurately. I don’t know whether Rabbis really use gematria in exactly this way, but it was very interesting.

An Act of Divine Providence

According to the Jews, everything is God’s handiwork and there are no coincidences. Mother T. left no explanation of her comment that “After chapter 10, there are exactly 375 proverbs in the book of Proverbs.” However, she did leave the following sentence:

“Coincidence in the eyes of man is inevitability in the eyes of God.”　-Mother T

I take my hat off to the wisdom of the ancient Jews, who combined the numbers of the Hebrew language like a puzzle. On the other hand, I also think that the mysterious coincidences of various biblical texts would have been impossible without the hand of God.

Glory to God!