Emitte Spiritum + non-Shakespeare

St. Thomas Aquinas gave an excellent Pentecost homily. Click here.

Here is a less worthy attempt… (But shorter at least!)

Come, Holy Spirit! On our dryness pour your dew.

We live by holding fast to the doctrines of our Catholic faith. At the same time, we also see visible signs of the mysteries we believe in. Let us try to understand how the mystery of Pentecost fits into the annual rites of spring.

First, the basic facts: The Lord Jesus died on the cross. On the third day, He rose again. He remained on earth for forty days. Then He ascended into heaven. The Apostles prayed. Then Christ poured out the Holy Spirit.

Festival Day

Hail, thee, festival day!

Fr. Andrew White, S.J.

Don’t forget that this is the 376th anniversary of the first Holy Mass in the English-speaking colonies.

It was offered on St. Clement’s Island in the Potomac River by Fr. White!

…Annunciation Day and Holy Week are always in the spring.

In the spring, many things that have lain hidden finally come into view. The goodness of the earth reveals itself.

In the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, at the instant when He was conceived and became man, the Word of God declared to the Father: “Behold, I come to do Your will!”

For many years, this perfect obedience lay hidden within the soul of Christ.

Then, during Holy Week, it was fully revealed.

Sabbaticals

Come on, seventy degrees. Come on, baby. So close. Don’t be afraid. Come to papa!

…The Law of Moses bound the Chosen People to a weekly day of rest.

The Law of Death gave the human race rest from sin.

But this is the everlasting Sabbath: To believe in God and the One Whom He has sent…

…On the art beat:

“The Sacred Made Real” in the East Wing of the National Gallery of Art is NOT TO BE MISSED.

If you do not visit the National Gallery of Art between now and May 31, you will have MADE A BIG MISTAKE…

Opera buffs:

Did you know that Scott Joplin wrote an opera? It is called “Treemonisha.”

They performed it recently at the Atlas Theatre, in my humble Northeast Washington parish.

Here is some of the cast singing one of the ditties:

…St. Patrick’s day is great. But let’s face it. The big day of the week is Friday, the Solemnity of St. Joseph.

All the laws of penance and abstinence fall by the wayside in honor of the holy Patron of the whole Church. (Click HERE if you want to get siked-up for St. Joseph’s day.)

Tokens of Warmth + a Vow

Last summer I got a big, fat book. I started it while I was on vacation at the beach.

Every morning I study a few pages of this particular book. I am only about halfway through.

This morning I held the book in my hands, and I remembered the day when I started reading:

The warm sun was sweetly baking my SPF-15-protected skin. The light was perfect for reading through sunglasses. The waves were lapping in from Europe. It was heaven…

…I have a pair of cufflinks which I bought to remind myself of the beach. They have little sailboats on them.

Here is my vow to you: I am going to wear these sailboat cufflinks every day until the official National Airport temperature hits 70 degrees Fahrenheit…

…Listen: If you missed Sunday Mass because of bad weather, please remember that your pastor needs the monetary offering that you would have given.