We find in the Acts of the Apostles, chaps, vi. and vii., the history of St. Stephen, the first martyr, which in substance is as follows:
"And in those days, the number of the disciples increasing, there arose a murmuring of the Greeks against the Hebrews, for that their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. Then the twelve, calling together the multitude of the disciples, said: It is not reason that we should leave the Word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word. And the saying was liked by all the multitude. And they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles: and they praying imposed hands upon them. And the word of the Lord increased, and the number of the disciples was multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly: a great multitude also of the priests obeyed the faith. And Stephen, full of grace and fortitude, did great wonders and signs among the people. Now there arose some of that which is called the synagogue of the Libertines, and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of them that were of Cilicia and Asia, disputing with Stephen: and they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit that spoke. Then they suborned men to say that they had heard him speak words of blasphemy against Moses, and against God. And they stirred up the people, and the ancients, and the scribes: and running together, they took him, and brought him to the Council. And they set up false witnesses, who said: This man ceaseth not to speak words against the holy place and the law: for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the traditions which Moses delivered to us. And all that sat in the Council looking on him, saw his face as if it had been the face of an angel."
While we are endeavoring to write about Christmas we cannot but deplore the misfortune of those who are out of the Catholic Church. What is Christmas for them? Another anniversary of the birth of Christ; that is all. But Christ Himself is not with them. They do not believe in the Real Presence; or if they do, they adore that which is mere bread, since their ministers have no power to consecrate. (From Christ on the Altar, by Bp. de Goesbriand)
" Christ is born to us: let us adore Him." In Bethlehem of Juda, according to the prophecies, the Christ, expected by all nations as the Redeemer, was to be born. Today the Church desires each of her priests to say three Masses, and each of those Masses has a special Gospel assigned to it. In these extracts from the Evangelists are given the reasons why St. Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary went to Bethlehem, and also the circumstances of the Nativity of Our Lord. Read them with attention, and you will admire the goodness of Him Who, being so great and so rich, made Himself so little and so poor for love of us.
At the first Mass (Gospel, Luke ii. 1-14): At that time " there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that the whole world should be enrolled. This enrolling was first made by Cyrinus, the governor of Syria; and all went to be enrolled, every one into his own city. And St. Joseph also went up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with the Blessed Virgin Mary, his espoused wife, who was with child. And it came to pass that when they were there her days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her first-born Son, and wrapped Him up in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger: because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same countries shepherds watching, and keeping the night-watches over their flock. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the brightness of God shone round about them, and they feared with a great fear. And the angel said to them: Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, that shall be to all the people; for this day is born to you a Saviour, Who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David. And this shall be a sign unto you: You shall find the infant wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly army, praising God, and saying: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will."
[The Sixth Letter of Metropolitan Sheptycky to his Mother]
My Beloved Mother!
Somehow things have always turned out so that I never really had the opportunity to tell You about my meeting, or more aptly described, my "evangelic sojourn and friendship," with that historical personage and genuinely Holy Man on this earth, our own Pope Pius X. In fact, even when the two of us, Mother, were joyfully welcoming the news that Jesus had chosen Joseph Cardinal Sarto, the Patriarch of Venice, to be His Deputy on earth, I wanted to tell You all about my stay in Venice and my few-days' visit to his palace, during the time when I was scheduled to go to Rome.
It was at that time, namely, after being informed that no one had displayed any prior interest in the archives of the St. George's Mechitarist Monastery, in Venice, where, allegedly, there were supposed to be some Slavonic manuscripts or original printings from the XVth century, I, being on my way to Rome, decided to stop over for a few days in Venice. I immediately wrote a letter to Joseph Cardinal Sarto requesting him to permit me to visit him, and also asking his permission to make a cursory examination of the archives at St. George's Monastery. A week hadn't gone by when I received a very gracious reply from the cardinal, an open invitation to make myself at home at his residence for as long as I might require, and, in addition, a letter of introduction to the Archivist of St. George's Monastery, Riasophor Benjamin, instructing him to place himself at my disposal. And at the end of the letter there was a short postscript, asking me if I could send him an Italian translation of our Divine Liturgy, no matter whether St. Basil the Great's or St. John Chrysostom's. In his time he had been very interested in the Liturgies of the East, he still had copies of some of the Coptic and Melchitic Liturgies, but Italian translations of Ukrainian Liturgies, or rather, of Slavonic Liturgies, he didn't have.
On the Feast of All Saints, in the Holy Year of 1950, His Holiness, Pope Pius XII, in his Apostolic Constitution, declared "Munificentissimus Deus," declared the following: "For which reason, after we have poured forth prayers of supplication again and again to God, and have invoked the light of the Spirit of Truth, for the glory of Almighty God, Who has lavished His special affection upon the Virgin Mary, for the honor of her Son, the immortal King of the Ages and the Victor over sin and death, for the increase of the glory of that same august Mother, and for the joy and exultation of the entire Church; by the authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to he a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory. Hence if anyone, which God forbid, should dare wilfully to deny or to call into doubt that which we have defined, let him know that he has fallen away completely from the divine and Catholic Faith. "
CMRI
Congregation of Mary Queen Immaculate. Traditional Catholic Priests, Brothers and Sisters dedicated to preserving the Tridentine Latin Mass and Traditional Church Doctrine.
Christ or Chaos Brilliant articles about the Catholic Faith by Dr. Thomas A. Droleskey
The Aquinas Catholic Site
Dedicated to St. Thomas Aquinas and to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Vanquisher of all Heresies - contains an enormous amount of well-researched and cited documents by Mr. John Lane that explain the present crisis.
Bellarmine Forums
Archived Forums on the Aquinas site (maintained by Mr. John Lane) are an invaluable source of information on issues very important to Traditional Catholics.
TraditionalMass.org
Articles for Traditional Catholics by Bps.Sanborn and Dolan and Fr. Cekada.
The Four Marks
An excellent Traditional Catholic Newspaper (Mrs. Kathleen Plumb, Editor). Print form as well as downloadable copies (via PayPal) are available from Mrs. Plumb's site.
"And in those days, the number of the disciples increasing, there arose a murmuring of the Greeks against the Hebrews, for that their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. Then the twelve, calling together the multitude of the disciples, said: It is not reason that we should leave the Word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word. And the saying was liked by all the multitude. And they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles: and they praying imposed hands upon them. And the word of the Lord increased, and the number of the disciples was multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly: a great multitude also of the priests obeyed the faith. And Stephen, full of grace and fortitude, did great wonders and signs among the people. Now there arose some of that which is called the synagogue of the Libertines, and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of them that were of Cilicia and Asia, disputing with Stephen: and they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit that spoke. Then they suborned men to say that they had heard him speak words of blasphemy against Moses, and against God. And they stirred up the people, and the ancients, and the scribes: and running together, they took him, and brought him to the Council. And they set up false witnesses, who said: This man ceaseth not to speak words against the holy place and the law: for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the traditions which Moses delivered to us. And all that sat in the Council looking on him, saw his face as if it had been the face of an angel."
On the Feast of All Saints, in the Holy Year of 1950, His Holiness, Pope Pius XII, in his Apostolic Constitution, declared "Munificentissimus Deus," declared the following: "For which reason, after we have poured forth prayers of supplication again and again to God, and have invoked the light of the Spirit of Truth, for the glory of Almighty God, Who has lavished His special affection upon the Virgin Mary, for the honor of her Son, the immortal King of the Ages and the Victor over sin and death, for the increase of the glory of that same august Mother, and for the joy and exultation of the entire Church; by the authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to he a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory. Hence if anyone, which God forbid, should dare wilfully to deny or to call into doubt that which we have defined, let him know that he has fallen away completely from the divine and Catholic Faith. "
