Just a Little Advert

About six years ago (wow - seriously, I'm surprised at how time flies!) I wrote this blog post where I pretty much nitpicked some of the quotes which supposedly show how Catholics believe the Pope to be God in the flesh or something along those lines. It ain't really much, but I just added a little something to the post - specifically, to the quote attributed to Cardinal Sarto (Pope St. Pius X) about the pope "being Jesus Christ hidden under the veil of the flesh." Otherwise it's still the same old post, full of sharp nitpicking from a six-years-younger-me. Click on the link to find out.

(P.S. No, I can't really make any more promises to be active on this blog; the only thing I can say with certainty is, I'm not letting this blog die down. Yet. But who knows what tomorrow will bring?)

(P.P.S. So I'm advising readers, y'all better keep what you're reading here in whatever way you can - no need to ask me. Save it, print it, copy it, torrent it, whatever. Nothing is totally permanent, not even on the Internet. So if you feel something interests you - go ahead, feel free. This is probably one of the few instances where stealing is allowed - hey, maybe even a good thing. ;))

Remember when I actually posted something?

...Neither do I. ;)

For all those wondering, no, I'm not dead. It's just that real life is a very harsh taskmaster and has been giving me quite a load to do. To be honest, I can't promise to be able to write another blog post these days - that does not mean however that I've quit this blog. Who knows? I might be able to churn out something quick if I have adequate time and motivation.

For the record, E.G. Atchley's translation of the liturgy of Ordo Romanus I is now up. Well, it's the very least I could do to nominally keep this blog up and running.

The Pre-Conciliar Ambrosian Rite Mass now up!

The Latin text of the pre-Conciliar Mass according to the Ambrosian Rite now has its own page.

Ἔλεον εἰρήνης, Sacrificium Laudis

As you can see, I've slightly retitled my blog to Ἔλεον Εἰρήνης, Sacrificium Laudis. This is a slight reference to the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, where before the Anaphora proper begins there is the usual dialogue between the deacon (or priest) and the congregation common in all liturgies. One of the responses happen to be (in Greek) Ἔλεον εἰρήνης, θυσίαν αἰνέσεως. That is, "mercy of peace, sacrifice of praise."

The term 'sacrifice of praise' which is used in Psalm 49/50:14 and also in Hebrews 13:15 ("Through [Jesus] then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name"), has since from early on apparently been applied to the Eucharist. To quote the Catechism, paragraph 1359: "The Eucharist, the sacrament of our salvation accomplished by Christ on the cross, is also a sacrifice of praise in thanksgiving for the work of creation. In the Eucharistic sacrifice the whole of creation loved by God is presented to the Father through the death and the Resurrection of Christ. Through Christ the Church can offer the sacrifice of praise in thanksgiving for all that God has made good, beautiful, and just in creation and in humanity."

Aside from the Byzantine liturgy, we can see it referenced within the Roman Canon at the commemoration of the living - which is what I was also thinking of when trying to come up with a title for this blog:

Memento, Domine, famulorum, famularumque tuarum N. et N. et omnium circumstantium, quorum tibi fides cognita est, et nota devotio, pro quibus tibi offerimus: vel qui tibi offerunt hoc sacrificium laudis, pro se, suisque omnibus: pro redemptione animarum suarum, pro spe salutis et incolumitatis suae: tibique reddunt vota sua aeterno Deo, vivo et vero.

Remember, Lord, your servant men and women (Names) and all here present. You are aware of their faith and know their devotedness. We offer for them, or they offer, this sacrifice of praise for themselves and all who are theirs, for the redemption of their souls, for the hope of their health/salvation and safety; and they present their prayers to you, the eternal, living, and true God.

We go to Ἔλεον εἰρήνης. As we have noted, this phrase literally translates to "mercy of peace," which admittedly does not make much sense, to the point that some who use an English translation of the Divine Liturgy soften it into more comprehensible forms like "Offering of peace" or "mercy and peace". There have been various attempts to explain what the original wording could have been (there are have apparently quite a number of variants throughout history). For all intents and purposes, I chose to preserve the textus receptus version here. After all, εἰρήνης (pronounced as irinis in Byzantine Greek) is a good rhyme to laudis. ;)

Exhibition in Dresden reunites Dürer painting with altarpiece following a 21-year restoration

A tip of my (symbolic) hat to the folks at The New Liturgical Movement for this headline: Durer Altarpiece Unveiled 21 Years After Acid Attack.

LONDON. A panel from Dürer’s first major altarpiece has been restored after a 21-year treatment following a devastating acid attack in Munich. The Virgin of Sorrows has been unveiled in Dresden, where it was reunited with the rest of the altarpiece of the Seven Sorrows for the first time in nearly five centuries.


Dürer painted the Seven Sorrows and the Seven Joys of the Virgin in 1496, at the age of 25. It may have been commissioned by Frederick the Wise for his palace church at Wittenberg. The altarpiece was probably dismem­bered during the Refor­mation, and the seven panels of the Sorrows (of the life of Christ) passed to the artist Lucas Cranach the Younger, whose father had been a court painter. In 1588 Cranach’s estate sold them to the Saxon art collection in Dresden, and they later went to the city’s Gemäldegalerie [...]

The Roman Mass of the Late 15th Century now (partly) up!

It may not be much of a news, I know, but I've finished typing half of the ordo of the 15th century Roman Mass, derived from Henry Bradshaw & Son's Missale Romanum Mediolani, 1474. It's only half-complete, so stay tuned for updates.

Taking Advantage of the Pages...

As per the title, I decided to take advantage of the page function and assign separate pages for the liturgies I've once tackled on this blog (yeah, I know I can only add up to 10, but I've not crossed the limit...yet ;))
Here's the page for the St. Amand Ordo (typed straight from E.G. Atchley's Ordo Romanus Primus, this time without major alterations of any kind - just the pure text). Hope you enjoy. :)

Forgive us our dust

Fret no more: I am still alive and well, even after a bout of (seasonal, thankfully) influenza and one gruelling test!

Now, an announcement: I apologize for not posting anything in such a long while and for making everyone worry. I'm rather busy these days, leaving me with no time to post properly and edit already existing posts - there are a lot of unfinished and unpublished blog posts waiting to see the light of day. Aside from that, there is also the dreaded writer's block - I'm rather uncertain what to post about these days, and how to post something that crosses my mind. If anyone has something you would like to see tackled on this blog, feel free to post in the comment box!

I'm still alive

For anyone who's worrying about me, I'm still alive and well, as far as I know. I have merely been very busy lately due to school and other things, and perhaps will still be within the next three months, which explains the lack of any recent posts. I can't promise to post more often, but I will post something one of these days.

A Word of Gratitude

I just noticed that a German site, Summorum Pontificum.de, had linked to my posts on Ordo Romanus I in an article. Admittedly, I do not know Deutsche Sprache (save for a few words and phrases here and there) so I can't read it much, but I'd really like to thank the owner of that site.