A Catholic Life

In today’s episode, on the Nativity of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, I address the following:

1. Customs for Our Lady’s Nativity
2. Customs for the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
3. Reminder on Upcoming Ember Days

This episode is sponsored by PrayLatin.com. PrayLatin.com offers Latin prayer cards to learn and share prayers in the sacred language. Learn your basic prayers in Latin conveniently on the go. Practice your pronunciation with easy-to-follow English phonetic renderings of Latin words. PrayLatin.com offers prayer cards in various formats, including Latin-English rosary pamphlets with the traditional 15 mysteries. Shop for additional Latin resources like missal booklets, server response cards, and more. Visit PrayLatin.com today.

In today’s episode, on this First Sunday of Lent, I would like to go over a few things:

1. Each Feria in Lent Has Its Own Propers for Mass

2. St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows whose feastday is on Monday

3. The Feast of the Sacred Lance and Nails kept on Friday after the First Sunday in Lent in some places

First and foremost, though, keep up the disciplines you have begun, especially prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. And even though this is a Sunday and fasting is not done, I’ve written before how Sundays in Lent were still days of mandatory abstinence. For centuries, no meat or animal products were consumed during Lent – even on Sundays. Let’s bring this back. For a full treatment of the topic, see my article “Abstinence from Meat & Animal Products on Sundays in Lent,” published in 2021.
Above all, remember what Pope Benedict XIV famously lamented the following: "The observance of Lent is the very badge of the Christian warfare. By it we prove ourselves not to be enemies of the cross of Christ. By it we avert the scourges of divine justice. By it, we gain strength against the princes of darkness, for it shields us with heavenly help. Should mankind grow remiss in their observance of Lent, it would be a detriment to God's glory, a disgrace to the Catholic religion, and a danger to Christian souls. Neither can it be doubted that such negligence would become the source of misery to the world, of public calamity, and of private woe."

In today’s special episode, I address the forgotten history of the Eucharistic Fast based on a talk I gave to the Young Adults of St. John Cantius Church in Chicago, IL

For more information, pick up a copy of "The Definitive Guide to Catholic Fasting and Abstinence," of which even many Catholic priests said that 95% of it was new to them.
Fasting is one of the chief means of penance we can perform to make satisfaction for sin, as our Lady of Fatima repeatedly called for. However, in a modern Church that legislates fasting only two days a year, we find a woefully lacking answer to Heaven’s incessant calls for penance and reparation. Understanding the decline of fasting over time in the Church should inspire us to observe these older customs and to encourage other Catholics to do so for the purpose of making satisfaction for sin.
While the purpose of fasting has remained the same, how fasting is observed has changed. As more Catholics seek to rediscover the traditions of earlier centuries and piously observe these traditions, they are often confused by the changing disciplines and exceptions for certain times, places, and circumstances. St. Francis de Sales remarked, “If you’re able to fast, you will do well to observe some days beyond what are ordered by the Church.”
“The Definitive Guide to Catholic Fasting and Abstinence fills a great lacuna in the life of the Church. Matthew’s articulate and cogent account of an integral Catholic way of life is one which gives rightful place to the body and its healthy, holistic, and holy subordination to the soul and spirit. Matthew’s book is not only a call to arms, but a call to the recovery of the vital narrative memories of the saints of yesterday, who in their fundamental anthropology, struggles, and strivings are no different from us, the saints of today. With sobriety, intelligence, and authentic piety, The Definitive Guide to Catholic Fasting and Abstinence serves as a point of reference, understanding, and motivation so that the strength and the joy of our forefathers may be ours in the here and now.” (Father Cassian DiRocco)
https://acatholiclife.blogspot.com/2022/11/the-definitive-guide-to-traditional.html

In today’s episode, on Pentecost Sunday, I address the following:

1. Customs for Pentecost Sunday & Why Pentecost is Such a Holy Day

2. The Whit Ember Fasts

3. Why Catholics Must Reject In Vitro Fertilization

This episode is sponsored by PrayLatin.com. PrayLatin.com offers Latin prayer cards to learn and share prayers in the sacred language. Learn your basic prayers in Latin conveniently on the go. Practice your pronunciation with easy-to-follow English phonetic renderings of Latin words. PrayLatin.com offers prayer cards in various formats, including Latin-English rosary pamphlets with the traditional 15 mysteries. Shop for additional Latin resources like missal booklets, server response cards, and more. Visit PrayLatin.com today.

In today’s episode, on the 4th Sunday after Easter, I address the following:
1. The Propers for the 4th Sunday after Easter

2. Seasonal Variation in the Prayer before and after Meals

3. SS. Philip and James on May 1st

4. The Finding of the Holy Cross on May 3rd

I would like to thank CatechismClass.com for sponsoring this episode. CatechismClass.com, the leader in online Catholic catechism classes, has everything from online K-12 programs, RCIA classes, adult continuing education, marriage preparation, baptism preparation, confirmation prep, quince prep classes, catechist training courses, and much more. Use discount code Easter25 to save 25% off the Easter Season Course.