Keep the Mass in Christmas

 "Whereas we not only use it as a nourishment spiritual, as that it is too, but as a mean also to renew as ‘covenant’ with God by virtue of that ‘sacrifice’ as the Psalmist speaketh."

Lancelot Andrews, a bishop in the regin of James I and VI, and the head of the team charged with the translation of the Scriptures into English now known as the Authorized Version or King James Version, was insistent that in the Lord's Supper we are not only nourished by a spiritual meal, but renew the covenant with God through the one Sacrifice of Christ.

And this is only fitting. In the seventh chapter of Leviticus we read "For the wave breast and the heave shoulder have I taken of the children of Israel from off the sacrifices of their peace offerings, and have given them unto Aaron the priest and unto his sons by a statute for ever from among the children of Israel;" and in many other places of the Old Testament it is clear that only the priests could eat of the sacrifices of the Tabernacle and Temple. Jesus confirms this in his dispute with the Pharisees when, in chapter 6 of Luke he asks them "Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God, and took and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?"

But we are assured in the first epistle of St. Peter that all of us who are baptized are "living stones...built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." And our priesthood is seen, not in that we each offer the sacrifice, for even in the time of the Temple every priest did not offer the sacrifice, as only one at a time could do so, (and hence Zechariah was chosen by lot from among his section of the priesthood to offer the incense on the day he encounted the Archangel), but in that we eat of the Sacrifice.

The best way to keep Christ in Christmas, as others have noted, is to keep the Mass in Christmas. May all of our readers be blessed in the days to come when we remember the tender love of our Savior who came to dwell in humble surroundings that we might share in his glory.

Read, mark, learn and inwardly digest the wise words from the Anglican Patrimony in Bishop Andrewes' text from our Pentecost 2010 (Vol III, No. 2) issue: http://www.anglicanuse.org/AE_3_02_AngPatr-Andrewes_Sacrifice.pdf 

Melismatic Propers for Midnight Mass at Christmas

Many people who attend Anglican Use liturgies are aware of The Anglican Use Gradual, edited by C. David Burt, a fellow congregant of mine at St. Athanasius Parish in Boston. The AUG sets the minor propers of the liturgy (introit, gradual, alleluia, tract, offertory and communion) to simple psalm tones so that even a small schola or choir can chant them. I have heard the chants of the AUG sung not only in Pastoral Provision and Ordinariate parishes, but even in regular Roman Rite parishes.

Mr. Burt's gradual was the first English language gradual to appear for Catholic use, although there are now many others available, thanks to the work of folks like the hard working people at Corpus Christi Watershed.

But The Anglican Use Gradual remains the best suited for the Divine Worship liturgy, as it has congruent language, the texts being taken from the Coverdale psalter and the King James and Revised Standard translations of the Scriptures.

Over the years, we have published additions to the gradual in Anglican Embers, adapting the melismatic tones found in the Solemnes books and chants from the Sarum tradition. These are available on the Anglican Embers page at the Anglican Use Society web site, but here's a link to an appropriate one, the Midnight Mass propers for Christmas, published in our Advent 2010 issue: http://www.anglicanuse.org/Christmas-Midnight-Propers.pdf

A time for Christians to engage with the world

December 19, 2012 10:30 pm
By Pope Benedict XVI

Christmas is a time of great joy and an occasion for deep reflection, says Pope Benedict XVI

“Render unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God,” was the response of Jesus when asked about paying taxes. His questioners, of course, were laying a trap for him. They wanted to force him to take sides in the highly charged political debate about Roman rule in the land of Israel. Yet there was more at stake here: if Jesus really was the long-awaited Messiah, then surely he would oppose the Roman overlords. So the question was calculated to expose him either as a threat to the regime, or as a fraud.

Jesus’ answer deftly moves the argument to a higher plane, gently cautioning against both the politicisation of religion and the deification of temporal power, along with the relentless pursuit of wealth. His audience needed to be reminded that the Messiah was not Caesar, and Caesar was not God. The kingdom that Jesus came to establish was of an altogether higher order. As he told Pontius Pilate: “My kingship is not of this world.”...

From the emperor cult of ancient Rome to the totalitarian regimes of the past century, Caesar has tried to take the place of God. When Christians refuse to bow down before the false gods proposed today, it is not because of an antiquated worldview. Rather, it is because they are free from the constraints of ideology and inspired by such a noble vision of human destiny that they cannot collude with anything that undermines it.

In Italy, many crib scenes feature the ruins of ancient Roman buildings in the background. This shows that the birth of the child Jesus marks the end of the old order, the pagan world, in which Caesar’s claims went virtually unchallenged. Now there is a new king, who relies not on the force of arms, but on the power of love...

Read the rest of Pope Benedict's editorial in The Financial Times

Christmas Eve service at St. Athanasius, Boston

The sanctuary at St. Lawrence Church adorned for the festival


Organist Jim Reedy in the loft


Beginning Mass before the procession.


Chanting the Proclamation of Christmas from the Roman Martyrology.


Thurifer Bruce Rand and crucifer Pat Cavanaugh lead the opening procession


The schola (front to back) Allen, Les, Steve, during opening procession


Worship in the Lord with an holy worship.


My daughters Molly and Althea singing Silent Night.


The congregation singing Silent Night at the end of Mass


The schola singing Silent Night