Friends in Christ,
Welcome to our weekly Sunday update. This Sunday is the Fifth Sunday after Easter. We are nearing the Ascension now, only four days away, the day of Our Lord’s departure to rejoin His Father in Heaven. Forty days after having risen from the dead, Jesus is to rise from among the living, bringing to an end His earthly sojourn.
In the Gospel reading for this Sunday, we see Jesus continuing to prepare the disciples for His final departure. He urges them to turn to the Father in prayer: Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you (John 16:23). Then He goes on to make explicit at last the co-identity of Father and Son: I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again I leave the world, and I go to the Father (John 16:28).
The disciples rejoice at this plain-spoken self-revelation: Now we know that thou knowest all things, and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God (John 16:30). Now is the ultimate grace of the Incarnation made known to man, the gift of God Himself that we acknowledge at Mass by kneeling for the relevant passage in the Credo (“ET INCARNATUS EST DE SPIRITU SANCTO EX MARIA VIRGINE: ET HOMO FACTUS EST”) and at the appropriate moment in the Final Gospel (“ET VERBUM CARO FACTUM EST”). Deo gratias.
Feast of Ascension - Thursday May 14 (as announced)
The Chapel of the Little Flower will celebrate the External Solemnity of the Ascension on Sunday May 17.
Calendar of Special Observances
Celebrations are those listed in the Roman Missal of 1962.
DAY, DATE – FEAST (CLASS)
Sunday, May 10 – Fifth Sunday after Easter (II)
Monday, May 11 – Rogation Mass (II) – Ss. Philip and James, Apostles (II)
Tuesday, May 12 – Ss. Nereus, Achilleus and Domitilla, Virgins, and Pancratius Martyrs (III) – Rogation Mass (II)
Wednesday, May 13 – The Vigil of Ascension (II) – Rogation Mass (II) – Commemoration of St. Robert Bellarmine, Bishop, Confessor, and Doctor of the Church
Thursday, May 14 – Ascension of the Lord (I)
Friday, May 15 – St. John Baptist de la Salle, Confessor (III)
Saturday, May 16 – St. Ubald, Bishop and Confessor (III)
Fifth Sunday after Easter
The links provided below can be used to download printable copies of the Proper Prayers for the Fifth Sunday after Easter with English or Spanish translation, followed by commentary by Dr. Michael P. Foley.
Traditional Latin Mass Schedule
Diocese of Charlotte Sunday Masses
Chapel of the Little Flower (757 Oakridge Farm Road, Mooresville, NC)
Note: Only Sunday Latin Masses and Holy Days are offered at the Chapel. This is the only Diocese of Charlotte location which offers the Traditional Latin Mass.
Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face, the Little Flower, pray for us!
Diocese of Raleigh Sunday Masses
Diocese of Charleston Sunday Masses
Diocese of Charleston Daily Traditional Latin Masses
As a reminder, travelers are urged to consult parish websites or offices for up-to-date information regarding possible changes in the schedule of Mass times.
Minor Rogation Day Procession Monday May 11 - Wednesday May 13 (11:45 a.m.)
Prince of Peace parish (Taylors SC) will offer a Minor Rogation Day procession at 11:45 a.m. before each 12 noon Latin Mass on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week, which are the Minor Rogation Days in the Traditional Latin Mass calendar. For more information on Minor Rogation Days, see General Announcements below.
Chapel of the Little Flower Announcements
Mass Intentions for Sunday
Sunday May 10, 10:00 a.m. - In thanksgiving and special intentions of the Chinnasami family requested by Nalina Chinnasami
Mass Intentions Book Open on Sunday May 17
The next registration for Mass intentions will be held on Sunday May 17 between the 10:00 a.m. and 12 noon Masses. Masses can be requested for June, July, August, and September.
Also:
Father is looking for a few volunteers to help with the collection of
Mass Intentions on May 17th between Masses. Please sign up at the table
in the narthex if you are able to help.
Donations for the Chapel of the Little Flower
To donate to the Chapel of the Little Flower, please make out a check to “St. Ann Catholic Church” and carefully earmark it for “Latin Mass” or “Chapel of the Little Flower”. It can be mailed to the parish (3635 Park Road, Charlotte, NC 28209). To donate online, please visit the parish’s “Chapel of the Little Flower” online donation portal at this link.
Lost and Found
The Chapel has a growing collection of items left behind after Mass. If one is missing a missal, book, or other item, please see the table in the cry room.
Father Jones’ Contact Info
If one has questions about the Chapel of the Little Flower, that are not related to one’s parish, please email Father Jones directly at: tlmchapel(at)rcdoc.org
Visiting the Chapel of the Little Flower
If you haven’t attended Mass at the Chapel of the Little Flower yet, you are welcome to join us in Eastertide. Seating is adequate at both Masses, and there is plenty of parking; a cry room; open space outside for the kids after Mass. Bulletins from Saint Ann and Saint Thomas Aquinas parishes are usually available.
General Announcements
Minor Rogation Days This Week – This week, the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before Ascension, are called the Minor or Lesser Rogation Days, a period of penitential petition in the 1962 calendar (the Greater Rogation Day was celebrated last month on April 25). Rogare is a Latin verb that can be translated to ask, beg or request. Historically, the prayers of petition associated with the minor rogation have focused on protection against calamitous events. For an informative article on the subject, see Dr. Michael P. Foley’s article Rogationtide on newliturgicalmovement.org
Fatima Processions May 13 - This Wednesday May 13 is the 109th anniversary of the Our Lady’s first apparition in 1917 to the three shepherd children at Fatima in Portugal. To commemorate, the following parishes are among those organizing Marian processions:
LiveMass.net – Want to watch a Latin Mass online? The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (FSSP) has a broadcast apostolate which streams its Latin Masses across the world at various times of the day. To view visit: https://www.livemass.net/
Support Saint Ann and Saint Thomas Parishes – Our parishes remain the anchor of our spiritual and community lives and continue to promote the sacred traditions, devotions, speakers and catechesis important for the spiritual growth of ourselves and our families. They also need our continued financial support (and occasional visits!). Both parishes would appreciate our continued generosity.
Rosary for the Traditional Latin Mass – A Rosary is offered for the restoration of the Traditional Latin Mass in the church on Sundays after the 11:30 a.m. Novus Ordo Mass at Saint Thomas Aquinas Church.
Daily Holy Face Chaplet for Sacred Liturgy (perpetual novena) – For the preservation of the Traditional Latin Mass, it has been recommended to all friends of the sacred liturgy in the diocese to consider continually praying the powerful Holy Face chaplet, under the banner of Our Lady of the Holy Name. To pray the chaplet, please see this link.
Cardinal Burke’s Prayer for Pope Leo XIV – His Eminence Cardinal Raymond Burke has released a prayer for Pope Leo XIV. Please see the prayer at the links below and consider praying this daily for the Holy Father as he leads the Church. PDF copies can be accessed at these links: [English] [Español] [Latin]
Holy Face Devotions
Prayers of Reparation to the Holy Face of Jesus are offered each week at the following churches on the indicated days:
Note: Days and times may be subject to change due to holidays.
“Jesus, Your ineffable image is the star which guides my steps. Ah, You know, Your sweet Face is for me Heaven on earth” (from Canticle to the Holy Face by Saint Thérèse de Lisieux, the 19th century Discalced Carmelite nun who took the name in religion, Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face).
Traditional Latin Mass and Liturgical News
Saints and Special Observances
Saint Robert Bellarmine was born Roberto Bellarmino at Montepulciano, Italy, on October 4, 1542, a quarter-century after Martin Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses ignited the so-called Protestant Reformation. The Council of Trent, meeting in three sessions from 1545 to 1563, adopted the framework for the Counter-Reformation that Robert Bellarmine was to champion throughout his illustrious career.
Bellarmine was the third of ten children born to Vincenzo Bellarmino and Cinzia Cervini. His mother had a brother named Marcello who, after a distinguished career in service to the Church, was anointed Pope Marcellus II on April 10, 1555, only to die 22 days later. Inspired perhaps by his uncle’s example, Roberto discerned a religious vocation and expressed a desire to become a member of the Society of Jesus, a relatively new order founded by Ignatius of Loyola and his companions in 1540. Vincenzo Bellarmino, being opposed either to his son’s choice of vocation or to his desire to become a Jesuit, elicited from him a promise to wait one year. One year later, Roberto was still determined to pursue the course he had chosen, and the superior general of the Society was so impressed by the young man’s obvious potential that he counted the year of waiting as his novitiate and allowed him to make his profession of vows without further delay.
After studying philosophy for three years at the Roman College (now known as the Pontifical Gregorian University), Bellarmine studied theology at Padua, before going on to complete his studies at Louvain. Ordained at Louvain in 1570, he became the first Jesuit professor of theology there, teaching courses focused on the Catholic response to Martin Luther, John Calvin and the other leaders of the Protestant Reformation. Returning to the Roman College in 1576, he established a reputation over the next 11 years as one of the principal defenders of the Catholic Church and was called on by the Pope to serve on commissions charged with revising the Vulgate Bible and preparing a new edition of the Septuagint, for which he wrote the preface. The lectures he delivered while holding the chair of controversial theology at the Roman College led to the publication in 1586 of the first of three volumes of his Controversies, considered his most important work.
Called on by the Pope to assume diplomatic duties, Bellarmine proved to be an uncompromising defender of the interests of the Church, alienating powerful princes who blocked any chance that he would be considered papabile at a future date. Appointed rector of the Roman College in 1592, he was named provincial superior of the Jesuit Province of Naples in 1594, only to be summoned by Pope Clement VIII to serve as his theological advisor two years later. Contrary to his own wishes, the pope made him a cardinal on March 3, 1599; then, to his surprise, Clement appointed him Archbishop of Capua in 1602. When Paul V succeeded to the papacy in 1605, he asked Bellarmine to remain in Rome where he made use of him as a member of several Vatican commissions.
Ever adhering to the spiritual life prescribed by the Society of Jesus, Cardinal Bellarmine would make use of the 30-day retreats each year to write his works on spirituality. In 1597 and 1598 he published a Catechism in two versions that would be translated into 60 languages and serve as the official teaching of the Catholic Church for centuries. His later works written for the spiritual benefit of the faithful included, among others, The Mind’s Ascent to God by the Ladder of Created Things, The Art of Dying Well and The Seven Words on the Cross.
Cardinal Bellarmine’s request that he be allowed to retire was refused by both Paul V and his successor, Gregory XV. The latter subsequently relented, allowing the future saint to retire to the Jesuit novitiate of Sant’Andrea just days before his death on September 17, 1621, at the age of 78. The cause for his canonization was initiated in 1627 but did not reach its successful conclusion for three hundred years due to political considerations that included both the opposition of secular authorities and Bellarmine’s involvement in the ecclesiastical cases of the heretical apostate, Giordano Bruno, and the astronomer Galileo Galilei. Canonized on June 29, 1930, by Pope Pius XI, who proclaimed him to be one of the foremost figures in the history of the Church, Saint Robert Bellarmine was named a Doctor of the Universal Church the following year. His remains remain on display in his cardinal’s red robes in the Church of St. Ignatius, the chapel of the Roman College. His feast day is listed on the traditional Roman Calendar as the 13th of May.
Closing Commentary
We close with a commentary excerpted from The Liturgical Year of Dom Prosper Guéranger, OSB, and provide a link to the full text of the entry for the Fifth Sunday after Easter below. In speaking of the Epistle taken from the First Letter of Saint James, the great Benedictine liturgist highlights the special relationship that existed between Jesus and the Apostle who played such an important part throughout His ministry.
Fifth Sunday After Easter
The holy Apostle, whose instructions these are, had received them from our Risen Jesus: hence the authoritative tone wherewith he speaks. Our Savior, as we have already seen, honored him with a special visit: it proves that he was particularly dear to his divine Master, to whom he was related by the tie of consanguinity on his Mother’s side whose name was Mary. This holy woman went, on Easter morning, to the Sepulcher, in company with her sister, Salome, and Magdalene. St. James the Less is indeed the Apostle of Paschal Time, wherein everything speaks to us of the New Life we should lead with our Risen Lord. He is the apostle of good works, for it is from him that we have received this fundamental maxim of Christianity—that though Faith be the first essential of a Christian, yet without works, it is a dead Faith, and will not save us.
He also lays great stress on our being attentive to the truths we have been taught, and on our guarding against that culpable forgetfulness, which plays such havoc with thoughtless souls. Many of those who have, this year, received the grace of the Easter mystery, will not persevere; and the reason is that they will allow the world to take up all their time and thoughts, whereas they should use the world as though they did not use it. Let us never forget that we must now walk in newness of life, in imitation of our Risen Jesus, who dieth now no more.
The
two Alleluia-Versicles celebrate the glory of the Resurrection; but
they also contain an allusion to the approaching Ascension. Jesus was
born eternally from the Father; he came down to us; but now, in a few
days, he is to return to his Father. [Fifth Sunday after Easter]
~
We wish our readers a blessed Eastertide and to all mothers a happy Mother's Day. Christus Resurréxit! Resurréxit Vere!