Friends in Christ,
Welcome to our weekly Sunday update. This Sunday is the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost. This Sunday’s Gospel reading relates the miracle of the four thousand fed in the wilderness. An Episcopal chaplain of a Protestant school once explained the miracle to his seventh-grade religion class in this way: There were among the four thousand some who had more food than they needed, and Jesus simply shamed them into sharing what they had in abundance. A thoroughgoing materialist, this chaplain could not conceive of Our Lord Himself producing the food required to feed four thousand. And yet, according to Mark’s Gospel, Jesus said the people had nothing to eat and some would faint on the way home if required to undertake the journey without receiving sustenance. The materialist dismissal of the miracle assumes that Jesus knew about the available food and was simply less than truthful in what He said. But true faith teaches us to believe that Jesus is Truth itself and that He who made the world can come up with a meal when the occasion calls for something to eat. “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall not hunger” (John 6:35).
Schedule note: ** This Sunday the Chapel of the Little Flower will offer the External Solemnity of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ, which is normally celebrated on July 1. Please see the Propers below.**
Calendar of Special Observances
Celebrations are those listed in the Roman Missal of 1962.
DAY, DATE – FEAST (CLASS)
Sunday, July 5 – Sixth Sunday after Pentecost (II) – (USA) External Solemnity of Ss. Peter and Paul (II)
Monday, July 6 – Feria (IV) – St. Maria Goretti, Virgin & Martyr (IV)
Tuesday, July 7 – Ss. Cyril and Methodius, Bishops and Confessors (III)
Wednesday, July 8 – St. Elizabeth of Portugal, Queen, Widow (III)
Thursday, July 9 – Feria (IV)
Friday, July 10 – Seven Holy Brothers, Martyrs; and Rufina and Secunda, Virgins and Martyrs (III)
Saturday, July 11 – Our Lady on Saturday (IV) – St. Pius I, Pope and Martyr (IV)
Sixth Sunday after Pentecost (External Solemnity of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ)
The links provided below can be used to download printable copies of the Proper Prayers for the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost with English or Spanish translation, followed by commentary by Dr. Michael P. Foley.
For those attending the Chapel of the Little Flower, the Proper Prayers are provided for the External Solemnity of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ (July 1), which will be celebrated on Sunday July 5.
Sixth Sunday after Pentecost
External Solemnity of the Most Precious Blood (Chapel of the Little Flower)
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
Note: The summer Mass schedule for Prince of Peace parish is in effect and according to the bulletin there will be no daily Latin Masses at Prince of Peace during Monday-Saturday this summer.
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.
Chapel of the Little Flower Announcements
Mass Intentions for Sunday
Sunday July 5, 12:00 p.m. – Intentions of the Priests of the Diocese of Charlotte and Burlington, Vermont by Loo Montgomery
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
If one is missing a missal, book, or other item, please see the Lost and Found 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. 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
Holy Face of Jesus Talk: Friday July 10, 7– 8:30pm (Holy Family Parish, Clemmons) – A special talk on the Holy Face of Jesus devotion will be held on Friday July 10, 7-8:30 p.m. in Rooms 1 and 2 at Holy Family Parish in Clemmons (4820 Kinnamon Road Winston-Salem, NC 27103).
The talk is open to devotees and newcomers alike and will feature an introduction to the devotion, its history, the promises given to those who practice it, and why one should have a devotion to the Holy Face. The talk will also show how this devotion is connected with many other Catholic devotions.
The presentation will be given by Danielle Parent from the League of Saint Martin at Holy Family parish. For questions contact Danielle at: danielleparent@proton.me
Bishop Martin’s homily for June 27-28 – The Diocese of Charlotte has published Bishop Martin’s homily from last weekend ahead the country’s 250th anniversary. [link]
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 Elizabeth, Queen of Portugal is also known as Elizabeth (or Isabella) of Aragon, since she was born in the Spanish kingdom in the year 1271. The daughter of King Peter (Pedro) III of Aragon and Constance of Sicily, she was married to King Denis of Portugal around the age of ten. He was about ten years older. The two children resulting from the marriage were Alphonso IV, who succeeded his father as king of Portugal, and Constance of Portugal, queen of Castile.
Elizabeth was known as the “Peacemaker” in her lifetime because of the aptitude for diplomacy she displayed in resolving disputes between factions in both the Aragonese and Portuguese realms. Sadly, she was unable to find peace and happiness in her marriage to King Denis whose interest in other women produced half a dozen illegitimate children during a reign that spanned more than 46 years. Devoutly religious, Elizabeth sought solace in performing works of mercy and devoting herself to pious activities such as prayer and fasting.
While her husband won fame by promoting agricultural renewal, encouraging literary efforts in the Portuguese language and establishing the first university in Portugal, Elizabeth was known and loved throughout the nation for her generous donations to hospitals and orphanages. She also established a college for the purpose of training young women to be farmers. A frequent visitor in hospitals and asylums, she gave herself to the care of the worst cases wherever she went. Elizabeth was said to have cured the cancerous foot of a patient by kissing it after she had washed it over the woman’s objections.
The queen’s powers of diplomacy were put to the ultimate test when her son fell out with his father and sought to overthrow him. Elizabeth actually rode out between the battle lines drawn up by the two combatants and prevailed on her son to throw down his arms and ask his father’s forgiveness.
King Denis died in 1325, affording Elizabeth the opportunity to begin a new life within the monastic ranks of the Poor Clares, taking up residence as a tertiary member of the order in a house near the convent. Undertaking pilgrimages, she developed a following and was credited with performing miracles, including the restoration of sight to a blind child.
Called on once more to resolve a serious dispute – this time between her son and her son-in-law, the king of Castile – Elizabeth was exhausted by the journey she had to make to bring about peace between the disputants. Falling ill, she died on July 4, 1336. Memorialized by a shrine erected in Coimbra, Elizabeth was not canonized until 1625 when Pope Urban VIII declared her a saint in response to numerous miracles attributed to her intercession. Her feast day is the 8th of July, according to the traditional Roman Calendar.
Closing Commentary
In closing, we offer commentary on the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost excerpted from The Liturgical Year of Dom Prosper Guéranger, OSB, followed by a link to the full text.
Sixth Sunday After Pentecost
The Masses of the Sundays after Pentecost have, so far, given us but once a passage from St. Paul’s Epistles. It has been to Sts. Peter and John that the preference has been hitherto given of addressing the Faithful at the commencement of the sacred Mysteries. It may be that the Church, during these weeks, which represent the early days of the apostolic preaching, has intended by this to show us the disciple of faith and the disciple of love as being the two most prominent in the first promulgation of the new Covenant, which was committed, at the onset, to the Jewish people. At that time, Paul was but Saul the persecutor, and was putting himself forward as the most rabid opponent of that Gospel, which later on he would so zealously carry to the furthest parts of the earth. If his subsequent conversion made him become an ardent and enlightened apostle even to the Jews, it soon became evident that the house of Jacob was not the mission that was to be specially the one of his apostolate. After publicly announcing his faith in Jesus the Son of God; after confounding the synagogue by the weight of his testimony, he waited in silence for the termination of the period accorded to Juda for the acceptance of the covenant; he withdrew into privacy, waiting for the Vicar of the Man-God, the Head of the apostolic college, to give the signal for the vocation of the Gentiles, and open, in person, the door of the Church to these new children of Abraham.
But
Israel has too long abused God’s patience; the day of the ungrateful
Jerusalem’s repudiation is approaching, and the divine Spouse, after all
this long forbearance with his once chosen, but now faithless Bride,
the Synagogue—has gone to the Gentile nations. Now is the time for the
Doctor of the Gentiles to speak; he will go on speaking and preaching to
them, to his dying day; he will not cease proclaiming the word to them,
until he has brought them back, and lifted them up to God, and
consolidated them in faith and love. He will not rest until he has led
this once poor despised gentile world to the nuptial union with Christ,
yes, to the full fecundity of that divine union, of which, on the 24th
and last Sunday after Pentecost, we shall hear him thus speaking: We
cease not to pray for you, and to beg that ye may be filled with the
knowledge of his will, in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that
ye may walk worthy of God, in all things pleasing him; being
fruitful in every good work. … Giving thanks to God the Father, who hath
made us worthy to be partakers of the lot of the Saints in light, … and
hath translated us into the kingdom of his beloved Son. [Sixth Sunday after Pentecost]