Category Archives: 2020 – Christmas

Sanity!

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Beloved, we have much to tell you – not the least of which is that we have a new home!! Bishop Gerald Vincke, Bishop of the Diocese of Salina, Kansas, has invited us to build our home in Beloit, Kansas, an almost “fairytale-ish” town with an unbelievably beautiful church and even more beautiful community of souls who deeply love and live the Catholic Faith.

We are currently in temporary quarters. As soon as we have a permanent address, we will send out a newsletter and catch you up to date. In the interim, I wanted to send you (and the whole world, if possible) this video from Michael Voris of Church Militant. Whether or not you are a fan of Church Militant or of Michael Voris, I would urge you to listen to what I think is the most “sane” message of our day. Sanity is seeing reality as it is; I think Michael has given us not only an accurate assessment of where we are now as an American people and, more importantly, as God’s People, but also our clear path forward. I personally believe every word and perspective he lays out in this message is indeed true, the negation of which will result in a much deeper and further disaster than we have already experienced.

Our love to each of you and prayers for a most blessed, healthy, and, yes, prosperous New Year in the One who came that we might have Life, all of Life, and have it to the full.

Mother Miriam of the Lamb of God, O.S.B.

P.S.!!! As I was about to send this email message, an opportunity came up for us to see a particular house for sale which would meet our present needs. We    just came from there and wish to buy the house!!! It’s “only” $200,000 😬 . . . but we believe if it is our Lord’s will, He will provide. He has met our every need to date; what Our Lord does not want, we do not want. If the purchase of this property can go through, we will return to Tulsa, OK, right away to move the rest of our things to our new home. We are planning to give our Priory and Guest House in Tulsa to a deaf-blind ministry for men and women, and will not be requiring certain payment from them apart from what they can afford.

These times are so thrilling for us. Beloit, Kansas is almost too good to be true, as is our new potential home. We have met many of the teachers and students in the school and many around town. It seems as if the entire town, Catholic or not, is happy we are here. Blessed be God forever. If any of you are able to assist us with the purchase of our new home at this time, we would be exceedingly grateful of course. You can mail a check to: 466 S. 79th East Ave., Tulsa, OK 74112 (which will be forwarded to us in Beloit) or donate online at: https://motherofisraelshope.org/donations/. Please know that your prayers and good wishes are as much a part of our new foundation than any other gift. We cherish your friendship and partnership in this apostolate for the restoration of the family and the salvation of souls!!!

The video follows: Please do watch it. I would be happy for your thoughts. God bless you!

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The History of Advent

From THE LITURGICAL YEAR, Book 1, Advent
LORETO PUBLISHING
Dom Guéranger OSB
First Translation: 1867

The name Advent [from the Latin word Adventus, which signifies a coming] is applied, in the Latin Church, to that period of the year, during which the Church requires the faithful to prepare for the celebration of the feast of Christmas, the anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ. The mystery of that great day had every right to the honour of being prepared for by prayer and works of penance; and, in fact, it is impossible to state, with any certainty, when this season of preparation [which had long been observed before receiving its present name of Advent] was first instituted. It would seem, however, that its observance first began in the west, since it is evident that Advent could not have been looked on as a preparation for the feast of Christmas, until that feast was definitively fixed to the twenty-fifth of December; which was done in the east only towards the close of the fourth century; whereas it is certain that the Church of Rome kept the feast on that day at a much earlier period.

We must look upon Advent in two different lights: first, as a time of preparation, properly so called, for the birth of our Saviour, by works of penance; and secondly, as a series of ecclesiastical Offices drawn up for the same purpose. We find, as far back as the fifth century, the custom of giving exhortations to the people in order to prepare them for the feast of Christmas. We have two sermons of Saint Maximus of Turin on this subject, not to speak of several others which were formerly attributed to St. Ambrose and St. Augustine, but which were probably written by St. Cesarius of ArIes. If these documents do not tell us what was the duration and what the exercises of this holy season, they at least show us how ancient was the practice of distinguishing the time of Advent by special sermons. Saint Ivo of Chartres, St. Bernard, and several other doctors of the eleventh and twelfth centuries, have left us set sermons de Adventu Domini, quite distinct from their Sunday homilies on the Gospels of that season. In the capitularia of Charles the Bald, in 846, the bishops admonish that prince not to call them away from their Churches during Lent or Advent, under pretext of affairs of the State or the necessities of war, seeing that they have special duties to fulfill, and particularly that of preaching during those sacred times.

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