Manual of the Holy Catholic Church
Imprimatur 1904

Ash Wednesday
Of all the stories of the Old Testament, that of Jonas  and the conversion of Niuive is the most wonderful. The great, prosperous heathen city of Assyria stood out  amongst the cities of the earth as one  whose wickedness  came up hefore God. Its destruction  was at hand; yet one more warning  was to be given to it. Jonas  was to preach a divine threat in its thoroughfares. "Yet forty days and Ninive shall be destroyed." And for three days the prophet proclaimed the terrible truth. "And the men of Ninive believed in  God; and they ordered a fast,  and put on sackcloth  from the greatest to the least. And the word  came to the king of Ninive ; and he rose  up out of his throne, and cast away his robe from him, and was clothed in sackcloth and sat in ashes. And he caused it to be proclaimed and
 published in Ihe city  from the  mouth of the king and the princes, saying: 'Let neither man nor beast, oxen nor sheep, taste anything; let them not feed, nor taste water. And let men and beasts be covered
 with sackcloth, and cry to the  Lord with all their strength ; and let them turn from their evil ways, and  from the iniquity that is on their hands. Who can tell whether God will turn away from His fierce anger, and we shall not perish?'  "

This  was no exterior conversation, no outward semblance of penance and humiliation. "God is not  mocked." He sees the heart. And the heart of the Ninivites  must have been truly contrite, truly
 humbled.  For "God  saw their works, that they were turned from their evil  ways ; and God  had mercy regarding the evil which He had said He  would do to them, and He did it not."

 Such was the effect of a call to penance  upon a pagan, sensual people; such  was its  power with God that it stayed His avenging hand. The three Sundays— Septuagesima, Sexagesima, Quinquagesima--
 bring us  by easy steps within sight of Lent, the Church's time for penance, fasting, and special prayer. "Yet forty days," is the cry. How are we going to listen to the  warning voice? "But we are not pagans," we may say;  "our wickedness does not go up before the  Lord like that of the Assyrians. What  was good for the wicked is not approved good for us."  The answer is, penance is good for the holy as well as for the sinful. It preserves as well as atones. Saints have felt the need of it in all ages  and at all times, at the beginning of their conversion  and at the end of their lives. In whichever category, therefore, we may think well to place ourselves —saint or sinner— penance is necessary for us. And we know it well.

We are not true to our best nature when we  deny the need of mortification. For we feel the struggle within us, the conflict between the good  and the bad. We know the good should conquer,  and that it
cannot conquer without pain, and that this pain is mortification in one form or another. Why do we dread penance? Because it opposes our lower nature; in simple terms, because it hurts. Nature shrinks  from what hurts.

Yet it is astonishing how soon penance becomes easy when it is undertaken with courage. Courage counts as two-thirds of the necessary outfit for  any undertaking, natural or supernatural. What we have then, is to brace ourselves  up to look forward bravely, and suffer magnanimously all the little mortifications proposed  by the  Church as to fasting, abstinence,  and prayer. They are few enough as it is.  Far be it  from us to wish  them fewer or less binding. Above all, let us  remember that whatever exemptions we may justly ask, we cannot justly  exempt ourselves  from the spirit of penance during Lent. We  must feel its pressure,  come under its discipline.

The very weakness or labor that keeps us from fasting may itself be our penance, if suffered in tlie right spirit. Now, is this determination to spend the forty days of Lent in the spirit of the Church going to make us sad or long-faced? God forbid! We might as well be Pharisees at once. If mortification does
 not bring with it cheerfulness  and holy joy, there is something wrong with it,  and we  had better find out  what it is as soon as possible. No. The  most mortified are the most cheerful. Those shiver most who bathe at the edge of the sea and get wet  by driblets. Those who plunge in deep are in a glow before they feel the shock. Those who do penance grudgingly do not taste its joy. Dare I be amongst the cheerful givers, the generous sufferers ? Yes, because "the love of Jesus urgeth  me."

Could you Explain Catholic Practices
By: Rev. Charles J. Mullaly, S.J.
Imprimatur 1937


ASH WEDNESDAY, FAST, AND ABSTINENCE
It was the afternoon of Ash Wednesday. As I visited the class of eighth grade boys I could not suppress a smile. The forehead of every pupil had been generously marked with blessed ashes and evidently not one had made any attempt to remove the symbol of penance received some hours before in the church. Maybe these sturdy youngsters had erroneously believed that it would have been almost a denial of their Faith to remove the mark of the ashes, not knowing that there is no obligation to go through the day with this very visible sign of their Catholicity.

I wondered if these eighth graders could explain why they had gone to church on Ash Wednesday morning. When I asked the question of the class in general, the Sister in charge turned to the forty eager listeners. "Those who can answer Father's question will raise the right hand."

Forty hands excitedly waved in the air. I would make a test. I noticed an amused twinkle in the Sister's eyes and I then knew that my questions would be answered, for she was an accurate and exacting teacher. I soon elicited the information that the ashes received by the Faithful on their foreheads at the ceremony on Ash Wednesday are obtained by burning palms blessed on Palm Sunday; that at a special ceremony, before the Mass on Ash Wednesday, the ashes are blessed and those present approach the altar-rail and receive them upon the forehead from the priest who says, "Momento, homo, quia pulvis es, et in pulverem reversers." )"remember, man, that thou art dust, and unto dust thou shalt return").

I was then told that Ash Wednesday is the first day of the forty days' fast of Lent; that in the early days of the Church public penitents who had come to the church door to receive their penance were brought before the Bishop who put ashes on their heads and admonished them to repent and to do penance. Out of affection, or humility, relatives and friends of the penitents joined themselves to them and offered their foreheads to be sprinkled with ashes.

My question, "What is the meaning of Lent?" was met with an enthusiastic waving of hands. One bright-eyed boy informed me: "The fast of Lent dates back to the earliest days of the Church, though not in its present form of forty days. St. Irenaeus, in the second century, speaks of the fast before Easter. Whatever the duration of the fast, it is clear that it was considered obligatory. The present legislation of forty days dates back many centuries. Lent now starts on Ash Wednesday and at present ends at noon on Holy Saturday after the Mass of the Resurrection. It is the season when we beg Gods mercy for ourselves and do penance for our sins."

I was marveling at the clearness of the boy's answer when Sister remarked:
"You see, Father, how we use "The Messenger of the Sacred Heart' with profit." I had one more inquiry. "What is the difference between abstinence and fasting?"

I received the correct explanation that abstinence is abstaining from meat; that fasting means, under our present legislation, the taking of only one full meal a day at midday or in the evening, allowing, over and above the principal meal, the present custom of a cup of tea or coffee with a fragment of bread or toast in the morning and a collation of about eight or ten ounces of food in the evening or at midday. Every day of abstinence is not a fast day, and only those fast days are days of abstinence which are marked as such. On fast days which are not days of abstinence, meat may be taken only at the principal meal.

The law of abstinence binds all Catholics who have completed their seventh year; the obligation of fasting is imposted on the those who are over twenty-one and under fifty-nine.

Welcome to another Feria Friday, where every Friday we share a saints story and 5 meatless recipes in honour of Christ's Passion and death on the Cross. In regards to Church use 'feria' means without and is used to mean a day in the Church calendar that is without a feast of a saint. Typically in our posts we use 'feria' in reference to recipes without meat.

Lives of the Saints, by Alban Butler, Benziger Bros. ed. 1894

July 27.—ST. PANTALEON, Martyr. T.
PANTALEON was physician to the Emperor Galerius Maximianus, and a Christian, but, deceived by often hearing the false maxims of the world applauded, was unhappily seduced into an apostasy. But a zealous Christian called Hermolaus awakened his conscience to a sense of his guilt, and brought him again into the fold of the Church. The penitent ardently wished to expiate his crime by martyrdom; and to prepare himself for the conflict, when Diocletian's bloody persecution broke out at Nicomedia, in 303, he distributed all his possessions among the poor. Not long after this action he was taken up, and in his house were also apprehended Hermolaus, Hermippus, and Hermocrates. After suffering many torments, they were all condemned to lose their heads. St. Pantaleon suffered the day after the rest. His relics were translated to Constantinople, and there kept with great honor. The greatest part of them are now shown in the abbey of St. Denys near Paris, but his head is at Lyons.

Reflection.—"With the elect thou shalt be elect, and with the perverse wilt be perverted."

1.) Lentil Sloppy Joes served with Potato Salad and fresh summer fruit

2.) Oyster Mushroom Po' Boy with Sweet Potato Fries

3.) Potato Kale Cakes, with large garden salad and cranberry green beans

4.) Dairy/Meat Free Nichoise Salad - looks delish!

5.) Drop Dumplings with Mixed Vegetables

For the homeschooling families out there, are you thinking back to school or still enjoying your summer break? This week our little family kicked off some 'short school' and put our Holy Simplicity planner to work!

The month of August is coming up and marks the official back to school season. Get your planner today and have your home, school and Liturgical Plans all in one location!

Welcome to Feria Friday, where every Friday we share a saints story and 5 meatless recipes in honour of Christ's Passion and death on the Cross. In regards to Church use 'feria' means without and is used to mean a day in the Church calendar that is without a feast of a saint. Typically in our posts we use 'feria' in reference to recipes without meat.

Lives of the Saints, by Alban Butler, Benziger Bros. ed. 1894

June 29.—ST. PETER, Apostle

PETER was of Bethsaida in Galilee, and as he was fishing on the lake was called by Our Lord to be one of His apostles. He was poor and unlearned, but candid, eager, and loving. In his heart, first of all, grew up the conviction, and from his lips came the confession, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God;" and so Our Lord chose him, and fitted him to be the Rock of His Church, His Vicar on earth, the head and prince of His apostles, the centre and very principle of the Church's oneness, the source of all spiritual powers, and the unerring teacher of His truth. All Scripture is alive with him; but after Pentecost he stands out in the full grandeur of his office. He fills the vacant apostolic throne; admits the Jews by thousands into the fold; opens it to the Gentiles in the person of Cornelius; founds, and for a time rules, the Church at Antioch, and sends Mark to found that of Alexandria. Ten years after the Ascension he went to Rome, the centre of the majestic Roman Empire, where were gathered the glories and the wealth of the earth and all the powers of evil. There he established his Chair, and for twenty-five years labored with St. Paul in building up the great Roman Church. He was crucified by order of Nero, and buried on the Vatican Hill. He wrote two Epistles, and suggested and approved the Gospel of St. Mark. Two hundred and sixty years after St. Peter's martyrdom came the open triumph of the Church. Pope St. Sylvester, with bishops and clergy and the whole body of the faithful, went through Rome in procession to the Vatican Hill, singing the praises of God till the seven hills rang again. The first Christian emperor, laying aside his diadem and his robes of state, began to dig the foundations of St. Peter's Church. And now on the site of that old church stands the noblest temple ever raised by man; beneath a towering canopy lie the great apostles, in death, as in life, undivided; and there is the Chair of St. Peter. All around rest the martyrs of Christ—Popes, Saints, Doctors, from east and west—and high over all, the words, "Thou art Peter, and on this Rock I will build My Church." It is the threshold of the apostles and the centre of the world.

Reflection.—Peter still lives on in his successors, and rules and feeds the flock committed to him. The reality of our devotion to him is the surest test of the purity of our faith.

June 30.—ST. PAUL

ST. PAUL was born at Tarsus, of Jewish parents, and studied at Jerusalem, at the feet of Gamaliel. While still a young man, he held the clothes of those who stoned the proto-martyr Stephen; and in his restless zeal he pressed on to Damascus, "breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of Christ." But near Damascus a light from heaven struck him to the earth. He heard a voice which said, "Why persecutest thou Me? " He saw the form of Him Who had been crucified for his sins, and then for three days he saw nothing more. He awoke from his trance another man—a new creature in Jesus Christ. He left Damascus for a long retreat in Arabia, and then, at the call of God, he carried the Gospel to the uttermost limits of the world, and for years he lived and labored with no thought but the thought of Christ crucified, no desire but to spend and be spent for Him. He became the apostle of the Gentiles, whom he had been taught to hate, and wished himself anathema for his own countrymen, who sought his life. Perils by land and sea could not damp his courage, nor toil and suffering and age dull the tenderness of his heart. At last he gave blood for blood. In his youth he had imbibed the false zeal of the Pharisees at Jerusalem, the holy city of the former dispensation. With St. Peter he consecrated Rome, our holy city, by his martyrdom, and poured into its Church all his doctrine with all his blood. He left fourteen Epistles, which have been a fountain-head of the Church's doctrine, the consolation and delight of her greatest Saints. His interior life, so far as words can tell it, lies open before us in these divine writings, the life of one who has died forever to himself and risen again in Jesus Christ. "In what," says St. Chrysostom, "in what did this blessed one gain an advantage over the other apostles? How comes it that he lives in all men's mouths throughout the world? Is it not through the virtue of his Epistles?" Nor will his work cease while the race of man continues. Even now, like a most chivalrous knight, he stands in our midst, and takes captive every thought to the obedience of Christ.

Reflection.—St. Paul complains that all seek the things which are their own, and not the things which are Christ's. See if these words apply to you, and resolve to give yourself without reserve to God.

1.) Baked Halibut with Sour Cream, Parmesan and Dill Topping

2.) Grilled Salmon with New Mexico Chile Honey and Mustard Glaze

3.) Grilled Tilapia with Cherry Salsa

4.) Salmon with Martini Sauce

5.) Grilled Salmon with Avacado Salsa

Are you enjoying your Holy Simplicity Planner yet? We are still shipping the 2011-2012 planners. Get your copy today and help simplify your homeschooling, home planning and Liturgical Year in your home all in one place! Included within the planner is a reprint of the book Catholic Life giving wonderful lessons each season of the Liturgical Year!

Welcome to Feria Friday, where every Friday we share a saints story and 5 meatless recipes in honour of Christ's Passion and death on the Cross. In regards to Church use 'feria' means without and is used to mean a day in the Church calendar that is without a feast of a saint. Typically in our posts we use 'feria' in reference to recipes without meat.

Lives of the Saints, by Alban Butler, Benziger Bros. ed. 1894

June 22.—ST. PAULINUS OF NOLA.
PAULINUS was of a family which boasted of a long line of senators, prefects, and consuls. He was educated with great care, and his genius and eloquence, in prose and verse, were the admiration of St. Jerome and St. Augustine. He had more than doubled his wealth by marriage, and was one of the foremost men of his time. Though he was the chosen friend of Saints, and had a great devotion to St. Felix of Nola, he was still only a catechumen, trying to serve two masters. But God drew him to Himself along the way of sorrows and trials. He received baptism, withdrew into Spain to be alone, and then, in consort with his holy wife, sold all their vast estates in various parts of the empire, distributing their proceeds so prudently that St. Jerome says East and West were filled with his alms. He was then ordained priest, and retired to Nola in Campania.

There he rebuilt the Church of St. Felix with great magnificence, and served it night and day, living a life of extreme abstinence and toil. In 409 he was chosen bishop, and for more than thirty years so ruled as to be conspicuous in an age blessed with many great and wise bishops. St. Gregory the Great tells us that when the Vandals of Africa had made a descent on Campania, Paulinus spent all he had in relieving the distress of his people and redeeming them from slavery. At last there came a poor widow; her only son had been carried off by the son-in-law of the Vandal king. "Such as I have I give thee," said the Saint to her; "we will go to Africa, and I will give myself for your son." Having overborne her resistance, they went, and Paulinus was accepted in place of the widow's son, and employed as gardener. After a time the king found out, by divine interposition, that his son-in-law's slave was the great Bishop of Nola. He at once set him free, granting him also the freedom of all the townsmen of Nola who were in slavery. One who knew him well says he was meek as Moses, priestlike as Aaron, innocent as Samuel, tender as David, wise as Solomon, apostolic as Peter, loving as John, cautious as Thomas, keen-sighted as Stephen, fervent as Apollos. He died in 431.

Reflection.—"Go to Campania," writes St. Augustine; "there study Paulinus, that choice servant of God. With what generosity, with what still greater humility, he has flung from him the burden of this world's grandeurs to take on him the yoke of Christ, and in His service how serene and unobtrusive his life!"

1.) A Manly Man's Veggie Burger

2.) Florida Avocado Summer Wrap

3.) Panini with Anjou Pears, Brie, Caramelized Walnuts and Aurgula Pesto Mayo

4.) Grilled Summer Vegetable Pasta

5.) Fresh Tortellini with Asparagus, Peas & Mint

Get your Holy Simplicity Planner now, in time for the first month in the book! The planner runs from July 2011 to June 2012. Great for planning your day even if you haven't started school yet! It doubles as a daily planner as well as a homeschool planner that follows the Church's Liturgical Year. Enjoy the simplicity of having it all in one place!

Welcome to Feria Friday, where every Friday we share a saints story and 5 meatless recipes in honour of Christ's Passion and death on the Cross. In regards to Church use 'feria' means without and is used to mean a day in the Church calendar that is without a feast of a saint. Typically in our posts we use 'feria' in reference to recipes without meat.

Today is a different occasion though and there is a great feast on this Friday, the Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus! So for such a great day our post will be a little bit different. Instead of sharing a Saint story, below is an article on the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and below are some activities and resources for celebrating such a wonderful feast. May the Sacred Heart of Jesus send you an abundance of blessings!

Around the Year with the Von Trapp Family
By: Maria Von Trapp   1955

THE FEAST OF THE SACRED HEART

Eight days after Copus Christi follows the feast of the Sacred Heart. After Jesus had died for us on the Cross, He wanted to do even more - to give His last drop of blood. And so the Roman soldier pierced His heart with a lance. One would think this would have convienced all later generations of their Redeemer's love. But the "Prince of this world" saw to it that Christians in the course of time became forgetful of this love. To remind us, JEsus in 1675 appeared to a humble little nun in France, St. Margaret Mary, all aglow and radiant, the Risen Christ of Easter Sunday. On His breast she saw His heart all afrie. Our Lord pointed to it, saying, "Behold, this heart which has loved men so much," and He told her to spread the news: everyone who would venerate this symbol of the Divine Heart He  wouls reward with divine generosity.

I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life.
I will establish peace in their houses.
I will comfort them in all their afflictions.
I will be their secure refuge during life, and above all in death.
I will bestow a large blessing upon all their undertakings.
Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy.
Tepid souls shall grow fervent.
Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
I will bless every place where a picture of My Heart so be set up and honored.
I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be blotted out.
I promise them in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to all those who communicate on the first Friday in nine consecutive months the grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving the Sacraments; My Divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.

As our home is called "Cor Unum" and our motto for daily life that we want to be one heart and soul, we chose the feast of the Sacred Heart as our family feast. On that day, after a Solemn High Mass and the feast-day breakfast, we have our yearly family conference. We report on all the doings of the past year, we talk about the plans of the coming year. This is the day for every one of us to say whether he or she wants to stay in the family choir known as the Trapp Family Singers for another season; whoever wants to get married or whoever wants to do something on his own - this is the day to say so. This custom comes from the old country. Many families have their family day on the feast of the Holy Family in January, some on the feast of St. Joseph, who was a family man.

Another Friday is upon us and with that we are sharing another Feria Friday Post. "Feria" means Latin and in the church is held to mean a day that no feast is celebrated at the mass. For our blog post Feria means without meat as Friday's are dedicated to Christ's Passion and as such we offer the sacrifice of no meat on this day up in return for such a great sacrifice.

Lives of the Saints, by Alban Butler, Benziger Bros. ed. 1894 June 8.—ST. MEDARD, Bishop.

ST. MEDARD, one of the most illustrious prelates of the Church of France in the sixth century, was born of a pious and noble family, at Salency, about the year 457. From his childhood he evinced the most tender compassion for the poor. On one occasion he gave his coat to a destitute blind man, and when asked why he had done so, he answered that the misery of a fellow-member in Christ so affected him that he could not help giving him part of his own clothes. Being promoted to the priesthood in the thirty-third year of his age, he became a bright ornament of that sacred order. He preached the word of God with an unction which touched the hearts of the most hardened; and the influence of his example, by which he enforced the precepts which he delivered from the pulpit, seemed irresistible. In 530, Alomer, the thirteenth bishop of that country, dying, St. Medard was unanimously chosen to fill the see, and was consecrated by St. Remigius, who had baptized King Clovis in 496, and was then exceeding old. Our Saint's new dignity did not make him abate anything of his austerities, and, though at that time seventy-two years old, he thought himself obliged to redouble his labors. Though his diocese was very wide, it seemed not to suffice for his zeal, which could not be confined; wherever he saw the opportunity of advancing the honor of God, and of abolishing the remains of idolatry, he overcame all obstacles, and by his zealous labors and miracles the rays of the Gospel dispelled the mists of idolatry throughout the whole extent of his diocese. What rendered this task more difficult and perilous was the savage and fierce disposition of the ancient inhabitants of Flanders, who were the most barbarous of all the nations of the Gauls and Franks. Our Saint, having completed this great work in Flanders, returned to Noyon, where he shortly after fell sick, and soon rested from his labors at an advanced age, in 545. The whole kingdom lamented his death as the loss of their common father and protector. His body was buried in his own cathedral, but the many miracles wrought at his tomb so moved King Clotaire that he translated the precious remains to Soissons.

Reflection.—The Church takes delight in styling her founder "THE AMIABLE JESUS," and He likewise says of Himself, "I am meek and humble of heart."

1.) Vegetable and Edamame Pasta with Basil Sauce

2.) Grilled Black Bean and Goat Cheese Quesadillas

3.) Zucchini Lasagna

4.) California Sandwhich- looks super yummy!

5.) Summer Vegetable Macaroni and Cheese

We are still shipping out hard copies of the Holy Simplicity Planner for the 2011-2012 school year! The Planner starts next month so get your copy now! Its never too early to start planning next years lessons!

Lives of the Saints,
Alban Butler, Benziger Bros. ed. 1894

April 13.—ST. HERMENEGILD, Martyr.

LEOVIGILD, King of the Visigoths, had two sons, Hermenegild and Recared, who reigned conjointly with him. All three were Arians, but Hermenegild married a. zealous Catholic, the daughter of Sigebert, Ring of France, and by her holy example was converted to the faith. His father, on hearing the news, denounced him as a traitor, and marched to seize his person. Hermenegild tried to rally the Catholics of Spain in his defence, but they were too weak to make any stand, and, after a two years fruitless struggle, he surrendered on the assurance of a free pardon. When safely in the royal camp, the king had him loaded with fetters and cast into a foul dungeon at Seville. Tortures and bribes were in turn employed to shake his faith, but Hermenegild wrote to his father that he held the crown as nothing, and preferred to lose sceptre and life rather than betray the truth of God. At length, on Easter night, an Arian bishop entered his cell, and promised him his father's pardon if he would but receive Communion at his hands. Hermenegild indignantly rejected the offer, and knelt with joy for his depth-stroke. The same night a light streaming from his cell told the Christians who were watching near that the martyr had won his crown, and was keeping his Easter with the Saints in glory.

Leovigild on his death-bed, though still an Arian, bade Recared seek out St. Leander, whom he had himself cruelly persecuted, and, following Hermenegild's example, be received by him into the Church. Recared did so, and on his father's death labored so earnestly for the extirpation of Arianism that he brought over the whole nation of the Visigoths to the Church. "Nor is it to be wondered," says St. Gregory, "that he came thus to be a preacher of the true faith, seeing that he was brother of a martyr, whose merits did help him to bring so many into the lap of God's Church."

Reflection.—St. Hermenegild teaches us that constancy and sacrifice are the hest arguments for the Faith, and the surest way to win souls to God.

Easter eggs are for Easter! The egg represents the resurrection in new life that Christ brings us. Just as the rock sealed the tomb the shell on the egg hides the new life. This weeks five recipes feature eggs in honor of Easter week.

1.) Egg Salad with Capers and Olives

2.) Salmon Stuffed Eggs with Herb Dressing

3.) Grilled Halibut Salad Nicoise

4.) Smorgastarta - Sweedish Savory Sandwhich Torte

5.) English Muffin Egg Pizzas