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“Go teach,” said Christ to His Apostles. Teach what? Not the opinions of Peter, James or John, not the sayings of Matthew, Philip or Bartholomew, not this or that system of belief, or these or those deductions of human reason; but “the things that I have commanded you.” And the command laid upon the twelve Apostles is still honored and obeyed by the priest in the Church of God. The priest, then, teaches, not in his own name, nor does he propose a doctrine thought out in deep study, but, “God exhorting through him” on account of his unity with the chair of Peter, he but echoes the divine voice, heard throughout Judea in the dawn of Chris­tianity. The priest speaks and the world listens, not because of his words of deep reasoning, nor on account of his faultless diction, nor because of his fervent eloquence, but because he speaks as one having authority, the authority given by Jesus to His Apostles, and by them transmitted to him." Source: The Priesthood by Rev. M.S. Smith (The Homelitic Monthly and Pastoral Review, Trinity Sunday, May 1922) Special thanks to Robert Olson

Prayer to the Holy Trinity by Saint Elizabeth de la Trinité

"O my God, Trinity whom I adore, let me entirely forget myself that I may abide in You, still and peaceful as if my soul were already in eternity; let nothing disturb my peace nor separate me from You, O my unchanging God, but that each moment may take me further into the depths of Your mystery ! Pacify my soul! Make it Your heaven, Your beloved home and place of Your repose; let me never leave You there alone, but may I be ever attentive, ever alert in my faith, ever adoring and all given up to Your creative action.

O my beloved Christ, crucified for love, would that I might be for You a spouse of Your heart! I would anoint You with glory, I would love You – even unto death! Yet I sense my frailty and ask You to adorn me with Yourself; identify my soul with all the movements of Your soul, submerge me, overwhelm me, substitute Yourself in me that my life may become but a reflection of Your life. Come into me as Adorer, Redeemer and Saviour.

O Eternal Word, Word of my God, would that I might spend my life listening to You, would that I might be fully receptive to learn all from You; in all darkness, all loneliness, all weakness, may I ever keep my eyes fixed on You and abide under Your great light; O my Beloved Star, fascinate me so that I may never be able to leave Your radiance.

O Consuming Fire, Spirit of Love, descend into my soul and make all in me as an incarnation of the Word, that I may be to Him a super-added humanity wherein He renews His mystery; and You O Father, bestow Yourself and bend down to Your little creature, seeing in her only Your beloved Son in whom You are well pleased.

O my `Three’, my All, my Beatitude, infinite Solitude, Immensity in whom I lose myself, I give myself to You as a prey to be consumed; enclose Yourself in me that I may be absorbed in You so as to contemplate in Your light the abyss of Your Splendour !"

Meditation for Ember Saturday:

"And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God: whereby you are sealed unto the day of redemption." (Eph. iv. 30.)

1st Point.-Love is the fruit of knowledge, and fear is the golden shield which protects love. Consider what a holy, beautiful, precious gift is fear. There can be no deep love without fear. True love must always be based upon reverence, and reverence is but another word for fear. It is said of Jesus, in His adorable Humanity, that "He was heard for His reverence." (Heb. v. 7.) The souls who love most deeply, generally are most full of fear; but it is the fear of intense reverence, not the fear of slavish dread, for that fear is "cast out by perfect charity." He that feareth with the fear of a servant, is not "perfected in charity" (1 John, iv. 18); but he who fears with the reverence of a child, has attained its highest consummation. Oh, let us pray for this golden gift, and give no rest, by our urgent importunity, until we have obtained it!

2nd Point. This fear manifests itself, when most perfect, in an interior dread of "grieving the Holy Spirit of God." It is the fruit of burning love; and in souls who are far advanced in charity, its manifestations are surpassingly beautiful. They speak in their hearts all day long to Jesus, and Jesus speaks to them; not always with evident sensible consolation, but with a distinctness often accompanied with extreme dryness and darkness, which may perhaps be sent as a balance to this unspeakable favor. They scarcely commit an imperfection, ere it is distinctly pointed out to them; and the love that burns so strongly within them, excites their fear, and they suffer, as only such souls can suffer, from intense fear, lest they should grieve their Beloved. To such souls there is no fear like the fear of grieving the object. of their love; yet, because of their familiarity with Him, they are often supposed to fear less than those who love less.

3rd Point. This gift also manifests itself in another form, in souls who are not so much led by personal love to Jesus. In them it is simply fear or awe of God and of His judgments; and such souls walk very blamelessly before Him, but rather from the love of fear, than from the fear of love. Let us pray to-day, as the octave of gifts closes upon us-let us pray above all things for holy fear: God will impart the gift to each soul in the way best suited to promote its perfection. The Spirit is our "seal unto the day of redemption." Oh, let us beware how we break or cast from us that blessed seal! Let us begin a new life of prayer to the Third Person of the ever-blessed Trinity; let us try to convince ourselves firmly of the importance of His office, and of the immense importance of invoking His help daily as our Teacher and our Comforter.

Source: Meditations for Advent and Easter, p 280

Hymns, readings and prayers for this Whit Embertide:

Veni, Sancte Spiritus (Come, Thou Holy Spiritus, come)

Veni, Creator Spiritus, (Come Holy Spirit, Creator Blest)

Readings:

Ember Saturday:

Joel, 2. 28-32

Leviticus, 23. 9-11, 15-17, 21

Deuteronomy, 26. 1-11

Leviticus, 26. 3-12

Saint Paul to the Romans, 5. 1-5

Saint Luke, 4.38-44

Prayers:

An excellent prayer for this purpose is the Litany of the Saints, in which so many bishops, priests, and levites are invoked; or the Rosary may be appropriately said, grouping those for whom we pray into five

classes, corresponding to the five decades.

Litany to Obtain Holy Priests

Prayers for Ember Days:

Listen, Almighty God, we beseech Thee, to the prayers which Thy universal Church offers to Thee at this time, beseeching Thy blessing on those who are about to be admitted to Thy Holy Service of the Altar, in particular on Deacon Nicolas Rapkoch. Give Thy grace to all who are called to any office and administration amongst Thy clergy, and so replenish them with the truth of Thy doctrine, and indue them with innocence of life, that they may faithfully serve Thee, to the glory of Thy great name and the benefit of Thy Holy Church. Amen

O God, of Whose mercies there is no number, and of Whose goodness the treasure is infinite, we humbly thank Thee for the gifts thou hast bestowed upon us. Continue Thy mercy to us, and give us also so much of Thy temporal blessings as Thou knowest to be for our good.
Grant that the fruits of the earth may, by Thy holy favor, increase and multiply. Defend them from all drought, frosts or tempests, or whatever else may be hurtful to them. It is from Thy hand only that we look for succor, and to Thee we have recourse in all our necessities. Amen.

Source: St. John's Manual 1856, Archbishop of New York John J. Hugues

Meditation for Friday in Whitsun Week:

"Be ye therefore followers of God, as most dear children and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath delivered Himself for us, an oblation and a sacrifice to God for an odor of sweetness." (Eph. v. 1, 2.)

1st Point. The gift of piety is the very soul of devotion. It is an intense filial love of God which leads us to "walk in love, as most dear children.” Oh, blessed gift! Oh, precious gift! Gift which the world cannot know or understand! Gift which is bestowed in the richest abundance on the most saintly souls! "Be ye therefore followers of God, as most dear children." Oh, how the heart of the great apostle burned with love as he wrote these words! "Be ye therefore." Wherefore? Because, as he tells us in the preceding words, "God hath forgiven you in Christ." This is the reason why we are to be followers of God, as most dear children. We are very dear indeed to God, for our purchase has cost Him the life and the blood of His only Son. We slew Him, it is true; but for all that God has forgiven us in Christ, and He only seeks now, in return for all His love, that we should be "followers of God, as most dear children."

2nd Point. Consider how loving children follow their parents. They follow them, by imitating their example. A loving child is firmly persuaded that no one is so good or so wise as his own parents, and considers their conduct as the highest model which he can follow. If they have faults, he does not see them, for love blinds him. He follows them, by keeping close to them. A loving child prefers the society of his parents to that of others. He follows them, clings to them, and weeps when he is separated from them. Are we thus following our Father, as "most dear children"? Children may be deceived by their love, and follow bad and imperfect example; but we never can be deceived when we follow our Father. A child may injure his prospects in life by too great attachment to his parents; but the closer we keep to our Father, the more we shall advance our best interests.

3rd Point. The gift of piety will also enable us to "walk in love." How much is implied in these words: To "walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us." How did He walk in love? The apostle tells us : it was by " delivering Himself for us as an oblation and a sacrifice to God." Are we willing to walk thus in love, to sacrifice ourselves for our Beloved, even as He sacrificed Himself for us? To sacrifice ourselves in every detail of our daily life for the brethren, for those with whom we associate, because they are Christ's representatives to us; this is, indeed, to "walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us." O sweet Spirit, come! Spirit of adoption, Spirit of love, come, and enkindle in our hearts Thy heavenly fire-come and fill us with this blessed gift of piety, that we may indeed "be followers of God, as most dear children "!

Aspiration. "My Beloved to me, and I to Him." (Cant. ii. 16.)

Source: Meditations for Advent and Easter, 1866 p 278

Hymns, readings and prayers for this Whit Embertide:

Veni, Sancte Spiritus (Come, Thou Holy Spiritus, come)

Veni, Creator Spiritus, (Come Holy Spirit, Creator Blest)

Readings for Ember Friday:

Joel, 2.23-24; 26-27

St. Luke, 5.17-26

Prayers:

An excellent prayer for this purpose is the Litany of the Saints, in which so many bishops, priests, and levites are invoked; or the Rosary may be appropriately said, grouping those for whom we pray into five

classes, corresponding to the five decades.

Litany to Obtain Holy Priests

Prayers for Ember Days:

Listen, Almighty God, we beseech Thee, to the prayers which Thy universal Church offers to Thee at this time, beseeching Thy blessing on those who are about to be admitted to Thy Holy Service of the Altar, in particular on Deacon Nicolas Rapkoch. Give Thy grace to all who are called to any office and administration amongst Thy clergy, and so replenish them with the truth of Thy doctrine, and indue them with innocence of life, that they may faithfully serve Thee, to the glory of Thy great name and the benefit of Thy Holy Church. Amen

O God, of Whose mercies there is no number, and of Whose goodness the treasure is infinite, we humbly thank Thee for the gifts thou hast bestowed upon us. Continue Thy mercy to us, and give us also so much of Thy temporal blessings as Thou knowest to be for our good.
Grant that the fruits of the earth may, by Thy holy favor, increase and multiply. Defend them from all drought, frosts or tempests, or whatever else may be hurtful to them. It is from Thy hand only that we look for succor, and to Thee we have recourse in all our necessities. Amen.

Source: St. John's Manual 1856, Archbishop of New York John J. Hugues