by Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG

Most readers of the Missive are no doubt familiar with the prediction made by St. Thérèse of Lisieux that, after her death, she “will let fall a shower of roses.”¹  In the years since her death, a not insignificant number of those who have had recourse to her intercession have received roses, some in a miraculous manner, in answer to their prayers thus manifesting the fulfilment of her prediction.²  It should come as no surprise, then, that, due to her association with roses, the Sacred Congregation of Rites, on 9 December 1925, approved the Blessing of Roses in Honor of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus (Rosarum in honorem S. Teresiæ ab Infante Iesu) for use by the Carmelite Order, which has since been extended to all priests.  The blessing is found in the Roman Ritual, and is presented here in translation:³

℣. Our help is in the Name of the Lord.
℟. Who made heaven and earth.
℣. O Lord, hear my prayer.
℟. And let my cry come onto Thee.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.
O Lord Jesus Christ, in Thy clemency look upon these roses which we ✠ bless in honor of Thy spouse, St. Thérèse, the Virgin; and grant that all those who scent their fragrance, may run after the odour of Thine ointments, and, through her intercession, deserve to obtain the health of both soul and body: Who livest and reignest for ever and ever.
℟. Amen.

They are sprinkled with holy water.

While the blessing is relatively simple, there are a few things which can be noted.  In the first place, the blessing is addressed to Christ, not God the Father, which is more common.  The next is that St. Thérèse is called the spouse of Christ.  This title is commonly given to Virgin Saints for the Magnificat antiphon for Vespers in the Divine Office for a single Virgin begins with the words “Come, O Spouse of Christ / Veni, Sponsa Christi.”  The following part – “all those who scent their fragrance, may run after the odour of Thine ointments” – is inspired by a line found in the Holy Scriptures, in the Canticle of Canticles, said in the voice of the female spouse: “Draw me: we will run after thee to the odour of thy ointments” (1:3 [Vulgate]).  The use of the Canticle of Canticles in this blessing is fitting for this Book is seen as expressing the love-relationship between Christ and the soul of each believer and the Church holds up St. Thérèse and her Little Way as a pattern to the faithful to follow in developing this relationship.  The Canticle of Canticles is also, for this reason, used in the Mass of this Saint, in the introit chant and the tract.  Lastly, it should be noted that effects from these sacramentals, these blessed roses, comes about not by having them or placing them somewhere, as is the case with other sacramentals including other blessed flowers, but by smelling them.  Besides the blessing of incense used in the Alia Benedictio Solemnior Crucis, this is the only other sacramental I am aware of which produces it effects by means of its odour.  It is, however, a nice complement to the traditional ceremony of Extreme Unction in which the nostrils are anointed with the Oil of the Sick and God implored to forgive the sick individual any sins which might have been committed through the sense of smell.

While not everyone will be favored by the miraculous appearance of roses granted through the intercession of St. Thérèse, all may easily obtain roses blessed in her honor, a most fitting way to celebrate her feast.

Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG was ordained in the fall of 2019 and was invested as an Ecclesiastical Knight of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St. George in the summer of 2025.  He currently resides at the FSSP Canonical House of St. Casimir in Nashua, NH, and ministers at St. Stanislaus parish.

In support of the causes of Blessed Maria Cristina, Queen, and Servant of God Francesco II, King 

1. The Story of a Soul – The Autobiography of Saint of Thérèse of Lisieux. ed. Mother Agnes of Jesus, trans. Day, Michael. (Westminster, Maryland: The Newman Press, 1957), p. 167.
2. See, for example, the accounts given here: When St. Thérèse Showers Roses (and Miracles) on Her Friends| National Catholic Register.
3. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 11, 53; English adapted from the translation provided in Griffith, Paul. The Priest’s New Ritual for the Convenience of the Reverend Clergy in the Administration of the Sacraments and Various Blessings. (Baltimore: John Murphy Company, 1933), pp.301-303.

by Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG

As long-time readers of the Missive are aware, for the past several years, in coordination with the Italian Apostolate of the Archdiocese of Newark, others and I have worked to revive the public celebration and procession in honor of the Madonna della Lavina (Our Lady of the Torrent) at St. Aloysius Church in Caldwell, New Jersey, my home parish.  I have written previously about the devotion here and have also reported on the 2024 and 2025 celebrations.  This year’s celebration occurred on Saturday, 19 September 2026.  I was the celebrant for the Solemn High Mass celebrated in honor of the Madonna, with Rev. Cav. Michael Barone, SMOCSG, of the Archdiocese, serving as Deacon, and Fr. Robert Boyd, FSSP, assistant administrator of Our Lady of Fatima in Pequannock, New Jersey, serving as Subdeacon.  Rev. Cav. Barone preached.

As in years past, the Mass was a Votive Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Grace as the image of the nursing Madonna is interpreted by the Ceramesi as an image of Our Lady of Graces (la Madonna delle Grazie).  Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina’s (1525-1594) Marian Missa Sicut lilium inter spinas was sung along with the following: Prelude: Salve Regina – Peeter Cornet (c. 1575-1633); Processional: Mira il tuo popolo (trad. Italian); Offertory motet: Ave dulcissima Maria – Carlo Gesualdo (1566-1613); Communion motet: O gloriosa Virginum – Palestrina; Postcommunion motet: Sicut lilium inter spinas – Palestrina; Marian antiphon: Salve Regina (simple tone); Recessional: O Sanctissima (Sicilian Mariners’ Hymn).

This year, thanks to the enthusiasm of a family of devotees, for first time since the revival and possibly for the first time in the New World, attendees donned the devotional dresses worn in Cerami on the feast day.  In Cerami, for the feast, all girls and women who have received the Sacraments at least a year ago, whether single or married, with no age restrictions, are able to wear a red dress with a yellow sash around the waist.  The carriers of the vara in Cerami traditionally wear a long-sleeve, light blue satin shirt, a black sash around the waist, and dark pants.  For this year’s Caldwell celebration, a few young ladies wore red dresses, patterned on those worn in Cerami, and yellow sashes, while the men who carried the vara, and their auxiliaries, wore black pants with light blue shirts.  Perhaps the black sash can be incorporated in the future.  The young women who wore the devotional dresses distributed feast neckerchiefs and sheets with the Mass propers assisted by the young vara auxiliaries.

After the Mass and procession, there was a reception in the parish gym.  As in years past, there was a display of memorabilia.  Returning this year to the display was the old society banner which had been sent out for repair and restoration.  Being over 100 years old, the restoration and repair will help ensure the banner is maintained in good condition for the future.  However, even with the restoration and repair, the banner should not be used in the procession.  A plan, though, is in motion to have a new one, patterned on the old, created which can be used.

Last year’s reception introduced cavatieddi atturrati di Cerami.  These cookies are one of the identity dishes of Cerami.  This year introduced the other identity dish, the u pipi vugghiutu soup, named after its main ingredient, Ceramesi peppers (u pipi Ciramisi).  Usually eaten with bread, this soup serves as a hearty winter breakfast for Ceramesi farmers.  Just like the cavatieddi atturrati, this soup also reflects the humble and agricultural roots of the community.  While the soup at the celebration did not contain Ceramesi peppers, which are native and local to Cerami, a selected match was used instead.  There is a fittingness that both these cookies and soup are present at the Madonna della Lavina celebration not only because of their ties to Cerami, but also because in Cerami, in late September, La Sagra dei Prodotti Tipici Ceramesi ‘Pipi e Cavatieddi’, a festival in honor of the soup and cookie, is celebrated.  This year, also, in addition to the cookies, the soup, assorted Italian mini-pastries, brown pears, and figs, there were also a few prickly pears.  While brown pears are associated with the celebration in New Jersey, prickly pears are affiliated with the celebration in Cerami.

Before concluding with a series of photographs, the organizers of this year’s event would like to thank profoundly all those who volunteered and contributed – May God reward you all!

Evviva la Madonna della Lavina! Evviva Maria!

Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG was ordained in the fall of 2019 and was invested as an Ecclesiastical Knight of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St. George in the summer of 2025.  He currently resides at the FSSP Canonical House of St. Casimir in Nashua, NH, and ministers at St. Stanislaus parish.

In support of the causes of Blessed Maria Cristina, Queen, and Servant of God Francesco II, King 

by Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG

On 14 September, the Roman tradition celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross which commemorates the recovery of the Relic of the True Cross from the Persians.  Such a time is, no doubt, a fitting one to examine the blessings found in the Roman books which can be used to bless crosses and crucifixes, an examine which will be undertaken, at least in a cursory manner, in what follows.

The Roman Ritual has two blessings specifically intended for crosses which can be used at any time.  The first blessing listed, the “Solemn Blessing of a Cross” (Solemnis Benedictio Crucis), is intended to be used “for a cross without the image of the Crucified.”¹  The following is a translation of this blessing:²

If a cross is to be exposed for public veneration, it should be solemnly blessed.  This blessing is reserved to the Ordinary who may delegate any priest to perform it.
If the cross is for private use, it may be blessed by any priest without the Ordinary’s permission:

℣. Our help is in the Name of the Lord.
℟. Who made heaven and earth.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.  O Holy Lord, almighty Father, everlasting God, be pleased to bless ✠ this cross, that it may be a saving help to mankind.  Let it be the support of faith, an encouragement to good works, the redemption of souls; and let it be consolation, protection, and a shield against the cruel darts of the enemy; through Christ our Lord.
℟. Amen.

Let us pray.  O Lord Jesus Christ, bless ✠ this cross by which Thou snatched the world from Satan’s grasp, and on which Thou overcame by Thy suffering the tempter to sin, who rejoiced in the first man’s fall in eating of the forbidden tree.  Here it is sprinkled with holy water.  May this cross be hallowed in the Name of the Father, ✠ and of the Son, ✠ and of the Holy ✠ Ghost; and may all who kneel and pray before this cross in honor of our Lord find health in body and soul.  Through the same Christ our Lord.
℟. Amen.

After this the priest, kneeling before the Cross, devoutly venerates and kisses it, and others may do likewise.

It is interesting to note that the text of the prayer associates, even more, identifies, the cross being blessed with the cross on which Christ was actually crucified.  Later regulations would modify the printed rubric allowing any priest to use the above blessing without needing permission from the local Ordinary.³

The second blessing, “intended for a crucifix of more than ordinary size that has been erected as an indoor or outdoor shrine,“⁴ is titled “Another, more Solemn Blessing of a Cross” (Alia Benedictio Solemnior Crucis).  The same blessing, with more extensive rubrics, can also be found in the Roman Pontifical as the Blessing of a New Cross (“de Benedictione Novæ Crucis,” II, 17).  This more solemn blessing begins with a truncated version of the second prayer of the previous blessing followed by the first prayer of the preceding leading into a preface.  The following is a translation with commentary in brackets:⁵

At hand are a thurible and holy water.  The priest, vested in surplice, red stole [the color of Masses and Offices of the mysteries and instruments of the Lord’s Passion] and cope, says:

℣. Our help is in the Name of the Lord.
℟. Who made heaven and earth.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.  O Lord Jesus Christ, bless ✠ this cross by which Thou snatched the world from Satan’s grasp, and overcame by Thy suffering the tempter to sin, who rejoiced in the first man’s fall in eating of the forbidden tree [Gen 3].  We ask this of Thee Who live and reign with God the Father and the Holy Ghost forever and ever.
℟. Amen.

Let us pray.  O Holy Lord, almighty Father, everlasting God, be pleased, we beg Thee, to bless ✠ this cross, so that it may be a saving help to mankind.  Let it be the support of faith, an encouragement to good works, the redemption of souls; and let it be consolation, protection, and a shield against the cruel darts of the enemy [Eph 6:16].  Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who lives and reigns with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God

Then with hands outstretched before his breast he says the following preface in a moderately loud voice:

℣. Forever and ever.
℟. Amen.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.
℣. Lift up your hearts.
℟. We have lifted them up to the Lord.
℣. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
℟. It is right and just.

It is indeed fitting and right, worthy and salutary that we should always and everywhere give thanks to Thee, O holy Lord, almighty Father, everlasting God; for among Thy visible creatures even fruitful trees never cease to praise and bless Thine holy and awesome Name.  In figure of Thine only-begotten Wisdom Thou beautified in the beginning the Garden of Eden with the tree of life, and by its fruit, as by a holy sign, Thou admonished our first parents to beware of death and to seek everlasting life [Gen 2-3; note that the Tree of Life is identified as a sign of Christ for Adam and Eve].  Condemned as we were to a just death by the touch of the forbidden tree, Thou mercifully recalled us from death to life by the selfsame co-eternal Wisdom, Jesus Christ, our Lord and God.  Therefore, we Thy suppliants pray that Thou may hallow with a blessing ✠ from on high this singular sign, wrought and raised up for the faithful’s devotion in remembrance of that first holy standard on which Thou conquered by the precious Blood of Thy Son.  May all who kneel before it, imploring Thy sovereignty, experience true compunction and obtain forgiveness of their transgressions; and by the merits of the victorious suffering and death of Thine only-begotten Son may they seek only what pleases Thee, and speedily obtain what they request.  Grant, we pray, O most loving Father in Whom we live, and move, and have our being [Act 17:28], that as often as we gaze upon and call to mind the triumphant sign of divine humility, which crushed the pride of our foe, we may be filled with hope and be strengthened against the wiles of that same foe, and receive greater grace to live humbly and devoutly in Thy sight.  And on that dreadful judgment day, in that tremendous issuing forth of Thy majesty, when the elements shall quake and the powers of heaven be moved [see 2 Pet 3:12 and Mat 24:29, Mar 13:25, Luk 21:26], and this glorified sign of our redemption shall appear in the heavens [Mat 24:30], may we pass from death to life, and deserve to see the everlasting joys of a blessed resurrection. What follows is said in a subdued tone, loud enough, however, to be heard by the bystanders: Through the same our Lord Jesus Christ…
℟. Amen.

Let us pray.  O God, Who by the gibbet of the holy cross, a onetime instrument of punishment for criminals, restored life to the redeemed, grant that Thy faithful people may find in it a strong support, who see in it their standard of battle.  Let the cross be for them a foundation of faith, a pillar of hope, a safeguard in adversity, an aid in prosperity; let it be victory amid enemies, a guard in cities, a shield in the country, a prop in their homes.  By it may the Good Shepherd keep His flock unharmed, for on it did the Lamb ✠ Who has conquered win our salvation [see Apo 5:5-6, 17:14]; through the same our Lord…
℟. Amen.

Let us pray.  Sanctify, ✠ O Lord Jesus Christ, this sign of Thy passion; that it might be an obstacle to Thine enemies, and to those who believe in Thee may it be prove to be a perpetual banner of victory: Who live and reign with God the Father and the Holy Ghost forever and ever.
℟. Amen.

Then incense in a boat is brought before the priest, who blesses it saying: [Blessing the incense in the boat and not while imposing it in the thurible is unique.]

Let us pray.  O Lord God almighty, before Whom the host of angels stands in awe, and renders Thee a spiritual service glowing with love [symbolized by the coals of the thurible], be pleased to look with favor on this creature, incense, to bless ✠ and to hallow ✠ it.  May all weakness, all infirmity, and all assaults of the enemy, sensing its fragrance, flee and be kept far from Thy creature, man, that he, whom Thou redeemed by the precious Blood of Thy Son, may never again suffer from the sting of the ancient serpent; through the same Christ our Lord.
℟. Amen

[The production of the sacramental effects by means of fragrance is rare.]

After this the priest puts incense into the thurible, and then sprinkles the cross with holy water and incenses it.

If the cross is made of wood he adds the prayer indicated by 1; if of metal or stone, the prayer indicated by 2:

(1): May this wood be sanctified, in the Name of the Father, ✠ and of the Son, ✠ and of the Holy ✠ Ghost.  And may the blessing of this wood, on which were hung the sacred members of our Savior, remain ever in it, so that all who kneel in prayer before this cross in God’s honor may have health in body and soul; through the same our Lord…in the unity of the same Holy Spirit…
℟. Amen.

Then the priest, kneeling before the cross, devoutly venerates it and kisses it, and others who wish may do likewise.

(2): O God of glory, God of hosts, the mighty Emmanuel, God, Father of truth, Father of wisdom, Father of holiness.  O Father, Thou enlighten us and keep watch over us.  Thou rule the world and reign over all kingdoms.  Thou are the giver of all grace and the dispenser of all gifts [see Jam 1:17].  All nations, peoples, tribes, and tongues serve Thee [see Dan 7:14].  All legions of angels minister before Thee [see Heb 1:7, 14].  Thou bestow on Thy servants the power to believe and to praise Thy Name, enabling them to offer due worship to Thee.  Thou desire first of all faith in those who offer sacrifice to Thee, even before the gift is sacrificed.  We appeal, then, to Thy tender-hearted mercy, asking that Thou hallow ✠ and consecrate ✠ this cross made by Thy servants in a spirit of total faith and devotion, to serve as a reminder of Thy victory and our redemption, a victorious and glorious sign of Christ’s love.  Behold this unconquerable sign of the cross by which diabolical power was destroyed and human liberty restored, which once was a symbol of shame, but now by Thy grace has been turned into a symbol of honor; which once punished the guilty with death, but now absolves criminals from their debt.  And how can it please Thee, except that by it Thou were pleased to redeem us?  And now no gift can any longer give Thee due honor except that which onetime had the sacred Body nailed to it; nor is there an offering more familiar to Thee than the one consecrated by the familiar extension of Thine own hands.  Therefore, accept this cross with those hands that once embraced the first cross, and by the holiness of that cross make holy ✠ this one.  And as the world’s guilt was expiated by that cross, so may Thy servants merit deliverance from sin by this one, as they honor it in praise of Thee.  Under the protection of the true cross may they advance step by step as victors.  Here on the cross may the splendor of Thy only-begotten Son, our Lord, sparkle in the gold of Thy glance; may the renown of His death on the wood shine out; may our redemption from death, the purification of our life, be reflected in the effulgent crystal of the cross.  Let the cross be a safeguard and assurance to its followers; let it unite them in faith with the people of all nations, bringing them together in peace and in hope, advancing them in victories, increasing their good fortunes, helping them for all time to advance toward everlasting life, thus assuring their happiness in this life, and leading them by its mighty power to the glory of the heavenly kingdom.  May you grant this by the appeasing Blood of Thy Son, by Him Who is the giver of all gifts [see Jam 1:17], Who gave Himself for the redemption of many [see Mat 20:28], Who offered Himself as a holocaust for sin, Who in being exalted on the wood of the cross humbled the principalities and powers [see Col 2:15], Who with Thee, in the undivided unity of the Holy Ghost, sits on the heavenly throne forevermore.
℟. Amen.

Then the priest, kneeling before the cross, devoutly venerates and kisses it, and others who wish may do likewise.

This blessing is much grander than the previous, having the priest vested in cope, using incense, even including a preface, and views the cross as a “battle standard / vexillum,” similar to the hymn Vexilla regis prodeunt, a word which is also used to denote a processional banner.  It also, notably, differentiates between crucifixes made of wood and those made of metal.  As with the previous, a priest no longer needs delegation from the Ordinary to use this blessing.

Themes common in both of these blessings, especially as the majority of the first is also present in the second, are references to the Trees in Eden, Christ suffering on the wood of the Cross and His victory, by means of the cross, over Satan, sin, and death.  In this, they are expanding on themes present in the Preface of the Holy Cross:⁶

It is truly meet and just, right and for our salvation, that we should at all times, and in all places, give thanks unto Thee, O holy Lord, Father almighty, everlasting God; Who did establish the salvation of mankind on the tree of the Cross; that whence death came, thence also life might arise again, and that he, who overcame by the tree, by the tree also might be overcome: Through Christ our Lord. Through Whom…

In addition to the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, the Roman tradition also celebrated a feast of the Cross on 3 May, the Finding of the Holy Cross, commemorating when St. Helen, the mother of the Emperor Constantine, unearthed the True Cross of Our Lord which had been buried.  Possibly motivated by this feast falling near when warm-season crops are planted, on 10 February 1888, the Sacred Congregation of Rites approved a blessing for crosses which will be placed in cultivated fields, vineyards, and the like (Benedictio Crucium in agris, vineis, etc., plantandarum) which is to be used on 3 May or on the following Sunday (Dominica proxima):⁷

℣. Our help is in the Name of the Lord
℟. Who made heaven and earth.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.  Almighty everlasting God, merciful Father and our unalloyed comfort, in virtue of the bitter suffering which Thine only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, endured for us sinners on the wood of the cross, bless ✠ these crosses which Thy faithful will set up in their vineyards, gardens, fields, and other places.  Shield the land where they are placed from hail, tornado, storm, and every onslaught of the enemy, so that the produce, ripened for the harvest, may be gathered to Thine honor by those who put their trust in the holy cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who lives and reigns with Thee forever and ever.
℟. Amen.

They are sprinkled with holy water.

It would appear that this blessing is intended for wooden crosses without a corpus as they will be subject to the weather.  While this Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross was removed from universal observance under Pope John XXIII, later permission allowed for the Mass of the Finding of the True Cross to be celebrated on 3 May.⁸  As these crosses are to be placed in “vineyards, gardens, fields, and other places,” there is a fitting request to protect crops from the ravages of the weather and for there to be a good harvest.

The blessings above are used for large wooden crosses, large shrine crucifixes, and crosses to be placed in fields and the like respectively, but what about crucifixes which are to be placed on church altars or used at home?  Such crucifixes are blessed using the Solemn Blessing of an Image (Solemnis Benedictio Imaginis),⁹ which can be used at any time and reads as follows in translation:¹⁰

Solemn Blessing of an Image
of Our Lord Jesus Christ, or the Blessed Virgin Mary, or another Saint

Images intended for public veneration should be solemnly blessed.  This solemn blessing is reserved to the Ordinary, who however can grant this faculty to any priest.
This blessing can be conferred privately by any priest without the Ordinary’s permission.
The appropriate expression should be used, as indicated in the text below.

℣. Our help is in the Name of the Lord.
℟. Who made heaven and earth.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.  O Almighty everlasting God, Who do not forbid us to carve or paint images (or likenesses) of Thy saints, in order that whenever we look at them with our bodily eyes we may call to mind their holy lives, and resolve to follow in their footsteps; may it please Thee to bless and to hallow this image (or statue), which has been made in memory and honor of Thine only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ (or the blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ, or blessed N., Thy Apostle, or Martyr, or Bishop, or Confessor, or Virgin).  And grant that all who in its presence pay devout homage to Thine only-begotten Son (or the blessed Virgin, or the glorious Apostle, or Martyr, or Bishop, or Confessor, or Virgin) may by His (or her or his) merits both obtain Thy grace in this life and everlasting glory in the life to come; through (the same) Christ our Lord.
℟. Amen

The priest then sprinkles it with holy water.

Again, the restriction indicated in the printed rubrics was modified by later directives.  This blessing succinctly presents the Church’s teaching on the use and veneration of images, namely that their production and use is not forbidden by God; that the faithful are reminded of the lives and merits of those whose images they view; that the faithful be motived by the example of those whose images they view to live a more holy and Christian life; and that, by the intercession of the those whose images they view, they may receive supernatural benefits. 

The blessings in the Roman tradition for crosses and crucifixes, along with that for images of the saints, are rich and varied, expressing in vivid and beautiful terms the mind of the Church regarding these items and their uses by the faithful.

May what have been presented above aid the faithful in keeping the upcoming feast of the Holy Cross, and indeed even the rest of the days of their lives, with a more profound appreciation for the crosses, crucifixes, and images which adorn, or should adorn, their churches, their shrines, their houses, and even their fields.

Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG was ordained in the fall of 2019 and was invested as an Ecclesiastical Knight of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St. George in the summer of 2025.  He currently resides at the FSSP Canonical House of St. Casimir in Nashua, NH, and ministers at St. Stanislaus parish.

In support of the causes of Blessed Maria Cristina, Queen, and Servant of God Francesco II, King 

1. Matters Liturgical [1959], n. 152.c.
2. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 9, 13; English rubrics taken from the translation provided in the Parish Ritual – Designed to Aid Parish Priests in the Regular Exercise of the Pastoral Ministry – Supplemented by Lawful Customary Usages Proper to the United States. Ed. McManus, Fredrick R. in association with Babo, Bede. (New York: Benziger Brothers, Inc., 1962), p. 15*; English translation modified from the translation of the Ritual, Complete Edition done by Philip T. Weller (Chicago: The Bruce Publishing Company, 1964), Blessing of Things Designated for Sacred Functions of Purposes, n. 14.
3.  Inter Oecumenici Instruction on Implementing Liturgical Norms, 26 September 1964, 77.
4. Matters Liturgical [1959], n. 152.b.
5. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 9, 14; translation adopted from Weller, Complete Edition, Blessing of Things Designated for Sacred Functions of Purposes, n. 14.
6. Translation taken from Divinum Officium.
7. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 3, 12; English adapted from the Weller translation provided online by EWTN (2, XI, II, 15).
8. See the entry for 3 May in the 2021 CDF Ordo Divini Officii Recitandi Sacrique Peragendi.
9. See Matters Liturgical [1959], n. 152.a.
10. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 9, 15; English rubrics taken from the translation provided in the Parish Ritual – Designed to Aid Parish Priests in the Regular Exercise of the Pastoral Ministry – Supplemented by Lawful Customary Usages Proper to the United States. Ed. McManus, Fredrick R. in association with Babo, Bede. (New York: Benziger Brothers, Inc., 1962), p. 15*; English translation adopted from Weller, Complete Edition, Blessing of Things Designated for Sacred Functions of Purposes, n. 15.

Join gift planning experts and FSSP priests and staff on August 25th, 2026 at 4PM EST for an informative webinar discussing Donor Advised Funds (DAFs), IRA Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs), and gifts of appreciated stocks or other assets.

Learn how these gifts REALLY help the FSSP AND provide meaningful tax benefits for you!

Special Guest: Joshua Gideon, FSSP Parishioner & Chief of Strategy for Knights of Columbus Charitable Fund

SIGN UP HERE

For information or to sign up, contact Joe Gardner, Director of Planned Giving: (570) 319-5271, jgardner@fssp.com, or via mail at FSSP Provincial Headquarters.

by Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG

On 6 August, Holy Mother Church celebrates the great feast of the Transfiguration and begins a recapitulated Lent.  Long associated with this day is the blessing of grapes.  Writing in the thirteenth century, William Durandus the Elder, Bishop of Mende (d. A.D. 1296), who did for the liturgy what St. Thomas Aquinas did for theology, gives the following account of this practice in his Rationale Divinorum Officium (VII, XXII, 2):

Note that in some places on this day, the Blood of Christ is confected from new wine, if it can be found, or at least a small amount [of juice] from a ripe grape is squeezed into the chalice.  And also, clusters of grapes are blessed, from which the people take a share [communicat], and this is the reason why.  For on the day of the Last Supper, Jesus said to His disciples: And I say to you, I will not drink from henceforth of this fruit of the vine until that day when I shall drink it with you new in the kingdom of my Father [Mat 26:29].  Because that which He called new, and also the Transfiguration, pertains to that glorious renewal, which Christ had after His Resurrection, and which the faithful will have after their resurrection; therefore, on this feast, the Blood of Christ is confected from new wine, and also because of this, on this day new grapes are blessed.

While Durandus presents a spiritual foundation for the practice of blessing grapes on 6 August, this must be considered a later development, one which came about after the origins of this practice had been forgotten.  The blessing of grapes on 6 August was originally, in fact, associated with the Feast of St. Sixtus II (d. 6 August A.D. 258), originally kept at Rome on 6 August prior to the adoption of the Feast of the Transfiguration (after the Feast of the Transfiguration was adopted, Sts. Sixtus and Companions would come be observed as a commemoration on the same day).  According to a tradition, it was Pope St. Sixtus himself who established

the custom of blessing grapes at the liturgy, in consequence of which the practice came to be very generally observed on his feast day in later centuries.  The day was held to be propitious as the grapes by then were generally ripe…When the feast of the Transfiguration came to be observed on 6 August, two Masses were celebrated on that day [one of the Transfiguration and one of St. Sixtus], and the blessing took place in the Mass of the Saint.¹

It is also noted that the blessing of grapes during the liturgy, at certain times and places, was additionally done on the “25 July, the joint feast of St. James and St. Christopher.”²

The point in the liturgy, that is the point during the Mass, at which the grapes would have been blessed was at the location of or as part of the Per quem hæc omnia prayer at the end of the Roman Canon, which seems to have been originally used for blessing “natural products.”³  In fact, the Gregorian Sacramentary⁴ preserves the text for the blessing of grapes which would have been added to the Per quem hæc omnia in Rome on the Nones of August (6 August), the Feast of St. Sixtus II:

Benedic domine et hos fructus nouos uuę./ quos tu domine rore cęli . et inundantia pluuiarum . et temporum serenitate . atque tranquillitate . ad maturitatem perducere dignatus es . et dedisti ea  ad usus nostros cum gratiarum actione percipere . in nomine domini nostri iesu christi . per quem hęc omnia domine semper bona creas.⁵

While the Roman Ritual does not have a blessing of grapes specifically designated for 6 August or for the Feast of the Transfiguration, there is a general Blessing of Grapes (Uvarum) which can be used at any time and, fittingly, on the Feast, which is presented below in the both the Latin and in translation.  It should be noted that a comparison of the text above found in the Gregorian Sacramentary and of that found in the Ritual shows that there is great overlap between the two of them, with only some slight differences (indicated in bold above and below and explained below), indicating the Ritual preserved this ancient Roman blessing of grapes whose origin goes back to early Roman Christianity.

℣. Adiutórium nostrum in nómine Dómini.
℟. Qui fecit cælum et terram.
℣. Dóminus vobíscum.
℟. Et cum spíritu tuo.

Béne✠dic, Dómine, et hos fructus novos víneæ [“of grapes” changed to “of the vine”], quos tu rore cæli, et abundántia [“inundation” changed to “abundance”] pluviárum, et témporum serenitáte atque tranquillitáte, ad maturitátem perdúcere dignátus es, et dedísti eos [change to eos to reflect back to fructus novos, here the reference seems to be more vague] ad usus nostros cum gratiárum actióne percípere in nómine Dómini nostri Iesu Christi: Qui tecum vivitet regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti Deus, per ómnia sæcula sæculórum.
℟. Amen.

Et aspergantur aqua benedicta.

℣. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
℟. Who made heaven and earth.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.
Lord, bless ✠ this new fruit of the vine, which in Thy benevolence Thou have ripened by heavenly dew, an abundance of rainfall, gentle breezes, and fair weather; and have given us to use with gratitude in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, forever and ever.
℟. Amen.

They are sprinkled with holy water.⁶

But the blessing of grapes on the feast of the Transfiguration is not limited to those churches which follow the Roman tradition.  According to A Byzantine Rite Liturgical Year:

This feast [of the Transfiguration] falls during the time when the fruits of the earth reach maturity.  From the earliest times in the Eastern Church, on this day fruit is blessed in thanksgiving to God for the first fruits of the earth.  This custom was adopted by the Christian Church from the Old Testament which prescribed that fruit be brought to the Temple of the Lord.  In the Book of Exodus we read: “You shall carry the first-fruits of the corn of your ground to the house of the Lord your God.” (23,19)  In the Book of Leviticus we read: “When you shall have entered the land which I shall give you, and shall reap your corn, you shall bring sheaves of ears, and first-fruits of your harvest to the priest.” (23,10)

The custom of blessing the first-fruits in church was prescribed in the Canons of the Holy Apostles at the end of the third century.  The Apostolic Constitutions of the fourth century have a prayer for the blessing of first-fruits.  The local Synod of Carthage (318), in the forty-sixth rule gave prescriptions concerning the first-fruits that are brought to church.  The Sixth Ecumenical Council of 691 spoke of the blessing of the first-fruits of grapes (the vine) and wheat…

In Greece, in the month of August grapes and wheat, which are the more important fruits, reach their maturity.  For this reason, the custom of blessing the grapes and ears of wheat in church on the feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord prevailed there.  In Rus-Ukraine, grapes of the vine were replaced by apples and other fruits.⁷

According to this, the origin of the blessing of first-fruits in the Christian tradition began in imitation of what was prescribed in the Old Testament and was codified by Church practice, as witnessed in ecclesiastical writings, and even by a decree of an Ecumenical Council.  The Byzantine practice of blessings of grapes on the Feast of the Transfiguration, according to the above, has an origin in Greece, as it was around the time of this Feast that grapes are harvested there.  While this explanation does shed some light on the ancient Christian practice of blessing fruit in general, it does not explain why the feast of the Transfiguration, as opposed to some other day or feast (the Feast of the Dormition/Assumption of Our Lady is only a few days later), was chosen for the blessing of grapes.  Though, perhaps, the Greeks adopted the Roman day, which predates the introduction of the Feast at Rome, and knowledge of this borrowing has been obscured in the East, and, just as in the West, the blessing of grapes became associated with the Feast of the Transfiguration rather than with St. Sixtus II.  In any case, both at Rome and in Greece, early August is the time grapes come to maturity and the Christian instinct led our forefathers in the Faith to mark an event of such importance liturgically.

Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG was ordained in the fall of 2019 and was invested as an Ecclesiastical Knight of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St. George in the summer of 2025.  He currently resides at the FSSP Canonical House of St. Casimir in Nashua, NH, and ministers at St. Stanislaus parish.

In support of the causes of Blessed Maria Cristina, Queen, and Servant of God Francesco II, King 

1. King, Archdale, A. Liturgy of the Roman Church. (London: Longmans, Green and Co.,1957), pp. 340-341.
2. Ibid., p. 341
3. For a discussion on the purpose of the Per quem hæc omnia see Jungmann, Joseph, A. The Mass of the Roman Rite: Its Origins and Development, vol. 2. Trans. Brunner, Francis A. (New York: Benziger Brothers, Inc., 1955), pp. 259-264.
4. The Gregorian Sacramentary is a Mass book originating in Rome, prior to A.D. 800 and possibly dating to the time of St. Gregory the Great himself (A.D. 590-604), containing the texts necessary for a priest to celebrate Mass (the orations, prefaces, Canon, etc.).  For a discussion about the date of this work see: CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Liturgical Books.
5. The Gregorian Sacramentary Under Charles the Great. Ed. Wilsom, H. A. (London: Harrison and Sons, 1915), p. 92.
6. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 7, 2; English adapted from the Weller translation provided online by EWTN (2, XI, VIII, 2).
7. Katrij, Julian. A Byzantine Rite Liturgical Year. Trans. Wysochansky, Demetrius. (Detroit: Basilian Fathers Publication, 1983), pp. 422-423.

by Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG

In May of 2026, I accompanied the servers of the parish, along with some of their fathers, on a self-organized pilgrimage to the National Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs in Auriesville, New York, perhaps better known as the Shrine of the North American Martyrs.  It marks the area where Sts. Isaac Jogues, René Goupil, and Jean de Lalande were martyred and also the birthplace of St. Kateri Tekakwitha.  Prior to boarding the bus, Mass was celebrated and the Blessing of Pilgrims Before Setting Out was invoked over those making the journey.  The Blessing of Pilgrims on Their Return was duly conferred at the conclusion of the day.  All of this having happened, I thought the readers of the Missive would be interested in reading the ceremonies from the Roman Ritual which were used.

To begin, then, the following text, presented in red, is the rubrics presented at the beginning of the Blessing of Pilgrims before they set out for the holy shrines (benedictio peregrinorum ad loca sancta prodeuntium).

In accord with ancient ecclesiastical discipline, pilgrims who are to visit the holy shrines should obtain a letter of recommendation from their Ordinary or pastor before they set out.  Having put their affairs in order, they prepare themselves with sacramental confession, assist at Mass and receive holy communion. In this Mass the Collect for pilgrims (pro re gravi) is said.  After Mass they kneel before the priest who says the following¹

The Mass prayers referenced at the end of the above rubrics, taken from the Votive Mass for Pilgrims and Travelers (Missa votiva pro peregrinantibus et iter agentibus), are as follows:²

Collect: Hear, O Lord, our humble prayers, and set Thy servants in the path of Thy salvation; that amidst all the changes and chances of this life, they may ever be sheltered by Thy help.  Through our Lord…

Secret: Be appeased, O Lord, by our humble prayers and in Thy bounty receive these offerings which we make to Thee on behalf of Thy servants; send Thy grace before them to guide their steps, and sending it with them be pleased to accompany them on their way; that by the protection of Thy mercy, we may rejoice both in their progress and in their safety.  Through our Lord…

Postcommunion: May Thy sacraments, O Lord, which we have received, preserve Thy servants who hope in Thee; and defend them from all assaults of the enemy.  Through our Lord…

After the rubrics begins the text of the ceremony:

Antiphon: May the almighty and merciful Lord lead you in the way of peace and prosperity.  May the Angel Raphael be your companion on the journey and bring you back to your homes in peace, health, and happiness.

Luke 1.68-79³

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel! * He has visited His people and brought about its redemption.
He has raised for us a stronghold of salvation * in the house of David His servant,
And redeemed the promise He had made * through the mouth of His holy prophets of old–
To grant salvation from our foes * and from the hand of all that hate us;
To deal in mercy with our fathers * and be mindful of His holy covenant,
Of the oath he had sworn to our father Abraham, * that He would enable us–
Rescued from the clutches of our foes–* to worship Him without fear,
In holiness and observance of the Law, * in His presence, all our days.
And you, my little one, will be hailed ‘Prophet of the Most High’; * for the Lord’s precursor you will be to prepare His ways;
You are to impart to His people knowledge of salvation * through forgiveness of their sins.
Thanks be to the merciful heart of our God! * a dawning Light from on high will visit us.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Antiphon: May the almighty and merciful Lord lead you in the way of peace and prosperity. May the Angel Raphael be your companion on the journey and bring you back to your homes in peace, health, and happiness.

Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Our Father (the rest inaudibly until:)
℣. And lead us not into temptation.
℟. But deliver us from evil.
℣. Save Thy servants.
℟. Who trust in Thee, my God.
℣. Lord, send them aid from Thine holy place.
℟. And watch over them from Sion.
℣. Let them find in Thee, Lord, a fortified tower.
℟. In the face of the enemy.
℣. Let the enemy have no power over them.
℟. And the son of iniquity be powerless to harm them.
℣. May the Lord be praised at all times.
℟. May God, our helper, grant us a happy journey.
℣. Lord, shows us Thy ways.
℟. And lead us along Thy paths.
℣. Oh, that our life be bent.
℟. On keeping Thy precepts.
℣. For the crooked ways will be made straight.
℟. And the rough places plain.
℣. God has given His angels charge over you.
℟. To guard you in all your undertakings.
℣. O Lord, hear my prayer.
℟. And let my cry come onto Thee.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.
God, Who led the children of Israel dry-shod through the sea, and showed the way to the three Magi by the guidance of a star; grant these pilgrims, we pray, a happy journey and peaceful days, so that, with Thine holy angel as a guide, they may safely reach their destination and finally come to the haven of everlasting salvation.

God, Who led Thy servant, Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and kept him safe in all his wanderings; may it please Thee, we pray, also to watch over these servants of Thine. Be to them, Lord, a help in their preparations, comfort on the way, shade in the heat, shelter in the rain and cold, a carriage in tiredness, a shield in adversity, a staff in insecurity, a haven in shipwreck; so that under Thy guidance they may happily reach their destination, and finally return safe to their homes.

Lord, we beg Thee to hear our request that Thou guide the steps of Thy servants along the path of well-being that comes from Thee, and that in the midst of this fickle world they may always live under Thy protection.

Grant, we pray, O almighty God, that Thy family of pilgrims find a safe route; and heeding the admonitions of blessed John, the precursor, come finally to Him whom John foretold, Thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Hear, Lord, our prayers, and kindly accompany Thy servants on their journey; and as Thou are present everywhere lend them Thine aid at all times, so that with Thee as their shield they will be defended from all dangers and pay Thee their homage of gratitude; through Christ our Lord.
℟. Amen.

May the peace and blessing of almighty God, Father, Son, ✠ and Holy Ghost, descend upon you and remain with you forever.
℟. Amen.

They are sprinkled with holy water.

If there is only one pilgrim the prayers are said in the singular; but if the priest who bestows the blessing is a member of the pilgrimage they are said in the plural.

The main theme of the ceremony is the protection and safe return of the pilgrims.  The blessing fittingly begins with the Benedictus, the Canticle of Zachary, the father of St. John the Baptist, with its reference to the ways of the Lord, which in this case refers to the way of the pilgrimage.  After the versicles and responses, reference is made to the divinely guided and protected journeys of the Israelites out of Egypt, of the Magi, and of Abraham with the ceremony asking God to watch over the pilgrims in a similar way.  The text in the second prayer, asking God to accompany the pilgrims in a variety of ways, is similar to a passage in the Prophet Isaias : “And the Lord will create upon every place of mount Sion, and where He is called upon, a cloud by day, and a smoke and the brightness of a flaming fire in the night: for over all the glory shall be a protection.  And there shall be a tabernacle for a shade in the daytime from the heat, and for a security and covert from the whirlwind, and from rain” (Isa 4:5-6).⁴  The requests are also reminiscent of the fourth stanza of the Veni, Sancte Spíritus, the Pentecost sequence, which reads: “Thou in toil art comfort sweet; Pleasant coolness in the heat; Solace in the midst of woe.”  Overall, this Blessing of Pilgrims before they depart follows closely to the Itinerarium which can be used for any travel.

The translation of the blessing for pilgrims on their return (benedictio peregrinorum post reditum) is as follows:⁵

℣. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
℟. Who made heaven and earth.

Antiphon: Behold, thus is the man blessed who fears the Lord.

Psalm 127 [Vulgate]⁶

Happy are you who fear the Lord, * who walk in His ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork; * happy shall you be, and favored.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine * in the recesses of your home;
Your children like olive plants * around your table.
See, thus is the man blessed * who fears the Lord.
The Lord bless you from Sion: * may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life;
May you see your children’s children. * Peace be upon Israel!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Antiphon: Behold, thus is the man blessed who fears the Lord.

Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Our Father (the rest inaudibly until:)
℣. And lead us not into temptation.
℟. But deliver us from evil.
℣. Blessed are they who come in the name of the Lord.
℟. Blessed be you by the Lord who made heaven and earth.
℣. Look with favor, Lord, on Thy servants and their works.
℟. And keep them in the way of Thy precepts.
℣. O Lord, hear my prayer.
℟. And let my cry come onto Thee.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.
We beg Thee, Lord, be appeased, and lavish on Thy servants pardon and peace, so that being cleansed of all their transgressions they may serve Thee with tranquil hearts.

Almighty everlasting God, the ruler of our lives and destinies, grant to Thy servants continual and abundant peace, so that those whom Thou have brought back safely to their various occupations may bask in the security of Thy protection.

God, the support of the lowly, Thou Who console us by the love of our brethren; bestow Thy grace on our brotherhood, so that we may always see Thy presence in those in whom Thou live by Thy grace; through Christ our Lord.
℟. Amen.

May the peace and blessing of almighty God, Father, Son, ✠ and Holy Ghost, descend upon you and remain with you forever.
℟. Amen.

They are sprinkled with holy water.

The blessing upon return begins with Psalm 127.  The reference in the Psalm to those “who walk in His ways,” is a reference to the pilgrims who have, by undertaking the pilgrimage, walked in the way of the Lord, and thus serves as a parallel to the Benedictus used in the previous ceremony which also mentions the ways of the Lord.  The first prayer asks for the forgiveness of sins, presumably those which unfortunately may have been committed during the pilgrimage.  The second recognizes that God has brought the pilgrims back safely and asks for His blessing as they return to their normal routines.  Lastly, the third prayer asks for the grace to see God in those in whom He is indwelling.  This prayer also indicates that those who have gone on pilgrimage together form a brotherhood (societati) and that a love exists between them (fraterna dilectione).

The ceremony for blessing departing pilgrims is noticeably longer than that used upon returning, no doubt because going on pilgrimage was, and can still be, a very dangerous affair.

In conclusion, dear reader, if you are ever setting out on a pilgrimage, either alone or with a group, please consider having these ceremonies performed so that you may have available to you all of the graces which the Church desires to offer to her pilgrims.

Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG was ordained in the fall of 2019 and was invested as an Ecclesiastical Knight of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St. George in the summer of 2025.  He currently resides at the FSSP Canonical House of St. Casimir in Nashua, NH, and ministers at St. Stanislaus parish.

In support of the causes of Blessed Maria Cristina, Queen, and Servant of God Francesco II, King 

1. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 4, 1; English adapted from the Weller translation provided online by EWTN (2, XI, III, 8).
2. Translations taken from Lefebvre, Gaspar. The Saint Andrew Daily Missal-Regular Edition. (St. Paul: E. M. Lohmann Co., 1940), pp [157], [159].
3. English from the Weller translation provided online by EWTN in the blessing of Epiphany Water (2, II, 5).
4. The similarities are clearer in Latin where the blessing uses “…in æstu umbraculum, in pluvia et frigore tegumentum…,” and the Prophet “et tabernaculum erit in umbraculum diei ab æstu et in securitatem et absconsionem a turbine et a pluvia.“
5. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 4, 2; English adapted from the Weller translation provided online by EWTN (2, XI, III, 9).
6. English from the Weller translation provided online by EWTN in the rite for celebrating marriage (1, VII, II).
   

by Fr. Mark Wojdelski, FSSP

(This is part of a series of articles, and will make little sense without the introductory articles: (1) , (2), (3), and (4).  There are more than four articles in the series, but the first four are very important to understanding the conceptual framework.  There is also an index available here for the rest of the articles which includes a calendar with links.)

Now that the Easter season has come to a close and Pentecost and its octave are behind us, there is now an opportunity to look at a few more items from Holy Week that were omitted at the appropriate time for the sake of length. So many different things were occurring at that time of the year that it was not possible (within reason) to describe all of the various events taking place.

We can begin once again on Palm Sunday, corresponding to the tenth day of the first month, the month of Nisan (or Abib), when Moses is instructed by God:

 

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall be for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month they shall take every man a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household; and if the household is too small for a lamb, then a man and his neighbor next to his house shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old; you shall take it from the sheep or from the goats; and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs in the evening. (Ex 12:1–6)

At this point the reader is probably asking, “Would it not make more sense for the crucifixion to have taken place on the 14th day of Nisan, as the paschal lambs were being sacrificed? This is an interesting question and has been the subject of debate for a very long time, with at least one scholar who held this position arguing that the Last Supper took place on a Tuesday. (!)¹ Generally, the Eastern church holds the opinion that the crucifixion took place at the same time the paschal lambs were being sacrificed  (as they say) on 14 Nisan. This is seemingly the position of St. John’s gospel.  In accord with this assumption the Last Supper could not have been the Passover meal, strictly speaking. Still other commentators have suggested that the supper as recounted in St. John’s gospel was not the Last Supper at all, but a meal that was shared in Bethany the night before.

The Western church (at least liturgically) holds to the history as given by the synoptic gospels. This might seem to go against the deep symbolism of the sacrifice of Christ taking place at the same time as the sacrifice of the paschal lamb. However, this need not be so. I propose that the Paschal lamb and Christ were not sacrificed at the same time, but they were sacrificed on the same day, strictly speaking, if we look at the letter of the law:

“The slaying of the lamb was to take place on the 14th Abib, between the two evenings (Ex. xii. 6). According to the Samaritan, Caraitic view, which is generally regarded as the correct one by modern writers on Jewish antiquities, the expression בֵּ֥ין הָעַרְבָּֽיִם refers to the time between six o’clock and half-past seven—the first evening commencing when the sun disappears below the horizon, the second at the time of total darkness.”²

We have seen in a previous article that the Sadducees held power in the temple at the time of Christ and would have tried to observe the absolute letter of the law, implying that the sun would have already set on the 14th, at least when they were sacrificing their own lambs for their personal use.³ The few Samaritans (or perhaps Karaites) remaining in the world today would follow the same practice. Thus the time between sunset and total darkness represents a sort of transitional period, where one can reckon it as both the day preceding and the day following. When complete darkness takes over, there is no longer any doubt that the next day has begun. Since our Lord certainly died well before sunset, at about the ninth hour, (Mt 27:46) it was still definitely the same day, and not the following day (not even ambiguously), while the paschal lamb would have been sacrificed at a time that was (ambiguously) both on the previous day and the following day. The old covenant thus seemed to be offering sacrifice on the cusp of a new day, but one that began in darkness, because the sacrifice was one with which God was pleased but not satisfied, (Ps 49:13–15) an evening sacrifice, as it were. On the other hand, the sacrifice of Calvary took place while the sun was darkened in the middle of the day, at about the ninth hour, just when the darkness that began three hours before was about to end, and a “new” (albeit very short) day was about to commence: “Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’. . . And Jesus cried again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.” (Mt 27:45–46, 50) What the gospel passes over reminding us is that it was then that the darkness was lifting. God had received the sacrifice that pleased Him, that of His beloved Son, and in testimony of this, the declining sun once again gave its full light before the end of the day.

This way of looking at the sacrifice of the paschal lamb can perhaps serve to reconcile the diverging opinions of both the various scholars and the various traditions that tenaciously hold to one day over the other as the “real” day of the crucifixion. This might also explain why the odd expression “between the two evenings” was used in the book of Exodus. The true Paschal Lamb prefigured by the lamb of the old covenant would still be sacrificed “between the two evenings” of the 14th and the 15th of Nisan, but during the day on the first day of Unleavened Bread, after the lamb of the old covenant was sacrificed during the transitional period ending 14 Nisan and beginning 15 Nisan. Thus both the paschal lamb and the Lamb of God are sacrificed on the same day. Each day begins with an evening and ends with an evening, but those evenings are somewhat “fuzzy” in nature.⁴ The old lamb was slaughtered during one of those “fuzzy evenings” and eaten in the middle of the night. Our Lord died on the cross “during the day” but it was just becoming light after a period (three hours) of darkness, just as the old lamb died while it was becoming dark at the end of an ordinary day.

Returning to the tenth day of Nisan, we note that this is also the anniversary of the day Israel comes out of the Jordan river into the promised land after forty years of wandering in the desert. After the deaths of Miriam, Aaron, and Moses, the people were placed under the leadership of Joshua, who led them across the Jordan river as over dry land, in a manner very similar to the crossing of the Red Sea.

The people passed over in haste;  and when all the people had finished passing over, the ark of the Lord and the priests passed over before the people. . . On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they stood in awe of him, as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.

And the Lord said to Joshua, “Command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant to come up out of the Jordan.” Joshua therefore commanded the priests, “Come up out of the Jordan.” And when the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord came up from the midst of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up on dry ground, the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and overflowed all its banks, as before.

The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they encamped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal.  And he said to the sons of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’  then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty; that you may fear the Lord your God for ever.” (Jos 4:10,14–24)

After this crossing, we are told, “On that day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they stood in awe of him, as they had stood in awe of Moses, all the days of his life.” (Jos 4:14) The contrast here is noteworthy. Both the triumphal entrance into Jerusalem (the Holy City, the center of the Holy Land) and the tragedy of the second Joshua (=Jesus) being marked for death coincide with this day of joyful entry into the promised land. “Hosanna!”’ gives way to “crucify him!” The first Joshua, like his fulfillment in Jesus, are celebrated on this earth on the same day. The first Joshua, however, does not have to bear the humiliation of the cross; instead he celebrates the first Passover in the promised land with the people of Israel. Our Lord celebrates His last Passover on the night before his passion and death, after entering the Holy City, the figure of the eternal Temple. He told his apostles, “I tell you I shall not eat it [again] until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” (Lk 22:16)

The epistle for Palm Sunday fits well with this theme:

Have this mind among yourselves, which was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,  but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil 2:5-11)

He accepted what we will not easily accept, and he accepted it under the most gruesome and humiliating circumstances imaginable, but God glorified Him when He raised Him up from the dead.

There is yet another grouping of events taking place on this day, somewhat in parallel to the above. In the last eight chapters of the prophecy of Ezekiel, the prophet in exile in Babylon is given a very long and detailed vision of a new temple. It was always understood by the Jews returning home after their exile in Babylon that this was a symbolic description of some ideal temple, and its specifications were not incorporated into the new temple that was built after their return from their time in exile:

In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was conquered, on that very day, the hand of the Lord was upon me, and brought me in the visions of God into the land of Israel, and set me down upon a very high mountain, on which was a structure like a city opposite me. When he brought me there, behold, there was a man, whose appearance was like bronze, with a line of flax and a measuring reed in his hand; and he was standing in the gateway.  And the man said to me, “Son of man, look with your eyes, and hear with your ears, and set your mind upon all that I shall show you, for you were brought here in order that I might show it to you; declare all that you see to the house of Israel.” (Ezek 40:1-4)

One of the things Ezekiel saw was water flowing out of the temple: “Then he brought me back to the door of the temple; and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east); and the water was flowing down from below the right side of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar.” (Ezek 47:1)

This is the origin of the antiphon “Vidi Aquam,” used instead of the “Asperges” during the sprinkling of the water over the people at Sunday High Mass during the Easter season. It might seem odd that this event takes place on this day, rather than any other, but there is a possible connection with another bit of Jewish tradition. Just as Christians keep remembrance of the date of a holy person’s death, most Jewish traditions assign the death of Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron, to the tenth day of Nisan, the day that we are considering here.⁵ Given the obvious parallel in the names Miriam and Mary (probably meaning something like “exalted lady”), the day that her Son is designated to die (liturgically speaking, as the mystical Lamb) is perhaps the day that she herself feels the pains of death in her heart. She must certainly have been aware that his death was approaching, since she understood the scriptures.

“And the sons of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh; and Miriam died there, and was buried there.” (Num 20:1) The name of the place “Kadesh” means “holy,” so Miriam was buried in a “holy place” exactly one year before the Israelites entered the promised land.⁶

According to certain traditions, this is when the “Well of Miriam,” i.e. the rock that traditionally followed the Israelites through the desert, giving them water along the way, dried up towards the end of the Exodus. (Num 20:1–2) Thus the second time Moses has to get water out of the rock likely happened this day or shortly thereafter.

“The rock was Christ,” according to St. Paul (1 Cor 10:4) but the Jews, the people of the old covenant, attributed it to Miriam. It is fascinating to consider that this much later rabbinic association with Miriam could be subtly pointing the Jews towards our Blessed Lady, and by that avenue, towards Christ.

And three good gifts were given from Heaven through their agency, and these are they: The well of water, the pillar of cloud, and the manna. He elaborates: The well was given to the Jewish people in the merit of Miriam; the pillar of cloud was in the merit of Aaron; and the manna in the merit of Moses. When Miriam died the well disappeared, as it is stated: “And Miriam died there” (Numbers 20:1), and it says thereafter in the next verse: “And there was no water for the congregation” (Numbers 20:2). But the well returned in the merit of both Moses and Aaron.⁷

Three good providers arose for Israel, and these are they: Moses, and Aaron, and Miriam. And three good gifts were given through them to Israel, and these are they: the well, and the pillar of cloud, and the Mannah. The Mannah was [given] by the merit of Moses, the pillar of cloud by the merit of Aaron, the well by the merit of Miriam. Miriam died, the well disappeared, it was given back to Israel by the merit of Moses and Aaron.⁸

There are all sorts of later traditions that sprang up about how the rock moved along with them, and how it gave water around the whole camp (traditions with which St. Paul was familiar, cf. Rom 10:4). Once again, we see the rock and the living water. St. Paul tells us very clearly that “the rock was Christ” but if it was earned by the merits of Miriam, we can see the connection with the Incarnation. We would not dare suggest that our Lady somehow merited the Incarnation strictly speaking, but the Church does engage in a bit of pious exaggeration in such liturgical antiphons as the Regina Caeli (“whom thou didst merit to bear”).

The matins reading assigned to Palm Sunday (10 Nisan), from the prophecy of Jeremiah, also seems to fit with this theme:

Be appalled, O heavens, at this, be shocked, be utterly desolate, says the Lord, for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves,  broken cisterns, that can hold no water. (Jer 2:12–13)

They try to purify themselves, but to no avail. Without God we can most certainly do nothing. (Jn 15:5) The waters of life—referring to the Holy Spirit who is life—only issue only from the living temple, our Lord Jesus Christ.

We are pleased to provide the following translation of an article in Claves, the newsletter of the French district of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter. This article summarizes the arguments presented in a 40-page Theological study authored by members of the Fraternity under the direction of Fr. Josef Bisig, rector of Our Lady of Guadalupe seminary and a founding member of the FSSP. —ed.

Are the ordinations planned by the FSSPX legitimate?

Written by a group of theologians (Theologus), this article received strong praise from Cardinal Sarah:

“A huge thank you for this enlightening text. It will enlighten souls eager to live their Faith in the Truth, that is, in Christ and in His Church. Since 2001, I have been among those who assist the Supreme Pontiff in selecting candidates for the episcopate, following a long and meticulous investigation of each candidate. I am painfully surprised and shocked that a simple decision by a Community Superior would determine the ordination of ‘truly Catholic bishops.’ Thank you for this wonderful, clear, and well-researched text. We must realize that it is not we who save souls. It is Christ alone who saves. We are merely instruments in His Hands.

Let us continue to pray that the Body of Christ may not be torn apart again.”

Cardinal Robert Sarah

What is the fundamental argument of the SSPX in defense of the consecrations planned for July 1, 2026?

It is officially summarized in an Appendix to Father Pagliarani’s response to the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, dated February 18, 2026:

“An episcopal consecration not authorized by the Holy See, when it is not accompanied by a schismatic intention or by the conferral of jurisdiction, does not constitute a rupture of communion with the Church. The constitution Lumen gentium on the Church states in Chapter III, no. 21 [LG 21], that the power of jurisdiction is conferred by episcopal consecration. […]

The argument that would conclude that future episcopal consecrations within the Society would be schismatic rests entirely on the postulate of the Second Vatican Council that episcopal consecration confers both the power of order and that of jurisdiction.”

In what way is this argument open to criticism?

It contains two major errors: one regarding what the Council affirms; the other regarding the argumentation of those who oppose the future consecrations.

What does the Council actually say?

It does not affirm that episcopal consecration confers the power of jurisdiction.

“The holy Council teaches that, through episcopal consecration, the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders is conferred […]. Episcopal consecration, together with the office (or function: munus) of sanctification, also confers the offices of teaching and governing, which, however, by their very nature, can be exercised only in hierarchical communion with the head of the college and its members (LG 21).”

To fully understand the text of LG 21, it should be noted that an explanatory note (Nota explicativa prævia) was added to Lumen gentium in response to requests for clarification from the Council Fathers, including those from the group to which Archbishop Lefebvre belonged, the Cœtus internationalis Patrum.

What does the Note explaining LG 21 say?

“In the episcopal consecration, ontological participation in the sacred functions (munera) is conferred, as is clearly evident from Tradition and also from liturgical tradition. The term ‘functions’ (munera) is deliberately used rather than ‘power’ (potestas), because the latter could be understood as a power capable of being exercised in practice. But for such a power capable of being exercised to exist, a canonical or juridical determination on the part of the hierarchical authority must intervene. […] Such a subsequent norm is required by the nature of the matter, because these are functions that must be exercised by several subjects who, by the will of Christ, cooperate in a hierarchical manner. It is evident that this “communion” was applied in the life of the Church according to the circumstances of the times before being codified in law.

This is why it is expressly stated that hierarchical communion with the head and members of the Church is required. Communion is a concept held in high esteem in the early Church (as it still is today, particularly in the East). It is not understood as some vague sentiment, but as an organic reality, which requires a juridical form and is at the same time animated by charity. ” (Nota prævia, n. 2).

Is there here an erroneous innovation of Vatican II?

Contrary to what the FSSPX maintains, according to Vatican II, what is conferred by episcopal consecration is not the power to govern (jurisdiction), but offices or functions. The FSSPX therefore asserts—without proving it—a supposedly erroneous “postulate of Vatican II.”

Moreover, a well-known “traditionalist” theologian, Father Raymond Dulac, explains, on the contrary, that in the text of LG 21, there is no break with previous Catholic doctrine: “Consecration produces an innate, indelible vocation, inscribed in the ‘episcopal character,’ to govern a portion of the Church, but this capacity must be actualized through a true ‘power’ of jurisdiction.” And he speaks of “radical authority inscribed in consecration ” (Episcopal Collegiality at the Second Vatican Council, Le Cèdre, 1979, pp. 119–120).

Does the argument of those who oppose future consecrations rest entirely, as the SSPX claims, on this supposed “error” of Vatican II?

No, because even if the SSPX were correct in its criticism of Lumen gentium, those who oppose its reasoning do not base their position on this question of the transmission of the power of jurisdiction.

The argument of those who oppose the SSPX’s consecrations rests on the very nature of the Catholic episcopate, the essence of which includes hierarchical communion.

How might we clarify the arguments of those who oppose future consecrations?

As we have just noted, what is at issue in future consecrations is not whether or not the power of jurisdiction is received. It is the fact that all the functions received in consecration—including that of the sanctification of the baptized through the conferral of Confirmation and Holy Orders—“can be exercised only in hierarchical communion with the head of the college and its members”; and that this stems from “the very nature” of these episcopal functions.

Does this also apply to a bishop without jurisdiction, such as a titular bishop or a bishop emeritus?

Yes, a bishop who has not been entrusted with a flock to govern (titular bishop) or who has retired (bishop emeritus) does not confirm or ordain the faithful of other bishops in the Church without the permission of their own Ordinaries.

A titular bishop is indeed consecrated without being granted actual jurisdiction, but he nevertheless continues to exercise, within the order of sanctification, the “grace of leadership” received at his consecration (cf. St. Irenaeus, Adversus hæreses, III, 17, 2) in hierarchical communion with the Pope and the other bishops.

Whenever a bishop without actual jurisdiction exercises his episcopal sacramental power, he does so with a mission received from those who have jurisdiction (diocesan bishops or religious superiors).

Is a special mission received for the future bishops of the SSPX?

No, that is not what is envisaged for the consecrations of the SSPX:

“The present situation, which is one of a widespread and permanent invasion of modernism into the minds of men of the Church, demands, for the sanctification and salvation of souls, a truly Catholic episcopate free from the errors of the Second Vatican Council, such as cannot in fact be found outside the work initiated by Archbishop Lefebvre ” (Abbé Gleize, “The Consecrations of July 1, 2026,” La Porte Latine, February 11, 2026).

In the introduction to a book published in Italian, the SSPX asserts that it is necessary to have

“the consecration of fully Catholic bishops for the ordination of fully Catholic priests who will continue to transmit the Deposit of Faith without alteration” (Various Authors, Al servizio della Chiesa. Le consacrazioni episcopali della Fraternità San Pio X, Edizioni Piane, 2026).

It is therefore envisaged that the future bishops of the FSSPX will be consecrated not only without receiving any jurisdiction or mission but also outside the Catholic hierarchical communion, since only the FSSPX can, in its view, transmit the Deposit of Faith without alteration.

Is ordination outside of (and a fortiori against) hierarchical communion an intrinsically evil act?

Yes, because a priest who is ordained without receiving actual jurisdiction nevertheless always receives a spiritual power intrinsically ordered toward the governance of the Church. He cannot receive, outside of any mandate from those who hold authority in the Church (and a fortiori against them), a “grace of leadership,” that is, a power essentially ordered toward an act reserved, by divine right, to those in the Church who are vested with authority.

A consecration outside of hierarchical communion therefore entails a grave defect which is, if not schismatic, at least in the very line of schism. Pius XII thus describes consecration received without apostolic institution as a “very grave attack on the very unity of the Church,” and he describes the exercise of the power of order by bishops thus consecrated as “gravely illicit and sacrilegious” (Encyclical Ad apostolorum Principis, June 29, 1958).

Is conferring or receiving the episcopate outside of hierarchical communion contrary to divine law?

Yes, because Christ did not establish the apostles, nor did the apostles institute the bishops, their successors, as autonomous entities, unconnected to one another. Speaking of the determination required for hierarchical communion, the Nota Prævia clearly states: “Such a subsequent norm is required by the nature of the matter, because these are functions that must be exercised by several subjects who, by the will of Christ, cooperate in a hierarchical manner” (n. 2).

The conferral of the episcopate on priests of the FSSPX on July 1 would therefore take place autonomously and without any connection to the rest of the Catholic episcopate. It would contradict what Fr. Berto, theologian (peritus) to Archbishop Lefebvre during the Second Vatican Council, recalled: “By divine right, the bishops, even when scattered, are a constituted body within the Church” (Pour la Sainte Église Romaine, Éd. du Cèdre, 1976, p. 242).

And Pius XII emphasizes that the three offices of the bishops (including that of the order) belong to them in subordination to the Supreme Pontiff: “By divine institution, it belongs to you, the successors of the Apostles, under the authority of the Roman Pontiff, by virtue of a threefold office and prerogative (cf. can. 329): the magisterium, the priesthood, and governance (magisterium, sacerdotium, regimen) ” (May 31, 1954, Address to the Cardinals and Bishops who had come to Rome for the canonization of St. Pius X)

Are such consecrations, as their defenders claim, free from “schismatic intent”?

Subjectively, it is possible. The grave and prolonged crisis in the Church, particularly the fact that certain members of the hierarchy may at times actually promote error or be complicit with those who spread error, can lead some, in good faith, to lose sight of essential elements of Catholic doctrine, such as hierarchical communion. And subjective intention is a matter for God’s judgment.

But objectively, the Lefebvrist episcopate can only be constituted by denying the other bishops the status of Catholics: the SSPX acknowledges this when it asserts that a “truly Catholic episcopate” must be established for “the salvation of souls.”

As Bishop Marian Eleganti noted, “it is not primarily a matter of intentions, but of objective facts and behaviors” (thecatholicherald.com, March 9, 2026). And Bishop Robert Mutsaerts wrote: “The SSPX has a parallel hierarchy (of bishops without a papal mandate), it performs ordinations without jurisdiction, and often ignores local bishops” (lifesitenews.com, March 12, 2026).

Is the concept of the episcopate, as presented by the FSSPX, orthodox?

Unfortunately, the FSSPX is increasingly and clearly developing a concept of the episcopate that is manifestly contrary to Catholic Tradition. It claims, in fact, to ordain bishops who have no connection to the actual governance of the Church and who are not “true princes in the ecclesiastical hierarchy” (Leo XIII, encyclical Sapientiæ christianæ, January 10, 1890).

In contrast, the Catholic concept of the episcopate is clearly affirmed by St. Thomas: “The bishop has a rank in relation to the Mystical Body of Christ, which is the Church, over which he receives a principal and quasi-royal charge” (Treatise on the Perfection of the Spiritual Life, chap. 24, 4).

Tradition is also expressed, in particular, in the liturgical rites and practices of the Church, both Eastern and Western. It shows that, through the rites of episcopal consecration, bishops not only receive a specific power of order but also take the place of Christ as Teacher and Shepherd. Thus, the traditional Roman Pontifical states, for all bishops, even those who do not have charge of a particular flock: “Grant him, O Lord, an episcopal see to govern Your Church and the people entrusted to him.” And Benedict XIV invokes another text from the Pontifical: “Receive the Gospel, and go and proclaim it to the people entrusted to you” (Apostolic Letter to Cardinal delle Lanze, August 4, 1747).

The SSPX, on the contrary, promotes an episcopate reduced to the exercise of the power of order (ordaining priests and confirming the faithful). This contradicts the Council of Trent, which teaches on two occasions that “preaching is the principal duty (præcipuum munus) of bishops” (Session 5, Decretum de reformatione, c. 2, and Session 24, Decretum de reformatione, c. 4; Mansi, 33, 30, and 159).

Is there a danger of drifting toward heterodoxy?

Yes. For the SSPX, the bishop is appointed by the superiors of a particular society of apostolic life: the SSPX. Such a bishop is therefore no longer instituted in union with the pope and the other bishops; he is no longer a member of a body.

Therein lies a heresy, at least in practice: “The most elementary Catholic doctrine,” teaches Pius IX, “teaches us that no one can be considered a legitimate bishop:

• unless he is bound by the communion of faith and charity to the rock upon which the Church of Christ was built,
• unless he adheres to the supreme shepherd to whom all the sheep of Christ have been entrusted to lead them to pasture,
• unless he is bound to the one who confirms his brothers who are in this world
  (Apostolic Letter Etsi multa luctuosa, November 21, 1873).

On the other hand, the concept of the episcopate as formulated by the SSPX is allegedly reduced to the function of bishops administering the sacraments at the behest of the SSPX’s superiors.

Such bishops claim to have no jurisdiction, yet they nevertheless assume jurisdiction over subjects who are not under their authority in order to confirm and ordain them. One sign of the insincerity of this claim of lack of jurisdiction is precisely the use in the FSSPX’s pontifical ceremonies of numerous symbols of the powers of teaching and governance: the miter, the crosier, the throne, etc. Whereas such liturgical symbols are absolutely not required for the validity of the exercise of episcopal power of order.

The conception of an episcopate reduced to the power of order thus practically contradicts the revealed affirmation that bishops are “appointed by the Holy Spirit to govern (shepherd, poimainein) the Church of God” (Acts 20:28).

On May 28th, 2026, twelve Our Lady of Guadalupe seminarians were ordained to the sacred priesthood by Archbishop Thomas Wenski of the Archdiocese of Miami. The ceremony was held at St. Cecilia Cathedral in Omaha, Nebraska. May God bless the ordinati!

by Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG

On 26 February 1901, the Sacred Congregation of Rites approved a blessing of lilies (benedictio liliorum) in honor of St. Anthony of Padua, Confessor and Doctor of the Church, to be used on his feast day (13 June).  The lily has long been associated with this Saint.  Indeed, “in the earliest pictures [of St. Anthony] we find nothing more distinctive than a book, emblematic of his knowledge of Holy Scripture, or a lily,”¹ which “signifies his love for purity.”²  The translation of the blessing, found in the Roman Ritual, is as follows:³

The priest vests in surplice and white stole, and says:

℣. Our help is in the Name of the Lord.
℟. Who made heaven and earth.
℣. The Lord be with you.
℟. And with your spirit.

Let us pray.

God, the Creator and preserver of the human race, the lover of holy purity, the giver of supernatural grace, and the dispenser of everlasting salvation; bless ✠ these lilies which we, Thine humble servants, present to Thee today as an act of thanksgiving and in honor of St. Anthony, Thy confessor, and with a request for Thy blessing.  Pour out on them, by the saving sign ✠ of the holy cross, Thy dew from on high.  Thou in Thy great kindness have given them to man, and endowed them with a sweet fragrance to lighten the burden of the sick.  Therefore, let them be filled with such power that, whether they are used by the sick, or kept in homes or other places, or devoutly carried on one’s person, they may serve to drive out evil spirits, safeguard holy chastity, and turn away illness – all this through the prayers of St. Anthony – and finally impart to Thy servants grace and peace; through Christ our Lord.
℟. Amen.

Then he sprinkles the lilies with holy water, saying:

Sprinkle me, O Lord, with hyssop, and I shall be clean of sin. Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

℣. Pray for us, St. Anthony.
℟. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray.
We beg Thee, O Lord, that Thy people may be helped by the constant and devout intercession of Blessed Anthony, Thy illustrious confessor.  May he assist us to be worthy of Thy grace in this life, and to attain everlasting joys in the life to come; through Christ our Lord.
℟. Amen.

After this the lilies are distributed to the people.

As might be expected, the main blessing fittingly contains two references to purity, one at the beginning (“holy purity”) and one at the end (“holy chastity”), which is symbolized by the lily.  A point of interest is that the blessing begins by offering the lilies to God, something rare in such blessings.  In addition to the references to purity, a central intention of this main prayer is the prevention of and restoration from illness by the power of the sacramentalized flowers.  This intention regarding the prevention of and restoration from illness may be inspired by an event which occurred when the Saint was interred – “St. Anthony was buried on the Tuesday following his death, in the Church called Santa Maria Maggiore, in Padua.  On that very day, all the sick who had themselves taken to his grave, recovered.”⁴  This event also provides the foundation for holding devotions to St. Anthony on Tuesdays.  The concluding prayer is concerned with receiving supernatural benefits through the intercession of the Saint.

Another unique feature of this blessing is that the concluding rubric directs that they should be distributed to the faithful.  This rubric, then, envisions this ceremony as something done publicly, with a group of the faithful, and with the flowers grouped together for the blessing, rather than something more singular or with the faithful holding the flowers as they are blessed.  The use of the Asperges text (“Sprinkle me…”) while sprinkling the lilies with holy water is also something rare among the blessings of the Ritual, but is used in the three major blessings during the course of the liturgical year, that of the Candles on Candlemas, of the Ashes on Ash Wednesday, and of the Palms on Palm Sunday.  This, again, indicates that this blessing of lilies is foreseen as something major, especially as this ceremony is restricted to one day of the year.  What great honor is thus given to the lily, which is, according to St. Thomas Aquinas, “the most beautiful flower.”⁵

Rev. Cav. William Rock, FSSP, SMOCSG was ordained in the fall of 2019 and was invested as an Ecclesiastical Knight of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of St. George in the summer of 2025.  He currently resides at the FSSP Canonical House of St. Casimir in Nashua, NH, and ministers at St. Stanislaus parish.

In support of the causes of Blessed Maria Cristina, Queen, and Servant of God Francesco II, King 

1. Butler, Alban. The Lives of the Saints, vol. 6 (June). Edited and expanded by Thurston, Herbert and Leeson, Norah. (New York: P. J. Kenedy & Sons, 1937), p. 166.
2. Deymann, Clementinus. Devotion to St. Anthony of Padua; or, A novena in His Honor, 3rd ed. (San Francisco: A. Waldteufel, 1888), p. 11.
3. Rituale Romanum [1957], Titulus IX – Caput 10, 5; English adapted from the Weller translation provided online by EWTN (2, XI, VII, 23).
4. Deymann, 12.
5. “est pulcherrimus flos“-St. Thomas Aquinas’ Commentary on Isaias 35:1 (745).