Lex Anteinternet: Blog Mirror. Daily Tasks of the Priest and Parochial Solipsism

Lex Anteinternet: Blog Mirror. Daily Tasks of the Priest and Paroch...:

Blog Mirror. Daily Tasks of the Priest and Parochial Solipsism

Catholic priest from Taos, New Mexico, helps a parishioner value his land.

A very interesting podcast from a Catholic prospective, including an interesting item on the history and early purpose of the diaconate.

The office of Deacon goes back to the very early days of the Church.  Indeed, the creation of the diaconate is described in the Acts of the Apostles.

At that time, as the number of disciples continued to grow, the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.  So the Twelve called together the community of the disciples and said, “It is not right for us to neglect the word of God to serve at table.  Brothers, select from among you seven reputable men, filled with the Spirit and wisdom, whom we shall appoint to this task, whereas we shall devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” The proposal was acceptable to the whole community, so they chose Stephen, a man filled with faith and the holy Spirit, also Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicholas of Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles who prayed and laid hands on them.  The word of God continued to spread, and the number of the disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly; even a large group of priests were becoming obedient to the faith.

Act of the Apostles, Chapter 6. As can be seen, in the very early days of the Church, Deacons hold what we might regard as a a temporal service role to their congregation, as well as a spiritual role, which we will discuss below.  And as we can also see from the above, they were ordained in that role.  

The qualifications they had to hold from their office were set out from the earliest days.

Similarly, deacons must be dignified, not deceitful, not addicted to drink, not greedy for sordid gain, holding fast to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. Moreover, they should be tested first; then, if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons. Women, similarly, should be dignified, not slanderers, but temperate and faithful in everything.  Deacons may be married only once and must manage their children and their households well. Thus those who serve well as deacons gain good standing and much confidence in their faith in Christ Jesus.

Timothy, Chapter 3.

We know that they preached, and in fact we know that the first Christian martyr was a Deacon.

Now Stephen, filled with grace and power, was working great wonders and signs among the people.  Certain members of the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen, Cyrenians, and Alexandrians, and people from Cilicia and Asia, came forward and debated with Stephen, but they could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke.  Then they instigated some men to say, “We have heard him speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God.”  They stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes, accosted him, seized him, and brought him before the Sanhedrin. They presented false witnesses who testified, “This man never stops saying things against [this] holy place and the law. For we have heard him claim that this Jesus the Nazorean will destroy this place and change the customs that Moses handed down to us.” All those who sat in the Sanhedrin looked intently at him and saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

Acts of the Apostles.



We also know that they preformed Baptisms,.

As they traveled along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water. What is to prevent my being baptized?” Then he ordered the chariot to stop, and Philip and the eunuch both went down into the water, and he baptized him.

Acts of the Apostles, regarding Philip the Evangelist, who is not to be confused with Philip the Apostle.



They occupied a role different from that of the Priests, but still an ordained one, with, at first, a service role that freed the Priests from that same role.  Quite soon, the Deacons obtained an assisting role to the Bishops, and assisted the Bishops in liturgy, administration, and distribution of alms to the poor.  St. Ignatius of Antioch noted about them, in his Letter to the Trallians;

Let everyone revere the deacons as Jesus Christ, the bishop as the image of the Father, and the presbyters as the senate of God and the assembly of the apostles. For without them one cannot speak of the Church.

The association with the Bishops resulted in their office, in the early centuries of the Church, growing in importance and they became the local representative of the Bishops, something that was restored when the diaconate was restored in recent decades.  I.e, they work for the Bishops, not the local Priest, at least in a technical sense.  In the very early days, and indeed for a very long time, we need to keep in mind that there were many more Bishops per parishioner capita than there are now, although its been suggested that this situation also be restored to a more prior patter.  In the Latin Church, however, the diaconate began to decline in the 400s, something that did not occur in the Eastern Rites however.  To some extent, moreover, the rise of monasticism in the West and its strong emphasis on taking care of the poor caused their role to decline.  By 800 their role was reduced to being a temporary one on the way to ordination as a Priest.  Again, this was not something that was experienced in the East.



Concerns over various things, most interestingly the overstretched burdens of Priests in South America, lead to a restoration of the office in the 1960s in the Latin Rite.  Now Deacons are once again common as a third order of ordained clergy in the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church.  A rarity even in the 1980s, they are fairly common now.  As a rule, they're from the local community they serve.



So, in this interesting podcast with a complicated name, a Catholic Priest discusses possibly restoring their original role in an updated format, replying on the work of another Catholic Priest from some decades back:

07 FEB 2019 · #376 PAROCHIAL SOLIPSISM

Fr. John Nepil & Fr. Austin Litke

Why your priest friends don't call each other

Highly decorated Belgian Priest during World War One.

The thing I'd add to this, is that what's discussed here probably not only explores "why your priest friends don't call each other", but also why they don't call you either.  I.e., Catholic priest are incredibly busy, but also incredibly isolated.

I have another post I've semi drafted regarding Pope Benedict's recent article, and in some ways this is vaguely related to that one, but I'll plow forward none the less rather than wait, which would possibly be a more prudent thing to do.



Anyhow, one of the things I've noted over the half century that I've been around is that Priests of more recent generations can be really hard to get to know, at least if they're Americans.  I've probably only known three Priests fairly well, and I'd state that this observation was true of 1/3d of those Priests, which when I state that somewhat cuts against what I just stated.  Of those three, one was from the region and was very easy to know.  A fourth I can claim to quasi know.  A second had come out of Sub Saharan Africa and was also easy to get to know, ironically in fact because his rural African origin made him a lot more like a lot of us around here than Priests who come from elsewhere.  The other one I'd say was extremely difficult to get to know.  Of the one I can state to have quasi known, it was simply his highly unique and aesthetic personality that probably contributed to that.



In contrast to this, when I was a kid I recall my father being very good friends with a Priest who had a lot of the same outdoor interests and who in fact grew up in the same region as my father had.  He'd come over for dinner and a frequent conversation of their topics was bird hunting.  Perhaps somewhat related to this, I can also recall my father picking up two Priests and the Bishop when their car broke down on the highway and we happened to drive by. The conversation on the way home was about fishing.



If all this seems odd and has a "where is this going"? quality to this, it's this.  I've also observed that the administrative burdens of a Parish are enormous and I really don't think that the average Priest probably enters the seminary with that in mind.  If we regard the Priesthood as not only a vocation, but an occupation, it would share that feature with a lot of other occupations.  Lawyers, doctors, dentists, accountants, etc. etc., don't enter their fields of professional responsibility thinking that they're going to be office managers, but very frequently that takes up a lot of their daily tasks.



But because Priests aren't simply an occupation, it makes sense to me that this could indeed become a problem in more ways than one.  Indeed, most parishes have a parish administrator of some sort and is assisted by a Parish Council and a Finance Council.  But the administrators are in turn oddly burdened as their secular role doesn't feature a clerical one at all.



I guess that the podcaster in this instance received a fair amount of flak from his fellow Priests for this suggestion.  But in my view, as a layman, it's one worth considering.  The substantial problem I see with it from the onset is that almost nobody who is currently a Deacon would have entered that state with this role in mind, and therefore may be no more prepared for it than the Priests may be.  On the other hand, as they are otherwise laymen, they likely have more day to day experience in the administrative role than Priests would ever have.  The ones I know off hand, and I don't know very many well, would tend to potentially demonstrate that, as they've occupied such varied roles as insurance broker to lawyer.  And indeed I've seen a couple of them take the position of Parish Administrator when it came open, so perhaps things are somewhat headed that way by default.



When the Permanent Diaconate was established following the 1960s it didn't mean that those seminarians progressing towards ordination in the Priesthood no longer experienced that stage, so we already have two types of Deacons in the Church now.  Perhaps establishing a third type of sorts, a Permanent Deacon with a permanent administrative role, a servant of the Bishop but serving on a career basis locally, is a good idea.  He could assist the Priest in the clerical areas he's entitled to, and free up the Priest in the administrative role so that the Priest could be focused only on the spiritual mission he's charged with.  Perhaps then, a Priest could find the time to "call his friends", or even go fishing or bird hunting now and then.



And I think, frankly, that's important for a variety of reasons.  And one is this.  It's been common to note that while the Church has an all male Priesthood, women occupy lots and lots of the various roles in the daily role of the Church and accordingly men can feel they don't identify well with things (something that's claimed not to be the case in the Eastern Rite or in the Orthodox churches).  If a Priest joined you at the fishing hole or in the bird fields now and then, I suspect that might be a bit different.  Christ, it might be noted, had a group of dedicated male friends.



Something to consider.

Churches of the East: Notre Dame de Paris, Paris France

Churches of the East: Notre Dame de Paris, Paris France

On this sad day, more on original post:

Notre Dame de Paris, Paris France

Lex Anteinternet: Naomh Pádraig, St. Patrick, S. Patricius. The Man...

Lex Anteinternet: Naomh Pádraig, St. Patrick, S. Patricius. The Man...:...

Naomh Pádraig, St. Patrick, S. Patricius. The Man.

At Tara today in this fateful hour

I place all Heaven with its power,

And the sun with its brightness,

And the snow with its whiteness,

And fire with all the strength it hath,

And lightning with its rapid wrath,

And the winds with their swiftness along their path,

And the sea with its deepness,

And the rocks with their steepness,

And the earth with its starkness

All these I place,

By God's almighty help and grace,

Between myself and the powers of darkness.

The Rune of St. Patrick, condensed from the much longer Lorica.

St. Patrick's Day, the Feast of St. Patrick, is such a popular civil holiday that it practically drowns out the saint himself.  

Indeed, that fact contributes to a lot of odd rumors and misimpressions about Patrick (I once had a high school chemistry teacher maintain that there was no evidence for his existence, which is a really remarkable statement about a man about whom so much is known and who left writings).  For example, some uniformed professor who published an article in the Salt Lake newspaper recently wrote that "he's not really a saint as he's never been canonized", showing that he had a nitwit's understanding of the definition of "saint".  None of the early saints were canonized, which is a more recent juretical process with the Catholic church which does not, in any fashion, disrupt the saintly status of those who were saints before that.

St. Patrick is regarded as the Apostle of Ireland for establishing the Faith in that land.  He wasn't the first Catholic missionary there, but he was massively effective.  He was not Irish himself, but rather was Roman British, born near what is now called Kilpatrick near Dumbarton Scotland (which wouldn't have bee Scotland) in 387, prior to the Scots invasions of the north and prior to the collapse of the Roman Empire, but during that period of time during which Rome was becoming increasingly weak and had abandoned its British colony to its own fate. Indeed, the people who became the Scots, and who invaded northern Britain slightly after this period, where the Irish and Patrick, in his writings, referred to the Irish in Latin as the Scotti, the name that would later give us the term Scots for the people who live in Scotland today.

Patrick's actual name was Patricius, a name symbolizing that he was of significant patrician origin.  He came from a line that had strong affiliation with the Church, and indeed by his own account his father, Calphurnius, was a Deacon in the church and his grandfather a Priest, this being of course well before the Latin Rite of the Church imposed a rule of celibacy upon Priests. 

Patrick, by his own account, was not a religious man until he was kidnapped by the pirates as a sixteen year old and sold as a slave in Ireland.  It's often claimed that he was sold as a youth, but at that time, he would not have been really regarded as so much as a youth as a young man.  He spent six years as a slave in Ireland, the property of a cruel master. The experience was Providential, however, as the Roman youth learned Irish Gaelic and experienced a deep religious conversion.  Indeed, a metaphysical one.  He escaped, managed to return to Britain, having formed the intent to enter religious life and return.  He did just that, and was remarkably able at this mission, being a very tough man who was readily capable of dealing with a very tough people.  Remarkable in that, he lived a very long time in an age and occupation in which that would not have been expected, perhaps approaching or even exceeding a lifespan of 100 years.

In spite of that, at some period, Patrick suffered an attack by some who accused him of something of which we are now unaware.  He therefore suffered the trial that so many who are orthodox and effective do today of coming under accusations by others, even within the Church.  In his case, this motivated him to write his Confessio, in Latin, to defend himself.  It's survived but the accusations against him have not.

We can pick up his own words from there:

I, Patrick, a sinner, a most simple countryman, the least of all the faithful and most contemptible to many, had for father the deacon Calpurnius, son of the late Potitus, a priest, of the settlement [vicus] of Bannavem Taburniae; he had a small villa nearby where I was taken captive. I was at that time about sixteen years of age. I did not, indeed, know the true God; and I was taken into captivity in Ireland with many thousands of people, according to our deserts, for quite drawn away from God, we did not keep his precepts, nor were we obedient to our priests who used to remind us of our salvation. And the Lord brought down on us the fury of his being and scattered us among many nations, even to the ends of the earth, where I, in my smallness, am now to be found among foreigners.

And there the Lord opened my mind to an awareness of my unbelief, in order that, even so late, I might remember my transgressions and turn with all my heart to the Lord my God, who had regard for my insignificance and pitied my youth and ignorance. And he watched over me before I knew him, and before I learned sense or even distinguished between good and evil, and he protected me, and consoled me as a father would his son.

Therefore, indeed, I cannot keep silent, nor would it be proper, so many favours and graces has the Lord deigned to bestow on me in the land of my captivity. For after chastisement from God, and recognizing him, our way to repay him is to exalt him and confess his wonders before every nation under heaven.

For there is no other God, nor ever was before, nor shall be hereafter, but God the Father, unbegotten and without beginning, in whom all things began, whose are all things, as we have been taught; and his son Jesus Christ, who manifestly always existed with the Father, before the beginning of time in the spirit with the Father, indescribably begotten before all things, and all things visible and invisible were made by him. He was made man, conquered death and was received into Heaven, to the Father who gave him all power over every name in Heaven and on Earth and in Hell, so that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and God, in whom we believe. And we look to his imminent coming again, the judge of the living and the dead, who will render to each according to his deeds. And he poured out his Holy Spirit on us in abundance, the gift and pledge of immortality, which makes the believers and the obedient into sons of God and co-heirs of Christ who is revealed, and we worship one God in the Trinity of holy name.

He himself said through the prophet: 'Call upon me in the day of' trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.' And again: 'It is right to reveal and publish abroad the works of God.'

I am imperfect in many things, nevertheless I want my brethren and kinsfolk to know my nature so that they may be able to perceive my soul's desire.

I am not ignorant of what is said of my Lord in the Psalm: 'You destroy those who speak a lie.' And again: 'A lying mouth deals death to the soul.' And likewise the Lord says in the Gospel: 'On the day of judgment men shall render account for every idle word they utter.'

So it is that I should mightily fear, with terror and trembling, this judgment on the day when no one shall be able to steal away or hide, but each and all shall render account for even our smallest sins before the judgment seat of Christ the Lord.

And therefore for some time I have thought of writing, but I have hesitated until now, for truly, I feared to expose myself to the criticism of men, because I have not studied like others, who have assimilated both Law and the Holy Scriptures equally and have never changed their idiom since their infancy, but instead were always learning it increasingly, to perfection, while my idiom and language have been translated into a foreign tongue. So it is easy to prove from a sample of my writing, my ability in rhetoric and the extent of my preparation and knowledge, for as it is said, 'wisdom shall be recognized in speech, and in understanding, and in knowledge and in the learning of truth.'

But why make excuses close to the truth, especially when now I am presuming to try to grasp in my old age what I did not gain in my youth because my sins prevented me from making what I had read my own? But who will believe me, even though I should say it again? A young man, almost a beardless boy, I was taken captive before I knew what I should desire and what I should shun. So, consequently, today I feel ashamed and I am mightily afraid to expose my ignorance, because, [not] eloquent, with a small vocabulary, I am unable to explain as the spirit is eager to do and as the soul and the mind indicate.

But had it been given to me as to others, in gratitude I should not have kept silent, and if it should appear that I put myself before others, with my ignorance and my slower speech, in truth, it is written: 'The tongue of the stammerers shall speak rapidly and distinctly.' How much harder must we try to attain it, we of whom it is said: 'You are an epistle of Christ in greeting to the ends of the earth ... written on your hearts, not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God.' And again, the Spirit witnessed that the rustic life was created by the Most High.

I am, then, first of all, countryfied, an exile, evidently unlearned, one who is not able to see into the future, but I know for certain, that before I was humbled I was like a stone lying in deep mire, and he that is mighty came and in his mercy raised me up and, indeed, lifted me high up and placed me on top of the wall. And from there I ought to shout out in gratitude to the Lord for his great favours in this world and for ever, that the mind of man cannot measure.

Therefore be amazed, you great and small who fear God, and you men of God, eloquent speakers, listen and contemplate. Who was it summoned me, a fool, from the midst of those who appear wise and learned in the law and powerful in rhetoric and in all things? Me, truly wretched in this world, he inspired before others that I could be-- if I would-- such a one who, with fear and reverence, and faithfully, without complaint, would come to the people to whom the love of Christ brought me and gave me in my lifetime, if I should be worthy, to serve them truly and with humility.

According, therefore, to the measure of one's faith in the Trinity, one should proceed without holding back from danger to make known the gift of God and everlasting consolation, to spread God's name everywhere with confidence and without fear, in order to leave behind, after my death, foundations for my brethren and sons whom I baptized in the Lord in so many thousands.

And I was not worthy, nor was I such that the Lord should grant his humble servant this, that after hardships and such great trials, after captivity, after many years, he should give me so much favour in these people, a thing which in the time of my youth I neither hoped for nor imagined.

But after I reached Ireland I used to pasture the flock each day and I used to pray many times a day. More and more did the love of God, and my fear of him and faith increase, and my spirit was moved so that in a day [I said] from one up to a hundred prayers, and in the night a like number; besides I used to stay out in the forests and on the mountain and I would wake up before daylight to pray in the snow, in icy coldness, in rain, and I used to feel neither ill nor any slothfulness, because, as I now see, the Spirit was burning in me at that time.

And it was there of course that one night in my sleep I heard a voice saying to me: 'You do well to fast: soon you will depart for your home country.' And again, a very short time later, there was a voice prophesying: 'Behold, your ship is ready.' And it was not close by, but, as it happened, two hundred miles away, where I had never been nor knew any person. And shortly thereafter I turned about and fled from the man with whom I had been for six years, and I came, by the power of God who directed my route to advantage (and I was afraid o nothing), until I reached that ship.

And on the same day that I arrived, the ship was setting out from the place, and I said that I had the wherewithal to sail with them; and the steersman was displeased and replied in anger, sharply: 'By no means attempt to go with us.' Hearing this I left them to go to the hut where I was staying, and on the way I began to pray, and before the prayer was finished I heard one of them shouting loudly after me: 'Come quickly because the men are calling you.' And immediately I went back to them and they started to say to me: 'Come, because we are admitting you out of good faith; make friendship with us in any way you wish.' (And so, on that day, I refused to suck the breasts of these men from fear of God, but nevertheless I had hopes that they would come to faith in Jesus Christ, because they were barbarians.) And for this I continued with them, and forthwith we put to sea.

And after three days we reached land, and for twenty-eight days journeyed through uninhabited country, and the food ran out and hunger overtook them; and one day the steersman began saying: 'Why is it, Christian? You say your God is great and all-powerful; then why can you not pray for us? For we may perish of hunger; it is unlikely indeed that we shall ever see another human being.' In fact, I said to them, confidently: 'Be converted by faith with all your heart to my Lord God, because nothing is impossible for him, so that today he will send food for you on your road, until you be sated, because everywhere he abounds.' And with God's help this came to pass; and behold, a herd of swine appeared on the road before our eyes, and they slew many of them, and remained there for two nights, and the were full of their meat and well restored, for many of them had fainted and would otherwise have been left half dead by the wayside. And after this they gave the utmost thanks to God, and I was esteemed in their eyes, and from that day they had food abundantly. They discovered wild honey, besides, and they offered a share to me, and one of them said: 'It is a sacrifice.' Thanks be to God, I tasted none of it.

The very same night while I was sleeping Satan attacked me violently, as I will remember as long as I shall be in this body; and there fell on top of me as it were, a huge rock, and not one of my members had any force. But from whence did it come to me, ignorant in the spirit, to call upon 'Helias'? And meanwhile I saw the sun rising in the sky, and while I was crying out 'Helias, Helias' with all my might, lo, the brilliance of that sun fell upon me and immediately shook me free of all the weight; and I believe that I was aided by Christ my Lord, and that his Spirit then was crying out for me, and I hope that it will be so in the day of my affliction, just as it says in the Gospel: 'In that hour', the Lord declares, 'it is not you who speaks but the Spirit of your Father speaking in you.'

And a second time, after many years, I was taken captive. On the first night I accordingly remained with my captors, but I heard a divine prophecy, saying to me: 'You shall be with them for two months. So it happened. On the sixtieth night the Lord delivered me from their hands.

On the journey he provided us with food and fire and dry weather every day, until on the tenth day we came upon people. As I mentioned above, we had journeyed through an unpopulated country for twenty-eight days, and in fact the night that we came upon people we had no food.

And after a few 'ears I was again in Britain with my parents [kinsfolk], and the welcomed me as a son, and asked me, in faith, that after the great tribulations I had endured I should not go an where else away from them. And, of course, there, in a vision of the night, I saw a man whose name was Victoricus coming as it from Ireland with innumerable letters, and he gave me one of them, and I read the beginning of the letter: 'The Voice of the Irish', and as I was reading the beginning of the letter I seemed at that moment to hear the voice of those who were beside the forest of Foclut which is near the western sea, and the were crying as if with one voice: 'We beg you, holy youth, that you shall come and shall walk again among us.' And I was stung intensely in my heart so that I could read no more, and thus I awoke. Thanks be to God, because after so many ears the Lord bestowed on them according to their cry.

And another night-- God knows, I do not, whether within me or beside me-- ... most words + ... + which I heard and could not understand, except at the end of the speech it was represented thus: 'He who gave his life for you, he it is who speaks within you.' And thus I awoke, joyful.

And on a second occasion I saw Him praying within me, and I was as it were, inside my own body , and I heard Him above me-- that is, above my inner self. He was praying powerfully with sighs. And in the course of this I was astonished and wondering, and I pondered who it could be who was praying within me. But at the end of the prayer it was revealed to me that it was the Spirit. And so I awoke and remembered the Apostle's words: 'Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we know not how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for utterance.' And again: 'The Lord our advocate intercedes for us.'

And then I was attacked by a goodly number of my elders, who [brought up] my sins against my arduous episcopate. That day in particular I was mightily upset, and might have fallen here and for ever; but the Lord generously spared me, a convert, and an alien, for his name's sake, and he came powerfully to my assistance in that state of being trampled down. I pray God that it shall not be held against them as a sin that I fell truly into disgrace and scandal.

They brought up against me after thirty years an occurrence I had confessed before becoming a deacon. On account of the anxiety in my sorrowful mind, I laid before my close friend what I had perpetrated on a day-- nay, rather in one hour-- in my boyhood because I was not yet proof against sin. God knows-- I do not-- whether I was fifteen years old at the time, and I did not then believe in the living God, nor had I believed, since my infancy; but I remained in death and unbelief until I was severely rebuked, and in truth I was humbled every day by hunger and nakedness.

On the other hand, I did not proceed to Ireland of my own accord until I was almost giving up, but through this I was corrected by the Lord, and he prepared me so that today I should be what was once far from me, in order that I should have the care of-- or rather, I should be concerned for-- the salvation of others, when at that time, still, I was only concerned for myself.

Therefore, on that day when I was rebuked, as I have just mentioned, I saw in a vision of the night a document before my face, without honour, and meanwhile I heard a divine prophecy, saying to me: 'We have seen with displeasure the face of the chosen one divested of [his good] name.' And he did not say 'You have seen with displeasure', but 'We have seen with displeasure' (as if He included Himself) . He said then: 'He who touches you, touches the apple of my eye.'

For that reason, I give thanks to him who strengthened me in all things, so that I should not be hindered in my setting out and also in my work which I was taught by Christ my Lord; but more, from that state of affairs I felt, within me, no little courage, and vindicated my faith before God and man.

Hence, therefore, I say boldly that my conscience is clear now and hereafter. God is my witness that I have not lied in these words to you.

But rather, I am grieved for my very close friend, that because of him we deserved to hear such a prophecy. The one to whom I entrusted my soul! And I found out from a goodly number of brethren, before the case was made in my defence (in which I did not take part, nor was I in Britain, nor was it pleaded by me), that in my absence he would fight in my behalf. Besides, he told me himself: 'See, the rank of bishop goes to you'-- of which I was not worthy. But how did it come to him, shortly afterwards, to disgrace me publicly, in the presence of all, good and bad, because previously, gladly and of his own free will, he pardoned me, as did the Lord, who is greater than all?

I have said enough. But all the same, I ought not to conceal God's gift which he lavished on us in the land of my captivity, for then I sought him resolutely, and I found him there, and he preserved me from all evils (as I believe) through the in-dwelling of his Spirit, which works in me to this day. Again, boldly, but God knows, if this had been made known to me by man, I might, perhaps, have kept silent for the love of Christ.

Thus I give untiring thanks to God who kept me faithful in the day of my temptation, so that today I may confidently over my soul as a living sacrifice for Christ my Lord; who am I, Lord? or, rather, what is my calling? that you appeared to me in so great a divine quality, so that today among the barbarians I might constantly exalt and magnify your name in whatever place I should be, and not only in good fortune, but even in affliction? So that whatever befalls me, be it good or bad, I should accept it equally, and give thanks always to God who revealed to me that I might trust in him, implicitly and forever, and who will encourage me so that, ignorant, and in the last days, I may dare to undertake so devout and so wonderful a work; so that I might imitate one of those whom, once, long ago, the Lord already pre-ordained to be heralds of his Gospel to witness to all peoples to the ends of the earth. So are we seeing, and so it is fulfilled; behold, we are witnesses because the Gospel has been preached as far as the places beyond which no man lives.

But it is tedious to describe in detail all my labours one by one. I will tell briefly how most holy God frequently delivered me, from slavery, and from the twelve trials with which my soul was threatened, from man traps as well, and from things I am not able to put into words. I would not cause offence to readers, but I have God as witness who knew all things even before they happened, that, though I was a poor ignorant waif, still he gave me abundant warnings through divine prophecy.

Whence came to me this wisdom which was not my own, I who neither knew the number of days nor had knowledge of God? Whence came the so great and so healthful gift of knowing or rather loving God, though I should lose homeland and family.

And many gifts were offered to me with weeping and tears, and I offended them [the donors], and also went against the wishes of a good number of my elders; but guided by God, I neither agreed with them nor deferred to them, not by my own grace but by God who is victorious in me and withstands them all, so that I might come to the Irish people to preach the Gospel and endure insults from unbelievers; that I might hear scandal of my travels, and endure man persecutions to the extent of prison; and so that I might give up my free birthright for the advantage of others, and if I should be worthy, I am ready [to give] even m life without. hesitation; and most willingly for His name. And I choose to devote it to him even unto death, if God grant it to me.

I am greatly God's debtor, because he granted me so much grace, that through me many people would be reborn in God, and soon a after confirmed, and that clergy would be ordained everywhere for them, the masses lately come to belief, whom the Lord drew from the ends of the earth, just as he once promised through his prophets: 'To you shall the nations come from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Our fathers have inherited naught hut lies, worthless things in which there is no profit.' And again: 'I have set you to be a light for the Gentiles that you may bring salvation to the uttermost ends of' the earth.'

And I wish to wait then for his promise which is never unfulfilled, just as it is promised in the Gospel: 'Many shall come from east and west and shall sit at table with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.' Just as we believe that believers will come from all the world.

So for that reason one should, in fact, fish well and diligently, just as the Lord foretells and teaches, saying, 'Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men,' and again through the prophets: 'Behold, I am sending forth many fishers and hunters, says the Lord,' et cetera. So it behoved us to spread our nets, that a vast multitude and throng might be caught for God, and so there might be clergy everywhere who baptized and exhorted a needy and desirous people. Just as the Lord says in the Gospel, admonishing and instructing: 'Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always to the end of time.' And again he says: 'Go forth into the world and preach the Gospel to all creation. He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he who does not believe shall be condemned.' And again: 'This Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached throughout the whole world as a witness to all nations; and then the end of the world shall come.' And likewise the Lord foretells through the prophet: 'And it shall come to pass in the last days (sayeth the Lord) that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions and your old men shall dream dreams; yea, and on my menservants and my maidservants in those days I will pour out my Spirit and they shall prophesy.' And in Hosea he says: 'Those who are not my people I will call my people, and those not beloved I will call my beloved, and in the very place where it was said to them, You are not my people, they will be called 'Sons of the living God'.

So, how is it that in Ireland, where they never had any knowledge of God but, always, until now, cherished idols and unclean things, they are lately become a people of the Lord, and are called children of God; the sons of. the Irish [Scotti] and the daughters of the chieftains are to be seen as monks and virgins of Christ.

And there was, besides, a most beautiful, blessed, native-born noble Irish [Scotta] woman of adult age whom I baptized; and a few days later she had reason to come to us to intimate that she had received a prophecy from a divine messenger [who] advised her that she should become a virgin of Christ and she would draw nearer to God. Thanks be to God, six days from then, opportunely and most eagerly, she took the course that all virgins of God take, not with their fathers' consent but enduring the persecutions and deceitful hindrances of their parents. Notwithstanding that, their number increases, (we do not know the number of them that are so reborn) besides the widows, and those who practise self-denial. Those who are kept in slavery suffer the most. They endure terrors and constant threats, but the Lord has given grace to many of his handmaidens, for even though they are forbidden to do so, still they resolutely follow his example.

So it is that even if I should wish to separate from them in order to go to Britain, and most willingly was I prepared to go to my homeland and kinsfolk-- and not only there, but as far as Gaul to visit the brethren there, so that I might see the faces of the holy ones of my Lord, God knows how strongly I desired this-- I am bound by the Spirit, who witnessed to me that if I did so he would mark me out as guilty, and I fear to waste the labour that I began, and not I, but Christ the Lord, who commanded me to come to be with them for the rest of my life, if the Lord shall will it and shield me from every evil, so that I may not sin before him.

So I hope that I did as I ought, but I do not trust myself as long as I am in this mortal body, for he is strong who strives daily to turn me away from the faith and true holiness to which I aspire until the end of my life for Christ my Lord, but the hostile flesh is always dragging one down to death, that is, to unlawful attractions. And I know in part why I did not lead a perfect life like other believers, but I confess to my Lord and do not blush in his sight, because I am not lying; from the time when I came to know him in my youth, the love of God and fear of him increased in me, and right up until now, by God's favour, I have kept the faith.

What is more, let anyone laugh and taunt if he so wishes. I am not keeping silent, nor am I hiding the signs and wonders that were shown to me by the Lord many years before they happened, [he] who knew everything, even before the beginning of time.

Thus, I should give thanks unceasingly to God, who frequently forgave my folly and my negligence, in more than one instance so as not to be violently angry with me, who am placed as his helper, and I did not easily assent to what had been revealed to me, as the Spirit was urging; and the Lord took pity on me thousands upon thousands of times, because he saw within me that I was prepared, but that I was ignorant of what to do in view of my situation; because many were trying to prevent this mission. They were talking among themselves behind my back, and saying: 'Why is this fellow throwing himself into danger among enemies who know not God?' Not from malice, but having no liking for it; likewise, as I myself can testify, they perceived my rusticity. And I was not quick to recognize the grace that was then in me; I now know that I should have done so earlier.

Now I have put it frankly to my brethren and co-workers, who have believed me because of what I have foretold and still foretell to strengthen and reinforce your faith. I wish only that you, too, would make greater and better efforts. This will be my pride, for 'a wise son makes a proud father'.

You know, as God does, how I went about among you from my youth in the faith of truth and in sincerity of heart. As well as to the heathen among whom I live, I have shown them trust and always show them trust. God knows I did not cheat any one of them, nor consider it, for the sake of God and his Church, lest I arouse them and [bring about] persecution for them and for all of us, and lest the Lord's name be blasphemed because of me, for it is written: 'Woe to the men through whom the name of the Lord is blasphemed.'

For even though I am ignorant in all things, nevertheless I attempted to safeguard some and myself also. And I gave back again to my Christian brethren and the virgins of Christ and the holy women the small unasked for gifts that they used to give me or some of their ornaments which they used to throw on the altar. And they would be offended with me because I did this. But in the hope of eternity, I safeguarded myself carefully in all things, so that they might not cheat me of my office of service on any pretext of dishonesty, and so that I should not in the smallest way provide any occasion for defamation or disparagement on the part of unbelievers.

What is more, when I baptized so many thousands of people, did I hope for even half a jot from any of them? [If so] Tell me, and I will give it back to you. And when the Lord ordained clergy everywhere by my humble means, and I freely conferred office on them, if I asked any of them anywhere even for the price of one shoe, say so to my face and I will give it back.

More, I spent for you so that they would receive me. And I went about among you, and everywhere for your sake, in danger, and as far as the outermost regions beyond which no one lived, and where no one had ever penetrated before, to baptize or to ordain clergy or to confirm people. Conscientiously and gladly I did all this work by God's gift for your salvation.

From time to time I gave rewards to the kings, as well as making payments to their sons who travel with me; notwithstanding which, they seized me with my companions, and that day most avidly desired to kill me. But my time had not yet come. They plundered everything they found on us anyway, and fettered me in irons; and on the fourteenth day the Lord freed me from their power, and whatever they had of ours was given back to us for the sake of God on account of the indispensable friends whom we had made before.

Also you know from experience how much I was paying to those who were administering justice in all the regions, which I visited often. I estimate truly that I distributed to them not less than the price of fifteen men, in order that you should enjoy my company and I enjoy yours, always, in God. I do not regret this nor do I regard it as enough. I am paying out still and I shall pay out more. The Lord has the power to grant me that I may soon spend my own self, for your souls.

Behold, I call on God as my witness upon my soul that I am not lying; nor would I write to you for it to be an occasion for flattery or selfishness, nor hoping for honour from any one of you. Sufficient is the honour which is not yet seen, but in which the heart has confidence. He who made the promise is faithful; he never lies.

But I see that even here and now, I have been exalted beyond measure by the Lord, and I was not worthy that he should grant me this, while I know most certainly that poverty and failure suit me better than wealth and delight (but Christ the Lord was poor for our sakes; I certainly am wretched and unfortunate; even if I wanted wealth I have no resources, nor is it my own estimation of myself, for daily I expect to be murdered or betrayed or reduced to slavery if the occasion arises. But I fear nothing, because of the promises of Heaven; for I have cast myself into the hands of Almighty God, who reigns everywhere. As the prophet says: 'Cast your burden on the Lord and he will sustain you.'

Behold now I commend my soul to God who is most faithful and for whom I perform my mission in obscurity, but he is no respecter of persons and he chose me for this service that I might be one of the least of his ministers.

For which reason I should make return for all that he returns me. But what should I say, or what should I promise to my Lord, for I, alone, can do nothing unless he himself vouchsafe it to me. But let him search my heart and [my] nature, for I crave enough for it, even too much, and I am ready for him to grant me that I drink of his chalice, as he has granted to others who love him.

Therefore may it never befall me to be separated by my God from his people whom he has won in this most remote land. I pray God that he gives me perseverance, and that he will deign that I should be a faithful witness for his sake right up to the time of my passing.

And if at any time I managed anything of good for the sake of my God whom I love, I beg of him that he grant it to me to shed my blood for his name with proselytes and captives, even should I be left unburied, or even were my wretched body to be torn limb from limb by dogs or savage beasts, or were it to be devoured by the birds of the air, I think, most surely, were this to have happened to me, I had saved both my soul and my body. For beyond any doubt on that day we shall rise again in the brightness of the sun, that is, in the glory of Christ Jesus our Redeemer, as children of the living God and co-heirs of Christ, made in his image; for we shall reign through him and for him and in him.

For the sun we see rises each day for us at [his] command, but it will never reign, neither will its splendour last, but all who worship it will come wretchedly to punishment. We, on the other hand, shall not die, who believe in and worship the true sun, Christ, who will never die, no more shall he die who has done Christ's will, but will abide for ever just as Christ abides for ever, who reigns with God the Father Almighty and with the Holy Spirit before the beginning of time and now and for ever and ever. Amen.

Behold over and over again I would briefly set out the words of my confession. I testify in truthfulness and gladness of heart before God and his holy angels that I never had any reason, except the Gospel and his promises, ever to have returned to that nation from which I had previously escaped with difficulty.

But I entreat those who believe in and fear God, whoever deigns to examine or receive this document composed by the obviously unlearned sinner Patrick in Ireland, that nobody shall ever ascribe to my ignorance any trivial thing that I achieved or may have expounded that was pleasing to God, but accept and truly believe that it would have been the gift of God. And this is my confession before I die.

This isn't Patrick's only surviving writing, amazingly enough.  Some people have claimed that the Confessio is short, but given the nature of writing at the time, it's actually amazingly long, given the ordeal that writing such a long letter entails.  Patrick himself notes that he was rustic in nature, which downplays his patrician origin, but if we consider that he had been kidnapped when only sixteen years old, there's was no doubt truth to his claim.



He left a very long letter in addition to the Soldiers of Coroticus complaining about the violent treatment given to some recently baptized converts and instructed that it be openly announced.  A prayer, the Lorica of St. Patrick, also survived and is believed to have been authored by him.



One of my favorite saints, for a variety of reasons, and one whose is more contemporary in terms of our present needs than we sadly realize.

St. Matthew's Catholic Church, Hulett Wyoming

The church depicted above is St. Matthew's Catholic Church in the small northern Wyoming town of Hulett.  The Church is served by the parish in Newcastle, which while not far away is a substantial drive in the winter.

Community of Christ Church Hulett, Wyoming

This is the Community of Christ Church in Hulett, Wyoming.  The Community of Christ was formerly known as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and, as the name would indicate, its an offshoot of the Mormon religion, having separated from the LDS quite early.

This church is immediately adjacent to the Catholic St. Matthew's church.  It's not unusual to see churches built side by side, but in this instance the appearance is a bit unique as both churches were built from house like structures.

St. Patrick's Catholic Church, Moorcroft Wyoming

This is St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Moorcroft, Wyoming.  The parish is served by the larger parish in Gillette, Wyoming.

St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, Baker Montana

This is St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Baker, Montana.  The church is a very striking Romanesque style church, but otherwise I don't know anything about it.

Churches of the East: Near Reims

Churches of the East: Near Reims

Lex Anteinternet: The Year in Review | Catholic Answers (Mid Week At Work). And also the Orthodox Schism.

I linked this in our our Lex Anteinternet blog:

Lex Anteinternet: The Year in Review | Catholic Answers (Mid Week At...: The Year in Review | Catholic Answers Really fascinating economic discussion starting at 20:00. I've been posting some topics on Dis...

I did that due to the interesting discussion on Distributist economic prinicpals, but there's a discussion starting at about 10:00 on the schism that's developed in Eastern Orthodox world this past year that's quite interesting.

It's been hard to get news on that topic, and this approaches it in a fashion I had not heard before with information I had not previously heard.

Lex Anteinternet: The Cross.

Lex Anteinternet: The Cross.: A cross in France.

The Cross.

A cross in France.

Churches of the East: Catholic Church, Paris France

Churches of the East: Catholic Church, Paris France:

Catholic Church, Paris France

A Catholic Church in Paris.



MKTH Photograph

Churches of the East: The ruins of of Saint Albain Nazaire, France.

Churches of the East: The ruins of of Saint Albain Nazaire, France.:

Off topic, given the location, but worth pondering.

The ruins of of Saint Albain Nazaire, France.

The 16th Century "Old Church" at St. Albain Naizaire in France stands as a silent reminder of the violence of World War One.  The church was destroyed by the French Army to keep it from being used by the Germans as an observation post in 1914.

Following the war, locals elected not to rebuilt the church and leave it as a monument to the tragedy of the war.

All photographs by MKTH.

Lex Anteinternet: As we pass 700,000 views, the State of the Blog(s)...

Lex Anteinternet: As we pass 700,000 views, the State of the Blog(s)...: Lex Anteinternet Ostensibly exploring the practice of law before the internet. Heck, before good highways for that matter. ...

Catholic (SSPX) Chapel of the Annunciation, Ft. Collins Colorado.

I've passed by this church many times but this was the first time I stopped.  I knew it was a Catholic church of some sort, but I didn't know that it was a Society of St. Pius X Chapel.

The Society of St. Pius X is a controversial Catholic organization that at one time teetered on the brink of being declared irregular.  Under the last three Popes a dedicated effort to keep that from occurring was undertaken and now the SSPX has a somewhat more regular status with the Church but it is still somewhat on the outside, rather than fully on the inside.  When I last checked, which is awhile back, they had been granted the right to perform sacraments, but a person really ought to check if they're a Catholic and planning on going to a SSPX service.

This church isn't really in Ft. Collins (at least not yet), but on a less and less rural road between Ft. Collins and Windsor Colorado.  Technically its a chapel because, I think, canonically the SSPX are outside of the regular diocese for a region and their churches do not, therefore, have full church status in the eyes of the Catholic Church.  Again, I'm not an expert on this by any means.

This chapel appears to be an offshoot of St. Isadore the Farmer church in Denver, and served by it.

Lex Anteinternet: Today (Actually yesterday) is the Start of Advent ...

Lex Anteinternet: Today (Actually yesterday) is the Start of Advent ...: 

Today (Actually yesterday) is the Start of Advent for 2018. Time for a Fast?

 The midnight sun over Advent Bay, Norway, 1905.  Things seem dark?  Maybe time to refocus a bit.

Yes, the Christmas Seasons has officially arrived with the start, today, of Advent!*

Now, most folks will of course know what Advent is, but for those who do not, and I know that there are plenty of people who do not, including not only secular people but many devout Christian Protestants, Advent is the liturgical season which preceded Christmas.  During this time, in Latin influenced Christendom, which by this point would mean all of Western Europe, the Western Hemisphere, and much of Sub Sahara Africa (and many other places as well), this seasons is characterized as being a time of joy in anticipation of Christmas itself, or in religious terms, the feast commemorating the birth of the Savior, that being Christ's Mass. . .IE., Christmas.**

So, time for a fast!

Eh?

 Yup.  Some Christians fast this time of year.  Indeed, they are obligated to in some instances.

Now this is something that's blisteringly foreign to most people in the Western World.  The whole idea is a shocker. This is the season of endless parties. . . that holiday gathering of friends, relatives and family, the office party or parties, the gatherings in dorm rooms, lecture halls and the like. Even people who only vaguely try to adhere to a Christian life will be gathering for Christmas parties and partaking in mass quantities of holiday cookies, cake, and, yes. . . booze.

Mr. Fezziwig dances with his workers at his company party in the famous scene from A Christmas Carol, in which Dickens portrays the jovial and generous Fezzwig as the model of a Christian employer. . and not without good reason.

But not everyone does that.

And perhaps that's a good thing for those of us in the Western World to recall.

In the East, and by that I mean in Eastern Christendom geographically, culturally and Canonically, this is a time to fast.

What?

Yes.

The Nativity Fast is here!

Now, to explain this I'm going to lean heavily on something I just linked in right above. The item above is linked in (taken?, swiped?, borrowed?) from an excellent blog called Fear Not Little Flock.  Its' the blog of the wife of a married Byzantine Catholic Priest.*** The chart sets out the season in the various spheres of the Apostolic Church's realms.  Indeed it does a very nice of job of doing so.

For those not too familiar with it, the Catholic Church has several Rites, only one of which is the Latin Rite.  The Latin Rite is that rite of the Church that most people call the Roman Catholic Church and which is by far the biggest rite.  It certainly isn't the only one, but for historical reasons it became the largest and has spread around the globe.  That rite never displaced the other ones however, and as noted above there are, in addition, the Ambrosian, Mozarabic, Byzantine, and Maronite Rites. The Ambrosian Rite is very close to the Latin Rite and actually exists principally in a certain region of Italy.  The Mozarabic Rite is one that was once dominant on the Iberian Peninsula and today is principally found around Toledo Spain.  The Maronite Rite is major rite that is centered in Lebanon. The Byzantine Rite of the Catholic Church is that Catholic Rite which reflects that part of the Apostolic tradition in the East which remained with or returned to full Communion with Peter's seat.  In form of its liturgy, it's very close to the Greek Orthodox Church.

Indeed, that isn't all of the rites, but given as its the major ones (and a couple of more minor ones), it's a good list.  In addiction to those listed in this charter there are also Bragan, Dominican, Carmelite and Carthusian, which are very narrowly used and all of which are associated, like the Ambrosian and Mozarabic, with the Latin Rite.

The Maronite Rite is a West Syriac Rite, which also includes the Syriac and the Malankarese Rites.  The related East Syriac includes the Chaldean and Syro Malabarese Rites.  The Byzantine family of Rites includes not only the Byzantine Rite but the Armenian Rite. The Byzantine Rite itself shares its liturgical forms with the Eastern Orthodox so its not surprising that there are some Catholic Rites that share their liturgical forms with the Oriental Orthodox, those being the Coptic and Ethiopian/Abyssinian Rites.

Which brings us to this, as its part of the story we're about to relate, even though this wasn't intended to be a post on church history..  Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches are also Apostolic Churches, along with the Catholic Church.  I don't know the fasting disciplines of the Oriental Orthodox, other than that I'm sure they have them, but the Eastern Rite of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox share the same fasting disciplines, as essentially they are close in form.****Regarded such things as fasting, the Eastern Orthodox and the Eastern Rite of the Catholic Church are very close, reflecting a common Eastern origin.

Okay, so what can we learn from this?  Well quite a lot.  And its significant.

For one thing, Advent in the Eastern Rite begins on November 14 or 15, not in late November or early December as it does in the Latin Rite.  And it begins even earlier in the Ambrosian Rite which is very closely related to the Latin Rite. That probably suggest that it began earlier in the Latin Rite at one time as well, particularly as the Mozarabic Rite also commences Advent earlier.  As the chart shows, the Maronites, also start it earlier.

Where the Eastern Rite really stands out, however, is that it has a Nativity Fast tradition.

As the chart notes, the Advent fasting obligation is not as strict as the Lenten one for the Eastern Rite.  That fast, from the Latin Rite prospective, is very strict indeed.  In the Latin Rite, since the 1960s, the fasting discipline has become very minor and is confined to certain days Lent with the number of days of Abstinence, i.e,. days in which Roman Catholics abstain from meat, being likewise so confined in the United States (this isn't the case, however, everywhere).  The Eastern Rite, however, during Lent steps in various items which the Faithful must abstain from, with the ultimate list being quite expansive.

So what is the Nativity Fast in the Eastern Rite? Well the Church in the Eparchy of Phoenix states the following regarding it:

Fasting
Abstain from meat and dairy products on Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays. Dairy is allowed on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but still no meat. (See our list of Philip's Fast Dinner Ideas.)
Fast from certain foods, such as soda, alcoholic beverages or candy.
With each meal, eat only an amount that is sufficient for nutritional needs, without feeling full.
Fast from select forms of entertainment (television, movies, radio, internet, novels, etc.).

That right there exceeds what a lot of Latin Rite Catholics do during Lent.  

Note, however, I don't know if the Nativity Fast is obligatory for Eastern Rite Catholics.  I do know that, just from listening to Catholic Stuff You Should Know, which as a Byzantine Catholic Priest as one of its hosts, that the Byzantine Catholic Church had let its fasting discipline weaken a bit over the years but it is now reviving it.  Brief net research suggest that the Nativity Fast may be optional, but if you are researching the topic, don't take advice from me, as I don't know the answers here.

The Antiochean Orthodox Church, part of the Eastern Orthodox, takes this view:

Guidelines for the Nativity Fast

The Nativity Fast

(November 15 through December 24)

The Nativity Fast is one of the four Canonical Fasting Seasons in the Church year. This is a joyous fast in anticipation of the Nativity of Christ. That is the reason it is less strict than other fasting periods. The fast is divided into two periods. The 1st period is November 15th through December 19th when the traditional fasting discipline (no meat, dairy, fish, wine, and oil) is observed. There is dispensation given for wine and oil on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Similarly, fish, wine, and oil are permitted on Saturdays and Sundays. The 2nd period is December 20th through 24th when the traditional fasting discipline (no meat, dairy, fish, wine, and oil) is observed. There is dispensation given for wine and oil only on Saturday and Sunday during this period. Here are the guidelines:

Meat	Dairy	Fish	Wine	Oil
beef, chicken, pork, turkey, elk, veal, lamb, deer, rabbit, buffalo, and so forth	milk, eggs, cheese, butter, yogurt, cream, and so forth	fish with a backbone (not including shrimp, octopus, shellfish, squid, or other seafood.	(some include all types of alcohol in this category)	(some include all types of oil in this category)
Abstain.	Abstain.	Permitted only on Saturdays and Sundays before December 20. (some permit fish Tuesdays and Thursdays also)	Permitted only on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, & Sundays before December 20.	Permitted only on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, & Sundays before December 20.

Abstinence includes refraining from the food and drink mentioned above, as well as from smoking. The Eucharistic Fast means abstaining from at least the previous midnight for communing at a morning Liturgy.

The Purpose of Fasting

The purpose of fasting is to focus on the things that are above, the Kingdom of God. It is a means of putting on virtue in reality, here and now. Through it we are freed from dependence on worldly things. We fast faithfully and in secret, not judging others, and not holding ourselves up as an example.

• Fasting in itself is not a means of pleasing God. Fasting is not a punishment for our sins. Nor is fasting a means of suffering and pain to be undertaken as some kind of atonement. Christ already redeemed us on His Cross. Salvation is a gift from God that is not bought by our hunger or thirst.
• We fast to be delivered from carnal passions so that God’s gift of Salvation may bear fruit in us.
• We fast and turn our eyes toward God in His Holy Church. Fasting and prayer go together.
• Fasting is not irrelevant. Fasting is not obsolete, and it is not something for someone else. Fasting is from God, for us, right here and right now.
• Most of all, we should not devour each other. We ask God to “set a watch and keep the door of our lips.”

Do Not Fast

• between December 25 and January 5 (even on Wednesdays and Fridays);
• if you are pregnant or nursing a newborn;
• during serious illness;
• without prayer;
• without alms-giving;
• according to your own will without guidance from your spiritual father.

Okay, whether its obligatory or not, its certainly the case that for most Americans the concept of abstaining from something during the Christmas Seasons is simply inconceivable, although ironically thousands of Americans will making pretenses towards abstention following the Christmas Season, which gets me to my next point.

 Christmas beer. . .something that most Americans are much more familiar with than Nativity Fasts.  While some might suppose that this is a recent phenomenon that came about due to the micro beer boom, in fact special ales for Christmas are a very long European tradition and go back into the Middle Ages.  Special Ale was in fact a very typical feature of Christmas feasts and usually significant landowners either brewed a good Christmas ale or imported it, even in the Middle Ages, from Germany which was already noted for its superior brewing.

I've noted here before the weirdness of the hip cool secular left repeatedly discovering, but not admitting it, disciplines that were long existent in the Apostolic Churches.  It's really bizarre but in recent years the hip and cool have "discovered" such things as "intermittent fasting", fasting and specific item fasting in the form of "purging" in general which the Apostolic Churches, together with the Jewish faith and Islam, have had as disciplines forever.

The anemic part of the secular trendy discovering, or pretending to discover those things is that they're always anemic as at best their tied to a vague sense that there ought to be a purpose to what they're doing and at worst they're tied to the concept that "if I personally do this, I'll live forever".  No wonder so many people who do this, with such little purpose tied to it, fall of the wagon while the Apostolic Faithful do it year after year without being noticed.

Well, what about an Advent Fast.  Extreme?

Well, not really.  

This is a season of joy, to be sure, and I'm not going to make the argument that there is no pleasure without pain (although that's likely quite true).  What fasting does, among other things, is to emphasize a point, and a point that needs to be made.

It focuses.

There is a point to Christmas and Advent emphasizes that point. The point isn't running around with eggnog spiked with Makers Mark and having a hangover the following day.  The point is likely the antithesis of that.  And the fasting discipline of the Eastern churches really emphasizes that.

It seems foreign to us, as it is.  But that's because the point of modern Western existence is, well pointless.  People run around after money or self fulfillment or any number of other vague catchphrases that have no deeper metaphysical or philosophical meaning at all. To try to fill that, they try to fill it with self directed meaning that's just as meaningless.  It's no wonder that all sorts of vague movements meaning nothing, from self awareness efforts, to confused efforts to redefine gender and base your identity on that (why on earth would anyone want their identify defined by their sex drive?), to grossly misunderstood attempts to adopt Oriental religions that have no disciplines are popular in our own day.  People want the greater meaning. . . as long as it doesn't have meaning. . . or perhaps if it doesn't seem too hard.

Well, fasting is hard, particularly if it has a purpose, and that purpose isn't focused exclusively on you.

Which is one of the reasons that the Western World here ought to take a look at the East.

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*FWIW, the word "Advent" comes from the Latin, "to arrive".  It celebrates the arrival of Christ.

**Christ's Mass is known to have been celebrated extremely early on in Church history, I believe as early as the 1st Century.  Moreover, contrary what later day basement Internet dwellers and Naive Reddit Rubes may have some believe, it's not only not placed on top of a preexisting pagan holiday, it's known to have actually been celebrated in December early on and, moreover, prior to the Roman establishment of the most commonly claimed pagan candidate, Sol Invictus.  That's right, pagan Romans, probably simply coincidentally, placed their holiday on top of what was already a Christian feast day.

***Oh I know you are already saying "whoa there bucko. . . I know a thing or two about you Catholics and your Priest don't marry". Well not so fast buckwheat.  That's only true in the Latin Rite, and not fully true even in it.

Eastern Rite priests can and usually are married if they're parish priests.  And in the Latin Rite there are married priests who have come in typically from Protestant churches where the priest was formerly a cleric of a Protestant church that has a similar and close understanding of theological matters to the Catholic Church.  It isn't a matter of theology that keeps Latin Rite priest from being generally married, but rather a law of the Latin Rite was originally designed to prevent there from being an aristocratic inherited priesthood.

****And this definitely isn't intended to be a history of schism, so we'll only briefly touch on that here.

As noted, all of the Churches discusses here are Apostolic Churches. That is, they were directly founded by the Apostles.  They were, and they all acknowledge that they were, at one time one single church but historical events separated them and a schism developed.  That is, they have disagreements and the Eastern Orthodox and the Oriental Orthodox are not in communion with the Catholic Church.  I don't know if the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox are in communion with each other.  There is currently a major dispute going on with the Eastern Patriarch in Turkey, who is generally regarded as the most important Patriarch in the Eastern Orthodox community, and the Russian Orthodox Church, which has caused the Russian Orthodox to take itself out of communion with the Greek Orthodox Church and hence a schism has recently developed there.

Schism or not, all of these churches are highly related and are largely in agreement on most things. They all adhere to the doctrine of Apostolic Succession and they all view each other as having fully valid holy orders and sacraments.  While it might surprise an American who walked into the door of one of the various Orthodox Churches to learn it, they are much closer to each other than they are to any of the Protestant churches.