It is always exciting when we get to celebrate a new feast day that has been recently added to the Church Calendar. And today is one of those days! Thanks to Pope Francis this rarity has become a tiny bit more common with his reinstatement of the historic Feast of Our Lady of Loreto as […]
J+M+J
Everything You Need to Know about the Ember Days
In our home, the commemoration of the Embertides are a carry over from my husband’s and my college days when I was an Anglo-Catholic (Anglican, Church of England in America). Anglicans follow a form of the Old or Pre-Vatican II Calendar like those under the Pastoral Provision or Personal Ordinariate. It is similar to 1962 […]
{Singing with the Saints} March Hymn Study: “Lord Who Throughout These 40 Days”
This month we are learning the hymn “Lord Who Throughout These 40 Days” written by English hymnist Claudia Frances Hernaman in 1873. Over the years Hernaman penned the text of over 150 hymns. She released several hymn collections, many intended for children. This most common hymn tune used with “Lord Who Throughout These 40 Days” is […]
Praying the {Indulged } Stations of the Cross at Home
Dating back to at least the 300s Christians have made pilgrimages along the path that Christ traveled on his way to Calvary. This route was known as the Via Dolorosa, The Way of Sorrow. Over time nine stops for prayer were added, in addition to 5 others found in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. […]
{Singing with the Saints} February Hymn Study: “O Love How Deep How Broad How High”
This month we are learning the hymn “O Love How Deep How Broad How High” written by St. Thomas à Kempis in the early 1400s. Originally penned in Latin, it was later translated to English in the mid 1800’s by Benjamin Webb, a Church of England clergyman. Thomas à Kempis is best known for his […]
Seven Sundays of Sacrifice
It has been almost six months since the Pennsylvania grand jury report on clerical abuse was released in August of 2018, exposing the longstanding, vile rot that had been buried from faithful members of our Catholic Church. As a convert who chose to make many painful sacrifices to be received into the Church this revelation was […]
{Singing with the Saints} January Hymn Study: “Songs of Thankfulness and Praise”
This month we are learning an hymn fit for the Solemnity of Epiphany and the Baptism of our Lord. “Songs of Thankfulness and Praise” was written by Christopher Wordsworth in 1862 and uses Jakob Hintze’s tune Salzburg from 1678. Christopher Wordsworth was the nephew of famed poet William Wordsworth. The first verse of “Songs of Thankfulness […]
Countdown to Advent Giveaway 2018
Can you believe it? We’re down to less than a week before Advent and the beginning of the new liturgical year!!To kick off this season of joyous expectation I have put together a week of giveaways and {FREE} goodies to help our community build the anticipation for one of my favorite church seasons.Each day through […]
Requiem Aeternam: A Poor Souls Playlist
As the Church dedicates November to the Poor Souls in purgatory, the church penitent, our family makes it a point to fit in little remembrances of the faithful departed throughout our day. These souls are desperate for our prayers and indulgences to release them from their torments; and the older I get the more I […]
Memento Mori: A Hallowtide Playlist
You may not yet be tired of playing The Monster Mash and Thriller, but for this Death Triduum of All Hallows’ Eve, All Hallows’, and All Souls’ Day I wanted to share some Classical listening options as we head into November, the month dedicated to prayer for the Poor Souls. During this time of year, as […]