Tuesday in Holy Week: Mediation on the Entrance Antiphon

“Do not leave me to the will of my foes, O Lord, for false witnesses rise up against me and they breathe out violence.” – Entrance Antiphon for Tuesday of Holy Week

Everything in the life of our Lord was done either to manifest His Divinity or His Saving Plan for humanity. Consequently so much of what He did was done as an example for us. He prayed to teach us how to pray, and He suffered, not only for our salvation, but also to show us how we must embrace our sufferings. Ultimately, however, the only way we can truly embrace our sufferings is to embrace our Lord.

There is a catch to embracing our Lord though, and it is that we must embrace our cross. To be a disciple of Jesus requires one to take up one’s cross daily (Luke 9:23). This brings us to an important meditation for today, however, and that is “How do we embrace our cross?”

Does embracing the cross mean a simple resignation to all of the afflictions and ailments that may befall us? Certainly not! That would be in direct contradiction to the prayer of today’s Entrance Antiphon, wherein we pray for deliverance from these things. As we have already seen so often this week, and shall continue to see throughout the week, our Lord Himself prayed that He might be spared the pains of the Passion (Matthew 26:39). Nevertheless, He also prayed that the will of God be done (Matthew 26:39, 42, 44).

What then, does this mean for us? What must be our prayer in suffering? Our prayer must be that ultimately God preserve our inward soul. It is true that we may pray for deliverance from the evils of this world, such as sickness. Indeed, we even have a Sacrament, the Anointing of the Sick, which does this! But even in the Sacrament, the ultimate focus is not on our bodies, but on our souls. 

The will of our foes, our real and eternal foes, is that we be lost to God forever. In his rejection of the Lord God, Satan punished himself to eternal misery in Hell, along with all of the other demons who fell. In their spite for God, even though they have no one to blame for their fall but themselves, they wish to attempt to hurt all of God's beloved, ultimately by getting them to also condemn themselves to eternal misery in Hell. 

We may, then, in all of this see the true enemy of souls, and it is pride. Through pride Adam and Eve fell, and it is through the pride of man that all subsequent sins have come about. It is not coincidence that St. Thomas Aquinas labeled pride the chief vice and source of all others. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, "Hatred of God comes from pride (2094)." Once one has been infected with pride, it becomes harder for God to enter the soul and heal it. We see this so often in the Parables and Teachings of Jesus. Let us look for a moment at the Parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector. The Pharisee was not able to be justified, because in his pride he believed himself to be without sin (Luke 18:9-14). 

This same sin extends to the Pharisees and Scribes in their relationship with Jesus Christ. They believed themselves to be free from sin due to their strict adherence to "the Law." The problem was, they had set up their own law, often in contradiction to the intent of the Law of Moses. This is always the way of pride, it will force a man to raise himself up to the place of God, and it will lead one to reject God. 

Our prayer must, then, as Pope Francis said this past Palm Sunday, and as we noted, be for humility. This should be our prayer in suffering. As Pope Francis said, "There can be no humility without humiliation." We may pray to be delivered from the evils of this present age, but within this prayer, we submit ourselves to God, for in Him we trust! The will of our foes is that we become inflated with pride, as they are. They present false accusations to try and make us turn on God. The violence they breath is to disquiet our souls. Nonetheless, if we are truly humble of heart, we shall cry with the Psalmist and in union with our Lord in His Passion, "Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life (Psalm 54:4)." 

Monday in Holy Week: Meditation on the Entrance Antiphon

“Contend, O Lord, with my contenders; fight those who fight me. Take up your buckler and shield; arise in my defense, Lord, my mighty help.” – Entrance Antiphon for Monday of Holy Week

As was mentioned yesterday, Holy Week is a symbol of our earthly lives, which is often a sharing in the Passion of our Lord, which we are so intimately focused on this week, and the words of today’s Entrance Antiphon tell us the attitude we must have in suffering – we must allow the Lord to be our defender and help in it.

Notice especially that this antiphon does not ask the Lord to fight with us, but to fight for us. Nor do these lines beg for the Lord to fight offensively, but they instead request a defense. We may draw a comparison, for today’s meditation, to the prayer of our Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Not my will, but thine, be done (Luke 22:42).” Within these prayers, we submit ourselves to the Lord and trust in His merciful love for us.

However, to pray these prayers of submission to the Divine Will requires the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Through faith, we believe what God has told us. Through hope, we expect the reward and fulfillment He has promised us. And through charity, we attain that reward and rest in Him; we are united with Him in the bonds of love. Through charity, we are conformed to the Divine likeness. Through charity, the Lord is able to fight for us and defend us, for He will fight through us, and defend us by His presence.

Now these three virtues were first given to us in our Baptism, when we entered into the Divine Life through participation in the Paschal Mystery; they were strengthened in us in Confirmation, and they are renewed in us through every reception of Holy Communion. We of course see here the three Sacraments of Initiation - the Sacraments the Elect will receive in five days time! Yet they are not alone in these Sacraments, for while we will not be Baptized again, yet we shall renew our Baptismal Promises, the promises through which we committed ourselves to the Christian Life so that we could be living vessels of faith, hope, and charity.

In this renewal we shall again have the opportunity to have the virtues of faith, hope, and charity increase in our souls, for we shall make the formal re-commitment to the Christian life, the life we have been working to strengthen throughout this Lenten season. Yet we have hopefully, through our prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, seen that without the grace of God we cannot fulfill our desires. While we may attain to natural virtue, this is not sufficient for our sanctification, for that can only come about through the grace God bestows upon the soul.

Indeed, we see this in the Passion of Christ. In the Garden of Gethsemane, as He prays to the Father, He says, "Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done (Luke 22:42)." The soul of Christ is full of fortitude; it is perfect in all ways. Nonetheless, it shirks from the bitter agonies it is about to undergo; so great is the suffering that our Lord sweats blood (Luke 22:44)! Nonetheless, as He has placed Himself in the hands of His Father, He is given strength from on high, through the coming of an angel (Luke 22:43), and thus He is able to accomplish all the works of the Passion and fulfill all that was prophesied concerning Him (John 19:30).

May we, then, like our Lord, submit ourselves entirely to God. Perhaps our works of self-denial this Lent have been rigorous; if so, we will need all the more the grace of God to persevere in the fruit they have gained. If we have been slothful, we are in need of the grace of God to convert back to Him and be renewed in our fervor. If we have neglected up to now the season of grace given to us for conversion of heart, let us turn to Him immediately, for, "Now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2)." If we will rededicate ourselves to God this Easter, we must be converted, we must have the Lord God as our strength.

Let us recall the words of Christ, for He teaches that the demon, once cast out, will return with seven more to reconquer the soul, and if he succeeds, the last state is worse than the first (Matthew 12:43-45)! We must, then, give ourselves entirely to the Lord, we must be as obedient to the Father's will as Christ was. Then, He shall contend against the enemies of our soul for us; He shall be our defense and will never allow the fortresses of our souls to fall to the enemy!

Palm Sunday: Meditation on the Antiphons for the Procession with the Palms

“Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, the King of Israel. Hosanna in the highest.”

“Six days before the Passover, when the Lord came into the city of Jerusalem, the children ran to meet him; in their hands they carried palm branches, and with a loud voice cried out: Hosanna in the highest! Blessed are you, who have come in your abundant mercy!”

“O gates, lift high your heads; grow higher, ancient doors. Let him enter, the king of glory! Who is this king of glory? He, the Lord of hosts, he is the king of glory. Hosanna in the highest! Blessed are you, who have come in your abundant mercy!”

- Entrance Antiphons for Palm Sunday

Today begins the most sacred week of the year; it is a week mixed with both profound joy and sorrow. This “Holy Week” is a perfect symbol of our life upon this earth, for the lives of Christians are mixed with joy and sorrow. Before the Week is out, we will have celebrated the institution of the Sacraments of the Priesthood and the Most Holy Eucharist, the bishop shall have blessed the oils and consecrated the Sacred Chrism for use throughout the year, the Elect shall have been initiated into the Church, and we shall have renewed our Baptismal Promises!

Nevertheless, within this week, we shall also see the conspiracy of the Jewish leaders against the Divine Lord Whom they had prayed for and expected for millennia. We shall see the betrayal and denial. With Mary, our hearts will be pierced with the most profound sorrow at the Agony, Scourging, Passion, and Death of Jesus. We may even go so far as to say that this sorrow will overshadow the joys of the week, for it is quite true that the Church cannot give way to rejoicing, so rapt up will She be in sorrowful expectation of the Death and Burial of Christ, until finally on Easter Sunday this joy will break forth.

As we may note from the Antiphons above, however, this day, Palm Sunday, begins with apparent great joy. Let us not be deceived though, for this joy comes through sorrows, and this is what we shall focus upon today. Before embarking upon this meditation, let us consider some features of the Procession with the Palms, along with the rite of blessing them. This procession is the first of the many we shall experience throughout the week, and each of them is marked by unique features and feelings.

Today's procession is one of exultation in Christ's Kingship and focuses especially on His fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies concerning Him. The cross used for the Procession, although veiled, is decorated with palm branches, as is the Sanctuary of the church itself. The palm is the symbol of the triumphant martyr, and Jesus Christ as the seed of the martyrs, is most worthy to have it as one of His symbols, especially attached to the cross. These two signs, the cross and the palm may be seen as the primary symbols of this week, for the cross is the central focus of our meditations, but the palm symbolizes the victory and glory of the cruel Passion. To combine the two then, shows us the triumphant victory of the Cross!

It is appropriate to mix these two feelings together on this day for two reasons. The first reason is to prepare us for the great sorrows of this week. On the Second Sunday of Lent, we saw our Lord manifesting His glory in the Transfiguration in order to prepare them for the horrors of the Passion. It is like this with us, before walking the Passion with our Lord, the Church would have us call to mind His glory, so that we would not forget it in the sorrows of this week.

The second reason is that today is Sunday, and Sundays are always given to the commemoration of the Resurrection. Thus, although the Mass of Palm Sunday contains many penitential and sorrowful elements, the joy of the Resurrection cannot be overlooked. As a sign of triumphant joy, the Faithful are to hold their palm branches during the reading of the Passion, as a reminder that through His Death, Jesus Christ conquered sin and death for us, a feature that will be lacking when the Passion account is read on Good Friday. 

With all of these intentions in mind, let us begin our considerations of this beginning of Holy Week, meditating upon the antiphons, and the rites that accompany them. Within these processions, we shall be walking with our Lord, therefore, we must have an understanding of all the actions and ceremonies we shall participate in. At the principal Mass of the day, it is suitable that there be a Procession into the church in which the Mass will be celebrated. Therefore, the blessing of the palm branches and the reading of the Gospel of the Triumphant Entry into Jerusalem should take place in a chapel or other location separate from the church, but within walking distance. 

By going out to this location to begin the Mass of today, we are fulfilling our role within the Passion of Christ, we are a part of the crowd who will crucify Him, for He was crucified because of our sins. Nevertheless, we are also part of the ranks of Christians. Therefore, we may acclaim Him as our king now, in a way impossible for the Jews, and we may make reparation for our sins. 

We, like the crowds, expect our Jesus to come to us and so we go out to meet Him and give Him a triumphant entrance into the Temple. However, how different are the two of us! The crowds go out to proclaim an earthly king, king of a single nation; we go out to proclaim the King of Heaven and Earth, God Himself. The Jewish multitude will guide Jesus into their earthly temple, but we shall walk with our Lord into, "the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem (Hebrews 12:22)." When the Priest and Deacon and the sacred ministers approach the area where the Liturgy is to begin, let us truly cry "Hosanna to the Son of David!" 

Though the words we use are the same as the Israelites, how different are the meanings! When they call Jesus, "Son of David," and, "King of Israel," they are proclaiming Him as the descendant of David and thus the rightful ruler of the people of Israel. While this is true, they see Him as an earthly ruler. We know, however, know that an earthly ruler cannot reign forever, as was promised by the Lord to David (2 Samuel 7:11-14). However, a ruler from Heaven may possess an eternal kingdom! 

Therefore, as we chant this first antiphon at the approach of the Sacred Ministers, let us see in their persons the Son of David, Jesus Christ. He is present in the person of His Priest, who makes present the saving Mystery whereby He conquers and proclaims His kingship. When we chant this antiphon, let us think not of an earthly kingdom, but let us proclaim Christ as Son of David, the favored one of God. Let us beg Him for salvation, but not the salvation from earthly oppressors as the Jews expected, but salvation from all the evil spirits which seek our eternal ruin! 

Jesus is blessed, because His Divinity conquers the devil, sin, and death through His humanity, and thus we may chant, "who comes in the name of the Lord," for as fully human He may be king, since He bears the blood of David, but as God, He always acts according to the Divine Will (in the name of the Lord). Yet, when we bless the King of Israel, we do not have in our minds the human kingdom of Israel of old, for that kingdom was destroyed. Instead, we are the new Israel; we are the children of God, chosen by Him. Thus, we proclaim Him king now of our souls and invisibly of the entire universe, for, "God has put all things in subjection under his feet (1 Corinthians 15:27)." But we know one day we shall proclaim Him as the visible King of the entire Universe, when all things are completed and He comes to reign at the end of time in glory! 

Let us then sing, "Hosanna in the highest," for all praise is worthy to be given to Christ. As the twenty-four elders in Heaven acclaim, "Worthy art thou, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power (Revelation 4:11)." Let us worship Christ with all our souls today and throughout the rest of the week, for He has come to die for our salvation! 

While there is much more we could say, let us move on in our meditations. The other two Entrance Antiphons are to be used as the Priest incenses the altar after the Procession has finished. They speak of the Entrance into the city of Jerusalem. May we again consider the differences though between these two entrances, for the Jews walked with Jesus into the capitol of Judah, proclaiming His Davidic kingship; we have walked with Him into the Heavenly Jerusalem, symbolized by the church, proclaiming His eternal and Divine Kingship. 

These events, we are told, occurred six days before the Passover. The hour has been set since the creation of the world. He has come to the city of Jerusalem. It is only appropriate the Sacrifice for the Redemption of mankind be accomplished in this city, for as our Lord Himself attests, "salvation is from the Jews (John 4:22)." Here it is that the Temple is where sacrifice must be daily offered under the Mosaic Law, yet it will not be there that Jesus will offer His Sacrifice. His Sacrifice transcends the limits of the Law. He must go back to the beginning and repair the sickness that has infested mankind since Adam. Therefore, He shall offer the Sacrifice on Golgotha, the mount traditionally believed to be the burial place of Adam. He comes to Jerusalem, to fulfill all things. First, He must perfect the Mosaic Law, which can only be done in Jerusalem, the center of the Mosaic Law. Then, He shall be the first to go forth from Jerusalem to preach the salvation to all nations, and this shall be accomplished in His Crucifixion, for as He Himself said, "I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself (John 12:32)." 

Anxious to join our Lord in these events, let us run spiritually to participate in this first Liturgy of the week. For the first time this week we shall hear the account of the Passion of the Lord. Today we hear it with the idea of Christ's triumph over sin and death; in a few days we shall hear it with the reminder that it was on account of our sins that He died. Today's reading awakens feelings of love and submission to our King; later this week we shall have feelings of love for our Redeemer and repentance for sin. Today we see victory; Friday we shall see humility. Let us then, today, do as St. Andrew of Crete says in the Office of Readings:

"Let us run to accompany him [Jesus] as he hastens toward Jerusalem, and imitate those who met him then, not by covering his path with garments, olive branches or palms, but by doing all we can to prostrate ourselves before him by being humble and by trying to live as he would wish.

"So let us spread before his feet, not garments or soulless olive branches, which delight the eye for a few hours and then wither, but ourselves, clothed in his grace, or rather, clothed completely in him. We who have been baptized into Christ must ourselves be the garments that we spread before him. . . . Let our souls take the place of the welcoming branches as we join today in the children's holy song: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the king of Israel (Second Reading for the Office of Readings for Palm Sunday, emphasis in original)."

We have come this week to Jerusalem, both the earthly and the heavenly. Our final antiphon for the day calls for the gates to be lifted up for the king of glory! These are the heavenly gates, which at the end of the Paschal Mystery, Christ's Ascension, we shall see open to receive the Victor into their realm. Today though, we must open the gates of our hearts, the Jerusalem Jesus wishes to enter into this week. He wants to dwell in us, but He can only dwell within a humble heart, as the Psalm says, "A humble and contrite heart, O God, you will not spurn (Psalm 51:17)." Indeed, it is to the contrite and humble heart that God will show His abundant mercy! 

In his homily for this day, Pope Francis said, "This week, Holy Week, which leads us to Easter, we will take this path of Jesus’ own humiliation. Only in this way will this week be 'holy' for us too! (Emphasis in original)" As we proclaim and rejoice in the victories of Jesus Christ this week, let us remember that they were gained through His humble submission to the Father's will. Let us then, as well, enter into Jesus' humiliations this week. In this way, we shall grow in love for Him and open wide the doors of our hearts! Then He will enter our lives with His abundant mercy, just as He entered Jerusalem to bring mercy to all mankind, and we will be able to eternally sing, "Hosanna in the highest," to Him, the Victor over sin and death!

The Annunciation of the Lord: Meditation on the Entrance Antiphon

“The Lord said, as he entered the world: Behold, I come to do your will, O God.” – Entrance Antiphon for the Annunciation of the Lord

The Church interrupts Her intense fasts once again today during this Passiontide in order to commemorate the sacred Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, in which we celebrate both our Lord and our Lady. Nonetheless, this solemnity, while it exempts one from the Lenten penances, cannot be considered outside of its Lenten context, as we shall see while meditating upon the Entrance Antiphon.

The Psalms and the Letter to the Hebrews give us many of these meditations upon the Incarnation of God the Son and the communication between God the Son and God the Father as the Son is sent by the Father into the world. This visible procession of God the Son proceeds from the eternal generation of God the Son from God the Father, and the visible mission of the Son is for our salvation, as John says in his Gospel, “For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him (John 3:17).” Additionally, later in John’s Gospel, before His Passion, Jesus says to the Father, “For this purpose I have come to this hour (John 12:27),” and the hour He was speaking of was the hour of His suffering and death for our salvation.

This communication with the Father, which Jesus has before the crowd before His Passion is but a manifestation of the eternal communication, which is what the Entrance Antiphon conveys to us, taken from the Letter to the Hebrews. Jesus Christ declares, as He enters the world by taking flesh in the womb of Mary, that He comes to do the will of His Father. This was not, however, just a task for Him, as we may often think of it for us, but it was His very essence, the definition of the life of Christ. In the Gospel of John, once again, Jesus says, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work (John 4:34).” The Incarnation of Christ and His life were directed toward the Redemption of humanity, to bringing mankind back to God the Father.

Within this earthly mission of Jesus, we may see the reflection of His Eternal Life in the Trinity, for the Son and the Holy Spirit are themselves directed to the Father, the Origin without origin and the Final End of all things. Therefore, all things that exist by God's eternal providence must also be directed to the Father as their Final End. Let us especially call to mind that hymn so often sung during the Christmas and Advent seasons, Veni Redemptor Gentium, and the verse which runs:

"From God the Father He proceeds,
to God the Father back He speeds;
His course He runs to death and hell,
returning on God's throne to dwell."

This feast of the Annunciation is so appropriately situated in the Lenten season, so close to the Triduum, because from the first moment of His earthly life in the Incarnation He was pointed towards the Crucifixion and Resurrection. In fact, the ancient tradition of the Church has always been that this day, March 25, is sanctified because of three events. The first is the belief that this is the day the world was created by God. The second reason is that which we commemorate today, the Incarnation of God the Son, and the third is because it is believed that this is the day upon which Christ was crucified.

While these events are not doctrinally tied to this day and there is no necessity in believing them (and even historical research gives reason not to believe the Incarnation took place on this day), the belief of the Church shows the important relationship these three events bear to one another, and which we may consider in light of the Entrance Antiphon.

The Creation of the world was God exercising His Almighty Power; He calls being into existence from non-being. The world is created ex nihilo - out of nothing. Through His eternal Word, all things were made, "and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men (John 1:3-4)." Yet, as we have often considered this Lenten season, through Adam and Eve, sin and death entered the world, and the life that was originally bestowed by God was lost. The state of grace was no more.

This state of grace, lost by sin, would once more be seen upon the earth, for the eternal Son of God, becoming flesh in the womb of Mary would be the light that shines in the darkness (John 1:5). Although this light of the life of God was no longer present in the human race, yet God in His almighty power, brought it forth onto this earth once again!

Yet it was not in the Incarnation that this was first accomplished, but in the Immaculate Conception of our Blessed Lady, and thus this day is given both to the honor of Jesus and Mary. The Western Church has always considered this a Marian feast for the foregoing reason, while the Eastern Church has seen it more as a feast of our Lord, for the Incarnation is the visible manifestation of this light. Our Lady was not a public figure of the Church until the day of Pentecost; hers was a hidden life.

Just as light was created on the first day, so on the day of the Incarnation the Light from Light began to shine in the world. The last event believed to be accomplished on this day though cannot be overlooked, for it is the the culmination of the Incarnation - the Crucifixion. The moment when Christ was lifted up on the Cross is the moment when the Light that had come into the world began to shine for all the world! As darkness covered the earth (Matthew 27:45), Jesus Christ, "lifted up, draws all people to himself (John 12:32)!" On the Cross He is proclaimed "King of the Jews," in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, the languages of the Roman world, signifying that this proclamation was that He was King of all Nations (John 19:19-20). The ministry to the Jewish people would end, and the ministry to the Gentiles and all the nations of the earth was about to begin!

We celebrate this day, then, not simply because it is nine months before Christmas, but because it is tied in with the Paschal Mystery, through which the light of God's eternal life and love is again given to us. For this reason, at Baptism, we are given a candle, to symbolize this light that now shines in our souls through the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity. But our nature can only be given this light if God the Son takes upon Himself a human nature, which He does in the Incarnation. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, "Christ enables us to live in him all that he himself lived, and he lives it in us (521, emphases in original)."

On account of His taking a human nature, the Eternal Son of God is able, then, to say "Behold, I come to do your will, O God," for in His Divinity He is God and His will is one with the Father. He could not do separately. And while it is true that on account of the Hypostatic Union Jesus Christ could not do anything than the will of God, this does not mean He did not have a human will. Rather, it means His human will was perfectly subject to the Divine Will. As God, He shares in the Divine Intellect and Will; as man, He has a human intellect and will. These two are united in perfect harmony in the Incarnation, and thus, as He comes into the world to do the will of the Father, the Son is made Lord, for, "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 (Philippians 2:8-11)!"  

A Look at the Mass: The Prayer over the Offerings

We have reached the definitive ending of the Offertory portion of the Liturgy, and having sent the priest forth to offer the Sacrifice and our prayers and petitions to God, stand on the threshold of the great prayer itself, the Eucharistic Prayer. Before this can commence though, it is fitting that all of our thoughts should once again be gathered into one prayer, just as happened before the Liturgy of the Word with the Collect. These three prayers, the Collect, the Prayer over the Offerings (which we shall now consider), and the Prayer after Communion form what we may call the pillars, upon which the central actions of the Liturgy rest. They gather our thoughts together from what has preceded and prepare us for what is to follow.

Much of this prayer is the same in theology and style as the Collect, which we have previously examined (here), so we shall not repeat ourselves. Nevertheless, there is a difference in the ending, and the overall idea and purpose of this prayer differs from the Collect. For the purpose of our meditation we will focus on these aspects, then, using three different Prayer over the Offerings - the one for Easter Sunday, the one for the Feast of St. Francis de Sales, and the one for the 22nd Week in Ordinary Time.

Let us begin with the Prayer over the Offerings for Easter Sunday. It is:

“Exultant with paschal gladness, O Lord,

we offer the sacrifice

by which your Church

is wondrously reborn and nourished.

Through Christ our Lord.”

We may quickly see the resemblance it bears to the style of the Collect, as well as its differences. It is not so general as the Collect, but is directed towards the actions about to take place, namely the making present of Calvary's Sacrifice and the reception of Holy Communion. Like the Collect, though, this prayer is brief and focused and attempts to tie in the specific mystery being celebrated, the Resurrection of Christ in this example.

We may see the same tie in on saints feast days. For example, the Prayer over the Offerings for the Memorial of St. Francis de Sales is:

“Through this saving sacrifice which we offer you, O Lord,

kindle in our hearts that divine fire of the Holy Spirit

with which you wonderfully inflamed

the most gentle soul of Saint Francis de Sales.

Through Christ our Lord.”

The prayer here gives us an accolade to St. Francis, while also focusing our thoughts on the Sacrifice to be offered and begging for a specific grace to be gained from it. We must not, however, entertain the idea that these prayers are directed to the saint, or are to be an explanation of the mysteries. On the contrary, the mysteries give us understanding of these prayers, and consequently must be contemplated separately. In addition, while the saints pray with us, not for the same graces for they have already attained them, they are praying that what is prayed for in the Prayer over the Offerings may be accomplished in us. Thus, we may say they pray in union with us, but this prayer is always directed to God directly, which we shall consider shortly. 

Let us look now at our last example, the Collect for the 22nd Week in Ordinary Time, in which no saint or specific mystery of the life of Christ or Mary is commemorated. It is:

“May this sacred offering, O Lord,

confer on us always the blessing of salvation,

that what it celebrates in mystery

it may accomplish in power.

Through Christ our Lord.”

Here we may see the same style and precision of thought that is present within the other examples, but without reference to any commemoration. Instead, the prayer speaks only of the Sacrifice about to be offered and the Sacrament to be received. There is little more to be said regarding the content; the prayer always asks that the offering be acceptable to God and that it be efficacious in granting the necessary graces to our souls.

There are, however three style components which it would behoove us to consider. The first is the use of the plural first person. Although this prayer is prayed singularly by the priest, while the other prayers of the Offertory have been prayed in the singular by the priest, this prayer is a prayer of the whole community, a prayer of the Universal Church. Therefore, it is only proper it should be prayed in the plural by the priest, who speaks on behalf of all the Faithful. For this reason, perhaps, the reforms following the Second Vatican Council decreed this prayer should be prayed aloud by the priest, for until then it was prayed silently.

All of the other Offertory prayers, with the exception of the Orate Fratres, may be, or must be, prayed silently, for as noted they are personal prayers of the priest, but this prayer, as a universal prayer to which the Faithful are especially to unite themselves, is appropriately prayed aloud. Thus, the Faithful may hear these powerful words and direct their intentions towards the actions to follow, just as at the Collect.

The second attribute of the Prayer over the Offerings we must consider is that it is always directed to God the Father, just as the Collect is. At first glance it would appear to be directed to the one God, and not to a specific Person of the Trinity, for, like the Collect, it addresses the Father as either, "God" or "Lord." Nevertheless, we can see God the Father as the one being addressed for two reasons. The first is that all of the prayers of the Offertory are directed to God the Father, since the Sacrifice to be offered is that of the Son to the Father. The Church, in union with this Sacrifice, then, directs all Her prayers to the Father.

The next reason is the prayer often speaks of Jesus as either, "your Only Begotten Son," "your Son, our Savior," etc. This use of the second person in conjunction with "Son," could only be done if the Father was the One being addressed. 

Finally, the last stylistic component of the Prayer over the Offerings to be examined is its conclusion, which is always more simple than the Collect. While the Collect ends with, "Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever," or, "Who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever," the Prayer over the Offerings is simply, "Through Christ our Lord," or, "Who lives and reigns for ever and ever."  Although apparently different, these conclusions are really quite the same thing, simply abbreviated.

With the Collect we saw the prayer was offered to the Father through Jesus Christ, as all prayer is, since Jesus is our Mediator with the Father (Hebrews 9:15). The same goes here, for we attach our prayers to the Cross, "to the sprinkled blood [of Christ] that speaks more graciously than the blood of Abel (Hebrews 12:24)." All our prayers are offered through Christ, our Advocate with the Father, Who lives and reigns with Him and graciously provides for all our needs to attain our salvation!

As we enter into the next part of the Mass, the most ancient and integral part, the Eucharistic Prayer, let us perfectly unite ourselves in intention with Jesus Christ our Head, and the Church His Body. May we receive salvation through His Sacrifice for our Redemption and be filled with every grace through the Sacrament about to be made present!

Fifth Sunday of Lent: Meditation on the Entrance Antiphon

"Give me justice, O God, and plead my cause against a nation that is faithless. From the deceitful and cunning rescue me, for you, O God, are my strength." - Entrance Antiphon for the Fifth Sunday of Lent

Today begins the sacred two weeks of the year, formerly known as Passiontide, for within these last two weeks of Lent, the Church will turn Her attention exclusively to the Passion of our Savior. While we were rejoicing last Sunday, in order to be reminded of the Resurrection which will follow, now that we have been enlivened by those thoughts, we must delve into the mystery of our Christ's suffering, which will culminate in His sacrificial and saving death.

The Church gives almost a complete suspension to any signs of joy over these two weeks, with only a few exceptions. In addition to the Alleluia, Gloria, and Te Deum which have been suspended throughout Lent, the images and statues in a church may be veiled and it was formerly the practice to even cease reciting the "Glory be." These practices were all meant to turn our thoughts exclusively to the Passion of the Lord. Finally, before Easter arrives, the austerities will even further increase, but we shall consider those in their proper time. 

The words of the Entrance Antiphon, which we are about to consider will show well the thoughts of the Church during this time, for as noted, the thoughts are all caught up in the meditation of our Lord’s Passion, and the Church would have us walk these final two weeks of Lent with Him on the road to Calvary and the Resurrection. We may place these words in the mouth of our Lord during these weeks, for as the Liturgy has constantly been reminding us, the Pharisees and the leaders of the Jews were very desirous to put Jesus to death.

The final plot to put Jesus to death, however, shall begin today, for this Sunday, like the former two Sundays, has the option to use the readings for Year A, especially in coordination with the celebration of the Third Scrutiny, and the Gospel Reading for Year A is that of the raising of Lazarus from the dead.

While we shall not consider this raising from the dead in coordination with our meditation upon the Entrance Antiphon, it is important to note what comes from it. The passage after the resurrection of Lazarus is:

"Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him; but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council . . . . So from that day on they took counsel how to put him [Jesus] to death (John 11:45-47, 53)."

The raising of Lazarus was the final straw for these wicked men. While they had often desired the arrest of Jesus, Caiaphas, the high priest at the time of the council, prophesied the death of Jesus, and so that became their ultimate goal.

But let us now look at the prophecy of Caiaphas. He says, "It is expedient for you [the chief priests] that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation should not perish (John 11:50)." John then tells us, "He [Caiaphas] did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus should die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad (John 11:51-52)." With the thoughts of this evil council and this prophecy in mind, let us now move into consideration of the Entrance Antiphon.

If we place the words of this antiphon in the mouth of our Lord, it only makes sense that this is a prayer to the Father prayed within His Passion, through His humanity. Throughout this Lent, we have repeatedly seen the faithlessness of the Jewish nation, especially its leaders, those people who were supposed to be most ready for the coming of the Messiah! While many Jews realized Jesus was the Messiah, such as the man born blind whom we saw in last Sunday's Gospel, Jesus has constantly rebuked the chief priests for not recognizing Him as the one whom they await, e.g. John 9:39-41; Matthew 11:20-24, 23:29-36. The nation of Israel was once again faithless, as it had so often been throughout its history! Its leaders themselves are scheming to end the presence of Jesus among them.

Nonetheless, as we saw at Christmas, the moment of Christ's birth on earth had been decreed from all eternity, as shown by the chanting of the Proclamation of the Birth of Christ. Likewise, His saving death and Resurrection have also been decreed, and these events, while brought about by the Scribes and Pharisees, have not been chosen by humans, but by Jesus Himself as the means through which He shall save the human race. These wicked men plotting the death of our Lord, then, do not realize how powerless they are before the Almighty, however.

It is like this with all earthly powers. Their comprehension of their feebleness, nay their nothingness, before the face of Almighty God is always lacking. Those of earthly minds always believe themselves in control of the situation, and to an extent they are, for they only look to control the things of this earth, but in the grand scheme they have no power! God alone has full control of time and history, for He extends beyond it! He who looks towards the things of earth will only be led inwards, but he who looks towards the things of Heaven will be led to seek God, through Whom Heaven and eternal life may be attained.

This is the example Jesus sets for us. He places His life in His Father's hands. We see Him pray in Gethsemane, "Yet not what I will, but what thou wilt (Mark 14:16)." He does not attempt to fight as the men of earth do, with scheming and cunning devices, with endless hours of strategy and shrewd dealings, but He places all trust in God and gives the battle to Him, to Whom all power and wisdom belongs!

And does not God the Father bestow upon Jesus, His Own Divine Son, justice? Although Jesus was, "crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men," yet, "God raised him up, having loosed the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it (Acts 2:23-24)." While Jesus suffered injustice at the hands of the Jewish leaders and before the Pilate and the Romans, He received His justice from God, for He was not worthy of the sentence of death, and therefore could not remain dead, due to the perfect and harmonious justice of God.

But the justice bestowed upon Christ extends also to us, for by dying Christ has paid the ransom for our sin, granting us an inheritance in His own Divine life. We may consequently use these words as our own. We may pray that God will not doom us with this faithless generation, the "culture of death," in which we are now living as St. John Paul II was apt to call it. Instead, if we live our Christian lives in conformity with the Gospel, if we place our trust in God, we may have faith that He will provide for all our needs. He will not allow us to be overcome by death, but like Lazarus in the tomb, He will call us forth and through us, He will show the world His love!

In these final days of Lent, then, let us work all the harder to separate ourselves from our attachments to this world. While this is hard, for the things of this world are not evil in themselves, by cleaving to them, due to our fallen nature, we run the risk of forgetting God and wishing only to live in the world. By falling into this trap, we assure ourselves of everlasting torment, for we will receive that which we desire.

We must also remember that the enemy, the devil, Satan, wants us to fall into this trap. He tempted Judas to betray our Lord (Luke 22:3), and he wishes to do likewise to us. And we cannot underestimate him. He is deceitful and cunning and will use all the means at his disposal to trap us and lead us into perdition. Nevertheless, we may take confidence in the promise of our Lord:

"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you (Matthew 10:16-20)."

If we give ourselves completely to our Lord and separate ourselves completely from the attachment to this world, we will then be living vessels of the Spirit of God within the world. God will be our strength and all of Satan's wiles and schemes will fail. He will be nothing more than a barking dog! And we, we shall be used, like the raising of Lazarus, "for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by means," of us (John 11:4)!"  

A Look at the Mass: The Orate Fratres

While we must remember that the Form of the Mass which we are primarily meditating upon is the Ordinary Form, and therefore there are parts of the Extraordinary Form which we will skip, nevertheless we have considered various aspects of the Extraordinary Form, as well as additional prayers of it, when it behooved us to do so, and we will continue in this practice for the remainder of the Mass. Before we move on to the next part of the Ordinary Form, then, we will pause and consider what may be called the final Offertory Prayer in the Extraordinary Form, which is especially a looking forward to what is to come.

For this reason it is especially important for us to consider it, because regardless of the Form or Rite of the Mass used, these affections are what are contained within the Sacrifice and Sacrament of the Mass. The prayer, then, prayed silently by the priest is:

“Receive, most Holy Trinity, this oblation which we are making to Thee in remembrance of the Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and in honour of Blessed Mary, ever Virgin, Blessed John the Baptist, the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, and of these (names of the saints whose relics are in the altar), and of all the Saints; that it may avail unto their honour and our salvation, and may they vouchsafe to intercede in heaven for us who honour their memory here on earth. Through the same Christ, our Lord. Amen.”

As Gueranger points out, this prayer is a looking ahead at what is to come, for he says:

"Receive this Oblation. The Priest says these words of the Bread and Wine just offered by him, nevertheless, he has really in view neither this Bread nor this Wine. . . . the Oblation here presented to the Divine Majesty, could never be confined to an order of Sacrifice purely material, as was that of the Jews; it is evident, therefore, that the Priest is here stretching forward in thought to a something far higher: he is presenting the Offering of the Great Sacrifice which is soon to be accomplished (The Holy Mass, Section: Suscipe, Sancta Trinitas)."

While this reminds us that the Sacrifice the priest is offering is not simply a material sacrifice, as that of the Jews or the Pagans, but is the Divine Sacrifice, to further stress this the Paschal Mystery of the Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension of our Lord is mentioned. By attending the Holy Mass, we attend all of these events. We are present at the suffering and Death of the Lord for our salvation, but the mystery does not end there, for if it did it would be of no profit to us. The Death pays the penalty for sin, but does not restore us to life. Rather, it is through the Resurrection of Christ that we are restored to life, and then our nature and life is glorified and raised to a new level by Christ's Ascension into Heaven, beginning the ministry of the Holy Spirit and the Church. Finally, it is because of the Church's ministry that we may even be present at this great Sacrament and Sacrifice and receive the Body and Blood of the Lord!

The prayer next moves on to the mention of saints, specifically chosen for their relation to their presence in the Holy Mass. First is mentioned our Lady, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Our Lady - perfectly united in will with our Lord - must be found wherever He is, for she was never absent from His love or in His ministry. Indeed we find reference to her presence throughout the Gospels (Matthew 12:46; Luke 8:19), and especially she is mentioned as present standing at the foot of the Cross (John 19:25). Mary must be present to us, then, for we are mystically present at the Crucifixion through the Mass.

However, we must also recall Mary's place as co-Redemptrix in the plan of salvation, and consequently her appropriateness to be named here.  Through her, Jesus Christ received His humanity, and thus, as one Person Who was both God and man, He was able to redeem the human race from sin. As the Liturgy so often sings, the salvation of the human race came forth from Mary; of her was fulfilled the ancient prophecy of the serpent being crushed (Genesis 3:15)! Therefore, how appropriate it is that within the celebration of the holy mysteries of our redemption, we beg Mary's intercession that we may personally be saved through the Blessed Sacrament.

Next named is St. John the Baptist, he of whom our Lord said there was no man born of women greater (Luke 7:28). He it was who declared Jesus to be, "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29)" We shall encounter these words again before the distribution of Communion, but it is appropriate here, for we must remember that in the person of the priest, we are beholding Jesus Christ, Who is about to make present the Sacrifice to take away our sin.

St. Peter and St. Paul, the two pillars of the Church are then invoked. These two Apostles are traditionally associated with the full Apostolic authority, for the Church was founded on the rock of St. Peter (Matthew 16:18), who preached and taught the Jews, and the Faith was spread from there and elaborated upon by St. Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles (Galatians 2:7). To mention them here, is to remind us that the Sacraments come to us through the Church of Christ, one of the marks of which is that She is apostolic, as we proclaim in the Creed. The Sacrifice and Sacrament which we celebrate, then, is the same as that which the Apostles celebrated.

The final saints which were to be mentioned were those whose relics were reposed in the altar in which Mass was being celebrated at. This is the only part in the Mass where they would be mentioned by name; at all other points they were only referenced. The importance of their mentioning however, should not be overlooked, for while all the saints are present at the Mass, through the union of the Heavenly and earthly liturgies, these saints have part of their mortal remains present. While their souls are separated from their bodies, the mortal remains are those which were sanctified in life through the presence of the Holy Spirit, as taught by the Council of Trent (Decree on the Invocation, Veneration, and Relics of the Saints and on Sacred Images, December 3, 1563). Therefore, the Church continues to honor them and prays that as the Holy Mass is celebrated upon their mortal remains, so we may be filled with the graces they received through It. Lastly, by recalling to mind the presence of the relics of the saints, we recall the text from the Book of Revelation, "I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne (Revelation 6:9)."

This prayer then closed with the request that the Sacrifice of the Mass would profit for the honor of the saints whose memory we call to mind, and that we may attain salvation through Its celebration and through their intercession. As the Council of Trent also teaches, when Mass is celebrated in honor of a saint it is to give thanks to God for the victory they achieved by His grace and to implore Him that we may imitate them and also gain their intercession (Canon of the Council on "Masses in Honor of the Saints," Session 22, September 17, 1562).

Within this prayer, then, the Church recalled for the first time the Paschal Mystery about to made present for our salvation, and implored the intercession of the saints that we may profit through its celebration and attain the graces they received in their lives, so that we, like them, may attain the crown of eternal life, which the Lord promises to those who are faithful to Him (Revelation 2:10)! Although this prayer is no longer recited, these are the thoughts we must bear as we enter into the celebration of the Sacrifice, especially throughout the Eucharistic Prayer, which is about to commence.

Let us now move to the next progression in the Mass, for from this point forward, the priest will go forth to fulfill his highest office and offer the Sacrifice. This task is his alone, and he alone can fulfill it. While the full import is not necessarily clear in Masses where the priest faces towards the people, this address the priest makes to the people is important and shown especially in Masses celebrated ad orientem, for from this point forward the priest acts solely as the mediator between God and men and will not address the people again until after the Eucharistic Prayer is complete.

Turning towards the people, if not already facing them, the priest says to them:

“Pray, brethren (brothers and sisters),
that my sacrifice and yours
may be acceptable to God,
the almighty Father.”

The people then respond, as the priest turns back towards the altar (if he is celebrating ad orientem): 

“May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands
for the praise and glory of his name,
for our good
and the good of all his holy Church.”

Let us examine first the address of the priest to the people. This is a prayer that has undergone very little development and change over the ages, which speaks of the sufficiency found in it for expressing the needs and sentiments for this moment. As we have noted, it is the priest alone who offers the Sacrifice in persona Christi, but it is on behalf of and for the people gathered, nay for all the members of the Church, both living and deceased. Thus, we must understand, that the priest is really asking all of the members of the Church, those on earth, those in Heaven, and those detained in Purgatory for prayers that he may worthily and well accomplish for the benefit of all the Faithful, this great work.

The title, "brethren," may be confusing to us at first, and it is for this reason the Church allows the use of, "brothers and sisters," in its place. However, as the use of, "brethren," is allowed and quite old, we should have a proper understanding of it. It is not simply an address to the males gathered, or even more exclusively to any other priests who may be present. Rather, this term is addressing all members of the community, just as St. Paul used it, and it is on account of its presence in Scripture the Church has preferred it for the Liturgy over "brothers and sisters," (E.g. Romans 7:1,4; 1 Corinthians 1:10; Galatians 6:1).

We may note that the priest here addresses us, not as a father (which he properly is to the faithful), but as a fellow Christian, a brother in Christ. He has been chosen from among the people; in nature he is the same as us, but in dignity he is higher. But, just as our Lord, Who shared our nature in all things but sin, His ministry is one of service. And thus, he begs us for prayers that he may serve us as Christ did.

The next line is a most interesting one, for it speaks of two sacrifices, yet we know there is but one Sacrifice of Christ, as the Letter to the Hebrews says, "He [Christ] entered once for all into the Holy Place, taking not the blood of goats and calves but his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12)."

To have a proper understanding of this we must turn to both Jungmann and Gueranger, for they each explain both this twofold and single sacrifice. First, Jungmann points out:

"The priest feels very strongly that he is exalted above the people - a matter the early medieval Church [when this petition was developed] was fully conscious of - and even in his sacrificial prayer he realizes he stands alone before God as the people's mediator (83)."

We turn, then, to Gueranger, who says:

"The Sacrifice is the Priest's, for he is the direct agent therein; the Sacrifice belongs to the Faithful, because Jesus Christ instituted it for their particular profit . . . . he [the priest] re-awakens the attention of thee Faithful, urging them more and more to earnestness; for it behoves them not to forget, that they too have a share in the Priesthood (The Holy Mass, Section: Orate Fratres)."

We see herein, the meaning of the double sacrifice being offered in the two priesthoods. First, there is the ministerial Priesthood, in which the priest himself participates, who acts in persona Christi to offer the actual Sacrifice of the Cross - the Sacrifice of God the Son to the God the Father in the unity of God the Holy Spirit. However, there is also the priesthood all the baptized share in, a priesthood where they may, in union with Christ, offer sacrifice. The Faithful will, then, be offering a sacrifice of their own, their very selves and the prayers they bring to the Holy Mass. These, however, depend on the Sacrifice of the priest, to Which they are united, and for this reason we have the final words of the priest's petition to the people that they, "may be acceptable to God the Almighty Father."

Because the primary Sacrifice is that of God the Son, It is being offered to God the Father, and for this reason the prayers of the Faithful are also being offered to God the Father, just as the central prayers of the Mass are all directed towards Him. But this petition is also a request that we trust in the providence and power of God, for the naming of, "the almighty Father," would have us recall that no prayer is too great for God to grant, by His power all things are possible, even the accomplishing of this great work through the hands of the priest!

The Faithful send the priest to his work with firm faith that God will give unto him the graces necessary for him to worthily perform the work. Additionally, we trust that God will give us the graces, through His benevolent and loving graciousness, so that we may offer ourselves fully and efficaciously to Him.

Within the response of the people, there is the acknowledgment the Eucharist will be made present and the Sacrifice will be offered to God through the hands of the priest alone - "May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands." The prayers of the people depend upon the priest, for without the Sacrifice of the Cross, they cannot offer worthy sacrifice to God. But first, and foremost, we are present at the Holy Mass for the purpose of adoration of God, as we see in the Book of Revelation. The saints who stand before the throne of God at the heavenly liturgy cry out, "Worthy art thou, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power . . . (Revelation 4:11)," and the angels who stand in the Lord's presence sing, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty . . . (Revelation 4:8)." The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:

"Adoration is the first attitude of man acknowledging that he is a creature before his Creator. It exalts the greatness of the Lord who made us and the almighty power of the Savior who sets us free from evil. . . . Adoration of the thrice-holy and sovereign God of love blends with humility and gives assurance to our supplications (2628, emphasis in original)."

It is not supplication, nor thanksgiving, nor reparation which is the primary focus of the Holy Actions in the Mass, but pure unadulterated adoration of God. Christ upon the Cross gives glory to the Father, and so through our participation in the Mass so do we, and thus we say, "for the praise and glory of his name."

The last part of the response of the Faithful is the reason for our participation, i.e. for our good and that of the entire Church. As Sacrosanctum Concilium states:

"The liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the church is directed; it is also the source from which all its power flows. . . .

"From the liturgy, therefore, and especially from the Eucharist, grace is poured forth upon us as from a fountain, and our sanctification in Christ and the glorification of God to which all other activities of the church are directed, as toward their end, are achieved with maximum effectiveness (10)."

The good of the Faithful, which will be achieved is their sanctification, through partaking of the Body and Blood of Christ in Holy Communion worthily, for the Eucharist completes one's initiation into the Body of Christ, which is Itself Holy, begun in Baptism and strengthened in Confirmation. The Church also receives grace from the Eucharistic celebration, since it is from the Cross that She derives Her powers of sanctification, and it is from the Blessed Sacrament the the other Sacraments and the sacramentals of the Christian Life flow.

As we send the priest forth to accomplish the work of our redemption, let us not cease to pray for him, since it is account of his actions that we can participate in the Sacrifice of the Cross. Christ has ordained to give this most exalted honor and role to the priest; we cannot neglect to pray for him then, since, "Every one to whom much is given, of him will much be required (Luke 12:48)."