Today would be, and ought to be, the sixth day within the Octave of the Epiphany. Nowadays, our liturgical calendars, even that pertaining to the 1962 Missal, are rather impoverished when it comes to Octaves. The 1962 Missal has three, those of Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost; the Novus Ordo jettisoned the Octave of Pentecost, leaving it with only the first two. However, up until not so long ago, there were many more Octaves - perhaps too many, one might argue, but at least many more.
The list of Octaves observed varied somewhat through its development in the Middle Ages, and then was pared down by Pope St. Pius V when the Usage of Rome became the normal liturgical rite and calendar for Latin Christendom. Following that, the rules for the celebration of Octaves were modified by various Popes, but the Octaves remained the same until Pope Pius XII.
Here is a list of all the Octaves (in rough chronological order):
Christmas
St. Stephan, Protomartyr
St. John the Apostle
Holy Innocents
Epiphany
St. Joseph
Easter
Ascension
Pentecost
Corpus Christi
Nativity of St. John the Baptist
Sts. Peter & Paul
Sacred Heart
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
All Saints
Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin
Additionally, the Patron of a Nation, Diocese, or Church was celebrated with an Octave, thus often adding as many as three more Octaves to the year.
Octaves have an intimate connection with all Sundays for Catholics. Very early on, the Church moved the Sabbath to Sunday from its Jewish place of Saturday. Sunday has always been considered the first day of the week; Saturday the last, and so it was the Sabbath because God commanded it so in Genesis, during Creation. It even antedates the Fall of Man! However, with the Incarnation of Our Lord, and the beginning of the New Creation, the Sabbath shifts to Sunday as a constant reminder of that "Eighth Day" which has begun but stands incomplete. Every Sunday is a Feast of Our Lord's resurrection and is the proverbial Eighth Day of Creation.
The concept of the Octave simply extends and develops this rich meaning of the Eighth Day and New Creation. If each Sunday is a Feast of Our Lord's Resurrection, then why not also the principal Feast Days? Thus, the custom began fairly early to commemorate the Octave Day of the principal Feasts. Christmas, Easter, and Pentecost are the earliest attested Octaves (Catholic Encyclopedia, "Octave"). Later on, Octaves arose for other major Feasts of Our Lord and of the Saints. Also later on the custom began of celebrating not only the Feast and its Octave-Day, but each day therein. Thus, for example now each individual day within the Easter Octave is a First Class Feast (N.O.: Solemnity).
When Pius XII, via the Sacred Congregation of Rites (now known as the Congregation for Divine Worship (CDW) made various alterations to the Sacred Liturgy and Liturgical Calendar in 1955/56, the reason given was "simplification of the rubrics for the Mass and Breviary." Certainly, this is quite understandable when the matter, for example, of overlapping Octaves arises. The most obvious example is of the first four Octaves, where for a few days the Christmas, St. Stephan, St. John, and Holy Innocents Octaves are all simultaneously going on. A muddy situation indeed! Additionally, the Octaves of St. John the Baptist and Sts. Peter & Paul overlap (and Corpus Christi or the Most Sacred Heart can overlap with both too), and the Octave of St. Joseph often interferes with Passiontide. So, one can see why both complex rubrics arose to classify each Octave, and ultimately why many were done away with.
Octaves, however, in addition to being liturgically and symbolically rich as I mentioned above, also help to give rise to many pious devotions amongst the faithful and are oft-replete with local, traditional customs associated with the most Solemn Feasts of the Faith. Catholics are a feasting people, and the Catholic Religion a feasting religion. Of course, this is extremely tempered in this Vale of Tears - hence we pray nine-day Novenas before eight-day Octaves, and we fast before we feast - but nonetheless these rhythms are essential to our religion.
So, let us continue to celebrate Epiphany with vigor, and offer an extra prayer for the restoration of the Epiphany Octave and perhaps some others too!
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Monday, January 9, 2012
Cardinal George, KKK, and Homosexuals
By now, I am sure most have heard the news reports of Cardinal George, Archbishop of Chicago, making comments where he discusses homosexuals and the KKK in the same paragraph, grievously offending many people and making even many Catholics uncomfortable.
The issue is, of course, a relatively minor one concerning literally a non-event, given in an interview. These were not words said in a big speech; not words said during the sermon at Christ-Mass on television or something. Rather, the organizers of the Homosexual Pride Parade in Chicago decided to move the time of this summer's upcoming parade in such a manner that would have interfered with the schedule of the Catholic parish along the parade route, so the Pastor of the parish asked them to change it back. And eventually they did. Later on, a journalist asks Cardinal George his thoughts, and he says that he supports the Pastor, would have supported him if there had been a larger fight to un-change the parade time, and notes how the tactics of the rather unabashedly anti-Catholic homosexual rights groups, etc., bear similarity to the activities of the KKK.
What follows is the umpteenth instance of these groups proving, among other things, their inability to conduct reasoned discourse. Cardinal George did not say that homosexuals lynch people, that they are just as evil as the KKK, that they are racist, or anything of the like. His Eminence did not "compare" the KKK and homosexuals. He said that the homosexuals are anti-Catholic and that the KKK were/are also anti-Catholic. That is about it. Thus commenced the furor.
My Catholic friends with whom I spoke about this even expressed at the very least discomfort with his remarks, accusing His Eminence of imprudence (isn't that always what it is, no matter that they said something that may be true, it is mean or uncomfortable, so it is imprudent) or being uncharitable (the other common canard when something true is said that others do not like).
Bishops are often chastised by many today. Sometimes, rightfully so and sometimes not. We live in a time where a terrifyingly large percentage of them seem to not want to offend anyone, not confess Christ clearly and exclusively, and seem more concerned with any number of activities not having anything to do with the salvation of souls. So when a Bishop says something that calls into question one of the most anti-Catholic, anti-nature groups and their agendas and tactics, I welcome that. It is too rare an event. Bishops are not supposed to be politicians.
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As I finish this post, I realize that Cardinal George has decided to apologize, likely under lots of pressure from even his close aids, for the "hurt" caused, the "disrespect," etc. etc. Sadly, in our day of political correctedness, that is how these things usually go, Cardinal George not being immune to them either (see the charade of the "Fr." Phleger episode). Alas...
The issue is, of course, a relatively minor one concerning literally a non-event, given in an interview. These were not words said in a big speech; not words said during the sermon at Christ-Mass on television or something. Rather, the organizers of the Homosexual Pride Parade in Chicago decided to move the time of this summer's upcoming parade in such a manner that would have interfered with the schedule of the Catholic parish along the parade route, so the Pastor of the parish asked them to change it back. And eventually they did. Later on, a journalist asks Cardinal George his thoughts, and he says that he supports the Pastor, would have supported him if there had been a larger fight to un-change the parade time, and notes how the tactics of the rather unabashedly anti-Catholic homosexual rights groups, etc., bear similarity to the activities of the KKK.
What follows is the umpteenth instance of these groups proving, among other things, their inability to conduct reasoned discourse. Cardinal George did not say that homosexuals lynch people, that they are just as evil as the KKK, that they are racist, or anything of the like. His Eminence did not "compare" the KKK and homosexuals. He said that the homosexuals are anti-Catholic and that the KKK were/are also anti-Catholic. That is about it. Thus commenced the furor.
My Catholic friends with whom I spoke about this even expressed at the very least discomfort with his remarks, accusing His Eminence of imprudence (isn't that always what it is, no matter that they said something that may be true, it is mean or uncomfortable, so it is imprudent) or being uncharitable (the other common canard when something true is said that others do not like).
Bishops are often chastised by many today. Sometimes, rightfully so and sometimes not. We live in a time where a terrifyingly large percentage of them seem to not want to offend anyone, not confess Christ clearly and exclusively, and seem more concerned with any number of activities not having anything to do with the salvation of souls. So when a Bishop says something that calls into question one of the most anti-Catholic, anti-nature groups and their agendas and tactics, I welcome that. It is too rare an event. Bishops are not supposed to be politicians.
--------
As I finish this post, I realize that Cardinal George has decided to apologize, likely under lots of pressure from even his close aids, for the "hurt" caused, the "disrespect," etc. etc. Sadly, in our day of political correctedness, that is how these things usually go, Cardinal George not being immune to them either (see the charade of the "Fr." Phleger episode). Alas...
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