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February 2nd is the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord.

Our Lady of the Candles (Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria) is also known as the Candlemas Virgin. It was the title given to Our Blessed Virgin Mary in commemoration of the Presentation of Jesus and Mary’s own rite of Purification according to Jewish Law.

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Article sources: newadvent.org (Catholic Encyclopedia),
Photo sources: en.wikipilipinas.org, daughter of the King, theleastofallthefaithful

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Now Thou dost dismiss Thy servant, O Lord, according to Thy word in peace;

Because my eyes have seen Thy salvation,

Which Thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples:

A light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel

February 2nd is the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord.

Our Lady of the Candles (Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria) is also known as the Candlemas Virgin. It was the title given to Our Blessed Virgin Mary in commemoration of the Presentation of Jesus and Mary’s own rite of Purification according to Jewish Law.

According to the Mosaic law a mother who had given birth to a man-child was considered unclean for seven days; moreover she was to remain three and thirty days “in the blood of her purification”; for a maid-child the time which excluded the mother from sanctuary was even doubled. When the time (forty or eighty days) was over the mother was to “bring to the temple a lamb for a holocaust and a young pigeon or turtle dove for sin”; if she was not able to offer a lamb, she was to take two turtle doves or two pigeons; the priest prayed for her and so she was cleansed. (Leviticus 12:2-8)

Forty days after the birth of Christ, Mary complied with this precept of the law, she redeemed her first-born from the temple (Numbers 18:15), and was purified by the prayer of Simeon the just, in the presence of Anna the prophetess (Luke 2:22 sqq.). No doubt this event, the first solemn introduction of Christ into the house of God, was in the earliest times celebrated in the Church of Jerusalem. We find it attested for the first half of the fourth century by the pilgrim of Bordeaux, Egeria or Silvia. The day (14 February) was solemnly kept by a procession to the Constantinian basilica of the Resurrection, a homily on Luke 2:22 sqq., and the Holy Sacrifice. But the feast then had no proper name; it was simply called the fortieth day after Epiphany. This latter circumstance proves that in Jerusalem Epiphany was then the feast of Christ’s birth.

From Jerusalem the feast of the fortieth day spread over the entire Church and later on was kept on the 2nd of February, since within the last twenty-five years of the fourth century the Roman feast of Christ’s nativity (25 December) was introduced. In Antioch it is attested in 526 (Cedrenue); in the entire Eastern Empire it was introduced by the Emperor Justinian I (542) in thanksgiving for the cessation of the great pestilence which had depopulated the city of Constantinople.

Article sources: Newadvent.org (Catholic Encyclopedia),
Photo sources: en.wikipilipinas.org, daughter of the King, theleastofallthefaithful

The Feast of the Presentation of our Lord , February 2, 2012

The Nunc dimittis (also Song of Simeon or Canticle of Simeon) is a canticle from a text in the second chapter of Luke (Luke 2:29–32) named after its first words in Latin.

Simeon was a devout Jew who, according to the book of Luke, had been promised by the Holy Ghost that he would not die until he had seen the Saviour. When Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem for the ceremony of consecration of the firstborn son (not the circumcision, but rather after the time of Mary’s purification: at least 40 days after the birth), Simeon was there, and he took Jesus into his arms and uttered words rendered variously as follows. (http://en.wikipedia.org)

Lord, now you let your servant go in peace;
your word has been fulfilled:

My own eyes have seen the salvation
which you have prepared in the sight of every people:

a light to reveal you to the nations
and the glory of your people Israel.

Watch Fr. Claude (Dusty) Burns response.

Uploaded by spiritjuicestudios on Jan 18, 2012. This video, among others, is a response from a Catholic perspective to the video “Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus”. Filmed at the Queen of all Saints Basilica. Directed & Edited by Rob Kaczmark, Lyrics by Fr. Claude (Dusty) Burns aka Fr. Pontifex, Produced by dUSt, Danny Hidalgo, Kyle Escamilla, Rob Kaczmark and Re-Recording Mixed by Manuel Lopez III.

“What if I told you that Jesus loves religion
And that by his coming as man he brought his religion to fruition
See this had to be addressed, the use of illogical terms and definitions
You clearly have a heart for Jesus but its fueling atheistic opinions
See what makes his religion great is not errors of wars and inquisitions
It’s that broken men and women to participate in his mission
Clearly Jesus says I have not come to abolish
I came to fulfill the law and I came to fulfill the prophets (Matthew 5:17)
And lines about building big churches and tending to the poor
Sounds a bit like Judas when the perfume was being poured (John 12:5)
See His religion is the largest worldwide source of relief

Mother Teresa serving the poor. Her society today is even involve in the relief works for famine, floods, epidemics and refugees.

For the poor, the hungry, the sick and repentant thief
Oceans of compassion, opening wide the doors
For single mothers, widows and orphans, married and divorced (James 1:27)
We all detest hypocrisy, and empty show is just the worst
But blaming religion for contradiction
Is like staring at death, and blaming the hearse.
See the teacher will teach when the students are ready to listen
But those that choose to sit in the pews and refuse the good news
Is not the fault of religion.
And If I have the Jersey and I’m playing for the Bulls
There’s going to be some boundaries, regulations and some rules.
You can’t have Christ without his Church; you can’t have the King without his Kingdom
Sins of the Body and internal treason will never ever make me leave him
And that Jesus said it is done, is absolutely true
But he also gave us a mission with many things to DO.
Jesus says if you love me, you will Do what I command. (JN 15:14)
Go and Baptize in the name of the Father, Son & Spirit in Every Land. (MT 28:19)
And on the night he was betrayed he took his men in the Upper Room
Take at eat this is my body take and drink my blood for you.
A New covenant you see, an act connected to the tree,
Do this time and time again in Memory of Me. (Mt 26:26-28)
And at last with crown of thorns beaten beyond comprehension
His eyes were looking for yours and mine; it was divine, no human invention.
So as for religion I love it, I have one because Jesus rose from the dead and won.
I believe When Jesus said IT IS FINISHED, His religion had just begun.”

Fr. Claude (Dusty) Burns
Aka Pontifex
1/14/12

Photo source: Leadershipwithyou.com

From: wsj.com

ObamaCare and Religious Freedom

How about some respect for Catholics and others who object to treating pregnancy as a disease?
January 25,2012 by Timothy Dolan

“Last August, when the administration first proposed this nationwide mandate for contraception and sterilization coverage, it also proposed a “religious employer” exemption. But this was so narrow that it would apply only to religious organizations engaged primarily in serving people of the same religion. As Catholic Charities USA’s president, the Rev. Larry Snyder, notes, even Jesus and His disciples would not qualify for the exemption in that case, because they were committed to serve those of other faiths.

Cardinal-designate Timothy M. Dolan of New York (CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz)

Since then, hundreds of religious institutions, and hundreds of thousands of individual citizens, have raised their voices in principled opposition to this requirement that religious institutions and individuals violate their own basic moral teaching in their health plans. Certainly many of these good people and groups were Catholic, but many were Americans of other faiths, or no faith at all, who recognize that their beliefs could be next on the block. They also recognize that the cleverest way for the government to erode the broader principle of religious freedom is to target unpopular beliefs first.”

Read the whole article HERE.

From: stblogustine.blogspot.com

2012 March For Life in Washington DC….Cold and Wet, But Determined!

January 23, 2012 by Matt K Cassens

In spite of the rain, in spite of the cold, the turnout for the 39th Annual March For Life looked as strong as last year. People came from all over the country to celebrate life and to protest once again the unfortunate decision by the Supreme Court in the case of Roe Vs. Wade, legalizing abortion-on-demand.

I expected a lower turnout this year because of the rain, and also because most major cities are doing their own marching or walking (out west). The fact that the crowd is every bit as large as before in DC tells me the pro-life movement is GROWING.

Continue reading.

View all pictures.

This article and the all pictures are from: stblogustine.blogspot.com

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