Had we Angels’ eyes, we should see the earth as a vast field sown with seed for the resurrection. The death of Abel opened the first furrow, and ever since, the sowing has gone on unceasingly the wide world over. This land of labor and of suffering, what treasures it already holds laid up in its bosom! And what a harvest for heaven, when the Sun of Justice, suddenly darting forth his rays, shall cause to spring up as suddenly from the soil the elect ears ripe for glory! No wonder that the Church herself blesses and superintends the laying of the precious grain in the earth.
But the Church is not content to be always sowing. Sometimes, as though impatient of delay, she raises from the ground the chosen seed she had sown therein. Her infallible discernment preserves her from error; and, disengaging from the soil the immortal germ, she forestalls the glory of the future. She encloses the treasure in gold or precious stuffs, carries it in triumph, invites the multitudes to come and reverence it; or she raises new temples to the name of the blessed one, and assigns him the highest honor of reposing under the Altar, whereon she offers to God the tremendous Sacrifice.
“Let your charity understand,” explains St. Augustine:1 “it is not to Stephen we raise an altar in this place; but of Stephen’s relics we make an altar to God. God loves these altars; and if you ask the reason: Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.2 In obedience to God the invisible soul has quitted its visible dwelling. But God preserves this dwelling; he is glorified by the honor we pay to this lifeless flesh; and, clothing it with the might of his divinity, he gives it the power of working miracles.”3 Hence the origin of pilgrimages to the shrines of the Saints.
“Christian people,” says St. Gregory of Nyssa, “wherefore are you assembled here? A tomb has no attractions; nay, the sight of its contents inspires horror. Yet, see what eagerness to approach this sepulcher! So great an object of desire is it, that a little of the dust from around it is esteemed a gift of great price. As to beholding the remains it conceals, that is a rare favor, and an enviable one, as those can testify who enjoy the privilege: they embrace the holy body as though it were yet alive, they press their lips and their eyes upon it, shedding tears of love and devotion. What emperor ever received such honor?”4
“Emperors!” rejoins St. John Chrysostom; “as the porters at their gates, such have they become with regard to poor fishers. The son of the great Constantine deemed he could not pay a higher honor to his father, than to procure him a place of sepulture in the porch of the fisherman of Galilee.”5 And again, concluding his commentary on St. Paul’s admirable Epistle to the Romans, the golden-mouthed Doctor exclaims: “And now, who will grant me to prostrate myself at Paul’s sepulcher, to contemplate the ashes of that body which, suffering for us, filled up what was wanting of the sufferings of Christ? The dust of that mouth, which spoke boldly before kings, and, showing what Paul was, revealed the Lord of Paul? The dust of that heart, truly the heart of the world, more lofty than the heavens, more vast than the universe, as much the heart of Christ as of Paul, and wherein might be read the book of grace, graven by the Holy Spirit? Oh! that I might see the remains of the hands, which wrote those Epistles; of the eyes, which were struck with blindness and recovered their sight for our salvation; of the feet which traversed the whole earth! Yes; I would fain contemplate the tomb where repose these instruments of justice and of light, these members of Christ, this temple of the Holy Ghost. O venerable body, which, together with that of Peter, protects Rome more securely than all ramparts!”6
In spite of such teachings as these, the heretics of the sixteenth century profaned the tombs of the Saints, under pretext of bringing us back to the doctrine of our forefathers. In contradiction to these strange reformers, the Council of Trent expressed the unanimous testimony of Tradition in the following definition, which sets forth the theological reasons of the honor paid by the Church to the relics of Saints:
“Veneration ought to be shown by the faithful to the bodies of the Martyrs and other Saints, who live with Jesus Christ. For they were his living members and the temples of the Holy Ghost; he will raise them up again to eternal life and glory; and through them God grants many blessings to mankind. Therefore, those who say that the relics of the Saints are not worthy of veneration, that it is useless for the faithful to honor them, that it is vain to visit the memorials or monuments of the Saints in order to obtain their aid, are absolutely to be condemned; and, as they have already been long ago condemned,7 the Church now condemns them once more.”8
Considering the unequal distribution of relics throughout the world, Rome has not fixed one universal feast for the essentially local cultus of these precious remains. She leaves the particular churches free to consult their own convenience, reserving it to herself to bless and sanction the choice of each.
Mass of the Holy Relics
As the feast of the holy Relics is in many places celebrated on the Sunday within the Octave of All Saints’, we here give the Mass and Vespers most commonly used. The liturgical formulæ are, however, not less variable than the date of the feast.
The Introit, borrowed from the thirty-third Psalm, tells us of God’s solicitude for his own, in death as in life. Whatever may become of the just, under trial and persecution, their bones shall be gathered together again on the last day, at the voice of the Son of Man.
Introit
Many were the afflictions of the just, and out of all these the Lord delivered them: the Lord keepeth all their bones, not one of them shall be broken.
Multæ tribulationes justorum, et de his omnibus liberavit eos Dominus: Dominus custodit omnia ossa eorum: unum ex his non conteretur.
Ps. I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall be ever in my mouth. Glory be to the Father. Many were.
Ps. Benedicam Dominum in omni tempore: semper laus ejus in ore meo. Gloria Patri. Multæ.
The miracles wrought by these dry bones prove, says St. Augustine, that they are not really dead.9 Let our faith in the future resurrection be thereby increased; and let us pray with the Church in her Collect, that we too, at the appointed time, may partake in the glory of which their wonder-working power is the pledge.
Collect
Increase within us, O Lord, the faith of the resurrection, thou who workest wonders in the relics of thy Saints: and make us partakers of immortal glory, of which we venerate the pledges in their ashes. Through.
Auge in nobis, Domine, resurrectionis fidem, qui in Sanctorum tuorum reliquiis mirabilia operaris: et fac nos immortalis gloriæ participes, cujus in eorum cineribus pignora veneramur. Per Dominum.
Then are commemorated the occurring Sunday and the Octave of All Saints, by their respective Collects.
Epistle
Lesson from the Book of Wisdom.
Lectio libri Sapientiæ.
Eccli. 44.
Eccli. xliv.
These were men of mercy, whose godly deeds have not failed. Good things continue with their seed, their posterity are a holy inheritance, and their seed hath stood in the covenants; and their children for their sakes remain for ever: their seed and their glory shall not be forsaken. Their bodies are buried in peace, and their name liveth unto generation and generation. Let the people shew forth their wisdom, and the Church declare their praise.
Hi viri misericordiæ sunt, quorum pietates non defuerunt: cum semine eorum permanent bona, hæreditas sancta nepotes eorum, et in testamentis stetit semen eorum: et filii eorum propter illos usque in æternum manent: semen eorum, et gloria eorum non derelinquetur. Corpora ipsorum in pace sepulta sunt, et nomen eorum vivit in generationem et generationem. Sapientiam ipsorum narrent populi, et laudem eorum nuntiet Ecclesia.
Our ancestors looked upon holy relics as their greatest riches, the treasure by excellence of their cities. Dew of heaven and fatness of the earth, the blessings of this world and of the next, seemed to distill from the bodies of the Saints. Their presence was a check to hostile armies, as well as to the legions of hell; it guarded morals, fostered faith, and encouraged prayer in the heart of cities, to which they attracted as great crowds as now flock to our centers of pleasure. And with what vigilance was cherished the blessed deposit, the loss whereof would have been considered the greatest of public calamities!
“I have here, my brethren,” says Cardinal Pie, “to unfold to you a marvelous design of the God whom Scripture calls wonderful in his Saints. The Lord Jesus, who said to his disciples: Go ye and teach, euntes ergo docete, frequently takes pleasure in sending them forth again after their death; and he makes use of their apostolate from beyond the tomb, to carry the blessings of grace to other nations, besides those whom they evangelized in life. I have appointed you, he said, that you should go and should bring forth fruit: Posui vos ut eatis et fructum afferatis. In obedience to this command, the Saints, even after having reached the blessed term of their mortal pilgrimage, consent to become wayfarers once more. Had I leisure to recount to you all the posthumous wanderings of our illustrious pontiffs and thaumaturgi, for instance the repeated journeys of our own Hilary and Martin during more than ten centuries, I should, though captivating your attention by narratives full of interest, run the risk of wearying you by the length of my discourse.”10
The Gradual and its Verse, taken from the Psalms, extol the future glory feebly imaged by that which here surrounds the blessed on their couches of honor.
Gradual
The Saints shall rejoice in glory: they shall be joyful in their beds.
Exsultabunt Sancti in gloria: lætabuntur in cubilibus suis.
℣. Sing ye to the Lord a new canticle: let his praise be in the church of the Saints.
℣. Cantate Domino canticum novum: laus ejus in Ecclesia Sanctorum.
Alleluia, alleluia.
Alleluia, alleluia.
℣. Let the just feast and rejoice before God, and be delighted with gladness. Alleluia.
℣. Justi epulentur, et exsultent in conspectu Dei: et delectentur in lætitia. Alleluia.
Gospel
Sequel of the holy Gospel according to St. Luke.
Sequentia sancti Evangelii secundum Lucam.
Chap. 6.
Cap. vi.
At that time, Jesus coming down from the mountain, stood in a plain place, and the company of his disciples, and a very great multitude of people from all Judæa and Jerusalem, and the sea-coast both of Tyre and Sidon, who were come to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases. And they that were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. And all the multitude sought to touch him, for virtue went out from him, and healed all. And he, lifting up his eyes on his disciples, said: Blessed are ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are ye that hunger now, for you shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now, for you shall laugh. Blessed shall you be when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake: be glad in that day and rejoice, for behold, your reward is great in heaven.
In illo tempore: Descendens Jesus de monte, stetit in loco campestri, et turba discipulorum ejus, et multitudo copiosa plebis ab omni Judæa et Jerusalem, et maritima, et Tyri, et Sidonis, qui venerant, ut audirent eum, et sanarentur a languoribus suis. Et qui vexabantur a spiritibus immundis, curabantur. Et omnis turba quærebat eum tangere: quia virtus de illo exibat, et sanabat omnes. Et ipse, elevatis oculis in discipulos suos, dicebat: Beati pauperes: quia vestrum est regnum Dei. Beati, qui nunc esuritis: quia saturabimini. Beati, qui nunc fletis: quia ridebitis. Beati eritis cum vos oderint homines, et cum separaverint vos, et exprobraverint, et ejecerint nomen vestrum tamquam malum, propter Filium hominis. Gaudete in illa die, et exsultate: ecce enim merces vestra multa est in cœlo.
Amen, Amen, I say to you, he that believeth in me, the works that I do he also shall do, and greater than these shall he do!11 Our Lord was speaking of his Saints and disciples, who would believe in him so fully as to place their earthly happiness in poverty, hunger, mourning, and persecution. His word was to be accomplished in them during life; but frequently it was to be still more manifested after death, in the power retained by their relics of driving away demons, healing all diseases, and obtaining every grace. It is not only from the narrow province of Judæa, but from the coasts of the entire world, that multitudes now flock to hear the saints in the silent eloquence of their tombs, and to experience the virtue that goes out from them.
St. Paulinus of Nola thus speaks in his poems: “God, in his goodness, has willed that the Saints should be distributed among the nations, so that their aid might never be wanting to us weak mortals. If he has given the principal cities to the greatest Saints for their residence, the grace with which they are endowed for our sake is not confined to the places where their entire bodies rest; where there are but small portions, there is the same power, and God thus gives testimony to their credit in heaven. From the holy deposit the sacred ashes are scattered abroad, and become the seeds of life; let but the least drop be taken from the spring, and it is itself a source producing rivers of grace and of love.”12
Let us, then, honor our Lord in his Saints; for it is from him, as the Offertory tells us, that all their power originates.
Offertory
God is wonderful in his Saints: the God of Israel is he who will give power and strength to his people: blessed be God. Alleluia.
Mirabilis Deus in Sanctis suis: Deus Israël ipse dabit virtutem et fortitudinem plebi suæ, benedictus Deus. Alleluia.
“Who ever adored the Martyrs, or mistook a man for God?” asked St. Jerome, in his defense of the homage paid to sacred relics.13 And the Church shows, in her Secret, that the cultus of these venerable ashes is rendered to the Saints themselves; while the Saints’ own power is but a power of intercession before the Father of the divine Victim who wrought our salvation.
Secret
We implore thy mercy, O Lord, that by the suffrage of the merits of thy Saints, whose relics we venerate, the sacrifice which we offer may be the expiation of our sins. Through our Lord.
Imploramus, Domine, clementiam tuam: ut Sanctorum tuorum, quorum Reliquias veneramur, suffragantibus meritis, hostia quam offerimus nostrorum sit expiatio delictorum. Per Dominum.
Then follow the Commemorations as above.
He that eateth my Flesh and drinketh my Blood, said the Man-God, I will raise him up in the last day.14 Holy Communion, which places in our bodies the germ of a glorious immortality, justifies the object of this feast, and explains its joy.
Communion
Rejoice in the Lord ye just: praise becometh the upright.
Gaudete justi in Domino: rectos decet collaudatio.
How could we better conclude our prayers of today, than by expressing our desire of living eternally with the blessed, who have been gladdening us with the presence of their holy relics! This the Church does in the Postcommunion.
Postcommunion
Multiply thy mercy upon us, we beseech thee O Lord, by these holy mysteries which we have received, that as we rejoice with pious devotion in the solemnity of thy Saints, whose relics we venerate, so, by thy bounty, we may enjoy their eternal fellowship. Through our Lord.
Multiplica super nos, quæsumus Domine, per hæc Sancta quæ sumpsimus, misericordiam tuam: ut sicut in tuorum solemnitate Sanctorum, quorum Reliquias colimus, pia devotione lætamur, ita eorum perpetua societate, te largiente, fruamur. Per Dominum.
Then the Commemorations as before; and at the end of the Mass, the Gospel of the Sunday is read, instead of that of St. John.
Vespers of the Holy Relics
The Vespers are those of the Common for many Martyrs, with the Collect of today’s Mass for the Prayer.
1. Ant. These are the Saints who yielded their bodies for God’s covenant, and washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb.
1. Ant. Isti sunt Sancti, qui pro testamento Dei sua corpora tradiderunt, et in sanguine Agni laverunt stolas suas.
Ps. Dixit Dominus, Chapter II. On the Office of Vespers for Sundays and Feasts during the Time after Pentecost.
2. Ant. The Saints by faith conquered kingdoms, wrought justice, and gained the promises.
2. Ant. Sancti per fidem vicerunt regna, operati sunt justitiam, adepti sunt repromissiones.
Ps. Confitebor tibi Domine, Chapter II. On the Office of Vespers for Sundays and Feasts during the Time after Pentecost.
3. Ant. The youth of the Saints shall be renewed like that of the eagle: they shall flourish as the lily in the city of the Lord.
3. Ant. Sanctorum velut aquilæ juventus renovabitur: florebunt sicut lilium in civitate Domini.
Ps. Beatus vir, Chapter II. On the Office of Vespers for Sundays and Feasts during the Time after Pentecost.
4. Ant. God shall wipe away all tears from the eyes of the Saints: and now there shall be no more mourning, nor crying, nor any sorrow: for the former things are passed away.
4. Ant. Absterget Deus omnem lacrymam ab oculis Sanctorum: et jam non erit amplius neque luctus, neque clamor, sed nec ullus dolor: quoniam priora transierunt.
Ps. Laudate pueri, Chapter II. On the Office of Vespers for Sundays and Feasts during the Time after Pentecost.
5. Ant. The dwelling of the Saints is the kingdom of heaven, and their rest shall be eternal.
5. Ant. In cœlestibus regnis Sanctorum habitatio est, et in æternum requies eorum.
Ps. Credidi, November 1. All Saints.
Capitulum
(Wisdom 3)
The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and the torment of death shall not touch them. In the sight of the unwise they seemed to die: but they are in peace.
Justorum animæ in manu Dei sunt, et non tanget illos tormentum mortis. Visi sunt oculis insipientium mori: illi autem sunt in pace.
Hymn
Let us together celebrate the glorious delights merited by the Saints, and their heroic deeds: for the mind exults to proclaim in song these the noblest of conquerors.
These are they whom the world in its folly abhorred; while they, the faithful followers of thy name, O Jesus merciful King of the heavenly citizens, despised the world as barren and devoid of fruits and flowers.
For thy sake they scorned the rage of men, their savage threats and cruel stripes: the fiercely rending hook, vanquished by their courage, left the brave heart untouched.
Like sheep, they are slaughtered by the sword: not a murmur, not a complaint escapes them; but with unquailing heart, the soul, conscious of right, preserves its patience.
What voice, what tongue could relate the rewards thou preparest for the Martyrs? For, adorned with the purple of their own blood, they bind their brows with victory’s glittering laurels.
We beseech thee, O supreme and only God, that thou wouldst cleanse away our sins, remove all evils, and grant peace to thy servants, that they may sing glory to thee for all ages to come. Amen.
℣. The Saints shall rejoice in glory;
℟. They shall be joyful in their beds.
Pangamus socii, gestaque fortia:
Gliscens fert animus promere cantibus
Victorum genus optimum.
Hunc fructu vacuum, floribus aridum
Contempsere tui nominis asseclæ
Jesu Rex bone cœlitum.
Calcarunt hominum, sævaque verbera:
His cessit lacerans fortiter ungula,
Nec carpsit penetralia.
Non murmur resonat, non quærimonia;
Sed corde impavido mens bene conscia
Conservat patientiam.
Quæ tu Martyribus munera præparas?
Rubri nam fluido sanguine fulgidis
Cingunt tempora laureis.
Ut culpas abigas, noxia subtrahas,
Des pacem famulis, ut tibi gloriam
Annorum in seriem canant.
Amen.
℣. Exsultabunt Sancti in gloria.
℟. Lætabuntur in cubilibus suis.
Antiphon of the Magnificat
The souls of the Saints, who have followed the footsteps of Christ, rejoice in heaven: and because for his sake they shed their blood, therefore they exult with Christ for ever.
Gaudent in cœlis animæ Sanctorum, qui Christi vestigia sunt secuti: et quia pro ejus amore sanguinem suum fuderunt, ideo cum Christo exsultant sine fine.
The Canticle Magnificat Chapter II. On the Office of Vespers for Sundays and Feasts during the Time after Pentecost.
The Prayer is the Collect of the Mass, above.
Then follow the Commemorations of the Sunday and of the Octave.
In some churches, the hymn for this Feast is the following composed by Claud Santeul, who must not be confounded with John Baptist Santeul of St. Victor. The compositions of the former are superior to those of his brother in unction and simplicity, as well as by their orthodoxy.
Hymn
O choirs of Christians, one in heart, celebrate in songs of joy the tombs of the Saints and the ashes of our Fathers; dear relics, pledges left us by the heavenly citizens.
While their happy souls possess in heaven joys proportioned to their loving toils on earth, here below meet praise and honor are rendered to their bodies, sharers anon in their sufferings.
Mindful of his promise, God, their kind protector, gathers these scattered pledges, lest they perish; and lovingly collects his chosen stones to fit them for their places.
Yea, God who is himself our Victim, consecrates these relics and tombs into altars for himself; the divine Head unites with these his members, and immolates them together with himself.
O ye, whose ashes the pious people looks upon as its secure defense, and honors with suppliant kisses; if our troubles touch your hearts, bring aid, in your goodness, to your clients.
So that when our flesh, resplendent with new gifts, shall rise again and be united with the choirs of spirits, God, the indivisible Trinity, may be to us for ever all in all. Amen.
Sanctorum tumulos et cineres Patrum,
Charas exuvias, pignora cœlitum
Lætis dicite cantibus.
Felices animæ gaudia possident,
Pœnarum sociis debita redditur
Hic laus et decus ossibus.
Custos, ne pereant, pignora colligit:
Electosque suis providus aggerit
Aptandos lapides locis.
Aras ipse Deus consecrat hostia:
Conjungensque suis se caput artubus,
Hos secum simul immolat.
Tutum præsidium, plebs colit osculis,
Si vos nostra movent, subsidium boni
Vestris ferte clientibus.
Surget juncta choris spirituum caro,
Indivisa Trias sit Deus omnia
Nobis semper in omnibus.
Amen.
We next give the beautiful formula from the Roman Pontifical for the blessing of shrines and reliquaries.
Preface
It is truly meet and just, right and salutary, that we should always and in all places give thanks to thee, O holy Lord, Father Almighty, eternal, inestimable God, ineffable God, God of mercies and of all consolation. Who didst command thy servant Moses to construct, according to the pattern thou didst show him in the mount, an ark of incorruptible wood, and to cover it all over with purest gold, that therein might be preserved, as a testimony to future generations, the golden urn full of heavenly manna, with the tables of the Covenant written by the finger of thy Majesty. In our ages thou didst make known how these same things are to be more mystically understood, when thou didst fill with all the plenitude of the Divinity the Body of thine only Son, conceived of the most pure Virgin by the operation of the Holy Ghost, and quickened with a rational soul.
We suppliantly beseech thee, O Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom all paternity in heaven and on earth is named; that thou wouldst deign to imbue with thy heavenly blessing, through the intercession of thy Saints, these vessels prepared to receive their sacred remains; so that those, who have recourse to their patronage, may, through their intercession and by thine assistance, merit to overcome all adversities, and to obtain all that is useful and profitable from the abundance of thy bounty. And as these thy Saints, O Lord, by the inspiration of thy grace, were able to avoid the snares of the spirits of wickedness, and in the strength of Christ our Lord not only to despise but entirely to triumph over the most cruel tortures from the hands of men: even so, that those who venerate their merits and humbly embrace their relics may be protected against the devil and his angels, against lightnings and tempests, against hail and all sorts of plagues, against unhealthy atmosphere and mortalities among men and cattle, against thieves and assassins, against invasions of nations, against wild beasts and serpents and the innumerable kinds of reptiles, and against the most wicked designs of evil men,—do thou, being appeased by the prayers of the same thy Saints, mercifully stretch forth, always and everywhere, the right hand of thine invincible power, to drive away all that is evil, and to shed abroad all benefits.
Through the same Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the same Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen.
Vere dignum et justum est, æquum et salutare, nos tibi semper, et ubique gratias agere, Domine sancte, Pater omnipotens, æterne Deus inæstimabilis, Deus ineffabilis, Deus misericordiarum, et totius consolationis. Qui Moysi famulo tuo præcepisti, ut juxta exemplar quod ei in monte demonstrasti, arcam de lignis imputribilibus construeret, et eam auro mundissimo circumdaret, in qua urna aurea manna cœlesti plena, cum tabulis testamenti digito majestatis tuæ conscriptis, in testimonium futuris generationibus servari deberet. Quique nostris sæculis eadem sacratius intelligenda manifestasti, dum corpus unici Filii tui, opere Spiritus sancti de incorrupta Virgine conceptum, et anima rationali vivificatum, omni plenitudine divinitatis replesti:
Te suppliciter imploramus, omnipotens Deus, Pater Domini nostri Jesu Christi, ex quo omnis paternitas in cœlo et in terra nominatur; ut hæc vascula Sanctorum tuorum pignoribus præparata, eisdem Sanctis tuis intercedentibus, cœlesti benedictione perfundere digneris; quatenus qui horum patrocinia requirunt, ipsis intercedentibus, cuncta sibi adversantia, te adjuvante, superare, et omnia commode profutura, abundantia largitatis tuæ mereantur invenire. Et sicut illi, te Domine inspirante, spiritualium nequitiarum versutias cavere, et humanitus exquisita tormenta non solum contemnere, sed etiam penitus evincere, Christo Domino confortante, potuerunt; ita ipsorum merita venerantibus, et Reliquias humiliter amplectentibus, contra diabolum, et angelos ejus, contra fulmina et tempestates, contra grandines, et varias pestes, contra corruptum aerem, et mortes hominum, vel animalium, contra fures et latrones, sive gentium incursiones, contra malas bestias, et serpentium, ac reptantium diversissimas formas, contra malorum hominum adinventiones pessimas, eorumdem Sanctorum tuorum precibus complacatus, dexteram invictæ potentiæ tuæ ad depulsionem nocivorum et largitatem proficuorum semper et ubique propitius extende.
Per eumdem Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate ejusdem Spiritus sancti Deus, per omnia sæcula sæculorum.
Amen.
Lastly, not to forget our dear dead on any of the days of this Octave, let us end with this ancient and tender supplication, used by the churches of Séez, le Mans, Angers, and Rennes, for the Commemoration of the departed.
Sequence
From the depths crying out we groan, and groaning we pour forth our prayer: hear us O Lord. Pitifully have pity on the pitiable, O thou who art called the Savior and Salvation, and thy function corresponds to thy name.
As the hart speeds to the fountains, so does the soul yearn after thee, O fount of mercy; wash us with the waters of this fountain, and deal not with us according to our sins, O God of pardon.
Mark not the measure of our crimes, and count not the number of our sins, but make way for indulgence. Guilty as we are, it is not judgment we need; but we are afflicted, grant us forgiveness by the free gift of thy grace.
Thou hast said: All ye that are heavily laden with labors and with burdens, I will refresh you. Behold how oppressed we flee to thee; from thee alone we seek refreshment, through thine own clemency.
Oh! despise not the work of thy hands; but look tenderly upon the suppliant, and give healing remedies to the guilty. Thou, who art to come as Judge of all, grant to all the souls of the faithful everlasting joys. Amen.
Et gemendo preces effundimus:
Exaudi nos, Domine.
Miserere misertus miseris,
Qui Salvator et Salus diceris,
Competente munere.
Sic anima ad Te desiderat,
Fons misericordiæ.
Fontis hujus aquis nos abluas,
Nec secundum culpas retribuas,
Deus indulgentiæ.
Nec culparum numeres numerum,
Sed da locum veniæ.
Non est opus reis judicio,
Sed afflictis detur remissio,
Dono Tuæ gratiæ.
Pressi estis, atque oneribus,
Ego vos reficiam.
Ecce ad Te pressi confugimus,
A Te solo refici petimus,
Per tuam clementiam.
Sed clamantem pius respicias,
Dans reis remedia.
Qui venturus es Judex omnium,
Animabus cunctis fidelium
Des æterna gaudia.
Amen.
Same Day. Saint Hubert, Bishop and Confessor
Rome, wishing to admit as few interruptions as possible into the present great Octave, gives but a brief notice of St. Hubert in the Martyrology. It is fitting that we should imitate her reserve. Were we, however, to omit all mention of him, Christian hunters, so faithful in proclaiming their glorious Patron, would not forgive us. It is right also to satisfy popular piety, and the gratitude of numberless clients saved from hydrophobia, and led to the feet of the Saint by a tradition of a thousand years’ standing. A few words suffice to recount his life.
After the mysterious stag had revealed Christ to him, he became, from a hunter of wild animals, a hunter of souls; and merited to be called the Apostle of Ardenne, whose forests had often echoed to the baying of his hounds. He became the disciple and successor of St. Lambert; and transferring from Maestricht both the relics of the holy Martyr-Bishop and the Episcopal See, he raised Liège from an obscure village to a great town. His blessed death took place on May 30th 727; and on November 3rd 743, his precious remains were taken up for the first time, which led to the celebration of his feast on this day. In the following century, the Abbey of Andain was put in possession of the sacred deposit; and took from him the name of St. Hubert, as did likewise the town which sprang up around and soon became a center for pilgrimages. Two orders of knighthood were established in honor of St. Hubert; the first perished with the fall of the Bourbons its last chiefs; the other still exists, and the kings of Bavaria are its Grand-Masters.
Antiphons15
Hail, glory of Confessors; hail, companion of Angels: give us present joy, which may become eternal bliss: by thy prayer, well-pleasing to God, save the healthy, heal the sick.
Ave, decus Confessorum, ave, consors Angelorum: nobis præsens tripudium da, sit perenne gaudium; prece tua Deo grata sanos salva, ægros sana.
℣. The Lord hath led the just man through righteous ways.
℣. Justum deduxit Dominus per vias rectas.
℟. And shewn him the kingdom of God.
℟. Et ostendit illi regnum Dei.
Prayer
Be propitious, we beseech thee O Lord, to us thy servants, through the glorious merits of St. Hubert thy Confessor and Bishop, that by his loving intercession we may ever be protected from all adversities. Through our Lord.
Propitiare, quæsumus Domine, nobis famulis tuis per sancti Huberti Confessoris tui atque Pontificis merita gloriosa, ut ejus pia intercessione ab omnibus semper protegamur adversis. Per Dominum.
Aug. Sermo cccxviii, de Stephano Mart. V.↩︎
Ps. 115:15.↩︎
Aug. Sermo cclxxv, de Vincentio Mart. II.↩︎
Greg. Nyss. de Theodoro Mart.↩︎
Chrys. in Epist. II. ad Cor. Hom. xxvi.↩︎
Chrys. in Epist. ad Rom. Hom. xxxii.↩︎
Conc. Nic. II. cap. vii.↩︎
Conc. Trid. Sess. xxv. De invocatione, veneratione et reliquiis Sanctorum.↩︎
Aug. Sermo cccxix, de Stephano Mart. vi.↩︎
Cardinal Pie, Discourse pronounced at the translation of the relics of St. Latuin.↩︎
St. John 14:12.↩︎
Paulin. Poem. xix, xxvii.↩︎
Hieron. contra Vigilantium.↩︎
St. John 6:55.↩︎
Proper Office of the Abbey of St. Scholastica of Juvigny-les-Dames, where a tooth of St. Hubert was kept.↩︎