Dear Readers,
My
name is Fr. Franz Devantier of Saint Titus, Independent Old Catholic Church
(IOCC) of Africa, operating in South Africa, and also creator of this blog.
My background was that of a liberal Catholic Priest, and a Traditional
Catholic Priest in South Africa, and then an independent Priest in the Catholic
tradition. I was incardinated into the IOCC by Archbishop-Primate
Emeritus Maurice McCormick founder of the IOCC of America.
Primate Archbishop George Le Mesurier, IOCC of
America
Primate Emeritus Archbishop Maurice McCormick, IOCC of America
+++
Primate Emeritus Archbishop Maurice McCormick, IOCC of America
+++
Bishop George Otieno Odhiambo, IOCC of Africa
+++
Father. Franz Devantier, IOCC South Africa
In
nomine Patris, et Filii, + et Spiritus
Sancti. Amen (In the name of the father, and of the Son, + and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. )
12th
Sunday after Pentecost – 11th August 2013 (Colour of Celebration – Green)
Intent: Self-Dedication
Almighty and everlasting God, grant that we may ever
increase in faith, hope and charity; and, that we may quickly attain that for
which thou hast destined us, may we love the path which thou hast ordained;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.
We have been initiated into spiritual life by the Sacrament
of Baptism, and strengthened, perfected, by the sacrament of Confirmation. The Feast of Pentecost has celebrated the
efficaciousness of Baptism and Confirmation: the graces and fruits given by the
Holy Ghost. The Church recalls in the Liturgy
today the duty of charity which derives from them.
Commemoration
of the Saints, for the coming week
Sunday August 11th
Commemoration of St Tiburtius, Martyr
The Roman Deacon Tiburtius, son of the prefect of Rome, was
beheaded after suffering many cruel torments.
A.D. 286
St Susanna, Virgin, Martyr
Susanna, a holy virgin of high linage, refused to marry the
son of Diocletian, and was beheaded after grievous torments. A.D. 295
Monday August 12th
St Clare, Virgin
St Clare of Assisi expressed to St Francis the desire to
consecrate herself to God. Together with
him, she became the foundress of the Franciscan Nuns of the Second Order: the “Poor Clares”. She governed her convent for forty-two years,
and died A.D. 1253.
Tuesday August 13th
Commemoration of SS. Hippolytus and Cassian, Martyrs
Hippolytus, guardian of St Laurence, was converted and
baptized by the Saint. He was tied by
the legs to wild horses A.D. 260.
St Cassian, a schoolmaster at Imola, was pierced to death
by his pagan pupils, armed with styluses A.D. 320. He is the patron of stenographers.
Wednesday August 14th
The Vigil of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Liturgy of the Mass celebrated on this day is a fitting
preparation for to-morrow’s ancient and solemn Feast of our Lady.
Thursday August 15th
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Mary was cared for by St John for twelve years after our
Lord’s Resurrection. Her life was spent
in helping the Apostles and in praying for the conversion of the world. On the third day after Mary’s death, when the
Apostles gathered around her tomb, they found it empty. The sacred body had been carried up to the
celestial paradise. Jesus Himself came
to conduct her thither; the whole court of heaven came to welcome with songs of
triumph the Mother of the Divine Word.
Friday August 16th
St Joachim, Confessor, Father of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Holy Patriarch Joachim was the husband of St Anne, and
the father of our Lady. This feast,
originally kept on March 20, was transferred to the day following the
Assumption, in order to associate the Blessed Daughter and her holy father in
triumph.
Saturday August 17th
St Hyacinth, Confessor
Hyacinth Ronski, a Pole, was originally a canon of the
cathedral of Cracow. Having gone to
Rome, he became acquainted with St Dominic and was admitted into the Order of
Friars Preachers by the holy Founder himself.
He laboured for the establishment of the Order in Poland and died A.D.
1257.
Announcements:
We are collecting members for Saint Titus, Ordinary
members, members who need baptism and confirmation, and candidate Priests, both
men and woman. We want to provide for
our members, all sorts of services that they may need, such as burial,
marriage, confession, and etc. We are
hoping to attract as many people as possible.
If you are interested, then please contact Fr. Franz devantierf@gmail.com
News:
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Sacred References:
Romans, chapter 15, verse 1 onwards
Matthew, chapter 5, verse 17 onwards
Homily:
The intent for today is
self-dedication. To what are you going
to dedicate your life’s efforts? What have you dedicated your life to, so far? As a theme, let us look at Saint Mother Theresa. Yes she gave her life to the Lord, as the Protestants
would say. Why did she go on, and
dedicate her life to the service of humanity, when she was already justified by
faith, or already had her place secured in Heaven? She could have just sat back and enjoyed the
ride that is life, knowing that at the end of the road, she would be passing
through the Gates of heaven, and that her name would be recorded in the
registers. Her place in Heaven was
secure, but it was not enough. Christ
Jesus once said: “In my Father’s house there are many mansions”. Saint Mother Theresa was not going to be
happy with the bare essentials accommodation in Heaven. Are you going to be happy with the bare
essentials in Heaven? Yes you have
believed in Christ Jesus, and dedicated your life to Christ Jesus, you have
been baptized, and have the certificate to prove it. Some of you have even been baptized with fire
or with the Holy Ghost. Some of you have
been confirmed, and have the certificate to prove it. All this is great, but are you going to be
satisfied with your status in heaven one day.
Are you going to be satisfied when humble servants live in magnificent
mansions in heaven, and you have to make do, with the absolute bare minimum. Yes you will be in heaven, we are not
debating that point.
Christ Jesus pointed out that he had
not come to destroy the law or the prophets, but to fulfil the law and the prophecies. You see we are living under the New Covenant,
see the “Anglican Catechism” below, for more details on the New Covenant. It is not that we are not subject to the law
anymore. We will still have to satisfy
all of the law, down to the very least point that is recorded in the
scriptures. Even if we slip up on the
very least of these laws, we will end up as being the least in Heaven. We will be in heaven, because of the
Atonement for Sin, or to put it another way, Justification by faith. Most of us are happy to live more or less the
same life, that we would have lived anyway, before we became a Christian,
because we know at that back of our heads, that we will be going to heaven in
any case. How many people do you know
that live a life that is very connected to the sins of this world, but on
Sunday they dedicate themselves to the life they will one day live in Heaven? How do you feel about this?
Well on the other hand if Christ Jesus
had not offered us this wonderful opportunity of atonement for sin, by his
dying on the cross, then there would have been very few people, who could have
measured up to the stature of the Scribes and the Pharisees, in order to secure
a place in Heaven. If you think about
it, Christ Jesus has created an opportunity for billions of people to get into
heaven, that would not otherwise have made it.
This also implies, that most of them will be in the least or the humble
or the bare essentials part of Heaven.
Would you be happy to be in this part of heaven, with probably close to
100% of the others who made it into heaven?
We have the tools to get into heaven,
thanks to Christ Jesus.
Firstly there is Atonement for Sin or
justification by faith, which are different ways of describing the same
concept. This tool is enough to get you
through the gates of heaven.
Secondly we have the law of love. Love your neighbour as yourself. Now if you truly get this one right, you will
have satisfied all the other requirements of the law in the Old Testament. This is the tool that we can use to improve
our positions in Heaven. This is the
tool that Saint Paul worked so hard with, this is the tool that saint Mother
Theresa used so seriously. In order to
properly use this tool, your life has to operate in Love. You have to operate every day in Love. Now when hardship and temptation come across
your path, this is an opportunity for bonus heavenly points, or for losing points
with relation to your position in heaven.
When something bad happens to you in
life, you have the opportunity of edifying your eternal position in Heaven, or
for downgrading your position in Heaven, and even in some extreme circumstances,
losing your pass for the Gates of Heaven.
If your life goes smoothly and everything goes the way it should, you
have been cheated in a way. You have
been cheated out of all the opportunities for building your mansions in heaven,
or for choosing not to accept Christ Jesus into your life, and choosing to live
in the after-life as a spiritual outcast, or as some would say in Hell. Remember that lessons of an eternal nature
only come with pain and affliction. So
next time you find yourself afflicted with pain, next time when life happens,
and the most horrific things come your way; take the opportunity, to build your
mansions in Heaven. Give thanks for the
eternal opportunity. Otherwise your
feelings and emotions, and ponderings on why God allows certain things, will
drag you down, and in extreme cases, may even forfeit your ticket for the Gates
of heaven. Give thanks for your pain and
affliction, because this is your enemy, and Christ Jesus calls us to love our
enemies. Turn your discomforts and
misfortunes into treasures in Heaven, see them as a bonus.
Love Father Franz.
Church History – Article 7:
A Golden Twilight
The fourth century marked a
radical turning point in the history of Christianity. The institutional church started to grow rapidly,
theology became more sophisticated. The
church has its roots firmly set in the fourth century; with regards to the
Eastern Orthodox church of the Byzantine empire, as well as the Western
medieval Latin Catholic church. On a
broader perspective the protestants are also firmly rooted in the fourth
century, with their rich history which they inherited from the Catholics, and
the constant desire to recapture early Christianity. Also in the fourth century, because the world
did not have communications, as we can enjoy today; the western Christians
started to lose contact with the Christians in the East. This was also a major contributor to
development in different ways in the East and the West. Eventually Christianity entered a period of
spiritual recession in the early middle ages.
Some believe that the incorporation of Christianity as the one and only
official religion of the Roman empire in 395, had much to do with the
recession.
Before the spiritual recession
set in the Church went through a stage of “Golden Twilight”. It was at this time that the church was
blessed with spiritual giants like: Ambrose (339 - 397), Augustine (354-430),
and of course Pope Gregory I (540-604).
The church was experiencing the last of the Western Church Fathers, and
it was truly a Golden Twilight. The
church fathers were building and developing the theological of the Christian faith. They were building and improving the
institutional church. Not to mention the
great progress that was going into the spiritual development of the church. During the fourth and fifth centuries the
hierarchical structure of the church grew and developed. To me the most important developments were on
the increasing emphasis on Liturgical worship, and the heavy emphasis on the
sacraments, especially Baptism. Baptism
was taught as the process of salvation through the institution of the
church. The Christian church it seemed
had done well by allowing itself to become the official religion of the Roman
Empire in the year 395.
However there were other
historical influences that were also taking place during the same period of
time. The Roman Empire had been
suffering from internal decadence, and in the fifth and sixth centuries, the
Roman Empire suffered invasion. Perhaps
because Christianity had become entrenched in the Roman Empire to the extent
that it had, the decay of the Roman Empire affected the church as well. As the foundations of the Mediterranean world
started to decay, Christianity started to decay as well, and it was clear that
the Golden Twilight had come to an end.
(Next week we look at the collapse of the Christian
church in the early middle ages)
An Anglican Catechism
– Article 7:
The New Covenant
=>
What is the New Covenant?
The
New Covenant is the new relationship with God given by Jesus Christ, the
Messiah, to the apostles; and, through them, to all who believe in him.
=>
What did the Messiah promise in the New Covenant?
Christ
promised to bring us into the Kingdom of God and give us life in all its
fullness.
=>
What response did Christ require?
Christ
commanded us to believe in him and to keep his commandments.
=>
What are the commandments taught by Christ?
Christ
taught us the Summary of the Law and gave us the New Commandment.
=>
What is the Summary of the Law?
You
shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with
all your mind. This is the first and the
great commandment. And the second is
like it: You shall love your neighbour
as yourself.
=>
What is the New Commandment?
The
New Commandment is that we love one another as Christ loved us.
=>
Where may we find what Christians believe about Christ?
What
Christians believe about Christ is found in the Scriptures and summed up in the
creeds.
(Next
week we will look at the creeds)
Prayer:
Our
Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy Name: Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth
as it is in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. And forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation. But deliver us from evil.
[Protestants
can optionally add: For Thine is the
kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever.]
Amen.
A Meditation for all Humanity, The Great Invocation:
This meditation or prayer refers to the Kingdom of God,
establishing itself on Earth.
(In place of the word “Christ” below, you may be more
comfortable with the term “Lord Maitreya”, “the Imam Mahdi”, “the Bodhisattva”,
“the Messiah”, or etc.)
From the point of Light within the Mind of God
Let Light stream forth into the minds of men.
Let Light descend on Earth.
From the point of Love within the Heart of God
Let Love stream forth into the hearts of men.
May Christ
return to Earth.
From the centre where the Will of God is known
Let purpose guide the little wills of men
The purpose which the Masters know and serve.
From the centre which we call the race of men
Let the Plan of Love and Light work out
And may it seal the door where evil dwells.
Let Light and Love and Power restore the Plan on Earth.
By using the Invocation and encouraging others to use it,
no particular group or organisation is sponsored. It belongs to all humanity.
Benediction:
The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep
your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God and of his Son, Christ
our Lord; and the Blessing of God almighty, the Father, + the Son and the Holy Ghost, be amongst you and remain with you
always. Amen.
Love,
Rev. Fr. Franz Devantier of Saint Titus, IOCC, South Africa,
devantierf@gmail.com
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