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The Feast of the Black Nazarene is a major Filipino religious celebration. Image from https://quiapochurch.com.ph/about-quiapo/the-black-nazarene-image/. Used as being in the public domain. It occurs every year on January 9 in Manilla, the Philippines. It involves carrying a life-sized wooden statue of Jesus carrying a cross through the streets of Manila. People will touch cloths to the statute and make what they call "healing relics" from them. After several hundred years of doing this, the Black Nazarene statue is in such bad shape that they now use a replica and the original is maintained in the Minor Basilica and National Shrine of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo, Manila, Philippines. The replica is called the Vicário. Image retrieved from https://philippines.licas.news/2020/10/01/manilas-observance-of-feast-of-black-nazarene-to-change/. Used as being in the public domain. The stat=ue was carved from wood by a Mexican artisan in the sixteenth century. It was brought to the Philippines in 1606. The boat that was carrying the statue burned in the harbor, and the statue suffered damage as a result. Why January 9? Simple, really. As the name Translaciôn implies, it was the day that it was translated, or moved, from one location to another, In this case, it was moved from its original location in Luneta Park to Quiapo. The statue was originally brought to the Church of San Juan Bautista (St. John the Baptist) in Bugambayan (now Luneta) by Augustinian Recollect priests in 1606. In 1608, the statue was moved to the Recollect church San Nicolás de Tolentino in Intramuros. It was moved to San Juan Bautista Church in Quiapo (often called the Quiapo Church) on January 9, 1787. In time, this date became known as the Feast of the Black Nazarene. The statute is called the Nazarene because Jesy=us was from Nazareth. It is referred to as being black because of the darkness of the statute due to having been burned on the boat in 1606. Additionally, two churches burned down around it in 1621 and 1929. The statute is paraded through Manila on January 9; Good Friday; and on New Year's Eve. December 31 is the start of the Novena to the Black Nazarene. January 9 is the end of the Novena of the Black Nazarene. Good Friday is the culmination of the Passion of Christ. For future years, the Novena t the Black Nazarene may be found at http://god-answers-prayers.com/jesus_christ_prayers/novena_prayer_black_nazarene/index.html. __________________________________________________________________________________ Join me at 3:30 p.m. Eastern for the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to learn about the Black Nazarene, and for the daily update at: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2024/01/09/divine-mercy The Three Hail Mary's Novena: https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/devotions/three-hail-marys-novena-323 Award-winning Catholic recording artist and songwriter Lisa Marie Nicoile's show is on Saturday, January 20. Her guest will be Mike Aquilino. She will be doing the live show on YouTube. Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDc_4Iy3h-8. If you want to listen to some great interviews, John Benko and I interviewed the original modern-day Catholic Defender, Steve Ray at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/steve-ray-with-john-benko-talking-about-going-to-the-holy-land, and we interviewed acclaimed Catholic musical artist Donna Cori Gibson at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/t4p-welcomes-donna-cori-gibson. Be sure to check out our friends at https://therockcompanyshop.com/. This is an image of a Rosary made by the Rock Company. This is an unpaid and un compensated endorsement of a great product:

Elizabeth Ann Seton was born August 28, 1774 and died January 4, 1821. She was the first person born in the United States to be canonized. Image found at http://jfkpaint.deviantart.com/art/saint-elizabeth-ann-seton-202030630. Used as being in the public domain. I remember way back in 1975 when she was canonized by Pope Saint Paul VI. Elizabeth Ann Seton was born in 1774 - prior to the issuance of the American Declaration of Independence - in New York to a wealthy and influential family. Her birth name was Elizabeth Ann Bayley. She grew up in a quiet and oft-times lifestyle. She was a voracious reader, reading everything from the Bible to novels of her day. the Bible was to be her constant companion throughout her life. Elizabeth married the young and prosperous William Seton in 1794. Elizabeth was madly in love with William and was quite happy in this marriage. Sadly, her happiness was to be short-lived. William's father died about four short years into the marriage, leaving William to care for the business as well as his siblings. The business, an import business, would soon fail. So would William's health. After filing for bankruptcy protection, Elizabeth and Ann left for Italy, where William had business contacts. The move to Italy did not help and William died there of tuberculosis. Elizabeth Ann took solace in the fact that William started to gain an interest in the spiritual things before the end came. With the death of William, Elizabeth was alone and separated from her family by a long distance. It was because of these factors that Elizabeth turned to the Catholic Church. Elizabeth lost her mother at a young age and truly depended on our Holy Mother to be her mother. She asked Our Lady to guide her in the path that God had created for her. Elizabeth started her first school in Baltimore, Maryland at the suggestion of the President of St. Mary's College in Baltimore. The school started as a secular school until word of her conversion to Catholicism spread. This led to the removal of several girls from the school. This led to her and two young lady's who helped her with the school lay the groundwork for a group of religious sisters who would operate Catholic Schools. They opened the first free Catholic school in the United States. They also made arrangements for Elizabeth to continue rearing her own children. On March 29, 1805, Elizabeth Ann Seton declared her vows os poverty, obedience, and chastity. These vows were binding for only one year. From that date forward, however, she was known as Mother Seton, a name that is still borne by her. The rules for Mother Seton's order was based on the rules of St. Vincent de Paul for his Daughters of Charity. They were approved by the Vatican in 1812. Mother Seton would become afflicted with tuberculosis, but would continue to raise her own children. Elizabeth Ann Seton died on January 4, 1821 at the young age of 46. She and her sisters had started, in addition to their first school, two orphanages and another school. Elizabeth Ann Seton was well-known for her love of the Eucharist, for Sacred Scripture and for the Blessed Virgin Mary. There are six groups of sisters today who can trace their origins back to the initial groundwork of Mother Seton. The parish hall at my church in Gadsden is called Seton Hall. There are many churches and parish halls named for her around the United States. A Prayer in Honor of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton: Lord God, you blessed Elizabeth Seton with gifts of grace as wife and mother, educator and foundress, so that she might spend her life in service to your people. Through her example and prayers may we learn to express our love for you in love for our fellow men and women. We ask this through Christ our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. Information for this article gleaned from .com and https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=180 St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us! __________________________________________________________________________________ Join me at 3:30 p.m. Eastern for the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to learn about Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, and for the daily update at: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2024/01/04/divine-mercy The Three Hail Mary's Novena: https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/devotions/three-hail-marys-novena-323 If you have not watched our Christmas Special, the Case for Christmas, you can find it here: Part I. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rv8kymNnl4 Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnW9m7kSwIc Part 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlL1gpVoN8A Award-winning Catholic recording artist and songwriter Lisa Marie Nicoile's show is on Saturday, January 6. Her guest will be Mike Aquilino. She will be doing the live show on YouTube. Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDc_4Iy3h-8. If you want to listen to some great interviews, John Benko and I interviewed the original modern-day Catholic Defender, Steve Ray at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/steve-ray-with-john-benko-talking-about-going-to-the-holy-land, and we interviewed acclaimed Catholic musical artist Donna Cori Gibson at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/t4p-welcomes-donna-cori-gibson. Be sure to check out our friends at https://therockcompanyshop.com/.

St. Genevieve was born to a respectable, but possibly poor/peasant family in Nanterre, France around the year 422. She was always a devout girl. Image retrieved from https://www.blessedmart.com/shop/hand-painted-icons/female-saints-icons/saint-genevieve-of-paris/. Used as being inn the public domain. One day, she was seen in a crowd by Saint Germain. Saint Germain foretold her parents of Genevieve's piety and perpetual virginity as well as the sanctity that would engulf her life in the future. At. Saint Germain's invitation, Saint Genevieve left with Saint Germain whereby she made her vows of piety sand perpetual virginity. Saint Germain gave her a medal with a cross on it to remind her of her vows. Sher received the religious veil from the Bishop of Paris in her teens. She then lived a devout life of prayer, charity, piety chastity and austerity. Saint Genevieve came to be known especially for her prophesies and her miracles. She could even read consciences (am I glad I never went to confession with her!). Genevieve's parents died and she went to live with her grandmother in the City of Paris. Many times, she visited other cities, performing miracles. She got in hot water for this and was being persecuted when Saint Germain came to her rescue. After Saint Germain speaking on behalf of Saint Genevieve, she came to be greatly revered by the people. One of Saint Genevieve's great miracles was to save Paris from an attack by Attila the Hun. She would again save Paris from famine when she prayed for a shipment of grain to pass through a military blockade of Paris. She prayed for the people of Paris, and the grain miraculously made it through the blockade and saved the City of Paris. Saint Genevieve is revered as the Patron Saint of Paris, against fever and against famine, plague and disasters. Saint Genevieve died in the year 512 Join me at 3:30 p.m. Eastern for the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to learn about St. Genevieve of Paris (If blogtalkradio.com is actually fixed!) at: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2024/01/03/divine-mercy If you have not watched our Christmas Special, the Case for Christmas, you can find it here: Part I. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rv8kymNnl4 Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnW9m7kSwIc Part 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlL1gpVoN8A Here is a link to my interview with Lisa Marie Nicole from Sunday, December 10, 2023. I lovingly refer to Lisa as the Catholic version of Stryper: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/ If you want to listen top some great interviews, John Benko and I interviewed the original modern-day Catholic Defender, Steve Ray, https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/steve-ray-with-john-benko-talking-about-going-to-the-holy-land, and we interviewed acclaimed Catholic musical artist Donna Cori Gibson at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/t4p-welcomes-donna-cori-gibson. Be sure to check out our friends at https://therockcompanyshop.com/.

TODAY'S CATECHISM . WE BEGIN OUR CATECHISM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AMEN TOPIC: THE PENITENTIAL RITE (CONFITEOR) => INTRODUCTION/DEFINITIONS => BRIEF HISTORY => THE CONFITEOR (“I CONFESS”) => ABSOLUTION => THE PENITENTIAL ACT (CONFITEOR) BIBLE REFERENCES => CONCLUSION => REFERENCE INTRODUCTION/DEFINITIONS Following the order of the Eucharistic celebration and the entrance procession, the veneration of the altar and the greeting, we now reach the Penitential Rite. According to Wikipedia, The Penitential Rite or Act is a form of general confession of sinfulness that normally takes place at the beginning of the celebration of Mass. The Church, which is holy and at the same time a community of sinners, is conscious that her members need a continuous conversion to ask God’s forgiveness and to worthily participate in the sacred mysteries. This explains how from the very beginning public repentance of one’s sin was necessary before the Eucharistic celebration so that the sacrifice be pleasing to God. The Penitential Rite is a concrete expression of this reality by the minister and the faithful, who humbly recognize their sins. They repent and implore God’s mercy so that they may participate fruitfully in the sacred mysteries. The only two confirmed cases of people who never sinned are Our Lord himself and the Blessed Virgin Mary. Extenuating circumstances, a bad day, raging hormones don’t let us off the hook: with humility we confess that we’re still struggling and need Our Lord’s help to get the most out of receiving him in the Eucharist. We don’t go into details out loud, as we would in the Sacrament of Penance, but we do acknowledge our faults and failings, and usually, after the priest’s invitation, there is a moment of silence to reflect on what we’ve done or omitted before we perform a penitential act together. BRIEF HISTORY As we can see, the beginnings of the penitential act at the opening of Mass are found in the ancient liturgical books. It was soon to be expressed with the prostration of the priest in front of the altar, as takes place now in the celebration of the Lord’s passion on Good Friday. Around the 10th century, this rite is included in the missals and consists in the priest’s recitation of a few prayers that manifest his feelings of unworthiness as the minister of the Holy Sacrifice. Only in Paul VI’s Missal is this rite extended to the entire community. Up until then only the priest did so. On Sundays, especially during Easter time, the penitential act can take the form of sprinkling holy water. This is to remind us of our baptism and to invite us to a continual purification, as the living of this sacrament demands. THE CONFITEOR (“I CONFESS”) I CONFESS TO ALMIGHTY GOD AND TO YOU, MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS, THAT I HAVE GREATLY SINNED, IN MY THOUGHTS AND IN MY WORD, IN WHAT I HAVE DONE, AND IN WHAT I HAVE FAILED TO DO; THROUGH MY FAULT, THROUGH MY FAULT, THROUGH MY MOST GRIEVOUS FAULT; THEREFORE I ASK BLESSED MARY EVER-VIRGIN , ALL THE ANGELS AND SAINTS, AND YOU, MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS, TO PRAY FOR ME TO THE LORD OUR GOD. The Confiteor (“I confess”) The most common prayer formula to make an act of Penance is known from its first word in Latin, the Confiteor (Roman Missal, “Order of Mass”): I confess to almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do, … By reciting this prayer together, we acknowledge before God and before our family and friends that we have sinned. We have all sinned, and in saying this prayer together we encourage each other to come clean, knowing we’re not alone. Sin isolates us from God and from others, and penitence helps us to start reuniting with our fellow believers again in a holy way. Sometimes we convince ourselves that as long as we’re not killing anybody, we’re okay. The Confiteor makes a point of helping us say we’ve done something wrong, and it helps us examine ourselves when we think everything is okay: have I never offended God or others in my thoughts? In my words? Have I not done something that I should have done? Everyone in that broad span of areas of spiritual growth can find some room for improvement, and the need to ask for forgiveness. This is also a moment to remind ourselves how sorry we are for past, forgiven sins as well. And, striking their breast, they say: … through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault; … It’s not enough to just admit we’ve sinned; we have to acknowledge that it was bad that we have sinned, that we are responsible for our sins. We can’t place the blame on anyone else. Others can influence us and condition us, but the final decision is made freely in my heart, just as I have to decide freely in my heart to denounce what I’ve done and turn back to God. “May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.” This beautiful liturgical prayer, which the priest says, does not absolve all sins with the ex opere operato efficacy characteristic of the sacrament of penance. It is rather a petition, such that, through the beseeching mediation of the Church and through the personal acts of those assisting at the Eucharist, the small sins of every day are forgiven. In this way the faithful are kept from falling into graver sins. ABSOLUTION The priest actually gives us absolution at the conclusion of the Penitential Act. However, the General Instruction of the Roman Missal reminds us (n.51) that this absolution is not the same as the one performed in the Sacrament of Penance. Some sins, due to their seriousness, rupture the communion we have with God and with our fellow believers (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church [CCC] , nn.1440 and 1457), which is why the Sacrament of Penance is also known as the Sacrament of Reconciliation and has the effect of reconciling us with God and with the Church. THE PENITENTIAL ACT (CONFITEOR) BIBLE REFERENCES I confess to almighty God (Dan 9:4), and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned (1 Chr 21:8), in my thoughts and in my words (Psalm 19:14), in what I have done and in what I have failed to do (2 Sam 24 : 10 ), through my own fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault (Dan 9 : 5-7 ); therefore I ask blessed Mary, ever virgin, all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God (1 Thess 5:25). May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive our sins, and bring us to everlasting life (1 Jn 1:9). Amen. Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy (Tob 8:4; 1 Tim 1:2). CONCLUSION The Church, which is holy and at the same time a community of sinners, is conscious that her members need a continuous conversion to ask God’s forgiveness and to worthily participate in the sacred mysteries. The priest invites everyone present to acknowledge their sins in order to prepare themselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries of the Mass. When we become believers, we don’t stop being sinners; the battle against temptation and sin will be waged until the last day of our earthly life. Even the greatest saints, as they grew in holiness, saw the gravity of even the slightest sins. Therefore at the start of the Mass, we come clean together that we haven’t always lived as we should. REFERENCE => The Holy Bible => Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) => https://www.homeofthemother.org => https://www.usccb.org => https://rcspirituality.org We have come to a conclusion on the topic THE PENITENTIAL RITE (CONFITEOR). Thanks for your participation, support and contributions. May the God in his infinite mercy continue to be bless and grant you more understanding of his words; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen PLEASE WE ARE ENCOURAGE TO CONTRIBUTE AND ASK QUESTIONS IN REGARDS TO THIS GREAT TOPIC. WE ARE CATHOLIC

Interpreting the Bible by Ken LItchfield The Bible is the collection of books that the Catholic Church decided could be read at Mass. It is not a manual on how to run a religion or build a church. Those things already existed before the Bible was assembled. The Catholic Church and the Liturgy of the Mass already existed before the Bible was assembled. The Didache is the earliest manual on how to run a Church. Canon Law and the Catechism based on the Bible is what we use now. The disciples that became Apostles handed on what Jesus taught them to the new Christians. Some of what they taught was written down. Because parchment was expensive and few people could read, the Faith was passed on orally more than by writing. The Oral Tradition was supported by the Written Tradition when there were disputes. The Catholic Church recognizes that the Bible is inspired because its books support what Jesus taught, the authors were Apostles or their secretaries, they were read in Churches from the first century. The Bible contains divinely inspired writings. But John chapter 20 tells us that everything is not in the Bible so there has to be an outside interpreter to understand it. Jesus prayed that all of His followers would be one but they aren't. (John ch17) In Paul's 1st letter to the Corinthians ch11 he says we have no other practice and nor do the churches of God. Yet the many varieties of churches have different forms of worship. The Catholic Church provides a limited playing field in which a variety of opinions on the Bible and practices are permitted. Scripture can be used to help interpret Scripture, especially when you look at the typology of the Old Testament. Scripture needs to be interpreted in the context of the Tradition of the Church that assembled the Bible and the context of the society in which the books were written. This requires much more study than just reading the Bible. We can be drawn into a deeper relationship with Jesus through His word in the Bible. The Holy Spirit then guides us into a better understanding. The Catholic Church has the oldest and original understanding of these writings. The Pope is the successor of the minister that Jesus left behind to feed His sheep and tend His flock. This same Jesus promised to be with His Apostles until the end of time Matt28:20. Some people say that when they read the Bible, they get an inspired understanding of the text, that they feel confident is correct. The thousands of different Protestant churches demonstrate that none of them go by the Bible alone. Everyone has an outside influence in their understanding of the Bible. The many varieties of Protestant churches have different forms of worship and different understandings of salvation. It is understandable why Luther wanted to go by the Bible alone because it was difficult to determine which traditions went back to the Apostles. The early reformers like Martin Luther and John Calvin expected everyone to understand the Bible the way they did. Instead, people came up with their own new interpretations forming new denominations. John and Charles Wesley developed a method of reading the Bible along with the Church Fathers in order to come up with the original understanding. A short list of early Church writings to help understand the Bible is: The Didache, 1Clement to the Corinthians, the 7 letters of Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr's First Apology, Polycarp to the Philippians, Irenaeus Against Heresies, and Hippolytus of Rome. There are many more but these are a good start to understanding how the Early Christians understood the Faith before the Catholic Church decided which early Christian writings were the inspired word of God. The Catholic Church has the oldest and original understanding of the writings that became the Bible. No other faith tradition can rightfully claim that they assembled the writings that make up the Bible. The Catholic Church provided a variety of translations of the Bible from the very beginning of Christianity. Even the Vulgate is a Latin translation of old Hebrew and Greek texts. The Pope is the successor of the minister that Jesus left behind to feed His sheep and tend His flock. (Matt16:18, Luke 22:31-32) This same Jesus promised to be with him to the end of time (Matt28:20). Jesus didn't leave us a book to put our trust in, He left us a Church to teach us what He taught the Apostles. We put our trust in the Church Jesus founded not a book or a man. Jesus didn't leave us a book to put our trust in, He left us a Church to teach us what He taught the Apostles. We put our trust in the Church Jesus founded not a book or a man. You have to do a lot of research and read the Bible or trust the guidance of the Church that assembled the Bible. Either way you end up in the Catholic Church. Some Protestants are taught that only the writings of the New Testament or of Paul are the ones that apply to Christians. They use a verse in the King James Version of the Bible 2 Timothy 2:15 that refers to “Rightly dividing the Bible” 2 Tim 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. KJV 2Tim 2:15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth. NRSVCE The question is, does Scripture support this view of the phrase "rightly dividing the Word of truth"? Dispensationalists are correct that the answer to that question is indeed foundational. It is a key to how you interpret the entire Word of God. In evaluating the Dispensationalist view of 2 Timothy 2:15, we must, as always, begin by looking at the original language in context. We find that the word that is translated "rightly dividing" in the Old and New King James Bibles, and in several others, is a single word in the Greek. It is a form of the Greek verb orthotomeo. This is a very interesting word. In New Testament times, orthotomeo was primarily a civil engineering term. It was used, for example, as a road building term. The idea of the word was "to cut straight," or "to guide on a straight path." The idea was to cut a roadway in such a manner that people who would travel over that road would arrive at their destination directly, without deviation. Orthotomeo was also used as a mining term. It meant to drill a straight mine shaft so that the miners could get quickly and safely to the "mother lode." There is another word in Greek, katatomeo, which means "to cut into sections", but that is not the word that the Apostle Paul uses. Paul is not talking about "rightly dividing" in terms of dissecting the Word of God, or cutting it into sections based on Jew and Gentile, or Israel and Church, or any other criterion. It is interesting that the Apostle Paul does use that other word katatomeo, cutting up in Philippians 3:2, where he says, literally, "beware of those who would divide you up" —in other words, beware of those who would try to make a difference among believers between Jews and Gentiles. The best way to understand and interpret the Bible is to study ancient history and culture as well as first century Jewish culture. Studying how the first Christians lived the Faith and understood Christianity before the Catholic Church established the Canon of Scripture, helps a person best understand the Bible. For many, that is too much to ask. That is why Jesus left His Authority with His Church, so that we would have an Authoritative Church to guide us in understanding the Bible. The Catholic Church has 2000 years of historical interpretation. We do well to follow the interpretation established by the Catholic Church.

TODAY'S CATECHISM . WE BEGIN OUR CATECHISM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AMEN TOPIC: CHRISTMAS SEASON => INTRODUCTION/DEFINITIONS => BRIEF HISTORY/ORIGIN OF CHRISTMAS => CHRISTMAS => CHRISTMAS GIFTS AND TREES => THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS' INFANCY => CONCLUSION => REFERENCE INTRODUCTION/DEFINITIONS Christmas is celebrated to remember the birth of Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God. The name 'Christmas' comes from the Mass of Christ (or Jesus). Christmas is one of the most important days of the Church year, second only to Easter itself. It is the feast of the incarnation, the feast of God becoming flesh (the Latin "in carne" means "enfleshment"). It is a uniquely Christian teaching, the Divine choosing to become one of us. Because of this belief,God is not only Transcendent, but also wholly Immanent, Emmanuel (God-with-us). While remaining Transcendent (meaning we must rise above our present condition to reach Him), He is at the same time Immanent (meaning He is with us as we rise toward Him). Every Eucharist is like Christmas where the bread and wine are transformed into His flesh, His Body and Blood, and, in a sense, He is born anew on the altar. BRIEF HISTORY/ORIGIN OF CHRISTMAS The precise origin of assigning December 25 as the birth date of Jesus is unclear. The New Testament provides no clues in this regard. December 25 was first identified as the date of Jesus’ birth by Sextus Julius Africanus in 221 and later became the universally accepted date. One widespread explanation of the origin of this date is that December 25 was the Christianizing of the dies solis invicti nati (“day of the birth of the unconquered sun”), a popular holiday in the Roman Empire that celebrated the winter solstice as a symbol of the resurgence of the sun, the casting away of winter and the heralding of the rebirth of spring and summer. Indeed, after December 25 had become widely accepted as the date of Jesus’ birth, Christian writers frequently made the connection between the rebirth of the sun and the birth of the Son. A second view suggests that December 25 became the date of Jesus’ birth by a priori reasoning that identified the spring equinox as the date of the creation of the world and the fourth day of creation, when the light was created, as the day of Jesus’ conception (i.e., March 25). December 25, nine months later, then became the date of Jesus’ birth. For a long time the celebration of Jesus’ birth was observed in conjunction with his baptism, celebrated January 6. The first recorded date of Christmas being celebrated on December 25th was in 336, during the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine (he was the first Christian Roman Emperor). But it was not an official Roman state festival at this time. CHRISTMAS The Church primarily celebrates Christmas from Christmas Day until the Solemnity of the Epiphany, which commemorates the manifestation of Christ as the Savior of the whole world (cf. Mt. 2:1-12). The Church has also traditionally celebrated Christmas for 40 days, culminating on the Feast of the Presentation (Feb. 2). During this time, the birth of Christ is celebrated as one continuous festival. It is just as important to celebrate during the Christmas season as it is to prepare for Christ during Advent. The liturgical season of Christmas begins with the vigil Masses on Christmas Eve and concludes on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. During this season, we celebrate the birth of Christ into our world and into our hearts, and reflect on the gift of salvation that is born with him... including the fact that he was born to die for us. CHRISTMAS GIFTS AND TREES Toward the end of the 18th century the practice of giving gifts to family members became well established. Theologically, the feast day reminded Christians of God’s gift of Jesus to humankind even as the coming of the Wise Men, or Magi, to Bethlehem suggested that Christmas was somehow related to giving gifts. The Christmas tree and the Nativity scene are popular symbols of the season and a tradition in many Christian homes. It is also traditional to exchange Christmas gifts with family and friends as a way to honor God the Father's gift of his only son to the world. Having received the gift of Christ, we naturally want to pass that gift along to our loved ones. THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS'S INFANCY * Jesus circumcision , on the eighth day after his birth, (Lk 2:21) is the sign of his incorporation into Abraham's descendants, into the people of the covenant. It is the sign of his submission
to the Law (Gal 4:4) and his deputation to Israel's worship, in which he will participate throughout his life. This sign prefigures that "circumcision of Christ" which is Baptism. (Col 2:11-13) * The Epiphany is the manifestation of Jesus as Messiah of Israel, Son of God and Savior of the world. (Mt 2:1) * The presentation of Jesus in the temple shows him to be the firstborn Son who belongs to the Lord. (Lk 2:22-39; Ex 13:2, 12-13) With Simeon and Anna, all Israel awaits its encounter with the Savior-the name given to this event in the Byzantine tradition. Jesus is recognized as the long-expected Messiah, the "light to the nations" and the "glory of Israel", * The flight into Egypt and the massacre of the innocents (Mt 2:13-18) make manifest the opposition of darkness to the light: "He came to his own home, and his own people received him not." CONCLUSION Given the importance of Christmas as one of the major Christian feast days, most European countries observe, under Christian influence, December 26 as a second Christmas holiday. So whenever you celebrate Christmas, remember that you're celebrating a real event that happened about 2000 years ago, that God sent his Son into the world as a Christmas present for everyone! REFERENCES => The Holy Bible => Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) => https://www.britannica.com => https://www.whychristmas.com => https://www.catholicculture.org We have come to a conclusion on the topic CHRISTMAS SEASON. Thanks for your participation, support and contributions. May the God in his infinite mercy continue to be bless and grant you more understanding of his words; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen PLEASE WE ARE ENCOURAGE TO CONTRIBUTE AND ASK QUESTIONS IN REGARDS TO THIS GREAT TOPIC. WE ARE CATHOLIC

Dating Christmas by Ken Litchfield We can figure out that Jesus was born in late December by first figuring the time of year in which Saint Zacharias was serving in the Temple. This provides us with the approximate conception date of Saint John the Baptist. From there we can follow the chronology that Saint Luke gives which leads to Jesus being born at the end of December. Jesus’ birthday can be established from Sacred Scripture in two steps. The first step is to use Scripture to determine the birthday of Saint John the Baptist. The next step is using Saint John the Baptist’s birthday as the key for finding Christ’s birthday. Saint Luke reports that Zacharias served in the “course of Abias” (Lk 1:5) which Scripture records as the eighth course among the twenty-four priestly courses (Neh 12:17). Each shift of priests served one week in the temple for two times each year. The course of Abias served during the eighth week and the thirty-second week in the annual cycle. However, when did the cycle of courses begin? Josef Heinrich Friedlieb has convincingly established that the first priestly course of Jojarib was on duty during the destruction of Jerusalem on the ninth day of the Jewish month of Av. Therefore, the priestly course of Jojarib was on duty during the second week of Av. Consequently, the priestly course of Abias (the course of Saint Zacharias) was undoubtedly serving during the second week of the Jewish month of Tishri—the very week of the Day of Atonement on the tenth day of Tishri. In our calendar, the Day of Atonement would land anywhere from September 22 to October 8 1BC. Zacharias and Elizabeth conceived John the Baptist immediately after Zacharias served his course. This entails that Saint John the Baptist would have been conceived somewhere around the end of September, placing John’s birth at the end of June, confirming the Catholic Church’s celebration of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist on June 24. The second-century Protoevangelium of Saint James also confirms a late September conception of the Baptist since the work depicts Saint Zacharias as High Priest and as entering the Holy of Holies—not merely the holy place with the altar of incense. This is a factual mistake because Zacharias was not the high priest, but one of the chief priests. Still, the Protoevangelium regards Zacharias as a high priest and this associates him with the Day of Atonement, which lands on the tenth day of the Hebrew month of Tishri (roughly the end of our September). Immediately after this entry into the temple and message of the Archangel Gabriel, Zacharias and Elizabeth conceive John the Baptist. Allowing for forty weeks of gestation, this places the birth of John the Baptist at the end of June—once again confirming the Catholic date for the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist on June 24. In Luke ch1, we read that just after the Immaculate Virgin Mary conceived Christ, she went to visit her cousin Elizabeth who was six months pregnant with John the Baptist. This means that John the Baptist was six months older that our Lord Jesus Christ. If you add six months to June 24 you get December 24-25 as the birthday of Christ. Then, if you subtract nine months from December 25 you get that the Annunciation was March 25. All the dates match up perfectly. So then, if John the Baptist was conceived shortly after the Jewish Day of the Atonement, then the traditional Catholic dates are essentially correct. The birth of Christ would be about or on December 25. The Blessed Virgin Mary never forget the detail of the birth of her Son Jesus Christ who was conceived without human seed, was proclaimed by angels, born in a miraculous way, and visited by Magi. She knew from the moment of His incarnation in her stainless womb that He was the Son of God and Messiah. The Gospel writer Luke was not present for any of the events he records for us. He learned the story of Jesus conception and birth from Mary and wrote down what the Holy Spirit inspired him to write. The Holy Spirit is the guarantor of the accurate information we have in the Bible. The exact birth date (December 25) and the time (midnight) would have been known in the first century. It is completely reasonable to state that the early Christians both knew and commemorated the birth of Christ. Their source would have been His Immaculate Mother. Further testimony reveals that the Church Fathers claimed December 25 as the Birthday of Christ prior to the conversion of Constantine and the Roman Empire. The earliest record of this is that Pope Saint Telesphorus (reigned A.D. 126-137) instituted the tradition of Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve. Although the Liber Pontificalis does not give us the date of Christmas, it assumes that the Pope was already celebrating Christmas and that a Mass at midnight was added. During this time, we also read the following words of Theophilus (A.D. 115-181), Catholic bishop of Caesarea in Palestine: “We ought to celebrate the birthday of Our Lord on what day soever the 25th of December shall happen.” Saint Hippolytus of Rome, wrote around 215AD that the birth of Christ occurred on December 25: The First Advent of our Lord in the flesh occurred when He was born in Bethlehem, was December 25th, a Wednesday, while Augustus was in his forty-second year, which is five thousand and five hundred years from Adam. He suffered in the thirty-third year, March 25th, Friday, the eighteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, while Rufus and Roubellion were Consuls. Also note in the quote above the special significance of March 25, which marks the death of Christ (March 25 was assumed to corresponded to the Hebrew month Nisan 14 – the traditional date of crucifixion). Christ, as the perfect man, was believed to have been conceived and died on the same day—March 25. In his Chronicon, Saint Hippolytus states that the earth was created on March 25, 5500 B.C. Thus, March 25 was identified by the Church Fathers as the Creation date of the universe, as the date of the Annunciation and Incarnation of Christ, and also as the date of the Death of Christ our Savior. In the Syrian Church, March 25 or the Feast of the Annunciation was seen as one of the most important feasts of the entire year. It denoted the day that God took up his abode in the womb of the Virgin. In fact, if the Annunciation and Good Friday came into conflict on the calendar, the Annunciation trumped it, so important was the day in Syrian tradition. It goes without saying that the Syrian Church preserved some of the most ancient Christian traditions and had a sweet and profound devotion for Mary and the Incarnation of Christ. Now then, March 25 was enshrined in the early Christian tradition, and from this date it is easy to discern the date of Christ’s birth. March 25 (Christ conceived by the Holy Ghost) plus nine months brings us to December 25 (the birth of Christ at Bethlehem). Saint Augustine confirms this tradition of March 25 as the Messianic conception and December 25 as His birth: For Christ is believed to have been conceived on the 25th of March, upon which day also he suffered; so the womb of the Virgin, in which he was conceived, where no one of mortals was begotten, corresponds to the new grave in which he was buried, wherein was never man laid, neither before him nor since. But he was born, according to tradition, upon December the 25th. In about A.D. 400, Saint Augustine also noted how the schismatic Donatists celebrated December 25 as the birth of Christ, but that the schismatics refused to celebrate Epiphany on January 6, since they regarded Epiphany as a new feast without a basis in Apostolic Tradition. The Donatist schism originated in A.D. 311 which may indicate that the Latin Church was celebrating a December 25 Christmas (but not a January 6 Epiphany) before A.D. 311. Whichever is the case, the liturgical celebration of Christ’s birth was commemorated in Rome on December 25 long before Christianity became legalized and long before our earliest record of a pagan feast for the birthday of the Unconquered Sun. For these reasons, it is reasonable and right to hold that Christ was born on December 25 in 2 B.C. and that he died and rose again in March of A.D. 33. The pagan celebration on December 25th starts much later after Christians had already been celebrating Christmas. The pagan Roman festival of Saturnalia. Saturnalia was a popular winter festival that commemorated the winter solstice. Yet the winter solstice falls on December 22. It is true that Saturnalia celebrations began as early as December 17 and extended till December 23 but the dates don’t match up. The pagan Roman holiday Natalis Solis Invicti which means “Birthday of the Unconquered Sun.” The Emperor Aurelian introduced the cult of the Sol Invictus or Unconquered Sunto Rome in A.D. 274. Aurelian found political traction with this cult, because his own name Aurelianderives from the Latin word aurora denoting “sunrise.” Coins reveal that Emperor Aurelian called himself the Pontifex Solis or Pontiff of the Sun. Thus, Aurelian simply accommodated a generic solar cult and identified his name with it at the end of the third century. Most importantly, there is no historical record for a celebration Natalis Sol Invictus on December 25 prior to A.D. 354. Within an illuminated manuscript for the year A.D. 354, there is an entry for December 25 reading “N INVICTI CM XXX.” Here N means “nativity.” INVICTI means “of the Unconquered.” CM signifies “circenses missus” or “games ordered.” The Roman numeral XXX equals thirty. Thus, the inscription means that thirty games were order for the nativity of the Unconquered for December 25th. Note that the word “sun” is not present. Moreover, the very same codex also lists “natus Christus in Betleem Iudeae” for the day of December 25. The phrase is translated as “birth of Christ in Bethlehem of Judea." The date of December 25th only became the “Birthday of the Unconquered Sun” under the Emperor Julian the Apostate. Julian the Apostate had been a Christian but who had apostatized and returned to Roman paganism. History reveals that it was the hateful former Christian Emperor that erected a pagan holiday on December 25 to replace Christmas that the Christians were celebrating. These historical facts reveal that the Unconquered Sun was not likely a popular deity in the Roman Empire. The Roman people did not need to be weaned off of a so-called ancient holiday. Moreover, the tradition of a December 25th celebration does not find a place on the Roman calendar until after the Christianization of Rome. The “Birthday of the Unconquered Sun” holiday was scarcely traditional and hardly popular. Saturnalia (mentioned above) was much more popular, traditional, and fun. It seems, rather, that Julian the Apostate had attempted to introduce a pagan holiday in order to replace the Christian one! The modern objection to Christmas is that Christ could not have been born in December since Saint Luke describes shepherds herding in the neighboring fields of Bethlehem. Shepherds do not herd during the winter, so Jesus was not born in winter. Palestine is in the southern area of the northern hemisphere. Bethlehem is situated at the latitude of 31.7. Dallas, Texas has the latitude of 32.8, and is still rather comfortable outside in December. The great Cornelius a Lapide remarked during his lifetime, one could still see shepherds and sheep in the fields of Italy during late December, and Italy is at higher latitude than Bethlehem.

Image found at https://www.smp.org/resourcecenter/resource/7430/ and used as being in the public. domain We really know very little about Saint Zeno of Nicodemus. We know that he was a Roman soldier during a time of great persecution of Christians (remember that back then, all Christians were Catholic. It is of interest to note that when we say we are Catholic or refer to our Faith as being Catholic, we are using a secular term. The Church has never given itself a name. Note that most Papal Documents start with "To the Church"). Another thing that we do know is that he laughed at and mocked Diocletian as he was making an offering to a Roman god or goddess. As punishment, his jaw was shattered and he was beheaded. He died in the year 303. Saint Andrew's Christmas Novena Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in a stable, in the piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, we beseech Thee, O my God, to hear our prayers and grant our desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His blessed Mother. Amen. (Prayer copied from EWTN) Join me at 3:30 p.m. Eastern for the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to leafrn about St. Lucy and to pray the St. Andrew Christmas Novena at: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/18/divine-mercy-saint-of-the-day-and-daily-update If you have not watched our Christmas Special, the Case for Christmas, you can find it here: Part I. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rv8kymNnl4 Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnW9m7kSwIc Part 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlL1gpVoN8A Here is a link to my interview with Lisa Marie Nicole from Sunday, December 10, 2023. I lovingly refer to Lisa as the Catholic version of Stryper: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/ If you want to listen top some great interviews, John Benko and I interviewed the original modern-day Catholic Defender, Steve Ray, https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/steve-ray-with-john-benko-talking-about-going-to-the-holy-land, and we interviewed acclaimed Catholic musical artist Donna Cori Gibson at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/t4p-welcomes-donna-cori-gibson. Be sure to check out our friends at https://therockcompanyshop.com/.

St. Peter Canisius was born on May 8, 1621 in the Netherlands. He died on December 21, 1597. He is considered to be the Second Apostle of Germany. Boniface is the original Apostle of Germany. He is a Doctor of the Church. Image found at https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-peter-canisius-91 used as being in the public domain He was born in Nijmegen in the Duchy of Guelders. At the time, it was part of the Habsburg Netherlands of the Holy Roman Empire. Today, it is the Netherlands. His father was a wealthy burgermeister, which is roughly the equivalent to a Chief Magistrate (a judge) or a mayor of a city. His father was named Jakob Kanis. His mother, who died when he was very young, was named Ægidia van Houweningen. She died shortly after Peter's birth. Peter was sent to the University of Cologne. He earned his Master's Degree in theology at the age of 19 in 1540. During his time at Cologne, he had heard about a new order of priests called the Soviet of Jesus (the Jesuits). One of its founders, Saint Peter Faber, S.J., was in Mainz at the time and our Peter traveled to Mainz to meet him. Father Fber led Canisius on a 30-day retreat for young men. During the second week, he opted to join the Jesuit Order. He was accepted as a novice on birthday, May 8, 1543. He was then 22. Peter returned to Cologne where he completed his doctoral degree in theology. He was ordained as a Jesuit priest in 1546. Even before his ordination, our Peter taught scripture and published new editions of texts of the writings of both Saint Cyril of Alexandria and Pope Saint Leo the Great (Leo I whose papacy, according to Pope Benedict XVI, was one of the most important in history). He attended sessions of the Council of Trent in 1547. Much of the Council of Trent dealt with the Protestant Reformation. Note that the root word of Protestant is PROTEST, meaning one who is in a state of protest with Rome. Peter created the German Catechism. This book put the basics ideals of into a written form ion the German language, This made the catechism easier to understand for many Germans as Latin was, by then, a dead language as its is today. While Peter was offered the bishopric of Vienna, hue turned it down so that he would be free to preach and travel as he saw fit, although he did serve as Administrator of the Diocese of Vienna for one year until a suitable bishop was identified and properly consecrated and placed into office. In 1562, Peter founded a college that is now known as the University of Innsbruck. When he left Germany, the Society of Jesus was huge compared to its humble beginnings there. Peter converted most of the Rhineland (Central Germany) and Bayern (Bavaria in southern Germany) back to , hence his identification as the Second Apostle of Germany. Peter went to Fribourg for the last 20 years of lhjis life, where he founded a Jesuit college, College Saint Michael. This college trained young men for their careers and/olr for future university studies. When he was 70 years old, Peter suffered a debilitating stroke. However, with the aid of an assistant, he was able to write and to preach until his death in Fribourg on December 21, 1576 at the ripe old age of 76. And 76 was old for people to live to back then. After the first of the year, we are going to start praying the 3 Hail Mary Novena. It is as perpetual novena. We will pray that Novena unless we are on a different Novena. Towards the end of May, we will start praying there Novena to Saint Boniface leading up to his feast on June 5. He will have been in Heaven 1,270 years by then. Yes, I have a strong devotion to Saint Boniface. He is my confirmation saint. If I were being confirmed today, I would be tempted to take a double name such as Boniface Therese. Much of the information gleaned herein came from wikipedia.org Saint Andrew's Christmas Novena Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in a stable, in the piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, we beseech Thee, O my God, to hear our prayers and grant our desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His blessed Mother. Amen. (Prayer copied from EWTN) Join me at 3:30 p.m. Eastern for the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to leafrn about St. Lucy and to pray the St. Andrew Christmas Novena at: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/18/divine-mercy-saint-of-the-day-and-daily-update If you have not watched our Christmas Special, the Case for Christmas, you can find it here: Part I. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rv8kymNnl4 Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnW9m7kSwIc Part 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlL1gpVoN8A Here is a link to my interview with Lisa Marie Nicole from Sunday, December 10, 2023. I lovingly refer to Lisa as the Catholic version of Stryper: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/ If you want to listen top some great interviews, John Benko and I interviewed the original modern-day Catholic Defender, Steve Ray, https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/steve-ray-with-john-benko-talking-about-going-to-the-holy-land, and we interviewed acclaimed Catholic musical artist Donna Cori Gibson at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/t4p-welcomes-donna-cori-gibson. Be sure to check out our friends at https://therockcompanyshop.com/.

St. Dominic of Silos was born around the year 1000. He died on December 20, 1073. His Feast day, December 20.. Image located at https://dailydoseofpositiveliving.in/2020/12/20/saint-of-the-day-saint-dominic-of-silos/ used as being in the public domain. St. Dominic of Silos was born in the year 1000 - about 1023 years ago. He lived exactly one millennia from the current day. I found that to be fascinating. He was born to a peasant shepherding family in Navarre, Spain. He grew ups as a shepherd in the Pyrenees Mountains. He spent his time tending to his father's sheep. Shepherding is a lonely life and he spent a lot of his time by himself, a fact that he became both used to and comfortable with. This led him to enter the Benedictine monastery. Dominic eventually became the prior of the monastery, but was run out by the king, Garcia III, who demanded the lands owned and occupied by the monastery. Dominic would flee to another monastery, the monastery of St. Sebastian (which would become the Monastery of Saint Dominic of Silos), under the protection of King Ferdinand I, who was king of Leon. The monastery was in really bad state of decay and was crumbling down. The six monks who were there also seemed to have lost their spiritual way. The Monastery of Saint Sebastian was both physically and spiritually lacking. Dominic came in and took on both of those issues. He did so well at restoring the monastery that it became a center of scholarship and charity to the poor. Dominic also used monastery funds to ransom enslaved captives away from Musilmrs who were trying to invade and take over all of Spain. Saint Dominic was known for working miracles both before and after his death in 1073. The mother of Dominic de Guzmán went to the shrine of Saint Dominic for a son. When she gave birth to a son, she named him for Dominic. Dominic de Guzmán would go on to found the Dominican Order and is now referred to as Saint Dominic. Saint Dominic of Silos soon became the patron saint of pregnant mothers. Interestingly, his crozier was always brought to the bedside of Spanish queens who were in labor. He is additionally the patron saint of shepherds and of prisoners. He was canonized by public acclaim because the Congregation for Causes of Saints had not yet been created. St. Dominic of Silos, pray for us! Saint Andrew's Christmas Novena Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in a stable, in the piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, we beseech Thee, O my God, to hear our prayers and grant our desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His blessed Mother. Amen. (Prayer copied from EWTN) Join me at 3:30 p.m. Eastern for the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to leafrn about St. Lucy and to pray the St. Andrew Christmas Novena at: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/18/divine-mercy-saint-of-the-day-and-daily-update If you have not watched our Christmas Special, the Case for Christmas, you can find it here: Part I. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rv8kymNnl4 Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnW9m7kSwIc Part 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlL1gpVoN8A Here is a link to my interview with Lisa Marie Nicole from Sunday, December 10, 2023. I lovingly refer to Lisa as the Catholic version of Stryper: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/10/t4p-artist-lmn-wins-big-divine-mercy-saint-of-the-day-and-daily-update If you want to listen top some great interviews, John Benko and I interviewed the original modern-day Catholic Defender, Steve Ray, https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/steve-ray-with-john-benko-talking-about-going-to-the-holy-land, and we interviewed acclaimed Catholic musical artist Donna Cori Gibson at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/t4p-welcomes-donna-cori-gibson. Be sure to check out our friends at https://therockcompanyshop.com/.

Saint Winebald is the nephew of my Confirmation Saint, Saint Boniface of Mainz (whose birth name was Winfrid and from whom we get the Christmas tree - I'll tell you that story ion June 5). Saint Winebald was born circa 702 and comes from an entrire family of saints including his parents, Saint Richard the King (or Richard the Piulgrim - being named Richard, I am particularly inclined to use king) and Saint Wunna of Wessex (possibly a sister of Saint Boniface), his briother, Saint Willebald (the biographer and companion of Saint Boniface), and his sister, Saint Walliburga, the Abbess. Image located at https://www.prayersandpetitions.org/feast-of-saint-winibald-18th-december/ used as being in the public domain. Saint Winebald accompanied his father and his brother on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. However, when their father died at Lucca (in northwestern Italy), where they buried him, the brothers proceeded to Rome. Willibald would proceed on to the Holy Land, being the first known Englishman to visit the Holy Land). Winebald stayed in Rome and studied. He stayed in Rome for seven years before returning to England around 730. However, he would soon return to Rome with a strong determination to enter the religious life, which he did at Monte Cassino prior to 737). He was in Rome in 737 and had taken vows as a Benedictine when his uncle, Boniface, arrived in Rome snd recruited him to travel to Germany to help convert the pagans there. It was to be Boniface's second misasion to Germany, the first failing before Pope Saint Gregory II changed his name from Winfried to Boniface (Bonifatius - one who does good). Winebald arrived in Germany around 739 where he was ordained to the priesthood. He worked hard to convert the pagans in Thuringia (central Germany) and Bayern (Bavaria, in southeastern Germany). After being ordained, he was charged with overseeing seven (7) different churches. Saint Winebald was prone to illness and had, while in Rome, contracted either the Black Plague or malaria, the recovery from which caused him to stay in Rome and study for an extended period of time while his brother went on to the Holy Land. While in Germany, Winebald founded a monstery at Schwanfeld, but subsequently moved it to Heidenheim in 742, establishing it as a double monastery - part for study and part for the training of priests. Winebald became the first abbott of this monastery, with his sister, Williburga, serving as the first Abbess. In 742 or 743, Winnebald participated in the Concilium Germanicum (Council of Germany). The Concilium Germanicum was the first church synod in the Frankish Kingdom and was presided over by Winnebald's uncle, Boniface. Concilium Germanicum was shrouded in secrecy as to the location and, to history, even the exact timing of it. Among the decisions reached at the Concilium Germanicum were: All archbishops and bishops had fixed sees in dioceses that were previously assigned to laymen by Charles Martel; Clergy were expected and required to annually appear before their bishop to give an account of their activities over the previous year; Bishops, with the aid of Auxillary Bishops, were expected to visit each parish in their diocese annually; Clergy were not allowed to carry weapons and were not allowed to hunt; On Maundy Thursday (Holy Thursdasy) of each year, the bishops were required to consecrate oil (chrism) to be distributed to the parishes in his diocese; and The Rule of Saint Benedict became mandatory in all monasteries in Germany. Image of Saint Boniface found on wikipedia.com and used as in the public domain Boniface was martyred in 754 at Dokkum, Frisia (a territory overlapping northeastern Germany and northern Netherlands. Boniface's remains were returned to the Cathedral at Fulda, where he was interred in a sarcofagus there. The site instantly became (and remains today) a site of Christian pilgrimage (which I hope to visit sooner rather thasn later). In 761, Winnebald visited the shrine of his uncle at Fulda. He fell ill on the way home and died at Heidenheim. The date of his death was December 18, 761. He was made a saint by popular acclamation rather than through the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints because it didn't exist until the twelfth century. He is venerated as a patron saint of construction workers. As you can readily see, it was impossible to tell the story of Saint Winnebald without talking about Saint Boniface. As I discuss the other saints mentioned herein, I will try to link the pages for ease of reading. These six saints (Boniface, Willibald, Winebald, Richard, Wunna and Walliburga), like so many other saintly families (the Martin family cvomes to mind with Therese, Luis and Zelie already canonized and Leonie beatified) or saints whose lives crossed paths multiple times, like John of the Cross and Teresa of Avila, are inextricably intertwined. Information for this post was derived from wikipedia.com, https://www.morningoffering.com, https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=2055, and https://www.prayersandpetitions.org/feast-of-saint-winibald-18th-december/ Saint Andrew's Christmas Novena Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in a stable, in the piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, we beseech Thee, O my God, to hear our prayers and grant our desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His blessed Mother. Amen. (Prayer copied from EWTN) Join me at 3:30 p.m. Eastern for the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, to leafrn about St. Lucy and to pray the St. Andrew Christmas Novena at: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/18/divine-mercy-saint-of-the-day-and-daily-update Here is a link to my interview with Lisa Marie Nicole from Sunday, December 10, 2023. I lovingly refer to Lisa as the Catholic version of Stryper: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/10/t4p-artist-lmn-wins-big-divine-mercy-saint-of-the-day-and-daily-update If you want to listen top some great interviews, John Benko and I interviewed the original modern-day Catholic Defender, Steve Ray, https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/steve-ray-with-john-benko-talking-about-going-to-the-holy-land, and we interviewed acclaimed Catholic musical artist Donna Cori Gibson at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/the4persons/2023/12/05/t4p-welcomes-donna-cori-gibson. Be sure to check out our friends at https://therockcompanyshop.com/.

TODAY'S CATECHISM . WE BEGIN OUR CATECHISM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AMEN TOPIC: INFANT BAPTISM => INTRODUCTION => INFANT BAPTISM => PROTESTANTS' VIEW => REASONS FOR INFANT BAPTISM => BIBLE REFRENCES TO INFANT BAPTISM => CONCLUSION => REFERENCE INTRODUCTION Infant baptism (according to wikipedia) is the practice of baptising infants or young children. In theological discussions, the practice is sometimes referred to as paedobaptism, or pedobaptism, from the Greek pais meaning "child". This can be contrasted with what is called " believer's baptism" (or credobaptism, from the Latin word credo meaning "I believe"), which is the religious practice of baptising only individuals who personally confess faith in Jesus, therefore excluding underage children. Opposition to infant baptism is termed catabaptism. INFANT BAPTISM Infant baptism-is a mystery to those who do not have the clear understanding of the Word Baptism. A simple meaning of the word BAPTISM is INITIATION ( adoption, admission, possessed or acquired something to function). In the old testament you would have been hearing about circumcision on the eight day which was a sign of spiritual cleansing of the new born from inherited impurity. In the olden days if you are not circumcised, you are not counted as Jew or not illegible to partake in the worship of Yahweh. In the new testament circumcision has been replaced with baptism. Baptism is a sacrament, because it is an "instrument instituted by Jesus Christ to impact Grace to it's recipients. So infants are traditionally baptised on the eighteth day, recalling the biblical injunction to circumcision on the day. PROTESTANTS' VIEW The Catholic church is often been criticized by protestants of the practice of baptizing infants. According to them, baptism is for adults and older children, because it is to be administered only after one has undergone a “born again” experience. That is, after one has “accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Saviour.” Although the above objection might be clear in scripture (Cf. Acts 2:28, 41; 8:16), However, since the New Testament era & based on the same scripture, the Catholic Church has always understood baptism differently, teaching that it is a sacrament which accomplishes several things. The first of which is the remission of sin, both original sin and actual sin - only original sin in the case of infants and young children, since they are incapable of actual sin; and both original and actual sin in the case of older persons. REASONS FOR INFANT BAPTISM 1. From Peter's Sermon On Baptism, he explained what happens at baptism when he said, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; (...)” (Acts 2:38). The phrase "Everyone of You" in the above text means he (Peter) did not restrict this teaching to Only adults. This even becomes clear when he (Peter) added, “For the promise is to you and to your CHILDREN and to all that are far off, EVERY ONE whom the Lord our God calls to him” (Acts 2:39). Now from the above text if baptism is connected with salvation then it must be for ALL since salvation is a universal phenomenon. 2. Baptism Replaces Circumcision Furthermore, Paul notes that baptism has replaced circumcision (Col. 2:11–12). In that passage, he refers to baptism as “the circumcision of Christ” and “the circumcision made without hands.” If Paul meant to exclude infants, he would not have chosen circumcision as a parallel for baptism. Since the time of Abraham right to the present, Jews have circumcised infants and brought them into the Covenant on the eighth day after birth, based on the faith of the parents, just as we do now in Christian Baptism. The pattern is the same. BIBLE REFERENCES TO INFANT BAPTISM But one might ask, does the Bible ever say that infants can be baptized? The indications are clear. In the New Testament we read that Lydia was converted by Paul’s preaching and that “She was baptized, with her household” (Acts 16:15). Also, in his greetings to the Corinthians, Paul recalled that, “I did baptize also the household of Stephanas” (1 Cor. 1:16). In all these cases, 'whole households' were baptized. Therefore, the children must have been baptized as well. Again, according to Scripture, Baptism is the an essential prerequisite for entering into the Kingdom of Heaven. "(...) Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit" (John 3:3-5). . Now if Jesus says also that the Kingdom of God belongs to infants and children, it would make no sense if He then withheld the gift of Baptism that would give them entrance to this very Kingdom. CONCLUSION St Gregory of Nazianz summarizes the answer for us perfectly in his "Oration on Holy Baptism". "Do you have an infant child? Allow sin no opportunity; rather, let the infant be sanctified from childhood. From his most tender age let him be consecrated by the Spirit." Let Bible be the basement for our responses.........!!!!!!! Infant baptisms is a mystery to those who do not have the clear understanding of the Word Baptism. A simple meaning of the word BAPTISM is INITIATION ( adoption, admission, possessed or acquired something to function). In the old testament you would have been hearing about circumcision on the eight day which was a sign of spiritual cleansing of the new born from inherited impurity. In the olden days if you are not circumcised, you are not counted as Jew or not illegible to partake in the worship of Yahweh. In the new testament circumcision has been replaced with baptism. Baptism is a sacrament, because it is an "instrument instituted by Jesus Christ to impact Grace to it's recipients. So infants are traditionally baptised on the eightieth day, recalling the biblical injunction to circumcision on the day. READ THE FOLLOWING BIBLE PASSAGES. Baptism is of spiritual mandate to every soul irrespective of the age if the soul must be cleansed of original sin and being impacted of grace, David said l was conceived of sin from my mother's womb and born of sin (Psalm 51:5 GNB) so with this how can we exempt children from congenital sin? The will of God is to save every soul and Baptism is one of the first mandatory instrument instituted by Jesus Christ to make heaven. In John 3:5 Jesus replied Nicodemus " I am telling you the truth," "No one can enter ,the kingdom of God without being born of water and the spirit. In Mark 16:16 Jesus said, " Whoever believes and is baptised Will be saved; Whoever does not believe Will be condemned ( a clear affirmative command of salvative requirement). In Acts 2:39 For God's promise was made to you and your Children,and to all who are far away,all whom the Lord our God call to himself. In Acts 16:29-33 "The jailer's entire house hold was baptised (that means included children). In 1Cor 10:1-4 " 2,all the Israelites were Baptised as followers of Moses ( 'all' means,no one was left out). So some one should read the above passages and digest it. Catholic Church is not doing anything on their own but according to Christ's command. REFERENCES Osei-Bonsu, J. (2011). Catholic Beliefs & Practices.Takoradi: Franciscan Publishing. Osborne, G. (2011). "Why does the Catholic Church baptize babies?" The B.C. Catholic press. We have come to a conclusion on the topic INFANT BAPTISM. Thanks for your participation, support and contributions. May the God in his infinite mercy continue to be bless and grant you more understanding of his words; in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen PLEASE WE ARE ENCOURAGE TO CONTRIBUTE AND ASK QUESTIONS IN REGARDS TO THIS GREAT TOPIC. WE ARE CATHOLIC By Echofu FrancisMary Young & Michael Adoyi