By 1741, George Frideric Handel had fallen deeply into debt, and was even threatened with debtors’ prison. Instead, he departed to Ireland for a sabbatical, where he wrote his "Messiah" in just twenty-four days. While Handel’s Messiah is, for many, an annual Advent spectacle, in the Classical Girl household, the 1741 oratorio gets pulled out during [...]
This is how the rich pursue God: self-sufficiently, driven on by the conquest of curiosity, inevitably instrumentalizing the knowledge they seem to acquire for their own self-satisfaction. The poor of the Lord, however, must take another path: the path of the wise men. Matthew 2: 1-12 gives us the only narrative in the gospels of [...]
Why celebrate Christmas? Why throw a party, instead of going to church, in the first place? Is not this religious holiday, by nature calling us to quiet contemplation? Did you know that Christmas celebrations were banned in Scotland until 1958? I certainly did not, not until my son started working on his sixth-grade “Christmas around [...]
6th January The Epiphany of Our Lord “…the star beckoned the three wise men out of their distant country and led them to recognise and adore the King of heaven and earth. The obedience of the star calls us to imitate its humble service: to be servants, as best we can, of the grace that [...]
5th January Eve of the Epiphany of Our Lord Twelfth Night and the drawing to a close of the twelve days of Christmas and the vigil of the Feast of the Epiphany! 12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the twelfth day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me twelve Drummers Drumming: The twelve points [...]
12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the tenth day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me ten Lords a-Leaping: The Ten Commandments. Poem: Hilaire Belloc - "Courtesy" Of Courtesy, it is much less Than Courage of Heart or Holiness, Yet in my Walks it seems to me That the Grace of God is in [...]
12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the ninth day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me nine Ladies Dancing: The nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal 5:22-23). Poem: Ruth Pitter - "The Bird on the Tree" The tree, and its haunting bird, Are the [...]
Mary and Joseph spent every day gazing on the face of God incarnate—their own son. These two, no doubt, were profoundly aware of the privilege of every second with their child, the God of the universe. Let us take their example, then, to ask God for the grace to make each moment in his presence [...]
1st January Day 8 of the Octave of Christmas Christ the Lord is born today; today, the Saviour has appeared. Earth echoes songs of angel choirs, archangels’ joyful praise. Today on earth his friends exult. Glory to God in the highest, alleluia 12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the eighth day of Christmas, my True [...]
31st December Day 7 of the Octave of Christmas Christ the Lord is born today; today, the Saviour has appeared. Earth echoes songs of angel choirs, archangels’ joyful praise. Today on earth his friends exult. Glory to God in the highest, alleluia 12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the seventh day of Christmas, my True [...]
30th December Day 6 of the Octave of Christmas Christ the Lord is born today; today, the Saviour has appeared. Earth echoes songs of angel choirs, archangels’ joyful praise. Today on earth his friends exult. Glory to God in the highest, alleluia 12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the sixth day of Christmas, my True [...]
29th December Day 5 of the Octave of Christmas Christ the Lord is born today; today, the Saviour has appeared. Earth echoes songs of angel choirs, archangels’ joyful praise. Today on earth his friends exult. Glory to God in the highest, alleluia. 12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the fifth day of Christmas, my True [...]
28th December Day 4 of the Octave of Christmas Christ the Lord is born today; today, the Saviour has appeared. Earth echoes songs of angel choirs, archangels’ joyful praise. Today on earth his friends exult. Glory to God in the highest, alleluia. 12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the fourth day of Christmas, my True [...]
27th December, St. John Day 3 of the Octave of Christmas Christ the Lord is born today; today, the Saviour has appeared. Earth echoes songs of angel choirs, archangels’ joyful praise. Today on earth his friends exult. Glory to God in the highest, alleluia. 12 Days of Christmas Carol: On the third day of Christmas, [...]