"Repentance is the renewal of baptism. Repentance is a contract with God for a second life. A penitent is a buyer of humility. Repentance is constant distrust of bodily comfort. Repentance is self-condemning reflection, and carefree self-care. Repentance is the daughter of hope and the renunciation of despair. A penitent is an undisgraced convict. Repentance is reconciliation with the Lord by the practice of good deeds contrary to the sins. Repentance is purification of conscience. Repentance is the voluntary endurance of all afflictions. A penitent is the inflicter of his own punishments. Repentance is a mighty persecution of the stomach, and a striking of the soul into vigorous awareness."
+St. John Climacus
+St. John Climacus
"Any time is the right time for works of charity, but these days of Lent provide a special encouragement. Those who want to be present at the Lord's Passover in holiness of mind and body should seek above all to win this grace, for charity contains all other virtues and covers a multitude of sins."
+Pope St. Leo the Great
"There are three things, my brethren, by which faith stands firm, devotion remains constant, and virtue endures. They are prayer, fasting and mercy. Prayer knocks at the door, fasting obtains, mercy receives. Prayer, mercy and fasting: these three are one, and they give life to each other."
+St. Peter Chrysologus
Prayer for Aid in Fasting
Hanging as a vine upon the Wood,
O Christ our Saviour,
Thou hast made the ends of the earth
to drink from the wine of incorruption.
Therefore do I cry aloud:
I am darkened always by the hateful drunkenness of sin;
Give me to drink from the sweet wine of true compunction,
and grant me now the strength, O Saviour,
to fast from sensual pleasures,
for Thou art good and lovest mankind.
+St. Joseph Studite
"When you fast, see the fasting of others. If you want God to know that you are hungry, know that another is hungry. If you hope for mercy, show mercy. If you look for kindness, show kindness. If you want to receive, give. If you ask for yourself what you deny to others, your asking is a mockery."
+St. Peter Chrysologus
Lenten Prayer
Lord, I believe in you: increase my faith.
I trust in you: strengthen my trust.
I love you: let me love you more and more.
I am sorry for my sins: deepen my sorrow.
I worship you as my first beginning,
I long for you as my last end,
I praise you as my constant helper,
And call on you as my loving protector.
Guide me by your wisdom,
Correct me with your justice, Comfort me with your mercy,
Protect me with your power.
I offer you, Lord, my thoughts: to be fixed on you;
My words: to have you for their theme;
My actions: to reflect my love for you;
My sufferings: to be endured for your greater glory.
I want to do what you ask of me:
In the way you ask,
For as long as you ask,
Because you ask it.
Lord, enlighten my understanding,
Strengthen my will,
Purify my heart,
and make me holy.
Help me to repent of my past sins
And to resist temptation in the future.
Help me to rise above my human weaknesses
And to grow stronger as a Christian.
Let me love you, my Lord and my God,
And see myself as I really am:
A pilgrim in this world,
A Christian called to respect and love
All whose lives I touch,
Those under my authority,
My friends and my enemies.
Help me to conquer anger with gentleness,
Greed by generosity,
Apathy by fervor.
Help me to forget myself
And reach out toward others.
Make me prudent in planning,
Courageous in taking risks.
Make me patient in suffering, unassuming in prosperity.
Keep me, Lord, attentive at prayer,
Temperate in food and drink,
Diligent in my work,
Firm in my good intentions.
Let my conscience be clear,
My conduct without fault,
My speech blameless,
My life well-ordered.
Put me on guard against my human weaknesses.
Let me cherish your love for me,
Keep your law,
And come at last to your salvation.
Teach me to realize that this world is passing,
That my true future is the happiness of heaven,
That life on earth is short,
And the life to come eternal.
Help me to prepare for death
With a proper fear of judgment,
But a greater trust in your goodness.
Lead me safely through death
To the endless joy of heaven.
Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
+Pope Clement XI
"Be not, then, ashamed of the cross, in order that Jesus Christ be not ashamed of you, when He will come, clothed in the Majesty of His glory, accompanied by this sign of our redemption, which will then shine more brilliant than the sun. Engrave it in your heart, lovingly embrace that which procured the salvation of our souls; for it is the cross which has saved and converted all the world - it is that which has banished heresy and unbelief, which has reestablished truth, which has made a heaven on earth, and which has transformed men into angels. It is by means of the cross that the devils have ceased to appear formidable, and are now only to be despised ... it is through the cross, that all our enemies have been conquered."
+St. John Chrysostom
"The Cross of the Lord is the monument to His Victory. O marvel of the love of the Word of God for men, for it is on our account that He is dishonored so that we may be brought to honor."
+St. Athanasius
"Nothing unites us so closely to the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ as the cross which is the most precious pledge of His love."
+St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
"In all things let us not forget to repeat with the Lord Jesus: "Not my will but Thine be done." . . . Let us not forget that Jesus not only suffered, but also rose in glory; so, too, we go to the glory of the Resurrection by way of suffering and the Cross."
+St. Maximilian Kolbe
"Nothing unites us so closely to the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ as the cross which is the most precious pledge of His love."
+St. Margaret Mary Alacoque
"In all things let us not forget to repeat with the Lord Jesus: "Not my will but Thine be done." . . . Let us not forget that Jesus not only suffered, but also rose in glory; so, too, we go to the glory of the Resurrection by way of suffering and the Cross."
+St. Maximilian Kolbe
Penitential Prayer
O Lord, who hast mercy upon all,
take away from me my sins,
and mercifully kindle in me
the fire of thy Holy Spirit.
Take away from me the heart of stone,
and give me a heart of flesh,
a heart to love and adore Thee,
a heart to delight in Thee,
to follow and enjoy Thee, for Christ's sake, Amen
+St. Ambrose of Milan
Laetare Sunday
Palm Sunday
“Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is He who
comes in the name of the Lord; hosanna in the highest.”
Mt 21:9
Holy Week
He descended from heaven to earth for the sake of suffering mankind, clothed himself with a human nature through the Virgin Mary, and appearing in our midst as a man with a body capable of suffering, took upon himself the suffering of those who suffered. By his Spirit which could not die, he slew death, the slayer of men. Led forth like a lamb, slain like a sheep, he ransomed us from the servitude of the world, just as he ransomed Israel from the land of Egypt. He freed us from the slavery of the devil, just as he had freed Israel from the hand of Pharaoh; and he has marked our souls with the signs of his own blood. He has clothed death with dishonour and he has grieved the devil, just as Moses dishonoured and grieved Pharaoh. He has punished wickedness and taken away the children of injustice, just as Moses punished Egypt and unchilded it. He has brought us from slavery to freedom, from darkness to light, from death to life, from tyranny to an eternal kingdom.
He is the Passover of our salvation. He was present in many so as to endure many things. In Abel he was slain; in Isaac bound; in Jacob a stranger; in Joseph sold; in Moses exposed; in David persecuted; in the prophets dishonoured. He became incarnate of the Virgin. Not a bone of his was broken on the tree. He was buried in the earth, but he rose from the dead, and was lifted up to the heights of heaven. He is the silent lamb, the slain lamb, who was born of Mary the fair ewe. He was seized from the flock and dragged away to slaughter. Towards evening he was sacrificed, and at night he was buried. But he who had no bone broken upon the cross, was not corrupted in the earth, for he rose from the dead and raised up man from the depths of the grave.
From the homily of Melito of Sardis on the Pasch
(Second Century Bishop/Early Church Father/Martyr)
Holy Thursday
The Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over, took bread,
and, after he had given thanks, broke it and said,
“This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying,
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,
you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.
1 Cor 11:23-26
"My soul, if you wish to penetrate the depths of this Mystery, your gaze must be illumined by Love! You need to see and understand! Contemplate the Last Supper: see Jesus Who knows that He will soon be separated from the body of His humanity, and yet wishing to be united to us forever; contemplate the Love by which He institutes this Sacrament which permits Him to be corporeally and forever united to mankind. O Inextinguishable Love! O Love of Christ! O Love of the human race! What a true Furnace of Love! O Jesus, You already saw the death which awaited You; the sorrows and atrocious tortures of the Passion were already breaking Your Heart, and yet You offered Yourself to Your executioners, and permitted them, by means of this Sacrament, to possess You forever as an Eternal Gift, O You, Whose delights are to be with the children of men!
"O my soul, how can you refrain from plunging yourself ever deeper and deeper into the love of Christ, who did not forget you in life or in death, but who willed to give Himself wholly to you, and to unite you to Himself forever?"
+Bl. Angela Foligno
"How is it that we do not die of love in seeing that God Himself could do no more than shed His divine blood for us drop by drop? When as man He was preparing for death, He made Himself our food in order to give us life. God becomes food, bread for his creatures. Is this not enough to make us die of love?"
+St. Teresa of the Andes
"How is it that we do not die of love in seeing that God Himself could do no more than shed His divine blood for us drop by drop? When as man He was preparing for death, He made Himself our food in order to give us life. God becomes food, bread for his creatures. Is this not enough to make us die of love?"
+St. Teresa of the Andes
Good Friday
He was spurned and avoided by people, a man of suffering, accustomed to infirmity,
one of those from whom people hide their faces, spurned, and we held him in no esteem.
Yet it was our infirmities that he bore, our sufferings that he endured,
while we thought of him as stricken, as one smitten by God and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins;
upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole,
by his stripes we were healed.
while we thought of him as stricken, as one smitten by God and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins;
upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole,
by his stripes we were healed.
Is 53:3-5
The Agony of Our Lord in the Garden by St. Padre Pio:
Prayer of Acclaim to the Suffering Christ
O Lord, you received affronts without number from your blasphemers,
yet each day you free captive souls from the grip of the ancient enemy.
You did not avert your face from the spittle of perfidy, yet you wash souls in saving waters.
You accepted your scourging without murmur,
yet through your meditation you deliver us from endless chastisements.
You endured ill-treatment of all kinds,
yet you want to give us a share in the choirs of angels in glory everlasting.
You did not refuse to be crowned with thorns,
yet you save us from the wounds of sin.
In your thirst you accepted the bitterness of gall,
yet you prepare yourself to fill us with eternal delights.
You kept silence under the derisive homage rendered you by your executioners,
yet you petition the Father for us although you are his equal in divinity.
You came to taste death, yet you were the Life and had come to bring it to the dead. Amen.
+St. Gregory the Great
Prayer to Christ in His Passion and Death
Prayer to Christ in His Passion and Death
Hail, sweet Jesus!
Praise, honor, and glory be to Thee, O Christ,
who of Thine own accord didst embrace death,
and, recommending Thyself to Thy heavenly Father,
bowing down Thy venerable head, didst yield up Thy spirit.
Truly thus giving up Thy life for Thy sheep,
Thou hast shown Thyself to be a good shepherd.
Thou didst die, O only-begotten Son of God.
Thou didst die, O my beloved Saviour, that I might live forever.
O how great hope, how great confidence have I reposed in Thy death and Thy Blood!
I glorify and praise Thy Holy Name, acknowledging my infinite obligations to Thee.
O good Jesus, by Thy bitter death and Passion, give me grace and pardon.
Give unto the faithful departed rest and life everlasting. Amen.
+St. Francis De Sales
"In giving us His son, His only Word, He spoke everything to us at once in this sole Word - and He has no more to say … because what He spoke before to the prophets in parts, He has now spoken all at once by giving us the All Who is His Son."
+St. John of the Cross
"Invisible in His own nature, He became visible in ours. Beyond our grasp, He chose to come within our grasp. Existing before all time began, He began to exist in a moment in time. Incapable of suffering as God, He did not refuse to be man, capable of suffering. Immortal, He chose to be subject to the laws of death."
+Pope St. Leo the Great
"Often tell Jesus that you love him very much, and that you wish to die for love of him. Behold our love, Jesus; behold our life, Jesus; behold our all, Jesus. Let us accompany Jesus in all his ways. When we are alone, let it be with Jesus in the solitude of Bethlehem when we are traveling, let us think that we are with Jesus in Palestine or on the way to Calvary; when we are lashed by biting criticisms, behold us scourged with Jesus; when we are fixed to the cross, behold we are crucified with Jesus."
+St. Gaspar del Bufalo
"Can the life of a good Christian be anything other than that of a man nailed to the Cross with Jesus Christ?"
+Saint John Vianney
"The martyrs found themselves hard-pressed, beset by danger from violent storms of hatred in this world, a danger not so much to their bodies which, after all, they would have to part with sometime, but rather to their faith. If they were to give way, if they should succumb either to the harsh tortures of their persecutors or to love of this present life, they would forfeit the reward promised them by the God who had taken away all ground for fear. Not only had he said: Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; he had also left them his own example. The precept he had enjoined on them he personally carried out, without attempting to evade the hands of those who scourged him, the blows of those who struck him, or the spittle of those who spat on him. Neither the crown of thorns pressed into his head nor the cross to which the soldiers nailed him encountered any resistance from him. None of these torments did he try to avoid. Though he himself was under no obligation to suffer them, he endured them for those who were, making his own person a remedy for the sick. And so the martyrs suffered, but they would certainly have failed the test without the presence of him who said: Know that I am with you always, until the end of time."
+St. Augustine of Hippo
"Let us therefore without ceasing hold fast by our hope and by the earnest of our righteousness, which is Jesus Christ who took up our sins in His own body upon the tree, who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth, but for our sakes He endured all things, that we might live in Him. Let us therefore become imitators of His endurance; and if we should suffer for His name's sake, let us glorify Him. For He gave this example to us in His own person, and we believed this."
+St. Ploycarp of Smyrna
"It was not so much the sorrows of his Passion which saddened and embittered the life of our Redeemer, as the sight of all the sins which men would commit after his death. These were the cruel executioners which made him live in continual agony, oppressed by such an overwhelming grief that pain alone would have been enough to make him die of pure sorrow. Father Lessius says that the sight alone of the ingratitude of mankind would have been sufficient to make Jesus Christ die of grief a thousand times."
+St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori
"How is it possible to offend a God scourged, a God crowned with thorns, a God crucified for us? And how is it possible that, seriously pondering these truths of faith, we can yet offend God?"
+St. Paul of the Cross "Often tell Jesus that you love him very much, and that you wish to die for love of him. Behold our love, Jesus; behold our life, Jesus; behold our all, Jesus. Let us accompany Jesus in all his ways. When we are alone, let it be with Jesus in the solitude of Bethlehem when we are traveling, let us think that we are with Jesus in Palestine or on the way to Calvary; when we are lashed by biting criticisms, behold us scourged with Jesus; when we are fixed to the cross, behold we are crucified with Jesus."
+St. Gaspar del Bufalo
"Can the life of a good Christian be anything other than that of a man nailed to the Cross with Jesus Christ?"
+Saint John Vianney
"The martyrs found themselves hard-pressed, beset by danger from violent storms of hatred in this world, a danger not so much to their bodies which, after all, they would have to part with sometime, but rather to their faith. If they were to give way, if they should succumb either to the harsh tortures of their persecutors or to love of this present life, they would forfeit the reward promised them by the God who had taken away all ground for fear. Not only had he said: Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; he had also left them his own example. The precept he had enjoined on them he personally carried out, without attempting to evade the hands of those who scourged him, the blows of those who struck him, or the spittle of those who spat on him. Neither the crown of thorns pressed into his head nor the cross to which the soldiers nailed him encountered any resistance from him. None of these torments did he try to avoid. Though he himself was under no obligation to suffer them, he endured them for those who were, making his own person a remedy for the sick. And so the martyrs suffered, but they would certainly have failed the test without the presence of him who said: Know that I am with you always, until the end of time."
+St. Augustine of Hippo
"Let us therefore without ceasing hold fast by our hope and by the earnest of our righteousness, which is Jesus Christ who took up our sins in His own body upon the tree, who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth, but for our sakes He endured all things, that we might live in Him. Let us therefore become imitators of His endurance; and if we should suffer for His name's sake, let us glorify Him. For He gave this example to us in His own person, and we believed this."
+St. Ploycarp of Smyrna
"It was not so much the sorrows of his Passion which saddened and embittered the life of our Redeemer, as the sight of all the sins which men would commit after his death. These were the cruel executioners which made him live in continual agony, oppressed by such an overwhelming grief that pain alone would have been enough to make him die of pure sorrow. Father Lessius says that the sight alone of the ingratitude of mankind would have been sufficient to make Jesus Christ die of grief a thousand times."
+St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori
"How is it possible to offend a God scourged, a God crowned with thorns, a God crucified for us? And how is it possible that, seriously pondering these truths of faith, we can yet offend God?"
"The mere sight of the Lord fallen to the ground in the garden with that frightful sweat is enough to last the intellect not only an hour but many days, while it looks with a simple gaze at Who He is and how ungrateful we have been for so much suffering."
+St. Teresa of Jesus
"Renew your confidence by a glance at the cross. See that precious blood, those mortal wounds, those hands which have made heaven and earth are still outstretched to poor, repentant sinners who humbly sigh for the embrace of Jesus."
+St. Paul of the Cross
"Let us observe with profound gratitude, that sublime mystery which strongly attracts the Heart of Jesus to His creatures; let us consider that He deigned to assume our very flesh in order to live among us, sharing this miserable earthly life. Let us muster up all our intellectual strength, to worthily contemplate the tenacious fervour and hardship of his apostolate, so that we may recall the horrors of his passion and martyrdom, and adore His blood which was royally offered up to the last drop, for the redemption of the human race. Then with humble faith, with the same ardent love with which He fills and pursues our souls, let us bow our impure heads at His feet."
+St. Padre Pio
"I looked at Thy Cross, O Christ, and read there the song of Thy Love!"
+St. John of the Cross
"My crucified Jesus, I protest that I desire not the things of the earth; for Thou alone suffices! for me, Thou alone, my God and my All!"
+St. Paul of the Cross
Holy Saturday
Today a great silence reigns on earth, a great silence and a great stillness. A great stillness because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and has raised up all who have slept since the world began... "I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be a prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. "
-Liturgy of the Hours
"O tender Mother, unutterable was thy grief in finding thyself deprived of thy dear Son, and then in beholding Him dead in thy arms!"
+St. Paul of the Cross
I compassionate thee, O most sorrowful Mother!
Thy heart was pierced with a sword of grief
when Simeon foretold to thee in the Temple
the ignominious death and the desolation
of thy Divine and most dear Son,
which thou wast destined one day to witness.
By the great anguish of thy suffering heart,
O gracious Queen of the universe,
impress upon my mind, in life and in death,
the sacred Passion of Jesus and thine own sorrows. Amen.
+St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori
Easter Vigil
Easter Vigil
May the light of Christ, rising in glory, dispel the darkness of our hearts and minds.
Exsultet
(Easter Proclamation)
Rejoice, heavenly powers! Sing, choirs of angels! Exult, all creation around God's throne! Jesus Christ, our King, is risen! Sound the trumpet of salvation!
Rejoice, O earth, in shining splendor, radiant in the brightness of your King! Christ has conquered! Glory fills you! Darkness vanishes for ever!
Rejoice, O Mother Church! Exult in glory! The risen Savior shines upon you! Let this place resound with joy, echoing the mighty song of all God's people!
It is truly right that with full hearts and minds and voices we should praise the unseen God, the all-powerful Father, and his only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
For Christ has ransomed us with his blood, and paid for us the price of Adam's sin to our eternal Father!
This is our passover feast, when Christ, the true Lamb, is slain, whose blood consecrates the homes of all believers.
This is the night when first you saved our fathers: you freed the people of Israel from their slavery and led them dry-shod through the sea.
This is the night when the pillar of fire destroyed the darkness of sin!
This is the night when Christians everywhere, washed clean of sin and freed from all defilement, are restored to grace and grow together in holiness.
This is the night when Jesus Christ broke the chains of death and rose triumphant from the grave.
What good would life have been to us, had Christ not come as our Redeemer?
Father, how wonderful your care for us! How boundless your merciful love! To ransom a slave you gave away your Son.
O happy fault, O necessary sin of Adam, which gained for us so great a Redeemer!
Most blessed of all nights, chosen by God to see Christ rising from the dead!
Of this night scripture says: "The night will be as clear as day: it will become my light, my joy."
The power of this holy night dispels all evil, washes guilt away, restores lost innocence, brings mourners joy; it casts out hatred, brings us peace, and humbles earthly pride.
Night truly blessed when heaven is wedded to earth and man is reconciled with God!
Therefore, heavenly Father, in the joy of this night, receive our evening sacrifice of praise, your Church's solemn offering.
Accept this Easter candle, a flame divided but undimmed, a pillar of fire that glows to the honor of God.
Let it mingle with the lights of heaven and continue bravely burning to dispel the darkness of this night!
May the morning Star which never sets find this flame still burning: Christ, that Morning Star, who came back from the dead, and shed his peaceful light on all mankind, your Son who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.
Christ yesterday and today,
the Beginning and the End,
the Alpha and Omega.
His are the times and ages:
To Him be glory and dominion
Through all ages of eternity. Amen
Easter
He is not here, for He has been raised just as He said.
Mt 28:6
Born as a son,
led forth as a lamb,
Born as a son,
led forth as a lamb,
sacrificed as a sheep,
buried as a man,
he rose from the dead as a God,
for he was by nature God and man.
He is all things:
he judges, and so he is Law;
he teaches, and so he is Wisdom;
he saves, and so he is Grace;
he begets, and so he is Father;
he is begotten, and so he is Son;
he suffers, and so he is Sacrifice;
he is buried, and so he is man;
he rises again, and so he is God.
This is Jesus Christ,
to whom belongs glory for all ages.
~Melito of Sardis
Easter Prayer
It is only right, with all the powers of our heart and mind, to praise You Father and
Your Only-Begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Dear Father, by Your wondrous
condescension of Loving-Kindness toward us, Your servants, You gave up Your Son.
Dear Jesus You paid the debt of Adam for us to the Eternal Father by Your Blood
poured forth in Loving-Kindness. You cleared away the darkness of sin by Your
magnificent and radiant Resurrection. You broke the bonds of death and rose from the
grave as a Conqueror. You reconciled Heaven and earth. Our life had no hope of
Eternal Happiness before You redeemed us. Your Resurrection has washed away our sins,
restored our innocence and brought us joy. How inestimable is the tenderness of Your Love!
We pray You, Lord, to preserve Your servants in the peaceful enjoyment of this Easter
happiness. We ask this through Jesus Christ Our Lord, Who lives and reigns with God
The Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.
+St. Gregory
The Easter Praise of Christ
We should understand, beloved, that the paschal mystery is at once old and new, transitory and eternal, corruptible and incorruptible, mortal and immortal. In terms of the Law it is old, in terms of the Word it is new. In its figure it is passing, in its grace it is eternal. It is corruptible in the sacrifice of the lamb, incorruptible in the eternal life of the Lord. It is mortal in his burial in the earth, immortal in his resurrection from the dead.
The Law indeed is old, but the Word is new. The type is transitory, but grace is eternal. The lamb was corruptible, but the Lord is incorruptible. He was slain as a lamb; he rose again as God. He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, yet he was not a sheep. He was silent as a lamb, yet he was not a lamb. The type has passed away; the reality has come. The lamb gives place to God, the sheep gives place to a man, and the man is Christ, who fills the whole of creation. The sacrifice of the lamb, the celebration of the Passover, and the prescriptions of the Law have been fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Under the old Law, and still more under the new dispensation, everything pointed toward him.
Both the Law and the Word came forth from Zion and Jerusalem, but now the Law has given place to the Word, the old to the new. The commandment has become grace, the type a reality. The lamb has become a Son, the sheep a man, and man, God.
The Lord, though he was God, became man. He suffered for the sake of those who suffer, he was bound for those in bonds, condemned for the guilty, buried for those who lie in the grave; but he rose from the dead, and cried aloud: Who will contend with me? Let him confront me. I have freed the condemned, brought the dead back to life, raised men from their graves. Who has anything to say against me? I, he said, am the Christ; I have destroyed death, triumphed over the enemy, trampled hell underfoot, bound the strong one, and taken men up to the heights of heaven: I am the Christ.
Come, then, all you nations of men, receive forgiveness for the sins that defile you. I am your forgiveness. I am the Passover that brings salvation. I am the lamb who was immolated for you. I am your ransom, your life, your resurrection, your light, I am your salvation and your king. I will bring you to the heights of heaven. With my own right hand I will raise you up, and I will show you the eternal Father.
~Melito of Sardis
I give You glory, O Christ,
because You, the Only-begotten, the Lord of all,
underwent the death of the Cross
to free my sinful soul from the bonds of sin.
What shall I give to You, O Lord,
in return for all this kindness?
Glory to You, O Lord,
for Your love,
for Your mercy,
for Your patience.
Glory to You,
for forgiving us all our sins,
for coming to save our souls,
for Your incarnation in the Virgin's womb.
Glory to You,
for Your bonds,
for receiving the cut of the lash,
for accepting mockery.
Glory to You,
for Your crucifixion,
for Your burial,
for Your resurrection.
Glory to You,
for Your resurrection,
for being preached to men,
for being taken up heaven.
Glory to You who sit at the Father's right hand
and will return in glory.
Glory to You for willing that the sinner
be saved through Your great mercy and compassion.
+St. Ephrem of Syria
Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord
As they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their sight.
Acts 1:9
"Today our Lord Jesus Christ ascended into heaven; let our hearts ascend with him. Listen to the words of the Apostle: If you have risen with Christ, set your hearts on the things that are above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God; seek the things that are above, not the things that are on earth. For just as he remained with us even after his ascension, so we too are already in heaven with him, even though what is promised us has not yet been fulfilled in our bodies.
Christ is now exalted above the heavens, but he still suffers on earth all the pain that we, the members of his body, have to bear. He showed this when he cried out from above: Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? and when he said: I was hungry and you gave me food. Why do we on earth not strive to find rest with him in heaven even now, through the faith, hope and love that unites us to him?
While in heaven he is also with us; and we while on earth are with him. He is here with us by his divinity, his power and his love. We cannot be in heaven, as he is on earth, by divinity, but in him, we can be there by love.
Christ is now exalted above the heavens, but he still suffers on earth all the pain that we, the members of his body, have to bear. He showed this when he cried out from above: Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? and when he said: I was hungry and you gave me food. Why do we on earth not strive to find rest with him in heaven even now, through the faith, hope and love that unites us to him?
While in heaven he is also with us; and we while on earth are with him. He is here with us by his divinity, his power and his love. We cannot be in heaven, as he is on earth, by divinity, but in him, we can be there by love.
He did not leave heaven when he came down to us; nor did he withdraw from us when he went up again into heaven. The fact that he was in heaven even while he was on earth is borne out by his own statement: No one has ever ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man, who is in heaven. These words are explained by our oneness with Christ, for he is our head and we are his body. No one ascended into heaven except Christ because we also are Christ: he is the Son of Man by his union with us, and we by our union with him are sons of God.
So the Apostle says: Just as the human body, which has many members, is a unity, because all the different members make one body, so is it also with Christ. He too has many members, but one body. Out of compassion for us he descended from heaven, and although he ascended alone, we also ascend, because we are in him by grace. Thus, no one but Christ descended and no one but Christ ascended; not because there is no distinction between the head and the body, but because the body as a unity cannot be separated from the head."
From a sermon by Saint Augustine, bishop
From a sermon by Saint Augustine, bishop
(Sermo de Ascensione Domini, Mai 98, 1-7: PLS 2, 429-495)
