Parisian Sequences for Pentecost

The New Liturgical Movement has an interesting post about the series of Sequences the Use of Paris had for the Octave of Pentecost - one for each day as opposed to the Roman Use, which employs Veni, Sancte Spiritus every day. I understand Sarum had different Sequences for just the Thursday and Saturday of the Octave.

The texts are a fine selection of medieval hymnography, and written over a period of over three centuries. Three of them, for mid-week are by Adam of St Victor. That twelfth century Victorine tradition was, of course, centred on the abbey in the southern part of the medieval city. Also present is Stephen Langton's Veni, Sancte Spiritus , and he, of course, had been a Master at Paris before his elevation to Canterbury. The post can be read at An Old Parisian Sequence for Thursday in the Octave of Pentecost.

Pentecost

Today is Pentecost, the gift of the Holy Spirit, whether we think of it as a consuming fire, a rushing wind, a stream of water, or the gift of eloquence in tongues.

 

Image:fisheaters.com 

Hail this joyful day's return,

hail the Pentecostal morn,

morn when our ascended Lord

on his Church his Spirit poured! Alleluia!

Like to clove tongues of flame

on the twelve the Spirit came--

tongues, that earth may hear their call,

fire, that love may burn in all. Alleluia!

Lord, to you your people bend;

unto us your Spirit send;

blessings of this sacred day

grant us, dearest Lord, we pray. Alleluia!

You who did our forebears guide,

with their children still abide;

grant us pardon, grant us peace,

till our earthly wanderings cease. Alleluia!

Words: Attributed to St Hilary of Poitiers (d.368);

trans. Robert Campbell (1814-1868)

Text:oremus.org 

  

This is the hymn that we sing as the introit on Pentecost at the Solemn Mass at the Oxford Oratory. I like it not just because it is an ancient hymn but because, unlike some of the better known, and excellent, hymns associated with this season it emphasises the gift of the Holy Spirit to the Church rather than to individuals. The Holy Spirit is bestowed upon the Church as the Body and the Bride of Christ, and so is mediated to the individual members of the whole in union with it and other members.

Few images of Pentecost convey in any adequate way to my mind the transforming and renewing power of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Here is a detail of one which does suggest the reality described in the Acts of the Apostles:

Pentecost

Detail from the painting by El Greco 

Image:bustedhalo.com

Observing the Vigil of Pentecost

Earlier this evening I attended the Vigil for Pentecost celebrated at Blackfriars here in Oxford. In recent years this has become a regular part of my celebration of Pentecost, and I have posted about it before in Pentecost Vigil at Blackfriars and Vigil of Pentecost pictures  and in 2010, Vigil of Pentecost at Oxford Blackfriars from 2011, Pentecost Vigil at Blackfriars Oxford and with some thoughts about the way we really ought to celebrate the Solemnity in Celebrating Pentecost from 2012, and Pentecost Vigil at Oxford Blackfriars and The Pentecost Vigil at Blackfriars in pictures from last year.

Pentecost

Italian Master of the Dominican Effigies circa 1340

Single leaf, now in the J.Paul Getty Museum

Image: Wikimedia

This is also the patronal feast of Blackfriars, which is the Priory of the Holy Spirit, and so is a particularly special event for the Dominican community in Oxford. As a consequence there were a group of Dominican lay people from London in the congegation as well as members of the local Aquinas study group which meets at Blackfriars, this resulted in an almost full priory church, the best congregation I have so far witnessed for this celebration.

The church looked very handsome, with the tapers burning before the consecration crosses on this the patronal feast, the music well performed and the priory's very fine set of embroidered red vestments in use.

The Pentecost Vigil includes First Vespers of Pentecost, Vigil of Readings and First Mass of Pentecost - celebrtaed here in the format sometimes refrerred to as "Masspers". I am not sure that I particularly like the merging of the Office and the Mass, but overall I always like this occasion. It is similar in many ways to the Easter Vigil, but is simpler, shorter and without the blessing of the font - Blackfriars is not a parochial church - nor, obviously, the Pascal Candle. The Old Testament readings stress the promise of the gift of the Spirit in the future, with the four accounts from Genesis of the story of Babel, from Exodus of the people of Israel at Mount Sinai, from Ezekiel of the valley of dry bones and from Joel of the Day of the Lord. Tonight we are still awaiting the gift which will come symbolically tomorrow.

On its website the Priory describes the liturgy as a joyful and prayerful way to celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit, and that it is. I think, as I have written in previous years, this Vigil is a valuable thing to do. It emphasises more fully the importance of Pentecost, which is not just seen as the end of Eastertide - and, of course, I think the Octave should be restored to the Novus Ordo - but rather as a real time of renewal and new life in the Holy Spirit for the Church and for individuals.

Again, as I have written before, I think this modern form of the Vigil could be celebrated in many parishes to pastoral benefit and the recovery of liturgical bearings for the faithful.

Tomorrow I shall celebrate Pentecost at the Oxford Oratory with Mass in the morning and then Solemn Vespers and Benediction in the evening - always splendid ways in which to observe this feast.

The Pentecost Vigil at Blackfriars in pictures

I have now found two photographs of last Saturday's Vigil Mass at Blackfriars on the Dominican Godzdogz blog:

 

Images: Godzdogz/ Fr James Claffey OP

 

Thereis more about their celebrations of their patronal feast over last weekend from the Godzdogz site at  Pentecost Vigil and Doorkeepers' Dinner

 

Pentecost Vigil at Oxford Blackfriars

On Saturday evening, following my return to central Oxford, I went to the Pentecost Vigil at Blackfriars, which I advertised in a recent post. Last year I was unable to attend, but I had been on two previous occasions. This was, as I mentioned, a celebration of their patronal feast, so the candles were in place and burning before the consecration crosses around the church, adding to the sense of occasion.

The rite was a Dominican adaptation of the Novus ordo provision for the Vigil, consisting of First Vespers, Vigil readings  - four in number, from Genesis, Exodus, Ezekiel and Joel, with responsorial psalms or other sung pieces and prayers  - and Solemn Mass. The liturgy, staging of the ceremonial and the overall appearance of the church, all could be described as fulfilling the idea of "noble simplicity." Thus, although one might be drawn instinctively to a more ceremonious style, this was an elegant and dignified way of marking one of the great feasts of the Church by more than just Sunday observance - one felt that something significant was indeed happening in the life of the Body of Christ.

Thus in a simple context the use of handsome red vestments, the presence of six tall candles in simple holders on the forward altar  as well as those burning in the candlesticks on the high altar, the plentiful amount of smoke produced by the thurifer -  he is, incidentally, a young Dominican I had the privilege of teaching medieval church history in the autumn - and the extensive use of latin produced a fine blend of old and new, and with asense of the distinctively Dominican heritage.

The principal celebrant and preacher was Fr Richard Ounsworth OP. His sermon drew out the inherent meaning of the Spirit's action in "sighs too deep for words" - these are not mearly sighs, they are the groans of childbearing, and that through that pain comes the joy of new birth. Maybe having been to baptism that very afternoon made this all the more apposite, but it was a forceful elucidation of the spiritual quest of us all, and the action of the Holy Spirit in shaping our lives.

As in previous years this was a good liturgical occasion to participate in, and an indication of what other churches could perhaps offer to mark the Vigil .

If I can find some photographs of the liturgy online - I noticed  they were being taken - I will post them when I can.

Pentecost in Oxford - additional Masses

In addition to the usual pattern of Masses in Oxford this coming Sunday there are two others for Pentecost which might - indeed should - interest anyone with an appreciation of liturgy who is free to attend.

On Saturday evening to mark their patronal feast the priory of the Holy Spirit of Oxford Blackfriars are again celebrating the Vigil of Pentecost. This is a liturgy they have re-established in recent years as a novus ordo version of the traditional practice. It begins at 9 pm and consists of First Vespers, the Vigil readings and Office of Readings culminating in the First Mass of Pentecost.

On Sunday there will there will be a Sung Mass in the Extraordinary Form at 12 noon at the church of SS Gregory and Augustine in Woodstock Road.

The parish currently has the largest number of regular Masses in the Traditional form, and indeed the longest recent history of advertised public celebration of them, of any parish in a very wide radius. It has every Wednesday and Friday Masses offered in this at form 6 pm, as well as sung or solemn celebrations on days such as Ascension and Corpus Christi.

The Oxford Oratory will have Solemn Vespers of Pentecost at 5.30pm that evening - a three cope occasion.

Celebrating Pentecost

Were I to invited to suggest liturgical, or at very least calendric changes, in the cause of the "Reform of the Reform" I would give priority to amending the celebration of Pentecost.

In the current Missal we go from Pentecost straight into Ordinary Time, there no longer being an Octave. This is, in my opinion, to be regretted. Not only was the Octave an ancient feature of the liturgy but it provided a week to reflect on the gifts of the Holy Spirit day by day, and to assign time to reflect on the scale of the gift poured out upon the Church. So there are good practical and teaching arguments for extending the observance of the feast.

There is in the present arrangement, despite the renewed emphasis in recent years upon the role of the Holy Spirit, a constraint on observing the gifts and rejoicing in them which seems to be a result of stressing the unique, but enclosed period of fifty days from Easter to Pentecost. This is now all designated as Eastertide, with only the Easter Octave surviving as a sub-division. So the hinge of the Ascension, stressed by commentators such as Dom Gueranger, loses something of its significance - all the more so with its transference as a solemnity to the Sunday following. Pentecost can appear to be no more than the rounding off of Easter rather than the beginning of the next phase in Salvation-history.
My pre-1955 St Andrew's Missal begins its description of the rites of Whitsun with a clear reference to the discrete fifty days, but goes on to stress the significance of the established, interlocking liturgical components to it - Ascension and its Octave, the original novena of Penetcost and so on.


Restoring its Octave would redress that balance, as indeed would the restoration of the pre 1955 Whitsun Vigil. This would emphasise the solemnity of the feast and give it a symmetrical relationship with Easter, whose night time Vigil has become very popular since the liturgical changes under Pope Pius XII. Here a restored Pentecost Vigil would allow reflection on the nature of Christian initiation and participation in the sacramental life of the Church, and emphasise the importance of the feast.

I have drawn attention recently to the restored Vigil celebrated at Blackfriars in Oxford, and many priests will no doubt be celebrating votive Masses of the Holy Spirit this week - and may even keep red hangings in place for part of the former Octave. I heard of one church which began its celebration of Pentecost with Solemn Terce - that being the Hour at which the Spirit descended. There is an appetite for such renewal.


The emphasis by many in recent decades on the action of the Holy Spirit has at times disturbed and confused others within the Church. A revival of ancient practice and custom could serve as a reminder, along the lines of long established understanding, that the bestowal of the Holy Spirit is not, as it not infrequently appears to be seen, an ecstatic personal religious experience but rather that it is the baptism of the Body of Christ which is the Church and its sanctification. It is through the medium of the Church that we as individuals receive Grace, and through our membership our incorporation into it as a living Body and, hopefully our ultimate divinisation.

Something of a liturgical extravaganza

Regular readers may have worked out that the Clever Boy rather likes going to church, and this last weekend has provided him with several splendid opportunities to do so.

On Friday evening at the Oxford Oratory there was, following the 6 pm Mass for St Bede, Solemn First Vespers for the Solemnity of St Philip, with the psalmody sung by the choir,and three coped sacred minsters, followed incensation of the relic and altar of St Philip, followed by Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament and by the Veneration of another of the relics of the saint.

St Philip Neri - and his cat
A painting by Anthony Lummis,
one of the Brothers of the External Oratory at Oxford.

Image: Anthony Lummis/Oxford Oratory

On Saturday morning there was the Solemn Mass for the feast, with the sermon being preached by Msgr Marcus Stock, Secretary of the Bishops Conference of England and Wales. At the heart of his homily was the concept of St Philip being like the Apostles with his immediate experience of the Pentecostal fire in 1544.

The Monseigneur set this within his own reminiscences of times spent at the church. One was of his praying there, as an undergraduate of an Anglican Evangelical background, in 1978 for guidance as to being received into the Catholic Church. Another was from 1990 when as a priest he was very temporarily in charge of the church and parish before the first Oratorians arrived from Birmingham. At that time the relic cupboards were empty - their contents had been cremated some years previously, but, intrigued by a locked cupboard underneath the others, he had picked the lock and found inside, covered in dust, two pieces of the orginal collection given at the beginning of the last century. There, in glass cases, were a copy of the death-mask of St Philip and a copy of the sixteenth century printing of the hymns of the late thirteenth century Franciscan ecstatic Jacapone da Todi, complete with on the title page, the former owner's signature - Philip Neri. He had placed the two relics on the altar and sung a Te Deum in thanksgiving, assured that St Philip had arrived well before his sons and, one might add, as in Newman's hymn to St Philip, that he had journeyed on after his death and sought the very heart of England.

He concluded the sermon with a reading of one of Jacapone's hymns, full of the spiritual joy which inflamed St Philip.

Afterwards there was the opportunity to see both death-mask and hymn book in the relic chapel - itself now happily restocked with relics and objects of devotion collected by the Fathers of the Oxford Oratory.

In best Oratorian tradition there was an enjoyable reception afterwards and the opportunity to talk to friends and visitors who had come to the feast day.

Not having yet acquired the charism of quadlocation I had to miss out on attending the Westminster Ordinariate Diaconal Ordinations, the London Oratory's celebration of St Philip's day with Cardinal Burke and the chance to join a patronal pilgrimage to Pugin's St Augustine's Ramsgate with the parish of SS Gregory and Augustine. One cannot, alas, do everything.

In the evening I went to the Mass of the Oxford Ordinariate group at Holy Rood, where to celebrate Pentecost we had music by Haydn and a sermon from Fr Richard Duffield of the Oxford Oratory, and the congregation was afforced by a number of German and US visitors.

Unfortunately I did not make it later on to Blackfriars for their First Vespers, Vigil and First Mass of Pentecost, about which I posted the other day - but perhaps on a warm day that might have been a bit much, and might even suggest religious mania on my part...

On Sunday, due to a committment in the late morning, I went to the well attended 8am EF Mass at the Oratory rather than my usual attendance at the 11am celebration, and in the evening I was back again for Solemn Vespers.

Once again it was a three cope occasion, and all the more striking with the clergy vested in Whitsun red. The Office was all sung by the Oratorians and the church choir, and, as usual, followed by Benediction. This was the second year in succession that Vespers for Pentecost has been a fully musical service, as is the established custom on Easter Day, and a very fine celebration it proved to be. I shall be writing more about how I think Pentecost should be marked liturgically.

Pentecost - Fire from Heaven

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.

And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them.

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Pentecost

El Greco c.1597-1600

Image:artandseek.net

Vigil of Pentecost at Oxford Blackfriars

Last Saturday evening, as last year, I attended the Vigil of Pentecost at Blackfriars here in Oxford. 

This was the second year that this occasion has been marked in this particular way. As I said last year in my post about the Vigil it is a welcome return to older practice and it makes for more in the way of celebration and reflection on the gift of the Holy Spirit to the Church. Here are some pictures of this year's celebration from the Dominican website Godzdogz: 

Pentecost Novena - Day IX

NINTH DAY (Saturday, Vigil of Pentecost)

Thou, on those who evermore Thee confess and Thee Adore, in Thy sevenfold gift, Descend; Give Them Comfort when they die; Give them Life with Thee on high; Give them joys which never end. Amen

The Fruits of the Holy Spirit

The gifts of the Holy Spirit perfect the supernatural virtues by enabling us to practice them with greater docility to divine inspiration. As we grow in the knowledge and love of God under the direction of the Holy Spirit, our service becomes more sincere and generous, the practice of virtue more perfect. Such acts of virtue leave the heart filled with joy and consolation and are known as Fruits of the Holy Spirit. These Fruits in turn render the practice of virtue more attractive and become a powerful incentive for still greater efforts in the service of God, to serve Whom is to reign.

Prayer

Come, O Divine Spirit, fill my heart with Thy heavenly fruits, Thy charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, faith, mildness, and temperance, that I may never weary in the service of God, but by continued faithful submission to Thy inspiration may merit to be united eternally with Thee in the love of the Father and the Son. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

Pentecost Novena - Day VIII

EIGHTH DAY (Friday, 7th Week of Easter)

Bend the stubborn heart and will, melt the frozen warm the chill. Guide the steps that go astray!

The Gift of Wisdom

Embodying all the other gifts, as charity embraces all the other virtues, Wisdom is the most perfect of the gifts. Of wisdom it is written "all good things came to me with her, and innumerable riches through her hands." It is the gift of Wisdom that strengthens our faith, fortifies hope, perfects charity, and promotes the practice of virtue in the highest degree. Wisdom enlightens the mind to discern and relish things divine, in the appreciation of which earthly joys lose their savour, whilst the Cross of Christ yields a divine sweetness according to the words of the Saviour: "Take up thy cross and follow me, for my yoke is sweet and my burden light.

Prayer

Come, O Spirit of Wisdom, and reveal to my soul the mysteries of heavenly things, their exceeding greatness, power and beauty. Teach me to love them above and beyond all the passing joys and satisfactions of earth. Help me to attain them and possess them for ever. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

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Pentecost Novena - Day VII

SEVENTH DAY (Thursday, 7th Week of Easter)

Heal our wounds--our strength renews; On our dryness pour Thy dew, Wash the stains of guilt away.

The Gift of Counsel

The gift of Counsel endows the soul with supernatural prudence, enabling it to judge promptly and rightly what must done, especially in difficult circumstances. Counsel applies the principles furnished by Knowledge and Understanding to the innumerable concrete cases that confront us in the course of our daily duty as parents, teachers, public servants, and Christian citizens. Counsel is supernatural common sense, a priceless treasure in the quest of salvation. "Above all these things, pray to the Most High, that He may direct thy way in truth."

Prayer

Come, O Spirit of Counsel, help and guide me in all my ways, that I may always do Thy holy will. Incline my heart to that which is good; turn it away from all that is evil, and direct me by the straight path of Thy commandments to that goal of eternal life for which I long.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

Pentecost Novena - Day VI

SIXTH DAY (Wednesday, 7th Week of Easter)

If Thou take Thy grace away, nothing pure in man will stay, All his good is turn'd to ill.

The Gift of Understanding

Understanding, as a gift of the Holy Spirit, helps us to grasp the meaning of the truths of our holy religion. By faith we know them, but by Understanding we learn to appreciate and relish them. It enables us to penetrate the inner meaning of revealed truths and through them to be quickened to newness of life. Our faith ceases to be sterile and inactive, but inspires a mode of life that bears eloquent testimony to the faith that is in us; we begin to "walk worthy of God in all things pleasing, and increasing in the knowledge of God."

Prayer

Come, O Spirit of Understanding, and enlighten our minds, that we may know and believe all the mysteries of salvation; and may merit at last to see the eternal light in Thy Light; and in the light of glory to have a clear vision of Thee and the Father and the Son. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

Pentecost Novena - Day V

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FIFTH DAY (Tuesday, 7th Week of Easter)

Light immortal! Light Divine! Visit Thou these hearts of Thine, And our inmost being fill!

The Gift of Knowledge

The gift of Knowledge enables the soul to evaluate created things at their true worth--in their relation to God. Knowledge unmasks the pretense of creatures, reveals their emptiness, and points out their only true purpose as instruments in the service of God. It shows us the loving care of God even in adversity, and directs us to glorify Him in every circumstance of life. Guided by its light, we put first things first, and prize the friendship of God beyond all else. "Knowledge is a fountain of life to him that possesseth it."

Prayer

Come, O Blessed Spirit of Knowledge, and grant that I may perceive the will of the Father; show me the nothingness of earthly things, that I may realize their vanity and use them only for Thy glory and my own salvation, looking ever beyond them to Thee, and Thy eternal rewards. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

Pentecost Novena - Day IV

FOURTH DAY (Monday, 7th Week of Easter)

Thou in toil art comfort sweet, Pleasant coolness in the heat, solace in the midst of woe.

The Gift of Fortitude By the gift of Fortitude the soul is strengthened against natural fear, and supported to the end in the performance of duty. Fortitude imparts to the will an impulse and energy which move it to under take without hesitancy the most arduous tasks, to face dangers, to trample under foot human respect, and to endure without complaint the slow martyrdom of even lifelong tribulation. "He that shall persevere unto the end, he shall be saved."

Prayer

Come, O Blessed Spirit of Fortitude, uphold my soul in time of trouble and adversity, sustain my efforts after holiness, strengthen my weakness, give me courage against all the assaults of my enemies, that I may never be overcome and separated from Thee, my God and greatest Good. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

Pentecost Novena - Day III

THIRD DAY (7th Sunday of Easter or transferred Ascension)

Thou, of all consolers best, Visiting the troubled breast, Dost refreshing peace bestow.

The Gift of Piety

The gift of Piety begets in our hearts a filial affection for God as our most loving Father. It inspires us to love and respect for His sake persons and things consecrated to Him, as well as those who are vested with His authority, His Blessed Mother and the Saints, the Church and its visible Head, our parents and superiors, our country and its rulers. He who is filled with the gift of Piety finds the practice of his religion, not a burdensome duty, but a delightful service. Where there is love, there is no labor.

Prayer

Come, O Blessed Spirit of Piety, possess my heart. Enkindle therein such a love for God, that I may find satisfaction only in His service, and for His sake lovingly submit to all legitimate authority. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

Pentecost Novena - Day II

SECOND DAY (Saturday of 6th Week of Easter)

Come, Father of the poor. Come, treasures which endure. Come, Light of all that live!

The Gift of Fear

The gift of Fear fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread nothing so much as to offend Him by sin. It is a fear that arises, not from the thought of hell, but from sentiments of reverence and filial submission to our heavenly Father. It is the fear that is the beginning of wisdom, detaching us from worldly pleasures that could in any way separate us from God. "They that fear the Lord will prepare their hearts, and in His sight will sanctify their souls."

Prayer

Come, O blessed Spirit of Holy Fear, penetrate my inmost heart, that I may set you, my Lord and God, before my face forever, help me to shun all things that can offend You, and make me worthy to appear before the pure eyes of Your Divine Majesty in heaven, where You live and reign in the unity of the ever Blessed Trinity, God world without end. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

Pentecost Novena to the Holy Spirit - Day I

Fr Blake has been telling his readers about his intention for a Pentecost Novena, and asking if they want to join him in saying it, in his post Pentecost Novena Begins Tomorrorrow.

This reminded me that the other year I had downloaded from EWTN a text for the Pentecost Novena for the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit, and I thought I would share it on a daily basis. The whole text can be read here.

Introduction

The novena in honour of the Holy Spirit is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord Himself when He sent His apostles back to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Spirit on the first Pentecost. It is still the only novena officially prescribed by the Church. Addressed to the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, it is a powerful plea for the light and strength and love so sorely needed by every Christian.

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT
To be recited daily during the Novena

On my knees before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses I offer myself, soul and body to You, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Your purity, the unerring keenness of Your justice, and the might of Your love. You are the Strength and Light of my soul. In You I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve You by unfaithfulness to grace and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against You. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Your light, and listen to Your voice, and follow Your gracious inspirations. I cling to You and give myself to You and ask You, by Your compassion to watch over me in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and looking at His Five Wounds, and trusting in His Precious Blood and adoring His opened Side and stricken Heart, I implore You, Adorable Spirit, Helper of my infirmity, to keep me in Your grace that I may never sin against You. Give me grace O Holy Spirit, Spirit of the Father and the Son to say to You always and everywhere, "Speak Lord for Your servant heareth." Amen.

PRAYER FOR THE SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
To be recited daily during the Novena

O Lord Jesus Christ Who, before ascending into heaven did promise to send the Holy Spirit to finish Your work in the souls of Your Apostles and Disciples, deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me that He may perfect in my soul, the work of Your grace and Your love. Grant me the Spirit of Wisdom that I may despise the perishable things of this world and aspire only after the things that are eternal, the Spirit of Understanding to enlighten my mind with the light of Your divine truth, the Spirit on Counsel that I may ever choose the surest way of pleasing God and gaining heaven, the Spirit of Fortitude that I may bear my cross with You and that I may overcome with courage all the obstacles that oppose my salvation, the Spirit of Knowledge that I may know God and know myself and grow perfect in the science of the Saints, the Spirit of Piety that I may find the service of God sweet and amiable, and the Spirit of Fear that I may be filled with a loving reverence towards God and may dread in any way to displease Him. Mark me, dear Lord with the sign of Your true disciples, and animate me in all things with Your Spirit. Amen.

The Novena begins on the day after the Solemnity of the Ascension, Friday of the 6th Week of Easter, even if the Solemnity of the Ascension is transferred to the 7th Sunday.

FIRST DAY (Friday after Ascension or Friday of 6th Week of Easter)

Holy Spirit! Lord of Light! From Your clear celestial height, Your pure beaming radiance give!

The Holy Spirit

Only one thing is important -- eternal salvation. Only one thing, therefore, is to be feared--sin. Sin is the result of ignorance, weakness, and indifference The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Light, of Strength, and of Love. With His sevenfold gifts He enlightens the mind, strengthens the will, and inflames the heart with love of God. To ensure our salvation we ought to invoke the Divine Spirit daily, for "The Spirit helpeth our infirmity. We know not what we should pray for as we ought. But the Spirit Himself asketh for us."

Prayer

Almighty and eternal God, Who hast vouchsafed to regenerate us by water and the Holy Spirit, and hast given us forgiveness all sins, vouchsafe to send forth from heaven upon us your sevenfold Spirit, the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding, the Spirit of Counsel and fortitude, the Spirit of Knowledge and Piety, and fill us with the Spirit of Holy Fear. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.
Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts

Pentecost Vigil at Blackfriars

Last Saturday evening I attended the Pentecost Vigil celebrated at the Dominican Priory of the Holy Spirit here in Oxford - Blackfriars in less formal parlance. This is of course their patronal festival, and the Vigil was a new initiative. Provided for under the 2008 provisions, it was a move towards a return to a feature of liturgical practice that disappeared from the Missal in 1955.

For what was done before and in 1955 there is this piece from the New Liturgical Movement.

Saturday evening's liturgy was novus ordo, and used the vernacular for much of the celebration, but also used distinctively Dominican chant forms. It followed what is, I understand, a Dominican format of incorporating the celebration of Mass into Vespers. Personally I found that unusual, and perhaps not ideal. However the fact that the Vigil was being observed was, I think, more important than the specific format.

First Vespers was celebrated with its psalms, followed by the Kyries, four Prophetic readings suitable to Pentecost (rather than repeating the Easter ones) with collects, Epistle, Gospel, homily, the Canon - EP I - and then a reversion to Vespers with the Magnificat and concluding prayers and dismissal.

This was, then, a new liturgy rather than a restoration - for example, lights were carried at the Gospel unlike the traditional practice. As Blackfriars is not a parish church there is no font, so there was no blessing of that. Considerable effort had been put into the music and the Priory church was suitably decorated for the Feast - including tapers burning before the Consecration Crosses - and there were some fine red vestments in use.

The service book had a pertinent quotation from the Pope about the need to take time to listen to the record of the Holy Spirit's action in Salvation history if we are to avoid relegating Pentecost to a mere observance.

Although my own preference would be either for the pre-1955 rite or a reworking closer to it, I was impressed by the liturgy. There was a sense of occasion and new beginning, not just the end of the Easter season, a sense that this was a special time of preparation for the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Talking to members of the Community afterwards it was clear that they hope to establish this as part of their annual liturgical observance, and they are to be encouraged in that. It was a format that many parishes could copy, with genuine spiritual benefits for those attending. In a parish church the blessing of the waters of baptism would be practicable as well as of sacramental and symbolic value. I found it a valuable preparation for Pentecost Sunday, and I am sure others did as well.

My own inclination would, as I have suggested, be to go for something closer to the older forms, but this was a 'Reform of the Reform' and very welcome in what it achieved.

And, yes, of course, I want to see the restoration of the Pentecost Octave...