Fifth Sunday after Easter

Friends in Christ,

Welcome to our weekly Sunday update. This Sunday is the Fifth Sunday after Easter. We are nearing the Ascension now, only four days away, the day of Our Lord’s departure to rejoin His Father in Heaven. Forty days after having risen from the dead, Jesus is to rise from among the living, bringing to an end His earthly sojourn.

In the Gospel reading for this Sunday, we see Jesus continuing to prepare the disciples for His final departure. He urges them to turn to the Father in prayer: Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you (John 16:23). Then He goes on to make explicit at last the co-identity of Father and Son: I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again I leave the world, and I go to the Father (John 16:28).

The disciples rejoice at this plain-spoken self-revelation: Now we know that thou knowest all things, and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God (John 16:30). Now is the ultimate grace of the Incarnation made known to man, the gift of God Himself that we acknowledge at Mass by kneeling for the relevant passage in the Credo (“ET INCARNATUS EST DE SPIRITU SANCTO EX MARIA VIRGINE: ET HOMO FACTUS EST”) and at the appropriate moment in the Final Gospel (“ET VERBUM CARO FACTUM EST”). Deo gratias.


Calendar of Special Observances

Celebrations are those listed in the Roman Missal of 1962.

DAY, DATE – FEAST (CLASS)

Sunday, May 25 – Fifth Sunday after Easter (II)

Monday, May 26 – St. Philip Neri, Confessor (III) – Rogation Mass (II)

Tuesday, May 27 – St. Bede the Venerable, Confessor and Doctor of the Church (III) – Rogation Mass (II)

Wednesday, May 28 – The Vigil of the Ascension (III) – Rogation Mass (II) – Commemoration of St. Augustine, Bishop and Confessor

Thursday, May 29 – Ascension of the Lord (I)

Friday, May 30 – Feria of Paschaltide (IV) – Commemoration of St. Felix I, Pope & Martyr – Commemoration of St. Joan of Arc, Virgin

Saturday, May 31 – Queenship of Blessed Virgin Mary (II)

Note: The three Rogation Days (Monday-Wednesday) immediately preceding the Feast of the Ascension are days of penitential prayer focused on the need for favorable weather and protection against calamitous events.


Fifth Sunday after Easter

The links provided below can be used to download printable copies of the Proper Prayers for Fifth Sunday after Easter with English or Spanish translation, followed by commentary by Dr. Michael P. Foley.



Latin Mass Schedule: Sundays

Charlotte Area Latin Masses

  • 11:30 a.m., Saint Thomas Aquinas

  • 12:30 p.m., Saint Ann

Other Diocese of Charlotte Latin Masses

  • 8:30 a.m., Saint John the Baptist (Tryon)

  • 9:00 a.m., Our Lady of the Angels (Marion)

  • 1:00 p.m., Church of the Epiphany (Blowing Rock)

  • 1:30 p.m., Our Lady of Grace (Greensboro)

Diocese of Charleston Latin Masses

  • 12:00 p.m., Prince of Peace (Taylors SC)

  • 1:00 p.m., Our Lady of the Lake (Chapin SC)

Note: Travelers are urged to consult parish websites or offices for up-to-date information regarding possible changes in the regular schedule of Sunday Mass times.


Latin Mass Schedule: Weekdays (May 26 - May 31)

Charlotte Area Latin Masses

  • Saint Ann – Wednesday, 6:00 p.m.

  • Saint Thomas Aquinas – Thursday, 7:00 p.m.

  • Saint Ann – Friday, 7:00 a.m.

Other Diocese of Charlotte Latin Masses

  • Our Lady of the Mountains (Highlands) – Tuesday, 9:30 a.m.

  • Saint John the Baptist (Tryon) – Friday, 8:30 a.m.

  • Church of the Epiphany (Blowing Rock) – Friday, 9:30 a.m.

Diocese of Charleston Latin Masses

  • Prince of Peace (Taylors SC) – Monday-Friday, 12:00 p.m.

  • Prince of Peace (Taylors SC) – Saturday 8:00 a.m.

Note: Travelers are advised to contact parish offices to confirm weekday and Saturday Mass times, since local schedules are sometimes subject to change without notice, especially on or around holidays, holy days of obligation and other special feast days.


Ascension Thursday: Thursday May 29

The following are announced Latin Masses for Ascension Thursday. If more Masses are scheduled, we will include them in future updates.

  • Saint Ann, 7:00 p.m.

  • Saint Thomas Aquinas, 7:00 p.m.

  • Saint John the Baptist (Tryon), 6:30 p.m.

  • Our Lady of Grace (Greensboro), 6:30 p.m.

  • Our Lady of the Lake (Chapin SC), 6:30 p.m.



Special Announcement

SAVE THE DATE

TUESDAY JUNE 24, 5:00 p.m.*

757 Oakridge Farm Highway, Mooresville, NC


Bishop Martin invites you to learn about the new Latin Mass chapel in Mooresville.

Per the Catholics News Herald, Bishop Martin is hosting a meeting at the new Latin Mass chapel in Mooresville (757 Oakridge Farm Highway, Mooresville, NC) for anyone who would like to visit the site and learn more about the changes in how the Latin Mass is offered in this diocese. The meeting will be held in the hall on June 24, the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist.

This is your chance to see the new property, hear the bishop speak about his plans for the Latin Mass, and to ask your questions to him about the Latin Mass. Your prayers and physical presence are needed to express how much the Latin Mass matters in this diocese.

Everyone is strongly encouraged to attend.

*Although the meeting begins at 6:00 p.m., due to the heavy rush hour traffic, we advise everyone to arrive by 5:00 p.m. and join us in praying the Rosary. The address of the new Latin Mass chapel is 757 Oakridge Farm Highway, Mooresville, NC.


Announcements

Diocese of Charlotte announces changes to the Latin Mass effective July 8 – The Diocese, on Friday May 23, announced changes on how the Traditional Latin Mass will be offered. The changes go into effect July 8. Let us continue to pray for our bishop and priests, entrusting them to Our Lady's care and protection. Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us! [New chapel being established for the Traditional Latin Mass] [Announcement Letter]

Novena to Our Lady of Undoer of Knots (May 29 - June 6) – The Latin Mass community at Our Lady of Grace in Greensboro is organizing a 9-day Rosary novena to Our Lady Undoer of Knots, for the Latin Mass. It runs from Ascension Thursday May 29 - Friday June 6. The intention is:

To remove all spiritual and temporal obstacles which prevent the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass in the Diocese of Charlotte.

All are invited to participate. The novena can be accessed at this link.

Daily Holy Face Chaplet for Sacred Liturgy - It has been recommended to all friends of the sacred liturgy in the diocese to consider praying the powerful Holy Face chaplet, under the banner of Our Lady of the Holy Name. To pray the chaplet, please see this link.

(also as we note each week, please consider attending one of the many Holy Face gatherings across the diocese as it's a beautiful devotion of reparation - see listings below)

No First Saturday Latin Mass on June 7 – There will not be a First Saturday Latin Mass at Saint Thomas Aquinas on June 7th due to diaconate ordinations that day. Please pray for those seminarians set to be ordained that morning.

Minor Rogation Days This Week – This week, the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before Ascension, are called the Minor or Lesser Rogation Days, a period of penitential petition in the 1962 calendar (the Greater Rogation Day was celebrated last month on April 25). Rogare is a Latin verb that can be translated to ask, beg or request. Historically, the prayers of petition associated with the minor rogation have focused on protection against calamitous events. For informative articles on the subject, see Mathew Plese’s Forgotten Customs of Rogation Days on onepeterfive.com or Dr. Michael P. Foley’s article Rogationtide on newliturgicalmovement.org


Cardinal Burke’s Prayer for Pope Leo XIV – His Eminence Cardinal Raymond Burke has released a new prayer for Pope Leo XIV. Please consider praying this daily for the Holy Father as he leads the Church.


Prayer for Pope Leo XIV: Vicar of Christ on Earth and Shepherd of the Universal Church

O Holy Virgin Mary, Mother of the Lord of Heaven and of Earth, Our Lady of Guadalupe, guide and protect the Roman Pontiff, Pope Leo XIV. Through your intercession, may he receive in abundance the grace of the Successor of Saint Peter: the perpetual and visible source and foundation of the unity of our Bishops and of all our brothers and sisters in the Mystical Body of your Divine Son. Unite Pope Leo’s heart to your Immaculate Heart, leading him to rest his heart ever more securely in the glorious-pierced Heart of Jesus, so that he may confirm us in the Catholic faith, in the worship of God in spirit and truth, and in a good and holy Christian life.

In the tumult of the present time, keep Pope Leo securely within the hollow of your mantle, in the crossing of your arms, protecting him from Satan, the Father of Lies, and from every evil spirit. Implore Our Lord to grant him, in particular, the wisdom and courage to be a true Shepherd of the Church throughout the world. With you, I place all my trust in Christ, the Good Shepherd, Who alone is our help and salvation. Amen.

Heart of Jesus, formed by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mother, have mercy upon us!

Our Lady of Guadalupe, Queen of the Apostles, pray for us!

Saints Peter and Paul, pray for us!

Pope Saint Leo the Great, pray for us!

PDF copies can be accessed at these links: [English] [Español] [Latin]


Prayers for Diocese of Charlotte Candidates for Ordination – There are several seminarians in the Diocese of Charlotte who are to be ordained to the transitional diaconate or priesthood next month. Please keep these men in your prayers. [Seven men to be ordained deacons June 7]

Special schedule change Sunday June 8 for Prince of Peace parish (Taylors SC) – On Sunday June 8, Prince of Peace parish in Taylors, SC will offer its Sunday Latin Mass at a special time of 5:00 p.m. There will not be a 12 noon Sunday Latin Mass that day. This is due to the first Mass of future Father Daniel Perry, a Prince of Peace parishioner, which will be offered earlier that morning followed by a reception. Please pray for Deacon Perry and all those set to be ordained in the Charleston and Charlotte dioceses in the weeks ahead.


Holy Face Devotions

Prayers of Reparation to the Holy Face of Jesus are offered each week at the following churches on the indicated days:

  • St. James (Concord) – Monday, 10-10:30 a.m. (in the cry room)

  • St. Mark – Tuesday, 5:30 p.m.

  • St. Thomas Aquinas – Tuesday, 6:00 a.m.

  • St. Ann – Tuesday, 7:30 a.m. (following 7:00 a.m. Novus Ordo Mass)

  • St. Michael the Archangel (Gastonia) – Tuesday, 8:30 a.m. (following 8:00 a.m. Novus Ordo Mass)

  • St. Vincent de Paul – Tuesday, 8:40 a.m.

  • Holy Spirit (Denver) – Tuesday, 10-11:00 a.m. (following the 9:15 a.m. Novus Ordo Mass)

  • Saint Elizabeth of the Hill Country (Boone) – Third Tuesday, June 17, at 6:45 p.m. after Mass in the Youth Room

  • St. John the Baptist (Tryon) - First Saturday, 9:30 a.m. (after 8:30 a.m Latin Mass)

Note: Days and times may be subject to change due to holidays.

“Jesus, Your ineffable image is the star which guides my steps. Ah, You know, Your sweet Face is for me Heaven on earth” (from Canticle to the Holy Face by Saint Thérèse de Lisieux, the 19th century Discalced Carmelite nun who took the name in religion, Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face).


Latin Mass and Liturgical News



Saints and Special Observances

St. Augustine, Bishop of Canterbury and Apostle of England, occupies a position of supreme importance in the history of the Catholic Church in England. The date and location of his birth are unknown, and nothing is known of his life before Pope Gregory I chose him to lead a contingent of 40 monks on a mission to England. We only know that Augustine was a Benedictine monk, serving as prior of St. Andrew’s monastery in Rome, when the man who would come to be known as Gregory the Great called on him to head the English mission. His mandate was to succeed where earlier missionary efforts had failed by establishing a permanent Christian presence in pagan England.

Setting out from Rome in 596, Augustine and his Benedictine brothers headed north, bearing papal letters of commendation addressed to Gallic bishops the party was to encounter in the course of its journey. They got only as far as Provence before the monks, frightened by stories of pagan atrocities and the prospect of a Channel crossing fraught with danger, prevailed on their leader to turn back and ask the Pope to abandon the proposed mission. Convinced that the people of England were ready to be received into the Church, Gregory denied the request and sent Augustine back to instill in his monks the courage necessary to carry out the mission.

Arriving in England in 597, the monks landed in the domain of King Ethelbert of Kent whose Frankish wife, Bertha, had already converted to Christianity. The daughter of Charibert, king of the Franks, Bertha convinced Ethelbert to hear what Augustine had to say. Impressed by the Benedictine monk’s message, the king granted him permission to preach to his subjects. He also gave him a house in Canterbury and allowed him to make use of an abandoned stone church still standing there almost two centuries after the Roman withdrawal from Britain.

Ethelbert presented himself for baptism at Pentecost; and Augustine, having succeeded thus far in his mission, returned to Provence to be consecrated bishop by Vergilius, the metropolitan of Arles and papal legate for Gaul. When he returned to England, as many as 10,000 of Ethelbert’s subjects gathered at the Swale River to be baptized. The Pope authorized Augustine to consecrate twelve suffragan bishops to assist him in the performance of his administrative duties and sent everything needed to prepare the purified pagan temples of England for Christian worship.

Augustine established Christ Church in Canterbury as the primary cathedral in the English realm, and in 603 he rebuilt both the church and the house Ethelbert had given him for occupation by the Benedictine monks upon their arrival. Creating sees in London and Rochester, he appointed Mellitus bishop in the former and Justus bishop in the latter.

On two separate occasions Augustine attempted to bring about the unification of the Celtic churches in Cornwall and Wales with those in Anglo-Saxon England, but both initiatives fell short of success. The leaders of those churches that had survived the Roman withdrawal from Britain were not ready to overlook the Anglo-Saxon invasion that had driven them into the border country in the south and west of the island. It was not until 60 years after his death in 604 that the Church in Britain was unified under a single primate.


Closing Commentary

We close with a commentary excerpted from The Liturgical Year of Dom Prosper Guéranger, OSB, and provide a link to the full text of the entry for the Fifth Sunday after Easter below. In speaking of the Epistle taken from the First Letter of Saint James, the great Benedictine liturgist highlights the special relationship that existed between Jesus and the Apostle who played such an important part throughout His ministry.


Fifth Sunday After Easter

The holy Apostle, whose instructions these are, had received them from our Risen Jesus: hence the authoritative tone wherewith he speaks. Our Savior, as we have already seen, honored him with a special visit: it proves that he was particularly dear to his divine Master, to whom he was related by the tie of consanguinity on his Mother’s side whose name was Mary. This holy woman went, on Easter morning, to the Sepulcher, in company with her sister, Salome, and Magdalene. St. James the Less is indeed the Apostle of Paschal Time, wherein everything speaks to us of the New Life we should lead with our Risen Lord. He is the apostle of good works, for it is from him that we have received this fundamental maxim of Christianity—that though Faith be the first essential of a Christian, yet without works, it is a dead Faith, and will not save us.

He also lays great stress on our being attentive to the truths we have been taught, and on our guarding against that culpable forgetfulness, which plays such havoc with thoughtless souls. Many of those who have, this year, received the grace of the Easter mystery, will not persevere; and the reason is that they will allow the world to take up all their time and thoughts, whereas they should use the world as though they did not use it. Let us never forget that we must now walk in newness of life, in imitation of our Risen Jesus, who dieth now no more.

The two Alleluia-Versicles celebrate the glory of the Resurrection; but they also contain an allusion to the approaching Ascension. Jesus was born eternally from the Father; he came down to us; but now, in a few days, he is to return to his Father. [Fifth Sunday after Easter]


We wish our readers a blessed Eastertide. Christus Resurréxit! Resurréxit Vere!