Mass of Blessed Columba Marmion, Priest and Abbot

“I owe more to Columba Marmion for initiating me into things spiritual than to any other spiritual writer.”
Pope John Paul II
Abbot Columba Marmion, O.S.B. was beatified by Pope John Paul II on September 3, 2000. His liturgical memorial was fixed on October 3rd, the anniversary of his Abbatial Blessing in 1909. Blessed Abbot Marmion is best known for his trilogy: Christ, the Life of the Soul, Christ, the Ideal of the Monk, and Christ in His Mysteries. A fourth volume, Christ, the Ideal of the Priest was published posthumously in 1952.
ENTRANCE ANTIPHON
MR
The Lord is my inheritance and my cup; he alone will give me my reward. The measuring line has marked a lovely place for me; my inheritance is my great delight (Ps 15:5-6).
Or GR, Caritas Dei, p. 248.
The charity of God is poured forth in our hearts
by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us.
V. My soul, give thanks to the Lord,
all my being, bless his holy name (Rom 5:5; Ps 102:1).
COLLECT
O God, Almighty Father,
who called the blessed abbot Columba
to the monastic way of life
and willed to open to him
the secrets of the mysteries of Christ,
mercifully grant that
strengthened in the spirit of our adoption as sons
by his intercession,
we may become a dwelling place
worthy of your Wisdom.
Through the same our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God forever and ever

GENERAL INTERCESSIONS
For the Church in every place;
that God may raise up for her, in our own day,
lovers of Christ in His Mysteries,
and gifted teachers of life in the Holy Spirit,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For all world leaders of good will;
that they may seek the wisdom
of men and women attuned to the Spirit of God,
and pursue the things that make for peace,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For all who suffer,
in particular for the sick recommended to our prayers;
that they may fix their gaze upon the Cross of Christ,
and hold fast to hope,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For all who seek holiness;
that a widespread rediscovery
of the spiritual writings of Blessed Columba Marmion
may help them to grow in union with Christ, the Life of the Soul,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
For ourselves;
that, like Blessed Columba Marmion,
we may keep our eyes fixed on Christ, the Ideal of the Monk,
preferring nothing to his love,
never despairing of the mercy of God,
and rejoicing in the gifts of the Holy Spirit,
to the Lord we pray: Christ, hear us. R. CHRIST, GRACIOUSLY HEAR US.
COLLECT AT THE GENERAL INTERCESSIONS
Almighty and ever-living God,
who desire
that those whom you have adopted as your children (cf., Rm 8:15-16)
should call you Father;
by the intercession of the Blessed Abbot Columba,
renew the gift of your Holy Spirit within us (cf., Rm 5:5),
that, hidden with Christ in the secret of your heart (cf., Col 3:3; Jn 1:18),
we may adore you in spirit and in truth,
according to your own desire (Jn 4:23)
and, at length, come to share
in the inheritance of the saints in light (Col 1:12).
Through the same Christ our Lord.
OFFERTORY ANTIPHON
GR
Lord, you went before him with blessings of sweetness:
you set on his head a crown of precious stones.
He asked life of you,
and you have given him length of days
forever and ever (Ps 20:4-5).
PRAYER OVER THE OFFERINGS
Most merciful God,
who, in the Blessed Abbot Columba,
deigned to make an end of the old self
and to create a new self according to your own desire,
mercifully grant
that we also, renewed in like manner,
may offer this, the acceptable sacrifice of our atonement.
Through Christ our Lord.
PREFACE
Truly it is right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always, here and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Christ sowed the word among us
as the seed of a rich harvest
in the lives of those who believe.
Night and day, Blessed Columba meditated on your word
and from the fruit of contemplation
drew his teaching of your truth.
In that same word
he found the unfailing source of wisdom
to lead a life of holiness
and instruct your Church in the doctrine of salvation.
Now, as we celebrate his memory
we join with the host of angels and saints
in their exultant hymn of praise:
COMMUNION ANTIPHON
MR
What we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord,
with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake (2 Cor 4:5).
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Almighty God,
we beseech you
that, fortified by the strength of this sacrament,
we may learn, from the example of the Blessed Abbot Columba,
to seek you above all things,
and to bear, while we are yet in this world,
the imprint of the new self.
Through Christ our Lord.