A Sequence for the Holy Cross
One of the treasures of our monastery is a Graduale from 1818 containing the chants of the Mass used in the church of Lyons in...
The Antiphons of Saint Joseph
The Antiphons for Saint Joseph are some of the most delightful Antiphons of the Year. The series of five psalm Antiphons recounts one of the...
The Holy Spirit Is the Forgiveness of Sins
Today is a Mass that some of us look forward to all year long. Though the beautiful Gospel tells us about Christ the Good Shepherd,...
Mass for the Election of a Pope
Few Masses are rarer for the schola to sing than the Missa pro Eligendo Pontifice,the Mass for choosing a Pope, though we joke sometimes that...
The Joy of the Sons of the Resurrection: Blessed Schuster on Easter
The following text was originally written for Easter Sunday, but serves as a fitting meditation for the entire season of Paschaltide. Easter Sunday1 Station at...
Blessed Schuster’s Daily Thoughts on the Rule: Ember Friday in Lent
Ember Friday of Lent Station at the Holy Apostles The Pool of the Sheep 1. The station is at the Apostoleion [Basilica of the Apostles]...
Salva Nos: Perimus (Save us, we perish!)
Christ Calms the Storm The Mass propers for today are taken from the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany. When Easter is early, these propers are moved...
Brother Maurus, run fast!
Maurus Rescues Placid from the Waters In Chapter VII of the Second Book of the Dialogues, Saint Gregory the Great recounts the most famous episode...
Tu Rex gloriae, Christe
The Sunday Before All Saints In the traditional calendar of the Roman Rite, the Feast of Christ the King, instituted by Pope Pius XI in...
Laetare, Jerusalem!
Like a Breath of Springtide “Be glad, Jerusalem! Hold an assembly, all you that love her: rejoice and be glad, you that were in sadness:...
The Blessing of Basil Leaf in Honour of the Holy Cross
The aromatic herb, basil (Ocimum basilicum) has long been associated with the Holy Cross. Etymologically, it is related to basileios, the Greek word for king....
Blessing of Herbs and Flowers
Christians of both East and West have, from very early times, blessed herbs and fruit on the Feast of the Assumption. Thus blessed, these creatures...
In sanctis montibus
Our Office of Saint Bartholomew has a beautiful collect from the Leonine Sacramentary: Deus, qui Ecclesiae tuae in sanctis montibus fundamenta posuisti: da, ut intercedente...
Solomon and Christ
Liturgical Notes: Seventh Sunday after Pentecost Seven Gifts Today is designated the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost; seven is, of course, a mystic number in both...
The Joy of Innocence
Sexual Exploitation, Then and Now The young Italian prince Luigi Gonzaga preserved his innocence in a milieu where boys were often the victims of sexual...
Saint Aelred, Abbot of Rievaulx
A Saint Full of Sympathy for Physical and Moral Infirmities Jocelin of Furness, a contemporary of Saint Aelred, gives the following account of the saintly...
Drink to the Love of Saint John!
Blessing of Wine on the Feast of Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist On the Feast of Saint John, Apostle and Evangelist, at the end of...
Gaudium sit tibi semper
The Liturgical Providence of God Revisited Some weeks ago at Holy Mass, I preached on the liturgical providence of God. I attempted to articulate something...
SS. Martha, Mary, and Lazarus
Invitatory The God who conversed with men: * O come, let us adore. Hymn, Redditum luci, Dominus vocante Sing of the first fruits of the...
In Cenaculi Solitudine
Our Lady of the Cenacle Many years ago and long before I had any idea that I would one day play a role in establishing...