Tea at Trianon: The Biblical Roots of First Fridays

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Wednesday, June 12, 2024

The Biblical Roots of First Fridays

From Catholic Exchange:

Don Dolindo notes that this sacrificial ritual on the first day of each month had not been previously instituted in the law of Moses in earlier books. It is only in the book of Numbers that this innovation was revealed. Don Dolindo sees this as a purposeful innovation, establishing the first day as a special time set aside for “spiritual renewal and as a sacrifice of atonement.”
As Dolindo further explains, “it seems as if we see in this innovation what the Church has done by consecrating the first Fridays of each month to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.” He posits a profound continuity between the Old Testament system of sacrifice and the modern Catholic devotions, implying that both serve the fundamental purpose of spiritual renewal and atonement.
To fully appreciate this link between biblical rituals and modern Catholic practice, we must understand the revelations of the Sacred Heart made to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the 17th century. As she recounted, Christ appeared to her repeatedly, showing her His heart burning with resplendent light and infinite love for mankind.
He lamented, however, at how little love He receives in return from most people. As a means of making amends for this ingratitude and forgetfulness towards His infinite love and mercy, Christ requested specific acts of devotion to be made on the first Friday of every month. Among these special First Friday devotions is attending Mass, receiving communion, and spending dedicated time in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. (Read moreRead more.)