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not see, and hearing they may not understand. Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. And they by the way side, are they that hear, then the devil cometh, and taketh the word out of their hearts, lest believing they should be saved. Now they upon the rock; are they who when they hear, receive the word with joy: and these have no roots; for they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away. And that which fell among thorns: are they who have heard, and going their way, are choked with the cares and the riches and pleasures of this life, and yield no fruit. But that on the good ground are they who in a good and perfect heart, hearing the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit in patience.

OFFERT. Ps. xvi.-Perfect thou my goings in thy paths: that my footsteps be not moved: O incline thy ear unto me and hear my words. Shew forth thy wonderful mercies: who saveth them that hope in thee O Lord.

SECRET. May the sacrifice we have offered to thee, O Lord, always enliven us and defend us. Thro'.

COMM. Ps. xli.-I will go up to the altar of God, to God, who rejoiceth my youth.

P. COMM. Supplices. Grant, we humbly beseech thee, O Almighty God, that those whom thou refreshest with thy sacraments, may, by a life well pleasing to thee, worthily serve thee. Thro'.

QUINQUAGESIMA SUNDAY.
INTROIT. Ps. xxx.

BE thou unto me a God

a protector, and a house of refuge, to save me: for thou art my strength, and my Sige; and for thy name's

re

ESTO mihi in Deuna

protectorem, et in locum refugii, ut salum me facias: quoniam firmamentum meum, et refugium meum es tu; el

propter nomen tuum dux mihi eris, et enutries me. Ps. In te, Domine, speravi, non confundur in æternum; in justitia tua libera me, et eripe me. V. Gloria.

Jake thou wilt lead me, and nourish me. Ps. In thee, O Lord, have I hoped, let me never be confounded: deliver me in thy justice and rescue V. Glory. COLL. Preces.-Mercifully hear our prayers, we beseech thee, O Lord, and being freed from the chains of our sins, preserve us from all adversity. Thro'.

me.

EPISTLE. 1 Cor. xiii. 1. 14.-Brethren: If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And if I should have prophecy, and should know all mysteries, and all knowledge, and if I should have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And if I should distribute all my goods to feed the poor, and if I should deliver my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity is patient, is kind: Charity envieth not, dealeth not perversely: it is not puffed up, it is not ambitious, seeketh not her own, is not provoked to anger, thinketh no evil, rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth with the truth: beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never falleth 2way: whether prophecies shall be made void, or tongues shall cease, or knowledge shall be destroyed. we knew in part, and we prophecy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child. But when I became a man, I put away the things of a child. We now see through a glass in a dark manner; but then face to face. Now I

For

know in part: but then I shall know, even as I am known. And now there remain faith, hope, charity, these three: but the greatest of these is charity.

GRAD. Ps. lxxvi.-Thou art God that alone dost wonders: thou hast made thy power known among the nations. V. Thou hast delivered thy people, the children of Israel and Joseph, by the strength of thy arm.

TRACT. Ps. xcix.-Jubilate Deo omnis terra; servite Domino in lætitia. Sing joyfully to God, all the earth: serve ye the Lord with gladness. V. Come in before his presence with joy. Know ye that the Lord he is God. V. He made us; and not we ourselves: we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

GOSPEL. Luke xviii. 31. 43.-At that time: Jesus took unto him the twelve, and said to them: Behold we go up to Jerusalem, and all things shall be accomplished which were written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man. For he shall be delivered to the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and scourged, and spit upon: and after they have scourged him, they will put him to death, and the third day he shall rise again. And they understood none of these things, and this word was hid from them, and they understood not the things that were said. Now it came to pass, that when he drew nigh to Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way-side, begging. And when he heard the multitude passing by, he asked what this meant. And they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. And he cried out: Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. And they that went before, rebuked him, that he should hold his peace. But he cried out much more: Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus standing, commanded

him to be brought unto him. And when he was come near, he asked him, saying: What wilt thou that I do to thee? But he said: Lord, that I may see. And Jesus said to him: Receive thy sight; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he saw, and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people when they saw it, gave praise to God. CREDO.

OFFERT. Ps. cxviii.-Blessed art thou, O Lord, teach me thy justifications: with my lips have I pronounced all the judgments of thy mouth.

SECRET. May this offering, we beseech thee, O Lord, cleanse away our sins: and sanctify the bodies and souls of thy servants, to prepare them for worthily celebrating this sacrifice. Thro'.

COMM. Ps. lxxvii.-They did eat and were filled exceedingly, the Lord gave them their desire: they were not deprived of that which they craved,

P. COMM. Quæsumus. We beseech thee, O Almighty God, that we who have taken this heavenly food, may by it be defended from all adversity.

T

ASH-WEDNESDAY.

HE ceremonyof applying ashes, in the form of a cross, to the heads of the faithful on this day, is a relick of the ancient discipline of the Church which, at the beginning of Lent, subjected public and scandalous sinners to public and canonical penance. The priest, (having first heard their confession, clothed them with sackclothCaid ashes on their heads, and sprinkled them with holy water) recited aloud over them the seren Penitential Psalms, assisted therein by all the clergy lying prostrate on the ground. After the procession, in which they walked bare-foot in the penitential dress above described, they were turned out of the Church, not to be again admitted to assist at the sacred mysteries, till Maunday-Thursday. The Church doors were then shut, and the Mass of the faithful began.

Thongh public penances are not so frequent as they formerly were, the Council of Trent expressly orders them for public crimes, Sess. xxiv. c 8. de Reform. And the directions given in the Roman Ritual, de Sacram. Penit. are: "Let not the priest absolve those who have given public scandal, till they have made public satisfaction, and removed the scandal."

We are therefore to perform this holy ceremony with an humble and contrite soul, with a firm resolution of entering upon penitential practices in order to punish our sins, and to satisfy for them in a manner that may bear some proportion to the enormity of our offences."

THE BLESSING OF THE ASHES.

ANT. HEAR us, O Lord, for thy mercy is kind: look on us, O Lord, according to the multitude of thy mercies. Ps. Save me, O God: for the waters have reached my soul. V. Glory.

ANT. Hear us, &c. to Ps.

The Lord be with you. R. And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.-Omnipotens.

Almighty and eternal God, spare those that repent, shew mercy to those that humbly intreat thee: and vouchsafe to send from heaven thy holy angel, to bless, and sanctify these ashes, that they may be a wholesome remedy to all who humbly call upon thy holy name, and conscious of their sins, accuse themselves, and deplore their crimes in sight of thy divine Majesty, or humbly and earnestly have recourse to thy sovereign bounty: and grant, by our calling on thy most holy name, that whoever shall be touched by these ashes for the remission of their sins, may receive health of body, and defence of soul. Thro'.

Let us pray.-Deus, qui non mortem.

God, who desirest the conversion, and not the death of sinners, graciously consider the weakness of human nature, and mercifully vouchsafe to bless these ashes, which we design to re

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