In honour of the First "Patriarch" of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic, His Beatitude Cardinal Josyf Slipyj (1892-1984)

Wednesday, September 28, 2011




Because i can't upload this Videos via Youtube, i have to post them as Links about the Blessing of the Monument in honour of the first "Patriarch", which is of course being given in honour by the Holy Synod of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic to their Major Archbishop without the proper Recognition from the Vatican, though they consent in giving such Title. It is also worth writing here the sacrifice the Ukrainian Greek Catholics have give to recognized this "Patriarchate" since the time of His Beatitude Cardinal Josyf Slipyj until this present Major Archbishop His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk. For more than 4 decades, they sought such Approval from the Pope's Apartment, though it ended up in vain and of course, "Ecumenical" tactics.

The Ceremony of the Blessing was presided by His Grace Innocent Lotocky, OSBM, Eparch Emeritus of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Eparchy of Chicago, and one of the Oldest Hierarchs not just of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church but of the whole Catholic Church as well.

And here is the Link of this Article i made Many months ago in respect and honor of the first Major Archbishop, or should i say Patriarch, of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, His Beatitude Cardinal Josyf Slipyj, and with proud he is also the "Last Man" standing in the Soviet Gulag, the only Hierarch to came alive.




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Pontifical Divine Liturgy in Commemoration of the 60th Martyrdom Anniversary of Blessed Martyrt and Bishop Theodore Romzha



 

The Video Footage is courtesy of  the  Orientale Lumen website, known for Videos of Liturgies in the Eastern Rite, both Catholic and Orthodox. This Pontifical Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Cathedral of Mukachevo in Uzhorod, Ukraine, Celebrated by the late Metropolitan Archbishop Basil Myron Schott, OFM, of the Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Metropolia of Pittsburgh, concelebrated by all Byzantine Catholic Hierarchs, including the Bishop of Mukachevo, His Grace Milan Sasik, C.M

For Videos of Eastern Rite Liturgies, just click in this here and another one here for Liturgies in Arabic and Liturgies in English as well and below are some Photos taken in this Solemn Commemoration of the Anniversary of Blessed Theodore Romzha, who is also the former Eparch of the Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Mukacheve until his Assasination in 1947.









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Dedication of the Church and Consecration of the Altar in the Byzantine Rite, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church

Tuesday, September 27, 2011


This Video footage was taken at the Dedication and Consecration of the famous St. Elias Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, presided by the then Eparch of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Epatchy of Toronto, His Grace Isidore Borecky, who Celebrate the Divine Liturgy, Concelebrating with him is His Grace Julian Voronovsky, M.S.U, Eparch of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Eparchy of Sambir-Drohobyc. Along with the Service, as a sign of Ecumenical Gesture is Bishop Vsevolod, Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of America, under the Jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

Here below is the link of  St. Elias Ukrainian Greek Catholic Parish and the Blogspot of the Website.

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AKATHIST Hymn to Our fathers among the Saints Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom: THE THREE HOLY HIERARCHS


That all due Honour should be given on this Three Pious and Influential Fathers of the Eastern Churches, both Catholic and the Orthodox unlike. St. Basil the Great known for his Monastic way of living and explanations on the Christian faith; St. Gregory the Theologian for refuting the Heresy of Arianism and St John Chrysostom for his Eloquence in giving Sermons. The Eastern Rite Churches teach that the Three Hierarchs appear together in a vision and said that they were equal to God: "There are no Division among us, and no Opposition to one another". They are Commemorated every January 3, which is titled "Synaxis of the Ecumenical Teachers and Hierarchs: Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom"





Troparion (Tone 1)

Let us who love their words gather together
And honor with hymns the three great torch-bearers of the triune Godhead:
Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom.
These men have enlightened the world with the rays of their divine doctrines.
They are sweetly-flowing rivers of wisdom filling all creation with springs of heavenly knowledge.
Ceaselessly they intercede for us before the Holy Trinity!

Kontakion (Tone 2)

O Lord, You have taken up to eternal rest
And to the enjoyment of Your blessings the divinely-inspired heralds,
The greatest of Your teachers,
For You have accepted their labors and deaths as a sweet-smelling sacrifice,
For You alone are glorified in Your saints! 
Click here at the Hagiography of the Three Holy Hierarchs to read more about them


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AKATHIST Hymn to Our venerable and God-bearing Father Saint Anthony the Great

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Apolytikion (Fourth Tone)
O Father Anthony, you imitated the zealous Elijah.
You followed the straight paths of the Baptist and became a desert dweller.
By prayer you confirmed the universe.
Wherefore, intercede with Christ our God to save our souls.
Kontakion (Second Tone)
Forsaking the uproars of life O venerable one,
you completed your life in quiet, fully imitating the Baptist.
Therefore, we honor you with him, O Anthony, Father of Fathers
One of the Prominent Desert Fathers and Mothers, St. Anthony the Great, also known as St. Athony the Abbot, is the first known Monk to practice Asceticism in the Wilderness, which is the Desert, and helped spread the concept of Monasticism according to St. Athanasius of Alexandria.  He is also the Proponent of the "Pray and Work" rule, even anticipating St. Benedict of Nursia for 200 years. All of his sayings are written in the book "Sayings of the Desert Fathers". For more regarding his Life, click here on the Hagiography of St. Anthony the Great


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Eastern Sedevacantism?

Friday, September 16, 2011

I myself got a taste of the ludicrous polemics of sedevacantism—the heresy which holds that there is no real pope on earth and that Popes John XXIII up to Benedict XVI were/is (an) impostor/s—anti-popes, a typical sedevacantist would call them. This ideology springs from misinterpretations of the reforms of Second Vatican Council. Sedevacantists believe that the Church had fallen into error because of Vatican II, when as a matter of fact; the council never defined any dogma at all and was purely pastoral—those which changed were the disciplines and not the dogmas.

Sedevacantism is very much prominent in the Latin Church. We have the examples of the Dimond Brothers and the Society of St. Pius V. But apparently, there are also sedevacantists on the Eastern front, specifically ones that call themselves the Ukrainian Orthodox Greek Catholic Church.

This organization was founded by seven bishops who were former UGCC priests and is based in Pidhirsti, Ukraine. They have declared Pope Benedict XVI as excommunicated, along with more or less 10,000 bishops of the Catholic Church worldwide and 265 theologians from the Pontifical Gregorian University. The excommunication against the Holy Father was declared not long ago, on May 1, 2011.

The current Patriarch of this movement is Anthony Elias Dohnal, who announced that he and some others were consecrated as bishops, since the UGCC was falling into heresy and is on the verge of apostasy. On their website, they posted the following:
Our orthodox Catholic Bishops’ Synod pointed out last year the heresies of Card. L. Husar which violate the very essence of the Christian faith. The Cardinal did not present a single explanatory argument against the accusation of heresies. Unfortunately, the whole Synod of the UGCC manifested their unity with him and with his heresies. Instead of dealing with the most essential problem, i.e. L. Husar’s proclamation of heresies, they took his side and help him towards the liquidation of the orthodox Catholic faithful. The heresies are as follows:
  1. casting doubt on the Divinity of Christ
  2. casting doubt on the Virginity of the Mother of God
  3. casting doubt on the eternity of hell
  4. propagation of occultism and syncretism
  5. divination by pendulum
  6. approval of homosexuality and of doctrinal and moral relativism
  7. casting doubt on the primacy and infallibility of the Pope
  8. propagation of reincarnation
They have—as a matter of fact—not provided any basis for the accusations against Lubomyr Husar above. In my opinion the accusations are just slanderous and way out. Was Lubomyr Husar really guilty of the accusations? I highly doubt it.

Although some would assert that the UOGCC is not a sedevacantist organization, their excommunications against Pope Benedict XVI and Bl. John Paul II have in fact proven their belief of the Church as with their declaration below:
The Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate by authority of the apostolic and prophetic office in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ obliges before God all Catholics in conscience and promulgates:
  • Beatification of the deceased Pope John Paul II is invalid.
  • The deceased Pope John Paul II (Gal 1:8-9) excommunicated himself from the Church of Christ. The reason was his apostatical gesture in Assisi by which he opened the Church to the spirit of antichrist.
  • By beatification of the spirit of Assisi – the spirit of antichrist – Pope Benedict XVI likewise excommunicated himself from the Church of Christ.[1]
(By believing that the Church had fallen into apostasy concerning Bl. John Paul II’s participation in the Assisi affair, it seems as if the UOGCC—like many sedevacantist organizations—adheres to Pius XI’s Mortalium Animos, which did not reiterate dogma but merely issued a norm of discipline.)



Furthermore, they themselves have admitted to believing that the Church is in the state of sedes vacantis:
As from 1st May 2011, the Church is in a sedes vacantis state. Every priest is now obliged to dissociate himself from the spirit of Assisi before the faithful. He must no longer mention the name of the apostate Benedict XVI or of the apostate bishop in the Liturgy. If he remains in unity with the spirit of apostasy, then, as an apostate, he celebrates the Liturgy invalidly. The Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate is now commissioned by God to protect the orthodox doctrine of the Catholic Church, including the Latin Church. Only after an orthodox Catholic hierarchy and an orthodox successor to the Papacy is elected, will the Patriarchate be relieved of this God-given duty. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed![2]
Blatantly, the UOGCC has indeed declared itself to be a sedevacantist organization, falling into the errors of the sedevacantist heresy, which apparently has more to do with its problems with the changes of Church discipline instead of Church dogma, the latter which never changed.

It seems as if on that on the Eastern front, misinterpretations of Vatican II and some writings of the popes before John XXIII have also caused this sort of whim. Will we be seeing a new pope—a Slavic pope, like the “anti-Christ” Ivan Pavla[3]—emerging from Ukraine anytime soon? Or has a new pope already been elected somewhere in the Mid-West? How does sedevacantism make sense from a theological perspective again? Beats me; ask a sede.


By Jared Dale T. Combista


[1] Ukrainian Orthodox Greek-Catholic Church, Declaration of an excommunication upon Pope Benedict XVI and John Paul II
[2] Ibid.
[3] I’m being sarcastic here—hope nobody takes offense.


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Ecumenical tactics you can't beat it!!!!!

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Some days ago if i can still count, as i browse in the Internet i have encountered this Article of the famous Russian Orthodox Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev making a cry baby to the Vatican on resolving some Issues between the Orthodox and Catholic in Ukraine, specially of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. He said there are still tension on regards of Properties which are still contested, read the article below about this matter

Reuters Exclusive: Orthodox Leader urge Vatican to resolve Dispute

As i observe, Metropolitan Hilarion is crying foul for such freedom after the Ukrainian Independence that lost all of the Orthodox in Western Ukraine to become Ukrainian Greek Catholics, and the fight of taking over Church believe to be confiscated by the Soviets to the Greek Catholics. Look at this Hypocrisy of him telling that the Orthodox in Ukraine (Under the Metropolitan of Kyiv and not the Break away self proclaimed Ukrainian Orthodox Patriarchate of Kyiv) are subject under Proselytism by the Catholic Church, which is of course not true Here is  a excerpt of what Metropolitan Hilarion is saying regarding a possible meeting of Patriarch Kirill and His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI:



"This is why we regard positively the development of our relations but still we believe that some further work should be done to improve the situation before the meeting between the pope and patriarch could take place,
We believe that such a meeting is quite possible but before we discuss the time, the venue, the protocol we would like to come to agreement on basic issues and we would like to receive some signs of readiness to work for the solutions of the existing problem" - Metropolitan Hilarion


Let me reminded him that most of the People in Western Ukraine are Byzantine Catholics beginning in 1595 at the Union of Brest until the False Synod of Lviv in 1946, where almost all of them are forced to be part of the Russian Orthodox Church. And now the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which is not recognized by the Russians as a Sui Iuris but a part of the Latin Rite Roman Catholics (See, even the Pravoslavije have Supremacist and Triumphalist too) is just taking what is rightfully theirs. Metropolitan Hilarion is making this Accusation of Catholics proselytizing the Orthodox, to pleased their Patriarch Kirill and to make Vatican look like a Moron by not just having their Churches near St. Peters but to make them fool over this by saying the Pope will not resolved such problem if he will fell victim on these pressures by Moscow, and everyone know this one is Political in overtone and not just Religious and Ecumenism being used as a tool against the Catholic Church, and to be exact is the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.


Because i am a Latin Rite Roman Catholic Filipino who is just making a Opinion and my views regarding this Issues from these Hypocrites, here is another more plausible Article from the site of Religious Information Service of Ukraine making a Interpellation on the Metropolitan Hilarion statement of the alleged conflict, 
Here is the Rebuttal of Metropolitan Hilarion's statement from the Ukrainian Greek Catholic side:


Very different reasons stand behind ROC's accusations against Greek Catholics


As for the question of church property, the previous head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) Lubomyr (Husar) in an interview to the BBC said: "These accusations have been made for many years now. But I have yet to hear someone prove them. There is a Latin proverb quod gratis asseritur, gratis negatur  what is asserted without reason may be denied without reason. If we heard legitimate criticisms that could be taken as truly objective, it would be interesting. Until now, other than public statements submitted to the Vatican or to others, I see no proven allegations. They say that we, the Greek Catholics, interfere in the building of churches in western Ukraine by the Orthodox of the Moscow Patriarchate, or that we have forcibly taken them away. I do not know if there is at least one example where we have taken a church built the Orthodox of the Moscow Patriarchate. In 1946 the ROC received from the state very many, if I’m not mistaken, more than 500 churches for liturgical use, while the other churches were to be used for secular purposes, such as cinemas, theaters or stores. But one can hardly say that those that were transferred were the churches of the Moscow Patriarchate. They never showed us their willingness to return them when the right time and freedom came." - His Beatitude Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, M.S.U 




The Patriarch Emeritus of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is not lying, and he is telling the Truth, with some points to be considered, knowing if such claims has basis on its own, But instead Moscow Orthodox Patriarchate still makes its unending Polemics against the Catholic Church, specially of those in the Byzantine Rite, and to be exact the Ukrainian Catholic Church. So with finality here i end though i think this is not that over yet, that the meeting of the Russian Patriarch and the Pope is not possible and it is not likely to happen or else it will us into a situation whether you either choose Moscow or Kyiv, and vice versa!!!




Yes, the Major Archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Metropolitan of Kyiv finally meet. Well good for them, but we still wait for a possible meet of the Pope and the Moscow Patriarch in near future, if you can feel how near it is :)))





My advice to Metropolitan Hilarion: Keep going with the Propaganda and the Ecumenical Strategy and Moscow Patriarchate will flourished, no doubt about that and kidding aside at all. We can all achieve Christian Unity with this kind of Prelate, taking advantage in the name of their beloved Patriarch Kirill






I do not know why did i post this Photo of His Beatitude Sviatoslav Shevchuk here in the Article, but reminding me previous article here many months ago about the rightfully heir of the All Rus Patriarchate, and the first time to use in this Blogspot the term "Ecumenical" tactics here :D


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GREAT FEAST, ELEVATION OF THE HOLY CROSS

Wednesday, September 14, 2011


One of the Great Feast by the Eastern Rite, both of the Catholics and Orthodox, the Universal Exaltation of the Precious and Life creating Cross, also known to be the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, commemorates both findings of the true Cross. First is in 326 A.D When Empress Helena, Mother of Emperor Constantine, discovered it in the Golgotha after a Ailing Woman was healed and a Dead man giving his life after the Cross was put to him. The Second is when the Cross was returned in 628 A.D by the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius after it was stole by the Persians, Legend has it that when he insist to carry the Cross back to Jerusalem, he felt a heavy burden at the very entrance of the City Gates. But when he removed his Crown, it weight becomes miraculously light as the Gates was opened. Today is also a day of fasting and repentance. For the feast, the Cross is place on a tray surrounded by flowers or branches of Vasiliko or Basil, a flower which was believed to be found at the very spot where our Lord Jesus Christ is Crucified, and placed in the center of the Church to be venerated by the faithful

Akathist Hymn to the Elevation of the Holy Cross


Troparion (Tone 1)
O Lord, save Thy people,
And bless Thine inheritance.
Grant victory to the Emperor [or "Thy people" or "the Orthodox Christians"]
Over the barbarians, [or "their enemies"]
And by the power of Thy Cross
Preserve Thy commonwealth. [or "estate" or "habitation"]
Kontakion (Tone 4)
As You were voluntarily raised upon the cross for our sake,
Grant mercy to those who are called by Your Name, O Christ God;
Make all Orthodox Christians glad by Your power,
Granting them victories over their adversaries,
By bestowing on them the Invincible trophy, Your weapon of Peace.
Instead of the Trisagion
Before Thy Cross we bow down in worship, O Master, and Thy holy Resurrection we glorify. (Thrice)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
And Thy holy Resurrection we glorify.
Before Thy Cross we bow down in worship, O Master, and Thy holy Resurrection we glorify.

Forefeast hymn

Troparion (Tone 4)
We offer in supplication
The Life-Creating Cross of Your Goodness, O Lord,
Which You have granted to us who are unworthy:
Save the Orthodox Christians, O only Lover of Man,
Through the Theotokos.

Afterfeast hymn

Kontakion - Tone 4
As You were voluntarily raised upon the cross for our sake,
Grant mercy to those who are called by Your Name, O Christ God;
Make all Orthodox Christians glad by Your power,
Granting them victories over their adversaries,
By bestowing on them the Invincible trophy, Your weapon of Peace.

On the eve of the feast, Vespers is served and contains three Old Testament readings. The first, from Exodus 15:22-16:1, tells of the "tree" which made the bitter waters sweet, the symbol of the Tree of the Cross. The second reading is from Proverbs 3:11-18, which reminds us that the Lord chastens and corrects those whom he loves and that Divine Wisdom is "a Tree of life to those who lay hold upon her and trust in her, as in the Lord." The third reading is from the Prophecy of Isaiah 60:11-16; it tells of the "city of the Lord" where both Jews and Gentiles will live together and shall prostrate themselves at the place of God's feet and "shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob."
Sometimes Matins is served on the morning of the feast. The four directions of the universe are blessed with the Cross, while the faithful repeat the chant "Lord have mercy." The Matins Gospel reading is from John 12:28-36. In it Christ says that when he is elevated on the Cross he will draw all men to himself.
Divine Liturgy is served on the day on the feast. The normal antiphons are replaced by special verses from the psalms 22, 74, and 99, which have direct reference to Christ's crucifixion on the Cross. A special hymn replaces the Trisagion hymn, as it is sung, the faithful prostrate. The epistle reading is from I Corinthians 1:18-24, and says that "the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." The gospel reading is taken from John 19:6-11, 13-20, 25-28, and 30-35 together. This long reading is the passion account." - Citation taken from Orthowiki site regarding this Great feast. You can also click  here on the Eastern practice on this Great Feast.


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MASSABKI BROTHERS: Blessed Martyrs of the Maronite Catholic Church

Saturday, September 10, 2011


The Massabki Brothers, composed of Four Brothers by the named of Francis, Abdel Mo'ti and Rouphael, have die for the cause of Faith during the 1860 strife between Christian and Muslim in Lebanon in Syria, after they have been killed in Damascus for not refusing to abandoned their Maronite Catholic faith. such account have been detailed, here below is Testimony about the Events that occurred:

"At nearly eleven o’clock, Superior Father Emmanuel closed the Monastery’s doors and called everyone to the church, where they prayed, made their Confessions to the priests, prayed for the intercession of the Blessed Mother, participated in the Procession of the Holy Eucharist, and proceeded to Holy Communion.
Then, all save Francis, who remained kneeling at the feet of the Sorrowful Mother, went up to the roof. Moments later, the aggressors infiltrated the convent through the roof and a secret door shown to them by Hassan Allaf, the house manager. The first person they caught was Father Superior Emmanuel, who told them, “Come, let me lead you to a treasure inside the church.” When he went up to the altar, he lit two candles, took out the Eucharist from the tabernacle to protect it from desecration, and said, “This is the treasure. I have nothing else.” He was killed instantly.

The aggressors saw Francis kneeling in prayer and recognized him, for he was a man of stature in the city. According to his nephew Nehmeh, who was twelve years old at the time and who hid and thus survived the massacre, the aggressors said to Francis, “Sheik Abdallah has sent us to save you from death; you, your brothers, your families, and all those who depend upon you for protection, on the condition that you deny your faith and convert to Islam.” Francis answered them, “Sheikh Abdallah can take my money, he can also take my life; but my faith no one can make me deny. I am a Christian and on the faith of Christ, I will die.” They replied, “We shall kill you then.” So Francis said, “I shall be with my Lord who told us ‘Do not fear thosewho kill the body, but are unable to kill the soul.’” He went on praying, but the men struck him down with their swords and hatchets. His blood poured forth and pieces of his flesh were scattered in the church.

The men caught Abdel Mooti in the convent yard next to the church door, insulted him, and asked him to convert to Islam in order to escape death. But he replied in a loud voice, “I’m a Christian. Kill me; kill me for I am ready to die.” So they killed him without hesitation and with the same savagery they used to kill his brother.

As for Raphael, who was hiding inside the convent, his fate was not any better when the men found him. When he refused to convert to Islam in order to escape death and remained prostrate in prayer, he was beheaded and trampled upon; the men went on to spill yet more blood.

According to witnesses, the three Massabki brothers were buried in the convent along with the eight martyr priests and others who had sought refuge there. Hence, the blood of Maronites was mingled with the blood of Franciscans, and thus the Eastern and Western witnesses of Christ embraced in martyrdom and yielded a memorable expression of sanctity that shall endure forever." 
Bechara Chemaly, “The Martyrdom of Francis Massabki and his brothers Abdel Mooti and Raphael, Part Two, pp. 51-63. Cf. Carlo Salotti, op. cit. pp. 23-28.
 
Prayer and Novena to the Blessed Martyrs Massabki Brothers
 
Oh Lord Jesus, You who have promised to glorify those who glorify You, and to acknowledge those who acknowledge You, look at us with Your merciful eyes, and answer the prayers we raise to You through your martyrs the Franciscan priests and the three brothers Francis, Abdel Mooti, and Raphael, who acknowledged You before everyone, glorified You before nations, and died courageously for You. Accept this prayer that we raise to Your greatness, for rapidly confirming their canonization if You mercifully allow it. Amen.
Oh Jesus Christ, the martyr of Mount Calvary who gave us on Your cross an example of true sacrifice, and who wished in every time and place to give us live examples of this sacrifice through Your chosen ones, give us what we request now through your blessed martyrs who spilled their blood for You. Amen.
Oh Christ the King who is revered, we beg you to give us, in this Eastern land that was made holy by You, a new example with Your martyrs, and to bestow upon us through both earthly and heavenly blessings, what we ask for through their intercession. Hence, Your name will be glorified and You will be proud of Your Church. Faith will be strengthened and the past days will return to this Eastern land, which will shine through the teachings of its glorified priests and the purity of its great saints just like it shone in the past with the blood You shed. Amen.

* Oh three Massabki martyrs
** Pray for us       

Oh Lord Jesus, Son of God, You who have promised to glorify those who glorify You, and to acknowledge those who acknowledge You, look at us with Your merciful eyes, and answer the prayers we raise to You through your martyrs the Franciscan priests and the three brothers Francis, Abdel Mooti, and Raphael, who acknowledged You before everyone, glorified You before nations, and died courageously for You.
Accept this prayer that we raise to Your greatness, for rapidly confirming their sanctity if You mercifully allow it, and bestow upon us the necessary blessings, especially (name of requested blessing). May glory be upon You. Amen. 
 
 
 
 
For more information about these Blessed Martyrs of the Maronite Catholic Church, please go to the Official Site on their Cause for Sainthood, you can also read here the Spirituality of the Martyr Blesseds, and the Account of their Martyrdom, their Personal Biography. the Testimony for their cause of Canonization. They are proclaimed Blessed in a Beatification ceremony in 1926 by His Holiness Pope Pius XI


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GREAT FEAST, NATIVITY OF THE MOST BLESSED VIRGIN AND HOLY THEOTOKOS MARY: More honorable than the cherubim, and more glorious beyond compare than the seraphim, without corruption you gave birth to God the Word: true Theotokos, we magnify you.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011


The famous Icon known to all Filipinos, the Our Lady of Perpetual Help is the most Venerated Image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who is also Enshrined to a Church in Baclaran, Pasay under the care of Redemptorist Order, a Religious Congregation in the Catholic Church known for producing most of their Hierarchs and Clergies coming from the Byzantine Rite. Many case of Miracles have been reported because of Intercession to the Lady and the plea of the Faithful.

Today we commemorate the Birth of the Most Blessed Virgin and Theotokos Mary, the Mother of God and ever Virgin. The Eastern Rite Churches, both Orthodox and Catholic, held that Mary is Immaculate, pure and Spotless, for she is free from actual Sin. She is regarded as the new Eve, for her Obedience to God is the exact opposite of Eve's disobedience in the Garden of Eden

Akathist Hymn to the Nativity of the Theotokos

Troparion

    Your Nativity, O Virgin,
    Has proclaimed joy to the whole universe!
    The Sun of Righteousness, Christ our God,
    Has shone from You, O Theotokos!
    By annulling the curse,
    He bestowed a blessing.
    By destroying death, He has granted us eternal Life.

Kontakion

    By Your Nativity, O Most Pure Virgin,
    Joachim and Anna are freed from barrenness;
    Adam and Eve, from the corruption of death.
    And we, your people, freed from the guilt of sin, celebrate and sing to you:
    The barren woman gives birth to the Theotokos, the nourisher of our life!





For the Chanting of the Akathist Hymn in honour of the Birth of the Most Blessed Virgin Theotokos, below is a Video clip in honour of this Great Feast today



Богородице дѣво, радѹйсѧ,
Благодатнаѧ Марїе,
Господь съ тобою:
благословена Ты въ женахъ,
и благословенъ плодъ чрева Твоегω;
якω Спаса родила еси дѹшъ нашихъ
Bogoroditse Djevo, raduisya,
Blagodatnaya Marie,
Gospod s' toboyu:
Blagoslovyena tyh v' zhenakh,
Y blagosloslovyen plod chreva Tvoyego,
yako Spasa rodila yesi dush nashikh.

Rejoice, O Virgin Theotokos
Mary full of grace,
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb,
for thou hast borne the Saviour of our souls.

This prayer is the Eastern Variant of Hail Mary in Church Slavonic. for another Hymn of the Most Holy Virgin Theotokos, please click on this link about Agni Parthene, Rejoice, translated to O Bride Unwedded , in honour of the ever Virgin Mother of God Mary.

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