The Great O’s

TL, DR: The Second Coming is now. 

by Lucy Tucker Yates

Photo: Mariadonata Villa

There is a song by Charles Ives (Memories I) that goes, "Weee're SIT-ting in the op-'ra house, the op'-ra house, the op'-ra house, We're WAIT-ing for the cur-tain to arise With won-ders for our eyes... A FEEL-ing of expec-tancy, A CER-tain kind of ec-stasy, Expectancy and ecstasy--Expectancy and ecstasy---SHHHHHHSSSSS!!!" 

Such FEEL-ings surround and bind us together during Advent: we huddle in the grand theatre of heaven-and-earth, eager to see our hero revealed, ready for our leading man to light the shadows, right the wrongs, mete justice. The gaze of all is upon the stage.  

The prayers of the O Antiphons, the Great Antiphons of Advent, are the most urgent, elegant condensation of humanness I know of. As in the circular breathing of an oboist, the words on our lips give life to generations past. They focus centuries of adoration, impatience, woundedness like a spotlight. They are the poetry I would send out into space. 

How is such poetry fashioned? “Antiphon” comes from Greek ἀντίφωνον, “opposite voice,” and Socrates of Constantinople writes that Ignatius of Antioch (the third down from Saint Peter himself) introduced antiphony into worship after having a vision of two choirs of angels. Antiphons are often lifted from the Psalms or prophecies and designed for call and response, and to be sung as refrains. 

So imagine everyone in the world, together, with the house lights dimmed, with or without ushers, with or without tickets, singing "O come, o come, Emmanuel." Remember how the hymn works: the first half of each verse invokes a Messianic title and attribute of Jesus, and the second half makes a request, drawing on His strength, from our weakness. "And ransom captive I-i-is-ra-el." Notice that the hymn is a beautiful and durable recasting (in the Aeolian mode), but know now that in the ancient Italian antiphons (the first, “O Sapientia,” appears in Boethius in the sixth century) the body–of prayer, of poetry, of past, of future–is suspended between the "O" and the "come".

Each verse calls on the Most High, offering a quality, a role, a memory, as a fan might smile up at the star: "Remember when you were the commander in that crazy long battle? You shredded that day. Can you come down and shred here?" Some petitions sound well-bred and -schooled: "come, and teach us the way of prudence." Some seem brisk, but really anxious: "don’t be slow, already!" All are predicated on His coming.

And the call is always the same–a great round vocative. "Vocative" comes from Latin “vox,” voice, and one of the glories of the human voice is the shape of O. Drop your jaw and try one. You may find that the air can't decide whether to rush out hot, as in relief or in pain, or to swoop in cold, as in shock or in awe, or to park and pop open the vocal folds, as in recognition. You are suspended in a tunnel, or a cave, or a cathedral, or a cheekily perfect dewdrop. A mouth like a portal. Round as a belly. Curved as Time. 

Because God is master of inversion–we know the plot of our Trinitarian play works upside down, backwards, and inside out–the lines allow a neatly flipped acrostic mnemonic. Here are the names from end to beginning, from 23 to 17 December: 

Emmanuel  (God-with-us, the peoples' desire, giver of laws)
Rex Gentium  (King of the Peoples, who made humankind from earth)
Oriens  (Rising Star, Sun of justice)

Clavis David  (Key of David, opener of locks, shutter of mouths)
Radix Jesse  (Root of Jesse, life abiding in the tree that was cut down)
Adonai  (Lord, Ruler over nature and the House of Israel)
Sapientia  (Wisdom, the creating Logos and incarnate Word)

From the Parousia back to the creation. "Ero": "I will be [there]"; "cras": "tomorrow." The answer is within the questions: He is coming! He is the other “choir” in our antiphon! The secret voice, the wider circle! But when is "tomorrow"? Might verb tenses not work back and forth, too–or around and around? What if He is already here? What if we are all in the play? 

We are presenting the antiphons in their traditional setting, framing the Magnificat, so as to hear the expectations of the leading Man amid the satisfactions of the expectant leading Lady. We are singing solos, but we represent the whole Church, who plays not only the part of the Prophets but that of the Mother of God.

When singing of the First Coming we always invoke the Second: when yearning for the Second we always echo the First. Try the O again, and this time raise your eyebrows and open the top half of your face. Lift your cheekbones and twinkle your eyes. There, don’t you feel like a child who’s discovered a secret? OHHHHH!! That’s the kind of O we don’t often see, because its wearer claps their hands in front of it to avoid giving too much away. Inside its arena, the Parousia is all one. Emanuel, God (already) with us.  

And is this not the fullness-of-time itself? To seek to usher in on earth that which we ask the Redeemer to grant from Heaven? To meld the memory of Alpha and the desire of Omega? May we always be rounded to call and willing for His response: I will be there. I Am. Here. Now. May we always be caught between the expectancy of "Come" and the ecstasy of "O."

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O Sapientia, quae ex ore Altissimi prodiisti,
attingens a fine usque ad finem,
fortiter suaviterque disponens omnia:
veni
ad docendum nos viam prudentiae.
  

        O Wisdom,
          which came out of the mouth of the Most High,
          and reaches from one end to another,
         mightily and sweetly ordering all things:
                   come,
                         and teach us the way of prudence. 

O Adonai, et Dux domus Israel,
qui Moysi in igne flammae rubi apparuisti,
et ei in Sina legem dedisti:
veni
ad redimendum nos in brachio extento.
  

        O Adonai,
          and leader of the house of Israel,      
          who appeared in the bush to Moses in a flame of fire,
          and gave him the law on Sinai:
                    come
                       and redeem us with an outstretched arm. 

O radix Jesse, qui stas in signum populorum,
super quem continebunt reges os suum,
quem Gentes deprecabuntur:
veni
ad liberandum nos, jam noli tardare.
  

        O Root of Jesse,
          which stands for an ensign of the people,
          at whom kings shall shut their mouths,
         and whom the Gentiles shall seek:
                    come
                        and deliver us, and tarry not. 

O Clavis David, et sceptrum domus Israel;
qui aperis, et nemo claudit;
claudis, et nemo aperit:
veni,
et educ vinctum de domo carceris,
sedentem in tenebris, et umbra mortis.
  

        O Key of David,
        and Scepter of the House of Israel,
          who opens and no one can shut,
          who shuts and no one can open:
                    come,
                        and bring the prisoners out of the prison-house,
                        them that sit in darkness and the shadow of death. 

O Oriens,
splendor lucis aeternae, et sol justitiae:
veni,
et illumina sedentes in tenebris, et umbra mortis.
  

        O Day-spring,
         brightness of the light everlasting,
          and Sun of righteousness:
                    come
                       and enlighten them that sit in darkness and the shadow of death. 

O Rex Gentium, et desideratus earum,
lapisque angularis, qui facis utraque unum:
veni,
et salva hominem,
quem de limo formasti.

          O King of nations and their desire;
          the Cornerstone, who makes them both one:
                    come
    and save mankind, whom you formed of clay. 

O Emmanuel, Rex et legifer noster,
exspectatio Gentium, et Salvator earum:
veni
ad salvandum nos, Domine, Deus noster.
  

        O Emmanuel, our King and Lawgiver,
          the desire of all nations and their salvation:
                   come
                       and save us, O Lord our God.

Feast of St. Charles, Final Day of the Double Novena

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. Here are the prayers for Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Four, Day Five, Day Six, Day Seven [All Saints Day], Day Eight, and Day Nine.
Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

Many are familiar with how St. Charles risked personal contagion during the plague of Milan in order to give medical and financial help to the sick and dying. What is not well known, though, is that for as long as he put himself at risk for infection, he practiced social distancing to make sure that he didn’t pass the plague onto others. His biographer, Giovanni Pietro Giussano, reported: “For himself , he acted as if he were actually an infected person , allowing no one to come near him or wait upon him , and having a rod carried before him when he went abroad , in order to keep off every one from himself and his assistants.” Charles would place this rod, which was over six feet long, on the ground between himself and anyone who wanted to approach him. St. Charles also instituted an alternative to public prayer assemblies: “seven times a day, when the cathedral bells rang, the residents of Milan, now homebound, would come to their windows and doors and sing prayers and litanies. The effect was, it seems, not unlike contemporary instances of quarantined residents joining in communal serenades: the voices of some ‘three hundred thousand souls,’ Giussano wrote, ‘resounding and echoing, calling all heaven to help in that court of misery’” (Matthew Guerrieri, Boston Globe music critic).

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St. Charles used his own family funds to support the needs of the impoverished and to set up hospitals and hospices for the sick and dying during the plague of Milan. Through his intercession, and that of master fundraiser, St. Martin de Porres, we are confident in reaching our goal for Revolution of Tenderness’s end of year campaign. Please give generously.

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The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day Nine [Feast of St. Charles Borromeo]:

“When you pray the [psalms], think about the words you are saying and the Lord to whom you are speaking. When you take care of other people, meditate on how the Lord’s blood has washed them clean so that all that you do becomes a work of love. This is the way we can easily overcome the countless difficulties we have to face day after day, which, after all, are part of our work: in meditation we find the strength to bring Christ to birth in ourselves and in others.”   [Charles Borromeo, Homily]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Postlude:

To you Saint Martin de Porres, we prayerfully lift up our hearts filled with serene confidence and love. Mindful of your unbounded and helpful charity to all levels of society, we offer our petitions to you. Pour out upon our families the precious gifts of your generous intercession; show to the people of every race and every color the paths of unity and of justice; implore from our Father in heaven the coming of his kingdom, so that through mutual benevolence in God, people may live in the peace of Christ.

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

Martin de Porres Litany in Honor of His Feast Today

Portrait of St. Martin de Porres, c. 17th century, painted during his lifetime; Monastery of Rosa of Santa Maria in Lima

The Litany of St. Martin de Porres

Lord, have mercy,
Christ have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us,

God the Father of Heaven,
have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Spirit,
have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God,
have mercy on us.

Holy Mary, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary,
Pray for us.
St. Martin, ever in the presence of God,
Pray for us.
St. Martin, faithful servant of Christ, etc.
St. Martin, lover of the Holy Eucharist,
St. Martin, devoted to our Blessed Mother,
St. Martin, spiritual patron of Americans,
St. Martin, raised from the depths to a heavenly mansion,
St. Martin, honored son of Saint Dominic,
St. Martin, lover of the Most Holy Rosary,
St. Martin, apostle of mercy,
St. Martin, winged minister of charity,
St. Martin, miraculously conveyed to far-distant lands,
St. Martin, freed from the barriers of time and space,
St. Martin, seeking the conversion of sinners,
St. Martin, protector of the tempted and repentant,
St. Martin, helper of souls in doubt and darkness,
St. Martin, compassionate to the sorrowful and afflicted,
St. Martin, consoler of the discouraged and unfortunate,
St. Martin, peacemaker in all discords,
St. Martin, touched by all suffering,
St. Martin, comforter of the sick and dying,
St. Martin, angel to hospitals and prisons,
St. Martin, worker of miraculous cures,
St. Martin, guardian of the homeless child,
St. Martin, humbly hiding God-given powers,
St. Martin, devoted to holy poverty,
St. Martin, model of obedience,
St. Martin, lover of heroic penance,
St. Martin, strong in self-denial,
St. Martin, performing menial tasks with holy ardor,
St. Martin, gifted with prophecy,
St. Martin, symbol of interracial brotherhood,

Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world,
Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world,
Graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takes away the sins of the world,
Have mercy on us.

V. Pray for us, Saint Martin,
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let Us Pray.

O God, who exalts the humble, you ushered St Martin into your heavenly Kingdom. Grant through his merits and intercession that we may follow his example of humility on earth and so be exalted with him in Heaven, through Christ Our Lord. Amen.

St Martin’s Feast (Double Novena, Day 9)

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. Here are the prayers for Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Four, Day Five, Day Six, Day Seven [All Saints Day], and Day Eight.
Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

Yesterday we listened to a short oratorio, composed by Marc Antoine Charpentier, to honor St. Charles Borromeo and his deeds of love during the Milanese plague. Today we’ll look at a very different piece of music, Black Christ of the Andes, composed and performed by jazz giant, Mary Lou Williams, in 1962, the same year that St. Martin de Porres was canonized:

“‘St. Martin de Porres,’ begins with a choir singing a cappella. The chords — dense and full of satisfying tensions — showcase Williams' previously underutilized aptitude for vocal arrangement. As they sing the saint's name, the choir slows down, masterfully swelling on the vowels as if to prove their devotion. When Williams finally enters on the keys, she does so with an Afro-Latin groove, perhaps a nod to the heritage of the hymn's subject.
It is the perfect, haunting invitation to the world of this recording, which feels unexpected and refreshing at every turn. ‘Mary Lou Williams is perpetually contemporary,’ Duke Ellington once said. ‘She is like soul on soul.’ Black Christ of the Andes feels like soul on soul, perhaps in ways beyond what Ellington intended by the phrase. The entire composition is concerned with salvation, the wellbeing of our souls”
(Jenny Gathright, for NPR).

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During the 2020 Festival of Friendship, Revolution of Tenderness hosted a free concert of Mary Lou Williams’ compositions, played by jazz pianist Deanna Witkowski and her Trio. This concert was acclaimed by all who tuned in for it, and was just one of the many excellent free programs that we organized this year. Please support our end of year campaign so that we can continue to provide free concerts.

We have an added gift for you today: a beautiful litany to St. Martin de Porres that you can recite in honor of his feast.

The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day Eight:

“You must realize that for us nothing is more necessary than meditation. We must meditate before, during and after everything we do. The prophet says: ‘I will pray, and then I will understand.’"   [Charles Borromeo, Homily]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day Nine:

“In the banquet of life Martin took the lowest seat at the table. Overjoyed to be at the banquet, he chose to sit with the poor, the sick, and the vulnerable. And, at that end of the table, he shared with his neighbors whatever he had. As a result, when in 1639 he went home to the Lord, the Good Shepherd spread before him the banquet of eternal life. At that banquet, Martin was invited to sit at a very high place, close to Jesus himself and to his Mother Mary, surrounded by the saints and angels.”
   [Archbishop William Lori]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

Double Novena Day 8

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. Here are the prayers for Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Four, Day Five, Day Six, and Day Seven [All Saints Day].
Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

St. Charles and St. Martin each inspired composers to write glorious music about their extraordinary presence in the world. The selfless and heroic charity that St. Charle exhibited while caring for the plague-stricken citizens of Milan inspired Marc-Antoine Charpentier to compose a motet, “Pestis Mediolanensis” (“The Plague of Milan”). This short piece of music, “like many of Charpentier’s other oratorios, …features a double choir, two groups of singers sometimes in counterpoint, sometimes in competition. In his [oratories], Charpentier used double choirs to represent opposed groups... At first, the choirs in ‘Pestis’ seem similar: a city divided against itself, in which ‘servants begged for compassion from their masters, and the poor begged from the rich.’ But in the final chorus, the choirs’ imitation might be heard as a united congregation, reverberating citywide, a call-and-response praising Borromeo’s holiness and generosity” (Matthew Guerrieri, Boston Globe music critic). You can listen to this motet here. Tomorrow we will consider a very different (but also hauntingly beautiful) piece of music that was composed in honor of St. Martin de Porres.

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Please donate to our end of year campaign in order to support the concerts we offer through Revolution of Tenderness.

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The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day Seven:

“Do not neglect your own soul, do not give yourself to others so completely that you have nothing left for yourself. You have to be mindful of other people without becoming forgetful of yourself.”   [Charles Borromeo, Homily]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day Eight:

“In another episode, Martin negotiated a treaty of sorts with the convent’s rodent population. Too many mice had found their way into the building and were causing significant damage. Then one day Martin was seen ushering an orderly regiment, consisting of several hundred mice, outside to the garden. There he explained he would feed them once a day if they stayed outdoors… St. Martin’s miraculous authority over animals speaks to our beginning and our end—where we’ve been and where we’re (hopefully) going. They gesture toward the order and harmony constitutive of mankind’s original, and final, glory. And they point the way to get there.”
   [Jordan Zajac, O.P.]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

Special All Saints Day Prayers for the Double Novena (Day 7)

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. Here are the prayers for Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Four, Day Five, and Day Six.
Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

“There is only one tragedy in the end: Not to have been a saint.”
(Charles Péguy)

The vast majority of saints never defy the laws of physics and never have mystical experiences. Their one claim to heaven was love, and they loved so well, according to the pattern of love that Jesus showed us, that they initiated others into the Holy Trinity’s companionship of Love. That’s all.

We would be in serious error if we were to imagine that St. Charles’ position as bishop and cardinal, or St. Martin’s gifts of bilocation and being able to communicate with animals, were what “made” them saints. Each of these men was, first and foremost, a practitioner of love. Their love was a divine love, not because it came with worldly honors or strange marvels, but because they loved without distinction, without “reserving” their love for the “deserving.” Like Christ, they loved the morally upright and also the sinners, the poor and the rich, those who were sick and those who were well. They loved everyone who happened across their human path, and they loved these people with all their energy and strength. That’s more than enough.

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Our end of year campaign provides you with a way to collaborate in our mission to offer hope and healing during our uncertain time. Through education and the celebration of all that is good and true and beautiful, we seek to strengthen our human capacity for dialogue and mutual aid. Revolution of Tenderness is a 501(c)3 nonprofit. All donations are tax deductible. Please be generous.

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The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day Six [All Saints]:

“Calling the saints to mind …arouses in us, above all else, a longing to enjoy their company... We long to share in the citizenship of heaven, to dwell with the spirits of the blessed, to join the assembly of patriarchs, the ranks of the prophets, the council of apostles, the great host of martyrs, the noble company of confessors and the choir of virgins..”     [Bernard of Clairvaux, Homily]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day Seven [All Saints]:

“Let us long for those who are longing for us, hasten to those who are waiting for us, and ask those who look for our coming to intercede for us. We should not only want to be with the saints, we should also hope to possess their happiness. While we desire to be in their company, we must also earnestly seek to share in their glory. Do not imagine that there is anything harmful in such an ambition as this; there is no danger in setting our hearts on such glory.” [Bernard of Clairvaux, Homily]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

San Carlo and San Martín, Day 6

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. Here are the prayers for Day One, Day Two, Day Three, Day Four, and Day Five.
Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

Throughout our novena, we have been considering connections and confluences between St. Charles and St. Martin, but today we cannot help but think about St. Francis of Assisi when we read about St. Martin’s ability to communicate with animals and to tame wild bulls.

Both Francis and Martin valued begging as an important spiritual discipline. Because St. Francis and his brothers subsisted on whatever they could raise through begging, their association was called a “mendicant order;” meanwhile Martin approached the wealthy Spanish nobles of Lima to ask for funds to support the orphanage and the medical clinic he founded. Each saint was a catalyst for the free flow of money across castes and classes.

Being able to approach wealthy donors in freedom and confidence requires great humility. Perhaps the power to connect with animals is a sign of a saint’s simplicity or a gift that results from radical humility.

The full-length version of this image shows Martin with his animal friends

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We are full of wonder and gratitude to announce that, due to the generosity of our most committed donors, we have already received over $8,000 in gifts; this brings us more than halfway to our end of year campaign goal of $14,000. We need you to join us in fostering dialogue and healing in the public sphere. Your contribution makes you a standard-bearer in the cause to build a culture of encounter and mutual respect. Please contribute to our end of year campaign today. Revolution of Tenderness is a 501(c)3 nonprofit. All donations are tax-deductible.

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The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day Five:

If your job is teaching and preaching, then study diligently and apply yourself to whatever is necessary for doing the job well. Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words will bring only cynical laughter and a derisive shake of the head.  [Charles Borromeo, Homily]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day Six:

There are many “accounts of the wonders Martin worked with animals. ... For example, when the novices brought two bulls into the convent for a mock bullfight and the antagonized bovines started to attack for real, Martin came to the rescue—by reasoning with the bulls. They heard him out and obeyed. Giving them a snack, Martin instructed the elder bull to let the younger eat first, as was the common practice in the convent. The bull respectfully complied, and nuzzled Martin as if kissing his habit.” [Jordan Zajac, O.P.]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

Day Five of the Double Novena

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. Here are the prayers for Day One, Day Two, Day Three, and Day Four.

Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

“There were only a few… who could remember the plague, which fifty-three years before had ravaged the greater part of Italy and particularly the Milanese provinces where it was – and still is – called ‘the plague of St. Carlo.’
”Such is the power of charity! It could make the memory of one man stand out over the varied and solemn memories of a general disaster, because it inspired that man with feelings and actions more memorable even than the evils themselves: it could stamp him on people’s minds as a symbol of all their misfortunes, because it had urged and thrust him forward into all of them as their guide, help, example, and voluntary victim; it could turn a general calamity into almost a personal triumph for him; and name it after him as if that calamity had been a conquest or a discovery.”
[Alessandro Manzoni, The Betrothed, page 477]

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This coming Sunday, November 1st, in honor of All Saints’ Day, we will begin releasing the videos from the 2020 Festival of Friendship. We will host a watch party for our first two videos, “Like a Boss: Presentation on St. Therese of Lisieux, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, and St. Teresa of Calcutta” and “A Cloud of Witnesses: Gracie Morbitzer’s Icons of Modern Saints.” We hope that by making these videos available through our youtube channel, our friends in other time zones will be able to enjoy the extraordinarily convivial experience of our Festival.

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The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day Four:

Listen, and I will tell you. If a tiny spark of God’s love already burns within you, do not expose it to the wind, for it may get blown out. Keep the stove tightly shut so that it will not lose its heat and grow cold. In other words, avoid distractions as well as you can. Stay quiet with God. Do not spend your time in useless chatter.
[Charles Borromeo, Homily]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day Five:

“Saint Martin, always obedient and inspired by his divine teacher, dealt with his brothers with that profound love which comes from pure faith and humility of spirit. He loved people because he honestly looked on them as God's children and as his own brothers and sisters.”
[St. John XXIII]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Charles and St. Martin, Day 4

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. Here are the prayers for Day One, Day Two, and Day Three.

Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

When he was 15 years old, Martin entered the convent of Nuestra Señora del Rosario, a Dominican priory in Lima, Peru. Because of racist regulations, Martin couldn’t apply to enter as a postulant; instead he asked to be accepted as a servant. He began by cooking, cleaning, and laundering but because of the training he’d received as a barber’s apprentice, he was soon given responsibility for the monastery’s infirmary; later, he was also given the task of almoner; in this role, he raised the astonishing sum of $2,000 per week, enough to feed and support up to 160 poor inhabitants of Lima. He earned the title, “Martin the Charitable” through his constant attention to the poor and needy of Lima. One day a filthy beggar, covered in sores, reached his hand out, and Martin immediately lifted him up and carried him to his own bed. When one of his fellow monks told him that this was going too far, Martin replied, “Compassion, my dear Brother, is preferable to cleanliness. Reflect that with a little soap I can easily clean my bed covers, but even with a torrent of tears I would never wash from my soul the stain that my harshness toward the unfortunate would create.”

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Martin was able to raise extraordinary sums of money because he was willing to visit the Spanish nobles of Peru in order to beg on behalf of the poor and suffering. Emboldened by his example, we would like to beg that you donate to Revolution of Tenderness.

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A note on the sources for the prayers: the introduction and first prayer for each day of the St. Charles’ novena come from a booklet he wrote to provide spiritual healing for his people in the time of the plague. These prayers struck us as so fitting, given our current plague, that we have incorporated them. To introduce the St. Martin novena prayers, we have quoted from the writings of the Peruvian saint’s many admirers. Otherwise, we have turned to the liturgical texts from the Roman Missal and the Liturgy of the Hours to furnish the best prayers for our novenas, just as we did in honor of St. Jude.

The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day Three:

Take note of how the apostles awaited the promise of the Holy Spirit with the most ardent desire, and enclosed in the Upper Room for ten days continuously, they all persevered with one soul in their prayers. What do you think the unity of theirs signified, if not charity and concord which are so necessary in your homes? Take care always to maintain peace and tranquility in the house. Come forward, most beloved souls, open the door of your heart to the Spirit; prepare your houses.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day Four:

“St. Martin did not blame others for their shortcomings. Certain that he deserved more severe punishment for his sins than others did, he would overlook their worst offenses. He was tireless in his efforts to reform the criminal, and he would sit up with the sick to bring them comfort. For the poor he would provide food, clothing and medicine. He did all he could to care for poor farmhands, blacks, and mulattoes who were looked down upon as slaves, the dregs of society in their time. Common people responded by calling him, ‘Martin the charitable.’”
[St. John XXIII]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

Double Novena, Day 3

[Left to right] St. Charles Borromeo, by Luca Giordano; St. Martin de Porres, Giles Priere, 1990

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. You can find the prayers for the first day here. And here are the prayers for Day Two. God’s sense of time is different from ours: his ways are not our ways. Don’t worry about beginning a day “late” or if you need to double up the prayers on any given day. God isn’t standing over us with a calendar, ready to scold us if we miss a day. He loves it when we pray. Period. Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

St. Charles Borromeo: When the bubonic plague struck Milan, in August of 1576, the governor and most of the rich inhabitants fled the city. By contrast, Charles Borromeo, who had been out of town for a funeral, hastily returned to Milan. Described by Desmond Seward as “Tall, painfully thin, with piercing eyes, Cardinal Borromeo was one of the sights of Milan, celebrating Mass in gorgeous vestments at the Duomo’s high altar, tramping through the meaner streets to visit the sick and the dying. Accessible to all, he was a father to the city’s poor, selling his furniture to feed them, and an uncompromising ascetic who slept on straw and lived on bread and water…”

Once back in Milan, Cardinal Borromeo dedicated himself to reducing the human costs of the plague. Rev. Prosper Guéranger reported: “In the absence of local authorities, he organized the health service, founded or renewed  hospitals, sought money and provisions, decreed preventive measures. Most importantly though, he took steps to ensure spiritual help, assistance to the sick and the burial of the dead. Unafraid of  being infected, he paid in person, by visiting hospitals, leading penitential processions, being everything to everyone, like a father and true shepherd” (L’anno liturgico – II. Tempo Pasquale e dopo la Pentecoste, Paoline, Alba 1959, pp. 1245-1248).

Today let’s pray particularly for the shepherds of the Church, and all other religious and secular leaders, that they may seek out and implement wise and effective methods to decrease the human toll of the current pandemic.

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The Revolution of Tenderness needs your help. We are in the final days of our 8th Festival of Friendship, an experience that has enriched and sustained our lives in wholly unexpected and beautiful ways. We are not asking you to sell your furniture, as St. Charles did! But please be generous toward our end of year campaign, through Network for Good. Every donation is tax deductible.

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A note on the sources for the prayers: the introduction and first prayer for each day of the St. Charles’ novena come from a booklet he wrote to provide spiritual healing for his people in the time of the plague. These prayers struck us as so fitting, given our current plague, that we have incorporated them. To introduce the St. Martin novena prayers, we have quoted from the writings of the Peruvian saint’s many admirers. Otherwise, we have turned to the liturgical texts from the Roman Missal and the Liturgy of the Hours to furnish the best prayers for our novenas, just as we did in honor of St. Jude.

The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day Two:

Be charitable and prudent with all the members of your household, treating them and making sure they are treated well, with love, and seeing to it that they are not maltreated.

Do not speak injurious language either to your children or to any other person.

Rather make an effort with divine grace to restrain anger and taking offense in adverse circumstances which arise during the day in the house or outside

.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day Three:

“Rose of Lima, like her friend, Martin de Porres, who lived four blocks away in the Dominican priory, joined forces to make sure that no one would be left out of the banquet hall of God’s love and mercy.  God’s heart does not exclude anyone.  All that life offers us is a gift.  All that God offers us is a gift.  Our response is to join hands around the table of God’s infinite love, the table where Jesus breaks open his body and pours out his blood, and give thanks.  The Eucharist is not a place of exclusion.  In the wedding banquet of God’s Son, all are welcome.”
[Rev. Brian Pierce, OP]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

Revised St. Charles and St. Martin Novenas, Day 2

[Left to right] St. Charles Borromeo, by Luca Giordano; St. Martin de Porres, Giles Priere, 1990

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. You can find the prayers for the first day here. God’s sense of time is as different from ours as his ways are not our ways. Don’t worry about beginning a day “late” or if you need to double up the prayers on any given day. God isn’t standing over us with a calendar, ready to scold us if we miss a day. He loves it when we pray. Period. Scroll further down to find today’s novena prayers.

From the founding of Revolution of Tenderness, a 501(c)3 nonprofit that organizes and supports many educational and cultural initiatives, including the Festival of Friendship, we named St. Martin de Porres as our Director of Development. We hired him for the job because, in 16th Century Peru, Martin founded a children’s hospital and an orphanage in Lima, thanks to his ability to interest wealthy patrons in these projects. Each year since our founding, we have prayed novenas to ask for this saint’s help in finding donors who will support our revolution of tenderness. And each year, St. Martin has come through for us! This year, as you pray the double novena with us, please prayerfully consider making a tax-deductible donation to support our work.

A note on the sources for the prayers: the introduction and first prayer for each day of the St. Charles’ novena come from a booklet he wrote to provide spiritual healing for his people in the time of the plague. These prayers struck us as so fitting, given our current plague, that we have incorporated them. To introduce the St. Martin novena prayers, we have quoted from the writings of the Peruvian saint’s many admirers. Otherwise, we have turned to the liturgical texts from the Roman Missal and the Liturgy of the Hours to furnish the best prayers for our novenas, just as we did in honor of St. Jude.

The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Day One:

When you are sitting by the fire with your family, standing and walking about the house, rising in the morning and retiring at night, and in a word always and everywhere, you must by good observance of God’s precepts and rule of Christian life have at heart Christ’s teaching and example from the Gospels.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day Two:

“When Martin became a Dominican lay brother, he soon became a one-man charity agency in the city of Lima. This dark skinned friar in his black and white habit traveled the streets of a cruel and indifferent city, to bring healing and compassion to the Indian outcast, the abandoned slave, and the forgotten child. During the day St. Martin de Porres was a man of action, during the night he was a man of prayer, a mystic. For more than 40 years he lived out his calling as ‘Father of the Poor.’”
[Rev. Cyprian Davis, OSB]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

Revised St. Charles and St. Martin Novenas

[Left to right] St. Charles Borromeo, by Luca Giordano; St. Martin de Porres, Giles Priere, 1990

Two great men each died on November 3. Charles Borromeo passed away on that day in 1594, and exactly 45 years later, on a different continent, Martin de Porres died in 1639. Their lives overlapped by 15 years, but they never met; most likely neither one ever heard of the other. Scroll down for today’s novena prayers.

Why does the Catholic liturgical calendar honor holy people on the anniversary of their deaths? The usual human practice is to commemorate a person’s life on the day it began – not when it ended. In fact, the Church only marks the births of three figures in sacred history: Jesus Christ; his mother, Mary; and John the Baptist; moreover, their deaths or passings receive greater consideration than their births. Think, for example, about how the three-day solemnity of Easter overshadows our observation of Christmas. On the other hand, the liturgical calendar is brimming with celebrations to mark the deaths of numerous holy men and women. Attention to the anniversary of a saint’s death does not mean we somehow relish death. Rather, we appreciate that in the life of a saint, the moment of death is not a defeat but an immense victory. We glorify the passing of a holy person because we recognize it as a greater birth: his or her entrance into a mysterious, luminous, and eternal life that we’ve each been promised.

How fascinating it would be to see the world from God’s perspective: panning out so far that we could take in the vast reaches of the cosmos all at once while simultaneously zooming in on the particular details of each person’s life, no matter what time period she inhabits! Imagine one eye as a telescope powerful enough to observe the whole of reality and the other equipped with an infinite number of microscopes, trained everywhere, in all times at once. And everything God sees receives an unimaginably attentive and unwaveringly absorbed gaze of tenderness, of love.

God would have thus been watching Charles and Martin at the same time and with the same sense of divine, parental delight. In Italy, Charles (or Carlo) grew up the scion of a family so wealthy that it owned two islands – each with a castle on it! – in Lake Maggiore, near Milan. Martin’s (or Juan Martín) single mother, a freed Black slave, raised him in Peru, where they suffered extreme poverty. In some sense, we could say that Charles had to overcome the inconvenience of his wealth in order to follow the path that could bring him fully to life. Perhaps we could even call Martin’s poverty, and the evils of racism he suffered, a strange “advantage;” these objectively harmful circumstances increased his capacity for compassion and strengthened his humanity.

Over the next nine days we will journey with each of these men, training our gaze on each of their lives at once, in order to get some small taste of God’s view of our human drama.

One note: though both men died on November 3rd, the Church in the United States observes St. Charles’ feast day on November 4th. For our purposes, we have added an additional “preparatory” day to the beginning of St. Charles’ novena so that we can finish in time for his liturgical memorial. Each day of the novenas, we will post new information about our two holy men to this blog. Tomorrow we will tell you why this pair of saints is so meaningful to our work at Revolution of Tenderness.

A note on the sources for the prayers: the introduction and first prayer for each day of the St. Charles’ novena come from a booklet he wrote to provide spiritual healing for his people in the time of the plague. These prayers struck us as so fitting, given our current plague, that we have incorporated them. To introduce the St. Martin novena prayers, we have quoted from the writings of the Peruvian saint’s many admirers. Otherwise, we have turned to the liturgical texts from the Roman Missal and the Liturgy of the Hours to furnish the best prayers for our novenas, just as we did in honor of St. Jude.

We will post biographical notes and daily novena prayers each day for ten days. We hope you will take this double journey with us!

We invoke these two holy men’s help as we turn our attention to the upcoming fundraising season. If you find these prayers helpful to you, or if your lives were enriched through participating in the Festival of Friendship, or if you simply want to support our mission, to provide humanities education and free cultural events in Appalachia and beyond, we ask you to please consider supporting us through Network for Good (Network for Good allows you to join the Revolution through either a one-time or regular tax-deductible donation to support the work of Revolution of Tenderness) or Patreon (Patreon offers a three-tiered opportunity for regular, tax-deductible giving. Each tier offers exclusive bonuses — from shout-outs on the Revolution of Tenderness Podcast to free books and Revolution of Tenderness items emblazoned with the colorful Borromean rings).

The Prayers:

St. Charles Borromeo
Preparatory Day:

The hand of God has been so kind to us in the scourge of pestilence with which he has visited us in these times, that we can also well understand how he seeks only our conversion and life, not our death.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

You, Lord, who have the power to renew the heavens, the earth, and all things, give to all of us that new heart, that new spirit which you promised us through the mouth of your prophet: And I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit within you (Ezekiel 36:26). Bestow it upon us, Lord, with such abundance that it will produce in us, efficaciously and constantly, new resolutions, new customs, a new way of life, and in the end, that eternal renewal which the new Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, already came into the world to bring us. With this help, our heart shall be enlarged, reforms will no longer seem hard, nor your service burdensome. But the yoke will be sweet and the weight of your holy commandments light to us. We ask this through your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Charles Borromeo, “Booklet of Reminders”]

Preserve in the midst of your people,
we ask, O Lord, the spirit with which you filled
the Bishop Saint Charles Borromeo,
that your Church may be constantly renewed
and, by conforming herself to the likeness of Christ,
may show his face to the world.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Martin de Porres
Day One:

“What for others could have easily turned into a life of bitterness and anger, for Martin became an opportunity for holiness. Martin entrusted the chaos and the poverty of those early years to God, who took the Spanish and African threads of his heart and wove them into a beautiful tapestry of love. Perhaps Martin’s greatest gift was his capacity to let God turn his suffering into compassion.”
[Rev. Brian Pierce, OP]

Blessed is the man who is found without fault,
who does not make gold his life's object,
who does not put his trust in wealth.
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

Who is this man that we may praise him,
for he has done wonders in his life?
- His future will be secure in the Lord.

O God, who led Saint Martin de Porres
by the path of humility to heavenly glory,
grant that we may so follow his radiant example in this life
as to merit to be exalted with him in heaven.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
[Collect for the Memorial of St. Martin de Porres, Roman Missal]

Our Father, Mail Mary, Glory Be

St. Jude Novena: A Proposed Revision

“St Jude Thaddeus,” by Georges de la Tour, 1650

How are novenas effective? What does a novena actually do?

“I used to pray that God would feed the hungry, or do this or that, but now I pray that he will guide me to do whatever I'm supposed to do, what I can do. I used to pray for answers, but now I'm praying for strength. I used to believe that prayer changes things, but now I know that prayer changes us and we change things.” St. Teresa of Kolkata

We could think of a novena as a nine-day preparation to celebrate a liturgical feast. Like a “little Advent,” the novena could help to purify and convert our hearts so that we can find ourselves in the strongest possible position to receive the graces that Christ wants to offer us through the intercession of a particular saint. The Eucharist, as the source and summit of our faith life, provides the richest, most effective food for prayer life.

If we look at novenas in this way, perhaps the best texts for us to meditate on in the days leading up to the celebration of a particular liturgical Memorial or Solemnity would be those ancient prayers that the Church herself gives us through the Roman Missal and the Breviary. To compose a novena from these rich sources could offer us a powerful method for growing in love and holiness. Following this logic, we’d like to offer an alternative to the “traditional” Novena to St. Jude, one that is paradoxically more deeply rooted in Tradition because it is based on the Rites and liturgical prayers that the Church has ordained for the celebration of the saint’s feast day.

Day One (Beginning today): “Our Lord Jesus Christ has appointed certain men, including the holy apostle, St. Jude Thaddeus, to be guides and teachers of the world and stewards of his divine mysteries” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
For you, eternal Shepherd,
do not desert your flock,
but through the blessed Apostles
watch over it and protect it always,
so that it may be governed
by those you have appointed shepherds,
like St. Jude Thaddeus, to lead it.
We glorify your name, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be

Day Two:  “Now the Lord bids his holy apostles, like St. Jude, to shine out like lamps and to cast out their light not only over the land of the Jews but over every country under the sun and over people scattered in all directions and settled in distant lands” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
For you have built your Church
to stand firm on apostolic foundations,
to be a lasting sign of your holiness on earth,
and, like St. Jude, offer all humanity your heavenly teaching.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be

Day Three: “That man has spoken truly who said: ‘No one takes honor upon himself, except the one who is called by God,’ for it was our Lord Jesus Christ who called his own disciples, including St. Jude, before all others to a most glorious apostolate” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
We humbly implore you in the Holy Spirit,
that what we do to honor the glorious passion
of the Apostle Jude
may keep us ever in your love.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be

Day Four: “St Jude Thaddeus, along with Christ’s other disciples, became the pillar and mainstay of the truth” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
And may he who has endowed us
with the teaching and example of the Apostle Jude Thaddeus,
make us, under his protection,
witnesses to the truth before all.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be

Day Five: “Jesus said that he was sending his apostles, just as the Father had sent him. By these words he is making clear the dignity of the apostolate and the incomparable glory of the power given to them, but he is also giving them a hint about the methods they are to adopt in their apostolic mission” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
Through the intercession of the Apostle Jude Thaddeus,
may we inherit the eternal homeland,
for by his teaching we possess firmness of faith.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be

Day Six: “Christ interpreted the character of his mission to us in a variety of ways. Once he said: ‘I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance.’ And then at another time he said: ‘I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. For God sent his Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him’” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
Christ says: ‘Whoever loves me will keep my word;
and my Father will love him, and we will come to him,
and make our home with him.’
We ask for this grace, just as St. Jude received it,
through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be

Day Seven: “For if Christ thought it necessary to send out St. Jude, along with his other intimate disciples in this fashion, just as the Father had sent him, then surely it was necessary that they whose mission was to be patterned on that of Jesus should see exactly why the Father had sent the Son” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
Father, you wanted your Son to be seen first by the apostles
after the resurrection from the dead;
we ask you to make us, just as you did for St. Jude,
his witnesses to the farthest corners of the world.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be

Day Eight: “Accordingly, in affirming that St Jude and the other apostles are sent by him just as he was sent by the Father, Christ sums up in a few words the approach they themselves should take to their ministry” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
You sent your Son to preach your good news to the poor.
Just as St. Jude did,
help us to preach this Gospel to every creature.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be

Day Nine: “From what Christ proclaimed, St Jude and the other disciples would gather that it was their vocation to call sinners to repentance, to heal those who were sick whether in body or spirit, to seek in all their dealings never to do their own will but the will of him who sent them, and as far as possible to save the world by their teaching” (From a commentary on the gospel of John by St Cyril of Alexandria, bishop).

O God, who by the blessed Apostles
have brought us to acknowledge your name,
graciously grant,
through the intercession of Saint Jude,
a holy man whom you chose in your own perfect love,
that the Church may constantly grow
by increase of the peoples who believe in you.
You sent your Son to sow the seed of unending life:
grant that we, following St. Jude’s example,
work at sowing the seed, may share the joy of the harvest.
You sent your Son to reconcile all to you through his blood:
help us all to work toward achieving this reconciliation.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be