Byrd’s Reges et Sanctis
A blessed feast of Our Lord’s Baptism to all our readers! In the midst of a world gone mad, ’tis incumbent that we Catholics keep our wits and our joy about us, which includes keeping our eyes on the ‘one thing needful’, on eternity, the end and purpose of it all, by living liturgically, in the company of Christ, Our Lady, Saint Joseph and all the saints through the year. The spirit and beauty of our liturgical tradition is a gift beyond price.
We have talked of William Byrd before in these pages, was an unabashed Catholic composer during the tumultuous time of the ‘Reformation’ – more properly, the revolt in England and across Europe against the Roman Catholic Church, to which the the great musician belonged. He was born in during the dying days of Henry VIII, and lived through the Tudor reign of his children – Edward VI, Mary Tudor, the long-lived Elizabeth, and then to James I. Somehow, like his contemporary genius Shakespeare, Byrd kept his Catholic faith, his head and his freedom – not least, since he was the greatest composer of his age, perhaps that England has ever produced.
As we draw close to the end of Epiphanytide, here is Byrd’s meditation on the Three Kings, Reges Tharsis, first published in 1607, the text of which, drawn from Psalm 71 used at Mass over the past week, runs as follows:
Reges Tharsis et insulae munera offerent,
reges Arabum et Saba dona
(domino Deo) adducent.
Et adorabunt eum omnes reges terrae,
omnes gentes servient ei.
And, since Baptism makes saints of us all – at least for a time, and for all time, if we cooperate with the grace so offered – here is Byrd’s magnificent Laudibus in Sanctis, first published in 1589, based on psalm 150, and the first of three parts of a cycle. There are hints herein of the Elizabethan persecution of Catholics, tribulatio proxima est, but offering hope amidst trials, that the Lord in the end will triumph; we may ponder its resonance in our own day. Here is a performance by the vocal ensemble Voces8, about which there are few words to describe the perfection of their performances.
Saint Kateri , Canada’s Protectress
This was the title given to Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, by Pope Benedict XVI, when he canonized her on October 28th, 2012, along with six others, in Saint Peter’ Square (she had been beatified by Pope John Paul II back in 1980). With Saint Joseph as our protector, along with the Canadian martyrs, we seem to[…]Continue reading→
A Closed, Unsustainable, Descending Loop
As a follow-up to my thoughts on Payette’s payout, here be a stark image of where are here in Canada. As the graph shows in, well, graphic terms, since 2025, the public sector has contributed to 95.5% of economic growth. The private sector – which funds the public sector, or is supposed to – has[…]Continue reading→
Remembering Father Alphonse de Valk
(Today marks the sixth anniversary of the death of Father Alphonse de Valk, C.S.B., a faithful, courageous and indefatigable Basilian priest, pro-life-and-family apostle, and the founder of Catholic Insight magazine. Here is what we wrote those on his entering into eternity five years ago, as we continue to remember him in our prayers and thoughts)[…]Continue reading→
My Name is Bernadette
April 16th is a propitious day, for besides the anniversary of Father de Valk’s death, who founded Catholic Insight in its print form decades ago, and the commemoration of the ‘two Benedicts’, mentioned in accompanying posts, today we also recall Saint Bernadette Soubirous, the young visionary to whom the Virgin Mary appeared numerous times at[…]Continue reading→
Presidential Pardon of Weronika Krawczyk
As a good news, follow-up to our story from Poland, of the persecution of Weronika Krawczyk for her pro-life views, we heard that she has been granted a presidential pardon. One might still wonder why one needs a presidential pardon for simply holding the long-held belief that the child within the womb is a child,[…]Continue reading→
Canonizing Sister Faustina and Divine Mercy
HOMILY OF THE HOLY FATHER MASS IN ST PETER’S SQUARE FOR THE CANONIZATION OF SR MARY FAUSTINA KOWALSKA Sunday, 30 April 2000 1. “Confitemini Domino quoniam bonus, quoniam in saeculum misericordia eius”; “Give thanks to the Lord for he is good; his steadfast love endures for ever” (Ps 118: 1). So the Church sings on the Octave of[…]Continue reading→
Divine Mercy Sunday – An Echo of Every Mass
Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe’… ‘My Lord and my God!’ (Jn. 20:18)). Today is Divine Mercy Sunday, and as we celebrate the end of the Easter Octave, we contemplate the wounded side of our Saviour, the Church’s source of life. On Good Friday in the[…]Continue reading→
Pope Leo and a Rosary for Peace
Pope Leo XIV has asked Catholics across the world to join him in a Rosary for peace today, at 18:00 Rome time (6 pm), which would be noon from where I write (EST). If you are able, whether at that time or another, and in whatever way you pray, to join in intercession with the[…]Continue reading→
Payette’s Payout
I was glancing through some headlines, and noticed a mention of Julie Payette – engineer and astronaut and sometime the Queen’s representative in Canada – which brought back vague memories. She was appointed Governor-General by Justin Trudeau in 2017. Ms. Payette resigned in 2021, amidst claims that she created a ‘toxic work environment’, with allegations[…]Continue reading→
Saint Stanislaus of Szczepanów
We celebrate Saint Stanislaus today (+ April 11, 1079), in light of this Easter Octave, a bishop and martyr who accepted the episcopacy only at the direct order of Pope Alexander II. He proved a wise and courageous leader of his flock, put to death by his own king, Boleslaus, for rebuking the monarch’s ‘immoral[…]Continue reading→