Category

Liturgy

7th November 2020
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Daily Holy Mass in the Diocese in the Extraordinary Form of the Rite

By | Liturgy, News

Mass in the Extraordinary Form (1962 Missal, Latin)
Daily at 17.00 in the Cathedral of St. Mary the Crowned.

Priest: Canon Pablo Piaggio Kokot, ICKSP

 

Please note that as booklets or print outs cannot currently be provided, you might already have the Mass on your mobile. Using the ‘ipieta’ app, choose Trad+ on the calendar, otherwise access www.divinumofficium.com and click on Missale on the top menu.

 

What is the Extraordinary Form?

It is the Roman Rite Mass in Latin as it grew organically for many centuries and was consolidated and codified at the Council of Trent, therefore, sometimes referred to as the Tridentine Mass. After the start of Mass being offered in the vernacular, in 1970, the traditional Latin Mass continued, with permission, in a few places. St. Pope John Paul II issued his Motu proprio Ecclesia Dei in 1988, encouraging generous provision for celebration of the traditional Latin Mass. Then in 2007, after many requests from the faithful, Pope Benedict XVI encouraged the world’s Bishops to offer wider use of this form of the Roman Rite with his 2007 Motu Proprio, Summorum Pontifium.

In the accompanying letter to the document Pope Benedict told the world’s bishops “there is no contradiction between the two editions of the Roman Missal. In the history of the liturgy there is growth and progress, but no rupture. What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful.” He used the term, the ‘Extraordinary Form’ of the Roman Rite to speak of the old Mass, whilst stating that the new Mass is the ‘Ordinary Form’ of the Roman Rite. Today both Forms of the Mass are offered in numerous Parishes worldwide.

 

Why in Gibraltar?

In 2018 Bishop Zammit very kindly agreed to the request of a group of faithful who asked him if it would be possible to make provision for the implementation of Summorum Pontificum in Gibraltar. The Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest were very happy to assist the Bishop in providing priests to come over, from their apostolates in U.K. and Spain, at first every three months, then monthly, until the March 2020 lockdown. In October 2020 they provided a priest to stay here so that the Latin Mass may be offered daily.

 

Who are the ICKSP?

The Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest is a Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right whose goal is the honour of God and the sanctification of priests in the service of the Church and souls. Its specific aim is missionary: to spread the reign of our Lord Jesus Christ in all spheres of human life. Learn more at: www.icksp.org.uk

23rd April 2020
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Online PRAYER BOOK to help us amid the coronavirus crisis

By | Liturgy, News, Vatican

The Vatican has released a free online prayer book to help Catholics seeking divine assistance amid the coronavirus crisis.

The 192-page book is published by the Libreria Editrice Vaticana, on behalf of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication and will be updated regularly.

The book, which is called “Strong in the Face of Tribulation: The Church in Communion – a Sure Support in Time of Trial” and has an image of the Archangel Michael on its cover, is divided into three parts:

  1. Prayers, rituals and supplications, including prayers for the sick and for liberation from evil.
  2. Explains how Catholics can continue to practice the faith without the support of the Sacraments.
  3. Gathers together Pope Francis’ reflections since the pandemic struck.

You can download it in English or in Spanish

16th March 2020
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Novena in honour of the Annunciation of our Blessed Lord

By | Bishop Carmel, Churches, Liturgy

As the Referendum on abortion of 19th March drew near, there were several initiatives to pray for the protection of the baby in the womb, including a Novena to St. Joseph, concluding with his Feast day, also the 19th March. The Referendum was recently postponed due to the onslaught of the Covid-19 virus.

In the Gospel of St. Luke (1:26–38), we hear how Mary received the wonderful news that she was to be the Mother of God. Her humble, trusting, reply to the Archangel Gabriel is forever engraved in our hearts:

“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord;

let it be to me according to your word.” (v. 38)

 

and immediately, she conceived Jesus in her womb through the action of the Holy Spirit.

Mary said ‘Yes’ to Life. We, who follow Jesus, also say a resounding ‘yes’ to Life, to Him.

The 25th March, the Solemnity of the Annunciation, therefore, presents an unexpected opportunity to continue to pray for the protection and dignity of unborn human life.

Sadly, this need to pray for life has taken on further urgency: we have been forewarned to expect Covid-19 to be a serious threat to the lives of many, primarily the elderly, in our community.

The Cathedral has organized a Rosary Novena for Life, to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, which begins Tuesday 17th (Rosary followed by Holy Mass presided by Bishop Zammit) and ends on the Solemnity of the Annunciation, 25th March. On that day, Bishop Zammit will officially consecrate Gibraltar to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in a solemn act during the live-streamed Mass of the Annunciation.

We pray that as we face these evils threatening Gibraltar, God may guide, protect and convert our hearts to His.

Please pray with us this special Novena, live-streamed daily from the Cathedral:

Rosary at 10:30

followed by the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass at 11:00

 

Please spread the word around! Thank you.

15th March 2020
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Spiritual Communion

By | Adoration, Bishop Carmel, Liturgy

An Act of Spiritual Communion

As we cannot receive Holy Communion while the Covid-19 emergency measures are in place, the Bishop is encouraging us to follow the celebration of Holy Mass online and to make an act of ‘Spiritual Communion’ instead, by reciting the suggested prayer below.

Live streaming of the Sacred Sacrifice of the Mass is available daily from the Shrine.

 

 

My Jesus,
I believe that You
are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love You above all things,
and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment
receive You sacramentally,
come at least spiritually into my heart.

I embrace You as if You were already there

and unite myself wholly to You.

Never permit me to be separated from You.

Amen.

14th March 2020
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MORE DETAILS OF THE BISHOP’S MEASURES REGARDING COVID-19

By | Bishop Carmel, Liturgy, News

Bishop Zammit’s Press release yesterday, summarises in a statement for the general public, the Church’s response to the Health authorities’ instructions on reducing the transmission of the dreaded Covid-19. The Bishop had issued a Decree suspending all public religious events within the Diocese.

The Decree also referred to other matters which are more specific or relevant to the Faithful. Here, we offer you the full text of the measures issued through the Decree:

 

 

  1. All Churches and Chapels and other places of the Diocese of Gibraltar, where Masses are celebrated or other public religious services are held, are to be suspended as from Saturday 14th.

  2. Parish Churches and Chapels may remain open daily as normal, but solely for personal prayer and visits to the Blessed Sacrament.

  3. All prayer groups and other groups of apostolate are to cease all their regular meetings and other events organized by them, as from Saturday 14th March, until further notice.

  4. In accordance with the instructions issued by the Health authorities, funerals are to be held at the Cemetery or Crematorium, with only immediate family members present.

  5. Confessionals are not to be used. Instead, the Sacrament of Reconciliation may be celebrated in a larger space where there is a sufficient gap between the priest and the penitent.

  6. With regard to concerns over fulfilling the Sunday and Holy Days of Obligation: The demands and challenges of this emergency, as for other situations when there is a genuine health crisis, pastorally overrides and mitigates the obligation to attend Mass. Instead, the Faithful are encouraged to use these times for private prayer and Spiritual Communion, for example, by reflecting on the Sunday’s readings and Gospel, reading the Bible, or saying the Rosary.

  7. Baptisms and weddings may not be held in public, but only, if the Parish Priest judges that the sacrament cannot be postponed for genuine pastoral reasons, with a maximum of persons present as follows:

    1. Baptisms: the person being baptized, the parents and 2 Godparents.

    2. Weddings: the couple, their parents, 2 witnesses and a photographer.

  8. First Holy Communions will not be held for as long as these measures are in force.

 

The Bishop concludes:

Since this is an evolving pandemic situation, further updates will be issued through our Diocesan website and on our Twitter account: catholic.gi and @CatholicGi

Sadly, these exceptional, emergency measures are essential. The Catholic community remains committed to cooperating with the efforts being made to reduce the impact of Covid-19 in Gibraltar.

17th July 2019
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What do we mean by ‘ORDINARY TIME’?

By | Churches, Liturgy, News

With the end of Eastertide, the Church returns to her so-called Ordinary Time. This is a fitting way to remind us that the entire reason why God was born, became one like us —in everything but sin— was to show us the way back to the Father, which we had lost through the sin of Adam and Eve. This is at the heart of the mystery of our Redemption as revealed by God.

The Baptism of Jesus therefore signals the dawn of our hope: that being baptized in Him, we will die with Him, to rise with Him (c.f. St. Paul Rom 6:3-5; 1 Cor 10:11-12; Col 2:12).

The basis of our re-birth in Christ, is our new life in the Sacred Trinity: to live in an ineffable communion of love between Father, Son and Holy Spirit; in an eternal embrace of joy! That relationship begins now, through Baptism.

Jesus became truly man so that He could illumine the way for us, by following Him along our life-long road of conversion: turning away from sin and living a new life in God. Baptism is the gateway which Christ opens for us, to make possible our entry into Paradise —if we so desire— and live with Him forever.

The ‘Ordinary Time’ of the Church’s Liturgical Year in 2019 began on Monday 14th January. This means that we resume the 3-year cycle of readings from Sacred Scriptures which are proclaimed at Holy Mass each Sunday and during the weekdays.

Also, the ‘Divine Office’ or ‘Liturgy of the Hours’ which all religious, bishops, priests and deacons are obliged to recite in the name of the Church, ‘resets’ back to its starting point for the new liturgical year after the Feast of Christ the King, or more accurately, beginning from the First Sunday of Advent.

Since the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, an astonishing number of lay people, associations of Apostolic Life and groups have joined in this ‘Universal Prayer of the Church’. This is a tremendous blessing for the world, whereby from East to West, “from the rising of the sun to its setting, a pure sacrifice may be made offered to your name” [Eucharistic Prayer 3].

As with the Eucharistic Prayer which the Priest offers In Persona Christi —that is, in the Person of Christ— is Christ’s perfect prayer of praise and thanksgiving, which He offers continually to the Father, similarly the ‘Divine Office’ is His intercession for His Body, the Church.

In this official Prayer of the Church, we can feel the presence of our brothers and sisters —the Church in Heaven and the Church in Purgatory— praying in unison with the ‘pilgrimage Church’ on Earth. This is the nature and reality of the Catholic Church, which finds her origins and mission in the one Sacrifice of Christ, offered once and for all, to the Father on Calvary and made actual —in our time— through the Sacred Sacrifice of the Mass.

This Mystery is truly awesome! It generates in our hearts a sublime desire to worship the Triune God. It is the humbling feeling that our infinite God loves us. Without God, we are meaningless and finite; of little lasting worth! This sentiment of true devotion invites us to bend our knees and bow low, with deep reverence, as we behold and adore the Body and Blood of Christ at the elevation at Holy Mass. As we do so, God’s light of hope touches our hearts and makes us new: the grace of God, so freely given, transforms us into a new creation in Christ. That is why our Baptism unfolds and reveals throughout our life, who God destined us to be. It spells the unique mission we all have: to creatively reflect something of our ‘image and likeness’ of God, back to the Father who created us out of nothing.

The Church encourages all her Faithful to pray the Divine Office and also, to be renwed each day at Holy Mass. If we do so and listen to God’s Word attentively, which is at the heart —like a scaffold— of all our liturgies, we will have virtually gone through the entire Bible in 3 years! What a wonderful way to make a home in our hearts for Jesus, the Word-made-flesh!

In this year 2019, the programme of readings from Sacred Scripture for the Divine Office and for Holy Mass are as follows:

  • For Holy Mass:
    • Sunday readings = Year C.
    • Weekday readings = Cycle I.
  • The colour for the Liturgical vestments is green, symbolizing hope and fresh, new growth (as in God’s creation all around us) in our relationship with Christ.
17th June 2019
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CHANGES TO MASS TIMES AT CATHEDRAL & SACRED HEART

By | Churches, Liturgy, News

CHANGES TO MASS TIMES

 

CATHEDRAL

As from Monday, the 24th June 2019, due to the fact that priests in the Cathedral are or will be away or convalescing, apart from the fact that we have also lost Fr Mario Tong, we need to suspend temporarily one of the Masses celebrated in the Cathedral.

Therefore, the 7.30 morning Mass will be suspended for the time being.

This decision was not taken lightly, but under the extraordinary and unexpected circumstances we are in, we are sure that you will understand.

During the summer months commencing on Saturday 29th June, the weekend AND weekday evening Masses will be at 7.15 pm.

__________________________

 

SACRED HEART

 

For the time being during the summer months, in order to ensure we have a Priest available, the Mass schedule will be as follows as from Saturday 22nd June :

 

Friday 28th:         Feast of the Sacred Heart, followed by the traditional Parish celebration. Mass will be at 7 p.m.

 

All Saturdays & Holy Days of Obligation:       8:00 p.m.

                                                   All Sundays:        9:30 a.m.