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Catholic Customs


First Communion by Theofile Emmanuel Duverger - 1867


catholic The Vigil of the Passion: Watching with Christ - Part 4
Altars of repose, Calvary chapels & penitents mark the night

catholic The Silence of the Bells on Holy Thursday - Part 3
Wooden clappers replace the bells in churches & processions

catholic The Glorious History of the Mandatum - Part 2
The Washing of the Feet ceremony on Holy Thursday

catholic Holy Thursday Bread & Greens - Part 1
The Triduum begins with a day of Purification

catholicLenten Customs & Practices

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 1 -   Ash Wednesday: The Start of Penance
                  Penitential processions & the King's Cock Crower

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 2 -   How Lent Permeated Medieval Society
                  Nobles & peasants entered the season of penance & fasting

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 3 -   Counting down the Weeks of Lent
                  With effigies of old women, sardines & Jack-a-Lent

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 4 -   Fire: Symbol of the First Week of Lent
                  Burning away the last vestiges of sin & the disordered passions

catholic Christmas Greenery: Hope for Everlasting Life - Part 1
Forests & field provide the decorations of Christmas

catholic Trees of Paradise & Fruitful Grain - Part 2
Christmas customs that comes from the life of the peoples

catholic The Christmas Crèche & Mystery Plays - Part 3
Christ's Crib: the center of all the Christmas festivity 

catholic The Christmas Eve Meal: Symbolic Courses - Part 4
Awaiting Our Lord's birth with joyful expectation 

catholic The Holiest Night: Blessings for Animals & Land - Part 5
The grandeur of Christmas is felt even in the farmyards

catholic The Wonders of Christmas Night - Part 6
The nearness of Heaven brings new marvels to the earth

catholic Passion Week & Our Lady of Sorrows Processions
Veiled statues & other pious traditions

catholic St. Joseph: the Harbinger of Spring - Part 1
Great bonfires & processions to honor the Spouse of Our Lady

catholic Catholic Charity & St. Joseph’s Tables - Part 2
Private altars & grand feasts to treat the poor

catholic Candles & Bonfires - The Lights of Christmas - Part 1
Glorious lights filled the world in the Christmas of old

catholic Bringing in the Yule Log - The Lights of Christmas - Part 2
Merry festivities & solemn blessings in times past

catholic The Boy Bishops of Holy Innocents Day
Catholic customs of the fourth day of Christmas

catholic The Third Day of Christmas: The Wine of St. John
The power of this blessed wine over evil

catholic Ringing the Bells for All Saints Day
Special breads & preparing for the visits of the Poor Souls

catholic Lammas Day Is August 1: Celebrating Harvests of Souls & Wheat
Honoring St. Peter in the Chains & making the harvest festival

catholic Rogation Day Processions, Prayers & Perambulations - Part 1
Days to ask God's blessings & appease His just anger for sin

catholic Celebrating Ascension Thursday - Part 2
Countryside outings, mountain picnics & bird-shaped bread

catholic Can the Head of a Household Give Blessings?
Yes, he can. Read the answer

catholic The Return of Light for Candlemas
The sun's triumph reflected in the customs

catholic Festivities & Processions for Candlemas
The 'Dance of the Devils' and other colorful traditions

catholic The Blessed Candles of Candlemas
Sacral processions & protection from storms & dangers

catholic The Medieval Spirit of Advent & the Rorate Mass
Preparing for the First and Second Coming of Christ

catholic Re-enactment of the Holy Family Search for an Inn
Austrian boys choir repeats an old Christmas tradition

catholic The Wheat & Cherry Branches of St. Barbara's Day
Customs to honor & gain the protection of this great Saint

catholic Catholic Traditions on All Souls Day
Candles, flowers & prayers at the tombs & special 'soul foods'

catholic Commemorating the Nativity of Our Lady
Grape harvest festivals & the winter seed blessing

catholic Processions, Shells & Oysters on the Feast of St. James the Apostle
Joyful festivities in Spain & the New World

catholic Celebrating the Feast of Ss. Peter & Paul
Grand processions, fireworks, fairs & fish feasts

catholic The Belgium Gilles: The Pride of the City
A Carnival parade with deep roots & bright colors

catholic Farewell to the Alleluia
A beloved prayer, a powerful battlecry

catholic The Blessed Candles of Candlemas
Sacral processions & protection from storms & dangers

catholic The Feast of St. Thomas: Lively & Manly Customs
Whipcracking, rifle shooting & the search for an inn

catholic The Golden Nights
Customs & traditions preparing for Our Lord's coming

catholic All Hallows Eve: Joyful Anticipation
The ‘souling’ night with lanterns, bonfires, prayers & songs


catholic Honoring St. Michael on His Feastday
'Gloves, geese and ginger,' and many processions


catholic The Special Blessings on the Feast of the Assumption
Let us restore these innocent customs of the past


catholic Bonfires on the Eve of St. John the Baptist
Customs that marked this great feastday


catholic How Our Forefathers Celebrated Pentecost
Catholic Whitsun festivals and customs throughout Europe


catholic ‘Lady Day’ Gives Us a Rich & Sacral Legacy
The Annunciation Feastday celebrated with joy & sacrality


catholic The Authentic St. Patrick's Day: Joyful Ways of the Past
Mass, festivities, folk dancing in every village


catholic The Carnival: Charming Customs, Admiration for Royalty
Each region with its own festivities & ways of feasting before Lent


catholic The ‘Biddy Boys’ & Woven Crosses of St. Brigid’s Day
Traditional Irish customs for her February 1 Feastday 


catholic The Feast of St. Lucy Inspires Charming Customs
Processions and crowns of light in Italy and Sweden 


catholic Restoring the Feast of St. Nicholas
St. Nicholas and his companion mete out rewards & punishments 


catholic Martinstag Celebration in Germany
With its procession, St Martin's Day lanterns, procession and goose 


catholic Polish All Souls Day: Cemeteries Become Seas of Lights
A friend recalls the Catholic customs of her youth


catholic The Victim Is the Priest, Not the Baby
An elderly priest slaps a wailing child at a baptism


catholicCan One Pray the Rosary During Mass?
Yes, this is a time-honored custom that has the approval of Popes


catholicUnease Stalks German Christmas Markets
Islamic terrorism threatens the old custom of an entire people


catholicThe Angelus: a Meditation on Christmas
Its three points condense the whole Christmas story


catholicRemembering the Often-Forgotten Indulgences
What they are and the conditions required to earn them


catholicThe Sabbatine Privilege & the 30 Gregorian Masses
Is wearing the brown scapular enough to merit the privilege?


catholicCall Me Jorge’
Pope Francis disregards papal titles & protocol


catholic The Children’s Greeting
Lessons for today in a 19th century German painting


catholicThe Holy Viaticum in Bourgogne
A village priest brings Our Lord to a sick person for the last time


catholicMy Encounter with Alphonsus de Liguori
A new perspective for life after reading Preparation for Death


catholicThe Sudden & Unprovided Death
St. Francis de Sales distinguishes different ways to die well


catholicPreparing Soul and Body for Christmas
The authentic joys a Catholic should have & what should he avoid


catholicVisiting the Holy House of Loreto
St. Therese of Lisieux reports special favors received from Heaven


catholicWhy Saturday Is Dedicated to Our Lady
Only she was faithful to the promise of the Ressurrection on Holy Saturday


catholicThe Luminous Mysteries: Novelty Clashes with Tradition
Adding a new set of mysteries opposes Our Lady's expressed wish


catholicHow and When to Use the Veil in Modern Times
The ideal situation and practical solutions


catholicThe Rosary: A Weapon against Progressivism
Examples of how it destroyed heresies in the past should inspire us today


catholicThe Thirty Gregorian Masses
The efficacy of this centuries-old practice initiated by Pope St. Gregory the Great


catholicPraying the Fifteen Decades of the Rosary
Our Lady asked for the full Rosary and linked to it special graces


catholicDon't Forget Sacramentals - Aids to the Spiritual Life
What are these special ways the Church created to benefit the faithful?


catholicHow to Address Priests: Titles, Abbreviations, and Signs of Respect
The correct treatment for members of the Hierachy, clergy and religious persons


catholicSt. Pius X on Priestly Dignity and Propriety
Photos illustrating the contrast between past and present priestly behavior


catholicFirst Communion
Progressivism is destroying the sacrality of a soul's first encounter with Our Lord


catholicRestoration: Let's Begin with the Veil
History, significance and propriety of the veil for women at Mass


catholicA Study of the Veil in Christian Tradition

blank.gif - 807 Bytes             Introduction
                A scholarly study based on Greek and Latin texts of Saints

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 1:   The Veil in the Apostolic Age
                St. Paul ordered women to wear veils inside the church

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 2:   The Veil and the Church Fathers - St. John Chrysostom
                A woman should be ashamed not to be covered with a veil in church

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 3:   St. Ambrose and St. Augustine on the Veil
                Lust and vanity are avoided if a woman covers her hair and neck

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 4:   St. Thomas Aquinas and His Teaching on the Veil
                Not wearing a veil is not a sin, but its use is highly recommended

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 5:   The Veil in St. Thomas' Commentary on the Corinthians
                By covering her head, a woman  affirms her submission to man

blank.gif - 807 BytesPart 6:   What Does Canon Law Say about the Veil?
                While the Code of 1917 called for the veil, the Conciliar Code ignores it

blank.gif - 807 Bytes             Conclusion
                How and When to Use the Veil in Modern Times



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