Birmingham age-herald., 1895-04-09

accordance with the ofi sinal designs of the l church of Rome.
 Alltr the vespers ihe priest, with his | pinis eIs, divests the altafs of the church l of their coverings and other ornaments.
 The antiphOn, ''Divserunt, ano the l Psalm, 'sDeus, Deus meus,'i said by the 1 Irns and sung by The choir during the
 ceremony, sufficiently show that 1t repre-
 sents ihe stripping of our SavIor of his 1 garments, which they divided among | uein. He nakeoness of lbe altar
 sigbIfies that Christ, in his passion, lost
 all Lis beauty aLG maj j-sty and was in Il
 manner oeprived Of the glory of His divine l Bature.
 On this day the clergy of st me churches l meet 10 perform the ceremony of washin E
 the ftet, called in the Rubric :Manda-
 lum, or ihe 'Commanoment, bt cause l 1t Is cominauded by the tx mple and words
 of Jesus Christ. in tbe gospel sung before l the Iriest begins to wash the feet. Hence, | in each church the superior washes ihs feet | of his infefiols; many rich do the same to 1 the poor, and kings disdain not 10 St, oo to the feet of tbeir subjects. And il teaches | us to initiate the humility of cur Savior, | and 10 cleanse our souls from The stains oi | the smallest tins.
 On lhis day every year takes place tho | blessing oi the oil of catt ch umens, aud of | the oil oi unctlon Tor the sick, and inc holy | chrism is made.
 GOOD FRIDAY. The church comme morates every day the | bloody sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross | by true ana real unbloooed Sacrifice, in winch 'he { ff-rs 10 God the same bouy and | blood that were given for the sins of the world. But on Good Friday she offers no sacrifice, nor IS there aBy cousecration of
 the hoy eucharist; the priest receiving the tacrtd host which he mad consecrated the dAy before. So that in the fiji ce which
 is performed instead of the mass, she con tents herself wlth bare represenla,ion ot
 the passlcn ahd makes it hel chief business 10 expose io lhe faithful Jesus Christ cruel teo ior them. For this end she reads such
 lessons aLd tracts as contain predictions of
 His coming for ther redemption and types of His immolation on the cICss; and
 ihen she reads the history of the passion
 as related by St. John, to show how the
 law and the prophets were verified by the gospel.
 lie faithful by these lessons are in.
 slrucied Tn the mystery oi this day, and therefore beg with tne priest the fruit and application of this passion by praying for all sorts of persons, even schismaiics,
 heretics, Jews and ,gans. None are ex- ciudeo from the suurages of the church on day when Jesus Christ prayed for his prosecutors and effrred Ills blood to His Father for the saivation of those who sned it.
 Next, both priest and people adore Jesus Christ crucitied, expressing their adoration by kneelipg thrice before they kiss the cross. The veneration of the cross is as hbCieub as NuTIStldnIty IISeiI. II at tue bare name of Jesus every k nee should bend, what feeling should arise in Chris tian breast at the sight of the sacred sign of redemption? It is not 10 the irail materials of the cross that we pay our adoration, but to Him who on it offered for our sins the sacrifice of propitiaiIon.
 Alter the ceremony the priest brings back 10 the altar the body of our Lord with the same solemnity as II was carried from hon n hpr pdau md Hpic cbaat haf off by receiving the sacred victim that was slaln this day for the redemption of man. kind.
 HOLY SATURDAY. } The Tenebi9 or matins, with the other canon cal hours for this day, are conse- crated to the memory of our Lord in His .sepulchre; at mass He is represented to the ifaithiul as coming out of the grave and triumphing over death by His resurrection. The word .'night," used in the bepedic- itiou Of the Paschal candle, in the collect of the mass, in tue preface and communi- cantes, shows that the | flee and mass, now said In the middle of the day, were formerly said in the following night to honor the | lime of our Savlor's resurrection, which happened In this night.
 -oIhe altaTs, deprived of their ornaments on Meundy Thursday, are again clothed with them, and @ new fire IS blessed to illuminate them. The office begins with lighting d triple candle, which IS emble- matic ot he light of Christ, and signifies that the faith of the blessed Trinity pro- ceeds from the light communicated to us by Christ risen from the dead. The Paschal candle, blessed in the next place by the deacon, is figure of the body of Jesus Christ, and, not being lighted at first, rep resents Him dead; and the five blessed grains ot incense fixed in it denote the aro- matic spices that embalmed Him in the sepulchre. he lighting of the Paschal candle is a representation Of His rising gain 10 new lite; and the lighting of the teaches the faithful that the resurrection Of the Head will be followed by that Of the other memb bers.
 Tue baptlsmal font is blessed with cere- monies mat are full of mysteries. l. The priest divides the water in the form of a tcross, to teach us that iJ confers grace and sanctiiy by the merits of Christ crucfied 2. He touches the water with lis hand praying that it may be free from all inn pressions of evil spirits. 8. He sgnsit thrice with the sign of the cross, to bless it
 in the name of the Holy Trinity. 4. He separates it with his hand and casts out some of it towards the four parts of the world to instruct us that the grace of baptism, like the rivers of Paradise, flows all over he earth. 5. He breathes thrice upon it in the form of a cross, desiring God to bless 1t with the iD fusion of His Holy Spirit, that 1t may perceive the virtue of sanctifying the soul. 6. He plunges the Paschal candle thrice into 1t, praying that the Holy Ghost may descend upon it as He dld at the baptism of Christ in the waters of Jordan. 2. He mixes holy oil and chrism with it, to signify that baptism con St crates us 10 God and gives spiritual strength to wrestle with and overcome all the enemies