High Mass/Missa Cantata in Archdiocese of Toronto Saturday, August 25th 1230pm EST

(Source: https://achristianpilgrim.files.wordpress.com/)

Hello everyone,

I would like to announce another special offering of the Latin Mass (Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, herein the "EF") in our Archdiocese of Toronto, happening before Summer’s end. While I will not be involved liturgically (full serving compliment!,) others whom I have served with will be assisting at the altar of our Lord for this Mass.

The offering of this Latin Mass will be at the level of Missa Cantata/High (Sung) Mass, with Fr Russell Asch, Chaplain of the EF in the Archdiocese of Toronto as Celebrant.

The date and time of this offering is Saturday, August 25 at 12:30 PM. This will be held at the chapel for the Carmel Heights Seniors' facility located in Mississauga at 1720 Sherwood Forest Circle. Follow the link for a map.

As an interesting footnote the liturgical acolytes a.k.a. altar servers as well as the liturgical music of sacred Gregorian Chant, will not be organized/provided by the usual lay organizations or choirs, who normally hold offerings of the Latin mass at the higher levels in the Archdiocese of Toronto.

The servers will be composed of young men who already serve their home parish and/or extra-parish offerings of the EF, and a choir of young adults in our Archdiocese. This is an extraordinarily positive sign! This shows that young people in our Archdiocese are willing to go the distance, with some additional help when needed, to bring full, liturgical worship that people are craving, to the faithful in our local and universal Church.

This also shows that the EF alive and well in the Archdiocese of Toronto, and has expanded beyond its normal groups and parishes in our Archdiocese, and in the overall life of the Church. Who knew this would happen back in the mid 2000’s when the EF first re-emerged in Toronto’s faith life, outside of the one 1988 "indult Mass" at St Vincent De Paul.

As an important note: NO, this does not fulfill your SUNDAY obligation. You must still attend a Saturday Vigil Mass in a Valid and LICIT rite of the Church, OR Sunday Mass including either form of the Roman Rite.

Regardless, if you are looking for that beautiful endnote to the Summer in your faith life, or are genuinely curious, come one and all to this sacred offering of the Latin Mass.
Come experience real mercy and reverence in the Latin Mass, and see that Hagan Lio Pope Francis keeps telling youth to do!

Pax Tibi Christi, Julian Barkin.

Report: Missa Cantata/High Mass in the Extraordinary Form for Sacred Heart June 8, 2018 7pm EST

Hello everyone,

Once again St. Patrick’s Gregorian Choir, (herein, SPGC,) based out of Saint Patrick’s Catholic Church in downtown Toronto, began their season of organizing Latin masses a.k.a. the Extraordinary form of the Roman Rite, with a Missa Cantata or High Mass, last month on Friday June 8, 2018 at Saint Edward the Confessor Catholic Parish in North York, Ontario, within the Archdiocese of Toronto.

It is the pleasure of this author, once again serving the Lord Jesus Christ on the altar for these offerings, to be reporting on this sacred beauty of a liturgy in the Church.

Mass Preparation

At first, it was possible there would be no offering of Sacred Heart, due to the choirmaster`s other commitments in the classical music sphere within the city of Toronto. As of June 1st, Fr. Russell Asch who is now the official Chaplain for the Latin Mass in the Archdiocese of Toronto, agreed to be the celebrant for a Mass for the Feast of the Sacred Heart. In addition, an experienced Master of Ceremonies, Giovanni, who has frequently aided Fr. Asch in carrying out Latin masses in the Archdiocese, and training of servers for those Masses, assisted in recruitment of servers to serve the Lord on the altar, as well as performed the duties of the liturgical role of Master of Ceremonies for this offering.

As soon as the necessary people were gathered, a serving practice was held the night of Wednesday, June 6, at the confirmed parish for the Mass. The practice went quite well, and it helped that the servers present, including myself, were already experienced in serving the Latin Mass.

At the choir end of things, the SPGC, of who most of the members are veterans, practiced their repertoire for the Latin mass, and it was easily mastered as many of them have been with the choir over the years, including singing the Gregorian chant propers, specific for this feast as per the Liber Usalis, as well as being familiar with the Mass setting (No. 12/XII, For Feasts of the Third Class, ``Pater Cuncta,``) chosen by the choirmaster, Mr. Surinder S Mundra.

Prior to the day of the Mass, Giovanni and choirmaster Mundra went over the chants that were going to be used in the musical repertoire, so Giovanni would be able to predict timing on the altar, and for servers to be cued at the appropriate times, as well as for Fr. Asch's intonations, chanting etc.

The Day of the High Mass, June 8th.

With all servers and clergy in place, the sacred liturgy of the Latin mass was carried out well. The serving was nearly flawless without hesitation by any server involved, and everything went seamlessly. This includes my service to the Lord in the role of crucifer and the ringing of the bells (with some minor roles such as removing the Roman Missal for one of the incensations of the altar, and directing people at communion to the 2nd step,) during the Mass of the Canons a.k.a. the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

As per my usual reporting of these events, below are the usual pictures of the altar pre-Mass:

Further, once again Fr Russell Asch preached an excellent homily with points that teach new insights into our faith every day. Of the points I can recall, he preached on this relating to the Sacred Heart:

• When it comes to devotion to the Sacred Heart, there is history behind the devotion, and even up to today it’s symbolism persists in the Church, despite it being not as popular or well known as other devotion in the Church.
• A poignant note that happened around the late 1200`s or start of 1300`s, is the vision of St. Gertrude whom was allowed in her vision to rest her head near Christ`s wound and could hear the beating of the Sacred Heart. 
• St John Capistrano and another saint or individual, were mentioned, more in regards to devotion to a part of Jesus. For St. John Capistrano, that would be the sacred and Holy Name of Jesus, particularly attributed to a victory during the invasion of the Ottoman Turks against Christian cities, such as Belgrade, where his victory occurred.  
• The promotion of the devotion of Sacred Heart, was attributed directly to St. Mary Margaret Alacoque, to whom Christ directly revealed the desires of his Sacred Heart, as well as the particulars of the devotion such as Communion on the 9 First Fridays. 
• The Jesuits hold the devotion to the Sacred Heart quite prominently in their order. St. Claude de Colombiere, SJ, was the spiritual director of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. Fr Asch at this point showed the two sides of a red badge of olden days, the ``League of the Sacred Heart,`` one side having the sacred heart with light rays emitting from itself, the other side with Christ with arms extended (as seen below:)

(Source: https://www.sacramentals.org/SacredHeart.htm)

• The Passionist order of priests, hold the Sacred heart dearly though Christ`s Passion, death, and resurrection, with their heart emblems on their clerical robes, as well as their adjoining sisterly order, the Passionist Nuns.

• It is fitting that the symbolism of Jesus' Sacred Heart represents much of Christ giving himself, his whole self, to us in his ultimate sacrifice and act of mercy, and taking upon all our sin and suffering. Even pagan cultures, recognized the legitimacy of this symbolism to some extent. 
• On this relevant note is the death of one of our Canadian saints in this regard, St. John de Brebeuf, one of the "Canadian Martyrs."
• The Iroquois were NOT a friendly tribe of the Native Canadians to those priests who were trying to promote Catholicism in Canada. In 1649, the Iroquois attacked villages where the priests were doing their work, and attacked the village where St. John was, taking him hostage.
• St. John suffered brutal torture at the Iroquois' hands, of which Fr. Asch only describes some of the grotesque actions they took against John, but most noteworthy was that after St. John died, they cut our his heart and ate it raw. To them, the heart was the seat of the soul or the everything of a person, and to consume it would bestow life or vitality to them, as well as deliver the finishing blow to totally annihilating and enemy. 

• This symbolism with meaning, is also present in our faith lives, via the feast days of our Church. Each major feast day in the Church, points to a specific part of Christ`s life, whereby God allowed the Lord into our lives, and Christ poured our himself in the ultimate act of mercy and love, in his birth, passion, death, and resurrection. This is evident in Church solemnities and feast days, from Christmas, up to this very feast of the Sacred Heart. Some examples given were:

• The Feast of the Purification/Candelmas (Feb 2nd:) Here, candles are blessed and lit, representing Christ entering into the world as the Light of Hope for our salvation. This also commemorates historically Christ being presented to the Temple as first born son, which Jews were obligated to do. We Christians reflect this in the Sacrament of Baptism, baptizing our children as soon as they are born. 
• The Feast of Corpus Christi (June 2nd in the EF calendar, or Body and Blood of Jesus in the Novus Ordo on a Sunday usually in June:) When priests actually allow a Eucharistic Adoration procession to take place, often children who had (or will have) their Sacrament of First Communion take part, donned in their first communion clothes or all white, spreading a path of red rose petals as they go (e.g. Here at New Liturgical Movement.) The rose petals, represent the blood spilled by Christ from his wounds, including the lance piercing on the cross. 

After the Mass was concluded, and Fr. had done the Dismissal (a.k.a. "Ite Missa Est.") Fr. knelt at the foot of the altar and did the Act of Consecration and Reparation to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. Such an act receives a plenary indulgence when recited on this Feast of the Sacred Heart in the Church, under the usual conditions (Confession, Communion, and prayers for the Intentions of the Pope (1x Our Father, 1x Hail Mary, some people add 1x Glory Be) (See here, ``The gift of the indulgence.``)

Despite the short notice and planning of this offering in one weeks time, and small promotion of the offering only online (e.g. on Facebook(TM) groups and this blog,) about 40 to 50 lay faithful (including one priest or seminarian in semi-Jesuit cassock) were in the pews. Some of these included commrades in EF serving (and their significant others,) and/or fellow Brothers and Sisters of Christ of the clergy or servers. They were treated to a beautiful and sacred liturgy in the Archdiocese of Toronto! Even more so is the fact that even 40 to 50 individuals came to this offering in a short time frame, speaks for the Latin Mass and it’s growing interest and importance in the daily life of the church, as well as that the faithful are willing to spread news of when such offerings are held, and to invite others to be part of the Mass in the pews.

To all those who attended, we hope that you were spiritually moved and fulfilled by what you experiences, your senses aroused, and your souls enlightened to Heaven`s high, with all the angels and saints. Special gratitude is given to Fr. Pat, pastor of St. Edward the Confessor, who allowed another Latin Mass in his parish.

As for the next offering of the Latin Mass by SPGC, unless circumstances permit an offering in between, it will likely be on Sunday October 28, 2018, for the Feast of Christ the King in the EF calendar, which will be the 12th anniversary of the formation of the choir.

Pax Tibi Christi, Julian Barkin.

CONFIRMED! Latin Mass Announcement! MISSA CANTATA (High Mass) for Sacred Heart THIS FRI June 8 in the Archdiocese of Toronto!

Hello everyone,

The St. Patrick’s Gregorian Choir, stationed within the Archdiocese of Toronto at St Patrick’s Catholic Church in Downtown Toronto (link to parish here,) will be organizing and providing their voices in singing the liturgical music for, their annual offering of the Latin Mass/Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, for the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The details of the Mass for this feast day are as follows:

Where: St Edward the Confessor Catholic Church, Toronto (North York,) Ontario, in the Archdiocese of Toronto.
Address: 75 Churchill Ave, Toronto, ON.
When: Friday, June 8, 2018
Time of Mass: 7 pm E.S.T.

The celebrant for this Mass will be Fr Russell Asch, recently promoted to the Chaplain of the EF in the Archdiocese of Toronto, and now stationed at St Lawrence the Martyr in Scarborough (in place of transferred Fr Steven Szakacski.)

As a side note, I will be joining my friends in Faith of the SPGC choir, once again in a liturgical role on the altar, in service to our Lord.

For more information or questions, you may contact Surinder S. Mundra, choirmaster of SPGC at 416 731 4485. In addition, should you be interested in participation for this mass or in future, via serving or singing, you may also contact Surinder who will connect you for the appropriate part of the Mass (serving/singing).

You may also contact me at my blog e-mail (torontotlmserving@gmail.com) and I can put you in touch with Surinder and/or those in charge of serving for these Masses. Be advised if you desire to serve this Mass, you must have availability for Wed June 6 in the evening for a practice, site TBD. At this point any additional servers would be likely a boat bearer, in choir, or as torchbearers as it is now confirmed a complement of 5 servers (including myself) will be assisting.

For anyone and everyone else, please come and attend and encourage your friends to attend. I hope you will take the time to partake in this sacred event and be moved by the EF and all its parts on the altar. This will truly give you a taste of Heaven on Earth!

Pax Tibi Christi, Julian Barkin.

Latin Mass Triduum, 2018 in Archdiocese of Toronto. Better Late than Never.

(Source: https://fineartamerica.com/featured/jesus-on-the-cross-roman-piercing-kurt-miller.html)

``... Regnum meum non est de hoc mundo .... Ego in hoc natus sum, at ad hoc veni in mundum, ut testimonium perhibeam veritati: Omnis qui est ex veritate audie vocem meam.`(Douay-Rheims John 18: 36 - 37: ``My kingdom is not of this world ... For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, that I should give testimony to the truth. Every one that is of the truth, heareth my voice.``)

Hello Everyone,

Forgive my tardiness that I did not get this out for yesterday, Holy Thursday, but I write this as finally, I have a chance to myself, as my first born son is being quiet. I became a father as of 1024h last Friday, Mar 23rd.

Thanks to a Latin Mass mailing list I'm on, I have come across information for the annual Latin Mass Triduum (since 2014 or 2015) that is held in Toronto. From the e-bulletin, I share the following information:

WHERE: Chapel of the Carmel Heights Retirement Residence, staffed by Carmelite Sisters.
Address: 1720 Sherwood Forrest Circle, Mississauga, Ontario, CAN
Website for Residence: http://www.carmelheights.ca/

MASSES:

• Holy Thursday/Solemn Mass of the Lord's Supper (Thurs Mar 29, 2018) 730pm EST Start time
• Adoration to 1100pm
• GOOD FRIDAY (TODAY, Fri Mar 30, 2018)
• Stations of the Cross (EF/Usus Antiquor): 2PM EST
• SOLEMN Service: 3PM EST
• HOLY SATURDAY/SOLEMN Paschal Vigil (Tomorrow, Apr 1/18)- 830pm EST Start Time

Some notes:

1) I, and my closest allies and siblings in Christi in the TLM in Toronto, have no personal/professional nor desired relationship with certain parties involved in the Triduum liturgies, nor have been asked by any party involved to assist. In spite of this, I promote this Triduum on my blog because: Fr. Russell Asch is chaplain to the residence (incl. the sisters, and does their Masses IN ADDITION to those of the Latin Mass) and has been faithful to ALL parties in the TLM community including my friends of St. Patrick's Gregorian Choir (plus technically, one could say he is pastor of the chapel;)) one of my closest friends in faith has decided to sing in the choir for these liturgies/services; and most of all for the good of the lay faithful (and clergy to an extent) who have honest and non-radically traditionalist interest in the EF liturgy of the Roman Rite, particularly in the most, important time of the Catholic Faith during the year.

2) While priests who are under the spiritual authority of the Archdiocese of Toronto are involved in the carrying out of these Masses/services, in no way, shape, or form, is this directly due to the Archdiocese of Toronto proper, or any of its episcopal members, up to and including His Eminence, Thomas Cardinal Collins. This has been independently organized via the efforts of parties involved, individual lay men and women, and the assisting clergy. 

3) All services and/or Masses of these EF liturgies will be done at the level of the Missa Cantata/Sung or High Mass, with one priest officiating and carrying out the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass/Good Friday service, with a full complement of altar servers and a liturgical choir. 

4) Fr. Steven Szakaczki, priest for the EF at St. Lawrence the Martyr Toronto (and veteran, as well as mentioned numerous times here on S.U.D.) will be the celebrant/priest for the Holy Thursday and Good Friday liturgies/services. Fr. Russell Asch will be the celebrant/priest for Holy Saturday. 

_________________________________

If you have not spread the word to your family and friends, please do so! Don`t forget to arrive early! Pew space is limited to about 75 bodies, plus maybe 40 seats on the sister's side (single Transept) for overflow. After that it will be standing room only. 

Spread the Word, and may you contemplate with deep fervor and passion, that of His Lord, Jesus Christ, who sacrificed himself on the wood of the Cross for the opportunity for us to obtain Eternal Salvation. 

PAX TIBI CHRISTI, Julian Barkin. 

Report: Solemn Latin Mass for Feast of Christ the King, Sunday Oct 29, 2017 in the Archdiocese of Toronto

REPORT: SOLEMN LATIN MASS FOR THE FEAST OF CHRIST THE KING IN THE LATIN RITE (EXTRAORDINARY FORM CALENDAR), SUNDAY OCT 29, 2017 @ 3PM EST, ST. EDWARD THE CONFESSOR IN THE ARCHDIOCESE OF TORONTO

Hello everyone,

This past Sunday, October 29, 2017, was the Feast of Christ the King in the Extraordinary Form (aka, EF, Latin Mass,) liturgical Calendar of the Roman Rite in the Catholic Church. On this feast day, the St Patrick’s Gregorian Choir (herein, SPGC,) once again organized a Solemn Latin Mass in the Archdiocese of Toronto, on what was their 11th anniversary of formation. The Latin Mass was held in the area of North York in the Greater Toronto Area, at St Edward the Confessor parish at 75 Churchill Ave, at 3pm EST this past Sunday.

Notes of importance

With this offering of the TLM, some notes of importance that must be mentioned, showing how much the Latin Mass is growing and starting to reach an impact in our parish communities. When the TLM is promoted by those who: express solidarity with our Holy Father and the Catholic Church
expressing the positive Joy of the Gospel, and actually practicing what Pope Francis professes in his homilies (including daily "fervorinos") instead of: jealousy, detraction/slander, and even declarations of heresy in various form of communications (e.g. letters, “Tweets,” emails,) positive fruits such as the following occur:

• For this solemn Mass, we had a seminarian almost finished his studies, as well as an actual permanent deacon, in the clergy roles of sub-deacon and deacon respectively.
• The seminarian has assisted at Latin Masses in serving roles, but in this Mass, this was his first time as one of the three clergy roles, as the sub-deacon! Another first for the EF!
• The permanent deacon, was actually the deacon of the hosting parish! He had assisted for the first time in a Latin Mass, at the June 2017 Sacred Heart TLM organized by St Patrick’s Gregorian Choir. He was happy to assist again with his home parish community!
• We also had another two men in formation, including a seminarian of St. Augustine`s in Toronto in his pastoral 3rd year @ St. Edward's, and the other has been in past offerings of the TLM/EF organized by SPGC, who were in choir on the altar! Deo Gratias for the interest of those men in formation who are being exposed and/or willingly seeking out the TLM despite no formal courses in seminary!
• On the serving end of things, our thurifer was another gentleman stationed at the parish who is in formation for the permanent diaconate program at St Augustine’s Seminary! Also we had a new young man to the scene of SPGC offerings, a senior in high school who has started becoming involved in TLM serving! Welcome J!

Pre-Mass Preparations

Once the Mass site was confirmed, preparations were underway. The master of Ceremonies, who usually is responsible for server training and providing direction for the clergy roles* (with assistance from the priest celebrant,) set up practices for both clergy and servers, with an additional practice for the clergy due to the deacon & sub-deacon being new in their clergy roles, or becoming more proficient at their role from their last occasion of doing so in the EF.

The servers, with the clergy, did a combined practice the week before the Mass, where roles were given to the servers based on their experience, and the practice went well between those involved in the liturgy of the Mass on the Altar. Good instruction was given to all parties by the MC and celebrant (a veteran and blessed soul to all parties in the Latin Mass community in Toronto, Fr. Russell Asch,) alongside a guest Master of Ceremonies who has been helping out with other Mass offerings in the archdiocese. The instruction was well received by clergy and servers.

The actual Mass on Sunday Oct 29, 2017

Prior to starting time of 3pm, all clergy and serving members arrived promptly, and the altar was set up in good time.

Side view of the Gospel side of the altar, with credence table in the background, as well as the sediliae arranged, and server's seating with Latin/English translation of readings and propers in pamphlets.

View of the main altar prior to mass, with some laity in the pews in the nave.

Closer picture of the altar setup for the sacred liturgy. 

Final small notes/pointers/assistance were reviewed in the sacristy for those involved in the liturgy, and all members donned their robes prior to the start time. In addition, the pastor of the parish was able to assist some lay members who requested the Sacrament of Confession prior to Mass (Deo Gratias!) Then, at 3PM EST, we who were to be on the altar of the Lord, processed from the back of the nave of the parish, towards the altar to begin the Holy Sacrifice of all time in the Liturgy of the Mass. 

Entrance Procession picture 1

Entrance Procession picture 2. I, the author, was Acolyte 1, and can be seen on the right side with candle in arms behind the crucifer and next to Acolyte 2.  

Prayers at the Foot of the Altar with the clergy and the Master of Ceremonies (kneeling). Celebrant/Priest Fr. Asch is in center, with Deacon on the right (in Dalmatic, noted by two horizontal bars on his back), and Sub-deacon on the left (in Tunicle, noted by one horizontal bar on his back.) 

Thankfully, on this occasion, I was able to retain a good portion of points of the Homily from our celebrant, and jotted notes down after the Holy Mass that night. While these points may not be verbatim what the good and Holy Father said, much was remembered, giving a taste of the excellent preaching done in the EF liturgy. The homily from Fr. Asch, was quite interesting, inter-weaving the themes of Christ our Lord and King and children, a take this author has not seen nor thought could relate with this Feast, having served Mass on this feast day in the EF for the past 6 years [coincidentally, the 6th anniversary of my foray into altar serving in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite]:

• Fr. Asch began by re-reading the first lines of the Gradual (Psalm 71: 8, 11) "He shall rule from sea to sea, and from the river to the ends of the earth .... And all kings shall adore Him, all nations shall serve Him."
• The feast of Christ the King should have particular interest to us, particularly as the state of our world appears to be coming more and more dark, for example, in the realm of politics [Editorial note: Fr Asch might have been referring to the USA under Donald Trump as well as Kim Jong Un in Korea, but I didn’t ask him for specifics.]
• When we think of this feast day, we might conjure up images, of our devotion to the image of the Infant Christ the King adored in crown.

• Being at the time of year it is, on Halloween weekend, most children take simple delight in this annual activity of trick-or-treating. When they dress up and go around collecting candy, they enjoy themselves, with pure joy in the moment with their treats. They are satisfied in the moment at such an activity. It is this simplicity that one should apply in terms of us approaching our Lord. 
• On a related side note to Halloween, Fr Asch also rightly commentated on how such a fun thing for our children has become so distorted by secular society in many ways, one being making Halloween grotesque. He recalled taking his younger nephew to a Halloween store where a figure of a zombie or a demon was eating the flesh of a human or its own flesh was present and it unsettled his poor nephew in a queasy way.

• Moving onward Fr Asch then began to describe briefly the development of this feast day in the liturgical Calendar, being different from the Novus Ordo in that it is the last Sunday in October.
• Pius XI, in 1925, when he wrote the encyclical QUAS PRIMAS, has likely positioned the feast day in the calendar for the last Sunday in October for two central reasons: 
• The first was that Pope has such Awe [as in rightful spiritual Fear of the Lord, as per the Gift of the Holy Spirit] for Christ as King of the Universe, he was trembling in instilling such a feast day. 
• The second would be that there were other important feasts in the calendar and focuses in October, such as October being a month of the Rosary and being associated with Mary. 

• Mentioning Mary, Fr then discussed the two devotions of the Sacred Heart, and the Immaculate Heart, encouraging such devotions, but also discussing the Hearts and their relation to Christ the King, as well as Mary being full of Grace, the grace needed to carry out God's will (including the birthing of Christ, who would be King.) 
• In discussing this, Father had a visual reference for those present, in a vintage plaque of the Sacred Hearts side by side with a Latin Inscription around the borders of the ovals of Christ and Mary, placed in front of the Pulpit before Mass began, as seen below in this picture of the Homily at Mass:

Homily at the Mass. While small, notice the picture of the two Hearts below the pulpit on the little table. 

 

• Fr. also then tied back the theme of children and their simplicity and innocence back to family hood from describing the Holy Family with the devotions. In terms of the kingship of Christ and how we should relate to it, it is analogous to a son who adores his father with genuine and simple love, no strings attached, and even wants to be part of him via admiration of his profession, being “just like Dad.”
• Our Lord Jesus Christ is like that father, allowing us to partake in that shared life of His via the Sacraments and in obeying His and the Church's teachings. In that, is where our Lord shows his love, compassion, and mercy for us as adopted children of God.
• Most of all, we are given a choice freely in life as to whether we choose to live that life or not in his Kingdom forever. To illustrate that choice, Fr described headstones on a grave site. The birth date and the death date are emphasized, but really the most important part should be the "dash", that whole life of the person. 
• Spiritually speaking, we should be making every moment of our lives count to that effect, particularly they should we separate ourselves from our Lord with sin, it will be even one act of Confession that shall redeem ourselves, graciously given by the Lord, to restore and keep us in his Sanctifying Grace. 
• We should make every opportunity possible in our lives to adore our King and be willing to be with our Lord in his kingdom, be that prayers, rosaries, sacraments, indulgences ... we should make every effort count! 
• Because in the end, there are but two kingdoms we can choose to partake in, two standards which we can choose one to bear. The first the standard of a tyrannical and ruthless kingdom akin to Babylon, with a merciless King and war and endless suffering, or the second akin to a Eternal “Jerusalem” where by the merciful and loving King, Our Lord Jesus Christ, rules with love and true mercy. Which standard do you choose to bear?"
• Fr then ended the Homily by praying a Hail Mary, a "t"radition I have witnessed enough at the Latin Mass, though this is not something that is forced upon priests to perform as part of the liturgy of the Latin Mass. 

As for the rest of the liturgy, despite a few cues here and there for the new clergymen, and this author's usual nerves, the Mass was carried out with beauty and solemnity in my Archdiocese of Toronto that fall day. The rest of the servers carried out their roles proficiently, and all present walked away after the Mass peaceful in our hearts and souls. 

As an added bonus for the souls of the faithful present, prior to the exit procession, Fr. Asch knelt down before the foot of the altar, to recite the beautiful prayer of the Act of Dedication of the Human Race to Jesus Christ King (Iesu dulcissime, Redemptor.) This prayer, when said publicly on the Feast 

of the Christ the King, grants the souls present a plenary indulgence under the usual conditions: Sacrament of confession, communion, and prayers for the Holy Father`s intentions (minimum 1x Our Father and 1x Hail Mary) within 20 days of the indulgenced act (see general conditions, "The Gift of the Indulgenced Act").

Exit procession of the servers and the clergy. 

In attendance was about 100 strong, in a Church containing a pew capacity of maybe 400-500, with what was likely a number of local parishioners of the parish, as well as experienced Latin Mass attendees, based on the number of mantillas I witnessed in the pews from the altar. 

Many thanks is given to all those involved in the planning and partaking of this liturgy, and even to those laymen who graciously assisted with the collection (Thank you, Ramon and Anthony,) but especially to those deacons, the deacon in formation (our thurifer above), and the seminarians who were present in choir. Your presence is a God-send and a ray of hope for the future of the Church, and in the promotion of sacredness in the Liturgy via your interest in the Latin Mass. Thanks is also given to the pastor of St. Edward, "Fr. Pat," who graciously allowed this offering to occur in the parish that afternoon, and for providing confessions to those souls who needed the Sacrament of God's infinite Mercy and Love.  

Pax Tibi Christi, Julian Barkin. 

Footnote:

* Let me state for the record that this is NOT unusual, in the current state of the return of the Latin Mass, that competent laymen or future clergy who are Masters of Ceremonies, are providing direction to both serving and clergy. Worldwide, the number of competent priests knowledgeable in celebrating the EF, still needs to grow to a large enough number that they will be available to take on the bulk of the training of liturgical roles in the Latin Mass, in addition to their normal parish duties. In addition, it is a primary duty of the MC, to ensure that the liturgy is carried out properly and if necessary, to provide assistance and cues even in the liturgy, to see such a goal is carried out properly. As for the Archdiocese of Toronto, let it be stated that SPGC is NOT the only choir/lay initiative who is allowing for such MC/lay assistance in the training, preparation, and carrying out of the EF liturgy to be occurring in this manner. Let it be the Will of the Lord that one day, that the Church will once again have a plentiful number of competent priests who can be responsible for training in all aspects of the EF liturgy, though it should still be welcome that laymen will continue to take an active interest in the sacred liturgy of the EF, and have such knowledge to be able to assist priests in certain duties.  

REPORT: Christ the King Solemn Latin Mass on Sunday Oct 25th, 2015 at Loretto Abbey Chapel.

Hello Everyone,

The St. Patrick's Gregorian Choir (SPGC) once again organized another beautiful and sacred Solemn Latin Mass in our Archdiocese of Toronto.

On this the Feast of Christ the King in the Extraordinary Form/Latin Mass calendar, and co-incidentally the 9th anniversary of the formation of the SPGC, we were blessed by the hospitality and generosity of the sisters of the Incarnate Word of Blessed Virgin Mary (IBVM) to have usage of their chapel, attached to Loretto Abbey Catholic Secondary School. Our Mass was 330pm in the afternoon this past Sunday, October 25th, 2015.

In preparation for this Mass, our servers met at St. Lawrence Martyr Catholic Church on the Friday evening prior, to go over their roles for the Mass. Practice went well, and all save our crucifer (due to work) were accounted for. With 7 servers in tow, including myself as First Acolyte and our Master of Ceremonies, we were organized and motivated to have a great Solemn Mass, fit with even torchbearers!!! In addition, some of these servers have had prior experience, be it assisting at St. Joseph Streetsville, St. Lawrence the Martyr, or other Latin Mass initiatives in Toronto.

As usual, the SPGC choir practiced after their 5:00pm Mass downtown at St. Patrick's Catholic Church, the Redemptorist Parish and the National Shrine Church of Canada for Our Lady of Perpetual Help. The 5pm vigil is their regular Mass, by the way, where they provide hymns for the liturgy, and chant or sing in Latin the major response parts of the Novus Ordo Mass.

As for the day of, we arrived at 2pm to prepare the chapel for Mass, and to go over roles for the liturgy. We had some interesting issues to contend with:

• Some liturgical equipment was not provided for us (e.g. a "triple chain" thurible, acolyte candles ...) or was more "modern" (a processional cross with a resurrected Jesus/"Resurrefix")  but thankfully, most equipment that was lacking, was supplied by the choir, as well as a few editions of my own I've payed personally for, to be able to assist the choir and anyone else I do the Latin Mass with. Whatever was not of usual, we used the chapel equipment just the same. Regardless, here's the setup of the liturgical equipment:

The acolyte candles, gracefully provided by St. Patrick's Gregorian Choir. There were none readily available at the chapel! 

The lavabo bowl, washing cruets, and towel (yes, a real towel) from the chapel. As for those fancy cruets and the communion paten, those are from my personal liturgical stockpile. 

This little incense boat was part of my liturgical collection to be used for Masses. It has a little gold-coloured spoon inside too. 

A side view of the sediliae, as well as bells, aspergillum and aspergillus, with single chain censer and stand, lavabo bowl and jug with a towel (that's all there was), provided by the chapel. 

This, my friends, is a beautiful wooden tabernacle, made by one of the choir members. Turns out they do not just sing you know. They bear many a talent to glorify the Lord. Best part is that it is light weight, and can be used for the Latin Masses, when needed to replace one, if the main tabernacle is off to the side, or if we cannot use one, regardless of reason. Also present is one of three altar cards, of the set owned by the choir. 

Voila! The complete credence table complete with additions of chalice with veil, the humeral veil, and the Epistolarium, either from the Choir or from our clergy who celebrated the Mass. 

The completed front altar, set up for the Latin Mass. Unfortunately we were not allowed to use the high altar, as this has been set up by the media company for the daily mass recordings. 

A final view of the sanctuary from afar, and the lovely stained glass window and sanctuary of the chapel. This chapel was built in 1950 prior to Vatican II, and despite small changes that were standard at that time of the Council (e.g removal of altar rails), much of this is untouched! Just looked at the wooden crucifix and the reredos in the back! 

• Space. Wow ... well this is a chapel, not a full size church, so processing was somewhat of a challenge. The side rows were maximum two normal people's width, making maneuvering a little challenging. This also was a smaller sanctuary than normal, and I personally found this a challenge. There was barely any space between me, my chair, and the sediliae in front of me, so much so getting up and down to kneel, meant hitting the wood of my chair. Ugh.  

• A new caveat: Since last year, the Archdiocese of Toronto's daily Mass recordings have moved from St. Basil's in University of Toronto, to the chapel of Loretto Abbey for Monday to Saturday (daytime) Mass. You can view it here online at https://www.youtube.com/ user/dailymass. However, for us, we were told NOT to move any major items. If we moved something minor, it was put back in place. Because of this, we had to opt NOT to use their still intact high altar, and instead use the Novus Ordo Altar for the Mass. Usually most churches do not have high altars anymore, or renovated to make them non-usable, so we were not bothered by this fact. 

The Mass


Prior to the Mass, laity were provided with booklets, which contained the Propers and liturgical readings for the Mass in Latin and English, along with a copy of the hymn, "Sweet Sacrament Divine," to encourage vocal participation in the Latin Mass. Here's some pictures of the booklet:

These booklets also contained commentary on the feast day, from a famous traditional book, The Liturgical Year, by Dom Prosper Gueranger. 

With all the preparation and last minute directions for the servers, now in their location of the Mass, we proceeded ahead with the sacred liturgy. For the Mass, our clergy, all priests experienced with carrying out the Extraordinary Form in our Diocese were:

1. Fr. Jean- Pierre Pilon, formally trained by Fraternal Society of St. Peter; pastor of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary parish in Peterborough - Subdeacon (also, please see my January posting on his initiative, begun this year.)
2. Fr. Steven Szakaczki, Latin Mass Chaplain of the Archdiocese of Toronto, residing at St. Lawrence the Martyr - Deacon
3. Fr. Russell Ashe, Associate Latin Mass Chaplain working with Fr. Steven, assisting @ St. Lawrence the Martyr - Celebrant (Priest).

As for the Homily, this was said by our celebrant, Fr. Ashe. Between the echo-ey acoustics, being at the side vs. in front of Father, the good Father's accent (British?), and my poor sleeping habits, I'll admit that I do not remember the majority of the homily, but here's the small tidbits I remember, with links/additions where needed from sources, such as papal documents:

• Father began the Homily with a quote from Scripture, when Christ is being magnified in the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor, and God speak of him as in Luke 9:35: "....  “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” God clearly indicates the authority of His Divine Son in this passage. 
• Father than continued on to explain the origins of the feast day of Christ the King, in how it was established by Pope Pius XI in 1929, in the encyclical Quas Primas. 

• Part of the reason for Pope Pius XI releasing the exhortation, and establishing the feast day, was to combat religious laicism in society and the Church: whereby people would not acknowledge the Kingship of Christ as lord, or any God for that matter. This Feast day was to make public pronouncement in the Church, of the Lord as our Saviour, but also our Divine King whose kingdom is in Heaven. 

• Father also mentioned St. Joseph in the capacity of Christ the King. We do not usually connect kingship with St. Joseph normally, as we usually acknowledge him as St. Joseph the Worker. However, a father in a family relationship is a "king" of sorts. He is the natural leader; he rebukes, chastises, but he also loves and serves those whom are in his servitude or under is governance. Christ's Kingship is exactly like that, as being God Made Flesh, whereby like God Jesus is not a tyrant ruler judging us, but He is the Divine Lord and Father, rebuking, chastising when necessary, but also loving and leading us so that way we are led to proper governance, and proper salvation to Him. 

• In a way, we all share in the kingship of the Lord. Father Ashe reminded us of a particular portion of Vatican II, from the decree APOSTOLICAM ACTUOSITATEM, that  "...  the laity likewise share in the priestly, prophetic, and royal office of Christ and therefore have their own share in the mission of the whole people of God in the Church and in the world." (AA, 2)

• I also think that Father touched upon a point I remember from one of years' past Masses on Christ the King, the concept of self-governing one and rebelling against the King. When one accepts the "kingship" of self or the Devil, he is accepting one of anarchy and non-authority, being the sole governor of one's life. 

• Father also, in reference to this rebellion, commented on the war of the Angels and devils. Satan bucked this Divine kingship of the Lord, saying to him "Non-Serviam," meanwhile St. Michael, dutifully acknowledges Christ's Kingship, and having the name Michael signifies "quis et deus" which means in Latin "who is like God." I am not sure if Fr. had this planned, or he took inspiration from a couple of depictions of the archangel commander (see pictures below.)

Despite everything (ugh that chair!), we came out with a sacred, Solemn Latin Mass, and we even had the addition of the Asperges Rite as well as torchbearers!!! Also, considering that the school chapel was a bit out of the way from major streets (closest station is York Mills and you have to go up the hill to get close to it), we still had a good turnout of about 50 laity in our pews, and a couple of sisters were around while the Mass was going on. Also, a master of ceremonies from other Latin Mass initiatives in the Archdiocese attended our Mass! It was great to see our brothers in serving support us.

Hopefully, the choir will consider doing as usual, their offering of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, Tuesday December 8th. I will definitely be reporting on this when I receive any official word from Surinder and the SPGC choir.

To conclude, some personal anecdotes and musings (and school spirit)
Occasionally, when these masses occur, some little interesting anecdotes or facets just happen, because of the site, or by the grace of the Lord. I would like to share a few of them with you.

To begin, my lovely fiancee finally made it out to a Solemn Latin Mass held by the choir!!! While I wished there had been a bigger crowd, regardless I was happy to see here there, and to know that she supports my endeavours, as I support hers (though I have to work on my temperance and stop being so critical of things and going "rah rah rah Latin Mass" too much.). In case you are curious about her, (e.g. a picture, a name) let`s just say that there`s a few things I hold close to the vest at the given moment. I decline from posting any information to her.

A second and third note, joined together. At one of my fiancee`s parishes she currently assists in Novus Ordo liturgies, as a ``jack of all trades`` (Server, MC, Sacristan, EMHC ...,) sometimes in multiple roles when short-handed, I have been blessed when she has been an EHMC to be able to receive communion from her. It`s a touching moment being served by the one you love, with the One Who LOVES TOTALLY, as she will best exemplify in this Sacrament of Marriage. Today, I had to do somewhat of a ``reverse role``, with me assisting the deacon (Fr. Pilon) in handing out communion to the lay faithful via holding the communion paten. My fiancee came up beside me, on the prie-deux to kneel and receive communion from Fr. Pilon as deacon. I of course was filled with glee seeing my beloved there, but then afterwards a thought occurred to me. Fr. Pilon and I (with of course Fr. Pilon as ordinary minister serving her the Sacred Body of Christ, so don`t misinterpret what I say.) ``served`` her, when normally I am the one being served Christ`s Body by her as an EMHC in the Novus Ordo Mass.

Then, it clicked to me. Here we are, both of us, having been served Christ`s Body, and are serving with Christ, in a literal and other sense, and also have assisted the other in being served. When I marry this golden gift of the Holy Family, my love of my life, we will be doing this in everything, with the sacrament of Marriage presenting ourselves to Christ. When a couple marries, this is their primary vocation, serving the Lord, and serving each other as He served us, and being his exemplar, as him with the Church to the world, for our salvation. In the Eucharist is his Love, served to us through the Church, HIS TOTALITY!!! Also, the couple is to help each other achieve salvation, and become saints through the Sacrament and lifetime of love. Wow, just wow. That was what, all of 2-3 seconds in the Latin Mass and I got that awesome insight??? The Latin Mass did that for me .... Deo Gratias.

Finally, as I was looking around the chapel of the Loretto sisters, I came across two poignant signs .....

 

The picture was outside of the Chapel. The statue is right above the entrance to the chapel, on the inside. 

Wow!!! These are magnificent depictions of St. Michael. What beauty! What strength!!! It turns out that in chatting with an IBVM sister who came by at the end of the Mass, she revealed that in the history of their order, their devotion or protection/patronage to St. Michael, goes as far back as England from when they came over.

In a related side note, (for any of you who are St. Michael's College School alumni/current SMCS students (BTW I'm an 2002 grad,)) the history of the "sister school" to St. Michael, is that St. Mike's TRUE sister school, was the Abbey. Holy Name of Mary College School in Mississauga changed that, but the Abbey was the sister school of St. Mikes for the longest time, with a history of social exchange (dances) as well as students applying to each other's dramatic productions, and even a cheer-leading squad for sports games, prior to the late 90's. They also have the "double blue" as part of their colour scheme for their kilts and uniforms, just like our school colours. To me ... the Abbey will always be the true sister school to St. Mike's.

So seeing these depictions of St. Michael, my devotion, this blog under St. Michael's patronage, and my alma mater's interesting history with the Abbey, one could say I had a lot of signage and connection with St. Michael that day. It was great to see his presence with us as we glorified the Lord, and made me ever more thankful for his patronage, and watch over us and the Abbey.

Finis

I hope you have enjoyed yet another report of the liturgical initiatives of the St. Patrick's Gregorian choir whom I serve with. If you attended the Mass of the 50 or so people, thank you for attending. May your souls have been uplifted to Heaven with the Saints and angels, and your soul nourished. Please stay tuned for the next offering from the choir. 

Pax Tibi Christi, Julian Barkin. 

REPORT: Solemn Latin Mass for Feast of the Sacred Heart, Fri June 12, 2015 @ St. Paul's Basilica, Toronto

Hello Everyone,

After a good length of time since Immaculate Conception 2014, for St. Francis of Assisi's centenary celebrations, the esteemed St. Patrick's Gregorian Choir, (SPGC) operating within the Archdiocese Toronto, began it's 2015 season of organizing higher level Latin Masses for the lay faithful of the Archdiocese. Of course, yours truly once again served alongside this awesome choir in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

For SPGC's first Mass in 2015, to commemorate the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the choir was welcomed back to St. Paul's Basilica in Toronto, a real treasure of a parish/worship site. The last Solemn Mass that the choir held at this site was for the Feast of Divine Mercy/Low Sunday, back in 2012.

Having had artistic renovations in the last decade, the basilica is what I like to describe as, a "mini Sistine Chapel." Let the pictures below tell the tale, even though this is only a sampling of this gorgeous site:

The exterior, in classic church design with a functional bell tower. 

A snapshot from the back of the Body of the Church. Look at all the painted frescoes on the ceiling! 

Close-up of some of those frescoes. I am not sure of the top and bottom, but the middle is a depiction of either Peter's thrice-fold denial, or the wagering of Christ's clothes by lots (dice). 

This must be the Holy Family, with the Holy Spirit in classic dove symbolism, atop a standard, classic style confessional. 

In addition to the lovely space for the Holy Mass, we were blessed to be in the presence once again, of the Archdiocese of Toronto's most experienced Latin Mass priests: Fr. Russell Asch, associate pastor of St. Joseph's ("Streetsville") Catholic Church in Mississauga, and Fr. Steven Szakaczki, who is responsible for St. Lawrence the Martyr Scarborough's Latin Mass program, and other Latin Mass inquiries in the archdiocese. Fr. Steven took over after Fr. Howard Venette of the FSSP left Toronto in 2010. Both priests have been veterans in the Latin Mass circuit for High/Solemn Latin Masses in our Archdiocese, and have been a blessing in assisting the needs of those seeking the Extraordinary Form without prejudice or bias.

Preparation for the Mass

After making arrangements to secure the necessary serving and clerical roles, a practice was arranged for servers and those needing additional practice work for their roles, on Tuesday, June 9. The practice was held at St. Lawrence the martyr, with Fr. Szakaczki generously allowing for the practice space. Unfortunately, the basilica was not able to be booked for a practice.

During the practice at St. Lawrence, our Master of Ceremonies (MC)/Instructor went over the necessary parts for all servers, and assigned roles accordingly, with your author being assigned Acolyte 1. In an additional blessing and bonus, a full contingent of 6 servers were acquired for this Mass, with the optional roles of crucifer and boat bearer being fulfilled too! In addition one new server joined us, who had not assisted with the choir's Masses previously.

With this new server, and new attendees partaking in the choir's offerings, I've come to discover, that positive word is being spread about efforts in the Latin Mass via St. Patrick's Gregorian choir! I am sure my blog has played a portion in this on social media, and I am glad to serve the Lord in this way, by promoting those efforts whose modus operandi aligns with the Mind of the Church, and true obedience to its Magisterium and its Holy Fathers, past and present.

Our practice was successful, and smaller arrangements for Friday were taken care of.

Setup for St. Paul's Basilica
Arriving in considerable time, the choir and servers set about in preparing the altar for the Solemn Latin Mass. Latin to English translation booklets, with the order of the Mass and appropriate cues for the laity, were provided, though we will need to increase the quantity that we produce in future!

Anything last minute to go over was re-freshed and dealt with, and the altar was promptly set up for Holy Mass. Pictures below, as usual, display how the altar and credence table were set up for this Mass:

Alb, supplementary notes, and the Evangelarium opened, last minute things for our Sub-deacon to chant his reading properly.

Credence table, rear view, setup for Mass. The cruet set pictured here is NOT property of the basilica. This is actually an addition to my serving hauls that I splurged some of my earnings on, as a gift for whomever I have the pleasure to serve with. Let's just say they don't make cruets like these anymore, with a serving dish to house them. 

Frontal view of the credence table.. 

The Altar set up prior to the start of the entrance procession. Beautiful. 

The censer was primed with burning charcoal, acolyte candles were lit, and after some preparatory prayer from our Celebrant, Fr. Steven, our party went out in procession to go unto the altar of the Lord.

The Mass, Including Homiletic Notes From my Memory.

Save some minor difficulties of navigation of the sanctuary space, due to not having the basilica for practice earlier in the week, the Mass was done in a beautiful and solemn manner. The servers carried out all their roles in holy reverence to our Lord, from our newest servers as crucifer, to our stalwart MC, who ensured the liturgy was carried out with dignity and order. This was accomplished from the very start of the procession and prayers at the Foot of the Altar .....

Thurifer and boat bearer in sync, followed by crucifer, flanked by acolytes 1 (me) and 2.

Our clergy, sub-deacon, deacon, and celebrant. 

``Introibo ad altare Dei. Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meam ....``  

..... to the end of the Holy Mass. Our choir, sang quite beautifully, pulsating their sacred music throughout the echoes of the basilica.

Surinder S. Mundra, leading the St. Patrick`s Gregorian choir in chanting the music for the Sacred Liturgy. 

Their effect was so powerful, that as one attending lay member described to me, that the moment the choir began to sing it's beautiful Gregorian chant, his whole self became filled with calm, and a euphoria at being elevated to the Holy Mass thorough our choir's prayerful music. I have no doubt that this happened to the majority of those in attendance as well. The effect a well-carried out Latin Mass can have on a person`s soul is magnanimous.

As always, the preaching contained in the Latin Mass never ceases to disappoint, nor fail to teach those in attendance something new and true of our Faith, while addressing the needs of the faithful.
Fr. Steven Szakaczki, delivered quite a homily that spoke to our "hearts: as it were, about Christ's Sacred Heart. That is, the Love of His heart, and even, our love, or reason for lack thereof, for Him.

Of the points (that I could remember,) Fr. Steven spoke about these topics as such:

- When we speak about the Heart, we often speak about love. What were Christ's two greatest commandments? To love the Lord your God above one another, and to love your neighbour as God loves you.
- Often when I give homilies, I ask those in the congregation, "On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do you love God, though our Lord?"

- God is loved above all other things, because what God provides is necessary to our salvation, to our being, to our locution .... 

- Now, on a scale of one to 10, how much do you love others, including our Lord?

- One reason that we find it so hard and challenging to love the Lord, is due to justice.

• We must emphasize that both Justice and Mercy go hand and hand. You cannot be merciful if you are not also just.
• When we see depictions of Christ`s Sacred Heart, such as the Divine Mercy, there are two rays radiating from His heart. These rays represent Christ as being both infinitely Merciful, but also infinitely Just. 
• When it comes to justice, we want to punish one who transgresses or causes an injustice. For humanity, when we want to resolve the injustice, we have ourselves or the person commit some form of action in reparation, either equivalent to the harm caused by the injustice, or beyond. 
• With us, we feel that when we sin, we feel that God loves us less, that we are insufficient, and not worthy of God's love because of guilt and our sense of justice [editor: that is, that we have committed an injustice against Him.] 
• Now, Christ, the Word of God Made Flesh, came down from Heaven, for us in the human state, and in our injustice, he suffered through such depravity and torture in His Passion. They beat Him, bruised Him, slashed Him already though He was badly bruised, mocked Him, crowned Him with thorns, all ending up with Him being crucified in agony on the Cross at Calvary. 
• The Roman soldiers, being experts at what they do .... their "job," as the Roman Empire's military force, ensured that those men who were on the Cross, including Christ, were truly dead. They purposely aimed with their spears at the crucified men, piercing their lungs and heart to ensure that they would be truly dead in their entirety. 
• Christ, suffering all He did, gave himself in the ultimate sacrifice of Love from God, for all men, for all time, regardless of one's sins they have and would commit. Christ's redeeming act, truly shows that God loves us that much to have done so. [Editorial note: again I'm paraphrasing. Yes, you need confession for mortal sin. Fr. Steven OBVIOUSLY knows that, but his point is that he is countering this reason that people, including numerous Catholics, hold erroneously, via what lies within Christ's Passion and Death on Calvary.] 
• When we attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we participate in his ultimate act of Love for us, represented by the Sacred Heart of Jesus. 
• ..... We also see example in St. Margaret Mary, when she was presented with the vision of Christ for the Sacred Heart, He was present holding his most Sacred Heart in His hand, extending his heart in hand out to St. Mary....

- Another reason that we find it difficult to the love the Lord is because of a lack of that which allows us to Love.

• For some people, this could be exemplified in actions or circumstances which happen to them in one`s life. This can range in anything from one`s environment, being burdened more than other people, or some form of trauma or bad actions happening in the world, perhaps even bad actions that other people have inflicted onto you. Such actions are not inflicted because you are loved less than others by the Lord. 
• Also part of this reason is comparison to other people, such as the Saints. We often feel that God `made them special` or bestowed special graces onto them, making them more favored in God`s eyes, yet we are not. 
• This is actually not true in the sense that they were favored. In fact, the saints often times suffered quite harshly and were not ``favored`` this way, yet were highly capable of expressing such Love of Christ. 
• E.g. 1: St. Paul: Prolific in spreading the Church, Paul was jailed a number of times, not well received in every town he preached in, got abandoned or shipwrecked twice [Êditorial note: One of those times being shipwrecked on the isle of Malta], and he eventually was brought to final imprisonment, and then even martyred by [necessary edit 19/6/2015] beheading as Christian tradition holds. 
• E.g. 2: Highly important to Canada's patron sainthood, the primary saint is St. Joseph. Second most important, would be the North American Martyrs. St. Jean de Brebeuf is a prime example of Christ's Love, and being able to Love Christ, despite the most awful of circumstances and inflicted abuse and pain and suffering. 
• The Jesuits in doing mission work in North America, attempted to spread the Gospel to the Native Canadians. One group they were not received by was the Iriquois nation.
• The Iriquois was a war-nation. They detested the white man, and any associated allies. This included the Huron tribe of Native Canadians, who did assist and accept the company of the Jesuit missionaries. 
• The Iriquois attacked the Jesuits and Hurons, and took many of them captive. 
• With Jean de Brebeuf, they saw him as a "leader" of the group, and wanted to make an example out of him to instill fear in the Hurons and other white man followers.
• With St. Jean, they of course physically assaulted him. Of other tortures they inflicted upon him [warning .... extreme depravity and grotesque acts, but they were true and documented!!!!!! .....], they ripped out his finger nails and toe nails, forced him to walk back in the frigid cold with his fellow Hurons back to their village, made him run the gauntlet which is two rows of Iriquois at each side and you get beaten with clubs while running through the center, etc.
• After that they attached him to a post, and while he was there, they scalped him alive. They boiled water and poured this scalding water over the scalp-less part of his head. They even performed acts of cannibalism, eating parts of his flesh while he was alive. 
• Finally, to kill him, one or more of them, took an awl, and stabbed him repeatedly to finish the job. 
• Yet, even while experiencing these extreme torments, he pleaded and encouraged his tormentors to repent and believe in the Gospel and to believe in the Lord. Most of all, he forgave them and loved every single one of them, despite what they were doing to him and his Huron companions. 

- Therefore, on a scale of one to ten, now, how much does God truly love us? He loves us infinitely. It is this love, expressed in the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ, that we focus on today for this Feast, in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

After the homily, the Mass proceeded accordingly in the second part, the Mass of the Canons. Provided below are digital photographs from that portion:

Preparations of the Altar, at the Offertory. Boat bearer and thurifer assist in the preparations for the incensation of clergy and laity, while Acolyte 2 awaits to remove the missal, next to our Master of Ceremonies. 

Incensation of the celebrant by the deacon, with thurifer next to the deacon.

``HOC EST ENIM CORPUS MEUM`` - The consecration of the Sacred Host to His Body.

``HIC EST ENIM CALIX SANGUIS MEI ...`` - The Consecration of the Sacred Wine into His Blood.

``Ecce Agnus Dei, ecce qui tollit peccata mundi.`` - Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who taketh away the sins of the world.

Myself as Acolyte 1, waiting for the return of the cruets, while the post-communion ablution takes place. 

With the cruets in my hands after the ablutions, I bow to the clergy. 

The Last Gospel. 

``Ita Missa Est. Deo Gratias.``

Concluding Notes

Once again, it was an honour and divine pleasure, to serve at the Lord's altar through the most holy and charitable works of the St. Patrick's Gregorian Choir. Each Mass involves much preparation and arrangements, not to mention dealing with other behind the scenes issues that pop up. Satan tries his best to throw curve blocks in our path of various forms, but every time, SPGC has over come these barriers, and the result is epic Masses that inspire the lay faithful, and the choir, clergy, and servers that partake in them.

Clearly, there was a good response from the Laity to our Mass. One prosperous sign, is that we only made 70 Latin-to-English booklets for the Mass. All were taken by those in attendance! We surpassed that number at least 2x fold! By my visual estimate, we had about 130-160 in attendance. This was quite a marvel considering the urban location for the basilica, cloudy/rainy weather, and a Friday evening after a long work-week!

In the crowd, I say a number of people of varying ages and cultural demographics. Aside from the usual baby boomers and seniors who would have been familiar with the EF Mass, there were other types of people of note. I saw a few young people in attendance on their own at the Mass. I saw a young couple or two as well. I am quite positive I even saw a home-schooled, traditionally Catholic family of 4 or 5 children from youth to teen to young adult in the pews! (I might be wrong on the homeschooling part, but usually their presence is quite obvious in dress, disposition, and family size. By the way, homeschooling or not, if you read this, thank you graciously for coming! Sorry I could not speak to you and introduce myself to you!). I think I might have even spotted a familiar face from when I used to attend and assist another Latin Mass group`s offerings. Overall, the mix of ages and attendees was a great sign! The Latin Mass is for all peoples, of all ages and backgrounds!

Every time these Masses are held, they contribute to the New Evangelization, and the liturgy is one of the most powerful means of the Church to (re-)educate its Body of members, renew their hearts and souls, and truly FEED them spiritually in its direct, visual, and powerful ethos and operation.

In addition, allow me to share a personal sentiment about St. Patrick`s. I have remained with the choir for the longest time, of 3.5 years, since October 2011. My first ever Latin Mass I served was a Missa Solemnis/Solemn Mass at St. Patrick`s Catholic Church Toronto, as a torch-bearer. I have remained with this choir, because all its members exude a true, fraternal love and charity, with boundless joy for Christ and His Church.

Intra-Church or Intra-liturgical politics, critical harshness thinly veiled as `fraternal correction`, or liturgical self-policing by chastising other priests and organizations publicly, are not present here with this fine group of men, women, and young adults. Rather, they express the very joy and love of Christ, qualities that our Holy Father, Pope Francis, is encouraging the Church to express, in order to show the world the Church`s beauty and life. Because SPGC does so, I remain with this group of loyal sons and daughters of the Lord, and will continue to do so until the Will of the Lord absolutely prevents me from doing so. What SPGC does, brings justice and truth to what the Latin Mass truly is all about ..... the Love of Christ that emanates from His Sacred Heart.

To all of you reading this report, if you attended the Solemn Latin Mass at the basilica, thank you dearly and honestly for supporting St. Patrick`s Gregorian Choir, but more importantly, for loving your Lord, Jesus Christ, in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.

For those of you who live in the Toronto area or close by, and did not attend, I hope that after reading this report, you will be intrigued about the Latin Mass, and will seek to attend a future offering of the High/Solemn level Latin Mass, offered by parishes and/or the St. Patrick's Gregorian Choir.

Should anyone wish to attend the next offering, SPGC annually organizes a Mass in October, for the Feast of Christ the King, which takes place in the EF calendar, during the last Sunday of October. Traditionally, this has been an afternoon Mass, which when at the higher levels, will include the Asperges (holy water) rite prior to the beginning of the actual Mass. This year's anticipated date is Sunday, October 25, 2015. The choir also holds this Mass annually in commemoration of their formation in 2006 on that feast day in the EF calendar. Please keep this specific Sunday in mind, by looking for the next offering on social media such as my blog (but also Facebook, and occasionally, other websites.)

Whether you are looking for more information for future offerings such as Christ the King, or be a young man, aspiring (as in seminarian), or ordained cleric (Deacon, priest, or higher) interested in assisting in the EF, via SPGC, please feel free to contact Surinder, choirmaster and head of the Choir. Contact information is in my Latin Mass offerings tab, or you can look at the opening picture above in this post for his phone number.

Finally, I would like to extend due credit and thanks to Emad Alfred, one of the attendees at our Mass, who offered out of kindness to share with the choir and I, the pictures he took at the Solemn Mass, which are posted here in this report. While the pictures prior to the start of the Mass are my personal property, all other pictures are those of Emad. Thank you!!!

We hope you have enjoyed this report of the St. Patrick's Gregorian choir's Sacred Heart 2015 Mass.

PAX TIBI CHRISTI! Julian Barkin.