Sunday, October 28, 2012

Our Lady of the Rosary Celebration 2012















This year's celebration for the feastday of Our Lady of the Rosary was held on Saturday, October 13 at the St Stephen's Cathedral.  As in past Marian feastday celebrations, we started with the community recitation of the Holy Rosary, followed by the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, procession of the statue of Our Lady of Fatima from the cathedral to the Villa Maria Adoration Chapel and culminating in Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. 

It was a beautiful celebration and we were blessed with a beautiful spring day.  This year's turnout was noticeably bigger than last.  The two bigger boys felt so privileged to have been able to process right behind the statue of Our Lady in their servers' vestments, and the girls were so happy to be dressed in white with accents in Mamma Mary's colour - blue.  One accessory that they did not want to do without was their Mamma Mary badge!

All in all, it was another event to remember and one that, undoubtedly, put a smile in the Blessed Mother's face. 

Ora pro nobis, Sancta Dei Genitrix; ut digni efficiamur promisionibus Christi!


Saturday, September 22, 2012

Red Chasuble Set

A couple of weeks ago we got a call from Peter (an acquaintance and a regular guest at our private Masses here) asking if it would be okay for Fr Michael (Latin Mass chaplain for Perth, W.A.) to say mass at our little devotional chapel on Friday, September 21 as the latter will be visiting Brisbane to officiate this year's Annual Family Retreat this weekend.  We were naturally rapt to hear this and of course we said YES!

Checking the traditional calendar, we were doubly rapt to find that Friday was St Matthew's feastday.  And because we have adopted St Matthew as our patron saint (for Mateo, our family name), it made us even more excited. 

Early this week, to start preparing the chapel for Fr Michael's Mass, I had asked Webster to look into our vestment cabinet to check if all the liturgical vestments required for Friday were in good order.  To my horror, Webster informed me that we did not have a red chasuble set at all; and come to think of it, Fr Hartley had taken his set back for his own use several months ago.  And of course it had to be a red set as it was going to be a mass for St Matthew, a martyr.  This meant we had to find one real soon as Friday was literally only a few days away!  However, it quickly dawned on us that there was no other choice but for me to make the vestment set myself! 

What an exciting but daunting prospect for me!  Exciting because I have always wanted to get back into sewing and embroidering as this is one of my favourite things to do whenever I'd get the time and because traditional Catholic vestment making is one of my special interests; but daunting at the same time simply because of the time factor, and given my other duties at home!!

It has been a LONG time since I last visited my sewing and embroidery machines, my only hope was that they were still in working order, considering that they are both electronic, and the embroidery machine operates on computer chips!!  When I got them started, though, I discovered straight away that my fears were unfounded, because both of them worked as smoothly as I last used them!  Thank God.

As soon as I was able to establish which parts needed pre-embroidering, this was done initially before sewing.  And as I always say about making anything, cutting is the longest part of the process, and once individual pieces have been cut, it is merely a matter of putting them together, to form each piece of the vestment set.  Needless to say, before and during the course of this undertaking I was in constant prayer to Our Lady - for her guidance and assistance, and for the set to be finished in good time.  As ever, she came through this time - as she always does without fail - because come Thursday night the vestment set was completed and ready for Fr Michael and the Mass for St Matthew the next day!

Gratias tibi ago, Mater Maria!

Beautiful latin crosses embroidered on, thanks to my Janome 300E!


All pieces cut

red vestment brocade, beautiful

maniple, stole, burse, chalice veil - all completed and sewn

finished Roman chasuble, front

back of the chasuble, featuring antique motiff

motiff featured in the middle of the back cross:  antique Pie Pelicane applique

St Matthew cake

Fr Michael in action (the boys served)

beautiful Mass in honour of our family patron saint, Sancte Mattheus

sharing afterwards


Fr Michael and P-nut



Tuesday, September 18, 2012

PHOTO JOURNAL ENTRY: Roadrunner's First Holy Communion


Some presents/souvenirs for Roadrunner on his special day
mini monstrance Eucharist lapel pin

special breakfast for our first communicant, themed all throughout, including the placemat which bears the words:  "Domine non sum dignus.." (Lord, I am not worthy..)

siblings all excited for the first communicant

hmm.. yum!


I patterned Roadrunner's cake image design on the one I designed for Webster 3 years ago.  Here I just finished placing decorations (chalice and Eucharist, dove figure, plastic rosary and bible) on the cake which was picked up yesterday.

Very pleased with how it turned out.

with big brother, before leaving for church


processional


Consecration:  the most important part of the Mass

Almost time.  Pity we could not get any closer to get a better photo, to avoid causing any distraction during Holy Mass.

Receiving his certificate



"Thank you, Fr Jordan!"

Act of Consecration to Our Lady

A beautiful blessing for the children from a beautiful Capuchin priest.



Recessional






with good friends




morning tea with the congregation







Bobbles

playing ball with Tatay


lunch party to celebrate the occasion


Congratulations, dear Roadrunner!  May Our Eucharistic Lord truly be Food to sustain you in your Journey.  May the joy in your heart on your First Holy Communion, and the love of our Lord stay in your heart forever!

Domine, non sum dignus ut intres sub tectum meum.  Sed tantum dic verbo et sanabitur anima mea!