Ss. Michaelis, Gabrielis et Raphaelis, Archangelorum (St. Michael and All Angels, that is): September 29

Today is the Feast of St. Michael and All Angels: Michael ("Who is like God?"); Gabriel ("God is my champion"); Raphael ("God heals"); Uriel ("God is my light"). More about this:

The word El appears in other northwest Semitic languages such as Phoenician and Aramaic and in Akkadian ilu as an ordinary word for god. It is aso found also in the South-Arabian dialects and in Ethiopic, and as in Hebrew it is often used as an element in proper names. In northwest Semitic texts it appears to be often but not always used of one single god, of "the God", the head of the pantheon, sometimes specifically said to be the creator.

El is used in both the singular and plural, both for other gods and for the God of Israel. As a name of God, however, it is used chiefly in poetry and prophetic discourse, rarely in prose, and then usually with some epithet attached, as "a jealous God." Other examples of its use with some attribute or epithet are: El ‘Elyon ("most high God"), El Shaddai ("God Almighty"), El ‘Olam ("everlasting God"), El Hai ("living God"), El Ro’i ("God of seeing"), El Elohe Israel ("God, the God of Israel"), El Gibbor ("Hero God"). In addition, names such as Gabriel ("Hero of God"), Michael ("Who is Like God"), and Daniel ("God is My Judge") use God's name in a similar fashion.

Here's the Collect for the day, which is also called "Michaelmas":

Everlasting God, you have ordained and constituted in a wonderful order the ministries of angels and mortals: Mercifully grant that, as your holy angels always serve and worship you in heaven, so by your appointment they may help and defend us here on earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

And the New Testament reading, from Revelation 12:7-12:

War broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back, but they were defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. The great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world-- he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, proclaiming,

"Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Messiah,
for the accuser of our comrades has been thrown down,
who accuses them day and night before our God.
But they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony,
for they did not cling to life even in the face of death.
Rejoice then, you heavens
and those who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
for the devil has come down to you
with great wrath,
because he knows that his time is short!"

And of course, Jacob's Ladder with angels ascending and descending, from Genesis, too.

Here's something about Michael:

Michael (Hebrew: מִיכָאֵל‎, Micha'el or Mîkhā'ēl; Greek: Μιχαήλ, Mikhaḗl; Latin: Michael or Míchaël; Arabic: میکائیل‎, Mikā'īl) is an archangel in Jewish, Christian and Islamic tradition. He is viewed as the field commander of the Army of God. He is mentioned by name in the Book of Daniel, the Book of Jude and the Book of Revelation. In the book of Daniel, Michael appears as "one of the chief princes" who in Daniel's vision comes to the angel Gabriel's aid in his contest with the angel of Persia (Dobiel), and is also described there as the advocate of Israel and "great prince who stands up for the children of your [Daniel's] people".

The Talmudic tradition rendered Michael's name as meaning "who is like El?", - so Michael could consequently mean "One who is like God." But its being a question is alternatively understood as a rhetorical question, implying that no one is like God.

And Gabriel:

In Abrahamic religions, Gabriel (Hebrew: גַּבְרִיאֵל, Modern Gavriʼel Tiberian Gaḇrîʼēl; Latin: Gabrielus; Greek: Γαβριήλ, Gabriēl; Arabic: جبريل, Jibrīl or جبرائيل Jibrail; Aramaic: Gabri-el, "strong man of God"[1]) is an angel who serves as a messenger from God. Based on two passages in the Gospel of Luke, many Christians and Muslims believe Gabriel to have foretold the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus.

And Raphael:

Raphael (Standard Hebrew רָפָאֵל, Rāp̄āʾēl, "It is God who heals", "God Heals", "God, Please Heal", Arabic: رافائيل, Rāfāʾīl) is the name of an archangel of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, who performs all manner of healing.

The angels mentioned in the Torah, the older books of the Hebrew Bible, are without names. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish of Tiberias (A.D. 230-270), asserted that all the specific names for the angels were brought back by the Jews from Babylon, and modern commentators would tend to agree.

Raphael in the Book of Enoch

Raphael bound Azazel under a desert called Dudael according to Enoch 10:5-7:

"And again the Lord said to Raphael: 'Bind Azazel hand and foot, and cast him into the darkness: and make an opening in the desert, which is in Dudael, and cast him therein. And place upon him rough and jagged rocks, and cover him with darkness, and let him abide there for ever, and cover his face that he may not see light. And on the day of the great judgement he shall be cast into the fire."

Of seven archangels in the angelology of post-Exilic Judaism, only Michael, mentioned as archangel (Daniel 12:1) and Gabriel are mentioned by name in the scriptures that came to be accepted as canonical by all Christians. Raphael is mentioned by name in the Book of Tobit, which is accepted as canonical by Catholics and Orthodox. Four others, however, are named in the 2nd century BC Book of Enoch (chapter xxi): Uriel, Raguel, Sariel, and Jarahmeel.

I think I'll leave these last Enoch angels for my 2010 post!

The Introit for the day is Benedicite Dominum, from Psalm 102:20 (103:20 in the Anglican reckoning), the second half being the wonderful Verse 1 from the same Psalm:

Bless the Lord, all ye his angels: you that are mighty in strength, and execute his word, hearkening to the voice of his orders. Bless the Lord, O my soul: and let all that is within me bless his holy name.

Here's the mp3 from the Benedictines of Brazil, and below is the chant score:





The Offertory for the day is Stetit angelus, from Revelation 8:3-4:

3 And another angel came and stood before the altar, having a golden censer: and there was given to him much incense, that he should offer of the prayers of all saints, upon the golden altar which is before the throne of God.

4 And the smoke of the incense of the prayers of the saints ascended up before God from the hand of the angel.

Here's the mp3, and below is the chant score:





Here's Giovanni Vianini's version of this Offertory:



And this Stetit angelus comes from a contemporary composer, Giovanni Bonato:



The Communion song for the day is Benedicite, omnes angeli, from Daniel 3:58 (part of the Benedicite, omnia opera):

O ye angels of the Lord, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all for ever.

here's the mp3, and below is the chant score:





See also the Office hymns, posted last year.

Here's a nice Guido (Reni, that is) of St. Michael:





I posted a lot of Michael images last year - they're a dime a dozen - but you know, I'd really like to give Gabriel and Raphael some equal time this year, so here goes.
About Raphael:

The name of the angel Raphael appears only in the Deuterocanonical Book of Tobit. The Book of Tobit is considered canonical by Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christians. Raphael first appears disguised in human form as the travelling companion of the younger Tobias, calling himself "Azarias the son of the great Ananias". During the adventurous course of the journey the archangel's protective influence is shown in many ways including the binding of the demon in the desert of upper Egypt. After the return and the healing of the blindness of the elder Tobit, Azarias makes himself known as "the angel Raphael, one of the seven, who stand before the Lord" Tobit 12:15. Compare the unnamed angels in John's Revelation 8:2. Christian churches following Catholic teachings (Roman, Oriental, Orthodox, Anglican, etc) venerate and patronize him as Saint Raphael.

Regarding the healing powers attributed to Raphael,[1] we have little more than his declaration to Tobit (Tobit, 12) that he was sent by the Lord to heal him of his blindness and to deliver Sarah, his daughter-in-law, from the devil (Asmodeus) that was the serial killer of her husbands.[2] Among Catholics, he is considered the patron saint of medical workers and matchmakers, travellers and may be petitioned by them or those needing their services.[3]

And - saving the best for last - I'm sure I don't need to mention (yet again) my fondness for this Annunciation by Sandro Botticelli, and the terrific take on the Archangel Gabriel:

Tagged by the Good Rev.

Rev. Sam, that is. As I adore redheads - and particularly this one! - I'm more than happy to comply.

I am to "Post a collection of 10 things you believe, ethical, philosophical or theological." Which will be much harder than it looks, believe you me, and will probably take me a few days! I'm leaving most of these blank for now while I think about this and in order to let Rev. Sam know I'm on the case.

1. I believe completely in Alcoholics Anonymous and the principles by which it works. It has never steered me wrong - never. It is a wonderful spiritual path, and I'm extremely grateful I lucked into finding it. It saved my life and gave me back my sanity.
   
   I originally put this one next-to-last - imagine that! - but then realized it should really be first. And so it is.
   
   
2. I believe that you can't possibly improve on the story in the Gospels, so you might as well just tell it as is and see what comes of it.
   
   
3. I believe that some people - me, for instance - are hard-wired for spiritual experience, and that others have a more difficult time with this for good biological reasons.
   
   
4. I believe that Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God - even during the sometimes extended periods that I don't believe in God. (You figure that one out; I can't.) Put another way: the Cross really is the "crater of history." (I thought that was a direct quote from someplace, but I can't find it now. I know I didn't make it up.) Put still another way: I believe in the Anglo-Catholic Vision, and in the sacred and the human.
   
   
5. I believe the idea that "the 20th Century more or less proves Original Sin" is true. I believe that human beings, without some sort of corrective influence to this problem of Original Sin (which has nothing to do with sex) will destroy ourselves and our societies - an especially dangerous problem today. I believe that human beings are mostly blind to self, and thus cannot make the needed adjustments without help from a "power greater than themselves."
   
   
6. I also believe in the Greek notion of the individual "fatal flaw," and in the essential tragedy of the human condition (closely related to #5 above).
   
   
7. I believe, nevertheless, and along with the Preacher, that "I commend joy, for man has no good thing under the sun but to eat and drink and be joyful, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of his life that God has given him under the sun."
   
   
8. I believe that Publius Terentius' statement that "I am human; nothing human is alien to me" perfectly describes the inner life of a person once she reaches her 50s. (Walt Whitman said essentially the same thing: "Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself, (I am large, I contain multitudes.) " He was only about 35 years old then, but some people - I wanted to say "gay people," but refrained - are born older.)
   
   By this time in life, I think: I've seen it all now. I've done it all, and actually maybe even been it all. (This is of course not actually true - but it feels that way. I completely understand that human beings do all sorts of things that at one time would have seemed shocking or horrible - alien - to me; now at last I understand. And I am sympathetic.)
   
   
9. I believe that Ronny Cammereri was right: that "love don't make things nice - it roons everything. It breaks your heart. It makes things a mess. We aren't here to make things perfect. The snowflakes are perfect. The stars are perfect. Not us. Not us! We are here to roon ourselves and to break our hearts and love the wrong people and die. The storybooks are bullshit."
   
   I believe in the Opera, IOW. (Well, I do. Why do you think I like religion, anyway? The only question is: is this ethical, philosophical, or theological?) Back to love, though: I'm writing something about love right now - a story, or a prose poem, or an essay, or something. I can't quite grasp what it is, but in any case I am feeling very rooned at the moment, so I will have another chapter shortly, I guess.
   
   
10. I believe, along with my French boss of about 30 years ago, that "La vie est une lutte; il faut lutter." That means: "Life is a struggle; we must fight." It seems to me that there's never been a time I wasn't fighting and struggling; life before sobriety was hard, and life after it was harder. I can never understand this new push for immortality (or much longer life, anyway); how can one continue to fight for another hundred years? I've really been fighting for a long time, I guess; it seems to be my vocation, in some way. (Maybe I should start my own philosophy?)
    
    Good things have come from all the fighting, I do acknowledge, but it has been exhausting. I'm exhausted right now, that's all. Rooned and tired.
    
    This, too, shall pass.
    

You see? That took almost two weeks (I thought for about a week before I even put up the post) - and I'm really not even sure I played the game properly.

Oh, well. I'm going to tag anybody who wants to play. Play!

September 17: Hildegard von Bingen

The Collect, via IO Lectionary:

God of all times and seasons: Give us grace that we, after the example of your servant Hildegard, may both know and make known the joy and jubilation of being part of your creation, and show forth your glory not only with our lips but in our lives; through Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The First Lesson, from one of my favorite of all books:

Sirach 43:1-2,6-7,9-12,27-28

The pride of the higher realms is the clear vault of the sky,
as glorious to behold as the sight of the heavens.
The sun, when it appears, proclaims as it rises
what a marvelous instrument it is, the work of the Most High.
It is the moon that marks the changing seasons,
governing the times, their everlasting sign.
From the moon comes the sign for festal days,
a light that wanes when it completes its course.
The glory of the stars is the beauty of heaven,
a glittering array in the heights of the Lord.
On the orders of the Holy One they stand in their appointed places;
they never relax in their watches.
Look at the rainbow, and praise him who made it;
it is exceedingly beautiful in its brightness.
It encircles the sky with its glorious arc;
the hands of the Most High have stretched it out.
We could say more but could never say enough;
let the final word be: "He is the all."
Where can we find the strength to praise him?
For he is greater than all his works.

Here is a video labelled "O Ierusalem, sequence to St Rupert."



At Liturgica.com, you'll find a few mp3 samples of her work, and this blurb, explaining the "St. Rupert" reference:

After being forgotten for several centuries, Hildegard von Bingen is recognized today as one of the universal minds in Western culture. The abbess at the monastery of Saint-Rupert close to the town of Bingen, Hildegard was a composer, writer, physician and visionary who lived in the 12th century AD.

Below is another video, this one labelled "Hildegard of Bingen, O magne Pater." Here's the blurb over there:

III. Antiphon from the vesper of St. Hildegard of Bingen, Schola of Benedictine sisters of Abbey St. Hildegard, Eibingen.

O großer Vater, III. Antiphon aus der Vesper der Hl. Hildegard von Bingen, Schola der Benediktinerinnenabtei St. Hildegard, Eibingen

And here is "Spiritus Sanctus," which I believe I've sung parts of:



Here's an article at the Fordham server about Hildegard. I still love this little poem, which I was introduced to about 5 years ago at a time when I was really hardly very interested in any of this stuff and was actively furious at the church (even more than I am now!):

Holy Spirit,
Giving life to all life,
Moving all creatures,
Root of all things,
Washing them clean,
Wiping out their mistakes,
Healing their wounds,
You are our true life,
Luminous, wonderful,
Awakening the heart from its ancient sleep.

There's an interesting variety of images of Hildegard out there; for some reason I'm partial to this one:

Nos autem gloriari

Below is Giovanni Vianini's version of Nos autem gloriari, the Introit for In Exaltatione Sanctæ Crucis (The Exaltation of the Holy Cross), September 14. It's a beautiful song, also sung on Maundy Thursday, with texts taken from the wonderful Galatians 6:14 and also from Psalm 67:

Nos autem gloriari oportet in Cruce Domini nostri Iesu Christi:
in quo est salus, vita, et resurrectio nostra: per quem salus, vita, et resurrectio nostra: per quem salvati, et liberati sumus. Deus misereatur nostri, et benedicat nobis: illuminet vultum suum super nos, et misereatur nostri.

But it behooves us to glory in the cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ: in Whom is our salvation, life, and resurrection; by whom we are saved and delivered. May God have mercy on us, and bless us: may He cause the light of His countenance to shine upon us; and may He have mercy on us.

(Galatians 6:14: But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

Psalm 67:1: May God be gracious to us and bless us, and make his face to shine upon us and have mercy on us....)

Here's the chant score:





This is another Gregorian piece for which Palestrina wrote choral music. That doesn't seem to be online - but there is a stunning choral version of this text by 20th-Century French composer Alfred Desenclos:



Per signum crucis is the Communion song for this day. TPL says this:

From the Roman Breviary. It recalls Phil. 3:18, "For many, as I have often told you and now tell you even in tears, conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ. "

PER signum Crucis de inimicis nostris libera nos, Deus noster. In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.

BY the sign of the cross deliver us from our enemies, O our God. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

I'm not so sure about that Philemon reference, but here's the mp3, from the Benedictines of Brazil, and below is the chant score.





The Office hymns for the day are here.

OK, let's go over it again....

I am continually surprised when N.T. Wright is invoked as somebody who needs to be "grappled with" on Topic H (as our Postulant friend likes to call it). (Here's the original N.T. Wright article, for those interested.)

But apparently we need a refresher on this, so to that end I'm quoting below my entire post from March 29, 2007, in order that we can all see again what actual theology looks like:

The incoherence of "church teaching" on the topic of you-know-what, that is. It's from the James Alison article *Christopher linked in comments on another post:

Please notice that there are two logical barriers which the ecclesiastical argument cannot jump without falsifying it’s own doctrine. The first is this: The Church cannot say “Well, being that way is normal, something neutral or positive, the Church respects it and welcomes it. The Church only prohibits the acts which flow from it”. This position would lack logic in postulating intrinsically evil acts which flow from a neutral or positive being. And this would go against the principle of Catholic morals which states that acts flow from being – agere sequitur esse. The second barrier is this: the Church cannot say of the homosexual inclination that it is a desire which is in itself intrinsically evil, since to say this would be to fall into the heresy of claiming that there is some part of being human which is essentially depraved – that is, which cannot be transformed, only covered over.

Faced with these two barriers, ecclesiastical logic did a backward double-flip worthy of an Olympic gymnast so as to arrive at the following formulation: “The homosexual inclination, though not itself a sin, constitutes a tendency towards behaviour that is intrinsically evil, and must therefore be considered objectively disordered.” With this phrase, the Vatican Congregations sought to maintain the absolute prohibition of the acts without describing the desire as intrinsically evil. Nevertheless the price of this definition is very high. It obliges its defenders to insist that the homosexual inclination, independently of any acts flowing from it, is something objectively disordered. And the kind of objectivity they have in mind is deduced not from what can be known through experience, but is an a priori which depends on the Church’s teaching concerning marriage. That is to say, the a priori of the intrinsic heterosexuality of all human beings. In other words, from the presupposition of the intrinsic heterosexuality of all human beings, it is deduced that the person whose inclination is towards those of the same sex is a defective heterosexual.

Well, let us not delude ourselves here. This characterisation of the gay or lesbian person as a defective heterosexual is absolutely necessary for the maintenance of the prohibition, as the authors indicate with the “must be considered” of their phrase. The problem is that, for the characterisation to work properly within the doctrine of original sin and grace, it would have to be the case that the life of grace would lead the gay or lesbian person to become heterosexual in the degree of his or her growth in grace. That is to say, in the degree to which grace makes us more patient, faithful, generous, capable of being good Samaritans, less prisoners of anger, of rivalry and of resentment, just so would it have to change the gender of the persons towards whom we are principally attracted. The problem is that such changes do not seem to take place in a regular and trustworthy way, even amongst the United States groups which promote them with significant funds and publicity. As the senior representatives of such groups indicate: at most, and in some cases, a change in behaviour is produced, but the fundamental structures of desire continue to be towards persons of the same sex. [3]

This then is the conflict: for the prohibition of the acts to correspond to the true being of the person, the inclination has to be characterised as something objectively disordered. However, since the inclination doesn’t alter, unlike desires which are recognisably vicious, the gay or lesbian person would have a desire which is, in fact, intrinsically evil, an element of radical depravity in their desire. And we would have stepped outside Catholic anthropology. Or, on the other hand, the same-sex inclination is simply something that is, in which case grace will bring it to a flourishing starting from where it is, and with this we would have to work out which acts are appropriate or not, according to the circumstances, and we will have stepped outside the absolute prohibition passed on to us by tradition.

I'm still reading - James Alison's writing often takes days to get through - but it's another great one. Even just the above snippet has already, in exposing the contradictions inherent in Catholic doctrine (which is, let's face it, the product of centuries of massive intellectual tradition, and way beyond most of what we see from the Anglican side these days) started to whisper to me: "This argument is just about over, folks; they really haven't got even a thread of a leg to stand on."

The intro is truly chilling, too, and I can't wait to see how he ties it all together....

I mean - come on. N.T. Wright? Mr. N.T. Straw-Man "We simply 'construct' ourselves from day to day" Wright? Please....

"Sudanese 'trousers woman' jailed"

In BBC Online:

A Sudanese woman has been jailed for a month after refusing to pay a fine for "dressing indecently" by wearing trousers, her lawyers say.

Lubna Ahmed Hussein did not want to "give the verdict any legitimacy" by paying the fine of about $200 (£122), her lawyer, Nabil Adib, told the BBC.

Ms Hussein, a journalist in her 30s, could have been given up to 40 lashes.

Before the verdict, she had said she wanted her trial to become a test case for women's rights, correspondents say.

Ms Hussein had resigned from her job at the UN, which would have given her immunity.

"She thinks she was unfairly tried and convicted and was not given a proper chance to put her defence case," Mr Adib said.

He said Ms Hussein would appeal to both the Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court.

Kamal Omar, another of Ms Hussein's lawyers, told the AFP news agency his client had been taken to the women's prison in Omdurman.

The BBC's James Copnall, at the court in Khartoum, says that Ms Hussein had previously said she was determined not to pay the fine but her lawyers had been trying to convince her to do so.

Truncheons

The announcement of the fine for Ms Hussein came shortly after the trial resumed on Monday.

Ms Hussein wore loose trousers to the hearing in Khartoum

The journalist - who appeared in the same loose green trousers, top and shawl she was wearing when arrested - was found guilty of wearing "indecent clothing" under article 152 of Sudanese criminal law.

Earlier, at least 40 protesters were held by police outside the courthouse in the Sudanese capital. Some of them were women reportedly wearing trousers in support for Ms Hussein.

All the protesters were later released on bail.

Our correspondent saw one woman being hit eight or nine times by police with truncheons.

Ms Hussein's supporters were heckled by Islamists, who tore up some of the women's homemade signs, says our correspondent.

But the presence of diplomats and human rights activists inside the court, and the protests outside, show that the trial has become a test case for women's rights in Sudan, he adds.

Among Ms Hussein's supporters were members of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) from southern Sudan.

The chairman of the SPLM's parliamentary group, Yasser Arman, told the BBC the prosecutions were adding to "the violations of the constitution of the peace agreement and of women's rights - Muslims and Christians".

"We reject it, we denounce it. The law itself it is unconstitutional, it is contradicting the constitution," he said.

'Nothing wrong'

Ms Hussein was arrested in July together with 12 other women who were wearing trousers.

Several of the women pleaded guilty and were given 10 lashes immediately, Ms Hussein said at the time.

She said several of those punished were from the mainly Christian and animist south, even though non-Muslims are not supposed to be subject to Islamic law.

During the trial, Ms Hussein argued that she had done nothing wrong under Sudan's indecency law.

On Friday, the London-based human rights group Amnesty International called on Khartoum to withdraw the charges against Ms Hussein and repeal the law used to justify flogging as a penalty for "indecent" dress.

In a column published in the UK's Guardian newspaper on Friday, Ms Hussein wrote: "When I think of my trial, I pray that my daughters will never live in fear of these police... We will only be secure once the police protect us and these laws are repealed."

Hymn Introits for the Liturgical Year

Before I forget: here's a link to this book at Amazon.com, which is subtitled "The origin and early development of the Latin texts"; you can read sections of it via the Preview feature.

It really looks wonderful; I've started reading sections but keep forgetting to link it here.

Thanks to our good friend Derek the Ænglican for pointing this one out.

Iustus Es, Domine

That's the Introit for the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (this coming Sunday, September 6). It comes from several verses - 137, 124, and 1 - of Psalm 119 (118 in the Catholic numbering system):

137 Sade. Justus es, Domine,
et rectum judicium tuum.

124 Fac cum servo tuo secundum misericordiam tuam,
et justificationes tuas doce me.

1 Alleluja. Aleph. Beati immaculati in via,
qui ambulant in lege Domini.

Sade
137 Thou art just, O Lord: and thy judgment is right.

124 Deal with thy servant according to thy mercy: and teach me thy justifications.

1 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.

Here's the mp3, from the Brazilian Benedictines - and here's the chant score to follow along:





And here is the "Justus es, Domine, et rectum" page at the Global Chant database, which seems to be growing ever-larger.

The Offertory on the day, Oravi Deum Meum, is from Daniel 9, verses 4, 2, 17, and 19:

4 Et oravi Dominum Deum meum, et confessus sum, et dixi: Obsecro, Domine Deus magne et terribilis, custodiens pactum, et misericordiam diligentibus te, et custodientibus mandata tua:

2 anno uno regni ejus, ego Daniel intellexi in libris numerum annorum, de quo factus est sermo Domini ad Jeremiam prophetam, ut complerentur desolationis Jerusalem septuaginta anni.

17 Nunc ergo exaudi, Deus noster, orationem servi tui, et preces ejus: et ostende faciem tuam super sanctuarium tuum, quod desertum est propter temetipsum.

19 Exaudi, Domine; placare Domine: attende et fac: ne moreris propter temetipsum, Deus meus, quia nomen tuum invocatum est super civitatem et super populum tuum.

4 And I prayed to the Lord, my God, and I made my confession, and said: I beseech thee, O Lord God, great and terrible, who keepest the covenant, and mercy to them that love thee, and keep thy commandments.

2 The first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by books the number of the years, concerning which the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, the prophet, that seventy years should be accomplished of the desolation of Jerusalem.

17 Now, therefore, O our God, hear the supplication of thy servant, and his prayers: and show thy face upon thy sanctuary, which is desolate, for thy own sake.

19 O Lord, hear: O Lord, be appeased: hearken, and do: delay not, for thy own sake, O my God: because thy name is invocated upon thy city, and upon thy people.

Here's the mp3, and here's the chant score:





Palestrina apparently wrote a motet based on this text, although with slightly different words:

Oravi ad Dominum, Deum meum ego Daniel dicens: exaudi, Domine, preces servi tui, illumina faciem tuam super sanctuarium tuum, et propitius intende populum istum, super quem invocatum est nomen tuum, Deus.
(Dan 9, 17-18)

A note on that page reads: "(The current Gregorian Missal (Solemnes 1990) assigns this offertory to the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time and give the opening as 'Oravi Deum meum')." I can't find a recording of it online, sad to say....

Update: current goals and ambitions

This hilarious stanza from Joni Mitchell's "Song for Sharon" has been running through my head quite often lately:

Dora says "Have children";
Mama and Betsy say "Find yourself a charity -
Help the needy and the crippled or put some time into Ecology."
Well, there's a wide wide world of noble causes,
And lovely landscapes to discover -
But all I really want to do right now
Is find another lover.

I laugh every time it invades my psyche - but in fact it's a good sign, I'm pretty sure. Interesting to be waking up again like this, actually....

(There are actually other things involved, all mixed in together - and it's not as one-dimensional a thought as it might seem from this post. But, good.)

See this.