Photos from Maundy Thursday Tenebrae 2023

The Brothers and the Chorus Breviarii groups of San Diego and Murrieta were gladly joined by Fr. Stephen Porter, SVD, a priest offering the TLM in Palm Desert, CA, for the 23rd annual observance of Tenebrae on the night of Spy Wednesday. We had 18 men in choir and plenty of laity to pray with us in the pews. Tim Horning created the new Tenebrae hearse for CB Murrieta from pieces of the wooden crate that formerly held the statue of Our Lady of Walsingham at Holy Martyrs Catholic Church. Allegri's Miserere was also sung at the appointed time by the HM Murrieta choir in the darkness of the church. 

Thank you to Bert Porciuncula for documenting this beautiful event. We will post more photos over the rest of the week.

A blessed Easter to all!

Tenebrae 2023

 

Man of Sorrow, Albrecht Dürer, 1511, woodcut

Wednesday, April 5, 19:15 (7:15 P.M.)

TENEBRÆ of Maundy Thursday

Holy Martyrs of England & Wales Catholic Church 

39022 Sky Canyon Dr., Murrieta, CA 92563

Text with translation for printing or mobile devices (1st part). 
Text with translation for printing or mobile devices (2nd part).

Friday, April 7 & Saturday, April 8, 5:00 (A.M.)

TENEBRÆ of Good Friday & Holy Saturday

St. Anne Catholic Church

621 Sicard St. San Diego, CA 92113-2396

Tenebrae is the sung offices of Matins and Lauds of each of the three days of the Sacred Triduum. Parts of the services will be performed in Gregorian chant, parts in our own tones. There is no charge for admission, and all the public are invited to attend. The morning offices at St. Anne will finish around 7:15 a.m. Blessed Triduum to all.

For Friday:

Text with translation for printing or mobile devices (1st part). 
Text with translation for printing or mobile devices (2nd part). 

For Saturday:

Text with translation for printing or mobile devices (1st part). 
Text with translation for printing or mobile devices (2nd part). 

Oratory of the Passion

The altar during Friday Exercises

On Friday nights during Lent, the Brothers and postulants in San Diego gather to pray the Friday Exercises according to the Manual of the Little Oratory. As the Brothers in San Diego lack a church building of their own, they usually gather either at someone's residence or in a church. Like last year, the Brothers have usually gathered at St. Anne Catholic Church on Fridays in Lent, though while last year we started about 20:45 (8:45 p.m.), this year we have started closer to 21:30 (9:30 p.m.)

The Friday Exercises are conducted in the dark, save for the illumination of the crucifix, the candles lit at the altar at the Nunc dimittis, and the necessary booklights. Fratellino mentions how in London, the drawing of curtains around windows keeps the Oratory near pitch black during the Exercises. One of the most interesting parts of the Exercises is the sharing of the Kiss of Peace after the Nunc dimittis using the pax-brede, a long-forgotten liturgical object that was used to distribute the Peace among the faithful without intimate contact. By the end of the 19th-century, the pax-brede had fallen out of use, similar to many other liturgical objects and rituals such as unconsecrated wine for the laity, pain-bénit, and the quasi-clerical customs of European monarchs. 

According to Fratellino, our pax-bredes were originally Syroco (woodite) plaques, which was a moldable pulp-resin composite material popular in the early 20th-century. Their depiction of Our Lord and Our Lady serve as close substitutes for the image of Our Lady of Vallicella depicted on the pax-bredes in London.  Being of the perfect size to be used as pax-bredes, the plaques were silvered by a friend of Frater George Pecoraro and given iron handles through another friend. These handles allow for the pax-bredes to stand on their own upon the altar during Exercises, be held by the Brothers conveniently during the distribution, and hold the cloths used to wipe the pax-brede after each Brother has kissed it. Other parts of the Exercises include a period of silence, the reading of a summary of Our Lord's Passion, and other Psalms, Hymns, and Collects.

The altar at Frater Ron's

When gathering at someone's residence on a Lenten Friday, the Brothers enjoy a soup supper at table together following the conclusion of the Exercises, which are lengthened into the full Oratory of the Passion with the praying of the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary. According to Frater Ron, the songs after each Mystery were selected by Fratellino years ago, with some selections being:

• 1st: Fratellino's harmonization of In monte oliveti from Tenebrae
• 3rd: O Sacred Head Surrounded
• 5th: Christus factus est (Gradual from Maundy Thursday)

Dinner at Frater Jon T.'s

In 2021, Frater Jon T. hosted us at his house, where we prayed at a side altar built for the chapel adjacent to his foyer. Afterward, we enjoyed our simple supper of lentil soup with bread and beverages. This year, we were hosted by Frater Ron at his house, where we were able to appreciate the various depictions of the London Oratory and other sorts of memorabilia at his house, dedicated to Our Lady of Walsingham. During Exercises, we were accompanied by the sound of frogs and rain during a particularly wet weekend. After Exercises, we enjoyed a dinner of vegetable soup with roasted peppers and coconut milk very reminiscent of a Thai coconut curry. Dinner came with drinks, bread, and a small dessert. The soup supper after Friday Exercises each year reminds the Brothers to enjoy the company of one another in the midst of Lenten penance. 

A good vegan soup

Courtesy: Fratellino, David

Eternal Rest, Father Louie

"And so, Fr. Louis Solcia, C.R.S.P., passes from the scene, aged 91 years. This was a priest of extraordinary personal charisma, a true believer in the supernatural reality of the Catholic faith, and a unique credit to the Clerks Regular of St Paul. Lux aeterna luceat ei, Domine. Requiescat in pace. St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria, St. Philip Neri, and St. Padre Pio, pray for him." - Fratellino

After over 30 years of serving the Barnabite (C.R.S.P.) church of Our Lady of the Rosary in Little Italy, San Diego, Father Louie has passed into the next life on Thursday, March 2, 2023, at 3:30 a.m. to meet Our Lord. We pray especially that Our Lord may have mercy upon his poor soul and reward him for his merits on the Last Day, and that if he must endure the cleansing of Purgatory, that the Saints above pray unceasingly for his quick entry into Heaven. 

The Last Judgement at Our Lady of the Rosary

The Office of the Dead is a powerful prayer for the repose of departed souls. As Father Louie was a priest, his Collect reads as follows:

Deus, qui inter apostolicos sacerdotes famulum tuum Ludovicum sacerdotali fecisti dignitate vigere: praesta, quaesumus; ut eorum quoque perpetuo aggregetur consortio. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum.

O God, who among the apostolic priests made thy servant Louis to flourish in priestly dignity: grant, we beseech thee; that their association may also be perpetually united. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.

c. 1950

Born near Milan on November 15, 1931, during the reign of Milanese Pope Pius XI, Louis Mary Solcia was inspired to become a priest by his uncle Fr. Enrico Solcia, P.I.M.E., who was a missionary priest in India under the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions. He enrolled at the Barnabite seminary at age 14 and was ordained as a priest in the Clerks Regular of Saint Paul at age 26 on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. After years of being transferred across North America to teach at schools and minister to parishes, Fr. Louie was appointed associate pastor at Our Lady of the Rosary in 1991. During his three decades of service in Little Italy, Fr. Louie promoted devotion to Padre Pio, inspired vocations to the priesthood (including a current priest in the F.S.S.P.), and served as a confessor to both clergy and laity alike. He was also chaplain to many lay groups across San Diego and taught classes on history and Scripture both at the parish and through Facebook livestreams. Father's notability is emphasized by his presence among the "famous Italians" banners attached to street lamps throughout Little Italy, placing him among the likes of Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and Antonin Scalia.

Fr. Louie's banner on Google Street View

Even in the face of persecution for upholding the moral teaching of the Church, Fr. Louie stood firm against pressure to offer a Funeral Mass for a lapsed Catholic who lived in public sin.  

Father is shown walking past a street lamp

Members of Chorus Breviarii can testify to Father offering Traditional Low Mass at times, and Fr. Louie was certainly not a stranger to the activities of the Brothers. During the Seven Churches Tour of 2012, Fr. Louie was among the clerics who joined in the Eucharistic procession between Our Lady of the Rosary and St. Joseph's Cathedral. Father was likely familiar with the Precious Blood Robes of the Brothers in San Diego, having seen them worn during both the Seven Churches Tour and the annual Eucharistic procession at the Little Italy Festa. 

The Brothers and the faithful of San Diego will certainly miss the presence of Fr. Louie. After his funeral in San Diego, he will be buried at the Barnabite complex in Lewiston, NY. Please pray for him so that he may soon become our intercessor in Heaven, and that, if he does indeed hear our prayers, through his intercession we may join him with Christ and all the Saints. 

Father at the Thanksgiving Mass of
Rev. Fr. David Lopez, F.S.S.P. (2022)

Recently ordained Fr. Lopez
gives a blessing to Fr. Louie

Courtesy: Shaun, Fr. Louie's Facebook page, Peg Demetris, The Southern Cross

St. Philip, Bad Confessors, and the Devil

The Church of St. Mark in Florence

In the first chapter of Book One of The Life of St. Philip Neri, Apostle of Rome, Fr. Bacci speaks of St. Philip's frequent visits to the Dominican Church of St. Mark during his boyhood in Florence. This is the same St. Mark's that housed the famous friars Fra Angelico and Savonarola, the latter of whom St. Philip admired and defended. While these two great Dominicans died before St. Philip's birth, St. Philip was familiar with two other Dominicans, Fra Zenobio de' Medici and Fra Servanzio Mini. Testifying to their virtue, Philip often recalled the following event to his disciples:

St. Benedict expelling the devil, from the sacristy of San Miniato in Florence (1388)
Spinello Aretino (Tuscan, c. 1350 - c. 1410)

These two fathers had agreed together to hear each other’s confessions every night, before they went to matins, in order that they might say office with greater devotion; but the devil was envious of so much good, and one night, about two hours before the usual time, he knocked at the cell of Fra. Zenobio, saying, “Up quickly, it is time.” At these words the good father woke and got up, and went as usual into the Church, where he found the devil in the form of Fra. Servanzio, walking near the confessional. Believing it was really his companion, he knelt down to confess, and the devil sat down as if to hear the confession, and at each fault which Fra. Zenobio named, he cried out, “It is nothing, it is nothing.” At last the friar adding a fault which seemed to him of a somewhat more grave character, the devil still said, “It is nothing.” When Zenobio heard this form of speech, he bethought himself a little, and suspecting, not without reason, some diabolical illusion, he at once made the sign of the holy cross, saying, “Perhaps you are a devil from hell,” at which words the evil spirit was confounded, and immediately disappeared.

Sacrament of Penance (c. 1800)
Francesco Novelli (Italian print, 1764-1836)

The devil attempts to prevent a woman from making a good Confession

In the present day, many penitents are often subjected to dangerously soft confessors who attempt to minimize sins. Some priests laugh mortal sins off as "common" or even allude to their own faults in a light-hearted manner. Other priests attempt psychologizing sins of imprudence and impurity, and some may even accuse young men of being too hard on themselves. When it comes to being good confessors, can these priests claim to be that much better than the devil himself when he tested Fra Zenobio? The devil does not need to tempt us with the promise of dominion over earthly kingdoms to gain our servitude, as he did during the unsuccessful temptation of Our Lord in the wilderness. Rather, that simple lie repeated by the Devil under the appearance of Fra Servanzio is enough to rope many into Hell: "It is nothing." Many Americans have been deceived by the false Gospel of "once saved, always saved," even believing continuous repentance to be useless. Meanwhile, many Catholics have been tricked by Protestants and crypto-Protestants into denying the power of Penance, often quoting erroneously from Scripture. The Gospel of the First Sunday of Lent reminds us that even the devil can deceive us with Scripture. Whether the devil chooses to attack the faithful with bad advice in the confessional, bad preaching from the pulpit, or bad YouTube videos promising eternal security, Catholics must remain firm against falsehood and error. Follow the example of Christ in the wilderness this Lent, and you will be rewarded for resisting temptation!

The Temptation of Christ on the Mountain (c. 1308-1311)
Duccio di Buoninsegna (Italo-Byzantine, Sienese, c. 1255 - c. 1318)

Who are Chorus Breviarii Murrieta?

Visit Chorus Breviarii Murrieta's site: https://chorbrevmurrieta.blogspot.com/

One of the sweetest fruits of 2021 was the founding of a new Chorus Breviarii subgroup, the decently-sized Chorus Breviarii Murrieta, within the boundaries of the neighboring Diocese of San Bernardino. A summary of the history, purpose, and activities of the original Chorus Breviarii is available in the Who We Are section of the blog. 

First choral Compline at Holy Martyrs, 4/30/2021

With outreach mostly restricted to the Diocese of San Diego (and occasional events in the neighboring Diocese of Orange) since 2001, the founding of a subgroup in Riverside County just before the 20th annual observance of Tenebrae opened up opportunities for the expansion of traditional practices in California's Inland Empire region. With most of the founding members being parishioners at the Ordinariate Parish of Holy Martyrs of England & Wales in Murrieta, CA, the subgroup is especially familiar with pious public prayer in both English and Latin. Founded by men whose most familiar liturgy is the Anglican Use of the Roman Rite, Chorus Breviarii Murrieta has a great familiarity with the rituals and services of both the Anglican Ordinariate Use and the Traditional Roman Rite. Like the original Chorus Breviarii in San Diego, the group is not tied down to any particular parish, allowing members to spread a love for reverent liturgy to other parishes in their area.

CB Murrieta members at the Marian shrine at the conclusion of O Tide Evensong
at St. Martha Catholic Church, Murrieta, with Fr. Ian Hollick

Courtesy: Holy Martyrs Facebook page

Past initiatives of CB Murrieta include the introduction of biweekly Friday Compline at Holy Martyrs and the chanting of Evensong during "O Tide" (the Greater Ferias of Advent, on which the O Antiphons are sung in anticipation of Christmas) both at Holy Martyrs and nearby St. Martha's. 

Three San Diego Brothers and a few CB Murrieta members after Compline,
along with Dcn. Keith Way and Dcn. Sam Keyes (now Fr. Sam Keyes), both
 clergy from St. Augustine of Canterbury Ordinariate Parish in North SD

Additional activities of CB Murrieta members include Eucharistic processions, pro-life marches, singing for both Requiem and Festal Masses, and collaboration with the San Diego Brothers and CB members for the observance of Roman Tenebrae. Along with Holy Martyrs and St. Martha's, CB Murrieta has also been invited to assist with chanting Mass parts at St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church in the desert town of Victorville, CA. As of January 2023, there are about a dozen members.

Evensong at St. Martha, 12/22/2021

CB Murrieta member Thiago Da Costa has created a video dedicated to the late Brazilian philosopher Olavo de Carvalho containing portions of a Requiem offered for the repose of his soul, the parts chanted by CB Murrieta members directed by a San Diego Brother.

May Our Lady, St. Philip Neri, the Holy Martyrs of England & Wales, St. John Henry Newman, St. Bernardine of Siena, and all the saints pray for the success of this group of men in their efforts to spread the benefits of reverent, corporate prayer to churches in their area!

More Scenes from St. Thomas the Apostle 2022

 Blessed Epiphany to all!

We encourage our readers to take a look at the following posts from Chorus Breviarii Murrieta, who joined us for St. Thomas Vespers as part of their O Tide event. Plenty of photos and some videos from their O Tide and Christmas events are available for your viewing.

O Tide in Victorville 2022

O Tide in Chino 2022

Snapshots of Murrieta and Guasti 2022

Additional Snapshots from Murrieta 2022

Midnight Mass 2022

O Tide Recap 2022

St. Philip with his distinctive collar

As a little bonus, here are some photos of St. Philip making an appearance in the Nativity scene at the Roman church of Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini, founded by St. Philip himself and currently under the care of the FSSP. The collection of photos of the Nativity scene are available at New Liturgical Movement.

St. Philip's scene is located to the right

Courtesy: New Liturgical Movement