A Carpe Diem Snapshot:
It happened again-- another Roman "Godincidence" today. Today's Carpe Diem Snapshot was supposed to be about the final days of Carnevale in Rome but, as usual, God had other plans and made them impossible to miss. Around midnight last night I started filling out today's blog post and, in so doing, looked over the liturgical info for March 4 on catholicculture.org. After filling in the Shrove Tuesday info, I scanned the rest of the page and noted that it was also the Feast of the Holy Face. Not knowing anything about it, I ignored it and prepared to publish the post. But, instead, I ended up falling asleep. Today, on the way to St. Anselm's on the Aventine hill, I walked too far and ended up climbing the hill on a street I had never been on before. As we all trudged up the hill, I was conversing with one of the students when out of the corner of my eye I saw the words "Festa del S. Volto" and stopped in my tracks. Upon inspection, I was amazed to discover that we were in front of the home of the devotion to the Holy Face in Rome, the tomb of Blessed Maria Pierina De Micheli (who created the Holy Face Medal), and the location of today's Eucharistic Adoration and Mass in honor of the feast day. When the porter inside noticed a dozen young ladies standing in front of the convent gate, the buzzer was pressed and the gate opened. We had to apologetically wave back that we were unable to go in at that time.
When I related the coincidence to our host at St. Anselm's, Fr. Hudson, he commented on the appropriateness of devotion to the Holy Face for Lent and described the different examples of devotional objects we have access to here in Italy-- the Shroud of Turin (the model for the Holy Face medal), Veronica's veil (exhibited in St. Peter's during the station Mass in Lent), and the Manopello cloth (our students already went there!).
Following our tour of the three historic churches on the via di Santa Sabina, we retraced our steps and flagged down the porter at the convent. After being led through a pre-school and up a flight of stairs, we found ourselves in the sisters' private chapel where the Blessed Sacrament was being exposed for public adoration the whole day. Before leaving, I was able to also visit the tomb of Bl. Maria Pierina, and pick up some literature and medals. If you would like to join me in this devotion during the Lenten season, here's an article with links and the prayer.
The reason we all know about the Holy Face devotion today is because the original visionary, Sr. Marie of St. Peter, wrote a book about it called The Golden Arrow. Incidentally, it is also the name of a novel written by Mary Webb (1916), with an introduction by G.K. Chesterton. You can read that one here.
Liturgical: Tuesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Shrove Tuesday
The day before Ash Wednesday is a celebration marking the start of the penitential season of Lent. Before Lent — a time of prayer, fasting and penance through a period of 40 days until Easter — Catholics and others celebrate with festivities known by several names. Catholics also prepare for Lent by spiritually removing themselves of sin through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. That is why this day is also referred to as Shrove Tuesday, from the old English word shrive, meaning to confess all sins.
Today is a traditional feast honoring the Holy Face of Jesus. On April 17th, 1958, His Holiness Pope Pius XII confirmed the Feast of the Holy Face of Jesus as a movable feast on Shrove Tuesday (Tuesday before Ash Wednesday) for all the dioceses and religious orders who would ask for the Indult from Rome. Devotion to the Holy Face was revealed by Jesus to Sr. Marie of St. Peter (1816-1848) a Carmelite nun of Tours in France. The primary purpose of the devotion is to make reparation for sins against the first three commandments. Learn more about this devotion at Holy Face Devotion, the Holy Face Association and this article for more information.
Sanctoral: The Optional Memorial of St. Casimir (1458-1484) who was born in 1458 and was the son of the King of Poland. At an early age he saw through the superficiality and corruption of court life. Throughout his short life—he died of consumption at the age of 26—he dedicated himself wholly to the service of God and of his fellow-men. His love for the poor was immense. He was also renowned for his devotion to the Eucharist and to the Blessed Virgin.
Human: It is the day before Ash Wednesday, called Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday. Traditionally, it is the last day for Christians to indulge before the sober weeks of fasting that come with Lent. Formally known as Shrove Tuesday, Mardi Gras has long been a time of extravagant fun for European Christians. In many southern states of the USA Mardi Gras is a traditional holiday. The most famous celebration takes place in New Orleans, Louisiana. It has been celebrated there on a grand scale, with masked balls and colorful parades, since French settlers arrived in the early 1700s.
Today is the Birthday of Antonio Vivaldi (1678)! Here's a bio video for kids.
Natural: Delicious Beignet recipe for a New Orleans Mardi Gras! And...15 Delicious Italian Carnevale Desserts
Italian: The vocabulary of Italian Carnevale: what you need to know
Quote: "A Carnevale ogni scherzo vale!"
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