The Chair of Unity Octave goes from the Feast of St. Peter’s Chair in Rome to the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul (January 18-25).

Fr. Scott Haynes A Meditation for the Month of the Holy Name January Church bells are among the most enduring voices of Christian civilization. For centuries, their sound has shaped daily life, calling the faithful to prayer, marking sacred time, and summoning entire communities to moments of danger, sorrow, or thanksgiving. Yet bells were never meant to be neutral instruments. Once blessed, they were understood to be active participants in the life of the Church, sanctifying

For almost a millennium, pilgrims have traveled to Cologne Cathedral in Germany to venerate the relics of the three wise men.

The Church gives us the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus as a quiet jewel after Christmas. The Child has been born. He has been circumcised according to the Law. His Name has been spoken aloud. And now the faithful are invited to linger over it, not as a title, but as a presence. The hymn, "Jesu dulcis," is the beautiful hymn of the Holy Name.

From the blessing of Epiphany Water to the Chalking of the Doors on the feast of the Three Kings, Catholics celebrate Epiphany in tradition.

Fr. Scott Haynes Below is given the priestly blessing of Chalk during Epiphany. Benedictio Creatae in Festo Epiphaniae   V. Adjutorium nostrum in nomine Domini. R. Qui fecit caelum et terram. V. Dominus vobiscum. R. Et cum spiritu tuo. Bene + dic, Domine Deus, creaturam istam cretae: ut sit salutaris humano generi; et praesta per invocationem nominis tui sanctissimi, ut, quicumque ex ea sumpserint, vel in domus suae portis scripserint nomina sanctorum tuorum Gasparis, Melchio

Fr. Scott Haynes The priest may bless Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh during the Epiphany season. The traditional blessing from the Roman Ritual is given below.

During the season of Epiphany it traditional for the priest to perform this blessing of the home.

The chalking of the doors at Epiphany is a venerable Catholic tradition rooted in the Passover. We chalk the lintels to seek God's blessing.

Sr. Lucia teaches us the traditional devotion to the Five First Saturdays in honor of Our Lady of Fatima. Through Mary, God sends us grace.

Fr. Scott Haynes A Meditation on History, Theology, and Holy Poverty I. A Carol Born of Winter Silence In the Bleak Midwinter  did not begin as a carol sung by choirs beneath candlelight. It began as a poem. In 1872, Christina Rossetti, one of the great devotional poets of the Victorian era, published a quiet meditation titled A Christmas Carol  in the magazine Scribner’s Monthly . Rossetti was not writing for liturgy or performance. She was writing for the soul. Her verse wa

Gesù Bambino is a beloved Christmas carol.

Learn from St. Margaret Mary Alacoque how to practice the traditional Catholic devotion of the nine first Fridays of the Sacred Heart.

Fr. Scott Haynes Christ is the sole Mediator between God and man. Sacred Scripture speaks with absolute clarity: “For there is one God, and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus”  (1 Tim. 2:5). His mediation is unique because it flows from His divine Person and His redemptive sacrifice. No creature can stand beside Him as an equal, nor can any add to the saving power of His Cross. Yet the same St. Paul who proclaims Christ as the one Mediator also teaches that God

In dulci jubilo is not merely a Christmas carol. It is a song born on the threshold between heaven and earth, where language falters and joy overflows. From its first notes, it sounds less like a composed hymn and more like praise breaking free from the heart of the Church.

Fr. Scott Haynes The carol known throughout the world as Carol of the Bells  was not born amid Christmas trees or cathedral choirs. Its true name is Shchedryk, and it arose from the deep memory of the Ukrainian countryside. It began not as a Christmas hymn, but as a song of blessing sung at the turning of the year, when winter seemed strongest and hope most fragile. In the original text, a small swallow flies into a household and sings of abundance to come. The fields will fl

Fr. Scott A. Haynes A Carol Meditation Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella bursts into the night with motion. This is no hushed lullaby sung at a distance. It is a summons. Bring a torch.  Run. Hurry. The Child is here, and the darkness must give way. The carol comes to us from Provence, rooted in the old French Noëls  that were sung not in concert halls but in homes, marketplaces, and village streets. Its original refrain, “Guillô, pran ton flambeau,”  called real people by na

In the calendar year, who is the last saint mentioned? It is St. Sylvester I, who was a 4th century Pope, and contemporary of Constantine.

On New Year's Day we celebrate the Octave of the Nativity of Our Lord and Jesus' Circumcision, tied to the Jewish history of the Old Covenant.

Fr. Scott Haynes A Film on the Life of St. Thomas Becket Feast Day, December 29 Becket is one of the great historical dramas of mid-twentieth-century cinema, released in 1964 and closely associated with the cultural and spiritual climate of the early 1960s. Directed by Peter Glenville and based on the play by Jean Anouilh, the film dramatizes the tragic conflict between King Henry II of England and his former friend, Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury. At the heart of th