The Baptism of Christ

From today's Office of Readings:

By St. Gregory Nazianzen

Christ is bathed in light; let us also be bathed in light. Christ is baptised; let us also go down with him, and rise with him. 

John is baptising when Jesus draws near. Perhaps he comes to sanctify his baptiser; certainly he comes to bury sinful humanity in the waters. He comes to sanctify the Jordan for our sake and in readiness for us; he who is spirit and flesh comes to begin a new creation through the Spirit and water. 

The Baptist protests; Jesus insists. Then John says: I ought to be baptised by you. He is the lamp in the presence of the sun, the voice in the presence of the Word, the friend in the presence of the Bridegroom, the greatest of all born of woman in the presence of the firstborn of all creation, the one who leapt in his mother's womb in the presence of him who was adored in the womb, the forerunner and future forerunner in the presence of him who has already come and is to come again. I ought to be baptised by you: we should also add, "and for you," for John is to be baptised in blood, washed clean like Peter, not only by the washing of his feet. 

Jesus rises from the waters; the world rises with him. The heavens, like Paradise with its flaming sword, closed by Adam for himself and his descendants, are rent open. The Spirit comes to him as to an equal, bearing witness to his Godhead. A voice bears witness to him from heaven, his place of origin. The Spirit descends in bodily form like the dove that so long ago announced the ending of the flood and so gives honour to the body that is one with God. 

Today let us do honour to Christ's baptism and celebrate this feast in holiness. Be cleansed entirely and continue to be cleansed. Nothing gives such pleasure to God as the conversion and salvation of men, for whom his every word and every revelation exist. He wants you to become a living force for all mankind, lights shining in the world. You are to be radiant lights as you stand beside Christ, the great light, bathed in the glory of him who is the light of heaven. You are to enjoy more and more the pure and dazzling light of the Trinity, as now you have received - though not in its fullness - a ray of its splendour, proceeding from the one God, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and power for ever and ever. Amen. 

Painting by Bartolome Esteban Murillo (1665)

Sacred Art Series Interview with St. Michael Catholic Radio

St. Michael Catholic Radio interviewed me yesterday on the Catholic Man Show. The interview is embedded below.

Thanks to St. Michael Catholic Radio for having me on! I enjoyed it.

More Gospels on Their Way to Amazon

Our Gospels are temporarily out of stock at Amazon, but a new shipment was mailed Thursday, December 16. The books should arrive soon and I expect that with 2-day Prime Shipping, they'll still make it to customers by Christmas!

More Large Rosary Flip Books are also on their way.

Marian Antiphon for Advent - Alma Redemptoris Mater

The Alma Redemptoris Mater is the seasonal Marian Antiphon for Advent. That means that tonight, following Night Prayer, rather than singing the Salve Regina, we'll sing the Alma Redemptoris Mater.

My blog post at OnePeterFive earlier this year explains the Marian Antiphons and includes instructional videos for all of them.

The Alma Redemptoris Mater video is embedded below.

Happy Advent!

New Book and a Giveaway

New Book!

Bloomfield Books has just published a new book! Or rather, we've just published an old book: The Life of St. Philip Neri by Fr. Pietro Giacomo Bacci. This excellent biography of St. Philip Neri was first published in 1622, not long after the saint's death in 1595. Over the years, undoubtedly due to St. Philip's amazing life and enduring popularity, this book has been translated into different languages and republished many times.

While several English translations have long been in the public domain, until now, there was no easily readable electronic format. We've remedied this by publishing a Kindle Edition.

Kindle Edition

The Life of St. Philip Neri is actually six books. I intend to publish all six books for Kindle, but for now I've only completed editing the first volume, which contains Books I and II. Book I describes St. Philip's youth through the founding of the Congregation of the Oratory. Book II describes St. Philip's many virtues.

The book is now available for purchase at Amazon for $1.99.

Giveaway and Sale!

There's also a new giveaway involving the Sacred Art Series' The Holy Gospels of St. Luke and St. John. The giveaway is at the blog A Knotted Life, and features many, many great Catholic giveaway items, including a copy of our Holy Gospels and one of my sister's I'm Bernadette books. Enter here!

In honor of the Giveaway, the price of all Sacred Art Series items at Amazon have been lowered 20% at Amazon. The sale will continue throughout the time of the Giveaway, which goes through November 16.

Our Lady of the Rosary - October 7

Today is the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, which commemorates the Battle of Lepanto. (For more on the Battle of Lepanto, see this fine piece by Fr. George Rutler.)

And don't forget that October is the month of the Rosary. Do you pray the family Rosary? If not, October is a great month to start, and if you haven't started yet, today would be the perfect day.

And remember, if five decades is too much for your little ones, consider beginning with just one decade. Also, consider using images of the Rosary to help you meditate on the mysteries as you pray your Our Father's,  Hail Mary's, and Glory Be's. It was with this in mind that I created the Sacred Art Series Rosary Flip Book. Hopefully it will be as helpful for your family as it has been for mine.

Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us!

Homeschooling and the Sacred Art Series -- and a Sale and Giveaway!

Schools and homeschools alike are beginning classes soon, which means that it's time to buy books and other school materials.

The Sacred Art Series offers two unique products that can supplement your religion curriculum and aid family devotion year round: (1) The Holy Gospels of St. Luke and St. John and (2) the Rosary Flip Book.

Cultivating Prayer in the Home

As the father of a homeschooling family, I designed the Sacred Art Series especially for families with school-aged and young children--and particularly for homeschooling families such as my own. Every day, I want my children to grow in their knowledge, love, and service of God. Two of the best ways for cultivating this in the home are the regular reading of Scripture and the daily recitation of the Rosary. Yet both activities present difficulties for children.

I designed the Sacred Art Series to minimize these difficulties, thereby making Scripture and the Rosary more accessible for children.

The Holy Gospels of St. Luke and St. John

The Holy Gospels of St. Luke and St. John presents the complete text of the Gospels of Luke and John in large print in a story-by-story format alongside beautiful images of sacred art. With these two Gospels--the synoptic Luke and the non-synoptic John--a child will have an accessible, one-volume life of Christ that can be read and re-read throughout life. Strong readers (second or third grade and up) can easily read a new Gospel story each day on his own. Children learning to read can read with their parents. This regular reading of the Gospels not only supplements a child's religion course by developing knowledge of Jesus Christ, it also lays a strong foundation for a regular life of prayer.

And there's no need to take my word regarding the contents of the book. You can view a free .pdf of the entire interior of the book here; and hi-res images of the printed book are available here. More details and reviews are available at the SacredArtSeries.com product page and at Amazon.

The Rosary Flip Book

The daily recitation of the Rosary--or a portion thereof--is another excellent practice for families. Many homeschoolers wisely incorporate this devotion into their school day. But praying the Rosary with small children can be difficult. Asking a child to meditate on the Fourth Sorrowful Mystery, the Carrying of the Cross, tends to be too abstract for the mind of a child--and often too abstract for us adults! The Rosary Flip Book can help.

Providing an image to stimulate the imagination and regularly call the child back to the mystery at hand is helpful. And even after your Rosary is done, leaving the Rosary Flip Book open on the mantle or elsewhere in the home can provide a helpful reminder to pray throughout the day. It's especially helpful on holy days such as the Annunciation, Christmas, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter, Pentecost, or the Assumption, as the appropriate image can be displayed throughout the day.

More details on the Rosary Flip Book, including reviews are available on the product page at www.SacredArtSeries.com.

Back to (Home)School Sale and Giveaway

Both The Holy Gospels of St. Luke and St. John and the Rosary Flip Book are available for purchase through Amazon with free shipping through Amazon Prime. More information on both items is available at www.SacredArtSeries.com. And for the next week (through August 27), I'm reducing the prices at Amazon on these items by 20%.

And there's more: The Sacred Art Series is hosting an Amazon Giveaway of one copy of The Holy Gospels of St. Luke and St. John. Follow the link, tap the box, and see if you're the winner.

Lastly, a final request: if you find these books helpful for your family and your homeschool, please consider writing a favorable Amazon review and spread the word--both orally and through social media. (You can also like and share our Facebook page.) The publications of the Sacred Art Series were self-funded out of a desire to spread the Gospel and the Rosary. It's not cheap to produce a beautifully bound book, so if you'd like to see more from the Sacred Art Series, I need your help.

God bless you and your families in this new school year!