Every device of which man boasts as an invention of his mind is revealed by Divine Providence and every invented device has its two-fold significance one physical, the other spiritual. Even the clock is a wonderful device but it was not invented merely to tell us the time of day and night but also to remind us of death. This is its spiritual significance. When the small hand completes its rounds of seconds and minutes then the large hand arrives at the ordered hour and the clock strikes. So will the clock of our life strike when the days, months and years of our life are numbered. That is why St. Tikhon of Zadonsk counsels every Christian to reflect:

1. How the time of our life continually passes;

2. How it is impossible to bring back time that is past;

3. How the past and future times are not in our control but only that time in which we are now living;

4. How the end of our life is unknown;

5. How we must be prepared for death every day, every hour and every minute;

6. How because of that we must always be in the state of continual repentance;

7. How we must be repentant in every hour and spiritually disposed as we would wish to be at the hour of our death.

MEMORIAL TO A MONK WHO JOYFULLY DIED AND WHO NEVER JUDGED ANYONE IN HIS LIFE

This monk was lazy, careless, and lacking in his prayer life; but throughout all of his life, he did not judge anyone. While dying, he was happy. When the brethren asked him how is it that with so many sins, you die happy? He replied, “I now see angels who are showing me a letter with my numerous sins. I said to them, Our Lord said: `stop judging and you will not be judged’ (St. Luke 6:37). I have never judged anyone, and I hope in the mercy of God that He will not judge me.” And the angels tore up the paper. Upon hearing this, the monks were astonished and learned from it.

May he pray for us!

These two feasts seem to me analogues. And so this seems to me a perfect time for a week of prayer. Yes, I mean – it’s time to cross the streams.

NB: One might just as well remember Our Lady’s cry – and St Seraphim of Sarov – to “pray the Rosary Daily”!

(If you’re saying these prayers as a “stand alone” office – start here)

Glory to you, our God, glory to you.

O heavenly King, Comforter, the Spirit of truth, everywhere present and filling all things; Treasury of good things and Giver of life: Come and abide in us and cleanse us from every impurity, and save our souls, O good one.

Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal: have mercy on us. (3x)

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

O, Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, cleanse us from our sins. Master, pardon our transgressions. Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities for your Name’s sake.

Lord, have mercy. (3x)

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Our Father, in heaven, hallowed be your Name; your kingdom come; your will be done on earth, as in heaven. Give us this day the bread of Life; and forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us; save us from the time of trial, and deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, are yours: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

(If you are saying the novena with other prayers, start here)

O good Mother of the Good King, most pure and blessed Theotokos Mary, pour out the mercy of your Son and our God upon my passionate soul, by your intercessions guide me into all good works, that I may pass the remaining time of my life without blemish, and attain paradise by your help, O Virgin Theotokos, only pure and blessed one.

Troparion (Tone 4)
Today the faithful celebrate the feast with joy
illumined by your coming, O Mother of God.
Beholding your pure image we fervently cry to you:
“Encompass us beneath the precious veil of your protection;
deliver us from every form of evil by entreating Christ,
your Son and our God that He may save our souls.”

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Kontakion (Tone 3)
Today the Virgin stands in the midst of the Church
and with choirs of saints she invisibly prays to God for us.
Angels and bishops worship,
apostles and prophets rejoice together,
since for our sake she prays to the pre-eternal God.

Litany of Our Lady of Victory

God, the Father of Heaven, Have mercy on us.
God, the Son, Redeemer of the world, Have mercy on us.
God, the Holy Spirit, Have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God, Have mercy on us.

The response for the following greetings is Pray for us.

Our Lady of Victory,
Victorious Daughter of the Father,
Victorious Mother of the Son,
Victorious Spouse of the Holy Spirit,
Victorious Servant of the Holy Trinity
Victorious in crushing the serpent’s head,
Victorious over all the children of Adam,
Victorious over all enemies,
Victorious in your presentation in the Temple,
Victorious in your response to the Angel Gabriel,
Victorious in your wedding to St. Joseph,
Victorious in the birth of Christ,
Victorious in the flight to Egypt,
Victorious in your exile,
Victorious in your home at Nazareth,
Victorious in finding Christ in the temple,
Victorious in the mission of your Son,
Victorious in His passion and death,
Victorious in His Resurrection and Ascension,
Victorious in the Coming of the Holy Spirit,
Victorious in your sorrows and joys,
Victorious in your falling asleep in the Lord,,
Victorious in the angels who remained faithful,
Victorious in the happiness of the saints,
Victorious in the message of the prophets,
Victorious in the testimony of the patriarchs,
Victorious in the zeal of the apostles,
Victorious in the witness of the evangelists,
Victorious in the wisdom of the doctors,
Victorious in the deeds of the confessors,
Victorious in the triumph of all holy women,
Victorious in the faithfulness of the martyrs,
Victorious in your powerful intercession,
Victorious under your many titles,
Victorious at the moment of death,

Lord, have mercy,
Christ, have mercy,
Lord, have mercy,

Christ, hear us,
Christ, graciously hear us.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, Spare us, Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, Hear us, Lord.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, Have mercy, Lord.

Pray for us, blessed Lady of Victory.
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Our Lady of Victory, we have unshaken confidence in your intercession before your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ. Humbly we ask your prayers for all Christians in help or need. We implore you to obtain for us grace needed in our lives to make us worthy of sharing Christ’s victory. May we join with you in praise of the the Father, His Son, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and ever and unto ages of ages.

Salve Regina (Hail Holy Queen)
Hail Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope.
To Thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To Thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn, then, most gracious advocate, thine evyes of mercy toward us.
And after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of Thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.

Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God:
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

The Memorare
Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that any one who fled to Thy protection, implored Thy help, and sought Thy intercession, was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly unto Thee, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother. To Thee I come; before Thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate! despise not my petitions, but in Thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.

O Victorious Leader of Triumphant Hosts!
We, your servants, delivered from evil,
sing our grateful thanks to you, O Theotokos!
As you possess invincible might,
set us free from every calamity
So that we may sing: Rejoice, O unwedded Bride!

(If you are saying this novena by itself, continue:)

Glory to you, O Jesus Christ, Our God and Our Hope, Glory to you.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Most Holy Theotokos Save us!

More honourable than the Cherumbim and beyond compare more glorious than the seraphim, in virginity you gave birth to God the Word. True Theotokos, we magnify you.

Lord, have mercy. (3x)

Lord, bless!

O Jesus Christ, Our God, through the prayers of our holy fathers and mothers have mercy upon us. Amen.

Although it’s called “Transfiguration” (and the Greek uses the word closest to “Metamorphosis”) the reality the Church sees here is that Jesus was revealing who he really is as both God and Man. There’s a lot of theology that arrises for no other reason than this very feast. What our idea of “salvation” is in the eastern tradition, how it is we are saved, who saves us and how we cooperate in that salvation is all sketched back to this mountaintop revelation of the mystery.

In this revelation, Jesus, as God and Man, is not just showing us his power… he’s showing us how we are to be. Because of who he is, we may become like him. Not in some spiritual paradise of harps and clouds, but in our very bodies, transfigured – metamorphosed – to be like his. Jesus the God-Man brings us humans back to integral unity with God in our spirit and in our flesh. And that happens for us to one degree or another here, on this Earth.

The problem with us – the reason we need the help – is because long ago (and continually) we get distracted by this world, either in a negative or positive way. We either get hung up on thinking the world is totally evil and/or illusory, or else we decide there’s nothing wrong with it or, equally bad, that we can fix it on our own. The clearest example of this is the other thing that gets commemorated on this day, the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: humanity arrogantly unleashing the inner fire of creation on ourselves. I’ve seen the math, justifying the lesser evil. I don’t presume to judge those who make such decisions with nearly 60 years of perfect hindsight. But in the same situation now, I’d be profoundly protesting. There are peaceful means of unleashing that fire, that fall under other rubrics, but in terms of warfare, we seem to make our choices as if the enemy doesn’t matter, was not himself the living Ikon of God. Instead of reconciliation, we’re left with shadows on walls to venerate in awe.

Jesus light doesn’t burn us into nothingness. Instead it burns away the useless things. Our goal is to live always in that light – and though the daily purgation to have a more-pure life until we, too, become that light. This is the Christian teaching on salvation: to follow the light until we become the light. That is our work here, that is our work in other times and places as well, as we move from Glory to Glory.

Jesus as God-Man did not seek to make us, as some would have it, Godly Men. By this they mean, usually, good citizens who are moral and trustworthy and mow their lawns properly. WHen I hear “Godly Men” mentioned in a sermon, it usually means some sort of Eisenhower-era image of Apple Pie and a Flag. In other cultures the totems will change, but the position is the same. It’s easy to reject this – as so many in the world rightly do – not because we fail as often as we do, but because it is shallow. This largely protestant, largely American (based on solid European roots) idea is sipped by millions the world over and found wanting. They can be prim and proper (and terribly boring) on their own, thank you.

Jesus did not come to make us “Godly Men”, but rather to infuse humanity with God. The God we had exiled came among us as one of us in order that the same God might dwell within us and make us – body and soul – one with him. This is far more exciting, far more dangerous, far more salvific. The path is just there.

The purpose of Transfiguration is to give us a goal to shoot for and to light the path before us.

As the bountiful harvest of Your sowing of salvation,
the lands of North and South America offer to You, O Lord, all the saints
who have shone forth in them.
By their prayers keep the Church and our land in abiding peace
through the Theotokos, O most Merciful One!

Kontakion (Tone 3)

Today the choir of Saints who were pleasing to God in the lands
of North and South America
stands before us in the Church and invisibly prays to God for us.
With them the Angels glorify Him,
and all the Saints of the Church of Christ keep festival with them;
and together they all pray for us to the Pre-eternal God.

Who are these “All Saints of America”?

As Anglicans and part of the Independent Sacramentalist community, we recognise the presence of sanctity beyond our own tradition. The Saints of America show forth a wide spectrum of God’s work in the new world, under the patronage of Our Lady of Guadeloupe, the Queen of the Americas

From the Eastern churches, this list includes

Innocent of Alaska,
Raphael of Brooklyn,
Tikhon of Moscow,
Arseny,
Nicholas,
John of San Francisco,
Juvenaly,
Jacob of Alaska,
Alexis of Wilkes-Barre,
John of Chicago,
Herman of Alaska,
Peter the Aleut,
Alexander Hotovitsky,
Seraphim of Platina.

For the Roman ecclesial communities, this list includes:
Juan Diego
Junipero Serra
Elizabeth Ann Seton
Frances Cabrini
John Neumann
Oscar Romero
René Goupil
Théodore Guérin
Katharine Drexel
Rose Philippine Duchesne
Isaac Jogues
Kateri Tekakwitha

And many many others:

It will come as a surprise to many, if not most, to learn that there are at least some 137 men and women who have lived in North or South America who have been beatified or canonized by the Roman Catholic Church. Sixty of them were canonized and 77 beatified. Most of these, 50 of them, came from Mexico and another 33 were from Brazil. The United States and Canada together can claim eight North American Martyrs. Individually Canada boasts another twelve saints or blesseds and the United States, nine. Seven were from Peru; three each were from Argentina and Chile; and one each from Guatemala, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. All except eight of these were beatified or canonized within the last one hundred years or so. Of these, Pope John Paul II was responsible for the canonization of 28 and the beatification of 32 others.

From the Anglican communities, the list of saints grows to include:

Samuel Seabury,
The Wesley Brothers,
Charles Henry Brent,
The Martyrs of Memphis,
Harriet Bedell,
Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
Amelia Bloomer,
Sojourner Truth,
Harriet Ross Tubman,
Thomas Bray,
James Lloyd Breck,
Phillips Brooks,
Anna Julia Haywood Cooper,
Alexander Crummell,
Jonathan Myrick Daniels,
James de Koven,
William Porcher DuBose,
Julia Emery,
King Kamehameha IV and his wife Emma,
Enmegahbowh,
John Hobart,
James Holly,
James Huntington,
William Huntington,
Absolom Jones,
Frances Joseph-Gaudet,
Jackson Kemper,
William A. Muhlenberg,
David P. Oakerhater,
Vida Dutton Scudder,
Thomas Gallaudet,
Henry Winter Syle,
William White,
Channing Moore Williams…

And others.

From the wider tradition, the action of God, the Sanctity of the Holy Spirit can be seen in the lives of Martin Luther King, Jr, Eleanor Roosevelt, John Muir, Dorothy Day, John Coltrane, and others who through their lives and art, their self-sacrificial love and their actions show the love of GOd to the world.

This list will keep growing.

The feast of All Saints of America is celebrated on the Second Sunday following Pentecost. The Theotokos of Guadalupe is celebrated on 12 December.

Troparion (Tone 4)

When you appeared in the New World, O Theotokos,
you fixed your image on Juan Diego’s rose laden tilma.
All the poor, hungry, and oppressed seek you, Lady of Guadalupe.
We gaze upon your miraculous icon and find hope,
crying out to your Son concealed in your womb:
Hear our plea for justice, O most merciful Lord.

Kontakion (Tone 7)

No longer shall the New World lie wounded in useless blood sacrifice,
for she who is clothed with the sun has revealed the Son to us.
O Mother of the Americas, imprint His Name upon our hearts,
just as you wove your image into the cactus cloth.
Teach your children to cry out:
O Christ God, our hope, glory to you.