Commemoration of the Feast of Saint Bridget of Sweden, Widow

    Christ is our Savior, and the priests of the Church are made rich in Him. The Church is blessed abundantly in and through Our Lord Jesus Christ

   There is a commemoration today of the holy Doctor of the Church Saint Jerome who was born in Dalmatia in 329. Even during his life he was renowned as a Doctor and interpreter of Holy Scripture. He defended Catholic teaching against many heresies; his chief aim was to be a perfect monk and before he would consent to be raised to the priesthood he exacted a promise from Paulinus, Bishop of Antioch, that this new dignity should in no wise interfere with his monastic vocation. To him we owe the translation of the Holy Scriptures, the introduction of the alleluiatic chant into the Sunday Mass, the spread of monastic life among the aristocracy, and lastly the daily recital of the Divine Office. After important services to the Pope of his time, St. Jerome retired to Bethlehem, where he died September 30, 420.

For more on this Doctor of the Church, consider the following from the feature Father of the Mother Tongue:

    St. Jerome was the wise and talented translator of the Holy Bible into the Latin Vulgate. Born of wealthy parents anywhere from 329 to 342 in Dalmatia, which is today the former Yugoslavia, Eusebius Hieronymus Sophronius had the benefit and opportunity to study at the great universities. We know him by his Christian name Jerome. He chose Rome, studying the languages under the great pagan grammarian Donatus. Through his intellectual curiosity towards literature, Christian writings and Scripture, he came to realize the Truth and was baptized in 360 by Pope Liberius himself.

    Jerome, yearning for more, gave up the pagan culture and the social trappings and sought the life of a hermit for four years where he studied Hebrew which he later called "the language of hissing and broken-winded words." At the conclusion of this seclusion, he became a priest around 379 and journeyed to Constantinople where he studied Scripture with St. Gregory Nazianzus as his tutor. When Gregory retired as Bishop of Constantinople and left for Asia Minor, Jerome was drawn to Rome where, accompanied by Bishop Paulinus, he was introduced to Pope Saint Damasus I. So taken was the pontiff that he appointed Jerome as his secretary and commissioned him to undertake his greatest contribution: translating the Greek and Hebrew texts of Sacred Scripture into Latin.

    At that time the language of the common people of the empire in the west was Latin, yet most of the writings had been in Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic and thus understandable only to the learned. Urged on by Pope Damasus, Jerome accepted the tremendous task of translating the entire bible into Latin to which we are all grateful for the Latin Vulgate Edition of St. Jerome. It took great skill and discernment to express the meaning of the Word of God in Latin and to know which words to choose.

    Jerome was given another gift, that of being able to express the Word in the simplest and most meaningful way and honing in even more on the true essence of all that was written by the prophets and evangelists. Within a short time the people were able to read and understand the "Good News" of the New Testament. This played a major role in the people rejecting the heresy of Arianism in the West for they could now read first hand the truth.

    While he was working on this massive project, Jerome had also become spiritual director to three holy women who had come from nobility but wanted more than the world offered. Many believe these ladies - Marcella, Paula and Eustochia were the first religious nuns. Because of her wealth and strong faith, Paula built a monastery in Bethlehem for the women to live and when Damasus died in 384 Jerome graciously declined Pope Saint Siricus’ offer to stay on as secretary, opting instead to become full time spiritual director at the Bethlehem monastery where he could also devote more time to translating the greater part of the Old Testament from Hebrew to Latin.

    For nine years from 393 to 404 many Arian clergymen sought to discredit him and cast scandal on Jerome, the sisters, and the Church just as is happening today with the post-conciliar Modernists who are discrediting the Church by their cover-ups and embracing heresies. Jerome, through his faithfulness and the grace of God, withstood these attacks and staunchly defended the orthodox doctrine of his faith just as faithful Roman Catholics are seeking the Truths and Traditions of Holy Mother Church today in the face of fierce subterfuge and open opposition.

    St. Jerome had intended to return to Rome at the urging of Pope Saint Innocent I who was elected the 40th successor to Peter on December 22, 401 but in 404 two events occurred. First, Sister Paula died, saddening Jerome and, after much prayer, decided to stay on at the monastery; and secondly, he received the terrible news that Rome was being sacked by the Goth Alaric and he prayed intensely for the Holy Father’s safety and all of the Roman people, some of whom, in 410, had sought shelter at the monastery when the Saracens invaded Palestine. Jerome interrupted his work on Ezekiel to take the Roman refugees in, taking the opportunity to teach them all he knew during the decade they were together.

    It's also interesting to know that Jerome began in 405 a series of scriptural commentaries which helped explain some of his discernment of the Latin Vulgate. Ten years later, he soundly denounced Pelagianism in his work Dialogi contra Pelagianos and faced the wrath of the heretics when a band of armed Pelagian monks bearing torches burned down several monasteries in Bethlehem. Through the grace of God Jerome escaped and the Pelagians were left to fight amongst themselves in abject poverty for in their fury they destroyed all means for survival as well.

    Shortly after they departed Bethlehem in failure, Jerome returned and began helping to rebuild the monastery. In 420 he died near the age of 90 on what is believed to be September 30th which remains the day of his feast in the universal Church. He was buried in the monastery which had now also become a hospice for many and would soon be the site for the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, the same site that was under an intense five-week siege that thankfully ended in early May.

    Throughout his priestly life Jerome wrote countless theses and letters exhibiting a tremendous knowledge of history, sociology and geography, not to mention prose. Many call him the "Father of the Mother Tongue" for he promoted Latin more enthusiastically than anyone before him. Jerome is also renowned for his bibliography of ecclesiastical writers, chronicled in his work De viris illustribus.

    Jerome's masterful translation of the Latin Vulgate, passed down by the monks and Fathers of the Church served as the Word in all of Christendom until the Faith was fractured with the Protestant Revolution in the 16th century. That same century saw the Counter-Reformation and the Council of Trent which made the Latin Vulgate the official Bible of Holy Mother Church. This stood for nearly 500 years until 1979 when that, too, was shelved by the newChurch in the takeover and auto-demolition of all that was held sacred and holy for so many centuries with the "New Vulgate" - the translation of which is more vulgar than Vulgate.

    It’s interesting to note that during this period in history when Jerome translated the bible into Latin, Ufila, the Bishop of the Western Goths, was doing the same into Gothic, but it was the Latin version that would last the test of time and become the standard for all of Christendom until man decided he knew the Word better than those inspired by the Holy Ghost. Thanks to God's Providence we have the essence of what the Advocate truly handed down and infused in this exceptional priest and outstanding Doctor of the Church - St. Jerome.

We want to thank the Friends of Our Lady of Fatima for expediting these resources of the Propers. Sources: Saint Andrew Daily Missal and the Marian Missal , 1945

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Da pacem
INTROIT:   Eccles. 38: 18

Da pacem, Dómine, sustinéntibus te, ut prophétæ tui fideles inveniéntur exáudi preces servi tui et plebis tuæ Israël. - (Ps. 121: 1) Lætátus sum in his, quæ dicta sunt mihi: in domum Dómini ibimus. v. Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio et nunc et semper et in saecula saeculorum. Amen. Repeat Da pacem...		Give peace, O Lord, to them that patiently wait for Thee, that Thy prophets may be found faithful: hear the prayers of Thy servant, and of Thy people Israel. (Ps. 121: 1) I rejoiced at the things that were said to me: we shall go into the house of the Lord. v. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Repeat Give peace, O Lord...

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COLLECT

Dominus vobiscum. R. Et cum spiritu tuo. Oremus. Dírigat corda nostra, quæsumus Dómine, tuæ miseratiónis operátio: quia tibi sine te placére non póssumus. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Collect for St. Jerome Orémus. Deus, qui Ecclésiæ tuæ in exponéndis sacris Scriptúris beátum Hierónymum Confessórem tuum, Doctórem máximum providére dignátus es: præsta, quæsumus; ut, ejus suffragántibus méritis, quod ore simul et ópere dócuit, te adjuvánte exercére valeámus. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum, Filium Tuum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Collect for the Intercession of the Saints Orémus. A cunctis nos quæsumus Dómine mentis et córporis defénde perículis: et intercedénte beáta et gloriósa semper Vírgine Dei Genitrice María, cum beáto Joseph, beátis Apóstolis tuis Petro et Paulo, et ómnibus Sanctis, salútem nobis tríbue benígnus et pacem; ut destrúctis adversitátibus et erróribus univérsis, Ecclésia tua secúra tibi sérviat libertáte. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Collect for God's Holy Church Orémus. Ecclésiæ tuæ, quæ-sumus, Dómine, preces placátus admítte: ut, destrúctis adversitát-ibus et erróribus univérsis, secura tibi sérviat libertáte. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen.		The Lord be with you. R. And with thy spirit. Let us pray. Let the exercise of Thy compassion, we beseech Thee, O Lord, direct out hearts: for without Thee we are not able to please Thee. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, Forever and ever. R.Amen. Collect for Saint Jerome Let us pray. O God, Who didst vouchsafe to provide for Thy Church blessed Jerome, Thy confessor, a great Doctor for the expounding of the Sacred Scriptures, grant, we beseech Thee, that through his merits we may be enabled, by Thine assistance, to practise what both by word and deed he hath taught us. Through the same Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God Forever and ever. R.Amen. Collect for the Intercession of the Saints Let us pray. Defend us, we beseech Thee, O Lord, from all dangers of mind and body: and through the intercession of the blessed and glorious Mary, ever Virgin, mother of God, of St Joseph, of Thy holy apostles, Peter and Paul, and of all the saints, in Thy loving-kindness grant us safety and peace; that, all adversities and errors being overcome, Thy Church may serve Thee in security and freedom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, Forever and ever. R.Amen. Collect for God's Holy Church Let us pray. Graciously hear, O Lord, the prayers of Thy Church that, having overcome all adversity and every error, she may serve Thee in security and freedom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, Forever and ever. R.Amen.

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EPISTLE:   Corinthians 1: 4-8

Léctio Epístolæ beáti Pauli Apóstolii ad Corínthios. Fratres, Grátias ago Deo meo semper pro vobis in grátia Dei, quæ data est vobis in Christo Jesu: quod in ómnibus dívites facti estis in illo, in omni verbo, et in omni sciéntia: sicut testimónium Christi confirmátum est in vobis: ita ut nihil vobis desit in ulla grátia, exspectántibus revelatiónem Dómini nostri Jesu Christi, qui et confirmábit vos usque in finem sine crímine, in die advéntus Dómini nostri Jesu Christi. Deo Gratias.		Lesson from the Epistle of Blessed Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians. Brethren, I give thanks to my God always for you, for the grace of God that is given you in Jesus Christ, that in all things you are made rich in Him in all utterance and in all knowledge, as the testimony of Christ was confirmed to you so that nothing is wanting to you in my grace, waiting for the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who will also confirm you into the end without crime, in the day of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thanks be to God.

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GRADUAL:  Psalm 122: 1,7

Lætátus sum in his, quæ dicta sunt mihi: in domum Dómini ibimus. V. Fiat pax in virtúte tua et abundántia in túrrìbus tuis. Allelúja, allielúja. V. (Ps. 101: 16) Timébunt gentes nomen tuum, Dómine: et omnes rwges terræ glórìam tuam. Allelúja.		I rejoiced at the things that were said to me: We shall go into the house of the Lord V. Let peace be in thy strength, and abundance in the towers. Alleluia, alleluia. V. (Ps. 101: 16) The Gentiles shall fear Thy Name, O Lord: and all the kings of the earth Thy glory. Alleluia.

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GOSPEL:    Matthew 9: 1-8

Dominus vobiscum. R. Et cum spiritu tuo. Sequentia sancti Evangelii secundum Matthaeum. R.Gloria tibi, Domine In illo témpore: Ascendens Jesus in navículam, transfretávit, et venit in civitátem suam. Et ecce offerébant ei paralyticum jacéntem in lecto. Et videns Jesus fidem iliórum, dixit paralytico: "Confíde, fíli, remittúntur tibi peccáta tua." Et ecce quidam de scribis dixérunt intra se: Hic blasphémat. Et cum vidísset Jesus cogitatiónes eórum, dixit: "Ut quid cogitátis mala in córdibus vestris? Quid est facílius dícere: Dimittúntur tibi peccáta tua: an dícere: Surge et ámbula? Ut autem sciátis, quia Fílius hóminis habet potestátem in terra dimitténdi peccáta," tunc ait paralytico: "Surge, tolle lectum tuum, et vade in domum suam." Et surréxit, et ábiit in domum suam. Vidéntes autem turbæ timuérunt, at glorificavérunt Deum, qui dedit potestátem talem homínibus. Laus tibi Christe.		The Lord be with you. R. And with thy spirit. The continuation of the holy Gospel according to Luke. R. Glory to Thee, O Lord At that time, Jesus entering into a boat, passed over the water and came into His own city. And behold they brought Him one sick of the palsy lying on a bed and Jesus seeing their faith, said to the sick man of the palsy: "Be of good heart, son, thy sins are forgiven thee." And behold some of the Scribes said within themselves: He blasphemeth. And Jesus seeing their thoughts, said: "Why do you think evil in your hearts? whether is it easier to say: Thy sins are forgiven thee or to say: Arise and walk? But that you may know that the Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins" (then said He to the man sick of the palsy): "Arise, take up thy bed, and go into thy house." And he rose, and went into his house. And the multitude seeing it, feared, and glorified God, who had given such power to men. Praise be to Christ


Go to Father Louis Campbell's Sermon for the Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost
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OFFERTORY:   Exodus 24: 4,5

Dominus vobiscum. R. Et cum spiritu tuo. Sanctificábit Moyses altáre Dómino ófferens super illud holocáusta, et immolans víctimas: fecit sacrifícium vespertínum in odórem suavitátis Dómino Deo, in conspéctu filiórum Israël.		The Lord be with you. R. And with thy spirit. Moses consecrated an altar to the Lord, offering upon it holocausts, and sacrificing victims: he made an evening sacrifice to the Lord God for an odor of sweetness, in the sight of the children of Israel .

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SECRET

Deus, qui nos per hujus sacríficii veneránda commércia, unius summæ divinitátis partícipes éfficis: præsta quæsumus; ut, sicut tuam cognóscimus veritátem, sic eam dignis móribus assequámur. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum, Filium Tuum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Secret for St. Jerome Donis coeléstibus da nobis, quæsumus, Dómine, libera tibi mente servíre ut múnera quæ deférimus, interveniénte beáto Hierónymo Confessóre tuo, et medélam nobis operéntur, et glóriam. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Secret for the Intercession of Saints Oremus. Exaudi nos Deus salutáris noster: ut per hujus sacraménti virtútem, a cunctis nos mentis et córporis hóstibus tueáris, grátiam tríbuens in præsénti, et glóriam in futuro. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Secret for God's Holy Church Oremus. Prótege nos, Dómine, tuis mystériis serviéntes: ut divínis rebus inhæréntes, et córpore tibi famulémur et mente. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen.		O God, Who, by Thy venerable intercourse with us in this Sacrifice, dost make us partakers of the one Supreme Godhead: grant, we beseech Thee, that as we know Thy truth, so we may follow it by worthy lives. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God Forever and ever. R.Amen. Secret for St. Jerome By Thy heavenly gifts, O Lord, grant us, we pray, to serve Thee with untrammeled minds, that the offerings we bring may, by the intercession of blessed Jerome, Thy confessor, effect our healing and our glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ Thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God Forever and ever. R.Amen. Secret for the Intercession of the Saints Graciously hear us, O God our Saviour, and, by virtue of this Sacrament, defend us from all enemies of soul and body, bestowing upon us Thy grace here and Thy glory hereafter. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, Forever and ever. R.Amen. Secret for God's Holy Church Protect us, O Lord, who assist at Thy mysteries, that, cleaving to things divine, we may serve Thee both in body and in mind. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, Forever and ever. R.Amen.

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PREFACE   of the Most Holy Trinity

Dominus vobiscum. R. Et cum spiritu tuo. Sursum corda. R.Habemus ad Dominum. Gratias agamus Domino Deo nostro. R. Dignum et justum est. Vere dignum et justum est, aequum et salutare, nos tibi semper, et ubique gratias agere: Domine sancta, Pater omnipotens, aeterne Deus. Qui cum unigenito Filio: tuo et Spiritu Sancto, unus es Deus, unus es Dominus: non in uninus singularitate personae, sed in unius Trinitae substantiae. Quo denim de tua Gloria, revelante te, credimus, hoc de Filio tuo, hod de Spiritu Sancto, sine differentia discretionis sentimus. Ut in confessione verare, sempitiernaeque Deitatis, et in personis proprietas, et in essential unitas, et in majestate adoretur aequalitas. Quam laudant Angeli atque Archangeli, Cherubim, quoque ac Seraphim: qui non cessant clamare quotodie, una voce dicentes: SANCTUS, SANCTUS, SANCTUS...		The Lord be with you. R. And with thy spirit. Lift up your hearts. R.We have lifted them up to the Lord. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. R. It is meet and just. It is truly meet and just, right and for our salvation, that we should at all times and in all places, give thanks unto Thee, O holy Lord, Father almighty, ever-lasting God: Who, together with Thine only-begotten Son, and the Holy Ghost, are one God, one Lord: not in the oneness of a single Person, but in the Trinity of one substance. For what we believe by Thy revelation of Thy glory, the same do we believe of Thy Son, the same of the Holy Ghost, without difference or separation. So that in confessing the true and everlasting Godhead, distinction in persons, unity in essence, and equality in majesty may be adored. Which the Angels and Archangels, the Cherubim also and Seraphim do praise: who cease not daily to cry out with one voice saying: HOLY, HOLY, HOLY...


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COMMUNION:    Psalm 95: 8,9

Tóllite hóstias, et introíte in átria ejus: adoráte Dóminum in aula sancta ejus.		Bring up sacrifices, and come into His courts: adore ye the Lord in His holy court.

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POSTCOMMUNION

Dominus vobiscum. R. Et cum spiritu tuo. Oremus. Grátias tibi reférimus, Dómine, sacro múnere vegetáti, tuam misericórdiam deprecántes: ut dignos nos ejus participatióne perfícias. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Postcommunion for St. Jerome Orémus. Repléti alimónia coelésti, quæsumus, Dómine: ut,interveniénte beáto Hierónymo Confessóre tuo, misericórdiæ tuæ grátiam cónsequi mereámur. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum, Filium Tuum, Qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus, Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Postcommunion for the Intercession of Saints Orémus. Mundet et múniat nos quáesumus Dómine dívini sacraménti munus oblátum: et intercedénte beáta Vírgine Dei Genitríce María, cum beáto Joseph, beátis Apóstolis tuis Petro et Paulo, et ómnibus Sanctis; a cunctis nos reddat et pervérsitátibus expiátos, et advérsitátibus expedítos. Per eúmdem Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fiiium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spíritus Sancti, Deus. Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen. Postcommunion for God's Holy Church Orémus. Quæsumus, Dómine Deus noster, ut quos divína tribuis participatióne gaudére, humánis non sinas subjacére perículis. Per Dóminum nostrum Jesum Christum Fiiium tuum: Qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spíritus Sancti, Deus. Per omnia saecula saeculorum. R. Amen.		The Lord be with you. R. And with thy spirit. Let us pray. We who are fed with Thy holy Gift, O Lord, do offer our thanks unto Thee: beseeching Thy mercy that Thou mayest make us worthy to share in it. Through the same Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God For ever and ever. R. Amen. Postcommunion for St. Jerome Let us pray. Filled with Heavenly nourishment, we pray Thee, O Lord, that by the intercession of blessed Jerome, Thy confessor, we may be found worthy to obtain the favor of Thy mercy. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God For ever and ever. R. Amen. Postcommunion for the Intercession of the Saints Let us pray. May the gift of this Divine Sacrament which we have offered, cleanse us and defend us, we beseech Thee, O Lord; and through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of God, of St. Joseph, of Thy holy apostles Peter and Paul, and of all the saints, free us from all iniquity and deliver us from all adversity. Through the Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God Forever and ever. R. Amen. Postcommunion for God's Holy Church Let us pray. O Lord our God, we pray Thee that Thou suffer not to succumb to human hazards those whom Thou hast been pleased to make sharers of divine mysteries. Through the Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God Forever and ever. R. Amen.

Return to the ORDINARY OF THE HOLY MASS FOR THE FINAL BLESSING

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