Feast of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, Seminarian and Patron Saint of Youth; Commemoration Dominica IV Post Pentecost: Missa “Minuísti eum“
Saint Aloysius Gonzaga was like a white and fragrant lily in his virgin purity, transplanted by God from the luxurious and sensual Court of Madrid to the chosen garden of St. Ignatius Loyola at Rome. The whole life of Aloysius breathes forth sanctity and purity; his Baptism, which was administered at the very moment of his birth, his First Communion at the hands of St. Charles Borromeo; his reception into the Society of Jesus by Claudio Acquaviva, the spiritual direction given to him at the Collegio Romano by St. Robert Bellarmine; his severe penances, and, lastly, his holy death as a victim of charity in the service of the plague-stricken sufferers in the Hospital of the Consolazione at Rome. He died on the octave-day of Corpus Christi, 1591, at the age of twenty-three years. Pope Benedict XIII declared him the patron of young people.
INTROIT Psalm 8:6
Thou hast made him a little less than the angels; Thou hast crowned him with glory and honor. (Ps. 148, 2). Praise ye the Lord, all His angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts. 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 Thou hast made him…
COLLECT
O God, bestower of heavenly gifts, Who in the angelic youth Aloysius joined wondrous innocence of life to an equally wondrous love of penance; grant, by his merits and prayers, that we who have not followed him in his innocence may imitate him in his penance. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. R. Amen.
Commemoration Dominica IV Post Pentecosten
Grant us, we beseech You, O Lord, that the course of the world may be directed according to Your rule in peace and that Your Church may have the joy of serving You undisturbed. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. R. Amen.
LESSON Ecclesiasticus 31: 8-11
Lesson from the Book of Wisdom. Blessed is the man found without blemish, and that hath not gone after gold, nor put his trust in money nor in treasures. Who is he, and we will praise him? For he hath done wonderful things in his life. Who hath been tried thereby, and made perfect, he shall have glory everlasting: he that could have transgressed and hath not transgressed, and could do evil things, and hath not done them: therefore are his goods established in the Lord.
GRADUAL/ ALLELUIA Psalm 70: 5, 6
My hope, O Lord, from my youth: by Thee have I been confirmed from the womb; from my mother’s womb Thou art my protector. V. (Ps. 40: 13) But Thou hast upheld me by reason of my innocence, and hast established me in Thy sight forever. Alleluia, Alleluia. V. (Ps. 64, 5) Blessed is he whom Thou hast chosen, and taken to Thee: he shall dwell in Thy courts. Alleluia.
GOSPEL St. Matthew 22: 29-40
At that time, Jesus answering, said to the Sadducees: “You err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they shall neither marry nor be married: but shall be as angels of God in heaven. And concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read that which was spoken by God, saying to you: I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” And the multitudes hearing it were in admiration of His doctrine. But the Pharisees, hearing that He had silenced the Sadducees, came together: and one of them, a doctor of the law, asked Him, tempting Him: Master, which is the great commandment of the law? Jesus said to him:”Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. And the second is like to this: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Of these two commandments dependeth the whole law and the prophets.”
OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Leviticus 21: 6
The priests of the Lord offer incense and loaves to God, and therefore they shall be holy to their God, and shall not defile His Name. Alleluia.
SECRET
Make us take our place, O Lord, at Your heavenly banquet clothed in the wedding-garment which the loving preparation and constant tears of blessed Aloysius adorned with precious pearls. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. R. Amen.
Commemoration Dominica IV Post Pentecosten
Be appeased, we beseech You, O Lord, by accepting our offerings, and in Your kindness make even our rebellious wills turn to You. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. R. Amen.
PREFACE of the Holy Trinity
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, everlasting God; Who, together with Thine only-begotten Son, and the Holy Ghost, art 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:
COMMUNION ANTIPHON Psalm 77: 24, 25
He gave them the bread of Heaven: man ate the bread of angels.
POSTCOMMUNION
Grant, O Lord, that we who have been fed with the food of angels may angelic lives, and, following the example of him whom we honor today, may we spend our days in unceasing thanksgiving. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. R. Amen.
Commemoration Dominica IV Post Pentecosten
May the sacrament we have received cleanse us, we beseech You, O Lord, and by its grace protect us. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. R. Amen.
PROPER LAST GOSPEL Commemoration Dominica IV Post Pentecosten
Luke 5:1-11
At that time, while the crowds were pressing upon Jesus to hear the word of God, He was standing by Lake Genesareth. And He saw two boats moored by the lake, but the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. And getting into one of the boats, the one that was Simon’s, He asked him to put out a little from the land. And sitting down, He began to teach the crowds from the boat. But when He had ceased speaking, He said to Simon, Put out into the deep, and lower your nets for a catch. And Simon answered and said to Him, Master, the whole night through we have toiled and have taken nothing; but at Your word I will lower the net. And when they had done so, they enclosed a great number of fishes, but their net was breaking. And they beckoned to their comrades in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord. For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish they had made; and so were also James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, Do not be afraid; henceforth you shall catch men. And when they had brought their boats to land, they left all and followed Him.
R. Thanks be to God.