Published by the Anglicanorum Coetibus Society concerning the POCSP ST. PETER’S RAMBLER Feast of the Epiphany Jan. 3, 2021 [Edition 2, Volume 5] SUNDAY HYMNS Epiphany Epiphany, or Three Kings Day, marks one of the great Feasts of the Our Lady of Walsingham Cathedral What Child is This? Church and highlights of the Christmas Season. We include here liturgi- W. Chatterton Dix (1837-1898) cal notes on the Feast of the Epiphany, events in the upcoming weeks What Star is This? (1736) around the Ordinariate, excerpts from TS Eliot and Lancelot Andrewes John Chandler (1806-1876) (with some nice Latin commentary on today’s gospel), and more. Happy St. Barnabas, Omaha Sunday! Earth Has Many a Noble City (4th C) Edward Caswall (1814-1878) Would you consider writing a Parish Profile? Is there a ministry, good Song of Thankfulness and Praise (1862) work, or event you’d like others to know about? Would you help ex- Christopher Wordsworth (1807-1885) cerpt passages? Email [email protected] to tell us Brightest and Best of the Stars of the Morning (1811) more. Thank you to all the contributors this week. Reginald Heber (1783-1826) The First Nowell (1833) The opinions expressed here by different authors are their own, and do not officially Anonymous represent the POCSP unless otherwise indicated. As with Gladness Men of Old W. Chatterton Dix (1837-1898) St. Mary the Virgin, Arlington LITURGICAL NOTES As with Gladness Men of Old This past week saw both the Feast of Mary Mother of W. Chatterton Dix (1837-1898) God, on Friday, and the Feast of the Epiphany, which for When Christ’s Appearing Was Made Known (5th C) the past few years has been transferred in the POCSP to John Mason Neale (1818-1866) the nearest Sunday. Deck Thyself (1649) At the Cathedral, The Vigil Mass on Dec. 31st has generally included a solemn Catherine Winkworth (1827-1878) Te Deum in thanksgivings for blessings of the past year (and very impressive Still, Still, Still (1963) thurible swinging). George K. Evans (1917-Present) Epiphany provided an opportunity for Epiphany chalk, blessed in the Mass Three Kings from Persian Land (1859) and distributed afterwards for use at home (OLSJ, Louisville, St. Aelred’s, Peter Cornelius (1824-1874) Athens, St. Alban’s Rochester, St. Thomas More’s, Toronto, St. Barnabas’, What Star is This? (1736) Omaha), and the proclamation of the Year’s feasts in the Sanctorale, a very old John Chandler (1806-1876) tradition going back to the early Church (at St. Thomas More’s, Scranton, St. Thomas More, Scranton OLSJ, Louisville, St. John the Baptist, Bridgeport, St. Alban’s Rochester, St. O Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness Barnabas’, Omaha). St. Mary the Virgin in Arlington also celebrated the feast John S. B. Monsell (1811-1875) with an Epiphany play, acted by the parish’s children, during Mass. Earth Has Many a Noble City (4th C) The Cathedral, which generally puts out Epiphany chalk to be picked up after Edward Caswall (1814-1878) Mass, also had at the beginning of Mass a station at the creche: Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning (1811) Jesu, sweetest Child, born in Bethlehem of the Virgin Mary, wrapped in swaddling-clothes, Reginald Heber (1783-1826) laid in the manger, heralded by angels, visited by shepherds, have mercy upon us. Have mercy As with Gladness Men of Old upon us, Child Jesus, have mercy upon us. W. Chatterton Dix (1837-1898) V. We have seen his star in the East. St. Alban’s, Rochester R. And are come with gifts to worship the Lord. We Three Kings of Orient Are (1857) Lord Jesus, our Master, go with us whilst we travel to the heavenly country; that, following John H. Hopkins (1820-1891) thy star, we may not wander in the darkness of this world’s light, whilst thou, who art our Song of Thankfulness and Praise (1862) Way, and Truth, and Life, dost shine within us to our journey’s end; who with the Father Christopher Wordsworth (1807-1885) and the Holy Ghost, livest and reignest God, now and for ever. Amen. Have a submission or an announcement? Want to help? Contact [email protected]. Enjoyed the paper? Please donate $2 or more to the Diocesan seminarian fund, at https://ordinariate.net/give-to-sff. Feel free to print out and distribute copies. Journey of the Magi Vidimus and Venimus ‘A cold coming we had of it Sermons of the Nativity, Dec. 25 1622 Just the worst time of the year It is not commended to stand ‘gazing up to heaven’ too long; not For a journey, and such a journey: on Christ Himself ascending, much less on His star. For they sat The ways deep and the weather sharp, not still gazing on the star. Their vidimus begat venimus; their seeing The very dead of winter.’ made them come, come a great journey. Venimus is soon said, but And the camels galled, sore-footed, refractory, a short word; but many a wide and weary step they made before Lying down in the melting snow. they could come to say venimus; lo, here ‘we are come;’ come, and There were times we regretted at our journey’s end. To look a little on it. In this their coming we The summer palaces on slopes, the terraces consider, 1. First, the distance of the place they came from. It was And the silken girls bringing sherbet. not hard by as the shepherds—but a step to Bethlehem over the Then the camel men cursing and grumbling fields; this was riding many a hundred miles, and cost them many And running away, and wanting their liquor and women, a day’s journey. 2. Secondly, we consider the way that they came, And the night-fires going out, and the lack of shelters, if it be pleasant, or plain and easy; for if it be, it is so much the And the cities hostile and the towns unfriendly better. 1. This was nothing pleasant, for through deserts, all the And the villages dirty and charging high prices: way waste and desolate. 2. Nor secondly, easy neither; for over the A hard time we had of it. rocks and crags of both Arabias, specially Petræa, their journey lay. At the end we preferred to travel all night 3. Yet if safe—but it was not, but exceeding dangerous, as lying Sleeping in snatches, through the midst of the ‘black tents of Kedar,’ a nation of thieves With the voices singing in our ears, saying and cut-throats; to pass over the hills of robbers, infamous then, That this was all folly. and infamous to this day. No passing without great troop or con- voy. 4. Last we consider the time of their coming, the season of Then at dawn we came down to a temperate valley, the year. It was no summer progress. A cold coming they had of it Wet, below the snow line, smelling of vegetation; at this time of the year, just the worst time of the year to take a With a running stream and a water-mill beating the darkness journey, and specially a long journey. The ways deep, the weather And three trees on the low sky, And an old white horse galloped away in the meadow. sharp, the days short, the sun farthest off, in solsitio brumali, ‘the Then we came to a tavern with vine-leaves over the lintel, very dead of winter.’ Venimus, ‘we are come,’ if that be one, ven- Six hands at an open door dicing for pieces of silver, imus, ‘we are now come,’ come at this time, that sure is another. And feet kicking the empty wine-skins. And these difficulties they overcame, of a wearisome, irksome, But there was no information, and so we continued troublesome, dangerous, unseasonable journey; and for all this And arrived at evening, not a moment too soon they came. And came it cheerfully and quickly, as appeareth by the Finding the place; it was (you may say) satisfactory. speed they made. It was but vidimus, venimus, with them; ‘they saw,’ All this was a long time ago, I remember and ‘they came;’ no sooner saw, but they set out presently. So as And I would do it again, but set down upon the first appearing of the star, as it might be last night, they This set down knew it was Balaam’s star; it called them away, they made ready This: were we led all that way for straight to begin their journey this morning. A sign they were Birth or Death? There was a Birth, certainly, highly conceited of His birth, believed some great matter of it, We had evidence and no doubt. I had seen birth and death, that they took all these pains, made all this haste that they might But had thought they were different; this Birth was be there to worship Him with all the possible speed they could. Hard and bitter agony for us, like Death, our death. Sorry for nothing so much as that they could not be there soon We returned to our places, these Kingdoms enough, with the very first, to do it even this day, the day of His But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation birth. All considered, there is more in venimus than shews at the With an alien people clutching their gods. first sight. It was not for nothing it was said in the first verse, ecce I should be glad of another death.