Well, dear friends, it is the last day of the calendar year and we are still within the Octave of Christmas which means that we should still be celebrating as if it were Christmas Day! To that end, we wish to make you, our readers, aware of one of the great traditions of the Church and an opportunity to grow in the spiritual life through obtaining a partial or plenary indulgence on this last day of the year.
Make your way through the rain, snow, sleet or hail and recite the Te Deum in a church today. This ancient prayer was composed in the 4th century and is included in the office of readings on the great feast days and octaves of the Church’s liturgical year. Here is what the Church’s manual on indulgences says for today’s recitation:
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§ 1. A plenary indulgence is granted to the Christian faithful who, in a church or in an oratory, are present [take part] in a recitation or solemn chant of: …
2° the Te Deum hymn, on the last day of the year, in thanksgiving to God for the favors received in the course of the entire year.
Finally, this last day of the year and during this Christmastime, I make bold to ask you to support the Bellarmine Forum. Like most small operations, we can’t get by on subscriptions to our magazine alone. We depend on our donors and supporters. The Bellarmine Forum is a 501(c)(3) entity, which means your gifts are tax-deductible. Won’t you consider giving to the Bellarmine Forum in the hours that remain in 2013? If you like what you read here, and if you think it’s important to the Church and the wider culture to have confident, common sense, Catholic analysis by a group of lay men and women that have defended the Pope and the Church since 1965, then the Bellarmine Forum is the place for you! Click here and make your tax deductible donation today!
