‘… I rose up and am still with you.’
‘… Wounded for Our Iniquities …’
‘… he was wounded for our iniquities, he was bruised for our sins….‘
Annuntiatio Domini

Cell 3 of the Convent of San Marco
by Blessed John of Fiesole, OP (Fra Angelico), 15th Century
From the Office of Readings in today’s Liturgy of the Hours, an excerpt from a letter by Pope St Leo the Great:
To pay the debt of our sinful state, a nature that was incapable of suffering was joined to one that could suffer. Thus, in keeping with the healing that we needed, one and the same mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ, was able to die in one nature, and unable to die in the other. [… ]
One and the same person – this must be said over and over again – is truly the Son of God and truly the son of man.
‘… called Emmanuel.’
‘Sign you ask none, but sign the Lord will give you. Maid shall be with child, and shall bear a son, that shall be called Emmanuel.‘
O Filii et Filiæ
Dignity, gravity, and meditative sobriety combine with Easter joy in this hymn, a favorite of mine. The verses on the doubting of Thomas are especially moving.
Alleluia! alleluia! alleluia!
O sons and daughters of the King,
Whom heav’nly hosts in glory sing,
Today the grave hath lost its sting!
Alleluia!
That Easter morn, at break of day,
The faithful women went their way
To seek the tomb where Jesus lay.
Alleluia!
An angel clad in white they see
Who sits and speaks unto the three,
“Your Lord will go to Galilee.”
Alleluia!
That night the Apostles met in fear;
Among them came their master dear
And said: “My peace be with you here.”
Alleluia!
When Thomas first the tidings heard
That they had seen the risen Lord,
He doubted the disciples’ word.
Alleluia!
“My piercèd side, O Thomas, see,
And look upon My hands, My feet;
Not faithless but believing be.”
Alleluia!
No longer Thomas then denied;
He saw the feet, the hands, the side;
“You are my Lord and God!” he cried.
Alleluia!
How blest are they that have not seen
And yet whose faith has constant been,
For they eternal life shall will.
Alleluia!
On this most holy day of days
Be laud and jubilee and praise:
To God your hearts and voices raise.
Alleluia!
Alleluia! alleluia! alleluia!
Sanctus Pater Noster Dominicus
Cell 7 of the Convent of San Marco
by Blessed John of Fiesole, OP (Fra Angelico), 15th Century
Today is the feast of Saint Dominic de Guzman, founder of the Order of Preachers.
As previously noted in Korrektiv, Holy Father Dominic practiced ‘nine ways of prayer’, based on distinct gestures or attitudes of the body. The Nashville Dominicans have a superb illustrated outline.
Blessed Fra Angelico‘s fresco of the mocking of Christ (above) depicts Dominic off to the side, reading — but, it’s safe to suppose from the context, not just reading: In his Eighth Way of Prayer, Saint Dominic integrated the acts of prayer and reading. Dominic’s reading-prayer did not consist only in his meditation on the text, but also in his reverent handling of the book as a physical object, and in his engagement with the Divine Author as a presence in the room. The Nashville Dominicans quote Fr Simon Tugwell, OP’s description of the Eighth Way: