PODCAzT 03: Pope Leo the Great on the transfiguration, the moon, etc.

It’s the 4th of March, the 2nd Sunday of Lent and the Roman Station today is at Santa Maria in Domnica.    Welcome back to another Podcast from Fr. Z.  See below.

You might be interested in a couple of the texts from the Podcast.

There is a great song everyone should be able to sing along with.

Roma nun fà la stupida stasera
damme ‘na mano a faje di de si

Sceji tutte le stelle
più brillarelle che poi
e un friccico de luna tutta pe’ noi

Faje sentì ch’è quasi primavera
manna li mejo grilli pe’ fa cri cri

Prestame er ponentino
più malandrino che ciai

Roma nun fa la stupida stasera
ROMA nun fa la stupida stasera

Damme ‘na mano a faje di de si

Sceji tutte le stelle
più brillarelle che poi
e un friccico de luna tutta pe’ noi

Faje sentì ch’è quasi primavera
manna li mejo grilli pe’ fa cri cri

Prestame er ponentino
più malandrino che ciai

Roma reggeme er moccolo stasera.

Then we have a Latin reading of the second of today’s selections of the Officium lectionum.  It is from a sermon by Saint Leo the Great, pope and is magnificent.  Here are the English and Latin texts.

The Lord reveals his glory in the presence of chosen witnesses. His body is like that of the rest of mankind, but he makes it shine with such splendour that his face becomes like the sun in glory, and his garments as white as snow.
The great reason for this transfiguration was to remove the scandal of the cross from the hearts of his disciples, and to prevent the humiliation of his voluntary suffering from disturbing the faith of those who had witnessed the surpassing glory that lay concealed.
With no less forethought he was also providing a firm foundation for the hope of holy Church. The whole body of Christ was to understand the kind of transformation that it would receive as his gift. the members of that body were to look forward to a share in that glory which first blazed out in Christ their head.
The Lord had himself spoken of this when he foretold the splendour of his coming: Then the just will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Saint Paul the apostle bore witness to this same truth when he said: I consider that the sufferings of the present time are not to be compared to the future glory that is to be revealed in us. In another place he says: You are dead, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, your life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.
This marvel of the transfiguration contains another lesson for the apostles, to strengthen them and lead them into the fullness of knowledge. Moses and Elijah, the law and the prophets, appeared with the Lord in conversation with him. This was in order to fulfil exactly, through the presence of these five men, the text which says: Before two or three witnesses every word is ratified. What word could be more firmly established, more securely based, than the word which is proclaimed by the trumpets of both old and new testaments, sounding in harmony, and by the utterances of ancient prophecy and the teaching of the Gospel, in full agreement with each other?
The writings of the two testaments support each other. The radiance of the transfiguration reveals clearly and unmistakably the one who had been promised by signs foretelling him under the veils of mystery. As Saint John says: The law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. In him the promise made through the shadows of prophecy stands revealed, along with the full meaning of the precepts of the law. He is the one who teaches the truth of the prophecy through his presence, and makes obedience to the commandments possible through grace.
In the preaching of the holy Gospel all should receive a strengthening of their faith. No one should be ashamed of the cross of Christ, through which the world has been redeemed.
No one should fear to suffer for the sake of justice; no one should lose confidence in the reward that has been promised. The way to rest is through toil, the way to life is through death. Christ has taken on himself the whole weakness of our lowly human nature. If then we are steadfast in our faith in him and in our love for him, we win the victory that he has won, we receive what he has promised.
When it comes to obeying the commandments or enduring adversity, the words uttered by the Father should always echo in our ears: This is my Son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased; listen to him.

And even more importantly,

Aperit Dominus coram electis testibus gloriam suam, et communem illam cum ceteris corporis formam tanto splendore clarificat, ut et facies eius solis fulgori similis, et vestitus candori nivium esset aequalis.

In qua transfiguratione illud quidem principaliter agebatur, ut de cordibus discipulorum crucis scandalum tolleretur; nec conturbaret eorum fidem voluntariae humilitas passionis, quibus revelata esset absconditae excellentia dignitatis.

Sed non minore providentia spes sanctae Ecclesiae fundabatur, ut totum corpus Christi agnosceret quali esset commutatione donandum, et eius sibi honoris consortium membra promitterent, qui in capite praefulsisset.

De quo idem Dominus dixerat, cum de adventus sui maiestate loqueretur: Tunc iusti fulgebunt sicut sol in regno Patris sui; protestante hoc ipsum beato Paulo apostolo et dicente: Existimo enim quod non sunt condignae passiones huius temporis ad futuram glotriam, quae revelabitur in nobis; et iterum: Mortui enim estis, et vita vestra abscondita est cum Christo in Deo. Cum enim Christus apparuerit vita vestra, tunc et vos apparebitis cum ipso in gloria.

Confirmandis vero apostolis et ad omnem scientiam provehendis, alia quoque in illo miraculo accessit instructio. Moyses enim et Elias, lex scilicet et prophetae, apparuerunt cum Domino loquentes, ut verissime in illa quinque virorum praesentia compleretur quod dictum est: In duobus vel tribus testibus stat omne verbum. Quid hoc stabilius, quid firmius verbo, in cuius praedicatione veteris et novi testamenti concinit tuba et, cum evangelica doctrina, antiquarum protestationum instrumenta concurrunt?

Astipulantur enim sibi invicem utriusque foederis paginae; et, quem sub velamine mysteriorum praecedentia signa promiserant, manifestum atque perspicuum praesentis gloriae splendor ostendit; quia, sicut ait beatus Ioannes, lex per Moysen data est, gratia autem et veritas per Iesum Christum facta est; in quo et propheticarum promissio impleta est figurarum, et legalium ratio praeceptorum, dum et veram docet prophetiam per sui praesentiam, et possibilia facit mandata per gratiam.

Confirmetur ergo secundum praedicationem sacratissimi Evangelii omnium fides, et nemo de Christi cruce, per quam mundus redemptus est, erubescat.

Nec ideo quisquam aut pati pro iustitia timeat, aut de promissorum retributione diffidat, quia per laborem ad requiem, et per mortem transitur ad vitam; cum omnem humilitatis nostrae infirmitatem ille susceperit, in quo si in confessione et in dilectione ipsius permaneamus, et quod vicit vincimus, et quod promisit accipimus.

Quia sive ad facienda mandata, sive ad toleranda adversa, praemissa Patris vox debet semper auribus nostris insonare, dicentis: Hic est Filius meus dilectus, in quo mihi bene complacui: ipsum audite.

And this should be helpful:

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

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17 Comments

  1. Andrew says:

    Let’s hope that this coming Roman night will be quiet and it will be silent all around as the moonlight spills on the floor as frost on the ground.

  2. PMcGrath says:

    Father: Excellent podcast. One technical note: The download version played just fine, but the “play now” and “popup” versions played super fast — at least on my computer. Think “Alvin and the Chipmunks” as Bob Dylan.

  3. PMGrath: Okay: I read about that Chipmunk playback thing somewhere. I know there is a way to fix it. However… I simply lack time. I wish I had someone I could trust who could do some tutoring and work on the back end of these technical things. My learning curve is pretty good (I built this whole thing myself) but I have to really puzzle these things out.

  4. Anon. says:

    Simplified characters?
    You should know better…

  5. dad29 says:

    The Transfiguration also utilizes the Light/Dark apposition…

  6. Father Z.,

    That song has to be in dialect, right? Is it Romanesco?
    I know a bit of Veronese, but it isn’t a northern dialect,
    is it? It certainly don’t seem to be.

    Or is there just a lot of slang that my years in Italy
    failed to master?

  7. Anon. While I REALLY don’t like totally impersonal, anonymous comments, you are right. I replaced the simplified characters with the traditional text.

  8. Fr. Augustine: This is the Roman dialect. It is very distinctive and once you get it in your ear, you never forget it.

  9. Fabrizio says:

    “It is very distinctive and once you get it in your ear, you never forget it.”

    Ce poi ggiura’ !!!

    scastagnamo ar parla’, ma aramo dritto! (G. G. Belli, trying to render Martial’s “lasciva est nobis pagina, vita proba” the way an old “trasteverino” would have)

    ;-)

  10. Fabrizio: I should have you record again the Internet Prayer in the Roman version. I can’t find it on my computer. We could feature you reading Church documents in Romanaccio, as a matter of fact.

  11. RBrown says:

    Fr. Augustine: This is the Roman dialect. It is very distinctive and once you get it in your ear, you never forget it.

    Parliamo il vero Italiano noi Fiorentini.

  12. Ma i senesi lo parlano meglio.

  13. Fabrizio says:

    RBrown: “Parliamo il vero Italiano noi Fiorentini.”

    true, iuxta modum. OTOH, 60 million people can’t be all just as cool as good old romanacci

    > VBG

  14. Antonius says:

    Nice podcast, but what’s with that initial music, Father? (*crossing myself*)
    I never knew oily old man’s rock was your bag also.

  15. Antonius: If you don’t like it, don’t listen.

  16. Antonius says:

    Wasn’t meant as a personal insult, Father. And yes, I used the possibility to just skip the introduction.

  17. Fr. Z –

    Thanks for the Chinese. It’s been a while since I heard that poem by Li Bai.

    xie xie ni, shen fu!

    Peace in Christ!

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